CHAPTER 5: My Darling
But he, that dares not grasp the thorn
Should never crave the rose.
Anne Bronte
…
Uchiha Sasuke is everything everyone aspires to be.
That is a fact he knows well.
Who wouldn't want to be him?
He is handsome, strong, Rookie of the Year, the Uchiha heir, and most importantly, Uchiha Akari's twin brother.
Just like the civilians whisper to him, there are few in Konoha as blessed as Sasuke.
Hn.
What a load of bullshit.
Honestly, Konoha is particular in his worship. It is a place that both pities and reveres and where adults prey on two eight years old orphans barely a few weeks after a tragedy. A village that is greedy for the vestiges of a bloodstained clan yet that lets its murderer run free.
Sasuke might be too harsh on his village– God knows how much Iruka despaired over his Will of Fire.
But the Uchiha heir cannot give his heart to Konoha, not when it rightfully belongs to someone more deserving.
Now, don't get him wrong. Sasuke is not ungrateful for the Leaf's adoration – though that adoration is aimed towards Akari and not him – as it makes life in the village easier. Better be loved than hated like the dobe who the citizens love making his life as miserable as possible. Though those useless fools quickly learned not to, Naruto is Team Seven. The dead last is theirs before he is the village's, and Sasuke takes care of what is his.
Sometimes, the dark-haired child wonders if Naruto hates the twins for being revered while he gets spit on. But that thought dies as soon as it comes for the team's sunshine – as Akari so well nicknamed him – follows their lead like a puppy. Naruto is an orphan, unattached, and thus, safe to keep near.
It's us against the world.
A world that is fake and cruel, even in their love for they don't see the cracks slithering in their vision of the perfect Uchiha heir, content with praising him for the slightest thing like breathing correctly, showering him with hallow compliments as if it could make up the loss of his family.
There still hadn't been a day in which someone didn't gush over him, yet their words don't reach him, they barely do register as nonsense chatter, wasted breath, and ultimately useless. Sasuke knows how someone's admiration can be fickle. How they only see the Uchiha name and think of greatness, another of his shadow that just won't leave Sasuke – it won't leave him alone whether it be in his nightmares, in his memories, or even in reality.
Heavy is the head that wears the crown as the saying goes.
Heavy is the crown of a massacred legacy and Sasuke sometimes catches himself resenting it for the shackles it brings. Though Akari shares its weight with him, and it makes things better.
Between the two Uchiha twins, Sasuke is the one that attracts strangers' eyes like a beacon of light.
He is the one people respect, admire, and fear in almost equal measure.
The stares and wary glances weigh heavy on his back. Their so-called love and admiration vanishes before a fraction of warmth can even reach him.
(People keep Sasuke at arm's length, close enough to be able to bask in the golden hue that his name brings but far enough to never truly connect and be vulnerable with are always wary of him snapping and murdering everyone.)
It's not like he needs any of them anyway. Sasuke has his twin sister and that is all he will ever need.
But Sasuke will always remember the first and only time Akari wore a low ponytail, silky ebony hair tied loosely at the ponytail's end along with her classic, high collared Uchiha dark grey shirt. An Inuzuka had called out to his beloved twin, barely a month after she was tortured by that man.
"Itachi?!" the girl had called out.
The world had frozen, and civilians gaped at the sheer audacity. Sasuke had never wanted to kill someone other than Itachi yet here that trash stood, a trembling hand hovering near her mouth and the other gripping at one of her dogs' fur. The other two whined and growled at him. Sasuke's mouth opens, waves of harsh, sneering words ready to flood out of it yet they all die before he can get them out.
Akari had turned around, a smile on her lips even as her fists clenched, and she was practically trembling. "No," she enunciates properly, almost as if slowing her answer for the Inuzuka to understand. "I'm his younger sister, Uchiha Akari."
"I-"
Ignoring the apology that is sure to come if the Inuzuka knows what is good for her, his beloved twin sister then proceeded to drag him away from that brainless bint. Perhaps, if he hadn't noticed – he is the only one that does – Akari's flinch at the man's name, well, he would have let it slide. But Sasuke cannot, not when Akari flinched, not when there is a chance for her to remember Sasuke's failure. He just got his sister back. He won't lose her again.
People's eyes always snap towards him whenever he shows the tiniest bit of frustration. He doesn't anymore. Iruka tenses when his perfect and powerful hits become vicious against the dobe.
Sasuke is of Itachi's flesh and blood after all.
Though, he has to admit it is funny that while Konoha's population adores him as a genius shinobi in the making –like his brother, as awful as it sounds, and a part of him wonders if his father would be proud of him now that Sasuke has shown genius potential? – they forget that Akari is her brother's sister too.
If Konoha must be wary of Sasuke, they should fear Akari as well.
For they are the same, two halves of the same soul.
But Konoha doesn't see. Doesn't see the noose Aniki that man has tied around Sasuke's neck, dangling Akari's well-being in front of him mockingly as the rope tightens and tightens till he can no longer breathe because if he kills her, if he destroys the sole good thing that remains then what is there left for Sasuke? What good can he even do?
There's one thing and one thing alone to do.
To kill that man.
Kill Itachi Aniki Itachi Aniki Itachi Aniki Itachi Aniki Itachi Kill him
Kill him or lose everything.
It's simple really. It's the life Sasuke has been condemned to the second the first Uchiha fell to his blade. It's the justice that his gutted mother deserves. It's the protection his twin sister deserves for being born alongside someone that failed to protect her from him.
Sasuke hadn't been strong enough at eight.
And he still isn't strong enough – though he thinks (with dreaded hope) that Team Seven will give him that strength. The dobe and Kakashi are both orphans, lonely souls that have latched on Akari's kindness like moths attracted to a brilliant flame.
Life in Konoha has always been 'us against the world'.
But Team Seven doesn't need to be the world.
No one wants the Uchiha heir to be too powerful too soon.
When he shared that thought with Akari, his head resting on her lap and her delicate fingers playing with his hair, she laughed bitterly. "Of course. No matter how powerful it may be, a pawn must remain a pawn. And you, sweet brother, are too great to stay a pawn. It threatens them."
Sasuke agrees.
The Hokage too tries to hinder his quest for justice.
"You are only children. You still have time to grow stronger." The old man said when the twins went to him. Sasuke had been confident their leader will see the wisdom of having the last two Uchiha become stronger. But the man didn't want to see. "Enjoy your childhood, enjoy your time at the Academy."
What a funny world.
Childhood.
Children.
The twins, before being children, are first and foremost Uchiha. Uchiha shinobis. They had already wet their blades red, in their clan's name.
The Hokage speaks of being a child, of having a childhood, but what childhood?
The one that didn't last and was burnt down by their eldest brother's hand?
The one where Sasuke had been confined in his shadow, always the spare, never at the front unless it is in his twin's eyes?
Don't make him laugh.
The world doesn't want him to succeed.
No one does.
Except for Akari.
Sweet, ever-so-loving Akari that loves him and only him.
Because they've always been together. They'll always be together. Sasuke and Akari. He had dragged her by the foot at their birth, already connected in the womb, it is only right for them to leave the world the same way.
She is his.
His to love, his to protect, his to treasure.
And Konoha is trying to take her away. Betrothing her to Nara Shikamaru, that lazy fool who thinks himself so clever yet remains unable to see beneath the layers of lies and deceits Akari clothes herself in – a self-defense mechanism she hides behind, knowing that he alone wants what is best for her. He alone truly loves her.
Because Akari is the peace he craves in this rotten world.
…
The betrothal is sprung on them unexpectedly, already a done deal before Sasuke can nip it in the bud.
It is another attempt at separating the twins, Sasuke is sure of it, and he is getting tired.
But as it turns out, Sasuke doesn't end up murdering the Nara for it.
A shame really.
Though the Uchiha heir knows it is but a mere fantasy – it's not like Sasuke would actually kill Shikamaru, Akari likes that guy too much for him to even entertain such thoughts Sasuke would do anything for his twin, anything but let her go – but clearly, Naruto didn't know that.
Quite frankly, the dobe's tackle as the two left the training ground was a bit too much, and Sasuke makes to share his opinion on that matter thoroughly through a good punch to the gut. The Uchiha heir would have hit Naruto's head, but then again, it would be like stabbing yourself with a kunai. The dobe is enough of an idiot as it is, Sasuke doesn't want him to lose any more brain cells. The team needs them, as few as they are, for missions and training.
Instead, Sasuke goes to meet the Elder Council, in proper, formal Uchiha garb, and with Naruto's lecture on 'it's bad to murder our comrades' ringing in his head.
The Uchiha heir is seated in front of the Elder Council, head held proudly as his forehead protector gleams from the sunlight, ready to save his sister. She is too important, too treasured to ever be used in the callous way the Elder Council has treated her, promised her to an upstart without asking her or him for that matter.
He will not stand for it.
It helps that Kakashi is there too, in solidarity with their team or rather to preserve Akari's freedom.
"Yes, Akari-hime is betrothed to Nara Shikamaru. I do not see how this is a problem." The elder woman enunciates in her raspy voice. Her skin is wrinkled and her head, gray.
Sasuke does. Plenty of problems in fact, but more so that Akari is his before anyone else and he does not want to change that.
"It is when we did not know of it before it was announced," Sasuke hisses, fists clenching. His dark eyes glare daggers as he tilts his chin up stubbornly. "I am the Uchiha Clan Head, you have no say in her marriage."
Kakashi pats his shoulder, slouching as he stands, and his porn book tucked in his hand unopened. "Maa," he drawls with an eye crinkle. "I agree with Sasuke-kun, here. Akari-chan is merely twelve years old with an entire career ahead of her. There's no need to already plan her betrothal."
The elderly woman sniffs hauntingly. "Regardless, it does not change the fact that the Uchiha clan is at the brisk of extinction. It falls to the Council's pejorative to not let the line die."
"She's fourteen!"
Kakashi tightens his grip on Sasuke's shoulder in warning as the younger boy almost springs to his feet in fury and disgust. Is that all that Akari is worth to them?
"And a Konoha kunoichi. Uchiha-dono, you do understand that Akari-hime is the last pure-blooded female Uchiha since the Warring Clan Era, and thus, she is priceless? Out in the field, she will be hunted by Kumo and other villages to try and gain the Sharingan. We cannot allow the Uchiha bloodline to fall."
Why must that awful woman rub his family's non-existence in his face? How dare she objectifies Akari, his twin sister?!
"I do understand that my sister is a brilliant shinobi in her own right and not a broodmare for the Council to use."
Careful, a voice that resembles Akari's whispers in his ear, always the voice of reason. Too much rebellion can easily be considered as treason. Just follow their lead, in the end, everything is lies anyway. Akari is wise and knows how to play others like a fiddle, and so, Sasuke reigns in his fury.
"There's no hurry," Sasuke continues and tries to make his voice drip with butter – like Akari's drips of honey when she talked to Iruka. "Akari can serve the Uchiha clan after completing her duty to Konoha as a shinobi."
"A long engagement then. Or, perhaps she does not need to become a kunoichi." One of the elders ponders aloud, pushing the bridge of his glasses up. Sasuke sputters, ready to protest vehemently because how dare he imply that Akari would be useless – Kakashi tenses next to him – but the bandaged elder speaks up before Sasuke can.
"No, Uchiha Akari is the best kunoichi of her generation and her progress in fuinjutsu should not be ignored. It would be a shame to allow such a promising asset to waste away in the village."
Thank you.
Sasuke agrees completely. Akari would wither and so would he if they are separated.
"I agree, Danzo," the woman adds. "However, Konoha currently only has three sharingan users in its force, all of them on the frontline. Perhaps Akari-hime would better serve in the research department."
"Restricting her field abilities would only hinder Konoha's future. The same could be said about her wedding to the Nara heir. Once she achieves the status of jounin, if she has started to bleed, then it can be concretized. As for her protection, I can have a powerful and discreet shinobi to act as a bodyguard." the elder, Danzo with his narrowed eye and bandaged arm, counters.
Kakashi straightens at the suggestion. "There's no need for that, Danzo-sama. Uchiha Akari is under my lead in Team Seven. I will take care of her and will thank the honorable council to leave such matters and her protection in my hands as her jounin sensei as I am sure they have more important matters."
If they had been among Team Seven, Sasuke would have let out an amused Hn. But it isn't Team Seven – they aren't safe here – so he refrains. Yet, who would have known that Kakashi would give such a polite fuck you to the Elder council? Perhaps Akari's influence? How amusing.
"That does not comfort us in the slightest, Kakashi-kun, to leave such a valuable kunoichi in your hands." Once more, the woman speaks up. "Lord knows what happened the last time you promised protection to a kunoichi."
The next thing that happens is one for history.
Honestly, Sasuke has always seen Kakashi as this nonchalant, who cares kind of man. Though his sensei and another sharingan user, well, it is hard to respect someone that does not nurture them properly (Sasuke still cares for the man that tried to save them from Zabuza. For the sensei who promised them safety, the first time anyone fully cared outside of Akari). His tasks are always too simple, and his teaching habits and frequency are too slow.
Akari has shared Kakashi's impressive bingo book page and Sasuke had been thrilled to train under a praised genius – Itachi had been a genius too, perhaps has even served under Kakashi and wouldn't that be great? – but Team Seven is, well, not a disappointment per se, but not exactly what he had wanted.
In summary, the Uchiha heir thought his sensei a confident, careless assassin. Yet the aura of fury intermixed with self-loathing and wrath that cloaks him, sharingan blazing and a low rumble resembling a growl escaping his masked lips makes Sasuke's senses prickle in worry and perhaps raises his respect higher.
Akari had warned him of thinking so lowly of his fellow shinobi. Just because someone's bark is quiet, doesn't mean their bite won't kill. But how can Sasuke not hold them in contempt? If they were so powerful, so great then where were they? Where was Konoha when the Uchiha were slaughtered by a madman?
(Where was Kakashi – Uchiha Obito's precious person who received one of their sacred eyes as a gift – when the twins' world was crumbling?)
"Enough." The Hokage, who had till then remained silent, snaps, his usual soft eyes hardening, reminding Sasuke that the Professor earned his title by drenching the elemental nations in red, decades ago. Shinobis die young. "Koharu, that was out of line. Kakashi, stand down."
"Surely, you realize the folly of trusting such a priceless kunoichi to Comrade-killer Kakashi, Hiruzen?" Koharu argues, unrelenting even as his jounin sensei's killer intent recedes, folds into himself like a dog tucking away his fangs at his master's orders.
"I trust Kakashi to do his best with Team Seven, with Akari-chan and the rest. He is the best jounin sensei for the Uchiha twins, something we have already agreed on beforehand." The Hokage then throws a kind, grandfatherly smile at Sasuke – a curve of the lips fake like the ones Akari throws around. Sasuke has never been one to enjoy deceit – Itachi had hidden his cruelty and selfishness well – but he knows how to recognize them, be it to see the snakes and enemies surrounding him or to see beneath Akari's façade when her mind becomes too much for her to handle.
Sasuke gives a respectful nod as Konoha's leader continues:
"And I trust Sasuke-kun to know what is best for his twin sister."
What is best for Akari? Her happiness.
Clearly Itachi's death.
But Konoha has allowed him to escape justice, even as their family's corpses rot six feet underground, their murder left unpunished, and their souls unable to find any semblance of peace. So yes, Sasuke might know what is best for his twin sister, but the Leaf cannot give it to him.
"Hn. I'd like for us to remain under Kakashi-sensei's guidance."
The Hokage laughs good-naturedly at Sasuke's typical Uchiha response, his cigar in hand
as he takes a puff of smoke. The smell is bitter and unfamiliar to him, and if he was
anywhere but in the Hokage's office, surrounded by Elders that do not care for him and do
not wish for his success, he would have wrinkled his nose.
"Mahhh, Sasuke-kun, I didn't know you loved me that much." His sensei drawls from his side, once a ferocious wolf, now all but a pup, defanged by the Hokage. Sasuke suppresses a flinch.
Sasuke isn't sure if he is able to love anyone other than Akari. He had loved him and look where it got him. But if Sasuke could, he would love his team.
"Hn."
And there's that.
…
Nara Shikamaru doesn't dislike many things as it would be too troublesome to keep track of everything and care at the same time.
But if there is one thing he particularly dislikes is fights. Not in the traditional sense, of course as he is training as a shinobi and has always lived a ninja's lifestyle, lived seeing its darker side. Rather, he dislikes those battles in which words are swords, poisons are your own mind turned against you by others, and wounds fester, unable to heal for they are not tangible.
Those wars children seem so good at, tearing each other apart.
Chouji has suffered a lot from those battles even as a young child, and still bears those scars despite Shikamaru's best efforts. Now, don't get him wrong, the Nara heir hates everything unnecessary, but it is really, really troublesome to see Chouji suffer like that.
So, Shikamaru tries to help, but realistically, what good can an eight-years old do against an already established pecking order?
He approaches it like Shogi.
Strategize and protect the important pieces.
But it is an unfamiliar field in which he does not know all the strategies, all the rules, and weapons used. Thus, he begins observing his classmates and tries his best to shield Chouji till he can find a winning strategy.
It's not like he has anything better to do, the Academy proving itself too slow to stimulate his brain.
First is Naruto, the loudmouth that everyone seems to hate. He is brash, childish, funny, and knows next to nothing about the battles Chouji faces. The blonde might not know about them and not understand them, but it doesn't mean he doesn't fight them too.
That kicks him out of his observations. If Naruto cannot help himself, he cannot help Chouji.
Next is Ino. As the Yamanaka heiress, she is well versed in those polite battles and should be a precious ally to him. He knows her since they were but toddlers. But, she is too obsessed with Uchiha Sasuke, too caught up in her own battles to truly help. Plus, Ino is too immature and too loud. She is kind, yes, and Shikamaru knows she would help Chouji in a heartbeat, but it is not quite what he seeks.
Then his attention goes to the two most popular kids in their class and things get interesting.
At first, it isn't.
There's nothing much about the top of their class. Uchiha Sasuke thinks very highly of himself and broods continuously in class. He sneers at adults' pity and snarls at his fangirls, an emotionless boy though he adores his twin sister who adores him back.
As for Uchiha Akari, well, she smiles brightly. She's friends with everyone, second-best in the class, and is adored by adults. There's nothing more to it till there is.
It started with a mistake on her part.
Shocking, he knows.
But Akari is eight, barely a month after the massacre, and has been absent from class for two weeks. She starts to play with chakra.
They have barely started its theoretical aspect and here is Uchiha Akari, second-best in their class and already using it. Must be the famed Uchiha genius manifesting again. Again, a bit surprising, but irrelevant in the greater scheme of things. Shikamaru brushes it off. It's not the first time Konoha would have an Uchiha genius, her eldest brother being a well-known one and her twin on his way too.
Yet, a few months later, it is Uchiha Sasuke who excels with the leaf exercise, the first and only one in the class capable of surpassing the level expected of their class. Akari, leaves only lingering on her hands before falling prey to gravity, smiles, and claps in delight alongside the others as Iruka-sensei gushes over Sasuke's excellent control as if she did not have it too. As if she hadn't already surpassed that level months ago.
Interesting.
Then, a year in, Shikamaru is awoken from his blissful nap by Akari. A sheepish smile on her pink lips, she leans down closer to him, whispering: "Hey, do you mind if I sit next to you? I won't bother, it's just getting a bit loud." She tilts her head towards her usual seat, all filled with desperate fangirls and wrapped boxes.
"Troublesome. Sure, go ahead."
"Thank you."
Shikamaru tries to go back to sleep. But sleep doesn't come, only a burning curiosity about the puzzle that is working next to him. He steals a glance at Akari's opened notebook and is met with a shocking amount of information on Asahi Jiro, a bully older than them by two years and one that insults others as frequently as he breathes. Huh. Shikamaru didn't know that Jiro's parents were divorced, both caught in affairs, and thus, a sore subject for the bully.
Two days later, Jiro harshly pushes Chouji to the ground and calls him a useless fatass, his little friend group all bursting into laughter. It has been a long day and Chouji, wounds already raw from Amy and her friends' cruel words, sniffles.
Jiro. Is. Such. A. Freaking. Drag.
"Shut up, Jiro." Shikamaru doesn't snarl, but it is a close thing.
"You gonna do something about it, dead last?"
"You-"
Yes Shikamaru is going to do something about it damnit because Chouji is his best friend and no one gets to call him a fatass and to make him cry and gets away with it. Even if that someone is two years older, and thus more experienced in fights and even in bullying. 3% of chances to make Jiro leave the two of them alone, what a bother.
"Clearly someone has to since your parents are too busy cheating on each other to educate you." Someone pipes in.
All heads turn around.
Uchiha Akari quirks an eyebrow, hand delicately tucked in the crook of Sasuke's elbow. She is still smiling, but her smile lacks the warmth Shikamaru associates with it.
"Akari-chan…" Jiro, suddenly all smiles and charm ark, takes a small step forward but flinches at Sasuke's glare.
"Don't call my sister so familiarly," the Uchiha heir sneers, overprotective and insults biting as usual. "A worthless bully like you shouldn't even be in the Academy."
Jiro stomps his feet, red in humiliation. "Shut up!"
Akari tilts her head, eyes bright and doe-like. "But nii-chan, isn't he the one Mizuki-sensei was complaining about? You know, the one whose father bribed the teacher to keep him in the program because he failed too many times?"
87%.
Her remark is well-timed, sharp, and well-aimed.
No, but really. Where does Akari get that information? Why is Jiro so hurt after only a few words from her? How could the class's sweetheart so easily wield the same kunai older people use?
His father once said that to truly wield a weapon, one must bear its scars for the first step of success is failure.
She's nine – they are all children, nine at best – and she's Uchiha heiress, beloved by all and privileged as all clan heirs are.
Where did she learn how to thread on that kind of battlefield?
He wonders if her soul bears her kunai's wounds. Or if being a genius has exempted her from them. It's probably the latter.
It wouldn't make sense otherwise.
"W-What? Aka-!"
Sasuke interrupts him, making a shooing gesture. "Go away Jiro. No one cares. Go cry to your mommy." At the Uchiha heir's words, Jiro flinches as Sasuke smirks. "Oh, that's right. Your mother doesn't care either."
Jiro takes a step backward, sniffles, and runs away, quickly followed by the rest of his gang.
Shikamaru stares at the twins. He is sure that if he was to look down, he would see a trail of red from where Jiro was standing. It is the first time he sees a casualty that isn't Chouji. He likes it.
Akari twirls back towards Shikamaru and Chouji, brows creased in concern and eyes soft, but not with pity. Shikamaru had noticed it. How both twins never pity. It is comforting.
"You alright, Chouji?" she asks.
Chouji nods, stealing a smile from her.
"Great," she chirps, clapping her hands. "Don't listen to Jiro, he's an ignorant brat that doesn't know anything."
After that incident, Shikamaru approaches her in class, eyes sharp and layered questions on his tongue. Akari answers back, eyes almost a mirror to his own, and answers as curved as her lips curl into a grin.
Troublesome girl.
She's intriguing. Troublesome, but intriguing.
Her mind is a palace he has no access to yet remains curious of.
…
Another year passes.
…..
Chouji used to hunch in front of strangers' eyes, used to avoid them as much as possible, and used to stop breathing to make himself look thinner sometimes.
He stops, eats with more confidence, and shrugs off the rare insults that come his way. But they are rare for no one wants to poke at the overprotective Uchiha heir when he is near. With Akari as a best friend, it is always. Nor do they want that quiet, almost disappointed stare Akari shoots bullies when their filthy mouths open near her.
Chouji's happiness is a victory Shikamaru is most proud of.
And true to his lazy nature, with Akari firmly in his friend group and someone he appreciates, he decides to forgo deception for once. Shikamaru asks the Uchiha heiress what her little game is all about. The detailed notes, the sharp tongue, and the fierce protection. The Nara heir hopes he isn't ruining everything.
Akari laughs, though not unkindly.
It is a different laugh, not as soft and melodious as the ones he heard before in class.
It is a real one, and it is beautiful.
She then pokes him on the cheek, smiling cheekily at him. "Don't try to study me little Nara. You won't graduate." She tells him.
Shikamaru smiles back. It's hard not to smile back when Akari beams so brightly.
"You'll find out soon enough that it only makes me more curious. I want to try," he replied.
She stares at him for a little while before giving a small whistle. Her eyes remain guarded – not the fortress it has been at first – but Akari still refuses to remain defenseless, even in front of him. "Wow, you must really do nothing with your life, then."
Her tongue always gets sharper when she is defensive. Sometimes, Shikamaru wonders what Akari sees to be wary of most people.
A thought, so ignorant and ridiculed he banishes it quickly, comes to mind. Words are like kunais, Akari had told him so. Healers and protectors, or killers. The shadow user would have thought she had been on the kunai receiving end, but it wouldn't make sense. After all, someone will die before Sasuke allows his precious sister to be hurt.
"Well, there hadn't been a lot of interesting things in my life. Till now."
Akari blushes and he laughs at her muttered 'troublesome'.
Troublesome indeed.
…
Shikamaru hates fights.
He has said so before and will continue to say so till the end of his days.
That is if Akari doesn't decide to hunt him down for what he did, for drafting a marriage proposal to the Elders. Now don't get him wrong, Shikamaru doesn't regret it. The Nara heir is selfish like that. He isn't sorry for what he did. Only sorry that the news had to be sprung to her so suddenly, and most certainly not by his own voice.
Akari is bright, warm, and fierce.
People love her, worship her.
And sometimes, when eyes follow her everywhere, and whispers echo her every step, he wants to tuck her to his side, and say "mine" just so that they stop judging and looking.
"I'm not an object, Shika." She will surely yell at him, eyes blazing, and a snarl curving her pink lips.
Shikamaru knows she isn't. She is Akari, his best friend. He just doesn't want to lose her, to others, to time.
Though, she is a best friend who he hasn't seen for a while, even when Fueko-obaa has slyly mentioned she congratulated their future matriarch.
Huh. That's troublesome.
Shikamaru is used to Akari's unapologetic brightness with the witty, cunning quips and fierce love. Since they were mere toddlers, she had been around him, and since they were nine, almost joined at his hip. He is not used to her absence and apparent cold shoulder.
The Nara heir wonders if she's planning something. Or anything at all. Akari's reactions show how much she truly cares for her friends.
He is not used to her silence. He doesn't want it either.
Shikamaru finds her close to the Naka River, ankles deep in the cool water, and seated on the grass. She knows he is there but doesn't acknowledge him which is fair enough. At least Sasuke isn't there. The Uchiha heir is the type to stab before talking.
The silence continues, only disrupted by the waterfall.
Fortunately, or unfortunately – depends on how you see it – Shikamaru misses Akari too much to indulge in the silent battle. He has always been hopeless at that kind, and she has always been the best at it anyway.
"Akari," he calls.
Akari ignores him, doesn't deign lift her eyes away from the waterfall as Shikamaru drops next to her. Even though his best friend, fiancé now, doesn't acknowledge him, he stays by her side, staring at her till she rolls her eyes, scowling.
"Shikamaru." Akari says flatly.
The Nara heir eyes her, his gaze sharp and considering. His skin is prickling, and he has to stop himself from biting his lip. It doesn't feel right, to hear Akari talk with such indifference to him, to not hear her endearing – though he will never admit it – nickname for him.
"Troublesome. You know." He sighs, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Know what?" Akari gives him a mocking, little smile as she tilts her head to the side.
"Don't play dumb Akari, it doesn't suit you."
"Neither does being a broodmare yet here we are."
Her voice is bitter and her tone although cold, sounds betrayed. Shikamaru almost flinches, almost regrets his decision. But he cannot, because it is Akari.
"You're not a broodmare," he tells her flatly and she laughs. Not her usual, beautiful laugh, it is a brittle and cold one.
"You say that Shikamaru, but I hear something else. Why would you enter a betrothal agreement if not?"
"To save you."
Ok.
So.
That might not be the best thing to say, especially to Akari. Shikamaru wonders if he can take it back, but Akari's glare tells him it's too late. Damnit. His genius brain seems to have left him, leaving him wincing beneath Akari's fiery indignation, floundering for words.
"Save me?" her tone is disbelieving, rightfully so because Akari is the best kunoichi in their generation, and he is well him. Too lazy to have trained as hard as she did, never understanding her urgency for more. "Now, listen here Nara Shikamaru. I don't need saving, never did, and am not planning to need it anytime soon. And even if I somehow did, I would have asked. So, get off your moral high horse because this isn't about saving me."
It shouldn't be as comforting as it is to see her mad and hear her cutting words. But Akari hides behind polite curtsies like a shield, an armor, and she is his best friend, his future wife, and she shouldn't have to hide from him.
He welcomes her wrath like an old friend, confident in her love for him that she would never harm him, be it by jutsu or by words. Just like he will never break her heart, never leave.
"Troublesome. I take that back, I didn't mean it that way. You can always say no, I won't take offense. It's your choice."
She laughs coldly. "My choice?" she repeats. "Ha, as if. I don't have any say in this. Neither does Sasuke."
This.
One word spat with so much disdain.
This.
Betrothal. Marriage.
It's not Akari's choice, they both know it. But as the Uchiha heiress, she has a duty to the village, a duty to her family line to continue it. It's not fair that she of all people is coveted like a prize to be won, not fair that her happiness and freedom could be stolen away from an overzealous fiancé who does not care her, only for her blood and beauty, but it is life.
As the Uchiha princess, Akari must continue her family bloodline limit.
As the Nara heir, he must marry and continue the main line.
So, logically, the best option would be to marry Akari. Two birds, one kunai. It also helps that Shikamaru lov- likes Akari, is comfortable with her, unlike the other kunoichis his family presented to him.
Thus, the Nara sent their offer to the Elder council as soon as they could.
It's a selfish thing to do, to be honest, essentially trapping her in the arrangement with him. If she truly loathes it, well, no one can truly refuse Akari once she puts her mind to it. Even if it is for an annulment. Though his best friend won't be able to escape her obligation.
Their loyalty will always be to the village after all.
"You will do foolish things for the one you love. Anything to keep them happy." Fueko-obaa had told him.
"Is it a bad thing?" young Shikamaru had asked.
"Only if you don't know your priorities well."
As heirs, they have a duty to Konoha, a duty to their clans.
But Shikamaru likes to think that he is the better option, that he can give her the happiness he knows his best friend longs for.
Akari is still glaring at him.
The Nara heir bows his head a little in shame.
He regrets not telling her beforehand, for allowing her to be blindsided, but he hadn't expected her mission to take that long. Hadn't thought her brother would awaken the Sharingan in a C-rank mission.
Shikamaru wants Akari in his life, is that so wrong?
"I don't want to lose you." He admits, barely a whisper only meant for Akari's ears.
"So, instead, you're forcing me into marriage."
He understands her frustration. Yet she of all people should understand the games that adults play, her role as a valuable piece and he is trying to protect her happiness the best he can. Konoha and their clans come first, their happiness second. But he is really trying.
"You would be forced into one either way."
The observation earns him a curl of the lips, too sharp to be a smile, too something to be a sneer.
"True. I just didn't think that it would be my best friend who would do me so dirty."
Shikamaru rubs a palm to his face.
"Look, I get that you're mad that I didn't tell you beforehand. But I couldn't tell you beforehand, it would have failed otherwise!"
"And I get that! It's fine, Shika, I'll get over it." She tries to wave him off as if her frustration and pain don't affect him too. He catches her hand and gently drags her closer to him. She leans on him.
"I'm sorry that you have no choice in this. I wish there was a better way."
Akari sighs, her eyes devoid of its usual fire – the one Shikamaru calls troublesome yet he wouldn't have her any other way – as her head drops to his shoulder. "We both know there isn't one. Though I guess it could be worse. I could have been stuck with a Shimura."
And wouldn't that be dreadful?
Humans are selfish and greedy.
Shikamaru is greedy to be able to call Akari's heart 'home'.
Shikamaru shifts so that Akari is at his front, arms circling her and tucking his chin over the crown of her head. "Does it bother you that much?" he asks quietly.
Is it him the problem?
Akari bites her lips. "If it's you, then no, it doesn't bother me that much Shika. If I had to choose, you'd be my first and only choice."
Her words make him smile, make his heart swell.
"I'll make you happy." He promises.
He truly means it.
"Hn. I'm sure. But," she continues and of course, there's a but. "You have to understand that Sasuke will always be my priority."
Ah.
Of course.
It's something he likes about Akari, her devotion to the people she loves. Traitorously, he can't help but want her to love him the same way. To look at him with the same passion, like he is the sun and the moon and the stars all in one.
But she doesn't.
Patience Shikamaru.
…
I killed a plant once because I gave it too much water. Lord, I worry that love is violence.
José Olivarez
…
Author Note: Hey!
So this chapter might not do much in term of story telling and advancing the plot, however, I really wanted to show more of the characters' perspectives outside of Akari's. If I could add a tag to this story it would be #unreliable narrator, ahaha. I hope that this chapter was still interesting as it delves into the mindset of the people closest to Akari. Let me know your thoughts!
PS: Next chapter, Chuunin Exams
PPS: I changed their ages because quite frankly, I was a bit uncomfortable with the talks of marriage with a twelve-year-old (I know that fourteen isn't much better, but is is an improvement). Also, I think them being older better suits all the things I have planned for them :)
Thus, the Massacre happened when they were eight and they graduated the Academy at fourteen.
OMAKE: (For those who scrolled through the end hehe)
A day after Akari is mistaken for Itachi:
"You…" Sasuke seethes as he stomps over that foolish Inuzuka girl, the one who dared to hurt Akari, HIS Akari. She is Kiba's elder sister, the would-be heiress if she hadn't been too much of a coward to accept such a dutiful honor.
She gets up from her crouched position. "Sasuke-san, listen…"
The sheer audacity of the girl makes him want to retch.
"No, you listen!" he snarls and the cement beneath him cracks a little. "Don't you ever approach my sister like that again, do you get it?"
"Yes, of course, listen, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to –"
"I do not care for your stupid and useless excuses, the harm's done." Hana, it is the useless girl's name, nods at his words and Sasuke's lips curve into a hateful sneer. "Count yourself lucky that Akari does not remember what Itachi did to her during the Massacre," the girl flinches. Yeah, Sasuke knows she had been out of the first amidst the reinforcements that came too late to save his family. He heard enough whispers from civilians, too callous not to gossip of the horrific sight even near him, as if it wasn't his family that had been massacred. "If she ever shows an ounce of discomfort because of you, those three dogs won't be able to track the different parts of your body down, got it?"
"i- Yes."
With a curt nod, Sasuke stomps away, not noticing the crow perched in a tree close to the confrontation, listening too closely for it to be normal crow-like behavior. Instead, the Uchiha heir continues his way to the compound, only to see Akari sitting on the edge of their bed, hands trembling and gripping at her hair tightly. Sasuke takes them in his, cradles them as if they were the most precious thing in the world, and gives them a small squeeze.
"I- I'm not him" His twin sister whispers almost brokenly. Her eyes snap towards him, wild and urgent as if begging for him to understand. "I'm not. I'm not, I swear Sasuke –"
Of course, she isn't. Where that man has been cold, selfish, and unfeeling, Akari is warm, loving, and devoted. Nothing can change that in his mind.
"You're not, Akari, you're not him. You're my jewel, my twin sister, right?"
A tear escapes her eye, she doesn't even notice – her mind is fogged and distant, he hopes that memories of the Massacre still escape her – so Sasuke reaches out and gently wipes it away.
"Yeah. Twin sister." She repeats, giving him a small nod, eyes still glistening and face ashen. "I love you Sasuke, so much"
"That's right, and I love you too. So, so much." Sasuke tells her.
She continues, not hearing him. It's alright, he'll say it enough, will swear it on his heart and soul every day. "I love you, he didn't, Sasuke, he left, he left and I'm here, and we're the only ones left-"
She crumbles into his arms and he tucks her head in his neck, pressing his lips to her head, arms tight around her. "I know," he whispers to her. His throat is tight, and his chest aches as his shirt become wet with tears. But this is fine, more than fine even because Akari is still here. "He didn't love us. He left us alone. But I love you and you love me, we'll be fine."
Her sobs are her only answer.
Outside of the room, a crow with rubies for eyes watches as the two siblings break onto their bedroom's floor, masks off and wounds still raw and bleeding, alone in a ghost town.
And in another country plagued by rain and devoid of any sunlight, a tall, black-haired boy closes his eyes, hand clutching at his black and red robe.
Just a bit more.
Crimson escapes from one of his eyes and rolls down on a young face marked by stress and grief.
Drip, drip, drip.