Disclaimer: No, I don't own Naruto. Wouldn't be here if I did, would I?

Chapter 1: The Promise

Heaven was weeping on this unusually cold February day. It had been weeping for nearly a week straight.

Uchiha Shisui glanced out of his bedroom window and up into the cloudy gray sky of Konoha. Rain was pouring down like a heavy curtain, the masses of water violently clashing with the surface of the earth. The sound was deafening, a monotonous rhythm that spread over the empty streets like a numbing blanket.

Not a single soul could be seen. The Uchiha district was quietly drowning, its inhabitants hidden inside their houses and enveloped in the comfort of their own small worlds. It was a time for families to bond and to pray for the loved ones who were not with them. In moments like this, shinobi lucky enough to have a family truly realized the importance of a home to return to, of people waiting and loving.

It was exactly those same moments that made the burden of loneliness for other shinobi grow heavier, almost suffocating to bear. But the lonely ones endured. And wasn't the life of a shinobi nothing else but the epitome of endurance?

Shisui sat up in his bed and rubbed his slightly reddened and puffy eyes. He hadn't gotten more than a couple of hours of sleep and although he was tired to the bones he was unable to sleep any longer. He felt restless ever since he had returned from his mission the evening before, the uneasy feeling a tight knot in his stomach which refused to go away. Not even meditating had helped.

He swung his legs from under the cover of his blanket and made his way to the bathroom.

The house was eerily quiet in the hours of the early morning. The hallway was cold and dark as Shisui stepped into it, barefooted and clad in his pajamas. He couldn't remember the last time his home had felt alive, the last time he had seen his grandfather emerging from the bedroom at the end of the hallway, the last time somebody had actually used the front door. It was always the window of his bedroom now, a swift exit and entry without anyone noticing since it opened to the backyard. Had he had visitors it might have been different, but as it was he was mostly alone.

He had done a very thorough job on securing that. He preferred to be able to choose his company and eventually seek it out on his own terms, so it wouldn't do if just about anyone who happened to think of imposing himself upon him would march through his front door. And imposing his clan could be indeed.

He slid out of his pajamas, simple gray shorts and an old dark blue shirt adorned with the Uchiha fan on its back, and stepped into the shower. The hot water poured over him, washing away the tiredness and soothing the gloomy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He could feel his tense muscles relax as the steam rose around him, filling the little cabin and condensing on the glass.

He didn't allow himself to indulge long in it, though. He hoped to see someone before he made his way to the hospital to visit his grandfather.

Ten minutes later he was dressed in the standard Uchiha ensemble, a dark high-collared shirt and dark pants completed with bandages wrapped around his ankles and dark standard shinobi sandals. He put on the harness for his tanto and secured the weapon there before adding a kunai holster to his right thigh. He had realized long ago that he felt safest when he was in his full shinobi gear. He wasn't sure if he even owned casual clothes. Finally, he took his forehead protector from the nightstand beside his bed.

Shisui smiled sadly as he held the piece of cloth with the metal plate in his hand. The leaf insignia glinted in the weak light of his room. It held so much meaning for him.

'As an Uchiha, the family, the clan should always be on the forefront of your mind when making any decision. Think about how your actions might reflect on the clan. Will it bring honor to the Uchiha name? For as a member of our clan, everything you do as an individual immediately falls back on the clan as a whole. There is no exception.

'But at the same time, remember that the Uchiha are part of the village. Konoha might be weaker without the Uchiha, but the Uchiha are nothing without Konoha. The village is everything. It is the place our loved ones are born in, live in, and share the most precious moments of their lives with us. It is the place that gives us a purpose to fight, for we never fight more ferocious than when we want to protect the ones we love. It is the place that allows peace to blossom, peace being the one single thing we all should strive to protect and maintain at all costs. Konoha … is what makes us shinobi. Always remember that, Shisui. Always.'

He could hear the deep vibrating voice of his grandfather just like he had on the day he had received his headband. He had listened with wide eyes and confused questions whirling in his young genius mind, tumbling over the set foundations of his beliefs and warping its cornerstones.

The Uchiha were proud people. They drew as much power from their doujutsu as directly from the conviction that they were superior. The clan was the core of their identity. Uchiha did not exist without the clan. It made them different from the rest of the village. It made them stronger. It made them better.

It was to be protected at all costs, even if it meant the neglect of village duties. Every Uchiha knew that.

Thus, Shisui was shaken when his grandfather contradicted all of it, telling him to prioritize the village over the clan. Tendrils of apprehension had gripped his heart, prying it open to the world outside the confines of his clan and slowly opening his eyes to a truth his clansmen were too narrow-minded to perceive.

But he had begun to see. With every passing day, every mission he spent as a shinobi of the Leaf and every bond made outside of his clan he could see clearer. It was like stepping from behind tanned glass and realizing that the true colors of his surroundings were brilliant, as crystal as the realization that he was a shinobi first, a clan member second.

With it came the understanding that he was alone in his belief.

He closed his fingers around the hitai-ate and fastened it around his forehead. With a last quick glance over his bedroom he exited through his window.

He still had a couple of hours before the hospital opened its doors for visitors and he wanted to check on his younger cousin and maybe train a bit before he went to sit at the bedside of his grandfather. He made his way over to the main house, easily hopping from roof to roof. For any onlooker he might appear as nothing but a blur of dark blue, an ink-blotch on the canvas of the gray rain. Shisui was nothing if not fast.

He arrived on the roof of the main house sixteen seconds after exiting his window and let himself gracefully fall over in front of Itachi's window, sticking to the overhanging just by his feet. He gazed through the glass only to find his cousin's bedroom empty.

He cut the chakra flow to his feet, flipped his body mid-air and landed safely on the ground. Stretching his senses he tried to feel for Itachi's signature inside the building. He found little Sasuke, soundly asleep in his bed, Mikoto, already on her way from the bathroom to the kitchen, and Fugaku in his office. But there was no trace of Itachi.

Shisui frowned. Why was a five-year-old not in his home at six in the morning? He hoped that his little cousin was not outside in this weather and decided to go looking for him. Somebody had to do the job if his parents were not. He suspected that little Itachi had slipped their watch. Again. He couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips.

After unsuccessfully scouting the whole district he went for the spot in the forest that Itachi had taken a liking to for target practice. He sped past trees with low hanging branches and bushes following a path that led straight to a clearing. His feet made squishy sounds on the muddy ground and the soaked grass. As he approached the clearing, Shisui could see the targets sticking to the bark of various trees and make out the faint smell of smoke despite the rain. However, Itachi wasn't here.

Shisui scrunched his nose in annoyance. He was fed up with the fruitless chase and had half a mind to leave his cousin to his own devices and just head out for the hospital already, visiting hours be damned. He was a shinobi, he could sneak in whenever he wanted.

But a part of his mind chose to point out that he really should take on the responsibility and continue looking. Itachi was five, for heaven's sake, and he was out and alone in the streaming rain. The same part conveniently forgot that he himself was only ten years old and that mentioned kid had parents who ought to be looking after him.

He sighed. Fights with himself led nowhere. Besides, the funny feeling in his stomach was back.

He tried to think of a place where Itachi might have gone.

The academy? Maybe. But today was Sunday, the academy would be closed and deserted.

The training grounds? Kami, there were fifty of them! And besides, the Uchiha had their own. Itachi had no reason to go to the public ones.

Any public place?

A sudden idea struck him and without a second thought he turned around and sped away from the clearing.

Shisui was surprised when he actually found Itachi. The memorial stone had been a wild guess but there he was, the tiny figure huddled in a sitting position, face turned towards the polished surface of the slab of marble which was covered with names upon names of fallen shinobi. Shisui wondered why he had chosen this of all places.

He marched over to the child and flopped down next to him.

"Oi 'Tachi-chan, you're really hard to find these days. What are you doing here out in the rain? You could catch a bad cold, you know?" Indeed, the kid was soaking wet, his raven hair plastered to his head and hanging down in limp strands.

Itachi slowly turned his head to face his cousin and tilted it in an acknowledging nod. Shisui noted the tired lines on his face, disturbingly distinct like the stress marks of men four times his age. Lines like that didn't belong on the face of a five-year-old.

"Shisui." The childish voice was still a little hoarse, indicating that he had just muttered his first word of the day. "I did not expect anyone to find me here."

Shisui snorted. "Of course not. I bet your parents don't even know that you're awake, yet."

"Probably not."

And just like that, Itachi turned his head back to face the memorial stone again.

Shisui had realized that Itachi was a very quiet child right from the moment they had met nearly three years ago. He had been officially presented to the clan as their heir in a ceremony that had required the presence of every adult clan member, including his grandfather. Shisui had tagged along because he was curious of his cousin.

Immediately after setting eyes on Itachi, he had decided that the kid was improbably perceptive and mentally far too advanced to be categorized as a child barely out of his toddler stage. Shisui had never reversed his opinion.

The air of silence and sobriety surrounded Itachi like a bubble that separated him from the rest of the world. He had always been like this and Shisui remembered only one time where this aura had wavered, shaken by the terrors of the Third Shinobi War. A war that had changed the way the eyes of a child, barely four years of age, viewed the world. It had changed his own view, too. He had been nine years old then.

The silence spread between the two children, the nourishing ground on which the rain pattered without disturbance. The difference of water hitting hair, skin, cloth and ground were the only sounds that gave their presence away.

After a while, Shisui stood up. Stretching his legs he said: "You should go home now. Seriously, if you stay a minute longer you'll get sick."

"I'm wearing a cloak."

"Yeah, still. Your parents will have realized your absence by now."

"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

Shisui blinked. "Huh?"

"You didn't come looking for me just like that."

It wasn't a question. Shisui thought he could catch a hint of annoyance in his cousin's voice. He smirked. Clever kid.

"What? Can't I just want to have a nice chat with my little 'Tachi-chan? I just came back from a mission yesterday night." Then, he added with a cheeky grin: "Did you miss your favorite cousin?"

To his mild surprise, a small smile tugged at the corners of Itachi's mouth and a warm shine entered his eyes. Suddenly he looked so much younger.

"Yes. You were gone for two weeks."

Shisui's grin widened. He loved the moments when Itachi came out of his serious shell. "Aw, 'Tachi-chan, I'm touched! Did you count the days for my return?"

His cousin chuckled. "Don't get ahead of yourself. You missed our training."

Shisui pouted at that, but on the inside he felt the warmth of joy encasing his body and soul. He knew that this was the closest to a declaration of affection he would get from the aloof child that he thought of like a little brother. He felt responsible for Itachi, wanted to protect him and show him that the world, as flawed as it was, was still a place worth living for. He deserved a break from his heavy duties as clan heir from time to time which clearly was not in the schedule his parents had bestowed upon him since the moment he was born.

So his answer, while still pouting, held a playful note. "Oi! That was mean, 'Tachi-chan."

Faint smile still on his lips, Itachi quirked an eyebrow. "Anyway, how did you know where to find me?"

"I didn't actually. Just a feeling, I guess." he shrugged. "So why are you here?"

He eyed his cousin carefully as Itachi's face grew serious again. But his dark onyx eyes didn't close off like they normally did and Shisui instinctively knew that Itachi had never before told anybody what he was going to tell him now. He was instantly alert.

But Itachi hesitated. He had stilled completely and the silence began to stretch. Shisui felt him slip away like the fleeting impression of a butterfly's wing brushing his cheek and he suddenly had the urge to reach for him with his hands, to grip him and make him confide. He wanted to wipe the deeply troubled look off Itachi's face, wanted to show him that he could be trusted. So he raised his hand and reached out.

Inches before his palm met the boy's shoulder, he began to speak.

"What is it that makes us shinobi?" His voice was only slightly stronger than a whisper. He seemed to be in a faraway place. "We are tools for our village. We're born and raised to be fighters. We kill when we are ordered to. We are nothing but empty vessels, filled with the beliefs our superiors feed us and trained to obey without second thoughts. Is it our ability to fight? To kill without remorse?"

He paused and let his gaze wander over the countless names on the cenotaph.

"All these names … They belonged to people once. Living, breathing people. They died for the village. Some of their corpses came back and were buried. But most of them have simply disappeared from the face of the earth, silently and without real notice. They knew there was a possibility that their deaths could be in the shadows, maybe even pointless. They knew they would be sent out to kill and maybe even get killed. But still they went. They chose to be shinobi. Why?"

Shisui could see the confusion in his eyes. Scenes of death, mindless slaughter and grief flashed in front of his inner eye, pictures of silent assassinations and gory battlefields, bodies on open streets and children, terrified and orphaned.

He had seen it all. The Third Shinobi War had robbed him of his innocence like it had so many other children who had been forced to grow up without being able to give their minds the time to mature with the sudden influx of horrors. They had all been swept away by the torrent of time, a whole generation lost to the crippling force of war.

But while the war had left at least the illusion of safety within the village, the Kyuubi attack from four months ago had taken even that. The harsh truth of their lives had been brutally punched into their faces: There was no safe place for a shinobi.

He understood Itachi's confusion, his need for answers. He could feel his desperation drowning him and leaving him dried out from the inside at the same time, eager for anything to fill the senseless void that was left behind. Itachi was so vulnerable now, in such a dangerous state of mind that he would suck up anything that promised the faintest semblance of stability.

Shisui was relieved that Itachi chose to reveal his vulnerability to him. It made him feel oddly proud. He would answer him as well as he could and share the wisdom that his grandfather had once imparted to him. For his grandfather had immediately understood their need for what it truly was – the yearning for peace.

"Look around you. What do you see?" His voice was soft, but he knew that Itachi could hear him.

He watched carefully as the boy let his gaze wander from the cenotaph over the forest to the now muddy and dull terrain of training ground seven, the blurry outlines of the village with the Hokage tower, the Hokage mountain and back to the cenotaph. He could see the cogs of his brain working, trying to come up with the reason why he was asked that particular question.

Itachi frowned slightly and looked his cousin directly in the eye, onyx meeting onyx, when he finally answered.

"I don't think you want me to describe the scenery to you since there is nothing out of the ordinary. What are you aiming at?"

Shisui held back a chuckle. His little cousin could be quite blunt when he was getting impatient.

"Well, since you're not going to tell me what you see, I'll just tell you what I see."

He waited a few seconds before he continued to heighten the suspense. He freely admitted to himself that he had a thing for drama – he was an Uchiha after all.

"When I look around whenever I'm in Konoha, I see home."

Itachi, clearly having expected more, raised an eyebrow. The corner of his mouth twitched minutely, the only sign of his annoyance.

Shisui smirked but quickly got serious again. He remembered that he had a message to deliver.

"Tell me, Itachi. What does the word 'home' mean to you?"

Itachi remained silent for a long time. Just as Shisui thought that he would never answer, Itachi looked up to him again.

"I honestly don't know", he spoke softly, sounding lost and uncertain. "I know that people expect me to answer this question with 'the clan'. But I can't. 'Home' is supposed to be the place you can return to, where you feel safe and where you are loved unconditionally, isn't it? However … the clan does not meet all of these conditions."

Shisui understood instantly which exact condition was not fulfilled.

He felt protective tenderness for his cousin surging in his heart. Although he himself had never had parents or siblings, he had been lucky enough to be raised by his grandfather who had cared deeply for him. Just like Itachi, Shisui had never been able to associate the clan with the feeling of home and it was only thanks to his grandfather and later his genin team that he had gotten to know this concept at all.

"What you just said is true. Home is all that. However, there is one more thing that you should know about because it's actually the most important one.

"Home is not about a place. It's rather about people. The people that are close to you, that are more important to you than anything else. The people that you would do anything for, even if it costs you everything you have. Just one single person can be your home. It doesn't matter where this person is, as long as you feel comfortable around him or her, you can return to their side."

He hesitated briefly before he continued in a more subdued voice. "If the clan doesn't feel like home to you, I guess … I guess it's alright."

Itachi's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

Shisui levelled his gaze at a faraway point behind the memorial stone and grimaced slightly.

"Actually, I feel the same. Don't get me wrong here, Itachi, I love the clan, I truly do. I'm proud to be an Uchiha and thank whoever is responsible every day for having the gifts that our clan offers bestowed upon me.

"But that doesn't mean that I cannot see the limitations the clan has placed on itself. Even though I know and can at least acknowledge most of the reasoning for them, some still prevent me from seeing the clan and subsequently their members as the most important people in my life. This feeling is something that I have struggled with for a long time and I want you to know that, although it makes us different from the rest of the clan, it's alright."

"But Konoha is home for you?" Itachi's voice was laced with confusion, his face set in a slight frown.

"Yes. My grandfather, my team and sensei – they are the most important people in my life. I would do anything to protect them, to prevent them from getting hurt.

"And, see, they have precious people, too. So if anybody hurt those, they would be hurt, too, which means I've got to protect them in order to protect my important people. They all live in Konoha, so it really seems prudent to protect the village at all costs. So, at least for me, that makes the whole of Konoha home – including you, by the way."

He sighed. "I know that sounds kinda … on a really grand scale and stuff. So you might not understand now, but I'm sure you will one day."

"Did these shinobi", Itachi pointed at the names on the marble, "feel the same?"

"I guess so. Scratch that, I'm pretty sure they did! And about the dying-pointless-thing: I guess that, in a way self-sacrifice …" Shisui struggled for words. Taking a deep breath, he continued. "My grandfather once told me, that a nameless shinobi who protects peace from within its shadow was the true mark of a shinobi. So no death is ever pointless, as long as the shinobi died in service of his village. Because the village is the entirety of all things worth protecting."

"Protecting peace from within its shadows …" Itachi's face was set in an intensively thoughtful expression as he muttered quietly for himself.

Belatedly, Shisui realized that everything he had just told Itachi was likely to clash at least in part with what they were taught to believe in the clan. The kid would get a serious headache mulling over the information. What was he thinking, anyway, telling a five-year-old stuff like that? And the clan heir, to top it off? He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and made his voice sound as light as possible.

"Huh, I guess I suck at explaining things like that. Don't think too much, you'll get early wrinkles like that." He held his hand out for his cousin. "I should take you home now. Your parents are probably throwing a fit."

Itachi nodded curtly and didn't even glace at the outstretched hand. He took off in the direction of their district in a blur. Shisui snorted and followed.

)()()(

A lanky teenager stepped out of the shadow of the trees. He was clad in ANBU gear, silver-white hair sticking wildly from his head. His ANBU mask was attached to his hip, but his face was still covered by a cloth mask and his left eye was hidden beneath a crookedly set hitai-ate, effectively leaving one dark eye visible.

He had come to pay his respects for a dead medic-nin, a dead Hokage and a dead Uchiha and had instead found two children of the same clan, alive and deeply involved in a discussion about the appropriate reason to die.

Waves of bitter frustration rolled over him, washing away the cold numbness of the emotional void he had become. His fists clenched tightly at his side, he stiffly walked to the cenotaph.

What did those children know? What did they know about protecting people, protecting peace? It was easy to die. But what did they know about the crushing weight of utter failure? The suffocating guilt of being the survivor? Knowing that he lived, had lived while the ones he'd sworn to protect had died around him, and could change nothing because he was completely useless?

The teen was breathing heavily, chest rising and falling in a rapid pace, nails dug deep into his palms, drawing blood in the process. It dribbled off his hands, mingling with the rain water pouring from the leaden sky and disappeared in the muddy ground.

His sight was blurry, images swirling wildly as he continued walking until his foot hit the marble stone. He fell on his knees and pressed one hand against his lone visible eye.

Somewhere in the haze that were his newly awakened emotions a voice, eerily reminiscent of a blond man with gentle blue eyes, was trying to tell him to calm down. He strained his mind to listen to it, but there was that deafening roar of black guilt, screaming at him and lunging for his attention, grasping at the shreds of his sanity.

hewassuchafailure –

hehadpromised –

ObitocrushedtherockhismangledbodynowhatareyoudoingwhydidyoupushMEaway –

Obito's eye -

Rinohmygodyourchestmyhandbloodburnedfleshtoodeepinyourchestyourheart –

youpromisedyoupromisedyoupromised –

YOUFAILED

He couldn't shut the screaming out, no matter how hard he pressed both of his hands on his ears. Shaking and quietly sobbing he endured, witnessing the blackness slowly retreat as his will battled the screeching and slowly, ever so slowly he reemerged from the haze, the numb feeling resetting as the usual cold returned.

)()()(

The run to Itachi's home was silent. Although Shisui was holding back on his speed he noted that his cousin had become faster again.

'In just two weeks. How does this kid do that?'

Shaking his head he came to a halt in front of the main house. Itachi was already climbing the stairs to the front door and was in the process of shoving it open when his mother appeared in the doorway.

Uchiha Mikoto was a beautiful woman with long raven hair and deceptively gentle features. As she looked down on her soaking son her face adopted a worried expression. She quickly pulled him into the house.

"Itachi! You shouldn't have been out in the rain! Quick, get out of your wet clothes before you catch a cold."

Shisui chuckled as Mikoto began fussing over her son. Startled, the woman lifted her head.

"Shisui-kun, I'm so sorry! Please come in, you shouldn't be out either! Would you like some breakfast?"

He smiled politely and bowed his head slightly before answering. "Thanks for the invitation, Mikoto-sama, but I don't plan to stay. I'm going to pick up some breakfast on my way to the hospital."

Her face softened. "Visiting your grandfather? You're a good boy, Shisui. If you wait one minute I'll pack some onigiri for you."

Shisui's face lit up and he stepped into the house. "Thank you! That's very generous of you."

She smiled and hurried into the kitchen. Itachi had already disappeared, presumably to his room for a change of clothes. He didn't bother to take off his sandals as he was leaving in a minute anyway and stood waiting in the genkan.

A few seconds later a shoji screen slid to the side and Uchiha Fugaku emerged from his study. The stern clan head spotted him and greeted him with a curt nod. Before stepping into the dining room, however, he hesitated. Making up his mind he came over to Shisui.

"Shisui-kun."

"Uchiha-sama."

There was a short silence. Shisui was acutely aware of the older man's scrutiny and he wished that Mikoto would hurry up. He felt uncomfortable under Fugaku's gaze.

"You just came back from a mission?"

"Yes, Uchiha-sama. It was successful."

The clan patriarch waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "Of course it was. I wouldn't assume otherwise."

Shisui nodded in acceptance of the praise – or, what was as close to praise as would ever come out of Fugaku's mouth.

"When are you planning on joining the Police Force?"

He knew it. The day Fugaku would stop harassing him about joining the Police would be the day Itachi had a laughing fit. He consciously had to fight the groan rising from his chest.

"I'd like to make chuunin and jounin first before joining. I'm sure that I'll benefit from the added field experience."

Fugaku frowned.

"Make sure to rise quickly. The Uchiha need every skilled pair of hands to do their duty."

Shisui noticed the shift from 'the Police Force' to 'the Uchiha'. He was saved from having to give an answer when Mikoto reemerged from the kitchen.

She handed him a bag with two bento boxes and smiled. "Here you go. Kagami will be hungry when he wakes up, so I made an extra bento. Please convey our regards for him."

"Of course. Thank you, Mikoto-sama!"

He bowed and was already halfway out of the door when Mikoto's voice called him back.

"Shisui-kun! Would you like to come for dinner?"

He turned his head over his shoulder and grinned. "Dinner sounds great! See you then!"

"See you! And thank you for taking care of Itachi!"

Suddenly he wondered how his life would've been like had his parents survived.

)()()(

The gloomy feeling in his stomach had returned during his wait for the visiting hours to start and he had decided to spend the remaining time outside since the pouring rain had finally receded to a slight drizzle. Shisui felt tiny sharp drops stinging his cheeks, leaving an annoying prickly impression. He lifted his hand not holding the plastic bag and rubbed over his face.

Konoha Hospital was not a place built to please any aesthetical standards. It was simple, a huge two-storied and U-shaped building with the flat side facing the street, located in the middle of the village. Patches of more or less green grass made up the front lawn. The paint was whitish with a pink tinge in an effort to make the building look friendlier. Shisui was not sure about the success of the attempt, but, hey, it was the thought that counted.

After the chat with Itachi there hadn't been enough time left to start a training session so he had come straight to the hospital. Idly he wondered if he could be considered a strange kid for preferring to wait in the rain instead of seeking shelter inside the building. But he was a shinobi, and shinobi didn't like hospitals, so he brushed the thought aside.

The time was finally up. He entered the building and grinned at the nurse behind the reception desk. The middle-aged woman smiled back and gave him a thumbs-up. Mai-san was definitely his favorite nurse.

He walked the stairs up to the second floor and stopped in front of the door to room 224. He mentally prepared himself and took a deep breath before pushing it open.

The room he entered was unusually big for a hospital room which housed only one patient. Of course white was the dominant color, but there were blotches of light blue and green from various items that added a homely feeling. A vase with blue bell flowers stood on the nightstand beside the bed and even more flowers and other get-well-gifts were spread over a table near the window.

His grandfather, Uchiha Kagami, lay unmoving in between pristine white sheets and pillows. The typical Uchiha look had faded with progressing age and his formerly short, unruly black hair had become longer and white. His face was wrinkled and gaunt, the cheeks hollow and the skin of a sickly gray color.

Shisui felt the bottom of his stomach drop as he took in the sight of his sleeping grandfather. His condition had worsened faster than anticipated. Only two weeks before, when Shisui had left for his mission, he had looked fine – or as fine as a bedridden man could look who had suffered heavy injuries during the attack of the nine-tails.

Moving silently, not wanting to wake his grandfather, he sat down on the chair beside the bed. He took the bento boxes out of the plastic bag and put them on the night stand, folded the bag and dropped it on the floor. He then proceeded to rearrange the sheets on the foot of the bed which had become tangled.

"No need for that, Shisui."

Shisui nearly jumped. He looked up to find an amused smile on the face of his grandfather. Kagami's eyes were sharp as ever as he took his grandson in.

"Oji-san! I wasn't aware you were awake!"

"Well, I wasn't until you started fussing around my feet. And good morning to you, too." Kagami deadpanned. His voice was strong and clear and belied the frail state of his body.

Shisui felt his face redden and had the grace to look sheepish. His grandfather was the only person who could still make him feel like a five-year-old.

"I'm sorry, oji-san. If you want to rest, I can leave and come back later."

"And what, leave me alone to my boredom? Now that I'm awake I'm not likely to fall back asleep, so leaving isn't an option for you."

Shisui grinned and let out a breath he hadn't even realized he was holding. His grandfather's condition couldn't be that bad if he was still able to scold him, right?

"You just came back from a mission, I gather?"

And just like that, everything was fine again as they chatted merrily about his simple C-rank escort mission and drifted away to other topics. They ate Mikoto's onigiri, both agreeing that she made the best rice balls in Konoha. Shisui relaxed, all nervousness and bad feelings gone. It was like old times, back at home in Kagami's study from the time before they, along with a lot of other Uchiha, were forced to move into what was now the Uchiha district.

He should have known that it would not last.

"Shisui, I need to tell you something very important."

Shisui did not like the sudden seriousness in his grandfather's voice. The graveness hit him like a boulder in the gut, bringing back that odd feeling from before. He nodded mutely.

"What I tell you now is something that not many people know about. Promise me that you're not going to tell anybody whom you don't have complete and utter faith in."

The younger man gulped. "I promise."

"I never told you how I grew up, did I? Well, my father was a traditional Uchiha, stern, conservative and proud. He sought to raise his children to follow the same mindset. However, out of his two sons, it only worked on one.

"My older brother, Katsuro, never wanted to be a shinobi. My father forced him to go to the academy nonetheless because in his view, an Uchiha who was not a shinobi wasn't an Uchiha. So Katsuro decided to stop being an Uchiha and deliberately failed his graduation exam three times, ultimately marking himself as a disgrace to the family. My father was furious and stripped him off the family name, disowned him and renounced any relations to him. He forbade him to keep any contacts to the clan, including my mother and me."

Kagami smiled grimly at the memory.

"Anyway, Katsuro entered into an apprenticeship with a blacksmith. He fell in love with the blacksmith's daughter Emiko and married her after taking over the shop. He adopted the family name of his wife, Anzai, and had one child, a boy named Isao.

"When Isao was born, the Uchiha clan suddenly remembered my brother's origin, years after they had abandoned him. There was a possibility that Isao had inherited our bloodline limit, though, so the clan elders tried to persuade Katsuro to enlist his son in the academy. He resisted of course, but the clan didn't stop harassing him. They even threatened him to take Isao away by force – which they were legitimated to do. Clan law dictates that the offspring of clan members, even if they are civilian, are to be evaluated in their potential by the clan head and the elders. So Katsuro had no choice but to send Isao to the academy.

"After one year, the academy instructors send him back to the civilian school with the reasoning that he was not cut out to be a shinobi. He had a poor grasp on his chakra and was not at all interested in any form of fighting, which ended in him being on the receiving side of bullies. After that and some other things the clan quickly lost interest in him and left him alone.

"So Isao grew up as a civilian and learned the trade of his parents. When he was ready to take over the shop, Katsuro and Emiko retired. Two years ago, Isao married a girl with the name Keiko. The last time I checked, she was pregnant."

Kagami fell silent.

Shisui had never heard this story before. He hadn't known that he had relatives outside the clan, hadn't even thought of such a possibility. What would that make this Isao anyway? He quickly calculated in his head. First cousin once removed. Hmm.

Clearly, he didn't wish to interfere with clan business. Shisui would never begrudge him that sentiment, though. However, that didn't explain why the old man suddenly decided to tell him this story where, clearly, it would be in the best interest of the Anzai family to keep a low profile.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Do you remember what I said about my father? That he managed to raise one son after his beliefs?

"That was me. I was a very obedient follower and could not understand why Katsuro, who was a member of Konoha's greatest clan, would reject the idea of being a shinobi. We were not very close, so I was not upset when he was kicked out of the clan because in my eyes he deserved it.

"However, my mother, who I cared a great deal about, was heartbroken. She didn't agree with my father's verdict and tried everything to get Katsuro back. She argued that there were lots of Uchiha civilians in the clan, but my father would not listen. His son would be a proper Uchiha or none and he even forbade her to stay in any kind of contact. My mother never forgave him. She died a little on the inside on the day Katsuro left.

"After that, I started thinking. I made it a habit to occasionally check in on my brother without him noticing. As my stalking continued for months, I realized that he was happy with his new life. Just by observing him I learned to see beyond the narrow mindset of my father and the boundaries of the clan. By the time I graduated, my whole perception of my identity as a shinobi had changed fundamentally and when the Nidaime accepted our genin team, I pledged my loyalty first and foremost to my village, Konohagakure no Sato.

"During my time as an active shinobi I never stopped keeping the family of my brother in sight. So when Isao was born I was fully prepared to fight the decision of the clan elders. I would have seen it through if my nephew hadn't taken care of it by himself. But now that I have taken this injury, I cannot complete the task anymore.

"It's been four months since the Kyuubi attack. For four months nobody has been keeeping track of the Anzai family."

Kagami closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again they were the bleeding crimson of a fully matured Sharingan.

"The reason I tell you all this, Shisui, is that I want you to continue where I left off. I ask you to keep an eye on them and protect them in case of danger, be it from enemies of Konoha or the Uchiha clan. Promise me to look after them so that they don't have to suffer needlessly when I'm no longer there."

Shisui was locked into the gaze of the Sharingan. The severity of his grandfather's voice encompassed his mind, the urgency of his pleading seeping into every inch of his brain. He felt himself being dragged irresistibly into something that was bigger than he could grasp at the moment and he realized with startling clarity that he could not deny his grandfather.

His voice was a little hoarse but unwavering as he replied.

"I promise."

Kagami smiled, relief clear on his face.

"I'm glad, Shisui. Thank you."

)()()(

The sun had finally decided to show itself when Shisui made his way to the Anzai smithy. Its rays were remarkably intense for February and gave notice to the approaching spring. At least the air wasn't so moist anymore, having resolved itself in the earlier week-long rain.

Shisui had never been to the civilian area of Konoha before. Reconstruction here had been swift, clean and of high priority. It had helped, too, that the civilians were not located in the center of the village and had mostly only taken stray attacks. There were barely any visible damages left, so the people had resumed with their lives.

Seeing civilians in their own surroundings was a novel experience. The people were more open, their lifestyle slower, their expressions more trusting. The blatant absence of shadowy figures racing across rooftops felt massively wrong and apparently the people felt the same about ten-year-olds in full shinobi gear strutting around the neighborhood.

All Shisui could think about was how vulnerable these people were.

He turned from the main street into an alley. It had trees planted in regular intervals, branches gently swinging in the rhythm of the wind. Although they did not have any leaves, yet, there was a slight rustling noise in the air. It was so peaceful, it was surreal.

He walked to the address his grandfather had given him and came to a halt in front of the smithy.

The shop was all boarded-up. Had been for a long time it seemed.

Shisui felt dread beginning to pool inside of him. Something had gone horribly wrong for the Anzai family. He needed to find out.

He went to the house next to the abandoned smithy which appeared to be a pharmacy and entered.

It was a small shop. The air smelled clean and a little soapy. Various medicines were lined up on shelves covering the walls and the counter. There were no other customers.

He walked up to the deserted counter. A little bell stood on top of a stack of magazines and Shisui reached out to alert the owner of his presence. Before he could shake it, though, a curtain of strung glass beads parted behind the counter and a woman in her fifties emerged. She was dressed in a simple maroon yukata and a matching obi, her dark hair bound back in a loose ponytail. She seized him up shortly, noticed the Uchiha attire and plastered a smile on her face. It was so fake that Shisui had to fight the urge to gag.

"Uchiha-san! Can I help you?"

Forcing himself, Shisui bowed his head politely. "Good day, owner-san! Indeed I would like to ask you some questions."

The woman nodded reluctantly.

"The neighboring blacksmith's shop, do you know what happened to the owners? I bought some weapons there once and was very happy with the high quality of their products, so I wanted to buy there something else, too. But the shop seems to be closed."

He figured that a good story would make his question somewhat less random. Lately, being an Uchiha hadn't been the grounds on which to build mutual trust. Not since the rumor that the Kyuubi had been controlled by an Uchiha had spread.

And he was right. The smile on the woman's face became icy and a wary expression entered her eyes. Suddenly the light coming in from the windows seemed to have lessened, darkening the shop and lengthening the shadows on the walls. Shisui had half a mind to check for a genjutsu. Just to be sure he muttered "Kai!" quietly. Nothing changed.

"The Anzai family" the woman began slowly, "has abandoned the smithy. It was destroyed when … when … that monster attacked the village. They used to live above the shop so when the attack came they were asleep …"

She was breathing heavily now. Tears glistened in her eyes and her hands were clutching the sides of her yukata, nearly tearing the cloth in the middle.

Horrified, Shisui took the news in. Images flickered through his brain, glimpses of the huge, tailed beast, its all-devouring malice streaming from every inch of its body. The Kyuubi had attacked in the night and if the people had been sleeping while a stray projectile had hit the area … oh god.

"The only one that survived was the girl, Keiko, because she had been staying with her parents that night. She was pregnant and she will have given birth by now. The poor girl will have to raise the child without a father. Kami, she didn't deserve this, none of them deserved it! They were good people, all of them …"

The woman was sobbing now, but Shisui had listened wide-eyed. When she didn't show any signs of continuing, he leaned forward, pressing his hands on the counter and looking deep in her eyes. His voice was strained and sounded urgent as he spoke.

"Owner-san, where can I find Keiko? Please, I need to find her! Tell me where she lives!"

The woman shot him a suspicious glare. "You're not going to make any trouble for her, are you? Kami knows she has already endured enough without the meddling of the police."

Shisui shook his head. "I'm not here on behalf of the police. I promise that I'm not going to make any trouble for her. But it is of the utmost importance that I see and speak to her!"

The woman stared for a little longer until she finally relented.

"The last time I heard she was at the house of her parents. She was a Sugimura before she married Anzai-san, so I suggest you start looking there."

)()()(

Mikoto discreetly eyed the boy while he was being harassed by her husband. On the outside, Shisui was nothing but polite, but as a wife to an Uchiha and a mother of two Uchiha sons she was more than able to read the tenseness in his shoulders, the way his jaw locked when he was not speaking and the way his knees were pressed together on the zabuton. It was plain to see that he did not enjoy the conversation.

Fugaku had started off with questions about the development of his Sharingan. ("Gomen Uchiha-sama, but I have not yet awakened it."), followed by questions about his plans on making chuunin ("Yes, Uchiha-sama, we're going to participate in the next exams. No, Uchiha-sama, my team does not weigh me down, we have excellent teamwork. Yes, I'm very glad about my teammates and my sensei, I value them very highly not only as shinobi. Yes, Yuuhi-sensei is more than adequate and is very invested in us, though he does not place emphasis on the same areas as Kushina-sensei did.")and now he was explaining why it was most important that Shisui joined the Police Force as soon as possible.

Mikoto didn't doubt for a moment that this part was intended as a lesson for Itachi as well.

Her son was quietly eating his dinner and hadn't spoken a word, yet, which really was nothing unusual. What was unusual, however, was the way he intently monitored the reactions of his cousin to his father's speech about family honor, clan pride and the natural advantage of their blood line.

Mikoto knew for a fact that Itachi regarded his cousin with something akin to admiration of the sort that a younger sibling would have for his older brother. Though her son never expressed his affection in the way other children – Mikoto refused to use the word 'normal' even in her thoughts – did, like following around or, god forbid, clinging to the chosen person, he had other ways of showing.

It was the way his face brightened at the sight of Shisui, the lips just a little bit more prone to smiling, the eyes lighting up, the way he sought for the elder's approval during training and the way he took every piece of guidance to heart.

She knew, too, that Shisui reciprocated that feeling. He spent a lot of his free time around her son and showed overprotective tendencies.

And recently, it seemed that the two clan geniuses had progressed to sharing thoughts about their views of live. Or more precise, their views of the clan.

Mikoto hid her amused smile behind a curtain of raven hair as she stood up and started to collect the used dishes. When Itachi got ready to help her, she signaled him with a gentle shake of her head that he should remain on his seat. Fugaku would be displeased if he left in the middle of his lecture.

She brought the dinnerware to the sink in the kitchen and was just about to return to the dining room to collect the rest when a piercing wail cut through the house.

Itachi shot out of the dining room like a lightning bolt and disappeared into little Sasuke's room. Mikoto arrived there only a second later with worry tightly gripping her heart, to a picture so heartwarming that she stilled completely.

Itachi was standing in front of Sasuke's bed and holding his baby brother in his arms, the little bundle pressed tightly to his chest. Small tufts of soft raven hair peaked out from the blankets and tiny hands were clutched in the material of Itachi's shirt. Sasuke had already stopped crying, comfortably snuggled into the warmth of his brother's arms.

Steps echoed in the hallway behind her. She turned around and saw her husband and Shisui. Waving her hand she gave them both a reassuring smile.

"Everything's fine."

"What happened?" Shisui asked, relief relaxing his features.

"He fell out of his bed." Itachi answered not releasing the hold on his brother.

Mikoto frowned slightly. Her son was a tad bit overprotective today, even more so than usual.

"Hn." That was her husband. "I will retreat to my study now. Good night, Shisui."

"Good night, Uchiha-sama."

They watched as the clan head disappeared behind one of the shoji screens. Shisui turned around again and grinned.

"I'll help you with the dishes, Mikoto-sama. Itachi can stay here and play mother hen a little longer."

Mikoto's laughter rang through the house. "That is very considerate of you, Shisui-kun. Let's go then."

She made her way to the kitchen, completely missing the pensive expression on Shisui's face as he threw a last glance into Sasuke's bedroom.

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