Authors Note: You may want to listen to Somewhere by Within Temptation for the first part of this chapter. That's what I was listening to when I wrote it, so it was the inspiration.
"Are you sure you're okay, nee-chan?" The blonde shinobi asked for the umpteenth time since setting up camp for the night. The older girl smiled at him and nodded slightly. She had recently been bandaged up, thanks to Itachi and the two Uchihas had gone to get supplies from a nearby village.
"I'm fine, Naruto-kun. You don't have to worry about little old me. Hey, listen. How about I teach you some more wind techniques along the way home? How about that?" Naruto's eyes flashed in excitement, then he seemed to calm down and look indifferent about the whole thing.
"Only if you feel up to it, nee-chan. I don't mind waiting until you get better." He replied, trying to sound cool. Eneko smiled.
"Why, that's very kind of you, Naruto-kun. But I think I'll be up to a little training tomorrow." She praised him. Naruto smiled for a minute before sitting in silence. After a few minutes, he went and sat by Eneko.
"It's too quiet without Sasuke and Itachi around. The Uchihas are obviously the trouble makers…" He muttered. She looked over at him.
"If you think it's too quiet, I could always sing for you, Naru-kun. Would you like that?" Naruto's eyes widened and he nodded frantically. The two boys had learned along the way that Eneko had an amazing singing voice and when morale was low with the group, one of her songs would cheer them right back up again. Naruto loved listening to Eneko sing. "Any requests, Naruto-kun?" Naruto put his finger to his chin in thought. Suddenly, he smiled shyly.
"Could you sing that song you used to sing about finding someone? I really liked that one and you haven't sang it in a really long time." Eneko thought back and smiled, recognizing the song Naruto was talking about. She began to sing. Naruto watched her, smiling. He liked the way that the firelight danced across Eneko's eyes as she sang. The song slowly got to him and he felt like going to sleep, a peaceful feeling creeping across his system. He lay down with his head on Eneko's lap. She smiled, knowing the Kyuubi was being soothed within the boy and began playing with his hair.
Naruto smiled, hoping that one day he would find a girl like Eneko to take care of. The woman he thought of as an older sister was like role model to him. He had learned so much from her in the past seven months. They had secretly worked on helping with the Kyuubi's chakra, but Eneko couldn't do much about the seal. Jiraiya had already taken off the seal. He sighed contently, hearing the Kyuubi almost purr within him. Kyuubi obviously liked Eneko's music too. Slowly, but surely, he fell asleep peacefully.
Eneko smiled softly, still playing with his hair. She enjoyed Naruto's company. Sure, he could be a bit obnoxious at times, but he made you want to love him once you got to know him. Deep in her heart, she knew he would become hokage. He had the spirit of his father before him. He always wanted to protect those around him. Even if he did have the Kyuubi inside of him, she found it hard to get mad at the young boy. She would have a talk with Jiraiya about training him, sending him with a few scrolls of wind-type jutsu he could learn in his free time. Sasuke could train with her and Itachi. She suddenly leaned down to whisper in the fox-boy's ear.
"Naruto-kun. I know you're going to become the Hokage, and I will be there for you every step of the way. I will promise you that." Naruto smiled in his sleep. She went back to simply playing with his hair and watched the flickering fire in front of her. She tilted her head back and stared at the stars. It was these sorts of nights that made her feel peaceful inside. She sighed, at ease with her surroundings, and closed her eyes, enjoying the night.
Itachi and Sasuke slowly came back, noticing it was all quiet. They had heard Eneko's singing from the village and everyone there had thought it had been some sort of wind spirit, watching over them, soothing them all. With this peaceful atmosphere it was easy for them to get supplies and news of the other village's goings-on. Konoha was apparently in an all-out attempt to find another Hokage. The third had died defending them all from Orochimaru when the sound and sand attacked together. Surprisingly, Gaara had tried to protect the leaf as well, learning from his battle, knowing it was Naruto, Sasuke, and Eneko that had saved him from the demon inside himself. That threw some of the sand off. It was easy for Konoha to get most of the sound villagers away. Apparently, Jiraiya had gone to find Tsunade and was in their general direction. Itachi told Sasuke to make sure that they asked Eneko if they could help, knowing the third was dead was a hard blow for both of them. As they approached the clearing, the two Uchihas both saw they cute scene in front of them.
"Ene-chan? Is everything okay?" Itachi's voice startled Eneko out of her thoughts. The brown-haired kunoichi smiled over at him and nodded, motioning to the sleeping boy below her. Sasuke's face contorted into a mix between jealously and embarrassment.
"Is it all right if that dobe sleeps on you like that? I mean it looks as if – " Eneko gave him a stern look and he stopped.
"Sasuke. Don't call Naruto a dobe. And it is if I let him. I sang him to sleep so that he could go to sleep peacefully. I'm not letting him have any nightmares." She vowed. Sasuke looked at his feet.
"Sorry, nee-chan. I didn't mean anything by it…" He muttered, ashamed at himself for getting scolded. She smiled and motioned for him to come over to her. He slowly stepped toward her and when he got close enough she pulled him down toward her and hugged him. She then kissed his forehead.
"It's all right, Sasuke-kun. I know you didn't mean it. But now you need to sleep okay? My Clan was divided into two branches you know? Fire users and wind users. I'll teach you some of the fire techniques tomorrow, how about that?" Sasuke nodded, grateful. He kissed her on the cheek and heaved Naruto onto his shoulder.
"Good night, Eneko-nee-chan." He smiled. She smiled softly back at him before motioning for him to go along on his way.
"Good night, Sasuke-kun. Sweet dreams." Sasuke smiled and nodded. He started walking towards where the boy's sleeping bags were.
"C'mon Naruto, time to leave nee-chan alone! Jeeze, and try to cut down on the ramen intake." Eneko chuckled quietly to herself. They were so much like brothers it was uncanny. Itachi smiled, his mood lightened by her being in a good mood. She leaned her head on his shoulder, smiling.
"You're good with the boys, you know." He told her softly. She sighed quietly and nodded.
"It's easy to care for someone when they are outcasts of the village, Tachi-kun." He blinked in confusion and looked at her.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He asked. Eneko's green eyes reflected the dying embers of the fire.
"Naruto is the son of Minato Namikaze, the fourth, which means that he's the carrier of the nine-tailed, Kyuubi. He's a real outcast of the village but he tries harder than anyone else I've ever met. Sasuke doesn't have very many true friends. Sure, he's got a whole group of fan girls and I think he said they formed the 'Sasuke is mine' fan club, but none of them are his true friends. Most of them are just awed that he's the younger of two Uchihas. But he's always been determined to get stronger so that he could come with me to find you. And me? Only a handful of people know I'm even still alive." The log in the fire crackled, breaking in half. Itachi looked at Eneko's expression, but it was just thoughtful. He pulled her closer to him, laying his head on top of hers.
"I see what you mean, Ene-chan, but that's all going to change when we get back to Konoha. You and I will finally get married and Sasuke and Naruto will both find their own loves and new friends to hang around with. I'll make sure of that. And maybe in a few years, Sasuke won't be the youngest of the Uchiha Clan." He murmured. Eneko's face turned a light tint of pink and she leaned her head up to look at him, wondering if he was kidding or not. He merely smiled and kissed her gently. Her eyes filled with tears and she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. His eyes widened, thinking that he had done something wrong when he heard her crying softly.
"I've missed you…" She finally whispered. His eyes softened. "I've missed you so much, Itachi…I promised you I would come back to you? Didn't you believe me? I promised…" She cried softly, tears streaming down her face. He turned toward her and hugged her tightly so that her face was buried in his strong chest. His strong, but gentle arms encircled her and hugged her gently.
"You have no idea how much you mean to me, Eneko. When I heard you had died, even if it wasn't true, even if I knew you would find me again someday, my heart broke. My rainbow had seemingly disappeared. I was heartbroken, Eneko-chan. I believed you would come back, but then I blacked out and when I woke up, my parents were…dead…" He sighed softly, feeling her crying dying down. "I never want to let you go again, Eneko."
"Can you promise me something Tachi-kun? Please?" She begged. He nodded, a small smile creeping on to his face.
"Anything, Eneko-chan. I'll promise you anything in the world." He promised. She smiled slightly and hugged him again.
"Can you promise me that…we won't be separated again? Like we have been? I don't know if my heart could take not being able to see you anymore…" She whispered. Itachi's eyes softened again and he hugged her.
"I promise you this, Eneko. I promise you that we will always know the other one is watching over them, no matter where they are." Eneko smiled and now happier tears were falling from her eyes. She looked tired. "Sleep now, niji-chan." He told her, using a new pet name.
"Maybe I actually will sleep tonight…" She whispered before drifting off into the land of dreams for the first time since she had come home to find Itachi gone. Itachi pet her hair gently, drifting off into his own dreams.
"Sweet dreams, Eneko…I'll always love you…"