[Sasori sighs. Yet another associate of his that those bastard deities have chosen to toy with.]
The sense of humor of the gods here certainly leaves something to be desired.
[If Itachi is speaking of his parents like this, it suggests to Sasori that his memories may have been tampered with as well.]
I suspect that you may not remember me. This is Sasori, I'm...
[A friend? He feels somewhat presumptuous to declare such a thing. Besides, if a stranger had spoken to him when he was Itachi's age and referred to himself as a friend, he certainly would have been highly suspicious
( ... )
[It's another new person! Itachi is started to become wary that so many people seem to know him when he's older. And these people even seem to like him, or at least accept him in some way.
It's strange.]
You know my brother and Kisame-san? Do you know Pain-san as well?
[Because maybe they all know each other and that explains why they all know him. Itachi knows he could never have met this many people by himself.]
[Sasori nods, somewhat relieved that the others have contacted Itachi, and have likely explained at least some of the situation to him.
Kisame is certainly far better suited to handling such things than Sasori is. He doesn't really know how to deal with children; Kisame makes it seem so easy, but Sasori's always had difficulty connecting with children, even when he himself was a child. At least Itachi is a shinobi, so Sasori speaks as he was spoken to at that age-as an adult.]
That's correct. You and Kisame are part of the same organization that I am, the Akatsuki, and Pain is our Leader. You joined several years after I did.
[He smiles slightly.]
I'm a good bit older than I appear, you see.
Admittedly we did not know each other as well until more recently, but I've always respected your self-discipline and abilities as a shinobi.
[That makes sense, since Pain had called himself Itachi's leader.]
When did I join?
[Was it before his clan had been killed or after?]
You do look young. My brother's age.
[Itachi doesn't know how he should feel about all these people speaking to him with such familiarity. All these people who claim to know him and be his friends and comrades. He is wary, but Sasuke isn't warning him about speaking to them, so they must not be a danger to him. He didn't even stop Itachi from speaking to the Konoha shinobi.
It's technically really far from possible and Naruto just stares in muted shock for quite a long time.
It's not a face he recognises, far from it, but it has echoes of someone else, it holds vestiges of a boy he could-have-known and those eyes are black, not red and almost like the eyes he remembers once and that probably speaks more to Naruto than anything else ever could.
And it's impossible. And he keeps coming back to that but he has to remind himself of where he is now, of who is here and what has happened and that sometimes the impossible is not that at all.
It could be an illusion.
It could be someone else. It just looks like- looks too much like him and the words Naruto has heard only back the concept up.]
[Bright blue eyes and blond hair that is more than a little distracting. Itachi doesn't recognize this man-boy either. So many people here to who know him...it's disconcerting, confusing, and even though there is a light fluttering in his chest at the thought of these people--friends, they are his friends, comrades--it also makes him wary.
Not everyone can be someone like him.]
Who are you? Do you know the older me?
[Maybe he should have asked Sasuke before speaking to anyone else.]
[The words jerk out as the thought occurs to him and he looks disappointed, squints at Itachi a little as though this will tell him how the other managed to forget.]
You don't remember?
[No, that is a stupid question. He doesn't remember. Not anything. Neither good nor bad and what else has he forgotten? How much does he recall- Sasuke obviously, to judge from his initial transmission but then Itachi would never forget Sasuke just...
The ones who do not matter as much.
Naruto is silent for a while, processing this. Itachi is a child, but he was never really a child, was he? Not in the sense that other children were.]
I know the older you. [A small nod. He is staring. He understands he is staring, but still, he is unwilling to look away.]
[How much this boy stares at him unnerves Itachi. None of the others looked at him so intently, as if trying to search him deeply for something that is not there. It reminds him that he is not who these people expect, he is not who they want to see. He doesn't like it.]
No I don't remember. [His tone is a bit more flat than before.] I am not the older me in a younger body, I am myself.
Do you know Sasuke? Are you part of Akatsuki?
[These are the two primary questions he asks because they seem those most easy to answer. Itachi won't speak to anyone who can verify that they are known to him or those of Konoha. Sasuke would probably not like it.]
Backdated, ack!papercutroseNovember 9 2009, 05:50:26 UTC
[... Oh.
That...
That is unexpected.]
I am sure your brother will be in contact with you shortly, Itachi-san.
[She's not sure he will, actually. There is bad blood between them, as Konan understands it. Given Itachi's past, that's a small wonder. But he is, by all appearances, a lost small child, and Konan seeks to reassure.
... It's strange to address Itachi in that manner.]
[It's a woman. She's pretty and her eyes are kind when she looks at him.]
I'm fine. My brother already found me. Who are you?
Are you from Akastuki?
[It seems the most likely reason for her to speak with him. Only that Konoha shinobi and Okuzaki-senpai--he's from Konoha too, but he's young, like Itachi. He wouldn't have known what Konoha did...would he?--have spoken to him and weren't from Akatsuki.]
[There is the barest inflection of a question, indicative of the slight shock that comes there. But only slight. After all, memories have been tampered with before.]
Yes, I am. My name is Konan. I am Na--Pain's wife.
No I don't. I'm sorry, but I don't have the memories of my older self.
[He wonders if he's upset her. He didn't mean to.]
I met Pain-san earlier. Are there many more members in Akatsuki? I have met Kisame-san and Sasori-san already as well.
[It's something he's heard of before, so he's curious. His mother didn't head the Uchiha clan with his father. Mother stayed at home and took care of he and Sasuke--more Sasuke than Itachi himself as of late.
[ Valeria puts the name to a face much younger than that to which she has grown accustomed. She is accustomed to addressing a man roughly her age, not a child, least of all the child who will grow up to be that man -- her friend, her teacher, her roommate. Seeing him as he is now, it's hardly a wonder Kisame rushed out the door like he did. She's thankful he gave her some explanation as to why, though. Had she stumbled across this herself...
Had she stumbled across this herself, she'd likely be just as surprised and awestruck as she was -- is initially. Itachi is a child. This should not be possible. People don't physically regress. It's impossible; and yet, there he is -- Itachi, a child -- defying logic and possibility without intention, if his prior conversations are any indication.
What does one say in this sort of situation? She opens her mouth to speak, but pauses. What does one say in this sort of situation?I... don't suppose you remember me, do you
( ... )
Comments 149
[Sasori sighs. Yet another associate of his that those bastard deities have chosen to toy with.]
The sense of humor of the gods here certainly leaves something to be desired.
[If Itachi is speaking of his parents like this, it suggests to Sasori that his memories may have been tampered with as well.]
I suspect that you may not remember me. This is Sasori, I'm...
[A friend? He feels somewhat presumptuous to declare such a thing. Besides, if a stranger had spoken to him when he was Itachi's age and referred to himself as a friend, he certainly would have been highly suspicious ( ... )
Reply
It's strange.]
You know my brother and Kisame-san? Do you know Pain-san as well?
[Because maybe they all know each other and that explains why they all know him. Itachi knows he could never have met this many people by himself.]
Reply
Kisame is certainly far better suited to handling such things than Sasori is. He doesn't really know how to deal with children; Kisame makes it seem so easy, but Sasori's always had difficulty connecting with children, even when he himself was a child. At least Itachi is a shinobi, so Sasori speaks as he was spoken to at that age-as an adult.]
That's correct. You and Kisame are part of the same organization that I am, the Akatsuki, and Pain is our Leader. You joined several years after I did.
[He smiles slightly.]
I'm a good bit older than I appear, you see.
Admittedly we did not know each other as well until more recently, but I've always respected your self-discipline and abilities as a shinobi.
Reply
[That makes sense, since Pain had called himself Itachi's leader.]
When did I join?
[Was it before his clan had been killed or after?]
You do look young. My brother's age.
[Itachi doesn't know how he should feel about all these people speaking to him with such familiarity. All these people who claim to know him and be his friends and comrades. He is wary, but Sasuke isn't warning him about speaking to them, so they must not be a danger to him. He didn't even stop Itachi from speaking to the Konoha shinobi.
So Itachi isn't afraid, but he's confused.
Why do people seem to like him when he's older?]
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It's technically really far from possible and Naruto just stares in muted shock for quite a long time.
It's not a face he recognises, far from it, but it has echoes of someone else, it holds vestiges of a boy he could-have-known and those eyes are black, not red and almost like the eyes he remembers once and that probably speaks more to Naruto than anything else ever could.
And it's impossible. And he keeps coming back to that but he has to remind himself of where he is now, of who is here and what has happened and that sometimes the impossible is not that at all.
It could be an illusion.
It could be someone else. It just looks like- looks too much like him and the words Naruto has heard only back the concept up.]
... Itachi?
[It's not uncertain per sae, but it is shocked.]
You're-
[Young. Younger. Too young for this to be real?
No.]
Are you... okay?
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[Bright blue eyes and blond hair that is more than a little distracting. Itachi doesn't recognize this man-boy either. So many people here to who know him...it's disconcerting, confusing, and even though there is a light fluttering in his chest at the thought of these people--friends, they are his friends, comrades--it also makes him wary.
Not everyone can be someone like him.]
Who are you? Do you know the older me?
[Maybe he should have asked Sasuke before speaking to anyone else.]
Reply
Naruto. I'm Naruto.
[The words jerk out as the thought occurs to him and he looks disappointed, squints at Itachi a little as though this will tell him how the other managed to forget.]
You don't remember?
[No, that is a stupid question. He doesn't remember. Not anything. Neither good nor bad and what else has he forgotten? How much does he recall- Sasuke obviously, to judge from his initial transmission but then Itachi would never forget Sasuke just...
The ones who do not matter as much.
Naruto is silent for a while, processing this. Itachi is a child, but he was never really a child, was he? Not in the sense that other children were.]
I know the older you. [A small nod. He is staring. He understands he is staring, but still, he is unwilling to look away.]
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No I don't remember. [His tone is a bit more flat than before.] I am not the older me in a younger body, I am myself.
Do you know Sasuke? Are you part of Akatsuki?
[These are the two primary questions he asks because they seem those most easy to answer. Itachi won't speak to anyone who can verify that they are known to him or those of Konoha. Sasuke would probably not like it.]
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That...
That is unexpected.]
I am sure your brother will be in contact with you shortly, Itachi-san.
[She's not sure he will, actually. There is bad blood between them, as Konan understands it. Given Itachi's past, that's a small wonder. But he is, by all appearances, a lost small child, and Konan seeks to reassure.
... It's strange to address Itachi in that manner.]
You appear lost. Are you well?
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I'm fine. My brother already found me. Who are you?
Are you from Akastuki?
[It seems the most likely reason for her to speak with him. Only that Konoha shinobi and Okuzaki-senpai--he's from Konoha too, but he's young, like Itachi. He wouldn't have known what Konoha did...would he?--have spoken to him and weren't from Akatsuki.]
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[There is the barest inflection of a question, indicative of the slight shock that comes there. But only slight. After all, memories have been tampered with before.]
Yes, I am. My name is Konan. I am Na--Pain's wife.
Reply
[He wonders if he's upset her. He didn't mean to.]
I met Pain-san earlier. Are there many more members in Akatsuki? I have met Kisame-san and Sasori-san already as well.
[It's something he's heard of before, so he's curious. His mother didn't head the Uchiha clan with his father. Mother stayed at home and took care of he and Sasuke--more Sasuke than Itachi himself as of late.
Reply
[ Valeria puts the name to a face much younger than that to which she has grown accustomed. She is accustomed to addressing a man roughly her age, not a child, least of all the child who will grow up to be that man -- her friend, her teacher, her roommate. Seeing him as he is now, it's hardly a wonder Kisame rushed out the door like he did. She's thankful he gave her some explanation as to why, though. Had she stumbled across this herself...
Had she stumbled across this herself, she'd likely be just as surprised and awestruck as she was -- is initially. Itachi is a child. This should not be possible. People don't physically regress. It's impossible; and yet, there he is -- Itachi, a child -- defying logic and possibility without intention, if his prior conversations are any indication.
What does one say in this sort of situation? She opens her mouth to speak, but pauses. What does one say in this sort of situation?I... don't suppose you remember me, do you ( ... )
Reply
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