Hey! I got this up quickly just for you! Because I know how much cliffhangers suck... Okay so for this chapter, I just wanted to say... does the song "All For You" by Sister Hazel remind you of Sasuke and Itachi, or am I just high? Or the song "How You Remind Me" by Nickelback! Am I HIGH? Or am I RIGHT?

Anyways, please review! I went through SO MUCH!... to put this chapter up :) I'll always respect you if you review :D

Sasuke gaped, both touched and shocked by the object. He reached in and pulled it out, stroking the worn out surface.

"Is… is this what I think it is?" Sasuke asked quietly.

"Yes, it is," Aname muttered back. "You gave that to him on his thirteenth birthday, didn't you?"

Sasuke nodded his head. "I-I can't believe he kept it…" He ran his fingers over the word that simply states what the object is.

"JOURNAL," the book read. He looked at Aname, who nodded her head toward the object. "Open it," she said bluntly.

Sasuke continued examining the object in his hand, letting many emotions fill his broken heart at the sight of it. Did this truly mean that there was a truth? That Itachi really did care for him all this time? There was only one way to find out.

Before he opened the journal, he looked up at Aname for encouragement. However, she had vanished. Maybe she wanted to give him a little privacy.

Sasuke opened the front cover to see the title page, which he had written himself before giving the journal to Itachi. "This journal is for Nii-san ONLY! Don't look or I'll do the fireball jutsu on you!" beneath these words was a picture Sasuke had drawn of himself doing the fireball jutsu on his father. Sasuke laughed at the stupidity. But he found it… bittersweet. He felt young and happy again, looking at that picture, holding the journal in his hands. He felt that same urge to be around his brother all the time, the one he had fought back for all these years. But this time, he let it out. He let himself long to be in Itachi's arms again.

It felt wrong, but Sasuke turned the page to the first journal entry.

Itachi had written in his perfect handwriting…

Journal#1

Well, today was my birthday. My little brother got me a journal, so why not write in it? Besides, I feel like I have to get this off my chest a little, since I can't tell anyone in the Uchiha clan.

First of all, my name is Itachi Uchiha. I'm thirteen years old, as of today, and I live in Konoha. I work for the ANBU Black Ops.

It's an honor to be able to work for them at this age, but I've had to make a very big decision. The Uchiha clan is planning to take over the village, thanks to my father. If this happens, then another war will happen. I've already lived through that, and I don't want to have to see another Great Ninja War take place. I've never forgotton what had happened or what I have seen.

So, I decided to spy on my own clan and tell the Hokage what they're planning. When I told him that they were planning the coup d'etat, he told me what to do. Kill everyone in the whole Uchiha clan.

What else am I supposed to do? I can't let another war happen.

I don't want to kill my clan. I don't want to kill my family. I can't stress that enough. But most of all, I don't want to kill my little brother, Sasuke. I don't even know if I'll be able to.

But I have to. I can't do anything about it. It's already decided.

I have two days to enjoy the time I have with my family. My world is about to end as I know it. Soon, I'll be all alone, the last Uchiha standing, a hero to Konoha. It was a hard decision. And it kills me to think about what I have to do. I can't even begin to imagine what I'll feel once my mission is complete. Especially after I kill Sasuke. After I kill him, I'll have nothing to live for, except the praise that I get from everyone in Konoha. That hardly makes up for anything.

What I'm feeling is beyond words. You'd have to actually be in my shoes to know.

At least I'm doing something good…

Journal #2

It's been a while since I've written. But tonight's the big night. I'm in my room, and I'm not planning to leave until it's dark outside and the clan is asleep. It was hard enough killing Shisui, so I can tell that this is going to be a long, torturous night.

I listened to my mother humming in the kitchen, completely carefree and clueless about what would happen to her tonight. It's not her fault. She didn't think it was a good idea to take over the village. I'm sure that's the case with many other Uchiha's. But the Hokage told me not to leave any Uchiha's alive, no matter what.

I also found out that Madara Uchiha's still alive. He wanted vengeance on the Uchiha clan, so I told him that I would kill them all. Tonight.

Well, since I can't say it out loud, goodbye Uchiha clan. Goodbye, mother, father, and Sasuke.

Here goes nothing…

Journal #3

I couldn't do it. Kill Sasuke, I mean.

I killed the whole clan. But once I saw Sasuke, I realized something. He has more value to me than the village itself.

I just hope the Hokage will understand that he must protect Sasuke.

I told my little brother to become powerful enough to defeat me. He thinks that I'm evil now, and I hope that he follows the plan that I have for him. I hope that he avenges the Uchiha clan. And that everyone will see him as a hero for killing me, Itachi Uchiha.

I should go talk to the Third now.

Journal #4

He understands. It took me a while to convince him to protect Sasuke, but he said he'd do it. Danzou wants Sasuke gone, so I told him that if he touched him, I would tell everything that I know about Konoha to enemy countries. I will do it, too.

I guess I'm leaving Konoha for good now. I'll miss my home, my family, and my little brother. I'll see him again. I'll see him when he's ready, and powerful enough to kill me. He'll restore the clan when I'm dead. He'll be looked at as a hero. I'm willing to die by his hand as an enemy, as a traitor, for him.

Sasuke read the first enries in awe. This was written by his brother. The man that had made this plan for him, which had actually been working splendidly.

"Itachi doesn't deserve to die," Sasuke murmured out loud, shocked by the sudden realization, as he gazed at the last few sentences of the last entry he read. He deserved to be a hero. A hero to Konoha. A hero to Sasuke…

Sasuke flipped past a few pages and came to a bunch of short entries.

Journal #208

Deidara and Hidan are such fools. When will they shut up?

Journal #209

Today Kisame bought me a guide dog. Very funny, Kisame…

Journal #230

Sasori made a failed attempt at putting on a one man puppet show. It ended with the stage toppled over on Zetsu and Kisame, with broken puppets lying everywhere. Pein was not pleased.

Journal #231

Today Kisame and Kakuzu dragged me along to go and buy a movie. I didn't have any money, Kisame didn't have any money, and Kakuzu refused to pay. He ended up killing all the employees. We had to run away from all of the ninja in the store. Good thing they didn't find our lair.

Journal #232

Went fishing with Kisame. He obviously doesn't know that it's unacceptable to devour raw fish in front of your best friend, who's not half shark.

Sasuke flipped past some more pages. There were tons more entries like the ones he had just read. At least something exciting happens to him everyday… Sasuke thought. He flipped through the book until he reached the last entry.

Journal #1050

Mission to Konoha with Kisame tomorrow. I hate having to go to Konoha. Makes me homesick. And besides, Sasuke isn't there anymore, so I can't see if he's ready to avenge our clan, which he wasn't last time. But that was a while ago.

Kisame's very impatient with me. I guess I should quit torturing him and go get ready.

Now the rest was empty. This must've been the night Aname came along.

There really is a truth. I just couldn't tell you.

He really had meant it. Sasuke felt like jumping right back off the edge of the cliff. He even looked over the edge for a little while, but then decided against it. Why didn't he think about it? Itachi was such a compassionate brother to him before that. And what did he say to Sasuke before he began losing his emotion?

I'll always be there for you. Even if I'm just an obstacle for you to overcome.

Sasuke brushed his fingers over Itachi's perfect scrawl. He had written this with his own hand. It wasn't a lie that this was the truth. The plain truth.

"Itachi." Sasuke looked up as the shock hit him. He had to find his brother again. The Uchiha stood up and whipped out his map, his fingers shaking as he held back adrenaline. He examined the map for the closest route to Konoha. As he searched, he realized that he had traveled much farther from Konoha than he thought.

This may take a while… Sasuke thought. Once he had finally mapped out where he was supposed to go, he took off running in the direction.

"Sasuke!" Upon hearing the voice behind him, Sasuke stopped in mid run, like how a cartoon freezes in midair. Yes, he really did freeze in midair. Don't ask how.

Sasuke sighed and turned around. "What is it, Aname?" he asked the red haired girl behind, clearly annoyed.

Aname flounced over to him and looked up at him with the same determined, serious eyes that she had given him before showing him the journal. "Look, I want you to take this path." She jumped up rather high and snatched the map from the Uchiha's hands, crumpling it a little. She unfolded it and examined it closely before tracing her twig-sized finger over a certain route on the map. To Sasuke, it looked like she was burning something into the paper.

Aname handed it back to Sasuke. He looked down at it to see a straight red diagonal line from where he stood to Konoha. Duh, Sasuke, how did you NOT see that route?

"Go there," Aname said, too seriously. "You'll get to Itachi much quicker. And I mean WAYY quicker."

Sasuke gave one brief, rushed not of his head. "Thanks, Aname." Then, rather unexpectedly, he swooped down and hugged Aname. The first hug he had given in the many years since Itachi had gone.

Aname's large eyes widened even more in utter shock. It felt like Sasuke was squeezing the daylights out of her.

"Thank you. Thank you for showing me the truth." Sasuke's voice resisted shaking.

Aname then smiled and wrapped her arms around Sasuke. Having the daylights squeezed out of you can actually feel pretty good. Especially when you knew that you've just saved someone from a cruel harsh road ahead, waiting for them in their life.

Then, faster than you can say "pickles," (don't ask…) Sasuke was up, out of Aname's arms, and BOOKING it, faster than the speed of light, to Konoha.

Aname smiled as she watched Sasuke go off. She never thought this, but she was looking forward to being his guardian angel.

YEAH! You finally know what it is! ;D Hehe! So... like I said, please review! Because the climax is beginning ;) Thanks for sticking with the story!