Naruto uchiha

chapter 13

Later at night

It had been almost ten hours since their fight with the Explosion Corps and the members of team Ro Han had run continuously to make their way towards Konoha. Currently, all the members were resting in a secluded area, few miles outside of a small town called Tanzaku Gai. To get away from the area of their previous battle, all the members had rushed at top of their speed, thus exhausting themselves in the process. It was just past midnight and the sky was clear, giving off a magical view of the millions of stars that were visible to the naked eye.

Yugao and Mikasa were soundly asleep in the sleeping bag which they generally carried with themselves during missions which took longer than a day. Despite being Anbu and being regarded as the elites of their village, they too tend to get tired. And after the close battle they had with the Iwagakure shinobi, which luckily everyone had survived, they all deemed it necessary to rest for a few hours. And then proceed towards Konoha at the stroke of first light in the morning. Since they were deep within the Fire Nation and somewhat close to the village, they could rest easy knowing that there wouldn't be another enemy attack. While Shisui stayed close to the girls and kept watch, Naruto and Itachi were a few hundred meters away, to the group's north. Naruto had made a few Kage Bunshins and scattered them all around to be on the look out for anything suspicious.

They two currently rested atop the branch of a tall tree, from where one could get a panoramic view of the surrounding. The wind too was cool and crisp, like a refreshing drink of cool water after hours in the desert, making it an ideal night for one to just sit outside nonchalantly. Naruto and Itachi had been sitting silently for quite a while, simply observing the surrounding around them. Slightly glancing towards Itachi from time to time, Naruto had noticed that his health was not well. The strain caused in his eyes due to the use of Mangekyo Sharingan was evidently clear earlier. His father had mentioned that, one who awakens the mangekyo sharingan normally starts to lose sight in their eyes with frequent use. Naruto was aware that his own case, however, was different because of his extremely high regenerative powers, strong life force and potent chakra that made sure the light in his eyes would never fade away.

"You shouldn't use those eyes too much, Itachi." Commented Naruto, to break the silence.

"I know... I think I'm already beginning to lose my eyesight slowly." Itachi stated frankly. Ever since he awakened his mangekyo sharingan, he had used it in training a couple of times and the strain he felt in his eyes was unbelievable. And with every time he used those eyes, he felt his vision getting blurrier.

"You did read the stone tablet in the Naka shrine, right?" Naruto asked curiously, even though he had an inkling that Itachi already did. Even though Naruto himself never read the script on the stone tablet, his father had informed him about everything related to it.

"I did, and I'm aware about the eternal mangekyo sharingan. But, that is not something I wish for right now. The possibility does seem appealing, but I wouldn't want my brother to go through such pain just to augment my own visual prowess..." confessed Itachi.

"You're wrong Itachi. Sasuke isn't weak and he certainly is not a naïve kid anymore." Naruto replied rather irritatingly. At times Itachi was too pacifist in his way thinking. He saw Itachi giving him a questioning look and found himself slightly amused at the current scenario. Normally, it would be Itachi explaining him things, not the other way around.

"You need to stop treating Sasuke as if he's a mere child. You must stop sheltering him from the truths and practicalities of the shinobi world. I believe, Sasuke will one day become a great and important shinobi for Konohagakure no Sato. He has already seen his clan get massacred and he knows what pain is. Don't put the entire burden on yourself." Naruto stated wisely. Meanwhile, Itachi listened to each word carefully and understood Naruto's perspective. Hearing those words made him wonder, maybe if he was honest with his little brother from the beginning, Sasuke may have made his father see things differently. Maybe if he hadn't tried to shoulder all the responsibilities alone, his clan may still be alive.