I wrote this in 2006 and it was uploaded here for years before I removed it in 2014 to my LiveJournal exclusively (because the rating will go NC-17). I had several people ask me about it though, so I decided to move this story (and the others I removed) back here and will finish them one by one. Please note I will have to remove the NC-17 parts for this site but they will be noted and you will be able to find them via my profile.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of its characters. Naruto is copyright Masashi Kishimoto.

Spoiler Alert: Please note while this fanfic will deter from the manga timeline, it will have spoilers from the manga AND anime. So if you not current on the manga/anime you have been warned. Also, this will deviate pretty hard from cannon.

Black and White Eyes: Chapter Ten - Decisions

Itachi surveyed the grounds knowing they were close, knowing what lie ahead but still had to stop himself from flinching when the ground below gave a great lurch and exploded beneath him.

He flipped backward and saw Shisui do the same out of the corner of his eye. His cousin gave him a look and they leaped toward the trees for cover without question.

They sat quietly and waited as smoke billowed from the crater. Whoever it was that emerged, they wanted to be prepared for it. Slowly smoke and dust settled enough that he could see the dark online of three figures.

Sasuke shielded his eyes from the flying debris before sending a nasty glare. "Using the front entrance would have worked just as well, Suigetsu."

"Yes, but it's not near as much fun. I always wanted to blow up this place. Don't tell me it hasn't crossed your mind."

Sasuke's lip twitched as he tried to slow his breathing. "Run ahead to the inn and see if everything is in place, we will follow."

"Worried the little wife can't keep up?"

Sasuke heard Hinata cough beside him as light filtered in from outside, the rays of the sun highlighting the dust in the air. "Are you alright?" He asked.

"I'm fine, but the sooner we leave this place the better I'll be," she said as she looked around at the damage beside her.

Sasuke looked back to Suigetsu. "We will meet you by nightfall so make sure everything is in place. I'll want to get an early start."

Suigetsu rolled his eyes and sped forward away from them.

"What do we do now, Sasuke-san? How can you leave me at the border of fire to return home when we can't be apart?"

He sighed and shook his head, his response making her look down to her feet. He had no real answers for her. He only hoped the Jutsu would wear off or they would find a way to break it along the way. It was a four-day journey after all.

Checking the position of the sun in the sky and seeing the time, Sasuke jumped up from the crater and for a split second, he lost his balance. He felt just the slight touch of a hand righting him, as Hinata jumped past. She didn't say anything but he knew he was considerably weekend since the fight, and that is something she would be able to see.

He walked forward to stand beside her and gave her a quick nod. "We should be goi— "

Sasuke blinked, his Sharingan activating in a split second as his body went still and his mind froze. For a moment he thought he saw the impossible.

"Sasuke?" Hinata asked, a hint of fear and rage whipping up and down her spine, only the fear belonging to her. "What do you see?"

"I'm not sure. What do you see behind those trees, Hinata?"

She hesitated only a moment before activating her Doujutsu and searching the forest tree line. Her eyes flew wide as they settled on a dark figure hiding poorly about a half a kilometer in.

Her reaction was the only thing he needed as he sped off toward the figure not even caring that his mind, and hers, screamed at him to stay in a blistering onset of emotion that he almost couldn't handle.

His scream of rage drowned out her own plea as she ran after him. Branches whipped across her face tearing at her clothes and skin and she set a space that called for no caution.

He was faster then she and it took everything in her to try to keep up and when she saw them collide with enough force to shred several trees around them she stopped. This was not something she could get in the middle of. The only thing she could do for him now was to maintain a perfect distance so his concentration wasn't broken. He would need all his wits about him, especially in his weakened state.

Just as she was about to creep forward slightly she heard someone land behind her and she whipped around to meet the stranger.

"You! You're the one from that day! What did you do to us?"

"Ah, yes, that would be me but we don't have time for that just now. Do you trust me?"

'What? No, of course not!"

"Fine. We will do this the hard way then. Would you mind screaming for me? It would make what I'm about to do next so much more believable?"

Hinata narrowed her eyes. She couldn't read this man at all, but like before, he didn't frighten her.

"Look, there isn't much time and if you want Sasuke to be able to live with himself after today then SCREAM NOW!"

So she did and the man grabbed her and flickered them toward where Sasuke had his brother pinned to a tree, his sword at his throat, ready to strike.

Except he hadn't. Just before he was to deal the striking blow he heard her and stopped his movement to locate her. He saw her, standing in front of a man he knew to be long dead, his arm trapping her against his chest.

"If you want the Missus to live then I suggest you let him go, Sasuke,"

Sasuke didn't move an inch. He had waited too long for this. He watched the man sigh and tighten his grip on Hinata. The slight widening of her eyes almost made him lower his sword… almost. "Who are you?" He asked.

"You know who I am."

"I know who you want me to believe you are."

The man laughed. "It is me, Sasuke. Do you think your Sharingan lies to you?"

"If you really are Shisui then I know enough to not trust my eyes when it comes to you."

He chuckled. "Fine, if you don't believe who I am, then do you at least trust in yourself to know your own brother?"

Sasuke looked at him long, only a small wrinkle between his brow betraying any confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"Did it ever occur to you to question why you were able to pin Itachi down so easily? Or were you just so eager in your rage that you ignored what your instincts are probably still telling you?"

"The only thing my instincts are telling me is to slit his throat."

He watched as Hinata flinched. At his words or his anger, he wasn't sure, but he hated that he was distracted by her… worried for her even.

"Itachi?"

Sasuke tightened his sword against his brother's throat as Itachi slowly rotated his head to view Shisui, cutting himself from the movement and blood trickling down. Sasuke frowned.

"Why didn't you try to block him. We talked about this. We agreed."

"You agreed. I merely listened," said Itachi.

Sasuke looked between his brother and Shisui and watched as he released Hinata and pinched the bridge of his nose out of obvious frustration. Just what was going on here, he wondered. "Hinata, is this the man that connected our minds?"

She nodded and moved slowly away from the man, though he made no move to recapture her.

"Can you undo it?" Sasuke asked.

"I can, yes… but I won't," the man said as he smirked.

Sasuke gritted his teeth. "What is it that you want?"

"Only for you to listen, though this might be a cumbersome conversation to have whilst you keep your hand at Itachi's throat."

Sasuke laughed. "Do you really expect me to let down my guard?"

"Sasuke," Itachi said in his low tone and he almost flinched. When was the last time he heard his brother address him? He turned and locked eyes with him. "I have no intention to run away from you anymore. After you listen to what Shisui has to say, if you still want my life, I'll give it to you. Right now, though, I'm feeling a bit tired."

Sasuke blinked and for the first time really took in his brother's appearance. He breathing was labored, though he had put up no fight at all and when Sasuke looked deeper, what he saw shocked him to his core.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked.

When Itachi remained silent Shisui spoke instead. "He's dying."

Sasuke finally lowered his sword, not out of mercy but out of surprise. He stood silent as his brother walked away, towards the bank of a small creek not far from them. Presumably to rest.

"Shall we take a seat as well? This is a very long story."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I prefer to stand."

"Alright, and the girl? Is it really alright if she stays?"

"I see little difference if she stays or goes, considering she can feel and even hear my most inner thoughts if she leaves. You saw to that."

"Ah, so I did," Shisui said with a small smirk. " I guess I should start my story at the beginning. What do you know about a man named Uchiha Madara?"

Sasuke sighed. "Even children not of the Uchiha clan know of Madara."

"Yes, but do they know that he is still alive?"

He heard a gasp and he was unsure if it was Hinata's or his own. Uchiha Madara alive? It was impossible. Everyone knew of the legends, the famous rivalry, and fight between his ancestor and the First Hokage.

"Alright," Sasuke said, "You have my attention."

She walked down to the river three separate times and each time she lost her nerve. The first time he had cast a Katon onto the water that was so unstable she deemed it unwise to step closer to him. The second, she felt him calm slightly so when she went to make her way to him, she felt her tears. Only they weren't really hers. The third time she just lost her nerve altogether.

She had felt pain and loss. Many times she had felt it, but not like this. This was so foreign to her. To be in such despair that wasn't her own. To feel a loss so deeply that even she, in her optimism, wasn't sure it could heal.

She did want to go to him. To comfort him. Only she didn't know how. To have been lied to so fully by the village and then by the very brother who only wanted to protect you, but turned you into a monster in the process? She felt a war within him and she knew this could be his tipping point.

Gathering courage she tiptoed down towards the embankment he now sat upon, his legs swinging freely like a child's, though not touching the water. She stopped a few feet away still unable to find the words or the bravery to see his face.

"Either come here or go," he said, his voice gruff. "Your indecision is driving me crazy."

"Sorry. I don't want to intrude, but…"

He turned slightly toward her. "But you cannot help yourself? It's not in your nature to see someone hurt and do nothing."

She shrugged even though he had turned from her and could no longer see. She stepped closer and sat behind him, still giving him the option of privacy. She sat and played with the grass beneath her, waiting for him to speak if he so chose.

"You want me to talk about it?"

"Only if you want," she said as she twiddled a blade of grass between her fingers.

"You already know everything. What is there to talk about?"

"What will you do?"

"I suppose you would be curious about that, tied to me as you are. What would you do?"

She raised her head and was met with one black eye turned toward her. She looked down at the ground unable to hold his intense gaze. "I could not begin to tell you— "

" would you want to do… speculate."

"I think… I think I would want to go home."

"Home, huh. Don't you think that is the one option I probably don't have?"

"I think, as of now, it's the only option you do have. For several reasons."

He spun around so quickly she jerked back but he held her chin in place. Refusing to let her look elsewhere.

"I am a traitor of Konoha. I betrayed my entire village and my team. Do you really think anyone would want me to return after that? Or have you forgotten I'm a Bingo Book listed criminal that is probably entered as a kill on sight."

"You're wrong," she said, jerking her chin out of his grasp.

Sasuke laughed though it held no joy. "About which part?"

"All of it," she said as the cruel smile slipped off his face. " Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi-san. They never gave up on you. Every day they trained harder knowing one day they would come for you. They want to bring you home. Do you really not know?"

This time it was he who looked down to the ground, in shame and embarrassment… maybe even a little relief.

"And as for the Bingo Book, you are listed as capture only because the Hokage knows how much you mean to Naruto and Sakura. She also knows Naruto would never give her a moment's peace if you were listed otherwise," she said, a smile on her face imagining her words.

"I have no purpose now," he whispered. "I could go anywhere and do anything," he said, looking back across the water.

"Sasuke-san, I meant it when I said you need to come home,"

He turned to her. "Why are you so adamant?"

"Besides the fact I think you owe it to your team to see them?"

"Owe them?" He asked, scoffing.

"Yes," she said, frowning at his reaction. "Also, Sasuke-san, your cousin wasn't lying when he said your brother is dying. I looked into his Chakra Pathways myself. I've seen pathway decay before, into one, maybe two areas of the body, but this is all over. There is not one system unaffected. At this point, I believe there are only three people who could study and repair that type of damage."

"And all three just happen to reside in Konoha, huh?"

She nodded and Sasuke sighed. "What makes you think they will be any more welcome than I would. The council—"

"The council is something Tsunade-sama's does not fear. You do not know the current Hokage. She will take your brother's mission and service into account. She will be fair to all of you, I believe."

Sasuke raised a brow. "And if she isn't?"

Hinata rocked her head to the side. "Then we leave… in a big hurry," she said while smiling. "But that won't happen."

"You really believe that?"

"Yes."

Sasuke sighed. "I don't want to go back."

"Liar."

"Get out of my head, woman," he said, though his glare held little of his usual heat.

"I don't need to be in your head to know you are lying to yourself. Don't forget we also need to take care of our little problem."

"Can't wait to divorce me?" He asked.

Hinata smiled at his attempt at humor. "Annulment," she corrected.

"Can the Hokage really heal my brother?"

"If anyone can. It would be Tsunade-sama."

"What if Itachi and Shisui don't believe in your positive outlook of this Konaha reunion and refuse to go?"

"I've already spoken to Shisui-san and he agrees. Itachi-san is in no condition to disagree."

Sasuke sighed. Going home was something he had dreamed about in the past, especially when he first left home. He still wanted to revive his clan and live a somewhat uncomplicated life, as uncomplicated as a ninja's life could be anyway.

"I'll be arrested as soon as I walk through the gates… and sent to interrogation," he said, though mostly to himself.

"I'll be there with you."

Sasuke nodded, it hadn't occurred to him, but she would, of course, suffer the same, though the techniques they would use on her might be a little more pleasant.

"We will stay here tonight and leave at daybreak."

Hinata gave him a bright smile, and all he could do in response was swallow. He stood after a moment and she did the same. The first thing he had to do was have Shisui remove the mind jutsu. He was looking forward to having his thoughts remain only his again, and he was sure she felt the same.

Happy 2018! Comments welcome.