Chapter 4
The destruction created was magnificent.
Surrounded by wails of agony or fear and groans of death, Kisame remained seated in his booth, hand strategically covering his glass from the debris and body parts that exploded into the once peaceful tavern. Opposite him, his partner was no different in casualness, his eyes remaining shut in resignation as they once more found themselves seemingly cornered by pesky hunter-nin.
There weren't many who remained standing after the blast, though that wasn't too surprising considering they had all been civilian. He was, however, surprised that there were any survivors at all. The sheer force of their dramatic entrance was enough to completely blow out the wall furthest to him and Itachi, the creaking of the beams above them and the revelation of the second floor warning Kisame that the whole place would collapse soon.
"You always liked a good drink, didn't you, Kisame?"
Humming with intrigue at once being addressed so familiarly, he tilted his head to the side. It was that ANBU captain again – the one who never knew how to give up or accept that her mission of disposing of him was a laughable failure.
"I would offer you one, Taichou-san, but I get the feeling you wouldn't accept," he shot back with a leer.
He took his time in pouring another, his senses remaining firmly locked on the platoon awaiting a single offensive move.
"You can't blame me for that," she snapped hotly, much to his surprise. It was even enough to cause Itachi to glance up at him, not watching for their reactions, but his. Oh? Hadn't he believed his answers only moments before about having no idea who the wench was? "I go on one goddamn mission and suddenly everything turns to shit–"
"Taichou–"
The slamming of his dish to their relatively untouched table silenced them and Kisame huffed at the trouble they were causing him, standing to his full height.
Unsurprisingly, his partner remained seated at the table with his tea still in hand and Kisame recalled the first time he'd been ambushed after they'd become partners. Itachi had told him, in no uncertain terms, that they were his problem to deal with. Of course, he'd tried to dispute that with the simple fact that he aided him in putting down the hunter-nin sent after him, but according to Itachi, he never asked for his help which he supposed was true. He helped of his own volition.
Without sparing a glance at the severed arm laying by his feet, Kisame grabbed Samehada, swinging him onto his back with a promise of stuffing himself full of chakra soon. But first, he wanted to alleviate his constant case of boredom.
"This is getting old," he warned the captain. "Aren't you tired of losing your teammates yet?"
"That's what has me so certain you've suffered some kind of blow to the head," she spat back. Lowering herself with an expert flick of her katana that felt unsettlingly familiar, the captain guarded each of her vulnerable spots, hands steady and ready to strike with a precision Kisame had quickly learned was deadly. "No one knows the bloody nature of Kirigakure better than you, Kisame."
He veiled the suspicion that bloomed in his chest at her words, refusing to let the woman know she'd unnerved him with how well she seemed to know him.
Kisame had always taken note of the casual way she addressed him, or of the way she handled herself and knew of his attacks and fighting style, never once showing a shred of uncertainty or fear. She faced him almost like a scorned woman – the thought previously caused Kisame to crack an amused smirk simply because of how ridiculous it seemed. But now, he…
What else explained her persistence? It was evident even to Itachi, who'd met her all of five times now, that it went deeper than being a mission she needed to complete.
The Uchiha brat was right. Putting her down was crucial to their mission, especially when considering the risks of her potentially knowing him. They couldn't risk Akatsuki being discovered in its early stages.
Usually, the captain was the lead in the attacks against him and due to being so familiar with his fighting style, the best at evading his counters. The same was rarely ever said for her teammates who were lacking in speed and unable to dodge or block. Each time that happened, she wisely retreated, using their deaths as the perfect distraction. Kisame was unable to deny letting it slide from time to time, for as he'd previously thought: she was a shake up from his mundane routine.
It seemed their game of cat and mouse was to come to an end. A shame really. She was quite the entertainer.
"Nothing?" she demanded angrily at his silence. "You're not going to say anything to me?"
However she knew him was definitely personally – not due to him murdering a precious person of hers – Kisame simply couldn't think of how. As strong as the captain appeared, she was clearly not a member of the Seven Swordsmen or even up to that level. Due to that, he couldn't imagine they'd ever run in the same circles for too long to make it a meaningful encounter. But her persistence and anger towards him said differently.
"Fine," came her angered yell. "We'll keep running in circles until you acknowledge me again, Kisame!"
"Make this quick, Kisame-san."
Huffing, he sidestepped the captain's blade and spun around her with speed he knew the others were incapable of following, for there was no other reason for allowing him to press Samehada against her back and absorb her chakra.
"How is this for a break in our running, Taichou-san?" he questioned with a toothy grin.
The mere glance Itachi spared the rest of the platoon froze them in their places, his sharingan glowing ominously amongst the smoke and dust. Had he placed them under genjutsu on his behalf? How kind.
"I-Is this it… Kisame?" she wheezed as Samehada continued to drain her, katana clattering to the ground noisily and somehow echoing in his mind. "After a-all we've… we've been through y-you're…?"
"I thought you said you didn't know this woman?"
Frustration was quickly warping his thoughts and threatening to make him falter, but Kisame fought against it. He prized himself on his rational thinking in a battle or stressful situation, and he was not about to allow himself to be worked up over some insignificant woman who he couldn't–
Samehada stopped feeding.
Why had Samehada stopped feeding?
Eyes widening a fraction, Kisame glanced downwards at the trembling captain before him. Her knees were buckling and would have fell to the rubble beneath them, had it not been for Samehada catching her armour and holding her up. As if the ceasing in feeding wasn't strange enough.
He noticed Itachi's gaze narrowing.
Clearly, somehow, Samehada knew of her. But how was that possible? He hadn't acquired the sword until he killed the previous owner, leaving the village not long afterwards. Kisame knew he hadn't encountered anyone from ANBU back then as Madara had been with him. Leaving the village had been easier than he'd ever believed to be possible due to the legend's presence.
Was she somehow connected to Fuguki, perhaps? Being that he was his master, it was entirely possible they'd crossed paths with one another, explaining how she knew him. But why didn't he know her?
"Kisame-san."
No. Gut instinct was telling him that there was more to the situation, that he had to look underneath what was before him now.
Could he really justify that, however? Could they really afford for him to play investigator?
Killing her would be easy. She was basically unconscious as it was, and her teammates were still under Itachi's genjutsu so were absolutely useless to help her. Taking them all out wouldn't even be satisfying, it'd just be a chore.
Slowly and while being ready for a surprise attack on her part, Kisame brought the captain closer, lifting her over a foot off the ground so that they were face-to-mask. Tempted as he was to remove it to see if her features were recognisable, he didn't. Something itching in the back of his mind told him not to, because it wasn't time yet. He hadn't…
What was that?
Why did his mind blank whenever he crossed paths with her? Why would his blood roar with the exhilaration she granted him by breaking Kisame out of his mundane routine as a missing-nin? Why, when the battle was over and she inevitably retreated to plan another ambush, did his life grow hollower? Like every time they clashed, she sucked away another part of him that would have once revelled in the destruction he was previously more than happy to create?
"Dispose of her."
No. Killing her would be too easy and he was not about to brush her under the rug when clearly, something bigger was in the works.
Using Samehada to launch her upwards, he changed his stance, waiting for the harsh whoosh of breath in his ear before turning away, silently warning Itachi that he would not explain his actions or himself to him.
"Let's go."
Akatsuki were good for planting hideouts throughout the five nations, always right under the noses of the shinobi village. It was almost comedic how close they were at times, yet so unseen by the seemingly blind shinobi. Kisame supposed being in the presence of an Uchiha who excelled in genjutsu also bettered their chances of remaining undiscovered.
If it weren't for what he knew of Uchiha Itachi, Kisame almost would have declared him a lazy man. He didn't draw out battles, didn't rile up his opponents, didn't go looking for trouble, would conceal each hideout he inhabited with multiple layers of strong genjutsu to remain undisturbed. All in all, Kisame presumed that the guy simply didn't like fighting, but again, that made little sense. How could a guy who'd slaughtered his entire clan in cold blood dislike the rush of a good fight?
Ah, but it wasn't about Itachi's strange tendencies or personality, Kisame reminded himself as he glanced at the corner of the room. The captain was slumped against the wall, still in full uniform including her mask, body trembling every so often from the chakra depletion. Had Samehada continued feeding for just a few minutes longer, she would have died.
The hideouts were never anything extravagant, but they were liveable and allowed them to unwind. Cupboards were always stocked with non-perishable foods, toiletries were kind of lacking but got the job done and it was furnished. They couldn't really ask for more, being missing-nin. Despite being abandoned by families during wars, the small hideouts were the closest they got to a home. They merely chose to ignore the family pictures hanging on the walls that were a cold reminder of their cause, or other members chose to put them away so that they were out of sight.
Just because they were in Akatsuki, they weren't necessarily monsters – well, not all of them were, anyway. Did they have their less than civil tendencies? Sure. But they weren't immune to suffering or emotions themselves. They were definitely a hindrance, but sometimes, the reminder that he was still human despite all that'd gone on or being who he was, was pleasant.
So, Kisame left the pictures up to remind himself that Akatsuki would decimate the abhorrent system that'd likely been the cause of the house being abandoned, one day.
The return of his partner had him turning his gaze away from the captain and assessing him, not missing the faint traces of annoyance that lingered in his eyes. It was rare to bring forth any sort of emotion on the Uchiha's expression, so he didn't plan on following through with any requests or orders anytime soon. Instead, he wanted to push him as far as he could.
"Dispose of her."
"Not yet."
Leaning back against the windowsill, Kisame glanced over his shoulder at the large, empty expanse of field. It stretched out for miles before them, allowing them to see any ambushes from all sides and to better their cover, Itachi had coated the place in genjutsu. To outsiders, there was nothing to be seen. That gave him a few days to retrieve all the information he needed from the captain, although he planned to complete his personal mission sooner.
"We cannot afford to be distracted or to bring attention to ourselves."
"We won't."
They were still feeling one another out, although Kisame supposed it was only natural for two missing-nin with bounties as high as theirs and crimes as gruesome as theirs. Hell, it never failed to rub him the wrong way how Itachi acted so high and mighty at times, or other times when he refused to give into that bloodlust that had to be lurking under the surface.
Chances were, they'd never be comfortable in one another's presence enough to completely lower their guards. Not even as partners.
"Kisame-san, you–"
Patience wearing thin, he finally returned his heavy stare back to the Uchiha, the glare he settled him with enough for Itachi to bite his tongue – not back down, but weigh out his options, Kisame noticed. He was just a kid, but a smart one.
"It's easy to forget how young you actually are," he huffed suddenly and leaned back in his seat, almost dismissing him altogether until his glare zeroed in on him once more. "But don't think that will help you if you keep ordering me around like you're my superior. Got it?"
"I have never tolerated insubordination," Itachi shot back without hesitation, making Kisame's jaw clench. "Especially not when it gets in my way."
Interesting. They all had their personal agendas for being in Akatsuki, so it didn't come as a huge surprise that Itachi had his own.
"Oh? Are you saying I'm in your way, Itachi-san?"
He was finally getting under his skin, Kisame thought with a toothy grin.
"We have our mission, and it is yet to be completed," came his much too rational response. "I will not risk failure for the sake of you getting your kicks out of torturing a woman you allegedly don't even know."
Allegedly, huh?
Kisame supposed Itachi's words – accusation, in fact – was justified. He was jeopardising Akatsuki's end goal (which he was all for, might he remind), however, a shinobi should never ignore their gut instinct and for weeks now, his was growing progressively louder and more demanding. That woman was of some sort of importance to him. If he had to torture the information out of her to find out how she was tied to him?
So be it.
"By all means, if my barbarous actions are offending your delicate nature, then feel free to leave," he stated with a smirk of great amusement before hoisting himself to his feet at the sound of the captain stirring, looking down on Itachi. "I am sure Leader-sama would love to hear why you disbanded our two-man squad."
So very irritatingly briefly, Itachi's eyes narrowed, smoothing out just as quickly.
"You said it yourself: we can't get close to the Kyuubi's jinchūriki right now," Kisame recalled.
"And you plan on using that time torturing people who happen to cross you?"
He wished. No, Itachi had already expressed his displeasure of wasting their precious time with unnecessary battles, so Kisame concluded that the same applied to some old school torture and interrogation, also.
"This woman has become a major pain in my ass," he explained with a half-hearted, uncaring shrug while turning to face her, the sight of her wary hands feeling out the lack of rubble amusing him greatly. It was the first time he'd spotted any hints of trepidation in her body language. "I'm simply finding out why she has such a vendetta against me."
Using whatever means he deemed necessary.