Thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed, or reviewed this fanfic! It gives me such pleasure to see that people are enjoying what my imagination has come up with!
Throughout the day, Mori and Iruka talked. It was as if they had seen each other every day. Mori felt a slight fluttering in her chest as Iruka laughed, and her cheeks became warm. Their orders finally came in, and with that a comfortable silence settled between the two. The silence was broken when a loud blonde came barrelling towards the two.
"Hey! Iruka-sensei! There you are I wanted to tell you about my mission!" Naruto shouted as he skid to a stop behind Iruka.
Mori smiled warmly as Naruto began retelling the mission in exaggerated detail, regardless if Iruka said yes or no. She quietly slipped off the stool and paid for her meal as Naruto continued chatting. She turned and quietly walked away, the sound of Naruto's loud laughter following her. It lightened her heart as she continued walking down the crowded street of Konoha. It definitely had a healing effect on Mori.
The fights with her older brother opened emotional wounds for her. Talking to Iruka helped to heal some of those wounds.
Turning a corner, she reached inside to her other chakra and enveloped herself in it. In seconds a white wolf stood there, and Mori shook out her fur. Her nails clicked on the street as she padded through Konoha. Some children ran around her, and her heart lifted when they pet her fur. Her tail wagged slightly when they continued stroking her fur and scratching her behind her ear. Mori soon found herself on her back as the children continued their pets and strokes. Her entire body wiggled in happiness as the children continued.
Unfortunately they were called away, and with mumbling curses the children walked away. Her ears flattened sadly as she lay on her side, red eyes staring at the back of the children as they continued walking away.
'Well, that was fun while it lasted' Mori thought to herself.
Her tail twitched as she sat up on her haunches. A chuckle sounded from behind her, and Mori's ear slightly twitched. She knew Kakashi was behind her, and turned her head slightly to see her friend standing behind her.
"What do you want Kakashi?" Mori said before scratching the back of her ear.
"Care to tell me what happened in the Land of Waves?" the Jonin said, hands in his pockets.
Mori sat silently for a couple of seconds before getting up on her four paws. She padded down the street, eyes looking straight in front of her. She didn't need to look back to know Kakashi was following her.
Finally, Mori stopped at the training grounds. A breeze blew through the trees and ruffled her white fur. She sat down in the grass and stared up at the sky. The clouds floated on by, and birds chirped back and forth to each other. Internally she reached inside and grasped her human chakra.
In seconds the young woman sat on the ground. She sat up from the ground and brushed her pants off. She turned to Kakashi and brushed a few strands away from her red eyes. Her friend stood there with his hands in his pockets, patiently waiting. Mori sighed and brushed a hand through her hair.
"That was my brother on the bridge, and in the forest. A couple years ago, the entire pack was attacked by Orochimaru and his ninja. My father was killed by Orochimaru, and we tried to flee but Kabuto captured my mother, brother and myself. We spent years in cells and had many tests and torture methods done to us, because we had two types of chakra inside of us" Mori snarled, canines glittering in the sunlight.
Her pupils narrowed at the memory of the mind-numbing pain she went through at the hands of Kabuto. No matter how much she screamed and tried to get away, the pain was always there. Other times she tried to attack Kabuto or one of the other ninja, but that always led to her being chained and whipped. Mori clenched her fists at the memory. She could still hear the sound of the whip cracking in her ears. A hand on her shoulder snapped Mori out of her memories. Red eyes met black as her shoulders relaxed slightly.
"Then what happened" he said quietly.
Mori sighed and looked away, jaw opening and closing as she tried to find her voice.
"Some time ago my mother somehow found a way for me to escape. She created an opening in the wall of the cell we shared, and created a diversion so I could escape. I snuck through the hole and ran. I had never run so hard or fast in my life. I wanted to go back for my mother and brother, but my mother told me to only run. I don't even know if she's still alive or not. The wolf you saw on the bridge: that was my brother Hideo. I don't know what he was doing, or why he was doing it. It's like he's being controlled" Mori finished, gasping for breath.
Kakashi stood there, silently absorbing her words. Mori brushed a hand through her hair. It felt somewhat good to get this off her chest. She was keeping it all inside, and sooner or later it would have burst. Slowly, her limbs began to relax as birds flew overhead.
"Thank you for hearing all of it. I have never told anyone else" she said, eyes softening.
He gave her his signature one-eyed smile.
"Well, I have to meet my team. I'm entering them in the Chunin exams" Kakashi said.
Mori nodded.
"Good idea, the genin are ready, especially Naruto. He will be a wonderful alpha one day" she said, letting out a slight chuckle after.
