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Kodomo Namida	By : Turtlenoise Category: -Misc Anime > General Views: 1499 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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- 2
- 3
Two old friends have brunch and discuss concerning matters
Chapter Two: Is the Beginning
Namida was almost fourteen and on the cusp of jounin testing. It was impressive, considering she had only been made chuunin about three years ago.
Already in a year's time since their own academy graduation, the Rookie 9 was testing for chuunin. It was something Ayumu and Daisuke had still yet to accomplish. Something Hyuuga Neji had still yet to accomplish. Perhaps they were getting quicker at catching up. Perhaps, Namida thought, she should work faster.
She couldn't help but think that Itachi had long since surpassed her current position when he was her age, entering the ANBU ranks and clearing his way to captain. Technically by her age, Itachi had murdered his whole clan and stole away in the middle of the night to join some illegal organization, if the rumors she heard were true. But Sasuke wouldn't hear it from her, given his last reaction. She was sure those who were privy to that information had decided not to share it with him, and for quasi-good reasons. The only reason she knew (the only reason she knew most of the really juicy gossip) was because she had a very effective and very nosy summons, who had the tendency to sleuth on her behalf if she batted her eyelashes.
She briefly considered how convenient it must have been for Itachi that the Uchiha were relocated to a single area of shared living space following the Kyuubi attack. But she didn't spend much time ruminating over him or humoring other conspiracies, as deep as the secrecy ran and as many unanswered questions as there still were. He was far outside her reason for worry. There wasn't much else she could do and no reason it should have to involve her. There were other, more pressing matters to address.
Namida was stationed at a window and propped up by the heels of her hands on the windowsill, idly taking in the cheerful Konoha street below and essentially people-watching. The Response Center was tall enough to overlook stretches of lower roofs belonging to homes, apartments, and businesses. They all fed ribbon-like into one of the main, perpendicular streets farther out and closer to the village's center. Yama required slanted roofs to prevent the weight of snow from causing them to collapse but level roofs, which Namida had not been used to at first, were sure convenient for ninja travel. She compared the villagers' foot traffic to the shinobi flitting from one elevated perch to the next.
Behind her, she largely ignored the addling sights and sounds of equipment being transported, whirling machines, and the harried busybody personnel – mainly medic nin and what one would consider nurses, as well as the occasional security, janitor, or nervous genin forced into bitch work. She stayed planted that way right up to the moment she sensed Kuro's arrival and even then, she gave little indication he was there at all. Her sensei (technically ex-sensei) arrived as silently as someone of his status should, appearing with a smart shadow flick and a smile. It became brittle when she randomly voiced her train of thought: "Itachi-san was ANBU captain by my age now."
"Technically, he murdered his whole family by this age." Kuro was quick-witted, a skill only sharpened by Namida's outlandish tendency to keep everyone on their toes. The way his response reflected her previous assessment almost verbatim made Namida grin (or perhaps the case was vice versa. After such prolonged exposure to not only his tutelage, but his dark and often tasteless humor, she must have begun to think similarly to him). Her long lashes fluttered briefly against her cheeks when a fond look passed, not for the view before her but for the man behind her.
"Get out of my head!" She finally spun around to face him, one hand still touching the glass and the other brushing over her heart. "We spend too much time together, Kuro-sensei."
"And who's fault is that? If I had it my way, I would be in bed at six a.m., not the training fields."
She tutted disapprovingly. "There was a time you were just as excitable, gramps."
He frowned in speculation, squinting down his nose and slightly raised chin. Kuro was already so much taller than her that stretching himself out in a posturing manner made Namida's brow twitch in annoyance. "Why consider him now, anyway? You should dwell on nicer things!" He uncrossed his arms and gave her a good, albeit brief, shake when he got ahold of her shoulders. "Like your upcoming promotion?"
She batted him away. "It is a fool who considers the battle already won." And fuck her, Kuro realized belatedly how she was parroting his own words, from a past version of himself who was more serious and astute. He smirked gamely and chuckled, stuffing one hand in the pocket of his trousers and using the other to scratch the back of his neck.
"Perhaps some things are more obvious, 'Tenba-chan. You," he gestured vaguely toward her, palm up and fingers splayed, "will excel the expectations for these tests, of this I have no doubt."
"Perhaps," it was Namida's turn to cross her arm, and her ankles as well, leaning back on her hip. "But you are supposed to be supervising my preparation, and yet you are late."
He sighed dramatically. "I thought we were going out to eat?"
"Light meal and then training," she admonished strictly. "And then a big dinner, huh?"
"You tricked me."
"Kaka-sensei is beginning to rub off on you," she accused. "All those secret missions you two lovers fly off to in the middle of the night? My sensei would have never been late at the birth of Team 13, not to meet an old friend for pre-congratulatory lunch."
"Oh, so we are celebrating? I thought you haven't passed the tests yet?"
She snorted and turned back to the window now over her shoulder when Kuro glanced around the lobby area in which they currently loitered in a moment of distraction, situated at the crossroad of three big hallways. It was always instinct to survey a scene initially, but more lackadaisical examination was a bonus when one had the time. He wasn't sure why she'd want to meet in the Response Center, but he figured Daisuke had been spending a lot of time there and her favorite coffee shop was just down the street. "But it's as you said… how could I not pass, especially considering the state of the others?"
"Jounin testing is drastically different from the chuunin exams. It doesn't matter who happens to be testing at the same time as you. You're not pitted against other squads and facing off against each other. But you are on your own."
Namida hummed. "First, we must get through these chuunin exams." She rolled her eyes. "Which, for the record, doesn't sit right with me. I heard the Kazekage has been going mad, and that Yama nin will be attending this time..."
Kuro shifted his weight nervously and averted his gaze, before his eyes returned scrutiny to the back half of Namida's skull. "Hokage-sama has set up very strict limitations. We are only allowing in the bare and essential minimum – genin, their instructors, select chuunin personnel, and a few other non-militant guests." She didn't know why he felt the need to reiterate something he already knew she knew. Perhaps it was his way of trying to console her. While Namida didn't need comfort, frank discussion was welcome. She wasn't hurt or scared, but she was wary. And she would only be relatively pacified by plans and back-up plans.
"The High Priest. He will be proxying the final test in the Koorikage's stead."
"Yes, well, your father obviously won't be stepping foot in the village. He still means to murder you."
"Oh no, he won't be trying to do that anymore." The confident statement caught Kuro off-guard. With all that had happened since Team 13's formation – the work and play, the horror and fun, the adventure and close encounters with near-death – it was not often the subject was touched. Namida could complain about her messy situation on a spectrum anywhere from clownery to dry and bitter humorlessness. But she was sometimes overtly touchy about certain facets and only brought them up when necessary. It arose at surprisingly inconvenient times. This, thankfully, was not one of those times. Kuro could tell by the casual tone of her voice. "He'll try to steal me."
Kuro played along just as nonchalantly. "During the exams?"
"Not necessarily. It would be very risky. It might even cause war, though I doubt it at this stage unless he really blunders up bad. But the exams are not without their opportunity." She decided to go on and tackle the unasked question. "I've lived in Konoha, now, for almost five years. I know every inch of this village. We're practically Konoha nin in all but name. I'd be useful to him, returned."
The use of 'we' reminded Kuro of another element. "That's assuming it's you he'll try to kidnap, and not Daisuke-kun. Or even Ayumu-chan."
"True, I guess any one of us would do. It's not like anyone in Yama would be particularly bothered by their detainment." Of course, she had already taken that into account. "Still, Ojiisan has been letting me on missions outside less and less. And when he does, it's almost always with higher ranked jounin such as yourself. I need to be leading missions. Especially considering I'm almost jounin myself."
He chortled a little. "Otenba-chan, he's trying to protect you. But also, he is giving you leadership tasks. Sorting teams, picking missions, these things that help run a village..."
"It's busy work," she argued.
"Listen, there's no one who thinks you can take back what was stolen from you more than the Hokage, even if he cannot possibly or officially say the words." That reminded her it was bold to speak of the desire to eventually return to Yama when it could be considered treason on her part, now sworn to Konoha. "But you can't do it dead. Or captured."
"It feels like I'm not doing anything," she sighed. Like she was becoming a static fixture. "It doesn't feel like I'm fighting for it like this."
"There's nothing to fight right now. A good opponent waits patiently and plans for an opening. You can't do a thing in your position now, as it so happens to be."
"I'll be an old woman when I finally take it all back."
"If fifty years is what it takes, I have no doubt you have the tenacity."
She huffed with laughter. "Come on." She pushed herself into a more upright position and led Kuro down a hall toward the stairs instead of the slow and congested elevators. She always preferred more effort and manual labor over waiting and lack of personal space, evidently.
"Was Daisuke-kun working with the medics again?" He asked after her, searching for the familiar head of spiky, bottle blue hair before they hit the door to the stairwell.
Namida nodded. "He just got off his shift, though, and had to go meet up with Ayumu-chan and Kimi-chan. About the exams, I take it?"
Kuro nodded. "Ayumu-chan and Daisuke-kun are definitely more than ready this time. It's a shame that the only time they made it to the third round was their first time with you, when they were still inexperienced. If they hadn't been knocked out beforehand the last times, I'm sure they would have fared much better."
"Because in the final, it doesn't matter if they win or lose."
As they trekked toward the bottom level and out a back exit, Kuro went into detail explaining how the third exam was judged by merit, skill, and performance. Namida knew the process well, having gone through it herself and becoming something of a regular spectator since, but Kuro liked to be expositional and thorough, and couldn't seem to keep track of who knew what and what he had told whom. Still, sometimes his repetition did clarify certain things or go into more description, so at least it was of more use than just humoring his forgetfulness. Sometimes, he'd even inadvertently let certain, previously unknown and more covert, facts slip out. He trusted her like that. Sometimes Namida wondered why.
Outside, there was a wonderfully clear and bright sky paired with an awful heat, same as every other day. Loitering bunches of shinobi smoked or strolled or chatted with their friends, and all eyed the duo as they passed. But after so many years following the initial excitement of Namida's loss and being made a charity case, she was less of a centerpiece and more like a side salad. The villagers had other gossip which took up their energy and attention – like the orphaned heir of their greatest clan, a reportedly weak heiress to the next greatest, and a demon boy. Namida listened in on all sorts of interesting things.
She remembered the final exam's arena well, packed with shinobi and civilians alike originating from a plethora of different villages and spanning all manner of classes. It was not difficult for the poorer to acquire the cheaper tickets. The village leaders themselves sat together in an elevated, centered gallery. She had learned the faces of many Kages who rotated up there, year after year. Yama hadn't attended since their assassination plot. The exams were twice a year, but not always hosted in Konoha. And Konoha nin did not make an appearance at the exams held in Yama, either.
"Did you see the son of the Kazekage?"
"Which one?" Judging by the laughter in his voice, he knew exactly which one, and she shot him an unamused glare.
"Oh, the cute little redhead, about yay tall," she grumbled, her hand cursorily designating a height only a few inches shorter than herself, "with a bad case of killer intent and making no attempt whatsoever to mask it? He was terrorizing Team 7 earlier along with the honorable grandson."
"If Konohamaru-kun was there, that is… distressing."
While she hadn't seen the tension once the genin team had bumped into the other firsthand, her familiar had given her his account. Ookami-san was constantly prowling and gathering intel, reporting back to her when Namida was off-duty or in the village. She trained with him often enough to satisfy networking purposes. She had also taken up the habits of having tea with him (his helping unceremoniously served in a dog bowl) and taking him on long walks. While Ookami tended to complain about being treated like a pet, he seemed to enjoy what Namida would call "hanging out", and what he would call "keeping her out of trouble" like some noble, melodramatic sentry.
"Gaara no Sabaki," Kuro answered finally. "He's called Gaara of the desert."
"Is it true what they say about the demon?"
He gave her a reprimanding look. "We're not supposed to talk about that?" They passed a gaggle of giggling children playing behind a strolling older couple, racing in and out of their way. One bumped into Namida and she lightly shoved him away, rolling her eyes more toward Kuro than the kid.
"And yet here we are, talking about it."
"Here you are maybe." He glanced around them, perfectly paranoid. While Namida was all for playing it smart and – by extension, she guessed – safe, there was only so much of Kuro's responsible sensibilities she could take without haggling him. But the closer they grew to the popular coffee shop, the larger the amount of people on the road became and that disconcerted him. Civilians and shinobi on all sides donned a variety of bright garb. Namida couldn't help but think that the styles would have never been allowable in Yama – where one always wore colors that could blend in with snow, varying shades of black and white and grey with no color or saturation of which to speak. Here, girls and boys alike could wear revealing clothes suitable to the hot temperature.
"No one cares about our conversations, Kuro-sensei. They're boring and we're boring," she reminded him. "Active ANBU spies have better ways to spend their time."
"You never know. There are so many ears around us. On duty or off, in all manner of capacity."
Namida pointed mischievously at a woman sewing some garment in an flaky wicker chair on her front porch. Her grandson was settled at her feet and playing with a couple of timeworn, wooden toys. "What about them? You think they are listening in on us?"
To that, he could only shrug. "Maybe?" She shoved him playfully.
Namida liked the fashion of Konoha, it's light weight and the freedom of movement it afforded. She had started wearing a dark blue v-neck cut off at her midriff, the back of which Ayumu had decorated with the Kodomo crest in an exercise of her neglected sewing skills. It was a talent the handmaiden had learned from Namida's mother. Yuki never liked Namida's common friend much at all. It was plainly by accident that all those lessons Yuki forced upon Namida, which fell on her deaf ears, had not been wasted on the quiet wallflower that was Ayumu. Ayumu – the considerate and kindhearted girl – also included the sigil on Namida's green vest, though she only wore it out on missions, when she met with the Hokage and other officials, or anything else related to work. Happy hour with coworkers included.
Namida was still fairly covered by a mesh shirt with elbow-length sleeves underneath the crop-top. It was just a little longer, but there was only a thin strip of flesh glancing out between that and her high-waisted slacks, which in turn tucked into tightly fastened shin guards. She had black boots to match (some of Yama's influence still remained). The baggy nature of the dark pants gave her many inside pockets, adding to the storage capacity of the kunai pouch strapped externally to her left thigh.
"It was sealed within him as an infant?" She egged him on, turning toward him and shamelessly fishing for information. "Come on, it's not like this is Konoha's dirty laundry we're airing out."
Kuro sighed and rubbed his jaw. "Yes, they say he grew up volatile, eventually became unstable, and that the Kazekage continues to send the occasional assassin after him. So far, obviously none have succeeded… or even survived."
"Oh wow, and you chastised me for oversharing in public? The fuck kind of bomb is that to drop on someone during brunch?" They had finally made it to the coffee shop, and Namida kept talking throughout the process of seat hunting. "How do you know all that?"
"Many people here have many ears. Myself included," he admitted, scratching a scar on his cheek. "Those wolves were my summons first, remember."
"For such a dangerous, ostentatious breed, they certainly are stealthy gossips."
"Why is it so damn busy here? Why do you drag me to the noisiest places?" He continued to grumble as he plopped down in an only recently vacated spot. Namida swept into the seat across from him, planting both elbows on the table and her cheek in one hand.
"You're just a grouchy old man," she commented, teasing. "This is fun and trendy!" Then, she blinked slowly and returned to the original subject. "Is he really unstable? Or is his father just a dick?"
Kuro shrugged, just as the barista brought their usual orders to the table. "Mizu-san went on a B-ranked mission with him once. It was a nasty assassination in the camp of some guerrilla force. Awful business – nothing for a little lady such as yourself."
"Kuro-sensei," Namida snapped, "we've literally been on that exact same mission before." The waitress left almost as soon as she came. Civilians tended to act skittish when shinobi started discussing shinobi things. Alternatively, there were also ones who seemed to enjoy flagrantly listening in like it was the coolest thing on earth, for some kind of vicarious thrill.
"There have been a lot," he snorted. "They all begin to blur after a while."
"Well, there are a few memorable exceptions," she rebutted, grabbing her mug. Kuro eyed his tea, and then glanced back to her.
"Mizu-san told me that the look in the boy's eyes… He'd never seen that look on anyone before, not even during The War."
"War makes monsters out of men. It is known. But for young Gaara, who has never experienced traditional warfare, to enjoy it so perversely? Naruto-kun is not this way." The look he gave her was not only reproachful, but downright murderous. "I wonder if it's truly all due to the demon?"
Kuro frowned. "Perhaps there's more to the story."
"That is troublesome. Have you considered that something's up with this whole chuunin exam thing? I mean, first Yama nin are attending for the first time in five years, and now this demon is at our doors?"
"You aren't planning anything dangerous, are you, 'Tenba-chan?"
"No, not yet."
"Because I've seen that look in your eyes before."
"What eyes?" she played dumb, looking around and pressing the backs of her hands over aforementioned eyes as she did, waggling her fingers. "I don't have eyes. I can't see a thing." She was chortling when she let her arms drop once again. Even Kuro, who at first clicked his tongue, chuckled a bit. "I'm just worried, is all. Aren't you worried?"
"Hokage-sama knows what's best," he replied simply.
She pursed her lips before taking a forceful bite of her pastry. Kuro wrinkled his nose in disgust. It was still too early for such sweet things, but Namida washed it down with a swig of what was most probably scalding hot and bitter coffee. Smacking her lips together as she chewed and swallowed, the ministrations did not stop her from continuing. "And Sound nin? Where do they come from?" She leaned in and raised her pinky, ring finger, and middle finger. "That's three odd things."
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Kodomo Namida