A/N: More backstory revealing to come, which I think might involve lots of flashbacks. I'm rather glad that I managed to get this chapter out relatively soon after the last update. Happy reading!
Chapter 36: Family
The pounding in her skull roused her for what seemed like the hundredth time that night. As before, Kurotsuki tried to ignore the headache and fall back asleep, but a quiet voice, not belonging to any of the ANBU guards, sounded.
"Finally awake?"
Despite the pain, she forced her eyes open. The sight of the dark-haired man, with red eyes and a cloud-patterned cloak, made her draw breath sharply. "You're not fighting already, are you?" she whispered timidly.
Uchiha Itachi shook his head. "Not yet. Sasuke hasn't been able to find me."
"But you shouldn't be here, it's dangerous for you to be seen." Her voice barely rose above a whisper. Her throat was aching from the screams that had escaped her as Hiashi activated her seal.
He chuckled. "Have you noticed that all of the ANBU in the room haven't lifted a finger yet?"
"Oh."
"I always told the Hokage that the ANBU had to get rid of masks. The problem with eyeholes is that you can always tell where they're looking. All it takes to win a battle is a well-placed genjutsu. Besides, masks cut all your peripheral vision anyway."
"I suspect that purely visual genjutsu became a much smaller concern after the massacre," she pointed out.
The man shrugged. "Maybe you'll be able to carry on the Uchiha legacy in Konoha. Sasuke's not intent on coming back any time soon, from what I can tell."
"Ew, no." She stuck out her tongue. "Kids are gross. Besides, it seems like I might be the first of us to go."
His brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
Kurotsuki smiled sadly. "They know about you. I knew they'd find out soon enough, whether or not I said anything. Someone went through the old mission files and found the one that you and Hyuuga Hizashi went on. Didn't take long for them to put two and two together and figure out that you were the one who taught me how to be a shinobi after Kougyoku was destroyed. Now there's an execution order that's been put through, on the ground of association with a wanted S-rank criminal. And I guess you're further wanted for sharing Konoha's secrets, not that that changes much for you."
Itachi let out a sigh. "You were always supposed to outlive me, kiddo."
"Guess I won't be. I overhead they're carrying out the execution when I can walk again. Dignity before your death and all that."
"They've told you that? Couldn't you just pretend to be bedridden then?"
She snorted. "The ANBU talk when they think I'm asleep."
He took a few steps towards her hospital bed, reached out, and ruffled her hair. "Is there no way to have the execution stayed?"
"Kakashi might try something. He always worries too much about me. If push comes to shove, I can always run. I can come find you, and it'll be the way it was before. Just you and me."
The Uchiha shook his head. "You know the rule. Two people are twice as easy to find."
She sighed and seemed to deflate a little. "Yeah, I know."
Itachi pulled a small chair closer to the bed and sat down. He found it strange that he, a wanted criminal, was sitting exactly where any other brother would be, if his sister had landed in the hospital. "I don't think I ever told you, but you've done remarkably well. You survived five years between the destruction of Kougyoku and finding me after I left Konoha. And your skills are exceptional for only having spent four years with me."
Kurotsuki blushed and averted her eyes. "It... it's probably because She gives me so much chakra to work with."
"Chakra isn't everything. You have to want it, and keep trying even when you've only seen failure. How has your doujutsu been serving you?"
"I've trained with Neji, but I haven't really had the chance to use it. Some missions went south for the Jounin that lead Team 8 and Team 10, so our team has mostly been on standby while it was sorted out."
"Well, Hidan and Kakuzu aren't around to harass Konoha anymore at the very least. Shame I won't get to see those eyes put to use. I would have liked to know if the byakugan helped sort the blindness issue," he commented.
Worry descended on her features. "How are your eyes, Onii-chan? You haven't been using the mangekyou, have you?"
He shook his head in answer. For an instant, the red disappeared from his eyes, sharingan deactivated. The dark, calm pools of his eyes watched her, with the moon's light seeping in around the edges of the blinds.
Kurotsuki's breath caught in her throat. She was sent back in time, to when she had found Itachi at his most vulnerable.
...
Itachi paused on a branch and turned his head to check the forest floor below. His senses had been on extremely high alert ever since he'd fled his home. Someone had been following him. For two days now, his shadow, which moved as silently as a true shadow, had mirrored his tree-branch path on the ground. But the stench of strong chakra had alerted even his ordinary nose to their presence as soon as they were within range. He leapt to the ground and drew his ANBU-issue katana. It was the only piece of gear he'd kept apart from his Konoha headband, which now lay in his pocket, slashed through the middle. Everything else, the chestplate, arm guards, even his kunai holster he had gotten rid of. They were too distinctive and at thirteen, he was now a man on the run. "How long do you intend on keeping this up?"
A large silver wolf emerged from between the trees, teeth bared. At its heels, a figure clad in black followed. "Until I get a chance to talk to you."
Itachi analyzed his opponent. The voice, feminine. Blue eyes and the tips of silver bangs showed in the eye slit that she'd left in the black scarf wound about her head. She was skinny and shorter than himself, but probably the same age. Another thirteen year old out in the forest by chance? Unlikely. There was no identifying insignia on her clothes, which looked civilian rather than shinobi. Contradicting this was the sword strapped to her back, good workmanship judging by the hilt. He noted her bare feet, which had allowed her to follow him so quietly. "We talked. There goes your chance." He leapt forward and swung his katana lazily, testing her. She darted behind a tree as the wolf reared up and snapped its jaws at him. His katana sliced through the air where she had been and he landed a couple paces away. She doesn't even know how to use that sword.
"Wait, I really just want to talk!" The girl held up her hands and waved them in surrender. "I just have this feeling that I know you. From somewhere. Do you know me?" She unwound the scarf from her head.
He blinked a few times to make sure he was seeing clearly. "So you survived." The face was older, but it was definitely the same. The girl he was convinced had died years ago when he'd been paired with Hyuuga Hizashi for a low-rank mission. "71, was it?"
She blinked, confused. "The year we met? I'm not old enough for that."
The realization hit him. "You don't remember. It was a traumatic night, I wouldn't be surprised. The doctors called you 'Number 71.'"
"Oh... I didn't know that. Can you tell me more?" Her blue eyes looked hopefully at him.
He sheathed his sword, knowing the girl wouldn't pose any danger to him. "For one thing, the Hyuuga and Uchiha clans-" would raise hell if they found out you were still alive. He never finished his sentence. Itachi's throat closed and he felt his eyes begin to sting. His hands began to shake. He clenched them into fists and wrestled with the emotions that threatened to rise up and swallow him whole. Calm. Control... Control... But his control was failing.
"You're upset."
The Uchiha's head snapped up to look at her. He drew his katana again and pointed it at her. Her eyes were black and red, but not the sharingan he was so used to seeing. The dark irises reflected his pale face back at him, haloed with a blood red that glowed in the shadows. "Stop," he ordered. Itachi wished his voice sounded sterner instead of trembling.
The girl walked towards him with silent, measured steps. She kept advancing, impaling her shoulder on the sword that was shaking in his hands.
He could smell her blood. The scenes of the massacre assaulted him. Crouching on the telephone pole, with the full moon at his back. The suffocating stench of blood. His last words to his parents. Little Sasuke sliding open the door. The horror on his face. Sasuke's shrill voice ringing in his ears. His taunt and challenge to his little brother that he loved so much. His own tears, wet on his cheeks, drying as he fled. The splash of all his ANBU gear in the river. His shaking hands carving a line through the leaf of Konoha before tossing his last kunai into the water. Red and black, his mangekyou sharingan staring back at him in the rippling water. Itachi's tears came again. His vision blurred and he fought to steady his breaths to no avail.
"Don't be sad. She likes it when people are sad. I don't like it when She gets what She wants." She wrapped her arms around his waist. The sword was awkwardly hanging between them, still protruding through her shoulder, but she didn't seem to notice. A soft white glow enveloped her and slowly reached out include his shaking form.
Itachi fell to his knees, clutching a stranger in the forest, and cried.
...
Back then, Itachi hadn't used his sharingan much to reduce his chances of getting caught. After joining the Akatsuki, he always kept it active. "I can hardly see without it." The red returned to his irises and he focused on his sister again. "I need to go, but don't you die before me. Send Tsuki if you run away, so I know not to look for you here anymore." Itachi bent over and gently cradled her head to his shoulder. "Will you make sure my body is burned? On a lake, with Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu until only ashes are left?"
She nodded silently as she fought back her tears. It's his last goodbye.
"Thank you." He began to hum, a sad, slow lullaby whose words he had forgotten long ago. She joined in, adding her voice to his. Shortly after, the last note faded into silence. "I'm glad we got to be each other's family, Kurotsuki," he said to her quietly.
"Me too."
"Goodbye."
"...Goodbye." Kurotsuki looked up at Uchiha Itachi's face for the last time before he vanished. He left a small whirlwind of leaves in his wake, one last tribute to his home.
Sakura groaned at the knock on her door. It's Saturday! Why am I being woken up on a Saturday?! And it's my day off!
"Sakura-chan, open the door," a very familiar voice said from the other side.
The kunoichi grabbed her pillow in one hand and wrenched the door open with the other, prepared to thoroughly buffet Naruto on the other side. "What."
Naruto hurriedly put up a forearm to block the blow. "You'd better get dressed. Kakashi-sensei told me to get you and head over to the hospital. I'll tell you about something on the way."
Sakura sighed and returned to her room to pull on her customary shinobi attire. Even on her day off, she couldn't avoid the hospital. She was supposed to go shopping with Ino, but Kakashi-sensei had priority over that. Besides, Ino was usually late to their shopping meet-ups. "So what's going on?"
He furrowed his brow. "Well, last night, I woke up because I had this weird feeling. And I wandered over to the hospital, where I heard screaming."
She shrugged. "It happens sometimes. Best way to have something seen to quickly if your condition suddenly changes."
"It's different. As I got close, it was muffled with a genjutsu, and when I tried to look into the window, an ANBU appeared and told me to leave."
Now it was her turn to furrow her brow. "That shouldn't be happening," she mumbled. "We treat people to help them, not to harm them. And there shouldn't be anyone in the hospital that needs an ANBU guard."
They both slowed their run as they neared the hospital and walked through the glass sliding doors. "Here's the thing, Kakashi-sensei was right outside, watching the window, and he told me it was Kurotsuki's room."
"Didn't she just finish the Exam last week? I don't remember her appearing in the medical tent." She tapped her cheek pensively. "But there were a lot of injuries near the end, and there was some kerfuffle and a bunch of ANBU left with Tsunade-sama." Sakura approached the main desk and flashed a smile at the receptionist.
"Sakura-san! I thought you didn't need to be in today."
She laughed. "It seems I can't stay away. Could you tell me which room Fuyuuno Kurotsuki is in?"
The blonde frowned at what her screen was showing after a rapid search command. "It's not displayed here, Sakura-san. I'm afraid I can't tell you."
She craned her head around the monitor and frowned. "No room number in the central system. Well that's unusual."
"Follow me," a sharp voice said behind her.
"Kakashi-sensei! What's going on?" her teammate demanded.
The grey-haired man simply turned and headed for the stairs, leaving his two students to follow. The three of them sprinted up the stairs until Kakashi opened a door back into the main building and headed for a room on the other end of the hallway. They entered just as Shizune was handing a black scroll to one of the eight ANBU standing guard.
"I brought the whole gang," Kakashi announced.
Shizune turned around and eyes him cautiously. "What do you mean?"
"While you're handing out execution orders, I brought a couple more convicts," he said, spreading his hands to indicate Sakura, Naruto, and himself.
"Execution?!" Sakura shrieked.
"Kakashi-sensei-" Naruto started.
He held up his hand for silence. "That," he pointed at the black scroll, "is an execution order for Kurotsuki. The reason given is 'association and possible communication with a known and wanted S-rank criminal, Uchiha Itachi."
Sakura blinked and looked at the unmoving figure on the bed. "Itachi? I had no idea. So when she stayed behind to fight him in Suna..."
"Probably not a fight at all," Kakashi confirmed. "But Tsunade-sama will need to write three more execution orders, Shizune."
"Don't do this," she said, her eyes widening.
"Team 7 should be executed for association and possible communication with a known and wanted S-rank criminal. Uchiha Sasuke."
The Hokage's assistant closed her eyes and drew a very controlled breath. "You know what Tsunade-sama will do. You know what she has to do."
"Yes, and if this is what I have to do to protect my team, then I will do it." He fixed her with his one-eyed gaze.
Shizune took the black scroll from the ANBU that she had given it do, and headed to the door. "Tsunade-sama won't be pleased about this."
"You can tell her that I wouldn't be pleased with my team being down to three again. I couldn't stop Sasuke from leaving, but I will stop Kurotsuki's execution."
She sighed quietly and closed the door.
"Kakashi-sensei, what just happened?" Sakura demanded, rounding on him.
He shoved his hands into his pockets and shrugged. "I stayed Kurotsuki's execution."
She crossed her arms. "Details, sensei."
The man wandered over to one of the small chairs in the room and slouched into the seat. "You heard Shizune. Association with criminals. So I pointed out that the three of us are extremely associated with Sasuke and technically deserve the same fate. But Tsunade-sama can't afford to execute us all, so she has to let Kurotsuki live. At least for now." He looked up at his two students. "Another lesson for you both. Execution is one of the easiest rules to play, since it has to be consistent. If an authority figure wants to keep their power, execution can't be seen as arbitrary. Remember that, it might help you someday." Kakashi looked back at the silver-haired woman. "Shizune can probably update you on what's been found out during the interrogation last night. Why don't you go talk to her?"
Sakura frowned. "She broke out of Ibiki's building when she first got here. What could they have possibly done to get information from her?"
"Does that seal look familiar to you?" he said, gesturing at Kurotsuki's forehead.
Naruto blinked. "Like Neji's! The Hyuuga Main Family?"
"I wouldn't be surprised if they could get that to work like it does on Neji."
Rage blazed in Sakura's eyes. "Tsunade-sama wouldn't! What is she even thinking?! This is a hospital." She grabbed her teammate orange sleeve. "C'mon Naruto. We need to go talk to Shizune. And Tsunade-sama."
He dug is heels into the floor, forcing Sakura to stop. "Wait, is she ok? After everything last night?"
Kakashi didn't look at them. "I'll send Pakkun if she wakes, shall I?"
Sakura caught onto the dismissal, taking Naruto out of the room with her. She closed the door, leaving her sensei in the relative peace of Kurotsuki's room, with the eight ANBU still on guard.
The tables were set. The floor was swept. The green and white colour scheme was reflected in the flowing fabric decorations hanging from the walls and ceiling, and in napkins at each seat. A table with a neat row of scrolls sat next to the podium, ready for distribution to the Chunnin who had earned their titles as Jounin. As per usual, the Hyuuga had an entire section to themselves, as requested by the head of the family himself. Shizune nodded to herself as she looked over the room one last time. The Jounin Gala was about to begin. The attendant by the door began allowing the Chunnin and their friends and family enter the banquet hall. A couple familiar faces entered before Hyuuga Hinata entered, followed by her younger sister, and a portion of the Branch Family following. "Well that's interesting," Shizune murmured to herself.
Hinata and Hanabi were dressed in dark cream kimonos, the rich fabric flowing elegantly behind them as they entered the room. Shimmering white lilies adorned the hems of their formal dress, accompanied by dark green stems and leaves. The colours were typical of the Hyuuga family, but the green in the embroidery represented their pride in the village they served. Neji was the first of the Branch Family members entering the room, kindly assisting an elder from the Main Family. They were dressed in the same kimono, but in a mens' style. The remaining Hyuuga who entered the room also wore the same garb, whether they were Main or Branch. "Will you be presenting the scrolls again this year, Shizune-san?" Hinata asked kindly as she approached.
"Yes, I will be. I'm a bit surprised that you and Hanabi-chan haven't chosen a more... elaborate garb like in previous years," she mentioned. Just last year, Neji had earned his Jounin distinction, where the Branch and Main Families had been distinguishable based on clothing alone.
Hinata laughed. "You mean the kimonos that Otou-sama chose for us? No, I decided that I would rather wear something more comfortable this year."
"Those bells made a racket anyway," the younger girl quipped.
Shizune smiled. "The ceremony will be beginning soon. Perhaps you'd like to take your seats? I'm sure you're both anxious to find out whether Hinata made Jounin."
Neji appeared at his cousin's side to escort her to her table. Most of the hall had been filled at this point, but the seat to Hinata's left remained vacant. Just as the attendants were going to close the banquet hall doors for the ceremony to begin, Hyuuga Hiashi strode calmly into the room, with Hyuuha Hyzuko just behind him. His pale eyes took in the room in a single sweep. "Hinata." His voice sounded deep and clear, silencing the chatter in the room.
She stood at her table and bowed slightly. "Otou-sama, I was worried you would not arrive on time. I am glad that you have joined us in time for the ceremony. Would you sit and join us in finding out whether I have attained the rank of Jounin?"
"I wish to have a word. With you, and Hanabi as well. Outside."
Hanabi stood and held her sister's hand, and Hinata seemed to stand a bit taller. "What is the matter, Otou-sama?" giving no indication of leaving the room as her father wanted.
He gritted his teeth at his daughter's stubbornness. "You are not appropriately dressed for the occasion," the man said, a hint of disdain in his voice. "As a member of the Main Family, and the... heir..." he said the word like he'd just eaten something sour, "of your attire should reflect your standing." Hiashi swept an arm, indicating his own formal dress, much more elaborate than that of his daughters.
Hinata raised her chin and returned her father's glare with her own white irises. I won't give in to you. "I see no issue here, Otou-sama. We are all Hyuuga, we represent the clan, and I see no reason for our kimonos to differ. You taught Neji the arts of the Main Family after our Chunnin Exam. Doesn't this show that you feel the Branch Family should not be so separate from the Main Family?"
Her father's face contorted into a sneer. "That was because you were too weak to learn them. Too slow, too hesitant. I thought that Hanabi would have done well, but she had so foolishly refused my offer to make her the heir, out of love for you." If it was possible, the room hushed even further. "The arts had to be passed to the next generation. But frankly, I regret teaching them to Neji even though he had discovered some on his own. I was feeling sentimental towards Hizashi at the time. Now, I am not certain that it was for the benefit of the clan. It is disheartening that the only person with the skill to learn the ancient arts of the Hyuuga was a Branch member," he spat. "You were always a disappointment to me, Hinata."
"And you a disappointment to me, Otou-sama." Gasps were heard in the room. Shizune clapped her hand over her mouth, stunned by the statement and the fury that had sparked in Hinata's eyes. "I am disappointed, Otou-sama, that I am the one standing against you. You and uncle were twins, the same in every way except one. Why should the firstborn be in the Main Family and the second in the Branch Family? You should have been the one asking this, not me. You should have fought for it, for you both, to be of equal status." She clenched her fist by her side and clasped Hanabi's hand tighter. "I am disappointed that my father would attribute the difference between himself and his twin to fate, when uncle's seal was the only thing that allowed anyone to tell you apart. Uncle died so that he could choose his own fate. You never chose your own because you let the Main and Branch continue as it was." She paused to draw breath. "Why does the Branch exist to protect the Main? Hyuuga should all lay their lives on the line for each other. Because we bear the same name. Because we are all family."
Hiashi's face had gone stone still. "Hinata. You were always timid, but now you have become rash. Neither is befitting of the Hyuuga heir. Be silent and come, child. This little outburst will do nothing to change our traditions."
"I am not leaving my own Jounin Gala before it has even begun!" she exclaimed. "I understand the importance of tradition, but I will not support those that we currently have. I promised Neji, Hanabi, and everyone wearing this same kimono. I gave my word that I would change the Hyuuga. And I will not go back on my word, because that is my ninja way."
Her father narrowed his eyes at both his daughters, standing together against him. He turned and left the room. I will not acknowledge either of you anymore. Hiashi left the shocked Hyzuko at the doors, as the attendants closed them gently in front of him, assuming he would no longer be attending.
The entire hall erupted in applause and shrill whistles. Some shinobi had risen to their feet, others were slapping their palms on the tables or stomping on the floor.
"Well done, Onee-sama," Hanabi said in her ear.
Hinata felt the heat flare in her cheeks as she looked around the room. She was sure her face was red as a tomato, and a rather funny sight. But instead of laughter, smiles greeted her, some approving nods, and the cheers continued. Are all these people happy for me? Proud of what I did?
Kiba attacked her with a hug from behind. "That was incredible! I didn't know you were going to do something like that. In public, no less."
She was relieved that Kiba and Hanabi were by her side, and Shino approaching from the far corner of the room, the faintest of smiles on his lips. She was in particular grateful for Kiba's hug, as her vision darkened and she fainted.
Kurotsuki woke in a fit of coughing, each rush of air searing her throat. Her head throbbed in time with her pulse.
"Drink," a quiet voice commanded. A plastic cup was pressed to her lip as the bed was raised to an upright position.
She managed a few small sips to calm the dry desert that was her throat and opened her eyes slowly. The one-eyed onyx gaze that she saw made her smile despite the headache. "Kakashi." His features relaxed and he let out the breath that he had been holding. "I imagine you've heard by now," she said, resigned. "What do you think of me?"
Her words fell on deaf ears. He leant forward and hugged her reclined form. "I'm so glad you remember," he said in her ear. When he released her, he saw the puzzlement on her features. "I haven't heard much. I've been away of a mission since the Exam ended and I just got back last night. When I left you... you couldn't remember who I was," he stammered.
Her brow furrowed. "What exactly did I say? I've been starting to remember things since they used the seal."
His eye flicked up to her forehead. "That's why you never took of your forehead protector. Does it work like the Hyuuga Branch Family's seal?"
"It does," she confirmed grimly. "Hiashi had a great time of it last night. When I was little, I tried to cut the whole thing off once. But it hurt too much and the blood just got everywhere."
The man slouched back into the small, stiff chair, leaving the cup of water on the side table where he could reach it easily if she needed another drink. He scanned the bed. The smoothness of the pale green blanket indicated that she'd been too weak to move, at least since she'd attacked the ANBU cell that was previously guarding her room. She looked thin, probably having slept up until Tsunade had woken her for the interrogation yesterday. "Do you want anything to eat? You look a little worse for wear."
She smiled weakly at him. "If you keep making that face, you'll always look worried," she joked. "The Hokage is focused on getting more information out of me and you haven't even asked."
"Before the Exam, you told me that the story behind your scar," he brushed it with his fingers, "was a story for another day. Today's another day."
Kurotsuki swallowed hard. "I'll start from the beginning then."
Kakashi listened quietly as the recounted her tale, starting with the Spirit of the Ten-Tailed Beast and the research facility of Kougyoku. Her first meeting with Itachi and Hizashi, at the end of which she'd acquired her large scar. After the destruction of the ruby-mining town, Tsuki had found her in the forest. At the time, she'd staved off hypothermia by unwittingly using chakra to keep herself warm, but was about to starve since she didn't know how to hunt. Tsuki had caught her a snowshoe hare, which she'd cooked using pure chakra. Kurotsuki survived off the land, stolen food, or prey that her wolves brought down. She became a thief to clothe herself, and collected a weapon or two despite not knowing how to use them.
For the next five years, they wandered, occasionally joined by her brother or sister wolves. Her gut feelings led her with respect to where to go. She had found a young Gaara, abandoned in a playground by the other children who feared him. Kurotsuki had befriended the young Jinchuuriki, uncannily able to read his feelings thanks to Her. Fast forward five years, when at thirteen, she had found Itachi, fleeing Konoha after the Uchiha massacre. During that time, they became 'siblings' due to their blood bond he taught her the shinobi arts. Itachi had been the first to suspect that her body had somehow managed to make use of the Uchiha and Hyuuga blood that she'd received so long ago, which had now manifested as her white sharingan. In four years' time, she left her brother, since the Akatsuki were suspicious of Itachi hanging around the same girl. About a year after that marked his first meeting with her, chasing her across the rooftops in the Land of Waves.
She explained all the issues that the Spirit caused: her bouts of fever, colour-changing eyes, recent episodes of self-harm, and occasionally wolfish tendencies. She shared the memories that she'd regained, while his dark eye watched her. Finally, her long narrative came to an end and silence descended on the room.
"You never shared Konoha's secrets with Itachi?" Kakashi asked.
Kurotsuki tried to shake her head, but then remembered that her body was too exhausted to move. "No, he wasn't interested. He's only concerned with Sasuke now."
"How is it that you were talking about being Number 71 before I left for my mission? The seal hadn't been used at that point."
The woman licked her dry lips. "The seals are failing. She's getting harder to control, and bringing up memories that I thought I'd forgotten."
"What happens when the seals fail?"
"I'm at her mercy."
One of the ANBU vanished, presumably to update Tsunade on the new information she'd revealed. The man stood, pushing his chair back, its legs scraping across the tiled floor.
"Kakashi?"
He drew up the blinds and opened the window, causing her to shut her eyes against the sunlight that made her headache worse. He left without another word.
He knocked at the door, feeling somewhat nervous. It was funny how, even though he'd been out of school for years, a small shiver ran over him as he stood before the teacher's office.
"Come in," a voice said from the other side.
Kenji opened the door to reveal a man, black hair in a high ponytail, sitting behind a sturdy wooden desk. He tried not to stare too long at the large scar across the man's nose, but didn't where else in the room to look. Sure, in his time as a nurse, he had seen plenty of injuries and the scars that resulted. Even the scars were easy enough to remove for moderately skilled medic-nin, who usually charged an extra fee to make some money for themselves. Kenji was used to people with facial scars asking to have them removed, but apparently Umino Iruka wasn't among them. (Another exception was Morino Ibiki, who had flown into a rage when he awoke to find that a new intern was trying to heal the scars on his head. The poor kid had learned very quickly that the man would be proudly keeping his scars, thank you very much.) And now he realized how difficult it was to have a conversation with a shinobi with such a prominent slash across the middle of his face. "Hello, I hope I've found the right office," he said, staring at the blackboard behind Iruka.
The man rose and extended his right hand and shook his hand firmly. "You must be Rubimura Kenji. Very nice to meet you; you have indeed found the right office." He sat down again and gestured for Kenji to do the same. He chose one of the larger chairs on the other side of Iruka's desk, noting there was a small one as well, most likely for when a prankster student was being given stern talking-to. He chuckled when he noticed where Kenji's eyes were focused. "You've seen your fair share of scars, I'll wager. Seeing that I kept mine is probably uncommon for you though."
"Y-yes," Kenji stammered. It was like Iruka had read his mind.
He smiled across the desk. "I'm not reading your mind, I just did some asking around. It's not every day that we get a 25-year-old applying to join the Academy. And believe me, you're one of the better ones at covering the fact that you're avoiding staring. Remember that I usually greet four-year-olds who go googly-eyed at every new thing."
Miraculously, Kenji found himself laughing, nervousness evaporated. It was remarkable how quickly Iruka had made him feel at ease. "Sorry, yes. Everything you just said is true."
The other man leaned his elbows on the desk and rested his chin in one hand. "What brings you to the Academy, Kenji? You already have a job as a civilian in Konoha, why the sudden urge to become a shinobi?"
"Well, I always wanted to, even before I moved here. I loved the ninja books my mom used to get me for my birthday. I moved here when I was twelve, but my father wouldn't have any of it. Wouldn't let me out of his sight until I'd missed the deadline for that year. Not that I would have been on time anyway, being twelve and having to start from scratch," he said with a wry smile. "I met Hyuuga Hinata recently, and she convinced me that even twenty-five isn't too late. I might not make more than Chunnin, or maybe even Genin. But I thought that I don't have much to lose by trying. She said you're always in need of medics."
"That much is true. What will you do about your work at the hospital? Managing long shifts, and sometime irregular ones, along with the demands of the Academy may be difficult."
"I've already asked to be put on the part-time roster, for evenings and weekends. And they won't be calling me to fill in unless there's an emergency involving the whole hospital."
Iruka nodded. He pulled some papers towards him, which Kenji recognized as his application forms. "From the information you've given me here..." he trailed off as he skimmed the papers, "you'll be placed with a class of mostly six-year-olds according to your skill level. Will that be alright with you? It can be discouraging to some."
He grinned like a fool. "Anywhere is fine, as long as you'll take me. I'll be behind, but I guess that just means I'll have to catch up to those six-year-old kids."
The black-haired man clapped his hands together. "Well, that's settled! You'll be getting a letter as September approaches with all the information you'll be needing to know before the year starts." He stood and offered his hand again. "I look forward to seeing you in the fall."
Kenji also rose, and they shook again. "Thank you so much." He collected his bag from the spot where he had placed it on the floor. He opened the door to let himself out.
"Just a moment, Kenji. If it's not too inappropriate of me to ask, why did you move to Konoha if your father wanted to keep you away from the shinobi arts?"
"My hometown got... torn down. There wasn't anything left of it so we had to go somewhere. It was called Kougyoku, because of the ruby mines. I doubt you'll find it on a map. Some other town has probably sprung up there by now, with a different name."
A crease appeared between Iruka's eyebrows. He made a hand seal and a second version of the man materialized, leaving through the window. "I've gone to ask permission, but I'm reasonably certain that it will be granted. I think there's someone that you ought to see."
A/N: Please let me know what you've thought of this chapter, or the last one. I'm curious how people are taking the reveal of Kurotsuki's past. As a side note, I imagine Itachi's lullaby to be something in the vein of the Waltz for John and Mary from BBC's Sherlock series. Please do look it up on YouTube if you've never heard it, it's quite a lovely piece. I imagine the lullaby to be celebratory, for the end of a long day, but with a hint of sadness for being unable to see each other until morning. Or in Itachi's case, ever again. I'd also like to hear thoughts on Hinata's stand against her father. I know the whole situation is rather different than what it is in canon, but I enjoy having Hinata be fierce. I look forward to any reviews that might come my way :)