Zabuza's sister

17 : Getting closer again

The days following their second encounter with Zabuza were strange, like clouded by the fog in Dana's mind. It was hard for her to have to say goodbye to the brother she just met again, and her team was acting a bit distant from her, even Naruto who was bothered she didn't tell him about Zabuza before. How many secrets did she keep? She wouldn't tell him anything about his parents, not even their names, already. Realizing he was only Dana's second brother and that he knew her so little made him feel sad and alone, more that he ever had been. And he wasn't the only one to feel this way.

Kakashi, while watching over Tazuna and his team finishing the bridge in case anything happened again, couldn't stop thinking about the brunette. He knew she told him the truth about her past, and he could see how loyal she was to Konoha – or at least the people she loved there – but would she stay there now Naruto was old enough to take care of himself and that she had found her big brother back? And why didn't she tell him before about all that? Why did she hide her identity in his team? It was clear she knew how to fight, but he never met her before on the many missions with so many different ninja he had been on.

Because, of course, he still didn't know about the Grimm Reaper. And that was a secret she really didn't want him to discover. Because they had live many things together on missions with her adoptive father's team or in the Anbu. And some details were quite embarrassing – for the two of them. Just thinking about it made her blush.

The day arrived when they had to go back to Konoha. The bridge was standing tall, linking the poor island to the main land, and a new life was waiting for it's people who all joined Tazuna's family to say goodbye to the leaf ninjas. Naruto was crying when having to say goodbye to the young Inari. Just when they were about to be too far to ear the villagers, Dana heard Tazuna say, about the bridge:

"We'll call it "The Great Naruto Bridge"."

And she smiled, ruffling Naruto's hair who finally gave her a smile and walked a little closer to her.

They had to stop in an inn again on the road, and this time the three gênin shared a room when the two adult were sharing an other one. It was a bit embarrassing when the inn keeper thought Dana and Kakashi were a couple and that the three youngster were they children ("How old do she thing we are?" Kakashi had asked, exasperated) and tried to suggest them couple activities to do during their stay, but they finally made it to the rooms, faces red and avoiding eye-contact, the young ninjas laughing behind them.

The room, thankfully, had two beds and a private shower Kakashi and Dana used one after the other, making sure they were completely dry and clothed when going out of the bathroom. Red didn't go off their faces. It was hard not to think about the other person naked, just behind that thin wall and a door without even a lock, water running on their skin. And of course Kakashi had to read his book while Dana was showering and fall on one of THE scenes. He had to change mask because of his too-much-bleeding nose. The brunette smelled the blood in air when going out of the shower but didn't show it.

The meal was quite strange that night. The three gênin were staring so hard at Kakashi's face that he refused to eat, pretending he was on a diet (Dana discretely hid some food for him that she would give him later, she wouldn't be awakened by the sound of his growling stomach) and he almost threw the table flying because Naruto dropped a smoking teapot on his lap. A quick rescue from the brunette saved the meal, but not the mood of her team who seemed very annoyed at her. What the Hell is happening?

It was only in the hot spring that she learned why the gênin were acting so strange. Sakura, bothered for the only time of her life not to be a man or that the baths weren't mixed, told Dana that they wanted to see Kakashi-senseï's face but didn't succeed so far. That's when they heard the white-haired man entering the boy's bath (at least Dana had an excuse to be red as a beetroot with the warmth of the hot spring) and a squeal of excitement from Naruto and Sasuke, soon replaced by a "SPLASH". It was quite clear their plan didn't succeed this time either. The young woman chuckled seeing Sakura's disappointed face and commentated:

"Maybe next time!"

The night began as strange as the meal had. Dana gave Kakashi the food she had taken for him from the table and he thanked her, beginning eating back to her before she said:

"You know, I've already seen your face, you don't have to feel shy with me."

Silence. Both had frozen. The words were hitting them hard. Since the white haired man knew who she was, he hadn't spoken to her, except for the essential. And they had both been pretending not to know each other, not to remember all they had live together – and one of them knew more about that than the other. But those words just exploded the lie they had been living to their faces. Yes, they knew each other, they had a past together, and they really never spoke after Minato and Kushina's deaths. Shame rose again inside Kakashi who couldn't eat anymore. The silence persisted for some long minutes, and then:

"I'm so sorry, Dana."

"I'm so sorry, Kakashi."

They had spoken exactly at the same time, turning their backs to one another, almost touching, feeling the other's warmth. They turned to be face to face. Of course, the white-haired had put his mask on again. But it had been quite some time since she hadn't met his eyes like that. They stopped breathing for an instant, looking at each other in a sort of amazement. How long had it been since they hadn't been alone together like that? Red rose to their cheeks again, making Dana's pale face even more beautiful, more alive. They each turned their stare in a different direction, confused. After all this time, the feeling were still there, bigger and scarier than ever.

They didn't speak again that night. But when they went to sleep, bed against bed, their hands slowly met and they felt asleep with their fingers intertwined and their faces smiling.