and the scarry skies above
a-hunting we will go
The feeling of a second presence in the room is what rouses him to consciousness, along with the soft hand that curls around his shoulder. He grasps at it reflexively, but his instinctive grip seems to lack its usual strength. Shortly after, his brain catches up to his reflexes, and even before his eyes adjust to the darkness of his bedroom, the scent of herbs and green tea registers on his mind.
He lets out a slow breath he didn't know he was holding. "Sensei," he says, running his thumb over the inside of her wrist to communicate there is no ill will. "What happened?"
"I'm sorry for waking you, Itachi," she whispers, volume kept to a bare minimum. Her breath ghosts over the side of his neck and sends a shiver down his spine. "But you need to come with me."
"Is it dangerous?" he asks, even as he slides out of bed and gropes for a change of clothing in the dark. The cool air washes over his bare chest and for a second he freezes. But then he glances over his shoulder at his sensei and decides that, if he cannot make out her in the dark, she won't be able to see anything either. The hesitation vanishes, replaced by an uncomfortable feeling of dread at her next words.
"It's confidential, at the very least," she breathes into the stillness as he slides on his jonin uniform. "I'm going against direct orders in being here, but I'll explain later. Come now, and hurry. You won't need your gear."
Even as he follows her to the window, his instincts scream at him. A shinobi without weapons is as good as dead, and even though he trusts his sensei with all his heart, he cannot help but slip a kunai into his sleeve just before he leaps onto the windowsill and out into the night. Down on ground level, Sakura is already waiting, and in the soft light of the moon he can make out her blurry form.
"We'll take the streets," she whispers, darts off. Nodding his understanding to himself, he follows. The night is clear, and their outlines would be visible from the rooftops. So instead, they slip through the deserted streets of the Uchiha district, streets that are not yet familiar and do not carry the feeling of home. Itachi doubts they ever will.
They slow to a stop when a guard passes by, slip into a shadowy niche to wait. For a moment, Sakura is pressed flush against his front, and memories of campfires and a shared blanket flood his mind. Every step of the way, a distant memory echoes, and then she is gone, darting across the street behind the guard, taking with her the smell of green tea and herbs and the warmth. He follows close on her heel, lead by the low, barely discernible rustling of her clothing. In a matter of minutes, they have reached the outskirts of the district and take a moment to secure their position, before they scale the walls in perfect sync and drop down on the other side, noiseless as a pair of shadows.
From here, it takes them mere moments to glide across the road, around a corner, then another, and then they are picking up their pace, still no sound. "We are going to my apartment," Sakura tells him quietly, and something about the statement both soothes and agitates his nerves. At least now he has a destination, although the purpose behind it is still unclear.
With the pace they are setting, it takes them little under ten minutes to circle from the Uchiha district along Konoha's outer wall and into the civilian ward where her flat is located. In the pale light, the damage that still mars the village is glossed over and seems almost negligible. They enter through the heavy doors, dart up the staircase, and all the while Itachi's mind is whirring away, trying to discern the meaning behind all this. The meaning, as it turns out, opens the door for them once they reach her apartment. Itachi is not at all pleased to see Naruto Uzumaki greet his sensei with such familiarity, but there is a sombreness in his usually spunky behaviour that makes the nagging jealously less distracting, even as the man holds open the door for Itachi to pass through as though he lived here.
Which he does, Itachi understands a moment later. The realisation hits him like a punch to the face, but evidence is strewn around the apartment in undeniable piles of unfolded laundry, haphazardly rolled up scrolls, all kinds of weaponry, snack wrappers, paper in a startling display of someone feeling completely at home. At first, he wants to be angry at Naruto for inserting himself into his sensei's life with such a casual ease, but then he notices how the kitchen chairs are not pushed in all the way, how there are dishes piled in the sink, and how the books are still arranged by topic but crammed crookedly onto their shelves. And he surrenders.
"What is it you brought me here for?" he asks instead. They lead him into the living room, where Tetsuo is seemingly strapping on the last of his gear. He blinks when they enter, and the tanto slides into the sheath on his back with a soft hiss, locks with a click. The rings dangling around his neck jingle softly. "I thought they didn't want any Uchiha on this mission given what happened, and that it would be just the three of us," he says. "It is," Sakura answers. "I just …" She sighs, pushes a hand through her hair. "You two haven't seen each other in a while." Tetsuo throws Itachi a clinical glance. Concedes after a moment, "True enough."
"I'll go get my gear," Sakura murmurs when nobody seems willing to move. Places a warm hand on Itachi's shoulder before she slips from the room. Naruto follows after a moment's hesitation.
To say Itachi is confused would be an understatement. "I gather this mission is classified," he says. Tetsuo catches onto the implied question and rolls his eyes. "Yes. Leave it to sensei to go against the hokage's direct orders. Only she would." He huffs, eyes Itachi over. Something in his stance softens. "But then again it doesn't seem like you'll be coming along. So it's alright, I guess."
Itachi is brimming with curiosity, but knows better than to ask questions. This mission doesn't concern him, after all. Instead, casting around for something to say, he offers, "It was quite a surprise to have her wake me up in the middle of the night."
Tetsuo looks at him, then grins. "A surprise maybe, but not an unwelcome one, I'm sure." Something of the old mischief sparkles in his eyes as his mood visibly brightens, even as Itachi's insides clench and all of a sudden, he feels cold. "What a wild accusation. There is no reason for you to say something like that." His voice sounds hollow, even to him.
"Isn't there?" Tetsuo saunters over, taps his chin. "Well, at closer inspection I guess you're right. Unless…" He lets the words hang in the loaded silence for a moment, before laughing and boxing Itachi's arm. "Relax, Itachi. I won't tell. But seriously –" he grasps his shoulder. "I'm glad you're here. This mission is so hush-hush I didn't get to say goodbye to anybody. It kind of feels…" He trails off, eyes clouded in thought, and for the first time in years Itachi takes a moment to really look at his former teammate. He's matured, that's for sure. There are fine lines around the corners of his eyes and mouth, testament to his easy laugh. But there's a furrow carved across his brow as well, bearing witness to the many times the quick humour gave way to anger, displeasure, and a foul mood.
A walking contradiction. Itachi tries to remember when Tetsuo became that way.
His musings are interrupted when Tetsuo lets go and moves across the room to swipe something from the coffee table. "I need to ask you a favour," he says, and pushes four letters into Itachi's hands. "Please deliver these once the mission is over. The names are on the envelopes. I –" he's interrupted when the door swings open and Naruto enters, closely followed by Sakura, both decked out in Jonin gear.
"Tetsuo," she says as she pulls her hair back and begins a tight braid. "We're ready to move."
Something flashes through Tetsuo's eyes, something reminiscent of fear or hurt, but it is gone too quickly too identify. "Take care, Itachi," he says, grasps him by the shoulders once more. He looks him up and down for a second, then smiles. "You're a lousy friend, you know? You should keep in touch more."
He steps back as Naruto darts around the room, collecting loose brushes, ink pots, sheaves of paper, stores them all in his pack, and Sakura ties off her braid. With a quick motion, she throws Itachi a bundle of keys, and he, fingers still cramping around Tetsuo's letters, just barely manages to catch them. "Be a dear and lock up the place, will you?" she asks.
All three of them sidle up to the balcony, and with every step they take away from him, Itachi's confusion grows.
"Alright," Tetsuo says, throwing open the door, completely oblivious to the heavy feeling of dread pooling in Itachi's stomach.
"Let's go a-hunting."
A/N: Oh phew! It's been a hot minute, hasn't it? Thank you guys for sticking with me through my super irregular updating schedule! Speaking of sticking with me...
You guys pushed past 100 reviews! Thank you so much! I can't tell you how happy that makes me. I know theoretically speaking it's not a lot, but with my chapters being so short and everything, it really soothes my nerves to know that you guys like this story enough to leave a comment. Thank you so so much! You seriously are the best!
outrageoussmile, I love my jealous Itachi! He's so much fun to write, because this emotion is entirely foreign to him, an he knows it! And oh boy, will there be a snapping... I've got that chapter already typed out. But perhaps not the kind you are expecting! That one is my favourite chapter so far. (coughcoughtwoweekscough)
Thefiskers, thanks so much for your review! I'm always glad when people like the story despite the super short chapter! I am aware of the length, and try to make up for it by updating regularly, but oooh boy hasn't that worked out so far. But I'm slowly getting back on track, so I hope I'm not promising to much in announcing regular Friday updates from hereon.
And to all the rest of you lovely reviewers, well, having Naruto back is enough for now, I'd say. Wouldn't want to push Sakura's luck. And do not worry, my dears! Feelings will be confessed at some point, tears will be shed (most likely by me because I seriously love to torture myself), and relationships will be sorted out! I guess none of you are too familiar with my storytelling preferences, so I'll leave you to discover them for yourselves. But I am soooo looking forward to writing the rest of this story... man. I'm seriously hyped.
Tons of love and thank you all for your ongoing support!
planless
btw, do any of you read the chapter titles? They are usually related to the content of the story, and in some cases will give you a hint of what to expect (and sometimes they are just dumb references to my undying love of musicals). I'll just leave this here...