Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Naruto characters, unless otherwise stated. In this case, I only own Kimi and her village.
Author's Note: I'm not sure I have much of a note here . . . I'll just say this. I love humor and "aww" moments, so there's going to be quite a bit in this fic. I hope you enjoy!
III
Itachi hardly noticed Kimi's weight on his back as he trotted down the dirt road that led to Konoha. She was being careful not to strangle him, loosely draping her arms around his shoulders to help stabilize herself. If it had not been for the fact that Itachi was acutely aware of her cool cheek against his neck, he might have forgotten that she was there.
In fact, the young shinobi was so lost in his own analysis of Kimi's earlier actions and reactions that when she suddenly gasped, he was startled to a halt.
"What is it?" he asked urgently, eyes flying to the shadowed trees as he mentally chided himself for carelessly losing himself in his thoughts. "What's wrong?" He suddenly thought of her ankle; had he jostled it somehow?
"It's huge!" Kimi exclaimed, her voice layered with pure awe.
Puzzled, Itachi followed her upturned gaze to the tops of the trees. Indeed, over the canopy, the very top of the wall that surrounded Konoha could be seen. Itachi chuckled and continued walking. "You're right. It is. The wall circles all of Konoha. I'll spare you all the minor details, but in essence, you're right. It's huge."
Saying this, Itachi finished the final curve in the road. From over his shoulder, Kimi gave a long sigh, eyes wide. The wall, and the arched main entrance to the village, was in full view now.
"Wow," Kimi breathed. She then giggled lightly. "I don't envy anyone who might try to invade this place. They wouldn't stand a chance."
Itachi did not reply, face falling flat instead. They were within sight of the wall sentries. Though he knew for certain that others were hidden at various vantage points, Itachi easily spotted the pair of chunin seated within a small hut just inside the gate. Considering his reputation as being a distant genin – not interested in being "involved" with anyone – Itachi did not want to appear too friendly toward Kimi while under the eyes of fellow Konoha-nin.
Kimi dropped her head back onto Itachi's shoulder, her eyes slipping closed. Itachi almost faltered for a moment, but managed to continue on smoothly. He focused on the girl he carried, careful not to allow this intense focus to reach his facial features. He could feel Kimi's heartbeat and breathing slow against his back. Had she fallen asleep?
As he resisted the urge to turn his head and check on her – and before he failed to do so – one of the seated men called out to him. "Back so soon, Itachi? I figured you'd be out all day."
Itachi inclined his head to the shinobi, not halting in his smooth gait. He knew they would ask him about Kimi; it was protocol to do so with any unfamiliar entries – and even some of the familiar ones as well. Still, he silently willed the two to let him continue and not stop him for questioning.
He was not so lucky, for the second man – adjusting his sunglasses – asked, "What do you have there, Itachi?"
"Twisted ankle," Itachi replied without hesitation. "She can't walk on it, so I'm taking her to get some ice." He paused in the middle of the road, just past the stand and gazed at the man, an almost challenging glint in his eye.
The second man merely pursed his lips, saying nothing. The first, however, nodded with a small smile, speaking around the glowing cigarette he held between his teeth. "That's very nice of you, Itachi. Smart, too, to not let her walk on it. That could cause a lot more problems than a twisted ankle itself is worth." He scribbled something on his notepad and waved the young shinobi and his ward on. "You both have a nice day."
Itachi nodded to the men and continued on without another word. As he did so, another young man – a few years older than himself and yet a fellow genin – jogged up with a slip of paper in his hand. "Hey, Itachi," the young man said as he passed.
"Iruka," Itachi responded flatly.
Iruka stepped up to the stand and handed the folded paper to the man with the sunglasses. "Lord Hokage sent me to give this to you. It's a new page for your bingo books. Just came in today."
The man unfolded the paper, eyes scanning the information written there. He nodded and ducked down to fetch a small black book from under the stand, handing the paper to his companion. After reading it himself, the first man ran a hand across the stubble of his beard, removing his cigarette and breathing out a puff of smoke.
"Another rouge ninja, eh? They're becoming more and more frequent now-a-days, especially after that uprising in the Land of Waves. I hope this doesn't turn out to be some sort of epidemic." He chuckled to himself, shaking his head slightly.
By this time, Itachi had reached the line of one of the strips of trees that stretched through parts of the village. As he stepped into the cool shadows, Kimi spoke near his right ear.
"Rogue ninja?"
Since they were out of sight, Itachi allowed himself to smirk. "Alive, are we?"
Kimi snorted in his ear reaching up with one hand to flick his nose. When she missed – Itachi had tilted his head out of the way at the last minute – she rested her head back on his shoulder. "I didn't miss anything."
"I thought you were asleep."
"Do you think they did too?"
Itachi scowled slightly. "Is there a reason they'd need to?"
She lifted her head again. "Well, it was easier on you; wasn't it? If they thought I was awake, they would have probably detained you longer to question me, too."
"And that's a bad thing?"
"My ankle isn't getting any better."
Itachi grunted in return. To his surprise, Kimi twisted her head to plant a light kiss behind his ear. "Sorry," she said – he could hear the smile in her voice. "Did I make you mad?" He said nothing, and after a moment, Kimi took a breath and continued. "So, what was all that about rogue ninja?"
Deciding to forgive her for the moment – but not forget the event – Itachi shrugged on shoulder – with some difficulty since Kimi was leaning on it now. "There are some shinobi that betray their village for some reason or another. Driven by power or something of the like, they betray and even kill their fellow shinobi. Some simply leave the village and are branded deserters for the act, leaving the village in a time of need. Thus, the general term for them is rogue ninja."
"Driven by power," Kimi repeated softly.
"Right," Itachi continued. "When they leave or are banished from their respective villages, they mark out the symbols on their headbands. That's the easiest way to recognize one. There's a deep gouge across the center of their forehead protectors."
Kimi chewed on her lower lip for a moment. "So what exactly does one have to do to be branded a rogue ninja?"
"Betrayal – of course – mass murder, mutiny; the list goes on, really." Itachi paused. "Why are you so interested?"
"There's just so much about the life of a shinobi," Kimi explained. "The more I learn . . ."
Itachi nodded, understanding the finish of that sentence through the bleak tone of her voice without her needing to do so aloud. "Yeah. I can see why you don't want to be a shinobi. It's complicated – and rough."
"Then why do you try so hard to be one?"
This question threw Itachi for a moment, and he paused between a pair of thick trees. He had never really thought about the answer to that question before. "Well," he replied slowly, "it's
a part of who I am, I guess. It's always come naturally to me, as natural as breathing. I don't really have to try."
He carefully set her down on a moss-covered rock. "Wait here. I'll run on ahead and get some ice for your ankle. It'll be faster. Don't worry; I'll be right back."
Kimi cocked her head to one side, blinking up at him with those deep twilight eyes. "If there was a road, why did we come this way? Wouldn't it have been easier to take a smoother route?"
Itachi shrugged, walking backwards so she could see the smirk on his face as he answered. "Too many eyes – too many questions."
Kimi's soft laughter followed him as he ran toward the Uchiha Clan stronghold.