It was a warm spring day, the first with beautiful weather after a long winter. Finally, coats and scarves weren't necessary, and the sun showed its face in a cloudless sky. The streets of Konoha were crowded with people breaking free from their hibernations. So crowded, in fact, that Itachi didn't risk closing his eyes to bask in the welcoming environment. With his luck, he'd just be run over.
The Uchiha was wearing his mesh shirt and a loose pair of pants, having come from the training field inside his clan's complex. The promise of tea and dango was so close that he could taste it. After training for six hours straight, he deserved it. Itachi firmly believed in a reward system. He put his hands in his pockets, checking just one more time that he hadn't forgotten his wallet. That was a disappointment he didn't want to suffer.
Shisui had pushed him to his limit that morning. No matter how many times Itachi complained that using his flicker technique was cheating, his cousin continued to practice it and stay one step ahead. The offending ninja walked by Itachi's left side. Despite the pleas of his future clan head, Shisui strutted down the street with his own shirt slung over his shoulder. His black jogging pants were emblazoned with his clan insignia, a red and white fan, on his right thigh.
It took Itachi several seconds to notice the sudden change in his environment. That was what he got for letting himself relax. He stopped, stepping off to the side of the street before he looked back. He'd lost Shisui several meters back. His curly-haired cousin was concealing himself poorly against an exterior wall of a shop. Itachi quirked an eyebrow. Shisui's dark eyes found him immediately, and he gave a sly grin before diverting his attention. Itachi resisted the urge to sigh. Torn between leaving Shisui and waiting for him, he shifted his weight to the left, and then to the right. Shisui had seen him, knows he is waiting, had plied him with promises of sweets for just one more set of exercises. Yet, he remained where he was. Itachi stuck his tongue in his cheek, a childish display of annoyance, and backtracked down the street until he was by his cousin's side.
"What are you doing?" Itachi's voice was flat and disinterested. What could be more important than their lunch?
"Look," Shisui whispered, guiding Itachi's face with one hand until he could see the situation on the other side of the road. "Sasuke's socializing."
Sure enough, his baby brother was perched on one of the stools at Ichiraku ramen, alongside his teammates and Kakashi. From where he was standing, to Itachi, it looked more like his brother was in an argument rather than chatting, but Shisui was right. Sasuke was interacting with people outside the clan. And damn if that wasn't an improvement.
Shisui placed a hand on Itachi's shoulder for a brief moment, grabbing his attention. With a devilish grin, the older of the two schemed, "I'm going to go say hi."
"Shisui-" It was no use. He'd already flickered out of sight and appeared behind Sasuke. Itachi swore under his breath and weaved through the crowded street, apologizing to each passer-by he bumped into. He was going to kill his cousin one day.
"Hey, little brother!" Shisui draped himself over Sasuke's shoulders. The young Uchiha neatly jumped out of his skin. Choking on his ramen, Sasuke tried to beat Shisui away with the hand holding his chopsticks. Naruto was caught in a fit of laughter, and Sakura looked on, confused.
"Get off of me!" Sasuke snapped when he finally caught his breath. "What the hell's your problem?" He gagged dramatically. "You reek!"
"Language," Shisui tutted, just to get underneath his skin. He poked Sasuke playfully in the cheek, and he narrowly avoided a small, bony elbow to his head.
"Why are you here?" he growled. The young Uchiha's posture had gone rigid, and his previous discussion was completely forgotten. "God, get off, before I catch your b.o."
Itachi had finally made his way to the ramen stand, looking a bit disheveled for the effort. Sasuke turned an accusatory glance to his brother, who couldn't think of a way to placate him. Well, there was one thing he could do. With a firm hand, he pulled Shisui off of Sasuke, forcing him to stand back up.
"Itachi, Shisui. Good to see you guys," Kakashi smiled, clearly amused. His eye lifted in a smile that matched the one he certainly had beneath his mask. "It's been a while."
"Yeah, we've been off on missions," Shisui informed his elder. "You know how it is."
"I do, and I have to say, I don't miss it. Most of the time." The look he gave his students went unnoticed by all three genin.
"I didn't know you had another brother," Naruto complained. He leaned around Sakura to punch Sasuke in the shoulder. "You only talked about Itachi." He was clearly offended by his exclusion from the information.
"He's not my brother," Sasuke grumbled. His pride was too wounded for him to risk fighting Naruto back. Some things Shisui said were embarrassing enough that he wanted to die. He didn't want to do anything to encourage those comments.
"I'm his cousin," Shisui clarified with a grin. "Well, kind of. Removed a couple times. We share a last name way more than we share genes."
"Thank god," Sasuke spoke into his ramen.
"I just thought I'd pop in and see how little Sasuke's been doing."
With an accusatory glare, Sasuke snapped, "Like you don't see me every damned day."
"You could be lying to us," Shisui countered. "It can't hurt to hear it straight from your sensei."
"Go away, Shisui."
"You wound me."
"Shisui." Itachi's tone held a subtle warning that only Shisui and Kakashi picked up.
"I know! Why don't we eat lunch here, Ita?"
Itachi's lips drew thin. "You promised dango, not ramen. I didn't climb that cliff a second time to eat ramen."
"Fine, fine, you prickly bastard," Shisui sighed. "Dango it is. See you later, little bro." He ruffled Sasuke's hair with his hand.
"I'm not your brother!" Sasuke shouted after him, drowning out Itachi's farewell. When the two Uchiha were out of sight, Sasuke squeezed his fist so hard that he snapped his chopsticks.
"What the heck was that about?" Naruto wondered.
"Sasuke, are you okay?" Sakura cautiously extended a hand to his shoulder.
"I can't stand that guy!" Sasuke threw down his broken utensils and grabbed a new set of chopsticks. "Acting like that. Have some dignity."
"Easy, Sasuke. You know Shisui means well," Kakashi chided his student.
"Easy for you to say. He's everywhere ." I never see Itachi alone anymore , he thought bitterly. Now that he had his own missions, Sasuke was busier than ever. His and Itachi's schedules conflicted more often than not, and they hadn't so much as trained alone together in half a year. It was grating.
"They're ANBU," Kakashi reminded him. "Your teammates there are different than the ones on your genin team; the bonds are much stronger. I wouldn't be surprised if they placed Itachi of the Sharingan and Shisui of the Body Flicker on the same squad."
"Hey, I want a cool title to follow my name," Naruto demanded. "Like, Naruto of the Epic Jutsu!"
"Naruto of the Stupid Names, more like," Sakura quipped, leaving Naruto visibly wounded.
Once they rounded the street corner, it was safe to speak once more. "Why?" Itachi drawled, looking to his left out of the corner of his eyes. Shisui snickered, throwing him a wink that didn't answer his question.
"It's fun to rile him up. Not nearly as fun as you, of course." Shisui reached out and pinched the shell of Itachi's ear. His hand was gone before his companion could swat him away. "Your brother's a yapping puppy. With you, your bite is far worse than your bark."
"I would be worried if you annoyed the two of us for the same reason," Itachi replied, his voice smooth as silk, without looking at Shisui. There was mild amusement in his eyes.
"You wound me, Ita." Shisui clapped a hand over his heart. Itachi didn't respond. With blinding speed, he flickered to Itachi's left, catching him off guard just long enough to push him down a shadowed gap between buildings. Itachi's back hit the brick wall, barely registering the pain in his shoulder blades.
Shisui's hand tucked itself underneath the hem of Itachi's mesh shirt, fingers brushing against skin. Just above his necklace, lips and teeth teased the juncture of his neck and shoulder. A low growl reverberated from Shisui's chest. Itachi placed his hands firmly on the other man's shoulders and tried to push him away.
"We're in public."
"No, we're in an alley." The words were punctuated with a nip at his earlobe.
"Shi," Itachi warned.
"Hm?" His hand drifted lower, his fingers running along the hem of Itachi's pants. He grinned satisfactorily when he felt his breath hitch. "I had to watch you train for six hours, and I couldn't do anything about it because we were in the compound. Come on, Ita, let me have this."
"Think, Shisui. What would you say if Sasuke and his team found us?"
Shisui tutted against the taut skin over Itachi's collarbone. "About time you figured it out?" he offered. "Or, maybe, this isn't even close to the kinkiest thing we've done in public?"
"You will not say that to my brother." Itachi ordered.
"Ah, there's that bark," Shisui's eyes shone with mischief as he lifted his head, resting his forehead against Itachi's. His black eyes spun into red, almost glowing in the low light. "Come on, forget lunch. I know for a fact that your parents are off on some diplomatic mission. Sasuke's busy with his little team. Your house is empty…" His teeth grazed against Itachi's jawline. He reveled in the sigh that he pulled from the oh-so-composed Uchiha. He was winning, and he knew it. Roughly, he captured Itachi's lips with his own, pulling them together with the grip he'd maintained on his hips. When they broke apart, Itachi was breathless, exactly the image he'd wanted to capture. Shisui allowed his eyes to return to normal.
"Fine," Itachi agreed, which was his version of an enthusiastic yes. With a single handsign, Shisui flickered them out of sight, leaving no trace of their presence. The next thing that Itachi knew, they were standing in his kitchen. Before he could gather his thoughts, Shisui was tearing at the hem of his shirt, pulling it up and over Itachi's head. The two of them collided, and one after the other, their hitai-ate clattered down onto the tatami mat. Shisui's fingers made deft work of the cord holding Itachi's hair back. He grinned when it fell free, knotting his hands in Itachi's long hair.
Itachi relented when he felt Shisui's hands on the back of his thighs. He allowed the taller man to lift him up, wrapping his legs around Shisui's bare waist. Although he had enough core strength to support himself, he laced his arms around Shisui's neck for good measure. His companion's fingertips dug into his skin, seeking purchase. Their combined weight made Shisui stagger when he took a step. Abandoning that idea, he shuffled forward just far enough that Itachi's back made contact with one of the wooden beams.
Pulling back just enough to speak, Itachi murmured against his lips. "Bedroom."
"Why?" Shisui mused, catching Itachi's bottom lip between his teeth for a few agonizing seconds. "No one's here." Pleadingly, he added, "It's been two weeks."
"It was yesterday."
"Before yesterday, it was two weeks."
"Shisui…" Itachi rolled his eyes.
Breath ghosted Itachi's ear when his lover whispered, "That's not how I want you to say my name." The resulting shiver that went down Itachi's spine was an embarrassment, but it only encouraged the onslaught. He stifled a groan when Shisui ground his hips into his, stuck between the wooden beam and his companion.
"Shisui," Itachi panted.
"Now that's more like it," Shisui chuckled, catching Itachi's lips once more. Itachi was putty in his hands, and he had every intention of exploiting his power. With a sudden movement, he moved away from the support beam and fumbled until Itachi's back lay on top of the low table. Any protest he might have made was dispelled by the way Shisui ran his hands over his body.
Itachi grabbed a fistful of Shisui's curly, black hair as the other man began to trail his lips down from his neck. Special attention was paid to his collarbone, his sternum, his ribcage. The slow pace was as tantalizing as it was infuriating, and Itachi's free hand curled into a fist above his head. "Dammit," he swore breathlessly. "Hurry up."
He almost cursed him with everything he had when Shisui had the gall to slow his pace. He tugged fruitlessly at the hair in his hand, but Shisui didn't relent. They were going to do things his way, no matter how Itachi might fight him. Itachi could feel him smiling when he kissed the sensitive skin just above his navel. That son of a bitch. Instinctively, his feet lifted until his heels rested on the edge of the kitchen table. For his impertinence, Shisui languidly drug his tongue back up to his sternum, earning a groan of protest.
Once more, Shisui began his downward descent. If he looked up, he could see Itachi grinding his teeth, fighting to keep himself from making Shisui further retract what little progress he'd made. His pale, gaunt cheeks were flushed in anticipation. Shisui knew that, if he didn't get to it, Itachi would soon tackle him to the ground and take what he wanted. "Relax," he chided, pressing his lips to Itachi's tense abdominals.
"I can't believe that we're actually seeing the inside of Sasuke's house!" Naruto's voice boomed from the foyer.
Itachi and Shisui froze, like animals being hunted. Roughly, Shisui pulled Itachi into a sitting position and flickered, moving them from their compromising situation. They appeared in the safety of Itachi's bedroom, and both men sighed in relief.
"Just don't touch anything," Sasuke snapped. "And take your shoes off, idiot." He shot Naruto a glare over his shoulder. "Itachi!" he shouted, waiting for a response. "Itachi!" he cried louder. From inside Itachi's bedroom, Shusui had the Uchiha's mouth covered, shaking his head.
"Why are we here, Sasuke?" Sakura asked, trying to drink in every detail that she could.
"I let Itachi borrow my shuriken for practice; he's having his sharpened." Sasuke explained.
"Your house is a mess, man," Naruto informed him from the kitchen. "Even I know better than to leave clothes on the floor."
Biting back a retort, Sasuke stepped into the kitchen. "Dammit, Itachi!" he shouted as if his brother were here. "Don't leave your dirty shirts in the kitchen!" He stooped down to pick up his brother's mesh shirt. He didn't recognize the teeshirt he picked up next. It was a larger size than Itachi wore. Was it his father's? Why would it be out? He held it up, arching an eyebrow at it. That was strange.
Itachi slipped out of his bedroom, fully clothed, thanks to his dresser. He took his time walking down the hallway. "Oh, Sasuke, I didn't know you were home. Hi Sakura, Naruto."
"How did you not know? I called your name three times," Sasuke complained. He stalked toward his brother and shoved the shirts into his chest. "Pick your clothes up, okay? Leaving your dirty clothes in the kitchen is disgusting."
Itachi grinned disarmingly. "Sorry. Do you guys want something to eat or drink?"
Sasuke's "No" sounded at the same time as Naruto's "Yes." Itachi shook his head and made a detour to the laundry room before entering the kitchen. He pulled three sodas from the fridge and turned to distribute them to the children.
"What's this?" Sakura asked. She held up a long, leather necklace, adorned with a single silver pendant. The metal was cut into a pinwheel pattern. Itachi immediately recognized the piece of jewelry.
"I think that's Shisui's," Sasuke mused, taking the necklace from Sakura. His fingers brushed her palm when he did so, leaving her blushing. He ran his thumb over the metal. "Yeah, that's his Mangekyo."
"His what?" Naruto asked.
Sasuke looked at Naruto like he was stupid. "Mangekyo Sharingan. It's an advanced stage of our bloodline trait."
"That's right. Shisui and myself are two of the three people alive who can use it. The other is your sensei."
"Are you talking about me?" Shisui asked with a grin as he let himself in through the front door.
Acting as though he hadn't been there all along, Itachi informed him, "You left your necklace."
"Oh, thanks." He took the necklace when it was offered to him by Sasuke. He pulled it over his head and let it rest on his chest. He was lucky enough to have abandoned a shirt beneath Itachi's bed, which he now wore.
"Why are you here?" Sasuke asked him, narrowing his eyes. It was hilarious how threatened he felt.
"Itachi and I have things to do," he answered vaguely. Itachi resisted the urge to cover his face with his hands. Shisui looked over at him. "Your hair's down."
So it was. Apparently he'd missed that little detail. It was shameful that a ninja of his caliber would forget something like that. "I'd been brushing it when Sasuke got home. I was going to braid it."
"You need some help with that?" Shisui inquired.
"If you don't mind."
"Not before you give me my Shuriken," Sasuke interrupted. "I need them for practice."
"Oh, right. One second." Itachi stepped out of the kitchen. Shisui grinned at Sasuke, who glowered back at him.
"So, Shisui, do you live here?" Sakura asked, attempting to make small-talk.
"No," Sasuke snapped.
"I might as well," Shisui laughed, crossing his arms. "I've been hanging around here since before Sasuke here was born."
"You and Itachi are that close, huh?" Naruto tilted his head.
"Closer, probably. Enough to make little Sasuke jealous."
Sasuke opened his mouth to retort, but Itachi had returned. He handed his little brother his pouch of shuriken. "Thanks for lending them to me."
"Yeah. No problem." Sasuke was looking around him, narrowed eyes fixed on Shisui. Itachi looked behind him, but Shisui just shrugged.
"Will you be home for dinner?"
"Later tonight," Sasuke informed him. "I have work to do." He turned and walked to the front door without another word.
"Make good choices!" Shisui called jokingly after the group of pre-teens. The door clicked shut, and Itachi turned to glare at him. "What? Oh, come on. We're fine, Ita."
Itachi ran a hand through his long hair, rolling his eyes.
"Shall we pick up where we left off?" Shisui inquired, arching an eyebrow as he moved closer.
"Bedroom," Itachi commanded, pointing to the other side of the house.
"But-"
"You've lost kitchen privileges. Bedroom. Now."