Kioko awoke at Itachi's glare and stared up at him in confusion.
Her eyes clearly asked, "Huh?" Itachi frowned and lifted her under her arms and pulled her away from Kisame who awoke at the movement.
Kioko seemed sleepy and asked in her muted voice as the two men were forced to read her lips, "What's going on?"
Itachi frowned and pushed her into the bathroom as he handed her an outfit to wear. She nodded in droopy sleepiness and walked in.
Itachi was let to glare at the fish man. Kisame seemed confused as to why and asked, "What the hell did I do?!" Itachi frowned and stated, "You were holding Kioko in her sleep."
Kisame looked horrified, "Damn! D-Did I?!" Itachi frowned, "No. If you had you'd be dead now."
Kisame sighed in relief and stated, "It wasn't on purpose, Itachi."
Itachi nodded, "I know. But from here on out she will stay with me."
Kisame nodded in sad agreement and Kioko walked out from her quick shower in a traveling outfit. Thing was that it wasn't hers.
Her eyes were sad and unbelieving. She moved and walked over to Itachi and frowned to him. She was still mute. Her voice was still and useless though her quiet humming was heard at times. Now however she only asked as she moved her lips for Itachi to read. She stated, "Why are you so protective?"
Itachi frowned and walked away from her. Kisame had been facing Kioko's back and hadn't seen it.
She turned to him and asked, "What is wrong with Itachi?"
Kisame frowned and replied in a real voice to answer her, "He just cares. It's new to him. You'll have to forgive him."
She only smiled slightly and nodded. She then asked, "Why this outfit? It's not even mine."
Kisame frowned and looked down at Itachi's shirt on her. He sighed and stated, "He must be planning on traveling hard today."
She shrugged and replied smiling happily, "He has fat pants!"
Kisame laughed and Itachi stuck his head back in the room. "Ready yet?" Kioko nodded happily and walked out the door.
Itachi seemed willing to travel and asked, "Can you do anything like a ninja?" Kioko looked confused and looked shyly at them both. Her lips moved.
"I flunked ninja school."
They both died out laughing and she turned away blushing. Itachi chuckled and stated, "Well I graduated early."
Kisame nodded and laughed on. Kioko turned then and glared at them.
"That is one hell of a way to make me feel better about myself!" Her curse words were taken with wide grins and rare laughter.
Itachi smirked and nodded. He knelt down and motioned for her to get on his back. She went red and shook her head no. Itachi sighed.
"You rode on my back just the other day. Forget it and get on."
She looked abruptly away before wrapping her arms around his neck as he stood and gripped her legs to steady her.
She closed her eyes and focused on keeping her face from growing red.
Kisame frowned and walked after him out of the hotel as staring eyes glanced at Itachi and Kioko. Kisame sighed and walked on with them out of the small town and to the woods.
Kioko looked to Kisame and asked, "Where are we going?" Kisame replied, "The village hidden in leaves... Konohagakure."
Her eyes widened and she rested her cheek on Itachi's back in sympathy.
He grunted. Kisame glared at Itachi for not seemed to care at her caress. He would have paid for that kind of treatment. Kioko then began to hum. It was almost as if she was trying to soothe them both from this morning's rough air.
It was a song that struck them both as familiar.
The song was pure and honest and loving. They both new it so well their hearts burned in their chests as she drifted to sleep at the sound.
The words floated in their minds as she hummed the last line.
"Love I have in abundance
all for the one who asks first
but my heart beats for one already
Does he know I'm waiting?
I see him walk away and I see him every day
I watch as another seems ready to ask
To ask for my heart that I shall give
Love I have in abundance
I wish he knew my heart
I wish he knew my thoughts
I know he could be the first...
But the question is if he'll ask...
The one I love and another...
Two men that I see all day...
Why can't the one I love see my today?
Will he be the first to ask me?
Or will he loose my heart anyway?
Oh how my heart aches to wait..."
It was a song they had grown up with. Ancient. A love song that was as old as time itself.
Itachi looked to Kioko over his shoulder and from her to Kisame.
Kisame watched him back and asked, "You think she meant to hum that?"
Itachi shrugged. Both looked to the girl again. Her arms receded from Itachi's neck and pressed on his back. Kisame sighed and stated, "You know the second we really begin to move she's going to wake up..." Itachi nodded and smiled. "I know." And then Itachi shot up into the trees. Kisame sighed and followed after him. Kioko gasped as she nearly tilted backwards. Her arms latched around Itachi in a death grip. Itachi chuckled and asked, "You okay?"
Kioko refused to answer as she buried her blond hair in Itachi's back.
Kisame was at their sides a moment later. She gripped even tighter and Itachi was forced to lift a hand up to loosen her grip.
Kioko seemed to let completely go and was forced to rewrap around Itachi's eyes. He sighed and released his hold on her. She screamed and dropped away from him. Her eyes were wide in panic and fear.
Kisame sighed and looked away from her.
In a flash, Itachi had her in his arms, bridal style.
She looked really freaked before squeezing her eyes shut and murmuring to herself, "Gonna die. Gonna die."
Itachi smirked and whispered in her ear, "I thought you said you'd rather die than be alone... We are both still here."
Her grip relaxed and she looked up into his eyes and relaxed. Her grip loosened further and she nodded to him.
He smirked and stated, "Feeling better?" She frowned and replied with her silent lips, "No. Not really. I don't like this at all."
He smirked more and more until he was grinning evilly. "Well it seemed you like tucking yourself into Kisame's chest more than me carrying you!"
She gasped and went red and demanded, "When?!"
Itachi's smirk faded slightly adn he stated, "When you sleep and he carries you...Or… Last night... You sure were wrapped into him then."
Her eyes went wide and she asked, "LAST NIGHT?!"
Itachi smirked and her eyes rolled back in her head and she fainted.
Itachi smirked and Kisame asked, "What did you say to her?"
Itachi smiled at him and replied, "The truth."
Kisame frowned and replied, "It isn't up to you."
Itachi smirked, "Not like it matters any."
Kisame growled.
Itachi glared.
Kioko squirmed in a dream and her face etched over with pain and confusion.
Itachi frowned and stated, "She's having a nightmare."
Kisame sighed.
~Kioko's dream~
Her eyes flashed over a million symbols at once. A red cloud... A fan... A sword... Strange patterns... Village symbols...
Her eyes flashed at each of them. Her real voice echoed in her dream. "I don't understand!" Another voice replied, "You don't have to." Her eyes flashed around to look for the voice's owner. Instead all of the signs began to swirl around her. At first, it was slow and she could see a shadow approaching. She gasped and felt power emanate from it. The signs began to move faster.
She gasped and ducked back and into her tail. She screamed in fright as the shapes moved closer. She covered her head with her arms.
Now all of a sudden the signs were gone.
She saw several people in front of her. A man with slicked back white hair... A man with a black mask covering half of his face... A blond man with hair covering one entire eye… A squat man with a hunched back and a mask hanging from his face... A woman with blue hair and cold eyes... A plant like man... And the shadow from before…
Itachi and Kisame's faces flashed by in her mind.
She took it in as a symbol settled on each person.
A strange circle and triangle settling on the white haired man... The sword on Kisame. A scorpion on the squat man. A white flower in the blue haired woman. A white bird to he blond man. A sketch of a yin yang signs to the plant man... The strange Uchiha symbol fan on Itachi. Sharingan signs on Itachi... A leaf symbol added to Itachi as well. And a needle was rewarded to the masked man. The shadow only smirked and the picture of a intermingled gray circle.
Kioko gasped as the signs glowed.
-Awake-
her eyes shot open and her gasp shocked through the air. She thrashed around and Itachi stopped to allow her to hit the ground.
She was scared stiff. She looked up to them and frowned.
Kisame replied, "We are here, Kioko-chan." Kioko looked down from the hill where they stood. She frowned and nodded.
She reached out two shaking hands and took one of Kisame's and Itachi's in the other.
She looked shaken and the two men looked to her and frowned.
Kisame rubbed a thumb over her hand. Itachi clutched hers tighter.
Kioko gulped and let her hands drop. She nodded and turned to smile at them.
Her nonexistent voice laughed and smiled. She asked, "Are we going to stand here until next month or hurry this up?!"
Kisame looked to his partner and back to Kioko. Itachi frowned and nodded.
Kioko smiled happily and began to walk on.
The two both followed after. And yet again she hummed.
Itachi and Kisame also recognized the words to this one.
"My heart is happy
I don't understand why
Maybe it is only excited
A new adventure
on my horizon!
Smiles and laughs
my heart is souring
my love is blossoming
Take my hand and lead me on
Laughing on I am so happy.
So proud to be my own person
so thrilled to walk beside you
our adventure together!
Maybe we can find the answer...
to why you make me so happy!"
Kisame thought, "Who does she mean?!"
Itachi added in his own head, "Why is she so mysterious about this?! It's driving me insane!"