ItaSakuFest Day 1: Meeting.
The Moment I Found You.

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Let's go back to the light of our younger days

Hiding inside the trees

You called me your little honeybee

And you would look after me

Though it's getting cold and we're growing older

Now that we have to leave

I don't wanna play like it's lost and found

But will you always search for me

Slow at your hold, never let me go

Pray to god our time ticks slow

Of all parted hearts I've grown to know

Yours will always lead me home

The Search.

Mree.


Haruno Sakura was a smart girl, she always studied hard and was at the top of her class. She always did her chores when her mother and father asked her too, she spent her free time studying and she stayed out of trouble for the most part. She always ate her vegetables, even the nasty green things That-Shall-Now-Be-Named (they were brussel sprouts). She always dressed warm when her mother told her too, and she even picked up trash she saw on her way home from school.

Haruno Sakura was not a very smart girl at all.

It had been silly, she had made Sasuke valentines cookies, because she loved him of course. She had been planning to approach him with them after class, but he had sprinted off into the forest that the girl had been wandering around in for hours. She had lost track of him, and the tiny nine year old was beginning to get anxious as the sun set behind Hokage Mountain. She didn't know where she was, and the shadows seemed to stretch on endlessly as the sun escaped with it's trays of light.

Her hair was pulled into a bun on top of her head, in the shape of a bow, (she had asked her mother to do it, so she would look cute for Sasuke) and she was even wearing her best red dress. It flared around her thighs, wearing black tights with cute white hearts on them, and the shoes she had begged her father to buy for her. She felt ridiculous as she pulled her fluffy jacket closer to herself, jade eyes alight with fear as she bit her lip. She knew the Uchiha compound was on the outskirts of the village, but how far had she walked? Was she out of Konoha now? Where exactly was she?

She bit her red lip in fear, the cold nipping at her skin as the sun disappeared almost fully, lighting the sky a brilliant vermilion and vivid orange, it was pretty. By the time the stars had come out, Sakura had given up all hope of getting out of the forest, and on a last bit of instinct, she climbed a tree to ward off anything that would come and snatch her up. Tears welled in her eyes, nearly crushing the container of cookies and homemade chocolates to her chest. She wanted to give them to Sasuke, and she ended up lost, great just great.

She cried, sniffing loudly as deer snapped branches and things moved in the shadows that scared her. She usually loved the forest, the way the green plants and ancient trees came together so effortlessly, it fascinated her. There were herbs and gorgeous flowers that couldn't be found anywhere but in the wild, the kind her father picked for her mother on special occasions; she cried, wondering if she'd ever find her way back home. It was dark, the moon illuminating her young face as she sniffled, nose red from crying and the cold, cheeks flushed as her shaking hands brushed away tears that poured down chunky childish cheeks.

The slightly jousting of the branch she was on scared her, and jade eyes snapped up to meet onyx black, that were staring back at her blinking through messy black hair. Sakura almost screamed, seeing the other boy in the tree, staring at her with wide eyes, and she put her hands in front of her, in a protective stance. "What are you doing up here?"

His voice was soft and gentle, kind above all else, even if it did sound like he was laughing at her. Sakura slowly pulled back her hands, blinking the cold tears from her eyes to look the boy over again. Her mother had warned her of strange boys, but the one in front of her didn't even look dangerous. Well, he was a ninja, even Sakura could tell that. If not for the cloak or Anbu armour he was wearing, it was the mask hanging from his hip, or his katana on the adjacent side. So swallowing, she decided she could trust this boy. He didn't seem like he wanted to hurt her, she was just a kid after all. "I–I got lost, I don't know where I am." She admitted, looking down at the container with sad jade eyes. "I just wanted to give Sasuke cookies is all, and he ran away so fast I didn't know where he went." She sniffled, and the boy seemed shocked, long hair fluttering from it's tie as he stared at her with wide black eyes.

"Otouto?" Sakura's eyes widened, and she looked up to the boy, a few of her pink locks now framing her face and had fallen from her bow shaped bun. He seemed to think, and looked her over, brows furrowed. Did he just call Sasuke…little brother? "You go to the ninja academy, right?" She gave a small nod, and he shifted to sit on the branch, a few feet in front of her. "Why are you wearing a dress? Isn't it hard to train?" his tone was curious, and Sakura was just not in the mood to be criticized on her choice of dress.

She was upset and angry, and cold and she was all stuffy and her nose was runny from crying. "It's valentines day!" She said sternly, her jade eyes full of light but her lips were pressed in a fine line.

The boy blinked a few times before looking down to his gloved hand and counting on his fingers. When he landed on four, his eyes widened, and he hummed, pressing his lips together. What did a teenager have to count on his fingers for? "It seems, you are right. I didn't know, I completely forgot about it." He sounded absentminded, and he looked off to the forest, quiet as he listened to the sounds of the bugs and animals in their burrows. It was a nice comforting sound, he had missed Konoha on his week long mission. "What's your name?" He asked, turning his head to the pink haired girl, eyes soft and kind. It was strange, he had never seen such a pretty shade of pink before.

But his breath rushed from his lungs seeing the girl's wide jade eyes fill with tears and her cheeks were so cute when they puffed out, red from embarrassment. Uchiha Itachi felt as if someone had physically ripped something from inside his chest out, and he was left missing the horror. "Haruno Sakura." Her voice was so quiet, and Itachi couldn't stop himself from reaching out to brush away her tears with his gloved hands. Something in his chest lurched at seeing her cry, and he'd never understand why.

"Uchiha Itachi." He said absentmindedly, reaching up to pat the girl's head softly, the most genuine smile on his face.

And Sakura felt her face set aflame and her heart stop dangerously in her chest, it was painful, seeing the way he smiled so brightly at her. "Why are you out here?" She asked, shifting closer to him, and Itachi realized she was cold. She was little, so soft and fragile, and he didn't think twice about unbuttoning his cloak and throwing it over her shoulders. It was way too large on her, but her tiny hands gripped the edges and she smiled.

Itachi felt strange, he felt entranced by the little girl. She was something else, she was angry and cue, and he didn't think he felt so at ease with someone in such a long time. "I was coming back from a mission and found you, why are you here?" He asked, adjusting his pack that was slung over his shoulder.

She puffed her cheeks out again, and Itachi figured he'd like to annoy her if for no other reason than to see her cheeks puff out in annoyance. He found her far more amusing than he should have. "I told you, I got lost!" She defended, voice high pitched and he found the sound endearing as he laughed.

Gloved hands reached up to cover his mouth as he laughed, and Sakura backed away, hands tightening around the boy's cloak, and the smile on his face was pretty. He was really pretty, she was jealous of his hair, it was so long and so black, and she really wanted to touch it. So she did, she got up on wobbly knees and reached out to run tiny fingers through the Uchiha's hair, it was soft and thick, and she liked the way it felt. He stopped laughing then, and she looked up as she hold his hair in her hand, the other keeping her steady. He blinked down his nose at the girl, and she looked up with jade eyes that he wore were going to be the death of him.

"Your hair is really pretty."

And Itachi laughed again.

They sat for another hour or two, just talking about anything and everything, and Sakura found Itachi comforting. Itachi was sure to have laughed more that night than he had in years, and he felt at ease around the girl. She didn't look up to him with starlight eyes like Sasuke, or look down at him in expectations like his father, she was a girl with a bubbly smile and a pretty laugh. So when she had offered to share the cookies she had made (if he remembered correctly they were for his brother) he was hesitant. "Sasuke will probably just throw them away, like he does anything else I give him." She admitted with a sigh and a pour of defeat. Her eyes beamed up at him, and the smile of a happy child pulled at her lips. "So will you eat them with me Itachi-chan?! I promise they're very good, my kaa-chan helped me!"

How could he say no to that smile? So the Uchiha heir, the boy who at the age of thirteen had killed men, was the top of his class, already a master at the sharingan, was hesitant to try a nine year old's cooking. He grabbed the chocolate covered cookie, and with Sakura's eyes beaming at him, hesitantly bit down into it.

But what he found, was pleasantly surprising.

The cookies were delicious, and Sakura had laughed, "They're strawberry!" she had told him, and together they ate them all. Itachi had always had a sweet tooth, and he briefly wondered if that soft spot now included girls with cute pink hair and big emerald eyes.

When the cold got to both of them (Sakura still wearing his cloak) he had told her he would take her home, it was almost nine after all. She held tight to him as he jumped down from the tree, her own school bag thrown over his shoulder. He allowed her to wear his cloak as he navigated them out of the forest, the girl clinging to the side of his shirt at everything that went bump and creaked, she was scared after all.

They walked through the village, many waving to both the Uchiha heir, and the civilian princess. He was shocked to find out she was going to be the first ninja, that both of her parents were civilians who owned a quiet and quaint tea shop. When her small house had come into view, both her mother and father were waiting outside, and her eyes had widened as she shrunk closer to the boy whose steps were faltering. He hadn't thought this through.

"Sakura! Where have you been!" Her mother scolded, and the girl opened her mouth, trying to say something to her defense. "I said you had to be back before dinner, I was worried sick." her mother's tone lightened and Itachi felt awkward with the way her father was staring at him.

So clearing his throat, he breathed in, the air prickling his bare arms, he spoke kindly. "I'm so terribly sorry. I am Uchiha Itachi, and it seemed your daughter had gotten lost looking for my brother, Sasuke. I found her in the forests not too far from my home, i'm sorry to worry you." His tone was respectful and elegant and Sakura was still clinging to his shirt.

Her father sighed, and smiled kindly, the mother more than happy to hear her daughter was safe now. "Thank you, Uchiha-kun, would you like some tea?" he gestured towards his house, and Itachi politely declined.

With Sakura handing him back his cloak, and him gently handing her bag back to her, he smiled kindly. "It was nice meeting you Sakura-chan."

She nodded, that bright smile on her face but it dimmed when she realized it would be the last she saw of him. "Itachi-chan!" She yelled, ignoring her mother's sputters as she ran after the boy. Her face was red from embarrassment, but she needed to talk to him. "Can I see you again sometime?" Her eyes were full of hope and Itachi found himself speechless at her offer. His own cheeks had been dusted red, and her tiny hands were clutched to her chest, staring up at him. "We can have tea and I can make cookies, and you can tell me more about your missions! Please?"

With a sigh, he felt relieved as he reached doubt and put his hand on her head, the girl stilling.

"Sure."

And that was their first meeting of many.

23/11/14

Art: Neimana - Tumblr