I was standing near the only entrance – and exit – of the village, ready to get going. Naruto, Sasuke, Itachi and I were going on a quest together. Yay, me and three guys. I would be able to handle myself though. I don't Itachi would dare to try anything. Not with Naruto and Sasuke there.
Naruto and I were already there and we were waiting for Sasuke and Itachi.
Naruto had told me about the mission last night, after diner. Kakashi, the village leader, had put together the team for this mission himself. That's how I knew how important the mission was. It would be a piece of cake though. With both Naruto and Sasuke there, Itachi and I probably wouldn't have to do anything.
"Let's go," Sasuke said. I'd been lost in thought and looked up to see Sasuke and Itachi standing next to us.
Itachi practically ignored me the whole time. I mostly talked with Sasuke, which I thought was kind of awkward. You know, with the whole him being my dad thing.
We arrived at this really tiny village. They'd been the ones that had requested a team.
The leader of the village took Naruto and Sasuke with him, to his office. Which meant Itachi and I were left in the village, alone.
There was an awkward silence. I didn't want to be the one to speak first and apparently neither did he.
I'd sat down on one of the benches that were scattered across the square and Itachi was leaning against the wall of one of the buildings that surrounded the square.
It's funny how it's called a square, yet it's shaped like a circle. I decided I liked the word 'plaza' better.
"So," I broke the silence.
Itachi threw me a look and then decided to ignore me again.
"Tch," I muttered. What was wrong with this guy?
I thought I'd ask him.
"Seriously, what is wrong with you?" I asked.
"I figured the best way not to get punched is not to do anything. And since I get punched all the time, I thought I would actually apply it," He retorted.
"I really don't get you," I snapped. "First you act like you're all in to me and you actually kiss me and then you decide to ignore me? I hit you because you were being too damn creepy. So if you don't want to get hit, try acting like a normal person!"
He merely looked at me, his face not showing any reaction at all.
How could he stay so calm? I curled my hands into fists, trying to push back all the irritations. Just the fact that he was so calm annoyed me. Everything about him annoyed me.
I got up from the bench and started crossing the plaza.
"Where are you going?" Itachi asked.
I ignored him and started exploring the village.

I walked through the village, occasionally entering a shop. There was a surprisingly large amount of shops, especially in comparison to the amount of houses. There must be a flourishing economy.
"Don't you know it's dangerous to explore a village alone at times like this?" A voice whispered in my ear.
I whirled around and kicked high, aiming at the person's face. He had disappeared before I could hit him though.
He must've appeared behind me, because I felt a presence at my back. Before I could turn around to hit him, he had gotten hold of my wrist and kept me immobile.
Then he released me and I turned around, cautious but not attacking. This enemy was seriously out of my league.
"Not bad," Sasuke said. "but you still need some training."
I sighed.
"You really scared me there," I scolded.
"Be more careful then. Why aren't you with Itachi anyway? It's not very smart to split up," Sasuke asked.
I shrugged. How could I possibly explain everything? That I'd kissed my half brother? That I really really like him, but hate him at the same time? That I can't seem to figure out whether he's amazingly sweet or a douche bag?
"I may not have been the one who raised you, but you're still my kid. I can still be worried about you. Don't go wandering off on your own," Sasuke told me.
I didn't know how to respond. Did I suddenly get two dads? Oh boy. One dad was already bad if you wanted to get a boyfriend, but two?
And who was supposed to be my real dad now? My biological dad or the one who raised me? This was getting more confusing all the time.

"Alright. Let's investigate!" Naruto shouted. They'd just explained to us what the details were and the plan they'd come up with.
The sun was starting to go down.
"Isn't it dangerous to go into the forest at night?" I asked. I was secretly scared of the dark. Well, not really about the darkness itself, more of what could be lurking in it. Sadly, I had a very hyperactive imagination. Combine that with all the horror movies I've seen and you get the picture.
"Scared?" Sasuke smirked.
"No, of course not," I said fiercely. "I was just thinking, we wouldn't want to go through any unnecessary troubles. You know, not making the quest any more difficult than it already is."
"I wouldn't say no to a battle or two," Naruto grinned, cracking his knuckles.
"Difficulties? With the four of us? Not likely," Sasuke chuckled.
So, we went into the forest. I acted all hyped up, to not show my fear. I guess it's a defense mechanism. By pretending like I'm not scared, I push away my fear and I actually am less scared.

What was that sound? Did I just see movement there? What was that rustling in that bush?
I thought things like this constantly. I was moving stealthily, my gaze flying from to spot to spot. I heard every rustle of leaves.
I was so tense that I nearly yelped when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned and saw it was Naruto. My heart was beating against my chest rapidly and I thought they might hear it. It so dark, I could barely make out his face. I had to use all my other senses.
"Think of toads," He whispered in my ear, leaning forward. That made me chuckle.
As a kid, I used to be scared of the dark as well. So at bedtime I was always scared to death. And when I woke up at night, Naruto used to come and cheer me up. He'd always tell me a story, one about a toad. Gamatatsu, a toad whose only purpose in life was to eat, went on an adventure. He was so silly he got into trouble. He'd usually be saved by his brother, Gamakichi or he solved the troubles himself on his own silly way. The story was different because I'd gotten tired of it after a while and it hadn't helped anymore, so he'd changed it.
Naruto actually had a contract with toads, so he could summon them whenever he wanted, to help him in battle or with something else.
He'd gotten it through his teacher, after whom Jiraiya was named.
I wasn't scared anymore.

I heard the leaves rustling and I knew there were dozens of them.
"Watch out!" I shouted, but the rest had already realized as well. I ducked and avoided the kunai.
I grabbed one and ran towards one of the enemies, whirling around and kicking him in the face. In the same movement I whirled around a bit more and slashed at the enemy with the kunai.
He stroke back but I blocked it and lashed out again. Some more enemies came after me and I knew I had to get cover. They'd blocked me off, I could only go towards a tree. I quickly figured out what to do.
I ran towards the tree at full speed, my pursuers chuckling at my stupidity. I kept running and even put a couple of steps on the trunk of the tree, after which I did a somersault and landed behind them. I ran away and dove into a bush. I quickly took off my jacket, to get more movement space and got out of my shoes.
I went into the fight again, closing my eyes since I couldn't see much because of the darkness.
I relied on my sense of hearing and my sense of touch, sensing the vibrations in the air.
Because my feet were bare now, I could sense the movements on the ground. My primary element was earth, so I used earth jutsu as well. But I could use it in more ways than that.
I fought with the attackers, defeating some, but they were though and were always replaced by others.

Unlike them, having the advantage of numbers, I was starting to get tired. We'd been fighting for about an hour already.
Naruto and Sasuke were winning easily, but there were seriously a lot of enemies. Even Itachi was doing better than me.
I already had quite a few injuries, but I kept fighting. They weren't that bad, but it still drained my power bit by bit.
A particularly strong enemy lashed out at my leg and I fell. He swung his sword at my head and I could roll away just in time. I scrambled up and started running, which was difficult with that nasty cut in my calf.
I scrambled through the bushed, thorns scratching all over my lower body, drawing even more blood. I kept going though, not paying it any attention.
I heard the sound of the sword wing through the air and closed my eyes. I couldn't do anything. Although I really didn't want to die, I really couldn't do anything right now.
I waited for the blow, but it didn't come.
I opened my eyes and saw Naruto standing in front of me, the sword slowly being pulled back out of his stomach.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It couldn't be true.
Naruto fell to his knees and the enemy raised his sword, to finish him off for real.
No! This wasn't happening! I didn't know what I would do if he died.
My eyes started to tear up and I shook my head.
I screamed and it rang in my ears. It didn't seem to stop.
I can't remember what happened after that.