The Story of Hagami III [Naruto Fanfic | Uchiha] [Completed]

4 | Rest

The rest of the week was peaceful for Hagami. But frequently she's felt chakra sources wandering around the outskirts of the Old Uchiha Hideout and then finally a barrier being set up about three days prior to the fight. Kisame had also shown up and bypassed the system. He was already inside with Hagami at the moment, filling her in on everything she missed, or neglected to try to figure out.

"Yeah, the Uchiha Clan is surrounding this entire area. It's a miracle that I managed to get into this area." Kisame muttered standing beside her. His arm rested at the crest of the throne she was sitting on. "So, how many days from now?" He asked.

"Two days in about a half an hour." Hagami responded calmly. She wasn't slouching at all, but she did rest her elbow on the left side of the throne.

"Are you going to truly follow through?" Kisame asked.

"Yes, it's a fight to the death between us Uchiha." Hagami answered. "I knew my fate the moment I decided to preserve peace in Ko-" Hagami didn't get the chance to finish her sentence, let alone word when she began coughing erratically. She hunched over, one hand on her heart and her other hand covering her mouth.

"Hagami!" Kisame placed his hand on her shoulder and then hit her back a few times. She grunted as she cleared her throat harshly. "Where're your pills? Have you taken them?" He asked concernedly. He squeezed her shoulder lightly to see if she would respond.

"I-I have." Hagami assured. "It's just not enough anymore. I can't just take what's been prescribed now. But there isn't a need to worry, I'll be fine." She mumbled quietly, it was all her voice would allow at he moment. "Taking anymore will probably kill me. It already takes a toll on my immune system and my physical body. I'm surprised that I haven't died from this pills yet."

"If it weren't for this feud between you and your brother, I'd want to fight you myself and test my skills against you." Kisame finally admitted to her whilst changing the subject. He squeezed her shoulder as a way of reassurance or possibly to show that he cared about her as a sibling.

"I had a feeling you'd say that." Hagami chuckled a few seconds later. "Look, if I make it out of here, I'll fight you, one-on-one." She looked up blindly but Kisame could still tell she was trying to look into his eyes.

"What? Really?" Kisame asked surprised and removed his hand from her shoulder. The warmth left behind though made her remember this was perhaps the last conversation she'd have with him. So she took in the serene moment, engraved it in her memory but still waited for the impending storm.

"Ah, and I'll stick to my word on that one."

"To think I'll be able to fight against you if you make it out alive." Kisame murmured but he sounded excited. "I'll be waiting."

"Then let us just hope that I make it out alive." Hagami said but she was hoping for the exact opposite.

---

One day was left until Sasuke was going to set out toward the Old Uchiha Hideout. He had Itachi and Shisui by his side and with their help, he learned a lot about Hagami and her techniques. Though expansive, Sasuke used his Sharingan to keep them all stored in his head.

There was one technique he couldn't use though. Between his training and missions, he never once was able to awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan. This would've put him at a major disadvantage if Shisui hadn't helped him with it, as well as the rigorous training regime at a site near the Land of Fire's Feudal Lord. Shisui taught him that if he were to fight Hagami without the Mangekyō Sharingan, he'd better learn some Kenjutsu in order to balance it out since that was Hagami's worse asset.

But even with this it'd be tough to beat her and he knew that.

However, he also had at least one jutsu that'd be able to match her caliber. Using the Raiton, Raikou Hitofuki no Jutsu (Lightning Style, Lightning Blast Jutsu) gave him a shot to cancel out her strongest jutsu beside the ones she could use with the Mangekyō Sharingan. But he doubted that she'd use that unless it was a last resort so he didn't have to worry about that much yet.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Sasuke, you need to prepare." Itachi was at his door and he pushed it open. He found Sasuke sitting on his bed, his ninja gear laid out in front of him but none of it was packed. His katana was laying the closest to him too.

"I...feel like I'm making a mistake...doing this." Sasuke muttered under his breath but Itachi still caught it.

"Stop the fight at the end. Shisui and I will step in then, and we'll show the entire Uchiha Clan the truth from out memories-"

"No, it's not that. It's just meeting up with her tomorrow. Something...feels wrong." Sasuke mumbled. "I don't think I'll be able to follow through. I knew Jiraiya was telling a lie, there's no way she'd be able to do that."

"I'm sure Hagami knows something is up too. She'll take care of the barrier as soon as the fight commences." Itachi assured. "And if she doesn't, Shisui and I will be close enough to do so ourselves."

"I-I don't want to fight Onēsan." Sasuke said and finally looked up to Itachi. It was then that Itachi noticed Sasuke's slightly red eyes.

"And I shouldn't of lied to you in the first place, for that, I'm sorry," Itachi apologized quietly and Sasuke's eyes widened a little.

"I've forgiven a long time ago, Nīsan," Sasuke murmured, his voice slightly raspy, "It was under Hagami's request, so it wasn't truly your words. But I don't understand...why she's lied so much in her life."

"One lie always leads to another." Itachi answered. "Her life has been built on lies and darkness so she's changed herself to make sure our Village may live in sincerity and light."

"And I thank her for that, I just wish it came out a different way." Sasuke sighed and paused for a few seconds. "I guess that makes me the one that preserves peace after this fight."

"It does, Otōto." Itachi placed his hand on Sasuke's shoulder comfortingly. "Get some rest, you'll need all your strength for tomorrow. Little do we know what else Hagami could have up her sleeve so you have to be prepared for anything she throws at you." Itachi's hand left Sasuke's shoulder and the warmth dissipated.

A longing inside Sasuke sparked at that moment and he finally realized how much he missed Hagami, and overall, a complete family. He missed the old days when Hagami trained with him, and he missed the old days where the four of them spent time with each other without the need to keep things hidden behind their backs. Sasuke's hand covered his eyes in frustration and being torn between his Village's faith and family ties.

---

Hello to everyone reading this book. I'm sure you all know where we are now. Perhaps there's a lot of cliff-hangers, guessing what they're up to. Hahahaha, it's so fun writing stuff like this and if you write too, you may know the feeling I'm talking about.

Anyway, I'm so glad you readers have stuck around so long. Enjoy!

-silent