三十八
lingering hope
Kuina knew that Itachi's decision was absolute, but even then she still had a lingering false hope that maybe he would change his mind.
She knew she should know her place as a captive; asking Itachi to take her with him on his mission was indeed a lot to ask for. But she was desperate. She just really wanted to go outside. Partially because she was always confined, but majorly because of the fact that in the upcoming week, it would be her twentieth birthday.
People in her clan always took the twentieth birthday rather seriously. During this anniversary, the clansmen must spend it with the person they loved most. Even though she didn't love Itachi like that, within the world where she had no one left, he was the person she thought she was closest to. He didn't know her birthday, but just spending the day with him wasn't too bad.
Yet in the end, she had to come to accept that Itachi was absolute with his words - that notion of hers was a mere chimera in the current reality. So, she pushed it to the back of her mind and decided that instead, she would focus on her training.
The next morning after that day, she decided she must take the initiative to ask Itachi to teach her.
Itachi was at the back of the hideout that morning. He stood in the shade, standing comfortably against a tree, sharpening his kunai. As much as she dreaded it, she decided to approach him. He didn't acknowledge her presence, but he didn't seem to mind her either. So, she took her chance to remind him to teach her. At first, he looked hesitant, but after a brief while of her pester, he let out a defeated sigh.
"Alright," he gave in, his face filled up with a grimace. "Then tell me your current skill level and we can take off from there."
Kuina fidgeted with her thumbs as she looked down at the ground, her face red. "U-Um, about that. . ."
He raised his brows. "What is it?"
She gulped as she refused to meet his gaze. "I don't have any skill," she murmured, her voice barely audible.
He blinked, completely dumbfounded. "Not even basic Chakra control like walking on water or climbing trees?"
She shook her head.
"You have got to be kidding," he muttered as he opened his mouth to criticise her more, but then he caught her sulking expression. A sigh parted his lips. "That's alright, that's completely fine. We can start from scratch, no big deal." He leaned back against the tree, exhausted even before they had even gotten started. "Let us start with the fundamentals then. You need to build your concentration and control. This can be achieved by hitting a target with precision."
With that, he walked away from the tree he was leaning on. Flicking out at kunai, he aimed it at the tree and threw it effortlessly, letting it embed into the trunk perfectly in the middle. Kuina gawked in with amazement as she slowly walked over to him, her eyes not leaving the target.
His expression was barren as he looked at her. "Now, try," he demanded as he handed her a new kunai. But before she could receive it from him, he pulled it away from her. "It's sharp," he added.
Kuina pressed her lips into a thin line. "I know that a knife is sharp."
"Oh. I thought otherwise," he said, almost in a sarcastic tone. "Be careful, I donot need you crying all over me again."
Kuina glowered at him before snatching the kunai from him. Her expression instantly morphed from sullen to shock at the heaviness of the metal. Sweat dabbled over her forehead as she glanced at Itachi, who looked down on her. She took a deep breath and stood up straight, pretending the weight didn't bother her.
Confused and rather disoriented, she tried to stand in a stance that looked convincingly like how a ninja would. She narrowed her eyes at the bullseye. Well aware of Itachi's critical glare, she threw the heavy kunai, the weight and gravity almost pulling her forward to the ground.
The knife cut through the air, and halfway before reaching the target, it fell miserably onto the ground.
Kuina looked at the knife and then at Itachi, completely mortified. She lowered her gaze to her feet, refusing to meet his gaze.
He looked at her poor job in utter disdain. "Try again."
Kuina nodded, biting the inside of her cheeks. She picked up the kunai and held in her breath before she gave her hardest throw. But just as expected, the strength in her arm wasn't enough to toss it all the way to the target, and it fell flatly onto the ground.
"Try again," Itachi's deep voice resonated at her failure.
She gritted her teeth as she picked up the fallen kunai and tried again. But just like the last time, she couldn't throw it hard enough to reach the target. Her arm began to ache at the weight of the metal and she whimpered, a frown etching across her face.
He let out a tired breath. "Try again."
She nodded weakly as she held in the strain she felt coursing through her body and tried again. And throughout that morning, Itachi probably said 'try again' a hundred times, yet, she couldn't throw the knife to embed into the tree, less think of hitting the bullseye.
The sun rose above the canopy of clouds as morning turned to noon. By then, Itachi seemed to have completely lost his patience, which was rather rare for someone as forbearing as Itachi. He had gone from standing up straight to crouching down, his hand clutching over his forehead.
He flicked out a new kunai from his pocket and threw it, still able to hit the bullseye even while crouching and without looking at the target. "What is it that you find difficult about this?" he questioned.
Kuina snivelled as she threw the kunai as hard as she could in frustration. "It might be easy for you, but it's hard for me. . ." she murmured as she watched the kunai fall blandly onto the ground. An urge to give up filled her as she picked up the knife once more. "It's very hard for me."
"Hard?" Itachi questioned, his voice cold. "Throwing kunai is the easiest technique out there. I mastered it when I was four, so why can't you?"
She wiped the droplet of water that she couldn't distinguish whether it was tears or sweat, off her face. She sniffled, knowing she wouldn't cry because she had already promised him not too. Besides, she was the one who asked for it.
"You're a prodigy, I'm not," she grumbled, her voice shaking as she clenched her fists around the kunai. "Besides, no normal person would be playing with knives since they were a baby like you," she added, trying to dish out the worst affront she could muster to counter him.
He didn't look offended at the slightest as he raised his brows. "Then what do normal people play with when they were a baby if not knives? Enlighten me."
She furrowed her brows. "W-Well, when I was four, I was still playing with dolls like every other normal person would."
He looked at her ridiculously. "I see, no wonder you grew up to be so weak," he nodded and he looked as if he were tempted to laugh. "Or perhaps, you have not even grown at all. At nineteen, you are still remotely similar to a baby."
She glared at him, her eyes flaring up at his underestimation. She raised the kunai at him, scowling, before throwing it angrily at the tree instead to vent her anger. "I'm not," she seethed.
"Then why are you struggling with this easy task?"
In her pure vexation, she snapped her gaze up at him and gave him a large scowl. "Because you're a bad teacher. You're just throwing it for me to see and chiding me, but not teaching me how. I don't know how to throw it, I'm trying to figure it all out by myself. . ." she took a deep breath, as she lowered her gaze, instantly feeling guilty for berating him. She shuffled on her feet, casting her gaze away from him. "Sorry," she murmured.
Itachi raised his brows, somewhat taken aback. He let out a soft sigh as he stood up. "Troublesome," he muttered under his breath, but his voice sounded somewhat remorseful. "Fine, I will show you once. So, look carefully."
With that, he walked over to where she stood, and without warning, he grabbed her hand that was clutching onto the kunai. With his other hand, he lightly placed it on her waist. She froze instantly as his warm breath pricked against her ears, and his muscles flexed against her back.
She was momentarily confused as she tried to turn to face him, but he spoke, pricking goosebumps along her skin. "Don't look at me. Look at the target." His soft lips grazed her ears, making her knees grow weak as she looked at the target. "Step back with your less dominant foot, then focus your energy on your arms. Because you are frail, when throwing, you should utilise your whole body weight, understand?"
Her face flushed as her breath deepened. Her mind felt foggy, and she barely could comprehend his words. Either way, she nodded.
Itachi's rough fingers brushed against her hand, caressing it with his thumb, before holding it firmly towards the target. "Now then, throw." His breath flushed against her ear, turning it red as she squinted her eyes shut. The knife flew out of her hand, pushed completely by his strength.
She breathed heavily as she pried her eyes open and to her surprise, the knife was embedded perfectly at the bullseye.
"Did you understand?" he questioned.
She breathed sharply. Her heart pounded hard, and her knees grew weak. Her mind was too flustered to think straight as she nodded at his question.
"I think you did not," Itachi murmured as he released her, causing her to almost lose her balance. "And you were too stiff. Try relaxing when you throw," he remarked, his brows raising slightly at how feverish she must have looked. He didn't question it as he handed her a new kunai. "Now, I have shown you. Practice until you hit it like that. I will not accompany you for the rest of the afternoon as I have matters to do. So, come and get me only once you hit the target."
Kuina was still trying to process what had just happened when she saw him turning to leave. Her breathing quickened as she quickly called out to him, "I'm not allowed to go in until I hit the target?"
He stopped in his tracks. "What is the matter?"
She took a deep breath and lowered her gaze. "Well, what if I can't hit the target?"
At her words, he turned to her and gave her a stern look. "Do you know how I was able to master everything fast and perfectly?" he questioned.
She furrowed her brows, shaking her head.
"I never think that I can not do it. I always think that I can." he spoke, his voice cold. "Stay out here and practice until you can, that is ultimately the only way you can improve."
With that he wheeled away from her and left her alone, completely helpless and feeble.
*
𝐹𝑅𝐴𝐺𝑅𝐴𝑁𝐶𝐸
うちはイタチ