Chapter 3

It had been three days and today Sasuke had to leave the hospital. Sasuke wasn't in anymore pain at all and his body wasn't stiff. He was a little sore, but it was nowhere near the level that it had been at before. Kakashi hadn't left Sasuke alone the whole time Sasuke had been in the hospital. Sasuke wasn't looking forward to going back home, but he knew he didn't have any choice in the matter. When he was released from the hospital Kakashi had taken Sasuke to get something to eat. They then went back to Kakashi's home where they stayed until nine o'clock at night when it was time for Sasuke to leave. Kakashi walked Sasuke back to the compound and to the house that they had cleaned out for him. Kakashi could tell that Sasuke didn't want to be here and he felt horrible being forced to leave Sasuke here alone. The last three days in the hospital the curse mark had been acting up and it was causing pain to Sasuke at night. Kakashi wished there was some way he could stay, but he didn't want to put Sasuke at any more risk then he already was. Kakashi stayed in the living room and noticed that Sasuke hadn't even went to move around the house.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It's just weird."

"I know. The house is clean and there wasn't any blood in this house when we got here. So for what it's worth no one died in this house."

"Mmhm"

"Ok I have to get going, but I'll be here tomorrow morning and we can do some light training if you're up for it."

"Ok"

Kakashi just gave a nod and headed out of the house and back to his own. He felt horrible for having to leave Sasuke here alone. It wasn't something he wanted to do, but he couldn't risk going to jail himself or putting Sasuke in jail. Sasuke didn't know how long he had been standing in the living room for. He just couldn't make his body move to look around the rest of the house. He was too afraid of the memories that could come back to him if he realised whose house this used to be. There was no guarantee that he had even been in this house before, but he couldn't take that risk yet. His body was still sore, but he didn't care he couldn't move, he couldn't do anything. He could feel the curse seal starting to act up and the pain started to go through his body.

Sasuke knew that the pain would only get worse and he found himself not being able to be in this house any longer. Sasuke turned back to the door and left the house. His body just moved on it's own and he ended up in the woods just outside the compound. It was still Uchiha land technically so he wasn't breaking any laws. Sasuke was just wandering around the woods trying to figure out what to do and where to go. Sasuke knew these woods like the back of his hand. It was hard to forget when he had spent a lot of his time here when the Clan was alive. Sasuke went over to an area where Itachi and him used to train. He sat down with his back leaning against the tree. Sasuke closed his eyes to try and get the pain under control. The problem was it had been getting worse and worse each night. Sasuke was hoping that Orochimaru's stamina was wearing out and he would need a break soon. Sasuke didn't know how many more nights he could do this. It was fine when Kakashi was there with him. He was able to use his chakra to remove the pain so he could sleep, but Kakashi wasn't with him now. Sasuke didn't know what he could do to make the pain lessen. All he could do was just endure it as long as he could. Sasuke felt a strong spike in the pain and he felt like he couldn't breathe. Sasuke placed his right hand over the seal and his whole body began to shake uncontrollably. It wasn't until the last second did he feel someone's presence. Sasuke had his eyes closed and when he opened them standing there in front of him was Orochimaru.

Orochimaru had a sick smile on his face and Sasuke knew the pain was worse, because he was so close to him. Sasuke hadn't even brought any weapons with him.

"Don't worry Sasuke-Kun I'm not here to hurt you. My little seal is doing that for right now."

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked through gritted teeth.

Orochimaru moved closer so he was now bent down in front of Sasuke. Sasuke immediately felt the pain get ten times worse. Sasuke thought for sure he was going to die right then and there. Orochimaru moved his hand and started to stroke Sasuke's cheek and chin.

"I want you. You can't tell me you haven't thought about joining me. You survived my little gift; you should be thanking me for the power I gave to you."

"I don't want it." Sasuke's teeth were still clenched to keep him from screaming.

"You're goal is to kill your brother. If you wish to achieve that you'll need power, a power only I can give to you. I can train you and within three years you'll be at the same level that he is. Can Konoha say the same?"

"Kakashi…"

"Kakashi can't even kill me. He can't teach you what I can. I am a Sanin Sasuke-Kun. I killed the Third remember. Kakashi doesn't stand a chance against me. He can't train you like I can."

"He told me what you'll do. You can't fool me."

"Everything in life comes with a price. You want the power then you have to decide just what you are willing to give up for it. You can stay here in Konoha and never get stronger. You'll have friends and people who care, but you'll never grow to your full potential and you'll never reach your goal. Or you could come to the Sound with me and be powerful and feel fulfilled. Your body is the price of that power. Your body will be mine to do for whatever I wish. Killing Itachi is your sole purpose in life. How much is that worth to you? You don't have to answer me now, but just know that no matter what I will have you in the Sound. One way or another your body will be mine. I'm not a patent person the longer I have to wait the worse your punishment will be. So if I were you I would decide quickly. I'll see you soon my pet."

Orochimaru went and placed his lips onto Sasuke's. The problem was Sasuke was in too much pain to even move away from it. After a moment Orochimaru pulled away and then disappeared, but the pain didn't. It stayed at that level all night long. At one point it was too much for Sasuke and he found himself curled up in a ball on his right side lying in the grass. Sasuke couldn't move and at times it felt like he couldn't get his breath. The pain was so bad all he could do was lie there and watch as the sun slowly came up. Even as the sun rose the pain didn't lessen like it usually does and Sasuke was praying that Kakashi would show up early for once.

Kakashi had barely slept last night from the worry. He felt horrible for leaving Sasuke alone in the compound. What was worse was, knowing that he would have been in pain all night from the curse seal. It was for that reason why Kakashi was up at seven o'clock in the morning getting ready to head out. He didn't want to leave Sasuke in pain any longer than he had to. Kakashi was hoping that the curse seal didn't act up last night, but Kakashi knew it was a fool's hope. He made his way over to the compound in the early morning sun. It was a little chilly out with the early morning, it was a sign that the colder weather was coming. Kakashi went through the compound until he reached Sasuke's house. Kakashi opened the door and called out for Sasuke, but he received no answer back. He made his way through the house and noticed that it hadn't even been touched. He got to the bedroom and his thoughts were confirmed when the bed was still made. Sasuke didn't sleep here last night which meant that he went out into the woods. Kakashi left the house and started to head into the woods to find Sasuke. He had looked for close to twenty minutes before he found Sasuke on the ground by a tree. When he first saw him Kakashi thought that Sasuke was asleep. It wasn't until he was in front of Sasuke that he saw that he was shaking and in pain. Kakashi bent down and called to Sasuke.

"Sasuke talk to me."

"He was here." Sasuke said through gritted teeth.

Kakashi removed Sasuke's hand from the curse mark and Kakashi couldn't believe that it was glowing red. Kakashi knew that the seal was trying to come out, but the seal Kakashi placed on it was keeping it in check. Kakashi could tell that the pain was twice as bad as it had been before. Kakashi started to put his chakra through the seal to help ease the pain.

"Orochimaru?"

"Ya"

"Sasuke did he do anything?"

"It hurts."

"I know just give it a minute to get the chakra through. It's glowing red that's probably from Orochimaru being here. The closer he is the more pain that comes from the seal. Just close your eyes and try and focus on your breathing. The pain should lessen soon."

Sasuke closed his eyes and tried to focus on Kakashi's chakra going through the seal. Kakashi couldn't believe how much pain Sasuke was in. at least they had learned something new about the seal. With Orochimaru being closer to Sasuke to seal acts up and causes unbearable pain to Sasuke. Kakashi couldn't believe the level of pain that Sasuke was in and the seal was still glowing red. Sasuke was shaking pretty badly and he wasn't slowing down. Kakashi was starting to get worried if the seal was hurting Sasuke more then they all thought it was. Kakashi knew that Sasuke hadn't slept that night and this pain wasn't going to help him sleep. After a good thirty minutes Sasuke was in a restless sleep. Kakashi moved his hand and saw that the seal was still glowing an angry red color. Kakashi didn't know if he fell asleep or if he passed out from the pain. Either way Kakashi knew they couldn't stay here. Kakashi gently picked up Sasuke bridal style and carried him back to the compound. Once in the house Kakashi placed Sasuke down on his bed. Kakashi could tell that Sasuke was in a great deal of pain and he didn't know what to do about it. Kakashi made a seal to summon Pakun and the little dog appeared on the bed.

"Hey boss"

"I need you to go and get Tsunade and have her come here. I need you to hurry. Tell her it's Sasuke."

"On it boss."

Pakun took off to get Tsunade. Kakashi went back to Sasuke and placed his hand on the curse seal. He didn't know if it was helping at all, but he figured it couldn't hurt. Kakashi was starting to get scared, not that he would admit that. Sasuke was whimpering in his sleep and Kakashi knew that Sasuke was in unbearable pain. Kakashi didn't know what to do and in that moment he realised just how over his head he was in this. It was fifteen minutes later when Kakashi heard the front door opening.

"Kakashi" Tsunade called out.

"In the bedroom" Kakashi called back

Kakashi heard some shuffling and he knew that Tsunade was walking this way. Sasuke was still shaking and whimpering from the pain, even though Kakashi was still putting chakra into the seal. Kakashi turned around when he heard someone entering the room. He was surprised to see that Tsunade was not alone, that Jiraiya was with her.

"Jiraiya when did you get back?"

"Late last night. Tsunade was informing me of the situation that has been going on."

Tsunade was over to the bed by Kakashi and Sasuke. She could tell that Sasuke was in a great deal of pain.

"Kakashi what happened?" Tsunade asked

"I don't know. I went to see him early this morning and he was out in the woods lying on the ground he was in horrible pain and the seal it's glowing red. He said Orochimaru was here. When I asked him what happened he couldn't even talk from the pain. He passed out and I brought him here. The seal is still glowing red and I've been putting chakra into it for almost an hour now. It hasn't made it better."

Tsunade placed her hands on Sasuke to see if she could tell what was happening.

"He's in a lot of pain right now. His whole body is like it's on fire. The seal is causing his body damage."

"Let me see it." Jiraiya said

Kakashi moved his hand away so he could look at the seal. It was glowing red and you could tell that Sasuke's skin was becoming irritated from it.

"You said you put your chakra into the seal to help ease the pain?"

"It's been working for the past four days now. I don't understand why it won't work now."

"Orochimaru being closer to the seal will cause it to become stronger. How much chakra are you putting into it?"

"Just a light amount. I don't want to hurt him anymore than he already is."

"You need to put in a strong amount of chakra in it to overpower the seal. It will hurt him, but it will only last a few minutes. Once your chakra takes over the seal you can remove the pain just like you have done before. You need the seal to stop glowing before the pain will lessen. If not there's no telling how long this could continue." Jiraiya said

"How will we know when the seal stops glowing with Kakashi's hand over it?" Tsunade asked

"When Sasuke stops screaming."

"How bad will the pain be?" Kakashi asked concern clear in his voice.

"The pain that he is in right now, multiple that by ten. It'll wake him up and it will be so bad that he won't be able to pass out from it. When he stops screaming that will mean that your chakra took over the seal. At that point he'll still be in horrific pain, but you can fix that by doing it the usual way."

"How long will it take for the seal to stop glowing?" Tsunade asked

"Anywhere from thirty seconds to five minutes. It depends how strong it is and how strong Kakashi's chakra is."

"He could be in that level of pain for five minutes?" Kakashi asked

"He almost died five days ago. He's only been conscious for four days. His body might not be able to handle that level of pain." Tsunade said

"We don't have a choice. If this continues there's no telling what type of damage Sasuke's body could take. The seal is going after everything in him; his nerves, charka, even his cells. If this goes on for too long it could kill him. If you put your strongest chakra into the seal it will be agony for him for up to five minutes, but then it will be over. If you don't he could be in this pain or worse for days if Orochimaru wanted. Kakashi I know this seems cruel to cause more pain to him, but you have to. In order for this to end you have to cause him the pain."

"And if his body can't handle the pain?" Kakashi asked

"Then Tsunade is here to heal him. We'll hold him down to keep him still. Just do it as fast as possible."

Kakashi shook his head slightly he couldn't believe he was going to have to do this to Sasuke. He remembered when he put his seal over the curse seal how painful that was. Sasuke was already in pain he didn't need anymore. Kakashi kept his hand on the seal and put in his strongest chakra through the seal. It didn't even take five seconds before Sasuke was awake and screaming. Tsunade and Jiraiya held Sasuke down onto the bed so he couldn't struggle away from Kakashi's hand.

"Sasuke calm down. I know it hurts, but I have to do this to make the seal stop. Just hang on for a few minutes and it'll be over."

Sasuke was shaking so hard that Tsunade and Jiraiya were having a hard time keeping their grip on him. Kakashi felt horrible for having to do this to Sasuke, but he knew it was for the best. All Sasuke could feel was horrific pain. He didn't know what was going on or why Kakashi was causing so much pain, but he felt like he couldn't breathe. Sasuke's hand went to Kakashi's wrist that was on the seal. Kakashi could feel Sasuke trying to get his hand away from the seal, but his body was in too much pain to even get a good grip.

"It's okay Sasuke. I'm sorry, but I have to do this. It's okay."

Kakashi made sure he sounded comforting. Sasuke wasn't screaming out, but they all could tell the level of pain that he was in. Tsunade could see that Sasuke was having a hard time getting a breath.

"Sasuke let the air out. I know it hurts, but just breathe it will be over soon."

Sasuke tried to get a full breath, but he couldn't from the pain. Sasuke couldn't understand what was happening his mind just wouldn't focus on anything, but the pain. After what felt like hours Sasuke could finally get a breath. The pain lessened drastically to the amount of a usual night. He kept his hand on Kakashi's wrist, but he stopped struggling. The three adults could tell that the seal was no longer glowing so Kakashi only put a soft amount of chakra into the seal. Tsunade and Jiraiya removed their hands from Sasuke. Sasuke was breathing hard so Tsunade checked him out to make sure that nothing was wrong. She couldn't believe how inflamed his chakra cells were. She did her best to heal them and bring them back to normal levels. Kakashi could see that Sasuke was fighting to keep his eyes open.

"It's okay Sasuke. You're safe go to sleep. I'll be right here when you wake up."

Sasuke felt Kakashi's soothing chakra and couldn't fight to stay awake any longer. He closed his eyes and just let the darkness take over. Kakashi couldn't believe how bad this situation was getting and how fast. If he hadn't gone early to see Sasuke who knows what could have happened. Kakashi sat down on the bed so he could put as much chakra as he could into the seal. Tsunade and Jiraiya were still standing on the other side of the bed just watching Kakashi and Sasuke interact.

"He trusts you. For Sasuke that's almost impossible." Tsunade said.

"He's been through a lot recently." Kakashi said

"And you've been the only constant in his life since graduating the academy. He trusts you and that says a lot for him." Tsunade said

"I never thought about it." Kakashi admitted.

"What do you mean?" Jiraiya asked

"I've never thought about whether or not Sasuke trusts me. In the field he has to trust his life in my hands, just like everyone else trusts each other to keep them alive. I never even thought if Sasuke trusted me on a deeper level."

"Maybe that is something you two should talk about. Do you know anything that happened last night?" Tsunade asked

"I left around nine or so last night. We were at my place until it was getting late and we had to get him home. I brought him here and roughly ten minutes later I left once he said he was okay. I got up early this morning so I could come and see him. It was just after seven when I arrived back at the house. I noticed that he wasn't here and that the bed was never slept in. I had a feeling that Sasuke wouldn't stay here at night so I went into the woods and I found him twenty minutes later. He was lying on the grass and at first I thought he was asleep. It wasn't until I was in front of him that I noticed he was in horrible pain. I started to put my chakra through the seal, but it was glowing red and it didn't appear to be working. I asked him what happened and he said that he was here. I asked if he meant Orochimaru, but all he said was that it hurt and then he passed out. I brought him here and had Pakun go and get you. That's all I know, until he wakes up."

"His chakra cells were inflamed and irritated. I'll come by later and make sure that they haven't gone back up. For now just let him sleep."

"Ok"

"You and I are going to be doing research. We need to know everything we can about this seal." Tsunade said to Jiraiya.

"Tsunade was telling me that five men beat and left Sasuke to burn alive in his apartment. You don't know who?"

"No. Sasuke said they were wearing masks. He also said that he couldn't sense them so they were most likely ninja." Kakashi said

"I'll scout around and see if I can find out anything."

"Shikamaru and the others are going to do the same. I told them to be careful."

"They need to be extremely careful. These men won't think twice about going after any of them." Tsunade said

"When Sasuke is feeling better tomorrow maybe then the three of us will go for a walk around the village. If other ninja and villagers are even thinking about something seeing Sasuke with us might just keep them in line." Jiraiya said to Kakashi.

"Hopefully you being here will keep some of them in line." Kakashi said

"Let's go we have a lot of work to do." Tsunade said to Jiraiya

"I'll come see you later on tonight. Hopefully he will have been awake by then and you'll have more information about last night." Jiraiya said

"Ok"

"He'll be alright Kakashi. We'll get him through this together. I'm not about to lose anyone especially a child, especially an Uchiha to Orochimaru." Tsunade said

"I just hope that he'll fight." Kakashi said softly.

"He will Kakashi. I don't know Sasuke, but I know Uchihas and they don't ever give up. He'll get tired and wish he could just give up, but that's when you come in and you get him to push through." Jiraiya said

"I just hope I'm there to get him through."

"You can do this Kakashi. I'll come back later tonight and we can talk this out." Jiraiya said.

Kakashi gave a nod and Tsunade and Jiraiya walked out of the house and headed back to the Hokage tower. They had to try and find as much research as they can on the curse seal so they could help prepare Sasuke for what could happen. Tsunade was hoping that they could be able to find out a way to remove the curse seal. Orochimaru was not someone you wanted to play with and they had to be careful when they went against him.

It wasn't until five o'clock at night did Sasuke start to stir. Kakashi had been sitting on the bed with his back against the headboard watching Sasuke sleep. Kakashi had moved Sasuke and placed him under the covers and off to the other side of the bed shortly after Tsunade and Jiraiya left. Kakashi didn't want to leave Sasuke's side just in case something happened. Kakashi knew that Sasuke was having nightmares from the restlessness that he was in. Kakashi was going to be asking Sasuke about them when he woke up. From Sasuke moving around in his sleep he was now facing Kakashi and fairly close to him. If Kakashi had been lying down Sasuke would have been curled up against him. Sasuke began to move and Kakashi immediately noticed that his left hand went to the curse seal. Sasuke opened his eyes and noticed right away that he wasn't alone. He looked up and saw Kakashi staring down at him.

"Is it still hurting?" Kakashi asked with concern in his voice.

"No it's just sore. Everything is sore right now."

Kakashi could hear the exhaustion in Sasuke's voice. It was clear that the curse seal was causing him to lose energy and sleep. Both of which will make a person very tired and Sasuke had already spent a week without sleep.

"It's from the seal flaring. Besides being sore and tired how are you feeling?"

"I didn't say I was tired."

"You didn't have to Sasuke. I can see it all over your face and in your eyes. That seal is taking more out of you then you have been letting on."

"It's nothing"

"That seal is anything but nothing Sasuke. You need to talk to me. We need to have a serious and honest conversation about a few things. Things you might not want to talk about, but we have to. I will make you a deal though I'll let you ask me one question. It doesn't matter what it is and I'll tell you the truth about it."

"Why? You could just order me to talk and then you wouldn't have to talk about anything personal."

"I could order you to talk, but then where will that get us. I'm interested in you Sasuke. I want to know who you are. I don't want to have to order you to talk to me about something. If something is bothering you I want you to come to me on your own. I'm not here to control you. I'm here to help you and be there for you; and before you even say it this isn't my job. I'm here, because I want to be here for you. So to show you my good faith and that I'm not trying to trick you. You can ask me any question first."

"And you'll answer honestly no matter what the question is just like that?" Sasuke's voice held disbelief.

"I will, because I can't tell you to open up if I don't do the same. So one question, what will it be?"

Kakashi moved so he was sitting facing Sasuke instead of looking at the door. He thought about moving this into the living room, but he could tell that Sasuke was comfortable. He didn't want to make Sasuke move around too much just yet; so Kakashi was happy to let him lie in bed for this. Sasuke thought about what question he should ask Kakashi, but there truly was only one question that had been on his mind since he met Kakashi.

"Why do you wear a mask?"

"I had a feeling that would be the question you would ask. My father's name was Sakumo he was also known as Konoha's White Fang. He was praised by many powerful ninjas including the Fourth Hokage. He had even become stronger than the Sanins. He was well liked and very respected man not only in Konoha, but on this half of the world. Everyone knew him, knew of him. Growing up it was always hard, because I was constantly being looked to for that greatness. I graduated the academy at just five years old and from there my ninja ranking and respect escalated. My father was all for following the Shinobi rules; however he made the choice one day to not follow those rules. Him and his squad were out on a mission. His team got into trouble and instead of following the rules and continuing the mission he didn't. He saved their lives instead. By doing that he failed the mission. His first mission to ever fail. I was young at the time when this happened. I remember how different he was when he returned. Konoha should have respected his decision, but they didn't. People started to turn on him, even the ones he saved. He fell into a depression to the point where he wouldn't go on missions anymore, because his skills drastically decreased. He ended up killing himself when I was young. I started to wear the mask, because as I got older everyone said I looked just like him. At the time it wasn't something I could handle hearing. So I wore a mask so I wouldn't have to hear it anymore. As the years went on and I accepted what my father had done; the mask just became a part of me. So now I mostly keep it on to annoy people."

"It's a part of your identity."

"Exactly"

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. That couldn't have been easy."

"It wasn't and I changed a lot after that. It took me many years to find myself again. It's part of the reason why I don't want you in the Sound. I don't want you to lose yourself and go through the turmoil of finding yourself again."

"Some days it feels like I don't know who I am."

"You're thirteen it's supposed to feel like that. You're a teenager now Sasuke. Everyone goes through that point in their life when they have to start thinking and acting like a young adult and not a kid. There will be times when you don't know who you are and you'll need to figure that out. However, there will be times when you'll know who you're not and that's more important. You'll figure it out quick who you are growing into being. Everyone goes through it and sometimes it's not fun at all, but if you have someone there that you can turn to. Those not so fun times can be bearable. You were having some bad dreams. Care to tell me what they were?"

"Just memories. It's not a big deal happens all the time."

"Memories of what?"

"From growing up, from what happened not even a week ago. It's not a big deal it'll pass."

"It makes sense that you would be having nightmares from what happened to you recently. You went through something traumatic, even if it doesn't seem like it should be. You were almost burned alive Sasuke, anyone would be having nightmares about it."

"I know"

"It's the ones from growing up that are bothering you though. Sasuke I need you to tell me what happened that night."

"Why?"

"Because it's important for you to talk about it, especially right now. You're being forced to be back here and it's going to make the nightmares worse. You need to talk about that night, even if it's just once. Sasuke I promise you after this conversation I won't ever bring it up again, unless you do. You need to tell me what happened."

Sasuke let out a sigh. He moved so he was sitting up with his back against the headboard. He pulled his legs up to his chest and he put his head back.

"Have you ever been through something and you can't help, but think that there's more to the story that you're not being told?"

"There have been a few missions where I've felt like someone was keeping important information from me. Do you think there was more to this then you were being told?"

"I wasn't told anything about what happened. All I know is what Itachi said to me before he left."

"What did he tell you?"

"I asked him why and he just said, because he wanted to see if he could."

"And you don't think that's something he could have done?"

"I know he did it. I saw him kill our parents. What I don't know is why. That night it was like I was standing in front of a stranger. He was never mean to me or cruel. That night he was completely different then he had ever been with me. He went to attack me; he used his Sharingan on me. The more time that goes by the more I think that there had to have been some kind of reason for him to act that way towards me."

"But you think he could have killed the Clan for no reason?"

"I know it sounds crazy and horrible, but killing the Clan doesn't surprise me. It's the way he acted to me that doesn't make sense. For months before that night he was having problems with the Clan. Something huge was going on and everyone was acting secretive. Itachi he was so mad all the time, at everyone in the Clan. The only one he wasn't mad at was me. Looking back him killing them really doesn't surprise me. I think they were trying to get him to do something that he couldn't do or refused to do. I don't know what had been going on for those months, but it was something big. The way he acted towards me that night though, was something he never had done. He didn't talk to me that way, not even when he was furious. It doesn't make sense. He always went out of his way to protect me. He always made sure that I knew I could trust him, that he wouldn't hurt me."

"Had he ever turned his Sharingan on you?"

"No never. There was one time when our cousin was picking on me and he had his Sharingan on. Itachi came by and saw it; he put him in the hospital. After that day everyone in the Clan, including the Clan's elders would never even use their Sharingan around me little lone to me. It was this thing he had about it being used on me. When we would train together he wouldn't even use it. He used it on me that night to show me everything that he did that night. It doesn't make sense that he would go to that extreme when it was used around me; only to turn around and do it himself."

"You're right that doesn't make any sense. I used to work with Itachi in the ANBU. We actually spent a lot of time together working. I didn't know Itachi as well as you did, you probably knew him best. I can say that Itachi doesn't do things without a very good reason. For him to kill everyone just because he wanted to see if he could, doesn't make sense to me either. It also doesn't make sense for him to go to the level of making sure no one used the Sharingan around you; only for him to do it himself doesn't make sense. I'm sure there is a reason behind what he has done. He didn't kill you simply on a whim. He kept you alive for a reason. It's up to you which reason you wish to believe."

"What do you mean?"

"There's two ways to look at this. The first is that he changed and possibly snapped from all the years of pressure. He killed them for the reason he gave you and he turned the Sharingan on you, because he was being cruel. The second reason is that he killed them for a significant reason that is unknown. That he used his Sharingan on you and showed you that side of himself to give you a reason to live. Maybe he did love you to the point where he made you hate him so you would fight to live. Sometimes cruel actions have a loving reason behind them. Maybe by doing what he did to you, it was his way of making sure you survived without him. It's up to you which choice you wish to believe. Before you make that choice though, you need to think about everything that happened in the past. How Itachi was with you years before that night and days before that night. If he was constantly the same way with you for seven years, not all of that can be false. Not even Itachi can be fake for that long. So make sure you think long and hard about Itachi and how it all happened before that night."

"I wish I could just ask him, but even if I could he probably wouldn't tell me the truth."

"You might get that chance one day, but you'll never have a future if you're constantly looking back to the past. What did you see that night? Tell me the story Sasuke."

"I was out late, training at the academy. It was eight o'clock when I started to head home. When I got there something immediately didn't seem right. All the lights were off. It was never like that. I had been running home from the academy and I kept running inside the compound. After I passed the first few houses I noticed some blood. The sky was clouded so it was dark. The clouds moved away from the moon and I was able to see around me perfectly. That's when I saw the blood and the bodies. I ran home and started to call for my parents. I got home and I opened the door to the mediation room, father was usually there at night. I called out a few times, but no one answered. When I opened the door it was just as Itachi killed them. He slashed their throats with his Katana. I didn't know it was him at first. When he turned around I couldn't believe it. It felt like I couldn't breathe. I asked him why and he told me. He came at me and I ran outside. He followed me and then used his Sharingan on me. At the time I didn't know what technique it was. The sky and everything around me went red and black. It showed me how he killed everyone and it kept happening over and over again. The Mangekyo Sharingan. The night thing I know I'm waking up in the hospital."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that Sasuke. Do you get nightmares about it often?"

"It comes and goes. I guess being back here is just bringing them back. It's not a big deal."

"It is if it's affecting your sleep. I'm always here for you to talk to Sasuke. Even if it is about a nightmare. I'm here for you. Being back here will bring back memories for you, it's natural for you to be having nightmares about it. I'm here for you. There is nothing you can tell me that will make me leave or abandon you. Now we need to talk about last night. Do you remember what happened?"

"I couldn't be in this house any longer. I tried to walk around the house, but I just couldn't bring myself to. I kept thinking how I couldn't remember who lived here. It seemed so wrong that they were my family, but I couldn't remember them. I still don't remember. I decided to go out into the woods. Itachi and I spent a lot of time in them growing up. I was walking around, but the seal was acting up so I stopped and sat down against a tree. I don't know how long I was there, but I didn't sense anyone until he was right in front of me. He said he just wanted to talk. He bent down in front of me and the pain got so bad. I couldn't move it just hurt everywhere. The closer he got the worse the pain got. At one point I felt like I couldn't breathe. He kept stroking my cheek, like I was some pet. He said that he would train me, that if I stayed in Konoha I would never reach the level that I needed to be at for Itachi. I told him I knew what he would do if I went. He said that everything comes with a price; that for him to train me, my body was the price. The pain was too much, though and I couldn't talk anymore. He talked about you."

"What did he say about me?"

"He said that he could kill you in seconds. That you couldn't protect me from him. Is that true?"

"Orochimaru and I have never fought. There was one time when we almost fought. It was after the third round of the Chounin exams. I had just finished placing the seal on you and he appeared. He tried to take you, but I had the Chidori going and he decided to wait until a later time to take you. Obviously Orochimaru is strong. He killed the Third and that wasn't from luck. I'm not positive if I could kill him, but I'm also not positive that he could kill me. There is a lot more to my skills that people don't know about. I show only what I have to in order to get a mission complete. I'm not going to back down from him and I will do everything in my power to keep you safe. Is that all he said to you?"

"Ya"

Sasuke looked down and Kakashi knew that he was hiding something else.

"Sasuke what happened?"

"Nothing"

"Something obviously happened."

"Before he left he um…"

"It's okay Sasuke. What did he do?"

Kakashi kept his voice soft and gentle. He hid all the fear and worry that he was feeling inside right now. It was no secret to Kakashi that Orochimaru was a child molester. Kakashi didn't ever want Sasuke alone with him.

"The pain was horrible. It hurt to even try to breathe. I couldn't move no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't."

"Sasuke it's okay. Whatever he did to you it's okay. What happened?"

"He kissed me." Sasuke whispered.

"Did he do anything else? Did he touch you anywhere?"

"No" Sasuke shook his head.

Kakashi let out a breath that he didn't know he was even holding. It wasn't good that Orochimaru kissed Sasuke and Kakashi could tell that Sasuke was shaken up by it. Kakashi was beyond thrilled that Orochimaru didn't do anything else to Sasuke.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through this Sasuke. It's going to be okay. We'll figure this out and until this is taken care of you're not leaving my side."

"How is that even going to be possible? You're not allowed here at night."

"That's true I'm not, but you are allowed to be outside of the compound past eight o'clock with a Jounin. So here is what we are going to do for the next two weeks. During the day you will be at my place where we can sleep and then at night we will be out training. It'll keep you out of this house, and it will keep you with me where I can keep you safe. Then in two weeks you'll be going on missions and probably won't even be in Konoha for more than a couple hours in between."

"But for how long? We can't keep doing this for a year. How long can we do this before it becomes too much? Eventually things will go back to normal you know that."

"Eventually everything will go back to normal. Including the laws, how the villagers and other ninja treat you. Eventually you won't have to worry about Orochimaru. Look we can only do what is in our power to do. So for now let's just take this one day at a time. Starting with tonight. So why don't we get out of this house and go grab something to eat and walk around for a little bit. Do you feel up to that?"

"Sure, but I want to shower first."

"Okay well you do that. I'll go wait in the living room."

Kakashi got up off the bed and Sasuke started to as well. Before Kakashi left the room Sasuke spoke.

"Who was here earlier with you and Tsunade-Sama?"

"That was Jiraiya. He used to be on the same team as Tsunade and Orochimaru. He's the third Sanin."

"Why was he here?"

"Tsunade sent for him. She thought that he would be able to help with the curse seal. It's a good thing he was here, because it was him that knew how to make the seal stop glowing. He will also be around you at times. His presence is respected in the village and it is also intimidating. By you being around him it will make some people think twice before going after you."

"So he's on my side."

"He is very much so on your side. You can trust him. It's also good to have him around in case Orochimaru shows up."

Sasuke just gave a nod and started to head out of the bedroom. Sasuke went to the bathroom so he could shower and get ready to go out. Kakashi went to the living room to wait for when Sasuke would be ready to go. Not even ten minutes later Jiraiya came into the house.

"You look tired Kakashi."

"I've been up half the night worrying about Sasuke. Only to find him dying from pain."

"How is he doing?"

"He's taking a shower right now. We were going to go out and get something to eat. Care to join us?"

"I think that would be a good idea from the whispers I've heard in the village."

"What whispers?"

"Just villagers talking about how they wished Sasuke had died in the fire. Some villagers have been speaking poorly about him and questioning his loyalty to Konoha. I've heard other ninjas talking about ways that they could go after Sasuke. They were excited that Sasuke had these new laws to follow that Danzou had told them about. The ninja think there are no consequences for going after Sasuke. They don't seem too afraid of you either. I think this village needs to see that Sasuke is also under my eyes. Maybe that will help keep some of them in line."

"So they don't fear me."

"Not the ones that I heard, but it is one thing to talk about doing something. It's something completely different to actually do it. I think me being around Sasuke for a little while will help some ninja to smarten up."

"Sasuke truly only has a few allies right now. The problem is most of them are barely a year out of the academy."

"With higher ranking ninjas that will be a problem. I'm in this village until Orochimaru is killed, so he has me looking out for him now to. Did he tell you what happened last night?"

"He did. Orochimaru just wanted to talk to him. He said that Sasuke wouldn't be able to obtain the level that he needs to be at in order to kill Itachi staying here. He told Sasuke that I couldn't protect him from him. That Orochimaru could kill me in seconds. Sasuke told him that he knew what Orochimaru wanted from him and Orochimaru told him that everything comes with a price. That he wanted Sasuke's body as payment. Before he left he kissed Sasuke."

"He kissed him?"

"Sasuke was a little freaked out about it. He couldn't move from the pain and that scared him I think more than the kiss did. I think that was Sasuke's first realisation of just how powerful Orochimaru is. That he can cause Sasuke that level of pain, by not even doing anything to him other than being around him."

"That would scare anyone. Sasuke's young he has a lot of growing to do. There are two types of prodigies; the first is like yourself and Itachi. You start off young and grow quickly, but once you hit your peak that's it you don't grow anymore. The second is Sasuke. You start off slightly ahead of the others and you gradually grow and grow even when others have stopped. In the next three years Sasuke will be stronger than Itachi, he'll be stronger than me. All he has to do is put the work in and he'll prove to everyone just what kind of prodigy he truly is. It's the type two prodigy that is always the deadliest, because no one ever sees it coming."

"I'd have to agree with you on that one. I'm just not sure Sasuke sees it like that."

"He will in time. You went through something similar if I remember correctly. You made it through."

"I took my revenge though and that almost destroyed me. I don't want Sasuke to go through that."

"We all make our own mistakes. Sasuke will make his, but as an adult and his sensei it's your job to make sure those mistakes don't involve betraying the village."

"He won't betray Konoha. I know that he won't. I just hope that Konoha doesn't push him out."

"Danzou and the council could decide that Sasuke is a danger for the village and make him an exile."

"Danzou would just love to do that. He's just waiting for the chance to get Sasuke out of this village or imprisoned."

"Imprisoned? He's too young to be in jail."

"Danzou doesn't care you know that. Sasuke doesn't follow the laws to the letter he'll do it. And I have no idea how long it will take before I could even get him out."

"Danzou even tries it he'll be dealing with me and Tsunade. There is a way to over throw the council."

"How?"

"It involves other village leaders and high ranking ninja in Konoha. Tsunade has sent out a request to speak to the other villages letting them know the situation. Hopefully some will be willing to help. Inside Konoha is easy; there are you, myself, Tsunade, Asuma and Gai that will go to Sasuke's defence. There might be other high ranking ninja that are willing to help Sasuke as well."

"So there is a way to over throw the council."

"Of course there is. There have been many times when the council went too far. The Third did it a few times that I know about. The council isn't as all powerful as they would like everyone to believe. The village can even protest the council and force a new one to be elected. I don't see that as an option right now. I think too many people are all for these new laws and wouldn't risk them changing."

"At least we have a way to go about changing these laws. What did you find out about the seal?"

"We haven't found a way to remove it yet. From today's events we did learn that when it glows red like that how to put an end to it. Tsunade was also able to see the damage that it does to Sasuke's body. The seal is molding it's chakra into Sasuke's chakra slowly. If we find a way to remove it, then we need to do it quick. The longer he has the seal the more of its chakra will mold into his. If that happens and too much of the seal's chakra is molded into Sasuke's by removing the seal he'll die. We need to do something about it and soon otherwise he'll be stuck with it forever. We've been doing research all day, but so far we haven't learned anything new. The information of this seal is repetitive at best. There's nothing new to add to what we already know."

"There has to be someone out there that knows about this seal."

"I'm sure there is, we just can't find them."

They both heard the bathroom door open and they ended their conversation. Sasuke came out into the living room wearing clean clothes. Sasuke noticed that Jiraiya was here with Kakashi.

"What's wrong?" Sasuke asked

"Nothing's wrong Sasuke. Jiraiya was just coming to check up on you that's all."

"How are you feeling Sasuke?"

"I'm fine"

"Jiraiya is going to come with us to dinner."

"Ok"

"You all set?"

Sasuke just gave a nod and the three of them headed outside. Kakashi could tell that Sasuke didn't really trust Jiraiya and Kakashi couldn't blame him. He didn't know Jiraiya from a hole in the ground. Jiraiya could also tell that Sasuke was a little cautious around him, but he didn't mind he was used to having to earn trust. This wasn't about getting food or earning trust. This was about getting the village to see that Jiraiya was in Sasuke's corner. It was about taking Sasuke and putting him on a different level. If people saw that Sasuke was being backed by Jiraiya then they would think twice before they even try anything. They spent a good amount of time just walking around Konoha and going to dinner. It was around nine o'clock when Jiraiya left to get some sleep. Kakashi took Sasuke out onto one of the training ground and he decided that they would do some light training. He couldn't work Sasuke too hard, because of his injuries and from the seal, but he could get him to focus on some light training. It was ten o'clock when they had to stop for an hour when Sasuke's seal started to act up. Kakashi used his chakra to heal it and after that they continued on. When the sun came up they headed back to Kakashi's place so they could get some sleep.