Chapter 1: Karma's bitch.

It was always funny reading stories where people were freaking out, sometimes for chapters, when realizing what was going on. Only to freak even more once they saw the first ninja jumping about in the rooflines, or the village insignia, or their first cannon character, or... you get the point.

While fun reading, it was also amusing wrighting said stories, spending and wasting countless hours in doing something that really had no real value, couldn't produce money, definitively didn't pay the bills but you did it anyways, staying up late, waking up after too few hours of sleep, wanting nothing more but to curse whoever got you to start write at the first time, only to keep doing it at the first opportunity you have.

Sure, there were haters and spammers and sometime people being just stupid. And the annoyance when a character or story wasn't written the way you liked or someone didn't like your story and it left you annoyed and frustrated and on the brink of deleting said story, which you'd never really do just because... Because the stories gave you the rush, something different that doesn't exist in real life, but you wished it did.

My point?

I probably deserved everything that was hurled onto my face.

You already might have guessed what happened and I definitely won't amuse you by telling you how I realized where I ended.

It wasn't amusing at all, believe me.

There was war, people were afraid and angry and the academy spammed Genin to try and replace those that got killed. There was no time to think, no time to plan, no time to fix or see how things could be fixed, how to make things different, because it just couldn't be done. Because knowing things meant nothing, in the end. The past life didn't mean anything, because people are social being, they get attached and I did too. Not that I opposed my new family anyway. They were nice people, shinobi, no flashy names or tittles, but they got the job done and they did it good. Very good.

Staying in the academy, staying Genin for too long meant someone I knew would die, god forbid it was someone I know, but Konoha's Will of Fire did funny things to you. To protect, to kill, to defend, to save. It was a rush like none other, it either broke you or made something out of you, something neither good or bad, grey maybe. With blood on your hands. Lots of it.

Even now, I can't help but to compare. Most of the time, especially during the war, being a ninja felt like…. Being a college student and not having enough time to study for an exam. So, you are stressed about it and under pressure. Here, failing meant someone dies, there was no "next time". Sometimes, just sometimes, you wish it was you that died instead the person you watched exhale for the last time, that one person you wanted to save, that something you truly wanted to change because you know what would happen if you didn't.

In the end, the tears, sweat and pain meant very little. No matter how hard I tried, what I did, I couldn't- I didn't make much of a difference. I never really had the feeling that I fit in, I was just too different from anyone, looked at things differently, always an abnormality. I don't think anyone changed as many work areas as I did… I think… that was what made me so successful in this life. Knowledge. Unpredictability maybe, but in a very controlled way. Just as my parents taught me, I did things smart and I did the job done. Very good.

The flashy ones got all the fame, making cover for other to work. Working in the shadows was saying it wrong, because in Konoha it had a very dark meaning, so maybe a flower wall fit. Or a painting… a phantom. You know it's there, somewhere, but couldn't quite really remember seeing. Konoha was much like that. There was so many more than it was shown, so many faceless, nameless deeds that made a change. Almost insignificant things that left a scorched mark to be remembered.

No, I won't be telling you how it all began. There was just nothing to tell. Because it-

"Maki? Does it hurt?"

A muffled, half asleep voice murmured beside me. I frowned in the dark, wondering how in the hell did I manage to wake him up. He did sleep with one eye open, but still. I was just laying on my back, still as- ah, to still then.

"Everything's fine. Go back to sleep." I murmur back in the same tone, no need to alert him that I was awake for some time. I did force myself to relax, force my chakra to be still.

"Liar." I frowned into the darkness at his reply. Stupid prodigies… I tried not to get annoyed... Felling him shift, I could almost feel the way he moved before his hands found mine. They were hot to the touch, while mine freezing cold.

"…sorry I woke you up." He clearly felt my annoyance, because he didn't ask, as his arms snaked around me, pulling me closer to his body and somehow, my head found its way on his chest. I barely moved, I swear. His heart beat into my ear, reminding me that I didn't managed to fuck everything up.

"It's your fault I fell asleep in the first time." I pretended to overhear the subtle accusation in his voice. He needed the sleep anyway.

"I told you not to go into the shop while- hmf" his lips promptly shut me up. Murmuring into the kiss, I felt his lips stretching into a smile. Stupid prodigy distracting me.

"Go back to sleep. It's still too early to get up."

"Sure. After you."

"… Fine!" He fell asleep first. Two prodigies could play the game!

What? Don't expect me to tell you what this was all about. I'll tell you. Soon.

I dare you to try and figure it out who that was, sleeping by my side. I'd say favorite and review me your thoughts, but it doesn't work that way anymore. You'll found it out quite soon that my life is a huge cliffhanger. I always liked them anyway.

Hello everyone! I'll just say that I'm not abandoning my other stories. I just need some stress relief and this stories is just that. This story is a an almost literate coin toss. I pulled out the outcome of the main events like lottery numbers and work the story from there. It's fun.

I do plan to update the other stories soon.

Favorite and review your thought. It does work like that :D.

How fun would it be to "end" in one of your stories, or others you read? I might do one of those. Once I actually manage to end one…