My head was spinning. My heart was throbbing from the adrenaline and nervousness surging through my veins. My long golden hair whipped and flipped gracefully in the breeze as my knees shook slightly. My hands were trembling as I raised my arms for one last final stand. I had almost succeeded, almost. My Sharingan had failed me. Betrayed by the ones who shared my blood, I had a decision to make. I was trapped in the middle of three powerful ninja. My name is Aimi Uchiha from the Hidden Lightning Village. And this is how my life flipped upside-down, one small step at a time.
Whirlwind emotions washed over me as I began packing the necessities for my journey to the Leaf Village. The packing process was a lot harder than I thought originally, considering I'd never been gone away from home for such an extended period of time. Even though I was only going to be gone a few weeks, leaving home was something extremely hard for me to do. However, I was thrilled to be training with someone to teach me some things about my heritage, Kakashi Hatake.
I had many motivations for leaving, but one stood out to me the most. My family received the news of the betrayal of the Hidden Leaf Village by my cousin, Sasuke Uchiha. I knew then I had to find out for myself what had happened. Even if it meant I had to leave home.
Besides the fact I was beginning my first bout of combat training, I got to see my best friend from the Hidden Leaf, Naruto Uzumaki. Naruto and I have been best friends since we were about five years old, when I first visited the Leaf to see my cousins. We met, ironically, at his now favorite restaurant Ichiraku Ramen.
I never thought this day would come. First Itachi Uchiha, my oldest cousin, slaughters the Uchiha Clan; now Sasuke betrays the Leaf to join Orochimaru. It seemed my family was slowly losing its sanity. Both of my cousins have gone psycho. Who was next?
I had to stop thinking thoughts like those if I wanted to make it to the Leaf Village in one piece. The bag I had packed was finally ready to take. I bounded down the staircase with the bag of necessities I would need for the journey ahead. It was going to take a while to make the journey, but well worth it I was sure.
I was sad I was leaving home, but excited my new training. I was sure I had nothing to worry about because I knew my best friend and new sensei would protect me if the case a dangerous situation would happen to arise. As my final walk through the house came to a close, I found my mom and dad waiting for me outside on the back porch. They seemed so proud but so sad to see me go. I needed to do well so I wouldn't disappoint them. I knew if I tried my best they would be proud of whatever I did.
My dad had his arm around my mom's shoulder. I could tell my mom was trying not to cry. Her voice wavered and her lips quivered slightly as she spoke. "Our dearest baby girl, you're finally off to the Leaf. We are so very proud of everything you've done here. We will miss you greatly. The Leaf Village is so far away. Please, write to us as soon as you arrive. We are always here for you. So please be safe, and have a good journey sweetie."
My dad always tries to play the tough guy, but I know better than that. "That's right sweetheart. We love you with all of our hearts."
I gave them both a huge tackle hug as I cried a little bit. "I love you guys so much. I'll write to you as soon as I get unpacked at Naruto's place. I better get going, it's a long journey. Bye Mom! Bye Dad!"
They waved goodbye to me as I walked off towards the Leaf Village. I kept glancing back at my parents. They became smaller with each passing second. My parents were everything, but I needed this, for me and the rest of my family. I knew I was going to miss this place; there was no doubt in my mind. Living in the mountains here was all I knew. I couldn't imagine anything else. It was peaceful here and I knew almost everyone. Even though I never did much in the village, I was going to miss all of my friends.
As soon as I left the village limits, my thoughts began wandering once again. I thought of my good friend, and also a demon.
I forgot to mention that, didn't I? Well, I'm a Jinchuriki. You see, when I go to sleep at night, I'm visited in my dreams by someone. Her name is Kei, the three tailed phoenix demon. Kei has a long flowing poufy white dress with a white rose in her hair. She also wears white shoes with girly gloves. Her smile was sweet like honey and a face that could light up a room with just a simple little smile. She always seems to say the right things to help me out in some way. Sometimes, Kei will even give me a clue to a future event. She usually visits when I have trouble solving a problem.
Maneuvering through the mountains was the trickiest part of the journey. The curvy roads and steep hills kept me entertained. As soon as I exited the mountain pass, I was on a pretty straight road to the Leaf Village. The closer I got to the village, the more greenery I saw.
The moment of, "wow it's really here" hit me when I finally saw the massive village gate. This village was so much different from back home. There were people everywhere. I started to miss my parents as I strolled through the gate and actually entered the Leaf Village. My Lightning Village headband gleamed as the rays of sun flashed across the metal plate. Even though I was beginning a new chapter of my life, I was still scared. I didn't have my parents around to guide me. They were everything to me. It was a lot harder to leave them than I thought.
I casually strolled through the village looking around for Kakashi-sensei or even Naruto. This place was a lot bigger than I imagined. I was getting some rather funny looks as I walked through the streets looking for my new sensei or best friend. I assumed not many people from the Lightning Village came here. After aimlessly wandering through the village for about fifteen minutes, I finally saw a familiar head of blonde spikey hair. I continued to stare until they startled me from my thoughts.
He was slightly two inches taller than me now. The spikey haired boy came dashing towards me full blast. "Aimi, you're finally here! I'm missed you so much!"
"Oh dear, Naruto, it's so good to see you!"
By the time I had finished my sentence, Naruto Uzumaki had tackled me to the ground in a hug. His playful personality hadn't changed at all. For this, I was thankful. His whiskers on either side of his face were still there. His bright blue eyes were as mischievous as ever and gleamed with all sorts of schemes. He helped me back to my feet and began shifting his weight impatiently.
"I wasn't expecting you for another week. This is great! Come on, let's get you situated. You told your parents you're staying with me right?"
"Yes Naruto, I told them everything about the trip." I paused for a slight moment. "So, is it true, about Sasuke?" I asked him timidly.
Naruto didn't look at me anymore. He just stared into the sky with a dazed look on his face. I had a feeling bringing up my traitorous cousin would set him off.
He avoided my gaze. "Yeah, I'm sorry."
"Naruto, you need not apologize. It's not your fault. Come on, we need to lighten up the mood. How about we get some ramen on me this time?"
He smiled the big grin I always remembered. "Since you offered, sure thing, come on I'm starving! Kakashi-sensei is waiting for us at Ichiraku anyway."
"Race you there!"
"No fair!"
The two of us bounded down the street full fledge run toward Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto's favorite place to pig out. Racing, playing, and pushing each other the whole way there was something I missed while I was gone. The race was shortly concluded as we finally reached our destination.
We were greeted at Ichiraku by my new sensei, Kakashi Hatake. "Kakashi-sensei, she's finally here and a week early too!"
Kakashi nodded and his eyes turned friendly. "It's nice to finally meet the famous Aimi Uchiha from the Hidden Lightning Village. I am Kakashi Hatake, the person who will be training you."
I bowed. "It is an honor to train with you Kakashi-sensei."
Naruto bounded into the conversation with his arm draped around my shoulders. "Come on, I'm starving, let's eat!"
Kakashi shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. We ordered our ramen and soon all three of us were chowing down and casually conversing. The small talk dissipated as the ramen we ordered vanished. Naruto and I bowed to Kakashi-sensei as we took our leave. As we left the ramen shop, I pointed to the messenger stand. Naruto drug me along through the village until we reached the messenger station. I quickly wrote to my parents saying my journey was successful and I would send a detailed letter soon. I sent the bird away to my home land hoping my parents would respond soon.
As soon as the bird had left the station, my best friend and I made our way to his apartment. The streets were still filled with people. This place was so strange and different from back home. Eventually though, Naruto and I arrived in his apartment. I began unpacking my bag filled with clothes, some pens, my little stuffed chocolate colored bunny, and my diary along with my sword strapped to the back of the bag. However, I found a unique surprise in my bag once everything was out and sorted. I found a silver chained necklace with a small angel charm. The angel wore a long pink dress highlighted with lighter shades of pink. The little angel had silver wings and cradled a small red heart in its hands. I looked for a clue as to who might have left it. I stared at the necklace in awe of its beauty. My finger lightly traced the design of the charm. A smile swept my face as I blushed red with thoughts of who might have given it to me. My parents hated these types of necklaces. Maybe my best friend had put it in there while I wasn't looking.
"Well, it looks like it's about time for bed! Goodnight Aimi, sweet dreams!"
"Goodnight Naruto, sweet dreams to you too." I would ask him tomorrow about the little angel. I hugged my stuffed animal, Chocolate, and kissed bunny goodnight as I said with a whisper, "Goodnight Chocolate, on to another day."
As I drifted off into a dream, a familiar friendly voice rang in my ears. "Good evening Aimi."
"Kei?"
I stared up into the bright red and orange wings of Kei the phoenix as her voice spoke to me. "I have a bit of something for you."
"Good news I hope, I've missed your company."
She turned to me with a smile and laughed a little. "Oh yes, and I have been missing yours too."
"By the way Kei, why have you been missing for so long?"
"Some people have hidden halos. Trust me dear, you will know soon enough."
"Do you know something I don't, Kei? And that doesn't really answer my question either." I gave her an inquisitive glance as her three giant feathers ruffled behind her.
She turned to me and smiled that sweet smile I remember. "Well Aimi, I guess you'll have to find out."
I gave Kei a hug on the tip of her giant right wing. "Thanks Kei, you're the best."
"Well thank you. I try my best to help you whenever I can. You better get going; you've got a big day ahead of you."
"Goodnight Kei."
She waved to me. "Good morning Aimi."