Dangerously Beautiful

Chapter 3 Challenged Itachi followed Kisame into his old hometown, seeing the old restaurants, the old inns and shops he used to visit a few times. The old Yamanaka flower shop he used to go to every Mother's day for a bouquet of the rarest, most beful ful flower arrangements, while his little brother pulled a few ragged weeds from the yard right before he returned home. Bumehomehow, their mother always liked Sasuke's present more. Kisame stared back at his partner, wielding his heavy sword on his shoulder, "Itachi, you're not going to start crying, are ya'? Choro choro, I didn't know you were such an emotional guy..." "Shut up or I'll tear out your lungs." Itachi returned coldly, his blood red Sharingan nearly tearing a hole through Kisame's beady brown eyes. The missing-nin from the Water Country waved his right hand as if he were surrendering, "Fine, fine. I give up. Listen, we already tried to capture the demon fox, are you sure we can afford to screw up again?" "We won't screw up." He promised menacingly, wandering the city streets with little to no concern that someone might recognize him. "Last time one of the three great ninja was with that brat, all we have to do is separate them.he ehe explained casually, pointing ahead to a small eatery ahead of them. Kisame still appeared uncertain, though Itachi hated to see the shark deny his abilities, "And what about the other Jounin and such? Azuma and Kurenai, and those other two..." he touched the gills on the sides of his head in thought, scratching at them nervously, "Kaka..." "They won't be a problem. Now shut up, I can't eat when you're talking so much..." he spat out angrily, a vein in his forehead nearly bulging out of his head. The eldest Uchiha took a seat in front of the small restaurant, smelling the thick air around him, it stunk of chicken and ramen noodles. Itachi sighed, pulling his straw kasa over his eyes. The exile from the Hidden Village of the Mist let out a long breath, not daring to anger his partner, as he knew, although they were both S-rank criminals, if there were ever an argument between them, Itachi could rip him to shreds before he could blink and eye. He twiddled his thumbs and peered his small eyes around the town; it was so bright and sunny, such a change from the cold and foggy atmosphere of his homeland. "So, why did you pick this run-down shop?" Itachi growled, his lips rippling over his teeth, "No particular reason. Actually, I've heard the demon fox comes here often. I was hoping to catch him off guard." "It's not like you to reveal your plans to me like that." The eldest Uchiha twisted the Akatsuki ring on his pale finger, raising his hand to order a bowl of ramen, "Then perhaps I'm lying," he suggested, pulling the old man over, "Chicken ramen, and shrimp ramen." He ordered, already figuring what his seafood-loving partner would want. His dark red eyes held such a sense of foreboding danger, but other than that, they were impossible to read. It was a horrible feeling that Kisame was always unable to decipher what his partner was thinking. "You little bastard. Choro choro, you've got something on your mind, I know it." He coted,ted, his large frame shaking out a laugh. Itachi tapped his fingers on the wooden table in front of them as he awaited his meal. "Kisame, I would like to complete this mission alone." He stated bluntly, having never been one to beat pointlessly around the bush. His very shocked partner shifted where he sat, his large weapon moving precariously on his back. "What? We were both hired fer' this job! Don't think I'll roll over so easily and let you take it!" Kisame slammed frighteningly large fists upon the counter, staring at his partner for an answer, acknowledgement that he had even spoken. The eldest Uchiha tossed his black bangs back, "This is my home, Kisame. Whatever problems we have here, I can take care of myself. I'll get the fox boy, don't worry..." Kisame fumed, his pale blue face almost showing a hidden trace of red, "Bullshit! I was hired to take care of that brat too! Don't think yer' running the show just because we're in Konoha." He muttered, his sharp teeth quickly flashing below his slick scales. Itachi smirked, "Would you like to challenge me then, Kisame?" he asked menacingly, turning to face his partner with the vicious, murderous young eyes of the Uchiha clan. Kisame nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight, even though he should've gotten used to the emotionless pools of blood red and black, when the gaze was focused upon him, it couldn't be helped that he let out a frightened shiver. The two remained quiet as the missing-nin from the Water Country thought out whether he had enough guts to face the Uchiha in a real battle. Sighing, he gave up, slinking down in his chair, "Fine, you capture the kid. But once you get him, I want to play with him a bit..." he mumbled, licking his dry lips. "No, we need the kid alive. You can't kill him." "Can't I just slice an arm off or something?" "No." Itachi returned sternly, pulling the recently delivered chicken ramen closer to himself. "You just remain quiet in the village for a while. It won't take long to capture the boy. I reserved a room for you at the Nagame Inn, just don't cause any trouble." Kisame scuffed, slurping his ramen, he hated being treated like he was the inferior, but in all truths, he knew he was. Naruto Uzumaki let out a small sneeze as he headed down the paths of Konoha, stretching his arms way above his head. "Mission, mission..." he sang merrily, glad to finally have something to do in the backwater town. He casually made his way to the meeting place, already spotting an impatient Sakura sitting with her legs crossed. Out of the corner of his eye the blonde could see a black-haired, ryed yed boy, laughing and furrowing his whiskers, "Hurry up, Sasuke..." he teased, running quickly over to the pink-haired female ninja. Itachi watched the boy curiously, wondering how he could possibly be mistaken for his idiotic younger brother. He tipped the top of his kasa further over his eyes. There was the target, in plain sight. He could just go for it, with his abilities and amazing speed the fox boy would be no competition. His feet got a bit itchy as he prepared to stand, quickly stopped by Kisame's thick hand on his shoulder, "Stop." He muttered, pointing to the Jounin that was quickly headed over to Sakura and Naruto. The eldest Uchiha's Sharingan eyes grew wide as Kakashi calmly strutted over to his two young students, his hands in his pockets as he whistled a tune to himself. Itachi stared blankly for a long while at the Jounin he had once loved, remembering his gray, soft hair and his coal-black eye... Memories seemed to flood back at him at a ridiculous rate, and he couldn't stop them. His fellow rogue tapped his shoulder, "You can't handle a Jounin like that by yourself, Itachi. Let my Samehade take care of him." Kisame said with a chuckle, holding his large, wrapped weapon on his shoulder precariously. Itachi shook his head, "Like I said, I can handle this assignment on my own. Now let's get out of here, I suddenly lost my appetite..." Kakashi scratched the back of his gray scalp, "Oh, sorry I'm late you two, I was fishing, I mean this woman needed help..." The gray-haired Jounin stared at their obviously unconvinced scowls. "Oh what does it matter anymore?" Kakashi mumbled, kicking his heels. "Well, it looks like we're one short on this mission, but that's alright, it's just a C rank mission..." "What?" Naruto exclaimed, hands on his hips, "We can't do a mission without three people! Where is that stupid Uchiha anyways?!" he demanded, peering all around him suspiciously as if Sasuke could be hiding behind any bush or tree. "Who does he think he is holding us up like this?" the demon fox ranted, stomping his feet on the dusty ground. Sakura rolled her eyes, quickly turning to her instructor, "Kakashi, is Sasuke alright?" Kakashi remained quiet for a long while, already telling them both he knew something, before returning his false smiling mask, "I... don't think he's feeling well today. But we can do this mission in his absence." He explained, taking his two students with him to the outermost forests of Konoha city, his thoughts wandering many times to the young boy. Naruto suddenly woke his teacher from his fazed state, grabbing the bottom of his olive green jacket, "Kakashi, maybe you're not feeling alright, your eye is all glazed and fuzzy..." he pointed out, nearly sticking his finger in Kakashi's right eye. The gray-haired Jounin waved him off, "Never mind that, let's get to the mission..." Sasuke lay on his back, his hands resting under the back of his head as he stared up at his blank ceiling. Tiredly he turned to see his calendar, noticing he had a mission to do with the others today and letting out a long breath. There was no way he could possibly face Kakashi after what he had done to him, at least for a month or two... The youngest Uchiha curled up into a repressive ball, pulling his sheets over his shoulders and wiping the tears that gathered in his eyes with his warm covers. A part of him still longed to be with Kakashi, another part of him quarreling internally with why he had given up his virginity so easily to someone he barely knew. He was no better than the rest of his family, but he hadn't even received any money. Sasuke grumbled, pulling the sheets over his head. Why was he so damn stupid sometimes? Gods, when he thought about that his own teacher was his first-time, it made him feel so cheap. But maybe it was in his genes to be a slut; after all, it was the only life he had ever lived. Getting a small portion of his brother's money, playing the koto to comfort him while he was brutally raped time and time again. The youngest Uchiha shuddered as he remembered Itachi's painful screams of agony; the look on his face as the client shoved himself in completely, sheathing himself within the young Uchiha... It was all so horrible. He grabbed the pillow under his head and held in closer to his chest, thinking that maybe that was why he was so attracted to Kakashi. After all, Kakashi was the only person who had ever visited the Uchiha home who had treated his older brother as more than a whore. Kakashi would embrace Itachi like a real boyfriend, kissing his cheek and his lips and acknowledging he was worth more than that insidious life. Why wouldn't Kakashi comfort Sasuke like that? The youngest Uchiha wrestled with that question for a while, tossing and turning in his bed as he tried to think up a viable answer. Maybe Sasuke just wasn't worthy enough to be loved. Ouch. Sasuke sat up on his mattress, looking down at boxers and seeing the small spots of red that decorated the back. Damn he should have prepped himself yesterday, now the pain was so irritating. 'But it was worth it.' He heard a voice inside of him say, obviously the perverted side of the young Uchiha. He smirked and nodded. The frustrated boy growled between clenched teeth, no, no, no!! What he did to Kakashi was wrong; he shouldn't be praising himself for it! He drugged him and took advantage of his trusting instructor... On the other hand, maybe Sasuke was trying to help Kakashi get over Itachi. After all, finding another person to spend your life with was better than spending all of your existence pining after someone who refuses to give you the time of day. Sasuke nodded, that was definitely it. His chest ached as he thought of what he had put Kakashi through, peering over to the photo he had taken with the other two of his team, and Kakashi. The gray-haired Jounin had his arms around Naruto and Sasuke, while Sakura stood blushing in between them. Sasuke's face reddened, his eyes softening at the sight of his teacher. Everything about Kakashi was virtually the opposite of Sasuke, he wasn't punctual, he never seemed serious about even the most dire situations, and he always had a goofy smile on his face. Perhaps the young Uchiha was attracted to these qualities, for none of them reminded him of his family. Sasuke blushed brightly as he remembered the training with Kakashi before the Chuunin exam, as he was teaching him the 'chidori' technique. The youngest Uchiha would always strain his body, pushing himself to his limits without any concern for what permanent damage it might cause, worrying his teacher a little. At the end of each tiring day, Sasuke would collapse on the dirt ground, usually struggling to breath, sometimes even convulsing from the vast amount of electricity he had harnessed within him. His gray-haired instructor would just sigh and sit next to him, crossing his arms over his chest and muttering, "You shouldn't push yourself so hard, Sasuke. You'll spend your entire life trying to be better than someone else..." he explained, his coal black eye seemingly wandering off to a time when he too was much younger and much more competitive. Sasuke huffed, his breathing still very labored, "Bullshit, what about you and Gai? You're always competing with him." The Jounin chuckled, placing a comforting hand on Sasuke's trembling shoulder, "Yeah, but that's not much of a competition..." he joked, "I mean it IS Gai..." he said, turning to the Uchiha and expecting a laugh. Sasuke remained quiet for a while before murmuring a chuckle, which gradually evolved into full-blown laughter. The pain in his arms seemed to fade away as he threw his head back where he lay, his thoughts wandering to the sight of that strange bowl-cut, fuzzy-eyebrowed teacher. His dark eyes shut as he hissed a laugh; too exhausted to notice he was acting remotely human. He had opened up to someone, for the first time in a long while. Kakashi played with Sasuke's black bangs, pushing him with a loud sigh, "And that Rock Lee, he's growing up to be a Gai lackey..." he commented, half of him frightened of thinking there might be two Gais in the world. The thought sent a shudder up his spine. Sasuke thought for a minute, "So who's your lackey, then?" "Hmm... I never really thought about it. I suppose out of you three students, you are the most like me. We're both not very social, we both have the power of the Sharingan, in fact, you have pretty much my identical fighting style too. Don't worry though, I won't make you dress like me." He joked, his wide smile showing even through his thin black mask. The young Uchiha sat up, his back aching from the terrible strai tra training it. He held out his hand, a ball of electric chakra forming quickly as the beginning phase of the chidori started, "I guess I don't mind being taught under y." h." he said, feeling his cheeks start to flush at the mere thought of being 'under' Kakashi. "Yeah, it is an honor." Sasuke pushed his goofy teacher over, "I didn't say that." The Uchiha regretfully placed the picture on his wooden desk, his dark eyes still wandering back to the image of his kind teacher. He was determined to get him to forgive him, to possibly return to the way things used to be. Sasuke peered at his clock, seeing it had been three hours since he was supposed to meet the others. He dressed himself hurriedly in his typical black attire and headed out, hoping to meet up with Kakashi on his way back from the mission. Naruto grumbled as he reached his hand further into a thick hole in the mud below him, reaching as far as he possibly could, "Kakashi, I can't reach it..." he muttered. The gray-haired Jounin sighed, placing his hands on his hips, "Come on you two, it is a mission..." "You said it was a C Rank Mission!! Removing gophers from someone's yard is NOT a C Rank Mission!!" Sakura tossed back as she angrily reached further into the long tunnel that had been formed by the annoying animals. Naruto pulled at his whiskers with one hand, trying to vent his frustration and reach further to grab the little buggers at the tim time, "Stupid Sasuke, he doesn't have to exterminate gophers..." he mumbled below his breath, finally feeling something furry. "Ah! I think I have it..." Kakashi's eyes widened, "Hurry Naruto, pull it out!" The young blonde struggled to grab whatever piece of the animal he had felt, assuming it was a tail by the feel of it. Curiously he reached further, grabbing adfuldful of the creature's fur and pulling as hard as he possibly could. A growl rippled from his lips as he realized it was much easier said than done. In short, five bites and fourteen scratches later, Naruto had removed the pest and the three could finally return to their homes. The young fox rubbed his wounds on their way back, "Damn that Sasuke, when I see him, I'm gonna' punch him right in the mouth!" he threatened, making an uppercut with his arm. Sakura rolled her mint green eyes, "You couldn't land a punch on Sasuke if you tried, Naruto." Naruto scowled. "Well you'll just see tomorrow when Sasuke's walking around with a big black eye..." he teased, grabbing his knuckles in anticipation of that sweet moment. Now he was definitely determined to punch that little Uchiha's lights out. The two Genins peered over to their teacher, his eyes were drifting off, his mind seeming to wander as he walked with them. The young pink-haired girl turned to her teammate, "Isn't Kakashi acting strange today?" The demon fox chuckled, throwing his arms behind his head, "Kakashi's always strange." "No, I mean, he's been really quiet, like something's bothering him." She explained, knowing Naruto's intellect could not pick up on something so vague. It was her women's intuition. Naruto put his hand to his chin in thought, "Hm, maybe." He ran up to his Jounin teacher and grabbed his vest tightly in his small fist, "Hey Kakashi, what's bothering you?" he asked. Sakura nearly fell over, "Naruto, you're not supposed to flat-out ask him!!" she scolded. Kakashi seemed to barely hear the question, he turned, his eyes glazed over and tired while his gray hair hung in clumps over his eyes, "Oh, no, I'm alright..." he lied, wiping his eyes with his arm, "just a little tired." The blonde ninja nodded, taking that as an acceptable answer and walking further ahead. Kakashi wandered into his own thoughts for a while, thoughts about Itachi, the person he had tried to force out of his memory for years. So many memories were returning to him lately, memories of being with the Uchiha, going out with him on missions, sometimes rarely to dinner. The Jounin sm und under his mask, a blush inching its way onto his face as he recalled the quiet nights when both of them had no assignments or missions, when they would lie out in the ha fha forest for hours, Itachi resting comfortably on Kakashi's lap. Then he remembered Sasuke, how he used to spend hours with the kid, training him, teaching him his secret fighting techniques, or sometimes just sitting and talking to him. It was amazing what the youngest Uchiha would talk about once he opened up to someone. Kakashi couldn't really describe what feeling he held for him, but it was more than a teacher-student relationship, though it had not advanced to the way he and Itachi used to be. Ah! It was all so damn complicated!! On the one hand, he thought he had gotten over being with Itachi, that he would never see him again, and on the other hand, Sasuke was willingly confessing his feelings for him. The gray-haired Jounin scratched at his scalp. 'Ugh, I need a d...'...' Itachi stood silently under the cradle of the large window in his hotel room. Behind him Kisame lay back lazily on the wide bed, stretching his long arms and sighing, "So, you're gonna' get that fox kid on your own, eh? Just don't come crawling back to me when you fail horribly, choro choro..." Itachi ignored his comment; staring out upon the city he had left behind so many years ago, the friendships, and relationships he had long cut off and left back. His dark hair cluttered his eyes as he took in a breath, "I'm going off to scout, the sun is nearly down." He muttered quietly, stepping to the windowsill and vanishing with incredible speed. Kisame shook his head, picking at his gills and sighing loudly, "Moron." The eldest Uchiha sprinted about the village so rapidly all that could ben ofn of him was a dark blur that seemed to move at the speed of light. Finally the young S-Rank criminal paused, edging to the end of a tree limb and watching the activity under him. Behind his back the sun was setting slowly upon the Hokage monument, casting a dark shadow over the gist of Konoha. His Sharingan focused on the ground below his feet, he scanned for his target, the little nine tails boy. Angrily he watched the people pass by, remembering the faces and the hideous bodies of many of the men who now innocently passed by. No one would ever convict them, Itachi knew. Suddenly he caught Naruto in his sights, seeing his blonde head bobbing happily down the street, followed by his teammate Sakura and his teacher who obv obviously lagging behind. Itachi's eyes softened at the sight of him, his common sense quickly taking over and telling him he had an assignment, a mission to complete, that he had no time for frivolous acts. Naruto wiped the dirt off of his jumpsuit sleeves and let out a boisterous laugh at something he himself had said. Sakura merely rolled her eyes and followed him, Kakashi seemingly engrossed in his own mind. Itachi leaned forward, the leaves of the tree shuffliilenilently below his sandals. 'Where are they going at this time of day?' The whiskered boy turned, playing with his own spiky blonde locks, "Well, my house is just down this street..." he peered all around him as if he were suspicious about something before shrugging it off and heading towards his home. Itachi grabbed a limb, wanting to follow him, wanting to capture the boy as quickly as possible and leave this cursed town, leave these terrible memories behind him forever. But fee feet couldn't move. And neither could his eyes off of the gray-haired Jounin before him. He hadn't been this physically close to him in at least five years, and he found it rather hard to separate his gaze from him. Sakura headed down her appropriate path as Kakashi continued to escort himself home, trotting down the street with a rather depressed step. He placed his hands in his pants pockets and looked upwards at the dimming skyline above. Itachi nearly faltered, thinking perhaps he had spotted him. His breathing grew horse, his heartbeat silenced as he prepared himself for the worst. A single drop of cold sweat poured off of his cheek, pattering the dirt ground below the tree he had perched himself upon. Surely that had given him away? However, Kakashi continued to walk calmly, his mannerisms no different than before. His gray hair danced in the light evening breeze, his eyes squinting as the wind grew slightly harsher. There he was, the only one Itachi had ever fallen in love with, walking away from him, heading in the opposite direction and possibly leaving forever. The eldest Uchiha couldn't afford to take that chance. Itachi hopped from roof to roof as he followed his ex-boyfriend, not to reconcile of course, but to find a way to make his life a wretched living hell. Itachi was particularly good at doing that. Sasuke paced his front door a few times, his heels becoming raw for how many hours he had been walking back and forth in an attempt to decide whether or not he should go to see Kakashi. He needed his forgiveness, he couldn't live without it. Nervously he clenched and released a fist before finally deciding upon it. With a stomping first step of determination, Sasuke exited the Uchiha estate, wandering aimlessly in the Konoha streets for a short minute before spotting the gray-haired Jounin. Ah! That was so quick, perhaps it was fate... Hurriedly the young boyged ged over, his legs seemingly not carrying him as quickly as he wanted to be over there. Though Kakashi was still inevitably angry with him, something inside told him he had to act now. "Kakashi! Kakashi!" The gray-haired Jounin turned, a dark figure heading towards him out of the shadows of the bitter night. Itachi? No, he was taller. Curiously Kakashi stepped forward for a better look, "Sasuke?" "Kakashi, I needed to talk to you..." The youngest Uchiha muttered, holding his hands on his knees as he fought to regain his breath. His dark eyes focused upwards on his caring instructor, the one who had put his time and effort in to protect him from Orochimaru and had even given him the strength to fair well against the formidable Gaara. No one had ever done so much for him, and yet, he had... Kakashi stared at the damp ground below his sandals, "Sasuke, maybe some other time. It's late, you should get to sleep." "I can't get to sleep! Not when I know you're still pissed at me for what I did!" the stubborn Uchiha returned, stepping closer, somewhat ominously to his teacher. Itachi perched on the edge of a tile roof, his feet barely separated as he fought to regain his balance, "Damn Sasuke, what the Hell is he doing here?" "Sasuke," Kakashi began somewhat regretfully, making small circles in the mud with the toe of his shoe, "What do you honestly see happening between us? Have you thought ahead to the future?" Sasuke stuttered, unable to produce a viable answer for quite some time, "I-I... What does it matter, I..." "And when we walk down the street together and the people spread rumors about the teacher and his student..." "...They can say whatever they want..." "Or when people say behind our backs that an Uchiha shouldn't waste his blood on someone he can't bear children with, what will you do then?" "... I don't care what they say," "...When people mutter to themselves that it's a shame that a boy of such high class to have sold himself so short..." Kakashi mumbled, tears nearly forming in his eyes as he recalled to himself the hardships he and Itachi had faced for a long while. Passers-by and gossips muttering about the terrible couple, who selfishly fell in love without considering their gender, their social background, their different circumstances. Yes, how dare they. Kakashi was forced to cover his mask with his hands as he felt an overwhelming sense of sadness pour down upon his shoulders. "You are my student..." "I care about you a lot, Kakashi." Sasuke whimpered, his nose receiving the first drop of rain all that night. Soon it began to mist down on them, soaking their bodies and making the night seem so much more dreadful and horrendously long. The Jounin nodded, "Right..." he said sarcastically, knowing he had heard all of this before. Itachi shifted his weight, tipping his kasa down, 'What are those two talking about?' he thought, his blood red eyes focusing their deadly glare on the two as he listened further. Sasuke grabbed his instructor by the collar, nearly shouting into his ear to overcome the loud pitter-patter of raindrops around them "I love you, Kakashi." The boy's dark eyes clouded with tears after receiving no response, simply silence. And more silence. Finally Kakashi responded unwillingly, still refusing to look his young, impressionable student in the eye, "I care about you as a student, Sasuke. Anything more you thought we could have, is impossible. When you get older you'll realize that life is more than just going with whatever you feel. I'm sorry, Sasuke, I just don't care about you in that way." He explained flat-out, hoping his point would come across clearly this time, and that this would be the last instance the youngest Uchiha would approach him. Sasuke began to panic as his teacher began the short walk to his home, his arms and legs twitching involuntarily as his body told him to go after him, to chase the one he loved till the end of time. Sasuke panted, catching up to his meandering instructor and staring him straight in the eyes for a long while. His own dark eyes seemed so needy, as if they themselves were begging Kakashi for some kind of acknowledgement. It was thenuke uke made his decision. Without a second thought, he pulled himself up onto his toes, ripped away Kakashi's facial mask, and pressed his lips caringly to the older man's. Kakashi didn't appear surprised, but was shocked at how calmly he himself was handling the problem. For some reason he didn't try to push his student away, for some reason he made no attempt to stop him. Sasuke could feel the kiss was forced, could feel that Kakashi was not responding to him. He pressed harder, mashing his lips with his instructors and even eeping out a quiet moan at the crushing sensation. Their wet hair matted together as the youngest Uchiha brought them closer, closing his black eyes and waiting to feel that moment when Kakashi would too pour his emotions into their contact. Kakashi's mind spun gear after gear in an attempt to figure out an answer. Could he afford to put himself on the line again, could he fall in love a second time? He struggled with this question for a long time before spotting the tears that ran down Sasuke's pale cheeks, the painful look on his face as he finally came to the conclusion that the Jounin did not care for him, and thus he was not worthy of being cared for. The Jounin could no longer think of himself, and risking his own well being. Perhaps he didn't need Sasuke, but Sasuke definitely needed him. With a decision he was sure he would regret, hesed sed his eyes and leaned forward, opening his mouth to sample the familiar taste of a young Uchiha. Sasuke's cheeks flustered, his arms wrapping around his teacher's shoulders comfortably, his own small mouth slowly opening to reveal his warm cavern. The two shifted and moved to their own accord, both of their hearts beating like jackrabbits. The rain continued to fall upon both of their heads; masked by the warmth they were giving each other. Sasuke opened his eyes, nearly bursting into tears as he saw his Jounin instructor's familiar set of eyes staring back at him. Slowly he separated the kiss and stared at Kakashi's caring face. The gray-haired Jounin smiled, letting Sasuke return to his flat-footed state and noticing how much taller he was than the boy. Kakashi closed his eyes and placed a single peck on Sasuke's pale, rain-slicked forehead. "Your brother used to hit you there, right?" Sasuke nodded, wrapping his arms desperately around Kakashi's waist and nuzzling into his vest, feeling so warm, so loved, as if for the first time in his life, he had achieved something Itachi could not. Itachi's blood red eyes narrowed at the sickening sight before him. Kakashi and Sasuke. Kakashi and Sasuke. Kakashi and Sasuke. No matter how many times he repeated it to himself, it didn't seem to make sense. He grumbled to himself, a devious smirk soon spreading across his lips as a playful tongue swiped across them, "Fine, then. The game is on now Sasuke. From today on, you are no longer my brother, you are my rival."