Little Sister AU

vii

Little Sister AU - VII

-----

Summary: In which Kyoya tries to be a therapist.

-----

7.

When Uchiha Sasuke woke up from Tsukuyomi, the first thing he did was-

He broke down.

Shaking silently - Sasuke stifled his sobs as he tried to come out of the illusion Itachi put him under.

It was-

It was difficult.

His chest hurt from smothering his cries but-

(Emotions are weaknesses, his father said.)

(And so- even if it made his lungs ache-)

(He wouldn't give other people a show.)

(No.)

He couldn't breathe.

Why was this happening?

Why-

Why-

Why-

(Why did nii-san leave me?)

Sasuke looked at the wall blankly, ignoring the people that came to fuss over him asking and asking and asking-

What happened?

Wouldn't Sasuke like to know?

...

..

.

Sasuke wondered if it was his fault.

Maybe there was something wrong with him.

Maybe it was because he wasn't as good as his brother-

Maybe it was because he was weak so-

They all died.

(Or maybe it was because Itachi was just an arsehole.)

Itachi didn't even spare anyone.

(Not the old granny that always gave him sweets.)

(Nor the baby that had this particularly gummy smile that made Sasuke feel all squishy.)

Itachi didn't even spare their parents-

Why-

Why did his older brother break down?

Why did he leave?

(Wasn't Sasuke enough reason to stay?)

Sasuke curled in on himself.

He didn't have anyone left.

-----

Sasuke had many visitors ever since he insisted on checking himself out of the hospital to recover on his own.

He hated it.

It felt condescending and patronizing and if he could, he would kick them out so he could finally finish cleaning the compound on his own.

(The smell of bleach hurt his nose and the faint cloying taste of blood made him want to puke.)

(He could hire someone but-)

(He didn't want anyone to touch his clan's property.)

(They were his now.)

(Sasuke needed to take responsibility.)

Each clan in Konoha sent representatives to represent their goodwill and sympathy but his most frequent visitors include his Yamanaka therapist, the Hokage and-

Nara Shikari, Shisui's friend, and the Nara clan's heiress.

His Yamanaka "therapist" was the one he often see the most. The Yamanaka liked to interrogate Sasuke in the name of mental health and if not for the fact that Sasuke would be shaming his clan by acting like a brat, he would have slammed the door on the bastard's face several times already.

(The therapist questioned him in a manner that itched on his skin.)

(It made him want to scratch himself out until he bled.)

(The Yamanaka had a penchant for weaving webs to trap Sasuke into - slowly but surely strangling Sasuke with his words up until Sasuke could only helplessly reveal himself bare in front of the man.)

The Hokage too, from time to time, visited. Attempting to reach a common ground as he tried to ingratiate himself with Sasuke for whatever agenda the old man had.

Sasuke wasn't stupid and acted according to what the old man expected.

(He wasn't dumb enough to cut off relations with someone that had his life on his hands so-)

(Even if he wanted to ask so badly about how the massacre was even possible or why didn't anyone notice what's happening, for fuck's sake were the ANBU all just for show-)

(He could only keep mum and keep his head down.)

And-

Nara Shikari.

Sasuke didn't really know what to feel about her.

The first time she went inside the compound to visit was with her mother - bringing him tomato soup that Sasuke surprisingly enjoyed and then-

She just came on her own after that. Every day, lounging on the Uchiha's clan grounds as if it was hers. Occasionally bringing tomatoes and dropping them in his door as if in offering.

Sasuke was too tired to snap at her to get out already and he did try at first but-

It wasn't as if she was a disturbance.

The kid wasn't noisy and liked to keep to herself so Sasuke just helplessly let her go wild on her own.

(And-)

(The quiet presence of the heiress whenever Sasuke practiced on and on and on until his whole body hurt was comforting, in a way.)

(It soothed the frustration he felt for the world in general, at least.)

(Sasuke knew it pathetic since the kid was probably only there to hide from her babysitters, but he didn't feel so lonely anymore whenever he could hear the tiny puffs of breath the small chibi let out as he tried to remember the lessons his father taught him before.)

(Until-)

...

..

(Until one day, she didn't come anymore and days turned into weeks into months and-)

(Sasuke eventually got used to being on his own again - studiously convincing himself that he didn't care, no.)

.

(It didn't really work.)

-----

Author's Note: Chapter 8 would be uploaded in September. Thanks for reading.