A/N: Wow, 20 chapters. That's 19 more than I thought I'd get to when I started lol. Thank you very much to everyone who follows and reads. Makes my day that people actually enjoy this.

That being said…

Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty

Hello, My Friend

Sakura woke that morning with a smile on her face, and how could she not have? The night before was everything she had ever dreamed of.

She still heard Sasuke's voice echoing in her ears.

It was the perfect date. Just before sunset, she went over to his place, and the two of them made dinner together. They ate in candlelight as the night began to fall outside, and though Sasuke didn't do much talking, she did get him to smile a few times, and that was more than enough. Afterwards, they went for a walk through the village, and Sasuke even held her hand. If it wasn't still warm with his touch Sakura would have been sure it was dream.

Finally, he walked her home, and in the warm lights looked at her with those beautiful dark eyes, and began to move closer, and, and—!

Sakura traced her lips with a finger.

Perhaps that part was just a dream…

Nevertheless she could not wipe the smile off her face as she prepared herself for a long day of work. The ANBU uniform sitting in her closet had never felt so light as she put it on, the tattoo on her arm had never felt less painful that it did that morning. For one day, Sakura thought, she would be able to forget her worries.

She was doing a fine job of it as she made her way to the front of the village. Even those in the Hokage's Guard were sometimes tasked with mundane jobs, and on that particular morning Sakura had to deliver an updated business license to a food cart that liked to park itself near the gates.

It was a beautiful morning. It felt like forever since the sun had last been out, and though there were a few clouds hanging about, Sakura was glad to see a blue sky.

As she passed by a park that was beginning to fill with people trying to enjoy the day, she thought she saw the girl named Yui. She looked down. Sakura understood, given what had happened to her parents, but still…

Sakura decided it was best to let her be. Perhaps she would see her on the way back…

The rest of the way to the front gates she was thinking about Sasuke and the words from the woman named Misa that had been stuck in her mind since yesterday:

"Take care of him."

Yes. She would love to.

"Good morning, Sakura."

The lady at the food cart she was headed to noticed her coming from down the road. Sakura lifted her head up and smiled softly.

"Good morning, Ma'am."

She handed the lady the business license, and the older woman thanked her.

"You seem to be in a good mood," the lady teased.

Sakura tried her best not to blush. It was unbecoming for a ninja of the Hokage's Guard to be embarrassed over a boy.

Still…she couldn't help from smiling.

"Well…I had a good—"

Sakura saw and heard nothing, but for a split second after the gates exploded, felt a sense of incoming dread, as if her instincts were warning her that she was about to die.

She snapped her head towards them just quickly enough for her wide green eyes to see the blast shoot into the air. A gust of wind and debris shot out in every direction. All of sudden she was lifted off her feet and thrown into the closest house, and her body cried out in pain.

The last thing she remembered was hearing a scream as the building collapsed and the world went dark.

~XX~

Run. Run. Run. Run.

Run!

Run!

RUN!

Naruto could think of nothing else as his feet, moving almost on their own, carried him north, to the top of the village. In the back of his mind he recalled that there was a bunker beneath Hokage Rock.

This time he would get there.

The memories came back immediately. It was exactly the same. The running. The screaming. The crying.

There was no fire yet where he was, and no flying houses, and no giant animals.

But he was sure that they were coming.

His mind did not stop to notice his bad luck or to feel angry about being caught up in another attack.

Or the fact that he was alone this time.

"Naruto!"

The woman's voice stopped him dead in his tracks. Had it not been so familiar, he was certain he would have kept running; as it were, though, upon recognizing it as Misa, he turned to his left to see Itachi looking at him from a small alley. The bright green eyes, even through the crowd of running villagers, called out to him.

"Itachi!"

Naruto ran to him and began to get hysterical.

"Itachi! We have to go!"

"What?" Itachi asked. He had never seen Naruto like this before. "Wait, Naruto. Listen to—"

"Come on! There's a bunker! Below the mountain, we can go, and, and—"

Itachi's mouth hung agape. Naruto's eyes were wild, darting back and forth between him and the road, constantly searching for something; an escape, a way out, perhaps even something that would knock him out and allow him to wake up from this nightmare.

Finally Itachi gave up his reservations.

"Naruto!"

Naruto froze, wide eyes quickly gluing themselves to Itachi. For the first time, they noticed the unconscious man in an ANBU uniform lying atop a pile of garbage bags. Suddenly the chaos from the street felt far away.

Itachi returned Misa's face to his typical stoic look before bringing a hand, index and middle fingers raised, in front of his chest.

POOF!

A cloud of white smoke appeared in front of Naruto, and a moment later, Itachi, in his true form, stepped through. Though it was hidden by his cloak his left arm had vanished.

But his dark whirlpool eyes had returned.

They stared at Naruto, and the boy understood.

POOF!

Another puff of smoke, and Naruto lost his disguise, too. The blonde hair and the bright blue eyes returned to him, but his face was still twisted in fear.

"Itachi…why…?" It felt strange hearing his own voice after so long.

"It's fine," came Itachi's, its typical deep and calm tone unchanged. "There's no need to hide anymore."

Naruto had ceased his rambling, but the nerves inside of him were stronger than ever as Itachi continued.

"It's the Order, isn't it?"

Naruto swallowed hard and nodded.

"I thought so. This one didn't know anything about an attack today." Itachi gestured behind him with his head and Naruto wondered what had happened between the unconscious man and the Uchiha.

But at the moment it really didn't matter.

"We…we have to run…we have to leave…"

Itachi was silent for a moment as he thought, before finally turning his eyes back to Naruto.

"If that's what you really want to do, then yes. You should go."

Naruto was taken aback. Those were not the words he expected.

"'Me?' Just me? What about you?"

Itachi turned his eyes away from Naruto, and one more time they developed that searching quality in them.

"There's something I have to do."

He took off his cloak and placed it on the ground. Though it was difficult with only one arm, he managed to get one of the swords off of his back. He handed it to Naruto who only looked at it hesitantly.

"Take it," Itachi said. Naruto finally did so, and the Uchiha began to put his cloak back on, strapping the other sword overtop of it this time.

Naruto, holding the sheathed blade in his hands, looked at it for a moment before turning to Itachi.

"You're going to see Danzo…"

Itachi finally finished setting up and pulled his cloak over his head. His face was caught in its shadow.

"Yes. I am."

Naruto pursed his lips.

"W-why…? Why do you have to…? Let's just leave…let's run…let's get out of here, and we can come back another time, and—!"

"I'm sorry, Naruto…but I can't."

Naruto's blue eyes widened past their limits.

"Why…?"

"Because it's just like I told you all those years ago: I will never forgive Danzo for what he's done, but this is my home, and there are things here that I want to protect."

The darkness in Itachi's eyes suddenly became warm, and Naruto was drawn into them.

"And I know you feel the same."

Naruto's mind flashed him a memory of Ino's smiling face: five years ago it was bright like the sun in a clear blue sky, or a star in the dead of night; yesterday it was somber, like a flower drenched by the rain.

His teeth and his fists clenched, and his shoulders began to shake. He couldn't help the tears from falling.

"Itachi…I…I'm afraid…"

The Uchiha's eyes softened, but he said nothing.

"I…I'm gonna lose her again…I'm gonna lose it all…I'm gonna be alone again…"

Naruto felt the pain take him over.

All of it…

All of it was slipping away…

…

You're pathetic…

So pathetic. So scared.

You'll lose it all…because you're a coward…

Pathetic…

Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic…

Pathetic.

Pathetic!

Pathetic!

PATHET—

"First of all, you're not alone."

Even through his cloak Naruto felt the warmth of Itachi's hand on his shoulder. Through his tears he looked up to find the Uchiha's smiling face.

"I'm with you. Always."

Naruto couldn't decide whether his tears should stop or fall harder. It occurred to him then how much he had been taking Itachi's presence for granted. He was always just there—it was a given. He certainly never had the idea to put a title on their relationship.

But at the moment he thought the word "friend" would fit pretty well.

"Don't worry about the past, Naruto," Itachi continued. "Things change. This village has, and so have its people. And so have you."

A shot of hot, searing warmth came into Naruto's heart.

"You're not the same boy I came back for five years ago. You're stronger. You're wiser. You had the courage to cross the ocean to find out where you came from, and the courage to come back here to find out who you are."

Naruto was far from calm, but his fear began to recede. The doubts, the worries—they were still there.

But suddenly he felt as though he could handle them.

"But…I don't know the answer yet…"

Itachi removed his hand and stood tall. He only had a few inches on Naruto, but the boy felt as though the Uchiha towered above him.

"I know. But I know that you'll find it. Don't run away from yourself, Naruto."

With one more look from his dark eyes, Itachi straightened Naruto's back, and he stood tall.

The confusion remained, but the fear of it was gone.

At once, all the sounds of the village became loud again. They both knew that the Order was getting closer.

"We have to go," Itachi said. He moved past a frozen Naruto to the edge of the street. It was complete chaos. Naruto, watching it all unfold from the small alley, was reminded of how it felt five years ago. It looked the same. It sounded the same.

But seeing it as he was now, detached, ready, it didn't feel the same.

"Wait!" he called. "What…what do I do?"

Itachi stopped and turned back to him.

"I don't think you need me to tell you that."

He was right, of course—Naruto had always known.

He nodded, and his blue eyes, for the first time in a long time, filled with fire.

"Right."

Itachi gave him a slight smirk.

"Then I'll see you later."

And he was off.

Naruto felt the urgency rushing through him but took a deep breath. Suddenly, he remembered the sword in his hand and raised it in front of himself. He unsheathed it slowly.

It shone brightly in the sunlight, as if it had just been cleaned the day before.

~XX~

To a casual observer it would have appeared that Danzo hadn't moved since arriving atop Hokage Rock in the early morning. The Hokage seemed like a statue, unflinching, watching over Konoha with that deep eye that seemed to see everything.

But if this observer were to get closer, they would have begun to hear a faint noise—a clacking sound. It came from Danzo's cane that was being tapped on the ground over and over and over and over.

It was hard to say whether it was true anxiety or not, but there was certainly some anticipation filling him.

That dark, omniscient eye had not seen the orange cloaks coming.

For the second time that day, Sasuke appeared interrupted his solitude.

"Lord Hokage! The village! It's—!"

"Yes, Sasuke," Danzo said calmly. "I see."

Sasuke, alarmed by the lack of concern in the Hokage's voice, lowered his own to match.

"What are your orders, sir?"

Danzo was silent for a moment as he closed his eye, thinking about all that was happening. Finally he spoke.

"Open the bunker. Get Crow on evacuation. Tell Hawk to stop them at once. If part of the village is destroyed, so be it. Do not hold back."

"Yes, sir."

Sasuke turned, ready to leave, when Danzo stopped him with his voice.

"Sasuke. Do not join Hawk in the fight against the invaders."

The young Uchiha snapped his head around in shock.

"What? Why not, sir?"

Danzo's eye scanned the village for an off-white cloak. It saw nothing, and his cane began to tap once again.

"Because someone else will be coming."

~XX~

Inoichi's dead eyes looked straight ahead of him as he heard the chaos through the roof of his cell. It was only a few minutes before the wave of noise came close to him and stayed there. The central area of the Konoha prison was situated near Hokage Rock, and with the entire village rushing towards it, the ground was nearly shaking under their feet.

The Yamanaka head felt his ears ring with the cries and the screams but did not find the strength or the will to cover them with his hands. Instead he simply sat against the wall, half-leaning, half-lying, hoping that whatever it was that was happening above would collapse the roof and put him out of his misery.

It wasn't the first time he had been tortured, but it was by fair the most painful. The darkness of the room. The blinding light of the candle. The deep voices echoing out from behind the white masks. The sting of the whips that lashed against his skin. The asphyxia as the water filled his lungs.

The disappointment in selling out a boy he once considered a son.

All of it was too much…just too much…

I'm sorry, Ino…

I'm sorry, Noriko…

I failed…

Better to end it now…

Better to take him while he still had a choice…

Yes…

Time for the angel of death to come…

…

Time to go…

The angel appeared a moment later. He wore no wings, but rather an off-white cloak and a hood over his face.

Even in the shadow, Inoichi saw the dark eyes calling out to him. Surely, this was who he was waiting for.

He was ready.

"Are you Inoichi Yamanaka?" the angel asked him.

"Yes…"

Suddenly, the angel lifted his hand and revealed a set of keys drenched in blood. He picked one out and raised it to the door of the cell, and it opened. Quietly stepping inside, he dropped the keys to the ground and unsheathed the sword from his back.

Inoichi was calm as he closed his eyes and awaited his death.

I'm sorry, my love…

SCHLLNNG!

Inoichi heard the noise and waited—perhaps it took a moment to die? But certainly it shouldn't be taking this long…and why was there no pain? Why did his hands feel so loose…?

He opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was his handcuffs falling off of his wrists. They hit the ground with a clang. As he looked up, he saw the angel, who he now realized was only a man, sheath his sword and exit the cell.

"Go to your family," the man said. "Protect them."

It took Inoichi a moment to process what was happening. He moved his hands. No restrictions. Was he…free? After all this time?

Quickly he rose to his feet and stepped out of the cell, calling to the man who was already down the hallway.

"Wait! Who are you?"

Some of the other prisoners began to watch the scene before them as the man stopped and turned around, pulling his hood down behind his head.

Inoichi froze in shock. It had been seven long years since he'd last seen that face, since he'd last seen those dark eyes and that jet-black hair; but he could never forget them.

The name fell out of his mouth.

"Itachi Uchiha…"

There was an audible gasp from some of the other prisoners, but no one dared say a word. Itachi's name inspired just as much fear as Danzo's—perhaps even more.

"Why…why…?" Inoichi asked. "Why would you…?"

Itachi's dark eyes turned to him, and for the first time Inoichi realized that they were not nearly as cold as he once thought they were.

Neither was his voice.

"Naruto told me you were here."

"N-Naruto…?"

Inoichi nearly collapsed from the confusion.

"H-how…? How? How do you know him…?"

Yes, Inoichi could never forget that face; the face of the man who had slaughtered his entire clan. Even after all these years, the memory of it was still so vivid in his mind.

But he had certainly never seen it smiling before.

"He's a friend."

~XX~

Ino could only remember running so hard once in her life before, and even though she had shorter legs at the time, and she could keep up with her mother now, somehow it was so much easier back then.

It seemed to her at first that her memories were just playing themselves out in the real world. Everything was happening exactly as it did back then. Running out onto the street to see the remains of an explosion, grabbing her mother and moving as fast as her legs could take her, hearing the wicked cries of pain and dying in her ears, and the fear in her heart that she was going to be next.

Everything was the same except the colour of the sky.

That, and the boy who was no longer there.

"Look out!"

WWHHHOOOOAAASSHH!

Ino, Noriko, and the rest of the crowd stopped dead in their tracks as a blinding stream of fire shot out of the buildings on their right and burned horizontally across the street. The screams of the people caught in the flame filled the air as they burned.

A person in an orange cloak appeared through the flames. A white fox mask sat on their face, and the stance they took up made it seem as though they were ready to pounce on the people who cowered in fear.

As Ino watched all of this unfold, three more enemies appeared behind her. Slowly, slowly, they closed in on her and her mother, and though they all wore the same mask, she knew that behind them were wicked, evil eyes. It sent a fear shivering down her spine.

This was a nightmare.

Noriko held her daughter's hand tightly and the two of them moved closer, both hoping to protect the other; but whatever slight sense of security this brought them was immediately offset by the snarl that came from the assailants.

Ino felt time slow down as she tried to come to terms with the fact that she was going to die; all she could think of in the end, though, were four regrets that had piled up on over the years.

The first was that she should have become a ninja. Certainly she wouldn't be so helpless at the moment, and she could have protected her mother. She could have protected everyone.

The second was that she should have tried harder to remain friends with Sakura and Shikamaru and Choji. Being acquaintances, as they were now, was fine, but truth be told, she missed her old friends.

The third was that she hadn't seen her father in four years. If only she were stronger…if only she could have helped him…

But while the other three had all been swirling in her head for years, the fourth came now, as the middle of the three enemies pulled a kunai from their pouch. It was only as Ino stared death straight in the face that she recalled her conversation with the girl at the graveyard yesterday and was reminded that there was someone else she was missing: and old friend.

She only wished she could have seen him once again.

"Time to die!" the man with the kunai yelled. He pounced. Ino and her mother held each other close and waited for the end.

CLAAANG!

Ino opened her eyes as the sound of metal-on-metal rang out in the air.

In front of her was a man—no, a boy—in an off-white cloak. His blonde hair shook with him as he struggled with his sword to stop the kunai's momentum; and as he delivered a thrust with his blade, breaking the two weapons apart, he took a step back, just wide enough for Ino to see a bright blue eye, sparkling in the sunlight.

"N…Naruto…?"

Her mother's grip only seemed to get tighter, and the two of them shared a look of disbelief as Naruto charged forward to meet his enemies. For those who weren't ninja, it was incredible. The boy, only a teenager, took on three grown men with only a sword. He forced the first one back with a thrust as the other two made to attack with kunai of their own.

Naruto weaved in and out of the enemies with precision and skill, and though three was quite a bit more than he was used to handling, he realized as he dodged away from the group that it would be fine. He had the longer weapon, after all.

He burst forward and began to attack the right-most enemy. With a thrust of his sword, he knocked the kunai out of the man's hand before crouching down and delivering a kick into his gut, sending him flying. As the next closest brought his blade down on Naruto, the blonde raised his sword to deflect it away, and the man was sent a few extra steps down the road.

"Naruto?" some of the villagers' voices whispered. "The boy from before? How?"

Yes, Ino wondered. That's right…

How?

Finally the last enemy moved in with a lunge of his own, but Naruto jumped over him to dodge, landing on the other side. Quickly he sheathed his sword and moved his hands in front of his chest, weaving his fingers into a number of different hand-signs. He finished just as the man turned around to attack him again.

The man stopped as he saw Naruto's palm sticking out towards him. Suddenly, a burst of wind flew outwards from his hand, sending the man flying back and into the other enemy who Naruto had parried a moment ago. The two of them were down the street in no time, and they landed still, and stayed that way

Ino could do nothing but let her mouth hang agape. As she realized the enemies were defeated, she felt her feet moving on their own. The boy before her…that old friend…

He was a dream. He had to be.

"Naruto…?"

FFWWOOAASSHH!

The next thing Ino knew she was on the ground. Naruto had tackled her out of the way of a fireball that scorched the spot where she stood. He helped her to sit up.

"Ino!"

Noriko rushed over to tend to her daughter, but as she approached, noticed that it would be impossible to tear Ino's eyes away from the face of the boy that protected her.

Ino felt his arm around her. He was older than she remembered. He was taller. He was stronger. And those eyes…

There was still a hint of pain in them, but they were brighter now.

"Naruto…is…is it really you?"

"Yeah," he said, turning to her. He smiled.

"Sorry I'm late."

Her eyes began to quiver. There was no way she was going to allowed herself to cry, but they did feel a little wet.

Finally…

Finally.

"But…how…where…?"

Suddenly, the shadow of the man in the orange cloak appeared in the flames, and Naruto's eyes tightened, and the crowd behind them, also taking notice, began to run.

"I'm sorry," Naruto said. "I don't have time to explain. You guys have to get out of here."

"What?" Ino said, fear straining her voice. "No. No way! I'm not leaving you again!"

Naruto looked at her with surprise, but he was saddened by her words. He wanted to agree with her, to run away—but at the same time, he was the only one here who could protect her.

And he would be damned if he didn't do just that.

Before he could respond, though, Noriko grabbed Ino's arm.

"Naruto's right, dear. We have to go."

The urgency in her mother's eyes forced Ino to pay attention, but still she couldn't bring herself to agree.

"Ino."

She turned to Naruto. His blue eyes were deep, and they told her just how serious he was.

"Go."

It was only one word, but it was all it took for Ino to understand the reality of the situation. It was unfair. It was so unfair, but…

She raised a hand to his collar and grabbed it with all of her might.

"Promise me," she said, voice beginning to shake.

"Promise me you're going to come back."

Naruto allowed the words to sink into his ears and his heart. They were so filled with fear…but their meaning warmed him.

He smiled.

"I promise."

FWWOOSSHH! KLANG!

Out of nowhere, Naruto's arm rose, sword in hand, and blocked the kunai coming straight for Ino's head. The knife twirled away through the air, and Naruto turned back to her and nodded.

"Go."

Ino took a second before nodding back, but eventually, with Noriko's help, she rose to her feet. After another hesitant look, the two of them took off after the crowd.

The entire time she ran, Ino's eyes were trained on Naruto, who stood to meet his foe, sword at the ready. There was a fierce look in his eye, a determined glare.

That was not the boy she remembered from five years ago.

But…

Eventually Ino and Noriko lost sight of Naruto and turned their eyes to their destination, the Hokage Rock. Ino could hardly see through her tears.

He was alright.

He was alright…

Her mother was far too wise to have to ask what they were for.

"Come on, dear," Noriko said, grabbing her daughter's hand and pulling her forward.

"There will be time for that later."

~XX~

It wasn't often that Itachi took note of the sky. In ANBU he was trained not to let weather interfere with his missions, and he really didn't mind whether the sun or the clouds hung overhead.

Yet he couldn't help but notice as he approached the elevator to Danzo's office that there was a lot of grey coming from the east. Whether his eyes made them appear darker than they really were was not a concern. He felt it in the air.

Rain was coming.

Itachi walked as if he were in no rush. As he got closer to the spot at the base of the mountain that Sakura led them to a couple days ago, he saw that two ANBU agents were guarding the rock. They soon took notice of him.

"The shelter is on the other side of the mountain, sir," one of them said. "Please head there immediately."

Itachi did not slow down.

"Sir!" the other said as they both drew their swords. "Not another step! Lord Hokage is not—gah!"

Blood squirted from his chest as Itachi swung his sword up through it. The other man could only watch as the Uchiha did the same to him.

Itachi stood in front of the rock and stared at it for a moment. What was it that Sakura did? Put her hand here and…

At the outflow of chakra from Itachi's hand, the stone began to move. Eventually it revealed the elevator, the same as it did before. He got inside and once again followed his memory of Sakura, placing his hand one the same spot of the wall and sending more chakra through. It took a little more than the opening of the door, but soon it moved, and Itachi was rising.

It took a moment to reach the top, and in the moment Itachi recalled every single vivid detail of the night Danzo made him a murderer, the night his family and his home were taken away from him.

A few weeks ago, Itachi thought that the hatred and the pain had dulled over the years, but as he rose towards the Hokage now, he realized that that wasn't the case.

The passion came and went, but the feelings were still as strong as ever—perhaps even stronger now that he was so close.

The memory of Sasuke's smile yesterday stuck in his mind.

As the door opened to reveal the empty lower level of the office, Itachi realized:

That was what he had come back to Konoha for. Everything else was smoke and mirrors. So long as this village was safe, Sasuke would be safe.

And he would protect it. He would protect him, no matter who stood in his way.

The ascending stairway that led to Danzo's throne room looked darker than the first time he was here, and far longer. Itachi climbed the steps slowly, methodically, planning for every possibility.

As he finally reached the heavy metal doors, he took a deep breath. His dark eyes stared straight ahead. There was someone waiting for him on the other side.

Itachi knew who it was.

He opened the door.

Before him stood a boy, around Naruto's age, dressed in the ANBU uniform. He wore no mask, and his dark hair and ebony eyes, widened at the sight of his brother stepping through the door, were on full display.

"Hello, Sasuke," Itachi said calmly.

"You…" There was rage in Sasuke's voice. "What…what are you doing here…?"

Itachi pulled his cloak off to reveal the clothes he wore underneath. It was the grey and blue robes he got from the seaside village. The sleeveless cloth allowed Sasuke to see the stub below hi left should where his arm should have extended out from. Slowly, Itachi reached down for his sword and slung it around his back.

"Isn't it obvious?"

His dark eyes, not yet out of light, stared at his brother.

"I'm here for you."