After Mother had cleaned up the kitchen and the table, I went upstairs to the bathroom. I tugged a brush through my hair, which fell in waves down to my waist.

After I'd finished that, I went hunting for my shoes. Simple, black runners, but somehow they always disappeared… Either that, or Mother was playing tricks on me to try and get me to put things away properly.

I found them near the front door, waiting for me to put them on so we could go. So was mother, actually. I quickly put them on. "You took your time," Mother joked, running a hand through my hair.

"Not my fault," I shot back. "Long hair takes a long time to brush."

"And it looks beautiful, honey." She patted my head and I grinned. She opened the door and I wandered out, stretching my arms up as I embraced the warmth of the sun. We walked down our garden path, out the gate and onto the street.

"Why does Kakashi have to be an ANBU?" I asked. "He's gone so often."

Mother sighed. "Believe me, I argued with Minato long and hard about that. But I guess only the Third can change that now."

"Why did Minato-sama want Kakashi to be an ANBU?" I persisted. I knew that my mother would hide no secrets from me. She was my mother, after all.

Mother was silent for a moment. She hooked her thumbs into the belt loops on her jeans and chewed her lip in thought. "He thought that being an ANBU and working with a team would open his heart, and erase the blackness that had cursed it. His intentions were good, but the results were bad, especially after Rin died." Her voice became truly filled with sorrow as she remembered Rin. I hadn't seen Rin very often, but I remembered her as a kind girl that was always looking out for others. "Why is the world of shinobi so cruel?" I heard her murmur.

I put my hand on hers. "Don't worry, Mama," I said to her with a smile. "When I become a shinobi, I'll work hard to protect our village so we can all live happily, especially you and Kakashi!"

Mother looked down at me and smiled warmly. "Thank you Kaze. But the time has yet to come when you join the Academy. Kakashi and I will train you whenever possible."

I grinned. "Absolutely!" We walked in silence for a while, before I asked, "So does this Hitomi go to the Academy?"

"Yes," Mother answered. "She has been working hard for years to live up to the Uchiha standard."

"I bet I could take her," I said, grinning and clenching my fist.

Mother shook her head and chuckled. "If you want to be friends with her, you can't go around threatening her."

"But I don't know if I want to be friends with her, Mama," I pouted. "I've never met her."

"You're about to." Mother raised an eyebrow and nodded to something in front of her. I looked up and saw the gates of the Uchiha estate. My eyes widened as I took in the size of it all. It loomed over my small size, even though I was quite tall for my age. It loomed over Mother as well, who leant down and took my hand. "Stay close to me, Kaze," She whispered. "The Uchihas' may not be too happy to see guests, since most of Konoha blames then for the Nine-Tails attack five years ago. Just be nice, and don't say anything to aggravate them."

"Yes, Mama," I said obediently. She squeezed my hand and we entered the estate.

It was busy, although quite a few heads turned in our direction. I tried not to show the fear that I was feeling. They were seriously creeping me out.

Soon we reached the living estate and Mother stopped in front of a nice-looking house, and gently knocked on the door. There was a shuffling of feet, and the door opened. The first thing I saw was a girl my age, and something sparked in the back of my mind.