The Wish That Brought Me You (Itachi Uchiha x Fem Reader)

Chapter 17: We are Forever

I suddenly inhale sharply as someone grabs me from behind and presses a kunai knife to my throat.

"Who are you?" They growl urgently, "And who gave you the right to trespass here?"
I would recognize that voice anywhere. It's his voice——Itachi's voice.

"Itachi..." I whisper, "I-It's me."

I feel him slowly lower the weapon away from my neck, losing his grip on it. I can't help but flinch as it clangs against the floor, reverberating through the room with a repetitive metallic tone.

Preparing myself mentally, I slowly turn around to face him. And when our eyes meet, I can already see tears forming in his.

"Y/N..." he mumbles, backing away from me as though he can't believe his eyes, "B-but how are you here? You left years ago... I don't understand..."
He grips his head out of sheer disbelief.

"I must be hallucinating," he hypothesizes, "Yes, that must be it. You're just a figment of my imagination, that's all."

I shake my head stubbornly.

"No!" I declare, "I'm not! I'm actually here! I can prove it..."
I reach for his hand, and clasp it within my own. He shivers ever-so-slightly beneath my touch, and then glances up at me with shiny eyes clouded by tears.

"Is... is it really you?"
I nod, again and again, desperately.

"Yes——I came back for you!"
I sigh of pure joy as his gentle arms embrace me, just as they had done all of those years ago. And I'm once again filled with a warmth that only he can provide me.

All of the emotions I've been storing deep inside abruptly rise to the surface, emerging as a pile of tears that I cry into Itachi's shoulder.

I can feel his touch, and hear his voice——he even smells the same as I remember. Perhaps he appears slightly older, but there's no doubt in my mind, he's my love.

He pulls away from me and grips my shoulders, glancing me up and down, eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't understand," his voice breaks a bit as he speaks, "How did you get back? The Medical Ninja had said you can't dimension-jump in your world..."
"I know," I respond, "But none of that mattered to me. I found a way to come back to you. I will never stop fighting for you, Itachi. And I will never leave your side again."
He gets closer and closer to me, until we're only centimeters away from one another.

"Thank you," he whispers before pulling me into a tender kiss.

How I've missed the touch of his warm, soft lips. 

My feelings for him only grow with every passing second we're together, creating an even stronger bond that I will never allow be broken again.

Shit——I almost forgot!

I abruptly pull away from him, glancing frantically into his eyes.

"Itachi, you can't fight Sasuke," I warn him, "If you do, you'll only die. And your sacrifice will have been for nothing. He'll learn the truth about why you did what you did to the Uchiha clan. And then, he'll try to take revenge on the leaf village. Trust me, I've seen it all happen already."

Itachi narrows his eyes at me, clearly skeptical.

"How do you know all of this, Y/N? I never told you about my family history, or even my little brother, for that matter."

He'll never believe me if I tell him the truth——I read it in a manga based on this realm.

"Because I've been in the future," I improvise, telling half-truths, "So, I know all about your history. And I've seen exactly what will happen if you go through with this plan of yours. I've watched you die, Itachi, more times than I can handle. And every time I fail at stopping your brother from killing you, I reset the timeline and start from scratch. That's how I know what will inevitably happen should you battle Sasuke."

He contemplates my words for a moment before sighing warily.

"I have no choice but to confront him, Y/N, or he'll never find his true destiny."

I clench my hands into tight fists, becoming increasingly stressed due to the intense fear circulating throughout my entire being.

"I can't lose you, Itachi!" I shout, tears streaming down my face, "Don't you see? I can't just let you march to your death! I have to save you! So, please, don't do this!"

Itachi rests his hand on my shoulder, trying to console me.

"Even if I don't fight Sasuke, I'll inevitably pass away very soon."
I feel my breath become caught in my chest as he utters these words.

"What... do you mean?"
He frowns.

"I'm sick, with an incurable illness. All this time, I've been using medication to sustain myself so I can see my plan through to help Sasuke. Otherwise, I would have probably died by now, already."

I recall reading about this sickness in the manga, but I figured that I could help him find a way to cure it once I arrived here.

"No, I refuse to believe there is nothing we can do," I insist, "I will travel to every town and hunt down every doctor and medical ninja until we find one that can make you better. I promise."

He shakes his head slowly.

"There's no such person alive at the moment," he murmurs, "I've tried just about everything, but——"

Itachi's sentence is interrupted as he suddenly coughs up a significant amount of blood, clutching his chest tightly as he nearly loses his balance. I grab ahold of him, making sure he remains upright.

"Itachi!" I exclaim worriedly, rubbing his back until the coughs cease, "Are you alright?"
He nods a couple times as his breathing becomes regular once again.

"Y/N..." he utters, "I want to be with you forever. But, there's nothing we can do. One way or another, I will inevitably die. So, I may as well pass on my abilities to my little brother. Then, at least I'll know I won't have lived my life in vain."
I try to retain my composure for Itachi's sake. Seeing me break down right in front of him won't help him in the slightest.

"C-can you give me a minute?" I at last manage to say, "I just need a bit of fresh air."
He reaches his hand out to me as I scurry out of the hideout, burying my face in my hands.

"Y/N!" He calls after me, but I can't work up the courage to respond.

Instead, once outside, I lean against the outer wall and cry into my palms, trying to remain as silent as possible.

It's simply not fair. Why can't this world let me have happiness, just this once? All I need is Itachi——he's everything to me.

"Please don't take him away," I beg, hoping someone out there will answer my prayers, "Please don't take him from me..."

Suddenly, I feel a warm hand on my back and immediately recognize it as Itachi's.

"Nothing and no one will ever take me from you," he whispers, "Not even death can do that."

I look up at him, teary-eyed and empty.

"Would you like to know how I'm sure of that?" He continues, "Because when you left here the first time, having gone back to your dimension, the pain I felt was nearly unbearable. But something kept me going..."

He places his palm on top of his chest, smiling subtly.

"...I could feel you here, like a part of you was still with me," he explains, "And I have loved you all this time."

My eyes widen as these familiar words fill my ears yet again.

"From the moment you first came here, I've loved you. And I will continue loving you long after I'm gone. But if you're ever feeling lonely and need someone to be with, just know that I'll be up in the stars, waiting for you, just like we talked about that one night on the rooftop."

I grasp his hand out of sheer desperation as he says these bittersweet things.

"But, Itachi, I can't do this! How am I supposed to keep going without you?!"

He caresses my cheek softly with one of his hands, smiling warmly at me.

"You will never have to. I will always be with you... That's a promise."