Title: a suite change of pace
Authoress: pandastacia
Chapter name: tribulation
Dedicated: This chapter is dedicated to the ONE HOUR of MY LIFE I WASTED watching Miss USA. I only watched it because they were (no offence) all idiots. And because The Veronicas were there, DUH!
WARNING: Um, Hidan is in this chapter. Need I say anything more?
Notes: This chapter is kinda more angsty than anything. There are quite a few humorous moments, but more than anything, it moves the story along a bit.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the plot of this story.

"Do you love him?"

The question kind of jumps out at me out of the blue, making me choke on a small dango as it goes down the wrong way. It sounds almost like a "ngggggh!" as I gasp for air like a fish for a few second before hitting myself around the approximate region of my stomach, but it's been years since I've had to do the Heimlich maneuver, which doesn't even consider me applying it to myself. Perhaps my face starts gaining a blue tinge, which is when that infuriating, attractive man decides to undo the damage his words had caused me by hitting me between the shoulder blades. That is how the small dumpling ends up flying out of my throat and hitting Hidan, a silver-haired man, square between the eyes.

His violet eyes cross and his thin mouth drops into a very displeased frown at the morsel before looking at me. "What the fuck was that for?" he asks, his voice strangely muffled. Fingers shaking, he picks the dango off his face. It trembles in the air for a few moments before he allows it to drop into a trash can.

The fact that his voice isn't clear is strange on its own (Perhaps he is in shock?). Hidan is the kind of outspoken guy that interlaces every sentence with curse words. He prides himself on being comprehensible because, as he puts it, only idiots are so self-aware that their voices become muffled. He is just one more worker at the Akatsuki resort- one of the eleven co-owners.

I had met him this morning at the breakfast buffet. In his normally really loud and clear voice, he was threatening whatever "fucktard ate all the strawberries". He hadn't looked really threatening, seeing as Pein, the manager, no longer permitted him to carry his scythe around the place anymore.

(I think I heard Hidan muttering about some "damn nonsense. Why should my worshiping fucking Jashin scare anyone?")

Then again, I also heard Kisame saying it has something to do with Hidan nearly castrating the last person to finish the morning coffee a few weeks ago. At first, they had all tried to get him into anger management counseling, but that apparently had failed.

Wonder why.

Still, I shrink away from his glare. "Sorry. Didn't mean to do that. Itachi surprised me, that's all. And your face just happened to be in line as a target!"

He growls. It's a menacing sound that comes from deep within his throat- perhaps like a bear, lion, or wolf. Hairs prickle on the back of my neck. I imagine myself to be a scientist cornered by a wildcat near the edge of a cliff- no way to go other than down. Wrenching my wide eyes away from his narrow glare, I turn to look at Itachi.

His eyes are glued to mine as they meet his.

Itachi's beautiful- gorgeous, even. Not that it is really a surprise. I mean, him and Sasuke are related. Hair the color of raven feathers is held in a simple low ponytail with not even a strand loose to get in the way of deep crimson eyes. A few stress lines appear by his nose, though they do little to ruin his natural good looks. He is so attractive that not even the unfashionable black cloak with red clouds that all of the workers at Akatsuki wear. In fact, the black, collared shirt and pants make him look pretty delicious.

Not that I'd try to eat him, of course.

There is just something about him that sounds a bit familiar. I swear that someone has mentioned him to me before…

"Hidan, please quit your obscenities and just leave." Itachi's voice cuts through the paralysis that had wrapped my body in its crushing grip.

"And if I don't?" He sneers, ruining his potentially good looks with the ugly look that he gives Itachi. (In a way, he kind of does look like Draco Malfoy if Draco had dyed his hair so platinum blonde it turned silver.)

I don't really understand the animosity between them. As far as I know, they're just co-workers that are vying for the biggest bonus, but whenever I see them, they're arguing in some manner over something stupid.

Itachi doesn't bother gracing him with a response. Instead, he leans over, his lithe form freezing in mid-bend as his right hand goes for something beneath the issue of this month's Seventeen magazine I had bought from the hotel's store. He brings out the remote and switches on the television to channel 18, which was interestingly showing the Miss Kunoichi competition.

She wears glasses with dark frames, hiding her eye color from all watchers. A simple black dress with a laced up corset and a traditional skirt that falls to mid-thigh highlights her height, making her silver heels shine in the changing light.

The music is of greater interest to me than the competition, so most of what goes on I notice in passing.

Very dimly, I can hear Hidan screaming as he grabs something and shakes it. "GOD, I CAN'T TAKE THIS, YOU UCHIHA PANSY, YOU!"

That's before he throws what he had been shaking and dashes out of the room faster than I'd ever guess just looking at him. I think I can feel the Uchiha smirking as I focus on the television screen.

At the moment, a redhead is singing into the microphone with techno music blasting as the background onto which her voice soared.

The Miss Kunoichi contestants start taking turns walking across the stage, their (big, fake) BriteSmiles seeming to light up the large auditorium. They stand in the center of the stage for a minute or two, basking in the applause of their supporters. Dresses appeared in many different shades and designs.

The only really interesting part besides the dresses is the hair of the contestants. It is a bit of an awe-inspiring event as hair takes on the rainbow. Mostly it is because one of the rules of Miss Kunoichi is that there must be natural hair colors only, so no one can go out and dye their hair lemon yellow if it would influence their natural beauty.

(I think you can't get away from the fact that if left to soak too long, the hair dye will seep through the skull and mass-kill brain cells. But that's just my thought on the matter.)

Miss Konoha, for instance, has dark violet with blunt bangs that nearly cover her wise, experienced hazel eyes. She's one of the oldest of the girls. In actuality, it's probably closer to say she's no longer a girl, but a woman.

Then there is Miss Oto with her choppy-layered reddish-pink hair as she grimaces, walking around the stage like she doesn't even want to be there.

With dark brown hair that flows around her as she walks serenely around the stage, Miss Suna is one of those that talks little and mostly just smiles with her dark doe-like eyes than her mouth.

But yet again, the red-haired woman singing captures my attention more than anything else.

It is beautiful- the music, her voice, the words.

"First there was You,

I'd thought you were my prince come true.

You were so beautiful and calm.

How could I know it was all wrong?

"You held my hand when we were together (Thought it all felt right).

You were always quite the sir (Always so polite).

I never had to ever wonder

If you had to be mine to hold.

"Then I met Him

And God, did you dim.

I had thought I had to be with you,

But then again, I never really knew.

"So he's not perfect (whoever is?)

And maybe he doesn't bring home flowers (you knew my favorite)

On my birthday or our anniversary,

But he brings home my heart…"

Her voice cascades through the last line as the last girl- one from Oto- ends up along with the other contestants stage right.

"… And that's enough for me."

Screams erupt as the woman finishes singing. Apparently it hadn't just cast its spell on me. Everyone begs for an encore, but she gives a dazzling smile before smoothly walking off stage as to allow the competition to continue.

The spell breaks, allowing me to realize for the first time that Itachi is not well.

Okay, so he still sits up stiffly and he surely is still pale.

However, it is not the kind of natural white that he is on a day-to-day basis. It's the kind of pale you see on geishas. It's similar to the shade most people are when they walk out of a haunted house that gives them the shivers and feeling that death is but two steps behind.

Then there is the fact that his hand is grasping the remote in such a tight grip that I can see the veins in his hand bulge out. Cracking can be heard from the plastic as the pressure increases minutely.

"Itachi."

The slight twitch of the large jugular vein in his neck is the only way I am able to tell I'm getting through to him through the fog of emotion that is obviously gripping him.

"You're going to break the remote and you know what they say- you break it, you buy it."

This time, his jaw shudders at the age old adage.

"The resort already bought it." His voice is little more than a glacial whisper, something that I can barely hear as I strain from my seat to hear him.

"Itachi. What's wrong with you? You kinda look like Deidara when Tobi decided to try and use his clay when he ran out of Playdoh…"

The comparison to the "Idiot Squad" seems to bring him back to Earth.

"Nothing."

But of course I know it's not 'nothing' when he turns the sound off as the red-haired woman is hauled back on stage by a man with silver hair and a grin the size of- well, I don't know anything that big in comparison. She is rapping on his back, apparently trying to get away.

"They must do this a lot," I muse as I see the faux angry look on her face and the fans laugh. "Everyone seems used to it and laughs a lot." A laugh escapes me as the unnamed woman tries to run off, only to be tackled by the man. Must be her boyfriend or husband or something, considering how comfortable she seems to be with him. As she finally gives up, brushing herself off, she gives him a hug and dances over to the microphone. "They're cute together. I wonder how long they've known each-."

"They met three years ago."

I freeze as I realize the self-deprecating tone in his voice. Its caressing overtones welcome me home- a home I had never wanted to come back to. Coaxing at me, tendrils of Itachi's self-hate wave invitingly at me.

I refuse to wave back.

He continues.

"Karin and I had known each other since she was born. Her family and mine spent summers together as our parents were good friends. Needless to say, they thought that the best thing they could do- for both us and the families involved- would be to concoct some legal shit to set up an arranged marriage."

As far as I am concerned, Itachi is one of those people who are always eloquent even under the greatest of duress. For him to even swear is nearly cardiac arrest inducing.

"So for years- from early childhood until she graduated high school- we were nearly inseparable. I protected her when she was teased by the bullies. She was the only one who could make me smile or feel outside of my own family.

"We knew about the Arrangement, of course. That's what we called it outside the houses because no one could know that we- we, who everyone thought was ultimately free of earthly burdens- were tethered so tightly we couldn't fly.

"In the end, the Arrangement lead to many screaming matches on her side and ignoring her on mine. You probably know how it is. You love your family so much you can't blame them for what is essentially their fault. Blinded by that love, you never see past the illusion you made for yourself. The pretty little black and red pictures you draw until all you can see is a red moon and black skies. Nothing is right anymore."

Bitterness lives in his voice. His daily calm and blankness is just the way he hides all he feels deep underneath, I realize slowly.

But when you hide it all away, I want to say, you lose yourself. You're frozen in a cocoon and you can't breath until you start chipping away at the illusion you created for everyone to see.

I know.

I understand.

I broke through.

"Years later, we got used to being around each other so much that we began to know each other. With that acceptance came this feeling of responsibility.

"And with that responsibility, came love."

His voice grows quiet.

"But then she met this guy. Suigetsu." He spits out the name like it is tar on his tongue that he just wants to get rid of. "He had been one of Sasuke's college roommates, so one summer, he accompanied Sasuke to our summer house.

"Karin and I had been getting ready for our wedding the next summer. Weddings generally don't take that long to get ready, but our clan- the Uchihas- believe deeply in traditions, so our official engagement was to be a little over a year.

"But then he tripped over a toad statue Naruto left in the middle of the clearing…"

Naruto's name hit me like a stone in the middle of the chest, even if had just been in passing.

"And he fell into Karin and they rolled down the giant hill. Of course he lands on top of her and they just freeze.

"I didn't realize it at the moment, but that one moment when they looked into each other's eyes was the moment I lost Karin."

Maybe it is just a trick of the light, but I swear I saw a tear fall down his cheek.

But it's Itachi Uchiha, so it probably is a trick of the light…

Then it hits me over the head like a sledgehammer. I gasp as I grasp what has been alluding me since I met Itachi.

//FLASHBACK\\

Ino and I were on our way to the hotel yesterday afternoon.

"Sakura, you have to move on," the blonde was saying. "You can't just swear off the entire male race just because of one fluke accident. I mean, it was four years ago! You may think you're happy now, but you'll be even happier when you find love!"

"Puh-lease, Ino-pig." I rolled my eyes, indulging in the use of the childhood nickname to underline, bold, and italicize the stupidity in her statement. "You've been dating men forever yes you haven't found 'love'. Considering you've 'dipped into the basket' the most, so to speak, shouldn't you have found it already?"

My best friend since kindergarten mimicked my action. "What? Didn't I tell you about the guy I met last week? He's charming, sweet, and calm. He's most definitely The One. And guess what his name is?"

//END FLASHBACK\\

"Itachi Uchiha…" I whisper in nearly disbelief.

He gives me a strange look. Obviously he hasn't frozen back into a block of ice yet. "What?"

"You're going out with Ino!" Nearly yelling, I wave my index finger in his face. "Now why the hell are you moaning about Karin?!"

Of course, this statement apparently deserves a blink at my evident stupidity. "Weren't you listening?" The ice is starting to reform. He's beginning to lose the humanity I had seen but minutes before.

"Look here, buddy…" I glare at him menacingly.

The Uchiha bristles at my addressing of him.

"Not everyone gets a second chance at a happy ending and here you are moaning like someone who thinks they must have kicked a box of puppies in a previous life after running over their mother. No! You're a lovesick puppy that got kicked in the you-know-what and can't seem to find a reason to get up on your feet.

"Do you know how hard life can be? I'm sure you do. Then why are you wasting your opportunity. Ino Yamanaka is one of the most honorable- if a little blonde at times- women I know. And I'll have you know right now that she considers you a good person!

"Which is why if you decide to weep and bemoan this Karin character any longer, I'm going to have to kick your ass for breaking my best friend's heart!"

Giving a "Humph!" I turn to face the television. On second thought, I grab the remote which had fallen to the floor during Itachi's desolate, sorry tale so I can turn on the volume.

"Damn," I mumble as the last words of Karin's song fade off in the roar of the audience's applause.

Watching the women on screen answering questions kind of bores me, but that's not the reason that I turn to my silent companion.

"Believe me, Uchiha," I say softly. "I understand what you feel. I know you probably don't care about me or who I am or what made me who I am, but you have to understand something about me. Some of the things I've been through don't allow me to understand why you're letting go of people who care. Don't you think that your treatment of Sasuke is undeserved? Okay, so he was the one who got Suigetsu and Karin together, but he didn't mean to. And maybe somewhere, deep inside of yourself, you know that he loves you. As a brother."

There's still silence. The sound of the lights reverberate through the room, nearly drowned out by the cheering on the T.V.

So I sigh.

"Look, you want to know how I can relate? You probably think that me, a silly little girl cannot understand some great internal pain- the kind that comes from treachery.

"But that only shows you know next to nothing about me. You probably don't even understand why you'd tell me about Karin, considering we met less than twenty-four hours ago.

"But maybe you recognize our kindred spirits.

"You wanted to know if I love him? Do you mean Naruto?"

He doesn't give me an answer, just giving me a blank stare.

"There's a long and short answer to that. The short would be 'I do.' I love Naruto with all of my heart.

"See, Naruto came to me during one of the darkest parts of my life. You know Naruto, right?" Itachi shifts slightly. "Then you probably know how he is probably the most inappropriate, hyperactive, annoying person ever. He's the kind of person you never want to tell anything because either he'll misconstrue it, tell everyone about it, or interpret it wrongly and tell everyone about it.

"But he's also one of those people with a light inside them.

"After graduating from Suna High School two years early- I was a pretty smart kid- I moved in with my boyfriend of two years. Don't ask me what his name is- I don't remember.

"Maybe it sounds stupid, but after what happened, I made myself forget. Sometimes even knowing the name of someone who hurt you is the most painful thing of all. Does it make sense?

"Life was good. I was just starting to train under Tsunade, the head doctor of the local hospital. I got along with both her and her assistant, Shizune, very well. They were two bonds that kept me going after a car accident took the life of my parents in the fourth month after I started my internship. Me and the boyfriend got along well enough. It was the regular kind of relationship. We'd wake up every morning, eat breakfast, and get going to work. Upon returning home, I'd make dinner and we'd talk and laugh over dinner." My eyes glazed over as I remember the Good Years- the years where I didn't feel like a dried-up version of myself.

"A few days after my nineteenth birthday, I came home from work. It was normal as I opened the door, but then I entered the apartment. And that was when I was obvious that life from then on would be anything but normal.

"Half the apartment was gone. Gone. The bastard had up and taken all of his stuff and didn't even bother to leave me a note.

"I still don't know what happened to him, nor do I care to."

A rattling breath shakes me out of my stupor. Raising the back of my hand to my cheek, I'm surprised to see glistening tears coating it. All it takes is a hiccup before I shake my head to hold in the sob.

"But you see? When you have something that's so good, you can't let it go. You have to hold onto it as strong as you can because you never know when it will come back.

"They say that if you love something, let it go. If it was meant to be, it'll come back. If it leaves forever, it was never meant to be.

"But sometimes you have to chase after what you want. Sometimes waiting is a lost cause."

I sniff.

"Anyway, Ino became worried that I'd do something stupid like commit suicide, so that was when she introduced me to Naruto."

I paused to grab a tissue and wipe my eyes as I give a shuddering laugh. "I promised myself to stop crying about that stupid idiot…

"But I guess you and I think of love differently.

"The love I feel for Naruto is similar to the love I feel for Ino-pig. They are like my family- my surrogate siblings.

"I love them.

"They love me."

"And that's all I think I need."

:;:;:

Behind the door, a figure slumps. Guilt-ridden features coax themselves into a fake calm expression as he slowly walks away, his hands immersed in the pockets of his black pants.

"I guess she doesn't need me anymore…"

:;:;:;:;:;

A/N: Sooooooo… That was a long stretch between updates. I apologize profusely. Please accept it!

I'm not sure what I think about this chapter. A lot of the things I'd planned for Suite changed drastically. Like the story between Karin and Itachi.

And the guy behind the door, listening to the story? Heh, you'll be surprised. That is one element I'm not planning on changing.

Anyway, I've decided on the length of this story. Instead of each chapter being a day in the life at Akatsuki resort, it's going to be Sakura connecting with a character. This one's was Itachi, obviously. They aren't the "best of buddies", but it's the beginning because they understand each other on a very deep level. I'm not sure who is up next… But anyway, there is going to be eight or nine more chapters (EEP! o_0). Konan, Pain, Deidara, Sasori, Tobi, Temari, Karin&Suigetsu (they'll get their own chapter), and, of course, Sasuke. Then the epilogue (maybe. Maybe Sasuke's chapter will be the epilogue…?)

Just to clarify- I know that Sasuke didn't appear here at all, but this kinda sorta helps connect the story together. Itachi is the all important older brother figure. Sasuke will be making larger appearances in the rest of the story.

READ AND REVIEW!

~pandastacia