DAY 1
"Tell me, were you dropped on your head as an infant, Itachi..?" Kisame asked, crossing his arms, his eyes beady and judging. "This is foolish..." he motioned to the woman on the bed with a careless wave of his hand."...keeping her here."
Itachi rocked back on his heels. "I know." His eyes traced the patterns on the wood floor, thinking.
The room was small and modestly furnished. One large tatami took up most of the space, to the left of that was a short bedside table with a small porcelain lamp. Other than that and a couple of windows, the room was plain. Most of Itachi's house was. He didn't spend a whole lot of time there.
Itachi and Kisame were standing in two of the room's corners, studying the woman whom was still unconscious and drooling. She was sleeping so soundly in fact that Itachi had gone over more than once to make sure she was still breathing.
The men were quiet for a few moments. Both were contemplating and shamelessly curious about her; their eyes staring and searching for evidence of where she came from and who she was.
"Honestly, I have to know, what is your plan?" Kisame asked looking back at his friend with a tilted head. "It will be very interesting listening to you attempt to explain this."
"What plan?"
"With the girl."
"There isn't a plan."
Kisame turned towards him, managing to look stunned and smug at the same time. "No Pl- what do you mean, no plan?"
Itachi strode towards the large window and watched the stream lull by just outside. The leaves floating just above the water reminded him of autumn's quick approach. "Kisame, do you know this woman?"
His blue comrade sighed obnoxiously loud to announce his impatience, "Of course not."
Itachi clasped his hands loosely behind his back, tracing his thumb against his palm. "This is Mariko of the hidden leaf, one of my oldest friends." His eyes became slightly glazed as his mind travelled elsewhere. "She accompanied my team and me on a few missions during the brief time I was a genin."
Kisame scratched his chin. "So what. You had a crush on her or something?" He bared his sharp teeth in a grin. "And now, out of the blue, she stumbles across you, in the woods, and collapses into your waiting arms?" Kisame spread his arms out, strutted about like a peacock on display and chuckled at his own wit.
Itachi rolled his eyes and laughed darkly. "This isn't some second rate romance novel."
"Oh, of course, of course..." Kisame conceded unconvincingly with pursed lips.
"We have more important matters at hand." Itachi said as her strode over to Mariko's side, ignoring Kisame's unintelligible muttering about him changing the subject.
He knelt next to the bed, lifted her left hand, and extended her palm out. "After I brought her back I noticed this mark on her hand."
Kisame came closer and leaned down to get a look. Her palm had a dark green and yellow bruise like mark in the center of her hand. It was swollen. Protruding veins stretched out from the mark like tree roots bubbling up from underneath her skin.
"What is that?"
"I wish I knew."
The hand was jerked out of his grasp. Both of their heads darted up. Mariko was now awake. With round and watery eyes, she clutched the bedside lamp with both hands. "Where am I?"
The two men just stared at her and waited, not with bated breath but with calm faces as if she were as menacing as a kitten.
Her teeth ground her together audibly and in one swift movement, slammed the lamp against the wall behind her. The shattering echoed through the house. She pointed the now sharpened end at Itachi's face.
"Where am I!?" she repeated, her voice fierce.
Kisame laughed. The sound rumbled from deep inside the walls of his stomach. "Well I'll give you this Itachi, she has spunk!" He edged closer and studied her face.
"Stay BACK." Mariko threatened. She turned her makeshift weapon towards Kisame, the tip actually grazing his nose.
Kisame flashed his sharp teeth menacingly and easily jerked the lamp out of her hand. She let out a horrified squeak as he grabbed her wrist.
"You don't know who you're threatening, do you? That kind of hurt you know..."
Itachi let out a quiet breath. He hated whenever he got like this. It didn't take much for Kisame to become primal. He looked for any excuse to act like the animal he so favored.
Perhaps that's why they were paired together. There were only a handful of times where Itachi had lost his cool and had become...primal. He wasn't proud of it either.
He thought of the time where Sasuke had snapped his favorite toy in two. Itachi had yelled at him and shoved him hard. He had knocked Sasuke over and felt so bad for it he had confessed the act to his parents.
He shoved the thoughts away before they could take hold.
"Perhaps you should leave, Kisame." Itachi said coolly, sounding bored. "I'll let you know the plan when I figure it out myself." He rose from his kneeling position and crossed his arms, cocking his hips slightly to the side.
With an amused grunt, Kisame released her hand and she dropped like a sack of potatoes. He made his way towards the door, his heavy feet rattling the house fixtures. "Good luck, kid." He muttered towards them with a smirk before striding out the door, ducking to keep from bumping his head.
Itachi wasn't sure which one of them he was talking to.
His eyes trailed after his team mate until he was out of sight, then he turned towards Mariko. She was trembling, but she was still managing to glare at him.
"What did you do to my hand?" She demanded in what was a poor excuse for a command while shaking her arm roughly. "Why did you take me?" Her voice raised an octave as she worked herself up. "What do you want, Itachi?"
He blinked, gathering his thoughts, before answering. He strained to keep his reply gentle and calculated. "I don't want anything from you, Mariko. You stumbled across me in the woods last night and passed out."
He grimaced inwardly as he heard his own words, which sounded quite un-calculated. It had been awhile before he actually had the opportunity to comfort someone. He was out of practice.
"What are you talking about?" She shook her head. A vein bulged slightly in her neck. "I was home in the village last night. You must've kidnapped me! Stop lying!" She demanded.
She wiggled like she was about to crawl out from beneath the covers but Itachi sat on the end of the bed, trying his hardest to appear unthreatening. "I'm telling the truth." His eyebrows knitted together. "Are you sure, absolutely sure, that you were in the leaf village last night?"
Mariko paused. He could see wheels turning behind her eyes. Her resolve was faltering. "Of...of course I was." She stared at him intensely as if she looked at him hard enough, he would give her the answers she wanted. "I had to...where else would I be?"
Her head fell into her hands, her fingers rubbing her temples. "Why am I here? Why can't I remember? And oh my god my head hurts."
Itachi observed her inner struggle for a moment. He had so many memories flood into his head as he watched.
"How are you feeling?" He asked. Once again, he tried to keep his voice calm and soothing, but his tone just fell flat.
She looked up at him, tears brimmed her golden eyes. Itachi was taken aback. This wasn't the young woman he once knew. Mariko from his childhood was stoic and always confident. She wasn't this trembling, teary, woman before him. He could count on one hand how many times he had seen her cry. But things change, and he had been away for a while. He hoped that time and maybe puberty were the only ones responsible for making her so emotional. He doubted that was it but he hoped.
Leaning on the palm he placed on top of the bed, he bent a little closer. "What can you remember, Mariko?" He muttered softly.
She wiped her nose on her wrist, creating an innocent demeanor for herself. "I- I remember going for a walk, but having to go back to my apartment for my bag, because I-"
Mariko abruptly snapped her mouth shut, sat up straight as a board, and threw the covers off. She swiftly got to her feet. Itachi immediately followed suit. He felt anxious at the impending argument. Dread was hollowing a pit in his stomach.
She swayed slightly before steadying herself, cursing under her breath. "What am I doing?"
That was the Mariko he remembered. A girl with a spine of steel and slightly abrasive and offensive.
She took a step towards him and jerked her chin up, challenging him. "I should just cut off your head right now...you traitor." She narrowed her eyes to slits and Itachi could tell she was trying her hardest to intimidate him. It just came across as cheesy. "You have a lot of nerve to talk to me like you are my friend." She strung out the last word, making it sound like an insult.
He smirked and his left eyebrow rose, unable to keep the bite out of voice. "You could try, princess. But we both know the outcome."
With no other warning than a small cry she lunged at him with her bare hands, her nails clawing to reach his throat.
Not even batting an eye, he counted her movement. He used her momentum against herself and propelled her to the floor.
Fury lit her face. She tried again and failed once more. This time, when her fingertips* grazed his throat, he slammed her body against the wall, pinning her, and causing a small picture frame to fall to the floor with a loud bang. His forearm was firm against her throat.
"Stop this stupidity!" He commanded, annoyed with her. "You can't win." He said, hating sounding so condescending but stating what was shamefully obvious.
"It's not about winning..." She choked* out. Her fingers pulled at his wrists. "I would die for the honor of protecting the village...my village."
He thought his eyes would get stuck in the back of his skull, as he rolled them hard at her and her melodramatic ness*. He dropped her.
She fell to the floor, barely catching herself on her hands, coughing, and rubbing her neck.
"Stop Mariko."
"No! You need to-"
She stooped suddenly and gave a soft cry. She grabbed her wrist and extended her palm, studying the mark.
Itachi felt a flop in his stomach. The mark had spread, it's menacing green veins starting to crawl up her fingers and spread down to her wrist.
"Wha..." Mariko's eyes widened in shock.
Itachi crouched next to her and took her hand before she could protest.
"We need to get you help."
"The medical ninja in the leaf are very-"
"There isn't time." Itachi snapped impatiently. "You are very far from the hidden leaf and this mark is spreading. It's...unusual."
"What do you mean by unusual?" She asked, matching the tone of his voice mockingly.
"I mean it doesn't look natural." He stood up to his full height. "That much is apparent. I know someone who might be able to help."
"But-"
He grabbed her by the arm and hoisted her up as easily as a ragdoll.
"Follow me."
Itachi started to walk out. Mariko stood rooted to the floor.
"Why should I trust you?" She asked skeptical.
He looked at her over his shoulder. "You can't..." He pulled his hair back out of his face into a high samurai style ponytail. "I'm not asking you to trust me." he smiled ruefully. "I'm asking you to follow me."
He walked to a sliding door that opened into a closet. He paused as he started to reach for his Akatsuki cloak out of habit. Instead he grabbed a simple black jacket. He shrugged it on over his black undershirt. He zipped it up halfway and straightened it out by brushing his palms over the worn leather.
"It's starting to get chilly out, you might want this." When he tossed a dark blue hoodie her way, Mariko didn't move. It fell to the floor with a light thud. She stood still, holding her wrist tightly, and looking like a forlorn statue.
He looked at the hoodie resting on the floor and sighing, turned to face her. "Or instead, we can sit here gawking at each other until that thing spread-"
"Fine! Fine let's go..." Mariko said, as she made her way to the doorframe, shrugging on the too big coat, which barely hung on her skinny frame, making her look disproportionate.
And pretty endearing he admitted.
She glared at him once more as she walked out the door. "This doesn't change anything, Uchiha..."
Itachi released a breath through his nose, picked up a couple of knapsacks from the closet, and shut the door behind him as he followed her out.
The woods were relatively quiet as they made their way down an old overgrown trail. The leaves on the trees were a dull green, losing their vibrancy in the late summer air. The road they walked was less travelled, branches reaching out, leaves littered about, the occasional spider web that made your skin crawl when it caressed your flesh. The forest gradually consumed the trail it in its never ending appetite.
The afternoon sun was hidden by a bright overcast of clouds, occasionally playing peekaboo, warming their faces for a moment before concealing itself again. A crisp breeze disturbed the quiet by rattling the vegetation above them.
"So does a medic of some weird sorts live out here in the middle of God knows where?" Mariko asked her voice snippy.
Itachi rubbed the back of his neck and untangled a stray strand of hair caught between his fingers. "I guess you could call her that..."
Mariko harrumphed behind him.
Itachi cleared his throat. "We are actually really close now, but we need to pick up the pace if we want to get there by nightfall."
Mariko groaned "have you forgotten I'm like half your size? I have short legs...I'm having trouble keeping up as it is."
Itachi smirked. "I thought you were a shinobi."
"Shut your mouth..."
His smirk bloomed into a smile. Despite his first impression, maybe she had actually changed very little over the years. She hadn't grown an inch and aside from the light curve at her waist, she was still just as skinny as she was when she was a girl. She had grown her golden brown hair from a short bob to a waist length mane which and kept the sides pinned up under the crown of her head by a red ribbon. Even covered in perspiration her tawny skin was far from unappealing.
Itachi's thoughts were interrupted and he stopped short. "It was a lot closer than I remembered." He pointed to a shack in the distance.
A soft orange light emanated from its broken dusty windows. Vines had weaved themselves in and out of the foundation and mortar, it's long reach embracing the crumbling building tightly that Itachi was sure that it would fall apart if they decided to let go.
"Does someone live in that thing?" Mariko asked as they stood there staring.
"Yes. Her name is Fukiyo."
They started walking down the trail once more towards the house. "What medic in their right mind would live there?"
Itachi chuckled under his breath. "I guess medic isn't the most...accurate term after all."
They walked up creaking steps and up to the door, which may have once been blue, but was now rusted and covered with so much dust Mariko couldn't be sure what color it was.
"What would you call her then..." She muttered.
Itachi looked over at her and tilted his head slightly. "Most people would call her a 'witch'."
Mariko whipped her head around, eyes wide. "A what?"
They both leapt back just as the door fell down with a loud, wood splintering crash.
"What are you two thugs doing here?! Here to take my PRICELESS artifacts eh?" An old woman, who was even shorter in stature than Mariko, stomped over the debris and shoved a large crossbow in their faces. "Well you can't have 'em! Now prepare yourselves for-"
"Fukiyo, please! It's Itachi..." he shouted, trying to keep humor out of his voice.
The elderly woman paused and adjusted her comically large spectacles. "Well hello there, dear!" She said loudly. Mariko jumped to one side as she carelessly dropped her weapon.
"Isn't this just a happy surprise?" She waddled a bit closer to him. "Come here, come here, and let me get a good look at you!"
Itachi bent down so she could reach. She held his head in her soft soap smelling hands and he couldn't help the small smile still lingering on his face.
"Ah still just as handsome as ever." She patted his cheeks with wrinkly fingers.
She leaned away and put her hands on her hips. "Now I still haven't forgiven you for visiting Nekobaa more than me. That crazy cat lady, sister of mine always gets all the attention with her shiny weapons..." She smiled and waggled a finger at him. "But at least you're here now and I can make you some nice tea."
She looked over at Mariko as if she had forgotten she was even there to begin with. Her head then darted back and forth as she looked between the two.
"Who's this dame?" Fukiyo inquired, jabbing her thumb in Mariko's direction
A few introductions, explanations, and a makeshift door were made and Itachi and Mariko were led into small parlor. Red beaded tapestries were strung up wall to wall. Colorful scarves hung from the ceiling, giving the building a tent like feel. Dusty knick knacks, charts, maps, plants and various other items took up every inch of space.
They carefully followed Fukiyo through the path that weaved through her junk.
Mariko's hair raised as something furry brushed up against her leg. She grabbed Itachi's arm roughly. "You brought me to a crazy old broad who thinks she is a witch? How is she supposed to help me?"
"Relax." He shrugged off her hand easily, "I was only kidding about the witch thing...kind of. Others call her a witch. I never said she thought she was one."
The old woman motioned them over and sat them down at a small round table. Alright, no need t'beat around the bush. The tea can wait. I already know why you're here." Her large eyes looked Mariko over, scrutinizing every detail of her person.
Mariko raised an eyebrow and one corner of her mouth pulled down slightly. She was gradually feeling more and more uncomfortable.
"And how would you know that exactly?"
"That thing on your hand, it's pretty hard to hide." Fukiyo shrugged as if that were explanation enough.
"What exactly-"
Itachi, looking very serious, raised her hand to silence her. She blushed, furious at being ordered like a child, but complied.
Fukiyo stared at her for a moment more, and then scooted forward so far their noses almost touched. Mariko held her breath, uneasy under her heavy gaze. She was immediately started worrying if her breath smelled.
Mariko looked at Itachi out of the corner of her eye and he nodded in encouragement.
With shaking hands, Fukiyo pressed withered finger tips to Mariko's forehead. Her fingers were cold but sweaty at the same time. The old woman slowly started moving her fingertips down her face, her own face becoming more disgruntled; mouth pressed into a line; eyebrows pulled together.
Mariko resisted the urge to cringe. Was she doomed for eternity to deal with crazy people? Witches, murderers, and shark men; just a day in the life of Mariko. Nothing weird here. Nope.
Fukiyo had made her way to her shoulders, upper arms, but when she made it to the crook of her arm she started to shutter.
Mariko's eyes widened, the sarcasm in her mind came to a sudden stop. Her heart rate picked up and she had the urge to lean away from her but she didn't dare move. What is this? Was granny having a heart-attack?
Breath catching in her throat, Fukiyo kept feeling her way down, slower but still persistent. Finally her left hand reached one of the green veins trailing from the mark on Mariko's hand and reeled back, crying out as if she had been burnt.
Mariko stood, knocking over her chair. She backed a few steps, shocked and gripping her wrist tightly. She glanced over at Itachi, who had risen to his feet as well.
Fukiyo still stared at her, her face white and wary. She panted and dabbed her face with a rag she pulled out her pocket as she stood and quickly started rummaging through books on a dirty shelf.
Mariko rubbed her sweaty hands on her pant legs as Itachi walked over and stood next to her.
"What in the world did you drag me into?" She muttered under her breath.
Itachi ignored her and just watched the witch rummaged through her things, throwing junk and encyclopedia volumes behind her as she went. Her delving caused dust to spin and dance in the air, occasional particles catching the light and making sparkles.
Fukiyo paused, put on a different pair of glasses and squinted at a book she brought close to her face, her large greasy nose grazing the cover before holding it in the air triumphantly. "Ah." She said giving it a shake. "Here it is."
She walked back over to the table and slammed a large yellowed book down, motioning them over once again with her boney fingers.
Itachi walked over but Mariko hesitated, still gripping her wrist tightly, as if hoping if she cut off all circulation it would stop pestering her. She wouldn't be too upset if it just fell off.
"Come here kid." Fukiyo said, firmly.
Mariko hesitantly obliged and walked over slowly. She took a place standing next to Fukiyo.
The book looked old as dirt itself, with rusted hinges and a flakey leather cover. Mariko imagined it smelled either like an old office or like urine. She didn't really want to find out.
Fukiyo opened it up to a marked spot and flipped a few pages.
"I'm going to assume that the both of you, being ninjas, know a great deal about Chakra" she stated as she flipped through pages. She stopped on one in particular and placed her finger on the illustration. "But what do you two know about the paranormal?"
Mariko blinked then let out a breath of very loud frustration, a noise similar to that of a steaming teapot. "You're joking right? You have got to be kidding me!" A fiery pit of anger balled up in her throat. She didn't bother swallowing it. She let it fester there. She wanted to scream. This shriveled prune was telling ghosts stories while she had some kind of growth that was poisoning her blood for all she knew.
"No, no, now just listen, girl." Fukiyo insisted, looking up at her from the top of her glasses.
She started summarizing the page of the book before Mariko could protest.
"When a ninja learns to manipulate chakra, his power greatly increases.
There are, however, spirits who take advantage of that." She pointed to a small illustration in the upper corner of the page; a wispy character was illustrated with a large open mouth chasing some unlucky soul. "Though extremely rare, there are some spirits in existence that feed off of negative energies. If a ninja strays from the path of goodness to feed his own selfish desires, a spirit will sometimes latch onto this person's chakra, growing more and more fearsome."
Fukiyo took a raspy breath then continued. "This can also happen when someone experiences something particularly distressing, has regular malicious intent, or is regularly depressed or angry. These spirits can form a symbiotic relationship with their hosts. At times, the person can shake the spirit if they retake control of their mindset and or morals."
Fukiyo pointed to another illustration on the yellowed pages; a generic figure drawing with black spots on all of the vital chakra points.
"It has been said that when a spirit is persistently stalking a person, and that person obtains an injury, the spirit will pour a curse into the open wound that starts destroying the person from the inside out; Poisoning you so strongly mentally that even your physical state starts to deteriorate."
She stopped to compose herself once more, her eyes scanning the sentences. "To cut this long story short, the spirit will continue to poison you, body and mind in hopes that it can take full control of your body...essentially killing you..."
A small stifling pause, the other two stared at Mariko, waiting for her to say something.
Oh she had plenty to say.
Mariko threw her hands into the air and shook her head, snickering humorlessly at the ridiculousness of it all. "This..." She slapped her hands on the table, rattling it and knocking over a ceramic cow. "Is ridiculous..."
Fukiyo held her hand out to her as if the hold Mariko's "I know this is a lot to take in..."
"A lot to take in? This...what you're talking about...is impossible. It's ludicrous!" She leaned back up, shaking. "This isn't some sort of mystical game. I didn't come here to have my palm read or...or to have a tarot card session. I came here because I thought that you could help me." She stormed her way to the door.
"Mariko..." Itachi started.
"And you..." She jabbed a finger at Itachi. "This is entirely your fault..."
She stomped out of the shack, the whole foundation shaking as she did.
Itachi sighed, and blinked as more dust and dirt fell from the ceiling. He looked at the old woman. A few silent moments passed.
Mariko was a whirlwind, turning everything upside down with her spirit and animated attitude. Her subtle passion about the world was evident even when she didn't speak a word; even when she was frightened.
"Well, I guess you can relay the rest of the information." Fukiyo said adjusting her glasses once more.
She looked sad. Itachi felt sad for her. Who knew the last time she had had visitors. And now that she had them, they were much less than pleasant. Itachi made a mental note to pop in more than once every year or so.
Fukiyo cleared her throat with a watery cough. "There is an old wise sage who has been living and meditating on Namida Mountain for decades. He has learned to commune with chakra spirits. He can help you, I know it. He has dealt with this type of thing many times."
"How do you know?" Itachi asked.
Fukiyo smiled and winked, "Let's just say him and I have gotten along very, very well over the years."
Itachi grimaced and Fukiyo chuckled quietly.
She flipped to the back of the book and out slid another sheet of yellowed paper.
"This map will lead you right to him. It shouldn't be too difficult to get there."
Itachi took it from her with a nod of thanks.
Fukiyo rubbed her temples and sighed. "Listen, I didn't know whether to tell her this outright or not, but, this curse is going to be very hard to get rid of." she pressed her mouth together. "From what you've told me, she has 12 days to purge herself."
Itachi looked at her shocked. "12 days?"
She nodded, "12 days to get rid of it, or she will experience something even worse than dying."
Mariko picked her ear up from the door and backed away quietly.
She walked with dragging feet and put a small distance between herself and the house. She found a large tree and sank down, resting her aching back against the trunk and placing her weary head on her knees.
12 days?
12 days.
What was she supposed to do? Was she just supposed to believe that crazy old bat?
Her inner thoughts battled one another as she sat on the damp ground, her head spinning. She rocked slightly like a mental patient, the dampness soaked through to her skin. Why was this happening to her? Why Itachi? Why now? Why could she not remember the last couple of days? Even if she couldn't trust them, especially Itachi, what else was she supposed to do?
The questions piled onto more questions, the mound becoming higher and higher. She was becoming lost beneath its shadow.
Mariko knew he had walked up but she wasn't sure when.
"It's raining." He said pointedly.
She made a disgusted noise through her nose that reminded her of her teenage self. "I know."
"You know you have a hood on that thing for a reason." Gesturing towards her hoodie as he sat next to her, pulling up the collar of his coat to shield more of the rain.
The rain came down heavier. The splatter of a million droplets making a symphony of pattering taps and clinks.
"What do you want to do?" Itachi asked, looking up at the dark cloudy sky through the tree branches.
"Oh, so you're finally asking me what I want. Well, I want to go see a doctor." She turned her face away, pushed her dripping bangs out of her eyes. "And not a witch doctor...a real one."
She heard him inhale slowly and release it out of his mouth. Silence; Then a muttered fine.
Itachi looked up as she rose to her feet, blinking water droplets out of his eyes. "What? Does that bother you?" She crossed her arms.
"There is a town north of here." He stood up and mimicked her, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at her pointedly. "There is a doctor there. But if we are going there we're going to have to be quick. And we must leave right now." He arched his eyebrows. "You'll have to not be a baby and keep up with me."
She huffed. "I can keep up with you just fine." She looked out at the dark forest, placing her hands on her hips. When she looked back at him she noticed Him shouldering one of the modest brown knapsacks and holding the other in hand, both now fat with the things stored inside. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why are you in such a hurry anyways?"
"I have my reasons." He said, his face blank, but Mariko could see that his mind was on something else.
"I'm guessing you still aren't going to show me the way to the leaf village?" She said as she knelt to tighten her boots.
"If you're so set on going back, why can't you find your own way? You don't need my help." He said as he zipped up his jacket a little tighter.
"Because I don't know where I am."
"You're a ninj-"
"Whatever. Just stop." She retorted hotly.
He looked at her. He looked at her with such intensity as if he were trying to discover her innermost thoughts. Mariko would've been more comfortable if his sharingan were activated, then those endless black eyes wouldn't be making her uncomfortable in her own skin. She felt heat creep into her neck and looked at the ground.
"Well, let's get going then." Without another word he took off at full speed, leaping through the trees.
Her heart jumped into her throat at the thought of being left behind and she chased after him, her boots slipping slightly on the wet leaves underfoot.