Sakura keeps holding Itachi's hand as they enter his house – or rather, he doesn't let go of hers – and that's exactly what Mikoto sees first.

Mikoto is anxiously pacing up and down the hall until she sees them come in, then a warm smile blooms across her face, making her look younger. "Sakura-chan! Where did you find her, Itachi?"

"It seems Shisui wanted to interrogate her on his own terms," Itachi says dryly, "They went for a walk and he asked her about what's been going on."

"I see." Mikoto says, a curious gleam in her eye that told Sakura she was going to seek out answers from Shisui as soon as possible. "Well, are you hungry, Sakura-chan? It's a little late for lunch, but your parents aren't expecting you back for a while, so would you care for some food?"

Sakura swings Itachi's hand in hers. His is so much larger. When she dreams, she's taller and more in control of herself, and her hands are slim but calloused from years of work. Now, they're soft and small. Not good for much.

"Are you hungry, Itachi-san?" Sakura asks, looking up at him. Considering their small age gap, he's still miles taller. It seems unfair.

"I will eat if you will." Itachi says stiffly. She needs to work really hard to make him have fun and relax.

"Sakura!" Sasuke bursts into the hall, his little face alight in joy. It looks foreign someone she remembers wearing a scowl more often than not. "You're here! Shisui just whooshed you away! But now you're here again!"

"Sasuke, indoor voice." Mikoto reminds him with a tolerant smile.

Sasuke looks sheepish.

"Is Otou-san here?" Itachi asks, his chakra pulling back slightly.

Mikoto turns her smile on him, though it seems a little strained. "Not until tonight, sweetheart."

Itachi's chakra breathes out, and his grip on Sakura's hand slackens. She hadn't even noticed he was holding on so tightly.

Itachi doesn't like his father, Sakura notes. Well, then. Neither would she.

Sakura's stomach rumbles.

Everyone looks at her.

She's not embarrassed. It sounds like a little monster. Sakura puts her hands up like claws and aims them at Sasuke. "Roar! If I don't eat something soon, I'll have to just gobble you up!"

Sasuke shrieks with laughter and hides behind his mother, "Noooo!"

Sakura pounces, grabbing at him with her finger-claws, the two of them giggling helplessly.

Then, they're both seized by the scruff of their necks and pulled apart.

"No." Itachi says firmly. "Not in the house."

"Oh, Itachi, let them have their fun." Mikoto sighs.

Sakura sulks, hanging in the air from Itachi's grip. She can't poke him in the chakra like she did to Kakashi. Who knows how he would react to that? There's only one other possible solution.

"Roar!" Sakura kicks out wildly, swinging in mid-air. Itachi simply holds her further away, looking baffled. "C'mon, Itachi-san, play!"

"Itachi-nii never plays." Sasuke says grumpily.

Itachi's chakra ripples with sadness. "I try to, when I have time…"

"Lunch first," Sakura says decisively, "Then, we all play."

xxxxxxxx

Sasuke's getting better at having fun.

Sakura runs the way Shisui taught her, giggling as Sasuke chases her. She's a little faster than him, something he clearly hasn't missed, judging by the pout on his face as he strains to catch her. But his chakra is alive and bubbly, lit up with happiness.

They're in front of the Uchiha house, a large, elegant structure that puts her home to shame. But with all its clean lines and obvious wealth, it doesn't look lived-in. The grass is all cut exactly the same length and untrampled, unlike the scuffed dirt-path leading to her own house. The flowers are regimented.

Mikoto is standing in the doorway of the main entrance, looking out at them with a fond smile. Her chakra is the same blend of worry, tenderness and caution as it has been all day. Itachi isn't far from her, leaning against the house with a deceptively casual stance. His eyes are sharp and alert, watching the two younger children having fun.

Sakura dodges Sasuke and calls out, breathless, "Itachi-san! C'mon!"

Itachi shakes his head, a small smile on his face. He's quite content where he is. Sakura certainly isn't.

She ducks under Sasuke's flailing arm and hollers, "ITACHI-SAN! WE'RE PLAYING NOW!"

Mikoto delicately covers her giggle with a slight cough.

"I can see that, Sakura-san." Itachi replies calmly.

"You should play too!" Sasuke calls, giving his brother a hopeful smile. He lunges for Sakura and misses again.

"Maybe next time – "

Sakura darts right up to Itachi. She feels him stiffen, along with Mikoto, but ignores it in favour of beaming in his face. "It's time now! I don't need help to beat Sasuke, but I'm sure he'd like your help to beat me!"

Sasuke lets out a scoff, his cheeks pink from exertion. "I could beat you… if I wanted to…"

Itachi looks to Mikoto, as if asking for permission. She smiles and nods.

Sakura seizes Itachi's hands and yanks him towards Sasuke, bouncing all the way. "Okay! I'm the monster and you two have to catch me. If you don't, I'm going to eat everyone."

"Oh dear," Mikoto laughs, "Surely you don't have room after such a big lunch?"

"Monsters can eat lots and lots." Sakura explains.

"You go that way, Itachi-nii!" Sasuke says, pointing to the left. He's grinning madly, his chakra overflowing with joy now his brother's come to play. "I'll go this way!"

"The trouble with that strategy, otouto, is now she can anticipate our movements." Itachi says seriously.

"Oh, just go!" Sasuke rolls his eyes and takes off to the right, heading straight for Sakura.

She prepares to run, then finds herself in the air. Again.

Itachi is holding her by her collar.

Again.

"There." He says casually. "The monster is caught."

Sasuke groans. "That was too fast, Itachi-nii! That's no fun!"

"I thought the object of this exercise was to capture Sakura-san, who is playing the role of a monster. If a monster was let loose in Konoha, the best course of action would be to neutralise it as soon as possible." Itachi says, a touch of uncertainty in his voice. "Right?"

Mikoto's chakra flinched at something Itachi said.

"No! Some monsters are good." Sakura tells him. "You have to talk to them first. Some of them just need someone who cares about them."

"But you declared your intention to eat everyone." Itachi says, baffled.

"And you won't stop me this time! Let's start again, but slower this time, okay, Itachi-san? You don't have to catch me as fast as you can. You just have to have fun." Sakura wriggles out of his grasp and lands neatly.

Itachi steps back in place with Sasuke, his chakra a little more restrained. He's not having fun at all.

Sakura pounces on Sasuke, who goes down with a yell. Sakura tickles him as gently as possible. She can feel every ounce of Itachi is straining not to intervene as Sasuke shouts with laughter and rolls around on the ground.

"What are you waiting for, Itachi-san?" Sakura looks up at him with a grin. "Save your little brother."

Itachi doesn't hesitate.

Sakura finds herself placed carefully on the ground a few feet away. Itachi has Sasuke behind him, who looks equally confused by the sudden move. Itachi must have picked Sakura up, whisked her away, put her back down and then pulled Sasuke behind him. All too fast for her to see.

I really need to learn more from Shisui, Sakura thinks mournfully, oh well. I've got more tricks up my sleeve.

"Distraction!" Sakura yells, throwing a paper bomb down –

Itachi catches it before it can land and throws it high into the air.

They all watch the petals sail harmlessly to the ground.

"New plan." Sakura says, ignoring how amusing Mikoto is finding all this. "Itachi's the monster. Sasuke and I have to catch him before he eats Mikoto-san."

"No!" Sasuke yells, outraged. "You can't eat Okaa-san!"

"Of course I won't – " Itachi begins, exasperated.

"Get him!" Sakura shouts.

Sasuke charges at his big brother, face screwed up in an attempt at a snarl. Itachi dodges automatically, then catches Sakura's eye. She shakes her head and raises her eyebrows. Play, she mouths at him.

Itachi pauses, then slows down. Sasuke's next desperate grab nearly connects. Emboldened, Sasuke dashes forward and seizes Itachi's arm. Sasuke's face lights up in astonished delight, victory sparkling in his chakra.

"C'mon, Sakura!" Sasuke yells.

Sakura leaps for Itachi's other arm and yanks. Itachi staggers, not even pretending this time. She feels his surprise and winces. Oops. Be average, dummy.

Sasuke hooks his foot around Itachi's ankle and pulls. Itachi allows himself to fall with an insincere look of shock. Sakura pins his arm to the ground and Sasuke does the same with the other, laughing at the look on his big brother's face.

"We got you, Itachi-nii!" Sasuke squeals, overjoyed.

Itachi smiles, patting him on the head. "Well done, otouto."

Sakura feels his genuine pleasure, as warm and comforting as a hug. His chakra is content.

Which is why it feels like an icy shock when he suddenly feels dread, dark feeling spreading through his aura.

"Shouldn't you be training?" A deep voice says from above them. "This kind of behaviour is not befitting a proud member of the Uchiha clan, Itachi."

"Otou-san!" Sasuke gasps, scrambling to his feet.

Sakura gets up a little slower, keeping her wary eyes on the newcomer.

Itachi stands up straight, jaw clenched. "I apologise, Otou-san." He says stiffly. "It will not happen again."

Sakura opens her mouth to protest – Sasuke had so much fun, and so did Itachi! – but Itachi catches her eye and shakes his head, ever so slightly.

Mollified, the Uchiha patriarch nods. He looks at Sakura and his eyes narrow. "And who is this?" He asks, directing the question to Mikoto, as if Sakura is incapable of answering.

"My name is Haruno Sakura and my parents are – "

"Haruno Mebuki and Kizashi. I know." He interrupts. As cold as he looks, he still felt pity when she introduced herself. No doubt Mikoto already explained her sad situation to him. Sakura bites down on the instinctive flare of anger the thought produces. She has the best parents in the world, but the world doesn't know it. Shisui said that Mikoto's misunderstanding could only help her, but it doesn't feel like it.

Sakura politely averts her eyes and says nothing more. She's probably already in his bad books for interrupting, but he's in hers for making Itachi feel so bad just by being nearby.

"I am Uchiha Fugaku, Itachi and Sasuke's father. You are welcome in my home for as long as you require it."

"Thank you." Sakura says respectfully, inwardly making a face at him. "Would you prefer Uchiha-san or Fugaku-san?"

"There is no need to stand on ceremony, though the fact that you asked does you credit. Fugaku-san will suffice."

"Thank you, Fugaku-san. I'm only visiting today, because Sasuke and Itachi-san are my newest friends and I wanted to show Itachi-san how to play, because he's a bit too grown up." Sakura explains.

"I see." Fugaku replies, sounding unamused. "Itachi, Mikoto, let's talk inside for a moment."

Mikoto stays behind while a blank-faced Itachi follows his father into the house. "Come on in, sweethearts. I'll make you some snacks." She gives them a genuine smile, but it's a little frayed at the edges. Fugaku's sudden appearance has unsettled all of them.

"I'm not hungry, Okaa-san." Sasuke says reluctantly. "I want to play with Sakura."

"Sasuke, I can't leave you outside alone."

"Why not? You always used to."

Mikoto very deliberately does not look at Sakura. "Please don't argue, darling. Let's go."

The house is a little cooler inside, all wooden floors and thin walls. Sakura feels the presence of several seals nearby, though she can't tell what they are for. The light-hearted air of the day has been sucked away by the vacuum of Fugaku's presence. They make a silent procession to the living room, Sasuke feeling glum and trapped and Mikoto getting more nervous with every second that passes with Itachi alone with his father.

"Sakura-chan, Itachi will walk you home as soon as he's finished speaking with his father. Please wait here until he comes for you." Mikoto says, offering them both one last smile and a pat on the head, then she turns and leaves through a sliding door.

Sakura can feel her chakra signal approaching the other two in the house – Fugaku's aura is imposing and prickly, Itachi's is resigned – and she can pinpoint their location just by the feel of them. She did that once with the Yamanaka family, but couldn't detect Ino's father. Perhaps she's getting better at sensing chakra? She sighs at the thought of Ino. She hasn't seen her in forever.

"We can't play in here." Sasuke says unhappily, sitting up straight on the sofa. "We might break something."

"Rock, paper, scissors?" Sakura suggests.

Sasuke nods, presenting his hand with grim determination. Sakura giggles. He's so competitive about the silliest things.

"He cheats." Shisui comments from across the room.

Sakura and Sasuke both flail in shock, Sakura nearly falling off the sofa. She glares at Shisui. "Shisui-kun! What are you – "

"Sasu-chan, why don't you take these and practice that trick I showed you? I know Itachi would be pretty impressed if you could do it by yourself." Shisui says, offering some shuriken.

Sasuke jumps up eagerly, taking the proffered weapons and leaving with a wave to them both and a slightly shy smile for Sakura.

"Fugaku's in the Room of Doom with Itachi, isn't he?" Shisui says, twisting his mouth in derision.

"The what?"

"It's a room the servants aren't allowed to enter if someone's inside. There's a whole bunch of seals meant to keep all noise from leaving, to prevent eavesdropping. Fugaku uses it for his top-secret meetings and to scold his kids."

Sakura frowns, reaching out to sense the three occupants of the Room of Doom. Itachi is feeling pressured and stressed, a black dread weighing him down like storm clouds on the horizon.

"If Itachi is 'bad' in the future." Shisui mutters. "This is why."

"If he's mean to both his kids, why is Itachi the one who goes bad?" Sakura asks. Sure, Sasuke leaves and breaks her heart, but she still has hope for him. She was so afraid of Itachi in her dream.

"Remember when I said you needed to blend in, because the shinobi who sticks out the most gets cut down the quickest? It's the same with clan relations. Shinobi politics are just one, big, drawn-out battle. Itachi stands out because he excels, so Fugaku expects more of him than Sasuke, which puts more pressure on Itachi, which makes him less than perfect, which angers Fugaku and pushes Itachi to work even harder… you can see where this is going."

"I'll help him, Shisui-kun. I promise." Sakura says quietly. She means it. Whatever Itachi might become, he's just as lonely as Naruto was, in his own way. He needs a friend just as badly.

Shisui smiles at her. "Thanks, Firefly. I've been thinking about your situation, and I think you need to tell your parents the truth. They think you're being abused, so they're restricting your movements. We need you to be able to come train whenever I'm free, because you've got a lot to learn and I know you're capable of everything I know and more. I'm going to assess your parents for a week or so, then I'll let you know if it's safe to tell them."

"Assess? What for?"

"To see if they'd keep your secret or toss you into T&I." Shisui says bluntly. "I've had harder missions than spying on fellow nin on home turf. If the worst happens and they react badly to the truth, I can always make them forget."

Sakura's eyes widen. "Really?"

Shisui grins at her. "Yep. It'll all work out, though. Don't forget to focus on dreaming about your mother this week, okay?"

"Oh!" Sakura had forgot.

The door slides open.

"Mission over already, Shisui?" Itachi says dryly. "Excellent. Now we can spar."

"You'll never catch me alive." Shisui says, deadpan, then disappears in a flicker.

Itachi sighs, shaking his head. Then he looks up and smiles at Sakura. "Time to go, Sakura-san."

"Okay. You played really well today, Itachi-san. Did you have fun?"

Itachi pauses, considering the question. A slow smile spreads across his face. "You know, I think I did."

Sakura takes his hand again, and this time Itachi doesn't flinch.

xxxxxxxx

Fugaku catches up with them before they reach the exit. "Itachi, I was not finished talking to you."

"I'm sorry, Otou-san, but Okaa-san reminded me of my duties. I must see Sakura-san safely home before her parents start to worry." Itachi says, tightening his grip on Sakura's hand. Fugaku's eyes drop down to their clasped hands. His frown deepens.

"Mikoto can do that later. I'm sure the girl's parents won't care if she's a little late returning home. No doubt they hope their daughter's association with my sons may prove profitable to them in the future." Fugaku says, derision heavy in his tone.

"Excuse me, Fugaku-san, but my name is Sakura. Not 'the girl.'" Sakura says curtly. She cannot defend her parents, as much as she wants to. But she can defend herself.

"My apologies, Sakura. I can't help but notice that you did not deny the claim about your parents." Fugaku says, raising an eyebrow. He's… testing her, somehow. She just can't understand why.

"My father always says that taking the time to deny something that is obviously untrue only lends more credence to the lie." Sakura says, and that's a lie. Kakashi said it once. Or, he will.

Fugaku regards her with dark, interested eyes. "What are your plans for the future?"

"I'm going to be a shinobi and I'm going to live in a big house with Naruto and we're going to have a pond, a dog and some fish. The fish will live in the pond, probably." Sakura says, matter-of-fact.

"Naruto? The Uzumaki boy?"

"Yes. He's my little brother. I adopted him." Sakura says. Kakashi also said that if you say something enough, it eventually becomes true.

"Interesting." Fugaku says, like you might say manure. His lip curls.

"If you don't mind, Otou-san, I should take Sakura-san home." Itachi says hastily, pulling her behind him slightly.

"I told you to wait." Fugaku says coldly.

Mikoto seems to be summoned by his sharp tone, because her pale face appears almost at once. "Fugaku! Would you mind – "

"Not now, Mikoto. Itachi, you've heard my opinion on the matter and you will respect it. As my heir, I expect you to reflect my values and uphold our name. I want you to remember – "

"I don't like the way you talk to Itachi-san." Sakura says.

Silence rings in the hallway.

Mikoto feels a gut-punch of dread. Itachi isn't much better off, clutching Sakura's hand.

"I beg your pardon?" Fugaku glares down at her.

"Well, you can't have my pardon. Itachi-san is nine. Most genin are at least twelve. He's fought for his whole life and he's never been allowed to be a child. He deserves the same basic happiness every other kid his age gets. He doesn't even know how to play! He's sad and lonely and he needs a friend, so I'm going to look after him. If you don't start talking to him properly like you love him and care about him, I'm going to get very angry!" Sakura crosses her arms and glares right back up at him.

"With a tongue as uncivil as that, no wonder your parents discipline you so harshly." Fugaku says coldly.

"Fugaku." Mikoto snaps.

Sakura can't take anymore. "My parents love me! They do! And you know how I know that? Because they talk to me like they care, they don't treat me like you treat your poor kids! Everyone's saying bad things about my parents, but maybe they should say bad things about you!" Sakura stomps her foot angrily.

Cracks appear in the wooden floor.

She stares down, shocked.

(She crashes down to the ground, leg outstretched, and the ground shatters beneath her. Kakashi appears in the crater, astonished. She feels a surge of deep satisfaction. I did that, she thinks. Me.)

"I – I'm not sorry! Be nicer to Itachi-san or I'll break your whole floor!" Sakura shouts. "Come on, Itachi-san! Let's go play!"

Sakura tugs Itachi out of the house, utterly fuming.

xxxxxxxx

Itachi is silent the whole trip home.

His chakra is pulled back, so she can't tell how he's feeling. She's too angry to think about it. Why is Fugaku so mean? Doesn't he love his son?

Sakura refuses to let go of his hand when they reach her house. "Stay for a while." She mutters. Itachi's grip loosens and his head drops. He looks very weary all of a sudden.

"I must go home." He says hoarsely. "My father will be furious."

"I'm sorry, Itachi-san." Sakura says, patting his hand. "It'll be alright. I promise. I said I'd look after you, remember?"

Itachi laughs. It doesn't sound quite right. "Sakura-san. You cannot imagine the things I have seen. The things I have done. I'm not the one who needs to be looked after."

(Sakura has so much blood in her hair that it is matted against her face, flaking copper and rust across her skin. She can taste death with every breath and somehow it doesn't seem like the fight is anywhere close to over.)

"Look at me, Itachi-san." Sakura says, quiet but fierce.

He does, his eyes hollow and bleak.

"I've seen things too." She says, letting him see the horror and misery etched in her mind, echoed through her eyes. "You're not alone."

Itachi's face crumples, for just a second.

Then, her front door opens and her father peeks out. "Sacchan?"

"It's Sakura." She whines, reverting back to her real age at the sound of the hated nickname.

"Everything okay?" He asks, eyes darting from her to Itachi.

"I've brought a friend." Sakura says, holding up their clasped hands as evidence. "Can he stop over tonight, please?"

Itachi looks at her in horror. "Oh, no, I couldn't – "

"His father is really mean and I broke his floor." Sakura says bluntly. "Itachi-san is very nice and he walked me home, so could he please stay the night? Please?"

Her father just stares for a long moment. "I'll ask your mother." He says, disappearing back inside the house.

After a second, his head pops back out. "And we'll talk about breaking clan head's floors later, missy."

"You never said I couldn't." Sakura points out.

Her father pauses. "You know, I don't think we did. Huh. Well, consider it off-limits from now on!"

"Okay, Otou-san!" Sakura grins at him.

He winks and vanishes back inside the house.

Itachi is watching her when she turns back to him. He looks contemplative. "You and your father get along well."

"Yep."

"I was afraid your home life might be unpleasant, considering the rumours."

"Nope."

"Then… I'm glad to hear it." Itachi says with a tired smile.

"You can share my dad, if you want. You've already got a nice mother, so you don't need mine."

"That's very generous of you."

The front door opens again. Sakura's mother raises an eyebrow at both of them.

"Sakura." She says slowly. "Please tell me your father was exaggerating when he said you broke the Uchiha's floor because Fugaku was 'being mean.'"

Sakura gives her mother a sheepish smile. "It was an accident?"

Her mother raises her eyes to the sky and mutters a prayer for strength. "Fine. The Uchiha are far too obsessed with manners to storm over here and make a scene, so your little friend can stay over if you promise you will never do anything like that again. Sakura? Hm?"

"Okay! Thank you, Okaa-san!" Sakura chirps, bouncing up the steps, still holding onto Itachi.

Sakura's mother regards him with sympathy. "Come in, Itachi. We've got hot tea and the second-best blanket waiting for you."

"That sounds lovely, thank you." Itachi says, sounding quite sincere.

"So polite!" Sakura's mother observes with a smile. "You can keep this one, Sakura."

"I'm going to." Sakura says nonchalantly.

To the two people who wanted to see Sakura yelling at Fugaku… ask and ye shall receive ;)

One big Uchiha chapter! The Monsters are coming in the next chapter, I SWEAR! THEY'RE ON THEIR WAY! Naruto is leading the pack!

I like to imagine Shisui spent this chapter teleporting from room to room, because if I was as fast as he was, that's what I'd do! One second someone's asking me to do the dishes in the kitchen, the next second I'm upstairs, frightening the life out of the cat in the bathroom.

Shisui has Plans. I know some of you were concerned about his motivations in the last chapter. All I can say is, he may be the nicest Uchiha, but he's still an Uchiha. Plus a genius child shinobi. Buuuut I wouldn't worry too much about his intentions.

Thanks so much for all of your kind words of congratulations on my graduation! You're all the best :)

Sakura nearly made it out the door without causing an incident. Nearly.

I couldn't squeeze a dog into this chapter and I'm already disappointed in myself. Oh well. Everyone imagine your favourite dog mauling Fugaku, please, or just being hugged by Sakura. My favourite's a Shiba Inu!

Itachi is having his very first sleepover and he's quite nervous. Any ideas on what you'd like to happen? I wish there were face masks in the ninja world. And movies and popcorn. Sakura showing Itachi some classic romcoms would be hilarious.

I'm so glad a lot of you like Baby Saku. She's doing her best.

Quick poll for fun: Where would you live, if you could?

A: Narnia

B: Hogwarts

C: The Avengers Tower

D: Your choice! (it can be a country, a fantasy world, anything!)

I'd like to live in a library that only I can go in. Can you imagine? I'd have squashy chairs to sit in, and window seats and a crackling fireplace, and hundreds of books to read! I could finally achieve my lifelong dream to be crushed by a pile of books!