The walk back to the town was a silent one which I enjoyed. Hikaru would glance over at me every few minutes probably unsure of what to say but I preferred him like this. When we got back to the town, it was already dark with the decorative lights lit up the streets.
"I'm starving," Hikaru spoke up, "let's get some food."
"I'm not hungry," I told him crossing my arms.
"You haven't eaten all day of course you're hungry." He said leading me through the village acknowledging a few people as they passed by.
He led me to an area with many tents but the biggest tent had a buffet table which he quickly darted to gathering everything he could fit on his plate. I grabbed one for myself and followed everyone around the table going clockwise looking at the different kinds of foods but I hardly knew what anything was. I decided on fish, dango, onigiri, and some vegetables then followed Hikaru to a table sitting across from him.
"That's all you got?" He questioned after taking another bite.
"This is all I recognized. I mostly ate dango, ramen, or rodents my whole life. No time to cook fancy things like this while on the run." I explained taking another bite.
"Then you're not living!" He exclaimed irritating me. "Here, try some calamari." He finished using his chopsticks to grab the food and held it out for me.
I gave him skeptical look then looked back at the food. "What is it?"
"Fried squid," he answered making me give him a sour look.
"Sounds nasty," I commented as I looked down at the tiny squid on the chopstick.
"Coming from the one who ate rodents. Come on, it's good." He said pushing it closer to me.
I grabbed my own and grabbed it from his. "I can feed myself," I snapped before eating it. It honestly wasn't that bad but wasn't something I'd eat all the time. "Not bad, but I'll stick to my own food."
We started to eat enjoying the silence but of course Hikaru had to say something breaking the peace. "Have you ever wondered what it'd be like if you grew up with your Mom?" He questioned making me almost choke on my food.
"Why are you asking me this?" I questioned after chugging my water.
"Just curious if you ever thought about it. Orochimaru had to of kept her alive long enough to take care of a baby so she must've had an escape plan. I can't imagine her actually agreeing to stay there."
"I never thought about it, and I kinda don't want to. It's just wishful thinking...plus she was probably worried about my safety. So um did she uh ever sing a certain song though?" I questioned dying to know where that song came from.
He looked up from his food giving me a confused look. "Sometimes, I've only heard her sing once. She didn't have the greatest voice though, ha she'd probably kill me if she heard that. Why do you ask?"
"It's nothing, sometimes a song would pop in my head and I don't remember hearing it before. I don't think I've ever heard music actually...so why do Himura's hate each other anyway? Shouldn't a family, ya know, love each other?"
"It's a superiority complex. See, we actually love ourselves and think we're all powerful but unlike the Uchiha, we don't underestimate our opponents. Now, all of us are equally matched because of our Kekkai Genkei so it pisses us off. We're pretty competitive." He explained which confused me even more.
"Why?"
"A fight between Himuras' will be the most boring match you've ever witness. All we do is dodge and that's no fun. Mom told me that once in the Chuunin Exam there were a lot of Himura participating that year and they made to make sure not to pin us against each other."
"I guess that makes sense, hey how do you have enough money if you're traveling around? So far you had a hotel room, bought food, bought me clothes, a new haircut, and now this festival."
"Oh that's easy, I help out a town or village for a few months. Either doing odd jobs or protection." He answered as he finished his plate.
He was silent once again just watching me eat the rest of my food which made me feel uncomfortable and irritated.
"Can you stop staring?" I questioned which made him look down at the table.
"Sorry, I was just staring into space."
"Yeah sure," I scoffed then took my last bite.
"I'm serious, I was thinking about what I should help you with first."
"What do you mean?"
"Well you hate yourself because of what you did for Orochimaru so I need you to accept yourself. You show me everything you regret and I help you accept it. Easy peasy! But for now, let's have some fun!" He exclaimed as he got up and grabbed my arm yanking me to my feet and leading me away from the tent. I stopped and yanked my arm away rubbing the area he grabbed. "Jeez what's with you? You a germaphobe or something?"
"No, I just don't like being touched so stop doing it!"
"Well then party pooper, let's play some games!" He squealed like an excited child before running off towards a bunch of stands.
I rolled my eyes but followed him and stood beside him looking at a dart game. I shot him a look that showed my disagreement for his ridiculous idea.
"What?" He chuckled looking down at me.
"A dart game? That's too easy." I said as I crossed my arms.
"For ninja maybe but not for civilians which this town is full of. Oh you should take your headband off, you won't be able to play any games with that on."
"Who said I wanted to? I don't have time for this."
"Yes you do, where else would you go and what would you do?"
"I'd be training, I've been slacking. I couldn't even land a hit on that stupid Uchiha even with all the power the curse mark gave me."
"You're weak for a reason Ko, your chakra is all out of whack since your Dad died."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"I'm guessing you had a purpose fighting for him but now, you don't have the will. Believe it or not, your power relies on your confidence not how much you train. I bet you've come across shinobi who train for a reason. Loved ones, revenge, their village, even for themselves; they all have something driving them to be great. You don't even care if you die which means you have nothing to fight for. Since you have nothing, your chakra isn't working like it's suppose to...if that makes sense." He explained rubbing the back of his head. "Ooooor maybe it's the curse mark? I don't know, I don't have all the answers. Now, how about we play some darts!"
He walked up to the stand handing the guy some money then received three darts. He closed his eyes and started to throw them basically missing all but two. As he played I watched everyone else enjoying their time with no care in the world. I looked back at Hikaru who got another set of darts remembering what he said earlier. I have given up on life and feel empty inside but maybe I didn't have to be.
"Father," I thought as I looked up at the dark sky. "If you were alive right now, then you'd be training me for whatever is happening in the world right now...or I'd be dead. I'm alive for a reason and maybe it's what Itachi was talking about. The Akatsuki is planning something big, big enough for Itachi to warn me. Maybe I do have another purpose." I looked over at Hikaru who was talking to a kid and his mother. "Maybe that's why Hikaru survived...to help me through this change. I should at least try his method to helping me."
I reached for my headband placing it in my bag and walked next to Hikaru taking the remaining darts from his hand. "Let me show you how it's done Mr." I said positioning the dart in my hand.
"No cheatiiiiing," he sang with a smile making me roll my eyes.
"Psh what makes you think I'd cheat?" I scoffed.
"Well you are a villain soooo," he trailed off holding up his arms shrugging his shoulders.
"What does that have to do with anything?!" I shouted glaring at him honestly feeling insulted. I never thought of myself as villain but I guess that's what people would label me.
"Nothing nothing," he replied holding his arms out in defense. "Just throw the darts." I could see he was trying his best to keep the peace. These feelings he's bringing out in me are more like a curse. How could my family marry someone and fight with them all the time? That doesn't sound healthy even if they love each other.
I rolled my eyes then closed them throwing each dart hitting the target but purposely missed one. "And that's how you do it," I said proudly as I turned to him.
"Eh weapons aren't my specialty." He admitted rubbing the back of his head. "Well let's find another game."
We walked around the town playing painfully easy games which started to bore me so he mostly played them winning prizes on a few. I refused to take the prizes so he would give them to the kids that passed by. As he played another game, I looked down at my wrist staring at my curse mark thinking about Father once again.
"What would he even say if he saw me like this? Weak and pathetic...I'm growing soft because of Hikaru." I thought glancing at him. "If I want to defeat the Akatsuki I can't be like this...once I fix this problem of mine, I have to focus on getting back to my old self...even if Hikaru isn't in the picture."
"Hey what's over there? That's new." Hikaru said pointing to the crowd that was gathering just behind the town.
We curiously followed the crowd seeing a short woman on a podium. Once we were close enough, we saw a track just behind the town that looked like an obstacle course.
"For those just joining us," the woman spoke "We're trying something new this year, an obstacle course. Sign up sheets are to my right, anyone can participate including shinobi young and old."
Hikaru and I both looked at each other feeling competitive as we smirked at each other. We waited in line signing up in the seventh and eighth slots saying we wanted to go together. I was tapping my foot feeling impatient while we waited for our turn. I watched as the many children went first barely completing the course but were still able to continue despite their failure. They would run up to their parents as they were covered in mud with a smile on their faces explaining how fun it was.
"Why are they so happy? They failed; Father would've forced me to repeat it until I got it perfectly." I told Hikaru.
"Because they're having fun, not training." He replied making me throw a glare at him. "Hey you're the one who asked. Plus, this course is difficult, even a genin would've had trouble with this also."
"That's pathetic, this course is simple. I could've done it easily when I was a child. Maybe Naruto would've had a problem with this but no one else should." I scoffed as I watched a chuunin start running on the track making it to the first obstacle.
"Once again, this isn't training. If you had to do one of these as a kid, it wouldn't be easy. Who's Naruto?"
"No one important," I replied just as our names were called. We moved through the crowd getting to the starting point.
"Now let's see who's better, me or you." Hikaru teased making me smirk.
"Obviously me," I replied.
"Ready, set, go!" The woman shouted making us dart down the track.
We were going the same speed reaching the first obstacle, hurdles which were easy though pretty tall. Next, we had to climb up a wall using a rope which Hikaru excelled in. I was just below him so I swung over grabbing his rope shaking it making him slip and fall to the ground.
"Hey!" He shouted from below. "You cheated!"
"I didn't hear any rules!" I shouted down to him as I climbed to the top. "You did say I'm the villain remember?" I finished before jumping down and sprinting to the next one which were swinging from one bar to the next with a pit of mud at the bottom for those who fell. From a distance they looked small but as I got closer, they were five times my height. I looked up at them in awe bewildered on why they were so tall.
"No way, I watched those kids easily jump up and grip the bars," I thought. "The bars can't be this high...That bastard."
I activated my eyes releasing myself from the genjutsu. Once I was out, I saw Hikaru on the other side giggling and pointing at me making me angry.
"Haha you fell for it!" He said like a five year old making my blood boil.
"That asshole, he said Himura's couldn't be placed in a genjutsu!" I thought angrily as I jumped up to the bars now only twice my height and swung across.
Hikaru turned around and ran towards the next obstacle. Just as I reached the other side, he got to the next one making me feel desperate to win. I suddenly stopped quickly taking off my training weights. By the time they were off, Hikaru was already heading towards the next one. I sprinted towards the next one and before I knew it, I was running next to Hikaru able to see the shocked expression on his face.
"What? How?" He gasped making me smirk.
"I had a few tricks up my sleeve," I replied before jumping up on platforms jumping from one to another.
It wasn't hard at all but I remember the kids having trouble since the platforms got further and further away from each other. Hikaru was still behind me when I reached the last obstacle which had rubber poles with padded planks sticking out moving continuously. The planks were high enough for a child to crawl through unharmed but despite me being on the short side, I wasn't small enough.
Taking a deep breath, I ran towards the many poles swinging around randomly. It was simple to avoid being hit thanks to Father's training and once I completed it, I turned around seeing Hikaru getting pummeled by them.
I almost choked on a laugh, "I guess agility isn't his thing," I thought as I turned on my heal ready to finish this.
I suddenly felt something wrap around my torso causing me to yell out in surprise as I fell flat on my face. I started to struggle against the rope then heard Hikaru laughing which was getting closer and closer to me. I took a deep breath trying to control the anger that started to boil and performed the Rope Escape Jutsu just as Hikaru passed. As soon as I was out of the ropes, I ran as fast as I could catching up to him but because of his cheating, he'd already won.
When I reached the finish line I was still running towards Hikaru. I was about to punch him but he caught it and pulled me towards him then wrapped his arms around me. "Hey calm down Ko, don't be a sore loser." He chuckled.
"Let me go you ass!" My breathing was starting to become quicker as I started to panic.
"And why would I do that?"
"So I can kick your ass for tying me up!" Panic quickly left and was replaced with anger. "How did you even catch me in that genjutsu?"
"Himura's can be caught in a genjutsu if your Subete Miru isn't activated. We can figure it out faster than most people then dispel it with our eyes."
"I must say," the woman from before spoke, "that was the most entertaining thing I've seen in many years." She finished followed by a chuckle. "It seems like you shinobi know how to keep things interesting."
"We get competitive," Hikaru said slowly releasing me, "it's in our blood."
I ducked under his arms once he released me giving me a chance to swing my legs under his making him fall to the ground which made the woman laugh as she walked away.
"Hey what was that for?" He complained as he got up and dusted himself off.
"For pulling that cheap trick on me; tying me up was low," I replied.
"You're the one who started it!" He shouted getting close to my face. "We both cheated twice, that seems fair."
He was so close to my face I thought I'd be uncomfortable, but I felt drawn to Hikaru. Even though I'm angry at him I just wanted him to stay this close.
"I didn't cheat twice! That was my real speed idiot!" I shouted back which made his face fall and mouthed the word 'oh'.
"Okay fine whatever, let's just go to my hotel room before this escalates." He said motioning for me to follow which I begrudgingly did.
When we reached the motel, it was extremely crowded; almost every window was lit with some sort of light.
"Are you sure there's room for us? It looks pretty packed." I said looking around at the people walking in and out of their rooms.
"I come here every year so they save a room for me." He said getting the key out of his pocket then unlocked the door. "When you ran off before I came here and asked for another bed so we don't have another fight over it again." When he opened the door, I walked right passed him throwing my bag onto one of the beds. The room looked about the same size as the one we stayed in when we first met. "Alright let's get started!" He cheered once the door was closed. "Sit on the bed."
"What why?"
"To get started on working on yourself? Duh."
I was dreading this moment, I wish he'd forget all about this stupid goal of his. I just met the guy and I'm suppose to show him my past...something I didn't want to share with a stranger despite us being family.
"Come one don't be shy,"
I rolled my eyes and sat on the bed facing him. He made a series of complicated hand signs before holding out his hand which I begrudgingly took.
"This only works if you let me in Ko." He said as he placed his other hand on my head. "Now place your hand on my head. We're going to start with something easy, show me everything you regret."
"Why regret?"
"Regret blocks you from enjoying yourself." He explained before closing his eyes waiting for me.
I was hesitant but soon gave in and placed my hand on his head completing the connection. Suddenly I was floating in a dark space and looked around feeling panic setting in until I saw Hikaru to my right.
"You're fine," he reassured, "now, what was your first regret?"
Before I could even speak, we were standing in the Leaf Village with a huge crowd cheering around us; the Chuunin Exams. I looked to my left seeing myself creating a distance between my opponent, Airi Akimoto. My breath started to quicken as I relived this once again, it was like I was having another nightmare. I could see that past Ko had just released the genjutsu but Airi stayed still staring at the ground.
"No, don't do it." I whispered making Hikaru look over at me.
Past Ko smirked while making hand signs then reached into her weapons pouch taking out three shuriken which were in between her fingers. When she threw them my body acted on it's own running towards Airi as the three shuriken multiplied turning into almost twenty about to hit her. I jumped between the Mist genin and the shuriken attempting to save her but the shuriken went through me still hitting Airi.
Once again I had to relive her horrid scream and watch her lifeless body fall again landing on her stomach.
"Winner! Ko Himura!" The proctors voice echoed once more as I got up and walked towards Hikaru with my head held low.
"Can we leave?" I questioned him as I fought back the tears.
He placed a hand on my shoulder before dispelling the genjutsu. I fell forward only to be caught by Hikaru. "I'm guessing that was your first kill?" He questioned softly.
"She was suppose to dodge...but my genjutsu freaked her out."
"You shouldn't regret something like that Ko, she would've killed you when she had the chance."
"What do you know?!" I shouted jumping back towards the headboard of the bed.
"Akimoto, that clan lived right next door to ours Ko. That clan teaches its children how to kill at a very young age. If you gave her a chance, she would've slit your throat once you let your guard down. Akimoto's and Himaru's never got along, we hated each other more than we hated our own."
I got up from the bed and plopped down on my own facing away from Hikaru. He only sighed then went to the bathroom leaving me to my thoughts.
"I guess he's right, she would've killed me well at least tried to. That battle always haunted me, I guess it was shocking killing someone with no intention to do so. Father must've been proud when he saw me kill someone...why do I even feel guilty about this? It was bound to happen sooner or later, every shinobi kills."