A/N: Day twenty-eight. Made it just in time today as well, hoorah... Jesus lord, I am sleepy.
She finds him at the border of Tsume no Kuni, leaning against one of the larger trees and staring ahead at nothing in particular. His arms are folded, with a scroll held in one hand and for some reason he almost looks lugubrious. His gaze slides over to her, and whilst her skin tingles she continues to walk towards him.
There's a twitch of a smile on his lips, one that's both devious but resigned. "Here I had thought it would be her to find me." he remarks, with a deep chuckle.
A frown mars her expression as she stands a metre away, her body purposefully relaxed. "Shion said you were jealous and that's why you got Kakashi involved in her revival." she murmurs, wondering if he'll tell her his side of the story.
His eyes gleam and he shifts, tilting his head as a light frown contorts his lips. "I do not care if she only sees me as a pet, as long as I am the one whom she values most." he glances to the side with a scowl, tension rising in the air. "She viewed that failure as her favourite… The one whom was meant to die in the first place and instead had her killed."
She blinks, tilting her head with a deeper frown contorting her expression. "You knew she would see all this as betrayal." she comments, not so much in realisation but in hopes that he would elaborate his thought process to her.
He smiles then, his eyes sliding back to meet hers. "Yes… But I could not help myself. It had become a branch obsession, something I needed to snap off or it would bother me far too much. Even if it meant going against her word." then the smile falls away and she twitches when his gaze grows a little too intense on her. "I have done everything for her, as she wanted me to."
"You convinced Kakashi to sacrifice himself to bring her back." she deadpans, because it should be obvious by now that it's a rather large reason why Shion's pissed off in the first place. "She didn't want that, but now she wants to punish you for essentially being an unruly pet."
Itachi hums, his expression considering and it's not a comforting thing to look at. "Kakashi may have been her favourite pet… but what was he to you, Sakura-chan? Do you not want to punish me yourself?" then he smirks, and she cringes at the innuendo.
"He was a family member, and whilst I'd like to…" her stomach knots in distaste and her expression likely reflects how she feels. "I'm just going to leave you to Shion, since I doubt I would do very well at torturing you."
He chuckles once more, and she looks at him with an expression she hopes doesn't reveal her reluctant pity. Sadistic torture has never been her thing, but she also doesn't know all that much about Itachi herself. Shion, however, has both those requirements and therefore is far more qualified.
She doesn't know if Shion will kill him or not, but she supposes it's ultimately up to the cursed woman since he's her pet.
"I would have thought differently, Sakura-chan." he replies, pushing off the tree and setting her on edge as he begins to approach her. "You have the capacity, if you could just delve deep into my mind and find out what makes me… tick. Do you not want to attempt to do so, before Shion arrives?"
He brushes his fingers against her jawline as she looks up at him, her frown marring her face a little too much and her stomach feeling rather discomforted.
"I'd rather not." she replies, because it sounds like he actually wants her to try and wreck his mind. That just sets off all kinds of alarms within her, especially when he's got the Sharingan and she's never really tried bypassing that and into an Uchiha's mind. Shisui's always been able to block her out, likely because of how used he is to having his head messed with by someone far more proficient.
His smile is almost forlorn as he gives a slow blink, once again drawing her attention to his eyelashes. "Do you think she would be able to condition me out of my obsession with her?" he queries, tilting his head and glancing into the distance. "I believe she could… but I doubt she will. Perhaps she will make it stronger, just because she can."
"Does it hurt, this obsession of yours?" is her own query as she watches him and realises he looks a little less like a monster at the moment. How strange.
Itachi smiles, one that is rather sardonic. "Do you think it would not be, when she is as she is and I am as I am?" he question in return, with a raised eyebrow as he turns to face her once more.
She sighs, trying to unknot the tangle in her stomach. "I suppose you're right." she murmurs, since that just doesn't seem like a happy combination.
He lies his head in her lap, his body unmarred save for the eyes that have been surgically removed and the silencing seal that's been placed on his tongue . The way that Shion smiles as she runs her hands through his greasy hair is incredibly unnerving. Her wide eyes and insomniac are agleam with something akin to skewed affection as she gazes down at the blinded man. It's terrifying, to realise that the act of them simply being in the same room together makes their disquieting natures mingle together into an unbearable mix.
Sakura and her brothers fidget, all of them itching to just bolt out of the room and slam the door shut. Itachi and Shion aren't doing anything particularly shameless, but the insanity permeates throughout the room and threatens to contaminate them all.
"I thought you were going to kill him." Neji spits, even as she feels the shaking of his hand as it brushes against hers.
Shion, thankfully, doesn't look up at them. Sakura doesn't think they could handle the intensity of such a deranged gaze at the moment. "You thought wrong, yeah." the redheaded woman hums, brushing a thumb under Uchiha's bandaged eyes. "He may be an unruly pet, but he's still mine. He needs discipline, since he can't help his nature, you know?"
Itachi shifts, one hand reaching up to grab a lock of Shion's long hair. He leans closer, and Sakura feels wholly unsettled when she witnesses the wild gleam in mismatched eyes of indigo and spinning crimson.
"We…" Sai starts, but he falters. He takes a deep breath and tries again. "We wish to know when we will return to Konohagakure."
Since Jiraiya and Orochimaru seem to be content with waiting up for their long lost friend, and the rest of Akatsuki are busy preparing for new goals that are much simpler than taking over the world. So Team Yamaneko have to approach a rather intimidating woman themselves.
"Now, if you want to." is Shion's casual answer, her smile softening the slightest. It's such a broken picture, Shion and Itachi. Like chaotic harmony, perhaps. "Go back with Jiraiya and I'll catch up with Orochimaru soon enough, yeah."
Neji is the first one out of there, with Sai following next. Sakura stays behind for a moment, frowning as she wonders what it is that she wants to say. Itachi tilts his head in her direction, and though he can't see her she still feels uncomfortable being in his radar. Especially when the corner of his lips tilt up like he knows.
She feels irritation that he's been blinded, silenced and wrecked in the mind but is still an intimidating figure. Then again, she wouldn't be surprised if he knows how to fight without his sight even though he's an Uchiha. Even if he doesn't have one sense, he still has others and blind shinobi aren't unheard of.
"Is revenge…" Sakura murmurs, not sure what she's really going for. "Is it meant to leave you empty?" because the fury and the anticipation of getting revenge on Itachi has disappeared completely. It was muted, but she remembers it to be there even if it feels like it never was.
Shion smiles down at Itachi, although Sakura feels like it's meant for her. "If you aren't empty already, then I would say yes. I do it because I just don't like people crossing me, but the satisfaction is always lacking simply because of how I am."
Sakura almost forgot about that, since Shion is so emotive. "What do you plan on doing with Itachi-san?" she questions, glancing down to the man in question. He's a shattered existence right now, but she sees that he's genuinely content being in the arms of the one who's ruined him. It's ironic, she feels.
"He wants to become the favourite…" Shion hums, pushing his bangs out of his face. "So he will, since my other one killed himself for my sake. I have more time to condition him now, yeah. Make him better than before, you know?"
Finding this beyond disturbing, Sakura nods and exits the room. She hopes she hasn't caught their insanity via osmosis, however unlikely it seems.
As Team Yamaneko, Jiraiya and Konan make the journey to Konohagakure, they discuss a few things like understanding why Shion has to mess with people's minds in order to get their loyalty. Konan's coming along mostly as an envoy for Amegakure and for Akatsuki, though the latter part is understandably under wraps.
"It is because intimidation can only work for so long before they begin to retaliate." Sai remarks as he and Konan sit together, much closer than Sakura expects them to sit. This note makes her wonder how old Konan is and if it's paedophilia if anything between them develops. "Affection is harder to break."
She's under the impression that it is, but as long as Sai doesn't get a disease from it then she's fine with it all.
"Trying to build loyalty with fear is doomed to fail." Jiraiya nods, a little too sagely as his hair once again billows behind him like a cape. "And of course, it's all too easy to fear Shion so it would be the logical route for her to forcefully implant some influences in your brain to make you partial towards her regardless of her nature."
Neji bristles, clearly irritated with the topic. "So you know that she went into your head, made you like her more than you would ever like her… and yet you don't care?" he questions the toad Sannin, crouching down rather than standing this time. She still thinks he looks majestic, if a little pissed off.
Jiraiya bellows out a laugh, turning around and making the wind push his mane of hair in the other direction. "The way she does it is very gradual, my uptight little Hyuuga buddy! You become more partial to her due to her mental interference, but it's not exactly strong enough to really create any kind of loyalty. We've gotten to the point where it just doesn't matter anymore, because she's not going to go against me as long as I don't go against her. Terribly shady beginning, of course, but oh well!"
She pats Neji on the shoulder, who really looks like he just wants to go home and sleep for an eternity. She thinks she might share that thought, since a lot has happened in the past few weeks and she hasn't had much time to think on it.
Perhaps she doesn't want to, but it's likely that she'll tell Shikamaru and he always seems to help figure things out with her.
"You mind if we take a detour, hey Sakura-chan?" their captain looks over to her, and she tilts her head in question. He obliges her. "It'd be best if we get a few dozen bottles of sake for Tsunade, since she'll be pissed the hell off and will probably turn into a banshee or something when she learns that Shion's alive. Among other important details."
Sakura nods, because that sounds like a good idea and a nice way to avoid dying. She could also get Shisui, who'd be up for a fight against a pissed off Hokage.
They appear in her dream, the one from before who's both ethereal and suspicious as all hell. They spot her, but then they look around and seem to almost panic at the realisation that Shion's presence is no longer around.
"Where are they, little one?" they ask, sounding as though they're trying to remain calm. Their voice wavers though, just the slightest.
She frowns up at them, before sighing and sitting down on the slope of the hill she's currently on. She can see the scarecrow in field of shions, and a large weasel trying to rip the scarecrow apart.
"If you mean, Shion, then she was revived and has her own body." she finally replies, feeling them come to stand behind her even though their footfalls are silent. "Shouldn't you be in her dream if that's the case?"
"Malum Grande… or Shion, as you call them is a difficult soul to find." they murmur in answer, coming to stand beside her now and look at the environment of her dream. "I had not been able to find them until recently… It would appear that it is thanks to you that I was able to discover them after so many centuries."
She blinks at the sky, feeling rather exasperated since she just wanted to escape the absurdity for a little while. "Shion attached herself to me when I was born. She doesn't seem to know how. Would you be able to theorise why?" she tries, since they seem to be the most likely to have the answers.
They tilt their head, and it's strange to note that there's only a black shadow where the top of their head should be under that hood of theirs. "Perhaps it is because you were born at the exact moment Malum Grande died… Perhaps it was because Malum Grande had willed herself to remain in this dimension despite having died. But what matters now is that I must find them, and bring them home."
Sakura stands, since it's hard to feel the serious mood when she's craning her neck up to look at them. "What?"
"My people…" they hesitate, before sighing and facing her. "Do you know of tales, where there is a being whom is given the status of a monster because of some old prophecy?" when she nods, they continue. "Then you would understand that others would shun this being, since they cannot see the true nature of the supposed monster because their fear blinds them. Perhaps you would understand that others would wish to banish this being, even curse them so that they can remain at peace?"
She doesn't like where this is going. "Are you implying to me that Shion is the monster that they cursed and banished?" she tries, feeling something sink in her gut. If Shion were to know that's how her curse of an existence started, Sakura's sure that it wouldn't be a pleasant time for anyone they want to bring her back without a fight.
The figure smiles, and she realises that smile is rather ominous. "In tales like these, it is almost always the ones whom attempt to stop the prophecies that only up solidifying it. I have done the best I can to fix the damages, so that Malum Grande may remember when the time comes. They may hate me for being unable to help them sooner… but they will return and they will make the others understand what has been created."
There's a moment where Sakura has to stop thinking, then restart again as she realises what his intentions are. Then, she feels some sort of relief because Shion is more likely to go along with the ethereal figure if that's the case. Shion would without a doubt go against them for thinking that she would simply accept returning home just like that.
"That works." she murmurs, rubbing her temples. "Just stick around for a bit, since she's coming soon and she can get into my head or something. You can meet her then and… discuss."
"Thank you, little one." they beam, but it's not all that comforting. "It is unusual to meet such a cooperative soul. May you be blessed for the rest of your existence."
Now that just sounds shady in her opinion, so she bids a temporary farewell to face the day. It's better if the weirdos are outside of her head.
Chapter Word Count: 2,791
Total Word Count: 89,958
Targeted Word Count: 0
A/N: I think we've never seen Shion and Itachi interact together before, in Sakura's body or otherwise. I felt a little disturbed myself when I was writing it, but it was fun. Hopefully, the last bit made some sort of sense. Two more chapters to go, whoo.
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