Part Three: Revelations

Chapter Seven

Itachi fought between his survival instincts as a shinobi and his human instincts as he tried to appraise the old man who called himself Tenji. He felt no ill intent from the man who stood and allowed himself to be studied. Doubt flickered across Itachi's mind. Who they were, where they were, it would have been close to impossible for anyone who hadn't been following them to know exactly where to find them. Reason told him Tenji was telling the truth. His training told him to stay alert.

Tenji stood patiently before them, seemingly aware that he was being scrutinised by the two. Itachi glanced at Sakura, who seemed surprised and defensive, and then back at Tenji. He observed the walking stick, and the slight shake in the old man's hand and made a decision.

"Would you care to share our fire this evening?" Itachi offered.

Tenji smiled kindly at him.

"Thank you. I am weary from my travel today."

"Itachi, what are you doing?" Sakura asked, her quiet voice filled with question and warning.

Itachi gave her a look, and she sighed. Her eyes spoke for: you better know what you're doing. Itachi turned his attention back to Tenji, who had lowered himself to the ground and sat across the fire from them, cross-legged with his cane across his knees.

"I understand your hesitation and reluctance to trust me," Tenji said. "Be that as it may, I assure you that I mean you no harm."

Itachi lowered himself to the ground, and Sakura followed after a moment's hesitation.

"Our pardons, Tenji," Itachi said politely. "There have been complications in our lives recently that have made us wary of strangers."

Tenji inclined his head in understanding.

"Of course. Might I be allowed to put your minds at ease?"

"Please," Itachi replied.

"What's Ninshu?" Sakura interrupted. "Sorry, I just don't understand. I've never heard of it. Didn't the Sage of Six Paths give us Ninjutsu?"

"A common misconception," Tenji answered her. "I shall start at the very beginning. A millennia ago in the Land of Ancestors, Hagoromo Otsutsuki and his brother Hamura fought a terrifying and world-changing battle against their mother and the ten-tails, Kaguya Otsutsuki."

Sakura and Itachi glanced at one another, and Sakura bit her lip to hide a small smile.

"They were victorious in sealing her away, but the world suffered greatly as a result of their battle. Hagoromo traveled across the world in a journey of repentance and along the way, he gathered followers to him. Ninshu was what he called his teachings. It is a tradition of peace and meant for its followers to understand the mysteries of chakra, and in turn, to better understand themselves and others. It was only later that what we know as ninjutsu was created."

Tenji paused and Itachi and Sakura, both drawn in with interest, waited patiently for him to continue.

"Ninshu teaches us that chakra is the force that connects all things." He looked levelly at them. "Connecting life and death, and even across time."

Itachi didn't react to his comment. He'd been expecting something like it. Sakura, however, went stiff and sat up straighter.

Tenji gave her a soft smile, his eyes closed thoughtfully.

"I am very old, young ones, I never imagined I'd live for so long. The Sage of Six Paths wished for this world to be peaceful, but war has eroded his ideals for so many years." Tenji gave a heavy sigh. "The seeking of power for power's sake is a corruptive force. But the truth of chakra can never be lost: chakra connects all of us."

"What did you mean when you said you were sent by the Sage of Six Paths to find us?" Itachi asked him.

"It is as I said," Tenji replied. "Two days ago during my meditations, I was granted a gift: the Sage of Six Paths appeared to me."

Tenji paused and looked at the two of them, who were waiting patiently. On the inside, Itachi's body was screaming at the man to stop with the suspense, but he sat still and poised and seemingly patiently.

"We did not speak long, you must understand. He told me only this: 'this world is on the cusp of great change, and there are two who have appeared in this time who will bring it. You must bring them here, to this place, so they can speak with the ones who sent them through time.' He sent me an image, of this place, so that I might find you and I left that very afternoon."

Itachi gave a small nod to him and looked over at Sakura, who was frowning and looking at the grass in front of her.

"The ones who sent us," she murmured. "Do you think he means - "

Tenji coughed and Sakura cut her sentence off.

"I believe, young one, that we should speak no more of this until we reach a safer place," he said, his voice harder than before. "I told you what you needed, to know that I am here only to guide you. But you must be wary of the ears hidden in the forest."

Sakura opened her mouth to talk and then closed it again. Itachi's brown settled on a frown, and he gave Tenji another nod.

"Rest, Tenji," Itachi said gently. "We shall leave in the early hours of the morn."

"Thank you, young Uchiha," Tenji replied, and he lay down.

"How does he know you're an Uchiha," Sakura whispered to Itachi. "He keeps calling you 'young Uchiha.' But he doesn't say anything to me."

Itachi shrugged.

"I expect your pink hair gives pause to anyone who might think you were an Uchiha," he said lightly. "However, I suspect my own heritage is easily assumed."

Sakura grimaced and shrugged.

"I'll take first watch," she offered.

Itachi accepted, lay on his back and folded his hands behind his head, considering what Tenji had meant by 'ears hidden in the forest.'


Madara had been wrong about the location of the temple being between the mountains. It was inside the mountains. Itachi had carried Tenji on his back as they returned to the man's home of seventy years, and Tenji had been a surprisingly gleeful and exuberant companion on the trip.

He seemed to have recovered whatever strength he had spent on the journey to them while he slept, and Sakura soon discovered that Tenji was rather cheeky and almost child-like in nature. It was easy for her to forget her original suspicion and mistrust of him, and find herself laughing at his sly banter. Itachi appeared to be a favourite target of his, and Tenji seemed to want to draw out all the emotion from her usually controlled friend.

Sakura, of course, aided Tenji in his mission as they traveled. She told Tenji some stories about Itachi from the last few years when she had witnessed something seemingly out of character, or embarrassing occur. She delighted in revealing some of the tales that Shishui had regaled her with, about Itachi's childhood exploits and how 'adorable' the young Itachi had apparently been.

Itachi had thrown her many glares, so many she thought he would seriously put her in a Tsukuyomi if she kept up her story-telling. But it didn't matter as Tenji apparently had all the ammunition that he needed to tease Itachi himself now.

But he was silent and oddly serious the moment they stepped from the canopy of trees and saw the entrance to the temple. It wasn't something special or obvious, it was only a cave-opening at the base of a great mountain. But Sakura could sense something special laid within, and she realised, it was probably sealed.

Tenji tapped Itachi's shoulder, and Itachi lowered himself so that the man could slide off his back and walk to the cave. Sakura and Itachi hung back and waited. Tenji made a sign, but they couldn't see what it was before he turned to them and said, "Come."

Sakura and Itachi nodded and entered the mouth of the cave, and Tenji sealed the entrance again behind him, peering into the distance they had come from as if he were looking for something. Sakura frowned and looked as well, but she didn't see or sense anything. Perhaps the old man was just paranoid. She really hoped so anyway.

Dim and dying torches lined the wall of the dry, barely illuminating their passage further into the mountain. Their footfalls echoed with each step, and the air began to smell dank and stale. Sakura crinkled her nose, hoping the main area that Tenji resided in wasn't like this, otherwise she wasn't sure how the old man had managed to live so long without getting ill.

"Tenji," Sakura spoke quietly but her voice echoed. "What exactly is so special about this place?"

Tenji was quiet for so long Sakura thought he wasn't going to answer her.

"Once, there were many places out under the sky like this one. But they were lost over time as ninjutsu spread and the followers of Ninshu died out. This is the last temple of Ninshu, where the connections of chakra are the strongest, and the reason I have brought you here."

Tenji stopped talking as they reached the end of the long passageway. Sakura's breath was taken away.

Before them was an enormous cavern. The rock walls of the mountain were rounded and smooth, and from high above, there was sunlight filtering from some open place that shone light on the amazing scenery before them. A temple stood in the center, surrounded by grass, trees and even a spring.

"It looks as though someone plucked it from outside and transported it here," Sakura breathed.

Tenji laughed.

"That is exactly what happened." His voice took on a darker tone. "Some things must be protected."

She saw Itachi look at Tenji, an almost unnoticeable look of concern on his face.

"Someone very powerful must have done this," Itachi observed, changing the topic.

Tenji waved his hand dismissively, chuckling.

"Oh, you know those Uzumaki. Always doing the most extraordinary things."

Sakura's eyes bulged and she looked at Itachi, who looked equally surprised. Tenji descended down the rock-carved stairs towards the temple. Itachi followed him, and Sakura followed Itachi.

"The Uzumaki must have been pretty incredible, huh?" Sakura whispered to him. She only knew one Uzumaki, and he was as incredible an idiot as he was an incredible shinobi.

"They were known for their incredibly strong life-force and mastery of fuinjutsu," Itachi replied with a shrug. "They were so feared that their village was destroyed and its citizens scattered across the world."

Sakura blinked in surprise. Surely they must have taught her that at the academy? She couldn't recall, and she wasn't going to voice her ignorance to Itachi, who knew almost everything. But it certainly explained a lot about Naruto; an incredibly strong life-force definitely rang a bell. Sakura grinned, but it slowly dropped in sadness and longing. She eyed the temple. Maybe here, she and Itachi would finally get answers on how to get home.

At the base of the bridge was a narrow, unadorned rock bridge that ended at the edge of the grassy the temple grounds. The trio crossed it easily, it only spanned a few feet, and Sakura refused to look down. She'd caught a glimpse of an unending black abyss below them. She didn't care to stare down into it unless she really had to. Instead, she looked at the temple and little garden and the foliage and trees and found herself amazed at how alive everything seemed, despite being inside a mountain.

"It's beautiful," she remarked with some awe.

The moment Sakura set both her feet onto the rock, she felt a pulse of power in her body. Her breath caught at the sensation and she staggered forward a step. Itachi was as affected by it as she was. Sakura gasped and looked up at Tenji, who was looking at them both with some curiosity.

"That felt familiar," Itachi murmured.

Sakura swallowed and stood tall again. It did feel familiar, it felt the same as that moment of pulsing power she had felt at the end of the war before she and Itachi had been taken away.

Tenji stood before them with both hands resting on his walking cane.

"This is a place we may speak freely, without fear of interruption or the wrong ears hearing us."

Tenji awaited their questions.

"What do you know about the sons of the Sage of Six Paths?" Itachi asked Tenji.

Tenji let out a sigh.

"A sad tale of power, jealousy, and rivalry," Tenji said. "It was said that the Sage of Six Paths set both his sons out in the world to resolve the same problem affecting different people. The brother he deemed the most successful would be named his successor." Tenji paused, his brow crinkled in remembrance. "The eldest son was a prodigal child. He is the one who invented what you know as ninjutsu today. He was expected to be the successor over his younger brother, who though was a good natured child, wasn't as skilled as his brother."

Sakura frowned, recognizing the similarities to Sasuke and Naruto.

"The elder returned first, and the younger much later. Upon his return, it was clear he had grown as a person and in his skills and power and the Sage of Six Paths named his second son as his successor, and the elder son left the clan, walking through the world alone, while his younger brother gathered followers to him."

Sakura turned to see what Itachi thought. His face was void of expression, much to Sakura's disappointment. It was like Tenji was describing Sasuke and Naruto, and Sakura swallowed, coming to the understanding that whatever Asura and Indra had brought her and Itachi to the past for was something more than she'd ever imagined.

A silence stretched between the three of them and Sakura looked behind Tenji at the temple. She glanced at Itachi, who seemed content to remain silent.

"Inside the temple, you will meet who you desire to see," Tenji said, breaking Sakura's attention from Itachi. "The preparations have been made."

Sakura frowned. She opened her mouth to ask what he meant, but Itachi put a hand on her shoulder.

She looked up at him and saw that he was looking at her with an expression she'd never seen on him before. Worry and fear. He was afraid. The realisation hit Sakura in the gut. Itachi had always been someone she knew would have an answer, would be there for her. Now, no matter what happened, no matter what they found inside the temple, no matter what, she was going to be his strength. She never wanted to see him look at her like this again. She felt strength rush through her. She gave him a nod and a steely smile.

"We'll talk to… them, in there, right?" She asked.

He gave a nod. He wiped his expression, the fear was gone, but his hand lingered on her shoulder before it dropped. Sakura let out a breath and looked back to Tenji.

"Thank you, Tenji," she said.

He lowered to the ground and took up a position of meditation. Sakura reached to Itachi and took his hand without looking at his face. She could feel his eyes turn to her, but she stared ahead at the temple. She squeezed his hand, and after a moment he squeezed her hand back. She didn't let go. This contact, the comfort of it, she needed it as well. They walked across the grass, and Sakura's heart constricted in her chest. She didn't know what to expect, but if Itachi was here, she could handle it. She would handle it.

They walked into the temple, and everything faded into black.

The world around them became a space, a vast blackness without an end in sight. It gave Sakura chills, remembering the many time-spaces of Kaguya.

She didn't realise she was squeezing Itachi's hand until she heard a little hiss of pain escape his lips and she let go immediately.

"I'm so sorry," she apologised.

Itachi flexed his hand and gave her a wry smile.

"It's fine," he said, looking around. "We have company."

He tilted his head to indicate the presence of two new lifeforms.

Sakura looked and saw two small flickering fires of orange and purple. It was chakra, she realised. The bodies the chakra belonged to slowly faded into view around it, becoming more solid as they watched.

They were both graced with brown hair of varying lengths, and Sakura was struck with how familiar the two seemed in their presence. Everywhere she went, everything she heard, it all went back to her teammates and friends.

The person who belonged to the orange chakra was a man with spiky brown hair and a thick white headband. The purple chakra belonged to a man who was very clearly related to the Uchiha. His hair was long, his eyes dark and reminiscent of Itachi and Sasuke's, with purple paint underneath them. Like his brother, on each side of his head was short, wrapped hair in the white cloth.

Indra and Asura Otsutsuki.

Sakura stared at them, suddenly feeling a barrage of questions that wanted to fly from her mouth at them. She held her clenched fists at her side, barely noticing she had started to shake.

Her eyes flickered to Asura, and he gave her a soft smile.

"Sakura," he said her name softly, his voice happy.

Sakura blinked, her shaking ceased.

"H-hi," she stammered uncertainly.

The brothers stood before them, fully formed now and Sakura didn't know what to say or do.

For a moment there was silence, as they each regarded each other carefully.

Asura cleared his throat and looked at his brother.

"It's been a while since I've seen you, brother."

Indra nodded, slowly turning to look at Asura.

"Asura," he said in greeting, looking his brother up and down.

Asura frowned and gave Indra a playfully too-hard clap on his shoulder.

"Lighten up, Indra. We're dead already, you know?"

Indra raised an eyebrow at Asura.

"Well observed," he commented dryly. "Putting your big head to use, I see."

Asura made a face.

"Why do you always have to be so difficult? Haven't we put our differences aside now?"

His tone was a little pleaded, making Sakura wonder how much he needed the verbal confirmation.

Indra paused.

"We have." He looked over at Asura and smirked. "But you're still my foolish little brother."

Asura stared at him for a moment before he broke out in a blinding smile, and Indra's smirk widened almost imperceptibly.

Itachi cleared his throat.

"As nice an experience as this might be for you, we have some questions," he said flatly and unimpressed.

Asura and Indra both looked over at him and Sakura. Asura's smile faded and his face became set in a more serious expression. Sakura glanced at Itachi and saw that he was staring blankly at Indra, who returned his look evenly.

"Where are we?" Sakura asked nervously, breaking the growing tension between the two.

Asura rubbed the back of his neck thoughtfully.

"Well…"

Sakura waited, but he never finished. Indra gave an impatient sigh.

"We are on a plane of existence between the world of the living and the Pure Lands. A chakra plane," he explained swiftly. "It is the only place we can communicate like this."

"What he said," Asura grinned sheepishly, pointing a thumb at his brother.

He caught Sakura's eye and winked. She swallowed the growing lump in her throat and forced a small smile on her face. She saw a flash of concern in his eyes and averted her own.

"I believe it would be best for you to tell us why you have ripped us away from our lives and into the past," Itachi said, his voice dark with anger.

Sakura whipped her head to stare wide-eyed at him. She hadn't heard him use such strong language in a long time. He was angrier than she'd thought. He was glaring at the brothers.

There was a moment of silence before Asura spoke.

"We want - "

"I will explain," Indra cut him off. "After all, it was through my own misguided thoughts and actions that the world has been shaped the way it is."

"We are both to blame," Asura interjected passionately.

"No," Indra said firmly. "I was wrong. I allowed my own ambitions and ego to cloud my judgment, and forget the lessons from our father. However," he looked at Itachi and Sakura with a new seriousness. "It was not until the battle against our Grandmother and her… Zetsu - " he spat the name with disgust " - that I truly understood. Sasuke Uchiha was able to break the… curse of my will because of the undeniable bonds he held within his heart with his friends and family. For that," he bowed his head slightly to Itachi and Sakura, "I am truly grateful."

"You haven't explained anything that we couldn't have already guessed," Sakura said. "And you haven't answered Itachi's question either."

"I am not finished," Indra replied coolly.

Sakura folded her arms over her chest and waited, portraying impatience, whilst Itachi stood statue-still.

"We… It is my wish, and reason for your presence in this time that you might prevent the future revival of my grandmother. Knowing what I do now, about the true nature of my own foolishness, it all might have been prevented if Madara was allowed to be free."

A heavy silence settled over the four of them.

"You want us to fix your mistakes?" Sakura asked quietly.

She looked at Indra and Asura, who both returned level and unreadable looks. She felt something snap within her.

"It was finished!" She cried. "We sealed Kaguya. Sasuke was finally coming home to us! Why would you take us away from that!?"

"It should never have gotten that far," Indra replied quietly.

"You shouldn't have been so easily manipulated by Zetsu!" Sakura yelled. "Everything… Everything - all the pain and the war and death! It's your fault! Yours!"

Indra flinched away from her words, and Asura took a step to move in front of Sakura, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. She snapped her glare to him.

"Naruto may have been your reincarnation, but he's better than you! He would never have done something like this. Never."

Her voice was dangerously low and angry, her body trembled with the anger and confusion and sadness she'd been repressing for weeks.

"Sakura."

Itachi's quiet voice cut through her mind, drawing her attention. She shrugged off Asura's hand, and he stepped back. A look of guilt and hurt on his face, but she couldn't find it in herself to care.

"Enough," Itachi said.

She grit her teeth and stayed quiet, though she was bursting to punch and kick and let loose on the brothers.

"What did you mean, Sakura, about Zetsu's manipulation?" Itachi asked her.

Sakura sniffed, and looked at him, furrowing her brow.

"Black Zetsu… Naruto said something about Black Zetsu…that he was the one who'd been manipulating the reincarnations of Indra over the centuries, trying to awaken the Rinnegan." She flashed her eyes to Indra. "I just assumed he'd been manipulated too."

Itachi looked thoughtful. Indra let out a small sigh.

"You are right, Sakura Haruno."

Even Asura looked at him with some surprise.

Sakura looked over at him with narrowed eyes.

"In my youth, I was visited by a dark creature, who fed me praise and used his words to twist my views on my father, my brother, my own self. I believed I was superior, that I could carry the burdens of the world alone." He looked at Asura. "It seems I was wrong, about many things."

"Took you long enough to figure it out," Asura said, his voice serious but with a light tone of teasing mixed within.

"So what exactly do you want us to do?" Sakura asked with irritation, interrupting their moment. "Why are we here? Madara isn't the same as Sasuke. The cycle of hatred or whatever isn't broken in him."

Asura shook his head.

"You keep forgetting something, Sakura," he said. "Chakra connects everything. Indra's will has been broken in your time, and our combined strength has brought you from that time into this time. Your presence in this time period is already changing things."

Sakura furrowed her brow.

"So Madara's… not going to go crazy?"

She couldn't help but feel a spark of hope. Maybe the war could be avoided after all. If Madara doesn't battle Hashirama and they become friends… it could change everything.

"Under the right circumstances, there's a possibility, I guess?"

Asura looked to Indra for confirmation who gave a small nod. Sakura looked at Itachi, who was looking at Indra's feet.

"Itachi?"

She tentatively called for his attention. He didn't respond to her.

"Why us?" He asked suddenly, looking up with at the brothers with intensity. "Why Sakura and myself?"

"Your bonds," Indra replied.

"You didn't just bond with Naruto and Sasuke. You bonded with us," Asura motioned between himself and Indra. "You bonded on a level so deep that we felt it."

Sakura felt shocked at the revelation.

"Unlike Naruto, Hashirama Senju has his brother and clan surrounding him. But, he doesn't have someone like you, Sakura," Asura said.

"Nor does Madara," Indra said, looking at Sakura. "They do not have a bridge between them. Left to themselves without your support, and the knowledge you were there, perhaps Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki may have found themselves in very different circumstances. There is only so much one can do alone."

Sakura didn't know what to say. It was maybe the greatest and hardest compliment she'd ever received. Her pride was deflated as quickly as it arose.

"And you, Itachi Uchiha," Indra continued. "Madara does not have someone who understands him completely. His brother, although very close to his heart, does not comprehend Madara. Your character, and the… Will of Asura that runs in your veins, is necessary to help him keep the true and righteous course."

"So you want us to be friends with them?" Sakura asked flatly. "You stole our lives to make us be friends with them?" Her voice edged into incredulity.

Asura gave a small, regretful chuckle.

"Yes, but also, no. There is a task much greater and more dangerous we request of you two."

Sakura felt apprehension seize her.

"What is it?"

"Zetsu," Indra said, his voice venomous. "His poison must be stopped from spreading before it is too late for Madara."

"You want us to kill him," Itachi stated.

"You cannot," Indra replied. "He must be sealed. Permanently."

"Will you take us back to our time when we are finished?" Sakura asked.

All three of them looked at her, and a pained expression crossed the faces of both Asura and Indra. Sakura felt her stomach drop. She remembered how Itachi avoided answering her questions about home directly. How he looked at her when she brought it up. The realisation hit her like a chakra-filled punch to her heart.

"We're not going home."

Her voice was little more than a wisp of air.

"The future you came from has changed. Even since you arrived, it is distorted and the past you know doesn't exist the same. It is possible…" Indra trailed off, looking away.

Sakura stalked right in front of him, reached up and tugged his chin to look directly at her tear-filled eyes.

"You look at me when you tell me," she hissed through gritted teeth. "What's possible?" She demanded.

He looked her directly and unflinchingly in her eyes.

"It is possible your life and your friend's lives will no longer exist."

Sakura stared at him for a moment. His eyes reminded her so much of Sasuke, she felt her chest start to burn and hollow out. Tears slipped out of her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. She jerkily released his chin and looked away.

"Sakura," Asura reached out for her, but she slapped his hand away.

"It will be done," Itachi said, emotionlessly.

Sakura raised her chin and sniffed. She wanted to deny it. She wanted to scream that it wouldn't be. But she couldn't, she knew she could never live with herself if she didn't at least try, try for a better future when she had the chance.

"It won't be done for you," she said instead. "Remember that. It won't be done for you. Maybe you say we bonded with the two of you," she looked over at them. "But in my heart, I do this for Naruto and for Sasuke. They are my brothers, and you are not them."

Sakura walked away from them, forgetting they were stuck in a different place, into the blackness that surrounded them.

"We will be watching over you, Sakura and Itachi," Asura called to her.

"I am sorry."

Indra's voice faded away, so quiet she almost didn't hear it. Sakura stopped to snap that she didn't want his apologies, but saw that they were suddenly standing inside the temple again.

She turned to look at Itachi, who was staring solemnly ahead. Her fingertips reached out to brush his arm, and in a quick move, he pulled her into a tight embrace and Sakura cried into his shirt.

It was just the two of them now. She had never felt more alone.