2 Years Earlier
Staring into the polished surface of the mirror, Itachi Uchiha, prodigy of the Uchiha Clan, contemplated how much his appearance had changed.
Gone were the black and red of his clan, replaced at every opportunity with the light, inexpressive grey that had always reminded him of clouded skies. Where before he had always been able to see the subtle creases of his face, now there was only a white mask, clean and empty of all identity.
Had he not been the one gazing, he would not have recognized the man in the image as himself at all.
It was... disturbing.
As he turned away from the mirror, he could feel the cloth rustling underneath the thick cloak. The sliding, subtle pressures in so many places, as his hidden armor gave way for movement.
There was a knock at the door.
"May I come in?" His mother called, a little hesitantly. When it had been a few moments, still without response, she slowly pushed open the door.
Itachi sat slumped on the edge of his small bed, and his dark hair hung over his face as he stared down at the pale mask clutched in his hands.
The knuckles were white.
"Mother," he said, his voice shaking ever so slightly. She walked over and sat down next to him on the soft surface, and he gripped her hand with a sort of silent desperation.
"I feel fear. I cannot speak of it, but the mission that approaches for me is one I do not know I can accomplish. I fear my... abilities, are insufficient."
She rubbed the back of his hand softly with her thumb, and smiled.
"Don't worry, Itachi. I have faith in you, and so does your father. I'm sure you'll be able to handle it, whatever it is."
He slumped even further forward, and tightened his grip on her hand.
"Mother..."
"This is unlike you, Itachi," she said, in slight reprimand. "You know there will always be a home for you here, don't you? No matter what the Hokage sends you off to do, you are our son. Don't forget that."
She stood up and walked, allowing the door to glide closed softly behind her, carefully ignoring Itachi's stray hand hanging after her.
Itachi bit off the words in his mouth, ready to call her wrong. To accuse her of lying to him.
She was wrong. There would be no home for him here. Not after this.
Not anywhere.
"Aren't wearing your mask either, huh?" a young woman asked playfully, as she ran a firm hand through her hair. Itachi ignored her, in favor of the wooden doors before him.
"He's not done yet, you know." Hana said, leaning back against the door. "I wouldn't interrupt. He's been in a poor mood all morning. Can't say why."
"Hm," was all Itachi said in acknowledgement.
She peered over at him, her sharp eyes narrowing.
"Something's off with you. I can smell it. Missed breakfast? Problems at home?"
Itachi said nothing, and somehow, that said even more.
"She wouldn't understand, would she?" a new voice said, full of contempt. Behind the porcelain mask, it wasn't hard to imagine the pale eyes and aristocratic features donning the face.
"Hiniku, back so soon?" Hana asked.
"Once again, your informality is astounding. It's truly a wonder that the Lord Hokage has you on this squad at all." His voice was brittle and cold, a characteristic shared by many of the Hyuuga clan.
"Maybe I'm just that good."
"Unlikely. Still, we will have to see what our upcoming mission is. It is most suspicious we haven't been sent any details yet."
The wooden doors opened with a creak, and a small nervous-looking Chunin sidled out, looking like the devil was on his heels. This was not an uncommon event.
"Come," Danzo said curtly, his tone hinting at irritation. The three marched in, Hiniku brushing past Itachi with more than a little roughness. The Uchiha ignored this.
Danzo dismissed his regular air of dominance in favor of plain irritation. His head was supported by a single hand, and his single dark eye looked murderous.
"Itachi," he said immediately. "I cannot help but notice you are not wearing your mask. It did come with your armor, yes?"
"Yes," Itachi replied without tone.
The Hokage's eye narrowed.
"Explain."
"I was not aware I was under obligation to wear it," Itachi said honestly. "And, I felt it would make me more relatable to the citizens if my face were visible."
"How relatable you are is of little concern, as are the civilians. This is uncommon for you, Itachi. I trust you are prepared for the mission at hand."
"Yes, Lord Hokage."
"Yes to what?"
"I am prepared."
"Are you?"
Itachi stood silently for several moments. The tension in the room was like nails run across chalkboard. Hana was looking between the Hokage and young Uchiha in something between confusion and sympathy.
Hiniku's face was invisible, but it wasn't hard to imagine a smirk.
Finally, Danzo leaned back in his chair, rubbing his forehead in irritation. "We will discuss this later in private, Itachi. Hana, I expect you to be wearing your mask the next time I look at you."
Itachi didn't need to look back to know it was on her face. Still, he could visualize her look of worry. The way she creased her forehead would be forever imprinted into his mind.
Such was the fate of those who wielded the Sharingan.
"Now then. The next mission for your squad will not be a publicity tool like you have grown accustomed to. At least, not in the same way. I have little need right now for the village to see any of your faces. From henceforth, you are to wear your armor at all times and follow ordinary Root Procedures. Be visible only when necessary, and avoid contact with your families until further orders."
"But-" Hana cut in, before realizing her mistake.
"Watch your tongue, girl, or have you forgotten what your purpose here is? You forsook all those things when you joined this organization, or have your previous few missions made you forget that fact?"
Danzo's gaze was like a spotlight, and Hana took an unconscious step back.
"I require absolute loyalty from each of you for this mission. If you are unable to provide that, then there are exactly two ways out of this organization, and neither will benefit you or this village. Do you understand?"
"Lord Hokage."
"What." Danzo glared at Itachi again. "I have little patience for your moral quibbles right now Itachi. Your clan has tormented this village for too long. Even your actions do not redeem them entirely."
"Lord Hokage, Hana Inuzuka is operating with only the best intentions towards the village. It is my understanding that she will be expected home tonight; something her younger brother is looking forward to. A failure to appear may lead to suspicions which will be detrimental to the mission at hand. I am sure this fact was merely a slight oversight by some of your members."
Danzo's look promised future retribution. Such blatant insubordination guaranteed it.
"Get out," he growled. "Not you, Itachi. I have to speak with you."
Hana looked back one last time, before allowing the wooden doors to slide closed, and the various seal matrixes to resume once more.
Danzo reached back behind him, and slowly closed each of the windows individually, his aged hand running through the motions with meticulous and deadly care.
Itachi stood silently as this took place.
Finally, the Hokage turned back, and allowed himself to slump in the stiff wooden chair. His single eye no longer showed anger. Only exhaustion, and... guilt?
"Do you understand why you must carry out this mission, Itachi?" Danzo asked.
"I was informed by a messenger that it was necessary for village security-"
"No. Of course not. You were informed of nothing. There was a reason for this. I felt it would be better if I were to speak to you on this subject alone. Entirely alone."
Itachi flashed his Sharingan for an instant.
"Your guards have exited," he noted.
"Indeed. I do not doubt their loyalty or silence, but this is not a subject to be talked about lightly. It's an old habit of mine, I admit, but without them there's nothing left of me."
"I respectfully disagree, Lord Hokage."
"Ah. Of course you do. Hard to forget that idealism of yours. Reminds me of a man I once knew. He was unwilling to make difficult choices, and it cost him his life in the end."
Danzo locked eyes with the young Uchiha. "I have faith that you will not suffer the same mistake, but even now I am not sure."
"Lord Hokage. Have I not proven my loyalty to this village time and again?"
"Proven? Nothing remains constant in this world Itachi, and certainly not loyalty. I'm sure you've seen how unreliable such promises tend to be in the face of opposition."
"Perhaps it is because those loyalties are often made contradictory," Itachi replied.
Silence hung in the air.
"I am... sorry, to force this upon you." Danzo said. The constant, undercurrent of hatred Itachi saw so often in the man, seemed to lessen its flow just a bit.
This was an old man, with old traditions and ideals.
But no. That was wrong.
This was the Fifth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf.
"Your father and mother in collaboration have been planning a coup d'etat to seize control of the village. It was only thanks to your ally, Shisui, that we were able to discover this information at all."
Itachi felt his thoughts run into a steel wall. Shisui had brought this information? But how, and why-
"I'm sure you can see why I took this information seriously," Danzo said, echoing the Uchiha's thoughts. "Further investigation has revealed that this is due to heavy discontent among the clan. Perhaps you understand what it is I speak of?"
Itachi remembered the tense air that so often hung over the Compound. It was never something he could truly quantify. The reasons were obvious to see however. The Uchiha Police Force was little more than crowd management; it was one area where the ordinary Root members had proved seriously unable to perform, along with many other situations that required creativity and reactions to unpredicted events involving people.
It had taken the village a long time to forget the deaths.
"I do. However, I was unaware it had progressed to this level." Itachi said. "To force a coup, given our current military abilities-"
"Suicide, yes. The only explanation I've been able to imagine is the introduction of Branch Hyuuga into the Advanced Root Program."
"You still have not allowed the Police Force access?" Itachi said, a tinge of accusation permeating his words.
"These things take time, Itachi. The Branch Hyuuga are already easily controlled, and you know the importance of maintaining the sanctity of our highest levels. Imagine if this had been planned while they permeated our forces!"
"Perhaps, Lord Hokage, it would not have happened at all."
"You don't know that Itachi, and I'm afraid you are biased on this matter. The Uchiha have always had a natural inclination towards volatile emotions. I've seen it too many times to disagree with the conclusion."
"And what of me?"
"I don't know how you've succeeded, Itachi. It still pierces through at times, but you've learned, trained to quell your heart, without the loss of your exceptional abilities, much like myself. It is what makes you a Shinobi above all others."
Danzo's expression softened somewhat.
"Indeed, you are in many ways the reason I have not taken military action yet. Your mastery of your mind has always seemed illusionary to me, I admit, but after all these years, I cannot truly doubt it. You've given me faith, Itachi, that the Uchiha can integrate fully into Konoha's foreign military, the way they were always meant to."
The soft expression fell away, and in its place, the man who had survived two Great Wars returned.
"But, I cannot rule a village on faith alone. It will be many, many years before such a thing is even attempted, and even then, a message has to be sent. Something that will end this, and all future rebellions."
Itachi felt his hand tremor ever so slightly.
"My father and mother. You plan to make an example of them."
It wasn't a question.
Danzo let out a breath, and tugged up the hem of his robe. "I know you have been training your Mangekyo, to a degree where you can direct and manage Amaterasu flames."
"You… would put this burden on me." Itachi said.
There was the slightest quivering in his voice, the only hint of the sudden shake that had echoed through his chest. "You would have me demonstrate-"
"Loyalty to the Village, above your clan." Danzo's eye narrowed. "If a coup is ever realized and attempted, you know the Uchiha will be eradicated. You've seen our capabilities. Tell me; does this rebellion have any possibility of success?"
Itachi knew the answer. He knew it in every corner of his mind, and at the same time, he hated it.
"No."
"There is no other option, Itachi. If you do not take up this burden, the destruction of the Uchiha is an inevitability. That includes your brother as well. I cannot harbor any boy who may seek vengeance against this village or its people, regardless of relation, and you know the Sharingan is too powerful a weapon to allow into the hands of our enemies."
Itachi stood silently, his eyes staring without seeing.
"They will know," he almost whispered.
"Yes."
"There are no other Uchiha with my capabilities."
"No. There are not."
"Only I can carry this burden."
Danzo's dark eye reflected ominously in the dim light.
"There is no one else, Itachi."
He looked down, and stared for an eternal moment at the white mask still clutched in his hand.
Then, with slow, careful deliberation,
Itachi lifted it up-
-and allowed it to slide down his face.
"Sasuke," Itachi said suddenly. From next to his brother, Sasuke looked up and away from the sidewalk with questioning eyes.
"What is it?"
"I have a very selfish request," he said. The teenager's eyes were downcast, and his dark, charcoal bangs made his eyes impossible to see.
"I would not ask this of you, but I do not know if I can do what I must otherwise."
"Sure. What do you need?" Sasuke said, feeling a little nervous.
"Forgive me."
Sasuke suddenly felt an overpowering exhaustion, and slipped into unconsciousness before he even knew he was falling. Itachi swept the boy into his arms, and in an instant, became invisible to the world.
He stepped through space and landed on the steps of the Konoha Hospital. The receptionist at the desk hurried over immediately, calling for staff who came rushing out with emergency materials.
"What's happened?" she demanded, beckoning over the arriving medical Shinobi. "What's going on?"
"Keep him safe."
It was all the dark-haired teen said, before he blew away in an illusion of crows, letting the boy fall gently to the floor.
The moon hung oppressively in the sky.
Itachi stood staring at the door to his home, his white mask reflecting a few stray beams of moonlight.
Beside him were two other Silents.
He opened the door without a sound.
The rhythmic sound of a blade meeting a cutting board hit his ears. His footsteps soundless, he stepped through an open doorway, seeing his mother bent over her work, sleeves pulled up and an apron over her clothes.
Itachi made his next step deliberately audible, and she turned, first in surprise, but then in a smile.
"You're home early, Itachi," she said. The young Uchiha didn't know how to respond, and so he maintained his silence, wondering how she had recognized him.
"Your father won't be back a while yet; he's still at the office," she said, looking him up and down.
He still had not moved.
Mikoto's hands were shaking slightly, making the tip of the blade quiver in the air.
"I.. suppose you already knew that, didn't you," she said softly.
Itachi's arm raised, slow as death, to grip the hilt of the tanto blade hidden beneath his cloak. For many moments, the only sound in the room was the metallic ring as it slowly slid out of its scabbard.
He whipped it out with a flick that sent the scabbard skittering down the hallway. Mikoto flinched at the sound, but then, seeming to mentally chide herself, calmed again.
"So," she murmured, looking at her trembling hands. "This… this is the end, then?"
Itachi took a step towards her.
"It's alright Itachi," she said, smiling at him.
Then, he was before her, his blade buried deep into her chest.
"Y-Your father and I," she forced out, still smiling a sad smile, even as blood trailed out of the corner of her mouth. "We'll always..."
A hand dipped in blood came up to cradle the side of Itachi's mask, smearing red just below his left eye.
Then, after what felt like an eternity, she slumped, her hand trailing two paths of blood down its side. It fell limply against her body.
Itachi let Mikoto's body fall against his, and almost without thought, he was on his knees, her blood staining the grey of his cloak, and her small form still slumped against him with his blade through her heart.
There he knelt, silent, for many minutes.
And underneath his mask, two rivers of blood flowed from his eyes.
He left his house in flames, dark and menacing in the night. Black curls of the eternal flame licked at its walls, and inside he knew, at the body of his mother.
Itachi's chest was soaked with blood, and the edges of his cloak were a dark, hideous red, stained from where it had pooled underneath him in those cruel moments.
The two other Silents remained, maintaining a simple genjutsu hiding the building from sight. At least, until it was time for the Clan to see it.
With a simple application of chakra enhancement, Itachi was in the air, floating batlike onto the field surrounding the Uchiha Police Station. His eyes briefly caught sight of the Konoha Hospital during his flight, and his heart calmed slightly.
He touched down on the grass, all color lost in the darkness, leaving only the silver reflections of the moon on thousands of small surfaces.
Three Silents stood watching him, but one tore forward, running in desperation. Then, the figure came to a stop, seeing the blood marring Itachi's form.
"You… you didn't…" Hana's voice whispered in horror.
Itachi turned away from her, and stalked towards the building before him, one of the Silents following. Itachi stared up at it, and the white moon hanging in the sky above, full and beautiful.
The Sharingan imprinted the image forever into his memory.
Building Secured. The other Silent communicated with a few flicks of its hand. Target in Office. Isolation. Unaware.
Itachi dismissed the being with a small flick of his Tanto Blade, still clutched in his hand, and continued his slow march.
An eternity later, he stepped through the door.
All lights had been eliminated. The building had few windows, and the only illuminating light came from the doorway Itachi stepped through. His form cast a menacing shadow before him as he walked, his blade still gleaming as blood dripped slowly from its tip.
Slowly, he stalked forward. Each step was a perfect rhythm never broken. He passed hallway after hallway, the darkness becoming more thick with every step.
Before him was a door, yellow light faintly gleaming in its wooden outline. Itachi brought it down with a flick of his wrist, a whirlwind of fire smashing into its surface and knocking it clear from its hinges.
The door blasted forward with a rush of hot air, clattering with a smash against the floor, and finally creaking to a stop just before a wooden desk.
Behind it, cloaked in the black and red of the Uchiha, Fugaku sat, his eyes glowing with the same light as the lanterns lit on the walls.
"So," the man muttered, his red eyes spinning at the sight of the blood marring his son's form.
"This is your choice then, Itachi." Fugaku said, his eyes as unreadable as the white mask they looked upon. From behind its polished white surface, Itachi felt his Mangekyo engrave every detail of his father's face into his memory.
Itachi's form was stiff and unmoving. There he stood, his grey blood-stained cloak blowing softly in an invisible breeze. His father's face turned down, casting his eyes out of view, but his face twisted into a slight smile.
"Very well. I am prepared."
The blade was through his chest in an instant. Itachi ripped it out, the silver edge slicing cleanly through bone and flesh before finally bursting through the black cloak.
Itachi whirled around the man, moving almost like a dance, and the blade came piercing backwards, striking through the same wound. He did not look as the body slumped lifelessly off its edge.
His mask came spinning off, as his gloved hand tore it off with a snap as the band holding it in place split against the back of his head.
Salt and blood were smeared all about his eyes. Itachi could not see it, but he felt the warm stickiness just as he felt the blade in his grip.
He forced his eyes closed. The memories whirled about his head, perfect clarity endlessly reflecting before his eyes. Every moment, and every detail as the blade had carved through his mother's form-
Itachi's teeth gritted so hard he heard a crack, and searing pain shot through his mouth.
He ignored it. It was nothing. NOTHING compared to the torture of seeing it, again and again and AGAIN-
Her smile flashed across his mind again, and he convulsed.
An agonized cry broke from his lips, and his hands came up to his face, the blade falling without a thought. His hands trembled with tension as he clutched at his head, willing it to be cast from his mind. Desperate for the images to be erased.
He didn't know how long he sat there, the scream pouring out of his lungs, and the blood flowing freely in his mouth, but he didn't care.
There was no thought.
There was only the agony of existence.
Itachi's eyes flashed open, and whirled into the black and red of the Mangekyo. In his mind, the images vanished, replaced by the endless details of the world brought in by the Sharingan. The grained floor, and the soft orange light were carved into his memory every moment and every instant.
The burden lifted from his mind, Itachi fell forward in exhaustion, and his Mangekyo bored into the floorboards before him, engraving it further into the corners of his mind, and the perfect images of his memory were kept at bay.
With a slight trembling, the pronged form of the Mangekyo pulled back into the three tomoes of the Sharingan. Itachi forced his way to his feet, and his tanto clattered against the floor with a metal ring as it slipped off his thigh.
They were gone, but he could feel the images pushing at the edges of his mind, waiting to flood back in the moment his eyes closed, and the instant his Sharingan faded away.
But for now, they were at bay.
Itachi cast his eyes into the Mangekyo once more, and looked back at his father. It was only for an instant, but the image was cast into his memory in perfect clarity before black flames engulfed the body, and poured across the floor like a wave of flame.
Itachi let it flow from his eye, looking across the wooden walls and seeing as the flames traced the pattern across the surface, burning eternally and casting the warm orange light into the silver-black reflections of Amaterasu.
He stepped out of the room, tracing the flames across every hallway wall, leaving no surface untouched, and as he did, blood flooded from his eye in a steady stream, weakening him and draining at his diminished strength.
And then, his sandals touched on grass, and his Mangekyo locked closed with a twist of the Sharingan.
He stood, paralyzed, staring at the silver-white reflections of the grass.
And the blood changed to salty tears.
His senses screamed at him as a body approached, but he did not move. All will had abandoned him. All his strength he had cast away.
Hana let him slump against her, and curved her arms around him even as the teenager began to shake.
"I," he said, grasping for thoughts that did not come.
For a moment, there was only the crackling sound of Amaterasu eating at the wooden building.
Then, there was a grunt.
It began to reverberate.
It grew louder, its pitch increasing and shaking in rhythmic patterns. It burst forth into a giggle, and then a laugh, until it was practically screamed at the air and it shook the very world.
Itachi looked up with his blood-red eyes, and they whirled as they dug into Hiniku's figure standing hunched in the pale moonlight.
Still the laughter poured out from the Silent, like an uncontrollable faucet. The teen's body seemed unable to contain it all, and it burst until there was no more air left in his lungs.
Massive, audible gasps followed, and Hiniku tore off the mask donning his face, letting his long dark hair fall out, and his Branch Seal become fully visible.
Then, his head whipped forward with a crack, as Itachi's fist dug deep into the Hyuuga's ribcage, and sent the entire body flying through the air, spiraling and rolling across the grass.
In an instant, Itachi's hand was at the boy's neck, and it took all the control he could muster to not tear out the Hyuuga's throat.
"WHY." Itachi ROARED at the fallen figure, his face contorted in an all-consuming rage, and his eyes as red as blood. Hiniku froze, something primal and instinctual within him recognizing his impending death. It took a few moments for the feeling to be overcome, and for his shaky smirk to reappear.
"Y-Your entire family died today, Itachi," he said with a manic grin that made his white eyes stretch open in madness.
"You killed them all."
Itachi gripped the figure's head, and brought their foreheads together with a crack.
"Tsukuyomi."
On a cross, the Hyuuga hung limply. An endless inverted expanse was the only scenery besides the figure of death before him, its red eyes glowing with the purest hatred.
"
Where."
Hiniku didn't answer at first. After five seconds, the screaming began. Then, Itachi tore every scrap of skin from his body, and sent piercing blades through every pain point he knew. They pierced through the precious Byakugan again and again, endlessly inflicting the pain Itachi felt in his heart.
He allowed not a second of rest.
Finally, after ten minutes of begging for release, Itachi let it stop.
"Where," he repeated again.
"Inside the building," Hiniku moaned desperately. "I...Inside-"
Itachi's eyes went wide. A coldness he had not felt even as his blade had pierced through his mother's heart welled up within him, and in the fluxuation, his Sharingan went spinning out of control.
He barely paid any notice as the illusion collapsed, sweeping Hiniku's fragile mind into its abyssal destruction.
The wall shattered in a spray of splinters and wood as Itachi smashed into it. Around him, the great spirit arms of Susanoo tore at every door within reach, bursting into existence without being called. The burning spirit of Itachi's very soul cut door after door down. Ripped from their hinges, they didn't even have the chance to hit the ground before Itachi was across the hallway, tearing down the next set with desperate fervor.
The burning of his soul sheltered his body from the flames, but Itachi was already at his edge. Susanoo's great form let out a primal roar, and collapsed into wisps of smoke. Itachi ignored the eternal flames licking at his legs, even as they scarred them beyond recognition, and snaked their way up his vulnerable form.
A small body, wrapped in a hospital blanket, lay on top of his father's desk. Itachi's cloak was on in just in time to catch the deadly black flames, which immediately began to dance across its grey surface.
Itachi ran, even as the dark fire curled its way under his armor, running underneath the steel plates, and raced across his naked skin beneath the cloth.
From the hole he had created, Itachi tumbled to the grass in a burst of black flame, and there was a crunch as his body hit the ground.
Atop his chest, Sasuke rolled down to the grass, and Hana pulled him away before the flames could touch his skin, even as his brother burned.
A moaning gasp curled from Itachi's open mouth, as the last of the air in his scorched lungs escaped.
Hana's claws cut through the black fabric, drawing blood as they pierced the already damaged skin underneath, but his chestplate was torn off, and the dark flames revealed.
"ITACHI. HOW DO I GET THEM- ITACHI!" She screamed at him. His Sharingan stared up at the great white orb in the sky, unseeing even in its clarity, the mind behind it already lost and unable to interpret the information.
Then, it faded, and there was only the reflection of the moon in his dark eyes.
On Itachi's skin, the crackling fires continued to curl on his body, the black and charred skin underneath giving way to muscle.
In desperation, she whipped her cloak at the flames, and their upper fringes blew off, the fire dimming as it was blown onto the grass.
Hana fanned at the flames with all the force she could muster, back and forth until they had left his body to writhe among the dark blades, dancing on their edges.
His chest rose and fell, almost unnoticably.
From behind her, Hana heard a rustling, and Hiniku's shaking hand clawed and pushed against the grass.
His mouth cracked open to speak, but no words escaped. His face was twisted in pain, and even his activated Byakugan seemed unable to focus on the ground.
He forced his way to his feet, taking a shaky stand.
"...D..Damned…. Uchiha.. ." He forced out, his pale eyes contorting with immeasurable rage. His hands burst into blue wisps of visible Chakra.
"...This… I," he said, his face still ghastly tense.
He flashed forward, cocking his hand back to strike. The chakra around his flat palm crackled into writhing, twisting chakra as his hatred overcame all control. The raw force of his spirit burst forth, no technique calling for it.
His wide eyes curved up into an insane pleasure.
Hana's clawed hand was only just able to bat his thrust aside before it could pierce through Itachi's skull.
"You," he hissed, all signs of sanity vanishing from his eyes, replaced only by a primal, desperate hatred.
Hiniku's eyes looked ready to burst as the Byakugan strained them to their maximum capacity. His chakra burst from his Tenketsu, cloaking him as his very soul poured out all it could muster.
There was no grace to his attacks. No strategy. No control. Only desperate swipes that burst skin and flesh where it met Hana's arms and chest, even as she raked desperately against the onslaught, and Hiniku's body became a patchwork of carved skin. A sideways hit sent her bicep bursting, and the bone beneath it into three pieces.
White bone jutted out from the dark fabric, as it cut through her skin. She let out a scream, and Hiniku's attacks increased tenfold, sending her chest into a deadly rhythm as hit after hit impacted her chest, and bent the metal chestplate far into her body.
Hiniku's arms continued to swipe at air for a second before he noticed his target was no longer standing.
Then, he screamed as well, a high pitched, tortured sound as the cloth shredded off his form fluttered to the ground, and blood began to well up from a hundred different cuts, all around his armor.
His brief chakra burst vanished, and the last of his life blew away in the wind. Deep within his body, a flickering flame of life sputtered as its last spark was cast out.
Hiniku died as he fell to his knees, a mind broken beyond repair, and a body without the will to live.
Hana laid on the grass, unable to move. Tears welled up in her eyes, and gently ran down the sides of her face, hitting the soil below. All feeling was lost, and thought impossible through the pain.
Her broken chest struggled, and fought for a few moments to drag air into collapsed lungs.
It was almost a minute later when her mind was truly empty, and something deep inside was lost.
Behind the four collapsed bodies, the last support for the Uchiha Station was consumed with a slow crack, and the building folded in on itself.
The genjutsu hiding the building was dropped.
And the Silents swept in like a flood.
"It seems, he was acting independently after all." Danzo said quietly. He leaned back a bit in his chair, and turned to look out the window with a dark eye.
On his hospital bed, Itachi traced the movement with his Sharingan.
"An intense jealousy seems to be the reason. Perhaps he believed he was benefitting his clan, or maybe it truly was just an emotional decision. In any case, with his mind in the state it is, there's no way to recover information from the corpse, but there is little doubt he was already mentally unstable."
For a second, there was no sound but the airy suction as Itachi drew breath from the respirator attached to his face, his red eyes reflecting in its curved plastic.
"What a disaster." Danzo muttered, his eye mouth twisting down into a grimace. "The attack has certainly had its intended effect. Shisui has stepped up in place of your father as the Clan Head, and appears to be dedicated to repairing damages between the Uchiha and this village. Still, I never imagined that this would be your undoing, Itachi."
Itachi's left hand came up, shaking as it did so. A long, translucent tube fell across his arm as he did, and the red stream flowing through it was disrupted.
Slowly, it formed a sign. Then, two more followed.
Danzo's face was unreadable.
"It will be your last time out of that bed, Itachi," he said, his tone still clouded. "Even then, it might not even be possible."
Another sign followed, and silence filled the small room.
"Yes. I suppose it doesn't matter anymore," Danzo said, his eye turning away from Itachi's prone figure.
With that, the Fifth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf stood from his chair, and walked quietly out of the room.
"The memories still haunt me, Shisui," Itachi said, taking another tentative step, and bringing his crutch forward.
His red eyes came to rest on a pair of tulips, bright and colorful within the rooftop garden. Around him, blossoms of all shapes and colors were visible, and to his Sharingan, they each seemed to hold endless color.
The chain-link fence rattled in the breeze.
"My Sharingan is the only thing that keeps them at bay. They flood back to me, in perfect clarity. I cannot endure them. Still, it is nothing less than I deserve."
The two teenagers stood in silence for a moment, while a summer breeze blew, and the scent of the flowers surrounded them.
"Itachi. I'm not sure how to tell you this," Shisui said, his fist clenching at his side. "I… I was there. I wanted to use it, to make them see reason, but you know how I've always felt about…"
Tears began to run from the Uchiha Head's remaining eye. At his ankles, flowers brushed gently against his cloak in an invisible breeze.
"I couldn't do it; not to your parents. I wasn't as strong as you, and because of that…"
His hand trembled from the tension.
"Because of that…"
Itachi's hand came to rest softly on the man's shaking shoulders.
"Danzo wouldn't let me try," Shisui bit out, his whole body shaking. "He didn't even listen. Even with my Sharingan, he refused to end the conflict peacefully. He… that-"
Shisui's hand came up to cover his remaining eye.
"I can't do this Itachi," he said, his voice cracking. "I'm still not as strong as you. If only I'd…"
His mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. Finally, he stopped, wiping away the tears.
"I failed everyone," Shisui muttered.
"No," Itachi said, squeezing his friend's shoulder ever so softly. Together they stood, staring at the grey clouds drifting across the sky.
Itachi's Mangekyo whirled, and the world twisted before him.
"No, Shisui. I failed."
