Author's Note: Kamano Saisu, Yanagikage Kokage, and Kanden Tekuno are actually real, canon characters. Saisu and Kokage were just a couple years below graduation age at the time of the Kyuubi Attack. Tekuno's age isn't known, but with context clues and all that I decided that he couldn't be too much older than them. Thus, their genin team was born. And yes, Kokage actually is a canon fuuton user. Let me put it this way: Naruto Wikia is my best friend. And in this chapter, you get to see more hints of Mirai's anxiety in how it manifests as her protectiveness over Naruto. It's something she struggled with in her past life and, just like all her other previous issues, it will be coming back full force soon enough.

A note on Shisui (my beautiful, sweet, too-precious-for-this-world cinnamon roll): I'd like to hear y'all's thoughts on how I wrote him. He doesn't get a lot of time in the anime/manga, so it's hard to explore his personality there. But he is a genius and prodigy, despite the fact that Itachi surpassed him there. And he was incredibly loyal. Not to mention he was an impressive enough shinobi that Ao respected him and remembered his chakra for basically a decade at least. He's way under-appreciated, so I'm really hoping I do him justice here, because he's super important to the story.

Anyway, we're almost caught up to everything I've already written, so updates are going to slow way down. Waaaaay down. I have college classes starting up again this next week, so my writing time is going to be shrinking dramatically. Y'all will have to be patient will me, but I promise that I will update. If you have any ideas/suggestions/things you'd like to read for either this or my Scrapbook side-fic, then feel free to PM me. In the meantime, don't forget to read and review!

WARNING: There is a panic attack of sorts in this chapter. Nothing super serious, and I think it should be fine. But this is just a heads up in case it could potentially be a trigger; I want to take care of my readers.

DISCLAIMER: The wordsmith of the hereinafter tale is not the proprietress of the fable entitle Naruto or any of the associated characters.

I give you the fifth installment of Samsaric.

Chapter Four - Penurious

[Penurious—adj. 1: extremely stingy; parsimonious; miserly 2: extremely poor; destitute; indigent 3: poorly or inadequately supplied; lacking in means or resources]

Meditating on the ceiling was odd in the beginning. At first, too much of my concentration was going to keeping an accurate flow of chakra. After that, I let my mind wander too far, my control slipped, I tumbled down onto Kakashi's bed.

Finally, I got it.

I'd been meditating successfully for just under half an hour when I was interrupted again.

"That's impressive, Mirai-chan. I see you've been working hard while I've been away."

I squeaked in surprise at the Hokage's voice, my chakra slipping. I detached from the ceiling with a pop and flopped onto the bed below. It took a moment for me to regain my senses and I blinked. Then I scrambled to my feet. "Oyaji! You're back!"

"Hai, I am," he said.

My gaze turned to the people behind him and I saw Kakashi—fully masked—standing there with Naruto. "Time to go?"

"Yes. I'm sorry for what happened at the orphanage, but now you and Naruto-chan will have an apartment to yourselves. I'm sure I can trust you to be responsible with it?"

I nodded and then scrambled around the room, gathering up our things and packing them away. "Of course I will be. Arigato." I slung the backpack over my shoulder.

Hiruzen nodded. "Let's be on our way, then."

Naruto skipped after him, but I paused by Kakashi and hugged him tightly around his knees. "Bye, 'Nu-nii."

He patted me on the head. "We'll see each other again, Mirai."

I smiled up at him and, refusing to acknowledge the tears in my eyes, scrambled after my brother. We headed off towards the apartment and I felt excitement building in me right up to the moment when we started up the stairs. And then my heart plunged into a bucket of ice and I stopped. "Ne, Oyaji?"

"Hai, Mirai-chan?"

"Who lives here?"

He blinked before looking at me as if he was searching for something. Then his assessment was complete and he nodded acceptingly. "Trusted shinobi. Civilians are rare in this part of the housing sector."

Not civilians. Good. Shinobi. Better than that, they were trusted shinobi. Probably people the Hokage himself had looked at to decide if he would allow them to live close to me and Naruto. I glanced at my brother and he took my hand, fiddling nervously with the goggles around his neck. Satisfied, I followed the Hokage the rest of the way up the stairs. Just as we reached our new home, the door to the right of our apartment was flung open. "Hokage-sama!"

I blinked at the shinobi. He looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn't figure out why.

The door to the right of that door slammed open. "Hokage-sama!" the second shinobi said, bowing low and then straightening with a grin.

It clicked and I recognized the two of them. Izumo and Kotetsu, wasn't it? I'd loved the two as characters, even though they got hardly any screen time. And now I'd be living next to them?

They grinned down at me and Naruto. "Ah, you're our new neighbors!" the spiky-haired one said. "Hagane Kotetsu. Pleasure!"

"Maa, ignore the caffeinated idiot. I'm Kamizuki Izumo. It's nice to meetcha."

It took me a moment to regain my bearings, and by that point the door on the other side of our apartment had opened. "Hokage-sama. It's—cough, cough—an honor."

"Aw, Hayate-kun, aren't they just adorable? Hi, I'm Uzuki Yuugao, and this is my boyfriend, Gekko Hayate."

That was . . . unexpected. Alright, I could live with that. At least I felt more comfortable knowing the people leaving on either side of us were actually people I could trust, seeing as they'd been loyal comrades in the manga. So I bowed. "Uzumaki Mirai. This is my brother, Naruto, it's a pleasure to meet you all."

Yuugao dove forward and swept me up into her arms. "You're just so cute!"

The scent of flowers engulfed me and it was undeniable exactly who this was. I instinctively clung to her. "I've missed you, Neko," I whispered, so lowly that I wasn't sure if she would even be able to hear me. But judging by the tension that rippled subtly through her arms, I guessed she had. She released me and lowered me to my feet, smiling at me sadly as she stepped back.

The Hokage held out two keys and dropped them in the palm of my hand. He smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling oddly. "Welcome home."

I was goal-oriented.

That was an integral part of me—always had been and always would be. I was not, however, a planner. At least not by nature. Both of my original parents had been, however, so it was something I learned simply from being around them. Almost as soon as Naruto and I had been left alone in our new home, I sat down to plan while he dashed around the small place all while gasping in awe.

I stacked the ryo that had been given to us and then flipped open the notebook the Hokage had provided me with, clicking my pen. And then I resigned myself to doing something I was actually extraordinarily good at—budgeting. As a side job, both my parents had been financial advisors in my last life, and so money had been a skill of mine.

Considering that the apartment had already been furnished, none of that had to be purchased. However, groceries were necessary. I jotted that down, making a note next to it to make a list of specific foods to get, as well as making a meal plan. Then I wrote down the articles of clothing we'd need. After budgeting some money towards emergencies and utilities, I relegated the rest to individual funds for both Naruto and myself.

Naruto finally came over and climbed into the chair next to me, peering at my kanji in confusion. "Eh? Whatcha doing, Rai?"

"Budgeting money." I portioned out the actual ryo. "Get our wallets, please."

He scrambled to do so and I secured his money in his wallet. "This is for you to spend," I told him. Then I sectioned the rest of the money out into the different pockets in my own wallet. "We've gotta go shopping. First, though, we have to get dressed." I slipped down from the chair and retrieved my disguise kit from out bag. It only took me a minute to hide my whisker marks and then I tucked my hair up into my beanie. Then I turned to him and concealed his own marks. Sitting back, I frowned at his hair. "We've gotta hide that," I murmured. I tucked my wallet away, hooked my arm through his, and pulled him outside. When we reached the bottom floor, I knelt down and scooped up a good handful of dirt.

He peered at me curiously. "What are you—" He spluttered in surprise as I suddenly began messing the dirt into his hair, darkening it. "Wha?"

I stepped back and nodded. "Good."

Shopping was just as awful as I remembered.

It was a bit more exciting when I was stealing things—there was a certain adrenaline aspect to the five-finger discount that I loved—but I actually had money this time, so I couldn't exactly justify it. Besides, that would be an awful example to set for Naruto. So I went through it all the old, boring way, and it was a couple hours before we returned to the apartment, laden with bags. I distracted my brother with his coloring book and then hurried around the kitchen, scooting a stool around so I could properly reach everything. I smiled in satisfaction when the tasty aroma began to spread through our new home.

Naruto suddenly popped up next to me. "What's that?" he asked in awe, staring at the food I was making.

"Stir-fry," I said simply, dishing it out into two separate bowls. "Eat up!"

I sat down with him at the table, opening the new notebook I'd gotten myself for personal planning. I tapped my pen against the paper, considering the problem that had presented itself to me earlier in the week.

Uchiha Shisui.

The man—boy, really—was too precious too lose, in all honesty. I touched the ballpoint to the page and, after a bare moment of hesitance, began to write in my usual loopy English.

The Shisui Initiative

"See?" I asked excitedly, holding my beanie on with one hand as I stared down at the upside world below me. My audience clapped, some more excitedly than others.

"You're so cool, Rai!" my brother beamed.

"Wow! Could you teach me?" Sasuke asked, gushing happiness.

Itachi had given me a respectful nod, which was high praise from him.

Shisui was grinned from ear to ear so brightly that I was afraid his face was going to crack.

I stopped the chakra flow to my feet and kicked off from the branch, flipping down to the ground below. "I perfected it last night."

"How long have you been working on it?" the oldest Uchiha asked, flicking my nose.

I rubbed my stinging nose and frowned at him. "About a month," I muttered. "It was hard, but I guess knowing the chakra light made it easier to learn."

Itachi nodded vaguely in agreement. "Things do tend to work that way." His gaze flicked towards Naruto and Sasuke, who had become disinterested in our conversation and were now racing towards the lake. The two cannonballed into the water and then came up spluttering, yelling about how cold it was. I giggled and sauntered over to the dock. As I moved, I glanced back. "Shisui! Are you going to teach me shogi, now?"

He chuckled. "Sure, kid." He tugged sharply on one of my pigtails. "Let me go grab the board, okay? Try not to let anyone drown while I'm gone!" He disappeared.

I sat down on the edge of the dock, straining to dip my toes in the water. I blinked, looking down. Lightbulb!

What is it now, brat?

I know how to start working on water-walking. With a mild grin, I pulled off my shoes and wriggled my now-free feet. Then I rested them flatly on top of the water and began channeling chakra carefully.

"And here it is!" Shisui sat down on the other side of the end of the dock, the board between us. Itachi sat only a foot away in order watch. The oldest of the Uchiha began pointing out the separate pieces and explaining how they moved. When he was done, he offered me one of his jaw-straining grins. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be."

And so the game began.

It was a little like chess, I mused as I slid another piece forward. After a while, though it called for all of my concentration, so I stopped channeling chakra and pulled my wet feet back up to the wood. Shisui helpfully pointed out he was winning.

"I know," I mumbled. "I wasn't expecting to win my first time playing." I slid another piece. "You're going to beat me in three moves."

He blinked. "Eh? How?"

I raised an eyebrow. "You set me up for it perfectly and you didn't even know?"

Itachi pointed to one of Shisui's generals. "She can't stop you from moving him in position to win. But once you're there, she can block you. However, that leaves this pawn open for attack. If she blocks him, she has to remove her block from the general."

"Oh . . . . Well, that works!"

"Watch out, dattebayo!"

Water splashed all over the three of us, washing the pieces off the board and onto the deck below. Groaning, Shisui carefully started drying them all off and packing the game away. Itachi sighed. I turned slowly to look at a bashful Sasuke and horrified Naruto. "Is that an invitation to a water fight, boys?"

Sasuke blinked, treading water and looking confused. Naruto, however, paled. "N-no! Rai, ya don't need to—"

"Cannonball!" I leapt into the water, tucking my legs up to my chest. I could hear Naruto's squeal, muffled through the water. Instead of returning to the surface, I dove forward and snagged Sasuke's ankles, yanking him under. Then I lunged and grabbed him. When we resurfaced, I dug my fingers into his side. He tried to wiggle away, laughing so hard he looked ready to cry. I grinned. "You give? Surrender?"

"H-hai! S-stop!" he squeaked out.

I grinned and released him. Then I turned to Naruto. "Ready?"

Yeah, being the big sister has its perks.

Even though our apartment had two bedrooms, I discovered not too long after moving in that Naruto wasn't particularly fond of the idea of being so far away from me. It didn't bother me as much, since I could still hear his chakra, and I knew I would be thankful for the privacy when I got older. But he couldn't hear me, or see me. Really, he didn't have any assurance that I was there once he closed his door. So I wasn't surprised when I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of my door opening.

"Nato?" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes and sitting up. "What is it?"

He shuffled across the floor and climbed into the bed beside me. That was when I saw the children's book held tightly in his hand, one of the one's he'd checked out from the library. It had become a ritual of sorts—if he had a nightmare, he would come to my room and I would read whatever story he brought until he fell asleep.

With that in mind, I let him tuck himself under my arm as I took the book from him. Children's books in this world, I had discovered, were more similar to the Grimm's Fairy Tales of my old world than the Disney princess films. Which would explain why the author's name was Kira, of all things—and why in bold, dripping, red letters the title read Goodnight. Shrugging, I traced my fingers across the golden impression of a saurian wing on the black cover before flipping it open. I cleared my throat. "Ready?"

He nodded, his arms tight around my middle.

And so I began to read.

"She met the monster on a Tuesday. He was large, green, and scaly, but he still fit under her bed. She hadn't meant to find him, and he hadn't meant to be found, but fate works like that."

Naruto brushed his fingers across the muted colored paintings on the page before allowing me to continue. The story carried on with the plot, telling about the girl's struggle without a father and her mother's love for her and how her mother always made sure to say goodnight. I was again violently reminded about this world's different kind of storytelling when the mother was revealed to be a prostitute and was killed by a gang she regularly served. At that point, Naruto interrupted the story for clarification and I promised him he'd learn about it eventually. The last few pages spoke about the girl's shift into an orphanage.

"And then something was scratching under her bed. It was large, green, and scaly, but she'd missed him. The lights went out and she sank down into her covers with a sad smile. Then she whispered, 'Goodnight,' because even monsters need to hear it."

I didn't close the book, staring at the last page and the painting of talons holding hands. Then I very slowly shut it and looked down. Naruto was fast asleep against my side and I smile, reaching across him to put the book on the nightstand. I flicked off the light and settled down. Then I paused.

Goodnight, Kyuubi.

There was no reply.

I was cursing my handwriting when Naruto interrupted me.

"Hey, Rai?"

"Uh-huh?" I finished the kanji and then looked up. "What is it, Nato?"

"Why do you train so hard?" He sat down on the floor next to me, snuggling up against my arm in a way that pressed his goggles harshly into my skin.

"Because I want to be a strong shinobi. I want to be the best so I can . . . protect my precious people." I set my notebook down and turned, ruffling his hair. "Why do you ask?"

"Can . . . can you teach me too?"

I had been teaching him, of course. But when I looked at the fiery expression in his eyes, I knew that he wanted more than a lesson on kanji. I smiled. "Why?"

"Because I wanna protect my precious people too. Teach me?"

I hesitated, gauging how serious he was. Then I smiled, gripping his hand. "Alright, then. I have some exercises for you to work on. You remember the exercises I do every morning?"

He nodded slowly.

"I want you to do those, okay? Until they're easy. And then I'll be able to teach you some harder stuff."

He pouted. "But Rai—"

A knock sounded at our door and we both paused, glancing towards it. I rose to my feet, a hand on his shoulder to make sure he stayed put. Then I cautiously opened the door. "Yes?"

"Orphan stipend," was all I heard before the man dropped a bag at my feet and moved away. I bent down and picked it up, hearing ryo click inside it. I turned back, closing and locking the door, to find Naruto had already started on the exercises despite his complaints. I paced into my room and grabbed my budgeting notebook from my nightstand. Then I sat down on my bed and dumped out the money. As I sat there counting it, I slowly began to frown.

"This isn't nearly enough," I muttered, counting it again. I was right. There was barely enough to last us for a week of groceries. A scowl twisted my face and I shook my head, shoving the ryo back into the pouch they'd been delivered in. Well, if they were going to stiff us on what we needed, then I knew exactly what I needed to do. Because there was no way I was going to the Hokage for anything else; the fewer favors I owed him, the better.

"Rai! Someone knocked again!"

I turned towards the living room, frowning but internally thankful that I had drilled it into Naruto's head to let me open the front door. I hid the purse away in the drawer again and paced out into the main room just in time to hear another knock. The floor creaked under me as I moved, unlocking the door and opening it just a smidgen.

"Mirai-chan!" Yuugao squealed. "I was wondering if you wanted to come over and help me make dinner. Kotetsu and Izumo are joining us too."

My mouth dried out and I glanced back at Naruto, who was doing pushups like his life depended on it. Dinner? With all four of them? I licked my lips. "Of course. We'll be right over there."

The kunoichi beamed at me and hurried back to her apartment. I turned, pulling on my shoes. "C'mon, Nato. We've got dinner plans."

He paused mid-pushup—a mistake, because his elbows started trembling and just a moment later his arms gave out. He hit the floor with a thud and gasp of air. "Dinner plans, dattebayo?"

"Yep. Get your shoes on." I waved at him and stood by the door as I waited.

You're losing valuable training time.

It's dinner. It's not that big of a deal.

You're making excuses.

I knew he was right, but I didn't want to pass this up. They're skilled shinobi. If I agree to get some training tips from them tonight, will you promise to shut up?

He said nothing in return, so I took it as a yes. Naruto bounced over to me with a grin and I laughed, opening the door. He dashed outside ahead of me and I stepped after him, closing and locking the door firmly. I frowned at the handle. Really, a flimsy lock and key would do nothing against someone who actually wanted to break in. But until my skills were improved, there was nothing I could do about it. By the time I turned, Yuugao already had the door open and Naruto was inside. I smiled at her and hurried after them, not too comfortable will letting Naruto out of my sight now that we'd left the apartment. Yuugao shut the door behind me and I watched Naruto scamper off to the living room. "Kotetsu!" he squealed, dive-bombing into the chunin's lap. The man's resulting groan made me giggle and I joined Yuugao in the kitchen.

"What are we making?"

"Curry!"

I could feel my stomach aching for it already and I climbed onto the step stool she had in front of the counter for me. I glanced over my shoulder, satisfied that I could see Naruto just past the bar. Then I reached for the knife. "I'll cut everything."

The woman nodded and slid the cutting board over to me, along with the basket of produce. As we worked, I listened to Naruto boast to the men about how he was going to be the best Hokage ever. I smiled and turned towards the pot. Then I frowned. "Yuugao?"

"Hmm?"

"I feel like something's missing."

She blinked. "Well, I'm following the recipe."

"Yeah, but . . . ." I bit my lip, trying to remember the way I'd made curry back Before. Of course. I hopped down from the stool and paced over to the pantry.

"What are you looking for?"

"Honey!" I announced, holding it up. "It'll give it a little sweetness, too."

She squinted at it, taking it curiously. "You're sure?"

I nodded, grinning. "Yep!"

"Alright. I'm trusting you on this one. You're the talented cook, after all," she said, citing back to the multiple meals of mine she'd tried.

I was about to respond when frantic coughing from the living room grabbed my attention. Panic seized my heart and I whipped around, my gaze instantly finding Naruto. But it wasn't him. Hayate doubled over, sounding like he was hacking up one of his lungs. I gulped nervously. Of course. His sickness. Another case of undeserved suffering in this screwed up universe.

"Mirai-chan?"

Blinking, I turned back to Yuugao and smiled. "Hai?"

She frowned, gaze flicking to Hayate and then back to me. "Why don't you get everyone something to drink?"

I nodded in response, dragging the stool across the kitchen and using it to get down all the glasses. I raised my voice. "What do you want to drink?"

A grin cracked Izumo's face. "Sake!" The other two men seconded his motion.

Naruto lit up. "I want sake too!" he said innocently.

I laughed a little at him, searching through the cupboards for the sake bottle. "As if. You're getting milk, Nato. It's good for you." I found it and poured each of the men a little bit, trying to measure it out at about the same size of what I remembered a shot to be. I passed the drinks out and then poured Naruto a full glass of milk. "Here you go."

He frowned at it and then reluctantly took it from me. "Fine," he muttered. I grinned at him. Then I turned.

"Yuugao? Do you think you could help me with my kanji?"

"Rai, c'mon!"

I jumped, rough fingers closing tightly around the wallet I had just palmed. "I'm coming, Nato. There's no need to be so impatient." I glanced hesitantly back over my shoulder at the man we had passed. He didn't seem to have noticed anything. With a sigh of relief, I shoved the wallet deep in my pocket and hurried my pace to match Naruto's. "It's not like we can be late. We never set a time, after all."

"I know," he whined. "But I wanna get there as fast as possible, dattebayo!" He raced on ahead and I ran after him, laughing. He crested the hill before me, disappearing down the other side. I sped up, fixating on his chakra. I reached the top of the hill and paused, looking down at the lake as Naruto raced down the dock to the Uchiha that were already there. Grinning, I raced down the hill.

"Shisui! Sasuke-kun! Konichiwa!"

They both glanced back at me and offered me waves. Then Naruto stumbled down the deck, colliding with Sasuke and knocking them both into the water. They surfaced, spluttering, and dissolved into yet another water war. Shisui rolled his eyes. "There they go again."

"Where's Itachi?"

"'Tachi-chan has a mission. So you're stuck with just me and Sasuke today." He grinned down at me. "So. What do you want to do?"

I stared up at him, weighing my options. As I thought, I picked absently at the scarred skin the chakra burns had left on the palms of my hands. Part of me wanted to ask him to play another game of Ninja, but the other part of me—

Train, you stupid brat.

Ah, there was the delightful ball of fluff that never failed to brighten up my day. "Shisui?"

"Yep?"

"Do you think you could teach me a jutsu?"

He paused. Then he crouched down to my height, squinting at me. "Now why would you want that?"

"To get stronger."

He snorted. "You sound like an Uchiha."

"I sound like someone who wants to protect her brother."

Shisui cocked his head at me. "A jutsu, huh? What are you wanting to learn?"

I shoved my hands in my pockets, rocking back and forth on my feet. "Kawarimi, please." It would be the most practical to begin with, after all. Given my reserves, bunshin was unlikely. And henge required more finesse; at least that was what I had gathered from all my reading.

"Alright. It's like this." He raised his hands. "Tiger seal."

I lifted my hands into the sign I'd been practicing for months.

"Boar. Ox. Just like that. Then it's dog. And finally, snake." He grinned at me, a twinkle in his eye. "You think you've got all that?"

I grinned and paused for just a moment before repeating the pattern, my fingers falling almost naturally into the seals. All that training was finally paying off.

"Alright, show off." He put a hand on my head, shoving me playfully. "The idea is to gather your chakra and stretch it from you to wherever you're going—kinda like a rubber band. When you do the snake seal, you release and and you and your target switch places."

"Wow, simple," I muttered sarcastically, knowing it was going to be anything but. I was rewarded with a flick to the nose and a unimpressed look.

"Watch closely, okay?" He whipped out a kunai and tossed it several yards away. It stuck upright out of the ground. "You'll be switching with that."

"But isn't that a . . . pretty small target?"

His grin wasn't exactly a nice one. "Here goes. Tiger, boar, ox, dog, snake. Kawarimi."

I peered closely, determined to figure out how he was doing it. But the moment smoke erupted, I felt an all-too-familiar burning in my veins. The ground rushed up, meeting me as my vision spun. I crumpled, clutching my head and swallowing the pathetic whimpers that struggled to surface. The air around me turned to water, muffled and hollow and cold. A shiver wound its way around my spine and up my throat, tickling the inside of my mouth. I coughed violently, feeling harsh and burning air scrape against my tongue. A rhythmic sound boomed through the liquid air around me, vaguely familiar but yet so very foreign.

Cold splashed across my face and I spluttered on water, snapping up. My eyes stung and my beanie clung wetly to my ears as I shuddered, shaking off some of the water. "Wh-what—"

"Ah! She lives!"

"Rai!" I barely registered Naruto's voice before something hit me hard, knocking me back on the ground and proceeding to crush my ribcage.

"N-nato!" I gasped. "Air!"

"Oh! Sorry, dattebayo!" The oppressive weight vanished. "Are you okay? You fell asleep and you wouldn't wake up and—"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I mumbled, dragging myself back up into a sitting position. I glanced up at Shisui, who was frowning at me with his arms crossed. A sheepish smile touched my face. "I probably should have mentioned that I'm chakra-hypersensitive."

"Yeah, you probably should have." And just like that, he dashed through several hand seals and I felt another glob of water splash over me, along with more fire in my chakra coils. I sighed sullenly and glanced at Sasuke and Naruto, who were doing their best not to crack up.

"Go ahead," I muttered. "You can laugh." The two burst out into guffaws and I glanced up at the Uchiha. "I deserved that."

"Yes. Yes, you did. Now, are you going to learn the kawarimi or what?"

I blinked, rising to my feet and shaking myself off. "Wait, you mean you're still going to teach me?"

"Where else are you going to manage to find such an awesome teacher? You're gonna struggle with hypersensitivity no matter when you learn this jutsu, so might as well learn it now." He sat down cross legged. "The best way to start is to focus on molding the chakra the way you need it—no hand seals, no release. Once you have it, slowly return it back to your body."

I heard Sasuke mutter something about this being boring, followed by splashes just a couple moments later as they both returned to the water. I took a deep breath and sat down, closing my eyes in order to focus. Grass rustled and Shisui's voice was suddenly behind me. "Just focus and stretch your chakra."

I reached down inside, drawing up the warmth settled deep in my bones. Stretching it out was odd, almost like working with pizza dough; I was afraid that it I moved it too far, too fast it would tear. Then I paused, my chakra stretched out of my body and out towards . . . nothing, really.

"Good. Now slowly return it."

Slowly return it. Where had I heard that before? I began to pull my chakra back to me when I realized what it was. Archery. My chakra was like a bow, where you had to relax the string to keep from shooting the arrow. Of course it—

"Mirai, slow—"

My chakra snapped and the world screeched around me. Blood flipped in my body, draining to my head and wrapping around my throat like a noose. I gasped for air and it was getting harder and harder and harder to breathe. No air, no lungs; there was just fire burning in my chest cavity. I hit something hard and tried to bite back a whimper. I bit my tongue instead and coughed. Something vice-like closed around my ankle.

"Careful, now."

I gasped, breath croaking against my windpipe, and blinked to clear my vision. Blood pooled above my ears and I stared at the Uchiha.

"You're upside down."

He scoffed and his fingers uncurled around my ankle. I squeaked as the floor soared towards me and I hit it hard. Grunting, I sat up and spat dirt out of my mouth. "Alright, so I—"

"Mirai, what's this?"

I rubbed my wrist across my mouth and wrinkled my nose at the grit on my tongue. "What's what?" I glanced back at him and felt cement line my throat. "Uh, Shisui, I-I-I can—"

"This isn't yours," he said, holding the wallet between two of his fingers and giving me an accusing stare. "Where'd you get this?"

My hand went to my pocket where the wallet had been just minutes before. I felt some tension relax from my shoulders when I found the other stolen purse still deep in my pocket. "I found it."

He crouched down to my level and tapped me on the nose with the wallet. "Mirai, you're lying," he said in a singsong voice. "Why did you steal this?"

I glared at him, weighing my options. If I told him why, chances are he would tell the Hokage. And I didn't want the old man's help with anything else; owing him too many favors would give the man far too much power over me. But I really didn't have much of a choice. So I tensed my jaw and tilted my chin up. "We need to eat too, you know."

"You don't get money for food?"

I scoffed, crossing my arms. "Two things. One, those jerks that hand out the orphan stipend think it's okay to stiff us out of ninety percent of our monthly paycheck. Two, do you really think that we are charged fair prices?"

His sharp eyes narrowed. "You should have told the Hokage."

I couldn't help the scowl that twisted my expression. I was tired of pretending I liked the old man. "I want to owe him nothing," I hissed. "The less leverage I give him to use me, the better."

You're getting carried away.

I was going to tell him, anyway.

Now?

No . . . . Not yet.

His brow furrowed and he muttered, "Use you?" Then his eyes widened and he leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Mirai. You're a smart one, aren't you?" he whispered. His gaze flicked down to my shirt—or, more accurately, the place where he knew my shirt hid a seal. Then he watched me closely, waiting for my answer. I knew that whatever I said next was crucial. There was no going back after this, because someone would know.

"I like to think I am," I murmured, not dropping my gaze.

His jaw tightened and he leaned back, sitting down fully. His gaze flicked across my face before he turned his head to stare out at the two boys in the water. "So you know."

"Of course I do."

"I should tell the Hokage about this."

My throat closed up. "Don't," I hissed. "Please don't. I don't want him to think I'm smarter than he already knows I am. I'm sure I don't have to tell you what Konoha does to prodigies. I can't let him take me away from Naruto."

He frowned again. It was an expression I'd never seen on him before today, but now I was seeing it a lot. "Mirai—"

"If you tell him," I said quietly, "I'll never forgive you."

He snapped his mouth shut and squinted at me, crossing his arms. "That's a big secret to keep from the Hokage."

"Where does it say I need to tell him about this? If he knew that I knew, I'm sure he would waste no time with putting me in the Academy already. And I told you: I won't leave Naruto."

The Uchiha hummed, gaze dropping away from me to the wallet in his hands as he turned it over. Then he lifted it and waved it at me. "Nevertheless, you shouldn't steal."

I blinked, pulling back. "I— You won't tell? About the . . . or the—"

"No. You deserve to be a little kid." He tucked the wallet away. "I'll make sure that this gets back to its original owner."

My eyes widened. "But the money—"

"Hey." He held up a hand. "You deserve to eat, too. Luckily, you've got the awesome Uchiha Shisui as a friend, right? Now try stretching your chakra again. And this time, don't snap it."

I bounced my feet on the water, regulating my chakra flow as I studied the book in my lap. Leaning against my back, Naruto whined. "Where are they?"

"They'll be here soon, Nato," I murmured, turning the page and studying the diagram presented. "You need to learn to be patient." I reached over and dug in my backpack for my notebook. Flipping it open, I laid it across the book and tapped my pen against my lips. "Quadrant one," I murmured, tracing the diagram with my gaze. I frowned, trying to reconcile this new sealing theory with the varying ones I'd read before. It seemed no one could agree on the best fuuinjutsu method; that, of course, left me with a lot of room for experimentation. But it also made it harder for me to find a place to start.

"Rai! I'm bored!"

I felt my right eyebrow twitching in annoyance, but I took a deep breath. Naruto, no matter how childish he could be, was always priority. I closed my notebook and my book, tucking them away in my bag. Then I turned to face him. "How have your exercises been going?"

"I'm learning. I'm going to be the best shinobi ever, dattebayo!"

I smiled at him. "I know you will be, Nato, but you still need to work hard. How are your splits?"

"Rai," he whined. "I showed you this morning!"

I chuckled and rose to my feet, slinging the backpack over my shoulder. "I know you did. You've gotten really good. You've improved a lot."

He lit up. "Really?"

"Of course." I took his hand and we walked down the dock to the grass. "While we're waiting, do you want to play a game?"

He blinked slowly. "Game? Like what?"

I dropped the bag again, scooting it aside with my foot. "Hide and seek? You're it! Count to thirty, okay?"

Absolutely giddy, he covered his eyes and started counting. I dashed away as quickly as I could without making too much noise—stealth training was hard to do with Naruto interrupting me ever few minutes—and escaped down the dock. Humming chakra across my hands, I reached under and pressed my palms against the wood. I took a deep breath and then kicked off, flipping over and under. I bent my body up close to keep from getting wet, but my feet dragged a bit and I could feel the hem of my pants sagging as they soaked up water. My hands scraped a little against the wood, but I stayed in place. Breathing a sigh of relief, I carefully regulated my chakra and swung my feet up, sticking them too. Then I crawled away from the end of the dock, waiting. A few seconds later, I heard Naruto finish counting.

"Here I come, Rai!"

He was loud as he ran and I could hear him searching everywhere. I giggled. My hands budged a little and I sucked in my breath, refocusing myself.

"Shisui! Itachi! Teme!"

I sighed. While Naruto's little . . . nickname for Sasuke was almost endearing, it wasn't exactly appropriate. Judging by Shisui's loud laughter, though, it seemed he didn't have a problem with it. "What're you up to?"

"Hide and seek with Mirai! Do you want to play? I can't find her, dattebayo."

"We'll help you look." That was Itachi. I groaned internally. They were going to find me easily, now. I closed my eyes, listening to them running everywhere. I opened them again.

"Good morning, Mirai-chan!"

I squeaked, losing my chakra control and splashing down into the water below. Something tugged on my shirt and I found myself lifted up by my collar, the cloth tight under my arms. I glared at him. "Shisui! Naruto was supposed to find me."

"Oh, sorry, Taichou," he said sarcastically. "I thought I was invited to play." He dragged both of us back up onto the grass. "How about you're it this time, Mirai?"

I groaned. "Fine. I'm it!" I announced to everyone else. Then I put my hands over my eyes. "One, two, three." Really, the only challenge would be finding Itachi and Shisui. Naruto was the same beacon of chakra he always was, and Sasuke's own signature was easy to find. "Twelve, thirteen, fourteen." Naruto's chakra was off to my left. What was he running around for? If he kept goofing off like that, he wouldn't be able to even have time to hide. "Nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty—" The word stuck in my throat and I snapped my eyes open, hands going rigid. "Naruto," I whispered. Then I whirled around in the direction his chakra had disappeared in. "Naruto!" I yelled, cresting the hill. I felt his chakra against, bright and confused as he stared at me from his spot behind the rock. Shisui and Itachi appeared next to him in a flash, Sasuke in tow.

My brother cocked his head at me. "Rai, what—"

"Don't do that!" I yelled. "I couldn't hear you anymore. Something could have happened to you! You know you're not supposed to go that far away! If I can't hear you, I can't find you. And if I can't find you, then I can't keep you safe!" My chest was heaving and my face was burning, though I wasn't sure if it was from my anger or my fear.

Naruto shrank back, his eyes wide and watery. "I . . . I was just playing the game, dattebayo," he whimpered, huddled in on himself.

And just like that, I felt like someone had slapped me. I glanced at the Uchiha. Sasuke was staring at me in shock. Itachi looked as impassive as ever, though I could see the slight downturn to his eyebrow. And Shisui was frowning at me, arms crossed. I looked down at my brother, who was looking away and sniffling in an attempt to hold back his tears. I fell to my knees and scooted forward. "Nato," I murmured, reaching out for him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you. I was just—" I pulled my hand back. No, no excuses. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have screamed." I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. "Will you forgive me?"

I felt fingers, small like mine, close around my hand. I opened my eyes and smiled at him. But before I could say anything, he threw himself at me with a cry. "N-no, I'm sorry, Rai. I shouldn't have gone so far away."

"It's not your fault." I sat back, holding him close. I laced my fingers in his hair. "You don't need to apologize."

You're disgusting.

What now, Kyuubi? I snarled at him.

You preach to me about how you're going to get stronger. And then you can't even handle being separated from the yellow brat for even a couple seconds. How are you ever going to train and improve as much as you need to if you can't get away from him?

I didn't answer, releasing Naruto and watching as he climbed to his feet. Kurama was right, of course. But just the idea of not being able to feel Naruto's chakra—of not being able to know where he was or that he was safe—made my stomach turn over.

"Mirai."

I jerked my head up. "Hai, Itachi?"

"I do believe you just had a minor panic attack."

I blinked slowly. He was right. I chewed on my lip. "I . . . I can't help it. When I can't hear Naruto's chakra anymore, I can't help that I freak out."

"Maybe you need to get used to it," Shisui put in. When I turned to him curiously, he elaborated. "You need to get used to the feeling of not feeling Naruto's chakra."

Hot rocks were settling in my gut and the air was growing thin. "B-but—"

"Naruto-kun will be safe with me. I'll take him and Sasuke back to the Compound for lunch. Shisui will take you somewhere so you can get food. It will only be a couple hours." Itachi placed a hand on Naruto and another on Sasuke.

My eyes widened. "Wait, don't—"

Smoke puffed around them and I felt chakra burning in my veins. I shrieked at the backlash from the jutsu—more chakra than Shisui had put in his kawarimi—and fell back. I raised my fist to my mouth, biting on my knuckles to muffle the sounds. I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't—

"Whoa, Mirai. It's alright. Naruto's safe, remember? He's with Itachi. He's fine. He's safe."

I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I couldn't feel Naruto's chakra, I—

"Deep breath, Mirai. Deep breath. Naruto. Is. Safe."

Safe. Naruto is safe. But I couldn't feel his chakra and I couldn't see him. All I could see was black, black, black—

Again. Disgusting. Get ahold of yourself. How do you ever expect to become a strong shinobi with this sniveling attitude? And how will you protect the yellow brat then?

"Deep breaths. You can do it. He's fine. You're fine."

Safe. Naruto was safe. I forced out the breath I hadn't realized I was holding, instantly gasping for more air. "Safe," I muttered. "Safe, safe, safe."

"That's right. He's safe. You can open your eyes now."

My eyes were closed? I opened them slowly, squinting against the light that seemed so much brighter than it had been just a few moments ago. "Naruto. He's—"

"With Itachi. Remember?" Shisui beamed down at me. "Look at you. You're going to do just fine."

I climbed to my feet and reached for my backpack with shaky hands. I was almost trembling too much to move, but I managed a few steps in the direction of the Village. "I-I can't believe you did this to me."

"Relax. It's better for you in the long run. What kind of shinobi would you be if your calm and collected attitude relied on how close your baby brother is?"

"He's not my baby brother," I muttered, legs shaking like jell-o. I dropped to my knees and dug my fingers into the dirt, trying to collect myself. I felt like someone had removed one of my ribs and stabbed me with it. "He's my brother."

"You're bleeding."

I glanced down at my knuckles, frowning at the skin my teeth had broken through. "I'm fine. Let's go." I forced myself onto my weak feet and started walking.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

"To the Uchiha Compound to get my brother back," I snapped at him.

"Oh, no you aren't." He gripped my shoulders and turned me so I was pointed the other way. "We're going to Ichiraku's."

I scowled but obediently moved in that direction. My feet felt like lead and it was getting harder and harder to keep moving away from where I knew Naruto was. "I don't like this."

"That's the whole point. You're not supposed to like it. If you're always enjoying training, you're doing it wrong."

"This isn't training," I muttered.

"That's exactly what it is. We're training you to be okay with not being near your brother. And we're training you to trust him to be fine on his own." We stepped onto the first street and he finally released me, turning in the direction of the ramen stand.

"I still don't like it."

"Good for you," he chirped, all too cheerful. Then he reached in his pocket and pulled out a small drawstring bag. "Hands out."

I blinked and looked up, extending my hands towards him. He dropped the bag in my palms and I heard the soft clink of ryo. "Shisui, is this—"

"Just a little cut from my last mission. Should last you and Naruto for the rest of the month, right? Besides, I'm sure you can figure out a way to shop so that they don't know it's you."

"I'm not the problem. It's the fact that, no matter what, I can't seem to get Naruto to make sure people don't realize he's Naruto. He won't really do it unless I give him and explanation why, and I don't really want to do that."

"Well, you'll just have to go shopping on your own, won't you?"

I arched an eyebrow, glancing towards him as I stowed the money away. "On . . . my own?"

"Don't believe for a second that this is enough to get you comfortable with being away from him." He pushed me playfully and I stumbled for a moment. "You'll just have to leave him at home."

My eyes widened. "Leave him at—"

"Here we are!" Shisui hopped up onto one of the stools and started ordering.

I swallowed thickly and climbed up on the stool next to him. "Salt ramen, please."

Teuchi glanced at me and beamed. "Ah, Mirai-chan! One of my favorite customers! Where's Naruto-chan?"

I glanced to my right, where he normally sat, and hesitated. "Um, with a friend."

The man turned to make the food. "Funny. I have a hard time imagining you letting him go anywhere without you."

"Yeah, it's sure funny how things turn out," I said, glaring at Shisui. He held up his hands, shrugging, and I sighed. I knew this was for the better, but I couldn't stop the way my heart was still racing in fear.

"How did you find out?"

I glanced at him. "Find out about what? The Kyuubi?"

He glanced nervously over his shoulder, as if he was expecting someone to be listening in. Then he glanced at me and nodded once.

I swung my legs, feet grazing the water. "Well . . . ." Then I turned slightly towards him and pulled my shirt up just enough to show part of my stomach. "When I mold chakra, the seal does this." I summoned my chakra light and ink bled across my skin, swirling into a seal. "It's part of why I want to learn fuuinjutsu."

"You want to be a seal master?"

"Hai." I dropped my shirt hem back down and scooted forward so I could bounce my feet on the water, regulating my chakra.

"Water-walking?"

"I've almost got the chakra levels down. Then I'll try actually moving. I—"

He held up a hand. "Here they are."

I jerked to my feet, whipping around. They shunshined just in front of the dock and I could feel the jutsu fraying my veins. My knees trembled and gave way for a moment, but Shisui caught my elbow and I straightened. "Nato!"

"Rai!" he squealed, racing for me. I held up my arms, expecting him to slow as he neared me. But he didn't, hitting me head on. I squeaked and my instinct was to send chakra to my feet. I swayed backwards a bit, almost over the edge of the dock, but my chakra kept me put. I wrapped my arms around him and he buried his face in my shoulder. "I missed you," he murmured.

I chuckled, not willing to admit how badly I had been panicking the entire time. That only made Itachi and Shisui all the more correct, not that I wanted them to be. If I could, Naruto would never leave my side again. But that wasn't fair, to him or to me. I glanced towards Shisui. Arigato, I mouthed.

He chuckled. "How's that jutsu coming?"

I untangled myself from Naruto and he reluctantly let me go. I paced forward, curling my bare toes into the grass, and aligned myself with my backpack sitting a good ten feet away. I lifted my hands, muttering to myself. "Tiger, boar, ox." As I said them, I stretched my chakra out, knowing that my speed would improve with time. "Dog, snake. Kawarimi!" I released, letting the chakra snap like a rubber band. I wobbled for a moment, regaining my bearings. Then I turned, looking at my bag sitting where I had been a moment before. My chakra coils burned, but I grinned at the Uchiha. "Tada!"

Itachi glanced sharply at him. "You taught her kawarimi," he said accusingly.

The older shinobi shrugged. "She asked for it. I can't say no to an adorable face like that."

I wrinkled my nose. I might be five physically, but mentally I was at least sixteen. Adorable wasn't exactly a word I enjoyed being used to describe me. "Well?" I asked, putting my hands on my hips. "How was it?"

"You learned it pretty quick," Shisui said, grinning at me. "I only showed that to you last month."

"Well, I'm not dumb."

Could've fooled me.

I ignored him, pacing over to my backpack and slinging it across my shoulders. "Well, after this exciting day, I think Naruto and I should go. We promised Tenten and Lee we were going to meet them at the park, remember?" I held out my hand.

Naruto lit up and bounced forward, his hand fitting into mine. "Let's go, dattebayo!"

I waved to them. "See you later." I tugged on my brother's hand and started up the hill. I glanced at him. "Want to see what I got?"

His eyes widened. "What? Whatcha get?"

I released his hand and shifted my backpack around, digging in it for a moment. I pulled out a thick book, only about as wide as my hand and just an inch or two taller. It was held together with three metal rings. The covers were made of hardened wood and the paper inside was thick and durable. The word bingo was carved into the front cover. I held it up for him to see, turning us in the direction of the park. "It's a bingo book." I flipped it open to the first page, which held the entry for the Sandaime Hokage. It was a Konoha issued book, so it was detailed and held information on every missing nin in existence, as well as any shinobi that had a bounty—which included just about anyone above the rank of genin. Technically, only shinobi were allowed to buy it. But that loophole was easy to get to when I just handed Shisui the money.

"Whoa," Naruto breathed, eyes wide. "Jiji is super strong!"

I chuckled and tucked the bingo book away. We reached the park and I took Naruto's hand again, marching purposely forward and ignoring the mutters of the people around us, who suddenly seemed like they couldn't leave fast enough.

"Mirai-chan! Naruto-chan!" Tenten jumped to her feet with a squeal and raced towards us. "Wanna play?"

I grinned, but it faltered when I glimpsed their kunai pouches. I tilted my head to the side. Now, why would they— Of course. "How's the Academy?"

"It's okay," Tenten said, glancing to her right at Lee. "We found out Lee can't use chakra, though."

Naruto pouted. "Aw. But you can still be a kick ass shinobi!"

"Language," I reprimanded.

He glanced at me. "I mean, he can still fight real cool and stuff! Even without chakara."

"Chakra," I corrected.

"Right." He beamed at Lee. "You'll still be an awesome shinobi, dattebayo!"

Lee lit up. "You really think so?"

I grinned, watching his gaze flick from Naruto to me. "I know so."

"Why are we going to the, uh . . . ." Naruto frowned, squinting as he tried to remember.

"Jonin Station," I reminded him gently, consulting the map again to make sure we were headed in the right direction. I knew the real reason; I missed my ANBU family, and the Jonin Station was the one place where it would be easy to find them again. Genma and Kakashi were the only ones I would recognize on sight, of course. But there was alway the possibility of me recognizing one of them by smell, just like I'd done with Mokin. I tuck the map away. I couldn't tell Naruto that, of course. So I gave him a different reason, though it was just as real. "There's a bunch of super strong shinobi there. If you're going to be Hokage and I'm going to be ANBU, then we need to learn, right? I'm sure they can help us learn."

"Oh." He blinked. "Right."

"Here it is." I stopped in front of the small building, cocking my head to the side. Then I took a deep breath, taking his hand and stepping up the stairs. I pushed the door open. It was well lit, but the room was small. One door and a set of stairs going to some sort of basement. I moved forward and pushed the door open. A bathroom? I glanced towards the stairs. Down there, then?

"C'mon. This way." I tugged him after me and walked down the stairs. It got darker the farther down we went. We reached the door at the bottom and I released him, reaching for the doorknob. I pushed the door open and my jaw dropped.

It was huge. Shinobi were everywhere, surrounding the TV and the couches and the kitchen and all the tables. It was gigantic, much larger than I had expected.

"Hey, what are a couple of little kids like you doing here?"

I blinked, looking up at the shinobi. A grin split my face. "Kamano-san!"

The teenager crouched down to our height. "Mirai-chan," he greeted cordially. "What are you doing here?" he asked again.

Naruto lit up. "We wanna find someone to teach us!"

"Teach you?"

He nodded. "We're gonna be strong shinobi! We need some sensei!"

The chunin chuckled. "Well, my team is here, if you want to meet them." He motioned to us and we followed him across the room to a group of couches. "These are my genin teammates: Yanagikage Kokage and Kanden Tekuno."

I peered up at the two chunin. Kokage glanced down at us and I cocked my head to the side. I didn't recognize him from anything—I was sure I would have remembered the purple triangle tattooed on his left cheek. Next to him, Tekuno squinted down at us, running a hand through his thick, curly hair. I bowed my head to them. "Konichiwa, Kanden-san, Yanagikage-san. It's an honor to meet shinobi such as yourselves."

"Saisu, who are the brats?" Kokage asked, crossing his arms.

"Uzumaki Mirai and Naruto."

"Well, they're pretty cute," Tekuno said, grinning and squatting down. "How old are you guys? Two?"

Naruto made a face. "I'm five!" he said, holding up one hand.

Saisu put a hand on each of our heads. "They're looking for someone to teach them a thing or two."

Kokage arched an eyebrow. "I be they don't even have anything for us to work with. I doubt they even know what chakra is."

Saisu rolled his eyes. "Now, be nice, Kokage, they're just kids."

"Yeah! And Rai can already use chakara!"

"Chakra," I corrected.

"Right! She's super smart! Rai can already do jus— jut— just—"

"Jutsu?" Saisu asked, tilting his head to the side. "You know jutsu, Mirai-chan."

I tucked my hands behind my back, offering a small smile. "Just kawarimi."

Kokage arched an eyebrow. "Kawarimi? A little brat like you? As if."

I frowned, feeling my pride take the blow. "You don't believe us?"

"Of course not. No five year old can do that."

Naruto scowled, balling his hands into fists. "Rai can!"

"Prove it," the chunin muttered.

I knew he was baiting me, but my anger burned inside of me. "Fine," I hissed. "But if I prove it, then you have to teach me something. Deal?"

"Deal," he agreed cooly.

I turned, glancing around for something good to switch with. Someone tapped my shoulder and I glanced up at at Saisu. "Hai?"

He crouched down and pointed at the potted plant about twenty feet away. "There you go."

I frowned. It was farther than I had ever gone before, but I was sure I could do it. I ran through the hand seals and reached out my chakra. "Kawarimi!" I snapped forward, acid burning in my coils. I bit my lip fiercely to keep from whimpering. I jerked to a stop and bent my knees to soften the impact. I turned to see the stupefied look on Kokage's face, only to find that the group of shinobi I'd landed in was staring at me.

"Mirai-chan?"

I ran my gaze across all the faces of the shinobi before I found the person who'd spoken. "Mo—" I caught myself. "Genma!" I dashed forward and leapt into his lap, even though I was much bigger than when I used to do it.

He grunted, plucking the senbon hurriedly from his mouth to make sure I didn't impale myself. He glanced between me and the place I'd just appeared. "Was that . . . ."

"Kawarimi?" I beamed at him. "Hai!" Then I blinked and hurriedly hopped up, rushing back over to the others. I pointed at Kokage. "You owe me a lesson."

He squinted down at me before rolling his eyes and turning away. I watched as he walked towards the kitchen, my jaw dropping. Is he really just leaving?

Can't trust everyone, brat.

I scowled, crossing my arms. Why that yellow-bellied, cowardly, son of a—

"Take this."

I blinked, looking at the hand in front of my face holding what looked like . . . tissue paper? I took it curiously and glanced up at Kokage. "What's this for?"

"Chakra paper. It'll test your chakra nature."

"Kokage," Saisu murmured warningly. "You can't teach a little kid elemental jutsu."

Kokage shrugged. "Hey, if she's old enough to know kawarimi." He glanced towards me as I gently pushed my chakra into the sheet. "Besides, what's the chance she'll have—"

Chakra buzzed against my fingertips like the chill of winter and the paper ripped loudly in half.

"—wind . . . chakra." He blinked. "Okay. You're lucky, brat. Not many in Konoha have a fuuton nature."

I nodded, sniffing as I smelled a familiar scent. I barely glanced back. "Genma!"

"Hey, kiddo." He patted me on my beanie and glanced at the others. "What's going on here?"

"Yanagikage-san is going to teach me a jutsu," I said, smiling up at him.

To my surprise, Genma's expression pulled into a frown and he rolled his senbon between his teeth. His gaze flicked to Kokage. "You can't do that."

I blinked. "Ehh? Why ever not?"

He glanced at me and crouched down, pinching my cheeks. "You're chakra hypersensitive, remember? Remember what happened last time someone used a big jutsu around you? You ended up in the hospital."

I pouted, offering my best puppy dog eyes. "But Genma," I whined. "I'll be fine. It hurts, but I'm getting used to it. I promise!" I put my hands on my hips. "Besides, how do you expect me to become a shinobi if I can't learn jutsu."

"You're five."

"We're almost six!" Naruto piped up. "Who are you, by the way? How do you know Rai, dattebayo? And about her chakara—"

"Chakra," I amended.

"—hysenmativity."

I sighed. "Hypersensitivity, Nato." Then I turned to Kokage. "So, Yanagikage-sensei. What are you going to teach me?"

Chapter End

Answer: Personally, I would have to say my favorite is henge. While the others are definitely awesome and should really be used way more (especially kawarimi), I just can't argue against the idea of looking however I want. Just the bare bones of henge gives me so many idea for what it would make possible.

Question: In regards to the PJO fandom, who's your godly parent?

Today's suggested fanfic: Of the River and the Sea by Aleycat4eva. (Warning: Only start this fanfic if you're willing to put aside your life entirely until you finish it. It's fantastic.)