I sweat profusely as I do handstand push-ups in my apartment despite it being late at night. I could not help it as I felt strangely anxious for some reason, and I could not sleep despite my efforts. I am trying to tire myself out enough to pass out on my bed.
" 51."
" 52."
" 53."
I did the push-ups slowly as I did them until I reached one hundred. Feeling exhausted, I looked outside to see the full moon shining down tonight. I still could not relax enough to sleep as something was bothering me, but I could not think what it was, and it was driving me crazy. Sighing, I decided to dive into my studying material to try and kill time until I finally felt tired enough to sleep.
But why is it tonight that I can't sleep?
________________________________________
Sasuke and Sarada ran through the Uchiha District to reach home from training as they lost track of time.
" Come on, Sarada, we need to hurry, or Mother is going to be even madder about us missing curfew!"
" We are only this late because you wanted to perfect your Shuriken Jutsu and show it to Itachi and Father!"
Sarada retorted at her twin with a frown, and Sasuke shot back.
" And you wanted to show off your Shuriken Jutsu to Mother!"
The twins bickered as they reached the Uchiha District and noticed something was off.
" Hey, Sasuke?"
" Yeah, Sarada?"
" Isn't it too quiet?"
Sasuke nodded slowly in reply as he stopped running to look around as the Uchiha District never felt this ominous before, even at night. Sarada got closer to her twin as she felt unnerved by how quiet it was right now. She then said while feeling anxious.
" Let's get home."
Sasuke grunted in reply as they went back to their home. As they ran straight home, they saw something on the ground on the street in front of them, and their curiosity got the better of them as they went to check it out.
" Aunty!"
" Uncle!"
The twins cried out as they saw some familiar faces, a pair of civilian Uchiha that they both knew. They then saw the bleeding wounds on the bodies, still fresh and bleeding. The two paled and immediately ran home as fast as they could out of fear and hope for their parents' fates. As they reached their home, they both called out to their family in sync.
" Father, Mother, Big Brother!"
They were greeted with silence. The twins ran through the house searching for their family members while fearing for the worst. They reached the main foyer, where guests were entertained; the lights were off, and the room was completely dark, but then moonlight started to peek through the window, and they saw a familiar figure.
" Big Bro-!"
Their joy at seeing the familiar face of Itachi died as the moonlight revealed the corpses of their Mother and Father with pools of blood forming. The Uchiha twins were shocked into silence as they could not process just what they were seeing, but their attention then shifted to the bloodied blade in their Elder Brother's hand. The twins cried out in despair.
" MOTHER! FATHER!"
They wanted to approach the bodies to try and shake them awake like they were asleep instead of dead, but fear of their brother and his bloodied blade stopped them as they put two and two together. Sasuke was the first to demand answers.
" Brother, why!? Why do this!?"
Itachi emotionlessly flicked the blood off his blade before answering with a cold and empty tone.
" To test my capacity."
" Your capacity?"
Sarada asked in confusion as she could not understand why, nor did she want to. Itachi father explained as his Sharingan changed into its Mangekyō, a red iris with a three-blade Shuriken pupil with a red iris dot in the center.
" The Uchiha Clan prided itself on its bloodline limit the Sharingan, but there is a power beyond the Sharingan. The Mangekyō Sharingan. I unlocked it, and it granted power beyond anything I had before, so I naturally wanted to test it, and who better than the Clan the bloodline it originated from? However, I am disappointed that no one could stand against me.
The only ones left of the Uchiha Clan are myself and you two. Killing you two now would be pointless... My foolish siblings... If you want to kill me, then... CURSE ME! HATE ME! REVILE ME! And live a long and unsightly life as you cling to your life, so run, run away without dignity or pride, for you are weak. Then maybe someday your eyes will be like mine, and we can kill and curse each other to death.
But for now, you are nothing and will continue to be so until your eyes awaken like mine."
The twins then lost their minds as they ran in a panic, thinking.
" I don't want to die! I WANT TO LIVE!"
Unknown to the twins, as they ran, Itachi's eyes started to bleed and fell like tears as he looked down, clenching his fist and tightly gripping his blade. He opened his mouth to say something but decided to close it as he disappeared into the night.
As the twin ran, they saw more and more corpses of the Uchiha Clan. Memories flashed through their minds, recalling familiar faces they knew well but also barely recognized regardless. The two soon saw the Chunin and Jonin of the Uchiha, where Itachi dealt with them. As they took in the death of their clan, their family, they started to hyperventilate as it was just too much.
Something within the twins snapped as fear gave way to hatred, and panic turned to bloodlust. Their originally dark irises burned red and shined through the darkness of night. The Sharingan bloomed through the twins, and they muttered with pure venom.
" Itachi!"
Hate clouded the two's minds as they turned to not run away from the Murderer that ended their Clan but toward him with reckless abandon. They soon found their former beloved brother and drew their Kunai knives as they roared out with pure hate.
" ITACHI!"
They threw their Kunai, but the kinslayer effortlessly dodged the attack with the Body Flicker Jutsu. The twins traced where their brother ran off and got another set of Kunai to attack him as they charged at him high off their awakened Sharingan. Itachi raised his sword to block their attack but avoided looking at them directly to hide his anguish and suffering. He suppressed his emotions looked at his sibling with his Mangekyō Sharingan, then said.
" Foolish little brother... Foolish little sister... I warned you to only come at me when your eyes are like mine. Let me show you why."
The two soon found themselves under a Genjutsu where they watched Itachi kill every member of their Clan again and again. Sarada started to cry silently as she was forced to watch how Itachi and a second tomoe now in her blazing red eyes. Sasuke just broke down mentally as he could not bear the sorrow and pain. Itachi released them from the Genjutsu and turned away from his broken siblings.
He grasped his heart with an expression of pain and left them behind. Before Sarada lost consciousness, she saw her Elder brother's back and asked herself internally.
" Why does he look so lonely and in pain?"
She closed her eyes as she could not take anymore.
________________________________________
I yawned as I did not get much sleep from last night and did not even do my usual morning routine as I was too tired. I laid my head down as I was tempted to nap through class. Aki-Sensei then came to the, and yet I just now noticed that the Uchiha twins were nowhere in sight. The Chunin Instructor was grim as she clapped to get everyone's attention.
" Class, I have an announcement. You may have already heard the rumors this morning, but I will tell you the truth of the matter."
Rumors? I was too tired to really listen to anything this morning. What happened?
" The Uchiha Clan is no more... The Clan Heir, Itachi Uchiha, wiped them out. Only Sarada and Sasuke Uchiha survived."
Well... Shit... It finally happened. My tiredness disappeared, and I sighed as my mind went to how those two might react. Unlike in the Canon of Naruto, Sasuke is not alone and has his sister, so he might not become as edgy, or at least that is my hope. The Sasuke Fanclub was up in arms.
" Poor, Sasuke."
" We have to see him!"
" Sensei, where's Sasuke!?"
Aki-Sensei solemnly answered.
" I am not at liberty to say anything about Sasuke or Sarada's whereabouts."
The Sasuke Fanclub, of course, continued to pester Aki-Sensei regardless, as they wanted their precious Sasuke. My disdain only grew for them as they only had their selfish desires in mind; they wanted Sasuke but not to really help him, and they completely forgot his sister. I shook my head in disgust and gave a silent prayer for the twins well being. However, if they turned into power-obsessed avengers that will burn the world in their desire for vengeance, I will end them.
I am not like the original Naruto; I do not follow naive ideals, I don't have the Talk No Jutsu, and I doubt whether I can change them like the original could, so I can only put them out of their misery if they seek to harm me or the people I care about. If I have people I will care about in the future. I sighed as I was not optimistic but more realistic, if not pessimistic, about my chances.
Only time will tell if I need to put them down or help them if I can.
________________________________________
In an undisclosed location away from Konoha.
The Hokage stood without any guards and smoked as he waited. He used a Shadow Clone to take his place at his office. Still, unfortunately, he could only use a few Shadow Clones and he certainly could not withstand the aftereffects of the Jutsu as he was too old both physically and mentally. He puffed out a ring of smoke and then said.
" I am sorry to burden you with this, Itachi. If the Fourth was still alive or if I was just ten years younger, things might not have played out this way."
" I understand, Lord Third."
Itachi appeared from the shadows, kneeling without an expression on his face. Hiruzen turned to look at the young genius and sighed inwardly as he thought.
" If only I could have given this young man more time. He could have become the next Hokage if given enough time, but now... I truly am getting too old, but I need to endure as the Shinobi I am."
As melancholy filled the Third Hokage, Itachi reported.
" I was approached by someone claiming to be Madara Uchiha, and he assisted with handling the Uchiha Clan. He invited me to an organization called the Akatsuki, and I intend to join to provide information on them to Konoha."
Hirizen furrowed his brows as he asked.
" Is he really Madara Uchiha or his successor? And this Akatsuki organization, what is their purpose?"
" I don't have enough evidence to say one way or another."
Itachi answered, and Hiruzen took a long drag from his pipe, and the kinslayer then asked with a hint of desperation.
" Lord Third, please look after Sasuke and Sarada."
" Of course, I will leave the Sealing Array unchanged, so you check in on them. And Itachi."
" Yes, Lord Third?"
The Third Hokage gave the young Shinobi a slight bow.
" Thank you, Itachi Uchiha, for doing everything you can for the village. You deserve more than becoming a Rogue Ninja and being labeled as a kinslayer; it is more than unfortunate for you to sacrifice so much for so little. Konoha can not repay you enough for everything."
" I simply did my duty to the Village."
Itachi humbly replied, and Hiruzen felt sorrow as he realized the village had lost another promising talent and possible Hokage. The Third Hokage then decided.
" It seems I need to pay Danzo a visit and have him properly dismantle ROOT, as this is unacceptable! I know he cares about the village more than anything, but I can not see how this benefits the village in the long run. Regardless of the Uchiha's intent, they were part of the core of the village. Now, the other Hidden Villages will be probing our reactions for a long time to come. Stripping Danzo of his Village Elder title is also in order."
Itachi debriefed the Hokage on the Uchiha rebellion and then went their separate ways.
________________________________________
A month went by after the Uchiha Massacre, and the Uchiha twins still have not returned to class still. Although I guess it's hardly surprising, all things considered, as I honestly can not imagine what they are going through. I kept up my training and studying regardless, as there was nothing else I could do. Aki-Sensei entered the classroom and got everyone's attention.
" Alright, class, into your seats; I have something to tell you all."
Everyone went to their respective seats, and Aki-Sensei broke into a strained smile as she told everyone.
" Class, please welcome back some familiar faces."
The Uchiha twins entered class, and the Sasuke Fanclub went crazy at their idol's return. I looked at them and saw the heavy bags under their eyes, plus they were thinner as well. I guess these changes can't be helped, but now, what does the future hold? I both dread and look forward to what is going to happen.