Arc One: Hitomi's childhood

Chapter One

Aiko knew right away that her daughter was more intelligent than a baby her age should be. From the way the infant would look up at her from her crib at night, silently taking it in to the way she would survey each room they entered, taking in every person there and then looking more as if she just knew there was someone hiding. The pretty pink haired babe, as soon as she could roll over she started trying to climb up the bars of her crib then once she managed to do that she found a way to push off the crib and onto the dresser two feet from her bed and from there she could easily wiggle her way to the ground.

Aiko would find her and just freeze, the beautiful baby would just giggle immensely and roll onto her back.

Then her precious baby learned to crawl.

And at seven months old she was a terror.

Aiko swore her child knew what she was doing. The intelligence she saw hidden in the wide, doe eyes, buried in the black, it was there. And it frightened the civilian. With the wars since the founding of Konoha- just the wars that have happened since Aiko established a home in Konoha, Aiko was scared some ninja was going to show up at her front door and demand for her child. Aiko didn't want her only baby - her first born - to be a ninja.

But when she found Aiko found her daughter, barely one and a half, standing on the ceiling by her feet, she knew there wasn't anything she could do about it. And if she had no say in her daughter becoming a ninja, if she wasn't able to protect her precious hoshi, then she would just have to do everything in her power to prepare her for it.

Kizashi Haruno sighed for the umpteenth time. He was to young for this. To be a father. That's why he did it. That's what made him decide to just leave when his girlfriend of nearly two years told him she was pregnant. It was the coward thing to do, he would agree. But he still lived with his parents! He was still a genin- a drop out. Everyone he went to the academy with was at least a chunin, some (re: most) of them were jounin. Like that prodigy Minato Namikaze.

He pouted imagining the goofy blonde. The student of the student of the Hokage. But even being the student of Master Jiraiya, he was amazing. His other students were good, but Minato.. Minato was once in a life time amazing.

Even though Kizashi made the decision to stay away from his daughter and now ex, he still would check up on them. He wanted them to be safe. And even though he only made genin, and his skills were as such, it wasn't hard to sneak through Aiko Midori's home undetected by the civilian. His daughter on the other hand... he caught her staring more times than one. Finally when she turned one and could really get a move on with those chubby legs did he stop. He really didn't want to get caught by Aiko. Even though she was a civilian, she could put a whoop down like any other of the kunoichi. And that scared Kizashi.

Little Hitomi giggled relentlessly in her mothers arms. But even as she shook with laughter she saw everything. Every person they passed on the street, every shop, every vender, all the stray animals lurking in the alleys- and the blurs across the roof that her eyes strained to catch.

The two year old wrapped her arms around her mothers shoulders, tightening her legs on her hips so her mother didn't have to fully support her. She glanced over her shoulder then settled her chin on her mothers shoulder, staring behind them at the passing people.

"What do you say, Hitomi-chan," her mother says in her soft tone, "want to get some ramen before shopping?"

Hitomi debated inwardly, before nodding.

Aiko pushed aside the curtains of Ichiraku Ramen, even though all she had to do was duck her head a few inches and her short stature would fit under easily. She sat at a wall seat and placed her daughter beside her, on her own chair. Smiling when she noticed her daughters dark eyes had already zeroed in and was scoping out the occupants.

Aiko follows her gaze, glancing over the shinobi a few seats down. Aiko didn't know much about shinobi but she recognized the Hokage's student, a broad shouldered man with long spikey white hair and a large smile. He sat next to three kids, two boys and a girl, probably his students. Taking another glance at the dark haired boy, Aiko noticed that it was the Hokage's first born- Hamatsu Sarutobi. An elegant looking girl sat beside Jiraiya, Donning mainly purples and a soft smile. Her blue eyes showing how happy and loved she felt.

"Stop staring Hitomi-chan." Aiko chides with a giggle. Giving her order to the chef as Hitomi continues to stare, only to sigh and turn to face forward.

"What's wrong little one?" The chef, Tesuri, questions with a big smile.

Hitomi just huffs, placing her arms on the bar table and setting her chin on her one crossed arm, the other hand idly plays with the cup of milk set in front of her.

Tesuri starts cooing, behind him his wife rolls her eyes.

"How are you Aiko-san? It's been awhile since you've been in," the woman calls, moving away from the stoves to stand beside her cooing husband. "Last time that happened, you came back with a little bundle." She smiles wide, raising her eyebrows.

Aiko laughs, "no, no, I'm not pregnant again." Aiko waves her hands in a dismissing way, "one kid is enough for me." She glances down at her little Hitomi-chan.

"But who will she play with?" Tesuri pouts, "It's not like you have any family- ow!" Tesuri grabs at the ribs his wife just elbowed, Sakiku gave her husband a dirty look.

Aiko laughes again, "It's alright 'Kiku, and you're right Tesuri. We don't have any family around." Aiko sighs, running a hand over Hitomi's soft pink hair. The girls eyes were closed, but Aiko had no doubts her daughter was listening to everything- and that meant everything. Not just Aiko's conversation, or the people passing on the street, though the shinobi had fallen quiet on their end.

"I'm not worried about the lack of friends," Aiko shrugs, "I have a feeling even when she goes to the academy that she won't be a social butterfly." Aiko smiles softly, "she just isn't a people pleaser."

"Wait," Tesuri says, his cooing stopping as he turns to regard Aiko with a serious demeanor, "back up for a second, did you say academy? You're sending you're daughter to the academy?" Tesuri says with wide eyes.

Aiko laughs at the reaction, "well, I'm most certainly considering it."

"Why?" Sakiku questions, "not to sound rude or anything." She adds.

Aiko let's out a silent breath, glancing down at her daughter while still running her fingers through the shoulder length tresses.

"I don't want my baby to go off to war." She starts, "but the shinobi genes that missed me, hit her. Hard."

"How do you know that?" Sakiku asks, looking down at the toddler.

Aiko snorts, "well, I guess it could have something to do with when I come to get her out of bed in the morning and she's sitting on the ceiling, playing hand games. Or maybe it's the crystals that she plays with before bed. Crystals that I did not make, might I add. I guess it could also be her awareness. She's so attentive to everything- she always has been. Even when she a babe. Although she still doesn't talk much, a word or two here or there." Aiko shrugs. "But I guess a shinobi would really be able to give the okay or not. So entering the academy won't hurt her. And if she doesn't like it, and wants to quit, then she can."

The two didn't look convinced, but they didn't say anything or bring it up again. They turned back and started cooking again, going and taking the orders of the newcomers on the other side of the shinobi squad.

"Excuse me miss,"

Aiko tilts her head to the right, to Jiraiya who had just spoken.

"Yes?"

"Did you just say crystals?" He asks with a smile.

"Yes, my mother was a crystal user. It was my clans Kekkai Genkai." There was a warning sign in the back of Aiko's head, telling her not to tell people that specific information, but something told her she could trust Jiraiya.

"Oh, alright then." Jiraiya nods with a wave, standing and placing some money down. Aiko watched his genin follow.

Tesuri brought over steaming bowls of ramen, and started cooing over Hitomi again once she got up and started eating.

And that was the end of that, Aiko felt oddly more okay with her decision.

Hitomi rubbed her nose fiercely, an annoyed look crossing her smooth features.

"Watch it half pint!" The boy that had just ran her over exclaims, fixing the goggles on his forehead.

The four year old glares, but it bounces off the boy who sported all the right features for an Uchiha.

"I'm already late! God, Yakuzi-sensei is going to kill me."

Hitomi noticed the boy couldn't be two years older than her, maybe only a year. So an Academy student then...

"I'm gonna be Hokage one day!" He continues, "So watch it!"

She raises an unimpressed brow, rolls her eyes, and side steps. Walking past the blabbering idiot.

"Hey!" He shouted, realizing she wasn't in front of him anymore. He ran to catch up with her. "You weren't even listening! That's rude!" He pointed his finger at her nose, glaring down at her. He was only a couple inches taller, but he used it to his advantage.

Hitomi glares at the finger, then the arm, then the face. Making the boy twitch.

"What kind of kid are you?" He grumbles, balling his fists against his hips, and bending towards her.

She continues to glare, until finally he gets nervous and takes a step back, and turning to the side, stepping out of her way. She sends a nod, and walks past him once more, hopefully for the last time.

Hitomi walked in the direction of her mothers recently opened tea house- ninja tea house. Hitomi couldn't fathom as to why her mother would open a primarily ninja tea house, but she did. And Hitomi would support her through it. Especially after everything the woman has to put up her.

Hitomi had to hand it to her mother though, Aiko was very good at her job. She gave the ninja everything the wanted- everything they needed to wind down and relax after a mission, or just a long day of being paranoid. There were privacy seals on all the table and booths; the windows had a special seal, that tinted them so the ninja could see out but the passing people couldn't see in; and since the ninja were so paranoid, the cooking had to be done in front of them, so naturally there was a long space in the center of the room, where the food was cooked; and of course the few staff members that were hired were excellent dealing with shinobi, of course they were all civilians, couldn't bring in ninja workers or the ninja customers would be thinking that they were about to be poisoned and atop coming- no customers, no business, no business, no money, and Hitomi liked to spend money, specifically on dango and mochi; so on top of all the privacy and comfort, there was traditional tea rooms for tea ceremonies, and the clans like the Uchiha and the Hyuuga loved them; but there wasn't just tea, Hitomi had made it very clear to Aiko that that was just boring, so on top of lovely tea and dango dates, there was an increase of shinobi due to the sad fact that none of them had family waiting to cook for them or they didn't know how to cook, or they weren't in the village enough to have a stocked kitchen to cook.

All in all the tea house gained the title, Hoshi Garden Restaurant, or just Hoshi Garden.

So yeah, Hoshi Garden was open for business from seven in the morning to eleven at night, and her mother worked most of those hours, she didn't have to of course, but with Hitomi getting older aka more independent, she didn't need to spend every minute worrying about what Hitomi would be doing (re: getting into). Aiko trusted her to stay out of trouble, and to get herself out of it if she found herself in it.

Hitomi was happy to keep her abilities under wraps forever if she could. Did she expect to actually be able to do it? Nope. Especially considering that she helped out at her mothers restaurant. More specifically, especially after a year into having Hoshi up and running smoothly, some tart thought they could come steal from her mother, in broad daylight, a ninja restaurant. The dudes life must've sucked, Hitomi decides, replaying the memories of just two weeks ago when she was pouring a cup of tea for her mother, in the kitchen area of the restaurant.

"Hitomi-chan," her mother smiled down at her, petting her hair softly. Hitomi smiled down at the cup.

"Yes, Kaachan?" Hitomi said, in her soft soprano voice, that was extremely smooth for one that never talks.

"Nothing," mother shakes her head, accepting the tea China wear graciously. "I just love you. So much."

Hitomi smiles up at her mother. Hitomi wasn't shy about her emotions, always smiling and giggling when she felt like it and sometimes even when she didn't, just for her mothers sake.

"Excuse me," a rude voice said, from the counter.

Aiko patted her head once more, before turning and moving to the counter.

Hitomi put the porcelain tea pot back on its platter and leaned against the far counter, sub consciously watching out of the corner of her eye. She was willing to ignore the rude mans tone, and behavior until he made a grab for the front of her mothers kimono.

That was when she launched into action.

She leapt forward as her mother gasped, Hitomi's hands grabbing the counter edge, and in a back flip type move she kicked her feet into the air and straight into the mans sternum and clavicle. Sending him flying back a few feet despite her small frame. Landing on the counter from the kick, she swung her feet over the edge, nonchalantly. Appearing as if she had just hopped up and not just sent a grown man stumbling.

"What the?" The man glanced around, disoriented for whatever reason, it's not like Hitomi hit him over the head.

His eyes settled on Hitomi, narrowing. "You.."

Hitomi's lip tipped to a scowl. Her left eyebrow raising in a taunting manor.

"You little brat." He spits, taking a step forward. "Last chance to step aside kid. I don't wanna beat up a kid."

Hitomi smirked slightly, staying silent.

This, along with her not moving seemed to annoy the man and his glare deepened. "Go on kid, get lost." Once he realized she wasn't moving he shrugged, "fine then missy, you wanna act like a grown up, you gonna fight me like that?" He chuckled, "why don't you get a weapon or something? It would be a little more fair that way."

Aiko glanced between her daughter and the man who seemed to either be drunk or well on his way. All the scenarios in her mind did not reassure her of the outcome of this. She wasn't doubting her daughter, Aiko knew very well that her daughter wouldn't have a problem with this man. But all the shinobi, who looked ready to take action before her daughter had jumped in, sat back in their seats, silently watching. Her intelligent daughter had to know that this would open their eyes to her and her abilities. And that was dangerous, Hitomi knew that, Aiko had sat her three year old daughter down and explained that to her months ago. And now here she was, nearly four and about to whoop this poor unfortunate soul. Aiko would try not to enjoy it to much.

Hitomi's smirk widens, and she leans forward, "what makes you think I need a weapon?" She taunts.

The man snarls, and jumps forward.

With speed well beyond her years she used a jutsu very familiar to all the ninja in the room - the Body Flicker Technique - and moved from her spot in a flash, letting the man crash into the counter as she reappears right beside her previous spot. The wooden edge hits his gut hard and winds him. Hitomi seized the moment and reached out with her right hand to grab the back of the mans head and slam it into the counter beside her, not batting an eye.

The man fell to the ground with a thud and a groan, out cold. Hitomi glanced over the edge at his unconscious form, shaking her head.

"Hitomi!" Aiko exclaims, having regained her bearings, whacking her daughter on the shoulder, "I told you, not in the kitchen!" She scolds, leaning over the counter to shake her head at the rude man.

After that Hitomi had said her goodbyes, well, she waved and her mother yelled for her to be back in time for dinner, and that was close enough.

"And where have you been all morning young lady?" Nakuro, her mothers most trusted cook, questions, with a faux stern wave of his ladle- which Hitomi learned, hurt. It hurt very, very badly.

Hitomi shrugs innocently, ignoring all the amused looks from the shinobi there for breakfast. They no doubt saw the blood splattered on the bottom of her nose and on the long sleeve of her light blue kimono top, that covered down to her nonexistent hips and cut off, black shorts covering down her thighs. They also, no doubt, assumed she got into a fight.

"And what happened to your face?!" Nakuro exclaims, his jaw dropping, as she steps closer and hops up on the counter he moves to stand in front of her with a wet rag.

"My mom tells me I'm beautiful," she sniffs dramatically, "and it's rude for you to imply otherwise."

"Shut up."

Hitomi chuckles.

Nakuro smacks the wet rag against her face, "wow, I kind of expected you to dodge that." He mumbles, wiping away the excess water and rubbing the bottom of her nose.

"Yeah," Hitomi shrugs, "I'm not exactly in the mood. Probably why we're in this situation right now."

"It what situation?" Aiko questions, stepping into the kitchen, "what happened to you?" She ties an apron around her waist.

"Wait, so you ran into someone? I figured you got into a fight." Nakuro says, taking the cloth away and running it under the water.

"You got into another fight?" Aiko asks, nonchalant, grabbing Hitomi's chin and tipping it up.

"No," she groans in exasperation, "I did not get into a fight. And why do you say it like that? Another fight?" She scoffs and throws her self back on the counter, letting her head hang backwards off the edge, facing the door. "You act like I go out and get into fights all the time." She grumbles, glaring at the shinobi who smirked at her when her eyes met theirs.

"Alright, you made your point," Aiko pats her thigh and moves away, "So what did happen then, oh little peaceful one?"

Hitomi ignored the jab, and the dry tone her mother took and answered honestly, "some goggle wearing brat ran me over, then started yelling about how he's going to be Hokage." She shrugs.

"Oh yeah?" Aiko snorts, making the undignified gesture sound innocent and lady like, graceful. Hitomi wondered how she even did that.

Hitomi noticed the shinobi chuckle to themselves, some engaging in hushed conversations while glancing their way. She also wondered if they knew the brat she was talking about. Only one way to find out, shew decided inwardly.

"He looked like an Uchiha," she started, counting the number of shinobi that sobered up at the mention, "except, he was smiling. Like, a lot. And he was wearing orange, paired with dark blue but still, who does that?"

The shinobi snorted. One in particular, who had done very well in hiding the fact that he was listening to the kitchen banter. He had long white hair, and the standard Konoha forest green jacket, under it was a white and red half sleeved shirt, his eyes- if she remembered correctly, were black, and wrinkled. Now that Hitomi got a good look at him an image of a boy her age popped into her head, the little tart that wears a mask, she smirks. Kakashi Hatake, and here was his father Sakumo Hatake.

Hitomi grimaced, the Hatake clan was a scattered ninja clan, but a ninja clan none the less. She didn't want anything to do with them.

"And what are you all looking at?" She exclaims, still upside down, glaring them down, "nosey's! All of you, at least pretend to not listen." She rolls her eyes.

A few minutes later Sakumo stood, seemingly done with his meal, and walked towards the kitchen right past her, and kindly brought his dishes up to her mother, who kindly thanked him.

As he started to pass Hitomi again he paused and glanced down at her, a twinkle, that she did not like, in his dark eyes.

"Can I help you, Oyaji?" She grumbles, in between polite and rude.

He smiles, "You don't have many friends your age do you?"

Hitomi's nose twitches.

"Didn't think so," he chuckles, "you know what? I've got a son around your age,-"

"No." Hitomi cuts him off.

He ignores her, "I think you two would get along quite well.-"

"No." She repeats monotonously.

"And maybe even be friends some day."

"No."

"Hitomi!" Aiko scolds from the stove, Hitomi could feel the glare.

Hitomi rolls her eyes, "my age, huh?" She mumbles.

"That's right." Sakumo nods.

"Short, really spikey grey hair, wears a mask," she starts to list, "runs around with the kid in green spandex, always screaming about being youthful?"

Sakumo chuckles, "yup, that's him."

"He's s brat." She decides, Aiko dropped her head into her hands. "No really, he is. And I don't say that lightly. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt but he is just... phew. Don't know what you did to that one, but he's weird." She finished.

Aiko considered banging her head onto the counter. Leave it to her daughter to fully insult a shinobi.

Sakumo bent down to match the height of her upside head. "Well, you see, sometimes you don't do anything, and something happens, and sometimes you do something and nothing happens." He shrugs, thoroughly confusing her. He reaches out to flick the edge of her nose.

She tensed, expecting lingering pains from her minor injury but instead a warm sensation flooded across her face. Warming her and soothing the dull throbbing. Her eyes widened and her hands flew up to rub her nose fiercely.

"I'm sure you'll meet him soon enough, even if I don't bring him by." Sakumo smiles in his warm way before standing and striding out.

Hitomi stared after him, one hand still on her nose, and the other running through her hair, she felt it when he put something there. It was super quick and she couldn't see it when it happened but she felt him move earlier, when he had first bent down. Her hand enclosed on a string and she tugged gently, pulling it from around the lock of hair it was tied to and in front of her face. She smiles, it's bells, tied to a ribbon. Two of them, cherry red the bells were. She dangles them, but they didn't jingle. She frowns, sitting up she held them out and shook them.

"Hear anything?" She questions her mother with a frown. Her mother stops and listens before shaking her head, and getting back to work.

Hitomi's frown deepens as she lifts them to her ear and shakes them. Still nothing. She leaned back, and hung over the counter again. Closing her eyes she focused on her ears, and after a few moments she heard it, soft high pitch jingles. A bright smile lit up on her face.

"How did he do that?" She mumbles.

"Who did what, Hitomi? Speak up." Nakuro calls.

"Nothing!" She exclaims, excited, she shakes the bells again eager to hear the sounds, but they were gone again. "What the?!" She whispers, looking at the bells. She breathes out slowly, focusing on her ears just like before until she hears it. Just like before a wide smile breaks out over her face.

And for a solid twenty minutes she listens to the bells ring in her ear. And then she let go of the focus on her ears and it went away. She had to know what the deal was with these things, she had to find Sakumo Hatake, and the best way to find the father, is to find the son. She grinned wildly. Flipping her feet into the air and launching herself backwards she lands on two feet and runs towards the door.

"Hitomi!" Her mother calls, "what are you doing?"

"I'll be back later!" She shouts over her shoulder, giggling and pushing the door open and taking off towards the academy.

Hitomi sat on a tree branch, facing the academy. She had been there a while already but she was willing to wait. She really wanted to know how the bells worked. She had stopped focusing on her ears and instead pushed chakra to her hands, noting how she could also hear it that way as well. So they reacted to chakra? That didn't make sense.. logically. How would that even work? Hitomi sighs, pocketing the bells and fifteen minutes later the academy bell rang and students started flooding out.

It wasn't hard to find Kakashi once he stepped out of the school. Beside him was the boy who wore green spandex, and constantly shouted obnoxiously about how Kakashi wasn't embracing his youth the way he should be, or shouting out challenges to the solemn kid.

Hitomi's nose twitched, seeing a boy walking a few feet behind Kakashi and Gai. The Uchiha brat who wants to be Hokage.. Hitomi rubs her nose with a grumble under her breath. The boy was talking in a very animated fashion to a pretty girl with brown hair and dark eyes, a kind smile on her face as she twiddles her fingers together, her eyes glued to the back of Hatake. Hitomi snorts, rolling her eyes. Glancing around at the students in the yard she noted quite a few of the girls had eyes on the stoic brat.

Hitomi watches as the students say their good byes, going their separate ways. Gai and Kakashi lived near each other apparently and they walk together, Hitomi following them from the shadows.

From what she could tell, neither even had a suspicion that she was following them. Which was not smart to her. She always was aware of the people that stuck around longer then they should've.

Finally, they stopped in front of a thin two story home, and Gai raced back the way he came from.

Idiot... she frowns, so they didn't live near each other then. And Gai was just stupid.

The front door of the home swings open as Kakashi took a step forward and he paused.

Sakumo steps out with a smile, asking how his sons day was. And Hitomi started loosing confidence. Maybe she shouldn't have followed Kakashi, the bells weren't even worth it, she gulped. This is so intruding.

"So I assume," Sakumo starts, patting his son on the head, "you didn't realize you were being followed?"

Hitomi freezes. Of course she didn't actually think she could evade a jounin successfully, but she had hoped he wouldn't tell his brat. Now Kakashi was definitely going to hate her.

Speaking of which, Kakashi tenses, looking all around wildly.

Hitomi slowly steps out from the alley shadows across the street, and Sakumo smile widens.

Kakashi glares, "another fan girl?" He grumbles to himself.

"Not quite." Sakumo laughs, "Kakashi this is Hitomi, her mother owns that restaurant you showed me before, what was it's name again...?"

"Hoshi Garden." Kakashi grumbles, crossing his arms. "So why is she here then?"

"Well, I was thinking maybe you two would want to train together-"

"I don't want to." Kakashi refuses immediately.

"Me neither." Hitomi shrugs, digging in her pockets. "I just want to know how these work."

Kakashi scoffs, "you don't know how bells work?"

Hitomi ignores the tone, "I got them to work, but I wanted to know why I could hear them, but mom couldn't."

Kakashi glanced up at his father silently communicating.

"Well," Sakumo says, "why don't you come inside. And I'll tell you about them."

End chapter.

So, we met Hitomi, who saw Jiraiya, and Minato and his two teammates (that I have oh so kindly made up) and Hitomi met Obito and Kakashi! Not to shabby for a first chapter.

Not sure who I want to pair her with. So for the first ten chapters or so, I think I will have a vote. There will be a poll up on fan fiction dot net if you are interested in the official thang, if not, comment and let me know.

But yeah, vote or tell me what you think or somethingggg! Okay that was very whiney of me, I'm apoligize.

Until next time folks!