Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Sandman, or any of the characters, locations, etc. from either series.

Warning: This chapter contains HUGE, MAJOR SPOILERS for the Naruto manga.

Itachi looks down at his own body, lying there in the ruins of what was once an Uchiha stronghold. Sasuke gazes down at the body too, his expression indicating a mixture of disbelief, satisfaction, and...is that grief? Itachi can't be quite sure, because the mix of emotions is soon replaced by blankness as Sasuke collapses next to his brother's corpse. Concerned, Itachi kneels beside his brother and attempts to feel his neck for a pulse. His fingers, of course, pass right through.

"He's not dead, if that's what you're worried about."

Itachi looks up and sees a young woman standing a short distance away. She has dark, unruly hair, and wears a silver pendant on a chain around her neck. The pendant is in the shape of a symbol that Itachi recalls seeing depicted in a book somewhere. It's a symbol of life, which seems rather incongruous, because he knows on some instinctive level who this woman is.

"You're the Shinigami, correct?" The woman nods. "You don't look the way you did when Yondaime-sama summoned you."

Death's brow furrows. She doesn't like the idea of magic that can bind one of the Endless. It comes with a high price, of course--the use of that particular jutsu requires that the user sacrifice his own life. The number of people both willing to do that and skilled enough to complete the technique is miniscule, but it still unsettles her.

"At the time," she responds, "I took on the appearance that the majority of those present expected to see."

"This is not how I would have expected you to look," Itachi points out reasonably.

"You have no preconceived expectations of my appearance. You believe that the experience of death is beyond anything that the human mind can comprehend, and that attempting to comprehend things that are inherently incomprehensible is a waste of energy."

Itachi blinks in mild surprise. "You know quite a lot about me."

"I know quite a lot about everyone. It's part of the job." She moves closer. "In any case, your brother is alive, and you have somewhere else to be."

Itachi stands and approaches the woman, but then hesitates. Death cocks her head to one side, as though curious. She knows that Itachi has been planning this outcome for years, that this is exactly what he wanted. His hesitation isn't born from fear--not fear of her, at any rate.

Death knows humans well, and thinks she understands the problem here. "Listen, it's not my job to judge you for what you did. But I do know that you did it only to prevent something even worse from happening. I know that you saved more lives than you took, and that your desire to protect your home was sincere. For what it's worth, I'm pretty sure that's enough to save you from..." She pauses, trying to remember exactly what cosmology people in this particular world believe in. "...from Hell."

Itachi just stares at her, and she realizes that she's misjudged the reason for his hesitation completely. He's not afraid of supernatural punishment, nor of meeting those he killed in the afterlife. Then what?

The realization hits her, and she resists the tempatation to slap her forehead. Of course. There's only ever been one person whose opinion he really cared about. "Sasuke will understand, Itachi. When he learns the truth, he'll understand."

"No. I have specifically arranged things so that he will not learn the truth. For him to live a happy life, it is necessary for him to believe that his clan was composed of good, loyal, peace-loving people. But because that is what he will believe, he will also believe that I am a monster." For just an instant, the impassive mask of his face flickers, and she can see the anguish underneath. (And although it is not in Death's nature to curse, she mentally hurls a few choice words at her sister Despair.)

"'For him to live a happy life.' That implies he needs to believe your lie as long as he's alive, right?"

Itachi nods slowly.

"Then you have my word that when you see him again, he will understand."

Itachi's posture relaxes, and the corners of his lips turn upwards the tiniest bit. "Thank you, Shinigami-sama."

"No problem. I try to help where I can." She flashes a dazzling smile and claps a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, let's get you where you're going. I have a whole bunch of other people to see today, you know."

Neither Sasuke, nor Zetsu, nor Madara, sees the two figures as they walk away and fade from the world.

A/N: So, this was originally going to be a one-shot, as my way of saying goodbye to one of my favorite characters. But then I started to think of other cool ways for the Endless to interact with the Naruto characters, and I decided to expand it into a series. Each chapter will focus on a different one of the Endless, and a different character (or set of characters) from Naruto. I don't know what order I'll be doing them in, but either Delirium or Dream will probably be next, since I have a rough draft of Delirium's chapter written, and am partway through Dream's chapter.

This is my first time ever writing any of the Endless, so I hope I managed to keep Death at least mostly in character.

Reviews would be greatly appreciated, as always!