41Uchiha Fugaku was a terror on the battlefield. He had gained the title of 'Wicked-Eye Fugaku' in almost all of the Bingo books. The enemy Ninja were wary of his genjutsu. Despite all of this the no name Namikaze had a higher ranking than him. All because of that damned Hiraishin, that would raise Tobirama from the dead before an Uchiha getting a hand on it legitimately.
Fugaku was a Shinobi, though. He was finally able to get one of the Namikaze's Hiraishin kunai from his usual training ground. Now all he had to do was modify it to his chakra.
He went to one of the clan's training grounds, copied the Hiraishin seal and wrote it on the sealing paper. After unfolding it and a few hours of dismantling the seal, Fugaku was able to gather that it was a blood tied seal.
Simple enough.
He quickly put a few drop of his own blood on the sealing paper and then made a standard blood seal. It took another grueling few hours before he could incorporate his blood seal into the formula. Finally satisfied with his work, Fugaku made a shadow clone to activate the seal, not needlessly risking his life.
Unfortunately his shadow clone popped as soon as it activated the seal, transferring the feeling of a painful death back to Fugaku.
A failed experiment then, he sighed. He knew when to cut his losses, and preaped to leave the trading ground, giving it up as a lost cause. That's when two portals opened up on either side of him, dropping three people on to the ground. Shinobi judging by how they managed to break their fall. He put up his gaurd, immediately.
Getting a closer look, Fugaku concluded that all three of them were Uchiha, which was suspicious since he had never seen them before. A man, older than him, had come out of one of portals along with a teenage girl who was wearing a red dress and a Konoha headband. The other portal was breached only by a teenager, who was wearing ANBU garb.
The ANBU was staring at the the older man and the girl, seemingly dispassionately, but Fugaku who was very good at reading Uchiha expressions, knew he was actually awed and proud.
The man put the younger girl behind him, seemingly protecting her, and glanced between Fugaku, the ANBU and the remains of Fugaku's fuinjutsu experiment.
Eventually, he turned towards Fugaku and said, "Otou-san, what did you do?"
Uchiha Itachi prayed to every kami for forgiveness for the act he was about to commit, while tying his headband. He already hated himself for it, but it was necessary, for Sasuke, for Konoha, for peace. He took hold of his standard ANBU katana and prepared to depart and massacre the men, women and children of his clan. If only he more time to do something about the coup. Anything would be have been better than this. But the first attack by the clan was scheduled in two days. It was now or never.
Suddenly, Itachi felt a faint pull on his chakra. He activated his sharingan to locate the Intruder, but came out blank. A moment later a hole appeared below his feet, and before he could jump away, he was pulled in.
Landing on his feet, he examined where the portal had dropped him, and was astonished to see himself in an Uchiha clan training ground with younger version of his father, older version of his outoto and a girl his age who judging by her features and the way Sasuke was standing protectively in front of her, was his niece.
Sasuke, apparently having reached the same conclusion as him, bluntly asked their father, "Otou-san, what did you do?"
"What?" Father asked, not expecting a grown man older than him to call him otou-san.
Sasuke, it seemed, hadn't lost his impatience with age and began rifling though the discarded seal papers on the ground.
Itachi didn't understand how he could leave his daughter standed unprotected in his vicinity. Had he been unable to do what was required?
He seemed to recognize the seal used as he was quickly able to arrive to a conclusion.
"Hiraishin with blood seal." he murmured. Then looked his daughter, "We can't go back, hiraishin is only capable of one way travel without a marker."
She looked appropriately distraught at the news. "That means mama, Nanadaime-sama, Boruto, they..."
"They might or might not be born." Sasuke evidently didn't believe in coddling his children.
Father, who had been able to gather his wits by then, said, "Are you implying that you are my son from the future?"
"Yes." Sasuke replied simply. "What year is this?"
"3rd year of 3rd Shinobi war."
"Sarada and me are from 35 years in future, from what I can gather, Itachi is from about 10 years from now."
"Itachi?" Father looked at him, recognizing they name of his currently toddler son.
"Hai, tou-san." he replied, trying to sound normal, which was difficult, considering that he had expected the next meeting with his father resulting in one of their deaths.
Father stared at him for a long time, before sighing, "We should take this to the Sandaime."
Sasuke jerked at that before forcibly relaxing himself. "Only the Sandaime. Call him for dinner at your house. I don't want any word of this reaching Danzo's ear."
He knows, Itachi concluded, trying to stop himself from panicking.
"Why?" Father asked.
"He ordered the massacre of our clan, when I was eight. Sarada and me are the only Uchiha in our time."
Judging by Sarada's sharp intake of breath, she wasn't aware of this.
"I don't trust him because of obvious reasons. And frankly I had never expected to see him again after I killed him when I was seventeen. I don't trust myself to not go for his throat if I see him."
"I see." Was Father's grim reply.
Sarada didn't expect this to happen when Papa had agreed to train her for the day. What should have been a simple one on one training session, somehow turned into an irreversible time travelling adventure, with no possible hope of ever returning to their time. Sure, her clan was alive right now, but everything she had ever known was gone. It had never even existed.
They were walking in the Uchiha district (Uchiha had a district, who knew), towards grandpa's house. Itachi and her were asked to hand over their headbands. She eyed the boy walking next to her, who was apparently her uncle. The only thing she knew about him was that Papa had learnt the finger poke thing from him.
He was trying to look composed, but Sarada knew he was as distraught as her, possibly more. She at least had Papa with her, whereas he lost everyone from his time.
Trying to make him feel better, Sarada walked up to him and poked him on the forehead, which apparently surprised him.
"Why did you do that?" he asked.
"I was trying to make you feel better." she shrugged. "I know you're technically my uncle, but I'd like to be friends. I'm kinda low on them right now."
Her mind wandered towards Cho-Cho, before she firmly brought it back to the moment. She'll have her breakdown when she's alone, not in front of the passing by Uchiha clansmen, who were glancing at them curiously.
Itachi glanced towards Papa, before saying," You should ask your father if he is okay with it. "
Really? Were the people of his time that old fashioned?
"Why wouldn't he be? You are his brother, aren't you?" she countered, holding out her hand.
He hesitantly shook it as they reached an old fashioned house. A pretty women was sitting on the porch, (who was most likely grandma) with a toddler in her arms.
"Is that you?" she asked Itachi.
"Yes." he mumbled. He was actually blushing. How cute. This must be so weird for him, though, seeing his toddler self.
"Mikoto." Grandpa spoke. "I am inviting the Hokage to dinner tonight. Please see to all the preparations. And these three are our guests, take care of them."
"Hai, shujin-sama." Grandma answered, as grandpa left without introducing them.
How rude! If Papa had talked to Mama like that she'd probably have broken all his bones.
Papa, thankfully had some manners, as he bowed, "Mikoto-san. I'm Uchiha Sasuke and these are my children Uchiha Sarada and Karasu. Please take care of us." he said, without missing a beat, while Itachi stiffened next to me.
"Sasuke-san, Karasu-kun and Sarada-chan. Please feel welcome in my home." Grandma bowed back, gesturing us to enter.
"I have never seen you and your family in the district before, Sasuke-san." she commented.
"I've been out on a long term mission and the children didn't born in Konoha." Papa shamelessly lied to his mother.
Grandma took us to the dining room and left to make dinner, taking little Itachi with her, who apparently found Papa quite interesting and didn't want to leave.
Three of us sat in awkward silence, before Itachi asked, "Karasu?"
"You're used to it. You obviously cannot be Itachi anymore." Papa answered, looking anywhere but at Itachi. (Karasu, she mentally corrected herself. She wouldn't want to slip in front of others.)
There had to be history there, the way these two were skirting around each other.
She loudly cleared her throat," So, where'd you get the cool armor you were wearing in the training ground."
He eyed her oddly before answering, "It was ANBU armor."
"Okay? What's ANBU?"
"It's an elite force of ninjas loyal to the Hokage."
"Aren't all ninjas loyal to the Hokage?"
Papa decided to intervene then. "Things are very different here from our time Sarada. You should get used to it. The villages had gone very lax due peace."
"That's right. We are at war with Iwa, Kumo and Kiri right now. That's feels ridiculous. We went to Kiri for a school trip."
That was apparently a big news for Karasu, judging by the intensity his eyes bore into mine as he asked, "You went to Kiri, for a school trip? How was it made possible?"
"Well Nanadaime-sama is friends with all five Kages. He could have arranged a trip to any of the Great villages, or smaller ones for that matter."
"Who's the Nanadaime?"
"Uzumaki Naruto."
"He fulfills his dream, then." Karasu murmured.
"You knew him?" She asked, excitedly.
"I was a part of the squad that guarded him."
"Gaurded him from what?" Sarada was confused.
"He was the container of Kyuubi."
"Kyuubi? The monster that attacked Konoha and was defeated by Yondaime?"
"Do you remember Naruto protecting you when Shin attacked? He was using the Kyuubi's power at that time." Papa told her.
That definitely explained the nine tails of his golden cloak.
This was the second important thing that Sarada was blindsided by. She was the top student at the academy. How could she not know so much about history?
Sasuke never imagined, even in his wildest dreams, that he would meet the thirteen year old version of his brother, who may or may not have already committed the Uchiha massacre or that he would meet a three year old version of his brother, who was cute enough to melt even Sasuke's bitter heart.
He also didn't know what he was thinking claiming the teenage Itachi as his son. It was true that he was Sarada's age and they needed an appropriate identity for him, but he knew that despite loving his brother, he still hadn't forgiven him for manipulating Sasuke into killing him.
Judging from his reactions, this Itachi had already made the decision to slaughter the clan and torture Sasuke in Tsukiyomi. Sasuke would like to think he hadn't actually done it yet, if the absence of blood from his clothes was any indication, but with Itachi you never know.
The way he and Sarada were taking, anyone would say they were actually siblings. They even looked quite alike. For Sasuke it was foreboding of the role he would have to play.
What would Naruto do in this situation?
Sasuke quickly dismissed the useless train of thought. The Dobe had a heart big enough to forgive anyone, he himself was an example of that. Sasuke wasn't that generous with his forgiveness. But wasn't it petty to hold a grudge with a teenager his daughter's age, who might not have done what Sasuke was holding the grudge over.
"Sasuke." he was brought out of his thoughts by Itachi's soft voice. "What shall I call you?" Was he blushing? "I mean, Sarada calls you Papa and me calling you something else might be..."
"Did you do it?" he didn't elaborate. He didn't need to, Itachi understood him perfectly.
"No." he answered. "I was going to."
Sasuke took a deep breath. "I have already forgiven you for what you did. I forgave you for that long ago. I don't think I'll ever be able to forgive you for what you made me do."
Itachi nodded. "I understand."
"Whether I'll forgive you or not, I want you to know that I'll always love you." Sasuke echoed Itachi's last words to him. "And that you aren't alone anymore, you don't have to carry every burden yourself. I know I'm very different from the Sasuke you left behind, but we're family; you, Sarada and me. Do you understand?"
Itachi nodded again. Sasuke could see how much effort it was taking him, maintaining a neutral face.
That was when Sarada decided to pull them both in a group hug.
