Fate Wheel | Naruto

𝟗𝟕| "What we hold most dear"

Sasuke Uchiha.

He thought the name sounded funny.

Of course, he wasn't going to vocalise his opinion. It was a nice name, fitting for his younger brother to be. Sasuke was going to be a special child and already he felt the need to protect him.

"It's a lovely name, mother." Itachi gave a closed-eye smile.

He felt her tug at his strands a little bit. "You don't approve."

Itachi's eyes flew open in panic, only to calm down when he saw that she wasn't angry, only amused. "I-I do approve! It's just that... Sasuke means 'help' doesn't it? He doesn't need help, he's going to be strong."

What he didn't expect was for Mikoto to release a loud laugh, "Even a strong person needs help sometimes, right? It doesn't necessarily mean they're weak, only that they've been strong for too long."

Help. Itachi pondered on the subject. His father was a stoic, independent man and despite his individual strength he always asked for the opinions of other Clan members, integrating into the community eager to gain knowledge and understand the people around him. He must be tired, right? For being a figure of reliance, to constantly tend the needs of other people and have hardly any time for himself.

Sometimes he'd watch his father stow away in his office right at the back of their home, occasionally Clan members would walk in and out and at other times the only sound he could hear was quill etching against manuscripts and recurring sighs.

"I also believe that when Sasuke is born, he'd be able to help others as well." Mikoto continued with fondness bestrewing her delicate features. Itachi thought that his mother was the most beautiful woman alive. "When you were born, I'd never seen Fugaku so happy, the times he spent with you gave him the opportunity to remind himself that he's human and he too needs to spend time away from work and with his family. Maybe Sasuke can be the same, another ray of light shedding on our family."

Indeed he was.

The day Sasuke was born, a dove circled the bright sun and the sky was so heavenly blue. The same dove that always appeared whenever he felt lost. Doves were a symbol of love and hope and Itachi certainly felt a melange of emotions when he gazed at Sasuke. The first was that despite being quite an unsightly baby, he was still adorable in his eyes. And the second was a prophetic endowment of responsibility, that he was willing to carry mountains on his shoulders so that Sasuke could rest in its shade away from mid summer's sweltering rays. He was ready to sacrifice his own happiness to maintain the smile he saw when Sasuke looked at him for the first time.

He cried relentlessly, flailing his hands in the air and eyes creasing in distress. It was when Itachi held him in his arms and watched him calm down in awe that he realised he had entirely underestimated the extent of love he'd feel for Sasuke.

His mother was right, in a way Sasuke did help and never had he seen such change unravel before his eyes. Sasuke was the centre of attention, the catalyst of all positive change. His father no longer distanced himself for work and his mother no longer worried so much. Admittedly, at some point in time, Itachi had felt envious; an unusual kind of emotion he wasn't accustomed to, but dared not to dwell on it in fear it'd escalate into unwarranted resentment.

It was then he decided that he'd work hard so Sasuke didn't have to, that he'd become the framework of a home Sasuke could peacefully live in. He'd bare all expectations so Sasuke could grow into an individual on his own accord and not fall victim to pressure.