Chapter 4 – Getting To Know The Family

When she woke up, she found herself alone and for a moment, Sakura couldn't help but panic until she forced herself to calm down. She could feel Itachi because of their bond. He was okay. He was far away from her, but he was okay.

She grumbled to herself as Sakura realised she had fallen asleep in her clothes and to make it worse, as she looked outside, it looked around two in the afternoon. Was it normal for vampires to sleep so much? Weren't they supposed to sleep during the day instead of all night? Right now, Sakura was certain she and the Uchiha clan were just like humans, in a way. Yes, they drank blood and were ridiculously fast, but other than that…

Sighing, Sakura dragged herself out of bed, rummaging through her bags until she found a clean set of underwear and clothes. Once she had found them, she looked around the room unsurely before moving over to a certain door and opening it, only to close it again when Sakura found that it was a closet. Moving to the next door, she smiled to herself. The bathroom.

It felt like she was in the shower for hours as Sakura washed her body, as she massaged the shampoo and conditioner into her now short hair. Despite it being a part of her routine for as long as she could remember, it all felt so new to her. There were no scars on her body and no other blemishes. If she was still human, she would have blushed when Sakura also realised that other than the hair on her head (and obviously her eyebrows, eyelashes, etc) and… other, more intimate, areas… she was completely hairless. Had Mikoto waxed or shaved the hairs off her body while she was unconscious? That was weird…

Done in the shower, Sakura stepped out and wrapped a dark towel around her body, moving closer to the mirror to examine herself more closely. After wiping away the steam that had covered it, she narrowed her eyes. It was definitely going to take some time getting used to looking the way she did. Sakura had always had average looks (except for her hair colour, of course). Seeing her perfectly arched eyebrows, her thick and long black eyelashes, her unblemished skin… It was so strange. Was it because of being a vampire? There was no denying that the Uchiha clan were… were flawlessly beautiful to say the least, but her? She had always been billboard brow, Haruno Sakura. Before her attack, she had never even been kissed.

Sakura had always been happy with her purity. It had made her feel different to the other girls at school. She didn't care about being called 'frigid'. At least she could say that she wasn't a whore for sleeping around.

Shoving those angry, bitter thoughts from her mind, Sakura took a deep breath, placed her towel on the counter and turned around, slipping on her clothes. Then, once again grabbing her towel, she wrapped it around her head.

The cool air was pleasant as she left the bathroom and her new bedroom. And, listening carefully to the sounds around her, Sakura followed the nearest one. From the light footsteps and the sound of sweeping, she was guessing it was Mikoto. When she entered the room, she found that she was right.

"Hello, Sakura-chan," Mikoto greeted her as she paused in her cleaning. "Did you sleep well?" Sakura nodded and smiled. "Usually, we only sleep around once or twice a week depending on how much we exhaust ourselves. Unlike humans, we don't need as much rest. However, since you have only just woken up from your transformation, you are bound to be a little tired. How are you feeling?"

"It's difficult getting used to."

At her honest reply, Mikoto gave a gentle, understanding smile. "It gets better, trust me." Then, noticing how Sakura was looking around unsurely, the woman had to bite back a smirk. "Itachi is at work right now. He told me to tell you that he will be back around six so that you can both go out and hunt. Again, since you have only just been changed, you will be much thirstier than the rest of us. Sasuke still has difficulty with his thirst."

Sakura nodded once, remembering Shisui's words from the night before about the others having jobs. "Is that why…" Trailing off for a moment, she bit her lip. "Is that why Sasuke stays behind and trains?"

"Partly," Mikoto told her with a slight frown. "You see, Sasuke dislikes being crowded and he also doesn't like humans that much."

It was obvious that she wasn't going to go into more detail and Sakura couldn't really blame her. They hadn't known each other all that long and these were clearly family issues. "Do you need any help?" Sakura asked after a couple of minutes, realising that she had simply been standing there.

"Oh, I'm just about done now. Though, if you're feeling up to it, I am about to go and train if you wish to join me?"

A bright smile graced her lips. "I'd love to."

Mikoto chuckled as she tidied away her cleaning supplies. "I take it you enjoy sparring?"

"Fighting has always come naturally to me." Sakura laughed sheepishly as she scratched her cheek. "My friend once told me that I seem to prefer settling arguments with my fists rather than words."

"That sounds so much like somebody I know." The older woman smiled before gesturing for Sakura to come closer.

Uncertainly, she did so, though a small smile graced her lips as Mikoto guided her over to a chair and unwrapped the towel from around her head, using it to quickly dry Sakura's hair as much as possible. Once done with that, she disappeared with the towel for a moment and reappeared with a comb in hand.

"I have always wanted a daughter," Mikoto told Sakura and immediately, the woman had her attention. "Don't get me wrong, I am more than happy with my boys and Shisui, but there are times when I wish I could have a daughter to simply…"

When she trailed off, seeming unable to find words, she smiled. "I understand. My mom and I never really got on and she worked all the way through the night, so until I turned eight and could do my hair myself, it was always my dad who brushed it for me or put it up. My mom was too worn out from her shifts at work."

Mikoto was gentle as she worked through the tangles in Sakura's hair, though due to using conditioner while in the shower, it was easy to untangle them. "Itachi has such beautiful hair, but he never allows for me to style it." She chuckled and Sakura couldn't help but smirk. The thought of Itachi being in her place, having Mikoto play with his hair, was rather amusing. It was true that he had beautiful hair, though. "And I know that there is no point in asking Sasuke. He would simply roll his eyes and huff." Again, Mikoto chuckled as she parted Sakura's still-damp hair down the middle so that it would be framing her face. "Growing up, there were times when they would allow me to coddle and pamper them, but now they are so determined to be men and do everything for themselves."

"There's nothing wrong with a mother's affection," she mumbled, staring down at the ground. Her chest was aching slightly at the thought of her mother never doing the same for her. Part of her wondered if Mebuki regretted it now that she was no longer with them. Sakura did. She wished that she had been kinder to her mother, been more open. There was no point in denying that she caused just as many arguments as Mebuki did.

"Indeed there isn't," she replied softly and it was like she could pick up on Sakura's mood as Mikoto placed a hand on her shoulder. "Do not feel guilty about the past, Sakura-chan, and do not have any regrets. The past is in the past and there is nothing that can be done. That chapter of our lives is over, like the sun setting after a long day. All we can do now is look towards the future."

She nodded and as Mikoto allowed her to get up, now done with her hair, she turned and smiled at her. "Thank you so much for your kindness, Mikoto-san."

"Oh, it's nothing." Placing the comb down on the side and tucking the chair under the table, Mikoto ushered Sakura from the room. "Go and change into more suitable clothing and footwear and we will get started. There is so much to teach you."

Frowning, Sakura did as she was told.

What more could there be to teach her?

At first, she had wondered just what the hell Mikoto could teach her that she didn't already know.

Now, Sakura knew that there was a lot.

For example, despite being told about chakra and hearing about it, she had never been able to use her own. Her instructor had always told her that only the most skilled warriors could use it and since Sakura wasn't really a warrior… Well, to be honest, she had pegged it all off as make believe, as complete and utter bullshit. Now, as Mikoto taught her how to actually summon and use her chakra… She was shocked to say the least.

"You are doing well, Sakura-chan," Mikoto told her proudly. "It seems you have perfect control on your chakra already. Are you sure you have never practised using your chakra before?" She shook her head, still stunned with the fact that she was hanging upside down from a freaking branch. "Keep your chakra focused on your feet and walk your way back down the tree."

So she did.

"This is…" Sakura trailed off as she stepped back onto the grass, her eyes wide with surprise. "How is this even possible?"

Mikoto gave a small smirk. "Are you really still asking yourself that?"

Of course. After becoming a vampire, it should have been painfully obvious to her that anything was possible.

Her head snapped up as Mikoto's turned a fraction towards the forest surrounding the Uchiha clan's home. "Sasuke, why don't you join us instead of poorly concealing yourself in the trees?"

As her soft voice reached him, a grunt reached them and not long after that, Sasuke stepped out of the trees on the far end of the clearing. To Sakura, he looked no different than last night, but as she focused on his features, a faint dot of red on the corner of his lips caught her attention.

Blood.

Human blood.

Sasuke had just returned from a hunt.

Sakura bit her lip and looked away, willing herself not to focus on the blood, but… damn. Her mouth was watering and her throat was burning already. Mikoto really hadn't been kidding when she warned her about being thirstier than the others, had she?

Noticing this, Mikoto sighed and the moment Sasuke reached them, seeming to take his time walking over to them, she stepped forward and wiped the corners of his mouth, making him scowl at her. And for that split second that Sakura looked up, Sasuke looked like the child from Itachi's memories. He looked like the child who would pout and blush whenever Mikoto would baby him in front of others. Of course, now, Sasuke would never blush – none of them would – but the meaning was still there.

It was that thought that stopped Sakura from darting into the trees and hunting. It calmed her down.

"Why don't you show Sakura-chan your katon jutsu, Sasuke?"

He looked down at his mother silently for a moment before glancing over at Sakura and nodding once.

"Not as large as you usually do them, please, Sasuke. I don't want to have to put out another fire."

This time, Sasuke smirked, and Sakura noticed that he actually looked rather handsome when he wasn't scowling. It was a mischievous looking smirk that wasn't seen by Mikoto, although she somehow seemed to know it was there as she smiled and shook her head. Perhaps this was why the clan refused to give up on Sasuke? Despite the fact that he was obsessed with revenge, that he wasn't as perfect at controlling his thirst, that all he did all day was hunt and train, he was still their family. Deep down, Sasuke was still the little boy from Itachi's memories. The thought made Sakura smile softly.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"

Her smile dropped.

She had only just been able to make out the hand seals that Sasuke went through. She had only vaguely been able to register him leaning back and breathing in deeply before raising his hands to his lips and breathing out. But there was not a chance in hell that she would miss something like that. Sasuke was… He was breathing fire. There was a large freaking ball of fire right in front of her! Sakura's eyes were wide as they snapped to Mikoto's, but the woman was staring at the fireball with proud eyes, was watching her son with proud eyes. And as Sasuke finally stopped with the fire, as he straightened up and tilted his head to the side, looking at her arrogantly, Sakura could only stare.

"Sasuke," she whispered before speaking much louder. "What the hell was that?"

A single chuckle was all he replied with.

"Chakra, Sakura-chan," Mikoto told her when it was obvious Sasuke wouldn't say any more. Oh her son was such a show off. "With a great amount of it as well as perfect control, you can do almost anything."

"C-Can I do that?"

"It will take some time and a lot of training," she answered honestly. "Although, considering how fast you picked up on summoning your chakra and sending it to different parts of your body, you may learn it just as quickly as Sasuke did."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, not particularly enjoying being compared to a pink haired girl. "Fire may not be Sakura's natural element, Mother," he stated flatly.

"Natural element?" Sakura repeated, looking between them both. "You mean like, fire, water, earth and wind?"

"There is also lightning," he added.

"How many can you all use?"

"I can use lightning and fire."

"And I can use water and fire," Mikoto replied. "Fire came naturally, as it seemed to have done with other Uchiha, but I had to work hard on water. With the Sharingan, it is easy to copy jutsu." There was a brief pause. "Itachi can use most of the five elements. Fugaku is skilled with fire and wind and Shisui can use fire, wind and earth. I believe he is currently working on water."

Sakura frowned for a moment. "Itachi-san can use almost all of the five elements?" They nodded, but Sasuke's looked rather reluctant. "How is that possible?"

There was a moment of pause as Mikoto discreetly glanced at Sasuke from the corner of her eyes, knowing that he didn't particularly like the fact that Itachi was more skilled than he was. However, some things just couldn't be helped. "You see, Sakura-chan, whilst we work hard on learning all of our jutsu, it comes naturally to Itachi. He is considered a prodigy amongst vampires, a genius. It does not mean that we are weaker and it also doesn't mean that Itachi doesn't have to work on his skills, it simply means that we have to work harder."

Her last words were aimed more at Sasuke than Sakura.

"How do I know if I can use the natural elements?"

Telling both her and Sasuke "one second", Mikoto ran into the house. Her speed was definitely no match for Itachi's. If Sakura was completely honest, she would say that Mikoto could run just about the same speed as her. Though, since she hadn't seen Shisui, Fugaku and Sasuke run at full speed, she couldn't really compare much. Sure, Sasuke had fled from the room yesterday, but that was pretty much disappearing from in front of her. How fast could he run alongside her?

Before either of them could say anything to each other (although Sakura seriously doubted that Sasuke would even say anything to her since he was simply standing there looking bored), Mikoto returned with five pieces of paper. They weren't all that large – about the size of a card in a game of poker. On the cards were different kanji. Altogether, there were fire, water, wind, earth and lightning.

"For now, we will work on one. It is much more complicated learning how to use more than one, especially since you do not have the Sharingan," Mikoto told her as she handed Sakura a piece of paper. "Focus your chakra into the paper." She did so but frowned as nothing happened. "You are not a fire user," she told her, taking the paper from her hands. Focusing her own chakra through the paper, the pink haired girl gasped as it was set on fire, the flames and ashes quickly being blown away into the wind. "That is what happens if you are a fire type. Now, try this one."

Once again, Sakura frowned as she found that she was not a water type. Nor was she an earth or lightning type.

She was, however, a wind type.

Between her fingers, the paper split, making her grin. "I'm a wind user."

"Wind is a great combination to fire." Mikoto smirked, ignoring how Sasuke rolled his eyes at her as well as Sakura's excitement. "If you combine your wind say with, Itachi's fire, it would cause his fire to grow and become much more fierce and powerful."

Sakura's grin faltered for a second as her eyes slid from the piece of paper and up to Mikoto. Then, her eyes narrowed almost playfully. "Mikoto-san, are you trying to set me up with your son?"

Sasuke actually tensed.

However, the matriarch merely chuckled. "Not at all, Sakura-chan. I was simply stating that together you could both be an unstoppable force, one to be reckoned with."

Considering that Itachi was labelled as a genius and prodigy, Sakura seriously doubted that. Instead of voicing her doubt, however, she smiled. "Well, we will just have to see what happens."

If it was possible, Mikoto's smile brightened, appearing knowing. "Indeed we will."

By now, since it was around five in the afternoon, Mikoto had to go and change to meet with Fugaku. Apparently, despite only being an ordinary-ranking policeman (this time), he still had to keep up appearances and what screamed "I'm a totally normal family man" more than having a beautiful wife by your side? Well, that and the fact that his eldest son and nephew also worked there.

So, Sakura was left alone with Sasuke.

Oh the joys.

Forcing herself to be polite, she smiled at him, but he merely blinked in response. Sakura had to refrain from groaning with annoyance. Couldn't he at least try to be nice? Could he not at least attempt at getting to know her? If not for her, then why not for his family? All except Fugaku and Sasuke were being kind to her. Well, it wasn't that those two were being unkind, it was just that… Well, they seemed so aloof and cold. They both seemed so unapproachable.

"Spar with me."

It wasn't a question or a request. So, for a moment, all Sakura could do was stare up at Sasuke in surprise. That surprise turned into full blown shock as he barely even gave her time to react as he dropped to the ground and his leg lashed out, almost catching her own legs and knocking her flat on her back. Growling, Sakura took advantage of his crouched position as her foot whipped through the air, aiming straight for his head, but Sasuke dodged it effortlessly.

Jumping back, she narrowed her eyes at him. "Is that any way to treat a lady?"

He smirked. "You're not a lady. You're a child."

Sakura snarled and ran forward, her fist raising and swinging forward, but instead of hitting Sasuke, she hit nothing more than thin air.

"I'm not a child," she yelled, spinning around and throwing another punch. But again, he dodged it. "And besides, you look even younger than I do."

"We look the same age," Sasuke muttered, catching Sakura's leg and throwing her through the air. It was by sheer luck that she managed to catch herself by digging her hands and feet into the ground after landing, stopping herself from colliding with the house. "I may look the same age as you but I am, in fact, older. Much older."

Not enjoying the fact that he seemed bored with the fight and conversation, she shot forward and threw punch after punch, changing it up every now and then by also throwing a couple of kicks into her attack. Sasuke was on the defensive, blocking and dodging blows easily.

"You can tell you're older than I am," Sakura huffed. "You're a bitter old man."

For a split second, rage flashed through Sasuke's eyes but before Sakura could even regret what she had said, his foot was slamming into her stomach and the world around her was passing by quickly before she came to an abrupt stop, a pained yelp ripping from her as she smashed into a tree. It only vaguely registered in her mind how it snapped in half due to the collision, falling backwards. It didn't fall to the ground completely, however. No, the other tress caught it first. Nothing caught her. Instead, she fell to the ground, grunting with a mixture of pain and shock.

"What the hell would you know?" Sasuke spat, appearing before her and picking Sakura up from the ground roughly. "You haven't been around as long as the rest of us have. You haven't seen the things we have." Her mouth opened, about to argue, but Sasuke cut her off with a vicious growl. "I don't care if you have seen Itachi's memories. I don't care that the others can hide the horrors that they have seen better than I can." As he spoke, he once again launched Sakura through the air.

This time, however, he gave her the chance to prepare herself for his next attack. She winced as she tried to block his blows with her arms and legs, using every little bit of the self-defence she had been taught, but it did little against Sasuke. It didn't even seem like he was aware of how rough he was being, of how he had taken their simple spar to the next level. It was more like a real fight now.

"What happened to you?" Sakura grunted as she flipped backwards, just about dodging a punch that would have no doubt broken her nose. Or, was that even possible now? Could vampires break their bones or bleed?

"What happened to me?" Sasuke repeatedly coldly, his strength increasing once again. "What happened to me was that I had to sit back and watch as the rest of my family died. I had to sit back and watch as my friends died. All I could do, all any of us could do was watch as the foolish humans in this pathetic world destroyed our planet and slaughtered each other with their wars. Even to this day, they're still destroying it and each other!"

It occurred to her there and then that Sasuke had every right to be the way he was right now.

It also occurred to her that he was most likely going to kill her if she couldn't get at least one decent hit in, if she couldn't get him to pause for just a moment and realise what he was doing. Sakura wasn't sure if she'd be able to, though. By now, Sasuke's Sharingan was activated and spinning wildly and she was too afraid to look into his eyes. She could trust Itachi's Sharingan – sort of. He wouldn't kill her with it and the things he had shown her had only been memories. What would Sasuke show her? What if he showed her the horrors he had been forced to see? She didn't want to see them.

Clenching her fist tightly, Sakura flooded her arm with chakra, hoping that it would boost her strength even if it was only by the smallest amount.

"Sasuke, stop!"

Sasuke's eyes widened as he not only heard his mother and Shisui screaming at him, as he sensed the others of his clan returning, but also as he picked up on the power in Sakura's punch.

She couldn't control it.

He quickly jumped back and as Sakura's fist connected with the ground instead of his face, they were all stunned and shaken up as it erupted around them, as it split apart and shook violently. If it wasn't for Itachi shooting forward and grabbing her after she threw the punch, Sakura would have fallen through the cracks in the ground, would have fallen who knows how deep into the earth. It missed the house by a mere couple of feet and even from their place at the edge of the clearing, the others still had to move back to avoid being caught.

And after, as the dust settled and the area surrounding them stopped shaking, they could all only stare with wide eyes at the damage created. Even Sasuke and Fugaku were unable to hide their shock.

"Sakura-san," Itachi spoke as he lowered her to the ground, grabbing her chin and forcing her eyes to meet his. Like the others, his Sharingan was activated so that he could dodge the ground as it had been erupting and splitting. However, as he noticed Sakura's eyes flash with fear for a second, he immediately released it and allowed his usual, dark coloured eyes to return. They seemed to relax her. "Where did you learn how to use strength such as that?"

"I-I didn't," Sakura told him honestly, her eyes wide and her hands shaking ever so slightly. "I just… I just couldn't think of any other way to make Sasuke stop. I should have thought before I said anything, but I just got… I got so angry with being called a child, with him acting so much better than me." Her eyes moved over to Mikoto. "Mikoto-san, I am so sorry for destroying your home."

The woman was clearly still in shock, but managed to shake her head. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan. Shisui or Itachi can fix this with their earth style."

But Sakura was still feeling guilty. If her fist had connected with Sasuke's face like she had planned on it doing, what could have happened to him? Could vampires die? Would his head have exploded like the ground did? Oh God. Just the thought made Sakura feel sick.

Seeing that she was still scared, Itachi reached out to take her hand, only for her to snap it away from his, for her to very carefully keep them straight and not fisted. Her fists were dangerous. She was dangerous. The last thing Sakura wanted was to harm the man who had saved her life, who had been nothing but kind and understanding since she had woken up.

"Come." Itachi straightened up and walked away from her, toward the forest. "We will hunt whilst Shisui fixes the clearing."

She could only follow numbly, her eyes still wide and her hands still shaking.

When he was certain that they were alone and out of hearing distance, Itachi turned towards Sakura and once again forced her to look him in the eye. "You do not need to be afraid, Sakura-san," he told her gently, but there was a serious tone to his voice, one that seemed as though it was almost ordering her to understand him. "Sasuke should not have pushed you the way he did. He should know better than to force–"

"But I pushed him, Itachi-san," she argued. "I was the one who started it."

Itachi looked at her blankly. "Was it you or Sasuke who attacked first?"

"W-Well… It was Sasuke, but he told me that he wanted to spar."

"And who was it who grew much more violent and angry, who changed a mere sparring match to a real fight?"

"I got angry first," Sakura told him truthfully. "A-And more violent. But… I guess it was Sasuke who took things too far first."

She had no idea how lucky she was that he didn't start using his jutsu against her. Just a simple fire attack would have ended her existence if it had enveloped her fully.

Realising this, Itachi took her hand, ignoring how she tensed, how she tried to yank her hand away from him. Instead, he held on tighter and guided, dragged her, through the forest and to the lake Sakura enjoyed sitting by. And as she realised where they were going, as she realised that Itachi was not going to let go of her, she relaxed ever so slightly, her eyes never leaving the back of his head for a single second until they came to a stop and he sat down by the lake. By his side, she also sat down.

"There are still things that I have not had the chance to tell you," Itachi said seriously, yet at the same time, his voice was emotionless and his face was no different. "You may not know this, but there are ways to kill a vampire. The first is to behead one of our kind. Doing so will stop them from being able to attack. In fact, it is like being paralysed until somebody manages to put you back together or you regenerate. It does not matter how long your head is without a body. You will not die. You will simply be… unconscious." He paused for a moment, glancing down at the girl beside him as she looked up with wide, apple green eyes. "To destroy the body belonging to one of our kind, you must set it on fire. This will stop the vampire from being brought back or put back together again. However, you must get every part of them. If you miss even an inch of the body, your efforts will be wasted and the body would simply be regenerated. It would take some time depending on how bad the damage is, but it can be done.

"Also," once again, Itachi paused as he sighed, "it does not matter about dismembering the body because if somebody manages to set you on fire completely, you are done for. There is no coming back and there is no regeneration. All that will be left of you are your ashes."

Sasuke's fireball jutsu instantly filled Sakura's mind and, if it was even possible, her blood ran cold. He could have killed her within a split second during their 'sparring' session, though Sasuke had obviously been holding back. That or he had been way too angry to even think straight. Sakura was hoping it was the former, as the latter made her rather uncomfortable.

"Sakura-san." She looked up at him instantly. "It is important that, if you spar with Sasuke, you must have either myself or Shisui standing by. My father is still not sure of you, so there is no telling whether or not he would help if Sasuke gets out of control. There are moments when his rage is far too great for Sasuke to handle alone. When that happens, we use our Sharingan to restrain him. However, lately, Sasuke has grown much more powerful than our parents – which is why my mother cannot watch over you both if you spar. Her being a water-type helps, but only by so much. She can extinguish Sasuke's fire, but there is still a great risk."

Her hands were still shaking ever so slightly, but Sakura was slowly calming herself down. It seemed that even though she was technically dead, adrenaline could still pump through her veins. That particular thought brought another to mind. "Can we bleed?"

For a moment, there was silence as Itachi watched Sakura and, unfortunately for him, his mind went through every possibility of which way she meant 'can we bleed'. That was most definitely not a conversation he wanted to have. Not because he was afraid of menstrual cycles like certain foolish human males, but because it just wasn't a conversation he wished to have with the girl, woman, he had saved. It was more of a conversation she should probably have with his mother. However, those thoughts only lasted for a split second as Itachi realised instantly what kind of bleeding she meant.

"Bones can be broken," Itachi replied, "as can our skin, but no, we do not bleed. Our blood is frozen within our veins, just like our hearts. No matter how alike we are to humans, Sakura-san, you must remember that we are no longer human. We are classed as the living dead. We are vampires."

Nodding, Sakura looked out across the lake, her eyes squinting for a moment as she thought about what Itachi just said, as his words replayed themselves in her mind. "What about werewolves? And zombies? Mummies? Witches? Are any of those true?"

"Most of them are, yes," he answered smoothly as he watched the sun dance down on the lake as it began to set.

It was around eight in the evening now and they were nearing autumn. Already leaves had started to fall from the trees, though because there were hundreds, possibly thousands of trees, it took a lot longer for them all to fall and most got caught on branches until the wind picked up. In only a few months' time, the ground they were currently sitting upon would be covered in dead, dried up leaves and not too much longer after that, those leaves would be covered by frost and eventually snow.

"We have not encountered any zombies or mummies, but we have encountered a witch and werewolf before." Not for the first time that evening, Itachi gave her a serious look. "It is best not to go looking for them. Werewolves are highly unpredictable and their speed rivals our own. I'm sure that I do not need to warn you about witches being able to cast spells and conjure potions." She shook her head. "Some witches can even ensnare the mind and take complete control of it, however that depends on how powerful the witch is. Some can only read minds."

"Only," Sakura repeated dryly. Glancing up at him, her eyebrows furrowed for a moment. "Has that ever happened to you, Itachi-san?"

"No. Not to me." He paused for a moment, almost seeming as though he would not continue on with their conversation, but after a moment, he did so. "My clan and I heard a lot of the things Sasuke told you, but that is not the whole story. Yes, war affected us all, but it never had such a great effect on Sasuke until we had a run in with a powerful witch not too long ago." Again, there was a pause as Itachi seemed to go back in time, as he thought over his next words carefully. "A witch had confronted our clan, though at the time, there had only been Sasuke present. The rest of us were out on a hunt or running the perimeter, to make sure that none of our own kind or others had been tracking us to our new location."

Itachi looked blankly out at the lake, but Sakura could feel the emotions through their bond. There was a mixture of them and they were all cluttered up together. One of them stood out the most, however, and that was guilt. "Sasuke never went into detail about what happened, but when we returned, his mind was fragile and whatever the witch had cast upon him had disturbed him greatly. Since then, he has been tracking the witch."

A shaking hand pressed to her mouth as she herself felt great guilt. "That's why… That's why Sasuke focuses so much on revenge."

"It is."

Shifting onto her knees and inching closer, Sakura hesitantly moved her hand from her mouth and over to Itachi's face. In response, dark eyes slid over to hers as he focused completely on the uncertainty he could see in them, the flicker of fear she felt. It wasn't fear of touching him, however. It was the fear of rejection. He didn't move. And finally, she cupped his cheek gently, a small smile playing along her lips.

"Please don't feel bad, Itachi-san," Sakura whispered softly to him. "Even from the small amount of time I've spent with him, I know already that Sasuke cares for you. You're his big brother. Sure, he may be a little jealous of your power, but he could never truly hate you. Even I know that and I don't even know him." When silence met her, Sakura looked up at him. "Have you trained with him recently?" Itachi shook his head. "Maybe you should train with Sasuke and give him tips on how to increase his strength, or how to focus on keeping his mind controlled. I can't even begin to imagine how he must feel." Once again, there was silence, but she could feel through their bond that Itachi was considering her idea. "Think about it this way: Sasuke trusts you and if he gets out of control, you can stop him with your Sharingan. Your parents won't be able to do that for him and I don't know how much Sasuke trusts Shisui-san."

Her hand slipped from his face, but just as it was about to drop to her side as Sakura folded her legs beneath her, Itachi caught it. There were no words. They simply sat there together and watched the sunset before dashing off into the trees so that they could hunt. Itachi wasn't all that thirsty, but he knew that Sakura was. He could tell just by the faintest of twitches at the corner of her lips and throat. Her throat was burning.

Not even an hour after leaving the lake, they managed to hunt until Sakura was well sated and, so that she could begin to hunt by herself for when he wasn't around, Itachi allowed her to get rid of all the evidence. There was some practise needed, but he knew that she would soon be just as capable of clearing the area as well as the rest of them.

Also, by the time they returned, the clearing looked just as it had before Sakura destroyed it and she couldn't even deny that it made her so happy to see it looking the way it once had.

Later that night, as they were laying comfortably on her bed together with soft music playing in the background, Sakura frowned. "You said that you and your clan had to go through wars. But… Does that mean you fought in them, too?"

Itachi shook his head. "No. We chose not to take sides."

It was why it had been so hard on them all. As the humans fought against each other, as they slaughtered one another, all they had been able to do was… nothing. There had been no stopping them, especially not with the leaders that had been in charge at the time. Hungry and greedy warmongers. They had desired more power, more riches and to get those things, they had sent their men out to fight pointless wars. Sometimes, Itachi wondered just who the monsters really were.

"Weren't you all worried about humans suddenly becoming extinct?" Her frown deepened. "What if they had all killed each other and you starved?"

"That had been the last thing on our minds at the time," he answered her truthfully. "You are still young, so you have not lived through a war and hopefully you never will. Yes, you may have learned about them, but you have not truly experienced the horrors." That haunted look was back in Itachi's eyes, the look that told Sakura of how many of the horrors he was currently talking about, he had experienced. "The hatred, the violence… Even from humans, who are nowhere near as powerful as we are, it was suffocating. They were vicious and brutal, torturing information out of their enemies or simply doing it for the rush it gave them. We are aware of the fact that some soldiers fought to protect their loved ones, but why were they fighting? Why must those who start the wars, insist on such carnage? It was for their own selfish gain and the soldiers in the war were nothing more than pawns to them. They were and are sacrificial pieces to their games."

If she could have been, Sakura would be in tears right at that moment in time. She had never heard somebody speaking so passionately about something they cared about before – and his words were so true. It was then that she learned that Itachi, despite being what he was, was a pacifist. Had witnessing wars made him that way? With the feelings that were currently whirling within him, Sakura was willing to bet that it was.

"In the end, whilst those who started the wars and won them, sit comfortably in their homes, those who actually fought in the wars are buried six feet underground. Whilst the 'leader' who won bathes in his riches, the families of those soldiers grieve for their losses. War does not change anything. It simply causes more hatred."

Sakura rested her head on Itachi's chest, her hand resting near her eyes as she closed them. "I hope that, one day, there will be no more hatred. I know it seems impossible for everyone to get on without a problem, but I just hope that they can."

She wasn't the only one.

Itachi also hoped that Sakura would never have to live through a war. She was far too innocent and kind. He didn't want her to be tainted like the rest of them were.

"Sleep," he murmured to her as he felt her breathing slow. "I will be here when you wake."

"No work tomorrow?"

"No."

Sakura gave him a lazy smile, breathing deeply before releasing it. "Good. I like hanging out with you."

And just like that, she was asleep.

And Itachi wasn't even aware of the small smile pulling at the corners of his lips.

Edited on: 01/09/2016

*Why did I feel the need to say their names in every fucking sentence?!