CHAPTER TWO: ANXIOUS, BUT CALM


" … And that is all for today, students! Your homework is to practice the hand signs that we went over in class today. And remember, the Genin exams are next week! You all better study hard unless you want to be here with me for another year!" Nanami Senketsu said jokingly to her class full of Genin hopefuls. She believed that every last one of her Academy students would pass her test and move onto a four man squad with a Jonin leader. She watched as the twelve year olds filed out of the room as her warning probably fell on deaf ears.

As the last student closed the door, Nanami breathed a sigh of relief and plopped down at her desk. It was finally Friday and Nanami had not a single paper or homework assignment to grade. This a rare occurrence for any teacher. She had the entire weekend to enjoy the new novels she had accumulated for times like this. All she had to do was hurry home and lock herself away in her apartment for the rest of the weekend.

" Nanami-sensei?" The teacher's eyes flew up to the top of the classroom in the direction of where the small voice originated. She thought that all her students had rushed out of the classroom, but one of her students approached her desk.

" Hitoro, I already dismissed class for the day. Why were you hiding behind the desks?" Hitoro Uchiha shuffled down the stairs leading to Nanami's desk. He looked like any other Uchiha from his clan: coal black eyes that matched his coal black hair. Yet, Hitoro was not walking with the usual Uchiha pride that came with the territory. His shoulders were slouched as he nervously fidgeted where to place his hands.

" I wanted to talk to you when no one else was around."

Nanami's eyebrows furrowed and she sat up from her desk. "What's this about?" Hitoro's eyes hadn't met her's this entire time. They were glued to the dark collared shirt he wore.

" Is t-the Hokage going to be at the graduation ceremony?"

" Yes. Lord Fourth normally makes a speech and everything." The Genin graduation was not as intense as the Chunin exams were, but they were just as important. The Fourth Hokage cleared his schedule every year to congratulate each graduate and help pass out headbands.

Hitoro swallowed hard on the rest of the spit in his mouth still not meeting Nanami's curious eyes. " Do my parents have to come?"

Nanami folded her arms and leaned against the desk. " It's not exactly a rule, but it's customary that they should attend the ceremony. Why wouldn't you want your parents to see you raise in the ranks, Hitoro?"

" It's not about that…"

" Then, what is it?"

Hitoro fixed his mouth to begin to speak, but hesitated to choose his words carefully. " My parents will be angry."

Nanami bent down to her student's height and patted his shoulder for comfort. The most talented shinobi were normally the most humble. Hitoro's hesitation didn't surprise her in the slightest. His apprehension came across as modesty to the teacher. Nanami was more of a braggart about her ninja prowess by celebrating every new jutsu she mastered as a kid. Then with every failure, she pouted and cried until she finally grasped the basics. Her Academy days were filled with lots of crying. A ghost of a smile spread faintly over her lips at the memory of her childhood. She knew someone who was just as unpretentious about their abilities, especially during their schooldays.

With the speed of a pen drop, Nanami felt the all too familiar hollow feeling in her chest. Maybe it was genetic. Nanami smiled through the sadness that was slowly nibbling away at what was left of her heart. " They won't be angry to see their child graduating. You're a bright kid and you deserve the recognition! You have nothing to worry about."

Hitoro shook his head. " It's not about me, it's about the Hokage. That's what I'm worried about, Nanami-sensei..."

Nanami's cocked an eyebrow as she searched Hitoro's dipped eyes for answers." What does Lord Fourth-"

" They don't like the Hokage. No one in my family does…"

What could the Uchiha have against Lord Fourth? " The Uchiha clan doesn't like Minato Namikaze?" Nanami repeated back to Hitoro aloud trying to wrap her mind around this information from one of her most trustworthy students. It did not make sense that the Uchiha clan had a grudge against the Hokage unbeknownst to her. Minute was such a compassionate leader. He had the entire village's needs in mind with every decision he made. Who could hate such a gracious man? If such a scandal were real, she would have heard about it around the village.

The little Uchiha bit his lip and shrugged his teacher's hand away from his shoulder. " I-I'm not suppose to say anything."

" Don't worry about it, Hitoro. I won't make you talk about something that you don't want to talk about."

" Thank you, Nanami-sensei..." Hitoro reached the door and turned back to look at his teacher before closing it behind him. " And Nanami-sensei, please don't tell anyone about what I told you. I don't want you to get involved." Hitoro feared for what could happen if Nanami started to sneak around in the Uchiha's affairs. Even clan members were punished if they stuck their noses where they didn't belong. He dreaded the thought of what they would do to an outsider. Especially one from another clan like the Senketsu.

Nanami tightened her grip on the corner of her desk. She could feel the splinters of the wood pinch her already scarred hands. " Your secret is safe with me, Hitoro." She prayed to whatever god that was listening that she sounded convincing as Hitoro disappeared behind the closed door.

The Jonin was uneasy at best. Her weekend would now be plagued about 'what-ifs' of how to handle this situation. There were too many gray areas on what would be the right or wrong way to approach a solution.

One, she could head Hitoro's ominous warning and not investigate this slightly troubling tidbit of information. Two, she could monitor the Uchiha secretly and not inform the Hokage about her intelligence gatherings until she found disreputable evidence. And thirdly, the only other plan of action was to immediately share this intel with the Hokage.

Ignoring the problem was not an option for her but it was the safest way to stay out of trouble. If she was to conduct surveillance on the Uchiha clan, she would surely be caught by someone - the question was who and when would she be found out. And the problem with running to the Hokage was that this could be nothing. Just because the Uchiha don't like the Hokage does not mean that they're plotting something foolish like a rebellion. Konoha was a safe haven for Nanami. She knew that her hometown had a few kinks in their system, but they had things thought out better than the other villages.

A tinge of pain brought Nanami out of her thoughts. There was an indentation of her hand on the wooden desk. Her palm was full of tiny splinters that poked through the fabric of her gloves. She cursed her monstrous strength as she plucked every tiny wooden stake from her hand. Although her clan were known for their brute strength, this did not mean she was impervious to pain. She winced as she yanked the wood from her flesh and watched as droplets of blood rose from her inflicted skin. Still concerned about her next plan of action, Nanami scooped up her belongings from her desk and made a beeline out of the door. She figured that she could sleep on it, and act accordingly on a fresh mind instead of her thoughts clouded with the stresses of her day job.

Her satchel was filled with miscellaneous ninja tools and graded papers she didn't have time to pass back to her students. The stack of romance novels she had wrapped in her arms were not going to fit in her satchel. It was an understatement to say it was humiliating to walk around the streets of Konoha with a book called "Dying For Your Love" on display. No one would be looking at her so intensively that they would notice the name of the book, but the mere thought made her cheeks red with embarrassment.

Nanami clutched the books closer to her chest as she ducked and dodged her way through Konoha's streets. The trail to her apartment sent her through the village's most bustling roads. Street vendors selling goods and people running last minute errands carpeted the streets of her hometown. Children zooming past her in all directions added to the scuffle of sandals against the cobblestone walkways. Even though the fall was heading to a close, many tree leaves were latching on to their branches unwilling to join the few that coated the streets. The sound of the fallen leaves underneath Nanami's unrythmic footsteps were drowned out by the voices and laughter of the people she passed by. The sun was beginning its daily discend even though it wasn't a minute past six o'clock.

Out of the parade of people, she noticed a familiar face with even more familiar white, spiky hair. Kakashi Hatake was speaking with his self-proclaimed rival, Might Guy. Nanami made a beeline to greet her fellow colleagues, but stopped in her tracks with the reminder of her romance novels in tow. She made a perfect 180° turn and retreated across the street to stay out of sight. To Nanami's dismay, the Copy Ninja of the Leaf had already seen her silhouette out of the corner of his eye. " Nanami?" He called into the crowd of people where he seen her. Nanami's back was still turned to the duo of friends as she continued to walk out of the line of fire.

I could just wave and be on my way. The embarrassed Jonin whirled around and waved to her colleagues with a forced smile. Guy and Kakashi waved back in the direction of their comrade, but with Guy's wave with more enthusiasm than his rival. Nanami's smile formed genuinely with an accompanied giggle at the display of Guy's "youthful" energy. Maybe I'm being too self conscious. " Hey, you two." Nanami said to the pair of Jonin who were shamelessly soliciting outside of one of Konoha's tea shops.

" Hello, Nanami! How are you doing on this youthful evening?" Guy had asked with his award winning smile and usual teeth glint.

" I'm fine, Guy. Thanks for asking."

" Do you have any plans for this beautiful night?"

Nanami tightened her hold on her books closer to her chest. " Besides getting home and relaxing, no."

Guy's jaw fell agape. " B-But, it's Friday night! You should come along with us instead of being cooped up in your apartment alone! We're going out for drinks at the sake bar down the street."

" I appreciate the invite, but I think I'll pass this time."

" ...And we're also going out for dinner if that'll make you interested," Kakashi spoke up from his copy of Icha Icha. Nanami almost forgotten that he stood there since it seemed as though he was more interested in his book than the conversation.

Did Kakashi remember how much I can't stand alcohol? The memory of that day stained Nanami's vision. Their meeting had been a casual encounter, but the reason why they were gathered on that day is what left Nanami with a hole in her chest. The wedding was already eight months in the past and although Nanami was getting better with concealing her emotions, she was still only a novice. " You know what they say: two is company and three's a crowd," Nanami said trying to slink away from their invite. Maybe she would have accepted the invitation if she didn't have so much on her mind. " You all go and have fun-"

" Wait, is that a book from the Double Edged Sword series?" Kakashi's visible eye lit up as soon as he saw the book Nanami was hiding between the gap of her folded arms.

She gazed down at the stack of books in her arms and eyed the book Kakashi was gawking at. " Oh… T-this?" Luckily he hadn't seen the romance novels facing her chest. The particular book he was talking about was a book of the non-fiction tales of a celebrated Samurai. Nanami thanked the gods that she did dabble in more appropriate literature for her age and status. Cheesy romance was just a guilty pleasure of hers.

" Where'd you get it? I've been looking for the last installment for ages, but none of the bookstores in Konoha carry the series."

" I-I had a friend who um…" She swallowed hard on the only spit still available in her drying mouth. " He would bring me books when he went on missions outside of the village," The memory of Itachi's romantic gestures was making it hard for the heartbroken ninja to keep her mask of emotional stability up. All Nanami's hard to get books were given to her by Itachi when he was out of missions in far-away lands. This book was a reminder of the burden she carried. " Would you like to read it, Kakashi? You can keep it if you would like. I don't have a need for it anymore."

" Thank you, Nanami. I've been dying to read this." Kakashi reached out to accept the book from Nanami's hands. As she passed the book along, her heart felt a little less heavy.

" Is this another one of your pervy books, Kakashi?" Guy asked with his arms folded.

Kakashi's expression dulled. " Icha Icha isn't "pervy". It's a romance novel about a man and woman sharing passionate, uncensored love for each other-" Nanami tried to hide her laughter behind her hand covering her mouth, but it managed to slip through the cracks of her fingers. Kakashi narrowed his eye at her. " What's so funny, Nanami?"

" Icha Icha is not romance. Only thing uncensored about it is the amount of filth."

" You've spoken like you've read the book before."

" I've read it," Kakashi's eye widened a fraction at the revelation. " I've read the entire series." Begrudgingly, his interest had been peaked.

Kakashi laughed awkwardly into his fist with his signature eye smile. " We're all entitled to our own opinions. They're just that. Opinions."

" True." Nanami said agreeing with Kakashi's attempt to find middle ground with her. " I don't judge you for reading porn, Kakashi. We all have our guilty pleasures."

" Now I'm interested to know yours."

Kakashi was such a laid back and stoic man that his sudden interest in anything was peculiar. " Well, that's a story for another day."

" There's no time like the youthful present, Nanami!" Nanami turned her vision back to the green jumpsuit clad ninja who had seem to fade into the background. " We can all talk about our guilty pleasures over dinner since the offer is still open. My treat. What do you say?"

" Well, since it's free, what kind of person would I be to turn down such an offer?"

The unlikely trio had spent the rest of the night eating to their heart's content at Guy's expense. Nanami hadn't enjoyed herself in the company of others in so long. She was glad that Guy and Kakashi invited her out even though the rivals spent a chunk of the night playing rock-paper-scissors. The outing was well needed, but Nanami's thoughts kept reverting back to the Uchiha clan. Especially with her new revelation that Itachi could somehow be involved.

" Kakashi," Nanami called out to him on their way back to their homes. Guy lived on the opposite side of the village, so the trio became a duo as Kakashi and Nanami traveled without Guy. " Can I ask you for some advice? It's been bothering me all night, actually."

" Shoot."

Nanami took a deep breath before responding. " You've been dealing with children for a long time, haven't you?"

" Almost exclusively for the past three years. But, I've been a squad leader for six in total. "

" I've only been a teacher for a little over a year now. "

" They're a handful aren't they?"

" That's an understatement," Nanami laughed as she thought back to her students. Nanami still enjoyed her job and dotted on each one of her students even when it got tough. Yet, it was still a hassle having twenty or so twelve year olds with unique personalities all in one classroom. "But, I have one student that I'm a little concerned about it - or, well at least I'm worried about what he said. I'm not sure what to do with what he told me."

" What happened?"

" He told me that his family doesn't like the Hokage."

Kakashi lifted an eyebrow and gave Nanami a quizzical look. " Okay?"

" He's a Uchiha."

" Oh. " Kakashi stuffed his hands in his pockets as they continued their way down the dimly lit road. He became conscious of the chilly night air as a gust of wind whipped through the trees. The presence of eyes lurking in those very trees caught his attention." Well, that would explain your apprehension..."

" He told me not to tell anyone and not to get involved."

" And since we are having this conversation, I see that you don't mind breaking both of those rules."

" I don't know what else to do. I fear that if I ignore it, it may turn into something horrible."

" Horrible how?"

" The possibilities are what scares me."

Kakashi wondered if she knew someone was following them. He knew Nanami was a sensory type, but the person scrutinizing their movements was being careful not to be seen. In fact they were being so meticulous that they were suppressing their chakra. " Kids say and worry about things that they don't fully understand all the time. I wouldn't worry about it. It's not like he said that his parents are plotting against Minato-sensei, or anything."

" You're right. Thanks, Kakashi. This conversation made me feel a little better about it. I think I'm just prone to overthinking small details."

Kakashi gave Nanami his trademark eye smile. She smiled back genuinely with a small grin as she pushed a few of her wavy tresses behind her ear.I should walk her home.He thought to himself since the person that was following them retreated. He wouldn't rest well knowing that he left her alone knowing that someone was watching them. " Where do you live?"

" Up the road by the hospital. Why?"

" I was going to be a gentleman and walk you home."

Nanami looked up at Kakashi to search his face for an ulterior motive. She wasn't full of herself, just confused. No man besides her brother Tamaki and Itachi ever wanted to walk her home before. " That's a little unnecessary."

" What kind of friend would I be if I left you alone to walk home in the middle of the night?"

Nanami let out a quick sigh of relief. This is a friendly gesture. Great. " Well, since you put it that way then sure. But, it's very unlikely that I could run into any danger. It's not like I have stalkers. I'm not popular enough for that."

" You'd be surprised." The two Jonin continued on their way down the road in silence. They reached Nanami's apartment and the pair said their goodbyes and parted ways. As Nanami was closing the door, she could have sworn she saw a crow fly by.


XXX


Kakashi watched Nanami close the door of her apartment. He saw a flicker of light in her eyes and a low gasp from her lips. He checked behind him to see if anything was out of the ordinary, but saw nothing but an empty street. He walked down the stairs of the apartment complex and scoped the area out for any spikes of charka. He still felt uneasy even though nothing irregular peaked his interest. He continued his hike up the road and past his house to go pay a visit to his old sensei. It was close to midnight, but he knew that Minato would still be inside his office.

He could hear the muffled sound of voices grow louder as he got closer to the door. The mutterings of the people behind the door cut off abruptly right before he could knock. " Come in, Kakashi."

Kakashi opened the door to the Hokage's office and saw Minato Namikaze and Itachi Uchiha. " Is this a bad time?" He asked being how tense the air was in the room. He hadn't meant to interrupt what was going on between the two, but it did involve one of the present parties.

" No, we were actually talking about you, Kakashi."

" Regarding?"

" This situation is very delicate. You can not discuss what I'm about to tell you with any party outside of this room." Kakashi nodded in agreement. " I want you to keep Nanami out of trouble for me. We fear that she may start to act on a few suspicions she has... I want to keep this matter under wraps. I didn't want to involve anyone else, but it seems it's too late for that. I fear for what would happen if another clan were to get involved. It would cause a village wide panic and god only knows what else."

Kakashi thought back to how anxious Nanami had been during their latest conversation. He doubted her suspicions because she didn't have credible evidence - or any at all for that matter. He made a mental note to take her intuition more seriously in the future. " Is this about what Nanami's student said to her?"

" In a roundabout way, yes."

" So, Nanami's suspicions had some validity to them. What are the Uchiha planning?"

" A coup d'état that will ensue a civil war." The words rolled off Itachi's tongue nonchalantly, but the thought of impending war left him anxious. Itachi, as did Minato and Shisui, wanted to keep the village unified without the unnescary bloodshed. It would be hard to juggle being a double agent for Konoha and his clan while Nanami would inevitably try to involve herself in the fight. Itachi knew that her feelings for him would cloud her better judgement. That love could lure her into doing something without considering the consequences. That is if she felt what he still felt. " Please, Kakashi, keep her out of this. I would try to talk her down myself, but I think that would only make the situation worse."

" So, it was you that was following us?"

" Yes," Itachi admitted with no shame. " I check up on her every so often. I heard what her student, Hitoro Uchiha, told her. I've been surveying her movements the entire day to observe what she'll do next."

" Why do you think she'll do anything? If you heard what we were talking about earlier, I believe I talked her down."

" Nanami is..." Itachi paused to think of a word that would encapsulate the woman in question. " ... tenacious."

Kakashi noticed the ghost of a smile that flickered across Itachi's lips. It vanished almost as quickly as it appeared. What is their relationship?" This is just a precaution, Kakashi." Minato spoke up taking Kakashi away from his thoughts. " Can I trust you with this?"

" Of course, Hokage," Kakashi bowed in front of Minato and Itachi. " I'll do whatever I can to keep Nanami in the dark."