"Now kids; I want you to behave yourselves this weekend," Kisame ordered; folding his arms and surveying the innocent faces of his eight children as they stood on the stairs obediently, "Mr and Mrs Uchiha are arriving soon, and they will be staying until Monday. I expect you all to be polite; and no incidents like we had the first night Itachi and Sasuke were here; is that understood?"
"Yes dad…" came the sullen responses. He sighed heavily, facepalming and hoping that they would really try their best this time.
"Okay then; Sakura and Neji, come and help me with dinner; the rest of you start helping with the chores; Itachi's been cleaning all day and it's unfair on him," he commented.
"It's not like we asked him to," Shikamaru reminded his father flatly.
"No back talking thank you," Kisame remarked sternly, "Deidara; no fires, you hear me? Or you're grounded."
"But dad –"
"No buts," Kisame sniffed, "These are very important people –"
" –But they want to steal our house," Kiba snorted, folding his arms as he began stalking up the stairs.
"Buy, Kiba. They want to buy the house," he corrected, "Itachi has been very generous to us; we can at least show some respect to his parents."
"But Sasuke's been a dick," Naruto pointed out.
" –Go and clean your room," Kisame ordered, "Come on; and if any of you see Itachi; send him down to the kitchen, would you?"
"Yes dad," the teenagers repeated flatly.
"Why aren't you telling Hidan to behave, yeah?" Deidara snorted crossly, "He's the worst of all of us!"
"I gave up trying to get Hidan to behave years ago," Kisame chuckled as Sakura and Neji followed him off towards the kitchen to begin to make dinner for their guests.
Twenty minutes later, Itachi arrived in the kitchen to be greeted by what smelled absolutely delicious. Sasuke was rather sulkily sitting at the bench and looking impatient.
" –Were you seriously doing laundry?" the younger Uchiha asked his brother in an unimpressed voice.
"It was piling up," Itachi offered as explanation, "I wanted the place to be clean for when mother and father get here."
"We've arranged for guest bedrooms on the first floor for your parents and another for this other guest," Kisame informed him.
"No, dad; don't touch that!" Sakura snapped crossly, batting her father's hands away from whatever it was that she was preparing, "Itachi, can you come help? You're a much better cook than he is." She jabbed a finger at Kisame to make her point.
"Sure thing, Sakura," Itachi replied with a small smile; grabbing his apron and chuckling at Kisame's mock-offended face.
"I'm embarrassed to be your brother; really I am," Sasuke remarked dryly, "Since when did you become so domestic?"
"Just trying to help out," his brother sniffed darkly, "Would you go clean your room? It's an absolute mess!"
"Why were you in my room?" Sasuke snapped.
" –I needed to see if there was any laundry," Itachi replied flatly, "Go on Sasuke…Now, Sakura; what are we making?"
It was just hitting seven o'clock when the doorbell rang. Kisame quickly dried his hands and headed for the door.
"Now, Sakura; no passive-aggressive comments, thank you," he remarked with a stern look, "Neji; get your brothers to set the table; normally, will you?"
"Yes, dad," Neji sniffed with a sigh, heading after his father and then detouring up the stairs to locate Shikamaru.
"I'll serve up," Sakura sighed, and Itachi gratefully hung up his apron. He met his brother in the foyer; having apparently heard the doorbell ring as well.
"You must be Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha," Kisame greeted politely as he opened the door, "I've heard so much about you; I'm Kisame Hoshigaki; welcome to Samehada Manor." He shook the hand of the stern raven-haired man in front of him and ushered the pair of them inside. They were accompanied by a bespectacled, red-haired young lady.
"Oh god no," Sasuke whispered in horror as he recognised her.
"Sasuke!" Mikoto exclaimed in delight as she spied her youngest son. She eagerly opened her arms and enveloped him in a massive hug which Sasuke reluctantly returned. Over her shoulder he could see the laughing faces of Naruto, Kiba and Suigetsu hiding behind the railings of the floor above; obviously amused by his discomfort. "I'm so glad to see that you're doing well!"
"Yes, mother, I'm fine," Sasuke muttered as he was released and Itachi received much the same treatment.
"Hello, Karin," Itachi commented stiffly as he eyed the haughty, red-haired girl standing beside his father, "Father; I assumed that Nagato was to be joining you?"
"Nagato had business elsewhere in the country," Fugaku Uchiha informed his younger son, "His younger sister was more than happy to represent their father though." He turned to Kisame, "Mr Hoshigaki –"
" –Please, call me Kisame."
" –Kisame; Karin here is the daughter of an old family friend who has shown interest in being involved with the renovation of this manor, should we acquire it," Fugaku informed him.
"Lovely to meet you," Kisame commented.
"…Why are you blue?" Karin asked flatly; turning her nose up at him. Itachi and Sasuke exchanged dark looks.
"Medical condition," Kisame replied politely.
"Oh that is so interesting," Mikoto commented brightly, "You must tell me more about it; I was a nurse before I married Fugaku and –"
" –Mother…" Itachi coughed awkwardly and she smiled apologetically.
"We have dinner waiting for you," Kisame informed the trio, "Mr Uchiha; I would be happy to discuss business with you after, if you feel up to it after the trip out here."
"Very good," Fugaku nodded shortly, "Itachi; I trust Sasuke has been keeping up with his studies while he's been here."
"Of course," Itachi assured his father, "And I think you're going to approve of the property, father; it is in need of some slight repairs, but it has a certain appeal to it."
"It's beautiful," Mikoto commented conversationally to Kisame as they headed into the dining room where Sakura was busy bringing dinner out on various plates while Deidara and Neji finished setting the table. "Oh, how delightful!"
"Mrs Uchiha, this is my daughter, Sakura; and my two eldest sons; Deidara and Neji," Kisame introduced, "Kids; why don't you go and get changed for dinner; and tell your siblings that our guests are here?"
"Yes dad," the three of them replied in unison before escaping out the door once more. Kisame gestured for them to sit. Sasuke was rather uncomfortable with the fact that Karin had chosen to sit beside him.
"Itachi and Sasuke didn't mention there were other children here," Mikoto commented to Kisame in interest, "I hope Sasuke behaved himself; he tends to be a little…antisocial." Sasuke glared at his mother.
"I hadn't noticed," the blue man replied, though Sasuke knew quite well that he was being mocked. He was very aware that Karin was sitting a little bit closer than was strictly necessary, and that her hand was creeping closer towards his on the table. Uncomfortable, he yanked his hand away and placed it in his lap. There was a bark from somewhere out in the foyer.
"…Oh, I thought I told Kiba to put Akamaru outside…" Kisame sighed, "I'm sorry; the kids like their dogs inside."
"It's not a problem," Mikoto replied brightly, "I love dogs –"
"Not these ones, you wouldn't…" Sasuke muttered sharply. The door suddenly opened and Sasuke looked over to see Kiba, Ino and Suigetsu making an appearance; all dressed their nicest and trying to look pleasant.
"Are the others coming?" Kisame inquired curiously as the three of them introduced themselves to the Uchihas.
"Yeah; Hidan's just lost his head again but Shikamaru's helping him find it," Suigetsu replied and the three of them chuckled a little at the inside joke; Sasuke assuming that it was one of them that had hidden it in the first place.
"…Is Hidan having dinner with us?" Ino asked curiously after they received a warning look from their father.
"Indeed," Kisame nodded and the three of them stared at him incredulously, "Itachi spoke with him, I believe." The incredulous look was redirected to the elder Uchiha, who politely said nothing but just smirked at them.
Finally, Kisame's children were all seated around the table; and Hidan was the last to arrive; dressed nicely in a collared shirt and gritting his teeth slightly.
"S-Sorry to keep you all waiting," he remarked in a cracked tone, and Sasuke almost laughed at how obviously pained he was in trying to not burst out swearing.
"It's not a problem," Mikoto assured him kindly, "I've been having a lovely chat with Naruto and Shikamaru here; I'm glad to see you aren't running around like a headless chicken anymore like they said you were."
"They said that, did they?" Hidan remarked in a tone that held a slight trace of a threat directed at the two younger teens. Itachi shot the platinum-haired man a look and he said nothing more.
Dinner progressed lightly. Kisame and Fugaku engaged in interested business talk with the odd interjection from Itachi with a question about how things were running in the city. Sasuke, for the most part, picked at his food and threw irritated looks at Karin whenever she tried to sidle closer to him. She either didn't notice the looks or chose to ignore him, because her fingers kept dancing across his arm and leg, and he did not appreciate it in the slightest.
Suigetsu, sitting opposite him, seemed to find it absolutely hilarious. All of a sudden, Naruto paused in his eating and took a deep breath. Sakura's eyes widened in horror and she instantly clamped a hand over her brother's mouth dramatically; halting his sneeze before he could teleport. Karin looked up with a frown.
"…Sneezing at the dinner table is impolite," Sakura offered as a weak explanation; Naruto nodding to assure her that he wasn't about to sneeze. She removed her hand with a sigh.
"So you're all in the same year at school as Sasuke?" Mikoto asked Naruto curiously.
"Yeah," he replied, "He's…been…helpful…I guess…" he added awkwardly; not liking to admit that he'd needed Sasuke's help as a tutor.
"Sasuke's actually helping you with schoolwork?" she exclaimed in surprise, "Is he being held at gunpoint? I could never get him to do anything like that back at his old school!" Naruto and his siblings all sniggered at that; and the way that the raven blushed in irritation. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he spied with horror; Hidan's hand scampering along the table. His eyes widened, and Shikamaru happened to see this.
Before anyone could see, the hand was quickly levitated into the air and thrown out the nearby window.
"…What was that?" Karin inquired with a scowl; having seen something move in her periphery.
"Ow!" Hidan snapped at Shikamaru; remembering himself and hiding his handless stump under the table.
" –It was nothing," Sakura assured her quickly, "So, um, Karin, was it? What brings you to Konoha?"
" –I'm representing my father's company," the red-haired girl replied stiffly, but then her expression became quite smug and flirtatious, "…And I just couldn't pass up the chance to see Sasuke again!" Sasuke gritted his teeth as she turned to look at him adoringly from the corner of his eye. "Sasuke, everyone at private school misses you; I can't believe you have to slum it with commoners here…" The glass Sakura was holding promptly shattered as she clenched it too tightly. Eyes turned to her.
"…Sorry dad; I…it fell over…" she lied badly with a wince.
"It's okay blossom; is your hand okay?"
Sakura nodded, glaring over at Karin. The red-haired girl met her gaze coolly and the pinkette's hand curled into a fist. Who did this girl think she was?
"Well, I can show you to where you'll be staying, and then I'll be glad to engage in discussion with you," Kisame offered kindly, "Kids –" Almost out of habit, some of the plates began to rise into mid-air. The teenagers immediately panicked and caught them before it became too noticeable. Shikamaru blinked in surprise at his own carelessness before sheepishly getting up to help clear the table; a few of the plates clattering back to the table. Immediately, Kiba apologised for kicking the table as explanation for the resounding noise.
"No, Itachi; don't you dare," Kisame added warningly as the elder Uchiha made to help with the dishes. Itachi just smirked superiorly and got up anyway, as if to say 'You can't tell me what to do'.
"Your children are lovely," Mikoto remarked to Kisame as he helped carry her suitcase in through the front door, "So well-behaved!"
"…You think so?" he laughed weakly, having noticed both the flying hand incident and the way Shikamaru had almost levitated the plates away.
"I'm so glad that they get along with Sasuke," she sighed, "He was never very good at making friends back in the city; he seems to be quite comfortable with them." She looked over her shoulder in time to see her son swatting Naruto over the head for something he'd said. She giggled sweetly at the annoyed look her youngest son was wearing. "Dinner was lovely, thank you."
"Itachi was responsible for it," Kisame assured her, "Sakura wouldn't let me near the food; she's adamant that Itachi's a much better cook than me."
"Well, I'm glad that he's not having you slave away after him," she commented while Fugaku and Sakura finished bringing in the luggage. Sakura immediately excused herself and headed up to the second floor to sit and peer through the banister.
"So…Sasuke; whereabouts is your room?" Karin was inquiring slyly as she sidled up next to him. He flinched away from her in irritation, "I was hoping you could give me the private tour?" There was a not-so-subtle tone to her words that he was really disliking.
"I'd be happy to show you around!" Naruto suddenly remarked brightly; making Karin jump out of her skin as he interrupted her obvious flirting, "Come on Karin! This house is huge; it might take us ages to see everywhere! Sasuke's got homework to do, anyway; right, Sasuke?"
"Yeah; so much homework," Sasuke lied in relief as Naruto glared at the back of Karin's head; the blonde feeling some weird kind of well…jealousy welling up inside him. She'd been hanging off his arm all dinner, and it was just annoying to see her trying to make a move on him when he was clearly uninterested. He looked up to find that the majority of his siblings were standing on the landing of the second floor and looking down on him with rather knowing eyes.
Suddenly, Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he bolted for the nearest room. There was suddenly a resounding sneeze from the direction he'd run into, and then a short flash of light from somewhere above the foyer. Shikamaru's eyes widened from where he was leaning on the banister and observing the proceedings.
"What was –" Karin inquired; about to look around.
" –Oh that must be Naruto's allergies again," Itachi swiftly interrupted; drawing her attention away from the chandelier, where Naruto had teleported and was now swinging precariously. Shikamaru, Sakura and Ino all breathed a sigh of relief as their brother teleported away again; escaping the notice of their guests.
"Is it just me or is our baby brother jealous?" Neji inquired conversationally to his siblings (minus Naruto of course).
"Looks that way," Kiba chuckled, looking down to where Naruto had re-emerged into the foyer and had started arguing with Sasuke about something; Karin looking back and glaring at the blonde. "What do you think, Shika?"
"Oh, I know," Shikamaru replied and they all looked at him questioningly. He gave them a flat look and they understood.
"Ohhhh…" they all muttered; knowing just exactly how he knew that Naruto was jealous of the attention that Karin was giving Sasuke. Shikamaru had seen some weird things while dream-walking. He didn't need to elaborate further.
"I don't like her," Sakura sniffed, "Shall we get rid of her?"
"Dad said we had to be good," Ino muttered crossly.
" –Who cares what dad said?" Suigetsu smirked cheekily.
" –But Itachi's parents are here too, yeah," Deidara snorted, "And they seem all right; I mean, for Uchihas; yeah." They all frowned thoughtfully. "You think Sasuke likes Naruto?"
"Well if he does, he's never going to realise with that bitch around," Ino sighed, rolling her eyes, "And he is gay, remember?" She clamped a hand over her mouth, "…None of you tell dad that I read his mind, okay!" Her siblings rolled their eyes at her carelessness.
"Speaking of dad…" Shikamaru commented, looking over the railing to where their father was showing Mikoto and Fugaku to their room. Kisame was herding Itachi in the same direction; his hand companionably on the small of the raven's back to direct him. As expected, Itachi didn't seem in the least bit bothered. He sighed. "Troublesome." So much to do. So little time. He ran the various issues over in his mind and rubbed his chin. First thing's first...
"…So here's the plan…"
Oh dear! What do these mischievous teenagers have in store? Nothing good, probably! And it looks like their poor father's going to wind up involved in their plans! I'm sure they're well-meaning...right?
Review, review; new chapter soon!
xx K