Hanako felt her head was pounding once she started to wake up. She blinked a couple of times until her vision focused. "Hmmmm...." Hanako groaned, stretching her arms. Her body was asleep and she felt as if little ants walked around her limbs when she tried to move.
"You're awake," Hanako heard a familiar voice call to her. She looked in its direction and saw Itachi smiling down at her. "Sorry if I woke you."
Hanako frowned. "Why would...?" Her words died down when she took notice of her position. She was lying down on the floor, and her head rested on his lap. She sat up in a moment.
"You were out for almost an hour," Itachi continued calmly, not seeming to be bothered that she had just been lying on him. "You probably fainted from exhaustion. When was the last time you slept properly?" he asked.
"I tend to neglect myself...constantly..." Hanako bit her lip when he chuckled lightly. She had to admit she had been comfortable lying on Itachi's lap, but she ought to be embarrassed he ¾who was also a member of another team and not hers¾ was watching out for her. There was a constant throbbing in her temples that didn't let her think clearly, accompanied by an acute pain that was guilty of her blurry vision. She wondered if she might have a concussion.
"Are you okay?" Itachi reached a hand to run his finger through her hair, pushing it away from her face. Hanako nodded, closing her eyes in an attempt to push her dizziness away. "You should lay down..."
"No," Hanako retorted. If she had hit her head when she fainted, then she shouldn't go back to sleep in case she didn't wake up again. "I'll rest when I get to the tower."
"There is no rush to get to the tower," Itachi raised an eyebrow at her. "The first day isn't over yet."
"I know but¾" Hanako shut her mouth. She debated herself whether she should tell Itachi about Isao and his team or not. If only Isao knew that it was she who had killed his father, he would come right back at her. All Hanako wanted was to get to the tower so she could finally relax. That wasn't going to ensure that Isao would never find out the truth, but it gave her time to recharge her energy. The problem was that Itachi didn't even know about her mission in Iwagakure, so she couldn't explain her distress to him.
"What is it?" Itachi asked when he realized that the girl wasn't going to say anything.
"I..." Hanako looked away. She couldn't meet his eyes.
"You..." And though, he urged her to continue. Hanako bit her lip.
"I'm tired of being the prey," she finally said, pointing her trouble from a general point of view. "While being here, we haven't had even a second of peace. I only rested because I fell unconscious; but if I rest, Kazuki and Takeshi will be left unprotected. We can only be safe if we get to the tower. Resting is not option." Itachi's hand slid from her hair to her shoulder.
"Hanako," he said calmly. The girl looked at him, curious about what he was about to say. "You do know I'm also here to protect you, right? You don't have to worry about such things." Hanako shook her head in exasperation.
"Who are you to say such things?" she asked with a roll of her eyes. "You're supposed to be the enemy in these exams." Itachi chuckled.
"No matter what situation we're in, I could never see you as my enemy." Hanako's eyes widened. Steps interrupted her thoughts as Itachi withdrew his hand.
"I see you're up." It was Hiroki; and behind him were the rest of the Konoha Genin. "That's good because we need to get going." Hiroki looked at his teammate. "You haven't forgotten we are still mission one scroll, have you?"
Hanako raised her head, looking at Hiroki with curiosity. His green locks of hair covered his forehead partially, and Hanako wondered if it didn't bother him if it stuck in his eyes. "Which one is it?" Hanako asked.
