Disclaimer: The usual.
Heard about the tsunami thing... Hope no one got hurt! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
B4By K4K4SH1- Guess what? YOU GUESSED RIGHT! Yeah, Itachi was putting genjutsu on himself... Heh, you're the first one to figure it out before I added the extra ending... Heh heh.. START YOUR TRILOGY!
animEvivvErz- I owe you a lot of thanks... For reading, and having so much patience! THANK YOU!
Elusia- Just out of curiousity, what's your favorite Naruto pairing? It's okay to tell the truth!(wink)
Malitia- The interlude took place in the present; no link whatsoever with the main plot. Just for the holidays... I'm sure I would get use to Itachi's voice... Heh heh...
joann- Eh? Not enough ItaSaku for you? Well, I'm trying not to make him too OOC here.. And yes, soon the story will just focus on Sasuke, Itachi, and Sakura...
IhearVoices- Seriously! Who WOULDN'T like Sakura? (I actually didn't when I first saw her in the anime... Then when she wanted everyone to look at her back, she got to me..)
Peradis- THANK YOU SO MUCH! And yes, you really need to update, cuz I NEED TO READ AND REVIEW TOO! You better update!
L0vEnEkO- THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING SO MUCH! Man, I feel a bit guilty for not thanking you earlier! THANK YOU!
Osage No Onna- Eh, really? I seriously think that Sasuke doesn't sound like a twelve-year-old... He sounds more like some guy that went through puberty too early.. LOL
Lady Of Genesis- Ah! How did the summary lead you into thinking that?
iluvsasuke- THANKS FOR ALL THOSE REVIEWS!
taiki-kun- Yeah, the SasuSakuNeji triangle always get to me..
Kei- Of course I won't let Sasuke be so easily forgiven! (cough) LOL
Angelia-Kitty- To Chibi-chan: Heh, Itachi got to you too? LOL
Blue-Eclipse- Sorry, I can't do yaoi!
Padfoot da Darkwolf- Heh... I guess mostly everyone would drool after Itachi.. (guilty)
Ayane Selznick- Waking up right next to him? Hee hee, maybe later... LOL
sasukeluver222- Well, I got it in a place in Chinatown... Yeah, the Chinatown in New York...
THANKS GOES TO Dyroness, DreamCatcher16, nkitty29, Hao'sAnjul, wun-liddo-babi, uchiha4ever, BG-21, Harusame-chan, UNKIND, Youko Mitsutama, asn water, Jingle Bells, Sailor Panda, BBKarateGrl, HikaruOfArrow, Destiny1029, Majesa, BitterSweet Destiny, Fairia13, wy, Animefreak, Krimzen Angel, CrissyKitty, Lady Light, Lillia, bl4ck-st4r, mad-killer-bunnies-alert!
Results (not final):
ItaSaku- 16
SasuSaku- 10
What is loneliness?
" Tadaima..."
Deadly silence greeted him back with its sadistic smile.
He stood there, behind the closed door, eyes roaming over every possible corner in the large house.
This place... The place he called him home, was replaced by something else.
The once bright and lively atmosphere was suddenly removed from their usual place inside the sanctuary.
...The sanctuary where an angel once nested, a spirit of cherry blossoms that bloomed only during spring.
No, he decided firmly. She was not an angel.
She was too cheerful.
" Sasuke-kun! You're back!"
She was far too innocent.
Dark pools of obsidian narrowed.
" Sasuke-kun, are you okay?"
The soothing voice that brought him back from the jaws of insanity countless of times did not belong to a messenger from the Heavens.
She was no angel, he denied again.
She was the devil, that girl named Cherry Blossom.
Angels granted wishes... She gave him what he wanted, didn't she? She gave him a chance to see his family again... But that was not all she brought. It was his mistake to have met her, to have fallen into her temptations...and now, he was cursed by the dark lady herself.
Loneliness, was what the curse was called. He was jinxed with loneliness.
What is loneliness?
Slowly danced the careless wind. Piercing it was when it dealt damage to that organ he hid away carefully in his rib cage. It whispers the answer.
He broke free from the chains of thoughts imprisoning his consciousness from before. All those mind-bobbling feelings gave him a bad headache.
Raising a hand, he used the side of his index finger to wipe away the fog that clouded his vision when he stared at once spot for too long. He was truly fatigued.
Retirement to his bed seemed to be the best solution for now.
He let his hand drop back to his side, swaying a gentle motion rhythmic to the two feet that hit the wooden floor .
The finger glistened with warm moisture.
Equilibrium
Four
" That Itachi... He is sure to make our clan proud----a true prodigy indeed..."
The newly elected ANBU captain thrust his hands into the depths of his pocket, his countenance free of all emotion.
He was a Shinobi, a perfect one, in that case.
He shouldn't express any feelings. He couldn't.
" Guide the people, Itachi... They all look up to you."
Eyes adorned with pure admiration followed his mature figure, showering him with honor, with pride.
But what hit him the most... was responsibility.
" Itachi... He would surely make us proud."
" Itachi... Guide them..."
" Itachi."
" Itachi!"
" ITACHI!"
" Ugh..." His eyelids fell an inch or two, slightly masking those luminous orbs of crimson. The red color faltered, struggling between returning to their original shade of black and the rubies they were now.
No, how dare he be tempted, he scolded himself.
How dare he allow them to return to the dull onyx from before?
His eyes should be keen red. Always.
Like the sacred essence that poured out from the veins of the Uchiha clansmen when his sharp katana cut through their defenseless skin.
...And red like the flames of hatred engulfing his heart.
Hatred for his own people.
Hatred for that superficial admiration he received from them.
Hatred for...
" Okay, I'm dressed! Happy!"
Lifting his attention off the ground, he calmly scrutinized the fidgeting figure before him.
Though the material had hung loosely around her body, it had served its purpose of accentuating the feminine curves she possessed. He couldn't understand why she was so uneasy about fitting into the thing when it covered half of her well-toned calves and gave her enough modesty.
What was she afraid of?
" Okay, I'm dressed! Happy!"
Nothing, apparently.
That tone she used... Rough. Careless. Straight forward. And disregarding.
He felt it all in just one statement.
He stood slowly from the couch, grabbing his dark cloak at the same time. The light burning in her depths aroused conflict within him.
Mentally, the man added another reason to detest.
His new hatred----hatred for having nothing.
No one gave a damn about him (except for his little brother who wanted him off the face of earth).
But that was all right.
He didn't care about anyone anyway.
...Or did he?
A negative feeling goaded him when he passed her detecting a shiver that vibrated off her figure.
It was not from the weather. He was positive.
" Come." Reorganizing his disheveled thoughts into the back of his head, the Uchiha threw the weighted material around his shoulders and led her out to the waiting sunlight.
The duo found themselves strolling in the docile forest that encompassed his house.
Besides the warm embrace she received from the bright globe of fire, the damsel was also gifted by the finches and jays with their enchanted melody.
She stole a quick glance at him, thinking that he wasn't paying attention.
It was strange how a messenger sent from Hell would choose to live in a healthy environment.
Orbs filled with curiosity explored the isolated area some more, gently caressing at every little detail.
Well, it sure didn't look one bit like Hell...
It was the exact opposite, actually.
Crunch. Crunch.
The sound of dead leaves being mushed below their feet annoyed her to no end when it reached her ears.
They've been walking forever, and neither of them had made effort to start a conversation.
' Well. It's his job to do that anyway.' She told herself stubbornly.
" Eeek!" became her instant reaction when a warm structure fell against her bare shoulder, crushing her shorter figure against its owner.
Turning, she shot him the deadliest glare her eyes could muster for being a whole head shorter than he was.
Although the oversized collar had hid his mouth away, she could have sworn he was smirking.
Conjuring up as much strength as she possibly can, he two palms contacted his side, shoving him away from her.
He was forced to let her go.
She silently gave her ex-Hyuuga-lover her gratitude for training her to improve in the taijutsu area.
" Why are you doing this!" The female strategist demanded. As intelligent as she was, she could not crack the puzzle behind his enigmatic ways. Just why the hell did he bring her here, and gave him the right to screw around with her mind?
She couldn't understand.
" You don't need to understand." She clapped her hands over her mouth realizing that she had blabbered everything out. She failed to keep her emotions in check as a Shinobi. " If I tell you, you will cry."
" Please... Please tell me..." Gulp. " ...before you kill me."
He kept a poker face.
" I'm not going to kill you." Ironic it was, how everyone looked at him as an unreasonable murderer.
He wasn't.
The doubting look she shot him told him she was unconvinced.
He has to be verbal with his feelings then?
" I'm not going to kill you," he repeated. " I just want to give you something my little brother did not..."
Author's Crap:
http:www.deviantart. com/deviation/ 13453372/
The link above is the fanart I drew for this fic, just delete the spaces in between... And, make sure you're at lease 15 to view it!
Don't forget to leave a review before you leave (wink)!