Before we begin, I'd love to take the moment and say that it was a hell of a challenge to try and understand WHY Orochimaru was hell-bent on saving Sasuke's life the way he did - I know what you all must have been thinking. He took advantage of Sasuke's pain and made him abandon his comrades and such, turned him into a monster - and then I reached the moment when Orochimaru returned later in season 15, and Sasuke owned his ass, showing him he wasn't the boy he and Itachi manipulated anymore. :D After that, having stopped early in season 18 (due to damned lack of more English dubs, but I'll gladly wait ;D), I've come to the idea that will present itself here.
Enjoy.
Chapter Twenty
Cure of the Heart
Wow...Sakura sure is scary when she's angry.
To see her standing against the notorious Snake Sage made his flesh creep as much as it hurt more than anything to see Sasuke in his brother's arms, human again but dying. His cheeks scalded as he couldn't control his emotions. Sasuke was in his big brother's embrace like he'd been in Naruto's all those years ago when Haku's lethal crystal ice jutsu encased them both.
Sasuke...you can't die. We just got you back. Hold in there, buddy...
The poison is extracted from Kimimaro. I know it is; I can smell it from where I am now. Who else with powerful regenerative abilities other than Orochimaru's prized bone-chiller?
Bone-chiller...you got me right there, Kurama. But speaking of chilling, Sasuke is -
Yes. He doesn't have long to live...but look at how the kunoichi is handling the serpent scum himself, Kurama pointed out with a rumble in his throat. She is standing up to him. She will follow through on her word. See if she will kill him for her lover if she must...
The kunai was at the snake's throat when she threatened his life. "You make one wrong move - and you die in a heartbeat by my hand," Sakura snarled, angling it so the handle was in the air and tempted to pierce that small area and let a little blood be drawn. Naruto could see the bloodthirsty glaze in those irises, like green lava.
"You really are like Tsunade, Sakura-chan," Orochimaru told her, eyes twinkling with his smile. Naruto bared his teeth, lips drawing back, before he let it relax. Yeah, she's Granny's protégé...just like I am Pervy Sage's... He stopped there, unsure if he should dare to bring Sasuke and this bastard into the mix -
"What happened between you and Sasuke was meant to be."
It all was, Pervy Sage.
Naruto looked into Itachi's gaze, seeing the closed eyelids and the shining of tears streaking his lined cheeks. Whereas those lines made Itachi look older, now he looked younger than he was as he wept over his dying baby brother...he shared Naruto's pain in fear of losing this one. His mind was on the whirls: Teme...don't you dare die on us...don't you leave Sakura like this...Sarada needs the father who made her...she doesn't deserve to grow up a loner like I did...
...but Hinata and I also promised Sakura.
Sasuke...you have a promise to keep yourself.
Suddenly, Sasuke's eyes opened. The obsidian irises were glazed over with visible excruciating pain, and he stifled another gasp. Now his gaze darted to his right, where Naruto hovered over him. If he was going to speak to him like a bastard again, then damn the pain he was in. Naruto planned on giving him more...
"Dobe...my baby..." he croaked, making blue eyes widened. He must be delirious enough that he suddenly was thinking about his daughter. He wanted to see Sarada, but she wasn't here. How could Naruto answer him when his friend was on the verge of death? How could he tell that to a father wanting to see his child one more time before -?
"I'm - sorry, Sasuke. She's safe with Hinata." To his surprise, a weak smile graced the younger Uchiha's features...and then he reached out feebly and took Naruto's hand into his.
"T-thank you," he breathed before closing his eyes once again.
Damn it, we are running out of time! "Sakura, if you're not going to kill the bastard, then we have to get a move on!" As if on cue, they were all startled by the appearances - or not-so-surprising appearances - of none other than Kakashi-Sensei, Captain Yamato, and Kisame as well as Sai on one of his birds, with Kabuto in front of him. If only they'd killed the four-eyed bastard before they got here, Naruto wished. "You guys made it in time!" He shifted off to the side so they could all take in the pitiful sight of Sasuke restored to human form, but weakening every minute that passed.
Orochimaru didn't put up a fight when he smiled at them all. "He won't make it without me," he told them all slyly, "because I have done this to him, after all." At the same time, several ANBU buzzed around him and Sakura. She lowered her weapon and stepped back - but not before leaving him a small but painful gash across his cheek. He hissed and flinched, but that was it. It made Naruto sniff a laugh to himself. Served him right, but if only she struck him in the balls; now THAT was scary for a woman to do to a man.
"Orochimaru," was the collection from all ANBU as they closed in on him, expecting him to put up a fight, but he only continued to smile and allow a pair of chakra-suppressing handcuffs be placed on him behind his back. He didn't break eye contact with Sakura at all; she regarded him with utter contempt and looked between the small gash she made on his cheek and the lingering dark blood on her blade which she put back without so much as cleaning it. The bloodlust remained in her eyes.
And now the attention was on... "Itachi and...Sasuke Uchiha." The dismay and surprise was clear in their voices before it was regained back to cool control, but Yamato stopped them all.
"The traitor himself is coming with us voluntarily. And his brother must be taken to Lady Hokage immediately."
One of the masked men wearing a fox mask snorted. "And pray his judgment will be passed on for betraying the Leaf Village...like his brother." Itachi gave no expression other than flaring his Sharingan eyes with clear hatred for the talk they were giving about his brother moreso than himself. The utter helplessness in his bloody gaze made Naruto remember his own sense of helplessness as he stood with the older Uchiha who carried Sasuke like a bride, the younger's head lolling against the strong, cloaked chest and releasing a soft breath of air.
Hang in there, Sasuke...just hang in there. Don't make me keep on begging. He followed behind his old sensei, with both teammates and their additional help - and Kisame had long since vanished from sight, however he did THAT - and both Kabuto and Orochimaru guarded with extreme care - with Itachi Uchiha carrying his dying brother in his arms in the lead. This was because he was all the more desperate to get Sasuke the help he needed, and also because he was not trusted to be behind them all.
Dare Naruto add he and Sakura were just as desperate?
~o~
The village crowded with horror at the sight they were greeted with when ANBU arrived with Orochimaru - one of their greatest adversaries who almost completely destroyed their beloved village on more than one occasion - and his right hand in tow, guarded heavily while Kakashi Hatake's team were right behind none other than the traitorous Itachi Uchiha -
- with his brother Sasuke in his arms. Losing his grip on life, they could see. Some were elated to see that; they spited him for his betrayal, leaving them all, and who knew what uproar would come when - if - he was successfully revived. He hadn't even tried anything to attack them directly, but the fact he'd abandoned them for the S-rank rogue Sannin himself. But they didn't know he had been the fearsome "Man-Beast of the Wild"...
Thank the stars Lady Tsunade destroyed the semen match before today, for him. She had the faith I do that we could get to today. Wrong as it was, everyone goes to hell at some point. Shinobi are never perfect. Sakura stared at the back of Itachi's head, dismayed that the awaited day had come for him now. Her face pained with the stoic expression she put on for all to see. Naruto was trying not to crack either. Yamato and Sai were somber as ever, and Kakashi's revealing eye was enough to tell her how he was taking everything.
The uproar began that it made her erupt inside and tried not to let loose the wild mama side of her.
"..traitor!"
"Murderer!"
"MONSTER!"
Sakura drowned out every word and instead focused on the lolling head of Sasuke on the other side of his brother's body as Itachi carried him like a new bride across the threshold of the village. Itachi either ignored the spitting fire around him or he just pretended not to hear. Naruto leaned in to whisper to her.
"They're so ignorant," he hissed. "Only we can't do a damned thing about it, huh?" She sighed sharply and nodded. It is what it is, and we have to accept it. Once they passed the mixed reviewing crowd, they arrived at the gates to Hokage Tower where Lady Fifth herself and the medical team were waiting. She regarded Itachi with a wary eye as she motioned for the masked medical ninjas to pry his brother's body from his embrace, but not before he softly spoke some words to her which caused her brow to twitch with confusion and affirmation.
He's asking her to please save his brother. I'm not an idiot. She nodded to her sensei and joined, Orochimaru pausing in front of her momentarily, and Tsunade narrowed her eyes at both him and Kabuto. Sakura turned to look behind her and felt her heart crack at what she saw.
Itachi was being surrounded and bound with sealing tags as well as cuffs. He shared a brief look with her before his dark eyes, devoid of the Sharingan, were covered by the tags. A small smile was at one corner of his mouth. How could you smile at a time like this - or at anything like this?
The pained moan of her lover on the stretcher - tied at the ankles and wrists in addition - made her look back down at Sasuke's face, and she did the honors of pulling the oxygen mask over his face. She wanted so much to touch his forehead or run her fingers through his hair, back to its original raven, still wild and spiky but now reaching his shoulders. If she did that, she'd receive the backlash. Sarada did not deserve shamed parents, and she didn't need to have the treatment turned on her.
What am I going to tell her when she grows up?
Sakura put the big, terrible question to the back of her mind so she could focus on her man and father of their child.
~o~
His vision was covered by sealing tags, and he had one around his cuffed wrists so he wasn't a major threat. Uncomfortable as it was, he welcomed it but knew they would remain over his eyes when he would be taken to confinement. They made sure to take the precaution and ensure his "malevolent" Sharingan wasn't active. Like I have intentions to spring free - or if Kisame would have it in himself to slip in undetected and bring me away. But he wouldn't disrespect my wishes when I say I am done running.
Kisame, it was an honor to be your partner.
He was never one for sappy sentimentality, but the shark man would tell him it had also been an honor. Now he would go wherever the wind took him.
Itachi found himself stopping, having not uttered a word or even responded to the coldest, cruelest things he heard spoken about himself - but he came extra close to losing his cool at half the things said about Sasuke. They are saying he deserves to be locked up with me, he should be banished...he should be confined for the rest of his life until his corpse is found with mine. He gritted his teeth, clenching his fists at the same time. He dare not breathe a word to Kakashi or even Yamato; neither man trusted him, not that he wanted them to, but a long time ago, he considered the Copy Ninja a friend in ANBU...
"Itachi Uchiha - about time." Ibiki Morino. "Take him in and keep those tags on his eyes. We can't have him putting our best in that psychological nightmare of his, can we?" he sneered to the rest. Itachi swallowed, keeping himself together. The wrist cuffs were released, but he soon found himself chained to the wall and placed with more sealing tags. He was that much of a menace in their eyes. He didn't resist, didn't send a fiery remark - he just let them bind him and inform him that in three days he would be taken to interrogation and be under Yamanaka's mental probing jutsu.
They will find out the truth. They'll know everything.
Now Itachi could feel his blood running cold. As soon as his jailers and eventual interrogators - and the one he could maybe still consider a friend even if the other didn't - were gone, he succumbed to the rising dam. He felt the burning streaks of salt burn his cheeks, and he bowed his head forward to sob quietly. His chains rattled as he drew his knees to his chest, having been stripped of his Akatsuki cloak and his scratched headband which earned a sneer of his treachery and defilement, and let himself drown in fear for the entire village once again...and for his beloved otouto.
~o~
Three very interesting fugitives finally taken in - interesting depending on each one. First of all, the one whom she once cared about as a friend before he turned and murdered their sensei, wreaked havoc on this village she loved, and nearly killed her and Naruto as well as Jiraiya and Shizune - both him and that four-eyed runt of his would both be behind bars under TIGHT security damned good and well after this...
By "this", she referred to Sasuke Uchiha himself. Having ordered Shizune to shred the recorded proof of the semen match months ago, she knew she'd condemned herself for this. But now that Ibiki Morino intended to interrogate him, she had to suppress a heavy breath. Sasuke would not be protected once the scarred man found what he was looking for through Inoichi Yamanaka, and the Snail Princess knew what it would do to Naruto and Sakura. She knew her hands would be tied - and he was not the only one subjected.
Itachi Uchiha is finally locked up. But what he asked of me...
"Please protect my brother however you can, Lady Fifth."
I have no reason to trust him. How can I, when he slaughtered his entire clan and betrayed us all, joined the Akatsuki...?
Tsunade pursed her lips as she pondered this. Why would one of Konoha's most notorious, lethal fugitives ask her to...? She stopped her train of thought there as she downed down her second cup of sake. Shizune had frowned as she was prone to, but the woman needed it because of the progress made thus far with Sasuke Uchiha in the emergency ward today. Orochimaru and Kabuto assisted and was kept under lock and key during night hours. Shizune threatened both pairs of balls if one of them tried anything outside operation and examination of the dying young Uchiha.
His organs have only a few months to survive - notably the kidneys and stomach contents. This means a very complex organ transplant; we'd have to get a legal means to obtain what he needs, but that would take months. Orochimaru said he has only three months to live. Unless he can conjure up some forbidden miracle to get Sasuke's donor...
She exhaled sharply. Just...for once...could he be the man she knew a long time ago and show even a small amount of compassion...? Sakura reminds me of myself, Naruto is Jiraiya, so Sasuke must remind Orochimaru of himself...I hope that, deep down, that snake cares about him...I just want to believe it so much. She clenched her fists before herself, on the verge of crushing the cup in her grasp.
Back to the elder brother now who was currently in detention for three days until Ibiki would bring in the mental prober himself, Ino's father - and the Hokage had to stop herself from going down the wrong path. Panicking never got anything right.
The night was settling in by this time she was broken out and disturbed by severe knocking on the door. Growling, she yelled for whoever was on the other side to come in - and she had to admit she was stunned by the surprise visitor. "Konohamaru, what brings you here at this time?"
The grandson of her sensei collapsed to his knees, apparently after exhaustion from running. In his hands was a book - was it a journal? She frowned and stood from behind her desk to walk around to him. Behind him was none other than the two ANBU guards whom he had to scream and get through to her now. "Lady Hokage," the young man panted, and behind him, his two friends were watching with wide, eager eyes to see how events would play out. Konohamaru wiped his sweaty brow with one hand and extended the book to her. Tsunade took it from him and read the cover; a journal it was, and it belonged to Sarutobi himself. She noted the purple silk mark, then looked at Konohamaru when he spoke again, clearing his throat.
"Itachi Uchiha is innocent. Just read what my grandpa wrote in the marked spot..."
~o~
When she returned home at nightfall, Naruto and Hinata were waiting for her at her apartment. She really needed to see them after spending hours dealing with Orochimaru himself and her Sasuke being placed to machines and attached to tubes, the oxygen mask aiding in his oxygenation. But machine work and artificial liquids could only do so much...and in the end, an organ donor was in order.
Stomach...
Kidneys...
And he has three months, according to Orochimaru. We need compatible donors. We may never get them in time.
What was worse: she loathed being in the presence of the man who did this to Sasuke. If only he'd - if only he had done more than one success, then Sasuke would still be able to survive. But then she'd overheard some of the staff whispering to each other that Ibiki Morino planned to "question" Sasuke as soon as he recovered - but that was an if, and the man was aware of that. First, his focus was on Itachi who was locked up at this very moment. Sakura knew she couldn't visit without rousing suspicions.
She knew that everything was over. For her...for Sasuke...for Itachi...for all of them. It was hopeless. Once the truth about the "Man-Beast" was out, Sasuke would be imprisoned until he died or be executed. Her stomach rolled; once again, she was going to have to tell their daughter when she grew up...Sarada would be tainted by everyone around her because her father had been a "monster". Her stomach eroded. As for the mother herself, she would be called a whore. Her reputation was shattered; she knew this long before the day would come...
"It's finished," Hinata told her sadly, seeing it all in her eyes. She gently rocked Sarada, causing her to grunt and pump her little fists. "Sasuke..."
Sakura slumped into a chair and stared numbly ahead. "He's dying, and three months isn't enough to get organ donors," she said, barely audible to her own ears. "And when Ibiki Morino's team gets their hands on his psyche, they'll see it all..." And he'll be taken away from his own family, the only one he has left. Even if he does make it alive, the village will shun him and treat him no better than they once treated Naruto.
Naruto slumped forward beside Hinata, face in his hands. "Yeah," he moaned, "we lose him after only just getting him back. Now the poor kid..." He stopped himself then and there. "Damn that bastard - and damn the ones who made Itachi as the bad guy! Then none of this would have happened to Sasuke!"
Sakura Haruno wasn't a diplomat, but she knew this: But Itachi did prevent Konoha from falling into the hands of the Uchiha. It would have spelled disaster for us all...why does everything have to be such shades of gray? It's not black and white, but it's so complicated. I want to say yes, Naruto, I agree with you...but it's been done. A ninja is one who endures no matter what. But why did it feel like those words they had been taught since they were young children were nothing but an old worn-out article of clothing?
She found herself remembering when she had to speak to Orochimaru before he was taken away. She had to know...
"Why are you so keen to save Sasuke? You still want him as your next body? Are you still in your delusions, snake? He's dying because of you!"
"Yes, I will not deny it...but I am here because I don't wish to see him like this any longer, Sakura-chan. He reminds me too much of myself."
"Is that all - he reminds you of yourself? You and Sasuke have NOTHING in common -!"
"You are wrong once more, my dear. Your Sasuke and I have so much more in common. I did not only take advantage of his inner demons which he could not face that the pathetic swine of the Leaf could not advance him towards - look what happened when he did encounter his dear brother before Sasuke came to me of his own will. I did not savor the change that he never escaped; even if anyone else never made it before he, I was pleased that the second surviving Uchiha would survive the fatal Curse Mark. Sasuke is just like I am: a survivor. He wanted more, like me. He wanted to become stronger, more powerful so he could kill his brother, while I sought every jutsu and immortality so I could continue. We were doomed to this existence from the beginning. You need not agree with me, Sakura-chan, but I am telling the truth."
Oh, gods...in his own twisted way, he sees Sasuke as the son he never had. In a demented way, his own way...
Her head was beginning to pound, no matter how hard she tried to deny it. The snake said it as it was, vile and seductive as he was - no, she was by no means attracted to him. But that was what serpents did: they charmed and devoured the prey when it was too late. But he was right: Sasuke lived in darkness like he. And numbly, she nodded now, to herself and to him even though he wasn't before her like before. She then remembered how she and Sasuke paralleled to her sensei and the snake.
"He pierced my side, and I was willing to die for him."
"Tsunade put herself on my own blade trying to protect your friend Naruto - as I have said before, you are just like her."
Both my lady and myself placed our lives on the line for our friends and loved ones.
Sakura looked down at her baby in her arms, this miracle conceived between her and Sasuke, and wept happily, leaning down to kiss Sarada's forehead and inhaling her sweet skin. "Don't worry, baby - your daddy will make it." If Orochimaru can help conjure up a miracle...
~o~
"Itachi."
"Kakashi." He recognized the voice, surprised and wondering if it was time for the mental interrogation already. It had not even been a day or night, and he had passed out from emotional and mental exhaustion, fearing for Sasuke when he was alerted that he had a visitor. "What do you wish to get from me?" Obviously, no friendly or social calls, he thought wryly - and the response he got was not what he anticipated.
"Konohamaru Sarutobi discovered something very...vital about you and took it up with Lady Hokage last night. Why did you let yourself become a rogue, because you saved the entire village, Itachi?"
They know about the mission from the Elders...they know the truth...
His body doubled over, and a part of him felt like hacking up before he held himself together. This manner of discovering his secret mission that the Third Hokage, Danzo and the cynical counselors themselves...how did the late Sarutobi's grandson find out?! "How?" was all Itachi could ask, clenching his fists around his knees against his chest. "This was never supposed to be discovered..."
Another voice entered the air, none other than - "You're a savior to this village, and yet this pushes the boundaries of how a Shinobi should be!" Tsunade cut in. "You prevented another full-scale war, a possible dictatorship from your own clan - yet you let the burden turn you into a creature of darkness in the eyes of the rest of the world! You welcomed it long enough! We have the proof that you can return to us and clear your name!" she insisted vehemently.
"You don't understand, my lady," Itachi said wearily, feeling his loosened, unkempt hair fall on either side of his face, half masking him from her and Kakashi's sight. "If this gets out, the Uchiha name is tarnished. It was all to protect both the village and my little brother in hopes that he would never turn out like me or any of the arrogant members of our clan. I failed him, and look what became of him -" He was cut off heatedly by the passionate lady who took a couple steps into the cell, her heels clicking with her words.
"That matters not! You covered for that geezer Danzo and the others - but my own sensei who lost his say in the matter - and the attempt over this very village my grandfather had built with your ancestor! It was you who kept it from falling into the wrong hands! This is all going to end very soon, and you will not owe the village any more like this! You should be proud!"
But I am proud. I am proud this village continues to stand tall and strong - and I am proud of my little brother for finally becoming the man I wanted him to. I'm proud of him above all else - but I am disappointed in myself for allowing myself to be manipulated, to be used and never had a say in any matter. "I am," he said softly, "but I should die as penance. I let myself be taken in because I am tired of running. I have fulfilled a lifetime as a loyal Leaf Shinobi and then taken in as part of a criminal organization - neither of which was a choice in the matter of mine. Sasuke should have killed me, but he never could - as I could never bring myself to kill him. It was because I loved him, and even though he has not told me so, I know he still loves me as the kind and gentle older brother he once believed I was." When he was finished, he instantly became aware of another tear down his cheek that he was never aware of.
But the Lady Fifth herself was too ferocious a woman to be talked down to, too strong-willed to care about his pathetic attempts to remain locked up and allowed to die the traitor he never was. "Itachi Uchiha," she said hotly with much authority, "I am the Fifth Hokage, and I am not saying this just because of my title and position. This village survived based on a long-lived secret that ate away the one who saved it - and it even let his loved one he made loud and clear he would always protect no matter what rot away and paid for it. You really wish that any longer on Sasuke or anyone else? You wish to just die in a place like this?" She paused to sigh heavily.
"I am going to get my hands on those two remaining old fools if it's the last thing I do. Danzo is dead, as you must be aware, along with the one you asked to watch over your brother. Also, Sasuke is in good, capable hands; Sakura and I won't rest until his life is preserved. When that is done, the rest will be up to you."
"What are you talking about?" Oh, he knew, deep down, where this was going...
"In the near future, when I intend to step down as Hokage...I will put your name as the next candidate."
~o~
"...Sasuke...please...!"
"...don't kill me!"
"...you can stop if you want to..."
"...it hurts...!"
SHUT UP, SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UUUUUUUP!
His eyes flew open, his lungs constricting and his heart rapidly beating as he struggled to breathe. When he looked ahead, he saw a plain white, tiled ceiling. "Gods..." was all he could gasp out as he got himself under control. The tempo within his body was erratic as he continued to remember what he had been entrapped in, for what felt like an eternity...
The faces...
The voices...
...every single one of them...
KARIN. Her above all of the nameless ones.
His body shook with powerful waves, his throat tearing as he began to wail and sob. He couldn't control himself. There was no way to describe the pain he was in. He had been in and out of darkness and hungry decomposition for who knew how long. He was so cold, wishing there was a warm body to hold him, pitiful as the words of choice sounded, but it was true.
The pain is gone...it's done.
A hand touched him, his bare skin - soft fingers caressed his shoulder before squeezing to pull him out of his lamentations. Gasping sharply, he jerked to his left to gaze into a familiar pair of frightened green eyes. Next to them was familiar bright blues comically broadened as he'd never seen him like this. Sasuke found he was unable to control his thundering heartbeat, a hiccup he stifled turning into a throaty laugh.
He was gazing upon the faces of Naruto and Sakura - the ones who never gave up on him.
He remembered it now: being in the arms of Orochimaru before passing out - then awaking again to find himself in his brother's embrace, feeling chilled to his bones and weak, before finding himself holding the hand of Naruto, the one he could never kill, then begged to see his baby daughter whom the dobe promised was safe and away from here, from the monster before them...
...and now he was here, in a hospital bed with the loser and the mother of his child over him. Now his attention shifted to see the others: Shikamaru, Tenten, Neji and Hinata, Choji and Ino along with Sai in her hand, Lee, Shino, as well as Kiba and Akamaru?! The last time Sasuke saw that little white mutt, he was atop his master's head; now he'd grown to full wolf-like form. It made him want to laugh, but instead it made him cough a little. All of them regarded him with mixed expressions: half were happy to see him again, but half with Shikamaru included had no reason to trust him yet, and that was fine with him.
What happened? What had they done - no, what had Orochimaru done?! That bastard said he'd help...
Did it matter now? He was going to live. He had a reason to let a small smile show of gratitude - but he had to give something in return eventually.
"Sakura," he said finally, finding his voice. She bowed her head, holding his hand now, which he now noticed was strapped down, as were his ankles. Precaution, which made him snort. Of course, everyone had reasons to make sure he didn't try anything. But what had happened, and how long had it been...?"
"Teme, it's not even been three months, and you're alive!" Naruto told him with a beam, uncaring of the critical eyes of the crowd. "That snake did keep a good promise, and I never thought he would."
Shikamaru snorted. "Like I could trust a criminal like Orochimaru for anything like this - and after all these years, Sasuke Uchiha, don't expect a warm welcome from me."
"That's fine with me," Sasuke replied, returning the look. Neji narrowed his eyes, and Shino continued to look at him with unreadable, glaring sunglasses over his eyes. Tenten looked off to the side, unsure of what to do, and Lee was struggling to say something regarding youthful happiness and one of their own returning to them. Hinata gave him a soft smile and a brief wave, Ino a slight nod of the head as she couldn't get flirtatious because of her husband next to her. What could Sasuke say about his replacement who only returned a blank look to him?
Choji was busy munching on his favorite chips the Uchiha remembered from childhood. "Good to have you back," he said after a swallow. Sasuke nodded back before looking up at Sakura who instantly went into full Medical Ninja mode and explained that it had been difficult to get him a donor for stomach organs and kidneys, as well as cleansing his blood of lingering poison from the bone marrow extract, but he'd tuned out half of it, only relieved that it had been a success...but only half.
They'll take me in now. I have to answer for everything.
But what about his aniki? Itachi...
As if on cue with his thoughts, fate was on his side when he heard the voice of the one whom he once hated with a passion. The one who never paid attention to him, always flicked his forehead and said "forgive me" before running off - then took their family and clan away, left him as a...
"Otouto."
Itachi stood there with Kakashi and Yamato behind him - was that the Lady Hokage behind him, with the light shine of blonde hair? His brother was dressed in ordinary clothing, devoid of any prisoner bindings. It made the younger frown at him. What is going on...?
The sight of Sarada in his arms, wrapped in her blankets, cooing and grunting, made him alight. He felt a tear slip down his cheek. How long had he wanted to see her again, hold her? But how could he ask to have his arms released when the answer was obvious enough? "Itachi, let me see her," he said softly, before the baby was placed near his face. Her soft, cherubic face looked up at him, and her mouth opened with a toothless smile and a coo, reaching out to him again and touching his cheek. He closed his eyes, ignoring the others around him and concentrating only on his daughter's innocent, loving touch...
...and then it was over when Naruto had to speak up. "Well, Itachi, are you going to tell him the good news?"
"Naruto." His brother didn't raise his voice or growl, but the warning was there. Interest piqued, Sasuke opened his eyes again and looked at the unreadable conflict in Itachi's eyes. Now he deserved to know what happened while he was in a "coma".
"Itachi, what is he saying?" he demanded.
The older Uchiha closed his eyes and sighed. He held Sarada close to him for a moment before handing her over to her mother. He had the feeling the village knew the truth, but right now, he needed to hear what Itachi had to say. What else had he'd kept from his younger brother now? He felt old anger resurface the longer the elder continued to hold his silence... "ANSWER ME!"
"Sasuke..." Itachi's voice was softer than before. "...it's time I told you the truth about the night I took out every member of our clan..."
Sasuke felt like he was having an out-of-body experience the entire time Itachi told him the story, with the others around and standing with attention. Sakura had given Sarada to Naruto so she could help Tsunade adjust the tubes and liquids that kept the patient himself hydrated. Yamato and Kakashi were leaning against the wall and eyeing Itachi intently with weary disbelief in their eyes, and Sasuke knew why.
Naruto and Sakura knew all this time but never told anyone - or even ME. He didn't know whether to feel angry or betrayed. He was too confused right now, too deep in dismay. All these years he'd thought the Uchiha clan was proud and great, but now...
"...you're a hero, Itachi," he breathed out, more tears pouring down his cheeks. He did all of that to protect me and this village - but the ones who controlled it put him through this. Our father, the clan, the elders...but Itachi asked the Third to watch over me. He wanted me to take a different path from him...and he feels like he failed me.
"Yeah, your brother saved us all!" Lee agreed, clapping his hands, and soon the air was filled with concurring chatter that sounded like a buzz to Sasuke's senses...but one thing did make it to his ears crystal clear.
Itachi was going to be the village's next Hokage.
His heart began to cry rather than he himself. Seeing this, apparently, Lady Tsunade suddenly raised her voice and ordered everyone out - except herself, her apprentice and Itachi himself who was going to take the leader's mantle soon. Half of him wanted to object, because why should his brother continue to help and serve this village that caused him so much pain like this? Itachi did not owe anymore to this -
He looked up at Sakura who leaned in over him, and he breathed in her scent. She'd been amongst to help perform the hunt for his donations and the surgery, cleansed his impure system - but how could he be pure when his psyche recalled the depraved actions he committed even though it wasn't his own choice? He wanted to say he didn't deserve her...
Why was he thinking about this now after having awoken and revived? Human again, in her arms again and his brother cleared...but Itachi wasn't taking this better than he was. He wanted to remain rogue to keep the Uchiha name clean, but Sasuke didn't want this anymore. He wanted Itachi to be viewed as the liberator he was, not a demon. He cursed their father, cursed Danzo - cursed everyone who brought this on his beloved aniki. He just hoped Sarada wouldn't be tainted just because of this...she's an angel who will not be dragged to hell as her father had been.
Sasuke closed his eyes and leaned into Sakura's touch, wondering what would happen to him once he was cleared from the hospital and what Itachi was going to do now that he was a redeemed man.
God, I hope this chapter was worth the loads of spilling of blood, sweat and tears. :'D Especially with the attempts to save Sasuke's life, how it would be done - and of course, Sakura trying to understand why Orochimaru was so fixated on Sasuke besides wanting his body as the next host.
YAY, Sasuke lives! :D Oh, and if anyone is wondering if he truly regrets everything when he remembers the faces and cries of his victims before awaking, the answer is yes - and more on it will expand coming up, promise. He definitely has more to face before all ends well.
But Itachi above all else: I had been talking to my boyfriend and before then read a couple short fics that were never finished: "Resolution" by Empress of Enchantment, for one, which marvelously shows the depth of his thoughts as he butchered his clan, and when he met with Lord Third Sarutobi, the man commented how he would have been a great Fifth Hokage had things been different than they are now. Another was "The Return of the Weasel" by Uchiha Katane (which includes femNaruto he would have been paired with had the tale been completed), and when he was apprehended after returning willingly, he had come so close to becoming Fifth Hokage (because Tsunade had not yet arrived even though they were within that arc) by one or two more votes after telling the truth of the massacre.
I haven't yet come across any other fics where he DID get his chance, because he should have deserved that position after everything, right? But now Itachi gets his chance to become Lord SIXTH. :D Talk about poetic justice, wouldn't you say? Stay tuned for the epilogue. I don't need to bring up reviews, do I? ;D