A/N: YES! I finally did it! an ItaIno oneshot.
This is a gift for Marshie-chan (also known as enchantingmarshie18), who is a truly amazing person. She's really active in many fanclubs on Narutofan forums, makes AMVs (she made me a ShikaIno one!!!), draws fanarts AND writes fanfics. Isn't that just so cool and amazing? She's doing great at everything, too!
I admire you so much, Marshie-chan...and I'm sorry that you have to read such a stupid piece of writing about your fave pairing. I did my best, though. Have a splendid birthday, too!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Something lightly collided with Itachi Uchiha from behind, causing him to turn around swiftly, only to witness a bunch of colorful plants scatter on the ground before him and a young, blonde girl take a few, wobbling steps backwards.
"I'm sorry," She said hurriedly, dropping on her knees and pick up the flowers. "I wasn't looking where I was going."
Before Itachi had a chance to react in any kind of way, a new person appeared on the scene.
"I know you, girl." A Konoha chuunin came up to the blonde and placed a firm hand on her shoulder, pulling her forcefully up, which resulted in her dropping few flowers that she'd picked up. "I saw you working in that flower shop. Are you making deliveries?"
The only response he got was a determined glare of blue orbs and he chuckled. "I had great timing then. Hand over the money you got."
At this, the girl decided to open her mouth. "Excuse me?"
"The money." The unknown, brown-haired ninja said impatiently. "I need some right now; so, hand it over to me if you don't want to get hurt."
The blonde pulled her arm away in temper. "Like hell I'll give anything to you!"
The chuunin narrowed his eyes. "You know, I don't think it's wise to disagree with someone older and a higher rank than you." His hand raised, preparing to fall on the girl.
"And I don't think it's wise to threaten anyone, while someone with a higher rank is watching." Calmly, Itachi grabbed the man's wrist and squeezed painfully, preventing it from hitting the girl.
The chuunin looked at him with his eyes half-closed in pain. He grunted, tugging his hand away. "I was only joking, alright. I wouldn't take the money even if she'd agreed."
"Good." The Uchiha let go of the man and he stumbled few steps backwards, before walking away, shooting a cold glare over his shoulder.
The blonde smiled up at him. "Thank you so much for your help!" she made a small nod with her head. "I'm Yamanaka Ino."
"Nice to meet you." Itachi answered carelessly, turning away. "Be more careful next time, alright, Ino?"
Ino's eyes widened in horror. "Wait! Don't-" Itachi's foot made contact with the ground a quiet, squishing sound could be heard. "-... move."
The raven-haired boy looked down, only to see a small pool of water beneath his shoe. He moved his leg a bit and saw red petals, spread on the ground. "Oh."
"It was a Tiger Lily!" The Yamanaka whined, staring at the dead flower. "Do you have any idea how expensive it is?"
Itachi looked at it emotionlessly before shrugging and making another attempt to walk away.
"Hey! Wait a moment! Where are you going?"
He stopped. "None of your business."
Ino trotted to him. "I know you just helped me and all, but you could pay for what you damaged! At least part of the price!" she looked in his dark eyes stubbornly. "Or help me out with the deliveries." She added after a while of silence, as an afterthought.
Itachi looked at her light, blue eyes, blonde hair flowing in the wind and determinedly clenched fists. A smile tugged at his lips.
"Why not? I'll help you; I'm done with today's missions, anyway."
"Let's start with this one first." Ino commanded, both of them standing before the flower shop. Itachi looked around, noticing several, big plants standing near the door, with small notes stuck to each one of them.
"You need to deliver all of those?" He asked a bit surprised. Some of them were huge and looked reallyheavy.
"Well, it's not like this everyday. Seems like someone really rich or important died recently; most of those are funeral arrangements. My dad usually does those, but his mission is longer than usual. He'll be away for two more weeks." She neared one of the biggest bouquets.
"How about your mom?" The Uchiha asked, watching her fold the note open.
"Hm? Oh, she wasn't feeling very well so I wanted her to rest. She's sleeping now." She read the note carefully. "Alright, this place is not far away. Come on, let's go."
Itachi huffed a bit, lifting the plant. Ino watched him carefully.
"We can take turns, if you want."
"You want to carry it?" The boy looked at his companion with evident amuse.
Ino's cheeks colored. "I'm much stronger than I look, you know!"
"Whatever. I'll go alone, anyway. If I use my ninja abilities, it'll take much less time. I'll be right back." Before the blonde could protest, he was gone, in a puff of smoke. The note in her hands also disappeared.
Ino blinked, staring at the empty place before her, not so long ago occupied by the raven-haired boy. She shrugged slightly to herself.
He's right; that seems like the fastest way. Besides, I need to re-arrange the bouquet I destroyed, when I bumped into him.
Sitting behind the counter and reaching for different decorations and flowers, Ino busied herself in her own world.
Like usual, she lost the track of time. Minutes passed, changed into an hour or maybe two and the sunset already began. With satisfaction, she wrapped a green ribbon around the bouquet, inwardly nodding with approval, and stuck the note with the address to it.
A pair of cold hands clamped on her bare shoulders, making her both shiver and jump upwards a bit. The Yamanaka turned around swiftly, looking straight into dark, onyx eyes.
Itachi leaned in a bit. "I'm done with all deliveries." He said, exhaling a warm breath straight into her face, making small, blonde bangs to gently move on her forehead, brushing it slightly.
Ino's cheeks colored again and she trembled a bit, feeling her heart thrash inside her ribs like never before.
The Uchiha reached behind her, brushing his hand softly against her cheek.
Ino held her breath and shut her eyes firmly.
She could feel faint rustling behind her and the aroma of plants hit her nose. She opened her big eyes a bit.
Itachi was standing straight before her, the bouquet she just finished in his hands. "I take it that this one is done as well. I'll deliver it and be right back." And with a small poof! He was gone.
Ino exhaled deeply, then inhaled and exhaled again, trying to steady her breathing.
"What..." she whispered to the silence of the room, "What was that?"
She continued to stand like this until the boy returned again.
"Is that all?" He asked, brushing few leafs from his black shirt. "If so, I'll be going."
"W-Wait!" Ino cried out suddenly, almost running up to him. She took a deep breath and bowed low.
"T-Thank you for everything today. What you did, was worth much, much more than a Tiger Lily. So..." she straightened and pointed behind her. "You can pick up whichever flower you like and take it for free."
Silence fell on them as Itachi looked around, carefully scrutinizing every kind of flower. Ino stood still, waiting for the decision to be made.
Finally, he spoke, breaking the quietness. "I don't need any flower. Instead, could I come here again, sometime?"
Ino's face broke into a wide grin. "Of course! You'll always be welcomed here!" She saw him turn around yet again. "Hold on."
He didn't look at her. "What is it?
"Just one more thing." Ino looked at the sign on his back, recognizing the fan but being unable to place it. "You never told me your name."
"It's Itachi." He said, than paused. "Itachi Uchiha."
Ino's blue eyes lighted up. "Uchiha? That's from the same clan as Sasuke-kun! Hey, are you his relative...?"
But, Itachi was already gone.
Nevertheless, Ino continued to stare after him, with happiness written all over her face.
"Your hair is quite long."
Itachi didn't look up from the report he's been writing for the past hour. "So what?"
Ino shrugged. "Nothing. Actually, I think guys look better with long hair. My dad has long hair too. But it's down to his waist and it's blonde."
Silence fell between them after this statement, disturbed faintly by Itachi's pen scribbling on the paper.
"How about Sasuke-kun?"
The boy had the elegance to appear unaffected, unless you count the small frown on his face. "What about him?"
"Does he like girls with long or short hair?"
It was Itachi's turn to shrug carelessly. "I have no idea."
"Well, what about you? You're his brother so you have to have similar tastes!" Ino persisted, leaning a bit on the opposite side of the counter. "What kind of hair on girls do you like?"
He put the pen away and seemed to contemplate it for a moment. "Long." He answered finally, dark eyes examining short, blonde locks that encircled Ino's face. "So that it won't look stupid if I have longer hair than her."
Ino grinned. "Alright, then. I'm going to grow my hair, starting today."
"For Sasuke?" Itachi asked, gripping the pen a bit too tightly than needed.
The girl's grin grew wider. "Of course!"
The pen cracked slightly and Itachi frowned deeply before putting it away and reading the report.
"You know, Itachi-kun, you come here almost every day. Are you sure you don't have anything important to do?"
"Like?" Itachi inquired, only half-listening, his eyes scanning the contents of the paper cautiously.
"Oh, I don't know...Training session? Sasuke-kun trains all the time."
Itachi remained silent.
"Itachi, where've you been all this time? You promised Sasuke that you'll teach him a new Uchiha technique today." The said boy looked at his father, standing above him as he continued to remove his shoes. He shrugged.
"The rest of your team returned two hours ago. What were you doing?"
Again, Itachi shrugged. "This and that."
His father's eyes narrowed. "Was it more important than your brother?"
The boy stood up. "Yes." He whispered in an almost inaudible voice, brushing past his father.
He blinked rapidly, the scene fading and being replaced by the neatly written paper again. "No." He hesitated a bit, clenching his fists on the table. "No matter how much I train, the Uchiha are bound to remain a hopeless, pathetic clan."
Ino looked at him wide-eyed, cold shiver going up her spine when he glared at the clean, recently mopped floor.
She forced out a laugh. "No way! The Uchiha clan is really famous...and with Sasuke-kun, there's no way it'll be pathetic!"
Itachi looked at her emotionlessly. "You really like my younger brother, don't you? You always ask me about him and all..." He noted, somewhat bitterly.
Ino's cheeks reddened slightly. "Of course I do! He's cute and a very good shinobi..." She trailed, a little uncertain.
Itachi averted his eyes to the floor again. "Then...what would you do if he was gone?"
Ino looked at her comrade with sudden alarm. She tried looking into his dark eyes...but most of his face was covered by thick, black bangs.
"I..." She whispered, heartbeat increasing. "I'd probably cry a lot."
"I see." He nodded, fists clenching his lap strongly.
"Itachi-kun..." slowly, Ino got up and neared the boy. "You don't seem like yourself today...Is anything wrong?" She placed her small hand on his shoulder, inwardly amazed at the warmth that seemed to radiate from him, so unlike his cold ways.
The raven-haired boy sighed. "No, Ino. It's just...I managed to finally understand few important matters, recently."
He got up suddenly. "I'll be going now. See you later, Ino."
And casually, just like he did every day, Itachi walked out of the flower shop.
Ino watched him go, with his shoulders slumped and head bowed. And, as she tightly clenched her hand to her wildly beating heart, she just couldn't shake off the feeling that something was very, very wrong.
The night was starless, with a full moon lightening the dark streets of Konoha. A shadow could be seen, running down the streets, passing various buildings, towards the main gate.
The flower shop was already close but the young shinobi paid no mind as he jumped on its' roof, looking into the windows of the house placed above it.
Ino sensed nothing when the window opened with a small, creaking noise and a soft thud announced that someone entered her room. Red, sharingan eyes swept over her figure, childish curves visible under the blanket.
The man seemed to hesitate a moment before his hand shot out and roughly clamped over the small girl's mouth.
Ino's blue orbs opened and she instinctively started thrashing in her bed, screams muffled completely by the soft hand resting on her lips. She felt her hands being pinned to the pillow, above her head. The stranger leaned in, bringing his face closer to her.
"Boo."
The Yamanaka froze, staring at the white mask, with red stripes on sides. Her heart was on the brink of bursting through her ribs and small tears started to gather in her eyes.
"Hey, it's only me." Letting go of her wrists and using his free hand, the boy took off his mask, revealing an all-too-familiar face to the girl. A strong arm that had her immobilized and quiet, retreated to it's owner.
Ino took a deep breath, sitting up instantly. "Itachi? What are you doing here this late? And why did you have to scare me like that?" Covered in cold sweat and panting, Ino could still find the strength to glare at the young boy.
The Uchiha stared down at her somewhat coldly and amused. He remained silent.
Ino took one, last deep breath before returning to her normal pace of breathing. She examined her companion warily and a horrified gasp left her lips.
"Itachi-kun...you're all covered in blood!"
The blankets fell on the floor when she got out of the bed, looking at the red liquid his shirt was soaked with. "Are you alright? Did you just got back from a mission? Did something go wrong?" Question after question fell from her lips, the words rushed and full of concern.
Itachi smiled slightly, placing his hand on the top of her head. "Don't worry, I'm fine. It's not my blood, anyway; everything is just like it should be." He exhaled deeply.
"Then...why did you come here, scaring me like this?" Ino grabbed his arm tightly and squeezed with as much strength as she could. She could still feel her legs weak with the worry and fear she just experienced.
"I came to say goodbye."
Ino's mind went blank, especially after his hand slipped down from her head to the back of her neck. He forced her head to look up at him, red eyes intensively watching her. "I'm leaving."
"W-Why?" she managed to croak through her tightly clenched throat. Slowly, the urge to cry started to seep into her, getting stronger and stronger...She barely held back a sob.
"You wouldn't understand; not yet." He whispered before bending down a bit. "You're still too innocent, too young...Take care." He placed a light kiss on her forehead, his other hand sneaking around her slim frame, bringing her slightly closer to his bloodied shirt.
Ino's breath got stuck halfway in her throat and her cheek's reddened suddenly. "Itachi-" The sentence was cut as he silenced her by pressing his lips gently to her and remaining like that for the next three seconds.
And those were the last human gestures and words Itachi made.
He pushed her gently away, before jumping out of the window and dashing towards the gate, not looking back even once.
"You too..." she breathed out, automatically finishing what she wanted to say. She watched his dark figure fade in the night. A lone tear slowly made its' way down his cheek, only to fall and vanish into the small pool of blood that dripped from his wet shirt.
Somewhere, at the other side of Konoha, a young, raven-haired prodigy cried in anguish, while writhing on the floor, surrounded by the corpses of his family.
As he was running through the dark forest, Itachi briefly wondered who would help Ino make deliveries this time.
A/N: Alright. I admit, I like the last scene most...the beginning is awful but the ending is good. Please, leave a review!