Sass-suke

Chapter 18

Itachi had enough. He lunged forward, grabbing Sasuke by the arm and dragging him back out the front door. Sakura blinked from behind her sunglasses. "Well," she drawled. "We just lost a musketeer."

Naruto glanced at her, and they simultaneously made eye contact. As if they had made a silent agreement, the two rushed out of the house together.

Kisame and the other Akatsuki members merely watched as everything and nothing happened all at the same time.

Itachi didn't stop at the front door. He just kept walking until they seemed to be in the middle of nowhere, nothing but tall grasses and plains as far as the eye could reach. Sasuke scoffed, yanking his arm away from his brother.

The boy solemnly rubbed at his arm, where Itachi grabbed him. "Whaddya want?"

Itachi sucked in a breath. His eyes turned cold as they lay upon his sibling. "Sasuke, what are you doing?"

Sasuke harrumphed, turning his head to the side. "I don't know what you're talking about." The older grit his teeth. Sasuke was making this harder than it should be.

"What were you thinking? You not only put yourself in danger, but your teammates as well. And without adult supervision, no less. Where is your sensei?"

Sasuke shot an icy glare at him. "Don't act like you know anything about me." The old Sasuke would never have noticed the flash of hurt that swam across Itachi's eyes then. He would've been too blinded by his own emotions to think clearly.

But this Sasuke wasn't the young child Itachi knew. He let out a huff, eyes turning towards the ground. To think, all these years of getting stronger, and he still felt inferior to the man towering over him.

Itachi snarled, causing Sasuke to look up. He was wearing a smirk, a crazed look on his face. Sasuke knew that look. It was the same look Itachi had worn- had made him relive so many times.

Back then, Sasuke was weaker. He couldn't do anything. But now it is different. He's stronger, mature. He's built up confidence in himself and others around him. Yet.... all that comes crashing down so quickly.

"Oh but I do. I know everything about you. Foolish little brother." Itachi looked down at Sasuke, as if he was insignificant, no more than a bug squashed under his shoe. But then again that's all he's ever been, wasn't it?

"Perhaps... you need a reminder."

'Nonononono.' The word replayed like a chorus in Sasuke's head, echoing over and over and over again. What was he thinking? He can't do this. How could he think he would ever be equal to Itachi? The prodigy child. The light of their parents' eyes.

Compared to him, he was insignificant. Nothing. Destined to live in the shadow of his brother. Forever.

'NO! SHUT UP!' Sasuke screamed at himself, hands coming up to cover his ears. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Itachi, and was that concern in his eye?

'Don't delude yourself.' AARGH! That damn voice in his head. He knows he shouldn't listen to it, knows he should block it out- 'Itachi would never care about a weak boy like you.' -but it was just so loud.

'Disgrace to the Uchiha Clan.'

'Weak.'

'Your brother was already jounin when he was your age.'

'Poor boy. He'll never catch up to Itachi.'

'Worthless.'

Sasuke felt a hand place itself on his shoulder, and it felt like fire, burning him from the inside out. "NO!" He whipped around, eyes bleeding into the Mangekyo. Blood dripped down from his eyes, painting his cheeks a dark red.