The clock had just struck midnight when a mournful crying echoed throughout the house, sending Itachi jolting up in his seat. His eyes were bleary from lack of sleep, his nightshirt hanging on his shoulders. He'd lost a lot of his muscle during the the occupation of Akatsuki, but was slowly rebuilding his physical conditioning (though it was slow; to the point where he thought he was losing weight instead). In front of him were scattered papers of contracts. He would know. He'd read all of the fine print, and had signed eighteen out of twenty-five of them.

Turning down his oil lantern to as low as it got, Itachi got out of his seat, tossing his pen on his worktable. As he wandered down the corridor, he couldn't help but notice how empty his new house seemed. It'd been sheer luck that his father had not removed his name as heir since the last time Fugaku had corresponded with Konoha, so all of their properties (and funds) went to him in his father's absence. He'd sold almost all of them, leaving just two for himself: the house he was occupying and a building in the marketplace.

Hesitantly, Itachi levitated his hand over the doorknob of his son's room. Izuna continued to cry inside, unaware of his father's stalling. Then Itachi turned the knob, pushing the door open and heading for the crib.

Gingerly, he lifted the baby from his bed, holding him close to his chest.

"Shh... don't cry, I'm here now." Initially, Izuna did not cease his wailing. But Itachi continued to hold him, more stiffly than before. Was he hungry? Had he soiled himself? Did he need to be burped? He was relieved when Izuna calmed down to the sound of Itachi's heartbeat. "Did you have a bad dream?" Itachi murmured, pressing his cheek gently against Izuna's.

Izuna squirmed, looking up at him confusedly. As if Itachi wasn't the person he'd been expecting.

Where's okaa-san? his eyes seemed to ask.

Itachi stared back, speechless.

Izuna's face reddened and scrunched up again, and he started to cry at the top of his lungs. Panicking and frazzled, Itachi bobbed him up and down at what he hoped was a soothing pace.

"I'm sorry," Itachi apologized. "I can never give you want you want. I'm sorry, son." Izuna was fast approaching two months old. He'd spent almost a month without his mother to suckle from, without his mother to hold him. His child cried and cried, and Itachi slumped against the wall, sliding down.

He didn't know how long he sat there for, utterly defeated.

Eventually, Izuna cried himself to sleep. Itachi place him back in the crib, pulling the blankets over his tiny, breakable frame. He dried his son's tears with his sleeve, collecting his snot as well.

After observing his son for a few more moments, Itachi exited the room, holding up his clean sleeve to his mouth. He ran down the hall as he coughed, not wanting his son to hear the horrible noise. When it was over, Itachi examined his now soiled sleeve.

Specks of blood and phlegm greeted him.

Silently, Itachi returned to his worktable, trying to curb the feeling of dread that was sneaking up on him.

He had another seven more multi-paged documents to read through and sign.

A lot of the times, he had people over for dinner. He liked it—it added warmth and feeling to this hollow husk of a house. Tonight, Kakashi was making an eggplant curry dish with Rin while Deidara sat in the living room, entertaining Daichi and Hikari with her silly, amusing tricks.

"Kakashi-kun!" Rin exclaimed, fondly exasperated. "You didn't need to add that much chili inside!"

Itachi, setting the table, glanced toward the connected kitchen with faint amusement. Kakashi—he was without his mask today—eye-smiled at his brown-haired friend.

"Mou, it's more exciting that way, Rin-chan." He smeared curry sauce on her cheek, making her squawk. "We need a little more spice in our lives. Right, Itachi?"

"If you want," Itachi said noncommittally, earning a giggle from Rin. He let them banter between themselves, turning his raven gaze to where the living room was. Deidara had a several clay flying animals out—bats, birds, butterflies (or were they moths?)— fluttering them just out of reach from Hikari whenever the little girl tried to catch them. Daichi was lounging on the coach, trying to pretend such childish machinations didn't interest him. He lost eventually, trying to catch Deidara's clay monsters with a scowl on his face.

"Ne, you're getting too slow, Daichi-kun!" Deidara taunted, grinning haughtily. She'd moved in with Chiyo recently, and it warmed Itachi's heart to see her get some of her old spark bet. Her art would never betray her, he knew, and he was glad that she was taking steps in the right direction. Not many knew, but she'd been afraid to work on her art again, convinced that it would never be the same. He didn't know what had pushed her into it again. Perhaps it was just a natural attraction that she couldn't fight. She had, of course, been doing her art ever since young.

"I'll teach you slow!" Daichi grumbled when he missed a butterfly (moth?) by inches.

Daichi never caught the clay bug. Rin announced dinner, and Deidara put her creatures away into her bag, shooing the children to the dining room.

Itachi's household was a more traditional one—they all sat at a low-standing table with mats as seats. Eggplant curry and gyoza for the kids were tonight's dinner; each of them had a bowl of rice in front of them.

"Itadakimasu!"

As expected, Daichi and Hikari went for the gyoza right away, Rin smacking Daichi's hand lightly when he tried to go for a second one without finishing the first. Kakashi was more languid in serving himself, slowly pouring curry sauce all over his rice before adding eggplant, egg, and meat—ground beef, it seemed like.

Barely an hour later, the curry bowl was scraped clean, and the gyoza had all been vacuumed up ravenous Uchiha children. Itachi wished that there was dessert, but he hadn't bought any.

"We'll do the dishes," Itachi said when the topic came up, volunteering himself and Deidara. "Since you cooked."

"You don't mind?" Rin asked. "You were the one who made the rice, Itachi."

Deidara waved her off. "It's fine, hm. We don't mind."

And so Kakashi and Rin settled themselves in the living room with the kids, while Deidara and Itachi got to work, rolling their sleeves up.

"I heard you were recently hired," Itachi started casually, passing a pair of chopsticks to Deidara.

"Yeah." She rubbed dish soap on the utensils before running it under the hot water. She didn't even react at the scalding liquid spraying across her hand and turning it an angry red. "It was just luck, really." Deidara placed the chopsticks in the drying rack, making a small, appreciative noise at how modern Itachi's new house was. It wasn't as big as the mansion had been, but it wasn't exactly small either. "Shikamaru and Choji pulled a few strings, and now I'm working as a translator and general assistant at the Leaf Gazette, hm."

"Translator?" His interest was piqued.

"Yep—old Iwaspeak to modern Japanese. Did you know a lot of old Iwa plays were written in Iwaspeak?"

"No, I didn't," Itachi replied honestly. "I didn't realize you're into theater, Deidara."

"Hmm..." She smiled with just a hint of nostalgia. "It was hard not to get into it. I spent a lot of my childhood days running around and learning taijutsu to beat up boys, but my mother took me to the theater a lot, yeah."

"And you liked it?"

"I loved it." The raw candor in her voice almost had Itachi dropping the bowl he was washing. He stared at her curiously, and she chuckled, a little abashed. "I wanted my mother to sign me up for classes immediately. Turned out, though, that I have absolutely no talent in acting, hm." Deidara paused. "Hey..."

"Yes?"

"I'm leaving the city tomorrow." He passed her a bowl. "It's a work thing, yeah. I don't know when I'll be back, so..." Deidara trailed off, looking away. "I just thought I should tell you."

"... Why?"

She shot him an annoyed glance. "Because we're friends, Itachi."

Yes, they were, weren't they? "Sorry." He turned off the tap. "Do you want me to see you off?" Like you did with Sasori?

Deidara shrugged, wiping the last bowl she had in her hands. "I don't mind, hm, but I'd like that. It won't be where Sasori-no-Danna left—I'll be taking a boat to another town on the eastern side of the continent. It's still in the country, but the walls don't reach the docks. Say—where's Izuna, hm? I haven't seen him all night."

"Asleep—"

A crying started.

Itachi sighed. "Or, at least, he was until just then. Excuse me..." He tore off his apron and hung it on a random drawer-knob, racing for Izuna's room. When he got there, Rin and Kakashi were already there, the latter handing the former a cloth diaper.

"He's soiled himself, the little one," Rin informed Itachi, expertly wiping Izuna clean and then putting on the fresh diaper. Kakashi looked pale as he carried the old one out of the room, making a straight beeline for the nearest bin. "It looks like he's been sitting in in there for a while now. You'll have to wash him after."

"I..." Itachi faltered. "I didn't realize..." I'm sorry, Izuna. How could I have not known?

"It's hard to tell when Izuna doesn't cry all that much." Itachi didn't like how Rin was excusing his mistakes, but let it slide. "Just be a little more observant next time, and you'll be fine." Rin lifted a finger. "Oh, and don't leave him unattended for long periods of time. I'm not sure about Izuna, but when Hikari was his age, she would get into trouble all the time."

"I'll keep that in mind," Itachi appeased, strained. "Thank you, Rin."

She lifted the baby and placed him in his arms. Izuna blinked up at his father, wide-eyed. Itachi nearly fell onto his knees then. Everybody kept saying how much Izuna looked like him, but in that moment, all he could see was...

"It's getting late," Rin declared. "Deidara's told you that she's going tomorrow right? We should sleep early if we want to see her off. Goodnight, Itachi."

When everybody was gone, the house felt unimaginably empty again.

Disappointment settled like a stone in his stomach.

Content in his arms, Izuna cooed.

Sighing, Itachi tickled his cheek. "Come on, little one—bath time."

Why didn't you save me?

Itachi...

Why did you leave me?

Itachi awoke with a gasp, sitting up in his bed with his arm outstretched. His chest heaved, and sweat beaded at his temple. "Izumi...!" Trembling, he let his arm fall unceremoniously to his side, trying hard to get his breathing back under control. Her name echoed throughout the house.

Frantically, Itachi tossed his blankets aside and ran to where Izuna should have been sleeping.

Please—

He's all that's left of her—

He could not even begin to describe how relieving it was to discover Izuna in his crib, sleeping soundly. Itachi closed the door before slumping against it, his face buried in his knees.

Izumi...

Come back to me.

"I'll miss you," Rin said as she hugged Deidara tightly. "You'd better write, you hear?"

"Of course, yeah," Deidara promised, squeezing Rin as she returned the embrace. "I'll write as soon as I get there. Assuming that there's a post office, hm."

Itachi, with Izuna in his arms (he'd taken Rin's advice to heart), stood a little behind the ladies, watching them as they came closer to the verge of tears. He wasn't quite sure what he was feeling.

But that feeling amplified when Deidara hugged him sincerely before disappearing into the gathered crowd and then reappearing up on the gangplank. She looked back at them once, waved, and then headed up to the deck with her briefcase in tow. She looked so professional, even with that eyescope on her face. It was like... she had grown up, in a way.

His mouth grew dry.

He knew what it was now, as he and Rin watched the boat disappear into the horizon, becoming a black dot until there was nothing left except the line separating the sea from the sky. It was as if he were watching another loved one exit from his life.

"She'll be back, you know," Rin said when she noticed the disquieted expression on his face.

"Aa. I know. Let's go—have you eaten breakfast yet?"

She shook her head as they left the docks, the scent of the sea leaving his nostrils. "No, it was too early for that. But I'm famished now, and I only have about an hour to eat before I have to head down to the Leaf Junior Academy."

Itachi blinked in surprise. "You're enrolling them?"

"Yes." Rin shot him a side smile. "I've taken up two jobs, recently, to pay for their school fees. It's why I haven't been coming around too often. Tsunade-sama was kind enough to hire me as a hospital receptionist, and I also got a job at the florist by the refugee centre."

"You could always come live with me. Money won't be a problem."

"Thank you, Itachi, but..." Rin glanced up at the morning sky. "I want to stand on my own two feet. It wouldn't feel right if I were to live off the Uchiha trust fund. I might have married in, but..." She smiled a little sadly. "I'm still a Nohara at heart."

"That is admirable," Itachi admitted. "I hope everything goes well for you, Rin."

"I hope so, too."

Itachi couldn't help but feel out of place when Shimizu Asagi came over with her son on the same day that he was looking after Daichi and Hikari while their mother went to her weekend job as a florist's assistant. The kids were no trouble—Daichi and Hikari were more concerned about looking good in their uniforms and buying school supplies than making a fuss. Shogo joined in with them, stating that he wished to go to school as well. But...

"Ah, there he is!" Asagi smiled sweetly as she picked up Izuna with no hesitation at all, as if she were the one who had given birth to him and not... Izumi. Itachi wasn't sure if it was for better or worse that Izuna reacted positively to Asagi, cooing in delight and pulling at her lovely brown locks. She wore her hair in a similar style to which Izumi had—a low bun with some strands of hair framing her narrow face. "Hello, darling." She looked at him the same way that she looked at her biological son, Itachi noticed.

She might not have given birth to him, but Asagi truly loved Izuna with all of her heart.

Again, Itachi was conflicted that Asagi did not have a lot of time to give to Izuna. Her mother had entered hospice care a few weeks ago, and Asagi had been staying with her almost every day.

"How have you been?" Itachi asked as Asagi cuddled Izuna, both of them sitting on the couch. The kids were sitting on the floor, messing about with their uniforms and worn textbooks (which had been donated by the school).

Asagi smiled at him serenely. "As well as I can be. I've been seeing one of the doctors they have at the centre for my nightmares. I think it's getting better—I haven't had a bad dream for a while now." She paused, tapping her chin. "I believe that the Hyuuga sisters see the same doctor, actually."

Oh? This was news to him. It did not surprise him that some of them would seek professional help after what they had all been through, but...

"I think you should go, too," Asagi told him, her smile turning a little apologetic. "I don't mean anything by it—but it's good to have someone to guide you through it."

"I..."

Why did you leave me, Itachi?

"I'll think about it."

The next time Itachi saw the Hyuuga sisters, the school semester had already begun, with Daichi and Hikari setting off to school. In fact, it was exactly two days after that that he saw Hinata and Hanabi at the school gates when he went to pick up Daichi and Hikari from school. Students were allowed to leave with a guardian during lunchtimes and return to school before their next class.

Hanabi, surprisingly, was wearing a school uniform. And she looked extremely cross about it, too, while Hinata was covering her mouth as she laughed. He didn't know why, but Naruto and Sasuke were with them, too.

"Aw, you look cute, Hanabi-chan!" Naruto said cheerfully. "Don't be too mad—I'm sure you'll make lots of friends."

"I don't care about friends!" Hanabi hissed at him, smacking his hand away when he tried to pat her head. "How come you guys don't have to go to school?"

The older teens all exchanged a look.

Then Sasuke said tactlessly, "Because we've already been educated. Well, except for the idiot here—"

"Oi!"

"You're still a kid, so I bet your family tutors haven't taught you everything yet." Sasuke spoke over Naruto like he hadn't even said anything, talking only to Hanabi.

It made Itachi smirk. He knew that Sasuke had to be at least a little impressed by the girl's prowess, especially considering her young age, and their similarities were almost endless. He did not acknowledge Hinata the same way as he did Hanabi, and Naruto was just out of the question entirely.

"Otouto." Sasuke jerked when Itachi planted his hand on his little brother's head, effectively announcing his presence. "What are you up to today?" He greeted everyone else while Sasuke grumbled about Itachi treating him like a child.

"Where's Izuna-chan?" Hinata inquired politely.

"Asagi-san is looking after him today," Itachi informed. "I should get going now—oh, and Hanabi?"

The smaller Hyuuga blinked confusedly. "Huh?"

"You should go to school. You might like it."

That night, Itachi was exhausted. It wasn't unusual—he was usually more tired than ever these days, but his coughing had been getting worse and worse lately. When he hacked up more phlegm and blood while babysitting Daichi and Hikari, the former looked at him concernedly.

"H-Hey, Itachi-nii?" He'd taken to calling him that now. "You should go to the hospital, y'know..."

Aa. Maybe I should.

"Ha-na-bi!" Moegi huffed as she caught up to the girl. "You walk so fast."

Hanabi huffed right back. "I have somewhere to be, okay? Hinata-nee is going to come soon and then we're going to see Neji. Don't bother me, Moegi-chan..."

Moegi rolled her eyes, exasperated and amused (but mostly the former). "You should stop acting high and mighty at the academy, you know. You're doing yourself any favors."

"I don't care about these dumb kids. You shouldn't either, Moegi-chan."

"That's senpai to you," Moegi said just as Hinata arrived at the front gates, calm and composed. "Oh, hi, Hinata-san!"

"H-hello, Moegi-chan." Hinata smiled at the younger girl. "R-ready to go, Hanabi-chan?"

"Hai."

Shizune froze.

"What do you mean he's gone?!"

A/N: Bit of interlude, but not really. Pretty much the side of life from mostly Itachi's perspective. I swear this has to be the last upload, I cannot afford to waste anymore time on studying ooFT.