The End of Solitude

Every morning that Itachi woke up in Konoha was a surprise to him. He had to remind himself every time that this was normal now. There was no threat, no war, no conflict between him and his brother or the villagers. Now that Naruto Uzumaki was the Hokage, the village hummed with warm energy that he hadn't experienced in his thirty-five or so years of life, in Konoha or anywhere else for that matter. His apartment was in a secluded corner of the village that looked out over the forest, and the sun had just begun to rise, its rays streaking out above the treetops. He opened the window and a pleasant gust of wind swiftly carried away the stale air from the night before. For everything that he had experienced, Itachi was remarkably calm within himself. Yes, he woke up with a start every morning, expecting to be out in the woods or in an Akatsuki hideout to take a turn on night watch, but somehow the nightmares he experienced for years before resettling in Konoha had abated. He had to admit that was impressive. Something about living here and seeing his brother frequently, both alive and seemingly happy, was enough to give him closure to all the years of torment he lived through and the resulting terrors he used to see whilst asleep.

Later that day, he decided to stroll through the village to buy food and make some dinner. Itachi had a lot of free time, since right now Naruto didn't quite know what to do with him. He was obviously still a ninja, but since the shinobi world was at peace there weren't too many high-ranking missions to keep him occupied at the moment, and Naruto felt strange giving low-level missions to someone like Itachi Uchiha. In the meantime, he had taken to long walks around Konoha, observing the pleasant hustle and bustle and the way life flowed through the streets. It was almost therapeutic to him. After running into a few people and buying some supplies to prepare ramen, Itachi turned around to head home. As he turned, a sudden pink flash appeared in his peripheral vision and he immediately spun around to see Sakura Haruno on the ground in front of him.

"HEY!" Sakura was glaring at him; her immediate reaction was of severe irritation. Itachi stopped and began to help her up.

"Oh…Itachi-san, it's you…" she appeared to calm down as she dusted off her pink skirt. Apparently Sakura had been out grocery shopping as well. Presently, various boxes and containers were scattered about, with some of the items spilling out onto the dirt road.

"That was my fault, I didn't look where I was going. Let me help you with your things." He said while collecting her groceries in his arms as Sakura hurriedly began to pick up her things as well.

"No, you don't have to! I wasn't looking either. But thank you." The two of them both reached for one stray apple on the ground. One split second of skin contact that felt like an electric current passing between them, and Itachi quickly removed his hand while Sakura placed the apple in one of her bags.

"Do you need any help taking those things home?" Itachi asked with a worried look in his eyes. Sakura shook her head.

"No thank you, but I'm fine. I really appreciate the offer though. See you around!" The pink haired kunoichi turned down the street and disappeared into the crowd.

Itachi was unusually preoccupied with the thought of the unexpected energy he felt from Sakura's hand. It was the tiniest touch and yet it provoked a response he hadn't felt before. It was unlike Itachi to mull over the lack of romantic involvement in his life. Without a doubt, the extraordinary nature of his life path until this point led to a dearth of intimate female relationships. Itachi never had any interest in paid company either, deeming it to be a waste of time and money. Self-control and discipline were the guiding forces of his life up until recently; indulgence was never in the cards. And yet, now that he had so much free time, what harm could a little pleasant distraction with a beautiful woman do? Despite his lack of experience with women he did notice the effect he often had on them from time to time, so it wasn't like he wasn't confident in himself. He also knew that Sakura was previously infatuated with Sasuke, but since that never took off and his younger brother was currently out on a mission, Itachi hedged that he could stand to make a move. Sasuke's had plenty of chances to be with Sakura, so if it hasn't happened yet then anything Itachi did would be fair game. He did hesitate at the thought of Sasuke being angry with Itachi over something like this, but seeing as he didn't think this would go anywhere anyway he didn't really concern himself with that possibility.

Night was falling and Itachi had finished eating his dinner and cleaning up. As he lay on his bed staring up at the ceiling, he thought of what it must be like to lay in this bed with Sakura next to him. Seeing a woman's body in all its glory, something he's never really been able to experience, was an exciting prospect. Not just any woman, either, but Sakura Haruno, the most talented and strong medical ninja in the village and maybe in the world, next to Tsuanade-sama of course. Itachi smiled to himself when he realized he was forming what he knew to be a crush, an almost foreign feeling, within his heart. He sighed and turned off the lights, slipping into another dreamless sleep, the stars twinkling outside his open window. Solitude had been a way of life for Itachi for many years, but so many things have changed recently.

The next morning Itachi ventured into the village for one of his morning walks. He wondered where Sakura might be at that particular moment. She was probably just waking up, or maybe she was already at the hospital seeing patients. Itachi decided to head to a café nearby for a light breakfast. As he stepped into the little hole in the wall he noticed that familiar pink head of hair in the corner of his eye. Sakura was sitting alone in the corner of the restaurant, drinking a cup of coffee and shuffling around a plate of eggs. This was it, Itachi thought to himself. He was going to make a move. Approaching her with a touch of nervousness, Itachi cleared his throat and said

"Good morning Sakura-san, do you mind if I join you for breakfast?"

Looking surprised, Sakura quickly responded "No, of course not. I have to get going soon, but please come sit! This place is so tiny anyway."

Itachi took the seat opposite her and asked her,

"Heading to work soon?"

Sakura smiled wanly. "Yes… I'm going to be at the hospital all day and night so I'm trying to wake myself up. Unfortunately, this coffee isn't doing too much to help."

"You're impressive, Sakura-san," Itachi smiled. "You work so hard."

"Please, just call me Sakura. Yes, it's quite a lot of work but I do love it. I guess I need a break though… I've been working super long hours and haven't had time for much… including sleeping and eating." Sakura scratched her head and sighed.

"Well, I know the people of the village need you, but it's definitely important to take breaks, for your sake as well as theirs. Maybe… if you wanted, I could take you to dinner tomorrow, if you have time?" Itachi internally tensed at his forward invitation. He did want to spend time with her, but was this too much? Was she just going to turn him down?

Sakura stared at him for a moment in disbelief before clearing her throat and responding, "Actually, I'd love to. I never have food in my house so I usually eat out alone. Having some company would be great." Sakura seemed to be finishing up and preparing to leave. Turned out to be perfect timing on Itachi's part. He offered to walk to the hospital with her.

"You don't have to, but that would be nice." The two exited the café and head towards the hospital.

"I'll come by to your place to pick you up, if you want." Itachi said, trying to play it cool.

"Okay, my place is actually just around the corner from here. I should be ready by 7 pm, so I'll meet you then." Sakura approached the front doors of the hospital and turned around to say goodbye.

"See you then. Try to eat something today and find some better coffee." Itachi said smiling.

"Will do. Thanks for walking with me, and I'll see you tomorrow." Sakura said, returning his smile before she turned and head inside.

Itachi didn't realize it until that moment, but he had been holding his breath watching her leave. He exhaled heavily, feeling pleased but also nervous at the thought of their dinner tomorrow night.

Itachi was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't even realize he was heading to the forest. He was jolted back to reality by the sight of Kakashi Hatake sitting in a tree, a well worn volume of Icha Icha Paradise in his hand.

"Oh Itachi, it's you. What are you up to?" Kakashi said without taking his eyes off his book.

"Well, not much. I didn't really pay attention to where I was going and ended up here."

"Itachi Uchiha, absent minded? Hm, not a concept I'm familiar with." Kakashi swiftly landed in the grass below and strolled over to where Itachi stood.

"I suppose there is a first time for everything…" Itachi said, looking off to the horizon to avoid Kakashi's pointed look.

"There are only a few things I know of that could distract a man like you, and I'm guessing none of them are combat related. Can't be Sasuke, unless you're worried about him on his mission? Trust me, he's fine."

Itachi reluctantly made eye contact with Kakashi and let a moment pass before responding.

"I have no idea why I'm telling you this, but I'm taking a girl to dinner tomorrow night and I'm nervous."

Kakashi stared blankly at Itachi before erupted into raucous laughter.

"This is the best thing I've heard all day! I honestly can't believe this. I've never seen you like this, let alone over a DATE!" Kakashi had to remove his mask to wipe at the tears streaming from his eyes. Itachi glared at his old friend.

"Listen! I didn't tell you this for you to give me shit…"

Kakashi cleared his throat and halted his laughter.

"Ok, how about this? I won't give you any more grief if you tell me who it is."

Itachi sighed. He didn't really want to share that it was one of his Kakashi's former students, but what did he have to lose at this point?

"It's Sakura." Itachi said while involuntary tensing at the sound of her name.

Kakashi froze.

"Sakura Haruno? As in, my former student, Sakura Haruno?"

Itachi inched away from Kakashi.

"Yes… I'm taking her to dinner tomorrow night. I ran into her yesterday we just had breakfast together. She was telling me how she needs a break so I thought it might be nice to take her out." He watched Kakashi very carefully for his reaction.

Kakashi seemed to be contemplating this until he sighed at said "I can't believe I'm saying this but… I'm honestly happy to hear that." Itachi's face showed visible relief.

Kakashi continued, "She's been working so hard for such a long time, I think she could really use someone like you looking after her."

Itachi winked at his friend. "Really means a lot coming from you, Kakashi-sensei."

"Okay don't get weird on me now. I said I'm happy for you, not that I want to think about this any more than I need to. After all, I've known her since she was twelve… So it's kind of weird to think of her like that."

"Well I don't want you too either… I really had no intention of sharing this with you, but I guess you would have found out eventually." Itachi sighed contentedly now that he had Kakashi's blessing.

"Oh you got that right. And I probably would have showed up and done something I might regret, so I think you played this one right my friend." Kakashi's crinkled eyes revealed he was smiling beneath his mask.

"Well, I guess I should head back to town. See you later, Kakashi." Itachi waved and began walking.

"Just don't do anything stupid. You know how strong she is…" Kakashi returned to his spot in the tree and returned to his reading.

Itachi was quite pleased with this day so far. They were increasingly filled with pleasant interactions like this with friends, and there were more to come. Despite the years of heartache and hardship, Itachi's heart had never truly frozen over. It stayed hopeful, knowing that a time would come where he would find himself excited for dinner with a beautiful girl, worried about what his friends would say about it, and the end of solitude would begin.