The Uchiha Incident: Chapter 6

Mending Hearts

When Kiara first saw Taku, she knew she was special. There was just something about this girl, this air of mystery around her, that drew her in. She wasn't sure if it was the way she held herself or how composed and sure she was, but Kiara couldn't help but just want to admire her.

Like a moth drawn to a fire, she made strides to know her, but perhaps she had drawn too close as she found herself in the fight for her life. Lungs burning, she ran, trying to create some distance between them. "Too slow," Taku whispered, making Kiara's heart leap up her throat.

"Fast!" Catching her shadow at the edge of her vision, Kiara turned. Heart pumping, she roared as he pulled in fire from deep inside her. "Fire-Release: Vermilion Kick!" Heat bloomed across her coils as her chakra caught fire.

Legs arcing, she met Taku's fist. A part of her screamed at this wanton use of her family's Jutsu, but she couldn't hold back, not with her. In that split moment, their eyes met and she saw nothing in them. "Just who are you?"

Bracing for Impact, Kiara would feel nothing but air as her legs passed through Taku's smile. Bewilderment quickly gave way to alarm as the girl disappeared in a puff of smoke. "A clone!?" Eyes wide, she barely had time to hold up her arms as Taku's feet slammed behind her back.

Skidding across the field, she slammed hardin the rocks. "You should really stop jumping at every shadow," Taku taunted as they walked towards her.

Wincing in pain, Kiara propped herself up against the rocks as she let out a pain chuckled, "You're really good at this. We should do this more often." A genjutsu to cast fake shadows and clones, mere basics but very effective. It would have been impressive coming from the girl if it wasn't for the fact that Kiara found her back against the walls..

"Maybe if you last the entire thirty minutes, I'll consider," Taku replied. Fifteen minutes, that was how long she had been fighting or maybe it was better to call it as it was; That was how long Taku had been hunting her down. Looming over her, Taku cocked her head to the side, "Right now, it's really not sporting of me to take you on to spars."

"Have you seen Ami by the way? I swear finding that girl's a pain," The girl then asked.

"Are you talking about another girl while we're having fun?" She chuckled as she let out pain winced, "You sure know how to make a girl jealous."

As much as it pained her, Taku was playing with her. What's worse was that Kiara was exhausted. While Taku herself wasn't looking hot, being soaked in sweat, but unlike her, she barely had a scratch on her. Things weren't looking good. "I need to buy time."

Reaching for her pocket, she smiled. Just some paper and smoke bombs, not much, but they might just be all she needed to get out of this. "You know, if I knock you out, I have a feeling that Ami would just hide," Taku mused out loud, "Maybe I should just let you go for now."

"Aw, that's nice of you," Kiara laughed as she pulled out a smoldering piece of paper attached to a rock. As the paper hissed, Taku's eyes widened. "Here, let me give you something." Taku was already moving by the time Kiara tossed it, but she was hoping for that.

Fluttering in the air, the paper burnt to ash. It did nothing, but it served its purpose; Distraction. Winking at the angry girl, she tossed her smoke bombs before making a break for it.

-x-x-x-

Slumping against the small bluff she found herself in, Kiara let out a shaky breath of relief. "T-that was close," She whispered before glancing towards the direction of the dust clouds that were shooting up the sky. "How the hell is she strong!?"

She knew that the girl was someone special as the Head Ninja of Kumo himself brought her to class, but nothing like this! She was half her age, but she was throwing Jutsu's that some of her classmates were struggling with. Then there were those punches. It was as if she was facing a cousin of hers rather than an orphan girl. Just who was she?

Patting her cheeks, she whispered to herself, "Ok Kiara, calm down. You're overthinking this." So she was better than she expected. There's no reason for her to panic. It wasn't like she needed to fight her. "I just need to wait for her out and everythings going to be alright-!" She reminded herself before jolting at the sight of a familiar blonde stumbling her way in her bluff.

As their gaze met, Ami pulled out her Kunai, "You!" This girl, this stupid girl. Seeing that stupid, angry had her blood boiling.

Pulling out her own Kunai, she launched herself at the girl. It wasn't as sharp as she wanted, but anything to just hurt her. "This is all your fault!" None of this would have happened if she wasn't so much of a jealous cunt.

"My fault!?" Ami shrieked as Kiara pinned her down, blocking her blunt kunai with her own. She was lucky that was running on fumes. "You're the one being a bitch!"

"Oh fuck you!" Kiara spat back; How dare she. "I was just trying to be friends with Taku, but noooo!" She shouted as she pressed down with righteous indignation fueling her shaky limbs, "You have to be a jealous cunt!"

As she slowly overpowered the girl, Kiara felt her eyes water at the leg driven between her legs before her breath was driven out of her lungs. Flying off the girl, she landed on her back; Her kunai clattering off from her hands.

She wouldn't have time to catch her breath as the hairs in the back of her neck stood up. Rolling to the side, she dodged Ami by a hair's breadth as the girl plunged her kunai on the ground. Grabbing a fist full of dirt, Kiara threw it at the girl's eyes.

Blinded, the girl shrieked and Kiara pounced. Finding herself tangled with the girl, Kiara shrieked, "I just wanted to be her friend. Is it too much to ask!"

"She doesn't need friends like you!" Ami croaked even as Kiara pinned her down to the ground, raining punches down the girls face

"Friends like me!" Kiara shouted in disbelief, taking a shot before giving it back tenfold, "What is your problem?" She was just trying to make friends with Taku so why? Why did she make things so hard? Why is she still fighting even when she was already defeated?

Panting, she sat atop the girl as both of them ran out of steam. "You wanna know what my problem is!?" Ami coughed as she spat blood, "It's you and your stupid perfect life!"

"You have everything you could have ever asked for but you still want to get what I have?" Ami cried as she glared at her with such hate that Kiara found herself taken aback, "You're the one who doesn't need to work her ass off, you're the one that's actually pretty, you're the one the girl wouldn't hold her back…."

"Just because you have everything doesn't make me any less…" Ami hissed as she rubbed at the tears brimming in her eyes.

Hearing her words, Kiara found strength leaving her arms as everything clicked. "You're jealous of me?" She whispered.

"Of course I'm jealous of you, you perfect bitch," Ami spat back.

For a moment, she sat there in silence before she grimaced. "That's stupid," She couldn't believe this. All this trouble for such a simple reason, but it made so much sense.

"You're stupid," Ami hissed back.

Kiara was about to say something when she felt a chill up her sign. Immediately, she grabbed the girl's face, making her lash out. "If you don't want her to find us, just stay quiet!" She hissed as she pressed down.

For a heart thumping moment, both of them watch a shadow pass overhead, pausing ever so briefly, before jumping off. Kiara held on for a minute before she finally let go. "That was close…"

Getting off the girl, she walked over to the other end of the bluff before plopping herself down. Of course she was also decent at tracking. Did she listen to everything their teacher said?

As the blonde got up and rubbed her face, she whispered, "Thanks…"

Kiara looked back at her before nodding. It was a start. "We should probably move," She told her, "She's definitely going to come back here after a while." It was a hunch, but she'd probably double back. Her trial was eventually run out.

"You should head deeper in the forest. You're better at hiding and you could use the cover," She suggested, "Taku seems to have trouble finding you." She had no reason to believe the girl, but she had seen Taku surprised by the blonde far too many times

"I'll go to the lakeshore," She told her, "That should give you some time."

She didn't like that she was practically giving her every advantage she could, but she hated how stupid she was. The girl could use it more than she did and it wasn't like she couldn't wim Taku's challenge on her own. She just didn't need to fight Ami again.

As she got up and was about to leave, Ami called out to her. "Hey." Looking back, the girl asked her, "Why do you even want to be Taku's friend?" Eyes down cast and rubbing her arm, she added, "Don't you have more than enough of them already…"

Kiara huffed, "They're followers, not friends." They weren't her friends. Friends don't praise her mindlessly. Friends don't treat her differently just because of who she is. "It's hard to find someone who just sees me as me…"

Maybe that's why she liked Taku. At least Taku treated her much like she treated this girl. As Ami looked at her in disbelief, she rolled her eyes.

"She's also cute, ok?" She grimaced, scratching the back of her head. Gazing up, she recalled the first time they met; that time when her father took them out for a breakfast treat. She couldn't forget that look in the tiny girl's eyes.

"She looks like a sad kitten when I first saw her," She whispered before Ami spoke up, "And all I wanted to do was pick her up and cuddle her…"

Starting at each other, both of them ended up laughing. "At least we have something in common," Ami replied with a wry smile on her lips, "Aside from getting hunted down by said kitten."

"She has claws," Kiara nodded grimly at that. "Sharp ones at that." No wonder their teacher trusted her this much. She must be an apprentice of his if she was this good and she was given access to the man's training island.

Shaking her head, Kiara gestured outside, "Well I'm heading out. Good luck!"

"Wait!" Ami called out, making her pause. You know, Taku never said we need to knock each other out," Ami noted as she walked over the discarded kunai and picked it up, "Just stay up for at least half an hour."

"Where are you getting at with this?" Kiara asked, guard raised before she blinked as the girl offered her the kunai.

"Why can't we just… work together?" Ami asked. "Don't get me wrong, I still don't like you, but with how things are going, both of us would lose her," She noted. Indeed, their chances were bad. They were running out of energy and options. Together though…

"It's not like we're going to be friends over this," Ami pouted, "Just acquaintances." As Kiara let out a small chuckle, Ami huffed, "I just want to stay friends with Taku ok and if it means working with you, then so be it?" Eyeing her, she asked, "So what do you say? Truce?"

Kiara snorted as she grabbed the kunai and sheathed it, "Truce." Like she said, they weren't friends, but she's more than fine with that. "So, got any ideas on how we can get through this in one piece?" She asked as she gestured for her to follow her to the forest. There, they'd have more chances.

"I was thinking we beat her up," Ami replied, almost making Kiara trip as they dashed across the field. "What? If she's down then we don't have to hide, right?" Maybe teaming up with her is a bad idea after all…

A/N:

One more chapter tomorrow where we'll get the conclusion to this small conflict. See you guys!