Shisui paced back and forth in the office where Sakura had been working out of for the last couple of days. He figured that she would make it here first to pick up the charts of the patients that she had been working on the day before. Sure enough, he heard steps approach the door and he placed the ANBU mask over his face. Sakura opened the door and was not surprised to see Shisui in his ANBU mask sitting on her desk with his arms crossed over his chest.
She smiled and said, "How were things with you and Kakashi?" He replied, "How about you tell me how things with you and Itachi are going?" She looked right at him and decided not to take the bait. She knew that when Shisui was around Kakashi he became a bit too possessive about her. She looked in his direction and sighed as she shook her head. He softened a bit and took his mask off and uncrossed his arms as he approached her. "Look, I just don't know how to act around you anymore. The stupid closet pervert has me thinking all kinds of things… telling me you sleep next to…" he trailed off and looked at the floor.
She sighed and said, "Shisui I appreciate how much you are worried, but please don't be like that." He raised his hands in confusion and asked, "Like what?" She raised one eyebrow and then picked up her charts and made her way to the door. She turned around and said, "Like the possessive animal that you are turning into." She laughed at him and then stuck her tongue out at him in a playful way.
He put his mask on the desk as he smirked at her and then reached out to catch her by her arm, pulling her into him. He whispered into her ear, "So you want me to become a possessive animal, huh? Your wish is my command my Blossom." He nuzzled into her neck and growled lightly as he placed a kiss on the nape of her neck sending shivers down her spine. He leaned further down and kissed her shoulder as he said, "You bring out these emotions from deep…" another kiss on her shoulder, "deep…" a kiss on her neck, "deep within me…" he felt her shiver and then lean back into him as he sighed and whispered, "Stick out that tongue at me one more time and I will be forced to kiss you. This 'animal' you say I become… be careful or he might want to come out and play." She felt how his arms contracted and the toned muscles rippled through the thin material of his ANBU shirt.
He was clouding her judgement and she said, "Shisui… I have to get to work." She grabbed her charts once more and said, "I'll see you for lunch… ok?" He waved her off and said, "Ok… Ok… I will pace here in this 'cage' you put me in." She grinned and took a step back from him and said, "It's not a cage Shisui, it's just an office." She placed a kiss on his cheek and said, "If you're good I'll bring you back a treat."
Sakura grinned and ran out of the room before he could pull her back in again. Shisui just stood by the door and smiled at the retreating figure. He made his way back into her office and started to go over the plans that Itachi had given him for when they would confront Danzo.
Kakashi stepped into the Hokage's office and knelt before him, "You summoned me Lord Third?" Sarutobi said, "Kakashi, please get up… I need you for a special mission. Now come and listen close my boy. This is of the utmost importance…" Kakashi saw the document that the Hokage had given him and once he read it he said, "Lord Third, I am honored that you would trust me with this information and this position. I will do my best to make sure that this gets done." The elder shinobi said, "Itachi is trusting you with this mission…"
Kakashi was leaving the tower, but as he was walking out he saw Itachi coming down the hall. The young Uchiha stopped as Kakashi approached and whispered, "Thank you for trusting me with this…" He showed him the scroll that the Hokage had just given him.
Itachi immediately smiled and put an arm around his senpai as he said, "You are one of the few people that I trust implicitly… I know that you can be lead on this."
Kakashi grinned under his mask and said, "For what it's worth, even though I give you a hard time… I'm honored that they chose you." Itachi said, "It's because you were hard on me that I was able to grow and learn…" He gave him a serious look and said, "Remember, no one is to know until you have everything set up on your part."
The white-haired ninja nodded and took his leave. Itachi walked up to the Hokage's office and knocked on the door. "Come in" Sarutobi said. The young man walked in and bowed respectful. The man behind the large desk shook his head and thought, 'No matter what, he will always be this way…'
Itachi waited until his leader gave him permission to speak and said, "Lord Third, I have reason to believe that Root has been mobilizing and we have to be prepared." The elder shinobi pulled out his pipe and prepared to have a smoke. He looked at Itachi and said, "Don't worry about me… I don't want you spending any manpower on watching me. If Danzo makes a move we will be ready, and I expect you to lead your village as before. I believe that Danzo still doesn't know about Shisui and the less that man knows the better it is for the rest of us."
Itachi wanted to say something but he understood how his mentor felt, if it was him, he too would want others to be protected and use resources elsewhere, he replied, "I understand…"
As he puffed his pipe the older man looked at Itachi and smiled and said, "Don't worry so much my boy, now tell me how are things going in the district?" Itachi responded, "I'm still being followed by my father's closest advisors…" He thought, 'But they are such amateurs that I always manage to get away from them with ease.'
The older shinobi could see that Itachi was more annoyed by him being followed than angry at his father so he said, "It is expected from Fugaku, he was an excellent shinobi, but his eyes were clouded by those around him… How about Shisui, has he said anything about him yet?" Itachi shook his head.
There had been some closed-door discussions between his mother and father and the tension in his house was now even affecting Sasuke. Itachi appreciated that his mother was now taking a stand against everything that his father said, but he didn't want her to be sad on his account. Since he had spoken to his mother about Sakura, they had formed an even closer bond. She had confided in him that she knew about Shisui's "suicide" and had asked for his forgiveness in not being forthcoming prior.
His thoughts were interrupted when Sarutobi asked, "Speaking of Shisui… how is he doing?" Itachi had a smile on his lips and said, "He is fine, he is taking care of Sakura right now. Even though he has to hide his presence to everyone in the village, I know that he likes being back home. We are still making plans against Danzo and are prepared for anything that he might come up with."
"Good… Good… How is Sakura at the Hospital?" Itachi's eyes instantly brightened at the mention of Sakura and Sarutobi did not miss this. "She is making great progress in teaching the medics that we have. They all love her and are frightened of her at the same time. It really is amusing seeing how they are all willing to learn, but keep their distance in fear of her anger." The older man laughed and said, "Awww to be young and in your prime… I believe many feared and were in awe of Tsunade when she was young as well. It seems that our dear Sakura will have those medics in top shape in no time."
Itachi agreed and said, "If you will excuse me Lord Third. I have to meet up with Shisui to give him my latest intel." Sarutobi waved him off and said, "Go my boy, you and Shisui are a force to be reckoned with. I would hate to be on the receiving end of your wrath." Itachi grinned and said, "Sir, no one has yet to anger us to that extent." Itachi bowed and then left out the window.
He jumped from roof to roof until he got near to the hospital and he saw Sakura at a nearby stand picking up some food. He watched how she interacted with the shopkeeper and the kind smile that she gave everyone. He hopped down from the ledge of a window and then walked over to a stand and quickly bought what he needed. He caught up with Sakura and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and was quickly assaulted by the fresh scent of flowers.
The small bouquet was touching and it looked like the flowers were handpicked because they were different and not arranged symmetrically. It looked like the flowers that he chose were not put together by a florist but by him in a simple bouquet.
She thought back to what Ino taught her and then realized that it wasn't about the arrangement itself but the meaning of the flowers that was prominent. She looked at the bouquet and then at Itachi's soft smile.
She looked down and noticed: Tulips 'declaration of love'; gladiolus 'faithfulness'; white carnation 'pure love'; daisies 'loyal love'. She was overwhelmed and took the bouquet and smelled the sweet fragrance as her eyes brightened as she saw the happiness in Itachi's smile. There was something inside her that made her heart accelerate ever so slightly with each of his smiles.
He understood the meaning of the flowers he bought and hoped that she understood his message. He took her bags and extended his hand out to her. She took it as he said, "Would it be ok if I accompany you?" She replied, "I was just picking up lunch. Want to join me?" He grinned and leaned down close to her as he said, "I would want nothing more."
People stared as they walked into the hospital but did not dare say anything as they passed by. Sakura was not paying too much attention to where she was going as she was telling him all about her day so far. Itachi expertly maneuvered them around the hospital and would only ask her questions to keep the conversation going. Soon, they were by the office and Shisui opened the door only to see how Itachi held her hand and she was holding a bouquet of flowers with the happiest look on her face.
Shisui narrowed his eye at Itachi but said nothing. He did not want to diminish her bright smile and just stepped to the side to allow them to enter the office. Itachi placed the bags on the desk as Sakura continued, "… So, by the time that we were able to close the wound, we had to replenish eight units of blood. There was so much to do but I was so happy when his vital signs started to stabilize."
Itachi smiled and said, "Do you want me to clear the desk?" Shisui started gathering his papers and stacked them on top of a nearby bookshelf. Sakura smiled and said, "Shisui, you don't mind if he joins us for lunch, right?"
It was a leading question but he just grinned and said, "Well my Blossom, it's been a while since we all ate together, it would be nice if this kid joined us." Itachi groaned and said, "Old man… You need to make yourself useful and bring some water for Sakura's flowers." She looked at the bouquet and then at Itachi and slightly blushed.
Shisui looked at the two people in front of him and shook his head and said, "Ok… wait here, let me look for something…" He was upset that Itachi had beat him in buying her flowers but, for her, he would put up with this. He didn't want to upset her and although he would have loved to have an intimate lunch with her alone, deep down he was happy to see his best friend with such a carefree look on his face. For now, he would let this pass and try to make up his time with Sakura later on.
They ate and it seemed that things were back to their comfortable banter that they always shared. Shisui made Sakura laugh, while Itachi grinned and would make witty comebacks. The atmosphere around them was not tense and it reminded each of them of their time at the Uchiha hideout when they had met.
Sakura grinned when Itachi found the small dessert that she had bought, it was a couple of sticks of dango and Shisui tried to sneak them all before Itachi snatched the plate away with a quickness that was too fast for the naked eye. She laughed but said, "Alright you two, I have to get back to work, I have a major surgery scheduled this afternoon and will have many students watching. I have to go, but you guys are welcome to stay here as long as you need to." Itachi took her hand and brought it up to his lips giving it a tender kiss. He leaned in and said, "I meant everything I said in that bouquet." She looked deep into his eyes and saw the sincerity in his words. She replied almost breathless, "I know… and I loved the flowers… Thank you." He gave her a soft smile and whispered, "I'll see you later then."
She looked back at him and said, "Yes… later…" Her mind was not working or articulating any other words at the moment. Shisui was cleaning the table and grabbing his papers as he waved her from the back of the room, "See ya later Blossom… I will be here when you get off your shift."
She smiled and said, "I'll be back later Shisui!" She left and the two men looked at each other and stayed silent for a minute. Shisui broke the tension first. "Itachi, this is harder than I thought…" The Uchiha heir looked back at the door that Sakura had just left through and said, "I know… I know…"
Shisui knew that if things got serious with Sakura and either of them, it might cause tension between both of them. As if Itachi could read his mind he said, "Brother… no matter what, you will always be an important part of my life and will never hate you." Shisui thought about his own feelings and responded, "Me too brother, I could never hate you either, although, I am pissed that you bought her flowers before I did and interrupted our lunch date."
Itachi laughed and said, "Really old man? It seemed to me that you quite enjoyed lunch even with me here." Shisui grinned and said, "Ok kid, let's go over these documents. What news do you have now about Danzo."
Itachi turned and said, "Danzo is mobilizing Root. Those poor kids in the foundation will be forced to fight soon. We need to move fast." Shisui squared his shoulders and said, "Ok… let's see what we have to work with."
Itachi looked at Shisui and said, "Ok, but before we begin… There is something that I need to tell you. I haven't told Sakura, Sasuke, or even my mother…" Shisui walked around the desk and stood right in front of Itachi and said, "Tell me… Itachi you know you can count on me…"
Itachi smiled and said, "You know I do, and I trust you with the lives of my most precious people. You are my best friend and my right hand in everything that I do… There is nothing that I could ever hide from you and I want you to continue to be a part of my lifelong dream of… " Shisui looked at him and then broke out into a smile and said, "Wait…. Do you mean that?! Did it happen… your dream?!" Itachi looked up at him a bit bashfully, but nodded, "Yeah brother… The official decree will be announced next month. The Fire Daimyo and the Jonin Council approved my election as the Fifth Hokage…"
A/N: I am so sorry for not updating for the last couple of days. I have been working a couple of night shifts in a row at the hospital and was really struck with writer's block for this chapter. For some reason, I couldn't get it to flow right and I couldn't move past the first few paragraphs. I hope this chapter is ok because I really felt that I was stuck on this part of the story. I felt that I was losing sight of Shisui's humor and Itachi's true nature with all of my drafts so I had to rewrite this chapter many times over. Thank you all for your patience and continued support.