Itachi refused to let his surprise show on his face. He didn't think the Copy-Ninja figured it out on his own – the man was a genius but the Akatsuki was still relatively unknown. Some one had slipped up; they'd need to be more careful and alert Pein-sama.
"Kisame! Take Kakashi with us! The others, let them disappear from this world." Kisame grinned and charged the three Konoha ninjas only to be kicked back by a man in horrifying green spandex. Itachi warned Kisame not to take the man lightly and focused on making a plan to get Kakashi.
"We are not here to fight a war…even though it's a shame to leave, but to stay here is meaningless. Let's go." Itachi saw Kisame look at him from the corner of his eye. Kisame said something about getting excited, causing a distraction for him. Itachi used the body flicker jutsu and lifted Kakashi from the woman Maito Gai had handed him to. As soon as he had Kakashi in his hands, they both disappeared.
They only stopped once on their way back to the hide out and that was only so Itachi could readjust his grip on the gray haired man. Itachi knew there was no reason to rush to the hideout now that they were far from Konoha. It wasn't like Kakashi was going to wake up anytime soon. In fact it was stupid to rush, Tsukuyomi drained his chakra and the speed they were using combined with Kakashi's weight was wearing him out.
Kisame was tempted to ask his partner why he'd taken the gray haired man rather than killing him. Though rather than anger the tiring teenager, he let him be. But when Itachi nearly collapsed he put his foot down. "Itachi-kun let me carry him."
Itachi hesitated, reluctant to hand over his captive. Mentally smacking himself (since he was being rather dumb) he handed over the Jounin. Kisame slung the man over his shoulder and put a steadying hand on the younger man's shoulder. "We should rest." He said.
"No, we need to get to the hide out." Itachi shook Kisame's hand and continued.
"Itachi, you're being stupid." Kisame grabbed Itachi and forced him to the ground. The younger man went down easily, his legs collapsing under him. "What's your deal, Itachi?" He asked setting Kakashi on the ground. Itachi ignored him and slipped out of his cloak, they were at the border of Fire and Sand so it was boiling. Kisame rolled his eyes at sat next to his moody partner. Itachi slipped his hand in the pocket of his pants and felt the ring he'd placed there earlier. He knew it was Orochimaru's ring, Sky, but he wasn't sure how the Copy-Nin had gotten it. To his knowledge the snake sannin took the ring with him everywhere - on his original hand no less. There was much they could learn from the Kyuubi container's teacher - if he survived that is. Itachi hadn't been gentle with Tsukuyomi and only the best of healers could fix its effects. Pein-sama's skills would be put to the test.
Kisame glanced at Itachi, the Uchiha was spaced in deep thought and Kisame had the urge to poke him in the forehead. He almost did, until Kakashi made a soft noise of pain gaining his attention. "I thought his mind shut down..." Kisame murmured.
"No, he's deep in his unconscious. He's still feeling the effects of Tsukuyomi. In a few hours he'll be taken by fever."
"Why?" Kisame had seen the Tsukuyomi several times but none of it's victims ever survived.
"His mind is convinced he's been stabbed for seventy two hours. So it'll make his body think it has the wounds and wounds untreated get infected." Itachi turned his gaze towards the sinking sun. "What've we got for food?" Kisame dug in their packs and pulled out a small ration of dried meat and rice cakes. He also planted Itachi's canteen next to him. They ate in silence as the sun finally dropped below the horizon. "I'll take first watch." Kisame said. Itachi spread his cloak on the ground and pillowed his head beneath his arms.
His dulled black eyes closed quickly and the next moment Kisame was waking him for his watch. He blinked slowly as he sat up - though he didn't appear it, he was quite alert. Itachi walked over to Kakashi, his steps made no sound. He could tell from standing above the man - even with his deteriorating eyesight - the man was sweating with fever. To get an idea of how high he took off the forehead protector and placed his hand on the man's slick brow. The fever was high and dangerous.
"Damnit." He muttered, they didn't need the man dead. Itachi tore a stripe of his cloak and soaked it with the cool water from his canteen. Itachi took off the man's flak jacket and the bandages on his legs. He pushed up the legs of his pants, the sleeves of his arms and the waist of his shirt. It would have been better to strip him completely but they were in a rather open place that wasn't ideal for a quick getaway with a naked ninja. This would have to do. It would also help to lower the mask the silver haired man wore but for some reason - even to the S-ranked criminal - that felt... wrong. Itachi couldn't understand - he slaughtered his family without feeling yet he couldn't take down a sick man's mask?
'Meh, emotions suck.' Itachi thought darkly. He sensed unfamiliar chakra in the distance. It wasn't very strong from this distance but it would be unwise to linger. The Uchiha waited for a cycle of 10 minutes to pass to see if the chakra would change direction. When it failed to Itachi threw a rock at Kisame's side. The shark like man sprang to his feet with Samehada raised.
"We need to move." Itachi said softly. Kisame nodded unhappily. He still didn't like the way Itachi looked - still too peaky. The Konoha Jounin looked worse though.
"We're going slow. Unless they catch up to us quickly there's no need to rush." Itachi just gathered their things and Kakashi's clothes. He understood why Kisame wanted to go slow and he himself didn't fancy being carried by the shark man.