A Pure Shinobi (On Hold)

The Herbalist

It had only been a day since Koichi Uchiha had told Kakashi and the Sandaime about Kagome Higurashi. They both promised that they wouldn't tell anyone else about her. Kakashi had a hard time processing everything. He knew that Kagome was a very strong kunoichi when he first tested her in the bell test. But her eye technique, Eye of the Priestess, made him very curious. He couldn't figure out if she inherited it or created it. It was quite a mystery to him. Her summons also made him curious as well. He knew that the nine tailed kitsune was responsible for the death of their comrades. He thought that all yōkai were merciless killers and had no hearts.

I realized that yōkai have the same emotions as us, humans. They can love, fear, hate, and grieve. They fight to protect their loved ones and some fight for power.

That's what Koichi had said about yōkai. Maybe he should meet one of them. Perhaps his opinion might change.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two Days Later:

Kagome, Naruto, Kirara, and Hana were getting ready for their mission. A B-rank mission to be exact. The upside of it, they weren't bringing Sasuke or Sakura along. Which was a relief to them. But they had to bring Kakashi-sensei with them. Protocol to be most precise. At least, Sasuke and Sakura wouldn't know about it. To make things more interesting, Iruka-sensei was coming along. He was confused at first when he was requested to go on the mission by Koichi and the Sandaime. But Koichi convinced him that he needed to get out of the village once in awhile. Then he agreed to come when he heard that Hana Higurashi was going on the mission.

The mission was to bring back a few herbs from a herbalist's garden. Hana needed more herbs for her garden. But the journey there, is no picnic. It would take about a day and a half to get those herbs. The person she gets it from lives in a place where even robbers can't get to. The only other problem is that the person never leaves her sanctuary. So in other words, they have to go to her. But Hana knew a shortcut around those dangers.

The four of them waited for Iruka and Kakashi to show up at the gates. Truth be told, they were all excited about this mission.

"Ohayo!" Iruka shouted as he and Kakashi met up with the rest of the team.

"Ohayo." Hana said, a small blush appeared on her cheeks when she saw Iruka. A small blush also appeared on Iruka's cheeks when he spotted Hana. Kakashi, Kagome, Kirara, and Naruto could tell that there was something going on between them. Kakashi had finally figured out why Iruka was on this mission with them. He should have figured it out sooner.

"So, is everyone ready?" Kagome asked, breaking the silence between them.

"Hai!" Naruto said, pumping his fist in the air.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So who is this person we're going to see, Hana?" Kakashi asked. After at least an hour on the road, Kakashi was curious about the person they were going to meet.

"Her name is Ayame. She knows all kinds of plants that can be used for medicine and teas. She has the most rarest plants as well. But she rarely leaves her sanctuary. So I always have to go to her when I need some new herbs." Hana said.

"I see. So she's a hermit." Kakashi said.

"Of a sort." Hana said, scratching her cheek.

"How come she doesn't leave her sanctuary, Hana-chan?" Iruka asked, curious.

"I'm afraid that I don't know. There are some things that she didn't tell me about herself." Hana said, "But I'm sure that she has her reasons for doing so."