A.N. Happy Valentine's Day! My gift to all my wonderful readers is a new chapter! Yay!
Thank you guys for all the support this story has gotten. My update schedule will be really wonky, but I want to get a chapter out every week or two. We'll see. I have a ton of stuff going on. But, I LOVE Itachi, so you can count on me to do what I can!
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NOW:
"Good morning!" Tsukiko said brightly, strolling up to the two girls waiting for her. Instead of the normal classroom meetup, she had requested that her new team wait at the northern gate of the village. Knowing that the two had likely never been out of Konoha's borders, she planned on taking them on a tour of the surrounding wilderness to help them familiarize themselves with the territory.
"Good morning," Midori greeted politely, her green eyes dancing with excitement. Her gold hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and she was dressed in an emerald kunoichi outfit.
"Morning," Chiyo echoed, bouncing in place. Besides her two braids, her short, choppy hair was fluttering in the slight breeze. She was dressed in a dark purple kunoichi uniform, a huge grin stretched across her face at the sight of Tsukiko.
"Awesome! We get a cool sensei!"
Tsukiko smiled at the praise, happy that so far, everyone seemed to be getting along.
"Alright, Team Eleven," she said, trying out their name for the first time. "My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I will be your sensei. Today, I thought we'd do our usual meet-and-greet before—yes Midori?"
Shyly, Midori looked around. "Sorry Tsukiko-Sensei. It's just...are we missing a member?"
Tsukiko frowned, remembering that she would also be babysitting a rival ninja. "As a matter of fact, Midori, we are. You see, you girls are so talented, that you will actually have another jounin as a teammate."
Midori looked confused, but Chiyo jumped up high into the air. "Hell yeah! We rock!"
"But...isn't that really unusual?" Midori asked, uneasy. "I mean, I don't really know about Chiyo, but I'm not that talented."
"You're stronger than you think," Tsukiko encouraged. "You girls just have very specialized skills that need specific teaching. I'm your primary sensei, but Masuko-Sensei will be helping Chiyo with controlling and using her chakra in the most efficient way, while you and I will work on medical ninjutsu training and extreme chakra control. Make sense?"
Midori's expression cleared, and she nodded. "Okay, Sensei."
Tsukiko smiled and looked around. "Now if we could just find our missing teammate…"
Summoned by her words, a team of Anbu Black Ops dropped down from the sky, landing lightly about forty feet away. Their leader, a male with a fox mask, stepped forward.
"Tsukiko Amaya" he began formally. "Are you prepared to accept—"
The Anbu shinobi was cut off by Tsukiko's sudden appearance in front of him. "Shut up!" She hissed. "It'll be bad for my team to see their other sensei escorted in by Anbu and it be announced that she's in my custody."
She couldn't see his expression under the mask, but hoped he had the decency to be embarrassed. His cool tone when he spoke, however, suggested otherwise.
"Very well. Shall we retreat further into the forest?"
The white-haired woman nodded, turning to look over her shoulder at her team. "Wait here, girls. There's something I need to do."
Without waiting for an answer, she followed the masked Shinobi for little over a half a mile before they stopped.
"I take it this is acceptable?"
She narrowed her eyes. "Perfectly. Sorry to interrupt your little speech. Please continue."
Fox-mask straightened. "Tsukiko Amaya, are you prepared to accept custody of former Mist ninja, Masuko Arashi? If you agree, you are responsible for ensuring that she does nothing suspicious or that will in any way prove detrimental to the Leaf Village. Failure to keep her in line could result in severe punishment. Do you accept?"
"I do," she said stiffly.
He nodded, signaling the other shinobi. "Bring her here."
The rest of the team leapt away, leaving Tsukiko with Fox-mask. "When she arrives, we leave her to you," he said. "Her apartment will be guarded by the Anbu, but from the moment she reports for training or missions, she's your responsibility."
"Got it, got it," Tsukiko waved away, unconcerned. Despite this woman's incredible chakra and physical abilities, Tsukiko wasn't worried. She'd be able to keep Masuko in line, no problem.
The Anbu soon returned, a woman with dark purple hair in the center of their formation. Tsukiko recognized her instantly from the photo in her file.
'Masuko Arashi'
Said ninja landed evenly in front of Tsukiko. "Hiya, kid. Are you gonna take me to my squad leader?" Her voice was slightly deeper than what Tsukiko guessed was normal. She put up a bold front, but it was clear Masuko wasn't one hundred percent healed from her words or interrogation.
Not intimidated in the slightest, the younger woman met the former Mist ninja's gaze evenly, her voice calm, but firm.
"My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I am your squad leader."
Masuko looked at her incredulously. It was somewhat understandable, when comparing the differences between them.
Tsukiko was eighteen years old, five-foot-five, and despite her fit form, looked rather delicate in comparison to the tough Masuko.
The former Mist ninja was rather pretty, but equally intimidating. She was twenty-five, around five-foot-nine, and her physique left no doubt that she was dangerous. Masuko wasn't overly muscular, but was completely toned with little to no trace of fat. This, coupled with her glare, made it a lot more obvious how she survived her ordeal.
She was clearly a badass.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" She scoffed, looking Tsukiko up and down. "They think that, after everything I went through, you can stop me If I turn out to be a spy?"
Her sentence was punctuated by glares to the watching Anbu.
Tsukiko watched her calmly, a serene smile on her features. "Interesting, isn't it? Anyway, I'm Tsukiko Amaya, your superior from this point on. It's nice to meet you, Masuko."
The older woman looked at her speculatively. "You must have some tricks up your sleeve, hm? Well, where I come from, teammates often spar to see who's the most qualified to lead. Wanna find out?"
Glancing at the waiting Anbu, the younger woman hummed to herself. 'I see. Well, I'd better give them something to report back to Danzo, shouldn't I?'
"Where you come from, they kill innocent ninja for no reason," Tsukiko said lightly, her smile bright. "But I don't mind engaging in a local custom if it'll make you feel at home in the Leaf."
Masuko smiled back, revealing that one canine was sharper and slightly longer than the other, like a fang. Her blue eyes watched Tsukiko murderously. "Thanks for the hospitality. I just don't think I could serve under someone with hair that long. Honestly woman, anyone could grab that, and then you're finished!"
Tsukiko widened her stance defensively, seeing that the older woman was about to strike. "I'll let you in on a secret," she said with a wink, knowing it would further piss Masuko off. "No one's ever been able to grab it."
With that, the younger woman made the first move. Her defensive stance had lowered Masuko's guard, making her think the white-haired ninja would wait to block the first attack, but nothing was further from the truth.
Tsukiko's eyes turned green, and her right heel turned sharply in the dirt, left foot stomping down hard.
Faster than she could think, Masuko found herself sucked underground, her head the only part of her remaining above the dirt.
"My, my," the purple-haired woman growled through gritted teeth. "That's some trick of yours. Let me show you one of mine!"
With a shout of rage, her body was covered in the blue glow of her chakra, and she burst out of the ground as easily as it it had been paper. Spinning toward Tsukiko, Masuko pulled her fist back to land a blow that would definitely break something.
Tsukiko's eyes turned gold, and she shot a blast of air at the older ninja that pushed her off course, allowing her to dodge the punch.
'She's definitely strong, but she's over-exerting herself,' Tsukiko thought, sending a rock her way. 'She's not recovered nearly enough for this kind of fight. I need to end this quickly, before she seriously injures herself and I have to explain to Chiyo that her sensei was beat up by her other sensei.'
Masuko smashed easily through the rock, looking to see where her opponent was. Spotting her a few feet away, the former Mist ninja let out a howl of rage and slammed her fist into Tsukiko's face.
The clone exploded into a mass of crows, each of them cawing loudly and pecking at the defenseless woman.
"What the—?!"
When the crows dispelled, Masuko was left confused and scratched. Remembering her enemy, she looked around wildly before feeling something sharp at her throat.
"How about we call it at that?" Tsukiko asked mildly, her kunai pressed firmly against Masuko's neck.
The older woman stiffened, then sighed in disappointment. "Alright, sure."
When Tsukiko removed the knife, Masuko turned to her, a new respect on her face. "Nice moves. So you're the Gensogan user, eh? Just my luck they'd stick me with you." She smiled and stuck out her hand. "Nice ta meetcha, partner."
Tsukiko smiled wryly and accepted the gesture of peace. 'She's the "We fight to make friends" type, I see. Let's just hope she and Guy don't run into each other any time soon.'
She glanced back at the Anbu team, raising an eyebrow. "Was there anything else?"
Fox-mask made a signal with his hand and they all scattered, no doubt to report to Danzo, the head of the Anbu.
"Assholes," Tsukiko muttered.
Masuko let out a burst of surprised laughter. "You know what? I think we'll get along just fine!"
The white-haired shinobi smiled warmly. "I think so too. Anyway, the girls are waiting about half a mile that way, so—"
"What?!" Masuko exclaimed. "Our team's been waiting on me this whole time?! Geez, tell me earlier, will ya? I wouldn't have wasted so much time!" And with that, she turned and sprinted in the direction Tsukiko pointed out.
Sighing, the young woman hurried to catch up. 'I guess that's one way to motivate her.'
Chiyo and Midori were waiting for their return, patiently in the blond girl's case and impatiently in the dark-haired girl's case.
"Finally!" Chiyo shouted, seeing them. "You were gone forever, Tsukiko-Sensei!"
"Sorry, sorry! I just had to help Masuko-Sensei find her way here."
Chiyo turned wide eyes to the woman in question. "Whoa! You're cool-looking!"
Masuko preened under the praise. "Thank you Chiyo. I've been reading up on you, and you have quite the chakra! Tell me, do you have trouble controlling it?" Her voice was gentle and playful, and she winked mischievously.
Tsukiko nodded in approval as Chiyo and Masuko began to have a discussion on utilizing large chakras. She turned to Midori.
"And I take it you want to be a medical ninja?"
The shy girl's eyes lit up. "Yes!" Then, it was like she was a completely different person. Midori launched into a conversation of the ins and outs of medical ninjutsu, outlining that her chakra control was nowhere near precise enough to use her clan's techniques.
After about ten minutes, Tsukiko nodded in understanding. "Alright, Midori. I'll do some brainstorming tonight and we'll come up with some exercises suited to chakra manipulation."
Midori beamed.
"Alright, Team Eleven!" Tsukiko said, getting the attention of the other two. "Let's actually start this meet-and-greet!"
Masuko and Chiyo came over, and the white-haired kunoichi directed Chiyo to sit on the grass near Midori.
"Okay, I want us all to introduce ourselves and tell everyone a few facts. Interests, likes, hates, whatever. The one I want everyone to say, however, are fears."
"Fears?" Chiyo questioned, wrinkling her nose.
"We're a team," Tsukiko explained. "Which means we're only as strong as our weaknesses. It's good to know what situations or fears affect each of us, because they affect the team as a whole."
The girl nodded reluctantly. "Alright."
"I'll start." Tsukiko knew that no one liked to discuss fears, as those could be deeply personal, but it would be an excellent way to build trust.
"My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I am your team leader," she began easily. "My favorite color is red, I'm interested in honing my abilities, so you'll find me training every free second. I love sweet things, especially dango, and to read. I hate anyone who would hurt innocent people, and also those too lazy or unmotivated to do what they have to."
While they were listening, she could tell her genin were distracted, caught up in what they would admit about themselves.
"My greatest fear is...losing my family again."
Instantly, everyone's attention was locked on her, and Tsukiko forced herself to continue, trying to avoid painful memories. "Twice in my life, my family has been murdered. I've managed to pull myself back my grief both times, but I don't know if I can do it a third time." She raised her head to meet both genin's eyes and then Masuko's. "For better or worse, this team is my family. Believe me when I say that I will protect you all with my life."
Then fearing that she had been too heavy, as the air was thick with emotion, she coughed and added, "Also snakes. I'm terrified of snakes."
The tension snapped in half, and all three of Tsukiko's teammates burst into laughter.
"Wait, wait, wait," Masuko said, holding her sides. "You live in the Leaf Village! Aren't there snakes everywhere?"
Tsukiko took the teasing goodnaturedly, defending herself laughingly. "I'm not talking about a little grass snake!" She raised her arms menacingly, much to the delight of the genin. "I'm talking about snakes so big they'll swallow you in one gulp!"
Masuko stepped back worriedly, looking around. "And there are...a lot of those here?"
"Only in certain areas," Tsukiko said evilly. "Of course, I'll make sure to point them out on our little tour. Who knows, maybe we'll see one."
Unable to tell if she was joking or not, Masuko turned back to the genin, her expression clearing. "My turn! Alright, my name is Masuko Arashi, and if Tsukiko hasn't told you, I'm from the Hidden Mist Village."
Chiyo's eyes widened, and Midori tilted her head.
"But...you wear a Leaf headband…"
Masuko crossed her arms, nodding. "True. I'm a loyal Leaf Ninja now, but my home was once the Mist Village. You guys deserve to know that if we're going to be working together. You should never be ashamed of your past, unless you let it dictate your actions. I'm making a new start in this village, and I'm determined to go the best I can."
She paused for a moment, cocking her head. "Anyway, my favorite color is light blue, I love cute things, and hate seafood. My greatest fear is being betrayed. When I trust someone, I trust them for life. For someone to take advantage of that is despicable."
Tsukiko bumped her shoulder against Masuko's. "I agree...but if you think you're getting away with me not commenting on seafood, you can think again."
Now it was her turn to tease.
"You lived in the Mist! You guys probably eat seafood all the time!"
Masuko shuddered. "We did. I just...I just can't stand the taste of fish! It will definitely make me vomit!" She glared at all of them. "I'm trusting you, so you better not use it against me!"
Chiyo laughed. "Okay, my turn. My name is Chiyo Mitsuru, and my favorite color is red." She smiled at Tsukiko. "I love fighting and training, but I hate people who think they're better just because they win. I'm interested in learning about other villages and fostering good relations."
Tsukiko blinked in surprise. She had marked Chiyo down as mostly athletic, and had no idea that she was interested in diplomacy. "That's fantastic!" She praised.
Chiyo blushed, looking down at her shoes. "As for my fear...Well, my family isn't all that well known, but they've all been really good shinobi, and want to gain more attention. 'Chiyo' means 'one thousand generations,' and my parents named me that in the hopes that I would help make my Clan be remembered for at least that long. They push me really hard, so...I guess my greatest fear is letting them down."
Masuko wrapped her arm around Chiyo's shoulders. "Don't worry! There's no way you could let them down, as long as you stay true to yourself!"
She met Tsukiko's gaze and raised an eyebrow.
Tsukiko nodded, thinking hard. If need be, she'd have a word with Chiyo's parents. If they tried to force her to be a fighter over say, a diplomat, it would only hurt their daughter in the long-run.
"What about you, Midori?" Masuko asked gently.
"My name is Midori Hata," she said quietly, pulling at her pants. "My favorite color is purple, I like sweet things and spicy things, as well as studying medical ninjutsu. I hate people who hurt others for no reason, and my greatest fear is being in a situation where someone dies while I'm trying to help them. I...I couldn't bear knowing that I could've saved them...or worse, knowing that no matter what I did, they would still die."
Tsukiko nodded sympathetically. "That's a legitimate fear in our line of work," she said, hugging the blond genin. "And we will lose comrades in our lifetime. We will lose people we love, people we care about. But we save far more lives than we lose, which is something to be proud of."
Chiyo jumped up determinedly. "Don't worry, Midori! Together, we'll be the greatest team ever!"
Midori smiled, wiping her eyes. "Yeah."
Tsukiko smiled proudly, protectiveness surging in her chest. 'This is my team, my family.'
Then:
Almost five years old. Tsukiko had now spent nearly a year in the Leaf Village, and saw the place as her home. She was still uncomfortable around Lord Fugaku, but she liked Lady Mikoto quite a bit. And of course, Itachi. She had become quite adept at reading his expressions, and found herself enjoying her time with him more and more.
Itachi, in turn, had grudgingly admitted that she was an extremely talented fighter and an excellent sparring partner. In the last few months, their training had become more teamwork-based, the two moving in perfect sync with the other to pull off complicated moves.
Tsukiko liked her life in the Leaf, but she often felt lonely. Her parents had always been affectionate and happy, neither of which described the Uchiha Clan. She rarely saw Fugaku, and though he was kind, he was very strict. Mikoto was generally happy, but she was busy preparing for the new baby, and didn't have a lot of time to spend with her.
And despite all the time she spent with him, Tsukiko didn't really know much about Itachi. He always seemed to be distant, giving Tsukiko the sense that, given the choice, Itachi would rather be alone than with her. And the other children in the village, while friendly, didn't have the same interests as her. They cared about playing over training, which was understandable, considering their age. Itachi was the only one who understood her, but he wasn't the friendliest person in the world. Tsukiko doubted sometimes that he even liked her, and had started to become as silent as him, knowing that her chattering likely annoyed him.
And there were the nightmares.
Memories of her parents' deaths seemed to force themselves into her dreams quite often, and she would wake up in the bedroom she shared with Itachi in a panic, her Gensogan activated. Every time this happened, she would escape the confines of the house and sit on the front porch, closing her eyes to let the wind soothe her tear-stained cheeks. It was in these times that she could almost pretend she was back home, sitting next to her parents and listening to the crickets chirp.
It was on one such summer night that Tsukiko found herself sitting outside, her quiet sobs mixing with the nightly sounds of the village. She was curled into a ball, clutching at her knees as she rocked back and forth.
'I want my mom. I want my dad. I want to go home.'
These wishes echoed over and over in her head until she thought she'd go mad. It had been an exhausting day of training, and her nerves were strained from the glares of the older Uchihas. They definitely didn't like her, and she couldn't understand why. Was it because of her Gensogan? Was she again hated for simply being born?
Movement behind her made Tsukiko freeze in alarm, her sobs catching in her throat.
"It's only me."
'Itachi.'
Tsukiko turned her head in his direction, her eyes closed as she gave him a watery smile, not wanting to see if he was annoyed. "I'm sorry, did I wake you up? It's nothing, you can go back to sleep."
There was a long pause, making her think that perhaps he took her advice, before she felt him settle down next to her.
Her eyes snapped open and she looked at him curiously. "Is something wrong?"
"I'm sorry," he said abruptly, a faint pink covering his cheeks as he looked straight ahead.
"What?"
"About your parents. About...everything. I'm sorry."
Tsukiko lowered her gaze, her eyes tearing up again. "I just really miss them sometimes. I like living here, but...it's just so...different."
He looked at her, and she saw a flash of panic on his normally expressionless face. "Don't cry!"
She blinked, tilting her head. "Huh?"
"I don't like it when you cry," he admitted, his cheeks pink. "Or when you're upset."
Tsukiko stared, her eyes wide. "Are you—Are you worried about me?"
Now it was his turn to look confused. "Of course I am. Why shouldn't I be? You come out here almost every night to cry, and I don't know how to stop it."
The young girl watched him, flabbergasted as Itachi continued, his voice speeding up slightly as if panicked.
"I thought training more would help, so I pushed us to work harder, but that seemed to make it worse. Then I thought maybe you didn't like being with me, and I tried to stay away from you. But that made it even worse!" Itachi huffed, frustrated. "I don't know what to do, and I don't like it."
Warmth spread through Tsukiko, and she giggled at his grumpy face. The young boy was always so composed and distant, it was really strange to see him lose his cool!
He stared at her a moment before shaking his head. "I really don't get you." But his lips curled up into a small smile as he watched her laugh.
"I thought you didn't like me," she admitted shyly. "And since you're the only one I like to be around, I felt really lonely."
"Of course I like you," he protested, his expression open for once. "You're the only one I can train with, and you're very strong."
Tsukiko saw the truth in his eyes and before she knew what she was doing, she was hugging him. "Thank you, Itachi. It makes me feel better to have a friend here."
He stiffened momentarily at her touch, but slowly returned the hug. "Then don't cry anymore," he whispered. "Because you have me."
Tsukiko pulled back, her eyes shining with happiness. "Okay."
Itachi relaxed at the sight of her smile. While it was true, he had been annoyed when she had first arrived in the village, he had quickly found himself looking for her whenever he wanted to train, or when he was frustrated with his slow progress. She was calming to him, a presence he didn't realize he was growing attached to before it was too late.
The first time she had woken him with her nightmares was also her first night in the village. He had shot awake, thinking someone was attacking, his mind immediately flashing to the battlefield his father had taken him to a few months previously.
After looking around a moment, he saw Tsukiko thrashing around in her sleep, her face showing her fear and anguish.
That was perhaps the first time Itachi really realized what had happened to her. His parents had been tight-lipped about it, but he knew her parents had been killed in the war. What he didn't know was that Tsukiko had been there as well, and blamed herself for it. Now, he could easily piece the story together from her murmured pleas and frightened expression.
Since then, she'd taken to leaving the room when her nightmares struck. Itachi would always be awake, listening silently to her sneak out, trying to muffle her sobs. If Tsukiko hadn't woken him up with her movements before she woke, he doubted he would have noticed her leaving. It frustrated him to no end, listening to her cry without being able to do anything.
And he noticed during the daytime how unhappy she was. Sure, she tried to smile and be friendly, but with everyday, she was becoming more and more distant.
Finally, he could take it no longer, and followed her out after a particularly bad dream.
Now, sitting silently outside with her head on his shoulder, he berated himself for not doing this sooner. She had almost instantly become happier after hearing that he cared, and he could hit himself for not realizing it sooner. She had been lonely.
Itachi was used to being alone, preferring his own company to others, so he could further his goal to become the strongest ninja in the world. But Tsukiko was used to training with her parents, both of whom were far more encouraging and supportive than Itachi had been.
'Not anymore,' he vowed. Tsukiko was an excellent partner for him, and he'd be sorry if they stopped training together. Now that their skill level had caught up, he could see that training was far more efficient and practical with her.
'And,' he admitted to himself. 'I like being with her.'
As if sensing his thoughts, Tsukiko smiled again and broke the peaceful silence. "Itachi, what's your favorite color?"
He looked down at her amused. "What?"
She shrugged. "Friends know stuff about each other, and I barely know anything about you. So, what's your favorite color?"
"Black," he answered, thinking about it a moment.
"Why?" She asked promptly, her onyx eyes doing that shiny thing they did again. When she was happy, there was a certain glow to her eyes that drew people in.
"No reason," he muttered, embarrassed. "What's your favorite color?"
"Hmm...I like black too, but I think I'll go with red," she answered thoughtfully. "Fire is my favorite element, after all."
"Fire is orange," he objected.
She shook her head. "But using it makes my eyes turn red, and it totally looks like I have the Sharingan!" She shrugged self-consciously. "It makes me feel like I'm part of the family."
An unexpected warmth hit him then, and a rare smile lit up his features. "You are a part of the family."
Her cheeks darkened as she answered his smile with one of her own. "Next question. When is your birthday?"
"June 9."
"What?! That's next week! Why didn't you say anything?!" She glared at him.
Itachi shrugged. "A birthday is merely a milestone. Just because my age increases, it doesn't mean anything changes."
"But it's fun!" Tsukiko protested. "You get presents, and your parents make you sweets to eat, and you get to do whatever you want that day!"
He decided not to argue with her. "Fine. And your birthday?"
"July 20."
"That's not far away at all," he pointed out. "Were you going to tell anyone?"
She looked away, the air suddenly awkward. "Well, everyone's so busy all the time, I just thought that…"
"You'd let something you like so much go by unnoticed?"
For some reason, he felt himself growing angry with his parents. His father was busy with Military Police work and his mother was preparing for the baby, but that was no excuse to ignore Tsukiko. They had brought her here, and they were supposed to care for her!
The two children continued asking questions, learning more and more about the other, until Tsukiko was swaying with tiredness and Itachi insisted that they go back to bed. Tsukiko agreed, and quickly fell into a dreamless sleep, Itachi now a comforting presence that kept the nightmares at bay.
Itachi's birthday had passed with a big party that he found unnecessary. Still he had accepted Tsukiko's present, a clumsily made card with a crayon-drawn picture of the two of them, with a smile.
Tsukiko still couldn't believe that Itachi thought his birthday was a waste of time. To her, it was a day when her family didn't work or train and instead spent time together. Birthdays were special.
Still, she understood that things were different here, and people were busy. She was a little upset that neither Mikoto or Fugaku seemed to know when her birthday was, but she expected the day to be like any other.
It was a surprise to her then, when she came downstairs that morning and saw Mikoto waiting with a special treat.
"Happy birthday, Tsuki!" Mikoto cried happily, holding a tray of homemade dango.
Shocked, Tsukiko stared blankly for a moment. Then, a huge grin stretched across her face and she let out a happy squeal. Running forward, she gave Mikoto a huge hug, mindful of her enormously round belly. Itachi's mother was due any day, yet another reason Tsukiko wouldn't have been surprised to have been forgotten.
"Thank you!" She exclaimed.
'They remembered!'
Mikoto laughed, then smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Tsuki. We haven't been very good caretakers. Sometimes I think we forget how young you are. You're so mature and grown up, that it's hard to remember. I don't even think I asked you when your birthday was. If Itachi hadn't said anything, we might've missed it." She set the dango down, hugging Tsukiko tightly. "I want you to feel like part of this family."
The white-haired girl nodded happily, a warm feeling in her chest. When Mikoto released her, she turned shyly to Itachi, who was standing next to the table, looking at his feet.
"Thank you, Itachi," She said happily, her face warm.
The boy nodded, then held out a card, just as clumsy as the one she had made. His face was pink, and his smile shy. "Happy birthday," he said simply.
Tsukiko accepted the card, then hugged Itachi, the boy who'd quickly become her best friend.
"Aw," Mikoto cooed, smiling at the two. "Come on, you need to eat your dango."
Excited, she sat down, dragging Itachi with her. The young girl absolutely loved dango, almost as much as him. She immediately grabbed one of the sticks and took a bite of the delicious mochi treat. "It's amazing!" She declared, making Mikoto laugh.
At that moment, Fugaku entered, frowning at a paper in his hand.
Tsukiko froze, unsure if she was doing something wrong. Normally, it was impolite to start eating before the head of the household. But, Mikoto had told her to start, so she wasn't sure if she was in trouble or not.
"Good morning," the stern man said, raising his gaze to take in the scene. His eyes stopped on the girl, and the half-eaten dango in her hand. "Ah, that's right. Happy birthday, Tsukiko," he said, smiling at her.
The warm feeling inside Tsukiko returned full force, and she respectfully bowed her head. "Good morning, sir. Thank you."
They all ate together, and talked about anything and everything. Fugaku was warm and kind, while Mikoto was funny and motherly. It was the first time Tsukiko felt like she belonged in the family, like they truly cared about her.
'I'm proud to be part of this clan.'
A.N. Yay! New chapter! Some fluff, some angst, new characters...I hope you guys like it!
I hope you guys like Masuko. She's an OC designed by my sister whose head over heels for a certain shark shinobi. I WONDER who she will be paired with...you guessed it. Iruka.
No, not really.
Anyway, Chiyo and Midori will also be finding love, but it will be downplayed as I hope to someday in the future write separate fics for the two of them. If you can guess their future love interests, I'll be impressed. Chiyo has a bit of groundwork laid, but I doubt you'll be able to guess Midori's!