"I love you!" she screamed as she stomped her foot and turned her eyes to the ground. Warm tears trickled down her cheeks and slowly fell to the floor. She had tried to contain herself, but she couldn't do it any longer. She was beginning to feel so confused, and she was longing for acceptance by Itachi. She wanted him to embrace her and understand how she felt. She thought about how much she hated crying, and she kept her head down as she tried to halt her tears. Itachi was still facing away from her, looking out the window towards the radiant moon. He remained silent for what seemed like years.

"No you don't," he said abruptly. Kareiko jerked her head quickly upward to look at him.

Why is he doing this to me? Has everything meant nothing to him? She began to cry even harder despite her best efforts to stop altogether.

"But, I do! I love you so much," she spoke in between sobs, "I would do anything to make you happy, Itachi-sama." She clasped her hands together, and she tried to calm herself; it was no use, because there was no containing her feelings of helplessness and despair.

"No. You don't." Itachi was so cold; he hadn't even turned around to address Kareiko. She wasn't sure how to handle Itachi's refusal of her love. While she was heartbroken that he obviously didn't feel the same way, she was more hurt that he wasn't even acknowledging her devotion to him.

No. I do love him. He will understand that, at least. She decided to reaffirm her feelings to him, even if she believed it would anger him greatly.

"I do, Itachi-sama," she said with unwavering certainty. She looked at him, hoping that the intensity of her eyes would allow him to feel how serious she was. He turned his head and looked at her.

It worked. He understands how I feel now. She wiped her tears as Itachi continued to stare at her, his expression unchanged. She waited a moment, and she looked at him with her intense eyes. She hoped that he could physically feel how much she loved him; she hoped he would understand. He suddenly smiled, and she thought that she had successfully unearthed Itachi's softer side; she tried to reach out and grab for his hand.

"I hadn't realized you were such a foolish woman," he said as he smacked her hand away. Kareiko recoiled and rubbed her hand, which was aching; Itachi had smacked her hand with a great amount of force.

"I have no feelings for you, Kareiko. I have told you before that I only keep you around for your unique abilities," he started to walk away from her with his back still turned, "there is nothing more to it."

Kareiko tried to calm herself, but she couldn't hold everything inside any longer. She began to wail once again. Itachi refused to look at her as he headed for the door.

"If you are going to insist upon acting so foolish, then I will have to eliminate you. I have no use for an emotional child." He left the room immediately after finishing his sentence; he gave Kareiko no time to retort. She couldn't even manage to go after him, and her heart was aching more than it ever had. She thought of herself as a strong woman, but she couldn't handle all of the emotions that were surfacing. She fell to a heap on the floor as she continued to sob, and she started to feel like her childhood self once again. In between cries she could hear footsteps approaching the door, and she had honestly thought it may have been Itachi returning to apologize. She began to cry harder upon noticing that it was Kisame who had appeared at the door, not Itachi.

"Why don't you shut your trap, girly?" Kisame said as he leaned against the door frame. He seemed to be happy to see Kareiko in such a state, and she noticed he was smiling. She did not want to give him any more satisfaction in seeing her in such a way, thus she sat up and began to quiet herself. She also did not dignify his question with a response, which actually seemed to please him more.

"I just thought I should let you know that Itachi isn't ever going to love you."

Like it's his job to come and tell me that. He really thinks he is something else, thought Karieko as she continued to wipe moisture from her face.

"You've got Itachi-san really confused with some Prince Charming, huh? Do you even realize why he is in Akatsuki, girl?" Kisame suddenly knelt down and looked Kareiko directly in the eyes.

"He's in Akatsuki because he slaughtered his entire clan," said Kisame, his eyes glowing with delight. He said nothing else as he stood and exited the room, leaving Kareiko to rationalize everything that had just happened. She thought, for a moment, that she may have just remained there on the floor for the entire evening while indulging in self-pity. Then she came to the conclusion that she was not that type of woman; she was someone who wouldn't falter because of this. She jumped up and headed out the door after Kisame.

"I don't care!" she shouted down the hall as she ran towards Kisame. He looked backwards over his shoulder, confused.

"I don't care what you say happened," she panted as she caught up with Kisame and raised her head to look him straight in his eyes, "I still love Itachi-sama, no matter what you say he has done. I know everything I need to know about him." She smiled in such a beaming and happy way that it was evident that nothing Kisame said would be able to dampen her mood. He merely shrugged and continued to walk away.

"She certainly is one interesting girl," Kareiko could hear Kisame say to himself as he continued walking.

Itachi may have denied her love, but she still felt as if there was something between the two of them. It might have been completely moronic, but she felt like there was more to the story than anyone was telling her about Itachi. She yearned to hear everything straight from him, but she wasn't so sure that would ever happen. She could only hope that he was in denial rather than truly denying her affection. She might be delusional, but she felt happy. That was all that mattered to her right now.