Illusions That Break

:-:-:Prologue:-:-:

Tsunade sent a messenger bird to Naruto's apartment notifying him that he was needed at her office ASAP. Knowing Naruto, he would have been doing something before the summons arrived, and he would take his sweet time coming just to spite her. If Tsunade wasn't so fond of the exuberant, lovable blond, she would have kicked his ass to the moon and back by now.

This time, though, she didn't care if Naruto took his sweet time arriving. Their meeting wouldn't be over a new mission and it certainly wouldn't be just a random, frivolous discussion where Naruto's face would be punched in by the time Tsunade had finally reached her wit's end. No, not at all.

Then again, she and Naruto hadn't enough time to butt heads and fool around since Uchiha Sasuke returned to Konoha. The last time Tsunade and Naruto met up just to talk aimlessly was over three weeks ago. Things had definitely changed once Sasuke came back into everyone's life.

And just when Tsunade thought that the wayward Uchiha couldn't do anymore damage to her favorite shinobi, he was about to turn Naruto's world completely upside down once again.

Approximately half an hour of nervous pacing had gone by when Naruto finally decided to show up.

“Hey, Tsunade obaa-chan!” he greeted with a smile as he closed the door behind him. “Whaddaya want? I was just on my way to visit Sasuke when I got your message.”

I knew it, Tsunade thought. She motioned for one of the chairs in front of her desk. “Sit, Naruto.”

A blond brow rose slightly. Tsunade wanted to get straight to the point pretty quickly, which meant that whatever she wanted to discuss must be serious.

“What's up?” Naruto questioned cautiously. The Hokage hesitated to answer, making Naruto all the more worried. “Obaa-chan?”

Tsunade sighed deeply, dearly not wanting to force this upon Naruto, but she had no choice, did she? Naruto was the only one strong enough and physically able to do this.

“Sasuke was taken in for tests, as you already know,” she began, folding her hands under her chin. Naruto nodded for her to continue. “Well, the results are in.”

“...Okay. We all know he's innocent, so why do you look so troubled?”

Another deep sigh escaped the Godaime's lips. Asking Naruto of this was the hardest thing she had to do since she became the Hokage. Not only was it morally wrong, but it was also extremely risky. That was probably why the council asked for Naruto to be the one to get the job done. They knew he could handle it.

“Sasuke is mentally unstable, Naruto. Everyone's tried everything they can, including me, and we can't seem to find out how to get his mind back to normal. At first glance it's hard to see, but in actuality, there's definitely something wrong.”

Naruto gave Tsunade an incredulous look. “It figures that after all Sasuke's been through he'd be sick in the head, but are you sure you've tried every thing you can to get him back to normal?”

“We've definitely done all we can do,” Tsunade said. “There is one thing that we noticed about his instability, however, that helped tremendously.”

Silence. “And that is...?”

“Guilt.”

“Guilt?”

“Simply, Sasuke feels guilty for killing his brother.”

A few moments passed while Naruto absorbed this new information. It didn't seem like Sasuke felt remorse for the death of Itachi, but Naruto supposed that his friend was so blinded by his hate for the man that he didn't even realize he had been aiming to kill the second to last Uchiha alive. Of course he would feel some measure of regret afterwards.

“I'm confused obaa-chan,” Naruto admitted, feeling lost. “What exactly does this have to do with me?”

Tsunade didn't blame Naruto for feeling a little puzzled. She hadn't explained his role in the matter yet.

“Sasuke's been sent to every psychologist in Konoha, and only the best ones came up with a solution that could possibly help his mind get back in order.” Tsunade paused to gather her thoughts and put them into words. “Even before the death of his brother Sasuke hasn't been in the right of mind. Yes, he acted normal—he really was normal—but his family's massacre still left an indelible scar on him psychologically. He was obsessed with revenge, to get back at Uchiha Itachi for killing what he loved most. His clan. His family.”

Naruto's eyes narrowed only to widen shortly after.

“Do you see what I'm saying?”

Unlike like when he was a mere genin, Naruto was now smarter and could read people easily. His eyes widened even more as realization hit him square in the jaw. “Are you saying...?”

Hazel eyes saddened as they met two shocked blues. “You have been asked to resurrect the Uchiha Clan, Naruto. You are the only one in the whole village who can do it.”

An unexpected somberness replaced the shocked expression in those beautiful, usually happy eyes, but Naruto nodded his head nonetheless. Tsunade couldn't read minds, but she knew that somewhere in the blond's heart, he was already feeling guilty for what was to come.

“Understood.”

If it's to make Sasuke happy, I'll do anything.

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TBC

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Leave a review, everyone, and tell me what you think. There'll be a long author's note at the end of the next chapter to explain some things.