A/N: Awww guys, you make me cry! I love all your comments and reviews! I never expected you guys to love this story so much. THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE! And I would also like to apologize about the previous chapter. It was kind of rushed and chapter 16's title is too cliché. Also for this chapter, I'm sorry. It's so short but I had to do it this way to 'go with the flow' of the story. Hard to explain... but don't worry! The second part of this chapter will be up soon and I promise it's long.
Everything was once again a blur for Sakura. They had just been standing there, Sasuke holding a glare that could freeze hell but what happened next would have to be expected, right? The last thing Sakura could remember was Sasuke sending his chidori to his kusanagi who then charged at lightning speed. Both Uchiha looked like flashes with an untrained eye but Sakura and Sasori could both clearly see what they were doing.
Sasuke most definitely had the intent to kill. He didn't look like he's stopping any time soon and just focusing on his vision of Itachi laying on the cold ground covered in his own blood. His eyes held so much rage that it sent a pang in Sakura's heart as she watched for the first five minutes of Sasuke's long awaited fight. Suddenly, Sakura felt Sasori's grip on her tightening, though Sasori unknowingly did so. Sakura looked up at her brother and only noticed that his brows were knitted and his jaws visibly clenched as he watched the on-going fight, making no move to leave as Sakura had expected. She rarely sees her brother make this kind of worried expression. It was only on times where it concerns her... or if something goes out of his plans.
And Sakura felt her heart in her throat as her facial features changed to horror. "Onii-san... Could it be..?" Sakura gasped as she looked back at Sasuke and Itachi, still engrossed in the fight. She looked at Itachi and noticed that he looked calm as he dodged and countered Sasuke's attacks and just recently, the famed fire ball jutsu. Itachi's expression was neutral and stoic. He even appeared to look disinterested but that was in the perspective of those who knew him as the murderer of his own clan, the perspective of those who didn't know Itachi. Sakura wasn't any less different but she does know Itachi to an extent almost close to Sasori's and she just knew what's happening to Itachi right now.
Because inspite that facade he's showing right now, he's hurting. Right now, Sakura knows that it wasn't just emotional pain but physical pain as well and he was to be given a hundred awards for his acting skills because he's doing a great job in hiding he's pain right now, not that it went unnoticed by Sasori and Sakura. Sasori, for being his best friend and knowing him like he knows Sakura and Sakura for being a cunning medic nin. She could see it in his movements.
"What am I going to do?" Sakura furiously thought to herself as she bit her lips in utter worry. "If this goes on..." Sakura trailed in her thoughts.
Sasori seemed to have noticed Sakura's change of atmosphere and that's when he first really looked at Sakura since the start of the fight only to realize what's going on in her mind. This is why he dreaded telling her the truth back then. Truths actually. She was stubborn, very hard-headed and often ridiculous, and he knew that yet she still found out. He knew she would be thinking things as stubborn such as these.
"Onii-san-"
"No, Sakura." He immediately said. He wouldn't wait for her to speak her thoughts about it and with one last worried look at the clashing brothers, he turned around.
"Onii-san, wait! We can't leave them!" Sakura protested as she wiggled in his brothers grasp. "And what do you expect us to do, Sakura? Tell Sasuke the truth and risk everything Itachi did to hide it?" He spat.
"I never understood Itachi but I understand Sasuke! This is hurting both of them and whatever happens, the result will be a dead body between the two of them and Onii-san right now, I can see who has the upper hand!" Sakura fought back.
"You can see it as well, can you? Would you really let it happen, Onii-san!" It wasn't really a question. It was a challenge. For Sasori, it was literally like being forced to choose between his best friend who, inspite the deadly and vicious person he openly exposes to everyone, is actually doing things for a better cause- one that leads to peace, and Sakura, his most beloved sister whom he'd do anything, everything for. By choosing to help and save Itachi, he's giving the chance for Sasuke to take Sakura away and Sasori has not a shadow of doubt that Sasuke wouldn't. He definitely would take Sakura away no matter what it takes, now that his love for her has awakened. Stopping Sasuke would be like preventing the sun from rising.
"For you, I will." Sakura's eyes widened in horror and shock at hearing Sasori's response. She knew he loves her, but she can't believe he would abandon Itachi. That thought immediately faded like smoke when she realized he'd done more than that for her. "Onii-san, no! Wait! Please, no!" she squirmed helplessly but Sasori's iron grip wouldn't let her get away. They were already gaining a distance at the fighting brothers, Sakura couldn't let this. Her vision became blurry as tears filled her eyes at the thought of one of the Uchiha brothers dead. She knows their pain. She understands and no words could explain it.
Itachi, who have been wearing façade under a façade, pretending to be someone the total opposite of who he really is, and carrying a grave burden for years, for so long already. He was a hero who was never acknowledged, because of what he did, for keeping the peace in his beloved village, he had to be marked a rogue, S-Class criminal and the most painful of all, he had to kill his family himself, save for Sasuke - whom he loved dearly and had to beg for his safety.
He was just like her precious older brother whom she had just hit. An unacknowledged hero, one that fought for something and having saved a bigger cause as a side job.
And then there was Sasuke, who adored and looked up to his older brother like his universe revolved around him and loved him, even though he was their father's favorite and even though their father didn't pay attention to him because of Itachi, he was still his beloved Nii-san but then he had to be one day forcefully deluded into hating his beloved Nii-san, loathing him with such a passion that darkened his whole world.
He was left alone like her, except he had to remember every single detail of a horrific day while she was forcefully made to forget.
There really were no words to explain their tragedy.
"I'm sorry, Sakura. We mustn't interfere. Atleast let Itachi do what he wants to do and die by the hands of his brother." Sasori said, miserably failing in keeping his voice calm for he really didn't want this as well but he wouldn't risk Sakura's safety.
An eerie, deaf silence fell upon them but that silence was sliced through by Sakura's voice.
"No, I'm sorry Onii-sama." Sasori couldn't see Sakura's face but then suddenly his vision blurred and he felt dizzy. There was a warm liquid trailing from his mouth and a loud crash from behind him, shortly followed by a cracking of his bones from the impact. By the time he regained focus, he saw Sakura's petite form returning to where they came from at top speed. He growled as he tried to stand up but soon fell face first in the dirt. Sasori looked behind to see his leg bruised badly, disabling him to stand. He looked back at the direction Sakura went back to, already unable to see Sakura's form and glared hard as he growled again, try to stand up again and paying no heed to the stinging pain in his body.
All he could think of was just Sakura.
Tears fell in the path she took as she closed her eyes. 'I'm sorry, Onii-san! I'm so sorry! I'll come back. I'll make it up to you. After this, you can take me away forever...' Sakura furiously wiped her tears once as she jumped from branch to branch. She looked ahead with a determined face. 'I promise.' She thought as she continued on, hardening her resolve.
"I will definitely kill you this day!" Sasuke's furious voice resounded throughout the clearing as he striked Itachi with the all too familiar fire ball jutsu. "Do you really belive that, otouto?" Itachi taunted as he dodged.
They both panted, parallel to each other with a far off distance, two different sharingans staring deadly at each other. Tattered clothes, bruised bodies and an almost empty chakra reserve but still enough to fight. 'I've inlicted this much damage towards him now. There's no way I'll let him go this time.' Sasuke thought as he continue to pant, thinking of another strategy as well. "Are you tired? Would you like an afternoon nap, otouto?" Itachi mocked, straightening himself but with the still obvious heavy breathing. "Heh. Afternoon nap? You won't reach that time of the day any time soon. I swear you won't even get to see the first ray of sunlight!" Sasuke shouted as he yet again charged and once again, they became a blur to untrained human eyes.
"I will avenge them!" Sasuke shouted as he pierced Itachi in the arm with his Kusanagi, his chidori channeling through. Sasuke continued to attack, aiming to inflict pain on Itachi and continuing to make strategies as he fought all the while cursing and telling Itachi how much he loathed him and that he would avenge his family no matter what.
"Is that the best you've got, otouto?" Itachi mocked again as they were once again parallel to each other after Itachi performed a jutsu barely dodged by Sasuke. "You disappoint me. After all the years I've given you." Itachi faked a disappointed face, furthering his mockery to Sasuke. "You know otouto-"
"A demon such as you have no right to call me that! How dare you." Sasuke spat.
"If I am a demon, then what are you?" Itachi said, his voice laced with challenge.
"An avenger." As Sasuke said that, his fand formed a seal and it was shortly followed by another of Sasuke's restless attack countered by Itachi.
"Where... is this?" Sakura absent-mindedly murmured as she looked around her. "This was definitely not the way we came from... but how did I get here? I'm sure I followed the path from where we came from. I'm positive." Sakura jumped to a tree branch and then to another, going higher. "Could this be...?"
Sasuke knew they were fighting for a few hours but it felt like it had already been a day. He knew it felt longer because of the heaviness of his body, almost drained from their on going fight. But he didn't care. He won't have Itachi see the daylight. Sasuke felt a large force slam down on him, making him hit the ground full force and creating a crater around him. He gauged as blood splurted out of his mouth from the impact and his vision blurred for a second. His jaw clenched as he found himself unable to move and just staring at Itachi about to make a fatal, if not, final blow. He couldn't move. His body was badly paralyzed and his mind was slightly a haze with a throbbing pain. How could it not? Itachi had used his mangekyou on him just recently.
'I have to get away.' Sasuke angrily thought, still paralyzed on the ground. 'No, not runaway. I can't runaway! Not after going this far. I need to get my strength back.'
Sasuke's thoughts faded like smoke as he looked at Itachi ready to strike again. 'Would this be the end of me?' He negatively thought, seeing no escape.
He bit his lower lip until blood seeped out as he willed himself to get up or just at least dodge that attack but then something happened.
Itachi's mangekyou swirled dangerously.