Author's note: There are not so many stories of Hayate and Hitomi as lead characters, and therefore I had focused on the two. I hope you will enjoy reading the journey this pair is about to take.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All characters belong to Koei Tecmo and Team Ninja.

Happy Reading!

~A Lost Ninja~

Germany

Hitomi grabbed a towel to wipe her sweat off, and then picked up a bottle of water because she was thirsty after a hard karate training. Usually, she would help assist her father with the karate lessons for the children at the dojo, but today she focused on herself since she needed to improve on her own moves. Hitomi began making her way out of the dojo to head home. As she passed by a few rooms, she could hear the children sparring, the instructors correcting and praising their students. It made her smile hearing their determination. It reminded her when she was younger getting her first lesson by her father after school. Karate had become one of her greatest passion.

She then stopped at one of the rooms and leaned her shoulder against the doorway. Hitomi watched in silent while Ein showed his students how to do the right kicks and punches. He had only been a karate instructor for a few months and the children at the dojo seemed to love Ein. Hitomi smiled with adoration in her eyes as she watched him.

Six months ago, he didn't even know Karate… was this part of his life before he lost his memories? as nobody learned karate that quickly without having some type of a fighting background…

Ein noticed her at the door and flashed her a smile. Hitomi waved to him.

"I'm almost done." He mimed from the distance.

"No problem, I'll wait." She mimed back.

Ein then dismissed the class. Everyone had just left, so Ein grabbed his bag and walked over to Hitomi.

"You didn't have to wait for me you know." He said as they began making their way out of the dojo together.

"I know, but I finished earlier so I didn't mind."

Ein had been living with Hitomi and her father ever since Hitomi found him unconscious in the woods while she was training one day about a year ago. He was badly injured when she found him, and if she hadn't been there at the right place and time, he probably wouldn't have made it. Until Ein's health had improved and his memory had returned, they decided to let him stay with them.

Flashback

He laid in bed staring at the ceiling. He had been in a coma for days and was finally awake, what happened to me? He looked around the room with wondering eyes, where am I...? his gaze soon tracked curiously to his body. His head and chest were covered with bandages. Apparently, someone had treated his wounds. The more he wondered, the more confuse he became. It also frustrated him that he couldn't move his body too much without aching. His attention suddenly turned towards the door when he heard someone knocking.

"Come in…" He reluctantly responded.

"I brought you something to eat, you must be hungry." A brunette made her way towards the nightstand with a bowl of soup she had made for him.

He looked at her confused.

"My name is Hitomi." She then introduced herself with a smile.

Even though he had seen her when he first woke up from the coma, everything was still blurry and confusing around him at the time.

"I would introduce myself, but I can't seem to remember who I am..." He frowned strangely.

"Well, the doctor did warn us that this might happen when you wake up. He said that you had suffered a lot of damage to your head, but you didn't need to be in the hospital for the recovery if we keep an eye on you and let you rest. You were lucky I found you when I did, if you had lost more blood you probably wouldn't be here now." Hitomi explained.

A deep frown wrinkled on his forehead, and Hitomi stopped herself once she saw his concerned expression, as she figured that she shouldn't worry him too much since he needed to take it easy.

"Let's not worry about the details for now. You need to eat before the soup gets cold." She then said changing the subject.

"I hope I didn't bother you too much..."

"Not at all." She replied with a pleasant smile while gently lifting him up from the bed, so he could sit comfortably.

He carefully began eating. "It's delicious, thank you."

While he finished the soup, Hitomi lowered herself down onto a chair next to the bed. Her gaze then set on a picture frame on the wall that had suddenly grabbed her curiosity. It was a picture of a racecar with a number one on it.

"Ein..." She said in a low voice thinking out loud.

He looked at her questionably and Hitomi noticed.

"Well, since you don't have a name, how about we call you Ein in the meantime?" Hitomi suggested. Ein, which also means number one in German.

He gave it a quick consideration to her suggestion. Then with a faint smile, "I'm okay with that."

"Nice to meet you, Ein." Hitomi said smilingly with a little tease to her tone.

It made him smile as well at her friendliness. But he was suddenly feeling a little lightheaded…

Hitomi took a quick notice and got concerned, so she immediately got up from her chair to help Ein lay back down again. "You should rest..." Then covered him with a blanket to keep him warm.

But before she could turn to leave, he took her by her wrist making Hitomi looked at him with wondering eyes.

"Thank you." He simply said in a weak tired voice. It didn't take Ein long to fall asleep since he was still too weak.

Hitomi stood quietly gazing down at him for a moment…then took the half empty soup bowl and walked out of the room gently closing the door behind her.

End of flashback