Pulling of Puppets Strings

[Seraph]

“South. That is where I must go. The land of fire, I hear they have great shinobi. There maybe I can regain my glory. There I can become stronger. There I can justify myself. They won’t take on a Jounin like me as a teacher, but I can at least get better missions. So that settles it. I must no longer be a slave to this place. I must not hold myself in the pain and anguish of my past. Leaving this place, I will find myself a new place to call home.” Sitting at his desk with a map of the continents geography, he places a tack on the map. This mark is placed on Konoha itself.

Zhane gets up in his room. He looks out his window to the waterfall in the middle of the village. A light breeze comes over the town. His curtains begin to bellow in his room. He knows that tomorrow will start a journey that will bring him back to a path he has longed for. He takes his black fingerless gloves off his hands, and he places them on the desk.


As he turns from the window he begins to get undressed. A shower always relaxes his body before he sleeps. He walks into the shower room with his pants and boots on still. He turns the shower on. The water begins to cause a fog in the room. His mirror is covered in the condensation. He shuts the door as he walks back into his bedroom. The steam climbs out from under the door. The fog’s fingertips dance across the wall as it climbs to the roof.

As he removes the rest of his articles, he sits on his bed. There is no sound in the village. There far off waterfall can be heard. It’s crashing momentum sounds like a low drum in the mind of its citizens as they sleep. This village is comfortable to those who live there. The sound of nature places such a rest on everyone. They don’t have worries, they don’t have cares. Peace in this village and land is evident.

The shinobi walks into his shower. He cleanses his body as well as his mind. The water hits his hair and trickles down his face. His scarred hands run across his body as he rubs soap across his muscles. He gently rubs his hair to work the shampoo in it. His black and purple hair sits tightly to his scalp as his rubs the shampoo back. He places His head under the shower head. The foam from his body and hair floats down the drain.

He turns the water off. He walks through the fog of the room to grab a towel. He dries himself and discards the towel into a hamper. He walks into his bedroom. The steam that was in the shower bellows out into his room. The fog dances around like a dream. Captivating him, he lays in his bed watching the fog slide out the window. The fog is lifted.

Zhane lies in his bed. “Tomorrow, I start my journey. I will encounter many things. I know the journey will not be easy, but it will be fun.” The thought of danger and perils always put a nice feeling in his chest. The challenges are nothing to worry about. Things can always be overcome. This talented shinobi knows that. He turns on his side and closes his eyes. His final sleep in this place, the last time he will call this small apartment his home. He dreams of nothing. The excitement of the next day is too much for him to have any dreams. His mind is only set on the task ahead of him.

[cetra_aeris]

"Mother? Why are we packing?" A little girl said curiously as she put a shirt into a bag. Her dark hair looked similar to her mother's yet in her mother's eyes she only reminded her of her father. The one that never really came to visit anymore, the one that none of the villagers talked about, and the one that Shira so dearly adored in her young age.

"Because sweetie..." A woman said, nearly the spitting image of the child yet her eyes were full of sorrow and her hands shook even as she packed her own things. "Mommy misses her home, and we'll come back to visit. Besides, you'll like it in Konoha."

The little girl frowned and looked up at her mother. Her eyes were dark, almost black, unlike her mother's cool blue ones. "But mother.... What about Daddy?"

That statement almost brought Kira to her knees. Her daughter didn't understand now, and she didn't want her to know what had broken her and made her want to leave her long time home. So instead she put on a smile and patted little Shira's head. "Don't worry hunny... Daddy will know where we are, he'll come visit if he gets time."

~~

But her mother had lied, her father had never come to visit after they moved. Always Shira had sat as a child, looking out her window hoping to see her father coming to the door. He was the one had made her so determined to become a ninja. She had wanted to show him so badly that she was strong, yet she never seemed to have got the chance.

As Shira had grew older she came to realize the truth, that her mother had never told her father where they had went. Moving, that had been one thing. Sure Shira might have had friends, and of course she didn't want to leave, but she could get past that. She'd known that even as a child.

No, her mother had flat left in cowardence and hadn't even told her own daughter the truth. The fact that someone she had trusted had lied so dilebertly to her had made her grow colder as the years moved on.

Now, at 16, Shira didn't have any friends. She only had Aquaintences or comrades, never friends. She now thought them a waste of time, considering friends had always pulled her away from what she needed to be doing anyway.

~~

"Shira! Come over and play!" A young boy said. Shira was sitting next to a tree, staring intently at something. She hadn't played with them for some time and the boy was excited that she had come outside. Him and few other children stood to the side.

"Shira! Come on, we're playing tag!" Said a little girl. Shira turned then, and stood. Her eyes were downcast. For a 12 year old child, her look had an odd and older understanding in it.

A small smirk played her lips as she answered their pleas. "Tag is a childs game. I have more important things to do than waste my time with people I barely know." She said before turning back to where she'd been crouching before. The blue light of Chakra glowed from her fingers and she moved her hands, mimicking the hand sign that had been etched into her memory by her father.

~~

Kicking a stray rock, Shira let out a sigh. Walking around the village was boring. She needed something to do. Training was out of the question right now, and she didn't really feel up to it anyway.

She wanted something worth her time, a misson perhaps? She stopped where she was walking in the street and stretched. She looked around her to see exactly where she was at.

She turned, realizing she was a ways from the hokage manor, where she'd have to go in order to get a misson or something to do. Annoyed at herself as well as at the distance, Shira began walking back down the way she'd came. Her feet made small noise on the ground compared to the others around her. All these people, all of them, had taken them in. Her and her mother, and though they knew her mother they had known nothing of her, and they had never tried to learn.

Once as a child, she had asked her mother why no one was allowed to know who her father was. Her mother had told her then that it was because her father liked to keep his secrets. Sometimes, with the way her mother talked she wondered if somehow her father had died.

Walking down the street she passed faces she'd grown familar with over the past 5 years that she'd lived in Konoha. She often found herself wondering how her life would have been like had she been able to live out her life in the Cloud village. Would she have still had to hide so many things about herself? Would she have been able to see her father more? What kind of ninja would she have been?

Turning her thoughts away, Shira let herself watch the ground. She saw no point in thinking about the past. Yet, even as she chided her self, she knew that she would always feel trapped in Konoha. Even if her loyalties lied in Konoha, her heart was unsure of where to lay it's trust, or even what to feel.

[Xeim]

Kusinada sighed and looked down at the map Hanako had given her. It was beautiful- the girl had obviously put a lot of work into it. The map, clearly titled, 'The Hokage Mansion,' gave a detailed description of the layout of the building. Hanako had even inserted the color scheme into the picture! And, while the green was becoming nauseating, Kusinada greatly appreciated the girl's work.

“Time to explore!” Kusinada laughed to herself, and set off down the hallway outside of Hanako's room at a run.

~*~

The town of Konohagakure was large and colorful. Kusinada was amazed once again by the difference between it and Otogakure. Buildings were painted in a plethora of colors- red, orange, navy blue. It seemed happy, just like the Hokage himself. Kusinada felt, for the first time, that she belonged.

A gentle wind swept down the street where she stood. Kusinada closed her eyes and allowed her arms to drift out from her sides. It was probably a strange sight- a young girl standing with her arms thrust out in the middle of Main Street, but Kusinada didn't care. She was finally herself in the place she should have been all along.

The breeze passed, and Kusinada opened her eyes. She allowed a soft smile to grace her lips as she watched people go about their daily business. The entire town was like a family- they all worked together to make it through the day. She was part of that family now.

The sun was lower in the sky than Kusinada realized. Dusk was only a few hours away.

'I better hurry if I want to get a feel for the town before dinner!'

For the next hour and a half, Kusinada excitedly went window shopping. She looked at clothes stores, weapons stores, and her favorite, food shops. Of course, she didn't stop at the windows for these. She just couldn't resist the temptation of the sweet goodies behind the walls of candy stores or bakeries.

Finally though, she had run out of stores. It was quite unfair in her mind, as she wanted to keep shopping forever. She still had an hour or so until dinner, however, so she decided to explore the alleys and residential areas of the village. She was determined to see all there was to see of the beautiful ninja village in the Land of Fire.

~*~

Kusinada was walking down an alley in the more run down section of town when it happened.

She walked into a drawing. Before her stood the building in Hanako's wrecked sketch. But, Kusinada realized, something was different. It was…cleaner somehow. The setting sun cast its rays elegantly into the freshly painted walls. It was a beautiful sight, and yet, at the same time there was something extremely wrong with it. What in the world was going on here?

Kusinada stood still for a moment, and stared at the almost ethereal sight. Then, all at once, the image was shattered and the drawing was no more. The sun and most of the building had been blotted out by a massive amount of…

Dust.

Kusinada jumped back, even though she was well out of the range of the thick cloud. She was not surprised to see a feminine figure emerge from the house- coughing- moments later. The person doubled over for a moment from the intensity of the dust, before they straightened out and spotted Kusinada. This person had silky black hair and pale skin.

“Konnichiwa! ” the woman- or man, Kusinada was quite unsure at this point- called out.

“Uhm, konnichiwa ,” Kusnada called back. “What exactly's going on here?”

“Renovation,” the person called out before they leaned over to cough again.

“Wow, really? It looks like…fun!” she laughed.

“Uhm, if you want to put it that way, I suppose.”

“I'm Kusinada by the way!”

“Manami,” the person replied simply.

'Manami…well, that doesn't help with the gender confusion…' She began to inspect the person, and hoped to take in every little detail. Black hair, feminine figure, and green eyes. They wore a purple kimono. Kusinada's mind wanted desperately to decide that the person was female, but something didn't fit. She- or he- just didn't seem female. His (she decided) mannerisms and speaking patterns seemed male.

“Forgive my rudeness, but…are you in fact a man?” Kusinada inquired cautiously.

[Seraph]

The morning air drifts acroos Zhane room. The moon still shining as if it was a morning sun. Zhane's lack of sleep doesn't bother him. He has trained not to need things like sleep and sustinace incase of long recon missons. Zhane sits up in his bed and looks towards his bokken and Naginata. With their purple and black art shimmering in the moonlight, it dances across the items like a black canopy with holes punched in it. Rising out of his bed he puts his attire on. He covers his hands with his gloves. Rolling a blanket with a few changes of clothes, he places his bokken strap atop it. This forms a makeshift back pack. Grabbing his Naginata, he walks out of his room down the hall.

" Zhane, Where are you going?" A young woman with dark black hair and red eyes that pierce like blades." you can't leave us. You know aswell as I do that you are the best ninja we have, and if you leave this place will fall apart. Yeah I know the townsfolk and advisors are tough on you, but they do it out of protection for you. They don't want another situation to come up like the last one, and you fall apart."

Zhane shuts the door to his room while turning his back on the girl. "Raica, they don't trust me, and they never will. You say they protect me , and they need me. If they wanted to protect me , they would have not treated me this bad. If they really think I'm such a great ninja, they wouldn't need to protect me from the horrors of battle. If we were attacked, they wouldn't call on me. They think I'm weak, and that I will fall apart when the weight of the world is on my shoulders. The thing is more weight has burdened me since the tradgedy happened because they wouldn't allow me to continue on with my life."

Raica walks towards him." This is your home. Nothing will change that. No one will forget who you are or what has happened. Everyone won't let you get on with your life because you haven't accepted the fact that you failed. Don't go. Not this way. Do you want the people to remeber you as a coward or a hero?"

" Yeah i failed. I'm no coward. I'm no hero. I'm just another face in the crowd.I'm leaving. This will be our last conversation. If you need me, I am in the village of Konoha. I will come back if something happens. Tell everyone I am going to become a better man, not just a better ninja." Zhane begins walking down the hallways and turns towards the stairs. He raises his hand with a wave and give a smile.


He couldn't drag her into this. He has loved that girl since they trained as Genin together. The games they played as children begin to flash into his head as he walks down the stairs. Everything had played out like they said it would when they were children. He became a great ninja, and she was always by his side no matter what. He never told her how he felt though. No matter how strong he was he never was strong enough to let her know his emotions. He didn't have to tell her though. She knew. Everyone knew. She also had feelings for him too, but after the accident he changed. He became a shell. He withdrew to himself and never let her in. If she had only been there after he got back from his mission, maybe just maybe things would be better.

" Zhane, I never blamed you for what happened to my sister and your friend. You did as your were taught. Complete a mission before worrying about others. No matter how hard i tried to get to you though you always pulled away. Now your leaving, and starting over. What will become of us will I be just a memory." Raica says to herself as Zhane walks away.

Zhane makes it out of his apartment building and heads down the main street of Takigakure. The road leads suth straight to the Land of fire. From there Zhane will go to Konoha looking for the Hokage. If he is turned down there, he may just become a rouge ninja. DOing whatever he can to make a name for himself and to put him back on the map and get his head right.

[Xeim]

Hanako stood in her room staring at herself in the mirror. She didn’t like what she saw. Her kimono looked so heavy: as if she was carting around a bunch of sweaters underneath it. And her hair looked hideous tied up the way it was. Hanako didn’t understand. She had been fine with her appearance just a few hours ago, but now... now…

Now….

“Hmm…” Hanako murmured. “Ah well, I suppose I should get ready for dinner. Dad wanted me to help him cook tonight…”

Which means he wants more than ramen, even if he doesn't want to admit it. Peculiar.

Hanako lifted the skirt of her kimono so that she could walk more easily, and shuffled out of the room. What would she make for dinner tonight? How many people would be there? She supposed she should include Raiden in her numbers just in case. So, that was her father and mother, herself, Kusinada, and Raiden. Five people. Hanako decided it would be a good idea to make enough food for six. After all, you never know who might drop in…. or who might turn out to be a pig.

But what should she make? Even as she entered the kitchen, Hanako didn’t have an answer. She herself would’ve been fine with a salad or two, but that wouldn’t satisfy the others. The kitchen was smaller than most rooms in the house, but it still had two segments. The one Hanako was in now could only be described as the pantry. Foods of all sorts overflowed on the shelves, though the majority of them were ramen. There was also a huge refrigerator and freezer that held much more than what was already apparent. The lighting was dim, and the door to the other section of the kitchen stood on Hanako’s right. Hanako didn’t want to enter. The memory of that morning was still fresh; she didn’t know if she could handle the venture inside.

“Hinata…” Hanako heard a whisper come from around the corner. “Heh, today’s been pretty weird, hasn’t it?”

“Uhm, yes I suppose it has.” Hinata almost chuckled.

“Just before I came back…I received a report….” Naruto started, and he sounded kind of distant and upset.

“W-what is it, N-naruto-kun?”

“No, never mind.” He paused, and Hanako could almost see the legendary grin spread across his face. “Tonight’s a night for celebration! A member of the legendary Uchiha clan has returned home! Break out the ramen!”

Hinata sighed, and Hanako chuckled.

---
“RAMEN!!!!” screeched Naruto a few minutes later.

“Uhm, Dad…you do know that our guest might….perhaps….want…” Hanako started, but failed.

“Who wouldn’t want ramen?! It’s a sin to not want to indulge yourself in the sweetness of ramen!!”

“Did Sasuke like ramen?” It was an honest question. Hanako had no intention of provoking her father. She thought that by feeling out Kusinada’s father’s tastes, perhaps she could figure out Kusi- chan’s own. But it was the wrong question. Naruto always got upset at the mention of his old friend. But they were just that, friends. Sometimes, friends just have to leave, and the people they leave behind have to adapt. It’s not like they were lovers or something…right?

Hanako looked over at her father, blushed, and quickly dismissed the thought before she ended up embarrassing herself.

“Hanako?” Naruto asked.

“Mhm…”

“Maybe we should have more than ramen.”

“Alright, Dad.”

“Hanako? What do you like?”

“Heh, I think we should be thinking about Kusinada more than me,” Hanako giggled.

Naruto looked over at her, and for a few moments all he could bring himself to do was stare. His daughter had just uttered a whole sentence without stuttering once. And then, after the passage of those few moments, all Naruto could do was stutter. “Y-yeah, of course.”

“Oh! I know! We could have a stir fry!”

“Hm…well, I suppose since there are still noodles in it….”

“Then it’s decided!”

---

Hanako peered out the window. She had just finished cooking the meal, and was pulling bowls and chopsticks out of the cupboards for the table. It was beautiful outside, and the last rays of sunlight were just beginning to disappear beneath the horizon. The evening calm that usually fell over Konoha was beginning. Hanako sighed, took a deep breath, and went out of the kitchen to set the table. Kusinada and Raiden would be home soon.

“Hanako!” Naruto called. “I found stuff for sushi! Want me to cook some up?”

“I thought you hated sushi?” she responded as she set the first of the bowls on the table.

“Sa- Kusinada might like it.”

“Alright then, if you know what you’re doing.” She began to mutter. “Ramen, stir fry, and sushi. Not much of a variety between the first two, just a presence or absence of vegetables…he better make the sushi good….” She paused in setting down chopsticks. “Make sure you know what you’re doing, Dad!!”

“Hai!” he yelled back sarcastically.

Hanako sighed.

Then, the door to the mansion opened. Hanako heard it all the way in the dinning room, which was a few rooms away. “Hanako-sensei!!” called a feminine, goofy voice. “Hanako-sensei! I brought someone over for dinner! I know I should’ve asked but-”

It was Kusinada of course. Hanako was so excited she was finally back she could hardly contain herself. “Oh yes, of course that’s alright! Come in, come in!” She was almost jumping up and down by now. Kusinada and her guest would have to pass through the kitchen to get to the dining room, so Hanako stood facing the door anxiously.

“Kusinada! Welcome back!” she heard her father call. And then, “AH! Oh, wait not Haku. Hey Manami. Almost made me drop my knife here…” And the rest was trademark Naruto grumbling. Hanako chuckled and entered the kitchen, since it seemed as if Kusinada wasn’t going to enter the dining room now, from Naruto’s distraction. She was also curious to see this person Kusinada had brought back with her. Was she making that many friends already? Hanako felt a little put off, as if she wouldn’t matter much now that Kusinada had other friends. But Kusinada’s smile dismissed the thoughts.

“Hanako-sensei!! It’s so good to be back! Are you feeling better?” Hanako had almost forgotten that just a few hours earlier she had been so exhausted that she could barely move.

“Hai. Arigato.” Hanako replied quietly.

“Oh c’mon Hanako! You have to scream it! Let the world know you’re feeling good. Ready? On three-“ But she was interrupted by Naruto’s incredulous stare.

“You sure you’re an Uchiha?”

“Of course! You want me to prove it?” Kusnada cheered, and her eyes began to turn red.

“No no no! I just- well, you’re not apathetic, while being unreasonably possessive at the same time, or mentally unstable with a stick up your butt, so-”

That was it. Hanako couldn’t keep herself from laughing, and apparently, neither could Manami. The two laughed uncontrollably for the next few minutes, while Naruto and Kusinada just kind of stood frozen, rooted to the spot. Eventually though, Kusinada started giggling as well. “I wasn’t raised as an Uchiha.”

“Tch. That doesn’t mean you’re not mentally unstable. Or a lying, cheating bastard like your uncle and father.” That of course, was Raiden.

Everyone had finally assembled.

[Mistress Sheena]

“Forgive my rudeness, but.. are you in fact a man?” Kusinada queried.

“I wonder how she knew... I guess it must be a radar women have. Even the woman at the store knew I was a guy...

Manami raised a brow and smiled. He bowed and clapped softly as he cleared his throat.

“Haku Manami, Male, Eighteen. At your service. I have to commend you for correctly guessing my gender. Usually I get mistaken for a female. Although, that seems to only happen with men most of the time.” He coughed the last of the dust from his lungs and stepped out of the range of dust from his apartment.

“I'm sorry for all of this dust, by the way. I'm almost done cleaning the apartment. But I decided to take a small break.” His face glistened from the sweat and dust that traveled around his residence. He took a deep breath and let out an exhausted sigh.

“Why did you decide this point in time to take a break, Haku-kun?” she wondered.

“Well, I figured it was a good time to wash up and relax my body. I can only clean for so long before I get tired, you know. I've been at it since I got here, pretty much. And that was during the morning, and look at the time it is now.” he calmly smiled and tilted his head as his stomach rumbled.

Kusinada raised a brow and Manami sweatdropped. “I suppose you've grown hungry, too, hmm?”

“You noticed? Heheh...” Manami scratched the back of his head.

Kusinada walked past him and turned her body back toward him with her head up in the air and her hands tucked behind her.

“I guess I've got no choice but to invite you to dinner, then.” she glanced down at him and smiled.

“Really? That would be nice,” Manami smiled back and bowed and caught up with her. “So, let's be on our way. I'm sure the food is being prepared as we stand here idly.”

“Most likely.” Kusinada nodded and lead Manami to the Hokage Mansion to where the feast would be served.

[Lady Rika]

The bird cried out loudly as it was forced into the cage, its ebony black wings thrashing against the tiny cage walls. Raiden stared at it, annoyed but he didn’t speak a word. With out slow wave of his hand he began to cast Genjutsu on the terrified nightingale. Soon after many begging cries the bird hushed, sitting on the tiny sill that stretched across the cage. Raiden was satisfied enough with that though he knew he would had to use some sort of technique to get the wild bird to stay still for him. It had only taken him minutes to catch the beautiful creature it was a very lucky animal Yes indeed, the bird had made two little deep tear marks in the deep crevasse below his thumb. He would have taken its life but it was just so breathtaking he had to draw it.

Raiden sat his sisters now empty sketch pad in his lap and readied himself. The charcoal pencil he was using was aged and ready to fall apart but until then he would continue to use it. He loved the way the deep strokes make the birds wings seem alive; with every curve he depicted every little feather on the tiny nightingales breast and wings. Time seemed to pass slowly for him; though he liked it at times he sometimes wished that he could have his own time. Away from everyone, his father, mother, sister–everyone! If only for this village which he swore to protect with his very life; if not for that he would have been gone ages ago. ‘What do I have here?’ He thought angrily, ‘One half of my family doesn’t accept me at all while the other is only my foolish father!’ If anything he felt some respect for his father for being such a wonderful leader to Konoha and its people. But his mother and sister were something else…they held him back and kept his anger to a boil. Just their faces made him want to scream.

His deep sea blue eye gazed upon what he now had; the body was lightly outlined but the feathers and wings were finished, the head partly done. He just couldn’t get its eyes right, were they too small? Too big he wasn’t sure but he knew he would think it over during dinner…which he was forced to go too.

He sighed, knowing that now was the time to go downstairs and eat the slop that the new ‘guest’ had prepared. ‘Hmff, guest what a joke. More like freeloader.’ He seethed setting his sketch pad down along with the pencil to rest on his bed. The bird would be fine, he’d cast Jutsu upon other animals to get them to be still for him. That was sometimes the only way to do it. Streching, Raiden got off of his bed and went downstairs. He passed the hallway were his sisters crumbled up papers were. They were gone now showing only the clean and lonely flooring. He snorted, walking around his home sometimes made him think of humorous little thoughts. ‘Sometimes I think a balloon filled with crimson dye had exploded all around the house. Leaving it in the color of blood.

When Raiden reached downstairs he wasn’t surprised by the loud uproar of people talking. There might not have been many people there at the house but it was still rather boisterous and he hated that trait in people. He took a seat farther away from the others, a servant came and put a plate in front of him then walked away to do some other chore.
Raiden looked down at the food and huffed, he refused to eat even just a small nibble.
Naruto watched him carefully but tried to make it not noticeable. Though Raiden saw him of course, his blind eye was no fool. And his senses had grown slightly since his sight had left his one eye completely. So he ignored his father just as he did everyday, night and holiday. He stayed silent and composed something many people couldn’t do without practice. Usually he could be that way flawlessly but his dangerous temper got in the way.

“You sure you’re an Uchiha?”
His father asked the guest, ‘Heh of course she is! Just look at her…’ She showed all the signs of being one of the alleged high class Uchiha’s but acting like a carefree playful idiot just pissed him off. Where did she have the right to have a bastard of a father and act so calm! If she had any idea the kind of pain Naruto was in just thinking about Sasuke she would keep her trap shut!

“I wasn’t raised as an Uchiha.” She laughed.

Raiden glowered at the girl; his sisters laughs made him want to choke her just so he could shut her up! Her voice along with that stupid wretch of a mother’s was nearly unbearable. And after another minute of laughter he finally snapped.

“Tch. That doesn’t mean you’re not mentally unstable. Or a lying, cheating bastard like your uncle and father.” He hissed, pushing the plate as far away from him as he possibly could. ‘Damn her…I can’t stand these stupid Uchiha’s. Thinking there so much better than everybody else…especially Sasuke!’ Raiden clutched his fist tight, attempting not to say anything more.

It was then when he saw someone else, a girl about the same age as him maybe, sitting near the Uchiha girl. He stared at her for a few seconds then realized something vital. That wasn’t a girl. In fact, upon even closer evaluation he remembered seeing him once before in the streets but never paid attention to him until now. As he was in his house, sitting at his table.

“Who the hell do you think you are?” He finally asked calmly, his voice dripped with malice as he brought the deep blue eye up to gaze at her intensely.
“Bringing that disgusting queer into our home! Honestly what could you be thinking you stupid fool!” He let a smirk crawl eerily across his attractive face. A strand of golden blonde hair dipped down and covered a small portion of his ice colored eye giving off a arrogant look.
Naruto stood up abruptly, “Raiden!” He screeched, “How dare you talk like that to our guest! He happens to be a relative of a good friend of mine!” Naruto’s matching blue eyes burned into his sons; he remembered Haku oh so well. It was so long ago yes from his first real mission outside the village. When he had met that boy, he hated having to fight his new friend but in the end it taught him a lot. So much. And he wouldn’t stand for his wild son bad talking his relative.

Raiden jumped up as well, his chair crashing to the floor; “You shut up Naruto!” He growled. Raiden looked over at their ‘guest’ he hated that he couldn’t remember her name but at the same time was glad he didn’t. He wouldn’t want to even know the name of Sasuke’s daughter if he didn’t have too.
“And YOU!” He began viciously, “Stay away from me! You’re so lucky my family is letting you stay here or you’d be out on the streets like the repulsive Uchiha trash you are!” He roared hitting his glass of water with his fist sending it crashing to the floor. Water and glass spurted across the hard wood flooring, the glittering glass shards looked almost pretty even in the heat of the moment.
“I can’t even stand to be in the same room with you!” He backed away from the table, eyes huge. His mother Hinata shook with fright, she was used to this kind of attitude all the time from her eldest child but never had she seen him lose his temper so easily with someone he hardly knew.
“Ra..Raidd-den…please calm down.” She begged him in a small voice, “Miss Kusinada hasn’t done nothing to–
“Shut up!” he screamed at her, turning to Kusinada he whispered in a chilling voice enough for them to hear. “Cross me the wrong way whore and I swear I’ll kill you, on my life I swear.” He held up his hand and disappeared, reappearing outside in a large tree. His temper was flaring and so not to kill the little bird he left it in its cage so he could finish it. Sketchbook, pencil and birdcage in hand as he began to start drawing once more; trying to focus on the wings instead of the Uchiha clan he hated so much.


Naruto covered his face with his hand, he had never been so embarrassed before in his entire life. And that was speaking alot! He looked over at Kusinada and Manami; "Please forgive him...Raiden is...not well." He lied, honestly he didn't know what was the matter with his son. Why he was so guarded and vicious all the time when he was always loved as a kid, loved still now too, just as much. He longed to know what to do but Raiden never talked to him or anyone else either.

[Xeim]

"Please forgive him...Raiden is...not well."

Not well, eh? God, Kusinada wanted nothing more than to knock that ‘unwellness’ from his dirty, selfish little-

She mustn’t think like that. She must not whip people with her thoughts. She was changing. Starting over. She didn’t have to protect herself with biting comments anymore. Her mother was miles away from here, and her influence didn’t even reach half that length. Kusinada would probably never outrun her father’s legacy- no, she didn’t want to. She didn’t like the fear of being completely unknown, of being helplessly alone in what seemed like a new world. Her father’s legacy, as infamous as it was, protected her from that. Even if people hated her. Raiden did, obviously.

“Stay away from me! You’re so lucky my family is letting you stay here or you’d be out on the streets like the repulsive Uchiha trash you are!”

She cringed mentally at the remembrance of his statement. He was painfully wrong. If Naruto hadn’t taken her in, she wouldn’t even be on the streets. She’d be back out in the forest wandering. And really, it wasn’t only Naruto she had had to count on. It was Lee and his team, the people of Konoha, Hanako, even Hinata. She needed all of their support and guidance to get to where she was sitting. She really was trash, she supposed.

‘But, even trash can be recycled and made into something new. ’

As pitifully strange as it sounded, Kusinada was recycling. She was the dirty useless trash that would be made into something new. It didn’t happen instantly, but someday, someday she would show that emotionally impaired-no, no wrong!- that stubborn, blonde man that she was capable of becoming something else.

Her family name would not stop this determined young woman.

Kusinada hadn’t realized how deep in thought she had been until Manami coughed. She wasn’t sure right now if it was a cough to get attention, or just that, a simple dust induced cough. God knew he had been around enough.

“Raiden.” She said aloud, without knowing where to go from there. “He’s…”

‘He’s…’

“He’s entitled to his opinions.” She managed. Naruto looked over at her sympathetically, knowing what she must really be feeling. What must she really be feeling? She supposed she should hate him, but it just didn’t feel right…yet.

‘Yet.’

She glanced over at Manami. He had almost finished what was salvageable of his meal, and would probably look to leave once he had. “I’m sorry you had to witness that,” Kusinada said solemnly. It was kind of hard to be cheerful in a situation like this.

“Naruto-sama. You’ll allow me to be a Konoha shinobi, won’t you?” she asked quietly.

Naruto looked up at her. She had changed so much in these past few hours, and he knew it. “I already consider you one.”

“Arigatou.” She inclined her head slightly, and lock of her long black hair fell in her face, distorting the view she had of her sushi plate. She was still scared. She trusted Naruto, and she was confident in her place in Konoha, but she knew that there would always be people like Raiden. She’d have to face them- probably many of them, and hope to one day change their view of her. It would be hard. But life was hard. That was the whole point of it. If life wasn’t hard, what would be the point of living it?

Kusinada smiled sadly. Everything life threw at you was just something to help you get through something else.

“Well, I suppose now’s a good a time as any,” Naruto mumbled then. “Everyone’s already glum and-“ He sighed. “Everyone. I have something to say.” He stood up. “Recently, I’ve been receiving….interesting reports of movement in other shinobi villages. Many of them, including the other great nations have been focusing their attention on gathering weaponry. Some have sent spies to other villages. We don’t know quite what this means yet. We can’t find anything on what these weapons are meant for, but it’s obviously not good.”

Kusinada froze up. Weapons? Movement? Was there going to be another shinobi war? That couldn’t happen! Not now! She had just found a place that was more peaceful than anywhere else on the planet. She- She had just found home.

“We can’t know for sure that another war is about to start. But in all honesty, that’s the only reasonable explanation.”

“N-Naruto-kun! Wh-why did you wait to tell us this now?” stammered Hinata.

“I didn’t want to worry everyone. But seeing as Raiden’s already ruined the mood at this dinner table, I figured this would be the best time. I don’t want this leaking to the village until we have more to go on, though.”

Hanako spoke up then. “Amegakure?” It was one simple word, but it carried so much meaning. Amegakaure was the one village people hoped to never hear movement from again. It could mean so many things- revenge for their home being destroyed, anger at the death of their ‘God,’ the Akatsuki leader, or even the return of Akatsuki. Whatever the case, Amegakure was not a village Konoha wanted to hear about.

“Nothing yet.”

The mood in the room relaxed a little. But it was short lived. Just because there wasn’t movement today didn’t mean there wouldn’t be tomorrow. Just because they were going to crawl safely into their beds tonight didn’t mean they wouldn’t be fighting for those beds next week. They had to prepare. Tension was rising, and not just between Konohaers.

The nations were holding their breath. These next few weeks would decide whether a war would indeed begin or not.

[Mistress Sheena]

“....Bringing that disgusting queer into our home! Honestly what could you be thinking you stupid fool!”

When that statement was spoken, Manami looked up from tuning everything out due to concentrating on the meal in front of him. He had finished his meal when Raiden spoke out in a tantrum.

“What is his issue with the Uchihas, I wonder...” he thought to himself. He continued on with his tirade for a few moments and even back talked his own father. Manami continued to witness the enraged tantrum for observational purposes. Perhaps Raiden's mind was full of misunderstandings that he alone couldn't comprehend.

That was when his mental flow was abrupted yet again by speech directed toward him.

“I'm sorry you had to witness that.” Kusinada said solemnly.

“Oh, not at all. It didn't bother me one bit. I'm quite used to it by now.” he reassured her and smiled. But if only that were true. In the back of his mind, he made a decision to confront Raiden one on one and enlighten him of his foul behavior and the error of his ways.

“If I don't do anything, he'll end up worse off than Sasuke. How ironic... he hates that which he is about to become.” he thought to himself as he stood from his seat. But an announcement from Naruto had stopped him in his tracks.

“Recently, I’ve been receiving….interesting reports of movement in other shinobi villages. Many of them, including the other great nations have been focusing their attention on gathering weaponry. Some have sent spies to other villages. We don’t know quite what this means yet. We can’t find anything on what these weapons are meant for, but it’s obviously not good.”

Manami sighed and shook his head. It was only a matter of time. Peace was something that never lasted very long in this world. Though maybe this action was a precaution of something bigger yet to come. Soon, he would have to employ himself as a shinobi to involve himself in these matters.

Before that, he had a score to settle with Raiden. He excused himself from the table and offered to help clean up the mess that Raiden had left behind in his wake. Several moments had passed after the shrapnel was cleaned up from the floors. He said his goodbyes and left the mansion. He trekked back to his apartment and finished the rest of the renovation before he washed himself and prepared for the battle that drew closer with every moment gone by.

He equipped himself with several kunai and many shuriken. He dressed himself in teal gi and grabbed his combat mask. The only thing he had left to do was to hunt down Raiden's location and confront him before he caused anymore damage.

Manami left his home and locked up and dashed upon the rooftops in search of his prey. A few moments had passed when he spotted Raiden upon the Hokage Mountain.

“I think it's about time someone readjusted your views on life. Your threats and rage may scare other people, but they won't work on me. I'm here to challenge you to a duel, mostly because if I don't stop you right here and now, you will soon become that which you loathe.”

Manami shifted into his battle stance and swayed his fingers through the air and summoned the moisture within it and created a dome with which the combat would take place.

[Xeim]

“How do you describe a raindrop? It’s a tiny, seemingly insignificant bit of water, that when combined with a thousand of its brothers brings beauty to the land. But when you’re faced with the task of describing just one drop, what do you say?

“Brave, yet cowardly in the same breath? The basis of life and yet a symbol of despair? Beauty in a natural form?

“Unique?

“Is that how you’d describe me? For I am rain, and now I shall speak.”

| | | |

It was a cold, bitter night in Amegakure. There was no rain, so a deathly ice decided to lay itself upon the city. It was a night that would turn your nose pink just by sticking it out the door. And yet, Nakamura Kazuma sat on the roof of the former leader’s mansion, completely unaffected by the chill that surrounded him. The tiles of the roof felt dirty and moist under his callused and presently ungloved hands. Kazuma turned his head towards the point in the sky he knew contained the setting sun. He could feel the last of its rather faint warmth, and smiled as it finally disappeared. Night was here, the master of fear and emptiness. He would have rejoiced if night hadn’t been eternal for him.

To most, this night would be silent. They would lie in their beds, helpless against the cold, and hear only the thick silence that forced its way into their ears. They would feel it as it consumed them and wrapped its unloving arms around them, arms that forced them to sleep. But to Kazuma, this night was full of sounds. He could hear the fearful scuttles of animals far below them as they desperately searched for shelter, he could hear the moan of buildings as their structures were altered by the frigid temperatures, and he could even hear the ice slip off his roof as he stood. There was always movement, even in the stillest of moments.

Kazuma turned, and as he did so, the vibrations that his body set off allowed him to know exactly where he stood. He was near the edge, as he couldn’t feel anything beyond the point that was now at his back. He took a careful step forward. Most people would think he was out of his mind for being up on a slippery, dirt covered roof that he couldn’t even tell you the color of on an icy night, but there was no one around to see him, so there was also no one to think that of him.