I had packed my summoning scroll full of necessities for the road and double checked I had everything. Once confirming I was ready, I headed out of my room to meet Itachi and Kisame for breakfast. I yawned and stretched while strolling into the kitchen and over to the wooden table where Itachi and Kisame sat dishing out eggs and fruit. I joined them just as Itachi made me a plate and set it down in front of my usual spot at the table.

The fact that he cooks so much and doesn't mind is my kind of guy.

"So, what's on the agenda for today besides walking towards the coastline?" I said while picking up my chopsticks.

"Precisely that. We will have to make a stop in the next town over for a few things," Itachi said normally before taking a bite of his food.

"Okay." I glanced over at the two of them sitting and eating peacefully.

I wonder if they know about the policy for the losers in the arena.

I sighed inaudibly and picked up a small bit of food; the anxious pit in my stomach at the thought of losing destroyed my appetite. Kisame peeked over at me and furrowed his brows in concern, "Why are you not eating? Are you okay?" He sounded so genuinely worried as he put a hand on my back and rubbed slow circles. As anxiety ridden as I was, I loved how the hulking fish-man had become one of my closest friends.

"… do you guys know what happens to the people who lose fights at the Coliseum?" I said quietly.

Kisame's furrowed, concerned expression morphed into one of curiosity. "No—tell us."

"The losing fighter becomes the property of the winning fighter's patron," I said emotionlessly and examined how many small grains of rice I could count in my bowl.

Kisame's voice was soothing, "Hey, you're kick-ass. You can fuck up pretty much anyone. You won't lose." His wide grin reassured me.

I actually very easily could…

"Thanks… but we should still make a back-up plan just in case I do," I said composedly to hide my nerves. "People there love to collect Kekkai Genkai users… They will throw whatever they can at me to try and have me beat. The patrons like to play dirty." I willed myself to try and eat by bringing a bite of eggs to my lips.

"…Play dirty how?" Kisame cocked an anxious brow.

I swallowed before speaking plainly, "They like to use poison mostly, or chakra suppressants to weaken the other fighters."

Kisame bellowed a laugh, "Like we would let anyone do that! We got your back, you'll be fine. Relax a little, okay?" He shook my shoulder lightly, causing my body to rock subtly side to side. I couldn't resist the faint smile that made its way over my nervous countenance.

This guy is a champion at cheering people up.

Itachi was usually a quiet person, but he had barely spoken all morning. I also observed that he had stopped eating. If I didn't know better, I would say he seemed a little nervous. He stood from the table to pack his things. Kisame and I exchanged bemused glances as we finished up and packed out.

I relished in the brisk morning air against my skin and the pastel shades of pink and orange that stained the sky from the sunrise. I'd remembered that Sasori had asked if I would help him collect some botanicals for making certain poisons. Since I also needed to collect some for my own medical supplies and was the only other person who knew the correct plants, I had agreed. I stopped a couple of times to collect some wisteria seeds and red yew berries as we walked, always making sure to run and catch back up with Kisame and Itachi as to not slow our deliberate pace.

I had just caught back up with them after collecting some Wolf's Bane and geranium as Kisame began walking alongside me. He glanced down curiously at the plants I was putting into a small pouch when he spoke, "What have you been stopping and picking up?"

"Sasori asked if I could gather some plants that he needs for making certain poisons and I needed some for my own personal medical supply," I replied.

"What are you grabbing? It just looks like a bunch of colorful berries and flowers…," Kisame said.

I began to snicker to myself at his lack of plant knowledge as Itachi answered for me, "Medicines are made from petals, seeds, leaves and roots, Kisame. More often than not, they are vibrantly colored."

I hated to admit it, but I was impressed. I raised both of my brows in surprise, "You are correct. How did you know that?" We seemed to finally be approaching an inn, the first sign of civilization since heading out as the sun dipped below the trees.

"I have read many books on medicines and botanicals," Itachi said apathetically.

We all walked in silence the rest of the way until we made it to the town that Itachi had mentioned at breakfast. It was adorably small and surrounded by a large bamboo forest. For such a quaint town, it was bustling with shops and venders. It appeared that the entire village was out walking, busy chatting noisily as they ran errands. "Nii-san, that's not fair! Give it back!" I heard a little brunette yell desperately in a high pitch.

"If you want it, come and get it!" A young boy yelled back as he ran straight towards us; a cute doll was bouncing with each stride. He ran square into Itachi, who looked down at the small boy as he stared back at Itachi wide eyed with horror.

"I—I'm so—sorry. Please excuse me," the little boy said and started backing away in fear. Itachi knelt down to stare the boy square in the face as the little girl who had shouted first came running up behind him, panting hard. Itachi took the doll from the boy's small hands and smiled as he handed it back to the girl. She blushed endearingly as she took the doll from his much larger, navy-nailed hand.

My whole heart is dying from how precious this is.

"Thank you..." the little girl squeaked.

Itachi closed his eyes and smiled genuinely, triggering the girl to run off giggling furiously. He then stared back at the boy who was frozen in front of him. "Be nicer to your sister. You should be grateful for the time you spend with her." He spoke sternly, but not harshly. The brunette boy peeked up at him as Itachi smiled and ruffled the boy's hair playfully. The boy beamed back at him and giggled before taking off.

I watched standing next to Kisame while smirking sardonically at him. He stood upright and happened to glance my way, "What?" Itachi said in a flat, apathetic tone.

He's a total sap. Who knew?

"Oh, nothing." I said nonchalantly and strode off down the narrow dirt pathway.

Kisame's snort of a laugh prompted me peer over my shoulder at him, "Hey, I need to go grab something. I'll meet you both back here in 10 minutes."

"Don't be late," Itachi stated frigidly.

I jumped in, "Hey, I need to get something too. I'll be right back."

"You aren't going anywhere alone, Sora." Itachi said crossly.

"Yikes. Someone woke up on the wrong side of their bed roll this morning…" I said mockingly. "I just need something—"

He cut me off mid-sentence, "I will say it once more, you are not going anywhere by yourself. Understood?" He was becoming more heated.

"Maybe if you let me finish my—" I started.

I was interrupted by Itachi again except now he was irate. "Sora. Enough. Whatever it is, one of us will go with you whether you like it or not."

I am fucking done with this conversation. Why is he acting like this?

I narrowed my eyes menacingly and folded my arms, "Yeah? Or else what? Hm?" His coal-black irises became thin slits. I scoffed bitterly at him and walked away.

In a split second, he had me pressed out of sight against the back of one of the dark wooden buildings. My feet dangled and I choked hard as his sizeable hand gripped my throat.

Don't use your jutsu. You don't want to hurt him.

His Sharingan spun violently in his thickly lashed, dark eyes. "Put… Me… Down…" I managed to squeeze out.

"I will put you down when you agree to not wander around without either Kisame or me," Itachi said as he fumed.

"Fi—fine," I acerbically spat back.

Why the fuck is he being like this? You should have just broken his wrist.

He let go and I collapsed on the ground. I was hunched over on all fours while I coughed trying to catch my breath. I glowered up at him filled with rage and disgust.

I scrutinized him pinch the bridge of his nose and exhale exhaustedly. "Please forgive me. I didn't mean to lose my temper, he said while offering me his hand to help me to my feet.

I slapped it away forcefully, "Don't you fucking touch me." I said in a low and furious tone. I used the rough wood of the building to force myself to a standing position. I hit him with my shoulder while I shoved past him. I thought I heard him swear under his breath as his footsteps ensued behind me. I huffed off to the general store in a hurry.

If he wants to be there so badly when I buy tampons, then so fucking be it.

I stopped outside the store front and took a deep, cleansing breath before walking in.

"Hello! What can I help you two with today?" a kind woman with short black hair called from behind a light blue counter.

"Hi there!" I sounded so chipper for being so completely enraged at the man who was standing behind me. "Where are your feminine products?" I fought back a smirk as I felt Itachi's chakra shift faintly.

"Right over here, miss," the young woman answered sweetly. She strolled from behind the counter over to one of the walls and pointed. "What are you looking for?"

"Regular tampons and gauze, please." I said candidly while smiling at the shopkeeper. I felt another subtle spike in Itachi's chakra.

This is what he fucking gets. He's the one who insisted on coming with me.

"Sure thing. Is that all for you?" the woman said as she bent over to pick up my items. "Does your husband need anything?"

I started laughing nervously, "Oh, we're—"

Itachi stopped me mid-sentence, "No, thank you. Just those items will do."

He didn't correct her? That's… interesting.

Itachi insisted on paying for my things and we left to meet Kisame. I didn't look at him once after the incident earlier. I barely even acknowledged his existence while making sure to stay at least two strides in front of him.

"Did you get what we needed?" Itachi asked monotonously.

"Yep. All good," Kisame smiled and held his hands behind his back, "Sora-chan, close your eyes and stick out your hands." I did as he said, albeit a bit reluctantly. I felt the chill of smooth, cold metal as I opened my eyes—it was a beautiful chokuto. It was jet-black cord interlaced with red around the handle and a black hilt.

I was utterly speechless at the act. I had told him a while back that the chokuto given to me by my Oji was taken by my first captors. "Kisame… It's beautiful. Thank you." I slung it over my shoulder and threw myself into Kisame's arms.

"You're welcome. Just promise me you'll take good care of it." he smiled while crushing me between his giant, muscular arms.

"I promise." I grinned up at him as he set me back down.

"Sora-chan, what are the—" I stopped him before he could finish speaking.

"It's nothing. Let's go—only a few kilometers more and we'll be a little over halfway there," I responded hastily while I started back down the dirt path out of the village. I vaguely could make out Kisame interrogating Itachi as I picked up my pace most likely towards my death.

As we continued our journey after our fun little stop in the town, I was completely silent. I busied myself with collecting botanicals, making sure to keep a decent amount of room between me and my two companions. I was still fuming. I was upset and honestly incredibly hurt emotionally from how Itachi had behaved. I also couldn't believe that I hadn't used my jutsu on him as to not harm him. When he had his hand around my throat. Choking me.

Sora, why the fuck didn't you fight back?

The walls of trust that were beginning to build between the two of us had been shaken—damaged. I tried to not pay attention to what Kisame and Itachi were saying faintly while they whisper-argued behind me as we walked along the tree-lined dirt road. From what I was able to hear, I gathered that Kisame was livid and had pieced together what had happened; he was scolding Itachi like he had the little boy who had run into him earlier that day. The strangest part was that Itachi seemed angry still… but not at Kisame or me—with himself. When I accidentally glanced at him, he had the most dejected expression. It seemed like he was genuinely disappointed and discontented.

But it serves him right. He shouldn't have been an asshole.

"Let's stop here and set up camp for the night." Kisame said as he gently rested a hand on my shoulder and halted my movement. I peered over the pointed tree-tops and noticed that the sun was starting to dip below the horizon.

We found a suitable spot to make camp and got settled before I spoke for the first time since we left the village. "I'm going to get some water. There was a stream nearby—give me your waters," I stated curtly.

Itachi grabbed his and Kisame's canteens and handed them to me. I peeked up at him for a brief moment; the crestfallen countenance I saw earlier had consumed his slate-grey eyes. My stomach churned with hurt confused ire and my lips formed into a tight, anxious line. I spun on my heel and strode off in the direction of the flowing water.

He needs to stop looking like I just kicked a fucking puppy. It's ridiculous. He's the one who fucked up.

The summer breeze gently shook the leaves on the large trees that surrounded me. The setting sun cast long shadows through the gaps in the forest canopy and stained the sky brilliant shades of pink and orange. I walked at the slowest pace possible, so I could be alone for maximum amount of time. I needed it. The sound of flowing water increased, and the trees dispersed to reveal a sparkling, clear stream just up ahead. I made my way to the water's edge and knelt down to fill the canteens. Suddenly an all too familiar chakra signature approached from behind.

Itachi's velvet tone sounded deeply anguished. "Sora, can we please talk for a moment?"

"No. Go away," I responded tersely while filling his canteen.

Just fill his water and he can leave.

He heaved a sigh then spoke in a tone more disheartened than I had ever heard him before. "I—I just wanted you to know that I am incredibly sorry for what happened earlier. I shouldn't have done that…" His voice tapered off remorsefully.

I threw his canteen at him a bit forcefully and glowered. "Cool," I deadpanned bitterly.

"You could have easily manipulated me with your Blood Puppet jutsu. But you didn't—" Itachi sounded profoundly confused for once. "Why?"

Because I was too fucking weak.

I dipped Kisame's and my canteens into the cold water simultaneously and remained silent.

I heard his light footsteps on the grass as he come up beside me and bent down on one knee. "You could have—"

I cut him off snappishly while closing the waters, "I know full well what I could have done, Itachi." I felt his gaze burning into my cheek as I refused to make eye contact and shot up to a standing position.

"Then, why didn't you?" His earnest, melancholy tone prompted me to glance up at him. The bottomless charcoal of his eyes seemed so incredibly anguished.

"Itachi, you're my teammate. And my friend—I thought. How fucking foolish of me," I said caustically. I heard him exhale sharply as if my words had knocked the air out of him.

Yikes, that even hurt to say to him.

I began striding off towards our camp when he grabbed the wrist of my free hand lightly. "I swear I will never do that to you again. Let me make it up to you—please."

I was frozen in place and faced away from him as he continued to hold my wrist. "…Because we're fucking stuck together and I sadly need your protection at the Coliseum—I'll consider it." I ripped my wrist from him and marched back to our camp.

"Woah—you okay?" Kisame said stunned with how angry I undoubtedly appeared. His hulking, blue arms were full of wood.

"I'm just upset and need time to cool off. What I need is for you both to fuck off and give me some space to do that."

"Want some food?" Kisame asked simply while he set the wood down and took a seat.

Well, Kisame has learned how to make me feel better.

"I guess," I said as I plopped down on the ground next to him and leaned my head against his enormous arm.

"Hey, we're going out as a celebration after you win. Sound good?" he said while poking the tip of my nose. I nodded lazily against the hot skin of his muscular arm, "Sora-chan… I'm not excusing the Uchiha's shitty behavior—but he wasn't doing it out of anger towards you." He pulled a stick of dango then handed it to me.

I sighed loudly and peeled my head off of his arm, "Is that seriously what you two were talking about the whole way here?" I said before taking a small bite of the dango.

Kisame shook his head softly. "He was stunned that you didn't fight back—and honestly, I am a little too."

Same, bro.

"I didn't want to cause him pain. I've always brought nothing but pain to the people who I care about—I can't do it anymore…." I trailed off gloomily.

Kisame smiled smugly, "And she finally admits that she cares."

I rolled my eyes at him, "Not like that, Kisame."

He sardonically cocked a brow at me and folded his arms, "You totally do. You're beet red right now," he said while snickering. I chewed another bite of food and ignored his comment.

Kisame's countenance grew more serious, "Look, Itachi-san can be a bit… overprotective. He cares about you more than I've seen him care about any other woman. Ever. He's been on edge since this morning—since you talked about how shit goes down in the Coliseum. He is afraid—and doesn't want anything bad to happen to you. And when he's scared, his temper flares."

"So, me wanting to get tampons was the final straw? I don't get it," I said puzzled as I finished my dango.

"Kind of—more so when you insisted on going alone. When he or I aren't with you, he gets worried something might happen," Kisame said simply.

"You two act like I can't handle—" I started to speak but was abruptly stopped as Kisame interrupted me.

"That isn't the issue—it's people like Orochimaru we have to worry about. He knows everything about you and knows how to fuck with you personally. So does anyone that is powerful enough to subdue you and exploit you as a weapon. There are people who want to take you from the Akatsuki. He is concerned they will fuck with you at the Coliseum and botch your match." He sounded so forthright.

God damnit. I hate when he is fucking right.

I heaved a breath, "Well, shit. He still shouldn't have done that—but now I feel like an asshole for not looking further under the surface…" I rubbed my temples with my fingers while Kisame took the sake and downed a good portion of it. "I'll go say something to him—but I refuse to apologize for him fucking with my trust."

Kisame grinned his famous wry, toothy grin, "Maybe you two can kiss and make-up."

I rolled my eyes and threw a small piece of wood at him as he sniggered wildly. I smirked at him and went off to find the brooding Uchiha.