Obligatory Disclaimer: The series Naruto is owned by Masashi Kishimoto; I only own the OCs, picture, and this story.
Chapter 24: Of Contemplation and Things Forgotten
I didn't let either of my companions stop until we were on Kushina's street, coming to a stop just underneath the awning of her home. Riku was agitated but remained faithfully at my side, his nose brushing my face worriedly.
"What's the big idea?" Noburu panted as we finally settled against the door.
"Sorry," I wheezed and took a much-needed breath, trying to get my sporadically beating heart under control.
I really needed to get a handle on all these 'tactful' retreats I've been doing lately. But really; meeting Minato, Shisui, and the others paled in comparison to even thinking of meeting one of the series' main antagonists. How could I have forgotten that Orochimaru was still in the village? Just in Konoha born evil, he was far worse than Danzō by a long shot. The elder may have had both political and military power, but the snake sanin was a different thing all together.
Orochimaru was smart and evil with a complete disregard for the lives of others, using any means necessary for his own selfish desires. At least Danzō pretended it was for the betterment of the village, or more accurately, believed it completely with his deluded mind even as he worked in the shadows. The snake was top-tier villainy; egotistical, self-serving, and consumed in his desire for power. For the sake of my sanity, and overall well-being, I had to keep him in mind.
Letting out a sigh as my heart calmed, I gently nudged Riku's face away and regarded Noburu with a frown.
"What were you thinking?"
He mimicked my expression. "You didn't think I was just going to let him talk to you like that did you?"
"Of course not, but why were you there in the first place?"
He ruffled his fringe before stuffing his hands into his pockets.
"Kenji told me you had just stopped by the shop and I wanted to catch up with you. Then I heard that jerk talking to you like that and I couldn't help myself- he was pissing me off!"
A smile tugged on my lips. Same old Noburu.
"I did have it under control you know," I said, watching as Riku began to assess the boy with a few sniffs. "It was nothing I'm unused to; just more vocal than usual."
Noburu held his palm out for Riku to sniff, but looked at me with wide eyes.
"People from your clan treat you like that?"
I usually kept all the clan stuff separate from my friends, only barely mentioning it to Shisui during our occasional chats on the cliffside whenever we were both free. I didn't like the two to mesh; but I could stand to be more honest with Noburu.
"Not in so many words, but yes." His frown strengthened.
"Aren't you the heiress? Shouldn't that be against the rules or something?"
I didn't want to talk about such a subject on the street so I pulled him into Kushina's abode, letting myself in with the key she had given me and disabling the security seals that were placed on the door. The woman appeared absent so I led Noburu into the kitchen with Riku on our heels. Making tea and setting some food in a bowl for the pup, thoughts of snake people and being dissected dissolved as we sat at the table and began to warm up from the cold.
Noburu was unusually attentive, eyeing me seriously.
"Why did that jerk say you weren't a real Hyūga?" he asked, squinting at me. "You look pretty Hyuga-ish to me."
"Don't you remember that time in the academy with those snobby twins? I mentioned that I'm Hyūga and Senju."
My mixed bloodline didn't come up often outside the clan, for which I was thankful.
"Do you honestly expect me to remember that far back?" He quirked a brow. "I just remember the stupid look on Taro-baka's face when you said it. It was awesome!"
"Fair enough," I chuckled.
He looked at me thoughtfully. "Okay, you're half Hyūga; so what? You got the special eyes and everything. There shouldn't be a problem, right?"
I sighed; this was going to take a while. I gave him a brief explanation the division of the clan, only telling him what was pretty much public knowledge.
"Although my father is of the Branch family, I belong to the Main House of the clan. I was 'adopted' into that part because my mother is Senju, essentially."
The elders hadn't explicitly said as much, but it was basically a known fact.
"And that's why that jerk thinks he can just talk to you that way?" He frowned. "That's stupid."
"I know," I shrugged, taking a sip of my tea. "It is what it is. Honestly, I don't expect my status as heiress to last long once the next head of the clan has children. A mutt like me would be unfit to carry on the next generation of Hyūga."
Noburu glared. "Don't talk about yourself like that."
I gave him a tired smile, chuckling as Riku pressed his wet nose against my ankles in agreement with the boy's statement.
"Just because you don't agree with something doesn't make it any less true." My gaze fell to my cup, seeing my reflection in the liquid. "Half-blooded Hyūga are always part of the Branch family because their byakugan is weaker than a full-blooded one."
Noburu was silent as I rambled, caught up in my own thoughts.
"The clan cares only for the amount of prestige and connections they can get since I'm Senju; I am useless to them otherwise. I'll probably never surpass my cousins' byakugan with my own."
"Why does that even matter?" Noburu interjected and I looked up, startled by his words. "Even if you won't have the strongest byakugan, you graduated from the academy after a single year! At four years old! You're more than just a pair of special eyes."
I stared wide eyed, though warmth spread through my body at his words. Noburu ruffled his hair, seeming a bit bashful at his outburst.
"I mean, I guess I can kinda understand the pressure, or at least try to. Like, my dad is always getting on my case, even now that I've become genin because I think he wants me to fail, but I still want to prove myself to him. It's like that with you and your clan, right?"
Noburu usually ranted and whined about his father and how unfair he was, so it was surprising to hear him be so introspective. His bright blues eyes found mine.
"Well, I know it's not the same, but..." I shook my head.
"I appreciate the sentiment," I smiled. "Maybe I want the clan to just accept me, and that's why I've tried so hard."
This thing had hung over my life for what seemed to be forever, or whatever forever meant for a five year old. Sure, I did the training and studying for my own personal goals, but a small part of me wanted the clan to accept me, or at least tolerate my existence. I wanted to feel as though I actually belonged, even though a part of me hated it as much as it seemed to hate me.
"But even if they never do, that's fine. As long as I have people that care about me, regardless of my ranking in the world, I'll be okay," I said with an air of finality, a lightness in my shoulders having those words out of my chest.
"Well duh," Noburu rolled his eyes. "Like I've told you before, you're stuck with us forever."
"How could I ever forget?" I grinned. We enjoyed the rest of our tea and chatted about nothing in particular until a thought reappeared in my head.
"By the way, why were you looking for me?"
He looked down a bit shamefully.
"About what happened at Tsukuda's the other day…" I waved a hand in the air.
"Don't worry about it; it's not your fault. You didn't know."
"No, your mission went badly and I was being an idiot about your feelings. "
"You mean insensitive?"
"Yeah, that's the word," he nodded. "Akane didn't speak to me for like the whole day, and Shisui had to explain what happen to you because I'm an idiot."
"You're not an idiot," I shook my head, "the academy and the village constantly tell us that defending the village is one of the highest honors. You just got caught up in the excitement."
He stared at me in silence before shaking his head. "Still…I'm glad that you're alright. And alive."
I gave him my widest grin. "Yep, I'm still here. Ready and willing to continue winning our game of ninja tag."
He rolled his eyes again.
"Whatever, you're just cheating with your weird baby strength. I can still catch up!"
It was my turn to roll my eyes. "When you're sixty-five, maybe. You're still it by the way; shishou catching you counts in my favor."
We were interrupted from our banter when a voice called from the doorway.
"I'm home!" Kushina called. Noburu paled a few shades and I grinned.
"We're in the kitchen," I called. The redhead emerged from the doorway, holding several books and scrolls in her arms.
"Oh, we have a guest today?" She smiled friendly at him, not seeming to remember how she had introduced herself to him the other day. Riku emerged from under the table to welcome the Uzumaki woman home.
My grin couldn't have become any bigger. "Yeah, Noburu wanted to join in today's lesson."
Noburu mouthed 'what lesson' under his breath as Kushina dumped her burden onto the table with a heavy thud.
She grinned at him. "Welcome to Fūinjutsu 101."
Fūinjutsu was extremely fascinating, for lack of a more appropriate word. In its basic definition, it was jutsu that sealed objects, chakra, and even living beings- as well as an assortment of whole other things- within another object. They worked through formulas and you could theoretically use whatever language you wanted, though the usual method was using kanji. The physical seal script was very important to the stability of the seal itself so you had to be good at calligraphy. However, there were many other alterations, like hexagrams which were more simplistic but usually had simpler functions. Nevertheless, it wasn't as cut and dry as using hand seals and the only limits were your imagination.
Kushina went over the basics of fūinjutsu, even going as far to go over its history from Uzoshiogakure with a hint of longing only I caught. She also had to assess how well our calligraphy was before we got started on the real thing. Mine was pretty good considering my mother had drilled it into me since I could hold a brush, though the Fujioka wasn't as lucky. The practice sheets he had done were tragically horrible, and he had to spend most of the afternoon working on his calligraphy under Kushina's watchful eye. She even forced him to take some worksheets and scrolls home to practice.
I think he resented me at that, but as the Uzumaki woman explained the almost infinite uses of seals, I could hear his brain cogs turning with the possibilities. For the rest of the afternoon, the both of us practiced making the most basic combustion tags and storage scrolls with the promise of learning more as time went on.
Today, the redhead and I were walking to Team Minato's training field for joint practice. As we arrived on the snow dusted field, I took notice of the absent Uchiha of the group.
"Obito-senpai isn't here yet?" I asked, making a show of looking around for the chronically late boy as Riku quickly and efficiently began to assess both Rin and Kakashi.
Riku was already familiar with Minato, having met the jōnin several times when Kushina and I would crowd around the kitchen table going over jutsu at their house. Of course, we didn't study all the time, Kushina would not allow that, but a lot of the time Minato would return from training his own team to find the two of us wrestling in the living room. The Uzumaki woman said she was just teaching me how to grapple properly, but I just think she liked to see me struggle and get flustered.
"Late, as usual," Kakashi mumbled under his breath and automatically lifted a hand for Riku to smell, the pup no doubt interested in the scent of other dogs on him.
I hid a smile at the gesture. "That's unfortunate. How long does it usually take for him to get here?"
Rin chuckled sheepishly. "It varies, though he usually gets here before we finish our morning stretches."
"Then why don't we get started?" Minato stepped forward and the rest of us got started.
It was warmer today than it had been all week but the snow on the ground made the tasks more annoying than usual. No one complained however, and we finished just as Obito's panting form came up behind us.
"S-sorry I was late," he gasped as he stopped before our little group. "This little girl really needed my help because her kitten was stuck in a snow drift."
I could believe it, though Kakashi didn't seem at all convinced.
"A ninja should always be punctual and follow the orders given to them," Kakashi said, folding his arms across his chest. "Coming on time, would fall under that."
Teen Kakashi was such a stick in the mud; although, I could see how having a teammate that was always late being annoying.
"Who asked you anyway bastard," Obito glared, having caught his breath.
The pair's dark eyes clashed and I immediately stepped between them, looking up at the Hatake.
"Technically, by helping the young girl and her distressed kitten, he was preforming his duty as a Konoha ninja," I interjected with an innocent face. "Isn't it our duty to help our village and its people Kakashi-senpai?"
Normally, I wouldn't have gotten involved- sometimes their fights were both entertaining and informative- but since today was a special day, I couldn't have the boys bickering with each other. Despite the fact that Kakashi and I had had a moment together in the markets a few months back, it didn't mean I was going to let him step all over Obito.
It was quiet as he regarded me with his dark eyes.
"Whatever," he sighed and turned away, also knowing what day it was.
Obito jumped at the chance to heckle the other boy at his apparent defeat but I deftly jabbed him in the side, shooting him a look.
"Now that everyone's here, we can begin the one-on-one matches," Kushina declared with a clap of her hands. Minato nodded beside her.
"Kakashi versus Rin, and Junko versus Obito. The first one unable to continue loses. Everything is permitted."
The four of us split into the dictated teams and Obito stared down at Riku with a bemused expression as he joined me.
"What's with the dog? And why does he have a dagger attached to him?"
"Riku is my partner, and because he can."
His brows furrowed. "That's not fair. This is a two on one then?"
"You can't handle a genin and her dog Obito?" Kakashi taunted as he and Rin walked farther into the training ground, Minato following after to observe while Kushina stayed with me and the Uchiha.
Obito glared at him then glared at me, pointing a finger toward my face in an overly dramatic fashion.
"Don't expect me to go easily on you, even if you are my kohai!"
I smiled politely. "I wouldn't have it any other way Obito-senpai."
At Kushina's signal, Obito threw down a smoke bomb- a mistake on his part- and I activated my byakugan, watching as he made a tactical retreat through the haze. I grinned.
"Riku, fetch."
With my command, the dog sprinted forward to intercept the Uchiha, disappearing into the smoke as I used it to my advantage and hid myself within. I pulled my chakra to myself and went through the hand seals Minato had taught me. The jutsu would be difficult to pull off in the snow, but it should have the same effect.
I took a moment to see how my canine companion was doing. The pair had escaped the cloud of smoke and Riku had his dagger at the ready, standing offensively with his upper body low to the ground. The dog prowled around the boy and Obito held up a kunai defensively in response, though made no move to attack, seeming to forget about me for the moment.
Perfect.
Completing the hand seals, my body disappeared under ground and with a protective chakra shield around me, I tunneled through the snow and dirt under the distracted Uchiha. Sensing me in position, Riku launched himself at the boy with his dagger with a renewed aggressiveness. As the dog swung the blade with swift movements of his head, Obito blocked and seemed to gather his wits. The Uchiha swung back in counter, sending the canine into retreat briefly before Riku charged again. Closer and closer, Riku drove the boy to my position and as soon as he was above me, I thrust my hands out of the earth, grabbing onto Obito's ankles. With a swell of chakra, I dragged him down into the soil, neatly replacing my body with his in the hole I had created.
I emerged as the jutsu finished and the earth tightened around him, the Doton: Shinju Zanshu no Jutsu or Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu complete. I had been wary and excited when Minato had agreed to teach me this jutsu. In my previous life, I had been pretty claustrophobic but he had reassured me that it would be fine since it was only a d-rank technique. The right amount of chakra would prevent me from suffocating and the jutsu wasn't meant to go too far down underground, the spent chakra working to sink the opponent; he even let me practice it on him. Of course that came with limited success as he was much heavier and taller than I was and I could only get him in to his knees, but he was proud of my effort.
Obito was in past his elbows, looking at me with wide eyes.
"What the- that's sensei's technique!"
"Imagine that," I smiled, lightly brushing myself off as Riku walked to my side defensively. "Do you concede senpai?"
He wiggled in his earthy prison before glaring at me.
"Never!"
I saw the chakra in his body converge before a fireball emerged from his mouth and I leapt back with my hands in a tiger seal. My own chakra concentrated in my throat as the main body of the fireball split and a shower of flames began to speed towards me; but I wasn't worried. I released the condensed chakra, liquid bullets shooting from my mouth to clash with the flames, extinguishing them and causing steam to cloak the air around us.
In the clash of fire and water, Obito had managed to free himself and rushed to where I landed, and sending a brief sign to Riku, I met the Uchiha head on. He swung his kunai-clenched fist at me and I dodged, ducking under the blade. As soon as my form dropped and my stance was steady, I struck back, my hands darting forward. He smartly twisted his body away from my jabs and reversed the grip of his kunai, swinging the blade to get me to back off.
I did, not before spinning and managing to strike the offending wrist, causing him to drop the blade. He let out a grunt of pain but didn't stop, falling into the Uchiha style I was familiar with from my spars with Shisui. His incapacitated hand did nothing to deter him and he pushed me to the defensive with his strong strikes. But by then, Riku was ready and I moved.
Right into his range.
I fell with the momentum of his punch as it came into contact with my cheek, rolling onto my back and stopping in a crouched position, the taste of iron filling my mouth. Blood and saliva dripped down my chin as I spat out into the snow and Obito froze in place, raising a hand up worriedly.
"Oh shit, I'm so sorry Junko, I didn't mean-"
"Riku, now!" I commanded and the hound burst from a snow mound close by, tackling the Uchiha to the ground and holding his blade close to his neck.
I grinned a bloody smile at the boy though he couldn't see it.
"I win, senpai."
Kushina walked over to us, smirking at the boy.
"I can't believe you fell for that, dattebane," she said as I signaled for Riku to step back. The pup sheathed his blade and padded over to me, giving my bloody chin a few worried nudges with his nose.
I gave him a few pats, brushing off the snow that dusted his coat. "I'm fine. You did so well Riku. Good boy."
Obito sputtered as he sat up. "But you, but I-"
"What happened?" A worried but slightly haggard-looking Rin asked as she approached, followed by Kakashi who regarded the scene with a raised brow and a wide eyed Minato.
And an idea popped into my head; just because I wasn't going to let Kakashi mess with Obito didn't mean I wasn't going to.
I made my eyes wide as I turned towards them and it was easy to get tears to form from the cold gush of wind that blew through the area, gripping onto Riku's fur in a pitiful display.
"Obito-senpai punched me really hard in the face, Rin-senpai," I sniffled, looking imploringly at the girl who gasped.
"Obito!" She chided and the boy paled.
"It was an accident- well it was a part of the match- but still I didn't mean to-!"
His rambling fell on death ears as the girl quickly came to my side, lightly grabbing my chin to see the damage. I pushed down a giggle as Obito's face dropped like a rock as he was ignored by his crush. It was getting hard to keep up the act as I caught Kushina trying to smother laughter behind the iryō-nin, Kakashi and Minato looking at the redhead as though she had gone crazy.
"One of your teeth have been knocked loose," Rin said worriedly.
I made my eyes wider. "Really?"
Man, I couldn't believe she was falling for it too. Rin was professional but kind as she examined me.
"Don't worry," she said kindly, throwing another look at Obito that wasn't too happy. "It's just your baby teeth; your permanent teeth should be growing in soon."
At Obito's withering figure, a spark of pity emerged in my glee and I dropped the act.
"Oh I know, it was already loose before the match," I relented the puppy eyes to grin mischievously at her and Obito who stood up with a glare.
"You were nicer before Kushina got her claws in you," he scowled. Rin sighed, previous worry deflated, though she continued to wipe the blood from my face.
"You two are ridiculous."
I smiled at the boy with mock sympathy. "Just think of it as payback for running me over twice and almost burning me alive…"
His cheeks turned red. "Those were accidents!"
"Regardless, I think it's safe to say that training is over for today," Minato interjected shaking his head at our antics. "Why don't we head over to our place to get Junko taken care of?"
We all let out an affirmative. Obito wouldn't let me off the hook however, especially after I poked a slightly bloody tongue at him and he chased me all the way to the jōnins' place. The Uchiha was still mumbling about how unfair the match was as we made it to the door and I tugged him though it and up the stairs.
"If we did it to Kakashi, a, it wouldn't have worked because he probably wouldn't have cared if he'd knocked out all my teeth, and b, your reactions are hilarious," I explained with a shrug.
He sent me another glare before rolling his eyes. "I guess it would be funny if it wasn't happening to me."
"Next time, I'll help you get back at Kakashi-senpai, promise."
"Deal."
We hurriedly got everything in place before the others arrived, and I kept an eye out with my byakugan. Obito finished lighting the candles on the cake as the rest of our group entered from the stairs and we got into position as they entered the kitchen.
"Happy Birthday Rin!" We cheered from our spots around the table, Minato and Kushina joining in alongside a quiet Kakashi.
The girl's eyes were wide, cheeks flushed. Several presents were set around the cake as well as plates with mountains of food, and streamers were hung from the rafters. There was even a banner with the Nohara's name hand-painted on it hanging from the ceiling. If there was one thing that Kushina did extravagantly, it was plan things all out.
"You guys didn't have to do all this," she said with a gasp, though it was obvious she was pleased.
Kushina quickly grabbed the girl in a hug. "Of course we did, you're our precious Rin-chan."
"We didn't get to celebrate your last birthday due to a mission, so we're making up for lost time," Minato said as he ushered the girl to the cake.
The rest of the afternoon was spent having fun, well, after I had my tooth pulled. I had given Rin a book of herbal medicine recipes as well as a bundle of herbs I had picked from my garden. Kushina had cooked the girl her favorite meals, while Minato had gifted her with a new medic's pouch and her silvered haired teammate had given her a few specialized kunai.
Obito squirmed on the peripheral of the girl's vision as she talked with Kakashi about his gift, trying to work up the courage to give her his present. It was a sad sight to see as he passed the box between his hands, unsure, so I nudged him.
"You spent months making that and you're not going to give it to her?" I teased.
"I'm working on it," he hissed back.
He would either take forever or not do it at all. So I gave him a push. Literally. As he hit the table, jostling the plates and stuff on it, Rin and Kakashi jumped from where they were talking.
"Are you alright Obito?" Rin asked. Kakashi rolled eyes, having seen what I had done while I moved to hide near Minato and Kushina at the other end of the table.
"I-I made this for you Rin-chan!" he stammered, thrusting the package at her. She blinked in response before taking it from him.
She unwrapped it with a gasp, pulling out the red bracelet that laid within.
"It's beautiful, Obito," she said, smiling gratefully at him. "You made this?"
A blush crawled up his neck. "Yeah, my obaa-san knows a jeweler in the compound who makes things with fire jutsu, and he taught me how."
She slipped it onto her wrist, hugging it to her chest. "I'll treasure it always."
I think the boy could have die of happiness then.
Hanging with Akane on her day off also meant helping out at the orphanage. Even though she had lived in her own apartment since attending the academy, she still visited and helped out rather frequently and I accompanied her whenever I could.
I stood on a stool mixing a large pot of curry as the red-eyed girl ladled spoonfuls of already made rice into several bowls for lunch.
"I cannot thank you girls enough for this," the matron Nonō exclaimed as she and another one of the caretakers named Keiri organized the massive bags of groceries we had brought that morning.
As I had no need for the large sum from that dreaded mission gone awry, I decided to spend a large portion of it on Konoha Orphanage. It wasn't like I needed it as Mei took care of stuff at home along with any other financial stuff my parents had left for me.
Akane smiled up at me. "It was all Junko-chan, Mazā."
"You helped too Akane, don't sell yourself short," I said in return, hopping off the stool and turning down the fire on the stove. "And it was no problem, Yakushi-san."
Akane had gotten a list from the matron of things the place needed for the month since the winter months were always the hardest on the place and we had run around the market buying a bunch of stuff which I had sealed away. Some of the vendors we had visited were even generous enough to give us a little extra on the house when they had heard about our goal. The biggest expense had been the food but we had also managed to get other necessities like clothes and toiletries for the place.
"Still." She smiled gratefully. "We'll be able to get through this month and some of the next without worry with this, due to your generosity."
The green-eyed woman bowed and the other caretaker followed suit though a bit delayed. When I had first met the caretakers alongside Akane, they had been disturbed by my age, though they had every right to be. Nonō hadn't been all too surprised but had managed to hide a sad, knowing expression before greeting me with a smile. I hadn't known much about the orphanage from the series but I liked the caretakers, although Keiri could be a little rough around the edges.
Together, the four of us got the rest of the bowls ready for the lunch period as the cluster of children were ushered in by another caretaker by the name of Kanpu. Riku followed behind the man, one of the younger children, younger than me even, sat on his back, and several others stayed close to offer him pets.
He was in doggy heaven.
Kanpu ushered the children to get cleaned up, and as Riku's passenger was lifted from him, he trotted over to the kitchen door where he waited semi patiently for me to open it, peeking through the crack in the door. I signaled him to be patient as I looked around.
"Is there anything else that needs to be done Yakushi-san?" I asked as the dining room began to fill with hungry children.
"The snow storm last night knocked over a branch on the roof on the east side," Keiri interjected before the woman could speak and I nodded.
Moving to the bag of scrolls- one storage scroll could only hold so much and I wasn't an expert making them or increasing their capacity yet- I rutted around in the bag before pulling one out that had lumber stored within it. Both woman looked surprised.
"You come prepared for anything don't you Hyūga-san?" Keiri gaped.
"That's Junko-chan for you," Akane giggled.
"I'll go assess the damage while you help the caretakers, alright?" I said over their banter, getting to business. "You can come help when you're done?"
"Are you sure? I know how much you hate the cold…" Akane said with a worried pinch between her brows.
I sure did, but I hated having to avoid grubby hands from trying to snatch my forehead protector even more. I cared for children, but in large quantities they could become overbearing and irritating. And if I had to explain for the nth time that it wasn't a toy and prove that I was a genin again I would end up dunking some kid in the snow.
"I'll be fine," I smiled, turning to the matron. "I assume the tool box is in the same place as last time?"
With a reluctant nod from the woman, I headed outside with the scroll in my pouch and Riku at my heels. It was easy enough to find the problem and while unfortunate, I knew I could at least patch up the problem until the orphanage could get a carpenter to properly fix it.
Riku waited on the ground for me as I climbed up the side of the building with my tools in tow. The branch was decently sized, probably picked up by the storm from the forest nearby. From where I stood, it didn't look too bad, but the fickle weather would no doubt make it worse. One of the caretaker must've tried at least something as there were cuts in the branch though it looked as though they stopped half way through, probably called away for some other duty. Children were a big responsibility after all.
I began cutting the off the smaller branches that sprouted from the main body with a small handsaw. I must've been quite the sight, a kindergartner with such a dangerous tool. Though, I guess 'dangerous' was truly subjective when one was a ninja. It didn't take long for Akane to meet me on the rooftop and together we managed to pull the branch from the hole and deposited over the side. The blonde held down the heavy precut pieces of wood I'd brought as I hammered them down. For good measure, we nailed down a piece of tarp on top of our patch up job, just in case the slates weren't as seamless as they looked.
"We should go check up on the inside and see if anything needs to be cleaned up," Akane took charge this time, and I nodded in agreement.
The two of us, joined again by Riku, reentered the building to the chattering of several children. I sent the dog to occupy them as we entered the back rooms where the sleeping quarters lied. A bit of debris remained on the floor and we hopped to getting it cleaned up, grabbing supplies from the closet.
Just as we finished, a presence came to the door.
"Okaa-san is looking for you Akane-neesan," a voice called.
We both turned to see a little boy who had to have been around my age, with ash gray hair and dark eyes covered by round glasses standing at the doorway.
"Ah, thank you Kabuto-kun," she smiled at him, and I fought to keep my breath even. "We'll be right there."
The winter must've dulled my memory. How hadn't I remembered that Kabuto had been taken to this orphanage? I made a show of grabbing the broom and dustpan we had been using before regarding the boy who was looking at me with interest, eyes trailing from my eyes to the hitai-ate that sat on my head. He went to open his mouth, but closed it with a shake of his head and shuffled out of the room.
At my lingering stare, Akane pipped up.
"That's Mazā's son, Kabuto," she explained unnecessarily as we deposited our tools back into the hall closet. "He came to the orphanage about a year ago, with no memory. He didn't even have a name. He's pretty shy but he's a good kid."
"That's very kind of her," I murmured absentmindedly, trying to keep my thoughts away from images of a very different, older Kabuto.
I couldn't, or wouldn't, do anything about that now.
"You must really look up to Yakushi-san," I noted as we walked to her office.
Akane smiled brightly, eyes shining. "She has been there for me since I came to Konoha so I want to do as much as I can for her. She's an excellent iryō-nin, and was even head of the Medical Corps before she decided to run this orphanage. I really want to be like her."
I regarded my friend closely. Akane always seemed to exhibit this kind of, I don't know, lingering desire to belong, though that wasn't exactly correct. Maybe it was more of wanting others to look at her in a certain way, to be someone worth looking up to. I could tell by the way her eyes would shine when the younger children would call her big sister, and the pride in her shoulders when the older kids regarded her with respect because of the hitai-ate hanging from her neck.
Thinking on it, my red eyed friend was quite the enigma; I didn't know much about her past, knowing only of the memories she had experienced within Konoha's walls. I wouldn't force her to tell me anything, noting the skeletons that hung in my own closet, but her idol worship of Nonō was worrying. But as long as Akane wasn't forced into doing bidding for Danzō on that woman's behalf, I wouldn't do anything.
Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that.
We reached the matron's office and Nonō looked a bit uncomfortable as she stared down at us.
"I cannot in good consciousness take everything you have given us," she said, passing an envelope towards us. "Please take this in compensation at least."
I gave her an even look as Akane rushed to appease the situation.
"It's really fine Mazā; we both talked about it a lot and came to this decision together," she said, waving her hands as if to dispel the bad vibes. "We want to help!"
"Still," the older blonde shook her head, "the work you have done is at least a d-rank mission, several in fact. Please take it."
"Yakushi-san, while we appreciate the sentiment, we could not take the money regardless, as this was not a regulated mission given by the Hokage or council," I said, grabbed both their attention.
"Besides, if the orphanage is in such straits that our gift would ease your burdens for at least a little while, wouldn't you keeping the money help that moreso?"
Nono was eyeing me critically but Akane had a big, proud smile on her face.
"Junko-chan is right, Mazā," she said bowing and I followed. "Please accept our help."
It was silent for a moment before the woman sighed.
"It would be unpolite for me not to, wouldn't it?" She smiled and I nodded.
"If it bothers you so, might I suggest a trade of sorts?" I said, getting their attention again.
I smiled.
"Akane-chan has told me about your prowess in the medical arts and I would love to hear about it."
Akane was absolute giddy as we walked back to the village center, clutching a book on medical ninjutsu to her chest, all of which had been theorized and created by the Yakushi woman herself. The woman had noted somewhat embarrassed that some were incomplete, but we were glad for it all the same. Although, I had a feeling this wasn't her true work as even retired ninja had their secrets.
I had gotten the chance to skim through it. I could see why canon Kabuto and my red-eyed friend was so inspired by the woman. The woman was not only exceedingly intelligent, some of her theories and analysis on chakra systems sending me for a spin, she also had a good heart. The fact that Danzō had forced her into ROOT, threatening to pull funding, made me hate the man even more. How did he get away with so much shit?
I let the girl have it first as she was the actual iryō-nin in training and we split up, the girl happily going home to absorb her idol's work as Riku and I slugged through the fallen snow back to the compound. The sky was speckled with white and gray, and I huddled besides my furry companion to share his warmth. Konoha in winter had a sort of somber peacefulness to it. There were less children about and the shops opened later and closed up early as no one wanted to stay out in the cold weather, a sentiment I wholeheartedly agreed with.
But it was so still. Shinobi still went on their usual business, hopping from snow-topped roof to another without leaving a print, and people still worked their jobs but everything was muted. Without Kushina or any of my human companions, I enjoyed the silence for what it was, Riku's light breathing blending with the crunch of snow beneath our feet.
I yawned, burying myself lightly into his side as we entered the compound, my energy spent for the afternoon. We stepped along the cleared paths towards home with the promise of warmth and hopefully some tea; maybe a nap underneath the kotatsu. But as we stepped up to the front door, something beyond it gave me pause. Something felt different, but I attributed it to the seasonal blues and opened the door. Riku and I shook the snow from ourselves before making our way onto the genkan with the smell of something warm and savory welcoming us back.
After I removed my boots, I noticed a pair that weren't mine or Aunt Mei's as they were well-worn, having seen much use. Did we have a guest over? That was odd, Aunt Mei usually gave me a heads up about clan business before I left in the morning since the elders were the only ones who ever visited.
"I'm home," I called into the house as I removed Riku's belt and my jacket, but it wasn't Aunt Mei's voice that greeted me.
"Welcome back, Junko-chan."
I whipped around to the person standing in the entrance of the hallway, and my breath caught, everything in my hands falling to the floor.
She loomed over me, clad in a pale aqua kimono. Everything was different. Her bright amber eyes were a bit duller, a bit tired, and the long auburn hair that I used to fixate on, the reds fascinating my tiny, two year old brain, was cut short, brushing against her shoulders.
But the loving smile was unchanged, and a cry or a scream- maybe both- threatened to erupted from my throat, but all I could manage was a whimper.
"K-kaa-chan…?"
Author's Note
Posted/Edited: July 2nd, 2017
Things seem to be heating up for our dear Junko, but as always, thanks for all the favorites, follows, and reviews. I appreciate them greatly!
Q&A
KioshiUshima, Foul steak, chase5, and donstehly2 guessed the reference from the last chapter was Sif from Dark Souls, and a Guest guessed Koromaru from Persona 3 (also a nice guess.) But it was Raisalis with the answer of Repede from Tales of Vesperia with the correct answer! Although, Sif would be a great reference as Riku grows.
-To Aeonir: I strive to give the original characters I add to this story equal screen time, but if it ever seems like Riku is taking up more of the spotlight than necessary, let me know.
-To CrowsRaven and the Guest who expressed some issue with the pace of the story, as well as anyone else with worries:
While I understand the desire to get to more canon scenes, (there is probably no one more excited than I am for older Junko and company), certain things need to be done before we can get there. That being said, I have a time skip planned after the next two chapters, so please be patient. We are indeed moving forward.
For the poll: Only a little over 50 votes have been cast with Minato in the lead and Kakashi in close second, leaving Obito and Rin in the dust. I will only leave it up on my profile until the next chapter is posted because I have to get the chapter written for the time skip mentioned previously. So make sure you vote if you want a certain character chosen.
Next time on For a Chance at Happiness
Chapter 25: Of Rocky Restarts and Cryptic Dreams