The spring flower Neji FF

Chapter 26

"Ha you are!" cried little Akina and ran away from Itachi laughing. The four year old had seen him coming home and wanted to play with him. "Nah wait I'll get you already!" he yelled after her and chased her all over the garden.

Laughing, she tried to escape but Akina's legs were much too short. "Gotcha!" grinned Itachi as he grabbed his little sister and lifted her up a bit. Lightly she squealed and laughed. "Again!" she said, and was lowered by her brother. Before Itachi could say anything Akina ran past him until he heard why.

"Shisuiiii!!!" she beamed and jumped around his neck. Laughing, he held the little girl tightly and looked into her beaming face. "Nah you little sunshine." he smiled and nudged her nose. Giggling, she closed her eyes.

"What are you doing here, Shusui?" asked Itachi as he came to stand in front of him. "I was wondering if we wanted to train," the Uchiha grinned. "I want to go!" exclaimed Akina happily as they looked at each other. "You want to watch us fight?" asked Itachi, actually not thinking it was a good idea. Quickly the little girl nodded and looked at both of them with her pleading look. "Nah well, but you're just watching," said Itachi who couldn't withstand that look.

 Hopping she followed her big brothers and when she was at the training ground she was asked to sit down. Maybe she would learn something for later, especially when her father brought her back for training. But her attention did not last a second. While Itachi and Shisui warmed up a bit, Akina picked the flowers she could see.

Concentrated, she wove all together and looked forward to the result. Quickly the girl stood up and waddled towards her friends, who were about to fight each other. They were just able to stop their attack when Akina stopped between them. "Akina!" scolded Itachi. He could have hurt her why did she run between them!?

She happily raised her flower wreaths. "You must wear your battle armor.", she said which made Shisui laugh a little. "Battle armor?" he asked her. "Yes the flowers are your protection from wild beasts and their jutsus! They are sacred and you can't fight without them after all!", Akina laughed.

The two Uchiha couldn't help but smile. "I'm sorry my little spring flower that we forgot," Itachi said and let her put on his wreath. Akina was allowed to do the same to Shisui who lightly tousled her hair.

"Alright my friend. With the armor, I'm unbeatable!", Shisui grinned which Itachi did the same. Even though it was a nice gesture from Akina they couldn't tell her that flowers wouldn't help in a fight. But giving her that feeling and seeing her happy gladdened their hearts.

When Neji woke up, he felt a gentle handshake and looked down a bit. A smile played around his face when he saw Akina asleep. She must have been awake for a while. On the dresser next to him he could see fresh flowers which must have been from her. Carefully, he stroked the back of her hand with his thumb, causing the Uchiha to twitch slightly. Slowly she opened her eyes and tried to realize where she was. She didn't know why she was dreaming about this day, but it was one of the most beautiful she had.

Still a little sleepy and confused, she rubbed her eyes and looked at Neji who was smirking at her. "Hey Neji.", she said softly and only after a few seconds she actually realized that he was awake. "Omg Neji, you're awake!" Neji laughed a little and nodded. "Already a few minutes I guess." "Say, how are you?" she asked right away, sitting down properly. "So far so good. How are the others?" he asked and could see in her eyes that not everything was going according to plan.

Akina told him what she knew. She also told him that Lee came to their aid. She also did not rule out that Sasuke was now safe with Orochimaru. "But don't worry about that. I'll leave that to Naruto as his best friend." the black haired girl smiled. Neji looked at the girl, not knowing if he really had nothing to worry about. He knew she just took a lot of things in stride but whether it was the same with Sasuke he couldn't imagine.

"You know. I always tried to change Sasuke's mind. To tell him that revenge is useless. Out of revenge because the ninjas hurt you, I made a mistake that can't be undone. For Sasuke I tried to be a big sister who can show him the right way. But I could never stop his hatred. No matter what I would have said, one day I would have brought him to Orochimaru. It is Naruto's duty to bring him back as his best friend. Just as I did with you. I am confident and believe that my little brother will come back to Konoha," Akina said and Neji just couldn't understand this girl and admired her at the same time. "When Sasuke comes back, I will give him my hand," Akina grinned. No matter what Sasuke would do, the Uchiha would always love her brother.