Melancholia

Prologue

Blood was everywhere.

Corpses were scattered all throughout the area.

His family. Everybody was dead.

His mother and father too.

Itachi was there.

He'd killed them all.

He had seen it happen over and over again.

"You are not even worth killing. Little brother, you're pathetic. If you want to kill me, settle for hating me... Hate me and live... like the coward you are! Clinging to life without honor! And someday, when you have the same eyes as I... You will find me again."

Sasuke woke up in a cold sweat, feeling bile rising to his throat. Immediately he rushed to the bathroom emptying what little contents he had on his stomach.

It was that same dream again.

It had been two weeks since his fight with Naruto on the hospital roof and they'd barely spoken since. Sakura was clearly becoming uncomfortable with the whole situation and Kakashi didn't really seem to know how to diffuse things all that better.

Ever since his recent run-in with Itachi, since he'd made him re-experience that night yet again, the nightmares had resurfaced. He'd barely been able to eat at all, let alone sleep, living with a constant reminder that he would always be in his brother's shadow, as his father used to say.

Naruto, meanwhile, just kept getting stronger. How...? Just what was he? He used to be the weakest one in class and now, so many people were surprised by his growth. He was supposed to be the deadlast! The loser!

The knowledge of the blonde haired idiot managing to defeat Gaara when he himself couldn't burned in his memory, the recollection of Itachi saying his interest was solely in Naruto... That he was still weak... That he still didn't have enough hatred... It made him want to scream.

Letting the urge get the best of him, he acted without thinking, slamming his fist into a nearby mirror, shattering it into a thousand pieces and drawing blood.

"Dammit...!"

...

"I don't know why you keep on bothering with the ninja stuff. You're really not cut out to be a Shinobi. You can't even follow basic tasks at home, and you rarely ever actually listen to what I have to say."

"No, the problem is you never listen to what I have to say! Neither of you-!"

"Don't you dare put the blame on me! You're the one who needs to get your life together, Sakura, or you'll never find somebody who'll tolerate you."

"Oh, I have plenty of people! You and dad the only ones who ever seem to have an issue with me considering how you're constantly putting me down! I don't need you ruling my life and telling me what to do with it!"

"Sakura, get back here! I'm not through with talking to you!"

"Well, I am!"

This was a typical morning for the Harunos. Sakura's mother undermining her potential and discrediting her accomplishments, Sakura shouting back, the argument escalating before Sakura finally huffed off in a tizzy slamming the door behind her.

Except, this time, she didn't expect to get slapped when she pointed out that her parents didn't understand her. She reached up to feel the sensitive and most certainly red spot on her cheek, trying to ignore the angry tears welling up in her eyes. Why was it always like this between them? Why couldn't they just get along? Why couldn't her mom try at least once to look at somebody else's side of view? Why couldn't her dad actually take initiative and do something about it for once?