Whew, I'm enjoying this series. This one is a little long.

As always. Comment on what you think.

A Wayward Blond

Chapter 2

Wandering Into A Warzone

"Stay safe going home, Naruto!" Hinata yelled, her tiny arms just barely reaching over her head. Behind her stood her cousin, Neji, who watched the scene with stoic eyes. The Hyuuga boy met Naruto's eyes, and for a second the two youths stared at each other.

Then Neji nodded, and Naruto smiled. He nodded back, and that was that. Naruto turned from the gateway to the Hyuuga compound and started on his way down the road back to the orphanage. Behind him he could hear Hinata, the Hyuuga heiress, still screaming his name. She repeated the time he was to come tomorrow, as well as reminding him to bring his pajamas. Toothbrush, underwear, and don't forget to brush his teeth!

Honestly, even though Naruto was older, Hinata treated him as if he were her child. She doted on him every moment they were alone, to the point that it was even annoying. He tried to scold her before, but then she would turn her big, lavender eyes on him.

And suddenly he was paralyzed. He couldn't stay mad at her or her puffy cheeks.

The worst part was that she knew of her powers, and used them to keep him in check. Little Hinata dragged him everywhere she went, coddling him like a life-sized doll the entire time.

Honestly, why was she even acting older than him? She could barely speak to anyone outside of their trio if he wasn't around. Hinata was just weird like that.

Either way, Naruto would have some time away from her. For the past year the blond had been spending nearly every day over at the Hyuuga compound, but his home was still the orphanage. He was still required to show his face there from time to time, and today was that day. While he didn't cherish his time in the run-down institution, at least it was time away from Hinata.

Also it was time away from the stuffy Hyuuga elders. Neji told him that they had lightened up since the attempted kidnapping, but they were still blowhards.

Also don't tell Hinata that he said that. He wasn't allowed to curse.

Either way, four-year-old (and nearly five!) Naruto strolled down the streets of Konoha. The sun had already started to set, and the entire village had an almost orange tint to it. Stall venders had already packed away most of their stuff, with only a few stragglers staying behind to finish their preparations for the next day. Naruto took one look at them, and a devilish smirk overtook his face.

All at once the boy remembered his penchant for trouble, a trait that was locked away by Hinata's overbearing sweetness. With an evil rubbing of his hands and nothing but bad intentions going through his mind, the young child advanced on the poor, unsuspecting adults.

XxX

Pots clanged and detritus thundered against the dirt floor as Naruto bolted out of the Merchant District. Clutched in one hand was various necklaces and doo-dads that were probably not worth very much. Clutched in another hand was a single ball that barely fit in his palm. Stuffed in his mouth, and mostly hanging out, was a single fluffy piece of bread. It was warm, delicious, and tastier than anything he ate even at the rich Hyuuga's house.

But then again, that might just be because he stole it. Food always tasted better when Naruto stole it.

Either way Naruto beat up dust clouds as he belted down the street. He ducked into alleyways and over walls as he tried to escape from the disgruntled merchants. Even now they shouted profanities at him, and Naruto could do nothing more than smile.

The villagers weren't bad people, not necessarily. They were just incredibly boring and set in their ways. Naruto felt that it was his solemn duty to spice things up for them.

With these thoughts in mind, Naruto ducked around another corner before dashing into a bush. The merchants took a while, but they stumbled out of the alleyway he had vacated. One was a fat man wearing decent clothing, while the other was a reedy man wearing tacky, but obviously expensive wear.

"Where did he go?" the reedy man asked. Everything about him screamed "greasy." Naruto thumbed the cheap necklaces he held in his hand. They were nothing like the jewelry of the Hyuuga clan, but the man was selling them as if they were worth a small fortune.

"I don't know," the other man said. He gasped, hands on his knees, as he tried to catch his breath. He was one of many of the Village's bakers, and although he wasn't necessarily bad to Naruto, he wasn't all that kind either. Naruto munched on the loaf he had stolen from the man. It was still chewy.

The two men argued some more, before finally taking off in opposite directions. Neither man caught on to the fact that their target was less than a meter away from them, and Naruto stepped out of the shrubbery, smug grin in place. He took one look at the necklaces in his hand and dropped them to the dirt, before stomping on them for good measure. The cheap, almost plastic beads cracked from even that much, and the expensive "gold" dented from the four-year-old's assault.

Truly despicable, but Naruto supposed that it was to be expected. He took his now freed hand and reached up to tear the bread out of his mouth, immediately chewing and swallowing the bread that was left in his teeth. He finished the bread off quickly, before walking away from the scene of the crime.

Absentmindedly, however, he tossed the ball in his other hand in the air. He caught it every time it came down, and his eyes followed the orb as it sailed through the air again.

To be honest, Naruto wasn't sure that what he was holding was a ball. For one, it was made almost completely of glass, and playing with it as if it were a ball was probably not a good idea. Broken glass was not only a bad omen, but it sucked to clean up.

For another thing, the orb felt strange in his hands. It was both warm and cold to the touch, and the longer he held it in his hand, the warmer it got.

Naruto decided that he didn't really want to see how warm it could get, so he tossed it in the air to keep it from getting to the point where it could burn him.

It was such a weird ball, really. It was the last thing he stole, with two merchants already in hot pursuit of him. He reached out to grab one last thing, anything really, and his hand landed on the orb. The vender, a thin man with opulent clothing, looked up from his preparations when the commotion caught his attention. Naruto expected him to get mad. He expected the vender to give chase.

He didn't expect the man to smile— it was a small, wry smile— and turn back to his work. The man was weird, and everything in his stall was weird as well. With another toss in the air, Naruto debated just returning the weird ball back to him.

It was obviously trouble, after all. With another toss, Naruto continued his walk down the street. It wasn't like him to give something back, but something about the ball just seemed so... ominous.

It was while he was debating what to do that he came across a huge gate. While gates weren't exactly rare in the Hidden Leaf, to have one be so big and grand was unusual. The Hyuuga had one, but Naruto was told that they were a rich family. The one he stood before was just as big, if not bigger, but replaced the featureless white of the Hyuuga with featureless black.

The sign overhead read, "The Uchiha District." Naruto wasn't entirely sure what an Uchiha was, but if it was anything like a Hyuuga, then it was probably just a big family. Naruto had ventured by this way before in his wanderings around the village, but he was never let inside. Mean men with fierce glares always turned him away. Their eyes, which were normally cold and black, would turn red, and Naruto would be left scurrying away.

Right now, however, there were no guards. That alone was weird, but maybe they were all asleep? It was pretty late, after all. The moon had already started its rise through the night sky.

In the end Naruto decided that it didn't matter where the guards were. Asleep or not, they weren't there to keep him out anymore. A devilish smirk overtook his face once more, and tiny sandaled feet took their first steps into unknown territory.

The first step was simply euphoric, and Naruto had to forcibly stop the jitters that ran through his body. There was something about finally doing something that you weren't supposed to do that brought excitement into the little boy's heart.

The second step wasn't as amazing, but each new step brought a new feeling of curiousness to his heart. How much farther could he go? How much more could he do and get away with? Every step was a step into a new adventure. The more he saw, the more he wanted to see. He wanted to explore. He wanted to learn.

He wanted to prank the ever-loving shit out of these people. But that could wait for another time.

Right now Naruto was wondering what was going on. The Hidden Leaf Village was seriously huge. Even at night it was hard to walk down any road without bumping into at least one person. Right now, however, this "Uchiha" District was empty. There was no one walking the street, no one peeking out of any buildings or rushing along home. Ever since he entered the area, no, ever since he walked by the gate he hadn't seen a single person.

It was like he was walking through a ghost town. There was no sign of life anywhere.

Naruto was already a few minutes' walk into the district, and his sense of adventure was quickly being overcome by unease. Where was everyone? There weren't even any kids outside. Naruto briefly entertained the idea that they were all stuffy traditional people like the Hyuuga, but even the Hyuuga had stragglers out after dark: guards and drunk people at the very least.

Here there was nothing. There wasn't even any noise coming from inside the houses. If Naruto didn't know any better, he would have guessed that no one lived here at all.

Cautious steps brought Naruto only a little deeper into the compound. It was only a few minutes, but to Naruto it felt like eternity. Unease turned to full on revulsion as his steps echoed through each abandoned house and empty alleyway.

Let it be known that Naruto was never fond of ghosts. He hoped for a sign, any sign at all, to relieve him of the mounting tension building along his spine.

He came across a person shortly after wishing that. They laid on the ground, arms and legs sprawled out with their head turned. His black kimono had the same symbol on it that was on the front gate and almost every house thus far: a black and white uchiwa.

Naruto smiled. Another drunk, huh? The boy creeped forward. Once close enough, he slapped the man as hard as he could on the neck. The man wouldn't feel it, so out of his stupor.

But then Naruto's hand hit ice cold skin, and the boy recoiled. No one was that cold. And not only was the man cold, he was also hard, as if his whole body had tensed up.

Naruto didn't want to. He really didn't want to. Still, he reached out and grabbed the man's shoulder. He shook him as hard as he could, and got no response in return. He waited a few seconds that turned into a few minutes, only to receive nothing from the man. No drunken spiels or mumbling or even the poor bastard pissing himself.

Only silence, like the rest of the district.

Finally, Naruto had enough. He gripped the man's shoulder again, but this time pulled with all his might. Initially the man hadn't budged, but after a few seconds the almost-five-year old managed to flip the man over.

"There!" Naruto triumphantly crowed. "Now wake u—"

Naruto could only stare at the blank open eyes of the man. A red liquid that he was sure wasn't wine bubbled out of the man's mouth, as well as the large open gash that stretched from the man's left shoulder to his right hip.

Naruto stood there, blue eyes roving over something he wasn't sure of. His mind was telling him things, screaming facts of the matter to him, but he just couldn't believe it. He wrenched his eyes away from the corpse and calmly stepped over it. He wanted to step away, to leave the harrowing experience behind and go back the way he came.

But his mind wasn't working the way he needed it to. Instead of turning around he had simply started walking the direction he was already facing.

Naruto trudged deeper into the Uchiha Compound.

XxX

Itachi Uchiha felt empty. His heart died when he first swung his sword against his own kin. He had killed before, many times, but this time felt especially bad. He felt every inch of skin that tore apart with the passing of his blade. The squelch of blood and organs echoed through his mind, even now, and the light that died from his cousin's, or niece's, or uncle's eyes haunted his every thought and harried his every step.

Yet he could not stop. He had already started this massacre. There was no half-heartedness in the role he had to play. He would have to kill them all.

A clansman, the uncle that first taught him how to bend his wrist when throwing shuriken, ran up to him. The man's face was set into a scowl, but there was a pain in the way that he glared at Itachi. It was as if he couldn't believe what was happening. Itachi, his eyes just as red as the man's, ducked under the swipe of his uncle's knife. With nary a thought to the matter, the thirteen-year-old lunged forward. His blade sunk into the man's stomach, and he went limp immediately.

"Itachi," the man gasped out, his voice gargled. "W-why."

Itachi didn't have an answer. He didn't have a thought. He just sighed, before pulling his sword out of the man's gut. One more clansman collapsed bonelessly to the ground, his Sharingan deactivating as the chakra that fed it disappeared.

Itachi didn't look back as he moved on to the next house. He cleaned his sword on the clothes of the man's wife, and shuffled out the door.

He felt tired, and so very, very empty.

XxX

Naruto was running. There was no destination in mind, only an ultimate goal, and that was getting out of this crazy place. Naruto wasn't exactly sure who the "Uchiha" were, but they were certainly nothing like the Hyuuga. The Hyuuga were great people. They got together, ate, and played games.

So far it seemed like all the Uchiha did was kill, and Naruto had to be careful not to trip over another body. Whereas before Naruto just had to shuffle around the corpses, as he got deeper into the compound more and more popped up. It got to the point where the bodies were everywhere, dotting every street and littering every open doorway. The stench of blood filled the air, leaving a faint coppery taste in Naruto's mouth.

He didn't like it, not at all. He ran a little faster, almost stumbling over yet another body as he ran. A few minutes more passed, with Naruto unknowingly stumbling closer inside the Uchiha compound. He worried that he would never meet another living person in this hell.

Then he heard the sound of crying.

Normally Naruto would never run towards someone crying. That was just asking for trouble. Right now, however, even a crying person was an upgrade to the people he had met thus far. He made a beeline, or attempted to, towards the source. It took a few twists and turns, and far too many bodies than he was comfortable with, but Naruto had finally reached the crying person.

As it turns out, the crying person was a little boy. He wailed, fists balled and rubbing his eyes, as he crouched on the ground in an alley. His shorts, which were originally the color of eggshell, was stained with splotches of blood. His shirt, while originally navy-blue, was crumpled and stained as well. His onyx hair was matted to his head, likely from sweat, and his entire body shook in time with his sobs.

Naruto leaned a little to look around the boy. There was a body just behind him. From the silhouette alone Naruto could tell it was a woman. From the way she lay, sprawled on the ground and unmoving, Naruto could tell that she wouldn't be getting up again.

It wasn't hard to guess what had happened here. Still, Naruto approached the boy slowly. He crouched too, and put his hand on the boy's shoulder. The boy flinched, causing Naruto to flinch as well, before shooting his head up. His eyes were red, likely from all the crying he was doing, and even Naruto felt a little pity.

"Are you—" Naruto started, only to find his voice failing him. It cracked along the edges, and for a second he wondered what was wrong.

Then he noticed that he was shaking too. He looked to his hand, and found that he could not keep it still no matter how hard he tried. He looked back to the crying boy, only to see a look of understanding.

Naruto hadn't noticed the tears streaming down his eyes. The only thing he noticed was the comfort found in clutching the boy. Like it was with Hinata and Neji, hugging someone made things so much better.

The boy obviously felt the same way, because he didn't reject the hug. The two sat there, knees stained on the dirt road, clutching each other.

They were the only source of warmth in such a cold world.

XxX

Another Uchiha fell before him. Their blood splattered on his cheek, but he hardly felt it. The tears that fell from his eyes were the only wetness he could identify.

Even now he was starting to get used to the feeling.

A trio of Uchiha thundered over rooftops to reach him. Itachi spared them only a glance before rushing through hand seals. He inhaled deeply, and when he exhaled he spat vicious flames. The localized inferno washed over his clansmen, and their charred body fell from the sky.

Itachi tried to ignore the sounds of their bodies. He jumped in the air, paying no heed to the three wet thumps as his kinsmen hit the ground. He came down in a thundering smash, and broke through the roof of the house he was in.

He ignored the tug on his soul as he cut through the mother protecting her child. He ignored the child's cries as he silenced her as well.

Chakra bled through his very being. The moon was red tonight, he noted. It cast the entire compound in a coppery tint. It made the blood on his Anbu armor easier to ignore. With his chakra-enhanced build, Itachi burst straight through the house he was in and into the one next door.

The living room he stood in looked familiar.

Rather than complain or fall, Itachi simply walked forward. He was avoiding this particular part, but there was no way around it, it seemed. One foot in front of the other, the young Uchiha passed by the couch that he lounged on after hard training sessions with his father. He passed the flowers that his mother meticulously cared for, and the toys that his younger brother left carelessly on the floor.

He passed the end table that had the picture of his family on it. He looked at none of these things as he opened the door leading to the bedrooms.

The hallway was unusually quiet, but he supposed that made sense. This was hardly a usual night. Itachi didn't bother with masking his footsteps as he stalked the hallway. His parents were ignorant, but they were hardly unskilled. He made no effort to hide his actions tonight, nor to hide his break into his own house. His parents knew that he was here, and exactly where he was.

Itachi didn't even bother stopping at the first door he came upon. It was his own, and there was nothing of note in there. It was barely even his room anymore. At some point it may have belonged to an Itachi Uchiha.

That Itachi died when he slew his first clansman.

The new Itachi cared little for such things, and instead quickly came upon a second door. This one Itachi hesitated on. His hand shook for the first time that night as it reached for the doorknob, and for the first time Itachi felt fear. It took a Herculean amount of effort to pry open the door, but pry he did. The Anbu prepped his sword, then burst into the room.

He was met with an empty bed and silence. Relief washed over Itachi as he slowly closed the door that barred entry to his brother's room.

So Sasuke was still out? There was no telling if he was still alive, the masked man was especially bloodthirsty, but at least it meant that Itachi wouldn't have to be the one to kill him. His heart, which ached for just a second, managed to die once more.

Itachi stalked the hallways once more and came to a room that he knew wasn't empty. There were two unbelievably strong chakra sources on the other side of the door, and Itachi didn't even need his Sharingan to tell that.

He opened his parents' room door slowly. He wasn't afraid of them— for all their power, Itachi had surpassed them. No, he was simply apprehensive. They had surely heard him enter, and yet they still sat with their backs turned to him. There was no pomp in his entrance, Itachi simply walked forward. He stood behind his parents, sword raised and prepared to strike, when they finally spoke.

"So, you have chosen the other side," his father said. Gone was the stern, utilitarian tone he used when training Itachi. Gone was the silent disapproval when commanding Itachi to spy on the Hokage, and the dense expectation. What was left was... acceptance. Just acceptance.

His mother was next to speak. Her voice was soft, as always. Her back was as perfectly straight as her husband's. As always, she was the regal and unflappable leader. It was she who had the Weasel Anbu mask before Itachi, and she only gave it up to foster a family.

She was the only one who could reign in Fugaku Uchiha. Her words were known to demand obedience and shatter any doubts in the field.

None of those qualities were present when the Uchiha matriarch finally spoke. They were efficient, but not disapproving. They were curt, but not harsh. They were the words, not of a commander of soldiers, but of a mother content to let her child go.

"You have grown, Itachi."

Four words, and yet they cut deeper than every sword swung by his kin. His heart beat once more, and it did so painfully. Itachi clutched at his chest as his tears started to flow.

Fugaku sighed. His head rose, but he did not turn to see his child. "You are truly a gentle child, aren't you?" Itachi's red eyes rose and, though blurred by the sudden onset of tears, he could see the regal form of his father. "Perhaps I truly have wasted my time trying to foster you into a warrior. How I must have burdened you."

And it wasn't the words themselves, but the intense regret in his father's voice that had caught Itachi off guard. His father wasn't the type to regret his actions. If he made a mistake, he learned from it and used it as best he could. He regretted none of his decisions, even if those decisions included declaring war on his own village.

And yet here, now, Itachi could only feel pity for his father as he lamented his own abilities as a father.

"Your mother berated me many times for how hard I pushed you, but I only wanted what was best for you. I wanted you to be strong. I wanted you to surpass me, and be a better clan head than I ever was." His father's head fell, and the older man was once more looking to his knees. "You have surpassed me, alright. But you have become disillusioned. Is this truly the only path you can find that aligns with your truth?"

Itachi couldn't answer. He tried to, but his throat locked up and the only sound that came out was a choked sob.

Apparently this was enough. Fugaku nodded. His back straightened once more, and he looked ahead, and away from Itachi. When next he spoke, his voice was strong, confident.

"Itachi, I haven't been the best father, but I have taught you the virtues of a man. A man makes his decisions with resolution. Itachi, you are a man now. Perhaps a bit sooner than I hoped, but you are. And as a man, you have made your decision. You cannot back out on it now."

Itachi nodded his head. His teeth clenched as he prepared himself for what he was to do.

"No matter what decisions you have made, Itachi, you are my son. And I am proud of you."

Those were the last words that Fugaku Uchiha said before his son's sword pierced his back. The man made no noise, he didn't even sputter. He collapsed on the tatami mat when Itachi pushed him off his blade with his foot, and he closed his eyes with a smile on his face.

The tears were streaming freely down Itachi's face as he turned to his mother. It was like his father said, he couldn't back out now. Just like his father, his mother didn't bother to turn around. She stared straight ahead, her pride obvious, as Itachi raised his sword.

"Itachi. Promise me that you will take care of Sasuke."

Itachi nodded his head. "I will, mother."

XxX

Naruto thundered down the hall, pulling along his new crying buddy as he ran through the boy's house. The crying boy, whose name was Sasuke, had a hand over his eyes, and those eyes were firmly shut. He didn't want to see the bodies of his clansmen. He didn't want to see their lifeless eyes or open bellies. He just wanted to see his parents again.

Sasuke had said that they were likely dead too. Naruto grunted around tears and asked him how he knew that.

Sasuke had said, "that it was likely."

Naruto responded, "bullshit."

And the two children were suddenly off the ground and running. Naruto led the onyx-haired boy through the carnage, and before long they had reached Sasuke's house. It was hard to miss, after all. Sasuke had said it was the biggest house in the area, and he wasn't lying.

It easily had at least two stories on every other house.

Naruto didn't waste any time. He kicked the door in and stumbled into the opening hall. Sasuke still had his eyes closed, but he every so often he peaked.

"The living room is down the hall," the boy stammered. "Through there is the door to the hallway with our rooms."

Naruto nodded. He had guided Sasuke through the rooms— he was still scared of the possibility of his family being dead— until he reached the hallway. Up until now the place had been eerily quiet. Now, however, the two boys could hear faint whispers from the other end.

From here Naruto proceeded cautiously. Hizashi had drilled him endlessly on running into both situations and rooms without any knowledge. Long story short, he wasn't supposed to do it.

Where Naruto was cowed by the voices, Sasuke was rejuvenated. He jolted forward, and would have broken out of Naruto's grip had the blond not possessed a vice-like grip.

"Let go, Naruto!" Sasuke said. He tugged against Naruto's hand as hard as he could, but for some reason he couldn't break through. "That's my family in there! I recognize Father's voice! He and Big Brother are talking!"

Naruto nodded, but he didn't let go. Something was wrong here. He wasn't sure exactly what, but something told him to not let Sasuke run ahead. Instead he took a few steps forward. His gait was slow. Careful.

"Yes, that's fine Sasuke. Just stay with me. They're probably not going anywhere."

Sasuke looked like he wanted to resist, but an unusual sound rang through their ears. It was like the tearing of fabric, followed by the splattering of something.

Then the smell hit them, and unfortunately it wasn't something they were unused to. Both boys had become alarmingly proficient at sniffing out blood.

Naruto could no longer restrain him. The raven-haired boy burst from Naruto's now surprised grasp and pelted down the hallway. Naruto could do nothing but chase after him. Sasuke had reached the open door before Naruto could, only to scream a bloodcurdling sound. Naruto rushed in, his protective side rearing up, only to stumble into Sasuke and push him to the ground in the hallway. The blond turned to the room in order to see what had his new friend upset.

He never saw the dead man on the floor, or the worried woman who reached out towards him. All he saw was red, and the spinning swirl of black.

XxX

Mikoto Uchiha, mother of two very brilliant sons, could only gasp as her youngest stood in the open doorway. She had assumed him alive, after all fate couldn't be so cruel as to have one of her sons kill her and the other to perish. She hadn't expected him to be here, however. Her son didn't need to see this.

She turned to Itachi, the first time she had done so that night, ready to plea for at least Sasuke's non-involvement in this terrible night. She had planned to ask if she could put her youngest in a genjutsu where he could sleep the night away or, barring that, that Itachi might.

What she saw when she turned was something she had hoped she would never see.

The three tomoe of Itachi's Sharingan had fused into a swirl, kind of like a three-pronged shuriken. His eyes bled as he looked, not at her, but forward to where his brother stood screaming in the hallway.

That level of Sharingan, likely unlocked by killing his father, was not necessary to cast low-level genjutsu. The blood proved that he was using a technique unique to the Mangekyo.

Mikoto wasn't stupid. She knew exactly what Itachi was doing. She, however, had no way to stop the young man. So instead she turned, arm thrust out in some ineffectual ploy to grab her son and avert his eyes.

But Sasuke wasn't there anymore. In his place was a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy. He glared fiercely as he peered into the room. The first thing he noticed was the only standing person and, true to his heritage, he stared the threat down.

Mikoto knew that Itachi wasn't anywhere near as proficient in the technique as he could have been. It was his first time using it, so he likely couldn't cancel it. Thus, the attack meant for his little brother hit Naruto.

But not before the boy raised the only thing in his hands as a faux weapon with which to defend himself with.

Mikoto watched as Itachi Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki engaged in a staring contest abetted by a single crystal ball.

XxX

Itachi wasn't sure how he knew of this technique. When he killed his father a searing pain erupted from the back of his eyes. From the sheer agony alone Itachi almost crumbled, but he knew that he couldn't. He had a job to do, and he didn't have time to nurse his aching head or new powers. He raised his sword, ready to end a long, nearly unbearable night.

Hurried footsteps then crashed into the open doorframe of his parents' room, and Itachi was distracted. He looked up, and was met with the anguished face of his precious little brother. The boy took less than a second to take in and understand what he was looking at, and a pained scream immediately filled the room.

The scream almost shattered what was left of Itachi's soul. The knowledge of a technique he did not know came to the forefront of his mind and, as it was the only answer his mind was supplying him, he acquiesced.

Blood leaked from his eyes as the Tsukyomi took effect. The chakra pulsed from his eyes, and Itachi was sure that the attack would take hold.

Then Sasuke was pushed out of the way, and blue eyes and blond hair took his place. Unlike his brother, the blond child didn't bother to take in the effects of the room. He ignored the copper smell of the blood and the dead man on the ground. He ignored the woman's pleas and her outstretched hand. The boy, who Itachi noted as being the Nine-Tails Container, looked straight to him and stared him in the eyes. Tsukyomi took hold, and the two were whisked away.

They both found themselves in a world of black and white and red. White clouds zipped by against a blood red sky. Before him Itachi saw Naruto strapped to a chair. Ropes bound his arms tightly to the arms of the chair, and his legs to the chair's legs. He was restrained, wholly and totally, and yet he still glared at Itachi.

Itachi sighed. The young boy wasn't the target of his technique. Hell, Naruto shouldn't have even been there. Still, if nothing else, this was practice for when he used the technique on his brother.

The mental avatar of the Uchiha slayer walked forward, a sword appearing in his hands. The scenery changed from a featureless plane to the middle of the Village. People appeared, mostly faceless and adult.

They raised their hands and pointed at the bound pariah. Laughter spilled from their mocking mouths.

"It's the demon," one faceless person spat.

"The monster is finally getting his just deserts!" another jeered.

To his credit, Naruto paid the people no mind. He glared ahead and stared deep into Itachi's eyes. The Anbu almost found himself cowed, but then remembered their situation.

He stabbed his sword into Naruto's stomach. The blond boy winced, but otherwise didn't stop his glaring. When next he spoke, he was surprised at the venom in the boy's voice.

"I have gone without food for longer than you could imagine, red-eyes. That hunger is more painful than any sword you put in my belly."

Itachi's eyebrow quirked, but he made no other comment. Instead he withdrew the blade. The wound he inflicted closed instantly, but Itachi paid it no mind. Instead he shoved his sword into Naruto's forearm. That garnered a reaction.

"Tch," Naruto grunted. He bit his lip but refused to cry out. His head fell with the pain, but the boy soon raised it again. He once more stared into Itachi's eyes, his glare as potent as ever.

"You're not a very nice person, are you?" Naruto asked. Itachi didn't have an answer. Naruto didn't care. He continued talking. "You made my friend upset."

Itachi didn't respond. He withdrew his blade and stabbed it again into Naruto. This time his shoulder was pierced, and Naruto once again barely held in his cry of agony. Still, Itachi wondered.

When had Naruto and Sasuke become friends?

"You... made my friend sad..." Naruto said around grunts. He refused to look away from Itachi. "You are a bad man."

Itachi didn't need to be told that by a five-year-old. He had already been telling himself that. He pulled the blade out, and reinserted it into the boy's thigh. That finally got a scream, and the blond's sob was just barely drowned out by the rancor of the crowd.

"Yes!" a faceless villager cheered. "Give him what he deserves!"

"Kill the demon!" another yelled.

"Make him suffer!"

The jeers continued, and Naruto had to duck his head. His breathes came in ragged, unsteady patches, and his shoulders visibly heaved as he tried to steady himself.

Itachi almost didn't have the heart to tell the boy that this torture would continue for another seventy-one hours. To the boy's credit, he didn't even flinch when informed. Instead he worked to steady his breathing, then slowly responded.

"Take as long as you need, ya bastard," the boy cursed. "I'll take it all, and when I'm done, I'll beat the shit out of ya."

Itachi made to scoff, but then something happened that he wasn't expecting. Naruto had opened his eyes.

They were red. They weren't red like his, however. They were slit. Two slit, red eyes stared up at him.

"I'm going to beat you for every second you hurt my friend," the blond growled.

The imaginary Village went up in flames.

"What?" Itachi asked. Tsukyomi wasn't supposed to work like this. He was supposed to have complete control!

"Perhaps," said a voice, deep and rumbling and loud. It echoed around the burning village, imposing a deep pressure on the area. Itachi, Sharingan active, looked for the intruder. He found none. "But your Sharingan wasn't able to complete its hold. Your ocular power is being interrupted, boy."

And then, all at once, nine pillars erupted from the ground. They crashed and broke through the buildings of the imaginary Hidden Leaf Village, destroying the already crumbling architecture. Eventually the nine pillars stabilized, and instead enclosed the two young ninja.

Itachi attempted to use a jutsu. The fireball was impressive as it flew towards a pillar. A burst of red chakra whisked it out of existence.

"You are brave, boy. I will give you that much," the voice said. It sounded amused. "However, you have tread unto my domain, and angered my host. While I care not for the folly of my jailer, you have made the mistake of interrupting my rest."

Itachi, in his haste, looked back to Naruto. The boy, whose red eyes inspired a primal fear in him, had fallen asleep. He lie unconscious in his seat.

Itachi turned back around. He looked around for the source of the voice, only to see nothing but the nine pillars surrounding him.

All too late did Itachi realize that the pillars were actually tails.

"You have offended me, Uchiha. Next we meet, make sure that your Sharingan is strong enough to take on the strongest of the Tailed-Beasts."

Itachi's eyes widened as he realized what he was opposing. The ground crumbled around him, and the very sky lit on fire. Naruto's avatar fell into the void below as the ground became unsteady, only Itachi remaining on the small island of land that was left.

Tentatively, the Uchiha boy peered down into the abyss.

Two great, red and slit eyes stared back.

XxX

Mikoto stared, wide-eyed, as both her eldest son and Naruto fell backwards. They both hit the ground at the same time, with her son's katana falling out of his grip around the same time that Naruto's crystal ball slipped out of his hands and rolled across the floor.

For one beautifully ironic moment Mikoto Uchiha was surrounded by unconscious or dead men. Her psyche, now well and broken, could only stare blankly while she waited for something to happen.

XxX

Naruto rose from his bed, his entire body aching. His jaw was especially sore, and he rubbed at it grudgingly. After a while he just had to accept that the dull pain was a part of his day, and he cast off his covers. His feet slipped out of his bed and onto the floor, and the blond winced at how cold the hardwood was. I mean, it was winter, but the newly five-year-old boy still didn't appreciate the frost.

Still, it was better than the orphanage, so he supposed that it was alright.

Naruto pulled open his bedroom door in true Naruto fashion— with entirely too much force— and more or less barreled his way into the kitchen. He scratched at his stomach as he took in the place. It was newly bought, with new furniture and stuff, and even smelled new. The smell of new furniture wasn't what had caught his attention, however. It was the smell of freshly cooked breakfast that lured Naruto from his modest living room and into the attached kitchen.

The onyx-haired woman noticed his presence the moment his bare feet touched the tile. Mikoto Uchiha turned with a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eyes. It was a far cry from the look of despair he had first seen on her not a few months ago.

Even in his mind Naruto did not mention the Uchiha Massacre directly. It was still a sore subject for him.

"Good morning, Naruto," the woman chirped. Naruto almost blushed at her enthusiasm. Even at five he could tell the lady was really pretty. "Did you sleep well?"

Naruto nodded. He made to answer, but his words were overtaken by a yawn so powerful that he had to close his eyes.

"Remember to cover your mouth when you yawn," the woman chided. Naruto nodded once more, but he knew that he wouldn't. He would annoy and prank people all he wanted, whenever he wanted. The woman before him may have adopted him, and was technically his mom, but he would always be a free-troublemaking spirit.

The woman seemed to tell Naruto's thoughts. She placed her hands on her hips, temporarily ignoring the bacon in the pan in front of her to glare at the blond. There was no heat in her actions, however, and before long she was smiling.

"Just make sure not to yawn at anybody," the woman said. Naruto nodded. He could do at least that much.

With their squabble out of the way, Mikoto turned back to her cooking and Naruto climbed into a seat at the table. The kitchen fell into a comfortable silence, with the only sound being that of the sizzling bacon.

Then Sasuke trudged into the room, and suddenly even that sound was drowned out. The young Uchiha's attention fell to Naruto almost immediately, and Naruto rose from his nap on the table completely unbidden.

The two glared at each other, sparks flying as they vied for non-verbal superiority.

Mikoto didn't say anything about to their little rivalry. It was all just too cute! She shuffled from the stove to the table, and scraped some bacon onto the three plates there. There was already some eggs and buttered toast there, with the bacon completing the breakfast meal. Sasuke shuffled into his seat, never once breaking eye contact with Naruto, and picked up his fork.

"Thanks for the meal, mom," Sasuke muttered. He had started to pout, and Mikoto had to stop herself from squealing.

"Yeah, Miss Mikoto," Naruto repeated. His actions mirrored Sasuke's perfectly. "Thanks."

Mikoto chuckled, and retrieved the orange juice from the fridge. She knew what her next words would do, but honestly, their reactions were just too cute.

"I've told you before, Naruto. Just call me 'mom'."

And just like that Sasuke's glare intensified, while Naruto's melted. The normally unflappable blond blushed to the roots of his hair, and he was forced to break the staring contest as he mumbled his next words.

"I can't... that's just... ugh."

"Yeah, he's right, mom! He can't!" Sasuke yelled.

"Stop being so embarrassing, Miss Mikoto!" Naruto said through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, mom! You're so embarrassing!"

Mikoto chuckled. Boys were so cute. They didn't even know whether to be mad at each other or her. Regardless, the staring contest was over and the two boys had started to dig into their food. Mikoto followed suit, and waited until they were almost done to start talking.

"When you're finished, you need to clean up. You have a play date with Hinata and Neji today."

Sasuke grunted. "Again? We have play dates with them every day."

Naruto snickered. "You just hate going over there because Neji beats you in spars."

Sasuke catapulted from his seat. "He beats you too!"

Naruto rose too, if for no reason but because he didn't want to be outdone in any area. He was successfully taunting Sasuke, after all. "Well, yes, but I'm okay with losing to someone a year older than I am."

Naruto and Sasuke glared at each other, and for a second it looked like they might fight then and there. Instead they just glared for a minute more before sitting and continuing their meal.

Mikoto chuckled. Boys would be boys. For all their arguments, they were still stalwart friends. She was so very proud of them.

Mikoto was so very proud of all of her sons.