• I was about to pass out from lack of oxygen till I felt the weight lift off my chest. I heard a concerned gasp come from the other side of the field, then I was pulled up by my arms quickly. "Oh my Akane I'm so sorry," I heard Lee explain through his shock. "I didn't know you were sitting watching us," He went on seeming as I had scarred him.
    "Lee!" I interrupted him in his crisis of almost hurting me. "It's okay!" I said grabbing his shoulders then shaking him back and forth to get it into his head. "The only thing I'm worried about is Guy seeing as he looks like he unconscious," We both walked over to Guy quickly, and then I started nudging him a bit with my foot. He groaned a bit which meant to me he was alive, and totally fine just lying there.
    "So.......... Akane why are you here?" Lee questioned still trying to wake Guy up.
    "I'd thought I'd find you guys, and have a practice session but seeing as Guy's out I'm not too sure about it now," I said a bit disappointed in my attempts at making a practice for once. Sighing I began to walk away till I bumped into something. Looking up it was Guy sensei with a very serious face.
    "If you just wanted to practice with us you should have asked," he said seriously. "Oh I have such youthful students, for wanting to actually practice their skills!!!" He then said very excited, about us practicing. "Okay now let's begin Akane," He added at the end.


    We returned to the house and, after Kakashi combed through the interior to make sure no one was there, waited downstairs as I showered and changed into my training outfit, combing my hair back into a ponytail since I didn't have as much time to braid it. When I came downstairs with Momoko, Kakashi handed me a light purple slip of paper. "Here, give this to Kurenai when you get there."
    "Wow." I peered at the paper curiously. "I thought you were just joking about the whole late pass thing..."
    "Nope. Now get going, already." he smiled playfully. "And we're still training, after your mission."
    Rolling my eyes, I took the pass and hurried to the park, with Momoko chattering as he ran alongside me. Apparently he had been looking forward to his day of leisure in the hospital.
    Getting to the park, I saw Kiba and Hinata sparring, and Shino studying a bug on the other side of the park. Kurenai straightened and walked over to me. I handed her the pass. "Are you doing alright?" she asked.
    "Wonderful," I lied. "Kurenai-Sensei, could we work on some Genjutsu today? I haven't been practising it lately."
    "Sure."


    Some how Guy and Lee both talked me into working on my tai jutsu with them, which I have no idea how they did either.
    "Come on Akane! You've got to hit harder," Lee said trying to get me to do better.
    "I'm try you know! I don't have to much upper body strength at all," I yelled back at him a bit frustrated. My tai jutsu really stinks that I've started practicing it with them. I started running towards Lee when suddenly everything turned black, white, and red. I wasn't in the same place as I was before.
    "Hmph," Why'd that sound like Sasuke I thought. Turning around I found myself looking towards a guy with red eyes like mine almost. Wait a minute............ It was the sharingan!
    "Who are you I asked bluntly. He raised an eyebrow at me.
    "I've seen enough to know your skills as a ninja, to be Juro's sister" He said then started walking off into the distance. Well that went well meeting another one of my brothers comrades I guess. My eye sight came back into sight as I opened my eyes to see Guy and Lee's faces above me.


    For about an hour Kurenai and I worked on Genjutsu ... after practising her tree jutsu (the name of which I promptly forgot) she helped me to develop my own. An illusion where Momoko and I would 'trade places'. If the enemy saw Momoko, it would actually be me in disguise. For lack of a better name I called it the Tanuki Swap. I practised it with Kiba, and he showed me a jutsu of his, where Akamaru would become another Kiba. I tried it with Momoko, then, but it utterly failed (it looked like i was fighting with a lopsided man turtle.)
    After pracise I hurried over to where Kakashi was supposed to meet me. Not seeing him there, I turned to Momoko. "Let's check the cemetary."
    We did, and found Kakashi, staring at the stone again. Picking up Momoko, I approached him. "Kakashi-Sensei."
    He turned. "Ah, Matsuo. Done training?"
    "Yeah. And I made a killer new Genjutsu." I peered up at him. "I'll kick your butt using it whenever you're ready."
    He smirked. "Maybe I'll put that off until tomorrow."
    I laughed quietly and turned back to the stone. "What's on your mind, Sensei?"
    "A lot of things." he grew quiet for a minute. "Like what an idiot I was as a kid."
    "Nothing can be that bad," I said, peering up at him earnestly. "Nothing bad enough that you torture yourself by coming down here every day." I glanced at the stone. "Why are you so attached to this Obito Uchiha? What did he do?"
    Kakashi was quiet for a long minute. "I'll tell you some other time." he turned and set a hand on my shoulder. "Let's go train."
    I begrudgingly obliged, bitter about his changing the subject. Oh well. I would ask Iruka.


    Glaring at both of them I waited for them to notice I was up even though they were starring at me , with those big bug eyes of theirs. After a minute or they still hadn't noticed that I awakened so I decided to scare them. I popped up quickly making some odd sound, that made the both of them, fall back on their butts.
    "Akane what happen to you? You just started run at me, and then you tripped all over your feet, and was out like a light!" Lee explained. I put a hand out to him to help him up.
    "I don't really know what happen," I told the both of them shrugging. "I guess some person wanted to have fun trying out a genjutsu on me," I lied I knew the reason why I had really gone out, but my brother said it would be dangerous to let other people know about this organization he was in. "It's no biggy really I'm totally fine as you both can see," I told them putting my arms out at their full length, then spinning around to show them there had been no damage done.
    "I didn't see anyone," Guy said looking at me seriously. "And why would they only target you?" That caught me by surprise. No wonder he's a jonin I thought. How am I going to think something up for this?
    "Well they could have been hiding in the bushes?" I told him, seeing if he'd come to a conclusion. He started rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
    "The culprit must not be far then!" He announced going towards the woods. "I will search the area for my students safety!" I faced palm watching Guy head into the woods with ninja like stealth.
    "Uhm........." I had no idea what to say to him doing this, so Lee and I headed off to follow him.


    After a short training session with Kakashi, I went to Ino's, since my house was now off limits. I knocked on the door and when she pulled it open, her jaw dropped. "Matsuo!!" she squealed, hugging me tightly. "We haven't been able to hang out nearly as much as we planned as Academy Students!" taking my shoulders, she backed away. "How are you, how's your team, how's training? Did you need something?"
    "I'm fine, my team is questionable, training is painful. And would you mind if I stayed here a while?" I rubbed my arms anxiously. "My house was kind of...broken into."
    Her eyes widened. "What? Matsuo, I- when? Are you alright?"
    "Yeah, I'm fine. But my uncle's hurt....he's in the hospital." A deep breath. "And my house is currently being given the once over. So would you mind?"
    Ino pulled me inside, arm over my shoulders. "Of course not! What are best friends for?" she winked at me, closing the door behind her. "I'll even lend you some clothes." A few steps into the kitchen, and then, "Are you visiting Iruka tonight?"
    "Yeah. By the way, do you have the game Monopoly?"
    "Uh, yeah? Who doesn't?" she elbowed me, grinning. "Wait here. I'll go tell my parents you'll be staying here, and I'll go grab some clothes." She glanced down at Momoko, who was eyeing her warily. "And a leash."
    as she hurried to her room, Momoko spat angrily at her retreating form. I petted him, grinning. "it's not you. It's...animals, in general."
    When Ino returned, she handed me a pair of black sweatpants, and a loose, dark green shirt that resembled hers. after reporting her parents were all right with me staying, I took a shower and returned to find her waiting impatiently by the door, with the Monopoly board game under her arm. "Come on, all ready, before the Hospital closes for the night. I want to say hi to Iruka, too.'
    smiling, I hurried to her as we ducked outside. "It's not even that late," I laughed.
    "oh well. That'll make this monopoly game more interesting, then."


    "Guy sensei," I called, following Lee through the brush trying to find him again
    "Hhhhmmm?" He questioned not talking. Now we knew where he was. Lee led me over to where it was, and I found him on top of a tree looking off into the distance.
    "Uh, why are you in a tree? And it's really no need to find the person, since you're resorting to climbing in the trees," I yelled up to him.
    "Yeah but Akane it's his youthfulness that pushes him forward to do better, and that even means protecting his students!" Lee exclaimed. I swear I could see the sparkles bounce of of him from the determination of trying to convince me.
    "Okay Lee," I said. "But now I'm just saying he might fall out of a tree sometime seeing as he's so high up, and such." I told Lee trying to convince him now.
    "He would never....." Lee wasn't able to finish his sentence seeing as we both heard a fatal scream. "GUY SENSEI!" Lee screamed causing me to almost blow an eardrum. Covering my ears in pain from the loud scream that came from Lee, I had finally managed to get over it.
    I looked over to only find Guy lying on the ground, like he'd been whacked upside the head, with a very large stick.
    "Told ya so, Guy sensei," I said looking at his unconscious face, then started to walk away. "Lee tell Guy I had to go, kay!" I told him, giving him a motionless wave, while walking away.