Dangerously Beautiful

Chapter 14 Entranced Kakashi's black eyes had drifted closed, his hands grabbing desperately at Itachi's pale wrists, his entire body suddenly feeling an overwhelming heat. He couldn't stop kissing the one he had secretly desired for so long, the one he thought perhaps he would never see again, his lips capturing the younger man's own, dominating his mouth and claiming it as his own. Itachi pulled back, drowning in the incredible tastes and sensations Kakashi was delivering to his lonely body. It had been so long since they had touched each other like this, since their lips had met together, but somehow, it felt as if they had never left each other's sides. Everything that had happened previous to that moment, their memories of being together, the harsh experience of breaking it off and going their separate ways, and everything they had been doing since then seemingly disappeared into thin air when their pale sets of lips met. Even now the two of them could barely recall how in the world they had ended up in such a trifling situation. The gray-haired Jounin let a short breath out of the sides of his lips before diving back into the eldest Uchiha's mouth, his tongue slipping between his teeth and sliding delicately like a dancer across the insides of his mouth, and against his own squirming muscle. Itachi barely had a second to take in a feverish breath before his tongue was coaxed into action, slipping against and caressing the Jounin's able own. It was virtually impossible to escape this entrancing moment of comfort and familiarity they felt after finally reconciling, at least physically, after so many long years. The two of them were hesitant to stop expressing the words and feelings their words couldn't. Both of them were far too stubborn at this point to admit the other was the best person for them, that without them they might as well have been dead, but they could settle for saying that with their desperate touches. Kakashi's hands pressed down harder upon his ex-boyfriend's trembling wrists, causing the young Uchiha to back against the wall in cowardice, not nsarisarily for what the Jounin might do to him, but for the fear he might enjoy being with him again. It was then Itachi decided this couldn't go any further. Quickly the S Rank criminal pulled his face away, his cheek now facing Kakashi instead of his lips, using this opportunity to catch up on man many gasps of breath he had lost in the past minutes. His dark red eyes focused on the ground, not noticing that his determined old boyfriend had already descended upon his neck, taking small nips and bites out of the side before dragging hisst, st, talented tongue along the side of his throat. Itachi flushed furiously, turning to shout at Kakashi for continuing to assault his body even though he was clearly not ready for it. Unfortunately, that move only made the young Uchiha's tender lips more accessible. Without even flinching the perverted instructor pressed himself against those tempting lips once again, sucking and biting at the younger man's mouth and invading it with his tongue once again. Itachi forced his eyelids closed painfully, knowing as hard as he tried to escape this moment, it was nearly impossible. Kakashi pressed his young lover's back against the wall, his hands drifting away from Itachi's wrists and instead slipping under his long black cloak, trying as best he could to detect some kind of form under that thick piece of clothing. The eldest Uchiha let out a low moan as the scarecrow's calloused hands came to rest on the sides of his hips, rolling up and down the slender sides of his body in exploration. The gray-haired Jounin let out a slight breath, feeling his ex-boyfriend's warm skin under his net-material shirt and thinking how he hadn't changed at all in those five years, his body was still slim and desirable like it had always been. Itachi tried to stifle back a whining moan, but was unable to as his former lover's hands traveled his body, and his tongue wandered the innards of his mouth. The eldest Uchiha's eyes squinted faintly for a second, knowing there was something distinctly wrong with this situation, knowing something inside of him was churning terribly, but as hard as he tried-he knew it was virtually impossible. Without any further resistance, Itachi decided to fully give into the intoxicating feeling of the older man's lips. At that very moment, in the hospital room only a few feet away, a spunky young student rubbed his aching stomach as he grabbed the intercom from the side of the bed, pressing the nurse's button over and over before speaking into the microphone, "Nurse?" Naruto asked excitedly, pressing the button a few more times apparently just to get her attention. A stressed woman's voice answered fuzzily over the intercom speaker, "What is it, sir?" Naruto kicked his legs like a hyper, sugar-filled little boy under the papery sheets, holding the intercom to his mouth and grinning widely, "Hey, hey, what's for dinner tonight?" he questioned, his belly already growling in anticipation though the meal was more than a few hours away. "Chicken broth stew and steamed vegetables." The loud blonde let out a surprised shout, his skin crawling at the answer, "Ew! I'm not eating that! Don't you have any ramen?" he yelled, his tongue nearly leaping into his throat in fear of having to eat such a ditingting supper. He began slamming angry fists into the bedding, holding down the intercom button and nearly having a fit. The woman hesitantly answered back over the speaker, "No, sir, we don't have any ramen..." she muttered, obviously fed up with her patient's immature attitude. "But, but, but," Naruto began, looking so desperately hungry, the relative pains of his injury and his intense fatigue seemingly nothing in comparison to his raging hunger, "I need my daily dose of ramen! If I don't get enough ramen, I could, I could... die!" he exaggerated loudly, holding his scalp and thrashing around in his bed as he and the woman continued to exchange shouts and arguments. Sasuke's black eyes slowly drifted open, seeing a blurry vision of the bright ceiling lights above him and feeling as if his body weighed an extra few pounds, the aching wounds that covered his body suddenly waking all at once, causing him to let out a low hiss. But most painful of all was the irritating sounds of his roommate yelling and shouting next to him. The youngest Uchiha craned his head around to see the blonde holding the nurse's intercom and screaming like a madman into the receiver. 'Ramen this...' and 'ramen that...' over and over again. The dark-haired Genin bit his bottom lip, grumbling to himself before yelling groggily over, "Hey, dead-last, quit being such an idiot." He muttered. Naruto spun around to see his fellow student somewhat awake, rubbing his head and-wait; did he just call him an idiot? "Hey! I'm not an idiot!" he retorted, his nostrils flaring angrily as he slammed the intercom back down, and unfortunately, on his hand. The pain took a few seconds to climb his nervous system before the loud fox felt it, "Ow ow ow!!" he shouted, cradling his swollen hand in the other one before glaring at his rival. Sasuke let out a small chuckle, his throat swollen and raspy from all the strain of Kisamlarglarge hands encroaching on his neck, causing his voice to sound as if he had a virus. Curiously the young Uchiha inspected his body, seeing his right arm set on his side in a heavy cast, his eyes trailing down to his left leg, also set in a thick cast, the small cuts, gashes and bruises seeming somewhat insignificant, though they still ached badly. He pushed himself to sit up, the back of his head falling back into the lumpy pillow behind him. Gods, it felt like he had been pulled through the ringer. Not a single part of his body was without some sort of injury or bruise. Tiredly, he let out a long, strained breath, "Naruto..." The blonde's swollen hand had already healed from the power of the demon fox inside of him, so quickly he almost forgot he had done it. "Yeah?" he asked curiously, turning to see his teammate lying back on the bed, his eyes closed, revealing the bruises around his eyelids, and the small cuts to the sides of his face. It was almost too much for Naruto to see the one he had always thought of as somewhat invincible, stuck in a hospital bed in such a grave condition. "Do you remember what happened out there? My memory is fuzzy..." Sasuke explained, his forehead covered in bruises and bumps, it was no surprise recent events were a blur to him. Naruto scratched at his spiky blonde hair, "Hm, I remember getting really angry and then I just blacked out... other than that, I don't remember much..." he admitted, feeling a little useless and staring at his small hands with a long sigh. The survivor of the Uchiha clan groaned as he pulled his leg cast out of the hanging gurney, the cast turning out to be a lot heavier than it first appeared. Even though it was a great strain on his body, Sasuke pulled both of his legs to the side of the bed, the cold breeze in the room becoming obvious as the air conditioning blew past his naked upper body, the only parts remaining warm were the bloody bandages that littered his chest and stomach, his papery hospital pants also too thin for the cold and sterile room. Even so, Sasuke was determined to find out what was going on, "I'm going to find out what happened..." he muttered before limping slowly out of bed, his heavy left leg dragging behind him. Naruto hopped out of his hospital cot desperately, his pearl blue eyes wide, "No, Sasuke! You're too injured to get up; Kakashi said you needed your rest..." he mumbled, hurrying over to his teammate's side in an attempt to reason with the brash boy. Sasuke's eyes narrowed furiously, Kakashi, that name now sent an unpleasant surge of rage through his young body, memories of finding the one he had thought cared for him sweat-slicked and smelling of sex from being with his own brother suddenly pulsing into his mind. His unbandaged hand tightened into a fist as what had caused his injuries earlier played back like an old video, his wandering off into the outskirts of Konoha, his meeting up with Kisame, the beating the cruel missing-nin had continued for days, and finally remembering seeing Naruto, of all people, strive to rescue him. Though it pained him to think about it, he didn't recall seeing Kakashi there fighting for him. Perhaps his first instincts were right, Kakashi didn't really care for him, he was just working to replace Itachi. The young blonde's fingers wrapped arouis ris rival's pale wrist, no doubt brushing against one of his innumerable injuries, but he knew he had to stop him before he did something rash, in other words, before he did something very 'Sasuke'. "Hey, Sasuke, c'mon, you need your rest..." Naruto mumbled, his viable arguments falling upon deaf ears as the young clansman pulled his arm away, the blinding rage that roared inside of him far too much to shake off that easily. In the hallway outside, Kakashi finally ceased his lips' assault on Itachi, pulling back and staring into his young lover's eyes. It was impossible not to fall in love with those mesmerizing crimson eyes that seemed to be able to read him so clearly. The gray-haired Jounin's knees felt weak, his entire body overwhelmed with the reminiscent feeling of being able to freely touch the Uchiha's soft skin, memories flo bac back at a million miles an hour of being with Itachi, kissing him, touching him, making love to him the many times they had in the past. Kakashi pulled the eldest Uchiha to his chest, resting his chin on the bend of his shoulder and nuzzling into his ex-boyfriend's neck, his voice muffled by Itachi's thick clothing, "Gods, I missed you so much..." he muttered, feeling a few of the Uchiha's warm tears gently fall onto his own skin, "I couldn't forget you, even r fir five years..." The eldest Uchiha stepped forward into the older man's embrace, reveling in the feeling of those strong arms enveloping him like they had so many times in the past. After so many years of running from the law and having to constantly look over his shoulder for approaching enemies, it was a nice change for Itachi to be able to close his eyes and melt into someone else's arms, feeling entirely safe with Kakashi this close. "You feel so wonderful..." The Jounin muttered, wondering when his young lover was going to respond. Itachi couldn't speak. His entire life after he left Konoha, all the bad deeds he had done, the people he had killed, and even joining the devious organization of Akatsuki-it was all due to the incredible hurt he had blamed on Kakashi, now that he couldn't harbor those resentful emotions any longer, what did he have left? His reasons for everything he had done were completely destroyed. His chest began to ache as he felt more tears cascade helplessly down his cheeks. "Kakashi..." was all he could muster out of his mouth. It had been so easy to hate and despise this man when he was hundreds and hundreds of miles away, so he could focus on his abandonment of him and his brother, his despicable promises and the terrible night the Jounin left him to be raped. It had been so easy to convince himself it was entirely Kakashi's fault everything in his life had gone so far astray, but now it was different. While he purposely remembered every bad point when he was away, being so close it was nearly impossible not to see the good points he had forgotten. The way Kakashi would always hold him when he was in a foul mood, the way his kisses seemed to melt every other problem away, the feeling of his soft, comforting embraces, his caring eyes and affectionate face. Itachi let out a breath, pulling back a few inches to look up into those eyes, the single coal-black and the second Sharingan red, his own eyes clouded with hesitant tears. Kakashi stared back at him, both of them becoming silent. The gray-haired Jounin's lips curled into a slight, almost nervous smile, as if he didn't know if it was yet the appropriate moment to figure the scars and rifts between them had fully healed. Itachi blinked quickly, the few tears hanging from his eyes released and following the path of the several before them. Silently, Kakashi reached a single hand up to the perfect face in front of him, his thumb wiping across the Uchiha's cheek softly to catch the salty water before it went any further. Itachi's eyes fluttered closed at the contact. Gods, how was it he was able to stay mad at this man for five years. Now it seemed so impossible. Suddenly the guilt of what he had done not too many nights ago caught up with him, he had taken the form of his own brother and seduced Kakashi like a common whore. His stomach churned at the mere thought of it, his eyes tearing away from his lover's gaze, as if he felt he no longer deserved it. "Kakashi... There's something I have to tell you..." he mumbled, stepping back into the far wall to escape the Jounin's arms. Kakashi leaned in closer, his sympathetic eyes making what Itachi was about to confess even harder. Just as he opened his mouth, a loud sound of a slamming door caught their attention. The two of them turned to see the hospital room door only a step or so away from them rattle open, a limping young man step out, a second blonde not too far behind. Sasuke pulled away from Naruto's hands again, knowing he had to get to the bottom of whatever was going on, running away hadn't been the solution, then he had to face the problem head-on. The two young students stepped out into the hall, the smallest Uchiha's head rising from his constant stare at the tiled floor, his eyes fading to a blood-red tint at what he saw before him. For more than a little while he had been on the edge about Kakashi and Itachi, and now, seeing them together gave him that extra nudge he needed. For a long while all of them got quiet, Naruto's blue eyes wide with a combination of remorse and confusion, while Sasuke's were filled with nothing but a horrendous hate for both of the pair in front of his loathing eyes. Tears dripped from his eyes, though he was feeling more furious than saddened by the situation, he couldn't shake the stinging trace of betrayal that came from seeing the two like this, the salty rivers flowing more heavily as he realized they were the two people he had put the most trust into in his entire life. His teeth grittnd cnd clenched together, veins in his forehead bulging as his blood boiled, "So this is who you wanted all along, Kakashi?" he muttered, his jaw shaking. Naruto breathed heavily behind him, feeling the extreme tension fill the room like a thick cloud of smoke, the same tension he had felt every time the two brothers were this close. But now, it seemed far thicker, the emotions that were involved in creating this hanging cloud seemed far more complicated. Nervously the blonde spoke up, "Sasuke..." Ignoring his teammate, the youngest of the Uchiha clan spoke up again, "You were just using me... because I look similar, because I'm his little brother, right? Juske Kke Kisame..." he muttered, his heart beating faster as he heard no answer from the both of them. But he had expected that. Furiously he pulled on his right arm, snapping the metallic pole that held the broken arm at his side and motioning his fingers in front of his chest, spelling out a few symbols before Kakashi recognized the attack, "Sasuke, don't! You're too weak!" he shouted, but it was to no avail. After performing the final seal, the dark-haired boy held his left wrist, the powerful electric chakra gathering visibly in his palm before he lunged at the two with a loud roar, his eyes narrowing as he approached them. His fractured leg ached as he pressed upon it to run at the two, but the pain would be well worth it if it eliminated the systec blc blows to his heart. Pulling back his left hand, Sasuke made his way closer, his blood red eyes immediately falling upon his elder brother. All his life he had followed him like a younger sibling, never able to surpass his skills, and constantly having to be labeled as 'Itachi's younger brother'. Even now, no one would seriously consider picking Sasuke over Itachi, not in a million years. Furiously, the young Uchiha took another step before slamming his Chidori at the one he had only been able to follow. It exploded in a cloud of thick smoke, spreading over the entire hallway so not even Sasuke himself could tell if he made his target or not. Kakashi and Naruto stood off on the sidelines, both of their faces shocked and worried for what the outcome of this spar would be. When the dust had finally settled, it was obvious the young Uchiha had missed, his left hand impaled into the hospital wall, only inches from where Itachi had successfully dodged. The Uchihas stared into each other's eyes for a long time, everything else in the world seemingly becoming quiet. Only looking at each other, they could almost read the other one's mind in an instant. 'I hate you. I followed you for so long, no one sees me as more than your brother...' 'You took him away from me...' 'I trained so hard for so many years to exceed you...' 'You betrayed me and took away the only thing that mattered to me in the world...' 'You heartless bastard...' 'You weak brat...' Sasuke grumbled, ripping his left arm from the cracked wall and lunging at his older brother with it, knowing he only had one free hand to deliver blows. Itachi continued to dodge the simple attacks almost effortlessly as his younger brother tried and tried again to hit him, letting out frustrated breaths and shouts as even he realized he wasn't going to be able to land a single blow. Itachi was just far too powerful to as as he was now. The dulling medicine and sharp pains of the extent of all his injuries soon caught up to him, his limp body collapsing helplessly to the ground. His chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath, his left hand nearly torn to pieces from the effects of the Chidori, the rest of his injuries now bleeding more severely because of the great strain he had put on his aching body. After taking in a few breaths, and waiting for his Sharingan to deactivate, he looked up te a e a worried Kakashi standing over him, his black eyes narrowing, "No one has ever really cared for me... isn't that right? They all just think about me as 'Itachi's little brother'..." He stared right through his teacher's eyes as he beganfeelfeel the effects of straining himself so much, "And the worst part is, I thought you were different..." he managed to mutter before falling unconscious on the hallway floor. The nurses and doctors curiously peeked into the long hallway, wondering what all the racket and smoke had been about. Naruto worriedly ran over to his teammate, pulling back his long black bangs to make sure he was still breathing and letting out a sigh of relief. He seemed fine, though the blonde was still troubled by everything that seemed to be happening so suddenly. Why were Kakashi and Itachi standing so close in the hallway, why had Sasuke suddenly become so enraged? His questions were far too many to count. Curiously he looked up at the eldest Uchiha who loomed over him, "What's going on, Itachi?" Itachi remained perfectly silent before bending down to pick his younger sibling up off the floor, holding him on his back and stepping calmly back into the hospital room. Kakashi grinned widely behind him, that was the caring older brother he had remembered from five years ago, the one who risked his life and murdered his family to protect Sasuke from the life he was born into. The gray-haired teacher wrapped an arm around his other student, pulling him into the room as well, and closing it behind them. The eldest Uchiha pulled his brother off of his back and placed him on his hospital bed once again, knowing when his fatigue wore off, he would still be fuming with an unquenchable rage at both Kakashi and himself. Even so, he was his older brother, even if he hadn't acted much like it lately. Naruto took a seat on his own hospital bed, crossing his legs and staring anxiously at his teacher, "Kakashi, I don't understand at all what's going on anymore..." he admitted, the scarecrow running his slender fingers through the kid's blonde hair before sitting next to his bedside, Itachi soon taking the seat next to him. "It was me." The missing-nin spoke up simply, seeing Sasuke was already beginning to awaken. The extent of people in the room all turned to him, their ears more than ready to hear and finally understand everything that had happened until this point. After a few seconds of silence, he decided to start at the beginning, "When I returned to the village to kidnap Naruto with Kisame, I saw Kakashi with my own brother..." Sasuke hissed angrily, already awake from his unconscious state. He stirred in his bed, rolling over on his side and gathering the sheets up to his face to make sure no one could see if he began crying again. "... I couldn't stand to see the one I loved with that brat..." Itachi muttered, hearing his younger brother snap up in his sheets, immediately sitting up and puffing out his cheeks. "Who're you calling a brat-?!" The youngest Uchiha shouted, his teacher's kind hand reaching over slowly to cover his lips with his hands to quiet him, it wasn't as if Kakashi was trying to forcibly shut the kid up, he just knew there was more to the story that they all deserved to hear. Sasuke blushed at the familiar contact before his Jounin instructor's fingers slippightight off of his face as his older brother continued, "I wanted to get back at the both of them, so I went after Naruto to make you jealous..." he mumbled, peering up at Kakashi and feeling the incredible guilt from a few minutes ago arise in the pit of his stomach. He hated knowing that all of this time he had spent eliminating emotional feelings hadn't done a bit of good when it came down to it. Hesitantly he continued, trying not to look his young blonde lover, "After that, I decided to take Sasuke's form and I slept with you, I tried to kill you when you fell ap. p. And I came so damn close, I could've finished you right then and there and taken care of all of it... but I didn't..." The youngest Uchiha's eyes snapped open as he realized why he had seen Itachi in Kakashi's home that day, his belly began to churn now that he knew the trustworthy Jounin hadn't slept with his brother on purpose. Knowing this, he wanted to apologize for the way he'd been acting lately, but instead chose to use his actions to express his words. Silently, Sasuke leaned forward in his hospital bed, his forehead tapping against Kakashi's back, his small arms gathering around his teacher's waist. The gray-haired scarecrow's eyes fluttered closed as Itachi continued. "Even if I had to hurt everyone around me, I wanted to make you pay for betraying me like that..." The eldest Uchiha stood, stepping over to the side of the room and staring out of the slight slits in the wooden blinds covering the window, as if he was deeply rooted in his thoughts, "Even now I don't think I regret it." He mumbled, knowing his younger brother would explode at hearing that. Sasuke fumed, his small hands gathering in his Jounin instructor's clothing and forming tight fists with the material, but he tried his best to remain perfectly quiet, so he wouldn't give histherther the sadistic satisfaction of knowing he riled him up. Naruto, on the other hand, was more than ready to make up for his rival's silence, "All this time you've just been using everyone in Konoha for your own good?! But, but, not me, right? When you said you cared about me, you weren't lying, right?" his voice squeaked as he continued to speak, tears dripping down his short whiskers. In truth he had always known Itachi didn't care for him, but after so many days of convincing himself otherwise, it was hard to hear that he was nothing to the Uchiha but an assistant in his ploys. Itachi shook his head solemnly. The young blonde stifled back his tears, "No, no! It was different with me..." he continued to repeat aloud, as if saying it so many times might make it true. It apparently wasn't working, as the red-eyed menace in the corner continued to stare at him blankly. He had no answer. He had just been using Naruto from the beginning, tricking him and somehow leading him to believe a seemingly heartless murderer cared for him. Uncomfortably he shifted in his sheets, pulling them up to his neck and plopping down on his pillow, his pearl beyeseyes focusing on the wall next to him. "You never cared about me... You were just using me the entire time?" The voice arose quietly from the sheets, a timid, ashamed, and otherwise very uncharacteristic voice of the loud fox. The room grew gradually quiet as all of them digested the recent information. Kakashi feeling somewhat betrayed by Itachi, that he would take Sasuke's form and do such a thing to hurt his own brother. But, it was nearly impossible for the weight of the entire situation to fall solely upon Itachi's shoulders. Shyly the gray-haired Jounin spoke, "N-Naruto, I know what he did was wrong, a... a lot of things he's done in his life have been wrong..." Sasuke let out a loud scuff. "... but, I don't know if we can consider all of it his fault. He even murdered his clan to get away from the kind of life he was living. As much as he's hurt other people, you can't ignore what kind of torturewentwent through when he was younger." Kakashi explained, wondering if it would get through to the stubborn kid. Instead, Sasuke answered, his eyes faded to a blood-red color, eyebrows lowered angrily, "Don't fucking give him an excuse like that! He killed my family, there's no damn reason for that!" he yelled, his cheeks reddening as the unquenchable fury inside of him raged on. Kakashi quickly interrupted the young Genin, spinning around to grab him by the collar, "Sasuke! Don't talk about it as if you know what happened back then! Itachi-the only reason he tried so hard to get out of that life was to protect you! All the torture he went through living at that place was all because he refused to leave without you!" he shouted, his usually masked mouth perfectly naked, his gaping, yelling lips appearing so violent, so angry. Sasuke had never seen his calm teacher so upset before. The youngest Uchiha took in a short breath, his eyes quickly dulling back to their original black tint as he stared down at his own feet. He had nothing to say to argue back. Kakashi was right, damn him, he was always right about these kinds of things. Itachi had always protd hid him like an older brother when they were younger, he would feed him when he was an infant, help him with his homework from the academy, seldomnly he would even help him train. Most of all though, he had defended Sasuke against the drunken perverts who sauntered into the Uchiha residence for a good time, telling them numerous times that the young boy was not for sale, even getting into several fights about it. Sasuke quieted, knowing Itachi had not caused his problems, in fact it seemed it was the other way around. The gray-haired Jounin once again attempted to defend the eldest Uchiha, his chest aching when the guilt of his past caught up with him, "Itachi, he won't accept it unless it comes out of your mouth, please, he has to know that everything you did back then, the genocide of the clan, the abandonment, even though it hurt him, it was all for his own good." He practically begged, knowing his student would not listen if only he gave petty excuses for Itachi's vicious actions. He had to hear it from his older brother, the one he had looked up to as a hero for all his life. "He's not yet ready to hear it from me. And I'm not ready to tell him." The room grew distinctly quiet after Itachi's bold comment. The eldest Uchiha mused upon his own thoughts and memories by the window, staring for a few short seconds before the nostalgia of returning to the large city of Konoha returned to him. Slowly and gently, like the current of a small river, his thoughts flooded his mind, namely of a time when he was much younger, his brother having just entered the world. Itachi was five years old when his mother began wobbling around the house and behaving more clumsily that usual. His father seemed to watch over her like a hawk, more specifically making sure she had plenty to eat and drink. The young boy was so confused by the situation, wondering if his mother was sick and dying, his confusion only heightening when she began to put on more and more weight. The dark-haired child curiously watched as his mother's stomach began growing, larger and larger for a long time before he finally asked her what had been happening. "Mama, are you sick?" The youthful Uchiha family mother let out a slight giggle at the comment, her husband turning his head and grinning, "Itachi, why would you ask me that?" "There's a big lump in your tummy..." Again, his mother smiled, "Iyouryour little brother or sister, Itachi. In a few days they will be born and you'll be a big brother." She explained like a typical mother, giving him a reassuring pat on the head. Softly she took the young boy's small hand in her own, pressing his palm to her stomach so he could feel the baby moving inside. Itachi pulled his hand back, his eyes wide as he felt a small 'thump' within her stomach. How had the baby gotten inside of her in the first place, he was beginning to wonder, his thoughts and questions interrupted when his mother pressed his small fingers on her stomach once again. "Don't be scared, Itachi. The baby's just saying 'hello'." The youngest of the main family swallowed the nervous lump in his throat and pressed the entirety of his miniature hand to his mother's belly, feeling the little forming individual inside of her kick at him. Itachi smiled excitedly, "It kicked me! I felt it!" he exclaimed happily, his black eyes lighting up in amazement. He stared up at his mother before noticing something was wrong. Her face contorted in a sense of pain, her eyelids squeezed shut as she grabbed desperately at her stomach, falling the few feet from her wooden chair onto the kitchen floor. Itachi's father hurriedly rushed to her side, helping her up and immediately telling the other Uchiha family members to get the doctor. The young child held his hands over his mouth, oh no, he broke her, somehow he broke his mother! Tears began to form in his pitch-black eyes as the entire Uchiha clan was quickly caught up in this exciting situation, many of them running over to the local hospital and requesting a doctor as fast as they could. Meanwhile Itachi could just watch as his mother was brought into her master bedroom, the men in white coats and women in white uniforms pushed past his small form and made their way inside, closing the door shut on the boy. Itachi stood by the doorway with some of his cousins and aunts and uncles, all of them anxiously awaiting the arrival of a new clansperson. The youngest of the clan nervously bit at his small fingernails, somehow blaming this on himself. He had touched his mother the wrong way perhaps, or pressed too hard, either way whatever was happening to her was all his fault. He couldn't help the bilious tears that flowed from his eyes. Itachi began whining like the small child he was before turning and grabbing his aunt's thick clothing, buryingselfself in her dress and continuing his loud weep. "Mama, I hurt mama..." His aunt smiled softly, her light brown hair falling over her shoulders, "Itachi, you didn't hurt her. She's having the baby that's all. It's not your fault..." "Having the baby?" Itachi wiped at his pink eyes, sniffing back the remainder of his tears and staring up at his caring aunt's large black eyes. She grinned back at him, hearing the doctors and nurses from the Konoha hospital bustling around the room as she spoke, "Your little brother or sister decided to come into the world a few days early." She muttered, suddenly hearing the loud cries of a newborn baby muffled by the thick wooden door. All of the waiting family members seemed to simultaneously turn to each other, smiles on their faces, their eyes lit up as if they themselves had witnessed the miracle first-hand. After a few short minutes, the doctors opened the door, stepping out of the small room to get a breath of fresh air, while also allowing the rest of the weary woman's relatives to step inside. Itachi was nearly trampled by all the impatient family who couldn't wait to get a good look at the new child of the Uchiha. Being as short of stature as he was at this young age, it was no surprise how difficult it was for him to work his way through the crowds of people. All around him came the sounds of 'ooh...' and 'ahh...', and assorted baby talk, some of the older men of the family already commenting on how Itachi's new sibling looked like a real good fighter. The youngest of the clan was beginning to get anxious about seeing this kid. His mother waved him over, her eyes holding severe signs of fatigue from the early birth, but she still managed a smile, holding the thickly wrapped baby in her arms, Itachi's father standing over her. The small child worked his way over, standing on his tiptoes to see the new baby. What was so special about him anyway? He had ten fingers just like Itachi did, he only had a little bit of black hair on his forehead, and he had big black eyes just like Itachi. Why was the entire family so excited? Itachi's mother smiled, "Itachi, I want you to meet your new baby brother..." she muttered, her voice a little horse. The young five year-old peered into his mother's arms, seeing that little collection of skin and bones that was shivering a bit from the cold air in the house, the air conditioner running heavily because of the hot summer weather. Curiously he looked at the quiet child, his big eyes were closed, his small hands gat gathered up into small fists, his fingernails so slight that they were barely visible. Hesitantly Itachi reached up with a single finger pointed outward, pressing the little boy's nose softly and watching as the baby stirred, wiggling his nose and moving his small legs under the blankets, making incomprehensible babble. Another of his family members spoke up, "So, have you come up with a name for the kid?" The Uchiha's mother nodded, pulling the soft blankets over her new son's arms and smiling, "Sasuke." Itachi blinked a few times, "Sasuke..." he mumbled in his small, childish voice, holding out his arms and wriggling his fingers, "Can I hold him?" he questioned kindly, watching as his mother and father exchanged glances. Was he really old enough and responsible enough to hold a baby? After their silent debating, his mother held her baby out graciously, having Itachi sit on the end of the bed and carefully placed the small child in his arms. Itachi felt so big compared to this little mini person, the little child emanating small groaning sounds from his tiny throat and slowly opening his eyes, his eyelids seeming hesitant to open for a while before finally little Sasuke managed, his jet black, glowing eyes scanning the world around him before looking up at the person holding h He He stared into his older brother's eyes for a long time, obviously not old enough yet to understand who he was, but he smiled anyway, a wide, sincere smile. The now no-longer-youngest Uchiha smiled back at his younger brother, placing his small index finger down next to Sasuke's small hands, feeling the fingers curl around it and watching as the tired boy of only a few minutes of age closed his eyes and fell asleep in his arms. Why was he born into this family? What kind of terrible heavenly forces would make it so another child would be part of the Uchiha clan, another child to be put into this horrible life his cousins and second cousins had already endured for so long? While he felt glad to have a younger sibling, he could not help but wonder how long it would be before he was sent out to work. Itachi was already weary of the seven more years he had until it was also his time. Protectively, like a typical older brother, Itachi pulled Sasuke's small body closer to his warm chest, holding him carefully and placing a kiss on his forehead. Everyone that crowded the room let out their various 'aww' sounds at the adorable sight. Itachi, on the other hand, couldn't think of anything other than what this little child would have to experience later on in life. Regretfully he stared at the wriggling baby in his arms, "I'm sorry, Sasuke..." Itachi awoke from his memories, wiping what seemed to be a tear from his eye. That night, Itachi and Kakashi fell asleep in each other's arms, sitting in the small chairs given to guests in the boys' hospital rowhilwhile Sasuke and Naruto both seemed fully awake, perhaps because of the surprising things they had learned today. The youngest Uchiha shifted in his sheets, turning to face his rival's bed only a few feet from his own and grinning when he saw the blonde tossing and turning, trying his best to find the most comfortable spot on the bed. "Arghhh!!" Naruto shouted, seemingly back in his usual high spirits, "Damn these sheets!" Sasuke smiled widely, something about the brainless talwaalways entertained him so much when he was stuck in these terrible moods, it felt good to see a smiling, cheery, somewhat humorous face once in a while. The tired Uchiha blinked a few times, pulling the sheets up over his shoulders and feeling sleep beginning to overtake his body. "Hey, Sasuke..." Okay, now the happy little brat was beginning to get on his nerves. Sasuke grumbled, facing his teammate once again, barely making out his form in the nearly pitch-black room that was barely lit by the moonlight outside. "What, Naruto?" "I wanted to ask you-why did you go after your brother today?" The blonde teen questioned curiously, sitting up in his hospital bed and staring at his blanket-covered feet. The youngest Uchiha raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean?" "Well, today, when you saw Kakashi and Itachi in the hallway, you attacked Itachi. I thought it was strange since you thought Kakashi had betrayed you... Why didn't you attack him instead?" Sasuke d tod to think of a viable answer, though he knew at the time he had powered up his Chidori and came after the two of them, he really wasn't doing that much thinking. "He killed my family, I guess even though I was mad at the both of them, his crime was worse..." Naruto scratched at his scalp, "But, but, when I saw you come after Itachi, it didn't feel the same as before when you were obsessed with avenging your clan. I dunno', it just seemed different. mut muttered quietly, hoping the hot-tempered Genin wouldn't be too angry at him for pestering him late at night. "Why didn't you try and attack Kakashi too?" "Ugh, Naruto, I don't know. Maybe I was angry with Itachi for taking advantage of you. He treated you like you were a worthless step in his plan, maybe it pissed me off, I don't know..." He mumbled quickly, all of the words in his sentences running together. "I just want to go to sleep, okay?" The blonde ninja nodded, wrapping himself up in his thick sheets and blankets. For a long time the two didn't say a word to each other as they began fading off into dreamland, finally Naruto spoke up boldly. "You know, Sasuke..." Sasuke's left eye twitched frustratedly, his fingers tearing into his fluffy pillow, "Wh-what?" he said, clenching his lips together and gritting his teeth. "Itachi kept telling me no one could care about me because of this thing inside of me," Naruto muttered, touching his stomach and feeling the distinct seal over his skin. "... for a while I believed him, but, I guess you care about me, right?" Sasuke quieted for a long time, rolling over and choosing to face the opposite way so he wouldn't have to see the fox's devious face, "Yeah I guess, whatever. Go to sleep, dammit." Miles from the Konoha hospital, it seemed a majority of the city's Anbu had gathered on the outside of town, the Fifth Hokage alongside them. Out among the dead leaved cod cold evening air, lay the body of one of the Water country's most despised traitors. "Hoshigaki Kisame..." Tsunade muttered aloud, crossing her arms over her broad chest and staring at the bloody shark whose body was lying so limply out here, the black ravens already gathered around him and pecking hungrily at his scaly flesh. The Anbu teams looked at the body, watching as the medical members of their company lifted the heavy corpse into a thick black bag, zipping it up after them and lifting the weight onto a wide stretcher. The elite ninjas had to turn away at the sickening sight of the fish man's glazed-over, milky eyes and his gaping, sharp-toothed mouth. "It's impossible that Itachi has left town now that his partner is dead. The Akatsuki only move in pairs and he wouldn't have left Konoha until he reached his goal..." the Fifth Hokage muttered, her eyes becoming fiery, as if she was personally offended that someone working for the same company as Orochimaru was still in her hometown. The Anbu carried the body off, but not before Tsunade had given her instructions, "We will have a delegate from the Hidden Village of the Mist pick him up tomorrow, I'm sure they would want his body to be dealt with as they see fit." She quieted, her dirty blonde hair tossing in the wind. "Kisame has already paid for his crimes, Itachi too should be made to pay for his as well." The Anbu at her side assembled, their various white masks seemingly glowing in the dark, "We should continue to follow and track him, then ma'am?" one asked, as if the answer wasn't painfully obvious. "I want Uchiha Itachi brought to justice." She answered, her solution unwavering and her body language of her stark stance showing she was definitely not going to back down. Just as she was about to leave the area and return to her usual post in the Hokage's office building, she leaned down curiously, her caramel brown eyes scanning over the dirt and the long roots of the trees that littered the ground. She ran her fingers over the dark, crimson stain that fell upon the dirt, rubbing it in her hands before noticing it did not smell like the blood of Kisame. No, Kisame's blood had a distinctly fishy smell to it, this blood smelled of copper and wet metal and other characteristics that were typical of a normal person's blood. A million scenarios went through her mind before she came upon the most obvious one, "This isn't Kisame's blood. Maybe the two were attacked out in the forest, if so, Itachi might be in the hospital with his injuries." "But wouldn't the doctors have noticed who he was?" An Anbu spoke up. Tsunade bit her bottom lip, "Itachi and his younger brother are too alike in their looks. They might have just figured Sasuke had grown up." She explained, "Either way, I want the one team to monitor the hospital as soon as possible." Before she had even finished her sentence, the majority of the Anbu members had launched off into the dark night, ready to go off and finally complete their mission, to finally bring Uchiha Itachi to justice. Yay!! I finished this chapter!! Finally, only two or three left! BTW I hate fanfiction.net, they're pretty damn evil and I'm sorry if this is an inconvinience, but I know there are a lot of people at ffn who have been randomnly had their accounts taken down for ~some of them~ no reason... -_-;;; it's just infuriating. Anyway, please review, I need inspiration after ffn pretty much killed me, damn bastards, I could've gotten 100 reviews dammit!!! You killed it! Anyway, I put little 5 year old Itachi, that's worth a review isn't it *chu*