Thank you all for your reviews! Sorry for the delayed update. Here's Chapter 6.

Konan rummaged through the man's things. Let's see exactly how much that guy knew…

The first item up for investigation was a folder with "Uchiha Itachi" printed on it.

Naturally, this aroused her curiosity, and she opened it.

The first thing that came to her attention was a photograph, attached with a paper clip to some papers.

The person in the photograph was a young man. He had dark hair and dark eyes. He wore the hitai-ate of Konoha.

Konan blinked.

She looked at the photo again. Then she realized who this person was that she was looking at.

This was Itachi. Now that she paid more attention, she could definitely tell it was him. It was the same face. But this Itachi was much younger-looking. This Itachi had normal, onyx-colored eyes instead of the red of the Sharingan. The hitai-ate of this Itachi had no line scratched through it. This picture must have been taken some years ago, before Itachi had left Konoha.

Konan was completely fascinated. There had never been any Uchiha Itachi to her other than the one she'd always known. To her, Itachi had always been her comrade, her fellow Akatsuki member. That there had been any Uchiha Itachi at all before Akatsuki…such a thought had never even occurred to her! That there had been any previous existence known as "Uchiha Itachi", that this person had led a life previously…it seemed like such an astonishing revelation. Who was this boy in this picture, this person called Uchiha Itachi? Who was this person whose existence she had never even considered?

Another folder was labeled "Uchiha Sasuke". She opened it. She was greeted with another photograph of a dark-haired, dark-eyed boy. Of another young shinobi of Konoha.

So. This second boy was Uchiha Sasuke. She'd set out on this quest knowing nothing about the person she was searching for, not even what he looked like. Now, at last, she knew. She couldn't explain it, but she somehow felt like she'd reached the end of another, separate journey. She was looking at the face of this mysterious person, Uchiha Sasuke, the shadowy existence that was Itachi's younger brother. Here was tangible proof that this person really did exist. Uchiha Sasuke was real. A real existence. Her efforts weren't for nothing. He was a real person, and this was what he looked like. This was Uchiha Sasuke.

He really did look a lot like Itachi. She could see the family resemblance. These two boys were brothers. Brothers of the Uchiha bloodline.

She knew before that Itachi had a little brother. His reputation had preceded him. Uchiha Itachi. The prodigy of the Uchiha clan…and their destroyer. An entire family, his family…he'd butchered them all. It was a thing she'd known about, but hadn't given much thought to. It was hard to garner sympathy for people you never knew, people you couldn't put a face to. But now… "Itachi's brother" had a face. Itachi's brother had an identity. He was as real a person as she was. This was the one who had been spared, and who would kill the brother who had slaughtered their family. This boy had killed Itachi.

But…that seemed a bit ironic to Konan. Itachi had killed members of his own family. The hurt and betrayal and desire for vengeance Sasuke would feel after that was understandable, but…in getting his revenge…Sasuke would be guilty of the same crime he wanted to kill Itachi for. It didn't matter what crimes Itachi had committed…he was still Sasuke's brother, right? Still of the same blood. They were connected by a bond of blood, an unbreakable chain that shackled them together.

Family bonds held no real significance for her. Sure, she had had them once, but it had been so long…

But with these two, that wasn't the case. They were brothers. They were part of a family. And if that was the case, then they had a father and a mother, obviously. What did their parents look like? Did they have dark hair and dark eyes, like their sons? And the Sharingan? Was it really worth much thought, since they were dead anyway? Dead at the hands of their own son…there had to be some explanation for that. Normal boys did not go up in arms against their own family. There must have been something wrong with the Uchiha clan. Something that would lead to one of their own killing them all.

But if Itachi could have done something like that, then was it an indication that Sasuke, his brother, was capable of the same kind of ruthlessness? Just what sort of person was she dealing with here?

Just what sort of person was this Uchiha Sasuke?

She knew nothing about what sort of bond they had shared before Itachi had done what he did. The two could have been estranged long before then. But still. They were brothers. They shared a bond with each other. And they'd shared a bond with their parents, as well, and with the other members of the Uchiha clan. A bond was supposed to be special, right? Bonds were what connected human beings to one another, right? And the bond between family members were one of the tightest and most sacred of bonds. To break that sort of bond…what sort of person did that take?

In one night, Itachi had broken those bonds.

Those special bonds between clan members had been severed. And…the special bond between her and Pein…that had been severed, too. By an Uchiha.

What sort of people were the Uchihas, that they could so easily disregard their own emotions--as well as the emotions of others--to sever "bonds", that were supposed to be cherished and held dearly?

She didn't know Sasuke, but she did know he was an Uchiha, and therefore he couldn't be trusted. Even if he did agree to help her, she'd have to sleep with one eye open. Under no circumstances could an Uchiha be trusted. In fact, it would probably be better for both of them if she just got what useful information she could out of him and then parted ways as quickly as possible. And of course, since she was an Akatsuki member, like his despised older brother Itachi, then he was certain to regard her with the same sort of wariness. Of course…only if he knew she was an Akatsuki member. In fact, it might be better if he didn't know. If he knew her…affiliations, he might refuse to even help her at all. And she really didn't have the patience to try and weasel some information out of some little punk kid. Not only was there his cooperation to consider, but also the Sharingan. She didn't particularly want it used against her.

And thus, when dealing with such a person as an Uchiha, who could turn on her in an instant, extreme caution had to be used. He'd pulled off a revenge against someone who had made him feel the pain of brutally severed bonds. And she was seeking revenge for the exact same reason.

So. Even without knowing him, she had something in common with Uchiha Sasuke.

Maybe she could use it to her advantage to form an alliance.

But of course, she was planning as thought she'd already found him. Find Uchiha Sasuke. Right. That was the first priority.

She read through Sasuke's file, but it was outdated. He was last known to be with Orochimaru, it said. Well, gee, that was helpful. Even she knew that was no longer the case. Obviously not, if Sasuke had killed Itachi. In fact, Itachi's file stated that he was still alive.

How useless. That guy was up to something and I would have had to take care of him eventually, but I'd hoped there would have been some benefit! How annoying.

She closed the two files. What is with this Uchiha Sasuke kid? Am I going to have to keep wandering around and hope I bump into him? There must be someone who knows him personally, someone who has some idea of where to find him! What do I have to do, go to Konohagakure to get information on this boy?

She was thoughtful. Actually…that could be a possibility. Sasuke is a rogue ninja from Konoha. They're sure to monitor his movements…especially when, as far as they're concerned, he is the last surviving member of the Uchiha clan…I'm sure they wouldn't want to let the Sharingan slip through their fingers. Surely there's someone…I mean, I don't have to know a specific location, even knowing a general area will be sufficient for me to find him. Surely Konohagakure has some information in that regard.

Surely.

If Sasuke and his team are going to Konohagakure, then I might be able to implement that into this story...we'll have to see.