He wanted to make sure she lived. She realized after her brush with death that she wasn't quite ready to die. It only seemed reasonable that she accepted his offer.
She should have left it at 'yes'.
The easy way had been to assume that Itachi did it to increase her longevity and prolong her usefulness. But a part of her, the part that was fed up with being kept in the dark wanted answers. It was never going to forgive her if she blindly followed his lead yet again without trying to find out the real reason behind his actions.
"Why are you doing this?"
"What do you mean?"
Shiori cursed inwardly. She had always been good with sales talk. But when it came to things that matter, words had a knack of failing her.
"With you I always feel like I have to read between the lines. There's constantly a hidden agenda behind every decision that you make and I don't have enough brain cells to figure out what it is. Like what you're doing now, you're volunteering to help me. Why?"
He shifted so that his entire body was facing her. In those few seconds she could already see the cogs and wheels in his brilliant mind formulating a flawless argument.
'Just shut up already,' she scolded herself.
"You've been my ward for months. You should know by now. Kisame-san and I didn't go through the trouble of extracting you from Shimo just to get you slaughtered, not someone with an ability as unusual as yours."
"But that's too obvious," she muttered to herself. She felt his warm breath as he sighed in exasperation and she shivered. For someone who had spent most of her life being held at arm's length, the proximity was unnerving.
"What are you getting at, Shiori-san? Are you implying that I have other reasons other than to keep you safe?" He was playing with her now.
"I know more than half of your life story, Itachi-san. You know damn well that I'm more convenient to you dead than alive. I could leak information about you and Konoha to the enemies."
Obsidian eyes narrowed at her. She refused to believe that she was giving him ideas because Uchiha Itachi always thought five steps ahead. He already knew this was a possibility.
"You wouldn't dare," he replied. He was right. She couldn't, especially since she knew the reasons why he did what he did to the clan. Still she wanted him to know that she was aware of this possibility.
'Maybe you're suicidal after all,' she told herself.
"But I can and you know that. Kisame-san always talks about these missions you do where you eliminate threats. It doesn't matter whether a person or an entire village hasn't done anything yet. If there's even a small possibility that they might do something, they have to be taken down, am I right?"
Itachi thought about the slim chance of Shiori being captured by Konoha and interrogated by the infamous Yamanaka Inoichi. If a person of his caliber went inside Shiori's mind and saw what she saw, then his entire hometown was going to be in on the largest expose in the village's history. She had a point.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked again.
He knew exactly why. But Sora's warning rang loud and true. And the only way to heed it was to keep on doing what he did best. Play mind games.
"It's certainly not because I want to keep you alive. I have to. Shiori-san please do not assume that you can understand my reasons."
He smiled wryly when Shiori resigned with a frown. He had trumped her. And because of that he could keep her blind and safe for another day.
If there was one thing he realized after the Moto mission it was that he could no longer afford to lose her. He didn't want this to happen, not while he was in the middle of spying on an organization like Akatsuki. But it has and if he was to remain calm and collected, he needed to rid himself of unnecessary worries. One way of doing that was to make sure that Shiori had an ounce of knowledge on how to keep herself alive.
That night he dreamt of Shisui. His bestfriend had laughed at his face in the most insulting way possible. And when his guffaws calmed down enough for him to talk, the older Uchiha said, "I've always known you're a softie, 'tachi. But I never expected you to get so worked up over a crush."
They had just finished a mission in the Land of Waves when news of the tragedy was relayed to them by Pain. Orochimaru had orchestrated an attack against the Hidden Leaf. The Third Hokage was one of the casualties. The news had hit him like a wrecking ball to the jaw and it was all he could do not to drop everything and rush to Konoha the first chance he got.
'Sasuke,' he thought miserably. His otouto had become more vulnerable than anyone was aware of. Nobody knew about the deal he had made with the late Hiruzen Sarutobi. Aside from Danzo, the old man had been the only one in Konoha who was aware of the real reason behind the massacre and the agreements made in lieu of it. With Hiruzen gone, no one will be able to stop Danzo if he decided to strike on Sasuke. No one except him.
As soon as Pain asked for one of them to check on the village's current situation, Itachi volunteered in a heartbeat. The Third Hokage didn't change the codes to the village's barriers just so he could drop by to check on Sasuke if he wanted to. He hadn't considered availing to this privilege in the past but with the current events, he had used it as his ace. He also added keeping tabs on the nine-tails' jinchuriki as one of his objectives and not long after, he had formulated a convincing and airtight alibi.
As they rushed towards Fire Country, he could tell Kisame was surprised that he had volunteered. Members of the Akatsuki often dreaded going back to their homeland, not wanting to be recognized or bump into former comrades. This applied to him as well. Had it not been for other factors coming into play he would have stayed as far away from the shinobi village as possible.
"The village was at the height of prosperity. What a shame."
Kisame stole a sideway glance at him. They were perched on one of Konoha's walls overlooking the massive village when the thought crossed the Uchiha's mind. He didn't think his partner would pick up on the sincerity of his words. The swordsman surprised him by doing just that.
"That was out of character. So even you have feelings for your birthplace after all?"
The lie rolled out of his tongue without a single hitch.
"No. Not at all."
The mission had been a disaster. What started as a simple surveillance run had landed his former senpai and his beloved otouto in the hospital. Hatake Kakashi had succumbed to the effects of the Mangekyou Sharingan. Sasuke had fared worse. His broken wrist and cracked ribs barely scratched the surface compared to the psychological damage he had cost him, all in the name of the Uchiha honor. The "sorry" he had whispered for every blow that landed on his little brother sounded like mockery no matter how much he meant them. His sick heart clenched painfully and breathing became difficult, like his own body was punishing him for the heinous acts he was committing. He thanked the gods when Jiraiya came to the rescue. The one-third of the Legendary Sannin gave him a reason to stop and retreat.
"It was two against one, Itachi-san," Kisame argued as they sped out of Konoha borders. "We could've taken him down and taken the jinchuriki with us."
"You don't know what the Toad Sage is capable of," he replied. It was true. Jiraiya might struggle doing it but he was more than capable of wiping the floor with their faces.
He refused to stop running until they reached the Hidden Grass Village. In another surprising turn of events, Itachi bypassed the little dango shop and made a beeline for the shop two stalls down.
"Who are you and what have you done to the real Itachi?" Kisame joked as he took the seat across the young shinobi. The dark-haired boy handed him a bottle of sake after pouring himself a full shot.
"Help yourself."
Shiori could tell something was off just by looking at him. For one he was glowing pink from the tips of his ears to the visible patches of skin on his neck. His eyes, which were their normal dark color, had an unusual glint in them. It was a phenomenon Shiori was all too familiar with, one that she associated with stolen bottles of sake and dreadful hangovers in the mornings after.
She blinked a couple of times to make sure it wasn't just her imagination playing tricks on her. Itachi still looked drunk.
"No way," she murmured.
If Konan noticed anything she didn't mention it. She continued with her report regarding the occurrence of clan members with bloodline limits going missing. The kidnappings were spreading all the way to the Hidden Grass Village and Orochimaru was still their prime suspect.
"Were you tailed?" Itachi asked, giving a pointed look at Shiori.
"In the beginning we were," the kunoichi replied. "Their suspicions vanished when one of the market vendors recognized her."
Itachi made a sound which was halfway between a surprised gasp and a hiccup. "How?"
"He was a regular customer of the merchant caravan I used to travel with."
"You never told me you were a merchant."
"More like a merchant's daughter. I didn't think that information was important so I didn't bother. My apologies."
"We could put those street smarts into good use for more espionage missions," Konan pointed out. "You just need a bit of polishing."
Shiori looked down on the floor and said nothing while Itachi gave Konan the coldest poker face he could muster.
Not one for small talk, Konan quickly dismissed herself and vanished into an explosion of paper butterflies leaving Itachi, Kisame and Shiori to themselves. The swordsman shifted the Samehada on his back before excusing himself.
"Give me a minute to take a leak and we're good to go," he said in a gruff voice, hurrying out of the room in search for a toilet. The remaining two stood side by side in silence for a few seconds before Shiori burst with the question she had been itching to ask.
"You drunk, Itachi-san?"
"Nope."
"Right," she drawled, not bothering to hide the fact that she wasn't convinced with his blatant lie.
"You need to work on your chakra control," he said in an attempt to change the subject. "You may have most people fooled with your acts but it will be trickier to shake off a sensor type when you have a foot of chakra leaking out of your bare skin."
"I've been practicing, believe me. But it's not as easy as it sounds. Actually it's quite difficult-"
"- If you have practiced as often as I told you, it wouldn't be -"
"-More difficult than masking that floral scent you have on...from one of your female friends I assume."
The silence that followed stirred the rage Shiori felt within her and she couldn't explain why. At that very moment, she hated Itachi with a passion. The mere sight of him made her want to kick his shins.
"What I do in my free time is none of your business." There was a hint of irritation in his voice. Shiori should be scared. Instead she just got more riled up.
"I know. Don't worry though. That cherry blossom perfume matches your rosy cheeks." God, how she hated Itachi. And cherry blossoms.
Kisame walked in on the two glowering at each other and for a split second, he was hesitant to interrupt them.
It was during the trek back to the Land of Hot Water that Shiori heard about what happened in Konoha. Punches had been thrown and people had been hurt. Among those who suffered extensive damage was Uchiha Sasuke, Itachi's younger brother. Hearing that it had been the older Uchiha who gave him the nearly fatal blows left a strange aftertaste in her mouth. She stared at Itachi's back while he walked ahead of them. It suddenly made sense to her why he had gotten so smashed that day. She remembered how it crushed his heart when he first subjected the then eight-year-old Sasuke to the Mangekyou Sharingan in the past. The fact that he had to do it again for the sake of protecting him must have pushed Itachi so close to going over the edge and just losing it. Alcohol and sex were pathetic means of numbing the guilt but with Kisame watching his every move, what else could he have done?
He had just taken the numerous pills and potions Sora had instructed him to take and he was ready to leave that dreadful day behind when a familiar presence outside his door caught his attention. It took that person several minutes to muster the courage to knock. Even then Itachi was tempted to ignore her. She knocked again. This time he gave in. When he opened the bedroom door he made it a point to expose the bite mark that faceless woman left on his chest from earlier that day. He wanted to drive her away. He wanted to be left alone. Monsters like him made terrible company anyway.
His plan almost worked. Disgust flashed across her eyes at the sight of his bare skin but Shiori was determined.
"Tell me about what happened in Konoha," she had said.
"Kisame has told you everything you need to know."
"I don't care. I want you to talk about it."
"Hn." A sarcastic smile graced his dry lips. "I shared dango with you for a day and you already think you can order me around."
The look on her face was priceless.
"Go to sleep Shiori-san. I'm sure you're tired too." He had made a move to close the door but Shiori stopped him.
"Listen to me," she hissed. "Maybe it's because you're so damn smart that you feel like you can do everything by yourself but the truth is you're wrong. No man is an island Itachi-san. No matter how powerful you think you are, if you plan to take on everything alone then you're bound to fail. I don't want you to fail. That's why I'm here to let you know that...that you have me. Talk to me. I promise I'll do what I can to help. I owe you that much."
"You think a person like you can help me?" He might had sounded arrogant but at least he wasn't deluded. He had fallen from grace years ago and there was nothing anyone can do to help him with that.
"We don't know unless you let me!" she exclaimed, flinging the half-closed door away from him. Small hands landed on his shoulders and gave them a firm squeeze.
"Please. Talk."
Make sure Pain-sama never finds out.
Itachi took her by the arms and slowly pushed her back before closing the door between the two of them.
She didn't leave immediately and kept on standing on the spot he had pushed her on. She was close enough for him to feel her chakra. If he stood as close to the door as he could and rest his forehead on the cold wood he could still feel the warmth of her presence and so that's what he did. He sighed at the relief she had unknowingly provided. It made him realize why he found himself looking for ways to spend as much time as he could near to her. Her very presence soothed him, like a balm to the festering wounds his soul had silently endured since he was thirteen.
Shiori stayed rooted on her spot for a good ten minutes before she dragged her feet back to her room. Every step that took her away made him shiver until there was just him and his demons once again. In the dead of the night, with only the moon as his witness, Itachi allowed himself to cry. He cried for his honor which was now in tatters, for Sasuke who had endured the unbearable pain and shame caused by the betrayal of his aniki, for the family he had been forced to let go of, and finally for his own humanity, which he had lost while traversing this pitch black path he had chosen for himself.
'If you plan to take on everything alone then you're bound to fail.' Shiori's words haunted him through the hot tears and the fire in his chest. And as he doubled over to catch his breath, he found himself wishing he could take back what he just did to her.
"Don't go," he mumbled in the darkness of his room. "Shiori don't go."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Some of the conversations in this bit (Kisame-Itachi) are directly taken from episodes of the Itachi Shinden in Naruto Shippuden. The silent apologies by Itachi to Sasuke are also anime canon and therefore not mine. So is the scene in the Land of Waves. I've been trying to make the previous chapters light because I know this angst-bomb was coming. Anyways, hope you enjoyed it.