"I want you, Itachi. . ." A hissing voice. Defenseless. Fear engulfing his body. Unable to move. So dirty.
Itachi leaned against the tile wall. Despite the coolness, sweat was beading down his face. The images wouldn't stop. Suddenly, a soft hand was laid on his shoulder. Lurching from his memories, Itachi flinched at the contact.
"Itachi?" A warm, friendly voice.
"K-Kisame?" Itachi stuttered, turning around. Kisame was standing there, arms open and welcoming. Itachi tentatively placed his smaller, frailer body against Kisame's chest. Kisame wrapped his arms around Itachi, letting his hands rest on the lower part of Itachi's back.
"Do you want to talk?" Kisame asked softly.
"I'm not mad at Deidara. . ." Itachi said slowly. "It just sort of. . .a lot of memories sort of came up. . ."
"Do you need to talk about those?" Kisame asked.
"Just. . .when Orochimaru tried to- tried to-" Itachi gulped. "When Orochimaru tried to have sex with me- just- a lot of images. . ."
"I guess I got there too late," Kisame whispered.
"I'm just lucky Kakuzu and you got there at all," Itachi replied shakily.
"Am I. . .did he get any farther than what I saw?" Kisame asked quietly.
"No. . .he just got as far as you saw. . ."
"But that was still. . ." Kisame sighed. "I'm sorry, but I'm no good with words. I- I really wish I could give you more support. But I'm not sure what I can do." Itachi said nothing, simply allowing Kisame to hold him.
"All you have to do is be here, Kisame. Orochimaru might not even make an appearance after the beating Kakuzu gave him."
"But he knows Kakuzu isn't here. But if he tries anything, I swear, I'll give him twice the beating Kakuzu gave him." Itachi sighed, sounding a bit more content.
"I'm just overreacting. . ."
"No. What he did to you was horrible, and only happened three years ago. He left a lot of scars mentally and emotionally, and those scars need to heal." Kisame held Itachi tighter. "I want to help."
"Thank you, Kisame," Itachi whispered. Kisame rested his chin on Itachi's inky haired head, feeling like he had breached a barrier between he and Itachi had been conquered.
Deidara sat, slightly relaxed, slightly nervous, at a kitchen table. Across from him was Mrs. Uzumaki, to his right was Tobi, and directly to his left was Naruto. And, finally, far to the left, was Mr. Uzumaki. "So, Deidara, Tobi says you've come to a decision on your baby," Mrs. Uzumaki said. Deidara stiffened, glancing at Tobi.
"Um. . ." he coughed. "Well, I can't get someone to adopt it. . ." Deidara sighed. "I'm going to try to raise it, un." He looked around. All eyes were on him.
"Are you sure?" Mrs. Uzumaki said quietly. Deidara nodded. Subtly, he felt a hand on his knee. Tobi was with him. Shakily, Deidara gave a nod.
"I don't want to let it go to an orphanage, hmm. And no one wants, or can, adopt it, so I'm willing to raise it." Deidara gulped.
"Well, I suppose there have been worse parents," Mr. Uzumaki said, looking at Tobi. Mrs. Uzumaki reached over and picked up Deidara's plate.
"You're too skinny, still. You need to gain weight," Mrs. Uzumaki said. Deidara blinked.
"I am? But I've gained weight, yeah. . ." Deidara glanced at his stomach.
"You're growing a baby. When I was pregnant, they kept telling me to gain weight when I was a little fleshier than you. You need weight." Mrs. Uzumaki handed Deidara back his plate. "And I do expect to help you out a bit, if I can. Where do you know you'll be going once this year ends?"
"Uh. . .I'm working on it, un. . ." Deidara sighed. "Once I go to graduation, I don't think they'll let me back in, yeah. I'm trying to apply to some easy schools to get a scholarship for, but I'm not exactly expecting to get in, hmm. I'm hoping I can share an apartment with Kakuzu until I can get some money together, but I don't know, un."
"You can stay with us until you find somewhere, if you want," Mrs. Uzumaki said after a long pause. "I know Tobi's applying to some schools, but if he doesn't get into a dorm, you can stay with him." Deidara was looking slightly overwhelmed.
"I- I can't take advantage of your hospitality, yeah. . ." he said softly. Mr. Uzumaki cleared his throat.
"It's just common sense, Deidara. If you don't have anywhere to stay, it's our responsibility to offer you a place to stay until you can find one on your own," he said, giving Deidara a serious look. Deidara blinked.
"Arigato, Uzumaki-san," he said politely, bowing his head.
"You know, you can call me Kashina-san," Mrs. Uzumaki said.
"And you can call me Minato-san," Mr. Uzumaki said.
As dinner continued, Deidara gradually warmed up to the Uzumakis. Suddenly, though, a look of surprise leapt to Deidara's face and he pushed back his chair. "What's wrong?" asked Mrs. Uzumaki.
"Nothing, the baby was just kicking, un," Deidara said quietly.
"Cool! Can I feel?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto! Where are your manners?" Mrs. Uzumaki cried.
"It's all right," Deidara said. Naruto got out of his chair and knelt by Deidara's side. Deidara guided Naruto's hand, and the baby kicked again. Naruto jumped and grinned.
"Wow. . ." he whispered. Deidara smiled down at him. Deidara didn't see it, but all others were smiling.
"Would you like to stay the night?" Mrs. Uzumaki asked once Naruto had gotten back in his chair.
"Ah, I would love to, but. . .I have an ultra-sound tomorrow, yeah," he said honestly.
"Oh? I'm sure we could take you. It would be no trouble at all."
"But I really shouldn't impose on you, un," Deidara insisted.
"Deidara, I want to go," Tobi said firmly. Deidara stared at Tobi for a moment before nodding his consent.
"Thank you, Tobi," he said, giving a grateful smile.
"No problem, Deidara," Tobi replied. "You'd better finish your dinner. Mom's right, you are too skinny."
Dr. Might looked down at the few notes he had taken during the past hour. He glanced at the clock. Make that an hour and seven minutes. "So, Obito, do you have anything you'd like to tell me?" Dr. Might asked politely. Silence. "Oh? Well, I suppose you wouldn't mind if I asked you a few questions, then?" Still silence. "We've talked quite a bit about your parents. I haven't heard much about your brother, though. Would you tell me the first thing that comes to mind when you think of him?" Obito sat up and looked over at Dr. Might.
"Messy," he stated.
"I see."
"Messy like his hair. . ." Obito stared off for a moment, before snapping back into reality. "And he's always somehow involved in a mess."
"Would you consider your home life a mess?" Dr. Might asked.
"Of course. And Kakuzu was the one who raised me, I guess, so he sort of made a mess of things. . ." Dr. Might felt anger bubble within himself at such words. But he controlled himself.
"So you blame the way you are on him?" Dr. Might asked, attempting to keep his voice neutral.
"Of course. If you raised your son like he raised me, wouldn't your son be entitled to blame you?"
"I don't think so. I would think he would have to take a little of the blame for not rising above his obstacles." Dr. Might knew this was pushing it with Obito's sensitive psyche.
"So you wouldn't have your son blame you for being an obstacle?" Obito asked.
"I would have my son blame me if all I did was stand in his way and ruin his life. But I don't believe that's what your brother did or does, now is it?"
"Of course that's what he did. His gross negligence let a lot of things happen to me," Obito replied.
"Can you tell me some of the things he did that were negligent?" Dr. Might asked.
"He left me on my own a lot when he was at work. He always left my parents' stash unguarded and let me get into it." Obito leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "Whenever I left, he never followed me to find out what I was doing. He never questioned my friends, or hid my dad's weapons." Obito lapsed into silence. Dr. Might jotted down a note or two.
"It seems to me you're overlooking what he did do for you. Can you remember anything good he did for you?"
"He never did anything. He was always leaving me alone when he was working, and then he'd be too tired to do anything but make dinner, pack me a lunch, take a shower, and go to sleep."
"But aren't those things he did for you? Make you dinner and pack you a lunch?"
"Those are just essentials! He never did anything with me!" Obito cried.
"Didn't he? Nothing on the weekends?"
"He took me to movies, but he was always working. We never did anything just as brothers."
"But isn't going to the movies doing something with you?" Dr. Might argued.
"Yeah, well, he wasn't nice about it. He just sort of dragged me there, sat through the movie, bought me a soda, and then we left. And the shit really hit the fan when he got together with Hidan. As if his whiney friends weren't enough to take up his time, he now spent his free time with Hidan."
"Hidan? Are you, might I ask, jealous?"
"Of course not! But Hidan has normal parents that actually take care of him, unlike Kakuzu. So I don't see why Kakuzu needed to spend so much time with him."'
"Do you mean he had parents, which Kakuzu didn't, or that Kakuzu wasn't a good parent to you?"
"He wasn't a good parent to me, but Hidan had nice, normal parents. If Kakuzu was going to bother being a half-assed parent, he could at least be a half-assed parent for someone who needed one." Obito fell silent again.
"I see. So you feel he was being a parent to someone who didn't need it?"
"Yes! And he was ignoring me!" Obito cried. Dr. Might wrote something down.
"I see. How did that make you feel?" Obito looked desperately into Dr. Might's eyes.
"Like I was just being abandoned all over again," he said softly. Dr. Might nodded.
"So you feel abandoned by your parents?" he asked. Obito remained silent. Dr. Might tried not to sigh. Only when he mentioned Kakuzu could he get anything out of Obito. "I see you're done talking. Is there anything else you'd like to say?" Obito shook his head. "I think we've made some real progress. Would you like me to escort you back to your room, or have a doctor do it?"
"Doctor," he said simply, standing up and going to the door. I stood up and opened the door for him, looking around to see a doctor already waiting with another teenager. Why, I asked myself, to the teenagers always go crazy? I smiled kindly at him as the doctor led Obito off.
"Hello, my name's Dr. Might, or Gai, or whatever you want to call me," I introduced.
"I'm Zetsu," the teen said, his face completely emotionless. He held out his file. "You probably won't like it, but here it is," he said, looking sulkily down at the floor. I stepped back, allowing him into the office.
"Sit wherever you like," I said as I opened the file. The first word that jumped out at me was 'cannibalism'. My, you didn't get many of those these days. As he read on, he found Zetsu was raised by the children of a strange colt that believed cannibalism was right. Dr. might looked up at Zetsu, giving him a warm smile. "So, Zetsu, it seems you attend the same school and grade as my son. Do you like school?" Dr. Might sat down in his chair, still smiling at Zetsu.
"You're disgusted, aren't you?" he asked. "Everyone is, you know. So what if my parents have been accused of eating people? Does that mean I did anything?"
"No, I didn't say you did anything. And no matter what your parents are accused of, you are still your own person," Dr. Might said soothingly. He wrote down a note or two. Finally, an easy patient. "What people have said these things to you?"
"It was all over the papers. Everyone in school, all my teachers, and the neighbors all seemed to think they needed to give me their opinion."
"How old were you?"
"Sixth grade, to about eighth grade."
"What sorts of things did they say?" Dr. Might asked. Zetsu sighed.
"Did you turn the first page?" he asked.
"You seem to have this memorized," I commented as I flipped the page. '. . .in his own blood, written on the walls of the bathroom. . .' "Oh. Did they say the things you wrote?" Zetsu nodded. "I see. Well, what do you think drove you to write on the walls with your own blood?" Zetsu pointed to his head.
"It's in my mind," he replied calmly. Dr. Might glanced back down at the page. '. . .diagnosed delusional schizophrenic. . .'
"In your mind? Does it speak to you?" Dr. Might found himself wondering if one person could be diagnosed with multiple types of schizophrenia. Of course, he knew that, but he'd never really diagnosed someone with all of them at once.
"Not really. . .but it effects me. It sort of, well, I sort of feel what it wants to say."
"What do you think 'it' is?" Dr. Might asked politely.
"I don't really know. But it makes me feel things. Some days I feel sort of. . .light, and others I'm gloomy."
"Do you think you feel this way because of 'it', or because of something that happened?" Dr. Might asked. He was stuck at a very poorly written sentence in the file. 'Zetsu was raised by parents who were raised by a cannibalistic cult. Said cult believed cannibalism was a sin.' What the hell was that supposed to mean? Should he ask? He looked back up at Zetsu who was smiling slightly.
"Catch the typo?" he asked.
"The one about the cult and the sin?" Dr. Might asked.
"Yes, I believe that's the one. I've read my file many times, and it constantly irks me. I'm a stickler for getting the facts right, you know. I can be quite anal sometimes. But they won't let me rewrite it, because they think I'll change things that I don't see fit." Zetsu shook his head at 'their' naivety.
"How do you feel about your file?" Dr. Might asked. Zetsu shrugged.
"I don't feel shamed. It's one of the few places that has all the facts about me, and all are correct, except for that one. Would you like me to correct it?"
"If you feel a need to."
"The cult believed cannibalism wasn't a sin, as many others believe otherwise. They didn't condemn those of their members who partook in this activity, shall we say." Zetsu was sitting upright in the chair, legs crossed professionally. He didn't look the part of a mental patient.
"I see. Well, that certainly clarifies things," Dr. Might said, marking the page with a pen.
"May I ask you a question?"
"Shoot."
"Do you believe cannibalism is wrong?" Dr. Might found himself in a difficult situation.
"It depends," he said. "Hurting anything is something that's wrong. . ."
"I don't like it, either," Zetsu said, grinning wider. Dr. Might got the feeling he was dealing with something otherworldly and above him. And, suddenly, he began to wish for Obito again.
A/N: Hallo everyone! I know this chapter is short, but this weekend my family is having a sleepathon! We all just sleep the whole weekend! So I might not update for a while, because I have other shit to work on (cough WRITING CLUB cough) but I can make one promise: I will forever hate myself for the fluff at the beginning of this chapter. I'm sorry, but there was no way of ending that without going on a completely different track! I mean, fuck, I can't STOP adding to this plot! I was thinking to myself 'Nikki, people on the internet don't want this much depth. They just want two guys screwing.' But then it hit me: this story is rated T! No lemons allowed! So, yah, I'm giving each character depth. And I need to play up Obito's bastardness for his future role. NOTE: The psychiatrist part is NOT planned! The whole story should've ended CHAPTERS ago! Review please, and thank you for reading!