It was a dark, gloomy day outside the Akatsuki hideout, one of the darkest anyone had ever seen. It left the members feeling very glum and bored. Konan was doing the laundry with an exhausted expression on her face, the others sat there watching the TV with a blank face, and Itachi...well, he was thinking. About a lot of things. Things he regretted, things he feared, many things. The weather to him seemed just perfect.

"I'm going out," he called to no one. Being the girl of the group, Konan stood up.

"What? It's pouring out there. You can't go out."

Itachi grinned with some sort of malice in his eyes that not only frightened the blue-haired woman, but the rest of the Akatsuki sitting there.

"Watch me." he muttered.

He opened the door (cave door, rock, whatever) and stepped out, letting the rain cover his face. Though he'd already shut the door, everybody still stared. Not like it was strange for him to randomly go out from time to time, but at this hour? And in this weather?

Raindrops covered Itachi's face as he drew farther and farther from the hideout, and nearer to the center of the Hidden Rain village. The hideout had always been located in the Hidden Rain, so he was used to rain, but this poured down harder than ever. He walked sullenly, glancing around at the other happy faces, people who didn't have to worry about anything. There was something bugging him, something he really didn't want to think about.

The assasination of his clan...

The look on his little brother's face, that look of horror and despair that he'd blocked out for so long but now couldn't keep out anymore. He coughed and leaned against a wall, gazing into the starry night sky. Finally, he let his thoughts take over and stood there peacefully, thinking while the rain soaked him. Everyone had finally gone inside except him, who remained there without even noticing that he was alone.

After a very short while, he didn't hear anything other than the calm thoughts in his mind. The drizzle of rain, his shallow breathing, none of that was audible. The rain was freezing though, and he began to focus on that. He wrapped his arms around his chest for warmth, but that did nothing.

Suddenly, he twitched.

Could this be a seizure? he wondered. No, no, it can't be. I wouldn't be awake to know it was a seizure...then again...

Another twitch. He tossed his head back and let out a gasp.
Itachi collapsed onto the gray concrete, breathing heavily. The last thing he heard was someone calling his name before he finally drifted asleep...

"FINALLY! 'Bout time you woke up!" someone cried out. It was the first thing Itachi heard when he woke up.

However, he was not on the ground anymore. There wasn't any rain, but he was shivering. Slowly, he opened his eyes and saw Hidan sitting on the floor next to his bed. For a moment, just a brief moment, he hoped he would at least have pity on him. Pfft, no such thing.

"Jashin, screw you! Konan had to get all worked up because you left and started crying 'n sh**, so she was all 'Oh Hidan, go get him!' And so I looked for you, and what do I find? Someone lying half dead on the street! I pick him up cuz I'm gonna sacrifice him to Jashin, and what do you know. It's you. And look at you now! Pathetic!" he scoffed.

Itachi stared up at him blankly.

He sighed and mumbled, "I'll be right back..." He left the room and Itachi layed there, stunned. He just woke up after fainting in the middle of the street, and the first thing he hears is someone screaming at him for being pathetic. That part about Konan crying for him probably wasn't true, but he did realize that he'd have to apologize to her for the worry he caused after leaving so suddenly.

Hidan returned with a damp washcloth and placed it on Itachi's burning forehead. "Gawd you're hot...Your forehead, I mean!" he stuttered. A very faint blush crossed his face and he turned away. Itachi smirked slightly, but only for a matter of two seconds. He shivered and coughed into his hand, tears forming in his eyes. "You okay?" Hidan asked. Itachi nodded. "Pa-THETIC." he murmered, shooting a glare at the sick member he was forced to look after.

"N-Now that I think about it," Itachi said in a very quiet and tired voice, "Why exactly did you choose to look after me?"

"Idiot! It's not my choice! Konan left me in charge because nobody else is home!"

Itachi became wide-eyed and frightened, sitting up and backing away from him. "For the love of Jashin, I'm not going to rape you." He sighed in relief and laid back down. Hidan rolled his eyes. Itachi drew in a long, deep breath, then stopped. Something tickled his nose, and he sneeze into his arm. "Hah...A-Achoo! Agh..." Hidan muttered "Pathetic" under his breath once more and turned away.

"I don't recall you ever listening to Konan," Itachi continued. "It seems more like you're concerned for me."

"So what if I am?! You're a member of the Akatsuki, I can't lose you even if I hate you."

Itachi moved the washcloth aside and put his hand on his forehead. It still burned intensly. He started to sweat, his breath becoming heavy again. It went against his manliness, but Hidan finally turned around. "Take a deep breath. It'll be alright..." For once, Itachi did what he said. But this only made him choke and gasp for air, and THAT made him cough more. Hidan began to panick.

"D-Don't worry, I'm fine." Itachi said, losing the calm control in his voice. He shivered and his face had become a light pink from the fever. "You're obviously not, I'm not blind." Hidan retorted angrily. "To think, you actually made me worry like that..." Itachi sneezed into his arm again and shuddered.

"If you don't mind, Hidan, I'm really tired. Could you turn out the lights on your way out?" he asked. "Jeez, it's amazing how polite you get when your sick like this..." he said as he flicked off the lights and walked out the door.

Itachi expected those horrid thoughts from yesterday to come back and haunt him again now that he was alone, but they didn't. Instead, he focused on the pain he was experiencing. After about fifteen minutes of staring up at the ceiling, he finally managed to fall asleep.

"Itachi-sama?" someone said worridly. Hidan?!

"Itachi-sama, are you okay?" Woah, Hidan turned into a girl.

"Itachi-sama!" Someone shook Itachi awake. He opened his eyes and saw Konan frantically trying to wake him up. "W-What is it?" he asked, "Is something wrong?" She breathed a sigh of relief and hugged Hidan, who was apparantly next to her.

"Oh, thank you for finding him, Hidan!" "Get off..." came a muffled reply. She let go of him and turned to face Itachi. "Are you feeling alright?" she asked him. Itachi nodded slightly, coughing into his hand. He was still tired, but he felt much better than he did before. Actually, he felt normal. He slowly got out of bed, tying his hair in a low ponytail (it was long and sexy while he was sick, picture that fangirls), and apologized to Konan for making her worry so much.

He turned to Hidan. "Thank you," he said greatfully. "I'm surprised you were so concerned for me."

"I already told you, I wasn't concerned you bastard!" Itachi smiled and walked away, shaking his head.