A/N: Poll? Vote in it? I'd love opinions, and what happens really, really does effect the direction of the story (I have plans on all fronts).

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"To be nobody but
yourself in a world
which is doing its best day and night to make you like
everybody else means to fight the hardest battle
which any human being can fight and never stop fighting."
― E.E. Cummings

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Team D had been a team for about a year now – and, still, they got stuck with the quote horrible, baby, D-Ranks unquote. Though they did get C-Ranks on occasion, but they were still genin and someone had to do the D-Ranks (even though the pay on those were pretty shit). Every member of their team had complained or commented at some point, though Souma was pretty sure Kensuke did it the most often via snarky remarks.

Snarky remarks that didn't quite fit his teammate's constant morose expression, if you asked him.

Their sensei Asahi Keigo had none of it though – his word was law for the most part, and Souma was pretty sure the more complaints the man got the more D-Ranks they were going to get. Asahi-sensei was stubborn, superfluously so considering the suffering look he had on his face currently as he watched the three of them patch up some leaky roofs (Souma swore that at one point he heard the man say something along the lines of 'I don't get paid enough for this shit'. Well, Asahi-sensei, Souma had thought, welcome to my world – it would be burning, but there's too much rain).

"Is mopping up the inside of this place part of the mission," Kensuke spoke up dryly, "Or is that another D-Rank?"

Asahi-sensei made a noncommittal noise, but said nothing.

Souma was pretty sure he did it in-part to make Kensuke angry; the man did always seemed amused when the auburn haired boy's eye twitched. He figured their sensei had to get some kind of enjoyment out of this, somehow – since watching them do these menial jobs obviously wasn't doing it for him. Then again Souma was pretty sure his teammates would more than agree that it was the same for the three of them, too. Except if they attempted to mess with Asahi too much they would be neck deep in something – training, mud, water…

Which was also why they'd been holding off on pestering him about the chūnin exams, because if they pestered him they were liable to get stuck as genin forever because their sensei likes to be a stubborn ass when annoyed even only the slightest bit.

"Say, didn't your sister join the Academy?" Nami's comment was in part to stop Kensuke from grumbling and ranting and also part actual curiosity, "How does she like it?"

"Yeah, she did. So far Yuu-chan is enjoying herself," Souma paused to flex his fingers, "She does like learning – she kind of soaks things up like a sponge, so she's doing okay."

Which, admittedly, Souma didn't know whether he should be worried about or not. Having such a smart sister was something he was proud of, sure, but smarts came with a lot of responsibilities and expectations. Souma just didn't think she should have to deal with any of that until she was eleven – so he sincerely hoped she didn't get pushed along too much, too fast (but then again how amazing would that be? To have such a strong, smart sister, who could help better Ame alongside him).

"Then why do you look so concerned?" Nami's amber eyes linked in confusion, her head tilted slightly to the side, "If Yuuka-chan is smart, then she should be fine. You help her out too, don't you?"

At that Souma could only give a half-smile and semi-weary affirmative – because Yuuka didn't really need his help. History, language, basic math… Yuuka understood it all fairly well. The only thing Yuuka sometimes asked him about was the general shinobi guidelines –

"Yuu-chan is just in that stage where she asks a bunch of questions, you know?"

She didn't seem to understand why she couldn't show emotions, or why the teachers wanted her to lean towards a certain mindset.

("Why does Ame have to be the absolute best, Sou-nii?"

"Well, Ame is our home. Rain is our home. Don't you want your home to be well protected?"

"What does that have to do with being the absolute best? What makes Ame better than everyone else?"

"Because it's Ame, Yuu-chan. We've been through a lot. Our whole country is full of survivors."

"Surviving makes us better?"

"It makes us stronger, Yuu-chan.")

The only thing Souma could really do was tell her it was because it was the right thing to do – for her village, for her people, and for herself. Amegakure was weak right now (It was like he told her, Ame – no, all of the Land of Rain – was full of survivors. The citizens themselves were mixtures of natives, war refugees, or they were descended from either or (or both)), and Leader-sama needed all of his shinobi to do their best to get stronger and make Ame stronger, and Souma was determined. He wanted nothing more than to become a shinobi their leader could be proud of (he'd have to get Asahi-sensei to actually put them up for the chūnin exams first), and he would help Yuuka become great too.

That was what family was for, wasn't it?

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Yuuka both enjoyed and disliked being surrounded by so many children her age (or round-about her age, anyways). Beforehand she hadn't had others her age around – it was generally just her mother, big brother, and that nice lady Fukui (plus whatever customers came in). And then there was the fact that these other kids just seemed…different. They all took longer than she did on work and some of them complained that they didn't understand –

But her mommy had said that she was special, so that was why the other kids weren't like her – Yuuka was one of a kind (they just weren't on her level).

And Yuuka liked that thought. She didn't want to be grouped in with those other kids, but her mommy didn't want her standing out too much, she had said. So sometimes Yuuka got distracted and doodled on worksheets, leaving a problem or two unanswered even after already having worked out or thought up the answer. Yuuka didn't have any problems with doing that either, because she didn't really like doing things that she didn't have to (and her mommy had said she could, and Yuuka was of the opinion her mommy was ranked above her teachers; she was mommy, after all).

Plus, even if Yuuka didn't like that the other kids sometimes didn't understand her, she did like playing games. Tag was fun and playing ninja was okay too, though her brother said that playing ninja was nothing like being a real ninja. Though sometimes all Yuuka really wanted to do was sit and read (the pages in her flower anthologies and encyclopedias were getting worn at the corners already, after only roundabout a year of use), since playing all those games outside in the rain was no fun when you got sopping wet and didn't really have a good way to dry off – though apparently they would learn a technique later that used chakra to deflect rain and some people could even dry themselves off, apparently.

But even that wouldn't get rid of the mud or all the grey of the rain outside.

She wanted green, and she wanted to see green that was abundant and living, not something she could only peer at on pieces of paper – stagnant and muted. Her brother was lucky – he'd gotten to go outside of Rain and into lands that were nothing but green (almost, anyways), and Yuuka was very much so looking forward to that.

"Yuuka-chan!" A fellow female classmate peered at her, hands on her hips and puffing a strand of slate grey hair out of her mud brown eyes, "We have kun'ichi classes now! The new thing! Let's go!"

"Oh! Alright, Kotone-chan!" Yuuka wondered what they were even going to do in these classes. Typically, from what she'd gleaned (from both books and a few well-placed questions) kunoichi classes often involved flower arranging in other villages – but Ame didn't really have any sort of area where they could learn that (and, oh, Yuuka wished they did).

Maybe that meant more books – and Yuuka was all for new books.

But, apparently, if what Yuuka was seeing on the board was correct they were learning about proper etiquette first. Which meant learning about which fork and knife to use and what words to say and which ones not to say, and Yuuka was so not looking forward to that (and how were most of them going to stand sitting through that? Some of the other girls were real fidgety; then again they did make it to where these classes were after lunch and recess).

Prim and proper were not two words that Yuuka was very find of – she'd rather stomp around in mud puddles than sit through a stuffy dinner any day; then again when she was a ninja they would at least pay her for doing something so boring. She still didn't want to deal with it, though.

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Picking up Yuuka from the Academy was somewhat of a draining thing for Chika – when she had the time to do it, anyways. Given the still roiling and uncertain air of Ame, Chika just didn't like having Yuuka walk back home or to the apothecary on her own (even if Yuuka could and did do just that on occasion and was always fine; but Chika was her mother – she worried). She'd been especially paranoid for Souma, though somehow she felt like she worried more for Yuuka; perhaps because of how small and delicate she was compared to how Souma had been.

"How did your day go, Yuu-chan?" The rain was barely misting now – it was odd, but nice to have such a break from the usual downpour (but what she would really love was some sun; a whole day of it).

"Mnuh, we started kunoichi classes today," Chika almost smiled at the dreary, pained expression on Yuuka's face, "They're teachin' us etiquette. 'S no fun."

Chika laughed, not that surprised. "It's part of the process. We all have to endure something unpleasant every so often."

"Can I sleep during them?" Yuuka twirled and skimmed the tip of her sandal across a puddle, "I think I'm going sleep next time."

"Now, that doesn't seem like you, Yuu-chan." The pleasant, herbal smell of the apothecary wafted around the two as the stepped in the store, "I thought you liked to learn."

Though Chika supposed she wouldn't mind her little girl slacking a little bit, if it kept her in the correct year and out of the spotlight (at least, out of it in the good way, though in on the bad). But Chika wasn't to going to tell her not to do it – she'd leave that decision all up to Yuuka. Every child had to learn to determine and decide things for themselves sooner or later (in part, anyways).

Asuka hobbled over, little jars of tonics clinking in her hands. "What's this? Yuuka-chan doesn't want to do something?"

"Etiquette, Fukui-san," Yuuka's little high pitched voice was as grave as a kid's voice could be, "It's very boring. I think I'm going to use that class as nap time."

"It's still good to know, though, don't you think?" Asuka questioned as Chika brushed her hands through Yuuka's damp hair, much to the child's feeble protests, "Just in case."

A few incoherent mumbles followed, though the turquoise haired child instantly perked up upon a request from Asuka that she go tend the little indoor garden – just like she'd been taught to (watering what needed watering, picking what needed picking, and drying what needed drying). And the look on her face when Chika peeked back on her was so happy that Chika's heart ached, just a bit.

"Chika-chan?" Asuka leveled the brunette with a look only a mother could pull off (concern, knowing, and understanding all wrapped up into one look).

"I just…" Chika knotted her hand into her shirt over her chest, "I just can't help but to imagine her somewhere full of flowers and other plants – how she'd look then.

"Ame… the dreariness and constant rain… they just," Chika looked back at the doorway, "… Ame just doesn't really seem like where Yuuka belongs, sometimes. I feel like she belongs somewhere brighter, warmer."

Asuka clasped her weathered hands together on the counter, "I…suppose I can see what you mean. Maye Ame needs that brightness she has, or maybe Yuuka-chan will find her own way out of the dreary weather one day, one way. But what about Souma-kun? You never showed concern like this for him."

"Souma is… Souma has the mindset for this place." Pale blue eyes peered out the window into the misting rain. "Which isn't a bad thing – what fits, fits. He looks up to our leader and wants to make Ame great, and I want that too, because that's what makes him happy."

A wheezy, crackling laugh came from the elderly Fukui, her face distant with a look that only comes with old age, "Of course, of course. I can see what you mean – sometimes Yuuka has the same look on her face as they did. Of course I haven't seen them here in a long while."

Part of Chika wanted to ask who, but she had a feeling she might know – though she supposed who didn't matter right now, all things considered. "What look is it that you speak of, Asuka-san?"

"The kind that looks beyond." Yuuka trotted back in, ignoring the momentary silence of the adults while grabbing some yarn for herbs that need to dry before making her exit again. "She sees a world – a life – beyond what we have here now. Her vision about what she feels is right and wrong is different than the precedent set here now. Perhaps she hasn't realized this yet – she's too young to, but it's there."

"That's dangerous, isn't it." Chika's eyes fluttered shut before she peered back at Asuka through her lashes, her words a clear statement and not a question despite the wording.

Asuka's response was a soft smile and a solemn look. "It could be, yes."

A shaky breath and then –

"My baby will be fine. I believe that. I have to. She's a good girl, a smart girl – strong too, I think."

"Change will come again," Asuka's gaze moved around the room, to the window, and back to Chika, "When it does it may be here, or Kumo, or even Kusa. Somehow, someway, Yuuka-chan and others like her will be involved."

It was a daunting thought no matter how one thought about it, and Chika really didn't want to think about it (what mother wanted to think about their child going off in dangerous situations of any kind – or going off on their own in general). Perhaps if she knew, she wouldn't be as worried (or she would be twice as worried) – but she didn't have any oracles in her life, human or otherwise. She would just have to make do with the life she had now and keep supporting her children in any way she could – she was a mother, and that was her job, and she'd be damned if she didn't do her best to do it.

"Mommy," Yuuka stumbled in, dirt on her nose and under her nails (also with a distinct, herby, earthy smell), "Mommy I'm getting hungry."

Before Chika could say anything Asuka was shooing them along, "Go feed your child, dear. And yourself too. Get some sleep while you're at it."

Chika wanted to protest (she was still supposed to be working – she'd just come in early tomorrow even if Asuka might protest the thought of her doing so; she – she could let Yuuka walk to the Academy on her own) but everything that came to mind just died on her tongue, "Right, yes, thank you, Asuka-san. See you tomorrow."

"Bye, Fukui-san!" A pale, pudgy hand waved about in the air for a moment, the other loosely gripping Chika's hand. "See you later!"

Having a child's hand gripped within her own left a warm but sorrowful tingle in Chika's stomach, as children didn't stay children long (the tiny hand that gradually grew bigger and bigger as weeks passed by was proof of this). They grew like weeds, children; they didn't stay small for near as long as mothers would like them to.

Nor did they stay near as innocent as they should.

Chika would be happy if Yuuka could just live in a nice little house surrounded by pretty flowers, undisturbed and happy as could be.

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"Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit"

E.E. Cummings

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A/N: Anything to say this chapter? Hmm. Well, Chika is a very stressed and conflicted mommy. Yuuka doesn't like being proper (and is rather fond of the idea of getting some extra shut-eye). Playing ninja in the rain is kind of exhausting – so is playing hide and seek and tag.

Yuuka doesn't like lavender (it makes her nose itch). And her color palate is: eyes: pale blue; hair: turquoise; clothes: dark magenta, navy blue (or black), and silver. Sometimes instead of magenta she wears dark greens.

Souma really wants to eventually become good enough to be a guard at the main tower for -Leader-sama.

Asuka is very complex and knows a lot. Why? How? What is she up to?

Chika also has secrets. How big are they? Are they insignificant? Important? What's up with what happened to Yuuma?

Reviews are very much so appreciated!

(So's voting in the poll. ;o)