Chapter Ten: Time Lapse

"No."

The girl scowled, raising her right arm and igniting a ball of fire in her palm. Itachi only stared at her. It took everything he had not to reach out and touch the long, red hair that was flowing down her back. It looked so smooth compared to the ratty cut she had as a child. She was still tiny, and her attire was nothing extravagent, but there was a certain maturity edged into the confines of her face. What had happened to her, he thought, after I left? What did she become? Even as a child, with her sick mother and the constant taunting that came from the children around her, she had never talked so foolishly. She wanted him to kill her? She should have been trying to kill him for even attempting at her life, a miracle he still wasn't sure of.

"You can fight me if you wish," he said. "But it won't change a thing. I won't kill you."

"Then I'll make you," she said, throwing the ball of fire in his direction. The man only had to duck, letting the flames hit the tree behind him. Shin closed her palm as soon as the tree caught on fire, denigrating it to ash.

"You are most certainly different," he replied, standing up straight. "But you're not strong enough to beat me."

"That's where you're wrong," she spat, stepping forward into the moonlight, her red eyes glimmering. "I am more than strong enough to beat you. I could kill you where you stand, and I think you know that, don't you? You saw what I did to those sound ninja, you saw what I can become. So tell me, Itachi. Do you really think I can't defeat you? All I have to do is catch you, and believe me, you may be fast but you can't keep up with me for long."

"You're over confident. It's a pity you've stooped so low."

"Maybe you're just under confident," she said, appearing behind him now. Itachi's eyes windened as he felt the tip of her katana cut through his cloak and lightly tap the center of his back.

"Why do you act like you're so invincible?" He asked, his voice low.

"What makes you think I'm not?"

Itachi turned, grabbing her wrist and snapping it back so that the weapon fell from her grip and onto the ground. She moved her other hand to strike, but he caught that as well, twisting her arms together behind her back and pushing her forward onto the ground. She kicked up as soon as her face touched the grass, one of her legs kicking the man in the chest and the other one following suit in the abdomen. Itachi moved back, covering his mouth as he coughed. Drops of blood fell on to his hand, but he paid no mind, wiping the access liquid onto his pants.

"You can't contain me," she said as two shuriken whizzed past the man's head. "And you most certainly can't beat me."
It was him who ran at her now. She dodged almost every one of his hits, before he finally got ahold of her. He slammed her up against a tree by the neck, gripping tighter with each passing second until she had no choice but to look into his eyes.
Her eyes turned to black right before she passed out, falling to the ground below him.

When she opened her eyes again she was staring at the bright yellow eyes of the man she hoped to never see again.

She was once again trapped behind the glass, frozen solid.

"For the next 72 hours," Itachi's voice rang through the room. "You will experience nothing but the pain you felt on what is supposedly... the worst time of your life."

She went to scream, but the water filled up the glass, drowning her.

The man stared down at the red haired kunoichi laying in front of him. He had always imagined that the pain that the sharigan would bring would have taken her back to the fateful day in the Uchiha compound. It wasn't that he was disapointed, he was just a bit put off at how he felt. Was he angry? Was he relieved? What was this feeling building up in his gut as he stared down at the woman he used to call a friend?

The man bent down, pulling her up and placing her against the tree he had previously slammed her against. It would take a normal person weeks to recover, but he put no doubt in her ability to heal faster than most.

"Who are you, Shinwari," he said, bending over and pulling a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Itachi stood up at the sound of a small caw. He expected to see one of his crows waiting for him with news from Pein, but instead it was a small raven. The bird flew down, landing in front of the girl, it's head awkwardly cocked to the side.

"What did you do?"

Itachi was very used to animals talking; summons worked for communication. But how could she have summoned the raven without doing any sort of ritual?

"She will be fine," the man responded, still staring.

"Are you waiting for something?" The bird asked. "You've done your deed. Now leave her."
Itachi's gaze moved from the girl to her small companion, before turning completely and walking away. Kisame would be up soon, and they would resume their duties.

When Shin woke up her eyes were black and there was a pounding in her head she hadn't felt since all those years ago when Itachi stuck his blade straight through her heart. She groaned, sitting up and grabbing her forhead, applying pressure to the paint. It took her a few moments to register what had happened.

"Kirin?" She asked, trying to yell but her voice coming out strained. She was greeted by her small friend moments later, who relayed the events. Shin nodded in understanding, still grabbing her forehead.

She would have to wait until night fall to sneak back into Kohana. She had left without a permission, which was a big problem . She had only been asleep for about twelve hours, meaning it was around noon and the search parties would be out for her soon. If she could sneak back into the village, and make it seem as if she never left what so ever, she would be fine.

Where did her and Itachi go from there?

Nowhere.

The girl picked up her katana and swung in on her back before climbing up the tree with all fours, like the animal she was.

It was bitersweet.

She had returned to Kohana with doubt; that she would have been found out, that there had been ANBU sent after her with fear that she had betrayed them. The Hokage was furious, that was for sure, but not because he thought she had left. He was mad because the ANBU had been dispatched without their captain.

They had been sent after Kakashi's students to bring back another who had left the same night as she had.

Sasuke Uchiha.

Weeks passed after Sasuke's disappearance. Naruto had come home beaten and bloody, carried into the hospital and put into immediate surgery. Kakashi returned home soon after, laying his jounin vest on the couch without a word and immediately hiding away into his room. Shin had requested to be suspended from missions upon his arrival.

They didn't speak much, but Kakashi still enjoyed the company. She had become more interactive, cooking dinner more often and making sure that the neighbor's kids were taken care of in order to reduce the noise. The man just needed time to adjust to losing not just one, but all three of his students.
Sakura had been taken under Tsunade's wing, meaning that she would be spending all her time at the Hokage's office. Naruto was preparing to leave the village with Jiraya, and soon Kakashi would once again be put on the back burner of missions after denying the request Tsunade had made for him to return to the ANBU.

When Shin returned to work he had to admit that he missed the constant comfort she brought with her. She hadn't spoken of Sasuke's disapearance once, which wasn't out of character for her but was also quite suspicious. Obviously her and the boy had developed some sort of bond, and with him gone Kakashi at least suspected her to be a little put off.

She would leave for days at a time, only coming home for a few hours before leaving again. She would bring home groceries on the inbetween and on the rare occasion she would have a few days home they would go out to eat at the resturaunt he had taken to her after their famous battle.
Months passed and Kakashi eventually began dispatching and leading other teams, falling back into his routine quicker than expected. He worked with Sakura occasionally, enjoying his time with his former student more than anticipated. She had grown so strong so fast he couldn't help but feel a bit of pride at the sight of her.

It was after the first mission with the pinkette that he returned home to find his roommate and self-proclaimed best friend passed out on the floor. He had immediately brought her back to the hospital, and the medics there found the same weapon that had been used the day of Orochimaru's attack lodged in her throat. It was then the man felt something he hadn't in months - pure, unadulterated anger.

It only took the girl three days to recover, and within those three the older man and pulled himself back from missions once more. He spent the days cleaning up the house, fixing broken odds and ends that were still around since before her mothers passing. He checked her out of the hospital on the third day and walked her home, making sure there was no stumble in her step, or light headed behavior.

Routine picked up again and they saw each other less than they both would have liked. Months passed until a year had made it's cycle, and on the anniversary of the infamous Sasuke Uchiha's disappearance, Shin Natasu was sent on a mission that could have very well been her last.

And this is where the real story begins.