The Forgotten (Kakashi x OC) (Discontinued)

Book two Prologue

~No One POV~

"Tsunade, you can't be serious right now?"

"You have no idea how hard this is for me, Jiraiya! Do you think this is easy for me?!"

"No, but she's your daughter! Are you serious about leaving her right now? I get that -"

"No, you don't! Stop trying to act like you understand. He died, Jiraiya! You have no idea how much it hurts to see him in her every single day."

"And how much is it going to hurt her when you just up and leave her?! What about her?! She didn't ask for this, Tsunade. Why are you taking this out on her?!"

The small pitter patter of footsteps coming down the hall stopped her before she could speak again. The small, tired face of a toddler peaked around the corner, rubbing her eyes with her hands balled in a fist. Compared to most kids her age, she was on the smaller side. Her brown hair looked like a rats nest, from all of her tossing and turning during the night. She was clinging to a yellow and orange cat stuffed animal, as she usually did.

It was the small things about her that reminded Tsunade of her lover, like her small button nose, her resting smile face, and her facial features were just some of the few things. But it was her eyes, her deep teal eyes, that reminded her of him the most. Those same eyes were pulled her in to begin with. There were mesmerizing.

It hurt.

It hurt her to be pulled into those eyes again. It hurt to see that those eyes weren't his, but their daughter's.

She loved her daughter, but the grief from her lover's death was a heavy weight on her heart. She was still recovering from her parent's death, and now this? It was like she was drowning. And while she wanted her daughter to be the life preserve that would keep her afloat, it was anything but.

Jiraiya closed his eyes for a moment, taking a breath to calm himself before crouching in front of the small child.

"Hey, kiddo. What are you doing up this late?" He said gently with a smile.

"I heard mommy yelling." She answered with a yawn.

He let a breath out of his nose in disappointment. He had a feeling she was awake only because the two of them were arguing. He felt bad that he had woken his niece, but as hard as he tried to keep their conversation quiet, it was becoming quite difficult.

"I'm sorry. Your mommy and I were just having a disagreement. We'll try to keep it down for you. He gave her a smile and held his hand out to her. "Come on, I'll tuck you back into bed."

"But I want mommy to do it." She said sleepily, rubbing one of her eyes as she struggled to stay awake.

"Mommy -"

"Mommy has to get ready to go on a mission, sweety. You'll have to stay with Uncle Jiraiya for a while, is that okay?" Tsunade said, interrupting her former teammate.

A small frown formed on her lips, and her face tilted slightly, so she was staring at the floor. "Oh, okay." She said in almost a whisper.

Jiraiya snapped his head toward Tsunade, glaring daggers at her. 'Don't you dare.' He mouthed to her.

"You two always have fun together. I'm sure you both will have lots of fun." She said, keeping her eyes on her friend as she slowly walked backward toward the door.

"Tsunade -" He said, standing up, but before he could even continue a small hand wrapped around his pinky finger.

"Okay. Be safe, mommy. I love you." She looked up to Jiraiya with a yawn. "You can tuck me, Aiya." She pulled gently on his hand for him to follow her.

He kept his eyes on Tsunade, shaking his head in disappointment. "Sure thing, kiddo. Come on." He followed behind the tiny brunette, but watched as his friend disappeared out the front door.

It made no sense. He remembered how excited she was when she had told him she was pregnant. How she couldn't wait to be a mother. So how could she so easily abandon her daughter like this? They're ninja, death is bound to happen, and by no means does that not give her the right to grieve. But to abandon your child? The child who woke up because she was worried about her mother? Who only wanted her mom to tuck her in?

She didn't even say she loved her in return.

Grief is one thing, but this. . . This is a new low.

Walking into her room, he couldn't help but smile as he watched his niece struggle to climb up into her bed. As I said, she was on the smaller side.

"Here, kiddo." He said cupping his hands under her foot so she could use him as a step.

With a grunt she managed to climbed up into the bed and smile up at him. "Thank you."

"You've got it, squirt. Now, come on. Let's get you nice and tucked in." He said holding the blankets open for her.

"Aiya?" He hummed in response. "How long will mommy be gone?"

He sighed as he tucked her in snuggly into bed. "I'm actually not sure. But I think it might be just you and me for a while. If you're okay with that, that is?" He said playfully, raising an eyebrow.

She giggled sleepily. Her eyes started to droop as the heavy weight of sleep became almost impossible to resist any long. "That's okay." She yawned. "I like spending time with you." Her eyes closed and in no time sounds of soft snores filled the room, indicating she was asleep.

And hopefully for the rest of the night.

Jiraiya sighed and placed a kiss on her forehead. "I like spending time with you too, Emiko. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite." He said softly before tiptoeing out of the room, leaving the door cracked open behind him.