• AN INTERLUDE; WHAT ARE THE ODDS? •

Sasuke was practically humming. The purple box of cinnamon buns was on the passenger seat, intact and regrettably cold but nothing else could make him this happy. Today, he would meet the one he has been searching for.

The whole potlatch party thing was a lucky coincidence because Sasuke was not expecting to find her that night. He'd even been willing to settle for something else that was good until he tasted those cinnamon buns. Elated was a light way of putting how he felt that night. For all he knew the one he was searching for could be an old person or somebody overseas.

Contrary to how ecstatic he acted when he found the sweets maker of his dreams, Sasuke wasn't too keen on sugary things. In fact he couldn't stand sweet things at all. So why go through all that trouble and act happy when he actually didn't like sweet things in reality?

Well the answer to that question was in the reason behind Sasuke's after school trip with the box of uneaten buns. He had been searching for the perfect sweets for so long and now, with the purple box of sweet goodness in his arms, Sasuke was happily making his way to the person he loved the most– though he would never admit it out loud.

"Oh Sasuke! How are you today?" The nurse that was always sitting at the reception desk greeted upon his arrival. Sasuke replied her with a rare grin that made the surrounding women swoon. "Ohyah? Did something good happen today?"

"Yes, in fact. I got Itachi something that might make him happy."

"I wish I had a little brother like you." The nurse cooed much to the raven's embarrassment. "Run along now Sasuke, I don't want to keep you waiting."

Sasuke bowed to her. "Thank you."

The journey to Itachi's VIP room was a short one mainly because Sasuke was speed walking all the way there. The older raven was immersed in a book by the time he got there. The thick lens of his glasses made his onyx eyes seem bigger from Sasuke's point of view through the transparent glass panel on the door. They shone with interest and wonder but in them Sasuke could see the sadness swirling within.

It made Sasuke sad in return. Truth was, his brother didn't deserve the sort of luck nature handed him. Somebody as gentle and brilliant as Itachi didn't need to be cut short by a terminal illness.

The Uchihas only discovered that their first son and heir had a brain tumor about half a year ago when Itachi fainted in the midst of delivering his manifesto for his presidential run in his university. It was also then they discovered that Itachi had been hiding the symptoms for almost two years.

He would hide his migraine attacks under school stress and his declining eyesight under poor or too bright lighting, the reason probably being that he thought his excuses were true, that there was nothing a good rest couldn't fix.

The tumor had already grown beyond control. Having a surgical operation to remove it could either damage him permanently or kill him. The news came as a huge shock to everyone in the Uchiha household that day, especially to Sasuke who full on hyperventilated from despair.

The rest of the family were willing to take the risk and authorize the surgery but Itachi wasn't. He was going to die either way so he would rather spend the rest of his days with everyone than to pass on suddenly in the middle of the operation.

With treatment the amount of time he had to live was lengthened if not by a bit and Sasuke decided that he was going to spend every moment he could get with his brother before he left. Basically, Sasuke was prepared for Itachi's passing but he could never be ready enough.

He wanted to do something for his brother before the inevitable happened. There was a particular woman's pastries Itachi loved so much when he was younger. Unlike him his brother had a big sweet tooth and any time he was talking about this woman's sweets his eyes sparkled like stars.

Itachi ended up making him to taste one of the cinnamon buns he brought home one day. It wasn't exactly Sasuke's cup of tea but he committed the taste to his memory because it was something his brother loved.

Unfortunately they moved out of the small town they used to live in when their father's business grew so Itachi couldn't taste the confectioneries he loved anymore. Then the illness happened and things started to go south for Itachi. He wasn't happy anymore.

How could he be? He just discovered that he had only a few months to live. Itachi might cover it up with nice words and a smile but Sasuke knew that deep down his brother was in deep despair everyday. He had given up on life.

One day...

One day Sasuke would not get to see his brother anymore. So he wanted to make the best of the time he had left with him. He wanted his brother to smile happily at least once before he departed. He wanted to see Itachi's true smile again.

Getting him his favorite sweets might not cut it but it was a step forward. He could tell, even when he was young and naive, that the baked goods from that mysterious woman held a lot of beautiful memories for Itachi. Sasuke was going to unlock them, make him remember them all.

Moving back to their renovated old house was a huge opportunity to search for the woman but Sasuke couldn't find her. To make matters worse his only lead was a distant memory of how the cinnamon buns he had when he was younger tasted.

Still he didn't lose hope and searched every confectionery place in the town for it. He even got Naruto into it. Who knew the blond's random idea of a potlatch party for his birthday would bring the very thing he was searching for- a close second at least- to his feet?

Sasuke knocked before entering the hospital room. "Hey nerd."

"Oh?" Itachi looked up from his book and smiled upon seeing his little brother. "Hi Sasuke. How was your day?"

"Hn." Sasuke replied. Itachi fully understood the meaning of his grunt so he nodded.

"What's that?" He asked, gesturing to the purple box.

"See for yourself." Sasuke handed Itachi the box who opened it.

"Buns." He announced the obvious. Sasuke smiled wryly. So Itachi couldn't smell the cinnamon even though it took over the whole room the moment he opened the box. The boy watched Itachi silently as he tasted one. The older's eyes widened as he gasped. "This..."

"Is just like when we were younger, right?" Sasuke supplied and Itachi nodded.

"It is. It's really like Hikari-sensei's cinnamon buns." This was the happiest Sasuke had seen his brother in weeks. It lightened his heart that it had the desired effect on his brother. "You know, we used to play around a lot in her bakery; me, Shisui and Izumi. She taught us how to make simple stuff."

The people Itachi mentioned were people he really loved. They were both gone but their memories remained with Itachi till this moment. They were sad memories, memories of how they both left him alone but tasting the buns they used to make together, Itachi suddenly remembered the good times they spent together.

Sasuke was really happy that his brother was happy. "You know, I wanted to learn to make dango with Hikari-sensei and the others even though dango isn't technically pastry. I didn't get that but it's okay, I got to eat Hikari-sensei's baking again."

Seeing Itachi's wistful face Sasuke took up another goal; to learn how to make dango in his brother's stead. It would be the only thing he knew how to make other than tomato sandwiches but it would be so worth it to see Itachi smile once again.

***

I told you to prepare your tissues before didn't I? Itachi's finally inside the story but not for long. Thanks for reading and sorry for the impromptu hiatus. Votes and comments are my food, please don't let me starve.

-Star.