pThe sunshine peaking under her curtains woke Hana /
Everything she had discussed with Itachi the week before was still playing heavily on her mind. Well, everything he had discussed. Every time she looked at Sasuke she felt a heaviness in her heart. Was leaving him the best idea? After everything they had been through together? After everything he had done for /
She met Sumi and Nari at the training grounds. Takahashi sensei arrived shortly /
"Good morning, girls" he smiled, giving them a small wave as he approached. Hana eyed Sumi from the side, who avoided her /
"Good morning, sensei!" Nari exclaimed /
"Good morning" Hana mumbled. Sumi said nothing. Takahashi sensei sighed, and Hana knew he had noticed her weird behaviour /
"As you guys know, the Chunin exams are incoming" Takahashi sensei told them. It was then that Hana noticed the three small pieces of paper in his hand. He held them up to /
"These are the application forms."br /
"Ooooh!" Hana /
"So, we get the chance to back out?" Sumi asked /
"Huh?!" Nari gasped, "are you saying…"br /
Hana frowned /
"Well, I'm doing this. For my clan, and for Sasuke. He'll be so proud if I pass!" Hana said, pumping her fist in the /
Sumi clenched her fists, "me too. I'm doing this."br /
"Huh?" Nari blinked, looking between the two of them. Was this competition STILL going on? Even she was growing exhausted with /
"How about you, Nari?" Hana asked, jaw clenched. She was feeling angry. So /
"Of course I'm in!" Nari nodded, jumping up and down on the spot. The trio took their application forms from their /
"Very good. I knew you three would be up for it, and you're well able for it too. I'm still feeling very proud of how well you two handled yourselves against Zabuza and Haku."br /
Hana grinned, pumping her fist in the air once more "I look forward to making you prouder, Sensei!"br /
Takahashi Sensei smiled, "I'm sure you will, Ms. Uchiha. Very well, dismissed for now."br /
Takahashi disappeared in a poof, and then Hana and Sumi started to walk their separate ways. Nari's eyes flickered between the both of them. She was unsure who to follow, or if she should just go /
"What is up with you two?!" she suddenly yelled, startling the other two. Hana and Sumi turned to face each other, Sumi glaring at /
"I think you mean what is up with her" Hana /
"There's nothing wrong with me" Sumi shrugged, "absolutely nothing."br /
"You've been acting strange since the double date. Just because Sasuke doesn't want you, doesn't mean you have to take it out on me!" Hana yelled. Sumi started to /
"Oh, you sweet little summer child" she said, her giggle picking up into a laugh, "you don't get it at all, do you?"br /
"G-get what?" Hana /
"Oh, nothing" she shrugged, starting to walk away, "you've always been somewhat of a dimwit."br /
Hana snarled louder than before, eyes flashing red with the sharingan. Nari stood in front of her just as she went to charge at Sumi, holding her /
"Let me at her!" Hana roared. Sumi walked away, /
"She's not worth it, Hana!" Nari protested, struggling to keep her back. Hana had never felt so angry in her entire life, even after her family were /
"We have to follow her" Hana said, wiping the spit from the side of her mouth. She had been so furious she started to spit when she spoke. She was embarrassed, she hadn't even /
"But where do you think she's going that you want to follow her?" Nari asked /
Hana's Sharingan deactivated, and Nari released her from her hold, sighing with /
"I think she's seeing Sasuke behind my back. I think they've been lying to me this whole time."br /
"What?! Wh-why do you think that?" Nari /
"Well she's cocky about something, and I had just mentioned Sasuke. What else could it be?"br /
"She's just toying with your emotions, Hana. Leave it."br /
"I'm just going to follow her, nothing more."br /
"Promise me!" Nari exclaimed. Hana looked into her pleading /
"I promise, Nari."br /
Nari watched Hana jump up onto the rooftop of a nearby home, "let's go."br /
"Right!"br /
Nari jumped up beside her, and they hopped from rooftop to rooftop together until they found Sumi strolling along the pathway, hands in her pockets. Hana snarled. She was THAT confident that she could defeat Hana? She thought Hana was so weak she just kept her hands in her pockets?! What if Hana had ran up behind her or something? They followed her up to the Hokage faces. She sat up above them, and Hana and Nari clung to one below. Within minutes, as Hana had suspected, Sasuke /
Feeling her heart twist, she looked at Nari who was already giving her an apologetic /
"Were you followed?" Sumi questioned him /
"No, I made sure Hana wasn't around to see me" he replied. Sumi /
"It's getting harder to be nice to her" she admitted, "she's causing me so much trouble lately."br /
"How so?" Sasuke asked, taking a seat beside /
"She's being so cruel, Sasuke" Sumi cried. Hana's mouth hung open with shock, as did Nari's. They both, obviously, knew that wasn't /
"She's been throwing insults at me left and right. Calling me fat and ugly."br /
"I can't believe her!" Hana whispered loudly. Nari hushed /
"I'm sorry about that," Sasuke sighed, "Hana can be…"br /
"Difficult?"br /
"I wouldn't say that" he said, leaning backwards on his hands, "she's got a lot of powerful emotions."br /
"Hm?"br /
"She feels love with all her heart and soul. She gives love with every ounce of her and like I feared, her hatred is taking over. It's all Itachi's fault..."br /
'Itachi is good to me' Hana thought to herself, 'unlike you!'br /
"Aren't you always going on about the hatred in your heart for your brother? What makes you think Hana would feel any differently about Itachi?"br /
Sasuke was silent for a few /
"She's never once said a bad word against him."br /
"Well, she was young I suppose. Nevertheless, he literally murdered everyone you both cared about. She's so stupid sometimes!"br /
Sasuke chuckled in response, "she can be, yeah."br /
The anger was building up inside Hana. He agreed with her. Nari pulled on Hana's /
"Let's go, please" she whispered super quietly. Hana nodded; she'd heard /
They both shimmied across the Hokage faces until they reached a point where they could jump down unnoticed. Once they had landed on the ground safe and sound, Nari gave Hana a worried /
Hana was FURIOUS. Instead of crying, she just stared into space, feeling the fury deep inside of /
"Are you okay, Hana?" Nari /
"I'm super" she lied, "I'm going home. I need a nap."br /
"Need me to come with you?" she asked. Hana turned, giving her friend a small /
"Nah. Thank you for everything, Nari. I love you."br /
"I love you too Hana but, I'll see you tomorrow, okay? We can prepare for the exams together."br /
"See ya" Hana replied, turning and waving at Nari. She started to walk back to her apartment. As she edged nearer and nearer, and thought about it more and more – she realised she had made up her mind about Itachi's /
Once night fell, and Sasuke still wasn't home, she climbed from her bedroom window up to the roof. A small, neatly packed backpack on her back filled with some clothes and snacks, Hana closed her eyes and focused hard on her chakra points. A secret technique Itachi had showed her. In fact, he was the only other ninja in the world who had mastered it perfectly, and he had done so by her age. Long before, /
Sasuke had betrayed her. Sumi had betrayed /
"Itachi, big brother" she said, her voice wavering for just a split second. She cleared her throat, and her need to cry vanished. She was trying to communicate with him, but it didn't usually /
"Meet me someplace. I want to go with you, I've made up my mind."
After a few seconds silence, she gave up. Letting out a sad sigh, she moved to jump back in her bedroom window, but then a voice came – carried by the wind.
"Hana, it's Itachi. Meet me by the bridge I took you to once. The one with the ducks and swans, you remember, don't you?"
"I do" she replied instantly, "I will be there."
"I'll be waiting" he replied.
Hana cut off communication then, fully releasing her thoughts. She jumped down from the roof, clutching onto the straps of her bag.
A while later, she stood by the gates. She moved one foot shakily, until it crossed the border between Konoha and the outside world. The last time she had stepped foot outside Konoha was with everyone she considered friends. She allowed a few tears to fall – just a few – before she collected herself again.
"Goodbye, Konoha" she whispered, as she walked down the dirt road away from the village she had called home since the day she was born.
"Goodbye….Sasuke."