'For a great shinobi war, they haven't exactly called me away to anything intense yet. But soon. Sooooon…'
Kazusa knew it was coming, but the Sandaime Hokage saw how badly the police chief's son was taking the death of his beloved teammate. A boy that rattled still needed his mother. Such was the argument the clan had made, though Kazusa was starting to itch for real combat.
She hadn't gone on a real war mission since her youth, and a part of her missed it. Already, Sarani got called in at least eight times since this damned thing started—though she couldn't blame Hiruzen for calling her husband to duty time and again. He belonged to an elite disposal team, unsurpassed. Sarani was someone in whom she could take pride, though was it wrong to wish for a little action on her own part?
Then again, the KMPF were here to keep the village internally under control and in compliance. They needed a first line of defense and someone to keep prisoners under control once they made it here. Who could be better than the KMPF to court-marshal captured deserters who weren't to be executed on the spot?
The village needed Captain Kazusa to stay in place, it seemed, no matter how badly Captain Kazusa longed for the battlefield before her arthritic joints deprived her of the ability to fight altogether.
Today served as nothing more than a standard patrol, checking certain points of the village to confirm they hadn't been breached and no shady business was going on behind closed doors. So far, there was nothing. Nothing but–
"Kazusaaaaaaahahahahaha! Good to see you!"
The Uchiha woman paused in place, grimacing slightly as her right ankle gave her some trouble. That pain was nothing compared to the excitement she felt upon seeing an old friend. "Well, if it isn't my favorite wild wolf-man of the woods! It's been too long, Kariudo!" He was every bit as feral-looking as she remembered. "You just came back from the war zone, didn't you?"
"That I did! Your boy and his teammates saved my ass a couple of months ago by getting rid of those bombs. It's a shame what happened to the Senju kid, but how's your son holding up? Fugu, right?"
"Fugaku. And he's doing much better. Sarani convinced him to sign up for a new team, so he's already back to doing missions." And this time, Fugaku had a permanent jōnin instructor rather than being passed around by whatever tokubetsu jōnin the village could spare. "With Buyo."
Kariudo cringed when he heard that name, but snickered when he noticed Kazusa's sympathy grimace.
"I can't help but notice you aren't alone, Kariudo." Kazusa squatted down, wanting to get a better look at the little tomboy holding her daddy's hand. "You must be Tsume-chan."
She'd heard her teammate talk about his daughter a few times but never met the child before. Who else could this cute little rascal be? Her hair was every bit as dark and unruly as her father's.
Kazusa held out a hand for the child to shake. "I'm Uchiha Kazusa: one of your father's teammates."
"I like yer sunglasses," Tsume admitted, shaking as energetically and fiercely as her three-year-old hand could muster. "An' yer uniform."
"Tsume, Kazusa here is the captain of the Konohagakure Military Police Force." Well, that certainly caught the child's attention. "Not to mention she's the head of the Uchiha Clan." Even more so! "I think she likes you."
"Well, you know what?" Kazusa grinned, ruffling the girl's hair and chuckling as she saw how it stood up and refused to go back down. "I have a feeling I'll like Tsume-chan, too."
Despite the tough, no-nonsense resolve she tended to hold during working hours for most everyone, she was different around children. Every time one of her comrades became a parent, it was inevitable. She'd fall in love with the child, shower them with affection, and want to know all about them.
It was a sweet enough notion, but Kariudo knew the origin of that behavior. Several years ago, Kazusa lost a baby. Between that baby's death and Fugaku's birth, there was a long string of failed pregnancies. After Fugaku, Kazusa and Sarani tried, but the medics insisted she'd have no further luck with children. He was the only one they'd ever have.
There was a long and lonely period of eight years where she and Sarani were a childless couple, enviously watching as their lifelong friends started families. Kariudo had been a late bloomer in that regard and therefore been Kazusa's top confidante outside the clan.
"My boy was adorable at this age. Sometimes I miss that because he's certainly not cute now," she admitted. "We'd work ourselves ragged, but it was worth it just to come home and see how excited he'd get."
Days where one of them could actually afford to stay home were even better. He'd been such a playful child, so full of energy.
"Enjoy having Tsume-chan around with you for as long as you can. She'll be a kunoichi before you know it." Tsume's face wrinkled up at that as if she smelled something bad. "What's wrong?"
"I hate Kunoichi Preschool," she growled, folding her arms. "Did you have to go?"
"Nope," Kazusa admitted, continuing to squat down so she could have a chat with the child. "When I was a kid, Lady Mito and her friends were still figuring out how they wanted to run that program. What's it like?"
"AWFUL!" Tsume yelled, holding both of her hands up in a melodramatic display of annoyance. "They don't teach me how to fight! All we do is play with flowers, sew stuff, and cook. It's boring and the other girls are boring and…" Oh, that rant could go on and on, it seemed!
'You're a girl after my own heart,' Kazusa thought, trying her best to conceal her smile. "Hey…Kariudo? I don't mind showing her a thing or two, assuming you don't have any issues with that."
A roar of laughter ensued instead. "Well, her ma ducked out on us, so that would be great."
…
The Inuzuka Clan was one of the newer pioneer families. They weren't a founding family like the Uchiha, but Kazusa's father insisted up and down that didn't make the Inuzuka any less necessary for the village's strength. The whole way over here, he'd made a point of reiterating to Kazusa what he wanted her to do.
"We're trying something new as a village. You'll be placed in a team with children from other clans. Learn all you can about them and try to make friends."
"And one of them's an Inuzuka?" Kazusa asked, watching as her father nodded his head. "The other one is a…? Sorry. I forgot."
"Nara. The girl is a Nara and should be here a little later." He'd intentionally pushed his daughter to meet her other teammate first. There, standing at the edge of the woods, were two of the wildest-looking people Kazusa had ever seen.
The woman—her new teammate's mother, Kazusa assumed—had nails so long and sharp that they resembled talons. Her hair was frizzy and almost entirely white. A large number of claw marks scarred her body and she sported an eye patch. "…Okami-dono," she heard her father greet, bowing in respect. This woman, Okami, did the same. "This must be Kariudo."
"And this is Kazusa?" Okami held out her hand. Kazusa's eyes went right to how dark her nail beds were, but she couldn't tell if the cause was dirt or blood. Either way, there was a strong doggy smell coming from both these strangers. "I hope you and my son become good friends. Your father is one of the toughest men I've ever fought!"
"Indeed. I left you for dead."
"I sure fooled you, didn't I?!" Okami guffawed. "But don't you worry about that now! Now we all belong to a bigger, stronger village. It's time to put old grudges aside and build something better! Isn't that what Hashirama says?"
Kazusa noticed how her father bit his lip, but he said nothing in response to that. He simply moved off with Okami to talk about the bad old days, all in tones too low for his daughter's ears to pick up.
"I guess that means it's just you and me for now, huh?"
"Guess so!" the Inuzuka boy replied, grinning. Right away, Kazusa noted how sharp his teeth were. "Pleased to meet you, Kazusa-chan."
"You too!" Though her eyes were drawn far more to the lanky, grizzled-looking pup beside her new teammate. "Is that your puppy?!"
"Yeah! Every Inuzuka gets a ninja dog once they become a shinobi!" And right away, he saw the light shine in Kazusa's coal black eyes. "You love animals too?"
"I really, really do. I had this amazing cat once–"
"A cat, huh?" Kariudo chuckled. "Well, no one's perfect, I suppose; but it's great to have another animal lover on the team. I'm sure we'll become best friends."
"I want that, too!" Kazusa agreed. "Even when we're older."
"Good," she heard her father call out. "That boy is going to lead his people someday. Build a friendship with him."
…
She could hear Fugaku and Hizashi whispering upstairs, trying their best not to be heard. Very well. She could give the boys their privacy. After all, Hizashi was her son's guest and he'd been polite enough to help her clean the table after everyone finished their sukiyaki.
Poor thing. She pitied him so.
"Well, the kitchen's clean again," Kazusa sighed, putting the mop away. "Don't ask me to do anything else tonight. I'm tired." Sarani put the miniature stove away and placed a gentle hand on his wife's back. "I'm thinking about taking a bath. Want to join me?"
Sarani gave her cheek a kiss and wrapped his arms around her. She was too tall for him to rest his head on her shoulder. "Sure, but can I confide in you for a moment?"
"Hm?"
"While I helped set up futons, our son made a comment."
Oh dear. This wouldn't be a good conversation. In recent memory, Fugaku had chewed Kazusa out for how she'd treated Nawaki. Nawaki continued to be a bone of contention between the two, even more so now that the kid was dead.
"He says we're turning this into a political thing and he'd appreciate it if we stopped."
"…that's it. You aren't bathing with me, Sarani. You killed my mood." He let go, too. "Fugaku needs to get over himself because that's exactly what this is. My father pushed me to join a team with another heir apparent. Kariudo and I are on great terms and you've seen how strong we've bonded with the Inuzuka Clan as a result."
"Don't dismiss our child's feelings so easily, Kazusa." For this, Sarani wouldn't keep his mouth shut. His arms were folded. "Not every friendship Fugaku makes has to carry some sort of hidden agenda. Maybe it's enough that he made friends with Hiashi's twin. You don't even like the Hyūga Clan."
"Who does? They're the biggest snobs in the goddamn village and everyone knows it. You're missing the whole point."
"Then enlighten me. What am I missing?"
"It's the principle of the thing. It isn't exactly like Kariudo's little girl is old enough to be a viable teammate for Fugaku, but she could easily make friends with Mikoto or someone else in the clan." And perpetuate the camaraderie for another generation.
"But doesn't your other teammate have a son the same rank as ours? I find it funny that you're purposefully ignoring that." Sarani's face turned smug the instant he noticed how deeply he'd succeeded in annoying his spouse. She glowered just thinking about Nara Tochiko.
…
Kazusa spent the whole of her afternoon chatting away with Kariudo, but most of their stories revolved around special pets in their lives. Kariudo had a story for every single dog in his mother's massive pack, each one more badass and amazing than the last. "I used to ride Shiromaru like a horse!"
Kazusa, on the flip side, took ownership for the rapidly increasing feral cat colony populating her neighborhood. Bōfūu had been one very busy kitty after her father pressured her into abandoning him.
The adults were still talking in the background, but that didn't even matter. She could wander back to her clan by sundown and spend the rest of the afternoon with this interesting boy.
In some ways, she felt he already understood her better than Naho did. Kariudo felt like a kindred soul, like a brother she never knew she wanted until she actually met him.
So naturally her hopes were sky high the instant their other team member arrived. 'She's a Nara,' she remembered her father telling her. 'They own a lot of the woods and tend to the deer. That and they have really useful shadow jutsu.'
"Over here!" Kariudo called out, waving his arm toward this girl. She wore her hair tightly back in a bun and sported an earth-tone yukata. "I'm Inuzuka Kariudo and this is Uchiha Kazusa. We're your new teammates!"
"Pleased to meet you, Kariudo-kun," the girl replied, giving him a polite bow. "I am Nara Tochiko."
"We're excited to meet you," Kazusa added, but the girl grimaced. "What's the matter?"
"…oh. I was hoping I wouldn't have to share a team with an Uchiha," Tochiko admitted, shrugging her narrow shoulders.
"Why not?" Kazusa immediately jumped on the defensive with this, thin-skinned as she was. Kariudo tried to calm her down a bit by telling her that her braid was fluffing up like an angry cat's tail, but all that merited was an elbow to his stomach. "I wanna hear it. What's so bad about my clan?"
"Where do I even begin?" Tochiko retorted, sticking out her tongue. "But if you want an example, I'll gladly provide one." Kazusa's face progressively turned redder with every word to leave this girl's mouth. Who the hell did she think she was? "An Uchiha man poached some of my family's deer. We didn't give him permission, nor did he apologize. He hasn't quit, either."
Instantly, Kazusa knew who the culprit was. Not every child in the clan had it as good as she did. There was an older boy who fished every day, trying to bring enough meat home to provide for his family. He kept fishing even after his little brother drowned.
"I saw him before," Tochiko continued. "He was covered in dirt. He smelled like dirt."
'And he's poor enough that his wife sometimes has to EAT dirt,' Kazusa thought, seething. "That family's practically starving," she snapped. "Cut him a little slack. They need that meat."
"He has a family?"
"Yes!" And already, she could see Kariudo scooting further away. How quickly he learned.
"With kids?"
"One son."
"If he can't afford to feed himself, then that man had no business having kids in the first place," Tochiko growled. "I'll work with you in a team, but I'm not going to like you. Ever."
'You're not so lovable either, you little bitch,' Kazusa thought, casting her gaze briefly toward her father, Inuzuka Okami, and Tochiko's parents…then back to Tochiko. "Tochiko-chan?"
"What?"
"You aren't a clan head's daughter, are you?"
"No. Why do you–"
…it didn't matter that she was scolded the whole way home for beating that girl bad enough to knock out two teeth. Nothing her father yelled at her, even an impressive string of profanities, could wipe the smug grin off her beaming pudgy face.
…
She typically didn't clock out of work around 3:00 in the afternoon, but today was special. Sarani agreed to cover the rest of the shift for her. Kariudo gave the okay for her to pick Tsume up from Kunoichi Preschool, spend the afternoon with his little girl, and walk the child back home.
Besides, he knew how badly she'd always secretly wanted a daughter. Fugaku was great and she wouldn't trade him for anyone else, but it would have been nice to give him a rambunctious little sister.
Tsume felt like a kindred spirit. What part of a wild-hearted tomboy wouldn't appeal to her? And her mother was out of the picture. It couldn't hurt to bond with her friend's child and be a positive female role model, could it?
She made it to the Kunoichi Preschool in time to see some of Tsume's annoyance in full action. A prissy little Yūhi girl laughed and pointed. "See? I told you. You keep bullying us and someone's gonna call the police." Tsume shook a fist at the girl, making her squeak in terror, and then pranced over to the tall Uchiha woman. She grinned from ear to ear.
"Hi oba-san! What're you gonna teach me?"
"I thought we could go out for dango first," Kazusa suggested. "I haven't had a chance to treat my boy in a while."
"You have a kid?! Is he my age, or is he older?"
"He's twelve."
"That's too old. Never mind."
"But there's a girl in my clan who isn't that much older than you! If you train with me sometime, maybe you two can play." Mikoto did great with younger children. She already wanted to help Nanami and Kitaro with their twin babies, despite only being seven herself.
"You know, Kazusa oba-san?" Tsume reached out for the woman's hand, playfully dragging her along. "I'm glad you came by. Otou-san says you're the greatest."
"He's lying."
Tsume laughed at that, still grinning. "But there's one thing I don't like about you." The Uchiha woman froze in place and gave the child a quizzical look. What on earth could it be?
"…you're a cat person, aren't you?"
