Labyrinthine—an Itachi & Sakura story
By: M. Shiroi
Disclaimer: Naruto and all its characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto.
INTERLUDE
TALES FROM THE VILLAGE OF THE LEAF
UCHIHA SASUKE
"Nii-san!" he yelled, eyes wide as he watched his older brother stand completely still in the middle of the road, eyes closed. Naruto grunted as he struggled to free himself, while Sakura kept him firmly in place. Cursing her perfect chakra control, he managed to make another step. "Did you do it?"
"Do what, Sasuke?" Sakura struggled to say, eyes wide with panic and fear as she looked directly at him. She hadn't looked at him like this for years… not since the first time his Cursed Seal activated in the Forest of Death. Despite his overwhelming rage and anguish and the deep-seated knowledge that the man in the mask hadn't lied to him; that his older brother had been the one to kill off his entire clan, Sasuke ceased struggling.
"He killed my clan," Sasuke said in response, unable to look her in the eye as he admitted what he knew to be the truth now. Memories of that fated day came flooding back at him; how Itachi had held him close to his chest, tears streaming over his cheeks as he cried silently. His own hands coming up to comfort his older brother, touching his cheeks until Itachi looked up, eyes wide with sorrow and pain.
Sakura was talking to Naruto, who was hissing something back at her, but the sound of it escaped him. All he could see was Itachi, mute, as Kakashi and Yamato decided on the best course of action. The betrayal ripped through him. Instead of ebbing away, it multiplied over and over into a cold rage that rendered him paralyzed.
Instead of seeing the people in front of him, he was bombarded with memories of the past decade and a half. His brother picking him up from the academy whenever he was free to treat him to one of his favorite snacks. Itachi signing the lease on the new apartment so they could move out of the haunted Uchiha district. Itachi never leaving his side when they hospitalized him after Orochimaru branded him. Itachi praying next to him as they left incense and flowers on their mother's grave. Itachi attending his jounin ceremony, looking so proud of him… it all distorted until all he could see was the blood-red moon that hung over the Uchiha district the day of the massacre, and Itachi running toward him just as he stumbled upon the first victims—his favorite aunt and uncle.
"Why?" he whispered, faintly realizing Kakashi had walked up to the three of them. "Why?" he said louder, raising his head to find Itachi still in the same place, Yamato keeping his eye on him. "Why?" he shouted, all the anger and sadness that had been bottled up for the last fourteen years surging to the surface as he ripped himself free of Naruto and Sakura, sprinting past Kakashi as Chidori formed in the palm of his hand. "Why?!" he roared, the sound of a thousand birds trailing after him.
Itachi made no move to defend himself. He stood in place, as if waiting for his younger brother to kill him, the tiniest emotion on his face telling Sasuke that somehow, Itachi had always expected for it to come down to this. Between one heartbeat and the next, Sasuke had placed himself within striking distance of Itachi. Far away, he could hear Sakura scream and Naruto shout loudly, but there was nothing he could see but his older brother.
'You and I are flesh and blood,' Itachi's voice echoed. 'I'm always going to be here for you, even if I'm only an obstacle for you to overcome. Even if you end up hating me. That is what big brothers are for.'
There was one second of hesitation as tears formed in his eyes.
The next, Kakashi had stepped in between them, grabbing his Chidori fueled arm while Yamato had grabbed Itachi's arm to move him aside. At his feet, wood had sprouted to stop his movements while Naruto had used his superior speed to grab his waist again.
"Sasuke," Kakashi said, voice steady. "We're taking you to the Fifth." He looked over his shoulder to Itachi. "Along with Itachi."
Tsunade looked up from her desk as Kakashi stepped inside. A smile formed on her face. "I heard you succeeded. Excellent job, Kaka—" her voice trailed off as Yamato stepped inside with Itachi, moving to one corner of the room while Sasuke was hauled off into a different corner by both Naruto and Sakura. Tsunade clicked her tongue. "Now what? Fighting amongst the Uchiha brothers?"
The six of them stood in silence. "Sasuke and Naruto have encountered someone in the Wind country who has shared some information regarding the Uchiha Massacre, it seems," Kakashi began. Sasuke watched the Fifth carefully, noting how her expression changed.
"Close the door," Tsunade said to Yamato.
"You knew," Sasuke said quietly, a humorless laugh on his lips. He had been played for a fool not only by his brother, but by his whole village. It was like Madara had said. They had all conspired to kill the Uchiha clan, and his older brother had only spared him.
Tsunade turned her gaze to him. "Yes," she said, as though letting out a long breath.
"And you let him stay," Sasuke whispered, eyes darting from the Fifth to her desk and then out the window that overlooked the village.
"Yes," Tsunade replied equally silently.
"With all due respect, this is something that happened before your time as Hokage," Yamato spoke, eyes trimmed on Tsunade as he returned to Itachi's side.
"This happened during the Third's reign," Itachi finally spoke; the sound of his voice sending a lance of pure hatred crawling through his skin. Sasuke gritted his teeth as he looked to Itachi, finding his older brother looking at Tsunade with a blank expression on his face. Yamato looked at him, eyebrow raised.
"So… It's true? You killed," his eyes drifted from Sasuke back to Itachi, "The Uchiha Clan?"
Itachi remained quiet for the longest time and looked directly at Sasuke. "Yes. Alongside the Akatsuki member we know as the 'masked man.'"
Naruto swore beside him, while Sasuke was sure he felt Sakura shake quietly. Whether it was of anger or sadness, he didn't know, nor did he care. The earth felt like it fell away from him, the air around him growing stifled as he listened to Itachi's quiet explanation; how the Uchiha clan was planning a coup d'état, how the months leading up to the Massacre he was a double-spy working for Danzou and the village elders and the Third as they searched for any way to avoid a massive civil war. How tensions escalated and how Danzou had given him an ultimatum; either revolt alongside the Uchiha and be cut down to the last man… or kill the clan and save his younger brother.
"Fuck," Yamato said after Itachi's voice trailed off. Kakashi stood in the middle of the room, lost in thought, while Naruto and Sakura held onto him tightly.
Tsunade sat in silence, hands folded over each other as she observed him and then Itachi, and then back to him. "Itachi. I assume you've thought about your course of action in case this truth was ever revealed to Sasuke?"
"I have, Hokage-sama," Itachi said. "I lay my life in Sasuke's hands."
Shocked, he looked up, eyes wide to meet his brother's look of resignation. "What?" he said, voice raw.
"I decided," Itachi spoke to him. "I decided to not let you die that night. You were too young to understand what was happening and I wouldn't be able to protect you otherwise… But there was one more reason. I wished to be judged by an Uchiha."
He inhaled sharply, nostrils flaring. "Then why? Why did you play at being my older brother? Why didn't you just tell me what you had done and let me decide right then and there?"
"Because I am selfish," Itachi replied candidly. "Because there were two paths in front of me; one of which I would show you what I had done and tell you to grow stronger and create an avenger so that, by the time you would be strong enough, there wouldn't be a choice. You would come for me." He paused. "The other path was this one."
"The path in which you lied to me for years?" Sasuke spat, taking a step forward. "In which you pretended to be a survivor and victim, but instead you wielded the sword that ran through my mother?"
Itachi didn't avert his eyes at that, and though Sasuke could clearly see the pain behind his brother's eyes, he didn't wish to see it. Fourteen years of his life, he had spent idolizing the man who had killed his entire clan. He felt sick to his stomach.
"Be that as it may, Itachi, I think you're sorely mistaken if you think I'll allow Sasuke to kill you right here as a retribution for orders you had received from Konoha," Tsunade interjected, standing from her chair. "Misguided," she spat out the word, "as they were."
"I'm not going to kill him," Sasuke interjected, ignoring the way everyone turned to him. "Let go," he said to Naruto and Sakura, who reluctantly let go of his arms. Kakashi turned as he walked past the silver-hair jounin, hands pocketed. But he knew Kakashi well enough—the man could stop him in an instant. Not that it mattered.
Sasuke stood in front of the man he had loved for his entire life, the man he would have happily laid down his life for, the one person he had trusted above anyone else; the one person he had always aspired to be like. Numbed by grief and pain, he looked Itachi in the eye, his body unwilling to be there, yet his heart unwilling to leave without speaking. "You took them from me—my parents, my clan, even my dreams. There is no value in killing the likes of you… Selfish brother, you should have let me die that day. Live a long and unsightly life. Run away from what you've done and cling to your pitiful life. And then, some day, when you understand what it's like to have dreams that can only exist in the past, come before me."
UCHIHA ITACHI
Time slipped away.
Itachi turned the key and stepped into his apartment, stepping into the darkened hallway. Once, Sasuke would have sat here waiting for him at the kitchen island if he knew Itachi would return from a mission soon. Now, all that awaited him was a tiny layer of dust in his usually immaculate house.
After silencing and dismissing Yamato and the rest of Team Seven, Tsunade had sent him on an S-rank mission that took him away from the village for an extended time. He had accepted without giving it a second thought, not even opting to visit his apartment before he left. There was no doubt in his mind that time was all he could give his brother right now.
Which is why wasn't a surprise to see the little wooden basket he kept filled with Sasuke's favorite tomatoes overgrown with mold. Or to see that the neat stack of scrolls with Sasuke's favorite techniques had gone missing.
Silently, he walked to the hallway that led to his room. As he dropped his bag and opened a window to let in the warm breeze, Itachi looked around the room, picking up the picture his mother had once snapped of the two Uchiha brothers; Sasuke was still a baby, sound asleep on his stomach while Itachi kept his arms wrapped around him. Mikoto had gushed over the picture for weeks after taking it.
He laid down the picture and undressed, stepping into the shower. Most of his journey had taken him through the Country of Snow and after into the Country of Iron; cold had seeped into his bones until he had been convinced he would never feel warm again. The hot water cascading over his limbs was a welcome distraction. He had spent most of his mission not thinking about the final confrontation with Sasuke, instead directing his anger at Madara and his own foolishness for thinking for even one moment that maybe Sasuke would never find out. That for once, he could live a happy and simple life together with his brother and…
A flash of a smile and pink hair came to him, but he banished the thought instantly.
Clutching at the wet tile, Itachi gritted his teeth as water pounded onto his back, forcing himself to think of his next steps. Sleep, breakfast, report to the Fifth and ask for another extended mission. Being in Konoha would bring no-one joy. He smiled humorlessly. 'I am running, Sasuke.'
As he dried himself off, Itachi looked into the mirror. His hair had grown over the last weeks, the defined tear troughs seemed to have almost deepened, his skin gaunt. He tied his hair together, walking out of his room, intending to air out the house before leaving again. The first door to his left caused him to falter in his tracks.
He stood quietly in front of it, as though the heart of the house lived in the very room, and he was afraid to disturb it altogether, allowing his fingers to trail the patterns of the wood. Dropping his digits to the cool, brass knob, he turned and opened Sasuke's room.
Predictably, it was empty.
Sasuke's drawers were opened and hanging out of the closet, bookcase clear, picture frames empty, and the collection of kunai and swords Sasuke had painstakingly taken care of had vanished. Even the soap and shampoo had disappeared from the bathroom.
There was one thing that Sasuke had left behind, and it cut Itachi deeper than he ever thought possible. Gao, the tiny dinosaur plush animal Itachi had once bought for him with his first genin paycheck and Sasuke had never been without during his childhood days, lay abandoned to his side beside the bed.
He sat down on the bed, plucking the plush animal off the floor and watched as a tear dropped onto the toy, and then another one. Clutching Gao into his hands, Itachi finally let himself cry for the first time since the confrontation, mourning for the family he had lost.
HATAKE KAKASHI
Time slipped away.
Kakashi did not like birthday parties.
But, he supposed, when one of your favorite students turns 20, the proper thing to do was to at least come by to say 'Happy Birthday'. Even when it turned out he was the only one without a birthday present and the only sober person at that party at that.
"Kakashi!" Sakura slurred at him from the middle of the table, looking good and sloshed already. Ino sat beside her, refilling the sake even as she signaled to the waiter for yet another round. In another booth, Lee was desperately trying to get a sip of the drink while Neji, Kiba and Gai tried their hardest to distract him from the alcohol.
"Yo," Kakashi said, raising a hand in greeting as he smiled at the pink-haired kunoichi. In the back, he spotted Naruto and Sasuke; not entirely surprising, the Uchiha wasn't feeling festive enough to join in. Undoubtedly Naruto had a hand in Sasuke even showing up. He really gave that kid too little credit.
"Grown-up table is here, Kakashi," Tsunade called from a different booth, a blush staining her cheeks. Shizune sat beside her, flashing him a hesitant smile. Sighing softly beneath his mask, Kakashi made his way to the two women.
"Another round!" Tsunade bellowed as he sat down.
"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune began hesitantly. "Should we—"
"Oh, we should," Tsunade grinned. She gave him a long sidelong glance. "I trust you've heard the rumors?"
Of course he had. After seven years, Tsunade had enough and was ready to pass on the robes to a younger Hokage. Rumor had it his name was in the mix, and from the look on Tsunade's face, she was all too eager to see him as Sixth Hokage. "I have," Kakashi with a deep sigh. "Though I still think Nara Shikaku would be the better choice."
"Nonsense. You're young, you're skilled, you're Minato's former student and really, sending that grey mop of yours out on a mission guarantees everybody will know Konoha is involved by the end of it," Tsunade said, slamming down another cup of sake.
"Grey… mop?" Kakashi asked, wounded.
Tsunade bellowed a laugh. "Don't look so petulant, Kakashi." She grew serious. "Before I forget… Uchiha Itachi is in town. He returned from a mission, but I'm not planning on sending him out on another one for a while. If Sasuke and Itachi are to co-exist here, they should see each other once in a while."
"Is that wise?" Kakashi asked, voice lowered to ensure Sakura wouldn't hear. She had busied herself worrying over Sasuke for the last months, making sure all her free time went to spending time with the Uchiha, whether to simply have drinks together with Naruto or to spar together at the training grounds. But Kakashi, and Yamato for that matter, had easily deduced what had been going on between the elder Uchiha brother and Sakura. The lingering looks, the teasing and the way Itachi had (in his own way) worried over Sakura had been enough for both jounin to read underneath the underneath.
"Honestly," Tsunade asked, clicking her tongue. "I don't know." She looked up, honey-colored eyes boring into his. "There is no proper protocol, nor did the Third apparently consider what the ramifications would be if Sasuke were to find out. As irritating as it is, this one, I'm playing by ear."
Kakashi nodded. "Understood."
"He's been gone for three extended missions now… About three months altogether… And Sasuke-kun is going out on missions again," Shizune said, fingers drumming on the table. "But Tsunade-sama is right, it is a hard call to make."
"One you'll thankfully be making sooner or later," Tsunade said.
"I'll make a terrible Hokage."
"You'll exceed at it, like you always have, Hatake," Tsunade said, pushing a sake cup to him. "Now drink up—first lesson in being Hokage is always having a drink within reach."
"Tsunade-sama…" Shizune moaned, burying her face into her hands.
"Did you forget?" a very drunk Sakura asked, peering at him through half-lidded eyes.
"Your birthday?" Kakashi asked innocently.
"Hmm," she said in response, before jabbing an elegant finger to the humble pile of gifts she had received from her friends. "Birthday gift."
Inwardly, Kakashi laughed. Sakura placed her hands on her hips and gave him the exact look of disappointment she used to give him whenever he showed up three hours late during their genin times. How he missed those simple days. Teasing three twelve-year-olds turned out to be a lot more fun than he originally expected. "What would you like?"
She chewed her lip as she thought it over, pushing a sweat-streaked strand of hair behind her ear. "Something fun."
He was stumped. "Something fun?"
Sakura crossed her arms and leaned in. "Princess carry."
He was really starting to regret coming to this party. "You want me to princess carry you?"
"No, no," Sakura hiccupped before bursting into uncontrollable laughter. Amused, Kakashi waited until her laughter abated. She concentrated, undoubtedly burning away some alcohol with her chakra. The look in her eyes became a smidge more lucid, enough for her to stand steadier on her feet. "You promised me."
Okay, perhaps not lucid enough to think, he concluded. "Promised what?"
"That I could princess carry you," Sakura said.
"I distinctly remember saying you could, but only if I was old and unable to hold my drink," Kakashi pointed out.
She lifted an unimpressed eyebrow.
He scratched the back of his neck.
Most of the party-goers had said their goodbyes. Naruto and Sasuke had ducked out early, as had Team 8. Shikamaru and Chouji had left after Tsunade was carried off by Shizune, leaving Sakura alone with Ino and himself. He had hoped to make a quick escape after Tsunade had left, but found himself unable to leave her without knowing she would make her way home safe. Sakura liked to have drinks, but he hadn't ever seen her as drunk as she was now.
"Please…?" Sakura asked, a small smile playing around her lips, head cocked to the side.
He relented. "One street."
Pumping her fist, Sakura closed the distance between them, flashing him a radiant grin. In one maneuver, she had snaked her arm around his legs and arms, dropping him rather elegantly into her—admittedly, ridiculously strong—arms. "I wish Naruto was here to see this," Sakura said to him, starting toward his apartment.
"One street," Kakashi repeated, wondering how he found himself in these situations. If his younger self could see him now… But the smile that lit up Sakura's face was almost worth it. Almost. She seemed happy for the first time in weeks, and if a small dent to his ego caused that… well, he'd happily make that trade.
They turned a corner onto a busier street adorned with red lanterns. "Street starts here," Sakura remarked smartly, instinctively clutching him closer, knowing full well he would try to break free of her inhumanly strong grasp.
"You're testing me, Sa-ku-ra," Kakashi said.
She laughed. "Can I tell you a secret?" she asked, looking down at him. Alcohol still reddened her cheeks, green eyes almost luminescent. He was almost afraid to answer her, but just as he opened his mouth, a familiar chakra source drew his attention. Sighing softly, Kakashi watched as the smile melted off Sakura's face as she looked at someone beyond him.
He turned his head.
Further down the street stood Uchiha Itachi, dressed in a jounin uniform without his flak jacket. He carried a large bag of groceries, eyes fixed on Sakura before they dropped to him, still being held close to Sakura. Even from this distance, Kakashi easily spotted the tiny upturn of Itachi's lips before he formed a seal, disappearing into a storm of leaves.
Slowly, Sakura set him down to the ground again. Thankful to have solid stone under his feet again, Kakashi turned to the younger woman, finding tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She shook silently in his arms as he cautiously wrapped an arm around her and transported her to her living room. "Kakashi…" she said, quiet as a mouse, though her voice trembled as she reached out to grasp his flak jacket. "This is a one in a lifetime favor… can you please stay a little longer? I don't want to be alone."
He said nothing, just held her as she began crying into his chest.
HARUNO SAKURA
Time slipped away.
"Sakura," Shizune called out to her. "Glad you could make it. I have to get ready for a surgery; we have a couple of ANBU who need to get their yearly physical done. Namie-san has the list, make your way to exam room six to get started." Shizune tucked her hair into her cap. "And thanks again for coming on your day off."
"My pleasure," Sakura said with a smile.
"Sakura-san," Namie greeted as she walked into the room with a few charts. "Shizune-san found another excuse to bring you in for physicals, hasn't she?" The nurse giggled.
"I fall for it every time," Sakura chuckled. In fact, she didn't oppose physical exams as much as the other doctors did. Most ANBU and jounin who came in for physicals absolutely loathed getting it done and were unwilling to cooperate… That is until they found the attending physician to be Sakura with her near legendary strength. "Just, please don't tell me our esteemed Hokage is in there," Sakura said, pointing at the stack of charts.
Namie laughed at that. "No, the Sixth had his physical just before his inauguration in the summer."
Her lips curled upward as she thought of Kakashi's inauguration; after giving the sculptor a near heart-attack when he insisted on his likeliness being carved into a mountain with his mask on, and tossing most of Konoha upside down in one of his last battles with Gai, Kakashi had donned the robes and officially been announced as Sixth Hokage. She had stood in the crowd with Sasuke and Naruto and watched as their former teacher and captain now became responsible for the whole village.
A day later he had found her and quietly asked her about the mental health hospital for children she had once mentioned. Ever since, every moment she didn't spend on a mission together with Naruto and Sasuke was spent poring over permits and other official documents in order to get the hospital off the ground.
"First one is…" Namie blushed. That could only mean one thing.
"Genma?"
"Yes. Should I call him in?"
Sakura waved her approval, searching for her stethoscope and a fresh chart to document her findings. As Genma stepped into the room, he took one look at her and exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "I can't persuade you to make it a quickie today, can I?"
She deftly ignored the double entendre. "Just for that, I think I'll check your blood work too."
"I see you've inherited Kakashi's sadistic sense of humor," Genma joked.
"And Tsunade-sama's tenacity. Drop your pants."
Genma laughed at that, but did as commanded, hopping onto the table. She took her time, working slowly through the entire chart until he began sighing heavily, at which point she began drawing blood for a blood analysis. By the time Genma was done, she had spent more than an hour on him. "Always a pleasure," he said while sauntering out.
"Why do I feel you don't mean that?" Sakura asked sweetly.
He shot her a dark look and closed the door behind him.
As Namie sent the next ANBU member in, Sakura changed charts and grabbed a fresh pair of gloves. Time passed quickly. Most men and women she checked were in peak condition and ready to get back at it. Just as she was lecturing Raidou to eat more bananas to increase his potassium, Namie ducked her head back in. "The last person of the day is here. Should I send him in?"
"Sure," Sakura nodded, watching as Raidou made a hasty retreat. Smiling to herself, Sakura reached over the examination table to toss her used gloves into the bin. The door closed behind her, causing her to look over her shoulder. "Hi, please take off your shirt and take—"
Itachi stood in the doorway. His hand was still on the doorknob, as though he was contemplating walking out of the room again. She drank in the sight of him; other than the brief sighting she had of him during her birthday, Sakura hadn't seen him since the fateful encounter with Sasuke, almost seven months ago now. "Take a seat," Sakura finished, letting out a long breath.
"I can come back," Itachi spoke, his voice a balm to the painful way her heart thudded in her chest. Seven months and he could still light up her day in an instant. A tiredness that had felt bone-deep ebbed away the longer he stood there, waiting for her to make up her mind. Simultaneously, she felt a sharp pang of guilt toward Sasuke for being so happy to see his older brother again, knowing the pain he had inflicted upon the both of them.
"You're here now," Sakura said, turning away to grab a fresh set of gloves.
The rustle of clothing alerted her to the fact that Itachi was undressing. As she turned to face him, he had taken off his short-sleeved ANBU shirt, folding it neatly on the exam table before hopping to sit down. She closed her eyes, suddenly bombarded by memories of the time they had spent together; from the Wood release training sessions to the intense love-making the day before he vanished from her life.
As she pressed her stethoscope against his chest, Sakura couldn't help but notice his elevated heart rate, knowing her own heartbeat echoed his. "Breathe in," Sakura said, watching her pinkie slip from the diaphragm. She stared at the stretch of skin against which her finger rested, the warmth of his body seeping sweetly into her digit, his chest rising as he inhaled deeply. "And exhale," she muttered, feeling his breath washing over her face. He smelled like dango.
"He is back on missions," Sakura whispered, not daring to look up to him. Itachi remained quiet, but she knew he would hang on her every word. "He lives with Naruto, which is a crazy decision to make if you ask me, but it seems to work out."
"… Thank you," Itachi said eventually.
She lifted her head to meet his gaze, light dancing behind his onyx eyes. His lashes cast long shadows over his cheeks and it seemed like he had lost some weight, but Itachi was still so incredibly handsome it made her heart ache just to look at him. Her fingers itched with the need to touch him, to feel if he was real and not just one of the many times she had imagined him standing somewhere, watching her.
"I… heard the Sixth is working together with you on your children's mental health hospital," Itachi began, almost carefully, eyes darting back and forth between hers. "I was happy to hear the Sixth is supporting you."
Sakura chuckled, the stethoscope forgotten in her hands. "I wasn't aware ANBU needed to know about trivial things such as hospitals."
"It isn't a trivial matter," Itachi said quietly.
"No, I suppose it isn't," she replied. A moment passed before she discarded her stethoscope. "Open wide please," Sakura said, turning her flashlight to the inside of his mouth. His pink tongue made her flush slightly as she remembered the taste of his lips and the way his tongue tangled with hers and caused her nerves to burn with a scorching need.
"What about you?" Sakura asked to distract herself from the feel of his strong thighs around hers as she stepped closer to him. As she withdrew the flashlight, she gently curved her fingers around his chin, turning his head away from her as she reached for the otoscope.
"I was away on missions, most of the time," Itachi spoke. "The Fifth was content to keep me out of Konoha for a long time following… The Sixth isn't as… accommodating."
"You can't run forever," Sakura said, inspecting his ear.
"No. I suppose I can't."
She laid down the otoscope. "Itachi," she said, drawing his attention. "Is this… Is the massacre why you told me you couldn't be what I'm searching for?"
The corner of his mouth lifted slowly. "Was I wrong?"
"I… understand why you did what you did," Sakura said, watching him carefully as his eyes widened almost imperceptibly. "You were thirteen years old and being manipulated. By no means am I saying you are blameless; you've done something horribly wrong, not only to Sasuke, but to yourself and to your fellow clansmen… But I understand."
"Sakura…" he began.
"And Sasuke… he might never forgive you."
"I know."
"And you may spend most of your life away from the village you tried to protect."
"I know."
"And I think I love you."
Itachi's eyes definitely widened at this, his mouth slack-jawed as he searched her eyes. She stood still between his legs, shaking slightly as she finally admitted what she had been holding in for months now. What she had realized when she was woken up during that one night in Rain, held in his arms as they came apart together and he looked at her as if she was everything he ever wanted.
"Be selfish with me."
A/N: You know that feeling when you've plotted out something completely and while you're writing it, your fingers just decide to do 'bloop' and here you have Sakura confessing about five chapters prior to what I had planned. Then again, how often do you get to write two (!) cliff-hangers with the same words? Whoo-whee.
The final arc starts with the next chapter and is appropriately named 'Brothers'. A massive thank you again to all of you for your fantastic support, comments and love!
See you soon!
- Mitsuki
