Chapter 1:
Eight years prior…
Amongst the people in the crowd, there stood a lone figure among the rest. Crowds parted in the middle to give way wherever she went. She was no princess, despite wearing a very elegant yukata. Namikaze Misaki is far from being a princess, as a matter of fact, she is the daughter of a runaway girl who spent a few blank questionable years outside the village.
At a young age, it didn't take Misaki long to conclude that people are frightened of what they do not know, another conclusion is that people's suspicions and curiosities result in guesses and theories about what they do not know. What they come up with, they share to others with fictions of their own, then it spreads as gossips to the public, and what public the public known in general is proclaimed as truth.
Truth based on small amounts of data, therefore a relative truth.
Before she knew it Namikaze Kaede was dubbed the village whore who had returned to Konoha after being a missing Kunoichi for a few years as a seamstress with a three year old child who had her eyes, her child. People doubted her daughter because the little girl had long beautiful red hair instead of the bright blonde that Kaede carried, but there was no doubt that they reflected the same eyes.
The villagers had incessantly asked Kaede about the child she came home with who had her eyes and called her mom, but Kaede made no effort to answer them, nor did she made any effort to correction to the same villagers who dubbed her a whore.
But whatever the rumors and beliefs that surrounded the mother and child, they did not doubt the excellence in their works a seamstresses. Patronizing their clothing business from the toughest shinobi trousers to the most delicate hime yukatas. Feudal lords from different countries all over the world visited them to hire their hands in their palaces, but Kaede would meekly decline and the feudal lords would resort to commissioning their expertise for their fine clothings. Shinobi clans from different hidden villages risk going to Konohagakure to have their specialized and sturdy garments made by the Namikaze hands.
The very reason why a little girl of five years old, wearing a cute yukata carried a humongous parcel on her back that was in no doubt heavy. Kaede had her hands full with many different commissions and Misaki took it upon herself to take deliveries of Kaede's mind and help her the best and most possible way. She had also been entrusted with some of the commissions due to her fast improving sewing capability, but Kaede still took the high bidders orders.
"Do you need any help?" Misaki looked up to see the onyx eyes belonging to Uchiha Itachi.
"Itachi-san! I was just on my way to make a delivery to the Uchiha compound." Misaki replied cheerfully, but making no move to hand Itachi the parcel she was carrying, and if it made her feel any discomfort, she did not show it.
Misaki continued to walk, this time with a gentle smile on her face, Itachi was the only person who ever talked to her in a friendly manner, much less walked with her in a crowd of people. They grew a close uncanny friendship, which Misaki suspected was because she was about the same age as his little brother Sasuke. More than that, Itachi enjoyed her company because she was perceptive, observant and unbiased, she managed to see good in a sea of people who entitled her as 'daughter of a whore.'
"Are you sure you're alright?" Itachi asked the second time to make sure.
"Umm, mom's busy with some of the feudal lord's orders, you'd think the world with end if they somehow wore the same garment twice" Misaki joked as they walked through the crowds of Konoha.
Itachi was more than her friend, to Misaki Itachi was her idol and her teacher. He taught her the basics of the shinobi life, but more than that he taught her his beliefs and his views. Teaching her to be a ninja is to lay your life in service for a greater good.
"How is your enrollment to the academy going?" Itachi asked.
"No going so well at all, the first time I asked my mom she hit my head so hard, I felt like I was a nail hammering on the ground. The second time, she sent an army of needles my way, my latest attempt ended up destroying a part of the house" Misaki laughed, remembering her scary mother.
"Hey, come to think of it, can you teach me more about chakra molding? I heard that if you utilize your chakra enough, you would be able to walk on water without much effort" Misaki asked and Itachi just smiled at the little girl's eagerness to learn.
"Sure, maybe you could come along when I am teaching Sasuke some tips on training." Itachi offered, Sasuke and Misaki have met on several occasions and on all of those times, Sasuke ends up shying away from Misaki. At first Itachi thought it was normal since all children are shy at first meetings, but when they met for the fifth time and Sasuke still hid behind Itachi, he had to chuckle, his beloved little brother had a crush, and it was only confirmed when Sasuke would always asked Itachi about her, ask when she was going to hang out or just plain talk about her.
"Umm, but don't you think that's a good idea? I don't have anything against the idea or Sasuke itself, but I feel like he hates me" Misaki pouted as she stared at the ground.
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, ever since we met he hasn't said anything to me, and whenever I approach him he backs away like I have some something incurable. There was even one time when I accidentally held his hand and he ran away from me" Misaki recounted several events in which she and Sasuke were together. Itachi chuckled a little harder at Sasuke's shyness from Misaki.
"He doesn't hate you, - quite the opposite actually" Itachi muttered.
"Hey, Itachi what are you muttering about?"
"It's nothing" he laughed it off and continued walking.
The Namikaze household is an expansive traditional house with a zen garden in the middle. Some said it was an old clan's house when Kaede bought it. It was too big for a mother and daughter, but Kaede couldn't help humoring the villager's curiosities.
When she returned, she had all the plans of getting an apartment for her and Misaki. It would only be the two of them so a big apartment would suffice, then she'll probably just get another one for working and commissions.
Of course she reported straight to the Hokage and were under the intelligence division's tight scrutiny much to her dismay, but nothing too meddlesome. A few days in, Kaede was doing a little bit of shopping with Misaki while searching for prospective settlements when she heard a few tattle tales talking about how she was some foreign rich lord's mistress and probably sent to the hidden village of the leaves to hide, and that she'll be bought the expansive compound of an old and rich clan's previous home.
And she thought why not.
It was the best decision she's ever made. When Misaki first saw the place, Kaede felt her heart melt, she was so happy. While traveling, they only had rooms for themselves and even though some hade very big rooms, none of them was ever considered a home. The place, though it was empty and needed some fixing, it definitely felt like a home.
Now, a section of the home Misaki and Kaede had built together is in shambles. Kaede had 'accidentally' destroyed a part of the compound when Misaki made another attempt at convincing Kaede to enroll her to the Ninja Academy.
"Huh, what's so great about being a shinobi anyway" Kaede grumbled and muttered as she assessed the damage of her work, she'd have to hire some carpenters to rebuild this part of the compound.
"What a shame, the kitchen's there too. I guess it's going to be ramen for a few weeks" Kaede sighed and started making a list of things she had to buy to replace the broken stuff, ignorant of the presence outside the house, looking in.
Misaki sighed as she walked through the streets of Konoha, night has already fallen, but she knew she had to buy something for dinner since there was virtually no kitchen at home.
"Hmm, what should I get for dinner?" Misaki wondered out loud, when all of a sudden a drop of water hit her face…
…and another…
…and another…
…before she knew it, it was pouring hard and she ran at the nearest place she could find shelter.
"Rain, at a time like this" Misaki said inspecting her wet yukata, she was surely going to get a scolding of two from her mother again.
"What can I do for you little miss" a kind old and inviting voice asked her and she turned around to find herself at a food place.
"Ramen!" Misaki exclaimed, all the while jumping on the chair, it's like fate wanted her to come to this place, her mother loves ramen.
"Can I get two shoyo ramen and two miso ramens with lots of toppings on the go please?" Misaki cheerfully made her order while humming, swinging her legs to the tone.
She continued her cheerful wait when she felt someone looking at her. She turned around and saw a boy about her age, with blond hair and sad blue eyes standing in the rain.
'What's a boy like him doing in the streets at this hour, in the rain no less' Misaki thought as they stared at each other for a while, before the boy ran away wordlessly.
"Wait" Misaki jumped and ran after him, successfully grabbing his arm and pulling him in, failing at keeping herself from getting wet, but her clothes are not on top of her priority right now.
"You're all wet! What are you doing out in the rain?" Misaki scolded doing her best to dry out his soaked hair with a bunch of tissues. When he didn't answer and stared at the ground, Misaki decided not to pry, instead pushed him to sit beside her.
"Here you go" the owner said handing Misaki her packed order.
"Mister can I get another two bowls of shoyo ramen" Misaki asked as she unpacked two of the ramen she was supposed to bring home and placed it in front of the boy and herself.
"Mom said food has a wonderful way of making you feel better" Misaki said as she handed him her chopsticks. The boy looked at the ramen in wonder then started crying harder, scaring Misaki.
"Huh, don't you like ramen, perhaps you like miso better?" Misaki panicked then realized the answer to the question why this boy was out in the right at this time of night without anyone with him or at least looking for him.
He's an orphan. Misaki recognized him now, he was the one everybody was calling fox kid, calling him monster; Uzumaki Naruto. He shaked his head before muttering 'itadakimasu' and digging in the ramen. Misaki smiled started eating for herself.
Once they were done, her additional orders were finished and so was the rain.
"Um, thank you for the food" Naruto muttered shyly and Misaki just laughed.
"Don't mention it, my name is Namikaze Misaki"
"Uzumaki Naruto" he replied back. In order to thank her Naruto offered to help her carry the ramen she ordered.
"Why were you crying in the rain?" Misaki asked and Naruto looked the other way.
"I wasn't crying"
"Idiot, rain doesn't make your eyes go red" Misaki jested and Naruto pouted.
"You know, people are stupid, don't mind them" Misaki looked at the ground, she knew very well how Naruto felt amongst the villagers. Even though she knew better than to pay attention to what everyone thinks about you, it didn't change the fact that it hurt when people call you names and thought badly of you even though they don't know half of the story.
Misaki saw Naruto's fist clench then he started yelling at the top of his lungs while pointing at the hokage cliff.
"I'm gonna be the next hokage and make them recognize my strength believe it" Misaki laughed then copied Naruto, she too screaming at the top of her lungs.
"And I'm going to be there to watch it!" the villagers living in the vicinity started yelling curses at them telling them to go to sleep or get lost.
The two children just dodged the onslaught of thrown items and ran away laughing.
When they reached the Namikaze household, Misaki waved Naruto goodbye then turned to an unsuspecting tree.
When nothing moved, she shrugged it off then went home inside…
…barely dodging a slipper…
"I'm home" Misaki smiled nervously at her furious mother.
"Misaki, where have you been and look at you you're all wet" Kaede fussed, her initial anger overpowered by her worry.
"I'm sorry," Misaki pouted and just like that, she's forgiven like she always did.
'Just like her father…' Kaede thought as she shook her head, watching Misaki set the table.
"Mom, I made a friend today at Iciraku Ramen. His name is Uzumaki Naruto. He was very interesting, he said he was going to be a Hokage to make people recognize his strength" Misaki said making Kaede choke.
"Hokage?!"
"Yeah, he was so young, but I can tell he already has his heart set on it, and you know what mom, I don't know how or why, but I believe in him, and when his dreams come true, I want to be there" Misaki said with so much conviction Kaede can almost see her father's image in her.
"Tche, if you are going to be friends with a hokage you must be strong yourself, or else you're just going to be a free loader" Kaede said nonchalantly, but Misaki knew better.
"You mean" Misaki practically glowed as she realized what Kaede was trying to say.
"Yes, I'll enroll you to the ninja academy"
"YES!" Misaki jumped on Kaede, making them both fall on the floor in a wet laughing heap of a mess.
Naruto stood before the ninja academy, determined face painted on his face as he clenched his fists.
"Naruto!" he turned to see Misaki dressed in another yukata, next to a similarly dressed older blonde woman. Misaki smiled when Naruto turned and ran after him, completely disregarding her floor length yukata.
"Hey, Misaki" Kaede tried to warn, but stopped, it would be futile, as energetic as Misaki is.
"Oh, Misaki, are you going enroll today too?"
"Yeah, oh, this is Namikaze Kaede, my mom, mom, this is my new friend Uzumaki Naruto" Misaki introduced as soon as Kaede caught up to them.
"Oh, you're the kid who's going to be the future hokage"
"Yeah believe it" Naruto said cheerfully and Kaede laughed and hit his head.
"Then what are you waiting for get moving on" she scolded, scaring the two children into hurrying it up to enroll in the ninja academy.
After enrolling, Kaede left Naruto and Misaki on their own, saying something about needing something from the market.
"Man, Aunty Kaede is really really scary" Naruto said as they walked through the streets, villagers as usual getting out of their way, probably regrouping to mutter a new gossip.
"I know right, she even broke a part of the house at one time" Kaede said recalling her angry mom.
"Oh, Sasuke-kun" Misaki said waving her hand as she saw Sasuke with his mother Mikoto. As usual Sasuke hid behind his mom, making Misaki pout, instead Mikoto smiled in his stead, and Misaki smiled at her back.
"He probably enrolled today too" Misaki muttered as she and Naruto went to Ichiraku to eat some ramen then off to goof around doing what kids did best.
"Neh, Naruto" Misaki asked as they both watched the sun set on top of the hokage cliff.
"What is it?"
"This is where our journey starts, you're ready right?"
"Believe it" he said offering a fist bump, a gesture that Misaki returned.
"See you at the opening ceremony" Misaki waved as Naruto ran off, probably to set off another prank. Misaki walked around town until she walked by a bookstore and saw ninja guidebooks but the stall. When Itachi is too occupied to teach her, he would give her a list of reading materials to finish reading during his absence. If she was able to finish the books in advanced, she would sit on the training grounds where other jounin were training either by themselves or with apprentices or genins. Misaki would observe them for hours on end, trying to construct and deconstruct their movements, and once she believe she could try it from herself.
On days when she was the one plagued with helping her mom with the commissions, she had found a way in incorporate training with her chores. During deliveries, she would carry as much as she can and deliver them fast, giving herself a time limit to reach, each time, she arrived faster and her package lighter. During night, she would continue sewing even after the lights have been shut, adjusting her eyes to see in the darkness, each time the sewed on patterns becoming more and more accurate and precise.
Itachi had taken a notice to her training regimen and began teaching her and Sasuke taijutsu and chakra molding. Something that she would continue training on in the solace of their garden.
Distracted she didn't realize she was on a collision course until she actually collided, making her fall on her butt.
"I am so sorry" Misaki said fussing around her yukata, thinking about the many ways Kaede is going to murder her when she gets home dirty twice in a row.
"No, it was my fault I wasn't looking" a deep and lazy voice said offering his hand to her. Misaki looked up to see that she can only actually see one eye and a gravity defying set of hair kept in a hitai ate, he looked weird, but familiar.
'Where have I seen him' Misaki thought as she held on to his hand to support her to stand up.
"Thank you" Misaki bowed, giving her a glimpse of the book the man was reading that made him bump to her: 'Make out Paradise.'
"OH! You're my mom's stalker!" Misaki exclaimed as she pointed a finger at him, making everybody in the vicinity start whispering to each other.
"I am very sorry about that, if I may introduce myself, my name is Namikaze Misaki" Misaki bowed to the silver haired man as they sat together at a dango shop.
"What made you say I am your mom's stalker?"
Misaki looked at him like he asked a ridiculous question, bending her head to the side, before answering.
"Eh, I could have sworn I see you lurking around our house most days. Mom's probably around your age, but I'm not really sure about that because your face is covered and you have white hair" Misaki explained.
Hatake Kakashi frowned, he was certain he was being anonymous at tailing them, but it turns out, Misaki was quite observant for her age.
Just like her father…
"Hahahaha, well I guess I'm caught, I just wanted to see how your mom was" Kakashi laughed it off as he rubbed the back of his neck. He watched Misaki's face closely, waiting for her reaction. At first her face was contorted with doubt, but she slowly shrugged it off and smiled inquisitively.
"You knew my mom back then? Why am I asking, of course you knew her, you were one of the few who welcomed her to the village back then when we came to Konoha" Misaki wondered out loud staring up at the sky, as if she was trying to replay what happened that day.
Kakashi held his breath for the second time since officially meeting her. She was right, he was there to escort her from the gate to the hokage's office. The hokage thought it would be nice to be welcomed with a familiar face so he assigned Kakashi to meet them at the gates. What shocked him was how could she manage to remember him, he was with them for a short while, then proceeded to tail them in the shadows, what more is that she was so young, her memory must be really sharp.
"Let me see, if I can remember correctly Hatake Kakashi right?" Misaki continued, waiting for confirmation.
"Uh, yeah" Kakashi answered, he was wrong, her memory was perfect.
"That means you're the Copy Ninja Kakashi" Misaki exclaimed excitedly, staring at Kakashi.
"Mom, I'm ho-" Misaki barely dodged a fast moving tea cup going her way. Which was luckily caught by Kakashi who was standing behind her.
"Whoah, I'm glad you the tea cup didn't shatter" Misaki wondered inspecting the tea cup, completely ignoring her fuming mother.
"Oh, mom, this is Hatake Kakashi, he's been stalking you and staring outside longingly, so I thought to just let him in" Misaki explained indifferently as she went to their newly remade kitchen to prepare some tea, the salvaged tea cup joining the set.
Kakashi froze in fear as she stared at the blonde woman, who was ready to send him to his grave, and started reevaluating his life's decisions on how did he get to this point.
"Oh he also bought you dango, see, he even remembers you have an obsession with sweets" Misaki said offering Kaede the packaged sweet.
Before his eyes Kakashi witnessed the ferocious aura of a demon, turn to one of an innocent and sweet woman.
"Dango!" Kaede singed staring at the delicacy as she sat down on the table, cheerfully offering Kakashi to sit opposite to her.
"There" Misaki said placing a pot of steaming tea and two tea cups.
"Two? You're not joining us?" Kaede asked.
"Nope, I heard Itachi just got back from a mission, I'm off to see him" Misaki said as she slipped on her shoes once again.
"Get home safely, if it gets too late call me to pick you up, or just asked Itachi-san to drop you off" Kaede coddled Misaki.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll be back later" Misaki said shutting the door behind her. It was silent between the two, then they both jumped out of their skins when the door opened once again and Misaki poked her head through the small opening.
"Oh yeah mom, I almost forgot" Misaki began innocently before smiling like a Cheshire cat.
"I don't mind a younger sibling or two" she finished and Kaede threw the steaming pot of tea at her, which she dodged by closing the door only to open it once again.
"Oh, but that was your favorite tea" this time it was one of the tea cup.
"I love you" Misaki quickly said then finally closed the door, the tea cup shattering on the door.
"That little brat" Kaede was panting and red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger as she fumed to clean up her mess then proceeded to make another batch of tea, as Kakashi watched afraid that an unnecessary word from him could send him to the other world.
"Seriously that kid" Kaede sighed as she finally sat down with a new set of tea.
"Neh, Itachi how did your mission go?" Misaki smiled as she ran up to him watching as Sasuke practiced knife throwing.
"Smoothly, and you how have you been?"
"You're looking at a newly enrolled student at the academy" Misaki said smiling triumphantly.
"What a coincidence, Sasuke just enrolled himself too" Itachi smiled and they both looked at Sasuke who blushed at the sight of Misaki, but nonetheless doubling his efforts in hitting his targets, something that only Itachi noticed.
"Wow Sasuke you're good at this" Misaki praised making Sasuke blush even more.
"Thank you" he replied and Misaki's eyes widened, this was the first time Sasuke talked to her without having Itachi as their messenger.
Misaki soon stood next to Sasuke to try her hand with knife throwing, she was good, but compared to Sasuke she was a pale comparison.
"Eh, you make it look so easy Sasuke" Misaki mumbled as she ran out of knives.
"I can" Sasuke started, startling both Itachi and Misaki.
"I can help you improve, if you want" Sasuke said shyly.
"Really?"
"Yeah, not just in kunai but in school too, or anything you like" Sasuke added, his face comparing closely to his favorite food.
"Promise?" Misaki said offering Sasuke her pinky finger smiling cheerfully. Sasuke looked to Itachi for confirmation who smiled and nodded at him.
"Promise" Sasuke said entwining his pinky finger to her.
"And I promise to help you improve to," and for the first time Sasuke smiled at him.
A year later, Misaki was a lot closer to Sasuke now since that time they made a promise to help the other improve, Sasuke had been more talkative and cheerful around her. They would train together and often go to the bookshops together, much to his fan club's charging. Some days he would visit her and some days she would visit him. At first their relationship was reliant on Itachi, but ever since Itachi got promoted, he had been spending less and less time with them so the two of them found comfort in each other.
Fugaku and Mikoto were also very accepting of their children's friendship much to the whole clan's displeasure. When they think the children couldn't hear, they would speak of Misaki seducing the Uchiha brothers or of her tarnishing the Uchiha name, or the best part is that she's probably a spy. All of them, much to Misaki's surprise was shot down by the clan's head. Their acceptance to her turned to dinner invitations and birthday celebrations, and they even sent gifts to Misaki on her birthday. At one time she even heard the couple say something about Misaki is an exact image of her mother but the talent and wits of her father. A statement that confused Misaki a lot, maybe they got it mixed up?
She also made a lot of friends through the year at the academy, along with Naruto thankful that there are some children who won't judge her for something they do not know. Misaki wondered and thanked their parents in her mind for raising her friends well, she was especially fond of indolent Shikamaru and voracious Choji. At a young age, they had become quite a troublemaking group.
"I'm home mom! I bought you some-"she barely dodged the chopstick that imbedded itself in the wall.
Misaki peeked to see Kakashi and Kaede was there by the table having tea.
'Weird, she threw a tantrum while Kakashi is here, must be something bad, don't tell me-!'
"I swear it was Naruto, I was just an accomplice!" Misaki held her hands in a surrendering fashion. The two just looked at her like she had three heads.
"What are you talking about, we received this" Kaede said handing her a piece of paper.
"You are have been referred to accelerate from your class" Kakashi explained and Misaki looked at the paper like it was a piece of gold. She can't wait to tell Sasuke and Naruto and…
…Itachi…
The only things that changed for the worse was her relationship with Itachi. Ever since Shisui died, he had been more distant, he was there, he smiled and still talked like he used to, but it's like he wasn't even there, like we were talking to a shadow clone or something.
"What's the matter, shouldn't you be happy" Kaede asked noticing the change in her eyes.
"Oh, it's nothing, I'm probably just shocked. I'm going to tell Sasuke and Naruto, don't wait up" Misaki got up, bolted through the door while putting on her shoes at record speed. Kakashi and Kaede sighed in unison never really prepared to what Misaki is going to do the next.
"Oh by the way" Misaki peeked through the door like she had done many times before.
"Should I be calling you dad anytime soon Kakashi?" Misaki said and shut the door before she can get hit with flying kitchen knives.
"Seriously that little brat!" Kaede fumed as Kakashi just laughed at her expense.
Naruto and Misaki were sitting on the swing while eating ice cream.
"Naruto, the sensei recommended me to accelerate to a higher class" Misaki said staring at the ground. At first she was too excited to tell Naruto her news, but it didn't occur to her until now how Naruto would feel, and it made her feel even worse.
"Stupid, why are you sad, that's great. Only means I have to work harder to chase you, believe it!" Naruto said cheering her up as the sun set behind him.
Sasuke however was a different story.
"So you're going to leave me?" Sasuke asked, his face crest fallen, it broke her heart to see Sasuke this way, so she tapped her point finger on his nose.
"Idiot, didn't we make a promise to help each other improve?" Misaki cheered on and when Sasuke still looked like an abandoned puppy, Misaki offered her pinky finger.
"Then I'll just have to make you another promise"
"I Namikaze Misaki promise never to leave Uchiha Sasuke no matter how annoying he gets" Sasuke pouted but smiled wrapping his pinky finger around Misaki's
"And I Uchiha Sasuke promise to never leave stupid Namikaze Misaki ever" the two young ones smiled, oblivious to the figure that lurked in the darkness with piercing red eyes…
On her way home Misaki was lot with her own thoughts, barely noticing where she was walking on, the perks of being the 'village whore's daughter' was peoples automatically get out of her way, and they knew which way your home was, so walking with her head in the clouds was never a problem for Misaki.
When she got home, she noticed the lights still on, probably Kakashi was still there. If it was only Kaede at home then there would only be lights at the workshop, probably working up some more commissions. Misaki wondered, all of the commissions were demanded to be handmade by her mom, and still she managed all of them, despite the number. It was at a ridiculous price but people see it worth the buck. Even though Misaki had cut up to durability, design and whatnot of seam stressing, the speed of Kaede's work was not something she would caught on to, ever.
When she got inside the house, there was no flying objects threatening her life, which was a very good sign. She puffed a sigh of relief and entered the house to find that Kakashi and Kaede had not moved an inch from their seats. Seriously they are going to get nowhere in their relationship if all they do is sit there all day, with Kakashi reading his perverted book and Kaede binging on food all day, it's a wonder how that woman stays fit, but right now instead of food, she's working on a piece of cloth, probably working on a commission, again.
"I'm back mom, Kakashi"
"Oh, Misaki would you like some dinner?" Kaede asked pausing on the piece of cloth she was working on.
"No thank you, Mikoto and Fugaku invited me to dinner," Misaki smiled and walked up the stairs, but before she completely disappeared to the second floor, she pinched her chin and wondered out loud.
"Damn, I was so sure this would be the day I would get a younger sister or brother"
Misaki grinned giving a peace sign before running as fast as she can, barely dodging an array of flying needles on her way.
"YOU LITTLE BRAT!" she heard Kaede scream and a few mumbles from Kakashi for her to calm down, something about not destroying a part of their house.
Misaki closed the door to her room, and almost screamed in shock when a figure sat on an open window, windows that she never particularly unlocked much less opened. The only things that stopped her from screaming bloody murder and alerting the whole village was she knew the person.
"Goodness Itachi, you scared ten years out of my life" Misaki complained wiping a figurative sweat from her forehead as she approached Itachi, who wordlessly nodded and jumped to the roof on top of her room, in which Misaki silently followed. Itachi was one of the only people she would follow without questions or doubts.
"I heard you're advancing a year at the academy, impressive" Itachi said smirking to her as she sat down next to her, arms hugging her legs.
"Don't patronize, I'm not as good as you, Mr. I graduated-at-six-years-old-after-only-one-year-at-the-academy." Misaki joked, dramatically flailing her hands for extra effect, Itachi chuckled at her antics and ruffled her long red locks.
"You still treat me like a kid" Misaki pouted, but then laughed with Itachi. It was like that for a few more moments, them laughing with no particular reason like a bunch of idiots.
Once the laughter had died down, Misaki lied on the roof, staring at the stars. Stars were great, so is the sun and the moon, staring at them keeps your feet on the ground and reminds you how little you are, but at the same time enchants you with the constancy of their presence. It's a joined habit of theirs, staring at the skies, whether it be morning or night, it was unspoken but both of them knew they shared the same thoughts on the skies.
"Here" Itachi handed her a box, making her sit back up to take it.
"What's this?"
"Consider it an advanced graduation gift"
"Isn't it a bit too early? I'm just advancing a few classes, not yet graduating"
"I know you are going to pass" Itachi said flicking her forehead, something he does out of endearment. Misaki decided not to press it any further and opened the box. It was a matching necklace, one that Itachi wears right this moment.
"Thank you" Misaki said wearing the necklace immediately.
"Looks good, besides, I'm probably going to be on a mission for a while so, I think giving you my gift in advance seems logical" Itachi explained and Misaki looked at him I question.
"Mission?"
"Yeah, it might take a while, so can you do me a favor and look after Sasuke for me?"
"Tche, I am insulted that you would think you had to ask." Misaki turned her face away from him feigning anger, but the next actions from Itachi caught her off guard. She felt his arms wrap around her entirety and kissed the top of her head.
This was the first time Itachi hugged her much less kissed her head, it should have been a happy moment.
'So why does this felt like a heart wrenching good bye?' Misaki thought as she reveled in Itachi's embrace.
A few days later, Misaki was
She wasn't even in close proximity of the Uchiha compound when she smelled it.
The smell of blood
The smell of death…
Misaki immediately got a kunai ready to strike at any moment and ran in full pursuit, while praying to the gods above to not let it be anything she could think of. As soon as she caught sight of the compound with the sigil of an Uchiwa fan, her heart stopped and she willed herself to run faster when she saw a sprawled body lying on the ground, then another, and another.
She entered the compound without regards and respect to find countless bodies of the clan sprawled in the same fashion everywhere.
"Sasuke!" she exclaimed as she made her way towards the home of the head family, tears already starting to form in her eyes.
"Itachi!" she yelled as soon as she entered the house to find Fugaku and Mikoto sprawled on the floor, bodies covered in blood from wounds she doubted considered salvageable, but she tried. Ninja school taught them to put pressure on the wound to keep the blood inside the body.
"No, please don't" Misaki cried, after Mikoto, she went to Fugaku who still had a feint pulse on him.
"Fugaku-san what happened" she cried as she gently held his head, Fugaku reluctantly opened his eyes then muttered Itachi, then closing his eyes. Misaki cried harder and placed his head gently on the table.
"Itachi?" she ran outside the house, not minding the blood on her entire body. She blindly followed the trail of bodies and found Sasuke at the end of it.
"Sasuke" she rushed to his side to find that he was just unconscious, tears starting dry from his eyes. Misaki placed him on her back, using up all the adrenaline and took him to the only place she could get help.
The Hokage Residence; Misaki pounded on the doors as hard as she can alerting everybody of her presence. When the hokage's guards made it out, all they saw was a bloody little girl carrying an equally bloody boy as she cried.
"Please help him, the Uchiha, they they-"she didn't get to finish her sentence as she collapsed from exhaustion, trauma and her adrenaline rush having been spent.