Chapter Three
Their Exchange
Kisame opened his eyes to a shimmering lake, dotted with the ripples from many fish hunting in the evening's light. He was standing on a dock, overlooking an expansive basin, opening a few hundred feet away where the water lapped hungrily into the river, leading away from the stagnate body of water. The water dropped a few inches at the mouth of the disfigured brook, where it twisted out of Kisame's limited eye sight. It hid behind a cape of typha before peeking out between the hard grasses, possibly a mile or so away. The water itself was, for the most part, clear, although it harbored more than its fair share of algae and microscopic creatures. Lily pads floated peacefully on the surface of the lake, inviting toads to rest their weary legs upon their waxy complexions. Kisame spotted a toad, relaxed but alert, housing itself upon an exceptionally large lily pad. It's yellowish-green eyes watched Kisame carefully, in case the blue-skinned man turned out to be a threat to the small amphibian. Kisame let a low chuckle escape his previously immobile lips, frightening the frog into action. With a plop, the toad was gone, swimming beneath the surface of the lake.
Kisame breathed in the scent of the lake. The musky scent sent chills up and down his thick spine, making him shiver with delight. It had been a long time since he had smelt that smell so intensely, so strong. The scent coaxed him closer to the edge of the dock, luring him toward the teal colored water. Kisame crouched once he reached the edge of the wooden dock. His standard Shinobi sandals squeaked against the planks, as if they were wet. The shark-man dropped his arm over his knee. His fingers brushed the tips of his toes, making him glance down. His black nail polish was beginning to flake pretty bad on his left foot's toes; Kisame made a mental note to re-paint them when he got back to the base. Nothing looked worse to the Leader then carelessness. Soon, though, the thought was swatted to the side as he dropped his hand into the water, first letting only his fingertips skim the surface. He watched the ripples skitter away from his fingers as if they would eat the waves in the water. Kisame smiled to the slightest degree, watching his hand make ripples in the water.
Kisame closed his eyes for a moment to listen to the sounds of the wilderness around him when he suddenly heard a shuffle coming from behind him. He turned, not alarmed at all for whatever reason, and found Itachi standing a few feet off from where Kisame crouched. He stood tall, a tight fishnet spanning the surface area of his torso and meeting the edge of his standard Shinobi pants. His red ring was worn on his right ring finger, per usual. His eyes were onyx, his Mangekyou Sharingan not activated. Kisame stood slowly and bowed his head once he reached his full height. He made eye contact as his head lifted back up; his stare was questioning. Itachi looked as if he had something to say. Kisame wiped his cold fingers on his pants, attempting to rid them of any excess water. He looked down to his left hand and examined his yellow ring. He kept his on his ring finger as well, but it meant something entirely different than Itachi's. Kisame's meant "south", while his partner's meant "scarlet". Everything about him screams scarlet... Kisame thought half-heartedly.
"Kisame," The man standing across from him said, no question in his voice. It was almost commanding, and it made Kisame cock his head in confusion. Itachi took a step toward his partner; his arms were slack against his sides, the edges of his Akatsuki cloak billowing in the gentle wind that caressed their skin.
"Yes, Itachi-san?" Kisame spoke, watching the red and black fabric flowing around his partner's body. Itachi took another step closer, and soon was walking toward Kisame. When there was possibly two feet between the two men, the Uchiha stopped and straightened his back, looking into Kisame's eyes, which had been torn from the moving cloak. "What did you come for?" Kisame said, entirely confused at this point. He reached up and ran his right hand through his coarse, blue hair, slowing down at the feathery tips of his hair strands. He played with the edges before becoming awkward with it and dropping his hand back to his side.
"I came for..." Itachi took a step closer... Looking like a fish out of water... Hah, I'm funny. Kisame closed his eyes and laughed at his own lame sense of humor. When he opened his eyes again, Itachi was even closer. He opened his mouth and Kisame could smell mint on his breath; the fact that his partner was this close to him made Kisame slightly uncomfortable, but Kisame trusted the Uchiha. "I came for this." Itachi spoke, and reached up behind Kisame's head, pulling his face close to his own pale face. Before Kisame had even realized anything had happened, his lips were against Itachi's washed-out lips. The blue-skinned man's eyes were expanded to their capacity in his shock, but he did not pull away from the waxy man before him. Itachi's other hand, his left, reached up and ran across Kisame's forehead, back, pulling his headband off. His hair was against Itachi's fingers, with a few strands falling down to touch lightly on Kisame's face.
Kisame's eyes had closed somewhere during this exchange, and his own hands raised hesitantly. He touched his fingers against the small of his partner's back, testing his reaction. Itachi did not pull away from Kisame's touch, encouraging the taller man of the couple. He pressed his right hand firmly against Itachi's clothed back, his left hand awkwardly resting on Itachi's right hip. A clank comfirmed the stripping of Kisame's headband completely, although he could hardly hear the metallic noise over the ringing in his ears. Itachi's fingers were still crawling through Kisame's hair, making his scalp crawl with anticipation. Itachi's fingers lingered for a moment longer, then dropped to Kisame's hairline. He ran his first two fingers down the edge of the blue man's face, curving around the outer shell of his right ear when his fingers came to it. All of this was done with the utmost amount of tenderness, making Kisame physically shudder.
Kisame's hand had slowly began to grasp the excess of cloth on Itachi's back, pulling his partner closer to him. Their kiss had already begun to move, but now their tongues danced on the edges of each others' lips, making them both writhe in apprehension. Kisame's left hand had become less awkward and was now gripping Itachi's right hip firmly, making the raven-haired man twitch closer to Kisame. All hands were preoccupied by something, finding anything to tease or touch on the other. Kisame was the first one to allow entrance of Itachi's tongue, parting his lips enough to indicate to his lover what he wanted. As Itachi slowly, gently pushed his tongue into Kisame's mouth, he weaved his hands down and gripped Kisame's hip, likewise, in one hand and pulled him closer with the other. Their enchange was becoming rougher, lustful as the time was spent. Kisame let go of Itachi's hip for a moment to rub his growing erection, which was beginning to become sore from how hard it was.
Itachi suddenly let go of Kisame's body, even pulling his sweet mouth away from Kisame's. The taller man whined lowly in protest, but let his partner leave his body cold. Itachi looked into Kisame's eyes for a moment, a peculiar look in his onyx eyes. Kisame looked back with his equally ashen eyes, relatively emotionless, considering their previous activities. Itachi smiled the slightest smile - a type of smile you would only recognize if you knew the person you were studying - and slowly kneeled before Kisame. Before the shark man could protest anything, the Uchiha had yanked down his Shinobi pants and left him standing in his boxers. He let out a yelp in surprise and quickly covered the peep hole in his boxers, suddenly shy. Itachi grinned and grabbed Kisame's hands, guiding them away from his precious package. An obvious grin crossed Itachi's face, making Kisame even more uncomfortable. Why is Itachi-san smiling? He never smiles. He.. h-... Kisame questioned, a thousand questions running through his head at once, each cutting another off. He still hadn't time to consider the exchange that had happened just a moment before.
The smile still plastered to his face, Itachi eased his fingers into the waistband of Kisame's black boxers and yanked them down to Kisame's knees.
Kisame woke up to his blanket being yanked down below his knees. The sun was bright in his tired, now tightly closed eyes. He sensed the presence of another, and after a moment of rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Kisame looked over his left shoulder and saw a slightly irritated Itachi standing above him, dressed and ready for the day ahead of them. Kisame couldn't tell if his eyes were really turning a dull shade of red or if it was just his tired eyes playing games on his mind. The second thing Kisame realized - Itachi hovering above him being the first - was that he had a raging boner from the dream he was having just moments before. His eyes subconsciously trailed down to look at the tent he was pitching. He looked to Itachi and grimaced when he realized Itachi had followed his gaze.
Itachi's eyes widened for a moment before retaining their original size. He quickly looked away from Kisame's crotch, though, blushing slightly from the sight of his partner's "problem". His eyes were averted from Kisame's as he turned and walked away from the edge of the bed.
"Get rid of that. We need to get moving," Itachi spoke softly, but not gently. He strode to the couch and began to pack all his items that were strewn about from the previous night. "We both slept in. I'm sure you enjoyed the.. extra sleep." Kisame couldn't see his partner's face but he could tell that Itachi was extremely uncomfortable with the situation. Kisame wasted no time in getting up and rushing to the bathroom to rid himself of his pesky erection. He darted around the edge of the door to the bathroom, and peaked his head out for a last look at his disgruntled partner. Slowly, Kisame popped his head back inside the bathroom and locked the door.
Click was the sound the door of the bathroom made as Kisame carefully jutted his head out the corner. Itachi was packed and ready to leave, standing near the window that overlooked the lake. The lake... Kisame shook his head as he remembered parts of his dream from the night before. He stepped out of the bathroom and hastily went to pack his belongings. Itachi didn't turn around to address his partner, he only stood with his back to Kisame as the blue man hurriedly shoved things into his pack. Within minutes, Kisame was ready to leave.
"Itachi-san," Kisame said, a blush touching his cheeks as he spoke the name he was so familiar with, "I'm ready to leave." Itachi didn't turn around for a few moments, but when he did, all emotion was wiped clean of his face. Kisame couldn't expect anything less from the Uchiha - he was exceptionally good at wiping his face clear. It was something Kisame could respect the man for; Kisame had no poker face. His emotions laid as obvious as anything on his face. It didn't really bother him though - his emotions rarely changed enough for them to show on his face.
The two left Sujimoto, thanking the villagers politely, and resumed their journey to the Land of Fire. Kisame walked on Itachi's left and spoke sparsely, leaving the silence for his partner. Despite the obvious fact that Itachi liked the silence, Kisame couldn't say that he thought Itachi wanted to talk to him about anything right now. Kisame himself was over the embarrassment of what happened earlier, but he couldn't tell if Itachi was. Even so, the silence grew to an unbearable amount.
"So, Itachi-san, how did you sleep?" Kisame said in a chipper tone. Itachi turned to look at Kisame immediately after he spoke the words, but he did not respond. His eyes found their way back to the dirt road they were walking along. Kisame sighed, exasperated at the situation he was in right now. This is going to be harder than I thought it would be... Ah, shit.
A/N: Got chapter three up for you all! Enjoy! Review!
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