Itachi woke up first. He couldn't rely on the sunlight to wake up because of the cold, impassive stone compound. He kicked something soft and he looked down. His clothes were in a heap; they were still using his Akatsuki coat as a blanket, and Suigetsu was still sleeping. The mist nin's body was throbbing with heat. And so it should be, Itachi thought with immense satisfaction. They'd spent almost the whole night salivating over and enjoying each other's bodies, and even when it had gotten extremely sweaty and it was hot and Suigetsu said he felt raw all over because Itachi had been too rough, they kept going. Itachi never felt so sore in his entire life. He looked down at his dick. He didn't even want to touch it. Suigetsu had given him a blow job, and although there hadn't been any teeth in it, Itachi even felt tender down there. Eventually, he relented and patted it softly when Suigetsu stirred, an incoherent murmur escaping his lips. Itachi smiled. He brushed some hair aside from Suigetsu's face and wished there was more light and ventilation in the place so he could properly appreciate Suigetsu's hotness. Sasuke has great taste, he couldn't help but think, a little proudly because he'd gotten Suigetsu in the end. Or in the beginning, since he'd fucked Suigetsu first, but whatever. He'd taken the guy's virginity. That was good enough to Itachi.

All sexual thoughts aside, Itachi had never actually felt this attached to anyone ever before. He looked observantly at Suigetsu's slumbering face. Did he really only like Suigetsu for his body? Really?

Yes, he wanted to say, so he didn't have to admit he was in love. But he knew no was definitely the right answer. There was just something about Suigetsu. Itachi had seen plenty of cocky nin like Suigetsu in his life, but this guy just had something different. Maybe it was the way he ate his yoghurt. Itachi had seen that, even though he was with Sasuke at the time, in a desserts shop. As his brother was content with a pot of steaming green tea and warm mochi, Suigetsu was working his tongue sexily around a pretty dessert glass of what looked like vanilla yoghurt with fruit bits. Itachi had conveniently noticed that Suigetsu didn't like honeydew melon. But from that moment on, that was when Suigetsu really had Itachi nailed. Not literally, of course.

"Gaaah,"

Itachi was pulled out of his thoughts. He felt Suigetsu's thigh move against his. The mist nin rubbed his eyes and brushed back his fringe. "What time is it?" he asked drowsily. He grinned lopsidedly when he saw Itachi. "Morning, sexy,"

Itachi inclined his head and peered through the cracks in the ceiling.

"I would say eleven, at the very least,"

"My, my," Suigetsu said, tracing a circle around Itachi's left nipple. "We're getting lazy, aren't we? Sleeping in like it's our honeymoon and we have nothing else to do but bask in each other's wonderful aura,"

Itachi's heartbeat quickened. What did he just say? "Do you have something to do?" he asked.

"No," Suigetsu answered, wrinkling his nose. His hand left Itachi's chest and he touched the Uchiha's jawbone. "But you do,"

Right. Itachi did have something to do that wasn't Suigetsu. He nodded in agreement, mollified.

"When will you be back?" Suigetsu asked as he pulled the Akatsuki coat further up his body. He tucked it under his chin. Was he cold? Itachi inched closer to him.

"Of that, I'm unsure,"

"Hmph," Suigetsu smiled. Itachi thought he'd say I'll miss you, but he didn't. Instead, he said: "come back to me in one piece, you hear?"

Itachi nodded. Not exactly what he wanted to hear, but it was pretty much the same thing.

"Definitely,"

Then he leaned over and kissed Suigetsu.

"You know," Deidara piped up. "I still have those explosive beads you gave me,"

"What?"

Sasori took a few steps back to peer down the row of shelves. Deidara was picking up random bottles, reading their labels with supposed interest. The blonde flicked a corner of a loose label.

"The ones you gave to me for my fifteen birthday," Deidara explained hopefully.

Sasori's mind reeled back. Oh. He went red at the memory.

"Deidara. I expect you to heed my words,"

Pein walked out of the room. He glanced momentarily, disinterestedly, at Sasori, who was standing near the door. Then with a whoosh, he disappeared into the air in a grey cloud. Sasori heard the little brat sigh inside the room. There was an obnoxious clunk as the kid set something down on his table.

It was his birthday? Sasori thought to himself. Well, that didn't mean very much. He didn't even remember his own, let alone celebrate others. He played with a loose thread on his long-sleeved shirt. Deidara was, after all, still kind of a kid. At least to Sasori he was. The short thing only came up to his shoulder. Hidan—that Jashinist be damned—once joked that Deidara was like his son, following him everywhere. Sasori supposed it might've looked that way. Might've, if Sasori's hair was orange or at least dirty blonde. That would give them some semblance. Or not, because—wait, why was he thinking about this anyway? It wasn't like it was true.

And at first, Sasori had resented that he had to be partnered with the newbie, but later he realized it was a good thing, because then he could have someone to boss around. Sasori hmph-ed to himself at the train of thoughts and swished into Deidara's the room. The Iwa nin looked surprised to see him. Sasori no Danna, in his room, uninvited? It was a rarity.

"I have something to show you," he said. "Come with me,"

Sasori wasn't sure what he gotten over him, but he felt kind of obliged to give Deidara some sort of treat. He was pretty sure no other Akatsuki partnership extended this far, seeping into the personal zone, but…

Without a word Sasori nodded in the direction of his storage room. Deidara looked from it to Sasori.

"I get to go in there?"

Deidara sounded like he didn't want to, like it was stupid, but Sasori knew he did. He often caught the little hooligan peeking into there longingly. Sasori almost sighed and nodded. He stood in the doorway as Deidara's eyes scanned the shelves. His avid interest was highly amusing. Then, all of a sudden, Sasori felt kind of lame just doing this, like some dumb excursion. He went back into his room. His puppets hung suspended in the ceiling. He shuffled through their hardened bodies and found one. He bent over and a little and opened a small slot hidden in its neck. Inside was a container of small, little black beads Sasori had fashioned himself.

Deidara was in the process of perusing the last set of shelves when Sasori came in again. He looked up at the redhead, who was holding something in his hand.

"Here," he said. "Make good use of it,"

Sasori couldn't help but smile. He remembered feeling responsible all the time for whatever mistakes Deidara made, but as the guy grew older and more distant, that feeling had diminished. Deidara had grown nastier, cockier, and Sasori had forgotten about the beads entirely. Until now.

"You do?"

"Yeah," Deidara chuckled. "I remember I couldn't bear to use them all, un, because…," he trailed off. He coughed into his fist.

"That's toxic," Sasori walked over and pushed the fist away, because Deidara was still clutching a bottle tightly. "Don't get your mouth too close,"

Deidara looked dazed. "Oh," he said simply. He looked at the bottle like he'd never seen it before and put it back. Sasori stood with both his arms around the box.

"Because why?" he asked curiously. After all, Sasori had seen the look in young Deidara's eyes when he was fourteen. Because Sasori was also an artist, he'd taken delight in this.

Deidara gulped. He wasn't about to admit he didn't want to use them all because he thought Sasori would never give anything to him ever again, and that gifts really meant a lot to him.

"I've forgotten," he said weakly. He smiled at Sasori. "Are you done yet?"