Sorry for the wait for this chapter, I'm only writing this story when I have free time as I have another account on here with stories that I'm currently writing also, but hopefully you enjoy this one. Thanks everyone for your reviews and alerts!

Love of a Village

Onyx and Ivor

"Itachi?" Hoshiko called his name when he still hadn't answered her. The Uchiha sighed as he looked away from her gaze.

"Yes, you were the one who hurt Kakashi-san."

Itachi heard a disgruntled sound come from Hoshiko as he took a peek at her, she had angled her face down to the ground, her hands were clasped together tightly and he could see the slight shake of her body. Itachi could have chosen to lie to her; it probably would've been the best option considering the effort Hoshiko's mother and father had put in to keeping her Kekkei Genkai a secret from her this entire time.

"My Kekkei Genkai…?" She questioned, her voice barely a whisper.

"You unlocked the power and drew from Kakashi-san, healing yourself and draining him of his chakra."

There was silence between the two teens, broken only by the sound of the river and waterfall before them.

"Dammit!" Hoshiko shouted as her clenched fist punched the ground next to her. Itachi was silent as he studied her chakra flow. It was jumpy, indicating that she wasn't fully healed from using the Mizukiri; the colour was burning brightly, informing him that she was extremely worked up from the revelation. Itachi sighed and realized that he would have to calm her down and make her see reason.

"You should not blame yourself for hurting him," Itachi told her as she gazed over at him. Her silver eyes reflected the moonlight, making them seem like they were glowing, much like when she had drained Kakashi; but Itachi was not afraid of her.

"But I could've killed—"

"You didn't." Itachi cut her off with a firm look, "use this to become stronger, to protect those around you."

"How can I protect when this ability can only hurt those I care about?" Hoshiko asked him, the pain evident on her face.

"You can find a way, I know you can," Itachi said with confidence. Hoshiko furrowed her brows and looked out to the waterfall.

"I don't want to be seen as a monster. Everyone will think that I'm becoming one of them, I don't want to be an outsider anymore; I want to protect the village."

"Then prove it to them," Itachi stated. Hoshiko didn't meet his gaze but she listened, "If you want to be acknowledged by the villagers then show them that you are dedicated to it."

"How would I do that? Become Hokage?" Hoshiko asked with a scoff, "No one wants to see an outsider become Hokage, but I guess it would make everyone acknowledge me," Hoshiko mused as she sighed.

"Becoming Hokage doesn't mean that everyone will acknowledge you," Itachi explained as Hoshiko met his dark gaze. "It is the one who is acknowledged by all that can become Hokage."

Her mouth parted slightly and Itachi could see that she was going over his words in her head. It was a few seconds before she smirked and chuckled lowly.

"I guess you're right, Itachi-baka."

Itachi smirked at the name, knowing that Hoshiko was going to be just fine now, he was glad; it was getting very late and her mother would be frantic about her, not to mention his own father would be scolding him for missing another meeting.

"You should head home now," Itachi told her as he saw Hoshiko's shoulders tense up. He furrowed his brows and waited for her to speak, he was ever more perplexed when he heard her start to laugh under her breath as she turned her head to look at him with a sheepish grin.

"About that…" Hoshiko said as she scratched her head. "I can't actually move my body, I think I'm still suffering side-effects from the Mizukiri."

Itachi sighed in exasperation and shut his eyes for a second, cursing Hoshiko silently as he opened them.

Hoshiko watched as Itachi stepped closer to her and turned his back and then knelt down to the ground, offering his back to her. Hoshiko felt her cheeks heat up with a bashful blush at the thought of having Itachi give her a piggyback ride. Hoshiko cleared her throat but made no move to latch herself onto Itachi's back as the older Uchiha looked over his shoulder at her. His onyx gaze bore into hers as the blush on her cheeks darkened even more so.

"Would you prefer I carry you the other way?" Itachi offered with a slight smirk, invoking a response in Hoshiko as she spluttered and crossed her arms.

"N-no! This is fine!" She said quickly and reached out to pull her body onto his back. Her arms were fine for the most part, it was her lower half that had gone completely unresponsive and numb a few hours ago, Hoshiko assumed it was because she had used that part of her body before it was fully recovered from her Mizukiri. She gripped onto his firm shoulders and hoisted herself up, her arms shook from the exertion as his arms hooked under her numb legs as he stood up. Her body was pressed flat against his as his warmth seeped through her clothes. Her arms hung around his neck as Itachi held up the majority of her weight; it wasn't much effort seeing as Hoshiko was made like a stick.

Itachi turned and began walking back towards the village. The blush never left Hoshiko's cheeks as she rested her cheek against his shoulder, every time that she breathed in through her nose, she could faintly smell the scent of Itachi's hair from the soap that he used. It smelt like vanilla and his body aroma had a hint of dumplings, maybe because he ate it so much he was morphing into a dumpling.

Hoshiko chuckled at her train of thought as Itachi inclined his head.

"What is so funny?" He asked her as Hoshiko shook her head.

"It's nothing," she replied, earning a glare from the Uchiha.

Itachi carried Hoshiko on his back through the village, it was very late and there were no villagers out at this time. Hoshiko's eyes gazed up at the four stone faces of the Hokage, Itachi's words kept on replaying in her mind as she smiled.

"Ne, Itachi?"

"Hn?" He replied, keeping his eyes focused forwards.

"Do you want to become Hokage?" She asked him, her voice was laced with sleepiness. Hoshiko felt his body vibrate from the low chuckle he emanated.

"Why do you want to know?" He asked her as Hoshiko yawned loudly in his ear.

"I think you'd be a good Hokage. You're always thinking about the village," she mumbled, resting her head down once more on his shoulder. Her eyes began to droop but she fought it fervently. Hoshiko had failed to notice that the Uchiha had ceased walking; her words had chilled him.

"Don't you think I should be focused more on my own clan then the village?" Itachi asked her, he didn't realize it; but he desperately wanted to know about what she thought of it. He knew Shisui thought the same as him, but he wanted to know what Hoshiko thought about the allegiance to a clan and to a village.

"How the hell should I know?" Hoshiko muttered bitterly, "my clan is gone," she yawned once more. "My only allegiance is to my village, and to my mother. I became a Shinobi to protect my family and my home, this is my home."

"What if someone was to hurt your home?" Itachi asked her. He knew he was treading on thin ice here, he couldn't let slip about his clan's plans, but he couldn't stop himself from asking her opinion.

"I'd protect it, from anyone."

Itachi arrived outside of Hoshiko's home; most of the lights were on, telling him that her mother was probably still waiting up for Hoshiko. It was a long walk from one side of the village to the other, and shortly after their conversation about Hokage and the village Hoshiko had fallen asleep on his back. Her arms were limp and he could feel the deep breathing on the back of his neck. Itachi juggled Hoshiko's weight with one arm as he raised the other and knocked on the door twice. He heard rapid footsteps and the door was pulled open within five seconds.

Hiroka stood there, her dark hair piled on top of her head and her kind brown eyes wide and filled with worry. A hand was held to her chest as she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Itachi with Hoshiko.

"Thank goodness," she breathed out as Itachi nodded to her. "Please bring her in, Itachi-kun." Hiroka stepped to the side and allowed him to pass as Itachi walked into the warm house.

Itachi followed Hiroka down the hall and into Hoshiko's bedroom. Hiroka had obviously been in here and cleaned up the hospital clothes from before as she hurried over to the bed and pulled back the covers and helped Itachi set her down onto the mattress. Hiroka fussed over her, pushing her hair away from her face and pulling the covers up to her chin, she felt her forehead with the back of her hand as she tossed a sad look over her shoulder at the young ANBU who stood with a stony expression.

"Thank you for finding her," she said to him as Itachi inclined his head ever so slightly.

With nothing left to say Itachi left the home.

When morning came around Hoshiko felt much better, she sat up in her bed and rubbed her sleep-crusted eyes and yawned loudly. She glanced around her room, wondering how she had in fact gotten home last night. She smiled when she remembered Itachi had probably brought her home, she faintly remembered their talk from last night about the village and Hokage as she dressed in her casual clothes of ninja shorts, sandals and her sleeveless turtleneck. She found her forehead protector among her clothes as she tied it tightly to her head. She walked out of her room and into the living area, a small smile crept over her face as she saw her mother passed out on the couch; Hoshiko didn't want to disturb her sleep so she quickly scribbled on a piece of paper that she was feeling better and would see her later. When she was finished she left her home.

Hoshiko travelled over the rooftops of Konoha as she made her way to the Uchiha compound, she wanted to give her thanks to Itachi for bringing her home last night. She leapt over a large gap and wiped the sweat from her brow, she frowned and realized that maybe she wasn't as healed as she originally thought. Another question that plagued her thoughts was if she had passed her ANBU exam? She wasn't sure if almost killing a comrade counted as a pass or fail mark, and much to her chagrin, she hadn't been able to perform the one task to be accepted into the ANBU. Hoshiko sighed as she saw the high walls of the Uchiha compound come into view. She really didn't want to be seen by anyone at the moment so taking a deep breath she began to mask her chakra and leap over the wall and onto the roofs.

Hoshiko kept a watchful eye out for anyone that would spot her, it was a known fact that the Uchiha were a secretive bunch, and some hated it when outsiders came into the compound; if she was seen with her chakra masked and looking as suspicious as she did now, she'd be done for.

The Uchiha mansion came closer to her as she jumped around the back of it and expanded her senses. She could sense Sasuke and Itachi together in the elder brothers room, Mikoto wasn't in the house but she could sense Fugaku walking towards Itachi's room. Hoshiko landed in the tree outside of Itachi's room as she could hear Sasuke's little voice from inside.

"Aniki, you never play with me anymore, you're always out on missions or training with Shisui-san or Hoshiko."

"Sorry, Sasuke; things have been a little hectic lately," Itachi replied from within.

"You mean with Hoshiko?"

There was silence within the room and Hoshiko wondered if Itachi had replied to his younger brother, she was going to knock on the window to let them both know that she was here when a new voice joined them.

"Sasuke, your brother and I need to talk," Fugaku ordered. Hoshiko felt her ears burn; she shouldn't be here right now, she knew that whatever Itachi and his father were about to discuss, it was supposed to be private. "You missed the meeting last night," Fugaku stated.

"I apologise, I was out dealing with business." Itachi replied monotonously. Hoshiko felt her stomach drop; Itachi was getting into trouble because of her.

"What kind?" Fugaku asked.

"ANBU, I cannot disclose the details, Otou-san, you understand this."

Hoshiko felt her eyes widen, Itachi had lied to his father about her, she didn't know whether to feel terrified or grateful for Itachi's deception.

"Itachi…" Fugaku said his name with annoyance, "the clan comes before anything else. I will not have you miss any more meetings, you are the heir to the Uchiha and the key to all of this—"

"Otou-san, it would be wise to discuss this at another time," Itachi interrupted his father as Hoshiko froze to the spot.

He knows!

Hoshiko waited on baited breath to hear what either of them would say next.

"It seems our conversation is no longer private," Itachi continued as she heard the shuffling of feet away from the window. Her confusion growing, Hoshiko crept along the thick branch and peered into the room, only seeing enough to know that it hadn't been her that Itachi had been speaking about.

Fugaku opened up Itachi's door as the innocent little Sasuke froze to the ground, his dark eyes as wide as saucers, his face flushed a deep red at being caught eavesdropping. Hoshiko couldn't see Fugaku's face, but from Sasuke's reaction, she knows that he would be receiving an almighty scowl from his father.

"G-gomen!" Sasuke stuttered, "I just wanted to know what you two were speaking about," he said timidly.

"Sasuke," Fugaku said sternly as the young Uchiha winced at the tone of voice, "it is rude to eavesdrop of your elders conversations, and you will do well to remember that."

Sasuke nodded quickly, Hoshiko could see the embarrassed tears threatening to spill over his eyes but he held them back strongly. Fugaku turned to look back at Itachi as Hoshiko gasped quietly and ducked her head back, she prayed with everything that she had that Fugaku had not seen her just then.

"Itachi, we will discuss this later."

"Of course, Otou-san," Itachi replied formally as Hoshiko heard the door shut. She sighed quietly and leaned back against the tree trunk as she used her chakra senses quickly to see that Sasuke had hurried away, Fugaku was now downstairs and Itachi was sitting in his bedroom. She shut off her chakra senses and counted silently in her head, she'd give it a couple of minutes before getting him; she didn't want Itachi to think that she had been eavesdropping also. Though for a second there, she had definitely thought that she had been found out, if that was the case, Fugaku would've had her head. The conversation that Itachi and Fugaku had been having seemed important, she secretly wanted to know more about it, Itachi was the key to it? Hoshiko pondered the information, there was something weird going on with the Uchiha clan, and she really wanted to know what.

"It's rude to eavesdrop."

"Ah!"

Hoshiko jumped and slipped off the trunk of the tree, she quickly focused chakra into the soles of her feet and pressed them against the bark as she relaxed her body upside down. She walked calmly back onto the branch and glared at Itachi as he stood stoically with his arms crossed.

"You're just as bad as my Otouto," he said with a frustrated sigh as Hoshiko felt her face flush from embarrassment, so she had been caught after all.

"I didn't hear anything," she lied to him.

"I know, I stopped my Otou-san before he could say anything more," Itachi retorted as Hoshiko pressed her lips into a firm line. There was a noise from below them as Itachi inclined his head, realizing that if his father saw them here there would be trouble. He reached out and wrapped his long fingers around Hoshiko's wrist and tugged her along behind him as he jumped up onto the roof. "Let's go," he said to her. Hoshiko made a noise in the back of her throat that sounded like a protest but followed along, it wasn't like she had a choice anyway; Itachi's grip was strong.

The pair arrived at the bridge that they sometimes frequented, it was the place where two and a half years ago they had stood here and Itachi had explained about her clan's involvement in the Third Ninja War. Itachi had relinquished his grip of Hoshiko a while back, when he knew that she would follow him, her curiosity would be the death of her one-day.

Itachi walked a few feet away from her and leaned on the railing, looking out at the view of Konoha from where they stood. Hoshiko didn't know if she should say anything to him, she didn't know if he was mad at her for eavesdropping, or for the previous night still. She shuffled her feet quietly.

"I'm sorry for getting you into trouble," she apologized to him as she heard him chuckle.

"You always get me into trouble," he replied, causing Hoshiko to smile. It dropped slightly as she remembered Fugaku's words.

"Will he be mad tonight?" She asked him as Itachi remained impassive.

"Probably," Itachi turned to face her, "you shouldn't concern yourself with Uchiha affairs, Hoshiko," he said with good intentions but Hoshiko winced at the blatant command.

"I didn't mean to!" She argued, "I was just coming by to say thank you for last night and I arrived just as your Otou-san came to your room."

"I know you did," he smirked at her, Hoshiko frowned, "You may be able to mask your chakra but I've become so attuned to it now that I can sense you even when its masked."

Hoshiko stared at him with her mouth slightly parted, she wanted to know what he meant by that, why was her ability impervious to Itachi?

"You missed your clan meeting because of me," Hoshiko muttered as she turned her gaze down to the ground. "If I hadn't been such an idiot and run away, you wouldn't be in trouble with Fugaku-san. Your clan is important and I know that. I don't want you to get into trouble because of me, forgive me—"

Hoshiko halted in her speech when she felt the tender feeling of two fingers poking her forehead. Her silver eyes shot up to meet onyx, he was smirking at her, the warmth behind his eyes was something Hoshiko had never seen before. His index and middle finger placed delicately in the middle of her forehead as a chilly gust of wind blew around them. Hoshiko felt her cheeks warm under his intense stare as her heart thumped rapidly in her chest.

"You worry too much," Itachi told her as he slowly drew his hand away from her forehead. He gave her a gentle smile as Hoshiko turned her flushed face away from him.

"Ginyoru Hoshiko."

"Hai," Hoshiko stood tall as she moved into the centre of the room. Her eyes glanced at the four people sitting at the long table at the back of the room. The Hokage sat in the middle, smoking a long pipe. Koharu, the female sat on the Sandaime's right, with Homura on the left and Danzo next to him. Hoshiko had never met the man sitting on the end with his head bandaged; she felt a chill dance up her spine every time she locked eyes with him. Even though she had never met him, she had heard about him; he was the leader of the Foundation, a group of ANBU that had been trained in vigorous ways to protect Konoha from the shadows. She was wary of the man with the dark beady eye, it was like he knew everything about her, it made her feel uncomfortable but she didn't show it. She turned her attention back to the Hokage.

"We understand, that even though you were unable to continue on with your ANBU exam, the proctors who oversaw it were more than impressed with your abilities and leadership qualities that are befitting that of an ANBU agent," the Sandaime said to her. Hoshiko felt her heart elate at the news, but the pessimist in her was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"There is one matter that we must discuss that I am sure you are aware about…"

"…My Kekkei Genkai," Hoshiko muttered, feeling the shame wash over her.

"It is a very dangerous ability that you have," he muttered, drawing from his pipe. Hoshiko nodded.

"I understand."

"I would like to ask a question." Koharu said from the end of the table. Hoshiko's silver gaze moved over to the old woman. "What are your feelings towards Konoha?"

Hoshiko felt her eyes widen slightly as she shook her head, "I don't understand."

"You know of your clans involvement with the murders of hundreds of Konoha Shinobi in the recent war. We sentenced your entire clan to die for the safety of our village, I am asking you what you think about this," Koharu demanded.

"Koharu," Sandaime said her name warningly, "Hoshiko has already proven her loyalty to the village, I trust her as much as I trust all my Shinobi—"

"Forgive me, Sandaime-sama," Hoshiko interrupted the Hokage as she bowed her head in respect. "I would like to answer the question," she paused for a second, hoping that she wouldn't be scolded for cutting off the Hokage, but he simply nodded to her. She turned her attention back to the bitter old woman. "I spent the majority of my childhood dodging glares and attacks from the villagers and the children, I was ostracized for belonging to a clan that I have no bond with. I was born in a different place but I was raised here in Konoha. I understand the crimes that the Ginyoru clan committed were horrible and disastrous, but blaming a child who was almost four years old at the time is ridiculous. All I have ever wanted was to be acknowledge by the villagers as one of their own, my parents were shunned from everyone because of their ties to a clan that had turned their back on them years ago. When my father died I can remember people rejoicing at the fact that he was gone, they didn't have to worry about being ambushed from the inside; and yet I still remained. I still get treated like an outcast at times; I can feel the glares and the whispers behind my back, waiting for me to turn on the village. I love Konoha, and I will continue to love Konoha even if I am thrown out and left with nothing. Even if the villagers detest me and wish me dead I would still protect this village with everything I have in me. Does that answer your question?" Hoshiko tried not to glare at Koharu, but always being questioned about her loyalty always irked her, it was like everyone was indeed waiting for her to turn on them.

"She would do well in the Foundation," Danzo mused to the others as Hoshiko felt her stomach drop. Something inside her was telling her that she certainly did not want to be placed in the Foundation. Hoshiko watched as the Sandaime turned his head to stare at his old friend, the two held each other's gaze for a few seconds before the Sandaime sighed and turned his dark gaze back onto Hoshiko.

"You will be placed into the ANBU division, congratulations Hoshiko."

Hoshiko grinned as she bowed deeply, "Arigato-gozaimasu."

"Stop itching it!" Shisui scolded Hoshiko with a playful glare. The younger girl hissed at him and continued to scratch the bandage on her left shoulder. Shisui rolled his eyes as the two walked down the familiar street to the Uchiha mansion.

"Who would've thought that the little brat from so long ago would now be in ANBU?" Shisui said condescendingly to Hoshiko as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Who would've thought that the kid who used to spy on me would still be alive?" Hoshiko bit back at him as the older boy laughed boisterously. They turned the corner on the street as Shisui's loud laugh drew the attention of some of the Uchiha; Hoshiko ducked her head away, uncomfortable under their piercing stares at her.

"Whatever did your Okaa-san say when you came home with a tattoo?" Shisui asked her as he settled down from laughing.

"She's my Okaa-san, so naturally she scolded me; can't help it though," Hoshiko said with a cheeky smile. She was remembering her Okaa-san's shrill voice when she had returned from the ANBU HQ.

"A tattoo! Hoshiko! You're only fourteen!"

"Okaa-san…" Hoshiko whined to her mother, "all the ANBU members have one, even Itachi has one, and he got his when he was eleven!"

"That doesn't mean that you should get one too! If Itachi-kun jumped off the stone faces and plunged to his death would you follow too?"

"Don't you think you're being a little over dramatic, Okaa-san?" Hoshiko asked blankly. There was a silence where both women glared at each other, before finally Hiroka sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"I guess I just have to accept that my little baby is growing up."

"Okaa-san…"

"Ne, Shisui?" Hoshiko asked as they were fast approaching the mansion. Shisui inclined his head down to her. "Weren't you in ANBU?" Hoshiko asked as Shisui grinned and jabbed his thumb to his chest.

"I was! Best of the best," he said with a cheeky grin as Hoshiko rolled her eyes at him.

"Why'd you leave?" She asked him thoughtfully.

Hoshiko missed the way that Shisui's smile dropped, or the way that his eyes quickly darted to the Uchiha crest that was hanging outside a shop stall.

"The Police Force needed me, it's a clan thing."

"Oh," Hoshiko muttered sadly. The way Shisui had said that was obvious, it was something that Hoshiko would never understand, seeing as she didn't have a clan anymore.

"Uh-uh-I didn't!—What I mean—"

"I get it, don't worry," Hoshiko giggled at Shisui's stuttering and flustered face as he had realized what he had said to her unknowingly. Shisui sighed and wiped his forehead as they approached the Uchiha mansion.

Sasuke greeted them outside; he was sitting on the step leading into the house as he perked up when he saw Shisui.

"Shisui-san!" He called out to him. Sasuke saw the figure of Hoshiko grinning at him as he felt his cheeks redden. It was the first time seeing Hoshiko since he had left her the flowers at her bedside a few days ago.

"Sasuke-chan!" Hoshiko called mockingly as she hurried up to him and spun him around.

"I'm going to be sick!" Sasuke cried, holding a hand to his mouth as Hoshiko placed him on the ground and patted his head forcefully.

"I never did thank you for my flowers, that was very nice of you," Hoshiko said as she pinched his cheek gently. Sasuke's face darkened to the shade of the Sharingan as he looked away from Hoshiko; he could hear the quiet laughter from Shisui to his left.

"Okaa-san said that I should do it," Sasuke muttered bashfully as Shisui and Hoshiko shared a glance and both giggled. Sasuke knew that they both didn't believe him as he pointed an accusing finger at the two teens. "As if I would ever actually bring you flowers! You're so annoying!" He defended as Hoshiko smirked at him and bent down to his eye level. Sasuke jumped back, his dark eyes wide as he feared at what Hoshiko would do to him.

Her silver eyes were shining with mirth as her mouth pulled up into a smile. She reached out her hand to hold Sasuke's cheek as she quickly pressed a chaste kiss to his other cheek.

"Arigato, Sasuke," she said to him as she pulled away and watched the child's face darken once again. The little Uchiha was stunned speechless.

"Hey, Itachi," Shisui said casually as Hoshiko looked over Sasuke's shoulder to see Itachi standing in the doorway. A ghost of a smile was on his stoic face as his onyx gaze went from Sasuke to Hoshiko and then to Shisui, what a sight it had been for him to walk out on. He had arrived just in time to see Hoshiko press a kiss to his little brother's cheek, which was now the shade of a tomato. Sometimes it was easy to forget that Hoshiko was a girl seeing how she rarely acted like one, and it wasn't like Hoshiko didn't look like a girl, because she did, if it wasn't for her eyes she would easily pass for an Uchiha; the thick black hair, strong jawline and straight nose were all traits for Uchiha.

"Nii-san!" Sasuke cried as he hurried over to him. Itachi looked down at his little brother, obviously still reeling from the kiss he had received from Hoshiko as he tugged on his arm. "You're going out with them aren't you, please can I come?" Sasuke begged his older brother as Itachi's gaze softened.

Hoshiko moved to stand beside Shisui as the older boy chuckled at her, causing her to furrow her brows at him.

"What's so funny?" She asked him as Shisui clapped her on the shoulder.

"I can see a sibling rivalry forming in the not too distant future."

Hoshiko, confused, looked to the two brothers and then back to her cryptic friend, "What do you mean?"

Shisui laughed, "If you can't see it, then I'm not going to say anything."

"See what?" Hoshiko asked him, annoyed at his words and that he wouldn't give her a straight answer for once.

"Sorry Sasuke, maybe next time," Itachi poked Sasuke on his little forehead as the young Uchiha flinched back and frowned up at his elder brother.

Hoshiko turned her gaze to the brothers as she saw the forehead poke display. Her mouth parted slightly in curiosity as she slowly raised her own hand to feel her forehead where Itachi had poked her in the exact same place yesterday. Itachi removed his fingers from Sasuke's forehead as he turned to look at his two friends; he furrowed his brows when he saw Hoshiko holding her forehead in confusion. She noticed him staring and quickly withdrew her hand and averted her gaze to anything but him. Shisui waved goodbye to Sasuke who was pouting by the front door.

"Ja ne, Sasuke!" Shisui called as the three of them walked away; Shisui in the middle of the two ANBU agents.

"To Ichiraku's it is!" Shisui called in glee as Hoshiko and Itachi groaned in unison. Hoshiko groaned because it was always what they ate when her and Shisui go out. Itachi groaned because he didn't like ramen and preferred Dango.

"I thought this was my celebration?" Hoshiko asked him as Shisui slung his arm around her shoulder.

"It is, Hoshiko-chan, which is why Itachi is paying!" Shisui said as Itachi frowned over at his cousin.

"What? When did that happen?" Itachi glared as Shisui chuckled.

"Since you never pay," he said with a pointed finger.

"That's you, Shisui," Hoshiko deadpanned as Shisui dodged an elbow to his ear from the girl at his right. Shisui chuckled.

"Come now, I paid for the last time," Shisui defended as Hoshiko crossed her arms.

"No, I did," she retorted.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" She hissed at him angrily as Shisui held a finger to his chin and looked up thoughtfully.

"Huh, well in any case, it's Itachi's turn to pay."

"You're such a baka," Hoshiko muttered to herself as she shook her head.

"If I am paying then by rights shouldn't I choose where we eat?" Itachi asked as Shisui had a look of dread come over his face.

"What a great idea, Itachi!" Hoshiko agreed as she clapped her hands together.

"Tofu it is." Itachi declared to the two of them. Itachi failed to notice how Hoshiko and Shisui both stalled and froze to the ground, their faces both turning pale at the mention of the horrid food.

"Shisui…"

"Yeah…"

"This is all your fault."

"…I know."

Thanks for your feeback for the last chapter! Again sorry it has taken me so long to get another chapter out here, I'll try not to be too long next time, let me know what you thought of this chapter and them little cute moments in it!