Chapter 99: Farewell, Distant Light

Sasuke had his eyes closed. His senses raised to their peaks, hands firmly holding his sword. The entire world had gone silent, as if every being in the galaxy had died leaving him alone with the man in front of him. A man who single handedly destroyed the most powerful clan in the entire world.

A faint whisper echoed in the endless silence marking the beginning of the end...

His eyes snapped open to see an army of sharp, blood thirsty shuriken headed towards him. His Mangekyo spinned, his sword raised to the front and the dance started.

There were many in the world who still claimed the Senju better than the Uchiha, how wrong they were.

History is always written by the victor.

It was the reason why the world remembered the Senju as strong, not because the clan was actually stronger than the Uchiha but the truth was that their leader was the most powerful warrior in the world. If not for Hashirama, the Uchiha's were on the course of annihilating the Senju's in the clan war's era.

But there was a saying which remained constant no matter the age.

Karma's a Bloody Bitch!

Now the Senju were gone save for one last member who still remained in this world, and after her death that clan would be history. But the Uchiha's will live on, their leader was now the ruler of the entire world and they would be the ones guiding mankind to a new future.

Nothing could satisfy him more. And for this feeling to last, he was prepared to do everything in his power.

Even if it meant dealing with Itachi Uchiha, one last time.

Itachi was quite surprised when Sasuke didn't move a muscle, instead he tossed his fine sword forward towards the army of shuriken. The weapon itself spinned deflecting the shuriken with great finesse, Sasuke remained still. His fingers moving as if playing an instrument, and the sword danced to the tune.

"So you mastered the art of using chakra for manipulating your weapon. Not only does it save chakra, but keeps you aware of different attacks which might come from your blind side. You've improved, Sasuke..." thought Itachi,

Itachi smirked, taking out two explosive tags attached kunai he threw them straight into the wild fight going on between his brother's sword and the army of shuriken. If if was a battle of weapons Sasuke wanted, then he would get one.

Sasuke saw the incoming bombs and grinned.

His hand glowed brightly with chakra, and using the faintly visible link that he had with his sword he sent the energy straight to the weapon. Not a moment later, the sword fired two beams of chakra which connected with the exploding tags laced kunai.

The result was a magnificent explosion which destroyed the army of shuriken, as Sasuke brought his sword back in his hands.

"So, the slayer of the Tsuchikage does have some skills..." said Itachi calmly,

"So does the butcher of the Uchiha..." retorted Sasuke,

Others might have missed it, but he saw the feint flinch on Itachi's face. That remark coming from the person he cared about most had hurt. But it was the truth, so the older brother didn't say anything more.

Instead...

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu(Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu)"

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu(Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu)"

Both brothers launched the traditional attack of their clan. Two massive fireballs equal in size and power clashed with one another. Several strands of grass burned with the sheer heat radiated from these attacks.

Instead of trying to overpower Itachi's attack, Sasuke threw his sword straight into those fireballs. Maintaining a link with that weapon he channeled wind chakra through it creating a wormhole sending the pointed weapon straight towards a surprised Itachi.

Displaying his own prowess, Itachi never wavered and grabbed the incoming sharp weapon with one hand. Just in time to see Sasuke acrobatically jump through the shrinking wormhole between the fireballs, and deliver a bone crushing punch to the older Uchiha's face.

Itachi was sent crashing away, but he managed to regain his balance. Back flipped and steadied himself, although he couldn't stop a trail of blood from falling from his lips.

Taking a smoke bomb from his pouch he tossed it in the open, soon enough the visibility in the field decreased significantly.

Sasuke grunted in frustration. Why the hell was Itachi toying with him?

He made a hand seal, determined to blow away this smoke and then he realized his mistake. As soon as he inhaled the first scent of that air, his lungs burned.

From within the smoke, a satisfied chuckle escaped echoed from every direction.

"Hasty as always, Sasuke. Did you forget that I was an Anbu Captain?" asked Itachi, his tone mocking.

Sasuke cursed himself. He had made a grave mistake in assuming his brother would go for a wild battle, Itachi had been an Anbu Captain just like Naruto. While they had monstrous power, most of their missions were assassinations and espionage. All of them were masters in the art of silent killing, in ending their enemy from the shadows before they even know what was going on.

And then it happened...

A blur passed through Sasuke's right side, the Reich Commander was quick to raise his sword blocking a fatal attack that would have stabbed him in the chest. In doing so, he failed to counter a kunai from being lodged deep inside his left thigh.

He silently screamed.

The same thing happened again and again. The more Sasuke blocked, the more the shadowy Itachi hit him from the blind side. The more Sasuke screamed, the more poisonous smoke he inhaled making him even less combat effective.

He had heard several horror stories describing the fearsome power of his brother, now he knew all of that was true.

Fortunately he was not the same teenage boy he had been a few years ago.

Calculating the time lapse between Itachi's attacks, he prepared his move. When Itachi finished another attack and vanished into the shadows again, Sasuke performed a mysterious set of hand seals. Taking out a scroll from his back, he spread it open. Biting his thumb, he spread the blood on the blank sheet of paper.

"Fuin (Seal)"

The smoke was sealed inside the scroll leaving behind free, clean air for Sasuke to breathe again. His older brother stood before him, a small mask attached to his face.

Itachi appeared to be unharmed, the same could not be said for Sasuke whose entire body was sporting cuts and bruises.

"Done yet, Sasuke?" asked Itachi patiently,

"I'm just getting started..." replied Sasuke,

With a fierce battle-cry, Sasuke leapt towards his brother. His fists moved with frightening speed, one aiming for Itachi's chest while the other going towards the Anbu Captain's face. Itachi blocked the first, and sent a swift kick straight for his brother's ribs. Sasuke seized the moment, and the hand which was previously going for Itachi's face took out a hidden kunai from its wrists.

Mercilessly Sasuke stabbed Itachi's hand that was aiming for his ribs, Itachi grunted. Even so, the Anbu Captain moved swiftly engaging Sasuke in a series of kicks and punches.

Both were equals. One in speed, the other in power.

Sasuke aimed an upper cut, which was countered by Itachi with a leg sweep. The Reich Commander jumped and received a brutal kick to his chest which sent him crashing away. A second later Itachi was on top of him, but Sasuke slipped from between his feet. Rising behind Itachi's back, he then gave a severe kick to his brother.

Punch after punch, kick after kick, strike, evade, miss. The cycle continued for several minutes as the brothers continued to engage and hurt each other in the brutal match.

It came to an end, when Sasuke slipped inside Itachi's close quarter and delivered a swift elbow to his brother's nose.

CRACK

Itachi jumped away, a lot of blood now coming out of his broken nose.

"You're Taijutsu is better than mine..." complimented Itachi,

Sasuke didn't give a verbal reply, and simply made his Mangekyo spin. Itachi recognizing the move did the same...

"AMATERASU!"

"AMATERASU!"

A display of power which would have made Fugaku Uchiha proud, his two sons unleashed a stormy blaze of black flames. Sasuke's attack had transformed into the shape of an arrow, while Itachi's attack had taken the form of a large wall of black flames. Each trying overpower the other and get to the jutsu's caster.

Blood leaked from both of the brother's eyes, the pain in their sharingan increased but they kept on going. Hell bent on testing each other's visual powers...

Sasuke's eyes widened when another Itachi emerged from his back and grabbed him.

"A clone without a hand seal. Just like Naruto, if my prediction is right..." thought Sasuke worriedly,

BOOM!

Itachi narrowed his eyes when in the midst of black smoke, he saw a shadowy figure looming at a distance.

"So you mastered it..." thought Itachi proudly,

Soon enough Sasuke emerged from the smoke completely unharmed. A skeleton structure was present protectively around the younger Uchiha, its rear bones were slowly reforming again showing that they were the ones who had bared the full attack of Itachi's suicidal clone.

Sasuke performed another set of hand seals, a gesture which Itachi performed identically.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!"

Itachi summoned a huge crow which lifted him off the ground, while Sasuke summoned a large purple colored snake. The creature was larger than a mountain and reached quite high in the air with Sasuke standing on top of it.

"So, Naruto did give you the spoils of war. I believe the Kaiser gave you the Snake Contract when the Reich conquered Otogakure..." suggested Itachi,

"The Kaiser knows in what manner he needs to reward his subordinates for their loyalty..." said Sasuke flatly,

"Oh, and you aren't ashamed in being called the man's subordinate? You weren't too keen on someone ordering you around in the past..." said Itachi,

"On the contrary, I'm quite proud to serve under Naruto. He made me the Army Commander, entrusted me with the security of the Reich for years. Never once did he interfere with my work or my methods. I don't think I would have been allowed any of this in the ninja villages since I was an Uchiha..." spat Sasuke bitterly,

"And yet Kakashi commands your armies in this war? What kind of Commander are you?" mocked Itachi, to his surprise Sasuke smiled.

"Kakashi is a war veteran and has seen a world war. His experience and talents have already secured our first victory, and by now thousands of Resistance soldiers would be dead..." said Sasuke proudly,

That did manage to shock Itachi.

"Naruto, it seems you managed to get my brother in line. Good for him..." thought Itachi,

"Enough talk..." said Sasuke,

"Aoda!"

The large blue colored snake with light green eyes straightened up on his master's command. Itachi prepared himself as the snake took a deep breath...

"Dokujin no Jutsu (Poison Cloud Technique)"

The snake blew out a deep purple colored gas from his mouth, and it headed straight towards Itachi. The Anbu Captain performed his own move, the giant crow screeched. The sound wave that was generated made Sasuke grasp his head in pain, his snake too was in agony.

Meanwhile, Itachi had created a shadow clone and both of them had completed their preparations.

"Katon: Goka Mekkyaku (Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation)!"

"Fuuton Daitoppa (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough Jutsu)"

The fire attack violently clashed with the poison mist burning away its harmful particles with its scorching heat, then came the wind wave which completely scattered Sasuke's attack making it useless.

By then, Sasuke and his snake summon had somehow managed to recover themselves. But Itachi had made the first strike...

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu (Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique)"

The Itachi shadow clone created a large water dragon and sent it straight for the slithering snake summon. While the original...

"Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu(Water Release: Water Bullet Technique)"

The original Itachi fired hundreds of sharp water bullets towards his brother. Both water attacks charged, but Sasuke stood his ground.

"Aoda, charge in..." commanded Sasuke coldly,

Without any fear or doubt, the snake leapt forward despite the attacks charging towards him and his summoner. Sasuke used his Mangekyo again and the water dragon was destroyed in an inferno of black flames. A chirping sound echoed through the area, as he pointed his hand forward towards the incoming water bullets.

"Chidori Senbon"

Sasuke launched several needle shaped electric charges which clashed with the incoming water bullets ferociously sending sparks everywhere. Itachi's eyes widened slightly when the slithering snake made a large jump off the ground. Something which the Uchiha thought was impossible for a creature of that size...

The Reich Commander used the momentary flight which his snake had taken, jumping off Aoda's head Sasuke aimed himself straight at Itachi who was inside his range now.

"Chidori Eiso (Chidori Spear)"

Itachi saw a large, sharp spear headed straight for him and urgently brought his shadow clone forward. He was further surprised when Sasuke smirked and twisted in the air, and the spear which was aimed at Itachi instead pierced through the giant crow's brain.

"KYAHHHHH!" howled the bird

"You always had your aim set on my crow..." thought Itachi,

The crow disappeared in a great smoke explosion, and Itachi didn't know why but he brought his shadow clone before him as both of them started falling towards the ground.

His instincts proved right when Sasuke teleported right in front of him, his blade piercing clean through the clone's heart.

"Amenotejikara (Heavenly Hand Power)"

Itachi gave a harsh kick to Sasuke sending him away, thereby buying some time for himself. How wrong he was...

As soon as he emerged from the smoke cloud, he saw Aoda had leapt straight to eat him raw. His Mangekyo spinned rapidly as he whispered...

"Amaterasu"

The snake's eyes widened but not in pain. Itachi landed on a tall tree, and saw Sasuke had appeared before his summon shielding the creature from the black flames using a part of his Susanno.

"Sasuke-sama..." said Aoda in surprise and awe,

"Don't lose focus, Aoda..." scolded Sasuke,

"As you command" replied the Snake devotedly,

Sasuke shifted his gaze to Itachi who hadn't moved from his spot on that tall tree. His older brother seemed to be simply observing him with a strange haunted look in his eyes...

"I never thought I'd ever see Shisui's powers again. Your Mangekyo has the same..." said Itachi in shock,

"Maybe. My teleportation is not on the level of the Yondaime Hokage or Shisui. But it is enough to deal with you..." replied Sasuke flatly,

"But it has two disadvantages. One is the range which is quite short, and the other is that it takes time for you to use that alongwith a lot of chakra..." suggested Itachi,

Sasuke flinched.

Itachi smiled on his little victory.

"Not only that it takes time to recharge, so you can't use it often. That's why you were in such a rush to take me out after killing my crow. Am I right, Sasuke?" asked Itachi calmly,

"His analytical skills are as good as ever..." thought Sasuke bitterly,

"So, is that all you've got to throw at me? Because if it is, then this battle is over..." said Itachi seriously,

Itachi grunted and a skeleton structure started forming around his own body. First the hands, then the chest, the legs, the bare skull and finally the demonic eyes. Sasuke unconsciously stepped back, so did Aoda.

"Not yet, Sasuke..." chided Itachi,

Veins and muscles formed around the skeleton's form. Soon the development of armor followed, in one of its hand it held a large liquefied orange-red colored sword and in the other some kind of shield which was of the same color. The final form of the Susanno was humanoid in appearance, and resembled a knight with a helmet and armor.

"This is it, Sasuke. My ultimate and most strongest weapon, the Final Susanno..." said Itachi loudly,

Sasuke never gave a verbal reply. Instead he nodded to his snake who repeated the same gesture, clasping his hands together while glancing straight at his brother.

"Then allow me to show you something the Kaiser taught me..." said Sasuke frankly,

Itachi was surprised when an armor of Susanno bones started forming all over the giant Snake's body. While that development was happening with the creature, Sasuke had developed a demonic Susanno around him which was attached to Aoda's head as a shield. It was purple in color, and looked completely like an evil humanoid form with menacing eyes.

A bow was resting in one of its hands, while the other held a chakra shield.

The combined image made Sasuke and his summon look like a mermaid due to the unusual shape, but Itachi knew their power had increased greatly.

"Let's end this, Itachi..." said Sasuke, his voice sounding harsh and panting.

Itachi nodded. Beads of sweat also rolling down his face, alongwith his breathing becoming heavy. Unlike the Kaiser who had endless chakra reserves, their energy had its limits. And Sasuke had already been on a mission where he had fought and encountered Itachi, while the Anbu Captain had his own reasons for getting this tired...

"So be it..." agreed Itachi

With one last nod, the two brothers charged. Sasuke immediately made Aoda's lower half twist and wrap around Itachi's Susanno's legs. In return, Itachi dashed his shield like weapon in offense only to be blocked by Sasuke's own smaller shield.

The Reich Commander grit his teeth when he was pushed back. Applying more chakra, he pushed his brother even more.

Itachi slammed his sword cleanly towards the Susanno covered Snake. When it made contact, it instantly started absorbing the Susanoo chakra quickly.

"Sasuke-sama, this is...the Sword of Totsuka" hissed Aoda in horror,

"What?" yelled Sasuke,

"It can seal anything. Even summoned creatures into an endless genjutsu filled world in that pot which your opponent is holding. Every summoning creature has received warnings about such divine weapons..." explained Aoda urgently,

Sasuke snarled and clenched his fists. Itachi's holy sword which was about to touch Aoda's snake was instantly blocked by another layer of Susanoo bones.

"This is not over, Itachi..." yelled Sasuke furiously,

Raising his bow in the air, he aimed it straight at his brother.

"Enton: Susanoo Kagutsuchi (Blaze Release: Susanoo Kagutsuchi)"

Sasuke launched several large arrows completely composed of black flames one after another wildly; Itachi grimaced. Raising his shield he blocked the attack with great ease, but Sasuke used that chance to start pushing his brother back further and further.

Itachi looked at his divine sword to see it was still not making much progress with Sasuke recharging Aoda's defense with Susanoo. The Snake in turn provided the required force to push Itachi's Susanno back. A good tag-team...

His eyes glanced at Sasuke who was attacking him bravely, but Itachi also saw the sweat on his brother's face. Alongwith the blood which he occasionally vomited from his mouth...

"To stand up against my Susanno and Totsuka. Little brother, you have truly..." thought Itachi, his eyes moistened.

In that moment, Itachi had an epiphany (Realization).

Seeing Sasuke fighting so hard had showed him that his brother had finally became a man of his own. He had a goal, a life free from the destructive desires of vengeance, people who actually cared about him, a system in which he truly believed, and was soon to become a father.

No longer was Sasuke the little boy who needed Itachi's protection and guidance.

"Thank you, Naruto. You saved my brother, made him the hero I always wanted him to be..." thought Itachi peacefully,

It also meant that Sasuke was his equal now and not going all out would be an insult to his brother. Both of them were warriors, who were fighting for different sides. The better one had to win, even if it meant the other's death.

Sasuke was shocked when Itachi pushed his entire Susanoo back in one violent slam.

"Prepare yourself, Sasuke..." warned Itachi gravely,

Several black-reddish colored balls of energy started forming around Itachi's Susanoo, while the same thing was happening around Sasuke's Susanno's mouth.

"Yasaka No Magatama!"

"Yasaka No Magatama!"

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

As if the hammer of the gods were raining on the earth, violent explosions rocked the entire forest. Amidst the battle cries of the Uchiha brothers, the fires spreading across the landscape, the deafening sound of explosions, horrible destruction of trees and wildlife the battle continued to rage on.

Neither fighter back downed and poured every ounce of their power in the battle.

At the end of it, Sasuke and Itachi both were panting harshly. Blood and sweating oozing from their bodies. Their Susanoo had reduced in size and shape...

Even so, the brothers had satisfying smiles on their faces.

Time seemed to stop, both of them positioned their Susanoo. Eyes set on each other, weapons ready. The final moment arriving before them...

"ITACHI!"

"SASUKE!''

And the brother's charged towards each other.

Itachi's Totsuka blade burned brighter than ever as the Uchiha poured all his power into it. The sword was raised forward aimed straight for Sasuke...

Sasuke fired several arrows from his bow which managed to strike several parts of Itachi's armor. And then with a loud roar...

BANG!

Silence...

There was absolutely no sound across the forest now. Even the winds had stopped, Itachi now had tears freely falling from his eyes.

His eyes fixed on his holy sword which had pierced through Sasuke's Susanno and ran straight through not only his little brother's heart but also through Aoda's brain.

Sasuke's eyes were wide, blood leaking from his mouth as he stared at Itachi.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke..." said Itachi tearfully,

A lone tear slipped from Sasuke's eyes as he gave an understanding gaze to his older brother along with a small sad smile.

"So am I..."

SLASH

Itachi gasped.

The stabbed form of Sasuke vanished from in front of his eyes, and only the horrified face of Aoda remained. A sharp sword had pierced straight through Itachi's gut, courtesy of a crying Sasuke who was now standing behind him.

One of his Mangekyo slowly closing forever.

"Izanagi..." said Itachi with a smile,

The Susanno's vanished as both brothers fell towards the ground. Sasuke grasped Itachi in his arms saving his wounded brother from further injury. Gently he dragged Itachi's wounded form beneath the shade of a tree.

In that moment, Itachi's Mangekyo spotted something that broke his heart.

"Sasuke, you..." said Itachi, his voice numb.

"I finally surpassed you, Itachi..." said Sasuke proudly, even as he grasped his chest.

Itachi tried to move in order to help his brother, but his body was completely exhausted. On top of that Sasuke had given him a grave wound, even so the wound was not completely lethal.

"You never wanted to kill me?" asked Itachi in shock,

"I told you before, that since Naruto has no interest in you; I am the only one who has the right to render judgement for your crimes. You have suffered enough, your suffering is over now..." declared Sasuke, coughing blood from his mouth.

"Sasuke!"

The younger brother waved his hand while shaking his head. As Itachi's sharingan faded away, he clearly saw Sasuke's heartbeat was slowly decreasing.

"This was not supposed to happen..." said Itachi, his voice completely broken.

To his surprise, Sasuke chuckled lightly.

"Yeah, you were going to pretend all high and mighty and die at my hands in the end. Not this time, Itachi. For the first time in my life, I am at peace..." said Sasuke flatly,

"You didn't have to destroy your body for that? I would have gladly died for you...." yelled Itachi furiously,

"But I don't want that. I have also killed many people, some of them innocents. My hands too are stained with blood, just like you. If you had allowed me to win, not only would I be ashamed of myself and my powers for the rest of my life. But I would have to live with the regret that I killed my beloved brother after knowing what suffering you had to endure your entire life..." explained Sasuke honestly,

"And now you'll make me live with the same regret?" asked Itachi defeated, but Sasuke shook his head.

"This was my choice, not yours. There is nothing you can do for me now, but if you truly feel something for me. Then fulfill two wishes of mine..." requested Sasuke,

"I know what you're going to ask..." said Itachi silently, making Sasuke smirk.

"Surrender to the Kaiser, give him every information you have about the Akatsuki and the Resistance. And show him this..." said Sasuke seriously,

With his blood stained hands, the Reich Commander took out a scroll and wrote a short message on it. When he was finished he gave it to Itachi...

"This should be enough to give you a full pardon, and allow you to live a normal life in the Reich if we win this war..." said Sasuke hopefully,

"Why?"

Itachi's question made Sasuke look at the sky.

"Naruto taught me that life is too short for revenge. Besides, Mother would have wanted this too..." said Sasuke,

Itachi's resolve broke. For the first time in a decade, he wept openly while sitting beside Sasuke.

His brother's breathing was becoming more and more slow with every passing moment, yet Sasuke was smiling while glancing at the sky.

"A wise man once told me that it is the utmost happiness in life to have someone to whom one can entrust their child at the time of their death..."

"Sasuke..."

"Look after my child, Itachi. If there is any punishment for you, then that should do it. Besides, I would be a terrible father..." joked Sasuke,

"I..."

"I'm not asking your opinion. Get that through...your...thick...skull'' said Sasuke sharply, silencing his brother.

Itachi suddenly sensed something and turned towards Sasuke with hope burning in his eyes.

"Sasuke, I sense people heading this way. They're coming from the air, I can sense the bird's signature..." said Itachi happily,

His heart shattered on seeing Sasuke's shoulders had already slumped. His breathing had reduced almost to nothing, his eyes had almost closed.

Even as Itachi tried to help his dying brother, Sasuke was already drifting further away...

"Whatever happened to me? I'm barely acting like myself..."

"Someone as proud and stubborn as Sasuke Fugaku Uchiha is dying a death about which others would say something like 'The Brat became a virtuous man when he died'..." thought Sasuke bemusedly,

His vision had completely darkened, and he could barely hear Itachi calling his name and speaking incoherent sentences over and over.

"It's silly, but maybe it's all right. To each their own, in their life and their death. But still for those few people I've respected and loved...I...pray...they...die...a..more...graceful...death" thought Sasuke,

The faces of Naruto, Sakura, Kurenai, Haku, Kakashi, Anko, Hinata, Tsunade, Gaara...and most of all his unborn child passed through his memory.

He remembered how furious he used to get when Naruto usually arrived late during their Team 7 meetings, and even after he became Kaiser. He smiled on remembering the constant scolding he would give the Kaiser, and the man would apologize over and over.

"Naruto, you're late as always. I was planning to live until you arrived, but...looks...like...I...won't...make...it. You're...such...a...lazy...asshole...for...a...Kaiser..." thought Sasuke weakly, a faint smile visible on his lips.

Itachi's tears had long since dried up as he slowly witnessed his brother slip further away from him. The only thing that had kept him sane was the faint smile that was visible on Sasuke's lips, showing his brother was not in pain.

Occasionally he would mutter something which was too confusing for Itachi to understand. He had tried to heal Sasuke's wounds, but he was not a medic nor did he have any chakra left.

Most of all, Sasuke had destroyed his body from the inside to win the battle.

Sasuke's pride had led to his downfall...

Itachi edged closer to Sasuke, supporting his brother in sitting straight despite the blood leaking from his own body. Without medical help, even Itachi would die soon but none of that mattered to him. Then he heard Sasuke's voice clearly and picked up the scroll nearby to write the message...

"Mein Kaiser..."

"Sakura..."

"Long...live...the...Reich..."

Itachi's eyes widened when Sasuke's shoulders completely slumped, his eyes closed, breathing stopped. Frantically, he checked his little brother's pulse and only received silence in return.

"Sasuke..." said Itachi tearfully,

"Commander Sasuke!" yelled Itachi, hoping to awaken the boy with force.

After a few moments of desperate struggle, Itachi stopped. With tears falling from his eyes, the Anbu Captain gave a deep respectful salute to his fallen little brother.

On December 24th, at 23:24 hours, Imperial Year 5, Sasuke Uchiha's time stopped at the age of 21