troubles
025. liar

(i've been in a pretty happy, fluffy mood lately, so this will be non-massacre. :3)

Let's face it. Uchiha Itachi was irresistible. Even Uchiha Sasuke's got nothing on him.

There were a few main differences between the two Uchihas. For one, Itachi matured at a much faster rate. When he was thirteen, he was already in the ANBU. When Sasuke was thirteen, he was still a genin.

A genin.

Itachi's hair made much more sense. It didn't defy gravity, like the cockatoo hair of another Uchiha we knew.

And Itachi actually talked. (Yeah, he talked. Be jealous.) That was probably the biggest factor that made Haruno Sakura fall for him. Itachi had the capability to hold a conversation.

But then again, everyone had his flaws. Like Itachi's tendency to protect his dignity, even if it meant bullshitting his way through it.

Which brought us to this predicament here.

Sakura wasn't heartbroken. Nah—she was more than that.

She was fucking angry.

She and Naruto had planned to go to Ichiraku for ramen when she found Itachi—her sexy, sexy boyfriend—having lunch with another woman. Now, normally, she wouldn't mind. She had lunch with Naruto and Sasuke alone all the time as friends, so that didn't mean Itachi couldn't do that same. Except—except he was doing inappropriate things.

Like touching her. Brushing some hair out of her face, putting his arm around her shoulders—even leaning in to kiss her. But thank God that didn't happen, because she pushed him away.

She pushed him away, and giggled.

Like they were flirting.

Oh, that bitch was going to get it.

(Personally, Sakura never thought that Itachi was one to cheat. Because he had pride, and whatnot. He wouldn't be caught dead with another woman when he was already taken.)

(But obviously, she thought wrong.)

Stomping angrily into Ichiraku, leaving Naruto rather befuddled, she shoved the happily flirting couple off of their stools. Itachi, being an agile shinobi, landed on his feet effortlessly. Unfortunately for his counterpart, however, she fell gracelessly to the floor.

Hah. Served her right.

"First of all." She put her hands on her hips as the other woman hastily picked herself up and brushed her clothes off. "You"—Sakura jabbed a finger at her chest—"stay away from my man. And secondly," she turned around to face Itachi, scowling, "don't think we're still together after this." Tears were brimming at her eyes (angry tears. Of course they were angry tears) as she turned and stalked out. "Naruto, we're going somewhere else for lunch."

"Eh? But I wanted ramen!"

"We're going somewhere else."

"But Sakura-chaaan—ow!"

x

"I mean—tomorrow was our six month anniversary, too!" She stabbed her fork angrily into her cheesecake. "He even said he'd take me out for dinner and everything. Now all that's down the drain."

Naruto, who clearly was not used to consoling of this kind, ate his sandwich miserably, mourning for the lack of ramen.

"And who is she, anyway?" Sakura continued, feeling incredibly upset. "She didn't even look like a shinobi. Hey, Naruto, d'you think she's part of the Uchiha clan? Do you think Itachi's dad wouldn't let him date someone like me because I wasn't part of the clan?"

"I don't know, Sakura-chan. Ask Sasuke about this."

"Sasuke doesn't talk."

"…Well, I suppose you could just ask Itachi about it, right? I didn't think he'd be the type to cheat, and I'm never wrong in judging people. So go talk to him about it!"

Sakura blinked. "You're crazy. No way."

Naruto shrugged. "Then deal with it, then. You're the only one who can fix it, and if you won't, no one will."

She frowned, because she knew he was right.

x

The next day, she saw Itachi at the market, picking out some fresh tomatoes—for Sasuke, no doubt. Upon seeing him, she froze and looked for a place to hide. (Instead of using her expert kunoichi skills, because—well, just because.)

"Sakura." Before she knew it, though, he had already made it to her. "How are you today?"

Frowning, she crossed her arms and looked away. "How my day is isn't your concern anymore." But he was looking gorgeous today…

(Not that he didn't usually look gorgeous.)

"And why is that?" Itachi raised a delicate eyebrow. "Today is our six month anniversary, is it not?" How could he still think that they were together? She clearly dumped him yesterday! This was why she hated Uchihas…

"We broke up yesterday," she said, frowning. "Are you stupid?"

"You clearly left before I could explain anything to you." It was a little unnerving, how he could talk about this so calmly with a bag of tomatoes in his hand. If it was any other situation, it would've been comical. "Would you give me the time of day to?"

"Well…" She looked away. "Maybe."

She wasn't sure how she was supposed to feel about the smirk on his lips.

x

"So let me get this straight," she said, sitting up straighter on one of the couches in his living room. "She was your…counsellor?"

"Yes." Itachi leaned back in his seat across from her.

"For what?"

He looked at her evenly for a long moment before answering. "Females."

She blinked. "Females," she echoed.

"One female, to be exact. You."

The idea was so far-fetched, she wasn't sure if she should believe it. But then again, this was Uchiha Itachi she was dealing with—anything was possible. Quite literally. "Why?"

"You were making a large fuss about today." At this point, he looked away. "I was…insecure, for the lack of a better word, that I wouldn't meet your expectations."

What expectations?

"So what, you use another girl as a dummy to practice?" she asked sarcastically, crossing her arms and leaning back. Despite being one of the most promising members of the ANBU, his stupidity really shone through at moments like this.

"That's another way to put it, yes."

"You sicken me."

"Oh?" He looked amused. "Does that mean I'm forgiven?"

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Sakura wasn't sure if she could allow her boyfriend to do something as ridiculous as seeing a counsellor for dating problems—but it was Itachi, and Itachi was different from everyone else. And that was why she liked him. (He even had the ability to talk, after all.)

"Just this once, okay?" she said indignantly. "I won't forgive you if you ever do it again!"

His trademark smirk appeared again as he stood up from the couch. "Of course." With that, he crossed the short distance between them and caught her lips in a kiss.

Right. So this was why she went out with him.

Counsellor or not, Sakura wasn't letting him go.

"So," she said once he pulled away for them to breathe, "what else did that woman teach you?"

A/N: Somehow, I feel like this one isn't very strong. The idea was vague, and it was conveyed poorly. But nevertheless, I hope you guys liked it!

Oh, and I have Twitter! If you guys would like to follow me (and my stupid, pointless life), the link is on my profile. :3