Chapter Seven:
"The Tables Turn at Midnight."
For a brief second Yukio thought the room might burst into licking hellfire. Even so, that probably would have been better than what was currently happening. He took in Kisame's frightening figure but not shortly after another figure entered did he turn to look away. It took but a second for the recognition to kick in. The surly man that stood before them was Hinamei's old flame. Well, maybe that was a little too light to describe him, after all, he had killed everybody she loved. Kisame stilled, turning his head to look at Itachi and while Yukio slowly tried to melt away, Hinamei was ticking like a time bomb. The other Uchiha looked at her and then discreetly turned his gaze to his partner. "Kisame, let the girl go will you? We wouldn't want to damage the merchandise so soon." Immediately, the tall man released his tangled hold onto Hinamei's head with a defiant 'hmph' and she dropped to her knees, hands splayed out against the ground, shaking.
"You," Her head was down and her shoulders were trembling roughly. "What the hell are you doing here?" Hinamei's head snapped upwards as she snarled out her strain of words. Eyes a brilliant scarlet, burning into Itachi's equally ready sharingan. Kisame made to look down at the girl but before he could ask questions Itachi broke in.
"Kisame, go into the other room. Take the child with you, get what you can out of him but refrain from killing him." It was obvious who held the reigns in that relationship, Yukio thought sharply before his blonde hair was being pulled forward.
"I can walk just fine!" He tried shouting but it was useless, the monster didn't care nor humor his yelling. Hinamei's mind was too warped around the current situation to pay any mind to Yukio as he was drug helplessly into the next room. Kisame slid the door shut, leaving the two Uchiha alone in the room together. Their eyes were firmly planted on one another and briefly, Itachi realized the situation had not gone according to plan. She was struggling, she wasn't going to go down without a fight. He fought back the creeping smirk that was twitching at the corner of his mouth. She hadn't changed much at all.
"Hinamei, keep your mouth shut. We need to talk first." But his words were unheard and she let out a guttural scream, hands clamping firmly over her tousled hair. No, this wasn't happening. She had done all she could, changed her name, fled to a place no one had heard about, laid low. She did everything to avoid this very situation. What had she done wrong and why...why was Itachi standing in front of her now? The boy crept closer, reading at guard to silence her if needed but quickly she shut her mouth, head recoiling back towards the floor.
"Itachi," she spat out roughly. "I can't even...there aren't words to describe how I feel right now." Her hand inched towards the katana at her hip, a notion that didn't go unnoticed by Itachi. "I don't know why you're here, terrorizing me again, but I promise you," she clicked the blade upwards with her thumb, hand at the ready to fly forward. "I'm nothing like I was five years ago." Her head snapped upwards again and she quickly tore to her feet, katana wailing forward fluidly as she moved. Itachi hadn't expected her to move as nimbly as she did but that didn't mean he wasn't ready. He countered her attack with a single kunai, a move that immediately made her feel like she was being underestimated. And that did not sit well with her. An aggravated growl left her throat and she slid the katana down his weapon until small bits of light flew from the friction. She stepped back, hand out and sharingan ready for any genjutsu he might throw at her. As it was, his mangekyo wasn't activated yet. She wasn't stupid, that could pose as a problem. She knew she had to take what small chance she had. The boy narrowed his eyes at her and she dodged left, avoiding a shuriken that had come out of nowhere. "You'll have to try much harder than that." The small girl whipped forward, her sword took a sharp left and was brought up with force that wobbled the weapon from his hand. Move faster, she thought as she brought the edge of the blade back down and quickly made a jab at his ribcage. But his figure drifted away and with a scowl she realized he was playing with better cards. She moved in the split second his weapon came from behind, only slipping away with a small tear at her shoulder.
Hinamei had never learned to create clones. Or any of the other basics shinobi were taught. After all, she wasn't a shinobi but after five years of bone shattering training she was damn well impressive with a sword. And she convinced herself that's all she would need, no fancy parlor tricks. "I didn't come here to fight," Itachi started but was quickly silenced as he bowed to avoid her sharp cut. He watched with disdain as small fragments of his hair fell in front of his face. He really should have given her more credit. When he came up he knocked his fist hard into the soft side of her arm and her sword clattered to the floor as she stumbled back from his blow. But she was fast and she kicked the katana out of his reach and slid back to snap it up before it hit the wall.
"Then what are you here for? Don't tell me you just came to say hello." She spat harshly back, holding the blade in front of her body like a shield. Itachi stood up straight and glanced sideways. It was then Hinamei snapped her attention towards the door. Yukio was yelling, no, he was screaming.
Again, this couldn't be happening.
Hinamei made a quick b-line towards the door but Itachi wasn't about to let her slip away so easily. He stepped in front of her and grabbed her wrist in his hand, twisting it roughly to the left until her hand unwillingly opened and her sword was out of reach once again. "Pay attention," he growled at her. The force of his grip pushed her to her knees and finally he pushed her away. Her katana was in his hands now, and he eyed it curiously. As helpless as she was, she couldn't do anything but rub the pain away in her arm and glare at the man who stood so shamelessly in front of her.
"What do you want with Yukio?" She yelled loudly, edging forward on both aching hands. "He doesn't know anything!" Itachi dropped his attention and carelessly threw her blade to the floor. She winced when it clattered noisily against the ground.
"Nothing, but he's one more thing to use against you. You make that plenty obvious. Now, are you ready to talk?" Her red eyes quickly looked away and again, a ragged yell slithered in from the living room. Her eyebrows knitted together and she threw her face into her hands, eyes wide and helpless.
"Fine! I'll talk but tell him to leave Yukio alone. Please..." she whimpered. Her chest was aching with every throttled gasp that left the boy's mouth. He was in pain, and she had promised nothing would touch him. Hell, she hadn't even tried to stop him as he was being pulled away. "Make him stop." Itachi watched her curiously before giving a short nod and stepping towards the door. He cast one last warning glance at Hinamei before opening the door and placing half his body in the hallway.
"Alright, that's enough for now. Just don't let him leave." A loud noise came from the living room in response, angry.
"Well hurry up then, I never thought you were one to play with your prey Itachi. I can only wait for so long, you know." Without justifying an answer, he slid back in and closed the door. Turning towards the defeated girl with a monotone look in his eye.
"Stand up." His voice was the same as she had dreamt for so many nights, for so long. Cold and steely, careless almost. It was as aggravating as she remembered it being. But she wasn't stupid. What choice did she have but to listen? If they didn't have Yukio she would have fought harder, she would of had nothing to lose anymore. But over the course of three days, she had grown attached. Maybe she was desperate for a connection, desperate to feel human again. But of course that would be her downfall. Wobbling, the girl slowly brought herself to her two feet. Eyes still focused on the ground. It had been a long time since she had felt so helpless. Even when Kame had died she felt sure of herself. That she could take anything now, she had the knowledge and the power to. But she must have spoken too soon. And even as painful as this was, she refused to cry. The last thing she wanted Itachi to see was that she was still as big of a coward as she had always been. When she met his eyes again her eyes had returned to their normal dusty charcoal state. A sign that she was giving in. "You're going to come with us Hinamei, our leader has business he'd like to discuss with you." Her eyes narrowed and her full, pale lips cut into a smirk.
"Some leader you have, sending his pawns out to retrieve something as easy as one girl." Itachi's calm face distorted into one she knew well. He was losing his patience, something she knew better than anyone that he didn't have a lot of.
"Don't run your mouth off."
"And if I go?"
"You have no choice in the matter." He replied matter-of-factly, he still hadn't switched his eyes back to normal. He didn't trust her yet. Something she took as a compliment if even Itachi was keeping his guard up.
"If I go without a struggle. Leave Yukio alone, let him go and I promise I'll do whatever you want." Her brain shouted warnings, she was making a very big mistake. But she didn't care. What kind of person would she be if she couldn't save one person in her life? It was her fault anyway he was here, stuck in the arms of some mad man. It was the least she could do. And besides, it gave her the opportunity to give Itachi back what he deserved. Something she had always vowed to finish one day. "Please." Itachi glanced back, considering the option before he turned back to her, emotionless.
"If it's that easy then fine. And keep the facade up, not everyone needs to know you're an Uchiha. Is that understood?" She answered with a glower and Itachi stepped closer. So close she could smell the spray of the ocean on his cloak. "I'll gouge your eyes out myself if I must."
Well, he hadn't changed much.
Defiantly, she waved her hand in front of her body. "Fine, but drop the threats Itachi. They'll get you nowhere." By now, she could feel the anger rolling off of him. Good, he deserved it. He should have known better, he had killed that friendship long ago. He turned around and slid the door open.
"Follow me." He spoke with a formal kind of punctuality. Unlike what he used to, there was a sort of unsaid grace about him. It came as he grew, as he held everything in. And it only made him seem more hopeless. Reluctantly, she followed. "She knows, and she's coming with us. We'll leave tomorrow morning."
"And what until then?" Kisame said sharply, watching Hinamei carefully as she slowly stepped down the hall. Itachi looked around the living room and sighed.
"Rest here. I'll keep watch on the both of them. We're going to need it." The taller one shifted uncomfortably before growling and slamming the large sword he had on his back to the floor.
"If I didn't know you better, I'd say you were making a huge mistake Itachi." But truth be told, he was exhausted. They had moved at a much faster pace to get here than they had on any other mission. He had hardly slept at all that week. His small eyes shifted back to Hinamei as she stepped into the room. Her eyes immediately flew to the crumpled figure on the ground and they grew wide and frightened. It was a look he loved. The girl pushed past Itachi, falling to her knees next to Yukio's shuddering form.
"Hey, come on, sit up." Hinamei pressed her fingers to his wrist and cringed. He was barely there, the other man really had pushed the boundaries. She tried hard not to let her temper get the best of her and she slowly rolled Yukio on his back. The boy answered with a sharp intake of breath as she did so. His face was already bruising, partially covered in gore and he coughed violently. With one eye open, he blinked up at Hinamei and even through the pain he managed a grin.
"I'm not blaming you at all." He whispered, his single bright blue eye washing over the look of horror on her face. "Really, this could have happened to anyone."
"Stop talking you idiot, you're just going to make it worse." She quietly placed a finger over his mouth and closed her eyes. She needed to fix him up, fast. The girl stepped up and looked back at the two, both were watching her with amusement.
"Where are you going?" Itachi asked as she stepped by him. He was at the ready still, she wouldn't get far if she decided to flee.
"To get some medicine. Your friend here hurt him really bad, he'll die if I don't." Kisame watched on with a smirk and Itachi let her pass. As she walked down the hall she heard the taller one ask if she was going to make a run for it. But Itachi knew her better than that and he replied with a simple no. She clicked the bathroom light on and quickly dug in the cabinets for the items she needed. Still, the shock hadn't hit her. Itachi was here, sitting in her living room and ready to kill her if she made a single wrong move. Funny how these things worked out. Without wasting time, she back off into the living room. The blue one was resting against the couch, eyes still alert and Itachi was leafing through a book. She glared at him from behind and kept moving, the nerve of some people never failed to astound her. She kneeled back down by Yukio and pushed the bowl of warm water next to him. And despite his small struggling, she wiped at his face gently with the wet rag until she could make out his young features again. "Better all ready," she pulled a small jar out of her pile and with two fingers, rubbed it against the few wounds he had. They weren't as bad as she had originally thought but still, it wasn't a pretty sight. She had to bind one of his arms completely after finding out that he had broken in trying to defend himself. It was times like these that she really resented not having learned any medical ninjutsu. Creams and pastes were so old fashioned, it was almost embarrassing. When she finally had Yukio clean, she moved him to a sitting position. He was aching but he felt ten times better than he had.
"Don't give in, please. These guys are bad news." He whispered up at her, still trying to open his swollen eye. Hinamei rolled her own eyes as she stood up.
"What gave you that idea?" He looked away and she slowly made her way to the kitchen. Dumping the bloody water down the sink she didn't realize how bad she was shaking up until now. A cold shadow crept up behind her and her bowl dropped in the sink loudly as she turned around. Itachi's face was only inches from hers and she froze. His eyes were boring into hers, displaying a number of unsaid emotions all at once.
"Don't be stupid Hinamei," he hissed, eyes searching her face for any sign of ill will. When her mind came back she laid a single hand onto Itachi's firm chest.
"You're just itching to fight aren't you?" She could feel the soft and steady beats of his heart as she consciously moved in closer. Her body was touching the fabric of his cloak and with a slight widening to his eyes he quickly stepped back. He didn't answer and instead stepped back towards the living room. Kisame watched with a quirked brow as Hinamei watched him walk away. A tinge of regret painting her dark eyes. "Let me move Yukio into the other room," before either of them could respond she held a hand up. "He won't get far in that state, I promise. I'll stay where you are." Kisame looked at Itachi and the latter looked deadly on. Finally he nodded and Hinamei slithered in close to Yukio. She wasn't by all means a strong girl, so she couldn't lift him like he needed. Instead, she struggled to help him stand, throwing his unbroken arm over her shoulder, he limped next to her as they moved in front of careful eyes. He kept his head down the entire time. His room was closer and as much as she didn't want him to be that close, she had little choice. Yukio was beginning to crumple. When she did manage to get him in the room, he sat down and looked up at her with his eyebrows pushed together.
"What now?" He asked quietly, eyes darting between her and the doorway.
"Shh, we can't talk now. Don't worry I'm thinking. Just try to get some rest." Before he could respond Hinamei stood up and gave him a small wave goodnight. She shut the door and walked quietly back into the living room. By now, Kisame was fully stretched out on the small couch, his eyes closed and his chest falling in heavy breaths. Itachi on the other hand had his eyes glued firmly to Hinamei. She ignored his gaze the best she could as she sat against the front door.
Kisame wouldn't have slept as heavy as he did if Itachi hadn't been there, he felt safe to fall asleep fully while Itachi kept watch. After all, Itachi was stronger than he. And these people, well even someone like Hidan could have handled them without a problem. Which was why Itachi felt safe to talk now. "You weren't careful enough." Her dull eyes looked up, not understanding what he meant. Still his gaze was fixated on her and again she had to look away. "You were reckless."
"Don't waste your breath. I don't want to hear it." She pulled her knees up close to her chest and she laid her head down in the circle she had made with her arms. She blinked at the small darkness she had created, trying to edge away the tears that were breaking through. Just once, she wanted a normal life. She wanted to wake up and know that no one was going to try to kill her or ruin her life for good. Was it really all that much to ask for? Time slipped by and eventually Itachi turned the light off, edging a way into a corner himself. But she knew he wasn't sleeping, he was always on the watch. Like a hawk, he would strike if she made one wrong move. Even though her body ached and strained she refused to move. To look back up. Feeling trapped often times brought her back to this position, like nothing could touch her. Briefly, she wondered what Shisui would have done in this situation. But she pushed it away before she could answer, one Uchiha from the past was enough to consider for one night. After another hour ticked by she finally budged and looked up, activating her sharingan as she did.
Itachi's eyes were closed and his chest was falling in soft breaths. Apparently, he had exhausted himself more than he had even thought. A small thought bloomed in her mind and to test the waters she unfolded one aching leg and she watched his face carefully. He remained the same and a small smile fell on her lips. Where as she stood no chance of escaping with Yukio she at least had a small chance of getting some time to herself. After all, she was only minutes away from screaming again and losing all control. Slowly and carefully she stood up, making no sound in the silent house and Itachi stayed still the entire time. Her eyes flashed to the larger one and she looked away, he was out cold. She moved as fast as she could until she was in the hall, no one made to strike her yet and she carefully slid open her bedroom door, making a quick line towards the window. Hinamei paused and listened for a second, silent. With a grin she slid open the window and stepped out, shutting it after her carefully.
The air had never felt so sweet. But she would enjoy it in a minute, she fled from the side of the house and she promised, she'd be back before anyone noticed. It would have been easy to run away but that wasn't the person she was, as stupid as it was. She couldn't ever leave Yukio there alone with them. The sand melted away under her foot falls as she ran down towards the beach. Her steps became uneven and she came to a stop. Breathing in the air she looked out at the ocean with bright eyes. The moon was scored into the black water, swaying ever so lightly as small tides washed up the bank. The girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath, sighing out with relief as the air swept her up, tickling the loose strands of hair on her face. The ocean had never looked so appealing. She took a small look back and then when she was sure the coast was still clear, she kicked off her shoes and carefully stepped down until the water licked at her bare feet.
She must have been crazy doing this, but it was too late. She had been warped since the day she left the leaf, nothing seemed too much anymore. And was it really so crazy to admire the beach one last time? She took another step in and with a small smile she pushed her toes in deeper into the sand. If she had to thank Itachi for one thing, it would be for getting her out of the leaf and leading her here. Despite it's small attractions, the shore had it all. And for that she was endlessly happy. her dark eyes looked up at the moon, big and bright. And as she admired it she made to take another step forward but a slender hand wrapped around her mouth and cut short any ideas she might of had. "Why don't you ever listen?" Itachi's warm breath tickled her ear and his body was now firmly pressed up against her back. "Do you want to die so badly?" Her eyes widened and she could hear the smirk playing at the edges of his mouth as he hissed. His hand tightened around her face and with his other hand, he held a kunai to her throat. Dark eyes cinched shut and she tried to struggle, but it was useless.
But his hand fell back and he stepped away, giving her enough room to turn around until she was face to face with him again. Her knees threatened to buckle and she was edging towards complete hysterics. Of course, Itachi wasn't stupid. He knew, he had known the whole time. He was still playing his little games. "I wasn't-" she started but was quickly cut off as his kunai dug a little deeper into her skin. She glanced down and took his figure in. He had removed his cloak and now stood in front of her wearing a basic blue shirt and pants ensemble. But he was still just as threatening out of uniform.
"You know I hate repeating myself Hinamei. I'm asking you to go along with this, I don't need to hurt you." As she inhaled she paused. Had she heard him right? His hand fell and he looked away, it was obvious something was raging inside of him. The moon cast a pale glow over his already light skin and his eyes had finally reverted to that soft onyx grey she had always liked looking at. She didn't like him, in fact she hated him more than anything. He had killed everybody she loved, he had tried to kill her. But he didn't and suddenly she felt her chest aching.
Those feelings, they never really go away. And stupidly, she found herself still desperate to see some good in him. Without thinking her hand lifted up to feel his face, but he was quicker and caught her wrist before she could touch him. "Itachi..."
"Hinamei, don't." He replied coldly, eyes darting between hers. Unwillingly, her knees were giving way and she closed her eyes painfully. Tears were leaking through and Itachi had seen, she had betrayed herself entirely. His grip on her wrist loosened and her hand fell limply to her side. The pain was unbearable and just as she was about to collapse into the cold, shuddering waters Itachi's hands wrapped around the undersides of her arms. She was going into a catatonic state, her eyes seeing nothing but grey as he struggled to pull her to shore. She was shaking and Itachi felt angry he had let her get this far. He should have said something when he saw her try to leave. At least Kisame hadn't seen, he'd never get away with this. He laid her down against the sandy floor and kneeled over her, adjusting her head so that she was looking upward at the sky. Her breath was getting choppier and he narrowed his eyes. What the hell was he thinking. Madara was really testing him this time and no matter how many times he told himself to let go he realized then that it was much easier said than done. The soft touch of her hand brought his mind back to present and he went rigid. As she cupped his face her eyes fell back into focus, but she continued to cry quietly.
"You promised me forever. And look, look what you've become now. Itachi, what happened?"
He knew not to humor her, he knew he was taking a huge risk. But this once, he refused to think rationally. "People change, there's no such thing as forever." His voice was quiet but far from soft. He was angry, and he was clenching hard at the sand next to him.
"Only you changed, we were all happy right where we were at."
"You don't get it-" he started, angry that she was still trying so hard to convince herself things were better than they actually were. But when she spoke he found himself questioning everything.
"Not the clan, I know they went bad. But Shisui, you and me, we could have left together. We were always the same Itachi, but you..." Her eyes grew serious and she leaned in closer. "You fell apart." Despite her better judgement she let the moment take her, being thrust back into the same state he had left her in. The gap was small but she closed it. Sitting up on one elbow she gently pressed her cold lips to his, knowing fully well she was only making things worse. It was brief but he didn't resist for that one moment and she knew, somewhere there was still hope. When he did pull away his eyes were closed and quickly he stood up, looking more at war with himself than she had ever seen. Finally, he opened his eyes and she felt that spark of hope fade.
He was back to normal, hard and empty. "No, you're wrong." He said quietly. With more force than necessary he bent down and grabbed her by the shirt, pulling her up until she stumbled on her own thin legs. "Walk." The kunai was back out and as he moved behind her she could feel it's threatening tip dig into her back. The window was left open and reluctantly she pulled herself back in. She should have known, Itachi was gone. Forever. Angrily, she wiped her hand firmly across her mouth, trying to remove any traces of his mouth against hers. He watched on just as lividly. Quietly, the slipped in back down the hall and she returned to her spot. To her disdain, he sat himself in a close chair and crossed his legs, eyes full of malice. "Get some rest, you'll be needing it tomorrow when we go."
And she folded herself back up into her makeshift space, feeling as lost and hopeless as ever.
A/N: I hate cliffhangers as much as the next reader, but hey, sometimes they are just plain unavoidable. So to make up for that move have another chapter. Filled with plenty of action, dialogue, and romance? I swear, this is relationships in a nutshell. You love them but then they kill all your family and then you just don't know anymore. WTF. I can so relate. Kidding, you see where my sense of humor lies in the early hours of the morning. Not appealing.
Oh, and for that one reader that is going to Costa Rica on Tuesday, this is mostly for you. Please keep on living. And reviewing. I like that.