Summary: You're not supposed to fall in love with your captor, especially if he is a high-ranking member of the yakuza. Things just never seem to follow that law, however. Completely AU. Mainly Sasuke/Sakura. Rated for violence and language.
Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura, more will be revealed as the story progresses
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, at all. All the characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei. The only thing in this story that is mine will be the OCs and the plot itself.
Conspiracy of the Heart and Soul
Chapter Nine – The Preparations for the Downfall
Itachi eyed the handiwork in front to him. The holsters for the guns, five at each side, were sewn into his favorite pair of black pants. It had been three days since he had gotten his custom belt and killed that annoying, slick Ichigawa. His calloused fingertips ran over the smooth black leather hoops, perfect to fit ten of his choice guns. He was trained to be a superb marksman, using his left hand if his right was incapacitated. Of course, he would wear a trench coat, its pockets, some anyway, filled with extra ammunition. He was no stranger to the battle field, especially one wherein much chaos would ensue. After all, the mutiny three years ago was his doing. His onyx eyes gleamed with sadistic joy as he watched the matte black of the leather absorb the light.
Soft footsteps resounded behind him. He didn't have to turn around in order to know who it was, since there was only one other within the room besides him. He felt smooth skin on his face as he closed his eyes, his readiness for anything to happen never wavering. Long slender candle-like structures danced around his cheeks, trailing down his jaw, as he felt a slight weight and something slightly pointed, on his left shoulder. Opening his eyes, he blinked, trying to get used to the light once more. Hazy strands of light brown spilled over his left shoulder as he took a look at the foreign body clinging onto him. It was Nanako, his new toy for the time being. It was a wonder how fast he could get a woman, right after dumping or getting over the last one.
"Itachi-kun!" she said in her whining voice which disgusted Itachi to no end. Nanako released him from her grasp, but pushed him down on his bed instead. Her arms were wrapped loosely around him, her head resting on his cheek. Itachi's arm was lazily, and partially unwillingly, wrapped around her smaller frame. He only let her grow close to him because he merely needed a stress reliever, nothing else. After this mission of his, he would probably dump her, kill her if need be, and look for another woman to be with him for so long. The cycle was never ending. "What are you worried about, Itachi-kun?" asked Nanako as she sat up straight, her pathetic excuse for clothes slipping slightly off of her body. It wasn't that she was wearing any clothes in the first place. Her chest was bound with a thin black cloth, and an almost inexistent skirt dangled from her hips.
"Nothing you need to concern yourself with, Nanako," he replied as he pushed away her hazel hair away from her face. Nanako shivered at the contact. His fingertips were rough but even so, they were fingertips that Nanako wanted forever to feel. Her love for him was probably unrequited. Of course, he loved her, if only slight, but he wasn't prepared to risk it all for her, unlike she was for him. Even so, she would wait all eternity for Itachi to acknowledge her love for him, and would go through it again if that acknowledgement were to last only a few seconds. "Come here," he commanded as he wrapped his around her chest, his fingers expertly finding the knot that held the black cloth together.
Nanako reddened slightly as she moved towards him, her mouth slightly open, as she waited for what was to come. Sitting up straight, Itachi pressed her frail body against his, their mouths meeting in an explosive kiss, which meant nothing for Itachi but it meant the world to Nanako. Snaking her arms around his neck, she pulled herself closer to the body of the man who, unwittingly and knowingly at the same time, stole her heart. She felt his right hand work at the black material that wrapped around her chest, his left groping about her waist to find the hook that kept her skirt together. "Itachi-kun," she murmured inaudibly, her eyes glazed with love and adoration, as Itachi disregarded her swollen lips, paying attention first to the annoying black that barely covered her body. "Take me, again. I'm forever yours," she whispered as Itachi captured her lips once more, fully engaging in their activity this time.
"I know that," he said to her when he pulled away momentarily, tracing her jaw line with butterfly kisses, sending shivers of pleasure down her spine.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shikamaru's Laboratory
Shikamaru glanced at the people in his laboratory, twitching in annoyance as he continued to mentally count how many they were. It was rather spacious so he didn't feel claustrophobic at all. It was for the sake of the mission, so he didn't mind that he had to be in the meeting. Sasuke, Neji, Tenten and Ayumi were there, inspecting every one of them. Sakura was watching Kotoe work on the computer eagerly, blue light reflecting from her jade green orbs. What he did mind, however, was the fact that they had to use his laboratory when he could have been doing something much more productive, even if they were in a meeting!
"Did you really have to use this place?" said Shikamaru through clenched teeth, his coal eyes watching the four people in front of him pacing. His words went unheard as the possible candidates stiffened even further, hoping to pass this inspection. They didn't know what this was about, exactly, but they were loyal to Sasuke. This inspection was being conducted for their physical capabilities really. Their mental capabilities would be further singled out later in the preparations. "Fine, go ahead and ignore the one who owns this laboratory. It's not like he's important anyway," said Shikamaru, sulking in the process, as he stomped over towards his beloved laptop. Still he went unheard. Sakura looked curiously at the brooding Shikamaru, typing away at his screen. Walking over towards him, she stood behind him, weird characters reflecting from her jade orbs.
"Shikamaru-san, you're all stressed, especially you," said Sakura, pointing out the obvious, as she tucked a stray strand of her long pink hair, "Maybe, you should take a break first, even for a few minutes. It'll be good for your mind and body." Shikamaru's head jerked upwards from its downcast position, his eyes looking at her. "Take this as my advise as not only a friend, but a doctor-in-training as well!" Shikamaru's gaze softened as he heard those words. It had been a while since he heard them.
He had a best friend before he became extremely involved in this organization. His life wasn't as havoc-filled then but there were still the many things he had to do. He was still new, even though the Uchiha family had recognized his hacking skills. His best friend wanted to become a doctor, and he fully supported his endeavors. His best friend never really knew about the true nature of Shikamaru. He never went to college, and he still could. He managed to finish high school with the help of the Uchiha family, much like Sasuke. In fact, they were classmates since they started. He owed a lot to them. His family abandoned him, when they realized his strength lay in hacking and doing things that were illegal, a shame to the Nara Clan. His best friend saw beyond his innate skills. His best friend saw his personality.
Sure, he occasionally prodded topics about his best friend eating too much, especially barbeque flavored potato chips, but just that. He wasn't one to annoy his best friend, after all. It was the good old days, when they both could afford to spare time off. His best friend never asked about what Shikamaru did, since they were friends since kindergarten and Shikamaru never really liked to discuss about his past. In the end, they just had fun while they were together. An invisible smile plastered itself onto Shikamaru's face as he remembered the days before it happened, while he continued typing away at his computer screen. As he continued doing so, unwelcome thoughts pounded at his brain.
They were just walking in an alley since that was where the side entrance of the place his best friend was working at was found. It was raining too so he and his best friend had to huddle beneath a medium-sized umbrella, one of their arms getting severely damp since they both couldn't fully fit beneath the umbrella. As his friend fumbled in his bag for the keys to the entrance, someone had ambushed them, from another yakuza, though it wasn't a big organization, since they had to order to kill the hacking prodigy of Sharingan. Gunshots resounded as he pulled out his gun, much to his best friend's horror, one who wanted to become a doctor. When one of the assailants shot the gun, directly at his heart, his best friend intercepted the bullet and got shot.
It was too late for Shikamaru to try and save him, it was an instant death. What he was able to do was to kill every single one of the assailants, bring the lifeless body of his friend to his family's home, with tears streaming down his face. Soon after, he, along with Sasuke and Neji, were assigned to take down that yakuza. Itachi never really cared if Shikamaru would be able to avenge the death of his best friend. What the elder Uchiha did care about was getting the growing threat obliterated. In the end, Shikamaru was able to take down two birds with one stone. He was able to get over his friend's death but guilt gnawed on his conscience. All he was able to do, now that his friend had died, was to pray for his soul, ask for his forgiveness, and hope that he, Akimichi Chouji, was happy in heaven.
"Shikamaru," deadpanned Neji as he faced the technological genius who was wallowing in his own thoughts. Shikamaru didn't reply, his coal eyes hazed with bittersweet memories. "Shikamaru!" All eyes focused on the small scene between the opalescent eyed fighting expert and the hacking prodigy.
"What?" asked Shikamaru calmly, snapping out of his reverie, "What do you want of the host now?"
"The physical inspection is done. You go do your thing about making sure they're mentally ready for this complex plan of yours." His voice was low enough for only Shikamaru to hear, since none of the recruits, save for those higher up, knew exactly what was happening.
Shikamaru stood up and stretched slightly. Reaching over for a clipboard, he walked lazily towards the center, muttering about how troublesome this was. Scratching the back of his head, his eyes scanned the text on the plain white paper held in the clipboard. Kotoe's accurate hand drawn figure of the Sharingan headquarters was in the middle with the exact measurements written down, the drawing definitely a much smaller scale. In a bright red color was the plan he sketched out, symbols only he and Kotoe could understand written everywhere, blotching the otherwise plain black drawing with red.
"Okay, so you guys are here because you're loyal to Sasuke here, right?" A chorus reply came from them as Shikamaru looked up from his clipboard. Of course, Sasuke rolled his eyes at his question. Of course they were! Otherwise, they wouldn't be involved in this mission. "And assuming from what Sasuke here has told me, you guys don't exactly want to continue being in the yakuza. I mean, the only reason you're here is because you owe your lives to the Uchihas, more of Sasuke, so pay them back by working for them, so to speak." The people in front of him looked down, most of them anyway. Others wanted to be in a yakuza because they thought it was cool. In the end, they regretted their decision but had no way out of it.
"What if we said that there's a way out of this mess? That there's a way for you to go back to your old lives and be happy?" asked Sasuke, his arms crossed as he looked at them. His onyx eyes gave away his serious attitude. The recruits looked up at Sasuke with hope shining in their eyes. They would do anything to get out the mess they had gotten themselves into. "Good. Listen to what Shikamaru has to say because it involves a feeling of mutiny, in the sense that you will have to betray the one in charge of all this bloodshed."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Board Room
"Itachi-sama, you plan to send five representatives on that day, offering much stronger weapons and other such materials?" asked a man, silver hair obscuring his vision, as he pushed his glasses up methodically. A rare smile found its way to Itachi's face as he nodded. Finally, someone out of this bunch of idiots, who were supposed to be smart, got the plan which was so simple in nature! "While they are talking, we pursue the rest of the plan?" Itachi nodded, a satisfied look etched on his face.
"Of course, we set the bombs while the talks are going on, since they will be too distracted to actually concentrate on what's happening on the exterior of their headquarters," said Itachi as he took out a black case. All eyes focused on it as the leader of Sharingan opened the case. "It's a bomb that Shikamaru had designed. To be exact, it's a series of small bombs. However, because of Shikamaru's custom… recipe, so to speak, for the gun powder, it can deal heavy damage. About twenty of these can blow up a third of our building and it is one of the most architecturally advanced structures in all of Japan."
"Uchiha-sama, have you decided on who the five are supposed to be?"
"Yes, I have, actually. Sakon will take charge of the yakuza called Nightmare. Ukon will take charge of the yakuza called Terror. Tayuya will take charge of the yakuza called Illusory Demons. Haku will take charge of the yakuza called Hell spawn. Zabuza will take care of the yakuza called Bloodlust. You, Kabuto, will be my right hand man in this mission." The five other people Itachi had mentioned nodded slowly, casting invisible annoyed glances towards the bespectacled silver haired man who smiled slightly, nodding his head as well. "Kabuto, here is the mission operatives. Explain to these people how the plan is supposed to work, everything. Sakon, Ukon, Tayuya, Haku and Zabuza, you will be directly beneath Kabuto in the line of power." With that, Itachi rose and turned around, Nanako, clad in presentable clothes in the very least, following at his heels.
"Favorite of Itachi-sama, aren't you?" asked Zabuza as he hissed at Kabuto, his fingers itching for the familiar feel of the hilt of his sword to create that ever so familiar gash he loved to see on the bodies of his victims. He loved to mutilate their bodies, after he gave them an instantaneous death, driving a weapon into one of their vitals. "Just, get the fucking details of this plan over and done with so I don't have to deal with you anymore!" Kabuto looked at Zabuza, stoic, as he pushed up his glasses. Taking up the folder, he opened it and took out the acetate. Switching on the overhead projector, he lay the clear film atop and adjusted it.
"That is Nightmare's headquarters, is it not?" asked one of the two twins, his eyes focused on the projection, the black representation of the building clear against the plain white wall.
"Essentially, all the buildings have similar holes, small enough to hold one of Shikamaru's bombs. There are holes situated in twenty different places, all equally spread out. When the five of you get out of the building, the bombing will commence at exactly the same time, which is nine in the evening so you have one hour to convince them to buy our advanced weaponry," explained Kabuto as he pointed out to twenty different bright red X's on the acetate. The five representatives nodded as they marveled at the sheer simplicity and effectiveness of this plan. Kabuto nodded as he continued speaking. In Shikamaru's laboratory, Sasuke was doing the same, explaining their course of action on 24th of September. The brothers were both planning something that would wreak inevitable destruction.
Unknown to both brothers, each was preparing the ploy for something common, a downfall. However, they were both after a different downfall. The older, he was after the downfall of the other yakuza, besides Sharingan. He was hungry for power, for fame, for the reputation of being the best among the yakuza in terms of notoriety, torture and skill. They were not a force to be defied. The younger, on the other hand, was planning for the downfall of the one man that hindered him from a life that he wanted, a normal life. With his death, everything would end; everything he ever dreamed of having would be his. Both brothers, so alike yet so different, both absorbed in their preparations for the downfall.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sakura's Room
A clock, oh how she hated clocks! Her jade green eyes focused themselves on the time piece that was just aggravating her, the sound it was making tearing at her sanity, or what she had left of it anyway. Normally, she was just content with just sitting down quietly, in the same room as Sasuke, her jade green eyes focused on his emotionally hardened face. Drumming her fingers softly on the mattress, she waited for something to happen, as various thoughts pounded in her mind. She looked at his face, devoid of any emotion, as the invisible wall holding in all her questions broke down. Her lower lip quivered as she opened her mouth to speak. "Yeah?" asked Sasuke passively as he looked at her, his onyx orbs still not revealing any emotion he could possibly feel.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked softly, crystal tears collecting in her jade green orbs.
"Doing what? I'm just taking down this yakuza, and avenging you for what my brother did. It's a shame to know I'm related to a bastard such as he," replied Sasuke knowingly as he continued to gaze at her evenly, resisting the urge to kiss those tears away. Wait a second, kiss them away? The male mentally shuddered, as he was getting affected by the sheer helplessness of the girl before him.
"Still! You don't have to, I keep telling you that!" she said, her voice growing louder, though only slightly, as tears started to spill slowly down her face. That was it, he couldn't resist any longer. Stretching out his hand, he brushed the tears away from her cheek with his calloused fingers. Sakura broke down in tears as she grasped his hand, hugging it and keeping it in place. "It's… It's dangerous," she managed to whisper solidly as tears continued streaming down her alabaster skin.
"Yes, yes I have to," he murmured as his usually hardened onyx gaze and face softened, along with his voice. This was the Sasuke he wanted to be, at least to her anyway. He wanted to be genuinely happy but he was incapable of feeling that emotion, ever since his brother became the leader of Sharingan. "No one deserves to be toyed with like that, most especially you." All logic, reasoning and rational thought escaped Sasuke was he continued stroking her cheek softly, brushing away the tears spilling generously from her face.
Sakura couldn't say anything, as she remembered the night she met him. She was just going to buy a carton of milk and a box of cornflakes from the convenience store when she became a witness to Sasuke killing off someone from their yakuza. She was afraid, frozen in her spot, as her jade green eyes grew blank the minute she saw him. To her, he was a subordinate of the Devil, but possibly the most handsome one of all, even more than the Devil himself. She hated him for taking her captive, but she was never really one to snap at him. Of course she did, but it was never for long, because he was never really around. When she had bandaged him up that night, he lingered around her more often and she got to see a bit of his humanity, his fragile and broken humanity.
"Stop crying, it doesn't suit you," he coaxed as he pulled away his hand. Sakura wouldn't stop, though her sobs had started to subside. With a slight groan, more out of the effort he was exerting over anything else, he instinctively wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer to his body, both of them falling flat on the bed. He wasn't planning on doing anything, even comforting her, but things often got out of hand. Even if they did, he felt content just to be able to have her in his arms.
"I love you, I don't know why I do, but I just do!" said Sakura softly, the rise and fall of her chest still irregular. Sasuke's onyx eyes opened wildly at this sudden confession. Twisting his body, he managed to get on top of her, his lips barely even an inch away from hers. "Sasuke-kun…" she murmured as she touched his cheek, his warmth spreading over her slightly sticky hand.
"Damn you for making me weak but… without you, I wouldn't have been able to feel human ever again," he murmured to her before kissing her, gently and possessively at the same time. Sakura felt an unknown surge of electricity course through her body as she pulled him closer to her body. It was probably going to end up as her second time but this time, she didn't care. She was going to fully welcome this experience because for reasons unknown, she loved him. Thankfully, he felt the same feelings for her.
"Sasuke-kun…" she murmured when he began trailing her jaw with kisses, his hands moving expertly across her body, "I love you."
"I love you too…" he whispered before fully focusing on the activity at hand.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tsuzuku…
Hm. The end and the beginning were totally unexpected. Well, what's important is that I was finally able to update after nearly a month of inactivity! I'm really sorry about that but because of the unexpected amount of schoolwork; I wasn't able to handle updating my fanfics and school at the same time! Of course, school takes priority so, yeah.
You don't get to learn much about Sasuke's plan here but you already know about it. It's basically creating a diversion and then getting to Itachi when there is chaos from within. If you still don't understand that, go ahead and read chapter eight again! It's described there! Itachi's plan is pretty similar, but the chaos starts from the outside, and it is happening simultaneously to the five other yakuza of Kyoto.
I just realized right now, that the basic themes for the first part with Itachi and Nanako and the second part with Sasuke and Sakura have the same-ish themes. And no, I'm not going to write about it. Go imagine it if you want, or write it down for yourselves and do not send it to me. I can't write lemon scenes, regardless. Yeah, I can write to a point that it starts but not further.
Anyway, I don't have much else to say. Hopefully, chapter ten of CotHaS won't be too far away. Read A Mercenary's Tale and tell me what you think of chapter two! Bwaha!
As usual, here's the chapter preview!
Next Chapter: Chapter Ten – Fevered Dreams
Chapter Preview: Sasuke bolted upright, breaking in cold sweat, as he remembered that night. Panting heavily, he tried to calm himself down. It was something he hadn't dreamt in so long, so why was he dreaming about it now? Unconsciously, he moved his bare, sweat filmed hand and felt something warm. Feverishly, he turned to face what he had bumped into. He saw her serene face, the blanket covering her bare skin, their clothes thrown haphazardly on the floor. Calming down, he lay back down into bed, and pulled his lover's body closer towards his, her pink hair covering her face, tickling his chest. He needed moral support now more than ever, especially since he felt premonitions that something terrible was going to happen.
