"The future is always blank. Only your willpower can leave footsteps there."
Hoshigaki Kisame wouldn't let it show on his face that he was frightfully angry and seriously annoyed. The disgusted and wary expressions of civilians and fellow shinobi alike have long since stopped affecting his heart. He was no longer that weak and naive child who craved love, attention, and most of all acceptance for who he was.
He hadn't asked to be born fucking blue.
But he was and had quickly learned that pain demanded to be felt. It did not care if you were hurt or healed from previous torment. It came in like a tsunami and left with only wreckage to be cleaned up. Pain also left imprints in places where bandages or medicines couldn't fix or heal. Pain left scars. It left smudges like ink from a brush pressed in one place too long on paper. It left bruises, smears, stains, and traces left behind that could be tracked. Pain was agony, and he's been accompanied by both since the day his first cry of life was heard.
So despite the raging pain and hollowed grief that howled beneath his skin and fractured soul, he never broke from his icy and intimidating appearance.
"Why did I have to come with you, future shark-bait?" Momochi Zabuza growled out completely miffed as he swung his sword Kubikiribocho on his back carelessly, nearly cleaving a passing civilian in half.
Kisame rolled his eyes hard enough that he caught a brief glimpse of what his brain looked like. "Because Fuguki-sensei stated you needed to be watched Little Demon." He replied with clear annoyance in his tone.
"I don't need to be watched, damn it!" Zabuza roared out with an indignant expression clear on his face, despite half of it being covered by bandages.
"Sure you don't." Kisame dryly replied with a quick pointed look thrown over his slowly towering figure. He wasn't the one who killed several academy students before said murderer was even in school himself.
Kisame heaved another sigh of irritation before he grabbed Zabuza by his ear and dragged him into the Swordmaker's shop. The scene he comes across makes him pause and let go of the other's ear he had been holding in a tight pinch.
"Shisui-san, stop poking Samehada, she's becoming annoyed!" A rather childish voice chided, and when Kisame properly gathered his bearings, he saw sitting in the renowned Hamasaki shop a toddler with loud hair in shades and hues of different pinks and light reds. The other occupant much older than the first was a young preteen boy, and he knew he was an Uchiha. It was not because of the Uchiha symbol sewn in his clothes, but because of his dark and handsome features alone.
The scene before him put him on edge, because everyone knew that Hamasaki Sadao was not friendly and allowed anyone to browse in his shop carelessly while touching things.
"A sword can't be annoyed, Haruno-chan!" The Uchiha whined out as he attempted to poke Kisame's future beloved sword Samehada, only to get his hand slapped away.
Sakura gave a sassy huff as she rolled her eyes at the childish Uchiha. "Well, of course, not all swords can be." She paused for a second to give the wrapped sword a fond pat. "But this sword is special because it's sentient."
Kisame snapped as he watched a scrawny pocky-sized girl treat a sword as if it was simply a pet to play with. "Brat, what are you doing with my sensei's sword?" Kisame snarled out as he stepped forward, pointing a blue finger at the pink haired child.
The green eyed toddler glanced up from the book she had been reading to narrow her eyes at Kisame to give him her own snark, while showing off her own shark-like teeth, proving in truth of her Kiri heritage. "I'm watching it for my Oji-san until he gets back, Shark-Fin Soup!" she retorted, causing Zabuza to bark out an amused laugh while Shisui stared on in panic, hoping the large blue man would not try and kill her. After all, he would rather not have to break peace treaties if he could help it.
Also, he wanted to live too and not face the wrath of the one called Haruno Mebuki.
Not that Kisame would understand that.
Nor would he know that the currently pink haired child was seriously regretting her decision to travel back in time. The littlest of ripples she had already made caused the calm pond to shift into a rapid flowing river. The first person she had to meet was Uchiha Shisui, famed for being Uchiha Itachi's best friend, and notable for being highly skilled in using the body flicker technique. It had earned him the moniker Shisui of the Body Flicker, and many believed he could have been on par and even exceeded the Yondaime if he had lived past fourteen.
The next two people she encountered were one she witnessed die on her first c-rank, while the other was a man who hunted after her best friend for years before his own death.
Shisui paled as he held up his hands in a surrender position, discretely stepping in front of Sakura to shield her. "She's just a little kid! She didn't mean to call you Shark-Fin Soup."
Sakura scowled at Shisui in annoyance as she kicked at the underside of the table so it would briefly dig into the lower end of the Uchiha's back legs."Of course I meant to call Catfish that!" She leaned up on her palms to pull herself up onto the table, so she could glare at Kisame, who was now showing his annoyance with her and her insultive nicknames. "Even if he looks intimidating and cool." She muttered underneath her breath, before giving a sly smile coated in sharp sweetness. "I can touch your sensei's sword all I want."
"WHY YOU BRAT! I-LL-" Roared Kisame as he went to grab the little girl and strangle her to death. However, the feeling of a sharp cool blade against his neck had him pausing in his footsteps.
"Now I hope you are not planning to harm my only niece, Hoshigaki-san." An overly cheerful but deadly sharp voice chirped out.
Sakura gave a loud gleeful squeal of happiness, as she spotted her uncle jumping off the table, shoving an offended Shisui out of the way during the process. "Sadao-oji!" she happily exclaimed as she clung tightly to a man in his late thirties with long ash-red hair in a low ponytail. "Leave the goldfish alone Oji-san! I like him."
Sakura really didn't want her uncle to die if a fight broke out.
Sadao heaved a reluctant sigh as he lowered his blade from Kisame's throat. Kisame lightly rubs his neck as he let's out the breath he had been holding to bow to the elder man. "This one apologizes for the offense he has done against you Hamasaki-sama." He ended politely sneakily, sending Sakura another glare as the sword-maker turned towards his desk.
Sadao-sama let out a low hum as he tossed the thin blade onto his desk with a loud clang, as it slightly bounced off the edge of Samehada in the process. "I take it Suikazan-san has sent you here to pick up Samehada, Hoshigaki-san?"
"Hai, Hamasaki-sama." Kisame grumbled out as he crossed his arms over his chest, while ignoring the feeling of being intently stared at by a pink haired brat. He should say demon really. He should know, as he has met quite a few, not including himself.
Sadao gave out another low idle hum, "I don't think I should return the sword." He mused out as he ran his fingers down Samehada in a gentle loving manner one would do to their child to soothe them to sleep. "After all, you did just try to hurt my sweet niece. A niece I am finally meeting after so many years of being apart. A nice from my favorite imouto-chan."
"But Oji-chan, Kaa-chan is your only sister." Sakura butted in with a pout.
Sadao gave a light thump on her head, "Not the point." He turned a stern and cold glare at Kisame, who was now a sickly pale blue instead of his usual deep ocean blue hue. "So why should I give back a sword my great-grandfather created and my generational family has fixed and kept together over the years? By the treaty created by the Mizukage, we own the swords, but they are on loan to you swordsmen."
Kisame inwardly swallowed the lump, trying to strangle him while sweat gathered at his brow due to fear. Sometimes Kisame truly forgets that the swords the Seven Swordsmen use were not actually theirs. They were just borrowing until their death, or when both sword and sword maker approved of them. Kisame knew the swords from the Hamasaki clan were powerful and only fully loyal to the Hamasaki bloodline.
It just so happened that this particular clan made all the seven swords. So in reality, Sadao could take back all the swords, and not even the Mizukage could stop him from doing so. Their leader could try, but the end result would be lifeless swords who would refuse to work, and a talented clan pointlessly dead. Kisame glanced at Zabuza and saw how he too had become pale at Sadao's reply. Kisame inwardly winced, knowing if he came back empty-handed, how displeased his sensei would be with him. It wouldn't be pretty, and it would hurt. Kisame quickly sat aside any pride he had, and got down on his knees to bow deeply before Sadao and his niece. "Please allow me to take Samehada back to my sensei, Sadao-sama. I am willing to do anything in return."
Sadao turned to fully face the bowing shark-man with a dark twinkle in his eye. "Anything you say?" he questioned, causing Kisame to reluctantly nod his head. "Then you can take Sakura-chan on as an apprentice while she stays here in Kiri. I can only teach her on the weekends."
Kisame's jaw dropped in shock.
"EH?!" Sakura, Shisui, and Zabuza exclaimed loudly as all three wore identical expressions of disbelief.