WANTED: Itachi Uchiha

Yonjuukyu

Mikoto considered herself a happy person. She was in possession of a fiery temper, after all she was an Uchiha; fire was both her namesake and heritage. Her birthright almost. But despite her flares, which were more often than not warranted, given she lived in a male orientated household and the individuals of that gender were an absolute nightmare, her disposition remained cheerful.

In her mind she had everything she could possibly dream of, her recipe for happiness was well tested.  She had a home. She had her husband, who despite his grumpy façade was loving. And she had her sons who even though they tested the limits of her patience, were well behaved and successful.

That's why it broke her heart to imagine Itachi had been suffering all this time.

Her eldest, her first born child, the child who adored her and went out of his way to help where he could, had attempted to take his own life. That same child who had barely cried when she held him in her arms for the first time, bloody and wet with her tears, had momentarily left the world both bloody and covered in the tears of his brother.

And she hadn't seen it coming.

She had been so blinded by her version of happiness that she had failed to see he was suffering.

And she hated herself for it.

Ever since Itachi and Sasuke left the compound Mikoto had felt like a piece of her had died. Her happiness had been fractured and she was partially to blame. If she had looked beyond her own wants and needs she would have seen the shadows beneath his eyes. She would have seen that he was carrying a burden so heavy that his shoulders hunched with the pressure - pressure that she and Fugaku had added to. Fugaku had been livid when they left. That anger had then morphed into grief when the realisation of the situation had dawned on him.

They had failed their children, and had lost them in the process. All the while they had blamed Reina, when she had done more for Itachi in such a small window than she suspected anyone ever had. All the while she was fighting demons of her own and attempting to keep herself and her clan above water.

It made her feel sick.

Lost in thought, Mikoto wandered down the aisles of the supermarket, occasionally adding items to her cart without so much as checking what they were. She didn't buy as much food nowadays, not with there only being two of them at home. She missed her sons. She missed Reina. She even missed the sound of squabbling and Sasuke's foul language.

"I swear down Reina, if you don't put the tomato juice back in the basket I'll~"

"You'll what? Get Naruto to tell me off? Fuck off Sasuke."

"Ne don't bring me into it dattebayo!"

That familiar squabbling had Mikoto rooted to the spot, a stray bag of udon noodles in her hand. The sound, although crude, was music to her ears, the likes of which were exacerbated by a low, foreign sound, the likes of which she had heard in what felt like a lifetime.

She heard Itachi laughing.

Peering over the aisle shelf, Mikoto spotted the group, their bickering drawing frowns and tuts from people passing by. The group were oblivious. Itachi, who in her experience would have shied away from any form of public confrontation, was languid and at ease, obviously acclimated to the quarrels.

His appearance had her floored. To the point she had to tighten her hold on the shopping cart to keep her upright. Itachi, although fair of face, was no longer gaunt or lethargic; in fact he had a colour in his cheeks and his eyes were free of bruises. His appearance in general was unrecognisable. He wore his usual clan attire, the Uchiha sigil visible on the sleeve of his shirt; however it was the jounin vest that caught her off guard.

Had he retired from the ANBU? She didn't know.

Then a child answered it for her.

"Konbanwa Itachi-sensei!" A student chirped as they walked past with their parents, their wide smile aimed purely at him.

"Konbanwa." Itachi replied, the smile on his face genuine and unforced.

Mikoto was stunned, her heart melting.

Her son was happy. The pair of them were.

And it was everything she had always wanted.

THE END