Woo-hoo! This chapter can legally drink where I'm from!
Anyway...
Zetsu watched the scene play out before him, a dark blush creeping onto both sides of his face.
"That is it, we're leaving!" White Zetsu exclaimed.
"Why? Things were just beginning to get interesting," Black Zetsu retorted, somehow giving his lighter half a death glare.
"Tobi-sama will be interested in this new development."
"He probably saw it coming, which explains why he instructed us to keep an extra close watch on these two," Black Zetsu remarked.
"Still, I think she and Uchiha-san are good for each other."
"How is this a good thing?
"He trusts her. That's a good thing, right?"
"Not if you're Tobi-sama. But I guess we'll find out then, won't we?"
And with that, Zetsu left to report to Akatsuki's leader.
Uchiha Itachi awoke that morning most surprisingly without the help of his alarm. It felt as if a small voice in his head were screaming for him to get up for some explicitly important reason he had yet to discover.
His half-blind eyes opened to reveal that reason. Akira's sleeping face lay right in front of him, her body pressed against his chest in a loving embrace.
Itachi smiled at last night's memory as he drew his arms from around her bare shoulders, bringing up one of his hands to caress her face.
So beautiful, Itachi thought, his index finger trailing down the smooth curve of her chin. Even with his current eyesight, he remembered what she looked like, especially after the first time she'd healed eyes. Why hadn't he noticed before? Why hadn't he, the supposed master of detail, seen Akira's feelings?
Hell, why hadn't he acted on his own?
He should be regretting this—he should be ashamed at sharing his past with this girl after all that happened, but he wasn't. It felt good to trust.
The movement of his hand stopped when Akira's lavender orbs opened to meet his black ones. She smiled with a grin that actually looked human.
"Good morning, Itachi." Akira stared back at him lovingly as she slipped her fingers through his nearest hand. She pulled him into a kiss before her mind could wander and before she could even consider regretting what she had done.
All that mattered right now was Itachi. Akatsuki, the Uchiha clan, Konohagakure—she didn't even want to consider such trivial things.
Itachi broke the kiss first, trying to give them both a chance to fully wake up. Not complaining, Akira cuddled closer to Itachi's chest, savoring the warmth.
"I love you," she whispered.
He didn't reply but she was slowly learning to translate those periods of silence. He was still getting used to being with someone that actually cared about him.
"Hey, what time is it?" She felt Itachi crane his neck to see the clock while she remained warmly nestled in his arms.
"Seven fifteen. Something wrong?"
Akira groaned and begrudgingly separated herself from Itachi's warmth.
"Everything! I'm supposed to be in Konan's room! I've got about three minutes until Deidara comes in to let me out." She didn't have to read Itachi's expression to know he was painfully aware of the consequences of Deidara finding the room empty.
The frantic search for their clothes commenced.
Akira leapt off the bed, desperately trying to locate her underwear before a minute passed. As soon as her first mission was completed, all that was left to find was that—
"This is yours!" Akira seized Itachi's over-shirt and threw it to him while she pulled on her pants and noticed her shirt lying on the opposite end of the room.
By the time she was finally done, thankfully lacking shoes since she'd arrived barefoot, Itachi had been dressed for a minute more.
Thank Kami she'd come in her night clothes, otherwise, she would have taken quite some time to pry on the tight black outfit. She and Itachi inched to the door, scanning for chakra presences.
"Coast is clear," Itachi whispered, to which she nodded.
They made run for it—or walk rather. She gripped his hand for dear life, praying the hallway would remain vacant. They reached the paper kunoichi's room in a matter of seconds. Itachi shoved her inside as gently as possible just as Deidara's chakra approached.
Itachi closed her door with a soft creak, making eye contact with the blue-eyed blonde just in the nick of time. Being a genjutsu master, he made Deidara see him back a few yards farther than he actually was while he used a teleportation jutsu to get there.
The two men brushed by one another without so much as a greeting.
Itachi mentally sighed once he was back in the safety of the main room. That had been unnervingly close.
"Dammit, heal faster!" Akira growled as she poured healing chakra into her neck. She sat on the floor, hurriedly trying to heal a bruise on her neck that she'd failed to notice earlier. Of course, if she had only worn her regular outfit, she would have been fine, but she'd just had to go to bed in the comfortable, non-collared T-shirt!
The door opened seconds after the last traces of purple disappeared from sight.
"Akira?" Deidara looked down at her with a strange expression "What are you doing on the floor, un?"
"I, uh… tripped?" she finished lamely, looking away to hide her blush.
He looked at her dubiously.
"Sorry, I got up a little late. Would you mind waiting a few minutes until I get ready?" Akira added quickly with what she hoped was a convincing smile.
"Hm. You got up late, too? I passed Itachi in the hallway and usually he's—"
The door slammed in his face.
"Weird, un."
She'd already changed into her regular clothes by now, tied on her headband, and combed and re-braided her loose hair. Now, she was frantically brushing her teeth and while still trying to conquer the raging blush on her cheeks.
Calm down, Akira. It was just another night with Itachi.
But ambivalence took over
JUST?! I freaking slept with him!
Spitting out a mixture of toothpaste and saliva, Akira rinsed her mouth and replaced the toothbrush before scurrying to the door.
"You can come in now," she called meekly. The door creaked open.
"If you keep this up, I'm asking Tobi to get you," Deidara frowned.
"Sorry, I just had a slow morning!" And a long night...
Breakfast was normal enough, considering. She managed to choke down some food and keep herself from staring at Itachi for too long. Of course, then she had training to complete.
Kisame found himself carefully observing the Hyuuga girl that morning. Something seemed different about her. Yesterday morning, she'd possessed a glaringly awkward edge, and today the edge was gone.
Kisame had a strong feeling this somehow involved his partner.
From breakfast until training, he kept watching them, trying to put his finger on it. Then it hit him when Itachi stopped his strike inches from Akira's face. Normally, he'd just go through with it and send her flying, especially after what Kisame had recently caused.
The tension between them was gone—vanished into thin air. And after a discovery like the one Akira had made, forgive and forget was not plausible. The negative energy between them had been replaced with an odd understanding.
Kisame watched them for a bit longer, eagerly listening to Itachi's words as he instructed Akira.
He detected a warm change Itachi's tone. As for Akira, he didn't need to read her that closely. She was like a walking billboard with the way she had her emotions on full display. That girl didn't possess half of Itachi's self-control.
So either one of two things had happened last night: they'd both said to hell with it and gone back to acting normally around each other, or Akira had somehow convinced Itachi to spill everything, thus making her more knowledgeable about the Uchiha than any other member in all of Akatsuki.
Both were unreasonable, but their interaction screamed the latter.
Wait a second—didn't Itachi come to breakfast later than usual? Blood drained from the shark's face. No way…
The funny way Akira walked combined with the self-satisfied aura Itachi had about him—all of it made sense now.
To be honest, Kisame didn't know whether to feel proud or appalled. Itachi, that stoic, anti-social brat he'd been partnered with all those years ago—the same oddly celibate guy who he'd never seen so much as blink when a beautiful woman walked by—he was involved with their healer?
When it was his turn to spar Itachi, Kisame spent a good deal of the time considering whether or not to tell the new couple he knew about their relationship.
In the end, after barely managing to dodge one of Itachi's attacks, he decided against it. If this turned out to be nothing more a fling, Itachi would certainly want to keep things quiet. For now, and only for that reason, he would keep his mouth shut.
The rest of the day continued on, and thankfully no one else detected anything out of the ordinary. Hidan and Kakuzu left for a mission shortly after breakfast, and Pein and Konan arrived back at the base that afternoon. Weary from her travels, Konan went straight to her room and likely intended to stay there for the rest of the day.
As usual, Zetsu was nowhere to be found, and Kisame, Tobi and Deidara played poker in the main room. But, not-so-usually, Itachi sat on one of the main room couches, Akira close by his side. Or at least as close as she could be without arousing suspicion.
"So what possessed you to come join us, un?" Deidara inquired to Itachi. "All I ever see you do is lock yourself in your room."
"No particular reason." Akira breathed a mental sigh of relief that the other Akatsuki were too far away to see their joined fingers. Kisame stifled a laugh with an awkward-sounding cough.
"Ha! I win again, bitches!" Deidara exclaimed. He grinned smugly at Tobi and Kisame. "Pay up, un."
"But, Senpai, Tobi has no money!"
A long slur of profanities directed at the covert Uchiha filled the air, persuading the other members to go to their rooms early that night. Itachi and Akira's hands quickly separated as they made a run for the hallway, Kisame following close behind.
Moments after Kisame slammed the door behind them, an explosion rang out, sending a shock wave through the base.
"Are there any nights where someone hasn't tried to start a fight?" Akira muttered, steadying herself against the stone wall while the ground beneath them shook.
"Relax. Deidara's just hot-headed," Kisame assured. "Although if he ends up destroying something valuable again, Pein's gonna be pissed."
Akira sweat-dropped. Again?
Now in the safety of Itachi's room, Akira showered while Itachi sat on the bed reading.
"I wonder if Tobi's all right," Akira remarked as she dried her wet hair with a towel before replacing the fluffy linen in the bathroom and joining Itachi on the bed. Akira was in her night clothes again. She'd already doubled-checked for bruises in questionable places and found none. Now at least, she could wear collarless shirts without fear.
Itachi set aside his book and turned to the Hyuuga girl leaning her head against his shoulder.
"Do you regret last night?" Itachi finally said. Someone had to bring it up, so it may as well be him. Akira shook her head, bringing up a hand to conceal a yawn. "Not in the slightest."
He raised an eyebrow.
She sighed in defeat. "We cut this morning a little closer than I would have liked."
Itachi half-smiled, remembering his encounter with Deidara in the hallway. "And?"
"I take it you want to keep this just between us?"
"It's for your own safety."
At this, Akira laughed. "True. You do have an awful lot of people after your life."
"You're not the slightest bit worried about yourself?"
"Not really. I'm more concerned about you, really."
"Hm? How so?"
Her expression softened. "Is your brother really worth all this?"
"Yes." His answer was immediate.
She brought her head off his shoulder to properly look him in the eye. "Then tell me more about him."
"Maybe later." Akira tried to hold back at the eagerness Itachi's tone. "For now, we need to figure out how to avoid any more close calls."
"That's easy. No more sneaking out for either of us. Do you have any idea how unnerving it is, walking around these hallways alone at night?"
"It stopped being scary after about my second week here."
"Hey, I've been here almost that long!" she said with a playful pout. With that look, Itachi couldn't resist any longer. He cupped her face and kissed her, lightly biting down on her bottom lip. She kissed him back instantly, and before he could protest, she pulled him onto of her.
The sheer force of his weight knocked the wind out of her, allowing Itachi's tongue access to the rest of her mouth. Akira didn't mind him being on top, but she did, however, mind not being able to fight back.
Despite not having much experience, the Uchiha and Hyuuga commenced in a heated battle for dominance. They both agreed to no more sneaking around, but all bets were off when they were together like this.
Itachi broke the kiss to move his mouth to her neck. She felt him bite down again, likely leaving a bruise nearly identical to the one she discovered this morning.
Dammit. Forgot to ask him not to do that, Akira thought through hitched breathing. Her fingers wandered down to the hem of Itachi's shirt. She discarded the first piece of clothing before forcing the Uchiha into another kiss.
Then again, what the hell.
Zuzuzuzu
Uchiha Obito turned his head as he recognized Zetsu's chakra. He stood outside the base, enjoying the darkness and the view of the forest stretching beyond the lake near their cave.
"Your report?"
"Hidan, the usual. Two virgins and an old enemy murdered yesterday. Kakuzu is still keeping us in business with late night inventories. Kisame is normal, and Deidara—"
"What was so important that you came without my summoning?"
Both of Zetsu paused. Here went nothing.
"Akira knows about the Uchiha clan. Itachi told her last night."
"And what brought this on?"
"They had sex afterwards," Black Zetsu said bluntly.
"Ah. So they have become intimate after all." This could prove difficult.
"Shall we dispose of her?" Black Zetsu inquired.
It took a few seconds before Tobi replied, "No." Knowing Akira, she would not risk Itachi's confidence, especially if she was sleeping with him now. "We will wait. Her loyalty to Itachi may still work to our advantage."
In the least, it assured her silence.