4/6

"I went to the Naka River," he said, "To the exact spot at the cliff where Shisui had plunged into the ravine. I tried to figure out if there was another solution. I wracked my brain for what felt like forever, but… I found no other way forward. I… I…"

The dam finally broke; the tears he'd been struggling so hard to hold back at last began to flow. They fell slowly, one at a time… each one ripping at Yoruichi's heart more painfully than the last.

A rueful smile appeared on his face even as the tears trickled down his face. "I did… exactly what I'm doing now. The last time I remembered crying before then was that battlefield my father had taken me to. I had the rain back then as cover, but… I didn't have it this time. There was no one around, but Shisui's presence seemed to permeate that place. He had been determined to find a way to protect both the village and the clan, and had passed on that hope to me. However… I had failed. I wasn't as strong as him, and the fork in the road before me only had two choices. Side with the clan and launch a coup that I knew would only end in ruin for all… or massacre the clan so I could save my little brother and the village."

He turned to face her, anguish, shame and sorrow filling his eyes as the tears kept falling. "Tell me… which way was I supposed to go? To the left, where nothing was right… or to the right, where nothing was left?"

His gaze was one of despair, lost and desperate for an answer that he had clearly not found even after fourteen years of soul-searching. Yoruichi couldn't give him one, at least not with words, but she couldn't just sit back and do nothing. She reached out and took the young man in her arms, pulling him close and allowing him to rest his head on her shoulder. There were no audible cries, nor did his body shake from sobs or anything of that nature; even in the midst of such emotional agony, he refused to completely relinquish control. However, there was still that gradual flow of tears, and Yoruichi felt them as the slowly trickled down Itachi's face before falling onto her neck and shoulder.

She couldn't say for sure how long they remained together like that. It was probably just for a few minutes, but it certainly felt longer. All the while, she desperately searched for something, anything to say that could give him some form of comfort or reassurance, but words completely failed her.

That's a rarity, the spirit of her Zanpakutō quipped, and this is… unusual, for you. Rather tender, if I do say so myself.

Save the commentary. This isn't the time.

Very well, then.

Eventually, Itachi pulled himself away, and Yoruichi relinquished her grip. To her relief, she saw that the flow of tears had stopped, and even if anguish and sorrow were still clear in his eyes, the very small smile that appeared on his face was enough to tell her that she'd at least done some good for him.

"Thank you," he said softly.

Yoruichi nodded, surprised to actually feel herself blushing; where had that come from? "Sure… felt like it was the least I could do. So… are you sure you want to continue? We can pick the rest of this up at another time if you want. Trust me; I'll understand completely."

Itachi shook his head, his voice regaining some of its firmness. "No… I want to see this through… here and now. You deserve that much."

"All right," she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper.

He closed his eyes for a moment, breathing deeply before opening them and pressing onward. "I don't remember how long I remained at that spot, but… it was long enough to reach a conclusion. Above all, my commitment was to two things; Sasuke's survival, and peace in the village. There was only one way that I could see to achieve both… and so I gave Danzō my answer. He wanted the Uchiha Clan destroyed… and I would consent to being the instrument of their demise, with the condition that my brother would be spared."

Yoruichi's eyes narrowed. "How could you trust someone like Danzō to keep his word? He wanted the entire Uchiha Clan exterminated; what was to stop him from having Sasuke quietly killed after you did the bulk of the dirty work?"

"I wasn't going to just take him at his word," Itachi answered, "I had a plan to make him honor his agreement. It wasn't perfect, but it got the job done. I'll give you the details in a little bit; there are a few more matters to attend to in this tale first."

"Fair enough," said Yoruichi, "So… how were you going to take out the clan?"

"That was tricky, and not just because of the obvious moral lines that I was crossing by agreeing to slaughter my family," Itachi replied, "There were logistical problems to overcome as well. The Uchiha Clan compound that had been constructed in the aftermath of the attack by the Nine Tailed Fox was our home, but not every member of the clan was present at any one time. Since so many of our members were Shinobi, they obviously still had missions to attend to. The bulk of them were with the Military Police Force, and when they weren't on patrol or home they were typically at the headquarters. This had become more common as of late; since the Military Police Force was dominated by the Uchiha, the headquarters had become another center from which to covertly organize for the coming coup. Any Uchiha that had been out on foreign missions were recalled by the council, but that still left me with the problem of there being two major centers to target."

"And as good as you were, you couldn't be two places at once," Yoruichi observed, easily seeing his dilemma, "Attack the Military Police Force first, you risk word leaking out and the clan members at the compound. Strike the compound first, and you'd have the Military Police Force mobilize to counterattack. Either way, your true allegiance would be out in the open; the clan would either flee or every combat-capable member would concentrate their efforts on killing you."

Itachi nodded. "Precisely. I was skilled, but I still had doubts. My father in particular was a source of concern; he was an extremely adept Shinobi, and his mastery of the Sharingan was second to none. There's a very good reason he was known as 'Wicked Eye' Fugaku, after all. Even with the Mangekyou in my possession, I wasn't entirely sure if I could take him in a head-to-head fight, and other clan members would be sure to come to his aid."

"And you couldn't count on any official help from the village since Danzō wanted the purge to appear as purely a case of a rogue and mentally disturbed Uchiha," said Yoruichi grimly, "How'd you pull it off?"

"How to accomplish the mission was a question that I asked myself more times than I could count in those days leading up to the hour of judgment," Itachi admitted, "Had Shisui still been alive, it would've been a simple matter to launch a two-pronged assault, but obviously that was out the window. I could not rely on any of my fellow Anbu Black Ops colleagues lending a hand, either. I needed an attacker from outside the ranks of village Shinobi or the Uchiha Clan, a third party to the purge… and I found one where I least expected it."

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow. "Really? Who was it?"

"In the lead-up to the purge, the surveillance over the Uchiha Clan was greatly intensified," said Itachi, "In addition to being the village's spy within the clan, I also took part in the Anbu's monitoring operations. While watching the compound and the Nakano Shrine, I caught glimpses of what I realized was someone that was neither coup plotter nor Anbu, or indeed any Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village for that matter. Three days before the coup was scheduled to commence, I confronted this figure in the secret meeting chamber beneath the Nakano Shrine. They wore a mask; orange with wavy black lines… and a single eye-hole on the right side."

Yoruichi's brow furrowed. "The man that killed your former teammate right in front of you… the one that had the Sharingan in the eye you could see through that mask."

"One and the same," Itachi confirmed, "It had been nearly four years since our confrontation. In that time my mind had often gone back to that fight as I tried to piece together his identity from the scant few clues available in my memory. When I met him again beneath the Nakano Shrine… I suspected that it was none other than Madara Uchiha."

Yoruichi could not stop her eyes from widening in shock. "Wait a second, Madara? The guy that fought Hashirama after he became the First Hokage? The one that Hashirama supposedly killed?"

"Yes," Itachi replied, "The power I felt emanating from that one eye, and his attempt on the Daimyō's life all those years ago… in my mind, it could only be him. Madara's grudge against the Hidden Leaf Village for rejecting him during the selection of the First Hokage was well known, and despite the official story claiming he had been killed in his confrontation with Hashirama there was no known grave or any confirmation as to what had become of his body. This would've been a grievous lapse given just how powerful his Sharingan was; Hashirama would not have wanted Madara's legendary eyes to fall into the hands of rival Shinobi. Those factors had led me to question the official account, and when combined with my run-in with the masked man who had at least one Sharingan and had taken obviously hostile actions towards the Land of Fire and Shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village… well, there were no other rogue Uchiha that I knew of. Madara was the only figure that fit the bill, and despite how old he would've been had he survived that long I had no doubt that he would've remained formidable even in advanced age. Besides, he had made it past all the Shinobi patrolling the Hidden Leaf Village and had gone straight for the hidden chamber beneath the Nakano Shrine; only the Uchiha knew of that room."

Yoruichi nodded. "Given what you had to go on at the time, I guess I can understand the conclusion you came to. Still, that mask's an obvious red flag. You couldn't get a completely positive identification while he had that on."

"A valid point," Itachi conceded, "I never did get conclusive proof that he was Madara... and in fact, in later years I came to doubt my initial assessment. Still, his power and skills were undeniable, and that was what mattered."

"What was he even doing there?" she asked, "If he'd been ostracized from the rest of the clan and the village at large, why would he be poking around the Nakano Shrine?"

"As it turned out, the idea for a coup hadn't completely come from inside the clan," said Itachi, "The driving energy behind it now certainly was, but the notion was one that 'Madara' had suggested to the core malcontents when he made contact with them. To my knowledge, he took no active role in the planning; he simply threw out the suggestion and they happily made it their own. When the two of us spoke, though, he actually seemed to hold the coup plotters in contempt. That was my opening."

Yoruichi shook her head. "Sorry, but I don't get it. Why would he suddenly go from suggesting a coup to helping you act against it?"

"Whether or not he was the real Madara, he clearly had a grudge against the Uchiha Clan," Itachi replied, "I have no doubt he knew that launching the coup would lead to a civil war that would both annihilate the clan and severely damage the village. Seizing the window of opportunity before me, I struck a bargain with him; I'd help him get his revenge on the Uchiha by massacring the clan, and in exchange for my aid he'd leave the rest of the village and Sasuke alone."

"That's all well and good, but his original plan would've allowed him to kill two birds with one stone," Yoruichi argued, "If he had a grudge against both the clan and the village, having them wage a civil war against each other would've been the perfect revenge. Him allying with you might still let him get back at his clan, but the condition that the village be left alone would run counter to his desires. He wouldn't have much incentive to go along with you."

Itachi nodded. "You're not wrong there. Truth be told, I thought I'd have to argue harder in order to get him to side with me, yet it actually didn't take much to bring him around to my plan. It was strange… apparently, he found me to be more 'interesting' that the members of the clan he'd spoken to before. I don't know if it was because of our previous encounter or if there was something else to it. Either way, the result was the same; we joined forces and plotted the execution of the clan."

"What was the plan of attack?" asked Yoruichi.

"All things considered, rather straightforward," Itachi answered grimly, "He would attack the Military Police Headquarters and wipe out the bulk of the Uchiha Clan's fighters. Meanwhile, I would strike the compound… and wipe out the civilian portion of the clan."

Yoruichi couldn't begin to imagine what kind of resolve it must've taken for him to give himself such a task and move to carry it out. It was chilling to hear him describe planning such an act, and were it not for what had taken place just a few minutes ago she would've questioned if he had any humanity left. As it was, even though his voice was steady once again as he pressed onward, the shadow of shame and sorrow did not leave his eyes.

"What about your brother?" she asked after a brief pause, "How did you plan to keep him out of the crossfire?"

"That was easy," said Itachi, "Danzō would have a member of his Root organization disguise himself as one of Sasuke's Academy instructors and delay his return home by having him stay late for extra shuriken practice. My brother was probably annoyed by the ruse seeing as his skills with shuriken were already quite advanced for his age, but he wouldn't be able to see past the front and discern what was really going on. He was still young, not even a Genin yet… he had no idea what kind of shadows were swirling around him. The board was set, and all the pieces were in place. The operation would be carried out the day before the clan planned to execute the coup."

He was quiet again for a moment as he gathered himself. His outward expression didn't change much, but from the way he looked down at the ground for a few long seconds before he met her gaze again Yoruichi could tell that what was coming next was the act itself. He had already given her the context, the motives, and his feelings about the choice he had made. All that was left now was to describe the execution.

Itachi…

He took a deep breath before continuing. "Before the bloodbath began in earnest… I sought out Izumi. I couldn't spare her; the agreement with Danzō allowed for only one survivor. Still… I could ease her passing. I isolated her… and ensnared her in Tsukuyomi."

"The Mangekyou genjutsu you mentioned earlier," she commented, "What kind of illusion did you spin for her?"

"One where the horrors of what I unleashed that night never took place," he answered softly and mournfully, "Only the smallest fraction of a second passed in real life, but in her mind, she lived out no less than eighty years. A full life in her mind's eye alone… one where we married, had children and watched them grow… where we entered our twilight years together… and then faded from the world. Living out eighty years in such a tiny space of time… the human mind cannot survive being detached from reality in such a comprehensive manner. She died in my arms… and her last words… were to thank me. Thanking the man who had killed her…"

Yoruichi shook her head and put a hand on his shoulder. "She didn't suffer, right?"

"No," said Itachi, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I… I made sure of that."

She gave him a soft smile. "Then you did all you could. If you couldn't spare her, you at least gave her the gentlest passing possible. More than that… you tried to give her in her mind what you were forced to rob her of in reality. I know this might not be of much comfort, but I think her gratitude was sincere. She might not have understood what was happening in the real world or the motives behind it… but I think she knew you cared deeply for her."

Itachi sighed, a hint of bitterness creeping into his voice. "Murdered gently by someone who cared deeply for her… the ease of her passing doesn't excuse the act itself. I knew she had feelings for me, just as I felt something for her… yet I still took her life. In what world could that possibly be considered just?"

"Nothing about the situation you were thrown into was just," Yoruichi replied firmly, "That doesn't change the fact that you acted in a manner that was as humane as possible with her. She passed painlessly, and in her mind, she'd lived a full and loving life. The two of you were caught up in the worst possible circumstances, and you did everything in your power to keep her from suffering for it. It's not perfect, but… well, I can definitely think of worse ways to go."

"Perhaps," he said, although it was clear he wasn't entirely convinced, "I suppose the only way to know for sure would be to ask her if we meet again. I don't know where she might be right now, though. You know better than I do just how difficult it can be to track someone down in the Soul Society."

"Yeah," Yoruichi conceded, "This place's sheer size definitely doesn't make it easy. If you do find her, though… well, it might not be my place to say this, but don't be surprised if she's already forgiven you. From what you've told me about her, I think she would understand why, or at least give you a chance to explain."

A bittersweet smile appeared on Itachi's face. "Maybe. Izumi… she didn't deserve to share the fate of the clan. The Curse of Hatred had no grip on her. I… I should've tried to find a way to spare her too. No… I should've found a way to prevent things from getting to that point to begin with. It was too late, though. I targeted her first partially so I could ensure a peaceful end, but… it was also to steel my resolve. With her death, the last of my hesitation was gone… or so I told myself. From that point forward… the slaughter began."

The shadows that had haunted his gaze throughout their conversation became more pronounced as he described the ghastly affair. "Young and old, men and women… I put them all to the sword. I stalked that compound like a wraith, striking from the shadows. Most fell before they could even identify the assailant, but some manage to put up resistance, however brief it might be. Incidentally, that included the core advocates for the coup, the ones who had convinced my father to go along with their ruinous plan. I took no pleasure in my task, but… well, I'd be lying if I said I didn't experience a measure of satisfaction when I came across them and took their lives. Inabi, Tekka, Yashiro… so eager for their coup the following evening, they never even bothered to consider that the village might strike first. It was only then that they realized where my true loyalties lay, and it was far too late for that knowledge to help them. I was quick… and I was thorough. Eventually, only two targets remained… my parents."

The real test of his resolve, she thought somberly, Itachi… for all the fondness you may have had for Izumi, she was just the prologue. Targeting your mother and father for assassination…

The very notion made her shudder. Sure, she might have her disagreements with her parents from time to time, but that didn't change the fact that she loved them and did not wish any harm to come to them. To be in the situation that Itachi was describing, to turn her blade on them… she couldn't even begin to comprehend it.

"Despite the swiftness with which I had acted thus far, I didn't have much time remaining," Itachi continued, "The operative Danzō had sent to the Academy wouldn't keep Sasuke there indefinitely, after all. Still, when I came to our part of the compound… I hesitated."

"Of course, you did," said Yoruichi, "If you didn't hesitate before something like that, you wouldn't be human."

Itachi shook his head. "Family ties played a role there, true, but there was more to it than that. I loved my mother and father, but they were more than just family; they were both Shinobi. My mother had retired from being a Kunoichi to focus on raising Sasuke and I, but my father had remained an active-duty Jōnin. Theirs was also a marriage where both partners were of the Uchiha Clan, and while I'd never seen my mother use the Sharingan there was always the possibility that hers had been awakened during her career. As for my father… well, I already told you about him."

Yoruichi nodded. "You called him 'Wicked Eye' Fugaku. Even if you were a prodigy, he would've had the edge in experience."

"Exactly," said Itachi his voice softening again, "I fully expected a fight, and yet… when I entered, they were both sitting in the middle of the room. It wasn't a trick or illusion, no trap of any kind. It was just the two of them… and as I approached from behind, they made no move to stop me."

Yoruichi sighed heavily, realizing what had happened. "They already knew the truth behind your actions. They knew that you'd sided with the village over the clan, and that you were acting to stop the coup and subsequent civil war before it could start."

"Yes," said Itachi, a slight crack in his voice betraying what Yoruichi had no doubt was an intense internal turmoil, "and they said as much. They both understood my decision… and accepted it. I was standing behind them, so I couldn't see their faces, but still… I could fully sense their emotions. The kindness and gentleness of my mother… even on that blood-soaked night, her voice almost felt like an embrace. As for my father… there was no bitterness, no sense of betrayal. Both of them… were proud of me. Despite all the death that I had wrought that night… despite the fact that their lives remained to be taken by my blade, and I could not leave until the deed was done… the love they had for their children remained. They asked that I take care of Sasuke… their last request to their eldest son."

He looked down again, and Yoruichi saw that his right hand was trembling. It was as if it was joining the young man's mind in reliving the actions it had taken all those years ago.

"Once more… the tears flowed," he said solemnly, although none fell from his eyes this time as he spoke, "It took every last bit of resolve I had to finally do the deed… to murder the mother and father that loved me more than I had ever realized until that moment. Every single day since then… I've asked myself if there was another way. Countless possibilities and 'what-ifs' have played through my mind, as haunting as the memories of the actions I took that night. And yet, even as the blood of my parents dripped from my blade… the nightmare still wasn't over. My hesitation had cost me time… and my brother had finally returned home."

"At the worst possible moment, too," Yoruichi noted, "Damn… what'd you do?"

Itachi shook his head. "My agreement with Danzō was that I could spare Sasuke in return for purging the rest of the clan, but… I couldn't tell Sasuke the truth about it all. In order to sell the deception to the village that I had wiped our clan due to arrogance and mental instability rather than as a preemptive attack to head off a coup, I couldn't let anyone know the real reasons behind the events of that night. Between striking my deal with Danzō and then actually carrying out the mission, I did have some time to consider what actions I would take regarding Sasuke when it was all over. The conclusion I came to made sense to me at the time, but looking back on it now… it was the worst possible way I could've handled things."

"What happened?" asked Yoruichi, almost dreading the answer.

"I had told myself that my actions were to ensure Sasuke's safety," he answered, "However… I also wanted to preserve his view of the clan. Like I said before, he had absolutely no knowledge of the coup plot. I'm sure he detected hints of the tension within the clan, but he didn't understand what was really going on. In his eyes, the Uchiha Clan was a still a noble Shinobi family, proud and valiant members of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. I wanted to make sure he kept that preconception rather than learn the truth and mar his vision of the clan. In order to do so, I came up with a plan; I would convince him to focus all of his hatred on me, motivating him to become a Shinobi powerful enough to eventually hunt me down and kill me. To me, he was the only one that deserved to bring justice to the Uchiha name. He could survive, train, grow… and when the day finally came, he could seek me out, defeat me in battle and end my life. The murderer of the Uchiha Clan would be dead, our family would be avenged, and he could return home to the village as a hero. In order to push that plan forward, though…. in my eyes, the massacre of the clan wasn't enough to fully cement his hatred of me. I had to make sure a grudge took hold, one that would be powerful enough to push him through the difficult years to come. If he could become strong enough to defeat me, then that meant he'd be able to defend himself against anything else our cruel Shinobi World could throw at him. People like Danzō or other hardliners who distrusted the Uchiha and might seek to complete the purge when I was gone would think twice before attacking him."

He looked down for a moment, fresh shame readily apparent in his features. "To get him started down the path I'd chosen for him… I tortured the little brother that I had claimed to love. I unleashed the Mangekyou Sharingan, ensnared him in Tsukuyomi, and tormented him with visions of what I'd done to our family. To further cement his hatred of me, I told him that the reason I had murdered the clan was simply to test myself, and that I was letting him live only so that he could grow to become another test for me down the road. I told him… that I had never loved him… that I had only ever pretended to be a kind older brother in order to measure what he had the potential to become. I insulted him, belittled him… all the while, planting what I believed were the seeds for the justice I wished for him to give the clan in the future. No other Shinobi deserved to kill me; the only one I would allow to avenge the Uchiha would be the one member of the clan that was completely blameless in this whole affair."

Yoruichi shook her head sadly. "Was there really no other way?"

"At the time, I didn't believe so," Itachi replied, "However, looking back on it now… the entire plan was monumentally stupid. It was an exercise to my own vanity, my belief that I could plan out Sasuke's future… that I still had the right to make those kinds of decisions for him after what I had just done."

The self-loathing in his voice was impossible to miss as he continued. "For all that I might claim to love my little brother, I proved that I wasn't above manipulating him. Instead of being honest with him, as I should've from the start, I assumed that I knew what was best. I was determined to give him a future that would be better than mine after that night, but in doing so I acted as though he didn't have any agency in the matter. I laid out a path for him and pushed him down it without giving even the slightest consideration to whether or not it was one that he would want to take. I… I lost any right to call myself his older brother after what I did."

He's not even trying to hide his guilt, she thought somberly, I'll give him credit; he sure as hell isn't sugarcoating things here. When it comes to his own actions… he's a harsher critic of himself than anyone else.

"I could see despair, fear and anger overwhelming him," said Itachi, "and in those swirling emotions, something else appeared; the Sharingan. It was only for a few moments, and the sudden surge of chakra from its manifestation caused him to collapse, but it had been there all the same. I could take some comfort in knowing he had it, even if he probably wasn't consciously aware of it at the time. The power of our clan's eyes was at the root of all this misery, but at least it would give him a valuable weapon to wield in the years ahead. It would help him defend himself once he mastered it… and I was sure that he would. After all… he was my little brother."

Those last few words were tinged with bittersweet pride, tugging at Yoruichi's already-straining heartstrings. For someone who normally carried himself with such cool composure, Itachi had demonstrated a depth of emotion that she doubted any of his fellow Soul Reapers or former Academy classmates realized he possessed. Given her role as Squad Two's Captain, Yoruichi was fully aware of the value of never judging a book by its cover, but even so, she found herself caught completely flatfooted by what she'd seen from him today…

…and he still wasn't done yet.

Unohana told me that he wept after he recovered from the soul fracture, she recalled, Hearing all of this now… well, it gives that moment a bunch of new context.

"I thought he was down for the count, but I had misjudged his stamina," Itachi admitted, "As I moved to withdraw, he got back up… and actually managed to throw three kunai at me. It wasn't hard to doge the first two, but the last one actually managed to hit my Leaf Village Shinobi headband. There was a curved piece of metal imbedded in it, just as all the others of its kind had, so the blade was deflected. However, the headband came undone from the hit. I was astonished that he'd managed such a feat. That's when I realized… I was crying again. I knew that I had to get out of there immediately. If he saw my tears, I feared everything would come undone. I fled as fast as I could, but even so… I think he still caught a glimpse of my true feelings, even if he likely didn't fully comprehend what he was seeing at the time."

Yoruichi sighed. "No… from what you've told me, I bet his hatred was already taking hold. You were probably safe. Still… I get what you were thinking, but I'm not going to lie; I'm not a fan of your plan."

Itachi nodded. "I can hardly blame you there. Like I said, looking back on it, it was horrible. I used love for my brother as an excuse to feed my own ego in believing I could exercise control over events going forward. There were so many mistakes made that night… still, I think I was able to get at least one thing right."

"What was that?" asked Yoruichi.

"Sasuke's immediate safety," he replied, "Once I'd fled the compound, I sought out two people. The first was Danzō. In order to get him to honor his end of the agreement, I threatened to leak the secrets of the Hidden Leaf Village to the other nations should any harm come to Sasuke. My knowledge of the events of that night alone could rip the village apart if the truth got out, and he knew it."

"Blackmail's probably the only thing that would've worked on a man like that," Yoruichi conceded, "Let me guess; the second person was the Third Hokage."

"Correct," Itachi answered, "While I was furious at how his indecisiveness had contributed to just how badly the situation had decayed, the man still had a sense of righteousness that I could use to protect my little brother. I snuck into his residence, and it turned out that he'd already taken some preliminary action; he'd pieced together the situation and recognized Danzō's hand in the purge, and he had reacted by dismissing him from the village ruling council. His 'Root' organization was also to be officially dissolved in the aftermath of that night. It wasn't perfect; Danzō was more than capable of going to ground and reassembling his private black ops force in secret, but the immediate loss of status would hinder him in the short-term. The Third Hokage gave his word that no harm would come to Sasuke, and despite my disdain with how he'd handled the rising tensions between the clan and the village over the past few years I was certain that he'd keep his word here."

"Some good news out of that tragedy, then," said Yoruichi, "Still, even if the Third Hokage knew that your actions were on behalf of the village and agreed to protect your little brother, there was no way he could let you stay after what you'd done. Danzō might've been a real piece of work, but he did get one thing right; if peace in the village was to be maintained, the truth of your actions that night couldn't get out. Your very presence in the village was now a threat to stability."

"You're right," said Itachi, "I was all too aware of that, and I already knew that I'd be going into exile before that night was over. I would be officially branded a criminal by the village, wanted for mass murder. Shinobi that I had once called comrades would now attack on sight should I encounter them again. It wasn't just Leaf Village Shinobi that would be after me, either; my actions combined with my abilities meant that Shinobi of every nation saw me as a threat and would act accordingly. My extensive training, experience with the Anbu Black Ops, and the power of the Mangekyou Sharingan would make staying one step ahead of the hunters possible. However, I was determined to do more than simply go on the run and wait for Sasuke to grow strong enough to kill me. Publicly, the village would know me from then on out as a monster, but I was still determined to serve in secret as a Shinobi… and there was a potential threat that I wanted to keep an eye on."

Yoruichi's eyes narrowed. "Madara, right?"

Itachi nodded. "Yes. He might've agreed to my plan that night regarding the Uchiha Clan, but I wasn't a fool; it was entirely possible that he could act against the Leaf Village in the future. I wanted to track his movements… and as it turned out, he offered me the perfect chance to. During our planning session prior to the massacre, he mentioned an organization of rogue Shinobi known as the Akatsuki. It was very small, and there wasn't too much intelligence available on it at the time… but the very fact that 'Madara' was connected to it was more than enough to convince me that it was dangerous. Shortly after the massacre of the clan, he offered me membership in the Akatsuki, claiming that it would help protect me now that I was a wanted man. I was sure that there was more to it than that; in all likelihood, he probably wanted to keep an eye on me as much as I wanted to monitor him."

Yoruichi could understand the logic there. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. So, what did this 'Akatsuki' group want?"

"That was difficult to determine," Itachi admitted, "After the massacre, I spent the rest of my life with them, but their true agenda was layered over by a series of false yet plausible promises. The organization was out to capture the Tailed Beasts scattered around the Shinobi World, but for what exact purpose was veiled. The most common version was what newcomers were told; that the Akatsuki sought out the power of the Tailed Beasts in order to start and then swiftly quell wars, undercutting the Shinobi Villages established by the great nations and eventually putting them out of business. This would leave the Akatsuki as the dominant Shinobi faction and allow them to conquer the world. To raise funds, the group would hire out its members to nations at rates well below those charged by the most prominent Shinobi Villages, allowing us to secure numerous contracts. Every member of the Akatsuki was an extremely powerful rogue Shinobi, each one of us capable of challenging even Kage-class opponents, so I'm sure you can see why our skills were highly sought after even though we were officially the most dangerous criminals in the world."

Yoruichi nodded. "Seems straightforward enough, but Madara's connection alone seems to undercut that stated purpose. After all, based on what you've told me about him, he's the type that would likely have goals apart from simple conquest, although the latter probably wouldn't be exclusive from the former."

"You're not wrong there," said Itachi, "Before I left the Hidden Leaf Village for good, I was able to find a clue as to what that might be. Remember when I told you that I had confronted him in the secret chamber beneath the Nakano Shrine, where the clan had been having its meetings to plot the coup? Even when there was no one inside it, that chamber wasn't entirely empty. There was a stone tablet, one that had been kept there since the founding of the clan."

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow. "What would an old stone tablet have to do with all of this?"

"That tablet contained secrets of the Uchiha Clan," Itachi replied, "However, there was a catch; it could only be translated by someone who had the Sharingan. Even then, someone with only the basic Sharingan couldn't read all of it. Someone with the Mangekyou Sharingan could go further in deciphering it, yet full comprehension would still elude them. My father had mentioned one time that the tablet held the key to restoring the Uchiha Clan to its former glory, although I didn't entirely buy into that. I didn't think it was a coincidence that the clan held its meetings in the same chamber as that tablet, though… and Madara had clearly been drawn to that chamber, particularly after the meetings when he could study the tablet by himself. Since I had unlocked the Mangekyou Sharingan, I took the opportunity to read what I could of the tablet before my exile."

"What did you find?" she asked.

"Some interesting information on the Mangekyou Sharingan," he answered, "There were those clan secrets I mentioned before, but at that point they weren't of particular value to me. There was something that really caught my eye, though; a line stating that the Infinite Tsukuyomi would be the salvation of the Uchiha Clan."

"Tsukuyomi was the illusion power of the Mangekyou, right?" said Yoruichi, "Would this 'Infinite Tsukuyomi' be a more powerful version of it?"

Itachi nodded. "Yes… one that, supposedly, used the entire moon to reflect the genjutsu upon the world. I wasn't able to find much in the way of concrete information on it, though. However, I suspected that Madara might be pursuing that as his end-goal and needed the power of the Tailed Beasts to achieve it, hence his forming the Akatsuki; an organization of powerful Shinobi would make tracking down the Beasts and their Jinchūriki a more efficient process. So, my watch began. I would stay inside the Akatsuki, track their movements as I pretended to be one of them, and keep tabs on the Hidden Leaf Village to make sure Sasuke remained protected. All the while, I would wait for Sasuke to grow stronger… counting down until our inevitable deathmatch."