-OUTDOORS-

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Kawaki sneered.

You dug your toes into the moist dirt beneath you. The soft grass tickled at the soles of your feet, kissing them gently with the cold moisture of yesterday's rain. Your eyes, now doe shaped, drank in the vibrant colours around you. Green, blue, brown— the outside world was mind blowing. The fresh air filled your lungs and you breathed in the raw scent. It was the void of any artificial smell, and you couldn't help but let out a soft smile.

Kawaki shifted on the rock he was sitting on, his dull grey eyes scanning you from below. The two of you had managed to clear a good distance from the research facility but decided on taking a small break. His arm was killing him, and your nagging was doing his head in, so some time to breathe was probably good. It also gave Kawaki the chance to finally talk with you— the adrenaline from escaping practically silenced the both of you back then. But now that he actually had you sat down alone, you were too busy staring wide-eyed at your surroundings to pay any attention.

It was clear from the way you twirled the blades of grass beneath you that you were too engrossed to care about what he had to say. Which was exactly why his comment drifted with the wind, never to be answered or heard of again.

He grit his teeth at this— he hated it when people ignored him. Who were you to brush him off so carelessly? And well, he was about to say something about it, but felt his words die at his throat when noticing two fat drops of tears form in the corner of your eyes.

His lips sealed shut and his head turned away, thinking better against it.

A solid minute passed with Kawaki basking in the occasional streaks of sunlight that poured from the clouds, and he took this time to shift his injured arm sporadically to kill the air of awkwardness, mumbling a colourful array of insults at every attempt to position it in a way that didn't have him bleeding through the gown. Which was a failure, might I add.

That was when you eventually stopped in your exploration, your hand placed along the bark of a tree. You glanced back up at Kawaki, and he was in the middle of tying his bloodied arm with a ripped piece of fabric.

"...I don't remember the last time I've been outside." Your voice was as soft as a whisper, and he could sense the overwhelming joy laced in it.

'Of course.' Kawaki thought to himself. You were a lab rat of Karas; an abused, scared child that was sold off by those who you thought you could trust. He shared the same fate, but even then, his isolation periods were broken with the training and occasional missions Jigen had him perform. Chakra dispensers like you however, lived deep in the underground research facilities— hidden behind monitors and machinery that robbed you of any natural light. You probably haven't seen the outside in years. So he made a mental note to be a little more...gracious with his words. He didn't want to make you hate him— not when you were the only person in the world who could possibly understand him and his pain.

Possibly— key word.

He wasn't getting his hopes up.

"How...how did you get into Kara?" Kawaki tightened the knot around his sleeve, then spoke casually. His question didn't go ignored this time as you wiped your tears away with a free hand and grimaced. Bruises were now starting to form at your wrists— half from the cuffs that held them together and half from the force Kawaki used to break them.

You sighed, flexing your fingers. "My clan is famous for their Chakra supply. Some of the best doctors in the world came from my home town."

You pulled a sardonic smile "And well, you know what kind of people that draws in"

Kawaki grimaced at the thought. His own father, the devil he was, came to mind. "Tch, Kara..." He kissed his teeth in spite.

Though it wasn't a bad guess, it wasn't a necessarily correct one. But you kept that to yourself and let him believe what he wanted to believe. It didn't matter to you either way, you ended up in Karas possession no matter who got to your family first. Black market dealers, or the organisation, your clan was sold like cattle at the end of the day.

Besides, you weren't so keen on having all your secrets spilt so effortlessly . Though you agreed on the notion of mutual trust (especially when the two of you were now runaways) it was stupid to pretend as if the two of you wouldn't drop each other the second the situation called for it.

'We're using eachother, don't get so attached.' You reminded yourself. Effectively silencing that small inner child of yours that begged for a friend.

From the way Kawaki welcomed the end of the discussion, he didn't seem to mind your refusal to open up either. He wasn't that curious, naive child anymore, so your personal issues needn't the attention he initially gave.

"I'm planning on getting back at Kara." Kawaki started after a good moment of planning, "However, I need some time to train with my Karma mark."

The young boy slid off the rock he previously rested on, and planted himself firm on the ground. He was still barefoot, to which he sneered at. "The village over there will probably have some supplies that'll help with my injury. Hell, there might even be some food." Kawaki gazed upon the horizon, which revealed a large dwelling of buildings. A city full of people— one he could only assume to be 'The Hidden Leaf village' that his 'babysitters' kept talking about.

At the mention of food, you suddenly noticed the gaping hole in your stomach. A good day or two must have passed since your capture, and you were more starved than usual. 

"What I'm trying to say is, do you want to tag along for a little while? We're both from Kara and I'll admit, that ability of yours is really useful." Kawaki finished, then awaited your response with a cold glare.

You weren't intimidated by it in the slightest, so you let out a pitiful chuckle. "I was wondering why you didn't ask me sooner."

Kawaki quickly snapped back "- and what do you mean by that?" Clearly he disliked being compared to your other abusers.

"That injury of yours can be healed in seconds." You said "All it takes is a bite of my arm, and you're sorted. It's what everyone wants..." You couldn't hide the mirth in your voice, no matter how unfazed you constructed your tone to be. Never did you want to bleed chakra again, your pores aches of years of abuse becuase of it, but considering how you're dependant on Kawaki now, you could see yourself being used as his pocket healer from time to time. Hey, you had to give Kawaki credit for holding out this long atleast...

"I'm not going to take your chakra, you idiot."

A startled pause was all you could muster when hearing those words leave his mouth.

"But you're bleeding— badly." You insisted.

"And you're all skin and bones." He finished.

You blinked twice at the boy, utterly stunned. He returned the gesture, this time eying you with a confused look. Little did he know that nobody had ever refused your chakra before— your cuts and bruises being proof of that. He wouldn't know of course, he didn't even know how you looked a few days ago, which was why he quickly changed the topic.

"The only reason I want you along is because of how valuable you are to Kara. If I want to ruin that organisation I need to start by taking out its pawns." Kawaki could already imagine how panicked Amado must be knowing that his best assistant is missing. It brought a vengeful smirk to his face. "Besides, I've had worse injuries before. Now stop moping around and let's get moving, if there's any hound ninjas in the facility we'll be tracked down in a second." Kawaki didn't allow you to truly take in his words as he pulled you to your feet with one swift hand, and began the track to the village below.

You followed impishly behind, trying to match his speed but found yourself distracted. This time it wasn't because of the beautiful landscapes around you, but it was because you felt something stir within your heart; a sort of melodic relief that caused you to ease up. Thankfulness perhaps?

Yes, you were thankful that for the first time, someone showed mercy for your condition.