On my first sleepless night as a kunoichi, I thought maybe my ears were playing tricks on me.
My eyes fluttered open at precisely 2:12 in the morning on a Thursday. Ironically, I was also twelve.
Being merely a genin but thinking I was pretty strong for a kunoichi, I made my way outside of my home. It was chilly despite it being a late spring morning. I didn't mind however; the smell in the air was crisp just like a Fall morning. It was something that I appreciated more so than not.
I made my way towards my family's shed where I sensed the sound was strongest. I crept inside as silent as a genin could be, my heart fluttering like a humming bird and a hand where my kunai should've been. I squinted and with my perfect chakra control, enhanced my vision. In the dark, hung on the ceiling, I saw something silver glinting from the moon light which had entered through a crack in the wooden walls.
It was hung from the ceiling, hardly moving. A wind chime so beautifully crafted of what looked like sterling silver. I felt as if it were calling to me.
As it turned out, the chime was a family heirloom that'd been passed down since the first Haruno, who was a daimyo somewhere across the seas. My goofy father never dug too deep in it, but on my eighteenth birthday I was gifted the heirloom. When I moved out, I hung it outside and next to my window. I lived on the eighth floor so I needn't worry about any civilians taking my precious gift. I also knew every shinobi in the apartment complex I was staying at. No one bothered to take it.
The whistles soothed me through many sleepless nights, and the whistles also subdued Sarada as an infant. When I first had her, all I could think about was how my nights were going to be sleepless. Being a mother is a 24 hour job, but being a knight to Konoha also was a sleepless job.
I don't get nightmares from killing anymore, but when I was merely a genin, the dreams had already started. I may not have killed anyone at that point in time, but they had wanted to kill me. The whistles helped me through it by becoming a comfort source in the night. To this day I'm not sure why they helped soothe myself to sleep.
The chime sits calmly with my daughter through the nights. The window I leave cracked open so the wind can get to it. Though, ever the protective mother, I'd placed about five heavy seals on her window.
I'm happy to pass my gift onto my child.
Hope you enjoyed. It was a last minute thing, but I've been aching to write.