I have no rights to Naruto.
Enjoy.
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"She's only a baby." Sakura sighed arms folded across her chest as she leant against the kitchen counter facing Ibiki as he sliced an apple with a kunai, eating it segment by segment until it was gone.
"For Kami's sake she still falls asleep in the afternoon Ibiki!"
Ibiki watched as his Hellcat whirled to face the sink grabbing dishes whether clean or dirty and throwing them into the lukewarm water of the sink, soap and water splashing over her as she furiously scrubbed. The sound of cracking hitting Ibiki's ears even as Sakura held up the two pieces of ceramic from the soapy water, coming up behind her he pulled her against his chest, resting his chin on her head.
"I know Hellcat, but she is miserable."
Sakura dropped the broken plates into the sink and shook her hands dry, moving to hold Ibiki's arm as she leant back against him.
"I know, and I know she needs friends her own age." Sakura turned in Ibiki's arms to look up at him, biting her lip. "She's a baby compared to them, what if they tease her like the others, or they're parents drag them away from her, tell them to ignore her. They're so much bigger than her they could hurt her."
Ibiki nodded at his wife's concerns. "She's four and a half, nearly two years younger than the rest of the kids she would be with, but she's as cute as a fox, she-"
"I know!" Sakura pushed away Ibiki and walked into the living room glancing down the corridor where their little Angel was having a nap. "She needs a challenge; she's bored out of her mind, even if she's spending so much time at ANBU Headquarters."
"Of the two places it's much safer." Ibiki supplied hiding his grin as Sakura gave his a slanted look.
"I know she's safe at Headquarters, every ANBU is watching out for her and you're there. I can't say the same for that place."
Ibiki gave a chuckle. "And I thought I was reluctant."
"We can keep on teaching her, and so can her aunts and uncles. She already knows more than most."
"I've talked to Iruka Hellcat and I'm not throwing her to the wolves. She's only going for six months, basically the theory lessons. She can join you in Suna and also when we go visit Ko" Ibiki argued gently watching his Hellcat as she sank into the leather sofa and brought her knees up.
"Kids can be cruel Ibiki." Sakura murmured remembering all the teasing and bullying she had endured. "And it won't matter to them who she is; it will even make it worse if parents are afraid. Look at Naruto."
Ibiki ran his hand over his head readjusting his bandanna, taking the seat next to her looking her straight in the eye. "Hellcat, what will happen if anyone hurts Angel?"
"They wouldn't dare!" Sakura sat up straight emerald eyes blazing at the thought of someone touching her baby girl.
"Exactly." Ibiki grinned. "Unless they want to become my guests down in the interrogation unit."
"The intensive care unit is available." Sakura slumped down in the sofa, resting her head against Ibiki's shoulder. Angel was her little girl, she didn't like the idea of her being far away from her or in a situation either she or Ibiki couldn't control. Saying that – they had improved in the last four and a half years since she was born.
"Who is going with her?" Ibiki raised an eyebrow, Sakura shaking her head with a small smile. "I trust Iruka, really but I know you. So how many have you going with her."
"Squirrel and Newt." Ibiki admitted smirking at his Hellcat who gave him a playful slap on the chest.
"You couldn't have said that first. I was afraid you were going to send a rookie with her."
Ibiki sneered at the thought, his precious little Angel in the hands of a rookie, not a chance in hell.
"Angel is going to the Academy." Sakura sighed trying to convince herself.
"For part of the Academy year, we'll take her with us when we travel; teaching as we go and she'll join the kids her own age when they join."
Three weeks later Sakura sat in her office at the hospital, throwing files around as she searched for her last patient of the day, eager to go and meet Angel at the end of her first day of school. The morning had been tearful, clinging, worrisome, nerve racking and full of reluctance on Sakura's and Ibiki's part. The two parents standing outside the Academy dumbfounded as their little Angel and kissed them goodbye and ran off to her new teacher without even as much as a backward glance, never mind a wave goodbye.
While Ibiki was the master of keeping his emotions from his face Sakura had a feeling he was more affected by this than her. She had been relieved to see her daughter so happy, many of her concerns lessening, but Ibiki had stood rock still eyes fastened on his daughter's back until she was gone and stomping – if he would publicly show his annoyance- off.
A knock on the door and Sakura's frustrated cry to enter revealed a wary chunnin at the door.
"Firstly she is not harmed in anyway shape or form but-"
The Chunnin was slammed against the doorframe with at least one rib cracked as Sakura rushed past him the only thought on her mind her daughter. Reaching the door of the hospital she cursed herself and with the necessary hand signs disappeared in a whirl of leaves to arrive at the Academy doors.
Reaching for the door handle she met Ibiki's gaze as he appeared and opened the door.
"What the fuck happened."
"I don't know but the bastard that hurt her is dead."
"If she's hurt Iruka and that damned teacher will pay for it, and where the hell were your ANBU."
Ibiki clenched his fists and dreamt up horrors that would have every single ANBU shitting their pants for Squirrel and Newt. Arriving at Iruka's classroom he banged the door open making the occupants jump back and thundered. "What the hell is going on?"
"Your daughter is a menace!" Ibiki looked down at the woman before him who was glaring up at him. "Of all the irresponsible things, how-"
"Shut up." Ibiki growled down at the woman, stalking off to join his Hellcat who had pulled Angel onto her lap, Juca and Seko standing next to them alternating between watching his Angel and glaring at the kids on the other side of the classroom. The mother Ibiki had dismissed joining one of the girls.
Kneeling down before his little Angel Ibiki reached out and cupped her cheek, so small in his large hand and pushed a lock of dark burgundy hair from her face, biting his tongue at the anger and sulky look on her face and blazing emerald eyes so like Hellcat's.
"What happened Angel?"
Kaida looked at her Dad, happily secure in her Mom's arms she looked past him and around the room, finally looking at Juca and Seko next to her. The girls had been mean, called her names, said nasty things about her Mom and Dad and had tried to take Wednesday from her, tightening her hold on the doll, her favourite thing in the world apart from her parents Kaida for all her four and a half years made an extremely mature decision. She wanted to deal with the mean nasty girls herself.
Ibiki shared a look with Sakura as Angel slammed her lips in a straight line and looked at the ground.
"Angel?"
Ibiki ignored the mutterings that were growing behind him, waiting and waiting for his little Angel to speak; with a sigh he met Sakura's eyes, the worried mother nodding her head angrily. Taking a breath Ibiki narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw, face hardening as he took Angel's chin in his hand and force her to look at him. His voice was hard and unyielding, the people behind him instantly shutting up and looking at him with horror as he spoke to the four and a half year old.
"You will tell me what happened Morino Kaida, now."
Kaida's lips quivered and her eyes watered but no tears fell. "They were mean to me."
Ibiki surged to his feet, Sakura beside him with Kaida in her arms, the furious mother trying to hand Kaida to Ibiki who was caught with taking his daughter and trying to restrain his wife to hear what the hell had happened. Catching the sidelong looks from the two boys Ibiki barked.
"Juca, Seko. Report."
Iruka nearly collapsed in amazement as the two trouble makers stood up straight and to attention as good as any ANBU reporting to Ibiki or the Hokage.
"Angel was out in the yard during morning break when Anna, Chihiro and Miyu went over to her and started teasing her about being a baby and that she was such a baby she had to carry her doll with her. Angel's teacher shooed them away when she saw them but she didn't hear them."
Seko reported looking at his hero with pride as Juca continued.
"At lunch they went over to her again, saying bad things about you and Sakura-sensei, things their parents had told them. They pushed her around and when Angel tried to leave Anna pushed her to the ground-"
"That girl is a little madam who deserves a good whipping for what she did to my poor Anna, she shouldn't be in the Academy dangerous little-"
Ibiki blinked and shrugged his shoulders at Iruka who was shaking his head in defeat as he looked at Sakura, the pink haired woman standing over the unconscious form of Anna's mother – the woman had not only called her daughter a menace, interrupted Juca but dared say her girl need to be whipped and was dangerous. Chest heaving Sakura clenched and unclenched her fist looking up at the mothers of the other two girls.
"Do not talk about my daughter like that."
Catching the sharp cut on the face of one girl Sakura noted that it wasn't too bad and went back to Ibiki taking Angel from his arms and ordering the two boys next to her.
"What else happened."
"We went to help Angel, and the other girls kept pushing her back on the ground as she tried to get up, Anna tried to take the doll off her and . .well . ." Juca stammered and scratched his arm, poking Seko to continue the tale. With a grin Seko told them.
"Angel released the blade and slashed Anna on the face-"
"Enough." Ibiki held up his hand, turning his head to the two mothers as they helped the other up as she moaned, raising an eyebrow at his hellcat.
"I pulled back; I'd have killed the bi-nasty thing otherwise." Sakura muttered, correcting her language in front of Angel and rolling her eyes as the bitch began to give out. Ibiki's commanding voice stopping her in her tracks.
"Your eight year old daughter – eight years old – and her friends bullied a four year old." Ibiki stepped forward to look at the women, a nasty sneer covering his face as he looked down at them, voice as cold as ice and he inwardly filled with satisfaction as they suddenly and finally realised who they were dealing with. "A four year on her first day at the Academy and your eight year olds attacked her. Your daughters need a whipping, your daughters are the little monsters and your daughters should not be at the Academy."
"Our daughters are bloodied and bruised-"One of the mothers stuttered and stammered trailing off as Ibiki's black gaze bore into her, raging emerald hitting her from behind him.
"Hummm that's was us." Juca stepped to the side with his hand raised, a sheepish but proud grin on his face.
"No way were we going to let them hurt Angel." Seko pronounced hands crossed over his small chest. "Angel got Anna with the blade but the rest was us."
Ibiki looked over the boys from top to toe, taking in their determination and proud stance, a small upturn of his lips making the two boys beam with joy.
"You should be ashamed of yourselves." Sakura sneered at the mothers, casting the three eight year olds cold hard stares that made them back against their mothers, a dark stain spreading on the skirts of Anna as Ibiki growled when he passed her.
"I'll deal with them." Iruka nodded to the family giving the girls disappointed looks, Anna's mother making a nuisance of herself again as she scorned. "And what about the boys punishments and the girl's?"
Iruka frowned at her. "Angel was defending herself from your daughter and her friends she's not going to be punished."
The woman sniffed. "And the two hooligans?"
"Will spend they're afternoons in ANBU headquarters under my supervision." Ibiki growled, the two boys momentarily paling but following Sakura as she beckoned them out into the corridor with her. The mothers nodding while Iruka looked horrified.
"But that's. . . Ibiki that's way too harsh!"
Ibiki said nothing closing the door behind him and walking down the corridor to meet Sakura, taking Angel from her hands as the little girl cuddled into his arms. Rounding a corner Newt and Squirrel appeared by the groups side, Squirrel cocking his head to the side at the sight of the crestfallen boys, with a nod from Ibiki and a smile from Sakura he ruffled they're hair.
"We'll teach you some new tricks, lock picking is always handy."
The smiles on Juca and Seko's faces were priceless, Ibiki smirking and Sakura smiling at their happiness, not to mention protectiveness of their little Angel.
"Forget what I said, don't interfere only if it's a spar and a teacher is around." Ibiki addressed Newt, the green hair woman nodding happily. She and Squirrel had hoped from the roof when they saw what was happening but the sight of Ibiki's hero-worshippers and the gleam in Angel's eyes had stayed their hands.
"So she's going back." Sakura questioned Ibiki as Angel straightened up, pushing her hair back and tightening her hold on Wednesday.
"I can take of myself." Angel pouted looking her Mom and Dad straight in the eyes. "And Newt and Squirrel are here, and I got Juca and Seko, they won't let anyone hurt me. I liked it, I want to come back!"
Angel gave her parents a cross look, daring them to say no or laugh at her and when they finally agreed after looking at each other for a few minutes Angel smiled.
She still had to deal with those nasty girls as well.
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Dia Duit,
Okay so I'm going with the idea that the kids start the Academy at six and leave at twelve and while Kaida could advance quickly her parents want her to enjoy her childhood. I am switching the names Kaida/Angel you know who I'm talking about so I don't think it matters too much.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I can't wait to see what you think.
Lots of love,
The Rose and the Dagger x x x