Quietus

by Seraphina Scribes

When first he laid eyes upon her, he thought her the very personification of spring. He watches, from the depths of shadow; waiting to steal her away from the land of the living. Waiting to make her Queen of the Dead. Hades/Persephone retold. SasuSaku/AU.

65. Chapter 64

Thank you for the great feedback for the last chapter! So glad you're all excited for a Team 7 reunion. Some more twists and turns until we get to that point, though. This chapter focuses exclusively on Sasuke's memories as he recalls them, and is flashback heavy, intended to clarify the extent of his loss and why he grew to become so emotionless.

This is a very long read, so I have included a marker break about half-way to divide it into two more manageable sections.

This chapter is dedicated to Vetty, who loves Sasuke, and whose birthday it is on June 9th! Also Itachi's birthday! Vetty's beautiful Quietus artworks have delighted us all on the Discord channel. Thank you for your contributions and I hope you have a wonderful day.

---

Chapter LXIV

---

Born in shadows, a Prince of Night,

Stranger to the surface and all things light,

Raised in luxury, so self-assured,

Doted by family and deeply adored,

He grew and thrived until the day,

All love, all warmth, were stolen away,

Plunging his heart into perpetual ice,

To the depths of hatred – the cruelest vice.

---

He lit the candles of the shrine room erected in his family's honour, his thoughts burdened and conflicted. Ever since he had witnessed the appearance of monsters on the surface, Sasuke had been at uncharacteristic war with his inner voice of reason, over the extent of involvement he was allowing himself to have with issues that were decidedly not of his concern.

He'd told himself that he had intervened and cast genjutsu because it would benefit him if summoned before the High Council to account for his actions. But he hadn't known about the massacre at the building before he had teleported to it.

He'd succeeded in making his team believe it was curiosity alone that had spurred him to divert their mission. But he knew otherwise. He'd known it from the way his gut had twisted, as if sheared by a jagged blade, the moment he had heard her voice speaking softly behind him.

Seeing an explosion in the horizon after they'd trashed another of Orochimaru's bases, and realising that it had come from the centre of the village itself, had turned his thoughts immediately to Sakura. It had taken an iron will to keep himself from reaching out to sense her through the connection they shared. Being in Suigetsu, Karin and Jugo's company, he couldn't afford to show any emotion or vulnerability, and had he given in and identified that she was hurt, Sasuke was not so sure that he would've been able to prevent himself from going to her, however irrational and risky that action would have been.

The beasts were Orochimaru's work. Taking them out fell directly in line with his intentions to weaken and wipe out the serpent's resources. But he was all too painfully aware that he was indirectly assisting the surface gods by doing so - the very deities he viewed as his sworn enemies.

What if another outbreak occurred? Sasuke knew it wasn't any of his business. He had a Kingdom to run, and whatever was beyond his domain was not his responsibility. But if a creature like the hydra were to appear again, or worse – then it would lead to disproportionate death on a large scale once more. Human lives would be in danger – lives that would have otherwise been safe.

So what? It isn't your purpose to save mortal lives, he told himself exasperatedly - thoroughly irritated that he was even mulling the matter over. If those idiots can't handle it, it is not your job to clean up their mess.

He never intervened when a ship capsized, or when catastrophic natural events like earthquakes or volcanic eruptions caused the loss of hundreds or thousands of lives at a time. What made these monster attacks any different? Why would he even be bothered by them?

Because they were Orochimaru's pets, and he was an Avenger, who wanted to smite down every last trace and asset belonging to the snake?

Or was it something more than that? Something that troubled and disturbed him deeply, a stark realisation that he had started to make subtle allowances for things that, several months ago, would have seemed unthinkable – things that he categorically did not wish to acknowledge and think about.

The more Sasuke dwelled upon it, the more annoyed he became. He was bearing all the consequences of his own actions – actions birthed from the very same allowances he never would have entertained in the past. He had chosen to meet with Madara. He had left himself open in battle, which had resulted in acquiring the damned curse seal. He had attacked Killer B to get Suigetsu his stupid prized sword, Samehada. And he had chosen to hunt down Orochimaru's research laboratories and cause as much damage and disruption as possible.

These creatures were an extension of the snake's work. But he refused to play Konoha's vigilante hero from the shadows, if any others appeared. He was custodian of the dead, not the living. The thought of helping the surface gods any more than he already had filled him with scorn and intense disgust.

But what about Sakura's safety? She was entrusted to their care while on the surface and had clearly been at the venue. If they were all far too incompetent due to seal restrictions to do their jobs and protect her, then any one of any future monster attacks could endanger her. And what if Madara grew to suspect her? He'd already quizzed Sasuke about the mortal girl he'd somehow discovered had been kidnapped to the Underworld.

Sasuke still had no idea who might have revealed that to him. He raked a hand frustratedly through his unruly raven locks, pushing wayward strands out his face which fell immediately and stubbornly back in place.

Damn it.

He often speculated over how altered things would have been, had he turned away and departed before seeing her at that funeral years ago, how different events would have unfolded had he never laid eyes on her.

Or would he have just seen her again elsewhere? Was their meeting preordained by The Fates themselves, inevitable? For all his great wisdom, the death deity had no answers when it came to Sakura. His mind drew vexing blanks - and that fact frustrated him to no end.

Sasuke's obsidian gaze lifted from where it had been staring vehemently at the burning candles, up to the framed portrait of his family hanging upon the wall before him. His eyes trailed over his father's stern face, his mother's beautiful, gentle smile. Bitterness lodged in his throat. He had come to terms with their deaths over the course of time – but he had never forgiven the loss. The injustice of it. The cruel way they had all been ripped from him – with no answer offered as to why.

Even now, his parents' deaths still haunted him.

His eyes then turned to the last person in the portrait, standing by his younger self's side. Reserved, perfectly poised, and devastatingly brilliant to look upon. A silent, deadly, beautiful assassin, in keeping with his role.

He wondered what actions his older brother, in his great wisdom, would have chosen to take had he been in Sasuke's present situation. But even as he recalled Itachi's undeniable excellence, his heart was overcome with the burning resentment and agony that accompanied betrayal. Before he could keep the memories in check, as he always did whenever their ghosts threatened to revisit him, his mind began to replay them, and pain, repressed for too long, surged up like a tidal wave in his dark eyes, reopening weeping wounds in the deepest crevices of his chest. Wounds that had never fully closed and healed.

---

Hades followed the winding, ascending path set into the rock-face. He was heading towards the cavern where his father frequently met with his brother and cousin to discuss battle strategy.

He wanted to take a closer look at the maps detailing the intended plan for the war. It was only hours away – and Hades had grown tired of being quickly excluded from every meeting they held. How was he meant to know what to do on the field once the fighting begun? Once he secured his mother's safety, they surely couldn't expect him to simply stand back and watch?

Irked, he had decided to take matters into his own hands. Choosing a time when he knew his father would not likely be at the private quarters, he'd slipped away from patrolling the Underworld's borders with other members of his clan and snuck toward his intended location.

Reaching it, he pushed aside the heavy fabric curtain that concealed the opening of the cavern from view. Slipping inside, he found it to be surprisingly dark. The warm candles usually illuminating the entrance space had been snuffed out. Raising a hand, Hades summoned a small flare of precisely-controlled 'Katon' into his right index finger. He walked forward, stone crunching underfoot, through the passageway that led to the strategy room. Pushing aside another curtain, he entered into it, gaze moving automatically toward the table with the maps-

-except what he unexpectedly found on the floor beside it caused the flame to flicker out of life at his fingertip. His hand lowered slowly, eyes impossibly wide, as he struggled to process what he was looking at, his mind recognising the image- but stubbornly refusing to comprehend it.

Two figures were slumped motionlessly on the ground. He saw a pale, slender, limp hand. A crown of stars and scattered pearls. Midnight blue fabric, and a river of dark, silky hair. He saw the bracelet on his mother's slim wrist. Stared stupidly at it, as if the object could somehow offer him a reasonable explanation.

On top of her still form, cocooned almost protectively as if seeking to protect Nyx, was the motionless body of his father.

Hades spotted the blood pooling onto the cavern floor beneath them. Staining the rocks blacker than the rest of the black in the dimness. Somehow, he knew with certainty, that they were already dead. Had been for several minutes, at least.

His breath arrested in his lungs. His thundering heart plummeted to his feet. Immediately, unthinkingly, he drew Kusanagi, arm trembling, his shadow-accustomed eyes moving upwards, seeking out the perpetrator in the darkness.

He found it in the form of a tall, shadowy figure standing above his parents' fallen bodies. The sound of metal scraping against metal hissed ominously through the air as a blade was drawn from its sheath, steel glinting in the darkness. Hades then glimpsed crimson, Mangekyou eyes glowing menacingly in the shadows – and recognition slammed into him, making his heart explode with confusion and fear. It pounded within him uncontrollably, quaking his entire body with its racing, chaotic rhythm.

That pattern within the rotating kaleidoscope. He knew those eyes.

"Brother…?" he choked out, cemented to the spot by debilitating shock, the sword in his hand wobbling unsteadily, incapable of being raised against the one he had adored and idolised more than anyone else in the world. His mind still refused to accept what he was seeing, foolishly hoping he was trapped in a nightmare. Even when the implications were as clear as day, and utterly undeniable.

He refused to believe that it was his cherished big brother who was standing over their dead bodies. There had to be a mistake. A horrible misunderstanding. There was no conceivable way that gentle-natured Thanatos, the pride and joy of the Uchiha clan, would ever lift a finger to harm any of them.

And he was alone. Without Hypnos by his side. That was even more out of character and alarming.

He didn't understand. Maybe Itachi had discovered them dead. Maybe someone else had committed the crime. Maybe-

"Wh-what is this…?" Hades spoke in a hushed voice, stricken. "Mother and Father- why are they-?"

There was a long, stifling silence, in which Thanatos stood deathly-still, like a perfectly composed statue. No emotion. No reaction. His eyes simply continued to hold his little brother's steadily, the feared Mangekyou within those piercing red depths spinning furiously.

"Itachi," Hades whispered his brother's true name. "Who did this…?"

His brother offered no reply. The silence was disconcerting. Damning. Hades felt his blood turn to ice.

"You wouldn't- tell me it wasn't you," he continued, voice spiking with rising panic. "Brother! Please!"

There was another lengthy pause. Then at last, came the answer, as his brother's smooth, quiet voice spoke two words that stabbed through Hades' heart with such violent, severing force, that he knew, at that very moment, it would birth a gaping wound that would never mend.

"I did." His tone was as soft as it had always been. Calm. Unaffected by any semblance of feeling.

Shaking with grief, shock, disbelief and the crippling pain of a most grievous betrayal, Hades' voice rose, broken by the thickness of emotion that clogged his throat, as tears began to spill down his cheeks. "Nii-san… no. No. What are you saying?! I don't believe it! This isn't like you!"

When Thanatos gave no explanation, Hades exclaimed desperately, "Why?! Tell me why, damn it!"

His brother then spoke. The words were cryptic. They unsettled Hades even further, made him feel like he was standing precariously upon a thin sheet of glass that was rapidly cracking all around him.

"We live bound within the confines of our own perceptions, constantly defining reality according to what we perceive as correct and true. But these are such vague concepts, when you consider… that the things we believe to be correct and true - our realities – may all be a mirage."

Hades released a trembling breath, half-hysterical. It was not the time for such philosophical statements. He didn't understand. Was Thanatos implying that his life with his family had all been a lie? He did not understand!

"What are you saying?!" he demanded. Escalating fury and grief clawed at his chest, ripping his composure to shreds, and the hand holding Kusanagi lifted again. He gripped the hilt tightly, arm trembling even more violently, his heart hammering at the horrifying acknowledgement that his big brother had clearly taken leave of his senses and truly murdered their parents – and that he was forced to have to attack Thanatos with his own sword.

The realisation that he had to attack him for real. And that it was no sparring game.

"How could you?!" he cried hoarsely. "How could you betray us?! Answer me, Itachi!"

Thanatos's heavy-lashed eyes lowered. "You are still a child, Sasuke," he murmured. "There are times when deities must make difficult choices. One day, when you awaken the same eyes; you will understand." Then, almost as if to himself, his brother added, "There is no hope left for this wretched clan."

Hades's mind was spinning in a hurricane of turmoil and couldn't grasp any meaning in the words.

"You-" he inhaled raggedly. "You MURDERER!" he screamed, inconsolable, and launched himself forward, enraged, blade drawn back, screeching with menacing lightning energy, sword raised with the intention of striking the very person that had callously ripped his heart out, the one most dearest to him, who had betrayed him so terribly, so unforgivably.

Thanatos's intense gaze swept upwards once more, Sharingan eyes capturing Hades instantaneously within their caging prison. Hades felt his skull pulse as overwhelming pain and pressure assaulted his mind and body. Throbbing red filled his vision, and he heard someone screaming in agony – realised a moment before he began to pass out that the blood-curdling sound was coming from his own mouth. He distantly heard a sword clatter to the ground as he clutched at his head in anguish - and then everything began to grow numb, dark and cold.

His final memory before he completely lost consciousness, was the feel of something brushing gently against his forehead, a strangely unsteady voice, and the words: "Forgive me… Sasuke…"

---

When Hades next awoke, he was back in his bedroom in the sprawling Uchiha palace. He stared dazedly up at the underside of the rich canopy above his head, lifting his hands to his throbbing temples.

Had he fallen asleep? Why was he resting when there was so much preparation to do before-?

"…!" A gasp flew from his throat, as a split-second later, dreadful recollection suddenly crashed into him, knotting his stomach with sharp thorns. He bolted immediately upright, heart instantly pounding at the memory of seeing his parents' lifeless bodies on the ground. Leaping off the luxurious bed, he sprinted out of his room, nearly knocking over a startled servant girl in the process, ignoring the nausea that made his vision swim from moving too fast, too soon after regaining consciousness.

He bounded toward the entrance hall of the palace, a chant of denial and sorrow thundering in his mind.

No. No. Nonononono…

He'd desperately hoped that it had been a hallucination. But upon waking, the image was still so cruelly, so viciously ingrained into his mind's eye.

Itachi. Itachi had lost his mind and murdered their parents! His eyes stung with fresh, outraged tears as he practically hurdled two steps at a time down the palace's grand entrance staircase. He needed to tell Cronus. He needed to-

Hades almost collided bodily into a broad back as he reached the landing at the bottom of the steps, barely managing to stabilise himself in time. A stifled sound of grief tore from his throat, as Cronus turned to regard him evenly. He was standing in the entrance hall with three of his warfare advisors. Men who had begrudgingly obeyed but never particularly liked Hades' father.

"Hades," Cronus greeted, analytical eyes inspecting him coolly. "You look a state. What ails you?"

"They're dead," Hades began in a nonsensical rush. "I was looking for the map and when I got there I saw them- dead!"

Cronus raised a hand to calm him down. "Slow down, boy," he frowned lightly. "Who is dead?"

"They- Itachi!" Hades blurted wildly. "He murdered them! He killed my parents!"

To his bewilderment and great alarm, Cronus and the other Uchiha simply stared at him, looking remarkably unperturbed.

"Did you hit your head, young Hades?" One of the men questioned, clearly not taking his claims seriously. "Why in the world would your brother do such a thing?"

Cronus shot him a silencing look, as Hades protested in frustration, "It's the truth! I swear it!"

"I see," the Uchiha Patriarch stated deeply, after a moment. "And… you saw this with your own eyes, did you?"

Hades nodded frantically. "Yes. The cavern. My father's cavern- that's where their bodies are!"

"Careless," Cronus murmured, almost as if he were speaking to himself. Hades blinked uncomprehendingly at his odd choice of word, but before he could think anything of it, Cronus placed a hand on his shoulder. "Show me," he instructed, warping them effortlessly to the specified location.

Hades's heart raced as he pulled aside the heavy curtain and led them inside the cavern's passageway. When he stepped inside the strategy room, he found it illuminated - but his parents' bodies were gone. He walked to the precise spot where he was certain he had seen them and crouched down. Crimson still stained the ground – confirming he hadn't imagined the traumatic event.

"Look. Their blood! I am telling you, I saw them!"

"And how do you know Thanatos did this?" Cronus's curly-haired advisor asked dubiously. "That could be anybody's blood. My Lord, we have no proof, other than this child's word."

Hades was livid. He stepped forward toward the older clansman, affronted that he was being treated as a child when he was already very close to the age of young deity maturity.

"I found him," Hades's chest heaved, voice quivering angrily as he spoke. "He was standing over their bodies and he didn't deny it!"

Cronus held up an arm to halt him. "Stay." His eyes narrowed. "I wonder. It is true Thanatos has been acting strangely, as of late. I know Erebus informed me of a quarrel not a week past."

A quarrel? Hades caught his breath. He'd not noticed anything amiss. Surely he would have? But his parents had appeared fine. He had seen his brother just a few days prior, interacting with them perfectly normally. He'd even glimpsed a private moment through a slightly ajar doorway whilst passing by Thanatos's chambers, of his mother standing before Itachi as he sat upon his bed, cupping his face affectionately between her hands and pushing strands of silky dark hair out of her eldest son's captivating eyes. They had spoken together too quietly for Hades to overhear. Thanatos had then bowed his head, and Nyx had leaned in to place a tender kiss upon his brow. That was the last Hades had seen before continuing down the hallway, thinking nothing odd of the exchange, other than it was rare to see one of such a sentimental, unguarded nature between the two.

How could Itachi go from that, to seemingly snapping completely and slaying his parents in cold blood days later? It defied belief. But was it possible; had Hades merely been blind to any tension between them, seeing instead what he had foolishly, naïvely hoped to be true?

"Perhaps the reaping of souls has taken its toll on his sanity at last," another kinsman commented.

"It was only a matter of time," the other agreed. "Those voices are enough to drive anyone mad."

"…" Cronus came to stand beside him and looked down at the bloody stain on the ground. He frowned. "Has Thanatos returned from his mission?" he asked his subordinates.

"No, Lord," one of the long-haired men replied. "We believe he will be a while yet."

"Very well," Cronus nodded. To Hades, he added, "And what happened after you discovered their bodies? Did he speak anything? Did he strike you?"

Hades shook his head. "He…" his mind, at that moment, drew a blank as to the precise words his brother had uttered. "His words made no sense. Something about truths and- I did not understand him. I tried to disable him, but-" The memory of searing crimson eyes made it difficult to recall what, exactly, had happened next. "When I came around next, I was back in the palace."

"Is that so," Cronus folded his arms thoughtfully. "Interesting…" Then, to the others, "Leave us, now."

The men bowed and obediently exited the cavern. Cronus turned to Hades as the youngest Uchiha stood, placing a hand on his left shoulder.

"Listen to me, boy. If what you say is true – and I do not doubt you - then your brother has committed a great offence. The loss of your noble father and mother pains me deeply, and this will not go unpunished. Mark my words, Itachi will be detained and we will investigate this matter – but it must be after the war."

"But-!" Hades began to immediately protest in anger.

Cronus held up a silencing hand. "You must understand. We are hours away from war. I need your brother by my side on the field come the morrow. He is unparalleled in swiftness and combat, our clan's greatest asset. Let us march tomorrow to victory, and then, you have my word; upon my honour, once it is all over, he will be seized, dealt with and put to trial, and justice will be served."

"How is he on our side if he murdered my parents?!" Hades exclaimed, near-hysterical with fury. "He's already betrayed us-!"

"Believe me," Cronus assured him firmly. "Your brother has a great deal personally invested in ensuring the correct outcome of this war, and he will now be closely monitored to guarantee he executes his orders without fail. The passing of your parents is most unexpected, and we will obtain an explanation. But it cannot be tonight. I have already sent him and Shisui to the surface to make final preparations along with a cell of three others. There is no time."

Hades swallowed thickly and looked miserably at the ground. Grief and resentment bubbled like burning lava within his chest – even though he knew, deep down, that there was no way a comprehensive investigation could be conducted before dawn. And Cronus was right. His brother - along with Shisui - was literally the clan's deadliest fighter.

But whose side was Itachi really on, if his behaviour had clearly disturbed even Cronus himself? Whatever explanation Hades's agonised mind tried to conjure up to account for the uncharacteristic actions his brother had taken, none seemed rational, which only left him feeling even more distressed.

Had Thanatos truly quarrelled with their parents in private? Even if he had, what disagreement could have been so awful, so unsalvageable, as to justify completely terminating their existences on the eve before they were all due to ride out to battle?

It just didn't make any sense. And the not knowing was ripping Hades apart inside.

"Why…?" Hades whispered, distraught. "How could he-?"

Cronus squeezed his shoulder firmly. "We will have answers. This is a terrible loss. But I need you to focus on tomorrow's battle, Sasuke. Can you do that for me?"

Hades lifted tearful, unfocused eyes to him. Suddenly the war seemed meaningless to him. Without his parents around, and with his brother's inexplicable betrayal, what reason did he have to participate in it?

"I can't," he said in a hushed voice. "I cannot just ignore this-!"

Cronus clearly saw his faltering resolve, and his expression changed from sympathy entirely, completely walling off, growing intimidating. He stepped closer, slipping a hand to the back of Hades' neck, gripping tightly as he gave him a shake. His eyes bled to crimson, the Mangekyou spinning within menacing irises.

"Boy. Concentrate. You are fighting for the clan, and you must survive if you wish to obtain revenge. Despair, and you will be as good as dead if you let this loss paralyse you. There will be a time to grieve. That is not now. You will listen to my words."

Hades blinked, finally focusing on Cronus's face before him.

"No altercations with Itachi until after the war. You will not see him tonight. Go to your room and compose yourself. You must control your emotions. Save your anger for battle, harness it. We need every last able-bodied soldier on the field. I am placing my hopes in you. March out in your father's stead. Make us both proud, fighting for our family's honour. As for your brother – leave him to me." He paused. "Can you do that for me, boy? I depend upon you."

Hades blinked. He managed to move his head – though was unsure whether it was a nod or a negative.

He was being expected to fully concentrate on the war, when his brother's actions and apparent betrayal went unanswered? Even as he thought it, however, Hades knew he had no choice. That he could not properly grieve until afterward. Cronus was right. He had to survive to ensure that his brother was brought to justice. He had to survive, to honour his parents.

He knew he would not rest a wink that night. The question 'why' would play over and over in his mind, tormenting him until it was time to depart for the surface.

Cronus gave Hades's shoulder a final squeeze, as if confident that his point had been made, and left the cavern. Once alone, Hades fell to his knees by the bloodstains, head bowed, teeth clenched, battling to weep in silence.

---

Sasuke swallowed thickly. The memory was still so vividly etched in his mind. There had been no justice delivered, of course. Thanatos had perished the following day, before he could ever confront him. Even knowing that his brother had committed a grave crime and betrayal, a part of Sasuke had still mourned his loss, mourned the passing of the brother he'd thought he'd known so well growing up - because he had never obtained his answers. The knowledge that Thanatos had ended their parents' lives still filled him with so many unresolved, conflicting emotions. It had been the last time he remembered ever seeing Itachi – standing over their mother and father's motionless bodies. A cruel and callous last image to recall him by. And it had eaten away at Sasuke ever since, quickly filling whatever respite he had tried to find over the years with nightmares, until he'd forgotten how to sleep in peace, shunning any chance for rest entirely.

For whenever he closed his eyes, like this, he would see their bodies. He would remember his family, before the horrors of that moment. Their unconditional love and protection.

He would remember his big brother, and how so very wrong it had felt, how very out of character, for him to turn against his own parents. He recalled Itachi being nothing but gentle with his family. How could someone who had always been so averse to violence turn into such a lethal, unfeeling, ruthless killer? Or had that been Thanatos's real nature all along, as True Death? Had he misled and lied to his own family for all those years, a silent, heartless assassin masquerading as a peaceful, kind-natured son and brother? Had he been truly loyal only to Cronus, the very one who had hand-picked him as successor and trained him in combat and genjutsu from a young age?

How well had he really known his brother, after all? It had seemed the older they had grown, the less Sasuke had seen of him, and the further apart they had drifted as a result. Itachi had never told him much about anything relating to clan matters and what his frequent missions to the surface with Shisui were all about.

The fact Sasuke had never seen his brother alive again afterward to question him over everything, had only made the wound even more excruciatingly raw. And so, he had lived since then, never knowing, never being able to confront Itachi about it, swallowed by his deep resentment, dejection and unresolved emotions.

For his final memory to be that of his brother, whom Sasuke had always looked up to and worshipped, standing over the dead bodies of their mother and father…

His recollections turned inadvertently to the times they had shared together, in simpler days, filling him with a different kind of sorrow that hurt no less.

---

"Thanatos!" Nyx called, concern lilting in her musical voice. "My love, come quickly!"

Little Hades lifted a palm to his mouth, stifling a childish giggle when he heard his beloved Nii-san's voice answer softly, "I am here, Mother."

"Oh, Thanatos! Thank goodness! Please, help me! I seem to have lost your little brother in this garden! I have looked everywhere for him. It seems I am no good at this game. Won't you help me find him?"

"Ah," Thanatos murmured. "I see."

"I have searched all corners!" Their mother declared. Hades was too young to detect the carefully concealed amusement in her voice, mistaking it instead as worry. Excitement filled him. He was now tricking not only his mother, but his big brother, too!

"Hmm. I wonder where he might be," Thanatos mused.

"It's hopeless," Nyx exclaimed dramatically. "I am afraid he is lost forever to us!"

"You are right…" There was a pause. "I cannot see him, either."

A minute passed, followed by another, in which his mother continued to sigh sadly.

Hades snickered delightedly into his little hand, safely concealed behind the bush he had taken cover in. He had always known he was good at this particular game. But to outwit even his clever Nii-san, was surely a treat that he had to-

He gasped in surprise, when he was suddenly hoisted up from behind onto a pair of familiar shoulders. His big brother was several years older, and had yet to reach the age of deity maturity himself – but was already so strong, he could carry Hades in his arms without trouble.

"Don't worry. I found him, Mother," Thanatos said smilingly.

"There you are!" Nyx clapped her hands in relief. "You gave your poor mother such a fright, my love!"

"Awww, Nii-saaan!" Hades pouted, and lifted his hands, pulling on the growing ponytail on Thanatos's head. "How did you know where I was?"

"It was difficult to find you," Thanatos answered. "You've improved in this game, Sasuke."

Hades beamed at the acknowledgement and the affectionate use of his real name, and pressed his cheek on top of his brother's head, hugging him tightly.

---

Their father had sent them out hunting for a wild boar on the surface. Little Hades felt very grown up in his big brother's company, armed with a bow and arrow he had been practicing hard to use well.

He shadowed Thanatos's movements as they tracked their target. "Nii-san," Hades whispered loudly, creeping as carefully behind his brother as he could. "I heard the boar is huge! As big as a monster! Is that true?!"

His big brother lifted a finger to his lips, signalling for silence, as he listened intently to the forest surroundings. A sudden rustle of movement ahead of them made them both still. A moment later, the boar materialised, still oblivious to their presence.

Hades nervously gulped at the sight of its humongous, sharp tusks. But he steeled himself, gripping the bow tightly in his hand. Now was no time to lose his composure; it was finally his chance to show his big brother what he could do!

"Hades," Thanatos murmured quietly to him. "When I give the signal, go through the thicket on your left. I will head to the right. We can surround it that way."

"Yes, Nii-san!" Hades nodded determinedly. "Then, can I shoot it?"

"When I give the signal," his brother instructed. "Avoid its vital points. We are incapacitating, not killing it."

They continued to inch forward. Then Thanatos lifted a hand, waving for Hades to bear left. Hades did so, ducking low, keeping his eyes on the large beast. Drawing an arrow from the quiver strapped to his back, he nocked it to the bow, waiting for Thanatos's next sign.

A minute passed. Two.

He brushed his hair out of his face. Where was his big brother? Had he gone the right way? Hades apprehensively straightened, trying to see if he could catch sight of Thanatos if he stood a little taller. The plants in the forest were overgrown, and he could barely make out the shape of the boar above-

His heart jumped in his chest, realisation jolting through his small body. The boar! It had vanished!

The ground tremored, and a threatening, thunderous growl filled the air. With shaking hands, Hades lifted his bow reflexively, whirling around just in time to see the boar charging straight toward him, exhaling smoke, its nostrils flaring, golden eyes furious.

Hades released the arrow in panic, and watched in dismay as it whistled way off the mark. The boar continued to hurtle toward him, far too swiftly for Hades's little legs to jump away in time. He back-pedalled frantically, tripping over an upturned vine, and squeezed his eyes shut, terrified, bracing himself for the painful moment of impact-

A loud squeal of pain echoed around him, followed by a heavy thud. Hades cracked an eye open, to find the beast had been felled less than a metre from where he stood. And balanced perfectly atop its broad back, was Thanatos.

His brother leapt gracefully from the unconscious animal's body and landed lightly before Hades.

"You need more training," he remarked.

Hades looked down, tiny shoulders slumping. He'd just gotten in the way of the hunt. He had disappointed his big brother, when all he'd wanted was a chance to impress him, to shine.

"Can…" his lower lip protruded unhappily. "Can you help me train when we get back, Nii-san?"

Too embarrassed by his failure to look up, he waited with baited breath for his brother's response, only to wince when two fingers suddenly poked at his forehead. He reached up with his hands, holding them over the point where Thanatos had prodded him.

"Forgive me, Sasuke," came the soft reply. "Maybe next time."

---

Hades had been patrolling through the Underworld, happily minding his own business – when a steely arm suddenly fastened around his neck, knocking him unexpectedly off-balance and securing him in an uncomfortably tight headlock, causing his sword to fly from his grip and clank loudly onto the rocky ground.

"Gotcha!" Came Hypnos's triumphant, teasing voice. "Once again, the Little Prince is caught off guard!"

"Khnn…" Hades glowered, trying in vain to wriggle out of his older cousin's unbreakable hold. He did not appreciate being called little, when he was clearly well on his way to reaching maturity. "Let go, Hypnos!"

Hypnos chuckled. "Told you I could sneak up on you at any moment. You need to be better prepared."

"Get off me," Hades snarled, pushing and prying at his arm to no avail.

"Make me. Come on," Hypnos goaded. "I've gotten you enough times for you to figure a way out of this by now, Sasuke."

"Shisui," a smooth voice intervened.

"Dear cousin. How many more times will you come to Sasuke's aid like this?" Hypnos reached down and mussed Hades's raven locks of hair affectionately, which only served to irk the youngest Uchiha even further.

"When I get out of this, I'll rip your arm off!" Hades growled, mortified that his older brother felt the need to intercept on his behalf, to get him out of something as insignificant as a stupid headlock.

Hypnos laughed loudly at that. "Hear that, Itachi? He was such a sweet-natured little child. What happened? Adolescence?"

A light sigh filled the air, belonging to a person who had watched such interactions take place more times than he cared to count. "Don't tease him so. Enough."

Both Hypnos and Hades suddenly tensed when another voice called out to them reproachfully.

"Hypnos! Hades! Thanatos! If you all have time to engage in such silly distractions, then that is time unspent completing your obligations."

"F-father!" Hades stammered, flushing with even more embarrassment. He finally succeeded in digging his elbow aggressively into Hypnos's right rib, who grunted and released him. "I promise you, I was-"

"It was my fault," Hypnos interjected, raising a hand sheepishly. "I ambushed Hades in jest. Forgive me, Uncle."

"Hmph," Erebus cast a disapproving look at them all, shaking his head at their antics, before turning away. "Return to your duties."

Hades shot a withering scowl at Hypnos. His cousin simply winked playfully at him, then strolled off with Thanatos, who gave his brother a brief nod before he departed.

A pang of jealousy filled Hades watching them leave together, as he reached up to absently smooth his hair back down. Hypnos got to spend so much more time with Thanatos than Hades ever did.

It simply wasn't fair.

Retrieving his sword, he sullenly continued on patrol.

---

Hades stood, bored out his mind, leaning against the rock-face, arms folded across his chest, watching as his clan members patrolled the paths below his assigned post.

The approaching sound of hushed whispers and giggles then snagged his attention. He saw a small group of three young goddesses walking on the stony track below. They shyly looked up to meet his eyes and offered flirtatious smiles.

"Hello, Hades," one bold goddess called out politely. Her dark hair was braided, and she wore a black chiton dress. Golden leaves adorned her hair, and her dark eyes twinkled merrily as she waved up at him. She was somewhat pretty, Hades supposed – the prettiest out of her group of friends, certainly – but he had no interest in any of them. They were silly and unremarkable and he had no time for such superfluous things. He turned his face away dismissively, giving no response.

They giggled again amongst themselves, and he heard one of them remark that he was "so handsome" - which caused one corner of his lips to twitch in something that bordered on the beginnings of a smug smirk – when all the goddesses suddenly gasped, at once flustered and panicked.

"He's coming!" Hades heard one of the girls hiss agitatedly. They were then joined by five other adolescent goddesses hurrying down the path to greet them. They all whispered furiously to each other, and started looking anxiously back over their shoulders.

"He is right around the corner! We have just seen him heading this way, girls!"

"Is he alone?"

"Yes! I cannot believe it!"

"Now is our chance to speak with him! Which one of us will have the courage?"

"By Elysium! How does my hair look? Oh, if I had known!"

"I should have worn a prettier dress! He is scarcely ever home – why today of all days!"

"Oh my, oh my, here he comes, girls!"

"So close! To be so close to him!"

"My body is shivering. Can you feel that aura…? So powerful!"

"My heart is aflutter. I feel quite faint."

"Get a hold of yourself! Do not embarrass us!"

"Stop fussing! All of you! He will surely hear us-!"

Hades scowled contemptuously. What were they getting into such a ridiculous state over-?

Oh.

Oh.

He understood, a second later, as he saw the tall, fetching form of his older brother appear along the path, the very embodiment of effortless elegance and refined, regal poise. Dressed in the gold-stitched, richly embroidered, shadow-hued finery of their clan, with half his face concealed behind an elaborate mask and his long, silky hair swishing to his movements behind him, he radiated an air of alluring mystery and magnetism that clearly had quite the disarming effect on the group of girls.

They swiftly stepped out of his way as he passed them. But unlike with Hades, none of the girls dared to call out to Thanatos. Instead, they clutched at their bosoms, cheeks flushed, fanning their faces. They held their hands over their mouths as if too awe-struck to dare to speak with him. And Thanatos showed no reaction to their presence as they curtsied politely, sweeping past them with his usual air of nonchalant, languid grace.

Hades glowered at his brother's retreating, cloaked back. He couldn't even call him a show-off – since Thanatos never actually purposefully appeared to show off and definitely hated drawing any kind of attention to himself. He was just naturally perfect. At everything.

It was maddening.

To his astonishment, the girls then began to trail after his brother, like lovesick little puppies, giggling and whispering amongst each other, pushing each other along whilst maintaining a safe distance from the God of Death.

"He is so terribly handsome!"

"Did you ever see such beautiful eyes?"

"So intense! Those lashes!"

"Girls, girls, I think he may have glanced at me as he passed!"

"You're delusional, Daphne. I am sure it was me he looked at!"

"You're both mistaken. Prince Thanatos looked at me."

"M-maybe he looked at us all, let us not fight?"

"Do you think he has a sweetheart? A secret lover?"

"Perhaps he will marry soon? He is of age."

"Oh, to be chosen as his bride! Can you imagine?"

"We would be married to Death himself! What a power to command!"

"Or perhaps he could command us?"

They swooned and sighed and squealed excitedly.

Hades's eyebrows knotted together. Seriously? He could completely understand why the girls would find his older brother so irresistibly attractive. They had both been blessed by their parents' genes, after all – and Thanatos certainly radiated an otherworldly, unattainable air. But what did the foolish girls hope to gain from such immature, idiotic behaviour? Hades knew for a fact that Thanatos would never notice any of them, let alone give them the time of day. And if he did turn to face them, Hades was sure they would all faint from shock or fright. Perhaps both.

He half-hoped that his brother would spin abruptly around to confront his group of admirers. Smirking amusedly at the thought, Hades then turned his attention back to monitoring his post.

---

"Spar with me, big brother!" Little Hades reached out and tugged on the ends of his brother's navy tunic as he passed him in one of the hallways of the palace. "I want to learn how to fight, just like you. Please, teach me!"

Thanatos glanced down at him. Bending to his knees, he beckoned his little brother closer.

Hades jumped eagerly forward – only to be met with a poke to the forehead.

"O-ouch!" he exclaimed, clutching at the point of contact. "Nii-san!"

"Forgive me, Sasuke," Thanatos said, smiling softly. "Maybe next time."

---

Hades watched in open-admiration as the orange glow of his brother's fully formed Susano'o ebbed away, the protective barrier leaving their bodies as they finally defeated their powerful target.

Both Thanatos and Hypnos had mastered the technique. Hades, in stark contrast, had yet to manifest his own impenetrable armour – something that frustrated him to no end.

It had been an exhilarating, adrenaline-fuelled battle deep in the heart of the caves rumoured to house a formidable serpent named Aoda. Upon hearing of the reports, Hypnos and Thanatos had been dispatched to investigate. Erebus had ordered them to find the creature, and to see if its abilities could be harnessed by the Uchiha clan.

To Hades's great surprise, Thanatos had requested that they take him along on the mission. Hades had gaped at his brother in astonishment, for it was not like him to petition directly on his behalf before their parents when it came to matters relating to assignments. Their father had not been too keen at first – but his wife had quickly reassured him that Hades would be perfectly unharmed in his older brother and cousin's company, that is was a special occasion and to permit the adolescent deity to experience a taste of real combat.

Erebus had eventually relented, charging Thanatos to ensure his younger brother's safe return. Hades had been far too thrilled to pay too much heed to his father's overprotectiveness.

And so they had made the journey to the snake's lair, to discover that the tales were true. Aoda was a mighty, impressive serpent, deep blue-hued in scales, light-green eyed and enormous in size, so large that fighting him within the confines of his spacious abode had been a challenge in itself. But they had soon been victorious, the humongous snake no match for three activated Sharingan that included Hypnos's unrivalled mind control and Thanatos's unmatched genjutsu prowess – as well as all three deities' unrivalled speeds.

Aoda lowered his head in defeat. Polite and mild-mannered in nature, he had simply sought to defend himself and his territory, and, upon realising conflict could not be avoided, had promised allegiance to whichever of them defeated him in exchange for sparing his life.

"Well," Hypnos remarked. "You got the finishing blow, Thanatos. He is yours to summon."

"Thanatos-sama," Aoda bowed his head respectfully. "If it is your wish for my power to be yours to call, please invoke my summoning mark. It is a simple letter 'S', traced upon the skin."

"…" Thanatos regarded the serpent for a long moment – then his masked gaze slipped to Hades. Wordlessly, he walked over to his younger brother, and took hold of his left arm.

"What are you doing?" Hades frowned lightly in confusion, watching as Thanatos deftly unstrapped the metal bracer on his forearm and pushed the sleeve of his black tunic up to his elbow. "Itachi-" he began, addressing him more personally, more insistently, trying to tug his arm back. It was no use. His brother's grip was like iron. "No," he protested. "You defeated it-"

Thanatos expression remained perfectly indifferent, as he traced the summoning letter onto the underside of his little brother's left arm with his right index finger. Hades caught his breath, as he heard Aoda hiss an incantation, and immediately afterwards, blank ink formed on the surface of his flesh, fashioned into the image of an elegantly coiled snake. The mark throbbed, stinging briefly, before quickly settling.

He stared down at the tattoo in stupefied amazement, caught wholly off guard by the unexpected gesture.

"The clan has no use for this creature. That will be our report," Thanatos stated.

"If you say so," Hypnos nodded agreeably, not arguing with his decision. He winked at a perplexed looking Hades. "Our little secret."

Meeting his brother's eyes, Thanatos finished, "Aoda is yours."

Hades shook his head. "Why give it to me?" he demanded indignantly, displeased that he had been granted the boon without earning it. "I didn't finish him off-"

He was interrupted by an abrupt poke on his forehead, a familiar gesture of affection between them that Thanatos had carried over from their childhood. His older brother's lips curved into a small, amused smile when Hades's scowl intensified.

"Salutations, Sasuke."

Shock flickered across Hades's face. His brother had remembered? He had spent all of that morning, and the better half of the early afternoon, believing that both Thanatos and Hypnos had forgotten his birthday…

Hypnos chuckled. "I would say your choice of gift certainly surprised him," he laughed. "The look on his face."

"Brother…" Hades started in a hushed voice. "You…"

But Thanatos had already secured his bracer back, and turned coolly away.

"Sasuke-sama," Aoda addressed him courteously. "My power is yours to summon, should you ever require my aid."

Hades gripped his left forearm, coming to terms with what it meant to bear the snake's mark. Aoda would be his to call upon at will – no matter where he was at the time. It was a huge boost in power – and his brother had been the one to grant it to him.

"Well," Hypnos said, draping an arm lazily around Hades's shoulders. "Let's get going, shall we? We would not want my Uncle to worry that the snake has eaten you."

"Maybe I'll summon him first to eat you?" Hades suggested with a smirk, as they made a move to exit the caves. "Payback, for the headlocks."

Hypnos laughed out loud, and made a half-hearted attempt at capturing his cousin in one again. This time Hades deftly evaded, slipping away before he could be snared.

"Hah! Such aggression toward your poor Cousin. I helped you obtain this gift, too," Hypnos pointed out.

"Brother?" Hades paused, glancing back over his shoulder to find that Thanatos was still standing by Aoda, a hand held up against the snake's humungous scaled body. They seemed to be conversing quietly together. The serpent then bowed his head, as if in acquiescence, before slithering silently back into the dimness of his cavern.

Thanatos swiftly re-joined them, and the three navigated their way back outside.

"What was all that about?" Hades questioned, as they stepped out together into the late spring sunshine.

His brother did not break stride, continued to stare straight ahead as they walked through the forest.

"Never mind, Sasuke," came the quiet response.

Hades frowned. "But-"

"Gotcha!" Hypnos intervened, averting Hades from asking any further questions as he locked a hard arm around his neck, declaring gleefully: "Still too slow. Happy birthday, Little One."

"Shisui!" Hades snarled in irritation, struggling once again against the familiar, unyielding hold. "Get off me!"

Hypnos's entertained laugh echoed in the forest around them.

---

"Spar with me," Hades lifted Kusanagi, and angled it at the base of his brother's neck, forcing him to stop walking. He had caught Thanatos on the path leading out of the Underworld – and told himself that this time, he would not take 'no' for an answer, as he had so often done when they had been younger. "Don't tell me 'next time'. You always say that, and I won't let you pass until you fight a round."

"I am sorry, Sasuke," Thanatos began to decline politely. "I am busy-"

"Busy," Hades interjected at the same moment his brother spoke the word. "Always too busy. I never see you anymore. You have time enough to spend with Hypnos. Can't you even spare fifteen minutes for your own brother?"

Thanatos gave him a brief, side-long glance – before lowering his eyes, and sighing lightly.

"Very well," he replied, and drew the blade at his waist from its jewelled scabbard.

Metal clashed against metal. They duelled by the Underworld's entrance, two skilled, fluid fighters, dancing around each other with remarkable grace. The battle did not last fifteen minutes, as Hades ordered his brother not to hold back. It barely even lasted five.

Thanatos bested him, of course. He had been the one to first train Hades in the art of the sword. As he reached out a hand to his little brother to help him back up at the end of their sparring session, Hades smirked wickedly, and kicked savagely at Thanatos's legs, succeeding in almost sweeping his older brother's feet right out from underneath him. Thanatos faltered, clearly not anticipating such a low blow – and Hades used the split-second of uncharacteristic hesitation to lunge forward with a triumphant shout, pinning his brother to the ground, blade held against his neck.

"I win, Nii-san," he grinned widely.

Thanatos's eyes beneath his mask closed resignedly. "It seems," he indulged – before flipping their positions so quickly, Hades barely had time to draw breath.

He blinked up at his brother, stunned, finding himself flat on his back, sword-arm pinned firmly down above his head. Thanatos tilted his face pointedly, as if to communicate: 'Well. You were saying…?'

"What the-?" Hades sputtered indignantly. "How are you so damn fast?!"

A faint, amused smile played on Thanatos's lips, and he released his brother's arm, lifting a hand to tap Hades's forehead teasingly.

"Stop doing that all the time," Hades scowled. "We're not children, anymore."

"You will always be my little brother," Thanatos replied softly. Then in rustle of movement, he rose off him.

By the time Hades sat back up, he had already vanished.

---

Little Hades struck at the thick wooden post in the circular novice training arena, with as much energy as his small body could muster. Hacking and slashing with his sparring sword, he imagined himself to be a mighty warrior like his big brother, who was already so well-versed in the art of swordplay, that Cronus himself had stopped by to watch him and promoted him to the grown up fighters' ranks.

Puffing his cheeks out, Hades put more enthusiasm into his attacks, yelling with concentration.

"Hah! Yah! Hyaaah!" Gripping the sword hilt with both hands, he smashed it on top of the post with great force – only to watch in horror as the wooden practice blade splintered near the end and broke off into two pieces.

"Oh no!" Hades gasped in dismay, heart instantly quickening with dread. His father had given him this sword. It was his first blade! He reached down and picked up the broken piece, pressing it against the intact part thoughtlessly, as if that could somehow magically repair the damage.

Soon his father and mother would return to watch him! How could Hades possibly face them with a broken sword? Tears stung at his eyes, and his lower lip trembled. Why did everything he tried to do to grow stronger end up with him being such a disappointment? He sat down by the post, wiping at his eyes, the broken sword laid out pitifully on his lap.

He couldn't even get another. They were kept locked away from children and he didn't have the key. What was he to do? Nobody else ever broke their swords like this. The tears flowed thicker and faster, until Hades began to sob to himself in misery.

"Sasuke?" A voice called to him, laced with gentle concern.

Hades stiffened at his true name falling from his older brother's lips. He did not know which was worse; for his father to see his failure first, or his big brother. He scrambled hastily to hide the sword underneath his legs, like a criminal seeking to rid themselves of the evidence of their guilt.

"B-big brother!" he stammered, wiping at his nose and eyes in embarrassment. He turned his head to find Thanatos standing on the path that climbed down to the arena. He leapt effortlessly off it, landing gracefully before Hades.

"Why are you crying?" he questioned.

"Uhn… I'm n-not crying!" Hades wiped more frantically at his eyes, wishing the tears away. "I just… got something stuck in my eyes, Nii-san!"

"…" Thanatos raised a dark eyebrow, looking thoroughly unconvinced. Then he tilted his head, eyes dropping to where Hades's legs were crossed over one another. He sighed lightly. "Stand up," he ordered.

"No!" Hades cried in terror, crossing his legs tighter. "Nii-san, I am fine! You must be busy, so-"

Thanatos wordlessly reached down and slipped his hands under his little brother's arms, hoisting him easily up off the ground. Spying the sword, he sighed again, and set Hades back down beside him.

"I'm so sorry, Nii-san!" Hades wept, clinging tightly onto his brother's legs, his little body shaking with fear of reproach, or worse, the disappointment that was surely about to register on his adored older brother's face. "I- I was practicing, and- and-" he sniffled. "And I hit the post too hard, and it just broke… F-father will be…" he hiccupped, "so mad…!"

His brother's left hand moved to rest comfortingly atop Hades's little head in a light touch of fleeting affection. "It's alright, Sasuke," he reassured him. With his right hand, he drew one of the smaller blades at his waist – a large dagger - and offered it to his brother.

Hades blinked at it, stunned. It was steel – a real sword. "Nii-san?" he whispered. "I- I'm not allowed to hold that."

"Says who?" Thanatos questioned, an amused tinge to his tone.

"Father. He would be so angry-!"

"I was watching you spar," his brother replied calmly. "You are ready for a small blade."

Hades's dark eyes widened. He remained in place, huddled against his brother's side, processing the shocking revelation that Thanatos had been watching him all along - without him even realising it.

"You… watched me…?"

Thanatos chuckled softly. Then, gently detaching himself from Hades's embrace, he leaned down, and met his little brother at eye-level. Once again, he held out the dagger to him. "Go on. I will tell father I broke your sword. He will never know."

Hades bit his lower lip. "R-really?" he exclaimed unsurely. "You will, Nii-san?"

"If you show me what you can do with this," Thanatos agreed, flipping the blade expertly with his fingers, so that the hilt was facing toward Hades.

Hades beamed at him, and took hold of it.

---

Hades stood with his father and brother within a large cave, upon an overhang of rock that overlooked a vast pool of shimmering, turquoise water. Excitement filled his little body. Today was the day where he learned 'Katon'; the fire-elemental nature transformation jutsu that was signature to the Uchiha clan.

Behind them, Nyx sat upon a flat-topped boulder, carefully stitching an embroidery cloth in her hands with glinting pearls. She had accompanied them to watch the youngest in their family's first attempt at harnessing the flames.

"Remember," Erebus instructed Hades sternly. "You must concentrate and mould chakra inside the stomach, before releasing it via the lungs and mouth. Heat it too little, and it will be but a hiss of smoke. Channel the chakra correctly, and this will be the result. Watch me."

His father lifted a finger to his lips, inhaled deeply, and then blew out, releasing a huge, devastating ball of blazing flame that shot out over the water, sending ripples of hot air in all directions.

Hades's stared at it with wide eyes.

"A-amazing!" he gasped, thinking that his father was the most incredible deity in existence – along with his big brother, of course.

The flame-ball eventually waned, dissolving out of sight.

"Thanatos," Erebus nodded down at his eldest. "Show your brother how it is done once more."

Thanatos inhaled deeply and lifted his fingers to his lips, forming the release seal. When he exhaled, a humungous monster of a fireball exploded over the water, spinning even more violently than their father's had.

Hades gaped at it, awe-struck.

"As expected of my first-born," Erebus looked proudly down at Thanatos, nodding in approval.

"Hades," Nyx's encouraging voice reached him. "You try now, my love."

All eyes turned to Hades. He focused, concentrating chakra the way his mother and father had taught him to do. He felt warmth fill his belly, and drew in as deep a breath as he could - before lifting his fingers to form a seal identical to the one he had watched his father and brother use.

With all his might, he exhaled. A small burst of flame blasted out over the pool – but it was more a disjointed fire-stream than an impressive fire-ball.

Hades's little lungs quickly ran out of air. He lowered his hand, shoulders hunching as he snuck a look up at his father, to find Erebus frowning lightly ahead, arms folded across his chest.

Then he blinked and turned away, without even acknowledging the attempt. To Hades's disappointment, he said nothing, instead nodded for his wife to join him as he moved to exit the cave.

Nyx gave Hades a small, reassuring smile, before rising to follow after her husband.

Hades's head bowed. He'd failed and felt wretched. He hadn't even been able to summon a small sphere of flame-

A hand touched his shoulder. Thanatos crouched down beside him, looking into his face with kind eyes.

"Try again, Sasuke. I'll help you."

---

"Are those real stars, Nii-san?" Little Hades asked, from his position atop Thanatos's shoulders. They sat upon boulders by the mouth of the Underworld's entrance, staring up at the flawlessly clear night sky. "Why don't we have any in the Underworld?"

"That's not true," Hypnos dismissed. He was sprawled on the grass beside them, chewing a blade of green idly between his teeth. "We have stars in Elysium and the Elysian Fields. You'll get to see them when you're older."

"Have you seen them?" Hades asked, looking down at his cousin with wide eyes, full of innocent wonder.

"Sure," Hypnos grinned up at him. "I am a fair few years older than you, after all."

"It isn't fair," Hades pouted, folding his hands on top of Thanatos's head, resting his chin in turn upon them.

"What isn't?" Thanatos questioned.

"Being youngest!" Hades whined. "Nobody tells me anything, or lets me do anything, or go anywhere!"

Hypnos and Thanatos exchanged glances.

"Now, that isn't true, either," Hypnos replied. "For example, you don't need to go on boring patrol like we do. You get to do fun stuff all day – like chase my Aunt, paint pictures, collect bugs, play hide and seek, and spar to your little heart's content with the other new trainees. You have the freedom to do exactly what you like! Your brother and I?" he huffed, blowing out the grass from his lips. "What we do is the dreariest thing in the world. Isn't that right, Itachi?"

"Ah…" Thanatos began carefully. "I suppose that it's-"

"You see! Even your precious big brother agrees with me!" Hypnos gestured to the twinkling sky. "It is so boring, that I would send myself to sleep doing it if I could use my abilities on myself!"

Thanatos lifted his right hand, and coughed into it. Hades thought it seemed a strange, strained sound.

Hypnos caught Thanatos's eye and chuckled.

"I have no special abilities," Hades lamented sadly, missing the hidden joke in their little exchange entirely.

"You have them, you just have not learned to harness and summon them yet," Hypnos assured him. "Stop worrying so much about growing older. Just enjoy being little and cute. If you grow up, you won't be able to sit on your brother's shoulders like that, will you? Not without squashing him flat."

Hades stuck his tongue out at Hypnos childishly. Hypnos stuck his tongue out back.

"Alright, Sasuke," Thanatos said. "It is late, and time for bed."

"Aww, but Nii-san," Hades complained, hugging his head tightly. "I just want to look at the stars a little longer."

"Your brother and I have to take you back then head out on boring patrol," Hypnos sighed deeply. "Sorry, Little One."

"But I'm not sleepy!" Hades argued, as his brother carefully reached up, pulling him off his shoulders and onto his lap. "Nii-san," he wrapped his little arms around Thanatos's neck in protest, pressing his left cheek against his brother's right one. "I'm not tired… not even a bit…!"

Hypnos looked at him in amusement as he sat up. "Not tired, huh?"

Thanatos sighed, reaching up to gently untangle the tiny arms around his neck. Resting a palm patiently atop his little brother's silky strands of raven hair when Hades stubbornly wrapped his arms around his midriff next, he murmured, "Shisui."

"You got it."

Hades blinked, and stifled a yawn. "Not sleepy," he repeated, snuggling his face into Thanatos's chest, even as he felt his body relax into his big brother's secure, warm embrace. "Not…"

A second later, he was sound asleep.

---

Little Hades crept up behind them. He had been watching his brother and cousin curiously for a while as they stood by the fountain in his mother's private garden, engaged in deep discussion with one another – when the brilliant idea occurred to him to surprise them.

"Got you!" he shouted, leaping onto a crouching Hypnos's back.

"Argh!" Hypnos exclaimed theatrically. "Itachi! What is it? Get the monster off me!"

Hades beamed, hugging his cousin tightly from behind. "It's me, Shisui-san!"

"Sasuke?!" Hypnos relaxed. "Oh, what a relief! I thought I was in some real trouble there."

"Hehe," Hades stepped back, and moved over to his big brother. Clasping his hands behind his back, he looked up at Thanatos, and questioned, "What were you two talking about, anyway?"

Thanatos's eyes widened. He looked at Hypnos, who rose to his feet, shrugging.

"Ah," his older brother began awkwardly. "Forgive me, Sasuke. You are still too young."

Hades pouted unhappily, folding his arms. "What's that all about? I'm not part of your group?" He looked away. "You always say 'next time', Nii-san. You don't like me, just say so."

Thanatos's eyebrows drew together slightly. "Don't say such things, Sasuke."

"Then why won't you tell me?" Hades's bottom lip protruded as he sulked.

"Good grief!" Hypnos rolled his eyes. "What a horrible big brother, to leave you out of everything like that!"

Thanatos gave his cousin an uncertain look.

"Don't worry, Sasuke," Hypnos winked at the Death God as he crouched low again and slipped an arm around his little cousin. "I will tell you."

"Really, Shisui-san?" Hades was delighted. "You're the best!"

Hypnos replied, "Your brother and I were just discussing which of us is strongest. I know I'm far more powerful than he is, but alas, he won't accept the truth…" he sighed heavily. "Well, you know the truth, though, don't you, Sasuke? I am definitely more powerful than he is."

Hades jerked back and glared at him. "No you're not!" he immediately rejected. "There's absolutely no way you're stronger!"

"Huh?" Hypnos blinked in surprise.

"It's true you are powerful, but Nii-san is still way more powerful than you are!" Hades went on.

"Oh, really?" Hypnos's eyebrows lifted. He turned his head to the left, looking back up at Thanatos over his shoulder. "But I am older than he is, so it is only natural to assume…"

"Age has nothing to do with how skilled you are! Nii-san is more powerful than even many of the elders in our clan!" Hades fiercely defended.

"Is that right." Hypnos smirked, still looking up at his cousin, who avoided his eyes uncomfortably. "What a doting and loyal little supporter you have here, Itachi." To Hades, he then argued, "But you forget, I have the Sharingan!"

"So what?" Hades scowled back. "So does my big brother!" He turned his little head to look up at his brother in turn. "There's no way you would ever lose to him! Isn't that right, Nii-san?"

"…!" Thanatos looked from his little brother's expectant face, to his mischievous cousin, who sniggered, then back at his little brother again, clearly caught off-guard and somewhat embarrassed by the vehement display of such blind adoration.

"Ah…" he began uncomfortably. "That's…"

"Better not tell him our score count," Hypnos chuckled, as he rose to his feet. "It might break his little heart."

"You can spar now! I'll watch!" Hades suggested, lifting his small hands into fists. "Show him you're the best, Nii-san!"

Thanatos blinked, then beckoned his brother closer. Hades ran forward without a thought – only for his forehead to meet the tips of two poking fingers.

"Forgive me, Sasuke," Thanatos smiled. "Maybe next time."

---

Sasuke slowly opened his eyes, drawn out of his bittersweet, painful recollections, the index and middle fingers of his left hand pressed lightly against his forehead in memory. His brother's actions, his unexpected betrayal of their parents, went against every other fond recollection he had of Itachi.

His chest felt heavy as his gaze lifted, once again resting on his family's portrait.

He had lost his parents the night before the war. But on that fateful day, he had lost everything else. His brother. His cousin. His clan. His freedom.

The memory was a dark one, banished to the deepest catacombs of his mind. Unbidden, it rushed out, adamantly following on from the sorrow of recalling the happy times he had spent in his brother and cousin's company.

He remembered the horror of the war, of seeing his dead kin lying lifelessly all around him. He remembered the shades of the Underworld, appearing the moment Cronus had been confined to Olympus, swirling savagely around him on the surface, snatching at his cloak, coiling around his arms, his legs, dragging him down to a Kingdom he had not been prepared to inherit.

A throne he had been far too young to ascend.

He remembered waking up, surrounded by darkness. Alone. Angry. Afraid.

Broken.

---

~**REST BREAK MARKER POINT**~

---

Hades slowly opened his heavy eyes, becoming gradually aware of the hardness of cold, wet rock beneath him. He was lying face-flat against the ground. His head throbbed and every muscle in his body ached.

With a pained groan, he stirred, his vision blurring dangerously as he managed to drag himself up onto his knees. He raised a hand to his stinging forehead, felt warm wetness there. A deep cut that he was too low on chakra to heal.

What… happened…? He thought groggily to himself, blinking confusedly into the shapeless dimness around him.

Then – with a violent jolt - he remembered. Recollection slammed into him, ripping away the air from his lungs, and his head snapped up, so fast that his vision briefly spun - to find that he was back in the Underworld.

The war. The dead bodies. His clan. Cronus. Howling shadows. He had fallen. He had fallen through an opening in the ground on the surface, and then-

No, he thought to himself, staggering onto his feet. He couldn't understand why his body felt so weak. Why his limbs were like dead-weights, as if the very strength had been sapped from them. Horror was mounting within his chest, rapidly bubbling over, and his eyes stung. His entire body began to tremble violently.

No. No, it could not have possibly been real. If he could somehow make it back to the palace – if he could just find the strength he needed to head back there, then he would surely discover his family all safe and well, and he would realise that it had all just been a dreadful, horrible nightmare-

A sudden, high pitched whine filled his ears, so intense and searing, Hades immediately doubled over, clutching at his ears.

"Ghhn!" His head felt like it were on the verge of exploding, as immense pressure built behind his eyes. What was happening? Dark shadows materialised before his eyes, swirling around him as they had on the surface. He stumbled back, trying to escape them, but neither the shades nor the deafening noise abated.

Then he heard them for the first time – the whispers. Nonsensical, overlapping, rushing through his head continuously. They filled his ears and his mind, sinister and maddening. They would not stop no matter how hard he willed them to.

'Shihihihihihihiiii. Shihihihihihihiiii.'

What was that sound? He caught echoing syllables, but could not piece together anything coherent. The crushing pain in his skull intensified, and he felt thick wetness drip against his cheeks. When he lifted a hand to wipe reflexively at them, he felt something sticky and warm stain his fingertips.

He stared at his hand in shock. He was weeping… blood? Blinking rapidly, he continued to watch as droplets fell into his palm, appearing black in the dimness.

'Shihihihihihihiiii.'

A fresh assault of louder whispers reverberated in his ears, and he cried out, as the shadows howled around him.

"S-stop!" he yelled, swatting at them with exhausted arms. "Stop! Leave me alone!" He stepped back onto something thin and hard, and glanced down to find Kusanagi had landed beside him when he'd fallen. He reached down and grabbed the blade, swiping blindly at the shadows. They dispersed at the cleaving of his sword, before quickly reassembling, growing even more dense. Like freezing fog they swarmed around his body, chilling him to the bone.

He needed to make it to the palace. Which way was it? Why couldn't he think? The voices made it impossible to focus on anything else other than the dizzying pain inside his head. Then, to his astonishment, he felt the shades pushing him forward. Too weak to resist, too overcome by the buzzing, incessant whines in his ears, he squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the torture to pass. His feet stumbled unseeingly forward, heading in whatever direction the whistling dark wind directed him in.

It seemed the walk was endless, and any time he fell, the shades hounded him, forcing him to rise once more. A ragged sob escaped Hades's chest as he was pushed unrelentingly onwards, his vision obscured by the blackness of the shadows and the blur of bloody, stinging tears rolling down his face.

Finally, the shades scattered, dispersing into the air. Hades looked exhaustedly up to find himself at the enormous, glowing gates of the Uchiha palace. He gripped onto the iron bars, struggling to remain upright as the whispers continued to plague him.

'Shihihihihihihiiii…'

Why wouldn't they stop? Why was he hearing voices? His heart thundered. He had never before felt so afraid, so alone, so uncertain, than he did at that moment.

Sheer willpower to make it inside was what spurned him onward. Slipping through the gates, he dragged himself down the path leading to the front steps of the resplendent residence. Eventually he made his way inside - to find it hauntingly quiet.

There were no clansman guards stationed about in their usual posts. Gritting his teeth against the agony in his mind, Hades staggered to every door on the ground level, opening them, hoping to see someone, anyone. But the rooms were all eerily empty. He stepped into the banqueting hall. Saw his father's jewelled dagger on one of the many rich platters of meat set on the luxurious table. Saw a silk shawl on one of the ornate dining chairs. He lifted it to his face, and inhaled, fresh watery tears welling in his eyes at the familiar scent of his mother's perfume.

The fireplace still crackled as normal. The entire room was bathed in a golden glow.

But Hades had never felt so cold.

He hadn't even had time to fully process their deaths. To grieve them properly. They had marched to war the following morning. Finding their belongings like this sent him over the edge, caused grief swallow him whole.

"Mother…" he choked out. "Father…"

Cronus had promised justice. But now even Thanatos was gone. Everyone Hades had ever cared about had been wiped out.

'Shihihihihihihiiii.'

He shook his head, fighting against the din in his mind, and turned away, still gripping his mother's shawl tightly in his hand. He walked unsteadily to the next room, where he found one of Hypnos's cloaks. On and on he went, through the other rooms, discovering various belongings left behind – belongings all his clan members had intended to return to.

Finally he approached the grand throne room, feeling sick to his stomach. The shades reappeared, swirling around him, and hovered ahead, as if leading him toward a destiny he did not want to fulfil. Against his will, his trudging feet moved him forward, the doors parting for him as he stepped into the majestic hall.

No guards were on patrol. The majestic thrones on the royal pedestal were unoccupied.

The shadows pushed him to walk the entire length of the throne room. The whispers grew progressively louder as he approached the throne, and Hades's sword clattered to the ground, as his legs finally lost the last of their strength and he crumbled to his knees before the stairs climbing up to the dais. His mother's shawl fluttered to the floor.

"STOP!" he yelled, clutching at his head, nails digging hard enough into his skull to leave angry crescent marks upon his flesh. "STOP!"

The high-pitched whine in his ears escalated unendurably, making him see stabbing white. Hades screamed in anguish, in heartache, in wretched agony, suffocating grief and inconsolable rage, his cries echoing loudly against marble. He screamed and sobbed and slammed his forehead head in frustration against the hard-tiled floor, willing the noises to stop, willing himself to pass out and to never wake up again.

Cronus. Cronus had lied to him, to them all. The war had never been about restoring glory for the Uchiha. It had been all about Cronus, for Cronus, and none of them had realised it until it had been too late.

"Why?" he pounded a fist upon the ground, until it grew bruised and bloodied. "WHY?! Damn it! DAMN YOU!"

The pain in his skull, akin to a thousand daggers, made him dry heave, his stomach too empty of anything to expel its contents. He screamed until his throat was raw, until his lungs heaved and burned from the expulsion of so much air, cursing Cronus's name, cursing the surface gods who had marched to war against his family, cursing the hated sun deity Apollo who had reached a hand out to him before his fall like they were not sworn enemies. He screamed until his voice went hoarse and he was left a violently trembling mess from the vicious intensity of his shattering emotions.

Until the crippling pain assaulting him caused him to lose consciousness, and he collapsed on the cold, hard floor before the throne of the Underworld.

---

When he regained unconsciousness, Hades found himself lying numbly on his left side. He was still in the throne room.

He blinked blearily in confusion – then remembered everything once again. Pain skewered his heart like an iron-hot, jagged rod stabbing straight through his chest, splintering the organ into a thousand pieces. Pieces he knew would never be whole again.

He released a strangled sob, his body paralysed by sorrow, skull throbbing unbearably.

The whispers continued in his mind. Quieter than before – but still unyielding in their senseless syllables. He didn't have the strength left to fight them anymore.

'Shihihihihihihiiii...'

He did not move, crushed inside, drowning in despair, in mourning of everything he had lost. Tears streamed down his face, unchecked, as he stared blankly at the base of a fluted marble pillar ahead. A young prince turned disinclined King, utterly demolished by the devastation of war and all it had cost him.

He thought again of Cronus. Cronus, who had led everyone to their demises. Including the brother Hades would never again see. A brother he would never obtain answers from. Fury and hatred corroded him inside, pushing through the deep-rooted sorrow as he sought another target to blame. Had Thanatos not murdered their parents, might they have somehow survived? Might his mother and father have been with Hades, now…?

He swallowed thickly, nausea causing his vision to swim. No. No, he was nothing but a naïve fool. Even now, clinging onto irrational hopes. Hades knew full well, had realised far too late, that from the moment his clan had set foot upon the battlefield, there were never going to be any survivors.

That was Cronus's design all along. He had known precisely what he was doing, leading them all out to their untimely ends. No matter what else had happened, whether his parents had been spared or not – they would have still ended up dead. Hades would have still ended up all alone.

'Shihihihihihihiiii…'

Why me…? He thought to himself, loathing himself for living. Why… why did I survive…?

'Shihihihihihihiiii...'

"Why… only me…?" he croaked hoarsely aloud, looking at his outstretched, bloodied left hand, lying motionless beside him.

Brother… did you know…this would happen…?

If you did… why didn't… you kill me… too?

'Shihihihihihihiiiihiihihhihiii...'

He winced. It was almost impossible to think, to process anything, with the whispers stealing away his every thought.

He closed his eyes tiredly. Saw his mother's smile. Recalled his father's hand on his shoulder. Hypnos's teasing grins. Thanatos's forehead pokes. The many faces of his clan-mates and kin, all of whom had fallen in line and rode out without question to their dooms.

And now, every single one of them was gone. Hades was the only one left, alone in a Kingdom he had no idea how to run – and absolutely no intention of doing so.

He wouldn't. He couldn't. Cronus had created their world. It was his war-mongering Elder's Kingdom – though the idea of them being related now filled Hades with disgust.

He hated it. He hated the crown, the throne that had not been enough for Cronus. It was chasing a crown that had led them all to this deplorable state, wiped out his entire family in the space of less than twenty-four hours.

It hurt. His heart had been torn apart and it hurt, more than he could bear it. Hades told himself that if he survived, he would never love again. What positive emotions of warmth he'd been able to experience before, had died away for good with his family. As the Uchiha had the capacity to love, so too could they deeply hate. So easily, one feeling could bleed to the other, blurring the lines and boundaries between them.

He thought of Thanatos, of Itachi, whom he had idolised. How that love had turned so quickly to bitterness and loathing, upon witnessing his parents' dead bodies at his feet.

He thought of Cronus and his war-speeches. A noble cause, he had painted it; to ride out for battle to seek glory and honour for their clan.

It had all been a lie. They had found nothing but destruction and death. And for some reason, only he had been spared their fate. He didn't know why. Couldn't comprehend or accept it. He wished he had perished with the rest. Because their suffering had ended on the battlefield. Whereas he was still living it, breathing it, every breath he took was destroying him.

He had been youngest. Least worthy. Hades hated it. He hated how knowing that made him feel so useless, so pathetic. So weak. He released a quivering breath. His entire body ached.

He had survived, and the shadows had taken him, but the very idea of ruling made rage blaze through his veins. The angrier he got at the thought - the more he fought against his calling - the louder the murmurs in his ears began to grow again, until soon his heart raced, so fast that he began to feel faint. Hades closed his eyes as fresh agony shot through his overwhelmed mind. When his vision began to black out and fade, he did not fight it, gave willingly into the rushing tide of unconsciousness that pulled him under its blessed waves, hoping that this time, he would never open his eyes again.

---

When Hades came around once more, all the candlelight in the room had flickered out. It was freezing and dark. He had not moved from his position.

His throat was dry from screaming, lips parched, aching for the healing kiss of ambrosia. But he could not move his body to stand. He could do nothing but remain in place, defeated and broken.

He did not want it. The throne. He vowed to himself that he would not take it, even as the whispers continued to rebound ruthlessly in his head.

'Shihihihihihihiiii…'

"Stop…" he whispered. "Please… enough."

'Shihihihihihihiiii…'

He saw black shadows in his peripheral vision. They swarmed above him – but he was too numbed, too disorientated by trauma to be afraid anymore. He stared dully ahead, and time seemed to stretch eternally onwards, bleak and meaningless, in which he drifted in and out of consciousness.

---

He felt a familiar, comforting presence beside him. Everything, Hades told himself, had been a terrible dream. His parents still lived. Thanatos had not slain them. All was well.

They were sitting together by the fountain in their mother's twilight garden. Hades was crouched languidly on the carefully tended grass, his elbows propped up on the edge of the fountain's stone basin. His companion sat perched beside him on the rim.

The stunning structure depicted a beautiful angel, holding a glowing, hovering white sphere, in honour of the Goddess of Night. Hades swirled an index finger lazily in the fountain's cool waters.

"Is it over…?" he asked. "Can I… rest?"

There was a light, almost comforting touch on top of his head.

"Sasuke," A quiet voice reached him. Hades tried to look up, into his companion's face. He wanted – he needed – to see who it was so desperately. He had so much to ask, to tell, though he could not remember at that second what was so important.

But the palm resting on his head kept him from doing so.

"It is time to wake up."

Hades blinked. "No," he replied. He could not bear to return to the nightmare. At least here, he was at peace. "I want to stay here. With you."

"You must wake up, Sasuke." Two fingers brushed gently against his forehead. "Now."

The fountain before him rippled and began to fade from view. Hades closed his eyes, and the warm fleeting touch fell away.

---

With a shuddering jolt, he jerked awake, to find he was lying on his back, still in the dim throne room. He stared bleakly up at the chandeliers adorning the ceiling, blinking despondently as his vision doubled and the room spun. The simple act of breathing hurt. His lungs felt like they were being crushed under rock.

How long had it been? Hours? Days? Months? What meaning did time have, when one had lost all meaning, when one had lost everything?

He inhaled unevenly. The voices in his head had grown quieter, were merely low hums now. Too relieved for the respite, Hades had no way of knowing it was a worrying indication of his physical and mental state.

His body was subconsciously shutting down, in response to the fact that Hades was wilfully rejecting his newfound role as King of the Dead, and everything that it encompassed. He no longer wished to live. A life without his family, a life confined forever to the shadows, with only the dead for company, was an existence he could not bear to face alone.

He did not know the first thing about ruling. It had been Itachi, his wise, level-headed, magnificent brother, who had meant to succeed the throne. He had been Cronus's true intended heir. Hades's tear-dried eyes stung as fresh wetness threatened to well in them.

He had never felt so drained, so exhausted. So miserable, so dejected.

"Let me… die…" he whispered into the air.

Drowsiness overtook his body. His eyelids felt heavy. He began to close them, wishing only to rest. Wishing only that when he awoke, his family would be there to greet him.

Yes… he could almost see them. They were there. Waiting. He had only but to reach out and go to them.

His body relaxed. Began to feel weightless, as all feeling faded from it. He exhaled quietly, his breaths becoming slower, shallower. His pulse grew faint. The voices finally ebbed.

"Let me…" the words were barely discernible as they left his cracked lips.

"I cannot well do that," a voice croaked in response.

Hades paid it no heed at first, believing it to be another product of his delirious mind. His eyes fluttered shut.

"Oh no you don't. None of that. I did not give my word to sit back and let you fade so wretchedly." He felt a hand cradle the back of his head with an almost motherly gentleness. Felt coolness press against his lips. A sweet, familiar, honeyed liquid filled his mouth.

Ambrosia.

He tried to lift a hand to slap half-heartedly at the goblet held against his lips. No! He did not wish to be revived. He did not wish it-!

"A dreadful state you are in, child. Hold still, now," the voice continued at his feeble attempts at moving. "You must drink and regain your strength."

Speaking was too much of an effort. He could not even form the word "no". He shook his head slightly, but the person held his head in a surprisingly strong grip, and against his wishes, the healing liquid was forced down his parched throat.

He coughed, sputtering, trying to refuse the elixir, but he was too weak to fight back, and reflexively swallowed down a few gulps.

The hand holding his head then lowered him gently back to the floor.

"That will do for now. Not too much at once. Your body has been placed under great deal of physical and emotional stress."

Within seconds, Hades felt the warmth return to his body. He could feel his fingertips again – and then came the flooding of pain once more. The ambrosia took the edge off the physical aches in his muscles – but not the discomfort in his head.

The whispers returned, quiet murmurs at first. His heart began to sprint unsystematically anew in dread. His eyes flew open, to find the room had been illuminated once again, and an unfamiliar face was peering down at him.

Hades blinked as his vision began to slowly clear. An old woman was kneeling beside him, dressed in a brown cloak. In her hand was a peculiar-looking… staff? Walking stick? He wasn't sure which. Her grey hair was tied back in a tight bun, and deep wrinkle lines marred her face. She appeared almost grandmotherly and kind – if not for the fierce sharpness in her eyes. They were even more ancient and wiser than Cronus himself.

He blinked up at her in confusion, and lifted his heavy hands to his pounding skull, grinding his teeth.

'Shihihihihihihiiii…'

They were relentless, robbing Hades of his sanity once again.

"St…o..p…" his voice was guttural from overuse, even to his own ears.

"You hear them," the woman said, nodding as if she understood. "As expected; you have inherited all the abilities of your clan, being the last of the Uchiha line."

"Ghhnn…" he squeezed his eyes shut, willing them to cease torturing him. It was hopeless.

"Do not fear them," the strange woman advised. "They are the voices of the dead, seeking pardon and petition. This was your brother's gift. The voices followed him his entire life. The more you fight against them, the more they will hound you. Accept them, and you will learn the self-discipline you need to tune them out, in time."

Hades's eyes pooled with fresh tears at the mention of his older brother. Thanatos… had heard voices like this…? How? How had he always been so calm, with such a racket going on in his mind?

Had it been these voices that had caused him to snap and kill their parents?

With his senses returning, so too did the mounting hysteria and smothering grief. The woman noted the rising panic in his eyes, and clucked her tongue.

"This will not do. We cannot well converse if you have lost your wits. I suppose the whispers make it difficult to focus on much else. Hmm. Let me see."

A cool, wrinkled palm was placed against his forehead. Hades exhaled in relief when he felt warmth envelop his mind, causing the whispers to quieten considerably. His hands slipped away from his head, falling limply back to his sides.

"There. I will help suppress them temporarily for now. You may find they will return before long, and will continue to trouble you, until you learn to stop resisting them."

Hades frowned lightly at her. Feeling had returned to his body – but he felt so numb, so dead inside.

There was a long pause, in which he could feel the ambrosia restoring some of his chakra and energy, sealing any open wounds in his flesh.

His breathing grew steady again. He felt both better – and so much worse. He hadn't wanted to be aware and conscious again, and felt a flare of anger toward the stranger who had denied him his eternal peace. Who was she to barge into the Uchiha palace so brazenly, and decide that he needed to survive?

"Who… are you…?" he got out hoarsely.

"You can speak. Good." The woman looked pleased. "The ambrosia is working. Can you sit up, boy?"

Hades did not wish to move. Somehow remaining in place, a part of him hoped he would be allowed to go back to sleep. But the old crone beside him was as relentless as the whispers and shades had been. She tugged at his right arm insistently, and Hades slowly, gingerly - reluctantly - pulled himself to sit upright.

His gaze fell vacantly to the ground, head bowed as the woman introduced herself.

"I am the Goddess of the Crossroads, known as Hecate in the mortal world. You may address me as Chiyo."

Hecate? Hades knew the name. He would have been surprised that such a revered goddess had chosen to visit him – had he not been feeling so devoid of any emotion at that moment. He supposed he was experiencing a delayed state of extreme shock. He did not answer her.

She sighed, looking at him sympathetically. "You have been through a great calamity indeed, young Hades. This will all be new to you, and you will need time to adjust."

Still, he did not reply, simply stared unseeingly at the floor.

"Your body has been granted powers beyond your comprehension," she continued. "You are the Underworld's sole remaining heir, and that means-"

The word 'heir' triggered his emotions to return in an overwhelming, riotous flood.

"I am no King!" he interjected harshly, head snapping up, eyes glinting with dangerous rage.

Chiyo pursed her thin lips, as she stood up and took a seat on one of the steps leading up to the throne's dais. Clutching the top of her staff with knobbly hands, she remarked, "You have lost a great deal and are understandably grieving your loss. You are in a state of shock. I have no doubts you must also be angry, and you are justified in feeling all those things. But the Underworld is not simply Cronus's legacy. It is what ensures the balance of life and death continues on the surface."

"I do not care," Hades's voice shook. "About the surface. It and all its gods can rot!"

Chiyo eyed him. "Do you know how long you have been wasting yourself away within this room? Five days have passed. I have been watching you, and have given you as much time as I could to process your grief. But I cannot allow you anymore. The Underworld needs a ruler, and you are the last of the Uchiha. There is no-one else, young Hades, who can shoulder this in your stead."

"…!" Hades sucked in a sharp breath. It couldn't be-! Five days? Almost a week?

In his disorientated mind, it had barely been a day.

"Time does not flow the same in your world as it does in the world above, as you well know. But it has indeed been five surface days since the war. Would you like to know the outcome of it?"

Hades did not respond. He had lost his family. To him, nothing else mattered.

Chiyo told him regardless. "Cronus has been imprisoned on Olympus. His powers have been sealed for the most atrocious crimes he has committed and he cannot leave his prison. He will be a threat to the surface, and to you, no longer."

"…" Hades shifted, so that he could regard the old crone over his right shoulder. "My… brother…" he said thickly. He knew Thanatos and Hypnos were both gone. But he asked anyway.

Chiyo shook her head, appearing genuinely saddened. "You are the only one left, as I have said. In attacking the surface gods, your clan endangered the balance of life and death itself, and went against their intended purposes. Their dooms were sealed the moment they set foot on that battlefield. The surface gods lost many of their kin, too, for that same reason. Zeus and Hera are amongst their casualties."

Hades's eyes widened at this news. Zeus and Hera were Apollo's parents. So Cronus had succeeded in killing them? Only to be bound to the place he had coveted so greedily, unable to hold any influence or power at the end?

It seemed a fitting punishment for the Uchiha Elder. But it brought Hades little comfort.

"This was a war in which all sides lost," the old crone continued. "The surface gods are leaderless and have been banished from Olympus in turn. They will live henceforth under the guise of mortals, under seals that restrict their powers. The High Council has taken steps to ensure a tragedy of this magnitude can never occur again."

Hades reached for his sword and mother's shawl, and rose sluggishly to his feet. He began to walk slowly away, with no particular direction or purpose in mind.

"Sasuke," Chiyo's voice rang out behind him, addressing him by his true name. "The war has resulted in a devastating loss of mortal life. Those voices you heard are amongst them. You must ascend the throne. Sit forth in it, and you will take your rightful place as King of the Underworld. There is no-one else."

"I already told you…" Hades whispered, hands closing into angry fists. "I am no King." But her words had made him halt in his tracks. "Itachi…" he said, voice trembling. "Itachi was meant to rule. If he hadn't killed my parents, they would have-"

"Had your parents been spared, they would have still ended up sharing the same fate as the rest of your clan," Chiyo informed him categorically. "Believe me, Cronus intended for none to live."

Hades shook his head in disbelief. "Why…" he questioned, teeth clenched. "Why? Why me?! I know nothing about ruling- why was I spared?!" He spun back around to face her, eyes desperate, face openly afflicted by anguish. "WHY? Tell me!"

Chiyo regarded him with a calmness that unnerved him. She opened her mouth as if to say something – but seemed to think better of it, as it clamped shut again.

"You were the last one alive, the only one to survive," she finally answered simply. "Had it been anyone else, they would have been in your precise position. But The Fates chose you to rule."

He exhaled shakily, as his mind slowly came to terms with her words. So it had all been a huge coincidence? He'd just happened to be the one who survived on the battle field? But that made no sense. Hadn't Cronus intended for them all to die, and for himself to be the only Uchiha left to command the heavens, surface and the Underworld?

And again, was it possible that shrewd Thanatos had known of this outcome? And if he had, then what did that mean about his seemingly heartless decision to unexpectedly murder their parents?

Hades would never know. He would never know, would live forever not knowing, because Thanatos was dead.

"It's a good job you did survive," Chiyo went on gruffly. "Otherwise a great fix we would have found ourselves in, indeed. You do not know of the devastating power you now possess at your fingertips. Your entire clan's gifts, from sleep to death itself, are now all yours to command at will."

Hades lifted his right hand and looked down at it. Was that why his body had felt like it had been crushed by a terrible weight upon him waking up in the Underworld? Why he still felt so tired, even after drinking ambrosia?

"I don't want it," he spoke quietly, as if to himself.

"You have no choice but to inherit these gifts. You are the last-"

"I don't WANT IT!" he screamed, lashing unthinkingly out with his arm. Immediately, dark shadowy energy exploded violently forth from his palm, striking against one of the pillars in the room with enough force to cause the crystal chandeliers above their heads to tremor. Hades's mouth parted in shock, and he looked down at his trembling hand, as if it had betrayed him.

What had- what had just happened?

"As I said," Chiyo reiterated. "You have no choice. You must reel your emotions in, control them. Otherwise, you will not only destroy your Kingdom, and the balance, but also yourself."

"I didn't ask you to save me," Hades snarled, tiring of the lecture from a goddess he had never even met before, and whose opinion meant absolutely nothing to him. "Get out."

"You did not. But someone else thought you might be this way, and I gave my word."

"What?" he started. "Who-?"

"Did you not just tell me to get out? Now you wish to listen?" she censured him.

Hades swallowed.

She offered him a patient smile, like a grandmother humouring her foolish grandchild. "You are quite unlike your parents and brother in manners. I knew them all quite well. What would they think if they saw you in such a state?"

Hades turned away from her once more. He began to walk away again, not wanting to listen to anymore. He already felt enough of a failure all on his own without the need for anyone else to rub salt in his weeping wounds.

"Would they wish you to lay down and give up?" Chiyo called after him. "Where is the fight in you, boy? I was told such promising things, but what I see before me is quite the disappointment."

"Shut up!" Hades snapped back, in no mood to be provoked, so enraged that he automatically began to turn to face her again. "Do not speak of them-!"

He felt sudden resistance in his arms and legs, and looked down in surprise, to find that glowing chakra strings had locked him in place, and the old crone had vanished from her position by the steps.

"You wish to avenge them, do you not?" her voice made him flinch, and he turned to find her standing directly behind him. "

"How did you-?"

"I am older than you know," Chiyo answered. "Older than Cronus himself. You would do well to pay heed. Resist your calling all you like. You may think you wish to die now, so fresh and new is your trauma. But that is your anger and anguish talking. Give it time, and you may begin to feel otherwise."

"You speak as if you know me," Hades's voice quivered. "You know nothing of me!"

She whipped up her staff and pressed its pointed end against the base of Hades's throat, so quickly that he was startled by the unanticipated swiftness of her movements.

"And what have you taught me of you so far? That you are a spoiled child who thinks only of himself. Do you think you are the only one to lose loved ones in this war? I have already stated there have been many casualties lost, by both mortals and immortals. But unlike humans, you do not have the luxury of simply giving up. You were born into a line of princes. Eventually, you would have inherited the throne – whether you will accept this fact or not."

Hades could not believe he was being reprimanded. He struggled against the bindings, but the chakra strings held him in place firmly, and he could not move. Was forced to listen to the crone prattle on, when he had already made it transparently clear that he wanted nothing to do with the crown.

"I do not deny that you have suffered a difficult fate," Chiyo continued more gently, lowering her staff back to the ground. "Your loss is great, and it will take time to recover. But you have it in you to be so much more than what you are."

"I told you, you know nothing of me-" Hades repeated angrily.

"I am the Goddess of the Crossroads," Chiyo answered. "I see the past. I see the present. I can peer, too, into glimpses of the future. This is not the end for you, mark my words. Though it will feel it – it is not."

Hades was rendered speechless. He simply stared at her, appalled. What could he possibly say to one who claimed she had seen his future self?

"Your pain is still raw, and that is to be expected. But you cannot ignore your calling. You must rise above your emotions, and not take your anger out on the mortal souls that have no choice in entering here upon death. The balance of life and death must be upheld. This is your duty, all of our duties, as immortals – to ensure the world endures. This Kingdom was your father's home, your mother's, your brother's; the world into which you were born and all that you know. It is your birth-right."

Her word seeped into his ears, even when Hades did not wish to listen.

"Will you let it crumble because of Cronus's selfish actions? He showed he did not truly care for it at the end, to risk it so. You are the only one left who can rule, Sasuke. You can claim it as your own, bend the Kingdom to your will. It is true Cronus established this system – but it is now in your hands to perfect it. The dead will answer to you once you ascend."

"It is not," Hades spat out, "my kingdom. It is his."

"The shades claimed you. Cronus has no crown here nor on Olympus. He is stripped of his influence. Once you have harnessed full control of the powers at your disposal, some day you may have the opportunity to avenge those responsible for your clan's demise. You will have no choice in doing so if you give in."

She tapped the base of her staff on the marble floor, and the chakra strings released him. Hades looked uncertainly at her. If she had the ability to peer into the future, then was she implying that he one day would have the chance to avenge the loss of his family?

His mind was reeling. He didn't know what to think about that.

"I cannot force you to rule. If it is your choice to reject the calling, then you will die a slow and painful death, and this Kingdom will soon disintegrate to the chaotic darkness it was born from. The longer you neglect the realm, the more damage you do to yourself. The choice is ultimately yours, Sasuke. Heed my words – or do not."

With that, she turned and began to shuffle slowly away from him.

Hades stared incredulously after her. "Why did you come to me?" he asked. "Who sent you?"

"Ehehehehe," she chuckled at that, but did not stop or turn back. "That would be telling. You should however know that I am a member of the High Council that guards the balance. And that I have decided to set up home in the Underworld, also."

Hades blinked, not sure he had heard right. "What…?"

"As I said. If you wish to speak further, simply call my name. Or I will seek you out in time, if you haven't decided to self-destruct. Those whispers will return before long. Continue to reject the call; they will drive you to insanity long before you start to fade. It would be a far more useful thing to do, to learn to control them, would it not?"

With that, she winked out of sight before his eyes.

---

Hades let out the breath he hadn't even realised he'd been holding. Finally alone, he lowered his guard, and turned to look back at the throne on its grand pedestal.

"…" He glared loathingly at it, wishing that it would burst to flames. He wanted nothing more than to disappear into blackness, and be done with all ties to anything or anyone.

Despite his negative sentiments, he still felt its strange, magnetic pull in the inexplicable tension that plagued his body. Like an irrepressible force, the throne drew him in, whispering enticingly, pleadingly for him to climb the steps to it. He could feel it calling to him to ascend. He had never experienced anything like it.

He stepped away, unnerved by its dark allure, by the promises of untold powers it whispered through his mind. He had no idea how to run a Kingdom. No idea where he would even start. It was a lost cause. Could the old crone not see that? He was not worthy of being King of anything.

How could one person possibly shoulder the responsibility of an entire clan? The very thought was a daunting one – and one his grief-stricken mind struggled with, could not even envisage, much less process.

He turned his back to the throne and walked away, each step becoming easier with the further distance he placed between himself and the seat of power. He left the hall, choosing instead to wander aimlessly about the palace. He walked through the empty courtyards and hallways, the enchanting gardens, climbed the sprawling staircases and passed through connecting passageways.

Eventually his feet led him to his brother's quarters. It had minimal personal belongings, save for clothing, jewellery, weapons and musical instruments placed neatly about the room. He picked up a wooden flute, examined it. Saw his mother's initials engraved into it. Then, standing by the doorway, Hades broke down again, sinking to the floor. Drawing his knees up, he remained there for a long time, head bowed, simply feeling the anguish of loss.

When he heard approaching footsteps, he blinked through his silent tears, thinking he had to be imagining them. But they continued. His heart jumped to his chest, and he leapt to his feet. Had there been another survivor? Had someone else stayed behind and-

A servant boy stopped by the entrance to the room, his eyes wide as they fell upon Hades.

Hades's heart sank. Of course. Only the servants remained. He was surprised it had taken him so long to come across one – but then remembered they were not permitted in the throne room without explicit royal permission, and he had been there many days, drifting in and out of consciousness.

"M'Lord Hades!" The boy bowed low. "Begging your pardon, Lord; have your exalted family returned? We were instructed not to leave our posts and-" he broke off, as he finally looked up and noticed the dried blood and tears that stained Hades's face. "F-forgive me, Lord!" he apologised, alarmed. "I do not mean to pry, but are you well? You look distressed. May I get you something- ambrosia, perhaps?"

Hades shook his head. Then, realising the boy was still awaiting an answer to his initial question, he answered in a low voice, his words cementing the reality of his situation, "They aren't coming back."

The boy's eyes widened even further. "Begging your pardon, Lord? I- I am sorry- I do not understand-?"

"Leave," Hades told him.

The boy bowed, not daring to press any further for answers, and scrambled to continue along his way.

Hades sat for a while longer, holding his brother's flute in his hand. Then, in rage, he hurtled it across the room, with such force that the instrument splintered. Raising his hands to his temples, he closed his eyes briefly, trying his best to not- not – give in to the mindless hysteria that kept threatening to bubble over within his chest.

At length he got up and headed toward his parents' bedroom. He ran his hands over the belongings he found there, almost too scared to touch them for fear they would dissolve to ash in his hands. His eyebrows drew together, pain visibly palpable in his eyes. Approaching his mother's vanity table, he found and picked up a beautiful hair comb resting upon it.

Hades recognised it. He had gifted it to her as a child.

Grief clogged his throat. He raised the comb to his quivering lips and finally looked up at his reflection in the ornate framed, oval mirror – something he had actively avoided doing while navigating through the rest of the palace.

What he saw staring back at him was a frightening sight. He could barely recognise himself. His hair was in dishevelled disarray, face gaunt, smeared with blood. His eyes were blood-shot, red-rimmed from crying. They looked glazed. Haunted. Shattered.

It was the face of one who had experienced great suffering and lost everything dear to him.

He still wore the attire of battle, his clothing torn and bloodied and stained with dirt. As he stared at the Uchiha crest that fastened his tattered cloak in place, he felt his eyes burn anew, as the Sharingan bled into existence - only for his breath to snag, as he realised with a jolted start that the tomoe spinning within his irises looked different – had fused and taken on a new pattern in response to the severe emotional stress he had experienced.

His heart pounded. The Mangekyou had been awakened. The eye his brother and cousin had mastered, that he had always wished he could acquire, stared right back at him. Almost mocking him, as if whispering that this was the cursed price he had to pay in exchange for power.

If forsaking his eyes meant that his family would be restored to him, then Hades thought he would do it in a heartbeat, power be damned. And suddenly he understood why he had cried tears of blood. The strain on his body had literally bled through his eyes – as was the case when the Uchiha activated a new eye technique or evolved their Sharingan.

Chiyo's words echoed in his mind.

'You do not know of the devastating power you now possess at your fingertips. Your entire clan's gifts, from sleep to death itself, are now all yours to command at will.'

He raised his hands and looked at them.

Unbidden, a memory entered his mind. He had once been sparring with his brother. He had lost, as usual – but Thanatos had surprised him by abruptly telling him that one day, Hades would surpass him.

Hades had scoffed at the idea. In his eyes, nobody would ever better his brother.

'You will surpass me,' Thanatos had repeated. 'You have it in you. All that is required, is for you to hone your skills.'

Hades's hands closed into tight fists. No. Whatever power he had seemingly inherited, he fiercely told himself again he did not want it.

He was about to turn away from the vanity table – when he spotted a rolled piece of parchment which he had initially overlooked, tied to the base of his mother's uchiwa fan. Hades reached out and freed it from its string, opening the note curiously – to discover his mother's elegant handwriting.

His heart leapt into his throat. It was addressed… to him…?

His eyes widened. It was dated just over a week ago. Just before his parents had been murdered.

Hades exhaled shakily. This note had been placed on the fan deliberately. His mother had wanted him to find it. He walked to the great fireplace, still burning heartily in its hearth, and lowered himself slowly into the plush chair before it. He began to read, could feel his heart thumping in his chest, as his eyes drank up the words like a man plagued by an unquenchable thirst.

---

My most Cherished Prince, Sasuke,

When you read this letter, I fear that I will no longer be with you.

These are dark times for our Clan. There is so much I wish I could tell you. About us. About the war. But I have no time, and I cannot risk endangering your safety. Know this: that your mother and father are immeasurably proud of you. That they loved you to their very last breaths and will forever love you beyond it, no matter what you go on to become.

You are our family's dearest gift, our most treasured prize.

Everything we did, we did to protect you.

Please, forgive us, for being unable to be at your side now, when you need us most.

You are our only remaining hope.

Please do not give into despair. Though you will feel the urge to turn your back on everything, to shun your lineage, but you are so much stronger than you know.

You have it within you to surpass us all, and to become the wisest and most righteous ruler this Kingdom has ever known. We have always seen it. We have always believed in you.

Do not forget us.

Do not let our Home fall to ruin.

Please: this is your family's final wish. Protect our honour. Live.

In living, one day, you will avenge us.

-With my love eternally,

Mikoto U.

---

Hades released another unsteady breath, eyes impossibly wide, reading and re-reading the note, over and over and over again. He saw water marks at the bottom of the paper, smudging his mother's name. As if she had wept when signing her initials. His heart thundered, as he swallowed back the misery clogging his throat, running his fingertips tenderly over the dried droplets.

His eyes rested on the final line she had inked.

In living, one day, you will avenge us.

What was it about the war she had wanted to tell him? Why had they been protecting him? From what? Why was there no mention of Itachi at all? She had written the letter as if she knew what would come to pass; that Hades would end up alone. That he would reject his calling. How could she have possibly known any of those things?

Had his parents somehow anticipated the outcome of the war? Was that why Thanatos had killed them – so they could not warn anyone else? But that made no sense. And what of his traitor brother? Hades had even more troubling questions than ever – questions he knew he could never now find the answers to, for they had died along with his parents and brother.

This was his mother's final wish. His family's. They did not want him to give in. Fresh tears surged in his eyes, and he did not bother to fight them.

Do not let our Home fall to ruin.

You are our only remaining hope.

Please: this is your family's final wish. Protect our honour. Live.

Avenge us.

His gaze fixated on the one word: Live.

Live. Live. Live. It echoed in his mind like a maddening mantra. And with it, the whispers began to return, quiet hums as Chiyo's temporary warding spell began to wear off.

He had no semblance of how long he remained in that chair for, gripping the note tightly in his hand. As if it was all that remained anchoring him to any semblance of sanity he had left. As he fought, at tumultuous war with himself, over what he ought to do.

He held it as if it were his only lifeline.

---

Cronus.

Eventually, through the deafening haze of discord in his head, the name entered his mind, with a staggering depth of hatred and decisiveness that was absolute. It drove away the thick cobwebs that had made his thoughts so sluggish.

Cronus had done this. Had taken his entire family to the slaughter. Cronus – and the surface gods.

Cronus, the surface gods – and Itachi, who had been responsible for the first spilling of blood, in the form of his parents. But Itachi had been lost in turn, and Shisui with him, and all the rest of his cousins and relations, because they had followed Cronus.

At last, reason roared to life in Hades's mind. He knew who the enemies were – those of them left in existence that he could someday punish. Cronus, in his prison on Olympus – and the surface gods, stripped of their powers on the surface.

In living, one day, you will avenge us.

The enemy was not the Kingdom. It was not the dead, nor the mortals who had played no part or hand in the war. Mortals had merely been victims caught in the crossfire.

It was Cronus and the surface deities. They had both engaged in the war.

Hades rose from the chair, holding the rolled note tightly in his palm.

Would he sit uselessly in despair and mope? See his clan unavenged for all of eternity, as it died out once and for all with him, if he allowed himself to fade? What would that achieve? He could not undo the events that had transpired. No matter how many tears he shed, no matter how much he screamed, it would never bring his family back. Nothing he did could restore their lives.

Or would he fight? Honour his mother and father's final wishes, and avenge them? If Cronus had lied about the war – what else had he misled Hades about? He thought of his brother. A traitor. A murderer. There had to be more to it, than Itachi simply killing their parents without any matter of explanation. Had Cronus known anything more about that?

How would Hades ever find out, if he simply rolled over and gave up?

'One day, when you awaken the same eyes; you will understand.'

He recalled his brother's odd choice of words when he'd discovered his parents' bodies. Suddenly it was coming back to him; Thanatos had surely meant the Mangekyou, which he had also possessed. That had to be it.

Mangekyou Sharingan eyes that Hades had now awoken. Eyes that could cast and break through false fabrications with ease.

That had to be why he was suddenly seeing things with greater clarity, questioning things he never had before – as if he had been rudely jarred awake from being blind and naïve his whole life.

Somehow, the note had given him strength, restored a level of lucidity he had so desperately needed. And with it, a burning fire of vehemence and vengeance, as he vowed that one day, one day, when he was older, wiser, stronger, more powerful, and fearless, he would stand before his Elder, and what remained of the surface gods, and obtain his revenge.

He told himself, as he moved to the bathing room, that he could not change the past. He could only act in the present, to affect the future.

He would honour his mother's wishes. He had known the second he had read her note, that he could not ignore her final plea – to protect the Underworld and live until the day he could avenge their family. Her inked words had kindled and then stoked the fire within him, a fire that now blazed with determination and the will to not only survive, but to transform into whatever he needed to become in order to grow strong enough to take down a Titan god.

A coherent plan began to form in his mind, his anger now channelled into the drive to act. He would instruct the servants to collect all the personal belongings in the palace, and store them safely away in a memorial space. He would ensure his clan's memory was never forgotten. He would build a special shrine to his own family, where their belongings would be kept separately to the rest of the clan's.

Cronus's things, Hades promised himself, would burn.

He told himself that he would lock away his grief. That his rage would be the strength he needed to push himself onwards from that point forwards. He did not know how to rule. He had not the first idea of it. But he could start with simple things he did have control over, that he would be able to manage. Small steps, before leaping hurdles.

He would never forgive and forget. He would remember and work to rebuild. Starting with himself. By washing away the lingering filth on his clothes and body that were the result of Cronus's actions, and incinerating the uniform he had dressed all his clan in when knowingly sending them out to their demises.

---

After he had washed himself clean and dressed in fresh clothes – all black, as was appropriate for one in mourning - Hades found he could think a lot more clearly. The whispers were still in his head – but so long as he did not push them away, or fight against hearing them, as Chiyo had cautioned, they were somewhat more bearable – even if they still gave him a grimacing headache. He drank another glass of ambrosia. It helped soothe the ache in his temples – though the continuous buzzing remained.

It was incredibly testing, and taxing on his nerves, but Hades did his very best to tolerate it – until he told himself he would find a way to 'tune' the voices out, as that strange old crone had told him he could learn to do.

He stood before the mirror once more, gazing at his reflection, at the Mangekyou glowing ominously in his eyes. He remembered his father and brother, how they had faultlessly kept their emotions in check beneath an unwavering exterior of ice whenever they had went about their daily responsibilities. How that had made them strong, ensured all respected them. In the case of his brother, he had been revered to the point that he had also been feared.

That was what Hades decided he needed to become. Feared. Cold. Detached from sentimental emotions that would only threaten to weaken and destroy his resolve if he gave into them. In order to survive and thrive, in order to gain as much power as he could to achieve his revenge, he needed to focus, to instil absolute, iron-like discipline over his mind and feelings. He had to exercise restraint. Could afford to show no weaknesses. No hesitation. Any uncertainty he felt on the inside, could never manifest itself on his face.

He had to think of himself, and only himself. The wishes and emotions of others would not affect him. Never again would anything ever compromise his will. There was no one left to care about, and he would never care about anyone other than himself ever again.

He swallowed, and drew a deep breath, closing his eyes as he took the time to compose himself, to rein in the storm brewing within him, to control all the thoughts raging in his head.

When he felt he was ready, he secured a feather-lined black cloak around his shoulders and departed to gather the servants in the entrance hall of the palace. And for the first time, he set that impenetrable iron mask in place upon his face, informing them of the outcome of the war, and that he was who they answered to now. He watched as they all dropped to their knees before him in ready servitude, no questions asked.

All knelt – except Cronus's most steadfast supporters, who argued that since the Elder was still alive, he remained the true King.

Hades's eyes lowered. It was the first open challenge to his authority – and the other servants were watching closely.

Calmly, he asked those on their knees to rise if they truly considered Cronus to still be their ruler. He softly, insidiously told them not to be afraid. That he would simply release any who felt that way back to the surface, unharmed.

"…" He watched, with a hawk-like gaze, as five other servants stood. After a few more seconds of hesitation, a further two got to their feet.

Hades waited. When nobody else rose, he nodded, and beckoned them all forward, telling them that he would transport them back together all at once. He instructed them to stand before him and to face those that were on their knees; to say their goodbyes then, as they would never again be returning to the Underworld.

Cronus's servants looked uncertainly at each other, but did as they were bid. They did not know Hades to be cruel, or a threat, and had no reason to mistrust his word. He was the youngest, after all, and had never held any manner of influence or antagonism toward anyone before.

Hades stared at their backs as they stood before him, saying their goodbyes. Some even had the audacity to encourage those kneeling to join them. But nobody else moved.

These servants, Hades knew, had been mortals, and were paying off their sins in exchange for servitude at the palace.

But Hades told himself that sins pertaining to Cronus were unpardonable. They were clearly blindly loyal – to the extent they immediately defied his first display of authority. In a way, Hades could not fault them. But neither could he let their display of defiance go without punishment.

Chiyo had told him that the dead now answered to him.

'You do not know of the devastating power you now possess at your fingertips,' she had said.

He raised a hand, and concentrated. He did not know what to do. He only knew that he wanted them to live no more.

Only the traitors, he thought to himself, focusing on the back of the one who stood directly before his line of sight. Let them breathe no more.

He felt liquid ice run through his veins as he willed it. The coldness snaked down his left arm, collecting at his palm. The sensation hurt, made his heart palpitate unexpectedly within him. What was this feeling? This terrible, malevolent aura? A loud, high-pitched whine rang in his ears – the result of calling upon deadly powers that he had not yet comprehended how to wield using the correct amount of chakra. A cold sweat broke upon his brow, as he tried to draw whatever it was back, internally startled by what was happening to his body.

But it was too late. He had issued the command. And even as unaccustomed as he was to channelling his power correctly, his abilities still responded to his silent instruction.

One by one, before his amazed eyes, each standing servant stiffened. Their heads fell back and they screamed in agony, as Hades's unrefined, new-found ability squeezed painfully around their beating hearts, severing their arteries. Blood gushed from their lips and noses, and they crumpled lifelessly to the floor, puppets clipped of their strings. He saw spectral orbs of light leave their bodies as their souls were ripped violently away, dispersing into the air. The spirits cried out at the betrayal, and Hades' heard their echoing laments ricocheting deafeningly within his skull. He ground his teeth against their departing wails.

The servants on their knees gasped in fear, clearly not anticipating such a raw display of power. They lowered their heads, prostrating to the ground in submission, quivering before him.

Hades looked at his hand with wide eyes, equal parts awed and disturbed. His heart pounded, and a wave of nausea washed over him. His hand began to tremble – but he closed it in a tight grip, once again slamming down a steely barrier over his emotions.

Death. He had the power of death itself at his very fingertips.

This was the devastating power his brother had wielded.

It was an initiation. A rite of passage. Hades's first act of ruthlessness. He felt no remorse. It was a small revenge, insignificant – but it was justified, and it made him feel powerful. Like he had taken back some element of control.

His gaze lowered to the trembling bodies before him.

"You are safe," he informed them, voice ringing hollow and cold in his own ears. "Unless you are loyal to Cronus, still. Is there anyone else who questions me?"

Silence met him. He nodded, satisfied that he had gotten his point across.

"Burn these bodies," he ordered curtly. "I want Cronus's belongings gathered and burned with them. You," he pointed to a blond-haired male servant. "You are in charge of seeing to it. Take whatever help with you that you need. You," he pointed to a female servant. "See to it that everyone else's belongings are gathered into boxes and stored away. Take them down to the palace Archives. And you. Lyriah." He nodded at the flame-haired servant woman he recognised as one of his mother's handmaids. "Gather all my father's, mother's, brother's and Cousin Hypnos's personal belongings. Bring them to my quarters when you are done."

"A-at once, my Lord," she agreed.

"Go," he dismissed them all.

After they had scattered away to do his bidding, Hades turned to look toward the magnificent doors that led toward the throne room.

He felt its call, tugging even stronger than before. But no, he told himself. Not yet.

---

His next task was to venture beyond the castle. There were parts to the Underworld he had not been permitted to visit before. Such as the shores where mortal souls docked onto their boats, heading for their final destinations. He had a servant bring him a full map of the Kingdom, and then, with his Sharingan activated, Hades committed all the locations to memory in his mind.

He set out, and came to a stop by the shoreline first. With wide eyes, he saw them – ghostly spirits that drifted forward. The Sight. He had seen it back at the palace when slaying the servants, and now knew for certain that he'd acquired it. He had never looked upon the dead before. In the past, he had patrolled over sections of the Underworld where they did not roam, as the clan had been divided into different divisions that oversaw the running of different areas within the Kingdom.

It made Hades realise just how sheltered from the dead he had been. Whereas his brother, had seen and heard them, just as he could right now.

He watched the steady influx of souls as they filtered through, forming separate lines that led to different boarding ships. Saw the ferryman, Charon, whom he had heard of but never before personally met.

The whispers were louder, here. Suddenly, he could hear them. They began to make sense, words forming into recognisable sentences in his mind.

He felt goose-pimples surface on his flesh. The calls were haunting. He could not shut them out.

"Help me…"

"I do not know where I am…"

"I am afraid."

"I want to be in that line!"

"Please forgive my sins. I was weak! Have mercy!"

Their lamentations chilled him to the bone. What would happen to them, he wondered, if he chose not to ascend the throne? What would become of this world? It seemed to still be running like clockwork – but was that because he still survived? Or would it run for a while, and without his intervention, eventually cease and fall apart?

Do not let our Home fall to ruin.

His mother's words reverberated in his mind, somehow even louder than the whispers around him.

He turned his attention to the muscularly build, cloaked workers. They ensured no souls fell out of line. Hades watched them for a long moment. None turned to face him, none addressed him. He wondered if they knew that he was the only Uchiha left. It didn't seem likely. They were a long way from the palace, after all.

Perhaps that, he thought, was why he was required to take his seat on the throne? In doing so, would all the Underworld's inhabitants somehow sense the changeover in rule, and recognise him as their formal monarch?

Something about the idea made more sense than he liked to admit.

He flickered away from the shoreline, and next visited a set of caves. They glistened with unmined gems, and he found centaurs working methodically within to extract the stones. He walked past them, through adjoining rocky tunnels, until he eventually found himself in an unoccupied cave that was dark, without any evidence of precious metal.

This was ideal, he told himself, to test just how much power he could summon – and a way to channel all the anger swirling within him.

In the past, he could strike lightning onto rock, and break off generous pieces.

He focused chakra into his arm, summoning his signature attack, the Chidori. It flared, screeching, brighter than ever. The air snagged in his throat. He found he could barely control it, as the lightning sought to leap wildly off his arm, jagging outwards, already striking against and sizzling rock. He tried to drag the chakra back in, but it kept spiking erratically – his own familiar one, blended with a new, colder, more menacing undertone that was unfamiliar to him. It burned through his veins, so much more potent than he was accustomed to, and it hurt.

He grimaced. His clan's abilities, he realised, all the powers he had inherited.

Chiyo's words came back to him once more.

'You do not know of the devastating power you now possess at your fingertips. Your entire clan's gifts, from sleep to death itself, are now all yours to command at will.'

He needed to know what that meant. He needed a measure of just what he could do at present. His heart raced, as he decided to let loose, to allow the energy to take a life of its own and do its own damage. It struck upon the rock and exploded upon contact, raining debris all around him. He drew the spiking lightning chakra around his body, moulding it around him like a protective barrier, so that it sliced through any flying rock that fell toward him, rendering it to ash. Lunging forward with a yell, he punched his tightened fist into the wall, and blew off a huge portion of it. He continued to lay waste to the cavern, his body fuelled by adrenaline, grief, rage and hatred, as he swore to himself that he would shed no more tears. He would never be weak or allow another to control him, as Cronus had manipulated and controlled their clan.

By the time he had finished, the cave was in ruins, reduced to nothing but a pile of smoking debris.

---

The days continued to pass. He took the time to look around the realm, riding his trusted steed Alastor between the locations, tackling a section at a time, cementing the route to each with his Sharingan.

He visited every location that had been strictly off-limits to him prior to the events of the war. He went to the River Lethe. Elysium. The Meadows of Asphodel. The Plains of Judgement. Saw, for the first time, the Seraphs there, too. Places he had heard his kinsmen mention while growing up, but never before envisaged for himself, were suddenly brought vividly to life. When he saw them, they became real – each place had a purpose, a specific, important function that contributed to the effective running of the Underworld.

He sat in the Elysian Fields for a long time, marvelling at the beauty of its flowered plains and flittering butterflies, watching, with a deep ache in his chest, the peace and happiness of its inhabitants, including reunited families. He had seen the stars in the sky that he had doubted in his infancy, and almost smiled wistfully to himself in memory of Hypnos's words from a distant past.

Almost. The smile never formed.

When a child had shyly approached him, a collection of beautifully picked flowers in her hand, he had felt a deep discomfort overtake him, and tensed. Then he had stood up and immediately taken his leave, leaving her staring sadly after him.

He had not been yet ready to interact with any inhabitants of his world.

Eventually he found his mother's bridge, a stunning monument erected by Erebus in his wife's honour, celebrating the love he'd held for Nyx. It overlooked a spectacular view of cascading waterfalls. Hades stood there alone, holding his mother's note in his hand, lost deeply in his thoughts. The sound of the water was soothing, helped to drown out the incessant whispers in his head, and he decided that he would visit often.

There had been so much of his home that he had been deprived of seeing. Sacred places where he never ventured. It made Hades realise how much of a protected bubble he had been living in, cocooned by his family over the years. He had always wondered about the locations on the map. Had even been educated about them all. But seeing them, had always been something he was told he would be able to do when he 'grew older'.

His eyes trailed once more over the words his mother had scrawled, raw pain reflected in his eyes. As he stood at her bridge, he felt her absence. Thought he would give anything of himself, to see her, to hear her. To embrace her one final time.

---

Taratarus he left until last.

"I see you have cleaned yourself up, and have been touring your Kingdom," a familiar voice croaked behind him, as Hades stood at the oppressively hot mouth of Hell itself, listening to the wails of agony echoing far below within the chasm's bottomless, fiery pits. Flowing directly into it, was the flaming river Phlegethon, which coiled around a barren, acidic landscape, merging at its boundaries with the river of woe, Cocytus. Hades spied fortified steely boats travelling regularly across.

It was a horrific, disturbing, and yet oddly humbling sight. He had never been permitted anywhere close to this section of the Underworld before, and could clearly see why. Hell for mortals was a vision forged of their greatest nightmares, of endless torture and eternal, inescapable agony.

Now, to think, that he could be Master of this, that he had the influence to decide whether souls were damned or blessed… to think that he could be ruler over all that he was seeing and had seen.

Hades swallowed at the weight of it, watching as a cell built into the walls of the pit was opened by a cloaked figure, who dragged the inmate out and threw them, screaming, into the boiling lava deep below. So this was the resting place of the damned, of murderers, traitors, adulterers, thieves and all manner of the lowest scum known to humanity.

He blinked and glanced back over his right shoulder, the scorching plumes of air around them stirring strands of hair across his face as he finally acknowledged Chiyo's arrival.

"An encouraging sign. Could it be that you have changed your mind about ascending?" she quirked an eyebrow up, leaning against her staff. "Are you ready, now, to listen?"

Hades did not respond, choosing instead to turn back to the infernal pit as he made a point of deliberately ignoring her. A heartbeat later, he found himself back at the throne room in his palace. Cool air replaced the sweltering heat, kissing against his skin.

Alarmed, he looked around, to find Chiyo standing before him.

"What-" he began indignantly, stepping away from her, unnerved by her ability to not only transport herself, but him too, without even moving a muscle. "How did you do that?"

"You can do it, too," she answered, amused by his reaction. "Not quite yet. But you will, once you fully harness your newfound speed and the power of teleportation. You already know how to warp across short distances. Your new abilities will allow you to cover so much more ground. Wherever you wish to be, merely think it, and you will make the journey."

Hades stared at her. She talked far too much for his liking, and he did not like that she clearly seemed to know exactly what she was talking about.

"It is chakra allocation you must learn to control," she continued. "Use too much, too soon, and you will exhaust yourself. You must keep in mind that your body is shouldering much more than it ever did before. You felt it when you used your powers on those servants, did you not? How too much chakra can drain you so quickly. In time you will learn to reap souls with a mere blink of an eye."

Hades was even more thrown. How had she known he had done that?

"Have you been watching me?" he demanded, appalled.

"Of course," she smiled unrepentantly – as if it were perfectly acceptable to spy upon him. At the incredulous, displeased look on his face, she waved a hand. "Oh, do not look at me like that, child. I had to keep an eye on you, to ensure you would not do anything reckless, such as attempt to destroy yourself again. Destroying caverns is much more acceptable, however."

He looked away from her, disgruntled. She was strange, and he knew nothing about her, and yet she had seemingly just decided to live in his realm. That irritated him. But she was one of the most ancient goddesses in existence, and he knew full well that he couldn't really do much about it, if she had made up her mind to stay.

She gestured down the length of the throne-room. They were standing by the entrance doors.

"Begin with a simple exercise. Aim your blade at the end of this carpet strip," she struck her staff upon the velvet lining that ran down the centre of the polished, dark marble floor. "Just before the steps to the dais. Before you throw it, charge the hilt with chakra. In doing this, you can warp directly to its landing point, if you focus upon it. Try."

Hades gave her a suspicious look. Why was she even still there, giving him advice? He had not called to her. He did not trust her.

He no longer trusted anyone but himself.

"Who sent you?" he interrogated again.

"Someone who was rightly concerned about you being left to your own devices."

Hades waited for her to elaborate. When she simply stared knowingly back at him, he shook his head, exasperated. It seemed she only answered what she wished to answer.

"As I have said, I am a member of the High Council that oversees the affairs of all deities, and works to safeguard the balance of life and death," Chiyo explained. "We are the ones who will ensure the restriction seals are upheld, on both the surface gods and on Cronus himself."

"Did you side with them?" Hades questioned, not sure how he might choose to act if she agreed.

"We do not take sides. We simply work to uphold the balance for all. The war was initiated by Cronus. The surface deities had no choice but to retaliate. Remember they are charged with protecting living mortals, whereas your clan had custody of the dead." At the thunderous frown that surfaced on Hades' face, she added, "Scowl all you like. That is the truth of it. One side cannot exist without the other."

He withdrew his sword, and charged chakra into the hilt as she had suggested. Then, taking aim, he flung it across the room. It landed flat against the base of the steps, clanging loudly. He looked down at his hand. He'd barely placed any force behind the throw, and it had travelled so far with little effort.

"Hmm," Chiyo squinted thoughtfully. "Your aim needs a bit of work, but nothing time will not resolve."

Hades ignored her judgement, and concentrated on the blade. He stepped forward – and the room passed in a blur as he came to land directly beside the sword at epic speed.

He exhaled, turning to look back toward the entrance doors.

"Very good," Chiyo's voice spoke from beside him, causing him to tense again in surprise at her sudden appearance. "Now, follow me. There is something you must see."

Slotting Kusanagi back in its scabbard, Hades climbed the steps up to the platform, followed her past the throne, to a cloth-coloured table set against the stained glass panels behind it. Two items lay upon it. One, a gracefully fashioned helmet, black with coils of icy silver. Beside it, was a silver, two pronged spear, with a matte black hilt set with decorative crimson stones.

"The bident spear of the Underworld," Chiyo gestured to the weapon. "A symbol of the King's authority, and the key to unlocking Tartarus, when used in conjunction with an ancient seal. And this," she gestured to the Helmet. "Is the Helm of Darkness; it bears its wearer with the gift of invisibility, masking all chakra signatures from watching eyes."

Hades reached out to touch them – but Chiyo raised a hand to stop him.

"You cannot. Only the ascended King can wield these weapons."

Hades blinked, staring at them in silence. He knew exactly what the crafty old goddess was trying to do.

"You have toured your Kingdom. You have taken time to better understand it. That is your first step to obtaining wisdom. The Shades have chosen you, young Sasuke," she stated. "Will you accept their call?"

"…" His eyes slowly lifted to meet Chiyo's, bleeding to crimson, and she glimpsed within the depths of the deadly Mangekyou, the blazing flames of an Uchiha's pain turned to hatred.

A hatred fully realised, that would go on to burn for an eternity.

---

Hades sat, eyes closed, upon the throne of the Underworld, the bident spear held in one hand, the Helm of Darkness in the other. He had finally accepted his calling and ascended the throne. The Land of the Dead had immediately responded, bending to its new ruler's every command.

Power flowed through his veins – a terrifying, destructive energy like he had never experienced before. He had felt it vibrating through him, lethal and intoxicating, the moment he had taken his seat on the throne. Like a dark, eternally binding contract, the throne had accepted him as King, and as his hands had closed upon the arm rests, it had bestowed upon him the heavy burden of the crown, and authority absolute, cementing his fate as the deity of death and undisputed Lord of the Kingdom.

Time had passed since then, in which he had meticulously dedicated himself to the regular study of his world, hours upon hours of reading over books and scrolls and manuscripts kept in the palace's library and archive rooms. Hours upon hours in the training dome, honing his newly acquired powers, including the practice of tuning out the incessant voices. Everything he learned, he learned from scratch. And though his abilities were still relatively new to him, he no longer felt as though he were drifting helplessly along a wave that threatened to drag him under beyond his control. No. He had wrestled back control. As soon as he had stopped attempting to escape his destiny, he had stopped being a victim.

And he promised himself, as he opened piercing crimson eyes and looked intimidatingly down upon the soul bowing before the pedestal, waiting for his permission to begin its petition, that he would never again be a victim. He would close off his heart, harden it, until it became as hard and unbreakable and cold as diamond itself. Losing his family, the devastation it had caused him, the way he had almost lost himself entirely to his grief and rage, was something he vowed he would never allow himself to experience again. He would never again form bonds. Love was an emotion that had almost destroyed him. It had been what had hurt him most. To love, was to leave oneself open to loss. And he had already lost everything dear to him.

He had loved his family. That love he would never forget, would lock safely away in the deepest, most inaccessible chambers of his deadened heart, within a compartment that would never open again. He would crush any lingering, fragile feelings, become as heartless as he needed to in order to maintain and restructure his Kingdom as he saw fit. He had learned all too quickly, that a just ruler could not leave themselves open to any sentimental weaknesses.

He swore that he would not only embrace the shadows – but become them. He would wield the darkness itself like a weapon. It would cloak him and answer to him and bend to his every will.

While the Uchiha had the deepest capacity to love, so too did they have it within them to profoundly hate. And hatred, Sasuke told himself, as he discarded the name Hades, left it firmly in a past he would learn from but never forgive – hatred would be his strength, what would propel him forward, drive him to grow as powerful as he needed to be – until the day he was strong enough to obtain his vengeance. On Cronus. Upon the surface gods. He would stop at nothing until he tore them both to shreds.

Hatred, he knew, would be his shield, his permanent armour, and what would ensure he never lost anything dear to him ever again.

---

Sasuke opened his eyes, dark brows drawn together in response to the aching memories that lingered in his mind, weighing heavily within his chest.

He had told himself that he would never form any attachments ever again. And he had kept true to his word, for the most part, for countless centuries, grown into a feared and revered monarch in his own right. There were none in his Kingdom that dared to question him. It had taken a long time, had been a difficult, gruelling journey, but in the end, he had learned how to run the Underworld proficiently alone, had learned the art of delegation, and how to supervise his subjects, to ensure the well-being and fairness of all within it – while enforcing his own laws with an iron fist.

Then he had met her. Sakura. Seemingly mortal, and yet, he had discovered, so much more.

Forged of springtime and light, she had somehow wormed her way past his defences. Sasuke did not even know how it had happened. Could not pinpoint precisely when. Knew only that she had started to occupy his thoughts with alarming frequency. That her well-being had begun to take growing precedence in his mind, until he had taken it upon himself to find a way to free her of the curse of eternal rebirth that had been enforced upon her.

He had fought against the attraction, furious that one person could hold so much sway over his thoughts and actions. Furious that he had broken his own promise to never form bonds again.

Even now, he wished not to think of her.

Especially at that moment, as he recalled the pain of his own past. How he had been bound to the Underworld against his will, forced to ascend a throne before he was ready – with no real say in the matter, since the only other option had been to perish altogether.

Sakura. He had done the very same thing to her that he had despised and loathed to have happened to himself. In offering her the seeds, he had bound her to his Kingdom eternally. She'd had no choice in the matter. She would have to return. And if she fought against it, she, too, would perish. The seeds would poison her, the same way rejecting his calling as King had started to poison him.

He had not seen it as a prison sentence at the time of offering her the fruit. Had not understood why she would be so upset over the prospect of returning to his world.

Now he saw it all too clearly. All too guiltily. A bitter remorse gnawed away at him inside, knowing that he had been the one responsible for it.

He had believed himself angry with her for her betrayal at first. But the more time they had spent apart, the more he had become stiflingly aware of his actions – and the terrible consequences they'd had.

He had been selfish – just as Cronus had been. Cronus had wanted power, and damned his family. Sasuke had wanted Sakura – and damned her.

He knew the true root of his anger toward her; as well as the initial unwanted attraction to his enemy's daughter, he was all too aware of just how much he was stepping beyond his duties for her sake. An awareness of just how much he was risking, out of… what was it? The wish to atone? Sheer guilt? Wanting to make himself feel better, or seeking a way to justify what he had done? He thought of the madness he had already partaken in. A foolish trade with Cronus. The Curse Seal of Heaven. Summoning Kakashi for aid, instead of killing him as he always imagined he would when he got the chance – and he'd had it. Indirectly assisting the surface gods he so deeply despised. The inability to block her out when she called.

What was the use? He could not undo his past actions, he told himself. The seeds would remain within her, regardless of what he did. Whether he broke the seal upon her or not – Sakura would never forgive him. She had made that all too plain.

It did not matter, Sasuke thought to himself, whether she would hate him at the end or not. It did not matter, because he was no longer acting in his own selfish interests. He now simply wanted her to live. The same way his mother had implored him to live. Whether she was bound to the Underworld or free on the surface – she needed to survive.

Perhaps with the Rinnegan, there would be a way to reverse even the damage the seeds had caused. Nothing was documented about it – after all, the Rinnegan's full capabilities were still unknown. Sasuke did not want Sakura to return to his world, as unwilling as he had been when he'd first woken up in it after the war.

If given a choice between saving her life and releasing her, or binding her and losing her, Sasuke knew which he would now choose.

And perhaps – that was what angered and unsettled him the most. Just how much she had affected him.

How much he had noticed he had started to make exceptions. How much he had begun to change.

---

Author's Note

---

Hope you enjoyed the Sasuke flashbacks, and they didn't make you cry too much! Plot will continue to drive forward next chapter. Would love your thoughts about this one in the meanwhile. I did my best to edit out any errors, so if you find any, apologies; this was difficult to proof-read, as you can imagine, due to sheer length!

See you next update.