Komorebi |Uchiha Itachi| Kairos Sequel

chapter i. show me

"Child are you sure you would like to retire from the Anbu Black Ops?"

Dark hair barely shuffled in the bowed head that belonged to the kneeled shinobi. Her face expressionless as she found floors of the Hokage's office far more appealing than actual eye contact.

Lately the dark gaze of Hiruzen stripped away the layers she worked so hard to build these past few years. It was if every time she looked him in the eye for too long she would become the little girl from a tragic village looking for a new home. Amber eyes full of tears and the expression of a lost child.

But Aiko tried so hard to harden these past few years. Tried so hard to strengthen her resolve while battling the want to become a robot. She wanted to feel and think nothing. She craved to have no emotion at all and to trek endlessly onto Anbu mission after Anbu mission.

Aiko even went as far to get officially registered under the Black Ops squads if it meant preoccupying her entire being. What was left of her was given to the lone Uchiha in her possession. The small plastic smiles and lukewarm stares from across fields. It felt almost ironic to her because she watched his older brother stare at him the same way.

Only half warm and only from a distance.

"I am." She spoke slowly and low but swallowed thickly when she was faced with the stark silence left in the room when the Hokage spoke no more. Though Aiko refused to look up, Hiruzen stared calmly and patiently.

He waited for her to break her composure even if it was only for a moment. But Aiko kneeled with her bowed head stiff and solid. He smiled deep down out of sheer amusement.

She learned well from Itachi. She does not plan on breaking.

A loud sigh could be heard through out the room and when the amber eyes finally raised from their position, they were met with a warm familiar smile. But she did not relieve the weight on her chest yet. She would not feel safe until she finally left the office.

"I'll speak with Lord Danzo about the matter. He spoke so highly of your performance the last few weeks, I'm sure he'll be disappointed, child."

Aiko buried the grimace that tried to tug on the corners of her lips and persevered with the straight expression that gave away nothing. She knew Danzo's name left a bitter and sour taste in her mouth. The name of the man who blackmailed her multiple times when she was younger made her sick to her stomach honestly. Within the last few years, he had ceased blackmailing her and she never bothered to ask why. She was too busy diving head first into any mission that landed in her hands.

"My mind is unchanged."

The Hokage thought he would have a stroke in that very moment as he looked down over his desk at Aiko. It was significantly harder to still see child Aiko when he could hear the exact words falling from Itachi's lips. Blinking, the dark haired woman took the place in front of him. He hummed lowly with a crooked smirk while smoking the pipe in hand. Aiko was an adult and should be allowed to make her own decisions but Lord Danzo would be crossed with him. Looking out of his window he pondered silently and fought the amusement that grew at how akin Aiko was to Itachi. Seeing so much less of her, the transition went over his head these last few years.

"I have a favor I need to ask then."

Silence followed his words and he chuckled with low croaks that filled the room. His gaze remained on the clouds in the sky out of his window as he clicked his tongue.

"You did not think displeasing Danzo would be free, did you child?"

Aiko's gut felt like it was full of lead as she remained kneeled. The irritation that stung, touched and passed as she focused on not conveying emotion. Tried to focus on the reason she asked anything of him at this moment.