Please see first chapter for disclaimer, rating, warnings, pairings, etc.

Special Thanks: goes out to DarkAnonymous324, SnowStar145, and Chibi-Kyuubi-Chan for your wonderful reviews, and also to all those who have put this story on their alert and favorite lists!

Author's Note: I know this story is a bit confusing, but I promise that everything will all make sense eventually. Thank you all, so much, to everyone who's been sticking with me so far. I appreciate every single one of you so, so very much! Also, I just wanted to give you all a head's up about next week's update: I'm having all four of my wisdom teeth removed Thursday. I'm still planning to update (or, if I'm in too much pain and/or drugged up to my eyeballs on pain meds, I'll try to sweet-talk my beta into doing it), but just in case I don't, I'll try to get the update out on the soonest day that I feel better. In the meantime, thank you all so much for your support, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

*~Chapter IV~*

~Repercussions~

After a night spent mostly staring into the darkness it took nearly all the willpower Itachi possessed to force himself to leave his room in time to breakfast with his family. The early morning sunlight pouring into the courtyard, something he normally enjoyed, made him wince. He paused to rub his scratchy eyes with the heels of his hands before continuing on his way. Since he lacked any appreciable appetite, only a desire not to distress his mother motivated him to resume walking.

He refused to think of how he would react if his father were there.

Fortunately, Mikoto and Sasuke were the only people at the table when he slid open the dining room door. His mother glanced up as he entered and quickly gave him a searching look before saying, "Good morning, son," adding as he started to close the shouji behind him, "Oh, please leave the door open, it's such a lovely day."

"Good morning, Mother," Itachi replied as he knelt in his place at the table. When Sasuke didn't look up from his bowl or speak, he reached across and poked the top of the boy's head with his index and middle fingers. "Good morning to you, too, little brother."

With a brief upward flash of his black eyes, Sasuke wagged his chopsticks in a casual wave. "Hey, big brother. Nice of you to finally join us."

Itachi accepted the cup of tea his mother poured for him, but shook his head slightly when she reached for his rice bowl. He took one tiny sip, waited for it to settle in his queasy stomach, then took another. The steam rising from the cup brushed his nostrils with a sweet, grassy fragrance. A third sip, and he felt the throbbing tightness across his forehead begin to ease. Maybe in a little bit, he'd even assay some steamed rice after all-

SLAM!

Itachi nearly dropped his cup when the shouji on the inner wall of the room crashed open. As his head jerked around in response, he saw from the corner of his eye Sasuke's chopsticks fall clattering to the table and heard his mother gasp, "Fugaku!" His father stormed into the room and over to the table, where he threw a newspaper down in front of them, right on top of the remains of broiled fish Itachi had been studiously ignoring.

"Read it!" he snarled, then stood towering over them, his breathing a harsh, audible rasp.

Itachi leaned over the paper. It took a few seconds for his eyes to focus on the sideways characters, but then he read a bold headline: Uchiha Itachi Soon To Wed - and felt his own breathing stop. To his right, his mother made a faint sound of distress. Across from him, his younger brother straightened, shrugged and picked up his chopsticks again.

"So, big brother, is this what that piece of paper you wouldn't let me see yesterday was about?" Sasuke asked, his voice just a little too casual. "Oh, yeah, so congratulations, felicitations, and all that."

A dreadful suspicion blossomed inside Itachi. It turned to numb certainty as he noticed how the chopsticks in his brother's fingers now trembled ever so slightly, even though his hand rested on the tabletop next to his half-eaten breakfast. No, Sasuke! Not you! he wanted to say, except the words didn't seem able to make their way out of his dry throat.

He wondered later, much, much later, if perhaps he did make some sort of sound; because suddenly Sasuke's head lifted and his dark eyes, burning with anger and some other less identifiable emotion, locked onto Itachi's. Dimly, on some other level, he heard a sharp snapping noise just as his brother said, "I told you yesterday, Itachi: I'm meant to be your main advisor, your right hand man, but you won't admit it! You won't even admit that I am a man now, and not still just your kid brother!" In one fluid motion, Sasuke stood and threw the broken pieces of his chopsticks down on top of the disastrous newspaper. "Well, then, let the village advise you on your upcoming wedding!" He swiftly stalked out into the courtyard and immediately turned in the direction of the estate's main gate.

"Sasuke!"

Somehow, Itachi found himself standing as well, one hand stretched out as if to catch his brother back. And as Fugaku abruptly jerked out of his rigid stance to follow, "No, Father, please, let me go after him!"

His father fixed him with a burning glare. "Will both my sons defy me on the same day? Stay here and look after your mother!" And with that, he was gone as well.

Suddenly aware of how tightly his mother was clutching his other arm, Itachi turned to look at her. Tears streamed down Mikoto's ashen cheeks, dripping off the end of her chin to darken the front of her yukata with spreading patches of damp. She looked up at him with eyes so like his own; so like Sasuke's. Wishing he could also give way to the tears burning behind his eyes, he put his arms around her and drew her into a hug.

"Why, Itachi? Why?" she sobbed into his chest. "Why would Sasuke do such a terrible thing? You've always been the one he's looked up to and idolized, rather than your father, always-" She began to weep even harder.

Itachi, feeling shredded inside with anger, and betrayal, and guilt over the truth in his brother's accusation, could not find any words to answer her.

Just when Tenten decided she would be eating a solitary dinner, Kakashi came into the kitchen, crossed to their table in the corner, and sank tiredly into his place facing her and the wall behind her. As he tugged his mask down to his chin, she quickly poured a cup of tea and handed it to him.

"Thanks, Panda," he murmured, closing his eye with a sigh as he lifted the cup to his lips.

Tenten began to fill their bowls. "Poor big brother," she said. "You look like the wrong end of a long, hard day." He opened his eye again. Looking directly into it, she blinked twice while tipping her head ever so slightly to her right: Their code for It's okay to talk right now.

"I feel like the wrong end of a long, hard day. And it's probably going to get a lot worse before it gets any better." He set down his cup, which she immediately refilled. Picking up his chopsticks, he lifted his bowl of udon soup to further camouflage his mouth. "How much do you know about what's happened?"

Allowing her chopsticks to dangle casually from her fingertips, Tenten pretended to study her food, as though trying to decide what to select. "Lady Hinata grabbed the morning newspaper after her father left it in the dining room," she said. "After we'd read it, she explained why her father, um, reacted the way he did."

"How did she react to the news?"

Tenten took a bite of cooked white turnip with miso dressing before replying; hesitating not because she felt she would be betraying her charge's confidence, but to make sure she gave an accurate report. "Initially sad for the ones being forced into this marriage; she has such a gentle heart. Extremely concerned about what her father might do in response, since - her words exactly - he 'does not react well to threats.' Also," she toyed with an emerald broccoli floret, "as the day went on, she became more and more pensive. She spent most of the afternoon gazing out into the garden and playing sad songs on her samisen."

Kakashi nodded slowly. "So if she doesn't know for sure what's coming, she more than likely suspects it. Others will, too. Keep a very close eye on Lady Hinata, Panda Bear. I know you're already doing that, but ... just be extra careful while this whole scenario is playing out."

What was left of her appetite fled. "I will," she promised, and then sighed heavily. "I know it's what puts the food in our mouths most of the time, but - I hate political upheavals, and power struggles, and all that." Biting her lower lip, she looked up to gauge her brother's reaction.

Even though Tenten expected it, seeing his crooked smile filled her with relief. "Me, too, little sister. Especially when someone as sweet and kind as Lady Hinata looks to be caught in the very center of the fallout. C'mere, kid." When she obediently leaned forward in response to his gesture, Kakashi dropped a light kiss on the top of her head. Then, pulling his mask up to conceal the lower half of his face again, he stood. "Security's going to tighten up way past what it already is. I don't know how often we'll get to eat together until after all this finishes shaking out. Just remember everything I've taught you, Tenten, and be careful." Reaching down, he flicked both of her hair buns with his right index finger, and left.

Tenten got to her feet as well. Either Kakashi knew more than he'd told her or maybe, like Hinata, he only suspected. But what? She wanted to run after him, to catch hold of him and shake it out of him, but squelched the impulse as being totally childish. However vague his warning, apparently that was the best he could do. Perhaps, the thought suddenly struck her, he felt she should be capable of reasoning it out on her own: that, or more likely, that it was Hinata's place to tell her.

As she made her way to the hall outside the dining room to wait for her charge, Tenten felt the resolve she'd formed earlier that day grow firmer. In addition to guarding the Hyuuga heiress's life, she would also do her very best to brighten Hinata's existence as best she could from day to day. And, maybe someday, they'd both escape these walls that felt like they were closing in by the hour...

Itachi's first impression of his bride-to-be was: Alpha female.

Carrying herself with her shoulders well back and her chin elevated just enough to make a statement, Sabaku Temari possessed none of his mother's beauty or gentle grace, though he found her bright turquiose eyes quite striking - her best feature by far. Her light tan skin, both smooth and unblemished, complemented her hair, golden brown as the sand in the village from which she came. She wore it pulled back in four short, spiky ponytails at the back of her head, a style which emphasized the strength of her features. Dressed in dark, dull colors, she looked quite out of place in colorful Konoha, but Itachi made an effort to convince himself that that made her intriguing rather than intimidating.

If Mikoto held any reservations now she'd actually met her future daughter-in-law, Itachi couldn't tell; but then, he hadn't really expected to since his mother was the consummate lady. Fugaku seemed indifferent, satisfied that he'd completed his duty by greeting her on her arrival, then leaving her with his family. Sasuke, by the very perfection of his manners, made it clear he didn't like Temari, and to Itachi's secret amusement, Temari didn't really seem disposed to like Sasuke, either, so it all appeared to come out even in the end.

Gaara, Temari's younger brother, had arranged for her to stay in Konoha a week. With her had come Baki, the head of Suna's war council (potentially worrisome, had he not seemed so approving of the impending marriage), and Matsuri, a mousy little woman who was a bit ambiguous about her duties. Officially she exercised the offices of bodyguard and handmaiden, but Baki confidentially admitted to Itachi that Temari was more than capable of taking care of herself - in fact, she preferred it. Matsuri was just along for show.

And how, Itachi wondered right after being gifted with that knowledge, am I supposed to react to that little revelation?

With a whole week of nothing but wooing ahead of him, Itachi already felt weary to the point of exhaustion - especially since most of the day before had been spent in damage control of one sort or another, public and private. Now, meeting her, he thought Temari could be rather refreshing to be around, since she plainly spoke her mind without caring whether she offended anyone or not. But he also wondered how, if not to win over such a strong-willed woman, at least to earn her respect and liking, since he preferred to think some bit of affection would exist between them when they married, even if love had to come later. And he made earnest prayers daily to all his ancestors at once that love would come to them. To be trapped in a loveless marriage for the rest of their lives would be a nightmare for Temari and him both.

Knowing that, thanks to the article in the Konoha Daily, most of the people in the village seethed with curiosity about his bride-to-be, Itachi hoped Temari would want to take a day or two (or three or four) to recover from her journey. That hope faded about five seconds after meeting the lady. Disclaiming tiredness and claiming a profound wish to see the village, she requested Itachi take her on a tour. "Not the touristy places," she added firmly. "I want to see the normal, everyday village Konoha natives see."

"Of course, Lady Temari, it will be my pleasure and honor," he responded courteously, then added with equal parts honesty and mischief, "though I hope it won't discompose you to find yourself the center of everyone's attention."

She shot him an unreadable look with those opaque turquoise eyes. "Because of my rare natural charm and beauty?"

Surprising her as much as he surprised himself, he grinned and said, "Because I've never escorted anyone around the village the way I'll be escorting you, and the people of my village are nothing if not, ah, very quick on the uptake. I just wanted you to be warned."

"Oh." She blinked a couple of times, seeming to Itachi to be utterly disconcerted that she had failed to disconcert him. "Well, uh, thanks."

Within a very short time of entering the village proper, Itachi could tell that Temari, even though not naturally emotive, was absolutely captivated by the joyous confluence of colors, scents, sounds, and overall open friendliness that defined Konoha, all apparently lacking in Suna. Somehow he sensed how unnerved she initially was by the polite yet informal reception accorded them everywhere they went; sensed as well the moment she began to relax and enjoy herself. By the time they left the Yamanaka flower shop, where he presented her with a rose, its petals snow white on top and glowing crimson on the bottom, centered in dozens of violets, he'd actually begun to enjoy himself, too.

"Do you like ramen?" he asked as they merged into the throng of shoppers again. "Because if you do, I can say without the least bit of bias that Konoha is home to Ichiraku Ramen, the absolute, uncontested best ramen in the entire world. It's liable to be crowded, being more of a stall than an actual restaurant, but-"

Temari waved his warning aside. "Let's go, I'm starving."

However, approximately five seconds after Itachi and Temari sat and gave their orders, Itachi felt like committing murder as he passionately wished he'd never had the thought. Uzumaki Naruto burst through the short curtains only halfway screening the stall's interior from the street, exclaiming about what a coincidence it was to see the "happy couple" at his favorite eatery. He plonked down on the stool on the other side of Temari as he shouted out his own order (extra-large miso pork ramen, extra pork), then immediately pulled out his notebook and pen as he turned toward them. "How about an interview?" he said cheerfully. "How d'you think you'll like living in Konoha, Lady Temari?"

Had their bowls of ramen not been delivered at that moment, Itachi reflected later that he might have ended up being arrested by members of his own clan, considering the part the loud reporter had played in the previous day's disaster. "Uzumaki-" he growled, half-rising from his seat.

Temari calmly set down her chopsticks and offered Itachi a smile that seemed more mischievious than sweet. "Allow me," she said. As her blonde head swiveled back around, her eyes hardened, facial features seemingly undergoing a frightening transformation that made Itachi hope he never got on her bad side. "Get lost, kid," she snarled.

Naruto blinked. His mouth started to open and Itachi knew deep in his gut Sasuke's name was about to be invoked, just as he knew he couldn't stand for Temari to know what his brother had done. Standing, he stared down the younger man. "Not now, Naruto! I don't care if you went to school with my brother, I'm informally showing Lady Temari around Konoha, and we're not giving interviews on her first day in the village. I suggest you leave - now!"

The young reporter pouted. "But I-"

From somewhere within the folds of her dark purple dress, Temari withdrew a folded fan and promptly smacked Naruto over the head with it. "You're an annoying, persistent brat, you know that?" she said candidly.

"I'm dedicated," Naruo corrected, rubbing the knot forming atop his head, but prudently backing away. "Now please, please, if I don't get the rest of the story, I'm likely to lose my job!"

Itachi highly doubted this, since Sarutobi Asuma and Kurenai were notoriously kind people, as likely to give someone a second (or tenth) chance before they turned them out onto the street. Not to mention the fact they were also good friends of the kid's grandparents. "I've already set it up with Asuma for Wednesday," he said firmly. "Now get your ramen to go," he sent a significant glance at the stall's owner, who quickly nodded, "and go." Sitting down again, he broke his chopsticks apart and took a bite, hoping that would close the matter.

"Wednesday?" Naruto repeated hopefully.

"Yes," Itachi replied without looking around.

Before leaving, Naruto paid for Itachi and Temari's meal, as well as his own. Chuckling under his breath, Itachi watch Temari stare after him for a moment before turning her intense gaze onto him. "You let that little twerp just pay for our meals why?"

"It was as close as he'd come to admitting he was out of line," Itachi answered, picking up her chopsticks and offering them to her. "Besides, if I know Naruto, he didn't actually pay for our ramen; he probably put it on the paper's expense account. Right, Teuchi?" The owner grinned and nodded. "Now, then, better eat up before the world's best ramen gets any colder."

When they finally left Ichiraku Ramen, Temari withdrew her fan again, this time using it to cool herself. "How do you stand this humidity?" she asked. The three purple moons painted on the white silk flashed as she moved it slowly back and forth in front of her face.

"I've lived here my entire life," Itachi replied. "I'm sure I'll say the same thing about Suna's dryness, when I come to visit you."

Looking at him from beneath her sandy eyelashes, Temari smiled bewitchingly. "Are you going to come visit me?" she asked.

"I am not in the habit of invading a place to which I am not invited." He fought the twitch of his lips as he waited for her response to the hint of haughtiness he'd injected into his tone.

Almost instantly, Temari's laugh rewarded him. "I'm sure Gaara will not forbid you traveling to Suna," she assured him. Then her smile faded, and she glanced away. "He is, after all, a strong supporter of this union." Bitterness crept into her tone, making her voice sound hard, harsher than usual.

In quick sympathy, hoping he wasn't being unwelcomely forward, Itachi reached out to squeeze, quickly but gently, her hand still carrying his bouquet. "I know neither of us really got a say in this," he said softly. "And that neither of us really have a choice about our future together. But I am hoping with all my being to make you happy, even if you never love me." He swallowed hard, wondering what exactly he had cost himself with those words.

For the first time, Itachi witnessed Temari's stony turquoise eyes soften. She gazed up at him thoughtfully, lips pursed as she studied his eyes for truthfulness. After a few intense moments she looked away, resuming her casual fanning of herself. Each puff of air teased his nose with the scent of jasmine, making him feel slightly dizzy. "Thank you, Itachi," she said softly. "You are a - very kind person."

Noticing that she did not repeat his sentiments, he wondered for the first time what kind of competition he had for Temari's affections. Itachi owned no prior romantic attachments, but it now occurred to him to think that perhaps his intended might have formed such a connection.

How in the world was he supposed to win her heart, most especially if she'd already given it to someone else? And how was he supposed to give his to her if such a situation did indeed exist? More and more, this arrangement manifested all the earmarks of a catastrophe in the making.

Look at the mess you've gotten us into, Father. How in the world am I supposed to make this work?

*~To Be Continued~*

Important Author's Ending Notes: Just in case you missed the A/N above, I just wanted to give you all a head's up about next week's update: I'm having all four of my wisdom teeth removed Thursday. I'm still planning to update (or, if I'm in too much pain and/or drugged up to my eyeballs on pain meds, I'll try to sweet-talk my beta into doing it), but just in case I can't update it then, I'll try to get the update out on the soonest day after that when I feel better. Thank you all so much for reading, and I hope to see you all again next Sunday!