Growing

Kinjo opened up his new treasure and devoured its content. Every line was analyzed, and every hand sign was absorbed within ten minutes.

It had been three days since Itachi had handed him the scroll, though he hadn't touched it since he received it. His days were filled with classes from morning to mid-afternoon, additional training with Izumi until dinner, and then study sessions with her until he returned home. After his defeat at Itachi's hands during the mock exam, Izumi was beating taijutsu lessons into him, mentally and physically.

She also blushed whenever Itachi's name was mentioned, which was adorable.

He didn't want to practice any jutsu from the scroll in the Uchiha Compound since he wasn't sure if the scroll contained Uchiha-specific jutsu. Launching Uchiha-only fireworks within the district would only lead to awkward questions.

However, Izumi was busy spending quality time with her mother this evening, which gave him some free time to read through "his" scroll.

He was in Training Ground Fifty-Two, a forgotten training ground that bordered the village's walls near his home. It was devoid of trees, with only a few small shrubs dotting the rocky landscape. A large pond sat in the middle, an oasis in the desolate wasteland called a training ground. The earth was untouched and flat.

The perfect site for his independent training.

"Great Fireball Jutsu, and a few other Fire jutsu after I get the hang of the Fireball… Itachi doesn't hold back, does he?" Kinjo remarked as he finished reading and let out a low whistle.

His chakra control training was coming along well, as he could finally stick the leaf on his forehead with only his chakra. The next step in the exercise was to rotate the leaf in the direction of his chakra flow, which was clockwise.

That was harder than he had expected, which wasn't surprising.

His steady improvements in control allowed him to learn the Body Replacement Jutsu and the Clone Jutsu. His clone looked similar to Naruto's clone during his graduation exam. He was far from mastering them, but he was slowly getting there.

While it was exciting to learn and use the three basic jutsu, Kinjo was giddy at the opportunity to learn something more flashy and dazzling.

"Six hand signs, simple enough." Kinjo went through the hand signs quickly. "Focus on collecting chakra and kneading it into fire. Try to use a limited amount of chakra for the first attempt."

He didn't want a repeat of the fainting incident the first time he tried to overexert his chakra.

After taking a deep breath, he recited the name of the jutsu and fired. "Great Fireball Jutsu!"

Something erupted from the depths of his stomach. It quickly swept through his throat and entered his mouth, expanding at an alarming rate. It was as if he had eaten ghost peppers, and the spiciness was sweeping through.

Instead of a giant fireball, a thin stream of fire erupted out of Kinjo's mouth. Immense heat basked his face, yet his mouth felt like a warm tornado was whipping through. He held in a cough as his throat and lungs were choked with oxygen.

The fire roared for a few seconds, scorching the earth in front of him and creating a small ditch. Kinjo enjoyed the view before he was cut off the flow of his chakra as his insides twitched.

His "Great" Fireball created a trench that was several inches deep. It was as wide as his foot and was several feet long. It wasn't impressive, but it was his first nature jutsu, and it worked.

Before he could let out a cheer, he stumbled on his feet and fell, his legs shaking and his mouth gasping for air. For the moment, the ground was the softest bed in existence, and sleep threatened to overtake him. He lay there for several minutes as the effect of the jutsu faded.

He thought he hadn't used much chakra for the jutsu, yet he was sweating and aching.

"My 'fireball' wasn't that big, but I used a lot of chakra. My control still needs work..."

It was the only logical explanation for his sudden dizzy spell. Due to his nascent chakra control, he wasted much chakra trying to use the jutsu. Instead of his chakra contributing to the power and intensity of the fireball, much of it was lost while he was kneading it to fire.

As a result, his fireball was narrow and weak instead of the powerful and impressive Great Fireballs he remembered from the anime.

"Still, no wonder this is a rite of passage," Kinjo mused. "You need a fair amount of chakra to use it correctly."

He hoped that Itachi wasn't screwing with him and that anyone could learn the Great Fireball Jutsu.

"I'll do the Fire transformation exercise then... Should've done that before the actual jutsu itself."

His eyes wandered to the pond, a shining oasis in the wasteland. He shook his head to ignore the traitorous thoughts in his head, yet they persisted. "No, I shouldn't try walking on water. It doesn't matter if I would look like Jesus; it's still a bad idea. I definitely have to master the Leaf Concentration Practice first."

He took a tiny step forward, which was met with his other foot stepping back. "No!"

Kinjo sighed as he ran towards the pond, placing the scroll off to the side. "Screw it. I still have some chakra, and I'll look like Jesus."

"Here goes nothing." He slowly placed a foot onto the surface of the water and stepped.

+++++

"Brother, why are you soaked?"

"It's a long story, Mika."

"Shinobi stuff?"

"Yep."

Kinjo returned home after dripping water everywhere in his neighborhood. He had underestimated the depth of the pond, and the water came up to his chest. Thankfully, he was sensible enough to leave "his" scroll on dry land before his overeager attempt at walking on water.

The first two steps on the pond were a success, but after that, reality hit him like a truck. After the third step, he sank like a rock.

He wasn't Jesus; he was just a shinobi in training.

"What kind of shinobi stuff?" Mika asked as Kinjo walked towards his room.

"Walking on water stuff."

"That's so cool! Can I walk on water?"

He laughed and patted her head as she jumped excitedly. "Maybe when you're older, Mika."

After changing out of his wet clothes, he walked into the dining room to see his family gathered together for dinner. Satoshi was crying "Ma" and "Pa" every chance he could, though he did let out a "Ki!" when he saw Kinjo. Mika was eating a beef rice bowl with gusto, inhaling the food and asking for seconds.

His father was in a boisterous mood, gesturing with his hand and yammering away as his mother ate her food with a tired smile. "Can you believe that Arata tried to ask for a bigger discount on the beef jerky? I sold him some of my personal stash since that beef jerky is hard to find. Instead of being grateful, he asked for more and for cheaper. The audacity of that man…."

Makoto beamed when he saw Kinjo shuffle into the room. He ruffled his son's hair and slapped his back. "How is my favorite shinobi doing?"

"Shinobi in training, dad," Kinjo answered as he picked up his utensils. Dinner was simple yet looked mouthwatering: some clear soup with vegetables, pickled ginger, and a beef rice bowl. The delightful smell wafted into his nose, making his stomach growl impatiently.

"Did you do anything interesting today?"

His mother turned away at the mention of his shinobi training. Her warm expression toward him hadn't changed, yet he could feel the unspoken rift even at the dinner table.

Meanwhile, Mika stopped eating her favorite meal and looked at them with widened eyes. Before Kinjo could speak, she interjected, "Brother walked on the water today!"

"Just two steps, actually. I'm still practicing," Kinjo admitted.

"Still, that's impressive. I didn't know shinobi could walk on water," His father rubbed his shaven chin. "Maybe you can help me run messages to the Land of Water. I've always wanted to import some seafood from there…."

"I'm still ways off from running on water, dad."

His father sighed, "One can dream."

"Did you learn anything else that's cool?" Mika asked.

"I can breathe fire now, though only for a few seconds. It's pretty exhausting."

She gasped and turned to their mother while babbling. "Momma, I want to breathe fire too!"

"I think one shinobi in the family is enough, dear." His mother emphasized as she stroked her daughter's head. "Remember Kin, no shinobi training in the house or the store. You need to rest and spend time with your family too."

"Yes, mom." Kinjo nodded.

His mother was clearly unhappy with his enrollment at the Academy, showing a strained smile every time he announced the results of his training. Yet, she was much more tolerant of his choice than her initial reaction to his declaration of becoming a shinobi.

Though, it was a bit unnerving to see her smiling and coddling him every time he was home.

After finishing dinner, Kinjo sat in his room with a leaf slowly spinning on his forehead when he heard a knock. He scrambled to hide the leaf in his desk and opened the door to see Mika waiting with an impatient pout. "What is it, Mika?"

Mika rushed into the room without giving an answer and slammed the door behind her. "Show me!"

"The Transformation Jutsu again?"

She bobbed her head.

Kinjo peeked his head out the door and glanced around the hallway.

There was no one in sight.

He locked the door and shushed her. "You have to be quiet then, ok?"

"Ok!" Mika cheered a bit too loudly.

"Shh!"

"Ok."

After running through the three hand signs, he glanced at her. "Transformation Jutsu."

A puff of smoke blinded him before disappearing. He was several inches shorter than his usual height, and an uncomfortable emptiness settled in below.

"Well?" He said, his voice sounding lighter and higher than before.

"Hi, Mika! I'm Mika!" The "real" Mika said while giggling. "I like this better than your transformation into Jiraya-sama."

His room was now occupied by two Mikas: one still laughing and the other looking embarrassed.

"Next time, I'm turning into the Hokage," Kinjo mentioned. "Being a girl is still weird."

"Isn't that disrespectful to Hokage-sama?" Mika asked while circling his transformed body.

"It means he's so awesome that I want to be like him."

"Ok! Then if you turn into Hokage-sama, you have to talk like him!"

Kinjo rolled his eyes. "How do I talk like him?"

She cleared her throat and deepened her voice. "You, shinobi! Get me a beef bowl!"

"That's what you would sound like if you were the Hokage, Mika."

Mika beamed. "I get beef bowls if I become Hokage?"

"Of course. And you also get free minko cards." Kinjo joked.

"I want to be Hokage, then! I'm going to be a shinobi like you, brother!"

Usually, he enjoyed joking around with his sister, but now was not one of those times. He set his hands on her shoulders and shook his head. "Mika, mom and dad need you here to look after the store and Satoshi. Besides, being a shinobi is hard."

"Nu-uh. I don't want to work in the store! I want to go out and do cool stuff like you!"

"It's cool being a shinobi, but it's also dangerous," Kinjo lectured. "At the Academy, the teachers tell us it's dangerous outside the village. We're fighting another village right now! Also, as a shinobi, you have to be able to do terrible things like killing."

"Why are you a shinobi then, brother?"

"Well… someone has to protect the village and our family."

Mika placed her hands on her hips. "Then I can too!"

"Mom isn't too happy with me being a shinobi. She's going to cry if you decide to become one."

"It's okay! I can take care of Satoshi, make momma and daddy happy, and be a shinobi!" Mika declared.

"Mika…"

"So teach me, bro… sensei!"

"I said no, Mika. Besides, you're too young."

"Then I'll grow up faster than you and become the best shinobi!"

He smacked his hand into his face and exhaled. He should've expected something like this when he decided to become a shinobi. His siblings in his other life also tried to imitate his actions and choices, even when they were teenagers. Mika was the same, perhaps even more so.

Kinjo could only hope that she would soon grow out of her "wanting to become a shinobi" phase. It was hypocritical, but he wanted her to grow safely and healthily. As a shinobi, neither was guaranteed. Besides, he didn't want to see his sister murder people or go through some of the more… awkward parts of kunoichi training.

"Maybe you'll grow up and decide you want to do something else. Sewing is pretty fun, right? Mom is teaching you that."

Mika made a face. "I hate sewing."

"Is there anything else you want to be then?"

"Shinobi!"

A frightening image of his sister smiling and laughing while shredding other shinobi to pieces popped into his mind.

"God help us all," Kinjo mumbled in English. He transformed back to his original self and ushered her out the door. "Ok, but don't tell mom or dad that you want to be a shinobi, ok? It'll be our secret."

"Ok!"

As he watched her waddle into her room, he silently prayed to whatever deity that sent him here that she would take an interest in something other than being a shinobi soon.

+++++

"Remember to eat all of your lunch."

"I will, dad."

It was a week after he had received the scroll from Itachi. He had felt physically and mentally exhausted the day after, but he had recovered within the week and continued his chakra training at the old training ground. He had already worked out in the morning and was preparing to leave for school.

"Oh, and take this." His father handed him a bag of beef jerky.

Kinjo accepted the bag and tilted his head. "Why?"

"Well, you're a growing boy who's becoming a shinobi. You need all the protein you can get!" He pulled out a book and showed it to Kinjo with a smirk. "I've been reading this to help you become bigger and stronger."

"How To Feed a Child Shinobi… The title is really unimaginative."

"I know, but it's fantastic! I've been trying to get your mother to cook some of the meals written in this book, but she looked horrified. I'll keep trying, though."

"Was she horrified because… you know? Or was she horrified cause the recipes in there are bad?"

His father shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe I shouldn't have suggested a cricket-based dish for the first request."

"Dad."

"Kidding. Now one more thing before you head off to the Academy."

"Is it another joke?"

"I see you're starting to understand your old man better." Makoto walloped his back, knocking the wind out of Kinjo. "If you need anything, let me know. We might not be rich, but we'll support you as much as possible. Can't have the first shinobi in our family fail because he couldn't afford a kunai or two!"

Kinjo stared at his father and dipped his head.

He knew he was being selfish. His path to becoming a shinobi meant that his family would have to make sacrifices, even if he received a scholarship. And while they were high on his priority list, it was always second to his primary goal of helping others with his foresight. In his mind, he justified it by claiming that helping people would strengthen Konoha and would protect his family to survive the onslaught.

Yet, he was grateful for his father's and his sister's support. His father was his financial and emotional pillar, while his sister was a ray of sunshine that always lifted his spirits. Even his mother helped by cooking him light but nutritious meals.

Once he earned some pay from his missions, he would ensure that his family received most of it… After he got his essential shinobi tools.

"Have a great day at school, son."

His father enveloped him in a huge, which he stiffly returned. "Thanks, you too."

With that, Kinjo jumped to the roof of his family's home and hopped through the rooftops. The ten-kilometer run was a workout for him even after three months of training, but his pace was now swifter, and he was amping up his training. His backpack bounced off his back as he leaped from rooftop to rooftop with chakra bursts.

Thirty-five minutes later, he was panting in front of the entrance of the Academy. After taking a swig of water from his water bottle, he trudged inside and entered his classroom.

Classroom #202 looked the same as all the other classrooms, with numerous desks, benches, and a chalkboard. The classroom was empty when he walked in, the clock on the wall notifying him that there was still half an hour until classes began. He sat by the window in the middle row and pulled out his books to read.

Regarding academics and intelligence, he was ahead of most of the kids in his class. Math, literature, and science were easy for him since he had over sixteen years of schooling. Even so, there were a few subjects that he needed to study, such as cryptography, fuinjutsu, and battle tactics. Luckily, most of the students were also unfamiliar with the latter topics; hence he could easily keep up with the others.

He was an adult in a child's body, with plenty of knowledge and memories. His chakra also sharpened his focus and his ability to study, which made him absorb information faster.

Perhaps that was one reason his reserves were large, though he had no way to verify the theory.

Thankfully, he could read every form of Japanese writing without difficulty. It was as if his previous knowledge was translated into Japanese, thus allowing him to understand even the most challenging Kanji, Katakana, and Hiragana characters.

Just as he finished a chapter about explosive seals and their uses, a chubby boy with dark brown hair and emerald-green eyes shuffled into the room. He scanned the room before his eyes landed on the lone boy sitting in the classroom.

"Kinjo!" He shouted as he stumbled across the room with a delighted grin. "How you doing?"

Kinjo smiled at his loud classmate and placed his book down. "Hey, Shin. You're early again."

Akimichi Shinsuke pulled out a bag of mini melon bread and munched. Crumbs landed on his maroon shirt and khaki pants. "You're here earlier than me. Besides, I need time to settle into the mood to read my books."

"Textbooks?"

"Nah, you know what books I'm talking about."

With that, Shin collapsed into the seat next to him and pulled out a stack of shinobi adventure novels from his bag.

Most of his classmates had ignored Kinjo when he first transferred into their class. It wasn't difficult to see the reason why. Not only was he three years younger, but he was also a stranger with no connections to the class. He was also quiet and reserved, uncertain of how to reach out to a group of kids. He didn't really have a vested interest in reaching out to them, either.

Izumi and Itachi were exceptions; both befriended him through mutual interests and were much more mature than their age suggested.

Additionally, childhood friendships, friend groups, and cliques were already entrenched amongst the fourth years. Unsurprisingly, this meant that he was socially isolated from the class, though there wasn't any malice directed at him.

Shinsuke was an exception to this norm. He, like Kinjo, was an odd man out, but for entirely different reasons. Instead of studying and socializing, Shin spent most of his time reading adventure novels and eating at the Academy. He was generally friendly and had a few friends but preferred the sanctity of his books.

The two had sat together on Kinjo's first day at the Academy and reached a mutual understanding. They both enjoyed their books and enjoyed good food.

That was all that was needed for a friendship to start.

"By the way, my dad got me some beef jerky. You want some?"

Shin stopped chewing on his bread and whipped his head towards Kinjo. "What type of beef jerky?"

"I dunno. My dad did say it was hard to find…." Kinjo handed him the bag with the beef jerky, and Shin ripped it open with widened eyes.

"No… It can't be." Shin inhaled the rich scent of the jerky and swallowed one whole. "It's the Suzuki beef jerky from the Land of Rivers! Do you know how valuable these are?"

"Not really?"

"Oh, man. Your dad must have some deep connections there. There's a waiting list for Suzuki jerky in Konoha!"

"You're joking." Kinjo grabbed a jerky and chewed. The succulent flavor was incomparable to some of the dry jerky he had eaten. It was tough yet broke apart easily in his mouth. "You're not joking."

"I'll pay you for this."

"How much?"

"500 Ryo."

His jaws dropped when he calculated the amount in his head. It was enough to buy a pair of kunai. "It's a deal."

They shook, and Kinjo watched as Shin devoured half of the bag before storing the rest in his bag. After a few minutes of small talk, they returned to their books.

Kinjo enjoyed the comfortable silence between him and Shin as other students rushed into the classroom. He tuned out the chatter of students and focused on reading more about the application of storage seals.

"Settle down! The class begins now!"

He looked up to see a familiar silver-haired chunin standing in front of the chalkboard. Taku scowled as he wrote his name on the chalkboard. "My name is Taku, and I am your new instructor. Your previous teacher was sent to the front; that is all I can say on that matter."

His previous teacher, Masahiro, was a gentle and soft-spoken man who appeared to enjoy teaching his students. Even though he was in the class for three days, Kinjo respected the man for being passionate about his work.

Unfortunately, he was now stuck with the drill instructor, which given the situation outside of the village, wasn't the worst thing that could happen.

Though, it would probably mean much more yelling.

"Open up your cryptology textbook to page eighteen. We will have a quiz on the first two chapters in a week, so make sure you are paying attention in class!"

Several groans echoed through the classroom as the sound of pages turning and papers shuffling was heard. Kinjo obliged his new instructor's directions and turned his attention to the chalkboard, where Taku drew some rudimentary code wheel.

Meanwhile, Shin giggled as he flipped through his novel and munched on melon bread.

Kinjo made a mental note to jot down some notes for his friend.

+++++

Afterschool was a continuation of his classes, to some degree.

"I don't get it."

"It's not that hard, Izumi. Just carry the two, and add them together. Simple, right? "

"Why do I need to learn math as a shinobi? I'm not going to multiply someone to death!"

"You definitely can." Kinjo mused.

"What?"

"Never mind."

Izumi and Kinjo were sitting in her room at the apartment. Her room was small and was stuffed with various shinobi tools, books, and scrolls. The walls were painted a light green, and a single window sat above her desk. The only clue suggesting a girl lived in this room was two giant cat plushies sitting on her bed, next to a poster with all the Hokage posing.

"If I could beat up this math problem, I would win," Izumi grumbled as she scribbled numbers into her notebook.

Kinjo laughed as he kept one eye on her paper and the other on his forehead, where a leaf was rotating clockwise. "That would defeat the whole purpose. We're studying stuff like math and science to train our brain and our spiritual energy."

"What's spiritual energy?"

"Chakra has two parts: physical energy and spiritual energy. Physical energy involves exercising and training, increasing endurance. You're good at that. Spiritual energy involves studying and meditating, making you smarter and your chakra stronger."

"So… I need to be smart to be a good shinobi?"

"I guess?" Kinjo answered as he thought of a certain blond obsessed with ramen.

"Ok." Izumi looked down at her notebook with a frown. "I guess I'll use my brain for this."

Studying hard would not only help Izumi get into the advanced classes but also help her overall growth. She didn't have much chakra to begin with, as she struggled to use anything beyond the three basic jutsu and couldn't use her Sharingan. Since she was constantly training physically, it was time for her to train her mental state.

Which meant doing multiplication and division tables.

"No, no. That was a good try, but you needed to carry a six over here instead of a five. Try again."

Izumi pouted. "I wish I was as smart as you. That way, I wouldn't need to study so hard."

"And I wish I was good at taijutsu like you. It's why we're helping each other out, right? We're all good at something."

"I guess…" Izumi trailed off as she heard a knock on her door. "Mom?"

"Sweetie, there's someone here looking for you and Kinjo. I think his name is Itachi?"

Kinjo stopped spinning the leaf on his forehead and looked up while Izumi turned a bright shade of crimson. He grinned as she marched to her bedroom door and ripped it open.

Standing in front of her door was Itachi, who had taken a step away from the door. Her mother was nowhere to be found.

"Do you need something?" She asked calmly. Kinjo noticed her fingernails digging into her palm.

Itachi's face was unreadable, but he moved when he caught a glimpse of Kinjo. He held up a book bag and allowed himself into the room. "I was planning on studying a few things with Kinjo."

Izumi shuffled to her desk and collapsed into her chair, staring at Itachi the entire time. Itachi gave her a look but turned his attention to Kinjo and sat on the floor. "I thought you might be interested in some of the tactics we're covering since your classes are probably boring you."

"I'm helping Izumi right now, though," Kinjo stated.

He glanced at her, who was busy staring into the depths of her textbook instead of gawking. "She seems to be studying well by herself."

"Oh yeah, she's definitely intelligent. But I'm just making sure she's not making careless mistakes." Kinjo replied, shooting a knowing grin toward Izumi.

"Then it shouldn't be a problem. Come take a look."

"Sure, sure." Kinjo glanced through the textbook Itachi placed in front of him and frowned. "I'm learning formations right now. This is definitely more advanced."

"The sixth-years are studying more practical applications in hypothetical situations, which have been enlightening so far. For example, this scenario here on page 92…."

"We just started our classes at the Academy, and you're already on page 92?"

"It isn't too difficult. After some time, I began to recognize a pattern to all the tactics and formations."

"You should really inform the Academy about that… Our tactics and formations can't have recognizable patterns since the other villages will catch on."

Itachi frowned. "That's certainly possible. I'll bring it up with my instructor tomorrow. However, I want to see how you answer this scenario."

Kinjo read the scenario while rubbing his chin. "You are being pursued by nine enemy shinobi. You are leading a squad of six Konoha shinobi, including yourself. Your team has recovered valuable intelligence needed for the war effort. Two of your squadmates are heavily injured, though stable enough to be moved. The enemy shinobi are faster than your team due to your injured, and they will catch up to you in minutes. Your team is twenty kilometers from the border to the Land of Fire; what is your decision?"

"Interesting scenario, don't you think?" Itachi probed.

"It definitely is."

There was no doubt in Kinjo's mind that this was some sort of test. Itachi wanted to see if he was the person he claimed to be. While Itachi had been relaxed around him, he was trying to pry a bit into his personality and morals.

He already knew his answer.

"The scenario is missing a few pieces of information. What is the average rank of the enemy shinobi? What about my team? What skills does my team have that I can utilize to fight a delaying action? Who are we being chased by? I could come up with a more detailed answer if I had more information. With the information at hand… I would likely try to hold them off alone as long as I can to allow the others to flee."

"Why?"

"If I'm at a rank high enough to lead two teams, then I should have the necessary skills. I can make traps, bring summons, fire off some ninjutsu, or use clones. Something to buy valuable time and allow the team to escape. Even if only a few take the bait, that's a few shinobi off my team's back.

"If I know that the shinobi team is stronger than us, maybe someone else can assist me. But as the team leader, you must lead and show by example. And what example would I be if I leave my fellow comrades to die while I flee?"

Itachi remained silent for a minute before nodding his head. "I agree. Some things are more important than your life."

The irony of that statement was not lost on Kinjo, who contained a snort that threatened to spill out. "Anything else?"

"I wrote down a few notes that you may find helpful when you take these classes. I'm sure you are also trying to graduate as quickly as possible."

"Somewhat. I want to be better prepared before I graduate. If I want to graduate earlier, I can, and I will."

No, skipping three years was already enough. If Kinjo felt he was ready to graduate earlier, he would. Until then, he was going to work on his fundamentals.

"I'll take my leave then; my brother is waiting for me at home. He just learned how to run, and it's been an… exciting experience." Itachi rose to his feet and walked toward the door.

"Hold on for a moment!" Kinjo yelled as he rushed to Izumi. While Itachi was waiting for him, he quickly turned to her and whispered into her ear. "This is your chance."

"My chance at what?"

"You know, your crush on Itachi?"

"I do not have a crush on Itachi!" She sputtered loudly.

To his credit, Itachi looked away and pretended he didn't hear anything. Kinjo took the opportunity to elbow her shoulders and point to Itachi. "Itachi likes strong people. He also hasn't awakened his Sharingan yet. So if you mention that you have the Sharingan, it'll catch his interest."

"How do you know that?"

"Call it my intuitions."

"Your what?"

"Forget it. Just tell him. This is your chance! He's in your room."

Kinjo nudged her forward as she dragged her feet. Izumi whispered something to Itachi, which instantly caught his interest, and the two began chatting quietly near her bed.

He wouldn't deny it; he shipped them hard. And he was going to ensure that Itachi never killed her.

After chatting for a few minutes, Itachi gave Izumi a reassuring smile. In turn, she fidgeted her fingers and glared at Kinjo.

He just whistled and looked away.

Itachi was about to walk out the door when he jerked back towards them.

"I nearly forgot, but thankfully, I'm still here. I think it's important for you two to know this, just in case." Itachi grimaced as he observed the two in front of him. "This will be officially announced in a few days since Hokage-sama is doing some damage control to soften the impact of the news."

"What is it?" Izumi stammered.

"Orochimaru has defected from Konoha. He is now a missing-nin."

Kinjo blinked.