[A/N: Heya ya'll and welcome to my new story featuring the OC of Hikari's Light, Hikari Aino. I hope ya'll enjoy it and remember that reviews fuel new chapters! Rated M to be safe (strong suggestions of pedophilia)]
It was early on a rainy morning in Kohona when a team of three ninja came in through the front gates of the mighty hidden village. All three wore the all-too-familiar look of sadness and disgust on their faces, a look that came only from seeing devastation and death, of seeing the cruelty that mankind was capable of. One held a nearly empty bag of supplies, another held a scroll containing the official report on the decimation of the Hidden Snow village, and the last carried a small child in her arms, the only confirmed survivor. "I will take her to the medic center, you two go ahead and deliver the report to the Hokage" the woman offered as she checked to make sure that the scrawny little girl was still breathing. The men nodded before disappearing into the rooftops of their homecity to head towards the Hokage's headquarters. "Don't worry little one, you're safe here" she tried to comfort the child as she held her close to her chest before she too jumped out of the street and into the rooftops towards the medic center.
Within the hour the black-haired girl was in a warm bed with IVs depositing liquid into her circulatory system and had a nurse by her side along with a ninja sent to make a report of her presence in Kohona, though he was much more interested in the nurse than the report. "Poor thing, ice cold and dehydrated, it's a wonder that she even made the trip back to Kohona" the doting nurse commented as she removed stray hairs from the child's face. "Yeah yeah a damn shame, so what are you doing tonight sweetcheeks?" the ninja asked as he closed his journal, finishing his vague report of the state of the child and sliding it into his knapsack. The nurse simply let out a huff and rolled her eyes, he never would give up on getting a date with her, and likewise she would never accept. She shook her head and continued to dote on the child, becoming excited when the child groaned and her eyes fluttered open. She jumped in shock and fear at her new surroundings, instinctively lunging towards the window to try and escape as her fight-or-flight urge kicked in. The nurse and the attending ninja were quick to grab her when she clumsily fell off the bed. Everything suddenly came back to her in a horrifying, bloody vision. The shadows, the screams of dying women and children, the chaos, it all came back to her at once. She remembered peaking out of her hiding place under the tableware cabinet and seeing two cloaked figures slaughter her mother like a cheap goat.
Hikari began to scream and cry hysterically, kicking and pushing away the arms and hands that tried to hold her back. "MOMMY! MOOMMYYY!" she began to cry through her words, the nurse and ninja looking down in sadness as they already knew the fate that everyone that this innocent child knew and loved had met in the village hidden in the snow. "Shhh I'm sorry honey I'm so sorry Shhh" the nurse coaxed the child that was twisting and turning to try and escape her arms holding her as she rocked back and forth.
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Hikari stared blankly at the wall as the nurse held her in the bed, stroking her hair as tears soaked her uniform. The ninja finished adding a new section to his report of the child and quietly put the journal away, letting out a sad sigh. "What's going to happen to her?" the nurse asked quietly as she continued to rock the little girl back and forth. "By the looks of it, as soon as she's cleared from the hospital she'll be dumped in Kohona's orphanage, though they're struggling as it is. Say a prayer for her next time you pay a visit to the temple, she'll need it. Goodnight Kyanta, don't stay up too late" he saluted her and left the room, closing the door behind him to go deliver the finalized report to the Hokage.
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It had been a little over a week since the Kohona officials decided to allow Hikari to stay in their city orphanage and released her care to the orphanage staff. They did what they could to accommodate her, but she hadn't spoken a word to a single one of them and rarely ate. She stayed far from the other children, always sitting with her face pressed against her knees as if she was constantly cold or terrified. She sat at the far end of the playground pressed up against the chain-link fence that kept them caged from the other more worthwhile children of the village. She almost didn't notice someone come up to her from the other side of the fence until the shadow overtook her. Gasping in fear she jumped back and looked up at the tall figure that began to kneel down to her level.
"Heya hun, what are you doing all the way over here by yourself?" a middle-aged man with green eyes and white hair asked, his fingers resting on the links that separated them. Hikari didn't answer him, she just resumed her position clutching her knees. "Shy little thing aren't you? I bet I can open up your shell a little though. My name is Yamashita, what's your name? Hm?" She looked over to him from the corner of her eyes, back to her hands, then back to him before quietly whispering in a sheepish voice "H-hikari." "Hikari, what a beautiful name, fitting for such a pretty girl. How about if I took you out for something to eat, would you like that sweet little Hikari?" She thought about the idea for a moment, he did seem very nice, nicer than anyone else had been to her since she left the hospital. She reluctantly nodded her head, seeing a slick grin come to the Yamashita's lips. "I think you'll enjoy it very much, let me go talk to the staff and see if I can break you out of this cage for a day hm?" he stood up and playfully waved at her before heading down the chainlink wall towards the main office building of the orphanage. A few minutes later a staff member came out into the yard and brought her back, gently holding her wrist as she guided her across the yard. "Alright little one, a nice man wants to spend the day with you, and if you behave he might even adopt you, wouldn't you like that?" the young lady smiled down at the little child, though the expression faded a bit into concern when the little girl didn't respond. "Alright then, inside we go" she opened the door into the building, a gust of crisp, cold air-conditioned air hitting them as they retreated indoors. She walked her to the front desk where the white-haired man was signing several pieces of paper.
"This is Hikari, she's a little shy and quiet but well-behaved overall" the young lady said as she squeezed Hikari's hand a bit before fastening a strap around her wrist that identified her as a child from the orphanage should get lost during the outing. "Nothing wrong with that, I was pretty quiet as a kid and you can't shut me up nowadays" the white-haired man joked as he handed over the last signed paper and the pen he had borrowed. "So what makes you interested in adopting Mr. Yamashita? Your papers state that you are single and don't already have any children of your own" the attendant behind the desk remarked as he glanced across the papers. "Well I have a lot of love to give a child but unfortunately have never been able to have one of my own before my wife passed on from winter sickness. I don't intend on remarrying but I don't think that should keep a child that needs a home from getting one, ya know?" he charmed the attendants with his upbeat attitude and tearjerking story. "I'm so sorry to hear that about your wife Mr. Yamashita, I do hope that you find a child that suits you from our orphanage though. Bring her back before sunset Mr. Yamashita and if the two of you get along we'll take it from there, have fun you two." The young man and woman waved goodbye to them as the man took Hikari's hand and walked her off of the orphanage property.
"So sweet little Hikari, what would you like to do today?" he grasped her hand gently as they walked, though she remained silent as she was nervous around the new man. "We could get something to eat first and then decide from there, what kind of foods do you like hm?" He looked down to her, rubbing her hand with his thumb. The little girl shyly looked away, she didn't know what kind of food they had in this village, and thus she didn't know how to answer. "We'll walk down the main street and see if we find anything yummy, be sure and let me know if you see something doll." He smiled as he guided her down the road into the thick traffic that was the trade district of Kohona. At first Hikari was terrified of all the new people that were busily moving around her and speaking in many different dialects and languages, that is until a familiar smell caught her nose. She looked up to her left to see a barbeque shop with a lot of steam and a banquet of smells emitting from it's wooden walls. Her stomach suddenly gurgling she gently tugged on the white-haired man's hand and looked towards the barbeque shop, then back up to him with big eyes. "A barbeque girl huh? I like that. Alrighty a little roasted meat it is!" He walked her into the shop and helped lift her on top of the stool, giving her a good look at all the delicious plates that they offered.
He eventually coaxed her preferred dish out of her and ordered two for the both of them, he asked her questions about her likes and dislikes, always replying with a compliment towards her. When they were finished he paid the bill and helped her off of the tall stool before walking her out. The pair went through all the fun things to do in Kohona, from the great sights to the toy shops where he bought her a plush stuffed puppy for her to keep. She clung to the gift for the remainder of the day, even holding tightly onto it after she had fallen asleep, exhausted from all the excitement on the way back to the orphanage. Yamashita carried her back in his arms, stroking her arms and legs tenderly when no one was looking. When he reached the orphanage front office he hesitantly handed the sleepy little girl over to one of the exhausted workers. Hikari opened her eyes a little before holding out the stuffed animal to him as she clung to it's leg. "No no hun, you keep it, I'll be back for you in the morning" he waved goodnight to her before asking the front desk attendant for the paperwork to legally make Hikari his own, he had definitely found what he was looking for.
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The past few days had been freeing and blissful for the small child as Yamashita took her as his own child, giving her a bedroom to call her own along with an abundance of new toys and clothes. Today she was excited as he had promised to take her to the park so that she could get some fresh air and exercise. She clung to the plush dog she had named Daku in one hand while the other was held by her new caretaker, Yamashita. Once they reached the entrance he let go of her handand knelt down to her level as he had the other day. "Go play beautiful, don't worry I'll be close by." He nodded his head out into the field where a few other kids were gleefully playing together. Clinging to her inanimate pet, she walked slowly away from him, kneeling on the grass to watch them at play without interrupting them. She watched them play for a little while, getting bored quickly as she had no interest in what they were doing. She was ready to go back to Yamashita and ask if they could just go home when she noticed a small spotted cat walking along the edge of the forest the bordered the park. The cat looked straight at her and meowed a few times, standing still. Loving animals, she got up and walked towards the stray that continued to mew at her until she was just a few feet away before dashing off into the woods. Looking around she didn't see Yamashita to stop her before she stepped past the tress and went into the woods.
The trees were so big out here, and the treetops were so thick and vibrant that the sun barely shone through to the forest floor. She followed the cat for a few minutes, eventually losing sight of it. She sighed sadly and turned to go back out into the park when she heard something nearby, a stead thunking sound. She stepped towards the noise and peeked out from behind a tree to see a young boy with black hair wearing shorts and a black long-sleeved shirt standing in a small clearing, throwing daggers at poorly painted targets. The new boy mesmerized her as he tried again, and again, and again, and yet again to hit the targets, his aim not all that great. " How does nii-sama make it look so easy?" he grumbled as he retrieved the 'borrowed' kunai from the tree's large above-ground root a foot away from the target. He reformed his throwing stance and tossed the kunai again, this time it accidentally fell from his hand as it slipped through the sweat on his palm. Hikari couldn't help but giggle, which unfortunately alerted the young Uchiha to her presence.
"Who's there? Come out!" he growled, feigning toughness and making demands like his father did. Hikari hesitantly obeyed, cluthing Daku even tighter. "Who are you?" he questioned, his arms folded. "I-I'm Hikari" she squeaked, her eyes watching the potentially deadly weapon in his small hand. "Well Hi-ka-ree, beat it, this is MY practice area, and if you dare tell anyone about it I'll-OW" he was cut off by the edge of the blade cutting his arm straight through the fabric of his sleeve. "You're bleeding, you need a bandage." She observed, stepping close as she wanted to help him. "Don't touch it, it will be just fine, I'm tough just like my aniki!" he grunted as he clutched the arm and shied away from her when she came close. "But something bad might happen if you don't get it looked at, my momma said so…" she murmured, resting her face on the Daku's head. The little boy only growled and winced as he touched it, blood transferring to his fingers. "I-if you go get it bandaged I w-won't tell anyone about this p-place." She closed her eyes and shook nervously, caught between wanting to help and not wanting to seem bossy or mean. The raven-haired child thought hard for a moment before stashing the kunai away along with the targets inside a tree to hide them before heading back in the direction of the village. "Deal. I'm Sasuke by the way." He held out his free hand to her, shaking on the agreement before they returned to the open field together.
In the distance near the entrance to the park, Hikari noticed Mr. Yamashita looking around for her, a little bit panicked. "I'd better go." She murmured hoping she wasn't in trouble for wandering off. "I'm heading home, see you around Hikari." The boy dashed off, showing off his speed for a child his age. Hikari trembled in fear as she walked towards her adoptive father, holding Daku tight. "Hikari! By the gods you had me so worried!" the white-haired man picked her straight up off of her feet. "Don't you ever wander off like that! I'll have to think of a suitable punishment when we get home….do you know how dangerous the forest is my darling little flower?" he doted as he carried her out of the entrance, their day at the park cut short.
[A/N: Review please!]