Truth: Itachi Uchiha Love Story

C H A P T E R 8

'A time I would pay anything to go back to.'

Lost in my own thoughts I had forgotten I was supposed to be at the shrine. I reached for the pictures and slid each one of them out of their frames, placing them in my pocket. I turned on my heels and walked out of the room, down the hall, and out the front door.

Naka Shrine was on the other side of the Uchiha compound - on the outskirts, just outside of the watchful eyes of the village. Or so the Uchiha thought.

This place brought back the worst memories. It was the place Itachi had saved and abandoned me.

My heel kicked rhythmically against the cobble stone as I walked to the entrance of the shrine. Pulling the door open, I slipped into the dark room, shutting the door behind me as I walked further into the room, counting out the tatami mats.

"Under the 7th tatami mat is the clan's secret meeting place."

I lifted the 7th mat and walked down the stone steps. The room was inked with darkness. But I had been in this room many times before, and I knew it like the back of my hand. I walked to the right and left side of the stone table, I reached for the candles that always sat at the corner of the table. With a watered down fire jutsu, I lit the candles all at once.

Standing at the center of the room, I stared at the wall. The Uchiha emblem decorated the walls with vibrant colors of red and white. I remember being here after clan meetings with the other heads of the police force. I definitely didn't miss this place. My eyes swept from the right side of the room, up to the ceiling, and down to the left side. 

You could almost feel the hate that consecrated this room.

Then... the soft pitter patter of footsteps ticked behind me. My head quickly snapped back, my body spinning around in a swift motion. A dark figure emerged from the other side of the room. The moment I saw the raven hair, my eyes rimmed with tears.

"Itachi."

My voice croaked. My body was trembling. I didn't realize how much I had yearned to be in his presence till this moment.

"Shiori."

The sound of my name parting from his lips broke something inside me. 

Tears ran hot streaks down my cheeks, as a whimper fell from my lips. I dropped on my hands and knees, in prostration. My head falling in indignity. "I am so sorry, Ita..." My voice grated against my vocal cords. Almost instantly I could feel myself being pulled up from the ground. His arms wrapped tightly around my body, molding me to him. His embrace immediately soothed the chaos of emotions whirling through me, but the tears kept flowing. My arms locked around his waist and wound up his back holding on for dear life, my face buried into his chest. His fingers ran through my hair softly, rubbing against my scalp. Soft sobs continued to fall. I had never really cried before safe for what I was a baby, but I couldn't stop the tears from soaking Itachi's cloak. Minutes passed, and finally, the soft hiccups faded into silence. I didn't want to pull away from him. This felt like a dream, and if I pulled away, I'd wake up, and Itachi won't be there.

Unwillingly, I pulled away, but the grip he had on my body only tightened. With little effort, I finally managed to pull myself from his vice grip. Raising my face to his, I was surprised at what I found. Itachi's face stained with silent tears. My hands flew to his face, whipping the tears away as we stared into each others eyes in muteness.