"So what was that all about, Itachi?", Izumi skeptically asks, while she fiddles with her fingers.
She'd told me that she'd passed by my mother, who wanted to deliver me some fresh clothes. Izumi, being Izumi offered to take them instead. She even went out of her way to wait for me as I went to the hot springs to refresh myself again.
My hair was still wet as I tied it back. The clothes she'd gotten me were baggy and covering. My figure got lost in the baggy material as the Uchiha crest was disfigured when I threw my long ponytail behind me.
"It's a long story...", I swallowed the lump in my throat, "...th-thank you for bringing me fresh clothes, I couldn't tolerate one more second in my sweaty ones".
"You're welcome", she smiles, the brown of her eyes glimmering.
I patted out my baggy fit and took the bag which contains my dirty clothes. Izumi quickly took hold of it and said, "I'll carry it".
"Y-you don't have to", I breath a little heavy as she persists.
"You must still be tired, wanna take a walk to the Uchiha Senbei?".
"Uchiha Senbei?", I echo in recall of the place.
"Yeah, it's near the hot springs and our district since the relocation after the Great War", she elaborates.
"I know that", I pucker my lips, "I just remembered how Sasuke likes to eat from there. Teyaki Uchiha and his wife are such good people", I smiled to myself.
"Then why don't we pay a visit? Sasuke might be there, we could tag along to the district", Izumi proposes as a cold breeze hovers over my face, making me shiver.
"I don't want to go back to the district, Izumi"
"W-why not? Mikoto was frantic ever since she received the news of your detaining and-"
"Izumi", I cut her off and glance over into her chocolate brown eyes, "playing dumb doesn't suit you", I remark, observing her bodily language carefully.
"I-Itachi..."
"How many people in the Uchiha district know?", I sternly ask, hoping she wouldn't stall. When she fixes her gaze elsewhere I simply sigh and shove my hands in my pockets before strolling away.
I could sense her following after my footsteps, but the silence was kept intact between us. We kept walking further in distance before she broke the silence.
"I-I don't believe any of it, Itachi", she stammered, making me swallow a lump in my throat.
"What don't you believe exactly Izumi?", I sternly ask, making sure my voice came out steady.
"You'd never hurt your own clan members..."
For mere minutes the sound of our echoing footsteps circulated in my ears as I heavily sighed. My tongue was knotted in tight knots as I refrained myself from saying anything.
Izumi must be in denial. She thinks that I'm this knight in shining armor that's close to perfection, when in reality, I'm anything but. Once she accepts the truth, she'll be very disappointed, but that should put an end to her affection for me.
I might be cruel to have disregarded her feelings all this time, and ever since we were kids, but I am not obliged to return back feelings. I am thankful for her, thankful to what she feels towards me, but lying to her will only hurt her further.
"...E-even if you were to do that...then I'd understand that you had your reasons..."
Her unsteady tone of voice makes me halt in my tracks as I tip my head low. Seems like she stopped as well, because right then, I could hear her heavy breaths.
Is she...scared?
My mouth falls agape as a single tear slips through my eye. It trails down all the way to my lip, before I swipe it off. I slowly turn on my heel to see her lowered head.
I take in a deep breath and stare up at the sky before more tears threaten to fall.
She peeked at me in concern and I could tell that she was holding her breath from anticipation. Then, right here, where we both stood, barely glancing at each other, I told the her the thing that shook her faith right were she stood.
I told her the thing that crushed her hopes in ever getting a chance with me. The thing that drove me me to get myself detained in the first place. The thing that made her stare right back into my eyes, were she saw all the affection that I saved up for someone else.
"Hanabi is alive", I struggled to say it steadily and my breath heaved upon saying each syllable of this sentence.
Izumi's mouth falls agape and her eyes broaden in disbelief. She forgets to breath momentarily as her brain digests this information. The long brown locks that framed her face flailed around in the air as we intensely gazed at each other.
My heart clenched as I await what her response will be. Her clutch on the bag of clothes tightened as she deliberately lowered her head.
I pursed my lips together as a single tear stood on the edge of my lower lashes, menacing to fall. Izumi's shoulders began to tremble visibly, which made me wince.
Why does my happiness always affect others?
I witnessed the glowing tears that eluded her eyes as her face scrunched up in pain. She began to sniffle and my hand had involuntarily and shakily raised to rest on her shoulder.
My trembling hand fell back to my side again as Izumi had taken a step back, putting a decent distance between us.
A cold breeze howled between us, making the stinky sensation of the tear that rolled down my cheek futile.
My breath then hitched in my throat, and I forgot how to breath for a moment when Izumi flashed me the dark hue of her chocolate brown eyes and with a smile, she said:
"Thank god"
My pursed lips part and my eyes sparkle as they broadened.
"These past years, I watched how you grew up, writhing in pain moment after moment. I admit that it pained me a lot not to be able to do anything to help you Itachi..."
"I-Izumi..."
She looked away with a genuine smile, tears in her eyes as she carried on.
"I've been there since day one, Itachi. I know that everything has failed to bring you any kind of exhilaration in your life. You've never experienced true happiness up until the moment you met her", she looks back at my eyes, which were sparkling with gratitude.
"You deserve happiness just as much as the next person, Itachi. And I'm happy. Happy that you are finally happy. Hanabi was always a wild kid. A smug grin always took place on her face, which made her stood out...even to you..."
"You've been through hell and back, and now that you'll finally get what you've desired all this time...all I can do is ask you to someday tell me this great tale of you and Hanabi so I can tell the ladies that got their eyes on you, so they know that you're totally off limits", she beamed at the last part, making me cackle out a laugh through my tears.
"I'll be sure to do that", I scoff at her request as my heart sinks with relief.
We laugh for a moment, all the while staring into each other's bloodshot eyes.
Izumi wipes away a few tears before informing, "well, I guess I'll just stroll about my way"
"We could-"
"No, Itachi, my mom will probably get mad and don't worry I'll drop off your clothes at your house", she assures, making me feel exhilarated.
"Izumi...thank you...", I trail off, not knowing how to end this conversation.
"See you again?"
"Yeah"
We flashed each other our smiles before we went out and about. As she passed me, I involuntarily grab her arm, making her halt.
"Thank you...", I whisper in her ear, "for everything..."
Her sole response was a soft chuckle before she finally went.
We parted our ways near the Uzumaki Quarters, which was close to the Uchiha District and the Uchiha Senbei. I was heading to the Uchiha Senbei while Izumi went straight to the Uchiha District.
The relief I felt after talking everything out was indescribable. It's like I'm finally happy, and things will go right for once.
I remember Hanabi and imagine her walking beside me as we hold hands. Then maybe we go out on a date where we argue over splitting the bill. The idea just seemed immaculate and almost too convenient for me.
And right now, I just wish from the bottom of my heart that this notion becomes my reality. Whatever it is that traumatized us, we'll work it out together. We'll stay up all night holding one another as we spill our hearts out.
That is the life I imagine having with Hanabi Namikaze, and if I'm being honest, that's the life I want to spend with Hanabi Namikaze.
Through my never ending train of thought, I glance up at my surroundings and chin up. There, my eyes fell on Teyaki Uchiha, who had a newspaper propped in front of him. His wife, Urushi Uchiha was cleaning the foyer of their shop when her eyes fell on me.
"Itachi?", Urushi squinted her eyes to see better. Teyaki folded his newspaper at the mention of my name and got up from his seat.
"Oh it is Itachi indeed", Teyaki remarked.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and wondered if they knew...
"The hero who saved his clan", Urushi remarked to her husband.
What?
"Tell me son, do you need anything?", Teyaki asks, making my stomach flood with butterflies.
"Heroes like you deserve respect", Urushi smiled.
"I-well-I meant-have you seen Sasuke auntie, uncle? Did he come by to visit?", I inquire as I look between them.
Their expressions suddenly altered as they thought hard about the topic.
"He-he passed nearby, but he looked out of character", Teyaki informed.
"Out of character?", I repeat as my brows scrunched together.
"Come to think of it, he didn't even wave or greet us", Urushi inserted, putting me on my nerves again.
I tensed immediately at what I heard and demanded, "was he okay?".
"H-he looked pissed", Teyaki stated, broadening my eyes.
Could he have possibly heard?
There's no doubt about it, Sasuke knows of what I was going to do...
Oh Sasuke...
"Aunty. Uncle. Do you have any idea as to where he went?", I hold my breath as I wait for their answer.
"Uh, in the direction of the nearby training ground-"
"Thank you!", I blurt out before rushing a haste on my feet.
So Sasuke has heard about what I had to do...
He must be really disappointed, which made a pit in my stomach. My kid brother will surely hate me after this...
The training ground near the Uchiha district wasn't far away. It's the second biggest training ground in the village, and it just so happens to be very near.
I hasten my legs faster and before I knew it, I'd arrived at the training ground. I was surrounded by the greenery of the place as my eyes roamed around to desperately search for Sasuke.
"Sasuke!", I call out, as I frantically analyze my surroundings, "Sasuke where are you?".
I twirl round and round in circles as I search for my kid brother.
"Sasuke come out, I know you're here", the place was empty, as I knew that no one comes here at this time of the day.
"Listen I can explain!"
A speed, which toppled mine had leapt out of one of the nearby trees. In comparison, I'm too slow, but I still manage to block the barrage of Sasuke's abrupt strike. The impact of his kick made me wince a bit, since he's getting stronger day by day.
"Sasuke stop!", I bellowed as I saw him deliver a punch, which I quickly took hold of with my giant hand.
"I said stop-"
"Shut up and fight me!", he shouts back in response.
"S-Sasuke...", I trail off when I witness his expression. His face was scrunched up in pure rage. His nostrils were flaring in and out as he clenched his jaw, grinding his teeth together.
"Tell me it's all a lie!", he hissed through gritted teeth, as he sends another impactful punch.
"Sasuke...", my eyes widen as I stare right into his hate-filled ones. His nose was crinkled in disgust as he glared at me.
"Stop", I sternly ordered, which only infuriated him into swinging his arm a little below my ribs and pounding in a powerful punch. The strike took me by complete surprise and as a result, I felt my eyes pop out of their sockets.
He didn't even give me the time to recover as he attacked me again with his Taijutsu.
"Why?!", he demanded in a strained voice.
My lips part when I notice the wounds on his face that I overlooked the first time.
The corner of his mouth has blood swiped back. His left eye was bruised purple to blue. His attire had been messed up.
"Sasuke what happened?!", I demand in return, feeling my insides clench. My heart skipped several beats as my mind tried to put the full picture together, while signaling for my body to keep up.
"Shouldn't that be the least of your worries?!", he growls, "you were gonna kill me anyways!", he shouts, rendering me immobile at what he'd just said.
"What?", I gasp in shock.
This created an opening for him to pounce forward and punch me in the side of the jaw. I spat out blood instantaneously as I tried to keep up with his temper.
"What are you talking about?!", I bawl back in response as I proceed to block out his moves.
"The massacre you were supposed to pull off four years ago!", he uttered each syllable like it was curse, which he hoped would rain upon me.
"Who did this to you?!", I bawl in response, gritting my teeth together.
"The people who disgraced your name in front of me", he yelled back.
"Police Force?", I gasp to myself as I brace myself for the kick that's coming, "did they beat you up like this?!", I demand, clutching my breath before he supplies an answer.
"Why does it matter? I was clearly the clueless one who needed some sense to be beaten into him!", he growled aggressively.
"I can explain what you heard!", I offer as I block away another punch to my vital pressure points.
"I'm tired of all this", he suddenly roared, the pain in his voice stabbed a blade in my chest, making it clench, "I'm tired of your shadow hovering over me completely, concealing me and who I am".
"S-Sasuke...", I trail off as I see his lower lip quiver.
Stillborn tears escaped his loathing glare as he sniffed away.
"I idolized you for as long as I could remember, y-you were my older brother that I cherished above all else and-", he chokes on his own voice as his breath hitches in his throat, "Having you, mother, and father...family meant everything to me Itachi", he whimpered.
"But I guess it meant nothing to you"
His features saddened as he looks right back at my face. My eye sheds a single tear as I take in his pained expression before I decide to divulge, "the deal was that you get to survive...I couldn't have possibly brought myself to raise my hand on you, Sasuke..."
"But you had the heart to raise your sword on Mother and Father?!", he cried out in indigenous rage.
I heavily breathed and truthfully replied, "Yes".
Abruptly, he stopped attacking me all together and instead, stared back at me in disappointment. His wide, bloodshot eyes told the story of how someone's faith shook one fateful day.
"The deal was that I either kill everyone except you, or they'd kill everyone, including you", I elaborated.
"And you were ready to chose the village over your clan, your own family?!", he screamed at me as more tears began falling.
I scrunched my eyes and maintained my composure despite the unsteadiness in my voice.
"I didn't have any other choice..."
"So you were going to slaughter those I cared about and leave me alive to writhe in the pain of losing those I loved?!", he cries out, the pain which was evident in his voice jabbed at my heart.
"You are far too precious to me Sasuke", I whispered in response, which rendered him frozen in his place.
"And what then?!", he demanded, stepping closer to me, "what were you going to do after leaving me traumatized?".
"What?"
"What were you going to do after slaughtering your clan?"
Another tear slipped past my reach as I held back the unsteadiness in my tone of voice.
"I was going to leave you and the village behind".
"Why?!", he whimpered, his shoulders began trembling and his posture seemed unsteady, "why couldn't you confide in me? Why did you always overshadow me? Goodness did you ever actually think your plan through?!".
"Sasuke I-"
"Did you ever actually care about me?!", he shouted directly at my face, the tears burning his bruised face, "you're saying that you didn't have the heart to kill me, but you had the heart to leave me tainted and traumatized behind?!".
"Yes, Sasuke that's exactly what I'm saying", I reply in a deadpan, while my eyes held all the pain in them.
What've I done?
His head tipped low and for a moment, no sound eluded him before he said the thing that made me wish to die before I heard him say it. His voice was unsteady and he sniffed midway as he said the words that'd cut me deeper than any blade.
"I hate you from the bottom to the top of my tainted heart"
In a moment's notice, he'd lunged forward again to land another blow. He roared a scream as tears flew past his eyes. My body was too taken a back to give a proper reaction. As a defense reflex, and before I knew it, I'd activated my Sharingan, which he loath-fully stared right at it.
Involuntarily, he'd fallen in the trap of my torturing Genjutsu, where one second was enough to make him tremble with terror and fall to his knees before I got a hold of myself again and deactivated my dōjutsu, leaving behind a traumatized Sasuke.
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A/N:- Guess what'll happen✨✨I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but this book was supposed to end way back. Chapter 49, Bite Back Your Tongue was supposed to be the last chapter, and Hanabi should've died then and there at the Final Valley ✨✨but I envisioned more plot one day which is why it's still ongoing✨✨
P.S. each one of your comments, votes, reads, and adding this book to your reading lists got my stomach like:🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋
~A