Fishing for Kisame

[kin_slayer]

Characters: Hoshigaki Kisame (sexysamehada ) and Uchiha Itachi (kin_slayer )
When: October 8th
Where: Vincent's house
Rating: PG-13?
Summary: Kisame and Itachi have been partners for five years. But they haven't had much time to catch up since Kisame arrived. It's about time they actually sat down and talked.

Comments

[sexysamehada]

Kisame had been intending to simply wave to Itachi before heading out, but when he instead heard his partner using that imperious tone and all but commanding him to stay a slow smile spread over Kisame's face. That was the Itachi he was used to hearing, and he complied with a slight nod as he sat down. He was curious as to what Itachi might want, but he didn't show it.

"Itachi." Keeping his tone conveying his mild interest he leaned back, allowing Itachi to dictate the flow of this encounter. Admittedly, Kisame was used to letting Itachi take the lead but with things obviously being abnormal here he wasn't entirely sure what to expect. Was Itachi going to instruct him on the finer points of making chicken ramen to being to the Kyuubi container in a gesture of good will, or ask him to donate his coat to the next child he came across, or would this be a far less insane conversation. Kisame had no way of knowing.

"Hn, fine." Handing over the device, Kisame grunted slightly as he adjusted Samehada to lean the sword against the wall. The sudden, unexpected, but missed, behavior Itachi was displaying set Kisame at ease, making him wonder if the apparent friendliness the younger man had been displaying was the result of some crazy 'event' in this whack-job excuse for a reality. The respect they had for each other was clearly still evident, but that didn't stop Kisame from giving his partner a hard time. "Is this going to be quick Itachi? I was planning on hunting some training and exercise and I wouldn't want to interrupt kittens appreciation hour or whatever you and the kids are up to today." He smirked, fully expecting to get a rise out of his little buddy.

[kin_slayer]

Itachi took the PCD as Kisame handed it over, setting it on the table in front of him and beginning to key in a number of things on both his own device and Kisame's. He paused for a moment, raising an eyebrow and glancing up and a little sideways a Kisame, his expression completely blank, tone utterly deadpan. "Did you want a kitten too, Kisame? You should have said. I could always end your misery if you like. I am sure I could dispose of your body before dinner, though I might have trouble explaining the blood on my apron." He looked back down at what he was doing with the PCDs, letting Kisame retort as his older friend wished to. Morbid for a joke? Maybe. But they were both fairly morbid men, in their own right.

A moment later Itachi leaned back, holding up Kisame's PCD and turning the device to face the man. "I've keyed in the coordinates of a number of places I've left stashes of supplies. Most of them are close to the borders of the wastes, all of them are sealed in the usual fashion." What he meant was the standard seal used for the Akatsuki, a seal Kisame would easily be able to dispel, but even other shinobi from their world would have trouble noticing, let alone removing. "They are the usual caches. Medical supplies, packed goods, a few blankets. This information is locked and encoded, you can access it here." Itachi pressed a few buttons to demonstrate. "If I add any more, or change things, I will update it for you." He set the swordsman's PCD down, slid it across the table towards Kisame.

"In addition I've keyed your device to pick up my coordinates. Currently no one else should be able to hack my location, but the block won't show for you unless I specifically enter the right code. I've done the same for yours to mine, the code to block my ability to track you is simple, the password is South." Not very creative? Perhaps not. But Itachi didn't anticipate anyone else getting a hold of his partner's PCD in any case.

With that out of the way Itachi actually looked at Kisame for a moment, gaze cool and thoughtful and appraising. "Any questions?"

[sexysamehada]

Kisame watched as Itachi fiddled with his PCD, keeping his arms crossed over his chest as he tried to puzzle through the infuriating calm aura surrounding Itachi. When Itachi paused and raised an eyebrow Kisame knew that he had struck gold with his comment but did his best to keep his expression impassive. "Kittens are tasty, especially fried up just right. Misery? I don't believe I've mentioned being miserable once, Itachi. You should stop projecting, all this hanging out with teenagers is making you emo." Morbid was possibly not strong enough a term for a man who considered the sight of his own blood to be the most life-affirming sight ever seen.

Taking the PCD back from Itachi Kisame pushed himself forward, resting his elbows on the table as he checked out the modifications to his device. "I see you've been keeping busy here. Wonder why someone would put so much effort in putting supplies out there, this place grows odder every day." The fact that Itachi would think to use a seal they'd have no trouble with but other brats from their world would have issues noticing made Kisame feel just a little more secure, and he showed this by relaxing his gaze somewhat. He was still baffled by some of Itachi's behavior, and didn't want to actually question the man about why he was so damn friendly towards twerps.

"Sounds like you've thought of everything, really. So, you mentioned before having some plans for us here, and now that you've got my interest maybe you should spill." Kisame was looking for something to do that was actually of some worth, as opposed to the random trips to the Wastes to beat up things that seemed like some kid's nightmare creation.

Having asked the only questions he felt wouldn't get him killed at the moment Kisame regarded Itachi with a cool air. "Yeah, what's for breakfast?"

[kin_slayer]

Morbid. Twisted. Quite possibly just a touch insane. It fit them. At the very least they perceived reality in a way most normal people would find horrifying. They both had their own agendas and their own desires, but in some things the two dissimilar men saw strangely eye-to-eye. "You know I prefer seafood, myself." Itachi replied, without missing a beat, leaning his elbow on the table and resting his chin in his palm. "If we fry anything, my vote is for fillet of shark." He met Kisame's eyes, his own blank, but they didn't need to be expressing anything for Kisame to get the humor.

Itachi had never found Kisame's eyes particularly disconcerting, though in general the blue-skinned man was entirely exotic looking, to put it nicely, and monstrously bizarre to be more blunt. Itachi didn't mind bizarre, not when he understood the intelligence and skill lurking behind that sharp-toothed smile and those strange eyes.

"We can never be too prepared." Was Itachi's only response to Kisame's probing about his motives. It could have just meant I'm a fucking paranoid psychopath, what's new? or it could have been Itachi's usual slippery evasiveness, but either way the dark-haired teen didn't seem inclined to elaborate on why he'd gone to so much trouble. He did relax his own expression, just a little, in response to and acknowledgment of Kisame's slight concession.

"I always think of everything." Arrogance? Yes. But what was new there? "Winter is coming and there's no telling how harsh that will be here. There are more than a few people capable of surviving the wastes, but most of them take trips there that are random and purposeless. Not so with us, from now on. Things phase in and out there constantly, I've spent quite a deal of time observing it, I'm sure you've noticed as well. For fresh food there's really not much we can do unless we want to build a greenhouse and turn farmer, but with our tracking skills and your immense chakra I think we can stockpile for the winter quite well, not just for our household but quite possibly enough for several--if it's a mild winter, then fine, if not, we'll be prepared for it. Not the most interesting task, but I am sure there will be plenty of things out there to interfere with us for you to handle." Itachi gave a slight sardonic smirk. "And it's better than make-busy, run-around, useless activity."

Itachi stopped there, he needed a glass of water or he was going to start coughing up a lung. And wouldn't that be pleasant? He stood, lapsing into silence as he poured himself some water, back to Kisame as he downed it, poured another glass, and then returned to the table and sat again.

"As for breakfast... What do you eat again? Krill, isn't it?"

[sexysamehada]

There truly was no way to spend any length of time around someone like Kisame without considering the possibility that he could be one of the more creepy people you had ever met, at least until you encountered the rest of the Akatsuki. Compared to Kakazu, Hidan, Tobi, and even Sasori one might feel Itachi and Kisame were downright normal. "You would, though I doubt you'd be able to stomach me." Kisame did find Itachi's comments amusing, mainly because he knew full well that even if he and Itachi were to fight the smaller man would not get off scot free.

Kisame respected Itachi's ability to hold his gaze, knowing some found his eyes to be beady or even odd. Exotic was the nice way of putting it and nice was not a work Kisame ever attributed to Itachi. Most people took one look at him and assumed Kisame was simply a killing machine. Those people were idiots.

"This is true, especially not when dealing with the types who aren't within arms reach. Hell, does anyone know where the leaders of this place are?" Kisame didn't really require a greater explanation, he more just wanted some insight into Itachi's motives. It was one of the only true ways he could think of to test exactly what might be different about Itachi here as compared to the Itachi he knew.

"And with this stockpiling scheme you have, what benefits would this have for us?" There had to be some benefits. Kisame was many things, but a blue-skinned bastion of kindness and heart was not one of them. "I haven't heard of any type of currency here, so what would we get out of helping other people survive the Winter? How is that promoting survival of the fittest, if we're helping those who might not possess the proper skills to survive without assistance? Besides, why couldn't we just let someone else play hero, we're not the hero types." It didn't matter if it were interesting or not, all Kisame really cared about was how doing this would improve his quality of life. "Anything is better than ridiculous busy-work, of course, but why should it be on us to play saints to people who we barely know?"

Kisame was hoping Itachi had a good way to explain this idea, considering that Akatsuki had never been about helping the fellow man. The whole thing smacked of some kind of do-gooder behavior, and made him fear Itachi had been spending too much time playing big brother and what have you to impressionable children and somehow forgotten himself.

"That works, or human if we're in a pinch."

[kin_slayer]

Itachi knew full well that if he ever fought Kisame seriously the outcome would depend entirely on how effectively he used his doujutsu. Kisame had seemingly endless stamina, and while Itachi was powerful, any conflict he engaged in had to end quickly, before he became exhausted. In a prolonged fight Kisame would always have the upper hand. But that's part of what made them a good team; Itachi was excellent at assessment, and efficient to a fault, while Kisame was a powerhouse with chakra and stamina to spare. And both of them were highly intelligent, capable killers.

"No, though I've been keeping my eye out for them." Itachi could tell his actions had been unsettling his partner. It was the way Kisame avoided him a bit, the way the man watched him. Kisame's eyes might have been eerie, but they were also keen and observant.

"Barter and reserve, for the most part."Itachi said almost dismissively. "While we are capable of taking what we want from others, you are as aware as I of the long-term drawbacks of such barbaric tactics. We possess the skills to hunt and salvage, others can fix things, provide goods like generators, sundries and medical aid. Rudimentary economy. If not everyone is forced to focus fully on survival, those with the talents to can employ them at making improvements." Itachi shrugged, looking neither bored nor harried with the question.

To him the idea made sense; he was altruistic by nature, but not by habit, and while his main motives were to help ensure everyone survived the winter, the reasons he gave Kisame were no less valid, and had been thought through rather thoroughly before he decided to bring the plant to Kisame.

"I thought human was more to Zetsu's palette."

[sexysamehada]

Kisame knew deep down if an actual conflict between himself and Itachi ever turned physical he would spend most of his time utilizing his amazing stamina and chakra output attempting to neutralize Itachi's powerful genjutsu effects. Regardless of how good he was physically Kisame knew that like most everyone they encountered once Itachi had you ensnared within his mind traps you were done. Combined together, their skills meshed to create a fairly unstoppable combination, and that was not something that Kisame wanted to mess with.

It was because of the logic implied there that Kisame was willing to overlook certain eccentricities of his partners', in favor of how well they worked together. Admittedly, here in this strange environment the only thing keeping them partnered was a mutual desire to keep things as close to how they were as possible.

"So let me get this straight - you feel we should effectively set up shop, bartering with other locals in exchange for good and services to ensure both our survival and theirs while giving the albiet false perception that we are somehow altruistic? What about those who actually know us? Won't they find such behavior suspect coming from...well, from me I guess, since you seem to be forging certain alliances and opinions regardless of your assumed true nature."

Kisame was somewhat confused, to put it mildly. Completely unsure of how actions taken in this world affected the real world, he was leery of giving the purported impression of change when for all he knew Sir Leader or Madara could be watching. "I dunno, I mean I want to survive but why should I give a shit about anyone except you?" It was contrary to his worldview to even feign pleasantness and civility for any purpose that did not lead to wholesale slaughter.

"Yeah, and it's real fucking cool to watch. Most sharks don't even eat people." Kisame grinned.