A Dash of Chili Powder

18

[Tis very true. >D I kind of don't wanna write in Amaya's...'love' for Gaara anymore. -_- ]

"Wait," the tiny purple-haired girl mumbled, unsure of what to do when she got their attention. She didn't technically have anywhere to go either, but she didn't think that they'd let her stay with them either. She didn't want to have to pay an innkeeper a thousand ryo per day.

Hey, she lived paycheck to paycheck. If you lived paycheck to paycheck, wouldn't you try to weasel your way out of it? Damn straight.

She frowned, realizing that she was beginning to think like Yuki. This was an irritating prospect. May as well take it am run with it though.

"May I come along?" she asked solemnly.

"No...stay," Yuki replied in place of Kakashi. She was very grateful for his help and if Kakashi wasn't going to offer anything, then she was. Besides, where else would he stay? 

"Let him do what he wants, Yuki," said the tall jounin, sighing lightly.

"But...you're a dick, pops," she stated bluntly.

"Is that so?"

"Yes. It is so. Let him stay. I may be in bad condition, but he's someone I want to get to know. He is...related to you, right?" 

"...."

"Right, so that would make him my cousin or brother or uncle or something. I wanna know him."

Kakashi, again, said nothing.

Gracie

[D: Gaara-sama gets no love? Oh noes! Momo-kun has ruined his chances with a ginger cookie! (hahaha XD) Well, whichever you choose, I suppose. :) And Rage is almost like a daycare mom - food onhand at all times. XD]

Rage looked at Amaya's solemn face with slightly-widened peach eyes while Awaji was taken aback. "You really wanna come with?" he asked, surprised.

Scythe grinned. "Another nomad, huh? Sure you can come. Not like we can stop you or anything."

"But all we're doing is looking at apartments. It's kinda boring," Awaji mumbled. Rage reached into his satchel and offered another bento to the boy, again with both hands. His politeness knew no bounds. Awaji snatched it up. "Well, it might not be so bad," he decided.

"You sure you don't want something to eat? Awaji-kun'll eat all four of those in one sitting," Scythe warned with a fond laugh. He shook his head at Rage's questioning stare. "Nah, I'm not hungry."

As Scythe and Awaji walked ahead, the tall man waving Amaya to join them, Rage stayed back and waited. He only started walking again when Amaya had caught up.

"... ... ..." Vell looked at Kakashi with exasperation. "You had to get a smart kid, didn't you?"

Kakashi rolled his dark eye up to the ceiling in an attempt to look innocent. "I had no say in her intelligence," he said.

The silver haired teen folded his arms and narrowed his eye at Kakashi. He spoke to Yuki, though. "This geriatric, dick-headed old man is my brother. Unfortunately."

"You say it as if it's a bad thing."

"IT IS."

Kakashi chuckled and Vell looked to Yuki, face sagging with exasperation again. "Six years of this crap. That's what I grew up with. He hasn't changed one bit," he sighed as if it were a tragic thing.