Attention everyone - THERE ARE NO OC Characters HERE. This story is a fragment of Naruto's past life in my multi-chapter fanfiction - Orenji. Note though, that this can be read separately as an entirely different story without prior knowledge of my other fic, it would be better though if you knew the background story. I created this as a three-shot (maximum 5 chapters), to show the story from Itachi's/Ichiro's point of view, and show how their romance came about in the past life of Orenji's AU ninja-verse. For those who do know Orenji, this story takes place after Aoi molests Naruto and leaves him high and dry - Ch. 8 Of men and Foxes. Another thing, I refer to Naruto as boy a lot, but he is 17, he just appears to be younger than he is. This fic is Biased towards Uchiha Itachi also known as Uchiha Ichiro (His past self) from Orenji. Whilst in Orenji the story is biased and leaning towards Uchiha Sasuke aka. Uchiha Aoi.
Uchiha Itachi is Uchiha Ichiro
Uchiha Sasuke is Uchiha Aoi
Disclaimer:
I don't own the Naruto-verse of any part thereof.
Warnings: Un-beta'ed. AU but still in a ninja-verse. M-rated for Sexual content.
Pairing: Main - Itachi/Naruto, mention of Sasuke/Naruto. Onesided fascination/obsession Itachi/Minato
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-Kokuyouseki-
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.~Itachi/Ichiro 22 years old~
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It rained. Poured. Soaked.
It caused the sleeping man to stir and wrinkle his sensitive nose a bit. Gone. Washed away was the scent of yesterday's burnt Incense, ink and vague tang of Barberry bushes - in full bloom of yellow, just outside the smooth planked porch of his little quarter. The sloppy body stretched. His stiff back ached slightly as he blinked a bit, removing the wisp of black hair from his line of sight and taking in the wet garden before him like a serene picture.
Lent against the wooden pillar near the frail paper wall, he sat on the layered bamboo flooring, afraid to look underneath and around himself, when he became aware of the mess he had so sloppily allowed himself to drift off in. Strewn carelessly around him were this month's accountant books ajar, scattered scrolls, letters, drips of hard crusted wax, and crunched parchment. If his personal advisor had seen him in this state...he dared not to think about it.
Even in his own home he wasn't safe from the senile fools who had wrapped his late father so conspicuously around their finger. They were nothing but a corrupted bunch, now filling the new puppet Hokage with lies, whilst carrying out their deceitful plotting in the shadows of charitable public acts. Ichiro had grieved the loss of Minato Namikaze, their capable fourth Hokage, no. One could say he had admired the man even. It had been three and a half weeks since blue blood had been spilled, and it was almost sickening how little the other clans had cared for their lost allies and leader of the village. The older Uchiha blamed himself partly still, for having been unable to foresee the heinous massacre planned against their fellow clan. The Namikaze. He did not know who as of yet, but he had in secret started his own investigation to locate and hunt down the deplorable traitors.
He took a deep breath and inhaled an assorted scent of something intangible. The persistent thrum of raindrops spattering on the edges of the wooden porch made his skin prickle delightfully as he closed his lids, savouring the calming sound of the rain along with the unfamiliar scent of sunshine - warmth, sweetness, bitterness. It smelled like summer.
An absurdity in itself, as it was now the season of the coloured leaves. The grass no longer held that unsullied and vibrant shade of green but a more deep and profound dark green, while the tree crowns had turned into a beautiful blend of yellow, orange and red. Autumn had long arrived, and with it - the rain, grey skies and cold nights.
In the distance another man crept out from the storage room opposite to him. Onyx eyes narrowed in on the lithe frame whom he could now identify as that of his younger brother. The young man was currently in a mind of his own as he scouted the path ahead before rushing off with a hurry that left Ichiro staring at the room from where he had come, with notion. Not many knew of the secret shortcut through the storage. Not many knew, that it was connected to the inner quarters. Why Aoi was out and sneaking about like a mere scandalous thief when he could have entered freely through the east entrance, as a core member of their household, now that, was interesting.
Unable to let what he had witnessed go, he rose from the scattered mess and brushed himself off before heading towards the storage with steady footsteps. His younger brother had been distracted lately, quick-tempered even, and the arrival of his new bride candidate from the Hyuuga clan that had been send to his quarters this morning had been of little interest to Aoi. Something was up with Aoi.
The door to the storage was slid open, and darkness, dust and murky air greeted him. The room appeared to be untouched. His eyes traced the dusty surface of the floor, and sure enough, there was signs of light footsteps. Aoi had been in the inner quarters. The trail stopped at the hidden door. His fingers trailed the hidden handle and pulled what looked like a golden ornament ever so gently. It creaked and a faint whimper came from the dim room facing the inner garden, it was darkened and the wooden doors had been slid closed from the other side, leaving only a thin line of dim light from the outside to leak through the cracks.
"Who is there?" He demanded, his hand was resting on the grip of his tantō, safely hidden away in the folds of his kimono. A sharp intake of breath alerted him of the presence of another living hiding in the far corner, and sure enough, someone was sitting or laying there huddled up in a fetal position.
"Bastard..." A raspy voice growled at him. Nothing could have prepared the Uchiha for the sight that met him, and ungracefully bumped into his feet.
From the shadows trundled a wriggling boy, with skin of mild copper and wild hair of gold. There was a lot of exposed flesh, worst of all was the still stiff muscle bobbing between the youth's toned thighs and legs. The Long-haired Uchiha froze, and closed his defective eyes forcefully, giving them a moment to adjust to the plain of the living again, after a deep breath before he reopened them expecting the shameful mirage to have somehow gone from this world - disappeared - vaporized. It wasn't so however. The youth remained tied up, furious and laying sprawled across the floor so scrumptiously half-naked at Ichiro's feet. Soft tearful blue eyes gazed up at the sceptical man, with loathe, and his swollen pink lips, that were both cut and bruised were pulled tight with the faintest tremble.
"G-go away y-you bastard." The boy looked like he was about to cry, when he saw Ichiro's face. But the Uchiha just stared at him with those dark depths, seemingly unfazed by the nudity, or so he thought until those eyes drifted down and stilled at the boy's semi hard erection. It swayed boldly when the other tried to scramble away from his feet and hide himself. The man stared at it, the hand still on the hilt of his short-sword slowly let go, as he eyed the boy's pink glans - in contrast with the dabbled spots of light on the darker shaft that made the skin appear almost velvety.
"Aoi...why are you doing this..." The blue eyes blazed with venom and hate of the name on his flushed lips. The other's voice had stopped his wandering eyes and he quickly looked up higher where he saw a slight trail of blood seeping from a small graze on the youth's tan throat, efficiently drawing Ichiro's attention - once again - to the boy's unblemished body, quivering, glowing and raw - like a piece of meat.
He could feel a straining sensation in his head, as his mind worked hard to comprehend how, this boy, who had Minato's regal azure eyes and golden hair had come to stay locked up in a hidden storage room of the Uchiha compound. Then he noticed it. It had been so faint before but now, that scent was strong. He could smell that scent again, the whiff of summer. It was this child. It was sweet orange and cedar.
The Namikaze boy yelped and closed his eyes in fear as the Uchiha bend down behind him, grabbing the tied hands and loosening the ripped piece of cloth used to bind him. He felt a stinging sensation as his fingers grazed a tanned wrist, but thought nothing of it, till it hit him again, this time forcing him to withdraw his hands. Rising up he pulled off his haori and threw it over the quivering youth. The pain had subsided, proving his theory right. This boy was one of them.
"Y-you're...not Aoi?" The youth spoke, still uncertain but with more conviction now, since Ichiro had done nothing to harm him.
"What is your name boy." He wasn't aware that his voice had softened so severely, but something about the boy had made him lose the stern edge off authority he had maintained in dealing with the officials. Had he lost his edge to some snot-nosed kid that smelled like sweet orange and cedar? He masked the softness, and once again spoke with a baritone that demanded attention. "Answer now."
Minato's eyes or not, he knew nothing about the strange boy, he couldn't possibly be that child he remembered. He should have been more concerned that his own little brother seemed to have gained a taste for the male flesh over a woman's breast, but for some reason he cared more about how the boy had come to be. Still alive, whilst the rest of his Clan had been slaughtered. The Namikaze were dead, except for this one boy, whom his brother had been so impudently hiding, right under Ichiro's nose, like some personal prostitute.
"Naruto... my name is Naruto. And.." The stuttering had dissolved from the boy's voice, that was now a whole lot clearer and smoother with that a hint of determination befitting of a noble's son, the boy knew who he was and was not ashamed of his dishevelled appearance, no more. Instead the youth was now sitting up and rubbing his sore wrists, wrapped in the haori carrying the symbol of the Uchiha clan, that now hung loosely from his lean shoulders. This boy, Naruto, was indeed more beautiful than the darkness of the room let on, he was sure of it. A beauty that had driven his brother to keep the boy a secret from him. Blue eye locked on his again with gratitude. "Thanks."
Naruto...Naruto...Naruto...
Was he the same child who had been bound to his seal?
Impossible.
"I believe we have met before." He stated unabashedly, sounding strangely irritated. Not towards the youth, but towards his brother, that impudent child had no idea just whom he had brought in, did he? Aoi would pay for this. This boy was no toy, Naruto was his responsibility. His to protect. His former fiancé. "Namikaze Naruto."
"Yes, I...someone found me unconscious in the battlefield, and I think they brought me here." The blonde had again lowered his deep blue to look his wounds over. His movements looked delicate and unstable as it would be from laying sick for weeks.
Flustered and still uncertain of the level of danger he was in, the boy hadn't dared to look up at him again.
"By my brother I would assume?" He enquired.
"I don't know...he only said his name was Aoi. Uchiha Aoi..." The blonde whispered, his voice had lost some strength, he was still feeling sick and exhausted but the coldness he sensed coming from the man before him, probably Aoi's brother since they looked so alike, scared him a bit although he tried bravely not to show it.
"Did he force himself on you?" He didn't know how he managed to ask these things so calmly but he did, and that seemed to be what unnerved Naruto as well. There was a long silence and he was starting to wonder if there would ever be an answer to his rather blatant question, it then surprised him, when there was.
The boy mumbled under his breath. ".. only touched me."
A lump fell from his chest, and he felt the after-effects from the muscles that had rippled under his skin at the tension his body had undergone without his knowledge. Was he relieved? It felt like he was. Not that it would be the end of the world if Aoi did have a thing for men, but he had an unsettling feeling that this wasn't it.
Aoi was getting too cocky and free-willed these days, not that he could blame his brother for developing an interest in this particular Namikaze, the youth - he could tell - even in this dark room possessed the uncanny beauty of their previous Hokage, the boy's father. If anyone were to see this boy, Naruto, would they so easily accept that he was something out of their reach - something unattainable - or could he be slipped into another household as an adoptive son. The questions in the Uchiha's head were now countless and all of equal importance, as harming the boy was not an option he could go with.
This was the least he could for Minato's son after all the man had done for their family. He had made up his mind. The boy would stay. For now. But not with Aoi.
"Cover yourself, you're coming with me." He ordered the boy, who immediately started tugging the oversized haori tightly around him leaving only his knees and bare feet exposed. When Naruto tried to stand up he almost fell over his own feet and Ichiro unwillingly held the other by his upper arm, to steady him.
A jolt of pain caused through his arm and upper body. Shocked by the onslaught of pain he almost retracted his hand. He should have known. It was best not to touch the boy at all, the beast in him was fighting the seal, Ichiro would have none of that.
Once the blonde had regained stability, he quickly withdrew his hand, but by then the pain had settled and the beast that had lashed out at him calmed, almost as if allowing him to touch the boy. For a boy from a Clan of demons-handlers, Naruto looked so deceitfully innocent and sweet that it was hard to fathom how anyone could make such a claim.
Many nights of his childhood had been spent fighting bad dreams since his childhood meeting with Naruto had
"S...sorry." Naruto muttered shyly. Dark eyes narrowed, under the boy's innocent flush. The youth was probably not even aware of his secret guardian waiting beneath the surface of his skin, ready to raise a hell for whoever dared to touch his host without permission.
"You might consider relaxing, Naruto." Ichiro offered with a hint of amusement, before adding as an afterthought. "Unfortunately we don't have enough dark storage rooms available so I hope you don't mind a...lighter room in the guest quarter." He had unlocked the heavy doors facing the inner garden, and proceeded to open them.
Blue eyes lit up, as the doors swung open and light filled the room. "I- I can stay here?" The Namikaze asked, not sure if he was by now imagining things.
Ichiro smirked. Who would have known that someday, as his father had said, they really could become friends. "It is not like you have anywhere else to go." The last Namikaze, was in their hands now. It was only right that he would make up for the traitorous individuals who had stemmed from their ranks and participated in the annihilation of the boy's Clan. "Question is, what can you do?"
He would make the boy part of the Uchiha. As he should have been a long time ago when they were betrothed.
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Eleven years ago
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"Minato. It's been a while, my dear friend." His usually stoic father, Fugaku greeted the man with a small bow of his head and a faint but pleasant smile that showed the clear difference between his approach to the other nobles, and the young . Even his tone of voice seemed to hold nothing but its usual polite and smooth baritone. Only Ichiro could sense the slight difference, and calm his father felt in the other man's presence. Said blonde looked up from his seat on the on the wooden structure facing the garden, with the most radiant smile Ichiro had ever seen on a person before.
Perhaps it was the uncommon shade of his spiky golden mane and clear blue eyes that made him seem so much more radiant than other people. And his aura was almost numbing to his mind. As the man came closer Itachi shrunk away a bit behind his father, feeling a strange nausea he'd never experienced before spread in the pit of his stomach, making the beating muscle trapped inside his chest, pound irregularly fast for no apparent reason. He caught himself thinking for a faint moment that it might have been a warning sign, that he was... about to die, only to feel the heat creep to his face when he realised how absurd that was. This man did this to him, with his chakra. The mere force of the chakra emanating off of the unusual man, seemed to sedate his conscious mind almost like an aphrodisiac.
The frantic beating never let up, even as the other approached them with the morning sun in his back. And then. He could suddenly decode these abnormal feelings as an uncommon type of excitement, or anticipation even, to know more about this blonde man. It scared him a bit how the other's existence grew within his mind and became almost a tangible presence. Ichiro knew about Minato. He knew about the Namikaze, the history of the clan his father was allied with, it had tedious lessons in basic social science for him half a year ago but now he had a face and a first impression imprinted with it.
Minato Namikaze was an old friend of his father's, who was known for being a powerful S-class special Jounin. Ichiro suspected he worked for the ANBU as well, but if rumours held truth, this bright man would soon hold a much more sought-after title. There had been many talks of who would be appointed for the position as the fourth Hokage and after witnessing the mere aura this man had, Ichiro had no doubt that he could not just hold his own against any other ninja in their village but also very possibly be the only one of his calibre.
"It certainly has, Fugaku. Kushina just got back with the kids." Minato announced happily. Barely had he said that before a quick flash of blonde charged at the man and bumped into his leg, hugging it tightly. "Ahh, Naruto there you are. You don't look the least bit tired from the...walk."
The boy, Naruto, kept his face hidden, pressed against his father's leg like a leech, refusing to greet their guests properly. "That's because, I'm not." The child mumbled in a tiny muffled voice.
Minato ruffled the boy's hair gently and proceeded to preen the child off by lifting him slightly off the ground and placing him in front of the Uchihas. "Sorry about that, Fugaku. This is my first son, Naruto. He's quite a handful as you can see." A genuine smile broke out on the blonde's face at his son's childish antics. Ichiro pondered to himself how him and his little brother Aoi would have turned out if their father was just as lenient as the gentle blonde. " Naruto why don't you, welcome our guests and show them that beneath this little show, you do still know your manners?"
Sensing the boy's hesitation, Fugaku smoothly offered the child another moment to redeem himself as he ushered Ichiro forth with a firm push at his lower back.
"This is my son, Ichiro. As I promised, we can still follow through with the seal even if, we unfortunately have to cancel the engagement. Gender aside, I'm sure our sons could make the best of friends in the future."
After a short glare and a scoff at his father, Naruto did as he was told and bowed as he uttered a greeting in a surprisingly strong voice before looking up at Ichiro with narrowed blue eyes, inspecting the other boy for a good long moment before the stern mask fell and he broke into a wide grin, practically bouncing from side to side like a straw in the wind. "You have long hair like my sister!"
A shockwave of thick chakra seemed to stream steadily from the child as his guard fell along with the radiant smile and chuckle spreading on Naruto's whiskered face. Ichiro kept up the staring contest, outwardly untouched by the inquisitive child's scrutiny, as though he imagined that it could make the blonde boy stop fidgeting about like some wild animal. The Uchiha had had his own share of experience, being eye to eye with some of the most terrifying criminals when he assisted his father at the trials he participated in, so this little roach was nothing in comparison. So what if the child was just a six year old boy with big sky blue eyes and a foxy grin that made his chest jump uncomfortably, he was different from his father. Not as powerful nor as overwhelming as Minato, but he would be soon. If the sizzling burning of Naruto's energy nibbling and probing against his own with a creeping persistence was any indication thereof.
As strange as it was now, this very boy Naruto was the long-awaited first born to whom he had been promised to even before birth. That was until, Naruto , was born the wrong gender. Luckily his father had to scrap that plan else his future would be sealed and he would be stuck with this boy, Naruto. The blonde was way too energetic, or rather, erratic. Was he of any real use or was he just as innocently dumb as he looked?
"We're very grateful for you and your son's help." Minato said, firmly eyes alight with appreciation and gratitude for his old friend and strongest ally. "I almost didn't know who to turn to, but you my friend... We're eternally indebted to your family. I won't ever forget this."
Ichiro never missed the vague flutter in his father's energy as he covered up the emotions the blonde's words wrought upon him.
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This will make more sense for those who know my fanfiction Orenji : ) Reviews are appreciated. And sorry for being slow these days. I'm waiting for my flight now and I think my urge to write is slowly returning. I've finally returning to normal book studies and my energy isn't draining as fast when I don't actually work with writing all day D: 'cuse all the flaws ok, I actually just wrote this in the airport...^^ : Sorry for the shortness. I just can't wait to upload the next chapter of Orenji, aghh...