Chapter 5
hapter 5: Another Change
Itachi couldn't contain his excitement as he stood beside his mother, watching her cradle the tiny, squirming bundle in her arms. Sasuke, his little brother, was finally here. In his previous life, Sasuke’s birth had been clouded by the weight of impending tragedy, by the thoughts of the coup and the dark path ahead for both of them. But now, in this timeline, it was different. He was here to protect Sasuke, to be the older brother he had never truly been able to be.
The little hands of baby Sasuke curled around his finger, and Itachi felt a warmth fill his chest. He remembered the first time Sasuke had done this in the past—those tiny hands, clutching his finger with all the innocence of a newborn. But this time, something was different. Sasuke’s eyes, though still wide with the purity of a child, seemed... burdened. There was a look in his eyes, an expression of something Itachi couldn’t place.
Itachi furrowed his brows, a flicker of concern crossing his face. Regret. That was what Itachi saw in Sasuke’s gaze. A deep, inexplicable regret. But why? Sasuke was just a baby. He couldn't possibly know what had happened, could he? He hadn’t experienced the pain and loss that Itachi had. And yet, there was something there—a connection that Itachi couldn’t quite understand. Was this the result of some twisted fate, a lingering effect of Itachi's choices from the past? Or was it something else entirely?
He shook his head, brushing aside the thoughts for now. It didn’t matter. Sasuke was here. Alive. And this time, Itachi would protect him with everything he had. Whatever those eyes held, whatever dark feeling lingered there, Itachi would find a way to shield him from it.
The next day, as the sun began to rise over the peaceful village, Itachi accompanied his mother on a visit to an old friend of hers. The air was calm, free from the tension and violence that had once gripped the world. Konoha was at peace. There were no signs of the impending darkness that had threatened it all those years ago.
His mother introduced him to the woman waiting in the garden, an older woman who smiled warmly as she greeted them. She was holding her own bundle, a small baby wrapped carefully in a blanket. Itachi’s eyes widened slightly when he saw the baby’s face.
The baby was familiar in a way that took Itachi a moment to place. The face, the eyes—it was clear as day. The baby had the same unruly blond hair, the same bright eyes. It was a face Itachi knew all too well, but there was something off. This child wasn’t the same child he had known in his past life.
“Ah, this is Naruto,” his mother’s friend said with a proud smile. "Naruto Namikaze.”
Namikaze? Itachi blinked, trying to process the name. In his original timeline, he had known the boy as Naruto Uzumaki, the village jinchūriki, the one who had borne the burden of the Nine-Tails. But here, in this new version of events, his name was different.
Why was his name different?
Itachi’s mind raced as he connected the dots. If Naruto’s surname had changed from Uzumaki to Namikaze, then this boy was no longer just the jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails. He was now the son of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, the very man Itachi had served alongside in the past.
Itachi’s heart felt lighter. In the original timeline, Naruto had grown up an orphan, hated and feared by most of the village because of the Nine-Tails sealed within him. But this time, with the Namikaze name, Naruto would be raised by parents who would love him and protect him.
He would have a family.
That, Itachi realized, was a blessing in itself. The boy’s future was still uncertain, of course, but the ripple effect of this change had already begun. With the Nine-Tails no longer attacking the village, the peace would last a little longer. The tragedies that had once been so certain in the timeline were being avoided. For now, at least.
As he looked at Naruto, peacefully asleep in his mother’s arms, Itachi couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief. The future was still a mystery, but perhaps it was one that could be rewritten. The past couldn’t be changed, but there was still time to shape the future.
Itachi glanced down at his baby brother, Sasuke, who was nestled in his mother’s arms, peacefully unaware of the weight of the world. Itachi’s resolve hardened. He had to protect these children. He had to protect Konoha and the bonds that tied them all together.
But how long would this peace last? How long before the shadow of war, of hatred, of betrayal, crept back into their lives?
Itachi didn’t have the answers, but he knew one thing for certain: this time, he wouldn’t let the tragedies unfold again. Whatever it took, he would stand guard over the people he loved, and this time, he would save them all.
As the day wore on, Itachi left the visit with his mother, his thoughts filled with a sense of cautious hope. The village was peaceful. Naruto would grow up loved. Sasuke would have the chance to live a life without the darkness that had surrounded their family.
But the future was still unwritten, and Itachi couldn't help but wonder: How long would this peace last?