You voted on it and I gave it to you. Here is the third enstalment to the "Save You" Character Tributes. Ladies and gentlemen: Uchiha Itachi.
Warning: The following includes mentions of weddings, muffins, strip poker, and Icha Icha Paradise, though not in that order. Please note that the auther is slightly crazy and needs somewhere to dump said crazy thoughts.
Disclaimer: Whitefox may not own Naruto, but she still thinks that Naruto's eight-tailed transformation is the best thing since sliced bread.
Itachi: Not so Bad
1. Ever since he becomes Hokage and discovers the truth of the Uchiha Massacre, Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto decides that he needs to meet the elder of the two Uchiha brothers.
But that's kind of hard to do, seeing as the man has been dead for three years.
One day, Naruto receives a letter from Field Agent 350, Jiraiya's anonymous informant into Akatsuki that had gone silent a few years ago. It's addressed to Tsuande, but the message is clear.
"We need to talk."
Two days later, Naruto finds himself in front of an orphanage in northern Tori no Kuni. The matron tells him that he's been expected and shows him to the kitchen.
And there in all his blind glory is Uchiha Itachi. He's wearing an apron, surrounded by small children, and appears making…muffins.
Naruto raises an eyebrow, which the raven haired man returns.
"So they finally gave you the hat," the older man says with a respectful bow, "I should have known better than to put Tsuande-sama's name on that letter, Hokage-sama."
Naruto decides that maybe…
2. Haruno Sakura does not know what to make of Itachi. He's a brilliant strategist, fighter, and shinobi all in one package. But he's also the reason that Sasuke has no family, that Naruto has to worry about being hunted down, and that Gaara was almost killed.
So a couple days after he is brought back to Konoha, Sakura visits him in the hospital.
And she yells at him. She insults him and his family, saying some of the worst things to ever come out of her mouth. And Itachi just sits there, silent as the grave, taking everything she says to heart.
Sakura does not know how long she stood there, throwing profanities at the blind man. She does know that she only stopped because her voice was horse and the hospital staff had come in to tell her to keep it down.
Then she looks at him, looks into his blank eyes, and sees in them something that she had only seen in two other people. The expectation that he would always be rejected by the society that he wants to serve so badly.
And it breaks her heart.
Sakura crosses the room, wraps her arms around him, and whispers in his ear, "It's going to be ok now."
Itachi goes rigid for a few seconds before relaxing into her embrace. Minutes later, his shoulders start to shake. Sakura feels wet tears on her shirt, but pretends they are not there.
Sakura decides that maybe…
3. When Madara told Sasuke that there are only three people alive in Konoha that know the truth about the Uchiha Massacre, he is lying. Not intentionally, of course, as he had no way of knowing that there is in fact a fourth person.
This boy does not exist on paper. He has been trained not to exist, to appear only as a déjà vu to his enemies and comrades alike. One day, this boy is given a mission that like him does not exist. The mission is to kill a certain man who should not exist because his leader tells him to.
But when the boy reads the file behind this man, he realizes that the facts about his past do not add up. A streak of…something…tells him to act and find out.
The boy does not know what this something is. He does not want to know what it is, either. He does not know that this something will one day give him a mission of his own, a suicide one at that, as the boy takes on Hell Realm Pein by himself as Yuhi Kurenai goes into labour on the battle field.
And so this boy learns of the truth.
He does not understand it at first, but when he gains a name and learns of bonds from another boy who lives for them, he is able to comprehend a bit of what went through Itachi's mind the night he slaughtered his own clan.
Sai decides that maybe…
4. Hatake Kakashi is probably one of the only people that will ever fully understand the puzzle that is Uchiha Itachi before his is reinstated.
A couple weeks before the event that changes the boy's life, Kakashi walks into a bar and sees Itachi at the back table. The masked man tells him that he is too young to drink. The Uchiha responds with a blatant "fuck you" and orders himself another round.
Kakashi then realizes just how drunk the boy is.
So he asks if he wants to talk about. And Itachi tells him of a mission that the Hokage has given him: one that will have him wipe out an entire family because they are planning a coup on their village.
Itachi asks Kakashi what he would do to deal with it afterwards.
The Copy Ninja gives him a look before sliding Icha Icha Paradise across the table.
It is only at his death that the silver haired man realizes that Itachi was speaking of his own family and not some other clan in a far off village.
Kakashi decides that maybe…
5. Uchiha Sasuke does not want to believe his former teammates when they tell him that Itachi is alive and well, living in Konohagakure out of his own free will. He does not believe them despite the yelling of "He's alive, Sasuke-kun!" and "Can't you see the black fire over there, teme?!"
He does not want to think that his brother is here because Sasuke knows that Itachi will be disappointed in him, for letting Madara toy with his emotions and control him like a puppet.
So Sasuke does what his brother would have done and makes a choice.
When Sasuke shoves Chidori through Naruto's chest, he does not see the look of horror on the blonde's face. He does not hear Sakura's screaming and her feet pounding towards him.
He sees Itachi, who has just run around a corner in the street. Sasuke looks into his brother's blind eyes and smiles.
"I understand why now."
Sasuke decides that maybe…
6. Hyuuga Neji does not want to understand Itachi, but does anyways. He knows what it's like to hate your own clan, whether it be because of a planned coup attempt or a barbaric death seal that is placed on the majority of it's members.
Neji understands because he too is his clan's protégé and he too might have snapped, diving into the old records and telling his family's darkest secrets to the Hokage.
Neji also knows that Itachi understands him as well. Both of them were saved from the darkness that their kin had surrounded them in by a certain blonde Rokudaime. Both of them carry a mark (a seal in one case, blind eyes in another) that will hinder them until their deaths. And both of them are incredibly loyal to Konoha.
They become very good friends during the years that they spend together. Neji is often seen telling Itachi what cards are in his hands during the weekly Konoha 12 Poker Nights.
Neji decides that maybe…
7. Tenten decides to find out just who and what Uchiha Itachi is through the only way she knows how: a spar. She challenges him in broad daylight in front of a large crowd of people while speaking in a way that was, horrifyingly, rather similar to her late sensei, Maito Gai.
So they fight. She attacks him with kunai and shuriken and katanas and sickles and scythes and "What the hell was that?" He dodges, he parries, and he blocks the incoming objects like they were nothing.
And then Itachi lets her in on a little secret: he has not lost his Sharingan. It has merely been absorbed into his body, being blind is simply a side affect. He proves it by releasing a well controlled Amaterasu version of Katon: Karyū Endan, incinerating several acres of trees and a good chunk of her kunai collection.
After the battle (which he wins spectacularly) Itachi approaches one of her katana. It was the first one she had ever bought, but now it was too damaged to use.
"Don't bother," she says half heartedly, "It's too chipped for me to fix."
The Uchiha looks at her for a minute, before grasping the hilt of the sword and walking off.
About a week later, Itachi approaches her in the street and holds out a wrapped box. Inside is the same katana he had taken from their sparring match, only it has been repaired. Everything, right down to the grip, was in tip top condition.
"Wha...?" Tenten manages to get out, "You…I…what…"
"It's a beautiful sword," Itachi answers, "It would be a shame for it to go to waste."
Tenten decides that maybe…
8. Rock Lee is not one to hold a grudge, so he is naturally one of the first people other than the Hokage to welcome Uchiha Itachi back with open arms. Lee believes that the raven is full of the Springtime of Youth, being loyal to a village that had labeled him a wanted man.
It is because of this that the spandex wearing jonin becomes Itachi's confidant. Lee knows more about the Uchiha's parents than most people know their own. He often lies awake at night and wonders how one's own mother and father could only see their eldest son as a tool.
It is Lee that invites the raven to the Konoha 12 Poker Night for the first time. Most of them think he's mad, but when Itachi almost beats out Naruto during the first round, the taijutsu specialist can only smile.
Lee decides that maybe…
9. Maito Gai does not know much of Uchiha Itachi. To be quite honest, he's only met the man once and it was for an incredibly brief period of time.
The missing nin had every reason to kill his Eternal Rival that day. He even had the means to do it. But he did not.
Itachi spared Kakashi's life on a whim, but still spared it. And Gai is one that counts his blessing, not matter how small they may be.
Gai decides that maybe…
10. Hyuuga Hinata thinks that Uchiha Itachi is very intimidating. She's not frightened of him in a sense that he could kill her at a moments notice, but is instead scared of his eyes.
They are as white as her family's Byakugan, but she knows that the Uchiha is as blind as a bat. Hinata knows it, but when Itachi points out to Neji that there are in fact eight birds, not seven, she begins to wonder just what is going on.
She approaches him at the dango stand that he frequents. She opens her mouth to ask, but Itachi beat her too it.
"You want to know how it is that I can see, right Hyuuga-san," it is not a question.
"Well…yes," she answers, "I couldn't help but be curious. I understand if I'm intruding on something personal…"
"Not at all. Well, when I say that I am as blind as a bat, I really do mean it," Itachi explains, but sees the confused look on her face, "Sonar, Hyuuga-san. Bats can see using sonar."
"And you adapted it by using what? Chakra?" the look on his face gives his answer away, "But the amount that it would take to see constantly would be huge!"
"I push chakra out, pull it back in, read it, and then reuse it. It's a very simple concept," he sighs before continuing, "The sad thing is though, Hyuuga-san, I haven't seen colour in almost four years now."
The Uchiha stands, leaving him money on the counter.
"Hinata," she calls after him, "My name is Hinata, not Hyuuga-san."
He blinks, before holding out a hand, "It is nice to meet you, Hinata-san. I am Uchiha Itachi."
Hinata decides that maybe…
11. Inuzuka Kiba holds a lot of respect for Itachi. He believes that the Uchiha is the embodiment of the thing that his mother has taught him since birth: obey the Alpha. Not the clan head. Not your squad leader. The Alpha, the Hokage and no one else.
When the Hokage asks an Inuzuka to jump, they ask how high.
When the Hokage asks an Inuzuka to bleed, they ask how much.
When the Hokage asks an Inuzuka to kill off their entire clan because they are planning a coup on the village, they ask what time would you like them dead by, sir.
And Itachi did just that.
But that does not mean that Kiba is not scared of the Uchiha. Quite the opposite in fact. He is frightened of the man because he never shows what is going through his head.
One night, as the Konoha 12 surround the poker table at Hinata's place (she and Neji were hosting), Itachi asks a question that will forever change the way Kiba looks at him.
"Naruto, you have incredible luck with cards, right. What happens when you play strip poker?"
While everyone is looking at Naruto, who's grinning like a loon, Kiba is focused on Itachi; the man who just proved that under the forbidding Uchiha aura, he is in everyway, shape, and form a guy.
Kiba decides that maybe…
12. Aburame Shino sees the logic in Itachi's decision that lead him to massacre his clan in a single night. He had to choose the lesser of two evils, both of which would have lead to great personal sacrifice.
Itachi had to decide between the death of hundreds or the death of thousands being on his conscience.
Shino needs to pass by the entrance to the Uchiha sector on the way home. Once a year, his kikai tell him that someone alive is in there.
This day is always the anniversary of the Uchiha Bloodbath.
And for some reason, that makes him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Shino decides that maybe…
13. Yuhi Kurenai does not trust Itachi, not one bit. She down right hates the man and is not afraid to say it to his face.
So the day that her daughter, Hoshika, is put on the Uchiha's genin team, Kurenai marches right up to the Hokage and demands to know what the hell is wrong with him. Naruto tells her that Itachi himself requested the team and knows what he's doing.
Team 23 is a team of protégés from well respected clans through out the village. Sarutobi Hoshika will someday surpass her mother in the art of genjutsu. Inuzuka Tarou is the closest in his clan to achieving some sort of a kekkei genkai since Kiba. Hyuuga Han is most likely the one containing the key for getting rid of the Byakugan's blind spot. All of the graduated from the academy at the age of eight.
Every day, Kurenai comes home to listen to her daughter tell her about Itachi-sensei. About the cool new genjutsu he showed her. About their newest mission together. About how, at the end of the day, he treated them to dango at the local stand.
Kurenai watches in horror as Hoshika develops a sort of school girl's crush on the Uchiha.
And then she gets the letter: her daughter has been severely injured on a mission. She might not make it through the night.
Kurenai sits in the waiting room for five hours until the doctors will allow visitors into the ward. She rushes past them, nearly tearing the door off it's hinges in an attempt to get to her daughter.
"She's stable," the nurse tells her, "We nearly lost her twice, but Hoshika's stable. She'll wake up in a day or two."
As the younger woman leaves the room, Kurenai's trained eyes pick up a genjutsu in the corner. She dispels it out of curiosity, and nearly collapses from the sight of what lies behind it.
Uchiha Itachi sits on the ground, sleeping like a baby. Curled up against his chest are Tarou and Han, snoring softly against him.
They must of snuck into the hospital at night to wait for Hoshika to wake up. And the thought of it nearly makes her cry.
Kurenai decides that maybe…
14. Nara Shikamaru realizes after meeting Itachi that there is no thin line between genius and insanity.
To graduate at the age of eight, become ANBU captain at thirteen, and then be a double agent for the Hokage and council is pure brilliance.
To accept the order to slaughter his entire clan, team up with Uchiha Madara of all people, and then join an organization bent on ruling the world is absolute madness.
To fake your death at the hands of your brother, sever all ties with the outside world, work at an orphanage in the bloody boonies for three years, and then come back to your home village to serve as a ninja again is just plain…plain…
Shikamaru does not really know what it is.
When he hears Itachi telling Ibiki everything he knows about Akatsuki out of his own free will, the Nara sums the Uchiha up in three words.
Too freaking troublesome. He says it with a smile on his face.
Shikamaru decides that maybe…
15. Yakamana Ino has only one thing to say about Itachi when she first really looked at him: he is smoking hot. She even works up the courage over a series of months to ask him out on a date. When he suggests the barbeque shop that her team generally eats that, Ino is too enamoured to notice the odd look in his eyes.
About half way through the date, Chouji walks in and asks if he can join them. Ino's a little annoyed, but says yes and soon the three of them are having a pleasant conversation about the latest hook up in Konoha, Naruto and Sakura.
Fifteen minutes later, Itachi excused himself to go to the bathroom. He does not return.
But Ino could care less. Her alone time with Chouji was one of the best three hours of her life. When her teammate asks her out, she does not say no.
Three months later the news is out. Ino and Chouji replace the blonde Hokage and his girlfriend as the most talked about couple in the village.
Ino decides that maybe…
16. Akamichi Chouji has felt many things about Itachi: fear, anxiety, respect, and friendship being a few.
The memory that sticks out the most about the Uchiha takes place during the Rokudaime's wedding. Ino was in the back with Sakura and the other girls getting ready, so he was left wandering alone before the ceremony began. He walked into a room and came across a sight he will never forget.
Itachi and Gaara, both dressed in their best, were arguing in the center of the room about who would be Naruto's best man. The blonde entered through another door, arms flailing.
"Look, if it bugs you two so much, you're both gonna have to come to the alter with me! So will you please just shut up!"
It was only then that the three of them noticed him standing there.
"Uh, Chouji," the Kazekage said, "Do you need something?"
The Akamichi just burst out laughing at the looks of pure confusion on the faces of three of the most deadly people on the continent.
As he stumbles out of the room, clutching his stomach, he overhears Itachi saying, "I'll never understand that man as long as I live."
Chouji decides that maybe…
17. Sarutobi Asuma knows something about Uchiha Itachi that he has told no one about. Every year that he stays at the Fire Temple, the Sandaime's son would walk in on the raven praying for his dead family on the eve of their murder.
At first, Asuma is insulted.
Then he is perplexed.
Finally he finally asks the Uchiha why he is praying for the people that he slaughtered.
Itachi responds, "Because I want to."
That is the day that Asuma sits beside him and joins the elder Uchiha.
Asuma decides that maybe…
18. Hoshigaki Kisame will never get Itachi, despite the many years that they will spend together. The first time they meet, the blue skinned man challenges the Uchiha to a fight.
Itachi, much to his annoyance, does not do anything other than dodge the entire time. It pisses Kisame off, even though he can see the logic in the raven's moves.
When he is finally out of chakra, Itachi approaches him and pocks his forehead with two fingers, dispelling the genjutsu he has had on him the entire time.
"Sorry Kisame. Maybe next time."
The former Kiri-nin throws his head back and laughs.
Kisame decides that maybe…
19. Shimizu Hiroha finds Itachi fascinating. He's a time traveler, like that Gaara guy that helped her get into Konoha.
And he's really nice, too, unlike those bastards in her home village. Shibuki, despite being her step-brother, all but hates her. The children, who she only wanted to play with, all but fear her. But here was a man that knew what she was and accepted her.
Hiroha does not care that a life time ago, Itachi had been an Akatsuki member. She does not mind that he had caused her to die.
Itachi is the first non-jinchuuriki to look her in the eye and not see the bijuu that is sealed in her ankle.
He makes sure, the first night that she stays in the Hokage Monument, that she has a futon to sleep in. When his friends, Naruto and Sakura, show up, he asks if they could pick her up some teriyaki (her favourite) next time they stop by. When they sneak out into the night to get some take out, Itachi always pays for her food.
She wakes up one day and discovers that she prefers the time spent with him to the time spent without.
Hiroha, jinchuuriki of the Kaku no Shichibi, decides that maybe…
20. …maybe Uchiha Itachi is not so bad after all.
Alright, there we have it. Uchiha Itachi and some of the stories behind him. While his general past still remains a mystery, I hope this has shed some light on it.
He was the one to contact Naruto, Naruto did not contact him.
The truth behind his Sharingan is revealed.
How exactly he is able to see is discussed.
Itachi does take on a genin team about five years after being reinstated.
And he's a closet matchmaker.
Freaky stuff...
And about number 19, all I can say is SPOILERS!
Number 1 I have no excuse for other than that I was making muffins when I wrote that. Really good ones too. There were banana, raisin, oatmeal muffins.
Review and I'll give you one.
Tenten and Baki are now on the pole. Go do your civic duty and vote.
Later,
Whitefox