Archive of Our Own

The sky was turning a warm orange.

Cursing internally, Sasuke hurried his steps. He usually preferred to get there before the sun started going down, but Suigetsu arrived late today and consequently they all had to leave a little late. Sasuke looked up again as if he could somehow look the sun into going back to the east. No such luck. If Suigetsu ever does this again Sasuke will put him in a gourd and then shake it.

When he got back to the old Uchiha compound there was only little light left. The streets were almost empty, save for a few people rushing home, but the air was buzzing with the noises that filtered out from the nearby buildings. Sasuke wondered if he would ever get completely used to the vibration of life that had taken over the compound. The eerie silence once heavily enshrouded the place had completely vanished since Konoha started using it to house the refugees and war orphans they took in. The place was separated from the main village enough that it minimised the risk of spying before everyone was fully vetted, and self-contained enough to ensure a good livelihood for people. It didn’t take a genius to figure that out, but it did take one to suggest it.

Sasuke’s place, a new house at the end of the main street, came into view.

The sliding door squeaked a little as he pushed it open. He hastily took off his sandals and called out: “I’m home.”

“In the kitchen, Sasuke,” came the reply.

A grin spread out on Sasuke’s face at the familiar voice. He quickly put on his slippers and made his way to the dining room.

The room was soaked in warm light, and the smell of fried garlic lingered in the air. The person in the room turned to look at Sasuke, smiling gently.

“Welcome home.”

Poets say lovers are the most beautiful under the moonlight, on an endless field of swaying green grasses, and under the night rain on an empty half-lit street. They wore starlight in their eyes and misty flowers in their hair. But looking at brother, standing under the kitchen light with his unfathomable dark eyes, an apron askew on his hips, Sasuke wondered why any of that was necessary at all. At the sight of Itachi, all the weariness in Sasuke’s body melted away. His brother stopped what he was doing and stepped away from the stove so Sasuke could fall into his arms and rub his cheeks against his neck. He pulled Sasuke closer and buried his nose into Sasuke’s hair. Sasuke almost purred. The glands behind his ears were almost working overtime to release happy pheromones into the air.

“That feels good.” Itachi said.

Feeling satisfied that his brother had been properly scent-marked, Sasuke stepped back.

“How was your meeting?” He asked, happy like a little puppy.

“Productive.” Itachi said as he turned back to his food. Sasuke opened the cupboard to take out some bowls and dishes. “We finally confirmed a date of meeting with the head of the Hyuuga clan.”

“Really?” Sasuke said, mildly surprised. Just a week ago the Hyuuga was still unwilling to discuss the matter with the Hokage council. "You've convinced him?"

“The current circumstances play to our advantage, fortunately. One of the most well-known members of the Hyuuga right now belongs to the branch family, and he’s loved by the public for saving Naruto-kun’s life during the war. And the two Hyuugas who are currently in line to take over the clan aren’t interested in doing so, and they both support unifying the family. It's only a matter of knowing how to push.”

Sasuke chuckled as he arranged the table. That’s right. It’s almost amazing how quickly words spread if they came out of Naruto’s mouth these days. And all Naruto needed was the right prodding from someone he wanted to impress, say, Sasuke, to shout every detail of how Neji jumped in to save him out loud in the middle of a crowded restaurant, in the middle of a crowded street, in the middle of a crowded training field...

“The rest of the council is over the moon I'm assuming?”

“Well, Gai-san did push for this harder than I did. Kakashi-san and Kurenai-san think we should be cautious, but that goes without saying.”

Itachi turned off the heat to let the soup simmer. Sasuke had already sat down at the table waiting. His brother spoke little of himself in these meetings, as if he wasn't the one who orchestrated the whole thing by getting Tsunade and the council to put pressure on the Hyuuga in the first place. But Sasuke knew Itachi wouldn't be satisfied until after the plan had been perfectly executed to its successful end.

"What are you smiling about?" Itachi asked.

“I never thought Kakashi would become an advisor, it’s kind of funny.”

“It’s hard to change Tsunade-same’s mind after she had made her decision.”

Sasuke’s brother insisted to refer to Tsunade as ‘Godaime-sama’ like everyone else in the village, against her direct command, but sometimes he slipped up. It was understandable, seeing that Tsunade had personally seen to the treatment of his illness a few years back. Sasuke knew they did more than just ‘healing’ and ‘being healed’ during those times. He wasn’t sure what they had talked about, and he didn’t ask, but as soon as his brother’s condition improved Tsunade immediately offered him a position as one of her new advisors. But she would be a fool not to, Sasuke remembered thinking, and she was anything but.

They chatted about their day idly while eating. As usual, Itachi finished first. He put down his chopsticks and reached for a mandarin.

“Want more miso soup?” He asked, making a small pile out of the mandarin peels. He put them on the windowsills sometimes to chase away insects. Sasuke likes the way they smell.

“Ah.” Sasuke was at lost for words for a second, distracted by the way his brother’s sleeves rolled up and a sliver of his pale wrist peeked out.

Itachi took his bowl anyway without waiting for an answer. Sasuke always wanted more miso soup, which was a good thing. It took a while, but Itachi was finally able to correct this boy’s bad eating habit; only one dish for each meal, no fruit, always asking for tomato. Sasuke might have thought that was enough nutrients, but Itachi knew better.

Itachi pushed the plate of mandarin towards Sasuke once he finally put his spoon down: “I have some documents I need to go through. After you clean up, wait for a bit before taking a bath.”

“I know, nii-san,” grumbled Sasuke as he brought the dishes to the sink to be washed. Itachi only chuckled as he headed to his study.

An hour later, Sasuke entered, freshly showered, a cup of water and two small pills in his hand. Already, a bunch of scrolls had piled up on the ‘read’ side of Itachi’s desk (he always started on the left). Even when doing something as mundane as reading, Itachi’s appearance was dignified, his posture perfect. He looked up as Sasuke entered, and furrowed his brows in displeasure.

“Haven’t I told you to always dry your hair properly, Sasuke?”

“I forgot...” Sasuke said, looking sheepish.

“I don’t think so. You clearly just thought it was too troublesome.” Itachi gestured at the tatami next to him. “Sit.”

Sasuke gave his brother the pills and the water, then wordlessly sat down where Itachi had pointed at. His brother took his medicine, then reached for the towel flung over Sasuke’s shoulders.

“Come closer,” Itachi sighed.

Sasuke grinned, but he made sure to turn away so his brother couldn’t see it. Itachi patted the water from his hair carefully with the towel.

“How was today? Was Suigetsu late again?” His brother asked.

“Yes,” Sasuke snorted. “And he nearly dropped a whole shelf of chemicals on top of us too. Good thing he’s leaving with Juugo tomorrow, then I’ll be able to actually come home on time.”

“Running out of things to read already? You are getting more efficient.”

“Naturally,” Sasuke couldn’t hide the smugness in his voice at his brother’s praise.

He and the Taka had cleared out Orochimaru’s many hideouts years ago, rescued and rehabilitated whoever they could in the process. Sasuke’s main purpose had been Orochimaru’s forbidden jutsus and records of his experiments on the human body, which became rather redundant after Godaime-sama cured his brother, but team Taka decided to learn whatever they could from there anyway. The only inconvenience was that there were just too many scrolls to bring back at once, so they had to break them up into several trips.

“Any mission in the near future?” Itachi asked. He put down the towel and started combing his fingers through the damp strands to work out the tangles.

“Yes. Maybe in a month.” Sasuke sighed. He’d always hated drying his hair, preferred to just leave it to dry on its own. But when his brother did it for him it felt pretty good. “Suigetsu suddenly recalled there being a secret room in the Eastern Hideout, so we’re heading there.”

“The ‘prison for water’,” Itachi hummed in acknowledgement. “Orochimaru was always creative with the most despicable of practices. It must be something important if he went through the trouble of tampering with Suigetsu’s memory to hide it.”

“We think so, too. It was clear some sort of trauma made him forget, but it could be intentional or accidental. Plus, he doesn’t know what’s in there, so I want to be prepared, just in case.”

They were sitting quite close together, so Itachi could easily smell the slight apprehension rolling out of Sasuke. He reached over and placed his hand on Sasuke’s forehead to push his head back against his shoulder. Sasuke offered no resistance. Itachi kissed the shell of his ear lovingly before moving Sasuke around so his forehead pressed into the side of his neck. Long, graceful fingers located the sensitive spot on Sasuke’s nape with ease.

“Good work, Sasuke. With this too, we’ll be one step closer to our goal.”

“Yes.” Sasuke agreed. He let Itachi caress the back of his neck until the bitter note in his scent was all but gone.

“You smell good.” Itachi kissed the top of his head.

They stayed in the study until Itachi decided he was done, then got to bed together. In the morning, they had breakfast before Itachi headed to his work, and Sasuke walked there with him before he left to go to the Taka headquarter outside the village.

“Wait, nii-san.” Sasuke called out. His brother stopped just outside the gate of the administrative building, looking at him quizzically. Sasuke rushed over and quickly but thoroughly rubbed his cheeks against Itachi’s neck.

“Okay, done.” He said.

“Brat.” Itachi laughed, even though had he not allowed Sasuke to scent-mark him, Sasuke would never have been able to. He flicked Sasuke in the forehead, enough to hurt, then he was gone.

Sasuke arrived at team Taka’s farmhouse an hour later. There was no slipper on the porch, which told him they had all left. Sasuke walked across the big vegetable garden at the front, completely ignored by Juugo’s chickens. As he passed by, however, he couldn’t help but notice that the tomatoes, among other things, had started fruiting.

The entrance to their headquarter was well hidden from view behind the house. It was a small crack on the side of the mountain that was discovered by Itachi during one of his ANBU trips years ago. They spent lots of effort keeping the place a secret. On top of the house and the wards Sasuke had set up for protection, it was also officially registered with Konoha as a shallow rock crevice. In reality, it was a cave that ran deep into the mountain. Its first chamber is huge, big enough to fit several houses, and bright from the cracks on its ceiling. Sasuke got there just as the Taka was stepping out from the inner tunnel, each carrying a big pot.

“Morning, Sasuke-kun.” Karin greeted enthusiastically.

“Hey,” Sasuke answered. The Taka stopped so Sasuke could step forward and rubbed his forehead against each of theirs briefly. He released a wave of calming pheromone into the air, which they replied with their owns. “What are you all doing?”

“Ah. They’re just helping me carrying these out here.” Karin answered. “I went through the discarded scrolls again last night to make sure there was nothing else we could do with them before we turn them into fertiliser.”

Now that he had gotten close enough to look, Sasuke saw that the pots were indeed filled with scrolls. These were techniques they’d decided were too dangerous or couldn’t find a way to utilise. Sasuke couldn’t help a smirk. His brother had been pleased to know that Orochimaru’s work, some of which he spent years cultivated, would be feeding the fruit trees and vegetables in Juugo’s garden.

“You’re in a good mood, Sasuke-kun.” Karin commented teasingly, to which Sasuke didn’t reply.

“You two can go, I’ll take over from here.” He said to the other two instead.

“We’ll leave you to it then,” Suigetsu said, putting his pot down next to Juugo’s on the ground.

Sasuke nodded. “You two should get going. Be careful.”

Suigetsu gave him a grin and a thumb up. Juugo waved slightly. Then they left.

“Help me shred these first, Sasuke-kun.” Karin instructed.

She had changed. A few years ago, she would probably have shrieked at the chance of being alone with him, but not anymore. When nii-san talked to Kabuto before using the only sharingan Sasuke was able to take from Danzo to cast Izanami, it seemed his words resonated with something inside Karin as well. She still had a huge crush on Sasuke, but she was less annoying about it. She no longer lashed out at Suigetsu, except the occasional playful slap on the back. It was like she started seeing all of them, herself included, as actual people instead of objects and concepts like before. Nii-san helped her find herself too, Sasuke thought as he caught the kunai she threw to him.

They only needed half an hour to finish shredding the scroll and pouring water inside. Then, they covered the pot and put stones on the lids to make sure they stay put. The rest Juugo would take care of when he returned.

“Right. Let’s get on with our work.” Sasuke said.

Their “workplace” was another big chamber that situated deep in the heart of the mountain. There was a complicated tunnel system to navigate to get there. They’d put in a ventilation system, similar to those Orochimaru used for his hideouts, that let air circulate in the chamber. Orochimaru’s scrolls were placed behind a hidden door in the rock wall that could only be opened with Sasuke’s Rinnegan.

It was usually Sasuke and Karin who did most of the reading. Suigetsu was too scarred from the tortures inflicted upon him, and Sasuke didn’t want to make him relive the trauma. He was excellent, however, at stripping Orochimaru’s bases of their dirty secret, so that was his job. Combined with his tendency to wander, Suigetsu only came back to the farmhouse a few times a month. Juugo alternated between going with Suigetsu, taking care of his garden, and going through the odd experiments Orochimaru’s done on animals. They’d found out a year ago that Orochimaru had figured out a way to help Juugo control his transformation, so he no longer needed them to hover over his shoulders all the time.

Half an hour after they settled down to work, Sasuke noticed a hint of anxiety in Karin’s scent, and he automatically released some calming pheromone in response. She threw him a grateful smile before returning to the scroll in front of her. Sasuke was also frowning at the scroll in his hands, not for the first time cursing a dead man. He glanced at the photo of team Taka on his desk, which was taken when he joined Akatsuki after Itachi had faked his death. Imprisoned and experimented on. Imprisoned and tortured. Kidnapped. Kidnapped and experimented on. And there were many, many, many others.

“Orochimaru’s life had revolved around one principle and one principle only,” the Itachi in Sasuke’s memory said, “more knowledge equals more power. That in and of itself wasn’t wrong and what he knew... could serve us well. There needs to be boundaries, though, less we turn into the same monster.”

Itachi had looked thoughtfully away for a few minutes, before turning to Sasuke, and for that gaze alone Sasuke would jump into a volcano.

“I trust you to do it then, Sasuke.”

I’ll do it, nii-san, Sasuke thought. I’ll turn these into something good.

But, as it turned out, that day was not to be their day. Two hours and a few bounds of calming pheromone later, Karin was still proven to be inconsolable. He didn’t need to ask what she was reading, because really, they all were just as bad as the next one, or the one before. Instead, he decided they should end the work for the day.

“I’m bored,” he said, standing up, “let’s just finish here.”

“Er?” Karin, bewildered, wiped her cheeks. (Sweat? Tear?)

“Let’s pack up,” Sasuke said again as he stuffed the scrolls he had intended to read that day into his bag to bring home. Karin sat unmoving, seemingly unable to catch up with the change of events, until Sasuke opened the rock wall and gestured for her to give him her work.

“Is it really okay?” Karin asked.

“Sure,” Sasuke answered. She didn’t seem like she could continue, and he could work better away from her anyway. Her uneasiness had become a little distracting, plus, in such a tight space, it also made him feel cagey. After the door closed and disappeared, Sasuke waved his hand to smother the two torches and they headed out without a word.

“I’ll work on my own project the rest of the day then.” Karin finally decided once they got to the end of the tunnel.

“Good, keep busy.” Sasuke commented as they squeezed themselves out of the small entrance and into the house. Karin blushed at the compliment and busied herself with pushing the wooden panels back into place to hide the cave opening. Sasuke waited until she was done before he departed with a nod.

It did feel unearned to be back home in the middle of the day, even though Sasuke was merely changing one working environment for another. His brother wouldn’t be back until the afternoon, so Sasuke had the house to himself to work until then. Plus, he got to welcome his brother home at the end of the day.

Sasuke looked distractedly out the window, towards the direction of the administrative building.

The first few months back in Konoha was hard for him. Everywhere he looked, he saw the proof of his brother’s sacrifice. The peace and prosperity that had reigned over the village all these years were paid for by his brother’s own sweat and blood. Yet, everywhere they went, the villagers were still looking at Itachi with suspicion and disgust. The anger that Sasuke had been supressing since the beginning of the war came roaring back. Danzo was dead, but his ideas were alive, his accomplices were still in power. In Sasuke’s mind, the only way to thoroughly purge the world of their influence was to get rid of them for good.

He tried to hide what he planned from Itachi, but of course he couldn’t.

His brother sat down next to him on the porch one day, a mimic of what they used to do when they were children. He had been observing Sasuke from inside the house for a while. He hadn't made a sound, but Sasuke was aware of his presence like he was aware of the presence of the sun. And just like the sun, he was so bright Sasuke had to look away.

“I’ll do it,” was all that he said.

Two months later, a comprehensive report of the increase cuts in budget to the Uchiha Police Force made its way to the public, along with the official order from the Hokage council that forced them to all move to the edge of the village. Then stories popped up here and there about how well the Police Force was still serving the villagers during that time with no complaint. Concerns grew within the villagers. Why was the Force’s fund slashed? And why did they have to live in isolation away from the main village if polices needed to know their people to do their jobs?

With public pressure mounting, Konoha’s leaders had no choice but to divulge the truth. Tsunade took on the job herself. Danzo was identified to be the one who had planned and executed the suppression of the Uchiha, which pushed the clan into responding by planning a coup to take back their place. Sandaime-sama then had no choice but to implement such extreme measure to maintain peace.

“The Uchihas were good citizens of Konoha, like any of us. And they should have been given a chance. The past could not be changed, and what we could, and should, do right now is working together to improve the future. Even so, crimes cannot go unpunished. Shimura Danzo’s name would be removed from the Memorial Stone. For their roles as accessories of the crime, my two advisors are relieved of all duty effective immediately. They are to be confined within their residents for the rest of their days. As for Uchiha Itachi, after taking into consideration the impossible situation and his age at the time, it was decided that he would serve for three years as a public servant for Konoha to repent. I thank you all for your time and your understanding.”

It was the perfect plan. First, gaining sympathy for the Uchiha so that at least some of their reputation would still be intact after the revelation. Then, pushing the blame of the massacre onto three targets easily punished to regain trust in Konoha’s leadership that would no doubt take a hit after the revelation, and, of course, to get rid of them. Itachi’s sentence was more of a chance for him to get to know the village people again, and for them to get to know him. Every little detail was carefully sketched out and implemented by Itachi and Tsunade, with some input from Sasuke.

Godaime’s willingness to assist with this plan, combined with the fact that she’d saved Sasuke’s brother, endeared her to him somewhat.

After Homura and Koharu were out of the picture, Tsunade needed a new council, one that comprised of people without heavy clan involvement, and were not bogged down by the old way. Sasuke hadn’t thought that Kakashi and Kurenai necessarily fit the criteria, despite them being perhaps some of the most experienced shinobis in the village, but then again, his brother would be there to stop them from giving Tsunade any stupid idea.

Besides, when Itachi becomes Hokage, as per their plan, they’ll hardly matter anyway.

The sound of the door being opened signalled his brother’s return. Sasuke grinned and left the study. He could tell Itachi was surprised to see him, even when the only expression he exhibited was a slight raise of an elegant eyebrow. Sasuke greeted him cheerfully before falling into his arms.

“Welcome home, nii-san.” Sasuke could still smell himself faintly on his brother. He leaned over and rubbed his cheeks against the side of Itachi’s neck again, almost like he couldn’t help it. Itachi chuckled and wrapped his arms around Sasuke’s shoulder. The older Uchiha could almost see a sleek black tail wagging rapidly behind his brother.

“You’re home early.”

“Uhm.” That sounded almost like a purr. “I already drew the bath too.”

“Well in that case,” Itachi toed off his sandals. “Let’s take a bath before dinner then.”

Sasuke had stripped before his brother countless of times. Yet, he felt just as clumsy as the first time he’d done it after they’d become lovers. How could he not? Nii-san is... perfect. There wasn’t one part of his body that didn’t leave Sasuke speechless and tongue-tied with lust. Comparing to him...

Still, nii-san’s eyes glazed over with something as he watched Sasuke washed himself then got into the bath, which was just big enough for the two of them. Sasuke had to draw his legs up as he sat down, and the sides of his thighs touched Itachi’s as he did so. His brother smirked at the dusty pink that had coloured his cheeks. Nii-san had his hair tied up high to avoid it getting wet. The messy locks framed his face a little different than usual, making his eyes sharper and his jawline more defined. Sasuke couldn’t take his eyes off him.

“So,” his brother began after a while. He rested his hand on Sasuke’s knee in an oddly possessive and satisfying way. “Why were you early today?”

“Karin got anxious over something she read.” Sasuke tried to not think about how, among the hot water and the warm steam, the heat from Itachi’s palm remained the most noticeable. “I tried to comfort her a few times, but it didn’t work... so I decided the best course was to leave and give her time to clear her head.”

Itachi’s fingers tapped lightly against Sasuke’s skin, making goosebumps break out on his thighs. “Is that so?” He asked, but it was clear that he didn’t expect an answer. His expression fell somewhat, no longer the light teasing happiness of before, but the change was so slight not everyone would have been able to catch.

Sasuke suddenly realised his own smell had been a little soured ever since as well. He hastily tried to correct it, even though he knew it was too late. The gentle smell of his calming pheromone diffused into the humid air of the bathroom. Itachi tilted his head, but he didn’t smile, nor did he say anything, even though his fingers didn’t stop their motion on Sasuke’s leg. The gesture was calming. His silence, however, was not.

After a while, Itachi sighed.

“I’m sorry.”

“Nii-san...” Sasuke started but Itachi shushed him.

“I know.” He reached up and ruffled Sasuke’s hair, making it stick up everywhere.

“I’m going to go make dinner, don’t soak too long or you’ll become a prune.”

“Nii-san.” Despite himself, Sasuke whined.

Itachi only smiled and shook his head. He wrapped himself in a blanket and left the room, leaving Sasuke alone with steam and bubbles.

Sasuke didn’t quite understand what nii-san was thinking. Their situation didn’t bother Sasuke, had never bothered Sasuke, and his brother knew that he preferred his touch. The boy thought of the nights they spent together... Itachi had never seemed like he had hesitated or regretted anything. He had never attempted to withhold intimacy from Sasuke or tried to push him away. Is it possible he still feels guilty? Does the still think that Sasuke had to sacrifice something to be with him?

But that would be ridiculous. Itachi would have happily died in pain beyond measurable with his reputation tattered just to keep Sasuke’s illusion of happiness alive. He would have happily died with Sasuke hating him, his dream never realised, his vision never implemented, to give Sasuke strength. All Sasuke did was... being with him, that was all.

Sasuke had given up nothing. It wasn’t as if he would let anyone else mark him if he couldn’t be with his brother.

So deep in thought was Sasuke that by the time he crawled out of the bath he had become a prune.

“You’re a prune, aren’t you?” Itachi said as soon as Sasuke stepped into the kitchen.

“Maybe...” Sasuke replied. He came over to scent-mark his brother again, and hated himself at how relieved he felt that Itachi let him, as if there had been any chance that he wouldn’t.

“I just want you, nii-san.” Sasuke whispered.

“I know.” Itachi answered. He sighed, then kissed Sasuke on top of his head again.

After meal, they retreated into the study again. Sasuke wasn’t sure if he had expected that they would read until late then went to bed together or not, but he was definitely surprised when his brother took his hands and batted his eyelashes, an hour earlier than their usual bedtime, and whispered: “Bedroom?”

“Please.” Sasuke breathed.

Perhaps he had overthought this after all.

The following morning, a smile stayed on Sasuke’s lips the whole way to the Taka place. His nape, shoulder blades, back and thighs all throbbed, but that only added to his good mood. He landed in the forest clearing, making sure he wasn’t being followed, then calmly started walking to the farmhouse.

It was strangely empty in the garden. Sasuke realised that the chickens were still locked inside their coop. Normally, chickens having free access to vegetables make a disaster, but Juugo’s chickens had never touched any of his plants. Sasuke suspected there had been at least one stern “talking to” from Juugo.

He opened the gate of the coop before heading towards the house.

The pair of slippers lied neatly on the porch.

Sasuke took out a kunai from his pouch.

The house was empty. Nothing looked out of place. No strange chakra residual.

“Karin?” Sasuke called.

There was a sound of glasses hitting each other. A dull thud. Karin’s muffled cursing. Then a door opening and closing. A few moments later, the redhead all but ran into the room. “Sorry Sasuke-kun, I forgot the time.”

She looked... worse than yesterday. She was still wearing what she wore when they said goodbye to Suigetsu and Juugo, and there was a weariness that lied heavily on her brows. When she came over so he could touch his forehead to hers, Sasuke could smell the anxiety rolling strong and thick out of her.

“What happened?” He asked.

Karin shook her head hastily. “Nothing. Nothing happened. Let’s get to work.”

Sasuke didn’t budge. “I don’t think you’re in any state to work.”

It seemed the calming pheromone finally got to her. Karin almost collapsed on the floor, like her legs were no longer able to support her.

“Damn.” She said, all the air rushing out of her at once. “I’m sorry, Sasuke-kun.”

Sasuke suspected that the hallway wasn’t the best place to do this in, but Karin seemed like she didn’t have any strength to stand, let alone walk. He sat down on his hunch so he could be on the same eye level with her.

“Did you sleep?” He asked.

“Yes...” She replied, then “no, not really. Nightmares.”

Sasuke remembered when he used to wake up in the middle of the night drenched in sweat, pretending his face wasn’t wet with tears. The house was so big and empty and dark, no one to wait for him to come, no one to comfort him.

“Talk.” He said, but there wasn’t any hint of cruelness in his voice.

Karin bit her lips. She twirled a lock of hair around her fingers.

“The scroll I read... I knew the subject when she was alive... Orochimaru-s... let her go because her experiment failed... I saw her off... She was wearing my pink shirt because all she had was the prisoner clothes.” Karin’s eyes opened wide, like she was witnessing what she was describing all over again. “He wanted to give her my ability but... it wasn’t enough to just bite her... a large amount of her flesh needed to be consumed... she wasn’t let go... she was transferred to where Juugo was held and... and...”

Karin’s breathing quickened. “She wasn’t the only subject... I saw a lot of them off thinking they were freed... I... took part in a lot of his experiments... I tried to forget but... I can’t.”

As Karin finished her story, she seemed to crumble in on herself. She didn’t cry, as Sasuke had long suspected that anyone who survived Orochimaru lost their ability to shed tears. She smelt harsh and bitter. The smell was stifling in the small hallway. After some consideration, Sasuke sat fully down onto the floor. He leaned against the wall to draw some distance between them but kept himself close enough out of hope that his pheromone could still have some effect on her.

“Yeah, me too.” He offered. “I looked the other way. Orochimaru only showed me the criminals he took from the villages’ prisons, so it was easy to pretend in the beginning. But even when I knew about his true nature... well...”

“But... Sasuke-kun... you’re different.” Karin cut in, stumbling over herself to defend him. “You saved them. You released everyone when you found the three of us, and then when the war was over you came back for the rest.”

“Yet there were still those I didn’t save.” Sasuke replied.

“Then... how do we live with it?” She asked hesitantly, like she was afraid of the answer. Sasuke knew that feeling.

“We live it with,” he said, closing his eyes. Itachi was smiling at him, a gentle and knowing smile. Burnt light oil, black ink, new paper. The corners of his eyes were dry but glinted with sadness. “Don’t forget it, remember it, make it your strength. We can’t change the past, but we can work together to make the future better. Like what you’re doing now, Karin.”

When he looked at Karin again, she was looking back at him, something tentatively warmth had started blooming on her expression.

The smell of despair slowly stopped leaking out of her.

“Thanks, Sasuke-kun.” She said.

He stayed for a while longer to make sure she had truly calmed down. Then, he made a trip to the cave to take out some reading materials and putting them on her desk before leaving. He needed to fulfill his duty of helping the refugees tomorrow so he wouldn’t be able to come. “Take the day off,” he told her, not really believing that she would take it, “the chickens could probably use some extra feeding.”

“Sorry again, Sasuke-kun.”

“Hm.” Truth be told. He was looking forward to getting out of there. His head was starting to spin, and his heart had been racing from the second-hand anxiety.

Still, he stopped at the doorway and said without turning around: “You know how to contact me.”

Karin watched as he got further away and then disappeared in the distance. She couldn’t help but think that, even when he went to great lengths to hide it, Uchiha Sasuke was really a gentle person.

As his mood still hadn’t gotten get any better when he got back to Konoha, Sasuke decided to walk home so he could clear his head, but, having not returned to the village at this hour for a while, he had forgotten about the mid-morning crowded streets, and was reminded in the worst of way. After stopping abruptly to let a person rush by for the fifth time, Sasuke couldn’t help the irritated thought of why the compound had to be on the other side of the village.

By chance, the Hokage mountain came into view. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

“Ah, excuse me. Are you Uchiha Sasuke-san?”

A little voice interrupted his musing of murder, Sasuke turned around to face the source of it. It was a little girl with two pigtails. She was holding the hand of a grandmother, who was also looking at him, albeit a little apologetically. Sasuke squinted slightly at them for a beat. ‘Manner,’ his brother chided in his head.

“Yes, that’s me.” Sasuke said, then forced himself to continue. “Is there anything I can help you with?”

He didn’t really want to have anything to do with the villagers, and especially not right now when he was nursing a headache.

“You are Itachi-san’s younger brother?” The girl continued in a high, child-like tone. The grandmother, obviously knew there were only two Uchihas left in the whole wide world, became a little panic-stricken as if she feared the girl as offended Sasuke. But before she could interrupt, Sasuke, merely replied with a “Yes.”

The girl let go of the grandmother’s hand. She frantically opened the little bag she was wearing, and thrusted both her tiny hands into it. Sasuke thought she kinda looked like a baby monkey looking for food.

“Namiji-chan, maybe we shouldn’t bother Sasuke-san.” The grandmother said.

The girl ignored the grandmother in favour of rummaging around in her bag. And then, she pulled out a wooden box. It was a plain box, clearly handmade, about as big as both of her palms. Sasuke had no idea how she could have lost it in the bag. She opened the lid and offered the box to him with two hands.

Inside were a bunch of colourful, neatly folded paper cranes. Sasuke took the box, silently scanned it for hidden jutsus. Nothing.

“Could you please give this to Itachi-san? We want to thank him.” The girl looked at Sasuke with huge pleading eyes.

“My son, Namiji-chan’s dad, passed away recently without a will. If it hadn’t been for Itachi-san we would have lost the house. She’s rather attached to the place, you see. He planted a persimmon tree in the backyard for her.” The grandmother explained.

“It took me five months to fold these.” The little girl chimed in. Itachi finished his public service job four months ago, so they must have been one of his last cases. Sasuke nodded.

“I’ll tell him.”

The girl’s lips spread into a huge grin, and, to Sasuke’s surprise, her grandmother’s as well. They both bowed carefully while thanking him repeatedly. Sasuke tried to bend his neck in return at least, and hoped he succeeded, but he doubted that they could see anyway with the way their smiles were taking over their entire faces.

He had been very cordial; Itachi should be proud of him.

Sasuke couldn’t resist playing with the plain box as he continued making his way home. It was just the right size and weight to be tossed back and forth between his hands. The girl hadn’t said anything about the box, but Sasuke guessed to her it must carry some value. To give it away like that... He knew it was all part of the plan to win over the people, but his brother had sacrificed enough for this village. It was about time they appreciated him.

Sasuke wouldn’t even dare to imagine what could have happened had he gone to their fight blind, not knowing the truth. Had Danzo not been hasty in his quest to kill Sasuke; had he not cornered Sasuke at the inn when Sasuke was injured and presumed dead after his fight with Deidara; had he not been cocky, thinking there was no way Sasuke could get out of this alive, and blabbed about how his brother was the perfect shinobi because of his sacrifice and how Sasuke was Itachi’s only mistake; had he not done any of that...

Sasuke didn’t want to think about it.

His annoyance flared up again. The filth had managed to take his own life and robbed Sasuke of the satisfaction of crushing his windpipe with his bare hands. He exhaled roughly. He needed to go home, change his clothes, take a shower, and calm down before nii-san returned. Sasuke bent his knees, about to jump up to a rooftop, when...

“Ah, Sasuke.”

What day is this? Bothering Sasuke in the middle of the street day?

It was Kakashi this time. Sasuke furrowed his brows. Shouldn’t he be at work right now? Slacking off again? Sasuke wouldn’t be surprised. When he got closer, Sasuke could smell the familiar greeting pheromone on his old pack leader.

They both slightly bent their necks before catching up with themselves, old habit.

“Rather uncommon to see you in this busy part of town at this hour.” Kakashi looked at him curiously. “Getting supplies?”

“Since when did you make it your business to poke your nose in my business again?” Sasuke asked back, still annoyed about last time. Kakashi immediately held his hands up.

“Whoa, okay, I know you’re worried, but I was just asking.”

Sasuke would have tuned into the conversation faster had he actually put his mind into it in the first place, but a pounding head did not help with his concentration. He looked at Kakashi blankly for a while to try and process what he had just heard to no avail.

“What are you talking about?”

Kakashi had the decency to look taken aback.

“Oh... I thought you knew and that was why you’re here, my bad. Well,” Kakashi took a deep breath. “Itachi-kun was injured when we were clearing out a bunch of Danzo’s documents today.”

Danzo... Itachi... injured... there could not be a worse time for this string of words.

Kakashi looked at Sasuke like he was expecting an explosion. “Tsunade-sama relieved him. He should be home.”

Sasuke was running before Kakashi even finished his sentence. His blood boiled in his vessels. The filth had managed to find a way to hurt his brother even in death. Sasuke racked his brain trying to think of which hellhole they had put Kabuto in. He didn’t care if his brother disapproved of Edo Tensei, he needed the feeling of Danzo’s spine breaking under his foot.

Sasuke didn’t kick the door in but it was a close thing. “Nii-san!” He called loudly, feet thumping on the floor. He barged into the study to see his brother sitting on the zabuton, his left arm on the table. There were burnt marks running all the way up his shoulder.

The tomoes whirled in Sasuke's Rinnegan, coming to life at the same time the Mangekyou Sharingan activated in his other eye. He didn’t care whose fault this was. He would kill all of them. Tobirama, Danzo, Homura, Koharu, Tsunade, Kakashi. They were all responsible. He would burn this village to the ground and then burn the ashes as well. Dark purple chakra surged up around him. Somewhere else, Karin looked up in alarm at the faint feeling of Sasuke's rage.

“Sasuke!” Itachi said firmly. And Sasuke saw red in his brother’s own Mangekyou Sharingan. "Stop.”

Instantaneously, the world returned to its original colour and Sasuke's murderous chakra vanished like nothing into the air. Itachi stood up, calm and composed, and closed the distance between them. Sasuke, reeling from the sudden change of his own body and state of mind, slumped into his brother's arms.

Itachi’s hand closed around the back of his neck.

“Godaime-sama had treated me at her office. I’m fine. The salve would take care of the damaged skin in a few days.”

“Nii-san.” Sasuke said. He buried his face into Itachi’s shoulders and clutched at his sleeves. He can’t die, he can’t die, Sasuke thought. He can’t die.

Sasuke remembered Itachi falling at his feet, soulless eyes looking at the sky, scarlet blood running down his chin. It was only to deceive Tobi, but Sasuke had awoken his Mangekyou Sharingan on the spot. Sasuke remembered finding Itachi in his study in the middle of the night after his brother had left the bedroom so his coughing wouldn’t wake Sasuke up. Sasuke remembered the tangy coppery smell his brother tried but never quite managed to hide, and him begging whoever out there listening to not take his brother away from him again.

“Sssh, come here.” Itachi gently sat both of them down on the cushion. “It’s just skin-deep now, it’s fine.”

“What happened?” Sasuke spoke into Itachi’s shirt. His voice sounded shaky to his own ears.

“Tenzo-san brought over some Root classified documents under Godaime-sama’s order. There was one that was fine until I touched it, then it exploded.” Itachi intentionally didn’t mention that Tsunade had had him investigating Danzo’s webs of spies for a few weeks. Sasuke didn’t need to worry about something so trivial.

Sasuke stiffened up. So it targeted his brother specifically.

“My Susano’o wasn’t fast enough, that’s all.” Itachi stroked his back. “Didn’t expect you to get back so early again.”

“Karin.” Sasuke muttered. His heart was beating like crazy in his chest. His body felt abnormally warm.

“I could tell by the smell. No wonder you freak out so badly.”

“Nii-san,” it was really warm now. He felt... bad. “Nii-san, I feel...”

There was a sweet scent in the air.

No.

He whipped his head up to look at Itachi’s, and he could tell by the dawning dread on his brother’s face that Itachi had also realised what was happening.

It’s a heat.

Sasuke had never had a heat. He had been taking suppressants conscientiously since he was thirteen. The suppressants were to be taken two weeks before his season started, however, and that was a month away. This was different, though. This was a mock heat, triggered by anxiety and fear. Sasuke’s brain, still influenced by Karin, overreacted to Itachi being in danger and kicked his body into overdrive. He needed the assurance that Itachi was still alive, and here, with him.

If they were bonded, a bound of calming pheromone would have normally sufficed.

However, as Itachi was inducted to the ANBU force at the age of eleven, he was injected with a drug that neutralised his pheromone producing glands. Which meant no pheromone for signalling, no pheromone for mating, and no hormone to trigger heat. Couldn’t have ANBUs running around spraying smells to alert the whole enemy camp, nor going into heat, nor having mates while on duty, else it might mess up the mission.

The drug was supposed to be temporary. Most of the ANBUs would need to be reinjected after ten years, if they managed to stay alive that long. But Itachi’s tenth year came and went without any hint of him gaining his bodily functions back. While people’s metabolism differed and it could be that the drug just stayed in Itachi’s system longer than usual, Godaime-sama also informed them that there was a permanent variation of the drug that Danzo used for his Root faction; it wouldn’t have been impossible for him to make a swap. Sasuke couldn’t use his Rinnegan to fix Itachi, nor could Tsunade. There was nothing wrong with his glands anatomically. They weren’t damaged, just inactive.

Itachi couldn’t provide the pheromone, which meant Sasuke’s body would just keep going. He clung at his brother’s sleeve, fingers digging into Itachi’s arms. True to its name, the heat stirred up something warm and heavy in the pit of his stomach. He felt oddly weak and vulnerable, even with Itachi right beside him.

Slick already wetting his underwear, Sasuke mumbled. “Ugh. Hot.”

“You need mating pheromone.” Itachi said.

“Don’t want.” Sasuke shook his head. His head no longer hurt, but now it felt so foggy. Pheromone what? He just needed Itachi to touch him.

“Don’t be stubborn.” Itachi’s hand let go of Sasuke. The omega whined out loud at the lost, which seemed to startle his brother a little. Still, Itachi opened his drawer with steady hands. He grabbed one of the scrolls inside and spread it out half on the desk and half on the floor. “Kai.”

The seal in the middle released a folded-up shirt.

“Here.” Itachi brought it to Sasuke’s nose. He had borrowed it from Kakashi just in case. Even though their relationship had become almost nonexistent, Kakashi was still a familiar presence to Sasuke. His pheromone, which had once meant safety and protection, should be able to calm the omega somewhat.

Sasuke took one whiff and... leaned over and vomited onto the tatami.

Instinctively, Itachi, as hard as he could, tossed the shirt to the other side of the room. He hadn’t expected that Sasuke would react this way. He should only be rejecting alpha pheromones if he was mated.

“There, there,” Itachi stroked Sasuke’s back as he threw up. Sasuke’s body shook with how hard his stomach was trying to empty itself. When the retching stopped, he took the glass that Itachi gave him and gulped water down like he hadn’t drank in days.

“Hot.” Sasuke complained.

“Let’s get you into bed.”

Which turned out to be more difficult than he thought. Sasuke clung to him like an octopus, rubbing his face on every inch of exposed skin that he could reach on Itachi’s jaws and neck while simultaneously forgetting how to walk. Itachi ended up falling on top of Sasuke on the futon; Sasuke's limbs wrapped around him.

“Nii-san,” Sasuke whined, “touch me.”

Itachi shook his head. "Sorry, Sasuke." He didn’t have pheromones, which meant if they tried to have sex now Sasuke wouldn’t be able to reach release, which would only serve to prolong his heat.

“I know.” Sasuke sighed. “It’s fine, I can ride this through. Don’t knock me out, nii-san.”

Itachi propped himself up to look down at his brother. Sasuke was slightly flushed, and his skin was warm. Out of habit, Itachi started brushing the hair out of his brother’s face. Sasuke looked like he was having one of those kid fevers. Itachi had a slight urge to put a cool towel on his forehead, even though he knew the situations were vastly different and it wouldn’t help. “It would hurt later, Sasuke.”

“Rinnegan will shorten the effect of your jutsu... you’ll strain your eyes.”

“Haven’t I told you? I’ll be fine.” Itachi bent down to kiss the top of Sasuke’s nose. “Open your eyes, Sasuke.”

Half an hour later, Itachi had settled on his side on the futon next to his brother. He had one arm under Sasuke’s neck, the other around his waist, holding him close. Sasuke’s breathing had slowed down to a normal pace, and so had his heart.

Nothing for Itachi to do but think.

The lack of pheromones hadn’t stopped them from living like a mated pair ever since they moved into this house. They had meals together, took bath together, had sex. Every morning Itachi let Sasuke scent-mark him before he went to work, and every afternoon he let Sasuke do it again after he returned. Itachi should be happy, he should be satisfied. He wasn’t.

Before they became like this, he had never cared about his own lack of bodily function. With or without pheromones, he could still carry out and complete his duty to the highest degree of satisfaction. But now, without it, he felt like he was somewhat failing his brother. Itachi had always been the provider, the protector. He took up this role since he was four and he wouldn’t know how else to live his life. Yet, there were now things that he could not give Sasuke. Things that Sasuke’s body needs, even if the boy rationally doesn’t.

Itachi hated it.

Unbeknownst to Sasuke, Itachi had been taking an experimental antidote made by Godaime-sama herself. It was tricky because they didn’t know for sure which drug he was given, if it was the temporary kind gone wrong, or the permanent kind doing what it was supposed to do. They had to start small and go slow, half a step at a time so that they wouldn’t somehow make his situation worse. So far, after a few tweaks, there was still nothing yet.

Maybe it had actually worked without them noticing?

A glance at the bite mark he left yesterday on the back of Sasuke’s neck told Itachi that was not the case. If he had had pheromone to inject into the bite, it would have become permanent, but the mark was already fading. Sasuke is really a strong-willed child, Itachi thought and, despite the situation, chuckled. Even when they are not bound together biologically, Sasuke’s mind had long accepted him as a mate, and his body had followed suit, immediately rejecting another’s pheromone when it was presented to him.

“You’re such a miracle child.” Itachi whispered to the sleeping form of his beloved. Sasuke, under the effect of the Mangekyou, didn’t stir. A fierce sense of protectiveness bloomed in Itachi’s chest.

“I’ll always protect you, otouto.”

When Sasuke woke up next, the urgent pressing need that was turning his stomach upside down had completely vanished.

He glanced at the clock in the room and bolted right up. It’s been ten hours. His brother shouldn’t be using the Mangekyou Sharingan so many times; he’s still recovering. Turning to his left, Sasuke saw Itachi lying there, awake. He was looking at Sasuke with a lazy smile.

“There’s sleeping beauty.” He said. And even though he looked fine, Sasuke immediately checked his vitals.

“How are you feeling?” Itachi asked. Sasuke shook his head. He poured a glass of water and forced Itachi to drink.

“I’m fine now.” He said as Itachi gave him back the cup. Itachi motioned towards the water, so Sasuke drank some himself. Itachi waited for Sasuke to put the cup down before gathering Sasuke in his arms. It’s a hard fit now. Sasuke curled up as much as he could in his brother’s embrace and snuggled into his chest.

“You must have been frightened.” Itachi soothed. “I’m sorry...”

“No.” Sasuke replied. “I wasn’t scared.”

He looked up at Itachi. “I knew you would take care of me, nii-san.”

Itachi leaned down, and they met in the middle. Sasuke let out a long exhale. He sweetly threw his arms around Itachi’s shoulders and pressed his torso against his brother’s. The kiss started out slowly, carefully, but Sasuke knew it wouldn’t stay that way for long. Itachi kissed roughly and almost demanding sometimes, and Sasuke liked to be at the receiving end of their passion. Sasuke moved one hand down to his brother’s chest, groping and caressing the muscles there.

Itachi tugged at Sasuke’s grey shirt. The button-up was easily worked open to reveal his smooth skin. Nimble fingers slipped inside, deftly played with the sensitive skin before moving over to play with his nipples. Sasuke whined and arched into Itachi’s touch approvingly. He moved himself further into his brother’s lap, and found something poking at his butt.

Meanwhile, his brother moved a hand under the waistband of his pants - oh, he was wearing pyjama pants - and traced a line from the end of his tailbone down, down further. His fingers pressed lightly against the entrance of Sasuke’s hole, laughing lowly at the wetness still remained. The sound of his laughter, a little breathless and a little perverted, made Sasuke blush.

“What do we have here?” He said against Sasuke’s lips.

Sasuke whimpered and buried his face into Itachi’s neck. His brother, a terrible, terrible person, always teases him in bed. Itachi rubbed his fingers messily around, coating it in Sasuke’s fluid before gently dipping one inside.

“Hurt?” Itachi asked. Sasuke, face still hidden, shook his head. They did just do this last night, and he knew it would be long before Itachi would actually do something more than just shallowly pressing the first knuckle in and out.

Because he’s a terrible person who always teases.

He kissed Sasuke some more, stole his breath and his clear mind as he slowly worked more and more of his finger inside. The second one entered with some lube, and Sasuke hadn’t even noticed his brother had gotten the lube out. Itachi took a perky nipple into his mouth and sucked hard on the spot. Sasuke’s body jolted. He clutched at Itachi and pushed his chest into his brother’s mouth.

“Ah... I want... more, nii-san...”

Lube dripped onto the futon as Itachi jabbed his fingers inside and spread Sasuke’s hole open. Sasuke, so hard he was getting impatient, wiggled in his lap and tried to rub up against Itachi’s stomach. His brother pulled him back down, and, after tugging both of their pants down just enough, swiftly entered Sasuke.

They both made a wounded noise at the feeling. Sasuke at how deep his brother could go in one slide in this position, and Itachi’s at the perfect heat of Sasuke’s body. Every inch of Sasuke’s hot, slippery inside clung perfectly to Itachi’s cock, sucking him back in every time he withdrew, as if Sasuke’s body couldn’t bear to let him go. Inside, he was still sloppy wet from the mock heat. Each thrust forced more fluid to ooze out of his hole, making lewd squelching noises. In almost no time at all, Sasuke was forced to gasp for breath at how good it was.

“Perfect, little brother.” Itachi whispered. He let Sasuke bounce himself in his lap until the boy tired himself out, then took over. He grabbed Sasuke’s arse tightly and moved the boy up and down on his cock. His teeth sunk into the side of Sasuke's neck and he gripped the mouthful of flesh tightly with his canines. Sasuke choked on a breath as his brother fucked up into him, delirious with pleasure and pain. He felt like a rag doll at Itachi’s mercy, to be used as his brother pleased.

“Ah, there. I’m close... nii-san.”

Itachi reached to the front to take hold of Sasuke’s lovely dick, wet from the fluid that kept leaking out and running down its length. He couldn’t help but whispered filthily into Sasuke’s ear about how wet the boy is there, as his fingers deftly worked along the hardness, and it was like Sasuke was mortified into coming. His heels dug into Itachi’s back, Sasuke moaned loudly as he come. White liquid coated Itachi’s hand, some splashed onto Sasuke’s own trembling stomach.

Looking straight into Sasuke’s eyes, Itachi brought his hand to his mouth and darted his tongue out to lick the come clean.

Sasuke sobbed.

Later, when Itachi decided Sasuke had had enough, he wiped Sasuke clean then let the boy octopus around him on the futon. “Comfortable?” He asked.

“Yes, nii-san.” Sasuke smiled. “Never better.”

Itachi hummed. Then: “Did you notice how sweet your heat scent was?”

Sasuke groaned. “Nii-san, stop teasing me.”

“I’m serious. It was quite familiar too.”

“I’m sleeping. I’m not listening.”

A few days later, Sasuke returned from his refugee work, carrying more bags than he could count. It wasn’t often that Itachi asked him to go to the store by himself, but he had been quite busy recently with his duty. Plus, the Hyuuga business had started going into gear.

“I’m home,” Sasuke said. Itachi came out to greet him. “Welcome home.”

All feelings of fatigue at the end of a hard day’s work immediately left Sasuke. He came to stand in front of his brother and touched their foreheads together. He rubbed the side of his face against his brother’s and thoroughly marked him with his scent. Sasuke grinned when he was done and Itachi properly smelled like him again.

“I have dango.” Sasuke showed Itachi the bag in his hand. “From a Shuichi or something.”

Ever since the little girl told whom Sasuke assumed to be the all the kids in the whole village about Sasuke accepting her box, Sasuke had been continuously tracked down and surrounded by twerps, some of whom couldn't even reach his knees, so they could have him transferred their gifts to his brother. Sasuke couldn't quite figure out why kids were so fond of Itachi. It couldn't just be because he talked to them with the same politeness he used to talk to the adults like he claimed. Regardless of the reason, they filled Sasuke's palms, his pockets, and his bag with marbles, origami, hair ties, nice round pebbles, and candies. Most of their gifts were worthless, so Sasuke saw no harm in taking them. Today was the first time someone he actually didn't have to bend over to talk to gave them dango, which, how did they even find out? But it wasn’t like Sasuke terribly minded. On the contrary, these little proofs of Itachi’s growing popularity pleased him immensely.

But, instead of a happy smile like Sasuke had expected, his brother’s brows knitted together. He took the bag from Sasuke, then opened it and inhaled. His long lashes casted shadows on his cheeks.

“Oh...” He said.

“What?” Sasuke frowned.

“You remember I said you smelled sweet, but I wasn’t sure like what?” Itachi asked.

Sasuke nodded. Then it dawned on him.

“No.” He gasped.

Itachi was leering mischievously at him.

“I guess that's why I like mochi so much.”

“NO.”