Itachi paused for a mont, then smiled helplessly. "Sorry, you’ve grown up. You already understand all this. I still rember when you once left speechless with just one sentence."
"Ti flies. In the river of ti I can still see, you always seem like that little boy who never grows up."
"I wasn’t there for you all this ti. I’m sorry."
"I don’t need your pity..." Sasuke’s voice softened involuntarily, but the fire in his eyes didn’t fade. "You don’t have to die! We can figure sothing out for your eyes—Danzo, Orochimaru, anyone! Why do you have to die?!"
Itachi smiled gently. "Because I’m tired. Really, really tired."
Sasuke gritted his teeth. "I don’t care about any of that! You can survive! Just like before! Be the big brother who stands tall, the one who keeps all my troubles away! No matter what... no matter how... we can figure sothing out..."
A single tear rolled down Sasuke’s cheek. Even his voice grew weak.
"Please... Itachi... big brother... I’m begging you..."
"Don’t leave alone again..."
Loneliness... Emptiness... Fear...
This kind of thing... has surrounded Sasuke ever since the night his clan was wiped out. No matter how strong he seems on the outside, it’s just a wall he forced himself to build. One hit is all it takes for it to crumble.
If there was no Itachi, no so-called truth, maybe he could have gotten used to the loneliness, the emptiness, the fear. When you’ve lost everything, there’s nothing you can’t get used to.
But if there is one thing... it’s the rare sense of belonging found in that loneliness.
"Brother, I had nothing left..." Sasuke’s tears fell, and the kunai in his hand lost its strength. "Family, friends, my clan... I lost everything. And you were the one who destroyed it all. I should hate you. I was supposed to hate you."
"But why? Why did you give the truth? Why did you make hate not only you, but also the things I fought so hard to get back?"
"I had nothing left... I worked so hard to bring them back... so why did you take them away from again? And then, after all that, you just decide you’re tired and die on your own terms?"
The cruelest thing isn’t just losing sothing forever. It’s losing it, getting it back, and then losing it all over again.
Sasuke clenched his teeth, letting his tears completely soak his face. "If you really—"
"—can’t let go of , then please, I’m begging you, stay alive. At least let have you to rely on after losing everything else."
"Brother... don’t die."
His tears dripped onto the ground, creating tiny ripples in the dust. But the dry earth absorbed them instantly, leaving no trace behind—like they had never been there at all.
Sasuke lowered his head, his teeth clenched so tightly they hurt, his tears completely out of control.
Itachi just stood there, watching silently.
Sobs filled the room. Sasuke’s trembling voice echoed in his ears. "I don’t want to hate Konohagakure. I don’t want to hate Lady Tsunade. I don’t want to hate Kakashi. But... why does everything seem like it’s forcing to?"
"Brother... what am I supposed to do?"
Itachi closed his eyes, slowly lowering the kunai in his hand. Then, he reached out and pulled Sasuke into his arms, gently patting his back. "Just follow your heart. You’re not a child anymore. Dad, Mom, and I... all of us believe in you."
"And also..."
Itachi helped Sasuke stand firmly in front of him. Then, he raised his right hand, his face showing a rare, warm smile—just like before, but sohow even brighter.
He pressed his index and middle fingers lightly against Sasuke’s forehead. Sasuke stared at him, dazed.
Itachi spoke softly, "Even if you don’t forgive , that’s okay. This is the last ti..."
Sasuke gently held his forehead. That familiar feeling... just like before.
Itachi chuckled. "Alright, let’s continue our fight. Next is taijutsu."
He threw a punch. It looked powerful—but it was slow, way too slow...
"Stop right there, Konohagakure ninja. You’re not allowed to pass." Kisa rested Sahada on his shoulder, his eyes glinting as he looked at Kakashi.
Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "You usually hide your hostility behind a smile. But this ti, sothing feels different."
"Oh?" Kisa paused, then flashed his usual sharp grin. "My bad. If I rember right, you’re... Itachi-san’s old Anbu senior, right? Your na was... Hatake... Fifty-Fifty?"
"It’s Hatake Kakashi." Kakashi’s face darkened.
He had heard that nickna once before—from Kurama. How did this guy know about it?
"Ah, sorry, sorry. I’m bad at rembering nas," Kisa said, chuckling. "Not like it matters—most people end up dead anyway."
Of course, he had no idea what the "fifty-fifty" joke ant. He just made up a na that sounded close enough—he genuinely couldn’t rember Kakashi’s real na.
Kakashi let out a long sigh. He felt like Kurama was starting to rub off on him in weird ways.
Staring at Kisa, he didn’t hesitate. He lifted his headband, revealing his Sharingan, his expression turning serious.
Kisa chuckled when he saw this. "I rember now. Weren’t you the guy listed in the Mist Village’s Anbu manual? Copy Ninja Kakashi... I think your danger level was rated A, right?"
"You, a rogue ninja, actually rember things like that?" Kakashi kept an eye on his surroundings while continuing the conversation.
"Oh, not really." Kisa set down Sahada, smashing a decent-sized hole into the ground. "It’s just that I’ve already encountered the other A-rank ninjas. They’re all dead now—taken out and sold for bounty by that guy Kakuzu. The only ones left are you guys from Konohagakure, so your na stuck with ."
"So, you guys are wary of Konohagakure too, huh?" Kakashi narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah, our leader even told us not to ss with a few of your village’s more dangerous people—at least for now." Kisa let out a low chuckle, completely unfazed about leaking that information. "Oh yeah, I rember their nas. One’s called Uzumaki Naruto, another is Uchiha Sasuke, and then there’s a Tailed Beast... Hmm, actually, there were others, but I forgot."
After saying that, Kisa couldn’t help but laugh—bold and carefree.
The kind of laugh that could make kids cry in fear.
Kakashi imdiately sensed sothing was off. "You’re just giving intel like that? If I rember correctly, you were once a high-ranking ninja in the Mist Village. I don’t believe you’d be so careless about keeping information secret."
"Of course not. I do have so dignity, you know." Kisa nodded in agreent. "But..."
His gaze suddenly turned ice-cold. "Who said this information was off-limits to you?"
Kakashi’s eyes sharpened. "Why?"
"You’re asking why?" Kisa sneered. "Because as of this mont, the Akatsuki officially declares war on Konohagakure. Either you hand over the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki, or we wipe Konohagakure off the map."
"Oh, and just so you know... our main forces are already stationed around your village."
"!!!" Kakashi clenched his fists.
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