A New Hope (private IvO, Ayama Navi)

Navi approached Ayama, a sad look on his face as he accepted what he had to do, his eyes would lock with hers for a brief moment...

"I'm sorry Ayama,"

She took an automatic step back at his approach, nervousness causing her heart to beat faster. Hisoka was raging in her head now, his thoughts clashing and tearing through her own adding to the confused whirl of emotions in her head. He was screaming at her, telling her to run, run and never look. But she didn’t want to run, she didn’t want to flee from Navi. She said she wanted this to work, and she had a good idea as to what he was about to do. Her hands relaxed, her fists unclenching and her shoulders slumped as she accepted it. She stared into his eyes accepting this, resigning herself to it and in a way glad for it.

For a moment her eyes misted over, growing dull Hisoka quieted and fell still.

"I'm sorry... for interrupting," he would continue, "sometimes people will come by and bug you". Navi would smile slightly, trying to hide his emotions and feelings from betraying what he felt after doing what he just did.

“Oh… um no, that’s fine, it wasn’t your fault,” she said blinking rapidly frowning in confusion. Her heart was beating so quickly and there was a weird leaden feeling in the pit of her stomach. What was up? But even as she contemplated to anomalies they faded, draining away and she quickly dismissed them, her smile returning to her face. It grew even more as she drew her closer for another kiss, one she returned happily.

"Ayama, I need to tell you something important," his smile would be warm but his voice would be serious. "There are a few things you need to know about what I do."

She blinked at the seriousness of his tone studying his face, then she stood on her tip toes again and kissed him lightly on the nose.

“Don’t worry,” she said retreating and a bright smile, “ I trust you, whatever it is, it wont change that.“ she smiled brightly, hoping to comfort him. She had given him her necklace, something very important to her. It was like a conduit, a piece of her bond with Hisoka. It went against her instincts to give it away so freely, but she did trust him. Why shouldn’t she?

She blinked at the seriousness of his tone studying his face, then she stood on her tip toes again and kissed him lightly on the nose.

“Don’t worry,” she said retreating and a bright smile, “ I trust you, whatever it is, it wont change that.“ she smiled brightly, hoping to comfort him. She had given him her necklace, something very important to her. It was like a conduit, a piece of her bond with Hisoka. It went against her instincts to give it away so freely, but she did trust him. Why shouldn’t she?

Navi felt his stomach wretch as he felt sick with himself. With a glance in her eyes Navi had taken away her free will, and arguably her right to know a secret he was forced to keep from her. His eyes would fall on Ayama's perfectly innocent and adorable eyes, wide and accepting to anything that he would tell her.

For a moment he would look away, trying to repress the feelings of disgust that now resided within him. "I had to arrest Azaiyo the other day... the Sand Sannin and partial leader of your village. He went for a weapon upon arrest and even went so far as to run away upon my accusations. Because of his aggressive and traitorous actions I was forced to declare him a criminal of the Fire Nation."

Navi sighed for a moment before continuing, it actually made him feel good to tell some truth to Ayama after having so blatantly had to lie. Even if she reacted angrily, he would accept that, and have to hope that she could get through it for the sake of their relationship.

"For my actions I'm being called the "Hero of the Leaf" and have been recognized as a Sannin class ninja. I'm deeply sorry for any stress that my actions cause you, but without his arrest thousands could have been lost in a political war."

Navi had given the most clear and concise summary he could. In all actuality he had already had to give a report to Viper, make files in the Black Ops archive, and basically document every last detail. It was determined that Azaiyo was a traitor and may have started a war for his own selfish interest if not stopped, and Navi would be recognized for performing the actions of a hero. In actuality "Ferret" (his codename) had done the arresting, but the arrest of such a high level ninja could hardly be classified as a silent "black" operation. Instead the files were altered for the public, saying that a heroic leaf Jounin was able to stop the traitorous Sand Sannin before any lives were lost.

Unfortunately this "hero" status might be lost on Ayama because of the political implications this had against the sand village. Navi had no idea how Ayama would possibly react to this information, so he instead waited for a response before he would continue speaking. He desperately hoped that this didn't spawn another vicious cycle of her distrusting him, as Navi would be unable to hide this information from her. Besides, this wasn't classified military intelligence, and Ayama deserved to know the truth.

"I had to arrest Azaiyo the other day... the Sand Sannin and partial leader of your village. He went for a weapon upon arrest and even went so far as to run away upon my accusations. Because of his aggressive and traitorous actions I was forced to declare him a criminal of the Fire Nation."

Navi sighed for a moment before continuing, it actually made him feel good to tell some truth to Ayama after having so blatantly had to lie. Even if she reacted angrily, he would accept that, and have to hope that she could get through it for the sake of their relationship.

"For my actions I'm being called the "Hero of the Leaf" and have been recognized as a Sannin class ninja. I'm deeply sorry for any stress that my actions cause you, but without his arrest thousands could have been lost in a political war."

She remained still and quiet for the entirety of his explanation, her expression serious and contemplating. Her eyes dropped form his face to their hands and her fingers twitched slightly in his hold. A hero of the Leaf, for making the deputy-kazekage a national criminal. An act that could potentially start a war with her old village, if they chose to shield Azaiyo.

“So he took us from the sand so we couldn’t use our bloodline to defend it!” Hisoka snarled, as usual jumping to the negative conclusion.

“I’m not so sure, he’s the only one who knows about it and he knows its weaknesses. We arent strong enough to effectively combat him yet and he knows we that. We’re hardly a major threat to the village,” she replied calmly,

“But we could be,” the cat left that statement hanging between them. She knew it as well, she could feel it in moments when she and Hisoka worked in tandem. She knew it when Hisoka managed to easily channel chakra to his claws, that brief second when it held before he lost control again. She and Hisoka could… no, would grow powerful. Navi could have easily seen that and decided that her skills would be better put to use under his supervision in the leaf, than fighting against the village he was so loyal too. She looked up again, her eyes no longer open and trusting, they were narrowed and shrewd, studying him carefully. Somehow she doubted that was his intent.

“Did you encourage this relationship so I wouldn’t be in the sand if the shit hit the fan? So I wouldn’t be fighting against the leaf is war sprang up?” She could care less about the status he had been elevated too because of his actions. She knew that often times a hero was needed to rally around. To increase moral and loyalty within a village. In fact she was glad he had told her this. She would rather hear it from his mouth than in the whispers of the villagers when she began to explore. It also explained this feeling she held about him hiding something from her. But still she had a right to know. Had he brought her here because of their feelings, because he didn’t want her to be so far from him? Or had he done it merely because he was worried about the sand turning against the leaf and her with it.

She looked up again, her eyes no longer open and trusting, they were narrowed and shrewd, studying him carefully. Somehow she doubted that was his intent.

His heart sank, this was not good. Ayama claimed she loved Navi, but was this bond shaken after a simple truth was given? He could only assume that Hisoka was further manipulating her thoughts, and causing her to distrust him.

“Did you encourage this relationship so I wouldn’t be in the sand if the shit hit the fan? So I wouldn’t be fighting against the leaf is war sprang up?”

Navi took a step forward now, still not entirely seeing her reaction but willing to answer her question. It was a fair inquiry and Navi intended to reply with an honest answer.

"I fell in love with you early, but I wasn't sure if a relationship was possible. When I realized that you shared my feelings it became natural for me to realize the tenuous diplomacy between the sand and leaf."

He looked down a little bit, a cold expression hitting his eyes and a slight scowl on his face.

"I can't say anything to prove to you that my actions came out of love, and not manipulation. If you really believe that the feelings we shared was just a war strategy that I employed to lure you out, then I have nothing else to say."

A pained expression would be poorly hidden behind Navi's eyes. If her trust was shaken this easily, then maybe everything he felt was a mistake from the start. There would be no doubt that Navi would be put in this kind of position again. As Captain of the ANBU he was required to keep secrets from those he loved. He would often be forced to do missions that would be in the best interest of the leaf, and not always in the best interest of the Sand.

Ayama would need to accept this, or Navi would be unable to accept her.

"I fell in love with you early, but I wasn't sure if a relationship was possible. When I realized that you shared my feelings it became natural for me to realize the tenuous diplomacy between the sand and leaf."

A soft sigh escaped her as she released the a tense breathe. Relief filled her and she visibly relaxed. She wasn’t a weapon to him, he brought her to the leaf out of the fear that if a war started up they would be trapped on opposite sides of it and she would be lost to him.

"I can't say anything to prove to you that my actions came out of love, and not manipulation. If you really believe that the feelings we shared was just a war strategy that I employed to lure you out, then I have nothing else to say."

“No!” she gasped, taken aback, “I didn’t mean, I just..” she looked away biting her lip. She hadn’t meant that, she didn’t want him to feel like this relationship was baseless. She did love him she truly did but…

“This is all just so new, I’m sorry, I’m still getting used to it. Theres so much information being crammed into my head so quickly, so many new situations and feelings to deal with,” she squeezed his hand, acutely aware that he hadn’t yet removed it from her grasp. Her eyes returned to his, her gaze pleading, “please understand Navi, I want this, I want to be with you. I just need time to settle, to find my place and understand the ground I'm treading on. It’s all so new to me, I barely know what to do.” Her voice began to die towards the end, trailing off into a desperate whisper. Her blue eyes searched his pained ones, begging him to understand. She hoped she hadn’t damaged their budding relationship with her stupidity and paranoia. She hoped beyond hope she hadn’t hurt him with her thoughtless words.

“It wouldn’t be much of a tragedy if you did,” Hisoka muttered. “Oh hush” she snapped back.

“No!” she gasped, taken aback, “I didn’t mean, I just..” she looked away biting her lip. She hadn’t meant that, she didn’t want him to feel like this relationship was baseless. She did love him she truly did but…

Navi raised his eyebrow and couldn't help but smile a little bit to himself. That was fast, she had back pedaled quickly. Hisoka must have been the one pressing her to say those things, otherwise she wouldn't have jumped to such ridiculous conclusions. When she started trailing off Navi would silently curse that cat, secretly wishing that he could have a "talk" with the Nekoga without Ayama around...

“This is all just so new, I’m sorry, I’m still getting used to it. Theres so much information being crammed into my head so quickly, so many new situations and feelings to deal with,” she squeezed his hand, acutely aware that he hadn’t yet removed it from her grasp. Her eyes returned to his, her gaze pleading, “please understand Navi, I want this, I want to be with you. I just need time to settle, to find my place and understand the ground I'm treading on. It’s all so new to me, I barely know what to do.” Her voice began to die towards the end, trailing off into a desperate whisper.

Her words would confirm it, she hadn't meant what she said. His eyes would remain cold and his scowl would meet her confused gaze. Without a change in expression he would lunge forward and kiss her, holding it for a few moments and then gently pulling back. What she said had irritated him, but Navi would need to learn to forgive someone who was a member of his family. When he pulled back his features would still be slightly hardened, but his kiss would signify that he understood what she said.

"It's alright.. I only wish you sometimes listened to both of us before jumping to conclusions."

Navi would say this to acknowledge to both of them that he realized Hisoka had a hand in her outburst. By voicing this hopefully Ayama would push some of Hisoka's bias out of the way next time the scrawny cat insulted him.

"One more thing I wanted to do before I showed you around the village, follow me."

Navi would gesture for Ayama to follow him as he walked towards a door near the back of the house, leading to an open backyard space next to the Konoha forest. Outside there would be nothing but a tiny wooden porch, which Navi would step off of to walk across the cool grass. A few moments later he would turn around to face her.

"Come here, I have one more present for you..."

"It's alright.. I only wish you sometimes listened to both of us before jumping to conclusions."

She smiled, again, a tentative smile as though she was still unsure. “That sounds like an excellent idea,” she breathed, nodding. Hisoka mumbled something about love sickness and stupidity of leaf ninjas but she ignored him. She supposed she knew that just because Hisoka was in her head didn’t mean he was always right. The Nekoga was his own man, with his own views. He had expressed to her numerous times before his dislike of the powerful leaf ninja. It seemed his little distrust was growing.

"One more thing I wanted to do before I showed you around the village, follow me."

She blinked and easily followed him into the backyard, ignoring Hisoka’s chant of “it’s a trap,” in the back of her head. She paused in the backyard, a little bit surprised. In Suna she had lived in a tiny apartment most of her time there. There was no backyard to speak of. She knew exactly where she would be spending plenty of time while here.

"Come here, I have one more present for you..."

Blinking her attention brought back to him she covered the ground between them with a few short steps. Pausing about a foot away from him.

“What is it?” she couldn’t resist asking the question and blushed at the childishness of it. She needed to rein in these emotions before she became an overly friend bouncy loudmouth. God she would make an awful ninja if that happened.

“What is it?” she couldn’t resist asking the question and blushed at the childishness of it. She needed to rein in these emotions before she became an overly friend bouncy loudmouth. God she would make an awful ninja if that happened.

Navi smiled a little bit, before stepping forward and clapping his hands together.

"I'm going to have to ask you to trust me," he would say playfully, warning her slightly as to what he was about to do.

He closed his eyes and his Navagan would give a familiar glimmer before becoming intense and glowing brightly. The air would grow thick with chakra and a glorious blue aura would surround him, followed by the sprouting of beautiful angelic wings. Unlike his previous transformation though, Navi would still have his hands clasped together, and the chakra would continue to visibly flicker around him. The ground would begin to shake violently around him and the air around him would briefly screech from the amount of energy coming from him.

"Raven Style: Azrael!" (Angel of Death)

An ominous black chakra would grow around his hands and arms, and his angelic blue wings would turn silver and shine intensely. Navi would now have evolved to almost literally take the form of a divine angell, shining an aura of such unbelievable and glorious power it would overwhelm the senses.

Navi's person would even blur and seemingly vibrate with instability when observed, showcasing the extreme level of chakra that he possessed. He would then slowly walk towards Ayama, taking each step lightly as the ground seemed to want to give way under his feet. His angelic wings would spread outwards and his right hand would stretch out towards Ayama. The ring on his finger would begin to give off a black glow as Navi came closer to her.

With his right hand he would gently touch her neck and with his left hand he would hold her waist to pull her closer. The amount of power surrounding her would seem almost unbearable, and Navi would attempt to redirect as much as he could away from her. He would step forward one final time and tilt her head upwards with his right hand, causing her eyes to meet his intense and glowing gaze.

After this... there would be no turning back, this was the most personal gift he could give her, the blessing of an angel.

Navi would then lean forward and kiss Ayama, shutting his warm eyes and holding her lips against his. With this blessing chakra would pour into Ayama, empowering her body as an aura of chakra would begin to glow around her. Navi's radiating power would no longer harm her, but empower her, as she would now glow brilliantly in the presence of his form.

Navi released the passionate kiss and slowly drew his head back. No words would be spoken, as this blessing would be the greatest gesture of love and trust that he could ever offer.

"I'm going to have to ask you to trust me," he would say playfully, warning her slightly as to what he was about to do.

She nodded carefully, using the previous conversation to bolster her trust. She stood still and watched avidly as he activated his Kekkei Genkai, the Raven style. But then it changed, dark noxious chakra spread over his arms and his wings turned a blinding silver. She would have been lying if she said the dark chakra and the show of power didn’t intimidate her. She remembered what happened last time he had shown off his bloodline. But she knew, she knew he would never hurt her, not intentionally at least. So she remained still, watching with quiet awe as he drew closer and closer.

Her breathe caught in her throat, partly because of the immense weight of his chakra filling the air and partly because of his general proximity. One of his hands reached out towards her and she twitched slightly, the ghost of a flinch. But she did not move away and allowed him to wrap an arm around her waist and draw her in closer. Her hands moved of their own accord, coming up to rest on his chest. She studied them, not looking into his eyes. Her hands were a barrier, perhaps her final one. A flimsy thing between her and him.

Then his hand tilted her head up, forcing her to meet his eyes. Her breath was stolen from her once again, this time seemingly permanently. He was magnificent, all aglow with his own power, his eyes like stars. Her lips parted as she gasped softly, struck by his beauty, or perhaps his handsomeness. He looked like an angel, pulled straight from her stories, and a small bit of pride welled up in her heart as she came to a realization. He was hers, maybe not permanently, their world was so unsure, always changing and shifting. But for now, in this moment, he was hers and she his.

As his lips met hers in a fiery kiss, all her doubts were swept away, Hisoka’s nagging words banished to the farthest corner of her mind. As the heat of his chakra blessing mingled with the passion from his kiss her doubts were shed. Her hands were no longer the limp barriers against his chest but instead clung to his shirt as she sought contact, as she strove to bring herself closer. Because that was all she wanted and now she knew it for sure. She did not notice the vanishing weight of his chakra, she never noticed the glow surrounding her, hell she probably wouldn’t have noticed if a kanton jutsu had gone off next to them. Her world was centered around him, he was all that mattered and for now, that was just fine with her.

She was almost sad when he broke the kiss, and pulled away. But as her breaths came in short gasps she realized it was probably for the best. She didn’t want to faint from lack of oxygen mid kiss. That would be embarrassing. She smiled, a warm contented thing and leaned her head against his chest, not wanting to let go or move away. She was happy right here in his arms and honestly? She never wanted to leave.

She was almost sad when he broke the kiss, and pulled away. But as her breaths came in short gasps she realized it was probably for the best. She didn’t want to faint from lack of oxygen mid kiss. That would be embarrassing. She smiled, a warm contented thing and leaned her head against his chest, not wanting to let go or move away. She was happy right here in his arms and honestly? She never wanted to leave.

Navi would attempt to step away before he realized that Ayama was clinging to him. She had snuggled herself into his arms and had firmly rooted herself in his warmth. Unfortunately all good things had to come to an end, and Navi would attempt to pry her off of him, hopefully breaking her love induced trance he expected she was in.

The moment was too powerful though, and as he had just bestowed his most precious gift on Ayama, Navi would grab her hand an instant later and squeeze it tightly. If there was ever a more significant moment in Navi's life then he wouldn't be able to think of it. Hei had just performed a ritual that made him a guardian to Ayama, the girl he now felt nothing but passionate love for.

With a light tug on their intertwined fingers Navi would lead her back into his house, still speechless and absorbing the implications of what he had just done. They were both lost in their own separate dream worlds, and as they crossed the threshold into Navi's room he would let out an involuntary and loud sigh.

He had made plans for showing her around the leaf, but his mind was now too clouded from recent events. Navi would glance over at her to see if anything in her demeanor had changed or if she was stunned by her own thoughts like he still was. With that blessing Navi and Ayama had matured and reached a new chapter in their relationship, allowing for further passion and trust to be expressed between them.