• Mitsuko prepared supper in the kitchen, occassionally looking up from her work to watch her father and brother wait at the table. Her brother was a reflection of their father. Keen eyes, black hair and solves things a million times faster than any normal person. Mitsuko took after her mother whom she had never known. She had long black hair, green eyes and was slower than a turtle. She was a medical ninja and the caretaker of the Northen Deer Nursery, nothing more. Her brother was a chunin now while she kept failing the exams. She had no talent unlike her brother or father who could manipulate shadows.

    "Mitsuko, when is dinner going to be finished?" her father called out impatiently as he took his legs out from under him, stretching out on the floor like a child.

    "Soon, papa," she huffed, pouring a pot of steaming noodles into four bowls.

    "Something smells good, Mitsuko! What are you cooking?" Hidan asked when he came into the small dining and kitchen area, rubbing the back of his head.

    Everyone turned to look at him, including Shikamaru. Hidan was dressed in a white haori and blue hakama. He did not wear a shirt under the white jacket although Mitsuko provided a shirt in the pile of clothes. Hidan flashed her a grin when he saw her stare at him.

    "Buckwheat noodles and pork," Mitsuko muttered, regaining her sense of reality.

    "I can't wait!" he exclaimed as he joined Shikamaru and Haru at the table.

    A smile spread across Mitsuko's face as she finished preparing dinner. She was happy that someone actually appreciated her cooking. When she served dinner, only Hidan thanked her and watched her as she served Haru and her father. She felt bubbly inside and sat down at her bowl to eat.

    But Hidan couldn't take her eyes off of her. He ate and smiled at her, watching her. She began to feel uneasy and her stomach felt light despite the food that she was putting in it. She then noticed that her father saw Hidan watching her and was gritting his teeth as he ate.

    "What are you looking at?" Shikarmaru finally asked Hidan who sat across from him.

    Hidan looked from Mitsuko to Shikamaru and smirked. "Mitsuko."

    Shikamaru slammed his fists on the table and pointed his chopsticks at Hidan. "If you even touch my daughter, I will kill you,"

    "I would be thankful if you kill me but, then again, you can't kill me," he grinned almost maniacally and stifled a laugh.

    Shikamaru growled and started to make hand signs to perform a jutsu.

    "Please, papa! Calm down. Can we just have a peaceful dinner?" Mitsuko pleaded at her father's side.

    "Yeah dad," Haru finally butted in, "It's not like Mitsuko likes him back. After all, she's still going out with that Inuzuka boy, Ken."

    Mitsuko lowered her head, embarrassed in front of Hidan. He looked to her for an answer but could tell right away that Haru was telling the truth as she avoided his gaze.

    "Good point, Haru," Shikarmaru said, getting back to eating his dinner.

    After dinner, Shikamaru and Haru went for a stroll around the village while Mitsuko was left to clean up.

    "Mind if I help?" Hidan asked when he came up to her side at the sink.

    "Sure," she mumbled, not looking at him.

    He laid his jacket on the counter and helped her wash the dishes while looking in the corner of his eye at her. She seemed upset about what Haru had said.

    "So who's this Ken guy?" he asked her.

    "He's my boyfriend by force," Mitsuko confessed after a moment of silence, "I don't like him but he won't let me go. I used to like him but not anymore." She turned her back to him and raised the back of her shirt to reveal deep scratches in her skin.

    "What the hell?" Hidan muttered.

    "I don't want to tell papa or he will start something that will involve the whole village," Mitsuko stared down at the water in the sink.

    "Then I'll do something about it," Hidan said defiantly.

    "What will you do?" Mitsuko looked over at him and saw his flexing muscles as he rinsed off the bowls and pushed them to the side. Like Ken's before they were used to abuse her.

    "I don't know. Tomorrow, I'll go talk to him."

    Mitsuko wiped her hands with a towel and wondered what "I'll go talk to him," meant in Hidan's language.