Variables

By TwinEnigma

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto series or characters. I am doing this purely to amuse myself.

AN: A series of drabbles in which there are either deviations from canon or are outright alternate universes. Each chapter is a different universe, unless I otherwise specify so. If I continue a drabble within this series, which I may do from time to time, it'll be clearly marked at the top.

1. Little Brother

Sasuke had always been dependent on his brother as a little boy. There were few other children close to his age in the Uchiha district and, even then, the gap in years far exceeded the five years between the brothers. It was not entirely unexpected then that he came to idolize and rely upon his brother as both friend and a goal to strive towards. But Itachi was a genius, excelling in the Academy, and didn’t always have time for his little brother.

It was after a particularly spectacular tantrum on the five-year old’s part at Itachi’s chunnin promotion party that their father, Fugaku, decided he was going to put a stop to this unhealthy dependence once and for all. At the end of that week, he departed for the Fire Temple with his youngest son and enrolled him as an initiate. It was harsh indeed, but this sort of behavior could not be indulged and neither he nor his wife could see another way to stop the problem from escalating further, not while both of their sons were still living under the same roof.

With the promise of annual reports from Chiriku, the head monk of the temple, Fugaku left for home. He felt somewhat guilty, but this was all for the best. Sasuke would grow stronger as a person there, instead of languishing in his brother’s shadow.

Very shortly after his father left, Sasuke got in a fistfight with his new roommate, Sora, a cocky boy with a damaged arm and a loud mouth.

The two ended up in the infirmary for a good week and half, nursing their bruised egos. With nothing else to do besides sulk and sleep, they got to talking simply to chase away the boredom – first baiting each other with insults and teasing, then commenting on how boring it was and, finally, talking to each other.

Sasuke told Sora all about how he wanted to be just as strong as his big brother, how his missed home, and how good Mama’s soup was (and, oh, how he would do anything for a bowl of it right now instead of that nasty rice porridge).

Sora told Sasuke about how his father used to be one of the great Twelve Guardian shinobi, how much he wanted to honor his memory by mastering his abilities and becoming strong, and how good that soup sounded (because that porridge was horrid and he had no idea how anyone could stand it).

It was the start of the first real friendship either boy had ever had.

Three years later and just a few short days before Sasuke’s eighth birthday, Itachi was ordered to exterminate his clan to the very last man. He had mostly forgotten about his baby brother in his rapid advancement through the ranks and the chaos of being a spy, until he saw the most recent letter clutched in his mother’s hand. After all, it was very easy to forget someone you haven’t seen in a little over three years.

Itachi examined it curiously; he noted the most important things about what his little brother was studying at Fire Temple, such as his burgeoning interest in sealing jutsu, and then speared the paper to the wall with a kunai. He raised a blood-smeared finger and wrote out a message for his baby brother.

Almost as an afterthought, he added the words, “Happy Birthday.”

Author's Notes:

Sora is a filler character in Shippuden, with the downside that his crazy father sealed residual Kyuubi chakra in his body. It looses whenever Sora is angry or frustrated. He and Sasuke would get on like houses on fire. In this universe, their friendship is what prompts Sasuke to study sealing. In my first draft, the letter Itachi reads near the end is supposed to say that Sasuke is coming home for his birthday.