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Just Enough

10 and 1/2 Years Ago
Konoha Village

Today was hot and boring. Shisui had been enjoying a good spar with one of his many cousins, but that had ended up a bust when said cousin had broken his leg. It wasn't as if the fall had been so high that such an event couldn't have been avoided… so he supposed he would just have to chalk that one up to clumsiness. At least the idiot wasn't on his team. Speaking of cousins… he hadn't seen Itachi in days. Nothing like pestering his serious, overly analytical cousin to brighten a day with some form of excitement; even if it meant dodging exploding tags or whatever crazed genjutsu Itachi was determined to practice this time.

The problem with his cousin was finding him. He had heard Sasuke complaining to his oto-chan that morning that his Aniki had the day off and was gone… so that meant the training grounds. Since it was unlikely that Itachi would have stuck around long enough for one of the elders to show up to watch, he probably was somewhere in the more public areas. Humming a little under his breath, he set about at a fairly relaxed pace.

Flash stepping in this temperature was only good to look down strategically placed shirts – for even better breasts – or to land face first in a river. Unfortunately, even the rivers were too warm to be comfortable this late in the summer. He was halfway into training ground C when he heard what distinctively sounded like a furious, Inuzuka type snarl.

Leaping into a nearby tree, he paced along in the opposite direction of those particularly expletives. The Inuzuka Clan were excellent trackers, but odds were if that particular Inuzuka was in the woods over there that Itachi would be somewhere over here. It took longer than he would have liked, mostly because it was just too hot to use the energy to activate his sharingan.

So when he finally did locate his cousin, he wasn't feeling overly cautious.

"What are you doing?"

Itachi cracked on eye open and stared at him before shutting it again. "Training."

"… in a tree? By lying down? Are you practicing your balance? Clumsiness isn't an inborn Uchiha trait, you know."

Itachi didn't answer and before Shisui could poke him again, a scream interrupted them.

"I-TA-CHI when I get my claws in your face, I'm going to kill you!"

"… so Inuzuka is hunting you."

Itachi just opened his eyes and stared at him. It was Itachi code for: Congratulations on stating the obvious conclusion.

Shisui cut his eyes back to his cousin and studied him for a long moment. "Itachi… are you pranking your team?"

"No."

"…no?"

"No."

"Then what did you do?"

"Demonstrated their need for more training."

Shisui snorted. "Most people call that 'pranking'."

"Your suggestion that I am to blame for the lack of creativity in inferior shinobi who feel the need to hide pranking behind training is… irksome."

Shisui rolled his eyes. "Your unnecessary need to prove your superior vocabulary is stupid. And since you are here and your team… well, half your team is there – I came to the conclusion that you are pranking."

"Your logic has always been inferior."

"You're always so polite. I can't understand why your team would want to kill you."

"Is there a point to this conversation or were you just attempting to verify my opinion of you?"

"Depends on what that opinion is."

Another shrill, furious scream cut through the air and this time Shisui did activate his sharingan. Anything that could infuriate a woman to the point of hysterics was dangerous and he didn't want it anywhere near him. It appeared he may have to flash step after all. He glanced back at Itachi—the brat had closed his eyes again.

"Don't you have another teammate? Bug-boy or something?"

"He is currently occupied."

Shisui lifted a brow. "Huh. Well… I suppose I'll just be leaving them. Crazy and furious isn't exactly how I take my woman."

"I don't particularly care."

"I'm sure you don't… at least, not yet. One day, Itachi, you are going to get sprung and I am going to laugh my ass off. I think Inuzuka is moving this direction so nap time may be over."

Itachi simply grunted.

"...You're planning on letting her find you, aren't you? You sick bastard, what do you have planned for her next?"

Itachi cracked on eye open and it gleamed. "If you want to stick around and see..."

Shisui recoiled. "Nuh-uh! I'm not that crazy!"

Gathering his chakra, Shisui flash stepped out of the immediate area and shook his head as he headed back to the compound. Looking up at the sun, he perked up when he realized it was almost time for little Sasuke's afternoon snack which meant that there would be free rice balls if you were quick enough.

Then he could indulge himself in a cold, cold shower.

X

Present Day
Earth Country

Sakura twisted her hair off her neck and held it in place with her hand in an attempt to find some small relief from the thick, damp stickiness that was clinging to her skin like perspiration. The past day had been spent in blistering heat and now she felt like she was trapped in a shower. Sighing, she let her hair fall as she finished her scan and turned to face Itachi. He was studying the map Jiraiya had drawn in an attempt to finalize the location of the man's home.

"Any luck?" She kept her words soft, keeping them from carrying. The odds that they were being followed were slim but the risk was still there.

Itachi was silent for a moment before rolling the map up and putting it back into the case on his belt. "It should be just another five hundred kilometers, north."

Sakura frowned a little. Five hundred meters was not far and while this area had sprung up trees, they had been walking through empty plains and fields for hours. They should have been noticed some sort of human activity by now. Even a trained shinobi left behind some imprint after countless years spent living in any one area.

Itachi's face remained inexpressive, but Sakura couldn't help but think she wasn't the only one to suspect that something was wrong. He hadn't activated the sharingan, but there was a tenseness to his shoulders. Moving to flank position, she followed him down what might have been a deer path at one point.

They made it to a small, over grown clearing. It took Sakura a moment to recognize what she was looking at. The building was small with a small lean-to that might have been a workshop attached to the side. The roof had caved in and the wood and stone were scorched black from fire. The entire place seemed rotted out and Sakura swore under her breath.

It was obvious that no one had been here for years.

"The house looks too damaged to have sustained any information over the years." Itachi said finally. "The roof has been compromised, we will risk bringing the rest of it down if we explore. We may have better luck with the smaller building."

Sakura bit the side of her tongue to keep her frustration from spilling out. Instead, she just nodded and followed Itachi to the smaller of the two buildings. It had indeed been a workshop and there was blackened and bent metal on the floor and the dull glint of superheated glass. Itachi had activated his sharingan and was scanning the room so she took in what was left on the floor. Careful to keep from touching anything with her skin, she nudged a few broken pots with the handle of a kunai and uncovered a spider's nest, but didn't find anything that looked like it could have been used in experimentation with seals.

She glanced over at Itachi. He was frowning, staring at the black smudge on his fingertips.

Sakura turned away and continued her perusal of the ground. She moved carefully towards the corner of the workshop, hoping for any sort of clue. There—in the corner.

Mold.

"Itachi."

She felt the shadow of his presence before she heard him move, and shifted so that the light could clearly illuminate the sign of life, which indicated it had been quite some time since the fire had occurred.

Sakura glanced up just in time to see his eyes narrow. He nodded, once, and the motioned for her to follow him out.

Sakura did so feeling irritated. Crossing her arms at a sudden wind and darkening skies, she frowned at Itachi.

"Now what?"

Itachi was silent for a moment before speaking. "The soot markings on the walls suggest that the fire was set deliberately. Even if we did somehow manage to locate a trail, it has long become cold. With our current time frame, we don't have time to hunt through villages looking for a man that may be long dead.

She nodded. Something cold splattered against her cheek and Sakura looked up. There were clouds but they weren't dark, although it was obvious that the storm was growing. To her great displeasure, another and another joined the first drop until they were standing in a downpour.

"We'll make towards the border." Itachi said, his voice carrying easily over the sudden rain. Sakura glared at the sky before nodding. They needed to get back and there was nothing for them here.

X

Sakura was starting to hate Earth Country. The trek back in the general direction of the border was not going well. The drizzle that had started up at what was left of the house had turned into a steady down poor, turning the endless fields into mud pits. There was nothing worse than walking in the rain, mud leaking under the toes of your sandals.

It didn't help her attitude one bit that she was still cranky about traveling just to find ruins. Assuming the old man was even alive it was obvious that they weren't going to find him on this mission. Not with the time limits they were operating under. She hated going home empty handed. Barring a miracle, that's exactly what was going to happen.

Since they had left Naruto at home, the likelihood of a miracle was slim.

Itachi hadn't said a word since they had inspected the ruins. She bore the silence as best as she could, not wanting to interrupt whatever was going on in that famed head of his, but it was wet, it was muddy, and she was starting to get irritated.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Enough was enough. Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but he held up a hand.

She felt a tingling sensation of a henge wrap around her and held up her hand to see that her skin had been tinted several shades darker. She lifted inquiring eyes to him.

"We'll spend the night in an inn."

Sakura nodded in a silent agreement. If Itachi felt the chances were good enough to risk an inn, she wasn't going to argue with him. It was what she wanted anyway. It was either that or give into the internal urge to shove his face into the mud. Since even the attempt would start something she wasn't prepared to finish, she fell into step half a step behind him as before and tried not to be curious about what the henge looked like.

Itachi had made himself appear shorter and most of his hair had disappeared, leaving behind features that were neither remarkable nor attractive, but the curious sort of bland that no one really paid attention to. His walk had changed as well, a little slower, a little rougher, hiding the smooth grace that identified shinobi to anyone trained.

His shoes even squelched in the mud.

Uchiha Itachi. Making noise. Shaking her head slightly, she continued on, knowing they'd never believe this at home. It was amazing what he could do to get in cover.

Knowing that they probably still had a long ways to go or else he wouldn't have risked using chakra, Sakura settled in for a long, miserable walk. In the rain. In the silent, silent, rain.

By the time they arrived at the small, cramped village Itachi had picked out for the night, she was miserable. The lack of ability to use chakra limited her ability to keep warm and while the cloak she wore was waterproof, the rest of her was not. It was a relief to reach the rather sturdy looking building.

Itachi walked slowly, his shoulders rounded with what looked like exhaustion. She didn't have to fake her weariness but made a point to exaggerate it. The walk through the village had been quick and there hadn't been many people out, but the few women she had seen tended to scuttle and keep close to the man next to them. Changing her habits now would be a giveaway if anyone was following them, but she made a note to change her walk a little tomorrow. Leaning up against his side in what might have been an attempt to leach heat from his body would have to do for now.

Under the dripping hood of her cloak, she split her attention between watching Itachi's careful act as he secured their room and marking the quickest exits. She made a point to keep to herself but to let the man behind the desk get a good look at her. Hiding completely would raise suspicions.

Sakura followed Itachi up creaky wooden stairs and down a narrow hallway. The room they had been assigned was at the end of the hallway, closest to the emergency exit.

Itachi entered the room first while she guarded the hall, signaling when he deemed it clear. She entered the short hallway, noting the bathroom on her left before it opened up into a room just large enough for the queen sized bed. There were clean towels laid out over the comforter, and Sakura picked one up before turning to Itachi.

"I'm going to take a shower," she said. If he knew what was good for him, he'd continue this silent trend until she was warm, clean, and dry.

The bathroom was small but adequate. Setting her pack on the back of the commode, she stripped her boots. Once Itachi had showered she had would have to see how much mud she could get off in the sink. Her clothes she wadded up and stuffed into a waterproof bag she had brought for this purpose. She was suddenly very thankful for the extra set of clothing she had brought for an emergency. Reaching over, she flicked on the shower and while she waited for the water to heat she looked into the mirror to see what exactly Itachi had henged her with.

She had operated under henge before. While Sasuke's control wasn't as good as his brothers, they had run a few operations that had required it. Most of the time they had simply changed hair and eye color to blend in more completely into their surroundings. Itachi's henge was far more complex. Her hair was longer, a dull, thin brown that almost matched the color of her skin. Her eyes were brown and a little too narrow to be noticeable. The lines of her face had been rounded and her nose was unremarkable. It appeared the only thing he had kept was her forehead. She was torn between being impressed at his eye for detail and bemused at how utterly unremarkable she was.

Just as went to step into the water that was now steaming – her feet hurt just looking at the heat – Itachi knocked on the door.

"I'm going downstairs to track down dinner. I left a few things for you by the door."

Translation: He had set up traps to warn her if anyone tried to enter while he was gone. While he couldn't use genjutsu without drawing attention, trip wires and smoke bombs were still viable options. Her eyes swung to her pack and she dug around for the brace of kunai she kept there.

"That's fine. Find something warm if you can. I have my pack."

"Alright."

She didn't hear anything after that so she flung herself into the warmth of the water and bit her lip to keep from shrieking as the heat hit her frozen toes and fingers. By the time she was finished the room was filled with steam and smelled faintly of the herb soap that was standard mission fare. Just as she finished pulling on her clothing she heard the sound of the front door opening. Tensing, she silently slipped a kunai from her extra pouch.

"All clear."

She relaxed at the sound of Itachi's voice and opened the door. Double-checking, she nodded when she saw him adding additional wires to his trap at the door. Picking up her pack, she stepped out of the warm room and went over to investigate what he had brought back.

"There should be plenty of hot water left."

Itachi turned from where he had set down a trey of steaming food on the dresser beside the bed and made his silent way over to her. He paused a bare foot away from her before reaching and taking a strand of her henged hair between his fingers. He rubbed it back and forth between his fingers, his gaze resting on the strand in relaxed contemplation before he dropped his hand and moved back.

"Careful," he said. "The food's hot."

"Mmm, just what I need," she said with a smile.

Itachi's gaze heated. He deliberately dropped his eyes and dragged them up her body before placidly moving past her towards the shower.

Sakura's heart beat out a staccato rhythm as he brushed past. Jerk. When did it get so bad that he could make heat flush through her system with a look?

Shoving the part of her that wanted to say 'screw mission protocol; shove that man against the wall' firmly aside, Sakura made her way towards the tray.

Lifting the lid off of one of the two bowls she studied the stew. It was thicker than what she was used to and there was half a loaf of bread to help mope it up with. Settling carefully onto the bed, she broke her chopsticks and took a deep breath. Her eyes watered immediately. Blinking rapidly, she studied the food. Lifting a piece of meat she took a careful bite. The aftertaste burned but after another couple of bites she started to enjoy it.

Itachi must have been in a hurry to get out of the shower because the door cracked open before she had a chance to get halfway through her meal. Looking up, she paused. Oh. He wasn't looking directly at her but she was certain he knew exactly what he was doing. She had seen him with a shirt, but that hadn't done anything to prepare for her damp and clean… with his bare feet moving silently on the wood floors. Even with the henge, the way he moved and held himself was just too damn appealing.

"When you said 'hot' you should have said 'spicy'," Sakura said once she worked enough moisture back into her throat to sound normal. He paused from where he was digging in his pack. The faint smile hovering in his eyes warmed her insides.

"Good?"

"Yes." She said.

He nodded and pulled a shirt out of his pack. "They tend to use a little more spice here than at home."

"Clearly you have never tried Lee's Curry of a Thousand Death's." Sakura muttered as she scooped up another bite.

He turned to look at her with that foreign face and somehow managed to communicate vague disapproval without actually moving a muscle.

"All right, you caught me," Sakura continued blithely, "It's actually called the Curry of Life, but trust me, my name is a far more accurate description."

Itachi's face didn't change, but he stalked towards her in a smooth expression of lethal grace until he came to settle across her on the bed. He crossed his legs underneath him and reached for his helping of food.

The silence in the room as they both ate was surprisingly relaxing. After the breaking of anticipation this afternoon, the distasteful knowledge that they had failed the mission – even if there hadn't been much hope to begin – the ease between them was welcome. Sitting on the bed with Itachi's shirt molding to shoulders that most certainly were not henged, both of them barefoot and casually intimate… there was absolutely nothing relaxing about that. It didn't help that she knew exactly what his shoulders felt like under her hands and how nice…

She was getting side tracked again. Reaching up to shove the loose hair that had fallen over her shoulder behind her ear, she determinedly pushed her attraction to Itachi away. The casual way his eyes followed the movements of her hand and wrist were not worth thinking about. Currently.

Mission, mission, mission! Tearing off a small piece of bread, she dunked in carefully into what was left of her stew. "Now what?"

He lifted a brow.

She rolled her eyes. She slid one knee up to her chest to rest her elbow as she leaned back against the wall and popped some of the bread into her mouth. "We're walking back into Konoha with nothing physical. Might as well have a plan."

He was still infuriatingly silent. If he were Sasuke, Sakura would think he was trying to pout. She resorted to ignoring him. Tilting her head back, Sakura addressed her thoughts to the ceiling. "If we can't trace the jutsu, then I guess we're stuck waiting to see if Jiraiya came up with anything. Since the Akatsuki reclaimed the ring, we're stuck with using what notes we have."

Itachi didn't so much as pause in his methodical eating, and it irritated Sakura quite a bit. She tilted her head to set narrowed eyes upon him. "Are you ever going to explain that to me, by the way? It's obvious that you used to the ring to trap the Akatsuki into coming and getting the ring. What's not obvious is why."

When he didn't look at her, she mentally shrugged. While there was a great deal of her body language that Itachi could read, no matter how perfectly his henge translated movements and expressions, the change in eye size, color, jaw line… every minute change altered expressions just enough where the more subtle cues were missed.

And if Itachi didn't want to talk, that was fine. There were other forms of communication that she excelled at. And she would really hate to let the henge go untested. She did love fieldwork. It was her duty, after all, to help her fellow shinobi know where areas of his expertise might need some... adjustments.

Casually she reached back and coiled her hair around her fingers. Ignoring the way Itachi's eyes flickered up she reached over with her free hand and pulled the senbon needles off of the dresser Itachi must have left there and secured the messy knot she had created. Satisfied that she had his attention, she wiggled back against the pillows while unbuttoning the top two buttons of her shirt. Letting out a little sigh, she pulled the rest of her meal back into her lap and picked up a piece of bread. Shredding a piece of easily, she dunked it into the soup and popped it into her mouth.

Only then did she look up. Lifting a brow at the way he was watching her, she shrugged. "Getting a little hot in here, don't you think?"

He didn't say anything, but his henge-lightened eyes were on her with a familiar heat. Innocently, she continued, "Must be the curry. It really gets the blood moving, you know?" she arched her back in a not-so-subtle stretch before settling more comfortably back against the pillows.

She peaked up at him through her lashes to catch him in a stillness she hadn't seen from him before. Then, just as easily, he picked up his tray and moved off the bed, his muscles ripped along his shoulders in a way that had her biting the side of her tongue. Silently, he paced to the small table by the door and set his tray down.

Then he turned back to her.

His eyes didn't have to be his own for her to catch the heat in them. Her insides warmed and she bit down harder on her tongue at the way he tilted his head before he slid forward seamless, body rolling forward sinuously until his thighs hit the dark wood of the bed frame. Reaching down, he deliberately moved her tray to the small table next to the bed. Then he straightened, pressed one hand on the wall above her shoulder, braced the other on the on bed, leaned forward and traced his nose against her cheek, stopping so that his lips pressed against the corner of her mouth.

"Are you trying to compromise the integrity of this mission… Sakura?" He drawled her name with his voice wrapped in promise and she had to work to keep her hands to herself.

Titling her head just enough to brush her lips against his skin, she allowed a half-smile to curl her lips. "No, that would you. With your refusal to tell me anything."

Itachi traced his nose down the curve of her cheek. He turned his head so that his lips were just brushing against her ear, "Whatever do you mean, Sakura?"

Something hot and wet flicked against her ear and that was clearly not playing fair. She gasped and used the reflexive action as an excuse to arch up and brush her chest against his. "Playing stupid doesn't suit you, Itachi."

He clamped down on her earlobe and pulled, flicking the sensitive skin between his teeth with his tongue. Sakura instinctively reached for his hair, tangling her fingers in the thick smooth texture the henge could not conceal. Releasing her ear, he blew on it before whispering, "Careful, Sakura."

Shifting once again so that his eyes met hers, he murmured, "Tell me what you think you know."

Sakura's lips twitched up and she nudged his nose with hers, "Are we really going to have this conversation like this?"

Tilting his head, Itachi edged the corner of her lips with his. "Don't start what you can't finish."

"As long as you know what you are getting into." She responded lightly, brushing her lashes down his cheek. She hoped she knew what she was getting into.

His cheek slid against hers, the faint stubble catching her skin in a way that wasn't entirely unpleasant. When he spoke, his tone was faintly mocking. "What do you think you know, Sa-ku-ra?"

"You're hunting Orochimaru." Her lips curved against his jaw as his body stilled against hers. Letting her fingers wrap deeper into his hair, she dragged her nails down the back of his neck lightly. "That is the basis for many of your goals is it not?"

His hands ran lightly down her spine before arching her back so her breasts pressed against his chest. His teeth grazed against her jaw, just enough to sting and she shivered.

"Is it?"

She stretched her neck and flicked her tongue out under his chin. "You set your trap for the Akatsuki, but you also set it for Orochimaru."

Her spine popped at the angle he pressed it into but the way his nose nudged her was almost playful. In retaliation she wrapped her leg around the inside of his thigh, forcing him to hold her weight.

"Tsunade-sensei won't let you kill Orochimaru as long as he is your link to information about the Akatsuki. So you set a trap to test a theory Jiraiya hadn't even suggested yet. To find a way to turn their communication against them." She lifted her lashes just enough to watch him. "That's why Konoha played defense instead of offensive while they attacked and that's why you agreed to this mission… to give the impression that we were desperate enough to seek any source of information on their activities that we could."

His lips brushed the curve of her smile. "How did I do that?"

She untangled a hand from his hair and lifted it to trace along the edge of his eye. "You tell me… Itachi."

He laughed, a deep warm chuckle which belayed the sudden heat in his eyes at her mention of his name. Shifting, Itachi effortlessly held himself aloft with one arm while he used his other to mimic her caress on his face. Calloused fingers trailed over the sensitive skin by her eye, leaving a tingling heat in their wake. "But this way is so much more fun."

Quick as she could, Sakura darted her head up to clamp down her teeth on his ear. The hand on her face slid around to her neck, and Itachi hissed. "Do not," she whispered harshly into his ear, "make the mistake of thinking you can treat me like a toy."

The hand on her neck fisted, catching her hair by the roots and he pulled her down so he could stare at her eyes. Countless heartbeats passed between them before Itachi spoke, "Playing with you is not the same as toying with you, Sakura. I enjoy the way your mind works and find the way you explain your conclusions intriguing. As for this game," he nudged his nose against hers, "you started it."

Sakura refused to back down. "You weren't talking to me," she couldn't twist her head to gain distance because of his grip on her hair, and instead let her foot slide off his thigh and back onto the bed. "The ring was our mission. The pursuit of the jutsu used in it—our mission. You made choices without consulting me, led us off without informing me of our true objective, and you thought you could get away with it. I don't work that way. Itachi. Can I trust you to treat me as a person? As a partner? I will not settle for anything less."

His lips on hers were his answer. The heat of his kiss was at odds with the precision of his mouth against hers. He made no move to deepen the contact to more than just his lips on hers… but there was a deliberateness to each caressing movement that curled her toes.

She watched him through her lashes when he finally pulled back. Breathing deeply, he rested his forehead against hers and deliberately held her gaze as he spoke.

"I said everything, Sakura."

Yes. He had. And she had been very deliberately not thinking about it, but that didn't mean she had forgotten a single word he'd said. "You said you wouldn't demand anything of me that you wouldn't give." There wasn't any heat to her tone. "Prove it."

He laughed again, a soft, wondering laugh before dipping his head to plant a soft kiss on her forehead. Then he rolled off of her, landing on his back beside her. Itachi tucked his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling. Sakura supported her weight on her elbow and turned on her side to watch him.

"What's so funny?"

He met her gaze; his eyes alight with some inner fire. "You amaze me."

Itachi reached out with one hand to trace down her cheek before capturing her chin in his grip. Sakura allowed him to pull her down for one more kiss, this one almost nothing more than a chaste meeting of the lips. His hand slipped around the back of her neck during the contact and prevented her from moving back. His eyes were lit with a hunger which contradicted the lightness of his touch. "Ask your questions."

"What trap?"

"Tsunade agreed to use a high level genjutsu to cover a seal that will allow us to track the Akatsuki member who wears the ring with some level of accuracy."

"A genjutsu?" Sakura murmured, her brows tucking together. "That's risky."

"Using a genjutsu was a gamble." Itachi agreed. "It will allow us to track their progression if it is not discovered."

"What would it take to find the jutsu in the ring you planted?"

"I can think of perhaps five bloodlines that would allow the user to find the jutsu I used. Only three of them would allow the user to find and break the jutsu and two of those are in Konoha."

Sakura considered that while shifted her weight, bringing up an arm to settle against the mattress so she could brace her chin on her palm as she digested those words. She could think of two possible outcomes of this experiment. They would either discover that someone within the Akatsuki had a bloodline limit capable of dealing with genjutsu or they could track at least one Akatsuki member.

But it also opened them up to be shown what the Akatsuki wanted them to see…

"How will you deal with the chance that they will be feeding us the information they want us to have?"

"To find the seal they will have to break the genjutsu and if they do, the seal will dissolve and we will lose any connection we have to the ring."

It really was a gamble. But she could see the logic behind it. All the same…

"Does shishou know about this?"

Itachi arched a brow, "Do you really think I would do anything like this without the approval of the Hokage?"

The answer to that was probably better left unsaid, and he was sporting a smugly amused air which said he knew it. So Sakura fell back on her pillow and joined him in staring up at the ceiling instead. "We're doomed."

"Oh?"

"Well, if you didn't tell her, we are going to be in so much trouble when we come back empty-handed. And if you did tell her… that means she took our side in this bet. We're doomed."

There was a pause and then Itachi laughed, low and from deep in his throat. Tilting her head, she glanced at him. He pushed himself up and smiled at her with warm eyes. He didn't make a move to touch her but her pulse kicked up anyway.

"Either way, we'll find out once we return."

She was tempted to smack him with the pillow but decided that would get her into trouble. Before she could come up with a proper response, he pushed himself into a sitting position and was sliding off the bed.

"I'll take first watch."

Sakura opened her mouth to argue with him and then changed her mind. Already she could pick out the faint sounds of a growing crowd downstairs. The odds that shinobi would attack them tonight were so slim they were hardly existent. The worst that would occur was a handful of scenarios involving a few drunks attempting to find their rooms. Itachi would have to disengage the worst of their traps to keep from alerting the hotel that they were shinobi if someone did attempt to enter their room by mistake or intent. She was more than capable of handling it, but letting Itachi deal with idiots was suddenly very appealing. And quiet of the predawn hours would give her a chance to analyze this conversation in minute detail.

"Okay."

Climbing out of the bed, she dug out a kunai before yanking back the thin coverlet on the bed. With a sigh of happiness, she crawled under the covers and buried herself in the first real bed she had slept in over a week. Pulling a pillow over her head and curling her fingers around the hilt of the kunai, she allowed herself to relax, knowing that Itachi was all the warning she would need.

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