And finally the second half of chapter two! Read, enjoy :)

Chapter Two part II

Kakashi stood in front of a door, staring intently at the wooden surface as he waited for the doctor to join him. In the room was one of the boys he had agreed to take into his custody, take home with him and care for until they were old enough to go out into the world and live for themselves. They had said Itachi was in bad shape and it might be weeks to months before he was able to leave the hospital. It made Kakashi worry even more, if Sasuke wasn't in the house like the police claim then he had to have been with his brother. He knew the Uchihas and they never let Sasuke walk around alone at night, Itachi was sent out to fetch him when neither of them could do it. So whoever attacked Itachi must have done something to Sasuke as well, it was the only explanation Kakashi could come up with but until he could talk to the injured boy, it was all just theory.

The clack of heels drew his attention from the wooden door, a fairly tall woman in a white doctor's coat was heading his way down the hallway. Her blonde hair was in low pigtails and her honey colored eyes were focused on him. She stopped in front of the silver haired man, eyeing him almost suspiciously, before extending her hand, "I'm Dr. Tsunade Densetsu and you must be Kakashi Hatake, correct?"

"Yes, it'd be a pleasure if not for the unfortunate circumstances," The silveret said, giving her hand a firm shake, "If we could, I'd like to see Itachi now."

"Of course, please right this way."

He followed her into the room, closing the door behind him, and stopping in horror at the sight on the bed. The strong student he knew from his classes was gone and a helpless little boy was laying in his place. He had been briefed on Itachi's condition, knew it was going to be bad but seeing him wrapped practically from head to toe in bandages and plaster made it feel so much more real.

Tsunade stepped up to the footboard, slipping the metal clipboard from its place at the end of the bed. Honey colored eyes scanned the contents before moving to stand beside Kakashi, "I know you've been told about his condition but I'd like to go through his injures with you now, if that's alright?"

Kakashi nodded once, dark orbs locked on the boy's battered face.

"Let's see here... well as you can see, his head and face is mostly unscathed with a large gash near his temple, stitches were needed. Both eyes are swollen shut, mostly from his broken nose. There's some swelling around the jaw line but it's nothing to worry about.

Moving down, his torso is almost entirely bruised, he has at least three cracked ribs and one broken. His right wrist is broken, a clean break and should heal nicely. His left arm, both the radius and alna were broken, metal screws were needed to fix the break. His left shoulder was also dislocated, the slot was free of debris and reinserted smoothly.

Hmm... all the bones in his left leg minus the femur and some of the smaller bones in his toes have been broken at least once, multiple screws were required to repair the damage. His right knee, the way it was dislocated, lead us to the assumption that his attackers held his leg up and stomped on it until it snapped."

Anger had Kakashi's hands balled into tight fists at his sides, afraid to move in case he attacked the doctor next to him. The woman placed her hand gently on his shoulder, "I know this is horrible and you have every right to be furious but being angry will only make things worse. Itachi needs someone to support and comfort him, his parents are dead and his brother missing. He'll have enough anger without adding yours to it."

"Has there been any leads in finding out what happened, who did this? The Uchiha's house fire, his attack and finding Sasuke?"

"I'm sorry but I'm not privy to that information. I can send an officer your way to update you."

Kakashi's anger had faded and he slumped down into the chair next to the bed, watching the dark haired boy sleep. He shook his head, silver strands swishing quietly against the back of the chair. In the quiet of the room, both heard the groan of pain from the bed. The silveret jumped forward, hoping the child was waking up, while Dr. Densetsu moved around to the other side though it seemed to be nothing, Itachi still slept, lips mouthing words but no sounds escaping. Kakashi collapsed back into the chair as Tsunade bid him goodnight and left the room. He knew he wasn't leaving until the boy woke up and nobody was sure when that would be, so the dark eyed man got comfortable in his spot, head thrown back and eyes closed though he knew no sleep was going to claim him.

xxx

It was closing in on two months when Itachi was finally released from the hospital. All the superficial wounds and bruising had healed and he'd made extraordinary progress in his physiotherapy. The boy was able to use crutches for short periods of time, his healing shoulder unable to support his weight. The bones in his arms were mostly repaired, the casts removed and only tightly wrapped bandages were left. A brace had been put on his dislocated knee, letting it bend naturally but keeping it from popping out of place again. Itachi's left leg was still in a cast, the multiple breaks taking longer to heal then the rest.

At first Itachi was angry and bitter when the police came to speak to him about his family. He had told them his story and an amber alert had been put out on his brother though even after two months, there had been no sight of Sasuke anywhere.

Kakashi had been a constant in his healing process, always calm and understanding but Itachi could see the anger in the man's eyes, letting the boy know that his words weren't just excuses and that he really understood how he felt. The silver haired male`s lover had come to visit once during his stay at the hospital, the man was gentle and caring, almost more of a mother figure then a father. He hadn't met Iruka's adopted son during his recovery but he would as soon as he was taken to his new home.

The lazy man was waiting for him as he was wheeled to the hospital entrance, all the last minute paperwork finished. Itachi was allowed to take home a wheelchair for the next month or so until he was able to get around on his crutches all the time. He still had physio three times a week for the next four to five months with weekly checkups or until his doctor said otherwise.

The wheelchair stopped in front of his new guardian, "Hey kiddo, ready to get out of here?" Kakashi smirked as he moved to push Itachi to the car.

"Hn." The young raven refused to look his way and only grunted in response.

The trip to the house was a silent one, not that Kakashi didn't attempt conversation but Itachi seemed to be off in another world or perhaps he was simply ignoring him, not that he could tell the difference. Eyes the color of the night sky surveyed the quaint little two story house as they pulled into the driveway, no one was standing on the lawn with homemade signs for him or anything embarrassing like that and Itachi was pretty relieved with that. He had the feeling it was something Iruka would do. The boy was helped from the car and steadied on his crutches, his guardian following him up the short walk. At the front door, Kakashi went back to the car to retrieve the wheelchair and a large suitcase. Since all of Itachi`s belongings were destroyed in the fire, the silveret had gone shopping and bought a wide selection of clothes for the boy. As the man returned, the door opened to allow Iruka through to help Kakashi, he smiled gently at the raven after he placed the suitcase inside the entrance. The brunet turned back and led Itachi in with a hand on the boy`s back, pale skin furrowing between the eyes in a scowl at the gesture.

Once everyone was inside and the door shut behind them, the brown haired male moved toward the stairs, "Naruto! Kakashi`s home!" There was a muffled cheer and then the thumping sound of someone upstairs stomping their way down to them.

"Kashi!" Pools of black watched passively as a tiny blond boy came charging into the room and full out tackled his guardian. He barely stumbled though, catching the child easily.

"Hey kiddo! Been good while I was gone?" The silveret chuckled, plopping the kid back on the floor.

The golden mop flew everywhere as he nodded enthusiastically, looking quite a bit like a bobble head, "Yup, I was!" Naruto's aquatic blue spheres immediately zeroed in on Itachi, moving to stand in front of him. Tilting his head to the side, he glanced at his adopted father from the corner of his eye, "So, this is my new brother? But you said I'd have two, where's the other one?"

The dark haired youth looked livid, glaring down at the blond's back. He heard nothing of what Iruka was saying, that didn't matter to him. Itachi didn't want a new brother; he wanted Sasuke, his little brother! Coal black eyes suddenly met with blue and the guilty look in those deep pools shocked him. The raven kept his blank face though, waiting for whatever this boy had to say.

The blond didn't apologize but instead extended his hand, "Hi, I'm Naruto! I know you already have a little brother but I've never had one before, and I was wondering if you'd like to have another one?"

The kicked puppy look had never worked on Itachi, not even when Sasuke had done it. Using his crutches, he pushed Naruto aside, and started to hobble further into the house. As the raven haired youth moved past, he felt a hand on his shoulder and knew it was Kakashi. He didn't need to look at his teacher turned guardian to know what the man wanted.

"Hn, fine. My name is Itachi." The boy didn't glance back before he continued into the kitchen and missed the sunny grin on the young blond's face.

xxx

It was late, the whole house was quiet and Itachi was sure everyone else had gone to bed. For the first time in his life he hadn't celebrated Sasuke's birthday with him. The realization that morning that he was never going to see his little brother again had hit him hard, and he hadn't had the strength to get out of bed. Iruka had brought him food throughout the day but Itachi hadn't had an appetite for anything.

A soft knock on his door had dark eyes turning away from the ceiling. A blond mop poked through the opening, "Tachi?" The surprisingly timid voice asked from the doorway, "Can I come in?"

Itachi didn't respond but his lack of acknowledgement was answer enough for Naruto, who shuffled his way to the side of the bed. After pausing and staring for a long moment, the decision to crawl in beside the older teen and cuddle into his side was made and quickly done.

"Do you miss them?"

Midnight spheres stayed focused on the shadowy ceiling, "Hmm... My parents? I suppose. They were never around much, busy as they were."

"What about your brother?" Glowing cerulean watched intently as the elder crinkled his face in an odd show of pain.

Itachi resisted the urge to yell at the boy (he didn't know better after all), "It was Sasuke's birthday today," He started with a forceful sigh, "I've never missed his birthday before."

The brunet jerked at the feel of arms wrapping tightly around his middle. Looking down, he found that messy golden mass resting on his chest and without thought, enfolded the younger into his own arms, cheek against blond locks.

Long minutes past in silence until finally, Naruto shifted, "You know, if you want I could help you look for him?"

The teen snorted, "There is no point, he's gone."

"That's not true! He's not dead which means you can keep looking until you find him."

Itachi glanced down at the glaring blue eyes in wonder, "Your naivety is astounding."

"I don't know what that means but I don't like the sound of it," As the boy paused to take an angry breath, he heard a sound he'd never heard coming from the raven haired teen before. Chuckling, honest to goodness chuckling had a large grin splitting Naruto's face, "You're laughing!"

A cough covered chuckle, "I am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too!"

"Go to sleep, Naruto." Itachi put a hand over the boy's mouth as he opened it to say something else.

When both were calm again and on the verge of sleep, a groggy voice whispered, "Don't worry Tachi, we'll find him together."

"Yeah sure."

"It's a promise then?"

Itachi smiled softly into the darkness, thoughts of Sasuke filling his head, "It's a promise."

xxx

"Hey Tachi?" The thirteen year old blond asked, eyes closed, from his spot sprawled across the elder boy's bed.

"What have I told you about calling me that?"

Naruto rolled his baby blues behind his lids before answering, "Yeah yeah whatever. I was trying to ask you a question here," He heard a slight hum in acknowledgement, so continued, "Can you tell me about Sasuke?"

The dark haired teen went rigid in the chair at his desk, the clacking broke off as his fingers froze over the keyboard, leaving the room in silence. The blond quickly opened his mouth to take the words back (they'd never really spoken about Sasuke before) when Itachi's deep voice spoke up, "What would you like to know?"

His voice was smooth and quiet, with a tone Naruto had never heard from his older brother before. He spoke just as softly, not wanting to ruin the moment, "Anything. Whatever you want to talk about."

Itachi kept his back to the blond, knowing his eyes would give away how much it still hurt to think about his little brother, "Very well... Sasuke adored me when we were young. He looked up to me the way most children look up to their parents. Ours weren't around very often and so he turned to me in their stead. He was also incredibly naive, believing everyone to be his friend and I had to save him from a few sticky situations. I remember this onetime..."

xxx

The slamming of the front door and the clomp of booted feet was the very loud sign that his roommate was home. Twenty one year old Itachi Uchiha sat at his desk, in front of his laptop, writing up his first report as a Konoha detective. He had decided at an early age to always leave his bedroom door open, closing it had never done any good anyway, and moments later, a blond blur flung itself onto his freshly made bed.

"I don't know how you did it, Tachi?" Came the mumbled voice through a pillow.

The dark haired male hummed distractedly, "Did what, Naruto?"

"This College thing and so young too. It sucks hardcore!" The younger of the two flipped onto his back, hugging the pillow to his chest.

"It's only your first year, it'll get worse before it gets better."

Fortunately for Itachi's ears, the blond covered his face in the available fluff before screaming at the top of his lungs, and when he had finished, pulled the pillow back slightly, "Don't tell me that, you jerk!"

The elder watched, amused as Naruto then began to roll side to side in a sad attempt to do... well Itachi wasn't quite sure what the other was trying to accomplish but he was sure that it wasn't working. Turning back to his screen, dark eyes scanned the written words as the clacking of keys resumed.

"I really don't think I'm going to make it through this year yet alone the next three."

At the dismal voice, the young detective turned to look at his brother (the boy had been extremely determined and incredibly irresistible and had somehow managed to worm his way into the male`s heart), sad blue orbs met his obsidian ones and Itachi sighed silently, "Naruto, you know that you don't have to do this, I never asked you to join the force with me. Nobody will be upset if you drop out and do what you really want to."

That caused the blond to jolt into an upright position, "But this is what I really want to do! I want to help you find Sasuke no matter what!"

"The chances of actually finding my brother are none. I'm doing this because I don't want another to go through what I did."

"But Tachi, what about our promise to find him together?"

The blank look in those black as night eyes told Naruto that the elder believed that that had been a child's promise and an unreachable goal. Without a word, Itachi turned back to his computer, the clicking of the keyboard effectively ending the conversation. Ocean spheres watched his adopted big brother thoughtfully for a minute, coming to the realization that the dark haired male assumed Sasuke dead and it was killing him inside. With new determination, Naruto jumped from the bed and headed for his own room. The blond was going to study hard and keep that impossible promise. He was going to find out what happened to Sasuke and either bring the boy home or get that long sought after closure for his brother.

I'd like to take this moment to give a BIG Thank You! to all of you who have read and reviewed/favorited. It always makes my day to see that XD

So I hope you enjoyed and I'd love to hear any comments :3