ooc ]] this is a private, solo thread. no entry, thank you.

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The sound of gentle water flowing and gently crashing into rocks filtered through a kunoichi's ears. Naka River. She snorted as her almond eyes glanced downwards at the water, gazing at her reflection. From where she stood, she could see the river flow into a deep ravine. With a graceful movement, Juniko sat down with her legs dangled downwards off the cliff. She found it amusing that the river was given such a name - it was ironic, no? The River of Southern Joy ... that crossed onto Uchiha land? The clan that was born into hatred has nothing to do with joy; or so she believed, anyway. Although the kunoichi seemed to making fun of the river, her true sentiments were quite the opposite; the Naka River was important to many Uchiha and was part of many old wives tales and a plethora of other stories, passed down from generation to generation.

Her back was arched with her tresses sleek and elegant once more. Gentle strands of hair tickled her collarbones and plainly she would take her index finger and twirl a few strands of hair around it, tug, and release - the curl that she created would dissipate within seconds. For a pregnant pause, Juniko would continue to sit in her same spot, letting a gentle hum escape her lips. She found the resonance that the river emitted to be blissful - a noise she would indeed relish and indulge in. After all, she did not have many opportunities to venture out to the Naka River ... so surely a girl could enjoy herself for a few moments, neh?

Letting her cocoa eyes flicker open, she realized she had digressed. Relaxing wasn't her goal for today. Her limber body rose and Juniko carefully dusted herself off. Today was a day of change. She let a cynical chuckle escape her lips and she seemed somewhat stunned at hearing herself laugh. How long had it been since she laughed? Juniko's laugh didn't even sound realistic nor organic. Her bottom lip raked itself against her porcelain teeth and without warning, she began to make her way back to the village.

"Now ... to get Otousan to tell me where they live." mused Juniko outloud as she swiftly made her way back to Konohagakure. Her prowess in Taijutsu was certainly limited as she preferred Genjutsu, but being agile and swift had its benefits; she was capable of running quickly at a decent speed without exerting much energy. Juniko's thoughts were focused on something - rather, someone - she hadn't thought of in years. Her mother's side of the family. She had come to the conclusion that not being accepted by them had been holding her back, stunting her growth. That couldn't happen. Juniko had too much on the line to let herself be held back by platonic attachments.

She wanted to be a strong, powerful kunoichi. She felt both embarrassed and disgusted with herself for giving a damn about what they thought of her. Alas, no matter how many times she had attempted to rid the thoughts from her mind, they would continue to creep back teasingly, taunting her for being so weak. Thus, here she was; standing in the middle of Konohagakure, making her way back to her home. A few villagers waved at the kunoichi, some bowed as they nervously eyed the uchiwa symbol on her back.

Juniko scoffed. She hated feeling ostracized for her clan, but continued to pace herself as she made it to her clan compound. Letting her feet slide out of her shinobi sandals, she quickly opened the sliding door entrance and placed her foot onto the tatami mat when she was met with a familiar face. Her father stood at the door, towering over the lithe kunoichi with ease.

"If you're going after them, I can't stop you, Juni-chan. Just know that they aren't guaranteed to acknowledge you just because you show up thirteen years later." spoke Renato, her father. She crossed her arms defensively across her chest, glaring at him by lowering her eyes to slits. He didn't seem to flinch at her demeanor. He had experienced it before.

In thought, Juniko chewed on her bottom lip idly. What he was saying was true ... if they didn't care about her at her birth, why would they suddenly care now? Unable to say anything, she nodded swiftly. Pivoting on her back heel, she slid her shoes on and quickly ran off back to the central part of town. Now her goal was to hunt them down ... they had moved away from the slum in Hi no Kuni. She had to resort to asking around to figure out where exactly could they be living now. Thankfully, the surname Ito was not common in Hi no Kuni, making her task much easier than she had expected.

After spending ten minutes speaking to villagers and twenty minutes in the library, reading the almanac and residency list, she tracked down an address for what was only listed as the "Ito Family". "Now to make them acknowledge who I am ..." murmured Juniko, tying her hair into a tight ponytail and adjusting her hitai-ate.

She was focused and determined. If confronting her past worries would allow her to have the pressure removed from her conscience and to allow her to continue her path, then she would go to any means necessary. Taking gentle steps, Juniko would make her way through Konohagakure to locate the address. As she walked, she took note of the surrounding area; the deeper into the city she went, the poorer the buildings and the architecture was. The aura was shady and it seemed to lack the warm, inviting feeling that the rest of Konohagakure had.

Something was wrong. Chills spiraled down her spine as she heard a footstep behind her in an alley. Whipping around, she caught glimpse of someone staring at her.

"Who the 'ell are you? We don't want no police in this area." grunted the elderly man. His spine was hunched forward and he was very frail, only supported by a bamboo cane to stop him from toppling forward. The kunoichi furrowed her brow. She was no police officer and clearly looked far too young to be one. However, before she got a moment to retort angrily and snap back, it hit her.

The symbol. Her clan symbol on her back was part of the insignia of the Konohagakure Police Task Force.

"I'm not a police officer, just a Genin. I am looking for someone though - the Ito family. Surely, you could help, oji-san." spoke Juniko, her voice devoid of any emotion and calm. Internally, however, she was anxious for an answer - she didn't want to wait much longer to figure out where her relatives lived.

".. Ito? You're looking at the oldest Ito man alive. Again; who the 'ell are you?" spoke the man, wheezing a bit as he began to cough rather violently.

Juniko's eyes lowered to slits once more and a single brow curled upwards.

"I am Juniko Uchiha-Ito."

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