Sumire's POV

It's already past seven in the morning so I'm prepared to leave the inn that Eiji and I had been staying at the moment. We're supposed to leave today to resume our travels to deliver the last batch of goods to our next destination.

I'm an early riser so I am usually done with my morning routine and daily training at this hour. On the other hand, my current travel buddy is quite the opposite so he's still probably sleeping soundly in his room next door. I'm not really happy about it since I have to wait for him every morning in order for us to proceed with our agenda for the day.

Leaving this stuffy room to spend my morning outdoors might be a good idea. A walk to the park would be nice as I wait for my companion to wake up and get ready for our departure.

As I passed by the side of the inn, a gentle snorting sound caught my attention. It was Yume, Eiji's newly acquired horse, tied up securely inside the inn's stable. He bought this stallion in the village where he got attacked because his previous one had run away and got lost during the incident. He needed the horse to pull his wagon since he had multiple crates with him and traveling by foot with all those heavy cargoes isn't really ideal.

I approached the stallion and gently stroked its chestnut mane. "Are you hungry, Yume?" I asked the animal in a hushed tone while I was reaching out for the apple I have in my pocket. It's supposedly my breakfast for today, but I gave it to Yume instead and he gladly munched on without delay.

I continued my way to the park and spotted a bench. This seems like a perfect place to spend my morning and complete the illustration I've been diligently working on lately, so I immediately unsealed my drawing materials and sat comfortably on the bench.

I'm currently working on a sketch of the boy I love, trying to capture his masked face and piercing gaze on paper the way I remembered him during the night I met him at the shores of the Land of Sea. It's taking me longer to finish this drawing since I wanted it to look perfect.

My hand expertly glided the graphite onto the paper, but my attention was divided since my mind wanders to the thoughts that I constantly have at the back of my mind, making it harder for me to fully focus on the task I am doing at the moment.

I was twelve when I started remembering the forgotten memories that I had when I was younger.

I know the silver-haired boy by heart now since he was mostly all I could see in those memories and all I could think about. His very adoring eye smiles, the way he always put his hands on his pockets when he walks, his very calm demeanor that rubs off on you, his soothing voice that whispers sweet words in my ears, the books he always brought everywhere with him, his love for miso soup with eggplant and salt-broiled saury, the way his silver hair would move against the wind, and the "power hug" that always made me melt from my spot.

He is the source of inspiration for most of my art, the subject of my artistic creations.

I have so many sketches, portrait drawings, and paintings of the silver-haired boy the way I remembered him in my memories. Most of these artworks are in a blank book dedicated entirely to him, but I have several on canvases as well.

I could probably have an art show entirely just about him if I wanted to.

However, with all the things I recalled about him, his name was not one of them.

I tried racking my brain multiple times for any memory that might somehow include his name, but it was all futile because I could not remember it at all.

The brief meeting I had with him on the night he aided in subduing my pursuers as I escaped Umi no Kuni made me think about him more.

I mentally cursed myself for not remembering to ask for his name back then. However, I still felt happy because I was able to see him and hold him close to me even with the chaos that was ensuing around us during that time. I couldn't stop reminiscing about our encounter, and my affections for him became even more intense as each day passed.

I terribly miss him and badly wanted to see him again.

There were days when I just wanted to run straight to Konohagakure and find him there. However, there may be foes within the Leaf village who wish to harm me for their own selfish interests. I recalled him telling me not to trust anyone easily, not even people from Konoha, and I heeded his warning well.

This made me hesitant to go back there.

I'd consider returning only when I feel adequately prepared to do so, or if circumstances naturally lead me back to the village. I wouldn't actively choose to go back home because doing so would only invite danger back into my life.

The idea of reuniting with the silver-haired boy whom I yearn for day and night could wait a little longer. No matter how much I miss him, I need to hold myself back and restrain my emotions.

In the meantime, I would rely on the chakra pulses we exchanged on a daily basis to lessen my longing for him, and compelled myself to find contentment in seeing his face solely through the dreams and memories I have of him.

"Who are you drawing?" asked by a deep voice behind me suddenly. It made me panic a little, making me drop the pencil I have at hand, and balled my fist out of instinct. I'm ready to punch whoever startled me and interrupted my quiet morning, but I calmed down as soon as I recognized who it was.

It was Eiji with his head peeking over my right shoulder as I sat on the bench, his green eyes locked on the illustration I was working on in my sketchbook.

I replied while reaching out for the pencil I dropped on the ground, "Don't startle me like that! How long have you been here?"

I didn't notice his presence, so I clearly need to refine my ability as a sensor more. I often find myself spacing out recently and it makes me unaware of my surroundings most of the time.

"Around five minutes", said Eiji as he sat next to me. The brown-haired boy started to reach inside the paper bag he had been carrying and said, "I got you an onigiri with pickled plum filling, you told me before that you like that best." He removed the lid from the takeout box before handing it to me, "Eat your breakfast first, Sumi-chan."

I accepted the box of goodness and my eyes scanned its contents. Six pieces of rice balls were inside and it looked really delicious.

"Thank you." I gave him a smile before I started eating the rice balls. The pickled plums have a tangy and salty taste, and I like its distinct and unique flavor that's why it's my favorite.

Eiji also has a box of onigiri in hand. He's happily savoring the flavored rice balls and already about to finish it since he only had one remaining on the box. I asked, "What kind of onigiri do you have?"

"Tuna mayo", he answered. Then offered the last piece to me and said, "Have a bite, see if you'll like it."

I am not a fan of mayo so I have never tried this kind of onigiri yet. I told the green-eyed guy next to me, "I don't like mayo."

"Just a small bite. Give it a chance, Sumi-chan." He brought it close to my mouth and gestured for me to try it.

"Alright, just one bite." I gave him a disapproving look before I took a bite just to shut him up. The expression on my face as I chewed the food definitely shows that I didn't like how it tasted.

He laughed at my reaction and commented, "I'm not gonna force you to finish the whole thing if you really didn't like it." Then he ate the remaining tuna mayo onigiri to finish it on my behalf.

"You can eat these too if you're still hungry, I'm already full." I handed him the box of pickled plum onigiri, it still has four pieces of rice balls left so there's plenty more for him to eat.

"I'll save it for your snack later. You'll probably get hungry while we're traveling," he started to roll the sleeves covering his left arm and I was surprised to see that it was covered in ink. He channeled a bit of chakra to one of the marked symbols on his skin and unsealed a normal looking storage scroll from it.

Afterwards, he sealed the box containing the leftover rice balls into the storage scroll, and then just stashed the scroll in his pockets.

"I didn't know you have sealing marks on your body." I was definitely surprised. Eiji mentioned he knows Fuinjutsu but I didn't realize how advanced his knowledge about it was until I saw the intricate patterns and symbols inked on his skin.

"There's a lot more you don't know about my body yet," he gave me a teasing wink as he said that. Then he whispered in my ear, "I'll let you explore it, if you want."

It made my cheeks red from embarrassment and anger.

I took a kunai from my weapons pouch and then whispered back in his ear, "I'll explore it with this."

"Come on, you know I'm kidding," he patted my head while chuckling at my violent reaction.

"You know I'm not," I said as I returned the blade back on my pouch.

Eiji looked very amused at my reaction. He casually drops suggestive remarks like that sometimes, usually just to irritate me or to tease me, I think he only does that out of boredom or perhaps he likes to rile me up with his antics because he simply enjoys annoying me to death.

But even though he is like that, I've never felt unsafe with him and I know I could count on him.

His thoughtfulness, caring nature, and reliability shows through his actions. The simple gestures he does such as bringing me breakfast and remembering to get pickled plum onigiri since it's my favorite reveal the kind of person he truly is and made me certain that he is a good guy.

During the short amount of time we've spent together these past weeks, we are already familiar with each other like how friends are, so he knows when to stop annoying me since I'm about to lose my temper if he continues his teasing remarks.

He dropped the sly smile on his face and became serious as he changed the topic of our conversation. Eiji asked as he pointed to the drawing in my sketchbook, "So who's the lucky guy?"

I vaguely replied, "Someone important."

"Do you miss him?" He asked while glancing my way.

"Everyday," a sad smile was on my face when I answered his question.

"Sorry for asking and making you sad," Eiji had a soft look in his eyes as he said that. "Let's go, I'll get you something sweet to make you happy before we leave this village." He pulled me to stand up afterwards before guiding me towards the area in this village where the shops are located.

"Want some mochi? Or maybe dango?" He asked while scanning our surroundings.

I replied, "No need, I'm still full."

He pouted at my response and said, "But I want to treat you with something."

I stopped walking and glanced at him, this guy might look cool and intimidating but he is too childish sometimes. A sigh escaped my lips as I thought of something so we could reach a compromise, "How about coffee?"

He beamed at that and then led me to a nearby cafe. The green-eyed guy held the door open for me and stated happily, "After you, my lady."

We left the village after having our caffeine fix.

It's been ten weeks since I tagged along with him on his journey across Hi no Kuni. The travel time took longer than I had anticipated as we were moving at a civilian pace and took the safest route available, even if we had to take a detour, just to make sure we could avoid confrontation with thieves or bandits.

We stopped at towns or cities to drop off the deliveries and there were days when he had to attend business meetings on behalf of his father as well.

We're currently heading to a place called Tanzaku Gai, it's the last destination for the final batch of deliveries so our trip will soon come to an end.

"You're coming with me to the capital, right?" Asked Eiji as he guided the horse along the road.

I nodded in response, "You've been telling me stories non-stop about that place so you'll need to tour me around the city when we get there."

"You can bet on it, I'd definitely tour you around and we can call it a date," said Eiji with a smirk on his face. "You can have me all for yourself once we're there, Sumi-chan."

"Oh shut it, baka. You know I don't mean it like that!" I exclaimed in irritation at him. He definitely knows how to push my buttons and he's incredibly good at it.

"I'm hurt by your rejection. Do you know how many girls back in the city are dying to get a date with me and would gladly say yes if they're in your place?" He was pouting and had a sad expression on his face which definitely looked fake.

"Then ask them instead," I replied with a poker face.

"But seriously, I know you'll like it there," said Eiji as his expression turned to excitement in an instant. "There's a lot of beautiful sceneries you could draw or paint around the capital, and I'll also bring you over to our shops and facilities."

"What's your family business anyway? You've never told me in detail what it's about yet even though I've been helping you out for more than two months already." It had been at the back of my mind to ask him the past days so I decided to question him about it now.

"Our main business is called Collections by Akinari. You'll know more about our products once I'll show you around the shop after we arrive in the city," he explained.

I asked curiously, "Is Akinari your family name?"

He nodded at my question and then gave me a sly smile. The stupid grin on his face tells me he'll probably say something to tease me again.

"Do you like it? Just tell me if you want to add it next to your name so I could do something about it to make it official," he gave me a suggestive wink afterwards. "Sumi Akinari sounds good."

"No thank you, Eiji Akinari." I gave him a confident look and said, "My name is perfectly fine without it."

He held his hands to his chest and acted like he was hurt, "You're breaking my heart here, Sumi-chan. It's the second time you turned me down today."

"Stop it, Eiji-baka." This is how we normally interact, tolerating each other's comments and acts everyday, so I could confidently say that we've become friends already.

I'm still interested and curious about their family business so I questioned him about it, "On a serious note, why does it have to be you to personally deliver the items to your clients, can't you hire workers for that?"

He answered my question in detail, "My father can't really just trust anyone with the deliveries since all the items are very valuable and pricey. You saw the attack that I suffered from, imagine if somebody incompetent was in my place and had no means to protect the products we need to deliver. I'm lucky I could use Fuinjutsu to my advantage and was capable enough to stand my ground in a fistfight so I survived."

I only nodded at his words to show that I understood what he meant.

"Father said it's also a way to train me with how the business operates. He even asked me to attend a couple of meetings with prospective clients and business partners." Eiji looked at me with a proud smile, I'm sure he feels happy since his father found him reliable enough to entrust him with important duties.

"Then you're probably busy because of your work duties." If he's been doing obligations in their family business, he probably won't have enough free time and I don't want to impose. "You don't need to show me around the capital, I'm sure I could easily find my way around that place."

"I'm never too busy for you," he replied while giving me a wink.

"I'll poke your eye if you wink at me like that again," he chuckled at my threatening remark.

"Seriously though, I always have time to hangout with my friends and I could even introduce you to some of them if you want to have more acquaintances," said Eiji while looking my way.

"Ehh.. I'm not really a people person. You don't need to introduce me to your acquaintances since socializing is not really my thing." I told him that since I want to limit the number of people I'll interact with as much as I can.

"Better for me then since I'll have more of your attention," he chuckled at his own words.

"You're draining my energy with your comments, Eiji." I expressed my complaint with a defeated look on my face, "Stop it or I might not last through the remaining journey."

"If you're already feeling drained, just say the word and we can stop by so I can show you different ways on how I could energize your body, I could start with-" I put my palm over his mouth to stop him from further saying anything.

After spending ten weeks with this guy, I discovered that my patience was truly remarkable since I managed to refrain myself from strangling him despite how he always finds the words that tick me off.

"Sometimes I wonder if I did the right thing when I helped you back then, should've left you alone on that road instead." I gave him a smirk as I said that.

"I know you don't mean that," he glanced at me with a smile that looked both charming and annoying, "You even put those magic balms on my wounds and helped me with my broken arm so I know you can't resist my charms."

"I'll break that arm again if you don't stop." I deadpanned at him, "You're a big baby, utterly childish and immature."

He gasped loudly and said, "Did you just call me baby?"

I could feel my face heating up from his teasing remarks, my cheeks and ears probably turned so red from embarrassment. I exclaimed at him, "No, I did not!"

He started howling with laughter upon observing my flustered face, very amused with how I reacted from the words he had been torturing me with all throughout this morning, but his laugh was very contagious so I soon found myself cackling along with him.

I blurted out loudly, "You're annoying, Eiji."

"I'm your annoying Eiji," he emphasized the word "your" as he repeated my previous statement.

I could only sigh deeply in frustration since he's not about to stop with his witty comebacks.

"Don't sigh too much when you daydream about me, Sumi-chan." I only gave him a glare instead of saying anything back at him.

I guess I just need to shut up since this conversation would drag on if I kept on retorting back at his words. I think his new life mission is to drive me crazy everyday, and he's clearly succeeding since he had been doing it since the day we met.