One Change: Chapter 5 – Family.

So I present to you yet another chapter of 'One Change'! This chapter didn't turn out exactly how I wanted it to because my idea's changed half way through writing it and I just decided to go with the flow.

Character Ages:

-Itachi: 16

-Sakura: 11

-Haruki and Shin: 13

-Sasuke: 11

Iruka: 21

Thank you to: Guest, Guest2, silverwolfighter00, annashina, lightsky1842(Anon), mun3litKnight, Shadowlove'scookie, kyoko minion, leosbabygirl84 and angel897!

Standard Disclaimers Apply.

05: Family

2 months later.

It had officially been a whole year since Itachi had taken on his genin team. In that short time he'd seen them grow so much under his relentless training regime, he was pleasantly surprised that none of them had decided to throw in the towel yet. Pride was an emotion he hadn't expected to feel in his life in relation to anybody but himself. However, he found himself feeling increasing pride for the young ninja who where maturing right in front of his eyes.

He remembered their first mission outside of the village, that had been almost 3 months ago now, it had also been the first time he'd felt the foreign emotion that was pride for his charges. In all respects, the mission had not been difficult but they were newly minted genin, barely out of the academy and developing faster than anybody could have expected them to.

They had been assigned with the task of delivery some scrolls to a small town on the border of Hi No Kuni*, no hostiles were expected and they hadn't encountered any. The mission was completed with speed and efficiency.

As of late his mother had been bugging him to bring his charges to his home so that she could meet them, all he ever heard when he was around her was how cute they must be. On the other hand, Sasuke seemed less than pleased with the prospect of having to share his Aniki's* time with other children around his age.

Sasuke was an unusually hot-tempered preteen which led to him having few friends and spending most of his time training in solitude. Itachi knew that the boy wished to surpass him someday and he was content to let his Otouto* progress in his training. IN the next year Sasuke would be assigned his own sensei and team to officially train with.

Christmas was fast approaching when Itachi finally gave into his mothers wishes and arranged for his team to spend a portion of Christmas Eve at the Uchiha compound. When he informed the younger ninja they had accepted with little argument, Shin had uttered some complaints under his breath but hadn't bothered to voice any of them properly so Itachi took it as universal compliance.

Itachi was not nervous about the meeting that was about to take place, Uchiha Itachi didn't get nervous. In fact, he was irritated that, not only was his training time being taken up but his younger brother was in a foul mood and was likely going to show the whole family up by acting like he was raised by a pack of wolves.

The eldest Uchiha child composed his features before pushing the doors aside and gesturing for his team to enter before him. He heard their sharp intakes of breath as they surveyed their new surroundings, the Uchiha main house was lavishly decorated and very spacious but what else could once expect from the main house of one of the highest ranking shinobi families in the village.

Itachi realized he had hit the nail on the head when he saw Sasuke taking his time to glare daggers at each of the ninja, one at a time. He also saw the way that his Otouto's eyes lingered on Sakura for a second longer than he had the other two. The notion that he found the pinkette's presence noteworthy roused a sense of protection within Itachi that he would ever admit. What did he have to fear? They were both only children and it was extremely unlikely that anything would ever happen between them.

When he had them firmly seated in the living area awaiting his parents arrival, Itachi finally took the time to speak to his young charges.

"My mother is extremely excited to meet you all so do not act in any way that could lead her to believe you are displeased with her company. She will fuss over you, ignore it the best you can and try not to start any fights." he looked pointedly at Shin and Sakura when he said the last part of his sentence, over the past months the two had developed penchant for challenging each other over the most menial things. It almost always ended in some sort of destruction.

The three of them nodded obediently, waiting for their Sensei* to continue speaking.

"My father will likely ignore your presence for the most part. It is likely that if he does say anything then it will be some kind of insult directed at your person. What ever you do, you must not show him an adverse reaction. This is what he wants. If you can, keep your face impassive and answer politely and good-naturedly." Itachi knew that his father had some sort of superiority complex when it came to other shinobi families, believing that the Uchiha were the best no matter what anybody else said.

Again, the 3 said nothing but continued to listen to their trusted Sensei's advice.

Itachi sighed, of course he would have to warn them about Sasuke as well despite the fact he doubted his Otouto could do them any harm. "My younger brother is in a particularly bad mood today, he didn't want company and will likely try to draw a reaction from you by glaring at you for the majority of the evening. However, he may also attempt to back up my fathers insults. Don't give him the satisfaction of winning." The last sentence was said with a slight smirk on his face.

After all, it wouldn't have been fair to send them in the lion's den without being warned about what they might encounter. His statement was met with 3 almost identical smirks that told him what he already knew. They were ready for this.

A part of his complex mind registered that he was treating dinner with his family as though it was a mission. The genin seemed to have picked up on his mood and were reacting to both his reluctance to be there and their own uncertainty about the situation they found themselves in.

Mikoto entered the room with a soft smile on her face, automatically turning her face towards the genin who sat stiffly on the couch. Itachi smirked internally at how seriously they seemed to be taking his advice. Mikoto didn't seem to notice their hesitance and spoke to them in a tone that betrayed her excitement.

"You must be Itachi's genin team, I've heard a little about you from Itachi." she stated, turning first to Haruki, a knowing smile on her face. "You would be Hyuuga Haruki-kun, your hair and eyes make it pretty obvious that your from the Hyuuga clan." Haruki's eyes widened when she got the information spot on then narrowed into slits, calculating how much of a threat this woman may be.

Itachi let his eyes wonder for a moment and realized that the other two member of team 2 were now also on high alert, may it hadn't been such a good idea to speak to them so seriously about the situation. He knew that his squad was combat ready and the realization amused him greatly.

Mikoto seemed to remain olivous to their tension, instead turning her attention towards Sakura. "Ah! You're Haruno Sakura. What a cute little girl you are, I wish my Sasuke would marry somebody like you in the future." If Sakura had been tense before, she was absolutely rigid, with surprise or horror he didn't know.

Sasuke, with his penchant for having extremely bad timing, happened to enter the room just as Mikoto started talking about marriage. His eyes automatically narrowed into slits as he glared daggers at the little girl who was seated on the couch. Itachi found himself growing somewhat uncomfortable with the situation and he could tell that Sakura was about to bolt.

There was something that he's learned about Haruno Sakura in the last year. She had an incredibly strong will and she was much smarter than most children her age which made her a great strategist but she also found it difficult to associate with or get close to people. She put up an uncaring facade but it was weak and crumbled as soon as people began getting closer to her.

He watched her carefully. she had begun to tremble slightly and Mikoto had finally noticed that something was wrong, he smile disappearing and a worried frown taking it's place. Everybody in the room was still for a moment as the members of team 2 collectively held their breath. That all changed the moment Mikoto tried to take a step forward, Sakura had made the seals so quickly that he almost wasn't prepared for the jutsu she used.

"Suiton: Seiryusho!" she called urgently, her voice a little higher in pitch than normal as two jets of water shot out from her hands, narrowly missing his mother whom had jumped out of the way.

What happened next was a surprise to everybody in the room. Sakura Haruno ran straight into the arms of her sensei, Itachi Uchiha, and gave him a hug. Yes, she gave him a hug. The room was completely silent save for the shuddering sobs of the pink-haired girl and the muted dripping of water from the furnature.

Sakura seemed so absolutely terrified that Itachi knew there was more to her reaction than just todays events. Raising a hand hesitantly he placed it atop her pink hair and pulled her tighter to him in reflex. Something had to have happened for her to react in the manner she did. Looks like he was going to have to pay Iruka another visit.

For now, he gathered the sobbing girl into his arms and silently directed her and her teammates out of the Uchiha compound. When he decided to bring them here he didn't expect it to be all smiles and rainbows but he sure as hell wasn't expecting this,

The end! Looks like there's a little more to Sakura's past than Iruka revealed. Anybody want to hazard a guess at what made her react so violently?

*Hi No Kuni – Land of Fire/ Fire Country

*Aniki/Ani – Older brother(polite)

*Otouto – Younger brother(polite)

*Sensei - Teacher

Jutsu:

Water Release: Azure Dragon Palm!(Suiton:Seiryusho!)

Don't forget to review to let me know what you thought, what could be improved or what you liked ^^

Sei x