Consciousness came back to him slowly. His mind was foggy and his limbs were too heavy to move. There were several questions on his mind, but the loudest was, 'What the hell happened to me?' As if posing the question was enough to open the floodgates, everything came rushing back. Sasuke couldn't stop the way his entire body tensed when he remembered what had happened to his brother. The Yondaime had done something to him. Sasuke was sure of it.
Suddenly, some overhead lights flickered on and managed to disorient him despite his eyes being closed. Slowly cracking an eye open, Sasuke tried to determine where he was- an empty room with blank walls and a few dried blood stains on the floors. This wasn't the prison. He'd seen it more than enough times in the past to know the difference. He had to be within T&I. There was nowhere else in the village that was equipped at holding shinobi.
The metal gurney that he was strapped to shouldn't have been difficult to break away from, but his noticeably low chakra reserves gave him pause. His normally strong chakra moved sluggishly through his body, like a slow trickle of thick honey. Was this from the Mokuton user? (Since when did Konoha have a Mokuton user? Wasn't the Shodaime the only one?)
The deafening silence was broken by the sound of a door opening. He couldn't see who it was, nor could he sense their chakra, but the mystery was broken when they stepped into his line of sight. "Hi, Sasuke-kun," Ino greeted him with a small smile.
Sasuke wasn't sure how to respond to the girl. She gave him an apologetic look before reaching out towards his chest with a glowing hand. His entire body tensed, but Sasuke made no moves to pull away or fight her off. "I'm sorry that I'm not as good at this as Forehead, but I'm decent enough," she said as her hands glowed green and her chakra vegan probing through his system.
There were still a few pressing questions on his mind, but the most pertinent one was, "Where's my brother?"
Ino paused for a second before replying, "Safe." Sasuke glared at her in frustration. "You can see him soon, Sasuke-kun. You were already cleared from treason, but Ibiki-san wants to hold you until the Hokage officially signs off on the report."
While the idea of him being placed under suspicion for treason had been initially troubling, all his concerns flew out the window once thoughts of the Yondaime entered his mind. The Hokage. Some of his memories were blurry or missing finer details but Sasuke could still remember seeing the Yondaime with his brother. Itachi had suddenly started coughing up blood after the Yondaime had interfered. Whatever that man had done to his brother would nothing compared to what Sasuke would do once he got out of here.
"Hey," Ino pulled his attention away from his inner rage. "You don't need to worry about Naruko. I already spoke to her for you."
Naruko? What about her? What did she have to do with this?
Ino must have misinterpreted his confusion because she explained, "I was the one that did your interrogation. I know that you sent her away to keep her safe. She's pretty pissed off at you for that, but I thought it was sweet.
"It's weird. I don't think I've ever understood you as well as I do right now, Sasuke-kun. I thought I did when we were younger, but I was just seeing what I wanted to see. You're way more complex than I thought. Naruko has her work cut out for her," Ino joked with a smirk after ceasing her medical examination.
Sasuke wanted to shout at her for invading his mind and privacy. He wanted to tell her to shut up. He wanted to loudly and vehemently argue that she didn't know anything about him. But mostly, he wanted her to stop talking about pointless things and tell him where his brother was!
"I think you'll make a great father one day, Sasuke-kun," Ino whispered conspiratorially to him with a wink.
Sasuke's building irritation almost had him screaming at her, but the sound of the heavy, metal door swinging open once again stopped him. Whoever it was that had entered behind him didn't speak, but Ino was nodding to them in acknowledgment anyways. Eventually the door swung closed and Ino smiled brightly at him.
"See? You're free to go," Ino said and went about freeing him from his restraints and unlocking the shackles around his wrists and ankles. "I told them that they were going overboard, but they were worried about what you'd do if you found out about your brother."
Sasuke suddenly stopped massaging the skin at his wrists to give Ino a probing stare. "What happened to Itachi?" Sasuke interrogated, his throat far too dry. How long had he been here?
"He was taken to the hospital. I don't know how badly he was injured. Everything about him is being kept extremely confidential," Ino said with another sorry expression. Sasuke hopped down from his seat, ready to get the hell out of here and see his brother with his own eyes. For the Yondaime's sake, he'd better find his brother alive and well.
~:~
Sasuke didn't want to make any decisions until he had seen Itachi's condition for himself. He hadn't fully determined what he would do if he saw his brother actually dying, but his instinctual response was one of indignant rage. While his rage would be helpful, emotional boost to his strength, Sasuke knew that it would be better to save it for later. No, it would be better to find his brother without making a scene.
"I'm looking for my brother," Sasuke said to the nurse that was flipping through some papers behind the front desk.
The shinobi looked a bit annoyed, but their eyes widened in surprise at the sight of him. "I'm sorry, Uchiha-san. Your brother isn't here. Perhaps you were mistaken?" the nurse said with a shakily apologetic look.
Eyes flashing red, Sasuke glared at the nurse. Whatever seals had been placed on him in T&I were still having residual effects on his chakra. His normally fine control was shot, and the full force of his chakra was oppressing the space around him. Beads of sweat were gathering on the nurse's forehead as they looked at the other nurses standing around for help. The others just watched warily but made no move to interfere. "U-Uchiha-san, I promise you that your brother isn't he-" the nurse started, practically sweating bullets.
Patience shot, Sasuke's hand shot out towards the nurse to grab her by the front of her clothes, but his movements were halted by another's strong grip on his wrist. Sharingan gleaming, Sasuke turned to whoever had dared to-
"Sasuke-kun, I would appreciate it if you didn't harass or injure my nurses," Sakura said, tone level but there was a subtle promise of bodily harm in the way her grip tightened around his wrist.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed threateningly at Sakura. Did she really intend to fight him right here and now? No. He could see that she wouldn't fight him, but she would throw him out and make it far more difficult for him to get to his brother. Making a conscious effort to reign in his chakra, Sasuke exhaled deeply through his nose. Sakura held onto him for a beat longer before releasing his wrist with a nod. Sasuke resisted the urge to rub at his wrist. The area would surely bruise now. "Sakura," Sasuke started.
"You didn't even bother to shower before you came over here, did you? Don't bother answering. I could smell you from my office," Sakura sighed with a 'what-can-you-do?' sort of shrug. "You can use the showers here," Sakura said and started to walk away, assuming that he would follow.
"I don't want a-" Sasuke started, but Sakura cut him off.
"You'll have one if you want to see Itachi-san," she said in a no-nonsense tone.
Like dangling candy in front of a toddler, Sasuke's attention was instantly rerouted. Abandoning the nurse at the front desk, Sasuke trailed after Sakura. "Where is he?" Sasuke implored.
"That information is confidential, but-"
It was his turn to cut her off now. "Sakura, I don't give a shit about confidentiality. I want to see him."
Sakura shot him an annoyed look. "As I was saying, it's confidential. But Itachi-san made a point of wanting to see you once you were cleared in T&I. I'll take you to him, but you need to clean up first. I won't have you potentially harming my patient by introducing any harmful or infectious pathogens to him," Sakura said and gestured to the door marked "Showers".
"What happened to him?" Sasuke had to know. Sakura was the only one he'd seen who knew anything. She had to tell him something- anything!- about his brother.
"He wants to explain it to you himself. Don't ask me why. Just get cleaned up and I'll bring you some clean clothes," Sakura said and turned to leave him.
Itachi must be in a better condition than he expected for his brother to be making so many requests. Then again, it was never easy to understand or predict what Itachi was thinking. Frowning deeply, Sasuke pushed the door to the showers open. He'd clean up quickly and make his way over to his brother.
~:~
Sakura had left him the standard Konoha shinobi attire. Unfortunately, his focus had been entirely on Itachi when he'd been released from T&I, so he hadn't bothered to gather his personal effects. It was strange to not be wearing his headband. Honestly, it probably wasn't the best idea for someone just investigated for treason to be seen without their symbolic tie to the village. But Sasuke couldn't be bothered.
Once he stepped outside, Sakura was waiting for him with a clipboard in hand. After a short inspection, she nodded once in satisfaction before leading him away. "Your father is alright. He had lost a lot of blood, but we were able to stabilize him. He's been recuperating for the past few days," Sakura informed.
Sasuke was a little ashamed that he hadn't thought to inquire about his father. "And my mother? What about Shisui?"
"Your mother visits your father and brother around the same time every day. She's a bit stressed, but I heard that she's been staying with Kushina-san," Sakura stared and flipped to a page on her clipboard. "Shisui actually woke up earlier, but he wasn't awake for long. He lost a lot of blood too, but they got him to us in time. He'll live," she said and offered him a small smile. The tension in his shoulders lessened slightly, but not enough to make him relax entirely.
By the time they had walked through a fifth door, Sasuke was starting to question how much longer they had to go. Sakura led him through several doors and down way too many stairs. When he watched Sakura use her chakra to break the seal on a door, Sasuke felt his worry spike. Where were they keeping his brother? He knew that his brother's condition was being kept confidential, but he hadn't expected so many safeguards.
"There's only a handful of people who can come down here. That nurse you almost assaulted wouldn't have been able to help you even if she had known where your brother was," Sakura said, tone dry and a bit exasperated.
Not sure what else to say, Sasuke replied, "I thought that she was lying."
Sakura gave him the most long suffering look he'd ever seen on her face. She shook her head with a sigh and stopped in front of an unmarked door. "He's in here," Sakura said, but she hadn't even gotten through her sentence before Sasuke was pushing his way into the room.
When he finally saw his brother, Sasuke was surprised to see Itachi sitting up in a hospital bed with tubes up his nose and a book in his hand. His cheek had been resting on his fist, but he sat up straighter at the intrusion. When Itachi had noticed him, his brother gave him a genuine smile. "Sasuke," he greeted and put his book to the side.
Sasuke was moving before he knew it, clearing the room in two, long strides. Itachi had held his arms open wide and Sasuke had grasped at the invitation with both hands. The relief he felt at finally being able to see and hold his brother was sweet. A shaky exhale escaped him as he tightened his embrace.
"I missed you too, Otouto," Itachi said with a soft, breathy chuckle.
"I saw you. I heard you after the Yondaime…" Sasuke trailed off as he reluctantly pulled away.
"Minato-sama brought me to the hospital himself. He's already explained the situation to me," Itachi started. What? The Yondaime had helped his brother? Had he been wrong to accuse the older man of harming his brother?
"The whole clan must be vetted before anyone can be released, but I requested that you be one of the first to be investigated. I knew that you would pass, but I was mildly concerned when the days started to pass and you hadn't shown yourself," Itachi finished.
"I think it was the chakra exhaustion. One of the ANBU, they could use Mokuton and drained my chakra," Sasuke explained, frustration and anger coloring his tone.
Surprisingly, Itachi didn't react to the news of a shinobi in Konoha having the Mokuton. His brother nodded once at the information and said, "It was probably an attempt to restrain you until the situation was properly contained."
"I didn't do anything wrong and neither did you," Sasuke argued.
"I know. We aren't prisoners, Sasuke."
"They're sure hiding you away as if you are one," Sasuke said, not bothering to hide his anger.
"It's a purely political decision. As you can tell, I'm not in the best health at the moment. It would be concerning to the village and the elders if the full scope of my condition was made public knowledge. Some would most likely protest having a defective shinobi in line to become the Hokage," Itachi explained with a soft sigh.
Sasuke was about to deny any care or concern for the elders or the village's opinions when Sakura stepped over to them with a pen and clipboard. Itachi seemed familiar with this routine because he sat back on his bed and allowed Sakura to pass a glowing hand over his chest. "Have you seen Tou-san yet?"
"No," Sasuke answered, watching Sakura's movements like a hawk.
"You should. I heard that he has been asking for you," Itachi said and suddenly coughed into his hand. Sakura stopped her examination to carefully eye him before slowly proceeding once Itachi had finished.
"What's wrong with you? You haven't been this bad since…" Sasuke trailed off. Itachi silently watched him, his eyes growing sad. Immediately, Sasuke's fear spiked. "No," he vehemently denied. "You were better. Tsunade cured you."
"I was never truly cured, Sasuke. Tsunade-sama treated me as best as she could, but a permanent cure was never possible."
It felt like the rug had been pulled out from under him. Sasuke's mouth opened and closed helplessly as he tried to work through what Itachi was saying. Fortunately, Sakura spoke up before his thoughts could spiral too out of control. "Sasuke-kun, your brother has an autoimmune disease," Sakura said, genuine sympathy in her voice. Thanks to his medical training, Sasuke was aware of what that meant. His brother's own body was at war with itself.
"There isn't a name for Itachi-san's exact condition yet, but it's very similar to Takayasu arteries," Sakura started. She launched into an explanation that was heavily loaded down with medical jargon, but Sasuke was too hung up on the fact that there wasn't even a name for what was wrong with his brother.
"Sasuke," Itachi had to call out to him to bring him back down to earth. Sasuke looked up to see Sakura giving him an expectant look, but he had no idea what she'd asked. Taking pity on him, Itachi said, "Sakura-san asked if you had any questions."
"There's no cure?" Sasuke asked because there had to be. Sakura probably just hadn't thought of it yet.
Sakura shook her head. "The damage being done to his vessels and chakra pathways was manageable before, but the added strain from his eyes is making it difficult."
"But not impossible," Sasuke pushed.
Sakura sighed softly. "It's not a simple thing to treat, Sasuke-kun."
Sasuke wasn't quite ready to put his fist through a wall, but he was getting dangerously close. "If you can't heal him, then who can?"
"Sasuke-kun-" Sakura started after taking a deep breath.
"And don't say Tsunade. She couldn't fix him the first time despite being the world's best medic," Sasuke spat.
"Sasuke," Itachi's voice broke through the fog of Sasuke's anger. "Sakura-chan is trying to explain, but she can't do that if you won't let her speak." Resisting the urge to huff and roll his eyes, Sasuke gave Sakura his full attention.
"I can see why you wanted to be the one to explain it to him," Sakura muttered to Itachi. Sasuke glared at her. "The body's vessels and chakra pathways are located in very close proximity to each other- practically running over each other in some parts of the body. In addition to targeting the arteries in his body, Itachi-san's immune system is attacking his chakra pathways as well. His medication before was enough to suppress his immune system but the recent changes to his eyes and chakra have put more strain on his body. It's accelerating his condition past the point that any medicine can treat. Using and molding chakra is putting more strain on his body. It's too dangerous for him to perform any jutsu or even use his Sharingan. And then there's the damage to his eyes..." Sakura said with a frustrated shake of her head.
His eyes? Was Itachi going blind? Sasuke turned questioning eyes onto his brother, but Itachi had already closed his eyes as if he were trying to block them out.
"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun. At this point, even if I were to heal every square inch of him, it wouldn't do much good. It would only prolong his suffering," Sakura said with a sad frown.
Sasuke was quiet for some time before he turned a questioning look on his brother. "You're suffering?" Sasuke asked in a small voice.
"I've managed worse suffering," Itachi replied. Sasuke tried not to be too frustrated with his brother, but he was making it so hard. "I've grown used to the pain."
How had he not noticed that Itachi was in pain? Was he such a terrible brother that he hadn't been able to see what was right in front of him? Had there been any signs? "Why didn't you tell me?" Sasuke asked, doing a decent job of disguising his hurt but failing. Itachi frowned deeply but didn't answer him. Cursing loudly, Sasuke turned away from his brother. "How can I help you if you don't trust me enough to tell me the truth?"
"Sasuke, I trust you with my life."
"Don't lie to me, Itachi. You always stuck your nose in my business, but you always kept me at a distance. I never knew what's going on with you. The only way I ever hear what's going on with you is from Shisui," Sasuke said. For once, Itachi had nothing to say. He could only give Sasuke a sad, repentant look. "How long have you known?" Sasuke had to ask.
"I could tell that my condition was worsening after the first time I tried using my Mangekyo," Itachi answered.
Itachi had gotten his Mangekyo weeks ago. Frustrations peaking, Sasuke asked, "Does Shisui know?"
He had a feeling that he already knew the answer, but the need for confirmation was too strong to resist. When Itachi gave him an apologetic look, Sasuke's hands clenched. "When were you planning to tell me? On your deathbed? Or would you rather take all your secrets to your grave?" Sasuke sardonically asked. Itachi remained silently impassive, eyes lowered to his hospital-issued sheets.
His emotions were getting out of control. Sasuke knew that he should leave before he said something that he would regret. But he could already feel that vicious, ugly part of him forcing its way to the front. "What kind of brother are you?" Sasuke spat. Itachi still didn't reply, his gaze resolutely lowered.
"Sasuke-kun," Sakura intervened, but Sasuke shot her a warning glare.
"Don't start. You have no idea what it feels like to have him for a brother. We lived together for most of our lives, but it was always "Forgive me, Sasuke. Maybe next time," Sasuke scoffed. "I know more about Kakuzu than I do my own brother," Sasuke spat and turned on his heels. Neither Sakura nor Itachi tried to stop him from leaving, but it hardly mattered. There was nothing that they could have said.
He was furious. Furious and frustrated with Itachi, but also hurt. As much as Itachi liked to claim that he trusted him, Sasuke knew different. Why couldn't Itachi trust him? Why couldn't he confide in him the way he did with Shisui? Was he doomed to always be Itachi's "foolish little brother"?
~:~
After seeing Itachi, Sasuke had faced the small dilemma of not knowing where to go. He'd considered going to visit his father, but his simmering rage kept him away. (Best not to accidentally lash out at his father for something that wasn't his fault.) Sasuke considered going home, but after seeing the yellow, "Caution" tape plastered all over the entrance to the Uchiha district he'd quickly scratched that idea. Judging by the wary looks and mistrustful glares he received while just walking through the streets, Sasuke knew that the whole village must have known about what happened with his clan. After the fourth barely whispered comment about his loyalties, Sasuke gave up. Rather than face the village's judgmental stares, Sasuke had chosen to haunt his usual spot atop the Hokage Monument. Sasuke had spent hours alone staring out at the village that probably hated him and his entire family. Unfortunately, his solitude (brooding) was broken around sundown.
"What do you want, Kakashi?" Sasuke asked when his former sensei had taken too long to speak up.
"Forgive me, Sasuke. I've been catching up on everything I missed while I was away," Kakashi said and moved to stand next to him, still thankfully maintaining some distance between them.
"The village was destroyed, a lot of people died and came back to life, and my clan is full of traitors. There, you're all caught up," Sasuke replied and kept his gaze firmly away from the direction of the empty Uchiha district.
"Sounds like the quality of report I would give Iruka-sensei to upset him," Kakashi mused and sat down. When Sasuke didn't reply, Kakashi awkwardly asked, "Do you…want to…talk about it?"
Sasuke shot Kakashi a dry, annoyed stare that had his former sensei holding his hands up in helpless surrender. "You and I both know that I'd have better luck having an emotional conversation with a rock," Sasuke said with a roll of his eyes.
"Ouch," Kakashi replied and rubbed at the spot on his chest over his heart. "I don't remember you being so vicious before I left."
"In case you weren't listening before, a lot has changed."
"Did something happen to your brother?" Kakashi suddenly asked. Sasuke shot him a look that had Kakashi once again raising his hands in surrender. "I haven't seen or heard from him since I've been back. I just assumed that whatever happened is what put you in such a foul mood."
Sasuke scoffed and practically spat, "It's confidential. Then again, everything is a secret when it comes to my brother."
Kakashi didn't reply at first, choosing to stretch out his legs with a sigh. "He's a shinobi. We tend to collect many secrets in our line of work," Kakashi pointed out in a light tone.
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I'm not a kid or an idiot, Kakashi. I don't expect my brother to tell me the details of his missions. I just want him to look me in the eye and tell me when something is wrong." But why would Itachi tell him anything? He probably doesn't want or need any help from his little brother. Sasuke scoffed again.
"I think I understand where your brother is coming from," Kakashi mused. Sasuke shot him another annoyed look. "It's much easier to keep others at a distance. Maybe you don't want to them to have to share your burdens, or you think that you can handle whatever it is on your own."
"I know that he's a genius, but he didn't even think to tell me something was wrong," Sasuke said before realizing that he might have said too much. Sasuke doubted that Kakashi was privy to his brother's condition.
Kakashi silently stared at him for a long time before he said, "I hear that you're going blind."
Sasuke immediately tensed and shot Kakashi a narrowed glare. How had Kakashi- Sasuke's thoughts came to a screeching halt when he realized just who had been going around revealing his business to the rest of the village. "Naruko," Sasuke muttered.
"Not intentionally. She didn't want to discuss anything to do with you at first. But she seems to think that I have all the answers when it comes to figuring out what's going through your head. As usual, I tried to convince her to speak to you, but she seems to think that you'd rather lose a limb than let her in," Kakashi said, his monotonous voice managing to sound weighed down with secondary meanings.
There were no doubts or second guessing. Sasuke was the hypocrite. Brows furrowed, Sasuke glared down at his lap. "I don't want to talk about this anymore," Sasuke said.
"Fair enough," Kakashi said and stretched his arms above his head. "If it's all the same to you, I'm going to take a nap. I'm still a bit drained from an earlier challenge with Gai."
Sasuke scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Old man," Sasuke muttered.
~:~
Sasuke had spent a few more silent minutes in Kakashi's company before deciding to visit his father. Emotions tightly reigned in for the time being, Sasuke stepped into the hospital and approached the front desk for the second time that day. The nurse from that morning was nowhere to be found, but Sasuke did spot his mother leaving with a small basket in hand. "Kaa-san," Sasuke called out as he approached her.
Mikoto had been staring worriedly at the floor in front of her, but she perked up at the sound of his voice. "Sasuke. Thank goodness. I had gotten worried when I didn't see you," Mikoto said and tightly embraced him.
"I was out of commission. Chakra exhaustion," Sasuke briefly explained.
"But you're alright now?" Mikoto questioned. She didn't relax until he gave her an affirming nod. "Your father was worried about you. He's upstairs in room 203. Do you want me to come with you?"
"No, that's alright. I heard that you've been staying with the Hokage?"
"Yes. Our home has been sealed off while the investigations are ongoing. Kushina insisted that we stay with her and Minato," Mikoto said, but her mood quickly plummeted. "Have you seen your brother?"
"I saw him."
Mikoto nodded with a deep sigh. "I don't know what we're going to do. Everything seems to be going wrong all at once. Your father, Itachi and even Shisui… And then there's the clan. I'm not sure where to begin," Mikoto said with a heavy sigh.
His heart went out to his mother. With one sigh, she seemed to wilt on the spot. Sakura hadn't lied when she'd said that his mother was stressed. Firmly gripping her shoulders, Sasuke subtly adjusted his mother's posture until she was standing tall once again. "You don't have to do everything alone," Sasuke stressed.
Mikoto smiled softly. "You're right. Thank you, Sasuke. I'm going to get some rest. Kushina's offer was extended to the whole family. Stop by and get something to eat. It'll be dinnertime soon," Mikoto said and gave him another tight hug. Sasuke gave her a noncommittal grunt before watching her go.
Sasuke still hadn't figured out what he would say to his father by the time he was standing in front of room 203. He imagined an awkward reunion with his father complete with stilted dialogue and an urgent need to flee. 'Better get it over with,' he thought to himself while pushing the door open.
His father was sitting up on the edge of his bed, looking out at the view of the village below. Fugaku slowly turned to see who had entered and a look of genuine relief took over his face. Fugaku was up in an instant, doing his best to meet Sasuke halfway. Sasuke couldn't help but notice the bandages poking out from under his father's yukata.
"Sasuke," Fugaku sighed in relief. Sasuke returned his father's embrace, trying his best not to do so awkwardly. "I knew that you would be fine, but it's still nice to see you for myself. What happened to you?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?"
Fugaku frowned with a shake of his head. "Yashiro's handiwork," he said and gestured to his injury. "Meant for your mother. If had been only slightly less aware… I don't want to think about it…" Fugaku said and went back to sitting on the bed. "What about you? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Just some chakra exhaustion," Sasuke said and moved to take up the only seat in the room.
"Good. I'm glad that you're feeling better," Fugaku said with a small smile. As if he was remembering something depressing, the smile fell. "Have you seen your brother?" Fugaku asked. Sasuke grunted affirmatively but didn't expand any further. Fugaku nodded. "It was…quite the surprise."
"He didn't tell you?" Sasuke curiously asked.
Fugaku chuckled mirthlessly. "I haven't known what's been going on with Itachi in years. He's never been very open, but he was even less so after the first time the clan… Never mind."
"I already know, Tou-san. Itachi already told me what happened back then," Sasuke admitted.
Fugaku looked surprised for a second before nodding in acceptance. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. You two have always been close. You probably know your brother better than anyone barring Shisui or Izumi."
Sasuke didn't voice his doubts.
"Sasuke, I'm an old man," Fugaku said with a serious frown. When Sasuke raised a brow in question, Fugaku continued, "I got lucky this time, but I won't be around forever. I know that I didn't do the best job caring for you and your brother. I thought that I could at least take solace in the fact that you both are strong enough to protect yourselves and each other. But with the current situation… Can you promise me one thing, Sasuke?"
Sasuke sat up in his seat, giving his father his undivided attention.
"Promise me that you'll take care of your brother. He takes on too much- over burdens himself. It's mostly my fault. I just want him to be at peace for whatever time he has left," Fugaku said with a deep sigh.
Sasuke's eyes widened slightly as a lump formed in his throat. The reminder of his brother's condition compounded with the tired resignation that was flowing off his father in waves. "I will," Sasuke promised.
~:~
Sasuke hadn't gone to the Hokage's residence after visiting his father. Instead, he had popped into the newly rebuilt Ichiraku Ramen and placed an order to go. Teuchi and Ayame had greeted him warmly and expressed their relief at seeing him up and about. They had shown concern over his family but had left the matter alone when they had picked up on his unwillingness to talk and the looks that he was receiving from the other patrons. Fortunately, they had quickly prepared his order free of charge before sending him on his way with a promise to visit again soon. Sasuke was grateful to find out that not everyone in the village bore ill will against him or his clan.
Bag of takeout in hand, Sasuke had returned to the hospital just in time to see Sakura leaving for the night. She took one look at him and the food in his hand before shaking her head with a roll of her eyes. "Took you long enough," she said and lead the way back inside. Sasuke grunted once but didn't reply.
When he stood in front of his brother's door once again, he hesitated. Would Itachi even want to see him? Grasping at his last shred of confidence, Sasuke pushed the door open and met his brother's gaze.
"Sasuke," Itachi greeted, his eyes going to the takeout containers.
"Ramen isn't very good for him, but I'll look the other way this once," Sakura said. "No one should bother you tonight. I'll see you bright and early Itachi-san."
"Thank you, Sakura-san," Itachi said gratefully.
Sasuke waited until Sakura had closed the door behind her before slowly approaching his brother's bedside. Each step felt heavier than the last, but it fortunately didn't take many before he was standing before his brother. With all of his regret and shame on full display, Sasuke started, "Nii-san, I owe you an apology. I treated you horribly and I'm so sorry. You've always loved and protected me. You didn't deserve to be treated like shit. You're not a bad brother. I am."
Itachi gave him a sad smile as he reached a hand out to gently tap Sasuke's forehead. "While I accept your apology, I was never upset with you, Sasuke."
"You should be," Sasuke quickly interjected.
"I could never hate you, Sasuke. No matter what you do in this life, I'll love you. Always," Itachi said firmly, like a promise.
Grasping at his brother's verbal promise, Sasuke released a slow exhale and tried to calm the emotions warring within him. "Despite what my recent actions indicate, I love you too. There isn't a single thing in this world that could change that," Sasuke said earnestly. His brother had to be the most loving and patient person in the world. He deserved a better brother so Sasuke would be better. It was as simple as that.
Itachi nodded once with a small smile before gesturing towards the takeout in Sasuke's hand. "I have some things to discuss with you. Perhaps it would be a talk best had over a warm meal," Itachi suggested. Sasuke quickly pulled up a seat.