Learn to Love

He could feel the stress washing away from his mind as he continued to bring the cool water to his face. Keeping his eyes closed, Itachi blindly reached for the towel to the right only to discard it to the floor after he was done. With both hands supporting his weight, he leaned across the sink with his head hung low.

‘I will not feel guilty for this. I deserved so much more out of this life than what I had, but I gave it all up for the love of my village, and never asked them for anything in return. I murdered my family, made my brother hell bent on revenge and stricken with hate, I’ve lived the life of a missing nin all for Konoha. For my village, for the people I loved and love. They may not all know it but they have been in debt to me for years. And the only thing I want from them is the one thing that has belonged to me all along.’

Taking a deep breath in, he tilted back his head and closed his eyes. Feeling relaxed enough he released the air he was holding, and looked at his reflection. Crimson eyes met crimson. Itachi let out a slight sigh. He was an aristocratically handsome man, this he was confident about. It was never hard for him to spark an interest for him in the opposite sex, but he never found any true appeal to do it unless necessary due to built up sexual tension. Even then those pathetic whores weren’t enough to give him what he wanted, what he craved. But he hadn’t expected it to be any other way, for he never wanted anybody but her. Not particularly in a sexual sense, but in general. Before Danzo had him playing as a double agent he had a picture of his life in his head. They would be married, living in the Uchiha Compound’s main house, raising their own family. She would see him off to his rank A missions, and brag to her friends about him and their more then exceptional family.

He smirked. He really was naïve. Sure he was an ANBU captain with the skills and eyes that would have made even the toughest shinobi stop in their tracks, but when it had come to the subject of Haruno Sakura he was a thirteen year old love sick naïve boy.

To bad he had loved his village more.

Ignorance was bliss meant for a child.

Knowledge was lethal business meant for shinobi.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To anybody looking on the outside, it would seem as if she were asleep. Sakura only wished this was the case. In all reality though, she was very much awake. She just couldn’t seem to find the will to open her eyes.

Maybe it was because she was physically drained. Maybe because her eyes were swollen shut. Or maybe it was because she didn’t want to see him anywhere in proximity of her. Either way, her eyes remained closed and her breathing slow and slightly ragged from crying too much.

Taking a much needed deep breath Sakura began to search the room. She couldn’t feel anything threatening, and the closest chakra signature was on the floor beneath her. With a groan, she opened her eyes and sat up on the bed. One look at the damn room though and she knew she should have kept her eyes closed. Grabbing a book off of the night stand she threw it full force at the door with an ear splitting scream.

“You stupid, serial killing, mother-fucker!!”

Sakura could feel her face light up with anger. Her blood was boiling, and she was willing to bet anything that smoke was coming out of her ears. She could feel the shallow breaths of anger racking through her body.

And it all went down hill from there.

Shallow breaths quickly turned to angry sobs as she broke down for what felt like the millionth time. Laying back down she tried to ease the feeling of nausea that washed over her.

‘I can’t stand it anymore. I don’t want to be in this room. I don’t want to be here in general, but I can’t take being in this room.’ Sakura could feel herself hyperventilating and she knew she had to calm herself down before she passed out.

‘Calm down Sakura. It’s okay. They’re looking for you. It won’t be much longer. Naruto and Neji are looking for me. It’s okay. It’s okay.’

After some time her breathing evened out and Sakura could think clearly again. She had been there for about a week now, give or take a few days. She had been finally returning from Suna and was going home. She had stopped at a diner two town from home and….well that’s when her memory cuts out.

‘Itachi must’ve drugged me.’ Sakura closed her eyes as she racked through her thoughts. When she was first captured she figured it was just an opportunistic moment for them to gain bait to lure the Kyuubi. But she now had enough evidence to assume this wasn’t the case. Especially after last night’s episode. They, no HE, had planned this. And as much as she hated to admit it, Sakura had to say he did a good job. He must have dotted his i’s and crossed his t’s because as far as she knew, no had come for her.

Yet.
‘Oh when Neji finds out, he going to kick some Uchiha ASS!!’ Inner Sakura shouted gleefully.

‘Oh God, she’s back.’

‘Cha.’

Blocking out her internal evil twin Sakura continued to evaluate her situation. Even if a squad was outside to retrieve her right now, they would have to lay low for awhile before they could infiltrate the base. Until then she was on her own, and considering her last three escape attempts didn’t exactly go as planned she had to be careful where she stepped. Maybe she could negotiate with Itachi. Find out what he wanted from her.
She didn’t really expect this to go to well considering her past negotiation attempts with an Uchiha. Sasuke…

God , him and his brother were such asswholes!! ‘It’s gotta be genetic.’ Then again they weren’t always like this, well actually Sasuke was so… Itachi wasn’t always like this. As a girl when the other kids would run around and leave her out, Itachi would always come and talk with. After awhile she looked up to him. She used to think he was cool. Sakura snorted. ‘I was such an impressionable child.’ Then her and her family suddenly started taking trips to the Uchiha compound every weekend. Typically Itachi would be away, and that always made her feel sad. He was one of the few kids who were nice to her.

Then she met Sasuke and that opened a whole new world for her. She would chase him around and cling to him like white on rice. Sakura smiled to herself. Looking back on it she kind of felt bad for Sasuke, having a little fan girl like her must of scared him shitless. Then again the little butt head did push her in a pond when she couldn’t swim, so maybe not so much. Luckily that day Itachi had been there to pull her out, and wiped away all her tears and took her out for icecream. Strawberry topped with extra cherries.

Then one day, it was like he disappeared. Her family stopped making trips to the compound and Itachi never stopped to talk to her anymore. He didn’t even wave. For awhile it hurt because the sting of loneliness was starting to come back. Then one name changed it all. Ino. Itachi had been nice, but Ino was cool and a girl. She was her first real friend, and she knew a whole lot. Ino had become her bestfriend and soon Itachi was just a brief chapter of her past. Sakura had virtually forgot about him until the day of the Uchiha massacre. And that was……

“Has anyone ever told you that it is rude to insult your host in their own home. I thought you were raised better than that.”