After Sasuke told his mother about his new friend he hurried after his older brother who had gone to his room. Without so much as knocking he barged in. His brother had been in the process of taking off his shirt. Sasuke knew better than to disturb him. He silently padded to a chair in the corner of his brother's room and watched him as he finished removing the shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol, doing so revealed the Anbu tattoo placed on his left shoulder. Since Itachi had been named Anbu the two brothers had made a silent agreement. Sasuke would always be there as Itachi put on his Anbu attire, silently watching. Sometimes he'd even be the one to lay out the uniform on his brother's bed while he took care of other business, something Itachi had never allowed anyone else to do. To Sasuke, seeing his brother put on the Anbu uniform was like seeing a transformation, a whole new wave of respect washed over him as his brother but on the black and gray armor followed by the arm guards. Itachi did all this with his back turned to Sasuke. It wasn't until the porcelain cat mask was placed on the side of his head that he would turn to his brother. Sasuke would get up and grab the katana that was propped against the wall beside his seat. He'd then walk up to his brother and hand it to him. Itachi took the katana and strapped it to his back. He'd then smile down at his brother while sliding the mask so that it covered his face completely. After poking his brother's forehead once he'd leave the room and go on his mission. On that day he stopped just outside the house and looked at Sasuke through the slits of his mask.
"When I get back I'll help you with the shuriken technique, little brother." He said calmly. Sasuke's face lit up and a childish grin spread across his face but before he could say anything his brother had already left. Sasuke smiled at the direction he knew his brother had taken for a moment before shutting the door quietly. He went to the kitchen where he knew his mother was probably drinking a nice cup of tea. He slowly padded in and saw his mother sitting and serving the freshly made beverage.
"Would you like some tea, Sasuke?" she asked him without looking at him. He didn't answer; he simply got another cup and set it in front of his mother. As she served his tea he settled down beside her; the only sound in the kitchen was the tea pouring into the cup. She handed it to him; Sasuke watched the steam swirl over it and, holding it with both hands, blew on it to cool it down.
As he took his first sip his mother broke their silence. "Has your brother left then?" she asked looking at her own cup held between her two hands just like him. A lifetime of watching her drink her afternoon tea had made him adopt the way she held her cup. "Hn." He answered. As she took another sip from her cup Mikoto's lips curved into a smile, her youngest son was so cute in her eyes. Earlier that same day he had come in and started talking to her animatedly about some girl he had met and suddenly they had been sitting side by side for ten minutes and she only got one syllable out of him. "Did he say anything before he left?" she asked. "He said he'd teach me shuriken technique when he got back." Sasuke said with a cute smirk sliding along his lips as he looked up at his mother. Mikoto smiled at her youngest son and caressed his cheek lightly. "That's Nice." He closed his eyes and let his mother's caress wash over him for a while. She tried patting his spiky hair down but it stayed as stubborn as ever and she sighed, defeated. "I'm going to go finish my homework so that when Itachi helps me with my technique we can stay out longer." Sasuke informed before gulping down the rest of his tea, burning himself in the process. He grimaced but gave no other sign of pain. Mikoto closed her eyes and sighed, lightly shaking her head. Her sons, just like her husband, were always too proud to admit to any kind of pain. She stood up and got him a glass of cool water. He took it with a small grunt and quickly drank it. "Be more careful, Sasuke." She chided lightly though she found her youngest son's eagerness quite funny. He grunted in an annoyed manner to let her know that he heard her and went to his room to do his work.
Shinobi Mathematics Chapter four:
Question 1: A four man team of Shinobi has finished a mission and is returning to their village. On the way they encounter eight bandits who will not allow them to pass them without a fight. How many bandits must each member of the team fight?
Sasuke tilted his head. To him the questions seemed pretty easy.
Answer: 2.
Question 2: Another team has finished a mission and is taking the same path through the woods. They encounter the same group of bandits. This is a two man team. How many bandits must each team member fight?
Answer: 4.
Sasuke stayed completely concentrated on his work, determined to finish it before his brother came back. His mother brought him another tea while he worked and checked his answers over his shoulder. She stayed in the room with him for a moment to see if he needed any help but he didn't say a word. A proud smile made its way on her face and she left the room shutting the door.
Question 10: A group of Shinobi is given a mission. To complete it they must arrive at a village 90 miles from their current location. For the mission to be successful they must arrive within 3 days of receiving their orders. The team captain decides that they should travel the same distance each day to get to the village. How many miles does the team cover each day?
Answer: 30 miles.
Itachi watched his brother close the book and rub his eyes. He got out of his chair and turned to leave. His eyes opened slightly when he saw Itachi standing at the entrance to his room, back in his normal clothes.
"Ready to go, little brother?" he asked. "Just a minute!" Sasuke hurried to his closet and took out his ninja gear. He strapped on the little pouch with his weapons, a present from his brother from when he joined the academy, and pulled him out the door. "We're leaving now, mother. Bye!" was all Itachi could say to their mother as Sasuke pulled him out of the house and to their training ground.
"How did I do?" Sasuke asked his brother a few hours later when they stopped their training to rest under one of the trees that surrounded them. "Very good, little brother." Itachi answered as he sipped from his water bottle. He let his gaze linger on his brother who had his back against the tree and was flipping one of his shurikens into the air like one would a coin. His brother looked very content and carefree.
"Sasuke, I've been wanting to talk to you about something." He told his brother. Something about the way his brother spoke made Sasuke curious; he immediately stopped what he was doing and looked up at him. Itachi took this as a sign to continue. "That girl you were talking to today-" Sasuke interrupted him. "Sakura." He corrected. "Yes, Sakura." Itachi continued. "How did you start talking?" he asked finally. Sasuke suddenly looked angry. He turned his face away from Itachi so that his bangs hid his face. He gave no indication that he was going to answer and Itachi suddenly felt a cold wave of anxiety shoot through his spine and settle in his stomach. Sasuke always talked to him, always.
Sasuke on the other hand felt frustrated by what those girls said. He wanted to get some control over his emotions before talking to Itachi about it. He slowly replayed the whole conversation he had overheard in his head.
"Everyone likes him."
"Long hair."
"Cute lines."
"He could never compete with his brother." How he burned with rage because of that sentence.
"Why should he?" As he remembered all the things she had said to defend him he felt the anger dim slightly. It didn't vanish completely but he no longer felt the need to clench his jaw so tight or form such tight fists.
"You were talking about Sasuke?" The incredulousness in that voice stung him though he would never admit it.
"Yes, I was talking about Sasuke!" His jaw relaxed some more, allowing his lips to curve ever so slightly upwards. What had she been saying about him? He couldn't seem to be able to remember at the moment.
Neither one of the brothers realized that they had been silent for over five minutes, Sasuke remembering the conversation that had taken place and Itachi wondering over all the things that could possibly have happened to Sasuke to make him keep quiet.
"She stood up for me." Sasuke said quietly. Itachi finally managed to breathe normally again. "Oh?" he asked. Sasuke then told him all about the conversation he had overheard.
"So all the girls in your class like me?" Itachi asked, releasing a long sigh of annoyance. Now Sasuke's classmates as well as his own, just his luck. "Except Sakura." Sasuke corrected. Itachi smirked inwardly. This possessive streak that Sasuke had just displayed was the perfect opportunity to mess with him a bit. "That's a shame." he said letting his smirk appear on his face. "She was nice." He said lying back against the tree trunk beside his brother. "I wouldn't mind finding a girl like that." He said nonchalantly. He knew that what he was saying was getting to Sasuke. His head was tilted down and he was glaring at him through narrowed eyes. "She's pretty, too. Don't you think so, Sasuke?" he only barely managed to hold back his laughter as Sasuke's eyes widened and his cheeks flushed. His question had obviously taken him by surprise. Itachi found the situation too amusing to pass up and continued. "Well, Sasuke?" he asked cocking an eyebrow. "I guess." Sasuke muttered finally shifting back to his annoyed glare before looking away. "The kid she likes is pretty lucky." Itachi said closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the rough bark of the tree. "What?" Sasuke asked quietly and with a lot of venom, considering he was only seven years old. "You heard me." His brother answered looking at him with one open eye. In his right hand Sasuke held a kunai he had begun to spin around at some point in their conversation. His fist tightened around the handle and he glared at the target he used to practice his aim. He said nothing. "Really lucky." His brother whispered into his ear. He didn't even realize Sasuke had moved until he heard a "thunk" as the kunai sunk into the wood of the target. Even then he had to shift his gaze from the kunai sticking out of the target to his brother's empty right hand and back to make sure he really had moved.
"Foolish little brother, are you jealous?" he asked. "Hn." Oh, he was so jealous. "Because you shouldn't be." He told him, deciding that he had finally had enough fun. "What?" his brother asked. Curiosity had gotten the best of him; he had even forgotten to glare at him. "You're supposed to be smart, little brother." Suddenly Sasuke remembered to glare. "Think about the conversation you just told me about." Itachi began to gather their things so they could go. Sasuke was frowning, he had his eyes closed and his brow furrowed, a sure sign that he was thinking very deeply. Itachi had finally finished gathering everything, all that was left was the kunai Sasuke had thrown. It took him three sharp tugs to get it out. Sasuke was getting very good.
Their whole walk home was rather silent. Itachi had offered to carry Sasuke. He knew his brother thought best when he could keep his eyes closed and since it was partly his fault that he had so much to think about he decided to help him just a little.
Throughout dinner Sasuke still kept quiet. He shoveled down all his food and then pushed the plate away. He clasped his hands in front of his face and kept thinking. "Sasuke are you alright?" His mother began to worry. "I'm fine." He said quickly, not wanting to lose his train of thought. His mother turned to Itachi who gave her a reassuring smirk. "Time for bed, Sasuke." She said after debating whether she should push the subject a bit more or not. She had expected a fight from her youngest but was surprised when he simply threw his hands up in the air. "I give up." He shouted completely frustrated, then stomped off towards his room by himself.
Mikoto turned to her eldest son and crossed her arms. "Is there anything you'd like to say to me, Itachi?" she asked, giving him a piercing look. "Yes." He answered. "Would you like to play go?" he asked. He had already set the board on the table. Mikoto sighed but decided to trust her son's judgment. They had been playing for over an hour when they heard light padding footsteps and Sasuke appeared in the room. Mikoto had opened her mouth to send him back to bed but Itachi had already spoken. "So you figured it out?" he asked. A smug smirk made its way up Sasuke's face. "I'm simply feeling lucky." Sasuke answered as he looked at his mother through the corner of his eyes to see if she knew anything. Mikoto simply looked from one boy to the other wondering if they'd explain. "Good. Go to sleep, little brother." Itachi answered while placing another black piece on the board, gaining a big advantage on his mother. Sasuke threw himself at his brother and hugged him around the neck. He then hugged his mother and kissed her cheek. She followed him with her startled gaze as he ran out the room. She looked down to see that Itachi had put the go board away and was looking at her with an amused smile on his face.
"Sasuke and I had the most amusing conversation today." He began.
AN:/ There. All you Itachi fans should be pretty satisfied, I know I am .I know there's very little Sakura in this chapter but there's tons of Uchiha goodness!
