Chapter Ten

...

Dear me, Kaizuki thought with a heavy sigh as she walked down the halls to her homeroom, I think I'm losing my mind. Aisoku's gone, so I don't really have to worry about people getting murdered and stuff, and well, I feel so light I could fly. I think I just lost it. She thought for a minute, before ending her entry in the mental journal.

She looked up, rounding a corner and bumping into to someone. She saw something drop from their hands. On a pure impulse, she squatted and caught it, pulling it into the safety of her body so that it wouldn't slip and fall.

She stood up straight and stared at Itachi, a slight blush creeping up her neck.

Well, that was fairly embarrassing…or something.

"Here." She deadpanned, "Sorry for walking into you."

Itachi smiled genuinely. "Thank you," he replied, carefully taking back the laptop, "You don't have to apologize; I was being careless, carrying this out in the open. But thank you very much."

In return, Kaizuki smiled as well, "Don't mention it. I guess that was pretty important; years of martial arts and Aisoku have their worth after all."

"I'm sure your skills are worth a lot more than you think," Itachi replied.

Kaizuki shrugged, "Maybe we should spar some time; I need to fight someone. Haven't done it in a while."

After chuckling, Itachi responded with, "I'm free this afternoon. I'm not sure how much I'll be able to help with, considering I'm not a master myself, but I'll see what I can do."

Kaizuki's smile brightened, "Well, I'm sure you'll be plenty of help. I'll come and get you when I'm ready to go."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll see you then."

Kaizuki nodded, "I have to go to class now. I'll see you later." She bid him farewell, walking around him and heading for her homeroom. She wasn't quite sure why, but it felt fairly good to know that she had a friend. That she had friends, she mentally corrected herself. It was a different way of seeing the world, and she kind of liked it.

...

Juritsu was tired, and miserable, but she was slightly happy at the same time. Needless to say, it was a very weird whirlpool of emotions raging inside of her. She sat down at the usual table, which seemed to continue increasing in number. Not only Itachi and Kaizuki, but Kenichi and Miu as well sat at the table. And Sasuke and Sakura sat with them as well, though for the time being they were a lot quieter than the others.

"What happened, Juritsu-san? You look awful?" Miu asked.

"Did you have another long night?" Kenichi asked.

Juritsu smiled tiredly, "More or less. It was… eventful, I guess."

"Are you okay?"

"Of course I am. I'm still here, aren't I?" Juritsu waved off the concern, "Please don't worry about me. I'll be fine, I promise."

Miu looked up, "Isn't that Ryuuto-kun?" As she had indicated, the familiar violet-haired student was sitting at a table beside the window by himself.

Juritsu furrowed her eyebrows. "What in the world…" She sighed, standing up, and walking over to Ryuuto without hesitation.

"Hey," she greeted with a brief flash of a grin. He stared at her silently for a long moment before he replied.

"Hello."

"How come you're sitting over here by yourself?" she was quick to the point. Ryuuto blinked, looking slightly perturbed by her sudden question.

Nevertheless, he replied, "Because this table is vacant."

"Well, would you like to sit with us? There's more than enough room."

Ryuuto shrugged, "If you insist." He carefully stood up, obviously favoring his left leg. Juritsu's eye immediately lit up.

"Your legs are getting better!" she exclaimed excitedly, "I knew taking you to Akisame was a good idea!"

Ryuuto snorted, "The man nearly killed me yesterday with a second session of 'treatment'." He followed her over to the table, letting out a soft, barely audible sigh as he sat down. Walking was probably still a test of willpower and strength at that point, but Ryuuto was definitely not going to lose to the likes of Kenichi.

"Trust me, there are a lot of us who'd agree with you," Juritsu resumed her seat next to Itachi, which coincidentally was across from Ryuuto, "I didn't start wearing this black sleeve on my leg on a whim. Akisame was 'treating' my knee for a while… and then he had to treat other injuries as well."

Kenichi blinked, immediately realizing the topic of conversation. "Oh, you're talking about him again?" he half-groaned. Miu giggled.

"I think of all of us, Kenichi has the most experience with Akisame-san's treatments," she chimed in. Juritsu smiled understandably in response.

"Ah, but I don't think I've ever had multiple treatments," Kenichi noted aloud, "Actually, Takeda-san would probably understand more than anyone, now that I think about it."

Miu nodded, looking thoughtful. "He did scream a lot when he went to see Akisame in his clinic…"

Kaizuki raised an eyebrow, "So, I'm under the impression that you know a sadist."

"That's what I would say," Kenichi replied, "But Akisame-shisho really is a pro. He's the best 'bone' doctor out there."

"It's orthopedic," Juritsu automatically corrected, before continuing, "I think Akisame-sensei's the only person in the world that can heal a broken bone by merely tapping it."

Kaizuki nodded, pretending that she understood, and went back to her bento.

...

"Yo," Kaizuki greeted, "Are you ready to go?"

Itachi smiled as she approached. "Of course. Lead the way."

As he requested, Kaizuki brought the Uchiha to an abandoned dojo. It didn't look like it had been uninhabited for very long, but that might've been Kaizuki's diligent cleaning. It was off the beaten path, but not too far. It was actually fairly close to Itachi and Sasuke's old home, which was, at that point, a pile of burned logs.

"Here we are," Kaizuki said with a slight smile, "Me and Kiku used to come here and spar all the time; I lived in the town over when I was in middle school. We usually took the train." She seemed fairly fired up, which might've been because she hadn't been in there with another person in a long time.

"It's well-kept," Itachi observed as he set his things aside. Kaizuki nodded sheepishly in agreement.

"I guess." She replied, dumping her bag in a corner and fishing a pair of black pants out of it, "I need to change out of this skirt. I'll be right back." She walked off into an apparent changing room, or perhaps bathroom to change. She returned quickly, smiling brightly.

"Where should we start, sensei?" She said with a light chuckle. Itachi smirked slightly in response before charging at her.

"We start now."

...

It wasn't dark yet when he started on the way to his apartment. However, it quickly became dark as he continued on his way. His house was rather far, but he didn't like taking public transportation to get there. Ryuuto sighed to himself, watching as his breathe curled into a cloud and disappeared. It was extremely cold outside; he was shivering slightly, his muscles tense in an attempt to conserve heat.

"Oh, so you are still alive." A familiar voice caught his attention, and he slowed to a stop, turning around to face the man behind him. Kanou Shou stood there, his brown eyes flickering with a desultory anger.

Ryuuto glowered at him, not about to forget anything about their hatred towards one another. His legs were burning; if Kanou wanted to fight, then there was going to be a problem. His legs, though they functioned, were not at a point were he could fight well. He'd probably resort to remaining stationary during this battle, or at least try to.

If there's a battle to be had, of course. Maybe he just wants to have a nice, relaxing conversation with me. Ryuuto thought, even though he doubted his conclusion with all his being.

Kanou smirked slightly, walking towards him, "Well, as you've probably deduced, I didn't come here to chat, Ryuuto." He answered Ryuuto's thought, "So I suggest you get ready to die!" He sped forward, jumping up and throwing a kick, which Ryuuto easily avoided. His legs ached from the sudden twist, his bones creaking from abuse.

The silver-haired man didn't let up, only intensifying his attack. His hands became weapons, only cutting Ryuuto when he could actually hit him. Ryuuto's wrist was aching; Kanou had thrown several kicks already, and Ryuuto had been using his wrists and forearms to block them

At that point, he had twisted his hands every which way to get around and avoid Kanou's attacks, and he could feel a sprain already beginning to swell up in his left wrist. He gritted his teeth, bearing with the pain that was beginning to spread up his back, doing everything that he could to be easy on his weakened body. Old fractures were beginning to split where they hadn't finished healing. It wasn't bad, though. Not bad enough to warrant a visit to Akisame. They weren't breaking; they were ever so slightly cracking where Kanou was excessively kicking him. He could deal with such injuries by himself.

Abruptly, Ryuuto's eyes narrowed as he spotted an opening in one of Kanou's more arrant attacks. He took the chance, waiting until he was at the perfect height in the air, and struck him in the knee with his extended fingers. He heard a loud pop, and Kanou let out an agonized shriek as he fell to the ground. He swore, cursing violently at Ryuuto in every way he could.

Bruised and cut up, and in an overall state of agony, Ryuuto turned around and continued on the way to his apartment. His left leg screamed with pain, the feeling almost crippling.

A black car pulled up beside him, coming to a stop. The window rolled down, and Ryuuto stared wearily at Madara. The black eyes were lacking the hatred that Ryuuto had remembered them having. He pushed the car door open, "Hop in; I'll take you home."

Ryuuto, too tired to be careful, obeyed the request. He walked around the car and clambered into the passenger seat, letting out a soft sigh of relief as he closed the door. His aching legs almost immediately seized up, but he managed to hold back the urge to scream in pain.

"That wasn't too bad of a fight, considering your current condition, Ryuuto." Madara spoke up, "But that isn't really why I decided to pick you up."

Ryuuto turned to glance at him as they turned onto a street, taking an obvious detour, "What is it?"

"Ogata is going to be hunting you, along with all the rest of Juritsu's friends. I had a bit of a fight with him the other day, and I told him that you were under my protection, as were the rest of Juritsu's friends." Madara paused, letting out a soft sigh, "He didn't send Kanou after you tonight, but he will start sending him after you until you stop hanging out with Juritsu."

Ryuuto blinked, but quickly remembered what he meant. He knew what Ogata was going to do, as he had watched it happen before. Madara turned to glance at him briefly, before continuing, "I want you to stick by Juritsu's side, no matter what, okay? She's going to lose herself in loneliness and anger again if she has no one to turn to, and I don't want that to happen. I made a promise to her dad that I would protect her at all costs."

The violet-haired teenager nodded silently, a sad smile appearing on his lips, "I would stick with her anyway," He said softly, "She doesn't want to give up on me, so, even if she wants me to, I won't give up on her."

Madara smiled warmly at the road ahead of him, "That's why I like you, Ryuuto. You're passionate in a subtle way. You remind me of Itachi."

...

"It's amazingly cold out here," Kaizuki grumbled, her teeth chattering, "It isn't usually this cold this early in the year. I mean, it's only October!" They had stayed in the dojo sparring for hours; it was going on 8 PM, and they had only just started on their way home.

"Do you want my jacket?" Itachi asked, taking it off and offering it to her, "I'm not cold."

Kaizuki smiled gratefully, giving Itachi a strange look a she put on his coat, "You're not cold?" She repeated, "Do you have a layer of blubber that keeps you warm or something?" She poked his arm, "Well, I guess that blubber is unrealistic when it comes to you."

"I'm tolerant of the cold," Itachi remarked offhandedly, "Don't worry about it."

The younger of the two nodded, chuckling, "Complete opposite of me; I'm a weather-wimp." While she was a bit tired from the previous hours of sparring, she was happy. Itachi seemed to notice the positive vibe coming from his friend and he smiled.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself today, Kaizuki. It's much better to see you like this than it was to see you so upset."

Kaizuki glanced over at him, slightly surprised. Nevertheless, she smiled brightly, "Well, I must say I've had a pretty good day. Thank you for sparring with me, Itachi. I really appreciate it."

"It's no problem. We should spar agai…" Itachi's voice trailed off, eyes narrowing as he began to glance around. Kaizuki glanced up at him again, following his gaze for a moment.

"What is it?" She asked slowly. Itachi's aura had completely changed to cold and calculating.

"Come out," his voice was devoid of emotion. Four people walked out of the shroud of darkness. A very young girl who couldn't be older than ten, two boys with silver hair and green eyes, and a burly-looking blonde with crazed eyes.

"Good evening," the young girl said calmly, her voice completely empty, "Kushinada Chikage. This is Yazoo, this is Kadaj, and this is Ladd Russo." She indicated who was who with her small hand.

Kaizuki's eyes narrowed, but she didn't say anything, sizing up each of the four people.

"Honestly, I could've done this myself," the blonde, Ladd Russo, grumbled, "Kensei-sama is too paranoid."

Chikage glanced over at him, her expression alone a warning.

"Kensei… You're with Yami, then," Itachi growled after quickly putting two and two together.

Chikage nodded, "Since you know who we are, I'm under the assumption that you'll be able to deduce that we aren't here to chat." She replied. The three men around her crouched into their separate stances. Ladd bounced on his toes, looking overly excited to get started.

Kaizuki dropped her bag, taking off Itachi's coat so as to not get it dirty and putting it down with her bag. She got into her stance, eyes narrowed. She had not a clue what was going on, but she didn't especially care either; they wanted to fight, so she was going to have to fight. She definitely wasn't going to run away and leave Itachi for dead. That would be just plain old rude.

The elder Uchiha glanced at her as she assumed a stance. So, she was going to stay and fight after all. Sighing in exasperation, he tossed his bag to the side, bringing his fists up.

"You shouldn't be taking us lightly," his voice was venomous.

Kadaj snorted, "I could say the same to you, punk!" He said, charging forward. Yazoo went left, and Ladd went right, each intending to attack in a different way. Chikage waited in the back, her brown eyes empty and calculating.

As a team, Itachi and Kaizuki were able to adapt to each other's weakness and fighting styles well. It was clear that Itachi was more experienced, but Kaizuki was smaller and able to maneuver a bit better than he could. On the other hand, Itachi was stronger and faster than she was.

Panting lightly, Itachi glowered at Chikage, fists clenched tightly. The other three had been soundly defeated.

"Tell your masters that we don't go down that easily," his voice was icy as he growled at her.

Chikage sighed, stepping forward, "Why do you think they sent me?" She replied, her voice equally cold.

Itachi's eyes narrowed, and he brought his arms up to block just to she was starting forward. However, at the last second, she completely disappeared from his sight.

"Wha…?!" He whirled around to find her behind him, and no sooner did he realize she was there, she had hit him directly in the chest with a powerful palm-strike. He flew backwards, hitting the ground hard. Spluttering and gasping for air, he didn't get back up.

Cursing violently, Kaizuki turned back to face Chikage, only to find that she was gone. Eyes wide, she stood her ground, closing her eyes and breathing a heavy sigh.

There! She whirled around, swinging her leg hard and fast. Chikage caught her ankle, twisting it harshly. Kaizuki gritted her teeth to hold back a scream of pain and managed to wrench her leg back, nearly falling as she discovered that she couldn't put any weight on it. By the time she had regained her balance, the smaller girl had hit her in the stomach with the heel of her hand, sending Kaizuki back into a nearby wall. She slid down the wall, eyes wide as she forced the bile threatening to strangle her back down her throat.

The next thing she heard was blurry in her mind. Her hazy vision caught sight of someone with long, dark hair attacking Chikage in what looked like a fit of rage. He caught her completely off guard. The three that had been taken out earlier managed to get back up, but from the looks of it, the four retreated in the end.

"Are you okay?" She barely recognized the voice, but his face reminded her vaguely of Itachi. He pressed a hand to her stomach, prodding it gently. She clenched her teeth, groaning in pain.

"I don't feel anything wrong, but I'm going to take you to the hospital anyway." He said, picking her up. The world faded into a dark haze, and the last thing she remembered saying was too slurred to even understand.