A/N: Hello and welcome to another installment of Home! Thank you for your constructive feedback if you've taken the time to do so, that's a great way to help a writer know what they need to improve on! This fic is VERY loosely based off of the events of Naruto, Shippuden, and eventually Boruto(ish). Kishimoto owns all of that, but the concept of Akuri Uchiha is still very much my own. Present-tense scenes will be identified by the chosen POV of the character and brackets being underlined like so: X Naruto X. Flashbacks will be noted with the character point of view and a mini-heading for that portion like this: Naruto (and the audacity of this bitch). The current character's thoughts and words of emphasis will be defined via italicization I apologize sincerely for any literary errors that I may miss during the editorial segment prior to update! To wrap up my note, I will state that updates will take quite some time to churn out. If there's anything I've learned in the last few years, its that; while life is unkind, it is also unforgiving.
X Naruto X
The search for the twins had mostly been uneventful and stressful after being on the hunt for nearly five weeks, aside from the tinge of Sasuke and Akuri that appeared on the ninja hounds' olfactory radars. Without further direction to follow, the rescue team was rendered unable to find concrete trails to follow as they had all ended with birds with linen-wrapped ankles. Hope was waning and I found myself getting angrier by the day, the frustration of attempting to track the woman I loved or the rival I swore to retrieve becoming almost too much to retain a positive outlook. Sakura's steadfast support had been both unanticipated and greatly appreciated, her ingrained belief that we would eventually recover the pair of them without fail and things would be right once more was nearly enough to strengthen my resolve.
The day that the earth-blinding explosion went off in the distance, the entire crew seemed to be on high alert and a small portion of us were sent in investigate, myself included. The radius of the blast seemed to have gone on for miles, the only residue left in the area were singed remains of what was once an alabaster modeling clay that sent a different kind of shock down my spine. Anxiety rolled around inside me like a typhoon, fears of my mate meeting her demise via the mouth-palmed Akatsuki member that ended a future path before it had even been seen raced through my mind like dogs on a track. It was heightened the moment Pakkun announced that the twins' scent had been here not long before we'd arrived.
"Are you alright, N-Naruto?" Hinata's mouse-like inquiry was just enough to keep me from letting the fears run rampant, lilac eyes softly scrutinizing. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"It feels like I'm trying to figure out whose ghost I'm looking at," I divulged, heaving a sigh that felt as weighty as it sounded, studiously taking in the sight of the softened terrain and inhaling the scents of incendiary matter. "So...I don't know yet."
The moment her frail fingers took hold of the likely-clammy flesh of my hand, I felt a surge of mixed and tumultuous emotions. Her touch was meant to be a gesture of comfort, but everything in my body screamed to be held by the woman I'd longed for during the entirety of my training. All I wanted to do was wrench my arm away from the contact, but her intentions were too pure to shrug off without a subsequent jab of guilt.
"We'll find them," she urged with a soft squeeze, "if there's anything to know about the twins, they're strong. Right?"
"Yeah, they are," I agreed, although her sugary tone did nothing to sweeten my mood. I felt trapped in the uncertainty and hopelessness that toiled around my abdomen, the emotions drawing my throat tight and making my chest ache. A brief respite from the strain came from the small brown pug perched on Kakashi's shoulder, his rumbling voice never sounding sweeter than in that moment. I took that opportunity as an escape from Hinata's touch, separating from her to pay closer attention to whatever it was that the pug had to say.
"Their scent just up and vanishes from this point on," he informed with a glum tilt of his droopy face. Unrest spread throughout our team while theories were tossed around, my brain wracking over itself to reach a plausible scenario for long moments before it dawned on me.
"She phased," I imparted with a sense of eureka, whirling to face the rest of the troupe with glee, "they got out of the blast! We've got to find a new scent trail, guys!"
Murmurs of exhausted joy resonated throughout the team just as fast as their doubts had, Sai smiling from his crouched place while he gathered scattered pieces of clay and some of the affected soil from the blast-zone. Once samples had been collected and theories were brainstormed, the investigational team regrouped with the rest of the rescue squad to compare notes and to determine the next course of action. Several group members appeared worn and I was not excluded from the disheveled and tired expressions they all displayed, though my own bore a new resolve. The deliberation between the team leaders was short lived and the decision to make camp was made, Yamato's wood-style coming into play to erect a well-sized manor for the company to retire to for the time being. I joined my comrades as they filed inside, laying down wearily on my bedroll after shucking my shoes to stare at the lightless ceiling. Restful sleep would not come, as I knew, so I settled for recounting my goals.
I'll find you, Akuri. You and Sasuke...I'll bring you both back home!
X Sasuke X
The call of birds above and the chill of water lapping at the left side of my body is what drew me into wakefulness, my eyes peeling open slightly only to scrunch closed again at the intensity of sunlight shining down on me. Carefully, I peered around with one eye half-mast and caught sight of a smaller form next to mine on the shore, my brows lifting when I deciphered who it was laying beside me. When realization and recollection dawned on me, I sat up and quickly took a hold of my sister by the waist to shift her in my arms and bring her fully onto the unfamiliar beach. Without much grace, I struggled to my feet with the dead weight of my twin and ambled through the ever-sifting sand until I reached a grassy section to regain our balance. The sensation of her breathing in my hold while I carried her toward the small village surrounding the beach was comforting enough for me to resettle her on my back to carry her piggy-back style the way Itachi had done for me many times as a child. I toted my twin a short ways into the settlement before I found signage to direct me to the exit of this tiny town that overlooked the ocean. We needed to get back to the rest of Hebi.
"Stop right there," a voice commanded from my left, my eyes zeroing in on a silvery-blonde that appeared to be entering her golden years as she ambled out of her stall. I obeyed, unwilling to potentially compromise us further, and faced the elder to examine her furrowed brow with impatience. Her eyes were a twinkling sea foam green that made the strings of my heart tug as I recalled Sakura's pretty irises, but I shook off the sensation as I took in the light of concern that the woman's gaze held. Her thin and wrinkled lips pulled into a smile of comprehension when she took in the look of apprehension I had to have sported. "You don't need to tell me a thing, son...but you must be hungry. Come in and we can get her into a bed for some good rest, I'll make some tea and a little stew for you both."
The stall, I discovered, had only really been a storefront to this elder's quaint apartment home as I carefully followed her through a few racks of displayed wares. With a soft grunt of effort, the kind Samaritan spread a large bedroll on the floor of her living space and minded my sister's head as I slowly shrugged her from my back before she vanished to another part of the home. I turned to arrange Akuri comfortably on the pad and tuck the down pillow below her neck before tenderly sweeping her tangled mane from her face and collecting the mass to lay across the cushion, pooling on the clean wooden floor below.
"You must be twins," the woman deduced as she approached with a soft-looking blanket in her arms, "you're a very good brother, young man."
"It's my job as her older brother to take care of her," I admitted with a grateful half-smile, accepting the proffered cotton and splaying it over my twin's resting form. "Thank you for taking us in, I'm not even sure where we are to tell you the truth."
"Nadeshiko, it's a warrior village in the edge of the Land of Water. We take great pride in our fierce women and loving hospitality, so it's no trouble at all having you here," she relayed kindly, "is there anything you need before I get started on some tea?"
"A brush or a comb, so I can clean her up a bit more if you have one," I inquired, shyly evading her eyes as a flush crept up my neck and into my cheeks. When I regained composure, I faced her to add, "And your name so I can properly thank you."
"My name is Kaede," she introduced with a friendly curtsy before turning around and shuffling away. When she returned and her liver-spotted hands transferred a soft-bristle brush into my own, she leaned further to tap my nose gently. "I do live alone, so your company will be thank you enough, dear. You tend to your sister, I'll be in the kitchen if you need me."
When I heard the expected clatter of kitchenware after Kaede's departure from the space, I faced the mats of ebony hair with resolve and took hold of a handful of hair-shafts to begin working the brush through the singed ends. The task itself brought on cascades of memories that bore thorns like roses as they crossed my mind, the sound of the bristles catching and pulling on each knot that I attempted to pass over ringing as clear as the first time I'd done this. Before I'd even completed a full section of her head and realized what was happening, I was trembling and tears were streaming down my face as rage bubbled beneath the surface.
Mom should have been the one brushing her hair all those years ago...
I dropped the brush beside me and scooped my twin into my arms to cradle her close and cry silently against the material covering her shoulder, the action bringing back the night we'd lost our clan. We'd held onto one another for dear life, even after being found by a village Jonin, weeping wickedly together. Akuri's bleeding eyes had been the catalyst to our separation then, I'd feared that Itachi had come back to take her from me as well before comprehension dawned.
Her Sharingan wouldn't have awakened so early, we could have been so happy for such a long time...if it weren't for him and what he did to us.
"Mmm...'Ske?" Akuri's gravelly mumble was more felt by my hand cupping the back of her neck and head than heard by my ears, I had never been more grateful to be pulled from my thoughts. My breath hitched and I leaned back to look at her, chuckling tearfully at the dopey smile on her face. "Did we win?"
"Yeah, we got out of there, thanks to you," I praised, bending at the waist to lay her back against the pillow and cover her with the blanket. Her right hand stuck out from under the soft cotton and I took it in my own, mirroring the smile she displayed and giving her palm a light squeeze. "I'm so glad you're okay, sis."
"I'm only okay because I had you taking care of me, don't sell yourself short," she countered, shifting to take in our surroundings further. "I took us quite a ways from the rendezvous point, didn't I?"
"Have you ever been to a Nadeshiko village before?" I wondered, releasing her hand to resume my task of detangling her mess of hair. The look of joy that crossed her face was enough of an answer, but I delved for more. "When did you come here? Why was this your destination of choice?"
"I was really little when mom brought me here. We went on a girls' trip that fall, you remember? Anyway...this is where mom was born," she imparted with a sad twinkle in her eyes, "she taught me the sun jutsu here, too. I haven't been back in a long time...I only got to visit on business once last year."
"Your missions must've taken you everywhere by now, huh?" I marveled quietly, not taking my eyes from their objective.
"Especially after Tsunade made me an ANBU," she trailed off and a look resembling shame pulled her expression down again.
"Hey, hey," I cooed softly, putting the brush down to place a comforting hand on her shoulder. "What's the matter?"
"I have to face her again if I make it back home...I deserted the village and my Hokage, Sasuke," her tone remained strong as she admitted the sudden burden of guilt, one battered hand coming up to lay over mine. "I'll be tried...and I'll have to see Naruto, too. I just left him there with a note, I didn't wake him or anything."
I didn't have more words of assurance to offer her in that moment and twisted my hand to give hers three quick squeezes, releasing her to resume grooming her hair. It was relieving to know that this action seemed to placate her, Akuri's expression sliding into a tranquil neutrality as I spent long moments and slow strokes to ensure each bristle passed through the inky strands without hassle. Just as the task reached completion, Kaede's form shuffled into the room and she smiled brightly.
"I just came to let you know the stew is going to take a bit, but the tea is ready if you two want some. I'm happy to see you're awake, honey," she announced before addressing Akuri kindly.
"Tea? Oh, please, ma'am," my twin pleaded with animation, "I'd love a hot cup of tea!"
Nothing brought me greater joy than seeing my sister smile, I was sure of that.
Akuri (Tea time)
"'Kuri, let's go. It's tea time," Itachi cooed, his voice a gentle and comforting rumble that made this painstakingly bothersome process somewhat more endurable. He smiled down at me and hoisted me up onto his hip where I furled my small hands in the material of his shirt as he carried me from my bedroom to the semi-lit kitchen.
"How come I haveta drink this stuff, big brother?" My voice was hardly audible, it clawed it's way through my abused vocal cords to even pass my lips.
"Because it's a healing tonic and we all want you to get better," he informed as he always did, filling the kettle with one hand and setting it on a stovetop burner before sprinkling in the contents of a medicine packet. His question came after placing the lid on the kettle and turning the dial to ignite the flames. "Don't you want to get better?"
I would have answered him had I not been taken over by a coughing fit, my runty body wracking in his hold as it tensed for each hack of phlegm. Itachi's other hand came up to rub soothing circles into my back as I wheezed, his head leaning on mine as he gently swayed us back and forth in a way that was meant for infants that I secretly relished. The comfort that Itachi was able to provide during my times of illness were unrivaled by any other, he was especially doting when it was left to him to prepare and administer the bitter treatment. This was the fifth time in the last year that I'd contracted a tough-hitting virus, often leaving me bedridden or too exhausted to partake in any of the activities my siblings did. I whimpered at the pain of the coughs and the thought of spending another day watching Sasuke play or train while I tiredly sunbathed beside our mother.
I'm so sick of being sick..
"You'll feel better soon, sister," he crooned as though he could read my mind, starting to hum lowly when another coughing spell hit me after a short while. The tune he chose was one I'd heard for many years but could never quite place where it had originated, though it made me feel as though home had an accompanying song. The vibrations of his soothing thrum didn't cease, even as he single-handedly remedied the kettle just as it began to shriek to silence it and pour the steamy greenish liquid into a small ceramic mug. With a thoughtful quirk of his brow, Itachi reached a higher shelf and placed a teeny glass jar of honey beside the mug prior to rummaging for a spoon. Once he'd chosen a clean utensil, he scooped a healthy amount of the golden nectar into the basin of the spoon to upend it over the hot tea and begin stirring until the honey dissolved fully. "Want to look at the stars while you take your medicine tonight? The sky was clear when I got home, it should still be."
"Please," I rasped with a tiny grin, feeling a smallest rush of energy come back to me with the prospect of more time with my eldest brother. I hugged him around the neck with pure joy before making a small request, "can you show me more star pictures, Tachi?"
"Constellations, and yes, I can." he corrected kindly before obliging, lifting the mug to tote it outside with us. He slid the front door open with his right foot and settled down at our favorite stargazing spot after closing it with the opposite foot, placing me on his left to attentively hand off the potion. "Be careful with that, if you think you're going to drop it, just tell me. I don't want you to burn yourself, 'Kuri."
"Okay," I obeyed easily enough, mindfully bringing the small cup to my lips with both hands to blow at the steam before taking the most meager sip. A noise of surprise bubbled up through my ragged throat, looking down in wonder at the oddly sweet smelling liquid swirling around in the ceramic container I held.
"Did you burn your tongue, are you alright?" Itachi fussed, bending at the waist and twisting to get a better look at my face.
"It's so yummy!" I scratchily responded, gulping another heated mouthful of the sweetened leaf-water and relishing in the comfort it brought me internally. "I want Tea Time all the time, brother!"
Itachi chuckled at that but said nothing and put an arm around my shoulders while I contentedly sipped at the once-bitter elixir, both pairs of eyes soon fixated at the ethereal, swirling cosmos of twinkling white stars that dotted the contrasting navy skies. Intermittently, I would set my prescription to the side to point out the constellations that I could recall from prior stargazing sessions we'd shared, though listening to Itachi prattle off names and the stories behind them was the part of nights like these that I enjoyed the most. It felt as though we would spend hours conversing about the history of the tiny light-specks of space, I was fascinated by every little fact or detail he cared to share with me about the world beyond our own.
The very worst portion of it all was when my medication would take hold and I would nod off, only to awaken alone the very next morning in my quiet bedroom.
X Naruto X
"Are you going to sleep at all?" Sakura's annoyance in the question nearly rivaled my frustration at our current situation. "The whole point of this was to regain strength to continue the search, you aren't doing your body any favors by sitting up and brooding with the moon."
"Trust me, I've tried," I responded with a humorless chuckle, shaking my head before scrubbing a hand through my hair and heaving a sigh. "I just can't fall asleep, ya know?"
"Thinking about her?" Sakura asked knowingly, her voice gaining a gentleness that I was desperately needing. Without saying anything else for the moment, she knelt down and got into a seated position beside me. The silvery light of the moon washed out all the the vibrancy in the colors that made her up, but her sadness was the brightest thing that I could see. That nearly-mournful aura told me it was okay to let go, to free myself of this pain I'd been harboring. After the briefest moment of deliberation, I listened to it and took a deep breath to ready myself.
"I never stop thinking about her, Sakura. I can't even explain what she is to me...I love her with everything I have," I began to pour my heart out quietly to her, hugging my knees to my chest in a way I hadn't done since I was small. "She's been my first thought every morning and my last thought every night since we were kids, she was on my mind every second of every day while I was away. Then I came home, I was so excited because I finally had Akuri all to myself, she welcomed me back. I thought we were going to be together forever, until I woke up alone to a note. She left me this time, I guess I got what I deserved."
Sakura's slender arms curling around me as I broke down as privately as I could were more of a comfort than I ever would have expected and I let her hold me through it. The tears that accompanied my confession and the subsequent muted sobs didn't last very long, as the very admittance gave way to a wealth of relief. If anyone were to know, to a degree, how this had to have felt, it would have been the medical kunoichi I'd known for a good portion of my formative years. It was freeing to release all of the pent up sadness and worry that I'd been carrying with me since the moment I'd reported my mate as missing to the Hokage, as Sakura had to have felt when she'd reported her own Uchiha-of-interest to be MIA.
"We're going to find them and bring them home again," Sakura sounded as though she were making an oath then and there, after my dears had dried and we'd parted. I looked up to meet her gaze in the moonlight, the sight never looking more resolute in all the time I'd spent around her. "All of us are going to get our chance at being happy, those two especially. We can do this."
If I hadn't gathered myself quite recently, I would have shed a tear at her emotional proclamation and agreed more vehemently than I already was. The seriousness on her tone and the absolution of her oath was rather moving, but losing myself to the feelings of sadness and concern only moments ago put a toll on my exhausted form. I reached out to place a hand on her forearm with a small smile and gave the muscle there a gentle squeeze.
"Thanks for that, Sakura," I stated my appreciation warmly, "you have no idea how much I needed someone else to hear that and you responded perfectly. So, thank you."
"What're friends for?" She responded in kind, patting the hand I'd rested on her forearm. "Believe it or not, you've been a light for me on some of my darkest days since you've been back. I know someone else out there wants them home as much as I do, you know?"
"I get it, really," I affirmed with a nod and retracted my hand before shifting to sit down on my bedroll. "Thanks again, Sakura. I think I might be able to get some rest now."
"Good, I'm glad. See you in the morning," was the last comment made before she stood and shuffled off to her own bedroll to rest for the night.
Sleep hit me like a freight train not long after she'd gone, the entirety of me exhausted by the emotional output but strangely energized by a renewed resolution to bring the people I loved home.
X Akuri X
After the fourth morning at Kaede's had come upon us and I found walking to be a much easier feat, Sasuke made the choice to depart from the welcoming woman's home. We'd been fed three square meals each day of our stay, tea had been provided at a moment's notice, and the elder's stories kept us pleasantly entertained in the evening hours. I'd come to enjoy being near her and felt a touch more than sad to be told we were moving out. The only person who took the news worse than I had was Kaede herself, her thinned lips scrunching into an unhappy frown when she came to learn of her companions' plans to leave her there. She hadn't demanded that we remain under her roof or even so much as wondered where we were headed, but let it be known that we would be missed fondly and she would be lonely again. It stung to the core to think of leaving this kind soul to her lonesome, but Sasuke kindly thanked her and we swiftly got onto the main road that led out of Nadeshiko.
"Are you able to phase us back to the backup-rendezvous point?" He asked point blank as we crossed the village border. I assumed he was nearly as adverse to this long trek as I was. "Have you recovered enough to do that again?"
"I should be able to get us there. The one at that hideout we raided, yeah?"
At his nod we linked hands tightly and I blinked the prowess into place, forming a focus sigil with my free hand to muster up the chakra control to begin breaking us down cell by cell. The world began to spin and shake all at once, my entire body buzzing with electricity even as it split apart so finely and began it's travel through the space around us. The soft grass under my shoed feet was the first thing that I felt as we began to materialize from the bottom at first. Our cells gathered swiftly and build our bodies as precisely as they had initially been arranged, bodily senses coming back a tad sooner than our physical forms as though the delay were our systems booting up again. The first thing that graced my sense of hearing made me want to cringe and plug my ears with tufts of cotton.
"Saassssuuuukkkkeeee!" Karin's buzzing caw had to have broken my eardrums, the redhead throwing herself at the owner of the name she'd shrieked and hanging onto my twin as though he were a buoy in the middle of a tropical storm. "I thought something terrible happened to you, I'm so glad you've come back to me!"
"Oh, just shut up, Karin," Suigetsu groaned from his perch on a nearby counter, purple irises doing a flip as he rolled his eyes. "We knew they'd be back, they just took a little detour is all. Right, guys?"
Sasuke nodded and sighed, shrugging Karin's ever-grating affections off as though she were merely a gnat. His ebony eyes flicking to mine and narrowing on concern were somewhat alarming, but his expression relaxed after a brief moment and I followed suit.
"Are you alright?" Jugo's warm thrum sounded to my left and I nodded. I was slightly startled when his hand speedily produced a torn piece of cloth, his hand surprisingly gentle as he cleaned what I assumed to be blood streaming down from my abused eyes. His large fingers remained dexterous in their task and he did not step back until the crimson trails were cleared from my face. He frowned slightly as I blinked a few times and leaned in to dab at the residual blood that escaped my waterline, smiling softly once he'd finished and repeated his question.
"Yeah, I'm alright," I answered evenly, running a hand through my hair and bringing it back to inspect for more blood. I was thankful to find none. "I was still a little spaced out, thank you, Jugo."
"I'm just glad to see that you're both back and in one piece," the orange-haired goliath murmured kindly.
"You both seem fine enough to me, like someone took care of you," Suigetsu surmised smartly, taking a healthy swig of his water bottle before questioning Sasuke. "What happened to you guys? Where'd you go?"
"We won a fight and recuperated in a safe place for a few days," the leader of Hebi responded without giving much further detail. I was thankful that he was keeping our destination between us, our little piece of heritage. "When we were well enough, we met up with you guys here."
"Okay, 'cause that told us anything," the shark-toothed snarked, folding his arms across his chest indignantly. "Fine, keep your secrets."
The quintet that was Hebi began to devise the next strategy, full recovery being the top priority as our next opponent was fated to be the last. To kick off the first leg of the plan, Karin tended to any remaining wounds on Sasuke, her glasses fogging up when he'd removed his not-so-white shirt for her to examine more closely. The moan that escaped her lips as Sasuke's pearly white's pierced the flesh of her arm made the entire group uncomfortable. Despite my distaste for her open sexualization of a healing jutsu, I remained still-faced and rooted in place while Jugo delicately explored the skin I willingly bared him for lacerations or visibly broken bones, the warmth of his fingertips both comforting and heartbreaking. His touch reminded me so much of Naruto's and I wanted nothing more than to see him again, despite the shame I felt about leaving him in the depths of sleep. The jab of pain that spurred from those blunt fingers prodding a particularly tender place on my right side, I craned my neck to view the spot and noted the large violet bruise blossoming under the skin.
"That's going to feel nice when I go to bed tonight," I muttered unhappily, but maintained motionlessness while my other ails were seen to.
"I doubt that much of anything is going to feel good for a few days, at the very least. You really should take it easy, you two," Jugo advised, deftly massaging a salve into a deeper gash that I'd sustained during our escape. I could only sigh at how relieving the paste felt on my battered skin, the remedy being a welcoming gift from a fellow ANBU member once I'd joined their ranks over two years ago. My thoughts were dispersed as the largest Hebi subordinate finished his task and spoke again, "it looks like all you need is time and some rest, I've patched you up as well as I can."
"Suigetsu, you and Jugo are to go gather some food," Sasuke instructed as he dressed himself, hardly acknowledging the white-haired man further. "We can't recover without food. Karin, I want you to procure water for everyone."
The three underlings of the team flitted off with some complaint, the brunt of it tumbling from Suigetsu's sharp-toothed mouth. With the joy of being semi-alone again, I sighed and leaned heavily against the back of the wooden chair I settled into, feeling more weary now than I had the moment we'd returned to our team. We were in the final stretch and I wasn't sure how I ought to feel about it, whether I should have been antsy with anticipation or filled to the brim with dread. My mind spun with the possible outcomes of the battle drawing closer, our chances of success calculating to be rather high with the current amount of information I had. Two against one was generally a landslide victor, but I had no verified knowledge of Itachi's true abilities and that left a wide margin for errors to occur. Sasuke and I could have to be precise, accurate, and above all, smart if we wanted to have a real chance at defeating the man who slew our entire family. I hadn't realized it at the time, but I began to twirl a frontal lock of hair on my finger as I browsed my thoughts for battle plans.
"You're weighing our chances," Sasuke knowingly commented from his seat by the door. "What are the odds we win, sis?"
With a frown, I shrugged.