Title: projection
Characters: Itachi, Sasuke, Sakura
Summary: Sakura attempts to fall in love with Itachi, and sort of fails, while Sasuke becomes the stereotype of a brooding teenager and poor Itachi wonders why the teenage drama won't leave him be.
Notes: ...I'm honestly not the biggest fan of ItaSaku. But Sakura latching onto Itachi because of Sasuke is honestly too funny not to explore.

This one goes to Plastic Roses, who suggested Sakura-in-love with Itachi scenario.

Probably the first of a mini series of drabbles.

There was a two week period of time when Sakura was fourteen when, out of sheer annoyance with Sasuke's indifference to her feelings, declared that she was over him and promptly fell in love with his brother instead.

The abrupt transfer of affections left Itachi blinking and feeling vaguely out of touch with reality. He liked Sakura well enough, but the change from her inquiring about the finer points of his bloodline limit and what it meant to be an ANBU to her following him around, all giggly and girly and—

It wasn't pleasant, to say the least.

It had been cute when she was doing that to Sasuke and his foolish little brother had no idea how to respond. Now it was just annoying.

Speaking of Sasuke…

His brother, Itachi was sorry to note, now seemed to hate him with an intensity that rivaled Maito Gai's determination. He might have been too much of an Uchiha to show much of these feelings around their parents, but the younger boy had no qualms about throwing all manners of weaponry at Itachi when he thought his brother wasn't looking. Itachi very much doubted that Sasuke expected to hit him; it was probably just a way to sort out his frustration over Sakura. However, the random fireballs, steel kunai, and challenges to spar were a bit…harder to ignore.

This last one was proving to be a bit of a problem. Sasuke was still young, and no match for Itachi in terms of skill. But sometime within the last two years the scrawny boy had managed to develop some muscle, whether from tussling with Naruto or something else entirely, Itachi wasn't sure. But even a good-natured spar with Sasuke these days was enough to leave him wincing for several days if his brother got a hit in. When Sasuke was making a good faith effort to kill him Itachi was rather worried for his health. Plus, the boy was sulking, and Itachi didn't really want to have to put up with that for an extended period of time.

Itachi had understood his brother's brooding after the fiasco that was the Forest of Death. Having been in a semi-homicidal rage at the time, he had considerable empathy.

Sasuke sulking over a girl driven away by his own actions? Less so.

Especially when Sakura wasn't actually in love with him.

It was so obvious that she was trying not to be in love with Sasuke, and that she trying to project her feelings for Sasuke onto Itachi, instead.

He supposed he could see the reasoning behind it. He looked like Sasuke, was a bit more mature but still generally sharing several similarities in disposition and taste.

It just wasn't working. Sakura's smiles were a little too sweet, a bit too strained. She still looked too much at Sasuke to make good on her resolve to ignore him. She was trying too hard. The poor girl was a terrible liar, and it showed.

And Sasuke was so wrapped up in Sakura's attention towards Itachi that he didn't even notice.

Itachi sighed.

Really, he was nineteen. Wasn't he supposed to be too old for this sort of drama? It wasn't fair, being stuck in some hormonal teenage mess when he had been a legal adult for the past year.

Well, fair or not, it appeared that he would have to intervene.

"Aniki!" Itachi looked up to find a fireball speeding its way toward him.

Provided that Sasuke didn't actually kill him, first.

To be continued.

So, any comments?