Naruto Fan Fiction / Naruto Shippuden Fan Fiction ❯ With You I Will Journey Life's Path ❯ The Uchiha Effect ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: The characters, items, places etc of Naruto are property of Masashi Kishimoto. These objects are used without permission for entertainment only, not for making money. No infringement is intended.

Chapter 4: The Uchiha Effect

The first thing Itachi was aware of when he awoke was just how sore he felt. The second was that he was _freezing_, and the third was that the sun was rising and reflecting right in his face.

He shielded himself with one hand and closed his eyes again, turning to the side before opening them again. Both Deidara and Sasuke were still asleep- the latter had laid across the back seats in the night, too.

He slipped out of the car and closed the door as quietly as he could, leaning against the side of it and attempting to wake up a little better. The chill in the air was unbearable, causing him to shiver and retrieve a bottle of water from the boot as he had planned before jumping straight back into the car once more and switching the heat on.

Deidara stirred at the noise and feel of the heater, glancing over to Itachi sleepily before smiling softly. "Hey. Sleep well?"

"Not really. Was I supposed to?"

"You can't say it isn't a lovely sight to wake up to, yeah. Look out there. It's beautiful," Deidara argued, gesturing to the sunrise before them. "That beats waking up in a bed under a boring old roof any day."

"That would be warmer at least. I'm absolutely freezing- it feels sub zero out there."

"Itachi?" Deidara murmured, leaning across to him. "Happy Valentine's Day. I know you don't think this is the most romantic setting, but I think it is."

Itachi gave him a smile and accepted the offered kiss, putting one hand to the side of Deidara's face affectionately. "Thank you. Happy Valentine's Day to you, too."

"I see your brother got the best end of the deal," Deidara pointed out as Itachi lowered his hand, indicating Sasuke who looked pretty comfortable across the seats as he still slept.

"I'm going to be shattered by tonight," Itachi sighed deeply. "You're going to have to keep me from falling asleep in my celebratory champagne."

"There will be alcohol?" Deidara asked, eyes lighting up.

"Of course. That does not give you free reign to get horribly drunk, because if you show me up I will kick you out. You have been forewarned."

"Kick me out of the wedding or out of the house?" Deidara asked cheekily.

"Both," Itachi told him sternly, before switching the engine on and rubbing at his eyes to wake himself up more. "Let's go and find some civilisation, shall we?"

Through more luck than judgement they found a supermarket and bought a local map of the area. Said map was immediately passed to Sasuke's possession, and they found themselves finally parking up outside their hotel a little over an hour later.

Approximately twelve hours later than planned, Itachi walked up to the reception desk and gave the girl behind the counter a pleasant smile.

"I have a reservation in the name of Uchiha, please."

The girl nodded and tapped in the name on her computer, frowning in distaste a moment later. "You were supposed to check in last night, Mr. Uchiha," she intoned sharply.

"I'm aware of that madam, but we were delayed. I offer you my sincerest apologies."

"The room was empty all night," she continued, still sounding displeased.

"I have every intention of paying for it. My reservation was for three nights, of which we will still be using the room for two. I hope that it isn't too much of an inconvenience."

"It's fascinating," Deidara whispered to Sasuke. "How does he manage to sound so polite yet so threatening at the same time?"

"It's an Uchiha thing," Sasuke explained with a smirk. "We get our own way, no questions asked."

Itachi waved the key for the room at them not long after, indicating for them to follow as he led them in the right direction for the room. They were on the ground floor much to their shared delight, not far from the entrance. Itachi opened the door and promptly collapsed onto the double bed with a sigh of joy, closing his eyes and covering his eyes with one hand.

"Can I just stay here all day?" He asked.

"If you want to get some more sleep then do it now," Sasuke suggested. "I'm going to find the restaurant and get some breakfast. Coming, Blondie?"

"Sure," Deidara shrugged. "Sleep well, Itachi."

He swiped the key from the side where Itachi had left it, exiting the room with Sasuke behind him moments later. As the door closed, Itachi finally processed what had just happened- Sasuke and Deidara had gone to willingly share breakfast.

He wouldn't have believed it had he not just seen it with his own eyes. Smirking to himself, he kicked his shoes off and clambered under the covers. It left him to finally get some comfortable sleep in peace, at least, and that was all he cared for right then.

Itachi awoke to Deidara curling up to his side, giving him a smile and a gentle peck on the cheek. "Afternoon," he whispered softly. "It's about time you got up- it's just gone midday."

"What?!" Itachi cried, sitting upright immediately and nearly sending Deidara, who was leaning partly across his chest, flying with the action. "The wedding's in three hours!"

"Mum and Dad called," Sasuke told him from his spot on the windowsill across the room, looking bored. "They said Madara will be here in about half an hour to take us to his place. They're going to help dress the reception hall and will be tied up until the service, and he has our kimono."

"Madara?" Itachi sighed, looking unimpressed as he slipped out of the bed. "I was hoping to avoid him."

"Me too, but you know Mum. She had to offer her services, and who would turn down help on their wedding day? Konan was thrilled."

Itachi sighed again and headed off to shower as quickly as possible, dressed and presentable in a record fifteen minutes.

He hesitated over his wet hair with distaste, knowing he wouldn't have time to dry it, opting to tie it up into a bun instead to keep it off of his back. Both Deidara and Sasuke snickered at him, though Deidara had the decency to keep his opinions to himself.

"You look like a girl," Sasuke teased, not showing as much restraint.

"Madara better have a hairdryer," Itachi growled at him, but he soon forgave him when he discovered his brother had gone to the restaurant and picked him up a sandwich for breakfast while he had been busy.

They made it outside with five minutes to spare, only to find Uchiha Madara was already waiting for them. He was parked right outside the hotel in the no parking bay in a silver four-seat convertible BMW- despite it being the middle of February, he had the roof down and designer shades covering his eyes.

"Boys," he nodded to them. "Hop in."

Itachi quickly scrambled to get into the back seat with Deidara, earning a scowl from Sasuke as he got in the front seat begrudgingly.

"Cheer up Sasuke!" Madara told him. "Anyone would think you were going to a funeral!"

"Has your cat died yet?" Sasuke returned sharply.

"Suki? Alas, she died a few years ago now. I know how fond of her you always were."

"It's a shame," Sasuke intoned. "I was looking forward to poisoning her."

"You're a caustic little brat still I see," Madara sighed as he pulled away and set them on route, doing what Itachi knew was way over the speed limit for such an area. "How about you, Itachi? Aren't you going to introduce me to your boyfriend?"

"This is Deidara," Itachi replied, indicating his partner who looked as though he wanted to be cowering into his chair. Presumably his parents had filled his uncle in on the status of his relationship.

"Always knew you'd turn out to be gay," Madara observed. "Fugaku tells me you were never interested in girls as a teenager."

"I wasn't interested in anybody," Itachi pointed out, keeping his tone neutral. "And if you must know, I'm bisexual."

"You still suck cock, don't you? That's all that matters. Pleasure to meet you, Deidara."

"Hi," Deidara squeaked as Itachi attempted to hide his reddened cheeks behind his hands.

Madara finally kept his mouth shut and silent for the rest of the rather short journey, pulling up outside of a bungalow in a cul-de-sac that looked like it wouldn't be out of place in an advert. All the lawns were cut, all the windows were clean and all the paintwork was fresh and tidy. The area screamed of expense, but then again so did Madara.

"Make yourselves at home," he told them as he led them through the front door. "Kitchen's to the right, bathroom's to the left, my bedroom is out of bounds and your kimono are in the living room which is right in front of you."

He vanished down the hall and into his bedroom, pulling the door closed behind him and leaving three bewildered young adults standing in the hallway. A furry head poked itself around the living room doorway, meowing softly at the new arrivals.

"He got another cat," Sasuke sighed heavily before turning to the chocolate tabby. "Fuck off, go on. I don't want to spend the entire service sneezing and being unable to breath because of you."

Predictably, the cat didn't move and purred in delight when Deidara scooped it up into his arms. "Hello there," he cooed as he scratched behind one of its ears. "Aren't you a pretty kitty? Aren't you a pretty kitty, yes you are!"

"Careful Blondie," Sasuke warned. "You're making yourself like dumber than usu- that fucking thing has been on my kimono!"

He stalked over to the kimono in question, which had some telltale hairs on the black material. Itachi sighed heavily and took it from Sasuke, brushing the hairs off and handing it back.

"There, all better," he soothed. "The cat didn't realise it was doing wrong, Sasuke. Stop glaring at it like that."

"I'm glaring at Deidara. The cat just happens to be attached to him."

Itachi decided that he would much rather be anywhere else but that room right then, heading for Madara's room and tentatively knocking the door despite his earlier warning about it being out of bounds.

"Enter."

He pushed the door open to find Madara sitting on the bed with a laptop, which he promptly snapped shut as he gave Itachi a smile. "Business," he sighed. "It still gets me even on my day off. What can I do for you?"

"I don't suppose you have a hairdryer I could borrow, do you?" Itachi asked sheepishly. Madara studied him for a moment with a comical twinkle in his eye, getting up and retrieving one from a drawer to hand to Itachi.

"Is Sasuke getting along nicely with Miya?"

"If you mean your cat then no, I can't say he was pleased to see her."

"Make sure he doesn't kill her please. It would be awfully inconvenient- I have too much to do today and I'd rather not have to bury her on top of that, thank you. Now shoo, I'm busy. Will you need help with the kimono?"

"No thank you," Itachi said hurriedly, pulling the door closed behind him and heading to finally dry his hair. With that task out of the way, he set about examining the kimono to work out how to put it on.

Truth be told, he had absolutely no idea. Sasuke looked equally confused while Deidara was playing with Miya quite happily in the corner, safe in the knowledge that he was perfectly capable of putting a suit on.

"So how does it fold over?" Sasuke mused as he and Itachi studied their kimono. They were both black with gold, red and yellow decorations- Sasuke's had dragons and Itachi's had koi fish.

"If I knew, Sasuke, I wouldn't be standing here looking as confused as you do," Itachi replied, wondering if it was too late to ask for Madara's help again. Pride won over so he slipped the kimono on deftly, looking at Sasuke for help.

"I don't know!" Sasuke protested. "Deidara!"

Deidara glanced over, making his way to them when Itachi beckoned. He realised immediately what Itachi wanted and frowned, shaking his head.

"You expect me to know how to tie it?"

"Just try," Itachi urged.

Deidara shrugged and got to work, folding and tying and attempting to work out what on earth he was doing while Itachi patiently weathered it.

Sasuke, in the meantime, had slipped his own kimono on and sensibly asked Madara to tie it for him. Itachi knew what a blow to his sibling's pride that would be, but he also knew Sasuke wanted it done reasonably. Neither Deidara nor himself could give such a thing.

By the time Sasuke arrived back looking formal and stunning, Deidara had barely got anywhere with Itachi's kimono. The one thing he had managed Sasuke immediately shook his head at, snatching the folds of material out of Deidara's hands.

"No. Madara said that you only fold it that way if you're burying someone," he explained. "Here, let me do it."

Deidara, who had been quite enjoying his attempts even if Itachi had steadily become more annoyed with it, skulked off to play with Miya once more. Sasuke quickly and expertly folded and tied the kimono, earning a wince from his elder brother.

"Does it have to be so tight?"

"Yes. That's how it works," Sasuke sighed as he grabbed the matching kaku obi from the sofa and slipped it around Itachi's waist, tightening up so hard Itachi gasped for air and attempted to batter him off. "Stop fussing!"

"Stop suffocating me then!"

"Oh be quiet. Look, it's done now. It suits you, you know."

"It really is tight, Sasuke."

"That's how it's supposed to be, for the second time. Oi, Blondie- come take a look at your boyfriend."

Deidara gladly did so, standing before Itachi with admiration in his eyes as he trailed his eyes up and down. Itachi's hair was still loose around his shoulders, his eyes sharp and narrowed in discomfort as he irritably brushed it away onto his back.

"It looks good," Deidara agreed with a nod.

"It's too tight," Itachi complained once more, tugging on the kaku obi to try and loosen it.

"Itachi."

Itachi glanced over to the doorway, seeing Madara already dressed in his own crimson and gold kimono- bold colours for a male, but Itachi didn't expect any less. Madara shooed Deidara and Sasuke with one hand, closing the door once they had exited the room and stepping behind Itachi with a soft sigh.

"It's supposed to be tight," he chided as he untied the kaku obi. "But I'll see what I can do."

"Sasuke and Deidara had to leave for that?" Itachi asked, immediately knowing there was an ulterior motive for his uncle's sudden kindness.

"No, they had to leave so I could talk to you in private of course. Itachi- I'm sure we both know why you're here today. You don't know Nagato and Konan, yet you're attending their wedding. Fugaku got you an invite, didn't he?"

"I don't know. All I know is one arrived, and I accepted it."

"Right. So he talked you into it over the phone? I'm not a fool, Itachi. I know this is related to the company."

"You'll have to speak to my father about that," Itachi said smoothly- he refused to be dragged into the conversation. Madara, however, was insistent.

"If it passes to him, you realise that one day it will pass to you? How does that make you feel?"

Itachi had no reply for that, desperately thinking fast in an attempt to say something in reply that wasn't simply 'I hate the idea'. "I don't know," he finally replied. "It's a difficult thing to imagine, since it's so far removed from my current life. I don't think I can imagine how it would feel without actually feeling it."

"How would Deidara react, do you think? What does he do?"

"He's an artist."

"Hmm," Madara hummed, sounding disapproving. Itachi expected no less from a successful business man with a solid career. "I see. I never saw the fancy of such fickle areas of study, but if that's what he enjoys then so be it."

"He's very good at it," Itachi told him quickly, feeling defensive of his boyfriend.

"My other dilemma, Itachi," Madara continued, completely ignoring Itachi's comment.

"Is that considering the nature of your relationship, it is unlikely you will have children. Of course you are young, and one day you may marry a woman who bears children, but I can't rely on that considering the whimsical nature of youngsters today. How about Sasuke?"

"Sasuke hates children," Itachi responded quietly. He wasn't going to reveal Sasuke's own relationship, nor was he going to pass the burden of business to him willingly either.

"I see," Madara muttered shortly as he set about retying Itachi's kimono. "Fugaku cut his hours in the last few months. Why is that?"

"He wanted more time for Sasuke and I."

Madara didn't respond, still tying and folding the kimono. When he slipped the kaku obi around his waist and tightened it, Itachi could swear it was actually tighter than before.

"Better?"

"Not rea-"

"Good, good. Now go and tell Deidara to stop terrorising my cat and get changed."

Itachi dropped the issue and gladly slipped out of the room, almost bumping into Deidara in the hall. He was already changed into his smart black suit, grinning and cuddling Miya in his arms much to Sasuke's distaste.

"You've got hairs all over it," Itachi chided as he pried the cat from his partner's arms, setting her onto the floor and brushing down the front of Deidara's suit.

"You aren't going to say how great I look?" Deidara asked cheekily.

"You look incredible," Itachi murmured, giving him a quick smile before continuing with the task at hand. "I'm glad we have tomorrow together. You'll have to wear it again for me."

"You like a man in uniform, eh?"

"It's hardly a uniform."

"Shush, you'll ruin the moment," Deidara whispered with a chuckle. "For what it's worth, you look stunning. Are you going to leave your hair down?"

Itachi hesitated, one hand brushing through his loose ebony locks quickly. "Do you like it?"

"Yes. It looks good, yeah."

"Then I suppose I can leave it," Itachi smiled, giving Deidara a soft kiss.

Deidara returned it and linked his hand into Itachi's, giving him another smile that spoke of a thousand unsaid compliments.

"Are you two done being sappy?" Sasuke sighed impatiently from their side.

"Agreed," Madara noted from the living room doorway. "We're leaving in two minutes, so any last minute dashes to fix your hair or makeup or whatever need to be done now."

"You're hilarious," Sasuke intoned. "Really, your humour is so witty- the cutting edge of fine comedy."

"I'm glad you think so, Sasuke," Madara replied cheerily as he ruffled Sasuke's hair.

"Get off you fucking jerk!" Sasuke yelled at him, shoving him away and quickly attempting to fix his hair in the hallway mirror.

Deidara laughed at him and even Itachi smirked a little, though he checked his own appearance in the mirror quickly before stepping through the front door. The smile soon faded from his face as they walked to the car however, and it had nothing to do with how tightly his kimono was tied.

"Everything alright?" Deidara whispered to him, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"Fine," Itachi replied, not wishing to explain the details of the conversation he'd had with his uncle. He had a wedding to think about. Thinking about being shoehorned into a future he didn't even want just wasn't on the cards.

Chapter End