Simple Manipulation

.:Twenty-one:.

...You know, he couldn't see that she could be his everything, bringing light to everything now...

It was a very misty fog, so much so that dew collected on the cloak as you slowly followed Itachi. The town was eerily quiet, as if it were deserted. "So..." Itachi spoke once you were out of the town's limits, "...what did you say was in the journal?"

You looked down at the ground as you walked, choosing not to answer.

"I read the entire folder."

You stopped cold, staring at his back. He noticed and stopped too. "...What did you think of it?"

"Apparently, what I think of it doesn't really matter. What matters most to me..." He turned to face you and you immediately dropped your eyes to the ground. "...is whether or not you believe it. You haven't been able to look me in the eye since Sasuke left."

You suddenly felt nauseous.

His hand found your cheek and guided your face upwards, forcing you to look at him. His breath caressed your lips. "Do you believe I would do such things?"

Your heart pounded in your ears, making you light-headed. His eyes flickered red, forcing you to answer him truthfully. "Y-yes."

His hand fell away. "Really." He let out a half-hearted chuckle. "Well, it's all true. I did kill them...and Shisui, too, for that matter. For you."

"What?" You shook your head. "Why?"

He leaned back against a tree, folding his arms across his chest. "The first day, when Gai ordered me to tutor you, things were fine. I made it all a game to amuse me...using my Sharingan to manipulate you into doing little things like follow me around." He sighed with the memory. "To kiss me...I never imagined that I'd enjoy it so much."

"So...this was all a game? You killed people as part of some game?"

He shook his head. "It stopped being a game when I fell in love with you. It became something much more serious, something I was willing to kill for. My family was plotting against the Hokage. Their plans threatened to bring harm to those closest to me, like you and Sasuke. No matter how many times I refused, my father would try to find some way to make me do what they wanted. I hate being used for any reason. I killed Shisui because he threatened to expose us. However, my father caught us in bed...so I had no choice but to comply. While I was in military academy, ANBU approached me, wanting me to join. Can you guess what their reasoning behind wanting me to join was?"

You slowly shook your head.

"To spy on my family and report their plans to the Hokage. To become a double sleeper agent. I realized that trying to make everyone else happy took time away from you that I wanted." He took in a deep breath and released it slow. "I made the wrong decision. Or I guess I made the right decision, I just went about it the wrong way." He looked at you. "I should have taken you with me."

"...You killed women...and children." You took a step back. He pushed away from the tree and put a hand on your cheek.

"You have to understand. I know what I did was wrong. I can't explain it any other way but that I snapped. I was close to killing Sasuke, too! You stopped me from doing that. You brought me back down to Earth."

You shook your head, fighting tears. "The things you said at the river..."

His expression softened and he kissed you tenderly, then whispered against your lips. "You've finally opened your eyes."

You pushed him away. "You've killed people. And not just anyone. You killed people who loved Sasuke..." You looked away as unshed tears fell. "What happened to Kohana?'

He hesitated. "(Y/n), I love you."

"Where's Kohana?"

He waited until the echo died. "She knew the truth. She was going to tell you and take you away from me. I didn't wait three years for you to be released just to let her and Sasuke take you away!" He shouted.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?" You screamed.

"I KILLED HER!"

You covered your mouth with one hand and tried to hug yourself with your free arm. It hurt. It hurt so much. Just as much as it did when you were told you'd lost your parents. Your knees buckled and you collapsed, sitting on your knees hunched over. The first sob was silent but the second was a fairly loud and strangled cry. It felt as if your heart was trying to escape right through your chest, through skin and bone. He'd manipulated you long enough to take away the one person who cared about you the most. To take away everyone--

"I'm sorry."

"My aunt." You gasped and looked up at him with bloodshot, teary eyes. "Her too?"

He looked away...then nodded.

"Why?!" You cried out, unable to get up. "What did she do to you?!"

"She told me to stay away from you after Kohana mentioned my weird behavior in school. After you and Kohana had gotten into the argument over me."

"You bastard! That's no reason to kill anyone."

"She would have brought it up after I left."

It felt like the world suddenly came crashing down on you. As if you had run into a brick wall. It finally hit you. "You left...intending for me to go to jail?"

He looked confused for a split second before molding his face into the perfect mask of indifference. "No."

"That's what you just said." You stood slowly. "You killed my aunt because she would have brought up the fact that she asked you to stay away from me because of the way you were acting." The wheels started turning. "Which would have brought to light that you were in ANBU...something your family knew nothing about. They knew about the Academy which would have given you missions the Hokage would have had to appoint. Your family would have eventually asked you to kill him, which would have gotten you killed." You put a hand on your forehead. "You didn't have to kill anyone...you could have just told the Hokage."

He shook his head. "It would have started a war. I would have lost Sasuke...and you."

You turned away and hugged yourself. "All of that was for nothing, Itachi, because I don't love you anymore."

"You don't mean that." He took a step towards you but you turned around to face him and took a step back. "You'll forgive me eventually."

"I thought you said Sasuke wanted to leave the past alone. Why would he say that if Kohana was planning to expose you as a murderer?"

He looked down. "At the time, all I could think was that as soon as she got him away...she would tell him, show him the proof she'd had." He looked up at you. Your expression alone was enough to cause him to step back. "Don't look at me like that. I'm not perfect. I've fucked up royally. And now that I'm faced with the possibility of losing you...I'm scared."

"Of what?"

"Of being alone. I'm so used to you--"

"You went without me for three years. Don't give me that bullshit, Itachi." You balled your fists up. "I don't give a damn what happens to you. Sasuke will find out the truth. I hope he kills you slowly." You turned sharply on your heel and marched off, going back towards the village.

His arm slid around your throat as he yanked you back against his body. "You'll forgive me...eventually." He hissed. You clawed at his arm, kicking and screaming, as he walked you backwards into the woods. "You'll love me just as much as you did at first. It'll just take some time."

You squirmed and yanked, giving him a hard time trying to hold you still. You felt a sharp stabbing pain and looked down at your thigh. He emptied the syringe. "Bitch." You passed out.

~---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------~

You opened your eyes slowly. The nausea hadn't gotten any better and now a killer headache pounded away in your head. Your hands were tied together at the wrist above your head and your feet were bound by your ankles. You squirmed and looked around. You were laying on the ground and the rope attached to your wrists was threaded through a tall tree overlooking a lake. What the hell...

"You're awake." Itachi lazily walked over to you and squatted down, checking to make sure you were restrained properly. "Now, let's try talking this out."

"Go to hell, bitch."

He sighed heavily. "Ignoring that, is there any way you'll forgive me for what I've done? I know Kohana and your aunt meant the world to you. I'm sorry I took them away from you. I'd like to spend a lifetime making it up to you." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little black box.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me." You stared at him.

"I'm very serious. I don't want you to ever leave my side."

"You honestly believe a girl will say yes to marrying you when you have her tied up?"

He shrugged. "I have never, at any point, said I made sense or that there was a method to my madness." He looked down. "I just know that I love you...and that I don't have to manipulate you into loving me. It's already there. Still is, even after everything I've told you."

You looked away. He was right. Even after everything, a part of you still loved him. Or at least the part of him that resembled how he was before he threw everything to hell.

"So...will you?"

"And if I say no?" You didn't bother to look at him.

"...Don't say no." He whispered.

"I refuse to say yes."

He sighed deeply. "I understand." He stood up and grabbed the rope, pulling on it until you could stand in front of him. "I wish I could be inside you one last time."

"Snowball's chance in hell." You squirmed, trying to free yourself. "What is this for? I thought you were letting me go."

He shook his head. "After I get rid of you, I'll get rid of Sasuke. Then I'll disappear."

"This doesn't make any sense! How can you kill someone you just tried to marry?"

"If you had decided to come along, I wouldn't have had to worry about you telling anyone what I've just told you."

"Then why tell me in the first place?"

"Don't you think I've lied to you enough?"

"Then why lie to me in the first place?"

"Fair enough." He hoisted you into the air then pushed you a little, causing you to dangle over the water. "I love you."

You started to say something when he let go of the rope, dropping you into the cold water. It was murky from the mud but the rising sun enabled you to see. You looked to ahead of you and nearly drowned. Kohana's lifeless form drifted in the water next to a badly decomposed corpse that wore your aunt's favorite hawaiian print shirt. The disturbance in the water caused the flap in Kohana's throat to move. She looked like she was only sleeping. Then you realized that the skin on your aunt was peeling off and was part of the reason the lake was murky. You could only hold your breath for so long...

'Hold on...' Kohana whispered. Your squeezed your eyes shut, concentrating on making your breath last. The water warmed a little bit. 'Take in a quick sip...' You inhaled a little bit and, by some miracle, you took in air instead of water. 'Once more. This time exhale then inhale.' You obeyed and were rewarded with air that tasted fresh, as if from a meadow.You mentally thanked her. 'Just survive...hang in there for just a moment longer...' The water became icy once more and you started to get light-headed from lack of air.

How much longer could you possibly survive amongst the dead?