A/N: This came about faster than I expected but I guess I'm on a kick now.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
So very quickly, everything went to complete shit. You know what they say about best made plans…?
Sasuke wasn't even entirely sure what happened. One moment they were in position for the bust and the next, all he could see was Itachi standing there, armed, with 12 hostages. His brother. The brother that used to train him in martial arts and walk him through how to use his Uchiha enhanced vision. The brother that used to give him piggy back rides when he got injured, and cook for him when his mother was working…the brother he'd watched murder his parents…that brother was really selling people to a sick sadistic psychopath like Orochimaru. Knowing it and seeing it were two very different things. And Sasuke, who'd been infuriated enough just knowing it to split his knuckles open on a punching bag, completely lost it upon actually seeing it.
"Itachi!" He roared, forgetting everything about the plan and completely disregarding Orochimaru—the one they were supposed to be arresting.
All eyes whipped to him…and then it was an all out firefight, and Sasuke only had eyes for Itachi. He didn't want to shoot him though. No. That wouldn't be enough. He wanted to look his brother in the eye and see if there was even a hint of a human in there. He wanted Itachi to see the torment and pain he'd caused his little brother reflected back at him. Most of all he wanted answers. He didn't want to shoot Itachi. He didn't want Itachi dead—not yet at least. But he did want to pummel him senseless.
Sasuke raced down from the cat walk and into the open square of the abandoned warehouse, recklessly uncaring for the bullets whizzing by on multiple sides. His friends and colleagues shouts fell on deaf ears, and he paid no attention to the tall, pale, man with long black hair—the one they were supposed to be here to arrest. Orochimaru. If he'd been thinking clearly, he'd have recalled that that man was tormenting the love of his life, singling her out to use in some grotesque experiment. If Sakura had been in his line of sight, he likely would have been able to snap himself out of it—but she wasn't and the sounds of Itachi slicing through his parents chests that night was ringing too loudly in his ears, for him to bring up any memory of her.
Sasuke charged Itachi, ignoring the gun in his murderous, human trafficking brother's hands in the absolute peak of recklessness. He launched himself at his brother and the two went sprawling to the floor, turning their confrontation into a complete brawl.
"Little brother…how like you to burst in and mess everything up." Itachi greeted, his voice sounding calm and detached despite the absolute madness around them and the fact that they were literally rolling on the floor attempting to strangle one another.
"Shut the fuck up, Itachi! As if you weren't completely repulsive before! You had to add human trafficking to your crimes as well! What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Sasuke seethed, grabbing Itachi's collar and punching him in the face repeatedly.
Itachi caught Sasuke's fist and easily flipped their positions. Now it was Sasuke getting punched repeatedly. "Is that the best you can do Sasuke? You still don't have enough hate…pathetic little brother. Was seeing me kill our parents not enough? Here I thought you'd get stronger and smarter in your desperation to catch me…really it seems as if you've only grown less intelligent."
"You wanna see stronger?!" Sasuke roared, kicking Itachi with so much force his brother actually flipped off of him and slammed into the ground.
He didn't stay down long, springing to his feet, but so did Sasuke. The two were in their own world, ignorant of the gun fights between the other Akatsuki member, Orochimaru, whoever Orochimaru had come with, and the KPD. Their eyes glowed red with the mutual activation of their genetically enhanced vision, and they started to fight in earnest, switching rapidly from one martial arts form to another in quick succession.
"Itachi we gotta go! We need to report back about this!" The Akatsuki he was partnered with shouted.
"Quiet Kisame! I'll leave once Sasuke here has learned his place!" Itachi snapped back, stepping in closer to Sasuke, as his marital arts style once again switched from jujitsu to hapkido. Sasuke's from switched as well, from Taekwondo to Judo. The fight sure as hell wasn't easy—but there was no way Sasuke was going to back down. Itachi may have known more martial arts forms than him, but he was pretty sure he was faster. He might go down, but he was taking his brother with him.
Kisame stared on in shock. He'd never seen Itachi like this. The man was normally so conflict avoidant—or as much as he could be in the Akatsuki. He did everything in his power not to have unnecessary casualties or injuries, and was typically the first to suggest fleeing over fighting. So what was with him? And just who the fuck was Sasuke anyway? The two sorta held a resemblance to each other…
"Who is this kid?" Kisame asked, stepping in to join the fight.
"Stay out of it!" Itachi snapped, kicking at Kisame's shin and forcing his partner to recoil away.
"What the fuck?!"
"What nii-san, can't take me without backup?!"
"Niisan? I thought you killed your whole family." Kisame cut in, beyond confused, but his attention was drawn elsewhere when Lee suddenly appeared, drop kicking down on him. Kisame was drawn into the strange mix of gun and hand to hand combat, and was no longer able to pay attention to the Uchiha brother's showdown. It didn't really matter what Itachi wanted to do, he had to get out of here. Let Itachi go down, for all he cared, but he sure as shit wasn't getting arrested today! He began maneuvering toward the exit while still maintaining the upper hand in his battle against Lee.
Itachi was almost gaining the upper hand when his enhanced vision caught a flash of pink skirting the perimeter of the warehouse several isles away. It meant nothing to him, but the bright colorful streak drew his attention for a second, among all the dingy grey of the warehouse, and in that second, Sasuke turned the tables. He landed a painful hit to his brothers crotch, causing him to double over, and Sasuke managed to get his brother to the ground from there. He forced his arms behind his back and cuffed him.
"You're under arrest for human trafficking, the murder of Uchiha Fugaku, Mikoto, and several other members of the family." Sasuke forced out, the words as painful as shards of glass coming up his throat. "You have the right to remain silent…Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law…" His voice nearly broke. He hadn't realized he was crying. "Why?! Why did you kill them?! Goddamnit Itachi, why?!" He fell to pieces, tears of desperation and anguish spilling out over his eyes, as he roughly flipped his brother around and stared into his face.
Itachi said nothing. He just stared up at Sasuke unwaveringly, not saying a word.
"I asked you why! Damnit! Answer me!" Sasuke shouted in his face, roughly shaking him. But his brother said nothing. He just stared at Sasuke, barely even blinking.
"Answer me, asshole!" Sasuke shouted his fist slamming into Itachi's face again. "Tell me why! Why did you kill them?! Why did you leave me alive?! Why didn't you just kill me too?! Why'd you do it!" Again and again, his fist slammed into Itachi's face with each question. "Why?! Why?! Why?!"
"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted, running up to grab Sasuke's arm before he could punch Itachi again—who was now covered in blood and looked a bit out of it.
"Sasuke, stop!"
He didn't. He shook Naruto off roughly, once again slamming his first into Itachi's face.
"Stop! You're gonna kill him!"
"Fine! That prick deserves it!" Sasuke growled savagely. If Itachi didn't even care enough to give him a reason for ruining his life…The brother he'd idolized, looked up to, wanted to be just like—a murderer, human trafficker, drug dealer, weapons dealer, whatever else the Akatsuki got up too…if he couldn't even be bothered to give Sasuke a reason for it all…if he couldn't even do that much…then let him fucking die.
"You're gonna let him turn you into a murderer?!" Naruto demanded, once again attempting to stop him, but being shaken off with so much force that he fell to the floor hard.
"I don't give a shit anymore!" He was too far gone. He just wanted Itachi to answer him, or die. There was no in between. He didn't even register that the warehouse had grown quiet, no longer raining gunfire, nor did he notice the sound of sirens echoing from outside. But why would he have? He'd barely even registered the gunfire when he'd been the one running right through it.
His fist pulled back once more, rocketing at a nearly unconscious Itachi—
"What would Sakura-chan say?!"
—his fist halted centimeters from his brother.
No. You wanted to be just like your perfect, caring brother who always made time for you. Clearly you didn't want to be just like a mass murderer, because when you almost went down that road, you turned around and came back.
I don't think you were looking up to a lie either…He left you alive…He left you alive. I'm sure he gave you some bullshit reason for it, and leaving you alive after all you'd seen and lost was undoubtedly cruel, but I don't think he could kill you.
He knew what Sakura would say…she'd said it before. And the reminder of her did allow him to inhale for what felt like the first time since he'd seen Itachi. But a new thought immediately occurred to him. He knew Sakura, and if no one was critically injured, she would have been the one to stop him. Just like she had back during the sound trio situation.
"Where's Sakura?" His voice was slightly horse and there was a desperate edge to it.
Naruto looked around, his brow furrowing. "She's probably out with the recovery team, checking in on the hostages." Naruto answered when his scan didn't bring pink into his immediate vision. In the mayhem, both he and Sasuke had lost their in ear headsets.
"Help!" Naruto and Sasuke both turned to see a pale and terrified TenTen supporting an even more pale, barely conscious, and heavily breathing Neji.
"Holy shit!" Naruto was at their side in an instant, relieving some of Neji's weight. "We need to get him to Sakura-chan!"
TenTen looked up at him startled, a film of tears over her eyes. "Y-You mean you don't know?"
"Don't know what?"
"They…they got her. They took Sakura…"
Sasuke couldn't breathe. The air seemed to solidify in his lungs, refusing to go in or out. The blood rushing through him felt like ice. The second they pulled into the KPD, Sasuke was out of the car and into the briefing room turned HQ.
Ino, who had tears pouring down her face, Karin who looked shell shocked, and a very stressed looking Shikamaru jolted at the sound of the door banging open.
"What the fuck happened to her?!" Sasuke demanded, grabbing Shikamaru by the collar.
"Why the hell didn't you follow the plan?! You said you could handle it! This may never have happened if you just did what you were supposed too!" Shikamaru shouted back…it was uncharacteristic for him to raise his voice, but Sakura was an important friend and comrade to all of them, and Shikamaru didn't handle losing his friends well.
Sasuke nearly punched him…he really wanted to. But Shikamaru's words were like a being doused in a bucket of ice water. He was right. This was all his fault.
For a few silent moments, the two stood glaring at each other, Sasuke still holding Shikamaru's collar. Ino looked between them frightfully, unsure whether she should intervene and distraught over the loss of her best friend. Karin's eyes remained trained on Sasuke in fear and concern.
After a long second, Sasuke released Shikamaru, his hands shaking. "What happened to her?" He asked again, much more quietly, and both Ino and Shikamaru were struck by the sheer desperation in his voice. They knew he and Sakura had officially started dating, but Sasuke…it sounded like his emotions went so much deeper than "Sakura was his girlfriend," it sounded like he…like he needed her more than he needed water or air. Karin wasn't at all surprised by it though, and while she completely understood, it was still hard to hear…her gaze dropped to the table.
"She…" Shikamaru let out a long measured sigh, looking away, unable to meet Sasuke's eyes. "I ordered Neji to try and sneak up from the north side…Orochimaru had primarily been positioned on the north side of the open square, so I thought Neji might be able to sneak attack or cut him off if he tried to escape that way. He never got the chance though. Orochimaru's accomplice had been hiding on the north side as well. He got the jump on Neji. Attacked him from behind…I think with a knife. I'm not sure who the accomplice was…Neji might have seen him with his enhanced vision, but the body cams don't have 360 degree pick up. All we saw was Neji go down, and a pair of boots. And then we started to see a lot of red…" Shikamaru paused and swallowed with some difficulty. For Neji to have bled out enough for the camera to pick up…it was amazing Sakura had been able to keep him alive at all.
"I sent Sakura to him, thinking the accomplice had gone to the square. She said it was bad, but she could buy him time for the ambulance to get there. She set up an on the spot blood transfusion donating her own blood…apparently she's a universal donor."
If the circumstances were any different, Sasuke would have let out a huff of exasperated amusement. How like her…even her blood type was generous.
"The accomplice wasn't gone though. He snuck up behind her and had her at gunpoint. She bargained to let her save him, and then she'd go with him. I guess he took the deal, cause she gave no indication that he moved in anyway, but he didn't shoot or anything. Until Orochimaru came and said it was time to go…Then he knocked her out and carried her to a car on the north side. She probably would have been able to take them if she hadn't just donated a lot of blood…that makes you pretty tired and dizzy. Orochimaru took off her vest, body cam, and radio before throwing her in the car and driving off with her."
Sasuke's jaw clenched so hard he thought he might shatter it. His whole body shook. It was no one's fault but his own…if only he'd followed the plan, then maybe…all he had to fucking do was hold himself together in front of Itachi, but no…he was such an emotionally volatile loose cannon that he hadn't even been able to manage that! Even when he swore up and down he could…He knew. He knew if Sakura had been there next to him, it wouldn't have played out like that…but with her not next to him, not in his line of sight, and not able to talk to him over headset, he'd completely lost it.
What would Sakura-chan say?
Yes…what would Sakura tell him right now? He closed his eyes, imagining she was there next to him.
"I don't really see how it's your fault. It's not like you told Orochimaru or his accomplice where I'd be. And so you lost it when you saw your brother? Could anyone really expect otherwise? You haven't exactly been subtle with implying that he's a trigger for you—with good reason. Just look at what happened when Suigetsu simply brought him up. Your response may not have been good or ideal, but it's not like you don't have the right to feel those emotions towards your brother. We can work more on handling how you respond to them later Sasuke-kun, but for now let's just focus on getting me away from this creep, yeah?" He could hear her so clearly. Picture her soft patient tone, like she was speaking it in reality. His minds eye conjured her standing in front of him with her big, jade, eyes filled with openness, understanding, and a little bit of fear and anger about the situation she was in. "I'm strong remember? Between you and me, nothing's going to hurt me…I'll take care of things on my end. You come and get me out of here, ok?" For the first time since the news of her abduction, Sasuke inhaled air.
"What if…What if he turns Forehead into…He…that scumbag…Sakura she…" Ino couldn't even form coherent thoughts, she was so out of her mind with worry for her best friend.
"There's no what if…" Karin muttered tightly, looking a little green. "She was his goal, and he got her. He's going to proceed with the experiment." Anger clouded her thoughts…Sakura had accepted her. Told her she had a say over her used her body. Told her it wasn't her fault, for trying to survive. And the same monster who used and manipulated her without her awareness now had Sakura. The girl who genuinely cared about refugee orphans. Karin was also beginning to be plagued with doubts…Sakura said the KPD would protect her, but how could they when they weren't even able to protect Sakura—one of their own?
Sasuke opened his eyes, seeing just the briefing room with Karin, Ino, and Shikamaru. Determination flared in his gut. He would not lose her.
"Sakura's not weak." He stated fiercely, making all three's eyes jump to him in surprise. He was the last person they expected to hear something like that from. "By the time we get there, we may find she's already cleaned up the place." He turned and headed for the door before pausing, and turning his head to lock eyes with Shikamaru. "Call everyone in here. We're going on a recovery mission."
"You need clearance for that."
"Sakura may as well be Tsunade's adopted daughter. You really think she wouldn't want her back?" Shikamaru didn't dispute that. They all knew how much Tsunade loved Sakura. Sasuke started for the door again.
"And where are you going?"
"To find out where that psychopath took her."
Sasuke walked out the door to see Naruto leaning against the wall, arms crossed.
"Why didn't you come in?"
Naruto ignored the question. "You're going to interrogate him, aren't you?"
It was moments like this where Sasuke was reminded that Naruto actually was highly observant and people-smart. "…Yeah."
"Come on then." Naruto pushed himself off the wall and headed down the hall toward interrogation. Sasuke didn't follow, arching his brow in question when Naruto stopped and looked back.
"I'm not letting you go through that alone. Besides, if I did, and Sakura-chan hears about it, she'll kill me painfully." Naruto once again started toward interrogation, Sasuke trailing behind him, thinking about what incredible people his team 7 were…they really were the best humanity had to offer.
"Hey, Dead Last…" Naruto glanced back. "Thanks…"
"Don't mention it, Bastard."
Itachi sat in the interrogation room handcuffed to the table. A member of the med-team had the decency to clean his face off of any blood, and bandage some of his cuts. It was a miracle and a testament to Uchiha bone density that his nose hadn't broken…neither Sasuke nor Itachi had ever once broken a bone in their youth either. It truly was a rare occurrence for them, and when it did happen, it was usually a rib or wrist. Their beautiful faces always somehow managed to stay intact.
Sasuke stormed in and immediately slid into the chair across from Itachi. Naruto stepped in as well and leaned against the wall.
"Talk." Sasuke demanded curtly, his arms crossed over his chest and fists balled tightly.
"Is that anyway to speak to your older brother?" Itachi asked calmly.
"Don't fuck with me Itachi. Where's Orochimaru's lab?" It was taking everything in him not to fly across the table and resume punching his asshole brother, but he kept repeating Sakura's name in his mind like a mantra. He wouldn't forget about her and lose himself again. Not when her life was on the line.
Itachi cocked his head to the side curiously, his eyes narrowing. His brother was asking him about Orochimaru and not the massacre? He'd been in and out of consciousness during his brother's previous assault, but he thought he caught a name, just prior to the assault ending…what was going on here?
"Why are you asking me about that?"
"I don't have time for twenty questions! Where the fuck is his lab?!" Sasuke growled, his hand slamming down on the table.
It was strange, seeing his brother like this. There was something like desperation in his eyes…and fear…What was the name he'd barely heard Naruto invoke? Sa…Ra…his mind dredged up a flash of pink he'd seen during his earlier fight.
"...Sakura?" He asked, watching his brother's reaction carefully. Every muscle in Sasuke's body visibly tensed, his eyes widening with fear, then fury, and so much desperation.
"Do you know where he's taken her?! Answer the damn question!"
Itachi watched the near panic in Sasuke's expression. He never would have believed it…he thought he may have ruined Sasuke completely in that regard…he felt a sliver of hope for his brother rush through him.
"…Sasuke…are you in love with her?"
The amount of emotions that washed over Sasuke's face…the sheer panic and terror…that was fair. He was at fault for that. Of course loving someone, letting someone in again wouldn't be easy for Sasuke, after what he'd done. His poor little brother must have been terrified of what he might do now that he had this information. Of course he'd never do anything…but Sasuke obviously had no way of knowing that. Itachi felt the sliver of hope beginning to flourish. That Sakura woman must have really been something to get Sasuke to love again.
Sasuke didn't give an affirmative answer, not that Itachi needed one. The answer was obvious. But he did do something that shocked Itachi more than if he had.
"Niisan…please."
The desperation was so clear. Sasuke would have never politely asked him for anything…saying please to him, begging him…it probably made Sasuke want to throw up…that was how much he loved this woman…to hate him so completely yet force himself to ask politely…Itachi's gaze dropped to the table. Was it time? He'd hoped he could gather a bit more information, maybe take the Akatsuki down from the inside without ever having to involve Konoha. But one look at his little brother, coming apart at the seams and barely keeping himself together, and he knew he'd once again do anything for him. And right now that meant revealing himself to save this woman his brother loved so dearly.
Itachi looked up, his dark grey eyes locking on Sasuke's desperate onyx ones. "I need to speak with the prime minister."
"What the fuck?! Just tell me!" Sasuke shouted rising out of his chair.
"Sasuke. I need to speak with the prime minister."
Itachi's tone sent Sasuke reeling back. Back to the time when Itachi was the big brother he cherished. Back when he'd sternly but lovingly tell him they'd been training long enough and it was time to take a break. Itachi…in this moment, Itachi sounded like Sasuke's loving big brother, not the murdering, human trafficking, cold-hearted monster he'd been earlier.
"Granny's a bit busy at the moment." Naruto broke in coldly. It was impressive he'd managed to stay silent this long. The guy had a shocking amount of restraint when he wanted to…
"Then tell her to make time…and tell her this: Root."
Sasuke and Naruto exchanged a confused glance. What the fuck was Root?
Tsunade stormed into the interrogation room, thirty-eight minutes later, with a black laptop and a file in her arms. She slammed them down on the table unceremoniously and glared at the older of the two Uchiha.
"Listen up, brat! I'm in a bad fucking mood! My favorite apprentice has been abducted by an old, psychopathic classmate of mine, Hyuga's hanging on by six very thin threads—I was just pulled out of his surgery for this, so Hiashi's gonna be up my ass for a week, thanks for that—I've gotta figure out what to do with twelve refugees, thanks to you and your Akatsuki friend's little fucked up human slave trade, and there's too much going on that I can't morally have a sip of sake! Oh and fuck you, by the way! Now talk! What's this about Root?" Tsunade demanded, her palm slamming down on the table, leaving a small dent.
Sasuke and Naruto both stared at her, mildly perturbed. They'd seen Tsunade angry on multiple occasions, been the cause of it for several of those, but they'd never seen her like this before. Her whole being emanated ire, making even Sasuke flinch at the idea of crossing her path at the moment. Her amber eyes glowed with uncontainable fury, and her fingers drummed impatiently awaiting an answer.
Itachi, while his eyes widened slightly betraying his mild surprise, to his credit didn't even flinch. "The unseen ones who support the great tree of Konoha from the depths of the earth." Itachi murmured. Tsunade's eyes widened, some of her fury replaced by shock.
"What's with the poetry?" Naruto asked loudly.
"It's not poetry, idiot!" Tsunade snapped, before sitting down heavily and massaging her temples. She was silent for a long moment, making Naruto and Sasuke exchange confused glances.
"So you were one of them, huh? Senator Shimura and I hate each other, especially after I closed down his sociopath child assassin unit, and fired him from his position as Chief of Staff for the ANBU. As a fuck you to me, he had all of the files on Root and many of the ANBU encrypted, so I can't look up your file, missions, or check if this is all some lie…So you better give me something real and damn convincing."
"I copied my file and mission parameters before leaving." Itachi said, glancing briefly at Sasuke before bringing his gaze back to Tsunade's. "There are two flash drives in the lining of my jacket. One contains intelligence I gathered, the other my file…"
Sasuke stared at the conversation taking place with a growing sense of bewilderment, his eyes jumping back and forth between Tsunade and Itachi. "What…What the hell is going on?!"
"I'm sorry little brother, I hoped you'd never find out…I'd hoped you'd kill me before you had the chance…although maybe it was wrong to wish that on you…"
"What are you talking about Itachi?!" Sasuke asked again, his mind not comprehending anything happening at the moment.
Tsunade let out a sigh and checked her watch, scowling. "We don't have a lot of time. Sit down, kid. You're gonna need a really abridged history lesson." She pulled out the chair next to her, nodding at it.
It was maybe the kindest Tsunade had ever been to him…and that was making him even more uneasy. He sat down numbly…it didn't even feel like he'd really moved. Nothing was making sense. Sakura was in danger, Itachi was in Konoha, and nothing made sense. "Naruto, get those flash drives Itachi mentioned." Tsunade ordered flatly, before turning to Sasuke. "Bullet point version is this: Shimura Danzo was placed in charge of the ANBU black-ops unit by Prime Minister Sarutobi. Over time, they started to develop a difference of opinions over the ideal way to keep Konoha safe and secure. The prime minister had access to the ANBU black ops unit, so Danzo created a smaller branch that only responded to him, unknown to Hiruzen-sensei. He called this unit Root. They were to namelessly, facelessly, emotionlessly, carry out the dark tasks that Hiruzen-sensei would never green light, all for the safety of Konoha. He developed an extreme training method to destroy Root operatives sense of self and connections to their emotions and humanity."
"Hey! That sounds like what happened to Sai!" Naruto shouted, horrified by the idea that there'd been something like this happening within the their government.
Tsunade nodded. "That's because it was. Sai was a Root agent, or at the very least he was in training to be. We still aren't sure…there's still somethings the conditioning is too strong for him to talk about. His exposure to you, Sakura, and Ino, has helped reawaken his humanity and thanks to Sakura's mental health clinics, he is starting to heal and get better. But as I'm sure Ino and Sakura can and maybe have told you, trauma never fully heals, and they'll be some scars Sai will have for life. Somethings he might never be able to tell us…When I became Prime Minister, and found out about the unit, I had it disbanded and removed Danzo from his position immediately. Unfortunately I couldn't arrest him because he covered his tracks too well. And since there's no evidence and he had a following, he now makes my life miserable as a Senator." Tsunade glared over at Itachi. "History lesson's over. Your turn. Explain and make it quick. We're on a tight clock to get my Sakura back." They all caught how she'd called her "my" Sakura, though no one commented on it. It was common knowledge to both Naruto and Sasuke that Tsunade was in many ways more a mother than Sakura's actual mother. As for Itachi, he filed it away as another piece to the intriguing woman who thawed his brother's heart. Not only had she melted that iceberg, she'd somehow tamed the raging beast that was Senju Tsunade…He was becoming more determined to help save her, if only just to meet her. He was curious.
"Very well…I'm sorry Sasuke…this will be hard to hear. I never dreamed you'd actually find out…The Uchiha were a very powerful family…and they were planning a coup that would have resulted in civil war. I'd seen war first hand as a child, and it wasn't something I wanted you to see…our clan's pride was too great. Konoha had barely started recovering from a war outside and they wanted to start one inside. I didn't want you or any other child subjected to that. I was recruited to the ANBU at a young age…I'm not sure if you were aware of remember…"
"You were seventeen…" Sasuke murmured. Of course he'd been aware, when his idol big brother grew more and more withdrawn from him…
Itachi nodded. "I was approached by Danzo. His terms were simple. Stop the coup and you'd be spared. If the coup was allowed to happen, the ANBU, specifically Root, would exterminate all Uchiha, including you. I tried to talk father out of it but…you know how he could be…I made my choice…and I hate myself for it…but I wasn't about to let you die when you were just an innocent boy."
Sasuke stared in utter shock. He wasn't even sure he was fully processing. "It…it was all an operation…an assassination operation…you…"
"I'm sorry, little brother. I hate myself for it everyday…I wanted to die for my crimes and I wanted it to be by your hand…it would only by fair and just. I selfishly tried to manipulate you into that. But I was wrong, and made things worse. Trying to groom you only for hate…I almost destroyed your life completely. Thank gods you're a stronger, better, man than I could have hoped for. And thank gods you have such good people surrounding you." From what he'd seen of Naruto and heard of Sakura, their influence had saved his brother from the darkness Itachi had sewn in him. That was a debt he could never repay and he sure as hell was going to make sure Sakura came back alive. Sasuke needed her. And he'd give his brother everything he needed, if only to make up for an eighth of the pain he'd caused him when he took everything away from him.
"But you…the Akatsuki…" Sasuke murmured, his breathing uneven.
"I couldn't bear to stay and face you after what I'd done, so I cut a deal with Danzo. He would put me on a long term, deep cover operation. One that would take me far away from Konoha. Working with the Akatsuki was sickening…the things I did to maintain my cover and steal information…" Itachi actually shuddered. "But…if it meant I was gathering information that would help Konoha, while staying far away, where I wouldn't have to face the damage I caused you…it felt worth it. I ran Sasuke. That's what that was. I couldn't face you, so I ran, and hoped that when we next would come face to face, you'd be strong and rightfully hateful enough to kill me for my crimes."
Sasuke felt like the world was suddenly shifting on its axis. Was this even real? Was this conversation actually happening? He wasn't even sure. A warm hand clamped down on his shoulder and he saw Naruto glaring at Itachi, steadfast and strong. Naruto had always been there for him, tracking him down and bringing him back from the edge…and he was doing it again. Brining Sasuke back from the brink of insanity.
"That sure was dumb of you. You know how much worse you made things by not telling him?! The bastard's had a stick up his ass since he was twelve! You could have explained things, like you just did, much earlier, and Sasuke wouldn't have spent so much unnecessary energy on hating you! Believe it!"
Itachi stared down at the table. "I know. I made a mistake running away and not explaining anything first…"
"I hate to interrupt the much needed family therapy session, but we're running out of time. We need to know which lab Orochimaru brought her to. Are you going to cooperate or not?" Tsunade cut in.
"Yes. I'm still and always will be an agent of Konoha."
"Great. And until we do a full scan and analysis of those," she said with a nod to the two flash drives now sitting on the table, "you're not getting out fo those cuffs."
"I understand." He would have done the same thing. She was a good Prime Minister. He would have voted for her, if the vote of a murderer counted for anything.
"Good. Naruto, take him to the briefing room and give those flash drives to Shino and Karin. And tell Kakashi he's assigned to Itachi until we sort this out."
"Rodger that, Grandma!" Naruto said, saluting Tsunade, uncuffing Itachi from the table and cuffing his wrists together instead. He glanced back at Sasuke once, his eyes filled with concern, before walking Itachi out the door.
Sasuke was shaking, his head in his hands. What the fuck was going on?!
Tsunade placed a bracing hand on his shoulder, giving it a bordering on painful squeeze. Sasuke jolted in surprise, looking up at Tsunade with wide eyes.
She didn't smile, but her eyes seemed soft. Softer than they ever had been, directed at him…it was strange, up until now, he could have sworn she hated him.
"Listen kid. I know this was a huge bomb dropped on you all at once. It's gotta suck, and you probably feel like you're going to go insane. I promise you I'll do whatever I can to catch Danzo, and I'll even put you on the case if you want. But I need you to put all that crap on the back burner for now. Right now, the only thing that matters to me is getting Sakura back. I know she's important to you…can we see eye to eye on this one?"
Sasuke blinked, only then becoming aware of the tears streaming down his face. Sakura…whatever happened he had to get her back. Whatever happened in the past, whatever would happen with Itachi and Danzo, and the mess that turned everything he believed into a lie…it would all be unbearable without her. And no matter how strong and tough she was, Sakura must have been terrified right now. All of it could wait. Finding her came first.
Sasuke nodded. Tsuande nodded back, giving his shoulder another tight squeeze.
"Let's find her."
They found Naruto and Itachi by Kakashi's desk, filling him in on the rush of new developments. It was hard to read Kakashi's reaction, what with the enigmatic mask he always wore, but if his balled fist and tight eyes were any indication, he wasn't happy. He'd gotten back from tailing Kisame an hour ago—the Akatsuki member had headed west and managed to shake Kakashi (not an easy thing to do) about half way between Konoha and the south western border of Fire Country. Kakashi had to have broken several speed laws to make it back so fast, but honestly Sasuke was just happy Kakashi wasn't late this time. Sakura was as much his kid as Naruto and Sasuke were, and Kakashi loved her as such. He was furious about Sakura's abduction and was ready to tear down Orochimaru's hide out brick by brick to get her back.
"You placed a tracker on Orochimaru's car, right? Is Sai back?" Sasuke asked, as he approached the three. Kakashi looked up and shook his head sadly.
"We placed the tracker and Sai was camped out to follow. They got into the car, but they managed to shake Sai, and must have switched vehicles. By the time Sai caught up, they'd ditched the van at a truckers stop."
"I can check traffic cameras." A quiet voice suggest, making them all turn to see a pale, tired, red-eyed Hinata.
"Hinata-chan!" Naruto enveloped her in a large hug, and it was a testament to how strung out she was that she didn't go bright red at the public contact. She buried her head in Naruto's chest, hugging him back tightly. "You don't need to be here right now, if you wanna be at the hospital with Neji and Kiba, we all understand." He said gently, at a low volume Sasuke hadn't been aware Naruto was capable of. Hinata shook her head softly, looking up at him.
"Kiba-kun is okay. He didn't even need surgery. And N-Neji-niisan will be fine, according to Prime Minister Tsuande and Shizune-san."
"It's really thanks to Sakura." Tsunade agreed. "The damage he sustained was fatal if left untreated, but he'd have made it at least two days, and it was something we were able to fix. He would have died from blood loss at the warehouse though, if it wasn't for Sakura."
"Sakura-chan's my friend, and I want to help bring her back." Hinata murmured, pulling out of Naruto's arms and gazing up at him determinedly.
"What's the status of the hostages?" Sasuke cut in. If Sakura were here, it would have been the first thing she asked after hearing Neji's update.
"They're all in the hospital. Physically, they're all s-suffering malnutrition, but other than a few minor injuries, it's nothing too s-severe. They're all going to need a lot of c-counseling though." She reported, sadly. "I'll go t-talk to Sai-kun and see if we can pick up anything from traffic cams. B-Besides, TenTen needs an update on N-Neji-niisan's condition." She cast a weary glance at Itachi, before giving a small bow and heading off to find Sai and TenTen.
Tsunade turned to regard the four of them sternly. "Tracing through traffic footage will take too long if it works at all. Tell me you have an idea of where she is Uchiha."
"There are a few possibilities I can think of…knowing their heading would narrow it down. Orochimaru keeps labs hidden everywhere. If they're by car, then they wouldn't have been able to make it out of Fire Country in such a short period of time. So they're using one of the labs he has set up in this land. I know of five."
"Five?! That snake bastard has five secret bases here?!" Naruto shouted, making both Itachi and Sasuke wince.
"That I know of…" Itachi sighed. "But even if he has more, those are the ones with better resources, so he will likely be in one of them. Knowing the direction they were heading will eliminate some of those."
"Ok, well that's something!" Naruto cheered optimistically, slapping Sasuke on the back.
Kakashi let out a long sigh, drawing all eyes to him. "Someone needs to inform her parents…"
Tsunade visibly twitched. "Do we have to?" She grumbled.
Kakashi sent her a pointed look, making her sigh. "Fine. It's better for everyone if it's not me. No one here wants me pissyer than I already am. As her squad, I order one of you to do it."
"Isn't that an abuse of your power?" Kakashi asked dryly, sounding no more a fan of the prospect than Tsunade had been, despite being the one to recommend such a course of action.
"You really want me talking to them?" She spat the word like it was an insult. And given what Sasuke knew about Sakura's parents, and Tsunade and Sakura's relationship, he had no issues at all picturing several verbal altercations between the Prime Minister and Sakura's parents about Sakura's growth and abilities.
"No! Gods no! Never again!" Naruto paled, shaking his head frantically, his eyes comically wide. Itachi just watched the proceedings confused.
"Get on with it then, I'll in my office. I need to update interpol about the Akatsuki situation. Those fucking oblivious…." She walked away muttering a slew of insults, likely about Sakura's parents.
"Alright, let's get this over with." Kakashi sighed, dialing a number and putting his phone on speaker.
"Hello?" Mebuki answered after three rings. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"
"I'm sorry for the inconvenience, Haruno-san. This is Captain Hatake of the KPD."
"Oh…" Mebuki sounded less than thrilled about speaking to Kakashi. "It's you. Dear, wake up, it's the KPD. Sakura-chan must have gotten herself in trouble again."
Kakashi's eyes were closed, his jaw clenched tightly, and Naruto had a pained look on his face.
"Something happened to my little Sakura-chan? What did she do?" They heard the slightly fainter voice of Kizashi, join his wife on the line.
"She did her job. Really damn well." Sasuke growled…maybe Tsunade had the right idea walking away, cause Sasuke honestly wanted to punch them both.
"Who's that?" Mebuki asked sharply.
"Uchiha Sasuke."
"Sasuke? Weren't you supposed to be keeping her safe?! You let my little Sakura-chan run into danger and get taken?! Without any means to defend herself!" Her father yelled into the line. All the Squad 7 males were glaring at the phone now, as if it were solely responsible for this whole conversation, while Itachi just watched curiously. "I knew she wasn't qualified for this! To think they actually entrusted her with—"
"You clearly have no idea how strong and capable your daughter is. She was the only one qualified!" Sasuke nearly spat.
"Sakura-chan saved two people who would have definitely died without her help, and ensured the safety of twelve others!" Naruto shouted passionately.
"Is that Naruto?" Kizashi brightened.
"Enough." Kakashi cut in firmly. "You clearly have no concept of just how dangerous Sakura's situation is at the moment, and maybe that's for the best. We're calling as a formality to make you aware, because that's protocol. Though, if I had my say, we wouldn't have bothered, since I firmly believe Sakura will make it out of this safely, and mostly by her own power. More than that, I don't believe you two deserve to know. You went right to blaming her for the danger she's in without even first hearing the details of the situation—do you really care whether she comes back safely, or is this just some sort of shameful embarrassment for you?" Both Sasuke and Naruto stared at Kakashi wide eyed…they didn't know he had it in him to be so savage.
"Of course we care! She's our daughter, and we told her the KPD was too dangerous for her! She belongs—"
"Do you have to consistently underestimate and undermine her, even after all she does and sacrifices for you? Does it make you feel more in control of her? It's unbelievable how blind and delusional you are." Sasuke growled fiercely. He would have given almost anything to see and speak with his parents again, but it was beginning to become clear to him that not all parent-child relationships were good…some did more damage than they offered support.
Kakashi was quick to add a more professional rundown for why her parents were dead wrong about her. "You call her unqualified, yet she is the only medic to be certified as an active field medic since the war—and the only one to ever pass Prime Minister Tsunade's personal training program. She became a fully certified doctor, capable and in charge of running the biggest hospital in Konoha within three years, and even conceptualized and built the mental health and pediatric mental health clinics. She figured out what was going on in this case when any other medical professional would have deemed it impossible and backed away terrified."
"Sakura's the best! Believe it! She's super smart and tough as all hell—I'm more scared of her than I am of the bastard!" Naruto added for emphasis.
"You seem to think she's so capable, but you clearly don't know her like we do! She crumbles under pressure, no matter how good she is at something. She doesn't have it in her to see things through. She's messy and irresponsible—"
"You should start looking at your daughter as the adult she is instead of the child she was. Maybe, at one point, everything you just said was true. But that only makes who she is now all the more impressive…and the one thing Sakura never was, was irresponsible!" Sasuke had to bite his tongue to keep from revealing what Sakura had confided in him about quitting gymnastics in confidence. He honestly couldn't believe half of the things that had just spewed from Mebuki's mouth. This conversation was becoming a waste of time…time they didn't have. Naruto was of the same mindset.
"Ah to hell with this! We followed protocol and kept you in the loop, but clearly you care more about talking down to Sakura-chan than her actual safety, and I've had enough. Sakura-chan's probably already taken care of everything and is waiting for us to come pick her up by this point! We'll bring your daughter back safely, not that you seem to care all that much, so talk to ya later, Baachan, Jichan!" Naruto hung up before they could get in a single word of protest.
The three team 7 members stared at the phone, seething. Honestly, based on the previous conversation Sasuke had overheard between Sakura and her parents, their disappointing reactions weren't all that shocking. He was surprised by how aggressively Kakashi had responded, but Sakura had said Kakashi hadn't seem to like her mom very much. Besides, team 7 had always been close knit and particularly protective of Sakura. It was no wonder they were all on short fuses right now.
Itachi stared at Sasuke, with both pride and surprise. "You really love this girl, don't you, little brother?"
Sasuke stiffened, casting a wary and hostile look towards Itachi…he still didn't know what to think of say to him. All the confusion of the earlier revelation that he'd been pushing away for the time being hit again, and he couldn't afford that yet. Not until Sakura was safe.
"Not…I can't…Talking to you right now is…I haven't forgiven you, Niisan…and I don't know what to think—you really…I can't do it right now. Just…I need to find her…if you're sorry to me at all…help me find her."
A throat clearing brought their attention to the new comer standing awkwardly a short distance from the group. Choji stood, looking somewhat uncomfortable at having interrupted what may have been a private moment."We got something. You should come see this."
"What's going on?!" Naruto demanded as soon as they stepped into the briefing room.
Everyone was gathered around Shino and Karin, whose eyes were glued to the computer screen in front of them.
"A huge file transfer came in on the private server we set up." Karin explained quickly her eyes latching onto one of the uploaded file names. "They're records and files on Orochimaru's experiments."
"But who could have sent such a thing?" Lee asked.
"Are we sure they're real?" TenTen followed up, her expression anxious and eyes red rimmed.
"These files could have only come from one of Orochimaru's computers…" Karin affirmed her eyes skimming over reports, notes, and experiment logs.
"And if it was sent to this server, that means it could only have come from someone who knows about it…" Shikamaru murmured eyes wide.
"I told you she's not weak." Sasuke said firmly, hope flickering through him dangerously. She was alive and kicking…and Sakura could kick hard. Just like she'd said in his imagination, she'd taken care of things on her end. She just needed him to get her a ride out of there.
Sasuke joined them at the computer, eyes searching rapidly over the documents for any clues as to her location. "Can you trace the computer they were sent from?"
"We can't. It's because there were too many VPNs and double backs on the signal. They were likely already set up and Sakura had no idea they were there." Shino explained.
"Knowing Forehead, she may have guessed that was a possibility." Ino sniffled. "She probably sent this as a signal to us, as well as to have a road map to reverse engineer an antidote or treatment plan for any surviving experiments…She may have hoped we'd be able to trace it, but I doubt she's banking on it. She's too smart to put all her eggs in one basket like that."
"Sakura-san is truly the most intelligent and radiant blossom in all of Konoha! But how are we going to find her if we are unable to trace her location?"
"You won't need it." Itachi spoke for the first time since entering the briefing room.
"What's he doing in here?" TenTen asked cooly.
Sasuke caught Karin watching him with notable concern etched on her face.
"Why don't we just call him a CI for now." Kakashi answered smoothly, his aloof front back in place. "Sai, which direction did Orochimaru head?"
Sai blinked once seemingly confused by the sudden line of questioning. "North east. But as I reported, I lost them and they ditched their van. I'm unsure of whether they continued with that bearing or not."
"They did." Kakashi answered. "If they went North east, then he took her to one of two hide outs. Either to a hospital in an abandoned town eighteen hours away from the boarder of Otogakure by car, or he took her to a factory more east, 9 hours away from the border with Hot Water Country."
Shikamaru pulled up a map and dropped a rough pin of the two locations.
"Those are at least a four days apart from each other, meaning if we pick wrong, Sakura's done for."
"Can't we send two parties, one to each?" Naruto asked, studying the map seriously.
"We're too short on resources and manpower. To make it in time we'll need to use a chopper and we only have one available to us at the moment."
"Then don't pick wrong." Sasuke growled threateningly.
Shikamru's hands formed a circle as he thought through everything while considering the map. After a long moment he turned to the group still largely gathered around Karin's computer.
"Ino, Sai, Karin. Which do you think it is?"
Karin looked confused as to why the brains of the operation was suddenly defaulting to her, Ino, and Sai specifically, but Ino worked long enough with Shikamaru that she didn't have to ask. She was a profiler, and Sai an interrogation specialist. They were trained to get into peoples heads. And Karin had worked with Orochimaru and would actually be able to verify character suspicions they might have.
Ino studied the pinned locations with narrowed eyes. Her best friend's life was on the line. She had to get this right!
"He's a sadistic, power hungry, and controlling. He enjoys seeing people break…" Ino recited.
"Sakura's place of power, her domaine so to speak, would be the hospital." Sai added. It was a testament to how concerned he was that he hadn't used his usual nicknames for her. When Sai used Sakura's actual name, you knew it was serious.
"So then, he took her to the factory." TenTen guessed. "He'd want to take her out of her element. Make her less comfortable."
"I don't think so…" Ino shook her head. "He wants to break her, demonstrate his power and control while causing her the most pain. So…if I were him, I'd take her to the hospital."
"But why is that? Y-You said that's where Sakura-Chan would feel most at home." Hinata asked uncertainly.
"It's because it's where she feels most at home." Sai explained. "What better way to absolutely break someone, then to turn the place they feel comfortable, safe, and in control, into a nightmare where they have no power at all. It would hurt so much more to corrupt the place she feels confident."
"And from a psychological standpoint, it makes him a conqueror. if the hospital is Sakura-chan's domain, and he defeats her in it, he's now claimed it as his own, and erased her power from it. He's all about conquest and domination. This is just another form of domination."
"What do you think Karin? Does that sound right to you? You worked with the guy?" Shikamaru asked.
"Itachi worked with him more than I did…" Karin countered.
"My opinion wasn't asked for, though I'd tend to agree with Ino-san and Sai-san's assessment."
"Well Karin?" Shikamaru pressed.
Karin's throat felt like sandpaper. It wasn't fair! They shouldn't be turning this on her! If she gave the word and it turned out to be wrong, they'd all blame her for this and would all hate her and she'd be driven out again!
"Karin. We don't have time. Sakura needs us." Sasuke's voice was rough, like he was trying to hold back a million emotions at once and was seconds from shattering. Sasuke needed Sakura. Karin couldn't just let him be in pain like that! And she couldn't just let Sakura suffer at the hands of that manipulative monster either!
Karin turned her attention back to the map, staring hard at the pin over the hospital.
"I don't know anything about profiling or psychology. But Orochimaru always said there would come a point where he'd get more discerning with his test subjects. If he's stopped expecting his tests to be failures, and thinks he's bordering some breakthrough, he'll want to be closer to his home base of Otogakure. He took her to the hospital. It's closer to the Sound border."
"Alright. Get ready. We're headed for the hospital…what a drag."
Author's note: I really felt like reaming Sakura's parents, lol. Anyway, this was Sasuke's side of events during the bust...still not totally a filled in picture because Sasuke was too wrapped up in Itachi to process. But yeah, it got messy. I kinda love the moment with Tsunade and Sasuke...I love Tsunade incase that wasn't obvious and the two don't have much interaction canonically, but I genuinely feel like she'd hate him with empathy, if that makes sense. And that they'd both set aside their opinions of each other when it comes to Sakura's well being and happiness. I think Itachi would have really liked and respected Sakura too, given her positive influence on Sasuke.
Anyway, this'll wrap up soon. I'll see if I can get it to twenty chapters, cause that feels like a clean number to stop at, but honestly I might finish it off within the next two...We'll see.
Thank you so much for reading this far! Please do leave a review! They're excellent motivation! :)