Battousai's Daughter: Hunt For The Betrayer (Kakashi) 15

Pic of Ayame I drew
Chapter 16

The sun was just peeking over the trees by the time Tsunade had everyone gathered in her office to hear your story. Originally, you had assumed only the blonde would be present but she had insisted that all of your friends be here, which included most of your former students.

Telling everyone the truth was by far the hardest thing you had ever had to do in your life, but in the end it was far easier to have to do it only once. You kept your eyes fixated on your lap the whole time you explained what had happened in the forest with Itachi.

Kakashi stood behind you a steady reminder of constant support and care. When you arrived at the part about your sister you tensed and found yourself unable to go on.

Kakashi dipped his head level with your ear and placed a comforting hand on your shoulder and whispered. "It’s alright, just tell them."

Taking a deep breath you squeezed the hand resting on your shoulder and continued only occasionally freezing up.

"That is the truth. Make of it what you will."

For the first time in the past hour you dared to look at the other room’s occupants. There was shock in some of their faces but no disgust or pity which you were most thankful for. Pity was something your pride could never bear.

Asuma was the first to come out of his stupor. He scratched the back of his head in an embarrassed sort of way. The cigarette drooped from his lips as he spoke. "Well, this is something of a surprise. So, your name is Kaori huh? It seems our dear Kakashi-kun robbed the cradle."

You felt Kakashi flinch behind you.

"Enough jokes, Asuma-san." Tsunade snapped. "This is hardly the appropriate time."

"Hai, sorry about that."

Tsunade’s hard expression softened slightly for you. "Your sister Ayame was ill. There was no choice for you to make other than to protect yourself. I am sure that if she were in her right mind she would have never dared to harm you. I can tell you not to feel guilty but I won’t because it is up to you to decide how to feel."

Sakura hugged you, and instead of pushing her away you accepted the embrace. "Everything will be alright, nee-chan."

All of your friends offered words of comfort but they rang hollow in your ears. They could ‘alright’ everything to death but it still wouldn’t change the fact you killed your sister. Right now all you wanted to do was retreat to your room and crawl into your bed and stay there.

Kakashi led you out of the Hokage’s office by the hand, much like a parent leading their child. What would your parents do when they discovered you knew the truth? Tears welled up in your eyes and threatened to spill over. They must hate and despise you and they had ever right to do so.

You sniffed loudly and wiped at your eyes with the sleeve of your hakama. Kakashi noticed and stopped. The corridor you were in was deserted so there was no fear of being overheard.

He cupped your face in his large hands and smiled gently. His gorgeous smile, though hidden behind a mask melted you around the edges. You wanted to fling yourself into his arms and allow yourself to be vulnerable. "I’m here for you, koi. I will always be here for you but you need to pull yourself together at least for now. We have to pick up the twins from Sakura’s house. She had her mother look after them."

Kakashi was right. You couldn’t fall apart like this and have your kids see. Even though you had never felt so weak in your life you at least owed your children the honor of putting up a strong front. Squaring your shoulders you straightened. "I understand."

Without warning Kakashi pulled down his mask and captured your lips in a searing kiss that curled your toes. You weren’t in the mood for the physical stuff but your body was saying yes despite your grief. You shook off the thought. As nice a distraction as it would be it still would only be just that, a distraction. A temporary respite from the guilt that rode your heart.

Kakashi kissed the tip of your nose. "We should get going, my beautiful Kaori-chan. Obito-kun is cranky in the morning when you’re not there. While you were gone training he made sure to be extra difficult for me."

"Gomen nasai. It seems all I do is make mistakes lately. I shouldn’t have abandoned the kids for over a month just to become stronger."

He draped an arm over your shoulders and pulled you close as you walked. "Everyone makes mistakes, but what you did was not a mistake. Being with the kids is important but you had to train. We both have to be strong to protect the twins against Sasuke and the Akatsuki. And I would never forgive myself if I had stood in the way of your training and as a result you were left vulnerable and unable to defend yourself, Kaori-chan."

You raised your hand to knock on the Haruno's door but before you could the twins sprinted out as fast as their short little legs could carry them.

"Mommy." Obito launched himself at you and you caught him with an oomph as he collided with your stomach. His tiny fingers curled tightly into the fabric of your clothes. "I was worried about you mommy when otou-san said you were gone."

You kissed the top of his head feeling an upsurge of affection. "I'm fine, sweetheart."

Hiko waited patiently for her brother to get his hug before approaching you in a much more dignified manner. The girl had dropped her superior attitude for the moment and simply let you draw her into your arms if a little stiffly.

For the first time since the horrible revelation in the forest you felt calmer. Being around the twins had tended to have that effect on you.

Very little was accomplished over the next month in your life. Tsunade made you go on mandatory leave from the academy and you were ordered to rest. Sakura even gave you anxiety medicine because Ayame and your blood splattered blade haunted your dreams nightly.

Most of your waking hours were devoted to the rambunctious twins and reading. There was really nothing else for you to do. Kakashi was gone away with the rest of his squad to search for Sasuke.

You brought your knees up to your chest and stared at the offending item on the bed. A scroll lay on the covers taunting you with its hidden secrets. It was from your mother. Your hand inched towards it but then quickly recoiled. You had been doing that for the past two hours. She was sure to have heard of your breakdown and you were afraid of what she had written.

The sound of glass shattering brought you back to reality. With a weary sigh, you flung your legs over the side of the bed and went to go see what the twins had broken. Obito was crouched on the floor near the remains of a vase that had been a gift from your Aunt Megumi. Tears were rolling down his cheeks and his lips were trembling. Hiko was standing over her brother giving him a stern lecture.

They were both only two and a half and yet they acted so much older. Well, Hiko more than Obito who was more uncertain than his sister. They had inherited their father’s genius. As a result, things socially would be more difficult for them.

"You’re so clumsy! How are you ever going to become a ninja if you can’t go through a room without breaking something."

"That’s enough Hiko." You demanded in a hard voice. "Leave your brother alone. I will talk to him myself."

The silver-haired girl glared at you before stomping off towards the room she shared with her brother.

Obito cringed when you slid your hands underneath his arms and picked him up. "Gomen, mommy. I didn’t mean to it was an accident."

You ruffled his short red hair lovingly. "Its alright Obito-kun. Accidents happen but I ask that you are more careful when Hiko and you decide to play ninja in the house. Alright?"

"Okay."

"Now, go help your sister pick up the toys scattered all over your room. I’ll clean this up."

The broken glass was a fairly easy clean up job and you had it done within ten minutes. You were putting the broom away in the closet when you heard a knock at the door. Curious as to who it was, you went over to the door and opened it.

Shizune and Ino grinned at you.

You quirked an eyebrow questioningly. "What are you two doing here?"

"We know the twins are a handful and we figured you could use a break. You’ve been going through a lot lately and its always good to take some time and relax." Shizune said.

"Go shopping and out to lunch. Retail therapy always helps me when I’m stressed." Ino piped up trying to be helpful.

"Shopping isn’t really my thing, Ino-san."

"Then go training, exercise will do you some good." Shizune suggested.

Your friend did have a point. You hadn’t touched your sword or made any particular effort to train since the incident in the forest with Itachi. Maybe training would be just the thing to clear your mind. Then you could finally muster up the courage to read your mother’s letter.

"Alright, I’ll do it." You jammed your feet into a pair of sandals and snatched up your sword from the trunk in your bedroom.

Ino and Shizune were seated in the living room. When you entered they looked up.

The blonde haired girl wrinkled her nose in disapproval. "Training’s good and all but change out of that yukata first. You can’t go out in public in your night robe."

"Hai, I suppose I should." You admitted embarrassedly and went to go and change into some training clothes. All you had been wearing the past month were yukata because you didn’t see the point in getting dressed. You shed the yukata quickly and grabbed some clothes out of the drawer without looking at them and hastily put them on.

This time when you returned neither of them voiced a complaint. You tucked your sword into your belt. "I guess, I’ll head out to the training grounds and leave the twins up to you guys. Good luck, they’re in fine form today."

"Have fun, Kaori-chan." Shizune said cheerily and waved.

Several people greeted you warmly as you passed through town, including Iruka and Kurenai. It was a sight different to how they used to treat you when you first arrived. You thought wryly. Back then, it was like pulling teeth to get anyone to truly acknowledge you and it wasn’t like you encouraged them to be friendly with your overbearing attitude.

Gai and Lee were dominating the training field sparring wildly and you blanched. You weren’t in the mood to deal with them today.

You started walking again, heading towards the forest. It was just as well. You always worked best in solitude and quiet and those two were anything but.

Grumbling, you ducked under several low hanging branches moving deeper into the trees. The further in you went the wilder it became. Brambles snagged mercilessly at your clothes with sharp wicked looking fingers as you passed through the narrow path. It was all you could do to free yourself.

Panting from the effort, you finally won yourself free from the offending foliage and found yourself in a small clearing you didn’t entirely recognize. Purple irises dotted the emerald green grass. You knelt and cupped a flower bud with the beginnings of the same vivid purple beginning to sprout from its anther.

Flowers were an amazing thing in nature. Their beauty was fragile and only lasted a short time before fading in the summer, and becoming no more than withered stalks in the fall soon to be covered with a blanket of snow, forgotten with time. They reminded you so much of Ayame.

She endured a brief life where she bloomed and soon faded into ruin at your hands. You clenched your fists painfully, accidentally crushing the bud in the process. Slowly, you opened your hand and then laughed bitterly when you saw the squished flower. You tilted your hand and the bud rolled off your palm and onto the ground. You stood.

"I am a murderer. So, it would be poor of me to let me skills dull lest I be unable to partake of the pleasure in the future." You choked, every single ounce of pain and anguish evident in your voice.

You didn’t know how you were going to make peace with Ayame’s death or your part in it. Nor were you certain if you ever could. Would you end up like your father? Forever tormented by your sins?

A chill ran down your spine at the thought. Was that the fate which awaited you?

You shook your head back and forth violently. "Come on, get a grip baka."

Birds trilled happily in the trees above. You inhaled the sweet perfumed air deeply, before calming down.

You moved into battoujutsu stance and placed a hand over the hilt of your sword. In one swift movement, you unsheathed the katana in a glittering silver arc. The sun hit the steel making the blade glow. The image of a blood-spattered Ayame flashed across your vision immobilizing you before you could even begin an attack. A tremor started at your hand and shot swiftly up your arm through the rest of your body. The hand holding your sword shook so badly the blade rattled before finally falling from your grasp.

You doubled over hyperventilating. "What’s the matter with me? Why am I trembling?"

The katana lay among the irises seemingly harmless and you shuddered at the thought of picking it up again which frightened you terribly. What were you going to do?

You couldn’t use Hiten Mitsu Rugi anymore.