Disclaimer: I have never owned any of this stuff! I'll say it under oath if I have to!

AN: Yes, enjoy these chapters while I have the muse and motivation for them! Bwuahahaha. Another new story idea has also taken refuge in my brain…who knows what will happen next.

Thanks for all the reviews! They were great and I enjoyed reading them. Some of you guys are hilarious!

As for my Prince of Tennis story, it's on hold for now until I find my missing muse for that one.

****Will have slight manipulations of canon timeline and jumping****

Chapter 7

It hurt. Itachi ached all over. Not only did his body ache, but also his pride. It was shaken, rough-handled, and beat down like a dog on a street. All because of Reina.

Well, no…Kushina-sensei had a part of the blame too.

It had been a month since team placement and, don't get him wrong, he had learned a lot from the redhead so far, but her teaching style left much to be desired. If he didn't know better, he'd have thought that Reina was Kushina-sensei's mini clone. They could sniff out a person's weakness and hold it against them through torture via pranks or blackmail.

Today was no exception.

As a genius, and Uchiha, Itachi had much more developed chakra coils than another child his age usually had. So did Reina, only her clan was more known for their lazy genius. It had been just plain weird in the beginning to see such a hyper Nara like Reina, but now the village was use to her by now. She did manage to still have her lazy days though.

Anyway, where was…ah yes, pain. It makes a person feel so horrible. Mmm…must be why Itachi couldn't concentrate on one topic right now.

It was all because of the she-devil and her mentor.

Well, Itachi's mentor. Officially, Reina just happens to pass by while they train and of course, being the nice person that she is, Kushina-sensei wouldn't exclude her only student's best friend's efforts to improve her skills. Unofficially, Reina was there to make his life and training hell.

Reina thought it would be cool training with them. She kept up easily at the pace they were going at. Which made Itachi contemplate just what Reina did in her spare time away from him that she continues to be on par with him during training…is she even human?

Kushina-sensei, after hearing Minato's stories about his own genin team and seeing them when they were first formed, thought it would do Itachi good to have a capable rival. It did push him to try harder! Why, he'd already become very comfortable fighting on water with an opponent than a genin twice his age. The way Reina and Itachi interacted reminded her so much of her own Academy days relationship with her husband.

Itachi just thought the two were crazy. It seemed that all the women he knew were crazy. From the older women, both shinobi and civilian alike, liked to pinch his cheeks when they could to the younger set who liked to stalk him and giggle behind his back. The only exception to it all was his mother. Although, with her current pregnancy, Itachi was now fast approaching reconsideration to put her into the crazy category. Mikoto's mood swings and cravings tended to make her go just a bit wild.

Itachi felt something repeatedly poke his cheek. Eh, that's strange. When did everything go dark?

"-ke up! This guy-" a voice said near his head. The childish tones indicated someone young, maybe around his age as the speaker.

"Mah, mah. He's probably worn out." Oh look, another voice. It was deeper than the first and seemed more controlled. Now why did both sound so familiar?

"Nah, he can handle it. He's just being lazy. Watch."

"Itachi! Code FG!"

An instinct that every ninja had awoke in him. An instinct that had been honed into a quicksilver reflex and deep rooted into his psyche cause Itachi to jump up, eyes wide open, and seek the nearest safe shelter: behind Reina.

Itachi huddled behind her. Reina gave a grin. Kushina looked both confused and shocked. She could have sworn Itachi had been knocked out and totally exhausted. She looked at the young girl.

"But! He's been unconscious for the last five minutes! He didn't even get halfway through the Obstacle Course of Doom version 3.0! Just what the heck is Code FG?"

Reina snickered, "A while back, me and him were training…until we noticed we were being stalked…"

At the word 'training', Kushina raised her brow at the girl. Training. Yeah right, more like they were doing a prank or two.

"…and that's why he's like that now." Reina finished with a flourish and a bow. Itachi followed her movements to keep him less of a target.

Whoops. Kushina had been thinking about what possible pranks they could have done and totally missed Reina's explanation. Oh crap, now Reina was looking expectantly at her. What to do…what to do…

"Interesting." When in doubt, just act like Minato and be aloof and smart-like…only cooler.

Reina just looked at her carefully before grinning. She grabbed Itachi and half slung him over her shoulder. Itachi was now officially knocked out.

"Training over right? I'll just bring him home, ok?" Reina asked…more like said, as she was already walking away with her luggage.

Kushina called out to her, "Tell Itachi he has the next three days off and to meet at the Hokage Tower at 8 am for his first mission!"

Reina just waved a hand to indicate the message had been heard.

-Uchiha Clan Compound-

"Package for Uchiha-san!" Reina yelled before proceeding to bang on the door. She continuously banged on the door until it was yanked open.

Fugaku stood before her, scowling, while Mikoto could be seen trailing into the entrance hallway.

Reina's eyes lit up. She basically tossed her cargo- Itachi- at Fugaku before zooming to the Uchiha Matriarch.

"Whoa! Your belly is getting it bigger! It didn't look like that last time I saw you!" Reina said in awe before hesitantly lifting a hand to caress her Mikoto's stomach.

Mikoto smiled softly. With Reina hounding Itachi after the past couple of years, the Uchiha couple was well used to her antics…even if Fugaku were more often than not cleaning up after one of her pranks.

"Hai. I'm due in four and half to five months. Little Sasuke will be here then."

Both females walked together to the kitchen; their voices grew lighter as they moved further into the house.

Fugaku looked down at his son and sighed. This had become a routine in the last two months since Mikoto had found out at she was pregnant. The Head of the Konoha Police Corps shuddered. He still had the occasional nightmare about the times when Mikoto was pregnant with Itachi

Must forget. Must forget..Ah, yes..memories temporarily repressed once again. Success!

Fugaku sighed in relief before shifting his heir in arms to a more comfortable position. He better get Itachi cleaned and bandaged up, or else he would face a mothering Mikoto's wrath.

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Itachi woke up to find himself in his room. He stretched carefully and saw that his injures were neatly and professionally bandaged. It must have either been his father or Reina who had done so. They had plenty of practice in the past couple of months. If it had been his mother, there'd be animal stickers on his bandages.

Itachi yawned and looked outside. It looked so nice seeing the sun shining out and about so high…

Wait. Itachi did a double take on the sun shining outside his window and quickly looked at his clock. His eyes widened.

The young Uchiha bolted out of his bed and hurriedly rushed through his bathroom routine. He bolted down the stairs and stumbled up on his parents having a late breakfast. Itachi quickly grabbed an apple and some toast before greeting his parents.

"Gottagolatefortrainingbye!" Itachi said in a rush before dashing out the door. Kushina-sensei hated tardiness and it meant a prank was in store for him whenever he was late. The first two times he had experienced her wrath was two times too many!

Fugaku and Mikoto looked after his gradually diminishing figure in surprise.

"I thought Reina said he was off for the next couple days?" Fugaku asked and look at his wife.

She shrugged. "She did. He must going to visit Reina instead."

They looked at each other for a moment before continuing their breakfast. If Itachi did go train, it was good for him anyway. If he ended up waiting a while, his teacher might eventually stumble upon him…maybe.

-000000000000000000-000000000000000000000-

Itachi finished his rushed breakfast minutes before he stumbled into his team's training grounds. There was no visible sign of his sensei. Itachi carefully made his way to the center of the designated meeting spot. All the while, he kept a carefully eye out for any pranking retribution or a fiery red-head. He was over ten minutes later!

He stood on guard for about fifteen minutes before slowly relaxing. Another fifteen minutes saw him settling down into a calm state. Kushina-sensei must be testing his patience. If not, Itachi wasn't too worried about a prank now. If Kushina-sensei would have acted, it would have been within twenty minutes of him arriving.

He was safe.

He didn't know what hit him.

Ropes bound his hands and feet. More ropes bound his arms and legs tightly together against his body. Itachi stumbled to the ground. Was this a kidnapping? Who? How did a spy manage to get into the village? Especially in one of the more inner training grounds?

Footsteps vibrated softly against the ground and Itachi looked up into a familiar figure.

It was worse than a kidnapper.

It was even worse than a sensei seeking retribution.

It was a grinning Reina…who was now pulling him towards her with an attached rope

"Really didn't expect to see you here since Kushina-neesan had given you today and the next two days off. Luckily, I had been passing by and saw you!" Reina exclaimed before pulling her prize after her, out of the training grounds and into the village.

"I have to go to a baby shower for Yoshino-san and now that you've volunteered to come with, I won't be bored!" Reina gleefully said, completely ignoring the fact that Itachi never volunteered at all.

Itachi continued to struggle. Dang, these ropes were pretty tight…and when did Reina even have time to tie his fingers individually?

Both civilians and shinobi alike stared at the two as they walked through the village. Itachi's pleas for help did attract a bit of attention. However, after two years of such behavior, it was considered pretty normal and the villagers continued to go about their business. There were even a few indulgent looks. Some even mentioned how it was so cute to see young love…(didn't' they even realize that the two were like five?!)

Itachi gave up his efforts to escape and accepted his fate as Reina's captive for the day. He pouted. It was a rare free day and he couldn't even enjoy it properly!

Reina caught the pouting face and crybaby eyes. She rolled her own set of eyes. "I already asked and made sure that there would be plenty of pocky and strawberry milk there so stop whining!"

Itachi perked up. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.

00000000000-Baby Shower: Nara Compound-000000000

Itachi was tired. He was surrounded by enemies all over. His enemies included squealing females, mothering expectant mothers and children of all ages.

Yes, like Reina had promised, there was plenty of pocky and strawberry milk. He could smell it when he had first walked in.

What she failed to mention was that the baby shower was, in fact, not only for the Nara Matriarch, but also for the Yamanaka and Akimichi Matriarchs as well. They were due next month, in two months, and three and half months, respectively.

It was only people from those three clans (and Itachi) that were present at the baby shower, but it was enough. Itachi quickly figured out just why males over a certain age, aka puberty, avoided baby showers. It was to keep their sanity in check. Someone obviously forgot to send Itachi the memo.

Itachi had gotten separated from Reina within minutes of entering. It wasn't his fault, but somehow or another, they had gotten separated. Random children from each of the clans continuously bombarded him with questions and frequently asked him to show them cool jutsus or tricks once they saw his hitae. His ears still rang from their high pitched voices.

His cheeks hurt too. As he tried to carefully navigate himself to the banquet table, women of all ages over puberty were constantly trying to pinch his cheeks. Apparently, their chibi-chubby-ness was too cute to resist. Itachi could have done without.

Finally, he was able to make it to the banquet table where he eagerly tried to search out for his prizes. He looked and looked. And looked. Where was the delectable pocky and heavenly scented milk he had noticed from earlier?!

Then he heard the words of doom.

"I still can't believe all three mothers have the same cravings! Pocky and strawberry milk!" A high pitched feminine voice screeched.

"I know! That's the next Shi-Ino-cho trio for you." Another female giggled out. The two ladies exchanged laughs before making their way to congratulate the expecting mothers.

Itachi whimpered. All the commotion and hassle for nothing! He could feel his eyes tearing up. The young Uchiha carefully made his way undetected outside. After all, Uchihas did not cry…at least not in public where someone could catch them at least.

"Psst!"

Itachi looked around. He didn't see anyone nor did he care.

"Look up Itachi." Reina's voice called out to him so he did. He pouted and stubbornly looked away. Why couldn't he brood and mourn the loss of the pocky-that-never-was in peace?

Reina rolled her eyes. Uchihas were such drama queens. She took one of her prizes and threw it at the Uchiha.

The Uchiha felt the target approach him and snapped it out the air when it came close. He brought it closer…oh my Amaretsu! Itachi shoved it in his mouth. The burst of flavor from the pocky exploded in his mouth.

This time, when Reina beckoned him to come up, he did. Walking up the walls of the house using precise chakra control was a breeze after the brutal training Kushina-sensei put him through.

Itachi's eyes widened like dinner plates. Reina was sitting near a blanket on a flat portion of the roof. On the blanket was a treasure trove fit for a king.

In a small bucket filled with ice were small bottles and cartons of strawberry and regular milk. Next to it was a bowl of senbei. But the greatest of them all were the boxes of pocky. There were at least three boxes of no less than five different flavors that he could see.

He looked at Reina in awe.

Reina made a tsking noise and flicked him on the nose. She had developed that habit recently. Mmm…must have been that Training Animals guide she had read a few weeks ago.

Anway, Reina grinned at him. Itachi smiled back. If any of the mothers, or Itachi's fangirls, could have seen them, they would have squealed in excitement. Then the picture of cuteness was broken as the two children descended on the treats like a pack of starving wolves onto a plump deer after a harsh winter.

After they finished their treats, they lay down and soaked up the sun's rays.

Reina soon fell asleep next to Itachi. He snuggled beside her. Today hadn't been so bad after all. It was nice spending quiet days and moments like this with Reina that Itachi didn't mind being with his best friend. Not that he would tell her that. There was no need to willingly give her ammunition to use against him.

====================First Mission!=====================

"Why are you following me again?" Itachi asked Reina, the bane of his existence, suspiciously. He had been violently woken up this morning by the she-beast.

"It's your first mission!" Reina said excitedly. "Really! What kind of friend would I be if I didn't come support you? Don't worry, you'll be glad I came later on."

Itachi looked at her with deeper suspicion before dropping the matter. It's not like she was going on the mission too.

They walked together in silence. Soon the Hokage Tower loomed before them. The redheaded Uzumaki was waiting outside for her student.

"Ah, good, you're here Itachi." Kushina said before greeting Reina apologetically. "Sorry Reina, but you can't come since you aren't a genin yet."

Reina grinned. "No problem. I'll just go bug daddy. See you guys in a few hours!"

The Nara ran into the Tower. Ryuuta was working as the Yondaime's aid today in the Missions Room.

Itachi looked at her in surprise and suspicion. Reina had left entirely too easily. He looked back at his teacher and felt chills run down his back. His sensei's face sported a grin that was nearly identical to the ones Reina gave when she put him through her pranks.

"What's the mission?" Itachi asked hesistantly.

"Oh nothing, just a search, find, and retrieval mission. Just a low D rank since it's your first mission after all." Kushina explained in an oh so innocent voice. "I'll let you handle it while I observe how you act during this mission."

Itachi nodded. Inwardly he was lamenting the fact that even though he had graduated early and was considered a genius even among the Uchiha, he was stuck with a lowly D rank of retrieval. Some genius he was!

"Let's commence with the mission: Operation Catch Tora!" Kushina shouted gleefully.

Itachi sighed before following his sensei. He didn't notice the looks of fear and pity on the surrounding shinobi's faces.

-=======-Four Hours and 34 minutes later….============-============-

Reina was enjoying the bento she had made this morning with her father. The father-daughter duo was enjoying their bonding time together.

Of course, it was interrupted by the banging of the door to the Missions Room opening. An immaculate looking Kushina carried in Tora the cat with an iron grip.

Behind her was Itachi. There were mud stains all over his body and clothes. It seemed that Tora clawed all over him since there were scratches on his cheek and rips in clothes too. There were even a few souvenir twigs and leaves stuck in his hair.

Kushina exclaimed ecstatically, "Team Kushina, first mission success!" She cheered and Reina gleefully cheered with her.

Itachi finally noticed her and glared at her. He just knew that she knew what he would be forced to go through on this first mission. The Uchiha heir stalked over to her and swiped her bento. Kushina-sensei didn't allow him to take any breaks or take time to eat since she insisted that he complete the mission first.

Reina snickered into her hands as he moodily devoured her food.

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Yippie! That's another chapter down.

AN: Next chapter will have sort-of birthdays for the characters.

I won't abandon a story…it just may take a really long time for me to update again. It's a hit or miss when my muses come to me.

Thanks for all the reviews. Loving them and I'm glad you guys enjoy Reina too!

Another chapter down with 3,000+ words to it. A treat to celebrate the summer!

Read and Review… it's good for you (more like me)!

Have to study for some tests so won't be able to update till those are done…probably be back at the beginning of July or so!

Updated 6/21/13