I'm back. The beginning includes a small time skip. I toyed with the idea of writing it all out but it just didn't work out right. This story should only by a few more chapters long. I'm planning to have a nice round fifteen chapters. That is subject to change (I could possibly have a chapter or two more depending on my moods and my muse.)
The songs for this chapter are "All I Need" by Within Temptation and "Without You" by Three Days Grace. Both were recommended by the wonderful Number one Itachi fangirl.
****Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters of. I only wish that I could have Itachi tied up in my closet...heh. Imagine all the fun that could lead to..-fangirl squeal-****
Chapter Eleven (Twelve)
About a month passed as Itachi and Kumiko healed, physically and emotionally, and it was the best month either could remember. It may not have been perfect but then, they had never liked perfect. They didn't need perfect; they had each other. Little did they know that it could not last; happiness is fleeting.
They were walking slowly through the peaceful forest, hand-on-hand. They had cast aside their ninja headbands and Akatsuki cloaks for the day; the only signs of the pair's identity was the red and black ring each was wearing. They paused under a large cherry tree and Itachi cupped Kumiko's chin in his hand and turned her face up to his. He kissed her lips lightly and pulled back with a smile. He started to lean in for another kiss but was interrupted by the sound of Pain clearing his throat behind them. "Itachi, Kumiko, how are the two of you?"
Kumiko's eyes narrowed; she knew that this was not an idle question. "Good. Why?"
"Well," Pain sighed, "There is a mission that is perfect for the two of you. If you're up to it."
"And it is?" Itachi asked, wrapping a protective arm around Kumiko's soft, slender waist.
"An assassination. A prominent Konoha business man had hired us to kill his business rival. I want the two of you to kill both of them. They know too much about us and our organization. They both need to be dispatched. As both of you once held very high positions in the ranks of Leaf Ninja. you two will be the most likely to get n, get the job done, and get out safely and in a timely manner."
Kumiko and Itachi shared a glance that was an entire conversation. When Itachi looked back to Pain, his eyes had shifted from deep onyx to Sharingan scarlet. "We accept."
Pain smiled. "You leave tomorrow morning."
"We'll be ready."
"Good," Pain said, before he disappeared in a whoosh of gray smoke.
"Always with the dramatics," Kumiko said, waving her hands before her. "Was that really necessary."
Itachi glanced down at her. "Are you sure you're okay with this? We can always decline this mission and leave the Akatsuki for good. We could find a little place up in the mountains where we could be alone. No one would know who Uchiha Itachi and Saromi Kumiko are. We could start over."
Kumiko shook her head. "Itachi, no. Being a ninja is too important to you. I cannot ask you to give that up for me. Besides, being a ninja is important to me too. I worked so hard to earn that headband; I can't just throw it away."
Itachi nodded and smiled before pressing his flawless lips to hers. "Somehow I thought you might say that. Part of me had hoped you would."
"You know me well." Kumiko smiled and grasped Itachi's much larger hand in her own. "I guess our vacation is over. It was fun while it lasted."
"Wasn't it though?"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
They left before daybreak the next morning, traveling through the foliage at an incredible pace. They had made it nearly half-way to the regal village of Konohagurke when Itachi was forced to stop. He doubled over, rubbing his chest above his heart and panting. "I'm losing it," he said breathlessly. 'I'm going to have to set my headband aside soon. My heart just won't let me do this."
Kumiko halted beside him. "Oh, you won't have to do that. You've just have to restrengthen you're body. This mission is a good start. Besides, we needed to stop about now anyway. We need to eat."
"Okay. You're right. This will help build my stamina up." Itachi didn't really believe these words, and neither did Kumiko, but it helped to just say them- even if they weren't true.
It was nearly dusk when the pair arrived on the outskirts of town. They settled down for the night on a hill overlooking the Village Hidden in Leaves to await the perfect moment to attack. Kumiko offered to take the first watch, allowing Itachi some much needed rest. He stretched on the grassy space before a large tree as Kumiko climbed into its tall branches. From her perch in the limbs, she could watch him rest as she surveyed the surrounding area. The sun set as Kumiko sat there, unmoving. She crouched there, vigilantly watching, until the moon, at the apex of its cycle, rose high into the sky. Then she leapt down from the massive plant, stretching out the muscles stiffened by her position and lack of motion. "Itachi," she whispered, shaking him gently, "Itachi, wake up. It's your turn to take watch."
Itachi took up toe position in the branches, as Kumiko lay on the grass in the warmth left over by Itachi's body. She fell asleep almost instantly, exhausting for the day's hard travels. When Itachi woke her, hours later, the moon had not yet set. It was the stillest part of the day, when the night was over and the day had not yet begun. This was the best hour for attack.
"Kumiko. Wake up. It is time." Once she rose from the ground, Itachi pulled her into his arms. "Remember, no matter what happens, I love you." He kissed her, long and hard. When he pulled away, his eyes had shifted from their usual black to a dangerous crimson color. "Let's go."
The pair snuck unnoticed into the dark, empty streets of Konoha. They walked down the deserted alleyways as silently and unnoticed as ghosts. Their dark cloaks blended into the shadows, making them look like living shades as they neared the residence of their first target. They found an open window on the first floor of the man's huge mansion that allowed them to enter unnoticed. Itachi led the way up the massive stairwell, toward the room that they hoped was the master bedroom. The house was dark and quiet with only the moonlight streaming in through a large picture window to light the hallway as Itachi stopped at the doors to the bedroom. He turned toward Kumiko, his Sharingan looking almost demonic in the blackness. "We have to do this quickly. We want to be gone before anyone notices that he is missing or dead. Understood?"
Kumiko nodded, far too nervous to speak. She pulled her kunai out and gripped it tightly as Itachi opened the door. The man inside was awake, cowering underneath the sheets. His eyes were wide with fear for his life. He sighed in resignation when he saw the Sharingan; he knew that his life was over. "Uchiha... Itachi..." he said softly. "you've come to kill me haven't you?" Itachi nodded, not speaking. The man's eyes strayed to Kumiko's face. "Saromi Kumiko. I knew your father. He was a good man. It's sad- his life was cut short at the height of his glory-by his own daughter, no less." Kumiko's expression didn't change but she tightened her fist around her kunai. She was ready to kill this man now.
Itachi stayed her motion with one hand, which he rested against her wrist. "Now, there are two ways this can go: it can be over fast, or you can die very slowly. We'll leave the decision up to you. Will you fight us, or will this go simply?"
The man bowed his head. "Just do it quietly. Don't wake my son. he just graduated from the Academy today. He's asleep in the next room."
"Fine then. Be silent. He will die if you fight us." Itachi gestured toward Kumiko. "Go ahead."
She moved toward their intended target, tilting her kunai so that it would glint in the moonlight. Its sharp edge pressed against his jugular. Kumiko leaned forward to whisper into his ear. "My father was not a 'good man'. He beat me every single day of life. He deserved to die." With those words, she drug her knife blade across his throat, severing that vital vein with a single, swift motion that spilt his lifeblood onto the bed. Kumiko pulled her kunai away and wiped the blade clean on the sheet. The next kill was even easier. Itachi entered the room while the victim was asleep and slit his throat before he ever woke. They left the village as silently as they had entered. Their get-away was complete.
Just so you all know, as a spoiler, their get-away isn't actually as clean and complete as they think. It gets very hairy in the next chapter. So, please, stick around and read it too, when ever it gets posted. Depending on the weather it could get posted tomorrow or Saturday.
Please review. Reviews are better than...I can't think of anything that's not something to do Itachi, and as we all know, anything to do with Itachi is definitely better than reviews.
