Empire Fall

Chapter Six

UNEDITED

 
Itachi had been there for a long time and the days were growing into weeks. Lady Izumi sat at his bedside, only moving when called for, or to prepare a concoction to soothe his pain when his Brother's body moved and he groaned in unconsciousness.

He had demanded several explanations, but all his Brother's companions hung their heads in shame, no one knowing just how the man got poisoned - or when. Itachi had a knack for doing things by himself, so it could have been anything from a poisoned enemy blade to a tasteless poison in his food - the man was too smart to be fooled by ordinary poison - and too strong, he believed.

Something about watching his Brother lie mostly motionless on the bed played dangerously on Sasuke's mind. All his life, he had only ever known this man to be strong. A hero. His hero. And not only that, Itachi was also a favorite of their people. He pondered over just how the news of his condition leaked out into their ears.

An attack that rendered someone undefeated as Itachi uselessly confined to a bed could also very well weaken a kingdom's knees. Thusly, the king was on his toes, making a gesture to the people to show that Fire Country still remains strong, even though Sasuke was well aware that Father had been ready to step down, worn and ill - though he did a good job of concealing it from even the eyes of his sons.

Truth always has a way of surfacing, he thought, gazing at his Brother's still form and the distraught wife by his bedside, anger simmering underneath his skin.

*

A long two months passed. Itachi was still struggling between waking and unconsciousness. He had opened his eyes, but could barely stay awake through a quarter of a day. He was a strong fighter from the inside too though - the healer said anyone else should have succumbed to death by now. Sasuke was still pacing though, for to fell a man like Itachi as easily as with a poison was unthinkable and he was wracking his mind for a possible traitor amongst them. It would not be unheard of.

His suspicions were settling on -

"Your highness!"

Sasuke spun on his heel to meet the frantic eyes of a guard.
 

*
 

He tore down the corridors, heart pounding in his ears and a familiar rush coursing through his veins, except this one was more urgent - more primal.

Bursting through the door of his Brother's bedchamber, he was not prepared for the sight that it presented. The sharp smell of fresh blood hit his nose and he immediately saw the cause lying dead across the edge of Itachi's bed and another on the floor. Lady Izumi was protectively standing between two swordsmen and his Brother, her left arm bloodied, the red staining her pure white garments, but her right still held a sword.

A third man jumped in through the window, ready to tackle the future queen of their country, when the burning anger moved his arm, blade slicing cleanly across the throat. The man's face planted into the floor as he fell. As the remaining three people turned their heads to acknowledge him, finally realizing he was there, he let out a snarl of fury and charged.

Sword against sword, the fight began and men kept pouring in as they killed yet another.

"Lord Brother!" he heard Izumi's cry as she slashed another opponent. "We have been betrayed! Inabi and his forces - aarh! - Please find Father!"

Realization hit him like a slap to the face. Father! He looked around them to find they were surrounded. Letting out another roar of frustration and anger, he slashed mercilessly at them. They were probably expecting this, which would explain the constant influx of men. And then, his sword clashed with a loud clang! and an eye covered in bandages stood before his eyes.