Disclaimers: Naruto is someone else's, this is purely a fanfic using someone else's characters.

Warnings: This story includes strong language, violence, angst, hopefully some decent jokes, and (of course) beautiful SasuNaru love.

Chapter 13: イタチ

"A kiss is a secret which takes the lips for the ear."

-Edmond Rostand

--

Naruto wiped his eyes on his sleeve before awkwardly pushing himself up into a sitting position. He looked down at the chakra ropes tightly synched around his wrists, and then at the dark clearing around him. As far as he could tell, there was nothing there that he could use to cut through the thick binds.

He looked at the night sky, trying to determine what time it was, but he was still unsure. He thought back to the last time he kissed Sasuke. We were in bed together.. he blushed at the thought, but quickly refocused on the task at hand. It was night, but.. I don't know what time it was.

He bit down on his lip as he roughly pushed back his hair with bound hands. Fuck..

They weren't paying attention to time anymore because there didn't seem to be a need to. They definitely weren't going twelve hours without kissing, so why keep track?

This, he chided himself, THIS is why you keep track.

Too late to fix it now..

He looked up. Ok, it's still night but it's a little lighter out- getting closer to dawn. You have until noon to find him. His stomach dropped at the thought; he rushed to reassure himself- no reason to panic. That's a lot of time. As long as you stay clear of anyone else, you can do this.

He pushed himself up to his feet, but a sharp stab of pain sent him reeling back down. He groaned as his knees smacked into the ground. His head was throbbing, his shoulder on fire. Just ignore it. You have to just ignore it. He pushed himself back up and made sure he was steady on his feet before moving past the small clearing and further into the forest. He didn't know where he was, so he went with his gut, chose a direction, and moved- just one step in front of the other. That's all you can do.

Naruto was extremely aware of his lack of weapons and chakra the entire time. In fact, it was all he could think about. It was like walking around naked. Worse than walking around naked. He just hoped that he'd be able to pass by undetected, though even he knew that was extremely unlikely.

After a while, day started to seep into the darkness, pale hues stretching across the horizon. Naruto's heart slammed violently against his chest as a wave of anxiety crashed over him. How is it already dawn??

What the hell do I do?

He had kept his pace as quick as he was physically able to be, but he just didn't feel like he was getting far enough. A tight knot formed in the pit of his stomach, and his blood ran cold with fear. What if I went the wrong way? What if I'm going the opposite direction of Sasuke? Will he know to keep going?

His instinct as a shinobi told him to keep his presence unknown, to always avoid leaving a trail- especially one that could be followed, say, after an escape from a lunatic's hideout. But, if Sasuke was looking for him, he'd need some help. Naruto, hoping he couldn't come to regret this, broke branches as he moved and purposely left imprints in the dirt- something for Sasuke to follow. He bit into thumb, hard enough to draw blood, and had just marked a nearby brush, when he noticed something in the distance.

A patch of shadow, darker than the rest.

He wasn't sure if it was real, or just his eyes playing tricks on him, but he was almost positive it was a person. He exhaled slowly, then narrowed his eyes as he cautiously headed in that direction. There was no way to tell yet if it was friend or foe, not from this distance, so he would just have to stay low and move carefully.

It could be anyone.. he reminded himself. Don't assume they're here to help you. You have no chakra- no defense. Don't let them see you until you know for sure.

As he moved closer, the shadow took on a solid outline. He was still unclear as to who it was, but someone was definitely out there. He inched forward, mindful of his steps- keeping them silent, and his breathing controlled. As far as he could tell, there was only one person, but he couldn't be sure. The figure moved and he froze- waiting to see what they would do. All he could see was the outline of their head. Dark hair, but he couldn't make out their face, so he assumed their back was to him.

Then, the person turned and Naruto nearly collapsed.

Oh thank fucking god.

He could see his sharingan from here- a welcome sight after tonight's ordeal. "Sasuke!" He rushed up to him, relief sending a burst of adrenaline and euphoria through his veins.

"Sasuke! Thank god, you don't know how fucking relieved I-"

He froze.

He made a mistake.

A horrible mistake.

His eyes grew wide and his breath snagged in his throat. No.. His legs shook as he took a step back, then another.

"Naruto. You seem surprised to see me. Did you think I was someone else?" Blood red eyes flashed with amusement.

Naruto shook his head, unable to make a sound. He took another unsteady step back, and watched as those eyes filled with interest as they slipped from Naruto's horror-stricken face to his bound hands, "And someone's already done half the work for me.. How convenient."

"Itachi.." he swallowed.

The Uchiha narrowed his eyes on the blonde. "I see.." he murmured. Naruto stared back in confusion. What does that mean..?

"You do understand what comes next, don't you?" Itachi studied him, his face unreadable.

Naruto's jaw tightened. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Unfortunately, Naruto.. you really don't have a choice."

Several other Akatsuki members stepped out from the shadows, their grins sharp, their eyes hungry.

"Well, well, well," Zetsu's outer layer slowly opened to reveal the monochromatic duo within, "so the rumors were true. Someone out here has been trying to get their hands on the nine tails."

Kisame's predatory smile gleamed as he stepped out of the darkness. "Seems like they already did."

"Chakra-rope, nice" Deidara glanced over at the Uchiha, "this one was yours, right Itachi? How you wanna do this?"

Naruto's huge blue eyes darted between the Akatsuki members as they stepped out of the shadows. I'm fucked. I am seriously fucked. He looked between the group- trying to find a weak point, a way out, when his eyes narrowed once more on Itachi. He's closest. If I rush him, I might be able to get my hands on a kunai. If I can get the ropes off, there's a chance I can get out of this.

Itachi looked at him once more. "Will you come quietly, Naruto, or will we have to use force?"

Naruto slowly walked forward, raising his open palms in front of him to show his surrender. He watched Itachi carefully as he stepped closer. The Uchiha didn't seem convinced, but he wasn't making any move against him either.

"Before I go with you-" Naruto started, still moving steadily towards him, "there's something you should know.."

"This should be interesting."

So, sarcasm is a Uchiha trait.

".. I'll be dead by noon."

Itachi's eyes widened just slightly, and that is where he saw his opening. Naruto rushed in, twisted to the side, and leapt over the Uchiha, reaching his hands low. He managed to slip a finger through the top of a kunai and pulled it with him. He slid to the side and spun the kunai to slice along the top of the rope, but just as the blade touched his binds everything stopped. The blade, his body- he couldn't even blink. It all just.. stopped.

Dammit.. when did he-?

Time slowly crept forward and as the kunai sliced through, the rope erupted into a murder of crows. They surrounded him, stirring the air into a frenzy, whipping his hair across his face, his jacket loose, before suddenly disappearing. Naruto pushed his hair back and looked across a grassy field, or rather the illusion of a grassy field. Itachi stood on the other side, watching, waiting.

"Why am I here?" Naruto's voice cracked. "You have what you want. I have no fucking weapon, no fucking chakra- you know I can't stop you!"

He swallowed back a sob as the truth echoed in his mind. He looked away, struggling to keep his emotions in check. "You don't need to-"

Itachi shifted out of view and suddenly appeared directly in front of him. Naruto stumbled back, but the Uchiha grabbed him. Naruto struggled in his grasp, but he couldn't pull his arm free. Itachi gripped his chin and forced him to look up.

"Does Sasuke know?" Itachi asked.

Cerulean eyes stared. "What..?"

Itachi's face hardened. "Answer me."

Naruto could feel a tight pressure in his mind as his words were forced out of him. Fucking Mangekyo Sharingan..

"Y-yes.." he ground out. Anger flashed in his eyes, but Itachi either didn't see it or just chose to ignore it.

"Is there a way to stop it?" Naruto nodded. Itachi's fingers dug painfully into his face as he leaned closer. "How?"

"I- I have to-" he felt weirdly embarrassed saying this in front of the older Uchiha, but he knew from his experience with the younger one that there was only so long he could resist the sharingan's powers. "Nnnn- I have to- to kiss Sasuke!"

Itachi leaned back and tilted his head slightly as he regarded the blonde. "Really.."

Naruto felt the words rush through him before he even had a chance to see what he was going to say. "The Hourglass Curse.. has to reset.. every twelve hours. There was.. an accident-."

Itachi raised an eyebrow. Naruto glared back at him. "What do you want me to say!!" he screamed. "If I don't kiss Sasuke by noon then I'm fucking dead, ok? What more is there to know?!"

"Do you know why Sasuke stopped coming after me?"

Naruto froze. He looked up at Itachi, confused cerulean eyes flitting between crimson ones. "What're you trying to tell me?" Naruto breathed out.

Itachi released his face and took a step back. "Give him a reason to find me."

Naruto stared after him. "What do you-?"

Before he could articulate his thought, or get Itachi to explain, the illusion fragmented. It's shards dispersed and then he was back, in the forest, surrounded by the Akatsuki. He looked over at Itachi, but he gave no sign that anything had happened. Is he.. on my side?

He looked over at the other Akatsuki members. They're definitely not. But Itachi- he glanced at the Uchiha again, he might be..

"He comes with us." Itachi ordered, his voice monotone, face expressionless. "Deidara- I'll let you handle that part."

The blonde artist smirked, licking his lips as he approached.

Naruto felt a rush of panic. Fuck- think! Come on! Itachi said, "give him a reason to find me".. I need Sasuke to.. to know that I'm with Itachi.

He saw Deidara draw near.

Ok, how the fuck do I do that?

He looked around, quickly losing hope, when he noticed the blood, still dripping off his thumb, from when he had bitten into it to leave trail. That's it.

He glanced up, found an opening, then took off running.

"Oh come on- don't insult me." Deidara complained. "Why would that work?"

Naruto made sure to knock through branches and brush, leaving an obvious trail. Then he tripped and went flying to the ground. He caught himself on his bound hands, which he quickly moved along the fallen leaves on the ground, before shooting back up on his feet and racing in the opposite direction, away from his message to Sasuke.

Deidara, of course, caught him, or rather one of his birds did. Once he had Naruto secured in his masterpiece, Deidara happily led the group out of the woods and towards their closest base, leaving behind a thicket of snapped twigs, torn leaves, and written in blood on the forest floor-

イタチ

Itachi.

Author Note:

So, you may have noticed, but I decided to be creative with Itachi's storyline a bit. To be fair- I have kind of been doing that with Sasuke & Naruto the entire time. Anyways, I hope the inaccuracies don't bother you, or at least that my explanation for them are solid enough to be convincing :)

Besides- Itachi is my favorite character and I just needed him to be part of this one. So.. this might be more for me and less for you.

As always, thank you so so much for reading! I hope you're having fun, and I hope you stick around for the next chapter. And to the lovely readers leaving comments- it is truly appreciated. In fact, it means the world to me. Thank you for staying with this one. You're the best Xoxox~