Book 2: The Three of Us

Chapter 6: No Use in Lying

It's a while before our sparing comes to an end. Anko's attacks were starting to slow as she tires from the long spar. I could feel the stress on my body from the bleeding cuts on my body, not enough to slow me down but enough to be bothersome. Anko goes in for another strike, leaving her right side wide open. I take the break in her defense to step forward at the same time she moved towards me. Kicking the back of her knee while grabbing her shoulder and pushing her has her falling to the ground with a loud thump.

To keep her from getting back up, I step one foot on her stomach. Her breathing is heavy as she recovers from getting the wind nocked out of her. I give a smug smirk, "Ready to tap out now?"

"Fine asshole," with a glare, she taps my leg, signaling the end of the spar.

I remove my leg holding her down and hold my arm out to help her up. She grabs my arm and I pull her up, "Appreciate the spar, even if I did kick your ass."

Anko scoffs, "Only because you've been a shinobi for as long as I've been alive, Old Man."

"How old do you think I am?" I ask, offended by her assumption of my age.

"I don't know, man, probably in your mid thirties," she gives a half harded shrug as she grabs a water bottle and takes a long drink.

"I'm only twenty-nine!" I say, throwing my hands up in emphasis.

She chokes on the water she's drinking and lets out a wheezy cough, "No way. How the hell am I the same age as you? You do realize that the bingo book has your age wrong? Or maybe you're the one that's got it wrong."

"I know how old I am, thank you very much," I give her a flat look, "How old does the bingo book say I am?"

"Like thirty-two or something,"

"I need proof, give me the book," I say, making a grabbing motion towards her.

"Sorry, don't got one on me. You'll have to see some other time."

I look to where Kakashi is perched in the trees and raise my voice so he can hear me clearly, "Yo, Hatake! Got a bingo book on ya?"

He jumps down, landing lazily with his hands in his pockets and slouching, "I got one." He unseals it from a small scroll and hands it to me.

I grab it and start flipping through the pages to my own entry. I skim over the basic info and see that my age is in fact written down wrong, "Damn, that's just offensive. How do you even get that wrong?"

Anko lets out a laugh, "The universe is just seeing you for who you really are. Just a grumpy old man."

I can see Hatake reading my page from where he's standing. Not bothered by it, I hand it back to him. With one last look he seals it up back in the scroll. He gives me a complicated look before asking, "Anything else in there incorrect?"

"Nah, I think the rest of it is fine."

Anko looks between the two of us, obviously wanting to avoid Kakashi protective dad moment, "Sorry boys but I got places to be."

"We going to spar together again soon?" I ask, enjoying the training with her.

"Of course but seriously, gotta go, probably running late," she says and disappears before I can even finish my goodbye to her. My attention is turned towards Hatake when he starts to speak again.

"So you did have over a hundred kills from your time fighting for The Rink?" he asks and it makes me wonder what he's trying to gain from this. There was always a reason behind every question with a person like him.

"In public fights, yes," I answer honestly. I wasn't proud of my time there but there was no use in lying about it. It was nearly two years I spent in that place not long after I defected. The reminder of my time in The Rink sends a wave of anxiety through me and leaves me feeling on edge. 

"I'm trying to understand why someone like you would allow there chakra to be sealed away to partake in brutal fighting matches. How did that man turn into the man I see before me now?" Hatake asks, his tone turning serious.

"Really diving head first into it, aren't you? No small talk? Nothing?" I deflect, trying to lighten the atmosphere from the dark turn it could take. I can tell the moment Kakashi notices the tremor of my hands, my body reacting to the memories and everything it brought with it. 

"You're dating Sakura, my former student and part of my family. I don't trust you but she does. I'm here to make sure you don't use that trust against her," he answers, a silent warning left unsaid.

Anger bubbles up in me at first, offended he'd think I'd purposely harm Sakura before I let that anger calm, realizing he just wants to make sure nothing bad happens to her. I take my own water bottle, trying and failing to steady my hand, and take a long sip from it before speaking, "I enjoyed it. Simple as that. The pain, the adrenaline, the brutal fight for life with nothing but my own two hands. To me, it was freedom."

He seems conflicted by my answer and asks another question, "Why'd you leave?"

"Had no choice. The moron running the thing tried to bring the slave trade into it and was quickly shut down after that. With it gone I had to move on with my life," I answer. 

"Doesn't explain why you're who you are today."

"I realized I didn't want to die but knew I couldn't keep going as I was. Things had to change. Jiraya gave me that chance and I took it," guilt and grief takes root in my heart, his death still fresh on my mind, "I was on a mission for him - for Konoha - months before I even stepped foot in this village. And once I met Sakura and Itachi, I realized I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to be alone any more."

"You're a surprisingly honest man. Not many people are," Hatake says, giving me a nod of approval.

"Lies are dangerous things," I say.

Hatake nods in agreement, "Truth to that."

The tension that grew in me with the reminder of my time there stays with me, refusing to let go. It leaves me feeling on edge, mind busy and trying to set me into a panic.