Disclaimer: The characters are Masashi Kishimoto's property, I own the OCs.

Characters age:

Akane: 9 (42)

Itachi: 9 (25)

Shisui: 13

Naruto / Sasuke: 4

Kakashi: 18

"Up!" Darui and Shinko both jumped, like me as I went through hand seals. "Suiton: Big Waterfall Technique!" I spat a huge amount of water from my mouth. They didn't even scream for those who fell because of the weight that fell on them. Once on the ground, I glanced at Darui.

He used a powerful Raiton that shocked some of the shinobi down there. We landed back on the ground. We still had a dozen of powerful shinobi standing, the others not dead. They could get up at any moments.

"Those still standing are jounins, those on the ground chuunin except for two new jounin," Darui informed us sternly.

"Thanks, you have other good news like that?" I replied sarcastically.

"Three made it through the Second and Third Wars." I rolled my eyes and he smirked.

"Shinko, stay back," I told her, knowing she was terrified and not ready to face them. I handed her a paper seal. "If someone is too close, put this on the ground and activate it, like an Explosive tag." She nodded slowly.

Darui and I ran to them. I wouldn't last for too long in taijutsu with my size and their numbers, and genjutsu would screw me over. Ninjutsu, Fuinjutsu, they were my go-to.

"Fuuton: High Wind Technique!" Two strong gusts of wind left my sides to get rid of a dangerous looking Raiton

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed someone about to kill Darui from behind. I slipped to him by making ice on the ground and placed my hand on his abdomen. I made ice behind my palm and put an Explosive Seal on it, too weak to kill, but strong enough to send the guy back in the trees. Which I did. I didn't have the time to say anything that Darui's blade was in front of my eyes, small sparks dancing on it as the woman convulsed before falling.

We shared a look and nodded at each other before my back was against his. Shinko used the seal, putting everyone around her in an Immobility Seal. I knocked out the two near to her and was punched in my wound at the shoulder, making it bleed again, then I was punched in the cheek.

One of my baby teeth came out, like blood. I was getting tired, but they were still standing. Darui was also still clearly tired so…

It was bad. There were five remaining. It was five too much.

"LARIAT!" Darui got me out of the way and close to Shinko as someone appeared and got one in a chokehold, sending her away. Then, the someone raised their arm, fist closed except for the fore finger and pinky, imitating a bull. "Fools, ya fools!" I blinked, Shinko blinked, and we glanced at each other.

That was…an entrance. Wait, that catch phrase…

"B-sama!" Darui exclaimed relieved. Wow, I had seen B-san before but…

Well not gonna lie, it was weird seeing people young when I knew them as middle-aged adults.

"Darui, you okay?" B-san asked him more seriously. Darui nodded and B-san dealt with the others. Once the last shinobi fell to the ground, he cracked his back. "Finally, some action!" He looked at Shinko and I, his demeanor changing. "Konoha?"

"They're…they saved my life, we fought together. We think there is something weird going on and both Konoha and Kumo are pawns in it." He nodded at Darui and took a small notebook to write in it.

"'Pawns' could be good…" he muttered. Other Kumo shinobi appeared, and Shinko got closer to me.

"Darui!"

"C, you're here too?" I knew him. C was a lot shorter though.

"We have a shortage of sensors, I guided them here!" He ran to Darui and started healing him.

"Sorry." C glanced at us, then Darui. "They're okay."

I gulped when none other than the Fourth Raikage, younger though, appeared. Well, the first time I had seen him I was twelve because my Chuunin Exams were in Kumo but still, he was young. Young and far from having been the Leader of the Alliance during the Fourth Shinobi War, far from being at peace with the other Nations.

If anything, the chances were that he was rasher today, meaning we had to be extra careful.

"Raikage-sama!" Shinko tensed and I took a deep breath. His harsh gaze fell upon Darui, and us.

"Darui, what's the meaning of this?"

"They helped me and saved my life when the others turned against me." He frowned at that.

"Turned against you?" He glanced at the unconscious shinobi around. "They attacked you too?" He nodded. "You and not just the girls?"

"No, I was also a target." A guy walked over a shinobi on the ground and checked his pulse.

"Dead." I raised a brow. I had not…

Oh right, the Immobility Seal did kill someone earlier too…I still didn't know what caused this reaction.

"Can you identify the cause Dodai?" He nodded and removed the bandana that was the forehead-protector. The man was bald, and I frowned when I spotted something black on his scalp.

"I think…the last seal put on him clashed with the one on the head but…it's not one from Kumo." Dodai looked at the Raikage. "He didn't have it before leaving the village, I'm sure of it." Huh? My seals never clashed with another.

But again…in battle it would not be my main concern.

A looked down at Shinko and me.

"Make them talk," he ordered a guy.

"Wai…" The guy pushed Darui out of the way and went for Shinko. I went in front of her and let him lift me up by my collar. I grabbed his wrist and his confident smirk turned to confusion when he went limp due to my Immobility Seal. I landed on my feet and glanced up at A, who had raised a curious brow at me. He pointed at the body next to Dodai and I nodded.

"You're what, seven?" I frowned.

"I'm nine." I took my forehead protector and put it back around my neck. "I'm aware our villages do not get along currently, but we have reasons to think there is a third party involved."

"Do you now?"

"Raikage-sama." He looked at Darui. "Please hear us out." A stared harshly at Darui for long, long seconds.

"If you make me waste my time, there will be repercussions Darui." He nodded.

"We think there is a third party playing with all of us," he blurted out, taking a deep breath. "Their squad was sent here to look for us and what we were doing in the country. My squad was sent here for the same reason, and then last night when I came back from relieving myself, they all were…strange and started attacking me. The girls found me at dawn about to be killed and saved my life, which led us to realize someone else was toying with us."

"Are you sure it's not the Sharingan?" I blinked.

"I highly doubt it as we were attacked as well," I informed him. "We had people after us until we ran into Darui."

"It might be possible someone saw a good opportunity in our conflict to do some experimentations," this Dodai suggested before glancing harshly at the guy on the ground. "This seal is not nothing, if someone just made it, they would need guinea pigs."

"If it is correct, then we need to find that someone and put an end to their schemes," A stated firmly. I stretched out my hand to him.

"Please let us help Raikage-sama," I asked him, mustering as much bravery and confidence I could. No matter how you looked at it, I was nine so asking him to take me seriously was…a lot.

"Even if it is true, I will not ally ourselves with Konoha," he refused coldly, narrowing dangerous eyes to me and Shinko. My hand fell limply by my side, and I gulped as quietly as possible.

I looked around us and went back to Shinko as the shinobi became hostile.

"Are you going to kill us then?" A snorted.

"Hostages will be en…"

"Now please wait a second Raikage-sama!" I widened my eyes, like him at the new voice.

Jiraya-san was there, walking through the shinobi with his hands in the air.

"I am sure we can talk this out."

"Why is a sannin here?"

"Obviously because two genin got more than they could chew." He stopped in front of us. "Now, let's talk about whoever decided to turn your men into mindless puppets." Jiraya-san's presence made the Raikage reconsider. He glanced at his men around and raised his hand, telling them to drop the hostility. "Now, may I look at this seal you've mentioned? I promise I won't try any funny business."

"Alright," A accepted begrudgingly. Jiraya-san was a lot more imposing than I was, that was for sure.

"Thank you. Girls, follow me. I need assistants." We did.

We inspected the body for a few minutes before Jiraya-san asked us if we had a way to know how it was inside. I nodded and pulled a prognostic seal from my notebook. I put it on the body, and we waited.

"I have never seen this before," the Sannin remarked, and I just shrugged.

"Why are you here Jiraya-sama?" Shinko asked him quietly.

"Kakashi sent Pakkun to Minato, who then sent me a message via a toad and here I am. I think we won't get out of here without him coming for real though. Once we are done here, I'll send something."

"What about them?" I inquired in a whisper. Jiraya-san glanced at them from the corner of his eyes, the Raikage staring at us with his arms crossed. B-san was silent next to him.

At least it seemed like Darui was receiving all the care he needed from C.

After a few minutes, I took the prognostic seal and frowned at it. Jiraya-san took it and whistled.

"It is a lot more detailed than the Puppet Seals I have encountered so far," he admitted. "However…"

"It was applied directly to the brain without the protective layer," I finished bleakly.

"What are you whispering about?" Dodai asked us sternly. Jiraya-san stood up.

"The shinobi who have received this Mind Seal have no chance of surviving except as vegetables."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sure one of your Fuinjutsu experts will confirm, but the seals were applied to the brain without a protective layer of chakra in-between. Basically, the seal that was controlling them also burned off their brain to mush." The Raikage glared at the ground. "And it is not Konoha's style, so, we have a problem."

"I agree." The tension was palpable in the air.

We moved a little and Shinko properly bandaged my shoulder. Once this was done, I stared at the Sannin and Kage still talking. I had heard that Minato-san would be called and that was it.

We were still Kumo's hostages though, and I was not a big fan of that.

Part of the shinobi left, taking my forehead protector with them. They were most likely sent to get the rest of the group and took my hitai-ate to prove they had us.

How long were we…

Huh?

There was a man with a mask between the trees, away from the rest. He also had a cloak.

Wait…could it be…Obito?

The figure gestured at me with his hand. I bit the inside of my cheek. It would be dumb to follow him, I was on my own and I'd dive straight to the unknown but…

If he was showing himself to me then…

I glance around. No one was paying me attention as half of the group was gone, the rest talking among themselves. I took this opportunity to go around the bush.

"Where are you going?" Jiraya-san asked me. I tensed.

"I have to pee and…the other one." He pursed his lips.

"Alright, but don't go too far." I nodded.

I didn't go too far, but I made a clone and put a Chakra Concealing Seal on me. I was full of bad ideas because following the masked man was a bad idea but…

There was something deep in my guts telling me I had to follow him. I never seemed to catch up to him though as he'd remain in the distance, gesturing at me to come.

I found myself in a clearing surrounded by naked trees covered in frost. At the center was what used to be a big hole in think, maybe like a cave that had caved in as many rocks were blocking the way. I looked up, the man here. He waved at me and was gone in an instant. I reached where he was too late, and my leg went through rocks. I tried to get out but instead, the rocks crumbled beneath my weight, and I fell through it.

I looked up once I landed on my back with a pained groan. I wouldn't have arrived here had I been an adult.

I stood up, a hand on my bruised back and glanced around. It was a tunnel at first glance. I started walking when I stepped on something. I raised my foot and took the object in my hand, dusting it off. I froze at the dull orange of the goggles.

Weren't they…Obito's? One of the lenses was cracked but…they were his goggles.

I looked up once more in shock and horror. Was it…where Obito was crushed under rocks? Had I found where he was taken by Zetsu…not so long ago in present time?

Oh shoot.

I had to continue though because there was no way I could leave the same way I had gotten here.

So I did. I walked, and walked, and walked until I felt a breeze. I ran to it and was quickly outside. The masked man was there, waiting for me.

"Are you responsible for those Mind Seals!?" I asked him with a frown. He nodded. "What's your deal!?"

It was strange.

I used to hate being a kunoichi, yet since I had started here, I was handling it better. I wasn't sure if it was because I had real breaks from it or anything, but I was not even half the emotional mess I was in Kiri.

I felt less guilty about killing people as well.

Which was probably why I had run after him. Because I was more confident. However, as he removed his mask, a face that was not Obito appearing, I paled, and all of my confidence left my body.

In the blink of an eye, I had his fist in my stomach and spat before he dragged me away. I managed to grab my lucky charm and threw it on the ground, hoping it would be enough for Kakashi to find me.

I was in a bad, bad situation and the worst was, I was shaking like a leaf, frozen in fear.

"He was stalling?" Itachi repeated. Kakashi nodded.

"For what I can't say but…he was stalling."

They fought the man for a long time. Itachi had tried genjutsu on him, only to feel like he was looking into a mirror. He had no idea who he was, but he was a serious issue.

Once he left, they had put Yuki's body in a scroll and started running. One of Kakashi's ninkens was at the front, saying he had a lead. So they ran, and ran, and ran until they were surrounded by Kumo. Kakashi stepped in front of him and Tenma and frowned when he saw the forehead protector in the hand of the shinobi.

"The Raikage has your friend, you have to follow us." Kumo was outnumbering them, so it was safer to do as they were told.

They followed them, only to find Shinko and Jiraya with the Raikage. The whole situation was strange.

"Kakashi, bad news, Akane decided to fly solo!" Jiraya greeted them, the Raikage staring at them. Itachi also recognized a younger Killer B.

"Of course, she did," Kakashi muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.

He was not going to lie, he wanted to shake her like a tree to see if it would set her straight.

"The Hokage is on his way as we are speaking, go look for her." Kakashi glanced at the Raikage. "It's fine Kakashi, I will stay with them to show our good faith."

"I'm going too," Itachi told the Copy Ninja.

"Raikage-sama!" a shinobi from Kumo almost yelled to his Kage. A merely glanced at them.

"Let them go. They'll come back on their own." If the Hokage was coming…then yes, they would.

The Raikage was strangely calm despite one of his hostages leaving.

Kakashi took the forehead protector and gave it to his ninken, who smelled it and left, Itachi and Kakashi after him. Itachi noticed Kakashi tensing before speeding up. They reached a clearing, the ninken sniffing a pile of rocks in a ditch.

"It's a fucking nightmare," he heard Kakashi mutter under his breath as the ninken stopped at the spot on the rocks. "What did you find?" They joined the dog.

"Akane's smell goes down there but it's too faint for me to follow it." Kakashi glanced at the hole.

"Would you be able to follow me?" They looked at Itachi, who was staring at the hole as well. "Akane and I have the same built, if she slipped in there then so can I."

"That I can do, just give me something that's yours." He handed his forehead protector.

"Itachi, are you sure?" He nodded without an ounce of hesitation.

"It looks like Akane wasn't planning on falling down, the hole seems too recent for it." Without further words, he slipped in the hole as well. He landed on both his feet and looked around.

It was a tunnel made in the earth. Itachi frowned at the footsteps in the soils, still fresh. They also matched his footsteps, meaning they belonged to a child.

"Itachi, can you hear me!?"

"Yes!" he replied, looking up. He could see Kakashi's face. "Akane was there, there are footsteps! I'm going to follow them!"

"Alright, we'll follow you from above!"

He followed the footsteps running. He had a bad feeling regarding why Akane had been down there. After a little while, he felt a breeze and found the exit. Kakashi was not long to arrive and the ninken headed for the bottom of a tree. Frozen snow was still there, slowly being covered by fresh one. The dog removed the snow and Itachi narrowed his eyes, taking the lucky charm on the ground.

"That's Akane's." Itachi glanced up at Kakashi. "She plays with it during missions or when she's thinking," he added, noticing Itachi's surprise.

He pursed his lips and put it in his pockets. He'd be happy to hear that once he'd know she was safe and sound.

"They're close."

"'They'?" Itachi repeated.

"She's not alone. It's…weird."

"What?"

"The other's smell seems familiar almost."

"Where?" Itachi asked him.

They reached a cave. It was deep, a few bats flying away as they were getting deeper and deeper in it. At some point, there were two pathways.

"I can smell Akane that way, but the other is…"

"Itachi, you go get Akane with Urushi, I'll deal with the masked man." Kakashi didn't give him the time to say something that he was gone.

"Show me the way," he ended up saying to Urushi.

The dark and cramped tunnel started to widen until they were in a cavity. Itachi and Urushi rushed to Akane, who was flat on her stomach, not moving. Itachi knelt next to her and turned her around, shaking her to wake her up.

"Come on Akane!" She groaned and opened confused eyes.

"Itachi?" she said, uncertain. He nodded and she sighed. "Thank god you're here…" She sat and looked around. "Where is 'here'?"

"Who knows. Are you…okay?" Her left shoulder was stained with blood, a white bandage visible when her neck connected to her shoulder. There were splashes of dried blood on her, older than on her shoulder. A bruise was starting to form on her cheek, she grimaced when she rubbed her ankle, and her hair was a mess. She was covered in dirt and was soaked, probably due to the snow.

She was a mess.

"I'll live. Shit, Shinko and Jiraya-san are…"

"We know, we've seen the Raikage." She raised a brow. "He let us come, yes." She stood up, wincing when she leaned too much on her right foot.

"Who's with you?"

"Kakashi, he's dealing with…" She ran off. "Akane, stop doing that!" he yelled behind her.

She fell face first on the ground. He helped her up and had to physically keep her from running again.

"Look, I'll carry you but stop ruining your ankle! You can't fight anymore!"

"We have to hurry!" Her eyes were alarmed, a sense of urgency in them as her whole body was agitated.

"Get on my back." He realized she had goggles around her neck when he felt them against the back of his skull. He would ask later.

Right now, they had to get Kakashi and get out of here. Depending on the masked man's plans, they would let him go and go back to the others. He had not idea how this whole mission would play in the war between Konoha and Kumo.

They stumbled in another cavity, bigger, Kakashi facing the masked man. Akane climbed down from his back as the two men's kunai were clashing with one another. She fell on all four though. He put a knee on the ground to keep her where she was, but she just raised her face toward the two men, terrified.

"Stop!" she yelled with desperation. Kakashi glanced at her quickly and dodged a vicious blow that would have taken his eye. "Dad, stop!"

Itachi froze, gazing at her, dumbfounded. Kakashi cursed something he couldn't hear and ran back to them, staying in front of them. Itachi stood up and went to his left, now looking at the masked man.

"Come on, way to ruin my fun," the man almost whined as he pulled his hood down, the mask now on his head. He had short, disheveled brown hair and his eyes were the same shade of brown as Akane's from what he could see. He didn't look like much; he was probably the same built as Minato-san.

"It explains the weird feeling I've had since I've seen you earlier," Kakashi growled. Itachi had never heard him speak like this, with so much anger and disgust pooling from his words.

"And still unable to stop me." The man stretched out his back, cracking it.

"What do you want Ushio?" He grinned and glanced at Akane, then him before looking back at Kakashi.

"Not much, I just wanted to send the message that I was back."

"And Kumo?" His grin fell and killing intent filled the space.

"As I said, I sent a message. I wanted to see how rusted I was, and I tested a few other things since I…was released."

"Who would do that?"

"Huh, wouldn't you like to know Kakashi?" The Uzumaki showed their surroundings with his finger. "I hope you liked the special touch I put in by making you track Akane to the cave near Kannabi Bridge." Kakashi glared at him. "What, it is where Rin transplanted Obito's sharingan in your socket, isn't it?" Akane grabbed his shirt and pulled herself on her feet.

"What is your plan now?" He shrugged.

"Now, I'm just going to leave. I just want to say 'hi' to my daughter you know." He stepped back. "Now if you'll excuse me…"

"You won't…" Akane grabbed Kakashi's flak jacket before he could make a move. Ushio disappeared. "What?"

"Hiraishin," Akane mumbled. "Just…let him go." He caught her before she could touch the ground as she fainted.

"She needs to rest," Itachi stated. Without a word, Kakashi pried her off his arms and nodded.

They found a small inn on the road. The night was already falling anyway. Kakashi paid for one night, telling Itachi that he'd stay up.

"I'm going to change her," he told Itachi, his eyes in his. Itachi blinked, wondering what he was waiting for. Kakashi cleared his throat. "Itachi, I said I was going to change Akane's clothes, so get out."

"Right, sorry," he mumbled, leaving the room. Of course, Kakashi would preserve Akane's intimacy. He wasn't sure if Akane would want him in the room right now.

He wouldn't care if she saw him with close to no clothes on or nothing at all, she had seen everything already. He wouldn't be surprised if it was the opposite for her though. But there was a time for everything, and right now, Akane getting proper rest was the most important.

After a few minutes, Kakashi opened the door a little and gave him money.

"Go get two dinners and bring them here." He looked back and Itachi heard a soft, quiet voice say something. "And something vanilla or chocolate-flavored too please. I'll eat later when you'll be in bed." He nodded and left to get the meals.

When he came back, Kakashi told him there was another futon in the closet for him and to be careful with Akane, that she was not in a talkative mood. The jounin closed the door behind him, informing him he would update the Hokage about the situation, and Itachi put the trays on the floor before glancing at Akane. She was at the window, staring through it at the falling snow. She looked…small, and fragile in her white indoor yukata.

Things had taken a big, dark turn in less than twenty-four hours.

"Food Akane," he said quietly. She joined him and they ate quietly, Akane munching on her for too long sometimes, her eyes staring at nothing. He pursed his lips once his meal finished, his chopsticks on his empty bowl. "Do you want to talk about it?" It seemed his voice broke her out of her thoughts as she raised surprised eyes to him.

"What?" He smiled softly.

"Nothing. You should go to bed once you're done with your food." She looked down, blushing in embarrassment when she realized she had not even eaten half of it.

He poured her a glass of water when she started to swallow her food in big bites and was already next to her when she choked on a piece of fish. He rubbed her back when she drank the water and looked at the glass.

"Am I that predictable?"

"I wouldn't say that exactly." She sighed and ate her vanilla purin quietly. Once it was done, she went back to her futon.

"Goodnight then." She was not going to say anything tonight.

It would be fine. Seeing her father shook her to her core, he could see it. As she was eating, her hands wouldn't stop the trembling. The only thing she had told him about her family was that her brother was sick like he had been and was killed by their father when said father tried to kill her. Then, she was shipped off to Konoha with Kushina and Minato.

He put their dishes in front of the door in the hallway, got ready for bed and breathed out slowly at the comfort of the futon and the warmth of the blankets on him. The one thing he had gotten used too quickly once more was comfort. Having his own bed, having home-made food, he had missed having all of it and a place he could call 'home'. Of course, he used to think this of Akane's home before, but the Akatsuki and the way his life had been shaped had…tainted it in a way.

"He could have been the Fourth Mizukage," she said suddenly, her back facing him. He narrowed his eyes at the ceiling. "He was offered the position, but they fled instead when I was one. Yagura took the hat, and you know the rest."

"How strong is he?"

"I don't know." There was a short silence where he heard her take a deep breath. "Strong enough to give Minato-san a serious run for his money."

They fought before then.

"Truth is, I don't know him. He stopped being a part of my life when I was four. He…never reappeared before."

"I see."

"I know you must have questions but…I don't want to answer them, I don't think I even know the answer. But…his return is not a good omen, that I am sure of." He didn't say more.

She didn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't ask for more.

He was woken up in the middle of the night by muffled whimpers. He immediately went to Akane's side, who was sweating and struggling against an invisible foe. The second he touched her arm she slapped it away. He took a deep breath and was firmer, grabbing both her wrists with one of his hands so that he could grab her chin.

"Akane, Akane wake up," he said a little bit louder, keeping her from moving. He straddled her to keep her from rolling away.

"Stop, stop…onii-chan…Dad stop…" she begged in her sleep, tears falling.

"Akane." With a firm shake of her head, she opened her eyes wide only to find his onyx gaze above her.

"I…Itachi?" He nodded. "That was…I was…"

"A nightmare." She sniffed.

"A memory," she corrected him. He let go of her wrists and she wiped her nose and eyes. "Sorry for waking you up."

"Don't worry about it." She was panting and slowly, she got her breathing under control. He left her lap and watched her attentively. "Do you want anything?" She shook her head.

"I'…I'm fine, thank you 'tachi." Yet he had no idea how to make her feel better. "I'm…it just brought up a lot of…"

"You're scared." She froze and he put his hand on the top of her head. "But you're not alone, he won't come back."

"You don't know that," she retorted bitterly.

"Not now at least." She looked down, clenching her fist. "Would it make you feel better if we shared a futon?"

"Naughty."

"We're nine." She chuckled.

"I…would appreciate that to be honest." He didn't need to be told twice to slip beneath the blankets next to her. He put the blankets up to their nose as they were facing each other. "Even I am cold in the room, it looks like they don't want to spend on heating."

"It is not what I would call a luxurious inn," he replied quietly. "It is cold though." Akane's arms were around him in a second. He was all too eager to hug her back.

When he heard her breathing in his ear, he hugged her tighter. For all he knew, if they had gotten to her later then maybe, maybe her father would have…

"Are you okay? You're…hurting me a little." He immediately loosened his hold on her.

"Sorry, I forgot." She put a finger on his forehead for a second.

"What's up in there?" He opened his mouth, struggling to find his words. He poked her on the forehead.

"You're not allowed to make me worried on a mission," he ultimately whispered against her, his nose touching her cold one.

"Or else?"

"I'll find something." She smirked.

Itachi took a deep breath and leaned toward her, his lips kissing hers chastely. It was brief, just a peck on her lips really, but it was enough to feel their warmth and softness. He was all too satisfied, and smug, to see her cheeks darkened even with the darkness of the room.

"Wh..what…"

"It's my reward for the race I won."

"Two years ago? At school?" He nodded. "Seriously?" He nuzzled her nose.

"I won fair and square." She chuckled, the sound alike to melody to his ears.

They didn't stay like this for too long because Kakashi opened the door to check on them. Upon seeing them in the same futon, he cleared his throat.

"I will tell the Hokage and Fugaku-san. I'm sure he'll be pleased to hear his nine-year-old son is in bed with a girl." Itachi sighed against Akane's shoulder, who snickered, and went back to his bedding. "You better be in your own bed tomorrow morning, you both." On this note, he closed the door.

Akane moved her futon next to his when he was gone.

"He's great at killing the mood," she muttered, getting back in bed.

"Hn."

"Itachi."

"Yes?"

"Sorry for worrying you."

"Hn. Good night."

"Good night."

He always worried about her, but he would never resent her for it.

Thanks for reading. I hope you have liked it, please do let me know in reviews!

Bye!