Tortured Uchiha [CURRENTLY EDITING]

Golden Trio

Blood, death, suffering.  

Whatever life I had left was being washed away by the rain as I stared at Itachi’s limp body. Sasuke stared me straight in the face and said nothing, his charcoal irises held nothing but exhaustion as he too collapsed opposite his brother, the backs of their knuckles were touching.

I took a step forward, unsure of what I felt. Was it anger, the pure intense rage that threatened to ignite my body because Itachi was dead―that Sasuke had gotten to him? Was it sorrow, the unescapable cold that started in the pit of my chest and spread outward to harden every cell and blood vessel in me? Or was it the fear, the uncertainty of how to continue living because you’re so alone? It was a combination of all three, a deadly mixture combined with the thought of death―it occurred to me that I could exert all of my power and level the entire space, but what good would that do me? It would only quicken my death, but I wouldn’t want to die in such a way, this was what Itachi wanted.

I respected his decision.

Kisame reached out for my shoulder to stop me from walking forward, I was unaware that my body could still move. I slowed and rolled my shoulders back once, the man whom I only saw as Itachi’s comrade, a lose thread, was now an important part of my life―without Kisame’s knowledge of herbs and background information on the Uchiha, he was able to prolong Itachi’s life along with my own, he allowed Itachi to reach peace before the Dobe knew it himself. I reached up slowly and placed my hand over Kisame’s.

“You need to get out of here, Sasuke’s comrades will come to collect him and if they find you…” Kisame trailed off.

“I understand,” I said.

“You can’t take Itachi’s corpse, Zetsu or Leader–Sama would want it,” Kisame’s fingers dug into my shoulder. “Gomenasai Etsuko, you never deserved this.”

But I did, I deserved every single bit. I swallowed and broke from Kisame’s hold; if I couldn’t take Itachi’s body then I could at least do one thing for him. Singed flesh and death was all I could smell around his corpse, as if the decaying process had already begun. In my peripheral vision, I saw Kisame turn around to face Kuragari’s Yokai form to give me a sense of privacy.

Itachi’s eyes were no longer the colour of charcoal, but lighter, the same grey hue like fleeting storm clouds. His lips were parted so I could see the amount of blood that gathered within his throat, I ran my thumb around his bottom lip, the one I’d kissed so tenderly the night before. It felt so surreal, I could barely register that it finally happened, that Sasuke had truly won.

“Your pride got you killed Ita–Kun,” I whispered, my voice laced with tears. “You proud weasel, you should’ve run and hid your honoured little head.”

My fingers reached up and closed his eyelids, now, he looked at peace. I smiled softly to myself, I could convince myself a thousand times that Itachi was asleep, that he’d wake up and bat my hand away from his face or embrace me, it was a dream that I could neither stop or make a reality. I poked my index and middle finger against Itachi’s forehead.

“Jaa mata, Ita–Kun,” I sniffed.

I would see him soon, he and Shisui both.

I raked my gaze over Sasuke’s twitching body; the boy was no worse off than his brother. Gashes and scrapes befell Sasuke; he didn’t look like a victor, more like a pitiful victim. I crouched down in front of him and swept stray strands of his raven black hair out of his face, I was never affectionate with Sasuke, not even when he was a kind, pure child. Nevertheless, he was Itachi’s brother and I’d finally realised the difference between Sasuke and I―I knew the difference we both held in Itachi’s heart.