A gentle shake woke the black haired man up. His grogginess vanished the moment he registered the person in front of him was Naruto's doctor. Standing up, the Uchiha shook the doctor's hand, his eyes flashing to a nametag reading "Kibetsu". The man seemed like he was in his late thirties, with dark brown hair and green eyes.

"I'm guessing you're part of the police?" Sasuke nodded, flashing his police badge out of habit. "The patient is stable, sir." Sasuke could feel his shoulders sagging in relief, the pent up tension in them disappearing. Naruto was okay. He was okay. "But, I have some worrying news. Judging from his medical records, he seems to have suffered from psychological trauma, said to have been triggered from seeing his mother jump off a building. It seems the woman killed herself some months after his dad died. Anyway, it seems like the treatment for overcoming the trauma wasn't finished due to the patient being sent into prison. From the information I got, the patient was adopted a while after his parents died and went to prison for the murder of his stepfather?"

An almost mechanical nod was the answer. The Uchiha could feel his stomach twist painfully. He didn't like where this was going. "Well, that seems to have caused even more mental problems. Combine it with the excessive torture he seems to have suffered, the patient may have started developing psychosis. Has he had any panic attacks?" A crying figure and a dark elevator flashed through Sasuke's mind. He nodded again.

"What exactly is psychosis?" The doctor frowned, probably trying to form a simple explanation for him.

"Basically, it's a condition of the mind that's described as a "loss of contact with reality". It could be caused by trauma and it usually leads to unusual behavior, personality changes, panic attacks and so on. Due to Uzumaki-san's condition, he may suffer from this but until he awakes and we monitor him for symptoms, we can't actually confirm anything. These are just speculations from looking at medical records." The Uchiha stood stock still, the attempt at easing the situation not working on him at all. He crashed back into his chair.

"Will he be sent into a mental hospital?" The doctor shifted, and sat next to the black haired man.

"Well, this can be treated with medicine but there's also the option of the Acceptance and Commitment therapy, "ACT" for short. It helps the patient accept their personal events, especially unwanted ones. Personally, I think that's the better option. The problem is, if Uzumaki-san needs to be treated, somebody will have to pay for the treatment and this hospital visit. Also, he's a prisoner..." The Uchiha shook his head at that, surprising Kibetsu.

"He's not a prisoner anymore. I won't go into details, but he had made a deal with me, and he kept his end of it. Now it's my turn. I'll take care of any payment that's required." The doctor nodded reluctantly. He seemed like he wanted to say something else, so the Uchiha pointedly looked at him, signaling for him to speak.

"Ah, I don't mean to be nosy but...Is there a reason why you're helping this man so much? You don't have to answer if it's personal or..." Sasuke gave a humorless huff, and got up from his uncomfortable chair.

"I'm...I'm just a really shitty friend." And it's the only thing I can do for him at this point. A sharp pain went through his chest at that thought. Tired black eyes met surprised forest green. "Call me if you need anything." After scribbling his number on a piece of paper the doctor provided him with, along with his name, the Uchiha walked out of the hospital and headed towards his home, heart heavy and thoughts jumbled.

After four days he got a call from an unknown number. He had just gotten back from Mamoru's funeral. They couldn't find the body, but one of Danzō's men had said the man was dead, and it was later confirmed to be true. He shook the thought of his crying parents away, and sat on his bed, loosening the black tie around his neck. He had also dropped by to the prison to quickly give Suigetsu instructions, and visit Sakura to give her the news about Naruto. The girl hadn't taken it too well, even if she didn't show it. At least the news that the blonde wasn't a prisoner anymore brought her some comfort.

"Uchiha Sasuke?"

"Yes?"

"Ah, sir, it's Uzumaki-san's doctor, Kibetsu. I'm sorry, but our suspicions were correct. Would you like to use the therapy option or should he stay here and start using pills? You have to decide, since you're his only known contact, and you're paying for the treatment. We tried contacting his stepmother but we got no response." Deep breaths. Stay calm. Calm.

"I think the therapy is the better option."

"Okay, then I'll give you the address of the-"

"No need. Is there a way for me to pay without going there?" A pause followed.

"Well...You can come to me and leave me the money. I'll take care of the rest. But sir, are you sure?" Another pause. Breathe.

"Yes, I am." He finished the call. The chair he had been occupying flew to the other side of the room and crashed in the wall. His phone followed. His gaze flicked to the white envelope left on the table. He opened it.

It had been so obvious, Sasuke would have laughed if the situation was different. He stopped his car in front of an old looking house. It was near a lake, in the middle of a forest. He had been here with Itachi when they were little. There were a lot of wild animals around here, and hunting had been allowed. They usually hunted small animals. One day though, they saw a boar. When Sasuke tried to shoot it, he failed. Itachi managed to hit it perfectly. The younger brother had been jealous when they went back home and their father praised Itachi. Again. That was the last time they went hunting together. It was a memory Sasuke had buried and ignored so much, he had forgotten about it. Or so he thought.

"Lake, arrow, boar, brothers, fear...hunt, pride, failure, wound, jealousy, competition, memory, children...How did you change this for Danzō to be led to a factory, Itachi?" Said Uchiha turned towards Sasuke, having perched himself at the front of the house. An expressionless mask was plastered on his face.

"I have my ways. That's not why you came here though, is it?"

"No, it isn't. I came for answers you promised to provide."

"I will, once you lower your gun. I'm not here to fight with you, Sasuke." The sudden soft tone startled the younger man. He hadn't even realized he had pulled his gun out. He lowered it but didn't put it away. He still had a criminal in front of him.

"Talk, then. I'm listening." Itachi sighed and even though he was looking at Sasuke, his eyes seemed distant, looking at something that wasn't there.

"You know father is old already. He was going to choose me as the new clan head. The Uchiha were a powerful clan with a lot of connections and land, which just kept increasing. Danzō was feeling threatened by this. The clan was probably two thirds of the police force, maybe even more. But they didn't have a high enough position to do bigger things with their power, bigger investigations. They felt like the council and Hiruzen were purposefully doing this, keeping their power under control. Father decided to talk to Hiruzen about this and the man agreed to raise Fugaku's status and let him become a council member. Danzō though, didn't agree to this. So, he decided to kill Fugaku"

The elder Uchiha paused, letting the information sink in. Realization passed through Sasuke's eyes. "As I said, Fugaku is old. I was going to be the next clan head. I had never trusted Danzō, so I decided to research him after witnessing his heated protest against the Uchihas' rise in power. What I came up with was numerous crimes and killed people. I decided then that if I became the next clan head, Danzō would kill me, father and you. The clan would fall without a proper leader and Danzō would be able to take it out, control it even. So, instead of becoming the clan head, I fled."

The younger Uchiha fell to the ground, sitting there with wide eyes. Itachi continued. "That ruined the clan from the inside. Father was too shaken up from his failure of a son, and you were pushed into becoming the next clan head. The pressure, I assume, was too big and you broke under it, having to leave the clan yourself. The clan lost its drive for power after that and they closed themselves off from the accusing stares and whispers. And that..."

"...Took them off of Danzō's radar." Sasuke finished, whispering the end of a story he hadn't expected. He felt light headed. The gun slipped from his shaking hand, dropping on the grass next to him. Suddenly, he heard police sirens. His gaze snapped to Itachi. He got an apologetic smile in return. Itachi walked forward.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. Maybe I should have talked with you about this, found another way. But...I don't regret my decision. I had to stain my hand with blood after that, but everybody was, is, safe. That's all I wanted. There is so, so much I want to say to you but just know that no matter what happens from now on..." The older man crouched down, placing a hand behind Sasuke's head and pulling him forward, making their foreheads bump into each other.

Sorry Sasuke, maybe some other time. "I will always love you."

Then he got up, leaving the stunned Uchiha behind and walking towards the parking police cars, hands raised up in surrender. An officer came out of one of the cars and placed handcuffs on Itachi, pushing him into the car's backseat. Another one came towards Sasuke but the Uchiha waved him away, saying he was fine and to leave him alone. He stayed on the grass, watching the cars drive away with his brother. He didn't stop the tears that streamed down his face when the last police car was out of sight.