Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Shinobi: Pride of Pride ❯ Chapter Three ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Shinobi: The Price of Pride

By: Hanasaki Rikku

Summary: With a clan like the Hanasaki, is it any wonder why Rikku is the way she is? She lost her brother and friend at such a young age, and things with Chizuko have seemed to only gotten worse. What does Itachi want and why does a certain Snake Sannin seem so interested in her life all of the sudden?

Rating: T/M. For violence (poorly written, but still there), language, and some other stuff I can't quite recall at the moment. Just be warned. Oh, that, and my horrible writing.

Genre: Romance/Action/Adventure/Angst

"Sometimes, sanctuary can be found where least expected. The only thing keeping it out of reach is pride."

((CHAPTER THREE))

She fingered the placid mask almost affectionately, tracing the golden and gray markings. It had a strange affect on her, drawing her to it, though she couldn't quite place it. It was strange; so strange how the mask she held in her hands seemed to symbolize so much more than her rank and position as a Shinobi. And it was so white, contrasting immensely with her relatively dark ensemble. Her entire uniform consisted of black, the only form of color was the armor strapped along her forearms, hands, chest and legs; and even that was rather bland.

The weight of her armor was surprisingly light and comfortable, and she wore a large black trench coat to help against the early winter frost, her newly issued katana strapped to her back. She had taken a particular liking to her newest weapon, highly favoring the art of kenjutsu. It really was an added plus after being promoted.

It was still early, she had only arrived half an hour prior to dawn, and now, ten minutes till, she was beginning to grow impatient, if only a little. The Hokage-sama had specifically asked them to leave at dawn, the earlier the better, but even Chizuko wasn't here.

She glanced back just in time to see said girl appear in front of her, dressed in her ANBU robe, the faint outlines of her own armor visible beneath the fluttering cloth. She nodded once in acknowledgment, “You're unusually late,” addressing her softly. She slipped on her mask, waiting for the older girl's reply, the emotionless dragon visage of the Himura's mask staring back at her.

“I went to visit…Ayame,” she murmured, looking away.

Rikku visibly stiffened, “Hn.” Was all she said, though it could have hardly been taken for a response. She turned, facing the gate rather than the other girl. It bothered her that Chizuko still spoke as if Ayame were alive; it was strange. She knew full well Ayame was dead, why did she have to be so persistent?

Stubborn, that's what she was.

The cool gray clouds stretched out above them, the foreboding frost of snow coming in a form of a tight breeze. It filtered in through the eyes of her mask, cooling her face. She suppressed a shudder, raising the hood of her cloak over her head, clenching her gloved hands into fists and shoving them into her pockets. She never had been fond of the cold, which was why she lived in Konoha. It was supposed to be warm and sunny…and peaceful.

She scoffed at the thought.

This village was anything but peaceful nowadays. Everyone was so consumed with suspicion of one another, it was ridiculous. Disharmony and cynicism was breaking their village apart, making them weak for the picking. Oto would be sure to overrun them with ease if they ever caught wind of that.

“Kakashi will be here soon,” she heard Chizuko say, breaking from her thoughts. The only indication she'd allow to show she'd heard her being the slight tilt of her head in the Himura's direction. “He's in the memorial park… paying his respects to someone… a friend, I guess. I saw him there when I went to see…”

“You seem rather close with Hatake-san,” Rikku was quick to interrupt, absently glancing back briefly to face the girl. Chizuko was silent for a moment, “We've just talked a couple times. I hardly know him.”

“If he does not get here soon, I will leave without him,” she retorted, voice laced with coercion. She wasn't all too fond of the man, not that Chizuko needed to know. It ebbed at her to know she would be forced to work along side him throughout the duration of her first mission as ANBU. Really, she held no particular like for that man, her reasons her own, but she couldn't tell Chizuko that. She wasn't stupid.

She was surprised to find herself spun harshly, coming face to face with Chizuko. She no longer bore the mask and looked beyond frustration, scowling down at her; the grip on her wrist was beginning to burn, she noted wryly.

Chizuko's eyes were narrowed, mere slits of crimson. “Listen, Rikku, you seem to be forgetting that I am still a year older than you. Right now, you're the youngest in the team, but that doesn't give you a right to act like a brat!”

Rikku remained unfazed. “I am not acting like a brat.”

Chizuko released a repressed sigh, “Then what the hell is your problem? Why the hell are you acting this way?”

“I do not know what you are talking about.” She tugged at her arm in vain attempts to be released, frowning beneath her mask. She sighed, “Let me go.”

Her hand only tightened, “No. You're going to answer me now!”

This was getting out of hand. Chizuko didn't know what she was talking about. She didn't really want to fight right now, and she really wasn't in the mood for a little `heart-to-heart' with the Himura. “Chizuko…”

“Chizuko…I think that's enough.”

Rikku's eyes narrowed. That was most definitely not her voice. For one, it belonged to a man. Glancing beyond the taller girl, she recognized the silver hair immediately. Great…Her morning couldn't have gotten worse at this point.

Chizuko seemed to recognize the voice, for she pulled away immediately before turning to face Kakashi.

“Are we ready to go?” Chizuko asked, glancing back a Rikku briefly, slipping the pallid mask back on. Kakashi nodded, looking at the girl for a moment as well before both he and Chizuko took off, Rikku following shortly after. For some reason or other, however, she couldn't help but noticing a tenacious anger wedging its way into her mind. It was something she couldn't explain, but it was there all the same.

She didn't like to be babied, and right now, that's exactly what they were doing. They were treating her as if she were fragile and weak. Just likethey had done. That sorry excuse for a family; may they all rot in hell.

She shook the thoughts from her head, surprised to say the least. Where had that come from? She frowned behind her mask, glancing up ahead at the mere blurs she knew to be Kakashi and Chizuko. Happy to get away from thoughts of her family, she focused upon another subject: Kakashi and Chizuko.

They seemed rather friendly. It was a little odd, now that she thought about. Because Chizuko was right, she hardly knew him… Well, aside from the time they had gotten drunk a few years back and just happened to run into him. She hadn't thought about it much, since they had ran into a lot of people - Iruka-sensei being one she would never forget - and managed to embarrass themselves more than once.

A small, barely visible upward twitch was the only portent of a smile she could muster, but it was lost to the world, safely hidden behind her mask.

This brought upon another thought. Why had she chosen the snake? It was on her family crest, but she hated that thing. That family was full of egotistical idiots, the only thing keeping her tied down to them being their shared blood. It was hard growing up in a family where everyone expected you to be the best; perfection was awarded while failure resulted in punishment. Because that was all you could expect from them; no affection or show of love was ever given to prove you were in fact family.

She had never known her parents; her mother had died during her birth, or during the Kyuubi's attack. She wasn't exactly sure, she would have only been one during the assault, and she remembered nothing of those times. Her father…well, her grandparents had said he'd left before she was born in search of power. In any other family, that would have made him a degradation to the clan. Of course, the Hanasaki were all too proud of him. Though, they never did tell her his name.

She lived with her grandparents, who were surprisingly young when they first took her and her and her big brother in. His name, her brother's, that is, was Tochi, and she had looked up to him ever since she was young. He wasn't particularly strong, but he was kind, and it was rare, almost nonexistent, to find someone like him in her clan. But that had been the problem. He was too kind. Because of this, on his fifteenth birthday, he had been banished from their clan and run out of the village.

She had been eight then. And she had been eight when she realized just what kind of family she was living in. However, at such an age, she had been unable to comprehend the reason behind her brother's departure, and thus, held him in contempt. Granted, she was older now, but that hatred had yet to wane.

It made her wonder whether her father had really just left for power. Had he really been a part of those heartless bastards? Her grandfather always said how he was grateful that she had taken after her father, rather than her weak mother, who couldn't even survive giving birth to a child. But, she never listened to the man, held no feelings towards him, seeing as how he had been the one to initiate Tochi's exile.

Why was she thinking of this? Her brow furrowed, and her jaw tightened. It would only end in anger or pain. Neither options sounding too appealing at the moment. Or ever.

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she sped up, falling into place at Chizuko's left, Kakashi taking the lead. It was obvious the Himura was still holding onto her anger from earlier by blatantly refusing to so much as look at her. Kakashi, on the other hand, seemed to have completely pushed it from his thoughts, casting a sidelong glance her way after sensing her proximity.

“We will stop at Iwa and speak with the Kage there before setting off towards Kusa.” She gave no outward sign of acknowledgment, even as he continued. “At this rate, we'll arrive in a little over a half hour.”

True to his word, it took no more than two hours to successfully progress past the guards located at the main gates - though Rikku had noted with slight disdain how easy it had been to convince them they were here to meet with their Tsuchikage without even having to show their entry pass. Aside from that, they had been directed towards the Kage Tower in the central part of town to meet with the woman in charge. She was more than a little snobbish for Rikku's tastes, but a mission was a mission, and they were readily granted admission to explore the rocky canyons and valleys under the Iwa's power, which, according to the Kage, had been where the most recent sightings had been announced.

The blistering sun the following the day did not bode well for the young Hanasaki, the ANBU uniform absorbing the heat it radiated like a sponge. It seemed that Iwa was not at all affected by the winter as Konoha was and she couldn't help but be surly throughout her entire search for the two men.

She had split apart from her comrades, having noticed their irritation with her cantankerous behavior. Not one to seek out an argument with the petulant Chizuko, or anyone for that matter, she decided the stray behind the two and continue alone. It had sounded like a good plan, she was sure it would have been far easier on her own than with Chizuko and Kakashi, but as of yet, she had not heard or seen anything.

As if on cue, a bright red flare screeched angrily above her, slightly to the right. Identifying it as one of Chizuko's, she quickly set off in its direction.

((CHAPTER END))