A Little More Than This (Discontinued)

Chapter 36

Mei fiddled with her leaf headband, she was worried. Itachi hadn't come back yet and she was worried about Naruto and Sakura. Also what Gaara had told her a few days earlier had finally sunk in. And for a few seconds she couldn't believe 'Team 7's' luck, losing two members of the squad within 48 hours must have taken a toll on the remaining two.

Mei made a silent vow if she saw Sasuke while she was training she'd give him a good punch, then a lecture.

"Mei, you ok there? Play your damn card! Black Zetsu! She's thinking leave her alone!" Zetsu's arguing interrupted her thoughts, and she remembered she was in a game of poker. "Oh right. Sorry Zetsu-Nii" Mei giggled, scanning her cards and picking up another card.

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Shikamaru felt numb, like nothing outside of the scroll in his pocket was important anymore. He was sitting outside his home and playing a game of shōji with his squad leader, or his old squad's leader.

"Hey kid, I'm beating you. What's going on?" Asuma joked, moving a piece on the board. "Nothing much" Shikamaru mumbled, moving a piece to counteract his Sensei's move. "Looks like there is, because check" Asuma replied, moving another piece. Shikamaru stopped for a second, putting his fingers together and thinking. A minute later he moved a piece and saved his King piece.

"Say you swore you knew everything about someone and then you got a good look at them and you realised you only knew the smallest portion of who they really were. What would you do?" Shikamaru asked as Asuma took his turn. "Personally? Talk to them, I guess. Why?" Asuma asked, sighing a little as Shikmaru captured one of his strongest pieces.

"Ok, I'll try that. Thank you Asuma-Sensei" Shikamaru replied, ignoring the question. "Why?" Asuma asked more forcefully. "No reason" Shikamaru challenged, just as forcefully, a hint of anger flying through his brown eyes. Asuma was taken back, not only by the challenge in his voice but also by the spilt-second anger that flashed in his ex-students eyes.

Asuma fell into a suspicious silence and watched as Shikmaru defeated him, once again, at the game of Shōji. Asuma left the house soon after, mulling over his ex-student's behaviour.

Shikmaru hadn't meant to snap at Asuma or let his anger fly, but the whole ordeal of Mei was throwing him out-of-whack. He didn't know how to feel or what to do, he also didn't know his exact feelings for Mei anymore. Shikamaru had concluded that he definitely didn't hate her, but any other feelings he had were mixed up and rolled into a big bundle of confusion.

He pushed the table of Shōji away and laid back on the wooden boards. He just wanted to relax for a bit, and not care about the world anymore.

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Itachi woke late the next day, to reason he didn't know. He usually woke early in the morning everyday, but that day he just felt sluggish and tired. He sighed a little before walking over his bag and he sat on the floor, legs crossed and ready to find out all that Orochimaru had undiscovered.

Itachi pulled out the letter addressed to him first, wanting to see what the snake Sannin might have wanted to tell him. It was simple:

Look after Mei or you'll know about it. Also burn the other notes for safe keeping.

Itachi sighed and decided to do it at a later date. He pulled out the scroll and untied the sting around it, opening it up to a ton of information. Itachi scanned the first couple of paragraphs, smiling as he realised it contained all the info he needed to properly train Mei.

Itachi then packed up the scroll and placed into the bag, pulling out the book hard-cover books. One was thick and green with an orange symbol on it that looked like a flame curling around a cross with the arms on a diagonal slant. The other book was much thinner and had a simple black cover with the yin and yang sign on the back cover.

Itachi opened the black one and noticed it was instructions to release a seal, it was full of diagrams and weird symbols as well as a neat and decorative handwriting that he didn't recognise. He placed the book back into the bag and opened the green one.

Itachi scanned through several pages before coming to the conclusion it was a detailed background of the entire Kurisuna clan and history; naming enemies, relations to other clans, parts the clan played in both Ninja Wars, all known places the Kurisuna had 'set up camp' and three detailed reports on the clan's Kekkei Genkai.

Itachi was impressed, Orochimaru's information gathering exceeded his expectation by vast amounts. He closed the book with a snap and packed it up with the other book and scroll. He grabbed all the letters from his bag and walked out of the base.

On his way out he passed the kitchen, with its ever-lit fire stove, and chucked the letters into the fire. Itachi left shortly afterward, his feet and mind towards the hutt. He really wanted to read both scroll and books in full so he could help the little tangerinehead as best as he could.

He left the base and traveled back to the hut reaching it by midday and being greeted with the smell of cooking beef and spices. He smiled lightly and walked into the room to find Mei moodily cooking the meat.

"Hello Itachi-Nii, welcome back" Mei moodily grumbled at him. "Good afternoon Mei, where is Zetsu?" Itachi asked, sitting near Mei and watching her cook. "Black Zetsu-Nii dragged White Zetsu-Nii to the village under a disguise to prev at girls" Mei replied, giving Itachi a cooked beef stick.

Itachi hummed before pulling out the green book and opening up to a page. "See the cross? The one with the fire wrapping around it? That's your mother's clan's symbol. I've got all the information here to properly train you to use their Kekkei Genkai" Itachi explained. "I have a Kekkei Genkai? COOL!!!" Mei cried, peering at the symbol with stars in her eyes.

Itachi chuckled lightly and ruffled her orange hair and started to eat the stick of beef.