The night was dark, the shadows dancing in the moonlight enveloping Miyeko Nagaki's body.
She was crouched low on the ground, slowly moving in closer to him, this stranger she knew not the name of. Her eyes were locked on her prey, emerald-colored orbs gleaming in the twilight.
The stranger she has followed since she had stepped outside her home had his own energy signature that she could not forget. She had hidden in the shadows of the trees and the houses she passed by, following him silently. She remembered this road. The stranger, tall and muscular, was heading silently towards the ANBU headquarters, where she herself was given an impossible assignment that would ruin Itachi Uchiha's life, his family, and her own future. She followed him in the darkness, suppressing her own chakra to make sure she would not be detected. Her nimble body grew in closer to the faceless man's as he unsuspectedly headed towards a dark part of town where no civilian could cross the intricate chakra perimeter. He looked behind him to make sure that nobody had tailed him, that nobody had seen him.
But there was no one that he saw that followed him to this forsaken place well hidden within the village. No one at all. Not one shadow.
Or so he thought.
The slow downpour was the only witness to his presence in this poorly lit area.
Miyeko slowly stood up, as nimble and fast as a cat and she jumped high into the tree line, her presence still undetected by the man that had spied on her earlier, unaware of her green eyes marking his every move, his every breath. His traitorous gaze had awaked a deep, seething kind of anger that she had felt only a few times before inside her heart. As he picked up the pace to reach the ANBU Headquarters, so did Miyeko Nagaki.
He was not going to slip away.
She blended in the twilight, her snowy white strand of hair the only part of her that contrasted with the dark purple hues of the night. She made no sound, her breathing slow and controlled, aware of every single living being in her surroundings as he sent slow waves of chakra to scan the area. She felt the presence of two men guarding the faraway door leading down to the darkness below the village, where she herself had been brought earlier that day. As she slowly crept on the nameless man from high up, she noticed just how unmindful he was of his surroundings, a probable lack of sleep affecting his judgment. She snaked her way down the tree line and to the ground once again, her hands pressed together to form a familiar series of hand signs that she expertly weaved together, her green eyes never leaving her prey.
Rat, Monkey, Dog, Boar, Serpent.
'Shadow Style: Shadow Immersion no Justu.' she whispered as she melted into the darkness of her own shadow, slipping away from reality.
Before the unknown man could even take one more step, Miyeko appeared through his shadow, her body gliding upwards towards the moonlight again, her hand quickly snaking its way to his mouth, his sudden scream muffled into nothingness.
He stopped moving when he felt a kunai pressed against his throat, Miyeko's breath on his neck. For a moment, Miyeko Nagaki thought of ending his life right there and then, slicing his throat open with the sharp dagger that she held against his pulsating jugular. She could feel him tremble as the rain poured on them. Miyeko fought back the urge to kill him but she knew what she had to do to get the information she needed from him.
Her emerald eyes glimmered with anger, like precious stones in the moonlight.
She needed him alive still, even if it was for just a bit longer. She could bear this agony.
And with the single brutal swing of the kunai's round rivet against the side of his head, the man fell unconscious to the ground, silent. Miyeko Nagaki's eyes scanned the area once again, the darkness pushing her to use her Senjutsu chakra sensing once again but detected nothing. With a heavy sigh, she crouched next to the ANBU shinobi, grabbed him, and disappeared with him, leaving no trace of their presence behind.
When the unnamed shinobi finally woke up from his unconscious state, he was restrained by chakra wires, his mouth covered and was kneeling, facing an unfamiliar yet elegant white marble memorial surrounded by a field of wildflowers. He looked around but saw no one and his heart began to race, his head hurting from the violent blow that rendered him comatosed just moments ago.
He then heard a voice pierce the thickness of the night as its melodic tone crept up his back, chilling him to the bone.
'You must be wondering where you are.' said the woman. 'Most people have forgotten about this place, what it used to be, what it meant to me.' He could feel her presence, but as he looked around him in a panic, he couldn't discern her silhouette. He only saw shadows, the white marble of the memorial lit up by the faint moonlight that made its stark color contrast with the night's penumbra.
The man tried to scream for help but could not. His mouth was restrained by a gag, his entire body wrapped in chakra wires that only his abductor could remove.
'There's no need for that, shinobi. No one can hear you scream here. Only the dead.'
And then the ANBU spy understood.
He was kneeling before a pyre, a memorial. He closed his watering eyes, his heart pounding in his chest.
'You are kneeling before my family's memorial. This is the Nagaki family's resting place, where I lost everything a long time ago. My clan's ancestral house used to stand tall right here where we are. The only things that remain are the dead bodies buried below us.' Her voice called out, her presence slowly approaching.
The ANBU shinobi tried to remove the chakra wires, to no avail. The woman kept speaking, her blood-curling voice resonating in the night.
He truly was alone with her in this dark meadow, all alone and vulnerable to her rage.
'The two things that I cared about back then was my beloved sister and my best friend. And now that she's dead, he's the one thing that remains that truly matters to me in this world. His name is Itachi Uchiha.' Miyeko continued, slowly walking out of the curtains of shadows she hid behind. 'And you jeopardized his safety.'
Her words made his heart beat faster, his chest heaving under his grey ANBU flak jacket. The unnamed shinobi was truly beginning to be frightened, his dark gaze unfocused. He had never been so scared in his entire life, the petrifying sound of this woman's voice making his restrained hands tremble.
Her whole entity felt dark, sinister, like nothing he'd ever seen or experienced before.
His abductor moved around him like a willowy shadow, her silhouette invisible to him in the darkness, her presence ephemeral but her voice kept calling out to him, haunting him.
'You cannot envision the lengths that I'm ready to go to protect him… I can imagine a thousand ways to hurt the ones who would cause him harm. That's all I can think about at night, sometimes. That and the hollow screams of my family burning and the sight of my sister dying right before my very eyes. But you wouldn't know anything about that.'
He felt a cold hand suddenly creep up the nape of his neck, its long and pointy fingers grazing his skin ever so dangerously. He squirmed but another hand wrapped up around his shoulders, immobilizing the ANBU spy.
'How could you? You don't know who I am and what I live for. For you, it's just a mission, isn't it? His life means nothing to you. But to me, he means everything .'
The hand that slowly crept up his throat grew colder, the length of his long forearm slowly coiling around his neck while the other twisted around his chest, slowly making breathing difficult. And then he felt her presence next to him and turned his head around, panicked.
His eyes widened in the darkness when he saw that her alabaster hands were not around him like he thought they were.
She wasn't even touching him at all.
He screeched in horror on his gag when he saw a dark hand slowly grabbing at his throat.
She then slowly and quietly crouched next to him, her devilish green eyes staring deep into his own dark orbs, fright overtaking him as he saw that the cold and dark hands came straight from her own pulsating chakra, like phantom limbs that aimed to harm him.
'Do you know why I brought you here to this forgotten place to all but me?' she asked.
The gag prevented him from speaking. She smiled and turned her head to face the white marble memorial before them, slowly reaching out to touch it. The cold stone felt smooth beneath her fingertips as a cold wind blew in the quiet meadow, the tall wildflowers brushing against the skin of her arms.
Panic emanated from the ANBU spy when he heard her speak again.
'Because I want them to see that I've learned from my mistakes.' She said, pointing at the alabaster stone memorial. 'I want them to know that I will make sure no one else will harm the ones I love. Even if it means killing every single one of my enemies.'
She took in a long breath and turned to him once again, this beautiful creature of twilight catching his attention in the most frightening of ways, her long snowy white strand of hair pushed away from the skin of her face by the cold wind of the night.
He could only stare at this shadowy silhouette dressed in black that was moments away from taking his life, the dark chakra limbs she had control over slowly squeezing the air out of his lungs and chest as they venomously coiled around him without mercy.
'There's only one thing left for you to do before I send you to hell, shinobi.' she said, her voice ever so mellow and menacing. 'Tell me who you report to.'
She quickly removed the gag from his mouth as he inhaled deeply, panicked, and gasped for air. In the depths of the night, he murmured a single name. The wind blew around them again but this time, there would be no more reprise for the ANBU shinobi. Miyeko smiled as the phantom limbs violently tore the man apart, pointy and claw-like hands ripping into his skin and breaking his bones as he shrilled, not one single soul hearing his dying laments.
Blood splattered across the alabaster marble memorial pyre as Miyeko Nagaki left her family's lands, dark chakra dancing around her as the blood of her enemy soaked the dark soil of her family's memorial, the dark red liquid spilled out of rage becoming a symbol of the vow she made to herself on that night and for her to keep until her dying breath.
Protecting the one person that always had been there for her, the very same one that even as she trained far away that always kept her wellbeing and safety in mind.
Protecting the one person that always saw her for who she truly was, for who she wanted to become.
Protecting the only soul in her ugly world that meant more to her than life itself.
Itachi Uchiha.
Kakashi Hatake walked up the stairs to his apartment, tired and slightly drunk. He unlocked the door and neglected to turn on the lights of his genkan. The gray-haired, tall ANBU squad captain removed his sandals and his flak jacket before walking the few steps that led to his living room. His apartment was tiny, but he didn't need much space. He had very few furniture items and even less decoration to make his tiny dwelling place a home.
He headed straight to the kitchen where he filled a tall glass of water and pulled his mask down to drink. The refreshing taste of the cold water going down his throat made him forget, or so he hoped, the bitter taste of the many drinks that Might Guy made him throw down that night. Kakashi Hatake was not much of a drinker but the only person that he ever truly felt comfortable drinking with was none other than the Green Beast of Konoha.
After satisfying his thirst, he gently pulled up his mask and ran his hand through his thick gray mane, wondering just how late it was. His eyes were closed and there was not a sound to hear. His house was silent, just the way he had left it. He turned around to go and lock the door but something in the air didn't feel right to him at that moment.
There was a disturbance that suddenly enveloped his living room, a presence that thickened the air he was breathing. That very same presence made the hair on his arms stand straight, beads of cold sweat running down his back at the threat he suddenly felt within his own home. Quickly, he reached for his forehead protector and revealed a pair of mismatched colored eyes, a trait that made him infamous in this vast ninja world. The Sharingan in his left eye glimmered brightly into the darkness of his apartment, the crimson red orb scanning the room.
He could feel something was still not right, the energy around him threatening, menacing.
And then that's when he saw her.
She was quietly sitting in his living room, legs crossed and venomous green eyes staring back at him. His gaze sharpened when he stared back at her, quickly reaching for a kunai in his weapon pouch, his Sharingan examining her from head to toe. There was a swirl of dark chakra around her, caressing her skin. Her entire chakra system was overflowing with this shadowy matter. It enveloped her completely, Miyeko Nagaki basking in her own energy and letting Kakashi see what she could truly do, what she could truly accomplish with her cursed Kekkei Genkai.
In his obscure living room, he found the Shinigami of Konoha, looking at him, looking right through him.
So the rumors were indeed true. I couldn't believe it when Yugao told me what happened during the ambush in the forest of the Lands of Wood, how her chakra manifested as an extension of herself. But now that I can see it with my own eyes… What is this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach when I look at her? Am I… scared? And what is she doing here… he thought.
Miyeko Nagaki smirked, a hint of white from her pearly teeth catching the older shinobi's attention.
'Good evening, Captain.' she said politely. 'I hope you have been enjoying your little vacation.'
Kakashi's eyes narrowed suspiciously. 'Miyeko Nagaki. I must say it is a surprise to find you breaking into my home so late at night. And here I thought I had locked the door, silly me.' he said in a calm tone, his hand still gripping firmly on the sharpened kunai. As calm and unbothered as Kakashi Hatake appeared to a regular person, there was no fooling Miyeko. There was less than passive aggressivity in the low vibrations of his voice. He heard her laugh softly.
'Oh, Captain. Please do not mistake this for breaking and entering. You just didn't see me come in right after you. Too much alcohol, perhaps? That tavern you spent your evening at, it has quite the reputation for overserving their customers. Maybe the waitress gave you a few free rounds when she fawned over your pretty face- that mask can't fool anyone. You're not ugly under that silly disguise of yours.' she said, her smirk making Kakashi even more nervous, his grip on his weapon stronger.
He couldn't even find a witty reply at her flattering words. His growing frustration got the better of him.
'You followed me?' he asked, his legendary composure slowly withering away.
'I don't need to follow you to know where you are at all times, Kakashi.'
Her energy was completely different from the last time he spoke to her. She had been so calm and collected during their mission in the Lands of Wood and her once brilliant smile had turned into this vile, malicious grin that made him feel uneasy.
'What are you doing here?' he asked. 'This is not what I would consider an appropriate time for visiting an old comrade, now is it?' His voice was now grave, his baritone echoing in the almost empty apartment.
'I'm sorry I had to show up here unannounced.' she said as she sat in the darkness. 'Truly, I wished it wasn't like this. But there was a… development I had to urgently let you know about and I doubt it could wait until morning.' She said, slowly rising from her seat, the sinister aura of hers following her every move, her every step as she walked towards him.
Kakashi Hatake's senses went into overdrive, his body now moving on its own, listening to his fastening heartbeat, to the rush of adrenaline it felt run through his veins. He moved towards her at the speed of sound and before he even was aware of it, his kunai was now pressed to her throat, his body towering next to hers in a threatening fashion.
Miyeko Nagaki's shadowy aura had stopped the kunai from touching her skin, creating a barrier between the sensitive skin of her delicate pale neck and the sharp cold blade of Kakashi Hatake's kunai. The two shinobi looked deep within each other's eyes, green meeting onyx and crimson in a silent dance of wills, hers against his. Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan, the hero of the Third Ninja War, was now threatening Konoha's Shinigami with a blade.
What had happened that it all had come to this?
But here they were now, in the penumbra of his dark apartment, inches away from a deadly altercation.
'I see you've improved your skills with chakra manipulation, Miyeko. Truly impressive. I now see why you have earned your infamous nickname.' he said, his low voice caressing her ears as she eerily smiled at him, her expression ever so playful yet menacing.
'You know I hate that nickname.' she said. 'But I guess it really doesn't matter what you call me. You'll know exactly who I am by the end of our little conversation, that I can assure you.'
Now, that was a threat.
And Kakashi knew it as he pressed the kunai against her chakra barrier with all his might, aiming for the veins in her throat. But his kunai began to tremble against the ectoplasm like substance, its sharp blade rattling. What is that thing? He asked himself, shaken. It's- It's protecting her. Is that… her controlling it? How is this even possible?
The Hatake clansman's frown turned into a deep scowl before Miyeko's very eyes, his expression changing as he grew more aggravated. Miyeko Nagaki knew she was playing with fire when she entered the famous Kakashi Hatake's home to bring him a threat. She was not unaware of his deadly reputation. It made her nervous at first, but seeing him eye to eye now, she knew that if she didn't de-escalate the situation, he wouldn't hesitate to kill her. As much as Miyeko Nagaki trusted in her abilities, she wasn't ready to face him in close quarters. Not when he held a blade to her throat. Not when she still didn't have complete control over her abilities. Kakashi Hatake was simply too much to handle for her, at that time.
Now was not the time to be intimidated by him.
Miyeko sighed. 'Put your weapon away, Captain. I'm not here to harm you.' she said as the dark aura that enveloped her body vanished like smoke, disappearing from sight, leaving Miyeko Nagaki at the mercy of one of the deadliest shinobi of this village with a blade at her throat, completely vulnerable. Kakashi Hatake exhaled sharply, slowly lowering his weapon. He took a step back from the young woman that invaded his home, his guard not lowering.
Miyeko Nagaki smiled and spoke. 'I came here to let you in on a little secret, Kakashi.' she said.
'What secret? Make your point and fast. My patience is wearing thin and I'm getting tired of this.' he replied, all the more suspicious of her words. Her deep green eyes had never left his gaze.
'I know you've been spying on the Uchiha clan for months now under Danzo's orders. You've been observing the Police Force's movements for him and disclosed intel on many influential clansmen including Fugaku Uchiha, head of the Uchiha clan, and Chief of Police to the village's council. But more importantly, I know you've been informing that monster of Itachi Uchiha's every move and every word ever since he came in as a member of your platoon. And I know you sent a spy to tail me tonight.'
Kakashi Hatake's mouth went dry, his eyes growing wider. This is classified information, he thought. No one knew of this except for…
'How did you come to know about this?' he asked.
That when he heard her laugh. Her laugh was usually enchanting, serene. But this time, it was dark, cruel, vile, oozing with anger.
'Men talk when they know the end is coming for them, Kakashi. Especially when parts are being ripped away from them one by one. That's when they have the most to say. Your acolyte was not any different than the rest of them.'
Kakashi Hatake took another step back, shocked. He didn't know what petrified him more: the fact that this man he put his trust in spoke or the fact that it was her who made him talk, this man known by very few who vowed to secrecy. Kakashi's knees began to tremble, his chest constricting from a sudden rush of anxiety. He was not a man easily intimidated or pushed into a corner.
He was both of those things now.
'I heard stories about you ever since I was a young kid, Kakashi. Marvelous things, heroic tales of your many accomplishments. Graduated from the Academy at age five, promoted to Chunin at age six and became one of the best ANBU agents of this village by your seventeenth birthday.' she became, circling him, her eyes trying to pierce his defenses. 'Kakashi Hatake, a prodigy of an extinct clan with unnatural shinobi abilities and a war hero. I saw myself in you once, you know. Kuri always praised your legendary abilities and analytical skills, saying you were never swayed by volatile emotions during missions and combat, the perfect ninja. You are the famous Kakashi of the Chidori after all, and apprentice to the Fourth Hokage. Even the legendary Sannin Jiraiya, my master, commended you. I thought you were the kind of shinobi I wished to become, Captain.' she admitted, the pit in his stomach growing deeper, his hands now shaking, his mouth dry from nerves.
'That was before I learned what kind of man you truly are.' she said, her words now heavy, her subtle anger prickling at his skin. 'That was before I learned that you were ashamed of your father because he would rather save his teammates' lives than bring a mission to completion.' Her words hurt deeply now, Kakashi totally immobilized, slightly panting as a sheen of sweat moistened his skin under his forehead protector. No, not this. Not this, please.
'That was before I learned that in order to succeed in your mission at the Kannabi Bridge, you let your comrades die- or if the rumor is true, kill one of them and earned yourself the nickname of 'Friend-Killer Kakashi.'
Don't bring this up, please don't, I beg of you, no more.
He felt trapped and his chest felt heavy. Every time he heard that gut-wrenching nickname, his mind went blank with uneasiness. His breath was shallow, empty. His hands were sweaty. Images of Obito and Rin now crowded his mind, making his whole body tremble. It's happening again, he thought. Not now, I can't panic. I can't show her this- this version of me. Breathe, just breathe, he thought.
His gaze met hers once again.
'That was before you put my undercover mission in peril by sending a spy after me to make sure I stayed loyal to ANBU and Danzo's cause and by doing so putting my life in danger.' she said, grabbing Kakashi Hatake by the collar of his shirt, her face inches away from him, her eyes shooting deadly glares at him.
He could not remember the last time he'd seen fury like this, surpassing even the rage he'd seen in Itachi Uchiha's eyes a few days prior. The Sharingan wielding youth had worked him enough to know what he was capable of, but this… this was anger on a completely different level. It was visceral, ugly, murderous.
But Miyeko couldn't say more to him. She would blow her own double-agent cover if she went any further. She released him and exhaled sharply, her anger felt throughout the room.
'If you ever endanger me by asking a fool of a shinobi to spy on me and almost blow my cover again... I swear Kakashi Hatake, you being a complete disappointment to me will be the last of your worries.'
Kakashi Hatake felt winded, the air escaping his lungs as he stood there, paralyzed. In truth, he couldn't remember the last time he felt this frightened, petrified by just the wrath in someone's eyes. His heart was beating so fast in his chest it made him dizzy. But Kakashi was immobile as if he were made of stone, his face straight and devoid of emotion.
But inside, he felt as if she had stabbed him, her every word penetrating his skin like daggers. He hurt inside but he refused to let himself show just how much this affected him. He had not thought of his father nor his teammates on that night. He thought he was finally free of this curse of his. He thought he could finally enjoy a night like an ordinary man, drinking with his friend without a single worry in the world. But life never played in Kakashi Hatake's favor. Miyeko Nagaki had pulled emotions out of him he thought he'd buried forever, pushed away for good once and for all. But her words reopened old wounds he thought had mended. They had never mended. He had just forgotten that these wounds of his had never stopped bleeding at all. He had just grown numb to the sensation of this unique pain that plagued him ever since he found his father lying on the ground of his ancestral house, lifeless.
Why now, of all times? Why can't I breathe? Why?
Kakashi Hatake had never been so wrong in his life as the day he underestimated the last survivor member of the Nagaki clan, heir to Kuri Nagaki's darkness and Shinigami of the Hidden Leaf Village and again, on that night, he was reminded of his carelessness, letting this foul creature inside his home and tear down his legendary calm and collected composure, leaving him shaking and panting in the depth of the night's shadows.
Miyeko Nagaki sighed deeply and gave him a look. 'Like I said earlier Captain, this was going to be a short conversation. I must be on my way. Just one last thing.' she said as she turned heels, heading for the door. He listened silently, his heart pounding in his chest.
'Let me do my job, stay out of my way, and leave Itachi Uchiha alone. You will stop informing Danzo Shimura on him and I expect you to pass along the message to the old fox.' she said, heading towards the door. 'Make it known to him that I am loyal to this village and to its people and that I will not go back on my word. That's the least you can do for me, now.'
And then he heard her laugh. 'Oh, that's right! I completely forgot.' she exclaimed, Kakashi unresponsive as he stood there, in the middle of his apartment, jolted. 'I told you on our last mission that I felt bad about not bringing that renegade ninja's head to decorate your fireplace mantle with. Do you remember?' she asked innocently, but got no answer from the gray-haired ninja.
There was only a long heavy, tension-filled, anxious silence that lingered between them.
I remember every single thing that anyone has ever said to me, he thought.
'Well, I do.' she continued as she stepped into his genkan, holding the door open to let the night breeze in. 'I am a woman of my word, Kakashi. I did bring you a head for you to decorate your home with this time around. And you know from which neck I took it from.' she said, pointing in the direction of the Jonin's fireplace, in his living room. 'Let it be a reminder of your new loyalty to me.'
And with those words, Miyeko Nagaki stepped outside and closed the door behind her, leaving Kakashi Hatake alone in the emptiness of his house, his eyes slowly moving to where she had pointed, straight at his fireplace.
His heart almost stopped when he saw the severed head of his acolyte, blood dripping on his pristine and immaculately clean wooden floor as it rested high on his fireplace's white mantle, gouged out eyes staring into nothingness as Kakashi fell to his knees, nauseous and hyperventilating.
It was back again, this feeling of him not being able to breathe, his chest heavy and painful.
He tried to look at it again but was unable to do so. But he had to.
Without a soul knowing of what had just happened, Kakashi Hatake finally stepped forward, reached for the box of matches lying next to the bloodied severed head that sat on his fireplace mantle with a shaky hand and cracked one lit, lighting a fire for the first time ever since he moved into this apartment years ago and threw the decapitated human part into the flames, erasing all evidence of what had transpired in his home on that fateful night.
He could only hope that his audience with Danzo Shimura scheduled for the next day's afternoon could be urgently moved to the morning.
Shisui stood by the Nagaki clan's memorial, a bouquet of wildflowers in his hands as he walked towards the tall white marble stone, his eyes catching a glimpse of a dark spot on its immaculate whiteness. He felt his feet stick to the ground, a dark substance coating the base of his sandals. He walked towards the white memorial and placed the offering of flowers on its base, his eyes slowly going back to the foreign dark spot that tainted the white marble under the faint moonlight. He slowly traced his fingers over the stone and felt the dark spot smear under his fingers, coating his digits with a trace of dark, crimson red thick liquid. The onyx of his eyes turned into a red Sharingan that inspected his fingertips, rubbing the thick substance between his index finger and thumb, now familiar with the red liquid.
He exhaled slowly, now understanding where he stood.
This was indeed the Nagaki clan's resting place… And the place where Miyeko Nagaki's blood trail had begun.
A trail she had left behind as a warning to anyone who would oppose her and her goal of protecting the scheming Uchiha clan and its pride, Itachi Uchiha. Shisui swore under his breath, cursing himself for not being able to see the warning signs he should have paid more attention to. He should have known ANBU would have dragged her into his clan's mess, into this dark world of his… He should have known that they would target her, one day or the other. He should have known that her intensifying relationship with his younger cousin would one day lead to her involvement in the coup. All of this, he had tried to convince himself of its impossibility. But seeing the blood-soaked ground under his feet, there was no denying that to protect Itachi Uchiha, the sole survivor of the Nagaki clan was ready to forsake her own soul and destroy everything that would cause him and their family harm in the process.
He turned to the white marble stone once more before slowly bowing to it.
'I should have seen this coming, my love. I should have protected her better from this. I'm sorry, Kuri.'
In the dead of the night, Shisui Uchiha disappeared, rushed to find the only person Miyeko Nagaki was desperate to protect. The only trace of his presence there was the bouquet of wildflowers he had left at the base of the memorial stone, flowers that had once been Kuri Nagaki's favorites.
Itachi Uchiha's heart was beating fast, that much was undeniable. His palms were sweaty and his brow was as well. As he left the Nagaki clan's survivor's home, he stopped and realized that he had never been so profoundly mesmerized by anything in his entire life. What he had shared with the Miyeko Nagaki had been so strong, so vivid… It made him smile. He stopped in the middle of the deserted road, letting himself take a deep breath, his long locks of hair freely floating in the midnight spring wind. For a while, she had made him forget his pain, the burden of being an Uchiha.
He could still feel the velvety touch of her lips on his, the softness of her skin underneath his fingers, and her delicate scent made his stomach flutter with the kind of emotions that made the smile on his lips grow wider. Itachi Uchiha dared for just a moment to close his eyes and let his mind wander back to the instant she unveiled herself for him, letting herself become bare and vulnerable before him. He had never felt so privileged in his life as the moment he heard her small voice inviting him to discover more of her.
Was that what it felt like to truly connect with someone? His thoughts spun and spun around in his mind.
Right until he felt the presence of someone behind him, a presence he knew well and trusted.
He turned around and saw Shisui Uchiha's tall silhouette, his legendary Sharingan looking straight into Itachi's onyx orbs, a frown decorating his always grave expression. Itachi Uchiha knew from the look his cousin gave him that his worries and fears had come true. He could tell from Shisui's anxiety-filled Sharingan that the planned coup of their clan had brought in one more victim, one more soul to be tainted.
'It has begun.' said Shisui, his voice but a whisper in the night.
Itachi Uchiha sighed, his heart now filled with sadness and anger. In turn, he looked at his cousin with his own Sharingan, crimson meeting crimson.
'It's up to the three of us to put a stop to this from now on.'