[A/N]: Two chapters within the same month! You're welcome.

The first flashback is one I have already written, but this one is from Shima's POV. The only thing that's the same about it is the dialogue.

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Chapter Twelve

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Shima watched with curious eyes as the silver-haired boy hurled shuriken, real shuriken unlike her wooden ones, without missing a beat. It was her eleventh time seeing the boy at the training grounds. He was always alone, not caring about anyone around him. Since she had watched him so many times she began noticing things about him such as the constant tension in his chakra, like he hadn't relaxed since the day he was born, or the fact he liked to stare into the ground when his practice was over as if it had offended him, almost burning holes into the grass with his dark stare.

The boy was older than her, by how much she didn't know, and he already had his hitai-ate. With envious eyes she followed his every move. This boy was only a year or two older than her at most yet he was so far ahead of her in skill.

She was still just an Academy student.

The boy paused, glaring at the target he had been hitting momentarily before returning to his task. His throws became noticeably more forceful, making a firm thwack with each hit. It seemed like he was angry. Shima wondered if she had been sensed.

Tightening her loose pigtails, she took a deep breath. "Time to make a friend," she said to herself as a way of encouragement. Her dad had once said that everyone needed somebody whether or not they thought so. According to her dad, this boy was a prime example of someone who needed somebody.

Shima was going to be that somebody.

When she walked up his throws became even more vicious, as if warning her to walk away. Shima didn't falter, her father's words clear in her mind. Not everybody accepted the kindness offered to them, sometimes you had to force it down their throats. It hadn't made much sense until she thought back to the silver-haired boy that never seemed to smile.

He needed to smile.

Standing near him, Shima looked up at him. His dark eyes met her for a second before he scoffed, turning his attention back to the target. "What's your name?" She asked with an inviting smile.

He ignored her flawlessly, not even sparing her a glance. Shima huffed. "Hey, I asked you what your name was!" A pout formed on her lips, hoping he would fall for the same trick her Uncle Tamashi did. He didn't bother looking at her, dubbing her a nuisance without even giving her a chance. "I'll go first to show you how it goes." Shima took a deep breath, puffing her chest up with confidence. "My name is Shima, Shima Himura."

She waited…and waited…and waited, but the boy still didn't acknowledge her. Shima was opening her mouth to tell him that he might as well answer because she wasn't going anywhere when his voice filled her ears for the first time. "Kakashi Hatake," he said. It didn't process for a moment because she was simply floored that he had spoken to her! She didn't realize the questioning look that overtook her face. "That's my name," he said blandly without any emotion, not even annoyance.

They were making progress!

A bright smile graced her lips. "I like it." She thought she was daydreaming, but she could have sworn Kakashi was blushing under that mask of his.

Yeah, she was going to be this boy's somebody because he was already hers.

Shima jolted out of her thoughts with a smile despite the receding headache. "I wanted to be Scarecrow's somebody, huh?" She chuckled at her own childish antics, wondering if she had succeeded in her endeavor. Considering the vast amount of time the two had spent together, the desperation of Kakashi trying to get her to remember him, and the attachment she had to the man now Shima came to the conclusion that she had.

Kakashi was a cute kid.

Laughing to herself, Shima looked down at the kid that was giving her an odd stare; the one he always gave her when she spaced out, which was something she did more than she liked to admit. Shima was getting far too scatter-brained lately. It was thankful that she wasn't on a mission, just training her unofficial pupil.

"Shima-sensei, you space out a lot…" Naruto trailed off with a frown.

Shima sighed. "I know, Naruto," she offered him a smile. "Will ramen earn your forgiveness?" It wasn't a second later that Naruto beamed up at her, a smile covering his entire face.

"Yeah, Ichiraku's!" Naruto gripped her hand in his, a habit he had, and dragged her out of the training fields into the direction of his new favorite ramen bar. Shima only shook her head in resignation, not really caring that he liked to lead the way. They didn't appear to be sensei and student at all, but siblings.

It would be different when Shima was a real jounin sensei. Her team of genin would already be ninja, not children like Naruto. They would be going on life-threatening missions that she would be in charge of, be killing people on those missions. For now, Naruto was only an Academy student that she was helping with his Taijutsu. She would let him get away with holding her hand so familiarly for the moment, because she knew he loved the attention.

"You've been really improving, Naruto." It had been hard at first to get him into the proper stance, but he had taken to it quickly enough. The kid had a habit of running in without any proper thinking, but Shima had fixed that. The teachers at the Academy had let him slip through the cracks, not really bothering to help him at all. They had given him the basics and basically left it at that. It was no wonder he had been so bad.

Naruto mumbled out what she believed to be a bright 'thank you', but the noodles muffling his words made it hard to tell. Shima chuckled, consuming her own food. He never failed to amuse her, even after two months of it. "I'm receiving a mission tomorrow, Naruto." At this, he visibly withered. It always made him upset when she had to leave. "It will take a few days, so don't forget to go through that routine I gave you." He nodded with a slight frown. Shima ruffled his hair affectionately, before poking him in the forehead. "Don't look so glum. It doesn't suit your face."

Her student wiped away his frown. "Sorry, Shima-sensei, it's just really boring when you have to leave."

"It's going to be really boring without you on the team, Shima." She stopped every movement with a sharp expression; her chopsticks fell into her bowl. The bright voice faded away in an instant, but Shima tried her hardest to grab onto it. There was a flash of orange, a blur of a face she couldn't see clearly.

What team? Shima's heart clenched painfully when two more faces joined the one that had spoken, both unable to be identified. She placed her hand on the ramen bar to stop the world from spinning. "Shima-sensei! Shima-sensei!" Naruto was screaming for her, but he sounded far away. Who were those people? Those people that were hurting her heart so much?

Naruto was shaking her now. "Shima-sensei, what's going on?!" She blinked out of her thoughts, pushing away those faces that were a constant mystery to her. They were one of those blocks in her memory she was too scared to discover; the memories physically wounding her as if the memory seal was still in place.

Shima waved a dismissive hand. "I'm fine, Naruto. I just have a headache," she lied.

Naruto looked at her skeptically, but knew better than to ask. Shima smiled at him warmly. "So, who's Scarecrow?"

Shima blushed, realizing she had spoken out loud after her flashback. "A friend," she said lamely. Kakashi, Scarecrow, was more than that in some way, but Shima didn't know how. She scrutinized the word friend as Naruto went back to his ramen.

Naruto waved goodbye as he headed to his now clean apartment. Shima walked away as she remembered how much hell the two had been through to clean that place. It had taken up the good portion of a day to make it suitable for living, but the results made her happy. Naruto now lived in a healthy apartment. She shuddered at the memory of a scary pair of boxers that had to have been glued to the floor for weeks at least.

What had gone so wrong during this mission?

Shima blinked painfully as the poison spread through her system with each shaky breath. An Inuzuka looked over her with worried eyes, saying something she couldn't hear. Everything felt so far away as her heartbeat pounded in her ears. She fought back tears as the poison thrummed in her veins. The Inuzuka was in her face, shouting nonsense at her. Shima met his eyes with her own.

"Shit, look at her eyes! Where is that medic?" The Inuzuka was looking around quickly, trying to spot their team medic among the carnage. A light-haired woman shouted something back at him while bending over their other teammate. She rushed over with a grave face; a field medic's face. She said something to Shima, but it was too quiet to hear.

The poison caused her body to seize up painfully, bringing tears to her eyes. Reality slipped away as she watched the Inuzuka's face twist into a grimace. She closed her eyes.

Sorry, Naruto. It looks like I may not make it to training next week. That was the last thought Shima had as the darkness overcame her, making her spirit travel to an unknown location.

Three figures stood in front of her with frowns on their blurry faces. Shima squinted to clear her vision, but their faces were unidentifiable no matter how hard she looked. A boy younger than her by several years looked up at her with his long black hair falling around his face. "You would think someone with such a deep hatred for the hospital would be more careful." The two beside him nodded.

"Shima Himura being careful? Ha, that will happen the day she stops eating sweets." The orange-haired boy crossed his arms with a knowing nod.

The other boy shook his head. "You shouldn't bring up her sweet tooth in front of her. We both know what happened last time…" Orange Boy shuddered.

Shima swallowed the massive lump forming in her throat. "Who are you?" she asked the three in a quiet voice that felt much too loud.

Orange Boy seemed infuriated. "Did you hear that, sensei!? She doesn't even recognize us! What kind of friend is that?" The hurt in his raised voice made a familiar ache sharper than a kunai work its way into her chest, making it hard to breath.

"It can't be helped." The tallest figure's frame seemed to stiffen out of its previous slouch. Shima was frozen in place, her chest being torn apart from the inside. The tall man before her with a face she couldn't see just seemed to demand her utmost respect.

The boy with black hair stood a little straighter. "Shima-chan wouldn't forget us on purpose. She cannot be blamed." His voice was so sure of what he was saying that Shima felt warmth battling with the pain inside. At least someone had faith in her.

"Of course not," the man said to the boy. With a sigh he turned to her, the eyes she couldn't make out boring into hers. "The boys and I have truly missed you, Shima-chan, but I'm afraid you're not ready to be with us just yet. It's time for you to leave."

Both boys jumped in shock at the man's words. The one with orange hair spoke first. "Sensei, how can you say that!? We've been waiting so long for her to return, how can you just tell her to leave!?"

"I agree with him, sensei. We haven't seen Shima-chan in a very long time. After seeing her again like this it will be very hard to watch her go." The other boy clearly had a deep frown on his blurry face. Shima choked on an empty sob. This scene was hurting her in so many unknown ways. The pain in her chest spread throughout her whole body, making her body throb.

The man shook his head. "I've been waiting for this moment as long as you have, boys. It isn't Shima-chan's time yet. We have to let her wake up. She has people waiting for her."

"What about us?"

"We will wait here patiently. Neither of you are willing to leave without her, are you?"

The boy with black hair shook his head sharply. "It would be impossible for us to move on properly without her." Orange Boy nodded his agreement dramatically.

The man seemed to smile softly, turning back to her. "Try to watch out for yourself, Shima-chan. It would be unfortunate to see you again before the proper time. Wake up."

Her eyes traveled between the three before the pain enveloped her whole body, a bright light hiding them from her view. The kunoichi thrashed wildly in an attempt to stay, trying to reach out for them with all her strength. Shima didn't want to wake up; not yet. She didn't want to leave these three again. Again?

What did she mean by again?

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Shima slept peacefully on the grass, not caring that she was sleeping soundly in the open. Kakashi sighed, kneeling to get closer. "Shima, you're going to catch a cold sleeping like that." They had just finished perfecting her new jutsu and the work had wiped her energy, but the least she could do was go home.

"Mhm," she mumbled in her sleep, not making a move to get up. He poked her head sharply. This earned him a sharp glare from her sleepy eyes. It was inappropriate how cute she looked. Before he could blink, he was pulled firmly onto the ground with Shima using his lap as a pillow.

He was speechless at the turn of events. Kakashi wasn't sure how to respond to the teenage girl sleeping soundly with her head perched on his leg. She opened her bleary eyes when he squirmed. "Quit moving, I'm trying to sleep, Scarecrow." Kakashi did as he was told, letting her sleep. A blush crept up his cheeks as he looked down at her sleeping face. He kept telling himself not to think about the scene they must be showing, but it was hard when her head's weight kept reminding him that he was a freaking pillow.

"You're comfortable, Scarecrow. I should use you as a pillow more often." Shima sighed in her sleep, making Kakashi's blush turn a darker shade of red. He hated himself for thinking that he hoped she would follow up on that statement...

There was a sharp knock on his door, dragging the tired jounin out of the pages of his book. It was only when he felt the gentle motions of the ocean that he sat up. Sayuri rarely showed her chakra, but when she did it meant business. Even retired the habit of hiding her chakra was one she chose not to break.

Kakashi frowned. The older woman never visited his apartment; it was always him visiting her. He opened the door. "Hello, Sayuri." She met his eyes with a haunted look, one she only wore when giving bad news. It made the man uneasy seeing that look in her eyes and he was thanking the gods she wasn't crying.

Sayuri only cried when those close to her were dead.

"What's wrong?"

"Shima-bird's in the hospital." That wasn't a rare occurrence considering the woman's habit of protecting her teammates; something Kakashi admired greatly. But something in Sayuri's eyes said it was different this time. His heart clenched. "It's really bad this time, Kakashi. I…" Sayuri twitched. "I haven't seen her this wounded in a very long time."

Kakashi's grip on the door tightened. "I'll go see her right away." Sayuri nodded, leaving without another word. The jounin didn't blame her, knowing she was probably having a hard time dealing with her daughter being so wounded after finally being reunited with her.

The nurse led him into a sterile room reserved for those in intensive care. Shima was lying in the bed with a pained expression on her face. Kakashi took in the extent of her injuries: a stab wound through the shoulder, a deep gash in her abdomen, a broken wrist, a cut on her neck. That wasn't even including the chakra exhaustion or the damage to her insides due to jutsu and poison. He let out a shaky sigh, trying to push away the anxiety working its way into his mind.

Shima was alive, that's all that mattered.

He sat in the chair beside the bed, opening his book up to the last page. Kakashi thought back to when he saw her two weeks ago, when he punished her for that unpleasant visit from Guy. A sly grin rested on his lips when he recalled her face at that time. "You really are fun to tease," he said to her sleeping form. It didn't bother him that she was unable to respond.

He was used to talking to people who couldn't hear him.

Shima sat up suddenly, clutching her head between both of her hands. Her whole body shook from something Kakashi didn't know of. He gripped her uninjured wrist. "Shima, what's wrong?"

Her eyes met his. "Why can't I see their faces, Kakashi? They stood right in front of me, but I couldn't see their faces! They were right there." Shima's eyes were unfocused, panicked. The hands gripping her head twitched in a way that meant a fray of her nerves.

Kakashi didn't know how to respond, instead focusing on trying to calm her down. His hand twitched to rub her hair, but the personal barriers he had established kept him from doing so. His mind was working at full speed, fearing for Shima's state mind. It was unlike her to look so panicked at the absence of her memories. She had been incredibly frustrated in the beginning, but had come to accept the slow return. This outburst was something he was not prepared for.

The silver-haired man put a hand on the mess of choppy burgundy hair upon her head in as comforting a gesture he could manage without breaking the rules he had firmly given himself. The shaking of her body began to calm down; her hands once again were steadied. Shima bowed her head with the palms of her hands covering her face. There was a sense of defeat radiating from her that Kakashi couldn't stand.

For once he wasn't sure what to say. There was obviously something huge going on inside that head of hers and he had no clue what it could be. It was one of those moments that he felt completely helpless, one of those moments the Copy-Nin despised.

Shima was in pain. Resigning himself, Kakashi pulled her head into his chest with only the smallest amount of inner debate. Her body stiffened from the unusual action, but began to relax in his hold. He almost sighed, where were his personal boundaries now?

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[A/N]: This is where the story begins to get more into the major stuff, letting me move on from certain points. I know you're probably waiting for the Scarecrow/Shima reunion, but that's not for another two or three chapters. Be patient, okay? I have to get Shima's mind prepared!

You are welcome to PM me or review with any questions. Thanks for reading! You guys make me happy to continue with this story!

Fun Fact: The cover photo for this story is the Himura Clan symbol.