“…Uh. Yeah. You got it right. Turns out a Sannin with a buncha lackeys, more’n one chakra nature, jutsu people’ve never even heard of, an’ ‘nough info t’predict where you’ll be’s… a bad enemy to face.”
“I’m sorry those are the circumstances under which you were captured.” Him and many others, as well. Orochimaru’s greed knew no bounds.
she looks over at itachi, “How do you catch someone who can literally turn into water? are you sure he didn’t pull a sasuke and leave in hopes of getting stronger only to get screwed over like so many others?”
“Every jutsu has a weakness, including a process like hydrification. It is also Orochimaru who captured him. No doubt he would know a way to incapacitate many ninja.” The comment about Sasuke leaves Itachi extremely disappointed, leveling her with a look.
…You know what else was weird? For all Mangetsu grumbled and
complained (mostly in silence) he was ever ready to drop all kinds of animosity
to take a detour for a tea break. He wasn’t helping himself to tea, though. Never
did. It just so happened that most tea shops also served other beverages and
some even had fancy parfaits.
And holy hell did
Mangetsu love a good parfait.
He went through quite a lot of them while Itachi quietly ruminated
on a plate of dango.
He wasn’t even going to ask how long they were going to be
in there (because he knew word would get out sooner or later and they might as
well get ambushed, turn a tea shop into a bar brawl—or well, one could dream).
Mangetsu figures he might as well take the chance and run with it. Try and
drown three parfaits if he can manage it, assuming the wait-service was timely.
He’s a trickle of water when he winds his way down below,
just beneath the surface, up to where Itachi’s standing, forming up in silence
right next to him.
“Tea time already, huh?” Can’t help the grin. “Which way?”
That bit about not bumping into Sasuke, though—Mangetsu was
calling bullshit. Someone somewhere was going to tell that kid, and if the kid
was anything as ballsy as they used to talk about, defeating Zabuza and all,
then maybe he’d come running at his brother.
Maybe.
He’s got mixed feelings about watching that kind of match,
though. …For reasons.
“This way.” The streets have not changed at all. Itachi is acutely aware of his current position and where the nearest shop is. Provided it has not closed down, it’s a five minute walk.
His hat obscures his face as he joins the crowd of villagers on the streets. It’s a mix of civilians and shinobi, chattering, going about their daily duties. Children are either out about playing, or towing behind their parents.
It seems peaceful. Calm. The populace is secure, even though their Sandaime has died recently. It puts Itachi at ease. There is not a Godaime in place yet, though he no doubts a search is underway.
No one stops to gawk, at least from Itachi’s peripheral. He ducks his head under the entrance to the shop, choosing a seat directly in the middle, but facing the door.
He orders his usual, and the waitress turns her attention to Mangetsu.
[[ Just to clarify, Itachi didn’t pick birds because “uwu goth aesthetic”, he picks birds purely because no one expects birds, and a sudden flock of crows in your face is going to confuse you WAY MORE than a substitution log/common replacement item.
It wasn’t about being cool/showing off, it was about effectively confusing his enemy and making them panic through a method no one’s tried before, and no one is generally expecting. ]]
If he didn’t have to be quiet, Mangetsu would’ve said
something right there. Instead, he rolls his eyes, and settles for a scowl. Goddamnit Itachi. His grip tightens on
Hiramekarei’s handle; there’s an urge to just swing it around and cut
something, but no.
Traveling with this guy’s been an experience. Mangetsu’s had
to cater to Itachi’s ‘no kill policy’ quite a bit along the way. It wasn’t that
Mangetsu killed for the heck of it, but he’d always made sure there weren’t witnesses
or other bits and bobs that’ll come back to bite them in the ass. Sometimes there
was collateral damage. Itachi might not have openly reprimanded him for it, but Mangetsu could read the look on
his face—even when he wasn’t looking at Itachi.
He just knew it was there—that quietly disapproving look
about him.
It shouldn’t bother him. He should be doing whatever the way he knew to do it. He shouldn’t be
running around letting some weird pacifism rub off on him from the world’s most
notorious clan killer. Like—how hypocritical can you get? Clan killer? Pacifist? In the same damn sentence.
Mangetsu doesn’t even know what Itachi is, really.
He shouldn’t be letting any of this get to him, but it did. Somehow.
Even if he tried not to show it.
And right now he simply follows Itachi through the barrier. Decides
he’ll say something now. Quietly. (He
can do quiet. In fact he could operate in complete silence—got it down to an
art form, it was terrifying.) But honestly, where’s the point in being quiet
when their cloaks just screamed for attention? Plus, Mangetsu had Hiramekarei—it
wasn’t exactly a concealed weapon, despite the bandages.
“Think you’ll bump into yer lil’ brother again?”
Itachi had ways of passing the excuse off. No thrill, no payoff, so on. Each more hypocritical than the last, as his clan contained elderly and children alike. No matter how you looked at it, Itachi ridding his world of an entire clan in one night didn’t make sense with his mission policies.
He only killed when it was instructed on the mission scroll. And then it was swift, quiet death. He was not fond of messes. Bandits and Hunter-Nin did not deserve their lives ended, and Itachi had a specialized set of skills which made for quick, efficient escapes.
Itachi uses the thick trees below as cover, and to break his fall. A swipe of his palm, sticky with chakra, and his speed is greatly reduced, allowing him to simply slide his way down the trunk with minimal noise. A single leaf is misplaced, floating down below calmly, swaying side to side.
“No.” That is his answer, blunt and to the point, as most of his communication is these days. He’d no intention of locating his little brother, not until the time was right.
UchihaSavior 