A/N: I know it has been...two months...and I had said that since it's summer I'd write more...but...Agents of Shield got me. ^^; Please enjoy this chapter!
The trees blur past us as we race through the forest. It had been morning when we had left the burning village, and now it is getting dark. We have not seen anyone else traveling our path, and neither one of us has mentioned what we will do once arriving to the battlefield.
I sense that Sakura's energy is rapidly decreasing, as is mine, so I leap down from the trees onto the grassy ground. Sakura lands in the patch next to me and covers her mouth to hide her yawn.
"Let's rest here." She gives a small smile, as if thanking me, then she starts to pull items from her bag. She sets out some berries, two water bottles, and a small scroll. Sakura runs her hands through her greasy pink hair, then hides another yawn. I pick up a bottle and gulp down the water. It is somehow still cold and I eventually empty the bottle of its contents.
When I am done, I pick up a handful of berries and start to gulp them down. Sakura sits in silence, chewing slowly on the berries in her mouth. I notice the dark circles that have come under her eyes, and the slowness that indicates how exhausted she has become. I stumble over to her and sit down close enough to touch her. I hesitate, but then I reach for her delicate hand. I intertwine my fingers with hers and she looks up at me in confusion.
"You're exhausted. How about you sleep and I'll scout the area." She lightly chuckles and squeezes my hand. "Sasuke-kun, don't worry about me. We've been through worse terrain, right? I'm sure I can—"
"No, you need sleep. I can tell you didn't get much while in the other dimension." Her cheeks turn a shade pinker in embarrassment. She brings her knees up to her chest and tightens her grip on my hand. Her messy hair falls onto her knees.
It has gotten longer since we met a few months ago on that inevitable day. I run my free hand through my own hair, and I notice that mine has grown slightly as well. We've both been changed, emotionally as well as physically. A pain hits me in the stomach like I've just been kicked.
I let go of her hand and stand up. I open the scroll containing our sleeping mats and situate the bedding for her to sleep on. She rubs her eyes in exhaustion and crawls over to the mat. As she lies down she has a faint smile on her lips. Her green eyes glance up at me and she whispers a thank you, then closes them and her breathing steadies.
Once she is asleep I venture out into the woods to find more food. I slink around the dark until a movement catches my eyes. I activate the Sharingan to see a deer wandering in the opposite direction of our camp. I follow it until it is more visible, and I unsheathe my sword. I use hand signs to run Chidori through the blade, then swiftly strike at its weakest point—the heart. It dies instantly.
I place my sword back and grip the carcass in my arms, then carry it back to our spot. Sakura is sleeping silently when I arrive again. I set the body down and create a blazing fire to cook it over. As the fire warms up the campsite, I start to skin the deer.
As I get the deer ready to be cooked, my mind goes back to what happened in the other dimension. Sakura has resolutely followed my every word, even when I counteracted my previous plans. I guess some things stay the same. I smirk as I look over at her sleeping figure. The firelight lets me see the serene look that has washed over her face.
Thirty minutes later and I have the deer meat all chopped up and cooked, so I take a few pieces and almost swallow them whole. The taste makes my body crave more, but I let the rest be saved in a scroll for later. It has been awhile since I have eaten meat in the forest like this. I look back at Sakura, thinking about our genin travels and the animals we caught and ate. She was the first to be upset about the deaths, but at the same time be eating the meat. I smirk at the memory.
Within a second her face contorts to a grimace, and she mumbles something. The fire is barely alive now, so I let it go and stagger to her now trembling form. My knees hit the ground next to her head, and I strain my ears to hear her words. She has stopped muttering, but her eyebrows stay furrowed in disgust.
I swipe away the hairs that have fallen over her sweaty forehead, and her face instantly relaxes. I feel myself let out a sigh that I didn't know I was holding back. When did I stop worrying about this sleeping girl in front of me? In the back of my mind, I hear myself answer—Never.
The sun starts rise, meaning its time for us to get moving again. As I blink my eyes I see a blurry figure packing our few items into our scrolls. I lift myself up and lean onto my knees, then realize that I had fallen asleep in the dirt next to Sakura. She turns her head towards me as I stand up. She gives me a nod and continues packing up the mats.
"I cooked some deer, in case we get hungry. It'll be more nutritious than just berries." I pick up the scroll and place it into her hands. She places it into her own bag and then throws it over her shoulder. "I'll be in charge of rationing it out. Ya know, since I'm a medic ninja."
"That makes sense." I answer sarcastically. She gives me a playful smack on the shoulder that tingles a little too much, and then sits back down onto the ground. Her face has gone from playful to serious in a split second.
"Sasuke-kun, can I...talk to you about something?" Her eyes show embarrassment, but her voice has an edge of determination. I notice the scroll in her hands and sit down next to her. The curiosity I have for the scroll is short lived as she unravels it and reveals her scribbled notes. Notes about her memories.
She offers me the scroll and I hesitantly take it. My eyes run over names and descriptions of people from the village. Names such as Tsunade, Ino, Kakashi, and Naruto, along with the name of my team seven replacement—Sai. Also listed as bullet points are some events that must have happened after I left. The first event described as "healing a fish for the first time." She has remembered so much..and yet so little. "Sakura..." Now is the time to tell her.
"I–I have a feeling that some of these events happened more recently than when we initially left the village...Am I right, Sasuke?" Her voice falters at the end. I shut my eyes tight, an image of her scribbling these words down pops into my mind and I can't forget the pain I saw on her face after taking off the bandages. I'm hurting her again. I open my eyes, admittance ready to escape my lips.
Before I can reply, however, we see a figure race by us. A figure that I know all too well. "Itachi." We say in unison.
Both of us immediately leap up and chase after the retreating figure. His cloak is a mahogany color and his hair is whipping behind him. Sakura's scroll rests safely in my pocket and her bag on her shoulders, but the rest of our items were left scattered in the grass. I could care less at a moment like this.
"Itachi!" I yell his name, hoping to get some kind of reaction. A few minutes later, his arm is almost in reach. As I take a dive at him, he jumps down and lands in a clearing. His feet don't take him any farther because of the pink haired konoichi standing in his path.
Sakura's chest rises and falls quickly as she takes in more oxygen. Her emerald eyes pierce mine, and I take it as a sign to come face my brother. Slightly panting, I turn to look into his face. His skin is a sickly color and his eyes are the blood red Sharingan, only different. The whites of his eyes have become solid black, and there is no shine in his eyes. He is just a dead body, resurrected for a horrid reason.
"Why are you alive?" The words feel strangled in my throat. I stare into his dead eyes. The same eyes that I have implanted into my own head. Sakura walks up behind me and sets her hand on my arm, trying to calm me. I now realize how tense I've gotten and try to relax my muscles.
Itachi leaps around us and replies over his shoulder with,"Kabuto's Edo Tensei. Now if you'll excuse me, I have things to do." His form starts to disappear into the forest again. Sakura and I exchange a quick glance and then dash after him.
The two of us quickly catch up to the retreating body and I growl in irritation. Sakura pulls a kunai from her pouch, then focuses a large amount of chakra into it. Before I can stop her, she has already thrown it at the tree branch Itachi has landed on.
The branch snaps with a defining roar and the tree crumbles into a pile of dirt. Itachi has fallen to the ground beside it, but appears dazed, not injured. Sakura and I land next to him and I pick him up by the collar. "I have a lot of questions for you." I tighten my grip as he gives me a blank look.
"Do you feel guilty for—for those lies you fed me!? I know about them now. Tobi has told me." I activate my Sharingan now, trying to see past this manipulated figure in front of me. He returns my gaze, then his lips part slowly.
"I've already told you everything." I shake his body. "No. I see past this facade of yours. I have your eyes now—your real eyes." Itachi looks off into the distance. When his eyes return to me, they are glazed over.
"Sasuke, you've changed since we last saw each other."
"You're wrong. You've changed me—my past and my future." Out of my peripheral, I see that Sakura stands next me, her hands folded over her chest in a nonchalant way. My heart skips a beat. The old Sakura would have tried stopping me by now. I've turned her against her own mind. But now I realize that she has turned me against mine. I let go of Itachi and clear my throat.
"Because of you, I wanted revenge. Revenge for our clan's annihilation and for you being forced to do it. I thought the village needed to be destroyed in order to achieve that." My eyes leave his face and focus on the pinkette beside me. She looks at me, and in her eyes I see the compassion she has always had for the people of Konoha—and the compassion she has always had for me and my failures. I turn back towards my brother.
"I questioned why you didn't kill me that night, but I don't care anymore. I want to understand the past so I can change the future of the Uchiha." My throat feels dry after my speech. It was the first time I had admitted my thoughts, and a weight seems to fall off of me. Then Sakura touches my shoulder and I feel a heavy weight once again.
Itachi's eyes flicker to Sakura for a moment, but then back to mine. His lip twitches, not forming into a smile but I know that was a hint of one. He motions for us to follow him and he dives deeper into the forest. We follow close behind him, our steps silent as we roam the forest.
"You'll get your answers soon, my brother."
A/N: There will only be a few more chapters, guys. It's a bittersweet feeling to know that I am actually almost done with a fanfic! It'll be the first. ^^; Anyway, let me know what you guys think by way of a friendly review!