Disclaimer: Is it really still necessary? *Sigh* Very well then. I, TigerInTheMoonlight, do NOT own 'Naruto', nor any of the Canon characters.
Ok, hope you won't get too confused. Akina will be referred to as 'Naruto' and 'him/he/his' when it is in the point of view of others.
'She/her' will be used from Akina's point of view (but unless it is a direct thought, it will not say 'I').
Direct thoughts are in Italics, as are flashbacks, emphasised words in speech and whispers. It may be hard to tell, so sorry about any confusion!
Wow the response for this story has been great, I would be glad if even one person liked it, so more is awesome! Keep it up guys, you inspire me! Well that sounded a little cliché…all well. On with the story!
"There it is."
"The Demon boy…"
"Stay away sweetie, that one is very dangerous…don't go near…"
"So he's the Kyu-"
"Stop! You know we can't speak of IT."
"It is mocking us…I can see it in it's eyes…"
"What a monster."
Uzumaki Naruto walked through the streets of Konohagakure, keeping his head held high and doing his best to block out all the insults and whispers following him like a dark cloud. The blonde eight year old swung his arms by his sides as he made his way to the Academy.
The villagers gave him a wide berth accompanied by hate-filled glares, a few going so far as to spit in his direction. And yet he never broke his stride. There was no point in getting offended by fools such as these.
Could they not see that he was a child? A harmless, orphaned child, not some evil, plotting demon fox. What idiots…he thought in frustration.
He arrived at the Konoha Academy's gates, and walked in without a pause, seemingly oblivious to the cries of outrage he provoked from the watching parents, who were then quick to warn their children to stay FAR AWAY, until they could rectify this with the Hokage.
The Sandaime of course would deny any demands to remove him from the Academy. Although he had shaken his head at the odd plan, he had agreed to appoint Namikaze Akina as Uchiha Sasuke's undercover guardian, until such time as he could undeniably take care of himself. He owed Itachi that much, at least.
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Akina was bored. She was an ANBU (well, she was an ANBU, she had retired to undertake this 'mission'), an unseen prodigy if Konoha, and most of all she was thirteen. But here she was, in a class full of seven and eight year olds, pretending she didn't know the subjects discussed since she was four.
Some children were giving 'Naruto' wary and curious glances -no doubt they had been warned by their parents about him. Others decided to ignore the blonde boy completely.
Akina sat towards the back of the room, away from the Sensei's mild glare and the feeling of holes boring into her back from the nosey children. From here she could see the back of her charge's head, and she had positioned herself so that she could see his face in the reflection of the window.
It had been a week and a half since the Uchiha Massacre.
Uchiha Sasuke was the only survivor, save for the killer himself…his own older brother, Uchiha Itachi. The Uchiha clan heir, their father's pride and Konoha's prodigy had reportedly snapped under the pressure and his mental state went downhill, leading to the murders. Sasuke had spent a whole week in the hospital, as they were worried about him harming himself. No, he would not dishonour his clan by doing that, he would avenge them! He would train until he bled in order to kill That Man. His Aniki was dead, killed by That Man just as the rest of the clan was. That monster was nothing but an echo of what his brother once was, a demon inhabiting his Aniki's body! Aniki was gone. Itachi had killed him as well. At least, that's what he convinced himself. He sighed and looked out of the nearby window, ignoring the Sensei's teachings. He didn't care.
Akina watched Sasuke in concern. Her partner's Otouto was acting very distant…yes, the boy had recently been through a great shock and trauma, but she prayed his coldness would not last. He had always been so happy before, she didn't want him to deny any hope of a childhood. The boy was not made for isolation.
"NARUTO! Pay attention!" Iruka-sensei bellowed, and the class turned to stare at 'Naruto'.
"Eh heh heh sorry, Iruka-sensei! I was daydreaming…" Akina called, rubbing the back of her head in fake embarrassment, ruffling her already dishevelled short hair. She missed her mid-back ling hair…she couldn't wait to release the jutsu that night.
Iruka-sensei went back to lecturing the class, and Akina returned her gaze to the brooding Uchiha. She repressed a sigh of annoyance. She knew that in order to be placed on Sasuke's Genin team, she would have to be the class dead last. The top male and female were always together with the 'dobe', at least according to Itachi. Because she was disguised as a boy, the Kunouchi position was unavailable, and she knew Sasuke would be placed at the top, as there was NO WAY he would be the dead last, and he had to be one of them in order for Akina to plan their team.
Akina had never been on a Genin team, because she had never attended the Academy. But Itachi assured her that it was an…interesting experience, even though he was not on one for very long.
Itachi.
It wasn't even two weeks since he had left, but she already missed him greatly. Thank Kami for their summon Ravens, or she would have gone insane eventually! She smiled as she recalled the day they were given Watarigarasu's test, not long before Itachi had been given his mission…
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Akina lounged on a tree branch, absentmindedly tossing and catching a Shuriken into the air. Itachi was on the branch above her, reading another scroll. He could be such a nerd sometimes…if nerds could kick major ass and kill without hesitation. Uchiha Itachi, super-nerd!...Yes, Akina was very bored right now.
"'TACHI! This sucks. Let's DO something. Spar with me!"
"Hn…" the Uchiha sounded dismissively, not looking up from his reading.
"Itachi!" Akina whined, tossing her Shuriken and burying it into the tough wood of the tree by Itachi's foot.
"Hai hai, I'm coming." He waved his hand with an infuriating smirk. Akina rolled her eyes.
Both leapt down from the tree and took defensive stances.
"Taijutsu only?" Itachi inquired.
"Sure." Akina shrugged. She then grinned evilly. "Not feeling up to challenging my Ninjutsu today 'Tachi? Or are you still nursing your pride from the last time?" she jeered. Kami, teasing the Uchiha was so fun. She gleefully observed his face twitch.
"I was caught off guard and you know it Akina." Itachi reminded the Namikaze.
"'In a battle that would have killed you', is what you would have told me Mr. Hypocritical. Stop making excuses!" Akina laughed.
Itachi snorted. Suddenly, a humongous cloud of smoke poofed into the clearing, and both were forced to jump away from it in surprise. Out of the smog emerged the Ravens boss summon, Watarigarasu. Akina and Itachi bowed low to the giant bird.
"Watarigarasu-sama, it is a pleasure to see you again." Itachi intoned, but remained respectful.
"Hai, I agree with my partner Watarigarasu-sama! I am glad to be meeting with you again." Akina told the summons happily.
"Hello again Hatchlings." The raven boomed, "The time has come. You both have much potential, I can see a great chance of success for you two, more than the previous summoners possessed. Are you prepared to take the test of the Ravens young ones?"
"Hai Watarigarasu-sama." They said in unison, nodding their heads.
"Good. Climb onto my back, I shall fly us to the location. Careful of my feathers Hatchlings." He told them, lowering a giant wing to the ground. The two climbed aboard the Raven and held on tightly as he took off. Watarigarasu's wings flapped silently but forcefully, propelling them through the air at great speed.
"What is this test like Watarigarasu-sama?" Akina asked loudly from the summons neck, trying not to pull out his feathers. Itachi –who was directly behind her- was also curious, so he listened intently.
"You may just call me Watarigarasu, if you pass you are not my servant. Some claim to become the summons' master, but I warn you now that partnership is the better option, as many 'masters' have been killed because their summons do not assist them out of contempt." The bird told them. They both nodded, disrespecting such a powerful species was foolish. Watarigarasu continued. "The test will take place in what your village calls the 'Forest of Death'. I have sent some of our lesser Ravens to distribute four scrolls within the forest. They are the scrolls containing the scarce Raven jutsus, given to any summoner proved worthy of them."
Akina's heart leapt with excitement. "What jutsu are they Watarigarasu?"
"The Raven no Shunshin, Sakkaku no kokushibyou (AN: Illusion of the black death), Raven no Kawarimi, and the Raven Bunshin."
Akina resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the anticipation radiating off Itachi at the mention of a new, unknown Genjutsu. She ignored that fact that she herself was painfully eager for the unique Ninjutsu techniques.
"Inside the forest are many dangerous and deadly creatures. You have until sundown to summon me, with all the scrolls, which have faint chakra signatures that you must detect in order to find them. If you cannot, the techniques will be taken back and you will only be able to summon the weakest of Ravens in the future."
"But it's already past noon!" Akina cried in despair.
"Don't worry 'Kina. We'll get them long before the sun sets." Itachi encouraged her with a small smile. The blonde's face became determined and she grinned back at her partner.
"Of course we will!" she enthused. Watarigarasu chuckled, the great vibrations causing Itachi and Akina to grip his dark feathers tighter.
"You certainly are some interesting Hatchlings." He mused, "Are you mates?"
Akina spluttered, turning red. Itachi remained relatively impassive, although his cheeks were a few shades darker than before. Akina quickly regained her voice.
"W-we're only thirteen!"
"Yes, I suppose you are both young by human standards. Nevertheless, in Raven culture the one you choose as a mate you are committed to for life. You seem close to one another, quite the picture of prospect mates…"
…WAS HE TEASING THEM?
"But no chicks yet Hatchlings…I agree, you are both far too young for that just yet. Perhaps in a few years…" the Raven trailed off.
THIS GUY! He was awful! Really, he was reminding her of Itachi. Akina turned her head and glared at the Uchiha.
"What did I do?" he asked in an irritated and ever so slightly embarrassed tone.
Akina ducked her head, using her long hair to hide her flaming face. She muttered indecent things to herself, which were carried away by the wind.
"We're here. Hang on Hatchlings, the landing might be rough!" Watarigarasu called, and began their decent. He skillfully avoided the large trees and landed with an untold grace.
Itachi jumped off the great bird's back, Akina landing next to him a moment later. They tilted their heads in order to see Watarigarasu's face as he spoke.
"Well Hatchlings, good luck!" he crowed, before taking flight again. (AN: Haha the raven crowed…sorry.)
After a moments silence, Akina and Itachi went into the forest, wary of what awaited them.
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"Akina, where are you going?" Itachi called to his partner.
"Over there!" she told him, pointing ahead in determination.
"Why?" the Uchiha inquired.
"Do you have another idea? If I recall, your last great plan lead us to a nest of massive spiders." Akina shot at her partner.
"That was hardly my fault. Besides, we got one scroll didn't we?"
"100 metres from the nest. You're the one who dragged me down there, convinced it was inside." She quipped drily. Itachi grimaced. His Sharingan had seen chakra signatures underground, and assumed them to be from a scroll…but they had turned out to be the ferocious arachnids instead…
Itachi sighed. "So, did you sense something?"
"Yeah, about 250 metres from here I feel a masked signature, similar to the other scroll's."
They sped through the forest, keeping to the ground so they would not be seen by any animals in the trees. Although she was an ANBU, Akina had to admit that those enormous insects were so creepy. An Aburame would be in bug heaven, but a Namikaze? NO, thanks.
"Stop." She whispered, holding up a hand. "We're here."
Itachi activated his Sharingan and scanned the area, quickly spotting an unusually strong chakra high in a tree. It was too strong to be an animal, but not nearly enough to be a person, even a civilian had more than it seemed to.
"7 metres to the right, at the top of the second tallest tree." He informed his partner, slipping automatically into his 'ANBU voice'.
"Got it." She said, rolling her eyes at the dark haired boy's seriousness.
Akina leapt from branch to branch up the tree, keeping her balance steady. Itachi watched with his Sharingan from below. She reached where Itachi said the scroll would be. On the ground, a certain Uchiha's red eyes widened. How had he missed the minute signature next to the scrolls? Definitely belonging to an animal…Itachi prayed that it was a bird or something equally harmless, or Akina would kill him.
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Oh Uchiha, you are so DEAD. Akina mentally growled, keeping her eyes trained on the slumbering panther in front of her. Half of the cat's black body was hanging off the thick branch as it slept. And behind it –of course- was their scroll. It looked just like the other one, being pure black with a golden kanji reading 'Raven' printed on the surface. Akina had half a mind to go down, beat Itachi up and feed him to the predator. But she was a Kunouchi of Konoha, no mere cat would beat her!
The blonde girl had never been forced to capture Tora, obviously.
The blonde crept towards the large feline, careful not to awake it. She stepped over its body quietly, and permitted herself a smile of accomplishment when she reached the scroll. She let it drop to the ground, and Itachi caught it effortlessly. Just as Akina was preparing to jump down, a muted mewl caught her attention. She turned to see the panther stretching as it yawned, opening its yellow eyes, which immediately fixed on Akina.
…Shit.
The cat growled and swung its claws at the blonde girl, showing off its dangerous teeth. Akina dodged and brought up a Kunai to hold off the black animal's claws. She sprung backwards and flipped off the tree, landing beside her tense partner.
"…Oh, 'Tachi?" Akina commented innocently. Itachi cringed inwardly.
"Hai 'Kina?" he asked with hesitance. Akina took a large breath and spoke swiftly.
"You really are fortunate that I am not an Uchiha, or I would be very close to gaining the Mangekyo right now."
Itachi gulped just a little. "L-lets continue shall we?"
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The pair stopped by a steam to cool down. It was three and a half hours into the test, and they were exhausted. Who knew wasps could grow that big? It was ridiculous! Akina scooped up a handful of water in her palms and drank. She looked up and suddenly choked on the liquid, before going into a coughing fit. Apparently Itachi had thought it a good idea to dunk his head in the stream to refresh himself.
"Itachi!" she laughed between coughs, "what the hell!"
"I am more alert now." He stated blandly, without a blink.
"And soaked! Geez, look at you!" she groaned. And what a sight he was. His black bangs stuck to his face and his long ponytail dripped behind him.
"You should try it. It is very invigorating." He informed her, paying no mind to the torrents of water flowing down his face.
"…Baka." Akina sighed, exasperated.
Itachi tilted his drenched head curiously.
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Akina lifted the next scroll, turning it over in her palms, inspecting it. Something wasn't right…this was too easy.
"AKINA! IT'S A FAKE!" Itachi yelled to his partner, his Sharingan spinning rapidly, zeroed in on the 'scroll'.
Akina quickly threw the 'scroll' she had found away, just in time to see it explode into dark smoke. A Raven, not nearly the size of Watarigarasu, but still bigger than most of the Inuzuka's Nin-dogs, burst from the cloud and swooped at the blonde girl. Itachi's Sharingan quickly noticed the scroll attached around its neck.
Akina ducked and swung her foot out to connect with the dark bird, missing by only an inch. The bird screeched and attempted to stab her with its sharp beak. Akina did a backflip and landed in a defensive stance, just as Itachi appeared in the bird's line of sight, and was quickly targeted as well. Too bad nobody had told the Raven not to look in the Uchiha's eyes. The summons stood became paralysed under Itachi's Genjutsu, halting the attack.
"Akina, I can't hold it for long. Grab the scroll!" he said in an urgent tone.
The girl swiftly reached around the bird's neck and untied the thin rope holding the third scroll. The Raven poofed away, leaving them with the third scroll. Akina was ecstatic.
"I did it 'Tachi!" she smiled widely with pride, squeezing her eyes shut and punching the air in victory.
Itachi gave her a look. "…You didn't do anything. The Genjutsu-"
Akina glared fiercely. After all, you don't spend as much time with an Uchiha as she had –let alone Itachi- without picking up some ferocious glare tactics. Itachi couldn't hold in his minute sweatdrop.
"…Never mind."
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"Itachiiii…I'm sooo hungerrry. How far 'til the last scroll?" Akina whined, gripping her stomach tightly.
"Not far." Itachi replied shortly.
"We only have half an hour left!" the blonde girl said in a panicky voice.
"We would have had longer if you hadn't stopped for ramen 'Kina. Why did you even have some anyway?" the Uchiha reminded her, rubbing the bridge of his nose. She just ate ramen and is already hungry? He wondered in exasperation.
"I always have ramen with me! In a scroll, for emergency situations of course…such as being stranded here." She reasoned. Itachi raised his eyebrow high.
"HEY! Kyuubi burns calories fast! I have to eat heaps!" Akina growled defensively.
"Hn…" Itachi dismissed her explanation.
"Grr, dammit shut up 'Tachi! What would you know?" she complained irritably.
"…"
"…Don't ignore meee!" the blonde pouted. There was only so much boredom she could deal with! Itachi slowed his walking.
"The last scroll is close. Be on alert, all the other scrolls were guarded." He warned her.
"Hai, hai." Akina waved off his words, already pumped up for battle.
Somewhere high up in a tree an average sized Raven observed. Watarigarasu-sama was right, these two were different from the others…perhaps they would be the first to pass the test of the Raven clan?
Itachi froze in his tracks. You have got to be kidding me…Dammit, how had he not picked it up before?
"'Tachi?" Akina asked in confusion.
"We're being watched." He said, glancing in the Raven's general direction.
The Raven's eyes widened and his almost indistinguishable pupil shrunk into a pinpoint. He sensed me? The bird again considered the candidates before him.
The tests of Stealth, Courage and Combat they have passed…although Stealth took a turn for the worst. He recalled, having seen the two battle with the giant spiders they were meant to sneak past. But can they pass this next test?
"There, the signature is coming from those bushes." Itachi pointed with a Kunai.
"Ok, no problem!" Akina enthused, pulling out her own Kunai and walking over cautiously. She lowered the blade to her side.
"Oh, no…'Tachi? Could you come here?" she spoke softly.
"What is it?" he asked. Itachi strode over, peered around Akina and saw the scroll…
…Sitting next to a baby weasel. It was a pure white kit, an albino if the red eyes were any indication. Itachi felt like face palming. Damn Raven…bet he thought he was real funny too. The tiny animal shivered, unprotected from the air. It was so small, small enough to fit in a palm, with room to spare.
Akina 'aww'ed over the kit, and her eyes went all…teary. Itachi stepped backwards.
"He's shivering…" she whimpered. "Itachi he's SO CUTE! Can I keep him pleeease?" she begged.
"We are in the middle of a test Akina. And if you hadn't noticed, we have a bit of a dilemma." Itachi said seriously.
Akina looked at him, silently asking what was wrong .Itachi sighed.
"There is a trap on the scroll. If we remove it from that spot, it will detonate a small paper bomb on the kit's belly. To get the scroll…we must sacrifice the weasel kit." He informed her gravely, showing her the tiny slip of paper sealed onto the kit's underside. They could not take it off without it going off.
"OH HELL NO, NEVER! Nuh uh, not happening." Akina growled, shaking her head furiously. "There must be some way to disable it." She insisted. Itachi sighed again. He was doing that a lot today.
"I'll try. But we don't have much time left, the sun is already setting."
It took almost twenty valuable minutes, but at last Itachi was able to diffuse the trap. He handed the baby creature to his partner, who giggled as it scurried around her hand and curled up, squeaking happily. He had to admit, it was quite endearing.
Itachi gripped the final scroll, bit his finger and rapidly summoned the Raven Boss, just as the sun was disappearing from the horizon. Akina tore her gaze from the albino kit in time to see Watarigarasu step out of the smoke. The weasel kit hissed in fear and climbed up to her shoulder, standing on its hind legs. It didn't even reach her ear.
"I see I was right about you Hatchlings, not one summoner has ever gotten as far as you have. The final test was what destroyed their chances." The great Raven told them, "They believed it to be a test of ruthlessness, to demonstrate how they are willing to make sacrifices for what they want."
Here Watarigarasu paused, eyeing the young ones before him. "But in truth it is a test of Character, and Ingenuity. The explosive was a dud; we would never harm an innocent for no reason…you both pass."
Akina whooped and bounced up and down, grabbing Itachi's hands and trying to make him jump with her. He didn't. The tiny weasel held on for dear life. The giant summons cackled a laugh at their antics.
"You may keep the scrolls. Remember, do not just learn the jutsu, you must study them to the smallest detail if you wish for them to be to full effect. You now are both fully fledged summoners of the Ravens, and we will come to your aid should you call for us."
"Thank you Watarigarasu, we appreciate that very much." Itachi said, bowing low.
"Get up boy, you will never impress your prospect mate by acting so obedient to other males. Geez, what are they teaching Hatchlings these days?" Watarigarasu scolded the Uchiha mockingly.
Itachi straightened up, withholding a violent twitch. Akina's blood had all rushed to her face. She wouldn't have been surprised if it was cooking the poor little kit!
"In any case, farewell for now Hatchlings. The Ravens await your summons." The great bird dipped his head in a bow before dissipating within the fresh clouds.
…
…
"So 'Tachi, now can I keep him?" Akina pleaded, holding her hands in a praying position. Itachi rolled his eyes, deactivating his Sharingan.
"Why are you asking me?"
"I want your opinion." she said honestly.
"My opinion is you shouldn't." Itachi advised.
Akina huffed. "Eh, I was never gonna listen to you anyway. So what should we call the little guy?"
Itachi felt a migraine coming on. "We?"
"Yes 'we' baka-'Tachi." Geez, how many times is he gonna be surprised by that? She wondered. "He is ours now."
"You made this decision for me?" the Uchiha clarified.
"Hai." Akina nodded positively.
Itachi sighed, defeated. She was too attached to separate her from the thing now either way. "…How about Akayuki?"
Akina's eyebrows both shot up. "Bloody Snow? Isn't that a tad morbid?"
The Uchiha shrugged. "He is white and has red eyes. It suits." Akina smiled, her blue eyes sparkling.
"Yeah, you're right…Akayuki it is then!" she confirmed. The now deemed Akayuki let out a trill of excitement and burrowed under Akina's hair, causing her to giggle hysterically again.
"Why must you always get your way?" Itachi muttered, more to himself then Akina. She stuck her tongue out at him childishly.
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Akina was pulled from her thoughts by the sensation of pinprick claws racing around her abdomen wildly. Thank Kami for 'Naruto's baggy jumpsuit. She glanced around the room, and seeing that all eyes were off her, she lifted the collar of the orange and red jumpsuit and hissed at the hyperactive kit.
"Aka-chan! Calm down!" she ordered quietly.
Akina had been forced to bring the young weasel with her everywhere she went, as he was not old enough to be left alone…besides, she enjoyed the company.
She slipped her hand under the hem of the fluorescent outfit's shirt, gently stroking Akayuki to calm him down. She really did love the little white kit…but she still missed her Itachi-weasel more than anything else…
Tonight, she would summon a messenger Raven to deliver a letter to him.
She wondered how life as a Missing-nin was for him so far.
I could have written a few chapters on the Raven test, but I would rather get on with the story…you get the general idea, hopefully. And Watarigarasu was teasing! It surprised me too. Poor Akina, but at least she still has one weasel!
-TITM
-/_\-
(IT'S 'TACHI EVERBODY!)
*Growls* "But he's mine!"