Kurai

As I walk down the dusty street, the sun bearing down on the road, I mentally berate myself. 

Stupid, stupid troublesome idiot! Who the hell asks the person on the other side of negotiations to lunch! I mean, it’s not like it’s a date or anything. A date would be too troublesome, which it is not. This isn’t a date at all. Just because she is an extremely good looking young woman who is also intelligent and has pretty eyes and -argh! This is too fucking troublesome. 

I glance over my shoulder at Mabui, who is taking in the village with wide eyes.

Say something you dense moron! 

“I take it Konoha isn’t anything like Kumo?” She shakes her head, her hair flowing in the gentle breeze like snowflakes glittering in the bright sun.

“No, it’s really not. Besides the obvious difference between  you being surrounded by trees and us being in a mountain range, it’s… much more different. The people here seem more lively, which I find strange. I understand your village lives by the motto, ‘The will of Fire’, but does it really exist in the grand scheme of things? Where does our fate come into play? What makes your village so different from Kumo or Iwa? What makes the people here so much happier  than the others? These are some questions I have been thinking to myself through the duration of my stay thus far.” I pause in the street for a moment, thinking back to one of my very first days in ANBU. 

“...Sandaime-Sama, can I ask you a question?” Hiruzen blows out a puff of smoke from his pipe, leaning out the window as the night breeze wafts through the office. 

“By all means, go ahead. I’m curious as to what question could bother someone who knows everything?” I grimace. Evidently, the Hokage had found out about my perfect test scores in my latest examination in ANBU. 

“What exactly is the Will of Fire?” Hiruzen turns, taking the pipe out of his mouth and setting it on his desk. He turns back to the window, gazing at the stars just now peeking through the dark clouds full of mystery. 

“Ah, this is what has been bugging you for the last month, isn’t it?” I nod my head, the porcelain on my face shifting with the movement. “Tell me, Leopard, what do you see when you look out at the village?” I walk to the window, standing beside him as I gaze out over the village. 

“.... I just see the village, sir. It’s home, and I would give my life to protect it. Why do you ask?” I can feel the shadowy mirth in Hiruzen’s body, yet his face reveals nothing. 

“That is certainly one viewpoint of it. When I was still learning from Tobirama-Sensei about how to be Hokage, he said something to me that I don’t think I will ever forget. ‘A fire can burn a forest to the ground, but a forest can only be reborn once it has been razed to the ground.’ It took me a while to really figure out what that meant, but eventually, I came to a conclusion.” Hiruzen turns to face me, placing a hand on my shoulder. 

“Think about  what that means. Once  you have your answer, that is when you will understand what the Will of Fire really is.” 

Snapping in front of my face brings me out of my daze as I startle. 

“Well, finally, I’ve been trying to talk to you for a couple minutes now. Do you space out a lot?” I rub the back of my neck, looking down to hide my rising blush. 

“No, sorry, I was just thinking back on something. What were you saying?” I can practically feel the eye-roll from Mabui, but when I look up, all I see is a playful smile on her beautiful visage. 

“Where are we going to eat, mister.” She scoots closer to me, her shoulder brushing up against mine. I feel the rising heat in my cheeks turn into an oven, sending my body temperature through the roof. 

“Uh, I was- I mean- I” She giggles, an adorable little quiet giggle that is practically music to my ears which makes me blush even redder than I already was. 

“Is there anywhere with some good ramen? I could definitely go for some beef ramen right about now.” I pause, already regretting my decision as I will likely run into another troublesome person, the young blonde pariah, Uzumaki Naruto.

“Ichiraku Ramen should be right around the corner. If ramen is what you want, then that’s the best place to go.” She nods, linking an arm through mine. 

“Lead the way then, mister broody.” I choke on my spit, whirling my head down to her in shock. 

“..Mister Broody?” She laughs, a loud and boisterous laugh that sounds like a warm spring breeze full of chirping birds. 

“Yes, now come on, I'm hungry, and you are paying.” With that, she starts to drag me, with her arm still linked with mine. 

⍱

Arriving in the stand, I hold open the drape as Mabui walks inside. 

“Welcome to Ichiraku!” The old man behind the counter turns, a bright smile on his face as a young blonde boy happily munches on what appears to be his twenty-fifth bowl of Ramen. I stare for a moment in sheer shock, feeling Mabui pause beside me as well.  Shaking my head while smothering a snicker, I proceed to sit at one of the stools, with Mabui following my suit. Turning my head, I see stars in her pale forest-like eyes. With a sigh, I wave to the old cook. 

“What can I get for the lovely couple?” His voice is full of sun and energy, yet the words are certainly something I wish he hadn’t said. Feeling my back go rim rod straight like a statue, I desperately fight off the crimson flare rising up the back of my neck as I feel a pair of eyes peer into my soul. With sweat dripping down my forehead, I try to hold in my scream of terror. 

“Ah, we aren’t dating, unfortunately. Merely just here together for some lunch as we needed a break from all the work and-” 

“Unfortunately?” 

Oh shit. I said the wrong thing. Welp, may the troublesome gods take care of my shadowy soul. 

I turn to Mabui, who has a sickly sweet smile on her face. I can practically feel the laughter from the cook vibrating off him as Mabui continues to smile at me. 

“That’s not to say I would be opposed to being on a date with you. Of course, if you wanted to consider this a date, then I would be more than honored to be on a date with such a stunningly attractive young lady.” Mabui continues to give me that venomous smile before she nods, patting my leg in a friendly manner. 

“I think I’ll take you up on that mister shadowy pineapple. This is a date now, so that means your paying.” Turning to the cook, she gives him a pleasant smile. “Can I get two bowls of Sweet Pork Ramen?” He nods, writing it down on his notepad. 

“Name’s Teuchi, by the way. Now, what can I get for you, sir?” I glance up at the menu board, scanning it quickly before I see something I must have. 

“I’ll start with just a bowl of Sweet Kiwi chicken Ramen, please.” Teuchi looks at me with surprise before smiling and heading back to work on the Ramen. I turn to Mabui, giving her a long, painful look. 

She gives me the most innocent look she can, a light blush on her cheeks as her hair shimmers behind her in the sunlight. I cough, fighting off a nosebleed as she twirls her hair around one finger. 

“Are you sure about this?” She stops mid twirl, glancing at me with curiosity dancing in her eyes like waves. “I mean, I’m not exactly the greatest specimen out there, not to mention we are from different-” She puts up a hand, laying one finger on my lips as she silences me. 

“Look, I think you're  adorable. Yes, you are a bit of a dork, especially considering how intelligent you seem. I don’t mind that, though. Actually  it just makes you more attractive in my eyes. That’s all I need, really, and nothing else matters. Plus, if negotiations work out, which I am sure they will with you around, then we have nothing to worry about.” Now the blush takes full force of my face, turning me a crimson color darker than blood as I feel steam leave my ears. 

“I uh- well um, oh whatever fine. I think it’s quite obvious I think you are stunningly beautiful as well.” Now it’s her turn to blush violet, bringing out her sparkling eyes even more as she twiddles with her fingers in her chair. 

Heh, so she has no defense, huh. Maybe women aren’t so troublesome after all. This is actually kind of fun. 

As I open my mouth to say something else, Teuchi walks back with our food. Cracking open the chopsticks, I mutter a quick Itadakimasu before diving into the smooth, warm heaven known as Ramen.  The first mouthful enters my mouth like a warm blanket over my tongue, setting my taste buds into a frenzy as I close my eyes in pure bliss. Finishing my mouthful, I steal a peek over my shoulder to Mabui, who is staring at her bowl with practical hearts in her eyes. 

A smile manages to worm its way onto my face as her innocent visage sends me thinking of the future. For once, a future where I see myself trying to stay alive and not run myself to death in anbu. Mabui looks at me, with a question dancing on the tip of her thin mouth. 

“You alright? You seem kind of out of it.” I shake my head, clearing the image from my mind as I quickly turn back to my bowl. 

“It’s nothing, just thinking of something for the first time is all.” She nods, returning to her bowl as images of white and dark-haired small children dance around in my mind like bright shadows full of promise. 

After finishing the ramen, I let out a heavenly breath of relief. Leaning against the counter in bliss, I peek open an eye and see Mabui mimicking my actions. With a slight smile on my face, I move my chair closer to hers. Taking in the warmth of the atmosphere as the first tiny flakes of snow fall behind me, I feel Mabui move into my warmth as well, laying her head against my arm comfortably. 

Maybe this is what uncle was talking about when he said life comes at us in strange ways. 

⍱

Arriving back at my apartment after taking  Mabui back to her inn, I start to shuck off my shirt. Throwing it on the back of a chair, I move into my room. Grabbing my ANBU undershirt, I throw it on quickly. Looking up outside my window, amidst the falling white snow, a shimmer appears in the woods. I squint my eyes, peering closer at the fuzzy image of what looks like….. Antlers. Rushing, I feel my heart beating rapidly in my chest as I burst through my door like a demon out of hell. I rush into my locked chest, kicking it open and grabbing my armour and fur coat. Hauling them on, I sprint out the door in a mad dash. Snow obscures my vision immensely as I beeline for the woods. 

My feet sink into the inch of snow on the ground, my breath clouding in front of me as I finally stumble into the woods. The fuzzy image seemingly looks at me, staring for a few seconds as I stare back, panting. Suddenly, it bolts deeper into the woods. I pause for a moment, gathering chakra to my legs as I surge forward in a gust of speed, following after the now, more clear deer. 

Snow bats at my eyes as the trees go by in blurs. I pause, almost falling into the snow as the deer, some fifty yards in front of me, enters a rundown shrine. I take in the shrine, dusted lightly with snow as most of the stone is cracked and full of vines. The old archway is toppled slightly to its left, leaning into a small hole in the ground. The Shrine itself isn’t very tall, perhaps barely tall enough for me to enter without ducking. Now that I am closer, the white deer I can tell is actually an ethereal whitish blue, almost the color of what I would imagine pure chakra to be. 

The deer seemingly beckons me forward with a nod of its large head, its antlers frosted over in flakes of snow. I trudge forward, snow clinging to my pants and cloak like a second layer of skin. My heavy boots crunch through the soft snow, leaving large imprints as I come closer to the shrine. Standing outside the doorway, the deer walks up to me and nuzzles me with its nose for a split second, before vanishing from my sight in the blink of an eye. I stare, confused and bewildered, as I scan my surroundings. I close my eyes in concentration, trying to feel for any signs of chakra, maybe like the deers yet, nothing. 

With a weary sigh, I pull myself up the large, broken oak steps of the shrine. The platform creaks beneath me, tilting from side to side as if the foundation is unstable itself. I gulp, feeling the sweat beneath my mask freeze and stick to the inside of my mask. With a surge of confidence, I delve into the shrine, feeling a flare of chakra as torches come to life around me. 

Interesting, I don’t sense any people or seal formations here either. What exactly could be hidden here, in this uncharted part of Nara Territory. 

As I walk through the cold shrine, I take in the numerous pictures on the stone walls, cracked and faded with age and dust. Cobwebs keep the corners warm as all sorts of desolate insects crawl around me. I try not to shiver as dust continuously kicks up from my feet. None of the images make sense. All faded with age and were full of what seemed to be shadows of mystery. Most of the walls are, in fact, greyish to the point I could imagine the walls themselves are shadows. 

Trudging forward hesitantly, an eerie wind pushes its way into the shrine, seemingly following me like a dark shadow as I continue my search of the shrine. Eventually, going up against some steep stone steps, torches flare around me, illuminating a large casket. 

This isn’t a shrine. It's a tomb! Suddenly, the casket’s lid pops open with a large hisssssss, with a dark shadow lunging from the casket’s inside. I raise my arms as the shadow dives into my chest, sucking the breath from me as I feel my chakra fluctuate. The torches fizz out, with a large groan the floor beneath me gives, swallowing me into a pit of darkness as the wind tears at my cloak.