When she was eleven years old and about to graduate early, Izumi and Itachi stopped at a tea shop for a rest where Itachi's former teammate Shinko Inari was now a waitress at. Here Itachi questioned her on her desire to grow stronger. She explains her desire to grow stronger to help others is inspired by her father’s sacrifice, but Itachi’s insistence on her abandoning her resolve made her cry and she left.
Eventually, Izumi and Itachi were seen as a "couple" by many of their peers.