It was unkown to Shino what his father's mission is intended to be but he knew not to question his fathers actions no matter how odd, unusual, or cautious. After a few days, his father still hasn't mentioned what mission was. Once those days passed, they were finally in the Hidden Grass Village. For some reason, the air was much densly colder than usual. For now, they had to be in a motel to stay at for the time being. Shibi’s appointment was at dusk in a small restaurant with someone Shino has never heard of or ever met, but he knew it was very important to attend.
~*::..|..::*~
Shino yawned as his father and the meeting went on a few tables away. He was allowed to eat by himself as long as he did not leave the intended spot. Even if he did get a chance to eat, he was not hungry and neither did his chakra bugs feel so, too. Sitting in silence seemed to be the only thing he could currently do…
CRAAASH
He looked up with a bit of shock. Dishes had fallen from a counter nearby and a little girl about his age had her pale palms covering her long, jet black hair to protect her head from the dishes.
“You little maggot! This will be your final warning! If you EVER cause another accident again I will kick you out of here for good!” An elderly man scolded the little girl as she rubbed her eyes and wiped them off with her dark green apron.
“S-s-sumimasen, Hidoi-sama…” The little girl’s voice cracked as she said her apologies
“Eh, forget it. Just go home. You’re done for tonight.” The man ordered.
The little girl took off her apron and hung it on a coat rack by the kitchen door and rushed out the door. Shino was watching all this and felt oddly affected by this event. He was about to return to his sitting and thinking state until he felt a familiar hand touched his shoulder.
It was his father. “Shino, were you just watching that?”
He looked up. “Yes.”
“I have a special favor to ask. Would you please go talk to that girl?”
Shino looked at him with confusion. Why did his father need him to talk to the girl? But despite the confusion, he accepted it and stood up; he went out the door.
~*::..|..::*~
The night air was cold and the moon was full. The wind was still and the only lights came from stores and homes around. He knew the girl couldn’t be found at this state, since most people would be home already. She probably was on her way home. He decided to try his hand at his bug techniques by his fly track her down. He couldn’t fully use this kind of simple technique yet but he did get better than the months before when his father introduced it.
“There is a girl with long black hair and about nine-years-old. She has a cream colored shirt, brown pants, and black sandals.” He told a fly, and it went off. Once it did, he decide to walk down the street, maybe follow the fly, but in a short instant, the fly flew back and whispered: “LEFT.”
Shino turned to his left and found a dark alleyway. There was trash and such in the path way but he could see a person walking there. He followed the person to see if it was her. It was her.
“Excuse me.” He said to the girl.
She turned around and looked him with a surprised and shocked look.
“U-uh…you are that boy…y-you followed me?” She started to back away until her back touched the wall.
“I have no means to hurt you.”
“P-please, I-I know what I did…I said I was s-sorry to Hidoi-sama!” She raised her voice at the end and clenched her fist on her abdomen.
Shino stood there thinking what the man could’ve done to her. She obviously had no relations to him and had no respect for her as well. “Where is your home?”
“I-I have no home.” She said weakly, her eyes tearing up.
“Where is your family, then?” He asked.
“I-I don’t have one…” She looked down, still holding her abdomen softly.
Shino thought even more. If she didn’t have a family or home, then…
“What is your name?”
“Um…I-I...well, I-I don’t know.” She lowered her head all the way.
This girl didn’t even know her own name. Was she possibly abandoned at birth? What had happened to this girl that made her end up in such a state?
“Well then, I’ll give you a name.” Shino said. The girl looked up, and he saw this girl had very dark eyes, possibly black. “That Hidoi does not have the right to call you a maggot or any other harsh name.” She let one hand hang beside her and she kept staring at him with mixed feelings.
“You’re a human. A girl. You deserve to live like one. I can see that you’re very bright. Just as bright as any light you can see.” Shino said.
“Am I like that bright light in the sky? The big one at daylight?”
“Like any light you want to be.”
“Well, what is my name?”
Shino looked at her, thinking hard at her name. She would no longer be known as the girl without a name:
“Akari.”
~*::..|..::*~
End of Chapter 1