Slave to a Shark

by KisaItas

The Uchiha's are legends sought after for their special eyes, beauty, grace and power. One day, Sasuke steps into the outside world and gets caught, his brother Itachi tries to save him but ends up caught as well. The two are captured and sold as slaves to a man known as the Monster of the Mist. KisaIta AU. Lots of SasuSui later, some Shisui x Male OC too.

10. Things Change

Slave to a Shark - Chapter 10: Things Change

-.-.-

Warning: cow sex.

Just joking. There is no cow sex.

*sighs of relief all around and one groan of disappointment*

o_O.

-.-.-

Shisui crossed his arm and tapped his foot as he glared at the cow. There was a bucket and there was hay filling the inside of the dark barn - there was no electricity in this particular building, the only light came through the window. Outside was a pasture, but Shisui had brought the cow inside so he could milk it.

Do I really have to touch...

Ugh.

Shisui paced the barn, grimacing when he couldn't take it anymore. He needed milk. He would have to milk the cow. And touch strange cow udders.

Shisui gulped as he approached the cow, which stared at him impassively.

If I didn't know any better I'd think the cow is making fun of me. What's her name anyway? Cowsie? Cowmie? Moony? Moooooony? Okay, Moony would do.

"Alright Moony." Shisui exclaimed with false enthusiasm. "We are going to make some milk."

Then Shisui made a grimacing face. "Well not we... What I mean is you're going to give me some milk. Not you and me making milk together. That's just... That's just…" Shisui curled is lips to the side. "Weird."

-.-.-

Jared watched, entertained, as Shisui attempted to touch the cow he had affectionately named "Moony," who had responded in kind by kicking the boy in the gut with its hind legs.

Shisui fell back against the wall, groaning and screaming obscenities at the cow while Jared bit back his laughter. If only he had a camera.

-.-.-

"I'm just re-iterating that by going in, we will be stressing your brother out even more." Suigetsu was hoping Sasuke would explain whatever plan he had in mind, if he even had a plan. At this point it seemed pretty likely that Sasuke was just winging it without even thinking.

"Then don't tell him we are here. You can keep a secret, can't you?"

"Yes but..."

"Make sure ... Make sure Hoshigaki-sama doesn't say anything either. The place is big enough we won't need to worry about it."

"... Okay." Suigetsu promised. "Let me go in and talk to Jared first. Once we have the all clear, we can enter."

Sasuke closed his eyes. "Hurry."

-.-.-

Itachi had been in been for over sixteen hours. It wasn't like him at all - but he couldn't bring himself to do anything. The pain of his eyes had gotten so much worse it was unbelievable. He could no longer open them even if he wanted to. They weren't bleeding but they wouldn't open either. Dried blood crusted them together, but it wasn't the only thing keeping him from lifting his eyelashes.

After clenching his fist around the blanket over him, Itachi forced himself out. He couldn't see at all. This was a new room and he had no idea where to go. Not the best combination. He stretched his arms out and felt everything he could around him, hoping to feel the walls, something, anything. It wouldn't come.

"Someone." Itachi called softly. No response. "Anyone."

No response.

Itachi took another step forward, sliding his feet instead of lifting them, so if there was something on the carpet he would slide it away instead of stepping on it, the arms in front of him wavered.

It took Itachi about thirty minutes to find the door. Where would the door lead? He had no idea. It could be a closet. It could be the bathroom. It could be the hallways. Hell it might even be a balcony, which was the most dangerous option yet.

After opening the door, Itachi immediately moved his hand in and to the sides. He was in one of the guest bedrooms he knew, they had small closets. This wasn't a closet, then.

A sliding step out took him to carpeted floor. The bathrooms would be tiles or marble, some hard surface. This was not a bathroom then. There was no fresh air - so it was not a balcony. Besides, now that he thought about it, a balcony would have a glass door, which felt different from the wooden one he had felt.

Jackpot then. He was most likely in the hallway.

"Hello?" Itachi called out as soon, keeping one hand on the wall of the hallway. No answer.

Itachi continued walking and calling. Why was no one responding? Why? It should be full of servants or butlers and yet... No one.

Itachi walked until his head hit a wall - or something, he couldn't be sure.

"Sorry." Itachi said, in case it was a person. No response. Inanimate object then. It must've been a turn, so Itachi turned and called out once more.

"Hello? Someone? Anyone?"

"Itachi?" It was Kisame.

"Master!" Itachi filled with dread and alarm. He was glad he could hear someone, but why... Why did it have to be him? No, it was good it was him. They had things to discuss.

"Itachi, what are you doing here?"

"I'm... Looking for you."

"Your eyes..."

"Yeah..." Itachi didn't really want to respond to more about his eyes. "Where is everyone?"

"They went home. For the holidays."

Holidays. What even. Itachi had forgotten holidays existed. He had assumed all the servants lived here all the time. He had made the mistake of thinking they were all slaves. But there was no one here.

There was a sinking feeling in Itachi's gut as he had the sudden realization: they were alone. And he couldn't see.

"... Help me." Itachi finally ceded. He hated having to give in Iike this, to seek help of the one he hated most, but there was no other option. It wasn't help Itachi minded, it was help from Kisame.

He shuddered at the thought of having to touch the vile man who had touched him in the worst ways earlier, and yet he was powerless.

"What can I do?" Itachi couldn't see it, but Kisame was very concerned. At the exact point help was asked, Kisame had a sharp intake of breath as he silently cursed himself.

"Take my hand."

"Y-your hand?" Kisame almost wasn't sure he heard correctly. Itachi giving him permission to touch him? It was aggravating. It was aggravating what Itachi must be going through to ask for such a thing. His entire behavior since the incident had been nothing short of distant. He was a shell of his former self, wanting to be left alone.

Itachi held out his hand.

"You're holding your hand out towards the wall."

"..."

"I got it I'll shut up." Kisame would've laughed he wasn't so concerned. "Hold out your other hand."

Itachi obeyed, holding out his other hand.

"Okay, I'm going to touch your hand."

Why is he being so careful? Good Kisame is so different from bad.

Kisame reached forward and hovered over Itachi's hand for just a second before he let his palm meet Itachi's. He did not grip Itachi's hand, he froze instead, to observe Itachi.

Itachi, for his part, held still, but his heart rate sped up rapidly as he fought the urge to run, possibly into the wall. He took a deep breath, once, twice, seventeen times before he was courageous enough to grip Kisame's hand with his own.

"Take me outside."

"Okay."

The two walked together, distantly, with only Itachi awkwardly gripping Kisame's hand, and Kisame fighting the urge to curl his hand around Itachi's. It was instinct - holding a hand out flat was harder than it looked, but he forced himself to do it.

Itachi let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding as soon as they were outside. The crisp, fresh air of the outdoors filled his lungs and it was as if his body was being purged of the darkness, even if he couldn't see.

"You can let go now." Itachi said softly, half afraid it would cause Bad Kisame to rear his ugly head. It didn't.

"Your eyes are crusted with blood. We should wash it out."

We. That bothered Itachi.

"How far are we from the lake?"

"Not very."

"Let's hold hands again." Itachi held out his hand in the direction where Kisame was, at least his last memory of where he was. If he had somehow managed to move silently, he might be somewhere else.

"I'm reaching for your hand." Kisame stated as he reached for Itachi's hand once more. It was easier this time, and the two walked, with a distance between them once more, towards the lake.

"We're here." Kisame said as they came to a halt.

Itachi withdrew his hand and bent down, painfully, and reached his hands out only to hit the solid ground. Refusing to be defeated, he crawled forward slowly until his hands descended deeper and touched the cool water. Success.

Kisame didn't move as Itachi washed his eyes out ever so slowly. He imagined himself to be a tree and nothing more- his sole purpose in life right now was Itachi.

"When will we go on our date?"

"Huh?" Kisame was distracted and cursed himself for not paying more attention. "Date?"

"You promised... We could go on a date to discuss the future of Kirigakure."

Politics. Why was it always politics with Itachi? Well... If he wanted it that badly...

"We can go tomorrow."

"Excellent."

-.-.-

Shisui practically crawled back into the poor excuse for a barn-house he was stuck in, but he was smiling triumphantly. He succeeded. He may have a few broken bones but he had wrestled milk out of that cow and he was proud of it.

What he wasn't expecting was Jared to be waiting for him. For some guy who claimed he would leave him alone, he sure showed up often.

"What do you want now?" Shisui asked as he weakly got a glass out of the cupboard and poured milk from the bucket into it.

"I just came to make sure the new furnishings were adequate."

"Well I haven't used them all yet but they look great." Shisui set the glass down and rummaged for a pitcher to pour the extra milk in. It would have to be refrigerated.

As Shisui spoke, a smile crawled up Jared's dark features and he reached, teasingly, for the glass.

Shisui turned around and instantly his eyes widened and mouth opened slightly.

The sound of glass breaking against the wall followed by screaming wails was heard as Shisui threw the pitcher at Jared and subsequently screamed as the curse mark on his neck shot pain through his body.

"You... Stay... Away from MY FUCKING MILK!" Shisui seethed. He looked like he was about to kill, with his eyes shining bright red. Something was off. Shisui hadn't noticed it before, but now with his sharingan activated in anger… There was something dark surrounding Jared, something sinister and it seemed to suck in everything in the room around them.

Shisui's breathing hitched as the hairs on his neck crawled up, the room getting colder and colder, and the strangest thing was that Shisui was the source. Everything was colder and it somehow didn't bother him. There was a strange feeling rising inside of him, a strange strength. As the feeling rose the curse mark ceased to cause him any pain - or perhaps it was that Shisui could no longer feel pain. Either way his body was screaming with a single objective in mind that he could not explain but it seemed to sing to him.

Kill him. A voice sang in Shisui's head. Kill.

"Okay. Okay." Jared wasn't smiling now. He backed out of the building slowly as Shisui observed his every movement. The moment he stepped out of the house, and the door shut, he was gone. Shisui could feel it, he was definitely gone, and there was no doubt about it. How he knew, he could not explain, especially as he didn't even see it, but it was certain.

Was I seriously about to kill him over a glass of milk? … Stupid cow…

Shisui picked up the glass of milk and drank it slowly, savoring its taste. It was the greatest thing he had ever had to drink - well okay it wasn't, but he would force himself to believe it was. Even though his stomach felt like it would explode from the pain and there was a cow's foot imprinted into it, Shisui would not back down. At this point enjoying the milk was about whatever dignity he had left.

-.-.-

"Jared?" Suigetsu asked as he roamed the Hoshigaki manor. Usually by now the butler would've heard him. He had some sort of supernatural hearing, as whenever he was called, he was found, with remarkable speed. Suigetsu had yet to have difficulty with it. "Jared!"

"What?"

Suigetsu turned to make a sarcastic comment about Jared's timing when he stopped in his tracks. Jared's unruly hair was even worse than usual, some of it even stuck to his face as if... He was sweating. He was sweating. He looked exhausted and had dark bags under his eyes - well he always had dark bags, but now they looked even worse.

"Bleh. What the hell happened to you?" Suigetsu asked unceremoniously.

"What do you need, Suigetsu?"

"Sasuke is back."

"He didn't go home?"

"He refuses without his brother."

"He will be a problem."

"Yes, he will be."

Jared calculated the possibilities. Sasuke was an Uchiha. Sasuke could easily destroy Jared and everything he stood for. Sasuke was dangerous. Jared wished to avoid too much contact but it seemed it would not be so easy.

"Listen..." Suigetsu said. "Don't do anything too harsh... And let me stay with him."

Jared looked into Suigetsu violet eyes and understood. Suigetsu was in love. Kisame was in love. What the hell were the Uchihas, bouncing into their lives and taking over? What special power did they have to do this? It was agitating. Jared wanted nothing more than to destroy all of them and be done with it, but that wasn't an option.

With Sasuke here there was no need for Shisui. He could easily dispose of that kid and suck his blood dry... Yes... But there was a problem... Shisui had awakened his hunter side. Jared would have to hunt the hunter. Challenge accepted.

"I think I know of a place where we can keep Sasuke from bringing harm to Hoshigaki-sama."

"Take me too." Suigetsu rushed.

"I can arrange that. I will trap you in one of my towers. You two can work it out there."

"Perfect." Suigetsu smiled. "But make sure I don't get associated with it. It should be your fault."

Jared raised an eyebrow.

"I'll owe you one!"

Jared raised his eyebrow further.

"Two?"

Jared crossed his arms.

"What do you want, old geezer?"

"You owe me five."

"Five?!"

"Five."

"Fine."

"Fine."

And their deal was set. Jared grabbed Suigetsu, who immediately protested.

"Dude, what the-."

"You asked for this."

Moments later Jared dropped Suigetsu to the ground and retreated his long, wirey bat wings so that Suigetsu wouldn't notice.

"What was that for? It hurt." Suigetsu wiggled up.

"We're here."

"The fuck? How?"

"You ask too many questions. The point is, you're in my tower. I'll bring Sasuke here next. Use whatever excuse you must."

"Do you even know where Sasuke is?"

Of course I do... I could smell his blood miles away. Uchiha blood... So good... Jared almost lost himself and had to use a sharpened nail to scratch the center of his palm to bring himself back. It did not bleed, he was a vampire and vampires did not bleed, at least pure bloods didn't. They lacked it, which is why they drank to replenish - which of course was rarely equal to the amount a human contained.

"I'll figure it out."

"Okay..."

-.-.-

"I can really wear this?" Itachi asked. His eyes were open now. They were still red and painful, but he could see. His vision wasn't as good as it used to be, but most likely that was due to how exhausted his eyes were. Some rest should get them back to normal... If they could even rest that is. Their dryness made them feel like rough globes over his sockets, every blink was felt and stung ever so slightly.

"You didn't think you were going dressed as a slave did you?" Kisame asked.

"I expected to." Itachi honestly wasn't expecting anything relating to kindness from Kisame. But maybe this wasn't about kindness, maybe Kisame just didn't want to look bad bringing a slave in slave clothing to such an important event.

"Well... You can if you want to, but I think this will help you more... Even if we try to deny t appearances are very important and wearing better clothing will garner better results with what you're trying to do."

"Do you know what I'm trying to do?"

"Not completely, but by your insistence to go to these events I've gathered that you are very interested in politics and no one will take you seriously when you're dressed like a slave."

"... Thank you."

"You say that far too much. There is no need to thank me. If anything it should be me thanking you."

Itachi didn't respond to this, in a sense, he agreed. But he wasn't going to say anything. His eyes turned to the black suit with a silk tie and cashmere undercoat. It was fancy for lack of a better word. They were just hours away from their "date" and Itachi honestly hadn't expected this.

"Could I..." Itachi didn't know how to ask. Kisame had seen every part of him and yet... He still wanted privacy while changing.

"Oh yes, of course. I'll be outside." Kisame caught on quickly, and carefully left the room so as to let Itachi try on his suit.

Once alone, Itachi slowly peeled his clothes off - any faster would've been painful. Just as he was about to try it on, it occurred to him that he should take a shower first. Why ruin his clothes?

Itachi left fallen clothes on the ground and walked to the bathroom naked, feeling a stinging in his eyes get progressively worse as he did so. It wasn't until he had let the shower run for a bit and faced down that he noticed the hint of red in the water flowing down. Blood. His eyes were bleeding again.

Suddenly a strange dizziness, mixed with nausea overwhelmed him and he shut the water off immediately, hitting the side of the shower with a thud.

Help.

Help.

Itachi tried calling but he could not open his mouth, instead he fell to the bottom of the shower stall, shaking as his sharingan drained his energy. Everything went black.

His eyes were open. Everything was black. But his eyes were open.

"Help." Itachi squeaked.

No help came. Kisame had wondered what was taking so long, but out of respect for Itachi's privacy, did not enter the room. Instead, he sat outside imagining what could possibly be taking so long. His imagination began to run wild, with Itachi on a unicycle juggling strange plants at one point.

The overwhelming sickness didn't leave entirely, but it was enough that Itachi could move after about ten minutes, so he got up and ran the shower again, to wash off what was left of the soap, and hopefully whatever blood may have been on his face.

Itachi managed to make it to the room despite not being able to see, but he could not put on his suit. Not that it stopped him from trying - he managed to put the pants on easily enough. The front side was the side with the zipper. The shirt, which he may have torn, was the same way. Buttons in front. It was good that the best was made of a vastly different material or Itachi may have had difficulty with it. Oh wait. Before the vest, he needed to put on a tie.

"... Master?" Itachi called. When he received no response, he cleared his throat and spoke louder. "Master!"

There was a shuffling behind the door before Itachi heard it creak open as Kisame entered.

"Could you please help me with the tie?" Itachi asked.

Kisame didn't respond instantly. Itachi couldn't tell because he wasn't able to see at that moment, but Kisame was staring at his eyes.

"Itachi, what happened to your eyes?"

"What do you mean?" Itachi asked, curious himself as to whether his sharingan had turned off, or was still running.

"They're white."

"Ah. Well I can't see my own eyes so I was unaware." Itachi admitted.

"What does it mean?" Kisame asked as he placed his arm on Itachi, who immediately jumped and fell to the ground, breathing heavily.

"I..." Itachi tried to explain.

"You can't see." Kisame guessed. He was wondering how Itachi could be so calm as he grabbed the tie and reached for him. Itachi was not calm when it came to being touched, since the incident not a single moment had gone by where Itachi hadn't flinched at being touched.

"I can't."

"How did it happen? I'm reaching for you again, to put the tie on."

"... I don't know."

"I think you need to see a doctor."

"No."

"Itachi."

"Master."

"Fine."

"Not so close." Itachi warned as he felt Kisame's breath on his skin, signaling a far closer proximity than he would have liked, as Kisame tied the tie. Not soon after he regretted it - what if it brought out bad Kisame?

"Sorry. I had to get closer to tie it. It's done now." Kisame took a step back as Itachi got up and ran his hand over the tie.

It's strange, I haven't seen bad Kisame in a while. Usually he would be out by now.

"Thank you. Could you hand me the vest and jacket?"

"Here." Kisame held out the vest directly in front of Itachi. "It's directly in front of you."

Itachi nodded and reached forward, grabbing the vest and putting it on.

"Are you sure you still want to go? Not being able to see will affect you."

"It will be fine." Itachi said calmly. "I just need to relax." It was true. He had done quite a bit of research into the sharingan as a child, and may have known more about it than any other Uchiha. He had gone through all the old scrolls and even discovered strange things that no other Uchiha seemed to even think about. The eyes turning white meant he had overtaxed himself with the sharingan. His body recognized he was in danger, but not life threatening danger and preserved itself by forcibly shutting off. If danger came, his sharingan would come back and suck every last bit of his life force if necessary in an attempt to save him.

Right now while his eyes were white, they were still under the control of the sharingan. If he could turn his sharingan off by calming himself and convincing himself he wasn't in danger, then his onyx eyes would return.

That was the trick. He had to convince himself there was no danger. But how?

"... I think we should stay here or go to a doctor."

He could argue with Kisame. This would turn into an argument. Not good.

Itachi reached forward, taking a sliding step as he tried to find Kisame.

"You're approaching me." Kisame warned, in case he wasn't Itachi's target.

"Good."

"Good?" Kisame asked as Itachi's hands met his torso. Itachi was significantly shorter than Kisame.

"Yes." Itachi slid further until he could hug Kisame. His heart was racing. He hated doing this, but he knew it would work. Kisame was weak to it. It was a risk, a huge risk. But he was desperate.

"I-Itachi?" Kisame could barely contain himself at the warm contact. It was nerve-wrecking and he was anxious as soon as it occurred - what if he messed up somehow?

"Please don't take this away from me. I need it." Itachi said. He probably could've achieved this without a hug, but now Kisame wouldn't be able to think properly. Judging by the quivering body in his embrace, it was working. Either that or bad Kisame was out and raging angrily. The thought of bad Kisame had Itachi tensing his body, but he had to fight it. "If you're there you can help me."

"Of course I can. We can do whatever you want." Kisame agreed, too nervous to think properly.

"Good." Itachi let his hands fall back his side as he took a step back from Kisame. Mission accomplished. When he was a reasonable distance - or what he thought was a reasonable distance, he lifted his hand, Palm up, towards Kisame. "Take my hand and guide me?"

"Yes." Kisame breathed, forgetting to mention that he was reaching for Itachi's hand as he placed his palm in Itachi's. Itachi didn't flinch though.

"Then let's go."

-.-.-

"You're back." Jared materialized behind Sasuke, who jumped and swirled around at lightning speed.

"Y-you!" Sasuke stepped back. Suigetsu was going to talk to Jared right? And yet Jared found him first. Or did he?

"Me." Jared agreed. "You shouldn't have returned. You're no longer under Hoshigaki-sama's protection. He doesn't know you're here. He's not here either."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means... As of now, you are my prisoner." Jared avoided growing his wings, for fear that Sasuke would turn his sharingan on. Come to think of it... Sasuke would do that likely soon. He wasn't as calm as Itachi was. Things had to happen fast.

"I'm no one's prisoner." Sasuke's eyes were beginning to change hue, in rage.

It was a risk Jared could not take. He rushed forward and appeared begin Sasuke, using every power he had. An Uchiha with the sharingan was a risk he really shouldn't be taking. He was too old for this.

"What the hell?" Sasuke asked as Jared grabbed him by his waist and darkness flowed in front of his eyes. He couldn't see and the world was moving, or maybe he was moving.

A second later all was visible as Sasuke hit the ground with a thud, his eyes blazing red.

"You too, huh?" Suigetsu asked as Sasuke jumped to his feet and looked around for his captor. It was no use, Jared was gone.

"What the hell did you do, Suigetsu? You had one job!" Sasuke said menacingly and stomped his foot. "How did he disappear so fast?!"

"I tried talking to him but he trapped me here. I don't know why." Suigetsu shrugged. "But it looks like we are stuck."

"Arghh!" Sasuke punched the concrete wall, then retreated his hand and bit his lip. That hurt. But he wasn't about to show the weakness in front of Suigetsu, so he dropped his reddened hand to the side as he tried to calm down and think of ways to get to Itachi. "Where are we?"

"Looks like some kind of tower."

"How do we get out?"

"I haven't found an exit yet."

"Then let's get searching. If there's a way in, there's a way out." Sasuke finally took this moment to look around the room.

There was a large, open window, with no glass, agains the wall. No one bothered to paint the tower to make it look nicer, so the concrete was gray, cracked and moldy. Clearly visible. The ground was identical to the walls and the doorways held no doors. They were simply open.

Sasuke took the first doorway and began rushing through the rooms, Suigetsu followed behind as they began exploring the tower. It took an eternity before something was finally found - the tower seemed to be filled with nothing but long, empty pathways, there was no furniture or anything. The only light source was a strange vine that gave off a yellow golden light and grew in some of the concrete walls, or the sunlight through the rooms which had castle windows. Needless to say, it was very dark.

"Hey I found something!" Suigetsu called.

"What is it?" Sasuke yelled back as he headed towards the direction of Suigetsu's voice.

"It looks like a chess set."

"Chess?"

"Yes."

"We don't have time for chess."

"I think we should play."

"Why?"

"Because this is the only thing we have found in this tower is this chess set and if you notice... There is a lot more light here."

Sasuke did notice. The chess set was directly below a large grouping of the vines, set together in the shape of a flower or chandelier of sorts. The area was well lit.

"Look at these inscriptions. I can't read them." Suigetsu commented. The chess set was on a table which in itself was the board. There were two chairs on either side, and each side where the chairs were, there was a small inscription on the top of the wooden table.

"It says 'challenger' and 'savior'" Sasuke commented as he approached. "This is the language of Uchihas. What's it doing here?"

"The Uchihas have a language?"

"We do." Sasuke nodded. "This is part of it."

"What does it mean by challenger and savior?" Suigetsu asked as he lifted a wooden knight. The wood was old and had small cracks in it, but it was solid. The cracks might have even been intentional with how well made the rest of the piece was. The board itself had wooden colored squares, and white chalky squares - none of the squares were perfectly aligned.

"I have no idea." Sasuke admitted. "I think maybe we should play. This is like that golden puzzle we found in the attic."

"Do you think they're related?"

"No, the golden puzzle had inscriptions I didn't recognize. This I do. They must be different."

"It's possible those inscriptions were just decoration and not language." Suigetsu said.

"I think you might be right. There was nothing about them to suggest language but... Somehow I think they aren't connected."

"How do we play this again?"

"..."

-.-.-

Itachi held on to Kisame's hand in the car ride. Doing so was not easy, his whole body was panicking, memories of torture and rape flooded him and he tried to push them out. He had to convince himself this was nothing. Had to.

Think. Think about family. About Sasuke. This is for Sasuke. You need to relax or you will hurt them.

Itachi took a deep breath and ignored Kisame's existence. He pushed out all the bad thoughts he could and focused on every memory he could of Sasuke.

A serene expression covered Itachi's face as he withdrew his hand from Kisame's - he wasn't here anymore. He was playing hide and seek when he was seven, Sasuke couldn't find him.

He was swimming with Shisui, trying to catch fish with his hands.

He was drinking tea with Tohru.

He was helping his mom cut vegetables.

He was reading his father's notes on the sharingan.

Slowly, steadily, Itachi relaxed. His eyes faded to a brown, then dark onyx. He was safe. Then he felt the car moving through Kirigakure, the sounds of reality and the harsh fog surrounded him, and Kisame... Kisame was there.

Kisame wasn't looking at Itachi. He was looking outside. Looking at Kisame filled him with hatred, and he had to push it down. His dark onyx eyes were quickly changing to brown, he had to stop before they burned with the sharingan once more.

In his mind, Itachi created an illusion, an illusion of his family, and he was able to relax, it was as if Kisame was not there.

-.-.-

Jared stalked through his room in circles, unable to get Shisui out of his mind. Thoughts of the delicious Uchiha blood created a powerful need that threatened take over any semblance of thought, leaving him as nothing more than a mere beast.

But it wasn't just about the blood. If it was, Jared would've been as upset as he was over Sasuke or Itachi. No, it was something else. Was it because Sasuke and Itachi were his beloved Kisame's property and therefore untouchable? Was it because Shisui belonged to him, as he had control through the slave mark? Was it because he had an Uchiha completely at his mercy? No, it wasn't. Was it that Shisui seemed stronger, and had already threatened to surpass his slave mark to properly attack Jared? It could have been so many things...

Jared could not figure it out. He did not want to. Shisui was no longer useful, he had Sasuke as a hostage now. So why wasn't he trying to kill Shisui? Was it because he was actually afraid of Shisui?! Jared, one of the last vampires left, afraid of an Uchiha? Okay that actually seemed plausible...

Jared howled in frustration, his screeches echoing across the concrete of his underground laid, his wings spreading around silhouette and his cold complexion warping menacingly, causing his vampiric features show more prominently.

-.-.-

"We are almost there." Kisame said. "Just a few more turns."

"Are you someone with a lot of power in government here?" Itachi asked, shaken back to reality. But now he was focused on something besides his pain - he was thinking about politics, about changing the world. The change in thought was all he needed to get back on track.

"I guess you could say that. If you have the money you can have a say in our government. Otherwise you exist as a tool to be used."

"That's sick."

"Our government is not the best." Kisame agreed. "It has its ups and downs."

I've seen nothing but downs. But Itachi didn't voice those thoughts.

"So you can come and go to these things as you please?"

"More or less. Today the discussion is set to the problem of orphan children due to the recent war."

"Is that truly a problem?" Itachi asked. "Isn't it obvious to create orphanages and to help them get adopted?"

"I think the problem is selling them, killing them or using them." Kisame didn't hold back. Itachi would hear far worse inside.

Itachi's stomach lurched. "This is sick."

The car stopped.

"We are here." Kisame said softly. "Inside isn't going to be any easier."

"It's fine." Itachi said, his eyes briefly flashing red before he forcibly calmed himself again. "Let's go."

The inside was really something else. It was a strange oval auditorium with many seats, each one bench-like with and made with leather. The walls were made of stone and designed with Greek-style carvings. A little off center was an area to speak, created so whoever was standing at the podium would have their voice resounded throughout the room.

"Kisame!" Zabuza's voice was heard.

Itachi turned towards the voice to find a devilish looking man walking their way. By his side was a gorgeous man with long black hair that trailed behind him. The man had a soft smile and instantly Itachi felt as if he were looking at an angel, he seemed to radiate kindness with his eyes and soft features.

"I see you brought the Uchiha too." Zabuza glanced towards Itachi.

"And I see you brought..."

"Haku." Zabuza confirmed.

"Strange turn of events." Kisame thought. Perhaps he and Zabuza were more alike than they thought. What turn of events could have brought them both to bring their slaves here?

Wait... Slaves. Kisame glanced towards Haku and nearly jumped where he stood. There was no slave mark on the boy. Haku was walking free. Kisame turned to speak to Zabuza about this, as Haku walked towards Itachi.

"Hello." Haku smiled warmly and offered his hand to Itachi.

"Hi..." Itachi breathed, shaking the hand before him.

"I recognize you." Haku said. "From the slave auction."

"You were there?" Itachi thought, a pang of embarrassment rushing through him. He was naked back then.

"I was also sold that day."

"You... What?" Itachi tilted his head to the side. He had no memory of Haku, and even stranger was that what should've been a fellow slave was here today, at a place like this. Was it possible only Kisame treated his slaves badly? Did slaves have rights that Itachi was unaware of? Itachi's mind swirled as he thought of the legal implications and considered looking into his rights as a slave, and possibly a legal battle with Kisame.

"I was. But Zabuza..." Haku looked towards Zabuza. "Is kind. I am glad he bought me that day or who knows what would've happened."

Ah. So Haku had a good master then, it had nothing to do with slave rights.

"I see." Itachi said, his eyes saddened. "Master Kisame is... Similar." Sometimes.

"Zabuza has told me Kisame-sama is kinder than he is." Haku said. "You must be lucky."

"Oh really?" Itachi said noncommittally. Clearly this Zabuza did not know Kisame very well.

"Yes! In fact the two are very close friends and have known each other for years. The good and the bad."

I wonder about that. Itachi thought. He actually wanted to laugh at that one. Kisame must've been a damn good liar.

"Ohh well it looks like it's about to start." Haku said. "Let's go get seated and maybe we can talk again sometime."

"I never got your name." Itachi said. Of course he had overheard it, but it was nice to hear it from the man himself.

"Haku. Yours?"

"Itachi." Itachi said, genuinely smiling now. Haku seemed to be a good person, and a friendly face was always nice, especially among what Itachi feared would be monsters.

Itachi moved back to where Kisame was seated and noticed that the name "Hoshigaki" was engraved on the desks of their seats. There were several pamphlets on the subject of kids there as well.

"Now, it has come time to discuss what we need to do about the orphaned children." An old man's boomed voice sounded through. The clatter of voices died down around for him to speak.

It took a moment before someone spoke up. "Let's sell them all and be done with it. The money can fund the dam we have been needing to build."

There were a few murmurs of approval across the room.

"That would be the most logical option." Another agreed.

"Excuse me." Haku stood. "I disagree and think we should educate these children. They are the children of people who have died for our country and they can grow to be helpful citizens who are a benefit to society."

"Who are you? I don't recognize you." A woman argued standing up.

"This place is exclusive to the upper class of Kirigakure." A man nodded in agreement.

"Do you consider me lower class?" Zabuza asked dangerously as he rose in defense. "Haku is my husband."

There were gasps around as everyone shut up.

"I apologize... Mr. Momichi. Congratulations on the marriage." The woman from earlier sat down.

"What you are suggesting would cost far too much to maintain and how do we know these children won't be counterproductive? They have no parents. They are useless to us." The man from earlier argued. "I do not see your point as very plausible even if it is a nice one."

"I disagree." Itachi stood. "I believe that sometimes sacrifices must be made to invest in a better future. We must invest in these children and we will receive more than we gave. However, like any investment, there is risk. I believe they have the power to bring greater change as productive members of society and must be given the chance to do so."

"And before anyone asks, he's with me." Kisame stood by Itachi. "And I agree with everything he has stated. If you believe it is not plausible to create these orphanages, I will fund them myself."

There were murmurs around before the woman who accused Haku earlier stood. "I will also fund these orphanages."

"And I." Zabuza looked at Haku as he gave his commitment.

"I can help as well." A short man from the back said. "But I have conditions. There must be standards set to ensure these children are making some sort of progress towards becoming productive citizens."

"I disagree. Even with funding most of these children are far too traumatized to do anything. They will be depressed because their parents are dead. The older ones will act out. It is not worth the time, effort and money it will cost."

"That is not for you to decide if we are willing to put the money into their education."

"What of the opportunity cost?" A man spoke aloud. "There may be no loss because you will take care of them but there will be no gain that could have come from selling them immediately."

"There's gain if the project is a success."

"Which is a risk! There is a sure fire method in selling them."

The arguments continued for another six hours, by the end of which Itachi had a throbbing headache and a newfound respect for Kisame who stood by Itachi's side in every argument every step of the way.

He refused to let anyone speak harshly to Itachi, interfering before it got out of hand. When Itachi began showing signs of exhaustion, Kisame whispered to him to relax, and that he would continue for him. So Itachi had sat down and observed as Kisame doubled his efforts to bring the change Itachi had desired.

By the end, Kisame, Zabuza and Haku had succeeded. The plans would be detailed later, but the children would certainly be taken to the orphanages as planned by those who had promised the funding.

"Thank you." Itachi whispered as they exited.

"You're welcome." Kisame nodded back.

"It's was good to see you like that." Zabuza commented, as he approached the two.

"Itachi has changed me." Kisame said.

Itachi's ears perked. He had changed Kisame?

"Haku has done the same for me."

"You got married and didn't even tell me." Kisame said, offended.

"Yeah... That kind of just slipped out... But I really do think we should get married." Zabuza turned towards Haku at that second part, then back to Kisame. "I love him."

Back to Haku. "I love you."

"I love you too, Zabuza." Haku held Zabuza's hand and smiled warmly.

"Congratulations you love birds." Kisame smirked. "It's strange how things turn out. I'm in love... With Itachi as well."

Itachi's eyes widened. Sure Kisame had implied he was in love multiple times, Itachi had even believed it at one point. Hearing it like this was different.

"As much as I'd love to stick around though, Itachi and I have a prior engagement..."

"Of course. I'll see you later."

"Bye Itachi! Hoshigaki-sama." Haku called.

"Please, Kisame is fine." Kisame said as they walked away.

Haku nodded.

-.-.-

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable back there." Kisame said as they slid into the car.

"It wasn't uncomfortable. Just surprising."

"I thought you knew it already."

"I believed it at one point." Itachi could no longer suppress his earlier emotions. He had used so much of his energy and mental strength suppressing his emotions and and then arguing with politicians for the past few hours, not to mention the physical pain from the recent rape and torture. "Then I stopped." Itachi's eyes turned red again, a trail of blood slid down his cheek. It wouldn't take long before they lost their color and the world turned black.

"Well it's true..." Kisame said, allowing the rather large distance between the two in the car. "But I won't push you for it, Itachi. In fact, it is fine if you never feel the same way. I do not expect it. I will never bring it up with you again, unless you want me to. I am telling you now so you know. If you ever decide to return those feelings you will know I feel the same... Otherwise, please ignore it, as I will never bother you with them. I will also never lose control with you again. What I did... Was unforgivable. I can never forgive myself for it. Not just that... But even small arguments... I refuse them. Even if disagree I will never, ever, hurt you again. I promise you this."

"... Hn..." Itachi grunted that he had heard. But the words were meaningless to him. He had heard many words from the shark's eloquent lips. He needed to see them before he felt anything near comfort. "... Today was nice." Itachi ceded finally. Yes, Kisame today had been perfect. He couldn't deny that. But that could easily change. Still, Itachi was always one to notice the good things and compliment them - he couldn't bring himself to miss the obvious effort.

"Nice? It was insanity. I can't believe we argued for six hours over what should've been common sense." Kisame shook his head.

Itachi's lip curled into a semblance of a smile at those words.

-.-.-

Whoa… 64 pages in two days. This isn't a record for me but I have to say I'm impressed with myself. This one is for sevensocks on AO3, whose comments inspired me to write as quickly as I did. Thank you sevensocks ~3