(Edited: 07/19/2021)

(Edited: 08/21/2020)

Always fighting battles, but it never seems to end

Are we just ladders in the world of snakes?

'Cause if life's one big fuckin' game, well, I don't wanna play

So come and sing me, sing me to sleep

I dealt with too much fuckin' shit and now I'm in too deep

Cut off my wings, my flowers bloomed

You want salvation? Well, I'm sorry, we're all doomed

(~Bring Me The Horizon: Doomed, Extended Intro)

Chapter 7: Nothing Really Lasts Forever

After the day Itachi (literally) flung himself off a cliff, I clung to him like a (annoying) second skin. It mattered not that a large portion of the Uchiha Clan wasn't accepting of my friendship with their young heir.

I was used to hearing his clan's elderly whispering vile, venomous things about how Itachi "should be hanging around an Uchiha child, not an Uzumaki." Or, "That Uzumaki brat is brainwashing him—look at how he acts in public! So unrefined."

The times someone would say something particularly nasty about my Clan, Itachi physically had to pull me away. If they wanted to talk shit, they had better be prepared to back it up when confronted, even if a toddler foaming from the mouth was the one to dish out the pain.

At least, that was how I imagined it in my mind. The sad reality was, more times than not, I was the one who got hurt, not them. It didn't matter. I sported my cuts and bruises with dignity.

After the day I was bullied, there was an emptiness left in me. The truest wakeup call I had ever received. When I was done feeling afraid, I became angry. At my small, defenseless body. At this world.

In the wake of fear, I made a vow: I would always make my voice heard. Over the whispers and over the screams.

Those who disrespected me, or the people I loved, would receive no sympathy from me. No fucks given. I couldn't stand to feel helpless against their unjust prejudice.

Alas, the only time I left my best friend alone was when his dad would teach him Uchiha techniques. Itachi had spoken against his father's orders at first, saying I could hang around, but I politely refused.

He could use the alone time with his father, considering how often Fugaku was sent on missions these days. It was something I could understand. Minato and Kushina were always on missions, only getting a day's rest between being gone for weeks or months, before Kushina became pregnant.

The Uchiha Head seemed grateful about my refusal, and later insistence.

Honestly, Fugaku wasn't even that bad of a guy. He was grumpy and quiet: more interested in listening and thinking than speaking—but not directly mean.

He was actually a bit awkward. A lot like Itachi, really, just more prudish. Which made it so much fun to make him uncomfortable.

One time, after the announcement of an incubating Sasuke, I had asked him where babies came from. His face had turned such an interesting shade of pink as he stumbled over words for me to ask my own parents about procreation.

After, he went on a tangent about how I was always hanging around his house and eating his food. Then, in true Konoha fashion, he promptly disappeared in a flurry of leaves.

I had laughed for hours.

"One day my dad won't allow you to come over." Itachi said one day over pie—apple, of course.

The day was nice so we enjoying our 'secret place'—the stream where Itachi met his crows (we never spoke of his 'fall' from the cliff. Ever.) We spent a lot of time there. It was free of society's spiteful glares.

I snorted at the thought of 'Gaku' forbidding me to enter his house. "Nonsense. Your dad loves me." I flipped my growing blonde hair over my shoulder, the gravity of its length made it seem less unmanaged and more roguishly tousled. "I wouldn't be surprised if he tried arranging us to marry."

Pink dusted Itachi's alabaster cheeks as he shifted on the green blanket under us. It made sitting on rocks feel less like, well, sitting on rocks. "Why would he ask you of all people?" he inquired, voice an octave higher.

It took my immense self-control not to outright laugh at his obvious discomfort. Anything that had to do with romance, in any context, made Itachi turn into a flustered, bashful mess.

It was cute.

I chewed my pie, fixing a contemplative look on my face, as if I was thinking about it long and hard. "Because..." I ticked off the reasons on my fingers. They came easily. "I'm your only friend, and just so happen to be a girl; I'm the top kunoichi of our class; I come from a strong clan; and I just so happen to be the future Hokage's only daughter."

"Your dad isn't Hokage yet, so the last point is moot. I'm sure Orochimaru will become the Fourth. And I have other female friends." He tried arguing.

This time I did laugh.

Both of us knew his declaration of having any interaction with the fairer sex was an outright lie. All he had were fangirls, and he loathed the attention they gave him.

His mention of Orochimaru becoming Hokage also went ignored. It was something we disagreed on, and I didn't feel like arguing my point to someone who wouldn't see reason. He wasn't aware that behind the scenes, a decision was already made.

Anyone who put their own twisted desire to become immortal over human life was disgusting and didn't deserve to be the leader of a village. Not that anyone knew of his habits.

Itachi's blush deepened. "If he had any reason, it would probably be that he's afraid you'll beat up any other girl he tries to arrange me with."

I looked to him, fully serious. "Damn right."

"Language."

I shifted to my knees and faced him fully. Even the thought of another person being close to him as I was, or worse, closer, made me feel slightly homicidal…

Was that healthy? I should probably ask that to Oishi, my therapist…

"Anyone your dad has to force you to marry isn't worthy of being your wife. You have to choose with your heart." I reached over to poke his chest where his heart was with a single finger. "Marriage is a sacred vow of trust held between two people in love. If your wife ever hurt you or become unfaithful, I'll separate her head from her body and give it to you as a gift."

Now it was his time to snort. He swat away my hand, ignoring the thick atmosphere I had produced. "And who is worthy? You?" his blush reached his ears now.

There was a pause as I thought back on my previous statement. None of what I said was a lie. I meant every word. The fact I held so little value over human life was… worrying. 'In the end, maybe I'm no better than Orochimaru.' I put those thoughts aside and sent him a blinding smile.

"Maybe I am." the smile transformed into something more sinister. "Maybe I'll kill every girl that tries to come anywhere close to you." I leaned forward so our noses touched and stared mischievously into his coal eyes. "Does that make you uncomfortable?"

He squirmed in place; no doubt unsure what to do. A thought came to me that maybe… Itachi and I were destined to be together in this world. Two misunderstood kid geniuses (aLl Of itStoLen) who held no place in the future.

Him, a complete paradox: someone who hates murder and war, yet in time will have the blood of his entire Clan—even the children—on his hands. He would probably kill more in his short life than the average shinobi would their entire career, all for the sake of his village and little brother.

Then there was me, withholding the ultimate knowledge of this universe and unable to change anything. Willing to cut down anyone who stood in her way, disregarding years of lessons from another life in an instant.

I narrowed my eyes and the space between our mouths disappeared.

Itachi froze.

My lips firmly pressed against his, and to my utter shock, he kissed back. It was just two lengthy pecks, but still our first kiss.

It felt… Uh…

Both of us pushed away from the other and made gagging noises into the blanket under us. The thought of licking the pebbled ground passed my mind.

"Gross!" he shouted.

"It's like kissing my brother, 'ttebane!" I cried.

After we washed our mouths in the stream (so we wouldn't get cooties, of course), both of us began laughing. I fell back onto the ground and stared up at my best friend.

Warmth spread from my heart at the sound of Itachi's unrestrained laughter. I felt pride that I was the one who could get that kind of reaction out of him.

Since he witnessed so much death in the war, he hadn't been quite the same. He put up a great front, but I could see through it easily.

My cheeks hurt from smiling so wide. I loved it when he laughed. He so rarely allowed himself to show his emotions anymore that whenever it happened it was akin to landing a kunai directly in the bullseye.

No, that wasn't quite right…

Being around Itachi himself was like coming home after a long day of training to the smell of apple pie, greeted with happiness and unconditional love. My heart would swell with affection; the emptiness in my chest feeling less like a gaping maw. The icy terrain of my mind would sprout fields of flowers, melting away all of my worries.

In that moment, I understood that I loved Itachi with my whole being. It was clear now that though those were wonderful emotions, this wasn't a romantic love. That much was obvious; especially after that train wreck of a first kiss.

Sure, this set back my plan of maybe one day marrying him—since being with him would no doubt be easy. We resonated amazingly as friends and sparring partners (even if he always kicked my ass), why not devote myself to him? What was even better was that he wasn't taken in the future.

Meh, so much for that.

I watched as Itachi wiped his eyes and tilted his head, ever the curious bird; his smile was faint, but still lingering. "That was not how I imagined it would feel." He admitted.

My smile dimmed in confusion, "What do ya mean?"

He looked to the ground to hide his face and scratched the back of his neck. "Well… I kind of thought I uh… Loved you… Romantically, that is."

"Loved me?" I asked, blindsided by the confession.

No. That test was eye-opening. That could never be—we could never be. How could a creature like me, someone who hides themselves under layers upon layers of lies ever truly be loved?

It was impossible, and I knew that now. I thought too highly of myself to ever believe I deserved someone as good as him.

And oh god I just kissed a kid! Repress, repress, repress!

"I guess." He shrugged, ignorant of my inner turmoil, "But like you said… Like kissing a brother." He threw a pebble at me that I swat away with ease.

My smile was no doubt foxy as I shoved my previous thoughts back of my empty heart. "Oh, I see~"

There was no place for romantic love in this empty husk. Only devotion.

Itachi rolled his eyes and looked to the sky as if it would help him. Both of us knew he wouldn't find anything. Unless a crow was sent to pluck my tongue from my mouth.

"You had a crush on little ol' me? The Itachi Uchiha?" I fanned myself with my hand. "I'm so honored."

Itachi walked back to his spot on the blanket, sat down with the grace of royalty, and went back to eating his pie. "You're impossible."

"I mean—I don't even know where to start!"

"Then don't."

I ignored his pleas, instead standing up and acting as if I were receiving a Golden Globe.

Offhandedly, I deflected and dodged the rain of pebbles from my furiously blushing best friend. "First, I'd like to thank my Mom and Papa for reproducing and creating a fuckin'—"—Itachi interrupted me to say language, but I ignored him easily—"—Legend. Next, I would like to thank—wait'a minute. What do you mean by brother!?"

He laughed again, even as I tried stabbing him with his fork.

Later we came to an agreement: if we were both still alone at the age of twenty-five, we would marry each other. Family and all. The interlocking of our pinkies sealed the deal.

I fought hard not to think of him never making it that far.

"Read me another story?"

"It's three in the morning, Brat. I've read enough. It's time for you to sleep."

I bit my lip, nodding, and turned my body away from him. I pulled my fluffy comforter over my head. "I can't." was my barely-there whisper. I didn't intend for him to hear me, but his hearing was sharper than I gave him credit for.

Kakashi let out a sigh from his position on the floor, his back resting against my bed. Around him were piles of books—short stories, really—that my parents and various others had gotten for me. "And what's your excuse this time? Need a glass of water? Have to pee?" I could practically feel his glare.

Nights like this where Minato was stuck in his office, Kushina would have Kakashi put me to sleep. Since he was instructed to protect the pregnant redhead while she was pregnant, it only made sense. She didn't always have the energy to make sure I slept.

Though he seemed annoyed any time he had to do it, Kakashi would always read me to sleep.

Instead of speaking, I shook my head.

His voice was softer when he spoke, "... Are you having nightmares again?"

At his words, a plethora of images and feelings of fear and anguish shot through me that normally accompanied me in my sleep. My true origins hung above me like a threat, waiting for the Yamanaka to unveil and hang me with.

"Hey," Kakashi's voice ebbed in, quiet but strong, "how about I tell you a story my…father use to tell me?"

Reluctantly, I pulled myself from my own mind and gave my full attention to the silver-haired teen. He somehow was now sitting on the edge of my bed. I turned toward him, feeling more like the terrified toddler that my body was than ever, and lend him my ear.

This was the first time he had ever talked about his father to me.

He shifted uncomfortably for a beat before speaking again, voice apathetic to the untrained ear. Never before had that flat falsity ever sounded so alive and raw.

"There once was a velveteen puppy, who was loved by a boy…"

The story was that of The Velveteen Rabbit from my world, but instead of a fluffy bunny, it was of a puppy. Hearing a story that so closely resembled one from my childhood Before was strange, yet welcome.

That night, I dreamt of nothing.

I walked with Itachi to his shuriken training, arms behind my head and eyes closed. My ears were trained on Itachi's almost silent footfalls as a ways to follow him. Both of us knew he could walk without making even a slight noise, but he did it for my benefit.

It was fun to walk around with your eyes closed. Not only did it look badass, it helped me concentrate on the faint echo of chakra coming from the people around us.

I felt Itachi's most of all since I was most accustomed to his wavelength. The rest were nothing more than blobs of dull flames. Some I could vaguely recognize from the Academy but didn't care enough to memorize.

They were all background characters.

The day was a particularly nice, even if there were a few clouds in the sky. The breeze was crisp in a way the sun wasn't. Must be eclipsed by a massive cloud, I reasoned, unwilling to open my eyes at the moment and see for myself.

No matter. It could be pouring down raining and I would be at ease. I always enjoyed silent walks with Itachi.

Well, almost silent. There were kids playing around, being obnoxiously loud and rowdy.

"Hey," a girl called out, "aren't you Itachi? An Uchiha in my class? Let's play together!" A high feminine voice called out.

I opened an eye in annoyance, stopping in my tracks. Was I invisible or somethin? "Do you know her, Tachi?" I asked him, silently judging the purple high-collared shirt the girl was wearing.

She did look familiar from school, I noted. Probably another one of the fangirls. "Oh, you can join too! Akira Uzumaki-Namikaze wasn't it?"

So now I wasn't invisible. I was the Kage's daughter, dammit! I deserved more attention.

"What do you want to do today?" A boy called out behind fangirl number 503.

"Kick the can! Let's play kick the can!" Another answered excitedly, throwing an arm in the air.

My eyes fully opened when I realized Itachi hadn't answered my question. In fact, he hadn't even so much as paused in his walking.

Rolling my eyes at how asocial he was, I turned; ready to catch up to my best friend.

"Sorry," I lied, "rain-check?" The boys she was hanging out with already hated me because I won most of the games they wanted to play. Games weren't games to me. They were challenges, and I refused to fail against children.

"But…" the girl looked crushed as she looked after Itachi. I fought a smile.

"Huh? We played that yesterday." Another boy complained. "Izumi what do you want to play?"

One of the boys, a brunette in a mustard-yellow shirt must've noticed me and the disappearing figure that was the Uchiha Heir. He leaned on his friend with a pissy look on his face, eyes cutting.

I could already feel the trouble, causing me to stay where I was just in case something happened.

"Hey!" Yellow shirt shouted at Itachi's back, "Are you dissing us?"

When they received no reply a spiky haired dude in green bent down, picked up a rock and threw it at the Heir. It sailed past Itachi, thrown too far to the right.

Anger overcame me. "Oi, what do you think you're doing, 'ttbane!?" I screamed to the group, raising a fist and walking toward them threateningly.

They all began throwing rocks at him now, jeering insults at my friends back. It made me shake with rage. I was about to hit who looked like the ringleader, but the girl got in my way. "Guys stop! That's not nice! Leave him alone!"

I scoffed in disgust. They weren't going to listen to her telling him to stop. Hn. And this girl wanted to be a kunoichi? She's just like Rin, I thought, sneering nastily at the girl.

Without warning, I shoved the girl aside and ran as fast as I could to the boy in yellow and struck him in his solar plexus. While he bent down, gasping for air, I brought my knee up to meet his face.

A satisfying crack sounded as his nose broke.

Yellow stumbled to the ground, clutching his nose and crying.

At that same moment the spiky haired kid yelled, "Hey! Don't run away!" and threw a rock that soared to its proper destination.

I watched in awe as my best friend expertly turned around, caught the rock and sent it back, creating a domino effect of rocks ricocheting off each other.

It was so bad-ass in person.

The boys all paled slightly at the show of talent Itachi displayed. Yellow shirt groaned from his place on the ground, saying something about how I was a jerk but they ignored him.

With one last huff of annoyance, I straightened my shirt. My eyes met with the girl in a heated glare. She shied away from me as I sent an unrelenting kick to the crying fuck-head on the ground.

Itachi gave me a questioning look when I caught back up with him.

"Don't give me that look."

"What look?"

I trained my eyes ahead, unable to meet his gaze. "Like you're disappointed in me."

"…"

The rest of our walk was in spent in silence.

Violet eyes bore into those of the giant of a man standing across from her. Akira was trying (and failing) to keep the fangirl kept buried deep inside of herself calm.

It was but a losing battle because-

Holy shit.

That was the fuckin' Jiraiya standing in her kitchen! The Pervy Sage. One of her favorite characters of Naruto. She could have died again, and died happy, at that moment. She was on cloud nine.

Metaphorical stars shone in the child's bright eyes.

Jiraiya himself was practically preening from the attention the child was giving him.

"Hey kiddo." He said in a deep baritone, "You sure have grown since I last saw you."

The feelings of euphoria dimmed like a flickering flame. Akira bit into her tongue, filling her mouth with the unpleasant taste of metal, in an effort to silence seething words. 'Liar.'

Not once, even as 'Jemma', had she ever met this beautiful man. Of that, she was positive.

Minato mentioned once in passing how the man had been around when she in Kushina's belly, but the fact stood that her Godfather was never around. He was nothing more than a stranger. Always out of the village, running away from his problems.

Her father had to beg the man to stop by in order to ask for his blessing on naming his unborn child Naruto, just like the main character of his book.

Jiraiya was Minato's only father figure, since his own had died.

Any time Minato talked about his sensei, he held such an overwhelming sense of pride in his kindness and strength. In Minato's eyes, nothing could tarnish the perfect image of the strong Sannin who had practically raised him.

Not even being absent for his first child's life.

As the runner of this body, Akira had to play the part of a seven-year-old. Children didn't have memories of being a newborn.

Her nose scrunched at her command, along with the commanding mask of a bratty child, "I've never met you before."

The statement made the man cringe, his hand moved to scratch the back of his head. 'Gods his hand is huge. Like a bear paw.'

The Sannin stood tall, a little over six feet—six-three, maybe? His shoulders were broad under the earthy tones of his short kimono-styled shirt. The red shirt he wore over his clothes matched the markings under his eyes.

Hair, as white as freshly fallen snow was pulled back into a low ponytail that reached past his hips in a spiky mass of chaos.

The length was reminiscent of her mother's own luscious mane.

Definitely nowhere as pretty, though. Red trumped white nine times out of ten.

When the man made no move to speak again, just look guilty and bashful, she spouted out the first thing that came to her tongue to change the tone of the conversation. "Your hair is pretty!" This day was for Naruto, not her own selfishness.

The icebreaker seemed to do the trick. His shoulders relaxed significantly, as the air around him became a bit less self-deprecating. "Eh? Really?" he took a few strands between his fingers and peered at them skeptically with dark eyes. "Most people complain about how unkempt it is…"

Mentally, Akira thought of her own mess of hair. A swift surge of defensiveness overwhelmed her with reckless, childish abandon. She clenched her fists to her chest and spoke passionately, "Well I think it's nice. It reminds me of a pine tree in winter, 'ttebane!"

Jiraiya barked out laughter, a jovial sound that echoed throughout her home. He put his huge, warm hand on her head and roused it about. "A wintry pine tree huh?" Her face burned from the attention as she sent him a wide smile that didn't feel so forced. "I think I like that comparison."

After a pause, Akira ducked under his hand and bounced around him in easily feigned excitement. "Do you wanna play a game?" she inquired, already making a beeline to the kitchen. A deck of cards lay in a drawer next to the fridge for easy access and safekeeping. She had another deck in her pack, but that was for outside use only.

Kushina stood at the stove clad in an apron, stirring what smelled like curry. Yum.

The Toad Sage followed into the small space behind Akira, taking a seat at the dining table next to Minato, who sat reading a newspaper. "How is little baby Naruto these days, Kushina?" Jiraiya inquired.

The chair creaked under his weight but stood strong. Akira made a mental note to write down the maker of the furniture in order to send them a nice letter.

Said woman turned to him, "He'd be better if someone would quit having people follow me around the village." The radiant smile on her face battled with the biting tone of her voice.

Minato sunk into his seat, raising his paper higher in a terrible attempt at hiding.

Jiraiya sent Akira a quizzical gaze that she returned with a shrug. "Hormones." she mouthed.

He nodded in understanding before clapping his hands together. "So, Princess, what game were you thinking of playing? Go Fish?" Jiraiya asked flippantly.

Akira took the seat across from him, mindful of the snort coming from Minato and the look of pity Kushina shot her Godfather before turning back to dinner.

They knew her well.

"First off, I am not a princess, I'm a ninja." She emphasized with a roll of her eyes, "And second, we can play that childish game later, if you'd like. But for now…" the pause made him lean closer in anticipation, "We're playin' poker." She revealed, expertly shuffling the cards between her small but nimble fingers.

Jiraiya stared at the girl blankly. After a long moment, his eyes roamed over to his student accusingly. "And you worried about my influence on her? Sure she hasn't had the honor of meeting Tsunade?"

Papa shrugged off the comments and went back to reading, completely ignoring his sensei.

"I'm not so easily influenced. It takes more than being exposed to a person to change my behavior." Akira droned, rolling her eyes playfully. "Now listen as I tell you the rules of the game, because I won't repeat them twice."

"Is that right?" he intoned, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Name your rules, Princess."

Akira grinned, a sparkle of mirth in her eyes. She couldn't wait to crush his small, manly feelings into dust. "Rule number One… No ninja tricks…"

Akira stood outside of the Uchiha household, bouncing on her toes in excitement as she waited for someone to answer the door.

The second child of the Uchiha head had been born a few days ago and Akira wanted nothing more than to hold the tiny baby again.

Sure, she had been there to help Mikoto give birth (an experience that would scar her for the rest of her days—who let a child help deliver a baby?) and was able to see the baby even before Itachi.

As customary of a child being brought into this world, she was forced to stay away long enough to allow the family to settle in. A week had never dragged on so long.

The door opened, revealing Mikoto's radiant, smiling face. Akira allowed the comforting and familiar spicy smell of the Uchiha household to tickle her nose and surround her; allowing the tenseness she felt at staying away so long melt into nothingness.

"How did I know you would be showing up today?" Mikoto's voice was full of warmth and kindness.

Akira smiled sweetly. "Couldn't keep me away any longer even if you chained me to my bed." Her eyes drew together in worry, "Should you be up so soon?"

It was a true testament to the woman's strength that she was mobile so soon. The kids monstrously giant head had practically torn the poor woman in half. There had been blood, tearing and lots of screaming. Both from the laboring woman and Akira.

Mikoto shook her head. "I'm fine. A little sore, but the medic-nin healed me very well."

"Oh." She replied dumbly. Sometimes she forgot about the existence of healing chakra. Rin wasn't around anymore to heal her, so it was strictly up to Akira to bandage herself up the old-fashioned way. Hospitals were a very last resort.

Shaking her head, the blonde leaned to look through the door. "So where is little Sasu—erh—I mean Satsuki?" I corrected quickly.

Yep. You read that right. Satsuki.

Instead of a boy, Akira nearly had a stroke when Mikoto popped out a baby who was missing their dick. She had said as much, too.

"I guess we were mistaken," one of the nurses had said, "Congratulations, Mrs. Uchiha. You've given birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl!"

It was a big fucking oversight if there ever was one. Sure, medicine wasn't as modern as the world she had originally come from, but from what the doctors said, they could tell the gender of the baby with 99 percent accuracy via chakra.

This was the first sign her existence has actually changed anything in this world and it terrified her. What would this do to the future? What else was going to deviate from what Akira had thought was a set-in-stone path?

"She's with Itachi in the living room." Mikoto answered, drawing Kira from her thoughts. "Come in. I'll make you two a snack."

Akira nodded excitedly and entered the house. After taking off her shoes she made a beeline to the living room. Itachi sat on the couch, a small bundle cradled against his chest and a book in his hand. He paused in his reading to look up, a serine smile on his lips.

"Your mother finally gave in?"

She snorted and sat down on the cushion next to him. "Of course. Persistence is a wonderful motivator, my friend."

"So you annoyed her until she let you leave?"

"Obviously."

It was the day. October 10th had finally reared its ugly (beautiful) head.

Akira paced in front of her parents, hands joined behind her back, thinking. The early morning sun shone brightly from the kitchen window like a fiery beacon of what was to come.

Though the day would turn out terrible—yet great because she'd finally get to meet her baby brother—the weather was deceptively perfect. Not a single cloud collected in the sky.

"You're sure there are enough ninja on hand to protect you? How many are going again?" she was wound up tight. Coiled like a spring, ready to shoot off at the slightest inconvenience.

Today could very well be the last day she would ever see her parents if things went wrong and she was cripplingly aware of it.

It was a family affair; the times Minato planned where to take Kushina, which nurses would go with them and how many guards should be on duty. Kira would sit in with them, trying to make it so at least maybe one of them would come back to her.

It was selfish and would probably fuck up many things up in the future but… the thought of losing her parents was enough to make the reincarnated child not give a fuck.

She wanted to hide them away in her closet and never let them out.

Other than straight up telling them about what would happen, she had done as much as she could. At least she hoped so.

Papa let out a sigh over the scrambled eggs he was cooking on the stove for breakfast—'was this going to be the last meal of his I would eat?' "There are plenty sweetheart. It's a birth; not a mission."

"That thinking could get you killed." Akira commented seriously. "Mom and the seal will be weak and Kurama could be released and murder us all." By the end of her speech, she was hyperventilating—uncaring how she crossed too far to the truth.

"Honey sit down and take some deep breaths before you pass out. You need to finish getting ready for class." Kushina said from her spot at the table. She was reading a weapons magazine, hand rubbing her swollen belly.

"I don't know why you insist on calling It by Its name. It is a beast, Akira. Not a puppy." Papa mumbled, scraping hard at the eggs in the pan.

Kira's eyes narrowed, "I never said he was a puppy. He's far too big to fit inside of the house. And if it's rude to call Granny Haichi an old hag, it's rude to call Kurama a beast or monster." she crossed her arms, nose in the air, "Besides, Kakashi is a beast yet we all love him."

"You do know that I can hear you, right?" Kakashi called from the open window.

Actually, she did know. Not because he'd been hanging around their house the past few months like a ghost, but because she could sense him—something he allowed her to do at times to get practice.

Sensing was also the way she was able to strangle out the truth of Kushina being a jinchūriki. It all worked out rather well, if she were to say so herself. Kind of hard to miss a giant, malicious aura coming from your mom's chakra.

She had almost peed herself that day.

Akira faked surprise, "Oh, you are? Kind of like you have been for the past ten months?"

Now, she knew what many thought: "Wow Akira, you sure are sucking Kurama's giant, furry ass aren't ya? Do you need a straw?" And to that, she would clap and express how correct they were.

She was laying it on thick as fuck.

Personally, when a super-over-powered demon fox was about to have a major part of ruining her life, the last thing she would want is for it to loath her. Friendship wasn't her goal: survival was. Because like it or not, he was about to be FUCKING UNLEASHED ON HER VILLAGE.

"That's because Kakashi is a human, no matter how beastly." Minato turned around to jest, his smile wan.

No wonder Kurama hated him in the series… Her father treated him as if he wasn't even a living creature, and wasn't afraid to voice it.

Stubbornly, Akira's rolled her eyes, "You have your opinions and I have mine. If I could, I'd be his jinchūriki." She said offhandedly, picking up her drink.

Both of her parents' attention fully turned to their daughter. She just drank her juice with the most innocent expression she could muster. 'Hadn't meant to say that last part,' she thought, trying not to cringe herself into another life.

Damn her unflinching ability to blurt out thoughts at the most inconvenient times. Kurama no doubt hated her now.

All of those months of sucking up were for naught.

The giant chakra beast would probably seek her out after Obito's control of him waned and murder her in the most painful way possible. She shivered.

"Does this have to do with you being strong enough to protect Naruto, or do you have an ulterior motive in that brilliant head of yours?" Kushina asked with narrowed eyes.

Akira reared back as if physically struck. Her voice was small and full of real hurt. "Do you really think that lowly of me?"

Minato just listened silently, back turned so he could finish breakfast. How had this conversation even taken this turn? When had she ever given them the impression she would have something like an ulterior motive?

She was seven! They should just be brushing off the comment as a kid babbling nonsense as they usually did.

'Jesus. They're acting as if I was planning to kill someone. …Which would have to happen to Kushina in order to become jinchūriki… Akira would have face-palmed if they weren't giving her such severe expressions.

"Not exactly… We just know that you are very mature for your age." They shared a look. If that didn't sound like it held a double meaning, she'd do thirty laps around the village. Sadly, whatever it was flew right over her head.

"That doesn't make me feel any better, nor does it explain the third degree." Akira argued.

"What your mother is trying to say," Minato placed a plate of scrambled eggs on the table in front of her, "is that we just want to make sure you have the right intentions. Making choices such as what you implied could very well lead you down the wrong path. Wanting to have an evil chakra beast inside of you raises more than a few red flags."

Akira shook her head. "I don't need Kurama to make me stronger; I'm fully capable of becoming stronger on my own. The only reason I said that is because mom struggles at times. He shouldn't be treated like a prisoner, or forcefully control him. Maybe if we tried to understand him and make some sort of a bond—"

"Do you even hear yourself!?" mom shouted, interrupting Akira's loud mouth. It wasn't her hormones (which were making her more insane than normal), it was genuine anger. "The Nine-Tails is a beast. I don't need to create any form of silly bond to know all he wants to do is kill! There is no understanding him!"

At this point, it wasn't even about kissing the Tailed Beast's ass—nothing struck her more than someone saying that she was wrong. What was worse was they didn't even try to understand where she was coming from!

They didn't know Kurama was a lonely soul deep, deep, deep down. Under the layers of hate and threats of slaughter. He didn't deserve to be considered as some mindless monstrosity.

Him and all the others like him were capable of thinking for themselves and having emotions; wasn't that what made someone human? The ability to feel?

Emotions like hate and rage, though bad, were just that: Emotions.

Akira stood quickly and placed her hands on the tables surface, proud she didn't have to stand on the chair to do so anymore. "How would you feel if you were chained up and trapped inside of someone, huh? Maybe he is right to hate us. What the hell have we done for him? Use him for his power and keep him prisoner for just existing? If someone were to force me to do things against my will, I would wish to destroy them, too!"

"Akira Uzumaki-Namikaze! You watch your language, young lady!" Kushina shouted back, taking the same stance as her daughter.

"Or what?" Kira challenged, "You'll ground me? Well, have fun grounding me when you end up dead because you won't take this seriously, 'ttebane!" she deflated back into her seat, body shaking.

Kushina's face changed drastically, eyes softening. Akira thought she saw a spark of understanding. How the fuck could they even remotely understand?

"Is this about Obito and Rin?" Kushina asked.

'Jesus Christ on a cracker. You couldn't be further from the truth.' Still. It was as perfect an excuse as any. She needed to diffuse the situation. It was about time Rin became of some use.

"Maybe," she whispered, looking to the ground. Akira was keenly aware of Kakashi's presence at that point. She had to be careful. While Kushina and Minato wouldn't survive and remember—he would.

"Don't get me wrong; Obito died to save his friends and it wasn't Rin's fault she was taken but… That doesn't make it any more fair!" Ironic, really, considering she couldn't give a fuck about Rin. Yet they treated her as if she were ignoring the pain of that dumb girl's death, so Akira thought adding something in about her would help the lie.

Minato walked over to his daughter and put a warm, comforting hand on her shoulder, "I'll have more guards added to watching over your mom and brother."

She looked up beneath long lashes, "Really?"

He smiled down at her and for a moment, she felt as if the sun were beaming down on her, warm and assuring. "If it makes you feel safe, of course."

Akira returned his smile and then pounced at him in a hug. "I love you guys so much."

Dad chuckled and held her closer. "We love you too, Wildfire. More than you could ever know."

Sniffling noises coming from the table interrupted the moment. Father and daughter looked to each other in confusion before glancing toward Kushina. Tears ran tracks down her cheeks like raindrops.

Hormones were nothing to joke about

"So, Kakashi. Where we goin'?"

Said boy let out a long, suffered sigh. Since he had been hanging around our house so much, Minato thought it a good idea to have the silver-haired teen watch over me while Kushina gave birth.

Later, I would go to the Uchiha house and spend the night. He didn't seem happy about it in the least. If anything, I was positive he resented me for living at this moment.

I thought it was great. He was a slippery little fucker. No matter how hard I tried, he refused to read to me again, let alone spend time together. He treated me like the plague, and it hurt.

"Bookstore, maybe."

My head tilted in thought. "So… We aren't going to go visit Obito-nii-chan?" I asked, curious.

He shrugged, "If you want to, we can. Not like I don't have to put up with you for the next four hours."

"Try not to sound so excited," I replied tonelessly. "Please, your enthusiasm is contagious."

A few hours and a couple of new books later we were on our way to the graveyard. With a little pestering, Kakashi bought me two flowers to put at our dead loved one's graves.

When we finally arrived at Rin's grave, I stood silently as Kakashi set to work on cleaning it. It was a custom I thoroughly enjoyed. The idea of the dead looking down on us as we cleaned their eternal resting spot, made me feel warm and fuzzy.

Which was exactly why I refused to help clean Rin's.

Sure, there was no body in their graves (I begged Minato to give them one instead of just a name on a stone) but the thought was all that mattered.

Kakashi held out an expectant hand once he was finished. I complied, handing him the yellow rose I had picked for Useless. With care, he placed it in the metal vase in front of the grave marker.

I clapped my hands together in a short prayer that she would burn in hell, and then made my way to Obito's grave. I left before Kakashi so he could have a little bit of alone time to speak to his teammate. He did not seem to mind.

If I didn't know any better, I would have thought he was just trying to get out of more cleaning.

My feet drifted toward the familiar destination. I had been to Obito's grave plenty of times, hoping to maybe catch a glimpse of him in the trees. Anything to let me know he was well. Something to prove he was alive, because if Sasuke could go through such a drastic change, what was stopping it from truly killing Obito?

Sure, he would be the bad guy; It would be stupid to hold any thoughts of redemption. I still wondered if he thought about me. And it didn't stop me from remembering the boy he used to be. Bright, smiling and warm.

A tear fell from my eyes. I missed him so much.

In the beginning, I had loathed him. Wanted him to die, even. Then he tore those feelings apart, destroying them and leaving nothing but love and affection.

He was the elder brother I never had, and never would have again.

I sighed at how dirty the stone had gotten in such a short amount of time and went to work wiping the dirt off and scrubbing it until it reflected the rays of the sun.

Just like him. I mused.

"There," I started, clapping my hands together, "all nice and clean."

Then, with the utmost care, I took the remaining rose from my bag and placed it in the empty vase.

The breath caught in my throat—There! In the distance, I felt a tickle of familiarity. It made my heart skip about ten beats. Along with that evasive speck, I could sense Kakashi coming my way.

A nagging feeling began itching in the back of my mind. This felt terribly familiar.

"So, you're the one that leaves red roses at his grave." Kakashi's voice spoke from behind me.

"Duh. I love him… Bakashi." I muttered, my face heating slightly since I knew we would have an audience. The sun was setting.

"Haven't heard that nickname in a while." He replied with annoyance clear in his voice. "Can't say I missed it."

I stayed quiet; mind focused firmly on a far-off signature. Mentally, I filed it away; searing it into my memory as to never forget it.

"I'm sorry." he mumbled after a lengthy silence.

My eyes raised to Kakashi, "For what?"

He shifted uncomfortably and looked away, as if ashamed. As if he was guilty of the worst crime imaginable. Understanding filled me. The signature vanished out of my range.

"Oh, shut up." I said sharply. "He died protecting you—someone he cared for—that is the noblest death imaginable. And… Even if he did survive… I doubt he would be the same. Especially after Rin..."

"If he had survived, Rin would be here as well." Kakashi protested, voice firm and full of self-loathing.

I turned to him fully, head tilting to the side, "What exactly do you think he would have accomplished? By the time you got to Rin, she had already become a weapon for someone else. If Obito were with you, then both of you would have to of witnessed Rin's suicide—because we both know, she would have found a way no matter what. His heart would've shattered and—" I stopped, realizing how much I had already said. Things I wasn't meant to know.

Runrunrun.

Kakashi was openly staring at me with a narrowed eye. I had to get away from him before I said anything more that would raise suspicion. "How do you know that?"

A lie came easily. "I read the file…"

"For someone who only read a file, you seem to know quite a lot about it."

I directed my attention to the village, refusing to meet his eye now that he was suspicious. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"That's not how it seems."

"…"

Sweat dripped down my forehead. My hands became clammy. He couldn't possibly know. I needed to calm down and reassess the situation, or leave it altogether.

"I didn't write that Rin used me to end her life on the report."

'Ohshitohshitohshit—'

"I'll leave you to speak to him alone." My words were rushed and high. I began walking away, but he followed.

"Where will you go?" his voice was sharp. Accusing. Suspicious.

I shrugged, uncaring, and shoved my hands in my pockets. "A store to buy Naruto something. I'll be a big sister soon. First impressions are important, not that you would understand such a concept."

Couldn't say that I needed to do something that didn't involve dead people or his hounding for the truth. Soon my parents would be nothing more than dead.

Come nightfall, it would only be Naruto and me.

My heart beat rapidly in the confines of my chest so quick it ached. Just a few more steps and I would be away from him and this conversation. Everything would go back to normal. He would treat me like a sickness—

"Jemma." His voice reached me across the distance I had put between us; a question and a statement in one.

I froze mid-step, mind going a thousand miles a minute. There was a long moment where my chest constricted at being called that name for the first time. The part of 'Jemma' I could never rid myself of was shoved away like acid.

Outwardly calm, I turned my head far enough so he could read my lips, though I was sure he enhanced his hearing in order to hear me clearly. It would be the last I ever spoke to him of in regards to that name. "No. She's dead."

From the corner of my eye, I could see Kakashi standing rigid, hand reaching for his weapons pouch. The sun finished its decent behind the horizon, casting shadows along the ground where headstones stood.

They reached out to me greedily, threatening bring me six feet under where I belonged. All the way down until I reached the deepest, darkest depths of hell.

I had underestimated him. Never again, I promised myself. Never again would I underestimate another person in this life.

Not for the first time, I wished I didn't know so much.

His mouth opened, but before he could form the words, there was a monstrous roar so loud it sent shock-waves through the crust of the earth.

The world exploded.

END

A/N:

Thank you to EVERYONE who left me reviews on the last chapter. You're the reason this one has come out so quick! I appreciate all 157 of my followers for joining me in this journey. Hope this chapter was worth the wait!

**An even more special thanks to SarahFanaFanta for your words of encouragement 3 I am always so nervous to post chapters. It's always worried me that my writing is horrible, but I'll never get better if I do nothing.

*Someone asked me if there was a set update schedule... Ehhh, I'm trying my best to get something out every month, but my inspiration comes and goes.

*Minato's reaction will be next chapter! :D *

Have a wonderful week everyone!

~Siren 5/27/19