As the days passed Chikako buried herself in studying. After the first snowfall Chikako refused to leave her room all together. Food and books were brought to her by Shizune, who was happy to help. She was the only other person besides Tsunade who the girl made direct contact with.
Team seven went on missions without Chikako as the days passed. They didn't realize how much her presence changed things. It seems boring without her. She barely spoke, but the day she became part of team seven she was accepted as their friend and comrade. Sakura and Naruto tried to visit her time after time, but she refused to open the door. Only letting them hear her voice.
Jiraiya was tired of Naruto's whining so he explained why she won't come outside her room. He had gone through something very similar when they were training together a few years back. The only difference was, they didn't have a hotel room. Instead, Chikako found a cave and settled herself there. It was awhile before Jiraiya realized she would only move from her place to go to the bathroom and the most she would say were small sentences. He was tempted to leave her, but he was also very curious about the girl he had been training, so he decided to just stay with her as the winter passed; Bringing her food and water and helping take care of her all around. During this time if she wasn't reading, she was meditating. It took some convincing, but the old sage managed to get an explanation from her.
"She does this every time it snows. She will stay in her room until all the snow is gone. It's best if you don't disturb her." Jiraiya stated. Naruto of course had questions about Chikako and how the pervy sage knew about her staying in her room, but he changed the subject to fast and Naruto forgot all about it.
It was the winter season, but the snow was not covering on the ground today. Two mysterious visitors approached the gate. Chikako could feel a familiar chakra and decided to step out of her room. It has been a few weeks.
Chikako put her usual cloak and veil on and stepped out of her room. She was greeted with many surprised faces, but she refused to speak, only nodding in response. Ignoring the few calls for her, she made her way towards the village gates. When she was close enough to the chakra she leapt into the woods and followed the trail until she found the two men.
"Master. It's a pleasure to see you again." Chikako greeted while bowing her head slightly. She slipped off her veil to show respect to her master and clenched it to her chest as she continued bowing. One of the men jumped back a little confused while the other nodded.
"It has been awhile since you left the Akatsuki base. I assume you kept your part if the deal?" The man asked. Chikako nodded.
"I haven't said a word to anyone, nor do I plan to" Chikako raised her head and looked into the mans eyes. The cold weather sent a biting chill gust towards the two men letting the wind take their hats.
"Itachi and Kisame." The two members of the Akatsuki stood before their former student. It took a lot of convincing for Chikako to study under the individual Akatsuki members.
She encountered Orochimaru during her travels, and challenged him. If the ex-sanin won, he could use her for the reanimation jutsu and if Chikako won she would be granted permission to study under the Akatsuki members. That was the deal they made. In the end Chikako, at the ripe age of 7, beat Orochimaru. However he didn't keep his side of the deal and ran, so she found the Akatsuki base by herself. She had to fight a few people to prove her worth to the criminals, but in the end she was granted permission to study under the Akatsuki. In her younger years Chikako's chakra was overwhelming and uncontrolled. The members of the organization taught her to control it to a degree. During those two years she learned a majority of her jutsus and was able from the diverse types of shinobi, but as she got older her power began to run rampant. Chikako left when she started to feel the tension from the other members. They each wanted her for themselves, but she refused to chose.
She asked Itachi permission before she left. Chikako studied under him the longest, she mastered her sharingan under his tutelage. Therefore he earned the title of master. Itachi trusted Chikako enough to let her leave under the condition she didn't reveal her relationship to them or their secrets.
"I understand you are here on a mission, but I must ask you to wait. You know very well that is my mourning time. I cannot guarantee that I will hold back. I am part of this village because my brother is here. Please reconsider you presence here at this time" Itachi nodded along with her words. It was true. When people interrupted her mourning time she tended to get angry and didn't hold back. With her power and the help of the jonin, Itachi and Kisame were very likely to die.
Kisame flinched at Chikako's words. He remembered when he tried to fight her during her mourning period. It was his turn to teach her, but she wouldn't show up. He got frustrated and couldn't see why the others were so stuck on this little girl. He decided it would be killing two birds with one stone if he just fought her. To say in the nicest way possible, she turned into a monster- literally. She had no mercy for anyone who dared disturb her. Kisame tasted death that day. He was grateful Itachi stepped in and calmed Chikako down before she dealt the finishing blow. The whole thing happened in seconds.
Kisame could still remember that moment. Itachi's sharingan eyes bore into her oddly colored ones in a staring contest. The fish man could feel the battle going on between them in their subconscious. In the end Itachi somehow managed to put her to sleep and the whole ordeal was over.
Itachi nodded letting Chikako know that he agreed and will wait. The Uchiha held out his hand to Chikako, revealing a white rose.
"A simple offering" Chikako nodded in thanks and accepted the rose. Itachi knows just about everything there is to know about Chikako. He was the only person. He used his annoying sharingan to perform genjutsu and looked into her mind when they met. She didn't know how to use the power in her eye yet, so he was able to dig into her memories. The action was easily forgiven by Chikako as he caused no mental or physical harm to her and offered him memories of Sasuke and his family in return.
Chikako felt Sasuke's chakra and nodded a goodbye to Itachi and Kisame. They both left leaving Chikako alone until Sasuke appeared.
"Chikako? What are you doing" he asked. Chikako quickly replaced her veil before turning around. Sasuke however didn't miss her sharingan eye.
The boys eyes widened and in a second Sasuke pinned Chikako against a tree by her throat. Her head slammed into the dense trunk drawing blood to stain her hair.
"How do you have a sharingan?" He asked furiously. Chikako sighed. She needs to explain or it would cause an uproar. In all honestly, she was still unsure about Kakashi, so she wanted to stay a bit longer. That couldn't happen though if she didn't explain her eye.
"Release me and I'll tell you what you want to know" Chikako said calmly. Sasuke's grip tightened with a low growl, before he let her go. Pulling her hood up to hide the blood, Chikako stepped away from the tree; opening up the area behind her back.
"My mother was a part of the Uchiha clan. She spent little of her life with them even though she possessed the sharingan eyes. The clan leaders were going to force her to fight even when she possessed a weak body, so we fled. We lived most of our life in a place where it always snowed" Chikako explained.
"I was born with a sharingan in one eye" she finished. Sasuke was confused. Someone from his clan is... alive? He didn't know what to think. On one hand, was glad a part of his clan was still alive. She could help his restore it even, but it didn't seem like her goal. At the same time she stood still while his whole clan was slaughtered. Sasuke needed to clear his mind. Chikako decided it was best to leave the boy alone so she bowed her head as a wordless goodbye and headed back to the town.
"Don't tell Hatake" she whispered to she left. The boy was too deep into his thoughts to notice the large blood stain on the tree.
Chikako was already outside, so she went for a stroll. As she wandered around she found her way back to the pond and laid on the grass. She sat there watching the clouds move quickly across the sky.
After awhile she flt someone lay down next to her.
"It's a nice day to watch the clouds" she recognized that voice from before. He was he lazy kid she saw in the Hokage's office before.
"Indeed" they stayed in silence for awhile until the boy broke it again.
"All around town there's talk about a person shrouded in black. They said the person hasn't been seen for weeks. Why did you decide to come outside today?" He asked.
"Name?" Was Chikako's reply. She wanted to know who she was addressing before saw said anything.
"Shikamaru" He wasn't at all offended by her curt words.
"Shikamaru," She started. "I needed to see some past friends who threatened to disrupt my mourning period" Shikamaru was confused. He wanted to ask more, but it was clear that girl beside him wasn't going to answer any more questions. Talking was a drag anyway.
In time more clouds gathered and the chill in the air got colder.
"It's going to snow" Chikako said. Shikamaru grunted in agreement. The girl in black stood up and started to make her way back to her room.
When she entered the village she immediately smelled something sweet. She really needed to get back to her room before it started to snow, but it smelled so good. Against her better judgement Chikako followed her nose until she came to a bakery. It seems as though they just finished a fresh batch of chocolate muffins. Chikako's mouth watered as she bought the whole batch. She could give one to her mother.
Chikako silently made her way back to her room. From the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of Sasuke in the training grounds, but decided to leave him alone for a bit longer.
As she entered the Hokage's tower she was greeted by nurses and Shizune. She decided to stop at the Hokage's office while she was out. Lady Hokage has treated her well. It was only respectful to pay her a visit after all this time.
Lady Hokage sat at her desk doing paperwork when Chikako stepped in. She silently gave Lady Hokage a chocolate muffin as well as a bottle of warm saké.
"I would like you to stay here for a moment" Lady Hokage asked. Chikako bowed and waited in her spot for further instructions from the Hokage. The door opened and Chikako could feel another presence behind her.
"Yo" Kakashi greeted. Chikako nodded and looked at the Hokage.
"I understand your situation Chikako, but I would like you to keep an eye on Kakashi for the day. I need him locked up somewhere" Kakashi was confused as was Chikako, but all the same she bowed and lead Kakashi into her room.
Kakashi's lifted an eyebrow in question. Her room was decently sized, but all the stacks of books and scrolls made it almost impossible to move. Kakashi looked around and decided to settle down on top of a table and read while the girl made her way to the window sill.
The snow had already started to come down as she had predicted earlier. A light blanket covered the roofs of the town. Chikako shifted her eyes to the picture that she placed on the sill. It was a picture of a woman. She had long black hair and onyx eyes. Her soft features were near angelic as she smiles. Her hand was clasped with a silver haired childs. The little girl was wrapped in a red jacket and had a white hat, scarf, and mittens. The little girl had a wide smile. They were standing on the porch of a traditional Japanese house. Snow was all around the pair, but they were happy.
Chikako placed Itachi's white rose and a chocolate muffin next to the picture before she settled down on her futon with a muffin and a scroll about yin and yang chakra.
Kakashi watched his student as she moved around. He was curious. He only knew what Sasuke told him about her dead father. Besides that, Lady Tsunade refuses to say anything else. Kakashi studied the covered girl as she ate. It seems she had a sweet tooth. He'll keep that in mind.
"You said you came here to find someone, have you found them?" Kakashi asked. Chikako nodded.
"Who is this person to you?" He continued to prod.
"My brother" she answered simply. If she found her brother, why isn't she with him? Chikako seems to read his mind.
"I want to figure out if he is really someone I can depend on before I reveal myself to him. He has no idea who I am" she told him. Kakashi immediately thought of Sasuke. He was the only one she had talked to. It seemed obvious.
The conversation ended there. They stayed silent for the rest of the day. Around dinner time, Chikako walked into her small kitchen and started to make them both some food. She set the two pots of yosenabe on the table and they both ate in silence. Chikako glanced at her brother.
He hasn't done anything bad, nor good. He is still in the neutral category with her. Chikako was tempted to tell him that he has a sister, but held herself back. It was obvious to her that she was being selfish. He deserved to know he had a sister, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything in fear of rejection and abandonment. Her eyes found her food and she began eating.
As they ate, they sat next to each other not looking at the other while they ate. Chikako raised her veil to reveal her mouth and Kakashi pulled down his mask. It was a silent understanding between people who both hide their faces.
Not long after that, Lady Tsunade told the pair that Kakashi could return to him apartment. Once he left Chikako payed her respects to her mothers photo that was in the middle of a poorly mad shrine, but that was all she had left of her mother, so she made due. As the moon rose higher in the sky, Chikako felt her eyelids begin to grow heavy. She laid down on her futon and bid her mother goodnight before falling asleep.