Avoid the weeds

Chapter 4

- Third person's pov -

The clanging of metal filled the air as two children fight in an arena with swords. The girl, Ava, blocks a swipe to her face before lunging at her opponent. Her opponent, the black haired boy, dodges her attack before going in for one of his own. 

Danzō stood above them on the balcony as he observes. 

"You are to kill your opponent." His voice echoed off the arena's walls.

The two children look at each other before more clanging fills the air before it abruptly stops. Metal clatters to the ground followed closely by the thud of a body falling to the ground. 

"No emotion, you are merely a doll that follows orders."

Ava stood over the black haired boy, no emotions showing on her face as she stared down at her roommate as he laid on the ground, dead. Blood dripped off her sword and onto the ground, the blood forming a puddle smaller than the one being created by the body.

It had been two years since the kidnapping. Two years since meeting the black hiared boy and Shin. Two years since training began.

"You're dismissed." Danzō speaks as he lightly moved his hand causing men to begin clean up.

In the beginning it was speed and skill training, but that was soon followed by conditioning. Conditioning was, to put it lightly, not enjoyable. 

Ava bows before wiping the blood off her blade and sheathing it. Exiting the arena, she passes the conditioning room. Inside children her age and younger were being conditioned to be emotionless and to have little regard for their lives. The muffled screams coming from the room caused her to hurry past, not even glancing through the window.

Arriving back in her room, she walked to her section and put the sword back on the shelf above her bed. Going to turn around, she pauses as a drawing catches her eye. Pinned to the wall above her sword was a drawing of the black haired boy and herself. 

The two were drawn training and Ava couldn't help but stare. Her throat began to feel tighter as she continued to stare at the picture. The two had grins painted on their faces and yet, she couldn't get rid of how he looked in his final moments.

The black haired boy, the one who loved to draw, had a resigned look in his eye as he failed to block her strike. Ava had watched the light leave his eyes before he hit the floor. He hadn't been her first kill, in the two years she had been there she had killed plenty of other trainees. But the boy, he shouldn't have died. 

With the others, it was known it was a fight to the death. Ava had fought and won, proving herself to be as useful as Danzō predicted her to be. She had excelled in training, surpassing the others and catching up to the black haired boy within the first year. From then on, the two were sparring partners. 

What was supposed to be another training exercise turned into another skill test. Another test to prove it was worth it for ROOT to keep them alive. Ava had passed, the black haired boy had not. 

Clearing her throat, she turns away from the picture. The picture would only be a reminder of the irony between it and his death, a death caused by her. 

Unknown to her, the black haired boy had been moved to another room and was very much alive. The person she had killed that bled out on the floor being someone else under a henge. While Ava was useful at the moment, the black haired boy was as well and Danzō would be damned if he didn't use his pawns for all their worth.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

//ANBU headquarters//

The slamming of a locker echoes throughout the locker room causing those inside to look over. The sight of an angry Itachi Uchiha caused them to turn away and not ask questions though.