Day three, let's do this~! As always, I do not own anything aside from my ideas, plot twists and occasional OCs. Please review or comment and let me know what you think. Also, I found out the way I was originally writing the 'voice' in the back of Yomena's head was not showing up (it was supposed to be crossed out words). SO, instead it will be written as thus!
'Jiang Yanli'
Gotta hate formatting issues…
As a quick recap from last chapter: Yomena/Shisui are four, Obito is nine and now on a genin team, Itachi was just born and Aika is being haunted by her dead husband. Now, let's jump right in!
It was a week later when Shisui and Yomena are finally allowed to visit their baby cousin for the first time. Aika is more focused and engaged than usual upon the news Mikoto had given birth, instructing the twins in simple dos and don'ts.
"Alright you two, we ready?" Aika asks, holding their hands.
Shisui grins at their mother while Yomena basks in the tactile bonding as they toddle along.
"Un!" Shisui reassures her, swinging Aika's arm enthusiastically.
Aika arches her eyebrow, amused then looks down at Yomena.
"And you, Mena-chan?"
Yomena nods, humming to herself and studiously ignoring Kazuki's ghost hovering behind them.
"Aa!"
Aika's mouth tugs into a smile as they walk up to the front door. Shisui eagerly knocks and vibrates impatiently while they wait for someone to answer. Fugaku is the one who unlocks the front door and all three of them can see him repress a smile at their appearance.
"Mikoto said you would be by soon- she's waiting for you in the living room." He tells them.
Aika nods while the twins struggle to pull off shoes and retrieve guest slippers.
"How is she?" Aika asks softly.
Fugaku waits until Yomena and Shisui race ahead and out of earshot.
"Tired but happy- although, she has some questions…"
Aika arches an eyebrow, reading the subtext of Fugaku's leading words.
"She wants to talk to me in private then?"
Fugaku hums, folding his arms.
"If you wouldn't mind- I have some matters to attend to at the station so I'll leave you with Mikoto and her other guest." He states, pulling on his shoes.
Aika grabs his arm before he heads out, drawing a startled then suspicious look. She glares him down and nods her head towards where she can hear Mikoto chattering with Shisui.
"Did you say goodbye?" Aika murmurs.
Fugaku blinks, blindsided then grimaces as he shakes his head.
"My first bit of advice to you? Tell her where and when you are leaving- it will reduce her stress and in turn her child's. She will need reassurance even if ordinarily Mikoto wouldn't ask." Aika explains, releasing his arm.
Fugaku, brindled with swelling indignation, deflates and takes his shoes off before leading the way. Aika trails him as they enter a traditional room with the sliding doors open to the garden and sunshine. Mikoto is resting on a pile of cushions while Shisui and Yomena hover around her and their new cousin.
"He's small!" Shisui chirps, awed.
Yomena simply stares at the snoozing babe in Mikoto's assured hold, purple eyes wide and stunned. She makes an 'oh' with her mouth as she reaches out to brush a lock of hair away from Itachi's forehead.
"Cute…" Yomena murmurs.
'A-Cheng' The voice whispers but Yomena doesn't want to focus on it today.
Fugaku stops, staring at them and he softens- only slightly, but Aika and Mikoto can read him easily. Mikoto tilts her head at Fugaku, unintentionally diverting Shisui's attention to the pair lingering by the door. He darts over to them, tugging on Aika's hands as he attempts to drag her over, chattering a mile a minute.
"Kaa-san! Mikoto-oba-san says she had a boy and she named him Itachi like the weasel and he's super small and cute but Mikoto-oba-san said we can't hold him because we're too tiny! It's not fair, I wanna hold Itachi too!" Shisui complains, pouting.
Aika has to hold back a laugh as Fugaku quietly says his goodbyes to Mikoto and heads out. Yomena, on the other hand, is glued to Mikoto's side and stares down at Itachi with intense focus. Mikoto notices Yomena's fascination and coos at her.
"Mena-chan, are you excited to meet your cousin?" She asks the four-year old.
Yomena nods rapidly and looks up, amazement on her face.
"Mikoto-oba-san, I wanna be his nee-san, can I?" Yomena begs.
Mikoto stifles her chuckles and makes a show of solemnly thinking it over.
"Hmm, I suppose you might be a really good nee-san; what do you think, Aika?" Mikoto asks the other woman.
Aika tilts her head, considering Yomena who is intently and plays along.
"I think she could do a good job- and it will be a fun change for her, since she's the baby in our family." She replies casually.
Yomena perks up and whips around, begging silently with earnest eyes. Mikoto can't hold it back anymore and she giggles as she ruffles Yomena's wavy hair.
"I think Itachi will be very lucky to have such a wonderful nee-san, Mena-chan." Mikoto says seriously.
Yomena beams and jumps for joy, whisper-yelling 'yey' as Shisui pouts abruptly.
"If Mena's Itachi's nee-san then I can be his nii-san!" He declares passionately.
Aika and Mikoto exchange glances, thinking the same thing; too adorable! Mikoto nods, not bothering to hide her smile as she reassures Shisui he will be an awesome nii-san for Itachi. A set of footsteps announces the other guest Mikoto had invited. Kushina marches in with tea and snacks, beaming at Mikoto but stops upon seeing Aika and the twins in surprise.
"Aika-san, I didn't know you were coming dattebane!" The Uzumaki exclaims in surprise.
Yomena, having returned to her vigil over Itachi, twists to see who is so loudly speaking and stills, staring at Kushina's glimmering crimson hair.
"Pretty…" She breathes.
Shisui, seeing who his twin is staring at, nods in agreement.
"Un! Super pretty!" He agrees with her.
Kushina is frozen, staring wide-eyed at the twins. Then she blurs, setting down the tea things and swooping them up in her arms for a giant hug, squealing as Kushina crushes them in to her chest.
"Oh kami, they are so cute, Aika I love them dattebane! Can I keep them I swear I'll take good care of them and teach them all sorts of pranks and tricks!" Kushina babbles.
"How about you let them breath first?" Aika says dryly, prying Shisui and Yomena away.
Kushina laughs awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head.
"Whoops?"
Shisui, unperturbed, laughs and goes to glomp Kushina on the leg. Yomena, on the other hand, hides partially behind her mother as she stares at Kushina. Or rather, what is behind Kushina. Long, writhing tails and a sardonic sneer are Yomena's first impression of the ghostly fox hovering around the redhead. Fear turns to curiosity as she continues to watch the fox snarl and gnash his teeth angrily at Kushina's back.
'Guǐ hú'
The whispers in the back of her mind for a moment speak clearly but the words don't make sense. Yomena bites her lower lip then darts over to the redhead to glomp her other leg. The fox doesn't waver in his focus on Kushina and Yomena relaxes slightly at the observation. Kushina is pleased by her newest attacker and gives both twins kisses and hugs that threaten to shatter their ribs. Shisui and Yomena giggle at the open affection, so very unlike most of their clan. In a moment of true twin solidarity, they both look at Aika pleadingly.
"Can we keep her?" They say in sync.
Kushina's face flushes as scarlet as her hair while Mikoto laughs outright, tears streaming down her cheeks. Itachi unhappily opens his eyes, pouting at Mikoto for waking him and starts to sniffle. Mikoto quickly diverts disaster by rocking him back to sleep, stifling her mirth. Aika hums, a knowing expression on her face.
"I suppose. She's your Kushina-oba-san now." Aika decides.
"Yey!" Shisui cheers while Yomena beams a grin at Kushina.
"Kushina-oba!"
Kushina melts in the face of the cuteness and resorts to hugs to express herself. If Aika and Mikoto memorize the moment with their Sharingan, it remained their secret.
Four months later…
Yomena and Shisui watch as Aika hesitates at the door of their house, glancing back at them. For the first time in years Uchiha Aika is in full combat gear, the rest of her supplies and weapons sealed away to lighten her load. Their mother had been called back onto the frontlines since Konoha was losing too many shinobi, days before the twins turn five. Aika comes back to them and kneels, cupping their cheeks.
"I love you. I know I- I am not always the best mother, but I do love you both so much. Mikoto will watch out for you- Kushina too. I'm sorry I'm not what you deserve as a parent." She whispers.
Yomena reaches up and touches her mother's hand, purple eyes soft and knowing.
"Kaa-san tries. Always. I love kaa-san, always. No matter where kaa-san goes." Is her simple response.
The knots in Aika's chest relax slightly while Shisui continues to look conflicted, biting his lower lip anxiously.
"I love kaa-san too! I don't want kaa-san to go!" He breaks down, wrapping his arms around her tightly.
Yomena joins the hug, holding onto Shisui and her mother, a few tears slipping free unnoticed as Shisui sobs. Aika rests her chin on Shisui's head, arms wrapping around her twins and barely contains a sob of her own.
"I love you both, so, so much." She whispers and kisses both of their foreheads.
Gently, Aika untangles herself and walks out the door, closing it softly behind her. Shisui cries, snot dripping and tears smearing his cheeks. Yomena is not much better, sniffling quietly and she unthinkingly grabs Shisui's hand and charges out the front door after Aika. But she is already gone and Yomena finally bawls, hanging tight to Shisui's hand. Shisui, unable to stand being anywhere near the house, takes the lead and they run off.
Unintentionally their feet lead the pair to a familiar training ground- and their favorite cousin slash older brother.
…
Obito is not having a good day. He was super late and Bakashi was being all smug and superior again! Minato-sensei tried to smooth the ruffled feathers but Bakashi kept winding Obito up, to Minato and Rin's exasperation.
"Stop being such an asshole, Bakashi!" Obito yells.
"Hmph, maybe when you stop being a pathetic loser-" Kakashi starts to say when he is unceremoniously interrupted.
"OBI-NII!" Two voices scream.
Shisui body-slams into Obito, nearly knocking him over while Yomena stands defensively between Kakashi and Obito. A little girl with wavy black hair and angry purple eyes glares at Kakashi, whom he had never met before, tears dripping down her cheeks caked with dust. Kakashi is nonplussed, unused to children of any age and especially pissed off children single-mindedly glaring at him.
"Shisui?! Mena-chan?!" Obito squawks.
"Obi-nii-!" Shisui bawls, clinging to Obito's waist.
Obito is flustered and looks to Yomena for help.
"Mena-chan, what's going on, I have team practice- why is Shisui so upset?" He asks.
Yomena's expression of fury crumples and fresh tears stream down her face as she turns to her honorary older brother.
"Kaa-san… Kaa-san said she's going to the frontlines." Yomena says with a clear tremble in her voice.
Rin and Minato share sharp glances at the news, unhappy but all too knowing. Kakashi stiffens, his mind flashing back to another person going on a mission and coming back broken.
"She said- she said to go to Mikoto-oba-san or Kushina-oba-san but we wanted you 'cause you're Nii-san." Yomena hiccups.
Minato, the voice of reason, gently interjects.
"Obito-kun, we can resume practice when Shisui and Mena-chan are less upset. I'll go get Kushina." He orders, flickering away.
"Sensei-?!" Kakashi starts to protest but Minato is already gone.
Frustrated, Kakashi glares at Obito.
"We have to get ready for the Chunin Exams and now-!"
"Kakashi! Stop it!" Rin snaps, surprising both Obito and Kakashi.
"He can't exactly help the fact that his- wait, are they your siblings, Obito-kun?" Rin inquires.
Obito shakes his head.
"We're cousins- my grandma was sister to their grandpa on their mom's side. But Mena-chan and Shisui always call me 'nii-san'." He explains, sitting down.
Shisui crawls into his lap and stays there, silently sobbing. Yomena joins Shisui, curling up in Obito's lap and sniffling. Kakashi is torn- unwillingly sympathetic yet annoyed that two brats interrupted team practice so he stands there and huffs, scowling. Rin smacks his arm smartly, silently reprimanding him. She approaches and sinks down to be on their level, smiling warmly.
"Hi, my name is Nohara Rin, I'm your nii-san's teammate." Rin introduces herself.
The twins focus on her before answering.
"Uchiha Shisui." Shisui takes the initiative.
"Uchiha Yomena." Yomena offers, purple eyes studying Rin and then Kakashi.
Looming behind Kakashi Yomena can see a man with similar silvery hair and typical Konoha jonin wear watching them all with a depressed expression. Repressing a shudder, Yomena studies Kakashi next. Something about his attitude and posture reminds her of someone but she doesn't know who-!
'Jin Zixuan'
A flicker of gold, a dot of cinnabar crimson and an embroidered peony flash in her mind's eye before fading, leaving Yomena confused- and uncharacteristically combative.
"Who's he?" Yomena points at Kakashi.
Obito, unaware of his surrogate sister's mood, answers with a glare.
"That's Kakashi, or as I call him, Bakashi."
Shisui frowns, cocking his head.
"Isn't baka a bad word?" He asks, confused.
Obito sweat drops, having forgotten his little cousins are very impressionable. Rin nods in answer to Shisui's question, giving Obito a stern glare as she explains to the twins.
"Baka, teme and aho are not things you should call others. It is very rude!"
Shisui tilts his head at Rin.
"Then why's Obi-nii calling Kakashi a mean name?" He asks innocently.
Kakashi smirks behind his mask as Obito scrambles for an answer, flailing comically. He is saved by Minato returning with Kushina right on his heels. Kushina, being Kushina, immediately swoops Obito, Shisui and Yomena into a bear hug.
"Oh you poor dears!" She exclaims.
Yomena and Shisui wiggle, uncomfortable, while Obito's face gradually turns red. Rin intervenes, ashen faced.
"Kushina-san, they can't breathe!"
Kushina looks down and is surprised to see their faces changing to purple.
"Whoops! Sorry, dattebane!" Kushina releases them.
Obito takes great gasps of air, his face gradually changing back to normal while Yomena and Shisui pant. Rin darts over to check them, hands glowing green.
"Kushina-san, you need to be more careful! You could hurt them!" She scolds the redhead.
Yomena jumps at the feeling of different energy entering her body and watches, fascinated, as Rin does the same for Obito.
"What's that? What's that?" Yomena tugs on Rin's sleeve.
"Oh this?" Rin holds up her hand, making glow with green light.
"Hai, that that, what's that?" Yomena demands, pointing at Rin's hand.
"Iryo-ninjutsu; can you say that for me?" Rin asks.
Yomena frowns as she tries to sound out the words.
"I-iro-iryo-ninjutsu." She fumbles.
"Iryo-ninjutsu!" Shisui mimics, grinning brightly.
"Aww, they're so cute!" Kushina gushes before Minato pulls her aside for a private conversation.
"They mentioned you after saying their mother was sent to the frontlines." Minato murmurs low enough the twins can't hear.
"Aika-san did? Oh no… They only have her, Mikoto and I, though Mikoto sees them more often than I do. She must have just left." Kushina explains.
Minato scratches his head as he sighs.
"And being upset they ran to Obito… They call him nii-san." He shares conspiratorially with Kushina.
"Oooh?" Kushina grins foxily at the tidbit.
"How adorable~! How about I steal them for now and at lunch I'll bring them back so they can practice for the Academy? Then your minions can help them get ready and come out of their shells a bit dattebane?" She proposes.
"Good with me," Minato nods, eye-smiling.
Kushina takes that as the sign to swiftly snag Yomena under one arm and Shisui under the other.
"Let's go! We'll get lunch ready, kay?!" She cheers.
Before the twins can protest, she shunshins off with a cackle. Obito sweat drops.
"Isn't that kidnapping?"
"Eh, not really, since she's one of their caregivers until Aika-san comes back from the frontlines." Minato reassures Obito before smiling at his team.
"Now, today's exercise is surviving superior numbers without being captured." As Minato talks, he creates nearly a dozen shadow clones.
Team Minato pales in dawning horror. Minato continues to smile brightly.
"Any questions?"
…
Kushina quietly closes the door to her apartment, leaving Aika's twins asleep in her bedroom burrowed under blankets and activates the security seals. She body-flickers to Mikoto's house and knocks, waiting impatiently.
"Come in!" Mikoto's tired voice calls.
Kushina barges in, barely remembering to yank her shoes off before hunting down her best friend. Mikoto is cuddling Itachi and Kushina wants to coo over the image but firmly reminds herself she has a mission! Self imposed, but still.
"Hey, Mikoto! So, funny thing, you know Shisui and Yomena-chan, right? They were super upset this morning because Aika-san was deployed for the front and went and chased down Obito-kun. It was so cute dattebane! But, they said they were supposed to reach out to us for meals and stuff," Kushina word vomits.
Mikoto, well used to Kushina's particular communication style, waits her out before answering.
"I was worried when they didn't show up for dinner- did they eat with you?"
"Yup. They're asleep at my apartment. But how do we want to handle this? Split the days between us or by week or every other day?"
Mikoto frowns, considering.
"I'll take them tomorrow and you can have them the next day; if that works then we'll keep doing it." She decides.
Kushina brightens at the idea of having the twins over so much.
"Oh, it'll be so cute! We'll need to get their stuff from the house then-"
Mikoto points to a corner of the room where a pair of sealing scrolls is neatly set on a low table.
"Aika-san was very prepared- she dropped these off this morning before heading out." Mikoto explains.
Kushina picks the scrolls up with a sad smile.
"Aika-san is really strong, isn't she dattebane?"
Mikoto nods solemnly, rocking Itachi.
"She is."
Kushina lets out a long sigh, standing up.
"Hopefully she comes back for them."
"Hopefully." Mikoto agrees.
…
Yomena frowns in her sleep, tossing and turning. Shisui, thankfully, is used to this and continues to slumber peacefully. Yomena's mind is beset by images and snips of a different world.
A lake of lotuses.
Three bowls of soup.
A crackling whip creating purple lightning.
Happy laughter and grey eyes.
Purple robes and a stubborn pout.
Stern red-violet eyes and unbending ferocity.
A calm and serene face, teaching how to write calligraphy.
Flames devouring a lakeside town.
Fear, rank in her mouth.
A red sun on white robes.
Dirt, blood and grime caking her hands.
A golden peony and disgusted glare.
Swords clashing, a guqin playing.
A flute, eerie and full of deadly intent.
Shambling corpses, the smell foul.
The sun struck down.
Rebuilding from ashes, lotuses blooming once more.
A bashful confession, a promise made.
Crimson robes with phoenixes, dancing.
A golden tower, dripping opulence.
Happiness, new life.
Grief, white mourning clothes.
Seeking answers, the battlefield.
Pain, pain, pain-!
Frantic voices, despair and sorrow.
One last request, holding a hand tightly.
Drifting away, so many regrets.
Her eyes snap open as she sits up, purple irises flickering to crimson briefly before changing back to their original color. Tears pour down unheeded as she stares at the world around her, unseeing.
"Gomen, gomen, A-Ying, A-Cheng, A-Li, gomen, gomen-!" She cries near soundlessly.
It takes her a long time to stop crying but Shisui's soft snore drags her away from her destructive thoughts. She stares at her twin and strokes his hair, sniffling.
"I'll do better this time, I will. I won't stand on the sidelines this time!" Yomena vows.
And cut! This one took a bit of wrangling. I had to cut a scene that wasn't working with the dynamics I wanted to show and we introduced a few characters to each other! Please review, comment and let me know what you think!
Word count- 6948