Chapter 6: It begins (2)

"What's that?" Sasuke asked quietly.

"Go ahead and go down, Sasuke. It looks dark from up here, but it isn't really. Just be careful you don't trip." Auntie waved her hand in the direction of the opening and watched as the boy slowly descended, holding his suitcase handle with both hands.

Sasuke was surprised at what he saw. The room was about the same size as the one above it with an altar at one end. The altar had three lanterns sitting on it to help light the room.

There were also lanterns hanging from various wall hooks. It wasn't as good as electric light, but it was bright enough to read by, as evidenced by several people who were sitting under them doing just that.

Several boxes labeled "food" and "supplies" were set up against one wall and futons were spread out against the rest of the walls.

A table was set up behind the alter that had a propane stove, rice cooker and a tea pot sitting on it. Folding chairs were situated randomly throughout the room, especially under the lanterns.

"You will be over here, Sasuke, next to Sheeta and Nui." Auntie pointed to a corner where the thirteen and nineteen-year-old sisters were already sitting on a futon. They waved to him and he walked over, sitting on the futon next to theirs.

Nui grabbed Sasuke's hand and squeezed it. "How are you doing tonight, kid?" She smiled cheerfully and Sasuke smiled back despite the growing apprehension he was feeling.

He knew she was a medic at the hospital and that she always worked the night shift so she could be free during the days.

So why was she here? He looked over at Sheeta and frowned. Itachi's girlfriend was staring intently at a photo with a sad expression on her face.

He could see part of the photo and recognized it. It was Itachi and Sheeta holding Rumiko's twins before the woman had been killed. He suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

"What's going on Auntie? Why is everyone here? Are mother and father coming too?" Sasuke jumped when he heard something slam down above him. "What was that?"

"They closed the stairway." Nui replied quietly.

"What about mom and dad!" Sasuke stood up and tried to run but an elderly man caught him and picked him up.

"Calm down, Sasuke. They'll be fine. We're just staying down here for a while so we don't get in anyone's way." He looked up at the boys face and smiled, "And what's with the tears? Is that any way for an Uchiha to behave?"

Sasuke shook his head and wiped his face off. He had no idea why hearing the door close had upset him. He was actually quite independent and rarely worried about being separated from either of his parents. So why was it bothering him now?

The man put him down and knelt in front of him. "Now, Lord Fugaku is going to be confronting the Hokage about some issues in a few hours. It will turn into a fight and a lot of people are going to be hurt or killed. However, Lord Fugaku and Lady Mikoto are extremely skilled shinobi and won't even get a scratch."

"What about Itachi?" Sasuke sniffed and even though he tried to keep his voice even, it cracked.

"He is going to back up Fugaku, but you know your brother is the Uchiha prodigy. He's not going to get a scratch either. So you see, there's nothing to worry about." The man smiled and ruffled Sasuke's hair.

Auntie put her hand on the boy's shoulder, "Put your pajamas on and I'll give you a roll for desert, okay?"

Sasuke woke up a few hours later. The room was quiet, except for the occasional snores of sleepers or rustling pages of those who were still awake and reading.

He glanced over to the futon next to him and saw Sheeta's eyes were also wide open. She glanced at him once then turned over onto her back and sighed.

He realized the teen hadn't said a word all evening. Usually she was quite talkative and outgoing.

Closing his eyes, Sasuke felt someone take hold of his hand and he smiled as he drifted back to sleep.

___

Sasuke looked around and saw himself in one of the unused rooms in his family's mansion. On the floor were the dead bodies of his mother and father, blood splatters were on the floor beside them.

Standing behind the bodies was Itachi, dressed in his ANBU gear, minus the mask. His emotionless face and red eyes glared down at the boy and filled him with fear. Itachi had killed their parents.

Sasuke suddenly jumped up and ran at his brother. His anger was quick and he didn't think first about what he was going do when he reached him, "What's wrong with you?" He yelled.

Itachi bent forward a foot and his fist connected with Sasuke's stomach, knocking the air out of him. The boy fell onto the ground right in front of his parent's heads.

He looked straight into Fugaku's face, blood was still dripping from his mouth. They were truly gone. Dead. And the person who killed them was still in the room standing over him.

Sudden panic took grip of Sasuke and tears fell as he started sobbing loudly, "I'm afraid!" He yelled as he dashed out of the room at full speed. He ran out of the house and into the street, only to find his escape route cut off by Itachi.

"It's not true! My brother wouldn't do this!" Sasuke continued to sob loudly as he yelled at Itachi.

"I pretended to be the brother you wanted so I could determine your potential. You will be the one to help me confirm my ability. You have felt anger and jealously toward me. You hoped to one day surpass me. I will let you live for that reason. For my sake. Like me, you have the power to one day awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan." Itachi stopped talking at looked at the terrified little boy standing in front of him, "But there is one catch…"

___

"Sasuke! Wake up!" The boy felt himself being forcefully shaken and he opened his eyes only to find he was screaming and everyone was standing around him.

Nui had her hands on his arms and as Sasuke quieted down she relaxed her grip. He sat up quickly and looked around, relaxing only after realizing there were no dead bodies or evil versions of his brother ready to jump out and hurt him.

"What were you dreaming?" Sheeta asked quietly.

"Itachi… killed a bunch of people and attacked me." Sasuke said in a worried voice.

"Its okay, Sasuke dear, it was just a dream." Auntie gave him a reassuring laugh that made him smile, despite the residual fear from his dream.

Everyone else in the chamber settled back down quietly. "You just lie down and go back to sleep. You can see Itachi in a couple days and tell him your dream. He'll probably poke you in the forehead again and laugh like always. You'll see, everything is fine."

Three-man teams of Uchiha clansmen worked their way through the pre-dawn chill, positioning themselves in key areas around the government buildings, the business district and the watch towers.

They moved quickly and silently, unseen by those who watched and unheard by those who listened. Clouds obscured the sky as a soft mist of rain began to fall.

It was Saturday and many people were sleeping in, leaving the roads empty of all but the earliest of risers.

Five minutes after six o'clock the front gate and all four watch towers were under Uchiha control as the guards were quickly dispatched.

The gate was closed and those who showed up to exit or enter were turned away. A large banner displaying the Uchiha fan was hung over the front and back of the gate, covering the Konoha leaf symbol.

The business and government districts were sealed off at the same time the gate and towers were seized.

Fugaku walked resolutely through the streets followed by Toshiro and six other clansmen.

As they approached the government buildings they saw a group of Konoha ninjas standing around arguing with the Uchihas on guard.

It was a rather one-sided argument as the clansmen refused to speak or back down. Fugaku stepped through the barrier and entered the Hokage tower.

Sending out his chakra, he tried to sense the Hokage's location. As the eight shinobi ascended the staircase they continued to sense nothing more than a few of the early workers and some random ninja. They reached the floor under the Hokage's office and stopped.

"Let's look here. Sarutobi isn't the type of man to hide and the fact that I can't sense his chakra is not a good sign." Fugaku said calmly.

"What is this floor?" One of the ninja, a man named Genga, asked quietly.

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