Day 7: Precious time
Misaki woke up with a start realising that she had fallen asleep over night at the deserted medical core waiting room still waiting for the report. She ran her fingers through her messy hair and sat up to look out the window at the bleak and cloudy day outside.
Her neck felt stiff from the uncomfortable position she had slept in on the cold chair but she quickly clicked it to relieve the tension in her muscle just in time to see a young boy with a spikey pineapple looking ponytail and a bored looking face walking up to her. She recognised him from the opening of the Academy.
"Hey are you the person waiting for some medical report?" he asked sounding bored.
"Yes, I am"
"Here, my dad told me to give this to you. It's a list of medical terms for the Hokage to use when he gets the report"
"Are you from the Nara clan?" she asked taking two scrolls of paper from him.
"Yes. There's also a letter of apology from the leaf medical core chief Yakushi-san explaining why he can't make it to speak to the Hokage personally, something about his adopted son…"
"His adopted son Kabuto?" she said remembering previous person of interest profiles compiled by the ANBU earlier on. The boy merely shrugged.
"Oh yeah the examiner of… whoever you need examined is done and waiting for you in room 204"
"Thank you erm…"
"Shikamaru and you're welcome"
"So, who exactly was this dead guy found in Nakano River that everyone's talking about anyway?" he asked.
"Everyone's talking about it?"
"Of course, the whole village is talking about it, the news of his death has been spreading like a wild fire so I just figured that he was someone important or something" said the Nara boy.
Misaki kicked herself; she should've known that the entire village would soon be buzzing with talk about the death of yet another young Uchiha. All of the curious and gossiping people could end up making the investigation even more difficult to conduct accurately.
"He was an amazing ANBU member and a highly praised Uchiha. That's all" she said to the boy.
"Whatever. Ah man, delivering things so early in the morning is such a drag" he said yawning widely and walking away.
"What an attitude that kid has" she said in her head as she walked to the room and knocked on the door.
"Come in" said someone from behind the door.
Misaki walked into the medical lab of the medical core and saw a smiling woman washing her hands and coming up to greet her.
"Hello, watashi wa Konomi Nara desu (I am Konomi Nara)" she said beaming an over friendly smile for someone who had just helped perform an autopsy.
"Uchiha Misaki desu, nice to meet you" she said trying her best to return the smile and be polite.
"Ooh another Uchiha, impressive. Anyway here's the finalised autopsy report for the Hokage" she said giving Misaki the unsurprisingly thick sheets of paper.
"Thank you. So what exactly were your findings?"
The women looked serious now as she went over the report and gestured for Misaki to step closer to Shisui's body where all but his head were covered in a white sheet on the examining table.
"Truth be told, it's not looking good. I was told yesterday by Chief Fugaku Uchiha that this young man committed suicide in Nakano River. But we found severe injuries to his eyes that say otherwise. It's quite suspicious" said Konomi.
Misaki was astounded; if his injuries were so severe then how could it have been suicide, she couldn't understand it.
"My team and I have also noted in the report that judging by the victim's body temperature and the temperature of the river, he must have died sometime in the morning two days ago"
"The day of the ANBU assembly… And what of the injuries to his body?" she asked.
"There wasn't a single scratch on him. All of his injuries were to his eyes and obviously water in his lungs from the river"
"I'm not sure if that sounds like foul play was involved. So far it's in the clear"
"Unfortunately it gets worse. Brace yourself for this because it's quite gruesome"
"Don't worry I can handle gruesome" Misaki said truthfully remembering the sight of her brother's body.
"His eyes appear to be crushed in their sockets. The entire eyeball is completely damaged and covered in blood"
"Now that is the evidence that supports the suicide. If Shisui wanted to kill himself he would know to destroy his powerful eyes or they could fall into enemy hands. No one would have killed him left his valuable eyes behind"
"It doesn't end there though; we found a strange chakra around his eyes that doesn't seem to be disappearing after death. There might have been a very powerful genjutsu that was used on this young man's eyes"
"Are you telling me that someone could have stolen his eyes and placed a genjutsu around them to appear as if there merely crushed in their sockets? This is bad I have to go and report this right away!" she said knowing that Shisui had been the only person in their entire clan to possess a very powerful visual jutsu in recent times and if it fell into the wrong hands it could prove to be disastrous.
"Wait Miss Uchiha, please don't jump to conclusions. It's just as likely that he gave them to someone before he killed himself; it's not unheard of"
"But you don't think he did this to himself, do you. You don't think he killed himself" she asked her boldly, the woman was taken by surprise but then let out a sigh.
"Between you and me, I don't think this was a suicide, not at first at least. If this young man did kill himself, it wasn't until after he or someone destroyed his eyes badly. Even the drowning was very curious; from what I've been told this young man was an exceptional shinobi from your clan so it may be that the genjutsu was used to drown him. But then again it could've been assisted suicide, there are too many possibilities we can't rule out yet."
"That's illegal in the leaf village if it is not done by or under the supervision of the head of the assassinations core of the ANBU black ops. Not to mention that you need a valid explanation and permission from the Hokage first who only gives out the order under the most exceptional circumstances anyway such as chronic pain or terminal illnesses that have no cure. If someone had helped Shisui kill himself then it's classified as murder" she said textbook perfect.
"Is it possible to assume that he wanted someone to kill him without permission? Some people do it undercover to avoid any drama"
No, not Shisui, he was not the kind of person to kill himself; I saw him just the other day, he was so confident, with his usual high esteem, such a proud Uchiha who would die for the upkeep of the clan and for the sake of this village. He knew how much of an asset he was to the ANBU so he wouldn't just do this…" She touched his lifeless face and traced her fingers over the lips she had once kissed unbeknownst to her boyfriend. "Oh Shisui…I'm so sorry"
"I've also included in the report the time and place where his body will be destroyed so that his abilities don't fall into the wrong hands" she said respectfully seeing Misaki mournful.
"Thank you again for the report, I'll send it to the Hokage immediately" she said.
They both exchanged their goodbyes and Misaki set off to the Hokage's office in his main tower. His death had been more tragic than she had thought, but the assisted suicide bit was too far-fetched. When she got to the Hokage's office he wasn't there yet so she dropped it off with his assistant and left his office just as Anko ran up to her.
"Misaki!" she said almost out of breath and holding on to her best friends arms.
"So where's the fire Ankie?" asked Misaki stopping outside the hokage's office and seeing the state Anko was in.
"Did you hear? Itachi almost got arrested yesterday!"
Misaki's world seemed to stop; she looked at her best friend wide eyed with her heart beating too fast; all the bad news she had been dealing with lately was always somehow related to her boyfriend.
"What, why?" she said no louder than a whisper.
"Something to do with a confrontation with senior Uchiha members of the Konoha police force who are working with you ANBU black ops about Shisui's death. Apparently he assaulted them outside his house when they confronted him and he said some derogatory statements about the Uchiha clan"
"Itachi can't be arrested by the Konoha police force; they need a warrant from the Hokage to arrest ANBU black ops" she said defensively.
"That's what Itachi's father explained when he got there. He apparently took full responsibility for the whole incident and blamed it on the stress that Itachi's been under because of all of the missions he's been given lately"
Misaki covered her face with her hands in stress she was going through herself. It was beginning to be all too much for her.
"What were the Konoha police doing there in the first place?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, but I think it has something to do with the investigation into Shisui's murder"
"I can't believe this is happening. What the hell is going on around here? And knowing this village's penchant for the latest gossip, this incident will spread like wildfire"
"Don't worry, no one else knows about it; I overheard it from one of the Uchiha police as I was coming to your house to check on you yesterday but you weren't home. By the way, you didn't hear this from me" said Anko.
Misaki had to breathe slower and deeper to prevent herself from going into full panic mode. What was going on with Itachi? His strange behaviour was starting to impact negatively on him.
"That's it. I have to go and see him; right now, I can't wait any longer" she said running her fingers through her hair in frustration and walking away.
"Wait, Misaki please, I don't have a lot of time because I have to go on a mission. But I erm, maybe… maybe you should stay away from Itachi, at least for a while until this investigation is over"
"Are you kidding me Anko, do you even hear what you're asking me?" she said outraged; staying away from him during his troubled times was unthinkable to her.
"Just hear me out. Itachi seems to be building a reputation as a trouble maker these days and it could impact on you as well. Please I just don't want you to have your dreams taken away and I don't want to lose my bestie to some boy either" she said sincerely.
"Thanks for the concern but you don't have to worry about me. I just need to talk to Itachi and get to the core of what his problem is then we'll all be fine okay, trust me"
"Misaki, Itachi doesn't deserve you. You're a strong, independent and talented kunoichi with skills better than most shinobi in this village that Itachi will never recognise with all his arrogance."
"Where the hell is this coming from Anko, why are you being like this? Itachi needs my undivided support now that everyone is so against him because of his apparent 'strange behaviour', since when have we abandoned people we love when they're going through troubled times?" she said angry now; why was everyone including her best friend trying to keep her away from Itachi?
"He's up to something Misaki; Shisui, the other Uchiha's, the police force and the black ops have all been watching him for some time now and his strange behaviour could mean something bad for you"
"I'm a big girl, I can handle myself" said Misaki but she couldn't keep the memory of Itachi sneaking around in the dark with an unknown character, but she still didn't want to tell anyone.
"I know you can more than handle yourself, but remember this is Itachi"
"And what's that supposed to mean?"
"I just mean that he's skills are unparalleled in this village but he doesn't have the same pride for your clan that drives you and Shisui once". When she kept quiet he said to her "You're obsessed with him aren't you, that's why you try so hard to be like him"
"No I'm not, you wouldn't understand the relationship we have, he keeps me working harder when I see how advanced he is, I'm so proud of him; and I love him, and who cares if he's not a proud Uchiha."
Anko looked like she was about to give up so Misaki had to reassure her. "Anko you're my bestie, I appreciate your concern but I'll be fine" she said rubbing Anko's arm tenderly "Good luck on your mission, I'll see you when you get back" she said hugging Anko. She left Anko who was not feeling entirely convinced…
XxX
Misaki arrived at the magnificent compound belonging to the chief of the Uchiha clan. The compound that had for generations lived the noble chiefs and leaders of the Uchiha clan and their families, preserving their way of life and continuing the upliftment and prosperity of the clan.
As she walked down the long pathway leading to their home, she noticed that the gravel was quite loose as the heel of her shoes stabbed the ground. This must've been the place where Itachi assaulted the men. When she dug out her heel from the ground, something caught her eye. A crack running through the Uchiha crest on the wall. Misaki stared at it for a while, unable to understand how the crack got there on the wall of the main and proudest house of the proudest clan in history. It just added to the list of strange occurrences happening lately. She got to the front entrance of the house and knocked as she was not allowed inside the main house unless invited. The door opened to reveal not her boyfriend but his eight year old dark-haired little brother with a curious look on his face.
"Hello Sasuke is your brother home?" she asked sweetly as the little boy charmed the living breath out of her with his big innocent dark eyes, adorable face, furrowed brow, and his blue-black hair hanging in his face.
"Yes, but he's busy today so you'll have to come back some other time"
"Oh I—
"Never mind that Misaki; he just doesn't want his big brother leaving. I'll go and get him" said Itachi's kind mother Mikoto coming behind her youngest son. She always had an aura of peace and a nurturing maternal side that warmed Misaki up.
"Sure thanks. So Sasuke are you enjoying your first few days at the Academy?"
"I'm actually top of my class already" he said quite boastfully. The Uchiha blood was already starting to manifest into his abilities.
"That's great; I'm proud of you as an Uchiha myself…By the way, do you know what happened to your wall outside with our crest? I mean who or what made that crack?"
The little boy suddenly looked quite uncomfortable now, he hesitated before speaking softly.
"It was Itachi, he threw a kunai at the crest" he said.
"Why?" she said only imagining the amount of trouble he would get into defacing the sacred crest at his father's house no less.
"I don't know!" he said sounding defensive like he would be in trouble if he didn't know the answer. Misaki figured that it was best to leave Sasuke alone.
"Okay Sasuke, that'll do" said his mother coming from behind a wall again clutching an umbrella under her arm. She took her son's hand. "Excuse us, I have to go and get a few things for Sasuke schooling. Itachi will be down in a minute" she said smiling at Misaki. Misaki bowed to her courteously and leaned against a beam of the house.
...Eventually she heard soft footsteps walking along the wooden patio surrounding the house just as a light shower came down gracefully onto the roof.
"Why do I only ever get to see you after a few days?" came a voice behind her.
"I should be asking you the same thing" she said opening her eyes and turning around. Misaki was stunned by the person she was gazing at. He seemed to blind her with the light he was emitting. Itachi was a knock out vision in white. He resembled an angel with his long white robe and wide sleeves that dragged onto the wooden floor which revealed his bare feet. But the most surprising thing about him was his long beautiful jet black hair hanging down his shoulders. She had never seen is hair let down before. Clearly he was in his element at home.
"Wow Itachi" she breathed taken by his charm as he walked towards her.
"What's the matter?" he asked smirking at the stunned expression on her face.
"Nothing. It's just that… you're so beautiful" she whispered touching his robe.
Itachi just smirked at her again. "That's usually what a man would say to a woman" he said.
"Well you are. I've never seen your hair loose before; nor have I ever seen you in a kimono. You look like a samurai warrior or something and you're so sexy in white" she said unable to help herself. The vision of Itachi in his robes was stirring something up inside her.
Itachi slowly ran his fingers down the side of her face the same way Shisui had a few days earlier. It started her rapid heartbeat again.
"I feel so under dressed now" she said looking at her tank top and cut off jean shorts she was still wearing from yesterday as she hadn't the chance to go home.
"That's okay; you can wear one of my other kimonos. You're so lucky that we're alone at this house" he said giving her a strange look, she didn't really know how to interpret but it made her blush and she went along with it.
"What's the occasion?" she asked.
"Should there be an occasion for me to see a beautiful woman?" asked Itachi taking her hand.
She smiled at him and he led her to the main entrance of the house where she took of her shoes and followed him to his bedroom. It was quite nerve wrecking for her to go to his room when they were alone at the house…
"Here, you can put this on, I'll be waiting right here" he said giving her the white robe.
She took it from him and went to the bathroom to change. It didn't go unnoticed to her that she was taking her clothes off in Itachi Uchiha's bathroom; he wasn't even in there with her but it felt so sensuous to her somehow, especially since she only had her underwear on after taking off all her clothes and tightening the obi or rope around her waist in his kimono. She turned to the mirror to see how she looked and saw a picture of the both of them stuck onto his bathroom mirror. They were embracing each other with Itachi behind her wrapping his hands around her shoulders and both smiling at the camera under a sakura tree taken the previous year. She stared at the picture Itachi loved so much and thought how far they had both come since then. She then touched the silky white robe and smelt it; trying to take in his every scent. Then she walked out of the bathroom back to Itachi.
"Now it's my turn to say that you're so beautiful. The blossom, the beauty my heart and soul forever" he said shaking his head at her in amasement at her traditional look; she looked at him feeling dazzled.
"Just one more thing…there" he said taking her ponytail out of her hair and running his hands through it to loosen her hair now clean of dangerous sharp objects. Now they both looked the same with white Kimono's, long dark hair and feeling a touch of romance provided by the rain.
"It's a perfect day to stay inside…"
He led her to the other side of the house where there was an outside sunken bathtub filled with hot water. It overlooked outside terrace and the Japanese garden. He took of his robe and got inside the water.
"Well aren't you going to come in?" he asked.
"Itachi I'm naked under this kimono, except for my underwear" she blushed very much aware of her nubile status.
"I don't understand, is that a problem?" he asked trying to be innocent. She playfully raised an eyebrow at his coy question.
"Did you know that I was coming to see you today?"
"Something told me that you would want to see me"
"So you do know everything. I knew it" she joked and he gave a light laugh.
She got inside the hot water fully robed as she wasn't wearing anything underneath and soaked up the relaxing water. She and Itachi were sitting on opposite ends but she was hesitant to sit next to him; she was afraid of being tempted by her hormones. She brought her knees up and hugged her legs together.
"This feels so good, I haven't done this in forever" she said
"There's no time to do this anymore. I'm doing this because my father isn't here jumping down my neck". Misaki looked at him; he sounded beyond stressed and bothered. She needed to be there for him just as he had been for her around the time of her brother's death. They both needed each other and the only way to make that happen was to close the giant secretive and distant gap that Itachi created between them.
Misaki neglected the thought of being tempted and slowly got up, dripping wet with her robe clinging onto her body and walked to Itachi. She realised that being wet and wearing something white and thin meant that he could see through her garment. But she didn't care; she had just seen Itachi blush and for the first time and it made her feel confident. For her this was also test for him; she wanted to see how close he would allow her to get to him as he always had this barrier between them. She got to his legs where his knees were up. She turned her body to face his then slowly lowered her head onto his knees and stared at his curious face. They sat in silence for a while, listening to the rain showering the garden before Itachi spoke to her.
"Misa?" he said barely audible with the rain.
"Yes?"
"Tell me something about yourself?" he asked
"About myself?" she asked lifting her head up a little taken by the random question.
"Yes. Tell me something about yourself that only would know?" he whispered warming up to her and taking her fingers in his.
She thought about it for a while and played with his fingers before answering.
"I wish my brother was still alive. He was a much more valuable and useful shinobi than I'll ever be and I feel guilty that he's dead and I'm still here... living without him has been...impossible...and it's only been six months; I still have to live with this for the rest of my life" she whispered.
Itachi looked away from her when she said that but there was something else he wanted to know about her.
"Now tell me, what are your dreams, like where do you see yourself in a few years?"
"Well for now I want to find the shinobi who killed my big brother who was the glue that tied my family together and end the person, then I want to develop a stronger learership for kunoichi in this village and in ten years I see myself near marriage and swollen with child" she smiled at him suggestively.
"Really, you want to be married?" he asked curiously
"Well yeah, I know that it'd be better if I stay single and continue being a ninja but the Uchiha clan numbers are dwindling and it doesn't help that we've lost talented shinobi like my brother, Shisui and others. So I'd like to repopulate the clan; maybe not with ten kids but enough for us to maintain our standing in this village. Can you imagine cradling a baby Uchiha in your arms?" she said delicately.
"Sounds to me like family, female empowerment and...revenge" he said thinking about his last word for a long while.
He looked away pensively before she said to him "So then what are your dreams for the future?" she asked.
"It doesn't matter" he snapped a little too harshly.
He realised that he'd been too hard and turned away distantly, taking his hands away from her. They both sat in somewhat awkward silence for a long while listening to the rain. But inside Misaki a fire was raging. His sudden reaction set her off. She couldn't be afraid to confront him anymore. It was completely frustrating to have him treat her like that. She couldn't take his distance anymore, and she needed to find out why he was like this. Misaki finally had the courage to talk to him first and break the silence.
"Itachi?" she asked finally.
"Hmmm?" he murmured distantly
"I just really wanna know; are you okay? I mean I–we've all been worried about you" she said softly.
"I don't know what you mean"
She needed an easier way to confront Itachi without leading to conflict. She got up again- with Itachi trying not to make it too obvious that he was staring at her chest- and sat on his lap. That way he wouldn't be able to look away from him and it made her feel sexy and in control. She took his hands in hers and held them tightly. Itachi tried to look away from her feeling the heat from her sitting on his lap but she gently turned his head back to her.
"Listen, Itachi baby what's wrong? Please talk to me, your silence is deafening on my ears. I don't want to see you regressing into your old reserved self who was shut off from the world. I can't stand to see you like this. Clearly all the incidences that others are talking about mean that something's going on with you." She said and brushed his curtain of hair aside to lean in closer to whisper in his ear with his fine hair gently sweeping her face.
"I can see the hurt and strain in your eyes. Whatever burdens you might have I want to know what they are because I want to help carry them" she whispered in his ear. She softly traced the dark distinct lines on his face from his eyes to his cheeks with her fingers.
"I don't know Misa; everything is so different from how it used to be. Decisions are becoming more difficult to carry out and this clan-
"What problem do you have with this clan? I always get confused when I hear you badmouthing the Uchiha's especially since it's your responsibility to uphold our values being the eldest son of the first family. Even after all the encouraging Shisui did for you to uphold the Uchiha name proud-
"Yes well Shisui's dead now okay!" he said. She could see the emotion on his face.
She looked down and uttered "gomenasai ( I'm sorry)…have you ever considered leaving the ANBU black ops if there's too much pressure and try your talents in another area?" she asked him.
"Maybe I will" he said after a long pause.
"Good, I think that it'd be healthy for you to spread your wings, especially since it seems as though everyone's turned their backs on you because of jealousy. Even I might be leaving the black ops for a while"
"Why?"
"I've been asked to learn genjutsu from a specialist here in the village. But like I was saying, you're too talented to be doing one thing and your dad is always trying to control you. Also I hear the rumours people in the village say about you, you're kind of a hot topic, and it makes me sick. You don't deserve that"
"People will always have their own preconceptions about other people, and, even if they don't believe in me, it has no bearings on how I see myself".
She looked up at him right in the face "I believe in you Itachi and I will always be loyal to you. I trust your judgement and your ability to be a good person"
"I just wish you wouldn't though"
She looked at him in surprise; why would Itachi want her to think that he's not a good guy. He was doubting himself. She moved her head closer to him as he was looking away from her again.
"Why not?" she asked turning his head back to look straight ahead at her.
Itachi exhaled sharply "Listen Misa, if I've ever made you feel like you're closed off from me, just know that I'm trying to protect you"
"Protect me from what?"
"When we started seeing each other, I promised your late brother that I would take care of you and protect you and I will do so...even If it means protecting you from me"
"Itachi, I don't need to be protected from you. I trust you completely"
He gave a huge sigh while stroking her hair, his face inches from hers.
"Wow. I just can't believe the woman sitting in front of me. I have to say, you're not the same girl I would stare at from the corner of my eyes when we were genin. Now you're a strong, confident and beautiful woman with so much to give. Honestly you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. I never thought that I could open up to someone the way I have with you and it's because of that that I feel lonely when I'm not with you. But you have this ability to bring out the best in me; I truly believe that I am a better man because of you. And you don't even know what you do to me, with all your dancing and your utility belt. It really is a privilege watching you grow in front of my eyes. Misa, my heart and soul...
I don't think I've ever told you this but I've had a crush on you ever since we started the Academy all those years ago. I was so closed off that I would never even think of telling you, but at night I would go into my room and daydream about you and it would carry into my dreams, I couldn't wait to go home and dream about you all the time, until we started dating and we kissed for the first time in Nakano shrine like a bunch of naughty kids and my father caught us, I knew that I didn't have to dream anymore because for the first time in my life, reality was better than my dreams" he whispered; Misaki could feel the tears in her eyes at his words feeling touched. She had never known this about him.
"You're right Misa; I have changed for the better because of our relationship, there's a lot that I've learned about myself just by being with you. I didn't even know that I was capable of falling in love. You just hit me so hard when I fell in love with you; I didn't understand it…That's why… I just hope that you can forgive me…" he said squeezing his eyes shut.
"I already have. I know that you've been stressed lately but it's something we can both overcome"
"That's not what I mean baby…I'm so sorry for what I put you through" he said wrapping his arm around her neck to bring her forward and kiss her head.
"Listen, can you please promise me one thing?" he asked gazing into her warm eyes.
"What's that?"
"Promise me that no matter what happens to us, you will understand that…I love you. And, that I do everything that I do because I love you and for your own good and safety"
She looked at him and the sincerity in his dark shiny onyx eyes.
"I promise"
"Thank you. Now let's get out of here"
They both got out of the sunken bath and dried themselves while Itachi put his white robe back on. He led her back to the front of the house where he turned to her again. She looked up at his glorious face taking in every detail. Itachi stroked her face with what felt like a trembling hand on her skin.
"You're so beautiful Misaki I can't understand it" he whispered shaking his head.
Misaki felt like her heart was breaking; she could have sworn that she'd heard his voice shaking slightly. What could be wrong with him? He cupped her face in his hands and leaned in to kiss her. Misaki stretched upwards slightly to reach his face. Slowly he came closer to her face until his breath tickled her neck and sent heat waves surging through her with every sensitive nerve in her body screaming. When their lips met it felt different somehow; it felt soothing and comforting unlike the distant and closed off Itachi. He kissed her like he had never kissed her before. It was slower, tender, emotional and most importantly-vulnerable. She finally felt like she was breaking down the wall he had between them.
He held each of his kisses on her mouth lingering every second; savouring every second. Misaki could have sworn that she felt a hot salty tear trickle down his face and into her mouth. When she drew back to break away from the kiss, he pulled her head back towards his face.
"No wait, don't stop. Please. I want to remember how this feels; the feeling of your lips and your skin" he said quietly.
They both stared at each other when she breathed softly at him. She didn't understand why Itachi wanted to remember how it felt to kiss her as he could kiss her anytime he wanted but, there was something more pressing on her mind...
It was a slow build up; it was an uncontrollable urge for more of his kisses that shot through her body. She didn't want it to stop either. They stared at each other for a few seconds, a fire in their eyes until suddenly...Itachi launched himself at her and kissed her again, this time more ferociously, rapidly and passionately. He pushed her against the wall of the house and pressed his body against hers- with them still making out. She wrapped her hands around his neck to keep him closer to her while he cupped her butt to life her up-still making out. With Itachi giving her a boost Misaki jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist while he held onto her thighs-with-kunai's-strapped on to keep her around him-with them still making out. He spun her around while still kissing her but she pulled away momentarily to throw her head up and splash her hair in the air and yell out and exclaim his name in a smile and a laugh; then it was back to his lips...The momentum of her jumping and him spinning her on his waist knocked Itachi off his balance and he stumbled backwards until he hit an outside table with a vase sitting on it and they both fell to the floor with the crash and debris of splintering wood, smashing pieces of porcelain and Misaki's hair spilling everywhere...
Once he and Misaki were on the ground and he was on top of her, he moved on to her neck where she cradled his head on her shoulder and moaned out in pleasure and gripped his hair. It was the most erotic she had ever felt. It was like he was in a race kissing her at the rate he was going while she hooked her hands inside his long hair and closed her eyes in sheer delight. He broke away from her again as his breath tickled her neck. They were both breathing heavily, with a steady slowing rhythm. It was so sensual and vulnerable.
"You know I got a tattoo of the Uchiha clan crest on my lower back" she said randomly hoping he would catch on to what she wanted.
"I want to see it" he yearned.
She turned around as he undid the belt of her robe and touched the shoulders of her semi naked body only in underwear. His touch felt like fire along with his warm breath. He slowly removed her robe and began kissing her neck. Misaki was hanging onto whatever control she had left over her unyielding hormones as Itachi Uchiha's lips on her shoulders and back was left her begging for more. Slowly he kissed all the way down to her back until he reached the Uchiha clan tattoo she had gotten earlier during the week and kissed it as well. She cupped her modest chest with the big sleeves of her robe to cover them up. He pulled the robe back up to her shoulders. He was breathing heavy too… She had never seen him this side of him. They looked at each other acknowledging their most intimate moment ever and smiled feeling slightly surprised at what had just happened, they didn't realise that they could lose control like that. Itachi still feeling a little heated, tried to snap back but she tried to pull him back.
"Itachi, I'm addicted to you" she whispered contradicting herself from earlier and shakily clutching onto his hair as if to life itself.
"I can't live without you. Misa, I'm so sorry baby. I'm so sorry for everything. I don't know what to do about this"
A faint noise in the distance caught her attention. It was time to get back to reality. "Looks like your father will be coming back any time soon so I better get going. Don't worry, we'll work this out"
He looked pained at her last words. She turned to leave but he stopped her.
"Misaki?"
"Yes Itachi?" she said turning back to him. It looked like he wanted to tell her something. Something important.
"...I'm really glad that I got to spend this precious time with you. I'll see you tomorrow" he said with his voice breaking when he said 'tomorrow'. This immediately caught Misaki's attention. She stared at him directly in his eyes but something seemed wrong about them. His eyes showed a deep piercing pain in them. A hauntingly torturous pain and suffering that stemmed from his very soul. His eyes were crying out to her to tell her something. His eyes full of secrets.
"Itachi is there something that you want to tell me?" she asked hoping he would give her an answer, any answer; whether it was about his meeting the stranger or where he was during the assembly. She could see it in his eyes that he was keeping something from her.
When he kept quiet she took it as him not trusting her enough to tell his secrets. Feeling pained she nodded to him in understanding of what his lack of response meant and walked away from him with the image of his eyes now burned into her memory and haunting her. After putting her shoes on again she walked away and turned back to him one more time with tears stinging the corners of her eyes before walking melancholically in the rain.
Misaki got home and walked into the kitchen feeling over emotional and vulnerable. Being so physically and emotionally naked with Itachi had drained her in a somewhat pleasing she saw a family vase sitting opulently on a table next to their generations old bonsai tree. She dropped her hand inside the vase and reached for a key that her parents had slipped inside. Once she got the key she slowly walked slowly into the hallway in the opposite direction of her room. She hadn't walked there in what felt like forever. She stopped outside the darkest room in the house and unlocked it with the key she had just fished out for and opened the door. She couldn't see anything yet as the lights were off. They had been off for half a year now. She stepped inside and breathed a sigh to brace herself for switching on the lights inside her dead brother's room.
She switched on the lights. Tears burned strongly in the corners of her eyes and started to collect at the bottom of her eye. She looked around Masahiro's room with all the pictures and memorabilia decorated after he died. Pictures hanging from the walls and from shelves and of course his jonin uniform placed on a stand. She walked towards it and stroked it. Then she pressed her nose to it smelling the contents of his blue overall with the high collared military green vest. It had a musky twinge to it and slightly smelled of blood. It felt heart wrenching. Seeing him around her felt like he was really there with her. She planted herself onto his bed and cuddled in foetal position with one of the pillows.
"I wish you were here big brother to give me some advice" she said out loud. She lay there on the bed thinking, never wanting to leave…
Six months ago…
Kotetsu couldn't keep her away from walking towards the mass lying on the floor. With Itachi right behind her, she looked down at the grass surrounded by leaf ninja. A body. A mangled messy body drowning in its own blood. Misaki's widening eyes looked in horror at the incomplete body of her brother. His two legs and right arm were missing from his body. His right arm was laying a few metres from his torso. Someone had maimed him. Her brother. Masahiro. Her big brother and hero. She could do nothing. She was rooted on the spot by shock and the sickening sight of a broken body drenched in red. Her unfocused eyes showed her vision swimming in front of her. Her body had no feeling… Until she let out a scream. A blood curdling scream of horror that would make hairs stand on end. She screamed. And screamed and screamed and screamed as she felt her body losing balance. She was quickly caught by Itachi and Kotetsu but not before throwing up on the ground…
"We have to destroy his body, especially his eyes because he was an Uchiha" said someone distantly…
She felt dizzy and sweaty and had trouble breathing. She had to be carried back to the leaf village on a stretcher with a breathing mask on her face...
...The tall and skinny dark haired young man spun his adorable little sister in the air while she laughed so hard.
"Misakie, don't worry little sister you'll do just fine as a leaf shinobi" said a nineteen year old Masahiro Uchiha in their back garden spinning a twelve year old Misaki with his hands.
"But isn't it dangerous being a shinobi? Enemy ninja will always try to kill you. What if you get killed?" she said.
"Whatever will be will be. You can't allow fear to rule your life or you stop living. You might as well never get out of bed… There's no better way to die than to do it by trying to protect those close to you including the village, that's something Shisui Uchiha said to us once. You have to always live Misaki, just make sure you don't take any second of life for granted and just live. Live Misaki live…
Remembering what her brother had said to her all those years ago put everything into perspective. She needed to stop over thinking things, worrying about everyone else and just live how she wanted. Looking at the smiles of her dead brother reinforced his words to her. It was time to live. She had to set things straight in her life. Shisui's death, her brother's death, troubled Itachi, and keeping the secret from the ANBU. She had finally had enough. Tomorrow she would set things straight.
She noticed a shadow walk past the door and saw that it was her mother who just walked in followed by her father. They didn't say anything to her but sat on the bed embracing her and each other and lay there for a long while in silence.
Surprisingly her father Tsuyoshi Uchiha stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. She was completely taken aback by it. He smiled at her. She was speechless by her father sitting there with her.
"I'm proud of you baby girl. I just didn't know how to say it until now" he choked. If she hadn't been in the room she would've never believed it. She turned to her mother who was all too happy. The whole thing reminded her of when she was a little girl and he was her biggest champion. He really did seem to love her but in a different way and that's the only thing that mattered to her. She lay in her parent's arms until she fell asleep exhaustion taking her out for the night...
