TADA~ another update~ yay! Ok now it's back to Main Family! The Rei tangent has ended! [for now. I threw her in the mix for a reason people. She's gotta come back eventually.]

So Enjoy enjoy?

Itachi hopped back over to the Academy gates, intent on picking up his younger brother.

He had managed to get Shisui home without incident, though it was safe to say that things would be very uncomfortable for a few days. He shuddered in disgust as he remembered the liplock with his cousin. Tonight, he would be washing his face extra vigorously.

Arriving at the gates, he stood off to the side, waiting for his younger brother to exit. Sasuke would probably be disappointed by the lack of two others, but he would be ok. He would make up for it by spending some much needed brotherly bonding time.

Sasuke walked out of the building calmly, bored as ever with the incessant squabbling the female population of his class had taken to. Stepping into the courtyard, he caught sight of his brother by the gates.

He darted over, eager to spend time with his beloved aniki.

"Aniki!"

He was greeted by a subtle smile.

"Sasuke. I have time today."

The fowl-haired boy couldn't help grinning slightly, delighted by the thought of spending time with his older brother.

"Honto?"

The chibi received a light pat on the head.

"Yatta! Rei-nee-chan to Shisui-nii wa?"

Itachi paused for a moment before replying.

"Rei had something to do and Shisui didn't feel well so he went home. It's just you and me today, otouto."

A slight pout decorated the child's face for a moment but vanished quickly, placated by the fact he still had time with his brother.

"Ikuzo. Let's head home, if you want to train, we can use the clan's training grounds."

A bright smile lit Sasuke's face as he trotted home with his older brother.

"Mhm!"

Itachi supervised his brother's training quietly, throwing in a few tips and correcting Sasuke's form every now and then.

A few hours had already passed, and it was nearing dinner time.

"Sasuke, it's late. Let's go home?"

Sasuke nodded and ran to get his weapons. Soon the siblings were walking back to the compound.

"Mhm, Aniki?"

"Nani?"

"How come the training grounds by the Academy is so different from all the ones you bring me to and the ones you use?"

Itachi furrowed his brows, not sure what his cute little brother meant.

"What do you mean?"

"Well... none of the training grounds you bring me to and use do any of the weird things the one by the Academy does!"

Itachi's eye twitched as he sighed. Maybe he should let Sasuke know about the existence of fangirls...

He looked down at his eight year old brother who was peering up at him with wide, innocent, and trusting eyes, looking for an answer he was sure his only older brother could give.

...Nope.

"I'm not sure, Sasuke. What strange things happen at that training ground?"

Itachi replied lightly, playing dumb. He could hear Shisui laughing in his head. "A genius like you. Playing dumb? PFFFFTTTT!"

Little Sasuke scrunched his nose up, causing his brother to smile a little. Itachi could see the gears in Sasuke's head turning.

"The bushes there sigh and mumble. The trees there whisper and make weird thumps. And the posts eat my kunai!"

Itachi's brow immediately furrowed. He might need to rectify this habit of exaggeration his brother has developed.

"The posts eat your kunai?"

The dark tufts of hair swayed violently as Sasuke nodded sincerely.

"Everytime I train there, I always lose a few of my shuriken and kunai. And I've never missed the posts there!"

Sasuke paused before trying to get his aniki to explain to him the mystery of the one training ground.

"Aniki, is the training ground by the Academy possessed?"

Itachi knew for a fact his brother couldn't miss those posts, as he had trained Sasuke to hit those to near perfection by the time he entered Academy. Knowing it was all the fangirls, he couldn't help being vaguely annoyed, having remembered how the female creatures had kept stealing his weaponry back in the day as well.

"I doubt it. But is that all?"

Sasuke pondered as they arrived at the front door. Itachi began to open it as Sasuke remembered something.

"Ah! Sometimes the stuff in my bag goes missing too! One time the shirt I ripped went missing!"

Itachi stared through the open door at his very confused mother.

"Tadaima?"

Mikoto blinked as Sasuke darted in, squeaking a 'I'm home' with a smile on his face.

"Okari..."

Mikoto stopped her eldest in the hall, letting Sasuke vanish around the corner.

"What is this about Sasuke's shirt being ripped and missing?"

Itachi sighed.

"I'll tell you and Tou-san later. But he thinks the Academy training grounds are a mystery spot now."

Mikoto could only give a befuddled expression before shaking it off to focus on the task at hand.

"Ah! Shisui-kun wa?"

Itachi blinked. Shisui!

"He's at his house, sleeping."

"Should we call him over for dinner?"

"Uh..."

Itachi and Mikoto stood in the hall, silent. Sasuke was still delighted by yesterday's events.

"...Maybe not."

Itachi nodded at his mother's decision in agreement.

"That may be for the best. I'm not sure if his mental health will be ok after all these events..."

The matriarch shot her son a confused look.

"What do you mean?"

Itachi coughed, knowing that to reveal today's course of events would simply send Shisui into a mental breakdown.

"I..uh.. can't tell you that."

"Itachi."

He twitched at his mother's tone. Time to use the looks he inherited. And in a moment, he was Mikoto's adorable first born son. Cute, pretty and the envy of the whole clan.

"Please?"

Mikoto sighed as her oldest son escaped her questioning and went to his room. Itachi being a genius was terrible sometimes. He knew for a fact he had inherited the looks that could melt hearts. And he knew how to use it on his own mother.

Mikoto pouted slightly as she walked into the kitchen, passing her husband who just entered from another doorway.

Fugaku's eyebrow rose, not expecting to see his wife pouting of all things.

"What is it?"

He asked warily, not sure if it was a good pout or a bad pout that was on her face. As lovely as she was like that, Fugaku was terrible at reading emotions and so he needed to ask quite often.

"Itachi used his puppy face on me."

He nearly fell over. Itachi used his puppy face?! Fugaku couldn't help feeling this would be another weird night. He hadn't heard of Itachi using his puppy face on Mikoto in years. Last time he used it was...

...just that long ago.

"So is that a bad thing?"

Mikoto's cheeks puffed out a little, reminding Fugaku of his second son being refused by Itachi for playing or training.

"He used the looks I gave him on me!"

Fugaku could only let his mouth hang open slightly as he deadpanned.

"Well, he might as well if he has them."

A disapproving stare from his wife shut him up.

"Just saying..."

So I've made the parentals a little OOC, I hope none of you mind. It's just that I feel that making them a little more tangible in character works a bit better, so instead of a unfathomably cold father figure and ever regal mother like in the canon I've decided to add a little more warmth and fun. Cus..well.. It's semi-crack! I want to make Momma Uchiha and Daddy Uchiha fun too!

And as promised... UCHIHA-CENTRIC!

haha I hope you all liked this one.

Red hasn't been revealed yet, but you'll see soon~

Thanks everyone!

and Special thanks to VampirePrinssess!

You were the only one who reviewed T^T... and yes. GAI's ass :D it's quite a round green ass of a background ain't it? Glad you liked the chapter!

But I also feel so sad. It went from several reviews per chapter to one.

But for you... I SHALL WRITE!

Weeping rivers,

Silent-Himitsu