Chapter 13: Unravel
Warning: Extreme violence notice still in effect.
-X-
"...And after the dragon hand-seal, the spark should trigger a chain effect, jumpstarting the brain and the heart simultaneously. Sadly, it involves a lot of chakra, if not a Kekkei Genkai as well."
Itachi mused over her words as they walked a portion of the road to Rain. Sai's demise was still fresh in their minds, but Itachi's stoic countenance helped Sakura to ground herself and not allow her mind and feelings to carry her away.
"So it is not really a medical ninjutsu."
"It is, but only a minimal one. It's rather simple, actually. Someone who has a modicum of medical formation – which all of us have from the Academy – should understand and be able to perform this technique... but chakra control or a bloodline limit are factors to be considered in order to perform it with some amount of success."
"And the chakra reserves also," he pointed out. Sakura looked at him and nodded, her face blank and pale.
It occurred to Itachi that she might have smiled at him if her teammate wasn't missing and his wasn't dead. However, they were running out of time.
"I was told by Hogake-sama that you can perform the Creation Rebirth jutsu."
Her viridian, sharp eyes glanced at him guardedly as they both descended from the trees. "Yes, I can do that."
"And I am wrong to venture you will be using it in your battle?"
Sakura stopped walking, watching him with narrowed eyes. "What is it to you?"
Itachi tilted his head. "There is no need to be so defensive, Sakura. I merely asked because I am worried for your wellbeing. I am well aware of the aftereffects of that particular technique, since I witnessed Tsunade-sama fighting against Orochimaru."
"...Oh, sorry," Sakura lowered her eyes, contrite. "Yeah, she taught me that technique under strict orders not to release it without her authorization."
"And she gave it," Itachi remembered those cryptic words their blonde leader had directed to the pink-haired kunoichi. She nodded.
"She's worried sick about Naruto, and she knows I've been accumulating enough chakra... just in case."
Itachi considered her for a long moment, as the others made their way forward without looking back. "And what about storing half of that chakra in a scroll, just in case?"
She blinked, confused. "Just in case of what?" she asked, watching how his dark eyes glinted with something akin to malicious excitement as he pulled a scroll engraved with the Uchiha crest.
"I have been thinking about that technique of yours..."
-X-
The very earth shook under their feet when the angry roar connected with the atmosphere.
Many eyes turned to see the red wave of angry chakra that was building from the place where Naruto lay. Kakashi's eyes widened, now that Yamato had fallen... who would control the Kyuubi's maniacal rampage? Jiraiya's whereabouts were unknown, so it was impossible to determine if...
The Copy Ninja's eyes turned to see the prostrated body of his former female student, who was shaking uncontrollably, still under the genjutsu that the man in the orange mask had thrown her into.
It all had happened in a flash; Yamato's body fell in a wide arc, while Sakura charged at Tobi with all her strength. Yet another of her comrades had met their maker in battle and Kakashi understood that, even if she knew she hadn't had a chance, she had to do something.
Her reckless attack had proven some things: one, that she was a true Team Seven ninja; two, that she wasn't above of putting her own welfare on the line if that meant gaining a chance to defeat their enemy; and third, he and Shisui were able to see how the pin-wheeled Sharingan had performed the illusion, their own bloodline limits copying it in an instant.
Probably Sakura had done it on purpose. But knowing her psychological state since Naruto's abduction, Kakashi sorely doubted it.
Back to the task at hand, they had a very angry jinchuuriki on their hands, one that was currently developing its fourth tail.
Fuck.
Meanwhile, Sasuke had managed to hold his own as he snarled insults to the masked Akatsuki. He had noticed Naruto's transformation, and yet he hadn't done anything to attempt to contain his friend.
Only when the chakra-cloaked Naruto jumped into the fray, directing his first swipe at the orange-haired man that was battling Itachi, did the battle begin again. Faster than lightning, he had teleported next to them, leaving the rampaging Naruto alone to deal with the Akatsuki Leader.
"What the hell are you doing, Itachi?" Shisui queried nervously. "We don't know if this Pein guy-"
"Shisui," he cut off his cousin sharply. "Look to your right."
A white mane was flowing in the wind, making Kakashi heave a relieved sigh.
"Hatake, please go help Jiraiya-sama. My cousin and I will deal with this... Madara."
What the silver-haired ninja didn't know was that Itachi was sympathizing wholeheartedly with the kyuubi's wrath.
It was high time the Akatsuki fell.
-X-
Red eyes confronted red eyes. Itachi was well aware that Sakura was under a genjutsu so strong that not even she, a natural genjutsu user, was able to break it. He was angry at her, of course, but his temper cooled off when a fine line of blood trickled from her mouth.
"It is quite a handy genjutsu," the masked Akatsuki said mockingly. "Tsukiyomi, one of the three forbidden techniques of the Mangekyou Sharingan. I have to say it has become one of my favorites."
"The black fire," Shisui questioned, his usual cheery tone gone and replaced by a cold, hard one. Madara chuckled softly.
"How observant of you, my young descendant. The sacred black fire is named after the Goddess of the Sun, Amaterasu."
"Which one is the third?" Itachi asked flatly. "Two actively attack-type techniques with the names of two of the three Gods of the Heavens. Am I wrong to guess the third one is called Susanoo, and is, in fact, a defensive-type jutsu?"
He could feel the heat of both the Kyuubi's chakra and the angry look Madara directed at him. He had hit a bulls-eye with his question.
"I believe your title is truly earned, Itachi," the older nin said in a mild sneer. "I should have gone to you first. It is not too late, though," Madara added, his voice changing into a fairly persuasive, purring tone. "I am well aware of the failings and vices that lie within the Uchiha clan – my clan."
"You know nothing," Shisui sneered, his eyes narrowing in anger.
"Oh, but I know enough, Shisui," Madara pressed on, as he leaned over Sakura's body and lifted her up effortlessly, an arm around her waist and cradling her head on his shoulder. Itachi felt his chin tensing with the gritting of his teeth. "I know that there is a distinctive lack of trained medical staff within our dear family. Diphtheria should be easily treatable, but the Uchiha pride is so strong that the Clan Head simply couldn't ask the Sandaime Hokage for medical attention. In the end, even the Clan Lady fell under this disease. Deaths that should have been avoided, but they weren't, merely because of that stupid pride our family has."
"I would not put it past Akatsuki to attack Konoha through a biological weapon," Itachi observed mildly, although his head was reeling, tying loose ends. He knew that Sasuke was listening, and if his little brother was smart, he would make the connection soon.
Madara laughed. "Let's just say that Kabuto has served me well, even if in the end he turned on the organization and fled with his master; he got everything done."
Itachi realized the grand implications of that strange bout of disease. His and Sasuke's mother, Shisui's father... Sakura's parents.
"So you do not deny it?" Shisui asked, gripping his katana. "You basically killed your own kin and part of the villagers on a whim?"
"Oh no, young Shisui, not on a whim," he answered smoothly, letting Sakura's body fold itself over her back. Both Uchiha tensed. "Whether I ordered the contaminations of the water supplies or not, it is of no importance. What you three should ask yourselves is: how did I manage to slip into the District and do as I pleased? It is not that hard to perceive how deep the clan has fallen into corruption and decadence."
Sasuke, Itachi, and Shisui kept silent. The three of them knew how bad the clan politics were nowadays, thanks to overeager and ambitious elders.
Even their Father and Clan Head. They had heard them talking ill about the village's government more than once.
Itachi narrowed his eyes. "As much as I want to keep discussing politics with a decrepit outsider, one must consider how much influence you have within the clan nowadays," he said smoothly, drawing attention to himself and not even bothering to acknowledge the deafening roar that rocked the shattered battlefield. "It is obvious you have made your presence known among the elders. Poisoning their minds with thoughts of rebellion should not be that hard, since almost all of them are easily swayed by the promise of power."
The crash that resounded was so loud that Sasuke had to move his eyes from his target, noticing that Jiraiya, Kakashi, and Naruto had finally cornered the Akatsuki Leader.
"That man is not the leader," he murmured, his hard voice certain. "You are. You hid behind that mask and moronic attitude and funded this organization to fuel your revenge against the Uchiha... and Konoha."
"How clever, Sasuke-kun!" Madara nodded his head in mocking acquiescence, making Sakura's lean body sway with his movements. "That was not very hard to conclude, was it? Of course, I have the feeling you knew thanks to your little dalliance with Orochimaru. That pushy snake never knew when to leave things alone."
"It's over, Madara," Shisui snarled, gripping his ninjatô. "This ends here."
"Of course it does, boy," the masked man nodded, his Sharingan spinning with a wicked glint. "Let's just hope everything goes down as it should."
-X-
As Naruto was delivering the second to last blow, Jiraiya's voice finally reached his subconscious.
"Gaki! Snap out of it already!"
As the Kyuubi's wild consciousness started to retreat to the seal in his navel, the blond ninja's eyes returned to their lucid state, albeit their color was still red. The chakra cloak was still in place, draped over his body, though Naruto had recovered his senses.
The fall of the man that had helped him train and control the beast within had snapped his control. The mere thought of other comrades – his comrades – falling as well was enough to make him fight the bijuu to gain his body back.
It had helped also that Jiraiya had arrived at just the precise time. Six tails was plenty of energy to spend, and consciousness battle aside, the orange-haired man had been asking for a fight since he learned of the manhunt the Akatsuki organization had ordered on the jinchuuriki's head.
A hunched Kakashi was standing a few steps back, protecting the gashes that Pein's black rods had provoked in the silver-haired man's body. Jiraiya, however, was the most injured of all.
"Naruto, step back," the Sannin ordered in a no-nonsense tone. "This is something I must do."
Obeying the command, the blond shinobi retreated, his attention on his former sensei.
"You okay, Kakashi-sensei?" his raspy voice, a byproduct of the Kyuubi's chakra running over his body like a shroud. The Copy Ninja nodded, turning his head slightly to the battle between the Uchiha.
"We should keep an eye on them," he said simply. "That man is more dangerous than this one-"
A pained grunt and a sigh marked the end of the Akatsuki Leader, by the hands of the Toad Sannin. Looking mauled and exhausted, the old ninja fell to his knees.
Naruto's cloak disappeared as he hurried over to his mentor.
"It's okay, gaki," the white-haired man wheezed. "I just need a little rest."
"Don't worry, Ero-sennin," Naruto's voice was now clear and filled with worry. "We'll get Sakura-chan to patch you up. You'll be fine in no time, you'll see..."
Jiraiya's eyes smiled before closing.
-X-
Down the field, the Uchiha battle was turning rapidly towards disaster.
More than once, the curved kunai that Madara favored so much found purchase on the three Uchiha cousins. Gashes and slashes of the varied kind were now adorning their bodies; and what was more infuriating, none of their attacks had hit the enemy, much to Shisui's frustration.
"Now what?" he hissed to Itachi. "Nothing can hit that geezer. I should use that thing I just copied-"
"No," the ANBU Captain interrupted abruptly. "It is too dangerous. You do not know the effect that jutsu would have on your body."
"And Sakura is still KO," Shisui heaved an irritated sigh, noting how Itachi's chin tightened with the gritting of his teeth. "I'm worried about her."
"So am I," his cousin surprisingly admitted. "She is a natural genjutsu type."
The implications of his statement were enough for Shisui. If she hadn't woken up by now... there was a possibility that she wouldn't.
Deciding his next move was instantaneous. "Let's try the sixty-sixth maneuver," he said, not paying attention to the suspicious glance his Captain directed at him. "I'll go left. Let Sasuke figure how to attack from up there."
"Shisui-" Itachi started to say, but his older cousin cut him off.
"You can punish me later, taichou," he said cheekily. "I'll try this now. You with me?"
Without waiting for an answer, he took off like an arrow released by a bow. Itachi followed, their steps light and moving forward with a purpose.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was simmering in anger. Everything that Madara had spouted behind his orange mask was outrageous. His mother, dead because this decrepit bastard wanted to teach them a lesson, was something he could even begin to fathom. Shisui's father and even Sakura's parents fell to this.
How could no one see that outbreak as an attack? How come the Sandaime or even the Godaime hadn't seen this?
Even as the words were flying around his head, Sasuke knew it was basically impossible for someone to determine that the disease was an organized plot against his clan, against Konoha.
Watching his brother and cousin flash-stepping towards their quarry, Sasuke knew what he had to do.
Three mouths unleashed the same Katon jutsu on the man from three different directions. The strengthened Gokakyuu technique illuminated the field, lighting up several pieces of rubble.
But still, the alleged clan founder showed no sign of damage. His cloak wasn't even singed.
A surge of cold air stirred and raised the flames on the scattered remains, while behind his mask, Madara let out a sound of annoyance.
"Poor, misguided Nagato," he said, shaking his head. "He had to die to see the true extent of his errors."
"And while he was at it," Sasuke's sneering tone was darkly amused, "he deactivated that summoning statue."
"Your pawn is dead," Shisui mimicked his youngest cousin haughty sneer.
"You are alone," Itachi completed in a flat, cold tone.
"And you will die now," Shisui interjected, tossing caution to the wind and calling forth the genjutsu he had copied from his enemy.
A massive wave of pain flooded his brain; the genjutsu was way too strong for his Kekkei Genkai. It was one wicked technique, as he realized the extent of its effect. It was like a black space, waiting to be filled with whatever grueling illusion he could place to break the opponent's fighting spirit.
"Shisui!" Sasuke yelled, as Itachi's eyes widened with the sight, and his heart stung with the horrific realization.
The Uchiha cousin stood there, his Sharingan spinning in a backwards motion. Then, Madara phased out of his spot and planted both kunai in his body. Itachi flashed himself behind his enemy, his ninjatô finding a mark as he plunged the blade mercilessly in Madara's heart.
But the choked gurgle that came out of the masked nin wasn't the sound he had expected.
Itachi drew a sharp breath as his hands flew. "Kai!"
The illusion dispelled, only to realize how wrong he had been.
Madara let out a deep laugh as Itachi's hands wrapped around his cousin's slumped body.
"Tsukiyomi is quite the versatile technique," he mocked. "I can cast any genjutsu I want with just a glance. You have been under the illusion since you left Pein, Itachi."
"You bastard!" Sasuke snarled, swinging down and engaging the enemy with his katana.
Itachi stood there, frozen with the shocking, horrible realization.
He had killed his cousin.
Shisui's head lolled to a side, his eyes already dull with the loss of life. Itachi's Sharingan eyes detailed how his only friend's face was paling slowly, as the wound in his heart poured all the blood contained within his body, staining both their white uniforms.
"Cousin," he whispered, flexing his knees and depositing the body on the ground as gently as he could. The ninjatô was still embedded, and for the second time in his life Itachi experienced true despair as the familiar feeling of loss gripped his very soul.
"... I am so sorry."
His hand shook when he raised it over Shisui's face. Two slender fingers drew a light line over his cousin's eyes, closing his onyx orbs to the world.
Itachi's lips tightened in a determined line, as a wave of cold fury washed over him. "I will avenge you, brother."
A stab of sharp pain made him close his eyes as his lips finished that whispered statement. He felt his eyes burning, chakra was poured forth as Itachi felt how his Sharingan shifted and developed onto a new stage.
He didn't need to see his reflection to see that he had gained the Mangekyou Sharingan.
And now, suicidal move or not, he was going to fulfill his promise to Shisui.
The techniques he had seen from Madara and Sasuke now made much sense as his new eyes reviewed what he had copied before. The Tsukiyomi now seemed much easier to perform.
But that wasn't the technique he wanted to call forth.
Itachi didn't feel the line of blood that streaked down his cheek as he whispered the name of the Goddess of the Sun.
Sasuke elevated once more towards the sky, narrowly avoiding the black fire that shot up from the charred earth. It was a bit surprising, but something he kind of expected now that his cousin's body lay cold on the ground.
"Oh, so you gained the Mangekyou, Itachi," Madara's voice taunted without humor. "It was really a bad form to have Orochimaru approach your brother instead of going directly to the heir, the tensai of the clan," he continued as he waved dismissively to Sasuke, who had landed back on the ground. "Your little bother is pathetic, I have to say. I had to pull back from the coup plans when he rejected the snake's plans."
"Bullshit!" Sasuke snarled. "That foolish snake only wanted an Uchiha body to experiment with the Sharingan. I wasn't about to give him my own."
"Of course," Madara nodded in mock understanding. "You planned to give him your brother's or your cousin's body, correct? When your plan backfired you simply ignored the summons from the snake through the seal. It would have been poetic, would it not, to have the sons of the Head family massacre the entire clan in one night?"
"It would have been simply beautiful. Too bad that you did not fall for the scheme I had devised so carefully. A coup d'état, a fitting revenge against the Senju; it would have been quite the irony that the Uchiha Clan overthrew the Hokage and took over Leaf leadership. But Danzou did not fall for it, sadly. The Uchiha elders were so keen on having you as their champion, Itachi, that they didn't see my own champion. Your little brother."
"You lie," Itachi said firmly, but doubt was already forming in his head. Had he deserted his little brother so badly that he looked for guidance somewhere else? "Sasuke is loyal to our family."
"Ah, of course he is!" Madara's tone was amused. "He is quite the model son and obedient clansman, right? He strives to protect his clan as much as he can. But you need to ask yourself, Itachi... did you shield him enough from the elders' taunts and undermining commentary? It seemed to me that Orochimaru gained an ally since day one because you weren't there for your otouto. But he was a model student for the snake, apparently. It was a true pity that you allowed him to mark you, Sasuke-kun. Now your body is tainted. I have to wonder, though, where did you find enough information on the cursed seal to modify the one on your shoulder."
Sasuke's grin bordered on maniacal. "Why, the Uchiha Shrine, of course," he shot back without shame. "That same Shrine that holds the scroll about the secret Mangekyou techniques, detailing how to gain the forbidden Sharingan level. Unfortunately, aniki's newly improved doujutsu only proves the directives on the scroll true. Too bad that mine wasn't gained through the regular instructions," he finished with a light laugh.
"Who would have thought that you actually have a brain in that jealous head of yours, gaki?" Madara retorted, crossing his arms over his chest. "That scroll has always been a nuisance. If it weren't for it my vengeance on that desecrated clan would have been completed eons ago. Senju Hashirama was dumb enough to trust that wretched thing to your grandfather, when in truth it was high time to destroy it. Why he did not, I ask? It seems to me now that even Fugaku's father was aware of the isolation the Hokage had placed on the clan. Why keep the scroll then, if it was not to have been a final hidden card, a last resort to gain power?"
"Your scheme would have worked if you had captured the Jinchuuriki in their tail order. It would have been a good plan, if you went for Sabaku no Gaara first, instead of the ever ill-tempered Kyuubi. Your plan failed because you underestimated Konoha... and the clan you desecrated and abandoned," Itachi intervened, figuring out the whole picture. Sasuke had been but a pawn in the whole thing. He paled inwardly to the hypothetical scenario. What if it had been him? He could have played devil's advocate and killed the entire clan in a maneuver to cleanse the corruption that festered within. Would he have been capable of terminating his family?
Of course he would, he realized. If the scheme was correct and the coup d'état was planned, the only way to put a stop to it was... exterminating the whole source.
What a horrifying thought.
"Shut up!" Sasuke yelled angrily, breaking into Itachi's thoughts. "It was because of your meddling that my mother is dead! You don't care in the least for the clan you supposedly founded! Why kill us all to get revenge on the Hokage when you could do it yourself?"
"And now my opinion of you has dropped drastically, child," the masked nin sneered, walking to where Sakura's body lay. "I am powerful, but taking on the Hokage's forces would have been suicide. Even the Sandaime, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was regarded as one of the most skilled shinobi in Fire Country when he was younger. He could have killed Orochimaru if he wished, but his heart... his heart was soft and weak, in true Leaf fashion."
"However," Itachi cut the discussion, "You miscalculated, Madara, just as Kakuzu miscalculated. The old ways might have worked back in your time, but eventually, everything evolves into a new state. You stayed behind."
Unheeding the taunt and picking Sakura's limp form gently, Madara observed that both Uchiha brothers tensed. "One of the main examples of Konoha's weakness. A delicate, fragile flower about to be crushed under the onslaught of the primal fire."
"Let her go!" Sasuke yelled, noting out of the corner of his eye that Naruto and Kakashi had started running towards them. The time was now.
"So this is your weakness as well, Sasuke? Yours, Itachi? You two are nothing but fools."
With a wide arc, Madara threw Sakura's body towards one of the black bonfires that still burned. Seeing the properties of that accursed fire, which ate everything and didn't allow itself to be put out with water like a normal flame, it was sure that she would burn in an instant if...
Sasuke moved, only to stop when he saw Itachi jumping over the line of her fall, catching her nimbly in his arms. His hands cradled her gently to him, as his newly gained Sharingan roved over her unconscious face.
It was only then that the young Uchiha understood the true extent of his aniki's feelings for his pink-haired teammate.
"So it was true..." he whispered, before raising his chakra in a wave of scorching rage.
"Sasuke," Itachi called, but it was too late.
"Stand back! He is going to die by my hands!"
A strong wind shook their forms as a humongous cloud gathered unnaturally over their heads. A strong smell of ozone filled the air, and the sound of thunder reverberated through the field.
"Sasuke!"
Naruto's sudden scream was lost to the youngest Uchiha, as he lifted his hands to the heavens.
"Kirin!"
The effect was devastating. Ripples of electricity hit Sasuke's body as the current took a canine-like, beastly form. The Uchiha's eyes cried blood as his final and most powerful jutsu was built.
"This is the last time you destroy someone's life, Uchiha!"
Itachi had no other choice but to jump away, carrying Sakura's body with him towards the rest of Team Seven, who quickly took cover from the massive electrical storm. The ensuing explosion rocked the very foundations of Rain's Village, shattering the neighboring buildings and crumbling them to piles of rubble.
Leaving Sakura with a burnt-looking Naruto, Itachi teleported back outside, fearing the worst.
In the slowly clearing field, a deep crater had been carved; a charred, mangled form lying in the center.
Itachi ran.
"... Sasuke?"
-XxX-
AN: Yup, I did. I went there. 8D
If you didn't get it, Sasuke knew part of Madara's scheme against the Uchiha clan, but never occurred to him that the clan founder was the one that concocted the idea. He only thought that it was Orochimaru's doing, seeing that he claimed – while he was training Sasuke under Itachi and Team Seven's very nose – to be the wronged party during his exile. In the end, Sasuke disregarded his whining for what it was, emo grumpy bitching, without realizing that his comments were based loosely on Madara's plan. Sorry if I couldn't explain it properly.
Regarding Shisui... he was destined to die since chapter one. You have no idea how much it pained me to kill him. In a battle so great like this one, it was bound for losses to occur. Shisui was the key to Itachi's Mangekyou in canon as well, so I thought fitting for him to help his cousin one last time before he kicked the bucket. But my dear Shisui lives in my heart, and I can promise now I will portray him more in another story I'm planning.
Sakura is no Mary Sue like a person so rudely pointed out. She is out because she took the whole Tsukiyomi technique in her head, falling in it like a card castle because she really didn't see it coming. When Itachi placed this jutsu on Sasuke and Kakashi in the manga, I realized that the technique should have been quite strong to place both of them under a coma. Sakura, while she is a natural genjutsu user, and the fact that she was caught off guard, clearly is no match to the brunt of the whole technique, especially if it was cast by a ruthless son of a bitch like Madara.
Madara... he is one serious bitch to write, in both characterizations of his.
Oh, and one more thing. Since Sasuke is the only one that knows about the Mangekyou and Itachi just gained it, Kakashi does not have it. Gods bless Alternate Realities!
Once more, my deepest thanks to MelissaRose85 for her sharp betaing skills, and to you all for reading. Only two more left!