So I hope you guys like this chapter. And sorry about it being so late, I was feeling seriously unmotivated. Negative thoughts were just brewing in my head. Haha, but now I'm all good, ready to write. I'm just starting to figure out this whole story, and I've got a couple ideas, I just need to work up to them. Love, WTR!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, all the guys would be gay! Except for a couple.
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The sky was flushed a dark orange as the sun woke from its slumber. An eerie silence fell upon the busy village of Konohagakure.
-x-
Naruto sighed as he stuffed clothes into his backpack. Team 7 had been called on rather early for a mission. Escorting a bridge builder, Tazuna, back to his homeland. I wish I had a chance to say goodbye to Itachi...
He zipped up his backpack, took one last look around his bedroom, and headed down the stairs after having locked his apartment door and scribbling a note to his 'boyfriend'. They had agreed on what to call their relationship a couple days ago. The streets were quiet as it was early morning, and most people were asleep. A strange feeling had invaded his stomach, and he squirmed uncomfortably in attempt to get rid of it. What is this? Is it excitement? Apprehension? Guilt... Sadness.
"Dobe?" He heard someone say beside him.
"Teme. Good morning." Naruto said. He frowned when the feeling suddenly worsened.
"Are you feeling alright? You look kind of... I'm not sure. Un-Naruto like." The Uchiha said, cocking his head and inspecting his friend. Naruto grinned at him, and he seemed to buy it.
"I'm excited about this mission. Though it doesn't sound as cool now since he's a Bridge builder..."
"Hn. I don't think it makes a difference. It's going to be a simple mission. I won't even get a scratch."
"I doubt I'll even have to make a shadow clone."
"Hn."
Naruto spotted a mop of pink hair at the front gates, and he waved. The pinkette ignored his greeting like always, and chose to bother Sasuke instead.
Naruto turned to look at the large building bearing the Uchiha Crest in the distance. A string of thoughts entered his mind, but he chose the least revealing sentence to say out loud.
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"Hey, teme. I've got an escort mission. Be back in a week or so, it's in the Land of Waves. You should have noticed the absence of your brother. If not, you're a bastard. But weren't you always? –Naruto" met Itachi at the door of Naruto's bedroom. He'd gone ahead and opened the front door himself, not wanting to rouse the blond from his sleep.
"Oh, I'm a bastard?'' He retorted quietly. He almost wanted to push open the door and lay a kiss on the sleeping Kitsune's forehead, but the Kitsune was awake and on his way to the Land of Waves.
''Do you know how much I'll miss you, Naruto?'' Itachi whispered. He traced the messy writing with a trembling hand. He'd been trembling a lot lately; almost in anticipation.
''Guess I won't be seeing you for a while...'' The Uchiha said as he left the apartment. Little did he know, Uzumaki Naruto had uttered the same words at exactly the same moment.
-x-
Itachi left that night with his Anbu team by his request. He didn't want to stick around the village when his object of affection was away.
''Weasel, what's your situation?'' A feminine voice asked through his ear piece.
''Two guards. One is dead; the other is on the brink. It appears both their windpipes have been damaged with a... Katana. Strange symbols are covering their faces and arms, multiple wounds around their wrists. It looks like they put up a struggle; dirt and blood are dried on their fingernails. What's your situation? And remember, Cobra. I'm your captain, I'll ask the questions.'' Itachi replied. He was crouched behind a group of rocks, facing an abandoned fort and watching one of the mounds outside a rusted door shake.
''Sorry, captain. I keep forgetting that you're my superior. It looks like a nasty battle went on. There are 1,2... 4... 7, 8. 8 bodies, all with the same injuries you described, except they're all dead. No tracks, no evidence that anyone was there... except for the bodies of course. Doesn't leaving the bodies take away from the whole don't-get-caught-killing-people thing?'' Cobra chuckled.
''Dolphin, what do you see?'' Itachi asked, ignoring Cobra's last sentence.
''One body. Same injuries. I... uh, nevermind.'' Dolphin trailed off.
''Relax, Dolphin. Tell me what you think. '' Itachi said.
''A murderer wouldn't leave the bodies... they'd take, bury, hide, burn or even change the physical appearance beyond recognition in order to avoid being convicted! Unless there was a reason...'' Dolphin cried.
''A reason? Like what? Like bait?'' Raven asked.
''It's possible, but let's use some reverse psychology right now. If they originally wanted us to inspect the bodies physic- wait. What if we've already fallen into their trap? A certain distance from the bodies... what will we do, captain?" Dolphin was getting carried away now.
"Relax dolphin. We're alright. Cobra didn't spot anything, and neither did I." Itachi said. He changed his position so he could prevent his leg from falling asleep.
"Weasel... could it be him?" Cobra whispered.
"I don't know, Cobra." Itachi was fed up with Cobra's constant accusations of the man she had spent most of her life with, Dolphin's worrying, and Raven's frequent questions.
"Captain... I was thinking... why the strange markings? All four of the dead men in front of me have them. But there's something odd. Like each one is specific. Could it be some sort of tracking Jutsu? Are they putting the bodies in certain positions? Is it just a coincidence that this warehouse was broken into just miles away from the village that was wiped out last week? Is there a certain time period before the person can use the Jutsu again, if it even is a Jutsu? Is there a limit to the amount of people they can use it on?" Raved murmured.
"Raven, I must admit I've come up with a blank. Those are some important questions to be asking, but I have no answers at the moment. We should look for any evidence that isn't visible from our current positions." Itachi answered. He adjusted his mask and jumped onto the biggest boulder, making three swift hand signs that called his team over to him.
Dolphin leaned down and picked up a small pebble, tossing it at the body nearest to them. When the pebble made impact, the body started turning black, flames engulfing it. The Anbu team stared in silent horror as the evidence vanished. Cobra reached into her pouch for a kunai, then pointed it at Dolphin.
"BAKA! You just destroyed our evidence!" Cobra shouted, throwing the kunai so it gave Dolphin's mask a small scratch and landed in a tree behind him.
"Dolphin..." Itachi didn't have to say anything else, because Dolphin fell to his knees, begging for forgiveness.
"Get up. That won't make the body come back." Raven spat. Dolphin whimpered and stepped away from the team, determined to not mess anything else up. Itachi reassuringly patted Dolphin on the back as he walked past him.
Cobra huffed and made a point to bump into Dolphin on her way by.
"Cobra..." Itachi warned. The warehouse the guards had been protecting hadn't housed anything important to a shinobi... so why the break in? Unless they had been showing what they could do. To provoke fear, maybe? A threat?
"Voice your thoughts, Weasel." Cobra said as she crouched beside the Uchiha.
"That's enough, Cobra! You are not Captain of this team!" Itachi shouted. He got up and walked around the rest of the warehouse, ignoring the shocked silence of his team. Not seeing Naruto for a long time... not knowing if he's safe or ran into any trouble... is really frustrating.
-x-
Itachi stood outside the Konoha gate, pretending to be on an early morning stroll when he was actually waiting for his beloved Naruto to return from his mission. When a young blond tackled him to the ground, his heart raced.
"Naruto!" Itachi breathed. He wrapped his arms around the fox and shut his eyes. "You're here..."
The blond chuckled and shrugged Itachi's arms off, choosing to take his hand instead. They stood up together and walked hand in hand to Naruto's apartment.
-x-
"So... how was your mission?" Itachi asked. He was lying on Naruto's bed, with said Naruto in between his legs and leaning on his chest.
"It was... incredible, I guess. I've got a lot to tell you. I'm just... kind of tired, y'know?" The blond yawned, shut his eyes, and snuggled closer to Itachi.
"Yeah, I do know... sleep well, Naru." Itachi murmured, stroking the young boy's soft hair. He looked through Naruto's window, watching the cotton balls float across the sky and form familiar shapes. So this is what he wakes up to everyday? It's nice.
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So I hope you liked it. Please review, it makes me happy. And thanks for all the support and reviews so far, as well as favourites and subscriptions. Also, tell me what you think of it and if you want anything specific to happen, any side pairings, or if the characters are too OoC for your taste. Also, I don't know if you realized, but coming up with Anbu names and people to be on a team is rather difficult. So I added a made up character: Raven. His name is Karasu. He won't appear much, since I personally dislike OC's, but I was in desperate need for someone. Sorry for rambling! –WTR.