['We're in the Endgame, now'] (not really the end, end, I just like that quote) The ride will be wild, but stick it through to the end (pretty please). If you dislike it enough to comment please be vague to avoid spoilers for those who still want to try their luck reading it, and if you just really want to let me know how much I suck just PM me, don't ruin it for others. ~TimeLordOfPie

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I was in the room when the Hokage sent Naruto with Jiraiya to find Tsunade. I could only hope that things would work out in that arena without Hokage-sama already being dead or Orochimaru after her ass, it was a little late for that, after all. I thought nothing else about it for the rest of the day, there wasn't anything for me to do in regards to any of it. Then I was called back to present in front of the Hokage, and I wasn't alone.

The rest of my squad was there, as well as Shino and Shikamaru, and I was expecting an interesting mission, getting out of the village for the first time in a few months. Instead, I was met with a bulky green vest. I could only stare at it as Hokage-sama spoke to us about the potential that we had shown both in the exams and afterward during the invasion, helping our village to the best of our abilities. My squad was reassured that we were staying together, just as the other two were staying with their still-genin teammates, and then we were dismissed. Ichiyo practically vibrated out of the room, while the others followed more sedately, and I went back to my corner, holding the vest rather than wearing it.

The Anbu commander radiated amusement when they noticed me, "Why are you surprised? You took out the Jinchuuriki, helped topple the barrier between us and the Hokage, and created the seal that let us kill Orochimaru. That isn't for Gennin."

I shrugged, not looking at them and still running my fingers absently over the material, "When we were creating that seal, for Gaara, Jiraiya-sama said that I wasn't going to make Chuunin. That my impertinence wasn't cute." It wasn't the only reason for my surprise. The way they phrased it those seemed like amazing accomplishments, but that wasn't how it went down. I had a team of people helping me build the seal that kept Gaara out of the fight, I only knew how to affect the barrier because of my work with the Barrier Corp who knew so much more about that aspect of sealing than I did, and the seal on Orochimaru was a combination of shit from the curse seal and shit I shouldn't know without that past life that I would never admit to having. Accepting a promotion or praise for any of it felt…dishonest.

There was no outward reaction, one way or another, the commander just hummed, continuing to write whatever report they were working on, "What were you impertinent about? If it was arguing with Hatake then that's just your personality at this point."

"No, not really. I think it…well, he wanted to send me in with a seal solely of his making, to completely disable the jinchuuriki, for reasons other than the match. I refused…since that would be an act of war and he wasn't my Hokage. I proposed another solution, but he didn't really respect that I knew which end of the sealing brush contained ink at that time."

Another hum, "You must have proven yourself to him at some point if he was willing to trust your word with Bear-san."

I nodded absently, setting down the vest in the chair that was recognized as mine, "Yeah, Genma-sensei read him the riot act, and then he gave me a chance. I still say everything he thinks about prime numbers is absolute bullshit and I can prove it mathematically, but he refuses to look at the proofs, which is its own sort of evidence."

The commander shook their head, the light off their mask helping to bring me back into the present, "Well, he never submitted an actual recommendation that you not be promoted. Not that it would have stopped it, Sannin or not, Hokage-sama made his opinion known."

That filled me with a few warm and fuzzies. For all that I had been there for most meetings when Naruto was giving him updates and calling him 'Jiji' it hadn't occurred to me that he might become familiar with me as well. It really should have, especially when he addressed me as familiarly as he did when Genma became my sensei, with as comfortable as I was with him and hanging around his office at that time. I almost forgot that I was a child exactly as young as Naruto for all of that, picturing myself as…not a specific age, just…older. Not a child. What a sight I must have made, holding myself with that kind of confidence, but in that tiny body. How embarrassing.

It was just Sasuke and Sai who were with me to 'celebrate' that night. Sakura had a thing at the hospital, Ichiyo was with his clan, and Naruto was gone on his road trip. The three of us made the most of it, doing an introvert sort of party, mainly takeout that we had in my living room while we bitched at one another about various things that didn't make sense to anyone at all by the end of it. It was Sai's first pillow fort sleepover, and it was smoothed over just a bit by the most enthusiastic of our number being absent and unable to scare him off. Sasuke and I instead fell into our old-old-old habit of watching a civilian horror movie and judging the shit out of it, which Sai took surprisingly well to, though he edged closer to us in some scenes and we never called him on it, just absorbing him into the blanket amoeba. It was probably some strange symptom of trauma that we shared, finding humor in those sorts of situations, not that any of us were ever going to admit it.

A week later I was passed out, napping off sparring with Sai, when I felt it. I was sprinting immediately, not closing the window after me. I honed in on the commander's chakra signature, sliding into the room they were in, "Uchiha Itachi is three miles from the village, headed this way."

Everyone exploded into motion, the commander shoving a bundle of something at me. "Gear up, you'll be directing us."

I noticed several things at once, then. That the Anbu gear I was holding was strangely fitted for me, and that I had apparently broken into Anbu headquarters successfully and in my pajamas. The perfectly sized gear was off-putting, but the rest was mortifying. I changed quickly, hair pinned tightly to my head since it's not like I sleep in the beanie, and immediately became emotionally attached to the bone-white armor. It was much more comfortable than it looked. I strapped the tanto into place, though I wasn't yet very well-trained in using it. If nothing else it could be a backup for if someone else's broke or something. The Commander tossed me a mask when I emerged, "So you'll fit in. " The weasel mask. Itachi. Quaint. "You can do indoc if you live." Wait, what?

Holy shit did I not want to join Anbu. However, it looked like it was a little late for that as I used the Konoha standard sign to direct people in Itachi's direction, signing the one massive (with emphasis) chakra signature with him, water natured, and a strange one that tasted of metal. We reached an intercept point, the Commander calling everyone to a stop. They tapped lightly on my shoulder, speaking softly aloud,

"For this mission you are Itachi. Refer to him as this," They did an unusual sign and I tilted my head to show confusion from behind the mask, "I don't know that one."

A shudder ran through the group for some reason, the Commander sighing, "It's the sign for Uchiha."

Ah, that made a sad sort of sense. They stopped teaching that sign in the Academy when it was just Sasuke left, apparently. I hadn't even noticed that we'd learned all the clan name signs except that one. Resolved to teach it to Sasuke the moment I got home (if I made it home) I repeated the sign, waiting for correction. Instead, the Commander nodded, "Good."

They went back to signing, 'Distance?'

I signed back the estimate, focusing in on Itachi's location again. We dropped down into the road when they reached us, halting the two. I had thought the sword was the other chakra signature, I was right. Hoshigaki Kisame laughed, loudly,

"Your old village has much better security than the others. We didn't even get close."

At the end of the sentence the genjutsu unfolded, heavy in my lungs. I was intimately familiar with Itachi's chakra, and his genjutsu. I ripped it from my system, jabbing everyone close to me to yank them out as well, the Commander included. They all jolted before leaping into action. There were two clones of Itachi, but Kisame was making the most trouble. His sword was on a downward course toward one of the nin still stuck in the genjutsu. I may have panicked a little. I threw the tanto, forcing him to pull out of the swing and block it, staring at me in confusion for the insane move even as I tugged the nin back, pulsing chakra into them.

As we moved back Kisame went through hand signs, summoning a shark that seemed to have its own contained field of water. The water bubble was something the shark could steer, as it immediately leaned to the right and zeroed in on some poor fucker caught in the genjutsu. I had no idea how to counter that and keep this guy from getting eaten…well, I had one idea. I didn't have time for an actual jutsu, instead converting my chakra to lightning as Kakashi had taught Sasuke and me, and then forced raw lightning chakra out of the tenketsu in my knuckles, punching the water bubble, hard.

The shark poofed, back to the summon realm most likely, and the water bubble splashed uselessly to the ground, turning the terrain into a muddy tripping hazard. It wasn't too much of a concern for ninja; the same way walking on water functioned worked well enough for other types of hazards, like walking over snow and sand, or this disgusting turn of events. This close to the village a battle with S-rank shinobi was going to draw attention, and I had already noticed a few semi-familiar nin joining the battle, more without masks jumping into the fray. The best reassurance was hearing Chidori screaming through the air. Kakashi, back from his mission evidently just in time. I focused mostly on not dying against the water clone in front of me, though someone in a lizard mask popped up and helped me garrote the guy with ninja wire fairly quickly into the fight.

Nothing immediately leaped at me to try to kill me, so I took stock of everything around us. Chidori rent through the air again, drawing my eye. It punched straight through Itachi's chest, though he immediately dissolved into crows. The moment the air was clear of birds Itachi was in front of Kakashi, Mangekyo whirling. Kakashi's chakra seized, the worst thing I had ever sensed, with the worst sight following immediately after as he crumpled straight to the ground in a heap. For a heart-stopping moment, I was certain he was dead. Itachi took a step toward him and I realized that while his chakra was faint, and tangled, it was there. Everyone was caught up in fighting the Kisame clones, but I couldn't let Itachi kill him while he was down. Or at all.

Shunshin wouldn't have gotten me through the various battles quickly enough, too many landings and redirections, too many chances for a Kisame clone to take a swipe at me. It was only the second time I had abused the replacement jutsu like that, and the chakra drain was still monstrous, causing my eyes to water, burning slightly. Then I was face to face with Uchiha Itachi for the first time since he'd tortured me for months on end. I was expecting to (hopefully) catch the blade on my shiny new forearm guards, heart racing, and vision technicolor from what I was fairly sure was shock and the certainty I was about to die (again). I wasn't expecting the swinging kunai to stop, or his eyes to widen.

"Sasuke?"

He sounded genuinely surprised, and convinced that I was his brother. Both Sasuke and I had dark black eyes, but I didn't understand why that would convince Itachi that I was Sasuke, in Itachi's old Anbu mask. I also wasn't going to question the unadulterated main character luck I was experiencing, instead grabbing Kakashi. I picked a direction that was more allies than enemies, throwing a fuckton of chakra into a shunshin. Konoha Jounin closed ranks around us immediately, getting between us and the nuke-nin. I settled at Kakashi's side but oriented so that I could still keep half an eye on the S-class threats near us. My hands were shaking for some reason as I ran the medical diagnostic jutsu, though I let it sputter out fairly quickly, instead feeling along his chakra. It was genjutsu, a strangely familiar writhing of charka…Tsukuyomi. Yeah, I knew that genjutsu…very well. I couldn't afford to be gentle, yanking it out of place.

Across the clearing Itachi's eyes laser-focused on me, which I did my best to ignore, continuing to pull the foreign chakra out of Kakashi. Itachi took a step toward us, only for him to tilt his head, listening to something Kisame was saying. Then they turned, leaving us in a smoking crater of a clearing. It was ironic, actually, how all of Kisame's high-powered water jutsu had counteracted Itachi's pyromania. An Anbu member shouldered between me and Kakashi,

"What did you do? His vitals are improving."

"He was in Tsukuyomi, I brought him out of it."

A wave of muttering surrounded us, but the Commander's voice rang out, "Itachi!"

Most everyone twitched violently at that, but I reluctantly answered the summons, appearing at their side in a burst of shunshin. "Hai."

"Report."

There could only be one thing they wanted a report on right now, "Headed north-east, rapidly…upwards of 360 km per hour. No signs of stopping or turning back."

They were going in the opposite direction of where Naruto was, and I could only hope that they would take this as a mission failure, like they would have after Jiraiya stomped them. The Commander nodded, "Good, inform me immediately if anything changes on that front."

An Anbu in a cat mask, with familiar mokuton-tree-flavor chakra, appeared in front of the Commander. "Hokage-sama requests a report on this…incident."

Polite wording for 'get in here and tell me what the fuck is going on', I had to admit. The Commander just nodded, "Tori, Lion, Bear, stay behind for clean-up, the rest of you with me, yes including general forces."

We fell in formation and I kept where the Commander placed me, on their left where they could see easily if I signed any updates on the situation. Halfway to the village, I informed them of a thirty-degree heading change that would have them exiting the country sooner. He acknowledged the information and I went back to keeping an eye on the situation, but with a good bit of attention on where a blessedly awake Kakashi was running slightly behind me and to the right. My chakra was tamped down enough that I doubted he could tell it was me just yet, so I wondered at his place in the formation, at his reasoning.

When we entered the Hokage's office all of the Anbu knelt down, and I did my best to copy their movements since I was in a mask as well. The Jounin stood around us, towering awkwardly.

The Commander gave the report succinctly, "Mask Itachi reported the presence of Uchiha Itachi and a companion on course to enter the village, contact was made to prevent this. The companion was identified as Hoshigaki Kisame. General forces joined the confrontation, enemy combatants have fled. Full reports will be in by the end of the day."

There was no arguing with that tone, and I noted a few of the Jounin slumping from the corner of my eye. I just blinked a few times, a bit worried that the technicolor of shock hadn't gone away just yet, the burn not stopping, heart still racing, the tempo felt in my pupils. If I died of shock of all things Naruto would never forgive me.

The Hokage sighed, "Very well, Commander remain for questioning, Anbu forces I want a sweep of the village surroundings, Jounin you are dismissed."

I had planned to slip away as 'Anbu forces', leveraging the anonymity of the mask, but Kakashi spoke up, "Hokage-sama, I have some pertinent questions for Itachi-san."

Ah, the fuckening. Like the Reckoning, but with many more 'oh fucks' on my part.

I stayed kneeling at the Commander's side as everyone else filed out, except for Kakashi, and Asuma. The Hokage sighed at his son but didn't make him leave. "What did you need from Itachi-san, Kakashi-kun?"

He shrugged, dark eye focused on me, "I was just wanting to know how they managed to pull me out of Tsukuyomi, it hasn't been done before, after all."

Asuma went rigid, though no one else in the room reacted. I responded, "Experience."

It was the only answer I could give, my voice disguised by the seal work on the inside of the mask. The Hokage frowned suddenly, visibly thinking something over. He spoke slowly, "Itachi…stand and unmask."

Fuck. I straightened and pulled the mask off, but the reaction was much more visceral than I was expecting, all of them blanching, even the Commander twitching, though they knew damn well it was me under that thing. The Hokage's expression turned dismayed, before he said, strangely gently, "Asuka-chan, stop the flow of chakra from your eyes."

The what? Was I enhancing my vision weirdly or something, rather than shock? I examined my own chakra, rather than focusing outward to keep an eye on Itachi and Kisame, and what I found didn't make sense…until very abruptly it did, and too much of it. The chakra in my eyes had changed, just slightly, into something hauntingly familiar. I cut the chakra flow, knowing my eyes would have gone back to their natural black.

"Well shit, no wonder Itachi thought I was Sasuke from that close."

It was said blandly, like an absent revelation, but inside I was seething. Magic fucking eyes. Useless magic eyes, because what could the Sharingan do that I couldn't manage by sensing chakra? But none of that mattered now, because it was indisputable proof that I'd once had a family, that I was actually owed a name. A family I had apparently watched die over and over again, a name that would overwrite any and all of my accomplishments. Those who before doubted that I was capable would now believe it, yes, but it would be down to blood, the kind I had inherited rather than what I had shed and sacrificed to earn my triumphs. Nothing I did mattered anymore, it was now just another victory tacked on to the dying Uchiha name. I'd wanted a name, hadn't I? Well, now I had one, in this twisted way, like the ending of a Twilight Zone episode. Everything I wanted, but marred like I'd asked it of a genie.

I strangled the anger as best I could. For one thing, it wasn't the time for me to have a breakdown about this, and for another, I needed to be careful about negative emotions like that now that I had these stupid demon eyes. The Curse of Hatred or whatever the fuck might be an actual thing.

There was silence for a long moment following my statement and the Hokage let out a long stream of smoke before glaring at his Anbu Commander. "I tend to like at least a note when one of my Genin is stolen into Anbu."

The Commander was apparently a smart ass. "Asuka-chan is a Chuunin, you handed her the vest yourself."

Kakashi glanced at me in surprise, "Congratulations, Asuka."

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei."

Asuma interjected, "Can we focus on the eyes for a moment?"

I did my best to radiate disagreement without moving or saying anything. I have no idea if the Hokage picked up on that or not, but he did disagree with his son. "No, we can not! Not until I find out more about Asuka-chan being Anbu!"

He turned to me, "When did this happen, Asuka-chan? You haven't even been to see me to get the tattoo!"

The shrug I gave had feeling to it. "I'm not actually Anbu, Hokage-sama. The Commander did say I could if I survived the thing with Itachi."

The Hokage twitched. "...did you hand her a mask and take her to fight two S-class nuke-nin?"

His voice was calm, but his chakra was roiling. The Commander didn't react outwardly but I could sense a curl of unease deep in his chakra. "We needed her to find them, I didn't expect her to join the fight, though she did pull her weight admirably. Her experience with Uchiha's specific genjutsu was invaluable, not just when waking up Hatake-san."

The 'I don't regret it' was implied, and I had to applaud the balls of it. The Hokage scowled, "While I could forbid this…I shall not. Though does it have to be the Itachi mask?"

The Commander nodded decisively, "Of course, because now it's funny if for no other reason."

Asuma protested, "Wait, wait, we're really doing this? She's a kid! Barely out of the academy! When Itachi was her age in Anbu he murdered an entire clan and you concluded it was stress from Anbu! Now you're going to put another Uchiha kid in the same situation?"

The Commander shook his head, "Itachi was a Captain, we just won't give Asuka-chan here command of anything until she's older, like fifteen or something. Besides, Hatake-san was Anbu at her age, and he turned out okay."

Everyone in the room stared at him for that, even Kakashi shooting him a look of disbelief. Sarutobi sighed heavily, "Asuka-chan's situation is different from Itachi's. She'll attend the next class of indoc training beginning at the start of next month. She likely will be in the first wave of those sworn in under Tsunade-chan." The 'if Tsunade agrees' went unsaid. I did note how my own opinion wasn't taken, but I was expecting it. Military dictatorship and all that.

He cleared his throat before making eye contact with me, gaze serious. "I have watched you grow up, Asuka, seeing you and Naruto as counting among my grandchildren. I have not once seen a single thing that would indicate you may use those eyes for evil purposes. Whether you take the Uchiha name is up to Sasuke-kun as the current head, but it would be best to wait for the Godaime to decide if those eyes should remain secret for the time being. You may inform Sasuke-kun, Naruto, and Genma-kun in the meantime."

I noted that he hadn't included my teammates or Sakura in that order, which was a shame, but it wasn't like I would be keeping the secret from them for long since I'd be spending most of the time until that decision was made in secret Anbu whatever. I doubted Tsunade would order me not to tell them, it would impede effectiveness in the field or something. Plus another set of Sharingan for the Leaf would be a good boost to Konoha's reputation during these stressful times.

Just after I was dismissed the Commander snagged the mask from me, "You'll get this back if you survive indoc."

I was glad he didn't also ask for the distinctive armor back, it wasn't like I had any other clothes. I wondered idly if they would protest me sneaking back into headquarters for my pajamas. If nothing else I could get them back once I had actual access, unless someone got rid of them. I was pulled out of my thoughts by a call from behind me just as I exited the tower. I stopped, letting Kakashi catch up.

"0400 tomorrow, meet me at the West gate. You're getting a crash course in both Anbu and those shiny new eyes. Pack for an extended trip." He hesitated, as if he were going to say something else. Instead, he gave me an awkward pat on the top of my head before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Once home I showered off the soot, changing into a different set of pajamas. For something to do I cleaned the kitchen extra thoroughly, starting dinner, and then started tea when I sensed Sasuke making his way home. He stopped by his own apartment briefly, then entered mine, "Tadaima."

He blanched at the sight of the tea set. The urge to roll my eyes was small, but there. It was the nicer set, Naruto had dubbed it the 'set of doom' because it was only used for important situations like hard conversations. "Who died?"

At that, I really did roll my eyes, "Just sit down. There's…a lot to go over, and you aren't going to like any of it."

He sat, taking his tea after I poured it for him, cradling it in his hands and looking at me warily. "Alright, how much am I not going to like it?"

"...there's a tomato casserole in the oven."

Sasuke managed to pale a surprising amount for someone already pasty white. He took a fortifying sip of tea. "Alright, hit me."
It was a phrase that was only in his vernacular because of me, and I gave a small smile because of it before turning serious. "You know how I've been keeping an eye on Itachi's whereabouts for the Anbu Commander?"

He grimaced, "I can see where this is going."

"Oh, no you cannot." I sighed, "They took me with them, to help direct them his way-" Sasuke was in my space in an instant, looking me over desperately. I waved him off before setting my hands on his shoulders to keep him still, "No, no I'm perfectly fine, not a scratch. The point to this is that they had me in an Anbu mask, to fit in with the crowd," That was my story until I knew if I could tell him about indoc coming up. Seeing as he was technically my clan head, I probably could tell him…eventually. "But when I was face to face with Itachi, he thought I was you. It saved my life, but I didn't understand why he thought that until the Hokage pointed it out."

I concentrated my chakra, carefully following the lines I remembered from earlier. It was obvious, now that I knew, when it whirled to life. The difference in the world was staggering, clear lines, sharp colors, everything burned into my mind and easily remembered. Sasuke looked stunned, he was silent for a long moment before his arms came up to grip tightly at my elbows, my hands still on his shoulders. He said nothing so I let the color fade, swallowing thickly,

"I'm sorry. I had no idea. I-"

He pulled me forward roughly, into a crushing hug. "Shut up. Don't apologize, not for this." He squeezed impossibly tighter for a second before letting out a shaky breath. "I wanted to bring you and Naruto into the clan. For a long time. Naruto has a clan already so I can't with him, and for you, it wasn't something I could do until I was Chuunin. It doesn't matter now."

He finally let me go, blinking rapidly before shaking his head and activating his Sharingan. "Again?"

I complied, feeling my chakra whirl strangely in my eyes when our eyes met, like some weird little demon eye greeting, even as the singular tomoe in each of his eyes whirled the same pace and direction, right back at me. He gave a small smile, "I always loved seeing them do that. I didn't think I'd ever be able to do it myself, not unless it was when fighting Itachi. I don't know if Kakashi-sensei's eye does it. We'll have to check."

Well, that was heartbreaking. I couldn't help but feel sorrow all over again for the Sasuke of cannon, though I pushed it away. He didn't exist, and he never would. Sasuke sank back down into his seat, sighing and looking thoughtful, picking his tea up.

"We can get the paperwork done tomorrow, add you to clan records, get an ID with the right name."

I really didn't want to burst his bubble, but there was no choice. "Hokage-sama put a moratorium on sharing the information. We can only talk about it with Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, and Genma-sensei until Godaime-sama makes a decision either way."

The scowl was back, "Of course he did. He wouldn't do shit like this to any other clan head." He brightened for some reason, "Wait, you're older than me. I could make you acting clan head until I make Chuunin and actually get shit done with the compound and clan funds in the meantime." His expression turned wicked, "You would have to do all the paperwork for it." After more thought that wickedness turned downright evil. "You're the oldest member of the clan. I'm doing the paperwork to make you an honored clan elder, then they have to let you attend and vote at those village meetings."

That was…a lot to deal with. "Only if Godaime-sama allows it."

He waved that off, "Naruto is the one bringing her back, he'll have worked his usual magic on her, we'll just have him be the one to ask."

Which…was a good point, actually. I just shook my head at him, "We can worry about that later. I have to head out early in the morning, but we can talk it over when I get back, in a month and a half or so."

He didn't ask where I was going, likely assuming a mission, draining his tea in one long gulp. "Now with the hard part over can we have that casserole?"

With the 'hard part' over dinner wasn't exactly strained, but every now and then I did catch Sasuke glancing at me expression in turns lost and disbelieving. When we were done eating he asked, in a quiet voice, "Pillow fort kind of night?"

And who was I to tell him no?

/

Don't hate me?
Also…you can't tell me at least some of you didn't see that coming?
To my Americans, take care this Black Friday
~TimeLordOfPie