Growing Pains

Chapter 3

This was it.

She was going to die in the hands of this unruly and gross-smelling guy.

Whimpering, Araile closed her eyes as he continued to lick along the curve of her neck. She swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat, and tried once more to struggle free. His arm tightened like a vise around her waist, and it felt like he was squeezing the breath out of her lungs little by little.

Someone cleared their throat behind the man, causing one of Araile's eye to open slightly.

"Excuse me, would you know the way to the nearest village?" a smooth voice sounded behind her attacker.

"No, now m've 'long son," the large man said, turning his head slightly.

"Oh, that's too bad. But you are ruining my sense of smell," the unknown man said.

The next thing Araile knew, she felt the vibrations of her rescuer's fist making contact with the side of her attackers face, knocking him out cold. As her attacker's hands slipped away from her body, her legs decided to give out. Araile landed on her hands and knees on the ground as her eyes squeezed shut. Her heart continued to pound, and her lungs worked double time, taking in some much needed clean air.

A rustle of footsteps sounded quietly behind her, causing the 14 year old to flinch. Who was it? Another attacker? Her muscles began to tremble.

Her rescuer walked slowly behind her and knelt down beside her shaking form. A gentle hand was placed on her shoulder, and she flinched again.

"Araile..." her name left his lips softly, causing her to open her eyes slowly.

'How does he know my name? Wait...I know that voice,' Araile thought as she slowly turned her head towards the man's voice.

Her eyes roamed up a pair of sandals, to dark pants then to a familiar dark green vest. Taking a shaky breath, her eyes continued their roaming. A dark mask and a headband met her eyes.

Her heart couldn't be happier.

"Kakashi?" she choked out before rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Hey kiddo. It looked like you needed a hand with your friend," her old caregiver said before helping the shaking 14 year old up.

Letting out a shaky laugh, she rubbed her arms as her skin prickled. It felt like there were lots of little bugs crawling on her arms.

"What are you doing out here?" she asked as she tamed her hair back into a ponytail.

"Coming back from a mission," he answered putting a hand on her shoulder.

Biting her lip, Araile managed a measly squeak of an answer before her tears overwhelmed her. Shoulders shaking, she turned her face away, embarrassment making her stomach clench. Sighing, Kakashi reached out and smoothed out her hair as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Now, what's all this?" he chuckled as he bent down to her level.

Araile had grown yes, but she was still shorter than Kakashi.

"I-I thought I was g-going to die, and t-that I'd never see my friends a-again," she hiccuped.

"Araile," Kakashi sighed and pulled her against him while the 14 year old cried.

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, surprising the Jonin. After a couple of minutes, he stood up with her still in his arms. She wrapped her legs around his stomach, blinking as tears continued to come. Sniffling, her fingers played with the seam of his vest as Kakashi started walking back the way she had come. All the smells of home wafted off his vest, and Araile found herself relaxing as the memories of home in Konoha drifted through her exhausted mind. He smelled like home and the forest and safety.

"Araile, you've grown. I think you may start to be a little too big for this, don't you think?" Kakashi joked as he shifted the girl in his arms.

He chuckled as he felt her shake her head against his shoulder, her arms tightening momentarily around his shoulders.

"You used to always demand me to carry you in my arms whenever I came back from missions when you were small," Kakashi mused.

"Really?" came a muffled reply from his shoulder.

"Mhm, every day," Kakashi answered.