Sorry there hasn't been anything for a while; I'm meant to be studying (meant to be); but I decided that I wanted to get something started; procrastinate a bit...

Warning: will eventually contain yaoi; possible lemons

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

"Stop sulking, Sasuke," Itachi Uchiha scolded his little brother as he looked in his rear view mirror and found that he was staring sullenly out the window.

"Why?" Sasuke sniffed back crossly, folding his arms, "Mother and father have sent us out into the middle of nowhere halfway through the school year –"

"Oh don't whine," Itachi rolled his eyes, "It's only for a few months and then it's summer and you can head off to college. You know this is an important business deal for them."

"Then why did I have to come?" Sasuke grumbled childishly, "You I can understand, since you're practically running the Uchiha Corporation when father isn't around; but why did they have to make me come?" Itachi sighed again, knowing that Sasuke was fairly put out at being uprooted from his private school and being practically dragged across country to a small tourist town named Konoha. Being a city boy from a young age, the younger Uchiha had put up quite the fuss until their father had threatened to dissolve his trust fund.

"Konoha is a very popular tourist spot," Itachi reminded him firmly, "Everyone in the industry knows it, and there are several properties in the area that father is looking into purchasing and adding to our hotel chain. So far, the owner of the most promising has refused to sell, but he's agreed to meet with me."

"…And again, why am I here?" Sasuke asked dryly.

" –Because you're a spoilt brat who needs to spend some time with people who don't give a crap about what you want," Itachi muttered under his breath.

"…What was that Itachi?" his brother asked in a cold tone.

"…Because it's a learning experience that will help mould you into a man that will someday be capable of joining the corporation," Itachi corrected himself brightly; catching the unimpressed glare of his brother's black eyes in the rear-view mirror.

"Tch…you're always doing what father wants…" Sasuke muttered under his breath and dragged his headphones back over his ears. Itachi sighed and checked the directions they'd been given a few miles back. That little brother of his needed a serious attitude adjustment, really. Hopefully after a few months at a normal high school with normal people, he'd sort out that stick up his ass…

Although, if the rumours about Konoha were true, he wasn't all that sure that they were going to have a normal experience at all. The man at the gas station who had given him directions had seemed very surprised when he heard about where they were headed, even going so far as to tell them to watch themselves there.

'There's strange folk there,' he had remarked cryptically, 'Lovely community…but unusual. Weird things happen in Konoha and no one seems to know why. Don't be surprised by anything you see there.'

Itachi hadn't let it worry him too much. Being in the business world, he knew how much people could tend to exaggerate. From what he'd read about Konoha, it was a beautiful, quaint town at the bottom of a magnificent mountain with an unusual rock formation. It was very popular among holiday-makers for its scenery and apparently had a very prestigious university near the outskirts.

It took them about another hour of driving to finally pull up to Konoha, but not too long to locate the entrance to the grounds of the Samehada Manor. The main gate was apparently missing, but there was a long driveway up to the front of the huge house. The lawns were freshly mown, and all manner of plant-life appeared to be growing daintily in the various gardens that the two Uchihas could see in the orange evening light.

"Well…it doesn't look like a dump," Sasuke muttered, yanking his headphones down around his neck and yawning as Itachi drew their sleek black car to a halt to one side of the extensive car park.

"Be polite," Itachi snapped in frustration as he got out of the car, "Come along, Sasuke; don't drag your feet! We're representing the Uchiha Corporation –" He was about to continue scolding, but Sasuke, apparently realising that he was about to get an earful, had clambered out of the car and was standing there in his white dress shirt and pants expectantly. Straightening his tie and pulling on his suit jacket, Itachi nodded and head up the stairs to the porch and knocked on the door with the brass knocker shaped like a shark.

"Be polite," he reminded his little brother.

"I'm not a child, Itachi," Sasuke reminded him flatly; having at least enough sense to leave his headphones in the car. The elder Uchiha ran a hand through his long, bound hair to make sure it was acceptable –it had been a long drive, but the owner of the manor had been insistent that they meet as soon as he arrived in Konoha.

Suddenly, the large oak door was dragged open by a beaming, pretty teenage girl with bright pink hair and big green eyes.

"Good evening," she greeted curiously, "How can I help you?"

"Hello," Itachi greeted cordially, though he was frowning; he hadn't been expecting a teenage girl, "My name is Itachi Uchiha and I'm here to meet with the owner of this property on behalf of my father –"

"Oh, you must be the rich bastards who want to steal our house," she remarked innocently; her face and voice the very epitome of pleasantry despite her words, "Dad said you'd be here today. I suppose you want to come in." She opened the door wide and allowed them entry into the building.

"Dad! Your guests are here!" she shouted into the building in a strong voice. Itachi shut the door behind him and then blinked in surprise when he saw the foyer.

It was an incredibly impressive building; beautiful mahogany stairwells; stained glass windows; chandeliers –he could see why his father was so set on purchasing it. Not to mention, it was huge –with a little bit of modification, it would make an incredibly elegant hotel. There was another girl; probably about the same age as Sasuke, busy cleaning nearby, but she paused as she caught site of her two guests.

"Where's dad?" the pink-haired girl asked the blonde.

"Kitchen," the blonde replied with a scowl, "He's had me cleaning all freaking day –and do you even know how much mess Suigetsu causes? Not to mention how Shikamaru won't even lift a finger to help me!" The pink-haired girl seemed to notice that Itachi and Sasuke were waiting rather expectantly, and put on that beaming grin again.

"Oh, I suppose I should take you to see dad, then," she remarked conversationally, and began ushering them down one of the wide hallways to what they assumed was going to be the kitchen, "I'm Sakura, by the way."

"This is Sasuke," Itachi introduced; knowing his little brother was likely to be too antisocial to bother giving her his name, "He'll be attending Konoha High School for the remainder of the year."

"Oh, how nice," Sakura remarked, eyeing Sasuke carefully, "I suppose you're kind of cute…even if you are part of a scheming, blood-sucking corporation –"

"Sakura…that's enough," a gruff voice remarked firmly and her mouth closed obediently. The door to what appeared to be the kitchen opened and Itachi was shocked to discover that a giant man a good few inches over six feet tall, was now towering over him. Even more shocking than the fact that he was wearing an apron was how his skin and hair was blue.

"You must be the Uchihas," the man commented, "If you don't mind; can we talk in the kitchen; I've got dinner on." Still kind of unable to believe his eyes, Itachi followed, with Sasuke following him; his expression as unreadable as always.

"Sakura; where are your brothers?" the man asked of the pink-haired girl standing in the doorway, "And what's Hidan been doing; I've been looking for him."

"Shikamaru's still sleeping, like always," Sakura muttered, rolling her eyes, "Suigetsu and Naruto are at soccer practice; Deidara's working on his portfolio; Neji's at the library; Kiba's out walking Akamaru; and I think Hidan lost his head again."

"Typical," the man sighed heavily, "Sakura; will you and Ino please go and get dressed for dinner; we're having guests." He looked pointedly at Itachi and Sasuke.

" –Oh no, we couldn't impose," Itachi assured him immediately; not having expected to know that there were so many people already living here. Also; in what world could someone like that giant blue man end up having a daughter as pretty and normal-looking as Sakura? "We have a reservation in town; we are merely here for an informal discussion –"

"Dinner is informal," the man replied simply, "I insist. Sakura?"

"Yes dad," she grumbled, vanishing from the doorway and letting the door swing shut. The man sighed heavily and held out a hand.

"Kisame Hoshigaki," he greeted with a pointed, toothy grin, "I own Samehada Manor."

"Ahh, yes, I believe we spoke on the phone," Itachi nodded, "Itachi Uchiha. This is my younger brother, Sasuke. Our parents decided that it would be an interesting experience for him to spend a little time out of the city."

"Well, I hope our little town isn't too boring for you," Kisame commented, looking at the disinterested, young Uchiha. With a low chuckle, he returned to his cooking, "Dinner won't be long, I promise. The kids should all be back soon, so you can meet them all –most of them will probably be around your age, Sasuke?"

"Great," Sasuke responded, though he sounded as though even speaking was causing him too much effort.

"We'll talk business after dinner, shall we?" Kisame offered to Itachi.

"That sounds fair," the Uchiha admitted; hearing his stomach growl. Apparently Kisame heard this as well because he chuckled again.

"Now, I must warn you; my kids can be a little…difficult…when you first meet them," he informed them, "I've already told them why you're here, so don't be surprised if there's a little…hostility directed towards you. I've asked them to behave themselves but they do have a habit of liking to mess with newcomers. Just saying."

"Teenagers will be teenagers," Itachi admitted with a shrug.

"Itachi, you're twenty-three; stop pretending to be so much older than me," Sasuke remarked flatly and Kisame grinned in amusement at the sharp look that the elder Uchiha gave his little brother.

"Ahh, and just so you're aware; don't be surprised by anything that happens at dinner," Kisame added, almost as an afterthought, "It's perfectly normal for them." Itachi just raised an eyebrow at this but the blue man did nothing to elaborate further.

"Also," Kisame remarked conversationally, "We spoke on the phone about you perhaps residing here for your stay? We have plenty of rooms available."

"That would be satisfactory," Itachi admitted, "I would very much like to inspect the property and learn a little more about it." The blue man nodded and apparently deemed his cooking safe to leave alone as he undid his apron and hung it on one of the doors before leaning out the door and yelling in a booming voice, "Ino! Set the table!"

"Why me? Can't Shikamaru do it?" came back the annoyed voice of a girl –that blonde girl from earlier.

"Then tell him to do it," Kisame hollered back; sighing heavily. "Now, Itachi, we have rooms available for the two of you on the second floor; but if Sasuke is going to be attending school –"

" –He is –"

" –Then maybe he'll want to live with the other kids? Their rooms are on the second and third."

"No," Sasuke growled, at the same moment when Itachi brightly declared, "That sounds like a wonderful idea." Of course, Itachi earned himself a scathing look but refused to take it back. "Sasuke; you might actually be able to make some friends for a change," he added teasingly; a jibe that his brother apparently did not appreciate.

The pair of them followed Kisame through to what was apparently the dining hall to discover that somehow the rather large table had already been set –and apparently for quite a number of people. There was suddenly a resounding crash from somewhere in the house; followed by a large explosion and a wild yell. Immediately, Itachi tensed and looked around nervously for the source of the noise. Kisame simply looked up at the roof.

"Well, that'll be the boys back," he remarked conversationally as there was another piercing yell and a huge thud as something crashed to the ground. There were several more thuds and the sound of a girl screaming before everything fell silent again. Itachi looked over at Kisame for explanation.

" –Kids these days," was all he offered as way of explaining, "If you'll just wait here; everyone will be down in a minute. Dinner's ready." And on that note, Kisame left the dining hall once more and the door clicked shut behind him.

"…Do we call the police?" Itachi inquired flatly.

" –He didn't seem bothered by those noises…" Sasuke shrugged.

" –Yeah, maybe he's a serial killer," Itachi snorted, reaching for his phone. Before he had the chance to, however, the door opened and Sakura and Ino appeared; dressed respectively in red and purple.

"Sorry about that," Sakura remarked apologetically, "My brothers are a real pain when they get home…"

"What's going on here?" Itachi inquired flatly, "What were those noises?"

"Oh nothing," Sakura replied innocently and giggled when she exchanged a glance with Ino.

"…Kisame's not here; you can speak freely…" Itachi frowned; ignoring the smirk his brother was giving him, "…Are you in any danger right now? Why did we hear screams?" Sakura and Ino both laughed before taking seats with them at the dinner table.

"Is it true that you're going to be living with us?" Ino asked curiously.

" –Well, that remains to be seen," Itachi frowned; not liking the way that the two girls were grinning mischievously.

"…In that case…you'll find out soon," the blonde giggled back, looking over to where Sasuke was looking at the two girls with a raised eyebrow; his chin balanced on his fingertips. There was another loud bang and a howl from somewhere upstairs again and all four in the room looked up at the roof.

Sasuke Uchiha was not known for his interest in anything; not in school, not in women, not in hobbies –but there seemed to be something…strange about the people that they'd met so far. He couldn't shake that nagging feeling that they all knew something that he and Itachi didn't; and despite his dislike of new things; and general dislike of people, he was a little intrigued to see how this dinner went…and who these people were.

Review, review: I've got plans for this one :) What's going to happen at dinner? Who are these "brothers" and what's so unusual about this place?

xx K