Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! bakayaro, konoyaro!

A/N: Thank you to everyone still reading. This has some minor edits (just taking some things out that sounded weird), but nothing important has been lost or added to the story, I promise. Anyway, doozo; enjoy!

Konoha. 10 years before present time.

"When's Shisui coming?"

Reya's eyes dulled with impatience as she combed through the swimsuit section of a magazine. It was almost summer in Konoha, and the local pool opened in just a few weeks. She could already smell the saltwater and sunscreen. The floaties. The ice cream... Someone had better take her this year or else she'd have to pitch a royal fit.

Not that she didn't like spending time with Itachi; his idea of fun just seemed a little weird to her sometimes. When she heard that Shisui was running late, she imagined they'd kill time by doing something interesting, like a game of freeze tag or ninja. Reya would have been down for anything - knitting. birdwatching. kickboxing. - but it hadn't quite happened that way. Instead, to preoccupy her, Itachi took her to the store and bought her a 50 cent magazine. She'd read the whole thing twice.

She sighed theatrically and batted her eyelashes, the picture of loneliness. Older women often used such tactics to lure men into the house next door to the group home where she lived. They wore vibrant silk kimonos and sparkling jewelry, despite their bare feet. Reya thought it was odd at the time, but it seemed to work well for them. They always looked happy, and that was proof enough for her..

Itachi paid her no attention as he ran his finger softly down the side of a kunai to test its sharpness. It was a pasttime he'd adopted from the ANBU officers that visited his clan every so often on the holidays. They taught him plenty of tricks, like tracking and sealing jutsu. They also taught him how to turn off his ears and how to make his eleven year-old face look old and salty, like an old man's.

Reya took a deep breath and sighed louder. She thought he'd at least catch the hint, even if he chose to ignore it.

Wrong.

"Itachi!"

"What?" He was hardly listening.

"Answer me!" she shouted.

"I just did," he said tonelessly, gripping the rock in his hand and sliding it fast down the blade. He then wiped it clean with a hand towel, inspecting it carefully in the light that speared in through the cracks in the trees.

Reya shot him a dirty look, strangling the flaps of the magazine splayed over her lap. If Shisui was here he'd remedy the situation, or at least indulge her.

"Teme,"

She heard him huff, for emphasis, drawing out the word. "Baa—ka."

Eighteen excruciating minutes passed without word from Shisui, and Reya could have sworn she'd seen the same pink polka dot bathing suit fifteen times. She didn't even want it anymore since it looked less and less alluring with each go around. The magazine folded shut as the wind broke through the trees, revealing the smiling face of a national celebrity on the front cover, supposedly an actress from Kumogakure. She wasn't sure; only grandmas watch soap operas.

She heard a faint rustling in the trees that sounded like a rabbit. She kept watch vigilantly, but she couldn't tell where the source of the noise was coming from. First the left, then the right, then back to the left. Itachi didn't seem to care, even though he'd taught her some years earlier to always be on guard. If you're not paying attention, anything could pop out and get you. If in this case that happened to be true, she hoped they'd go for him first. She wasn't stupid enough to take on anyone by herself, much less a ninja. She wasn't even allowed to talk to them. The group home where she lived set strict rules about things like that.

As the minutes crept by, she pretended to read her magazine, ignoring the trees as they began shuffling again. She could see Itachi in her peripheral vision as she glanced up from the page, still sharpening his knives like he couldn't hear anything. She thought the whole situation seemed ironic, but again (against her better judgement) chose not to say anything. They always say to trust your gut instinct, but that rule didn't apply to Reya. Her gut instinct was dysfunctional ninety-nine percent of the time. She'd been subsequently ordered by Itachi to ignore it and obeyed for fear of throwing his fragile composure into upset. Rage for Itachi was a quiet intensity. Despite Shisui's best efforts at diffusing it, it burned through her like a laser beam, a feeling she considered most unwelcome.

She stared hard and long as the rustling quieted, squinting her eyes to the smallest slits, convinced that if she looked on enough she'd notice something familiar in the sea of colored leaves and branches. A shoe, maybe. Or a trace of a metal headband, glinting in the sun. Ultimately she couldn't recognize anything there that didn't belong. It made her stomach lurch in a mix of fear and anticipation, even though she knew how deceiving her imagination could be at the peak of boredom. The squirrels loved to chase each other back and forth through these woods - that's what her rational side told her - while the other side was picturing the cheshire cat smiling his cheeky smile from just outside the forest edge.

Reya jumped; Itachi tossed the rock he'd been using to sharpen his knives. It hit the ground with a 'thud' and rolled a few inches forward. He was packing his things. The kunai went back into his pack along with a few shiruken he'd taken out to clean, a pair of gloves, and a single roll of gauze bandages. He adjusted his headband and bent to tighten his sandals.

Thinking he was ready to go, Reya bent to grab the fallen magazine. She hesitated, peeking over her shoulder at the trees, just in case something were to jump out and surprise her. Nothing moved, but she could sense that the source of the noise was still there, its presence taunting her.

She turned and took a single step forward. Again her instincts made themselves known. Her heart quickened its pace as her grip tightened around the magazine, holding it tight against her body. Maybe she should've felt safer with Itachi there, but she didn't. Not because she didn't trust his abilities - because she didn't trust him. He was horribly insensitive and hypocritical, not to mention meticulous, hostile, and unfunny. At his age it was healthy to enjoy being a kid, but Itachi just wasn't that way. Reya knew that without Shisui, it wouldn't faze him to have nothing else to do with her. He'd lose no sleep over it. He'd go on to do great things for Konoha, and she'd be left alone and shut up at the group home with a bunch of bullies. There was no hope of happiness for her with a future like that…

A twig crunched underneath her shoes, startling her, but she kept walking. The edge of the forest was only a few yards away. When she approached the line of trees that divided the clearing, she slowed to a stop and peered curiously into the shady interior. It looked cool and damp with vegetation everywhere. Low-lying, tangled branches hung from unknown origins, and leaves covered almost all of moist ground. She didn't want to go in there; she just wanted to see what it was that had been teasing her this whole time, but to her disappointment, there was nothing. Whatever it was had had its fun and disappeared before it got caught.

Itachi thought about calling her back over.

It's just Shisui... he recounted, a foul taste in his mouth. He didn't care; they were always playing these little games. Reya never seemed to catch on that he was always the one messing around with her, so they were able to do this cat and mouse routine over and over again. It was like nails on a chalkboard, but he kept his mouth shut. He just wished he'd jump out and get her already so they could leave and get some training done before sundown.

A full-bodied scream cut through the clearing. Itachi could see down the path that led out of the forest and into the street. A few pedestrians had stopped, looking around anxiously. One woman grabbed her purse. There was a chunin there too with his hands stuffed in his pockets, probably holding a weapon. He looked away and patted some dirt off his knee.

"Where were you!" Reya yelled. The anger in her voice failed to match the look of excitement on her face. Shisui grasped her arm and pulled her off the ground. He grinned, feeling very accomplished despite the remorse he was obligated to show. Perhaps they both knew that he got a kick out of scaring her to death, but neither bothered to acknowledge it.

It was actually really funny, because Reya never missed a chance to call someone out. 'You always do this'. 'You always do that'. Shisui definitely always found some way to scare her. She never mentioned anything about that, though.

"Sorry, Reya-chan." He finished chuckling and poked her in the stomach as he passed, making his way over to Itachi.

"Yo," he greeted. "Sorry for taking so long. Tousan says I have to start going to meetings." Itachi nodded. He wasn't sure how to respond; he'd skipped out on it himself.

Shisui expelled an exasperated breath as he scratched at his head. "It's so tense in there. Tell your dad he needs to smile more."

At this, Itachi couldn't hold back a smirk. He often thought the same thing about his tousan, who was one of the most stone-faced men in the whole clan. If it wasn't for Fugaku's stress-filled lectures on bravery and nationalism, maybe the Uchiha clan meetings would be more productive and enjoyable. Itachi had been going with his dad for years but couldn't see himself sitting through many more, even as an adult. They planned to send him off to ANBU soon anyway, so he wouldn't have to worry about it. Shisui on the other hand would attend every meeting. He'd stay after hours, filing endless amounts of information into the back of his head. He'd come over for dinner, recount everything he'd learned, and then he'd go home and train until his fingers bled. Day after day, this would repeat until the end of his rope snapped. Itachi could see it coming. Though he never mentioned how deeply he loathed the direction that the clan was taking toward war with Konoha, the seed was already planted, and it was growing.

Reya appeared beside him, starry-eyed, gazing attentively at him despite not knowing what they were talking about. He lowered his arm and glanced awkwardly at her. She smiled faintly, sensing that even though he was looking at her, he was thinking about something else.

"Did they mention me?"

"Yeah," Shisui replied, locking eyes with him. "Once or twice. Wondering where you were."

Itachi nodded soberly.

"Your dad said you were on a mission."

They both made snorted. Reya glanced curiously at Itachi, wondering what the joke was.

"Maybe we shouldn't go to the training grounds. You're supposed to be in Ame."

"I'm supposed to be in a lot of places," Itachi said. He stood and started making his way down the trail towards the street.

Reya made a face, but didn't move. Itachi was always doing things his own way, like leaving randomly and not telling her where he was going. It was pretty annoying. Something told her he wouldn't want to come to the pool anyway, so she just ignored him. Only her and Shisui remained, standing in comfortable silence as Itachi continued down the path.

"Reya-chan, they're about to lock the doors over at the group home, aren't they?"

She turned. Shisui had a smile on his face, but it was fake.

"No," she answered tepidly. She offered no elaboration.

"We're going to the pool, right? I picked out a bathing suit." The wind rushed through the trees, emphasizing the silence between them. As Shisui's face hardened, the smile on his face faltered and slowly crumbled.

Reya had been looking forward to showing him the blue and green striped swimsuit she'd decided on buying. She'd even picked one out for him, just in case he didn't have one. Normally Shisui was more than willing to sit and listen to her many ideas. Most of the time he found her genuinely interesting, but this time was an exception.

He glared daggers into the magazine splayed over the ground, cursing Itachi into oblivion for buying it for her. Of all things, the swimsuit edition. He didn't understand, because usually they were more careful about shielding her from such things. Ever since they learned who she was…

They say it's not good to shelter a kid, but Reya needed to be sheltered. If only it were easier for them to contain her.

Surprisingly, out of the two of them, it was Shisui that thought she needed a tighter leash. She needed more than what safety precautions the group home provided; nothing but an old locked gate that she escaped from almost every day. If anything, Reya needed to be trapped in a wooden crate with the door nailed shut. That was the only thing that would keep her from wandering off, going about whatever she pleased with whomever she pleased. Of course, that particular method was inhumane. They'd spent most of their childhood fixated on finding different ways to keep up with her, but nothing ever seemed to stick.

"Shisui, are you mad or something?"

He was hard-pressed for words. "I'm not mad," he said. "-But I think you should go home tonight, Reya-chan."

She leaned away, stunned. The look on her face spoke volumes, but she more or less stayed quiet. If it had been Itachi, she might have thrown a fit, but it wasn't.

Maybe she was just confused; she had never been in this type of situation before, wrestling with herself over the urge to fight.

"It's too dangerous, you know. I don't think we'll ever go to the pool."

Too dangerous, she soaked in the words. That means they were scared she'd pass out in the pool and drown, or while getting a drink next to the icee stand where someone could snatch her off. It was a fairly high possibility given her lineage; children from her group home went missing all the time. The bathing suit would only make matters worse since it would expose her birthmark. The neat, crescent shaped blotch was a huge, "look at me! I'm from the Kitayama clan!" You'd have to be denser than a rock not to draw the connection.

As for the Kitayama clan, you could call them mythical beasts. Walking around like they're normal people when they're not. Shisui had only seen one once, not including Reya, and that was by accident when they passed out next to his feet as he was exiting a store with his father. He hadn't understood the gravity of the situation at the time, but he'd received a long, detailed lecture about it upon their return from the hospital. His father called them 'freaks of nature' because of how long they were known to live.

"200 years... It's just unnatural," he'd said. "That's why they have so many health problems."

And yet, it was an understatement to just say 'health problems'. Shisui later learned this the hard way after meeting Reya, when it became apparent to him that he would always have to worry about her fainting spells. She also bruised easily and had a growth deficiency that caused her to age slower than most people. Because of the lifespan issue, her clan had problems maintaining basic safety; that's why they had no homeland. They all disappeared, scattered across the continent from one village to the next.

Needless to say, it wasn't all that uncommon to find bodies of Kitayama clan members all over the map. Captured for experimentation, killed, and discarded. It was actually a pretty gruesome history, not that Reya payed any attention that in class. She was too busy drawing up escape plans in her head, recounting scenario after scenario of how next to outsmart her caregivers so she could leave on time to play ninja with the boys.

A long time ago, when Shisui was small, he used to bait her to leave. Cheese snacks and juice; that's all it took to bribe her. But he was all grown up now, influenced by Itachi and the effects of maturity. She didn't like it.

"I'm going to walk you back," Shisui said through a sigh. "Promise you'll stay inside tonight."

"Shisui!"

He tilted his head. "We're going to be training hard tonight anyway. I doubt you'd have any fun."

Truth be told, Reya never had any fun tailing the two of them around. They were real ninja now, so they got to do a lot of things that she couldn't. They got to travel and go on all sorts of cool and exciting adventures. Even though Reya felt she was up to the challenge of participating alongside them, they considered her too young and too much of an investment to risk tagging along. At eleven, they were taller, faster, and way more experienced than she was. Who could blame them for needing a bit of space. It was all really depressing. Reya didn't want to understand as well as she did.

"Tomorrow, we'll go to the library or something."

'Okay," She thought. Right.

Someday none of it would matter, but someday was really, really far away.

Kusagakure. Present Time.

Itachi scowled. The menu at the Harabuku Tea House was full of different flavors of mochi: green tea, vanilla, chocolate, peach… not that he would be ordering it. He flipped a page backwards, trying to find where he had overlooked the cabbage rolls. This particular village in Kusagakure was known for their spring rolls, so he thought he'd try them out this time instead of the usual onigiri.

Already his stress levels had dipped drastically low compared to three hours ago when he'd had breakfast with the group.

It was quiet here, the atmosphere was nice, and he was able to be left alone with little to no disturbances. The weather wasn't too bad either. The birds were still out and about, fluttering around outside the window next to his table. All Itachi really had left to worry about was his appearance. Under certain conditions and with the right materials, he did have the ability to alter they way he looked, but right now was not one of those times. It would be risky to try and put the whole area under total genjutsu for such a minor reason. His only option was to try and blend in; it worked well for him usually, just as long as he stayed far away from the Land of Fire.

The waitress returned with a saucer and a steaming hot cup of tea. She set the trembling piece of china on the surface of the table and slid it toward him. "Jasmine tea," she offered with a smile and took his order for a plate of their famous spring rolls.

"It doesn't have steak," he asked, glancing at her from the menu. "Right?" Though steak was not ordinarily used in spring rolls, the type of filling varied among different regions. He just wanted to make sure; he didn't feel like puking all over himself today. Not really but still—he disdained red meat. It would probably be best to not go there.

"Uhh, no. Not usually." The waitress plucked the menu from his hand with ease and tucked it under her arm. "I'm sure it's just the cabbage, bean sprouts, and shredded carrots..."

The air of frustration surrounding him was familiar as she took in his features, tracing the gentle lines accenting his face. His dark hair. That concentrated look. Familiar yet unfamiliar. She thought about presenting him with more options—her favorite was the dango—but something screamed to her that he wasn't interested. He'd hardly made eye contact with her at all, and the way he sat with his arms crossed made him look blatantly irritated.

She grabbed the silver serving tray from the adjacent table and held it against her skirt. "Have you decided?"

Itachi glanced at her. "Yeah," he said. "I'll actually have the onigiri." He didn't trust her judgment with the spring rolls. On the other hand, he had full faith that the onigiri would taste good; he'd tried and liked every flavor and filling ever devised for it.

That's all," he added pointedly, in case she felt the need to continue conversating.

She did.

She was curious. And a little bored.

"You must be from Yugakure. I remember seeing you and your girlfriend when I worked at that old mom and pop tea house."

"It didn't pay enough," she explained as she clicked her pen and jotted down his order on a tiny notepad. Itachi couldn't keep up with how many assumptions she'd made, but one in particular stuck out like a sore thumb. It agitated him, but he didn't say anything.

"Ita-chan!" she cried, a little too loud. She clicked her pen again and slid it back into her pocket. "Isn't that what she called you?"

Out of the corner of his eye Itachi noticed some of the other waitresses pause to indulge their curiosity. Even a few customers took notice, like the old man in the opposite booth, peeking at him from behind his newspaper. Itachi pinned the man in his gaze, awarding him a wordless fuck off.

The waitress sighed extravagantly and started giggling. "How cute!"

How cute~How cute~How cute~How cute. The sheer volume of her voice was painful. It haunted him for another two and a half-minutes after she'd left.

Itachi couldn't remember the last time he'd been called cute. Not even by Reya, and that was a feat. If he was smart he would've left, but he was tired and hungry, so he forced himself to endure, every so often taking a glance at the bag of goodies he'd bought at one of the local stores. He would wait to buy Kisame's wagashi on the way home, but he had already taken the liberty to buy the toilet paper, along with a few other essentials and toiletries that Reya would need for the house. Things like shampoo and toothpaste, along with the usual grocery list of boxed goods and produce he was used to fetching periodically.

There were some extra purchases too, but he'd hid them down in the bottom of the bag where he couldn't see them. He didn't want to remind himself of the experience he'd had buying those—things. It was actually a really painful endeavor, but Reya was finally eighteen. Naturally, puberty had taken its time with her, but it was here now. And she needed certain accessories to care for that...special condition.

He took a gulp of his tea and set it down on top of the saucer. Meanwhile, a crow appeared on the other side of the glass window, ticking it's head candidly in different directions. Itachi almost didn't notice it. He was too busy fighting off nervous chills with consecutive gulps of hot, jasmine tea. The more burn the better. He didn't want to think about anything anymore, just detain himself in his own misery. Thoughts of his parents, and Sasuke. All he could hope for was a quick and painless death when the time finally came to confront him.

Except, Reya needed him still.

Maybe she'd be okay in the adult world; he'd primed her well over the past seven years. Even her fainting spells had ceased. Well, almost ceased. She no longer had them often, just once every season. They called it, affectionately, hibernation.

"What is that?!"

Itachi paused as he began to lean forward for another sip. Without an ounce of curiosity about what happened, his eyes closed behind his silky black bangs, and he counted to ten a single time.

Inhale.

"Excuse me! Waitress! What is that thing?!"

Exhale.

Perhaps he picked the wrong village to sit and have tea.

He opened his eyes and blinked. Feeling watched, he glanced sidelong at the adjacent booth. A woman was sitting there fanning wildly with her finger pointing right at him. Itachi immediately tensed. Instinct took over his body and instructed him to look in the other direction, towards the window. When he did so, he was horrified to find the crow from before going absolutely ballistic.

It clawed violently with its feet and snapped its beak while thrusting its head back and forth crazily. At first glance Itachi thought it might have been rabid; he'd never been so thankful for a window before in his life. However, upon careful inspection, he noticed that the crow was missing an eye.

He gathered his things and was gone in a fraction of a second, leaving just enough money on the table to cover the cost of his food. The crow disappeared right along with him, much to the customers' astonishment.

He hadn't purposely depleted his chakra in a long time; not this fast. It was reckless. Doing so would have put him at a really bad disadavantage had he run into any enemy ninja along the path from Kusa to Yugakure. Luckily he didn't need to walk. It would have been annoying to have to run all the way there, anyway. With three bags, no less.

He translocated himself instead, using a secret jutsu he'd learned in Konoha a while back. Again, not the best option for long distances, but still - you learn to make due in times of crisis.

By nightfall Itachi found himself at the forest edge. He slipped through the wild grass and up the porch steps to find that the wind chimes had been taken down. Again.

"Reya.."

A needless task, as he reached to secure the delicate ornament back on its hook, he found her body strewn out like murder in the garden.

Cold. Defenseless.

At least once in the past five or more years, he must have sat her down and discussed what a danger to her the outside could be. The elements are merciless, especially to those incapable of defending or maintaining themselves. That's why he was here, but still—One day, he would become unavailable to her. When that time came, she needed to be able to take care of herself. Sometimes only the strong survive; it's a matter of natural selection. Survival of the fittest. It wasn't going to be easy for her. Reya had always been a runt.

Her skin was cold against him as he lifted her and carried her inside to her room. Itachi wasn't sure how to be nurturing - he'd been brought up with no knowledge of it - regardless, he used the utmost care in tucking her in and lit the wood in the fireplace to provide her body some warmth while he went to tend to the rest of the house.

The cottage was small and quaint, like a shack, but there were still tasks that could be done. The groceries needed to be stocked, her animals fed. He could make a pot of tea and do the laundry too, while he was at it.

Had Itachi left home with more money, he could have set aside somewhere better for her to live. He wanted to. In the least, he wished there was a fence with sharp points or barbed wire, but there wasn't. The house was less safe because of it, but he made sure to seal it tight with jutsu, just in case any homeless villagers stumbled upon it and decided to make use of it.

He did a good job of furnishing it, though. For years following each visit, he'd return with something new. Naturally the house filled up fast, and by the time he stopped, Reya had a nice bed, couch, and sitting room pieces to show for it.

Itachi placed the tea kettle on the stovetop and switched the temperature knob to 'medium high'.

Dinner was light, canned salmon and rice. He ate it outside on the extended porch where there was a comfortable breeze and a better view of the mountains.

It was said that a long time ago, the Kitayama clan founded their village inside twisted mountain caves. Probably not in Yugakure, but in a mountain range somewhere distant. They lived in peace for hundreds of years before the warring states period and were relatively unnoticed. But war brought armies back and forth through the mountains and the surrounding valleys. Eventually their secret was sold and marketed out to the rest of the world and they were targeted. Tortured, murdered, and everything in between.

Nothing ever lasts forever. As the clan felt their world crumbling beneath them, they scattered, leaving nothing behind but the evidence of their once thriving culture. Had their original home not been blown up by a bunch of thieves, it might have been turned into a tourist attraction. People would pay to see anything related to the clan's history; that's how legendary their downfall was.

Itachi remembered reading all of this in a book. It was part of a series titled Tragedy: The Mountain Clan. He might never have been interested in the subject had he not met Reya. They hadn't known her two days before Shisui started insinuating that she was in some way weird. After that, they had to look her up. They spent hours in the library researching, and boy did they hit gold.

The floor creaked behind him, reminiscent of the way Reya's bare feet patted the ground when she walked.

He glanced toward the door, half expecting to see her in her sleep-deprived state hit the door with her face. Or if she managed to get the door open, trip on the step leading outside. She'd pretend it didn't happen, just continue rubbing her face as she complained about why he was sitting outside so late.

He'd ignore her, affectionately, and she'd sit down next to him while pretending to be equally as interested in the scenery as he was. It wouldn't work.

Itachi waited there for a few seconds with his eyes on the door.

Reality hit him like a steam train. She wasn't there. She wouldn't be awake for another four days, thanks to hibernation. It wasn't anything serious, just her body's way of recharging itself after three weeks of expending energy. Reya hadn't decided yet if she considered it a blessing or a hindrance, but it was something specifically related to her kekkai genkai. Whatever that ability was, he sincerely hoped it was worth it.

As the night wore on, he found himself again at her bedside. He checked her pulse and felt her skin, made sure her neck was straight so she wouldn't wake up with any sore muscles. She looked fine overall, thanks to his impeccable timing. Had he spent the night at one of the taverns along the way as he'd planned, he might have returned to find her dead.

He extinguished the fire and slipped through the darkness to her side where he settled comfortably into his reading chair and dozed off to sleep.