The Married Life

Itachi woke with a start, sweat beading on his forehead. His legs were tangled in the sheets, along with Sasuke’s. The younger boy was wrapped around his brother, blissfully unaware of anything going on around him. Itachi, however, was not so peaceful.

There was a soft indistinct tap against the roof that had he not been paying attention, he would have passed it off as mice in the attic. But, that tap was a little too heavy for the common rodent, no matter how faint it was. With a sign, he straightened himself out and slipped out of bed, laying a kiss to Sasuke’s cheek, inhaling his brother’s sweet scent, before grabbing at the pile of clothes in the corner he’d made earlier.

“That’s the fourth one in the past two weeks.” He muttered, sliding open the window and climbing out, there wasn‘t any adrenalin thrumming thorough his veins this time. He was bored; each shinobi Konoha sent was just as second rate as the last one, so there was no challenge anymore. After shimming up the side of the house he dropped to a low crouch, kunai in hand.

“Uchiha Itachi, you are under arrest for abduction.” The masked shinobi said quietly, perched on the top of a nearby building. “Now, please come quietly or I will be required to use force.”

Itachi stood from his crouched position, raising an eyebrow in question. Who the hell did this guy think he was? ’I’ll be required to use force.’ Itachi mocked internally. “You’re a lot cockier than the others.” He replied amused. “It won’t help though.”

The other leaf nin appeared slightly miffed at the ridiculing behavior, shifting irritably as he stared Itachi down. Without a moments notice he shot forward, hurling a hand full of shuriken towards the Uchiha boy. Upon landing on the other side, there was a sharp pain in his abdomen, glancing down he noticed a small but deep wound just above his hip.

He peeked over his shoulder glaring at the younger boy. The Uchiha was fast. Very fast, and talented as well, he hadn’t even noticed the movement until it was too late. Clenching his jaw he turned full, calculating his surroundings. Being in unfamiliar territory gave Itachi the advantage, because no doubt the younger had scouted this area thoroughly.

A chill ran down his spine upon seeing blood red eyes, the legendary Sharingan. He tried to form the seals quickly, but just wasn’t quick enough. The boy had leapt forward with an unmatched speed, barreling straight for him. With the minimum of effort he knocked away the kunai sailing his way and cornered the leaf shinobi.

A pale hand griped his throat; it’s hold cutting off any possible intake of oxygen.

“Pity I didn’t have to use any thing special.” Itachi said smugly, his smirk curling all the way to his eyes. With a flick of his wrist, Itachi sent the kunai slicing through the weaker shinobi’s throat with an audible squish. The man gargled, blood spilling from his lips, his hands clawing at the Uchiha boy’s forearm, leaving stinging little tracks of broken skin.

Slinging the heavy, rigormortis body over his shoulder, Itachi set off, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, his bare feet making the slightest of noise. He headed towards the woods, cursing softly to himself as the rougher bark of the trees scratched the sensitive bottoms of his feet.

The worst part about killing someone was the clean up. He’d have to take the body hours away from town, come back and wash the bloodstains away from the roof, and then crawl back in the window and wait until dawn, upon which he’d start his chores and rouse Sasuke before heading down to breakfast. He sighed, dropping to the ground with a dull thud. This was a fine enough place, besides even a genius needed his beauty sleep, he snickered to himself.

He heaved the body into a nearby bush, throwing on some dead branches and leaves for good measure. He needn’t worry too much about concealment, Konoha scouts would find it eventually, obviously they had a clue of where he was, but for now staying with the Natsuki’s was still safe, so he found no reason to pack up and move.

Bounding up into the tree nearest to him Itachi set of for home, hoping to catch a little bit of sleep before sunrise. All that was left to do was grab the bucket outside of the store and fill it with water to flush the still fresh blood away from the orange roof tiles.

It proved to be an easier task than Itachi had thought, when he arrived back. The bucket was in its usual spot, in the alleyway next to the store, and after filling it he made his way to the roof. It was a blessing to have to only flush the blood away, usually it took multiple buckets of water, plus a little of his stolen cleaning supplies he’d learnt to keep under the bed. But, with the blood just running straight off the house, Itachi made his way back into the window with ease. He stripped off his bloody clothes and kicked them under the bed with his other soiled articles.

Sasuke was still sound asleep, his little hands flexing in the bed sheets as he murmured in his sleep. His lips were barely parted, allowing the whispered words to escape into their darkened room. Itachi stared down at his brother, casting a looming shadow over the sleeping boy, the pale moonlight hitting him from behind.

“Otoutosan,” Itachi sighed, running his finger’s through his younger brother’s hair, catching on a few knots, but working them free skillfully.

The smaller boy snuggled down into the nest of blankets he’d created while Itachi was gone. Sasuke was always intolerable to sleep with. He’d steal all the covers and cuddle close if he was cold, and if he was hot he’d push you away and take over most of the bed, tossing the blankets to the floor with a few well aimed kicks. There was a twitch to the corner of Itachi’s lips as he crawled into bed next to Sasuke, watching in amusement and delight as the smaller form instantly wrapped his arms around him and curled around his elder brother.

“Niisan,” He sighed, burying his face into Itachi’s neck, his breathing steady.

The elder boy slipped his fingers under Sasuke’s shirt, still somewhat peeved that they couldn’t sleep naked, nor have sex whenever or wherever they wanted. He’d spent many a day in the bathroom during his break masturbating to the thought of something mildly erotic Sasuke had done, whether it be the time he‘d played in the mud after a light sun shower and had to strip at the door before entering, or the time he was lazing in a patch of shade outside of the store, shirtless and licking that stupid popsicle like his was getting some morbid pleasure torturing his elder brother.

Trailing his fingertips across Sasuke’s back, he revisited memories from long ago, and not so long ago, nearly smiling at some of them. His brother had, no matter how it seemed otherwise, always been the most important family member he had. Sasuke kept him grounded, his cute smiles, cheerful laughter, and endless adoration creating a glimmer of something in his utterly power hungry world. He wouldn’t go as far as to say the younger boy made him a better person, but he sure as hell had changed him.

Wincing as the rough fabric of Sasuke’s shirt brushed his clawed forearms, Itachi sighed. It looked like he’d be having another cleaning fit today, wearing the horrendous yellow rubber gloves to cover up his wounds. He rolled onto his back drawing Sasuke to lay across his chest, as he decided it would be good to get some well deserved sleep.

There was a soft knock against the heavy wooden door, alerting a lightly napping Itachi to dawn. “Boys time to wake up.” Mrs. Natsuki’s voice called through the wood.

The eldest boy groaned, rolling other and detaching himself from his younger brother, shaking his smaller shoulder forcefully to rouse him.

“What’s with old people and getting up early?” He heard Sasuke mutter from the bed. He snickered, pulling out a pair of shorts and a clean t-shirt, and heading towards the bathroom.

Mrs. Natsuki was in the hallway when he opened the door. He folded his arms across his chest as she turned from her task of sorting through the laundry basket and ruffled his rather sleep mussed hair.

“Good morning,” She said sweetly. “Is Sasuke up yet?” Itachi nodded, stepping into the bathroom. “Breakfast will be ready soon.”

Closing the door with a soft click, Itachi set his clothes down on the toilet seat and turned on the shower taps, sitting on the side of the tub, waiting for the water to heat up.

“Niisan?” Sasuke called from outside the door. “Can I come in?”

Itachi shot the door an amused look. “Hai.” He said softly, waiting for his brother to peek into the room. A moment later, Sasuke was inside, his fingers still holding the doorknob behind his back.

“Can I take a shower with you?” He asked, wandering across the bathroom, and stopping in front of his elder brother. Itachi nodded, turning on the spray as he stood, watching Sasuke as the younger boy stripped off his shirt and underwear, standing naked and flushed.

Itachi raised an eyebrow, touching Sasuke’s cheek and letting his fingers fall to the boy’s slender shoulder and trail down his chest. The younger boy moaned, reaching out for his brother’s boxers, slipping the coarse fabric down his lengthy thighs, and letting it pool at his feet.

Itachi pulled off his hair tie, tossing it to the sink, as Sasuke stepped forward, his smaller, softer hands smoothing across his hips, hugging his brother tight. “Niisan,” He sighed. The elder boy gripped the backs of his smaller thighs and pulled, locking his legs around his waist.

Sasuke slid his hands into Itachi’s hair, smiling brightly at his brother. “I love your hair, Niisan.” Itachi grunted, stepping into the shower, careful not to slip.

A warm mouth attached itself to his neck, sucking greedily at his skin. Itachi tipped his head back further, giving his younger brother’s exploring mouth more room to roam. Sasuke’s hips flexed into Itachi’s belly, making both of them moan from the contact of slick skin against slick skin. The elder boy kneaded Sasuke’s pert bottom in his hands, massaging the soft skin gently.

Sasuke nuzzled his way to his brother’s mouth, nipping his jaw, and lapping at his bottom lip. Itachi opened his mouth to him, sighing into the kiss as their tongues mingled, wrapping around each other playfully. Their wet kissing sounds, were drowned out by the rushing shower water, but their merging breaths were harsh and giving away their fierce arousal.

“Oh…Niisan…” Sasuke moaned, as he broke the kiss, his panting breaths ghosting across Itachi’s moist lips. The elder brother worked his eyes open giving him a heated look. The smaller boy bit his lips as he thrusted forward, reveling in the feel of his brother’s erection grinding against his ass. “Itachi-niisan,” He whined. “Please!”

Itachi smirked his lips parting to reply. “Sasu-”

“Sasuke, are you in there too?” Mrs. Natsuki cut in, rapping on the closed door. Both boy’s froze, and then let out identical frustrated sighs.

“Hai,” He replied, irritably.

Itachi pressed his forehead to his brother’s shoulder, whispering into his ear. “Well, sex is out of the question, now.”

“Oh, okay, well breakfast is ready boys. Hurry up before it gets cold.” She called, heading back downstairs, her footsteps becoming fainter as she descended.

“Come on Otoutosan,” Itachi said quietly. “We better go.”

“Hai, Niisan.” Sasuke let his arms slip from around the elder’s shoulders, feeling destitute as his brother set him on his feet, with a growl. They were so close, yet so far away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Hokage, how many has he killed?” The voice was fearful, laced with bitterness and anger on the usually smiling tone, and had almost made him wince. The room was bathed in orange light from the sunset, making the shadows seem larger than they really were. Almost no sound was heard as both the inhabitants sat across from each other in contemplative silence.

“Three, maybe four.” Sarutobi replied, wearied eyes falling closed. He rested his elbows upon his desk, his fingers steepled just under his chin. The younger woman in front of him gave a soft, melancholy sigh.

“Something has to be done, Hokage-sama.” Mikoto stood her fists clenching at her sides. “Send me.”

He glanced up, hiding any thought he might have been having. “Why?”

It was true nothing else had worked, that no previous shinobi had been able to bring Itachi back, and he was running out of ideas. Unwilling to risk the deaths of any more citizens, no matter how willing they were. But, what made Mikoto believe she would be able to bring him back? Itachi’s power was far greater than hers, no matter how young he was. He was a better ninja all together, he was the perfect tool, or at least he would be if he weren’t so selfish.

“I’m his mother.” Mikoto replied after sometime. “That’s got to be worth something.” She looked desperate, tired, and lonely. She looked like a mother who’d lost her children.

Sarutobi sighed, standing with a rustle of white robes. He moved quietly to the window gazing down at the busy streets below. All of Konoha was oblivious to the disappearance of the two Uchiha boys. Their family thought it better to keep the occurrence hush-hush, giving information to the Hokage only, preferring to keep everything private. But, no matter how hard Sarutobi had tried he wasn’t sure if things were adding up correctly, there had to be something else to the situation.

“Mikoto, do you believe Itachi took his brother against his will?” He asked, turning his head to spare the woman a glance.

“I’m not sure.” Her voice was confused, slowly wrapping around the words given to her.

“And why is that?”

She looked puzzled, dark brows knitting together in thought. “Because Sasuke idolizes Itachi, and if ever he was to leave Sasuke would follow him no matter what.” She met Sarutobi with a hard look. “What are you trying to imply?”

“I believe you already know.” Turning back to his desk he reclined into his chair. “So, what am I saying?” He prompted.

“Sasuke made the choice to go with him.” She deadpanned.

“Exactly.” He retrieved a pen from he top drawer of his desk, scribbling on the blank paper in front of him. “So, now all we have to do is get them to come back.”

“Hokage-sama, I’ll-”

“You will be accompanying a team of three to the last known position of the latest disappearance, in the south of the country.” Signing the paper and tucking the document into a small plain envelope, he pushed it to the edge of his desk. Mikoto smiled gravely.

“I think I know where they are.” She said, taking the envelope from the desk. Sarutobi cocked an eyebrow, grasping his pipe between his teeth. “The Uchiha summer estate.” Without another word she left, her sandals clicking audibly against the hard floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The walk back home through the Uchiha compound was near torture. Mikoto could feel the scandalous whispers as they sprung from her relatives’ mouths. A particularly harsh one burned her throat as the tears in her eyes became heavy, leaving a dull ache of sorrow to hide in the joints of her body.

‘There goes Mikoto, she’s Itachi’s mother. She obviously didn’t do a very good job at raising him, look how he turned out; murderous.’

‘You don’t supposed he killed the other one, do you? You know, the normal one.’

Mikoto bitterly bit the inside of her cheek; hating the gossip mongering women she called family. Where once they would have prided Itachi for his genius, they now called him ‘murderous’, ashamed to even bare the same name. But, there had to have been a misunderstanding somewhere, maybe the boys had left a note? It could have fallen down behind the desk or blown out the window, but Mikoto couldn’t keep up such a false hope. She’d checked the room already a thousand times, and still nothing. They had run away.

Sliding the door open with a soft grind of wood, she quickly shuffled in, shutting the door behind her and dropping to her knees, still clinging to the door handle. They were her babies, and now one of them was charged with kidnap and possibly four accounts of murder. She fell to her side and sobbed into her arms, her dark hair a tangled mess around her splotchy, tear-streaked face.

“Where did I go wrong?” Mikoto whimpered, burying her face in her sleeves. “What did I do?”

There was a padding of bare footsteps against the wooden floor, before she felt strong arms wrapping themselves around her waist and pulling her to her feet. “You didn’t do anything wrong.” Fugaku whispered to her hair. “Sometimes these things just happen.”

Mikoto sobbed harder and clung to her husband, drawing strength from his comfort. “But, why?” She asked, voice raw and cracked. “Itachi was such a good boy, he did everything he was told, never broke rules, or got bad grades, so why?” She broke off into a haggard cry.

“Itachi isn’t as docile as you think, honey. He was an ANBU captain, he’s done things even you couldn’t believe.” Fugaku sighed. “Itachi isn’t power hungry because he has that. He has everything he wants, and if he doesn’t, he takes it. If he becomes bored with something he’ll toss it away. It’s just the way he is.” He laughed softly. “He‘s egotistical.”

His wife giggled a bit at that. “I suppose he is. It would explain his moodiness.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll find them.” He replied, patting her back before rubbing in soothing circles.

“I hope so.”