"I'm bored!" Mitsuki rolled around on her futon. The trio's journey through the sea had been a long one, far too long for her liking.

"Well, it's a long travel across the water." Kisame chuckled at the girl's behaviour.

Annoyed, Mitsuki sat up on her futon, and turned her head to meet Kisame's eye. "I didn't expect it will take few days of being stuck in the boat. I can't even train or anything," Mitsuki grumbled as she rocked her body back and forth. Having to stay in the same place for several days is not something that Mitsuki had gotten used to. In contrary, keeping herself on the constant move had been more of a norm for her. In such a small space, where her movement range limited to the ship itself with nothing much to do, Mitsuki found herself feeling stifled.

"You should learn from Itachi-san. He had never complained even one bit," Kisame teased the girl, realising how much she looked up to Itachi.

"Eeeh, don't compare me to him. Besides, what has he been doing, sitting still like that for hours?" Mitsuki frowned as she complained.

Itachi could hear both of his teammates chattering from the futon he's sitting on across the room. It was one of the times when he missed the familiar quiet.

"It's meditating, it's good to train your focus and it helps on improving mind energy for chakra too."

"Heee~" Mitsuki grinned mischievously. Itachi could feel her gaze on him even with his eyes close.

"Oi, what are you planning," said Kisame as he kept his eye on the feisty girl, worried that she would do something stupid to disturb Itachi's training.

"Nah, don't worry, I wouldn't want him to hate me," Mitsuki said teasingly, making sure Itachi could hear her. "Just thinking about how diligent he is. Maybe I should find a way to train as well here. OUCH!" Mitsuki stumbled backwards, her head colliding with the cabin wall as the boat swayed with the waves, prompting Kisame to laugh at her clumsiness.

"I still can't believe you dealt with those two hunter-nins with how clumsy you are." Kisame remarked, sparking annoyance on Mitsuki's face.

"Sure, they must have thought so to when they let their guard down," she smirked mockingly as she took out a thistle seed from her pouch and blew it towards Kisame. Kisame attempted to swat the seed away, when suddenly the seed exploded into thorny vines. Reflexively, Kisame, grab his kunai and quickly sliced the plant's stems to pieces, causing white fluid to leak everywhere from the cuts to Mitsuki's amusement and Kisame's disgust. As Mitsuki unleashed her laugh, Kisame yelled, "What the hell is this sticky thing? Disgusting!"

Itachi frowned silently. Yep, he'd really like his quiet time back.

"Those are the plant's sap, it might get itchy if you're allergic," Mitsuki stated as she playfully stuck out her tongue to jeer on Kisame as he quickly tried to wipe everything off with disgusted look on his face.

Suddenly, Kisame remembered. "Thinking about it, I've been wondering… What is that new ability of yours?"

Itachi opened his eyes. He too, was curious. There hadn't been a chance for him to ask Mitsuki about it as she had been going off on her own lately during their few last day of stay in the port village, undoubtedly trying to concoct another ploy for revenge match. If possible, he wouldn't want to ask directly in front of his partner, Kisame, either, as he was still not sure if revealing everything that he had learned about her would increase the interest Akatsuki had in her and pushed her further into danger, or the dark path. It's not that Kisame wasn't a good partner, but there are chances that they made him his partner to keep an eye on him as well. Itachi reminisced about the first time the two met and how Kisame warned Itachi about himself. No matter how good their relationship had become, Itachi decided to still take those words to heart.

"Is it mokuton (wood-element) jutsu?" Kisame added.

"No." Itachi said resolutely, as Mitsuki simultaneously asked, "What's that?" with confused look on her face.

Mitsuki turned her head to face Itachi who had now opened his eyes and joining the conversation.

"Hoo?" Kisame inquired curiously, seeing that his exceptionally intelligent partner might have a theory on the ready. On the other side of the room, Mitsuki also curiously kept her eyes on Itachi, wondering what he might have concluded.

"Mokuton is exclusively owned by the Senju family, and it's able to convert chakra into source of life and create growth from the caster or the ground in various forms." However, as he thought further of it, some of Mitsuki's ability does resemble Mokuton's trait, in terms of both giving and taking in life energy. "Senjutsu, and then Mokuton, huh?" Itachi thought to himself as he internally shook his head. Speculating at that point would only mislead him by his own preconception, he thought. He needed more information before he could form a solid hypothesis. After a few seconds of silence, Itachi continued, "Mitsuki, your new skill have quite a few limitations, isn't it?"

"Mmmhmm," Mitsuki nodded with a satisfied smile on her face, "it's not exactly new either. I just gave energy to these seeds and hasten their growth and controlling it by controlling the energy flow within, just how plants bend towards their energy source which is the sun." Mitsuki grinned, she knew that Itachi would have deduced at least that much.

"So, you can't just make anything?" Kisame added with disappointed look on his face.

"To be honest, it's more like you shinobis are the weird ones. How could you make something out of nothing? Isn't that against nature's principle?" Mitsuki frowned.

Itachi frowned as he dwelled on Mitsuki's statement. He had learned everything he could about shinobi's history to understand them and the world better, the history of the Six Path Sage and Otsutsuki Clan included, even though there might not be as many information as he would have wanted about it. As Mitsuki said, Chakra was indeed unnatural, something introduced by the Sage of Six Paths. Of course, it led him to learn about natural energy as the shinobi knew it during that time, at least in terms of Senjutsu itself. Itachi couldn't help to wonder, how about before that? Before chakra came into existence in their world? Again, he could only speculate.

"Why do you say it's unnatural, aren't you the unnatural one?" Kisame frowned at the girl's statement.

"Hmm. I don't know, but as for what my body naturally know as I use my ability, everything is supposed to be an equivalent exchange? For example, when wind blows the water, the water absorb wind's kinetic energy and transform into waves, some might have changed form along the process, to become sound for example. But it's always equivalent exchange in the nature. Isn't that right, Itachi-kun?"

Itachi nodded in silence in response to the girl's statement. He had made sure to learn all he could about everything that he could get his hands on in order to expand his knowledge, basic laws of nature included. As Mitsuki said, it was chakra which gave shinobi power to break through the nature law.

"As for the seeds, I made them grow by supplying them with my own energy, but I can't just grow them out of nothing," Mitsuki continued, a frown formed on her forehead, "However, it's true that I have unnatural amount of energy reserves and unusual, alternate way of replenishing it unlike other human.. Thinking about it, I guess I am really unnatural too?" Mitsuki lifted her hands and stared at them in slight horror.

Kisame snorted at the girl's horrified look, "I thought you knew already?" He stated.

Mitsuki narrowed her eyes in annoyance, as she said, "Well, sorry to call you shinobis unnatural then."

"Apology accepted," said Kisame as he grinned. It's not like there was any reason for him to get angry anyway, however he refused to let this chance of one-upping the girl pass by just like that.

Suddenly, the trio heard the horn blared.

"We're about to reach the land! Prepare for the dock!" Someone shouted, likely the same shiphand who announced their ship's departure previously. The tree looked up, then to each other. Mitsuki's eyes practically sparkled with excitement as she heard the announcement.

"Oi, you better clean up these messes," Kisame snapped her out of her excitement.

"Huh? Why me? I'm not the one who cut them to shreds and sprayed the sap everywhere," Mitsuki furrowed her brow, feigning innocence to Kisame's annoyance as Itachi quietly stood up, leaving the two to settle their business by themselves. His mind had already drifted somewhere else as they closed in to the land of fire.

"Is Sasuke having his chuunin exam now?" Itachi was excited in knowing how much his beloved little brother has grown. Yet, grimness swiftly consumed his heart again when he realized how impossible it was for him to be by his brother's side to cheer him on at this moment. Out of his partner's sight, Itachi let out a bitter smile as his eyebrow knitted into a sad frown.

Author's note:

This chapter a bit short :3 Initially, I wanted to start the chapter when they landed, but I realised I haven't shared the basis of Mitsuki's ability yet, so I took the time to make a simple explanation here as well as giving Itachi a bit more information as well for him to ponder :D