The ground fell away beneath him, and Sasuke felt himself being pulled back to that horrendous night. Surrounded by the darkness of his parents’ room and the pool of blood beneath them ebbing towards him, he remembered the calculating look in Itachi's eyes as he looked down at his younger brother.

Those eyes now stared at him with the same chilling indifference. Sasuke's hands clenched into fists, his nails digging into his palms as he struggled to regain control.

“It seems you’re still not worth killing, little brother,” Itachi had said, and those words echoed in Sasuke's mind, amplifying his rage.

A small, strangled cry escaped his lips as he fought to breathe, his chest tightening. The fear and grief clashed against an unyielding rage burning through him. Hot tears pressed against his eyes, unbidden, but he didn’t wipe them away.

He heard Kakashi order them to get back, but it was muted, and nearly drowned by his cascading thoughts.

Sakura's voice, distant and shaky, cut through it all. “Captain?”

Her words broke through the nightmare, anchoring Sasuke to the present moment. He blinked rapidly, forcing himself to focus on her and Kakashi. The world slowly came back into focus, just enough for him to breathe again.

Sakura turned her gaze from the two rogue ninja to Kakashi, confusion and fear evident in her eyes. “...Did he just call you his captain, Kakashi-sensei?”

“He did indeed.” Kakashi’s expression hardened, but his voice remained steady. He held his arm out like a barricade, positioning himself in the line of fire. “Itachi Uchiha… is my former subordinate.”

Sasuke’s breath hitched, and he shook his head, trying to clear the lingering fog of his traumatic memories. “How?… He’s t-the one who… who…” His voice trailed off, unable to complete the sentence.

Kakashi glanced at Sasuke, his eye softening slightly. “Stay focused, Sasuke. I’ll tell you about it once this is over, alright? We need to get through this first.”

Sasuke nodded, swallowing hard as he forced himself to stand tall. His team’s presence helped him to momentarily shelve the fear—only giving free rein to the unbridled rage it had been suppressing. This was his chance, his moment to face Itachi and show that he wasn’t the helpless child he once was.

Sasuke’s mounting rage only halted when Kakashi lifted his forehead protector revealing the Sharingan.

“I haven’t mastered this eye yet, so I’m going to be on the defensive here. Again, don’t look into Itachi’s eyes. He’ll ensnare you in genjutsu.”

“As wise as always, Captain.” Itachi hummed. “However… that eye of yours does not belong to you and so pales in comparison to mine.”

Kakashi chuckled. “I wouldn’t be so sure, Itachi.”

Beside Itachi stood a towering figure with blue skin and a shark-like grin. “Copy Ninja Kakashi, eh? Seems Gato wasn’t lying when he said we’d find interesting prey here.”

“You’re Kisame Hoshigaki, I presume?”

The blue-skinned shinobi grinned—Sasuke looked closer and noticed the sliced-through Hidden Mist sigil. “What gave it away?”

“That isn’t any regular sword you’re hefting around. It’s Samehada, one of the Mist’s legendary seven swords.” Kakashi shrugged. “Well… that and the smell of fish.”

Kisame Hoshigaki chuckled and heaved the massive bandaged blade onto a shoulder.

“What are you doing here, Itachi?” Kakashi asked.

Itachi tilted his head. “The Akatsuki has been hired by the Gato Company, Captain. I’ll have to ask you to hand over the bridge builder. For old times’ sake, I’ll let you and your genin go—and yes, even you, little brother.”

“We can’t do that, now, can we?”

“Oh, this is going to be fun.” Kisame laughed, baring his filed teeth in a vicious grin. “Since you know this lot, we’ll go on your call, Itachi.”

Itachi considered the question with a tilt of his head. “Keep Kakashi occupied, but don’t rough him up too badly. He’s still needed, after all. I’ll handle the rest.”

At that, the blue-skinned man chuckled and lunged forward.

Sasuke’s hands clenched into fists, his knuckles white. That careless tone… the same tone of voice he took when explaining why he killed their parents, their neighbours, Shisui… fuelled the embers he’d been stoking for the last five years.

Itachi’s shadow… his betrayal… had constantly clung to him for the last five years. He killed anyone Sasuke had ever cared about and ensured he burned the possibility of future relationships to ash with the threat of his existence.

And seeing him before him, the Uchiha crest at his back burned white-hot against his skin.

“This time… I’ll kill you, Itachi!” he yelled, charging forward.

“Sasuke, wait!” Kakashi called out, but it was too late.

He clenched his kunai tightly. The fear and helplessness gave way to something hotter, more primal. His vision tunnelled, focusing solely on the object of his five-year vendetta, to the point where he barely noticed Kisame Hoshigaki rush past him.

Itachi’s eyes flashed with cold amusement. “But how? You’re still weak, little brother.”

“Oh, this is going to be fun.” Kisame laughed, baring his filed teeth in a vicious grin. “Since you know this lot, we’ll go on your call, Itachi.”

“Keep Kakashi occupied but don’t rough him up too badly. He’s still needed, after all. I’ll handle the rest.”

At that, the blue-skinned man chuckled and lunged forward.

He blasted past Sasuke in an instant and, by the sounds of it, engaged Kakashi. Sasuke roared, going into his pouch to hurl several shuriken at Itachi. His rage propelled him forward, kunai in hand, aiming straight for the throat. Itachi effortlessly sidestepped, his twin Sharingan eyes spinning hypnotically.

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Sasuke skidded to a halt, turning sharply to face him again.

“You’ve grown, Sasuke,” he kicked out and struck through Sasuke’s guard, propelling past Kakashi and Kisame.

He landed in a heap just in front of his teammates and Tazuna.

With a swift motion, Kisame swung his massive sword, and Kakashi barely managed to deflect the blow—though its force sent him flying and they only moved further away with each successive strike. Sakura and Shino immediately flanked Sasuke, their faces set with determination as he swayed to his feet. Tazuna stayed behind them, clutching his gourd as if it could offer any protection.

“Stay back!” Sasuke yelled. He slapped away Sakura’s hand. His chest gave a twinge at the hurt in her face but it was quickly vaporised by his rage. “He’s mine!”

With a scream of frustration, Sasuke launched a barrage of shuriken at Itachi, who deflected them effortlessly with a flick of his wrist. Sasuke dashed in again with a kunai in hand, slashing furiously.

Itachi dodged each attack with minimal movement, his expression unreadable.

“Is this all you’ve got?” Itachi asked, catching Sasuke’s wrist in a vice-like grip and twisting it, causing Sasuke to drop his weapon with a sharp cry. Itachi’s eyes flicked to Sakura and Shino.

Sasuke frowned, wrenching himself to safety. His left hand throbbed but he barely felt the pain, spitting to the ground in disgust at Itachi’s words.

“You rushed at me without a second thought for your comrades. Why?” He could see it—that same euphoric glint in his eyes when Sasuke found him standing over their parents’ bodies. “Have you abandoned them for power?”

Sasuke saw red and launched himself at Itachi… only for him to disappear. He spun around—and his stomach dropped.

“We can’t just watch!” Sakura started to move forward, but Shino held her back.

“We have to be strategic,” Shino replied. “Itachi Uchiha is an S-rank threat—he’s at least as strong as sensei and definitely beyond us! Do you remember how he toyed with us during the Bell Test?”

She didn’t move when he let her go and neither of them saw Itachi approaching.

“G-Guys,” Sasuke croaked, heart racing. “Watch out!”

They turned at the same time, immediately flinching but raising their weapons.

“...M-Mr Tazuna is un-under our protection,” said Sakura, despite her hands shaking.

Itachi, his back to Sasuke, turned around with a chilling smile. “You should have stayed in the village, little brother.”

Sasuke tried to launch himself forward but he suddenly found himself pinned to the ground, thick metal spikes driven through his limbs and torso.

The pain was immediate and excruciating, every attempt to move sending waves of agony through his body. He gasped, his breath coming in ragged bursts. No matter what he did: speeding up his chakra flow, slowing it down, stopping it, flaring his chakra—nothing worked!

“This is the reality of your weakness.”

Sasuke thrashed despite the agonising pain—he couldn’t let Itachi do it again after he’d dedicated five years of gruelling training for the sole purpose of killing him. But he was helpless, forced to watch Itachi walk with a deliberate calmness towards his teammates and Tazuna.

“C-Come back here.” He tried to threaten him, but it didn’t work. “I’ll tear you apart myself, coward!”

The pinwheels in his eyes spun faster, melding into a distinct pattern Sasuke would never forget. “Do you remember what I told you, Sasuke? That if you wish to kill me, you should curse me and hate me; to live a long and unsightly life until you have the same eyes that I possess.”

“No!” Sasuke yelled, his mouth drying rapidly the closer Itachi drew to his teammates. However, his body refused to move, still completely dominated by the genjutsu and the helplessness only reignited that deep, seething hatred he felt towards the man he once called “brother.”

With swift, precise movements, Itachi blew past his teammates and slashed Tazuna's throat. Blood sprayed out and the old man crumpled to the ground. Sasuke's eyes widened in horror as his gaze moved from the dying old man to his two comrades—they would be next.

Them—as much as it scared him to admit it—his friends.

Before Sasuke could react, Itachi moved with blinding speed. He grabbed Sakura by the throat, lifting her off the ground. Her neck snapped with a sharp crack and he let her body fall. Burning tears obscured Sasuke’s vision and when he opened his eyes, he saw Shino attempt to launch an attack.

His insects swarmed towards Itachi, but Itachi was faster. He grabbed Shino by the throat and immediately flitted back to Sasuke, meeting his hateful, teary gaze with a smile.

“And you,” he said, staring into Shino's eyes and lifting him higher, “you were right about one thing: you never stood a chance.”

With a swift motion, he snapped Shino's neck and relinquished his hold over his lifeless body.

“Itachi!” Sasuke’s eyes burned with tears of rage and frustration. “I’ll never stop until you’re dead!”

“Perhaps one day,” Itachi replied, his voice like ice. “But today, know that your efforts have fallen short… and that your friends have died because of it.”

Looking at the corpses of his two teammates, the hatred left Sasuke frighteningly quickly, replaced with a slow, gnawing despair. Gritting his teeth, he mustered the focus to look up at Itachi despite the pain.

“Why? Why are you doing this?” he choked out, not giving him the satisfaction of hearing his anguish.

“Is that sorrow I hear in your voice?” He chuckled, then. “Where was this concern for your comrades when you rushed at me?”

Sasuke shook his head over and over, as if denying the sight before him would bring them back to life. His vision blurred with tears as Itachi’s words cut through him. Sakura's dull green eyes stared at him, and just ahead of her, Shino’s broken form lay on the ground, unmoving.

His heart pounded violently in his chest, each beat echoing the terror of that fateful night. The blood, the screams, his parents’ bodies—all of it came rushing back, overwhelming him. His breath hitched, coming in short, ragged gasps as he re-watched Itachi move closer to his teammates.

The fear was suffocating, freezing him in place. Sakura's neck snapping, Shino's lifeless body—each moment felt like a dagger to his soul. Once again, Sasuke was too weak to protect those he cared about, and that realisation tightened around his chest like a vice.

His vision blurred with tears, transfixed by the sight of their unmoving corpses.

“Did you know that you awakened the Sharingan on that very night? Though it seems you repressed it. Unable to bear the truth of your powerlessness, you hid from it, and now look at you.” Itachi's words cut through the haze like a knife. “The truth is, foolish little brother of mine, is that your comrades died because of your weakness.”

The fear and helplessness gave way to something hotter, more primal.

Sasuke closed himself off, unwilling to subject himself to the pain of losing anyone ever again. Yet Sakura and Shino—just through their constant presence in his life all day, every day—managed to matter to him before he even knew it.

…And now they were gone.

The unfairness of it all lit a spark within him and, just like after he awoke in the hospital all those years ago, that spark caught fire, burning away all the fear.

An inferno of hatred ran rampant within him, leaving him trembling. “I'll k-kill you... I swear I'll kill you!”

It was the same vow Sasuke made in the hospital five years ago. However, it was no longer just a vow worth committing his life to. Not when the monster stood tall over their bodies. It tore at him, unwilling to cease until he did something—anything—against the man responsible for the unceasing pain.

No, it wasn’t a desire but a desperate need.

His vision sharpened, the world coming into crystal-clear focus—and Sasuke knew it instantly. The Sharingan, with its spinning tomoe, had awakened. The pain in his eyes was searing, but he welcomed it; he embraced it, submerging himself as the power of his bloodline washed over him.

Itachi's eyes widened slightly, a flicker of something—perhaps recognition or satisfaction—crossing his face.

Sasuke clenched his kunai tightly. This time, he wasn’t powerless. This time, he would fight… even if it killed him.

“Today,” he said, taking a step forward, “I’ll cast off your shadow—one way, or another.”