Chapter 9
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Comments
This is a bit of a shorter one. I hope I haven't lost you all yet, but what do you think of shorter chapters? Please let me know if you all prefer a 'hit me with the dictionary' kind of approach or a bite-sized chapt! I do have a longer chapter coming up, but it's definitely big one so I might split it up. But do let me know :)
I promise we will be getting back to our favourite Hatake, but I have to admit that I enjoy writing for Izuna and playing around with his dynamic for Kana.
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"Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts."
~ Patrick Rothfuss ~
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Voices faded in and out as I felt my consciousness rejoin my body. Inhaling, the sharp sting in my chest forced my eyes open as the unexpected pain sent a shock through me, rebooting my system.
My eyes jumped around the unfamiliar room, slightly panicked. I calmed down when I saw the Uchiha fan painted on every wall, but I was still on edge in this foreign environment.
"Kana!"
Izuna dashed in. Flinging aside the katana he had strapped to his waist. My hand instinctively reached out to him as he grabbed it, "You inhaled a fair amount of smoke so don't try to talk-and before you ask your Granny's fine. She's talking to my father now."
Nodding, his lips cracked into a grin as he knelt on the hardwood floor causing me to frown. Giving me a quizzical look, I shifted on the bed and patted the now empty space, urging him to sit lest he wreck his knees by wearing them out on the floor.
His eyes widened as he gave me an odd look, before cautiously putting his weight on the bed, cautious and uncertain. I smiled, giving him a thumbs up of 'ok'.
"Kana, you're awake."
Tajima had entered, followed by my grandma. Honestly, she looked none the worse for wear… she was resilient that one.
"You really are a reckless one aren't you." Granny huffed, flicking the tip of my ear as I smiled sheepishly. "Now say thank you to Tajima-san. He's been kind enough to move us into the Uchiha compound so that nothing like that happens again."
I got up and kneeled, bowing respectful before the stern but kind man as I heard Izuna clap cheerfully behind me
"Oh my God, we're going to be neighbours!" He cheered, and I couldn't help but smile at the new predicament bringing me closer to my new friends.
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More time passed. Now that I had recovered and moved into the clan compound, Madara and Izuna had become constant fixtures in my everyday life. I had befriended other clan kids as well, but between juggling my work and weaving more robes and uniforms, my hours didn't line up with the other children my age. This meant that I was often left with the two brothers as my main friends aside from the village elders who had taken a liking to my designs and embroidery.
Sliding the door open, I saw a downcast Izuna digging his foot into the earth at the front of our house. Heading to our usual waiting spot, I bent down so that I made eye contact with the pouty Uchiha.
"What's wrong Izuna?" I asked, straightening back up with him, "If you did badly in training I'll treat you to your favourite daifuku today."
But not even the mention of his favourite dessert could brighten up my companion. 'This must be serious' I thought. After spending so much time with Izuna, I had learnt quite quickly that not much was able to bring his spirits down.
"Nii-san and I will be leaving." He mumbled, "Father's taking us out to train - I don't know for how long, but I know this is going to be the last time we can see each other for a while."
"When do you go?"
"Tonight."
That definitely killed my cheery mood.
I let out a sigh, "I see." I pulled him through the streets, running past all the stalls until we arrived at the very edge of the compound. This was a good starting point.
"Kana, what are you doing?" He quizzed.
"You leaving means we won't be able to do all this stuff again for a while." I smiled, "So we're doing it all today."
His mouth popped open silently before it turned into a smile, "Alright then, First stop, daifuku!"
The rest of the day went by with us darting through all the stalls and engaging in our favourite pastime of inhaling as much food as possible. But despite the numerous activities we partook in, time just slipped through our fingers and the crescent moon forced us to call it a day.
Izuna walked me back but he was silent and deep in thought the whole way. Not that I could blame him, he was not the clan's heir, but one could only imagine the amount of pressure he would still be under.
As we neared our destination, he seemed reluctant to take the final few steps that would signify the end of our days together. It was sweet that he seemed to struggle with saying 'goodbye'; or more appropriately, 'see you later'.
"Wait here." I mumbled, darting ahead and diving into my embroidery room looking for what I had been working on the past few months. I found it after digging through one of my many drawers, almost finished but not quite complete.
Rushing back out, I successfully ran back to where Izuna stood and was proud to say that I did so without tripping or face planting over the hazards that littered my workspace.
"Oh dear…" I panted, "My cardio could definitely use work." To which he gave me a knowing nod with a small smile.
"I'm not giving this to you, I'm letting you borrow it." I told him pointedly as I pulled out a small silk pouch that had the Uchiha fan embroidered on one side but remained blank on the other, "I'm not done with this yet so you can return it to me when you come back."
Placing the soft fabric in his hands, I saw Izuna get slightly teary as his thumb traced over the delicate embroidery.
"This is really good Kana." He smiled.
I rolled my eyes, and reached out to give him a hug. "It'll be even better once finished, so promise me you'll bring it back okay Izuna?"
A lump formed in my throat, but I willed it back. "Just bring it back, and if you get it dirty I'll make you embroider all the ceremonial robes from now on."
His arms came to wrap around mine, and we both pretended not to hear the crack in his voice as he said, "I promise."
And I intended to hold him to his word.