Akari Uchiha

Ch. 97 Of Course He Saw Through It

"Are you on the leaf village's side?" was the first question Akari Uchiha had dared to ask him on her own as she once again healed his chest to provide him relief from the pain his illness caused. 

"Yes," Itachi confirmed, curious as to where she was going with it. 

"Are you going to the battlefield again?"

"I might need to, why?"

She looked hesitant, before fishing out a bunch of seals from her weapon's pouch. "I came up with something...," she spoke softly avoiding his eyes. "And it might be helpful for the allied shinobi forces."

Itachi activated his sharingan, carefully examining the seals. "Healing chakra?"

He sounded surprised and looked at her inquiringly as she nodded. 

Damn, this kid. If he was understanding this correctly then... 

"It heals wounds to an extent. Can't do precision scale healing."

"What's precision scale healing?" Sasuke interrupted, who was sharpening his weapons and couldn't help but overhear. 

"Healing that needs precision," Akari spoke confused, as if it was obvious. 

"Medical jutsu wasn't a very valued skill in our clan" , Itachi spoke when the kid looked confused. She blinked. 

"Really?" both Sasuke and Akari asked together. 

Itachi sometimes forgot how less exposed these two had been to the clan. They were pretty young, hell, Akari was just born when the massacre occured. 

He simply nodded in response before questioning - "So, precision scale healing, you mean stuff like damage to vital organs?"

She nodded. "It can provide temporary pain relief in any case though."

"Do you mind if I test it?"

"As if she'll say no to you," Sasuke deadpanned. "So much chivalry from a rogue."

Itachi sighed. If it wasn't for the guilt he carried for hurting Sasuke all this time, he would have argued. God he missed when this idiot was an adorable 7-year-old admiring his elder brother. 

"I heard you knocked on Naruto's door before trying to kidnap him too, back when we were 12 and he was travelling with Jiariya-sama," Sasuke went on. 

"There was no knocking for me", Akari muttered under her breath as she continued providing healing chakra to him. 

Itachi sighed, ignoring the two brats and made a small cut on his arm with a kunai, before placing the seal on the wound. "That it?"

"Release the seal," Akari muttered, and Itachi did so, seeing the wound disappear. 

"These will be useful for the war", Itachi nodded. "How did you manage to seal healing chakra?"

He saw the kid hesitate, before glancing up at him. She tried her best to cover up her intent, but Itachi could sense the suspicious tone. 

"Ah, Itachi-san... I KNOW but I find it hard to explain, the workings might be similar to how curse seals work. Maybe you could explain one to me so I can tell you which parts! I bet you have more vocabulary than a 12-year-old! Say! The seal you put on me was a cursed seal right? Maybe you could tell me more about it!"

She laughed. Nervous. Stalling.

Itachi didn't move.

Didn't speak.

But Akari's smile vanished the second she felt a very familiar Killing Intent aimed at her.

"You think I don't see it?" he said, stepping forward slowly.