Naruto belongs to someone else! _ And I'd prefer it to stay that way. Though it's fun to make the characters your puppets, no? X3 Let's see what I can make them do in this chapter!
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Chapter 3 – Just Overreacting…
"It does feel rather nice to be back in school. Perhaps it is just the routine I missed… Then again, I do find it pleasant to get an education every once in a while," Itachi spoke to his otouto as they walked away from the school towards Itachi's car. After getting their schedules earlier, everyone had gone to their homerooms and listened to the school rules, drills, and regulations; all together, it was a pretty boring and typical first day back.
Though he had gotten his schedule at least three hours ago, Sasuke hadn't even glanced at it the whole time, nor had he looked up from the ground since he noticed Itachi walking towards him. He just couldn't bring himself to face him, not so soon after…
"I really wish Kisame would stop torturing freshman. In reality, I would not doubt it if he ended up killing one this year. There are only two of them…" Itachi frowned, losing himself momentarily in his distractive thoughts.
'He does trust you, you know.' Sasuke's own voice spoke up in his thoughts. He stopped walking forward, his eyes widening with fright and disbelief at what he had just heard.
'No… I-I…. Not…. Not…. Not you!' A chuckle sounded throughout his head, making him visibly shiver. The sound itself was so cold, so heartless it made his lungs fill with air that would compete with the coldness of winter. He could swear he even saw his own breath. He felt so cold, empty, afraid, and-
- "…and Hidan threatened to sacrifice three juniors to Jashin already. Sad part is I really would not be surprised if he followed through with those threats." Itachi shook his head, momentarily going through the scenario in his mind. "I am not sure if there is any help for that man."
'He'll be so disappointed. Do you think he would ever speak to you if he found out?'
'Stop it.' Sasuke shook slightly, trying vainly to calm himself down.
'I don't think he would even look at you.'
'I said stop it.'
"…that he was not there today. Then again, it is Sasori. It is just like him not to show up the first day." Itachi continued musing, not realizing that his otouto was no longer walking behind him.
'What would you ever do without your 'aniki', Sasuke? The last person in your family, turning their back on you.'
'Stop…'
'Then again, you turned your back on him first.'
'…onegai…'
Itachi stared at his otouto, frowning. 'He looks so distressed… School cannot be doing that to him already… can it? The last time he looked that upset was…' Itachi shook his head, clearing his thoughts to think. 'Now that I think about it, he has never looked that upset before… At least, not that I have ever seen…'
Not knowing what else to do, and realizing how silly Sasuke would look to anyone else, Itachi decided to halt Sasuke's depression before it got any worse. "Sasuke…?"
"What?" Sasuke looked up at Itachi, his face immediately changing from distressed to his normal monotonous self once more.
'First betrayal, then lies. What will you put him through next, Sasuke?'
Itachi stared at him for a little while longer, concentrating on Sasuke's eyes, fixating deep into them, reading everything he could out of them; black pits of emptiness and walls made of steel stared back at him, making it evident the younger wanted nothing to be revealed. Itachi shook his head, deciding to leave Sasuke's secrets to Sasuke; if they became a problem, he would tell his aniki, like he always had.
"Nothing, Sasuke. But… Perhaps you should start walking, instead of standing in the middle of the parking lot. It would be a real shame if you were run over our first day back, would it not?" Itachi began to walk again, once more heading towards his car. Sasuke sighed, following his aniki.
When they both reached the car, Itachi hesitated in unlocking it, staring at his otouto, contemplating whether it was wise to ignore how distressed he had looked earlier. 'Sasuke is not the type to worry others; whether it be from not liking them, or just because he would rather not bother them. Perhaps talking to him would do him some good…' Itachi frowned. 'Then again, it could also piss him off…'
Itachi shrugged, deciding the risk was worth it; you had to live with a little excitement every once in a while, right? "Hey, Sasuke?"
Sasuke looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "What is it, Itachi?" He forced his face to remain static, a task that he was finding to be more and more difficult each time it was performed – an odd fact, indeed, seeing as he used to effortlessly keep the same face on at all hours of the day. It seems times were beginning to change for him now. Nonetheless, he placed that shield on his face once more, determined not to let his nii-san get even a glimpse of the monster that lay behind those eyes.
Itachi stared across the car, more convinced than ever that his brother was alright. He sighed, shaking his head, smiling at his own silliness. 'This is Sasuke, you must remember that. He is not a child anymore. This is not the same otouto that used to curl up next to you in the middle of the night, cowering away from the darkness. He has changed, he is stronger now. He can take care of himself just fine. Stop worrying yourself over nothing.'
"You….were just a little…too silent. I was simply making sure you were okay." Itachi chuckled a little to himself, and then unlocked the car, opening his door and climbing in. Sasuke sent him the best glare he could manage at the time, realizing that it wasn't going to be that convincing. He sighed inwardly, and then followed his brother's example, almost thankful that Itachi fell for his lie.
Almost.
'So many lies, Sasuke. So many lies.'
Itachi sent a playful glare back at Sasuke, responding to Sasuke's half-glare. "Well, I am sorry I upset you, otouto."
Sasuke huffed, faking being agitated. "Don't call me that; I'm not a child." Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief, and felt worse than he ever had before. Itachi joking around like that proved that he utterly believed Sasuke with all of his being. He believed his lies, without a backwards glance at what was so obvious.
It seemed it should've been obvious, anyway. Itachi had always been the most observant person Sasuke knew, yet he noticed nothing out of place. Almost as if he couldn't tell…
'Or maybe….' Sasuke inhaled sharply, his eyes widening a fraction of an inch; fear crawled up his back, sending shivers all throughout his body. 'Maybe… he just doesn't care.' Sasuke closed his eyes, forcing that thought backwards. He couldn't believe that, he wouldn't! His nii-san was all that he had left in this world, all that he could consider actually important. If he didn't care about him…
"I am going to guess you had a normal day, since I know you would not answer if I asked," Itachi looked at his brother, expecting another glare. Instead, Sasuke simply sat there, his hair in his face. Itachi watched his brother intently, his face etched with worry; then he remembered he was driving, and focused his eyes back onto the road.
The elder brother was presently at a loss of what to say. He wasn't ever sure why his brother looked so sad, let alone what to do about it. The last time Sasuke had looked that sad was right after the –
Itachi shook his head, mentally correcting himself. He was simply overreacting; Sasuke was no doubt tired, maybe even close to dozing off. They had both gotten up that morning hours before they were used to waking; Itachi held back a yawn that proved his own point to himself. He glanced over to make sure, and breathed a sigh of relief. Sasuke was staring out the window, his monotonous self again, his eyes drooping a little from the lack of sleep.
'See, just overreacting.'
Itachi pulled the car into their driveway and got out, sighing happily at the sight of their beloved home. He walked up the small pathway towards the front porch, letting his hand trail on the wooden rail as he walked up the few steps leading the way to the door. Sasuke waited behind him silently as Itachi went through his keys to find the right one; this didn't take long, seeing as he only had three, but it seemed like a lifetime for the both of them. Itachi couldn't wait to simply lay on the sofa with light music in the background, reading a book; Sasuke couldn't wait to run to his room and hide his shame from his aniki. It took all of Sasuke's strength to remain 'normal' for the short seconds it took his nii-san to unlock their front door.
Finally, Itachi turned the handle to their front door, swinging it open. He smiled slightly as he turned on the light, taking off his shoes and heading towards the living room. "Well, I am certainly glad we do not have to go back tomorrow. I missed going, but it will be rather nice to sleep in, do you not agree?" Itachi turned to look at his otouto, only then realizing Sasuke was no longer in the same room. He heard a door close upstairs, indicating that Sasuke had already ventured up to his room. Itachi gazed up the stairs, once again feeling worry creep through his body, but sighed and shook his head clear once more.
'Just overreacting…'
