Along Came a Spider

Disclaimer:

I do not own the anime or manga Naruto. This is a Fanfiction based upon my own imagined storyline being superimposed and imagined over the baseline characters of the Naruto Manga/Anime which belongs to Kishimoto-san. There is no gain financial or otherwise from this story, and I write to fuel only my own creativity.

The story created here, which is superimposed upon Naruto Characters, however is created by me. I would appreciate it not be duplicated in any way, nor posted elsewhere- unless done by myself. Appreciate it.

Chapter 1: The Yamanaka Ball

Mizuki watched the headlights of the lone car winding its way up the lush 10 acre gardens, towards the entrance of the Yamanaka mansion. It was a bitterly cold winter evening, and now at 8 pm, the sun had long set leaving the stately cast iron lamp posts that lined the estate's long drive to illuminate the extensive grounds by night. Mizuki had been in the Yamanaka family service as a watch-guard and footman for 5 years now. The white haired uniformed agent wondered with a vague disinterest, whom the late arrival for the birthday ball of the Yamanaka heiress could be? He had spent all evening opening doors and welcoming the over 300 elite socialite guests, and was unimpressed by the timing of this straggler. As the vehicle came round the last turn towards the overhang of the mansion's front entrance, he moved forward to get a better look and prepare to help its passenger alight. However, the car's windows were tinted pitch black. He also noted on closer inspection that the vehicle was obviously a custom make and was exclusively high end. However, it had appeared from a distance as nothing more than a nondescript black Mercedes; made to not be outstanding despite being so. Only those who could recognize its customized value, would be aware of the status it entailed. Now, curious despite himself, Mizuku moved forward to get ready to welcome this late guest.

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The Mercedes pulled to a gentle yet sharp stop at the curb-front below the front door. The pitch black windows were still hiding the identity of this late arrival. As the vehicle stopped, before Mizuki could move forward, the massively built chauffeur alighted with impossible swiftness, to open the passenger door himself. With shock, the Yamanaka footman belatedly noted the 6 foot 5 inch hulk was blue tinged, and that his facial appearance (with dentition), gave the appearance of a mix between a bestial shark and man. Kisame was a well known figure; a legend of a man, whose family had served for generations as both body guards and personal chauffeurs to the ultra elite & powerful Uchiha clan. Realizing whom this guest could be, Mizuki resumed stepping forward, only to halt in stunned admiration, as a sleek figure emerged from within the plush interior of the vehicle. The man was encased in a tailor made bespoke black Armani suit that molded to his long lean, well toned frame. Pale luminescent skin glowed in a sharp narrow face, whose masculine beauty was legendary. Framed above by rich thick long midnight black hair, Itachi Uchiha's stunningly sharp facial features were off-set below by a razor sharp jaw line; giving the man an almost inhumanely attractive appearance. More fatal than his attractive face and perfect physique however was the dense aura of mystery and power that hung about him, like a shroud. From where he had alighted, he looked up; outwardly unimpressed by enormous white marble gold gilded pillars of the massive stately manor's entrance patio, nor unaccustomed to the grandeur of the sweeping grand granite steps that sloped upwards towards the mansion's phenomenal custom built massive teak double doors, hand carved with gold inset designs, which were flanked by the highly trained and well uniformed staff of the Yamanaka household. There was barely any emotion or reaction to be read upon his poker face. Moving forward like a dark wraith, the tails of his cashmere wool trench whipped around legs as he began to climb the granite stairs towards the entrance, while his calfskin gloved right hand simultaneously raised up to dismiss Kisame, without his verbal say so.

As the car pulled away , Mizuki broke out into a sweat as he belatedly realized he had been gawking, on a job he normally could do with his eyes closed. Flustered, he hustled to catch up to this esteemed and elite guest to the Yamanaka residence. It was only as the second butler took over at the front door, and the man moved on further into the home, that Mizuki realized how unfair he felt it was, that one man could have so much, when others had nothing.

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The ball was in full swing when he arrived, intentionally late. He loathed attending these sorts of soirees, but his great grandfather had insisted, and there was no way Itachi would refuse the old man who had raised him in the stead of his own parents. Once inside, one of the many footmen led him towards the ballroom, where in regency style, a liveried butler was announcing guests as they descended the sweeping curved staircase to the ballroom below. Mentally grimacing at the show of ostentiousness- (though his face showed none of his distaste), Itachi stalled at the upper balustrade, looking down into the crowed ballroom below. The Yamanaka's had built several generations of wealth that had all begun with a great- great grandfather's (then boundary shattering) patented work on Artificial Intelligence and intelligence gathering software with subsequent developed apps by his son and grandsons in mind reading and mind control. Their creations helped run the search engines around the world, as well as feed that information to big businesses, Wall Street and other financial institutions; not to mention the government and military uses and implications it had. Anyone who was anyone had come to this birthday fiasco. Given the influence their creations gave them, no one dared to not kowtow to the Yamanaka. They could ruin you. They were also very well informed through their spyware and abilities and were revered by those in the know as the people to consult on inside information.

Itachi spied several world leaders and upper crust government officials, among a mix of several banking CEOs, not to mention the throngs of the super rich and wealthy who belonged in the same social circles as he. Standing above the grand ballroom, where the milling crowds crushed together at society's latest extravaganza, fathomless dark eyes zeroed in on the three nearly identical heads of platinum blond hair at the center of the crush. Like some sort of halo, they shimmered under the soft glow of the massive Chandelier which illuminated the Yamanaka Clan's ancestral home. There stood the patriarch of the Yamanaka clan, Inochi Yamanaka, the current head of the illustrious hosting family and his two children.

Itachi's dark gaze traced the willowy yet well endowed silhouette of Ino Yamanaka. The only daughter, Ino Yamanaka was of marriageable age, and a hot commodity. A beautiful fox like face, perfectly enhanced by her sinfully pouting lips and electric light blue eyes; the Yamanaka Heiress a site to behold. She was tinkling with laughter from something the Shimura Heir, Sai had whispered into her ear, throwing back her long swan like neck as she tittered, showing off her splendidly defined collar bones and well toned arms and shoulders, which had been left bare by the strapless $12,000 Worth ball-gown she was encased in. Her narrow build however was well endowed in all the right places, with a cleavage a goddess would envy and a plush rump. Her limbs were sculpted and shapely, and her golden hair lush and thick. Her statuesque figure and perfect facial features, when combined with her lush hair, sexuality and confidence, put to shame the other women, who appeared wan in comparison. Upon her slender neck rested several million dollars in diamonds, in the form of a Harry Winston wreath necklace, custom made with 2 ct canary diamonds with a set of matching earrings peeking out from her stunning up-do, while a matching single thick strap wreath bracelet glittered upon her slender wrist. The finishing touch was the diamond and sapphire studded hair comb set within her heavy hair, that accented the shimmering nearly sheer gauzy georgette silver blue gown she wore. Even without the embellishments of her wealth, the girl was blessed with the body of Aphrodite, and (if rumor was true- ) the intelligence of Einstein. It was well acknowledged that she had a tongue that could whip a man's ego and self esteem to tatters and was icy cold in disposition. Few would dare to wrong this heiress for she was well known in her mercilessness.

Beside the heiress, stood a taller replica of her; her brother- Deidara Yamanaka. Itachi knew personally that Deidara was red hot fire and flame, to Ino's cool ice in personality. Bequeathed with the same thick rich golden hair, stunning looks, and laser blue eyes of his sister and father, Deidara was currently surrounded by hordes of flirtatious, determined women, who pressed up against him, hoping to catch his eye. Despite being born with a golden spoon in his mouth, the Yamanaka heir had not settled on the laurels, nor upon the extraordinary wealth of his ancestors. His intelligence and temper were legendary. A youthful rebellion had led to a falling out with his father and family, and the ostracized teen heir had been cut loose for a while. In that time, Deidara had established his own corporation, under which he had singlehandedly created a counter software that literally exploded any data gathering that his family's software could do. The demand in the market for this was phenomenal. He also had created his own explosives company, and specialized in fitting drone software and apps to launch said explosives to targets otherwise unreachable to most. He had even created a spider drone that could land and attach to a person or particular space to target attacks. Not to mention a bio-prosthesis for the eyes that helped long range visualizations which militaries around the globe where investing in. These discoveries were so blatantly brilliant, and utilitarian in the world of modern warfare, that he had become wealthier than his father by the age of 23. The Yamanaka had succumbed to the brilliance of their heir, and welcomed him back with open arms and wallets. His position both in society, the world and in his social strata were now cemented and unshakable. Women flitted to him like bees to honey- and his warm disarming smile and sweet flirtatious words, belied the ruthless womanizer and dangerous lone wolf that the man really was.

Dark eyes coldly stared down at the blond girl who was talking to one eligible bachelor or another, as they lined up to catch her attention, realizing that had he not been wooing her brother for a joint business venture, he would not have attended this waste of his time at all. However, Inochi Yamanaka had less than subtly hinted that they expected him to meet the princess of their home if further collaboration was the goal. Deidara had not chimed in to his father's request. However, the blond maniac had not countered it either- leaving the Uchiha to err on the side of caution tonight.

The Uchiha were like royalty. Bloodlines so ancient, that Itachi could trace his lineage back over 800 years, all of which were used to build up the Uchiha's wealth, influence and power. There were not many other clans who could compare. The Hyuga and Senju were the few that could, but even they did not have the genetic predisposition for genius and physical attractiveness that were the trademarks of the Uchiha men and women. Very much like Dierdra, each generation of Uchiha heirs had not only carefully maintained their ancestral properties and wealth with care, but had grown and added to them. They were trillionaires and the tentacles of their power lurked in every country's financial and banking system. Aside from financial institutions, the Uchiha controlled water, natural resource distribution lines, and owned majority shares in most national debts and military equipment companies. Many a nation's war, financial insolvency and famine had been orchestrated by the legal but less than moral means of his family and their ancestors. In a world of wealth, the Uchiha were the pinnacles of its success. They had even for several generations inter-married among family to keep the wealth contained and within the family, and only in the last 3 generations had that predilection for incest ended. Now, anyone who was anyone wanted in. While Itachi was the scion of that family, and the top pick for marriage making machinations of mothers everywhere, there were others like his younger sibling, his immediate two 1st cousins and even the second tier of cousins (within the Uchiha clan), who where extremely eligible. He or his illustrious great grandfather could request and arrange marriages for social advancement if needed, as it was an understood responsibility for all within the Uchiha clan. But like everyone else, Inochi and Deidara Yamanaka hoped the stunning blond heiress of their family would catch his eye. She did. Itachi coldly observed her willowy figure and tinkling laugh with a jaded eye. He had seen such beauty and social capability once. The similarities caused a cold curl of revulsion to form in the pit of his stomach, as he continued to observe her, and was reminded of the similarity of her beauty and behavior to that of his own mother. Shaking himself from thinking upon it any deeper, Itachi decided that the sooner he met the girl, did his due diligence and danced at least once with her, the sooner he could depart. Tamping down the impatience and distaste it left in his mouth having to undergo this demeaning fiasco, Itachi moved towards the foot of the stairs. He accepted a champagne flute from a nearby server as he descended the stairs, with a lazy prowl, and the butler announced- "Itachi Uchiha!"

With that announcement, the ball room seemed to sizzle with a moment of electric expectation, as 300 guests swiveled their heads to look at the illusive heir to the Uchiha Empire. Itachi Uchiha rarely attended Debutante balls, and this was one hosted by the Yamanakas to announce their intentions to find their heiress a husband. His presence here incited a frenzy of upset among the other upper crust families with designs and hopes of their own, upon his marital status. The single women in the room began to worry anxiously, at the real possibility that the beauty of the Yamanaka clan would ensnare him, taking him off their wish list of potential husbands. Men stifled disappointment that they may have to contest against him, to gain the favor of the stunning beauty they had wished to win for their own.

Ino Yamanaka watched as Itachi descended the last few steps, and the crowd closed in on him. Both men and women simpered welcomes, and kowtowed to the Uchiha heir. However, his bored face and dull eyes seemed to hide his impatience with the whole ploy of seeking his favor. Ino stifled her amusement at his plight when she saw his eyes lift to gage his distance from her location.

Her father, Inochi, leaned into her left, and softly stated, " He has come here to meet you. I expect you to use every ploy a woman can use to reel in this fish, Ino."

On the other side , her brother softly snorted. " If you think that man would tie himself to Ino, you are delusional old man- yeah?" He sipped his champagne as he eyed the dangerously sinful, dark haired, pale moon- kissed- skinned Uchiha. "He would make her miserable," he concluded, much to her father's irritation. Inochi huffed softly, but Deidara continued unperturbed, "I'm assuming he's just toeing the line to meet our request, to ensure we continue to work with them."

Deidara looked sideways, thoughtfully at his sister to gauge her response, but became irritated when noting how fascinated she seemed to be by the dangerous Uchiha heir. Stifling his ire, he touched her elbow gently, tipping his head toward the opposite direction. " I personally think you should aim for the Subaku family heir. Sasori is a cold bastard, but at least he's loyal. Gaara is a brat, but brilliant and a much better fit. Both of them would fall hard for you,my sister. That man," Deidara tipped his head towards the Uchiha male, who was making his way towards them like a wraith, "would never be wound around your finger. You would never have his heart nor be on his mind. You would become a means to his ends, but never be cherished by him. He would marry you, just to get me to agree to his business deal- Ass," he scoffed in ire and distaste. The Uchihas would sell their souls for power and profit and for the glory of the Uchiha name. Deidara was less than impressed. He had watched the man stand above them and observe, and now he was slowly but surely prowling over their way. "Ino deserves better- yeah; than he could ever offer, father," he quietly stated, so as to not be heard by those moving in closer to the group to talk. Deidara could not fathom how Inochi could willingly sacrifice Ino's future happiness, just to marry into that family.

Irritated with Deidara's interference in his marital plans for Ino's future, Inochi sighed, "Be that as it may, there is no other man like him. You would be the Queen of the world, and while you may never control him- you would control the whole world, Ino." He watched covertly as his daughter licked her lips, as she eyed the inhumanely handsome man making his way towards them. Ino's eyes glinted with interest and attraction. Good. She was interested- and when Ino decided she wanted something, she always got it. "After all, there is no way to surely say that you would never capture his heart my dear," Inochi added for good measure.

Ino mentally decided her father was correct. She was a goddess, and only another god would do. Itachi Uchiha was going to be hers. She was the most beautiful girl to grace their social circle in years, and there could be no one more capable or qualified than her to be the Uchiha matriarch. Itachi Uchiha's stunning good looks and well known capability were only the icing and cherry on the cake that was the Uchiha clan. She was determined that she would lead that life, or she would die trying. Deidara saw the glinting challenge in his sister's eye and stifled a groan. This was going to be a big mistake.