It'd been raining for at least four days, not even beginning to stop yet. It seemed as if the whole town would be consumed in rain in a matter of days at the current rate of down pour.

"Akane?" I heard a soft voice call. "You've been hiding in here for quite sometime now. You shouldn't worry Dad like this, Mom wants you to come down as well."

I smiled at my little brother, who was only about two years younger, and pulled him up. I'd been only 2 days since I'd been sitting in this tree, with nothing but my silver ring that my grandmother had given me.

"Akane?" He laughed, calming himself from the sudden change of height. He was sitting on the branch opposite to me. "What's wrong?"

"I'm not mad at father anymore, Daichi," I replied, shaking my head while looking at the rainy sky that covered us both.

"Then why are you still up here?"

"I've just been thinking," I said with all honesty. "I know we're young, but even now, I know that there should be more to our lives. Don't you wonder why no one speaks to us? Why we've only spent time with our family? Why we arent allowed into the Ninja academy to train? Why are we only allowed to be taught from home by father?"

"He is one of the best," Daichi shrugged, making himself comfortable in my favourite tree that stood right on the outskirts of our small town. "We've learned far more and far better than those in the academy, you know that."

"Don't you wonder why?"

"I do often," He sighed. "But maybe there's reason to why we're the way we are."

I looked at him with sincere understanding. He was living true to his name, he was definitely a boy filled with great wisdom. For the age of 8 he sure knew a lot about responsibility and understanding.

The rain began to come to a stop and almost at the same time, my heart did as well. There were loud explosions coming from the village and smoke and fires broke out within a blink of an eye. Daichi looked around and began to panic at the sight of the flames that engulfed the village. He stood and just before he tried to leave, I grabbed his arm.

"Wait!" I cried, tears slowly running down my face. I hadn't even realized I'd even begun to cry, I wiped them in surprise. "Where are you going?"

"Where else?" He blared. "To help!"

"They didn't want us."

"What?"

"The villagers!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, flailing my arms around. My baby brother, who'd always looked at with with nothing but bright eyes, looked at me with hurt and disgust. "Nobody saw us as fellow villagers, they saw us as dirt. We were nothing for our whole lives!"

"Our family is there Akane," He said, beginning to cry. "Dad and Mom! We need to go. We may have been treated as nobodies, but we are the ones that must work hard to change that, rather than to dwell in darkness. I always thought you knew that. I thought you, my older sister, knew that there is nothing in the darkness. We need to be the light, don't you know that?"

I stared at him in disbelief. He truly lived up to his name. How could I have been so dumb these few years. I didnt understand what I was thinking but at that moment, I knew. I had to do something to save everyone or at least try.

"Lets go Daichi," I nodded, wiping the rest of my tears. "But promise me we'll come out of this together."

He nodded with his usual smile on his face. "There's no other way otherwise. We will come out on top together, no worries."

"No worries." I repeated after him. "No worries."

"AKANE!" I heard my name over and over again. The pure sound of fear and urgency evident in my father's voice. "AKANE! DAICHI!"

We both rushed over to him, fire clung onto our cloaks as we jumped through the burning debris. There, in my father's arms, was a lifeless body. I stared at the limp arms that laid on the floor around my father's bent knees, the dangling head that laid in his lap, then I stared at the familiar and loving face of our mother.

Daichi roared in pain and rushed to cling onto our dead mother's body, pulling her close to his body.

"Let's get out of here," Our father began, carefully placing her body onto the ground. "We need to evacuate while there's no threat or danger. I don't sense anyone near, we need to leave... now."

I nodded, as did Daichi, and watched as Daichi followed father. I stayed behind for a matter of seconds. I sat with my mother and said my goodbyes and kissed her on the forehead, as she did every day since I'd been born. It was something I'd taken for granted and now I knew, I'd definitely remember how much it meant.

"Goodbye," I sniffled. "May you rest in peace, may you watch us from above. Sayonara, Okaasan."

I fled without looking back. I left my mother there to burn as the remainder of my family headed for safety. There, by my beloved tree, was my father and my baby brother, waiting for me with sorrowful eyes.

"Akane-chan," Oto-san smiled bitterly. "We need to talk about something very important."

Daichi nodded at Oto-san and left us to chat quietly in private.

"You were right that night when we fought," He admitted, taking a seat by the tree and patting the spot next to him. "I havent been honest about you and your brother and why you two were treated so badly these last 10 years."

"Shouldn't we find a safer spot than here?" I gulped, part of me not wanting to hear what he'd been about to explain. "What if there are still enemy ninja out there?"

"Do not worry," He shook his head and once again patted the seat next to him.

I took a seat and rested my arms on the ground to help balance my body weight. At the moment, it felt as if I'd weighed over a million tons. I was exhausted.

"You're grandmother didnt die from poor health and old age," He began, taking in deep breaths as he wrapped his arm around me. "She had sealed her life away, to ensure that you two , would live without the danger of being sought out for the pure need of power."

"What are you speaking of?" I asked in confusion of what I was hearing. "What danger? What power?"

"You and Daichi, Akane," He sighed. "Are-"

"FATHER!" Daichi's voice boomed from a far, reaching our ears at a frightening volume. "RUN! TAKE COVER!"

"Akane!" He cried, pushing me onto my feet and quickly throwing me up into the air like he did when I was four and Daichi was two. I grabbed onto the tree branched above and watched as my Daichi ran towards my father. He told Daichi to run as he held off the few ninja that were currently attacking us. "Hide, live, survive my children."

"Oto-san!" I screamed, tears flowing out of my eyes at a rapid pace. "Run!"

"No worries my child," He smiled, tears strolling down his face. "Just live the life you wish, be happy. That is all your mother and I'd ever wanted for you and Daichi. You two are the two stones of hope for our world, stay hidden and stay safe."

I hugged the branch as hard as I could and tried to stop crying so that no one would hear me. I watched as my father was attacked to death by four shadows. He held his grown to the best of his abilities, taking out two of the men. He managed to cut off one's head band with their village crest on it.

My eyes narrowed in on the abandoned band and felt anger boil inside my cold body.

The village of the Leaf.

It had been over 6 years now, at the ripe age of 16, I'd spent not nearly enough days searching for my brother. Today would have been his birthday, he would have been 14 years old today. I took a deep breath and decided to return to my next goal, find the village who'd sent the ninja. Konoha will be where I find justice.

It took me about a few hours from the small town I'd taken a break in and I began walking into the village of the leaf. I watched as children played in the streets and old ladies tended to their stores. I walked towards the village's ninja academy and found a beautiful tree with a swing. I took a seat on the wing and sat there, enjoying the breeze from the hot summer day.

"Who are you?" A small voice echoed from behind me. "You're not from around here are you."

I turned around and met eyes with a small girl with dark blonde hair that fell to her shoulders. "No, I'm not."

"Are you enemy?"

"M-Me?" I laughed. "No, I'm not. I'm actually looking for someone I could talk to ab-"

"You can talk to me," She smiled. "I'm looking for someone to talk to too."

"You are?" I smiled bitterly at the poor girl who seemed quite lonely, reminding me of myself. I stood off the swing and jumped into the tree, sitting on the lowest tree branch that was about two feet above her. "Well how about you come sit with me and talk?"

"I-I don't know if I can," She frowned, rubbing her hands together. "I haven't really practiced my skills."

"Want me to help you?"

She nodded. "Please."

I jumped back down and held out my hand and held her as I jumped back into the tree. I sat with her on the highest branch. She'd begun to smile and laugh to herself.

I could tell, from what she'd told me about her every day life, that she'd been struggling with making friends. I told her to make the best of the situation and find light in the darkest situations. She nodded and seemed to sincerely listen to what I'd been saying.

Just then, a rock flew up. I caught it before it'd gotten the chance to touch either of us. I glared down and saw a boy with dark black hair that'd been pulled back into a ponytail.

"Identify yourself," He spoke in a monotone voice, as if bored. "Release the child and speak your reason for being here without notice."

"Hari," I whispered to the little girl. "Don't worry about me, how about you go and make amends with your classmates? I'm sure they'll help you train. Go ahead and good luck to you."

I came down off the tree and motioned for her to follow. She jumped down, though sort of shaky, she made it with no problems. She smiled and left the scene quickly. I was left alone with the Spiky hair dude, I glared at him and began asking my questions.

"I am looking for someone I could speak with about a certain group of ninja that attack my village 6 years ago." I replied bluntly.

"What is your name?" He asked.

"Akane Kimura."

"I'm Nara Shikamaru," He introduced simply, taking a deep breath as he signaled for me to follow him to the village's Hokage. "Follow me if you wish to speak with the Hokage."

"I appreciate you not creating an uproar in our streets," Tsunade, the fifth Hokage spoke in a tough voice. "I can see that you are a smart girl. Rather than cause problems off the bat you decided to speak before fighting with us. Most would just go straight to revenge based on their problem. Now speak girl."

"My village was attacked, unknown ninja's probably," I sighed, shifting my feet. "All I know is that my brother was chased off and my father was killed by leaf ninja from your village. I want to know exactly why."

"Leaf shinobi?" She repeated in confusion. "Strange, we had no battles or missions in your area scheduled during that time. I believe that I know what happened... either rogue ninja or possibly the Akatsuki. What were they wearing?"

"Black jackets with red clouds on it," I replied, eyebrow raised in curiosity. "Why do you look at me like that?"

"Just as I thought," She sighed. "It was probably the Akatsuki, I'm afraid I cannot be of help to you. I am not sure where you can find them or what you are to do now."

I nodded and bowed before taking my leave.

"Wait," She called out, just as I was about to close the door. "I need to ask you something. Who was your mother?"

"Haruka Kimura," I answered. "Father, Ginta Kimura."

"Strange..." She shook her head. "You remind me of someone. I think it's best if you were to stay with us. It's become very dangerous for people outside on their own, you'd best take stay here for the meantime. How about a place on a squad? You can earn some money."

I thought about what she'd just offered and at the moment it seemed as if I'd lost everything I'd wanted. I'd lost my hopes on finding my brother and now I'd lost my only lead as to who had killed my father. I also was in urgent need of money if I were to survive until I decided what to do next.

"I'll accept your offer." I sighed, nodding my head slowly. "What am I to do?"

"You'll need to find Yamato," She instructed. "Ask Shikamaru to guide you for the time being, you'll have to do your best to find a place on your own."

I found a cheap place that I could stay at for at least five more days before I ran out of money. I'd been told to come to the tree I'd met Shikamaru at tomorrow morning at six to talk about my new job.

I got the key's to my new apartment from the old man at the desk and walked up to my new home. I was beat and really needed a good rest. I plugged the key I'd been given into the lock of my room but it wouldnt seem to budge. I began to bang the door and turn the key as hard as possible. I thought about going down to speak with the man but I'd remembered he went home for the night. Here I was, stuck outside of my room, tired as hell. Just when I'd lost all hope... a boy opened the door with smoke coming out of his ears.

He wore a silly sleeping cap and stripped blue pajamas. "Who hell are you and what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I-I... I just moved in... and I think I've got the wrong room." I blushed, pulling the key back into my pocket. "I am so sorry."

He stared at me from top to bottom and blushed slightly. "I-It's alright. Do you remember where your room is then?"

"Not r-really." I sighed, tucking back a strand of my almost blonde, light brown hair. "I'll leave you to rest then, I'm sorry."

"W-Wait," He stuttered, moving his arms around to stop me. "You can stay h-here if you'd like. I have a couch you can crash on."

I blinked in amusement. What's he thinking? Is he trying to get into my pants? Strange... "I'll be oka-"

"I insist," He reassured me. "I'm not trying anything, really. I'm assuming you're visiting the village and you've had a rough day."

He was right, absolutely right. I had the longest day ever and I needed a serious break. "Alright, thank you."

I pulled the covers over me and took a deep breath. The room was small, just a bathroom and one room where he slept. It had a couch and a bed, along with a small t.v.

"I'm Naruto by the way," He spoke. "And you are?"

"Akane," I replied, pulling the covers over my head as I began to close my eyes. "Thanks again and goodnight. I'll be gone in the morning."

"Goodnight, Akane-san," He mumbled, already half-asleep.

What a strange boy. I couldnt sleep but he seemed to sleep without a problem in the world. He began to snore and I began to toss and turn. I pulled off the blanket over my head and stared at him with evil eyes. I grew wide eyed as I saw his bare upper torso, he had Spiky blonde hair and a very toned six-pack. I couldnt help but stare. He turned in his sleep and knocked me out of my trance. I closed my eyes and tried my best to not think about his body as I slept. Key word: tried.

"Morning," He greeted. "You seem tired still. Did you not sleep well?"

"Not really," I frowned, pulling my light hair into a ponytail as we walked away from the academy and headed to meet with Yamato. "Can you explain what I'll be doing in this village?"

"Well firstly," He smiled. "You'll need a village band, here."

He passed me the same band that I'd seen on the ground when my father had been killed. Of course, without the strike through it. I tied it around my neck and continued walking with Shikamaru.

"Next," He continued. "You will be joining Yamato's team, they'd lost a member recently and are in need of a third partner. You'll be that third person. I'll be escorting you to them, I hear that you already have a mission set."

"Sounds fine with me," I nodded.

We appeared at a large clearing with a few tree stumps, along with three people. I saw one pink haired girl and a tall guy with white hair, behind them, a boy with spiky blonde hair.

"Akane-san?" He exclaimed, pointing at me with a goofy smile on his face. "You're the new recruit?!"

"I-It seems so." I replied, rubbing the back of my neck. I could feel all eyes shift onto me and him for more than a full minute. "Nice to meet you all, I'm Akane."

"I'm Yamato," The brown haired male spoke in a friendly and welcoming register. "Welcome to team 7. We'll be leaving on a mission now, if you are ready, to go make sure of a lead we'd just received. It's nothing too major so don't worry."

I'd heard basically everything about them, I'd even heard about Sasuke. I'd been very sorry to hear about his relationship with Naruto, and from what I'd heard, I can tell that Naruto cherished him a lot.

"I'm Sakura," The pink haired girl smiled, extending her hand. "Haruno Sakura."

"Naruto!" Naruto chimed in quickly. "UZUMAKI NARUTO!"

"Captain Yamato," A random man with an animal mask spoke from behind. I was unsure as to when he'd gotten there but he seemed to be part of the Anbu. "Danzo has selected another shinobi to join your mission, since he'd be another new addition to your squad. He is waiting by the front gate."

Just like that, he left after receiving a nod from Yamato.

"I'm Sai," He spoke with a strange smile painted on his face.

Naruto blurted something about him being the guy that attacked him and Shikamaru and my ears unknowingly perked up. I stared at the two bicker and it wasnt long until Sakura knocked Naruto down and right past me in the blink of an eye and Sai the other direction after speaking ill about Sasuke.

I rushed to his side and laughed when he seemed starstruck and oblivious as to what had just transpired. "Are you alright Naruto-san?"

"Ahhhh," He groaned, rubbing his head. "I'm fine. Sakura-chan's slowly building up my endurance to physical pain, you see?"

I laughed again and smacked him on the top of his head. "You're nuts. That seemed more like a death sentence."

Naruto shook it off and stood on his feet, pulling me up as well. He got scolded at by Sakura and began apologizing as Sai and I stood on the side. It was a strange team to be put on but I was happy to be able to do something to take my mind off my own problems.

We began taking our leave, our journey was filled with fights and pain for Naruto, seeing as how Sakura's fists almost always made contact with Naruto's face every time he'd open his mouth.

We were off to retrieve some message from the Kazekage from the village of the sand.