Disclaimer: The characters are Masashi Kishimoto's property, I own the OCs.

Characters age:

Akane: 18 (51)

Itachi: 17 1/2 ( 34 1/2)

Shisui: 21

Naruto / Sasuke: 12

Kakashi: 26

"I'm going back on my own?" Yagura nodded.

"After your return I sent more permanent spies. They stopped all contacts two weeks ago." I frowned. "Find them, or what is left of them. Don't come back with nothing." I nodded.

"Understood."

I left the next day.

Upon coming back to Kiri, I had received a message from Minato asking me if I had seen Itachi. I had said yes and told him something weird was going on and Kiri was getting concerned. I didn't write anything about Shisui though.

Shisui was already there when I arrived on the island. We hugged and he told me Konoha was sending someone. I immediately thought of Jiraya-san, he knew his way around infiltration, and no one would spot him not being in Konoha or anything.

"You're baking a cake?"

"Why not?"

"Just…I'm gonna look for Jiraya-san."

"You don't even know if it's him Akane," Shisui reminded me, stirring his ingredients.

"Who else? He's the messenger between all parties involved."

I went to the harbor and waited for the boats to arrive. I frowned deeply at not feeling Jiraya-san but Itachi among them.

Shit.

He left for an alley, and I followed him. He was busy looking around when I landed quietly behind him. He felt me when I was behind him, and I found myself with a kunai at my throat. Itachi's eyes…I loved them as much as I could see the wrong move would get me killed.

Slowly, I showed him my hands, raised them and pulled my hood down. His cold and threatening face changed for shock and…relief? I glanced above his shoulder and frowned when I really, truly saw no one.

"Are you on your own?" I asked him. It seemed to bring him back from whatever thoughts he was having. "I guess it will have to d…" I couldn't finish my sentence that his rough hands were cupping my cheeks and that he was kissing me.

Wait, kissing me?

He slipped his tongue in my mouth, and I froze. What was I supposed to do? The last time we had seen each other it had not gone well and now he was kissing me? I put my hands on his arms to push him. I felt him relax when he felt me. He would let me push him away if I wanted to.

Did I want to push him away? Despite everything, my whole being was on fire and my heart was beating wildly as his lips were on mine.

I gave in and kissed him back. It was sweet, yet passionate and desperate almost. When we ran out of air, we broke the kiss and he hugged me tightly, my entire body pressed against his. He was breathing heavily in my ear.

"We…we need to move Itachi." He moved away and I put my hood back on. "Follow me, we'll explain what happened."

He followed me. Shisui burned his cake and Itachi punched him.

So now there we were, the three of us sitting in the living-room with yours truly taking care of Shisui's bloody nose as he was explaining what had happened to him since the last time, they had seen each other. Itachi was quiet by the end of it.

"You really had to leave then. Both of you." We nodded. Shisui patted my knee.

"Now, Akane dived straight in without really thinking but yeah."

"I…Sayuri stabbed Kou, I just…how is he? Is he…"

"Alive and well." I sighed in relief.

"What did we miss?" Itachi averted his eyes to look at his cousin.

"Your actions calmed them down a little. We have other clans in the Police Forces, some clan members left the Compound…it's getting better."

"That's good then," I whispered with a small smile. His eyes flickered to me briefly. I stood up. "It really made me hungry, all this talking and reunion…someone wants something?"

"I haven't eaten your pancakes in years!" I nodded at Shisui and glanced at Itachi.

"Want some as well?" He nodded without looking at me. "Okay, just…talk, I'll…be a woman and be in the kitchen I guess?" They both looked at me weirdly.

"I thought you hated that kind of thoughts?" Shisui asked me.

"Yeah, except when I'm the one to do it." I left for the kitchen.

I leaned on the kitchen counter. What was wrong with them? The atmosphere was tense and awkward, which in turn made me awkward. I felt like Itachi was avoiding my eyes. Or maybe I was?

I heard the guys talking until I started to pour the mixture in the pan. As I was waiting for the pancake to bubble, someone leaned against the counter next to me. I glanced at Itachi, who glanced back and then we both looked at the pan.

An uncomfortable silent settled between us.

"Was it you?" I took a sharp breath at his question. "A few months ago, at the village, was it you?"

"Yes, it was."

"Shisui said you were blond and had a pixie cut." I smiled a little.

"Yeah, I was going on the continent a lot, so someone suggested I changed my hair. Shisui didn't see me with my head shaved, he wouldn't have let me forget it." He smiled a little.

"You shaved your head?" I nodded. "It's hard to believe." I chuckled briefly.

"And yet." Itachi took the pancake once it was ready, turned around and leaned on the counter to eat it.

"Naruto tried to look for you himself." I gulped. "It was hard on him, and Sasuke."

"There are always consequences to decisions." And he had no right to tell me anything about leaving a sibling behind.

"How long had you been planning on leaving for?"

"Kiri had given three months, so July before hostilities. I was…getting ready mentally."

"Have you ever thought about telling me about it?" he asked me, and I could hear he was not expecting any answer.

"I have."

"Was it when…"

"No. I wanted to tell you because it was…a lot to digest, but I couldn't find you anywhere in the village. That day, I just wanted to tell you Sasuke was unsure of himself regarding his skills and stuff like that and that you should be careful. You did help me make up my mind though."

"Hn."

"I don't regret my choice if that's what you're looking for Itachi," I stated firmly. "I regret hurting people by doing so, but I don't regret leaving." He clicked his tongue. "I'm way better in Kiri."

"Away from your family and friends?"

"Has it ever occurred to you that maybe the reason I wanted to go to Kiri was because of my family?"

"Believe me, more than once." I sighed, the rising anger simmering down.

"I want closure. I ran away from it once and never looked back, but I never entirely closed the chapter either. I just…want to close the Bloody Mist chapter of my life, even if it takes me two lifetimes to do so. And physically…just physically speaking I'm better in Kiri and the Land of Water, I haven't had a heat stroke in so long." I smirked bitterly. "Konoha is an unhospitable environment even for that."

"Are you happy then?" he inquired quietly.

"I haven't been happy in years." I was almost out of batter. "Why aren't you mad at me?" He blinked curiously at me.

"Excuse me?"

"Why aren't you mad? I left without telling you, I went behind your back regarding your clan, I spied on you all, I joined Root and…why aren't you mad?"

"…I have been, then it calmed down." He gulped. "Why aren't you mad?"

"I know how you are Itachi, I'm over being mad." He didn't seem to like that. "The one thing I felt was… I felt stupid, that's all."

"Why would you feel stupid?" For believing him, probably.

"A lot of things." I looked up at him. "I am sorry, for leaving like that, it wasn't cool on my part. I think a part of me wanted to hurt you like I was hurting, and a part of me didn't want you to make me reconsider but…I should have told you what was going on my side, and I have not. I apologize for that." His eyes were unreadable.

"Why do you always do this?" he asked me. I frowned but Shisui came at that moment, taking Itachi's attention away from me.

What did he mean by that? Trying to take accountability for my mistakes?

He had thought about this moment for years. He had made a whole speech in his head, making points and in which order he would tell her each of them. The moment he was alone in the kitchen with her, he just couldn't get them out. She had talked, a little, but he knew there was a lot left unsaid. He had no idea what she meant by 'I know how you are'. How was he? If she knew how he was, why wouldn't she tell him?

She apologized to him as well. He wasn't expecting it. He couldn't even bring himself about being happy she had apologized because once again, she had while he had remained quiet.

"So, what do we know so far?" Shisui asked once he was done eating. "Great pancakes by the way, I missed them."

"I hope so." Itachi cleared his throat. "Right. Well, many people have come to the island in the last year and many of them are missing-nins. Mangetsu confirmed once we were home that most of them had kekkei genkai. However, we have no idea of what happened to them once they reached the island."

"Hum. We need to find Kaijior at least what happened to him."

"Kaiji?" he repeated.

"Our old neighbor, last time we came he had vanished, and he has a kekkei genkai," Shisui explained briefly. He stood up. "You guys look around town."

"What about you?" He grinned at Akane.

"It's time I claim my title of champion back."

"After my dad beat you, you mean?"

"Hey, I know how he does it now, it's terrifying just to think about it."

He didn't know what was worst, Shisui who knew how old Akane and him were and the whole story or the fact he had clearly taken his spot in the Akatsuki but was teamed up with Akane's father and not Kisame. Shisui had told him everything and it was a lot. Itachi had asked him once he was done how he was feeling regarding the spying, to which his best friend's eye became distant for a second before saying he was doing what had to be done.

"Do you have civil clothes?" Akane asked him.

"Yes."

"Let's get changed then."

He followed Akane quietly once they were in town, his eyes roaming up and down her body. He was reminded of why he would fantasize about her when they were traveling together at the same age. His body was reacting like it was before, he wanted to touch her and…

Akane looked at him when he cleared his throat.

"Are you okay?" she asked him in a whisper. He nodded. They were on a mission; he could not let his thoughts wander to perverted thoughts he had about Akane.

Was she his ex? They had not officially broken up but leaving Konoha was…saying it all. God, he didn't like the sound of that at all. He didn't like using the past tense or the word 'ex' to describe her, he wanted the opposite yet…

She snapped her fingers in front of him before taking his hand.

"Hey, I don't know what you're thinking about but please focus."

"I know, sorry." He lifted his hand in hers.

"Not everywhere here is safe, it's better if people know we're together."

"So, we act like a couple."

"Ye…" He put his arm over her shoulders and pulled her against him, still holding her hand. "…or that I guess."

"You can stop me if you're not comfortable," he told her in her ear. She turned her face away, but he could see the faintest blush on her cheeks.

It made him feel so much better. She had kissed him back earlier, so she had to still have some feelings for him as well. He had not…he had not lost her entirely, he could still fix their relationship.

They went to the harbor and tried to see where the shinobi could be taken, but there was nothing. Akane sat on a crate in an alley, and he leaned against the wall, his arms and legs crossed.

"You know the place. Do we keep digging down?"

"'Know' is a big word, I left it when I was fourteen." She looked up for a second. "Well, I guess whatever is happening to them, someone with influence is behind it. They're going to be at the arena."

"Don't make me watch Shisui fight," he droned at her. She smirked.

"I had to endure it for seven months and a half, you can sit through one." She stood up. "It's tonight though, if the system has not changed Shisui is going to spend the day there. You should get some sleep." She ruffled the back of her head. "So should I actually, I arrived shortly before you did."

It was what they did, and when night fell, they went to the arena.

"I don't remember how many fights there are."

"Hn." He glanced at her. "We're going to have to talk at some point."

"There's nothing to say." He frowned. "Fine. Why did you kiss me?"

"You kissed me back," he reminded her firmly. She clicked her tongue. "I haven't seen you in five years Akane, it was nothing compared to what I used to do."

"We were in a relationship before." His heart missed a beat. "We're enemies on the continent Itachi, you should try to kill me and not kiss me."

"I wouldn't try to kill you," he whispered as Shisui appeared in the arena. Akane just looked straight in front of her. "Akane, I wouldn't try to kill you," he repeated more firmly.

"Right." She…she didn't believe him, did she?

It was possible he was not ready to hear what she had to say in the end.

"I left; I thought the state of our relationship was clear. Even if I had not left…I was planning on breaking up anyway." He clenched his hands on the railing.

"If it's because of what I said that da…"

"No, I had taken the decision before that. I knew it was over when you didn't show up." He froze.

He knew, deep down he knew she no longer looked at him the same way or wanted the same thing back then. On New Years Eve, she had let him be with Izumi and just…his attempts at fixing their relationship were meeting an ice wall, he knew that. Akane…in her mind, they already no longer were together.

"I don't resent you though, that's the weirdest part."

"You should," he muttered under his breath.

"No, I knew how you were, and I was stupid to think this time it would be different."

"It was different, it…it still can be…" She scoffed.

"You don't even realize that it was the same thing. The only thing was that it was easier to be together before, no matter how twisted that sounds." He wanted to know how she felt, he wanted her to spill what was weighing on her.

He didn't think it would feel like she was taking a sledgehammer to slam it on his already broken heart, the pieces barely staying together.

"I'm sor…"

"Oh, please stop with that," she cut him off coldly, angry eyes looking at him as Shisui was in the final. "There's only so many times you can say you're sorry until the word loses all its meaning." He pursed his lips. "Look, you're still in your village, your family's still here and you still have your brother, and I did my best to make sure it would happen, there's nothing more I can give you." She licked her lips. "You want someone I killed five years ago because she was weak, useless and was blinded by her feelings for you when she had a job to do."

Was it how she saw herself? Weak and useless? He had never thought that about her in his entire life and yet…

It couldn't have only been his actions, there had to have something deeper.

"Do you still want to talk? Because last time I checked you were big on avoiding it."

"Uzumaki-san." She turned around. A man was coming toward them. "Junchiro-sama was wondering if you wanted a better seat."

"Sure."

It was hard to focus with what she had just told him. She wanted nothing to do with him anymore, he had thought of the possibility but see it become reality was…a lot more heartbreaking than he had thought.

He couldn't stand the thought they were truly over though. He couldn't accept it. They had a second chance, he refused to accept it was gone for good. She…she had told him she was his, that she loved him when he had nothing to offer; he had no home, no future, no money, was a criminal, was sick, yet she had loved him.

If he were more open with his feelings, told her his side…then maybe, maybe she would…accept to be just friends. He understood she didn't want anything to do with him romantically anymore. It hurt like hell, but he understood. He didn't want her out of his life for good though, so if they could just be friends, not even close ones, he would be fine with that.

"Here's my champion!" Shisui was surprised to see them and frowned when he noticed the empty expression in Itachi's eyes. "It's good to have you back."

"Thank you." They talked a little and Itachi took a deep breath, putting his inner turmoil aside for now. He looked around and spotted a man talking with another in a couch.

He knew that man.

He used to be living in Ame before until Pain killed him himself when Itachi was twenty-one. If he remembered well, he was very much against shinobi and their politics. He discreetly elbowed Akane in the ribs and showed the man with his eyes.

"Someone you know?" she asked him in a whisper.

"I knew." Shisui walked up to them.

"I'm going to go with him for now, you should go back at the apartment." He frowned.

"Are you sure?"

"It will be fine, and it's not like you could come with me anyway, it's confidential."

"Oh, okay then." Itachi glanced at Akane quickly, then Shisui's grin.

It was fake and Akane was buying it. He knew Shisui as a shinobi, he knew him probably more than Akane on this. He knew the Akatsuki.

There was something Shisui was not telling them and he wanted them out of the picture.

We went back to the apartment, and I watched Itachi packing quickly.

"Do the same," he told me firmly.

"What? Did I miss something?" He looked straight in my eyes.

"Akane, please just pack, I'll explain on the way." I did. "Where would they go?" I blinked at him.

"Are you doubting Shisui now?"

"I'm not doubting, I know he was lying." I was taken back.

He was?

"Follow me," I said quietly. Junchiro lived in the highest tower in the city.

He had developed a slight megalomania syndrome these past few years I'd say.

Itachi and I found ourselves on the rooftop of another building after I had located Shisui and Junchiro. There were other people with them. We both had binoculars to watch them.

"How can you be sure he was lying?"

"I know him," Itachi said simply. "And I've been in his position."

"Did this place exist before?"

"Not that I know. But if the Akatsuki was hired, he's obeying orders."

We watched what was happening quietly and I kept my eyes mainly on Shisui. He didn't seem on edge or anything, but he did glance our way twice. Itachi and I both hid, but he most probably knew we were here. It was Shisui after all.

I widened my eyes when I saw none other than Kaiji coming in the room. He was not…walking straight though and was acting like a robot. Shisui did not seem fazed by his appearance. Kaiji turned toward the window and I widened my eyes in horror at the seal on his forehead.

"Oh shit."

"What is it?"

"See the seal on his forehead?" Itachi hummed in response. "It's the seal my father used when we ran into the Raikage."

"And the guy?"

"It's…Kaiji." Kaji was being controlled like a puppet and Shisui was just…there?

Anger was boiling in my veins, like frustration and disappointment. I mean, we were not on the same side, I knew that but…still, it was Shisui.

I bit the inside of my cheek when Kaiji turned the leg of the chair into a knife and slit Junchiro's throat.

"It's a coup," Itachi stated quietly, putting his binoculars away. We saw explosions at the harbor in the distance and screams started to fill my ears. "Does he have children?"

"A son yes…" Itachi grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me once, but firmly.

"Akane, I get it is hard to believe but we need to find the son and put him to safety, he is next." I licked my lips and nodded.

"Yes, sorry." I made the tiger seal and tried to locate him. "Same tower, three floors below." He looked at it, trying to find a way to get inside. I took a marker and threw it at the tower.

It wouldn't stick, so when it touched the toward, I grabbed Itachi and teleported there before grabbing my marker before it fell. We were now stuck to the wall of the tower, Itachi's surprised eyes on me.

"Hiraishin?"

"Yeah, I never got to show you in Konoha in the end," I muttered.

Itachi broke the window to open it from inside. We both got in to find a kid, no older than Naruto and Sasuke, terrified in his bed with who appeared to be a nanny.

"Dad!" Itachi was quicker than me and knocked the kid out. I kept the nanny from leaving.

"Look, his dad is dead, there is currently a coup, and he is most likely next, we need to evacuate," I told her briskly.

"Why would I believe you?" She was wary and terrified. Itachi already had the kid on his shoulder.

"I'm not giving you a choice." I grabbed her, put my other hand on Itachi's shoulder and we found ourselves hidden among rocks on the beach.

The woman was about to say something but the explosions and fires in the distance stopped her. She put her hands on her mouth.

"Junchiro-sama really is…" A strangled sob escaped her lips.

"Do you have a way out?" I nodded at Itachi and threw a scroll at him. He unsealed a boat from it and deadpanned at me. I shrugged.

"It's useful, isn't it?"

It was not a big boat, but it was enough for the distance. However, I had to make a wall of ice in the sea when people started shooting fireballs at us. I jumped on it and used the Big Waterfall Technique. It worked until I was almost hit by a ball of flaming rock by a Lava Release user. Black flames covered it and it fell in the sea.

I glanced at Itachi next to me, who wiped the blood of his eye as if it was nothing. He frowned and narrowed his eyes at the beach. I followed it and bit the inside of my cheek when I saw Shisui looking at us with no emotion.

"We need to go," I told Itachi, taking his wrist in my hand. He let me drag him back to the boat, only for something to hit it.

I put my hand in it to sense anything in it.

"You know how most of them are missing-nins from Kiri?" He nodded. "They have summons. Many."

"Big ones I guess."

"Yes."

"Pull your hand out of the water then." I did, even if I was not a fan of his scolding tone.

Everything happened really fast. The boat was broken in half. I remained in one half, my wide eyes stuck on Itachi who was now in the air. He pointed at the other half of the boat, where the kid and his nanny still were. I threw a marker at him and teleported. Then I threw one at the kid's part of the boat. I was about to teleport us both there when I saw the gigantic fish coming at us.

I teleported Itachi there and tried to seal the fish in ice. There had to be another one because he was set free despite my ice being quite solid and used his tail to hit me, basically swatting me like a fly. I was thrown back in the water, vaguely aware Itachi screamed my name.

I opened my eyes when I stopped falling and blinked at Itachi swimming toward me. He stretched out his hand I grabbed it. I took a deep breath when we were resting on a piece of wood.

"It's like swimming surrounded by sharks," I told Itachi. "Hey, can I trust you to keep me alive if I do something drastic to block them?"

"Sure." I made a small ice platform and once both of us were on it, I summoned Seihitsu. There was a flicker of recognition in Itachi's eyes at his sight.

"Seihitsu, you need to be quick as fuck, get the two civilians I'm sure you are smelling right now and get them to shore. Keep them safe until we find you." He nodded. "Okay, here goes nothing. Get them out of the water before I freeze them." I crouched and put my hands in the water.

Then, I froze it. The island was not that far from the shore, so the sea was not too, too deep. Here, I'd say it was…what, a hundred and fifty-meter deep, maybe sixty? I froze it fifty-meter deep and expanded it toward the continent. I saw fireball and such coming our way from the corner of my eyes, but Itachi used his Susanoo to shield us. The attacks disappeared against his shield.

"Keep going," he instructed me.

"What does it look like?" I forced a little bit more. I felt the two civilians being pulled out of the water and Seihitsu now with them. Now…keep it going until Seihitsu.

We did that for fifteen minutes. I was an Uzumaki, but freezing twenty kilometer of the sea, fifty-meter deep on a diameter of five hundred meters was not easy.

"We need to go Itachi." I glanced at our enemies who were started to get in the water. "On three we run, use chakra in your feet if you don't want to fall." He moved next to me, making sure he would be behind me. "One, two…three!" I stood up and we started running, the ice melting as we'd run. The summons frozen in it started to move again, trying to destroy the ice from below.

I started to be sucked back. I glanced above my shoulder to see a tornado coming toward us, sucking in water as well.

"Oh sh…" I didn't have the time to use a marker of anything that I was sucked in. Itachi grabbed my hand, but he ended up being sucked in as well.

He kept me against him, his hand on my head and using his Susanoo to try to protect us, but we ended up in the sea. I passed out at the impact with the water.

Itachi regained consciousness slowly. He could feel the sand beneath his hands and the cool sea breeze on his face. He opened his eyes to see dawn on the horizon, the sun giving the sky a pinkish hue behind the clouds.

He was soaked and shivered when the breeze blew on him. Despite his sore body, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. He was on a beach. The last thing he remembered; he was on the sea with Aka…

"Akane." He looked around. Akane was right next to him, her wrist still in his hand. He released it, feeling bad for the red marks on it, but he knew that at least she was still here.

She was soaked as well. He checked her pulse and almost sighed in relief when he felt it. He shook her a little and she blinked at him, a frown on her face. She saw him and it took her a few seconds for the confusion to disappear.

"Itachi…"

"It's me, we're safe." She groaned a little.

"No…do I have something in my thigh?" He raised a brow and looked down. Indeed, there was a shard of ice, probably half his forearm in size, stuck in her left thigh.

"Come on, I need to take care of that." She grasped his flak jacket to pull herself on her feet, but he scooped her up instead. "A comment?"

"…I'm in pain." Blood was slowly soaking her pants. "I think I have healing seals."

"Do you think you can stop the bleeding like you did in the Chuunin Exams?"

"Hum…tired…head spins…"

"Touch your head for me." She blinked. "Please." She did and winced. She showed him her hand, which had blood on it. "Your head too then. Stay awake."

"…cave…there are always cave…"

"There are not always…" He spotted one. "Hn." She smirked faintly.

He put her down and made a fire. He didn't take any of her seals and took one of his own; he had copied a few with his sharingans when he had started to run low on them. Akane looked at his used booklet with disdain.

"You still have that old thing?"

"Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"…it's not good."

"It's perfect, even years later." He put the seal on her head and was relieved about the changed expression on her face. "Now don't think anything weird but take your pants off once I have removed the ice." She furrowed her brows and looked down. She blinked at it and widened her eyes.

"Oh shit it's big." Itachi removed his flak jacket to use it to protect his hands as he grabbed the ice. "Huh…really?"

"I'm sure you've had worst."

"Well…well yes bu…AOUCH!" She hit him repeatedly in the arm, although not hard enough to hurt him, biting on her lips. "You didn't warn me…"

"Never warn someone for real when you're about to do something painful to them. Anticipation makes it worse."

"Sure but…" She sighed and unbuttoned her pants. He helped her remove her shoes and once he could see her wound, took what he needed to take care of it.

He raised his knee up to his chest and put her ankle on it, stretching out his other leg so she could lean her other leg against something. Their legs were mainly tangled together.

It was far from the first time, just like it was far from the first time he was seeing Akane half naked. He wasn't expecting her shirt to look like a swimsuit, but with short sleeves and thicker in material. Still, her legs were completely bare, and she didn't seem to mind. He did notice the shiver when he touched the skin on her thigh, especially when he carefully bandaged the bloody gash. He had used one of his medical seals to stop the bleeding and make sure it would not bleed again, the skin and flesh would heal on their own.

"Tell me if it's too tight," he said quietly as he cut the gauze with a kunai. He started to tie it and, not seeing any reaction, made it quite tight. "Akane, you're not listening to me."

"I'm not," she agreed, staring above herself, her hands on her stomach. "Hey, if I slap Shisui very hard in his stupid face next time I see him, does it make me a bad friend?"

"I punched him," he reminded her, carefully putting her leg back down.

"Yeah, you should have made out with him too." Disgusting. "It's just…when we left, we talked, a lot and he said we'd be a team and work in the shadows and all of that and now he…"

"He didn't exactly betray us." Even if Itachi did not like hearing they were working together and leaving him out of it.

"I'm pretty sure I saw him with the people shooting fireballs at us."

"Yes, but…he used his sharingan to talk to me." She sat, leaning back on her hands. "He said we needed to go to a place called Kinzoku in the Land of Iron and find someone called 'Shinobu'." Akane took her chin between two fingers.

"Before we went to the Isle of the Lost, we traveled but I don't think we went to the Land of Iron. Is it to go to someone he met since he joined the Akatsuki?"

"For one, he could have met them during one of his missions for Konoha. Then, weren't you the same?"

"What? At least I…"

"Traveled with us, it is worst." She glared at him and grabbed her pants, putting them close to the fire so they'd dry.

"You shouldn't have let me then."

"I wanted to." She froze for a second and looked away.

"Whatever. 'Shinobu'? We don't even know if they're a guy or a girl."

"Your name is unisex too."

"Whose side are you on!?"

"The one where he is not a different person." She closed her mouth. "Akane, I understand you can feel like you failed him or something because he is in the Akatsuki, but he chose this and knows the consequences."

"He told you to tell me that, didn't he?" Itachi nodded.

Shisui had been brief when he had trapped Itachi in his genjutsu. Take the child to Shinobu in Kinzoku in the Land of Iron, tell Akane he knew the risks of his actions and it was not her fault, and that whatever his position toward Konoha ended up being, as well as the view people there had on him were on him only.

He had to agree with Akane though; it did not make it better. Shisui did not have the blood of their clan on his hands, but Itachi knew all too well how bad he would feel doing missions for the Akatsuki that disagreed with his values.

"Motherfucker." She looked at him. "You're going to get sick too if you stay like this." He looked at himself. He was still soaked.

Without a word, he removed his shirt. He didn't comment on Akane's eyes lingering on his bare skin. He helped her to sit properly in front of the fire.

"Does it hurt?" He raised a brow at her. "I wasn't aware you had your Mangekyou, does it hurt? You used it a few times."

"I lost the pain tolerance I had gained," he said simply. It had hurt a lot. It still did, he could feel a painful tingling beneath his skin in his whole body. "How's your back?"

"Probably turning purple." She pursed her lips. "I trust Seihitsu, and there's no way we can protect these two properly over several countries right now, but how long do you think we need to rest?"

"Your leg is injured, unless you finish healing it, we won't be quick, so I'd say we should rest a few hours and then go find them." Her fingers went over the bandage.

"We probably shouldn't go tog…"

"It's the beginning," Itachi interrupted her. "I don't think they're going to stay away from the continent anymore, it will be an issue for all shinobi villages soon." She pursed her lips.

It was true, but he also did not want to say goodbye yet. He had just gotten her back, much like Shisui. Shisui was already gone so…he didn't want Akane to go back to Kiri just yet. Or never if it was up to him.

"Only one of us should go with them to the village in the Land of Iron then." He frowned, staring at the fire. "Now, don't get your panties in a twist. We are from enemy villages, and I have a way worst reputation than yours, I don't think going in a country that usually does not allow shinobi together is a good thing."

"It's not that they don't allow shinobi, they don't want us to interfere with their samurai system," he corrected her.

"Itachi, you'd be in trouble if you were seen with me," she told him firmly. "I ended up leaving with Shisui and I still feel bad about it, I'm not getting you in trouble." She raised her brow, challenging him to find a response to that.

"Just…don't leave without saying goodbye this time," he asked her quietly. She winced a little at that and looked down, guilt and shame written all over her face.

"Sure."

"Do…" She looked up at him. "Do you hate me?"

"Huh? Do I act like I hate you?" He looked at her and she sighed. "It would be easier if I hated you and were completely indifferent to you, but I…well, I know I'll always love you, so I made my peace with that." He gulped but the hope died quickly when she pointed a finger at him with a frown, fiery eyes directed at his face. "But we're not getting back together. Not now and probably never. I mean, we can't anyway with the whole village situation, but you know, I'm…I don't think I'd get back up again when it fails."

It wouldn't fail. He wouldn't let it fail a third time. Honestly, he might give up his duty as the heir and leave his clan if she asked him at this point if it meant they'd get back together.

Now he was with her, he was painfully aware of the missing part of himself for the past five years and wondered how the ache could have ever dulled.

However, she seemed determined not to want anything to do with him romantically speaking. He didn't know if it was temporary or not, he hoped it was, but he would respect it. At some point he would…need to explain himself but…it was not the time for now.

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