Common Courtesies

Pairing: Itachi x Temari

Rating: K+ Minor language

Disclaimer: I do not own the story Naruto or any of its characters, but I do own this story.

Warnings: OOCness- mostly on Itachi's part at the end (All for the sake of fluff…), Crack pairing, Spoilers up to chapter 280 or so

Summary: Being the mediator between Konoha and Suna has never been easy work. The three day trek across desert, through the mysterious River Country, then wandering about forests is tiring, and the constant risk of being attacked is present. Unfortunately for Temari, two of Akatsuki's notorious members, Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigake Kisame are dispatched to Konoha around the same time as she. After being wounded by Kisame, how will she deal with being alone with Uchiha Itachi?

AN: I love this pairing, whether it is crack or not. It hardly has any supporters or people who even really know of it, so I'll add to the small collection of ItaxTema fanfictions there are. I'm sorry if this isn't very good. This is the first serious Naruto fanfiction I've attempted to write in a long time. Anyway, this is an oneshot, and I hope any who read this enjoy it. Please no flames per se, but I appreciate constructive criticism and suggestions greatly. Before the story; I'd also like to thank Alex, who proofread this for any of my usual mistakes, even though she's a ShikaxTema supporter and hates ItaxTema six ways to Sunday. It means a lot, regardless. –in a fluffy mood today-

Even at night, the humidity of River Country caused the temperatures of the region to rise slightly above its desert and forest neighbors. The condensation in the air settled on leaves and grass blades, causing small jewels of dew to form on their green surfaces, the moonlight filtering down from above illuminating the water. From an aerial view, it seemed the entire landscape shone from the crystalline shards of liquid, which was a fairly pleasing sight to see for the kunoichi passing through the scattered trees of the expanse of river-strewn land, the foliage a welcome scene in contrast to the harsh climate of the desert she came from.

Sabaku no Temari was sent on yet another mediation mission by her younger brother, Gaara, the Godaime Kazekage. After Konoha had sent shinobi to aid him when captured by Akatsuki, the treaty between them was kept and their relations seemed to be increasing gradually. For once, the citizens of Suna had kept quiet in the decision, and actually agreed; all knew Suna wasn't in the best of shape and lately had been very dependent on their stronger allies. Everyone was so blinded by the current peace; they had forgotten their fiery pride they had formerly been known for. Not Temari, not the temperamental kunoichi who, if she was known for one thing, it was her strong will and sense of conceit; she wouldn't be fooled. It wasn't that she disliked Konoha; quite the opposite, actually. Uzumaki Naruto from that village had saved her brother from himself; he saved him again from death, but her independence and, as much as she hated to admit, superiority complex found a reliance on another nation sickening. To add to the humiliation, she also seemed to be always running back and forth between the two villages, and quite frankly, she was tired of it.

The thoughts all droned in her mind, flaring up her emotions subconsciously, and overall distracting her. As to be expected from distraction, the fan-wielding kunoichi soon found herself off track, her chakra-laden feet carrying her in random directions in a blind course, the dense and towering, unfamiliar trees streaming past her in a leafy blur. Temari cursed quietly in frustration, stopping abruptly on the next tree branch she was about to land on and leaned against the sturdy trunk to re-gather her storming thoughts and reconnoiter her position.

"Damn it all," she growled irritably, slamming her fingerless-gloved hand into the bark of the tree, the splintering of wood sounding out into the silence of the night at the force of the impact. The aching pain seemed non-existent to her due to the other feelings spiraling through her psyche.

She couldn't believe she had already been traveling for a day, and now she'd have to backtrack for God-knows-how-long until she managed to stumble upon her original itinerary. She'd been so peeved at her overworked state, she forgot just how long she was mentally ranting her frustrations, and Temari silently noted that her original three day plan would be delayed slightly if she needed to head backwards… Breathing a long, audible sigh and bringing two fingers up to massage her temple to prevent the oncoming migraine threatening to make her already sour mood worse, she turned in the way she had come from and gathered her chakra to her feet. She prepared for the trek back, when a rustle of leaves beside her and a sense of overwhelmingly large chakra alerted her clouded senses.

Temari could feel the adrenaline suddenly being pumped into her bloodstream, and she reflexively drew her fan as she leapt backwards from the presence of the other person, preparing to snap the oversized iron weapon open. But the power and speed of the newcomer was greater than hers, and getting away in time was an impossibility. A pained gasp escaped her lips and her bright teal eyes widened involuntarily as the recognizable, metallic scent of blood tainted the air, and a wave of chakra was sucked out of her at the single attack.

Cursing again at her terrible luck and not considering the fact said attacker may be much too powerful for her to handle, all three purple 'stars' on the large fan were revealed, and Temari swung it in the general direction of the original assault with self-surprising difficultly due to the rather large gash recently opened on her arm and the sudden lack of energy. Regardless, a deadly, howling wind blew, and the trees in its path were sliced quickly and as easily as if the foliage were made of paper.

The mediator landed gracefully on another branch a few meters off from the destruction despite her wound and smirked, pleased with her handiwork. However, her usual arrogance exceeded her far too much this time- the gash was worse than she had thought, and her 'opponent' was, indeed, a great deal stronger than her. The sound of fabric rustling, followed by a rather contemptuous laughter was the last thing she heard before a heavy blow to the back of the head caused her vision to go blurry. The world in front of her spiraled, shapes becoming unidentifiable, colors swirled into one and her eyelids felt heavy. An almost calming blackness engulfed her mind, dulling her pain and senses before she collapsed uselessly on the hard surface of the tree branch, any previous concerns forgotten.

"Suppose she had been on a mission where if she didn't arrive on time, others would come looking for her?"

"…I…"

"Would that not jeopardize our mission? Ourselves?"

"Itachi-san, I was scouting the area, as you said…"

Temari let a soft, aggrieved groan as she slowly felt herself drifting into consciousness, the area surrounding her slowly morphing back into sight and after a few moments, colors and shapes seemed to actually make sense to her.

Vaguely, she could hear voices. She didn't care; she could hardly remember what happened. The only thing truly apparent to her was the fierce, painful buzzing in the back of her head and the terrible stinging in her arm, the blood pooling out on the grass around her and staining the one sparkling dew-laden blades red. The uncomfortable stickiness on her skin and clothes wasn't helping her situation much either.

If the two people speaking knew she was awake, they obviously didn't care that much to stop their conversation, which seemed to be one scolding the other without much emotion in their voice at all, while the other helplessly tried to add in and defend themselves from the verbal abuse. Temari took the opportunity of being unnoticed or ignored, more likely, to glance up at whoever these people were. Upon seeing the distinguishable colors and pattern, another strained gasp left her, but it was hardly audible from her weakness. Red and black clouds only told her one thing: Akatsuki.

The kunoichi tensed, much to her wound's protest due to the stinging, throbbing sensation it coursed through her arm, but she tried her best to ignore it. Pushing back the bubbling anger and fear mingled within her, only allowing it to show in her eyes, she forced herself to look up to examine the two members of the infamous organization more closely.

One was very tall, she noted, with oddly-colored bluish gray skin and yellow shark-like eyes with lethally pointed teeth to match. Also, a wrapped up sword with the very bottom showing-which looked like scales- was present on his back. By the red tint on the very tips and the sheer size of the blade, she assumed this was the weapon that managed to cause her so much pain with one strike, and the shark-like man must be her attacker. Despite the hurt, she couldn't help but allow the smallest of smirks to cross her face; he was being chided by his partner, which led her to her next observation.

The other in comparison to his partner was almost amusingly short. Temari thought he may not even be that much taller than she, but she pushed the thought away, presuming he must be fairly confident in his strengths to be so calmly reprimanding a person so…scary looking, to put it bluntly. He had long, black hair tied loosely in a ponytail, and the most striking feature she noticed in him was his eyes- they were red. There seemed to be something familiar about him, but the fogginess of her vision, their distance apart, and the sudden wanting to fall asleep on the spot didn't allow her to properly identify the source of the familiarity.

"Kisame, needless bloodshed is exactly what will be the downfall of us. Go farther ahead, and if you see someone, report back instead of attacking."

The man now known as Kisame bore a look of loathing on his face, but a glare from the younger-looking one silenced any would-be protests, and he soon disappeared among the dense foliage once more with a mutter.

While Temari was pleased with her assailant's absence, being alone in the presence of an Akatsuki member wasn't exactly on the top of her to-do list. Mustering up as much energy as she could and with much effort, using one arm, she managed to push herself into a sitting position against the trunk of a tree she was lying by.

"You're awake," sounded the stoic voice of the raven-haired male, his tone suggesting the observation was more of a statement than a question.

The sudden address startled her slightly, and Temari reflexively pressed her back further against the tree's base, narrowing her teal eyes suspiciously and warily, trying to swallow down her growing fears. As the bright red gaze was turned in her direction, she could feel her heart rate increase, but with surprising courage, she managed to reply without a stutter, "What do you want?"

Instead of a verbal answer, the male simply turned fully in her direction, slow, calculating steps carrying him in her direction, eerily parting the forming blanket of mist gathering on the forest floor with the shift of environment, and it hazed the life underneath its thick coating from view. The precise timing of such a simple task as walking made Temari silently wonder if he had OCD or something of the sort.

"Who are you?" she demanded valiantly, her pride far more important than her current, injured condition, and she kept her calm expression as she managed to angle her head upwards to shoot the man a glare, but it soon withered away.

The discomfort his fatal, crimson stare caused prevented her from glaring, and practically all of her strength was sapped as she forced herself to meet its black-flecked look. When he knelt in front of her, the realization that those eyes were Sharingan dawned on her. She'd seen them, years ago, and her own blue eyes stretched in unspoken shock. Upon noticing the scratched out Konoha symbol of his hitai-ate, more conclusions formed in her mind. The Uchiha had yet to respond to her demands, so a game of twenty questions seemed to be her only real option now.

"Uchiha Sasuke?"

The Sharingan eyes of the nukenin before her seemed to harden ever-so-slightly at the mention of the name, and her guess was rewarded with a spoken response.

"No," he muttered, the slightest hints of distaste in his monotone voice, "Uchiha Itachi."

Temari flinched noticeably and the helplessness of her predicament only worsened at the knowledge. Even in Suna, the cruelty and crimes of the notorious Uchiha-murderer were of common information when it came to S-ranked felons. She knew the fear flashed in her eyes, and in turn, she swore she saw the faintest traces of amusement in his. Remembering the stories, she looked down, feeling her breath hitch in her throat at the understanding she was completely at his mercy- if that was even known in the vocabulary of Uchiha Itachi.

The painful stinging sensation abruptly returned to her wound as the arm was moved, and she winced, letting out a quiet hiss of protest. But before she could open her mouth to express her displeasure, figuring she was as good as dead anyway, a cooling sense flowed into the open lesion, and the feeling of seemingly continual blood flow she'd adjusted to gradually began to lessen. Glancing over, she found that the S-ranked killer, master of torture, the one who'd actually escaped the legendary Sannin Jiraiya and defeated three of Konoha's best Jonin was healing a wound a member of his own organization inflicted?

"W-what are you d-doing?" she choked out dumbly, the stutter she had been trying so hard to suppress surfacing from the initial shock of the sight, and she awkwardly looked away from him again as he glanced in her direction.

As the bleeding slowed, the grip of his hand around her wrist to hold it still caused her to jump slightly before a strip of cloth tightening around the ailing area indicating he was bandaging it to keep it from reopening.

'Seriously…What the hell…?' she thought somewhat nervously, biting her lip.

Itachi cast a look at her as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, and she could hear him sigh. "…You would bleed to death if I left you here. In addition, you have a concussion. Please do not fall asleep."

Temari's breath caught in her throat again as she turned, opening her mouth to make some sort of remark, but he seemed to read her thoughts and cut her off. Well, the concussion would explain the tiredness and haziness of her mind…

"I felt as though it were…common courtesy. My partner attacked you needlessly, and for you to die from it seemed…Unfair," the Uchiha explained flatly, uncaringly, as if that logic would satisfy the seething kunoichi beside him. Hateful vibes emanating from her were apparent to him, yet he chose to ignore them. In her condition and the fact she knew who he was gave him all the reason to keep his completely placid expression as usual.

"Since when did the Akatsuki ever have common courtesy?" Temari demanded bitterly, eyes blazing and narrowed as she met his gaze.

She winced after she spoke, the bindings wrapping around her arm suddenly tightening from him pulling too hard. Whether he showed it or not, she must have hit some sort of nerve, surprised him, something to affect that annoyingly emotionless expression he wore…

"Hn…" was the incoherent grunt of an answer she received.

Itachi was mildly surprised, in the least sense of the word. She first had enough nerve- or stupidity- to question his motives for assisting her in such a tone, and she knew who the Akatsuki were. He couldn't come up with an answer right away, since he-almost loathingly-admitted she had a point.

"…Unlike my partner, I don't believe in unnecessary violence."

With that response, he tied the binding in a knot to keep it in place and crossed his arms over his chest. "You don't give me enough credit…"

"I only give what you deserve," the fan-wielder hissed acrimoniously, pulling her arm completely away from him and resting it on her lap. "Akatsuki members are nothing but egotistical sociopaths who believe they have a good cause and plan to go about it," she continued, the hatred she felt for their organization seeping out through her words, memories of the whole Rescue Gaara mission returning to her mind, and the concussion and emotions made her forget who exactly it was who she was talking to, but only for a moment. The satisfaction of expressing herself like this outweighed just sitting pathetically, begging for her life should he choose to react negatively.

Itachi remained completely indifferent, save for the slightest narrowing of his reddened eyes. Inwardly, he tensed at the insult, silently contemplating who exactly this woman was in order for her to know about his group. Drawing a blank, he blinked slowly and impassively, and though she probably didn't realize what she was doing, the hatred and boldness caught his attention- interested him, again, in the very least sense of the word. "Tell me…What is your name?"

"Sabaku no Temari," she spat unthinkingly in his direction, the urge to launch a blind attack at him growing stronger in the back of her mind, but she managed to contain them, still having some common sense and the drowsiness almost becoming to much for her to stay awake.

"And I'll tell you something else, you insensitive bastard, your organization killed my little brother. Gaara, the Shukaku container, ring any bells?" Temari continued, turning to face Itachi, and through the drooping eyelids, he could see the same desperate look as his younger brother: the insatiable and unattainable urge to kill him. It was almost amusing.

"Temari," Itachi drawled out her name, "you do realize who you're talking to?"

To say the least, he was curious if she were being moronic or brave. He felt himself wondering why he had 'rescued' her from Kisame. It was a mistake to keep her alive… Showing even the smallest amounts of sympathy was the same as showing weakness, and it could be his downfall one day. It seemed to him he was only delaying the inevitable for her. Her mouth would most certainly get her killed one day by a less patient enemy… He blinked suddenly, snapping himself from his slight regrets upon noticing Temari was leaning precariously back.

"Don't fall asleep. You really will die if you do," the Uchiha deadpanned, grasping her shoulders to steady her as gently as his reputation would allow him to, and he sighed in silent annoyance. Surely, now he could just leave her to die.

"I know who I'm talking to," she responded in a nearly tipsy tone, allowing herself to be supported by the Akatsuki before she added on with the smallest of smirks, "But you're not killing me …"

Itachi raised an eyebrow and frowned beneath the large collar of his Akatsuki cloak. "May I ask what you are implying?"

"I don't think you're as heartless as people say you are…" Temari trailed off in a quiet murmur, letting her teal eyes fall shut before she drifted into unconsciousness for the second time that night, only this time, in the back of her mind, she felt as though she got the last laugh.

As the Uchiha gazed down at the sleeping young woman collapsed against his body, he felt more annoyed than he had in a while. His reputation of being the merciless, cold-hearted killer had been damaged- by a fairly weak girl in his opinion-, the constant nagging in the back of his mind to not let her fade away was ever present, as it was now, and she seemed to have stirred up some long forgotten emotion in him. Interest, was it? Bitter admiration of her bravery? Somehow, he doubted the latter, but he couldn't think of anything to place the feeling. It was infuriating to say the least, but he would never let it show, never admit it. The worst part was that he couldn't go back even a few seconds to leave a daunting, correcting reply for her to 'sleep on', but the way he was feeling, Itachi didn't even know if he could bare to.

Narrowing his eyes in mild perplexity and irritability mingled in his possibly deadly Sharingan gaze, he shifted her position so she could be more easily carried, and he reluctantly stood. The nearest village had to be somewhere within River Country, and, as dangerous as it was to stay somewhere where he could recognized, he felt it to be 'common courtesy'… But also, his first logical argument to Kisame seemed to apply now. If she was expected somewhere, staying in one place could allow them both to be found. That definitely wasn't what he wanted- needless fighting, as he had insisted several times… But if she died on the way for one reason or another, it wasn't his problem, he wouldn't care. He mentally washed his hands of the issue. With the final self-assuring thought, he leapt with an unknown speed into the trees above.

Over the hours, the skies had darkened considerably. The clouds almost constantly floating about were now hidden from view and a few tiny specks of starlight occasionally peeked through the invisible, but still lingering stratus clouds, signaling the rain that had been long withheld.

Though it had seemed like an eternity to Itachi, everything had happened in a span of a few hours. No matter what happened, the same excuses applied in his mind: common courtesies, keeping away from his enemies. He wasn't impolite, needlessly violent, or as obvious as his partner, and these reasons are what kept him in the hospital room with the kunoichi who had actually succeeded in stirring an emotion in him; truly a feat, he supposed. He'd even met up with Kisame again along the way and simply instructed him to continue on his way to Konoha, and he'd meet up with him shortly. He could've sworn the shark-like man had amusement written all over his face when he explained he was headed to the hospital, and maybe he wasn't hearing things when a quiet laughter sounded a few moments after Kisame had disappeared…

The pale shafts of moonlight managed to push their way through the glass window, casting gentle shadows on the pale face of Temari, who lie sleeping in a hospital bed, wound properly healed and bandaged, while her concussion had been taken care of as well, allowing her to sleep peacefully.

The Uchiha sat silently on the windowsill above her, figuring to at least stay until she woke up again. To regain some of his own shattered pride, he could watch hers crack in the slightest when she realized she had to be helped by someone she seemed to despise. He had to admit she did look rather fragile, asleep and hooked to several machines, one injecting a medication and the other measuring heartbeat. He thought the medical teams were overreacting, but he wasn't in any position to say; he wasn't a doctor by any means.

Besides tonight…

He breathed a heavy sigh, closing his now obsidian black eyes and leaned back against the cool pane of the window, listening to the gentle rain drops beginning to cascade from the sky, creating a rhythmic beat against the building.

"Itachi," sounded the now gentle voice of Temari, and Itachi opened his eyes to glance over at her, his expression unreadable. Her eyes were half-lidded from medication and drowsiness though they were still gazing intently at him.

"…Hn?"

The kunoichi drew in her breath, pausing as if to gather her thoughts before whispering, quietly but firmly, "I owe you nothing."

The corners of Itachi's lips quirked upwards in the beginnings of a small smirk, rising from his seat to pace in that same calculating manner towards her, and he knelt beside her resting spot. "I know."

Temari let her eyes fall closed, her hand subconsciously finding his, and she could practically feel the mild surprise from him at the sudden contact. Not all that long ago, she had been berating him for him and his organization's ways and their goals, thinking they were completely incapable of caring for anyone but themselves. She had been surprised when he slowed the bleeding, when he'd insisted on having some manners, but when she discovered he hadn't left her to die alone in the forest, an almost bitter respect for the slightly older male formed. He definitely didn't deserve the full reputation he had earned, and whether it was his looks or the concussion, the smallest feelings of attachment had joined the respect. "As much as I hate to say it," she began softly, almost intending not to be heard, "…Thank you."

She knew she'd definitely be late now, but she was sure those meeting her wouldn't be…Too angry.

Itachi remained perfectly silent, simply staring down at her, the newly discovered emotion flaring up briefly before he restrained it again, and as soon as he was sure she had drifted into sleep, he leaned forward to murmur into her ear an emotionless but sincere, "You're welcome."

And he figured that perhaps he could stay around…For a little longer.

AN: Haha. Finished. Okay, first of all, I know Temari being pretty useless and weak physically is a little unrealistic. But, first, I didn't want this to be too long, and Kisame is an Akatsuki member, even if Temari is on a Jonin level… If anyone is thinking on asking with Itachi and the Medical Ninjutsu; I suppose it's very minor. It's kind of like a combat lifesaver. Also, I apologize for the maaajor OOCness at the end with Itachi. Honestly, I planned it out differently, but I just had to write it this way! ...I dunno. It fit to me... Oh well. Anyway, thanks again for reading- hope you liked it- and please review.