Ame rolled out of her futon as the mid-morning light beamed too gleefully through the window. With every inhalation, nausea rolled in her gut. Her eyes refused to open fully, squinting at the invasion of light. She lay on the tatami flooring, staring at the ceiling as she re-lived the events of last night. A rhythmic thudding pounded the inside of her skull as she aggressively rubbed her eyes. She threw her body upright in one motion trying to avoid engaging her abdominal muscles.
The room swayed as she gripped onto the bathroom door for support. One look in the small mirror above the sink confirmed her fear. She looked like death. She looked gaunt and pale- more so than usual. The purple bags that hung below her eyes packed for a family.
After vigorously scrubbing her teeth, ridding her mouth of stale alcohol, she showered fighting nausea that threatened to spill. Ame changed into her regular gear, bandaged her hands and feet as she usually does, and made her way into the kitchen.
The dizziness subsided somewhat but her throat desperately sang out to be quenched. Her usually graceful strides were somewhat heavy and clumsy as she padded across the wooden boards.
Sharp glass sliced into the soles of her feet and she yelped, hopped and fell onto the floor, clinging onto her abused foot. She hissed as she examined the damage. She pulled at the shards, some came loose, but some she didn't. She left her bloodied foot bindings and scoured the apartment for her dustpan and brush.
After aggressively sweeping the kitchen floor she gathered her Anbu uniform and began to scrub the black trousers and top, ridding it of all the foul things. She hung it to dry in her tiny studio flat and began to scrub her body amour.
She strolled through the packed streets of Konoha as the weekend crowds swarmed the marketplace. The winter chill blew around the buildings but the sky was near cloudless, the sunlight shining strongly onto the village. She fought the hangover as she weaved between the rush searching for a shop selling homeware items.
It took her longer than she'd like to admit but she was now the proud owner of two drinking glasses. She wouldn't make that mistake again. She held them towards the sun admiring how the light danced through the handcrafted cup. Ribbons of colour penetrated through the glass and decorated the floor. She wrapped them back in the tissue and held them under her arm as she continued to meander through the busy streets.
The smell of sweet dumplings infiltrated her senses and guided her towards Dango-ya. The keeper of the shop greeted her coldly as she ordered a few sticks of the chewy goodness. She was used to the cold treatment, many assumed she was an outsider. She often henged herself to keep her identity more anonymous. As she did now, her lilac hair henged a simple brown and her byakugan transformed into usual grey eyes. It helped her from avoiding recognition from the locals. She headed towards the familiar curry shop enjoying the sweet goodness.
"Ya- Taiyo-san!" she raised the hand that wasn't holding her Dango and the bag of goods.
"Oh, Ame-chan" the owner looked up above the stewing pots bubbling away, waving a spoon at her. "I hope you're not here as a customer, it's not even been 12 hours" he chuckled as he continued to serve customers. His shop was always busy. She would say it's because of the food but everyone adores Taiyo, too. He was like the villager's grandfather.
"Heyyyy ojii-chan," she cooed. "Is that how you greet your best customer?" she took a seat at the bar. He shook his head and began rifling under the counter.
"Here," he placed a pile of small white cards in front of her. Confusion pulled at her face as she scanned the contents. Something hollow pulled at her chest.
"What are these for?" she asked a question she already knew the answer to.
"I thought maybe it would help," he paused from his cooking and leaned over the counter scanning the recipe cards he made for her. "It's only simple food but if you eat better then maybe it'll mean you can protect yourself out there better." He continued to scan the card with deep concentration. He didn't notice how her face defaulted into the Anbu expressionless. Something strange swirled in the pit of her stomach and she wasn't sure she liked it. She thought back through how many hours it would've taken him, knowing she'd seen him not 12 hours ago. The hangover nausea suddenly threatened to greet her mouth. Cold sweat broke out and slid down her back. "The thought of you out," he nodded in the direction of the village gates, "after living only on curry is enough to send me to an early grave" he chuckled. His round cheeks bunched up as his smile widened.
He glanced up to her and he began to fumble.
"I hope I didn't overstep." He laughed nervously. She managed to shake her head from side to side.
"I appreciate it, Taiyo-san. Thank you for your kindness" she offered.
"Well, I have to take care of my best customer now don't I?" she forced a small smile onto her face and rose from her seat.
"Here," she pulled out a stick of dumplings from the carrier bag. "In payment for your gift." His eyes lit up at the sight of the sticky goodness and he didn't hesitate in chomping down. She bowed her head in respect and bid Taiyo farewell as an odd feeling swam in her stomach.
Ame strolled from the busy marketplace to the quieter outskirts and found herself in the park after dropping off her glasses and recipe cards. She lay on the river banks watching the clouds drift by thinking of everything and nothing. The Dango was finished, and the evening was setting in.
She had three more days of leave and she already felt restless. She sat up and watched the people of her village enjoy the rare sunny winters day. The cold had invaded her senses, her skin tingled with frigid curiosity, and her hands and feet ached from the chill.
A mother called out to her son and Ame watched him run-up to her with a smile on his face. He called out for her with excitement and leapt into her arms. She sat and watched similar scenes unfold as children raced from the park to their parents. She found herself wondering what life would've looked like if she knew life as they did. The thought quickly dissipated like dust to wind and she rose to her feet. The cold ground offered no warmth and the cool breeze blew around her. Maybe she would invest in a coat but then again no, if she were cold she would just train, the cold had never bothered her before.
She found herself at her favourite spot submerged amongst the forest in training ground 4. She settled herself and began breathing techniques to steady her mind.
As her thoughts stilled she pushed slowly through the movements of hand-to-hand combat. Her eyes remained closed as she felt the movement of the forest through her feet, listening to the movements with her sharp ears, creating her next sense. She'd memorised the movement over and over again. Not a single day would pass without her practising, honing her skill. As time flowed forward, so did her movements. Cycle after cycle she increased the speed of the movements until her limbs were nothing but a blur and sweat ran down her forehead. She halted once the night had descended to the point of no light. Perfect. She smirked to herself and created earth clones. She could almost feel the smirks that her earth clones gave her in return. So deep in the forest, not much moonlight filtered down. Her eyes were unable to pick up movements as she stared into the abyss. This was when the real training started. She summoned her bats with a knick of her thumb and they spread out into the usual battle formation.
Their sonar cries swarmed around her and her sensitive hearing picked up the movements around her. They painted a near-perfect picture of what lay in front of her. She didn't always need her summons to aid the visualisation of a battle in the dead of night but it made it clearer, and she needed the practice with them. Her sensitive hearing came from her father's clan. She was able to pick up frequencies and vibrations that usually would go missing as a human. They called it 'the third eye'. It meant she could see even when she could not. It gave sight to the blind. Ability to those unable.
Their calls rang around her as she closed her eyes and began. Her earth clones ran at her, tag-teaming her. Attack after attack she fought them off until only one remained. She was attempting a Jutsu she had not yet perfected.
She was known amongst the Anbu ranks as the Reaper. She often wielded senbons made of chakra, hitting vital points using her byakugan. It was quick, easy and good in her line of work. But, most knew of her for her Shadow Burial Jutsu. Using shadow she could paralyse and then pull an enemy beneath the ground, and effectively crushing them with earth Jutsu. She found it effective in her line of work as it was could be silent, if she used her shadow to silence them, and left little trace of a fight. Hiding bodies also proved extremely helpful especially when there were many enemies. It didn't help that she was formidable in pitch-black combat earning her the title further. She was in the process of creating Jutsu's that she could rely on in the dark when shadow was not able.
Her past teammates likened her to a yokai that transports souls to the underworld and earned her the code name Shinigami. The Grim Reaper. She wasn't fond of the code name but then again, what anbu operative liked the names their known by. I could think of a few pretty terrible ones.
She inhaled deeply focusing on all the toxins swirling around her body. She channelled it using what she knew of her medical Jutsu and guided it to the air in her lungs. She exhaled forcefully pushing out the poison gas and leapt backwards onto a tree branch. She watched the earth clone crumble out of existence and a smile crept onto her face. She was panting but regaining control of her breathing after the strenuous training.
Tiredness seeped into her muscles and she leapt from tree to tree, heading back to the village centre. Her ribs twinged and she resisted the urge to flinch. She mustered up the healing chakra and started working on her ribs. She cursed as she realised her training had undone the healing that she received from the hospital. She knew she would be scolded for overdoing it.
Ame jumped down onto a path leading towards the hospital. It was quiet. The hospital echoed the empty streets. There was only one nurse in the large reception area behind the front desk.
"Chikako-sama" Ame spoke as the nurse looked up to her. She nodded yet somehow looked down her nose at the same time. She excused herself and later returned with Chikako in tow.
"You forgot?" A corner of her mouth twitched upwards but she raised her hands in the air faining innocents.
"Seems my brain failed me. Forgive me oh great Chikako-sama" the medic-nin rolled her eyes and began scanning her file.
"Come with me then." She sounded tired. She led Ame down into the basement ward where they treat Anbu and others with sensitive identities. She dropped the henge of brown hair and false grey eyes as she approached a private treatment room. She hopped up onto the bed and lent forward. As she had done a thousand times before.
The medic-nin brought her hands to her head and began to emit the familiar green chakra. She watched as thoughts crossed the shinobi's face.
"At least you've rested your eyes. How are they feeling?"
"Fine." The medic-nin tsk'd and rolled her eyes at her usual answer.
"Ribs?" she prodded them purposefully earning a hiss from the Anbu operative. "That's what I thought," Ame swears she could've seen her smile at her pain. "Lie down" she sighed.
The medic-nin took half an hour repairing the damage she'd done in training to her ribs. Ame lay as still as the dead for every second. The depths of her training never seemed to escape her.
"You are supposed to be an elite shinobi," the medic-nin left and began scribbling on the clipboard. "You need to take better care of yourself" she didn't look up from her board. "Come back in a few days and I can write your full discharge papers.
"Discharge me now" Ame spoke out, earning her a glare from the doctor.
"You're not healed enough."
"I am."
"Amaya-san," she sighed and rubbed her eyes with her thumb and finger beneath her glasses, "just do what you're told, for once." She fought the urge to roll her eyes, she has survived much worse odds and doesn't know what the fuss is about.
"Discharge me and I will avoid S-rank missions for a week." She bargained earning a groan from Chikako.
"You're not going to listen to me anyway are you?" Chikako began filling out more papers and ripped it off the clipboard. "Fine. Here you go." She held the paper out between them but snatched it out the way just before Ame went to grab it. "No S-rank missions for one week, and, come back if you feel any problems."
"Yes Chikako-sama" she replied absolutely and dipped her head. She earned the form and headed towards the exit.
"Don't forget" Chikako warned.
"I won't" Ame smirked as she left.
"Hokage-sama" she knelt as Anbu do in front of the san-daime after arriving as soon as she woke the next day.
"What can I do for you, Amaya-san?" the Hokage sat behind his desk, wearing his usual Hokage robe and hat. He placed the pen down giving Ame his full attention.
"I am ready to resume my responsibilities, sir" she continued to kneel with her fist over her heart, head bowed.
"Hmm," the Hokage left silence hanging in the air. She was bored of leave, she hated it. She wanted to continue to do what she was best at doing. Missions. "Are you not early?" he asked an obvious question with no doubt a not-so-obvious meaning behind it.
"I have formally been discharged from the hospital and I am ready to resume my responsibilities, Hokage-sama" she repeated herself. Silence hung between them as a knock rasped on the door thrice. She didn't flinch nor dare to move. She remained kneeling before the san-daime.
"Enter" he called. A presence came beside her and knelt in a similar fashion garbed in the same Anbu uniform she too wore before him. She glanced below her plain porcelain mask at the Anbu operative beside her but her eyes snapped back as the Hokage began to speak.
"Good I'm glad you're both here. There is something I need to discuss with you both." He smiled closing his eyes as he rounded his desk and stood before us both. He held his hands behind his back as he usually did. "Stand, both of you." Ame stood, her bones yelling at her that something was about to be very seriously wrong.
The Anbu next to her stood tall in her peripheral vision. She remained still waiting for instruction.
"Welcome, Team Rei (鈴)" Hokage Sarutobi's voice echoed through her head and she was suddenly thankful she was wearing a mask. Her mind raced through a thousand and one things.
"I haven't been teamed up since-" she stopped herself from speaking out of term.
"It's time again, to have a partner." He offered not unkindly. She may have been the picture of calm but she was screaming on the inside. How could he do this to her? He knows she works alone and that's how it is best. She is not meant to work with anyone.
"You two will be dealing with infiltration and intel gathering." Her usual work. Why does this require a partner? "You are both used to this line of missions and are used to being away for lengthy periods of time to retrieve crucial information for the Leaf. I personally want to show my appreciation for your commitment to our village. I sense the will of fire resides in both of you." He looked right at her as he said it. She almost wanted to laugh in his face. Will of fire my arse. Her blood bubbled under her skin. The Anbu beside her hadn't so much as breathed too loud, at least that was a good sign.
"As you have both been cleared from the hospital, your next mission will begin tomorrow. I suggest you spend today reading the brief and planning, together. Report back to me upon immediate arrival back. This is very sensitive information. That is all." Both the anbu operatives fell into a kneel with a fist over their chest.
"Hokage-sama" they chanted in unison. They rose and headed for the door. She pulled it open and attempted to exit when she was cut off by her partner. Fuel to the fire is a term that bashed around her head. She was positively simmering now. She closed the door to the Hokage's office just a little too loudly, causing passersby to glance in her direction.
They weren't 2 feet from the door when he whipped around to her. He puffed his chest up like a god-dammed peacock.
"You best not compromise the mission just because of your bad attitude." The audacity.
"You took the words right out of my mouth." She spat back.
"We are in a team whether you like it or not. You better start acting like it."
"Be at the gates at 6 am." She attempted to stride past him but he caught her arm and pulled her towards him. He craned over her and gave her a clear view of his eyes through his mask. Oh no. No no no.
"4 am." He left her in a poof of smoke, the sight of his Sharingan still swirled in her head.
This couldn't get any worse. Hatake fucking Kakashi.
Friend-killer Kakashi.