Chapter 25
Naruto had quickly made his peace with Keigo moving out when he discovered that Obito's old room could be his.
Well, his to share with Kakashi's pack.
Naruto didn't complain about the furballs sneaking into his bed and the dogs sure as hell didn't complain about the treats Naruto hid in the closet and snuck in for them.
Keigo and Kakashi had been together for almost two years and their relationship was stronger than ever.
Kakashi had introduced Keigo to his crazy group of friends and was now joining the monthly Yakiniku outings.
That particular day they were going out to meet Asuma, who had recently returned to Konoha after his experience working in the Fire Damyo's court.
Asuma, the one Hisao couldn't keep quiet about. Keigo felt like he knew the younger version of the man now in front of him.
"So you're Hisao's reckless little brother?" Keigo asked.
"And you were the one who took my place as a troublemaker" Asuma didn't miss a beat.
They exchanged a look before sharing a smile and a laugh at their shared memories of Hisao and what the man had told the other about the other.
The three were walking through the village when they passed the chaos of the Academy.
It was the middle of the day and the kids were out for recess, so Keigo spotted a blonde head poking through the crowd.
"Just a moment and I'll be back" he yelled at Kakashi as he was already running away.
Kakashi saw the way Naruto leaned towards Keigo when he saw him, even at eleven he was still a cuddle to his brother.
Naruto's friends also flocked towards Keigo and he welcomed them and made them laugh. He loved children.
"Man, kids love him" Asuma told Kakashi, "Forget it, teachers like him too" He corrected himself when some of the teachers also came over to exchange a few words with the redhead.
"It's like he's a people magnet"
"Keigo's the sun and we all are just gravitating around him, to be warmed by his presence"
Kakashi had a sweet smile that showed behind his mask, his tone dripping with adoration towards his boyfriend.
"Dude, people magnet was enough"
"What if I can't do it?" Keigo asked Kakashi.
They were sitting in the window of their house, Kakashi with his legs hanging over the edge and Keigo sitting astride the window towards him, his hand in his as he played with his fingers.
"Then you will try again another time, as we have done in the past" Kakashi replied calmly.
Keigo had been given a solo mission, one that his team had already failed in the past, to recover Itachi Uchiha.
He didn't know how his father believed that he alone had any chance of succeeding, when the entire Team Ro had been unsuccessful.
Why him?
Why not someone with more experience?
Keigo didn't know what line of thought his father had followed to assign him the mission but doubts gnawed at him from the inside.
"Calm down love, nagging you like this will only make the situation worse" Kakashi told him.
Keigo tried to think about something else but his thoughts kept coming back to it.
Keigo left early the next morning, a whispered goodbye and a kiss to a still sleepy Kakashi, a pat to Bull who was sleeping outside their door and he was on the street.
It wouldn't be a long journey, despite the years, Itachi was said to have never left the borders of the Fire Region. It seemed to Keigo that this meant that deep down Itachi wanted to go home.
When Keigo began to feel the first signs of Itachi's chakra approaching he decided that a less direct approach would be better.
Last time they had tried to chase him and they hadn't even made contact, this time he would wait for him.
Keigo waited standing in plain sight among the trees, he could sense Itachi was there and he could see him but he couldn't see him back yet.
"I'm just here to talk" Keigo raised his hands to show that he was unarmed, he certainly wasn't any less dangerous for that but it was at least a reassurance.
"Maybe it hasn't occurred to you that I don't want to have anything to do with you"
Itachi stepped out from behind a log to his right.
A flash of his experience in Tsukuyomi crossed his thoughts at the first sight he had of Itachi. Keigo must have tensed because Itachi tensed as well.
"Don't follow me, not now or ever"
Keigo was left alone.
He had managed to ruin everything once again. Even if he had managed to overcome those months of hell five years ago, seeing the person who had caused them again had destabilized him for a moment.
And now Itachi was gone and Keigo would have to go back empty-handed.
But he wasn't the fastest shinobi since his father for nothing. He could feel Itachi's chakra on the periphery of his senses, if he hurried he would be able to reach it.
A rush of adrenaline pumped through his body.
He wouldn't let him go, he would bring Itachi home, he would bring him back to his family.
Keigo ran, ran as fast as he could and found Itachi again. He stopped in front of him, cutting him off, forcing him to stop so as not to hit him.
Itachi was already turning to change direction.
Calm had not been the right path, Itachi had always been stubborn, perhaps a harsher approach would have gone through his head.
"YOU owe me" Keigo shouted at him angrily, "after everything you put me through, you owe me"
His breathing was heavy as he continued to speak.
"So if you're too coward to go back to Konoha for yourself, you'll come back because you owe me, do you understand? Because I promised Sasuke that I would bring his brother home in time for his graduation"
He met Itachi's eyes when he finally turned around.
"So either you come of your own free will or I'll be forced to carry your bony ass on my shoulders all the way back to the village"
The distance between them seemed insurmountable even though they were only a few steps away.
Keigo didn't dare break eye contact out of fear that Itachi might once again disappear without a trace.
"Bony, really? Was that all you could come up with?" Itachi finally broke the silence between them with a smirk.
"You big big idiot" Keigo laughed, laughed so hard that tears filled his eyes.
He slowly made his way towards Itachi, as if not to scare him.
"You grew up" Keigo put his hands on his shoulders, now he was as tall as him, the last time they were face to face Keigo had to lower his gaze to look at him while now they stared perfectly into each other's eyes.
Five years.
Itachi threw himself at him in a display of emotion. Keigo wrapped him in his arms, he was too thin.
Five years, alone.
"What do you need? What do you want?" Keigo worried for him.
"Only the comforts of home"