Thank you to all those who reviewed on chapter 2!
blackspiritfire; VampiricBloOdyRose; KitsuneNaru; TigrezzTail; wong jowo; CracktheSkye; WolfDemon1000; CrystalFireExplosion.
And now, on with the next chapter!
Life on the Run
Chapter 3
Itachi carried the child in his arms once more, the ground speeding away beneath his feet as the boy's legs dangle, swaying with the motion.
Naruto had fallen asleep a short while after he had eaten the soup that Itachi had heated after he had found it among his rations. The fox had curled around the boy protectively as he slumbered and Itachi had looked on in apprehension at the bond that was obvious between the woodland creature and his charge.
With his eyes never leaving the duo, he had begun to plan out their route and actions from this point onwards. The nights would become colder as winter approached fast, and he would need to find them real shelter for the boy to survive the harsh climate.
And not only that. There was also the last mission assigned to him.
How he was going to enter the strange new group that had cropped up with Naruto, he did not know.
Akatsuki was made up of a small number of Missing Nin that had banded together just recently. Their purpose and long term plans as of yet was unknown, although it was clear they were up to no good. After all, nothing good could come of collecting the Jinchuriki and Biju.
Itachi was also no fool. He knew bringing Naruto along would have advantages and disadvantages. Taking the young boy to them would be a sure fire way of getting into the organisation. However it left him with no guarantee of what would happen to the blonde. They could be out to kill the Jinchuriki which would go against the task of keeping the blonde safe, and on the other hand there could be a completely different agenda on the organisation's mind.
Itachi knew he had to become a part of the group despite all of this, for Akatsuki was growing fast, at such an alarming rate that he was sure plenty of the other hidden villages were also worried over their goals.
He had eventually come to the conclusion of hiding Naruto while he met up with the member who was supposed to meet him the following day to take him to their leader.
He had sat and watched the fox and child for a while longer before finally moving to repack all the supplies, before moving to pick up the boy once more.
The Fox had snarled at him colourfully, growing in volume at every step closer he took, until he was finally kneeling before them. Keeping a close eye on the animal, he reached out and ruffled the child's hair in hope of waking him from his exhausted sleep. When no such luck occurred, he instead scooped him up, one arm under his back and the other supporting the child's knees.
As he left the hollow, the young ninja shoved another food pill in his mouth, and blocked out the growling and hissing from the fox that followed him at a cautious distance.
When he took to the trees, the fox was soon out of sight.
-x-
When the first rays of sun peeped over the horizon, Itachi had made it to the edge of the thick forests surrounding his village and was able to fully appreciate the sunrise without the vegetation hindering the sight. The oranges and pinks that blossomed and painted the sky and the plains of grassy land were tainted by the glow, making the landscape seem unearthly.
With the pause in his travel, Naruto stirred in his arms at the change in the motion he had grown accustomed to in his sleep. Yawning pitifully and stretching gently, glassy blue eyes blinked a couple of times in adjustment and then took their time to focus on Itachi's face above him. As he finally seemed to comprehend the position he was in, the blonde's whole body went stiff, and his eyes widened in the beginnings of panic.
Seeing this, Itachi gentle lowered the boy until he was standing on his own two feet beside him, and then turned back to watch the sun's slow assent. He could see the child out the corner of his eye still standing stock still at his side, most likely to afraid to move or unsure of just what he should do. He could also feel Naruto's intense gaze boring into him, as Itachi continued to stare into the distance.
Eventually he sensed the child begin to relax just a little, as Naruto took his eyes off of his travelling companion for a brief while to take in their surroundings, before going back to staring at the older male.
When Itachi deemed enough tension had left the boy's shoulders, he spoke soft words into the quiet pre-birdsong morning.
"We've made good time. We're around a two hours run from the border, and there I will meet a man who is of key importance to my mission." He paused, watching as Naruto took in the information after jumping at the original sound of his voice. "I cannot take you with me."
This seemed to act as a physical blow to the child. He stared up at the ninja in bewilderment, before a look of understanding shortly followed by hurt crossed his still bandaged face. Then, eerily, Naruto's eyes went horrifically blank and a disgustingly fake smile adorned his lips as he nodded understandingly.
Seeing all this, Itachi immediately understood the gravity of what he had just said to the boy who had only ever known rejection. He was quick to try and make up for his clumsy wording.
"You will have to wait somewhere near here until I can come back for you. And I will be returning for you Naruto-Kun, that you can count on." A light of hope flickered to life within the deep cerulean pools, before they turned away from him in distrust.
Sighing softly, the Uchiha brushed a few strands of escapee hair away from his face and surveyed their immediate vicinity, his eyes roving over the landscape until they finally came to rest on a thick tree's hollow, similar to the previous one they had used. With a flourish of his hand he indicated the spot to the child, whom cautiously followed him.
Reaching into his backpack, Itachi removed several scrolls and laid them out on the mossy ground before releasing all of their content one after another.
Soon an arrangement of blankets, food and other necessities littered the ground. Quickly arranging the mess into something more organised, he stepped back allowing Naruto to enter, and the blonde crawled into the space on his hands and knees to sit with his arms wrapped round his legs facing the outside.
"I'm not sure how long I will be gone, Naruto-Kun. It could be anywhere between a few days to a couple of weeks, so make the food last." The boy did not respond, only continued to stare at him with the same emotionless replica of a smile held in place. Itachi could only hope that Naruto was paying attention, and that he would be able to rectify the damage he had caused to the slowly forming bond between them by proving his trustworthiness by returning to the blonde's side. "You will find a stream for water just a few minutes from here in that direction." He continued, gesturing further into the shadows of the forest. The Uchiha did not bother with any other tips on survival; he had seen the boy endure in much harsher conditions without the help Itachi had already provided.
Shuffling back a little, the elder of the last two Uchiha in existence rose to his full height and slung his backpack back over his shoulder. He turned and began to walk away from the boy, whose life was now entrusted to him, but found himself pausing, and looking over his shoulder for one last glance at the blonde. The boy was not even watching him leave. Sighing once more and brushing some loose hairs from his face yet again, he set off at speed, disappearing from the untrained eye's view.
He remained unaware of the azure orbs that secretly watched his departure through deceptive half shut lids, thick lashes hiding their glow from sight in the shadowed hollow.
-x-
Naruto laid huddled up in the homely hollow, as the cool night air washed over him in a gentle breeze that swept among the roots, swirling around the concaved area, before slowly coming to rest as the energy dispersed. The cold hours of darkness created a contrast to the heated bodies surrounding him on all sides, keeping him cooled to a comfortable temperature allowing him to sleep peacefully.
That is if it were not for the nightmares that haunted his every dream.
The small family of foxes, which had joined him in the hollow just hours after Itachi had left, were curled around him, each of their ears twitching, and whimpers escaping their furry bodies, as they, like all animals, could feel as a sixth sense the dark, terrified emotions intruding upon the child they looked upon as one of their own.
The largest fox, curled next to the blonde's head, licked the child's cheeks in a comforting manor. She wished that her rough tongue would awaken Naruto from his disturbed slumber. Her five kits, no more than two months old, all lay around his stomach area, keeping their adopted sibling warm. They slept through the human's suffering, but they still sensed that something was wrong and continued to keen in their sleep.
Finally, as the eastern sky lightened in the beginnings of a new day, the boy stirred, opening jewel like eyes which allowing a few tears to trail down his cheeks. These were quickly cleaned away with the mother fox licking them up, her tongue trailing over healed whisker marks.
Reaching out, the child expertly ran his hands through the coarse weather hardened rusty fur, till his fingers found a sensitive spot under her chin and he set about scratching the pleased mother.
Eventually he sighed and sat up, rousing the kits. Each stretched and blinked up at their mother and the human, slowly dragging their young minds from the sleepy haze. Whilst they did so, Naruto rose to his feet and left the shelter, taking a small saucepan with him as he went to the nearby stream to wash and collect some water.
When he returned, the young were already chasing each other around, playfully chewing on an ear and nipping at their siblings' tails in their game. Naruto's freshly washed blonde hair was somewhat flattened in its wet state, and it glistened in the now visible sun, drops of water still clinging to the soft locks. Seeing Naruto return, the fox cubs wove around and between his legs, near tripping him, as he headed towards the remains of a fire where he began to build a new one. He placed the water filled saucepan over the heat and waited for it to boil. He entered into a little game of tug-of-war to pass the time; Naruto verses two of the kits, growling good-naturedly at them, which they reciprocated in kind. The stick was eventually abandoned in the presence of food as he deftly poured the scolding water into a pot of instant ramen that was among the remaining food left to him.
The mother fox also returned at this point, having left earlier when he had returned, knowing him to be capable of protecting the kits from predators that would threaten them. Her search for food for herself and her children had been successful, and she returned with two rabbit held securely in her blood stained teeth. The fox cubs were quick to dig in along with their mother, whilst the human child sated his own hunger at the same time.
-x-
Itachi could honestly say he was rather disturbed by the appearance of the Akatsuki member he had met two weeks ago now. Kisame had introduced himself as his soon to be partner, and the Uchiha had immediately recognised the fish man from his ANBU bingo book he had been gifted with every six months within the force as they were updated. Kisame Hoshigaki was a missing ninja from the Hidden Mist, and not only that, he had also once been a member of the once renowned Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. The bulky bandaged object slung onto the back of the blue man's gigantic frame was all Itachi needed to verify the reports that he still kept his sword, Samehada, after all these years since his defection.
Of course Itachi never showed his less than cheerful feeling over the fishy appearance, after all he was a Uchiha, and even within Akatsuki their emotionless facade was infamous.
Lately, however, the ex Konoha shinobi had been growing restless, which Kisame had already pointed out on several occasions. He had left Naruto for quite some time now, and he had been slowly growing afraid that he would never get back to the blonde what with all the constant missions he had been sent on since his official enrolment into the group.
But now he had finally drawn close to the area in which he had left the child, and Kisame had split from him for the return back to base so as to make it more difficult for anyone to track them down and lead potential enemies to their headquarters.
Taking the opportunity, he raced across the border and into the Fire Country, where he hoped to find the young boy.
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