Red Butterfly

Chapter 41, The Good Goodbye

Itachi's P.O.V

"Yeah", I scoffed at her remark, "the blonde Namikaze.."

Izumi sighed then gave me a small smile before saying, "well I can't finish these dango all by myself so...I'll be waiting for you on the bridge where we used to practice the Fireball Jutsu".

At the mention of the bridge I immediately recall Hanabi. How she'd stopped me from committing mass murder. The memory of us standing on the bridge was still fresh in my mind.

"Ok", I attempted a faint smile to ease up the atmosphere, "see you later Izumi.."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and began walking away quickly, each step felt heavier and heavier. I wish that Hanabi didn't have any mission today. We could've spend the day together and...and...

Shiro was quick on his limbs as well since he caught up to me with ease. Walking with pace, my mind wandered to my memories. At the Academy, when we were children Hanabi's vibrant colors would catch my attention occasionally. What'd always rendered me staring at her was the lively spirit that stood out.

She of course, never noticed me, or better yet, she'd forgotten about me since I was always the quite kid. And so when I saw her that day at the Hokage's office, all of my distant memories had been unlocked. It was too good to be true. I'd always been too shy to approach her back then.

Looking back, if I had one more ounce of courage, we could've been childhood friends. We could've been in this from the start. But even though we didn't know each other until recently, the outcome was still the same. Since we did end up as a team who saved the village and the clan.

It's funny how this short time feels like we've known each other a long lifetime. Shiro kept twirling over my feet, disrupting my footsteps. I smiled when I spotted a white butterfly. I held out my finger for it to land on.

The creature looked delicate and mesmerizing. I'd seen them countless of times circling Hanabi. I halted a moment to admire the butterfly, the howling wind disrupted its peace. Therefore, making it fly away.

I recollected my memories from last night, searching for the route to Hanabi's apartment. When I was sure I'd remembered it clearly, I chuckle to myself and stroll about my way.

I'd began to run without realizing it, my heart suddenly encroached with life. It was quite exhilarating to witness yourself come to life after being halfway dead for the majority of your life. Satisfying, it was satisfying knowing that there's someone that can make you feel such a way.

I halt at the bottom of the flight of stairs. I look up at the top of the stairs, knowing I'd get a genuine smile on my face. There, stood Hanabi, her hand trailed along the iron banister as she attempted to skip between stairs. She was so focused on her steps, she'd overlooked my presence completely. I simply smiled and decided to see how long before she realizes my presence.

The moment I decided to call out her name and greet her was the same moment when her foot suddenly lost balance as she skipped a step. Her eyes had widened then, her mouth parted in surprise.

My body had moved automatically, my heart had paced a bit. When I came to a halt, I was met with Hanabi's blue eyes. Both of my hands clutched the iron banister on either side. Hanabi had bumped into the crook of my neck, before she'd registered what happened. Even though I was a step below we'd leveled eye contact perfectly.

"Itachi..", she whispered, adjusting her posture, "where'd you pop out from?", she playfully asked.

I simply smiled, the tint of blush in my cheeks evident. Our faces were so close at this point it'd made me nervous. Eyes-wide, I leapt back to give her some space, overlooking the fact that we're standing on a flight of stairs.