This is probably one of the longest oneshots I've ever written. Hopefully it makes up for at least part of the wait time. Requested, as usual, by someone off of Gaia. I don't own the OC, Reiya, she belongs to aaznpnaigurl on Gaia. Enjoy!
Tree leaves rustled softly as an invisible force whipped past them at inhuman speeds. Silent as the night air around him, Itachi's glowing red eyes encompassed the entire area. Each step full of purpose, bringing him closer to his destination, every breath mechanical and precise. He wasted nothing, that was the way he was; the way they were, the Uchiha clan.
An unfamiliar, unpredicted, sound flooded his ears and caused him to halt to an immediate stop. Fingers lightly grazed the kunai tucked away in his cloak as he cautiously emerged from the cover of the forest. He turned his head in either direction, first checking his surroundings, before slipping behind a tree. In the cover of shadows, he surveyed the area before him. A crystal clear lake fueled by a small but rushing waterfall at the far end was surrounded by rocks and boulders that provided visual coverage from most of the surrounding forest. The waterfall fit into a cliff side, and the small clearing around it was spotted with streams of moonlight filtering through the sparsely-clouded night sky. The reflection of twinkling stars bounced off the water's surface-- a sparkling pond set in the midst of something perhaps out of a dream.
None of that was what caught Itachi's attention-- such beauty had long since succeeded in impressing him. He narrowed his eyes slightly in concentration as he watched a figure glide gracefully through the rippling water. The female's damp, raven tresses cascaded down her tanned back, droplet of water clinging to each strand. The moonlight glinted playfully over her body as she stood from the water's cool embrace, dancing circles over her petite form.
Cloaked completely by the forest's cover, Itachi watched as she turned toward his position, crystal blue eyes scanning the forest for a moment. An owl hooted somewhere in the distance and the wind rustled against the trees lightly; a murmuring stir in the silence of the night. She was an attractive girl, Itachi noticed, well-endowed and nearly ethereal in the dreamland setting. She wasn't his concern, though, and she wasn't a threat. As quickly as Itachi had come upon the clearing, he was gone again, sneaking away with the wind.
The next day was as uneventful as ever for Itachi. Akatsuki was recovering from its loss of Hidan and Kakuzu, keeping low for the meantime. The Konoha shinobi were hot on Orochimaru's tail and had hardly bothered to notice his organization's silence. The combined inaction of both parties left Itachi with little to do, and while he was a patient man and didn't need constant excitement like some, he did grow tired of waiting for their plans to come to fruition.
Restless for the entire day, the night served him no comfort, either. His thoughts had raced back and forth between Akatsuki and Konoha and just how he was going to pass the coming days without going insane. Of course, some would argue that he had already reached that limit, but he disagreed. Itachi was hardly insane, his reasoning and logic simply transcended most other's realm of comprehension. All of the noise in his head kept him from settling into a comfortable sleep and he struggled for a consistent, calming thought.
Lingering on the edge of his mind for the past day, Itachi's eyes slowly closed as visions of the strange girl at the lake floated through his head. The otherworldly scene tempted him to join it, a brief reprieve from his constant battle, but he denied himself such a pleasure. Still, the peaceful thoughts lulled him into slumber as he allowed his unconscious to take him to places his reality refused.
The following morning, Itachi began to get annoyed. The girl wouldn't leave his mind and her safe haven from the world beckoned him. Deciding to face the inevitable before it affected his mood anymore, the black-haired shinobi headed quickly toward the secluded clearing, the unrest building inside his chest with each step.
His mind raced with his feet, wondering what exactly had gotten into him. This wasn't like him at all. Since when did Itachi Uchiha of all people have anything on his mind for more than a few minutes? Nothing affected him, nothing motivated him, and certainly nothing distracted him. That's why so many of the Akatsuki members kept their distance from him; despite being his comrades, they still had uncertainties about the rogue clan member.
Shaking his head, Itachi focused on the scenery flying by him. Even though he was far away from any major shinobi towns, Konoha especially, he could never be too careful. It would be downright embarrassing to be caught thinking about such trivial things, distracted by a girl whose name he didn't know and whom he may never see again. What if, he mused, she was just a figment of his imagination? Perhaps he really was slowly declining into the abyss of insanity.
Stopping quickly, just as he had two nights before, Itachi lingered at the edge of the forest, leaves and branches rustling overhead. If he was insane, then he would surely find out soon enough. Scoping the area carefully, he ventured forward from the security of the forest toward the rocky barricade around the crystal lake. No twigs or dead leaves crunched under his silent footsteps and if there were any insects near the picturesque scene, they were too ashamed to make their presence known. It was calm, still, beautiful, and unreal.
Still, as Itachi looked around, the beauty passing through his eyes and dissipating from his senses easily, the object of his true intentions was nowhere to be found. Perhaps she was just passing through-- most people with homes didn't bathe in frigid lakes-- or perhaps she never existed to begin with. It was possible, Itachi considered, that she was the embodiment of the moonlight itself; her figure and movements had been ethereal enough that such a concept wasn't completely ridiculous. Or maybe...
"Who are you?"
Caught unaware, just as he had reminded himself not to be, Itachi spun around to face the intruder. Ironically enough, the furrowed brow and slight frown touching the female's lips made Itachi feel as if he were the trespasser and for all he knew, he was. It was a delayed registration, but finally Itachi realized that the girl from that night was standing right in front of him. She wasn't bathed in moonlight and the water was far from glistening off her skin-- in fact, she looked quite plain at the moment-- but nonetheless, Itachi was sure it was her.
His eyes remained cold as ever as they scanned the female's form, taking in every curve and small detail almost all at once. He didn't make an effort to speak, simply watching the girl's movements. Naturally, that didn't quite sit well with her.
"Did you hear me?" she asked, black hair shifting slightly as she tilted her head. "Who are you?"
"My name is Uchiha Itachi," the shinobi murmured in a low voice, as per his usual tone.
After a few more moments of studying the tense stranger, the blue-eyed girl offered a smile and extended her hand. "Kuredo Reiya," she introduced herself. A slight chill twisted down her spine as the strange man grasped her hand in his, his skin as cold as death. Regardless, she kept her soft smile and glanced toward the lake. "I'm surprised you found this place, it's pretty secluded."
"It was an accident," Itachi assured her, dropping her hand to return his own to his side. "Two nights ago."
"So there was someone there," she murmured, then realized just what he meant. Flushing darkly, she shifted and walked past him to the water's edge. "You didn't...see anything, did you?"
"Anything?" the Uchiha repeated, slightly puzzled at first. Reiya's arms crossed over her chest in some sort of protective manner and he understood. Deciding against the full truth, he shook his head and joined her to watch the waterfall stream its crisp liquid into the otherwise still lake. "No."
Reiya breathed a soft sigh of relief and slid a sidelong glance to the man. "So...where are you from? This place is quite a ways away from any big towns."
Once again opting for secrecy, Itachi moved his shoulders slightly in what could arguably have been a shrug. "I left home at a young age. I'm posted near here on business." All technically true.
Delicate fingers reached out to grab at the black and red cloak that covered most of the ninja's body. "This is an odd outfit," she noted, looking up to him curiously. "Does it mean something?"
Could she not know of Akatsuki? Itachi reminded himself that he was far from Konoha, and while most there knew of his organization, most civilians didn't. This girl didn't seem like a shinobi, despite her ability to apparently sneak up on him-- he was lost in thought-- and so he came to the conclusion that she, indeed, had no clue. Still, explaining something like Akatsuki would be dangerous, illogical, and altogether stupid. What was he supposed to say? 'It's none of your business'? While that was a bit appealing, it would probably shut off any further conversation and a very awkward silence would ensue, not that Itachi was unfamiliar with such a thing.
He could have lied again, said that it held no significance, but instead he decided to step back away from the lake, eyes locking with Reiya's. "I have to go."
"Wait!" Just as he was about to run off, Itachi halted at that single word. The look he gave her, glancing over his shoulder, was slightly irritated, but he stayed, regardless. He waited patiently, wordlessly, for her to continue. "If you have to leave now, then come back and meet me." She nibbled on her lower lip lightly. "Under the moonlight."
Itachi gave no response, nor non-verbal confirmation, but simply turned and carried on with his previous plans of disappearing from sight.
What was wrong with him? Itachi growled softly to himself, alone in the deep cavern he had chosen for a resting place. He hadn't actually considered letting the stranger in on Akatsuki's secrets, but the fact alone that he had tempted the thought of having a real conversation with her was bad enough. He wasn't meant to communicate with the outside world-- it put the entire organization at risk. It was just one girl, he kept telling himself, one girl that didn't even know of their existence let alone what things they'd done and planned to do.
One girl, though, was one too many. After all, she could be lying or faking her ignorance to Akatsuki's existence. On the other hand, she didn't seem at all like a threat. Itachi shook his head in frustration-- he was thinking way too much on this. Not that he was a rash person who lived off of impulses, but he didn't tend to over-think matters, either.
Standing alone in his cave, Itachi leaned against one of the slate-gray walls and closed his eyes. A heavy sigh left his chest as his mind settled and his thoughts ceased to create a pressuring headache in his temple. Meet me under the moonlight. What kind of request was that? The girl was strange, but oddly enough, Itachi wasn't bothered by it nearly as badly as he should have been. It was decided, then; he would meet her and rid his thoughts of her once and for all.
That same, mystical, beautiful scene played out in front of hardened eyes once more. Twinkling stars, moon-bathed rocks, and cool, rippling water flooded Itachi's blazing sharingan with a contrasting blue-white. The grass folded neatly under his feet as he approached the lake, eyes trained again on a sleek, damp form. The man thought momentarily to avert his gaze from the bathing girl, but he had a feeling this is what she had wanted him to happen upon.
A soft rustle caught Reiya's attention and, submerged in water up to her shoulders, she turned around to watch the approaching shinobi. She smiled faintly as he stopped just short of the water and extended one arm out of the cool liquid toward him. "Join me."
Itachi's eyebrow rose in question as he attempted to decipher a different meaning from her words than the obvious. Upon her motioning to the glassy surface of the lake, though, Itachi realized she had no other intention than the most forward one. Declining the offer, he shook his head and sat down at the lake's side, resting his back against one of the decorative boulders.
A slight frown once again found its way to Reiya's lips as she glided through the water to the grassy shore. She let her elbows rest on the rough ground and she studied Itachi closely. Her crystal clear blue eyes traced over the deep creases in his face and the way the pale moonlight had little effect in washing out his already-ghosty tone. His eyes, colder than the water she was surrounded by, stared back into hers and she swore she could see her reflection in them-- like tiny bits of onyx.
"It's not as cold as it looks," Reiya finally said, motioning to the water. "Once you're in for a while."
"I'll pass," Itachi dismissed. It wasn't quite his style to go skinny dipping with a girl he just met, even if that girl was one of the most intriguing he had found in quite some time.
After a few moments of consideration, Reiya let a mischievous smile slip over her lips. She pulled herself from the shallow water, which only came to about her waist when she stood up fully, and slid next to him on the sleek grass. She grinned playfully at him as she saw his eyes finally adjust to other parts of the area, an uncomfortable air about him. "Shy?" she teased.
"Hardly," he responded, chancing a glance at her. "I'm just not used to women being so forward."
"I'm not, usually," she assured him, leaning heavily on his right arm, her cheek grazing his shoulder as she rested against his body. "This place, though...doesn't it have some sort of magical feeling about it?"
"Magical?" Itachi repeated, a skeptical eyebrow raising.
"Mm," she breathed softly, closing her eyes as a warm wind blew by them. "It's beautiful." After a few moments, Reiya tilted her head up to the night sky, the stars shining brightly, it seemed, just for her-- for them.
Itachi's gaze joined hers, bright red cooling against the infinite blackness of the sky. The stars called out to him, each one twinkling a short message of peace and serenity. A quick glance to the girl at his side and the still water just beyond her, and Itachi let out a soft sigh that might just have passed for content. For once, he guessed, he could let in all the beauty around him.
If ever I take so long for a oneshot again, I'll resign at that very moment. I can't even believe how long this took me D=. Well, it's done now and I wish I were happier with it. The ending is mildly satisfying, but while I was writing it, it felt like the middle section was kind of...tedious. I hope it's not difficult to read? Let me know what you thought~