Darkness filled in the empty spaces around us once again as the giant boulder slid back into place at the mouth of the cave, snubbing out our main source of natural light for the security of maintaining their secret dealings. Growing more and more accustomed to living in perpetual night with each new day, my eyes quickly adjusted as familiar outlines of menacing shadows shifted into place. Glowing eyes in the gloom only spared me disgusted glances as they passed by, fleeting and unimpressed with my presence.
I was hardly a speck on their senses, merely the unwanted dead-weight that came along with the coveted prize of a packaged deal. It was him they wanted, not me. But Sasuke had made it perfectly clear in the beginning that he would not be willing to join them unless I was allowed to follow as well. Against their policies and better judgment it had been allowed. The allure of possessing the last two souls that had a pair of naturally developed Sharingan eyes was too much for Sir Leader to pass up even at the risk of admitting one not yet worthy as me into his secret organization. The black swirls, swimming in a sea of red and framed with white as they analyzed the world around them, had been my savoir. There were very few places that a missing-nin would be safe within the shinobi world after they decidedly left their respective villages. And what place was better than Akatsuki headquarters?
“Come on, let’s go,” a familiar voice called out softly from the quiet of the shadows as a warm hand wrapped gently around my wrist, “Not much we can do around here until we‘re made official members of the organization.”
“And that won’t happen until one of them is killed, opening up a spot for someone to fill,” I scoffed, putting up no resistance as he tugged me down the long hall.
Torches randomly placed along the dark corridor flickered at our movements, stretching far into the mountain base that they called home. We had only been here a few weeks and there was still much to explore. But being new to the operation meant that our access was limited to only the main room located at the entrance of the cavern and the central corridor that led to the living and sleeping quarters. Despite the grand space allotted to them, all member potential or otherwise were to share a room with another. Perhaps it was Sir Leader’s way of determining the teams by the way they would interact normally with each other during menial tasks that came with everyday life. With a bunch of rag tag S-class missing-nins from the four corners of the various shinobi nations, it was safe to bet that nothing was out of the ordinary around here.
“Are you sure the room is the best place for us to be right now, Sasuke?” I inquired quietly so that my voice did not echo too much against the walls of the passageway, “Some of them have already made it perfectly clear that they’re suspicious of us.”
“Sticking around out here while they’re performing that jutsu isn’t going to help matters much either, Tenten,” the younger of the Uchiha brothers pointed out, “We’d just be in the way.”
“But at least we’d learn something from watching,” I retorted in a harsh whisper, jerking my hand away so he would stop and face me as he spoke, “Even despite the risk, it’s something.”
“And it would be pointless if we got caught,” Sasuke grounded out, taking an extra step closer so that we could hear each other’s hushed words, “Look, I’m willing to take the risks as much as the next shinobi, but we have to be careful around these guys.”
“But we’re running out of time,” I pressed on, doing little to hide the desperation in my voice, “I overheard them making plans to go after Gaara.”
Born and bred in the shinobi way almost since his birth, the young man had been keeping a careful watch on our surroundings, listening intently for any approaching figure who might be able to overhear our conversations. But all basic and instinctual acts that had been learned and ingrained in our minds at the Academy were forgotten and discarded at that statement. Piercing black eyes flared in red hues as they studied me carefully under the dim lights of the torches. It was hard to read the expression on his face, unsure whether Sasuke was staring at me out of irritation for risking so much to hear their secret plans concerning our friend, or because his own concerns for Gaara were boiling to the surface.
“It was unintentional, I swear,” came my swift explanation, believing that his reasons were the former, “I may be impatient and defiant at times, but I’m not reckless.”
“I understand your concerns, I’m worried about him too,” Sasuke finally responded with a sigh, pinching at the bridge of his nose to relieve the pressure that was building there, “But we can’t let our personal feelings interfere with this mission.”
Having learned the codes of conduct back in the Academy, I knew that he was right in saying that I could not let my personal . One of the first lessons taught to us was the process of detaching emotions from our assignments in order to remain impartial and unbiased in our decisions. But despite knowing all that, though, I could not sit idly by while the life of an old friend was threatened, especially when we had worked so hard in mending our broken bonds. Still consumed with an overwhelming sense of worry for the safety of the young Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village, I made to protest the matter further when I caught the undeniable twitch in the corner of my companion‘s eye.
“Come on, let‘s go to the room,” he stated a bit more loudly, the shift in his demeanor and mood noticeably different from before, “At least this way we won’t have to deal with this mass collection of superiority complexes.”
“I’d watch what you say if I were you, little brother,” a calm voice echoed down the corridor, still holding with it the contained malicious intent that we both had grown to recognize, “You never know who might be listening.”
Deep brown eyes met red as the Sharingan flared up at the sound. Even though he had finally moved on from the horrors of his past, thoughts of the massacre and the man who had caused still left a lingering sting in Sasuke. But before he could get lost in the forgotten emotions once again, I gripped at his forearm in hopes of bringing the young prodigy back from the shadows of the past and into the realities of the present.
Exchanging determined looks, we both turned to stare down the darkened passageway at the approaching figure. The silhouette was hard to distinguish at first as our eyes had grown accustomed to relying on the light of the flames. But as he walked under the flickering torches, draped in the traditional cloaks of the Akatsuki, his features and identity were made clear. After all, there was only one other person here that possessed the menacing black and red swirls of the Sharingan. The two pairs of eyes flared in the presence of the other, sending out an unspoken challenge in deep red beacons. No doubt the other associates in the organization could feel the tension that existed between the two brothers now.
“Itachi-san,” I merely greeted, relying on the tradition of showing respect to keep from sneering in his direction as he came to a stop beside us in the dark hallway.
“Tenten-san,” the elder Uchiha reciprocated with a lingering glance in my direction before turning to greet Sasuke, “Otouto.”
“Aniki,” Sasuke muttered in return, making it almost sound more like an insult than a greeting, “No one asked for your opinion.”
“And yet without it, you would not even be here, would you?” Though his tone had been as uncaring and stoic as ever, there was a hint of smugness directed at us that only a few could detect. The art of unspoken emotions and hidden meaning behind his words was something Uchiha Itachi had mastered long ago, even before he developed his Sharingan. Biting remarks from seemingly harmless words were things that had filled Sasuke’s childhood, brought back to life and in full focus in the small space of the stone halls.
“What are you doing slinking about the corridors, anyways?” the younger Uchiha questioned, choosing to quiet his growing anger and instead focus all his attention on prolonging the deception, “Don’t you have a ceremony to perform with those other circus rejects?”
“And don’t you have some training to do?” Itachi inquired in cool retort, “You can’t expect to join the Akatsuki if all you do is spend your time…indulging in worthless human affairs.”
“That‘s enough,” I interrupted, hoping to stop their bickering before it had a chance to fester into something much more, “You’re both working for Akatsuki now, so just stop all this.”
Whether they heard me or not, the two remaining members of the Uchiha clan continued to stare intently at each other, Sharingan eyes swirling and shifting with a contained challenge neither one seemed to want to back down from. The situation was dangerous and there was no telling how much patience Sasuke had left before he would forego the mission to face his own personal demons, manifested into the figure of his brother standing in front of him.
“Sasuke,” I called out as I tightened my grip on his forearm and gave it a light tug while I took a step down the hall, hoping that it would prompt him to follow, “Let’s go back to the room, like you said.”
Seemingly rooted to the ground, my shoulder jerked back at his refusal to budge from the spot, seeming intent on staring his older brother down in a silent battle of wills. Not in the mood to deal with their dysfunctional sibling rivalry, I pulled sharply at his sleeve, finally gaining enough of his attention to impatiently nod my head in the direction of the room we had been assigned to share. Reluctant at first, Sasuke finally gave a short nod in my direction, casting a fleeting glance at Itachi before making to follow me down the halls.
“Wait,” Itachi called, stilling our movements with one simple word, “If I could have a moment with you, Tenten-san…alone?”
“Uh…sure, Itachi-san,” I replied quickly before Sasuke could make a protest, gripping at the younger shinobi’s shoulder in warning as he opened his mouth to speak against the request.
Confused at my immediate acceptance to his brother’s calm insistence, the brooding young man turned to glare in my direction. Understanding perfectly his perplexed hesitation to leave, I only nodded for him to continue down the corridor, almost urging him. To this he frowned, giving me a look that spoke volumes on how he felt about leaving me alone with the Akatsuki member, his own brother no doubt. While it was touching how much he cared for my safety, I could not help but scoff at the irony. Only minutes before, he had given me a lecture about allowing my feelings for Gaara affect the progression of the mission. Now he was guilty of the exact same crime by being overly concerned about me.
He was defensive, and that much was understandable. His entire family had been taken out right in front of his eyes at a very young age, killed by the same person Sasuke had admired and strove to be like all his life. Such a betrayal was no so easily forgotten even after all these years, especially when standing face to face with that same man, not only the last remaining connection to his forgotten family but also the reason that they were gone as well. As I thought of this more and more, I realized that it was a hard enough concept for Sasuke to allow me to come this close to his brother; me who had been his closest friend and companion back when the Uchiha clan was still thriving and alive. But he had to trust in my strength and stick to the plan no matter what the cost.
“Go!” I mouthed soundlessly, waving him off with a simple hand gesture.
“Don’t worry, Sasuke,” Itachi assured his brother, only adding salt to the figurative wounds, “I’ll bring her back in one piece.”
It was hard to see behind the high collar of his Akatsuki cloak, but there was no denying the smirk in the prodigy’s voice, earning a low growl from Sasuke‘s general direction. Despite the years of maturity that had developed over the years, they were still brothers at heart. And as the older of the two, Itachi would never miss an opportunity to pick and chip away every last ounce of patience from the young heir.
“I’ll be fine, Sasuke,” I said softly, putting all my assurance into those three words so that my companion would be satisfied enough to allow me a moment alone with his brother, “Just go.”
Sighing his frustration at the situation, the young stared at me with his dark eyes a moment longer, the Sharingan fading into their usual black as they narrowed at the deadly Akatsuki member. His steps were slow and light as he turned to leave, still uncertain that leaving me to Itachi’s company was the best choice. But he understood as well as I did, had this been in the presence of Sir Leader, such suspicious behavior would draw unwanted attention. And that was something we needed to avoid at all costs.
“I’ll say this again: he must be very fond of you,” the elder Uchiha brother commented smoothly, interrupting my thoughts.
“What’s this all about, Itachi?” I inquired, folding my arms over my stomach as I completely ignored his statement, hoping that our conversation would not last longer than necessary, “Because if you pulled me aside just to disc - guh!”
Taken off-guard, I found myself gasping for much needed air, pressed hard against the stone wall of the corridor by his pale hand. Using all that I had learned of the Sharingan over the years and its many stages as well as the lessons Gai-sensei had taught us about facing such an opponent, I still managed to avoid any and all eye contact. Focusing my attention on the red and white swirls of his cloak, I stood there struggling to fill my lungs with oxygen, pulling and clawing at his hand in hopes that he would loosen his grip just a fraction more.
“Did you really think you could fool me with such a rudimentary plan?” he asked rhetorically, only tightening his grip on my neck, “Who in their right mind would believe that my brother would be willing to work in the same organization as me, the one who killed his precious clan?”
“If you had this all figured out, then why let us join?” I managed to rasp out, “Why not just rat us out to your leader?”
“It’s as I said before, our family has an affinity to the darker side of life,” he replied simply, loosening his hold when he saw that I was on the verge of passing out, “And my foolish brother is the only reason that you are here.”
“What?” I questioned, still frantic but forgetting for the moment about his slim fingers wrapped at my throat, “What are you talking about?”
“Do not play dumb with me,” the elder of the Uchiha brothers stated coolly, finally slipping his hand from my throat to gently cup my cheek, “Just because I was not present does not mean I don’t know about the marking ritual.”
Calloused fingers continued to roam across the skin of my neck as brown eyes widened with the realization of exactly what he knew. Fixing my gaze at the white and red clouds of his cloak, I stifled a shiver at the feeling of Itachi’s fingers brushing against the nape of my neck, tracing around the hidden symbol etched on the surface of the skin only weeks before. There had been no witnesses, we had made sure of that by holding the ritual in the private temple located on the Uchiha property. How Itachi had managed to find out about it when the entire village remained oblivious to the fact.
“You will make an excellent Uchiha bride indeed,” the deadly Akatsuki member whispered softly, “The only question is who will be your groom.”
Cold and calloused hands brushed against my cheek as they swept aside dark stray strands of hair to tuck it behind my ear. My head twitched just slightly as the soft skin of his knuckles grazed along the smooth surface, barely noticeable in the shady corridor but enough to draw the attention of both men standing on either side of me. I could almost feel the smirk on Itachi’s face as the hand fell to his side once more. Pivoting on his heels, he quietly strolled down the hall without another word, leaving me to wonder just what exactly he had implied with that last sentence.
What games are you playing at, Itachi? I thought, watching his quiet silhouette disappear into the shadows, knowing that there had to me more to what he was saying.
