Chapter Eight - Blood Suckers

Itachi was hesitant to get into the car.

Kisame was already in the driver's seat, reading whatever was in the envelope Madara had given to him.

He kept glancing back towards campus as if somehow his decision would be made easier. Joining the gang had been his choice from the beginning and now that he was a member he was having second thoughts.

It was as if Shisui's warnings were just now starting to click. The Akatsuki was a gang full of organized criminals who are willing to sell and deal drugs, kill and fight rival gangs. Itachi had always been on the other side of the line. His father was one of the best Chief of Police Konoha had and Fugaku had always wanted one of his sons to follow in his footsteps.

Itachi couldn't help but let out a small laugh at the irony of it all now.

"Alright here's the deal," Kisame said leaning up against the side of the car beside Itachi, startling the young prodigy from his thoughts.

"You are a member of the Akatsuki," the taller male began. "Now, you can get in this car and forget about the life you used to have or you can walk away right now and keep the life you have."

Kisame was silent for a moment, making sure Itachi was listening.

"If you get in this car then that's it, I don't want to hear any more complaining or have any more hesitation," he continued. "You will start acting like you are in this gang and follow the rules. If you walk away right now then don't come back and suffer whatever consequence Madara has for wasting his time."

He pushed himself off of the car and walked back around to the driver's side before sliding inside. Kisame turned the key in the ignition and waited for the Uchiha to make his decision.

Itachi knew Kisame was right. He was the one who had tried to get into the gang and now he was trying to back out. It was Kisame who had risked his own position to have Madara give him a chance. 'It's only until I have enough money' he promised himself as his grip on his backpack strap tightened.

He made up his mind.

Itachi pulled the passenger door open before sliding into the seat and closed the door. Kisame chuckled as he put the car in reverse and pulled out of the parking lot, speeding down the street.

"So what do we have to do?" Itachi finally asked, turning to look at Kisame as he drove.

"First, we have to get you a gun," he explained, leaning back comfortably against the seat as he continued to drive.

"A gun?" he asked, eyes growing wide.

"Ah-ah-ah, no complaints," Kisame chided teasingly as he looked over at Itachi.

"I'm not complaining," he retorted stubbornly and folded his arms across his chest. "I was just curious," he said quickly and looked out the window.

Another toothy grin appeared on Kisame's face.

"Just relax Uchiha," he said, pulling the car up alongside the curb in front of a strip of older buildings.

As he pushed the door open and stepped out onto the sidewalk, Itachi noticed that they were in the same neighborhood Madara had taken him to traffic the drugs. The buildings were all placed together reminding him of a historic looking town. The strip had everything from a furniture store to a locksmith, graffiti on every other wall, and people loitering on the sidewalks.

Itachi closed the car door and followed Kisame as he crossed the street towards what looked like a pawn shop. The small bell chimed as the door was pushed open, signaling their presence to whoever was in the back shuffling things around. Itachi looked past Kisame as a man walked up behind the counter. He noticed that the male was a slightly shorter than he was with pale skin and short, spiky hair that was brick-red.

What stood out to Itachi about the other was that he had raccoon-like black eye rings which could have been from insomnia or an excess of eye makeup. There was also a tattoo on the left side of his forehead with the kanji of love.

"Ah, Kisame, it's been awhile," the male said before he looked over at Itachi and folded his arms across his chest. "Who's your friend?" he asked, brows furrowing slightly.

"Itachi," Kisame replied, "Newest of the Akatsuki. Itachi, this is Gaara, one of Madara's associates," he made the introductions for them.

"Welcome then," Gaara greeted Itachi, relaxing. "Follow me," he instructed to the two gang members as he walked into the back of the shop again.

Kisame looked back at Itachi and followed Gaara back behind the counter and through the door towards the back of the shop where isles of shelves were stacked with boxes and black trash bags filled with unknown items. On the far table, Itachi watched as Gaara pulled out a gun from one of the boxes along with a couple magazines and ammunition.

"Have you ever used a gun before?" Gaara asked, his foam-green eyes looked up at the Uchiha.

Itachi shook his head silently, watching at how casually the other male handled the weapon in his hand.

"I'll start you out with a simple 9mm Glock," Gaara explained as he held up the unloaded weapon for the other to see. "The hammer-forged barrel has a female type polygonal rifling with a right-hand twist. It is designed with three independent safety mechanisms to prevent accidental discharge," he showed Itachi how to handle the gun before handing it to him.

"Sounds like a cock," Kisame grinned, chuckling, "Is that why they named it a Glock?" he asked gently nudging Itachi on the arm trying to release the tension in the room. (1)*

Gaara rolled his eyes at Kisame's childish humor.

Itachi held the gun in the palm of his hand as if it were going to bite him. It went unnoticed by Gaara who continued to explain how to use it properly.

"Alright, first you are going to want to pull open the slide of the gun, locking it into position," Gaara continued, watching as Itachi did as he was instructed. "You want to load your full magazine into the handgun and release the slide."

Itachi's hands shook slightly, but he did as he was told and loaded the magazine into the gun and watched as Gaara put the safety on for him.

"You're all set now," he said handing over some extra magazines.

"Thanks Gaara," Kisame chuckled as he reached his large hand over and shook the others hand. "Madara will be contacting you shortly for the payment arrangements."

"As usual," his lips curved up slightly at the shark like male though his face remained calm. "And Itachi," he said, turning his head to look over at the other. "Good luck out there."

Kisame grinned and grabbing a brown bag, he carefully placed the gun and magazines inside. Handing the bag back to Itachi, he walked up through the main part of the store and out the front. Itachi followed after him silently, clutching onto the brown back tightly.

Itachi was silent as Kisame drove to another part of town. The small, rundown buildings turned into taller, business type buildings and he knew that they were no longer in the downtown area of Amegakure. Kisame still had not said anything about what was in the envelope and Itachi could not help but be curious as to what they were supposed to do.

"What kind of business does Madara do…exactly, Kisame?" he finally asked as Kisame pulled up in front of one of the buildings.

Kisame was quiet for a moment, letting the car idle as he thought about how to answer the question.

"Well, it is kind of complicated," he finally began, cutting the engine off. He ran his fingers through his spiky hair and shifted in his seat until he was looking over at the other. "Akatsuki is more than just a gang, Itachi," Kisame explained.

"I don't understand," Itachi said, his head shaking slightly. "It's just a gang right? I mean, aren't gangs supposed to be about respect and territory?" he questioned.
"I thought your father was a cop?" Kisame chuckled, finding the others definition of a gang rather amusing.

Itachi furrowed his brow, but said nothing.

"This isn't like the movies, Itachi," he went on. "Our main goal is for power and control. The Akatsuki is more of an organization than a gang. People on the outside see us as a gang because of what they see on the outside – a group of people sharing a common identity in criminal affiliation and blah blah blah."

"So then what do we do?" Itachi inquired.

"That, I will explain to you another time," Kisame answered as he pushed open the car door and stepped out.

Itachi, though displeased with Kisame's answer, did not argue and climbed out of the car as well. They were instantly surrounded by men and women wearing pricy business suits. It was as if they had stepped into a different city completely; he had not realized before just how big Amegakure really was until now.

He followed the taller male through the cluster of passerby towards the entrance of one of the taller buildings in the area. Before passing the threshold, Itachi was able to catch a glimpse of the Hōzuki Corporation sign just above the glass doors.

"Hōzuki?" he questioned Kisame as he made his way towards the elevators. "I thought the company was in Kirigakure?"

"Hm?" Kisame asked, looking over his shoulder at Itachi. "It is," he answered reaching out to press the 'up' button on the wall beside the elevators. "The company is run by two brothers," he explained as he waited patiently. "They have decided to branch out."

Kisame said nothing else as a faint dinging noise was heard before the doors to the elevator pulled open and those inside quickly stepped out, allowing Itachi and Kisame to occupy it.

"So what are we doing here anyways?" Itachi asked, feeling oddly out of place in a sea full of people wearing suits.

"I need to see a man who sucks the blood out of people," (2)* Kisame answered with a toothy grin.

"…A vampire?" Itachi asked, raising a brow skeptically.

"No, no," Kisame chuckled. "They just sparkle." (3)*

Kisame looked down at Itachi and grinned as the elevator doors slid closed.

"A lone shark."


1*- Thank you inu-spike for giving the lovely suggestion of calling the Glock a cock. I found it rather amusing and I hope my readers do as well.

2* - I got this quote from the movie "Love at First Bite". I found it while I was looking for good lone shark quotes.

3* - I had to. If you bring up vampires you have to bring up some sort of sparkle reference along with it. It was just too easy.

Authors Note: Whoo! Thank you for sticking with me for so long, I know that this chapter is well overdue and I hoped you all enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. Reviews and constructive criticism help the creative process :D

In any case, please excuse any spelling and or grammar mistakes this chapter may have. I think I might have rushed it just a bit and for that I apologize.

10 points to the person who can guess who the lone shark is!