I do not own Naruto!
Chapter Ten
Two more days passed with Naruto confined to his apartment under increased guard. There had been no sign of the masked man, but that had done little to quell Itachi's apprehension. Today was the first day of the new school year. Keeping Naruto locked down was no longer an option, nor could the PSD post inside the Academy. Itachi came up with an alternative, however. He sat down with Sasuke before school that morning.
"How would you like to help with an ANBU mission?"
Sasuke's eyes widened, "Really? I can help?"
Itachi handed him a small whistle, "I need you to stay alert while you're at school. If you see anything you think is suspicious, I want you to blow that whistle, then get somewhere safe as fast as you can."
"Is someone trying to hurt Naruto?" Sasuke guessed perceptively.
"It's possible."
Sasuke gripped the whistle tightly, a determined look on his face.
Itachi stayed close by Naruto until they reached the Academy. He directed his team to set up a loose perimeter around the building, then concealed himself on the roof of the school. The day was nerve-wracking. The Academy was a high traffic area, difficult to secure. Itachi had to investigate every time a member of his team signaled that someone was approaching. Despite dozens of false alarms, most of the day passed without incident.
School let out at the usual time. Itachi was scanning the crowd of students for a familiar orange shirt when a sharp whistle suddenly cut through the air, coming from the back of the Academy. In an instant, Itachi was moving. He jumped from the roof, landing just a few feet away from where Naruto and Sasuke stood with their backs against the wall, a black-cloaked masked man before them.
"Boys, run." Itachi ordered, drawing his ninjato.
"Itachi Uchiha," the man said, "It's a pleasure."
His voice was deep, and carried with it the same dark feeling that Itachi had sensed the night he first saw him. It gave him the chills, even more so than the revelation that the man somehow knew his name.
"Identify yourself." Itachi demanded.
"Gladly. I am Madara Uchiha."
Itachi's grip on his blade tightened, "Madara Uchiha is dead."
"If you know my name, then you know my power. Hashirama may have bested me once, but he never managed to finish the job. Now he is long dead, and I live on, so who is the victor in the end?"
Was it possible? Could this really be Madara Uchiha, the man who had founded the Leaf alongside the First Hokage, only to betray it? And if it was, what chance did Itachi stand against him?
"Regardless of who you are, you are a threat, and it is my duty to eliminate you." Itachi said, activating his Sharingan.
"Try if you'd like." the man said flippantly.
With his ninjato held defensively in Itachi's right hand, his left moved with blinding speed, flinging several shuriken at his opponent. Instead of flesh, Itachi heard the dull thunk of the shuriken embedding themselves into the wooden shed behind his target. Impossible. The man had not moved and Itachi never missed. Adrenaline flooded his veins and he ripped off his mask, rapidly forming a set of hand seals.
"Magen: Kasegui no Jutsu!"
The genjutsu, supplemented by his Sharingan, would completely immobilize a target, leaving them helpless. In the same moment, he was already forming another set of seals.
"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!"
Itachi unleashed an unpredictable volley of fireballs like a swarm of bees, almost impossible to evade even when not caught in a genjutsu. Escape should have been impossible. Itachi's Sharingan caught a glimpse of movement, just for an instant, and suddenly the man was behind him. Blinding pain ripped through Itachi's body, paralyzing him.
"You're skilled for one so young. Of course, I'd expect nothing less; you always did have talent. But this hindrance of yours has drawn more attention than I would have liked. You've cost me a lot of time, and now there are more pressing matters I must attend to. You've managed to buy yourself and the Jinchūriki a few years, but I look forward to the next time we meet."
Itachi's world went black.
Itachi floated in darkness for what seemed like an eternity. He heard nothing, saw nothing, and felt nothing. Then, from somewhere in the blackness, came a distant sound followed by another, and another, and another. It was a steady, rhythmic beep slowly growing closer and closer. Itachi gradually became aware of feeling returning to his limbs, unfortunately it was only pain. Finally, he opened his eyes. A plain white ceiling greeted him.
"Doctor, he's awake."
"Send a messenger to the Hokage."
Itachi's vision cleared just in time to be blinded by a penlight. Reflexively, he slapped a hand over his eyes.
"Looks like you're alright after all. You had us worried" said an aging man in a tan medical uniform.
"Where am I?" Itachi asked, his voice hoarse.
"The hospital. We weren't sure you were ever going to wake up."
"How long was I out?"
"About three days."
Itachi sat bolt upright, his body protesting painfully, "Sasuke and Naruto! Are they alright?"
"They're just fine." came the Hokage's voice from the door, "In fact, they're waiting outside."
Itachi gave a sigh of relief, easing back down onto the bed, "What happened?"
The doctor bowed to the Third and stepped out, closing the door behind him.
"I was hoping you could tell me." Sarutobi replied, "Naruto and Sasuke told me that they were attacked by the masked man, but that's all I know."
"I tried to fight him, but he was like nothing I've ever seen. It was as if nothing could touch him. What happened to the operatives who were supposed to be backing me up?"
Sarutobi looked uneasy, "…I don't know. They've disappeared."
"Disappeared? How do three trained ANBU operatives just disappear inside their own village?"
"I can't explain it." Sarutobi replied, "Were you able to gather any information about this man?"
"I found out who he…well, who he's claiming to be. He says he's… Madara Uchiha. I was close enough to see… He had a Sharingan."
Sarutobi rubbed his temples, "…Madara. This challenges a lot of preconceptions."
"He said he would be back, but it sounded as if we might have time, maybe a few years, to prepare. If he wasn't lying."
"I'm getting too old for this." Sarutobi sighed, "Get your rest, Itachi. You did well."
As soon as the Hokage left, four people all tried to squeeze through the door at once. Sasuke, Naruto, Hana, and Shisui were all at Itachi's bedside in the blink of an eye.
"Are you okay, Aniki?" Sasuke asked anxiously.
"I will be. Don't worry."
"You scared us, kid." said Shisui.
"I never thought I'd see you here." Hana added.
"I guess I'm not invincible." Itachi said with a half-hearted smile.
Naruto stepped forward, staring at the ground, "I'm sorry, Nii-san. This is my fault." He said quietly.
"No it's not. Naruto look at me. It's not your fault, do you understand?" Itachi told him firmly.
"…I don't ever want anybody to get hurt protecting me ever again. I'm gonna get stronger so I can protect my friends instead."
"I'll help you. I want to protect my friends too." Sasuke said.
Shisui had a distant smile, "I guess my brother's will is still alive."
It was several days before Itachi was released from the hospital, but as soon as he was discharged, he insisted on going right back to work. He threw himself into training. He had never been so outmatched by an enemy, and he was determined to even the field for the promised next encounter with the man who called himself Madara Uchiha.
Yep, Itachi got his ass kicked. He is only thirteen at this point, and doesn't have the Mangekyo. Poor kid didn't really stand much of a chance. I'm also trying to avoid the annoying "main character is an invincible god" issue that seems to plague a lot of fanfics. Also, if anyone was wondering why he took his mask off during the fight, it was so he could use fire release jutsus. It doesn't seem like you could do those with a mask on. Please review!