Itachi no unmei -イタチの運命-
(The Destiny of Itachi)
Part 11 : Back to reality
48 hours had passed. My genjutsu had finally stopped. I was back to reality... All my happiness... had ceased. But I remembered every moment, exactly. Moments... Too intimate to mention.
— Bwurgh!»
I could taste the blood in my mouth. When I coughed, I let out a huge stream of it. A scarlet puddle lay on the ground in front of me. In fact, as time went on, all around me... had become nothing but blood.
A sharp pain ran through my skull, as well as my throat, which felt like it was being crushed. My whole body was in pain, more than ever.
— Bwurgh!»
...
— Bwurgh!»
...
— Kuf... Kuf... Urgh!»
...
The floor of my entire bedroom was now covered in blood. I was slumped on the floor, my hand in front of my mouth, trying to stop the flow. But to no avail. I woke up again on the floor, in intense pain.
— Your destiny is to die young. Then, when you die, you'll realize that your plan wasn't so infallible. And... It will fail. You are destined... To a tragic end. To die in pain... both physical and psychological.»
Madara's words echoed in my head. It made me sick... Hands on my head, I tried to hold back the cranial pain that filled me. Now, only these words remained, echoing in my head. The blood had stopped flowing.
— Stop it... Stop it...» I growled.
And then, suddenly, everything stopped.
Then I drew a breath, exhausted. The aches and pains had subsided, but I still felt a little tingling in my throat, skull and eyeballs.
I had just realized what exactly Madara had prophesied. Excessive use of my pupils would degrade my health, causing physical suffering. At the same time, I would suffer from my own feelings and from the absence of Izumi, whom I had killed, as well as from the fact that I would never again, now, be able to access happiness... This would cause psychological suffering.
So I was going to suffer both physically and psychologically, until finally... die.
A smile appeared on my face. I had a nervous little giggle.
— Hun... Hun... Hun...!» I laughed.
I lowered my head, then raised it, contemplating the ceiling of my room.
— I'm sorry, but... Madara. I won't have the destiny you saw. I will die... Long before that.»
I had made up my mind. I had understood... How to thwart those plans.
— Oh... Well, I'm glad to hear it.»
I turned around, startled by the voice I had just heard. It was there. He was...
— Madara...» I Pronounced «How did you...?!»
He nodded, staring at me.
— I can feel the flow of your chakra from miles away. I felt an enormous power of chakra emanating from this place... I recognized your chakra and the use of Tsukuyomi. It's true... The shape of this chakra... It's very similar to the one I know.» he said.
— What do you want from me?!» I growled.
He laughed lightly.
— You've put such a powerful spell on yourself... And look at the state you're in now... It's funny, isn't it?»
— You didn't come here for that.»
— Really?»
— Yes.»
— Mh... Indeed... It's true.»
— What's up?»
— I wanted to see how your physical and psychological development was progressing... From what I can see, it's not working out for you. Have you learned nothing from what I predicted?»
I glowered at him, annoyed.
— Although... Today, I see much further than you do.»
— You're very arrogant... Madara had told me about this annoying habit of yours, but I had no idea it was so ingrained...»
— He won't be able to talk to you about it much longer. Believe me, he won't.» I affirmed.
— What are you implying? That I'll soon be gone?»
— I want to know all your secrets, and then I'll be done with you.»
— Very interesting...»
Suddenly, my pupil flashed scarlet again. I had instinctively activated my Mangekyou.
— No more. Madara. I understand now.»
The floor cracked. My house was tending to collapse. A ray of light dazzled the space. There was a thud. And then... He appeared. Completely.
All around me stood not a mere skeleton, but a giant chakra form resembling a divine entity. It looked like the god Apollo. And this was all the more true as this chakra form took on a hue similar to that of the Sun.
— Impressive... It's... The Susano.» Madara declared.
The power that flowed all around me transfixed me. It consumed an insane amount of chakra, but somehow, in that instant, I felt my chakra growing bigger and stronger. I had lifted the limits I had previously imposed on myself.
I handled this strange chakra creature as if it were my second body, on instinct. Then I imagined his right arm equipped with a shuriken, and it appeared. It was in the shape of three tomoe, like my Sharingan.
«Yasaka's projectiles!»
The shuriken spun on itself, flew off the hound's arm, and charged towards Madara.
The latter, unable to dodge due to his old age, didn't move. What was he waiting for? It was ridiculous... He was going to...
«Susano!»
Suddenly, all around him, a mass of chakra formed. It was similar to mine, except that it had a sapphire-blue tint. The mass then took shape, creating another kind of half-human entity with the peculiarity of possessing two heads and four arms. It was like two entities rolled into one.
He then created a tomoe-shaped shuriken and threw it in the direction of mine. Both exploded, forming a huge ball of chakra.
He had been so quick... I hardly saw it coming... Yet my shuriken was already advancing at unimaginable speed...
— Me too... I can do that. But the thing is, I have the experience and the mastery... You don't.» Madara exclaimed.
He was right. I still knew too little about the capabilities of this new power... And he... Even as weakened as he was, he was still in full possession of most of his mastery.
This is why... I had it all planned.
*****
I knew that Madara would face me at any moment. His interest in me wouldn't stop there... He'd want to test my power. I had to be close.
Obviously, I didn't think I'd be able to stand up to him. That's why I needed someone to help me... But I'd already come to the conclusion that, in the scheme of things, that was impossible. So I needed... Another solution... Another helper.
But what...?
In the world of ninjas, there are three ultimate weapons, which, according to legend, were wielded by the father of the Uchiha. Only an iron-willed Uchiha could master them.
These weapons were hidden deep within the Nakano temple. When you pass through the trapdoor leading to the Uchiha assembly, there's a stele, apparently written by the rikudo hermit himself. If you lift this stele, behind it, in a new trapdoor... You could find the Uchiha armory.
I had discovered this place on my own. To tell the truth, I didn't even know if any other Uchiha knew of its existence. The stele was so sacred that nobody generally dared touch it.
In the armory, there were all kinds of powerful weapons, which had been used long before the first great ninja war, in multiple wars. These were the first ninja wars, dating back to the rikudo era.
Inside this room was... The three legendary weapons of the Uchiha clan. Totsuka's sword. Yata's mirror. Yasaka's jewel.
In fact, Madara had taken me straight back to Nakano temple, where we'd first met. That's where I'd picked up these artifacts, then returned home.
I was consumed by the desire to find a way to defeat Madara... Each time I heard his words echoing in my head, I searched for a clue, a loophole... And so, unconsciously, as I questioned my whole life to find a way to counter him, I activated my Tsukuyomi.
But first, I took care to equip myself with these three weapons. I had tied Yasaka's jewel to a string to use as a necklace, while I had placed Totsuka's sword and Yata's mirror in a dimension I had generated with my Tsukuyomi.
So I had in my possession... The three ultimate weapons of the Uchiha clan... And I had now mastered them, after my interview with Izumi in the Tsukuyomi.
Everything was going according to plan... I needed all this questioning to obtain the power I desired. With all that... I should be able to stand up to Madara.
*****
«Totsuka's sword!»
The sword sprang from my Susano's right hand, replacing the shuriken that had evaporated. It had taken on a new form, now a mass of chakra the color of the sun.
«Yata's mirror!»
A huge shield appeared and filled the space in front of the Susano. At first, it was scarlet-red, then took on a sunny hue.
— Impressive... These weapons... This You searched the Uchiha clan buildings, didn't you?» Madara asked.
— It was you who hid them there... Didn't you?»
— Yes... I told Madara to go and get them, but... He's a bit soft.»
— You choose your henchmen poorly...»
— I must admit that someone like you in his place wouldn't have been out of place...»
— Yes... But you know... I'm going to refuse.»
I think I'd already said those words. It was there... where it all began.
Now I had to get it over with. Definitely. Once I'd neutralized Madara, I'd just have to face the other Madara and put an end to it all. Then I'd go and revoke Minato Namikaze from the dead and all that... Would almost be over.
A certain excitement rose in me. I was nearing my goal.
Sorry Shisui, I intend to stay on it. I won't change my goal. I will remain determined to accomplish it. All my questioning... It made me realize that this goal was right. It had varied a little, I'd realized some mistakes... But the goal would remain the same. I wouldn't give up... My Nindo.
📖To be Continued...📖