Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of Naruto. I do own Shukumei/Doku. You can't have her. You can't have the plot either. I own that, too. hugs Doku plushie and manuscript

Summary: Itachi meets a singer he saw at a club. What is he thinking? What do Gaara and Naruto have to do with this? And how will this girl with such a strange clan affect all of them?

Chapter 1 – Brief Meetings and Strong Feelings

A girl in her late teens sat in a small restaurant in a village on the edge of Fire Country. She had ordered tea and miso soup. While waiting for her lunch she watched the people around her. People-watching was always amusing when you had the time and, boy, did she have time. Currently, she was employed by the local club as a singer/dancer for one night. That meant that by this time the next day she'd be working in the next village. Not much time when you think about it, but it was enough. Selling herself (looks and voice only, never her body; she still had that much respect for herself) was something she never thought she'd end up doing, never mind doing it well and actually making a decent living. But it was the traveling that she loved more than anything.

They always said she'd never keep to the village and that her voice, sweet as it was, could stop any fight. They'd nicknamed her Doku (poison, toxicant) for it because she could cause a fight as easily as end one and her listeners were always addicted by the end. But that was a long time ago, and she was starting to get tired. The Village Hidden in the Leaves wasn't too far, maybe they'd let her stay there? Only one way to find out and she needed money to get that far, a lot of money. Damn, traveling was getting expensive. Ugh, she should've stayed in the Hidden Sand. That red-head, the Kazekage's son, had taken good care of her for a month but eventually she felt she had to move on.

Anyway, who was around to observe this time of day? Not like there was a lot of choice, the place was practically empty. Oooh, here's an interesting pair…

Directly in front of her sat two men, one tall and blue (blue? since when were men blue?) the other was facing away from her and was much shorter, shorter than her even, with long dark hair. She let her mind wander while staring at the pair. They were, by far, the most interesting pair in the whole restaurant. Though the taller one seemed to be more menacing physically, the shorter one seemed to call the shots; always cutting off the taller with a simple glance or gesture, sometimes a word. The taller had a deep, gruff bass voice; the one in charge, the short one, had a smooth baritone she'd always been partial to. It crossed her mind that he could probably be a great singer if he tried. She could hear what they were saying if she listened, but that was rude. So she just listened to the timbre of each of their voices and let her mind wander. She almost fell asleep with her eyes open, old habits are so hard to break.

Eventually, the taller one noticed her staring and pointed it out to his companion. Only when the shorter man turned to face her did she finally realize she had been staring. Just as she opened her mouth to apologize her order came and she turned to thank the waitress. When she turned back around the blue man was sitting in the seat across from her. She blinked. When had he moved? And he had a scratched headband? Oh shit, she was dealing with rogue ninja.

"Did you see something interesting?"

WTF? He better not be hitting on me. She made sure to keep her face blank. "Excuse me?"

"You were staring at me and my friend there and we don't appreciate it."

Oh great, a tough guy, too. Huh, time to start smiling sweetly. "I'm sorry. My mind was wandering. I didn't mean to offend."

"Just see that it doesn't happen again. You wouldn't want to upset my friend." Yeah, sure buddy. You wouldn't want to upset me either. Ninja don't scare me as much as I'll let you think.

She cocked her head to the side, her thinking habit. What to do to piss this guy off without getting in trouble? What to do? What to do? Then she got up and, much to the amazement of the blue-skinned man who was failing abominably at scaring her, she walked around him to his companion who looked up at her slowly.

She made a small bow, more of an incline of her head really. "I am sorry if I offended you."

He blinked and turned to his companion. "Kisame." Oooh, that baritone… (mental slap) Snap out of it girl.

"Eh, sorry, Itachi. Just wanted to…"

"To what?"

"Uh, never mind." The blue skinned man, apparently Kisame, got up and knocked over her tea (on purpose she noted). It seemed like he would've walked off but his partner gave him a look and he grudgingly apologized.

"Sorry."

Honestly, she couldn't care less. If he wanted to be a bastard, then fine. "It's fine, really. I think they give free refills here."

Kisame grunted and returned to his seat. She bent to clean up the tea, it had spilled all over the table top and onto the floor. Beginning to kneel, a hand grabbed her arm. She looked up at the dark haired man, what was his name? Ah yes, Itachi.

Itachi turned to Kisame with another of those looks. Kisame seemed to balk a little but went to clean the tea himself. Itachi gestured her into Kisame's seat. His pitch-black eyes followed her every move. She didn't feel uncomfortable; he wasn't comparing or judging her, just watching.

"Are you sure…?" She gestured to Kisame. He didn't answer, simply nodded. He pushed his plate of sushi to the middle of the table and handed her a pair of chopsticks. She smiled and raised her hand in a refusing gesture. Quite honestly, she didn't like raw fish and the idea of eating said food nauseated her no matter how much time she spent in this country. To watch him eat it on the other hand was utterly fascinating. This man was very… feminine.

He had long, flowing, well-kept hair. Her hair was longer, she thought, but couldn't be sure; she hadn't let down her hair from its bun and actually paid attention to it in a long time. Granted, she washed it often enough but she couldn't remember exactly how long it was. It was a dark chocolaty-brown, she knew; silky, thick, and heavy, too. His nails were painted purple. She kept only clear nail hardener on, it was so much easier because it didn't show when it chipped. He had a pale, smoothly sculpted face with insomnia lines beneath his eyes. She was much darker, and the only features to really stand out on her were her high cheekbones and cat-like eyes. He had a tiny stature compared to most men, most especially to his partner. She was taller by a few inches, if she had been wearing her stage heels she would've towered over him.

All in all, if it wasn't for the obviously square shoulders and lack of breasts she would have thought him a woman from far away. At the same time she acknowledged the strength this man carried around him. She learned a lot about judging the strength of a person while singing in some of those seedier places. They weren't exactly… selective about their clientele and she'd had to learn fast to keep her money and her life.

He finished his mouthful and looked her in the eye. "What are you doing here?"

That one threw her off; sure the place wasn't a five-star restaurant but she'd been in worse. "I beg your pardon?"

"I saw you in the village we were in yesterday. What are you doing here?"

Oh great, don't tell me he's my latest stalker. Better nip this in the bud. I think it's time for the business-only voice. "I doubt very much that it's any of your business but, as I'm sure you know, I'm a singer for hire. That is what I'm doing here."

He seemed unfazed by her tone. "You have a very good voice. Were you formally trained?"

What is it with this guy? Oh well, they're innocent questions. "No."

"Talent like that is a burden." He seemed to get very sad and she had to wonder what his talent was.

"Only if you let it be." Her voice had softened more than she had meant it to, but there was know taking it back now.

This man's face and body language never changed, but she could read him oh so easily. Another talent, another burden. Again, she saw him rouse himself from his thoughts to continue the conversation. "What is your name?"

"Doku. You should know that, you've seen my show after all."

"No. Your real name."

"Shukumei (fate, destiny) or just Mei (dark, niece)."

"Mei." He tasted the name, rolling it on his tongue, and seemed to find it fitting. "You have a very beautiful voice, Mei. You shouldn't waste it in clubs like that."

What the bloody hell is up with these guys? First that one tries to scare me, then this one acts like he wants to "save" me. Yeah, that didn't work out too well for Red. I think he's still nursing a broken heart, poor baby… "Nowhere else will take me because I haven't been formally trained. Besides, I get better pay at those clubs because of the tips. So, why was someone like you at one of those places anyway? I can't imagine you couldn't find someone to pass the time with."

"I didn't want anyone, I was simply out walking. Then it started raining and I didn't feel like getting wet."

Liar. He heard the singing and went in. That's how it always is. "I love the rain. It's beautiful. Nature has a rhythm all its own."

"Not even rain can wash away a past though." So sad… But why? In any case, I shouldn't get involved. It's none of my business.

"Good thing I don't have a past to be washed away then. But I'm guessing you do." He seemed to narrow his eyes at her, as if wondering how she knew this and how she was so calm about it. "The scratched headband kind of gives that away. Are you going to come to the club tonight?" There was only one, it wouldn't take him long to find it either.

He seemed to think for a second, his eyes unfocused and then they zeroed in on her in all their inky black glory. "Yes." They're always addicted…

"Good. I'll see you then. Have a nice lunch, Itachi." And there is no cure…

She walked away, finished her lunch quickly, paid, and left. She didn't acknowledge them as she walked out. He was still sitting there, watching her, when she walked out the door. Because I'm the disease…

She practically ran down the street. When she thought she was far enough from the restaurant she stopped and stared at the sky. It was so blue, such a dark, dark blue…

And there is no avoiding Poisoned Fate…

"No avoiding it at all." A single tear slipped down her cheek, almost immediately lost among the raindrops.

Author's Note: Comments? Questions? Concerns? Suggestions? All are welcome. All are expected. Go click that button and type a few words. That's all I ask.