Chapter Nine

"Kuriko will be coming home tonight from her first mission outside Konoha, try to be home to congratulate her."

"Hai Oka-san."

Nakiro nodded a little with her words, tugging on one of her sandals. She needed to see Itachi, he had a mission he'd be leaving for the following morning and she wanted to see him off. She knew that he had planned on training with Shisui later that evening so she didn't want to interrupt their time together, she knew they rarely got to see each other between all the missions they did.

"Where are you off to?" her mother asked, Nakiro tugged on her other sandal.

"The Uchihas." she responded.

"You and that boy are spending an awfully lot of time together." her father commented, she felt her cheeks go warm at the words.

"I've noticed that too." her mother added.

"We're friends." she replied simply. She moved to her feet, looking back over her shoulder at her parents. "I'll see you at dinner."

She quickly exited the house, focusing her thoughts as her hair grew out of the short bob, her hair climbing down her back to reach her hips in loose curls. The color of her hair morphing from a golden blonde to spring green, a few freckles popping across her nose and cheeks. She blinked, the chocolate brown eyes replaced with a deep ocean blue color as she made her way down the streets. She glanced over towards one of the shop windows she passed, nodding to herself in approval at the sight of her reflection. She always seemed to be changing her look when she was nervous, the things happening around her lately had heightened her anxiety, especially when it came to Itachi.

He'd kissed her, after so many years of being best friends and closer with each other than anyone else, he'd kissed her. It had stirred up so many emotions inside her, her thoughts were bouncing from one to the other, scenario to scenario. The kiss had spoken to her, it had told her all the unspoken words and hidden feelings. Itachi loved her, just as she loved him. She wasn't entirely sure what she could do though, did they need to discuss it, what should she say to him? She hadn't seen him since the day of the kiss, which had put her more on edge than she'd ever been, there were so many unexpressed words hanging in the air between them. What could she say?

She bit down on her lip in thought as she walked, going in the direction of the small forest within the walls of Konohagakure, she knew where she needed to go to find Itachi. She continued walking at a slow pace, trying to gather her thoughts as she made her way through the trees. Itachi had never shown interest in any girl close to their age, as far as she knew and she'd never been interested in anyone other than him. That must've meant that they had been each other's first kiss.

A smile came to her lips at the memory, all the emotions she'd felt coming back at her full force. That one, simple kiss, had her feeling things she never felt before. There had been so much understanding, compassion, dedication, and love radiating from the gentle kiss. She could clearly remember the way their lips had molded together, as though they were two halves of a whole, finally coming together as one. She could feel her cheeks burning the more she thought about it, a shy smile playing on her lips. She couldn't deny how she felt anymore, she was in love with him.

"Nakiro." She stopped mid step, raising her eyes from the forest floor, meeting a pair of onyx ones.

"Itachi." she breathed. The teenage boy smiled softly, taking a few steps to meet her, his eyes were warm. "You're here already."

"I was just doing some warm up exercises." he told her. She smiled shyly when he extended his hand to her, placing her hand on his and took a step closer, closing the space between them. "How are you?"

"Fine." she murmured, her cheeks a light shade of pink. "And yourself?"

"Wonderful." he admitted.

She sighed contently when he moved his arm around her, pulling her into an embrace, she leaned her cheek against his chest as he held her. She closed her eyes as she leaned against him, her smile widening when his fingers ran through her hair, a kiss placed against the side of her head. She could feel her heart thumping in her chest, trying her hardest to calm it down as best she could, she didn't understand how he made her feel so nervous and at ease in the same moment.

"I was hoping we could talk." she confessed, looking up at him through her lashes.

"Only if I can see you for you." he murmured into her hair.

She nodded into his chest, focusing her thoughts, the changes she'd made to herself fading out. The loose curls adorning her hair fell into soft waves, the spring green color changing to dark turquoise. The color of her eyes shifted to a ruby red color as they locked with his onyx pair, his eyes looked as though they were shining at the sight of her.

"You are so beautiful." he whispered.

She felt her heart skip when his fingers caressed her face, leaning down closer to her face, their lips brushing slightly. Her eyes slipped shut when his lips met hers in a soft kiss, her arms moving around his neck to pull him closer. She moved her lips against his gently, flushing darkly when he pulled out of the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers, his headband between them.

"Itachi...I love you."

Nakiro opened her eyes when she heard the familiar soft humming in her ear, turning over on her back, red meeting blue instantly. Had she not been used to being woken up that way, she would've shrieked at Deidara's closeness, she just smiled sleepily instead.

"Ohayou love." he purred, she yawned silently in response. He chuckled softly, moving a few strands of her bangs away from her eyes. "Sleep alright hm?"

She shrugged halfheartedly, wishing there was a way she could return to that perfect place in her dreams, it was the only place she felt at peace. Maybe, she could manage to convince Deidara to have a day for recuperating from traveling and she'd be able to go back to sleep, back to her beloved. She quickly turned her attention to the blonde at the thought, pink staining her cheeks when she noticed his finger tracing over her stomach, the material of his glove brushing her skin. She watched him bashfully, unsure of what to do with herself until his visible eye found hers, a grin on his lips.

"Your skin is soft hm." he noted. She could've rolled her eyes at the statement, of course it was. The chemicals in her body were different than the ones in his, it was simple biology. "It's different with every form you take hm."

She blinked dumbly at his words, now fully awake and realizing what he'd been getting at before tapping her throat twice. Deidara quickly moved up in the bed and grabbed her bag from the bedside table, passing it over to her. She rummaged through her bag and pulled out her book, flipping through the pages and wrote.

The genetic makeup in my real form is different than when I've shifted. The body I have now is what I was born with, when I shift all the cells in my body shift with me. It's not just an outward appearance, it's internal as well. The only things that remain the same when I shift are my mind and soul, I'm still the same person even when I'm not. Does that make sense?

She passed the book to the blonde, watching as he read over her words. After a long few seconds, he turned his visible eye to meet hers, nodding his head slightly as he handed the book back to her.

"I guess it does hm." he said, not sounding very convinced. "I guess it's just a little hard to grasp hm."

She nodded her head, understanding what he meant. Explaining how her kekkei genkai worked to an outsider of her clan was difficult, they couldn't completely grasp the concept since they weren't Senshi and they didn't fully understand the feeling of shapeshifting. It was the same with any kekkei genkai, explaining how it worked to someone outside of the specific clan was difficult, they'd never be able to fully grasp it and that was okay. Everyone had their own unique abilities in the world and one person wasn't meant to know and comprehend them all, however, Orochimaru hadn't caught on to that little tidbit.

As a former Anbu of Konoha, she knew a fair amount about Orochimaru and what type of shinobi he was. All Anbu were briefed on the missing nins and rogue shinobi that originated from Konohagakure, the Hokage had made sure that everyone was kept up to speed about potential threats, Orochimaru being one of them. She knew that Orochimaru had defected from the village when he'd been caught preforming experiments on fellow shinobi, dissecting their bodies to learn everything he could about different jutsu and abilities. He was a genius of sorts but he was obsessed with knowledge, obsessed to a point that had turned him into a monster. According to the documents she'd read on him, he wanted to obtain immortality so he could learn every jutsu ever created and future jutsu that would be created.

Nakiro had been part of multiple briefings within her two years in Anbu before she'd been forced to abandon her home, her last briefing being the most important for her mission. The information she'd learned, she'd never forget because it had taken her life in a direction she'd never imagined. It had been said that Orochimaru had a plan in the works, something along the lines of gaining enough followers to create another hidden village, somewhere he could continue his experiments on his terms. She had never imagined that her clan's kekkei genkai was part of those plans but it was, it still was. She knew that if he managed to somehow harness her clan's ability and replicate it in his followers, it would make him that much more dangerous, as well as nearly impossible to find because she was sure it was something that he'd want for himself. Running and hiding had been her only option, to protect her home and all the people in it, for Konoha.

"Kiro."

She turned her eyes from her book to Deidara, the sadness she felt was beginning to overwhelm her, it must've been clear as day in her eyes because Deidara quickly sat up from his lounging position, turning to face her. She could see something in his visible eye as he looked at her but she wasn't able to place it, however, she could place that other emotion, the concern. She could've smiled when he cupped her cheek but she couldn't, the pain she was carrying was too much for her today, she merely leaned into his touch for comfort.

"You seem...sad hm." he murmured.

She cast her eyes down at his words, trying her hardest to control her emotions, she didn't want to cry in front of him. He sounded worried about her, genuinely worried. It'd been so long since someone had cared about her in that way, she wasn't sure how to respond to it. She hadn't thought she would be in this mood today, Deidara had woken her up in a way that usually guaranteed a good day but thinking about everything, it was too much. She'd sacrificed everything for the sake of her home, she'd lost her family and so much more, and she'd been carrying the burden of her decision alone. She hadn't even been able to tell anyone the truth before she started running, even if everything worked out in the end, she'd never be able to return to her home; Konoha didn't know the truth about what had happened that night.

"Nakiro." She hesitantly looked up through her lashes, meeting Deidara's gaze, a few tears slipping down her cheeks. "Oh...no, don't do that hm." he pleaded softly. She bowed her head at the words, moving out of his touch.

'I wish I could hold it in Dei...gomen.'

"Ooi, don't do that. Look at me hm." His fingers hooked under her chin in an instant, bringing her face to meet his, his other hand taking hers gently. "Don't hide from me hm." he murmured. "You don't have to...just...talk to me."

She blinked, more tears rolling down her cheeks, what was she supposed to say? Where could she even begin? She felt scatterbrained, her thoughts were all over the place, she wasn't sure she could form a proper sentence in the state she was in. She swallowed the lump in her throat, her cheeks going warm when he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, dabbing at her face, gently wiping away her tears.

"Look, I know I don't know your whole story hm." he began, scooting closer to her. "Demo, I don't have need to because I know you. You didn't deserve everything that's happened to you but you aren't alone hm. I'm here." She blinked dumbly at his words, her cheeks going hotter at his expression. "I'm here." he repeated, staring straight into her eyes. "And I'm not going anywhere hm."

'Deidara...arigato.'

"You'll always be safe with me hm." he told her. "I'll never let anything bad happen to you."

She felt a small smile come to her lips at the words and moved her arms around his shoulders, scooting closer to him and hugging him tightly. It was the only way she knew to thank him without words and she definitely needed the hug right now, she couldn't begin to thank him enough for caring about her and being in her life. She didn't want to think where she would be had they not met, she just hoped she'd impacted his life as much as he had hers. Her smile widened when his arms moved around her, hugging her back just as tightly, his nose buried in her hair as he held her close.

"I could do this all day and never get tired of it hm." he commented, she nodded against his chest in agreement. "Do you want to tell me what's on your mind hm?"

She shook her head slightly, she just wanted to forget about it all for the time being. Besides, they had work they needed to do. They'd arrived in Takigakure late the night before and they'd need to set up a meeting with the shinobi Deidara's informant had told him about, obtaining this information about Orochimaru would lead them one step closer to him or give them an ace in the hole against him. Obtaining this information was vital and it would give her something to occupy her thoughts with.

"How about this then?" She moved back from him slightly, looking up through her bangs at his face. "We could have a day to relax hm." he suggested, she tilted her head to the side in confusion. "I mean, we never really do it that much, most of our leisure time isn't even leisure time. When was the last time you watched tv all day for the hell of it and ordered takeout hm?" She shrugged her shoulders at the question, his enthusiasm bringing another smile to her lips. "So let's do it, a full day of just screwing off and doing whatever we want hm."

'Demo...Orochimaru-'

As if reading her thoughts, Deidara moved a hand from her waist and shoved his hand into the pocket of his pants, pulling out what appeared to be a note.

"I received this before I woke you up." he started, handing the paper over to her. "The shinobi we're supposed to be meeting left a few days ago for a mission, they're supposed to be arriving back within a few days hm." She nodded a little, reading over the words carefully before handing the note back to him. "So we have a free day and we can do anything you want hm."

'Whatever I want?'

She turned her eyes back to the blonde, her heart skipping when she saw the gentle expression on his face, the warmth in his visible eye, he really did care about her. She quickly turned her attention to her book and wrote a few things down, showing him the page. He chuckled softly as he read her words, nodding his head in agreement.

"Alright, sushi it is." he agreed. "And tv all morning sounds great hm." He turned away from her, grabbing the remote and moved further back on the bed, leaning back against the head rest. "Do you really want to go to a spa hm?" She nodded her head enthusiastically, she was in serious need of a professional back massage, she was sure it'd help relieve tension. "I don't know." he sang, grinning mischievously. She pouted her lip cutely, crawling a little closer to him, giving him the best puppy dog eyes she could muster. "Hm." She felt her cheeks going hot as she crawled into his lap, leaning back against him as he turned on the tv, his arm moving around her to hold her closer. "Alright, fine hm." he chortled.

I want one more thing.

"What's that hm?" he asked, reading over her shoulder. She twisted her body around and moved her hand to his hair tie, pulling it out before retying it after re positioning his hair, both his eyes visible to her.

I want to see both your eyes all day.

Deidara grinned at the words and planted a kiss to her cheek, her face flushing scarlet as she turned her attention back to the tv.

"You win."

Author's Note: Aaaaand chapter nine is finally completed!