…Fool me once, and I don't own Naruto. Fool me twice, and I still don't own Naruto…
Chapter 15: Battling Uchihas
Kakashi was oblivious to the outraged cries from Naruto as he stared in shock at the blue haired woman before him. She looked no different than she would have had he seen her any other time. It was only the feeling of his missing sharingan that made his surroundings seem stranger.
Come on, Kakashi. Pull yourself together. There was once a time when you didn't have the sharingan to rely on.
He thought back to those days for comfort, but none was to be found. While he'd been a genius, he had still made mistakes. It wasn't until he'd acquired the sharingan that his confidence balanced out with his abilities. Without his fail-safe, he felt as if a vital part of him had been ripped away.
"What's the matter, old friend?" Rin asked. "I gave you that gift, so it only makes sense that I was the one who took it away."
"Hey!" Naruto yelled from behind Tsunade. "What the hell did you do to Kakashi-sensei!?!"
His attempt to rush to the aid of the silver-haired jonin was stopped short by the Hokage's outstretched arm.
"Remember the deal, Naruto. No interference."
"But…!"
"She's right, Naruto." Kakashi said quietly. "You wouldn't want to let down the people who care about you by rushing in and doing something crazy."
The enraged blonde missed the hidden meaning behind his former sensei's words. However, the person they were directed toward heard them loud and clear.
Rin's eyes narrowed. "What's that? Finally an admission of guilt? Did the great Kakashi almost admit that he might have made a bad judgment call? That he did something foolish that got his friend killed?"
The look on her face was triumphant.
"No, Rin" he said calmly. "I wasn't referring to myself."
Her expression changed instantly. The hard, unforgiving look melted into one of regret. "I did what I had to do. You know that."
The former ANBU captain shrugged. "I read the reports. It seemed pretty clear to me."
"It wasn't. It wasn't clear at all. None of you were there! You would have done the same thing!"
"Then why did you leave?" Kakashi's tone was accusing. "Why did you remove yourself from Konoha before the council reviewed your actions? Could it be because two shinobi died and the fault was entirely yours?"
"Shut up!" She lashed out at him and caught him across the cheek with a chakra whip. "You let me leave! You knew where I was headed and you didn't try to stop me." She shook her head. "Maybe that's all I wanted."
Naruto watched, enthralled by the story he was hearing. It sounded vaguely reminiscent of another situation he was all too familiar with. He momentarily saw Sakura in place of Rin; Sasuke in place of Kakashi.
But Sakura would never wish Sasuke harm. If there had ever been love between his old sensei and this Akatsuki woman, he found it hard to believe that she would be able to hurt the silver-haired man so.
The two ninja were silent. Rin stared down at Kakashi, and Kakashi stared up at Rin. She had won, and they both knew it. All that was left now was the final blow.
The Akatsuki healer stepped forward and grabbed Kakashi's shirt collar. She readied the kunai in her other hand.
But as she was about to strike, Kakashi quietly whispered, "I'm sorry, Rin. I should have gone after you. That was my mistake."
The Konoha shinobi watched as tears welled up into the healer's eyes. She retained her look of rage, but her flooded gaze betrayed her. The kunai shook within her upraised hand.
"Enough of this!" the strange, mechanical voice of Zetsu called out. "Finish him Rin! Finish him or I will!"
The green, plant-like man strode forward, his own weapon at the ready.
"Hey!" Naruto struggled against Tsunade. "Hey! He's breaking the rules! Let me go! Kakashi-sensei!"
"Naruto," Tsuande leaned down so only he could hear her, "you really need to learn more about women."
Confused into silence, the Kyuubi youth turned back just in time to see Zetsu grab hold of Rin's shoulder and pull her away from Kakashi. However, as Zetsu did so, he was unprepared for her to turn into his personal space and ram her kunai into his throat. Shocked, his eyes went wide and one hand flew to the injury.
"You bitch," he gurgled out before slamming his own weapon into the healer's abdomen.
The two Akatsuki collapsed together amid a circle of shocked shinobi.
The first one to move toward them was Kakashi. He gently removed Rin's dieing form from beneath that of the green man.
"Rin…"
She smiled sadly up at him. "Don't…be sad… for me…Kakashi. I should have died…a long time ago…"
"You aren't going to die," He said with certainty. "Tsunade is here."
The blue-haired medic chuckled softly. "No…I have much to atone for…it is…my time…but first…"
She lifted a hand to the side of his face and sent a weak stream of chakra into his eye. The sharingan blazed back with full force. She smiled weakly. "Forgive me…old friend…(cough, cough)… forgive…"
"There was never anything that needed forgiving." Kakashi tried his best to smile reassuringly. "Come now, let Tsunade heal…"
Her hand fell away from his face. He looked into her eyes, only to find them open and staring—but seeing nothing. A small smile continued to grace her pale face.
Silently, Diedara and Tobi stepped over to the bodies of their fallen comrades. They unceremoniously pulled the rings from their dead fingers and turned away from the Konoha group.
"As agreed upon, we shall leave Sound." The blonde Akatsuki glanced over at Kakashi. "Rin betrayed us. She is no longer a member of Akatsuki."
With that, the two members vanished.
"What!?!" Naruto threw his hands up in disbelief. "Can you believe those guys!?! After what she just did, they have the nerve to…"
"Naruto," Jiraiya placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "That was the greatest honor they could bestow on her. Now Rin may be buried in Konoha with honor."
Understanding, Naruto went quiet again and watched his old sensei lift the dead healer.
No one said a word as Kakashi walked past them, his childhood friend held gently in his arms.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Itachi looked around, mildly amused. His brother's skill had progressed impressively since the last time they met. To trap the older sharingan master in a genjutsu was nothing short of impossible, yet Sasuke had done just that.
Yet, as Itachi glanced around, he knew this wasn't what it appeared to be. The landscape was never-ending barren soil. In sharp contrast to his Mangekyo world, this place had a pale moon held aloft in a dark blue sky.
Sasuke stood a few yards away. He watched his brother as the older Uchiha studied the new world they were in.
"Impressive, Sasuke, even though I think your plan backfired."
"Think what you will."
Itachi smirked. "At first I thought this was your version of the mangekyo world. But then I realized that you have yet to gain that honor. Whatever this place is, you have trapped us both here. I am not the master of this world, but neither are you."
"You are correct." Sasuke widened his stance. "Prepare yourself."
Itachi remained as he was. "Interesting. You have brought us to a place where our jutsus are useless. Trying to balance the scales a little? You forget," he shrugged off his cloak, "you were never my equal in taijutsu either."
Sasuke rushed at his brother, leaping through the air. He brought his fist down hard, and directed the hit to his brother's face.
Itachi twisted to the side and ducked down. He swung out his leg as Sasuke landed, intending to knock his brother's feet out from beneath him as he came down. Sasuke was prepared and as soon as he touched the ground he was airborne again. This time he landed behind his brother.
Itachi leaned to the side, and Sasuke's elbow missed its target.
"Your rage is misplaced, little brother. Don't you see? You would never have reached your full potential if not for me."
Sasuke blocked Itachi's kick to his stomach, grabbing his opponent's foot and throwing him into the air. Itachi landed a short distance away.
"If I had left things as they were, you'd be nothing more than a worthless member of the Konoha police. Just like Father."
The two brothers stared each other down before they clashed again. This time, both managed to land punches.
They broke apart and circled one another.
"They had to die Sasuke. You must know that now. You and I are too alike. We crave the same power. You would not have been happy living the life they would have chose for you. If I hadn't done it, you would have."
The rage in Sasuke's eyes was enough of a victory for Itachi. If he could not invade his brother's mind through genjutsu, he would do it another way.
They fought again, and the kicks and punches would have shattered bones had either of them made contact. The stepped away from each other, breathing heavily.
"Come Sasuke, forget your revenge. Join me. You know the potential of the sharingan. You know we can control the tailed beasts. And once I have the nine-tails, I will be unstoppable. We could rule this world together."
"The nine-tails?" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "You'll never accomplish it. That is one demon that will remain beyond your reach."
Sasuke watched Itachi smile. The older brother said, "Not since I made a deal with him myself. I showed him the way to you and Sakura and he has agreed to give himself over to me."
Sasuke covered the shock he felt well. That's just like Naruto. Speaking with his heart and not his head. "You won't live long enough for that."
Itachi blocked Sasuke's kick, and grabbed his brother's leg before he could pull away. As Sasuke flipped over to break the grip, Itachi anticipated the movement and let go. In mid-air, he grabbed Sasuke's other foot and twisted it cruelly to the side.
His ankle broken, Sasuke retaliated quickly, and as he fell, he caught Itachi in the face with his fist. Blood spurted from the oldest Uchiha's nose, and his lower lip split open. Itachi wiped the blood away, his sharingan eyes narrowed.
Despite his split lip, his next words were sharp and clear. "It's a good thing I have a medic waiting for me after this. Maybe I'll get to know her some before I destroy her spirit."
Balanced on one leg, Sasuke growled. "Leave Sakura out of this. She's nothing to you."
"On the contrary, she's everything to me. She's the only other one who can obtain the mangekyo. Don't you get it? If I make her remove your eyes and then finish you off, she'll have killed her best friend. Then I'll simply keep her trapped within a genjutsu until I have need of her powers. Having another sharingan user around would make controlling nine tailed-beasts a lot easier."
"She'd never do it."
Itachi shrugged. "It doesn't matter. She'd be easy enough to control." He touched his fingers to his lips. "I could probably make her do anything."
That was the last straw for Sasuke. He ignored the searing pain of his ankle and rushed at the grinning sharingan master.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sakura was surprised at who was waiting for her when she was lead down the hall and up a flight of stairs into what appeared to be a large throne chamber.
"Kabuto!" She stepped out from behind the figure of Itachi. "But you…"
"Disappeared?" he finished for her. "It's a long story." He turned to the waiting Akatsuki figure. "Thank you, my puppet. Now go keep watch while Sakura and I have a little talk."
"That…that's not really Itachi? That's his body double, isn't it?"
"Of course." The other medic looked annoyed. "If that'd been the real Itachi I'm sure he'd have been less accommodating to you. You'd probably be dead by now."
"If only I were so lucky…"
Kabuto grabbed her arm roughly. "Remember our deal Sakura? You're coming with me. We've got a long life ahead of us."
"Deal!?!" Sakura pulled out of his grasp. "There's no deal! Sasuke-kun isn't safe! He could even be dead right now. I'm not going anywhere!"
The dark look on Kabuto's face took on a menacing hue. "What do you propose? Are you going to go back there? Take on Itachi? What's the point if your precious Sasuke-kun is already dead?"
He was unprepared for how quick she moved.
There was a loud smack as Sakura's fist made contact with the grey-haired youth's cheek. She stood over him, rage fueling her strength since she was out of chakra. "I'm going back, Kabuto. If you think you can stop me, you're welcome to try."
With that, she turned and bolted out of the room. The Itachi double let her pass by. His master had not instructed him otherwise.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"What are you going to do, Sasuke? Kill me? You'd kill your own brother?"
Both Uchiha's sat, severely injured, on the dusty ground.
"I will avenge my family!"
"You'll be just like me. You already are. Only I didn't kill my brother."
Sasuke smirked, ignoring the numerous injuries that pained his body. "There is no other way. We cannot both leave this place alive."
As soon as those words were out of his mouth, the world around them wavered. Itachi nodded. "Thank you, brother for the entertainment. But I think it is all about to end."
The atmosphere shimmered again.
Damn it! What's going on? Sasuke knew but didn't want to accept it. Someone had found the unconscious bodies of him and his brother. And that person was now trying to revive him.
After a moment, the alternate world vanished and both Uchihas were cast back into the waking world.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"I think he's coming around." Tsunade glanced over at Naruto. "He's badly injured but not dead. I'm not sure why he's unconscious."
"Let's just carry him out. By now the others may have found Sakura-chan."
Tsunade glanced over at the prone form of Itachi. If Sasuke isn't dead… "Naruto, let's get Sasuke out of here. If we need to, we'll come back for Sakura."
"No…" Sasuke's feeble voice broke through. "Itachi…"
"What? What's that Sasuke?" Both Naruto and the Hokage leaned in closer.
The Uchiha's lips moved again, the words barely audible. "He's not…"
"What? Sasuke! Speak up!"
"I believe he's trying to say 'he's not dead'." Both Naruto and Tsunade turned around, the shadow of Itachi falling over them. As unprepared as they were, both instantly fell into the sharingan master's genjutsu.
"That was simple enough." Itachi knelt down next to his brother. "Poor Sasuke. You used up most of your energy on that technique didn't you? And since I had nothing to do with it, I retained all of mine. Guess that means I'm the better Uchiha after all."
He pulled a kunai from Naruto's pack. "I'll make sure that when he wakes up, he thinks that he is the one who killed you. Using his kunai only seals the illusion."
Sasuke struggled to sit up, but his body was beyond exhausted. He could see Itachi's injuries were still present, but the other sharingan user had ample amounts of chakra to rely on for strength.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of your friends for you."
There was a resounding 'clink' as the kunai was knocked out of Itachi's hand. He turned his angry gaze to the doorway. There, silhouetted against the torchlight stood Sakura. She pulled another shuriken from her pouch.
"No, Itachi. I'll be the one to take care of my friends."
The oldest Uchiha's eyes narrowed, and he smiled.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Coming soon: Chapter 16: Cry Havoc! And Let slip the Dogs of War
Author's note: Just to throw this in… I don't really believe that the blue-haired Akatsuki pictured in the manga is Rin. I simply used that theory for this story because I felt it worked well.
I also doubt that if Kisame died in the manga that it would be as quick as I made it in here. However, I think it works since Kisame wouldn't have expected Itachi to kill him, so he wouldn't have been on the defensive. Besides, if I took the time to elaborate on everything that minor, this story would never end.