If Only Things Were Different

Chapter 11

Karin ran as fast as she can when she sensed half of the Hidden Leaf's life force vanished up ahead. They're still far from Konoha and she prayed and prayed that they make it on time.

"Karin, don't be reckless!" Shisui is behind her. Trying to stop her from going to the Leaf.

"You can be killed and we don't know who did all this!"

Shisui noticed on his crows and lift his arm for it to land, he took the information and learned it was Pein attacking the Leaf. His eyes widen and when he looked back up, Karin is far up ahead of him.

"Damn, brat!"

He was scared for his sister's life. He didn't know what made her act foolishly to just sprint towards the enemy without thinking and knowing the situation to analyze first.

He noticed something in the sky, he squinted his eye and when his thoughts processed, he knew that jutsu is dangerous if completed, crushing everyone in the Leaf Village. But soon enough, the Chibaku Tensei explodes.

As they are nearing the Konoha, he saw his sister froze to where she stopped. He hurried and hopped on the branch where she's at and when he looked at what she's looking, he was as surprised as she is. Looking at the scene, the whole village was wiped out. He couldn't believe Pein could do much damage.

"No," she said. "I couldn't sense his chakra," she cried.

Shisui looked at his sister, "Kakashi?"

She nodded, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Shisui sighed as he wrapped his little sister in his arms, "cry it out."

Karin buried her head further into Shisui's chest as she cries over Kakashi and the whole Leaf Village.

"Just grieve and after this, live on."

"How?"

He was broken to see his sister like this, for the first time, he witnessed Karin caring someone else other than him and their mission. But to have that person rip away from her by death is the reason why Shisui avoided it at all cost and so he vowed to his life to have her sister his priority after he learned what Itachi did to the clan for the sake of stopping the coup d'etat.

Karin stayed at her brother's embrace, needing comfort when she sensed more and more chakras in the Hidden Leaf Village. Her confusion was written all over her face as her brows furrowed and her gaze grew intensely every second passed.

"Imoto?" Shisui said, "What's wrong?"

"They're back..." she said softly, "Nii-san," she faced Shisui, "they're slowly coming back!"

"What do you mean?"

"Kakashi is alive!"

"Alive?" he was confused.

"I sense their chakra coming back slowly. They're being brought back to life."

"Nagato..."

"Hm?" Karin cocked her head to the left, "Nagato?"

"The leader of Akatsuki,"

"How do you know so much?"

Shisui suggested to head back to the hideout before he reveals everything to Karin. He told her its best to set out before they're found and she agreed now that she's relieved to know Kakashi is now alive.

As they got back to their place, Karin sat on the ground, waiting for Shisui to tell her everything he knows.

Shisui sat on the table and placed both his feet on the chair, facing his sister.

"It was hard at first, giving Itachi my remaining eye, I faked my death by jumping into the cliff to have Itachi awaken his Mangekyou. I know it will help him. I tried adjusting to the life I was in, but I've memorized the ground from countless missions, the only trouble I have is for gathering food. Thankfully for being a sensory ninja, I can hide from whoever is nearby. But when I heard screams and struggles inside the Uchiha clan, all I can smell is blood. I stumble upon a corpse and took one of their eyes out to replace the eye I gave to Itachi,

"with it, I roamed around, every single Uchiha was slaughtered mercilessly. Blood was spilled everywhere and that's when I ran towards my home, my mother soaked with her own blood. That's when I saw Itachi placing Sasuke under genjutsu."

"What did you do after that?"

"I learned shortly after that he joined Akatsuki, I tried hard to gather information about them. And then, my attention turned to you when I overheard from travelers that Kikuchi clan was assassinated and there's only one survivor, you. I know its wrong but I blamed Itachi first, I almost lost you.

"A week after the assassination, I learned Danzo manipulated someone using my sharingan to murder your clan but before they could get to you, Leaf Ninja came to stop the massacre but they only managed to save you. And you're now on your way to the Sand, I visited you every now and then as I gather more information.

"I learned more about Danzo, about the Akatsuki, and about our clan. I know there's something Itachi is hiding so I confronted him."

Karin's eyes squinted, watching her brother seriously.

"He was surprised to see me and wanted to give my eye back but I didn't, knowing he had a purpose to hide it. I asked him about the massacre but he told me it's best for me not to know like Sasuke. He cared for Sasuke so much that he let him live but I am not Sasuke damn it! He could tell me everything but he chose not to."

"So you have it become your mission?"

"Yes. And when I saw you struggling at the Hidden Sand Village, I decided to show up so I could take care of you. And not long after that, I told you about Danzo stealing my eye and his hatred towards our clan. That's when you decided to head out to the Leaf."

"Only to be found by Pein and ask for our alliance,"

"Which we didn't accept. But we did give them some information."

"They used it to destroy the village," Karin's fist formed remembering the events from earlier.