Author's Note:
There's going to be another chapter after this, not a story chapter, but one where I explain a few things and post the link to the NEXT STORY AFTER THIS ONE THAT YOU ABSITIVELY POSOLUTELY HAVE TO READ BECAUSE IT'S REALLY GOOD AND FUNNY. M'k? M'k!
And to all of your comments – I'll try to respond to EVERYBODY, I promise. Seriously…every comment, I WILL respond to. And all of your questions, which I usually answer in the author's note, will be answered next chapter.
Four Years Later
Itachi slid off his cloak, letting it fall in a heap on the ground near his ankles. He kicked it aside, and sat down on the small green blanket he had laid out for the night.
He glanced around the cave that he and few other Akatsuki members occupied for the night. The hideout was too far away after being relocated, meaning it would take more than day or so to travel back to the hideout after recruiting a new member.
Itachi didn't rather like the new member. Though he did recognize him from the dreams he had been having before, Deidara seemed like an all around annoying, whiney person. Then again, Itachi didn't like Kisame when he was partnered with him…he still really didn't, but that was beside the point. He watched Sasori and Deidara on the other end of the cave, as Deidara rolled out his sleeping bag, and Hiruko split in half, Sasori emerging from the center.
"That wasn't the real you?!" Deidara asked, bewildered, his eyes darting back and fourth between the real Sasori and the outer shell of Hiruko. Sasori stared at him, bored, not replying as he sat down on his own camp.
"You made that?" continued Deidara, gesturing to Hiruko with a jerk of his head. "Out of wood?"
"Yep." Sasori sighed, lying down and facing the wall.
"So…you're an artist, h'm?" Deidara pressed on, his questions never ending.
"Mhmm."
"…you don't look like an artist. H'm." grunted Deidara, with a brief nod of his head.
Now clearly annoyed, Sasori rolled over to face Deidara, an eyebrow raised in what almost looked like amusement.
"Are you a guy?" asked Sasori.
"Of course, h'm!"
"Well, you don't look like a guy. So there."
Deidara scowled at Sasori, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"I hate you, Sasori no Danna."
"Don't call me that, brat." mumbled Sasori.
To Itachi's right, Kisame laughed quietly.
"This kid'll be interesting." Kisame commented. "Not as funny as Hidan was, but he'll come close. You were too boring to provoke, Itachi."
Itachi said nothing in response, as was expected of him.
Kisame scoffed, and rolled over onto his side.
"You're no fun."
A few hours later, Deidara and Kisame were sound asleep. Itachi leaned warily against one of the walls of the cave, staring out through the opening, towards the star-speckled inky black night sky. Sasori was up, of course, being made of wood took no toll on his body, should he stay awake for even years.
The two conscious members said not a word to each other, seeing as neither were the very talkative type. Sasori was entertaining himself by attaching invisible strings of chakra to a wooden spider he had just whittled out of a small tree branch. Itachi stared at him out of the corner of his eye – he saw Sasori begin to move the spider towards a sleeping Deidara, but stop, as if having second thoughts. Itachi found himself rather amused. Sasori was at least fifteen or twenty years older than him, but was still a child at heart…well, literally, and psychologically speaking.
For a while, the two were silent, Sasori still amusing himself, Itachi staring out at the world through the small opening in the rock. It was strangely peaceful in the cave when all of a sudden, Itachi felt a strange, familiar presence. Sasori obviously felt it as well, for he looked up at Itachi.
"Someone's coming." he said casually. Itachi nodded, while Sasori continued. "It's her."
Itachi inclined his head once more, and indeed, a few seconds later, a familiar blue-haired person suddenly stood in the cave. She glanced at Itachi, and turned to Sasori.
"Did you retrieve him?" she asked. Sasori jerked his head towards the sleeping blonde.
"Yep. And he's annoying as hell."
Konan nodded and pursed her lips, turning her head to look at Deidara.
"Yes, well, his skills are exceptional." she said, with an obvious tone of I-really-don't-care. "You'll have to deal with him."
Sasori shrugged.
"Fine by me. Won't be long before the brat blows himself up, anyway."
Konan frowned, but decided to leave the conversation be. She turned, and was about to leave the cave when she did a double take, looking back towards Itachi.
"Itachi-san?" she asked. He looked up at her, face void of any expression at all.
"Yes?"
"Would you mind stepping outside? I'd like to talk with you."
Itachi nodded once, and pushed himself to his feet.
"Not at all."
The two stepped outside the cave, into the dark.
The night welcomed them warmly, wrapping itself around the two as it enveloped them like a blanket. Konan blinked once or twice in the dark, the sudden change in lighting made it hard for her eyes to adjust. Even Itachi, whose eyes were normally more than exceptional, had a slightly hard time adjusting to the new lighting. He felt the ever so slow side effects of the mangekyou sharringan taking their toll on his eyes as time dragged by. At the moment though, he had no time to worry about such a subject, for Konan had already begun speaking.
"So what happened?" she asked.
Itachi looked up, puzzled. "Well, he resisted slightly, but eventually we were able to 'convince' him into—"
"Not with Deidara." Konan cut him off, holding up a hand to his face in an obvious gesture to stop talking. She paused slightly as her hand slowly sunk back to her side. "I meant with Meri. I haven't talked to you since you were recruited. Before that, it was on her birthday, four years ago."
"Oh." Itachi said, unsure of why Konan was bringing up such an old topic. "I see…well…I assume she had the child."
A blank look overcame Konan's face, stunned disbelief
"You were supposed to kill her Itachi. You cannot merely 'assume.' Are you trying to tell me that in all of these years, you never once bothered to find out what happened?"
For some reason, Konan's calm air seemed to annoy him. Although Itachi was the exact same, always calm and never talkative, it seemed to bother him that Konan was so similar.
"It is a thing of the past. Meri and the child matter not."
Konan shook her head as well.
"For someone so infamous, you truly are stupid. I cannot believe you do not have the mental capability to grasp such a simple topic. You, Itachi Uchiha, were supposed to wipe out the entire Uchiha clan. But you didn't. Of course, everyone knows Sasuke lives, but what would happen if they found out there was another descendent of the Uchiha living in secret amongst them? Pure pandemonium. You don't know what happened to Meri – she could have let something slip."
Itachi felt suddenly blindsided. How could this not have occurred to him? He certainly felt stupid now, angry with himself for allowing such a thing to happen.
"Well…wait—" he paused as something dawned on him. "Sahiro? Whatever became of him?"
"He's dead." Konan said flatly.
Itachi didn't know exactly how to respond. He knew they were married, so…
"I'm sorry."
Konan looked up, startled.
"Oh no. I killed him."
Itachi nodded, brow furrowed in thought.
"What exactly is the story behind Sahiro, anyway?"
Konan smirked, amused by Itachi's strange curiosity. She decided to speak up, anyway.
"I was on a mission in Sunagakure, where the one-tailed jinchuuriki, Gaara, had just been born. Obviously, he was my mission. But while I was there, I met Sahiro. He was young, as was I, he was sweet and kind. Leader-sama had always warned me not to let my emotions get in the way of my mission, but at the time, I was sick of leader-sama telling me what to do, acting like an overly-strict father. I perfectly fit the stereotype of a typical teenager. Thinking I was in love, Sahiro and I eloped and ran away to Konoha. I kept this from leader, telling him that I was moving on to the nine-tailed boy instead. But, while I was in Konoha, I discovered someone much more interesting…"
She paused, smirking at Itachi. He could only guess what.
"I began to study the Uchiha clan." Konan continued. "And others, but mostly yours. I had heard tales, but never experienced such a power in person. It didn't take me long to figure out that you were truly the most powerful clan in existence, and that of the Uchihas, you were the most powerful in the clan. I attempted to recruit you to Akatsuki, and here we are. Thanks to Sahiro for bringing me to Konoha, I suppose. He proved useful for something after all. As for him, we lived a normal life, I suppose. After a while, I realized I wasn't in love with him, but continued to use him for this matter and that. Then, after you killed your clan and I left, Sahiro came looking for me, and Meri let something slip about our marriage. Of course, I knew that if the rumor was widely spread, leader-sama would find out, and God only knows what would happen. So, I went back to Konoha a few months later, and killed him."
Itachi listened intensely as she spoke, voicing his own opinion only a second after she had finished.
"That makes perfect sense."
Konan didn't seem to be listening. She stared out at the night sky, absorbed in her own thoughts. Itachi let her be for a minute or two, before she suddenly turned to Itachi again.
"That was four years ago. I erased my tracks completely, now nobody remembers me. You should do the same thing, Itachi, erase all of your past, get rid of the things that might come back to haunt you."
Itachi nodded once.
"I plan on it."
X—X—X—X—X—X—X—X—X—X—X—X
Konoha looked exactly the same way it had when Itachi left. The streets, buildings, houses, forests, etc., nothing had changed at all. He strolled leisurely down the streets in disguise as a dark-haired, pale young teenager, glancing in shop windows and simply taking in a great feel of every inch of Konoha.
Itachi knew he had to start looking for Meri, and kill her and the child. At the moment, it did not bother him. But when he came face to face with Meri, he knew that somewhere inside of him, a small, past emotion might stir up. He wondered what she looked like now. Still younger than her age, no doubt. And what of the child? Was it a boy? Perhaps a girl? Had it inherited any of Itachi's traits, or looks, or –
For a moment, he paused. What would it be like, living with Meri and raising a child? Itachi had a sudden image of his older self in a messy, cramped kitchen while a small young boy and Meri, expecting again, sat at the kitchen table that was originally made to seat only two people. He pictured himself making a meal, sliding a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in front of the boy, as a normal father should. He imagined the boy being whiney and complaining about not liking peanut butter, and himself having to take it back and start all over again, mumbling as he did so.
Itachi abruptly stopped walking, squeezing his eyes shut.
Stop. It matters not what the child looks like. Tomorrow, it will not exist.
And, as an afterthought,
And that's absurd. What child does not like peanut butter?
With this new thought in his head, he slowly slid his eyes open and began walking once more, debating on where to begin his search for Meri.
There was a small thought in the back of his head. It was tiny, insignificant, unlikely to be true. Yet Itachi could not completely suppress it.
The chances of maternal death during childbirth were very, very low. But Meri was young, and extremely small. He remembered Sahiro mentioning something about the pregnancy not going well.
Ah, the chances were far too small. She had survived.
…but it wouldn't hurt to check.
And it wouldn't take any time at all. He was just about two blocks away from it now, it would only take a few minutes. So, Itachi set off in the direction of the cemetery.
The moment he arrived, he unlatched the small black gate, stepped inside, and closed it behind him. He took one more step forward and looked around.
A small area of forest green grass lay before him, a large welcoming carpet of earth. Magnolia trees grew on all sides of him, their limbs growing and twisting playfully around the shoulder-height black fence. The flowers, only partially in bloom, cast down speckles of darkness. They covered most of the ground in shadows, allowing only the smallest beams of sunlight to penetrate their shade. It certainly wasn't a very large cemetery. He remembered it being larger, more…significant. Ah, he supposed he had just grown.
The size of the cemetery would make it easy for Itachi to find a headstone that may or may not be there. He walked up and down each row with great caution and little speed, his eyes flickering from one tombstone to another as he scanned over names. He was nearing the end of the rows, almost towards the end, when a sudden jolt shot through his spine.
My God.
There it was.
He couldn't believe it.
But there it was.
A small, warmly colored gray tombstone in the shape of a small rectangle stood before him.
My…my God!
Relief washed over Itachi's body. This made things so much less complicated. Oh thank goodness she was dead. Itachi just snared a few more hours of his life back.
Quickly, his vision darted to the left and right of the tombstone.
To the left, there was nothing but a black fence. He apparently had ended up in the corner. To the right, an identical stone with the words Jairo Sahiro Umeko carved into them, sat as still and warmly colored as Meri's.
Jairo. He thought, more relief occurring. What an unusual name.
Well. It didn't matter. They were dead. Itachi could return to the hideout. He turned away from the tombstones and –
What…?
Something happened. Something inside of Itachi shifted. He was…feeling…something. Some strange emotion had taken hold of his mind and refused to let go. He slowly turned back around and looked at the grave.
Shame, perhaps?
He remembered Meri…her beautiful face, her warm smile that lit up any room. She was such a lively, exciting, happy person.
And now, she was gone. Forever. Her voice would sound never again.
He remembered not only her looks and her personality, but how he was too. When he was around Meri, he loosened up, felt free, away from the pressures of being an Uchiha. He remembered how much he loved her.
That thought seemed to stop Itachi in his tracks.
Did I really love her?
Maybe he just hadn't gotten laid in a while and took it to far.
That was crude. He thought, wincing at himself.
No, it was something more. Working hard to please everybody, every day, living up to your reputation, being the perfect little child that was universally loved…it was hard. Pressure had gotten to Itachi, and he needed a way to relieve it, to rebel. And, as a teenager at the time, a forbidden romance seemed just the way to go.
"I perfectly fit the stereotype of a typical teenager."
Konan's words rang clearly in his head.
That had to be it. Itachi was not in love, no, not at all. He needed to rebel against…against…everything! His family, Meri's family, the Uchihas, practically all of society. Meri was an escape to him, someone who he could be different around and not have to fear anything odd coming of it.
That was it. He wasn't in love. He just needed an excuse to get away. Meri was that excuse.
Itachi ripped his gaze away from Meri's grave and turned. He walked away, through the rows of headstones and towards the exit. The moment he laid his hand on the cool metal of the gate, something else came into his attention.
Something hot and wet was sliding down the side of his face. He lifted up a finger and wiped it away.
A tear.
Itachi blinked in shock, and as he did, two more fell. Just as he did to the first, he wiped them away in haste. But then three more, then five, seven, soon they became countless. Itachi gave up and let them flow in a steady stream down his cheeks.
Then, one landed harshly on his shoulder.
But that couldn't have been a tear.
Another, on his shoulder. Then three hard taps on his head. There was a sudden clap of thunder from above, and in less than a moment, the sky was crying with him. The roar of the rain seemed soft, a murmur. He stood there, allowing the harsh, cool rain to plummet from the sky and hit him like bullets, on the back, shoulders, his head, and mostly his face. They blended in with Itachi's tears, camouflaging them as though they weren't there in the first place.
He turned back towards Meri's grave once more.
They were not in love. There was no possible way.
Although it was raining, tears still flowed down his face. Itachi could feel them.
No 'romance' existed between the two of them.
The word 'romance' was idiotic.
After all, Itachi Uchiha did not believe in such things.