Naruto hated being in this position, divided between two people that he deeply respected. However, he was still the crown prince of Fire, and it was his duty to protect his subjects. He stood in front of his father, facing his stern eyes, and taking a deep breath, Naruto turned around, to look at Tsunade.
"I disagree with you, Madam. Itachi is not a traitor and should not be executed." Naruto spoke. Behind him, Itachi was kneeling down, keeping his eyes to the floor. His father wanted to keep Itachi's trial private, and the only people in the throne room were Itachi, Naruto, Tsunade, Minato and Kakashi. Itachi hadn't been allowed to speak for himself, and Kakashi was too close to Itachi to defend him, so the role fell to Naruto.
"He joined the Akatsuki and helped them revive Madara Uchiha! He killed and stole artifacts from other countries to do this." Tsunade crossed her arms with a smirk. Naruto could feel her confidence and he felt bad for her. She wasn't aware yet of the information he possessed.
"The Akatsuki kidnapped an innocent Fire civilian. Itachi temporarily joined them in order to rescue this civilian and unwillingly participated in the revival ritual. Not only that, it was due to Itachi's efforts that we don't have to worry about Madara Uchiha knocking on our castle doors trying to take my father's life." Naruto argued back. He wasn't going to let Tsunade get away with murdering Itachi, especially not after everything the Uchiha clan had done for the Uzumaki family.
"That's what he claims. Unwilling, he says. Likely he chose to backstab the Akatsuki after realizing they backstabbed him by summoning a better Uchiha from the grave! What evidence do you have that he was unwilling?" Tsunade glared at Naruto, but he wasn't intimidated.
"My testimony. I was there when the girl was taken captive. If you recall, my fiancée was also taken captive." Naruto replied icily. Tsunade pursed her lips slightly at that and Naruto knew he got her there. "Also Master Jiraiya has kindly supplied everyone with the information that Itachi was not a willing member of the Akatsuki, considering the intel he supplied. Father, I believe you saw it as well?" Naruto directed his gaze back to his father. They had all seen Jiraiya's investigation into Itachi, and that Itachi had contacted the Frog Wizard, giving them valuable information into the Akatsuki's members.
"I thought your Lady Hinata was taken by Wind Nomads, not Akatsuki." Tsunade frowned.
"You're correct. But Sakura was sold out, because they didn't need her. Since she's a known associate of Itachi's the Akatsuki bought her in order to draw Itachi to them." Naruto glared. He didn't enjoy that Tsunade was making life so difficult for them all.
"Great theory, my prince, except the young woman was taken by an Orochimaru agent, not the Akatsuki." Tsunade smirked, but Naruto was ready for that.
"Yes, and we all know Orochimaru is associated with the Akatsuki." Naruto returned the smirk.
"My King, I understand that your son has close ties to the Uchiha family, but you must consider. This wizard disobeyed your orders, has caused severe diplomatic issues, and I believe that a punishment is required. If you let him go, you're weakening the crown's power and influence over our wizards." Tsunade decided to change her tactics, appealing directly to the king.
"You speak of disobeying orders, Madam? You suggest a no tolerance policy?" Naruto asked. He hadn't wanted to use Kakashi's secret information, because he knew bringing it up would only bring bad memories to everyone, but he felt that he had no choice. Snapping his fingers, he signalled to Kakashi, asking the spymaster to step forward. The silver-haired man brought a delicate wooden box with him, one that bore several delicate details. "You recognize this, Madam?" Naruto asked. He had the pleasure to see Tsunade's face grow several shades whiter as she paled.
"What is that, Madam Tsunade?" The King asked.
"It's nothing you need to concern yourself with, Your Majesty." Tsunade bowed her head slightly. "Now that I think on the matter further, perhaps we can observe Itachi's many contributions to the crown and this country, and realize that perhaps we should trust him." Tsunade spoke with a smile, but her words sounded bitter.
"Good. This nonsense was ridiculous. I strongly doubted someone like Itachi would choose to betray the crown his family gave their lives to protect." The King nodded, pleased with the result. "Duke Uchiha, you may raise your head once more. I must thank you for protecting this land once again." Minato waved his hand towards Itachi, who gratefully stood up, bowing to his monarch deeply.
"I am thankful for your wisdom and mercy, my liege." He muttered.
"This meeting is over." Minato stood up from his throne, walking away. The others all waited for him to leave before glaring at each other.
"How shameful, Madam Tsunade. I will keep this in my possession now, and assure its destruction, just as you once claimed to have done." Naruto took the wooden box in his hands. "Itachi if you would follow me." The prince began walking away, not waiting to confirm whether the Uchiha was following him or not.
When Kakashi had told him Tsunade had hid the Kyuubi scroll instead of destroying it, Naruto had been enraged. The Kyuubi had taken precious lives, including one of his best friends. The thought that Tsunade had kept it to herself made him doubt her loyalty. With the box that contained the scroll in hands, Naruto walked towards the castle gardens, towards a specific gazebo. It had been his and Sasuke's old base, when they were children, they played there all the time.
He led Itachi there for a specific reason, because while the scroll was excellent leverage against Tsunade, Naruto still wished to see it destroyed, and he felt that it would only be fair if Itachi was there to see it through. As soon as they arrived at the empty building, Naruto set down the box, and opening it, took the scroll out.
"Here, I think we should make sure it is properly destroyed." Naruto handed it to Itachi, who looked surprised.
"Are you certain? This is an extremely powerful and rare spell, destroying it is… Well some might say foolish." Itachi asked. He also wanted to see it gone, but the most rational side of him thought the idea was stupid.
"Yes. As your future king, I'm ordering you to destroy it." Naruto nodded seriously.
"Very well." Itachi nodded. Setting the scroll atop a stone table, he activated his Sharingan. The only thing he could think that would be powerful enough to destroy a summoning scroll of that level would be Amaterasu, and after a second the black flames engulfed the scroll.
Itachi and Naruto watched the scroll burn together in silence, remembering the late Uchiha clan, dwelling on their memories.
"You know, I think if Sasuke was here, he'd say we did the right thing." Naruto smiled.
"No he wouldn't. He'd want to keep the scroll for himself." Itachi shook his head.
"You're right, he was always a greedy bastard." Naruto laughed. Watching the black flames consume the scroll, Itachi felt as if a part of his anger and hatred was also burning away, leaving behind ashes of resigned sorrow. He sighed deeply, while he still deeply missed his family, he now had other people to surround himself with, people who would become his new family.
"I proposed to Sakura the other day. She said yes." Itachi felt like sharing with Naruto, and as he looked at the mature-looking prince, he thought that while Naruto wasn't Sasuke, he wouldn't mind spending more time with the future king.
"That's great!" Naruto sounded genuinely excited for a second, before his face fell into a frown. "Wait no, Hinata and I are getting married next month and you can't get married before me, you can't steal the spotlight like that. Can you wait a bit? Just a few weeks after you know? Then you can have a huge party." Naruto answered. Itachi couldn't help but chuckle a bit.
"I don't believe myself or Sakura would wish for a large festivity, and we don't mind waiting for your royal wedding either." Itachi smiled. Naruto looked at him oddly for a long time. It began to make Itachi uncomfortable. "What?" He asked the prince.
"I think that's the first time I've seen your teeth." Naruto commented. Itachi blinked in confusion for a second before realizing that he had just given Naruto a true smile for the first time as he'd always restrained himself to small closed smiles before.
The scroll finished burning to an unrecoverable crisp and Itachi extinguished Amaterasu's flame. Naruto waved his hand and a strong breeze took place, scattering the ashes of the scroll to the wind.
"I shall take my leave then." Itachi bowed.
"I'll walk you home." Naruto smiled. Itachi wondered why the prince wanted to do that, but after the moment the two had just shared, Itachi didn't mind. They made their way out of the castle and into the noble's district.
It had been a while since the war and the plague, and the noble's district was finally busier than before, looking more alive. People bowed and curtsied as they walked past, recognizing the prince and the duke. Itachi felt a little uncomfortable, but Naruto was used to it, waving and smiling to everyone they walked past.
Itachi felt relief when he saw his house. He expected Naruto to turn around at the gate, but the prince followed him in. As soon as they stepped inside it was completely dark, and for a second Itachi's heart stopped. Had someone finally managed to break through centuries of protective Uchiha spells, he asked himself.
Bright lights flashed as colorful sparkles blew into Itachi's face. The curtains opened, letting the light in and revealing a group of people in his house, all of them holding party poppers, with wide smiles. He could see Sakura, beautiful in a light green dress, the Uchiha tiara on her head, Ino wearing lavender, with an arm around a smiling Sai. Kakashi was also there, with an arm resting on Shikamaru's shoulder. Naruto walked from behind him to stand next to Lady Hinata, a huge smile on his face.
"Happy birthday, Itachi!" They all said in unison.
Itachi had completely forgotten it was his birthday, but looking around at everyone and seeing the small party they had prepared for him, he was glad, for he didn't think he'd ever be able to forget his moment. Feeling happy yet embarrassed, Itachi found himself smiling as Sakura looped her arm around his, dragging him further into his house, to the warmth and happiness of his new family.
.
.
.
Two elders were in a beautiful garden, filled with all kinds of flowers, shrubberies and trees. The male sat in a worn chair, holding a book in a hand, while the female crouched on the ground, with her hands in the dirt.
"Is this even necessary, we've had so many now, I bet nobody will come, they're all busy people with their own children to take care of." The man grumbled as he turned a page of his book.
"You know they're coming. Besides, the children love their grandpapa." The elderly woman had pastel pink hair with white streaks. While you could see several marks of age on her face, she still looked significantly younger than the male. His hair was almost completely white, with only a few black streaks here and there.
They were the two leaders of the Uchiha Clan, who lived in a small villa outside of Konoha. Itachi had long since given his children usage of the traditional Uchiha household, as they required its magical properties much more than him. He was now a retired man, a former wizard, having more than enough stories about him to fill several books. Now all Itachi wanted was to live in peace and obscurity with his wife.
"With these we'll now have all of my favorite flowers in the garden." Sakura stood up, stretching her back as she did. Itachi noticed that Sakura still looked much younger than her actual age, and worried for her. Her birth origin was a well-kept secret among the clan, but as Sakura moved into old age still barely looking like she was fifty, it would become harder and harder to hide it.
His worries were interrupted by the familiar sound of a teleport portal opening. The two elders looked at the blue vortex with smiles. Several children and young adults began pouring out, as all of their children and grandchildren came to visit them. Sakura shot a knowing look towards her husband. His birthday was the one day all Uchiha gathered in once place to celebrate and spend time together.
"Grandpapa!" Itachi was surrounded by children, all of them competing for his attention, as Sakura welcomed and greeted all the adults. They had five children before Itachi began using spells to prevent further children. Sakura had a tough time raising all of them, but as she watched the now large family gather together she felt that it had been worth it.
The new Uchiha Clan was filled with all different kinds of magicians, healers, fighters, merchants, she had encouraged all of them to follow their passions and they'd all excelled at it. Itachi liked to attribute Sakura's unique biology to their success as wizards, but Sakura always dismissed it.
The new clan was nothing like the old one, where once all Uchiha looked the same, with black hair and black eyes, now they were very different, but one thing they all had in common was the same love they held for their parents.
"Let's get inside, it's going to rain soon!" Sakura began herding her family indoors. The villa was quickly full of loud laughter and the joyful screams of children. Anyone that walked past would think the place was blessed with only good things.
This story is finally finished! It was a long journey, but we're finally at the end. I'd like to thank everyone who stuck with it since the beginning and I apologize for any mistakes. It was fun exploring this different universe and this different Itachi and Sakura. I know not everything was deeply explained, but I like leaving some things open ended as I always enjoy reading about everyone's different thoughts. Sometimes things don't need to only have one right answer, and there's fun in allowing people the opportunity to make their own interpretations. With that in mind, I leave wishing everyone good things and happiness.
