A Perception of Reality

by knightchaser

There is a belief that states for every action taken, the alternative action is played out in another dimension. In one reality Itachi succeeded in killing his clan, in another, he failed. This is the story of what happened when he failed.

83. Chapter 83 That Place He Calls Home

Thanks for all the reviews and favs!

Manga: So Konan can use her paper jutsu in the rain. She kept that a secret, didn't she? Good for her! And she wounded Madara! But I remembered that Kabuto is now working for Akatsuki so he'll get a new arm… somehow… probably… xD Proving beyond a doubt that Kishimoto is capable of writing powerful, beautiful women. Either that or he hired a ghost writer to do it for him…

Next week will be the epilogue, so, please review and let me know what you think.

I always have trouble thinking up title, but I like the title to this chapter because "He" can refer to any number of people in the story.

Disclaimer: Kishimoto owns Naruto

Chapter 83 That Place He Calls Home

Food was the last thing on Fugaku's mind as he ignored the suggestion from the medic to have some dinner and instead left the Konoha base camp to head towards the collapsed hideout. The early evening sun was still warm and the chirping birds and rustling bushes signaled that the animals Madara had scared away with his jutsus had returned. Although they were no doubt still spooked by the sudden shaking of the earth and intense waves of chakra, instinct told them where to find food and where their nests and dens were. They couldn't help but return.

"A lot like people, I guess." Fugaku muttered to himself. "A bird will almost always rebuild a destroyed nest in the same place, and we just keep going back to our villages and rebuilding the same corrupt, violent society."

"Ah! There you are." Kakashi was sitting on a boulder talking to Sasori, Bee and Yugito while the rest of the group, including Naruto and Sasuke sat on the ground finishing up their dinner.

"Yeah… this place took a lot of damage. You were lucky to get out." Fugaku observed as he surveyed the jumbled earth, boulders and uprooted trees that were bad enough to make anyone loose hope that there would be survivors. It just didn't seem possible.

"Dumb luck, if you ask me." Sasori responded drily.

Fugaku took a quick count and frowned, "There's one missing."

"He took off." Naruto answered, referring to the Jinchuuriki from the Stone village. "He was afraid they would make him go back to his village."

"Hmm." The clan lord knew the Stone Kage would be very upset to hear that, but as long as he had gotten out safe and was well enough to run away then it wasn't completely bad news.

"Sasuke," The boy cringed when Fugaku called his name and he closed his eyes momentarily knowing how hard this was going to be, "we need to talk."

All eyes were on Sasuke as he stood up and followed his father back along the path. They stopped a couple hundred feet from the group and each leaned back against the rough bark of a pine tree.

"This isn't going to be what you want to hear, son." Fugaku's voice was calm as he fixed his eyes firmly on the young boy in front of him, "But you're going to have to return to Mist."

"What? Why?" Sasuke hadn't intended for the exclamations to come out as a whine, but they did anyway. "I don't want to go back!"

"I know, but we need someone to keep an eye on the Uchiha there. Sora has to step down as clan leader in order to fulfill the terms of the goddesses' curse. You are perfect for that role."

"M…me?" Sasuke stuttered. It sounded almost like a compliment, like his father had finally recognized his abilities and was bestowing an honor on him. Saying that he was capable of managing the affairs of the Mist branch of the clan came with a large amount of responsibility and faith. But at the same time, the twelve-year-old boy inside of him balked, "I can't do that! I don't know anything about how to…"

"Sora will stay and teach you. And you will have the elder council to help. And, of course, I will be standing behind you. I believe there were a few things about that clan that you wanted to change?"

Sasuke stood straight and his eyes opened wide. There were a lot of things he wanted to change. The classism between the main and side branches, the elitism of the elder council, the ostracism of clan members who did not wish to be shinobi, and of course, the ceremony that robbed young ninja and kunoichi of their lives.

"I guess… I'll do my best." Sasuke had meant for the words to come out firm and full of commitment, but they were meek and barely spoken above a whisper. He cleared his throat and tried again and this time he succeeded, "I'll do my best. I'll learn a lot from Sora and study hard and help them."

"That's my boy." Fugaku smiled reassuringly. The boy's hesitation and nervousness were reassuring for some reason and it took him a minute to realize why. There was no arrogance in the promise. He new that years ago when he was twelve and studying under his mentor he was full of arrogance and that emotion was more than encouraged by those around him. It had almost destroyed his life, his families lives, and his clan.

It was certainly no indication that Sasuke wouldn't grow up to become like that, but all Fugaku could do, or even knew how to do, was to step aside and let his son grow up on his own. And trust in his judgement.

"Do I get to go home first? Before I leave?" Sasuke asked shyly. After all, he had left under less than ideal circumstances and returning, while sitting in his heart as his deepest wish, was also going to be highly embarrassing.

"Mikoto would have my head if I said no." Fugaku laughed. "Of course you can come. It will likely take a couple months for Mist village to settle down anyway. They have to find a new Kage and the Uchiha have to prepare for your arrival. It's better if they deal with each event individually instead of all at once."

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As expected, Sasuke's friends were a little less than excited about him leaving permanently. But at the same time, they were happy he was going to be in a position to make a difference with the notoriously militant Mist village.

Naruto was the most disappointed, having looked forward to his foster brother's return for months. And of course Sakura and Sai were sitting next to him, later that night in the Konoha camp, feeling just as dejected.

"We're never going to be together again." Naruto pouted.

"You can visit." Sasuke tried to reassure him. "And… we can write letters to each other."

"It won't be the same." Sakura sighed. "It was fun going on missions we always had a good time. It was easy for me to forget my parent were gone when I was with you guys."

"He's not dead, you know." Kakashi joined them and dropped down to the ground, "And even though Sasuke is leaving, the team is still staying together. They won't let me get rid of you guys that easy."

Naruto laughed, "As if you'd want to!"

The white haired jounin grinned nervously and scratched his head, remembering all the times he had wished he could stuff the noisy loudmouth in a barrel and send him down the river. Then of course there was the boy-crazy Sakura and the know-it-all and completely tactless Sai whom he wished, at times, had barrels of their own. But when all was said and done, "No, I wouldn't trade you guys for the world. I wouldn't want my life to get boring, after all."

That amused Sasuke and he laughed for the first time in who knew how long, "If I get lonely I'll just hire Team 7 for a party at my place."

"That's the idea!" Naruto responded energetically, "We'll teach them Mist people how to party!"

"Good luck with that." Sai responded drily. "Like you know anything about throwing a party."

The five friends talked until early morning, finally falling asleep where they sat just as the sun was rising.

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A familiar sense of urgency greeted Itachi as he opened his eyes. He could feel a hand on his legs and he pulled back as he tried to stand up, only to be restrained by several more hands.

"Calm down, we're getting ready to transport you to Konoha." He blinked his eyes as the reality of where he was and what the situation was returned to him. The medic smiled warmly as he calmed down and relaxed. She was strapping him to a special stretcher that would be placed in a horse-drawn cart. Because several other shinobi were also being transported it would guarantee that they weren't jostled too much by the ride or tossed around and injured worse than they already were.

"Sorry about that… I just…"

The medic laughed, "Don't worry about it. It's normal for a ninja to react like that when they wake up in the field and feel people near them. I'm used to it. All part of the job, you know."

"That's why we're here." Two large, muscular ninjas stood nearby smiling. Obviously they had been prepping several other injured Shinobi if the bruises and cuts on their faces and arms were any indication.

"I should get a picture of this, un." Deidara, his hair drawn up completely in a topknot and his blue eyes free of his eye scope stared down at him. Gone were the Akatsuki cloak, uniform, and in its place a pair of khaki shorts and a pale blue and white striped tank top. "Itachi tied up, un."

"Sheeta would probably want a copy too." Kisame strode up behind the blond and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "You two can fight over it."

Deidara frowned and muttered, annoyed "That's not what I meant."

Itachi decided to ignore the comment and address his pirate friend, "Where have you been?"

"With Madara." He dropped down into a folding chair and stretched his legs out in front of him and yawned loudly. "He's in pretty bad shape, mentally and physically. Can't say I feel sorry for him though. We reap what we sow." He paused for a moment before continuing, "Then again, we sow what those before us have reaped. It's such a frustratingly confusing conundrum that I try not to dwell on it."

"So…" Deidara tried to understand what Kisame had just said, "He did what he did because someone else drove him to it… then… then… he went too far."

"You got it!" Kisame laughed, "More or less."

"What are his plans? Has he considered any yet?" Itachi asked as he folded his arms over his chest. He was thankful the medic didn't feel the need to bind them as well. Some, of course, were a little more "rope" happy than others.

Kisame was silent for several minutes before continuing in a low, thoughtful voice that didn't really sound like him, "I brought up a course of action. I suggested that Madara place himself in the position of Water country Daimyou. I offered to become his aide. He believes the woman he has working as the 'acting' Daimyou should take his place as Mizukage. And of course Sasuke will study under Sora to replace him as clan chief."

"That's a big responsibility." Itachi observed, "I know how much you hate the capital. Are you sure this is something you can do?"

His advice made Kisame smile, "When exactly did you grow up to become so wise? What happened to that little kid I pulled out of the river so many years ago? Hmm… so much has changed. So much… but perhaps this is exactly what I need to do."

Itachi tried to laugh, but it hurt his bruised chest and he settled for smiling, "If I remember right you were the one who dumped me in the river in the first place." He turned to Deidara, "What are you going to do?"

The teen smiled, flashing his white teeth, "I'm going to Konoha to visit for a while then I'm going to travel around with Sasori. We're talking about some sort of artist village or something where artists can go and… well… practice art! And other people will come and buy our stuff."

"Sasori wants this?" Kisame said skeptically. "He doesn't seem like the type to settle in one place."

"He is." Deidara assured him, "He has several houses but because he's a wanted criminal he has to keep moving."

Itachi responded dryly, "Yeah, I can see how stealing corpses and turning them into puppets would get you driven out of your neighborhood frequently."

"Exactly!" Deidara laughed.

The medic interrupted, "It's time to go now, Itachi. I'm going to sedate you so you can sleep during the journey."

"How come you're sending him by cart and not jutsu?" Kisame asked curiously.

"The transportation jutsu used for that is reserved for only the worst cases because the amount of chakra it requires limits the number of times it can be done. We also could use animal summons, but they tend to travel in odd ways and, well, not many people want to travel in a frog belly or tied to the back of a dog or wolf."

"True. True." Kisame stood and yawned again. "Well, I've got to get back to the ship and get some sleep. We'll be in touch, Itachi." With that he folded his hands in front of him and disappeared.

Deidara moved toward the exit of the large tent, "I'll see you in Konoha, Itachi, un." But Itachi was already asleep before he finished his sentence.

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A scared and blood Sasuke looked up into his eyes as Itachi held him up by the neck against the wall. The young boy's fear and hatred evident in his eyes and his trembling body. The pain he was feeling went unnoticed.

Yet it wasn't enough. It wasn't enough to guarantee his survival. It wasn't enough to save his friends. It wasn't enough to ensure the future of the Uchiha clan. And it wasn't enough to kill the man who had murdered the entire clan.

Sasuke wasn't nearly as powerful as he should have been. Something was holding him back. Something was keeping him from seeking vengeance.

Itachi snuck a quick glance behind him. Jiraiya and Naruto stood several feet down the hall near Kisame, who was holding them back with his sword. He realized what was holding his little brother back.

'I'll just have to remind him why I let him live.' His eyes bled into their Mangekyou form and as he entered the boy's mind he showed him the events of that night. The murdered bodies, husbands trying to protect wives, wives mourning over the bodies of husbands as they, too, succumbed. Every horrible detail was shown in gory detail.

When it ended he leaned down and whispered into his brother's ear… "It's because you lack hatred."

The scene changed to a black and red world and Itachi found himself standing in front of himself. There was no wind, no scent, just the "nothingness" that was the world Itachi had created for his Tsukuyomi jutsu.

"You again." The other Itachi's eye's face was bitter and his haunted eyes stern, almost hypnotic. His voice, while even and tempered, was nevertheless angry and full of spite, "What do you want?"

"N…nothing. I don't know why or how I got here." He paused, "Who are you?"

"Itachi Uchiha. Member of Akatsuki."

"No, that can't be. Akatsuki no longer exists."

There was silence for several minutes, then the other Itachi spoke up in a softer voice, "Really? So… then…" He locked eyes with his doppelganger and smiled, "Thank-you."

Itachi cried out as he sat up in bed and threw the blankets off of his body.

"What are you doing young man? Get back into bed!" A stern woman's voice commanded and, guessing that he was probably in the hospital in Konoha by now, fully expecting to see Tsunade standing over him. To his surprise it was his mother.

"S…sorry." Itachi dropped back down onto the mattress and sighed, "Bad dream."

"Obviously." The woman sat down on a nearby chair, then smiled, "Everyone has been having bad dreams. Sasuke had one last night that you beat him up."

"He… didn't!" Itachi was shocked at the revelation, "Because I had a dream that I beat him up!"

"You two. Sometimes I don't know what to do with you." Luckily she just dropped the matter, and Itachi was glad he didn't have to explain any further. Whatever had happened it was in al alternate reality, apparently. He remembered a few other dreams he had like that and blamed his eyes. The Sharingan was obviously full of mystery.

But the smile that other Itachi had given him wouldn't leave his thoughts. What did it mean?

'I'll probably never know.' He thought to himself, 'And somehow, that makes me happy.' That world where Sheeta died, where his parents died, where his children were never born, it was too much to contemplate. To much…

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"Stay here and don't leave the cabin. I'll bring everything you need to you. If the crew finds out I'm granting you passage back to Water they'll have my head." Kisame instructed his two "guests." "The bathroom is through that door, including a sink for water."

"Thank-you, Kisame." Madara answered without emotion. While he was grateful to Kisame for allowing him on board, he would have rather stayed behind at the base – even if it was almost completely destroyed – for a while to think. But Sora had other plans. He wanted to get back and get things put into motion. He needed to prepare for Sasuke's arrival, and of course Madara needed to petition the elder council to find a new Mizukage.

And of course there was Aya. He needed to talk to her. He needed to convince her to stay with him. Madara had realized in the last twenty-four hours just how much he looked forward to seeing her again. And their unborn child. He wanted to see her grow up. Just as much as he was looking forward to seeing Sasuke grow up.

Kisame smiled, "You're taking this better than I thought."

"What was I supposed to be doing?" He walked over to the two-foot wide window and stared out at the shrinking coastline. The sun was coming up and he wondered how many more sunrises he would see before he could finally fulfill the terms of his curse. Hundred? Thousands? Tens of thousands? Or, god forbid, millions?

"You do have quite a temper, you know."

"I'm too tired to throw a tantrum. Maybe later." His voice was tired, and of course it wasn't an act. The fight three days ago had drained him considerably and his bruised body and ego were taking a while to heal.

Sora laid down on one of the two narrow twin beds, "Me too."

"Well, that's good. No trouble from you guys then. I just have a drunken crew to deal with then. They just can't stop celebrating, you know." He laughed, "At this point I'm not sure they even know what they're celebrating anymore!"

"Maybe someday I can join them." Madara smiled, "Let me know, Kisame, what I can do…"

Kisame laughed again, "It's on the list, Madara, and no doubt it will make them very happy. They want their home back. The lost villages the previous Daimyou's destroyed."

"Whirlpool? That was the biggest."

"Yeah. And a half-dozen others. But we can discuss it later." There was a sudden bang from the port side of the ship and Kisame jumped to the door, "Right now I need to get that cannon out of the reach of a bunch of drunken pirates before they end up sinking the ship. I don't really feel like walking to Water country."

As the door closed Madara dropped down onto his bed and stretched, "I've slept almost two days straight and I still feel like I could sleep another week."

"Me too."

"Me three." Madara and Sora sat straight up and stared wide eyed at the intruder.

"Zetsu?" The elder Uchiha gasped in shock.

"Hi." He waved good naturedly as his alter-ego spoke in a robotic monotone, "I told you we should have asked if we could come instead of popping up like this."

Madara shook his head, "Welcome aboard, old friend. There are only two beds but if you ask nicely I think Kisame can find an empty room for you. No need to hang out with us, I know how solitary you are."

"Thank-you." The white side responded politely, "I will ask then." The black also commented, "We'll wait here until he comes back." He stood up and closed the Venus flytrap appendage over his head. A few seconds later he was sound asleep.

"I guess he doesn't need a bed." Madara observed. "Funny how I never noticed that before."

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Shisui snuggled deeper in his grandfather's arms as Itachi looked on with amazement. Fugaku actually seemed attached to the infant despite his handicaps and in the month since he had returned to Konoha he seemed to spend a lot of time with the young boy. Of course, the fact that Shisui seemed to respond better to his therapy the more physical contact he had endeared him to all the baby-crazy adults and teenagers he came into contact with.

"Look at this, he can lift his arms." Fugaku wriggled his fingers a few inches from his grandson and smiled as the boy lifted his arms about three inches and tried to grab them.

"It's certainly a big improvement." Itachi agreed. The prognosis for his son wasn't the best, but it wasn't the worst either. A specialist had visited the family and said it looked like Shisui would probably gain partial use of his arms, but his legs would never be strong enough to walk. Of course, he also said that was no reason to stop trying.

Rumiko hadn't escaped the specialist's interest either. But while her prognosis was better, his diagnosis was that she also had problems with motor function and one ear was completely deaf.

"It's all that Danzou's fault." Was what the clan kept whispering. But Itachi didn't care anymore. He had seen what the life of a shinobi did to children and he was more than ready and eager to see his kids live the life a kid should lead. Besides, they would learn jutsus, and he would make sure they could protect themselves. Because if there was one thing he understood, it was that there were no guarantees in life.

A happy day today was no guarantee tomorrow wouldn't be full of tears.

He was broken out of his thoughts as Rumiko let loose with an ear-splitting screech. Smiling he looked over and saw Sasuke and Naruto covering their ears and laughing.

"I bet that's some kind of secret jutsu." The blond laughed.

"'Drive-your-family-insane' no jutsu." Sheeta laughed as she picked up the crying baby and draped her over her shoulder. Rumiko immediately quieted down and proceeded to blow spit bubbles.

"I'm going to miss them when I leave." Sasuke observed. "But I have a little sister coming soon."

"I still can't believe Aya decided to stay with Madara." Sheeta sighed. "But at least we can travel over there without all that tension now. Somehow, that makes her seem closer to us than before."

"Your mother will be accompanying Sasuke to Mist so she can be with Aya during the last part of her pregnancy." Mikoto spoke up, "She'll take lots of pictures and write lots of pictures, no doubt."

The warm summer day continued pleasantly for the family as they tried, for that day at least, to put the past behind them and look forward to the future. Because now they had a future.

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The End.

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Next week will be the last chapter. We'll skip forward ten years and see how everyone is doing.

Yeah, Itachi's kids have problems, I know a lot of you said you wanted them to be Shinobi, but sometimes life doesn't work out that way. I could go into a long explanation, but I think just telling you to wait for next week to see how they turn out is better.

I kind of feel like the ending was pretty weak. It definitely lacked the emotion of the first story, but then the circumstances are completely different. It was very hard to write and I kept revising it (which may have been a mistake.)

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