Enjoy!
Fugaku rubbed the corner of his temples, hoping to ease the tension giving rise to a headache. The meeting regarding the reconstruction, remodeling, and relocation of the clan had gone as well as the Uchiha head could have hoped, which didn't say much.
His people had a right to be upset with the abrupt shift in attitude from Konoha's council. While he appreciated the efforts of the Akimichi, Yamanaka, and Nara heads to stand against the relocation orders, he knew it would be in vain. The moment Danzo had stepped into the picture and taken charge of the meeting, Fugaku knew the fate of his clan had been sealed.
His people were still healing from the loss brought on by the Nine-tails attack. While the meeting with the Hokage was meant to spur healing and restoration, it had only served as salt on a wound.
"How do you feel about it, Itachi?" Fugaku asked as the last of the Uchiha clan members made their way down the stairs of the Naka shrine.
Itachi took a moment to roll up his chakra control scroll before taking in the calm scenery that would soon be their new home. "I like it here."
"That so?" Fugaku questioned in earnest.
"Hn. We'll have the best training grounds in the entire village. We'll be the envy of all the other village shinobi," Itachi elaborated as he and Fugaku made their way down the steps and towards the lake sitting in the middle of their assigned territory.
Itachi missed the crinkling of his father's eyes as he chose to bask in his son's enthusiasm for a change.
"Tou-san!" Itachi exclaimed as he ran down the semi-steep hill keeping him from the edge of the water. "Teach me a Jutsu."
Fugaku couldn't find it in himself to resist his boy's dimpled smile and sparkling eyes looking up at him.
"This is a key jutsu of our clan, one that it's clan members take great pride in perfecting."
Fugaku ran through the hand signs twice slowly before going through the 'Snake-Ram-Monkey-Boar-Horse-Tiger' sequence with the speed of an experienced shinobi and offering a demonstration. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
The flames seemingly funneled out of his father's mouth before expanding, growing, swelling. Just before the fire could get carried away, they folded in on themselves to form a tightly contained inferno. The flames lost their focus, purpose, and fuel a half-second after his father released the final seal.
Itachi's raised brows weaved into concentration as he copied his father's deliberately delayed hand signs.
His initial medium-sized fireball grew to match his Tou-san's as Itachi willed his breath to rush out in a sharper flow.
Fugaku chuckled in surprise before giving out a rare belly laugh as the pride and joy he experienced at that moment refused to be contained.
Seeing his Tou-san's casual and relaxed posture, Itachi knew he had done the right thing by allowing his father to be the first 'official sensei' to teach him the Fireball Jutsu.
"That's my boy," Fugaku expressed with a broad smile as he gently ruffled Itachi's hair.
His Tou-san's eyes crinkled at the corners in a rare open smile that had Itachi resenting his still dormant Sharingan.
"Dismissed!" Itachi's temporary team leader announced after a brief check-in within the village gates.
Itachi made his way down the main eastern road that would lead him home and coincidentally brought him a few blocks from his favorite dango shop.
Halfway down his usual route, Itachi spotted his Tou-san and three of his fellow officers outside the Konoha Police Force. If his father's cross-armed stance was anything to go by, he was engaged in a conversation winding up all four members.
Before Itachi could read any more into the situation, his father dismissed the officers. "We will continue this conversation tomorrow evening."
'Ah,' Itachi thought, 'the weekly clan meeting.'
Itachi gave his father a second to collect his thoughts before jogging up to him, "Tou-san! Tou-san!"
His father's face turned towards him before the rest of his body followed. A touch of a smile settled on Fugaku's features as he took in the sight of his ten-year-old son. "Coming back from a mission, are you?"
"Hai, Tou-san."
"Well, then, let's surprise your Kaa-san and Sasuke by getting home a little early today."
"Hai," Itachi's features perked at the mention of his little brother.
The Uchiha duo made its way towards the compound, with the occasional interruption from villagers wishing to greet the Uchiha clan head.
"We haven't walked together like this in a while," his father mused as he nodded a greeting at the clothing vendor his police force contracted for police uniforms.
"Well, I'm a genin now. I have missions, and you're busy keeping all of Konoha safe from within," Itachi expressed, pride freely infused in his words.
"Hm," was Fugaku's concise, but weary response.
"Tou-san, is everything alright?" Itachi ventured after a handful of strides. "You seem more preoccupied than usual."
Fugaku caught Itachi's curious but perceptive gaze. In that brief moment, Fugaku took in his eldest son's boyish features peering up at him: wide-open eyes, impressionable countenance, and slim form. Itachi could fool anyone who was not well acquainted with the boy, that he was just another shinobi child. But Fugaku had caught glimpses of sharp intelligence hidden behind unassuming eyes, a tenacious belief in peace amidst a culture that thrived on combat, and a solid build that could take down men twice his size and age.
Itachi had never been oblivious to the tension between the Uchiha and the rest of Konoha, so it did not surprise Fugaku that Itachi was able to pick up on anxiety the Clan head seemingly carried everywhere he went.
"A few years have passed now," Fugaku started as he faced the road once again, "since we were pushed to the outskirts of the village. With that, the council took away the Uchiha's authority and influence. Many in our clan still resent the village for that."
"Even if you didn't hear for yourself how often the topic pops up in clan meetings, you'd be aware of all that, wouldn't you? The Uchiha wants to regain our power one day and step out of the darkness and into the li-"
"Tou-san, look!," Itachi excitedly interrupted as he took in the number of shop owners taking the time to wave at his father from the doorframes of their shops. "The clan may not have the favor of Konoha's council, but amongst the villagers, you're the face of the Uchiha. Of the Konoha Police Force that keeps its streets safe. I'm proud to be able to walk alongside you."
The tension previously lacing Fugaku's features slackened enough to allow the right corner of his lips to curl up into a small smile. "That's enough flattery for the day," the clan head expressed in an attempt to change the subject. Despite his father's attempts, Itachi could see the pleasure his father felt at the mere acknowledgment the civilians were giving him.
Against his better judgment, Fugaku asked, "Want to get your favorite snack on the way home?"
"Itachi-san! Uchiha-sama," Mei greeted as a said boy and father crossed the threshold into the dango shop. "Back from your mission already, Itachi-san?"
"Hai, Mei-san."
"I'll have your order right up!"
Fugaku squinted a curious gaze at the dango shop cashier. A teasing smile easing into existence as he knowingly asked, "Come here often, son?"
Itachi refused to meet his father's eyes. "Hai," was his only response as Itachi purposefully focused his attention on the clock behind the counter.
Before any more teasing could be done, Mei returned with Itachi's dango stick set. In her hand was a bunch of Matcha-Pink-Matcha dumpling skewers. "I'm trying a new thing. For our VIP customers, of course," she said with a wink.
Fugaku raised an eyebrow at Mei before directing a silent question at his son.
"Hn. Arigato, Mei-san," Itachi's even tone was betrayed by the crimson flush traveling down his neck.
"Don't mention it! Your latest visit inspired the combination, so it's on the house!"
His father huffed in amusement. "Arigato, Mei-san."
Itachi took a few seconds to compose himself after the blatant teasing, before delicately unfolding his favorite treat.
Eyeing the dango out of the corner of his eye, Fugaku dared to prod, "That's different from your usual."
"Hn." Itachi gave nothing away as he gingerly nibbled on the first matcha dumpling, his bottom-to-top approach hard to shake.
Feeling his father's gaze on him, Itachi finally relented. "Sakura is indifferent when it comes to the matcha dango. We traded: my pink dango for her matcha one."
"Ah, yes, your mother may have mentioned something about that," causing Itachi's ears to heat up.
"How is Sasuke's training going, Tou-san? Before I left on my mission, Kaa-san mentioned you'd be teaching him the Fireball Jutsu."
Fugaku's features remained neutral, but there was a certain unnatural and unexpected tightness around his eyes that belied the streak of disappointment in his otherwise calm words. "Sasuke had a decent start to ninjutsu. He's been working hard since, trying to expand the size of his fireball."
Reading underneath the underneath, translated to 'Affinity is not matched by natural talent,' to which Itachi replied, "Sasuke will find his fire soon.
"I have a feeling," Itachi thought aloud, memories of the Great Ninja War and its casualties surfaced, "that Sasuke's drive will strengthen as he realizes what his true purpose as a shinobi is. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura are like burning embers…"
"...Who just need the right gust of wind," Fugaku finished for him. "Even though you and Sasuke are only a few years apart, you witnessed the reality and realized the nature of our trade at a younger age than most do. Talent. Context. Drive."
"That," Itachi mused, a teasing tilt to his lips, "and Shisui may or may not have shown me the Fireball Jutsu before you did."
Fugaku huffed out disbelief and amusement.
Itachi had still managed to replicate the jutsu after a single rundown by Shisui, but his father needn't know that.
"I was reading," Itachi started up as crossed the gates into the compound, "about dual-natured individuals, and the initial difficulty in honing one element due to the tension the two natures could pose to the initial flow and expulsion of chakra. Perhaps Sasuke has two equally strong affinities."
His father considered Itachi's words, "Hmm, perhaps. I suppose time will tell."
"Now," Fugaku continued, "what spurred this interest in chakra natures?"
"Ah," Itachi reached a hand to the nape of his neck, where he gave his ponytail a gentle tug, "Well, I've been training Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, and they all have vastly different chakra levels."
"That so?" his father remarked, a raised eyebrow serving to express Fugaku's interest in the topic.
"Hai. Naruto has an obvious… abundance of chakra, which makes chakra control incredibly tricky. However, it's probably unnecessary for him to develop anything more specialized than standard control.
"Sasuke has, as expected from a clan member, a decent store of chakra brewing within him, which will make his chakra control average without much difficulty.
"Sakura… Sakura has the least amount of chakra."
"Hmm," Fugaku hummed, "as expected from her civilian background."
"Hai, but Tou-san, her chakra control… even if she were from a powerful clan, her chakra control would be considered exceptional, especially at such a young age."
"Run me through what you've taught them," Fugaku requested, taking a greater interest in the topic.
"Leaf concentration exercise: It took her three tries before she was able to keep the leaf perfectly against her forehead for a considerable amount of time. By the end of the first day, she was able to keep the leaf in place while pacing around and bending over to collect more leaves. Two weeks later, she was up to ten leaves throughout her limbs. All kept in place as I put them all through, slowly, a standard Academy Kata."
"What does that tell you about her potential specialties?" Fugaku questioned.
"Genjutsu would be a given, but medical ninjutsu is also a strong possibility," Itachi remembered the medical pouch at his waist. He'd found a tan medical pouch, a color that would hopefully be neutral enough for her regardless of what her future genin outfit would be. The pouch was made of sturdy leather that could weather most anything. The moment Itachi had spotted the bag in the window of his assigned street, he knew he would be leaving with it. What better way to throw off their targets by covering up their surveillance portion of the mission with typical tourist behavior? "Given her personality, the latter seems like a better personal fit.
"That, and…"
Fugaku inclined his head in Itachi's direction.
"Well, I'm not quite sure what to make of it just yet. But Sakura has taken to observing the Kyuubi's chakra flow that unconsciously stirs up to heal Naruto every time he so much as has a paper cut."
"Has anything come of that?" Fugaku asked.
"Not in terms of summoning healing chakra herself, but she's made some observations. There is an excess of chakra that rises to heal Naruto, one which, as Sakura noted, damages as it heals. The sheer amount of chakra eventually weaves itself enough to heal the secondary damage and the initial wound. In a sense, it's an inefficient healing process, but a healing process nonetheless."
Fugaku brings an arm across his chest, supporting the other as a hand curls into a fist under his chin. The wheels spin inside Fugaku's head as he considers the 8-year-old pinkette's developing skills. Fugaku was well aware of his eldest son's growing affection for the girl, and he recognized a piece of himself and Mikoto in the youngsters developing story.
Fugaku had been just a few years older than Itachi was now when his parents first sat him down and explained the social intricacies of marriage. Even as a teenager, Fugaku showed outstanding leadership, influence, and intelligence during the Third Shinobi War, which placed his name high on the list of future possible clan heads. As such, Fugaku needed to choose his future spouse wisely.
Although, long before then, Fugaku had subconsciously chosen his partner in life years before he actively and publicly made a choice.
Itachi was too young now to consider such things as marriage and the future of the clan through that lens. But that didn't mean Fugaku couldn't help set Itachi up for success, should his affections for the rosette eventually blossom into the kind shared by a husband and wife. Heavens knew Itachi would need all the help he could get with getting the clan's approval. The 'traditional' clan council still believed in marriage within the clan as it assured both continuity of the Sharingan, and a shinobi background.
"Hone that skill," Fugaku finally spoke as they stood mere feet from their home's entrance. "And keep me updated."
"Hai, Tou-san."
A/N: Not many warm and fuzzies (and no Sakura!), but I saw a few Itachi AMVs on Youtube for inspiration and this just sorta happened...