The dark hair, the red eyes of the attacker were prominent, familiar. And yet, it wasn't Sasuke.
I let out a shaky breath at knowing Sasuke wasn't the one to kill my dad. Turning to him, I said "It wasn't you."
He gave a grim shake of his head before returning his attention back on the scene unfolding before our eyes. "It was Itachi."
Mom turned to run, but was quickly stopped Itachi who had grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. She let out another terrible scream that sent younger me wailing, my young eyes scrunched shut against the horror.
Before Itachi attacked, though, a new figure darted out and dragged him away from the pair of innocents. Mom then crumpled to the floor, still holding me tightly in her arms.
And there he was, now standing between my mom, me, and Itachi.
Sasuke.
He looked just the same, but a raw fury set his features ablaze. "Itachi," he breathed out through gritted teeth. "Enough of this."
Itachi looked over his brother, sizing up the situation silently. He straightened his spine, wiping the blood from his bottom lip and chin as he sent Sasuke a look of amusement.
"Dear brother, you finally caught up to me it seems."
Memory Sasuke looked to my fallen father, a look of distaste coating his gaze. "You're not yourself. Why have you come back here?"
Itachi's fingers twitched at his side, a look of pure manic washed over him. "I've actually never been better."
Then he attacked.
Itachi lashed his hand out to Sasuke's throat, but Sasuke immediately jutted his fist up into the oncoming arm, sending Itachi's own into the air.
Sasuke then sent a quick jab at Itachi's stomach, to which Itachi effortlessly dodged by moving to the side.
"Still not strong enough," Itachi rasped before jumping back, standing perfectly still.
A low growl escaped Sasuke's throat. "Say that to me again."
Sasuke leapt at his brother, and the two of them broke into a series of skilled fighting maneuvers. They were moving so quickly, it was difficult to keep up with who made what move.
We stood there, Sasuke holding onto my hand tightly, as the two of us bore witness to this moment from long ago. I stole a glance at Sasuke beside me; his face was taut and his eyes were solely focused on his fight with Itachi. The red of his eyes, of his foresight ability, watching closely, no doubt looking to find any mistake he'd made from back then.
The fighting stopped, causing me to look back at the pair of Uchiha brothers.
Itachi gave Sasuke a crazed look. "Stop coming after me, Sasuke. You won't like what you find."
Memory Sasuke gave him a questioning look, but said nothing.
Itachi then clapped his hands together and he vanished with a resounding smack.
Sasuke squeezed my hand and said, "I could no longer feel him. Whatever he'd done had sent him far away, beyond the scope of Konoha, perhaps even the entirety of the Land of Fire itself."
As he spoke, I watched the look of defeat cross over memory Sasuke's face, the sides of his mouth turned down and his eyes scanned the area.
He then brought his attention to me and my mother, still huddled nearby on the sidewalk. Unadulterated fear and panic coated my mother's face, her body seizing up so badly she was unable to move.
Sasuke walked over to them, walking around the corpse of my father.
He stood before them. "I'm sorry."
My mother said nothing, and I continued to cry in her arms, staring up at the strange male.
A passing emotion flitted over memory Sasuke's eyes then. I couldn't name it, but whatever it was had him speaking to me more.
"You both are safe for now. I can hear the hunters on their way, they will be here shortly."
Younger me stopped crying then, just sniffled as she continued to stare at him. My mom still unable to speak as she stared at my father's body.
"What's your name?" memory Sasuke asked.
"S...Sakura," young me said.
He remained standing straight, arms hung loose at his sides. "Sakura," he said, the same tone, inflection that I remembered from so long ago. "Until next time."
And then he was gone, running down the street in a flash of speed.
Sasuke tugged on my arm, bringing my attention back to him. "Time to go," he said and let go of my hand, his fingers trailing mine slowly before we were finally disentangled from each other.
I was thrust back into my body on the couch.
Immediately, I stood, the crystal falling from my palm to thud against the wood floor. The sound echoed in my ears as my breathing quickly increased.
Sasuke stood up in front of me, moving his arms forward, but then thinking better of reaching for me, of touching me in any way, so they just went back to his sides, hanging there in their uncertainty.
Try as I did to hold it all in, a tear slid down the side of my face.
I'd just watched my father die. I'd watched as he was killed and could do nothing about it. It was the most useless I'd ever felt in my life.
Over his hesitation, Sasuke reached up and brushed the tear away with his thumb. The warmth of his touch broke me.
"Don't touch me," I rasped, jerking out of his reach, walking over to the glass wall to look out over the expanse of mountains.
Silence, and then his footsteps sounded as he walked across the room and left through the hall.
I was alone then, and I couldn't hold it any longer. Sobs bubbled out of me from deep in my gut, the sounds wrenching and guttural and thick. I wrapped myself in them, sliding down to the floor as I thought of nothing but that horrid experience.
XXX
Night came slowly. I watched as the stars and moon stretched out before me, coating the lands in a darkness that resonated with my own.
My crying had long since subsided, my face brittle from the dried tears caking my skin.
"Miss?"
Yuko startled me enough to look her way. She stood ten or so feet from me, her face holding a quiet gentleness. "Are you hungry?" She held up a tray, and I could smell it from my spot on the floor.
My stomach grumbled at the smell before I could tell her no. I looked to the right, biting the inside of my cheek.
She walked over and placed the tray on the floor beside me. Turkey slices, corn, string beans, and golden potatoes lay upon the plate, a glass of water just beside it.
She leaned over and laid her hand upon my shoulder, giving it a tight, comforting squeeze before taking her leave.
I limply took up the fork, pushing the food around in a lazy manner. Eventually, I popped some into my mouth, savoring the flavors.
Footsteps sounded nearby, and Yuko had come back just as quickly as she left. A resolute expression upon her face this time.
"I know it's not my place," she said strongly, "but, what is wrong? Master Sasuke would not say, he just told to send food for you."
Her boldness surprised me, though I continued to push around the food on the plate.
She came over and knelt before me. "Speak. It does not help to keep things inside."
I couldn't help but grimace. "I'm not...good at expressing feelings."
"You become good at something the more you do it," she said. "If you will not talk to Master Sasuke about it, would you tell me instead?"
My fork stalled. "So you can run to Sasuke and tell him what I said?"
She glared at me. "I would never do something like that. I want to talk with you because you are upset. It's painful to see you like this."
The side of my mouth tugged at that. "Thank you, Yuko. You have been so kind to me, but I don't want to talk about it yet."
She studied me, her eyes searching, debating on what to say next. Finally, she said, "You know where to find me. If you ever need someone to talk to, I will always listen."
Now I did smile at her, a small, reverent smile, but one nonetheless.
XXX
Sasuke was not there in the morning for our usual training time. I waited at the door even though he usually knocks at my bedroom to walk with me.
No knock, no Sasuke. So I waited for a few minutes, but nothing happened; he did not deign to show up. I hesitated for only a moment before seeking out his living quarters.
Last night, I had barely slept, tossing among the sheets, constantly playing Sasuke's memory on repeat. I could practically feel the shadows under my eyes with each heavy blink, feel the weight of my restlessness.
I made it to Sasuke's door and knocked.
Nothing.
I knocked harder and listened for sign of movement from behind it.
Nothing.
"Sasuke! Where are you?"
More knocking and more yelling were not getting him to come out, if he was even in there to begin with.
"Fine," I said. "You want to sulk around some more, be my guest."
Turning away, I trudged to the library. The hours here were long without him, without company. I could always call on Yuko, but I felt intrusive somehow, like I was always interrupting her work.
The library was a grand space, cylindrical in shape. There were plush couches and chairs in the center of the room, reading lamps beside them upon small tables.
This is where I came to pass the time when Sasuke and I weren't training, when he disappeared for hours at a time. The characters in the books were my companions in my lonesome hours.
I ran my fingers across the spines as I circled the room, thoughts overwhelming me.
It was that night. I couldn't believe it was the night I'd heard his voice. The night I'd been daydreaming about, thinking about that silken beautiful voice was the night my father was murdered right in front of my eyes.
How could I have not remembered something like that?
The image of blood returned to me as my eyes landed on a red leather-bound book, the flash of blood that I'd pictured early on with Sasuke. That was my father's blood. The blood from when Itachi Uchiha murdered him right in front of me.
How.
How could I not remember that.
My own father butchered in front of me.
By Itachi Uchiha.
Itachi. Uchiha.
I was going to kill him.
I did not take a book from a shelf, but rather I slid to the floor, back against the myriad of books, and leaned my head against my knees.
Time passed, and I was unaware of how long exactly I'd been in there thinking of ways to end Itachi's life. A loud thud startled me, forcing me into a standing position, fists balled in front of my body ready to lash out if necessary.
Sasuke stood on the other side of the room looking at me, his face much more stoic than usual. He'd dumped a weapons belt on the nearby table, my sword attached to it along with a few knives and stakes.
"Put it on. We're leaving."
XXX
Hey all, I'm not going to post a question on this one! Just want to rant for a bit about how nervous I am right now. Tomorrow I have an interview for a new job, and I am HOPING BEYOND HOPE that it goes extremely well. I really need to get out of my current job. My boss is a complete lunatic. It's just such a toxic environment now, I can't stand it. Mmmmmmmmm cross your fingers for me, wish me luck, all that jazz!