I confess I really love Itachi's time with Hotaka and his group, though I am doing my best to make the other men likeable - even if I may not flesh them out completely. I know people expect a LOAD of development, but since I really like these guys (minor as they are but still important), sometimes a good character does not need complexity like Itachi and his brother, Naruto and Sakura, and any of the others we know and love.

I had struggled with how to bring to life this festival that is happening. Actual Japanese festivals do last a good while, and this one has to have importance for a variety of reasons. These events are fun and opulent, and have various ceremonial practices. They're loud and breathtaking. (breathes harshly) And as for the name of this event, it was in thanks to a reliable translator as my Japanese is limited to none. :(

With that being said, let's enjoy the latest. :D

Chapter Seven

Brothers Reunite

A new Konoha.

A new era.

Smiles and laughter.

Shinobi mingling with the citizens like nothing life-threatening was coming their way.

Everything Itachi Uchiha witnessed around him was beyond his expectations. So much was so different but as he remembered at the same time. Everything did not have a single clan watching over one part, but everybody was brought together as one. Children were screaming and chasing after each other, couples locking in affectionate embraces, and elders happily chatting away as their last days or even months would be spent with long-fought harmony amongst the next generation.

Behind his bandage, despite his easy smile, Itachi felt his brows furrow. Would he encounter any sole surviving comrades? Was Kakashi still here? Danzo was dead, and the two counselors must be by now. That meant his secret must be safe, and he intended to never let anyone see his real face again or know his true identity. And knowing his brother, Sasuke would never let him within the village that caused him pain and led to his death.

Times are different.

So he still hoped, for his otouto.

He had been scouting out amongst the crowds, but he did not detect anyone who even remotely resembled his brother. Or was he hiding away from the crowd if they still looked upon him as the traitor? He would not begrudge Sasuke if that was the case, but it would also make it a bit difficult to begin the search. Unless he would have to do this at night with Shiranui beside him...

"This is by far very...charming and fascinating," Hotaka noted with a vivid smile. "Who'd have thought that the Shinobi world would expand to the outside world, connect with more people than they used to? Old days long gone..." He paused there and sighed with sentimentality. "There always comes a time where new things are brought in, leading to growth and prosperity. But change is a part of life," he said lightly, taking Itachi's hand into his and squeezing it gently, making him laugh.

"You're absolutely right..."

Suddenly, ahead, Itachi could have sworn he saw a flash of black. The person was male, no mistake made. Spiky hair once flared out like the rear end of a duck was now matted down on either side, accompanied by a woman with pink hair and wearing the...Uchiha crest on her back. Itachi swallowed, feeling his whole being stiffen. Kami...is this...?

But there was no time to speculate. This had to be it. This had to be the man he was looking for.

Sasuke.

I've found you, brother. Now all I need to do is find the time and means to follow you.

"I see him," he whispered to Hotaka, who looked at him with a soft "hm?" Smiling at him, Itachi repeated. "My brother is here. I am one step closer to finding him again."

"In that case, I eagerly await to see how this goes between you two. An older brother always looks out for the younger, even if they are forced apart by circumstance and fate - even if they are obstacles in the way." A tear slipped through the corner of Itachi's eye, soaking the edge of the gauze as his heart splintered in the middle, as they were words he once told young Sasuke so long ago...

~o~

"This is Ryuu Kaze. He is new to our group. He was blinded and lost during the war, survived all this time until I took him under my wing. He's a strong fellow. He was born here, but has no family left. He's with me now." Hotaka had said those words when they were examined by the Shinobi guarding the main gates. Though they were in times of peace, precautions were still necessary. Itachi smiled, keeping the pretense of being a blind young hermit, holding his cane once more in his lap. The wolves looked upon the strangers and sniffed at them but didn't attack as they posed no threat, but Amaterasu did growl a warning when they got too close to her pups.

Next stop: the Hokage's office. Itachi swallowed.

Naruto.

How has he changed - or naught?

Both Kichiro and Fumio were ecstatic to be in the presence of the Seventh Hokage. Isao was composed and prepared to represent every one of them. Hotaka, however, while he was also enthralled and ecstatic, supported his ailing brother who hardly displayed the physical symptoms of disease in his features. Tsuneo chided his elder for being too protective and would graciously accept what it would be. Just as I accepted my outcome... Itachi closed off the morbid memory and found himself in none other than Hokage Tower with his friends...

...and right in front of the man himself in full robes sans the hat. Naruto Uzumaki was as he remembered, though the wild shock of yellow hair had been trimmed down nearly to his head for a cleaner, slicker cut. His once wide blue eyes had become smaller with wisdom, and tired with his job that he'd spent a lifetime fighting for, to be recognized in the eyes of the people they both loved so much - but he continued to smile at new visitors allowed into his village and in his office.

"I welcome the lot of you into the Village Hidden in the Leaves," the Hokage spoke with a nod of the head. He was surrounded with piles of paperwork and...very fascinating technological devices Itachi was keen to learn about. Despite his low profile, he wished to study more about the new wonders of the Shinobi world. He would not take anything in like a fool or blindly accept with deaf ears.

Hotaka had said technology was becoming an ally - but there were those who thought it more reliable than what came from the heart and soul. That alone was enough for the Uchiha to decide he wouldn't dare to set his foot into that world without careful examination.

If all goes well, then I will forge my own path to live once more.

If it ends like last time, then at least I will have savored learning the changes.

"Lord Hokage, it's an honor to bring my group here in time for the Heiwa-sai," Isao stated as the representative, putting an arm around his son's shoulder. "And we bring the liveliest of music in these times -" A hearty chuckle cut him off as well as a wave of the hand - and it was then that Itachi noticed Naruto's right hand was bandaged. He was stunned by what he saw through, when he recognized elements of Wood Style...the First Hokage's cells regenerating...

Naruto had lost his arm at some point in battle and had been given a replacement with Hashirama Senju's power.

He had control of the Nine-Tails, and now he had an element of the God of all Shinobi in himself.

He smiled. So, the young man had indeed become more powerful than before. He'd been placed on the right path, did not become egotistical and power-hungry like Madara - he followed through on his promise to Itachi during the war. Look at the village and the happiness under his care. The Five Allied Nations were still together, there was little threat...but a month ago, there had been the return of the enemy Snow. There had been no more word on them, but what if they were laying low...?

I'm no longer a Shinobi, officially. I am remembered as a traitor and murderer, but I still died for what I believed in. Yet I deserve to know what is going on.

But now he was listening to more about this festival which was known as the "Peace Festival". He couldn't help but snort with laughter. It was not a celebration which he was familiar with; it must be new, or had been brought to fruition after the Fourth Great War ended. If it had been because of the day the war was won, then this was a good cause to remember a great victory.

Little did he know he was half-wrong.

"Gentlemen, you are free to stay here for the majority of the festival," Naruto said at last. "And we could use a seasonal traveling music group. I admit technological recordings aren't always enough. People need more guts like the good old days."

Hotaka chortled. "Right you are, sir. Although, someday we will just be old relics of no value," he said sadly with a single bow of the head before he lightened up. "But there is no sense dwelling on the uncertainty of the future. Just live in the moment for as often as you can."

Naruto's smile was now distant, reaching his eyes. "I wish it were so," he said softly. "You all may take your leave and be prepared for tomorrow. This is going to mark as the seventh-year anniversary of the Heiwa-sai." So, the celebration was founded a year AFTER the war...how interesting...

But why on my birthday? Did Sasuke tell him?

Now that he began to think of it, his suspicions were on the rise.

"Kaze-san?"

His "name" was spoken, and it was then he realized that Naruto was speaking to him. The rest of his group was nowhere in sight, save for Hotaka. How had he'd gotten lost in his own thoughts like this? But there had been a few rare times this happened, accidental or on purpose. The look the young Hokage gave him was knowing and emotionless at the same time. Itachi felt the creep up his spine as though he were a child about to be berated. It was a feeling he knew all too well.

"I wanted to have a word with you," Naruto answered, "and your friend here was just going to wait outside. The others have gone out to check into the new inn we have built."

He swallowed a lump, worried for the wolves but tried not to think about it since they were quite capable of taking care of themselves, long before he was rescued by Shiranui. "I'll be outside," Hotaka assured him, placing a hand on his shoulder and squeezing it gently. He then turned to disappear out the office door, closing it behind him.

Leaving Itachi with the man himself.

"What do you wish to know from me, Lord Seventh?" he asked carefully, smiling easily...and then the smile slipped when he was answered. Calmly, welcoming, but shocked and controlling it well.

"I want to know how you are alive again...Itachi."

~o~

Blue eyes locked with bandaged ones...and now it was clear the disguise was no longer necessary as it was only the two of them. With the gauze off his eyes, relief washed over his body now that he made direct contact with the young man he knew was the one to save his brother from darkness and bring balance to the world.

"So, you figured me out the moment I set foot within these walls."

"No...your brother did."

Itachi narrowed his eyes. Sasuke..how did he see me? He should have known his younger brother would catch on, but how did he when they never made direct eye contact with each other, and his brother didn't have sensory technique? "Sasuke never saw me arrive," he told the blond whose smile returned to his whiskered face.

Naruto leaned back in his chair, relaxing but sitting straight. "He didn't, at first," he answered, "but his daughter saw you and your group pass by, and she pointed you out. Then his wife sensed your chakra level, and he saw through you using his Sharingan. He came to me right away, and I had to see for myself..."

Sasuke saw me. He recognized me without even approaching me.

He married a sensory kunoichi. I need to know more about her. And the newfound revelation of the child's gender made him smile. His little brother had a daughter, but how old was she now and what was her name?

"I assume he has been saved," Itachi spoke, deep in thought, looking down at the ground. "I have seen him upon arrival. I see he is happy."

"Yeah, though he is hardly home with his family, still protecting from the shadows - but he's accepted his life now. Some believe he isn't forgiven or welcomed back, and I am trying to prove them wrong." The Hokage sighed and looked off to the side. "It took a beating or two to bring him to his sense, but I managed like I promised you."

Itachi nodded. He found it within himself to take a couple steps forward and stop two feet away from the desk. "I heard that the war ended eight years ago," he said, remembering Hachi Shindo.

Naruto regarded him with a raised eyebrow. "Which brings me to my question you didn't answer," he pointed out. "How are you alive again? Sasuke told me you put Kabuto under a genjutsu and made him release you and the other reanimated Shinobi."

The Uchiha closed his eyes, before reopening them to show the Sharingan swimming against dead black, reminding him of his predicament. "I do not know who brought me back or why. I have been living this way for over a month, with less than interesting means to share with you...Lord Seventh." He felt compelled to drop to one knee like he used to in his old ANBU days, as a sign of respect, which made Naruto frown, but the action made Itachi feel humble as he continued to tell him about meeting his wolf companions and then the dying Hachi whom he buried out in the forest not far from Kirinono - which was where the recent trouble with the Snow had taken place. There, he met Hotaka who was the first to welcome him, then allowed him and the wolves to live with him, and his friends even accepted him as one of their own.

But besides Hotaka, none of the others knew his true identity. Naruto nodded in understanding upon the finish.

"It can't be Orochimaru or Kabuto, because they've both been low-key on human experimentation and reanimation since the war was won," he mused. So..Kabuto did pull himself from the pit and learned his mistakes. He felt his mouth turn into another frown. Orochimaru? The snake has returned, but how? Unless Sasuke was the one to bring him back using a forbidden technique... "I wish I had a clue as to who would think to bring YOU back, and why they did. As much as I hate to say it, I hope it isn't to have you as a tool again. You have done enough, and if they think they can cause you more pain in death, they'll answer to us all."

Itachi bowed his head in agreement. "Will you help me then, Lord Hokage, even if I have to stay in the shadows to protect myself and your village?" he asked, receiving another wave of the hand.

"Our village. To me, you are still worthy of a Shinobi."

Alarm flared up when he dared to grit his jaw. "Naruto, please tell me you did not tell anyone the truth about me," he insisted. If the Uchiha name is tarnished...

Another voice entered the air. That voice...

"Does it MATTER about the truth? What matters is that you are here again...brother."

Naruto stood up from behind his desk and motioned for Itachi to rise. The Uchiha obeyed and turned around, stricken to his core as a face resembling his own made him shake in his knees, but he was pleased that he held himself together. The other man in a swirling black cape looked like he was going to shatter, lose all of his composure, but he stayed where he was as he continued to look over his reanimated brother, taking in how his hair had been cut to ear-length, how he was garbed like an ordinary civilian, but continued to gaze at him with dead-and-alive eyes forever shining with their bloodline...

"Sasuke," was all the elder could get out. His vocal cords felt like they had already dried up.

Sasuke's eyes were shining, looking at him from a much older face than the one he remembered, but otherwise the same. His response was hoarse. "Itachi."

Before either knew it, their arms were suffocating each other after an eternity of separation by life and death. Love and hate once separate came together as a powerful wave of emotion that neither could control within the embrace which brought the estranged brothers back together.

Oh, the feels! :') The brothers back together and with so much to catch up on - but how is THAT gonna happen since Itachi is trying to keep up his disguise for the world?

Heiwa-sai translates to mean "peace festival" as stated. :) The importance and decision to make it an important event will be revealed in the next chapter at most, so until then...