Chapter 6: Comfort

Thanks goes to my Beta Bonnie-san again! :)

Itachi swiftly stood up, putting Sasuke down at the ground behind him. Could it get any worse? This was exactly what he had feared. In front of them stood seven Anbu members.

Danzo sure hadn't taken any risks – he had sent the best of them. Itachi's former comrades. It would be both physically and emotionally hard to finish them off but if they tried to hurt Sasuke, Itachi wouldn't hesitate.

His little brother was trembling on the ground behind him, completely depending on the elder's protection. Itachi stood tall in front of him. He would do anything to protect him, even if he would have to tear his former comrades' souls out. He would stop at nothing.

W-what is happening? Sasuke thought panic-stricken. What if they hurt nii-san? What can I do?

His heart fluttered with fear when he saw the Anbu members standing there. Their animal masks made them look rather redoubtable. All of them were carrying katanas. Sasuke swallowed hard. But he believed in Itachi's ability to handle them. His whole life Itachi had been the older brother who was able to do anything in the whole world.

Even kill their own parents… The child suppressed those thoughts and wondered if there was something he could do to help his nii-san. As if Itachi had heard him, he held out a hand in front of Sasuke.

"Stay behind me, Sasuke."

One of the shinobis seemed to lose his patience. It was probably a newer member, Itachi thought bitterly. The elder members, including Itachi, knew that team work was always the essential part of the whole mission. That mistake would cost the younger member his life.

The Anbu shinobi made a lunge towards the young Akatsuki member. Such a foolish move.

Itachi didn't even need to use his eyes. With a flash of his kunai the corpse of the shinobi tumbled aside. The eldest Uchiha didn't move. Behind him Sasuke gasped and flinched a bit. Itachi felt a sting of guilt when he realized that this was probably reminding his little brother of the massacre.

The other Anbu members were shocked, it was easy to tell. They hadn't expected their opponent to be this strong. This child of barely fifteen years who already had fled the village and murdered the best clan in Konoha would probably be harder to handle than any opponent they had had before.

Itachi called upon his Mangekyo Sharingan. Maybe there was a better way for them to go?

If he just could immobilize his opponents then no unnecessary lives would be sacrificed and Sasuke would be less scared. The young Akatsuki member eyed the masked shinobis warily as the black dots around his pupils swirled and created a new look.

Itachi swiftly placed the Anbu members under the power of his genjutsu - Tsukiyomi. A moment later they were all like trapped rats, staring at him behind their animal masks without a chance to look away.

Now, all Itachi had to do was to create some horror-filled scenes inside of his mind and this fight would be over. It was hard to be a Tsukiyomi user. The whole technique was about creating such vivid and terrorizing pictures that the user himself hardly could stand it and then coldheartedly share it with the victims. He wasn't really fond of other weapons either, but this was the worst thing.

But before Itachi had time to do that, the ground was splattered with blood and he noticed that some of the shinobis were already dead. Then the long-haired ravenette heard a familiar chuckle.

This could only mean one thing… a minor massacre was coming up.

Itachi swiftly turned around and pressed Sasuke against his chest, protecting his brother from the sight he knew was coming. Sasuke gripped his cloak tightly and closed his eyes. "Nii-san, w-what's happening?"

"Hush, Sasuke." Itachi's voice was low. Behind them they could hear sounds of bodies being brutally sliced in two. Some dark red drops landed on the elder's cloak.

He remained crouched on the ground with his little brother in his arms. The sounds suddenly stopped and the older Uchiha couldn't sense the Anbu black ops shinobis anymore. Their chakra was gone.

"So you have been here all the time, Itachi-san. You've been gone for several days so I came here to see what was going on."

"There was no need for overkill, Kisame", Itachi said sourly. His voice had adopted its usually emotionless tone.

The shark man walked over to them, grinning. He carelessly swung Samehada behind him. The shinobis were scattered like crushed leaves on the ground.

"It looked like you were in distress Itachi-san", Kisame said, only at that instant noticing the extra presence. "And… who's that kid?" He stepped curiously over to them with his large sword over his shoulder.

Sasuke who carefully had peeked out from his brother's embrace shied back scared.

Itachi turned around and glared threateningly at his partner with blood-red eyes. The shark man grinned. Although he was too polite to his comrade to say something about it, he would gladly have admitted that Itachi looked more like an aggressive weasel now than ever before. A red-eyed weasel, though.

"My little brother", the younger Akatsuki member answered, still eyeing Kisame.

The older man was surprised. "What is he doing here? Hey… Itachi-san, didn't you kill your whole clan?"

The Uchiha ignored the painful reminder. "He is coming with us back to the Akatsuki." Sasuke looked shocked at his brother. Nii-san wasn't going to abandon him?

Itachi's voice left no room for arguments. He had decided instantly after this encounter that leaving Sasuke on his own would be the same thing as leaving him to die. He couldn't take that risk.

Kisame still grinned. Something about the whole situation seemed to amuse him greatly.

"Too bad, I wanted to kill him." Itachi bared his teeth. "Anyway, Itachi-san, if you say so… It will be interesting to get to know him."

The Uchiha's red gaze never left him for a second. Mangekyo Sharingan surfaced to emphasize the threat. "Beware", Itachi said darkly. It was easy to read the threat in his eyes: If you hurt Sasuke, I'll rip your head off.

Kisame chuckled, unfazed by the other's death glare. "Since he is your little brother, Itachi-san, I have no intention of hurting him. Maybe he and I will get along very well…" He grinned at the scared child.

His partner didn't answer. Itachi caught a strand of his brother's hair and pulled it through his fingers distracted. He admitted quietly: "Though I wish that you didn't put off such a show –" He nodded at the corpses behind them, "You came in the nick of time, Kisame. I need your help to mislead the shinobis from Konoha. More are coming, in search for me and Sasuke. We will stay here to rest another day until Sasuke get his strength back."

Itachi's voice was demanding, not asking. He was used to take the leader roll from his time as an Anbu Captain and Kisame followed his orders without hesitation. They had been partners for a year and they were the couple who got along the best. But there was something new for the shark man though – he wasn't used to see this care-taking side of his comrade. From the first time he heard about Itachi he had perceived the young man as heartless and cruel, somebody who killed his clan because of selfish desires.

Kisame nodded and set off down the mountain. Within a day he would be back and joining his partner. He would make sure that Itachi didn't have a single shinobi trailing after him. It was the least he could do.

.

Sasuke felt his brother relax a bit but the elder wasn't letting his guard down completely.

The child's burning fever had finally started to droop; only a faint blush was left. His thoughts were becoming clearer and he felt much better.

Itachi decided to arrange some kind of meal to them, since both of them were starving. With his Sharingan it didn't take long until he found some bigger rodents among the rocks. Then he used a simple fireball technique and created a campfire which they grilled the animals over. As they ate Sasuke's worry grew. He still remembered their earlier conversation clearly and what Itachi had said. "Aren't you going to leave me?" he whispered. He didn't dare to hope yet, but it was close.

The elder shook his head. "No. Things will settle now when Kisame takes care of our chasers. We're safe, at least for the moment." And leaving you alone would be far too dangerous for you, he added in his mind. How many more will it be? Will we have the whole Konoha after us in the end?

Sasuke sat in his brother's lap and stared into the small fire. "Are we going to your organization?"

"Akatsuki", the elder confirmed. "There's no other way for us to be together. I will have to keep doing missions for them to make our living."

The child's voice was surprisingly determined. "I'll help you with the missions, nii-san. It doesn't matter where we go as long as we're together." The younger turned around and hugged him tightly.

Itachi placed his chin on his brother's head and looked into the fire as well. "I will protect you Sasuke, even at the cost of my own life." Sharingan gleamed for a moment, the fire was visible in his eyes. Itachi's arms found their way around his little brother's body.

So much I destroyed that night... what I said to you...

Maybe there was a way for them anyway. Itachi wanted to believe in that.

At least Sasuke didn't hate him anymore, and that was enough for him.

.

Later that day, things seemed to have stabilized between them. The elder Uchiha was worried for how his brother would take the information about their clan, everything he had told Sasuke earlier. So much had happened between them and in Sasuke's little head in only a few days. But the child remained calm.

As Itachi deleted every trace of their campfire and presence, preparing for Kisame's return, he watched over his little brother. Sasuke was sitting near the edge of a cliff not far away from the elder. His small arms were wrapped around his legs. He looked out over the forest that surrounded the mountain, towards the distant horizon and the clear blue sky. A soft breeze ruffled his black spikes a bit but everything else was still.

The child was quiet and motionless. His sadness and confusion were filling the air around him and it reached the elder. Even though Sasuke was sitting with his back against his brother it was easy to tell.

Itachi saw him and his movements stopped. He wanted to walk over to his brother and hold him, comfort him. He wanted to hold Sasuke so close that nothing could ever bring them apart.

He wished that he could do a fraction of everything he wanted to.

He wanted to tell his little brother about this world, of all the heart aches one must go through to learn to live. He wanted to teach him a part of what Itachi already had learnt about losing bonds. About how hard life could be, but that it was a purpose behind it. And how to grow and develop through one's losses. Some things you are just better off without. The way to get stronger through one's mistakes and find a way to make it through. Itachi wanted to show him so much, tell him what it meant. He wanted to protect Sasuke from all the sadness and confusion he was going through now.

If only he could… if only he could take away his sorrows. But who was he to speak? What right did he have to console Sasuke? Itachi was the one who brought all pain to him.

The prodigy clenched his fists. He couldn't take away from Sasuke what he had given him. If he could cry Sasuke's tears, if he could take all the bitterness away, he would. If Itachi could take on all the pain by himself, he would.

The fifteen-year-old boy pretty much changed the world with his decision to bring his clan down. He saved the whole village and so many lives, stopped a world-wide war. But he only wanted to protect Sasuke. That was the only reason. He wanted to help him through all hard times, spare him from war experiences. Because Sasuke was a part of him.

You and I are flesh and blood. I will always be there for you. That's what big brothers are for.

Itachi couldn't take Sasuke's pain away no matter how much he wanted to. He could just helplessly watch as the child broke down inside.

Itachi had failed. He had been forced to choose the most painful choice; he couldn't find another solution but accepting that mission. Sasuke's brother could still remember how his whole body had been shaking with tears as he killed his parents. His father's word in the final seconds:

Promise me to take care of Sasuke. The way we think is different, but I am still proud of you.

Itachi could feel his legs give away under his body. He sank down on the hard rock ground, not being able to support his own weight anymore. He brought his hands to his face. He wanted to tear his own eyes out. Like Shisui did, smiling, just to protect the village. The damn village…

Itachi wanted to erase all the memories that were burned into his mind. He could feel how his body began to tremble.

He had been forced to grow up so quickly, killing his own parents and relatives at the age of thirteen. He was too young to take this. His soul felt tainted.

And he let it out, not being able to stop it. Itachi cried silently in his own hands, not knowing what he would do. Every day had been a living hell… and Sasuke's life had been hanging on a thin string all the time. It still was. The prodigy had fought for his little brother's survival so long and yet he almost lost Sasuke anyway. The child had suffered so much and it was Itachi's fault.

The elder Uchiha wished that somebody could take away the miserable feeling that threatened to overwhelm him now. He was miserable, good-for-nothing. A failure. He remembered how he found Sasuke, crying and bleeding, so close to death. What if his little brother had died?

Itachi closed his eyes and let the tears flow over his hands. He was trembling and gritting his teeth in the deep waves of hopelessness. He must be a monster. All bad things he had done…

Suddenly he felt a small movement, something – somebody – crawling into his lap.
The tiny body nuzzled close to his. A small, soft hand stroked his forehead. "Nii-san, don't cry."

The child's voice was pure and gentle and he tenderly stroked the elder's hand. Itachi opened his eyes and looked down at his little brother. Sasuke smiled up at him. An innocent, safe and trusting child's smile. "Don't be sad nii-san, I'm here. And I feel safe with you."

Itachi hugged his brother and felt his sorrow slowly subside. He buried his face in the younger's hair, overwhelmed. His happiness and love for this child was infinite. This child was the only one that made him feel better. The only one that made him believe that somewhere beyond all dark clouds, there was a sun.

Sasuke was there for him. It was all that mattered.

"I have a question, nii-san."

"What, otouto?"

"How come you found me? Why where you in Konoha that day... when I was about to…"

The elder let out a sigh. "I don't know what I was thinking. I just felt the need to check on you. I was going mad. And then I found you in the nick of time…" His arms tightened around Sasuke.

"Nii-san, we will always be together, right?"

Itachi kissed his forehead. "Forever."

xxx

The next day some shinobis from Konoha arrived to the mountain. Kakashi was one of them. They had been sent by the Hokage to stop the Anbu Black Ops. Sarutobi had confronted Danzo about the matter and decided to interrupt all actions against the Uchihas. But it was a bit strange – the squad hadn't met a single Anbu member yet.

Kakashi knew that Sasuke wouldn't be seen in Konoha many years ahead. The former academy student was with his brother now.

The copy ninja had been shocked when he got to know the truth about the Uchiha clan right before this mission. And he knew that it would be impossible to find Itachi and Sasuke now. But maybe it'll be best that way, Kakashi thought. Even if it would make Sasuke a rogue ninja too in the future…

The rain was sweeping in over the area, filling the air with clear drops. The large forest on both sides was glowing green. Kakashi suddenly noticed something. Far away, almost invisible through the rain, he saw two figures in black cloaks. One had a large sword over his shoulder. The shorter of the two was carrying a younger person, probably a child, on his back.

He only saw the figures for some seconds before they disappeared into the deep forest.

The sky was dark and the rain poured down heavily as the thunder shook the ground. Kakashi turned around and gestured towards the other shinobis. "Let's turn back. They won't return."

And you better never do, Itachi. Take care of your brother.

The end

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