A Home No More
Itachi spent ten days training Sasuke in the forest, honing his kunai and jutsu. Sasuke had taken to his lessons quickly, proving to be adept in many of the skills Itachi taught him. Itachi felt proud of his brother as they prepared to leave, the boy had achieved a lot for the short time they were there.
"Ready?" Itachi asked his little brother as he finished gathering his things into his pack.
"Yep," the boy replied enthusiastically, hoisting his pack onto his shoulders with a big grin.
Their walk back was uneventful, but Itachi felt a cold pit form in his stomach as they neared the Uchiha compound. He told Sasuke to hang back by the gate as they neared it, entering their clan's compound with all the stealth he was capable of as one of the Anbu's top members. He ducked into the shadows behind one of the houses, noticing that there was not a single light on. He also noticed that the compound was entirely silent, something that did not bode well.
He continued to sneak his way through the compound, making a zig-zag for their house. He bolted in when he heard something move inside the darkened building, his Sharingan active as he pulled a kunai from the pouch on his thigh. He made his way to the back of the house, towards the bedrooms. He heard another faint noise as he neared his parents' door, making him pause as he passed it. He gently cracked the door open and peeked inside, nearly losing his composure when he saw two bodies on the floor in a large pool of blood.
He entered the room the same way he would when infiltrated enemy territory, making sure he would be ready if the murderer was still there. The room proved to be empty aside from the bodies. He knelt down to check, though he was already certain of what he would discover. His parents had been murdered, and their eyes removed. Itachi gripped his kunai tighter as he noticed their empty sockets. He was storming from the house when he heard a scream from near the gate, no doubt in Itachi's mind that it was Sasuke.
He rushed to the gate, sliding to a stop beside Sasuke as the boy knelt on the stone path, holding his head in his hands as he stared forward and screamed. Itachi followed his gaze to see a man in a long cloak, his face covered by a strange, swirling mask that only had one eye opening. He could vaguely make out the red iris and black tomoe of the Sharingan behind the mask's hole. He threw his kunai at the man, drawing another as the first left his hand. His eyes went wide in surprise as the thrown kunai passed through the stranger's body as though he weren't there, but the giant Fireball jutsu he cast at them was real enough to destroy the ground in its wake. Itachi grabbed Sasuke and leapt out of the way before the jutsu hit them, turning to find the mysterious stranger gone.
He looked down at Sasuke, who had lost consciousness and was babbling incoherently. He lifted his little brother into his arms and snuck out of the village, turning to the only person he felt he could trust.