A Shinobi Approaches

Kai felt a little uncomfortable holding Shiro's hand... He wanted to take his hand away but without appearing incensitive... He could find no such excuse, so he just trundled on. As they began to near the village gate he said "Alright, follow me briskly and don't try and offend anyone, just maintain politeness and you'll be fine."

"O-okay", Shiro said, wondering why Kai was thinking he could or would offend anyone.
Well, yes, Shiro was a thief. But that did not mean he was impolite.
Sometimes he had even apologized to the people he had robbed.
While they were sleeping though, so they would not notice him.

Kai wasn't afraid of his villages strength... It was their respect . He was desperate for acceptance... Kai walked briskly and they had arrived at Kai's room it was small, it had a single bed, a small kitchen area a bookshelf, a small bathroom and a small longue... "Make yourself at home, there's a few clothes in a bag over there that are too small for me now and I was going to throw them out. You can have them if you like."

Shiro's eyes shone with gratitude as he ran over to the bag to see what was inside.
Not only was this the first time someone had given him clothes just like that but also these clothes would smell of Kai. A scent he already associated with safety. Shiro undressed without thinking but before he put the new clothes on he stopped. "Can I... have some water?", he asked, he wanted to wash himself.

"The bathroom is just there, there's a shower and a towel just hang it off the window so it can dry..." Kai checked his small fridge... "Damnit... I'm going to be gone for 10 minutes and I'll be back with some real food. Don't touch the bookshelf though... It has things that are private."
With that Kai grabbed a spare jacket and wondered out of the door and proceeded to walk to the local Ramen shop.

"Uh-huh", Shiro made and went to take a shower. He had no reason to touch the bookshelf, he could not read, not even write or read his own name. Sometimes he wished he could but there were more important things to learn for him.
Drying himself off soon after he put on some of his new clothes. They were still a little too large for him, but he liked it and curled up in them, waiting for Kai to be back.

Kai waited patiently in the shop for his and Shiro's ramen... He felt bad for Shiro... He had been left alone, he was an orphan like Kai, he found a mentor just like Kai... But Kai remembered the pain of losing Daisuke-Sensei... It hurt... He felt as the world was finally opening up to him just to fall back down to the bottom again...

"Hey Buddy your food's going cold..." said the chef...
"I'm sorry, Thank you." Kai replied...

He began to walk home thinking how Shiro had got to attached to him now and how he couldn't refuse to help Shiro now... It didn't matter Kai was coming round to the idea of having a little brother but it was one more weakness... one big weakness.

Kai soon found himself at his front door... He took a sigh and opened the door with a smile on his face.

"Kai-kun!", Shiro chimed when he heard the door open.
He had dozed off but was now wide awake, running towards the elder.
However, he tripped over the seam of his trousers and fell.
He was too small for these clothes... but he wanted to keep them nonetheless.
"What have you got there?", Shiro asked while getting up.
"It smells goo~d", he added grinning.
The growling of his stomach underlined that statement.

Kai had a small chuckle when he saw Shiro with clothes that were obviously too big... He let out a laugh when he fell over though "Haha Calm down Kiddo, I was gone 10 minutes."

Kai put the 2 pots of ramen on the side and got out 2 forks he handed one to Shiro telling him not to rush it because it was hot and he didnt want Ramen spilled on his floor...

He then walked over to his bookshelf, it was untouchedbut he was looking for 2 books in particular... He had found them. "Here grab this" Kai threw a book to him labelled 'Acadmey basics' "I read that book when I was younger it should help you..." Kai himself grabbed a rather large book entitled "The tales of a gutsy ninja" he hadnt got round to reading it but heard the reviews were good. With that Kai took his Ramen to his favorite lounger and began to read.

Shiro was eating slowly. He wanted to postpone the time he had to admit he was unable to read. When he had finished his ramen, Shiro got up and sat down right next to Kai, snuggling up he pretended to read the book he was given. His eyes moved over the letters and signs, none of them making any sense. The longer he pretended, the more nervous Shiro got, his cheeks burning hot with embarrassment.

Kai looked over to Shiro who was reading the book beside him, his cheeks red raw... It dawned on Kai... Kai's face lit up with an embarrasment.... How could he of not known this? Kai quickly grabbed Shiro's book Kai turned to him and said "I have a better idea, I'll give you some Ryo, and you can go buy a something to play with or something that you like. I need a shower so I'll be in there.... Kai got up and gave Shiro some money and quickly vanished to the bathroom... He put his hands in his hair and sank to the floor.... "Gah.... I'm such an idiot... What have I done...?!" His hands dropped from his hair to his face... He decided that a shower would do him some good.

Shiro was startled but glad he did not have to pretend anymore.
He hated lying to Kai, after all the elder had done for him so far.
"Thank you. I'll hurry!", Shiro said, giving Kai a quick hug before getting up to put on his shoes.
They had holes everywhere but still it was better than going out with bare feet.
Shiro had rolled up his sleeves so he would not trip again and searched the stores nearby for something to bring home.

Of course he would not be so selfish and buy a toy for himself.
Shiro had no use for such things anyways, he had never played with toys as he had never owned any.
Instead he bought a box of sweets for two, proud that he had thought of Kai.
There was enough money left for a sketchpad and a pencil, too, which made him even happier.
Shiro loved to draw, though he could not afford paper usually.

With everything packed in a plastic bag, Shiro returned home.
"I'm back!", he said, taking off his shoes and waiting for Kai to show up.

"Welcome back" Kai shouted through the door.... Kai was almost finished but he was soaking wet, he walked through the door wearing his boxer shorts and drying his hair with a towel, he went to a pile of clean clones and pried through them to find something to wear. "So what did you buy?" Kai asked

Shiro watched Kai closely, a tingling sensation inside his chest.
Blushing slightly he tried to look away but could not push himself to it.
Kai was handsome. Shiro had never thought like that about a boy.
"I... I bought some paper and pencils for me... and some sweets... for us", Shiro replied and showed the box to Kai. "I hope you like it", Shiro added, nervously. If Kai did not like it, it was a bad present. It was a bad present anyways, Shiro thought, as he had bought it from Kai's own money. When he realized this he felt embarrassed but tried to keep up his smile.

"Awesome, pass me one of the good ones will ya." Kai winked at Shiro, "Hey this is the shirt I wanted" Kai pulled on a black short sleeved t-shirt and a pair of black pyjama bottoms. "Oh by the way, you can use the bed for tonight but tommorow we're going to have to find you one."

Shiro nodded, excitedly. So he was going to sleep beside Kai? It made him happy. It felt like a family.
"Which one do you want? There are... some white ones... and... dark ones... and this one is pink... this one has something green on top...", Shiro continued for a while, wondering who on earth made these small things. It was quite fascinating. Especially how one could make them without eating them all right after.

Kai just laughed, Shiro listed a lot more of the sweets but Kai wasn't really too interested he didn't have much of a sweet tooth. "Errm the blue jellie one? Oh and remember don't eat too many, I don't want you getting sick." Kai looked around, he needed to place a second bed but room was limited... Tommorow he'd have to move the bookshelf and lounger to the opposite side of the room... It would make space but things would be a little cramped... He also realised he may need to buy a chest of draws so they could distinguish who's clothes were whoms... As well as new clothes as well... Kai too a look at his savings... He estimated that buying all this plus food for the week was going to severly dent the savings... he sighed but he wasn't too upset.

Shiro handed Kai the one he wanted and ate a couple of funny coloured sweets himself.
After a few more he snuggled up with Kai. "Thank you", he mumbled.
"I really like your house", he added.
To someone who had slept in damp cellars at best, Kai's home was luxurious.
Shiro did not even need a bed to feel comfortable.
"I can sleep on the floor or on that thing we sat on, it's ok. You don't have to get a bed for me", he said.
He looked really serious and even a little worried. Kai should not spend too much money on him.
Shiro did not want to become a burden.

"Don't be ridiculous, If you had the money would you want me to be on the floor? Besides, I'll just have to do a few missions to claw some money back" Kai sighed. "It'll be fine" Kai smiled at Shiro and then popped the Sweet into his mouth, "So, how good are you at drawing" Kai asked.

"I can help you", Shiro suggested. "I can work for you, too."
Kai felt warm and Shiro was happy the elder was letting him sit so close.
"Drawing? I don't know... I draw on the floor sometimes but I don't think I'm good."
Shiro did not have a very high self esteem, he never thought he was good at anything.
"It's fun, though. I like it", he added. "Do you draw?"

"I wish, I'm not very good at it, I can't draw anything" Kai laughed "But I dont mind, I may be bad at some things but I'm better with others..." Kai looked out of his window and realised it was nightfall... "Well, I'm sorry but you'll have to wait until tommorow to draw because it's getting late. Make yourself comfortable." Kai looked at the bed... it looked too small for 2 people he wondered if he should just sleep on the floor instead...

Shiro was getting sleepy and had dozed off against Kai's chest.
Slowly he crawled to the very side of the bed so there was enough space for Kai left.
"Will you sleep already, too?", he asked, a little nervous to sleep in a new place like this.
There was only one blanket and Shiro moved it over to Kai's side.
For himself he got the jacket Kai had given him and curled up in it.

Kai was tired... He seemed a little uneasy to be sharing a bed... He seemed to old to be doing this but he didn't want Shiro to feel uneasy... Kai yawned... "Sure..." Kai hesitated a little... He got in and wrapped himself in the covers and fell to sleep...

Shiro smiled and fell asleep soon after.
While dreaming he put his arm around Kai as though the other was a teddy bear.
Probably due to the new environment Shiro's dreams were restless.
Not enough to cause him nightmares or have him toss and turn, but enough to have Shiro mumble in his sleep.

Kai woke early morning and noticed Shiro's arm he blushed a little, It was a little wierd for Kai he hadn't had been close to anyone and then to suddenly find someone who was dependant on you was a little strange... He moved his arm carefully of him and walked into the bathroom...
He did his regular morning routine. Then he walked to his book, and began to start reading it again.