Itachi's POV
4 years later…..
We were cornered. Danzo's going to win and the Uchiha Clan will fall. What he didn't understand is why. Sure, he had a few guesses, but he assumed they weren't as close to the truth as he'd like. It felt like there was so much more to the situation that he would be able to comprehend at this point in time.
He moved to stand in front of his cousin, Shisui, in a protective stance, it didn't look like they'd be getting out of this without a fight. They'd already taken Shisui's eye and injured him, they'd cornered them at the top of the cliff above the Naka river. He needed to make a decision quick. His weight shifted in preparation to defend himself and Shisui.
"Stand down. Danzo has ordered us to take Shisui-sans other eye. We must complete our task. Do not stand in our way." One of the root members spoke. No. No, he was not going to let them harm Shisui. They weren't going to lay a finger on him.
"I believe that's enough, Root-san." Itachi's eyes snapped up to the trees in front of him where he found a young girl seated herself in an optimal angle to view their interaction. He didn't even sense her.
"A child…" He heard his cousin Shisui whisper from behind him. Yes, a child. But who is she and why is she speaking with such authority?
"Hikari-sama." Is she a member of Root? "This is Root's business. Please do not interfere." She wasn't a member of Root. Who is she? Why is she wearing such a peculiar mask? Itachi could feel the killing intent exuding from her very being causing both him and Shisui to tense in anticipation.
"Yes, I do understand that this is Root's business. However, I also understand that now that Danzo is dead, Root is disbanded. Isn't that right?" The girl hummed in false amusement.
"Danzo is dead?..." The Root members looked at each other as if they were asking what they should do.
"Yes, but if you'd like to join him, you're certainly welcome to stay." Was she implying that she killed him? He wasn't normally one to judge, after all he was a prodigy himself and he was certain that there had to be people who were younger than him yet stronger than him, but she couldn't be older than ten. Truly, it was difficult to believe. She's tiny and still had her baby fat judging by her wrists. There wasn't anything striking about her either. She had pale skin and long brown hair. She looked incredibly average even as she playfully swung her legs back and forth in her seated position, teasing them in a childish way.
"You killed him." It was a statement, nothing questioning about it. The little girl hummed again playfully.
"I never said that, did I?" He could tell she was smiling behind her mask. He could feel it.
"No. But you implied it. That is treason!" One of the Root members exclaimed.
"So, you're going to stay? You Root truly do have a death wish." She stated in monotone, all amusement from before now gone. Her gaze shifted from the Root member speaking to her to the member standing behind him. The Root member screamed in agony and fell to the floor, blood pooling around his head. "You're friend is still alive, however, he only has around 10 minutes before he loses all brain function. Better run along and get him to a medic-nin quickly." She chuckled. He couldn't believe it. She barely looked at the Root member and he was on the verge of death.
"You're a monster." No, she's a shinobi.
"Sure," she nodded in agreement, "Also you should let the medic know he has abnormal swelling in the wall of a blood vessel in his brain. That should help them patch him up pretty quickly." She jumped from the tree and gracefully landed on her feet without making a sound. "Before you leave, Root-san, I should inform you that from this moment forward, the Uchiha Clan is under my protection and they will be for as long as I live. So, if you ever try to harm an Uchiha again, I will personally cut out your vocal cords and watch as you choke on your own blood." Root tensed at the girl's words and it looked like she'd noticed their fear. "I'm a monster, remember?" She giggled.
"Of course, Hikari-sama." Itachi could sense the intimidation they felt and their itch to run and hide. "We will take our leave now." They picked up their fallen comrade and disappeared into the trees.
The little girl turned toward Shisui and himself and began walking to them. Now that he had a closer look at her, she seemed to be around Sasuke's age. He couldn't imagine, no, he didn't want to imagine his little brother ever doing something like this.
"I apologise for what you just saw. I promise I will bring no harm to you." She tilted her head like a puppy does when don't understand something and reached into her kunai pouch only to pull out a jar filled with liquid. "Shisui-san I'd like to give you your eye back if you'd allow me to heal it." Shisui moved toward her but Itachi couldn't help but be suspicious of her and placed his arm out in front of his cousin, stopping him from moving any closer.
"Itach – " Shisui started only to be cut off.
"It is quite alright Shisui-san." She sighed, "Itachi-san, I truly mean no harm. I am a member of the Sandaimes personal anbu." She stated whilst holding his gaze as a sign of trust. He could kill her with a flicker of his Sharingan. They both knew that.
"I have never met nor seen you before today." She stated in a monotone voice yet still curious on how she would choose to reply.
"Very well. I cannot simply tell you who I am and my whole life story Itachi-san." She snorted, "But, I can say that although Hikari is not my true name, it is the name I go by most. I can also say that I have been in anbu for approximately four years now and that I am close enough to the Hokage to know the affairs that are currently occurring within the Uchiha Clan. Everything else is confidential." She said with a shrug. "However, first and foremost, I am a healer. Meaning that I'd truly like to heal your cousins' eye and that I have no further intentions other than that. So please move out of my way Itachi-san. If we wait any longer there is a possibility that Shisui-san could become permanently blind." Cautiously Itachi stepped away from Shisui and she moved forward revealing that Shisui's missing eye was in the jar of liquid.
"If you are as close to the Hokage as you say you are, why is no one currently aware of your presence and affiliation with him?" Itachi asked curiously.
"I'm 8, Itachi-san." She said in amusement and hint of sarcasm. "Although I am a member of anbu, I am more useful when it comes to protecting and nurturing my own generation. Which I wouldn't be able to do if every shinobi in Konoha knew my identity." She said teasingly as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. She then proceeded to urge Shisui to lay on the ground with his head placed in her lap whilst she repaired his eye. "You're lucky Danzo wanted to use this eye for himself, otherwise it most likely would've been too damaged for me to repair." She stated with sympathy slipping through her tone.
"Would've been luckier if Danzo hadn't taken my eye at all." Shisui said jokingly and the girl, Hikari, giggled. "I'm sorry for my little cousins' behaviour, he's overly paranoid most of the time." Itachi grimaced, he was so not overly paranoid. He was just cautious; he shot his cousin a glare. The girl was suspicious, that's all.
Taking her hands away from Shisui's face, she asked him to sit up and slowly open his eyes when he felt comfortable. "Itachi-san should stay the way he is." She said firmly much to itachi's surprise. "Some people may view paranoia as a bad thing, but, being honest, I'd have to say if I wasn't as cautious or paranoid as I am now, I would've died years ago. So – I guess what I'm trying to say is that paranoia keeps you alive – which is a good thing – but it doesn't help to keep you sane. So I suggest finding a safe haven, somewhere – or with someone so you don't always have to be on your guard – it'd be really good for your mental health." She truly was a child, an impressive child but naïve, nonetheless. Itachi nodded in acknowledgement, she may be kind but that wouldn't stop him from being weary of her.
Shisui slowly opened his eyes, "I can see even better than before." He whispered in astonishment and eyed Hikari curiously.
"See, good as new," she exclaimed, "just to let you boys know, I wasn't lying about what I said earlier. I will always protect the Uchiha Clan, and you don't have to worry about the Coup anymore." Her voice sounded happy, but her words startled him. "I already spoke with Fugaku-san and we've … come to an agreement." She hummed.
"You spoke with my father… about the coup de tat… and he agreed to end it?" Itachi questioned dumbfoundedly. There weren't many things in this world that surprised him anymore but it seemed that the more he spoke to this girl, the more surprised he got.
"Yep!" She chirped cheerfully, "Well seeing as the both of you are fine, I should get going. But don't ever hesitate to ask for help, okay? And don't forget to go to the hospital to get a check up before going home! Okay well I'll be going now, see you later!" She then puffed in a cloud of white smoke, disappearing from their sight at once.
She was a clone.
"She was a clone?!" Shisui voiced Itachi's exact thoughts with a little more enthusiasm and shock.
"So it seems, Shisui." He replied contently.
"That's incredible. She's so young, too young. In a way, she reminds me of you, Itachi, cute and mysterious." He said with a grin, "Don't you agree my cute little baby cousin?" despite Shisui's words and expression, Itachi could tell that he was more than shocked by the presence of the little girl by his rambling but only one response came to mind.
"I suppose, that is the life of a Shinobi." He would most definitely be reporting her appearance to the hokage. He blanched at the thought of all the paperwork he'd have to complete because of this event and looked up at the bright blue sky.
Why did it feel as though the world was against him?