Guard Duty

Itachi sighed in contentment and leaned his back against the tree, stroking Sora's hair and allowing himself to relax as she rested. He didn't think that there would be too much to worry about in this general area, but he kept his guard up just in case.

Sora awoke a couple of hours later, looking up slowly just to check Itachi was still there. Smiling when she realised it wasn't a dream, she sat up and looked at him, biting her lip, but still smiling.

I gave up everything just to be with you, she thought to herself, watching him quietly And I'll never regret it, Itachi-koi. Never.

"It's about time you woke up." Itachi teased, smirking. "How'd you sleep?"

Sora rolled her eyes "I wasn't sleeping that long."

"I slept pretty well, actually," she yawned, leaning into his shoulder "but its your turn now, so get comfy. I'll keep guard."

"Right." Itachi said, yawning. He settled himself more comfortably against the tree, pulling Sora closer to him. With a contented sigh, he closed his eyes and drifted off.

She kissed his forehead and smiled, holding him close to her body as he slept. She kept a constant guard; watching out for anything at all.

Itachi had slept better than he had been able to for a long time, he could finally relax. After a couple hours, he awoke with a stretch and smiled lazily at Sora.

She smiled back and tenderly moved some of his hair of his face.

"Hello, love."

"No trouble while I was asleep, Sora-chan?" he questioned, reaching up to stroke a finger over her cheek.

"No, nothing," she yawned, leaning into him "Did you sleep okay?"

"Better than I have for a long time." he replied, stretching lazily.

She smiled and leant down to press a soft and tender kiss to Itachi's lips.

"I really missed you, you know."

He smiled gently and held her to him. "I've missed you, too, more than you could know."

Snuggling into Itachi again, she smiled to herself, closing her eyes in contentment.

"Where do we go from here, Itachi-kun?"

Itachi looked to the horizon, it was still early enough where they'd make headquarters before dark. He pulled Sora to his face and placed a passionate kiss upon her lips. "We've got a while yet, Sora-chan, we don't need to leave yet."

Sora's eyes widened as he kissed her, and slowly but surely, she relaxed into it, holding onto him tightly.
As he pulled away, she smiled, cheeks flushed "Oh...okay, Itachi-kun."

Itachi rested his chin on the top of her head, closing his eyes contentedly. "It's nice to just relax with you. It's been so long..."

She nodded, leaning back into him and smiling contentedly "It's been far too long, Ita-koi."

He stared over her head to the landscape around him. "I still can't believe you're actually coming with me. It's like a dream."

She smiled again and nodded "Yeah, I honestly thought I'd never see you again...nevermind leave with you. It's amazing."

"You're sure you're up to joining, though?" he teased, smirking.

She giggled and looked up at him, tracing a finger over his cheek "Of course. The Akatsuki is incomplete without me..."

"And face it, you've missed training with me." she smirked

He smirked and kissed her nose.

"There's a lot I've missed about you" he said.

"There's a lot I've missed about you too, Itachi-koi," she smiled, and blushed a little. Her eyes traced over his features carefully; he'd grown taller, that was obvious. He more handsome than she remembered, if it were even possible. Just looking over him, her cheeks flushed a slight tint of red and she smiled again, this being an almost new smile.
Sora then gently traced her finger over his cheekbone and down his neck, before placing her palm flat against his chest "I've missed you so much."

His eyes softened at her words. He had loved her since they were children, the idea of their union was never something he feared, in fact he had lived all these years to try and return to her as much as he could. What he had done, his sins were unforgivable, but she still loved him and missed him.

"You don't know how much I've missed you" he said huskily, holding emotions at bay. "The moments I missed while I was gone was unforgivable, but I don't want to miss anything anymore. Never again"