3
Curomi
They left…How could they leave?
We were safe! Konoha is a trillion miles away from the Mist, and the strongest nation, even! How were we not safe?!
"Curomi," Kida murmured, "You're crying…"
My eyebrow rose. I reached a hand up to touch my face, and realized that I was, indeed, crying. I laid my head on her shoulder.
"Kida…"
"Yeah?"
"They're gone…" I whispered hoarsely.
"I think we did the right thing…" Kida patted my shoulder. "We didn't want to leave…Kiba and Naruto are too important…"
The mention of the blonde's name made me smile. He was important to me. The way his blue eyes twinkled when we stole Kyoko's food, or the way he grinned when Amaya sat on a whoopee cushion…
"I'm going to see Naruto." I stood up, wiping my face. "Are you okay by yourself?"
"Yeah," She shrugged. "I'll talk to Kiba later…he left on a mission."
I nodded, putting on my jacket and sandals as I headed for the door, but not before activating the seal on my shoulder blade. I felt the same bitter, fake feeling I always felt when using the seal, only this time it intensified.
The air was cool against my skin, making me shiver. It was starting to get dark, too, and I started to worry. Aridoku, Yuki, Kyoko, and Amaya couldn't leave at night. That would be too dangerous.
At the word "dangerous" I felt my lips thin into a deep grimace. "Being here is dangerous" my ass.
Naruto's apartment wasn't far from the Hokage Tower. In fact, going towards the Hokage Tower was a shortcut, but I took the long way instead. I didn't want to see them again.
I knocked on Naruto's front door, waiting. My sensitive nose could tell that he was heating up ramen, and knowing him, he was probably jumping around yelling for the microwave to hurry up.
"Curomi-chan?" Naruto asked, confused. "What are you doing here?"
"I…" I stammered. "I'm not feeling well…"
"Yeah, you don't look so good," He observed. "Come on in; I'm making instant ramen!"
I nodded, walking past him towards the sofa.
"What's wrong, Curo-chan?"
"Amaya, Aridoku, Yuki, and Kyoko," I said, "They're leaving…"
"WHAT?!"
"They're handing in their relocation scrolls to the Hokage as we speak," I chuckled bitterly. "They do this every year…"
"What about you and Kida?"
"We didn't want to leave," I shrugged, feeling his arms around my shoulders. I leaned my head on his shoulder and sighed.
"I'm glad you decided to stay…" Naruto said hesitantly.
I smiled, curling into his embrace. "You're so warm," I giggled. "You're only missing the fur and you'll be just like a kitty."
"I'm a fox."
"Sure, sure," I grinned. "But you're still a kitty to me."