CHAPTER 39: Where it All Began

A/N: Heyooo all~＼(^○^)／An official LOOOOOOOONNNGGGGG time no see. I missed you all very much. I did. I missed writing. I missed the comments. I missed how your support made me happy.(；д； )Anyway, SURPRISE! This is for leaving y'all hanging for so long. Please bear with my rusty, crusty, dusty writing skills because it's been a while - anyway. Enjoy. (-_-)d

A FEW HOURS LATER~

The door to Sasuke's room opens slightly as Naruto peeks inside, finding the raven sleeping like a baby, snoring very lightly, which causes the blonde to smile softly at the sight. He closes the door, making sure that he makes no noise to disturb his man.

"He's still asleep."

Naruto informed the Uchihas in a light whisper as he turned to face them. The visiting hours had already begun, and Mikoto, who was desperately waiting to meet her son, had to evidently hold herself back from barging in and engulfing Sasuke in a tight hug.

"Then... I'll stay beside him till he wakes up."

She whispered in a low voice before disappearing into her younger son's room.

"*sigh* Will she be OK seeing him in that state? I don't know..."

Naruto voiced his thoughts, looking at Itachi for an answer, who stood there expressionless.

Before the blonde could say another word, the door to Sasuke's room rattled open violently, startling everyone. It was Mikoto. She stood there shaking, with tears streaming down her face in a silent cry.

"Fugaku..."

Mikoto's voice trembled with anger as she whispered her husband's name. Her grip on the handle of the door tightened as the sight of her bandaged son replayed in her head. Itachi had never seen his mother so devastated.

"Okasan..."

was all he could manage before Mikoto's eyes snapped towards him, causing his voice to get stuck in his throat. A chill ran down his spine because he was able to read every emotion crossing his mother's face: the anger, the pain, the hatred... but most importantly, he could see the protective instinct of his mother come to life in its full force.

'Just how bad of a state is he in...?'

The elder raven couldn't even fathom the state his little brother was in for his mother to look this way after a mere glance. He took a careful step forward, wanting to bring his mother in for a comforting hug; however, before he could proceed with his plan, Mikoto spoke in a voice that was enough to prove how serious she was about what she said.

"I'm going to kill him with my own hands."

Her declaration caused everyone's eyes to widen with shock and concern, but before anyone could attempt to convince her otherwise, she ran off towards the exit, her mind clouded with the thought of ending the man who had brought hell upon her younger son.

"OKASAN, WAIT-!"

"I'll go after her. You stay here and relax."

Deidara nodded reassuringly at his husband before dashing after his mother-in-law. Itachi sighed shakily as he hid his face in his hand, his fingers rubbing his temples. He wasn't one to voice his concerns or show his weaknesses, and yet here he was, going pale from all the stress.

'Itachi, this isn't the time for you to fall sick. Snap the hell out of it!'

He internally scolded himself, trying to regain control. He was startled back to reality by a gentle yet firm hand on his shoulder. He took a deep breath and looked up, only to catch Naruto's cyan orbs looking at the elder raven with worry.

"Oi..."

Naruto wanted to help, but for once, he was at a loss for words. He could only be there for the elder Uchiha, who had somewhat composed himself in a matter of minutes. His head was reeling with the possibilities of the condition he'd find his brother in.

Never in his entire life had he felt so afraid.

"I... I want to see him."

Itachi managed to choke out while looking at Naruto, who seemed quite unsure about letting the elder Uchiha follow through but gave in nonetheless.

The blonde nodded before leading Itachi inside, where, on the bed under the dim light, lay the young raven having a deceivingly peaceful sleep, unbothered by the loud chaos that had happened right outside his room just moments ago.

Naruto moved aside and stood by the foot of the bed, letting Itachi see his little brother's state.

"Sasuke..."

The sight of Sasuke covered in bandages made the elder's heart drop to his stomach. His eyes were wide as he stilled. He could finally understand why his mother looked the way she did, for he wasn't feeling any less furious, if not more.

Every scar that he laid his eyes upon was like a stab to his heart, the wound of which was called guilt. He inspected every visible scar, trying to process the fact that this all had happened right under his nose.

He could feel his being shake at the thought of there being more scars, old and new, that would be all over him beneath those bandages and clothes.

"How dare he lay his hands on my outoto..."

Itachi gritted his teeth in a vain attempt to control the barely contained rage that threatened to spill out of him. His eyes slowly shifted from Sasuke's limp form to Naruto.

"Did he ever tell you about any of this?"

The elder raven was desperate for answers, only to be disappointed by a negative response from Naruto.

"No... he's never opened up about himself on such a deep level with me... rather, I never gave him a chance to. I was too busy pushing him away... like a fool, dattebayo."

The blonde confessed, his head hanging in shame and guilt as the reality of his past actions haunting him yet again.

However, there were some things the blonde knew because of Sasuke's entries in his journal. He wouldn't have told Itachi any of it if not for the situation they were in. Sasuke's life was more important than his privacy.

"But I do know what happened, even though it wasn't the best way to find out about it..."

Naruto declared, rekindling Itachi's lost hope. He nodded at the blonde, who took it as a signal to continue. Even he had to take a deep breath to steel himself for what he was about to reveal.

"W-Well... this all started when he was five..."

He started, narrating all that he had read in Sasuke's journal. He explained how it had all begun when Itachi left home to go to a boarding school while Sasuke was only two years old. Mikoto was a working woman who had events all around the globe, so she was seldom home. Hence, Fugaku was the only one left to handle the great business empire he had, alongside a liability: his younger son, Sasuke.

He was not the best even back then, but at least, he was a fine father in the beginning. He was strict, and the beating he hurled at Sasuke was limited to slaps. One would have mistaken it for a simple process of disciplining a child if not for the true nature of that sadistic monster.

However, things took a turn for the worse when, some time later, Fugaku's self-built business, a.k.a. Sharingan Villas began slumping, posing immense pressure on him, who threw himself into work. The more busy he got with work, the less patient he became with little Sasuke.

By the time Fugaku managed to reinstate his business, he had already become the devil, who unleashed himself on those he deemed unworthy, to go against his view of the world, including young Sasuke.

Sasuke was not a notorious kid. Rather, he was the complete opposite, if anything. He worked hard and saw his brother as an inspiration. But it was never enough to quench Fugaku's thirst for perfection. He had become a man so used to perfection that when it was Sasuke's age to grow, his father had lost the patience to deal with the process. He couldn't handle Sasuke's failures, no matter how small, such as failing to write a letter correctly.

Fugaku's physical and verbal abuse knew no bounds, and the fiend in him only grew; it never stopped. The pain of this torture worked on him like a slow poison, transitioning the little raven from a cheerful, innocent kid seeking his father's approval and praise to a person who would tremble even at the slightest hint of desire that dared to arise in him.

He had forgotten how to 'want' things, how to 'dream' big... he had forgotten how to 'live.' He had been reduced to a mere existence that was supposed to listen to his father because, if not, there were consequences he couldn't bear to deal with... all because they hurt a little too much.

As the boy grew, the abuse turned into a solid outlet for Fugaku's emotions. His expectations grew with Sasuke's age, and what grew with those expectations was the desire to control. The Uchiha just had to have control over everything around him for it to satisfy his definition of perfect.

And the man knew that he had the power to bring his views to life.

The only variable remaining in his foolproof view of his surroundings was Sasuke.

In his eyes, Sasuke had become the black sheep of the house simply because he was too young to be perfect. No desires of the young raven were good enough. And so, whenever Sasuke wanted to be himself, Fugaku would beat him right back onto the path he wanted Sasuke to follow.

And that the young Uchiha chose the least painful alternative: to follow what he was told to do while keeping a small part of his original self alive in the little studio in Suigetsu's backyard, away from the prying eyes of his father.

That's how Fugaku's toxic desires had manifested themselves in the young budding flower of the house, who was supposed to grow while embracing his beautiful imperfections, dulling him into a wilted perfectionist.

"That's all I know..."

Naruto concluded, sighing as he watched Itachi's face contort with several emotions. It was to be expected, for the weight of Sasuke's past was taking time to settle in. The elder raven took a few moments to process the entire tale before asking in a very misleadingly calm tone,

"Do you... also happen to know why he never asked me, or anyone else, for help?"

"Yeah... it's because that old hag told him that if he ever did that, he'd make you suffer instead of him."

"Me?"

"Yeah... Even Kakashi sensei found out about all this on his own, and when sensei did, Sasuke asked him to keep shut about it. In return, he agreed to let sensei help him with his injuries."

That rendered Itachi at a speechless.

'You were... trying to protect me. All this time.'

A tear escaped his eye, and he made no attempts to stop it. He pulled the nearby chair and sat by his outoto's side. He gently reached out to stroke the raven hair that matched his own.

"But why... would you go to such lengths for me...?"

"Because he admired you."

Naruto answered Itachi's question for him.

"He was a kid at that time, and he grew up knowing what a ruined life looked like... I assume he didn't want you to go through the same thing. So, I understand why he did what he did, dattebayo."

Itachi nodded at those words in understanding. The puzzle pieces were finally falling into place. He understood the extent of the damage that had already been done. He knew exactly how all this had managed to escape from his purview for so long.

It was not only Fugaku who was hiding it, but Sasuke too was a part of it. He had been perfectly manipulated to hide his own pains, aiding Fugaku in concealing the beast behind the human skin.

'I should've been there for him...'

The elder raven sat there, his mind reeling with guilt. He thought back to the numerous times Sasuke had been so obviously showing his pain. Those were the times when he could've helped his outoto... but he had failed. Or so he thought.

He breathed a shaky breath before speaking in a hushed voice,

"Thank you... for protecting him and saving him. I'll take care of him for now... you must be tired. You... should go home and rest."

Naruto was about to protest, but the guilt-ridden voice of Itachi made him realize that what the elder raven really wanted was a moment alone with his brother. So, the blonde nodded and quietly left the brothers alone, shutting the door behind him.

A/N: So... this is it for now.I have been out of touch with writing for a while, so I was really sceptical about posting this one. But anyway, what's done is done. (^^)dI really hope you all liked this one! 😅Also, in case it wasn't clear, Sasuke has been writing his journal for a long time now, but I have shown only those entries that are related to him and Naruto. (^。^)y Anyway, see you all in the next chapter 'soon'!Author sound out~ ✌🏻