The Prince and the Serpent

The Dragon Witch

Sarada woke with a splitting headache. She groaned and held her hands to her temples as she slowly adjusted to consciousness. Slowly, things became clear. She was laying on a rough wool blanket. It was spread out on a pile of straw and the boys were beside her. Once again, they were curled bodily around each other in a scene that was too cute to be allowed. Sometimes, their happiness made her want to vomit.

A metallic glinting in the muted light caught her eye. The keys had slipped out from where they were usually tucked within Boruto's shirt and were hanging in full view. She reached over and tucked them back into the folds of fabric, careful not to rouse Mitsuki as she did. She didn't need him mistaking her for someone trying to hurt his precious "Sun". That would quickly prove to be disastrous. However, someone stealing the keys would be far more disastrous, so potentially waking the basilisk was a chance she was willing to take.

Once the keys were safely stowed again, she looked around, curious as to where they had wound up this time. The nearest she could tell, Mitsuki had saved them and brought them to wherever here was. From the look of the rough stone hut, she could assume they were at least near Laharas. The sound of a door opening made her jump.

"Good, you're awake." She twisted to see a man, who she assumed to be the owner of the hut, stepping in through the door on the opposite side of the small room. He hardly looked at her as he wiped sweat from his brow with a rag and walked over to his forge. She opened her mouth to greet him in return but the sight of his left arm made her freeze. Long black lines she knew all too well twisted from his hand to his shoulder. This man had the same curse as Boruto.

"Where did you get that curse?!" She blurted out, her surprise overcoming her tact. The man froze with his hand still on the side of his face. Here was a long pause, then the man heaved a heavy sigh of resignation before lowering his hand and locking his steel eyes with hers. For a moment, he sized her up.

"Aren't you an observant one." He drawled. Sarada's cheeks pinked as she realized what she had done. Usually it was Boruto making stupid outbursts, not her. She was spending too much time with the thoughtless Prince. She was just surprised because she never dreamed she would find another person with Boruto's curse.

"I'm sorry." She muttered. She dropped her eyes and fidgeted with her fingers. The man stayed quiet as he finished the walk to his forge and turned his back to her. "Thank you, for taking us in." She added awkwardly out of a feeling of obligation. The smith paused.

"Don't mention it." He said simply before he started swinging his hammer. His tone was not unkind but his actions implied that the conversation was over. Sarada, however, did not feel right leaving things as they were. This man had taken them in and helped Boruto. Mitsuki even trusted him enough to indulge in sleep, she thought as she looked back at the basilisk. Even now he was still deep asleep, contentedly wrapped around his Sun. If Mitsuki trusted this man, then she could too.

"My name is Sarada." She offered over the pounding of the smith's hammer. He paused for a half second.

"Kawaki." He said simply before allowing the hammer to fall again. Uncomfortable silence fell anew as Sarada watched Kawaki work. If he noticed her discomfort, he didn't show it. Sarada's eyes followed Kawaki's lined arm with morbid fascination. Questions burned within her but she held them back. Kawaki had already made it obvious that he didn't want to talk about it and pushing the point would be rude. She didn't know what else to do so she continued to watch with her unanswered questions.

"Eleven years." Kawaki's sudden statement took Sarada by surprise.

"Huh?" She asked inelegantly.

"I've had it for eleven years." Kawaki deadpanned without turning around or pausing his hammer work.

"So long?!" She exclaimed. She wasn't sure if she was more shocked by the sheer amount of time he'd had the curse or the fact that he'd decided he was willing to talk about it after all. Kawaki did not reply. Maybe he had decided not to talk about it anymore. "How have you survived for so long?" She pressed. Her curiosity made her ask the question but she wasn't expecting an answer. For a while, she didn't get one.