Pairing: Itachi/Naruto
Thank you for all of the support so far! This had to be split into two as it got a bit too long, hopefully there won't be too long a wait between this and the next part.
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The thing about hosting a dinner, Naruto realised with dawning horror, was that he had no idea what to do. Boruto and Himawari had been no help either; Himawari had declared they should just eat bread and chocolate, and Boruto had smirked, stating that if Naruto wanted to impress the Uchihas, he needed to do it by himself.
He was a little shit, Naruto decided, and Boruto rolled his eyes.
"Look, you haven't been this worried about a dinner in ages, not even one of those stuffy meetings you have," Boruto said, crossing his arms over his chest, and Naruto felt bizarrely as if Boruto was the older one between them. "Who cares though. They're not coming over because they want to eat, or at least not as the main reason."
Boruto was right, Naruto realised, and he grinned at his son, ruffling his hair.
"Here, take some money and go pick out a dessert with Himawari. Make sure you get enough for everyone, but you can choose whatever you like." Naruto pulled his wallet – one of multiple successors to his dear gama-chan – and handed over money. "I'm going to head to Ichiraku, don't worry about waiting for me though. I'll meet you back here."
Himawari took Boruto by the hand, and Naruto watched as they ran down the road to their favourite bakery. They were both smiling, happier in his presence than he'd seen them in weeks, and Naruto knew he had to thank Itachi for so much.
He'd been an idiot, dwelling in his sadness and anger his marriage had ended instead of looking after his children. Naruto had ignored their needs for so long, and he was only just now trying to put them first. Just because he thought he had been didn't mean he truly had.
"Right," he muttered to himself, heading the opposite way, towards Ichiraku. It was huge now, and Ayame smiled brightly when Naruto walked in.
"Long time no see Hokage-sama!" she greeted warmly, and Naruto inhaled deeply. This place held so many memories, and while it had expanded, nothing had changed. Well, aside from the poster on the wall of him grinning with a bowl, and the photos of more famous ninja up at the back, but that came with the job really.
"I have a large to-go order," he said, and Ayame nodded, patting her husband on the shoulder. He'd succeeded the kitchen after Teuchi had retired – Ayame having no desire to become the primary cook – and while she managed the business, her husband kept up the delicious food.
"Just for you? It's been a while since you've come to collect in person," Ayame said, moving around the counter to clear some plates as she talked to Naruto.
"A family dinner," he said with a smile, and Ayame looked up, eyes bright with interest.
"Current, prospective, or hopeful?" she quipped, and Naruto raised an eyebrow, giving her a small smile. He'd never been afraid to share his personal life with Ayame. She could keep a secret, and gave the best advice, as well as feeding him with what he needed, even if he didn't realise it.
"I have no idea," Naruto replied, shrugging. "Well, the kids of course. Sakura-chan and Sarada-chan are coming too – as is Sasuke. He arrived back today," Naruto continued, pausing.
Sensing there was more to come, Ayame placed the plates on the counter, sidling up to Naruto and sitting beside him. Her husband set down two glasses of water before them, and she took a sip, sighing.
"I haven't had a sit-down in a while," she confided, and Naruto looked at her in slight worry, knowing she was carrying her third child, even if she wasn't showing much yet. Ayame trusted Naruto just as much as he did her, after all. "Now, who else is going?" she asked, and Naruto smiled.
"Uchiha Itachi," he commented lightly, and Ayame's eyebrows rose.
"Itachi-san? But…" she trailed off, frowning.
"Some idiot thought he could defeat us by using a blood jutsu to bring Itachi back. He's about 21, in his prime and…" Naruto trailed off, feeling like a disgusting pervert.
"And just as handsome as he ever was then," Ayame said with a laugh, blowing a kiss to her husband as he turned around, stern look on his face. "You're my one and only, my love, but if you saw him, even you'd agree he's handsome."
She turned back to Naruto, looking at him in a way that suggested he couldn't deny the fact either. Naruto shrugged, giving in. She was right, after all.
"Fine, handsome too. And I don't know," he said sighing and sinking against the counter, lying his cheek against the wood.
"Shall I tell you something," she said, not even making it a question. Naruto nodded, cheek pulling as he moved against the wood, and he sat up, rubbing the skin. "The last time you came in with such a big order was when you were celebrating Himawari-chan's birth."
Naruto's eyes widened. It had been that long?
"And what that tells me," Ayame continued, standing up and patting her stomach gently, "is that this matters a lot to you."
She was right, and Naruto smiled, adding more dishes to his order. They'd be kept perfectly warm and fresh until dinner (Naruto himself had contributed to the design of that jutsu), and tonight was an occasion to splash out on. Any reservations he had had were smashed by Ayame's words, and Naruto decided that he should enjoy this time with Itachi, even if nothing came of it – which he was certain would be the case.
Loaded with three shadow clone's worth of food boxes, Naruto waved goodbye and returned home, humming to himself. Himawari and Boruto were back already, Himawari covered in chocolate and grinning wildly.
"Ah," Naruto said, shaking his head and looking at a guilty-faced Boruto. "Someone's started early I see."
Himawari grinned, running forwards with sticky hands to grab at Naruto. His clones made a quick move to the kitchen, and Naruto managed to catch Himawari before her hands got him, twirling her up until she sat on his shoulders.
"No more chocolate for you I think," Naruto said and Himawari laughed, bending over and smearing her hands over Naruto's face. Boruto began laughing too, and Naruto grinned, grabbing Himawari and holding her out in Boruto's direction, turning her into a grabby, sticky mess machine.
"That's so unfair," Boruto said a few minutes later, the three of them sprawled on the floor in the living room, chocolate covering their faces and hair. Himawari was still giggling, and Naruto closed his eyes, enjoying the moment.
"How about you can have the shower first then," Naruto said kindly, and Boruto was off in a moment, the clunk of pipes sounding. He'd be in there for ages no doubt, primping for the evening. Naruto wasn't sure if he was putting on a show just for Sasuke, or whether Sarada was also the cause. Either way, Naruto would be stuck slightly messy for a while.
"You're next by the way," he muttered to Himawari, and she grinned down at him, switching the TV on and moving around dancing instantly, despite the fact she was busy flicking channels.
Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, letting himself doze off slightly. His mind was busy thinking, but he let whatever programme Himawari had settled on fade into background noise as he thought.
It wasn't just that he potentially very much liked Itachi. What came with that was something Naruto was scared of. He was scared of opening himself up to someone else, letting someone in so much that, if they left, if they decided they had more life to explore and live without him, then he would hurt so much. Parting from Hinata had hurt so much, and Naruto was still certain he'd never fully recover from that, but it was something he'd accepted. He could live with Hinata's hurt, but he wasn't sure he'd be able to if he began something with Itachi and it failed.
"Of course you would," Kurama said, and Naruto found himself lying on his back, one of Kurama's fingers poking his arm gently. "Stop being so melodramatic."
"You know what I mean," Naruto said, rolling away as Kurama made to poke him again.
"Then talk to him. You haven't even got that far yet, stop dooming yourself before you even confirm he's interested." Kurama grinned as Naruto stood, rolling his eyes. "He is interested, by the way, I can definitely confirm that."
Naruto wanted to tell him to stop it, but part of him definitely wanted to hear this.
"Oh?" he said, trying to sound like he didn't care too much. Not that Kurama would fall for it, but he could pretend to himself at least.
"I'm not giving you any tips. I need something to entertain me before you decide it's time I can come out again," Kurama said, and Naruto knew that he didn't really want to come out, not yet anyway. Naruto sighed and shook his head.
"You're impossible. So I should just ignore all the potential problems and talk to him then, that's your plan?" Kurama nodded, and Naruto looked down, scuffing the ground. "You make it seem so easy."
Kurama laughed, and Naruto opened his eyes to Himawari standing over him, looking down.
"Were you talking to Kurama?" she asked, and Naruto nodded. Himawari brightened instantly, and Naruto informed her she'd get to play with Kurama again soon. The last time, and first time actually, Naruto had introduced Kurama and his children, they had both been young enough to clamber over Kurama's hand, practically getting lost in his fur.
"Boruti-nii's finished, I'm going to have a bath now," Himawari announced, and Naruto followed her to the hall, heading to the kitchen rather than upstairs. His clones had put the food on the side, and Naruto resisted the urge to open one of them and sneak a taste. Everyone would be over in an hour or so, and he wasn't going to starve, but Ichiraku was always so good.
Instead, Naruto washed his hands, at least clearing some of Himawari's chocolate from him. He looked out of the window, drying his hands slowly, and shook his head. The garden was a mess, and Naruto couldn't remember the last time he'd actually done anything to it. Or even if he had at all. Maybe he'd cut the grass once, but it was wild now, practically. Maybe they could all tidy it up one day this week, Naruto thought, and his imagination drifted.
It was warm outside, so what if the kids decided to go to the park with their friends for ice cream or whatever they did. That would just leave Naruto and Itachi, and Itachi often wore dark colours. What if the sun was too much and Itachi had to take his shirt off? Naruto swallowed as he imagined the scene; Itachi framed in sunlight, pulling his shirt off and turning with a smile.
Fuck.
"Papa!" Himawari shouted from upstairs, and Naruto tore himself away from his daydream, moving upstairs quickly. "Boruto took the last towel!" Himawari shouted, marching naked along the corridor, looking as if she intended to kick Boruto's door down.
Quickly darting forwards, Naruto managed to grab Himawari. She was soaking wet and squirmy, growling like a wild animal as she fought to (in her words) teach Boruto a lesson.
"Boruto!" Naruto shouted, carting Himawari back off to the bathroom, ignoring the fact she had her byakugan activated. Everything could escalate if he wasn't careful, and all over a towel.
Boruto darted out of his room sheepishly, running to the airing cupboard and grabbing a towel. He entered the bathroom just as Naruto set Himawari down, and he passed her the towel.
"You owe me," she said with narrowed eyes, and Naruto turned, leaving her to it and pushing Boruto out of the room. When the door closed, they both sighed in relief.
"We got lucky," Boruto said, grinning. Naruto laughed, opening his mouth to speak when the doorbell rang. The effect on Boruto was instant. He ran off, shouting that he wasn't ready yet and for Naruto to distract everyone, and Naruto shook his head, looking down at himself.
Oh well. It wasn't as if any of his guests hadn't seen him in this much of a mess before. He moved down the stairs quickly, wondering which one of his guests it would be on the other side.
Sakura and Sarada stood on the doorstep, smiling when he opened the door. Naruto grinned, welcoming them in, and Sarada moved straight towards the kitchen.
"What on earth happened to you?" Sakura asked, eyes raking up and down his clothes, shaking her head with a smile.
"Himawari, chocolate and a missing towel," Naruto commented, holding one of Sakura's hands for balance as she slid her shoes off.
"I'm still thankful every day that Sarada was far from troublesome," Sakura commented, stepping into the house. "She's been an angel, all things considered."
Naruto nodded slowly, and they walked into the kitchen.
"Nothing's ready yet," he started apologetically, but Sakura just bumped into his arm, smiling.
"Don't worry about it, we left early to give Sasuke-kun and Itachi-san some time to talk. We knew we'd be intruding; I hope you don't mind." There was worry in Sakura's eyes, and Naruto understood why.
"Tou-san said they'd be okay," Sarada piped up, staring at the Ichiraku containers. Her sharingan was activated, and Naruto wasn't too surprised. She was learning all sorts of new things, she probably wanted to keep it active for as long as she could.
"And they will be," Naruto assured. He knew how much Sasuke had missed Itachi, even if they'd never really spoken about it. There had been one conversation, years ago, before Naruto had become Hokage. They'd been on the edge of Suna, camped out under the blazing sun, and Sasuke had just started talking.
He'd spoken about how scared he was of having a child, how he would probably fuck things up if he was there, how he didn't understand how Sakura could bear to look at him, much less touch him. He'd confessed he preferred to keep on moving, lest his demons catch up with him, and he'd said, in a quiet voice, that he wished Itachi was there.
Naruto also knew how much Itachi had missed Sasuke too. Everything he'd done was to try and protect Sasuke, and while he'd failed, that kind of love never waned.
So Naruto knew they would be okay, though that didn't mean they didn't have lots to discuss.
"Well they're doing that, so we're here to help. You seem to have most of it covered though," Sakura said, nodding to the Ichiraku containers.
There was a bang from upstairs, and Naruto winced.
"Papa!" Himawari shouted. "Bathroom's free!"
"Thank you!" Naruto called back, and he excused himself. Sakura waved him off, and he bounded upstairs, excited to get properly clean.
While he tried not to dwell too much on Itachi, Naruto couldn't help his thoughts slip in that direction. He huffed as he began shampooing his hair, trying desperately not to return to his earlier fantasy, and instead keep his thoughts on what Itachi and Sasuke might be talking about.
It didn't work, not really, and Naruto hurried himself up, jumping out of the shower and wrapping himself up in a towel before he could do anything he might berate himself for later.
Ten minutes later, Naruto was fully dressed and standing in the kitchen with Sakura, both of them setting the table.
"It's so nice to have someone there for Sarada," Sakura confided, and Naruto glanced at her, setting out napkins. They'd never talked about Sasuke's absence, not properly anyway. In fact, they hadn't really talked about much of anything for a lot of the time.
"I know he had his reasons, and I don't blame him…" Sakura continued, straightening a pair of chopsticks and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I resented his choice for a long while though. I blamed myself at first, then I blamed Sarada, and then one day it just clicked," Sakura said, looking at Naruto.
"One day I realised that was just who Sasuke was. It's what he needed, a part of him. It took a long while for me to actually accept that, but I think I get it now." She gave a small smile, and Naruto felt so proud of her. He'd been so busy with his own issues that he'd completely glazed over what Sakura might have been feeling back then. And when he had finally snapped out of it, Sakura looked as if she was fine, and Naruto had been climbing up to becoming Hokage.
"But I am so glad she has Itachi-san," Sakura finished.
"Do you remember when we used to sit and plan against the Akatsuki, before we really knew anything?" Naruto said, sitting down in one of the chairs. Sakura took a seat too, nodding her head.
"We were idiots really," she said, laughing. "Though I did take down Sasori, thank you very much," she added proudly, and Naruto scoffed.
"You were pretty amazing, I'll admit that much," and he meant it too. "I was totally in love with you back then as well, imagine if we'd ended up together!"
Sakura laughed again, slapping her hand on the table. The entire table jolted, but Naruto knew it was sturdy enough to weather Sakura.
"Any children we would have had would definitely have ravaged the village, can you imagine!" she said, and Naruto grinned. He hadn't been in love with Sakura for a very long time, and while he could laugh at his past self now, he felt comfort from that fact. His friendship with Sakura was stronger than any passing fancy.
"We dodged a bullet there," Naruto said, and Sakura nodded slowly, sipping her drink slowly.
"I feel I have to warn you," she said, and Naruto was alert instantly. "My dearest child and husband have been overheard plotting, of sorts. Nothing outright, but a mother and wife knows how to read between the lines," Sakura said firmly, and Naruto tilted his head in curiosity.
"They're trying to pair you and Itachi-san up," Sakura said, leaning back in her chair and smiling grimly. Naruto felt panic spike through him, and he shook his head quickly, leaning forwards.
"It's okay, you know," Sakura continued, before he could finish. "You two would be a good thing, and I get the feeling it's inevitable anyway." She sounded so blasé, so Naruto decided to give it up and accept it.
"Fine. I think I have feelings for Itachi. Now what," he commented, voice deadpan.
Sakura brightened, leaning forward to get closer to Naruto, narrowing her eyes as a smile slid across her lips. And suddenly there was a woman who was the top medical ninja, surpassing even the acclaimed Tsunade. Sakura was a formidable ninja, and Naruto felt as if he'd fallen into her trap.
"We have a little fun. If you and Itachi do hit things off and something starts between you, I feel it should be on your own terms, not Sasuke-kun's or Sarada's." Sakura was right, of course she was, and Naruto felt strangely as if he'd gone back years, back to when she was letting him know that Hinata was right there, waiting for him to notice her.
"Or yours?" Naruto said carefully, and Sakura nodded.
"Of course not. This needs to be yours and Itachi-san's. If you can get him involved, you should do. Think of it as revenge against Sasuke for trying to meddle in the first place." Naruto nodded, it did sound like fun. It had been a long while since he'd been able to play a trick on someone, and he missed that side of himself.
"If… if something did happen…" Naruto began, biting the inside of his cheek. "It wouldn't be weird?"
Sakura didn't seem to get it at first, and then her eyes widened. She reached for Naruto's hand and held it tightly, making sure he looked in her eyes before she began speaking.
"Itachi-san respects you a lot. Even without adding another layer to it, he already loves you for protecting Konoha and being there for Sasuke. I'm almost certain he's attracted to you on top of that." She squeezed his hand, and Naruto realised he had missed their talks. "So what if he's now younger. He's also been dead, been part of an organisation trying to kill you, and spent his entire life running from what he wants."
Naruto nodded slowly, finally getting what Kurama and Ayame had said. If Itachi chose him, then Itachi chose him. That was something remarkable in itself, and Naruto would be a fool to deny himself of something that would make him happy, even if it didn't last forever.
"You're right," he said softly, and Sakura let her hand fall.
"Right then. They'll probably be here soon, is everything ready?" Sakura asked, and Naruto nodded.
This dinner was the best idea he'd had in a long while.
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After Sasuke had come to the training field, Itachi continued training Sarada. He couldn't help but glance towards Sasuke every now and then, and he wondered whether Sasuke was learning anything from his instructions. He'd never had a true teacher in the sharingan, after all, and while he'd undoubtedly mastered it, Sasuke probably didn't have finer control over the basics.
"I think that's enough for today," Itachi decided, and Sasuke nodded.
"We'll be expected at Naruto's soonish," he added, and that was that. Sarada grinned, walking between them, talking excitedly about the fact her team were about to go back on duty, and how she had so much to tell Mitsuki. Itachi spared a glance for Sasuke when Sarada began talking about her other team mate, wondering how Sasuke felt about Orochimaru being a parent.
Sasuke just shrugged, as if to state that Orochimaru would do whatever the hell he wanted. That much was very true, Itachi knew.
Sakura was ready and reading a book when they entered. She gave them a quick look as they came into the living room, and smiled gently.
"It's nice to see the two of you together," she said, closing her book. Sarada vanished upstairs, and Sasuke sat beside Sakura, leaning back on the sofa. It left Itachi to sit on the small armchair, and he shifted it slightly so he'd be able to see the others better.
He was still having some difficulty recognising the man before him as his brother, though Itachi was thankful that Sasuke's similarity to their father weakened in person. Itachi didn't know if he'd have been able to cope with a larger ghost of the past.
"Sarada and I will head over to Naruto-kun's when she's ready. You two can join us whenever," Sakura said, setting her book on the coffee table and smiling. "Your bloodwork came back, by the way," Sakura added, and Itachi looked at her sharply, dread building in the pit of his stomach.
"It was clean," she said quickly, and Itachi gave a sigh of relief. "With your permission, I'd like to do routine tests, perhaps once a month or so, just to monitor your blood condition. That way we'll be able to tell if there are any issues relating to your past illness," Sakura finished, and Itachi nodded.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "It would be a relief not to have to worry about becoming blind again," Itachi said quietly, and Sasuke shifted, looking at him curiously.
"Blind?" he asked, and Itachi nodded.
"You might want to have Sakura-san monitor your blood too, though the rinnegan perhaps negates the effects, I'm not sure." Itachi looked down at his hands. "The Uchiha bloodline is susceptible to a number of illnesses, and while the one I had was a rarer blood illness, it's been noted in the past."
"And it caused you to go blind?" Sasuke asked, almost insisting the point.
"Near enough, there was the tiniest light, but." Itachi shrugged, closing his eyes for a moment. It wasn't particularly something he wanted to remember in detail, though he figured this would be the least uncomfortable conversation between him and Sasuke.
"I must have seemed like an insect to you back then," Sasuke said softly, and Itachi watched as Sakura stood, leaving the room silently. She closed the door behind her, leaving Sasuke and Itachi to it.
He knew exactly what Sasuke was talking about, of course he did. Fighting Sasuke had been hard, though not just because he'd been almost completely blind, though Sasuke clearly didn't believe that.
"I don't know if it's something you'll ever be able to understand," Itachi began carefully. Sasuke sat up straighter, his face painfully blank. He looked so young all of a sudden, and Itachi wondered just how much of his life he'd spent alone. "I was born in a different time, the first things I can still remember are almost all war."
Itachi grimaced, looking down at the coffee table. Sakura's book had a bright cover and a map of chakra pathways, and he wondered for a split second what it was about.
"I was in ANBU before I hit puberty," Itachi said, voice firm. This was something he needed Sasuke to understand. "I then went straight into a criminal organisation with a flee-on-sight order on me. I was brought up to be a perfect ninja, and that's what I am."
Itachi's eyes flickered to Sasuke, and he amended his sentence. "Was."
"But-" Sasuke said quickly, and Itachi shook his head.
"The person I died as was not a good person. I manipulated you and tried to play god, thinking I could plan for everything. I realised this when I was revived and paired up with Naruto. I made mistakes, Sasuke, ones that cost you and me painfully." He gave a wry smile. "And even though it was what I wanted, when we fought each other, you were a worthy opponent."
Sasuke nodded, letting out a slight huff of breath. His shoulder sagged as he leant back against the sofa, and he looked up, rolling his eyes slightly.
"This is so hard," he commented, and Itachi smiled, agreeing completely. "You know, I always wondered what it would have been like if you'd lived. I thought of hundreds of things I wanted to tell you, and yet not a single one comes to mind right now." Sasuke met his gaze, giving a shy smile.
"Sarada said that you and Naruto fought," Sasuke said, raising his visible eyebrow. "If… possible, I'd like to fight you."
Itachi could feel his sharingan inside of him, willing to activate in response to the challenge. His blood roared, heart swelling with emotion, and Itachi nodded slowly.
"I would like a proper fight," he said.
They moved onto more general things, such as the lands Sasuke had looked at and discussing Sarada's training. They'd barely skimmed the barrel of issues between them, and Itachi had a feeling they would be largely put aside until their physical fight. They'd never been the best at talking, really, and action would help them pour themselves out entirely.
So, Itachi decided, he was going to enjoy the night, whatever it held. He had a small idea that Sasuke and Sarada had been plotting (thinking that he couldn't hear them, and Itachi hadn't had the heart to tell them their whispers were anything but), and knew that the dinner tonight could be interesting.
A quick inspection of the house revealed that Sakura and Sarada had already left, and Sasuke ordered him to shower, calling that he'd dig out some old clothes and set the outside. For the second time, Itachi put his faith in this household's abilities to dress him, and stepped into the shower.
He wondered what dinner would be. Did Naruto cook? He'd never seemed to have any cooking abilities, what with his love of instant ramen, but perhaps he had learnt over the years. Truth be told, Itachi knew very little about Naruto, so he really could be in store for anything.
Running a hand through his hair, Itachi borrowed some of Sakura's flowery shampoo, smiling at the tiny luxury. It had been a long while since he'd used anything but standard shampoo, standard everything really, and it was nice to be able to use something nice. Plus it smelt nice. Years of being on the run and living with Akatsuki had hardly led to nice smells, and while he hated to admit it, bathing hadn't really been a major occurrence when they were trekking through the land on a mission.
Thoughts returning back to Naruto, Itachi wondered whether he thought it odd Itachi had returned to Sakura and Sasuke's house. Probably not, Itachi reasoned, but part of him wanted Naruto to question why, if only to himself. It was a ridiculous feeling, but he knew it was because he wanted Naruto to care.
Itachi groaned, resting his forehead against bathroom tiles. He rinsed his hair quickly and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel and drying himself, not analysing why he wanted Naruto to care. That was a bad thing to think about, especially with Sarada and Sasuke teaming up, and Itachi began drying his hair lightly, mind drifting regardless.
Being with Naruto wasn't feasible, not really. He was the Hokage, and as much as Itachi liked the concept of being selfish, he'd never take Naruto from Konoha. Besides, Naruto was still recovering from his divorce, and Itachi couldn't just take Naruto's mind off of that and make everything better. He had no idea if Naruto wanted anyone else to make it better, truth be told.
It would be hard, though, Itachi reasoned. And perhaps, if they talked about it, just maybe they could do something. Possibly. Itachi sighed. Maybe he'd been dead too long this time around and his brain had rotted through. Why was he thinking he could date Naruto, of all people. Talk about going after someone out of his league.
"Nii-san?" Sasuke called from outside, and Itachi wrapped a towel around his waist, opening the door. Sasuke passed a bundle to him, jerking his head to the side.
"I need a shower," he said, and Itachi gathered his dirty washing, heading to the bedroom. It was only then that he saw what Sasuke had given him, and he felt tears well up inside of him, overcome with the gesture.
Itachi's fingers smoothed over the fabric, tracing the Uchiha crest. It would sit high on his back for all to see, and this time Itachi would be proud to wear his clan symbol. It would mark him as part of a loving clan, one that was growing interlinked with Konoha for all the right reasons, and mark him as someone who had been accepted, despite his flaws and past mistakes.
And then Itachi's eyes caught sight of a thin sash, and he froze, staring down at the fabric in disbelief. Sasuke couldn't have been subtler if he'd tried, Itachi thought, shaking his head, elation at seeing the Uchiha mark fading into determination at seeing the Uzumaki clan spiral decorating the sash.
"If that's how you want to play it," Itachi murmured to himself, forgetting all the reservations he'd listed as reasons for not pursuing a relationship with Naruto. If Sasuke wanted to keep pushing him towards Naruto, then it would be rude not to at least try and talk to Naruto about it.
And Itachi had the feeling joining forces with Naruto would yield results that would teach Sasuke to stop meddling. Itachi was, of course, ignoring the irony of that statement, and he began to dress, making sure the sash was clear for all to see.
If Sasuke had been expecting a reaction about the sash, he didn't show it. Instead, dressed in dark trousers and a light top, he nodded as he joined Itachi downstairs a short while later.
"I bet you it's ramen," Sasuke said as they made their way to the door, and Itachi gave a hug of laughter, stepping out in the evening air. There was a sweet scent on the breeze and it comforted Itachi.
"Ichiraku ramen at that," Itachi agreed, and they set off, heading towards Naruto's house.
With every step, Itachi wondered what Naruto would think of the sash. It wasn't an obscene gesture – the Uzumaki spiral was integral to the village, after all, and on almost all uniforms. Wearing a sash with the spiral and being both part of a prominent clan (technically the head of the clan, though Itachi was very happy to hand that title over to Sasuke if it hadn't already) and a friend of the Hokage.
Whatever the reaction, the evening would be an interesting one, that was for sure.
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