Nightshift 40: Greenhouse Yard

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

[from here]

Itachi made it out to the yard without being accosted by any vengeance-obsessed brothers, so he could probably continue with his plans without further disruption. Additionally, there didn't seem to be any monsters or other obstacles in this area, either. With the exception of that minor occurrence, the night was proceeding entirely too smoothly. He had been correct in assuming he could get much further on his own.

And yet, something he could not admit to made him hesitate halfway across the yard. He turned, glancing back to the doorway. He could not deny that some part of him almost wished Sasuke would follow him, because he still wanted to see exactly what the boy could do when not drugged. That was unacceptable, however; he could not afford a fight that would waste his time, and he could definitely not afford a fight that exceeded his expectations. Not here, not until they destroyed the Institute and regained their abilities, not until whatever had been done to Sasuke's eyes could be reversed. There was no reason for him to be waiting here, in the eerie stillness of the night, staring at that door. This was not how he wanted to see his brother, and in the unlikely event that Sasuke was significantly stronger than he believed, this was not how he wanted to lose his life. Every logical consideration pointed to the fact that he should be leaving, now.

. . . So why was he still standing here?

Comments

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

Itachi caught a flicker of Sharingan in Sasuke's eyes and prepared himself for a more serious onslaught, but the red glistening in the darkness was gone as quickly as it came. So Sasuke was merely confirming Itachi's position. And now. . . the attack. Itachi ignored the stab of disappointment he felt at another straight attack, moving to block the strike with a timing calculated to account for his impaired sight.

Then, the first true surprise of the battle occurred. It had not been a straight attack after all; Sasuke had used some foresight, and Itachi had underestimated him. Underestimated Sasuke and overestimated his own eyesight, once again. If he were at his full mental capacity, he should have a perfectly accurate appreciation of his own limitations. But no, he had assumed he'd be able to catch a change in the trajectory of the sword before it was too late. He had measured his newly lowered strength against the creatures of the Institute, but Sasuke was on a different level. Even if he was not as strong yet as Itachi hoped he would become, he was certainly much faster than a monstrous nurse.

Mentally cursing, Itachi tried to dodge back from the low strike -- too slow. When had he become so slow in comparison to Sasuke? When had he not been able to read his movements in advance? Penance came in the form of steel biting into his right leg. He'd managed to slide back far enough that he wouldn't lose a limb, but the tip of the blade still sliced deep into the outer side of his calf and raked across his shin before swinging wide.

This was unacceptable. Sasuke was more of a challenge than he had suspected, and if he kept underestimating his brother he was going to get killed. Something that could not and would not occur. He would have to take this seriously, and provide a decent offense. Itachi began to consider his options even as his leg crumpled under him and he caught himself on his hands in another defensive crouch. The sword would have to be neutralized, that much was certain, but that could not be effected quite yet. Not when Sasuke was too far away and the range of Itachi's weapons too short.

Sasuke was off balance currently, his momentum still carrying him forward while the sword swung back. Itachi could make use of this to get closer, and to strike preemptively in the process. With this in mind, he lunged forward suddenly. Soon the backswing of the blade would turn into a forward stroke, but for now there was just enough time to grab the back of Sasuke's head and force him face-first into Itachi's uninjured knee. It was not the kind of move Itachi would normally use, not distant enough and a little too vicious, but Sasuke would not be expecting it and that was all that mattered now.

[sasuke-of-sound.livejournal.com]

Even if it hadn't connected as thoroughly as Sasuke might have liked, the strike was still successful in that it brought Sasuke in to the range he wanted, and he definitely felt at least some of the blow connect. There was the brief but familiar resistance of flesh against blade, and then the distinct sound of Itachi's knee hitting the ground. If Sasuke could just take advantage of what had to be a moment of pain, he could surprise --

But Itachi was the one who took the surprise instead. Sasuke hadn't expected to feel something as primitive as a grab in his hair, and certainly not after he knew he'd wounded Itachi (but of course Itachi would fight through the pain with barely an indication that it had happened). Despite an instinctive attempt to recoil, his forward momentum was ultimately too much: Sasuke's face smashed into Itachi's knee hard enough that he wasn't sure his nose hadn't broken, stars exploding across the blackness that was normally Sasuke's vision these days.

That was hardly the worst of it, though: his ears were ringing. While that might not have been much of a deal in a normal situation, in Landel's Sasuke couldn't afford to lose even a minute amount of control over his hearing; if Itachi chose to move away now Sasuke would have absolutely no way to track his movements. And to make matters worse, Sasuke registered belatedly that his head was spinning -- without a visual point of reference he barely realised how bad his balance was for a moment.

Even standing firmly might be difficult at this point. That left precious few options; namely, staying low to the ground and not giving Itachi the chance to break physical contact.

With that idea in mind (and thoroughly ignoring the pain), Sasuke kept right on running: tore his head out of Itachi's grip and drove forward into a headbutt with as much force as he could muster.

It lacked finesse, to be sure, but that was hardly first on Sasuke's list of concerns in a fight.

[youlackmascara.livejournal.com]

Breath rushed out of Itachi's body, his eyes wide with surprise as he fell back, injured leg folded under him at a painful angle. He hadn't expected Sasuke to do something so impulsive and crude, especially not after his satisfactory performance so far. He could not be positive, but it was possible Sasuke was feeling desperate. Itachi hadn't believed his strikes so far had been damaging enough to drive Sasuke into a corner, though his brother had always allowed anger to rule his actions. Itachi could hardly complain, as he had intentionally fostered that anger himself in order to protect both of them, but he couldn't help wishing Sasuke would channel it in a more controlled manner. Loss of control over one's emotions was the greatest weakness one could have, and Sasuke would never have the fortitude to kill him if he let his strength unravel for such a stupid reason. Itachi knew firsthand how vital it was to harden oneself to be able to do such a thing.

Still, if Sasuke had lost control now, Itachi could use that to his own gain. He somehow didn't believe desperation lay behind Sasuke's actions, however; they were far too deliberate. It would be too much of a gamble to risk underestimating him again. He would simply have to make the best of this new position. He was more vulnerable than ever, Sasuke was close enough to read his movements without wasting use of the Sharingan, and the sword was still too far back for Itachi to completely neutralize it. There was also the factor that a blow to Itachi's solar plexus had paralyzed him for a moment, because no matter how much one mastered one's reactions to pain, a strike there would serve as a temporary incapacitation. It was biologically inevitable. But Itachi had never let forces such as biological constraints stop him.

Sasuke had broken his grip and ducked his head under Itachi's hands, meaning the weapons Itachi still clung to were hovering over Sasuke's back. A mistake -- Sasuke was just as vulnerable as him, now. Perhaps he really hadn't been thinking. Lightning fast, awareness of that sword sharpened by the shock of pain and the distant possibility of defeat, Itachi brought the kunai down to rip into the muscles that joined the back of Sasuke's shoulder to his torso. He had been hoping not to inflict any long-lasting damage on his brother, but if he did not take this challenge seriously he could very well meet his death tonight. Besides, wounds healed more quickly than usual in the Institute.