53 Chapter 53 Truth

{Don't skip it, please read the author note before moving on to chapter, (This chapter is 53, 54, 55, 56 and 57 combined, It's all about Azuma telling the truth about Itachi to Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto, if you don't want to take this long ride, you can quit from here, I want to change the plot so this was needed and I will portray Itachi as a victim, some hate him, some sympathize with him, I'm the latter, If you don't like Itachi as a victim, than you can drop as well, but please don't leave harsh comments, my fragile heart won't be able to bear them, anyway enjoy if you can}

Kusagakure.

Orochimaru's lab.

Snake patterns were molded on the wall, big containers filled with strange fluids everywhere in the lab, some mutilated bodies floating inside them.

On the chair at the center of the lab sat Azuma his chin supported by the hilt of his sword placed under it, the fainted Sai lying before him on the ground, silence in the room.

Tap…

But with the sound of footsteps, the silence was broken, as from the already opened entrance door, three figures entered the room.

Sasuke with a pale expression on his face entered the room, both of his hands around the shoulders of Sakura and Naruto, being supported by both of them.

Thud…

"Sit" here Said Azuma, as he whizzed the nearby chair towards the three, motioning Sakura and Naruto to let the injured Sasuke sit here.

"Be careful Sasuke-Kun" Sakura guided Sasuke towards the chair, letting him sit on the chair with extreme care, a hint of worry in her tone.

"Thank You…Sakura…I'm fine…" Sasuke after a beating seemed a lot reasonable as he thanked Sakura, assuring her not to worry.

Tap…

"What do you want from me?" Asked Sasuke after sitting on the chair, his black eyes with a complex look in them gazing at the guy sitting before him.

This guy who looked around his age, was able to make him feel so powerless, honestly he never wanted to go through such an experience again.

Behind the chair of Sasuke on his left and right stood Naruto and Sakura, curiously looking at Azuma, wondering what he had to say to Sasuke, if they are not wrong, it should be the first time they even met.

"Ha…"

Feeling the curious gazes of the three on him, Azuma took a deep breath, like deciding about something, his lips parting: "Uchiha Sasuke, how much do you know about your Clan? I'll say what I have to after listening to your answer"

Asked Azuma, raising his eyebrows, his hawk shaped eyes, looking at Sasuke calmly.

The face of Sasuke changed slightly hearing him mention his extinct clan but nonetheless he chose to answer:" My Clan was a proud and mighty Clan, we were feared around the world by our powers, but…all because of that single guy, all was lost…damn Itachi!!!"

Roared Sasuke, his eyes turning blood red again, his voice overflowing with hatred, as just remembering him, he gets enraged beyond sanity.

"Your hate towards Itachi Uchiha is immense, will you really be happy after killing him or after getting your revenge?" Asked Azuma looking at the roaring Sasuke, his rage worrying Naruto and Sakura behind him.

"I have lived my life for a sole purpose, that is to see Itachi die before my own eyes, I don't care about being happy after that or not, the only reason I left the village was to seek strength that is enough to defeat him"

Said Sasuke, his tone firm, three black tomoe slowly spinning in his eyes.

"What if I were to tell you, that even if you succeeded in killing Itachi, you will regret killing him to the point that you would want to destroy everything"

Tap…

"That's impossible! I would never regret killing him, he killed our father, mother, our whole clan, he is the most notorious criminal in the world, all I would feel after killing him is endless relief" Shouted Sasuke, his hands clenched into a fist, his blood boiling in rage, the wound on his chest opening again, some blood spilling down.

"Calm down Sasuke-Kun, don't get angry, otherwise that treatment will be for naught" said Sakura behind him, grabbing his shoulders, calming Sasuke.

"What if I were to tell you that there are others responsible for the tragedy of Uchiha Clan, those who deserve to die hundreds time more than Itachi Uchiha?"

"what...?"

Azuma ignored the enraged Sasuke, and kept talking, his words like a bomb dropping in the minds of Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura.

"W-what do you mean…?" Sasuke's hands trembled a little, as he asked in a quivering tone, his eyes focused on Azuma, couldn't wait to know more information.

Sasuke actually has been thinking about this for a long time, no matter how strong Itachi was, there was really no way he could have taken down the whole Uchiha Police Force alone, he must have someone helping him.

"Before you know the names of others involved in the tragedy of Uchiha Clan, you should know about the foundation of Konoha"

"You should know about the life of Uchiha Itachi, a victim in the struggle of choosing a clan or the village"

Tap…

Said Azuma lightly as he stood up walking up to a big container near him, widened eyes of Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura behind stuck on him.

Azuma after thinking a lot decided to tell Sasuke the truth, because now that killing Sasuke is out of options because of Naruto and Sakura, he can only try to take some precautions.

In original Sasuke learned the truth after killing Itachi, the thought of killing someone who did so much for his sake drove him towards darkness.

He just wanted to give him a chance before everything was over, if even after learning the truth he still refuses to go back, than even if Tsunade or the whole village stands before Sasuke, his blade won't go down.

"Victim…Itachi…" murmured Sasuke, his heat shaking a little, but he forced himself to calm down and kept focusing on Azuma who had started speaking about the warring states era.

"The troubled times came to an end with the ancestor of Senju Clan, the first Hokage, Senju Hashirama, joining hands with the leader of Uchiha Clan Madara Uchiha, the curtains of the long lasting war finally fell"

Both Senju Hashirama and Madara Uchiha achieved their dreams and the village hidden in the leaves was founded, the one who named the village was Madara Uchiha"

Said Azuma, gazing intently at the big container before him, telling the story of how the village was formed.

"An Uchiha named the village!" Both Naruto and Sakura were shocked, as they never expected such a history of the village.

"What does this have to do with Itachi?" Asked Sasuke, who was also surprised somewhat but he didn't get any useful information related to Itachi.

"Be patient, the reason behind the fated extinction of Uchiha Clan is due to what happened after the village was founded"

"As Konoha was founded, it needed a leader, or a Hokage, Senju Hashirama offered Uchiha Madara who despite losing his brother in the war to Senju, had accepted to reconcile the position of Hokage"

"But Hashirama's younger brother Senju Tobirama, the future second Hokage, the man who had killed the brother of Madara, was against Madara becoming a Hokage and other people of the village also wanted Hashirama to be the Hokage"

"Hashirama couldn't fulfil his promise to Madara and had no choice to become the Hokage himself, even if he didn't want to"

"Madara may be due to this reason left the village, the man who had forgiven his brothers killers, couldn't toughen himself anymore"

Said Azuma a hint of pity in his tone for Madara, knowing Madara was really a pitiful man, who just wanted peace, but in the end he was nothing more than a pawn.

"Damn! This second Hokage, he looks like a bad guy!" Naruto who heard the story cursed as he couldn't help but feel pity for Madara, who despite enduring everything, still got betrayed.

Sakura also had a look of pity on her face, and Sasuke just kept looking at Azuma for more information, though what he had heard also burned flames of anger in his heart for Second Hokage.

"Madara left, Senju Hashirama became the Hokage, other lands also adopted the village policy, Sand, Stone, Mist and Cloud one by one were founded, their leaders Kazekage, Tsuchikage, Mizukage, and Raikage"

"Time passed, but one day Madara suddenly returned and wanted to destroy the village, Hashirama tried to stop him as he didn't want to fight his best friend, But Madara who had brought the controlled Nine Tails with him attacked him with full force"

"What! Nine Tails?" Asked Naruto with a bewildered look over his face, Sakura beside equally astonished as well.

"Yes, the Nine Tails that is sealed inside you, Madara was able to control it with his Mangekyo Sharingan, only Sharingan is capable of controlling Tail Beasts"

"So this is the secret behind that strange power of his" Thought Sasuke looking at Naruto, as he finally understood why Naruto had that strange power, Naruto was actually a Jinchuriki.

"Hashirama in the end had no choice but to fight Madara, the fight continued for a whole day and night, and in the end Hashirama emerged victorious and Madara died in the valley, currently known as End Valley"

"Soon, after the fight Hashirama succumbed to his injuries and died as well and Tobirama became the second Hokage, and the start of the struggle of choosing the clan or a village finally started"

"The second Hokage created an organization with in the village which was responsible for dealing with the criminals and to enforce law in the village"

"Sasuke you should know about this organization, your father Fugaku was its leader" Said Azuma turning towards Sasuke, asking him to guess what it was.

"Uchiha Police Force" Said Sasuke lightly, some memories of the past with him on Itachi's back passing by the building flashed in his mind.

"It's a fact that those who control crime are also easily disliked, Uchiha became a symbol of fear in the village, rather than bringing a sense of security to people, Uchiha only brought fear to the villagers"

"This only resulted in Uchiha distancing themselves from the villagers as well, migrating to the margins of the village, a small village in the village was formed, Uchiha living separately, you should know this Sasuke"

"It's true" Nodded Sasuke, remembering how he had lived at the outskirts of the village and people would always get somewhat afraid after seeing the emblem on his back.

"The second Hokage had six students he had taught personally, one of them was Sarutobi Hiruzen, the third Hokage, Koharu and Mitokado the current advisors, and Shimura Danzo, the leader of the root Organization, the organization which is equally strong as Anbu Black Ops, Sai is also a part of Root Organization"

Said Azuma pointing towards Sai who lay unconscious on the ground, the pupils of everyone in the room dilated a bit, the history of the village stunning them completely.

"Nearing his death, Second Hokage appointed Sarutobi Hiruzen the Third Hokage, which only fanned the flames of anger in Uchiha"

"It was both Uchiha and Senju who had founded the village, but the leadership of the village even after decades stayed in the hands of Senju and it became a dream for Uchiha to have a Hokage from their clan"

Said Azuma lightly, telling the dark history of village to the present three, who were completely left bewildered by what he told.

"It's really unfair for Uchiha!" Said Naruto garnishing his teeth, his hands clenched into fists, an unwilling look on his face.

Clearly Uchiha had an equal part in founding the village why were they sidelined and hated like this, it was really unfair.

"The Third Hokage tried to reconcile with Uchiha many times in his life, but the presence of a certain man only increased the distance of Uchiha with Konoha's top echelons"

"Who was it?" Asked Sasuke, a not so good look over his face, as just hearing the history had made him angry.

"Shimura Danzo, the man who strongly inherited the teachings of Second Hokage and used his Root Organization to do every dirty work in the name of protecting the village, it includes killing innocent children's who could be a potential threat to the village, and he also kidnapped kids, brainwashing them turning them into emotionless killing machines"

"Sai before you, a prime example of it, he was trained in hell like conditions and his final task to be an Official Root Shinobi was to kill his friend who he viewed like his elder brother"

"Shimura Danzo…this bastard!!!" Shouted Naruto, his pitiful eyes stuck at Sai who lay fainted on the ground, some orange charka appearing around him.

"What did this Danzo do?" Sakura was angry as well, but remembering his earlier words, she asked, wondering what part he played in the demise of Uchiha.

"Second Hokage who had seen the strength of Uchiha Madara, was afraid of the emergence of another Uchiha Madara, so he always viewed them with extreme caution"

"Shimura Danzo who inherited his will always made trouble for the Clan, framing them of some deeds they never did, stinking their reputation even more in the village"

"Time continued to pass, during the third ninja world war, Namikaze Minato, the yellow flash of the leaf became famous and he was named the fourth Hokage, which only angered Uchiha even more"

"But than 16 years ago, something happened that completely tore the last remaining bit face of Uchiha with the Konoha Upper Echelons"

"The Attack of Nine Tails Fox, which ended in the death of Fourth Hokage, Uchiha was blamed for this incident, as everyone was aware that only the Sharingan could control Nine Tails Fox"

"This…it's so wrong…" Said Naruto a painful look over his face, as from the words of Azuma he could guess that much, Uchiha was not behind this incident and they might have been framed.

"After this incident, Third Hokage retook the office, and in a meeting Shimura Danzo proposed to re locate the already separate Uchiha to the outskirts of the village"

"This resulted in the patience of Uchiha finally giving off, and something that was feared really started"

Said Azuma, and a serious look appeared on his face, knowing what he will tell now are secrets that no one except Obito, Itachi and two Advisors, are aware off.

"What did the Uchiha do?" Asked Sasuke, his voice eager, an impatient look in his eyes, knowing the real part of the story had finally begun.

"In a secret meeting in the Naka Shrine of Uchiha Clan, a voiced suggestion was presented before the Patriarch of Uchiha Clan, your Father, Fugaku Uchiha"

"A suggestion?" Sasuke wrinkled his eyebrows, Naruto and Sakura also eagerly looking at him.

"The decades of anger finally erupted and a plan to take over everything was put forward in the meeting, yes, a coup d'état"

"A coup d'état" Sasuke was shaken and some memories of his past came into his mind, his father talking with Itachi in a separate room along with his mother.

"Uchiha plotted a coup d'état, it was supposed to be kept secret as Uchiha wanted to look for a perfect Opportunity to take over the village in one fell swoop, but unknown to whole Uchiha Clan, they had two spies with in them"

Said Azuma, as he stopped talking and looked towards Sasuke, whose face was changing constantly.

"W-who was it?" Asked Sasuke, his voice a lot meeker, his hands trembling constantly.

"You know them pretty well Sasuke, one of them was Uchiha Shisui the teleporter, and the other was your older brother, the son of patriarch, the man who ended his whole clan"

"Uchiha… Itachi"

Azuma's words like a bomb exploded in the mind of Sasuke, his eyes widened, his heart beating fast, a chill going through his whole body.

"Itachi became a spy…you are lying…why would he do that!!!" Roared Sasuke nearly lunging towards Azuma, as the latest information was too much for him to believe.

Why would Itachi an Uchiha would betray his clan, he couldn't come to believe it.

"I have no reason to lie you…I just want to give you a choice before you regret on what you did and end up trying to destroy the world"

"At that time even if the whole world stands before you, my sword won't stop and would only rest after spilling your blood"

Said Azuma, a red aura appearing around him, his currently red hawk like eyes stuck at Sasuke, whose sweat roll down from his brows, his heart beating fast, his body trembling slightly.

Thud…

"Be careful Sakura-Chan!"

Sasuke due to his strong will was only shaking, but Sakura behind stumbled nearly falling, Naruto whose will was equally strong as Sasuke, catching her at the last moment, helping her stand straight.

"It seems you have calmed down now" Said Azuma looking at Sasuke who sat still on the chair, all kinds of emotion appearing and disappearing on his face, before a final determinant look appeared as he calmly gazed back at Azuma.

"Why would Itachi and this guy Shisui betray the Uchiha Clan, Azuma?" Naruto behind asked, a confused look over his face, as it didn't seem right.

"It's true that Uchiha Clan was sidelined but it's also a fact that nearly all Uchiha had arrogant personalities and were immensely proud of their Sharingan and would not put ordinary shinobi in their eyes"

"The arrogance that they are the strongest clan in the world, it was inherited generation by generation from warring states era and so on"

"Nearly every Uchiha would introduce himself as shinobi from Uchiha Clan not from Konoha, even when they just founded the village, and were not treated unfairly, even then they would do the same thing"

"They put the clan above the village, and that's why nearly every Uchiha Shinobi after graduating from academy would join Uchiha Police Force, rather than being a part of a three-man squad and interact with others"

"Am I right, Sasuke?" Asked Azuma, looking at Sasuke who sat before him.

*Big Brother When I grow up, I would join the Uchiha Police Force as well* Hearing his words, Sasuke remembered the past when he on Itachi's back passed by the Uchiha Police Force Headquarters and told his dream to enter the Uchiha Police Force.

"It's true…" Said Sasuke lightly, the unwillingness to believe in Azuma's words disappearing more and more from his eyes, as his every word was proving out to be true.

"But there were some Uchiha who could transcend the boundaries of clan and think for both the village and clan"

"Two of them were Uchiha Shisui and Uchiha Itachi"

"Both of them were part of Anbu Black Ops under the Third Hokage, your father Fugaku had planted Itachi in Anbu so he could get highly secret information of the village through him but unknown to him Itachi was supplying the clan's secret information to Konoha Top Echelons"

"A double agent!" Said Sakura, a shocked look over her face, Naruto had the same astonishment as well and Sasuke once again falling into his memories remembering the time when he overheard the conversation between his father and Itachi.

"I know you are curious as to why would Itachi become a double agent, it's simple, war, Itachi when just four years old, had seen the brutality of war, lives being taken at every second, this impacted him greatly and he developed a pacifist personality"

"Itachi was sensitive from a young age, he could think of things far beyond his age, he had already foreseen the result of a battle between Uchiha Clan and the Village"

"Countless lives would be lost and no matter who wins, it will only weaken Konoha in the end, and other villages would never let such a chance go, all of this could have easily triggered the Fourth Ninja World War, resulting in numerous lives being lost"

"Itachi continued to grow and was always stuck in a struggle whether to choose his clan or the village, but then something happened that proved out to be curtains for Uchiha Clan"

Said Azuma, a somewhat pitiful look flashing in his eyes, as what happened that year was really one of the greatest betrayal of all times.

"What happened?" Asked Sasuke, his voice weak, his whole body trembling, as just from the story till now, he could guess how much Itachi had to go through, and even if he didn't want to, he could feel the desire to kill Itachi was weakening.

Naruto and Sakura were equally curious as well, and Sakura already seemed to have some tears for Itachi, as from what she heard, she can already guess what kind of struggle in Itachi was involved.

"The death of Uchiha Shisui, it was something that drove Itachi to make a decision"

Said Azuma, and seeing the anxious eyes of three wanting to know more, he continued: "Uchiha Shisui, also known as Shisui the teleporter in the world was famous for his terrifying shunsin no Jutsu, and he was also a good friend and a mentor like figure to Itachi"

"During a mission, Shisui saw the death of his closed one, which resulted in him evolving his eyes to the level which only Madara and his younger brother could reach"

"Mangekyo!"

"Yes, Mangekyo," nodded Azuma confirming Sasuke's guess and added: Every Mangekyo contains a special Doujutsu in it, Shisui's eyes had a Doujutsu, called Kotoamatsukami, also known as the strongest Genjutsu ever"

"This Doujutsu allowed Shisui to silently change the will of a person permanently to his likings, a truly terrifying ability"

Hiss~

Naruto and Sakura couldn't help but take a deep breath, their eyes widened, as this ability was truly terrifying, changing the will of a person, this power shouldn't even exist.

Sasuke was shocked as well but Azuma ignored them and continued speaking: "As time passed, Uchiha were getting more and more restless, and it seemed that at any moment Uchiha would launch a coup d'état"

"Shisui seeing the situation proposed a plan to Third Hokage, to change the will of Uchiha Fugaku with his eyes so that the coup can be stopped"

"The Third Hokage thanked him and agreed with the plan, but the presence of that man destroyed the last hope of a reconciliation between Uchiha and Village"

"The same day Shisui proposed his plan to change the will of your father, Danzo suddenly summoned Shisui for a private talk"

"Shisui went there but…during the talk Shisui was suddenly attacked by Danzo who was greedy for Mangekyo, and gouged his one eye out, and all other root Shinobi ganged on him"

"DAMN Danzo!!!"

BOOM!!!

Naruto behind Sasuke roared, long thread of orange energy wafting out of him, his teeth getting slightly long, his nails getting bigger, a fast wind rolling in the lab.

"Danzo!!"

Sasuke seemed equally angry as well, the three tomoe in his eyes rapidly spinning but just when they were about to connect with each other, they stopped, maybe the stimulation not enough.

"This…Danzo…how can he do this…?" Sakura asked as well, tears in her eyes, feeling immensely sad for this Uchiha Shisui, who was betrayed by the people he spent his life protecting.

Tap…

"Don't rile up your chakra, calm down…" Said Azuma as he went forward, and tapped both Sasuke and Naruto hardly on the shoulders, waking them up from the state of anger.

Ha…

Hearing his words, Naruto took a deep breath, the orange chakra around him dispersing, but his eyes still stayed red, showing how angry he was.

Sasuke did the same and looked at Azuma with eyes that seemed slightly more red than before, hoping to listen more.

"Shisui fought hard with Root Shinobi and tried to escape but he was seriously injured by the sneak attack of Danzo and couldn't last longer against so many Root Shinobi, but just when he was about to fall in the hands of Root Shinobi, Itachi arrived and saved him, both of them running away successfully"

"At the Naka River, on the cliff near the waterfalls, Shisui told Itachi everything that happened and for the sake of the village, to not to cause unrest, he decided something"

"Rather than taking revenge on Danzo who betrayed him, he handed his other eye to Itachi and after advising him to protect both the village and clan, he committed suicide by jumping down the cliff"

"Seeing his best friend die before him resulted in Itachi unlocking his own Mangekyo, deep sadness welling in his heart"

Sigh…

"Shisui's will to protect the village even after being betrayed, impacted Itachi greatly and he didn't take revenge on Danzo, knowing this will only speed up the conflict between Uchiha and Village"

Said Azuma, sighing, as this was really the greatest tragedy ever, the choice to choose between village and clan, it sounded simple but it took so many lives to decide.

Sob…

Naruto and Sasuke remained quiet at his words, an immensely sad look over their face, a tearing pain impacting their heart, only the sound of Sakura sobbing could be heard in the surroundings.

"Shisui death was declared as Suicide and even the suicide note was found at his home but some Uchiha suspected someone to be behind the death of Shisui, yes, your brother, they suspected it might be him who had killed Shisui"

"This only saddened Itachi even more, who was working so hard to find a way to save both Uchiha and the Village, in the end the time to launch an attack finally came, and as a spy Itachi reported everything to the village's higher ups"

"Itachi…how much have you…" Said Sasuke, his eyes getting hazy, a complex look in them, he never understood his brother at all.

At the meeting in Hokage Office, The Third Hokage proposed a plan to talk with Uchiha directly to solve the issue and asked Itachi to buy him as much time as he can"

"But that same night, Danzo summoned Itachi for a private talk as well, despite knowing he might be attacked, Itachi still went there"

"Danzo their meeting, he gave a proposal to Itachi, one was to fight alongside Uchiha and perish with all of them, resulting in the extinction of clan, from newborn children to old man every one dying"

And the other…

Saying that Azuma stopped and looked at Sasuke whose face was changing constantly and giving him a deep look he continued: "The other was to kill everyone in his clan including his parents with his own hands"

"The advantage of this proposal being, one Uchiha would be left alive, the one who knew nothing, the one who Itachi couldn't build up the courage to kill"

"Uchiha Sasuke"

Thump…Thump…

Azuma's words fell, and the heart of Sasuke began to beat faster and faster, the past coming to his mind,

"Run… cling to your worthless life…you are weak….and not even worth killing…."

"You don't have enough hate…and you know what… you never will"

"Itachi did what he was told, he killed his whole clan, including his parents only on the condition of letting you live,"

"Two years ago, when third Hokage Died, Itachi reappeared in the village, it was to warn Danzo that he was still alive and you are not allowed to touch Sasuke"

"Now do you understand…the day Itachi left the village, he had already prepared himself to die in your hands…he made you hate himself, so that you can get stronger…he made you someone who could judge him for what he did…this is the truth of… Uchiha… Itachi,"

Sob…

"No matter how big of an obstacle it is, I will always be there to help you, that's what big brothers are for, Sasuke"

*Poke*

"Sorry Sasuke, some other time…"

"Big Brother…."

There was a silence in the lab, the sounds of tears falling on the ground resounding, Sasuke's hands covering his eyes, tears running down like a damn has been opened, a voice full of grief escaping his mouth.

Sakura was no less than Sasuke, her both hands continuously wiping the silent tears, Naruto with a painful look over his face, standing quietly.

Finally, after 10 or more minutes, the tears of Sasuke finally stopped, as he raised his head and opened his eyes, red eyes with a completely different pattern appearing and a word left his mouth.

"Danzo!"

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