Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Story rating: K

Summary: Non-massacre. Itachi meets Sasuke's team and then...

Big Brother's Interference

It was a lazy late morning, a rarity in Itachi's life. Used to getting up at the crack of dawn, if not earlier, this time he had comfortably slept in, knowing there would be no missions for at least a week and for once he could rest up and relax in peace. Itachi planned to make the best of this opportunity to unwind in his otherwise dangerous and stressful lifestyle.

Coming down the stairs, he was mildly surprised by a dark blue blur streaking past him to the front door after shouting brief goodbyes to their mother. The Uchiha shook his head in amusement at the antics of his younger brother, who had apparently trained longer than usual last night and in result overslept, what explained the genin's hurry now. He supposed he would have been worried more for consequences of Sasuke's tardiness if he didn't know that the boy's sensei was the chronically late Copy Nin. As it was, Itachi felt confident that Sasuke would still be earlier than Kakashi.

"Good morning, Mother," he greeted, stepping into the kitchen.

"Morning, Itachi! Did you sleep well?" Uchiha Mikoto replied cheerfully, bringing his favourite rice balls to the table and pouring the aromatic green tea she had brewed into a mug.

"Yes, thank you," Itachi pulled into his seat and began eating, hungry but mindful of his manners.

His mother beamed at him, pleased with his appetite and turned to the stove. Her eyes wandered to a packed lunchbox she had prepared so thoughtfully for her younger son.

"Sasuke left so quickly that he forgot to take his bento," she sighed in exasperation.

Immediately catching onto what his mother had in mind, Itachi swallowed a bite before replying, "I can drop it off for him when I'll go for a walk."

"That would be a great help, Itachi," Mikoto smiled.

He smiled back, glad to be of service to his poor mother. Besides, he still didn't meet Sasuke's team, except obviously their jonin-sensei, despite it having been almost half a year since its forming, and he had to admit he was slightly curious about it, especially due to his younger brother's tight-lipped answers whenever asked about his teammates. Itachi heard one of them was the jinchuuriki and the other a kunoichi and one of Sasuke's admirers.

It would be interesting to meet them, he mused, munching thoughtfully on the delicious rice ball with sweet filling.

After leisurely finishing his breakfast, Itachi thanked his mother again and picking up the lunchbox, set out for a walk around the village, soaking up the warmth of sun and enjoying the balmy Konoha weather. With his ninja skills and sensory abilities, it wasn't hard to get a lock on his brother's location.

Itachi slowed down as he approached the red bridge which was the usual meeting place of Team Seven, then noiselessly jumped into the trees to discreetly observe the young genins, curious how they acted without supervision. His little brother was leaning his back against the railing, hands in pockets, creating the aloof air around him, however the other two seemed used to it. The girl with outrageously pink hair stayed by Sasuke's side, chatting cheerfully and drawing short responses from the boy from time to time. The jinchuuriki cut in at regular intervals with some loud remarks or boasts, gaining himself annoyed looks, but no real hostility, though at one point he said something apparently too stupid and earned himself a punch to the noggin from the irate girl. Itachi noted the quiet mirth dancing in Sasuke's eyes and the subtle tilt of a head hiding the approving smile.

"Aren't they just precious?"

The Uchiha didn't react to the man who landed on the same tree branch he occupied. He had been aware of the jounin's near presence from the very beginning.

"Kakashi-san. I assume you're late."

"I got lost on the road of life," the masked ninja gave his standard excuse. "Do you have any business with my cute genins?"

Itachi nodded. "It won't take long."

"Go ahead. I still need to finish this chapter," Kakashi flipped a page and buried his nose in the X-rated book.

The Uchiha leaped down, landing softly with a cat-like grace, then walked closer to the bickering team. He could hear the argument between the jinchuuriki – Naruto was it? – and, surprisingly, his little brother, while the girl stayed out of it, though it was clear she supported Sasuke's side. Coincidentally, she was also the first one to notice his arrival.

The little kunoichi's eyes widened dramatically to the size of saucers as she took in the newcomer's strong resemblance to her stoic teammate. She tugged on Sasuke's sleeve to draw his attention away from the stupid argument and he turned to see what she wanted.

"Nii-san?" Sasuke sounded perplexed at the sight of his brother, but also a bit guarded.

Itachi quirked an eyebrow at the uncharacteristic tension in Sasuke's body language. "You forgot something," he said, handing out the lunchbox to the genin.

"He's your brother, Sasuke-kun?" the girl asked, looking at Itachi with intrigue.

"Teme has a brother? Why didn't you say something?" Naruto interjected, squinting at Itachi's face then comparing it with Sasuke's. "So when do you get the lines, teme?" he blurted out tactlessly.

"Dobe, shut up," Sasuke hissed in warning, annoyance written all over his face.

Itachi's lips curved gently, genuinely amused with the genins' antics. "I'm Itachi, Sasuke's older brother. And no, he won't get the lines."

"Well, teme's brother, I'm Uzumaki Naruto, the future Hokage!" the orange-dressed eyesore replied exuberantly, assuming a grandiose pose.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "As if you ever could," he muttered but not quietly enough which caused Naruto to instantly jump to his throat.

With the boys engaged in another petty squabble, Itachi turned his attention to the girl of the team who was on her side regarding him curiously. She was cute for a twelve-year-old, even that strange hair colour reminiscent of the sakura trees in a bloom seemed to suit her, bringing out the bright green of her expressive eyes and the peach complexion of her skin.

"What's your name?" Itachi asked, as the circle on her clothes didn't belong to any of the ninja clans he knew. She was probably of a civilian descent, he surmised.

"Ha-Haruno Sakura. Nice to meet you, Uchiha-san," she replied with a slight stutter, confirming his assumption. Subtle pink appeared on her cheeks fueled by the embarrassment of being subjected to his scrutiny.

"Just Itachi, I'm only five years older than you," he smiled.

"Okay, Itachi-san," she nodded. "Sasuke-kun doesn't talk much about his family," she added after a moment of silence.

"He doesn't talk about his team, too. Pretty secretive of him, isn't it?"

"Well, he's just trying to to keep home and work separate, it's professional of him," Sakura rushed to defend her teammate, then reddened after catching Itachi's amused, knowing stare. "I... I mean..." she floundered, "... it's good for a ninja to be secretive," she finished her statement awkwardly and winced self-consciously.

Itachi didn't contest her point, instead opting to change the topic and ask about the team's missions. The kunoichi happily obliged, relating some of the more interesting ones, soon relaxing enough to truly enjoy the conversation and even laughing at some of the quips Itachi made. In the meantime, Sasuke and Naruto settled their dispute, though more due to the feeling of being left out of something than any real agreement between them.

"What are you guys talking about?" Naruto bounded up to them.

"Oh, I was just telling Itachi-san about that horrible mission in the farm, remember?" Sakura replied, her eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Ohhh, that one," Naruto shuddered at the remembrance. Sasuke also grimaced. He wasn't too fond of that mission.

"Yes, that one," Sakura grinned. "In hindsight, it's actually quite amusing. Especially that time when you rode that pig."

"H-Hey! Don't talk about it to people!" he exclaimed.

The girl giggled. "It's too funny not to tell."

"Saakura-chaan!" Naruto whined like a little kid. The kunoichi just laughed some more.

Despite himself, Sasuke's eyes lingered on her smile as he shared her amusement with Naruto's misadventure. Only the characteristic feeling of someone watching him caused him to look away from Sakura. Meeting the disturbingly perceptive gaze of his brother, Sasuke blinked, feeling like he was found out but not too sure what exactly was his crime, then raised his eyebrow in question. Itachi just shook his head and smiled enigmatically.

"Itachi, don't you have anywhere to go?" Sasuke asked pointedly, his expression annoyed.

"Hmmm... It seems like I do," the older Uchiha agreed after a long pause. "It was nice meeting you, Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan," he bade his goodbyes to the other two. Sakura tittered excitedly, her cheeks instantly reddening at being called so familiarly and Sasuke's eyes narrowed dangerously as he glared daggers at his brother. What was he playing at?

"You can stay, you know! You don't have to listen to teme!" Naruto replied hotly, a bit disappointed that the new person who didn't hate him immediately upon meeting already had to go.

"Sorry, I have some errands to take care of. Have fun on your mission!" Itachi waved in farewell and headed off from the red bridge.

"Bye!" the blond idiot hollered after him. "Teme, why are you such a bastard if your brother is so cool?" he faced Sasuke, scowling.

"Piss off," he glared.

"Pfft, you're not scaring anyone," Naruto disregarded him, putting his arms behind his head. "Too bad Itachi-nii had to go, I'd have told him about that one time you got spooked on a mission," he chuckled.

Sasuke glowered darkly. "I'd murder you first," he threatened.

Naruto was ready to continue arguing but Sakura fitted herself between them, attempting to break the tension. "Well, I also think you have a great brother Sasuke-kun," she said, still slightly red around the face. "I hope he'll come see us soon, it was nice talking to him."

"Itachi doesn't have much free time. He's always busy with missions and clan matters. It was pure chance that he came today," Sasuke told his teammates, intending to discourage them from ever again asking about his brother.

The crestfallen expressions made him want to seriously hurt someone. They just met Itachi and were already sad that they wouldn't see him much?

The further rumination on this was prevented by Kakashi finally popping in. The team headed to pick up the day's D-rank assignment from the Hokage tower.

This evening, when Itachi was sitting on a porch and sipping on his tea, he was alerted to the soft, noiseless footsteps by feeling the vibration in the wood floor. The jounin didn't turn around, instead staying put and waiting for his brother to speak first.

After a moment, he did.

"Itachi. Stay away from my team," Sasuke's tone was sharp like an edge of a blade.

"Why?" he replied in a measured voice.

A pause.

"You have no business with them. You're just a distraction to our training."

Itachi turned to face his younger brother. "Am I? Or are you just insecure?"

"What are you going on about?" Sasuke furrowed his brow.

"There's no reason for me not to associate with your friends. Naruto-kun is a nice kid and Sakura-chan's a smart girl. They won't abandon you, if that's what you're worried about."

"Itachi... you..." Sasuke clenched his fists, torn between getting angry, embarrassed and vehemently denying his brother's words.

"Trust in your friends more, otouto," Itachi just smiled kindly and got up, leaving after giving Sasuke a poke on the forehead.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn?"

"Itachi-san is really cool. He's very strong and smart and already a jounin, right?"

"I suppose," Sasuke replied tersely, unhappy with the topic of his brother coming up again so soon.

He and Sakura were returning together from a day-long mission. Of course, in no way, shape or form was he walking her home. It was a coincidence that they had to take the same streets and besides there was certainly nothing wrong with teammates accompanying each other.

"But, you know..." Sakura fidgeted, spurning his curiosity. "I think that you're much cooler, Sasuke-kun. I always see you giving your all, training so hard and pushing yourself... It's inspiring me to better myself, too. And... and I want to..." a blush spread all over her cheeks, "always be able to cheer you on and somehow help you in whatever way I can."

She didn't dare meet his eyes, instead looking down on her feet and nervously wringing her hands. The prolonged silence on his part made her hopes plummet. He probably didn't want to hear this kind of words from her...

"Ah, j-just forget what I said! I... I just blabber stupid things, you know? I spend too much time around Naruto, so..."

"Sakura, it's not stupid," he finally found his voice again, a red tint on his own pale cheeks mirroring her blush as he looked away in embarrassment. "Thank you for saying this..."

And he meant it. Her words meant a lot to him.

"Sasuke-kun..." she said, stunned with his positive reaction and risked a quick peek at him. Their eyes met for a second and she backtracked, her face burning up. "Look, th-this is my turn! S-see you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun!" She ran off, not trusting herself to handle the churning emotions in her stomach that turned her into a lightheaded, stuttering mess.

He stayed immobile for a good while after she rapidly left, the blush slowly subsiding. With a small smile and a shake of his head, Sasuke set off towards the Uchiha district, his heart soaring, free of the heavy burden he hadn't fully realized that had been weighing him down.

Sakura thought that he was cooler than Itachi.

Sasuke's smirk didn't fade away for the rest of the day.

AN: Initially I wanted to write something different, but here it is! I hope you all enjoyed this oneshot :) I'm not entirely happy with how it came out, so any opinions will be very appreciated.