Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the Akasaka Prince Hotel (It's a real place). I do, however, claim full ownership to Akako

Title: Blood of my Aneki

Pairings: ItaSasu, NaruHina, KakaIru, LeeSaku, KibaShino, ShikaIno

Warnings: Yaoi, murder, blood, violence, psychopaths, etc.

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-Akasaka Prince Hotel, Itachi's room-

Itachi glanced at the clock on the bedside table. It read 5:43 p.m. Dinner was at 6:15. Good, he still had enough time to take a shower.

The Uchiha stepped into the bathroom, turned on the hot water and stripping off his clothes. Stepping under the warm jet that soothed his muscles after that horrible plane ride, Itachi just stood there for a minute, letting his thoughts wander from thing to thing.

As he grabbed the shampoo from a rack, his mind decided to be annoying and it brought up the subject of the girl in the shop again. What was her name again…? Oh, yes; Akako.

Itachi squirted some of the shampoo into his hand began to lather it into his hair. He could still feel that dull sense of connection and familiarity to the young girl pulsing through his veins. Yet he was sure he had never met her before. Of course, there was the possibility that he had simply forgotten about her, but Itachi doubted it. He was never one to completely forget something. He could even remember what he had for breakfast two weeks back.

He tipped his head back and let the water rinse out the shampoo. It felt good, having the water and lather run down his back. He tried to think of something else, like what the mission was about, or why Orochimaru constantly hit on him when the snake bastard KNEW Itachi wasn't going to react, except for perhaps with violence.

But his mind refused to let go of Akako. He found himself wondering more about her, like why she went into Izzy's shop. She sure as hell didn't look like any kind of fighter, but looks could be very deceiving. Then again, there were a lot of weapons that didn't look all that harmful, like the Bo staff (1). Maybe she was some kind of martial artist that did performance work at competitions. Yes, that seemed reasonable.

But the question that plagued his mind most was why she had looked so much like him. It had been a mirror image of himself in that store, apart from the breasts and black eyes. And if Itachi had wanted too, he could have easily made his eyes black again. He just chose not since he could maintain the Sharingan without any chakra usage and it usually scared the frickin' shit out of people.

Itachi lathered his body up with soap before rinsing himself off. Turning off the shower, he opened the curtain and grabbed a towel. He began drying himself, when something occurred to him.

I had my Sharingan activated when I went into that store. But neither Izzy nor Akako acted like I was any different. They didn't flinch or gasp…

Itachi securely wrapped the towel around his waist before moving out into the bedroom to get some clothes on. As he pulled on a black dress shirt that had the sleeves rolled up casually, he pondered this question over and over again. True, people in this society didn't know what the hell an Uchiha was, but that shouldn't make a difference as to the fact that Itachi's eyes were scary, and neither person had so much as given him a cocked eyebrow or surprised look.

Itachi pulled on the same pair of black jeans he had worn to the store. He glanced at the clock. 6:10 p.m. Itachi sighed. Why do my showers always take 20 minutes?!

Itachi grabbed his keycard and left the room.

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-Room 3535, 35th floor of the Akasaka Prince Hotel-

Dinner had not been a pleasant affair. It would have been, had some idiot not had the radio on. About half way through dinner, a special report came on that a man who looked like a shark had killed and eaten a police officer, and was now being help in an iron cage typically used for caging Zoo animals.

"What does that idiot think he's doing?!" Bairai yelled after the reporter had finished talking. "He'll get us all caught if he doesn't stop!"

"It's a bit late for that, Bairai-sama," said a member from stone country. "He's already eaten someone. They won't let him go after that for sure, not even if someone comes to claim him, which I doubt anyone will."

Bairai glared at Itachi, "Wasn't he your partner, Itachi? You should have stopped him from doing all this!"

Itachi shot Bairai a death glare that made even Orochimaru shiver.

"I will take no responsibility in Kisame's actions, seeing as you never said that we were going to have partners for this mission. True, if we had been assigned together, I would have triple checked him to make sure that he was doing everything according to instructions, but I was not his partner. Even so, I can't watch him every minute," the Uchiha said icily. Bairai suppressed a shiver.

"Fine," he said. "Now, onto what your mission is. As you know, our goal is to release the Kyuubi from the seal that holds it. We have, however, been unsuccessful in doing this." He paused to shot a glance at Itachi, who shot him a glare that said 'Stop looking at me for everything or I'll kill you'. Bairai quickly averted his gaze and continued, "However, research has shown that there are people out there who might have information on the Kyuubi and what its weak points are. We may be able to use this information to our advantage in trying to obtain the Kyuubi's power. We are also looking for possible recruits to teach the ways of the shinobi so that we can have people at the ready for a possible attack on Leaf. The new recruits will also give us new weapon knowledge, so we'll have an edge." He paused to see if anyone had any objections. "No questions? Good. You'll each be assigned two different people to watch: One for the Kyuubi and one for a recruit. If you find any good information, you are to bring it to me immediately. If the recruit shows no potential, abandon then and come to me. I will give you a new recruit. If anyone kills or harms anyone, they will be kicked out of the Akatsuki and transported back to the Shinobi countries. Am I understood?"

All eight members nodded.

"Excellent," Bairai said. He then pulled out a brief case. Upon opening it, everyone saw that it was filled with information cards on people. They were either labeled recruit or information. "These are your choice of targets. I will assign you the people you are to watch. If you have a problem with your person, figure it out yourself."

Bairai went around and gave each person two cards. Itachi looked at his. The info one was an old woman whose family had a back round history of dealing with the small demons and having much information on larger ones. The second was a top notch martial artist that had won several world titles. Itachi suppressed a snort. These people looked worthless.

"You are all dismissed. I bid you good night."

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-Outside a Tokyo Civic center, where a Martial Arts Competition is being held-

Itachi looked up at the building in front of him. Honestly, did these people have to make EVEYTHING big? It got rather annoying at times, being constantly surrounded be giants.

He walked inside the building, paying to get a ticket and proceeding to the seating area. His recruit was competing here today, which was perfect. Itachi would be able to see if the boy had any skills right away.

Itachi sat down in an empty seat near the floor. The competition had just started, and it was the lower belt ranks that were competing, so not many people had come yet. Itachi supposed that he would have to wait a while before the black belts performed, but he needed a good seat. It gave him a better analysis of his subject.

Itachi watched the competition for two hours. He was very disappointed. No one had yet had shown any great talent so far. Of course, the black belts were stating now. Maybe now he could get some entertainment.

"Will the next person please enter the ring?" a judge asked.

A girl with long brown hair and eyes stepped into the ring. She walked up before the judges, and upon reaching them, bowed. Then she took a stance and said, "Judges! Representing Marugo Martial Arts School! My name is Abe Wazuka! My form is quest! Judges! (2)" She bowed again, and back stepped to the middle of the ring.

Itachi watched with boredom as she performed. Her form wasn't very good. It would do absolutely nothing in a spot of trouble. Itachi was annoyed. Would his person step into the ring already?

For one hour, Itachi watched as one pathetic person after another performed. They all suck! Why the friggin' hell do they even bother?! He thought.

At long last, only two people remained. One of them had to be his person. Sure enough, the boy walked out onto the floor and repeated the introduction ritual that everyone before him had. His name was Togo Kenko. He was doing weapons. Kamas 3, to be exact.

Itachi did see that Kenko was slightly better than the others. He had a crisper from that would help him more in a tight area than the other peoples. But he still held no great potential to be a good shinobi.

Kenko finished and got the highest score of his division so far. There was still one person left, though. Most people were murmuring that Kenko would win for sure.

The judges motioned for the next person to step into the ring, which they did. Itachi's eyes widened ever so slightly.

It was Akako. She was wearing a typical Martial arts uniform with the gi coat 4 and pants, but it was a red coat with black trimming and black pants. She held Kamas in her hand. Well, that explained why she was at Izzy's, at least. Itachi had seen the same Kamas on the wall in his shop.

Akako stepped up to the judges and repeated the introduction ritual. But instead of being loud like everyone else, she was rather quiet. Then she stepped into the ring.

"With your permission, may I begin?" she asked.

A judge nodded. Akako took a stance, and began.

Itachi had thought that everyone here was a worthless loser that wouldn't last two minutes in the Shinobi countries. He had been wrong. Akako would last. For a VERY long time.

Her form was crisp and sharp; with sharp movements that flowed so perfectly with each other that you couldn't distinguish what was what. It was like a dance, so smooth and flowing. But her movements with the Kamas… They weren't moves to defend. They were moves to kill. Sharp and quick, with one stroke, meant to slice your body.

Itachi performed a hand seal for a genjutsu that let him see something from his mind with his eyes. No one else could see it, but to him, several shinobi entered the ring in the path of Akako's Kamas. And she slew each of them, perfectly. Real Shinobi would have almost no time to react.

When she finished, Itachi let the genjutsu drop. He was, in the least, dumbfounded. Akako was… incredible. She was talented, much more than anyone else in this damned building. Itachi looked at her scores as she received them. 10.0, all of them. He saw her smile in satisfaction. She bowed, and left the ring.

Itachi followed her with his eyes. She left the floor room, heading for what Itachi assumed were locker/changing rooms of some kind. He got up, and followed her.

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-Changing Rooms-

Akako smiled to herself as she changed back into her regular street clothes. Another first place. Honestly, no one will ever present a challenge against me, so why do I even bother going to these competitions. I did stop but…Akako frowned as she pulled on her jacket. True, she hadn't been to a competition in almost a year, because she never found a challenge. Yet she had signed up for this one. Why, she didn't know. She had just walked into the building and said, "Sign me up".

Akako grabbed her backpack. Oh well. She never did anything without good reason. She was sure that coming here would give her some benefit, even though she couldn't see it yet. She left the changing rooms.

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-Outside the Changing rooms-

Itachi watched Akako come out of the changing rooms. She was in street clothes again, black jeans, and a black shirt that bore the legend "Linkin Park" on it. It had a picture of the band members. A black jacket that was left unzipped rested upon her shoulders, as did a backpack.

Itachi followed her as she left the building. From the looks of it, he would have to say she was going downtown somewhere. She didn't grab a taxi or bus, which Itachi was thankful for. He wasn't sure if he had the money to follow her.

They walked for a good half hour, Akako leading a relatively easy path to follow. She stopped once to grab some dango from a bakery, but other than that she just kept walking until they reached an apartment complex.

It wasn't huge, but it was still a decent size. The building was white with a nice looking front courtyard. Itachi swore. He wouldn't be able to follow Akako into the building.

Itachi blinked. Wait a sec, why was he following her anyway. True, she had done very well, at the competition, but Itachi had no reason to follow her. Then he felt it again. That dull pulsing in his veins, that familiar feeling, that bonded feeling that he had felt in the store. It had totally consumed his body. And as he looked back at Akako, who was about to reach the front doors of the apartment complex, he saw her stop. She just stood there, as though she had just been paralyzed. And then, slowly she turned to look at Itachi.

Their eyes meet, and then a rushing feeling came to Itachi's head and images flashed before it, images he didn't know, had never seen before. They blinded him, filling his head with pain. He was vaguely aware that he had dropped to his knees…

The images. A little baby girl, in the incubator. She looked so sickly, so deathly, and so helpless. Itachi reached out a hand to touch her. Someone help her! She needs help, can't you see?!

"Hey! Hey, are you ok?!"

Itachi's eyes snapped open. He had not known they had shut. She was on his knees, one hand clutching his forehead, the other his stomach. He vomited, feeling very ill. He looked up to see that there was a girl kneeling next to him. It was Akako. She had one hand one his shoulder, the other looked as though she were going to reach out and shake him.

Itachi groaned and doubled over as he vomited again. He didn't feel good at all. His eyes closed again, and he began to feel light headed and dizzy. And the images came again, a sickly little baby, struggling to breathe, not doing very well. Why doesn't someone help her? She needs to be saved! There, a doctor! Yes, save her, she has so much to live for…

At a river, near Konoha, a woman with a cloak and basket was crying. The baby was in the basket asleep, the other was singing a lullaby. No, don't leave her! Don't, you'll regret it! The woman put the basket in the water. No! You've sealed your fate! Don't!

Itachi opened his eyes. He was lying on a bed, covered by a thick comforter. The room was blood red, with two thick black strips running along the top and bottom boarder. A thinner strip surrounded the window.

It was an interesting room. The wood of the bed, end table, bookshelf and desk were all a dark wood. Ebony, if Itachi was correct. There were a lot of books and tokens on the book shelf. Some were pictures; others were statues of some kind. They varied from glass to stone. There was a computer on the desk, as well as a printer and scanner. All looked very up–to-date. There was a radio/C.D/ clock on the end table, which stood next to the bed. The bed was covered in black and red sheets, all with either a dragon or fire on them.

"Hey, you're awake," a voice said from the doorway.

Itachi looked and saw Akako standing there, a look of concern etched on her face. She was carrying a tray with some food on it; probably soup of some kind.

Itachi sat up. Akako put the food tray down on the desk. She looked at him for a second, before asking, "Are you ok?"

Itachi was about to answer, when he felt a burning in his throat, and he vomited again. But he had vomited in a bowl. He blinked. When did that get there? He wondered. He looked to his right and saw Akako standing there, her hand holding the bowl. She looked worried.

Itachi just gave her look of thanks. She took the bowl away and set it on the desk. Then she brought the tray of food over.

"Here, try and eat something, um…" she said.

"Itachi," the Uchiha replied. "Thank you." He picked up the spoon and brought the soup, rice porridge (A/N: It's Thai, and it's like their version of chicken noodle) to his mouth and was about to eat when he felt his throat tightening again. He shut his mouth, dropped the spoon and motioned toward the bowl on the desk.

He was surprised when Akako grabbed the bowl and brought it back so swiftly. Although, maybe that had something to do with the fact that he had to repeat himself 20 times when ever he was with Kisame before the idiot finally got something. He vomited again.

"Or maybe it's best if you don't eat," Akako said as she took the bowl away. She reached behind the end table and pulled the plug on the clock and moved to the floor. Then she set the food tray on the end table. "You can eat it when you feel ok. I'll heat it up for you," she said.

"Itachi just nodded. He didn't want to open his mouth, afraid that he might vomit again. He flopped back down on the bed as Akako left to go wash out the food bowl. Why was so sick all of the sudden? Did someone slip something into his food last night?

Akako came back and set the bowl next to the bed. "You should get some sleep. I'll be on the computer if you need me," she told him.

"Thank you," Itachi said, just barley audible. Then he closed his eyes. He hadn't used the words thank you with meaning for a long time. What caused him to let his cold demeanor drop around Akako. Not only here but at the competition and Izzy's shop as well.

It didn't matter right now, though. Itachi slept and for the first time in years he felt secure and safe, and felt that in Akako's presence, nothing could go wrong.

The bond of the twins, after growing so weak after so many years, strengthened that night.

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(1) A long stick often used as a weapon

(2) How you're supposed to start at a competition

(3) Looks like miniature scythe, one that you could hold in your hand

(4) A traditional martial arts coat