Disclaimer: If I owned it, at this very moment, Naruto, Itachi and numerous other men would be duking it out for Sakura's hand in marriage.
Is that happening?
No?
Hmph.

Carnal
By Tsukiko Hoshino

Crows bewail the dead sheep, and then eat them.
(Proverb, unknown)

"What in hells name did I do last night?" Were the rather eloquent words Sakura spat out after her alarm clock had the nerve to go off at six in the morning.

It felt like she'd been trampled by a rhino, or had a round with a professional kick boxer.

"What the hell did I do last night?" She repeated once more, feistiness fleeing as her as eyes shuttered shut. The pain in her side was horrendous, and her head wasn't feeling much better. It took a lot of effort to extract herself from her bed and stumble down her apartment's narrow hallway to the bathroom.

The bright lighting of the bathroom had her squinting and clasping a hand over her too sensitive eyes. Slowly peeling back her fingers, she took a glance into the mirror in front of her, eyes widening in horror.

Blood, her clothes were covered in it. Although it had dried, it stained the cream colored blouse she'd worn to work the day before into a dark brown in the spots it touched, particularly at the collar and waist. The memory of the night before quickly assaulted her as she remembered coming home in a daze to wash her hands and face before promptly tumbling into bed to exhausted and shocked to do anything more.

Hunched over the sink, she got the feeling as though she were going to be sick. "Holy hell!" Sakura whined lowly as she was assaulted with the facts from the night before.

She couldn't believe what had happened the night before…it all seemed too crazy to believe. She didn't want to think about the girl she'd watched bleed out in that alley, nor the man who nearly killed her and she certainly didn't want to remember the guy who saved her life. "That guy…" Sakura whispered, looking at her own ashen face through the mirror. Her eyes were wide, and the fear she saw in them made her feel nauseous.

He had been anything but normal. 'His eyes.' She thought, feeling unsteady on her feet, as she slid to the floor, resting her back against the side of her tub. The color and odd formation were burned into her memory- reminding her of a pinwheel. The way that he'd appeared and moved had been unnatural.

'Unnatural? Oh do you think?' She asked herself sarcastically. 'He ate a person.' Sakura shook her head, teeth gnawing on her bottom lip and she cupped her hands over her mouth nervously. 'That can't be true though, because vampires…they don't exist.' But what else could he be?

"A lunatic." Sakura supplied, staring at the bright blue colored wall opposite of her. "Who just happens to think he's a vampire or something." He could have been wearing specialty contacts, and she could have been hallucinating from the blow to her head.

That was a perfectly logical deduction. An acceptable explanation she was more willing to believe in.

She should just be thankful that there were only two dead bodies, rather than three. As much as it pained her that she'd been unable to do anything for that girl, Sakura was just going to have to do her best to put it all behind her. "Alright then." She murmured, taking a deep breath as she pulled herself off the floor.

Rubbing her hands over her faces, and up through her hair-frowning when she discovered her usually silky locks to be stiff and brittle in places. 'Feels a bit like hairspray.' She thought, confusion deepening when her fingers came across a thin dash along the left side of her forehead. "Huh?" Sakura murmured, brow furrowing in thought. "That's new." The texture of it was slightly raised, like a scar. Feeling her chest tighten, she spared a long look in the mirror, leaning in closely to get a better look.

There was dried blood in her hair, undoubtedly her own. The mere sight reminded her of the searing pain she'd felt when her head was busted open the other night.

Sure enough, there was a pale pink line- a scar, a hardly noticeable one, but there nonetheless. "That's impossible." Sakura stated eyes widening as she prodded the spot with a forefinger. There was no pain, and as she puzzled over the incident an unbidden shiver ran down her spine.

The advanced stage of the wound was startling to say the least. If anything it should only be a scab, and most likely there should have been bruising all around the area.

But it wasn't and there was not, and it made her worry.

'It's the spot he was licking last night too.' She thought, feeling rather irrational as her cheeks heated. Or rather it was the spot he'd been most attentive to if she recalled correctly. "That doesn't mean anything." Sakura snapped, waving a hand wildly as if to dispel the thought. 'We're not going to think about this anymore.' She thought, a scowl crossing her face as she took a deep, pained breath.

Glancing at the small watch on her wrist, the time that blinked back at her told her if she wanted to make it to work on time; she'd better hurry things along. Content to lose herself in her morning routine, she pushed all thoughts of the night before out of her head.

An hour later she was dressed and ready to go, sparing a brief moment to mourn the loss of her favorite coat before she left, locking the door behind her.

Daytime in the city was always safest but after the events from the night before, she'd decided to stay out of alleys for a very long time. Exhaling deeply, she bundled her jacket closer, mourning the one she'd lost the night before. It'd been such a nice white before it'd been ruined.

"These birds are such pests!" A low voice called out from her left, drawing her attention as she passed by an alley way. Inside a few middle schoolers lagged around, surrounding a small hunched black figure, no bigger than a house cat.

It was clear to her that they were skipping school and up to no good to boot. "Hey!" Sakura snapped, stalking their way. "Shouldn't you guys be in class?" She asked, hands moving automatically to her hips. A stern expression settled itself over her face. The last thing she wanted was for those kids to end up getting hurt.

"You're not my mom!" One rather bratty boy with brown hair and long blue scarf declared loudly, arms crossing over his chest stubbornly. Behind him was a girl with ginger hair pulled into two pony tails and a boy with a perpetual runny nose looked up at her with wide eyes.

Recognizing the first as a tenant in her own apartment building-one she happened to know quite well, Sakura smiled, eyes glinting. "Oh, is that you Konohamaru?" She purred, leaning in close to the boy's face. "Guess you won't mind if I tell you mom what you've been up to hm? Or better yet, maybe Naruto? I hear the police force is cracking down on truancy lately. "She said, face somber as she began tapping a finger to her coral colored lips thoughtfully.

Thinking about the blond she'd known since youth, she wondered how he was doing. Lately, things had been so busy; she had hardly seen him at all.

Although Naruto himself had not exactly been the best in his youth, he aspired to become a police officer like his father before him. He was constantly at odds with others within his occupation however, because he was one of the few cops who could not be bought out or threatened.

He was one of the very few in the city who stood for the good of the people, and he had touched many people because of it, including the group in front of her. Konohamaru in particular had been taken in by the blonde, becoming a mentor of sorts.

Such as it was, it was no surprise for her to see him pale considerably, all the while Konohamaru shook his head. "What, no! I wasn't skipping anyways!" he scowled, gesturing to the black form that had been pacing back and forth between the three pairs of feet surrounding it. "I saw it almost get hit by some guy on a bike…so I tried chasing it out of the street. The stupid thing started flipping out though."

"A bird?" Sakura remarked quietly, studying the darkly colored creature its feathers were shadowy-like the color of ink, with a faint hint of cobalt to them. "A raven…or maybe…" the name she hesitated to say.

The thought caused her to shiver.

"I think it's a crow." Udon said at last, sniffling due to his ever runny nose. "You can tell a raven from a crow by the shape of their tails. Crows have rounded ones, ravens end in a point." He explained, blushing when three eyes turned to look at him curiously. "My dad's a bit of an ornithologist."

"Is that so?" Sakura asked, pushing her unease out of the way. There was no need to get worked up over an animal.

Konohamaru huffed and hiked his nose into the air proudly. "I was being a good citizen. You're a doctor right? Fix it." He demanded, motioning towards the bird. It's agitated squawking and pacing had paused. Instead it stared up at Sakura, sleek black eyes never faltering.

"I'm not a vet." Sakura scowled, bopping him upside the head with a closed fist. "Nor am I a servant who takes orders."

Reeling back quickly, he rubbed his head, already feeling a lump forming. 'I should have kept my mouth shut.' He whined, nursing his wound. Everybody who knew Sakura knew she could hit as well-if not better than any man.

"I may not be a vet, but I'll see what I can do." Sakura conceded reluctantly, pressing her lips together. The bird's unfaltering stare put her on edge.

They also knew she was one of the most compassionate people they'd ever meet, always willing to help.

Reaching into the messenger bag resting against her hip, she pulled out a small emergency first aid kit and riffled through it for a pair of latex gloves. There was no telling what was ailing the bird, and it would be wise to take precaution. 'It doesn't look sick though.' She noted, tugging the gloves up snugly.

As a matter of fact it looked very healthy- with plump, luminous feathers and sharp, intelligent eyes that studied everything intently. The only thing that seemed wrong was the way it held it seemed to avoid moving its left wing too much.

Settling on her knees as smoothly as possible, she stretched her fingers out tentatively, pausing before she came in contact with the sleek, lacquer black beak. When it seemed as though it was safe for her to proceed, she set the palm of her hand to its head stroking its crown. "Good birdie." She stated with a smile, pleased it hadn't tried to maul her.

"Oh wow." Moegi breathed in wonder, black eyes peering out from over Sakura's shoulder. "It's being really calm with you…it nearly tried to take Konohamaru's eyes out earlier." She explained.

Sakura shrugged, glancing behind her at the aforementioned boy. He was sulking. "I'm sure he's just a little worn out after everything." She said, sparing a smile. "It was nice of you to try to help him." Naruto would be pleased to hear about it.

"Yea well…" His cheeks were tinted a light pink. "Whatever. Is there anything wrong with him?"

Running her hands along its sides, she delicately tugged at the wing that she was guessing to be the problem. With a loud indignant squawk from the bird, it was opened rather slowly. "It doesn't seem broken." Sakura mused, running her fingers from the point it joined the body, to the very tip. "Perhaps someone was a little too vigorous with their aerodynamics?" She teased, tapping its beak.

It was probably a sprain, and if that were the case a few days of inactivity would be fine. So, she pulled a roll of gauze out and bound the wing to its body using just enough to keep it still, but little enough so that if it wanted to it would be able to remove the strip itself.

"Well, that's about all I can do." Sakura said giving the bird a brief pat. "You were better behaved than some of my patients." She stated gladly, eyes closing in a satisfied smile.

A clicking noise issued forth from the birds throat as it tilted its head back, feathers ruffling. "Well then, everyone time for you to be on our ways." Sakura declared, shooing them out of the alley as she stripped off her gloves. "You're late, and if I don't hurry I will be late." She explained.

"Will he be alright?" Moegi asked, glancing back at the bird.

"He should be." Sakura stated, giving the bird a brief glance over. It had moved away from the alley wall and closer to them. "I hope it's not thinking of following…" She said.

"Itachi."

The words had fluttered like wings, through the crow's beak- stilling her heart for the span of a second.

"W-what?" Sakura whispered, trying to fight the urge to run.

"It spoke!" Konohamaru cried, shock painted all over his face.

"That's actually pretty normal." Udon stated, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "Crows are very smart, capable of saying human words, and remembering human faces." He explained, motioning with a hand towards the creature. "Probably spent a lot of time with humans…"

Moegi tugged on Sakura's sleeve. "Are you okay….?" She looked so pale, like all the blood had fled her face.

"Um…y-yea." Sakura stated, clearing her throat. "Let's go." She stated frantically ushering them out and onto the street. 'That bird…why would it say that name?' she thought, a shiver running down her spine. " I've got to run now guys, straight to school!" She ordered, walking backwards for a brief moment. "Got it?"

"Yea, yea." Konohamaru sighed, walking in the opposite direction. "Maybe it's someone's pet." He suggested to his companions, pace unhurried as he drifted further away.
Sparing one last suspicious look towards the bird that she'd treated, Sakura took off running weaving her way through the throngs of people.

The crow left on its own watched after Sakura's departure, feathers ruffling in displeasure.

Shoving her bag into a locker, Sakura slammed it closed with a grateful sigh. She'd made it to work just in time. 'Maybe I really should look into getting a car…I mean I know paying back my loans is expensive and everything but I think it'd be worth it…' She'd have to consider adjusting her budget.

"No coffee with you this morning forehead?" Ino remarked, staring at her longtime friend's countenance. She seemed a little on edge, paler and more fidgety than usual.

"Good to see you too pig, I was a little busy." Sakura stated apologetically. "I'll treat you to lunch." She said, giving a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. Her thoughts were a mess. 'That damn bird…' she'd been so ready to ignore what happened the night before and doing so well until it showed up.

"Holding you to it." The nurse stated, flicking her long blonde hair over her shoulder. it was a habit she could never quit. "Everything okay?" she asked, a frown stitching her lips.

The question stilled Sakura's movement, her arms freezing just as she was pulling down her dark, wine colored scrub shirt. She was thankful for the black camisole she wore under it to hide the gnarly bruise she'd received.

If Ino had seen it things would have gone a lot worse.

Looking around quickly assured her that the room was nearly empty. 'If I tell her about last night…will she believe me?' probably not. So it was best to go with half-truths.

Ino Yamanaka was good at sensing lies, and saying nothing was wrong was not going to cut it.

"Actually…I might have seen something last night." She whispered quietly, drawing the other woman into a corner with her.

A grim look passed over Ino's pale blue eyes. "This city is just getting ridiculous…nobody knows you saw right?" She asked, thinking that the pink haired girl had simply been privy to some gangs' dirty dealings.

Taking a deep breath, Sakura began to formulate her story. "So last night, on my way home I heard some noises from an alley and went to take a look."

"Are you crazy?" Ino seethed as her eyes flashed dangerously, hands moving to her hips. "You could get yourself killed or worse getting all nosey like that!" Why did Sakura have to be such a good girl all the time? It only led her into more trouble.

Ignoring her, Sakura continued on. "There was a guy, and he was…." She hesitated for a second as the girls face floated through her mind. "He was well, raping her, and I got involved to try and stop it."

Explaining that was the easy part, what came next was more difficult to lie about. If she mentioned the murder, she'd have to go to the police, and then she'd have to tell them she met a vampire, and then she'd be locked away and then-'Get a hold of yourself!' Sakura took a deep breath, centering her thoughts. She would just leave all that out- she'd have to.

"So, I had him down, and was checking on her, when he got back up and threw me across the alley." Her hands were moving rapidly as she spoke, illustrating the story as she went.

"Uhuh." Ino said, eyeing her friends form in concern. It didn't look as though she'd been hurt.

"And then all of a sudden this guy shows up." She explained, biting on her bottom lip. "He saved me…' A blush came to her cheeks, as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "And uhm, that's it." She stated, wringing her hands together.

An absolutely salacious smile crept onto Ino's face. "Was he hot?" When the blush grew darker she had the answer she'd been looking for. "How hot?!" She squealed, stomping her feet in excitement. "Did you get his name?!" oh it was all too exciting! Sakura had all the luck, being rescued by some sexy guy late at night.

"Pig!" Sakura hissed, clenching her fists. 'I was attacked and you're more concerned his looks? Thanks for the concern…'

"What?! Your fine…right?" Ino asked, eyes running over the petite pink haired girls form slowly, all the while blinking her baby blue eyes. Nothing seemed out of miss as far as she could tell.

"Just shaken up…" Sakura mumbled quietly, green eyes studying the terracotta colored tiles beneath her shoes. "Anyways, we should clock in." she declared, posture straightening.

"So?" Ino asked, narrowing her eyes eagerly. Her lips had curled into a delicious grin.

An exasperated sigh flew out of Sakura's mouth. "Very, very hot." She stated looking into Ino's eyes she couldn't help the smirk that settled on her lips. "Like so hot if you threw water on him it would make steam." Hell, it would probably just evaporate at his mere presence, no contact required.

He really had been ungodly good looking. It just wasn't fair to the rest of the male population.

The blonde groaned, throwing her head back angrily. "How lucky." She wanted to be saved by a super-hot guy. "What he look like?" she demanded, using her identification badge to sign in.

"Dark hair, Dark eyes…" Sakura mumbled, sighing at the dirty look she received for being so descriptive. "He looked like a normal Asian person." At least when his eyes weren't all wonky and his mouth wasn't full of dangerous teeth and stuff. "What more can I say?" she huffed, swiping her card through the machine.

"So…you get a name?" Ino whined, holding onto the subject even as they were slipping into bustling corridor outside the changing room. "Please tell me you did not get saved by some awfully hot guy and let him go without getting his name?"

Gritting her teeth, Sakura ripped her clipboard off the spot it had been hung. "Uchiha Itachi." She stated simply, wondering why everything kept coming back to that guy. She hoped it stopped soon. "Now don't you have work to do? I know I do." She prodded, hoping Ino would get the hint.

"Uchiha…" Ino echoed, brows furrowing. "That name…sounds familiar." She spoke shaking her head. "Uh yea, work." She did not sound very thrilled at the topic. "So, lunch break at one, see you then."

"Uhuh." Sakura stated, watching the girl saunter away with relief. 'Now, what's first on the agenda?' she asked, checking through her papers.

She nearly leapt out of her skin, when she felt someone grasp her shoulder. "Oh!" she cried in dismay watching as her clipboard flew out of her hand and clattered across the floor.

"Jumpy today aren't we?" the man behind her laughed politely as he went to retrieve the fallen item. "Sorry to startle you Sakura-chan."

Heaving a sigh, she accepted the clipboard back gratefully. "Thank you Kabuto-san." To be honest, the man gave her the creeps despite the fact he was a respected and accomplished doctor. It was the way that he looked and treated people, like they were specimen in a petri dish.

"You're welcome." Kabuto stated, pushing his glasses further up the bridge of his nose, wily eyes never missing a thing. "I never noticed this before." He stated, cold finger trailing the scar on her temple.

A shudder ran down her spine, as her own fingers moved to brush over the blemish, knocking his hand away. "I usually cover it with foundation." She explained, never missing a beat.

"Ah, I see." He stated, nodding his head. "Well, anyways, I just wanted to let you know, my lab is always open if you'd like help on the paper you're writing. Viruses are a tricky subject, but the hypothesis is absolutely thrilling. Nice work."

An unbidden blush bloomed on her cheeks. Although she found him to be unsettling, the complement was welcome from a doctor as accomplished as him. "Thank you for the offer." It didn't mean she'd take him up on it.

"It's not a problem, I'd be happy to provide what assistance I can from one doctor to another." He said, nodding his head in farewell. "Have a nice day." And then he was gone with the swirl of his white coat and silver hair.

It was true that his help would be useful to the paper she was writing. 'He works with infectious diseases everyday…many of them viruses. The information I could get from him would be very valuable.' And his offer had been rather generous. Perhaps she had merely been misjudging him all along…

Taking him up on his offer wouldn't be so bad, would it? 'I suppose it's something to think about.' Sakura conceded, nibbling on her thumb as she went about doing her rounds. All thoughts of crows and mysterious men fled her mind as she set about her tasks.

In the end however, lunch time could not come quick enough. It was with great relief that Sakura found herself jaunting across the street from the hospital with Ino thirty minutes after one. 'So tired.' She bemoaned, grateful that the café they were headed to was just down the street and she could finally get some decent coffee.

Extra sweet, sugary vanilla flavored coffee with actual whipped cream on top. The thought filled her with anticipation and had her mouthwatering.

"In a hurry much?" Ino huffed, jogging to catch up with her pink haired companion.

"Yes!" Sakura bit back a groan. Not only did she really want that coffee, but she was damn near close to ravenous.

The little café they were headed to had a European theme to it, with coffee's, pastries, and hot sandwiches. Compared to the rest of the gaudy shops and stores it seemed to sort of fade into obscurity except to the few who had tasted its wares.

It was a great relief to slip in to the warm, homey atmosphere of the little bistro. She'd made the trip in her scrubs and the white coat, which did very little to ward off the chill.

Ino ordered first, citing she was on a diet and therefore bought only a salad and a nonfat latte, much to Sakura's Chagrin.

"We aren't all natural little sticks." The blonde accused with a smirk. She might not have the same waist line as Sakura, but she had the better bust and she never let the pink haired girl forget it.

"Whatever pig. At least mine won't be as saggy as yours will in a few years." Sakura sniffed indignantly all the while cradling her vanilla cappuccino. 'There is nothing wrong with B-cups. It's a decent size damn it.'

"Saggy? Hah, not a chance in hell." The blonde huffed, flicking her hair in agitation. There was no way something like that was going to happen to her. Not with all the work she put into looking like she did. With that, she picked up the tray with the rest of their food on it, and wandered off in search of a table.

Breathing a sigh, Sakura took a sip of her warm drink, her face slipping into a look of complete contentment. In that Zen like state, she trailed after her blonde friend, hardly paying any attention as she went.

It shouldn't have been surprising that she would have bumped into someone after allowing her senses to take leave so easily. "S-sorry!" She stated, wincing as her tongue was stung by the hot drink.

From the parted folds of his charcoal gray trench coat, she could see that the sleek black suit the man wore fit him perfectly, as though it'd been tailored to his form. It clung to his physique, giving a hint to the sturdy, yet slender musculature that lay beneath it. The only point of color in his attire was the deep, blueberry hued tie he wore.

Glancing at the person in front of her, she had to take a few steps back to see their face due to their difference in height. 'Oh my god.' She thought in complete mortification, as her face flushed red.

Sakura had totally not been eyeing him of all people up. There was no way. "Y-You." She hissed, pointing a finger at him in recognition. "Why are you here?" She cut straight to the point, voice quiet at the moment. There was no need to cause a disturbance and get sent off to the Looney bin after all.

A brief glance outside the window confirmed that the sun was indeed shinning, which left her completely puzzled and terribly worried. Folklore said Vampire's couldn't go out into sunlight. 'So was I wrong…?' she questioned, biting her bottom lip worriedly.

A single eye brow was raised at her vehemence. "Greetings and salutations to you as well." Itachi replied eyes roving over her form curiously. Without even meaning to, she'd somehow ended up right where he wanted her too.

A little earlier than expected, but welcome nonetheless…

Unfortunately she wasn't as thrilled to see him as he was her.

"Are you following me?" Sakura seethed- green eyes narrowing as her body inched away.

"Hnn." Itachi deigned to responded, black eyes peering at her from lowered lashes.

Not knowing what to make of his ambiguous response caused a tick mark to form on her temple, all the while she stared back warily, because the look he was giving her seemed…troublesome.

Little did she know the real threat was creeping up behind her the whole time.

"Oh? What a cute girl you found Itachi." Someone purred- and Sakura could not help the tiny, mouse like squeak that issued forth from her mouth when she felt an arm sling over her shoulder.

'Where did this one come from?' She thought, eyes tearing away from Itachi to stare at the newcomer.

Taller and sturdier built than the slender man in front of her, this one's hair was cut short and unlike Itachi's silky straight hair his was wavy. Still, the resemblance was there. 'They look related.' She thought, eyeing his arm like a cornered animal. If she had to, she'd chew it off to get away. 'Also, the way he spoke so familiarly with that guy…Itachi.' Sakura reminded herself.

"Shisui." Itachi acknowledged, lip curving just slightly. The look on Sakura's face spoke volumes as she watched his older cousin's arm. He might have to have a talk with the older man about being too…personal.

'Wait…what if they're both…'She blanched at the mere thought, and quickly wrenched herself away as the gears in her head began turning, searching for any relative information. Recalling something at least mildly useful, Sakura turned to the cashier who'd been eyeing the whole encounter with thinly veiled amusement. "Do you have any garlic!?" she was nearing desperation.

Shisui nearly choked on his own spit at that, his eyes flying up to meet his cousins. The two of them, having known one another so long had a certain degree of understanding of the other beyond words, and it was by the look in Itachi's eyes that he knew the answer he'd been seeking. 'So she knows, but she obviously doesn't know much.' He mused, biting back a chuckle.

No wonder the poor thing was so jumpy. She was half expecting to be devoured at any second.

Although Shisui knew Itachi better than most, sometimes even he couldn't understand where the man was coming from. To his own family, his cousin could be quite the enigma, despite that Shisui knew that like himself, Itachi didn't like needlessly hurting others- after all he'd taught him that way of thinking himself.

Itachi for his part in the whole debacle, felt a little mortified that she thought a common culinary ingredient would repel him.

The cashier, a little startled at the strange request hesitated before quickly shaking her head. "N-no. Sorry ma'm."

"Sakura!" A rather irate Ino shouted out, from the table she'd selected, not caring at all that her screaming might be bothering the other patrons.

In her whole life, Sakura had never felt so happy to see Yamanaka Ino's annoyed face. The blond huffed, cutting a path to her friend's side. "What are you fooling around for? " One minute the petite girl was walking along behind her and the next poof! She was gone.

Not to mention the absolutely adoring look the pink haired girl was giving her was freaking her out. 'Now that I think of it...' Ino thought, brow certainly not wrinkling. 'She looks a little nervous.'

"Ino! Sorry to keep you waiting, we should go. Now." Sakura stated, ready to dart to the blond's side, hoping to distract her from the two men.

It didn't work. As soon as Ino caught sight of the pictures of perfection the men in front of her made, she stilled- all animosity gone. If their hotness were literal, the room would be on fire. "Well hello~." She greeted, the syllables long and drawn out as she positively sashayed her way to Sakura's side. "Do you two know Sakura?" she asked, tipping her head to the side.

The way Sakura was looking at them seemed rather antsy, and more importantly Ino was supposed to know all the people Sakura knew. Something was a little off and she couldn't put her finger on it.

"We have met very recently." Itachi admitted bowing his head politely, making a note to remind himself to once in a while allow himself to be badgered into going places with Shisui. After all they sometimes led to worth will results.

'Dark hair and dark eyes….hot-really hot…'Ino thought, blue eyes widening. "Oh, don't tell me you're the guy from the other night! She told me you saved her." She chattered happily, nudging Sakura with her elbow, as she leaned in to whisper a "Boy you weren't kidding when you said he was good looking."

The smirk that twisted Itachi's face was enough to let her know he'd heard it. Turning a bright red, Sakura resisted the urge to throw her cooling coffee to the floor in a tantrum. 'I just can't win today!' She realized with morbid fascination. It seemed like everything was working against her.

It made her want to crawl in a hole and disappear. Things were not boding well for her, and the look in Itachi's eyes only seemed to be growing more intense.

"Did she now?" Itachi intoned, tipping his head to the side. Thinly veiled amusement smoldered in his black eyes, his gaze catching Shisui's momentarily. A silent conversation lasting only seconds took place, and a plan was hatched.

Moving, Shisui seemed to trip over his own feet, pitching forward the iced coffee he'd been sipping slipped and spilled all over the pale lavender of the scrubs Ino was wearing.

"Cold!" Ino squealed, reeling back as she surveyed the damage. "Damn it!" she had half a mind to start screaming that the man. She'd been all ready to bombard her friends savior with all sorts of questions and now she was soaking wet.

Not wasting any time, Shisui righted himself, grasping her hand. "I'm so sorry…uh, miss…?"

"Yamanaka Ino." The blonde stated, vexation filling every syllable. Even his pretty smile could do nothing to calm her.

"Ino-san, I'm so sorry for being so clumsy." The muscular man stated, broad shoulders slumping in shame. "Listen, there is uniform shop right down the street from here…I'll buy you a new outfit to replace this one right now." He held up a hand to cut off any possible protestations. "It's only right, I insist."

Ino was no match for the dazzling smile he gave her. "Alright." The blonde agreed, after all the uniform shop he was talking about was expensive, and she needed the clothes. The coffee was everywhere. 'At least it wasn't hot though.'

"Great! We'll be back soon then." Shisui laughed, hooking her arm within his as he marched towards the door. "See you guys in a bit-don't do anything I wouldn't little cousin." He murmured the last part quietly.

Sakura could only stare in absolute shock, everything had happened so quickly. It's when her gaze connects with Itachi's triumphant eyes that she realizes what happened right in front of her.

It was a well versed predatory maneuver that had just been carried out against her; divide and conquer.

Just like animals in the wild, where one is singled out and parted from the rest of the group to make it vulnerable to attack, she and Ino were split to make an easier target for whatever he had planned.

Late post is Late.

The results for this story have been phenomenal! Fifteen reviews in one chapter? Fantastic! I always judge whether a story is doing well or not by if they have at least 10 review a chapter, so to get 15 I nearly died and went to heaven.

Thank you all so much, and keep it coming

Hmm…I wonder whatever was up with that mysterious crow Sakura encountered earlier…?

Well, I suppose all good things must wait.

Anyways, this should have been up like three days ago…I blame the TV, and Assassins creed. But as an apology, I give you this Preview of something I'm considering continuing, it's also total and complete crack. So don't take it too seriously.

I'd also like to do one with a reverse, in which Itachi's the cat-boy… To say the least, I've got lots more Itasaku stories on the horizon…it seems I've been bitten by a bug. Nor sure if it's a good- or a bad thing.

PAWSABILITY: Zero.

"Kunoichi, Explain." The words left no room for argument as Itachi pinched one white, furry cat ear between his thumb and forefinger. Rather curious, he stroked the soft white fuzz with his thumb and felt the rumble of her purr vibrate through her whole form.

Despite the fact that she was currently being held in the grasp of an S-class criminal that was purported to be insane and highly dangerous, not to mention the older brother of her wayward revenge seeking ex-teammate Sakura couldn't help the jolt of sheer pleasure that wracked her form.

It had her tail and her toes curling.

Her new appendages were apparently very sensitive.

"Don't do that!" Sakura's bright green eyes fluttered shut as a moan echoed from her lips. Highly mortified she was thankful he was pressed up against her back, although with his advantage in height he probably could still see her blushing face easily.

Sakura was going to kill the damn cat that bit her. She was going to ring out every last one of its nine lives when she found the cursed thing. All she did was save the blasted little rascals life and then it bitt her and turned her into a cat eared, cat tailed freak. 'Just goes to show you that no good deed goes unpunished.' She thought miserably.

The feeling of his fingers trailing along her spine had her arching into the palm of his hand eagerly.

Not many people knew this, and by that he meant only he knew because everyone else who did was dead by his own hand-but Uchiha Itachi had a weakness for cute things, and unfortunately the pink haired girl in front of him was absolutely adorable.

So sweet he wanted to steal her away.

His brother really was rather foolish.