A/N - Here's my entry for the UchihaSaku competition. It's officially the 14th here, even though it's only minutes after midnight, I decided to post it day one's entry, which is short and sweet!

Day 1

Prompt: Painting your portrait.
Pairing: ItaSaku (of course). Non-mass.
Rated: M (just to be on the safe side). There shouldn't be anything here to trigger anyone, I hope.

"Lift your arm behind your head, Sakura-san."

Sighing, she did as she was asked and went that one step further by threading her fingers through her hair and tilting her head back a little, almost looking down at the man before her.

This was not how she had planned to spend her day off.

It was the first day off she'd had in a while and Sakura had been planning on spending it with her boys, going out for food and just relaxing for the first time in who knows how long. Unfortunately for her, Sasuke was nowhere to be seen when she knocked politely on his front door and it was the older Uchiha brother who greeted her.

She had been avoiding him for a while, mainly due to embarrassment, but mostly because of him.

After returning from an especially gruelling mission that left her feeling exhausted, dirty and run down, she'd decided to take a soak in the local bathhouses. It was something that helped her wind down and, of course, there was the added bonus of cleaning yourself.

To make a long story short, due to her exhaustion, she hadn't noticed that there was a sign outside of the bathhouses, warning them all that the male's section was out of order for a short while (she suspected foul play – probably Jiraiya). It was because of this that they decided to… Sakura swallowed. Yeah, they decided to mix them – to make them unisex until they got everything up and running again. More than likely why it'd been so empty.

So there she had been, sighing and relaxing into the hot water and as naked as the day she was born. Since she had always visited the bathhouses growing up, she hadn't thought twice about stripping off. Every woman had something they felt insecure about after all and because of this, they all had a mutual agreement there: never make another woman feel bad about her body. Even Hyuuga Hinata felt comfortable there, though she certainly had nothing to feel self-conscious about.

Sakura had been leaning against the warm stones, head tilted back against the ledge and her eyes shut peacefully. Had she taken any notice to another's presence? No. Women joined and left all the time and it was rude to stare, especially when they were naked.

It was the slight pause, however, that made her crack an eye open. There had been a pause in the person's movements of entering the water and Sakura had felt eyes on her. Not wanting to make a big deal out of it (just in case they weren't looking), she folded her arms behind her head and cracked an eye open, looking to the side.

Only to shriek in pure horror when she met the eyes of Uchiha Itachi.

Since then…

She shut her eyes, but reopened them when he told her to.

She would have liked to call it 'harassment', but that wasn't entirely true. He didn't make an overly big deal about what he asked of her and it was always slipped in casually when the timing was right. When she replied negatively, he nodded in understanding and thanked her for her time.

This time, she was unable to find an excuse.

An excuse for what?

A blush stained her cheeks and she released a shaky breath.

"Place your other hand between your legs on the chair, Sakura-san," Itachi ordered softly, his paintbrush teasing the canvas. When she did as she was asked, he then looked up at her from over the canvas and Gods the look made her insides feel warm. "Spread your legs for me."

The blush deepened and had it been anyone else, she would have outright refused. She would have been screaming "shannaro" and throwing punches.

But it was Uchiha Itachi.

"Move your hand to the right slightly," murmured Itachi. "I would like for you to keep yourself covered."

"Where will you be putting this, anyway?" Sakura asked, almost breathless.

His eyes met hers again and she could have sworn she'd seen a flash of heat in them. "You have no reason to worry, Sakura-san. I will guard this painting with my life."

"No one will ever see it," is what he had promised her.

She nodded, though stilled herself when he frowned in disapproval and a small smile pulled at her lips. Such a perfectionist.

In the bathhouses, with other women, she was comfortable in her own skin and was able to strut around naked. Outside of the bathhouses… Nobody had ever seen her naked.

Until now.

And certainly, nobody had ever asked to paint her while she was naked!

"I didn't know you were artistic," she had tried to accuse. How was she to know he wasn't a pervert?

"It is a hobby I would like to keep to myself," he'd replied. "But I have never painted a living person before. Only landscapes."

"And you suddenly want to paint me? Naked, I might add."

But Itachi had frowned, like the question was foolish. "Of course, Sakura-san. You have a magnificent body."

His words still caused her to blush.

"After I have finished, Sakura-san…"

At the pause, she forced herself to focus on the present. "Yes, Itachi-san?"

Once again, his eyes languidly met hers. "I would like to take you for dinner."