Kisame had always wondered whether violence for good could be legitimate or not. Maybe it's not when the person in front of you doesn't interest you, when it's not your friend. In the event that, even if you realize that he is making a huge mistake, you can allow yourself to remain indifferent and continue on your way while still remaining with a clear conscience. When you won't wonder for the rest of your existence how many tears that person will have to shed realizing they made a mistake.
Kisame had never been able to remain indifferent to pain, he didn't know Sasuke the first time he saw him sitting at that Susanoo table, he hadn't yet discovered that the weasel was really the brother he was looking for. The handsome dark haired hadn't even told him his name, but he had never been able to forget that desperate look, he had already read in his eyes all the love that he was capable of giving.
Maybe Sasuke did this in his own way, it is the relationships with people that teach us how we should behave and what are the ways to express feelings, however loneliness does not erase them and does not prevent us from feeling them in all their intensity and sincerity.
Already from the first evening at Susanoo Kisame he had already understood that those boys needed him. He still didn't know how he would be able to help them, but he was certain that he would.
Violence for good seems almost like a paradox, yet Kisame was never as certain as that day that in some cases it was legitimate. It is not extreme violence, obviously, it is not necessary to cause physical injuries, after all, even the punishments given to children in order to educate them, bad grades, scoldings and prohibitions inflict pain. Pain is a monster, but in some cases it must be used to destroy bigger monsters.
Sasuke would never have understood certain things if he hadn't been dragged down those stairs forcibly by him and Kakuzu, taken to where they had the car and locked inside in their company. He had to at least listen to their words. Kisame had seen a crack in his pride that was making him open up to what was truly right. Along the way Sasuke was in tears, Kisame was aware of how much it cost a person like him to show his weaknesses; he wanted to cry too. In all of this he had probably lost Itachi forever, but this would have prevented him from helping them anyway. It would have been the last good deed he would have done before completely sinking into suffering.
Maybe you and I will be like the lines of your tattoo, Itachi. Very close, one welcomes the other's movement despite knowing that the meeting will never happen.
"You're kidnapping me, as soon as I leave here you'll get a nice complaint!"
Sasuke was crying in the backseat of the Land Rover Defender with Kakuzu wrapping his arm around his shoulders. Kisame watched them from the rearview mirror sitting in the driver's seat.
"When you have heard everything I have to tell you I will unlock the doors and you can leave, but first you have to listen to me" Kisame put all his heart into the tone of his voice, he didn't care that, so exposed, he could easily be trampled. Maybe he would never have the chance to give it to anyone so disintegrated again.
Here's to you, Itachi.
"I love your brother like no one ever has, that's why I came to Susanoo for the second time after years and I did everything just to talk to him. I didn't know his face, always hidden by that mask, or even his name, yet I had seen his pain. I know something serious happened to you, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, it doesn't matter. But I can't deny that I sensed it just by looking at Itachi, by the way he moves, the way he talks, the way he breathes..."
Sasuke had lowered his gaze, the crying had become less violent and Kisame also had to swallow his tears before continuing.
"I loved him to death from the first time I saw him, you were there too. The mayor was present that evening, Naruto. We got together after five years of intense friendship and it became one of the most important relationships I've had. You saw him win the auction, we were celebrating our graduation. As you surely remember, Sasuke, I refused to go to the private room in front of your eyes. Four years passed without me being able to get Itachi out of my head, think I even got married. I spoke to him for the second time and left him my number. I met him after a year in my gym, he was the one who looked for me. This morning he came to visit me after more than a month that I hadn't heard from him, but I... I probably lost him due to a stupid misunderstanding."
Kisame couldn't hold back a sob as Sasuke's had stopped, his eyes seeming to have gotten even bigger. Now he was looking at Kisame through the mirror with that sucking gaze yet open to listening as his heart now was. No one would have any doubts about the sincerity of Kisame's feelings.
"I may have lost the love of my life but that won't stop me from loving him and doing everything in my power to help him, I will hire him, Shisui and Yahiko in my gym. As far as Nagato is concerned he has no responsibility. He and Itachi are two people full of problems and suffering, although they both tried their hardest they were bigger than them. I assure you that when they both feel better things will be completely different. Nagato already has someone helping him, it's Naruto. I had the opportunity to meet him, he has already made enormous progress, the person he was destined to be is re-emerging from the pain that had engulfed him. Your anger stemmed from the fact that he was unable to understand your brother's need to adapt to doing any job. I believe you should talk to each other because it was just misunderstandings and wrong assumptions. What I'm trying to make you understand, Sasuke, is that sometimes by giving yourself the answers, because you aren't lucky enough to have the company of friends or for any other reason, you end up making gigantic and irreparable mistakes. Now, however, Itachi is the one who needs all our support."
The words that Kisame had to make Sasuke understand were finished, he had seen the brunette's face change before his eyes as he made that speech. It was a profound change that had come to stay, perhaps these were those words that Sasuke had been waiting to hear all his life. Those that would have remained inside him on an unconscious level and of which he would never have been aware unless he heard someone say them. Sasuke had been one of those lucky few to have found the right person, the one capable of bringing out those words with the ability to move mountains. He had kept those words inside him all his life without knowing them, only now he had been able to see them thanks to Kisame.
Now the person who had been able to read his soul so clearly had collapsed on the steering wheel of his car sobbing. Paralyzed and unable to breathe, Sasuke watched the muscular shoulders tremble, those large hands so eager to give and receive caresses covered his desperate face and those light blue eyes that now no longer saw any hope.
Sasuke felt his lungs suddenly open as if they were filled with glue, if he didn't catch his breath he would pass out. He already felt his head spinning, however he had also done it for another reason, he had to say something important and true without fear of losing anything, Itachi's love, because it wouldn't have been like this: "Kisame, I know the reason why you came straight here, Itachi warned you. He could have called Shisui or Obito, but also any other person. He knows me well but the same goes for me, You haven't lost him, as you can see you were his first and only thought."
Kisame realized that it had been like this even the day he broke up with Nagato when he arrived at his gym armed only with a pair of sneakers. The redhead had confessed this to him after dinner at Naruto's house. Kisame lifted his face from the steering wheel of the car, his tears falling warm and velvety down his cheeks. Although always abundant, now they were no longer just pain, Sasuke's words had rekindled a spark of hope. He was also very intelligent, it was inevitable that he had come to understand how things really went on his own.
Life away forced you to fend for yourself straight away, it shows. I promise you that from now on you will get what you deserve.
"It's true, Itachi wrote me a message, as soon as I read it I rushed here. He started by telling me that he couldn't intervene because he was unable to move within a short time. Sasuke, if you know what he meant please tell me, this sentence threw me into the deepest anguish. Even if he doesn't want to see me anymore, I need to know that he's okay."
Before answering, Sasuke let out a liberating sigh: Itachi would never suffer again. That was the love he deserved, if he really loved his brother he would have had to do everything to ensure he took that path. That's why he spoke to Kisame with a smile: "Don't worry, I just put a few drops of sedative in his tea, however I can never do it to him, he's too smart. He certainly understood everything and started to feel the effect, at most he would now be sleeping like a log. He was upset when he came back from your meeting and I wanted to give him some relief. I see that it's like this for you too and that you haven't explained yourself well in something. I think we could talk better over a nice beer, what do you think?"
"And so, Madara is back…"
Sasuke's large, black eyes seemed to look beyond that street he had seen practically all of Kisame's life. It had been marked by the most salient moments of his existence, both positive and negative, from when he had been a fifteen-year-old desperately trying to attract the attention of the school representative he had fallen in love with, until now. The brunette seemed to see something that the others couldn't see, as if what they had in front of them was nothing more than a digital interface created specifically to hide reality but only Sasuke had noticed this.
Kisame waited for Sasuke to finish his two canonical beers to move on to the third, that was the moment when he realized he could finally get to the point. He glanced at Kakuzu who was standing with his elbow resting on the wrought iron table with yet another cigarette of the day between his fingers and a glass of wine so dark it seemed black, Kisame had wondered how he could handle that combination without give up. The big man was staring at him, also impatient to know what had happened that morning. He had seen the state in which Kisame had emerged from the gym bathroom and his words aimed at nothing had certainly not been stopped by the thin, smooth white plastic door.
Before starting to explain to them how things were at his house, Kisame had looked down at that silver bracelet with the skull, no one knew that it was a gift from Madara from many years ago, except Madara himself. Tears came to his eyes, it was inevitable, the fact that he had never taken off that jewel was evidence of how he could not have archived such an important person. However now their relationship had transformed like the one with Naruto had.
"I don't know if Madara is really willing to accept this, I think that in the end he returned because he was mainly driven by my memory and that of his family. He loves you as he has always loved me, he is a person who when he loves he does it in an absolute and all-encompassing way, which is why he always ends up suffering terribly. Know, Sasuke, that even though there is only Itachi in my heart now, I will never be able to stop loving Madara. It's true that I made a mistake this morning, I was moved by the suffering that Itachi's silence and Madara's sudden disappearance caused me. Doubts about your brother's feelings for me have worn me down. Everything seemed fine the day he came to my gym, when he revealed to me that he was the weasel, the dinner we had at my house, the night we spent together... And then after what happened to Nagato I didn't have it no longer seen or heard."
Sasuke sighed, finally taking his eyes off the road to look at the two in front of him. They were sitting outside a bar, the music rose lightly towards the sky as it only does in the summer air. Even the noises were now typical of summer, the chatter of people, the girls who began to walk with their legs uncovered, boys who began to awaken scooters and motorbikes from their winter hibernation.
"Kisame, I understand you and in fact I don't blame you just as Itachi doesn't blame you, as demonstrated by the fact that he looked for you a few hours later. He was already a person tried by life and Nagato's gesture threw him even more into despair, he has had practically no contact even with me this month, yet we live under the same roof. He will tell you everything and make you participate. I assure you that you will no longer bear it after he starts talking, I can see that he already can't do without you anymore. His only fear is that of making others suffer, which is why when he feels bad he withdraws even more" Sasuke smiled transforming his beautiful face into infinite sweetness, that expression quickly transformed into an amused but understanding laugh: "we Uchiha we have a bad character, some in one way and some in another. Welcome to the family, Kisame."
All three stretched their hands on the table to shake them, they were happy. Happy that Madara had returned to his family, Sasuke practically didn't know him but now he was bursting with joy from every pore to finally have this opportunity. Happy that Itachi and Kisame had the rare fortune of having found love, the real one. Happy that finally everyone would have a worthy job. Sasuke looked around again, that street was still the same and yet different, changed in a few seconds before his eyes.
No, I'm the one who's changed, it's been standing there for centuries. And I? I… will no longer be my own enemy from today. I know that now good things will come to me like they have legs and when I see them I will have to let them pass.
"Well, I believe that a proper evening should be full of friends" Kisame had pulled out the phone smiling and finally relieved it.
As he wrote, it seemed that the steamroller he had fallen under earlier in the day had been disintegrated by a giant punch that he himself had thrown.
Kakuzu and Sasuke hadn't wondered who the new guests were until they saw them arrive after a handful of minutes in their green and gray volunteer uniforms. Naruto's face seemed to be illuminated by the light coming from his blond hair, the same color as a cheerful summer sun when it seems so small, at noon, in the midst of the endless cloudless blue while the song of the cicadas cheers up the world as if the beautiful season should never end. A sky in his turquoise eyes like Kisame had never seen.
The most extraordinary thing was Nagato's smile, it softened that face which had finally regained possession of his natural features, the pink shade of his skin. His lips, no longer dry and chapped, curved in that sincere and deserved expression. Even his eyes, so rare that only two people on earth possessed them, were involved in the feeling. The purple reflections so intense that they almost seemed to be the predominant color, both uncovered, the wine red tuft no longer served to hide his face.
Naruto and Nagato had arrived on foot, arm in arm, walking briskly and confidently along that street that had seen so many. Now they were there at that table in front of a dark-haired man with an open mouth and two muscular, smiling men. They continued to hold each other tight.
"My, that's hot, Sasuke. Can you take me inside for a beer?"
The pain that Nagato had gone through in his life would make him have the utmost empathy towards any person forever.
Several seconds passed before the dark-haired man decided to get up from his chair, first he let his dark eyes pass through the faces of all the people at the table. They were calm and serene, waiting for him. What are you waiting for? They seemed to say.
I have friends… I have friends!
Sasuke still found it hard to believe it, the moment he decided to stand up they all watched as Nagato took his arm to lead him into the bar. The volunteer uniform fit him perfectly, he was still very thin but his improvements were evident.
They were immersed in the suffocating heat of the place, Nagato snorted at the queue they would have to queue: "of course a drink here will make you sweat, in the true sense of the word."
Sasuke was looking at the ground, he visibly sighed, raising his head but still not looking at him: "forgive me, Nagato."
The redhead smiled indulgently without taking that good-natured look off him: "Are you apologizing to me because you love your brother?"
The brunette had finally looked at him, his amazed expression spoke for him.
"Your reaction towards me is fully understandable, the mistakes both Itachi and I made did not come from the real us. Even though they loved us, and we will always love us very much, the pain had transformed us by bringing out something that wasn't real. The real me, although lost from sight for a long time, I discovered that it was still there, I am recovering it little by little and for this I have to thank Naruto and all the love that he is capable of giving me. Kisame is the only one who has the key to Itachi's heart, only true love makes that miracle possible for which it is never too late."
They had finally reached the counter, the bartender had to get their attention because they were smiling at each other, giving the impression of wanting to stay like that forever.
For Naruto it was easy to get drinks by skipping the queue, the girls hired as seasonal waitresses literally melted like snow in the sun when the mayor stopped them by pulling them by the sleeves of their shirts with that sly smile. Kakuzu and Kisame naturally took advantage of the privilege as well. When Nagato disappeared into the bar taking Sasuke with him, Naruto's turquoise eyes followed him while his cheeks colored slightly. This had made the other two understand how satisfied the blond was with the conversation that Sasuke and Nagato were about to have. It was certainly no coincidence that Nagato had managed to stay there alone.
"Nagato will come to be happy, he is already on the right path. It's as if people like him have developed a sort of friction with the ability to disconnect the mind from the body, making the head believe it can survive on its own without that useless ballast of flesh underneath. Even if they shift into gear again like he is doing now, they will not forget the mechanism that led them to this and the temptation to go into neutral again will lurk throughout their lives, for every adversity or displeasure that they will inevitably encounter. in front of. Nagato is learning to manage his pain by alleviating that of others, enjoying their smiles knowing that they are thanks to him, this is one of the keys necessary to unlock his heart. I will be there ready to straighten him out every time he slips even if it means bruising him and giving him black eyes. You know this Kisame well."
Naruto was still the same, a laugh was the inevitable soundtrack to his sympathy.
"The key to everything is love, this is what makes you sure of what the rest of your life will be like. I know that you too, Kisame, already have a clear idea of your future, absolutely everything. Those images that immediately show you how you will grow old next to the person you love. I gave you that key, go and open that door, your life is there waiting for you."
Kisame smiled at the blond's wink. His doubts were completely dispelled when Nagato and Sasuke finally sat down with them again. The way Naruto looked at the redhead he was sure would be the same way he and Itachi would look at each other when they next met. Now they could fully enjoy the evening, their friends and their future.