So this chapter is a tad bit tardy and not up to what my hopes were for it. Truthfully this chapter was mostly finished last week and I've just been tweaking it a bit.

I admit that what I'm writing will be different from the manga. It will become more obvious in the final showdown with Madara and Obito. I have no plans of having Kaguya make her godly appearance and all that rot. So, essentially that means that Zetu's role is diminished and Obito and Madara are the big bads…well more like Madara is the big bad and Obito is that cousin that makes really shitty choices in life.

"You're a traitor." Kisame's voice was nothing more than a gruff whisper on the chilly fall morning. Itachi looked to his partner, setting down the scrolls he had been reading. His parter and lover was facing him with an expression Itachi was not used to seeing on him.

Disgust. Anger. And distrust, all pointed at the Uchiha. Itachi's brows furrowed as he tried to understand what the man could possibly mean.

"Kisame?" He prompted and the Kiri nin grit his teeth as he looked away from his partner, focusing on the lamp sitting on the nightstand instead.

"Madara revealed everything. How each of our missions mysteriously end in failure, how none of us managed to make much progress in Konoha. Your loyalty was never to us. You're the spy." Kisame finally elaborated and Itachi closed his eyes.

"So he told you."

"And you confirmed it." Kisame bit out. Itachi wondered why Madara had finally decided to tell Kisame everything. What had compelled him to confide in Kisame? Perhaps it was merely to spite Itachi and the Uchiha would not put it past the man.

Kisame hated liars. He despised those who kept secrets and worked in the shadows. It was a shame that he had foolishly fallen for the greatest liar of them all.

"And with this knowledge now out in the open….what will you do?" Itachi asked, without looking at him. He loved Kisame. The Kiri nin had offered him something he had never expected in his life. But he loved his brother more and if it came between silencing Kisame forever or risking Sasuke, Itachi would swing the blade without a second thought.

The kiri nin stared at him for a long moment. For once, he was unreadable. It was a rarity that Itachi could not immediately know what his partner was thinking. Itachi watched him silently, not daring to move. Finally, Kisame sighed, shuffling around the room. Itachi tracked his movements with rapt attention, hands resting tense on his lap, but not moving his body at all.

Kisame moved so he stood directly in front of his partner, standing at full sight as he studied the Uchiha.

"My loyalty is to you," Kisame muttered, softly. "It has been and always will be."

"Despite the lies?" Itachi prompted in surprise.

"…Yes." Kisame stated after a moment of hesitation.

It was surprising to say the least. Itachi had expected Kisame to be unable to look past Itachi's schemes, but for some odd reason he was willing to. A new warmth for his lover filled Itachi's chest.

"Thank you, Kisame." He murmured and Kisame grunted, looking away from his partner.

"Just because I'm not going to slit your throat means that I'm not looking past this…you owe me answers Itachi."

There was an obvious truth to it. Kisame was putting his neck on the line by keeping Itachi's secret, and he had no idea the reason behind it. Itachi turned his head towards the ceiling, mulling over his choices. Keep quiet and allow Kisame to blindly flounder or finally let the man who followed him in on his biggest secret.

"I suppose there is no hiding it now. Come here," Itachi held out a freshly painted hand to Kisame who slowly approached, looking wary. "If your loyalties remain with me, I think there are some things you should hear rather than Madara's botched report." Kisame's eyebrows furrowed, causing his nose to scrunch up slightly.

"What more is there?"

"There is much more than just me working for Konoha." Itachi replied, pulling Kisame forward. The Kiri nin knelt down between Itachi's knees, staring at him curiously.

"And what would that be?" Kisame finally asked. Itachi took a steady breath, fingers tightening over Kisame's wrist.

As missions went. This was not difficult in the least. They knew where Kisame was and they knew when he would be there. The Akatsuki had been scrambling for weeks and Konoha had taken advantage of it.

Sasuke's initial plan was to kill Kabuto and it had taken Itachi some time to explain that they needed Kabuto alive in order to reverse the jutsu. They needed Kabuto alive. Both Uchiha knew what they would find in that decrepit cavern, but they had not been expecting how far gone Kabuto would be.

There was nothing of him that resembled the young man he once was. In fact he seemed to be infused with Orochimaru to the point where there was nothing human left in him. His once bright silver hair was dulled and lank, his skin sickly white and his shoulders hunched.

Even his voice had taken on a slithery accent and it sent chills down Sasuke's spine. Oddly, he was alone. Kisame's chakra having dissipated before they reached their destination.

It would be the first battle he and Itachi would officially fight together, and it was utterly satisfying to finally do so. If Sasuke had any lingering worries for his brother's recovery, they were dashed with swift efficiency. Itachi was a powerhouse, and nothing would ever change that.

Now with the sunsetting over the mountaintop, Sasuke had never felt so unsettled. They had allowed Kabuto to live, after Itachi managed to convince him to release the jutsu. Somehow Itachi had managed to reach something in Kabuto that had him finally stepping back from his plans. Somehow, the lingering humanity in Kabuto had been touched. Sasuke was not about to question his brother or his methods. It was still impressive to see the elder in action. He stared at the tree line in grim silence, waiting for his brother to finish with Kisame. Once they had finished with Kabuto, Itachi had insisted on going to where Kisame would be waiting for him.

Sasuke was still troubled by the battle. Kabuto's earlier words still whispered in his ears.

"So the rumors are true. Once you two were enemies and now you stand here before me to fight side by side…fascinating."

'You came here alone." Sasuke sneered. "That was rather foolish of you."

"Oh, heavens no. I have Kisame patrolling nearby. Perhaps he will come aid me." Kabuto turned dead eyes to Itachi who had given no physical reaction to the mention of his former lover. Once he was finished dealing with Kabuto, he would release the jutsu and free Kisame. Kisame would serve no master against his will. Not if Itachi could offer him a final escape.

Truthfully, Sasuke had never given Kabuto much mind during his time with Orochimaru. Yet the man seemed to know all there was to know about him.

"Was it not my master you came to in order to kill your dear brother. Was it not his blood you would have gladly bathed in. How the tables have turned."

"You don't know anything. You haven't changed at all. You're still that loser assistant chasing at your master's coattails." Sasuke's voice bit out in the cavern, echoing off the cold stone.

Kabuto had merely laughed, finding Sasuke to be nothing but a funny child.

"And I see you haven't changed either, Sasuke-kun! So filled with anger and hatred…no matter who it as aimed at, you always need someone to hurt. It is laughable. Like a child burning an ant or ripping the wings off flies."

His eyes had roved to Itachi. His smile was unnaturally wide and predatory as he took a lazy step in Itachi's direction.

"And you, Itachi-san. You are the best liar of us all." Kabuto's snake like eyes were cold as the fixed on the elder Uchiha. "It's what makes you such an excellent shinobi. Nobody really knows who you are."

"My loyalties has been and always will be to the village as well as to my brother." Itachi's voice was level and cold. Sasuke wondered how he could always remain so poised and cold, even when Sasuke was bristling with anger. He was the ice to Sasuke's fire. Kabuto had sensed this quickly and his eyes darted between them, mouth pulled into a far too large grin.

"Ahhh yes, the brother you would maim and kill for. Such an interesting dynamic you two have." He jeered, staring hard at Itachi. "You were given such an interesting opportunity. You reached something that Orochimaru could only dream of…and you threw it all away."

Itachi's dark eyes remain unwavering but Sasuke's scowl deepened. Itachi returning to his normal age was still a sore spot for Sasuke. He still felt like he could have protected Itachi and now he no longer had that opportunity. Not with Itachi's illness following his every step.

It was all for nothing though. Kabuto was not strong enough to defeat the brothers and despite his bravado and earlier speech of finding himself and transforming from a snake into a dragon, he still failed to do so. He still relented when Itachi proved himself to be the better shinobi.

When the man finally relented and agreed to release the jutsu, Itachi left to find Kisame.

"Sasuke, you'll be okay?" Itachi questioned and the boy waved him off.

"Go on. I've got Kabuto. Go say goodbye to your shark." Sasuke offered his brother a small nod and Itachi turned his head towards the cave's entrance.

"I won't be long." He murmured and stepped out into the daylight.

"I should have known it would end up being you." Kisame Hoshigaki's voice held nothing but amusement and acceptance. "Who else would be able to reach me like this..." He had not turned to face Itachi, instead staring over the edge of the cliffside and watching as the sun began to rise over the treetops. Itachi approached slowly, coming to stand next to his former partner and allowing himself to relax and enjoy the sight.

"You always were much more introspective than you let on." Itachi hummed. Kisame glanced at Itachi, lips curving into a slight smile.

"Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes." He commented. "You have eyes again." His grin was comforting and Itachi looked away.

"Indeed." He murmured. Kisame's smile was far too familiar. If Itachi wasn't careful he would be pulled back into it. And that thought scared him.

"We had a good run, didn't we?" Kisame hummed, causing Itachi to look back to him. Kisame grinned back. "We did good right?" There was an earnestness to his voice that had Itachi's heart fluttering.

"We did good, Kisame." He assured the Kiri nin. Kisame relaxed slightly at this and Itachi allowed himself to study his partner. With the jutsu in effect, Kisame's skin was cracked like broken china. His eyes were rimmed in black. Despite it all, it was still Kisame. It was still his partner standing for the last time at his side.

"You'll be careful alright?" Kisame gruffly stated, taking Itachi's chin between his fingers and turning him to face the elder. "I know you're a genius and prodigy and all that shit, but you're still human. You still need sleep and you still need to eat. Don't go starving yourself or working yourself to death."

"I won't." Itachi's lips twitched.

"You promise?" Kisame stared at Itachi long and hard and the Uchiha nodded.

"I promise." This seemed to assure Kisame who slowly pulled away, hand curling into a fist. He looked back over the horizon, the sun casting his skin in hues of orange and yellow.

"Can I…" Kisame's voice trailed off in sudden uncertainty. This piqued Itachi's interest. "Can I say goodbye before I go?" The question was vulnerable coming from Kisame. But Kisame had always been at his most open when it came to Itachi. The Uchiha's heart ached and he moved forward, reaching a hand out to his partner who took it. Kisame smiled at Itachi's hand which was dwarfed in comparison to his own.

He brought Itachi's hand to his lips and kissed it, shooting Itachi a toothy grin as he did so.

"Goodbye, Itachi-san." His voice was a low rumble and his eyes were dancing as he looked his parter and lover over.

"Goodbye Kisame." Itachi croaked. Kisame slowly released Itachi's hand and moved to stand tall. He offered the Uchiha a lazy salute, teeth pulled into a large grin. A slight shimmer began to emit from Kisame's flesh. He turned to glance over the horizon one last time.

"Kisame!" Itachi called out, and the Kiri nin turned just as Itachi purposely moved forward and, despite the childishness of it, wrapped his arms around the nin and buried his face against his shoulder.

"Goodbye, Kisame." Itachi murmured against the man's chest.

"Heh, finally throwing yourself at me?" The kiri nin chuckled. "Whatever would Hatake think?" Kisame's voice was light and Itachi offered him a small smile as he pulled away to study him.

"He would not mind." He replied absently and Kisame hummed, his large hand reaching to cup Itachi's face.

"I'll see you later, neh Itachi-san?" He quipped and Itachi smiled back at him.

"Yeah."

"Later, not sooner alright?" Kisame bopped Itachi's nose and the Uchiha's lips twitched in amusement.

Kisame did not let go of Itachi as the golden light began to glow over his skin. It was like ashes over flames, rising high into the air and vanishing with the wind. Itachi did not look away as the golden light burst from above KisameThe Kiri nin's features became distorted in the haze of light. His fingers squeezed Itachi's one final time before the light burst through him and in an instant, Kisame Hoshigaki was returned to rest.

By now the sun was above the trees and Itachi could hear birds beginning to chirp. He stared after where Kisame had stood for a long moment, hand still held out from where it had held Kisame's.

"Goodbye, Kisame." The Uchiha whispered softly into the air. He smiled weakly in the sunlight, eyes falling shut. For a long moment he just let the sunlight warm his face and enjoyed the peace. With the jutsu released, this meant that not only was Kisame freed, but Madara's plans would be delayed. It meant that facing him would be all the more easier. Still, it was not easy to say goodbye to Kisame after only just being able to see him again.

He heard Sasuke's quiet footsteps as the younger Uchiha moved around the rock ledge. Itachi did not move for a long moment and Sasuke stared at the skyline before focusing on his brother. He loathed to pull Itachi away from his musing but they needed to move on from here.

"Itachi?" Sasuke's voice hesitantly spoke up. Itachi turned to face his brother who stood close by, looking unsure.

"You ready to go?" He asked and Itachi nodded, looking back to the sunlight.

"I am."

I changed quite a bit of the Kabuto vs Sasuke and Itachi interaction. Like I've sad before, battle scenes are not my strong suit and I didn't want to bore anyone with attempting to write it.