The next morning, Karin was woken up by the familiar booming voice of her little brother. She sent a silent glare at the doorway where Naruto stood, the blonde sporting a large grin. "Sis, get up and hurry downstairs! Mom saids there's something big that she needs to tell us, but that's beside the point. Itachi and the guy from the leaf made us all breakfast and it's huge!" practically drooling at the thought.
Giving her best glare, the red-head rolled over and up into a sitting position. Raising her hands up to smooth down her sleep-ridden hair, she grumbled a bit. "He said his name was Kakashi, stop calling him a leaf ninja. Even if it's true, the thought of that shitty village is pissing me off." shaking her head back and forth a bit. "I'll be down as soon as I can. Give me a minute to get dressed." shooing him out as she slid on her glasses.
Karin made quick work of slipping out of her pajamas and into her daily clothes, the girl giving her hair a light brushing before she headed downstairs to join her family. She had to admit, she was curious about what her mother could want to talk to them about, but she would guess it has something to do with Kakashi helping make them breakfast. Time would tell, she supposed.
All the annoyance at Naruto for his overly eager waking disappeared as she stepped into the dining room. She was a lot more disciplined with her excitement than Naruto, but even she felt her mouth-watering at the sight before her. Not to mention the wonderful smell.
They all sat at the table, a new chair added and filled with the silver-haired ninja. On the table were a few plates of pancakes with condiments in bottles around them. There were multiple bottles of syrup, all sporting a different flavor. They had maple, chocolate, and strawberry syrup, the latter being her favorite. She noticed Naruto scooping on whipped cream to top off his, the blonde easily ignoring Sasori's scoldings that it was bad for him to eat so much. Beside him, Neji was shaking his head, sprinkling the mix of nuts into his lightly honey-coated pancakes.
Hinata seemed to be enjoying hers as well, the young teen using a mix of bananas, strawberries, and chocolate syrup to make a smiley face. Sasuke easily responded by shaping a mix of blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries into a frowny face on his plate, much to Hinata's fluster. As Karin moved to sit down, she could hear her youngest sister bicker, "Sasuke-nii! It's supposed to be fun, why are you making it frowny?" seemingly in response to something Sasuke had pointed about about her pancakes.
The older teen seemed to enjoy teasing the younger, smirking, "Maybe I like frowny faces? Tch, so judgemental, imouto." ignoring Gaara, who was shaking his head lightly at the two. The youngest of the brothers had settled on some whipped cream, the boy using the cut up strawberries to make a heart in the middle. Simple maple syrup was drizzled over the top, the teen looking quite satisfied with his work, though mildly annoyed as Sasuke and Hinata playfully shoved each other besides him.
"You know that's not what I mean!" Hinata countered, flustering at her brother's teasing. "Besides, you were just saying how mine looked too happy. You're the one who started it-" she bickered, crossing her arms in annoyance. They were both silenced as sand lightly covered their mouths.
Karin watched as they both whipped their head over to the only one of them who could have done it. Gaara seemed to ignore their glares, taking a bite of his strawberries. "You're both being too loud. Just enjoy the food instead of arguing," he muttered, loosening his sand as they both finally agreed, only huffing a bit at each other as they snacked on their pancakes.
None of the adults seemed to be paying their bickering much mind besides Kakuzu who occasionally rolled his eyes and Deidara who was betting with Hidan over who would win in the miniature argument. Their little game was easily shut down by Kisame, who backhanded them both without much thought, Karin noticed as she decorated her pancakes with whipped cream and strawberry syrup.
Since they were all downstairs now, it looked like Konan was ready to make her announcement. She lightly cleared her throat, but that was all it took for the playful bickering and small conversations at the table to stop. All eyes turned to her as she began, "Alright, so we have some big news for everyone. Akatsuki members and you kids, both." she explained.
The majority of the members seemed mildly surprised by that since most of the announcements had to do with the children. She continued on, however, "First of all, Akatsuki, we are reforming." looks of confusion formed on most of the members' faces. "The details have not yet been decided, but things are going to be different around here soon. There will be fewer death-centric missions and more focusing on our vision of peace. While you all will still be free to go on death-centric missions, they will be in less demand so you'll eventually have to take some assistance missions. It'll take some time to figure things out, but that much we know."
Hidan was of course the first one to take issue with this, standing and slamming a fist against the table. "What the fuck do you mean? This is bullshit, we're all S-Rank criminals! I don't give a rats ass about peace! You're both a damn shame to Jashin!" he growled, being pulled back into his seat by a glaring Kakuzu.
"There are children present, Hidan." the eldest of the members growled. "Keep your trap shut." the emerald-eyed man turning back to Konan. "Though, I can't say I agree with this either. Assistance missions barely pay a quarter as much as assassination missions. Our income will be cut down drastically."
Deidara growled from his spot, crossing his arms. "This is idiotic! How am I supposed to show off my art when we're stuck doing crappy missions like escorting people? It'll be like my genin days all over again. I can already hear dumb Onoki and his 'You have to respect the client, Deidara. You can't blow up the client, Deidara.'" his voice mocking as he spoke.
Sasori seemed annoyed at the idea as well, mildly sulking in his chair but not verbally arguing since the other members were doing that well enough on their own. It seemed that the only two members who didn't seem to mind were Itachi and Kisame, who both continued snacking on their breakfast. Kakashi seemed to be watching things unfold with mild amusement, though Karin couldn't tell with that mask over his lips. There was just something about his eyes that told her he found it amusing.
Nagato slammed his fist to the table, everyone falling into silence as he did so. The older red-head spoke calmly, "We will give you all until midnight tonight to choose. Stay with us and accept the new turn for the organization, or be gone by then. If you do choose to leave, fine. However, if you harm anyone in this village on your way out, you won't make it to the front gate." he warned.
A steady silence was left after that, Konan nodding in agreement. "Exactly. If you all do end up staying, this is what we're thinking for partners. Deidara and Sasori would be partners now that Tobi is dead, Kisame and Itachi would remain partners, Kakuzu and Hidan would stay together, then finally, Nagato and I would remain together. Zetsu has disappeared and Tobi is dead, so we were luckily left with an even amount of members. The three ring leaders of the new organization would be Nagato, Itachi, and I. This being said, Itachi is obviously off house-arrest."
Seeing as everyone was remaining silent, some in annoyance and others in relief the subject was finally over with, Naruto decided to ask the question on most of the kids' minds. "So, does the reform thing have something to do with Kakashi?" the teen not bothering to stop eating as he asked, too happy with the fluffy pancakes to stop.
Konan nodded, the adults slowly returning to slowly eating their pancakes as the children reached in for seconds. "Yes, we've decided that he is an ally. He's an old friend of Itachi and he seems to get along well enough with Sasuke. He took the lead and stood up for Sasuke against his village when they prepared to...hurt him." trying her best to avoid the topic as she imagined it would make the teen uncomfortable to have a table full of people discussing it. "He claims that he does not want to be associated with a village that would harm children to such a barbaric extent. As such, he had declared himself a rouge ninja. He will be moving into our village eventually, but for now, we've chosen to keep him in the Akatsuki base so we can keep an eye on him just in case."
The teens all gave a nod of understanding, Karin eyeing the silver-haired ninja wearily. He seemed nice enough, but then, he was still an unknown factor. She supposed she could give him a chance if he was going to join their village, besides, the Akatsuki wouldn't bring any threats straight to them.
Once they all finished, they found themselves fully satisfied. That was one hell of a breakfast. The bacon, eggs, and toast on the side had been so crispy it must have been criminal. Itachi sighed a bit as everyone stood up, giving a soft clap of his hands. "One more thing. We haven't been clothes shopping in a while, so you're clothes are all getting snug on you. We'll be doing that today. Everyone has half an hour to get ready, then we're leaving." he announced, giving Hidan and Deidara pointed looks. "We're all going, and everyone had better behave while we're out."
Hidan and Deidara both rolled their eyes lightly at the other but nodded a bit. Kakashi gave them a look of mild disbelief. This was the oh so feared Akatsuki? These were all S-Rank criminals? They acted like children!
No one set out to answer his questioning looks however, everyone making their way to their own room to get ready.
o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o
About twenty minutes later, Neji got out of the shower. As he headed into his room, he was surprised to see Sasuke sitting on his bed with the jacket he had borrowed folded neatly in his lap. It looked like it had been washed recently, too. "Hello, otouto. Do you need something?" the elder teen moving to place his dirty clothes and towel in a laundry basket to do later.
He purposely didn't pay Sasuke much attention, not wanting to make him nervous by staring him down. It seemed to work well enough as Sasuke spoke in a somewhat casual voice, though it was laced with nervousness. "I came to bring you back your jacket. I forgot to give it back to you. Thanks for letting me borrow it." the younger teen watching as Neji moved around the room, the older never once making eye contact with Sasuke.
"No problem. Thank you for washing it before you brought it back. It looks nice." he noted. It was fairly easy to feel the aura of uncertainty coming off Sasuke, though Neji wasn't sure what it was about. Did it feel awkward to return the jacket? Neji turned to finally look Sasuke over and noticed him holding it out to him. "Is there something you want to ask me?"
Neji settled for sitting beside Sasuke on the bed, noticing that his hair was still damp looking as well. He supposed the younger must have just gotten out of the shower as well. "Don't laugh." he heard Sasuke grumble lightly, looking down at the shirt in his lap. Sasuke had stopped holding it out after a moment of Neji not taking it.
A firm nod came from Neji, the Hyuuga agreeing easily, "Of course. I won't laugh, I swear."
"I know you have a few of these," Sasuke noted. "Since it's the usual Hyuuga style coat. I know you have a lot of extras since they're a pretty common clothing choice for Hyuuga." lightly rubbing the fabric between his fingers. "I also know that I'm not a Hyuuga. Really, I'm not even close. I'm kind of the opposite." he frowned, knowing their clans had never really gotten the long best due to their constant trying to one-up the other when it came to being a respected clan. Not to mention their kekki genkai both being dojutsu didn't help either.
Neji nodded, hands resting lightly on his lap as he looked up a bit. "I do have a few extra, they are pretty common in my clan so every once and a while they'll sneak into the compound to get me an authentic one. I have four or five by now, I believe," he noted. He was pretty sure he knew where Sasuke was going with this. "I don't think the Uchiha are the opposite of the Hyuuga. They're more like our cousins, in my opinion. We both come from the same place if you believe the legend of our clans' creation." he joked lightly, elbowing Sasuke in the rib.
The teen flustered lightly, grumbling, "Tch, like I'd believe an idiotic story like that. My old man used to try to shove that story down my throat all the time. Aliens? Mother of chakra? Oh, please. Spare the fairy tails." he shook his head back and forth. He relaxed after a moment, taking a breath and giving a thin smile to himself. "I do think our clans could have been related somehow, though, now that you mention it. It would make sense with how similar our kekki genkai are. Plus we do have pretty similar genes." lightly running his fingers over the pale skin on his hand.
Neji nodded a bit, leaning back on his bed. "So, now that that's out of the way, what did you want to ask me, and what does it have to do with you not feeling like the Uchiha and Hyuuga are very connected?" not wanting to push too hard.
"I wanted to ask," Sasuke seemed hesitant, but swallowed his pride. "If it isn't disrespecting your clan, could I keep it? I'll give it back if it makes you uncomfortable, but I'd really like to keep it. It's nothing like the Uchiha style, but it's extremely comfortable." his cheeks dusting red as he looked away. Neji understood the underlying message-- it made Sasuke feel comforted.
While Neji hadn't expected Sasuke to grow so attached to his jacket, he didn't have an issue with giving it to the younger. As he had said, he had many jackets in the exact same style with different clothes. Letting Sasuke keep it for comfort wouldn't hurt. "Of course. You're free to have it." he nodded, but glanced up lightly to look at the time. "It's nearly time to go. We should head downstairs so that Naruto doesn't drag us down." he joked lightly, standing up with a thin smile.
Sasuke nodded, following after him and trying to get the burning sensation from his cheeks. Neji made no comment as Sasuke slid his jacket on beside him.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Soon enough, everyone was lined up at the door. The Akatsuki were dressed in their casual clothes rather than their cloaks, something they had started doing recently as to not embarrass the teens. Nagato didn't get it, but apparently having ten ninjas in matching outfits follow along with you was embarrassing. Or so Karin said, anyway. Strange, considering how cool they used to think it was.
Nagato glanced over the kids and members alike, counting everyone as he spoke. "Alright, is everyone here? Yes? Alright, kids, make sure you stay with at least one of the members and vise versa. No wandering off. Also, Kakashi is coming because we need extra arms to carry things." he nodded firmly, ignoring the deadpanned expression the silver-haired ninja gave. "Remember, if anyone tries to grab you, go for either the crotch or chest to avoid killing them. We don't need to be banned from any more stores." he sighed. They had stopped fighting back against the bannings years ago since it seemed to upset the kids.
"Having said that, you all must be on your best behavior. No blowing thing up, no stealing, no putting things in the cart without asking, no stabbing, and no bickering." having to look at the Akatsuki just as much as he did the kids as he spoke. He heard a few lose grumbled and saw a group of nods, so he turned towards the door. "Let's head out, then. We'll go to the tailoring shop first, then we need a restock on a few other things too."
As they headed out, Nagato watched as the kids seemed to find themselves latched to the sides of the members, as always. Neji walked a steady pace beside Kisame, the teen's facial expression neutral, though his eyes shone with amusement. Not that Nagato could particularly blame the boy-- their shopping trips were certainly never dull.
Karin stood beside Nagato, the girl idely braiding her hair then pulling it out as soon as it was finished in boredom. It was a decently long walk, however, so he wasn't surprised that they would want to find something to fill their time with as they walked.
Sasuke, for example, seemed to be filling his time in by standing beside Itachi, taking any chance he could to step on the back of the Naruto's heels. Though the teen was glancing at the side of the road as if innocent, it was fairly obvious to the elder ninja.
The young blonde seemed to be taking great offense to being stepped on, the blonde doing a one-eighty as Sasuke seemingly did it one too many times. "What the hell are you doing that for, bastard!?" the teen earning a heavy sigh from Deidara, whom he was walking with.
Sasuke turned towards Naruto as if only now noticing his misdeed, though the elder ninja knew better. "Hm? Oh, my bad, it looks like I'm getting idiot on my shoes." the raven smirking at Naruto despite his brother's scolding looks. Nagato sighed a bit-- it looked like Sasuke had gone too long without being able to let off steam in the form of playful bickering, based on his teasing jabs at Hinata this morning and now Naruto. Kids would be kids, Nagato supposed. It didn't seem like it was doing any harm, so he supposed he could leave it be for now. Even if he had just finished saying there would be no bickering less than ten minutes ago, he sighed.
"Who are you calling idiot, you bastard!? You're the one stepping on my shoes!" he complained, Hinata sighing at the loudness of the blonde and sticking beside Konan.
As soon as Sasuke opened his mouth so send a comeback, Hinata's soft voice cut through the arguing, her Byakugan activated. "Please be quiet, both of you. You're giving me a headache," she spoke politely, though the threat was still there-- her idiot brothers had better quiet down. There was only so much a girl could handle.
Gaara sent her a grateful look, the red-head quite annoyed by the bickering as well. Soon enough, they arrived at the store. They all headed in, the store owner quickly standing from his work as they did so. He dropped the previous loose frown, his expression softening as he spotted the kids with the Akatsuki. "Pain-sama, Konan-sama, welcome." he greeted.
Nagato nodded in recognition, watching as the Akatsuki members began leading the kids to different sections of the store. Neji stayed beside them, knowing he would be first as always. Nagato made a mental note to make sure the village began referring to him by his birth name rather than his cover name. For now, he would focus on the kids. "Hello, Daito. We're here for six custom designs, six new jackets, thirty tops, and thirty bottoms," he explained, figuring it was best to be blunt with what they wanted.
He heard Kakuzu groan from behind him but ignored it. Daito gave a low whistle, rubbing the back of his neck with a lopsided grin as he motioned Neji closer to begin his measurements. "Whew, I barely afford to pay for my daughters, and I only have two. I don't know how you're still financially afloat with these money leaches." he joked, never having been one for fearing the Akatsuki. Really, very few people in the rain village did. They were their protectors, in a way.
Neji huffed a bit at that, allowing the older man to turn him around for his measurements. Nagato, however, mused at this as he noticed the kids looking through the racks. Well, it was definitely true that they did spend a lot of money on the kids. Then again, there were six of them. It was only to be expected that it would be no cheap way to raise them. "If it weren't for Kakuzu being down our throats every time we're even a bit wasteful, we probably would be broke by now. Not that it's much of an issue, though. They do well when it comes to only using what's needed. They're no more wasteful than any other group of teenagers." he mused.
Daito gave a hearty laugh at this, the man grinning as turned Neji around so that the teen was facing him. While he measured the Hyuuga's chest and other frontal areas, he nodded, "Yeah, they seem like good kids. I'd know, watching them get bigger year by year." lightly giving the now sulky brunet a light squeeze on the cheek. "I remember the first time you brought them. Little Neji getting all pouty and aggressive when I tried to measure him for his clothes. Now look at how still you stand."
Neji flustered a bit at that, looking away as his waist was measured. "Yes, well, I imagine it would be a bit problematic if I was sixteen and still throwing tantrums in the store," he grumbled a bit, ignoring the amusement written over a watching Nagato's face.
The teen sent his best glare towards Daito as the man mused, "That would be quite the issue. Though, I'm sure Kisame-san would have your hide if you tried something like that now." he joked, watching as Neji's face turned a bright shade of red at the older man's joke. Neji mentally growled. Why did adults always seem to laugh at their expense? He supposed the elder decided that he had enough teasing as the man gave his hip a light pat, moving to get the fabrics for Neji to choose from. "Alright, alright. No need to glare me into the floor, Neji," he spoke as he held out a few for Neji to feel as he spoke. "I hear you finished your internship. An official genin, eh?"
Neji nodded a bit, deciding on a piece of thin and silky fabric. It would be best for his sword techniques-- it would give him lots of room to move around, he decided. "Mhm. I've been a genin for a few weeks now," he confirmed, a small hint of pride in his voice, though not leaking into arrogance even a bit. He knew he had a long way to go before he was ready to match even a quarter of an Akatsuki member's strength.
The man nodded in interest, pulling out the color display to have him pick the exact color he wanted. "Ah, I see. You should be proud, succeeding under the apprenticeship of an Akatsuki member. You're one of the prodigies of this village, along with your brothers and sisters. One day, I'm sure you'll all do a great job at defending and leading our village." he lightly jabbed the boy in the side as he mused. "Better use that age advantage to go for the leader spot as soon as possible. I can tell Naruto's ready to fight you for it" he chucked.
Neji felt conflicted but gave the man his best forced smile as he looked over the colors. He knew that, logically, he was the eldest. Which would lead to people expecting him to be the one to take over the village when the Akatsuki was no more. The teen felt the choice of heir based on age alone had always been a terrible idea for obvious reasons. Beside that point, he didn't think the Akatsuki would be gone any time soon. By the time they were ready to retire, Neji was sure they'd all be adults, and they could choose the one best fit to be the leader. If it was even any of them at all, actually. Neji knew they weren't bold enough to throw him into the leader position merely because of his age, though it still made him conflicted every time he heard a villager or ally assume he would one day be their leader. It felt wrong-- like he was getting the respect he hadn't yet earned.
Eventually, he picked a shade of navy blue, tossing his thoughts to the side for now. He didn't want to worry Nagato by freezing up as he had done the first few times the topic was mentioned. He would rather focus on what he could control, like his clothing. He loved the color blue as it reminded him of the sky, but he also knew it would be foolish for a ninja to pick a color as bright as the sky for their everyday outfits. After all, no one knew when conflict would arise, and he'd rather be safe than sorry. "This one, please." he forced out while taking a breath.
Daito didn't seem to notice the teen's conflict, the man nodding and marking the two fabrics down onto his sheet. "Got it. What color thread, and do you have any designs you'd like on it?" he hummed over his clipboard.
"Dark blue thread. Try to make it match the color of the shirt as closely as possible if you can. As for designs." he paused only momentarily, having thought about it before they arrived. He glanced over at Nagato to check if it was alright, though he doubted the man would have any issue with it. "Can I get come feathers lining the sleeve in a row?" the teen smiling thinly as Nagato nodded in permission.
Daito nodded a bit, writing on his clipboard once more, "I think I can manage that." the man agreed lightly, drawing out a rough sketch of what it would look like. "How's this?"
"Can you make the sleeves a bit wider? The pant's color can just be the same as the shirt." watching as the man easily fixed the issue, "I'd also like it to be crossed over in the front so it buttons up instead of a closed peace." smiling a bit as the man fixed it just right. "Yes, just like that, please."
Once he got confirmation, Neji moved to get off the customer stand, sighing a bit as his hair was ruffled. He had known this man since he was eight, but his hair falling into disarray never became any more enjoyable. "Got it! I'll have it ready in no time. Why don't you go pick some pre-made clothes then while I work on the others' custom designs? Call Karin over here for me."
Neji nodded, easily heading over to where Karin was looking over some turtle-necks. He lightly tapped her shoulder, easily getting her attention. "Hey, it's your turn," he explained, watching the girl slide the shirt back on the rack and head over to the sizing area.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Karin headed over, a female taking the place of the male who had measured Neji. They figured it was best for a female to measure the young girls, for comfort's sake. "Hello, Karin." the woman smiled in greeting to the young girl, who only nodded a bit in greeting. "How have you been? It's been quite a while since we're seen you."
"I've been well," Karin answered simply, not really being one for conversation outside her family. Mainly because she could never keep herself from her loud-mouthed habits and it tended to annoy people. She'd rather keep to herself as to not cause any arguments. Arguing was a waste of her time, she usually figured.
The chatty woman continued on, however. She seemed to be in a good mood, though Karin had a feeling it was fake. "So, tell me, found yourself a nice boyfriend yet?" she playfully jabbed as she measured the girl. Seeing Karin's glare, she joked, "Come, now, I'm only asking. No need to be shy." she hummed, twirling her around the check her back measurements.
"No." Karin crossed her arms with a small scoff. Even if she had, it would be none of her business. Some people were so nosy.
A pout came from the woman, who assured her, "Don't worry, honey. I'm sure you'll find the right man someday." she smiled, "One that will worship, spoil, and support you. I didn't meet my husband until I was nearly nineteen! The courting process is simply magical. Gifts, big romantic gestures, compliments-" she swooned. "You know we have a son about your age, a bit older, but only by five or so years. If you ever want, we could-"
She was cut off, Karin becoming mildly aggravated. "I'm not interested." she snapped harshly. She could see the hurt on the woman's face and merely crossed her arms, "I have no interest in any relationships right now." she half lied, knowing it wasn't in her best interest to make her father's villagers upset.
In all honesty, she would be fine with a relationship, she just didn't feel anyone she'd ever met would be a good spouse. There were a few she'd seen who seemed nice enough, but nothing she could see being long-lasting. She felt like when she met the right person, she would know. For now, she had her family, and that was all that mattered. Besides, she didn't want any of that constant worshipping or spoiling the elder girl spoke of. If she ever got with someone, she'd prefer if they were able to be serious occasionally instead of constantly sweet talking.
The woman seemed disappointed but nodded, getting the fabric choices for her none the less. "Alright, but if you ever change your mind, feel free to tell me." she lightly joked. Karin only stared at her quietly, prompting the woman to hand the fabrics over.
"This one, in purple, please." she pointed to a piece of thick cotton fabric. The woman nodded, rushing to show her a light sketch of the outfit. Karin frowned at the sleeveless shirt that was suggested. "I would like the sleeves. I want them to go up to my wrists."
Tilting her head, the shop worker did as she asked. Karin nodded a bit at the new design, adding, "Could you do some white outlining on it?" she asked, "With two pockets? Could they have zippers so nothing falls out?" she asked, watching her make the adjustments to the image. "That's good. Thank you."
The woman seemed to be in a worse mood now, but Karin didn't particularly care. She had no business trying to pry into her personal life or setting her up with some boy just because they were close in age. If she had just minded her business, she wouldn't be in such a bad mood now. The woman frowned as she set Karin's order to the side, "No problem. Can you go get Sasuke? It's his turn."
Karin nodded, turning on her heel and heading over to Sasuke. The teen was beside Neji, the older seemingly showing off some hoodies he had found on the racks to Sasuke. She came up behind him, lightly ruffling his hair, "Your turn, otouto."
The younger seemed unamused, Sasuke lightly smacking her hand away with a huff and scowl. He fixed his hair, "Alright, I'm going, I'm going. Stop that." before glancing back and Neji, "Can you please put the navy blue one in my pile?" seeing a nod, he returned it with a "Thanks." before heading over to have his measurements taken.
As he jumped up on the measuring stand, the man returned from the back to take his measurements. He noted as she flipped through a clipboard, "Hey kid, care to take your jacket off so I can get an easier measurement?" he hummed, not looking up as he arranged a few things.
Sasuke nodded, hesitantly taking Neji's gift off and looking around for where to place it. He'd rather not put it on the floor. He felt someone tap his shoulder and glanced back to see Kakashi smiling behind his mask. "Need a hand, Sasuke?"
The teen huffed at the overly friendly man, lightly shoving the cloth into his hands. "Be careful." seeing Nagato's scolding look he added, "Please." before turning back to the man for measurement. He noticed the man was mildly frozen, looking over the numerous stitches and marks on his arms. Sasuke grew annoyed rather quickly, quirking his brow and raising his arms for easier access. "Are you going to start or what?" ignoring his instincts to cover himself.
The man nodded a bit, snapping out of it. "Right, of course." he moved to measure his arms, Sasuke staying quiet. Nagato didn't reprimand him for his snapping this time.
Clearing his throat as he measured the teen, he asked, "So, I hear you got into a bit off a scuffle with the other villages." he spoke, Sasuke mentally groaning. Didn't this idiot know how to read the room? "From the rumors, you kicked their asses pretty good, eh?" he joked.
Sasuke felt mildly confused for a moment. Kicked their asses? He knocked out some guards, dodged the sand siblings, failed to run away, then was tortured for hours on end. He ran away, stitched himself up, then got caught again. Leading to a repeat of the torture process. He had barely run away, let alone 'kicked ass'. Where had they got that idea? "Actually-" he began, but the other cut him off.
He felt a pounding on his back as the man laughed, "Don't try to be modest, now. I heard all about how you joined Tobi in taking down the ruthless Kazekage, then stuck behind as you two were cornered. Good thing, too. Tobi might be a 'good boy' but I don't know if he's good enough to hold out under interrogation like you did. Helping him escape probably saved his life." he grinned, hands firmly resting on Sasuke's shoulders.
"Then as soon as they were done interrogating you, wham!" he grinned, "Escaped, knocking out anyone in your way. With such big injuries, too! How you managed to escape them plus steal their medical supplies to stitch yourself up is beyond me. You're quite the little sneak master, aren't you?" he joked as he twirled him around to get his back measurements.
He clapped his hands as he finished measuring, not allowing Sasuke a moment to bring up his objections. "Not to mention tracking down a leaf jonin to force him to bring you into the leaf village! Talk about mad skills and bravery. Going to make sure the others finished off the Hokage after you escaped took some serious balls. Then calling forth the Akatsuki to deal the village some extra damage, I've not heard such a cold-blooded and epic story in years! You'll become a great ninja one day." he grinned. "Already are, actually. Ey, who knows, maybe that little stunt was enough to have your father consider you for the Akatsuki. No use waiting with bravery like yours-"
"Shut up." came a calm yet firm command from a nearby rack. Sasori was helping Gaara try on a few jackets, the older not bothering to look at the shop keeper as he spoke. "Sasuke does not wish to speak about it, as you would know if you were able to keep quiet for more than a tenth of a second. Leave him be. What happened on that mission is no one in this village's business. Quiet down, measure him and ask his preferences. You have no right to be blabbering on to him. Know your station, shop-keeper, or I will personally put you in it. Both you and your wife." the red-head thinking back to the pushy lady who had blabbered onto Karin.
The man looked frozen as he heard this, opening then shutting his mouth before holding the fabrics out for a mildly uncomfortable Sasuke to choose them. The teen sent Sasori a grateful look before pointing to a charmeuse sample. "In black, please," he asked softly, the man nodding in a rush.
Seeing the design as the man drew, Sasuke corrected lightly, "I'd prefer long sleeves this time."
The shop keeper looked ready to question it since Sasuke had always worn his sleeves short with shorts, but Sasori's warning look stopped him. "...Long pants too?" a nod was all it took for him to resume his sketching. "How is this?"
Sasuke nodded, looking him over. "Good, but could you add the Uchiha symbol on the arms too?" deciding it would be nice rather than just the back as usual. A firm nod came from the man before he drew them on. Sasuke nodded a bit, feeling awkward with how the man's eyes lowered and he quieted down. Sometimes it was hard to remember that the Akatsuki were S-Rank ninja, easily able to kill nearly anyone when they were so close to Sasuke. Seeing the man's open and blabbermouth personality quiet down so quickly with a warning from Sasori, though, Sasuke found himself easily being reminded.
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Naruto was the next to bound over, being in a much better mood than the others before him. "Heyo!" he greeted, nodding in greeting to the older man who was measuring him. When he only got a firm nod back in greeting, Naruto frowned a bit.
He had heard the scolding a moment ago and was mildly disappointed that things had played out as he had imagined. It looked like the Akatsuki had scared another one quiet. It was kind of annoying, how easily everyone bent backward to listen to the Akatsuki. Naruto couldn't think of a single person inside their village who would get in even a fight with them.
It was pretty dumb, in Naruto's opinion. Sure, they were really powerful and stuff, but it isn't like they'd hurt anyone too bad, right? They were the village protectors, right? It never made sense to Naruto how the Akatsuki could be so protective of the village and threaten it at the same time. It just seemed kind of counterproductive.
He guessed it couldn't be helped, though. Even if Naruto didn't like thinking about it, the Akatsuki were technically criminals. S-Rank ones at that. It made sense for the village to fear them. Naruto just...didn't understand why it had to be like that. He really wished it could be different, but he supposed he was only thinking that way because he didn't know much about running a village.
That would change soon, though. After all, he was supposed to be training under Nagato before this all started. He knew his father was going to be making some changes based on what he had said this morning, but he hoped that he would still be able to train under him. It would suck if the reforming of the Akatsuki made it so that he would have to learn from someone else.
If it did happen, he'd accept it, though. He knew Nagato wouldn't put him under someone who would suck as a teacher. Father knows best, Naruto figured. He turned, allowing the man measuring him to get his other side. The other had said nothing in the last few minutes, he mentally sighed.
Well, if the shop keeper wasn't talking, Naruto guessed now was as good a time as any to talk with Nagato about it. "Dad? With everything going on, am I still going to get to train under you? I know you've been busy with leading and everything but you haven't really taught me anything yet." he pouted, immature as always.
Nagato sighed from his spot a few feet away. "I'm sorry, Naruto. Things have been hectic in the last few weeks. We've been so focused on Sasuke that we've not had much of a chance to work on training our students. Or to focus on you all much at all, for that matter." tone a bit saddened. "I can't confirm nor deny the idea that your internships will be delayed or even completely stopped. We need to focus on the bigger picture to ensure this village's as well as all of your safety. So until further notice, they're put on an extended hiatus. I don't just mean yours or your siblings, either. I mean all the ninja in the program. I'll make the announcement public tomorrow." he explained.
Naruto nodded, sad, but understanding. There was a lot going on, so he could understand that they couldn't be focusing on just them right now. He might not be the most intelligent of his siblings, but he was smart enough to know that the Akatsuki recking the leaf village would put not only the sand village but all the villages on high alert. Especially now that it was clear they were alive.
It was years later, but Naruto finally understood why his elder classmates had doubted they were picked randomly. It was true, everything they had said. It had frustrated and confused him at the time, but Naruto now understood how important they were. Two of them had the Byakugan. Two of them held a tailed beast. Then, finally, two of them were some of the last in their bloodlines.
Whether it was on accident or on purpose, they were important. "I know. Things are probably going to be different now." he grinned optimistically, however. "That doesn't give you an excuse to not at least teach me some cool ninjutsu in your free time, though. You can't hold out of me forever." he joked, Nagato smiling back at the teen as he did so.
This seemed to set the shop keeper in at least a bit of a better mood, too. The man gave a small smile, holding out the fabric and color choices for the teen. Naruto quickly pointed to a chenille sample, "That one, in orange, please. With the Uzumaki symbol on the back and down the sleeves." liking Sasuke's idea of having their clan symbols down the sleeve.
He could feel Sasuke's accusing 'how dare you copy me' glare, but ignored it as the sketch was drawn out. It looked great. "Yeah, that's great. Thanks!" he grinned, hopping off down the measuring area and humming, "Gaara, your go."
Sasori sighed a bit. That was his cue.
Even after all these years, Gaara still disliked being touched by those outside his family. It had taken a lot for him to trust even them, so there was no way a shop keeper they saw maybe once every few weeks in passing would be allowed to touch him. As such, it had become a set idea that every time they visited, Sasori took the measurements and the man helped design and show off the products for him to pick from.
Gaara quietly got up onto the measuring area, Sasori picking up the tool beside him. Sasori's quick and gentle movements caused Gaara no fear, the teen standing perfectly still as he was measured. Sasori smiled a bit at the boy as he measured his waist. "You've gained a few pounds."
Now, normally, that would be a terrible thing to say to a teenager. Gaara was, of course, the exception. The teen's lips curved into a thin smile as he was measured, Sasori praising, "You're getting close to our goal. You're almost average weight." the elder approved, wrapping the tape around his arm. "I'm proud."
Gaara didn't bother stuffing down the smile that was slowly growing. He had noticed in the mirror that he was gaining weight-- just as they had been working at for a while. After all, being too underweight was never a good thing for a ninja. It would allow any wounds he got to bleed out faster. If he was stuck in the cold, he'd freeze quicker. Not to mention it would make it easier to hit his organs or snap a bone. Everyone needs a little meat on their bones, at least enough that they're healthy.
It was one thing to have a fast metabolism, it was another to have your tailed beast chomping away at your being due to loose sealing. Not to mention, Gaara had been scrawny since birth. So a few added pounds were cause for praise. "Yeah, I've been trying to keep up with our schedule even though we've been busy." he smiled, "I'm glad it's working out."
Sasori turned him around for his other measurements, the teen folding his hands in front of him, back straight. So far, today had been good. He could see Sasuke getting his jacket back from Kakashi a few feet away. He supposed Neji must have given it to him, then. It seemed like he was wearing it an awful lot and Neji didn't seem to be batting an eye.
Whatever made them happy, Gaara supposed. "You know, Gaara, you could get something besides your normal red and brown tunic. Maybe some designs or something of that sort?" Sasori suggested. "Naruto and Sasuke got their clan symbols, Neji got his feathers, perhaps something of that sort?"
The teen considered it briefly. What would be wear as a symbol? He was born from the Kazekage clan, but they didn't exactly have a symbol besides...well...the sand village symbol. It wasn't like he wanted to show off their symbol after what they had done to Sasuke. Not to mention it would make him a target for sand village enemies. Perhaps something like Neji's, then?
Neji had picked feathers, probably because of his freedom philosophy. Gaara didn't really have a philosophy, he noted. He had morals, of course. Rules he set for himself. Choices he knew he'd make no matter what.
He would always protect his loved ones. He'd never shy away from his own feelings, as he had come to learn they were part of him. Ah, perhaps that was it. He could wear a symbol for something he loved and that was part of him. Let's see. There was the Akatsuki, his siblings, his sand, and his hobbies. Ah, there it was. His hobbies. He supposed training and occasionally being allowed to toy with Sasori's puppets wouldn't work. Maybe gardening, then? He liked to garden.
Yes, that would work. He'd not mind that at all. "Can I get a flower vine along the back of my shoulder line?" he suggested, "Plus the cuffs of my tunic, if it's alright," he asked, glancing over at Sasori who nodded in permission.
"That sounds like a great idea. What kind of flower do you want on the vine?" he quirked a brow, the shop keeper already making notes in his note-pad off to the side.
Gaara thought only briefly before asking, "A dark red dahlia." he decided rather quickly, always having loved the flower. There were quite a few growing in the training woods, actually. He glanced over at the man's design, seeing a long-sleeved red tunic with leg flaps and a sand holder on the waste. The flower designs could be seen as well in just the right spot. He smiled a bit, "Yes, that's good. As for the fabric, the usual leather-linen, please." he noted, smiling thinly as Sasori lightly patted his head, motioning the boy off the stand.
"Alright. We got it. That just leaves Hinata then, I suppose. Could you go get her for us, Gaara?" the elder redhead asked. Gaara needed no further prompting before he was off to fetch his one and only younger sister.
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Finally, Hinata's turn came around. The youngest of the children headed over, standing on the measurement area. She stayed still for the young woman who was measuring her, not wanting to cause her any trouble. She was quiet but thoughtful as she side-eyed her siblings and the Akatsuki members.
She watched as they all chose their general clothes. What she saw didn't surprise her too much, for the most part. After all, they were her siblings. She knew them better than anyone.
Neji was picking mostly colorless fabrics, either whites or blacks. An occasional brown was mixed in, but for the most part, it remained the same. All long-sleeved, making him look like some sort of celestial being. It was amazing, honestly. Only Neji was able to take such simple outfits and make them look surreal. Kisame was shoving some sword holsters into his arms too, so she supposed he would be getting some of those. After all, everyone knew Kisame was one of the few people Neji openly admired.
All the items in Neji's arms fell, however, as he was crashed into from behind. The elder sent Karin a scolding look as he rubbed his shoulder. "Karin," he spoke warningly. "The spirits gave you two eyes, use them and watch where you're going." his Byakugan activating in aggravation, though they all knew he'd not use it on them. Karin, unfortunately, used this to her advantage.
"Yeah, yeah, you got the big scary byagkugan. You're a threat, we got it. But you're barking up the wrong tree. Sasuke's the one who pushed me into you." she scoffed, ignoring his threatening gaze as she picked up her purple and black shirts from the ground. Idiot brothers, she silently noted.
Sasuke gave her a glare for her accusation. "Only because you don't understand personal space. Stop breathing down my throat every two seconds and I wouldn't have shoved you." he held tightly onto his mixture of blue and black outfits.
"Well, maybe I wouldn't be breathing down your neck if you weren't arguing with Naruto every two seconds," she spoke, resting a hand on her hips as she did so, silently daring him to tell her she was wrong. Sasuke looked ready to take the challenge when Neji apparently chose his side.
The Hyuuga dusted off his pants, "Otouto, you two need to stop fighting. We're in the middle of a shop, you'll cause property damage. Or, worse, hurt each other." he scolded, both him and Karin staring Sasuke down. The raven glared at them with offense as he was cornered.
Damn it, Neji. Not helping, he noted mentally. "Well, don't just be looking at me, Naruto did it too. He's the one who started it." motioning to the blonde who was pointedly ignoring the conversation up until that point. Naruto tossed a jacket at Sasuke's head, much to the Uchiha's annoyance.
Sasuke whipped around, Sharingan flashing with their new design. They were red, but instead of three tomoe, there was one connected design. It had a black center with five thick and wavy lines swirling out of it. Sasuke growled at Naruto, the blonde jumping back a bit at the unfamiliar design. "Hey, bastard, don't look at me like that. What's wrong with your Sharingan?" the younger teen looking interested but wary.
Looking mildly offended, Sasuke glared harder, "There's nothing wrong with my Sharingan, idiot. Mind your own business or I'll kick you-" his thought process being interrupted as he felt something cover his eyes. He jumped, not having expected it. He whipped his head around, realizing it was a pair of hands. "What was that for?" he asked, trying to shake them off.
"Don't look at other people while your mangekyo Sharingan is activated. We still don't know what power you activated." the voice of his elder brother scolded. Sasuke opened his mouth to resort, but Itachi easily cut him off. "I realize it's a reflex to becoming angry, but if your Sharingan activates, point it elsewhere. Not at your siblings." he directed, finally letting go of Sasuke and moving his hands out from in front of his eyes.
Sasuke pouted a bit, never enjoying being scolded by Itachi, even if he was a lot older now. His sulking was interrupted as Gaara came up beside him, asking curiously, "Why are your eyes like that, nii-san?" he tilted his head while going through the racks. "Itachi has them too, but I've never seen them anywhere else. Is it an Uchiha thing? Do you get them when you turn a certain age?" he asked with interest, apparently not fearing Itachi's earlier worries of accidental pain if Sasuke misused his new power on accident. After all, that would make him a bit of a hypocrite, would it not?
The young Uchiha was surprised by his question but answered it. "No, from what I know, it activates when you see someone you love die. You've probably not seen it elsewhere because of the massacre." finally able to talk about the event without bawling his eyes out, though it had taken many years of comfort from both Itachi and the rest of his new family.
Neji asked with interest, "Itachi said something about power. Is it inherited or unique to each person?" he questioned. He had previously assumed that the Byakugan and Sharingan were pretty similar, but was surprised to find out that there was another level to the Sharingan. The Byakugan didn't have the next level, as far as he knew.
Sasuke shook his head a bit as he picked through the clothes. "It's unique to each person. I think I've got a clue of what one of the powers is, but I have no idea what the other is." he explained, "You get one in each eye. It's usually a mental power in one and a physical power in the other. The mental one is pretty obvious, so I figured it out already." he explained, his Sharingan finally dulling as he relaxed.
Naruto roughly nudged his side, "Well, don't keep us waiting bastard, what is it?" he demanded, Sasuke reaching over and knocking him over the head on reflex.
"Give me a damn minute and I will." he glared before returning to the clothes. "I can see energy." he explained bluntly, seeing Neji open his mouth, he glared, "Not like the Byakugan." giving a light pout at the idea. If his Sharingan had 'upgraded' to a Byakugan copy, he'd be pissed.
"How then?" Hinata finally spoke up from her spot on the measuring stand. If he could see energy, but not like them, then what was he seeing? Maybe he could see the separate parts of the chakra instead of the full rush in their body? She had heard from her biological father when she was little that very few skilled Hyuuga could do that.
Sasuke glanced over his shoulder as he heard his sister's question. "I don't just see human energy. I see...everything." lightly motioning around them. Seeing the confused looks he got, he huffed a bit, pointing to a glass of water. "It has water energy. It's sitting in a cup with earth energy." he pointed to the ground, lightly tapping the wooden planks with his shoe. "More earth energy." pointing to the lightbulbs above them. "Lightning energy." before crossing his arms.
Hinata and Neji's eyes both widened at that, knowing just how much chakra that must be based on what they had seen in people alone. Naruto looked unimpressed, however. "So what, you know that water is water and wood is earth. No shit. What good does that do you?" he huffed. "Why didn't you get a cool power like the Tsukuyomi?"
Sasuke looked annoyed now but did his best to keep his tempter. He knew Naruto meant no harm, but he seriously needed to work on not being so blunt. "I don't get to pick my power, idiot. I don't know what I'm supposed to do with it either, but I'll figure it out eventually." waving the other off with annoyance.
Itachi lightly sat his hands on Sasuke's shoulder from behind, "It most likely has something to do with his other mangekyo. It will reveal itself, in time. I'm sure it will be just as useful as the Tsukuyomi, once he figures out how to use it." he nodded firmly, offering the teens a light smile.
With Itachi entering in the ring, their bantering seemed to fall loose rather quickly. It was a skill to envy, Hinata noted. All Itachi had to do was step in for a brief moment with his assurances and all would fall in line. He leads them with love and gentleness, something her birth father had always claimed as impossible. It was one of the many reasons she looked up to him. His ability to soothe nearly any conversation was unmatched.
He was the image of pacifism, in her eyes. She knew what he had done, of course. They all did, of all the members. They weren't children anymore. They knew that by most standards, the Akatsuki were terrible people. None the less, they were still their family, and she could easily see the good in all of them.
Hinata could only hope that she'd be able to follow in Itachi's philosophy. She hated fighting, but she knew it was necessary sometimes. Maybe Itachi could show her how he did it sometime, she silently noted. She'd have to ask.
She was snapped out of her thoughts as a voice came from behind her. "Hinata, dear, what fabric do you want?" she tilted her head.
Hinata flustered a bit at her spacing out, bowing her head a bit in apology before glancing at the fabric choices. She decided to go with something basic. "Cotton, in purple, please," she asked.
A firm nod was given from the woman, a design being drawn within moments. Hinata looked it over. A long-sleeved purple shirt with pockets, she noted. "Can you add some netting on the arms?" figuring it would be a nice change. The woman easily obliged, finishing off the children's clothes designs at last.
Finally, they were done shopping for the day. Kakuzu had already bitterly paid in full, so they could leave and bring the majority of their clothes home at last. All that was left was the custom designs, which would be done in a few days' time. They were top priority customers, after all.