"Itachi, Leader-sama wants us to split up for the moment," Kisame said to his partner. Itachi nodded, acknowledging what the leader wanted. His partner wandered off, probably to follow the leader's orders.
Itachi was left alone to wander for the time being until the Akatsuki leader would call him for his next mission. He had nothing better to do, so he headed over to a nearby city, one that he would never forget, Ikebukuro.
It was one of the many places that weren't a ninja village. It was different from what Itachi was used to, the streets here were much more louder and seemed to be filled with more energy. The city looked more advanced with technology as well, since the ninja world had refused to use such technology to better train their people, they saw such things as distractions.
Itachi walked down the street, he had taken off his Akatsuki robe just in case anyone here would notice him, and was wearing his regular clothing.
"Sushi! Sushi half off! Would you like to try some sushi?" A giant dark man asked Itachi, who shook his head and walked off. Simon was struck by his this. Very few people said no to him, most just ran away in fear of him.
"Come on, Shizu-chan," A voice said, catching Itachi's attention. He turned to see a black haired male, taunting a blonde bartender. The bartender picked up one of the stop signs, and instantly threw it at the other man. Itachi sighed at this act of violence.
"Get back here, you flea!" The blonde man had shouted as the black haired man managed to get away from the blonde's wrath. Shizuo cursed under his breath, and felt someone staring at him. It wasn't like the many stares he was accustomed to, but a different type of stare, one that seemed to have a meaning and wasn't filled with fear.
Shizuo turned and locked eyes with the Uchiha. They held each other's gaze for a minute, but to the two it seemed like an eternity. Luckily for Shizuo, Itachi didn't have his Sharingan activated.
Shizuo was about to yell at Itachi for staring at him, but Tom appeared beside him, telling him they had to get to work. That single moment Shizuo had looked away gave Itachi the chance to get away and disappear from the man's sight.
Shizuo went on his own way, back to his next work place, while Itachi saw him leave from afar. He went in the opposite direction afterwards.
Later that day, when the moon had rose upon the city, Itachi was peacefully sipping on some tea he had purchased a while ago. He stopped to sit down and relax for a while as people continued to walk past him. He was amazed at how many people were still up and running at this time of night, ninja villages were only busy in the day.
That's when he noticed that blonde man from earlier. He was talking to a girl on a motorcycle. Itachi was unable to tell how she looked because of her helmet, but he felt some odd power, or chakra, come from her. She drove off after talking to Shizuo through her phone.
He was smoking, as usual, and once again felt that same stare land upon him. Shizuo looked up to see the same man from earlier, this time his eyes were different. He could have sworn they were black, but they had changed to red eyes with markings in them. Shizuo walked up to Itachi and sat down next to him. They sat in silence until one of them broke it.
"You new here?" Shizuo casually asked.
"Yes," Itachi answered instead of his usual nod. That explained the staring.
The two went back into their silence as they watched the various people walk by. Both being the quiet type, neither really minded the silence between them. Itachi finished his tea and Shizuo his cigar, simultaneously.
"If I were you, I'd stay clear of that damn flea," Shizuo told Itachi.
"Why do you dislike him?" Itachi asked, a bit curious to find out the reason for his hatred. Shizuo crushed his cigar in two.
"He's been causing nothing but trouble in my life," He answered, holding back his anger. If Izaya were to appear, he would have thrown Itachi at him.
"Hn," Itachi commented. He got up to leave, so he would be able to find a place to stay for a while, but Shizuo stopped him.
"Do you have a place to stay?" He asked.
"No."
"You can stay at my place if you like," Shizuo offered. He had been told by Tom to try and make some friends, so why not start with this man? He didn't seem all that dangerous.
"I will accept your offer," Itachi spoke.
"Name's Heiwajima Shizuo."
"Uchiha Itachi."
The two had gotten along rather well for being quiet and reserved. Itachi had spent a week with the man and they had learned quite a lot about each other, though they both refused to talk about their pasts. Neither wanted to bring up that subject.
Most of the time, Itachi stood in Shizuo's home, only occasionally going out to explore the city or to buy dango. Shizuo enjoyed his company, finding how alike they were. Though, Itachi was a bit more mysterious, Shizuo figured out that he didn't exactly like his life. They both had problems they wish they could have avoided, only wanting their life to be filled with peace.
And that's exactly what it felt like when they were together. The world seemed to be at peace when they were in each other's presence.
"Aww, Shizu-chan has a boyfriend that isn't me?" Izaya teased Shizuo.
"I don't have a boyfriend," Shizuo growled at Izaya. "He's just a friend."
"I've seen you two together, Shizu-chan. You both look really happy," Izaya smiled at this. He was going to love messing with Shizuo and his new love interest.
"IZAYA!" Shizuo shouted as he picked up a garbage can and chucked it at him. Of course, he dodged it and attempted to run away. Before he did, Izaya managed to catch a rare sight, Shizuo blushing.
Back at Shizuo's home, Itachi had received a message from his leader. It was time for him to stop whatever he was doing and head back into his mission to capture the tailed beasts. He knew this short vacation, or whatever it had truly been, would have to come to an end, but he didn't want it to. Itachi didn't want to leave Shizuo. He knew he would never be back.
When Shizuo went home, he was expecting to see Itachi lying on the couch. He was surprised to find a note there instead.
Go to where we first met, was all it said.
Shizuo was confused by this. If Itachi had something to say to him, he would just say it. Why had he left this note instead?
So, he headed over to the same place where the two had their first conversation. Itachi was standing there, but this time he was wearing a black cloak with red clouds on it.
"What is it, Itachi?" Shizuo asked.
"I have to leave," Itachi wavered before answering his question.
"What?" Shizuo almost shouted. He knew Itachi was here for a break, but the timing of him appearing and leaving was just so sudden.
"I got a call from my boss. He wants me back," Itachi said, remaining emotionless. Shizuo was speechless.
"I do not wish to go, but…there is something I must do," He continued not wanting to give anything away. It was almost time for him to confront his brother. Shizuo felt a pain in his heart. Why was this? When people left, he never felt anything. So, why was his leaving any different? And why did he have an odd feeling that he'd never see him again?
"When will I see you again?" Shizuo asked.
"I'm not sure," Itachi answered averting his gaze. He couldn't tell him about the future. Shizuo's anger began to grow. He wanted to know what the pain in his heart was and why Itachi was leaving him. Itachi saw this, his anger, and appeared before him in an instant.
"I'm sorry, Shizuo," He said as he gently kissed the man on his lips. The anger Shizuo felt had melted away, along with any other negative emotion. Itachi felt the guilt in him disappear, even if it were only for a few seconds. As they kissed, they both felt a moment of peace.
"I love you, Itachi," Shizuo said as Itachi broke away from the kiss.
"And I love you, Shizuo," As he spoke, his body turned into crows, surprising Shizuo. Itachi had dispersed into crows, leaving him alone.
In rage and confusion, Shizuo did what he normally did when he was angered, throw the nearest thing in sight. Itachi watched this as he was leaving Ikebukuro. For the second time in his life, tears began to flow from Itachi's eyes.
He would never forget the peaceful time he had in Ikebukuro, even as he died. He did not regret the time spent with Shizuo, or the kiss he had given to him. What he did regret was leaving Shizuo alone. He would never find out about Itachi's death, he would never be able to move on.
Shizuo would always be waiting for the Uchiha to return. Waiting to share the peaceful moment with the man he loved again.
