The young man stood at the edge of the docks in his ancestral home, longing for the companionship and sense of liveliness that once filled the large compound. His otouto had run-off to Oto, believing that his aniki had killed off their family, in search of power. The large family was all killed in one afternoon…and not a soul outside was disturbed. He returned late that week only to be informed that his family was dead and he was framed. The years following, he lived in solitude, venturing out in disguise.
The years have come and gone; the lost child had grown into a handsome man of twenty-six with long silky black hair, an aristocratic face, and the inherited onyx eyes of his clan. During the time of his maturation, he longed for companionship of anyone…be it male or female, friend or foe…but over the last handful of seasons, he wished for more. He wished for a family that he could call his own, to love and protect….much more, he longed for a wife, his soultwin, someone he could spend his days with.
One day while walking through the forest surrounding his home with his ever-faithful dog, he caught a glimpse of the most beautiful woman of his dreams. Walking towards her, he stepped on a twig and alerted her to his presence, and before he could call out, she ran off, emerald kimono flashing through the forest, her loose hair rippling behind catching the sun like gems.
Over the course of a month, he kept going back there everyday, hoping to see the woman again and ask her name. He never caught sight of her again…except for the odd tingling between his shoulder blades as if someone was staring at him constantly whenever he entered the forest. Then one day when just when he was about to give up hope, he caught sight of the angel again. She sat next to a stream within the forest, her golden hair spilled about her, bright against her midnight blue kimono, a shade brighter than the golden thread woven into her kimono.
The man walked up calmly, keeping her in sight. Up close, he noticed the dazzling azure blue eyes framed in long thick lashed, and the creamy beige skin marked only with three thin nearly invisible whisker-like scratches. He stopped a few feet from the lady and gave a short bow in respect. “Lady, my name is Uchiha Itachi. May I have the pleasure of knowing yours?”
She looked up at him, curiosity evident in her doe-like eyes and smiled gently, “My name is Uzumaki Naruto. Hajimashite.”
There in the forest they met daily, he would tell her about the village and in cases where he went on missions, he would tell her before he left. About two years after they met, his name was cleared in the village and he was able to wander around without hiding. As soon as he could, he persuaded Naru (as he had taken to calling her) to walk with him in the village so they could visit all the places he had told her about. The two had quickly become the talk of the village and gossip began to fly about the ‘couple’.
The gentle lady blushed ever so prettily when she went into the village and the village women mentioned how wonderful/cute/perfect the two looked together and Itachi would smile, eyes glinting gently with warmth, and look down at her. The two had been courting for a few years when one night out in the forest Itachi proposed. Naru was shocked but accepted with a happy nod.
The wedding took place under the harvest moon. Within the first two years of matrimony, the young bride was pregnant and one month after their third anniversary, she gave birth to their firstborn son whom they name Kiyoshi. At the same time, Itachi’s dog gave birth to a pup, which as the years grew by, became more and more hostile to the gentle woman. Naru begged Itachi to kill the pup, fearing for herself and their child, but he refused. Until one day, Itachi was out on a mission and was due to return, the pup, now a full-grown dog, attacked her ferociously.
Worried for her child, who she was playing with at the time, she shielded Kiyoshi with her own body; her gorgeous kimono was torn and ripped, blood had dried in patches, and vicious scratches and bites littered her exposed body while her frightened son sobbed for his father and for the dog to stop attacking his mother. That was the scene Itachi arrived home to; his beloved wife collapsed on the floor, blood on her body and his young son sobbing next to her, safe. Fury erupted on his face at who would dare harm his family and worry for them as well. Quickly reaching Naru’s side, he picked her up gently and told Kiyoshi to follow them into the house. Healing what wounds he could, he slowly drew the story from the stuttering and mumbling six-year-old.
That night, he slew the dog and burned the body when his son was asleep. A week passed and yet his wife didn’t wake. Just as the ninth day began to set, a shimmer covered her body and it shrank, becoming that of a fox. The eyes opened revealing the same azure eyes of his wife and it saw Itachi stunned in the open doorway into the gardens, his son asleep in his arms. A sad whine escaped the fox’s mouth and it fled through the open shoji doors and into the forest.
“You may be a fox, “Itachi called after his wife, overcoming his shock as the fox sped past, “but you are still the mother of our son…and the woman I love. Come back home when you are ready saiai; you will always be welcome with open arms my love.”
So every night, a few hours before sunset when both her son and husband were home, Naru would steal home and cook their family dinner. And every night, she would tuck her son into bed and sleep in the arms of her soultwin, her husband.
~*~ Owari ~*~
otouto – little brother
Oto (no Kuni) – Sound Country where Orochimaru’s base
aniki – older brother
hajimemashite – How do you do? (lit : It is the first time)
saiai – beloved
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Chapter notes: Disclaimer : Naruto isn't mine...belongs to Kishimoto and all the other corporate junkies.
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