Welcome back!
As always, skip to the horizontal line to avoid insane ramblings.
I have a few notes I want to make about this chapter: 1) it as very hard to write, because it was nothing but POV from Naruto's children. I think it came out a little too dramatic, and I'm glad to be getting onto the mission. I don't do emotion well... they are hard to write and they make my head hurt. 2) Shikamaru and Ino's child Gakira, who is called Kira by all her friends... well, funny story is that her other nickname (if you take the first part of her name) "Gaki"... it actually means "brat" in Japanese. So, yeah... I did that on purpose (like really. I made certain that I could make that joke, even though no one would really get it unless I explained.) Most of my names actually have an odd meaning to them... like Kitaka for example is a mixture of the kanji for "red" and "fox" because of his red hair from Gaara and the fact that Naruto is, well, foxy. 3) I don't like japanese terms too much. I use honorifics... and that's about it, unless I use it in a name (like Gaki). HOWEVER, I do use "teme" and "dobe" which are nicknames Naruto and Sasuke gave each other as kids (though it started out as insults). "Dobe" is a term that means "dead last" and it was spoken by Sasuke in like episode four or something of the anime. I can't remember where "teme" comes from, but it basically means bastard. I think they are adorable names, and something they would continue calling one another, and many others agree with me... I think? Anyways I wanted to explain that... 4) This chapter sucked to write and probably to read. My apologies. Nough said.
I've also started making some character drawings for Naruto's children. I'm going to be putting up and image with each new chapter, hopefully, so that you can get an idea of what Jira, Fumato, and Kitaka look like. First of our pretty boys is Jira. You can follow this link: (yaoi. y- gallery. net/ view/ 725986/) You of course will have to remove the spaces) Disclaimer: the link I am sending you to is completely clean, but I am not liable if you look at the dirty pics on y-gallery. I also do not encourage it, though I, myself, happen to enjoy them. :)
That's pretty much it for this chapter. I hope you like it, I hope you like the picture, I hope you leave a review.
A special thank you to all my reviewers, especially Kreative and Symphony! Loves to all my readers!
Sarai
Naruto: Kurashio
Chapter 3 – Undertow
Kakashi had forced his team to run endurance exercises all day, and they were exhausted. The first exercise has been a practice in moving swiftly and silently. The three genin had to make it from one side of the road without being seen or making a noise, covering a distance of about thirty yards. It didn't appear to be a difficult challenge; however, they were supposed to be avoiding Kakashi. If they were caught, their teacher would strike them sharply with a well thrown rock.
Fumato was thoroughly bruised from that exercise, as were his teammates, and that had been the first of many. Another exercise had them move through the tree line without dislodging leaves, while yet another made them travel from shadow to shadow without disturbing anything around them or getting hit by sunlight. But the most difficult thing about all three was having to do them without food.
The reason for this, Kakashi claimed, was they could never know when a mission would go longer than expected or when unexpected circumstances would arrive. At any moment a ninja could be placed in a situation where food and water would not be an option… and they had to be able to perform at top capacity even with that knowledge.
While it all made perfect sense, Fumato was certain none of the other ninja teams were being worked as oppressively as his own… especially right before a mission. The young boy didn't complain, but the situation made little sense to him. He suspected it had something to do with the conversation between his fathers and Kakashi before the mission had begun, for Kakashi had returned in a foul mood. They had been on exercises since then.
Fumato hadn't seen a glimpse of his fathers all day, which was torturous by itself—especially when both of his brothers were getting that luxury.
Kakashi couldn't work them all day; they needed to be rested for the morning. So when he announced their exercises were finished, even though the sun had long set, Fumato was still glad to be returning to camp. What few, precious moments were left before sleep, he would get to spend them with his parents… both of them at the same time. He was even excited to have his brothers there as well.
Admittedly, Fumato didn't get along well with his brothers. It wasn't particularly anyone's fault… there just existed some unavoidable issues. The largest was Fumato's father—not Naruto, but Sasuke. It was obvious his older brothers didn't care much for him. Fuma didn't quite understand it, but he knew there were issues. Why they existed, he had not been told, and… really? He didn't care. Fumato loved Sasuke and Naruto dearly; they had both taken excellent care of him, never once depriving him… but neither did they spoil him. Most of all, Fumato knew they loved him.
Some of the other boys in his class had often teased him, asking Fumato about his mother… to which he would always reply: "I don't need one."
It was the truest statement he had ever known.
Of course, Fumato understood that he had a mother. He'd even met his biological mom—he didn't care for her too much. She was nice and all, but he felt they had nothing in common… and she always seemed to be looking at Sasuke with a strange glint in her eyes, and if it wasn't Sasuke—it was Naruto. Fuma found her to be slightly creepy at times, though other people didn't see it.
Other people didn't see most of the things Fumato saw… like the man who was always lurking around the house. Numerous times, Sasuke had told Fumato that they were just dreams or nightmares, but the man outside had been too real to be a dream, and his smile was too nice to be a nightmare. The boy couldn't explain why he saw some things which others did not, but he just knew they were there—and he accepted it without complaint.
Kakashi explained about how his accute observance was a gift, something his teacher called an important skill. Apparently it would become very useful one day. Fumato was rather apathetic towards the whole thing-something he must have inherited from Sasuke, because Naruto was normally excited about these things.
This brought a smile to the young boys face. He liked Naruto when he was excited… the house was always so loud and cheerful. Those times were even better when Kit joined in, when he wasn't acting furious at the world. His blond father and redheaded brother were so full of energy; they could manage to pull the entire house into their games. Those were some of the best days Fumato could remember… if only there were more of them.
Of his two brothers, Kit was the only one who openly did not like him. Fumato blamed the ninja teachers and the village elders for this. Kit was really strong, Fuma had seen this on numerous occasions, many when his brother had not known he was watching; however, no one else in the village seemed to notice Kitaka or his abilities. They noticed Jira, which was sometimes annoying… but they also noticed Fumato, which was also annoying. Thankfully Naruto and Sasuke kept that attention to a minimum.
He liked attention from his parents; he liked it even more when they praised his ninja abilities… but he really didn't like it when old people stuck their noses in, which they did all the time. Fumato couldn't stop the elders from sticking their noses where they didn't belong, but, if he couldn't stop them, then Fumato prefered they bother with him—that way the rest of his family would be spared from the stupid, annoying, longwinded, old elders—he could always smell the age on them, something like stale beer and pain cream mixed, and then rolled together, with baby powder.
They came around each week, at least one of them, checking up on Naruto and his kids. It was as if they were afraid something would change in that short amount of time. The only thing Fuma could see changing was his frustration… and soreness. Each day Kakashi worked them to the point of exhaustion, and left them with barely time to get enough sleep. Fumato needed sleep; he'd gotten that from Naruto. They both loved to sleep. There were so many times Fuma just wanted to curl up into a ball under the blankets and stay that way for the whole day.
Secretly, and he'd never tell his brothers this, Fuma enjoyed the weekends when they would be off with their friends. Jira and Kit were out playing most of those mornings, and Fuma would sneak into Naruto's room while both of his parents were still sleeping. Once there, here would curl up, in-between Naruto and Sasuke, and they'd just stay there for an hour or so… always making sure to be up before the boys came in for lunch. Fuma kept that one piece of happiness to himself, and, thankfully, Kakashi never worked him on the weekends.
"I don't think I've ever seen you smile, Fuma…"
The young boy turned slightly to regard his companion. Ame was looking at him with a big smile, his eyes closed slightly as he enjoyed the night's walk back to camp. Ame was very easy to see in the dark, mostly because he was so pale… but partially because Fumato had always seen very well in the dark.
"I was just… remembering," the boy said quietly.
Ame nodded as if he understood, "Memories are there for a reason… shame to waste them." Having said that, the tall boy walked off ahead, his long, pale hair reflecting what moonlight was able to pierce the trees.
Of his two teammates, Fuma liked Ame the best. The other boy was normally concise with his words and he didn't need to talk in order to feel comfortable… whereas Gemma was loud and complained all the time. Yes... the more he thought about it, the more Fumato decided that Ame was much easier to handle.
Ame was also an excuse to visit Uncle Itachi, who was actually his real uncle and not someone whom he was supposed to call an uncle, like Uncle Kiba. Fumato didn't like pretending; he'd never been good at those games. He felt like things should just be the way they were… just because he called someone an uncle didn't make it true and calling someone mom didn't make her a parent.
Parents were a touchy subject with Fumato, mainly because he loved his parents and got extremely angry when people made fun of his family. Ame had never teased him, unlike Gemma, who had joined the other boys at school and made fun of Naruto and Sasuke. Ame had even shut them up once, which was probably why Gemma never really talked to Ame. Fumato preferred it that way. They could get more work done in silence, and he could go home sooner.
He enjoyed being home. Things were simple there, and they required less work. If only the world would stop and he could spend nothing but time with his family… Fumato thought it would be as close to perfect as he could get. Of course the world refused to stop spinning, which was why people were constantly making him do things that he didn't want to do… like be out here in the woods in the middle of the night.
Thankfully he saw a prick of light break through the tree before him, and he was able to pick up the faint sound of laughter, a laugh he was very accustomed to. Upon hearing the noise, Fumato launched into a run, bursting past Ame as he headed straight for the light ahead. Fuma came barreling out of the woods and tackled his father into a hug.
The small, dark haired boy and the large blond haired man rolled across the ground, much to the surprise of everyone gathered around the fire. As they came to a stop, a pair of shining, blue eyes and a happy grin were directed at Fumato, and he was scooped up into a near-rib-cracking hug, before being unexpectedly tickled. Streams of laughter were forced out of him, and he yelled for his dad to stop... but his protests only came out as more laughter.
Fumato decided to fight back, ticking his father until they both finally collapsed on the ground in fits and giggles. Their laughter was cut short as a shadow came over them, and both Naruto and Fuma looked up to see the dark silhouette of Sasuke standing over them, blocking most of the firelight.
"Hi, dad…" Fuma smiled brightly.
Naruto was grinning wildly, "Look whose back, Sasuke!"
The raven-haired main appeared stern, staring down at them both with a look that couldn't be made out because shadows covered his features. At first Fuma thought his onyx-eyed father might be angry, because he'd made such a spectacle, but Sasuke unexpectedly swooped down and pulled him into a hug, spinning him around once before setting him on his feet.
"Welcome back, Fuma," Sasuke's smile was bright; one of the rare ones, but it was quickly replaced by a look of shock. Naruto, who had been forgotten on the ground, had snuck up behind Sasuke and proceeded to pull him and Fumato back down to his level. The three of them were soon rolling about like children. Fumato found himself giggling with glee, enjoying the moment… and even though Sasuke was shouting protests and trying to push Naruto off… the boy could tell both of his parents were enjoying themselves as well.
[…]
"Ha! You're parents are ridiculous!" Gakira laughed, pointing Jira's attention at the scene Naruto was making.
"You're one to talk, Gaki," Hana responded.
"Hey! I've told you! My name is Kira! Get it right, Squirrely!"
"Brat!" Hana snarled, both Ying and Yang baring their teeth at the offending girl.
"Take that back, you bushy-haired—"
Jira had stopped paying attention at this point, shaking his head and sighing. This was why their teams never interacted. Outside of missions, they were all decent towards one another, in fact Jira had several friends in the other teams, such as Gemma and Sainō—though the latter was annoying even then. However it never failed, when the teams were gathered together in anything remotely competitive, bickering always ensued.
The eldest Uzumaki child reckoned his father helped cause the bickering this time, especially where Hana and Kira were concerned. Personally, he didn't care who was the most accomplished, the most attractive, the fastest… Jira didn't let petty things bother him. Naruto had always taught him that a ninja was only worth as much work as he was willing to put in, and, when it came to hard work, Jira knew he had clocked the most hours.
He was already the oldest genin present, save for Ame, but he didn't let his seniority make him arrogant. No, he still logged almost twice as many hours in training as the others. When his brothers were up and eating breakfast, Jira was practicing his forms; when his friends went to watch movies, Jira was doing exercises; and when his team was done for the day, Jira would take requests off the town notice board. These requests were often things too insignificant to even receive the lowest mission assignment, but Jira managed to make them challenging nonetheless, and it helped the elderly villagers... something he was always glad to do.
Jira felt that being idle was to waste time, therefore he always tried to keep himself busy. Apparently this made him come across as anti-social, something aunt Hinata had pointed out many times. Jira didn't care what other people thought, and he had said as much… to which Hinata had just laughed brightly and told him that he was too much like Neji.
That phrase had been said so much throughout his life, Jira often wondered if he was just a replacement for his missing parent. Perhaps he was the world's way of correcting an imbalance? He'd asked his father about this once, to which Naruto had become very stern.
"You are not a replacement for anyone!" Naruto had scolded, "You are very special. That you get compared to Neji… it only means that he put his best into you, just as I have… but you determine who you are, Jira."
He'd never seen his father so serious, never in any memory Jira could recall. It was almost frightening, except for the amount of love spoken in those words. Naruto didn't see him as a replacement for Neji; he saw Jira as a son, and he always told Jira how proud he was. Naruto made certain to tell all three of the brothers how special they were… and then he normally gave his best effort at embarrassing them. That was how their father operated.
"Jira!" Naruto suddenly cried out, "Help!"
The boy looked up from his thoughts, surveying the scene with pale, calculating eyes. Apparently, Sasuke and Fumato had ganged up on the mischievous instigator and were tickling him mercilessly. Naruto was laughing uncontrollably, and Jira was shocked he'd even been able to call for help.
Jira let out a deep sigh, ran a hand through his long, golden hair, and stood up to go intervene. He stopped just beyond their reach, not taking his chances with the pile of tickling limbs before him, "Ok… you three are making enough noise to be heard back in Konoha."
Of course there was no response, nor did the two attackers relent in their assault on Naruto. Jira watch as his dad wriggled partially out of their clutches and, with a monumental effort, reached a hand out for assistance.
"Help me up!" Naruto cried, his large, blue eyes pleading.
Jira looked at him with a wary eye, but, when his dad broke out into another fit of laughter, the boy gave in and reached down. He took Naruto's hand in his own, pulling up… and was completely caught in the devious trap. In an instant, Jira found himself added to the pile of bodies, and he was none to happy about it… despite the fact that he was now being forced to laugh.
This was unbelievable! He'd actually trusted his dad to play nice, to not trick him, and what did Naruto do? He had pulled Jira right into the middle of it. Well, if he thought that was going to fly… Naruto was going to get the punishment of a lifetime. No wonder Fumato and Sasuke had ganged up on him.
As soon as he gained his bearings, Jira retaliated. It was quickly a game of three-against-one, which Naruto was currently losing… though not without putting up a valiant fight.
"Ah! Hahahaha" Naruto squirmed, "Help! Murder!"
The answer to his cries was a violent tremble. The entire forest seemed to quake, an occurrence which caused all frivolity to cease. Jira quickly stood up, just in time to see Kitaka stalking off into the woods. The small redhead shoved past a returning Kakashi, who had been rather late when compared to his team, but Jira was too concerned to wonder about that.
"Kit?" Naruto's gaze followed his departing son, confusion spreading across his features.
Jira didn't hesitate, bolting after Kit. He didn't know exactly what was going on, but he had his suspicions.
[…]
"I have to go after them!" Naruto was on his feet in an instant. He felt something holding him back. With a quick look down, Sasuke had a hold on his vest, still seated on the ground with Fumato in his lap.
"Sasuke! I have to make sure Kit's okay," Naruto protested.
Sasuke responded with a quick shake of his head, "He'll be fine. He's just angry. Let Jira bring him back."
"He's not fine!" Naruto argued, pulling his vest free of the restraining grip, "If he were... fine... he wouldn't have run off!"
There was suddenly a hand on his shoulder. Naruto craned his neck to see Kakashi standing behind him, "Naruto-kun… he'll be fine. Sasuke is his team leader. If he felt something were wrong, it would be up to him to go after the boy. Remember that this is first-and-foremost a mission."
Naruto didn't say anything; he didn't trust himself not to argue. He just gave Kakashi a stiff nod.
"Good," the silver-haired man smiled beneath his mask, "Now where is this food I smell?" The old man didn't get a response from Naruto, so he decided to go pester the children who were around the fire, which was the most likely source of the delicious smell.
Dropping to the ground with a huff, Naruto just glared off into the distance. He felt a light touch on his elbow and turned to see Fumato. Such serious, charcoal eyes sent a wave of empathy through the blond man. The boy was worried, which mirrored Naruto's feelings, but it was Naruto causing Fumato to worry—just as Kit was worrying him.
The blond chastised himself for getting out of hand and smiled reassuringly at Fuma, "It's okay… I'm fine. I just don't like seeing you boys upset." He brought up a worn hand and brushed Fumato's cheek affectionately, his thumb brushing over the similar whisker marks.
"I know, dad," the boy gave Naruto a hug and then got up to join the other genin, leaving Naruto and Sasuke seated on the ground in silence.
"Neh… Sasuske, sometimes I wonder if our kids are smarter than we are."
The raven responded with a chuckle, "Sometimes that wouldn't be a difficult feat with you."
"Are you calling me stupid, teme!"
"No, dobe… just simple."
"That's just as bad!"
"Not always," Sasuke smirked, wrapping an arm around Naruto's waist. "Definitely not in this case…"
Naruto frowned, trying to understand what Sasuke meant. He finally accepted that it was not an insult and scooted closer, "You really think he's alright?"
"He's angry," Sasuke's voice was concerned, "I can't figured out why, though I have ideas... but... he's young, and he's tough... he'll be fine."
"And Jira's with him," Naruto said, relaxing as he said the words.
"Heh," Sasuke smirked, "That should let you know everything is fine."
Naruto nodded, feeling tired again, "Yeah, he's a good kid. Just like his dad…"
[…]
"Just like his dad…" Sasuke repeated, looking down to see Naruto sleeping again. The blond was breathing in and out in short breaths—it almost sounded like purring. The vibrations of it spread through Sasuke almost as fully as Naruto's intense body heat. With the blond nestled against him, there would be no need for a blanket tonight.
"You have no idea," Sasuke whispered to his sleeping companion.
Naruto was most likely referring to Neji; Sasuke was fairly certain of this. Naruto saw the best of each man in his life. Neji, Gaara, and Sasuke were all perfectly represented in Naruto's three sons, the things he loved. But Sasuke had noticed something else: Naruto never mentioned seeing himself in the children, which was odd... because if the three boys took after anyone—it was Naruto. They had inherited his best traits: kindness, loyalty, perseverance, honesty… even his brashness, though it was thankfully tempered.
The boys took after Naruto, and he refused to mention it… perhaps even acknowledge it. Sasuke suspected it had something to do with Naruto's childhood, where he needed to constantly prove himself—to be acknowledged. No one ever accepted him because of who he was, only after what he did for the village, which explained why Naruto viewed his traits as undesirable.
And now his children were the center of all attention in Konoha. Naruto probably wanted the villagers to remember their talented heritage, not that the three boys were the children of the Nine Tailed Demon fox. Kyuubi haunted Naruto to this day, and even though the fox had been docile for years… the damage had been done—to Naruto and the village. Sasuke knew there was nothing he could do about people and their preconceptions, besides Naruto had dealt with them. He'd become tolerated my everyone and accepted by most.
But as the Uchiha sat there in the night, basking in the soft fire's glow and the warmth of his Naruto, he knew, no matter the time it took, he would make the dobe see his own worth.
[…]
Jira caught up with Kit nearly half a mile away from the campsite.
His brother hadn't been difficult to follow. The angry, younger Uzumaki had left an obvious trail, and Byakugan made it child's play to follow. When they had been younger, Kitaka had always added an extra rule to hide-and-seek: Jira couldn't use his eyes.
A smirk played across the golden-haired boy's lips at this memory. As kids, they didn't know what Jira's talent was, not knowing it to be a powerful ninjutsu. All the young Kitaka knew was it allowed Jira to find him much too easily; thus, Jira's eyes were banned. It was a comical thought now, especially since he could control it… and they never played such games anymore, but Jira had learned to listen very carefully because of that rule.
The sound of crying was evident as Jira drew closer. It wasn't wailing or sobbing, rather short, choked sobs… a sound created when anger and grief mixed together. Kitata was obviously upset, he'd stormed off and nearly scared everyone to death in the process… and whatever had made him angry was obviously an emotionally touchy issue—something Kit had never handled well.
"Hey…" Jira said quietly, "You planning on running all night?"
Kit didn't turn. He brought up a hand to wipe at his face, not wanting Jira to see tears. Kit rarely cried, even as a child; he viewed it as being weak. Because of their close relationship, Jira had seen it happen on a few occasions, but each time Kit would try and hide the tears… wanting to be strong.
Silence hung in the air for several minutes. Kit stood with his back to Jira, who was thankful that the boy had stopped running; at least it was a start. When the redhead showed no signs of communicating, Jira tried again, "Dad's worried… you normally keep your power under control."
Kit turned and glared at him, and Jira had to admit: those emerald eyes were frightening when they were angry. "I know that!" the redhead snarled, "I… just—!" The boy lost his anger, deflating as Jira continued to stare at him, "…I couldn't stay there anymore… watching that."
"Watching what?"
"Them!" Kit shouted again, "Dad playing and laughing with them!"
"It wasn't just Dad playing with them," Jira said calmly, "You could have joined in."
"I'd rather get caught in the rain!" Kit snarled.
For Kit that was a rather crude statement. The boy hated the rain and everything which went with it: thunder and lightning and dark clouds… especially the water. As a child, Kitaka had been petrified at the sound of thunder. The only way he could sleep through it was by crawling in bed with either Jira… or Naruto, something which happened rarely once Sasuke had started seeing their father. So Jira had spent many a night coaxing his little brother to sleep with soft words and a reassuring presence, and, even after he fell asleep, Kitaka would unconsciously reach out to make certain someone was still there.
"It wasn't so bad," Jira offered, giving Kit a wry smile, "I joined in… and it even turned out to be fun. A bit embarrassing… but—"
"How could you just… do that? After he destroyed our family!" Kit yelled, rounding on his brother, "And of course dad would ask you to rescue him! You're always first, Jira! You always do everything right!"
And there it was… the fight they always had. Kit would get angry about Sasuke, and then he'd project it onto something he could handle. "It's not like that…"
"Of course it is! You're his favorite."
"Dad doesn't have favorites!" Jira said, his voice raising an octave. If there was one case where Jira refused to be calm, it was when someone attacked their father… even if it was Kit.
"Sure… and I supposed Sasuke doesn't either?" Kit's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
"I can understand you being upset about him, but leave Dad out of it!" Jira snapped.
"Why? He's all Dad ever thinks about!"
"That's not true, and you know it."
"You're right, Jira," Kit's voice became patronizing, "There's Fumato… the other favorite!"
"It's that what this is about? That Dad was playing with Fuma?"
Kit's answer was nothing but a glare.
"Geeze, Kit! Grow up!"
Kit snapped at those words. Before Jira even saw it coming, and if he'd had Byakugan activated he would have, Kit formed a hand sign and threw it at him. The earth between them literally erupted and formed into a giant, earthen hand. The hand swatted Jira, pinned him to the nearest tree, and began to tighten slowly.
"Grow up? Who do you think you are?" Kit screamed, "You get it so easy! Your life is perfect! You get to see dad every day! The whole village thinks you're some sort of godchild! Everyone says I should be like you... well, what if I don't want to grow up!"
Every time Kit's voice altered in pitch, Jira could feel the strength of the earth around him tighten. Kit was never in control when he got angry. Naruto had once told Jira how Gaara had been the same way. Kit's jutsu was unstable when his emotions got chaotic… like right now. Most of the time, their father would take care of it… he would calm Kit down, or take him off on some trip... otherwise someone could get hurt.
Or killed…
"My life… isn't… perfect," Jira said, grunting against the increasing pressure and trying to stay calm. "And if anyone… is Dad's favorite… it's you."
Kit took a step back, his eyes softening a bit. The moment's pause was enough for Jira to escape, wriggling out of the jutsu's grasp and dropping to the ground.
"You're wrong…"
Jira looked up, breathing heavily, "No… I'm not."
"I'm not his favorite!" Kita shouted again.
"You're the only one he can relate to!" Jira said, his face half grimace-half smile, "How many times do you get angry… or hyper… or you feel like you can't sit still?"
Kit looked at the ground embarrassed, "All the time…"
"And who is it that helps you all the time?"
"Dad…" the redhead said quietly.
"That's right," Jira got to his feet, moving closer to Kit, "You and dad have a bond that neither Fuma nor I, will ever understand. He will always put you first and make sure you're taken care of."
"Yeah," Kit sniffed, rubbing his eyes with both hands, "But it's only because I'm so much trouble… You and Fuma never cause problems. If… if Gaara was here, maybe he'd…"
"He's not here, Kitaka!" Jira snapped, his eyes getting cold—harsh even.
Jira could see Kit reel from the tone in his words, as if they had slapped the younger boy, "He… he would have been… but Sasuke—"
Jira sighed, "You can't keep blaming Sasuke. Yes, it may have been different had he never shown up; I get that, Kit, I really do… but the truth is… Dad left… and Gaara abandoned us. I don't blame him, but it doesn't change what happened."
"But… he wanted me… didn't he?" Kit was crying again, not even trying to hold the tears back.
Jira had his arms around his brother in an instant, hugging him in a nearly suffocating grip, "Of course he did! That's why he still visits!"
"Then… why did he leave?"
"I… I don't know," Jira whispered.
It was the one thing he didn't have an answer to, and if Jira was getting everything off his chest… it was the one question which always plagued him. Jira's other biological father, Neji Hyūga, had died before he was ever born. It wasn't something Naruto talked about, so Jira didn't know any details; however, the person who had always been a father to Jira, especially when Naruto had been in one of his darker moods, was Gaara.
Gaara had been more of a father to Jira than he had been to Kit. What his little brother did not know, was that Gaara's departure had been even more difficult for Jira to handle. It was still a sore subject, and every time Kit brought it up… Jira could feel that old abandonment again. While Kit looked forward to each of Gaara's visits, Jira hated them. Each visit was another, smaller abandonment… one that prevented them from creating a normal family.
Jira was more than willing to give Sasuke a chance, because he could see how happy the Uchiha made their father. It was a chance for a normal existence, and things were getting better every day; yet, once a month, Gaara would come to visit, and everything would go to hell. The signs were subtle, but Jira could see them… and he suspected Fumato could as well.
Sasuke would always take a mission before the visits took place, and he would come back injured, depressed, or sullen. Naruto would become aloof after Gaara's visit ended; he would become distant for several days following... hardly communicating with anyone. Kitaka would, of course, be extraordinarily happy for one or two days after the visit… then he would slip into an anger filled depression for days to weeks at a time, silently brooding but refusing to open up to anyone. All the while, Jira was left to deal with the aftermath… and it happened every... single... month.
Thankfully Fumato had this uncanny ability to see when Naruto was unhappy. Their youngest brother had a strange gift, which allowed him to reach their blond father, no matter how distant he became. It was for this reason—Jira couldn't find it in his heart to hate the boy. In fact, he doubted he could hate Fuma regardless, but Jira understood how the small, darkhaired child could reach their father in a way Kitaka and he could not. They all had their special place in Naruto's heart. Hopefully, one day Kit would be able to see this as well.
Right now… Jira was content to just hold his younger brother. Kit sobbed his anguish, attempting to flush it from his body with heated tears; Jira let a few tears of his own escape, silent and unnoticed. He wasn't proud of it; Jira hated not being strong enough for everyone in his family.
But the tears were liberating, his own private solace. Tears allowed a person to bear their soul; they cleansed the heart. For now, Jira would let the tears do their work, but he knew, somehow, this vicious cycle had to stop.
Otherwise their family would never fully escape the past.
[…]
The next morning saw the sunrise as it danced across the horizon, light flickering and glinting off the skyline of Ishitohi. Kit stood next to Sasuke and his teammates as they surveyed the scene before them. The redhead was tired, having spent most of the night speaking with Jira before they made their way back to camp. None of the other genin had been awake, and Kakashi and Sasuke had said nothing about their late hour upon returning; however, Sasuke had made it clear this morning—Kit was not allowed to participate in the mission if his head was not completely focused.
Kit had only nodded. While he was admittedly tired, he had more than enough sleep to focus on the task at hand.
"The three of you know our objective," Sasuke said, he was paying close attention to the city. "You will split up and locate the target. Once the target is located, you will contact the rest of the team and we will set up a four-point surveillance. Our primary goal is to track the target's patterns, learn any habits; thus, if he ever deviates from them… we'll know whether or not something is out of the ordinary. Understood?"
"Yes, sensei," Kira nodded, her normally wild, brunette hair was pulled back in a ponytail similar to her mother's. She was obviously taking the mission quite seriously.
Sainō was grinning from ear-to-ear, "Ready!"
Kit hadn't taken his eyes away from the skyline of Ishitohi. His focus was already on the mission. Their target was one of three: Naruto's team was following the head of Ishitohi's preeminent industrial corporation, who was suspected of dealing with the local gangs; Kakashi's team was following the leader of the largest of these gangs, which was known to be in possession of many smuggled weapons; and Sasuke's team was following the chief of police.
Kit had realized their target could be the most dangerous of the three, primarily for the reason they were tailing him. Government officials, who had asked Konoha ninjas to accept this mission, suspected that the Police Chief was taking bribes from whoever ran the weapons smuggling operation. Kit had to admit it was suspicious, especially seeing as how the police department of Ishitohi had not uncovered a single lead that would lead them to break the case. If the Chief was indeed taking bribes, then they would essentially be up against the entire police force of a very large, industrial city. They would have to tread carefully.
"Kitaka?" Sasuke's voice caused him to snap back to the present.
"Hn," the redhead nodded to his team leader.
"We'll have to make certain to say out of the target's sight at all times. As chief of police, he'll have had previous dealings involving ninja. If he is involved with the smuggling… that places us in higher risk," Sasuke fixed each of them with a stern look, "Don't do anything foolish."
They all nodded their understanding; although Kit thought Sainō might vibrate out of his skin with excitement.
"Then move out."
That was all the command they needed. In a blur the three genin vanished, making their way towards the eastern border of Ishitohi.
Kit knew where he was supposed to be headed. As it was early, the Chief was most likely leaving his house and headed for work. Kira would be observing the Chief's house, Kit was to take observation of the Police Headquarters along with Sainō, and Sasuke would be observing from multiple vantage points.
The four-point surveillance was a simple system which would help them to locate the target. Once they had the suspect under surveillance, they would watch the chief of police in pairs. Each pair would rotate out in two hour shifts until they had a good idea what the target's patterns would be. It was a fundamental mission, which would most likely take several weeks before they knew if their target had any involvement.
If they were lucky, the police chief would have some clandestine meeting tonight, and they would be able to wrap this mission up quickly. Kit didn't place much faith in luck, and if any of the targets would be suspicious of being followed, the chief of police would definitely make certain to cover his tracks. Kit expected this mission to last about three weeks to a month, which would allow the three teams to fully determine whether or not the targets were involved in the smuggling ring, and if luck decided to show itself, it might take no longer than a week.
There was little point in dwelling upon the length of the mission, Kit decided as he neared the city. It would only do to focus upon each task as they arose… and speaking of arising, the wall of Ishitohi was quickly coming into view. His first task would be to make it into the city without being noticed, their goal of stealth would be rather quickly defeated if Kit had to register his entry.
His mind kicked into overdrive as he approached the wall without slowing. Kit's emerald eyes narrowed, picking out each and every potential entry point and he finally found his best option. There were sparse trees around the outside of the city, but, in an attempt to approve the city's aesthetic appeal, several tall juniper trees were sprouting up in a patch off to the left of the nearest entry gate. Kit turn is gait towards the trees, leaping as he came near. Using his momentum, the redheaded boy bounced between the trunks, using them as a makeshift stepladder until he was higher than the wall. Once high enough, he propelled himself over the wall. The leap carried him well over the distance, and he landed lightly on the wall top, continuing his momentum on to the nearest roof.
With a quick series of leaps he left the wall behind and headed forward on his task, stealthily as possible. By continuing on the rooftops, he stayed out of eyesight from the pedestrian traffic below; for anyone else that may be looking his way, Kit maintained a high speed and kept mostly to the shadows.
It was took him about twenty minutes to locate the Police Headquarters and establish a vantage point, which he wanted to do before checking in. Once his was well hidden, Kit switched on his ear communicator and spoke into the mouthpiece, "This is Kitaka… in position."
"Understood, Kit," Sasuke's voice confirmed the recognition, "Saino is already in place on the northside. We're waiting for confirmation from Kira."
"This is Kira," a voice came in, "I've located the target. Chief Kaiza just left his house and is headed north, most likely to work."
"Alright," Sasuke was calculating, "Kira, follow him and discover what route he takes and make certain to time it. Saino, Kit… be prepared to watch which entrance he uses, where his office is, and how long it takes him to get there. We'll compare it each morning and find out what causes the time difference. I want reports every half-hour."
"Yes," Kit acknowledged and ended his transmit. With a deep sigh, he settled down into a more comfortably position and prepared himself for the first hour of what could be the next month of his life.