Damn, I'm on a pretty good role. Two chapters in two days, not bad, just ignored HW. XD So let me know what you think and like always I really do hope ya'll enjoy it.
The morning sun was just starting to rise over the tree tops as Meng Ka picked at the berries aimlessly as her mind wonder to Kakashi. He had been on missions consistently for the past few weeks and she hadn't even been able to see him one time between the missions. Uncle Shi usually slipped in late at night and then was called back to the Hokage's office and sent on yet another mission. Biting her lip, Meng Ka looked down at her baskets that were over flowing with berries. With a stretch, she got and yawned slightly, having not been getting much sleep because of her nightmares. Ever since her first nightmare, strange things have always been happening and Meng Ka didn't know how to handle them. Just the other day she had made a pot of jam explode by accident as her mind had wondered off back to her nightmares.
Sighing, Meng Ka rubbed her temples, annoyed that she was losing control over her own chakra so easily. It wasn't like her, she always had a tight control over her chakra but now it was like there was a leak and she couldn't find it. Meng Ka shook her head and bent down to pick up a basket when she felt another presence nearby and she stood up slowly, looking through the trees for the source. "You might as well just come out since I know you're here."
Kabuto walked out from behind a tree with a big smile on his face, "Hello Meng Ka. I'm glad to see that you are well." He pushed his glasses up slightly as he looked over at her and her berries.
"What do you want Kabuto?" Meng Ka asked as she crossed her arms and frowned, "It mustn't be that important since you sent your shadow clone and didn't come yourself."
Kabuto raised an eyebrow at her and chuckled, "I really would love to know how you can tell the difference. It is rather fascinating."
Rolling her eyes, Meng Ka glared at Kabuto, "If you're just here to make small talk I'd suggest you go ahead and poof into thin air cause I'm not interested."
Kabuto clicked his tongue, "Now Meng Ka, didn't Kakashi ever teach you to respect your elders. That temper of yours has been getting the best of you as of late I hear."
"Well in that case, you should watch what you say or I just might lose my temper." Meng Ka smiled mockingly at him.
His smile only widens, "I would love to see how strong you have become, Meng Ka. Orochimaru has been searching for you for years. What luck that he should stumble upon you here in his old village."
"More like a pain." Meng Ka mumbled.
Kabuto chuckled and looked around, "Where is your companion. I thought the two of you were inseparable."
Raising an eyebrow, Meng Ka smirked, "We may be separated physically but mentally we never are."
Kabuto looked back at her, "Well, I just wanted to let you know that Sasuka is taking to our treatment with great promise. Soon we'll have him come for you Meng Ka, after all, you can't kill a friend."
Meng Ka pressed her lips together, "Why come tell me this, Kabuto? I don't have time for your mind games."
Kabuto smiled and put his hands on his hips, "Who said I was playing mind tricks. After all, Orochimaru knows you'll come to him just as Sasuke did. You'll just be a little harder to convince."
"Well, seeing as that all I am to you is a lab rat waiting to have its secrets discovered. Yeah, I'd say it'll take a lot of convincing." Meng Ka as Tinktink let out a cry from up above them.
Looking up at the sky, Kabuto watched as Tinktink landed on Meng Ka's shoulder, "Hmm, that may be so but we only want to bring out your power and make you more powerful then you'd ever dreamed. After all with power you could bring honor back to your village and can start it back up once again."
Meng Ka balled her hands into fist as she glared over at Kabuto, "My village never lost their honor, even in death."
Kabuto then frowned, "That's what you think, I see the third Hokage didn't tell you much about where you came from." He then pulled out a small book from his shirt and tossed it to her. It landed at her feet with a soft thud as it kicked up dirt. "Here, how about you read the facts before you make assumptions." He then smiled slightly, "I'll see you again, Meng Ka." Then he folded his hands and suddenly disappeared, leaving only the book behind.
Looking down at the book that was at her feet, Meng Ka bent down and picked it up. The cover was made out of hard leather that was a light brown. Thick string bound the book together and the title was written in a strange language with a feather ablaze burned into the leather was underneath the title. Tinktink shifted on her shoulder and chirped softly. Shaking her head, Meng Ka lifted the baskets with her chakra and headed back to her home.
Once inside, she tossed the book on the couch and went to work on her jam. Making jam had always relaxed her and today was no different as she forgot about everything and concentrated on keeping the jam from burning. Today she even decided to make a pie and placed it on the window to cool down, hoping that maybe Kakashi would come home today. As she was ready to leave there was a knock on her door and without waiting for her to answer, Izumo, Kotetsu and Hayama walked in.
"Meng Ka!" Izumo and Kotetsu yelled as he rushed at Meng Ka and pulled her into a hug.
"We haven't seen you in forever!" Kotetsu said as they let her go.
"Why have you been such a hermit lately?" Izumo asked, ruffling her hair.
"I haven't been a hermit." Meng Ka said, "Have I?" She then asked with a guilty look on her face, it was true, she hadn't seen much of anyone lately.
The two laughed, "Hey, Kotetsu you know there's something he we haven't done in a long time." Izumo said with a smile.
"Oh, yes, you're right she does owe us after all." Kotetsu said smiling back as the two of them looked at Meng Ka. Meng Ka looked at them confused until they attacked her and started to tickle her. She laughed and wrestled with them as they continued to tickle her but soon it turned into a full blown wrestling match as the three of them laughed and struggled to be the victor.
Hayama then cleared his throat, stopping them just as Meng Ka had Kotetsu in a head lock and Izumo was messing up Meng Ka's hair. "We need to go. The fifth Hokage has asked for you Meng Ka."
Meng Ka frowned, "You can't just come and visit like normal people huh?" She pouted but then smiled and gave Hayama a hug who just stood there a bit awkward, never having been the feeling type. "It's still good to see you though, Hayama." Meng Ka then turned to the other two, "How long do you think we can get away with making her wait?" She asked with a devilish smile on her face.
Izumo laughed while Kotetsu shook his head and the two of them stood up. "Come on, kid. The faster you see her, the faster you can hang out with us at the gate." Izumo said as they walked her out of the house.
"Why would she send so many high ranked ninja though?" Meng Ka asked curiously as she walked between Izumo and Kotetsu, Hayama walking in front of them.
Kotetsu shrugged, "Maybe she thought you'd be difficult since you two aren't on best terms after all."
Meng Ka blushed slightly from embarrassment, "Everyone knows about that huh?"
Izumo smiled and placed his hand on her shoulder, "Some of the villagers are pretty upset with the way you acted towards our Hokage but if I were in your place I would have done the same thing on that mission. After all, Sasuke left on his own and it wasn't worth risking the lives of so many young ninjas who make up this village's future."
Kotetsu nodded in agreement, "I might not have yelled at the Hokage like you did but I would have been more concerned with keeping the young ninja's safe than run after someone who left the village on their own. The Hokage could have waited for some of us to return before sending out people to go after him."
"Perhaps she thought it best to go after him while we still knew where he was." Hayama spoke up from in front of them; he then stopped and turned to look at Meng Ka. "I don't agree with Izumo or Kotetsu since it was a mission that should have been easy for you to carry out." He then kneeled in front of her to become eye level, "But, she shouldn't have put you in that situation in the first place. I am glad that she took your rank from you; you are too young to have to carry such a high rank on your shoulders. You two might not see eye to eye but just give it time, you'll understand her actions one day." He smiled slightly at her and then stood up and continued walking. Meng Ka took hold of Kotetsu's and Izumo's hands as they followed after him, swinging Meng Ka between them.
"What do you mean by monitoring Akamaru?" Meng Ka asked as she stood in the Hokage's office, Tsunade and Shizune across from her in the room.
"You know about the incident where someone from outside infiltrated the village, right?" Tsunade asked as the two of them glared at each other.
"Yeah, Kiba told me all about it." She crossed her arms, "But Kiba said that they resolved the incident without any trouble."
"That's right." Tsunade nodded her head, "To be exact, that's wrong."
"What?" Meng Ka asked a confused look coming over her features.
"Before Kiba and the others had the intruder in custody, he swallowed a pellet and killed himself." Tsunade said calmly. "In the investigated that followed it was revealed that the enemy was a Shinobi from another land that uses a unique tactic. Perhaps he took his own life in order to seal that power."
"What is that unique power?" Meng Ka asked, getting a bit worried now.
"Something you would call a biological weapon." Tsunade said as she sat back in her chair. "It's a particular pathogen, a terrible weapon where someone infected will gradually lose oneself and have their body taken over."
"But then what does this have to do with Akamaru?" Meng Ka asked, "You don't think he got infected?"
Tsunade nodded her head and Meng Ka bit her lip, "There's possibility he's infected."
"Does Kiba know? Are you working on a cure?" Meng Ka asked quickly, becoming concerned for her friends.
Tsunade sighed, "No and you are not to tell Kiba about it either. As for a cure, we are trying and hope to come up with one before it's too late if Akamaru is in fact infected."
Biting down on her tongue, Meng Ka turned and headed for the door, "Please don't tell Kiba, it will only make things harder in the end Meng Ka. I asked you to do this because I know the two of you are close friends and you would be more help than anyone else."
With a nod, Meng Ka left the room and walked outside and Tinktink landed softly on her shoulder. Now all she had to do was find Kiba and she knew where he would be. Walking into up the dirt path she spotted the four of them training, well Shino and Hinata were training while Kiba sat in beside Akamaru who had a leg wrapped up. Smiling Meng Ka walked up to them and waved as Hinata waved back. "You aren't training?" Meng Ka asked as she stood next to Hinata in front of the two of them, Tinktink landed on the ground beside Akamaru.
"No, Akamaru still isn't feeling well enough to train so I'm just going to skip." He said a bit distracted as he got up and walked away, not even saying hello or goodbye to them. Akamaru whimpered and followed after him. Suddenly though Shino's bugs started to attack Akamaru who barked and fell to the ground. "Shino! What are you doing?" Kiba asked both angry and worriedly as he bent over Akamaru and started to brush the bugs off, "Call them off!"
Shino ran over to them and quickly folded his hands and tried to call them back but they were listening. He did it a second time with no luck and so Meng Ka interfered. She quickly sent out a pulse of Chakra towards the bugs sending them into a daze as she lifted them off of Akamaru with the air and back to Shino.
"I'm sorry; they weren't listening to me for some reason." Shino said as he looked down at Akamaru.
Meng Ka bent over Akamaru and ran her hand over him with her healing chakra checking to make sure he was alright and he was but there was something strange as well, something that was off but Meng Ka couldn't put her finger on it. Biting her lip she didn't say anything as she refused to believe that Akamaru was infected.
"Geez, give me a break." Kiba said annoyed as he picked up Akamaru, "We'll head back early then. See ya." He said as he turned around and walked away.
"I hope Akamaru gets better soon." Hinata said and Meng Ka nodded her agreement. Waving goodbye to them as well, she followed Kiba figuring she'd keep away a little since it seemed like he didn't want much company at the moment.
Akamaru mumbled a bark as Kiba stopped and looked down at him, "What is it?" He asked softly and then looked up in the tree that Meng Ka was standing in.
Meng Ka smiled guilty as she jumped from the tree. "What are you doing Meng Ka?" Kiba asked confused.
"Well…" Meng Ka trailed off as she blushed a little, "I was just worried and you didn't seem like you wanted company so I decided to just follow you." She looked down at her feet as she spoke and Tinktink chirped softly beside her.
A shocked look came over Kiba's face but then he smiled softly, "I didn't mean to come off that way Meng Ka. I just have a lot on my mind." He looked along the path and then back to Meng Ka, "You can walk with us if you want." Smiling Meng Ka walked with them back to the village, once there Kiba excused himself and they parted ways.
Meng Ka reported back to Tsunade and after hearing that they were no closer to a cure she stormed out of the hokage's office and then went to go find Kiba again, the sun was setting when she walked up to his home and saw Akamaru sleeping outside in the sunlight. Smiling softly she watched him sleep peacefully. She walked up to him quietly and ran her fingers through his fur, there just had to be a cure, Akamaru was still so young. Akamaru woke up a bit dazed as he lifted his head and looked up at her and Tinktink. Meng Ka smiled at him and reached out to pet him but he suddenly growled and jumped at her with a bark. Meng Ka's air barrier blocked him from attacking her and he fell back to the ground with a whimper. Worried, Meng Ka reached out to him, "Akamaru?" She asked as she was about to touch him but he suddenly lifted his head and bit her right on the wrist with a growl.
Meng Ka flinched slightly as his small fangs sank into her skin but she didn't move as she watched Akamaru worried about the way he was behaving. Suddenly Kiba and Hana came running out the door. "Akamaru?!" Kiba yelled as he saw him biting Meng Ka. "It's only Meng Ka. Why are you biting her?" He asked as he walked up to them. "Let her go, Akamaru." He said but Akamaru didn't stop. "Akamaru!" Kiba yelled and this time Akamaru stopped growling and slowly let Meng Ka go and whimpered as he sat on the ground in front of her.
Meng Ka reached out with a soft smile and petted his head, "It's alright Akamaru, glad to have you back." She said softly as Kiba came over and lifted her other hand, inspecting her wrist.
"Are you alright Meng Ka?" He asked as he looked over her wrist.
"I'm fine." Meng Ka smiled up at him as he frowned back. Akamaru suddenly got up and ran away with a whimper and Kiba looked over at Tinktink, "Do you think you can keep him company? Something tells me he doesn't want mine at the moment." Tinktink chirped and flew after Akamaru. Then Kiba looked back at her, "Come on in, we'll take care of your wound."
Meng Ka smiled and followed them in and sat at the table while Hana took care of her wound, which was a very easy heal since Akamaru didn't bit hard enough to cut through any veins. "Why didn't you tell me?" Meng Ka asked after Hana was done wrapping her wrist.
Kiba pressed his lips together and continued to look down at the table with hard eyes, "I didn't want to worry you. It's isn't your responsibility it's mine." He said as he looked slightly up at her, "How did you find out?"
"Tsunade asked me to keep an eye on Akamaru." Meng Ka said truthfully, "But you should have told me Kiba, I could help Hana find a cure. Two minds are better than one after all."
Kiba sighed and shook his head, "Like I told you, I didn't want to worry you. We can handle this, Meng Ka."
"But she can help," Hana said as she came in with tea and sat down three cups, "After all, she was my best student and between the two of us we should have a cure in no time."
Meng Ka smiled and nodded her head, taking the hot cup of tea and sipping. Kiba looked over at Meng Ka and frowned, "Are you sure?"
"Did you seriously just asked that Kiba?" Meng Ka asked as she smiled over at him, "If Tinktink were in Akamaru's position I'd do anything to help her. Don't expect anything less from me when Akamaru is concerned."
Kiba smiled over at her and Hana sipped her tea, "Well, looks like Kiba's going to sleeping on the couch again."
"What?!" Kiba asked as Meng Ka and Hana laughed.
Meng Ka stretched out on the bed as she rolled over, hitting something hard. With a groan she pushed and kicked it off the bed and rolled over, hugging the pillow. Kiba landed on the floor with a soft thud and a groan of his own as he sat up rubbing his head, "Oi Meng Ka! What's the big idea, pushing me off my own bed?" He said irritated and poked her side, making her wiggle and push him away mumbling something.
He frowned and walked out of the room then came back with a bucket of water. Lifting it in the air he let the water fall on top of Meng Ka with a smile on his face. Meng Ka shot up in bed with a small yelp and then glared up at him, "What the hell, Kiba?! I was sleeping!"
"You pushed me out of bed!" Kiba said as he put the bucket down.
Meng Ka pouted and crossed her arms, "I was sleeping, you can't blame me for something I did while sleeping."
"Yes I can." Kiba said smirking and flicked her nose, "I just did."
Meng Ka was about to say something else when suddenly Kiba sniffed at the air and turned his head, a frown forming on his lips. "What is it?" Meng Ka asked as she got out of bed.
Without saying anything Kiba walked out of the room and towards the living room where Akamaru sleeps. Sitting down next to him he sniffed at him again and gently put his paw in his hand. His shoulders slumped forward as his frown deepened and his eyes glazed over as he became lost in thought. Sitting down next to him, Meng Ka ran his fingers through Akamaru's fur as he laid there asleep. Tinktink chirped softly as she flew in the opened window and stood on the table next to Akamaru.
After a while of not saying anything, Hana rushes in. "Kiba, we have trouble."
"I know." Kiba said suddenly as he kept looking down at Akamaru, "I can smell the blood on him."
"So he was the one who attacked the shinobi while training last night…"Hana's voice trailed off as she looked down at Kiba with a said look in her eyes.
Meng Ka suddenly stood up tense as three Anbu Black Ops showed up in the room. One of them held up a piece of paper, "We have orders from the Hokage to take Akamru into custody."
"Over my dead body you are!" Meng Ka said angrily as she moved to get in front of Akamaru but Hana held her back.
"You can't take him!" Kiba said just as angrily if not more and was going to attack them but once again Hana held him down just like she did Meng Ka. Tinktink chirped and flapped her wings softly as she hopped over to Meng Ka on the table, trying to get her to calm down.
Without saying anything else the three of them put Akamaru in the dog cage they brought along and then went away. Once they were out of site, Hana let the two of them go. Meng Ka took in a deep breath before looking over at Kiba who stood there shaking from furry as his eyes remained closed and he didn't dare move. Hana directed Meng Ka back to the room where they had spent all night looking for a cure but having no such luck. They quietly went back to work with even more determination than before.
"Come on Kiba, I know you want to visit Akamaru. We don't have a cure but we at least have something that we hope will delay the effects." Meng Ka said as she came out of the room with a bag of the medicine.
Kiba looked up from the couch and nodded his head as he went and got changed. They walked outside quietly, neither one of them saying anything as they made their way to the vets where Akamaru was taken to be looked after.
"The Medical Corps will figure something out soon." The man at the front desk said as he bid them farewell. "Take care on your way home."
"Right…" Kiba said as he turned and left, Meng Ka waving the guy goodbye and then following after him. Kiba lifted the bag and held it close to him as Akamaru started to whimper.
"I don't like this Kiba. What if more people get hurt?" Meng Ka asked as she looked around and stayed close to Kiba.
"I told you to leave, Meng Ka. I didn't want to get you involved in this." Kiba said as he continued to walk, "You can still leave and tell my sister if you want but that won't change anything."
Meng Ka sighed and shook her head, "No, I told you I would help you and should anything happen I think it best that I tag along to be there to help."
Akamaru growled as he lay on the grown shaking as the infection started to take more control over him and he turned a dark red color. Meng Ka ran her hand over him, trying her best to push the infection back with her chakra but it didn't seem to be helping that much. "He's getting worse, Kiba. I can't do anything else."
Kiba pressed his lips in a tight line as he looked down at Akamaru, "There has to be something!"
Suddenly they heard voices in the forest around them, "Where are they? They should be around here."
Meng Ka and Kiba quickly took off again with Akamaru in Kiba's jacket as they ran through the forest. "I swore to protect him no matter what." Kiba said angrily as they ran. "I swore I'd never let him go through the experience ever again."
Meng Ka didn't have to ask, she knew Kiba was talking about the time that they went after Sasuke and were split up. He had a rough time fighting on his own and both of them had nearly died. Akamaru was hurt very badly and it took them days before they were well enough to leave the hospital. They continued to run throughout the day and by night fall they were able to get away from the search parties. Breathing heavily they crossed a shallow river to throw off their scent. Suddenly Akamaru jumped from Kiba's jacket and began to growl until he was huge, taller than the two of them combinded.
"Akamaru…" Kiba said sadly as he looked up at Akamaru who let out a howl.
Suddenly three wolves jumped inbetween them and Akamaru. Looking back, they saw Hana standing behind them. "Kiba! Meng Ka! Step back!"
"Sis!" Kiba said suddenly.
"You've got to be joking right?" Meng Ka asked, "You're the pursuit corps?"
"What are you going to do with Akamaru?" Kiba asked still looking at her in shock.
"This medicine I received from the Hokage." She said as she held up the tube. "I'm going to inject it into Akamaru."
"So then they found a cure?" Meng Ka asked, "Then Akamaru will be alright?" She could hardly believe it; it was too good to be true.
"The probability is fifty-fifty." Hana said with a determined look on her face, "If it fails, and side-effects are produced, Akamaru's symptoms will get even worse. All we can do now is take a chance on this. If the worse happens and it fails… You understand, Kiba, right?"
"Damn it…" Kiba mumbled as he looked away from his sister.
"But Kiba," Meng Ka said quickly, "There's still a chance that Akamaru will be cured. We have to take it! I'll help you get close, Hana."
Hana nodded towards Meng Ka and then looked over at Kiba, "What about you Kiba? If you aren't going to help then you're in the way, so beat it!"
Tinktink took off in the air as Meng Ka folded her hands, making a few shadow clones appear before looking back at Kiba, "Kiba?"
"Just leave that coward be, Meng Ka." Hana said, "You're ready, right? Let's go!" She said as she ran ahead of them and giving Kiba one last look she raced ahead. "Aim for the legs, immobilize Akamaru."
"Alright!" Meng Ka said as her shadow clones raced forward and distracted him long enough so that the three wolves were able to knock him down. Tinktink turned sharply in the air and cut across his face, blinding him for a few seconds as Meng Ka and her clones landed on top of him and held him down. Hana ran towards his exposed neck but just as she reached him he regained eyesight once again and knocked her out of the way while throwing Meng Ka and her clones off of him. The medicine fell from Hana's hands and landed in front of Kiba.
"Since it's come to this, I have no choice." Hana said suddenly "I must terminate Akamaru."
"Stop!" Kiba suddenly yelled from where he was standing. "I said stop…Akamaru."
"Kiba…" Meng Ka said quietly as she looked back at him.
Kiba then started to walk towards Akamaru, "Akamaru? Have you forgotten my scent?" he asked as he continued to walk. "We were always together from when we were little, weren't we? Akamaru, why did you become like this?" He asked as he stopped right in front of him, Akamaru growling lowly at him. "Please remember, Akamaru!" He yelled and Akamaru jumped in the air, ready to attack him. "I'm sorry, Akamaru. All I did was put you through painful experiences. I couldn't protect you." Akamaru suddenly landed on top of Kiba with a bang and dirt flew up in the air making it hard to see what happened. Hana and Meng Ka called out to Kiba as they stood up and looked through the dirt floating in the air.
Kiba opened his eyes slowly as he looked around the hospital room. "It really would have been touch and go if the medical corps had been even a little late in arriving. He would have lost his life if Akamaru's attack had hit Kiba's vital organs. Really it could have been much worse." Tsunade finished saying as Meng Ka crossed her arms and shook her head.
"You're wrong." Kiba said suddenly.
"Kiba!" Meng Ka said happily as he looked over at him.
"When he came down on me with his final attack." Kiba continued as he looked up at the ceiling. "Akamaru just barely missed my vital spots. He drained all of his remaining strength in order to desperately control himself. He was battling desperately with himself."
"Which saved us all in the end." Meng Ka said with a smile as she gently picked up Akamaru and brought him over to Kiba, resting him on his chest. Kiba gently wrapped an arm around him and smiled as Akamaru remained peacefully asleep.
With a sigh, Meng Ka pushed open the door later that night. It had been a long two days and she was happy to be back in her room and her own bed. As she closed the door and looked up she saw Kakashi tossing the last piece of her pie into his mouth as he sat on the island in their kitchen. He licked his fingers and looked over at Meng Ka with a smile, "Thanks for the pie, kiddo."
Meng Ka chuckled and ran up to him, giving him a hug as he lifted her up on his lap. "It's been so long since I last saw you Uncle Shi."
Kakashi hugged her tight, "I know but you seemed to be rather busy without me anyways." He said as he lifted the book that Kabuto had given her just days ago.
"Oh!" Meng Ka took it from him as she ran her hand over the letterings, "I almost forgot about this."
"How did you come by it?" Kakashi asked as he picked up a class of milk and downed it.
"Kabuto's clone paid me a visit and gave it to me." Meng Ka said without really thinking as she flipped through the book.
Milk came shooting back out of Kakashi's mouth as the class broke in his hand, "Kabuto?! How did his clone get so far into the village?!" He asked concerned as he stood up, letting Meng Ka jump from his lap and walked over to the window, looking out. "He didn't hurt you did he?"
"No, he didn't come near me. He only played mind tricks; it's all he's good at anyways." Meng Ka shrugged and sat back down on the stool looking through the book. The more she looked at the writing the more it seemed to make sense to her. "He tossed me this book and told me my time was almost up basically."
"You didn't tell the Hokage did you?" Kakashi asked as he came over and cleaned up his milk mess. Meng Ka shook her head and looked up at Kakashi as he sighed, "Meng Ka, you need to tell the Hokage about these things. She needs to know when the enemy is so far behind the border."
Meng Ka shrugged, "It's not like it's her business. It was only his clone and I dealt with it. At the moment they are only concerned about Sasuka."
Kakashi put his hand over hers on the book and rubbed the back of her with his thumb, "What are you hiding Meng Ka?" He asked softly as he searched her eyes with his one.
Meng Ka bit down on her bottom lip as she looked away. "I think I need to leave too." She said softly.
"What?" Kakashi asked alarmed, "What do you mean 'leave'? Meng Ka where will you go?"
"Back to my old village." Meng Ka said looking up, "May I can find answers there."
"Meng Ka, your village is nothing but ash. I saw it myself when you were younger." Kakashi shook his head.
"Maybe to you but to me, maybe I'll see something that was over looked." Meng Ka said hopefully, "Please, Uncle Shi. I need to do this. There aren't any answers to my questions here and if I remain here terrible things are bound to happen. If there are any signs of trouble I'll come right back."
Kakashi remained silent as he finished cleaning up his mess, picking up the glass slowly as he was lost in thought, thinking back to the day that he was handed Meng Ka and told that he was going to be her guardian. How was he supposed to protect her when she wanted to go home in search for answers that he didn't have. He remembered the times when she would wake up crying and he would rack her back to sleep, so simple those days. The times she a huge smile would come across her face in delight as she had mastered yet another jutsu. Those days when he knew that she would be home waiting for him to return after a mission. She was such a little girl then and still was but the darkness that always hung over her head seemed a bit darker now as she became older. He couldn't tell her no, after all she would go wither he wanted her to or not. He knew that look she was giving him, her eyes hard and set, her mouth pressed in a thin line. She had already made up her mind a long time ago.
Sighing, Kakashi walked back over to her and ruffled her hair, "I wish I could go with you but this is something you need to do on your own, Meng Ka."
Meng Ka smiled brightly at him and pulled him into a tight hug, "I'll miss you so much, Uncle Shi."
"When do you wish to leave?" Kakashi said sadden as he hugged her back.
"Tomorrow morning." Meng Ka said with a determined look as she smiled up at Kakashi.