i'll keep the lights out, i'll tell you fairy tales
Fandom: Naruto
Characters: Uchiha Itachi & Haruno Sakura
Prompts: 07. hardest truth & 37. training & 36. caught in the act
Word Count: 1824
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Notes: Part of a mini-series entitled Chiaroscuro. 9/31 complete. Sequels/Prequels can be found here at CHIAROSCURO. Written for lover100 & 50_shinobi & 500themes.
-
It was nearing eleven when the four decided to take a short break. They had already been training since the break of dawn, and it showed, because they were all sweat, dirt, and more sweat. Sakura looked sorriest of them all, but she had improved much since the very first time she’d trained with them. That time, she had done pretty much nothing but eat dirt for the entirety of their training session. It was an experience she had absolutely no wish to repeat. But that had been nearly two months ago, after they had all healed from their first mission together. Now, they had more than five missions under their belt together, and Sakura was adjusting well to their team dynamics.
Wiping her brow with her hand, Sakura laughed. “Next time I won’t be so nice, Shiranui.”
“You’ve got to be the most violent woman I know, Haruno.”
“Aww, when’d you become such a sweet talker?”
Genma smirked. “And only you would consider that a compliment.”
They reached the tree where Itachi and Shikamaru had already settled down under a moment later. With a smile, Sakura sat down between them. “How’d your spar go? Shika, you look like shit.”
At her good natured quip, the lazy man grunted. “Itachi’s a tyrant.”
Sakura was about to reply, but the neat boxes of food between them effectively distracted her. “Who brought the food?” On cue, her stomach growled. Sakura had the decency to at least blush slightly before picking up one of the rolls.
“Ino dropped by earlier to leave this for us.”
Sakura cooed. “Who knew Pig would adjust to domestic life so well?”
Shikamaru grumbled something under his breath about her troublesome living habits, but left it at that. Sakura wanted to giggle at how absolutely adorable they were, but managed to hold it in. Ever since the two of them had moved in together last month, their relationship had reached new heights. Ino’s domesticity for one, and Shikamaru’s taking initiative to do things, was another.
“Speaking of domesticity…”Genma started. Sakura knew the suggestive tone well, and paused in her chewing. “I heard we have another potential clan matriarch here with us today. Men, we should be so honoured!”
At this, Itachi also stopped eating. Clan matriarch? Did Sasuke propose? But even if he did, Sasuke wasn’t the clan heir. What is Genma spouting about?
Shikamaru raised a curious brow. “You and Sasuke are dating?”
“Wh-”
“Oh Sasuke! He completely slipped my mind,” Genma cut in before Sakura could interject. Genma turned to Sakura with an absolutely scandalized look. “Who knew you had it in you? I’m starting to look at you in a whole new light, Haruno. Two clan heirs fighting for you. Well, 1.5, I suppose, since Itachi here’s the actual heir.”
At the confused and angry look on Sakura’s face, Genma burst out laughing. “I’m just teasing, Haruno.”
“What’s this all about?” Shikamaru turned to Sakura also, curiosity shining in his dark eyes.
“Well…”
“She’s debating which clan will be less of a prison for her; Hyuuga or Uchiha. What do you think, Cap?”
Itachi said nothing in reply to Genma. Sakura dared to sneak a peak at him, but his obsidian orbs were more guarded and unreadable than usual. The silence hung heavy between them for seven tense seconds before Sakura burst out, “It’s not really anything with Neji. We just went out once.”
Genma shook his head in mock disappointment, clucking his tongue. “So that’s it then, you’ve settled on becoming the Cap’s dear sis-in-law? I hear the Hyuugas are a lot more fun than the Uchiha lot though.”
This time, there was no one to interrupt her as she blurted out a shocked, “What?!” She recovered slightly after a few seconds. “Who the hell said I was marrying Sasuke? Who said we were even dating?”
Genma gasped in mock surprise. “’tis no use denying it, princess. I saw it with my own little eyes.”
Again, that unfortunate memory came to mind. When Sakura realized Genma was referring to what he saw that night, she punched him “playfully” on the arm. The man barely kept in the grunt of pain.
“I know what you saw, Genma, but we’re not dating. Sasuke and Naruto are both brothers to me.”
“You sleep with all your brothers?”
Sakura sighed and shrugged. “We were inexcusably drunk. It was a one time thing.”
“A little birdie told me it was your first time, too,” Genma added with a slight snicker.
For the second time, Sakura looked affronted, but there was no malice nor truth behind this particular jab. “Who told you?”
At this point, Shikamaru, sensing the dangerous atmosphere that had been conjured by Genma’s careless jokes, interjected. He turned to Genma with a stern stare. “That’s enough. Leave the poor girl alone.”
Genma shrugged an okay. The familiar twinkle in his eye, though, hinted to all present that this was not the last of it. The easy atmosphere between the four had all but dissipated. A curtain of silence fell over them, thick and impenetrable.
Throughout the exchange, Itachi had been eerily quiet. Although not quite uncharacteristic of the stoic man, he was as intimate as he could be with all currently present. Usually, he would offer at least a sentence or two to the discussion. But today, he’d been completely silent, his mind whirling away.
We’re not dating. Sasuke and Naruto are both brothers to me. We’re not dating.
Sasuke had a lot of explaining to do. In actuality though, any explanation he could come up with, Itachi had probably already figured out. It was obvious by Sakura and Genma’s banter that at the very least, Sasuke and Sakura had slept together. This set a load of mild annoyance in Itachi’s chest, but it was a feather compared to the load it had just set free. The heaviness that had filled his person since Sasuke’s unceremonious “we’re dating” disappeared. Ironically, it was also the first time Itachi acknowledged it at all, having denied its very existence until that moment. Before, it would have been troublesome, as Shikamaru would have put it, to have any thoughts about his otouto’s girlfriend.
But now? a voice in his mind echoed.
But now, it was like he was that fourteen year old boy again, feeling the warmth of hope for the very first time. Hope was the feeling that the tiny slip of a girl had handed to him in the form of a bouquet. Hope was also the affection that she’d nurtured in his heart over the last nine years. Hope, as he’d soon learn, was the precursor to something entirely foreign to him.
From his peripheral, he saw Sakura give him a curious glance. Those open viridian orbs of hers were turbulent, vivid, vivacious, and unafraid. There were so many emotions dancing through them, and Itachi saw them all in that flash. Curiosity, shyness, amusement, dissipating anger…Itachi saw them all, more emotions at once than he’d ever allowed himself to feel, much less display.
Not for the first time, he realized how absolutely different they were. It was exactly this difference that had piqued Itachi’s interest in her for the first time, nine years ago. And it was still this difference that kept his mind and heart interested in this blossoming woman, a paradox in her own right.
Itachi itched to say something, to push her buttons a little, to tease her, even…but he refrained. Sasuke first, Sakura later. Although it irritated him to know that he’d been tricked by his little brother, it was the reason behind this trickery that had Itachi frowning. What could Sasuke possibly be planning? In this moment, it mattered not, though. Now that he knew the truth, there was plenty of time. Ever since he had boldly asked her to join their team, she was training with them nearly as much as with Team Seven.
The puzzle that was Sakura was one he wanted to take a long time to solve. This was now the real beginning, building off the foundation of nine little years. Whatever was to come in the next weeks, months and years was a mystery Itachi had no wish to rush through.
-
“Sasuke.”
The man in question looked up from his mission report, surprised that his aniki had spoken. “What?”
“You and Sakura have been dating for quite a while.”
“Yeah, so?”
Itachi folded up his newspaper neatly and set it down on the table. “Okaa-san would be quite delighted to know that Sakura is likely to become her daughter-in-law.”
It amused Itachi considerably to see Sasuke pale somewhat at his words. The latter recovered quickly though, and shrugged. “We haven’t thought about that yet. Plus, the longer Okaa-san is kept in the dark, the better it is for us. It’s just not necessary at this point.” Or at any point, really. Just until you get over your damn interest in her, Sasuke thought. The quicker the better. If she finds out, I’m fucked.
“I see. You two must not be so serious, then.”
“We are,” Sasuke all but barked, annoyed now. “And why do you care?” Saying this, Sasuke had an odd sense of déjà vu. Their last tense conversation had also been about Sakura. Sasuke did not like the implications of that.
“Really,” Itachi deadpanned, ignoring the latter part of his comment. “Her date with Hyuuga Neji must have been nothing, then.”
Sasuke froze. Sakura went on a date with Neji? What the fuck? When did this happen? Why the hell didn’t I know about it? He opened his mouth to reply but pinched his lips shut again. There was a curiously foreign expression on Itachi’s face, one that Sasuke had never seen before. Was this a god damn bluff?
He didn’t have a chance to find out, though, because Itachi had already gotten up. Before his older brother left the table, his expression darkened and he pierced Sasuke with his deadly gaze. “Genma mentioned that you two were dating today, but Sakura denied it with such vehemence…” Itachi faked a shrug. “You two must have some fantastic reason for keeping such secrecy, for her to hide it from even her own team mates.”
The for instance, because you’re not really dating went unsaid between them.
Itachi walked away then, leaving Sasuke to digest his words with an ashen face. Sasuke knew his aniki too well to not catch the unsaid implication. He knew that dangerous tone, that gaze of his. Itachi was warning him not to tread further, which meant…
Which meant, god damn it, that he knew. Sasuke brought his hands to his temples and started massaging. There was going to be hell and chaos around here, and soon. He could already feel a migraine coming on.
--
From the other room, Itachi smirked to himself. This was already proving to be more fun than he’d originally thought.
Characters: Uchiha Itachi & Haruno Sakura
Prompts: 07. hardest truth & 37. training & 36. caught in the act
Word Count: 1824
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Notes: Part of a mini-series entitled Chiaroscuro. 9/31 complete. Sequels/Prequels can be found here at CHIAROSCURO. Written for lover100 & 50_shinobi & 500themes.
-
It was nearing eleven when the four decided to take a short break. They had already been training since the break of dawn, and it showed, because they were all sweat, dirt, and more sweat. Sakura looked sorriest of them all, but she had improved much since the very first time she’d trained with them. That time, she had done pretty much nothing but eat dirt for the entirety of their training session. It was an experience she had absolutely no wish to repeat. But that had been nearly two months ago, after they had all healed from their first mission together. Now, they had more than five missions under their belt together, and Sakura was adjusting well to their team dynamics.
Wiping her brow with her hand, Sakura laughed. “Next time I won’t be so nice, Shiranui.”
“You’ve got to be the most violent woman I know, Haruno.”
“Aww, when’d you become such a sweet talker?”
Genma smirked. “And only you would consider that a compliment.”
They reached the tree where Itachi and Shikamaru had already settled down under a moment later. With a smile, Sakura sat down between them. “How’d your spar go? Shika, you look like shit.”
At her good natured quip, the lazy man grunted. “Itachi’s a tyrant.”
Sakura was about to reply, but the neat boxes of food between them effectively distracted her. “Who brought the food?” On cue, her stomach growled. Sakura had the decency to at least blush slightly before picking up one of the rolls.
“Ino dropped by earlier to leave this for us.”
Sakura cooed. “Who knew Pig would adjust to domestic life so well?”
Shikamaru grumbled something under his breath about her troublesome living habits, but left it at that. Sakura wanted to giggle at how absolutely adorable they were, but managed to hold it in. Ever since the two of them had moved in together last month, their relationship had reached new heights. Ino’s domesticity for one, and Shikamaru’s taking initiative to do things, was another.
“Speaking of domesticity…”Genma started. Sakura knew the suggestive tone well, and paused in her chewing. “I heard we have another potential clan matriarch here with us today. Men, we should be so honoured!”
At this, Itachi also stopped eating. Clan matriarch? Did Sasuke propose? But even if he did, Sasuke wasn’t the clan heir. What is Genma spouting about?
Shikamaru raised a curious brow. “You and Sasuke are dating?”
“Wh-”
“Oh Sasuke! He completely slipped my mind,” Genma cut in before Sakura could interject. Genma turned to Sakura with an absolutely scandalized look. “Who knew you had it in you? I’m starting to look at you in a whole new light, Haruno. Two clan heirs fighting for you. Well, 1.5, I suppose, since Itachi here’s the actual heir.”
At the confused and angry look on Sakura’s face, Genma burst out laughing. “I’m just teasing, Haruno.”
“What’s this all about?” Shikamaru turned to Sakura also, curiosity shining in his dark eyes.
“Well…”
“She’s debating which clan will be less of a prison for her; Hyuuga or Uchiha. What do you think, Cap?”
Itachi said nothing in reply to Genma. Sakura dared to sneak a peak at him, but his obsidian orbs were more guarded and unreadable than usual. The silence hung heavy between them for seven tense seconds before Sakura burst out, “It’s not really anything with Neji. We just went out once.”
Genma shook his head in mock disappointment, clucking his tongue. “So that’s it then, you’ve settled on becoming the Cap’s dear sis-in-law? I hear the Hyuugas are a lot more fun than the Uchiha lot though.”
This time, there was no one to interrupt her as she blurted out a shocked, “What?!” She recovered slightly after a few seconds. “Who the hell said I was marrying Sasuke? Who said we were even dating?”
Genma gasped in mock surprise. “’tis no use denying it, princess. I saw it with my own little eyes.”
Again, that unfortunate memory came to mind. When Sakura realized Genma was referring to what he saw that night, she punched him “playfully” on the arm. The man barely kept in the grunt of pain.
“I know what you saw, Genma, but we’re not dating. Sasuke and Naruto are both brothers to me.”
“You sleep with all your brothers?”
Sakura sighed and shrugged. “We were inexcusably drunk. It was a one time thing.”
“A little birdie told me it was your first time, too,” Genma added with a slight snicker.
For the second time, Sakura looked affronted, but there was no malice nor truth behind this particular jab. “Who told you?”
At this point, Shikamaru, sensing the dangerous atmosphere that had been conjured by Genma’s careless jokes, interjected. He turned to Genma with a stern stare. “That’s enough. Leave the poor girl alone.”
Genma shrugged an okay. The familiar twinkle in his eye, though, hinted to all present that this was not the last of it. The easy atmosphere between the four had all but dissipated. A curtain of silence fell over them, thick and impenetrable.
Throughout the exchange, Itachi had been eerily quiet. Although not quite uncharacteristic of the stoic man, he was as intimate as he could be with all currently present. Usually, he would offer at least a sentence or two to the discussion. But today, he’d been completely silent, his mind whirling away.
We’re not dating. Sasuke and Naruto are both brothers to me. We’re not dating.
Sasuke had a lot of explaining to do. In actuality though, any explanation he could come up with, Itachi had probably already figured out. It was obvious by Sakura and Genma’s banter that at the very least, Sasuke and Sakura had slept together. This set a load of mild annoyance in Itachi’s chest, but it was a feather compared to the load it had just set free. The heaviness that had filled his person since Sasuke’s unceremonious “we’re dating” disappeared. Ironically, it was also the first time Itachi acknowledged it at all, having denied its very existence until that moment. Before, it would have been troublesome, as Shikamaru would have put it, to have any thoughts about his otouto’s girlfriend.
But now? a voice in his mind echoed.
But now, it was like he was that fourteen year old boy again, feeling the warmth of hope for the very first time. Hope was the feeling that the tiny slip of a girl had handed to him in the form of a bouquet. Hope was also the affection that she’d nurtured in his heart over the last nine years. Hope, as he’d soon learn, was the precursor to something entirely foreign to him.
From his peripheral, he saw Sakura give him a curious glance. Those open viridian orbs of hers were turbulent, vivid, vivacious, and unafraid. There were so many emotions dancing through them, and Itachi saw them all in that flash. Curiosity, shyness, amusement, dissipating anger…Itachi saw them all, more emotions at once than he’d ever allowed himself to feel, much less display.
Not for the first time, he realized how absolutely different they were. It was exactly this difference that had piqued Itachi’s interest in her for the first time, nine years ago. And it was still this difference that kept his mind and heart interested in this blossoming woman, a paradox in her own right.
Itachi itched to say something, to push her buttons a little, to tease her, even…but he refrained. Sasuke first, Sakura later. Although it irritated him to know that he’d been tricked by his little brother, it was the reason behind this trickery that had Itachi frowning. What could Sasuke possibly be planning? In this moment, it mattered not, though. Now that he knew the truth, there was plenty of time. Ever since he had boldly asked her to join their team, she was training with them nearly as much as with Team Seven.
The puzzle that was Sakura was one he wanted to take a long time to solve. This was now the real beginning, building off the foundation of nine little years. Whatever was to come in the next weeks, months and years was a mystery Itachi had no wish to rush through.
-
“Sasuke.”
The man in question looked up from his mission report, surprised that his aniki had spoken. “What?”
“You and Sakura have been dating for quite a while.”
“Yeah, so?”
Itachi folded up his newspaper neatly and set it down on the table. “Okaa-san would be quite delighted to know that Sakura is likely to become her daughter-in-law.”
It amused Itachi considerably to see Sasuke pale somewhat at his words. The latter recovered quickly though, and shrugged. “We haven’t thought about that yet. Plus, the longer Okaa-san is kept in the dark, the better it is for us. It’s just not necessary at this point.” Or at any point, really. Just until you get over your damn interest in her, Sasuke thought. The quicker the better. If she finds out, I’m fucked.
“I see. You two must not be so serious, then.”
“We are,” Sasuke all but barked, annoyed now. “And why do you care?” Saying this, Sasuke had an odd sense of déjà vu. Their last tense conversation had also been about Sakura. Sasuke did not like the implications of that.
“Really,” Itachi deadpanned, ignoring the latter part of his comment. “Her date with Hyuuga Neji must have been nothing, then.”
Sasuke froze. Sakura went on a date with Neji? What the fuck? When did this happen? Why the hell didn’t I know about it? He opened his mouth to reply but pinched his lips shut again. There was a curiously foreign expression on Itachi’s face, one that Sasuke had never seen before. Was this a god damn bluff?
He didn’t have a chance to find out, though, because Itachi had already gotten up. Before his older brother left the table, his expression darkened and he pierced Sasuke with his deadly gaze. “Genma mentioned that you two were dating today, but Sakura denied it with such vehemence…” Itachi faked a shrug. “You two must have some fantastic reason for keeping such secrecy, for her to hide it from even her own team mates.”
The for instance, because you’re not really dating went unsaid between them.
Itachi walked away then, leaving Sasuke to digest his words with an ashen face. Sasuke knew his aniki too well to not catch the unsaid implication. He knew that dangerous tone, that gaze of his. Itachi was warning him not to tread further, which meant…
Which meant, god damn it, that he knew. Sasuke brought his hands to his temples and started massaging. There was going to be hell and chaos around here, and soon. He could already feel a migraine coming on.
--
From the other room, Itachi smirked to himself. This was already proving to be more fun than he’d originally thought.