The forest leaves shimmered in the air as the breeze moved lazily through the trees. Himari took a deep breath in, enjoying the smell of early summer: a faint smell of flowers that were giving way to fruit, the feeling of heat coming, and the promise of lazy days as the worst of the hot days passed by. Well, lazy days for most people - Himari lived in the forest on the outskirts of Konoha and tended to a small plot of land with a variety of fruit trees and some garden beds of fruits and vegetables. She made her main living as a seamstress and weaver, but also grew her own food and sold what she had left over.

At the age of 22, she had decided to not become a shinobi - instead, after the basic education at the academy, she switched to a strictly academic route and became interested in the trades. Studying agriculture, carpentry, glass blowing, and more, she settled comfortably into the growth and care of her plants and any wildlife that passed by. Years of working outside made her medium skin freckled and her long, dark brown hair to be chestnut in the sunny parts of the year. She was tall, athletic, and perfectly suited for manual labor outdoors, which she also had the luck of enjoying.

Spending so much time outside led to meeting a lot of passerby coming to and heading away from Konoha. This summer day was no different - Himari was tending to her orchard when someone in a cloak entered her vision. They had a plain black cloak and a straw hat and were walking off the main trail, but towards Konoha. Himari paused to watch them - they were close enough she felt comfortable calling out. "Hiya! Do you want something to drink? You must have been walking a long time to get here."

The figure turned towards her. She watched as they walked slowly towards her, stopping a few feet away. Under the brim of the hat she saw dark blue eyes and dark blue-black hair. It looked like a man. He was very tall and imposing, but didn't seem actively threatening.

"Did you want something to drink? Water, iced tea?" she offered again.

He continued looking at her. "Sure."

She chuckled and waved at him to follow her to the nearby bench under a tree, in view of both her home and the trail. He took a seat and she told him she'd be back momentarily. She returned with two glasses of iced tea. She extended one to him who took it - his hat was removed, showing dark hair pulled back, and he had removed his cloak and laid it along the back of the bench, revealing generic black ninja garb.

"Thank you," he told her, taking a sip.

"Of course! I know how draining the summer can be," she chirped, drinking some of her drink as well. "What brings you through?"

He spoke concisely but politely, explaining he traveled around, documenting what he saw and experienced. He was passing by Konoha - he said it was an area he grew up in, but didn't need to stop long, so he'd be leaving soon after a rest.

"If you need a place to rest, feel free to sleep out here on my land - it's pretty comfortable in most places, and you can snack on whatever is out here," Himari offered.

The man nodded. "I think I'll do that. My name is Itachi," he let her know. "It would be rude to not introduce myself, but accept your hospitality."

"I'm Himari," she said, putting her hand out towards him for a shake. "Dinner will be in about two hours."

The two parted ways temporarily, with Itachi carrying his things towards the center of the orchard, and Himari heading into her cottage with some bins of produce and getting ready to start dinner. She had shot a quail earlier in the day and prepared it, cooking up some greens and potatoes to go with it. Himari also had the perfect bottle of wine to go with dinner, so that'd be on the menu, too. The windows and doors of her home were open so she could enjoy the weather and let the heat from cooking leave the house. The smells drifted about too, and eventually she noticed Itachi approaching the back porch, glancing at his surroundings lazily. He settled in one of the chairs by the small table outside.

She stepped out, bringing two glasses and the wine. She opened it up and poured some out for both of them. "Perfect timing. Dinner is pretty much ready. I was planning on eating out here, if that's fine." A nod from Itachi resulted in a smile from her and she proceeded to get their plates ready, and they sat at the table, happily eating and drinking.

Itachi wasn't too talkative, but Himari calmly pointed out some things of note on her property, mainly the best fruit trees and where small animals liked to visit. "I do have some snakes that keep the mice under control, so if that bothers you, let me know and I have a guest room," she stated.

"You're awfully comfortable with a stranger, inviting them to your home like this," he commented evenly.

Himari shrugged. "The worst that can happen is you kill me, right? We're all just on our way out, at some time or another."

He smirked at that. "A bit morbid, don't you think?"

"Life is morbid," Himari smiled, drinking some more wine. "Might as well enjoy whatever you can squeeze out of it, so it doesn't suck you dry first."

Itachi chuckled a bit, pouring himself the last of the wine. "Dinner was very good, thank you. Did you grow and catch all of it yourself?"

"Yep, the quail was from this morning. I grow all of my own produce, sell the rest," she said.

"Is that how you make your living?" he inquired.

"Partially. My main income is from weaving, and also some sewing," she said. "I'm also a bit of a jack-of-all-trades - I do odd jobs here and there around and in town, fixing up homes, cooking for people, stuff like that."

"Didn't want to be a ninja?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I started going to the academy, but I was way too interested in other things - how stuff grew, how to make new things, stuff like that. I wouldn't have been suited for being a shinobi. I'm happy with helping on the domestic front, and I know just enough to keep myself and others reasonably safe." She looked at him. "Are you a ninja?"

He nodded.

Himari waited for a follow up. "Are you any good?" she giggled.

He shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. I didn't want to stay in that line of work though…" he finished.

"To each their own," she toasted.

They sat and chatted on and off for a while, finishing their glasses of wine quickly. Himari managed to get a few more chuckles out of Itachi, which she felt very proud of. A tour of the garden and orchard followed dinner, and she eventually brought him inside to show him some of her weaving.

"This is in progress," she said, motioning to a large blanket, made of green, blue, and silver wool. "But here are some finished pieces I'll be selling in late summer." A basket of blankets, a few folded ponchos, and some pillows were neatly arranged on shelving in her work room.

"They're very nice," Itachi said. "Do you have a small blanket? Good for camping?" he asked.

"Yeah. If you're interested in one, I think this would be nice…" she pulled out a twin-sized blanket, woven of red, black, and white wool. "Wool is great at regulating temperature and is pretty water repellant. Do you like this one?"

He smirked, gently taking the blanket from her and feeling it. "Yeah. I do. It's kind of… perfect."

Himari cocked her head a bit. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"The colors," he said. "They're family colors."

"Ah!" she said. "Yeah, red and black are common around here, huh? I'm glad the white also fits then!"

"I feel awful, taking advantage of your hospitality," Itachi noted. They'd made their way back to the living room - he had brought his things inside, deciding to take up Himari's offer of the guest room. He wrapped the blanket up and put it in his small pack.

"It's ok, the company is nice," Himari said. "Meeting new people is cool. Even better when they seem my age. And not creepy," she added.

Itachi smirked, looking at her. "I'm glad I'm not creepy to you." He stepped towards her a little, looking down at her. "If you'd like though, I have something in mind to repay you?"

Himari flushed a bit at him approaching. "I'd probably be okay with it. What did you think?"

He stopped just a few inches away from her, leaning down to her ear. "This." He brushed aside a bit of her hair from her neck and placed a gentle kiss. When she leaned toward him, sighing, he continued, holding her waist and cheek and trailing kisses along her neck, jaw, and cheek, the slight taste of salt present on his lips. She was warm from the sun and he saw the many freckles that dotted all of her skin.

She wrapped her arms gently around his neck, shivering a bit at the touch of his lips - he was so surprisingly gentle, it tickled. As he made his way onto her cheek, she pulled back a bit, looking at him. She took his face in her hands and kissed him firmly, feeling excited as he wrapped his arms more firmly around her, pulling her up and towards him as he carried her towards the bedrooms.

"First door on the left," she broke away to mutter, and he obediently carried her in. They made their way to the bed, hands exploring and clothes coming off, as they further introduced themselves to one another most of the night.