Night Rain

Night #10 [Extra #1]

"So what happened to your house? It was burnt down." Kisame asked. They had been invited into Amaya's house for tea. Itachi had questioned it, but didn't push the topic any further when Kisame said she was trustworthy.

"Actually..." Amaya laughed nervously and played with her ponytail, "I burnt it down...accidently."

Kisame nearly choked on his tea. He raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "How did you manage that?!"

"Well...I was cooking something...and that something was accidently left unattended...and then BOOM! It kind of exploded and blew up the kitchen...then set the house on fire." She added, "Don't worry, the other houses weren't destroyed." She waved her hand in dismissal.

"I wasn't worried about the other houses..." Kisame deadpanned. He changed the topic, "Where's your father?"

"Oh? Dad's out working." Amaya replied. "You know how he became a shinobi again after we turned into teenagers? He's still at it. But this time, he's helping out with the administration duties and all. He sometimes works at the academy too. They say that after not working as a shinobi for a long time, it wouldn't be smart to send him out into the battlefield." She explained. "But enough about us, how have you been? I haven't heard from you in nearly a decade!" She huffed, "You didn't even have the decency to send letters or even visit...what is this?"

"I was busy." Kisame answered.

"Yeah, being busy with being a missing-nin, right?" Amaya poked Kisame in the shoulder. "And in the Akatsuki, too." She sighed, "You guys do realise that you guys have started to become infamous and that you need to be careful, yeah? People are after you guys."

Kisame laughed, "Worry about yourself! You're the one associating yourself with us."

"I'll be fine. Remember...I'm communicating to a friend, not a member of Akatsuki." Amaya grinned and lifted her arm, her hand in a fist.

Kisame did the same and fist bumped her, grinning.

"See you, Kisame! Make sure to come back soon, okay? I'll make you some food! But I won't burn the house down this time!" Amaya waved frantically, the widest smile on her face. "Stay safe! I'll be waiting!"

Itachi glanced over his shoulder, then to Kisame. "She was a good friend, wasn't she?" He remembered their fist bump – it reminded him of his own best friend.

Kisame only grinned.