Hello there! This is actually a story I wrote years ago! I decided I'm going to redo it. It used to be called Sand in an Hourglass. There is quite a bit I'm going to go back over, so it might take me a bit. If you read the old one, I appreciate it! I'm going to leave the old one up, since I don't want to lose the reviews and such. I'm going to be changing things around in this one. Anyway, I hope you enjoy! Sorry ahead of time for any errors, and I may deviate from the Naruto story line a little.
Also, I originally was writing this as an eventual ItachiXOC story, but I'm no longer sure I would like to do that. . If you have any desires/ideas/etc. feel free to reach out to me!
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy!
Lavender colored hair cascades down to cover the tired looking face of a young teen girl. Her shaking hands clasp tightly onto equally shaking legs. She's been working on this seemingly easy jutsu for what seems like ages, but it feels like she hasn't gotten any closer to mastering it. In fact, she has practiced it so many times that she's lost count. To make matters worse, she's also lost, or broke, multiple brand new weapons. It was starting to eat into her mission allowances.
She closes her eyes in utter frustration and focuses on her breathing. Much to her embarrassment, her breaths are coming out in short, ragged pants. Teal eyes close, and the young girl silently berates herself for being so winded despite being a ninja, regardless of the fact that she is just a genin. Sweat causes the shorter pieces of her hair to cling to the edges of her hair, and her clothes are beginning to get that disgusting feeling of clinging uncomfortably to her body. She wrinkles her nose and wonders what she must smell like. Probably a sweaty earthy smell from being thrown into the dirt so much.
The thought alone was almost enough to make her gag.
Obnoxious laughter causes her eyes snap open and flash up to the source of the very annoying noise. A young blonde boy, about two years older than the girl, stands not far from her. His arms are wrapped tightly around his midsection, and he's bent at the waist just enough that he looks like he might be in pain. His mouth opens in what she can almost convince herself is a wordless cry of pain.
She lifts her nose a little. It'd serve him right to be in pain. Unfortunately, the pleasant image is broken when a snort of laughter finally escapes his gaping hole of a mouth. Her teal eyes darken in anger, since he is laughing at her. Much to her displeasure, he curls into an even tighter ball with each obnoxious laugh, causing the shaggy hair on his head falls down to cover his face.
For a moment, she finds herself wondering why he hasn't cut it yet. Usually he's very particular about his appearance. After a few seconds of thought, she vaguely remembers him mentioning something about growing it out. He said that he had a good reason, but it's lost within her memory. It mustn't be that good if she can't even remember it. His skinny, but broad shoulders shake with his laughter. The loose, black training shirt he's wearing shows no signs of the training the two young Rock Shinobi have been doing for the last hour or so. Even his calf-length, black pants barely have any dirt on them.
There is a nagging sensation in the pit of her stomach. Something was missing, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Her eyes trace over his body, but she can't seem to place it. It wasn't his new hairdo. It wasn't his clothes, or even his ninja shoes. He seemed to always be wearing such things lately. That's when it hits her. He's devoid of his headband. An uncomfortable feeling twists through her stomach. He had been so very proud when he had passed the test and gotten it. He had literally shown it to anyone who so much as looked his way, much to her embarrassment.
Where was it now?
Why wasn't he wearing it?
She shifts to an upright position while she considers the possibilities. If she were to be honest with herself, she couldn't remember the last time he'd actually worn it. Her eyes turn down to look at herself.
Her clothes are a completely different story from his. Like him, she wears a loose training shirt, but it's more blue than black. The shoulders shift from material to mesh and work their way down to the middle of her upper arms. She sports black shorts that stop just above her knee. Both pieces of clothing are covered in mud and sweat from their little sparring session. Bruises peek out from beneath her clothes, but she doesn't pay much mind to them. Such is the life of a ninja, even a female one. She didn't dare dream of the day she would have smooth, non-bruised skin.
Her eyes move back to his forehead, where his headband usually rested. It hits suddenly, but she misses the familiar weight of her own. Her fingers reach up to brush her collarbone out of unconscious habit. She had left hers at home when she came out to train with him this morning. She learned rather quickly that the boy in front of her fought dirty. He wasn't above grabbing her headband, since she typically wore it around her neck. He only strangled her with it twice before she decided that it's best to just leave it at home. He may be offering to help her perfect the jutsu her brother showed her, but he has a large competitive streak. He took losing hard and would do everything in his power to make sure he always came out on top, even if they were just simply training. Besides, the headband would just distract her in the long run anyway. She's been trying to perfect a jutsu that her older brother had taught her. It actually a lot simpler than she was making it out to be. All she would need to do is create a mirage of herself without actually casting a gentjutsu, or creating a clone. It would require less chakra than either of those techniques, leaving her more to fight with. It's nothing more than to draw the opponent's attention from her body. It had to look real, and be as convincing as a clone. After all, divided attention could mean life or death for a shinobi, so the simpler her image, the easier it should be to recreate.
The laughter begins to echo around her, and her irritation grows to a dangerous level. Her hands slowly curl into fists around her pants. She grits her teeth to keep from snapping something cruel at him, but it doesn't stop her teal eyes from narrowing angrily at him. Unfortunately, the glare seems to go right over his head, or, the more likely situation, he just doesn't really care.
Finally, she's had enough of his mocking laughter. The tight tension in the pit of her stomach snaps.
"Oh, shut up, Deidara! I don't have to beat you to know you'll always be a spoiled brat," she snaps, punctuating it with a stomp of her own foot, much like the spoiled brat she was accusing him of.
"At least I'm not the one who ends up on my butt every time we practice a jutsu, hmm," Deidara replies now that his laughter has almost completely stopped. His breaths come out in short pants. A sense of satisfaction fills her. It serves him right to be trying to catch his breath for laughing in her face.
She scoffs at his response and turns her gaze to a kunai that she dropped at some point during training. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see a downright mischievous grin over take his face. An uneasy, unfamiliar feeling fills her entire body, and she turns her teal eyes from the kunai to meet his blue gaze. Once they do, he straightens up, all traces of amusement gone from his face. A look of suspicion suddenly spreads over his face. She can't stop the grin from spreading over her face. He must have seen something in her eyes that made him think she was planning to attack. After all, she isn't above fighting dirty either, and the last thing he'll want to be hit by is a cheap shot. Her voice comes out slightly arrogant as she says. "I have to go easy on you, you know? I mean, it'd only hurt your fragile pride if a woman beat you. You know, I have to let you win."
He rolls both of his bright blue eyes and walks to her side. He proceeds to flop down to the ground beside her. She raises a questioning eyebrow at him, but she doesn't say a thing to him. Slowly, she eases herself down beside him. She loosely wraps her arms around her knees and lets out a soft breath. For a brief moment, she finds herself worrying once again if she smells bad, but she quickly pushes the thought out of her head. Of course she smells bad. She just spent the last hour rigorously training and sweating. Disgust fills every fiber of her being, and the need for a shower begins to swell in her body. She tries to push the feeling away, but it's hard to squash. Her thoughts turn to the boy beside her, and she silently reminds herself that she doesn't have long to be with her friend. She can shower later.
Movement out of the corner of her eye draws her full attention to her friend. Deidara slowly lifts his hands until they are directly in front of his face. His eyes begins to search the palms of his hands, as if the mouths they contain will answer some unasked question he has on his mind at that moment. He sighs after an uneventful minute and balls them into fists. After another few seconds of absolutely nothing happening, she turns her gaze skyward. The sight causes her heart to grow heavy and begin to sink to the pit of her stomach. A soft pink color is creeping along the edge of darkened sky. It's almost time for the two to go their separate ways for the day.
A strange, itching feeling appears on her face, letting her know that someone is looking in her direction. She reluctantly drags her gaze from the growing pink to meet bright blue. She tilts her head to one side in curiosity and shifts her weight to get a better look at him. Her arms are tucked beneath her thighs now, making her look vulnerable.
"Hey, Ishiko," Deidara says, sounding almost lost in thought.
"Hmm?" Is the unenthusiastic answer he receives. It doesn't seem to faze him though.
"What's your team like, hm?" he asks. A glance in his direction tells her that he isn't truly curious about her team. He probably just felt like he needed to say something to fill the awkward silence.
Ishiko hugs her thighs tighter as she thinks over how to describe her team. The thought of going back to them filled her with an odd sense of anxiety. She already knows that she really isn't really ninja material. She's too soft, and she shies away from the sight of blood, or gore of any kind for that matter. It made her feel sick every time she saw it. She had no idea how medic shinobi could handle some of the injuries they saw. Despite avoiding conflict as much as possible, she isn't a pacifist. She might be young, but she wasn't naive. She knew a peaceful reality would never come true in their very harsh world. Despite all that, she couldn't help but dream of a day she might have easy missions like babysitting. Days where she wouldn't have to worry about if she will live or die.
She releases a slow steadying breath, trying to gather her thoughts once more. She won't back down when it came to a fight. She can be fierce in her own way, and she's quite a handful to deal with when her stubborn streak hit. Her eyes turn back to the pink sky, and her thoughts drift further away from the question her friend asked. She cares more about her friends, family, and, though reluctant to admit, her teammates than what she called 'a silly little mission'. That was not viewed as the best trait in a ninja. She's painfully aware of that fact, but she likes to think she's fantastic in many other aspects. Her chakra control could become unrivaled in the village when she's fully grown, and she usually pick up jutsus fast.
She is brought back to the present when she hears Deidara noisily clear his throat. A small smile spreads over her face. He isn't known for being very patient. She stifles a chuckle. Who is she kidding? He's never patient, and she knows she is already pushing his limits.
"Hmm, they're…..nice," Ishiko finishes lamely. Her teal gaze refuses to meet his, despite the feeling that he is staring at her once more. The fact of the matter is both the boys on her team are not only obnoxious, but they fought terribly with one another. They are so rough with missions that they barely complete even the easiest ones. In fact, it's not a secret that they fail more missions than they succeed. In Ishiko's personal opinion, they probably shouldn't even be allowed to be around each other, but the village needed genin, so they were allowed to pass. They fought not only with each other, but the loudest, rudest one also fought with their sensei. Her sensei was nice, but he followed the rules down to the letter. He was known for leaving members of his team behind if they were late to the meeting place.
"Liar," Deidara scoffs. He throws his weight back until he's lying on his back. His hands rest behind his head as a makeshift pillow. It isn't much of a secret that he didn't like the two boys on her team. She could still remember the look of disgust on his face when she told him who she had been paired with. He had spent days telling her just how useless the two bickering idiots were.
She would never openly agree, but she finds herself agreeing. She worried that if she were to ever truly need them, she'd be out of luck. Her gaze finally turns to her friend beside her. His eyes had closed, and he had gained a relaxed posture. Depression threatens to overwhelm her. She could barely spend any time with him because of the rivalry between their teammates. The boy on her team would always pick a fight with Deidara, and it would be Deidara who got in trouble and sent before their kage. It was only in the early morning hours that they got uninterrupted, quality time together. They would sneak out of their houses an hour or two before dawn to meet at the training grounds where they would proceed to train with one another.
"They just argue a lot. They hardly ever involve me in the arguments." This is actually true. She didn't see a point in stepping between her arguing teammates. Not even her sensei would step between them. It may seem wrong, but the two of them let the boys fight it out until they tire themselves out. It just seemed easier. Another glance at the rising sun sets a tendril of panic to the pit of her stomach. If she didn't leave soon, she'd be late. "Well, I have to go. See ya later!"
She turns to him and gives him a short wave. He only opens one eye and raises his head just enough to watch her jog away. He doesn't bother waving, since she wouldn't have seen it anyway.
The silver haired boy threateningly towers over Ishiko, with his hands on his hips and a cold glare marring his face. He's at least two years older than her own 9 years of age, and he carries enough attitude to show it. His black eyes radiate the mistrust and hate he holds for the younger girl. It's obvious to anyone who cares enough to look at him that raw power is his forte. He's large, even for an eleven year old boy. Ishiko can see muscles beginning to form along his arms.
The silver hair on his head is reaches the bottom of his ears, with a greasy-looking texture to it. Ishiko doesn't know if it's actually greasy to the touch. She tries to avoid touching him in any form. To add to his appearance, his eyes are strangely close together, and he almost always squints in an attempt to look threatening. His nose is far too large for his face. It looks like it might have been broken a couple of times, and on the contrary, his mouth is too small; his voice can be booming, though. He has very broad shoulders, but his body continues to narrow the closer to the ground it gets, giving him an upside down triangle shape. Since he is older than Ishiko, he's at least five inches taller and uses this fact to try, but usually fail, to intimidate her.
With a roll of her eyes, Ishiko turns her teal gaze on her other teammate. The other boy is like a polar opposite of his teammate. He has short, spiky, dark brown hair. It almost looks like melted dark chocolate. His eyes hold a deceivingly, warm mud-colored gaze. He, too, is two years older than Ishiko. Because of this, he is a couple inches taller. Unlike her other obnoxious teammate, his facial features are set almost to perfection. A lot of the girls his age were known to have a crush on him. He's actually popular. Everything from his normal sized nose to his perfect mouth is almost like a dream come true. Ishiko's cheeks dust with pink with the thought of how cute he is running through her mind. Even though she's young, she's still a girl and has every right to day-dream.
"You and Sensei are late today! What did you two do? Oh, wait, you two were scr-" the gruff, coarse voice of the silver-haired boy starts to practically yell. It's barely past dawn, and he's already starting to grate on Ishiko's nerves. Today didn't look like it's going to be any better than any other day. Thankfully, another smoother voice interrupts his loud insult.
"Don't even think of saying anything else, moron," her dark-haired teammate practically snaps. His quick temper is the source of his obnoxiousness. It's actually the only thing unattractive about him. Unfortunately for Ishiko, she's seen it multiple times, up close and personal. Thankfully, she's yet to be on the receiving end of it, but she's sure it'll only be a matter of time. They've only been a team for a couple of weeks after all.
"Don't call me a moron or tell me what to do, Kaemon, you asshole!" growls the silver-haired boy. It sounded lame, even to Ishiko, who barely bit back the giggles. Kaemon gives the other boy an unamused look from his position, which is currently leaning against one of the various rock formations at the gates of the Rock Village.
"Watch your mouth. There is a girl present, Taro," Kaemon states finishing it off with a cold glare. Ishiko wants to feel flattered by the 'gentlemanly' gesture, but she has a sinking feeling that it has more to do with Kaemon's impatience than defending her honor.
Taro looks from side to side in a mock attempt to find Ishiko. "Oh really? I don't see one." His eyes finally land on Ishiko. "All I see is worthless scum. Hell, her family is so good at spying. I'm willing to bet my next paycheck on saying they are backstabbers. How do we even know that they aren't selling our information to our enemies?"
Ishiko feels rage begin claw at her stomach and heart. Kaemon's mud-colored gaze falls onto Ishiko's white knuckled hands with a look of disinterest. He's seen her upset many times before. In fact, it happens almost every day. Still, she looks ready to actually fight Taro, and that fact alone peaks his interest. It causes him sit up straighter, too. The slimy feel of Taro's gloating grin pores off of him in what feels like colossal waves. Kaemon silently urges Ishiko to land a punch right on Taro's malformed nose. He was sick of sticking up for her.
"I see the three of you are getting along just fine….once again," a deep voice drones. "I thought you'd all be happy to be getting an actual mission outside the village today. It looks like you aren't though. Perhaps I will tell the Tsuchikage to give the mission to a more worthy team."
The voice immediately commands their undivided attention. The three turn their heads toward the source. A man with black hair, riddled with grey, is walking toward them with a deep set frown on his face. His grey eyes are barely visible past his half closed eyelids. Though he is at least in his thirties, he has no facial hair to speak of. In Ishiko's private opinion, he's a short for a guy, though she couldn't accurately pinpoint his height. His headband is wrapped around the thigh of his right leg. Other than that, his appearance is that of an average shinobi, only he doesn't wear a flak jacket like the rest of his rank.
His large hand comes up to run his fingers through his peppered hair.
Ishiko can tell by the deep frown on his face that he's not in the mood to deal with them today. Not only are Kaemon and Taro fighting, even she is rallied up to fight with them. She watches his eyes slide closed, and a grimace passes over his face. She finds herself wondering what it is he's thinking. If only she knew.
He was wondering what he had he ever done to deserve this. The other genin squads didn't seem to have so many heated arguments in public. It just this team. He never told them that he hadn't even been jounin a whole day before he was forced to take on their squad. It was just his luck that he was forced to be with the most embarrassing squad in Rock history. In fact, they couldn't even get over their differences to baby sit some rich brat for a couple of hours. They had somehow managed to lose a five year old.
Movement out of the corner of her eye draws Ishiko's attention in that direction. To her absolute disgust, Taro is making crude, suggestive gestures in her direction while waggling his eyebrows at her. She feels her hands curl into white knuckled fists. Her breath hitches in her throat, and she tries to stop herself from losing her temper. Unfortunately, she loses the battle when Taro sticks his tongue out at her. The sound of flesh hitting flesh and a deep, yet loud, curse of pain cuts through the air. A sense of satisfaction fills Ishiko's belly, only to turn into cold dread the second Taro's absolutely furious gaze fixates on her.
Seconds later he's lunging at her with a murderous look in his eyes. Ishiko easily dances out of his reach. He might be a powerhouse, but he hadn't bothered to work on his speed. As long as she kept out of his long reach, she would be safe from harm.
"Whore! Why the hell did you hit me?!" Anyone could guess who that was.
"You no good, beaten, piece of trash! Take back what you said about my family!" Ishiko snarls back. Taro lunges once again, and Ishiko dances just out of his reach. This makes it appear as if she is taunting him, and that fact angers the boy more.
Unknown to the two genin, their sensei is rubbing the bridge of his nose in pure embarrassment. He knew he should step in to help. Ishko is so much smaller than Taro. To be honest, she looked small for her age. To him, it appeared as if a strong wind would knock the girl over at any given moment, but he finds himself treating it just like he would if it were Kaemon instead of Ishiko.
"Sora-sensei," a smooth young voice breaks the man's thoughts. His grey eyes lazily open and focus on the genin talking to him. Kaemon vaguely gestures toward his physically fighting teammates. The questioning words he says next is the thought that is on everyone's mind. "This is going to be a long week, isn't it?"
Sora sighs softly and runs yet another hand through his hair. "Yes, Kaemon. It's going to be a very long week."
"We are going to fail to protect this merchant, aren't we?"
Once again, Sora releases a gentle sigh. His eyes watch the two children he's in charge of. "Yeah, we are."
"Why did you take the mission?" Kaemon asks, his eyes never leaving his teammates.
"I don't know," Sora lies. To be honest, he's being forced to take it. The Rock wants to build its strength after it's utter defeat in the last war. They were pushing children out, regardless of whether they were ready or not. Take Ishiko for instance. They pushed her through the academy much faster than necessary and put her on a squad simply because she could control her chakra a little better than the other children in her class, and they needed another head to fill this particular team. The hope was having a girl with the two boys would help, and there hadn't been any girls in their graduating class that fit the two misfits.
It didn't help one bit.
Sora once again runs his hand through hair and decides it's time to break up the fight by announcing it was time to leave.
A couple of years slip since that fateful mission. It had ended in the typical failure, like they all knew it would. Ishiko had come out mostly unscathed, but Kaemon had ended up with a couple of large scars on his chest and back. Taro had received a couple of broken bones. The merchant lost his life to the bandits who had attacked halfway through the mission.
It was an eye opener for the team.
Once they had gotten back to the village, they had made an attempt to work together. Even years later, their relationship was rocky at best, but they had started to complete missions smoother. They could work in sync with one another at the very least after hours of training together. It took a lot of sweat, tears and arguments to even get that far.
They still didn't enjoy each other's company and never actively sought each other out. Tonight is one of those rare moments where Ishiko considers finding her teammates as she stares blankly out the window.
Multiple fires have been burning unchecked for a couple of hours now. They have begun to eat, not only important documents and the wooden parts of various buildings, but also human flesh. Cries of pain and terror fill the night sky. To the working shinobi, it seems that once they put one fire another springs up when a loud thunderous noise rocks their precious village to its' roots. Ishiko shifts uneasily on the bed, pulling a knee up to her chest and hugging it lightly.
Finally, some unknown deity seems to take pity on them. The thick sheets of rain are a cheered welcome. It starves the raging fires of food, and eventually tames them down enough that the shinobi have no problem putting them out.
She's pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of feet pounding down the hallway. Lightning illuminates her room, and the thunder roars loudly. Her eyes turn to her door just as it's thrown open, and a short, black mass launches itself onto her bed and scurries beneath her blankets. Her eyes follow the now shaking lump in her bed. It honestly hadn't been a surprise when her younger brother scampered into her room. Usually, he would've run to their older brother's room, but Ishiko heard him leaving a couple hours ago.
"You're not living up to your name, Katsuo. You can't hide every time we get a thunderstorm," Ishiko softly lectures. Despite the soft chiding in her voice, she places a gentle hand in the middle of the shaking mass and starts to pat it in what she hopes is a comforting manner. The blankets shift and an almost mirror image of her own teal colored gaze stares out at her through the darkness created by the blankets. Fear coats every inch of the beautiful color. His black hair blends in with the blanket's shadow. A squeak leaves him when yet another clap of thunder rocks the room, and his eyes disappear once more.
"Big brother is out, though. Father got called away to help with the fires. Mother is missing, too," Katsuo whispers. Ishiko frowns, as the news sets in. Now that she thought about it, why wasn't she called to help? Where did her mother go? Their mother isn't a shinobi anymore. A botched mission saw to that, so they wouldn't call for her. She was used to her brother sneaking out, so she hadn't thought twice about it.
A loud boom reaches her ears, and she turns her attention back to the window. Something had been bothering her. She had seen the clouds earlier, so she hadn't been giving the thunder a second thought at first. Unease coils in her stomach now. She can feel her little brother pressing himself harder against her side just as another boom rocks the village. The fires, the noise, and the fact that she hadn't been called must be related. She feels a shudder working down her spine, since she didn't want to think about an actual answer to the questions floating around in her mind.
She finds comfort in patting her little brother's back. More than she'd care to admit. She almost releases a scream of terror when a voice rips through the almost silent house.
"Ishiko! I have something I'd like to discuss with you! Come out now!" What kind of ninja was startled by her own comrades calling out to her? She finds her thoughts racing, and her body felt incredibly heavy. She knew those voices because of her older brother's position. What did some jounin want with her? The sound of them moving toward the bedrooms spurs her into action.
"H-hold on! I'll be out in just a minute!" She leaps out of her bed, runs to her still open door and peers out into the dark hallway. She counts three dark masses standing in her family's living room. That doesn't mean there are only three, though. She glances over her shoulder at her brother. His head is poked out from beneath the blankets, and he's giving her a look full of pure terror, complete with tears. She gives him a strained smile and a wink. Making sure to keep her voice low, she whispers, "They are here to ask for my help is all. I'll just tell them we can't leave you by yourself, alright?"
He gives her a jerky nod before disappearing back beneath her blankets. She releases a shaky breath and turns her attention back on the dark shapes. Silently, she urges her feet forward, despite the overwhelming want to hide with her brother.
Slowly, she makes her way down the dark hallway until she is standing in the doorway that connects the bedroom hallway to the living room. Lightning flashes momentarily lighting up the room enough that she can see the chillingly cold looks on their faces. Each jounin is focused solely on her, so the small shadowed figure of her younger brother a couple of feet behind her doesn't go unnoticed.
"Ishiko, tell us where Deidara has gone," demands one of the jounin. The darkness makes it impossible to tell which one it is that spoke. Her teal eyes jump from one dark form to another. Confusion sets into her mind. What did Deidara have to do with these shinobi showing up in the middle of the night?
"Huh?" Mentally, Ishiko curses herself for sound so dumb. Before she has a chance to redeem herself, one of the jounin drops a shocking bombshell.
"Ishiko, you are hereby under arrest." Fear fills Ishiko, and a squeak of surprise leaves the figure behind her. Two small hands ball up in the black tank top Ishiko had worn to bed, but she doesn't feel anything. Shock came first, then numbness took over.
"I-I d-don't understand," Ishiko stutters out in a whisper. "Why am I-"
"You're guilty by association," a familiar strict voice says, drawing the two young sibling's attention. A tall imposing figure steps out from the darkest shadows into some weak light filtering through one of the windows. Raven colored hair cascades down to brush his shoulders. His eyes seem to hold a frigid light all their own with the vivid green color.
"Father," Katsuo breathes with clear disbelief. "What's going on?"
Everyone in the room ignores the younger boy. He doesn't complain like he normally would. Even he can feel the tension that is twisting like a sharp kunai through the air in the room. Ishiko still can't wrap her head around what she's being arrested for, and the jounin don't seem inclined to give her more information on the matter. The only option she can see is to try to worm it out of her strict, stubborn father. She doesn't have to wait long for him to start talking.
"You're a shame to this family." Ishiko visibly flinches at the harsh words and can't stop a defiant glare from appearing on her young features. "We have managed to clear our names of suspicion and uphold a good name in this village…until now that is. Your brother saw to that."
"What?" Ishiko feels even more confused at this statement. Hadn't the jounin said something about Deidara? What did Daichi have to do with anything? Her father's eyes narrow in suspicion.
"He stole a vital piece of information from the Rock Village," he says in a cold voice. Ishiko starts to shake as possibilities of what might happen to her brother runs through her mind. "He used Deidara's vicious attack on the village as a distraction and killed the ANBU guarding the scroll."
Ishiko's eyes narrow further. There it was again. Deidara's name was mentioned, only this time more information was attached. Ishiko finds herself slowly shaking her head. There is no way her childhood friend would attack the village. He was on his way to making jounin. He was about to be fifteen in a month or two, and she would thirteen only a couple of months later. It just didn't make any sense to her.
"Deidara wouldn't…" Ishiko trails off when the jounin in the middle of the room makes a hand motion. The shinobi on either side of him seem to disappear before her eyes. Ishiko doesn't have time to react when one of them jerks Katsuo away, and the other kicks the back of her knees making them buckle. The moment her knees collide with the hard wooden floor, her wrists are snatched and wretched upwards painfully. The muscles in her shoulders protest at the unnatural way they are being strained, and she lets out a pained grunt and leans forward in an attempt to take some pressure off of the muscles. This is ineffective since the jounin moves his grip to accommodate her movement. Her eyes flick up when she hears movement approaching her.
"The charge against you is the association and help to both crimes," Ishiko's father states in the same cold tone. Ishiko's eyes close and her head tilts toward the floor in frustration. Why weren't they listening? She had nothing to do with this! She didn't even know anything about this! Why did the village have to be so harsh and cold, even to their own shinobi? She bites her lip in an attempt to fight the bitter tears that are threatening to spill from her eyes. She's barely a chuunin. There is no way she can fight four jounin. Her lavender colored hair falls into her face, thankfully shielding her crumbling resolve.
"I don't understand! What crimes could I have helped commit when I've been home the whole time?!" It seems like everyone in the room is holding their breath. All eyes are focused on Ishiko.
"Deidara's crime is of physically attacking and abandoning our village. You must have known about it or at the very least seen some sign of it," starts the jounin next to her father; the same one that had given the signal to the others. Her teal eyes open up, and her soft lavender hair tickles her cheek when she lifts her head to stare at the jounin in horror. She would never admit it, but she had become suspicious over the past couple of years. It started with him not wearing the headband, followed by the strange remarks. It started to escalate to the point that it seemed that he hated all of the Rock shinobi. Ishiko feels every muscle in her body tense, and her bottom lip starts to tremble. She hadn't wanted to believe it at the time, so she simply ignored them as a boy going through puberty. She thought he'd get better.
"You're brother's crime is of stealing forbidden information. We assume that he spoke to either you or Deidara about his plans. No one could have come up with such a flawless plan on their own, and as Deidara and you were close, you must have had some idea of what was going on," finishes the Jounin holding her arms. His grip tights for a moment, and Ishiko realizes she can't feel her hands anymore. She assumes it's from the awkward positions her arms are currently in. Inwardly, she groans at the thought of them tingling once they got proper circulation.
A yell from Katsuo draws the attention of the adults in the room. He had slipped out of the jounin's now loose grip and ran across the room. He was currently attempting to free his older sister by punching the back of the Jounin holding her.
"Let her go! She's been here with me! She hasn't done nothing to no one! You're hurting her!" The jounin that had been holding Katsuo comes to the aid of his comrade. He lifts the young boy up, which causes Katsuo to kick and scream in frustration.
"Katsuo!" a sharp voice snaps, drawing the young boy's attention and makes him fall silent. "Go to your room."
Ishiko doesn't have to see her brother to know that he is about to protest. To save him from punishment, she quickly intervenes.
"Aw, Katsou, do as your told. I'll be there to protect you from whatever scares you after I clear up my name. This is just a big misunderstanding, and they'll see. Dad'll help me get this figured out."
Katsou's teal-colored gaze rests on his sister's shadowy, hunched form. "Promise?"
Ishiko tenses for a moment, but instantly regrets it when pain washes over her wrists and arms. The stupid jounin had responded out of habit by pressing her arms almost to the breaking point. Forcing her muscles to relax, she lets her mind wander over the possibilities. Would she really be able to fulfill her promise? It honestly doesn't seem like she has to long to live. The Rock Village isn't known for being very forgiving to traitors. They aren't as harsh as the Mist village, but they are still cold, strict, and harsh.
Lightning lights the room once more. Katsou is gifted one more look at his sister's pained face before darkness engulfs the room once more.
"I promise for as long as I live, baby brother. Now, please go to your room and don't come out no matter what you hear," Ishiko whispers. Thunder rumbles like some large, angry beast. Katsou flinches. The shinobi cautiously puts the boy down. With one last look at his sister's shadow, he hurries to his room. Once he is out of sight, Ishiko breathes a soft sigh of strained relief and tries to think of something to say. Defiant teal eyes finally lift to glare at her father's silhouette.
"I have no idea what came over them. I do know that I have no part in it," she hisses past clenched teeth. The moment she is done speaking, the sound of glass breaking mixes with another rumble of thunder. A hot, sticky liquid runs down her arms. The sound of a solid thump and the sudden feeling in her arms starts off what she would later claim was the worst night of her young life.
It all happens too quickly for her to think coherently over the situation. Her life is changed in a single night.
"Get up! Ishiko, move!"
Teal eyes widen at the familiar voice, and her hands start to shake. Without a second thought, her ninja training takes over, and her instinct to survive kicks in sending her into autopilot. Now that her hands are free, she fumbles around for some type of weapon. The sound of clanking metal rings loudly in her ears. Finally, her hands find a discarded kunai. Unfortunately, it's by the edge nicking the tip of her fingers. She barely registers the pain as her hand wraps around the hilt. She remains in a crouched position and tries to sense any incoming kunai, making sure to easily knock them away. She's faintly aware of the fact that the warm liquid on her arms is slowly cooling and beginning to crust.
"Run! Ishiko, get out of here!" A loud noise rocks the house that sure didn't sound like thunder. She hesitates for a moment before numbly half crawling, half stumbling to the door. Once her hand touches the cold metal of the handles, she flings it open and throws herself out into the cold rain and mud. The cool wet night air assaults the exposed skin on her arms and legs. Without a second thought, she's on her feet and running into darkness at a dead run.
The cold rain roughly drags her shocked brain back to the present. Daichi's voice echoes in her mind, and she looks back toward her house in horror. He had killed that jounin that had been holding her; she was sure of it. Gods only knew who else he had killed after she'd left! On top of that, he'd stolen valuable village information! Now, she would look like an associate for running! What had she been thinking at that moment?
Oh, right. She hadn't had a single thought. She just followed the orders of a familiar voice like a good shinobi would. Why couldn't she ever seem to think for herself? Her dead run slows to a walk. A rapid bolt of lightning lights up the sky as well as the area surrounding Ishiko. Gaping holes and burn marks scorched various parts of the familiar buildings. She can faintly hear shinobi calling out to each other over the din of rain. This was Deidara's doing. She's sure of it now that she has seen the evidence. The very thought made her sick to her stomach.
She numbly passes a dark alley on her way through the village. She is so busy looking at the damage done, that she doesn't actually pay close attention to her surroundings. A large, cold hand falls over her mouth and jerks her into the shadows. She switches the kunai from her dominant right hand to her left. Her right arm swings up to grab the wrist of the offender. A second hand grabs her right wrist halting her attempts to rip the hand from her mouth. Out of instinct, she quickly lashes out with the kunai that she had never released during her escape. Luckily for the fingers on the hand, its owner has quick reflexes, and it narrowly misses losing a finger or two. Unlucky for Ishiko, her aim is wild and full of emotion. White hot pain races up her right arm, all the way to her shoulder. The sharp kunai easily opens a nice, deep wound that starts from her wrist and jaggedly goes all the way to her elbow. Tears of pain spring up in her eyes, but the adrenaline from the confrontation is still coursing through her body. It helps to numb the pain just enough that she can tolerate it. A gasp and a curse later, she hears a deep chuckle she could recognize anywhere. Trying to ignore the pain, she regrips the kunai in her left hand and thrusts it at the sound of Deidara's chuckle.
"You've always been such a klutz, hm. You'd think you'd be better since you're supposed to be a Rock Shinobi," Ishiko's teal eyes narrow in anger at his mocking tone. Tears of pain and confusion cloud her vision, but she stubbornly fights them off. She can't lose what little sight she has left. She has to keep an eye on her new 'enemy'. This whole mess is all his fault! If he just kept quiet and done as he was told, none of this would have happened! Why did he have to create waves? Why did he have to always stand out? Why couldn't she be in her nice warm bed right now? Why did she have to be standing in the freezing rain covered in her own blood and the blood of a dead jounin? The most she should be worrying about is how to comfort Katsuo due to his irrational fear of thunder. Anger helps to further dull the piercing pain in her arm. The freezing rain helps too.
"You!" she hisses between clenched teeth. Deidara takes a wary step back in shock at her sudden anger toward him. Both knew that she wouldn't pose much of a threat to him, but he still found it uneasy to have his only friend angry with him. Ishiko's small blood covered finger pokes him threateningly in the chest, and she takes an equally threatening step toward him. "You just had to take me down with you, didn't you?! Why can't you just do what you are told?! Why must you be so different from everyone else?! Look at what you did to our village! What the hell is going through that puny thing you call a brain?!"
Her small body heaves with emotional pain and fury. Her lungs burn for air, yet all Deidara can do is stare at her blankly. It just infuriated her further. It appears he can't comprehend why she's yelling at him. As she watches, his face slowly morphs into the look he gets when he becomes impatient.
How dare he look at her like that!
"I just wanted to tell you I was leaving," he whispers. Ishiko barely catches the words over the pouring rain. A flash of lightning gives Ishiko the chance to see her friend's young, yet serious face. When had he grown up? When had he looked more like a man than the child she grew up with?
Where had her time gone? The chance to actually see him is gone in a moment. Her fists tighten, and a rush of pain washes up her right forearm immediately reminding her of her wound. Her left hand instinctively moves to cover the wound, and she hisses in pain at the slightest touch. The adrenaline pumping in her system seems to be wearing off, and the numbing effect is quickly disappearing along with it. She can't hold back her tears at this point.
The warmth of her tears is a stark contrast to the freezing rain running down her face. An awkward silence passes between the two of them. Ishiko briefly wonders if her tears are from confusion, the pain in her arm, the betrayal of the people closest to her, or a combination of all three. She was leaning toward the last option. A large warm hand captures her right one, causing her to flinch back. She regrets the move as the hand doesn't realize her, and it tugs painfully at her wound.
She hisses loudly in pain and stops resisting. Deidara pulls her bloody left hand away and lifts her injured arm up for inspection. She's unsure of what he is actually looking at since she couldn't see her hand in front of her face. The sound of ripping material soon reaches her ears.
"This should hold until Daichi finds you. He'll know where to go to get you proper medical attention," Deidara says, tying a strip of cloth around the cut. Once it's secure, he leans toward her, drawing her gaze upwards. All at once, she wishes that she could actually see him, and not the blob he had become. She wishes she had the courage to ask him what the hell was going on. Unfortunately, the words become a ball in her throat, and she's unable to utter a single sound. His voice sounds so… hurt. It isn't something she's used to hearing. His fingers brush her wet hair out of her face, startling her. It's almost like he can see her. "Ishiko, we'll meet again. I promise. I'll explain everything then. Just be safe until then."
The sound of voices causes Ishiko look behind her. Lightning lights the world up again. Thunder rumbles, and the voices get closer. When she turns back, her friend's silhouette is gone. She suddenly feels very small and alone in the world. She stands there letting the cold rain run over her skin. She's so confused on what to do. Should she run? Should she wait to get caught?
No.
The village won't believe she panicked because of the battle raging in her house. She's a chuunin and should be used to such battles already. She should be able to think clearly in any situation. She shouldn't have panicked in the first place.
No. Letting herself be captured wouldn't make her situation any worse. In fact, it'd likely get worse. Her mouth goes dry, and her throat begins to burn. She'll be treated as a rogue ninja.
Her teal eyes drift in the direction of her house. It takes everything in her body not to go scampering back. It's one of the few places she feels safe. Her heart sinks when she realizes she spent the last moments in her house terrified with blood on her. She closes her eyes and swallows hard. The voices ring loudly within feet of her. She knew who it was. It should come as some relief it wasn't pursuing ninja, but it just made her feel even emptier.
The owner of the voice is the old man who ran the grocery store on the corner near her house. It sounds like his wife and youngest son is with him. They must have heard her yelling at Deidara and came to investigate. She turns to face them when they appear. None of them have any shinobi training. She can easily escape, but she finds herself froze in place. Lightning grants her one last sight of the old couple and their son. The looks of concern tears at her heart, creating deep scars she wasn't sure would ever heal.
"Ishiko, what is wrong? What is going on?" The old man calls over the falling water. She doesn't reply. Instead, she stares at their dark silhouettes miserably. The son moves to stand in front of his parents. It's like he senses something wrong. Or maybe he saw the blood on her and assumed the worst, but she has a feeling that he's shaking.
Slowly, she begins to gather chakra to her legs. Once she has the sufficient amount, she crouches and releases it in order to spring quickly onto a nearby windowsill, which she uses to propel her next jump onto the roof of another building. Once she makes it onto the rooftop, she about loses her footing. She blames it on the rain, but she knows it's because she's crying. The pain sure isn't helping either. She leaves them without responding to them at all.
It only takes her moments to get out of the village. Most of the attention is still on getting wounded shinobi and civilians out of the buildings Deidara destroyed, so Ishiko has no problem slipping out of the village. She pauses just outside to look back on the only place she's ever known. A voice startles her and makes her grip the only weapon she has at that moment. How did people keep sneaking up on her like this? How had she survived this long when she left herself so very painfully open?
"I never meant to get you involved, baby sister." Her brother's voice cuts through the night, and she finds her eyes searching the darkness for him. She desperately needs to see his face, but she also wants to punch him. A confusing mix of emotions tangle in the pit of her stomach, and all she can do is let out a strangled sound. She hears him sigh before saying gently. "Deidara didn't mean to either. We didn't think they'd come after you. I'm so very sorry. I thought I had everything planned correctly, but it seems I didn't. My mistake cost you more than I could ever have thought."
She releases a soft hiss, but that's the only sound she can make. It's taking all her concentration not to just throw herself into his arms and sob to her heart's content. She hears him shuffle and tenses. She turns in that direction, but she still comes up empty handed.
Come out, you coward! She screams this internally, since her mouth still refused to actually function. To top it all off, she's never felt more terrified of her brother and not being able to find him just made it worse. His soft voice cuts through the night once more. "I…. I brought you this. I know how much it means to you."
A piece of cloth and cold metal touch her hand, causing her to jerk away from it. After a few tense seconds, she feels it prodding her once more. She spins to face that direction. The clouds make it impossible to actually see her older brother, but she can see a dark shadow where he is standing.
Once more, he nudges her with the cool metal. Her heart leaps into her throat, but she knows it's not a weapon. It's blunt and square.
Then it hits her what it is. It's her headband. He had gone through the trouble of getting it from the house. She has to think for a moment about what to do with the kunai, since her right arm arm is now dangling uselessly at her side. It lost feeling and has already soaked the temporary cloth Deidara used to wrap it. Lightning flashes again with good timing. It reflects off of a headband being held out to her. She places the handle of the kunai between her teeth and slowly reaches out to grab her headband. She didn't know why she wanted the silly thing so bad. It isn't like she has a home to return to now. It was meaningless.
Tears fall even harder. No. It isn't meaningless. It represents so many precious memories. Memories she never wanted to forget. She snatches it away and cradles it to her chest. Her knees felt weak all at once, and it took all her strength to remain upright.
So many emotions threaten to overwhelm her all at once. She's a shinobi! She shouldn't be crying! Still, her bottom lip continues to quiver. The faces of Katsuo, her mother, her friends, her team, and so many others flash through her mind's eye. She won't ever get to see them again. If she does happen to meet up with them, they'll be her enemy. They will attack her without hesitation. She'll be their enemy. She loses the fight with her legs, and she sinks to the ground gripping the headband to her chest. The dam holding her emotions back fully breaks, and she starts to sob hard. The kunai clatters to the ground in the midst of her breakdown.
What is she going to do? She's only a child. Where would she go? How would she survive? She's a rogue now, whether she liked it or not, and they weren't known for having long life spans. She doesn't have a home and is doomed to be hunted for the rest of her natural life upon this land.
All for a misunderstanding. All for following orders like she had been trained to do.
A hand hesitantly begins to pet her hair, and she takes a small amount of comfort in it. There isn't a point in pulling away, or swatting him aside. He's her only sure way of survival. Daichi is older and more experienced than she is. Maybe her options aren't nearly as bleak as she first thought them to be. That line of thought does nothing to help the hollow feeling in the pit of her stomach, or the hole in her heart. The next words she hears from her older brother only makes this whole situation worse.
"You weren't supposed to be here. Ishiko, I don't have a plan for you, and you aren't coming with me. I'll take you as far as I can, but you'll have to leave my side sooner rather than later. ANBU will be searching for us. I can't protect us both. We will find a place for you to hide out though. I promise."
With that, his hand is gone. The last bit of comfort she had in the world just left her. She's alone. No home, no family, and no allies.
Maybe if she had thought a little, she wouldn't be in this mess.
Maybe she could've prevented all this if she confronted Deidara about her growing suspicions.
Maybe she would be warm now, not stuck in the rain in her pajamas.
She stands up slowly and takes the first few reluctant steps of her new life. She has no destination in mind, and her mind is growing foggy due to the pain in her arm. She's freezing too. She figured she'd just walk till she got tired and collapsed, or the ANBU caught up with her. Her brother made just enough noise to keep her heading in the direction he desired. Whether he was frustrated by her snail's pace or not, she will never know.
To be honest, she no longer cared. Deidara and Daichi had cost her everything, and they both left her. Or in Daichi's case, planned to leave her.
What a life….