Epilogue

It was early in the afternoon as Nozomi walked down the main street of Amegakure. The day felt perfect, not too hot and not too cold, so she closed her eyes to enjoy the moment. She just had a little shopping to do and she'd be on her way back home. Suddenly a breeze blew past her as she heard quickened footsteps followed by screaming.

"That's why the monster's going to get you with his terrifying tendrils of doom! Ruby can't save you now!"

"Waah! Get away!"

Nozomi opened her eyes in irritation before placing her hands on her hips. The moment of serenity quickly came to an end as she was forced back into reality. "Ryuji! Leave Anka alone!"

The little boy, who donned short, spiky brown hair, turned around to look at the older woman with a groan and crossed his arms. "If she's going to live in this world, then she can't be scared. I'm only helping her face her fears."

With an exasperated sigh, Nozomi walked over and picked up Anka, a blond-haired little girl with two short high pigtails who was clutching her stuffed elephant, Ruby, to her chest as tears trailed down her cheeks from her rust-colored eyes. She then flicked Ryuji in his forehead. "How is a seven year old going to teach a three year old about life?"

"I just can." He scowled as he rubbed his forehead. "I'm the man of the house after all!"

"And who would want to learn from an idiot like you?"

Ryuji turned towards the new voice, glaring at a small girl with long, white hair in a braid and thick-rimmed glasses, who was standing next to Nozomi. "You're stupider than me, Sorano!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Enough!" Nozomi rolled her eyes. "If you can't behave, then you'll be going back home. Now let's go. We have a shopping list to check off."

The group entered the market and Nozomi pulled out a piece of paper from her pocket. If that was one thing she learned in these last five years, it was to stick to a budget, especially since she now had extra mouths to feed. As they navigated the crowd, their bags began to fill with groceries.

"Ah, Miss Shidou! How nice to see you today! I see you brought the children." An elderly lady by the name of Sachiko called out to the blond. Immediately, the younger female smiled and approached her fish cart.

"You look well, Ms. Sachiko! I figured they would like to come with me, but I may have been in a little over my head. Honestly, I don't know what I'm doing half the time." Nozomi laughed as she pointed out a couple pieces of fish that she would like.

Sachiko chuckled to herself and started packing up her order. "That's how life is, sweetheart. The children will grow with you and learn from you as time passes, and you'll learn from them too. Taking them off the street was the best thing for them."

Nozomi thought to herself about the children as she tended to Anka. Five years ago, she wouldn't have seen this as her future. After she had paid her debt to Kakuzu, she took Pain's offer and became a citizen of Amegakure. The first two years, she worked as a seamstress and built relationships with the other civilians in the village. Afterwards, she moved into a cabin outside of Amegakure, but she still frequently visited. One day when she was getting groceries, she had her bag stolen from her by Ryuji. There was a long chase through the streets but once she caught him, she found out that he was an orphan who had lost his parents in an accident and had no place to stay. The boy had peculiar heterochromatic eyes, the right being green and the left colored red. The color scheme reminded her of a certain someone and any annoyance she felt for him before slowly melted away. Wanting to help him, she offered him a chance to go home with her.

A couple of months later, Nozomi had finished delivering some clothes she was commissioned to alter and was on her way home in the rain. She ended up taking a shortcut to leave the village when she found Sorano huddled up behind a dumpster. The child looked sickly, like she hadn't eaten in days, so she carried her back to the cabin where she found out that Sorano had been abused and kicked out of her home. Seeing no reason to leave her out on the street, Nozomi ended up welcoming her into the home as well. Due to the abuse, Sorano had a lot of head trauma that affected her vision, so Nozomi had some glasses made for her.

The three lived together as a makeshift family, with Nozomi taking care of them and homeschooling them. It was hard at first because she'd never been a mother and the only knowledge she had to go off of was the trial and error of her father and brother. Sachiko found out that she'd been taking in children and often gave her some aid and guidance. Towards the end of last year, the fourth addition to their family was added as the elderly woman asked Nozomi to take care of Anka, who was abandoned with no trace of where her parents went.

"A young, vibrant woman like yourself should have a husband by now. Have you been hiding him from me?" Sachiko teased as she handed Nozomi her parcel. "When I can meet the lucky chap?"

Nozomi laughed. "You'll be the first to know, Ms. Sachiko. I promise."

"You must already have someone. I can smell a lie a mile away." Sachiko eyed her before smiling once more. "Continue to be a blessing and happy birthday, dearie. I placed a little extra in the bag for you."

"Thank you so much."

Once they were done shopping, Nozomi returned home with the children and started fixing dinner as she thought of what Sachiko had said to her about the kids. She honestly felt like Ryuji, Sorano, and Anka helped her more than she helped them. Before, it was just her in the house and it got lonely whenever she had to wait for Kakuzu to come back. The children lessened that void for her and she instantly fell in love with them and their differing personalities, however it didn't completely hide the fact that she still missed Kakuzu. The last time she saw him was almost two years ago. Knowing him, he was probably really busy so she couldn't interfere with his work.

Speaking of him, what was he doing right now?

"Look Mimi! Birthday flower!" Anka ran inside the house holding a clump of daisies. Nozomi stopped setting the table and turned to see her little bundle of happiness smiling ear to ear. Ryuji and Sorano came in after her, holding presents of their own.

"Thank you! These are my favorite and they smell so good." Nozomi squatted down to Anka's eye level. "How did you know it was my birthday?"

Sorano smiled. "We overheard the old lady talking to you, so we got you something. We wanted to make you a cake because you always do it for our birthdays, but we don't know how." The six year old handed her a homemade birthday card with the children's messy signatures on it.

"Obviously my present is the best though! It's better than any cake!" Ryuji smirked as he gave Nozomi a small box of strawberry macarons.

"You didn't steal these, did you?"

"N-no!"

Nozomi laughed and pulled the three of them in for a group hug. "Thank you for your presents. You've made me very happy." Letting them go, she held the box with a grin. "We can share these after dinner."

₪•₪•₪•₪•₪•₪

Nozomi let out a breath of relief as she left the kids' bedroom. Finally, she was able to get them all to go to sleep. Next time, there was going to be a limit on how many cookies everyone could have, especially Anka. Rolling her shoulders back, she got to work cleaning up the kitchen and living room. Once she was finished, she walked outside and sat down on the front steps. The cool breeze of the night felt good against her skin as she laid her head against the railing and closed her eyes. Today was one of the best birthdays she had celebrated in a while.

"Damn, you look terrible."

Nozomi's eyes snapped open and in front of her stood Hidan and Kakuzu. For a moment, she had to wonder if she was dreaming because they literally showed up out of nowhere. They looked as if they hadn't changed since the day they left almost two years ago. Kakuzu looked like Kakuzu and Hidan… still irritated the hell out of her.

"Kakuzu! Welcome home!" Nozomi jumped up with a smile, completely ignoring his partner. Hidan laughed at her response, causing Nozomi to smack his arm. "Hush, you can't be too loud."

"Calm your tits. You have fucking kids, not babies." The silver haired male groaned. "I'm not sticking around anyway. Cook something damn good for breakfast tomorrow."

With that, Hidan took his exit, leaving Kakuzu and Nozomi alone. The female watched him go with her arms crossed over her chest and a roll of her eyes, grateful that he was ending the night early. Turning her attention back to Kakuzu, she led him inside and took his cloak to hang up in the closet.

"It's only nine o'clock, so if you're hungry, I can make something for you." Nozomi spoke first as she headed towards the refrigerator. "We have… leftover fish and rice and…"

Kakuzu looked around the living room as he took off his mask and headwear. Now that they had finished this last job, Pain said they could have a little vacation for the time being. Once again, Hidan was the reason for their prolonged journey as he killed the wrong guy and forced them to regroup. A little break from his silver-haired pest would have sufficed but extended time with Nozomi was more than enough.

"Whatever you have, I'll eat it."

"Okay, one homecooked meal coming right up."

As Nozomi started reheating dinner, Kakuzu walked over and leaned against the kitchen counter, watching Nozomi's every move. Her hair had grown a little longer so it touched her shoulders, but he could tell that she had cut it recently. Did she grow taller? Maybe a centimeter or two. Her demeanor was different though, a little more mature and self-assured which he liked. Once she finished, Nozomi turned around with a smile holding the food. Her warm smile was one of the many things that he appreciated about her because it never changed.

As they sat down at the table, Kakuzu ate while Nozomi kept him company. She was on cloud nine right now, overjoyed at the fact that Kakuzu was home. His hair was a tad bit longer than usual, but it was nothing a haircut couldn't fix. Maybe she could convince him to let her near his head with some scissors, she thought as she chuckled to herself. She had so many questions for him. Where did he go? What did he see? Did he get any souvenirs?

"I'm glad that you're back." She finally said as she rested her cheek against her palm, a mischievous grin gracing her lips. "Don't worry, I won't ask how long you'll be staying this time."

Kakuzu shrugged as he finished eating, getting up to put his plate in the sink. "That's too bad. I won't tell you then."

Nozomi blinked in surprise. "Are you serious? It's longer than the other times?"

"A month or two, maybe a little longer."

The female could barely contain her squeal of excitement. Jumping up from the table, she rushed towards him and immediately wrapped her arms around him in a hug. She had missed this feeling and Kakuzu could say the same. Her scent filled his nostrils as he wrapped his arms around her small frame. Nozomi looked up at the tall male and he started to lean down until Nozomi pressed her index finger against his lips.

"Aht aht, shower first. You stink." She laughed at his less than satisfied expression and untangled herself from out of his arms.

Kakuzu left the room with a frown. Sooner rather than later, he was going to get her back for that. It had been too long since he had seen his woman and he was going to make up for lost time. As he took a shower, Nozomi finished washing the dishes and went to her room to change into her night clothes. As soon as she sat down on the bed, it felt like all the exhaustion she'd built up from the day hit her at once. Between the kids and all the excitement, her body was worn out.

"Mimi?" A voice startled her. As Nozomi turned her head, she noticed Anka standing in the doorway. The child was rubbing her eyes sleepily while clutching Ruby in her free arm.

"Anka? What's wrong, sweetie?" As soon as the three year old stumbled over, Nozomi picked her up and held her on her lap. "Why are you awake?"

Anka frowned as she looked up at the older woman. "The monster's gonna get me."

"Well they're going to have a hard time because they have to go through me first." Nozomi teased the little girl and tickled her side, causing Anka to giggle. "And my biggest attack is my tickling fingers of terror!"

"Mimi, can I sleep with you tonight?" The child asked, now that she had calmed down a little.

Nozomi raised an eyebrow. "Oh, um…"

As if on cue, Kakuzu walked into the room with just a towel on, looking for his clothes. Immediately, Nozomi covered Anka's eyes as her own face was painted beet red. Kakuzu, on the other hand, saw the child and narrowed his eyes before getting dressed. "You got another one?"

"This 'one' has a name. Her name is Anka." Nozomi smiled. As soon as he was dressed, she uncovered the little girl's eyes. "She's three and completely adorable. How could you deny a face like this?"

"This isn't an orphanage, Nozomi."

"You said it was my house, right? And I can do anything with it?" Nozomi watched him, knowing that he knew she was right. "They needed help and this is something that I can do. You accepted Ryuji and Sorano the last time you came, so you can accept Anka now too."

"And Ruby!" Anka held out her stuffed elephant to Kakuzu with a tired smile. She was trying to stay awake, but sleep was getting the best of her. Holding a fist full of Nozomi's night gown, Anka relaxed against Nozomi's bosom as she started to fall asleep.

The male glanced at Anka for a moment before locking eyes with Nozomi's stubborn gaze. It wasn't that he wanted the kid out of the house, just out of the room. What kind of timing was this? She was irritating him because she was in his spot. Assessing his thoughts, he almost rolled his eyes. Was he seriously jealous of a toddler?

Forgoing his previous plan for their night, he decided that he would just have to try again tomorrow. There was no point in arguing, nor did he want to. He was glad that Nozomi found something that she enjoyed and he didn't want to take that away from her. Besides, they had time on their side this go around.

"You owe me."

Later on in the night, Nozomi was half asleep. Kakuzu was behind her and Anka had somehow migrated to the bottom end of the bed by her feet. Luckily, the little girl fell asleep faster this time, but she was more grateful that the child wasn't scared of Kakuzu since this was her first time meeting him. Nozomi had woken up when she felt Kakuzu move to get up, but he returned soon after. Suddenly, she felt something cool slip onto her finger. Opening her eyes, she examined her hand to see a gold ring that was a little too big for her finger, but she could manage for now. As her mind fully processed what just happened, she quickly sat up to look at the man who gave it to her.

"Kakuzu, what is-"

"I didn't want the stitch to be the only thing connecting us."

Tilting her head, she was a little confused. "What do you mean?"

Kakuzu sat up as well so they could talk face to face. "The stitch was a physical connection, however it wasn't just ours. It included your father, brother, and the bounty."

Nozomi thought about it for a moment before her eyes welled up with tears. He was right; the stitch reminded her of both happy and painful memories, but he was also wrong. "You're so silly sometimes, you know that. There are already so many things that connect us besides that." She wiped her eyes and pressed her lips against his sweetly. "Even without this stitch, I would be happy to be by your side. Nothing is going to change that."

"I'm glad you chose to stay by my side." Kakuzu watched her as he caressed her cheek. "I had something else too because I know it's your birthday, but I'll give it to you later." Nodding, Nozomi smiled back at him. As she laid her head against his chest, everything felt right. She had a new family, a new home, and a new life.

"I love you, Kakuzu."

"I love you, Nozomi."