A/N: Sorry this is so late, but this chapter was originally meant to be a bit different. As it is, I felt that it'd be too heavy if I had both scenes (you'll see which ones I'm talking about) in one chapter, so I had to split the two up and added more scenes (but it's still pretty heavy...). That took a while. Hopefully, this means sooner update for chapter 7.
As it is, now I'm thinking maybe I should have waited a little bit longer. I'm not entirely satisfied with the way this chapter turned out but... the main points are still here, so details don't really matter I suppose...
Chapter 7- Stand By You
There wasn't a cloud in sight the day of Hikari's funeral.
Inwardly, Edward thought about how much it suited her character; the bright, sunny character of a patient mother. He tried not to think about the day in the rain, when she had taken the fatal blow for him, her clothes soaked in blood and water.
Yes, her funeral set on a sunny day was best.
Shaking his head, Edward tried to listen to the Hokage, speaking adamantly in front of Hikari's tomb. It wasn't that Edward didn't want to pay attention, because if there was anyone who knew Hikari well it would be her father, but he just found his mind wandering. It kept going back, to... to...
"I just wanted… to save you."
Conflicting images: Hikari dying, Hikari in a coffin, Hikari buying them treats...
Hikari smiled, holding out the onigiri, "It's a festival today. It's all about the spirit of giving, isn't it?"
"...she was the best daughter anyone could have asked for."
Claps. Sobs. The Hokage was done.
This was a private funeral. Very few people remembered that the Hokage had a daughter, and only a select few would know the day that she died. Such was the way of ninja. Only the people who had been closest to Hikari were here today, which Edward was extremely thankful for. There would be no fake, polite clapping or condolences, everything would stem from the heart.
On the other hand, that just made things all the more harder.
Everyone here knew Hikari, knew what a gift and blessing she was. Though they didn't really know the events surrounding Hikari's death other than 'died in duty, protecting a friend', Edward felt that he could still feel their accusing glares on his back. Itachi had told him again and again it wasn't his fault, and the Hokage said he didn't blame Edward, but the blond still couldn't get the feeling to go away.
But Hikari had told him to live on, to not blame himself.
Edward let out a deep, shuddering breath; it was hard to keep her last messages to him, but he would do it. He had to. Yes, he blamed himself, he knew that denying it would bring no results, but he would continue to live nonetheless. Become the greatest medic of this world. Just like he promised.
With that burning guilt, that rigid determination as his motivation, how could he be stopped? It would just be like his search for the philosopher's stone with...
The funeral procession was ending.
People were milling past, clasping hands and leaning heads on shoulders. Some were blank eyed with grief as they slowly made their way to their houses, some were outright sobbing. Yes... Hikari knew a lot of people. It was just her bad luck that she had to get to know one stranded alchemist five months ago.
As Itachi turned in Edward's direction, Edward decided that he wanted to leave. He'd been avoiding Itachi ever since the day in the rain, and he wasn't about to stop now. Until he became a world class medic... he didn't want anyone closely associated with him. Until he became a world class medic... they would just die, wouldn't they? For him...
Edward turned away, and he knew that Itachi stopped walking. Itachi would not talk to him until the blond was ready, thank goodness for that. It was at times like this that Edward really appreciated Itachi's frustratingly patient nature. Edward didn't know how he'd react to a confrontation right now.
Besides, this wasn't just about Hikari now. That moment near death, in that instant Edward had recalled what was truly important to him. He couldn't believe he had forgotten it. Somewhere in between the research, the missions, Hikari, Itachi, and Sasuke, Edward had lost sight of what he needed to do here.
The whole reason he had become a ninja was to find a way to get back, wasn't it?
He needed to see Al, needed to see if Winry, Mustang, Teacher, Ling, and all the people of Amestris were okay. He needed to know what happened, needed to help them. Especially...
Did Edward's exchange with The Gate work? Did Al finally get his own body? Did Mustang follow through with Edward's last request?
These questions had only briefly flitted past Edward's mind after his mission in Grass, and he would not let that happen again. It was irresponsible of him, allowing himself to be enchanted by the glamour of the new world. And look where it had got him. Where it had gotten Hikari.
No, he wasn't for this world. He had to get back.
Almost at a leisure pace, Edward started for his apartment, leaving the sun and the crowd of people behind him. The coffin and the body. The scent of jasmine and the feel of a mother. He had things to do.
Edward had changed.
It had been subtly at first, and Itachi had not caught it because he'd assumed that it was due to Hikari's death. But that wasn't it, or at least, not entirely; Itachi could see that now.
In the libraries, it wasn't just medical jutsus that Edward was studying, though he did study a fair portion of them. Edward was keeping his promise to Hikari; he was learning how to heal, but... but he was also looking at something else. Time/Space jutsus.
Itachi for all his genius, could not figure out why.
Edward was studying time/space jutsus with a remarkable fever, spending even more time on it than medical ninjutsu. So much so, that even Itachi could tell it was unhealthy. Edward no longer spent any time outside, except for the one hour in the morning where he forced himself to stay in shape. His tanned skin was turning pale, and whatever he was doing it seemed as if his mind was on something else.
He also no longer visited Itachi, no longer came to the Uchiha for lessons, even. They no longer discussed theories on ninjutsu, or the best way perform a certain task. It was as if Edward's time had stopped and his sole attention was on the library.
Edward still continued missions when the Hokage assigned them, but that was far and few between. If a mission was particularly long, Edward would start to get fidgety and grumpy, and Itachi had to admit he did not have the patience to deal with it.
In fact, he had not been dealing with Edward's withdrawal at all. Itachi figured that whatever was bothering the blond was something Edward had to figure out for himself, and Itachi had no place in it. So, he had simply withdrawn, deciding that he would interact with Edward again when Edward was ready. He was not a confrontial person after all, and he doubted that anything he said could change Edward's mind. The matter was settled.
Still, he couldn't figure out why his mind kept going back to the blond even when he decided it was not worth thinking about.
"Nii-san! Nii-san!"
Itachi slowly opened his eyes, drawing himself out of his state of meditation. He hadn't gone very deep this time, but then, for this whole month his meditation had been a little off. He didn't know why. It was as if suddenly he wasn't content to go back to the state of silent peace he had before. He felt... odd. And he wasn't sure when it had started.
"Nii-san," Sasuke ran up to his side, looking at him with adoring black eyes, "Can we train today?"
Slowly, Itachi stood from his spot, brushing off bits of dust from his Uchiha uniform. He took a step towards Sasuke -who drew in a hopeful breath- and poked him, "Maybe some other time."
Sasuke pouted, swatting at his forehead, "Aw Nii-san, you never have time!"
Itachi simply shook his head, turning to leave. This was their daily ritual, only broken when-
"Where's Aniki?"
Sasuke was talking about Edward, of course.
Itachi remembered the first time Sasuke had given Edward the affectionate nickname, after Edward had tricked Itachi into promising to spend the day with Sasuke. Itachi had looked annoyed on the surface, but secretly Edward had to know that the black haired boy was pleased. Otherwise, how else could Edward manipulate him? Itachi wouldn't allow it if he didn't want it.
Sasuke had dubbed Edward with an affectionate 'nii-san' that day. For some reason, he had looked pained when Sasuke called him 'nii-san', and it was then that Itachi remembered the reason Edward had joined Konoha was to search for his younger brother. Later that night, Itachi had reminded Sasuke, and thought that was the end of it, but Sasuke had a way around everything.
So now, Edward was 'Aniki', while Itachi was the more affectionate but less regal sounding 'Nii-san'. Sasuke had argued that it was the only way for them not to get confused, and with Edward's laughter Itachi could not dispute it.
"He is doing work for the Hokage," Itachi finally replied.
There was a loud sigh, then- "So when is Aniki going to visit us again?"
Itachi could not reply.
Hiruzen was worried.
Most ninja experienced at some point in their lives, a traumatic experience in which someone died. There was no possible way for them to avoid it. He had been hoping though, that Edward would not experience it until much much later, and especially not in the form of his own daughter. That was the purpose of assigning the twelve year old to be a RESEARCH jounin, after all.
But it seemed as if the fates simply didn't want it Hiruzen's way. Really, he should have known. If he'd wanted to keep Orochimaru's child out of trouble he should have made sure that Edward stayed a civilian. Instead, Hiruzen had been selfish, wanting another ninja who supported his pacifist views.
And look where it had gotten him.
Most ninja had a period of backlash, a period of no emotion, a period of obsession towards something -anything- that would keep their minds off the deaths. And then that would go away, they'd mature and develop their quirks which would keep them sane.
But Edward wasn't moving from the first stage.
It had been a month, and Edward was hardly eating or sleeping. All he did all day was stay cooped up in the library, and Hiruzen had a feeling it wasn't just for entertainment. Edward was sickening, maybe even dying, and Hiruzen wasn't sure what he could do about it.
He had even brought Edward in one day, and had a talk with the boy, about how he didn't blame him for Hikari's death and how Hikari wanted him to live a good life. Besides, Hiruzen was actually proud of Hikari's death, though he would miss her, but in Hiruzen's opinion it was one of the most honourable deaths a ninja could have.
Edward hadn't really listened.
Oh yes, he'd made a good job of pretending to listen, as geniuses could do, but Hiruzen just knew that Edward hadn't gotten the main point. Edward had promised that it wouldn't affect his missions, so that Hiruzen shouldn't be worried. And indeed, Edward did do his missions with the same level of seriousness and reliability as always. Unfortunately, that meant Edward got less sleep, because for some insane reason the boy wouldn't take any time off from his personal research!
Didn't Edward understand that Hiruzen was worried about him more than the missions?
And so, Hiruzen had found that he was at his limit, as a meddling old man and the father to the person Edward was grieving. But, he still had one card left to play. His title as the Hokage.
Hiruzen picked up a file folder, the one with the mission he had been seriously debating whether or not to accept. On one hand, it could seriously help Edward out of his funk, if Itachi rose to the challenge. On the other hand... if Edward were distracted, he could be killed. Still, Hiruzen could not stand to see Edward slowly killing himself.
Besides, he had a feeling about this mission...
Unfortunately, he didn't know if it was bad or good.
"Protection mission?"
Itachi nodded, mentally reviewing the files in his head as they ran on. Itachi had been given the details not too long ago, and Edward didn't even know why he was running, but they were used to this. After all, adaptability was supposed to be a trait of a genius.
"An upstart businessman is signing a contract with Katrins, but in doing so will put Matan out of business. Once the contract is signed, there's nothing Matan can do about it, and they'll simply have to either lower their prices, or resign themselves to another partner. However…"
"Matan will obviously not like either of those choices," Edward finished, looking thoughtful as he jumped from yet another treebranch, "Katrins is already developed and famous, of course Matan will want to keep working with that company. So this businessman thinks that Matan will try an attempt on his life, to stop the contract signing. Okay, makes sense, but why are we hired? I mean, I specialize in research, not protection."
"Again, they're taking advantage of the fact that we're children." Itachi explained, smiling slightly at the disgruntled look Edward shot him. Itachi didn't like it either, but it was almost worth it to watch Edward's reactions. It was only during missions that Edward acted the slightest bit normal. Anyhow, onto the mission details. What was it Edward always said? Ah yes, Equivalent Exchange. "It'd look bad for our client if he showed up at the signing with guards, especially since Katrins is doing a huge favour to him already by agreeing to meet him. However, if he took two nephews with him…"
Edward sneered, giving a forceful push forwards as he sprang from his tree, "Heh, hard to buy, but I guess Katrins can't really complain about it right? Even if Matan does suspect we're ninjas, they'll still underestimate us. Is there anything our client's 'nephews' should know?"
Itachi followed in bemusement, quickly explaining the details to Edward. The other genius listened with intense concentration, quickly memorizing the facts like Itachi had done. They only had until they got to Wine Country, and then they would have to act as the perfect nephews. Itachi didn't exactly like the concept of being hired because of his body size, but it didn't come without benefits. Edward was an excellent ninja, and though the blond could be extremely rash when it came to the mistreatment of others, otherwise Edward was the perfect partner. Or at least, to Itachi he was.
Maybe it was an age thing after all. A lot of other ninja Itachi had worked with had never respected him, because he was eleven and they were thirty. Most respected him after Itachi showed his skills, but there were still those that doubted Itachi's maturity, mistaking it for arrogance. It wasn't exactly… troubling, but it was annoying. And, concepts that came to Itachi so easily, were never quite understood by some of his co-workers. Everything had to be explained to them in detail, with all the flaws and pros of each course of action. And Itachi did not like to waste his breath.
But that was not something Itachi should think about. It would just hinder him if he let negative thoughts consume him. In a mission, one had to be completely trusting of their teammates. He had seen that in the war.
"Ah, you're here!" The businessman greeted as they finally made it to the man's house, and a very elegant house it was. Itachi twisted his lips in distaste; the businessman had not even made the deal yet, and he was already spending the money. Did one really need such elegance? Still, this was their client they were greeting.
Itachi bowed low, and motioned for Edward to do the same, "Greetings, I am Itachi, and he is Edward. I understand we are to be Hideo and Junichi now?"
The businessman nodded impatiently, "Yes, yes. Now, you need to change out of those clothes and into… more acceptable wear, or else my colleges will mock me."
There was not a speck of dust on their clothes despite all their running, but Itachi knew that business people were especially picky about presentation. His clan was the same. They followed the businessman, up a flight of curved marble stairs, and into a large bedroom. Two sets of shiny black suits lay on a soft white bed, silly looking, but needed.
"They won't impede your movement will they?" The businessman asked, a hint of worry creeping into his voice.
Itachi shook his head, but gained just a little more respect for this man. Smart. Most people wouldn't think to ask that. Then again, Itachi supposed that it was the businessman's own safety that he was talking about, and one had to be paranoid about their own life if they wanted to succeed in business.
"Stick by me at every second," The businessman instructed, "Don't let me out of sight. If you mess this up and I lose so much as a strand of hair…"
"Of course," Itachi murmured, bowing again, "Gato-sama…"
They arrived at the conference building not long afterward, having fully practiced their roles. Itachi melted into his role perfectly; he was used to acting. Around his own family, he would… anyway. The businessman had no trouble either, and was carrying out the role of 'doting uncle' to a point where it almost disturbed Itachi. The receptionist led them up a flight of stairs, into a large, windowed room.
Itachi's eyes instantly scanned for potential dangers. The place they were meeting in was not optimal. The skydome room, while pretty, would be perfect for would-be-assassins. Even with the twelve other people in the room, any assassin would have no difficulty locating their client. Itachi made a note to sit extra close to the businessman.
Itachi listened to every single detail of the next two hours -who knew, it might be important in the future- and Edward did not. That was fine though; they had planned beforehand for Edward to sense for incoming ninja, especially since the blond had that special ability of his. Itachi wondered if it was a bloodline limit; and if so, what clan's? There were a lot of bloodline limits Konoha didn't know about, and the blond's special ability might just be one of them. Along with his ability that was so similar to sealing, yet so different.
Just then, he noticed Edward politely ask for something, a second later he was excused. Edward got up, and gestured for Itachi to follow.
"I've just told them that I'm forgotten something," Edward hissed as soon as they were clear of the room, "And you're accompanying me. I sense three chakra signatures coming this way, but no more than that. Shall we go engage them before they alert the businessmen?"
Itachi nodded, his mind already flashing through the different possibilities and their outcomes. "It would be best. We do not want the businessmen to panic and potentially get in the way of our attacks, after all. Which way?"
Edward grinned, and jumped away. Not knowing whether to sigh or roll his eyes (and finally settling on both) Itachi followed him. They raced along the rooftops, their footsteps quiet, though Itachi was certain that if the hired ninja were worth their salt, they'd be able to hear Edward and Itachi as soon as they were in a three meter radius. It was kind of funny, how the three ninjas hadn't split up and tried a pincer. Were they that confident, or simply that inexperienced?
It was a shame that Edward's ability couldn't discern at which level their enemies were. All Edward could tell so far, was that they were not normal citizens. For all Itachi knew, that could mean chuunin, to ANBU captain level. But, Itachi was soon to be an ANBU captain himself. He had heard others discussing it. And, Edward was no slacker either. If it weren't for Itachi's Sharingan, the dark haired Uchiha would have been hard pressed to tell who was a better fighter. Although now... with Edward's current condition...
Well, it would be enough against most ninja.
Soon, Itachi felt it. The slight chakra signature that all ninja could feel when engaged in battle. The smell of battle-worn cloth and sweaty skin. He heard the slightest rustling of robes, precisely covered by the sound of leaves twirling through the air. They were here.
Itachi calmed his mind, allowing his thoughts to settle into the cold, clear precision of battle mode. Here, he would feel no guilt, feel no regret. No, that was for later, when he didn't have people to disappoint. In this mode, Itachi could throw away his feelings for the good of the village. He could probably even kill his own mother in this state.
Itachi signalled Edward with his eyes, and with a nod both of them bent low on their respective rooftops. He saw Edward clap his hands together in that familiar motion again, golden eyes half lidded as a look of concentration took hold. It would no doubt, result in something flashy, but it would do the job.
Itachi on the other hand, had another tactic for taking out enemy ninja.
He was after all, ANBU. Ninjutsu, taijustu, genjutsu, yes he excelled at all those, but moving silently and killing could be said to be his speciality. Funny how fate played out. The only way for him to make sure that no one felt pain while they died was for him to specialize in killing- the thing he hated most. Detachedly he wondered if it would make him insane one day.
But of course it wouldn't, because he wouldn't let it. Itachi jumped from his perch, kunai already in hand as the enemy ninja approached his hiding place. Before the ninja could fully turn his head, Itachi had already slashed.
But it seemed the enemy was first rate too.
Without needing to turn his head, the ninja jumped away, twisting his body so that Itachi's slash just barely skimmed the edge of the neck. Itachi quickly changed his slash into a throw, aiming to force the enemy to waste time dodging if he couldn't be killed. Immediately after the kunai left his hand, Itachi started forming handseals.
A flash of blue lightning. Out of the corner of his eyes, Itachi saw another enemy jump out of the way of a huge hand emerging from the ground, and the other cursing as he tried to pull his leg from the ground.
Just then, the ninja Itachi had targeted put his hands together- but it was too late.
"Lightning Release: Bolt of Shock," Itachi intoned, pointing one judging finger at the enemy.
Lightning raced from the ground through Itachi's body, giving him an odd sensation, but nothing he hadn't felt before. This particular jutsu was slightly dangerous in that it required a fair amount of pain tolerance, but thankfully for Itachi he had been born into the Uchiha clan. While a ninja from a civilian family might not be able to do this justsu, Itachi had gone through his share of torture training. And in this situation, this technique was perfect.
In a tenth of a second the lightning had raced from Itachi to the unknown ninja, causing the ninja to cry out as the full blast hit him. Itachi didn't wait. He lunged forwards, another kunai already in his grasp.
This time, Itachi drew blood.
But not enough. The enemy leapt back, a small nick at the side of his throat. Just a flesh wound. This time the enemy did not try to attack, he leapt towards the left, where-
The ninja Edward had trapped had escaped, and now the two ninjas whom Edward had challenged were both chasing the blond. Debris and jutsus flew through the air, with flashes of golden hair breaking through.
Itachi cursed inwardly, and decided to give up chasing the foe- for now. Instead, he leapt towards his fellow Konoha ninja.
"Sorry," Itachi murmured as he soared past the yellow haired boy. It was a plan that they had agreed upon without talking, and Itachi had failed miserably. Using his flashy moves, Edward was supposed to get the attention of two of the ninja and distract them, while Itachi took care of the last one through the element of surprise. That way, they'd only have two enemies left and that could be easily taken care of. But now because Itachi had failed…
"They're strong," Edward grunted, throwing a Look at Itachi as he dodged a hazardous looking wind technique.
Strong enough that they couldn't be beaten one on one? Then that meant…
Itachi shot off towards the one who had just performed the wind technique, his hands already flashing through handseals. Out of the corner of his eye he saw another ninja -the ninja he had cut the throat of- rushing towards him, but then there was a flash and Itachi knew Edward had taken care of it.
"Fire Release," Itachi whispered, just as the wind user unleashed another technique, "Fire Shot."
Wind fed fire, and Itachi had used a B-rank technique. As soon as the chakra of the enemy ninja turned into wind, it burned up in the presence of Itachi's fire. The enemy's eyes widened. With Itachi's timing, there was no way he'd be able to completely evade the fireball's path, or even do a counter-attack. But, if he wanted to avoid damage, there was one thing he could do, and Itachi wondered if the enemy would see it. After all, the man was a professional…
The enemy leapt left. Chakra covered his whole right side, so thick it was almost visible. It was an incredible skill really, to be able to control chakra to that extent. It would have taken years of training. The fireball skimmed the man's right leg, but the chakra fended off any real damage. Itachi smirked.
Suddenly the man's eyes rolled back, his body going limp as he slid to the ground, releasing his tremendous hold on his chakra. Edward stood over him, the butt of a kunai poised over the place where the man's head had been moments before. It had all gone according to plan.
Edward caught Itachi's eye, a grim smile on his face, then jumped backwards.
One down, two to go.
A second later the ninja Itachi was supposed to take out first landed where Edward had been, his eyes gleaming with a predatory light. Edward jerked his head ever so slightly towards the predatory ninja, before making a run for it. Right then, this was their next target. And this time, Itachi wouldn't fail.
The last ninja Itachi noticed dashing towards him, but Itachi simply jumped away. Let the ninja follow him; it would be no use. Spotting an alleyway, Itachi changed course and raced towards it, knowing that Edward could distract the first ninja long enough for Itachi to take care of this one.
It was a dead end.
Slowly, Itachi turned around, fully facing the enemy ninja just as he made it there.
"No ambush right?" The other ninja grinned, hands flying through handseals, "You wouldn't have had the time."
A fire phoenix exploded from the ninja's hands, zigzagging towards Itachi with a speed that his eyes could follow but his body couldn't match. The fire consumed the black haired boy, leaving not even ashes behind. Suddenly, the fire phoenix turned, not satisfied with its small meal. It roared, then flew back towards the shocked ninja who had cast the technique. It slammed into him, eliciting a scream of pain.
Gasping, the ninja collapsed, eyes rolling back as the genjutsu took full effect. Itachi didn't wait around; he was already late.
He found Edward locked in a tight hand to hand with the other ninja, though maybe hand to hand wasn't the best way to describe it. Edward was dodging using that unnatural speed of his again, the one that he had almost defeated Itachi with. Occasionally, they exchanged a jutsu, but it was mostly the enemy nin frustratingly trying to land a hit on the blond.
Itachi decided it was time to end this. The enemy ninja hadn't sensed him yet, which was good, but not unexpected. So then, the best option was a surprise attack, especially since Edward was expecting something. Itachi flashed through handseals, able to use a more complex jutsu due to the time he received from Edward's distractions.
"Earth Release," Itachi finally whispered, making a pulling gesture towards the ground, "Burial."
Suddenly, Edward grinned, and with hands clapped together he jumped away from the place of battle. The enemy ninja's eyes widened, obviously realizing something was wrong, and also made to jump away, but he was a split second behind. A split second was all that was needed.
The ground exploded outwards, burying its victim wholly, just as its name suggested. When the sand fell away, only his head was showing, just allowing the ninja to breath. The rest of his body was concealed in what seemed to be a huge anthill, but it was as hard as rock. His head dipped to one side, the ninja was clearly unconscious. 'Burial' was one of the higher level A-rank jutsu, and almost impossible to get out of once caught. However, it had two big weaknesses, which is what prevented most ninja from using it.
"You cut it very close," Itachi said as Edward dropped down beside him, "A second late and you would be knocked unconscious as well."
Edwards shrugged, a grin splitting his face, "Nah, you needed as much time as possible. I sensed you cast a technique, so all I had to do was get out of there before it hit. If I moved earlier, that ninja might have realized."
That wasn't nearly as easy as Edward had made it seem. The rate at which a jutsu went from being cast to fully forming was depended on the user, so Edward had to take into consideration the speed at which Itachi's jutsus usually took to work, and find a medium between that and the average speed for heavy class technique. He also predicted that Itachi would use a jutsu which took a long time to cast, time that an enemy usually wouldn't allow during a battle. Then again, Itachi could have also done that.
"The two kids strike again!" Edward turned his head to look at the unconscious ninja, "By the time they're all conscious, Gato will have signed the contract and we'll be done. Then I can get out of this stuffy suit and finally get back to the libra... Hey Itachi, what did you do to the last one?"
The sudden change in Edward's tone worried Itachi, just a bit. "He's in a genjutsu."
Edward furrowed his brows, "Does genjutsu sometimes affect people in a way that leaves their chakra empty?"
Itachi opened his mouth to reply, when the full implications of what Edward said hit him. No way-
"Shit! Itachi move!"
And suddenly Itachi felt his body being shoved forwards, and a blinding violet light filled his vision. Something warm exploded onto his arm, the iron scent filling his nostrils.
Edward.
Itachi turned just in time to catch the falling blond, his hands soaked in Edward's blood. A huge, gaping hole stared at Itachi, taking the place where Edward's heart should be. But Itachi saw where Edward's heart was. It was a shredded mess, bits and pieces of dark red clinging onto the whites of Edward's ribs and faltering lungs.
No, not Edward, please not Edward.
Edward wasn't- couldn't- this had to be a genjutsu.
But no, Itachi still had his Sharingan on, and he would have seen through any genjutsu. This was... real.
Edward was...
Itachi's heart clenched, the same organ that Edward no longer had. His mind flashed back to the days of the Third Ninja War, and the losses he had experienced then. But somehow it didn't seem, quite as bad as this. Yes, he had lost some people he knew, but never anyone personally connected to him. Itachi had thought it would be the same feeling regardless, had thought it was perfectly reasonable to ask for people not to seek revenge.
Naive.
Edward was...
His partner, his companion, his fellow genius- no, more than that. Itachi remembered Edward's taunts, his theories, his passions. He annoyed Itachi to no end and got reactions that no one else could have ever hoped to achieve. He had never left Itachi and Sasuke alone, always forcing them to spend more time with each other with ridiculous manipulations.
And the past month, where Edward had been so distant... Itachi had thought that their friendship had ended there, if there was ever any in the first place. But no, during missions they still got along fine, if not with Edward being just a little bit distracted. That past month... what had Edward been thinking? Itachi hadn't thought to ask then, but now...
If he could turn back time. Something had obviously been bothering the blond, but Itachi had ignored it, hoping it'd go away. Now, he would never be able to help Edward. He didn't deserve to be called Edward's friend.
Why? Why why why did Edward have to be so stupid? So idiotic? He was supposed to be smart, a prodigy, a genius, supposed to see the value of life, so why did he waste it for a useless person like Itachi? Why did he have to give up his life to save someone who was too afraid to even ask him what was wrong?
Itachi didn't quite know what to do, how to react.
Scream? No, that was out of character for him.
Cry? He had not cried since he was two years old.
Blame Edward? Ha, that was just irrational.
So... why did Itachi feel like doing all three?
Edward had said that he didn't want to experience again people dying around him. Dying for him. The feeling of helplessness, of knowing that you couldn't do anything...
Did he think Itachi wanted to experience it?
What... what selfish reasoning...
"Huh," The enemy ninja said, his voice unapologetic, "I was aiming for you."
Slowly, Itachi set Edward down, his eyes burning.
Itachi glared at the other ninja, and suddenly with a frightening clarity, he knew exactly what to do.
"Tsukuyomi"
