When the Past Strikes Back...(Naruto based)

Out of Paradise

I don't own Naruto...

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Her face was chubby, and her cheeks were rosy. She had eyes that were as dark and deep as the sea. She had one strand of hair in the shape of a hook stranded between those eyes. Her lips curved slightly, forming a smile. Her mouth opened, revealing a pink tongue, no longer hidden between her two light pink lips. She squinted her eyes and pursed her lips, as if to say something, but no words were formed. Not even a sound was made. She was just expressing herself again.

I was happy, excited, awed, and somehow...sad. I was so happy that she was alive, born, new to the world. I was excited to hear her speak, walk, and grow up. It awed me to think that only months ago she was inside of my mother's stomach. I was even in there at once. It awed me to look at her small features. It was incredible to see such simplicity yet such complication in this natural process of life. And yet..., I was sad. She would grow up in a terrible world with deception, cruelty, rage, greed, envy, lust, hate, and lies. Deadly, monstrous, deceiving lies.

Her innocence will not last long at all. After she sees even the smallest example of evil, she will never again have the calm expression she holds now. She will grieve, hate, and become confused. I wish I could stop all of the evil in the world just for my baby sister, Ayano. I can't let her see what I saw. I have to make sure she never meets Ryo. She can't come in contact with a lifeless body or see an excessive amount of blood. Maybe I don't have to stop all of the evil in the world. Maybe I just have to stop her from seeing the worst of it. Which means keeping Ryo away from her.

"I can't let anything happen to you." I told the sleepy baby resting in my arms. I adjusted the blanket to warm her small toes with a smile on my face.

"It's not your job to save the world, you know," my mother lectured, walking through the doorway of the kitchen, into the carpeted living room. Her curly, blonde hair was wet. It dampened the cotton, ivy-colored rope she wore. She held a cup of tea in both hands. "You can't protect everyone." I set my jaw before sighing.

"Is that not my responsibility?" I stared at Ayano's brown hair as I spoke. "I was trained to be strong. Shouldn't I use this strength to protect what's important to me?" Mother sat down on the couch beside the rocking chair I was sitting in. She took a sip of her tea.

"You're thirteen, Aiko, and you're a girl. You shouldn't be talking like war veteran!" I chuckled. "You really need to live a little lighter."

"Live a little lighter?" I questioned, confused by her idiom. She nodded, her wet curls swaying.

"Life shouldn't be so difficult for you. It should be simple now that you're home. Speaking of that, I've been thinking about your old home and friends lately... Aiko, I think you should go back to the Leaf Village." 'Wow, she was quick to get to the point.' I thought.

"Why's that?" I asked carelessly.

"The thought really never crossed your mind? Aiko, honey, don't you miss your friends? Don't you miss your restaurant? Don't you miss the Leaf? Don't you... You're friends probably miss you." My body twitched for a moment. I hadn't even thought about that. My friends probably do miss-I promised Shikamaru Nara that I'd come back to the Leaf Village. Darn it.

"What about Hitomi and Chikako?"

"I'm positive they would want to go with you. Aiko, I trust you'll keep them and yourself safe." A deadly thought crept into my mind.

"Even after what happened?" I mumbled.

"Dear, you were just a little girl then. Now, you're a slightly older, little girl." The two of us laughed in the dim room. Even Ayano was smiling. "You're leaving tomorrow."

"Alright." I complied with no hesitation whatsoever.

Hitomi and Chikako were overjoyed when they heard the news. Something about seeing my friends made them giggle like crazy. I expressed concern about Hitomi's Uchiha and Hyuuga eyes. The Leaf Village was home to those clans. Hitomi found a pair of sunglasses that were 'fashionable enough to wear all the time', and that was settled. We packed our things, said our goodbyes to Mother and Ayano, and were on our way. Traveling through the forests to the Leaf Village brought back many memories, both good and bad.

When we arrived to the village gates, we walked straight to my apartment. It only had one room, so using extra money I had been saving for an emergency, we upgraded to a two bedroom apartment. I offered to buy a three bedroom, but Hitomi and Chikako insisted that they were fine to share a room. This apartment was much larger. Not only did it have two bedrooms, but it also had two bathrooms, a large kitchen, and an enormous living room. We filled it with my old furniture and new beds for the two.

After everything was finished, we had dinner at Ichiraku ramen then went home and rested. The next day, we went to Aiko's Fish. The whole day was spent cleaning and making banners and flyers for the reopening. Boy, was Chikako excited...

The following day, we fished in the morning then started passing out flyers. I was just about to staple a flyer to a post when I saw Shikamaru. 'I wonder what he's been up to lately,' I thought, watching him as he walked down the street. 'I hope he hasn't missed me. I really, really hope the boy who confessed his love to me hasn't done anything rash in my absence.'