Book 2: The Three of Us

Chapter 17: How Time Changes

This chapter is brought to you on the coldest day yet this winter. Seriously, it's freezing. Just for some fun, the picture included above is our fountain that froze overnight. Well, anyways, I really hope y'all are enjoying the story so far. Every read makes me very happy and motivates me to keep writing.

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Taking in a panicked breath, I sit up from where I was laying on the ground dead just moments ago. Activating my sharingan, I take a moment to look around at everything around me. Beside me is the body's of three of the Six Paths of Pain. Getting them to attack me with no backup so others could escape was probably one of the stupidest things I could of done. After all, after defeating them, I did end up dying. It felt disorientating to be back to the living.

Waiting for me after death was Shisui, and despite how angry I still was with him, I was so happy to see him again. His suicide still cuts deep, it always will, but I feel lighter after being able to sit and talk to him. Using a wall to pull myself up, I shakily make it to my feet. My chakra levels are dangerously low but I can't deactivate my sharingan. I need it to be able to navigate the destroyed village. It still didn't feel real, the complete destruction of Konoha.

Tension in my chest has me coughing, my hand instinctively going to cover it. Once the coughing subsides, I look down at my palm and see speckles of blood. I wipe it off on my pants and push it aside as a future problem. Scanning the area I'm in, there isn't a single person around. It seems I was successful in making it so everyone else could escape. A relieved smile makes its way onto my face. All I could hope for now was that everyone else was okay. I felt a small bit of panic, not knowing where to begin in my search for everyone.

Setting my eyes on where the hokage tower once was, I decided that was the best place for me to go. I was with Sakura at the start of the attack and when we parted ways, I know she went that way to assist Tsunade. Hopefully she was still there. As I made my way to the rubble of the hokage tower, my mind wandered to everything Shisui and I talked about. He left me his eyes for a reason and despite my vision deteriorating to the point of almost complete blindness, I still haven't been able to let myself use his eyes.

He made me promise him I'd use them and the very idea of it makes me sick to my stomach. It felt wrong on so many levels to use the eyes of another to make myself more powerful. I've already made peace with going blind, I'm okay with it. But Shisui said I'll need his eyes for the things to come. The warning felt ominous and left me on edge.

Finding Sakura beside the alive but exhausted Hokage has me rushing towards her and pulling her into a hug, thankful that she's okay. I pull back but still hold her in my arms, I could tell she was just as exhausted and seriously depleted of chakra, "Have you seen Kisame and my family?"

Sakura gives me a teary smile, just as happy to see me, "They're all okay. Sasuke, Kisame and your parents are helping the people who got stuck in the evacuation tunnels."

I let out a heavy breath of relief which ends up triggering another cough attack, this time much worse then the last. The wet crackle of my cough is all I can hear and I'm grateful that Sakura reaches out to grab me and keep me steady. When the attack finally subsides, Sakura holds my face gently with her hands. Her hands are cold against my face and there's no doubt I'm running a fever.

"Hey, are you okay?" Sakura asks, voice filled with worry.

"Just a flare up. Nothing some chakra rest and anti-inflammatories can't fix," I say to her and when I speak it feels like sand paper is being shoved up my throat.  I reach inside my kunai pouch and take out a bottle of my medication. Opening it I take out three pills, Tsunade hands me a water bottle and I quickly swallow them.

Tsunade quickly sets me to work, having me coordinate the different clean up and rescue teams. The work keeps me busy and stops my mind from wandering until it's hours past dark and I'm making my way back to my house. 

The Uchiha clan compound being one of the few places in the village that wasn't completely destroyed in the attack has the whole place packed with people setting up tents and families opening up there homes for others to stay in. Over half of the buildings here were still standing strong, only the older buildings having collapsed. Making my way into my house, I walk past my mother and Sasuke in the kitchen putting together all the food they can to give out to the extra people we are housing in the clan compound. My body aches with exhaustion with every movement and my mind feels hazy. 

My mother calls my name but I don't stop as I make my way into my room. Opening the bottom drawer of my desk, under a false bottom, I pull out a sealing scroll I've had hidden under there for years now. Unrolling it, I active the seal and the vile holding Shisui's eyes appears. I let the scroll drop to the ground as I stare at the vile in my hand.

In my rush, I left the door open and my mother steps into my room, "Hey, do you think you could...help me," her voice trails off at the end of the question as she looks at me and the vile in my hand. Her face is a mix of shock and confusion.

Looking up at her, sharingan still activated, my eyes fill with tears, threatening to fall at any second, "I don't know what to do, mom," my voice breaks as I speak, "I can't see, my vision is almost completely gone. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I don't think I can do this."

"Itachi, who's eyes are those?" my mom asks, her voice nothing more than a whisper.

My eyes burn and it takes every bit of my effort to speak, "Shisui's." Speaking feels almost impossible and causes my whole body to hurt as I force the words out. A wave of dizziness hits me and I grab onto the edge of the table to keep standing. 

"I thought they were destroyed in the accident," my mom says, confused why I have them.

Guilt builds up in me at hiding the truth from her, "It wasn't an accident. He killed himself and left me his eyes," letting out a shaky breath, tears start to fall but I continue, "I died during the attack. I was dead. Shisui was there, waiting for me. We talked and he told me to use his eyes but I don't think I can."

My mom rushes towards me and wraps me in a hug, holding me tightly, "Hey, it's okay, you're okay."

I hide my face, leaning into my mom as I cry, the tears unable to stop. I finally deactivate my sharingan, letting my chakra relax for what feels like the first time in forever. 

In the doorway, Sasuke's blurred form stands motionless, shocked at what he's overheard.

My crying sets off another cough attack, and with how exhausted I am, I can't keep myself up any longer. My body shakes with the exertion of the attack, my head spins and everything goes dark once again.