Shisui strolled through Konoha, tea in one hand, a stick of sweets in the other.

"Shisui! I finally found you!" Kokoa gasped, running up to him. He paused, dango still in his mouth.

"I didn't know you lost me."

"No time for joking. This is serious."

"What's wrong?"

"I told you something not too long ago, and I didn't realize how important it was until I said it to myself recently. Now it's all I've been thinking about, and I just – you! You can never speak of it!"

"Well I would agree or promise you…if I knew what you were talking about! Hellooo Kokoa, are you alright? Did you fall? Get knocked too hard on the head?"

"Listen Uchiha, I'm being serious!" she exclaimed.

"I can't help you if I have no idea what you're even talking about."

"You really can't remember me saying anything sudden, unexpected, or shocking to you? Nothing that made you gasp, or pause?"

"Nnnnooope. Trust me, I would have teased you about it," he admitted.

"Alright…" She took two steps back. "Are you sure?"

"Mhm."

"Really?" Another several steps.

"Yup."

"So no worries?" she called from the distance. With a slight smirk,

"No worries."

"Sasuke!"

"Yelling is futile Kokoa!"

"P-please!"

"Never!"

"Sasuke…get…off."

"You're not as scary as you think you are," he grinned before tackling her again. They wrestled in his room – or – actually Sasuke attacked her out of nowhere, and wouldn't get off. Despite her protesting, Kokoa didn't really mind. She loved Sasuke. He was her excuse to act like a child.

"Who said I think I'm scary?" she growled, knocking him to his butt. He looked up with a pout.

"Sorry," she chuckled.

"What on earth is going on in here?" Fugaku barged in, finding Sasuke on his butt with Kokoa hovering over him.

"I – I –" she stammered, frozen in fear. Fugaku stood there, studying her. Something caught Sasuke's attention. His eyes widened. He suddenly launched himself at the girl before him, knocking her onto her back.

"We're just wrestling, right Kokoa?" he laughed.

"My spine…" she sobbed. "Yeah, just wrestling." She pushed him off, sitting up slowly.

"My apologies Uchiha-san. Sasuke wanted to show Itachi-san and I something he learned at the academy, but since he isn't home, we were waiting for him. I guess we were that bored. I'm sorry about the noise," she apologized.

"Just keep it down is all," he sighed before leaving.

"Do you want your father to hate me more than he already does!" Kokoa hissed.

"He doesn't hate you! He's just…boring."

"Sasuke…" She rubbed her face.

"Now you're being boring like him."

"You attacked me in front of him."

"I saved you."

"Saved me? This is going to be good. Do tell."

"Your necklace. It was hanging out."

"My necklace – oh!" Her hands shot to her neck.

"That's why I attacked you. I tucked it under your shirt so he wouldn't see." He explained.

"Thank you Sasuke. You really did save my life," she sighed.

"I don't know why I did it though."

"Hu?"

"For some reason I just thought if he saw it, he'd be angry."

"Sometimes giving gifts to a person means you have feelings for them. Maybe you thought that if your father saw it, he'd think something was going on between Itachi and I. I'm also not an Uchiha. Maybe he's not too fond of the idea of a non-Uchiha wearing the crest." She shrugged.

"Hmm. Either way, you owe me."

"Crap…"

"That's why I like you Kokoa. You're like a big sister, but not really. You just buy me things and keep me out of trouble."

"What would you do without me?" she grinned. "Let's go grab a bite while we wait for your brother."

"Yes!"

"Itachi?" Kokoa blinked, holding the door open.

"Yo," he smiled. She backed up into her house, letting him in.

"Hi," she mumbled, scolding herself for looking like a bum. She was clean and looked fine, but today was her lazy day, and that meant a pair of nice loose pants and a random shirt.

"Sorry I'm such a mess. I wasn't expecting you. Why are you here by the way? A mission? Did you need something –"

"Ssshh," he cut her off with a kiss. She pulled away, shyly avoiding his eyes.

"I know how to quiet you," he smirked. She crossed her arms with a glare.

"You owe me money by the way," she announced.

"For what?"

"Being late yesterday."

"I thought I made it up to you by getting you those snacks you like so much," he explained.

"Because you were late, Sasuke started causing me trouble, and to keep him busy, I took him out for a treat. You owe me."

"Does it have to be money?"

"What else would it be?"

"I have something in mind. Go get dressed in something you don't mind being seen in," he instructed.

"Why?"

"No missions, I got all my work done. I finally have some time."

"But what about –"

"Kokoa, are you really complaining about spending time together?" he inquired.

"You Uchiha brothers kill me," she sighed, walking off to change.

"That food was delicious," she grinned, patting her belly.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I did, I did. Thank you Itachi-san," Kokoa smiled, linking her arm with his as they walked away from town.

"Well I apparently owed you. Now I'm off the hook." Eyes closed, he gave her a warm smile. Her grip on his arm tightened as an all too familiar feeling boiled deep within her.

"Thank you." Her voice softened.

"You already said that," he chuckled. She came to a stop, eyes glued to her feet.

"Kokoa?"

"Thank you…for being with me today, every day. It means so much –" He pressed his lips to hers, the back of his hand resting against her delicate cheek. Her eyes fell shut. Gripping his sleeves with both hands, she gave in, letting him have and do whatever he pleased. That was her only wish…to be his in every way. While he cared about her deeply, his work occupied a good amount of his attention. He told her there would be a time when they would be free to devote themselves to each other, a time when no one was watching or criticizing…and she trusted him. She lived for him, and yearned to care for and pamper him always because in her eyes, no one deserved it more. She would do everything and anything for Uchiha Itachi, no matter what happened.

He left one last kiss before pulling away, resting his forehead against hers.

"That – that wasn't too much, was it?" he inquired nervously.

"Uh – n-no – it…was nice," she whispered with a blush. There it was again, that overwhelming sensation. It was torturous. Not able to hold it in any longer,

"Itachi, I…" she started. Their eyes met. She immediately looked away.

"Hm?"

"I…" She sighed, angry with herself for lacking the courage. "It'll be dark soon. I don't want you getting in trouble."

"No worries. A few minutes won't make a difference."

"They will to your father. Don't be stubborn. Go on home. I'll see you next time," she chuckled, rubbing her arm.

"Quick to get rid of me. I see how it is," he grinned.

"Hey, if you get in trouble, then I won't be able to see you for ages. It's for our own good," she chuckled.

"Hn, goodnight Kokoa," he smiled, starting off towards the setting sun.

Setting down the document in his hands, Fugaku glanced at his wife, who sat beside him in bed. She caught him staring in the dim light, and flashed a warm smile.

"Mikoto…" he started.

"Hm?"

"Do you remember that necklace I gave you when we were young?"

"You gave me a lot of things when we were young, and a good chunk of it was jewelry," she giggled.

"It was the first one I gave you. The chain with the Uchiha symbol."

"Oh…yes that one. Of course I remember it," she replied, unsure where he was going with this.

"Whatever happened to it?" he inquired. Her eyes widened slightly.

"Oh, I put it away ages ago. It looked better back then. It's more for younger girls, you know? It's safe though. It's very dear to me. Why did you suddenly bring it up?"

"It just came to mind for some strange reason…" he trailed off. "I was curious, wondering where it ended up after all this time. It's no big deal," he assured her. She smiled, rolling onto her side. She gripped the sheets, relieved he let the subject go.

Annoyed that he always came by to harass her, Kokoa turned around, launching a shuriken. Shiusi easily caught it between two fingers. He gave her a dull look.

"If you're going to kill me, I suggest using something that would do a little more damage."

"Why are you always…well in my face?" she inquired, crossing her arms.

"I get bored easily, you're Itachi's woman, and I enjoy harassing you."

"One of these days you'll regret it."

"Sure I will," he grinned. She playfully rolled her eyes. "To be honest, I was just walking back home, then I spotted you. I thought I'd say hello."

"Well hello Uchiha."

"Anything new going on? Any missions?"

"I'm waiting a little longer. My side just won't stop throbbing." She held herself. "It's been ages, but I can't risk it again. Had Itachi not jumped in back then, I would be dead. That pain shook me all over."

"It's the smart thing to do."

"What about you? Anything interesting happening?"

"Me?" He thought for a moment. "I have an assignment tomorrow. I trained earlier today. I'm kind of hungry, oh, and don't worry, I haven't told Itachi that you love him."

"Wow, you're so s- wait…what…?" She froze.

"What?"

"Y-you – you said…you said you didn't know," she stammered, pointing a finger at him.

"When you asked me if I remembered you saying anything shocking, at first I really had no clue. Then it hit me," he explained.

"Why didn't you tell me? Why – you can't tease me, not with this. Please Shisui-san," she begged. He took a step back, surprised by her behavior.

"What's the big deal Kokoa? He doesn't know?"

"He doesn't. We know we care about each other, and we've talked about our future, but neither of us have come out and said 'I love you.' I know it sounds silly, but it's not. Not to me at least…" She stared at her feet.

"I haven't said anything! I only brought it up now to tease you. If you don't want me to tell, I won't."

"How can I trust you? You're his best friend. You tell each other everything. You've been wanting to tell him, or drop hints for days now, right?"
"I…" He let out a sigh.

"If you both know you care about each other, what's so bad about him finding out?" he inquired.

"I want to be the one to tell him. This isn't a silly crush, a rumor to spread around to poke fun. I…love him with everything in me, and I would do anything for him, anything he asked. I want him to hear it from my mouth, to see it in my eyes, that he's the most important thing in my life. He'll always come first. That's why I don't want him to hear this generic "Oh Kokoa loves you" from you or anyone really. It's so much more than that…Also…I' afraid he might not feel as strongly as I do." She turned away.