Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

Warnings: boy's love, a bit of shota since Naruto is 16 at this time and Itachi is 21. Language, strong sexual content (lemons in later chapters), violence, probable rape in earlier chapters

Pairings: Main ItaNaru, side SasuNaru, KakaIru, others…

A Hunting We Will Go

Chapter One

Rough Housing

Iruka groaned as the smell of stale ramen wafted through the windows of his home. It was miraculous that the scent could be strong enough from outside the house. He sighed and shook his head as he pranced up to the front door and pulled out his keys. With a swift turn of the lock he opened the door and let himself inside. He frowned briefly as he noticed something instantly off about his home. He was not greeted with his normal 'welcome back' cheer or the loud thumping of excited feet coming to tackle him. Even on occasion he would be bitten or growled at for being gone for too long. But nothing happened.

"Naruto?" Iruka called out softly, slipping off his shoes at the front of the door. He looked down to see Naruto's shoes still there. He rounded the corner of the entryway and gasped as he saw the state of the living room.

Items had been scattered about as if in a struggle. A lamp had fallen from a table and crashed on the floor while several magazines and books had tumbled down from the bookshelf. The glass coffee table had been rendered useless as it now lay scattered in pieces along the floor. Sure enough he saw an abandoned bowl of cold ramen spilt by the couch. What brought him the deepest concern was the window; broken and stained on the frame was a smudge of blood.

"Naruto…" he whispered deeply with worry. He rushed back to the door, stepping hastily into his shoes as he pulled out his cell phone. A quick speed dial and he finally heard the familiar voice on the other side. "Kakashi! They've found him!" he yelled out before the other man had a chance to question the situation.

"I'm on my way" Kakashi retorted quickly.

"Hurry…" Iruka muttered out. He hung up, feeling the uneasy sickness setting in. He wouldn't let them get away with this…

The night was cold, far colder than any he could remember. The ground felt frozen beneath the pressure of his thick paws. The leaves and grass crunched loudly as he raced through them, further alerting the hunters of his location. He panted heavily, dashing through the forest. He swayed in and out of fat and tall trees sooner than they could be seen. All that remained was the beautiful crimson and orange colored blur as it flickered between the forest silhouettes. His nine glorious tails rippled in the air like ribbons behind him, and enchanted any lucky enough to see them.

He did not feel lucky however. Beautiful his tails were but coveted they were even more. He snarled out as he heard the boisterous laughing coming from behind him. The violent crashing and toppling of trees and bushes as they followed made him frantic. He let out an animalistic yelp as he heard the loud roaring of another explosion go off from his left. He turned swiftly to the right and raced on, noticing the forest crumble behind him. His red eyes widened as another wave of light and frightening sound burst before him. He screeched to a stop, his paws digging into the dirt as he kept himself from running through the last explosion. Earth and rock flew into the air, making it thick and foggy as the smoke refused to settle.

"Come out, come out wherever you are pretty Kyubi" the hunter sang playfully. "I would hate to accidentally hit you and ruin that beautiful pelt of yours. Like a great piece of art, you must be appreciated properly."

The other simply rolled his eyes. "Sweet talking a monster isn't going to work Deidara. He's a beast; do you really think he understands a word you say?" Sasori grumbled back.

"I would certainly hope so. How else are you supposed to train a jinchuriki?" he questioned. His blue eyes darted swiftly ahead as he saw another flash of orange come into his line of sight. He smirked and raced ahead. Slipping his hand into his pocket he clicked the detonator once again. In a glorious resounding boom, the forest to the front broke apart. He was pleased when he heard the painful whelping of the beast. Even if the explosion hadn't gotten him, some amount of rubble or force must have. It was a miracle as it was that the fox-like creature was still running. He could have sworn Sasori gave him a good attack back at the house. He didn't think the beast would last long though.

And he was right; Naruto was in immense pain. His sides throbbed as he breathed in and out heavily. A trail of blood splattered about the forest floor wherever he treaded and he was beginning to foam at the mouth. He couldn't take much more of this. He mewls out softly as he ran in the only direction left unblocked from explosives. By now his stride had been reduced to a three legs limp and skip. His heart filled up with hope as he caught sight of a faded light. He was getting closer to the main city. If he could just find a place to hide he would be safe.

He eased his pace to quiet his escape. Reaching the boarder of the city where the trees ceased to grow and the land was paved in cement, Naruto kneeled by the underbrush. His heart was thrashing in his chest wildly and he tried to take a deep breath. He was much too weak to continue on. With another heavy breath he felt his spirit die down. He sank to the ground slowly as his thick fur faded away to reveal damaged, tan skin. His claws and fangs receded till he resembled nothing more than a human once more. With hazy blue eyes he watched the lively street for any oncoming cover. He could hear the hunters still approaching. He groaned softly as he forced himself to stand and started to race across the street. He narrowly avoided a loudly honking pick-up truck and taxi before making it to the sidewalk.

A woman just stepping out of a convenience store screamed out in embarrassment as she saw the naked boy stumble in her way. Her panicking made him fearful and he went running again, disappearing down the dark roads.

Further down in the city where few dared to venture, there was a life completely unknown to those that lacked privilege and understanding. A luxurious society of finely dressed businessmen and sophisticated women charming their guest and friends, resided. Among them was the snazzy looking eldest Uchiha. He confidently worked a midnight blue pinstriped suit with a silver accented tie. His long, slick hair was pulled back comfortably into a ponytail to reveal his stern, mature face. Women swooned and moaned at the very sight of him, but none had even found the courage to approach him. Itachi was a man far beyond their reach and would remain so as he didn't like taking anyone's company. On the rare occasion he was seen sporting it out with a close companion of his of an odd bluish complexion and scary face. Kisame never considered himself lucky for being the only person able to be in Itachi's presence. It was not a fun place to be and he was only forced to do so for work responsibilities.

Even now, dressed up as they were, they were conducting business. Itachi had gained the eyes of all as he waltzed into the auction house. The host lined up to greet him and bowed profusely to their best contributor. Kisame hastily followed after, not receiving as noble a greeting.

"Must be nice having the Uchiha name to fan around" he muttered under breath.

"My curse; everyone sees as a blessing" Itachi retorted nonchalantly. He eyed the lobby area for the usual faces. Already he knew whom would buy what or rather 'who' and how much they were willing to pay.

"Why do you bother coming to these things? I know we are paid on commission for what we bring in to be sold but do we have to bother with watching the whole process? I could care less with who buys the little monsters we find" Kisame retorted bitterly.

"Formalities Kisame. Simply formalities. If I see the buyers for myself I can understand their taste and demand much better. No bother wasting time on merchandise that won't bring in a good profit" he mentioned firmly. His dark eyes flickered with interest as he heard the first bell sound off in the room. Gradually the guest started to flood into the main auction hall. The two men sat in the back as they always did and looked over the contently chattering buyers.

"We shall begin with the Konoha Black Society Auction. All merchandise has kindly been provided by Akatsuki Inc. May all complaints, questions, or comments be directed to their main office. Now let's start off with the first item on tonight's list…."

The auctioneer raised his hand swiftly and the curtains rose up. A lovely woman of middle youth came gasping out as she was forced out onto the stage. Her long blonde hair was combed out of her face so the crowd could get a good look at her. She winced and trembled as her naked form was exposed for all to see. Try as she may to conceal her most intimate parts with her hands, she was held in place by chains.

"We have here a jinchuriki containing a two tailed beast; Matatabi. This pretty little kitty will make a wonderful addition to any exotic collection. She specializes in…"

Itachi eyed the woman skeptically. "Hidan and Kakuzu brought her in correct?" he questioned. Kisame nodded firmly. "They won't make much off of her."

Kisame looked at Itachi with question in his eyes. "Why is that? She looks pretty legit to me; not at all like some of those pseudo-jinchurikis. Those damn simulated beast make it hard for catchers like us; who only go after the real deal. But the auction brings in at least a dozen of those before we can find a real one" Kisame mentioned.

"Being a real jinchuriki makes no difference if the product is still damaged. Look at her complexion…she's sick. I give her a few weeks tops. Those damn fools end up killing their catches" Itachi grumbled in annoyance. "It's always better to nurse a catch before bringing it to the auction house. It's beyond help here."

Kisame rolled his eyes. "Yeah I'll try to remember that next time I'm trying to defend myself from its fucking teeth and claws." He stared ahead as the bidding began. Sure enough she went for a lower price than what would be a great sale. Apparently, they weren't the only ones that noticed her unhealthy complexion. Kisame hated when Itachi was right. After a few pseudo-jinchuriki went for sale afterwards, the auction ended. The two strolled out of the auction house and boarded the elevators that would lead them to the surface level where the world returned to blissful normality.

Itachi felt like gagging as the city air filled up with smoke and pollution. He handed a chauffer his card so that the man could receive his ride. With little wait time, a stunning black Ferrari. The red rims were painted and shaped into three black tear drops that spun in a mesmerizing manner. Itachi named his favorite feature the 'Sharingan'.

"Later Itachi. I'm sure the boss will have a lead for us to follow by the end of the week. I can't wait for the next hunt" Kisame retorted. He enjoyed the thrill and thought days got rather boring without them. He waved off the Uchiha before retreating to his own ride back.

Itachi gave a shrug of the shoulders and drove off. He picked up the speed, slipping pass a few red lights as he was feeling tired and deeply desired to go home and rest. Just as he rounded another corner after missing what could have been the fourth red light, he was forced to an immediate stop. His wheels screeched along the road, scarcely stopping before hitting a flash of tan. His eyes widened and his jaw clenched tight in frustration as he threw open his door.

Some idiot had the nerve to go standing in the middle of the street and lacked the common sense to move even after a car successfully stopped. Standing up out of his car, he was rather caught off guard. The hood of his car no longer shielded him from the full sight. A boy perhaps fifteen or sixteen he could guess, stood dumbfounded in the street stark naked. He wavered where he stood as though one more breath of wind could knock him to his knees. Itachi frowned seeing the dirt and blood caked over him like badges of honor. But more unsettling was the vivid black markings along the teen's stomach. Could he be…?

Itachi rushed forward as he spotted the boy's knees buckling beneath his own weight. He caught him short of falling, cupping the naked figure in one arm. Naruto's head hung back limply over his arm as he seeped away from consciousness. The older male's gaze hardened still as he got a closer look. Three parallel whiskers on each cheek only further confirmed his previous suspicions. This boy was a jinchuriki.

He looked about the road anxiously and finding no one within sight. With a heavy sigh he lifted the boy up from beneath the knees and carried him over to the passenger's side of the car. Carefully he managed to get the door open with a few loose fingers and lay the boy inside. Tonight was surprisingly his lucky night. He got back in on the driver's side and started off again. Every few feet his eyes made it cautiously back over to the unconscious blonde, sitting naked on his clean leather seats. His hand hovered nervously at the boy's shoulder whenever it looked like he was drifting too far to the side during the drive. Another fifteen minutes and he was pulling up into the wide driveway of the Uchiha mansion. No servants came to greet him and no guard came to unlock the gates. Everything he owned belong to him as well as one lesser Uchiha he believed deserved little acknowledgement on a daily basis. And to his relief, said lesser Uchiha was not home yet judging by the lack of his prematurely bought dark blue convertible from the garage.

Itachi parked, opened the front door and hustled over to the passenger's side once more to carry out the boy. His irritation grew as his nice suit got smudged with the boy's filth. Blood was impossible to get out. But it was not as though he did not make enough to buy a new suit later. He rushed his way up the stairs and down the hall until he came to the back master bedroom, his bedroom. He nudged open the doors with his foot and carried the boy into the bathroom in the back. Carefully he set the jinchuriki down in the tub.

"Fucking morons who did this to you." Itachi hissed to himself. He could name a few inexperienced and trigger happy idiots from the organization that were likely to do this kind of work. He made a mental note to bring it up with them later. For now he intended to take full advantage of their carelessness. Itachi stood back from the tub and removed his suit jacket. "You'll be worth a whole lot more when you shine" he smirked heavily.

To Be Continued…

A/N: And there is the first chapter! I'm so excited to finally be starting an ItaNaru fic as I had mostly been doing SasuNaru and GaaNaru. Thank you all for reading and I hope you will continue to stick with the fic. I will be updating in a day or two so please keep alert! I would love to hear some feedback! I want to make sure this fic is enjoyable from the very beginning to the very end.

Story Notes:

Jinchuriki's in this fic aren't going to be their normal tailed beast sizes. They are more the size of dogs and house hold animals. This is why people believe they are the perfect exotic pets to take home. So Naruto's kyubi form is no bigger than a regularfox in this fic .

Pseudo-Jinchuriki- are characters like "Sora" from Naruto Shippuden ep 54~. Not real jinchuriki but have been modified by science (in this fic's case) by people who really want jinchuriki, but for profit.