Get Lost

Chapter 7

It was dark when Kazue got back home. She had taken a long way around the village. She was tired and angry. 

Kazue stopped in front of her home. A few lights were on. It was a mix of modern and traditional. Their front door swung, their back doors slid. They had a nice garden back there, with a tiny stream and a little footpath. 

Kazue decided she wouldn't be able to stand having her parents ask how her day went. She couldn't go home yet. 

Instead, Kazue wandered off toward the abandoned part of the clan's property. There was plenty to explore if that's what she needed. There were plenty of places to get lost. 

As Kazue wandered into the maze of buildings. She heard the sounds of training. Kazue followed the noises, curious as to what was going on.

She found her father, surrounded by abandoned buildings, practicing fighting.

"Dad?"

Isamu Ige turned. he kept his hair long and in a braid like Kazue. He smiled at his only daughter. "What are you doing here, Kazue?"

"I was..." She looked behind her. "I was out walking."

"I thought you weren't supposed to be home until later." Isamu picked up a small towel from an abandoned porch and began rubbing off his face and hands.

Kazue shrugged. "It's pretty late already," she muttered.

Her dad looked up at the dark sky. "Oh, I suppose it is." He folded the towel then looked up and studied her.

"What's wrong, Kazue?"

Kazue looked up. She considered not telling him, but what was the harm? "I'm being picked off my team."

"They're sending you back to the Academy? It's very late for that."

"No." Kazue shifted. "They told me not to come back." She bit her cheek. "Dad, what's the Ige technique? I know other clans have ninjutsu techniques. What about us?"

Her dad exhaled, nodding slowly. "I don't know them," he confessed. "I was never a good enough shinobi to learn them on my own and neither of my parents were ninja. I didn't have anyone to teach me."

"So, they're lost?"

"I'm sure they were written down somewhere. You'd have to find the books in-" he looked around "-one of these buildings."

Kazue looked around too. There were a lot of buildings. "Can you teach me anything?"

Isamu looked at her. "The best thing I can teach you is hard work. But, I know you already work very hard. Don't give up, Kazue. This is the path you chose, put your all into it and don't let anyone stop you. Hard work makes up for a lot. Talent can always be surpassed."

Kazue looked around at her dad's impromptu training area. 

"Are you hungry?" He asked.

Kazue smiled. She had already eaten. It didn't matter. "Yeah."

"Alright. We'll come back after."

---

The next morning, Kazue was the first one at the place where Team 10 normally met. Rokuro arrived a while later. He was surprised to see her but didn't ask her anything and wouldn't look at her after his initial moment of shock.

Ino arrived next. Kazue kept glancing over and finding Ino frowning at her in confusion. 

Asuma Sensei, Sonomi, and Choji all arrived within a few minutes of each other. If they found her presence strange, they didn't show it. Except for Sonomi, who gave her a look of approval.