A/N: Okay, I am so sorry this has taken so long. It's been a weird few months. I'm looking for a new job, I moved across the state and my depression returned with a vengeance, but I'm not giving up! I will finish this story!
I want to Thank Everybody for all of the support and insights! They really do mean a lot.
Warning: This chapter contains Somnophelia, non-con. If you are sensitive about it, it's basically what happened in Ch. 3, but from Itachi's point of view. I just...when you take it out of dream context, I feel like it needs the warning. Itachi is being a creep in this chapter and it will get worse before it gets better, but it will get better I promise!
4
She was confused, he knew.
Her temper was adorable, her slender fingers gripping the edges of the menu she wasn't reading just a little too tightly to be casual, her eyes flickering back and forth to him as she tried to compose her next move. He repressed the twitch of his lips at her suspicious look; she was too entertaining for her own good. He took advantage of her distraction to order Tempura Udon for both of them. Then sat to watch her over the rim of his own cup, his grip tightening as he watched her tongue swipe a grain of rice from her top lip with a delicate flicker.
He wanted to feel that flicker against his own lips, to chase her tongue back into her mouth. Taste the tea on her breath, tangle his fingers in her hair, feel the moans and shivers as she pressed against him.
He knew he made her nervous, it was obvious in the way her fingers clenched around her cup, the suspicious narrowing of her eyes. He didn't like the tense set of her shoulders, he didn't want her wary of him.
"Why are you doing this?"
She wasn't ready to know, he reminded himself, forcing his tone to remain neutral. "You need to eat-"-Kami, did she need to eat. Even in the warm light of the shop, she looked pale and sallow. The circles under her eyes, looked more like bruises-"-Even the best shinobi need time to recuperate."
She snorted in derision. "Since when? I've had to manhandle some of Konoha's best shinobi into bed, Uchiha-san."
His bloodline limit unfurled automatically as jealousy constricted his chest at the thought of someone else, another man, kissing her, seeing her beautiful body, those full, petal like lips forming another name as she writhed beneath their panting form-
He forced his sharingan to retreat, feeling the pain behind his eyes as he did so, his vision wavering slightly before sliding back into focus.
She didn't want to admit that he made sense, even in her exhaustion she was unwilling to admit that her work habits were unhealthy. Itachi enjoyed the fire in her eyes, and the defiant set to her jaw. It was easy to imagine arguing with her in the future.
Watching her eat was amusing and frustrating. Her manners were not as refined as most of his other clan members, but she wasn't messy. Instead, she ate with an almost quiet desperation, as if her body was determined to consume as much as possible before her mind realized what she was doing.
She seemed subdued after eating, making an attempting to pay for her meal before he paid the bill. He hoped his brother knew better than to foist off the bill on Sakura. Tired as she was, she still put up a stubborn front when as he walked her to her door. Her footsteps were dragging slightly again and her green eyes were slightly glazed over, but she refused to give an inch. Repeatedly reminding him that he didn't need to walk her home, her thinly veiled ire apparent in footsteps and the set of her slender shoulders.
His muscles ached with the need to bundle her sleepy form into his arms and take her home, where she belonged.
Patience, he told himself. She was safe for the night. He'd soothed her headache, made sure she'd eaten probably her first real meal in weeks, and he was personally making sure she reached her door.
The apartment building was aged and in unacceptable disrepair, the missing light bulbs setting his ANBU instincts on alert. She used no traps on her door, a ridiculous lack of regard for her own safety that nearly made him twitch. He knew it was time for him to leave, he could practically hear Shisui snapping at him to not be 'creepy', but he didn't want to leave her alone in the dark.
"When is your next day off?"
She twitched minutely as he spoke, before turning to look at him. Itachi didn't know if she realized, but this was the first time she'd ever looked him in the face. Even dull with exhaustion and narrowed in suspicion, her eyes were mesmerizing.
"My mother would like to invite you over for dinner at your earliest convenience."
She smiled.
Not the forced grimaces or polite mask she normally wore in his presence, but a smile. Her full lips parting to reveal her even white teeth, her eyes brightening with joy.
Itachi's gut clenched; he was dimly aware of making plans to escort her to the Uchiha compound. Her smile was making him dizzy.
"Sleep well, Haruno."
He left her standing in her doorway.
Instead of going straight home, he ended up in the Uchiha Library. The dark halls were even more quiet at this hour, the few determined scholars dragged home for the night. With his sharingan activated, he didn't need a lamp as he searched for a particular scroll. The paper was thin, stiffened with age and crumbling slightly at the edges, the kind of artifact that made scholar's hold their breath and wear gloves to protect their sweaty palms.
The Uchiha heir carefully unfolded the scro.. The slightly faded ink and cramped writing made his eyes ache, but he maintained his bloodline limit, absorbing and learning the technique. He didn't flinch at the obvious creak of one of the chairs, the subtle sound obscene in the quiet library.
"So, you weren't at dinner tonight."
Mockingly, Shisui propped his hands beneath his chin and stared at his younger cousin. The clan heir ignored him, meticulously studying the archaic words in front of him. "Ah."
"See, I told you. Slow and steady wins the race."
"Hn." Slow and steady would end up with her in the hospital or dea-no. No. Not her. He had found her in time and she was going to be with him and he would take excellent care of her.
The elder Uchiha rolled his eyes at the subtle killing intent rolling off of his agitated younger cousin. It figured, Itachi was an odd duck, even for an Uchiha, dating like a normal person was beyond him, but still, if he kept on this path..."I've seen what happens when people piss her off, 'tachi. Prodigy or no, if she landed one hit, we'd be scraping what was left of you up to put in a jar."
"Do not address me as 'tachi."
A smirk curled Shisui's already mischievous face. "I bet you wouldn't mind it if she called you 'tachi."
Itachi rerolled the scroll and replaced it among its brethren on the shelf, ignoring his best friend. Well, sort of.
The Uchiha house was dark as he stepped across the threshold, careful not to make noise as he removed his shoes and armor. He scrubbed the grime of his mission from his skin quickly, loosely knotting the sash of a yukata around his waist as he stepped into the bedroom.
She was illuminated only by moonlight, the silver light gilding her long hair, like a cherry blossom preserved in frost. Her smooth skin looked like fresh cream against the navy blue of… one of his yukata? He could see her fingers still curled around a book. Sometimes she tried to stay up waiting for him. He pulled the book from her fingers, raising her small hand to his mouth and kissing her knuckles. She murmured slightly in her sleep, brow furrowing in sleepy confusion. A smile brushed the back of her hand before his lips closed around the bone in her wrist, sucking lightly, before moving over to kiss her pulse.
"'Tachi?"
Her eyes opened and she smiled, reaching up with her free hand to cup his face-
"Ugh. C'mon. Tell me how it went, I can't help you figure out your next step, if you're keeping secrets."
Itachi blinked and forced the fantasy to the back of his mind for revisit later. "She's coming to dinner."
"Already meeting the parents, huh? You certainly don't do things the easy way. Is Sasuke bringing her?"
Itachi shook his head. "I'm escorting her."
Shisui sat up and stretched. "That's something at least. It'll help her feel less like a lamb being led into a slaughterhouse."
"It was Mother's idea."
"Right, and I'm sure she would've brought it up even if you hadn't been aggravating your 'darling little brother' over his neglect."
"Sasuke is not to be blamed."
"Exactly, that's a big part of the reason he's such a prick right now. Though, honestly, Sakura-chan isn't his fault-"
"Her well being is my responsibility."
"No, her well-being is her responsibility."
Shisui ran his fingers through his hair. This was a mess and it was only going to get much worse before it got better. For Sakura-chan and his cousin. "Itachi, if you want a pet we can get you a goldfish or something."
Itachi glowered. "I have no need of a pet. She is your future matriarch."
Shisui groaned and raked his hand through his bangs again. "No, at the moment, she is your potential girlfriend and current object of your obsession."
Hooking his foot around the leg of another chair, Itachi took a seat across from his cousin. "I hate it when you're right."
"Well, it can't be your turn all the time." Shisui's self-deprecating grin faded as he really looked at his cousin. Sure, Itachi was pissed at the moment, but underneath that. "Something set you off this time. What was it? Another shinobi?Proclaim her undying love for 'Sasuke-kun'? Did she hit on the waitress?"
"She's getting migraines." He could still see her wincing in pain, her instinctive flinch at his touch, the smooth delicate flesh of her temples, then the softening of her posture as the pain receded. He wondered if she realized that she'd leaned ever so slightly into his touch.
Shisui winced in sympathy. "From the pills? Does she know you have them?"
Itachi shook his head. "No, I want to give her a chance to come to me."
Shisui snorted. "Since when? Until recently, I was convinced I was going to have to explain her disappearance to the Hokage. Did you have a sudden change of heart? Mikoto-san knock sense into you? Get trapped in your own genjutsu?"
The Uchiha heir glowered again before dispelling his sharingan. "She smiled at me."
He wanted her smiles. He wanted her to laugh with him, tease him, blush for him, seek him out. He wanted her, willing and happy by his side.
Shisui's inner pragmatist rolled his eyes and continued making contingency plans for damage control, while the optimist in him noticed his younger cousin's softening expression. "That's a good sign. Now, we just have to make sure she's comfortable enough around you to do it again, right?"
This was actually a healthier thought pattern for his younger cousin. He was only half joking about explaining an abduction to the Hokage. Itachi was unstoppable when given a goal. And this was the first time in twenty years that Itachi had ever brought up wanting anything for himself. He was going to have the pink haired girl one way or another, but if he wanted her smile, there was chance that this impending fiasco could be avoided.
Red eyes spun before the Uchiha heir vanished from the room.
The older Uchiha left his seat at the desk and went to the shelf where Itachi had been reading. He couldn't didn't know which exactly scroll his cousin had been using, but this section of the library was devoted solely to long distance genjutsu.
Let's hope you have some traps up Sakura-chan.
His room was dark and quiet as always, the lamps dim, but moonlight spilled across the floor from the open window. The quiet hum of cicadas helped him concentrate as he sat in his room, legs folded and crossed, wrists loosely set on his knees.
Long distance genjutsu was nearly impossible, unless traces of the caster's chakra were already present in the target. While, healing her headache wasn't the strongest connection, when combined with the minute amounts of energy he left along the walls of her apartment, it was easy enough. He could almost see her sprawled on her small futon, still wearing her clothes, the shadows under her eyes almost like bruises, her lips parted for soft exhalations, almost like she was waiting for a kiss.
His chakra pulsed and ebbed, worming its way into her consciousness. She had no mental barriers, while that worked in his favor currently, he would teach her not to leave herself so vulnerable. Layers of genjutsu fell over her mind until he slipped into her dreamscape.
The creamy skin of her nape and shoulders almost glowed in the moonlight. She didn't look real with her ethereal coloring and delicate frame. She looked like a faerie, or some kind of goddess.
He reclined behind her and nuzzled her hair. Her flesh was warm and slightly salty beneath his mouth. She groaned and grumbled adorably, rolling onto her back.
He huffed out a laugh. She was grumpy when she slept. He wondered how grumpy she would be if he woke her up like this. "Open your eyes, princess."
Her dreaming mind had removed her scrubs and her pale-pink tipped breasts were better than he imagined, the flesh almost sweet beneath his mouth, stiffening against his tongue. She moaned, arching her back, encouraging him to take more of her breast into his mouth. Her full lips parted.
He felt a groan build in his chest as his blood rushed south as he sucked on her flesh until he pulled free with a soft pop, enjoying the way his breath over her wet nipple made the nub pebble and harden. He wanted to see her eyes, wanted them sparkling with tears and need as her voice broke begging him. "Look at me."
She just whined and bucked impatiently. He closed his lips around her neglected breast. Her low moans reverberated through his body and Itachi answered with his own. His head felt light and his cock pressed insistently against his pants, the ache annoying, but he could manage to ignore it.
This was her dream and the success of the jutsu was dependent on sexual frustration. If either of them were satisfied, a new connection would have to be reestablished. Not his ultimate goal.
"Sakura, look at me."
His hand grazed over her hips and thighs, wanting to part them, spread her legs wide and bury himself between them. First his fingers, then his tongue, then his cock until she broke apart with a scream, his name on her lips. He settled for a punishing nip to the edge of her jaw, followed by a flicker of his tongue against her parted lips.
"Sakura."
He pulled from the jutsu as she settled into a deep, dreamless sleep and opened his eyes watching the moonlight on his floor. He ran a hand through his hair, pulling the elastic from his ponytail. He returned his hands to their original, meditative position and tried to deepen his breathing to relax, willing his erection away.
Genjutsu: Dream Demon
It was an ancient, forbidden technique dating almost back to the origin of his clan. Originally developed for female assassins, it was a form of genjutsu that allowed the user to establish to walk in the dreams of their target. It was mainly used to extract information or create a distraction, allowing the subject to be killed.
He knew Sakura didn't see him as a potential romantic partner or, even more frustratingly, as a man at all. This would weaken her defenses against him, creating an emotional vulnerability while he helped her heal physically. He wanted her aware of him in a way other than fear or nervousness. He didn't want to be her teammate's brother.
He wanted to be her protector, the body she turned to for relief from the cold of the night, the father of her children, and her shelter from all storms. She was strong, intelligent, beautiful, and passionate. She would be an incredible partner, a fierce mother, and a matriarch to be reckoned with; he wanted her so badly it hurt.
I&S&I&S&I&S&I&S&I&S
Everything hurt.
Her legs were cramping. Her stomach roiled and pitched like an adrift schooner while her head throbbed with every breath and her eyes reacted to every ray of light as though they were enemy senbon. If she didn't know better, she'd think it was a hangover, but Sakura didn't share her mentor's predilection for strong alcohol. Instead, the pinkette limited her vices to the occasional racy novel and multiple cups of strong coffee.
That's you drink to wash down massive amounts of illegally obtained soldier pills.
Shut. Up.
You know I'm right. This is withdrawal.
I didn't say you were wrong, I said SHUT UP!
A particularly sharp pain splintered behind her eyes and the medic tried to discreetly rub her temples, only for her ever helpful braid deciding to replace the familiar feel of her touch with longer, slightly calloused fingertips, carefully massaging the ache.
No. NO. That was weird and a one time thing. Just an Uchiha headache trick.
Then why wouldn't Sasuke use it?
Probably because Sasuke-kun won't admit when his bones are broken, let alone tell me his head hurts.
...There is that.
"HEY SAKURA-CHAN, ARE YOU AWAKE?!"
"She is now, dobe."
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY, TEME?"
Naruto only had two volumes; loud and unconscious whereas Sasuke could mutter so darkly, that only malevolent spirits could hear him.
Sakura stumbled, nearly tripping over her blankets as she stumbled to the door, jerking it open. "Shut up you idiots, I have neighbors."
Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry Sakura-chan."
Sakura just rolled her eyes, ignoring the arch of pain across her skull "Just come in."
She scooted a couple of books out of her way as the boys shuffled and removed their shoes. "Do you want some tea or something? I gotta wash my face real quick."
"Hn."
"That's okay Sakura-chan. Teme lost a bet with Kaka-sensei, so lunch is on him! Hurry!"
Sakura raised her eyebrow at Sasuke over her shoulder. "What was the bet?"
"Hn."
If it was possible, Sasuke's aura got even darker, chakra pulsing as Sakura went into her bathroom for a quick wash.
Ugh. Pig was right, I look like hell.
Well, I'm not going to argue with you.
Shut. Up.
Quickly, Sakura washed her face and brushed her teeth, and washing quickly with a cloth to make sure she didn't smell.
Sakura didn't have many civilian clothes, but luckily they all went together, She pulled on a pair of loose navy shorts that tied at the waist and a plain white tank.
Good enough.
She walked back into the living room, finger combing her hair. Naruto was rifling through her cabinet while Sasuke was flipping through one of the books, not the myopia study thankfully. She wasn't sure how to broach the subject with him yet.
"Sorry about the wait, ready to go?"
"Hn."
"Geez, Sakura-chan, and I thought my cabinets were bad."
Sakura pulled on her kunoichi sandals at the door. "Your cabinets are bad, my kitchen could still pass health code."
"Hey! I'm not that bad."
"Shut up Dobe."
"WHAT DID YOU SAY!"
"Shush! Neighbors!"
Konoha was bustling during the day, vendors calling from their stands, off duty shinobi replacing supplies, and housewives runnings errands.
Sakura palmed her wallet and wondered if she had time to dart into the shinobi supply store for soldier pills. Just a couple to get her through the day. Not as many as normal since she wasn't at work.
Still think you aren't addicted?
I...I'm not that bad.
Inner snorted. And Sasuke's a social butterfly.
"Hurry up!"
Naruto practically dragged his teammate's to the familiar Ichiraku ramen stand where Sai stood apparently waiting. "Good morning Dickless, morning Hag I see you are attempting to get more sun on your sickly white skin to appear healthier."
"Shut, up Sai!"
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING 'DICKLESS'?!"
"You, of course Naruto-kun." Sakura was starting to wonder if Sai really was as clueless as he pretended to be. That fake smile of his was starting to look just a little too fake.
Sakura sat down next to Sasuke, not bothering to look at the menu. Sasuke was watching her, weirdly enough.
What's with the Uchiha stare fest lately?
"Is there something on my face?"
"Are you free tomorrow?"
"Huh?"
"Are you free tomorrow?"
"No...I thought I was invited to your house for dinner?"
Sasuke furrowed his brow. "You are. That's what I was going to ask you. Why do you know that?"
"Your brother asked me yesterday."
She thought she saw a flash of red in her teammate's eyes. "Aniki did?"
"Yeah...it was kind of weird actually. I thought you'd asked him to ask me."
"Hn."
"What? What aren't you telling me."
"Nothing."
Bullshit.
Sasuke looked as...weird, if she didn't know better, he was agitated.
"Okay...how's Shisui then?"
"What?"
"Shisui, your cousin? The only Uchiha with a vocabulary of more than three words?"
"Hn."
"Not that one." She poked him irritably. "Is he staying off his leg like he told me he would? Or has he already broken it again?"
"His leg was broken?"
"Yeah, he was in the hospital until yesterday. That's why I kept running into your brother which, no offense to you, was really weird."
"Weird how?" The bloodline limit was flashing again.
"Just...weird. Your brother is kind of a legend Sasuke, it's intimidating."
Plus, he's acting creepy.
For once, I agree with you.
Like I care.
"Hn." Uncharacteristically, Sasuke looked like he was actually going to say more, but-
"Yo."
Kakashi appeared across the table, a flushed Naruto and a grinning Sai on either side of him. "Found these two troublemakers outside."
"Hn."
Naruto started waving down a server while Sakura tried to kick Sai under the table and ignored Sasuke's gaze.
He'd find a way to tell her if it was really important.
After her meal last night, sakura was able to keep down her vegetable ramen with less difficulty than she anticipated, though she stopped at one bowl, drinking tea while the boys tried to apparently, rupture their stomachs through impossibly volumes of noodles.
"Chewing is for cowards!" Naruto crowed, trying to force Sai to swallow noodles without chewing them.
Sai answered with a stanged gurgle and Sasuke ate another slice of marinated tomato. Kakashi had already called it quits, a healthy stack of bowls next to him, and was already buried in his ever present orange book.
This is probably the best time to slip away if I wanted to run into a shop…
Ugh, you are so stupid.
Shut. UP.
Quietly, Sakura muttered a thank you and slipped from the table and outside into the busy street. The markets were crowded, but not unbearable and she managed to find the right shop relatively quickly.
Shinobi shops were a strange mix of apothecary and armory with weapons, leather pouches, scrolls, and various herbal remedies all stacked close together with no rhyme or reason.
She was scanning a shelf when her nerves prickled in awareness and she whipped around, ducking and just avoiding Ino's grab. "Ha! Not this time!"
The blonde tossed her head and pouted. "Pssh! Lucky dodge."
"I don't need luck when I can hear your footsteps from a mile away!"
"Well, with ears as big as yours, I'd certainly hope so."
"Ugh, what do you want?"
"Hmm…" The Yamanaka heiress tapped her perfectly manicured index finger against her cheek mockingly. "Off the top of my head? A welathy, handsome boyfriend, a lifetime supply of snail sheet masks, and a best friend who's fashion sense didn't make me envy the blind."
Sakura stuck her tongue out.
"Very mature. Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way, but we're taking a trip to the bath house, followed by Emergency Beauty Intervention at my house."
"What's the easy way?"
"You come with me willingly and I generously help you recover your pride as a woman."
The pinkette crossed her arms.
"And the hard way?"
"I get inside your head and you cartwheel the entire way to bathhouse and put on a peep show for whatever pervert is peeking today. Then I generously help you gain the appearance of a woman, but without the pride."
Like she could get in my head.
I'll help this time! I'll even throw in some dirty limericks while we're doing the peep show!
Traitor!
Idiot.
"Alright, fine. I'll go, but no snail mucus."
It was one thing to use it in medicine, it was another to smear it all over her face in the name of beauty.
"You'll go. And I will convert you to mucus."
"Noo!"
"Stop struggling or you'll start cartwheeling!"
"Why can't you just act normal?!"
Ino snorted. "Normal is for people with no imagination."
"Ew, it's slimy!"
"Shut up! Stay still!"
The essence soaked mask was cold on Sakura's freshly exfoliated skin, stinging around her newly plucked eyebrows, as Ino's practiced hands smoothed it over the contours of her face. "Alright, now I'm going to put a lip mask on you too. Mainly to keep you from talking, but it'll help with that whole 'scaly' look you currently have going."
Exfoliated, lotioned, and intensely moisturized, Sakura felt silly wrapped in one of Ino's bathrobes while the blonde draped a towel around her shoulders.
"I gotta get some of these dead ends off, it's too hard to look at you."
"MM-mm!"
"Don't worry, I'm not taking the length off, just trimming it so it's not quite as obvious that you chew it."
"Hgg-mph!"
"Don't you dare swallow that lip mask, it's expensive, and I'm pretty sure it's toxic."
The feeling of a comb running through her hair, gently detangling it, was soothing. Ino tutted to herself as she combed the pink locks into sections.
Snip.
Snip.
Snip, snip, snip.
Snip.
Sakura's scalp tingled, the sensation trickling down from the crown of her head, down the nape of her neck and over her ears. She felt sleepy. Not in the exhausted slump that she normally felt when she staggered home from the hospital, but a warm, relaxed lethargy that made her limbs heavy and the world fuzzy.
"Go ahead and sleep, Forehead. I'll move your head if I need to."
Ino switched hands to comb another section down, tipping Sakura's head forward until the pinkette's chin was almost on her chest. "Besides, even if it turns out crooked, it'll still be miles ahead of the straw you had before."
"Shut up, Pig."
Sakura blinked slowly, her eyes almost too heavy to open. "Just for a minute."
"Sure."
"Hey Pig?"
"What? I'm concentrating."
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
A/N: Okay, me again. So, I am SO SORRY again about how long this took and I'm sorry that Sakura has spent most of this chapter asleep! But, admittedly, girl probably is super tired! Next chapter is dinner!
And I've already started working on that one, so it shouldn't take as long. I'm sorry, I wish I could give you guys a set schedule, but I really can't at this point. I'm at the mercy of my inspiration.
How was Itachi? Too creepy? Is the plot making sense?
Thanks again to all my reviewers! I really appreciate all of the feedback and it means a lot to know that my work is being enjoyed!