"She poured herself into me endlessly, and I lapped it up like the selfish, greedy creature I was."
"Sorry I'm late, sensei!" Obito shouted, bursting through the classroom door. The entire class instantly went client, twenty sets of eyes fixing themselves on Obito's sweaty face. Then, the laughter started.
The chunin at the front of the classroom sighed, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "Again, Obito?" he asked, resigned. Obito slumped at the obvious disappointed in his teacher's face, and the chunin huffed through his nose. "Go get in your seat, I'll let this one go. It's not like I can give you more detentions than you already have," he continued irratebly. Obito nodded his bowed head, eyes downcast. Behind the orange windows of his goggles, his eyes watered sadly as he shuffled his way back to his desk. He fell into his seat heavily, chairlegs letting out a low screech as the teacher resumed his lecture.
From the seat beside Obito, Rin's brows knotted in concern. Checking to make sure the teacher wasn't watching, the brunette leaned over and wrapped her arm around Obito's shoulders, offering him a quick hug. "It's alright, I'll stay after school with you again," she whispered, offering one last comforting squeeze before leaning back and returning to taking notes. Obito gave her a longing glance, his cheeks flushing as he straightened his jacket and turned his eyes to the board. The teacher was lecturing about historic landmark battles of the first ninja war, nothing that appealed to Obito.
Leaning over until his lips nearly brushed Rin's ear, Obito breathed, "Hey, wanna come to the park with me after school? There's this little gir-"
As it turned out, Obito whispered rather poorly, and mid-sentence was nailed with an eraser to the head. At the front of the classroom, the teacher seethed, fists clenched and face red with rage. "Obito! Detention!" he yelled, and Obito deflated. This time, Rin didn't risk sneaking a hug in as the chunin began his latest rant on Obito's behavior, but she did reach over to trace a quick word onto his palm beneath their desk: yes.
A slow smile spread across Obito's face despite the teacher's shouting, and images filled his head of introducing Naho to Rin. He was confident his best friend would like the prickly little girl, and maybe Rin could soften Naho up a bit. But just a bit.
When the bell for lunch finally rang, the chunin was forced to prematurely end his tirade, and the students fled the classroom like rats off a sinking ship. Crammed between the weirdo in front of him and Rin, Obito squirmed out the door and bolted into the play-yard before the teacher could realize he'd lost his captive audience. Escaping into the sunlight, Obito closed his eyes and let out a deep, relieved breath. He spread his arms out dramatically, letting the wind brush his skin.
"Obito, you're acting like you just survived a war," Rin giggled from over his shoulder. Obito flinched in surprise, snapping his arms down at his sides and spinning about to face Rin, who had her hands on her hips and was staring at him sternly. "You promised you were going to be on time today," she reminded.
Obito's eyes widened, and his cheeks heated up. "S-sorry, Rin!" he stammered. "I really did mean to be on time, but you see I woke up late and then I was running over to the school and I hit this little girl and-"
Rin interrupted his rambling with a gasp. "You hit a little girl?!" she shrieked ear-piercingly, appearing fully prepared to punish Obito for his crimes.
Obito cringed, holding his hands up in surrender. "I didn't 'hit' hit her," he justified hurriedly. "I was just runnin' really fast and I bumped into her, so she made me buy her some melon snacks-"
"Which you did, right?" Rin demanded unforgivingly, eyes narrowed. "If you ran into that poor little girl then you better have bought her a snack."
"I did!" Obito said defensively, continuing his explanation. "So, anyways, she asked me to get her a melon slice and I did, even though it was way overpriced, and then we sat down and ate them, and I was talking to her, and she was like a mini-adult! She was super smart, and she was only one! And then her mom showed up and it turned out she'd run away and it was really weird, but I agreed to meet them at Sakura Park later today and I want to know if you want to come?" he offered finally, ending his rather incoherent narrative.
Rin blinked several times, and then her hands fell from her hips. She stared at Obito dubiously. "A one year old managed to run away from her mother?" she repeated incredulously.
"She was super smart though!" Obito insisted. "You wouldn't believe she was one at all - I totally wanted to call bullshit when her mom said that-"
"Language."
"- she's kinda like that one asshole from our first year. Remember that white-haired kid who was so smug all the time?"
A fond light entered Rin's eyes. "You mean Kakashi-kun?" she said wistfully, smile spreading across her face.
Obito wrinkled his nose, not liking how happy Rin looked at the mention of his old nemesis. "Yeah, that jerk," he said. "She's kinda like him, but smaller and cuter. Her name's Naho," he paused, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "So, anyways, wanna come meet her with me?"
"Sure," Rin agreed, smiling. "I guess we'll head to Sakura Park after your detention then? Did you tell her you'll be late?"
"I told her to come at 4:30!" Obito squawked. "And anyways, you can totally help me arrive on time since detention ends at 4 o'clock!"
Rin laughed, sitting down under one of the near by trees and removing a purple wrapped bento box from her overpacked shuriken pouch. "It's good you thought ahead then, Obito," she said, patting the ground beside her. "Now sit and eat lunch, we probably don't have much time left." Obito's cheeks flushed again, and he flopped down on the ground beside Rin, turning away from her and pouting. Rin tossed him a knowing glance. "Did you forget your lunch again?" she asked.
Obito huffed. "S'fine, I had melon earlier anyways," he answered, shifting uncomfortably.
Rin reached out and tapped Obito's shoulder with an extra pair of chopsticks. "Lucky for you, I can think ahead as well," she said, lips twitching with amusement. "I packed extra lunch, so we can share." Obito lifted himself up and spun around to face the tightly-packed bento box at Rin's feet. Embarrassed, he quickly took the chopsticks from her hands, trying to hide his reddened face.
"Thanks for the meal," he mumbled, breaking the chopsticks apart and setting about eating. Rin giggled and did the same. Obito couldn't stop his heart from fluttering in his chest at the sound of her laughter, and an unstoppable grin spread across his face.
: : :
Naho had been reduced to glaring at greenery. She was stuck sitting in the middle of the park on the ground, ripping up the grass and pouting. The soil and roots were sticking to her sweaty palms as she sullenly carved out a patch of dirt. "Stupid… I just wanted some freedom… I'm independent…!" she muttered to herself as she massacred the park's plant-life.
From her bench several feet away, Mina smiled fondly as her daughter's little patch of brown curls quivered angrily. She had already gotten over Naho's mid-morning escapade into the market, and decided to suspend Naho's reading privileges for the next week as punishment, which was the reason for the tiny girl's current mood. They had arrived at Sakura Park early, and were now waiting for Obito Uchiha to make his appearance.
Lifting her pudgy fist of grass and dirt, Naho grumpily threw it as far as she could, nearly smacking another child running past her playing tag. She growled irritatedly when she missed, eyes narrowing into little reddish-brown slits. "This is a shitty situation all around…" she muttered bitterly, glaring at Mina over her shoulder. Her eyes widened almost immediately as she noticed the two children walking closer over her mother's shoulder. The first was easily identifiable as Obito, but beside him was a young girl with a brunette bob and wide-set brown eyes. Down her pale cheeks were two purple stripes. (Inside her mind, Christine Kent supplied images of a girl with a hand in her chest, smiling as tears poured down her cheeks and dying in her teammate's arms. She remembered that although Obito was the boy-who-would-one-day-war-with-the-world, Rin was the girl he fought it for. Naho was simultaneously sick with disgust and anticipation.)
Obito's eyes met Naho's, and a grin spread across his face. He waved eagerly, grabbing Rin's wrist and dragging her forward as he ran towards Naho. "Hey! You arrived early!" he shouted, running towards the tiny girl. He raced straight past Mina without even noticing her, and the young mother smiled fondly. Rin took a much more reasonable pace, watching Obito kneel down beside Naho. "So, Naho, I brought one of my friends with me," he said, laughing sheepishly. "I hope you don't mind."
Naho, knowing her mother was watching, turned and pointed at Rin. "Is that your friend?" she asked politely. Her eyes flickered over to her mother, who was watching attentively, and then innocently added, "she's pretty."
"Yeah," Obito sighed in agreement, and then his eyes widened and he coughed. "I mean, 'yeah' she's my friend, not 'yeah' she's pretty, not that she isn't pretty but-" he cut himself off, floundering helplessly.
Rin smiled, ignorant to Obito's struggles (and obvious crush, Christine thought disdainfully), and kneeled down beside him. "It's nice to meet you, Naho," she introduced. "My name is Rin Nohara, I'm a classmate of Obito's."
"Oh," Naho said. She tilted her head, and then reached out expectantly towards Rin's shuriken pouch. "Are you interested in becoming a field-medic, or working in the hospital?" she inquired suddenly.
"Field-medic," Rin answered in bewilderment, eyes widening in shock as she leaned away from the seemingly psychic child. "How did you-?"
Naho reached out towards the corner of the book poking out the top of Rin's shuriken-pouch. "Chakratic System Anatomy, Vol. 6," she said. "Only someone with an interest in medicine would carry a medical textbook around regularly."
Rin stared at Naho in shock. Obito laughed boisterously. "Told you she was super smart!" he declared triumphantly, somehow proud of himself. Naho didn't think he had any reason to be, he wasn't the one who'd taught her to read.
"That's right, um," Rin started, coughing into her hand and eyeing Obito awkwardly. "You… You really are smart, Naho," she compliment, and Naho nodded impaceably. Rin nodded as well, unsure of what to say. She had been under the impression Obito had been exaggerating, per usual. "You know a lot about books, do you like to read, Naho?"
"Yes," Naho answered curtly, and then feeling her mother's eyes, added, "but I can't read medical textbooks yet. I haven't learned the proper terminology to comprehend them." Rin still looked quietly shell-shocked, so Obito took over the conversation.
"I'm sure you'll learn it soon, Naho, and while you're at it you should try learning ninja skills!" he suggested, grinning toothily as he stood up and took a fighting stance. "You learn so fast, by the time you get to the Academy you'll be able to kick everybody's a-" Rin glared at Obito, and he finished with a squeak. "-butts!"
Naho blinked slowly, and then shrugged. "I don't have anyone to teach me," she said dully. "And who said I want to be a ninja anyways?"
Obito's eyes widened, and he waved his arms around emphatically as he spoke. "Naho, being a ninja is super duper awesome! And when I become Hokage, you could totally be my right-hand or something! You're so smart, you'd be super helpful!" Naho raised one eyebrow skeptically, or tried to at least. Her weak facial muscles struggled to follow the commands of her more mature brain, so all that happened was her brows scrunched together.
Rin shook her head to regain her bearings, deciding to act like normal and looking to Obito playfully. "But Obito, if Naho becomes your right-hand, what am I supposed to do?"
"You'll be the best medical ninja ever, so you'll be Head of the Hospital, obviously!" Obito cheered, clearly enthusiastic about building his new perfect future in his head.
Naho stared at him blankly. "That doesn't fix my problem of not having anyone to teach me, even if I did want to learn. I don't have any family members who're trained, and I can't be your 'right-hand' if I'm not a ninja," she pointed out.
Obito frowned. "That's true…" he agreed, scratching his chin thoughtfully. Then he pounded his fist against his hand, eyes lighting up with an idea. "I can train you!" he declared. "Every Hokage has a super awesome student anyways, so you can be mine!"
Rin glanced at Obito doubtfully. "Obito, how are you going to train Naho when you have school?" she inquired, adding in her head: 'and having a hard time of it.'
"I'll just have to work hard," Obito decided, nodding officially. He looked down at Naho. "So what do you think, Naho? Wanna be my super awesome ninja-student?"
Naho nodded without hesitation. "Yes," she agreed immediately, quelling her smirk and resisting the urge to yell in triumph at her plan's ultimate success.
"Great!" Obito cheered, pumping his fist. He offered Naho his hand for a high-five. "We'll go down in history as the best ninja ever! And I'll be Hokage!"
(I'll go down in history and no one will ever forget me, Christine breathes worshipfully. I'll do anything, anything.)
Naho reached out and slapped her palm against Obito's. "Sounds good," she said, and her eyes sparked with victory. Obito was too busy celebrating to notice, but Rin was watching and felt a chill run down her spine. Something about that little girl was unnatural, she realized. She wasn't the first to do so, and she wasn't the last to keep quiet about it.
"Well, now that that's settled," Rin began, clenching her fists to keep her hands from shaking. "Want to try playing Ninja Tag?"
: : :
Mina shut the door to her apartment, sleepy Naho leaning against her chest. Her daughter's tiny arms strangled her neck in a tight chokehold, her face buried into Mina's collarbone. Naho had played with Obito and his friend, Rin, for several hours, and her daughter was now positively exhausted, nearly falling asleep over the short walk home. Mina couldn't keep a smile off of her face as she cradled Naho gently, rocking her baby in her arms.
Naho's eyes fluttered open. "Mom," she whispered tiredly. "We'll see Obito and Rin again, right?"
"Yes, Naho-chan," Mina answered happily, quietly slipping into Naho's bedroom and adjusting her grip on the tiny girl. "I'm very proud of you, making your first friends." Naho grunted in response, eyes half-lidded. As delicately as she could, Mina lowered her into her crib, tucking her baby into her fluffy white blankets. Then, she moved to slip out of the room.
Naho rolled over, meeting her mother's eyes steadily before she could go. "Mom, I'm going to become a ninja," she informed her. "Rin and Obito offered to help train me."
For a moment, Mina's heart stopped. The world ceased spinning, her breath halting as she stared at her child in horror. Then, her brain entered overdrive, because of course her oh-so-bright daughter would want to become a ninja. She knew the universe had something great in store for her child, but she had hoped desperately her daughter would become a doctor or a politician or anything, anything but a soldier! (Christine Kent had been a doctor before, thank you, and she could tell you there was no glory to be had.)
With a trembling hand, Mina pushed her bangs out of her teary eyes. She took a deep breath. "I- I see," she said quietly, summoning up her courage. She wanted to say no, to refuse that her daughter ever even touch a weapon, and yet - Mina had been raised in a military family. Her parents had lived and died for their village, and even though Mina wasn't a ninja she understood the importance of protecting their home. She wouldn't stop Naho from pursuing her dream, but she would ensure she was as equipped as possible to handle the truth of what being a ninja was, not just the fluff and propaganda the Academy taught. "Naho-chan, I won't… I won't stop you from becoming a ninja," Mina began, and she noticed her daughter's eyes widening in surprise, but at what? "But, before you make any decisions, I want you to understand something."
Naho pushed herself up into a sitting position, sleepiness all but vanishing from her face. "Mom?" she inquired. It was the most concern Mina had ever heard in her child's voice, but she pushed that thought from her mind and moved forward.
"Naho-chan, you know that I don't… I don't normally talk about your grandparents, right?" Mina said, and then watched expressions flicker across her daughter's face at lightspeed. Confusion, surprise, and understanding ran through her daughter's eyes in moments, before finally settling on dark certainty. Mina despaired then, knowing that Naho already knew of the permanency and danger of death, even without her mother's guidance, and she knew in that moment that whatever she said next wouldn't dissuade her daughter in the slightest. "If you do choose to become a ninja, I need you to promise me something," Mina said, fighting to keep her voice steady. "You - you can't go away like they did, okay? I can't make you live the life I want for you, but… but you're so young, Naho-chan. I don't want you to rush into something and not be ready-"
"I understand, Mom," Naho interrupted, jaw set and eyes flat. Mina let out a shaky exhale, staring her child in the eyes and seeing something she didn't recognize there. In that moment, standing in the dim lighting of Naho's bedroom and shaking like a child under the knowing eyes of her daughter, Mina understood what her coworkers said when they called her daughter strange. "I promise you, I won't die," Naho continued, voice full of unnatural certainty and cold determination. "I'll become strong enough that no one will ever be able to hurt me, and I'll come home to you no matter what."
Mina felt her eyes well with tears, and she forced her lips to stop trembling, clenching her fists to keep herself from reaching out. Suddenly, she understood that her baby had never been within her reach in the first place. "I'll always be home waiting for you, then," Mina said, because she loved her daughter no matter what. "Goodnight, Naho-chan."
In an instant, whatever surreal light possessing her daughter drained from her, and then it was just her baby sitting in her crib again. "G'night, Mom," Naho answered, rubbing her eye sleepily. "Love you," she said, falling over onto her pillow and squirming under her sheets again.
"I love you too," Mina whispered, slipping silently out of the room. As soon as her daughter's bedroom door clicked shut, she fell to her knees, covering her mouth with her hands as her body was wracked with sobs of grief and fear, because god was she afraid for her too-talented, too-perfect daughter. How could she ask someone to promise her to live? Her parents had made that promise too, and Mina knew it was an empty one. So she kneeled on that floor and cried until her lips tasted like salt and tears, and prayed to whatever gods might listen that her daughter didn't become another name carved into the cold, hard memorial stone.
(Mina couldn't have had a clue, but Naho had meant every word of her promise. Christine Kent had never known love, but Naho had been full of it from the moment she was born, and Naho was very, very selfish.)
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Guest: I enjoy leaving these little hints inside my stories, so there will be plenty of foreshadowing and symbolism. Some of it will be obvious and explicit, and some of it is a little more hidden. And you are right: You should be concerned about Naho. Very, very concerned. I hinted at it, but Christine Kent suffered from antisocial personality disorder. She was as manipulative and cold as they came, and although Naho isn't a psychopath, because she received love and care as a child this time and developed the proper brain connections to be capable of empathy, Christine Kent's habits are still lingering about in her brain. Combine that with ninja training and you have all the ingredients necessary for a monster.
hinatayvonne: Thanks! :) I hope you continue to enjoy the story.
touslesjours: I actually didn't post the original version of this story on FF, but on another website, so that's probably why you missed it. As for having spoilers... with the amount of foreshadowing and symbolism and everything else I pack into this story, if you're observant enough, you could probably piece together the entire plot by Chapter 10. It's unlikely anyone will pick up on it all though the first time though, but if people decide to reread it later on they'll probably notice a lot more of the hints I'm scattering throughout. I hope you enjoy the story!
