Chapter Text
The angel’s wings felt heavier than normal.
Gripping onto the balcony railing, he forced back the tears that had been threatening to fall all evening. The onyx wings sprouting from his back shuddered as a painful coughing fit erupted in his throat.
Blood and feathers.
That’s what he’d been coughing up for years now. In the palm of his hand were three feathers, the same deep shade of his wings, surrounded by a few splotches of deep ruby.
Every day, he could feel the feathers poking into his chest, ripping and tearing at the walls of his lungs. He could feel them scratch his throat every time he coughed, every time he breathed. The angel longed for the day that he could be released from this pain, that the long process of falling could be completed, and the day of his long-awaited death.
Alas, he couldn’t give in to his sickness, not yet. There was still something he had to do.
Sasuke.
His younger brother was still out there somewhere, hungry for revenge. Sasuke Uchiha was the only one who could grant the angel’s wish. He was the lone survivor of the massacre, and he was the only one the angel was going to allow to take his life. The fall would not be the thing that took him.
His dark eyes watched as the bloody feathers were blown out of his hand. His gaze followed them as they fluttered in the evening breeze and into the cityscape below. As for the blood, he simply used his robes to wipe it away. It was black, so there was no need to worry about a stain.
“Itachi.”
The angel turned to see Kisame, a water demon, step onto the balcony. His sharp teeth were always twisted into a mischievous smile, and he wore dark robes similar to Itachi’s. They were part of the same group, and despite the demon’s irritating behavior, he and Itachi were assigned as partners.
If Itachi wasn’t as mature as he was, he would have thrown Kisame right off that balcony. He easily could have if he wanted to. Although the demon’s falling wouldn’t have been as graceful as the feathers.
“What is it, Kisame?”
“We’re ready to take our leave,” said the water demon. “Pain has tracked down another half-demon.”
Suddenly, the dried up, chakra-drained husks of the previous half-demons they had captured the past few moons flashed through Itachi’s mind.
“Oh? Which one is it this time?”
The demon smiled even wider, his expression growing even more twisted. “The nine-tailed fox. We’ve also located something else. Something that hasn’t existed since the dawn of creation.”
Itachi turned around to face the demon, his interest obviously peaked. “And that would be?”
“A half-human half-angel hybrid,” Kisame said, and Itachi knew exactly what—more accurately, who —the demon was referring to.
“A nephilim.”
Notes:
this chapter was most definitely just used as more of a prologue or setup chapter, but the chapters will get a lot longer as the story progresses, and as more details about this au are revealed. thank you so much for giving this fic a shot! look forward to more!!
Chapter Text
The half-demon stood outside the village gates, alone. He watched as the townspeople happily went about, smiling at one another, being friends with one another. They were all so friendly to one another. Nobody on the other side of that gate hated each other, so why did they only hate him?
The poor boy’s claws gripped at the wooden posts, squeezing them tightly with his mother’s strength that he couldn’t control. He was a monster in those smiling townspeople’s eyes. He knew he was different, but wasn’t everybody? What was it about his existence that made him so wrong? He did nothing to bother them, so why was he cast out?
The tears that the half-demon had been holding back suddenly fell. Small waterfalls poured down his cheeks and collected at his whiskers before finally dripping from his chin. He didn’t want to be like them—to hate the way they did—but sometimes he couldn’t help it.
Wiping away those tears, the boy walked away from the Leaf Village, walking into the lonely forest that he knew as his home. No one in the forest looked at him with kind eyes, but no one looked at him as if he caused all their suffering, either. It was a safe place for Naruto Uzumaki, even if it meant there was no one there for him.
The boy wandered and wandered, deeper and deeper, because that was all he could do, really. He had no one to talk to, no one his age to play or train with. His bare feet were calloused against the forest floor, his sharp toenails digging harshly into the dirt with every step. He chose not to take the path the villagers had made. He learned his lesson about that decision the day he got that scar on the palm of his hand.
“Demon! You damned demon!”
He could hear the voices of those angry villagers in his head every day. Every time he closed his eyes, he could still see them chasing him away. He could still see the other children his age cowering in fear. Why were they so afraid of him? He would never hurt anyone unless… he had to. But he never had to.
The scent of his own blood was still familiar in his nose. He could still feel the sword slashing against his skin. His scar still stung sometimes, as if it had been freshly cut. The memories haunted him, pained him. Some days, he just wished he could forget it all.
The forest seemed strangely quiet today. The usual chorus of birds chirping and toads croaking was suddenly silent. Naruto could only hear the faint sound of a bird of prey crying high in the air. The demon boy looked up, and he was right. A hawk was flying in ominous, dizzying circles above him. Was that why the animals were so quiet today? Were they just all hiding from that hawk?
No, that couldn’t be it. There was definitely something else off about the air around him. There was someone approaching. Naruto could sense a substantial amount of power emanating from this person, whoever—or whatever—they were.
A single black feather appeared in front of him, fluttering slowly to the ground at the demon boy’s feet. Naruto blinked at it for a few moments, unsure of how a feather as black as night could appear so suddenly. The color was all wrong to belong to that hawk, so where had it fallen from?
“Hey. Half-demon.”
Naruto looked up to see a boy around his age sitting on a tree branch above him. At least, he looked like a normal boy at first glance, but a closer look would say otherwise. This boy had raven-colored hair and dark eyes that shone a deep shade of red in the sunlight. He was dressed in robes the color of sapphire, with elegant sandals covering the bottoms of his feet. The boy’s most unique feature, however, was a pair of dark wings sprouting from his back, feathers black like onyx, with silver specks at the ends that sparkled like stars.
“Who are you?” Naruto asked the boy, cautiously. “ What are you?”
The strange boy lept from the branch, a few flaps of his wings softening his rough landing onto the ground. Despite the size of his wings, he clearly had had little experience using them. Was this boy just as lonely as Naruto was?
“A freak, just like you,” the boy responded. His voice was thick with sarcasm and hate, but the slight hints of loneliness and sadness were still there. Naruto knew that tone all too well.
“I’m not a freak,” Naruto insisted, pouting his lips and crossing his arms in irritation. Of all the people calling him that, why was this boy? Naruto didn’t even know who this was. He had no memories of seeing this boy in the village before, and a boy with wings was definitely something that was hard to forget. “I’ll ask again. Who are you?”
“My name is Sasuke Uchiha, and I’ve come to warn you about someone.”
Notes:
this next chapter has finally been posted! yayyyy! this one was also more of a setup chapter, so it was also kinda short (the next couple chapters may be as well), but once the story progresses they will get longer and longer. so brace yourselves. i have a lot of story i gotta get out of my brain lol.
so what do you all think of my portrayal of our beloved half-demon so far? my interpretation of him will be a bit more mature since he had to raise himself in the woods, but i still plan on giving him a much more child-like attitude compared to dark angel sasuke. both will get a lot of character development as well. i mean... it's naruto, so what'd-ya expect?
that's about all i have to say for this chapter. 'til next time!
Chapter Text
It was late at night. If it weren’t for the stars sprinkled along the sky or the full moon blaring the sun’s reflection like a spotlight, it would be pitch black out. Everyone in the village had long since gone to bed, and yet, there was her .
Izumi.
She was a peculiar girl, wandering alone in the streets at night without a single care in the world. Itachi always noticed her whenever he came to the village. He didn’t know why, but this human had always entranced him. Could it have been her flowing auburn hair? The beauty mark underneath her chocolate eyes? The joyful skip in every one of her steps? But his interest in her could have also been because she wasn’t entirely human.
If she had inherited her mother’s genes, then she would have had wings, or she just hadn’t developed into them yet. Poor Izumi was a nephilim, a half-angel.
Itachi knew deep down why Pain had sent him and Kisame to capture her, he just didn’t want to admit it. Unlike the tailed half-demons, who could occasionally lose control of their abilities, unintentionally make themselves known, and harm people, Izumi hurt no one. The angelic genes were rare to pass on to half-human offspring. The poor girl probably didn’t even inherit any of her mother’s angelic powers. Itachi figured that if they left her alone, nothing would be different. She’d just be a strange, starry-eyed girl in a world that would never understand her. He knew all too well what that was like, not being understood.
Alas, he had orders, and he had to go through with the plan. Fighting back the urge to cough, the fallen angel raised his dark wings high in the air, blocking out much of the moonlight that glowed in the night sky. His massive wings cast an enormous shadow on the ground below, and Izumi noticed. How could she not?
Looking up, Izumi’s deep eyes met Itachi’s glowing red gaze. Then it was all too late. Before she could even utter a scream, the girl collapsed to the ground.
Itachi flew down to the ground, so fast that it seemed like he was teleporting, and caught the girl in his arms. The angel nearly shivered at how light she felt in his grasp. He couldn’t help but wonder… was her life stable here? Has she been eating enough? Or was her half-angel body reacting poorly to her human side?
A few long strands of auburn hair drifted over her forehead. Itachi gently reached over to brush them back. He couldn’t help it. He found her so strangely beautiful. Her gentle face, her delicate skin, the beauty mark resting underneath her eye.
Itachi cursed at himself. He hated how he felt so much for others, no matter who or what they were. It was part of the reason he fell. The angel simply felt too much. He loved too much. He chose peace over his own clan, his own flesh and blood.
“That was strangely easy,” said Kisame, appearing from the shadows behind him. “I thought for sure that being a nephilim, she would at least have put up more of a fight.”
Itachi was silent for a moment before responding, “She probably doesn’t even realize what she is. Hell, half of the jinchuriki don’t even know what they are, even after long years of discrimination and harassment.”
Kisame chuckled. “Still, a nephilim is one of the most powerful beings in all the realms.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Itachi. “Let’s just take her back to base. We still have the nine-tailed fox to find.”
Yes, and, said the voice that creeped into the back of Itachi’s mind, I need to find Sasuke.
***
Beauty and grace.
Those were the only two words Izumi could think of to describe what she saw that night. The stars illuminated the deep blue color of the night sky. A brilliant gold halo surrounded the moon, and in the center of that halo was an ethereal figure.
Large onyx wings rose from his sides, fluttering gracefully to keep him high in the air. Raven-colored silk robes and straight waves of long dark hair glowed in the moonlight behind him. He appeared to be the epitome of absolute beauty and perfection, although she couldn’t see the walls of darkness and pain that he had built up inside of him.
Beauty and grace, pure grace.
Those ruby red eyes stared down at her like two scarlet suns in the dead of night. As soon as Izumi met those eyes, she felt her knees buckle. Her mind went blank before she hit the ground, but for a split second, she could have sworn that a pair of slender arms caught her as she fell.
Notes:
and so i've introduced our next important character, izumi. there isn't a lot of her in the manga/light novels or anime (sadly), so i wanted to give her some more spotlight in this story. also, i made her a half-angel since she was only half-uchiha in the series. after this chapter is when the story is really gonna pick up, so i thank you for reading so far.
Chapter Text
The falling sickness was different for everyone. While Itachi suffered from feathers poking through his lungs, a few of his teammates suffered fates that were just as horrid. The Uchiha wasn’t the only member of the Akatsuki that was a fallen angel.
Pain and his loyal accomplice, Konan, had also once been powerful angels before falling. Although their suffering wasn’t any easier. Pain was growing thinner and thinner by the day, slowly being eaten away by his own grace. His wings were nothing but tattered outlines of where deep maroon and violet feathers once were. The weight of the pitiful wings—if they could even be called that anymore—alone was enough weight to keep him from walking. He was growing weaker by the day, and he was supposed to be their leader.
Konan still appeared intact at first glance, with wings still as pure and white as the heavens above, but that was only because her sickness was more mental. It started as depression, which then led to her forgetting small things, which then led to her dementia. The poor girl can’t even remember what she is half the time.
Itachi watched from afar as Pain was resting on his throne. Half of his body was being kept alive by tubes and artificial body parts. If he was human, he would have most likely died many moons ago. Even for an angel, Itachi was surprised the sickness hadn’t taken Pain already. He was nothing but a crucifix of flesh and bones at this point.
Konan was sitting at her leader’s feet, resting on a small patch of paper roses she had fashioned herself. Even though they smelled of book pages rather than fresh pollen, there she sat, taking in the flowers’ scent.
Itachi wished his sickness was like that. Konan showed no signs of being in pain. In fact, she seemed happier now than she ever had before. Although it was sad to see her slowly lose herself, it was still comforting to know that she was happy in her own little world.
The Uchiha suddenly choked in an unexpected fit of coughing. He doubled over, wings hunched and shuddering as blood and feathers clawed their way up his throat.
“Damn it, Itachi,” Kisame said, backing away a few steps in surprise. “You really shouldn’t overwork yourself like that. That special jutsu of yours is killing you faster the more you use it, you know.”
Once Itachi recollected himself, he stood up, glaring at Kisame straight in the demon’s fishlike eyes. The nerve he had. A demon would never understand what it was like to be an angel who was slowly, painfully, falling. “Believe me, Kisame,” he said, wiping the blood off his hand. “I am well aware of that.”
“Here, take this.”
Itachi turned to see Konan standing behind him with a bouquet of paper flowers in her hand, each one folded perfectly. “Thank you, but what would I do with that?”
Konan flashed the angel an innocent smile. “You’re sick,” she said. “Please, take it.”
“I see. Thank you, Konan.” Without another word, Itachi carefully took the bouquet from her. Curious, he held the bundle to his nose and inhaled, chuckling to himself. They really did smell like flowers.
“Shall I make one for our guest, too?”
Konan was pointing to the unconscious woman Kisame had thrown over his shoulder. Izumi.
“That won’t be necessary,” Itachi replied, noticing how peaceful the girl’s face was.
The angel had trapped her in her own mind for a bit, giving them enough time to take her back to the base without a fight. He wasn’t too specific with his sharingan, so he wasn’t sure what kind of dreamworld she was currently living in. Itachi couldn’t help but wonder what a nephilim like her would dream about. Did she dream of human things, or did she not dream at all like her angelic heritage? She could have been running from a monstrous demon in a nightmare, or living in a peaceful world of her own, like Konan.
Konan simply smiled and walked back to her place at Pain’s side, smelling her flowers, and ignoring everything that was happening around her.
Noticing Konan’s return, Pain shifted his tired eyes toward Itachi and Kisame. His scarlet hair was turning silver at the ends, and the violet color of the rinnegan was fading. He was so weak that simply breathing caused his body to shake in agony. Even the sound of what was left of his voice was painful to hear. The embodiment of pain—the leader of the Akatsuki.
“Is that… the half-angel?” he asked, so slowly and quietly that it was nearly impossible to understand.
“It sure is,” Kisame replied, grinning like an over-achieving imbecile. “What do we do with her next?”
“Lock… her away… for now,” said Pain. “After all… we still require the half-demon to achieve… our goal.”
Notes:
i wanted to get another chapter in before life keeps me busy again. i feel so bad for making the akatsuki members (or at least all the angelic ones) suffer even more than they already did in the canon, but writing about suffering is so much more fun i'm sorry. i'll save fluff for another story. thanks for reading this far!
Chapter Text
She woke to a realm of her wildest dreams.
The skies above her were a soft shade of pink, as if the clouds above her were blushing. The grass at her feet was soft and lush and a deep shade of violet, the same shade of the elegant gown she wore. Her hair was braided with cherry blossoms and poppies woven into her hair. But the strangest part was the pair of deep umber wings that hung from her back. They weren’t nearly as large as the figure she saw, but they were still quite large.
Strange winged beings fluttered past her and up into the sky. They were peculiar little things—glowing eyeballs with multiple sets of wings. They almost looked like fairies, or small angels.
She watched in awe as they flew higher and higher into that cherry pink sky. She wished she could follow them and see whatever was beyond the clouds.
And she could.
Flapping those large wings of hers, Izumi took to the skies, fluttering behind the strange little seraphs. The air grew warmer the higher she flew. It was strange, yet comforting at the same time. It was just like wandering the village at night, peaceful and freeing and surreal. Knowing deep down that this was merely a dreamworld, Izumi wished she could just fly like this forever.
Alas, dreams were a complicated thing.
Izumi could hear something behind her. Strange chattering like birds came fluttering towards her, and when she turned her head to see what the cause of it was, it wasn’t at all what she expected. They looked like bats, only they had hollow eyes and white, mud-like skin. And there were a lot of them.
Izumi flew faster, higher, but it was no use. The bats were a lot smaller and a lot faster than she was. They were gaining. Quickly, too.
It was only a matter of seconds before the strange swarm caught up to her. Some flew in front of her, others stayed behind her, and a few attacked her at her sides. They bit into her flesh with their razor-sharp fangs, causing fresh blood to seep into her gown. Then they dug into her wings, causing feathers to fall into the air.
Blood and feathers.
Beauty and grace.
All in one.
After taking so much pain, Izumi couldn’t keep herself in the air any longer. So she fell, the clay bats watching as she quickly lost altitude. She couldn’t help but think that this was it, that even though this was clearly a dream, she was still about to die.
Then, she didn’t.
Izumi’s dark eyes fired open, violently gripped back into reality. Two demons were standing in front of her, one golden-haired and one with hair as fiery as the sun. It was then that she realized she was tied up, cold chains tightening around her wrists and ankles.
The two demons were clinging onto each other, chuckling and pointing at Izumi like the imps that they were. Then, the girl saw one of those clay bats fluttering by the blond demon’s head before it landed on his shoulder.
Izumi gasped in shock. If it weren’t for the chains keeping her still, she would have stumbled back a few steps. They were terrifying to look at.
Overall, the golden-haired demon looked human, but only at first glance. His eyes were just as dark and as hollow as the clay creature resting on his shoulder, and an unsettling mouth peered open on each of his palms, letting an unsettling grin and lizard-like tongue peak free.
The other demon was a lot less human. Despite his soft-looking scarlet hair, his skin looked wooden, his joints creaked, and his eyes had a strange shine to them as if they were made of glass. She noticed translucent strings that hung from his forearms and calves. He looked like a puppet.
“Where am I?” Izumi squeaked. She could barely be heard behind the demons’ laughter. “Why am I here? Who are you?”
“Hmph! You humans speak too many questions,” the blond demon sneered.
“Technically, she’s only half-human,” said the other demon, shooting his comrade a look.
It was then that Izumi noticed the dark robes the two creatures were wearing. They were the same robes that she saw the dark angel wearing that night. The night that she…
“Where’s the angel?”
The two imps perked up, surprised at Izumi’s sudden question.
“Another insolent question? Hmph!” the blond hissed. The bat on his shoulder began fluttering its wings in a way to copy its master’s irritated state.
“Where is the angel?” she asked again, this time a tad firmer.
“Show us some respect, you pathetic little—!”
“Deidara. Sasori. That’s enough.”
Everyone froze at the new voice, deep and commanding, yet as gentle as the flap of a broken wing. The two demons slowly turned, revealing the dark figure that stood behind them. Izumi knew this figure.
“It’s you!” she gasped at the sight, the chains tightening slightly at her head’s surprised movement. “I saw you in the sky!”
The angel simply nodded, the movement so subtle that everything on him—from his raven hair to the silk of his obsidian robes—didn’t move. “You did,” he said, his voice laced with an inhuman monotone.
Suddenly, the chains around Izumi’s wrists were gone, replaced with a thick set of prison bars in front of her. She took a wobbly step forward, rightfully expecting to fall, before catching herself with the bars. “How long have I—? Wait… Is this real life?” the poor girl said, her grip on the bars tightening as if her hands were the strange chains that had just been keeping her confined. “Am I still dreaming?”
“She asks too many questions,” observed the puppet-like demon. Izumi could only assume that the demon was Sasori, and the more talkative one had to be Deidara.
“That’s what I’ve been saying! ” Deidara. The demon crossed his arms and stuck his nose high into the air. “This little wench has done nothing but cause a ringing in my ear ever since you and that lugheaded water demon brought her here. Does she really have enough power to help with you fallen angels and your little plan? ‘Cause she just looks like another boring village girl to me.”
In the silence that followed Deidara’s complaining, Izumi found herself looking into the dark angel’s crimson eyes once again. She hoped that this time they would wake her up from this strange nightmare, or at least transport her back to her own little dream world, a place where there were fresh flowers woven into her hair and wings on her back.
Finally, that suffocating silence was broken. “Yes, this girl is not what she seems,” said the angel. “You don’t believe we—fallen warriors of grace—know what we’re doing? Are you really doubting our leader’s intuition, Deidara?”
The demon fell silent, guilt lingering in his empty eyes, but he was too proud to apologize for anything. Without waiting for any orders, the two imps simply left, leaving Itachi and Izumi alone.
“Am I still dreaming?” the half-angel asked.
Itachi was silent, staring at Izumi with so much thought and curiosity. As he analyzed her, he felt strange. Even though his abilities were slowly taking his eyesight away from him, even though she was nothing but a blur to him, he took in every detail that he could before finally deciding what to say next. “Depending on your point of view, you are in a dream world. I’ve trapped you in my genjutsu, keeping you prisoner until we’re given our orders. You’re helpless, and yet, you’re still in complete consciousness. In your reality, you’re awake, but in mine… you’re completely helpless.”
“What do you want with me?”
Silence again. “That… I cannot tell you.”
Notes:
i have returned with character cameos!! hopefully now that it's summer i won't get burnout as easily and i can dedicate more time to this story. another big character appearance is coming up, so look forward to that! until next chapter, readers. :)
Chapter 6: Man in the Forest
Chapter Text
Sasuke hated teaching himself how to fly, but he also hated having such magnificent wings if he couldn’t use them. It was hard feeling alone in such a large family, only having his older brother looking out for him, and it was even harder once Itachi had killed everyone.
He was so young when it had happened. After his older brother fell, he left Sasuke to fend for himself. The younger brother didn’t give a damn why. He was just glad that the bastard was gone. Alas, that meant the fledgling had to grow up fast, and that also meant teaching himself how to use his own wings. His flying still wasn’t the best, but at least he could get a few meters into the air. Although his gliding was still shaky, he could still travel fast.
“Your flying isn’t the best, you know,” said that irritating half-demon.
Why am I even warning this moron about anything? Sasuke wondered to himself. Honestly, the boy didn’t even know the answer to that himself. He was so bent on confronting his brother that he was desperate to do anything, even if it meant using this idiot to lure him out. He would do anything if it meant finding answers, getting his revenge.
“Seriously, who taught you how to use those things? How do you just keep flapping about like that and not crash? Like, seriously!”
“Will you just shut up!?” Sasuke snapped, whipping his head over his shoulder to glare at the abomination following behind him. The sudden movement distracted the angel from flapping his wings. He froze midair before tumbling to the group, too quickly to catch himself. “Damn it!”
Naruto snickered. “See? I told you that you’d crash. Where are you taking me, anyway?”
Sasuke winced as he peeled himself from the ground. Looking down, he saw the scrapes and green tinge along his knees from landing in the grass. At least there weren’t any sticks or pebbles to pull from his bleeding flesh this time.
Sasuke swore to himself that Naruto would never learn how often he actually crashes. He would never hear the end of it. Alas, that secret might not be kept any longer, because Sasuke was taking the half-demon to the man that had practically raised him. And, despite not having any wings, this same man was the one who gave him a few pointers on his flying lessons. This man had seen Sasuke crash many times before, but he also couldn’t keep a secret to save his life. The angel swore the only secrets he kept were what he was reading in those dirty books of his.
“You’ll see when we get there!” Sasuke huffed, flapping his wings a few times. He was suddenly back in the air, leading Naruto to his destination.
Eventually, after so, so much nagging from that annoying half-demon, they arrived. It was a peaceful little area in the forest, a quiet cove hidden underneath the gentle shade of the trees. A small cave was in the center, guarded by a pack of sleeping dogs.
Naruto was shocked at where the angel had taken him. After all his years of being alone in the forest, he had never seen this place before. Has it always been hidden somehow? Was it even real and this life nothing but a cruel dream?
The mixed sounds of snoring dogs and childish giggling filled the two boys’ ears, snapping Naruto out of his surprised state.
“Sensei! I can hear you in there!” Sasuke called out, landing on the top of the cave. The angel banged his fist against the top of the entrance, more for emphasis than anything, since flesh against stone barely made any noise. “Stop reading those pervy books of yours and get your ass out here right now!”
After a moment of not receiving a response, Naruto jumped. “Sasuke, behind you!”
The angel whipped his head around, causing his messy dark hair to follow his head’s sharp movements. A masked man stood behind him, with a pine green cloak hanging from his shoulders and a spiky cloud of silver hair. The man’s mask covered the bottom of his face, leaving his eyes uncovered. One was a deep brown, and the other was as red as blood, with a scar across the socket.
Before Sasuke could react, the strange man swept his legs underneath Sasuke’s, sending the angel falling to the ground. Another crash.
As Sasuke stood back up, the man’s eyes closed tight, showing that he was hiding a cheeky grin underneath his mask. “Welcome back, Sasuke. I see you’ve brought a friend with you. That’s a surprise!”
“You bastard…” the angel grunted, getting back on his feet. “What was that for?”
The white-haired man reached into his cloak and pulled out a book. From the wear the book's spine had, Naruto could tell that it was definitely a favorite of his. “You interrupted my reading time, you silly cherub,” he replied matter-of-factly. A light shade of pink dusted his cheeks as he thought of the book’s contents.
That explained the giggling earlier.
“Who are you supposed to be?” Naruto wondered. “You’re not Sasuke’s dad, are you?”
“Oh, heaven’s no,” the man laughed, waving his hand at the two boys. “But I guess you could say I raised him. I taught him everything he knows. Except for how to fly when someone knocks you off your feet, apparently.”
“His name’s Kakashi,” Sasuke explained, ignoring the man's taunt. “He’s my sensei, and he’s a total ass .”
“Where do you think you get it from, Sasuke?”
The angel ground his teeth together, fighting back a response.
“Are you an angel?” Naruto asked the man.
Kakashi smiled again. “Nope.”
“Are you a demon?”
“Nope! I’m just a man who lives in a cave in the woods.”
“Sasuke told me you know about us. So how do you know about angels and demons? You don’t read about it from those books of yours, do you?”
Kakashi’s face turned pink again. “We have a lot to talk about, my boy. Come inside and don’t mind the dogs. They get used to people easily.”
As he said that, a small brown dog with a flat face was at Naruto’s feet. He looked up at the half-demon, squinted its human-like eyes at him, and began growling.
Chapter Text
Itachi watched as Izumi picked at bits of dirt along the cobblestone floor. He couldn’t help but wonder what she found so interesting about dirt, but there was also the possibility that she was just bored. Yes, that was definitely the more likely reason. He knew humans got bored easily.
But she was only half human.
It had been days since she had said anything, even refusing to eat or drink. It was strange, not hearing a peep from her after all the questions she had the first night she was there. Itachi noticed that the dreamlike sparkle in her eyes was fading. Maybe she still thought that none of this was real, or maybe she was starting to realize that she wasn’t there as a house guest.
He had been watching her for years now, ever since he was but a fledgling. Her mother was of the same angelic bloodline. Therefore, he had always felt it was his duty to keep a close eye on her. She had always been a quiet child, always being neglected by the people in her late father’s village. Even as she grew into a young adult, she had remained silent, and alone. He couldn’t help but wonder what her life had been like if her parents hadn't been murdered.
Hearing her voice for the first time was a surprise for Itachi. He didn’t know she could be so curious, so confident. Her voice was so full of life, like the gentle cheep of a baby bird, and yet it was so soothing, like warm milk being poured into a glass on a cold rainy night. The fallen angel had only heard it once, and he found himself already missing it.
Oh, how badly he wanted to look into her thoughts at that moment. How badly he wanted to learn how her mind worked, how her body moved the way it did. She was an abomination, a half-human, half-angel. She wasn’t natural, and he wished to study her so incredibly closely. Itachi could have easily done that in a matter of seconds using his genjutsu, but he resisted the urge. He needed to save his strength for the next part of his mission.
The half-demon.
“Here,” said Konan, suddenly emerging from behind Itachi. She was holding a small cup of freshly brewed tea. “Have her drink this. She’ll become dehydrated if she doesn’t have something.”
Itachi took the cup from his fellow angel and placed it on the floor in between two of the bars. He winced at the sound of ceramic clacking against the stone. The small—but noticeable—sound suddenly reminded him he was still observing her. Only this time, she was his prisoner.
It was pretty clear that Izumi wasn’t interested in whatever they were serving. Her deep chocolate eyes didn’t even glance at the cup. “I’m not thirsty,” she mumbled.
Konan simply smiled and let her attention be grabbed by the vine of paper flowers she had growing up her wings and down her arm. “Ah, but it’s mint! I think…” she said, watching her creations carefully. “It’s delicious!”
Izumi shook her head.
“Please just drink it,” Itachi said, a bit too desperately. “You need your strength.”
This time, Izumi’s eyes met the angel’s, snapping towards him in a fury. “For what? Why are you keeping me here?”
Before Itachi could respond, Konan stepped in. “We can’t tell you. That’s a secret, silly goose.”
Itachi looked over at his fellow angel, gently placing a hand on her shoulder before speaking, “Konan, why don’t you go ask Pain if we’re ready to continue the mission.”
The angel’s amber eyes went wide with delight at the suggestion. “Oh, that’s a wonderful idea!” she squealed, placing a paper rose in Itachi’s hair before skipping away to find their leader. Itachi sighed as he watched her leave. It was truly sad how much of her mind was fading. Someday, she would be gone forever. They all would.
Once Konan was out of sight, Itachi removed the flower from his hair and turned, looking at Izumi’s slender form curled up into a ball on the floor. She looked so defeated, yet stronger than ever. “I’m sorry,” Itachi told her, quietly so that no one else in the base could hear. “I’m so sorry.”
Finally, the girl met his eyes. She didn’t respond to his apology, instead staring into his tired, dark eyes. He knew she could see right through him, whether it was her angelic blood or simply her own intuition. She was reading him like an open book.
Izumi broke eye contact, looking down at the teacup resting on the floor. She rested the back of her hand against the ceramic, testing the beverage’s temperature before picking it up and placing it underneath her nose to breathe in the soothing scent of mint leaves. Then, before Itachi had any time to react, Izumi threw the cup at him, splashing the hot liquid all over his face and shoulders.
He flinched, not at the steaming hot liquid, but at the girl’s decision to throw it at him. His eyes went wide as faint steam surrounded his burning skin, only for it to heal in a matter of seconds. Itachi gasped at the shock of it all, only to choke on his own breath and erupt into a fit of harsh coughs.
Clearly not expecting the reaction she got, Izumi rose to her feet in surprise. She read him again, watching as the blood splattered onto Itachi’s palm, followed by one—no, two. No, three!—feathers.
The coughing echoed throughout the base for a good minute, although it felt like an eternity. Looking down at the blood-soaked feathers resting in between his fingers, Itachi sighed, catching his breath. His body was his prison, and it was slowly crumbling at his feet.
“You’re dying.” Her observation was quiet, as if she was worried about the fallen angel who had taken her hostage. “Aren’t you?”
Itachi could only look at her, using his sleeve to wipe the blood from his stained lips.
The realization struck Izumi like a bolt of lightning. “Did you bring me here to save you?”
Notes:
it's been quite awhile since i've worked on this fic at all, so i figured i'd finally work on it over the holidays. this chapter is, again, kinda short, but there will be much more posted soon. my rough draft of the entire story is almost complete, and i'm almost done editing the next chapter, so stay tuned.
happy new year! and thanks for reading this far!
Chapter 8: Half-Demon
Chapter Text
The peculiar trio stayed inside the cave for the rest of the night. They gathered around a small campfire at their feet, biting back the cold from the chilly temperature of the cave and droplets of water that would occasionally fall from the ceiling. Kakashi was poking the fire with a stick, casually keeping it alive while a few of his dogs rested at his feet. A brown pug-like creature was resting on the strange man’s lap, snoring away.
“His name’s Pakkun,” Kakashi had said when the boys had first entered the place. “He’s a grumpy old fart, but he’s the bravest dog I know. Would you like to pet him?”
Rather than pet dogs, Naruto kept a close eye on Sasuke as he sat there. And as he watched him, the half-demon couldn’t help but notice how the delicate glow of the fire reflected off the other boy’s ebony skin. The angel’s dark eyes stared into the fire below him, lost deep in his thoughts. Naruto couldn’t help but wonder what—or who—Sasuke was thinking about. Dark wings slumped against the rocky cave floor, scarred and frayed from years of flying and fighting. Sasuke was so young and yet he looked so frayed. Naruto couldn’t help but want to know more about this strange boy.
The next morning, Naruto awoke to Pakkun snoring in his face. The half-demon’s whiskers twitched in irritation as he sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. His bones were stiff from resting on such a rocky surface, but the feeling wasn’t anything new to him.
The dog simply snorted in his sleep as a response.
“Good morning, Naruto!” Kakashi’s voice pierced the air, a strange mix of a monotone and sing-song sound. “How did you sleep?”
Naruto scratched his head, trying to recall the previous night’s events. He had been so tired that he couldn’t even remember when exactly he had dozed off. The only thing he could remember were a few glimpses of his dreams. Long red hair dancing in a calm wind, blood dripping onto a baby’s skin, and a man with golden hair desperately fighting for something Naruto didn’t know.
The boy had been having this dream for as long as he could remember, but he didn’t know who these people were, or why he saw them every night. Were they part of his story somehow and he just couldn’t remember why?
Occasionally, Naruto would also dream of a strange, fox-like creature with nine tails terrorizing a village. A strange contrast to the events from his other dreams, but he couldn’t help but wonder if they were all connected.
“Forget about how I slept,” Naruto snapped, ignoring the sleepiness that still lingered in his voice. “You said I was brought here to talk, and I’m ready to talk. So let’s get on with it! I want answers now!”
Sasuke rolled his eyes at the outburst, but Naruto ignored it, keeping his focus on Kakashi, who was likely the only one who had any answers for him. The struggle would just be getting this strange man to cough them up.
Surprisingly, though, the silver-haired man closed his eyes and sighed, planning his next words carefully. “Alright then,” he said, gesturing for one of his dogs to crawl up onto his lap. What appeared to be a beagle mix happily took the offer and exhaled softly as Kakashi rubbed his fingers against the canine’s ears. “Where should we begin, Sasuke?”
The angel had his hands clasped together, resting against his chin. The boy simply shrugged in response.
“Well, I guess we should start off by stating the obvious,” Kakashi continued. “You realize that you’re not quite human, right?”
The words pierced Naruto’s spirit like a knife. Deep down, he had always known that he was different, an outcast. The people from his village had abused him, banished him, called him a demon, but he always thought it was just an exaggeration. Now he was wondering… could it actually be the truth?
Kakashi read the boy’s expression carefully before continuing. “Your mother, see… she was… oh, how do I put this?”
“Just spit it out already,” Sasuke mumbled out of his breath.
“Naruto, your mother was a demon.”
The half-demon felt his heart and soul sink into his chest. His mother… a demon? It hurt to hear, but at the same time, that missing puzzle piece fit into his story all too well. It explained why he was always so different, why the villagers would spit at him and call him a monster.
“Demon! You damned demon!”
The answer had always been there, staring him straight in the face, and yet he still didn’t know. A part of him was relieved to finally hear the truth. It felt like someone had lifted a weight off his chest, but actually knowing the truth also made him feel so much worse.
The truth slowly spilled out of his mouth. “So I really am a demon.”
“Half-demon, technically,” Kakashi explained. Half-demon. It was that word Sasuke had been using to describe Naruto this whole time. “Your father was still human.”
Kakashi pulled a book out from underneath his cloak, cracking it open, and skipping to a page somewhere towards the middle. The spine was worn, but not quite as much as some of the other books Naruto had seen the white-haired man read. And so, he began telling the two boys a story not many people, angels, or demons knew.
The story of the nine-tailed fox.
Chapter 9: Nine Tails
Notes:
finally... some lore...
Chapter Text
Long waves of flame-colored hair flowed heavily in the breeze, contrasting brilliantly with the dainty yellow flowers that sprouted along her feet. A boy with hair of that same yellow shade watched the girl from afar, his aqua eyes widened in awe.
Her whiskers twitched once she realized she was being watched, and so she turned her head, meeting eyes with the human boy who had been watching her. Her nine grand tiles followed her small body’s movements. Those massive tails of hers were barely keeping her standing upright. The young girl was so frail, and yet her eyes were so full of wonder—a tortured soul still hoping for a miracle.
The human boy could tell just by looking at this fragile girl that she wasn’t human, and she most certainly was no angel, either.
“ Demon. ” The word slid past the boy’s lips like a swirling trail of smoke.
The demon girl flinched, but she didn’t appear afraid, and she had no intentions of running away. “ Human, ” she gasped.
The boy blinked at her for a moment, waiting. She didn’t run, didn’t attack, so why was she here? Was she simply awaiting her demise? Was she hoping to be killed? Then, the human noticed how her cheekbones protruded. Her elbows and knees were so boney. Something was wrong with her.
That’s when the boy made his choice, a choice that not many humans before him had ever made. He held his hand out to her, and the demon took it, her skeletal fingers clinging onto his. She was so cold, yet so desperate. She was so weak, and yet her claws dug into his skin, drawing blood.
This scarlet blood dripping onto the yellow petals at their feet… this blood would create a bond that would become legendary .
***
Minato Namikaze—the Yellow Flash—was a well-known name, a young hero who had saved the people of his village many times before. However, his fame did not stop the strange looks others gave him when he brought a strange red-haired creature into the village.
The boy had used his cloak to cover her body, but the twitching whiskers, the monstrous claws, and the bulging outline of her tails were all still very much visible. The townspeoples’ whispers echoed through the demon’s ears as Minato led her to what would be her new home.
“ What on earth is she? ”
“ Is that… a demon? ”
The village became a new home, but it would never feel like it. Quite honestly, she didn’t feel at home in Hell with her own kind, either. Kushina Uzumaki, always an outcast.
The only time she ever felt like she was truly at home was with him, that yellow-haired boy who trusted her enough to welcome her into his village. Even when the others shunned her and called her a freak, he remained by her side, holding her massive claws between his delicate fingers. He had a big heart, and he could see that she did too.
Eventually, they fell in love and snuck away to marry in secret. They both knew that the village wouldn’t approve, so they kept their marriage a secret. However, the truth of their relationship became harder to conceal once Kushina found out she was expecting.
Demons were known for rising from the shadows to spread sin, but it rarely resulted in any offspring. The hybrid growing inside Kushina’s belly was nothing more than a miracle, and a product of true love.
Once Kushina’s pregnancy started to show, Minato relocated her to a cottage outside the village, close enough so that he could visit her every day. Each night, he would sneak away to bring her food, medicine, kisses… anything that she needed to stay happy and healthy. He just loved his beloved demon so much, and the child he had yet to meet. As she grew closer to giving birth, Minato stayed at the cabin, telling his townspeople that he was heading out for a mission and wouldn’t be back for a few weeks.
The birth was tough and unpredictable. No one had ever heard of a half-demon-half-human offspring before, so both Minato and Kushina were afraid of what would happen. A boy was born in secret one crisp autumn night. Both parents were tired and still worried, but everyone was happy and healthy.
That is, until the village found out.
No one knows for sure who saw Minato sneak off that fateful night. Some say it was a man with an orange mask that had one swirling eyehole. Others say it was a man with dark hair that cascaded down his back in long spikes. Either way, it didn’t matter. The night following that rare birth, the townspeople raided the cottage.
In all his years spent with her, Minato had never seen Kushina’s true demonic form before. It was terrifying yet—absolutely magnificent. Outraged at the townspeople coming for her family at that moment, Kushina became the nine-tailed fox. Fully. Terrifyingly.
Outraged, Kushina Uzumaki single-handedly wiped out the entire group of villagers who promised to tear her family apart. Massive claws slashing, tearing trees from the earth, crumbling buildings into rubble. Those people lost their lives that night, and the fox demon destroyed most of the village along with them.
Minato was butchered during the townspeople’s attack, and Kushina simply died from exhaustion. Birth, fighting, and releasing all that demonic force into the world was just too much for her tired body to take. Little Naruto, her clueless son, was left orphaned in a destroyed village who hated his parents.
As the town began rebuilding, an orphanage took him in and raised him the best they could. Although he was a half-demon, he still didn’t deserve to be left alone, so young and helpless. He didn’t deserve to die.
However, as the demon child grew, the more mischievous he became. Stealing, vandalizing, causing more trouble than any other child in the village. He couldn't help it, being motherless and fatherless, and it was far more trouble than the village could handle. After everything that had happened, the townspeople were too scared to keep the boy in the village. So, they released him into the forest, spitting at him, and calling him names the entire way out.
“ Damned demon! ”
All of this was happening to this young halfbreed. And yet, he had no clue as to why, no clue as to what he really was.
Until now.
Chapter 10: Distant Echoes
Chapter Text
Kakashi slowly closed the dusty old book resting in his lap. “So now you know the truth—the whole truth.”
Sasuke watched Naruto’s face carefully as the fire below them illuminated his features. It was strange—both twisted and expressionless all at once. There, the angel couldn’t help but watch as all the puzzle pieces snapped into place inside the half-demon’s brain. The truth was a painful thing to experience. Sasuke knew that all too well.
That blank, twisted expression was the exact one that had been on his brother’s face the night of the massacre. Suddenly, those brutal, bloody images flashed through Sasuke’s mind. That unfortunate night that had been seared into his memory forever, and rightfully so. It had been his brother—Itachi Uchiha—who had wiped out his entire family.
Any angel who bore the Uchiha name—the purest of all angelic bloodlines—had been targeted by Itachi and murdered on sight. No one knew why. None of those angels were butchered, either. Instead, each soul was carefully executed, cut cleanly without mercy, and ended quickly. Every single Uchiha angel was murdered, all in one night, except for Sasuke.
“ My foolish little brother… ”
The words were so clear in his mind… and yet so muffled and distant, like suppressed echoes.
Sasuke had been so young at the time it all happened, so helpless. He was too scared to do anything. Compared to him, Itachi had always been better than him. He had always been bigger, faster, more powerful. Seeing him that night, eyes glowing red and massive dark wings held high above him, it scared the poor young Sasuke. Traumatized him, in fact. No child that age should have to see that much blood, especially the blood of the ones who had raised him.
It didn’t get any better once Sasuke looked into his older brother’s expressionless face. There, frozen in Itachi’s gaze, he was forced to witness the murder all over again. He was trapped under the spell of genjutsu, where he saw everything. He saw his mother and father lose their lives. He could feel their blood leaving their bodies, the sword piercing through their organs, tearing up their flesh. The pain of it all was unbearable.
“ Someday, when you possess the same power as I, come back and face me. ”
Once he was released from the spell, the young angel collapsed, not strong enough to fight back. Sasuke didn’t know why Itachi did what he did, or why he even let his stupid kid brother live, but he didn’t care. He just knew that Itachi was with the Akatsuki now, a peculiar group that had been hunting down other half-demons, and Naruto was next on the list.
“Oh,” was all Naruto could say.
Oh? The reaction wasn’t what Sasuke had expected. It was so surprising that it broke him away from his traumatic thoughts.
Naruto looked down at his hands, at the claws that once belonged to his mother. He felt the whiskers that lived on his face, the same ones that had once inhabited his mother’s.
“So,” said the half-demon, quietly, “what am I supposed to do now?”
Kakashi shifted nervously in his seat, but his calm demeanor remained intact. “Well,” he said, “that brings us to the next part of what we need to discuss.”
“What could be any bigger than what you just told me?”
“It’s the reason Sasuke brought you here, actually,” Kakashi explained as calmly as he could. “To warn you.”
Naruto huffed. “Warn me? About what? Not turning evil and following my demonic heritage?”
As Naruto spoke, Sasuke noticed a few tears threatening to escape the edge of the half-demon’s eyes. The image of those tears caused another memory to flash through his mind, a memory he thought he had long since buried.
It was his brother, Itachi, covered in blood and standing before Sasuke with his back turned. It happened after declaring a future fight. Sasuke remembered attempting an attack, only able to knock Itachi’s broken halo off his head. The angel leaned down to pick it up, and placed it back atop his head. His movements had been slow and calculated, as if they were robotic. Then, Sasuke remembered what his brother did next. It was something that seemed so out of character that it made the events of that traumatic night even more confusing.
Itachi turned to take one last look at his fledgling brother, at his home.
And there had been tears streaming down his face.
Sasuke shook away the thought, instead focusing on how Kakashi didn’t even wince at Naruto’s outburst. The strange man was always professional like that.
“Because of your legendary bloodline, there’s going to always be people hunting you. I’m sorry, but that’s just how it always is in this cursed world,” Kakashi explained. “You’re going to have to know how to defend yourself.”
Naruto was silent for a moment, listening to the truth, which was only becoming harder and harder to bear. “I grew up alone,” he said, finally. “I think I can handle defending myself.”
Kakashi nodded. “I believe you, but… you don’t understand. The group that’s after you right now… the Akatsuki… they’re dangerous and powerful. Very powerful. Both fallen angels and demons are on their side. They’ve been hunting your kind in order to harvest their power. If they get ahold of you, they’ll drain you of all your demoning power, leaving your body a lifeless husk.”
It was odd hearing Kakashi sound so serious, Sasuke thought. Still, his professional tone seemed to be working. Naruto was clearly listening, absorbing every word.
“So what do I do now?” Naruto asked.
“ You can hide,” said Kakashi. “Stay here in the cave until Sasuke and I can find a way to beat the Akatsuki.”
“What!? But I wanna help! I wanna fight with you guys! It’s me that they’re after, I don’t want you guys fighting in a battle that you have nothing to do with.”
“Don’t be an idiot,” Sasuke chimed in. “If they drain you, they’ll be unstoppable. We can’t risk it. It would put every human in the world in danger.”
“But I’m just supposed to let them kill you?” Naruto shot back.
Sasuke shrugged, wings following his shoulders sharp movements. “You don’t really know us.”
“Yeah, so? I don’t know most of the people you guys are trying to save either! Please. It’s me they’re after. Let me at least let me try.”
Kakashi and Sasuke exchanged a look, then the two winced at a sound so quiet most people wouldn’t be able to hear it. But no one in that cave was most people .
A small piece of paper suddenly appeared above them, fluttering down into the fire. The flames devoured it whole as soon as it made contact, but the strange thing didn’t go unnoticed.
Kakashi's muscles tensed up. “We might not have a choice,” he sighed.
Chapter 11: All That's Forgotten
Notes:
this is perhaps the beefiest chapter in this whole fic. very lore-heavy and very sad.
Chapter Text
“Did you bring me here to save you?”
Itachi squinted his dark eyes. Izumi’s form was so blurry in front of him, so unrecognizable. If it weren’t for her strong presence, and that soothing, flower-like scent that he knew was hers, the fallen angel wouldn’t have been able to tell it was her standing behind those bars at all.
She always had been a clever one. Growing up alone, she had gained quite the intellect for herself. It was one of the many things Itachi had always admired about her.
“You figured that out quick,” he observed, voice hoarse from coughing.
Izumi blinked at him for a moment, as if she was assessing his reaction. After all, she was surprised he had even said anything after her inquiry. “But… I still don’t understand why you need me,” she said. “I’m just a human. What am I supposed to do to help you?”
Itachi’s eyes squinted shut, but only for a moment, calculating his next move. Should he tell her the truth? If he did, how much should he even reveal to her? There was so much that Itachi’s own brother didn’t even know about him. Would he risk it, giving it all up to this girl who perhaps barely knew him? There were so many questions. Would it hurt to tell her the truth? How would she react? Would she understand or become overwhelmed, causing a scene?
The fallen angel’s eyes reopened, a pair of dark portals awakening. He looked ahead of him at the girl behind bars, the Akatsuki’s prisoner, trying to guess what her next move would be. Alas, she was nothing but a pretty blur to him.
If he hadn’t already memorized the details of her face, he wouldn’t have been able to tell what she looked like. His health was diminishing too quickly to waste anymore time, his vision being dragged down with it. His hand twitched as a sharp pain twisted down his arm, his chest ached, filled with feathers. He was running out of time.
Ah, to Hell with it.
For a moment, Itachi’s eyes blinked, and those deep portals of his became striking rubies. Izumi barely had any time to react before she was caught in his gaze, trapped in an inescapable illusion. Looking into his eyes, Izumi could see everything and anything, as if she was looking into the past, present, and the future all at once. She was thrown back into the dreamscape, where blurry images suddenly became much, much clearer.
***
Hazuki Uchiha was once a beautiful, powerful angel. Itachi’s father, Fugaku, knew her and her admirable reputation well. After all, she had always been a valued member of the Uchiha clan and a loyal soldier of her kin. Always fighting her battles with grace and magnificence. That’s why it was such an odd surprise that such an angel would fall in love with an ordinary human man.
Together, Hazuki and this forgotten human ran away, finding a home for themselves somewhere hidden on Earth. Eventually, they wed in secrecy and bore a child together—the very first half-human-half-angel hybrid to exist in eons.
However, the creation of such a creature did not go unnoticed by the Uchiha. A nephilim simply being conceived was enough to send a signal to the heavens, alerting Hazuki’s clan that an abomination had just been created.
Nephilim weren’t seen as pure to the other angels. These hybrids were unpredictable, some growing more powerful than the angels who had created them, others growing too weak to survive due to their angelic bloodline being too much for their mortal bodies. They were forbidden, and they were a species that simply couldn't—shouldn’t—exist.
Hazuki spent the following nine months of her life running from her own family, her human lover being the only one by her side. Feeling betrayed, the angel warrior found refuge in a cave beside an earthly spring, where she eventually gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. On the outside, the child appeared human, but the presence of angelic grace was all still there.
It only took their first meeting for the angel to love her baby so, so much. She had the same dark chestnut hair that her mother had, and the same beauty mark as her father rested underneath her eye. She was a beautiful child, glowing with grace and power that would aid her in the dangerous life ahead of her.
Before Hazuki could regain her strength, she decided it was time to move on. It was only a matter of time before her fellow angels would track her down and take her family away from her. If it meant protecting her loved ones, then her health didn’t matter.
Alas, before they could even plan their next move, a group of water demons attacked. They had been living in the spring beside the cave, and they were not happy once they realized an angel—a demon’s natural enemy—had been staying nearby.
Despite being so weakened, Hazuki placed her small daughter in the arms of her husband and told them to run. So they did. While the angel stayed behind to fight off the water demons, the father took his daughter and ran as far as he could before another demon found them. A young—what appeared to be—woman with ferocious claws and razor-like teeth.
At first glance, this demon was much more beautiful compared to the gray-skinned water demons. Her cheeks were rosy and her skin was glowing, most likely because of the baby that appeared to be growing in her swollen belly.
Determined to protect her own child, the young fox demon attacked them, not even aware that the human had a newborn swaddled inside his coat. All this man was to her was an enemy to her. A demon hunter, perhaps. One slash was all it took to have all the blood drained from his neck. And once he collapsed onto the ground, the fox demon heard it.
A baby crying.
Guilt immediately swelled in the pregnant demon’s chest. She scurried over to his body as best she could, tearing open his blood-soaked coat to find it. She was so tiny, so precious, so angelic. The fox demon couldn’t believe what she had just done. She had just orphaned this poor girl. She didn’t know what she would do if someone did that to her own child. A part of her wanted to keep her and raise her as her own, but she couldn’t do that. All she could see in this baby girl’s eyes were the dark eyes of the man she had just slaughtered without hesitation.
So, the fox demon ran, leaving the baby crying in the arms of her dead father. Eventually, that’s where Hazuki found them. She, too, was covered in blood, but not enough to be fatal. Her husband’s death left her heartbroken. Crying out in deep emotional pain, Hazuki couldn’t help but wonder if this was all karma. Maybe instead of her clan coming to kill her child, this was what the world sent to her as punishment.
She kissed her daughter’s head one last time before leaving the infant alone outside the gates of the Hidden Leaf Village. Maybe there someone could take care of her. Unsure of what else to do, Hazuki retreated to the heavens, to the place that was once her home. However, the only thing that awaited her was her punishment for mating with a human, for creating a nephilim. That, and the even darker shadow of the crow that came to punish the rest of the clan.
***
Another portal in the dreamscape cracked open. A young fledgling stood beside his father, watching as angels and demons brutally fought and murdered each other.
“ Blood and feathers… ” the boy gasped.
“ That’s what war is, son, ” was what the angel’s father had always said to him. “ Demons, angels, and even humans who know nothing of each other are bred to kill each other relentlessly. ”
“ But why? ”
“ That’s just the way the world is, Itachi. ”
This young angel grew up, haunted by the images of the wars that plagued his life. It had always been this way since the dawn of creation, and the truth of it all left a dark hole in the young angel’s heart. Why did it have to be this way? Couldn’t everyone and everything just live in peace and harmony?
From that day forward, Itachi swore that that would be his mission—to bring peace to the world, no matter the cost.
Because of his determination to guide all creation down a path of peace, Itachi excelled as an angel. Whether it was his training or schooling, the young fledgling had just the right amount of talent and determination to improve far ahead of all the others his age. Itachi Uchiha was truly a prodigy of his people. Every angel in Heaven envied him.
However, this impressive amount of improvement eventually caught the attention of the upper class angels—the archangels. One particular angel—the archangel Danzo—was the most interested of them all. Ever since he caught wind of Itachi’s talents, Danzo made sure that he was present throughout every one of the fledgling’s new accomplishments. The older Itachi grew, the more involved Danzo became.
Although Itachi had grander eyes on him, there were still those few moments that he got to spend by himself. Alone, off in a forest somewhere, training without being disturbed by anyone. (Except maybe the occasional visits from his darling brother, Sasuke.)
“Big brother! Big brother!”
Little Sasuke would follow Itachi around like a shadow. Although the younger angel’s shadow wasn’t as large and dark as Danzo’s, his existence was something painful, yet precious. Itachi loved Sasuke more than anything. Ever since he was born, a gaping hole inside Itachi’s heart tore open.
Would Sasuke also have to bear a life of war?
No. Itachi simply wouldn’t allow that.
That was just another aid in the young angel’s determination. He had to be the best in order to make the world a better place for Sasuke, and the peculiar being that he had yet to meet.
One day, as Itachi’s hard work training was nearly over, Danzo summoned him. Compared to all the violence and brutality Itachi had witnessed, Danzo was possibly one of the most terrifying things in all of creation. His eyes were a solid white, one of which was covered by bandages. His hair was a choppy mess above his head, a vivid halo of white light hovering right above the untamed mop. A scar was etched into his once sharp chin, and three pairs of dark wings sprouted behind him. Along the wedges of those wings were rows and rows of white eyeballs, staring back at Itachi through the feathers. Truly a terrifying mass of angelic strength.
“ Why have you called me here, Lord Danzo? ”
Danzo’s voice was something that many angels weren’t capable of hearing. Many archangels were so divine that their voices couldn’t pass through the eardrums of humans, let alone inferior members of their own kind. Itachi was surprised that he—a member of the Uchiha clan, a lower rank of angel—could even pick it up.
He told the young angel of Hazuki, who had long since fallen after mating with a human. He told him of how her nephilim offspring was now living among the mortals, and how the abomination’s existence could place all of Heaven in jeopardy. A war could break out.
Another damned war.
“ What would you have me do then, my Lord? “
And what Danzo told Itachi was something unbearable, something Itachi thought he would never hear come from another angel. It would stop war from breaking out, from a possible apocalypse, but at what cost? Where would it leave him?
Despite his intimidation, Danzo allowed Itachi some time to think it over. He could agree to the offer and save Heaven. Or not, and risk being killed in battle with his people… risk Sasuke being killed in battle.
As he pondered Danzo’s offer, Itachi decided to fly down to earth and see if this abomination was all that bad. It wasn’t its fault it existed, so why did it and the entire clan have to pay the price?
There, in the Hidden Leaf Village, he saw it for himself. The nephilim he had heard so much about… was nothing more than a young girl.
Immediately, Itachi noticed how beautiful she was. Although she didn’t completely look like an Uchiha, the evidence of the bloodline was still there. She had those striking dark eyes that many angels of his clan had. She looked extremely similar to her mother, with the same long chestnut hair and light freckles that Itachi could tell were only visible in the summer sunshine. However, the beauty mark underneath her eye definitely belonged to her father.
Regardless, Itachi was captivated by her. Not only by her beauty, but by her peculiar behavior as well. He noticed the way her long, slender arms swung by her sides as she walked through the village streets. There was always a dazed look in her eyes as she smiled at the townspeople, who clearly thought she was strange. Starry-eyes. Maybe they knew what she really was, deep down, without even realizing it. She didn’t seem to care. She knew her worth, even if she didn’t realize it yet.
She doesn’t deserve to be consumed by a world of war either, Itachi thought. Even if she is a half-angel.
Suddenly, he felt his wings move on their own. What in the heavens was he doing!? This was against the rules. He was an angel, a watcher , not a messenger. He wasn’t meant to interfere, and yet there he was, landing outside the village gates. Wings tucked away, he made his way towards her, a nervousness quivering in the back of his throat. Her aura was glorious, a warm pink glow as refreshing as spring water. Even if it was forbidden, he had to say hello. Just once, before everything was over.
Her back was turned to him, attention more focused on the colorful row of dango one of the townspeople was selling. The multi-colored row of dumplings was almost as striking to the angel as Izumi was. It was Itachi’s favorite food, after all. He was so distracted by the mouth-watering delight that he blacked out for a moment, not noticing that Izumi had turned to look at him. She was smiling at him.
“ Hello. ”
Her voice was like velvet, soothing to the ears. The softness was enough to catch Itachi off guard, snapping his focus back onto her. She wasn’t using a sharingan, and yet Itachi was trapped in her sparkling gaze. He swallowed, unsure if he could even respond.
“ H-Hello .” It was strange. Speaking casually with something so many of his kin believed to be such a horrid thing. Already Itachi could tell she was kind but strong. Two attributes every angelic being strives for. Why was her existence such a bad thing? Maybe if they spoke with her, then Danzo would have never made such a brutal offer.
It was strange, but it didn’t feel wrong.
“ Would you care for one? ”
Looking down, Itachi saw she was holding a pair of neatly wrapped dango. She was offering him one.
The angel hesitated, unsure if he even should. Suddenly, he regretted interacting with her. Now guilt stirred in his chest. Could he really go through with it now?
Carefully, he took one from the packaging and bit into it. For a moment, he thought he was back home in the heavens, flavors exploding in waves along his tongue. He felt a light warmth radiating from his cheeks at both the dango’s taste and at Izumi’s kindness towards him. He was a stranger to her, and yet she offered him the snack without hesitation. She was so kind.
After that day, Itachi would secretly visit the human village any chance he got, just to see Izumi. To the other townspeople, she was strange. But to Itachi, she was mesmerizing, charmingly peculiar, radiating. It didn’t matter to him that she was half human. If anything, her humanity made her more special.
Eventually, he grew to love her. He treasured the strange conversations they’d have together, whether it was about each other’s lives or nothing at all. He never told her what he was, but he could tell that she knew the truth deep down. The angel could see it in the way Izumi would look deeply into his inhuman eyes. He could feel it the way her lips would linger against his each time they kissed, as if it was something she knew no human man could give her. She clung to him as if she knew his presence was something unearthly.
She knew what he was, even if she didn’t realize it. The same way she knew what she was, without even knowing it.
One night, as the two were wrapped tightly in each other’s arms, Itachi remembered what Danzo had told him. His voice was like a needle, piercing through the silk fabric of his at-ease mind.
“ Wipe out the clan. Wipe out the nephilim. Erase all traces of this infernal disaster before war breaks out. ”
Itachi held Izumi closer at the thought of it, his nose resting against the top of her head. He breathed in her sweet scent, paying closer attention to the way she felt lying bare against him. He knew this would likely be the last time he would ever be this close to her.
Returning to Heaven, Itachi went to speak with Danzo. He accepted the offer, but there were a few things he had to do first. First off, he needed to figure out what was going to happen to him once it was over. An angel couldn’t just do that without consequence. He could be hunted by other clans, or… like Hazuki, the worst punishment an angel could ever face.
Fall.
It would be long and painful, far worse than any one of his clan would experience by his hand. But it would be what he deserved.
Not only would he fall, but he would also lose everything—his friends, his family, his beloved brother, his life, Izumi…. Everything he ever loved would be gone forever.
***
Suddenly, time began moving forward in the dreamscape, and from the shadows, a dark angel appeared. Itachi’s eyes were suddenly lifeless and tired as he flew back down to the village. As per usual, Izumi was still awake, wandering the streets at night, her starry-eyed gaze looking up at the stars in absolute wonder. When she noticed Itachi approaching her, those beautiful eyes of hers lit up brighter than the sun reflecting off the moon. A powerful ache erupted in Itachi’s heart. She had no clue what was about to happen to her.
“ Good evening, Itachi. ” Her voice was sweet, blank of fear. “ What are you doing here so late? ”
“ Izumi… there’s something I must tell you before the night’s end. ”
Suddenly, the sparkling stars in her eyes faded. “ Itachi? What’s wrong? ”
The dark angel stepped closer to her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. However, it was more comforting to him than it was to her. She rejected his touch, shrugging his hand away.
“ You’re scaring me, ” she said.
Scaring her. That was the last thing he wanted to do. He had to finish this quickly before things got any worse.
“ Nothing’s wrong. I can promise you that, ” he told her, the tears welling up in his eyes making it obvious that he was lying. Another thing he never wished to do, not to her. “ Just know that no matter what you hear from others, you’re not a monster. You’re a precious soul that deserves the world. ”
“ Itachi? ”
He closed his eyes.
“ I love you, Izumi. ”
Reopening them, Izumi was trapped in the sharingan, her memories being taken one-by-one from her mind. It wasn’t what Danzo had told him to do, but it was enough to do the job. If Izumi forgot who she was—forgot who Itachi was—others would, too.
Faith is a powerful thing. If one person believes something, then everyone does. If Itachi believed she was human, and Izumi didn’t remember any contact with angelic grace, then Danzo would never notice her existence.
She would be safe.
The rest of the Uchiha clan, however, was not.
Trangnhi on Chapter 11 Mon 25 Aug 2025 11:29AM UTC
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angelic_michaelis on Chapter 11 Mon 25 Aug 2025 08:59PM UTC
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