Moonlit Nights Chapter 1, a naruto fanfic

Moonlit Nights - Chapter 01: The Wandering Child

Like most things for KisaIta week, this fanfic follows the week's parts. This one is about the first meeting. Hope you enjoy this fic!

The full moon was the main source of light that night. The glimmering of the light reflected against the gently rippling surface of the water.

Kisame did not expect to see anyone else there that night, as he walked towards the pier. He had a small boat, nothing special. He stole it a few years back, from a drug dealer who had died through a series of unfortunate events. Really, it might as well belong to him now. No one would come searching for it.

He had just been walking back that night, his feet ruffling through the sand, a bag by his side that contained some groceries. It was then that he saw it, a small child sitting along the pier, his feet dangling down against the water.

"Hey kid, you should go home." Kisame said as he strode next to his boat. "It's too cold and there are some thugs in the area, you don't want to get caught by one of them."

The kid did not respond at all, and it was too dark. Maybe there was no kid, just a stick against the pier. Kisame refrained from kicking it into the water when a breeze flew through the kid's long hair, proving it was in fact, a kid. He shook his head and went into his little boat.

He turned on some Tchaikovsky. He reached for his small knife collection and began cutting the vegetables into a salad. He had some takeout soup and some cheese that should be dinner for the night.

Kisame spread dressing onto his salad and sighed, breathing in the scent of vegetables mixing with the salty sea air. It was a great scent, one he had fallen in love with.

It was decided then. He would eat outside and enjoy the nice autumn breeze. Kisame hummed and got his salad ready. He would come back for the soup.

He stepped outside and froze when he noticed the child still sitting there, stock still.

"Hey kid?" Kisame asked.

"Hn?" The kid grunted in reply.

"It's dangerous out here. You should go home."

"I have no place to go." The kid responded calmly. "Am I bothering you? I will leave." The kiss was speaking slowly, enunciating each word and in a long drawl. His voice was scratchy and forced, as if he had something stuck in his throat.

"Did you eat yet?" Kisame asked, feeling a pang of guilt. He knew what it was like to be starving on the streets. He had lived a nomadic life after escaping the hell his parents had created for him.

"... No." The kid admitted after a long pause.

"Get in." Kisame said, going back into his boat with the light. He wanted to get a good look at the kid before offering him food, plus most of what he had was inside anyway.

He headed into his boat and didn't look for see if the kid followed or not, he just kept the lights on and placed his salad on the small plastic table. He went behind the bar where he had a crate of bottled water. There was no fridge but the crate had enough. He picked out two bottles just as he felt the boat tip slightly with the entrance of another.

Kisame took a deep breath, half expecting a scream when the boy entered. Kisame's skin was a sickly greyish blue, completely abnormal. As a child, his father had tried to kill him and left permanent markings on his face and arms, which he later tattoo'ed over to resemble a shark. He was an unwelcome entity based on looks alone.

When he heard no scream, Kisame looked up and nearly dropped the bottle in shock.

The kid was broken. The kid was beautiful. He had pale porcelain skin and dark, dirt filled black hair. He has bruises on his neck and face as if he were recently in a fight, and he was tiny, easily half of Kisame's height - he was probably just a kid. Yet even then he was hauntingly beautiful, none of the purplish black bruises or the dirty hair detracted from it. The bags around his eyes giving him an exhausted appearance did nothing.

"Water?" Kisame offered, holding out a bottle. "This... You can wash your hands in the sink... Over in the bathroom there. There's a basin of water for washing."

Itachi said nothing but went to the bathroom and Kisame couldn't help but look down towards Itachi's sandy, dirt crusted hands, straight and straight towards those long, pale fingers.

The kid was clearly abused, possibly a runaway. He was also incredibly naive to simply walk into a stranger's boat, no questions asked.

It was a while before the kid emerged from the bathroom, having washed off most of the gunk from his face and hands. Kisame took the time to drop the bottled water onto the small bench style table and set a second set of food, dividing between the two of them and adding whatever few fruits Kisame had lying around.

"You can sit." Kisame said, sitting opposite the kid. "And you can eat, if you tell me your story. Food for a story, fair deal?"

"Yes." The kid said in response, sitting down opposite and eyeing the food hungrily.

"Name's Kisame." Kisame began. "You tell yours and start." Kisame took a bite of salad.

The kid stared at the food carefully, avoiding Kisame's gaze as he turned the salad over with his fork, as if checking for something. Eventually, he picked it up and carefully slid the salad dressing against his lower lip, not taking a bite.

Kisame watched with interest as the boy blinked in what would be a rather strange way, almost robotically, turning over the water.

"Itachi." The kid said after a few moments, during which he licked his lips and took a small bite of the salad. "My name is Itachi. I am just a kid. I was thrown out of my home for being... A bad kid. Then I came here because it was the direction I was facing. There's nothing else to say really."

Kisame highly doubted that. "Really? So you have nothing to say about the bruises on your face? About your black eye or anything?"

Itachi began eating his salad in larger bites. It seemed he had deemed the water worthy as well as he downed half of the bottle in a quick gulp, touching his neck wearily as he did so.

"I fell down on the way over. I was weak from not eating."

"Are you lying to me?" Kisame asked.

"Yes." The answered, taking another bite. "Do you care?"

"I'd rather know the truth."

"I'd rather not tell it. I told you a story, like you asked."

Kisame couldn't argue that point. He sat back then, observing Itachi. "Very well, you told me a story. Once you're done... We can go to the police and they can take care of you. I wasn't kidding when I said this place isn't safe for kids. They can get you into a home like you deserve, it won't be the same one you came from, probably."

If Itachi felt anything at these words, he made no mention of it. Instead, he continued eating. "Okay, thank you."

And so they ate in relative silence. Itachi seemed to approach each thing with caution, eating everything quickly after he deemed it worthy. Kisame figured he was a picky eater and wanted to make sure everything was tasty - strange for a starving street rat, but what else could it be?

Music played in the background in a loop and Itachi took his time finishing the food. When he was done, he excused himself to wash his hands. Kisame reached for his phone to look up the nearest police station.

He waited. And he waited. Kisame waited an entire hour before deciding to get up and check to see if Itachi had fallen asleep in the bathroom or something.

He knocked on the bathroom door. "Itachi? You alright?"

When he received no response, Kisame said. "Hey, I'm coming in, alright? Just to make sure you're okay."

"That little weasel." Kisame said as soon as he opened the door to find it empty. Itachi had run off, right under his nose!

Kisame didn't expect to see Itachi again, ever. He was surprised then, when a month later he was walking through a different town. His mother had died and he was here to collect his inheritance. It was a moderate amount. Kisame's parents were bound by the law of their tribe to give wealth equally among siblings, otherwise Kisame was sure he would have gotten nothing at all. As it was, he now owned his family's sword, Samehada, and a few properties. Kisame took it in stride and stayed with his sister to help her through her mourning.

His sister left to go back to work before he did, and he planned to stay in town just a short while longer, before buying a bigger boat and going out to sea. Maybe he'd do some sort of business before settling down someplace alone.

It was a week after the funeral had ended, on a night with a full moon. The light shone against the glass buildings, barely visible against the trees and street lamps of the town.

It started when he heard a familiar voice. "Please!" The voice croaked. "Leave me alone!"

Kisame ran. He ran towards the voice with a speed he didn't know he was capable of. His mind scurried and brought forth a name that had haunted him for weeks.

Kisame rounded a corner to see Itachi surrounded by several men in black suits, many of them twice as tall as he.

Itachi looked even worse than last time Kisame had seen him, the bones of his face were visible and his eyes were hallowed out.

"We cannot, you will come with us." A man answered.

"No." Itachi said, "This is my final warning, leave!"

The men answered by taking out guns. Kisame jumped back and fisted his hands to fight. Guns? Against a kid? What the hell?

But he didn't even enter the fight, for as soon as he was about to move he felt a gun to his head. "Boss, there's a witness."

"Kill him." A man, presumably the boss said. And that was the last thing he said that night, for in the next minute Itachi moved. And Itachi moving was unlike anything Kisame had ever seen before.

Itachi's eyes glowed red, black swirls rotated in his eyes, and he moved with a superhuman movement. He took down all the men within a minute and Kisame only stood their with his mouth hanging open.

It took him until then to realize that the man with the gun to his head had also fallen by Itachi's hand and that Itachi was remarkably close to him, staring up at him with red eyes. The street lamp above flickered briefly as their gazes locked both in equal wonderment.

Then Itachi collapsed, falling to the floor, dirty black hair splayed against the concrete. Itachi had no shoes, he was barefoot with bleeding, broken soles, some yellowed from infection.

Kisame didn't think, he picked up Itachi and ran, ran straight for the hotel. He entered through the side entrance so the main office wouldn't see, taking the elevator straight up. Luckily, very few people were around at this time of night so Kisame ran into no one as he inserted his keycard and took Itachi in.

Who was this kid?

For now, he was just a kid, and Kisame understood enough to know that if men in suits were hunting him, he wasn't safe here, and certainly not with the police. Men in suits who would point a gun at a child.

Kisame had no intention of infringing on kid's privacy, but he was in desperate need of a bath. Kisame went to the fridge and picked out another bottled water, leaving it by the side table.

At the side table, Kisame picked up the card with phone numbers and dialed for the front desk.

"Hello?" A woman on the other end spoke.

"Hello, is room service available at this time?"

"It's available 24/7 sir. There is a menu in the side desk, would you like to order something?"

"Yes, hold on." Kisame pulled the desk and looked through the menu. "I'd like stuffed mushrooms, Cuban rolls, basil, tomato and cheese flatbread and the garlic alfredo pasta with all the meats in it. And... Some cake too."

Itachi looked like he needed a lot of meat. Kisame looked at Itachi again, wondering how someone so small could be so dangerous.

Room service arrived almost thirty minutes later. Itachi was still asleep as Kisame brought the food in, leaving it on the office desk near the window.

Kisame pulled out a note and pen from the desk and writes quick note.

Itachi,

I am going out for a bit. Eat as much as you want, take a bath, don't leave. It's not safe for you. I won't take you to the police or give you away, promise. You're safe here, no one knows you're here. Call me at 010-547-2630 if you need anything. Be back soon.

Kisame

Kisame left the note by the food and left, nearly running to the department store across the street. At least one good thing about big cities was that everything you needed was literally right there.

He shopped at an insane speed, not sure what urged him on. He picked up clothes he was sure would be too big, but the closest he could find to Itachi's size without a sizing. Just a simple pair of jeans and the cheapest t-shirt he could find. He half couldn't believe himself when he tossed underwear into the mix. Simple sandals and, for the heck of it, a blonde wig and sunglasses. Plastic wrap and scissors as well.

It took all of ten minutes in his rush, and with some help, and he was done, going through self checkout and bagging the clothes.

When he returned, Itachi was still asleep when he returned. Kisame picked up his note, crumpled it up, and tossed it in the trash, glad he returned before Itachi could run away again.

It wasn't that he cared for the kid or anything, but he knew what it was like to be chased by some higher power. Years ago, Kisame had fought the same battle, though he was older and able to handle it. He would, at the very least, get this kid a disguise before sending him on his way.

Then he would go buy his boat and travel forever, or so Kisame had decided.

Kisame placed the plastic wrap along the floor so Itachi's bloody feet wouldn't ruin the carpet and convince the housekeeping staff that someone had died.

By the time Itachi finally woke up, the food was cold. Kisame watched as Itachi groaned, fingers curving into the plush bed beneath.

"Relax, you're safe. No one knows you're here." They were the first words out of Kisame's mouth. He knew they were there only ones Itachi would want to hear.

Itachi's onyx eyes met Kisame's beady black ones.

"Why?"

"I know what it's like." Kisame answered. "There's food. Eat."

And so it was a repeat of their last meeting. Itachi leaving to go wash his hands first, coming back significantly less dirty than before.

Itachi had been walkin carefully along the plastic wrap below before standing awkwardly.

"Go on, sit and eat at the desk." Kisame waved to the food, and Itachi complied.

Like before, Itachi ate his food with great care. He rubbed the alfredo sauce against his lip and waited before eating it. Kisame took note of how Itachi avoided eating the meat entirely.

"Aren't you going to ask?" Itachi wondered aloud.

"You'd lie." Kisame said simply. "There's no need to tell me anything at all."

Itachi hummed in response, just for a moment before reaching for the water and downing the entire bottle.

Kisame waited until Itachi was done before reaching for the clothes and wig in his bag.

"Here are some clothes you can change into. You seriously need a bath. Go clean up."

"I can't pay you." Itachi said finally.

"You don't have to. Consider it good will."

"There's no such thing." Itachi answered. "I am already in your debt. What can I do for you?"

"You can go take a bath." Kisame insisted, and so Itachi took the clothes and went to take a bath. Likely, he had to put his pride aside for the luxuries of clothes, or risk death. It almost hurt for Kisame to think it. Almost.

Kisame picked up the scissors and tore off the papery and plastic covers keeping it together. He pulled out his phone and began looking up hairstyles until Itachi was done.

Itachi took two hours in the shower. It was no surprise considering he was wounded and probably hurt. It was no surprise considering how much dirt he was flayed in.

Kisame was however, surprised when Itachi emerged, glowing and beautiful. It was amazing what a simple bath could do for someone's appearance. The clothes were certainly too big, but they did the job, which is what mattered. Itachi's old ones drenched in mud and dirt, torn and in tattered, were sadly the exact same ones, though barely recognizable, that Kisame had seen the first time he had met Itachi.

"Let's cut your hair." Kisame said instantly. "They will recognize you with your long hair. Let me."

Itachi blinked in surprise, but did not argue as Kisame gestured him back inside. Kisame mentally noticed how the bathtub had no dirt in it even though Itachi had clearly used it. Itachi had rinsed off the tub after using it, how thoughtful.

It wasn't a good job. Kisame had never given anyone a haircut before, and it was probably uneven in a lot of places. Still, Kisame had managed to cut off all of Itachi's long hair so that it now lay short and limped, clinging to Itachi's forehead. Kisame wanted dearly to leave Itachi's bangs, so he only trimmed them, he did like them quite a lot.

It was Itachi who instantly began cleaning the mess after, while stating a very polite "thank you."

Kisame didn't argue it, but did feel moved by the kid's politeness. How many street rats were so well mannered?

Itachi returned and sat across Kisame, on the sofa. His back was straight, proud and he looked directly at Kisame. It was unnerving that a child could look at him as if he thought of Kisame as an equal, not an adult from whom to follow orders.

"I got you a wig and sunglasses." Kisame said finally. "And sandals. Your feet you know... That way you can run from the suits."

"Thank you." The child repeated again. "Can I... Can I do something for you? Help you out?"

Kisame shook his head. What was with this kid? This kid who clearly had nothing yet wanted to do something?

"Stay safe." Kisame said, with a sigh.

Itachi nodded and then leaned forward and retched, bile spilling onto the floor before his eyes rolled back. Kisame caught him before he fell into it, consciousness lost.

Kisame rolled Itachi onto the bed and called for room service once more, this time to demand a new room and for added benefit, put the blonde wig on Itachi while the kid slept.

Carrying Itachi in the middle of the night to the new room looked pretty suspicious. A passing women eyed them but made no comment as Kisame entered the new room, identical to the last one. He dropped Itachi onto the bed and took a good look at Itachi. A real one this time.

Itachi was more beat up than he had last seen him. Kisame didn't want to breach Itachi's privacy by checking on his wounds in other places, but he had the vague feeling that Itachi was probably wounded where Kisame couldn't reach.

Another trip to the department store then. Kisame wrote an identical note to last time before leaving for the second time that night on a trip he never thought he'd take. Part of him wondered what he'd gotten into it. Any feelings of regret he might have had disappeared when he remembered the attitude Itachi had shown and the guns pointed at his face.

This time, Kisame rushed for entirely different reasons. He picked up a full medkit, and additional salves, alcohol and bandages. His feet had been infected - he'd need to see an actual doctor for that.

Kisame texted his sister. "I'm coming to see you. Have Darui there too. Will arrive by morning."

And with that, Kisame went through self checkout again, hurrying back to his hotel after.

Unlike last time, Itachi was awake, note in hand as Kisame returned.

"Why...?" Itachi croaked, his hand rubbing his bruised neck.

"I told you, I went through the same thing once."

"Tell me." Itachi said, there were tears threatening to spill out of the boy's eyes. Itachi blinked back the watering and gazed intensely at Kisame.

"I have my secrets, you have yours." Kisame answered, getting on his knees. "Now let me tend to your wounds."

Itachi did not argue, and allowed Kisame to bandage his feet and arms, refusing any other part. Kisame did not push the issue.

"I have a sister who is a doctor. Her husband too." Kisame said slowly as he bandaged. "You're going to come with me to see them, alright?"

"Alright." Itachi's eyed were heavily hooded as he fidgeted with his hands.

"Good. We're leaving now." Kisame said. "I don't trust this town full of suits."

Itachi looked up. "A different town?"

"Yeah, it's a small town in the mountains, east of here. It's an eight hour drive, think you can handle it?"

"I can handle it." Itachi nodded.

Itachi was silent through their ride, not wanting to speak much at all. That was fine with Kisame, who turned up the music, heavy metal or classic rock, and drove purposefully to the getaway where his sister lived.

They stopped only once and Kisame insisted that Itachi pick up some snacks from the snack aisle at the gas station. Itachi carefully picked up one bag of potato chips. Kisame looked, then picked up four more, random candies and chocolates and a few cold bottles of water.

Itachi's eyes only widened at the display, but said nothing at all. On the road again, Kisame turned off the music and asked Itachi to eat, and also to feed him some chips as they drove.

The road was long curvy and drove for hours.

"Do you have a family Itachi?" Kisame asked. "I have only one sister, both parents are gone."

"I have a brother." Itachi said. "He was adopted by some family friends. My parents are dead."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Kisame answered. "Is your brother alright? Not hunted?"

"He's fine, he will be happy. He's in good hands." Itach said impassively.

Kisame didn't press any further. "So you like candy, huh?"

"I like sweet things." Itachi agreed, chewing on a gummy lifesaver. "Chocolate is great too."

And so Kisame managed to get Itachi to talk a bit. He learned the strangest things, such as the fact that Itachi had learned to speak over thirty languages because of a strict education. Kisame was thoroughly impressed.

"I like history." Itachi said, and began telling the entire history of Italy to Kisame, who couldn't help but zone out at certain parts. It was like being in school again.

They arrived to the town in the mountains. The house they arrived at was located literally on top of a mountain, about an acre and half away from the next house, all along a singular lane of a long hilly stretch.

Kisame pulled up and asked if he could carry Itachi in.

Itachi refused, wincing as he walked. Still, he refused help, and Kisame allowed it.

"Your wig is lopsided." Kisame reached over and pulled it off. "You won't need it here don't worry."

And Itachi nodded.

Umi came out, her long navy blue hair flowed behind her as he rushed outside. "Kisame!" Soon her arms were flung around Kisame's neck and the two embraced.

"Umi, this is Itachi. His feet are infected and I fear he has suffered... Some fights and needs medical attention."

Umi looked at Itachi and cupped her hand around Itachi's cheeks. "You look pretty beat up. Come on in."

Darui waited for them by the entrance, greeting them and allowing them inside.

Kisame stretched. "I'm beat. I didn't get any sleep and drove eight hours straight here."

The sun was just rising where they were. "I'm going to go get some sleep."

Kisame went to his usual room and fell asleep instantly when his head fell against the pillows.

When Kisame woke, the sun was still high in the sky and someone had opened his window. The fresh mountain breeze greeted him and he rose to look out at the beautiful mountainscape before heading on down, from where he could smell food cooking.

Umi and Darui were were cooking together, as they often did.

"Chicken pot pie today." Umi announced as Kisame greeted them.

"Thanks for the coffee." Kisame grinned as he noted Darui already turning the coffee machine on for them.

"No problem." Darui stirred.

"Okay so, Itachi has some serious wounds. It's good his infection hasn't spread or we would have to amputate. As it is, I've got some antibiotics for him. Darui went and got them in town. We managed to fix him up as best we can for now but he is severely malnourished and weak. He will need at least a month for a full recovery."

"Think we could crash here till then?" Kisame asked.

"You're always welcome here." Umi said. "Plus then we can keep an eye on the kid. What's his story?"

"Dunno. But I plan to keep him safe."

"Might be illegal, he's clearly underage. Maybe 13 or 14 at most." Darui commented. "Child protection services will be after us. He needs to be in school."

"Keep it a secret then." Kisame said. "Some bad people are chasing him." Well okay, he didn't know the ones in suit were the bad guys. For all he knew it was Itachi. "Just keep it down and don't tell anyone."

Umi and Darui exchanged a look, but both agreed to it.