The "Fish Shop" business was neither good nor bad. In peak season, there was enough leftover to go out for a few meals; in off-season, it was still enough to avoid starvation. The shop sold fishing gear and fish feed—anything related to fish—except fish themselves.
The owner was a spirited, carefree girl, with a lively personality that bordered on boldness, earning her the affectionate respect of everyone on the street—even the aimless ruffians. They all called her
—Toki-sama.
Kisame first saw Toki-sama in a tavern. The irritating mission to catch a stag beetle across the world had finally ended. Kisame sat at the bar, drowning his frustrations in alcohol and reflecting on what misdeed had earned him such torment from his boss. Mid-drink, a particularly beautiful woman walked in—Toki-sama.
Toki-sama ordered a drink from the bartender and, like Kisame, sat at the bar. Kisame glanced at his own beer bottle and then at the dozen white bottles in front of her, deciding it was better to drink at home.
Before he could even put down the money, a hand grabbed his shoulder. Turning, he saw Toki-sama's slightly pretty face pressed close.
"Buddy, drinking alone is boring. Toki-sama's in a bad mood today, so I'll treat you to a drink."
That was the first time Kisame had heard a woman call herself "bro." If not for the obvious signs on her chest, he might have mistaken her for a delinquent and kicked her away.
Wait… no. This woman is flirting with me. Not bad, very sharp eyes.
At that moment, the thought of going home barely crossed his mind.
"I'm telling you, buddy, never date a ninja. They overthink everything. I just talked to someone for a few words and they assumed I was shoulder-to-shoulder with someone. What does shoulder-to-shoulder even mean? And here you guys are, wandering around, doing whatever, calling it intelligence gathering. What intelligence do you gather from a woman?"
Well, technically… she's shoulder-to-shoulder with me right now.
Kisame wanted to say that. Her arm resting on his shoulder was thin and weak. But after watching Toki-sama down a bottle of plum liquor in one go, he quietly took a sip of his beer.
Forget it. Konan said not to hurt the villagers… or she'd be angry.
And so, Kisame spent the night finishing a bottle of beer and listening to Toki-sama's endless tales about her boyfriend—or rather, ex-boyfriend.
At the end, Toki-sama said,
"Buddy, I've got your back on Sixth Street. From now on, mention my name there and no one will dare bully you. I've got you."
That was the first meeting. The second encounter happened when Kisame visited the "Fish Shop." The owner was none other than the Toki-sama who had forced him to drink all night months ago.
"Welcome, honored guest."
A polite smile, graceful and feminine—Kisame finally understood what a woman could be. Yet he could not tolerate the outrageous price of the fish feed: 8,000 ryo per pound. Seriously? Why not just rob her?
"This is imported from the Land of Rivers. Task money alone is 50,000 ryo. Don't think you can fool Toki-sama. Want it? Buy it. Don't? Get lost."
Kisame didn't have Samehada that day, or she would have been shredded.
The second encounter ended unhappily.
Now, it was neither the third nor the thirteenth time—it had become countless.
Dressed in the red-cloud cloak, Kisame stood at the door of the "Fish Shop," holding the fish tank. Toki-sama was still the same: long hair tied in a neat ponytail, plaid yukata with sleeves rolled to her elbows, sitting on the sofa, flipping through books while arranging colorful flowers. From the state of the flowers, it was clear she had been practicing ikebana for a while. Kisame knew the village had recently held a flower arrangement contest. The first prize was a set of "Emma" knives—Toki-sama didn't need knives—but the third prize was a handmade illustrated world book. She wanted it to fulfill her dream: to travel the world, see mountains, rivers, oceans, everything.
I wonder if I'll ever have a chance to go with Toki-sama.
Kisame shook his head slightly and entered the shop.
Toki-sama's eyes widened at the red-cloud cloak. She quickly set down the mangled flowers she had been working on and approached Kisame, bowing deeply with absolute sincerity.
"Welcome, honored member of Akatsuki."
Kisame felt a pang of disappointment. After all these years, Toki-sama still needed to recognize him by his uniform.
"Honored member, you must be tired. How may I assist you? Sorry, I got a little excited… first time seeing you here, really surprised… ah, sorry, I spoke too much. What do you need?"
Her happiness and gratitude were clear. Akatsuki's presence in the village earned unexpected respect, a fact Kisame already knew. He recalled what Konan had said once:
"Don't go to the village in uniform to scrounge food."
A warning not to be trifled with. During their first tailed beast sealing, the team was so hungry they went to the village ramen shop and ate dozens of bowls. The shop refused payment, so ever since, they prepared food in advance. Itachi had remarked how extraordinary it was—"Even the Hokage doesn't get this treatment." Pain had restored peace and prosperity to Amegakure, so it made sense.
Akatsuki was protecting this place. And now, Kisame was part of it.
He had slaughtered countless comrades, losing his way in life. What was real? What was illusion? He could no longer tell. But now, seeing Toki-sama bow like this, Kisame felt that his decision to join her path was not such a big deal. He didn't care to protect the world, but if it meant Toki-sama could live here and eventually fulfill her dream of traveling the world, it didn't matter if he never returned.
At least… Toki-sama will have a chance to see the world.
"I'm really hurt, you know."
Kisame said.
"Eh?"
He placed the fish tank on the table, looking at the flowers she had tortured in her arrangement.
"How long have you been practicing to arrange flowers like this? How are you going to win third prize?"
"Eh, how… how did you know?"
Kisame felt even more wounded.
He sighed, pulled off the Akatsuki cloak, tossing it onto the sofa, revealing his blue yukata. Toki-sama's jaw dropped.
"Ah!!! You're DouDou!!!"
Kisame silently mourned this nickname. Then, sitting on the sofa with a face full of mock suffering, he said:
"Toki-sama, we've known each other for years. How can you still not remember my face? I'm so memorable! Look at my blue skin, three stripes on my cheeks—normal people don't have that!"
"W-w-w-who are you?!"
Her scream could have lifted the roof off the building. Kisame rubbed his ear.
"I am Kisame Hoshigaki, Akatsuki, rogue ninja from Kirigakure. I joined Akatsuki years ago, currently living downstream of the village. Toki-sama, I'm not hiding from you. You just never asked, so don't blame me."
Toki-sama froze, then cautiously sat on the sofa near him, eyes wide in suspicion.
"You… you said you were unemployed!"
"Yes. No missions, no work. Our team's been pretty relaxed, just… retiring." Kisame leaned closer, completely unfazed.
"Eh, Toki-sama… this is a disease, it needs treatment!"
Toki-sama teased, sitting upright a few steps away. Realizing Kisame's identity, she panicked.
"I… I'm sorry, Dou… Kisame-sama! I didn't know you were Akatsuki, please forgive my ignorance!"
Rarely seeing her so flustered, Kisame laughed. Even the fearless Toki-sama could be scared. He grinned mischievously:
"Fine, since you said that, come closer."
Toki-sama obeyed, trembling.
Kisame pulled a marker from the tea table drawer.
Toki-sama stepped back, horrified.
"What are you doing?!"
"Last time you drew our turtles during the card game, now I'm drawing them back."
"You—hey! You said to draw the whole set!"
They both laughed.
The barrier of status vanished.
Kisame patted the sofa.
"Alright, enough teasing, Toki-sama. I have something to tell you."
Toki-sama sat back down, rearranging the flowers interrupted by Kisame's arrival.
"Go ahead, Kisame-sama. You scared me half to death. Talking to you like this feels so… unsettling."
...
The complete fanfic (Chapter 261) is already available on P@treon(.)com/Crimson_Lore