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: This chapter is actually pretty long compared to most of those I've posted. I'm really happy with how it turned out. You could say that this is a major turning point in Itachi and Kimi's tale. Why? You'll see. Due to the vagueness of Itachi's childhood in the anime/manga, I'm enjoying taking creative liberties in explaining things that are unexplained. One of the major "unexplained" things will come into play much later, but here you see the beginning seed of Itachi's relationship with Shisui. That's all I'll say for now. You'll have to read to find out more. Anyway, here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it!

XI

Itachi threw caution and secrecy out the window, carrying Kimi to the Uchiha stronghold instead of back to Tadao's farm. The sooner her ankle was healed the better, he told himself, but he could not help but wonder if there were other reasons behind him taking care of her personally. Maybe by introducing her to his family, he was seeking his parents' approval of her. With that, maybe he could see her more often in public instead of keeping her existence a secret from everyone.

Was that his real motive, though? He could only wonder, not really knowing the answer himself.

Thankfully, nobody occupied the main street of the Uchiha Clan complex, allowing Itachi to carry Kimi unnoticed into the place.

Kimi looked around in wonder. "Is this where you live?"

Itachi nodded. "This complex houses our entire clan," he answered softly.

"Why do you have a whole separate place in the village?" she asked in return. "Is your clan really important or something?"

He shrugged beneath her arms. "I guess. That's just the way it's always been."

Well, not always. Itachi though softly. There was a time when the clan was not segregated from the rest of the village, but that was before his time. He suspected that there was something else going on behind the scenes, but he was not sure exactly what. Father will tell me when he thinks I'm ready; I'm sure of it.

Itachi turned up the small walkway to his house. "Well, here we are."

He set her down in the entryway to remove his shoes. Kimi did the same, rubbing her ankle tenderly. Itachi bit his lower lip as he helped Kimi to her feet. It would probably be best not to startle his mother with the girl.

"Mother, I'm home!" he called, supporting Kimi with one arm around her waist and the other holding her arm hooked around his neck. He slowly walked her down the hallway toward the kitchen, Kimi half-limping half-hopping beside him. "Can you get a bag of ice for me, please?"

Mikoto turned from what she was doing at the counter. "You're not hurt are you? Oh! Hello. Who might you be?"

"This is Kimi," Itachi explained, helping the girl into a chair and propping her injured leg on a second seat. "She twisted her ankle in a rabbit hole."

Kimi gave a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry to trouble you, ma'am."

"It's no problem dear," Mikoto said with a warm smile as she prepared an ice pack for Kimi's ankle. "I'm glad to see Itachi's made a friend. So, are you training in the Academy?"

The young girl stiffened slightly. "No, ma'am. I –"

"She's the niece of a local farmer," Itachi cut in, taking the ice from his mother and resting it gently on Kimi's leg.

"Oh," Mikoto replied. "I see. I haven't seen you around here before."

Kimi glanced briefly at Itachi before smiling at his mother. "I just got here recently. My parents are having a hard time back home, so I'm staying with my aunt and uncle until things clear up."

"That's very kind of them."

Kimi was saved from any further questioning by Itachi's little brother, Sasuke. He stole Kimi's attention away from anything else, forcing Mikoto to resume cooking dinner. Kimi was hard-pressed to keep up with the toddler's chatter, but she seemed perfectly at ease with the young boy.

Itachi watched her from across the table as she entertained the child, showing genuine interest in what Sasuke had to say. She even pulled out here flute – which had miraculously remained unbroken in her hip pouch after both falls – to show the boy. After many minutes of begging from Sasuke, Kimi played a simple little lullaby for him, the notes flowing more confidently from the instrument than the first time Itachi had heard her play.

Itachi looked up and out the window after her song came to an end. The sun was beginning to set. He rose to his feet and said, "I should get you home. How's the ankle?"

Kimi lifted the bag of mostly-melted ice off of her ankle, flexing her foot. "A lot better, thank you." She started to stand up, but Mikoto put her hand on the girl's shoulder, keeping her in place.

"You're not going anywhere, young lady."

Kimi looked up at her, puzzled. "But –"

Mikoto turned to Itachi. "Set the table for me, please, Itachi. Make sure you add a place for Kimi."

Blushing, Kimi shook her head. "Oh, no. I couldn't impose upon you like this." She motioned to her foot. "You've already helped me enough."

"I insist," Mikoto stated with a warm smile.

The sound of a door opening came from the front of the house. Mikoto wiped her hands on a towel and walked out of the kitchen to greet her husband. Itachi watched her go before glancing at Kimi. The girl had her hands folded tightly in her lap, eyes staring down at the table.

"You alright?" Itachi asked her.

She nodded and gave a smile that seemed somewhat forced. "Yeah. I'm fine."

Itachi could not say anything else, for his father walked into the room at that moment, eyes appraising Kimi a bit too harshly for Itachi's taste. "Good evening, Father," Itachi stated.

Kimi looked up from her empty plate and Fugaku's expression became instantly open and kind. "Good evening, Itachi. How did training go today?"

"Fine."

Fugaku turned his attention back to their guest. "You must be Kimi. My wife told me you would be joining us for dinner. Welcome. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"T-thank you for having me, sir," Kimi managed with a small smile.

Itachi studied her expression. This was strange; she did not seem to be her normal energetic self anymore. He glanced at his father. Was it Fugaku that was making her nervous? Why would that be, though?

The young Uchiha puzzled over this as the meal progressed, watching Kimi and his father through the corners of his eyes. Kimi returned to her normal smiling self. Only the fact that Itachi had gotten to know her alerted him to the fact that she was extremely nervous – scared even. But why? Was Fugaku that imposing?

No. It's because he's so obviously a shinobi, Itachi thought to himself. He recalled something Kimi had said to him a while back. You're not like most shinobi . . . I feel safe with you. Was that it? Was Kimi afraid of shinobi? She had told Tadao that she did not have any parents. Could they have been killed by ninja?

It made sense. Kimi was afraid of shinobi. But she's not afraid of me. That thought brought a strangely warm feeling into Itachi's chest.

After dinner, Itachi insisted that he should get Kimi home. It was getting dark, after all. Really, though, he wanted to get her away from his father, especially if she was really afraid of shinobi, as Itachi theorized. Yet, as he walked out the door with her, Fugaku called him back.

"Itachi, I need to speak with you for a moment before you go."

Leaving Kimi to wait for him outside with an energetic Sasuke, Itachi walked back inside. His father motioned him into the living room. "Take a seat."

Puzzled slightly, but keeping the emotion from his face, Itachi knelt down on a cushion. Mikoto and Fugaku sat across from him. Fugaku eyed his son carefully before speaking.

"I've been following your progress lately, Itachi, and I'm impressed with how much you've improved over the past few months."

Itachi stared at him blankly in return, not showing any emotion on his face. Where was he going with this? Why did he call him in here now? Could it not wait for later? What was so important about Itachi's progress that his father felt he should delay Kimi getting home?

"As you know, the safety and stability of the clan goes above everything else," Fugaku continued. "In that sense, you're strength and progress in training is of great concern to the clan. You are our future, Itachi. That is why you must never see this Kimi girl again."

Itachi blinked, but instantly clamped down on his emotions before any sort of reaction could reach his face. What?! Angry questions and arguments ran circles in his head, but he kept a blank mask over his face and eyes as he stared across the room at his father.

Fugaku watched Itachi for a moment, searching for any sort of reaction to his words. He scowled when he found none. "We cannot afford to have you distracted at such a crucial point in time. You will be attending the Chuunin exams this fall, and there is no room for error. You cannot slack off even the slightest bit in your training. Do you understand?"

The boy made no reply, merely staring flatly at his father. There were so many things he wanted to say, but he bit his tongue. None were appropriate in the least.

"Very well," Fugaku stated. "You may escort her home tonight, but after that, you are never to see her again. You're dismissed."

Itachi rose to his feet and turned to walk out. He paused in the doorway. Should he tell his father how long he had known Kimi? Should he tell him that his improvement has grown out of a result of knowing the girl? How would his father take such information? Was that even factual?

"Is there something you want to say, Itachi?" Fugaku asked.

Itachi did not even look back at his father. He strode out of the room, slipped on his shoes, and left the house.

Kimi looked up when he emerged, her smile faltering when she saw the blank expression on his face. "Itachi?"

He did not stop walking. "Come," he said as he passed her.

After saying a quick goodbye to Sasuke, Kimi ran to catch up with Itachi. "What's wrong?" she asked, concern layering her voice.

Itachi made no reply, his feet carrying him quickly away from the Uchiha complex and toward Tadao's farm. Kimi fell in silently behind him, making no other attempt at conversation. Itachi's anger faltered for a moment. Had he frightened her? He almost frowned and spoke, but he sensed someone following them, bit back his words, and kept walking.

When they came into sight of Tadao's house, Itachi stopped suddenly. Kimi almost bumped into him, giving a cry of surprise. "A little warning next time?" she asked with a slight laugh.

"There won't be a next time," Itachi stated in return.

"W-what?"

Itachi turned to face her, unable to keep the pain out of his eyes as he elaborated, "We can't see each other ever again. I'm sorry, Kimi, but I can't be distracted from – becoming a shinobi."

Kimi stared into his eyes for several moments before looking down. "I see." She walked past him. "I'll still play for you," she said softly as she drew even with him. "Whether or not you listen is up to you. Goodbye, Itachi."

Itachi did not watch her as she walked to the house, but somehow he knew that she did not look back. He started walking back home himself. A few minutes later, someone joined him on the road – Shisui Uchiha.

Shisui gave him a small smile. "Sorry, Itachi, but I guess it's for the best, right?"

"Father sent you to make sure I told her."

The other Uchiha blinked in surprise at Itachi's dark and emotionless tone. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

Itachi grunted and kept walking, his mind wandering back to what Kimi had said. I'll still play for you. Whether or not you listen is up to you. What did that mean? He scowled inwardly. It was just like her to speak in riddles when it seemed like she had something important to say.

His heart skipped a beat. She had spoken in riddles when she had something important to say. Had she known that Shisui was following and listening? He glanced sideways at his chaperone. No. That could not be it. Kimi was not a ninja, after all.