He~y. At last! I updated! Were you waiting for this? Kahel004 does not and will ever not (unless by some miracle it happens) own Naruto or any of its productions.

Guys, as flattered as I am that some of you where really waiting for this to come out-let me say this, please. I know you want to read the next chapter so badly and I admit, I'm sorry that I never mentioned this before- I don't update that much. I'm busy with schoolwork-even in summer (yes, that's the truth of my pitiful life). I'm asking you to be patient because I am not entitled to update every week just because you want to read what happens next. This is my story-we have to go at it in my pace; are we clear? Thanks. :)

In the Land of Snow

By 004

Chapter 2

Uchiha Itachi tried his best not to glance at his wayward little brother as he left the infirmary. He fixed his hold on his son to make sure he didn't fall. Even if he was strong, Kyousuke was already a grown child and it was hard to hold him in one hand.

"What are you doing here, Kyousuke?" he asked.

The young Uchiha shifted in his position perched on his father's arm and tried to peer into the small slits the mask had for eye holes. "I just wanted to make sure the bad man wasn't going to do anything to us. He was looking for you and mama and Ichijou and Natsumi and Fuyuri!"

Kyousuke ended with a pout and the masked Uchiha looked at his son in amusement. Most of the time, his eldest child may act and behave like him but there were other times that he had a startling though not unpleasant resemblance to his beloved mother. With his one free hand, he fixed Kyousuke's long ruffled spikes and pressed his mask against his son's forehead.

"Dad, your mask is cold," Kyousuke whined just like his mother did in the days. The nine year old tried to back away from his father and the masked man chuckled.

"Let's head home," he said as he looked out of one of the windows lining the hall.

Kyousuke, the little brat, tugged a bundle of his hair that wasn't tied back in his ribbon. "Wait, Dad! The groceries are still in the sitting room!"

Itachi rubbed his scalp where it throbbed slightly from the force of the pull and immediately shunshin-ed from the spot and then with Kyousuke still in his arms, he stood outside the sliding doors outside the Princess's private sitting room. Kyousuke looked a little green and looked close to throw up and for a moment, Itachi felt guilty for making his son sick.

The spiky, ebony-haired kid lowered his head and he trembled slightly in his father's arms. The ex-missing nin was about to console him but Kyousuke immediately brightened and a huge, infectious smile stretched upon his lips. "Caught you, didn't I?"

From beneath his mask, Itachi smiled. "Ok, you little rascal; that wasn't nice."

"So is sudden teleportation! But you don't see me complaining."

"You just did."

Kyousuke childishly stuck his tongue out to his father and Itachi loosened his hold on his son just a little bit. "Hey-WOAH!"

At the last moment when Kyousuke was about to fall to the ground, Itachi grabbed the boy by his armpits. "That should teach you a lesson." He placed the boy on the ground, making sure Kyousuke had both feet planted on the ground.

"You're just a big meanie! A BIG, BIG MEANIE! I'm gonna tell you on mom!" the nine year old screamed with all his might. He was bristling with self-righteous anger and Itachi—the bastard—was smirking at his little victory over his son.

"We'll see," Itachi replied nonchalantly as he slid the doors open and immediately gave a small bow to the person inside. He had known since the beginning that she was there but didn't think the noise would bother her much. "Koyuki-hime, we're sorry for the disturbance. Please forgive Kyousuke's less than proper behavior."

Said boy flung his cerulean scarf at his father's head which Itachi chose to let himself be hit with. If he had evaded, the scarf would have missed his target and instead found a new one in Princess Koyuki's face. "LIAR!" Kyousuke then grabbed the fallen scarf from the floor and dashed to the princess's side to escape his father's nonexistent wrath.

The young princess smiled at their antics and ruffled her honorary nephew's already messy hair. "You shouldn't do that, Kyousuke-kun. Itachi-san might pull a Madara on you."

"Eeh, tou-chan doesn't even know what a Madara is."

"I would think," Itachi started in a soft voice. "That I would know exactly what it means. I was the first your grand uncle Madara used it on after all."

Kyousuke pouted.

"And you should listen to the princess; I might use it on you if you misbehave any more, make no mistake."

The guards and the few attendants with them in the room shivered at Snow's "captain of the guard's" tone of voice. He often used it when he was threatening vagabonds and other bandits that tried to cross the country's boundaries and most of the time, it would send the criminals running back to where they came from and out of Snow in a flash.

But Kyousuke stuck his tongue out to his father like the little child that he was before turning his back on him. The young Uchiha ignored the way everyone in the room looked fondly at him and picked up the groceries that were placed on a chair. He was used to the looks since all the people in the village thought their family was too adorable for words.

"I'll be heading first, tousan," he said as he tried to walk out of the room.

"I think not. We'll go together." As he said that, Itachi wrapped the cerulean scarf around his son; making sure that it was tight enough to keep the cold out. "Your mother will throw a fit if he found out you stayed this late alone. At least this way, we both have a reason."

"Heh, you just don't want mom to get angry at you."

"We're going Kyousuke," Itachi said as he pulled his son by his scarf while grabbing most of the bags in Kyousuke's hands.

"Oi!"

Princess Koyuki and her bodyguards watched father and son exit the room with a smile on their faces. There has never been a boring day since the Uchiha family came to Snow Country.

If only those Konoha nins could take a hint…

…

…

…

Kyouske hummed a silly tune under his breath; a big goofy smile on his lips as he walked beside his father on their way home. His dad had taken off his mask before they got out of the castle, seeing no reason to continue wearing it. Kyousuke thought that his dad would continue being the paranoid bastard that he was since the Konoha nins were still in Snow, but he got no response since his father was too deep in thought.

He decided to leave him alone because he knew his father had times when he brooded. He knew everything about his mom and dad's lives before they got married and understood that it wasn't the kind that anyone could just simply forget. Even his mom even had his moments of staring listlessly off to space, as if remembering a buried memory. It was best they were left undisturbed.

Itachi on the other hand, knew exactly what his son was thinking and thanked him for his consideration. Kyousuke was every bit like his mother, who always knew, when was the best time to back off.

His thoughts kept drifting back to Sasuke and the Konoha Team. It always had been, ever since they left the infirmary.

He didn't expect anyone from Konoha to visit Snow. It was almost winter and the lands surrounding Snow were continuously being rampaged by lots of blizzards and snowstorms that most people knew to stay away from the country in this time of the year. He knew he should've been careful about the information being spread about his family but Itachi supposed that people would find out the truth soon enough; that Uchiha Sasuke wasn't the last Uchiha for any longer.

He was careful for the last decade and did his best to throw away any search parties that were trying to find his wife. He blamed himself; just because there had been no activity from any of the villages concerning his spouse, it was definitely not an excuse to lower his guard. Tsunade had been desperate and sought out help from the neighboring countries of Konoha. It was only thanks to the Kazekage, the Princess of Tea Country and the Priestess from Rice Country that they were able to go so long in Snow without trouble.

Seeing Sasuke had been a wakeup call. He had almost deluded himself that everyone had forgotten them, or at least accepted that it was all a lost cause. He had been too busy enjoying his new life that he thought everything would just end so easily.

Itachi didn't realize he was too deep in his thoughts that he didn't notice they were already in front of the Uchiha Mansion. It had previously been one of Snow's Royal Family's villas, and Princess Koyuki had only been happy to give it to them when she heard they needed somewhere to live. It was because of her that they were able to live so normally despite all the people searching for them.

He pressed his hand on the wooden gates and poured some of his chakra into it. There was a faint clicking sound and Itachi felt the thick wooden beam keeping the gates closed creaking to the side, opening the gates. Kyousuke brushed past him and pushed the gate to get inside the house. Itachi followed at a more sedate pace and locked the gates behind him as he got inside.

Itachi wasn't surprised to see him already waiting by the door. His spouse, Namikaze-Uchiha Naruto.

"Okaerinasai," the blonde jinchuuriki greeted warmly.

"Tadaima," Itachi returned softly at the same time Kyousuke said his enthusiastic greeting. He leaned down to kiss his husband's cheek while balancing the bags of grocery in his arms.

Naruto turned his head and met his lips with Itachi's before it planted on his cheek. The dark-haired ninja moaned into the kiss and the jinchuuriki blushed at the sound. Meanwhile Kyousuke who stood to the side, was seeing his parents make-out in front of him. His face—the look of abject horror and he could only cringe as his father managed to put one arm around his mother's waist to bring them closer to each other.

"Wo-wo-woah! Ho~ld up just a second there!" Kyousuke exclaimed. "If you hadn't noticed, I am still here!"

"Go inside then. We're not stopping you, son," Itachi murmured against his spouse's lips; his eyes never leaving the other's.

"Yuck! And I thought this would stop when mom got pregnant!" the eldest son of the Uchihas stomped his way into the house and Itachi and Naruto chuckled as they continued to hear Kyousuke's complaints even from outside the house.

"Why doesn't he ever learn?" the blonde man said as he pulled away.

"I believe he got that from you. I was an obedient boy as I grew up." Thanks to his ninja-honed reflexes, he was able to evade the sudden slap that was directed at his arm.

Naruto mock-glared at him before he turned on his heel and followed his son inside. Itachi could only chuckle and close the door behind him before catching up with Naruto.

"So, mind telling me why you and Kyousuke were late?"

The blonde's voice was lighthearted but Itachi could easily tell he was uneasy and worried.

Itachi grabbed one of Naruto's hands in his own as he walked with him in stride. He whispered lowly in his ear, "I'll tell you later after the kids get to sleep."

The jinchuuriki turned grave cobalt eyes to his husband but Itachi only squeezed his hand in assurance.

'I'll protect you and the children, saiai. Nobody will hurt our family.'

…

…

…

Uchiha Kyousuke was the oldest of four siblings, now soon-to-be five. Being the eldest, it was his responsibility to protect his brothers and sisters like a good big brother would and by principle, made him the immediate person in charge whenever their parents were away.

And now since their parents were off in LalaLand together, it was his job to take charge of dinner preparations in his mother's stead.

He had quickly fled from his smitten parents, gagging as he ran down the massive halls. But inside, he was smiling. Even if those Konoha-bastards would come and try to take his mama and papa, he'll show them hell like how a true Uchiha was supposed to.

Because nobody messed with the Uchiha family.

"I'm back!"

Kyousuke exclaimed as he opened the sliding doors with much force that it banged against the wall.

"Kyou-nii!" came the squealing cries of his younger twin sisters, Natsumi and Fuyuri.

He quickly got down on one knee and opened his arms to them. The two blondes rammed straight into his arms and Kyousuke almost fell from the joined weight.

"He-ey! No need to trample your nii-san. I just came back!"

"We missed you Kyou-nii!"

"Yeah, Natsumi and Fuyuri missed niichan!"

Kyousuke continued to cuddle the two excitable four year olds who were only too happy to be embraced by their brother. Meanwhile the other male among the siblings just watched them interact from afar. He laid under the kotatsu, with a JUMP issue opened in front of him as he chomped on a rice cracker.

"Okaeri, niisan," he muttered softly.

As if by routine, Natsumi and Fuyuri quickly jumped off their older brother's lap and scampered off to the side where they sat and enjoyed the upcoming argument.

With a gangster's swagger, Kyousuke stomped to where his younger brother lay, looming over him with a scowl on his face.

"Oi, Ichijou! How many times do I have to tell you that you can only read that when I'm home! I haven't even started reading it yet!"

"Well you're home now right? Besides, it's your fault you keep staying out so late every time. Do you want mama to get angry at you again, huh? Why don't you suck your strawberry milk in a corner, kono yarou!"

"YOU!" Kyousuke pointing a finger at his younger sibling "are ten years to early to be impersonating a Gintama character you ungrateful brat!" he yelled as he snatched the JUMP from Ichijou.

"Hey! That's unfair! Give me back my JUMP!"

Ichijou jumped out from beneath the kotatsu and charged at Kyousuke, who simply sidestepped to evade him. The nine year old stuck out one foot in front of Ichijou and it would've been effective if not for the fact that they were trained almost every day by an S-class ninja.

Ichijou easily changed his footing to avoid falling before swiftly delivering a rabbit punch to his brother. Kyousuke ducked and held the thick JUMP issue above his head to receive to the blow.

"Kyou-nii! That's a special JUMP!"

Blinking in surprise, "Really?" Kyousuke looked down at the JUMP issue and scrutinized the cover for anything indicating a special issue.

But that was just a ruse because as soon the eldest of the Uchiha siblings looked down at the book (or is it a magazine? Manga?), Ichijou swept his brother off his feet with a big sweeping kick to the shins and Kyousuke fell mercilessly to the floor.

'Gotcha!'

Ichijou dived to retrieve his beloved bible but the twins who had been quiet all this time jumped on their older brother's back and rode him like a baby horse in a farm playpen. The sudden weight made the seven year old's knees buckle and he tumbled to the floor, landing on top of his fallen brother.

The sudden jerk made Ichijou reflexively toss the JUMP into the air and the twins squealed as it sailed in the air.

Unfortunately, at that moment, Naruto and Itachi arrived by the doorframe which was exactly the direction the JUMP was flying into.

Surprised blue eyes watched the thick book heading straight for him in slow motion but he didn't make any move to evade it; instead a hand had quickly intercepted the flying projectile and was now held daintily between long, ivory fingers.

"What are you doing, children?"

Itachi deep, silky voice carried through the noise his children were making and there was a sudden quiet when the siblings realized what they almost did. Naruto was beside him, like usual, a small indulgent smile on his face as if a heavy book hadn't been flying to his face a few moments ago.

Natsumi and Fuyuri squealed and ran to Naruto and hid their faces in his kimono. They kept grinning all the while, saying, "It wasn't me! It wasn't me!"

The jinchuuriki smiled and just headed to the kitchen, with the two small blondes still clutching tightly at his legs; leaving the three remaining males in the family room.

Itachi stepped inside the room and closed the door lightly behind him as soon as Naruto turned around the corner. He passed by his two sons who were still bickering silently with each other but had wisely sat on the floor with their heads bowed in apology. The eldest male Uchiha sat by the kotatsu and slid his legs under the thick duvet then placed the prized manga on top of the table.

He sent one inquiring look at Kyousuke and Ichijou and both boys quickly sat under the kotatsu directly across Itachi. There were a few moments of tense silence—broken only by Naruto, Natsumi and Fuyuri's twinkling laughter from the kitchen—before Itachi started talking and held up the thick manga.

"What made you throw this JUMP at your pregnant mother's face?"

Instantly, the two boys stood up from their seats and denied vehemently.

"It was just an accident!"

"We would never hurt mama!"

"I swear the JUMP just flew suddenly and—"

"No it didn't! If you hadn't snatched it from me—"

Itachi held up one open hand and both boys stopped bickering; fixing wide guilty eyes at their father.

"We're sorry father…"

"Don't worry," he murmured as his eyes swept over the colorful manga cover. "I know it was an accident. Just apologize to your mother afterwards, okay?"

"Of course!" Kyousuke nodded his head enthusiastically.

"I'll do it, dattebayo!" Ichijou was much like his mother in his younger years—and wasn't afraid to remind everyone of that fact.

"Hn. Now be good boys and get the groceries by the door." Itachi flipped open the manga to a random page and started reading.

"Why don't you do get it yourself, Dad?" Kyousuke complained.

"Yeah, why'd you leave it by the door anyways…" Ichijou mumbled under his breath, a trademark Uzumaki scowl on his face.

A small ball of fire bursted into existence on the tip of Itachi's finger—the finger that he had been using to turn the pages of the JUMP magazine.

"Were you saying something boys?"

They should have known.

A/N: Are they a little OC? I think they're a little OC. What do you think? Ooooh. What about their children? Any thoughts on Kyousuke? How about Ichijou? And the twins Natsumi and Fuyuri? Any comments and suggestions you may have, I am more that happy to accept!