Prologue

The sun was peeking over the horizon, spreading over the trees and giving them a golden tinge. In a particular forest, a girl jumped out of the tree she was previously resting in. She yawned, walking over to the fire from the night before and blowing sand over the ashes. She was dressed in a black fighting top with dark blue dragons going over the shoulders. She was wearing black knee length capri pants with the knees wrapped in bandages. A long, black trenchcoat covered her from head to toe. A long, dark blue scarf was wrapped around her neck, useful material for a mask. Her hair was black with an inky, dark blue sheen stretched over the top of it, becoming a shade darker on her bangs. It was braided into one, long braid, starting from the sides of her head and ending at her ankles. It rested on her back and stretched all the way down to her ankles. She looked about twelve years old. There weren't any weapons visible on her body.

She yawned again and stretched, popping her back. She let a contented sigh as she glanced around again. The sand had spread over the ashes and covered them completely. The wind was blowing and twisting playfully. She smiled and stretched her hand out to it. It changed direction and circled her, gently blowing her hair out behind her. As it settled down, she let her hand drop and turned back to the forest. She sighed silently, then ran into it, leaving the tree she had previously rested in behind. The wind followed her, running alongside her.

Ch. 1 Yuki Pov

As I ran, I could feel the wind racing along beside me. I was lost in thought. My thoughts were centered on the places I could go to escape the youkai hunting me. They hunted me for the stone hanging around my neck. Its a Hiroseki stone, also known as a Tear Gem. Only Koorime cry Tear Gems. Its an interesting story as to how they became able to do that. The Koorime, also known as Ice Maidens, used to have males on their island, but thay all went to war and died. The Ice Maidens were so devastated they isolated themselves by using a powerful spell to lift their island high into the air and create a fierce blizzard around it to keep everyone away from them forever. They forbid anyone on the island to be with a male. They reproduced by themselves around the age of twelve to twenty. The children were all girls. One day, a traveler came to the island. He was an old man, who was a past samuri. He asked for healing from the Ice Maidens and they denied him help. He was furious and cursed them with stone tears everytime they cried. He also told them he would pick an apprentice from the island in the future. The Ice Maidens were frightened and checked for the samuri mark on any of the children born. They relaxed after a few years and stopped checking for the mark. But one day, they found it in the worst way possible.

*Flashback*

Rocks flew from the hands of many children as they threw them at me. I could feel the bruises forming as each sharp stone hit a sensitive place. I stood up and ran away with them following. I hid in the shadow of the healing center as they passed me, calling me a monster. I peeked out to check if they were gone and sighed in relief as I realized they were. I cautiously came out and dashed down the cold roads, towards my house. It was really my Grandma Chiyo's house, but I called it mine because I stayed there so much. An old, two-story house came into sight, situated at the end of the road. I ran toward it and took the steps two at a time to the porch. I ran inside, looking around. "Grandma Chiyo,''I called out, still looking, ''Where are you?''

"In here, child,'' came a call from upstairs. I ran upstairs and to the fourth room.

I glimpsed Grandma Chiyo on the bed, looking through old pictures. I sat down beside her and watched as she glanced at each picture, before shifting to the next one. She paused at one photo and I glanced at it curiously. It was an old photo of a younger looking Grandma Chiyo and a red headed boy. The boy looked about seven. I knew who he was. Grandma Chiyo told me the story. His name was Sasori, Grandma Chiyo's grandson. He had dark eyes. They were a clash between red and brown. His hair was ruffled and stuck out every which way. I was brought out of my thoughts as I heard Grandma Chiyo sigh. I looked at her and saw her gazing at the photo with sadness in her eyes. Understanding her silent pain, I stood up to leave, silently deciding to give her some time alone to cry out her pain. As I was walking down the road, trying to figure out what to do, I froze, feeling something run through me. A series of pictures appeared in front of my eyes. I saw Grandma Chiyo dodging kunai and shuriken, with eight other ninjas surrounding her. One of them got lucky and hit her with a shuriken. Then the visions stopped. I growled as I ran as fast as I could toward her house.

I could smell the coppery smell of blood as I dashed towards the house. As I came near it, I started to see the fight. Two of the ninjas were trying to hit her with kunai. The other six were trying to surround her,but she slipped past them gracefully. The smell of blood was coming from her left side where the shuriken had hit. I was furious that someone would hit her. Something snapped inside me and the rest was black.

When I came to, I was different. I had claws, fangs, and some other changes. Grandma Chiyo explained to me about who I was, what happened, and what we had to do now. We had to leave and we did. She trained me in fighting and healing for five years and then sent me to be trained by her friends. Her friends trained me for five more years. Then I left to travel the land.

*Flashback End*

I shook my head to clear it of my wandering thoughts as I vaulted over a fallen tree with one hand and kept running. Apparently, Chiyo had a lot of friends. I had been trained by benders, meisters and their weapons, shinigami, youkai, mikos, and many other people. All of them had adopted me. They gave me many different weapons. Plus,I could make any part of my body a weapon because of alchemy. I could also make weapons out of my energy and soul. I'm a meister and my weapons are hidden inside my soul. I could call on them at any moment. My weapons ranged from scythes to to guns and swords. When the people adopted me, it changed my appearance from a normal child to a child with claws, fangs, and many different forms. They are all very powerful in their own ways. I never showed my other forms, besides when I battled. Only then would I show one or two of my other forms. Right now, I'm in my saiyan form. I looked normal, except for the white monkey tail wrapped around my waist. All saiyans had one, unless it was cut off. My hair was lighter and the blue highlights seemed to shine more. My bangs had bright white highlights through the dark blue and black strands. My eyes were a turquoise color.

I ran until the sky started to grow dark and stopped at a hidden clearing. I looked around for a tree to rest in and found a decent sized oak tree. I could use the top branch for my resting place. I shot up the tree and settled on the top branch, before turning my eyes to the moon. It shined brightly and spread moonlight across the clearing, making it glow in the white light. I took in a deep breath and smelled sand. I would cross into the desert soon. Hopefully,I wouldn't draw any unnecessary attention to myself.

*The Next Day*

I woke up and jumped out of the tree, feeling awake and refreshed. I could fly into the desert, but I wanted to take my time getting there. I estimated that I would have to run about six miles to the desert, a short distance for me. I started running, following the smell of the sand. A few minutes later, sand started replacing the leaves. I kept running over it, my thoughts flying faster than my feet. I wonder what world I'm in now. Chiyo and I had traveled to many worlds, but I had never seen this one. I pushed chakra to my feet and sped up, becoming nothing more than a white and dark blue flash to anyone watching. The sand went flying by under my feet in cream colored blurs. I had been taught by the Master Genkai. She taught me many powerful jutsus and showed me how to make the Kekkei Genkai's. I have all of them, every single one. They focused on my eyes. My natural eyes were a dark, blood red, crimson color. My real name is Yuki Jaganashi.

When the sun started to set, I looked for a place to rest for the night. I saw nothing but sand, sand, and more sand. Well shoot, where's a tree when I need one? I sighed before kneeling and running my hands through the sand. I lowered myself into a cross legged position. The sand flowed through my fingers and scattered into the wind. It circled in on itself like a mini tornado. I reached my hand out and it flew to rest over my hand. It kept on going in circles till a blast of wind knocked it off my hand and it dissolved into particles of sand that glided back to the ground. I stretched my legs out, crossed my arms behind my head, and lay out. My eyes closed as sleep overcame me.

*The Next Day-Mid-Afternoon*

I had been running for two hours straight. Finally, a huge gate was in the distance. I slowed to a walk and walked up to it. It had the symbol for Sunagakure on it in black. Sunagakure, huh?, Never heard of it, I thought to myself, scanning it closely. The guards suddenly stopped talking and turned towards me. ''State your business here,'' one of them ordered, watching me. ''I want to your Kazekage, in order to become a citizen for this village,'' I replied, glancing at the other guard, before staring him in the eyes. "Alright, you may pass,'' he stated, nodding for me to go ahead. I nodded back and slowly walked into the village. I looked around as I walked, taking in my surroundings.

The buildings were spaced out from each other with narrow walk ways connecting them. They looked to be made of baked sand. In the center of it all was a building with the Kazekage's black symbol on the front of it. I walked towards it and tried to ignore the stares I was receiving because of my appearance. My tail tightened reflexively and my hands tightened into fists. I hated it when people stared, still do. I bit back a growl at the feeling and grit my teeth, forcing myself to keep walking. Don't turn around, don't glare, keep walking, I chanted to myself silently. I calmed down and walked into the Kazekage's building. There were some messenger ninja going out and in. They stared at me for a minute, then one of them came over to me. "Is there anything you need?,'' she asked with a smile. ''I need to see the Kazekage to apply for citizenship,'' I answered, smiling back at her. "Right this way,'' she replied, turning and walking away. I followed, glancing around. She stopped at the last door. ''Here we are,'' she opened the door and I saw an older man with brown, spiky hair, wearing the Kazekage's robes.

''Good luck,'' she said, leaving with a wave. I watched her go, before turning my attention to the Kazekage. He nodded for me to come in. I walked in and sat on one of the armchairs in front of his desk. He leaned back and studied me. ''So what can I do for you?,'' he asked. ''I want to apply for a citizenship, if possible, I want to become a ninja,'' I answered, watching him closely. He nodded and leaned a little forward. ''Do you have any training?,'' he asked. I nodded and answered vaguely, ''I have some training.'' He nodded and thought for a moment. ''How about we test you, do you mind having a team?,'' he asked, coming out of his thoughts. ''No, I don't mind having a team,'' I answered, shaking my head. ''Alright then, come with me and we'll test you,'' he said, standing up and gesturing for me to come closer. I stood up and walked over to him, standing beside him. He made hand signs and we left the office in a poof of smoke.

We appeared at the training grounds. There were a few ninja there, training. We went to a corner of it. He looked around and his eyes landed on a chuunin.''Do you think you can fight him?,'' he asked me, gesturing to the chuunin. I nodded, examining him. He looked like an easy fight. I snickered inwardly, he looked weaker than Jaken. The Kazekage called him over and told him to fight me. He went into a defensive stance, while I slid into a stance that was good for offense and defense. He moved first, running at me with a kunai in his hand. I sidestepped him and brought my eblow back, hitting the side of his head. He fell foward and I whirled around to face him. He spun around and started a combo of punches and kicks. I dodged and blocked all of them. Then I went on the offensive. I punched him in the stomach and when he bent over, I jumped into the air and brought my leg down in a hard kick to his temple. He fell unconscious and I landed on my feet, hands up in a defensive position. I heard clapping behind me and slid out of the defense position, straightening up and looking backwards. There was a crowd behind me and in center, the Kazekage was clapping and smiling. I grinned inwardly, man that was fun. ''Good job, come with me and we'll get you a headband and introduce you to your team,'' he said, grinning and starting to make hand signs. I ran over to him and we left, back to his office.

He handed me a black headband. I took it and looked at it. It was jet black with a cool metal plate. The plate had the symbol for Suna delicately carved into it. It was beautiful in my eyes. I gently traced the symbol with my finger. I looked back at the Kazekage and smiled, saying, ''Thank you,Kazekage-sama.''

"Your welcome, by the way what's your name?,'' he asked, smiling. ''Its Yuki, Yuki Jaganashi,'' I answered, looking at my feet. ''Well Yuki, I can tell that your going to do great as a ninja,'' he said softly. I looked back up at him and nodded, saying just as softly, ''Thank you, sir.''

The door opened and three genins walked in, drawing my attention. One was a girl with spiky, blonde hair, grey eyes, and a large fan on her back. The second was a boy with purple, puppet paint on his face, dressed in all black. He had cat ears on his hood and a puppet wrapped in bandages on his back. The last one had red hair and green eyes. He had a sand gourd on his back and the kanji for love tattooed in red on his left temple. I could feel the youkai Shukaku sealed inside him, their souls atttached. He must have had a hard life, like mine.

I turned my attention to the girl as she spoke. ''What did you want, Kazekage-sama?,'' she asked, looking at me for a second, before turning to the Kazekage. ''This is your new teammate,'' he answered, pointing at me. ''Wow, she's hot!,'' the boy with the puppet said, grinning. ''My names Yuki Jaganashi, pervert,'' I introduced myself, smiling at him. ''Cute,'' he commented,looking me over. I stopped smiling and narrowed my eyes at him. ''Watch it, puppet boy,'' I warned, scowling. ''Names Kankuro,'' he introduced, half bowing. ''I'm Temari,'' the girl introduced herself, smiling. ''Gaara,'' the red headed boy introduced himself quietly. I nodded to each of them and said, ''Pleasure working with you.''

The Kazekage laughed and said, ''I see you get along fine, before I forget, here,'' he tossed me a set of keys, ''those are the keys to your apartment. Your staying with them.'' He pointed to my team. I nodded, smiling.

I turned to Temari. ''Come on,'' she said, grabbing my hand and pulling me out the door with her. I laughed and let her lead me away from the office. I looked back and waved to the Kazekage, before following Temari. She let go of my hand and I crossed my arms, walking after her.

*A few Hours Later*

''I'm going to bed,'' I called to Temari, Kankuo, and Gaara. They nodded and said goodnight. I walked upstairs, into my room, and crawled into bed, pulling the covers over myself. I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

*Dream*

I was seven years old. Darkness surrounded me. ''Mama!,'' I called into the darkness. I spun around in the darkness, trying to find her. ''Mama!,'' I called frantically, crying red Tear Gems. ''Youkai!, Run away!'', shouts came from every corner of the darkness. ''Who's there?'' I spun around in circles, trying to pinpoint the voices. ''Why hello, little Firecracker,'' a dark voice called out, laughing darkly. I spun frantically. ''Scared now, Firecracker?,'' a dark, taunting voice called out. I collapsed on my knees and sobbed. ''Yuki, where are you?,'' another voice, a kinder and familiar voice called frantically. I paused in my crying and sniffled, looking around for the owner of the voice. ''I'll see you soon, Firecracker,'' the dark voice hissed, before dissapearing. ''Yuki where are you?,'' the familiar voice called more frantically. A light appeared and I looked up at it, my tears dissapearing. A man and woman showed in the light and they reached toward me.''Yuki, Yuki, Come,'' they called, their voices mixing into one. I reached out to them and stood up, running toward them. No matter how far I ran, they kept moving farther away. Finally they dissapeared, taking the light with them. Then everything went black.

*Dream End*

I shot up straight in bed, sweat pouring down my face. Panting, I clenched my hands in the sheets. I had been having this dream since I was eight. It went the same way every time. I unclenched my hands and raised them to my face, setting my head in my hands. I focused on breathing evenly. I rose out of bed and walked over to the window, letting the cool breeze coming from it calm me down. I moved the curtains aside and looked down at the village, my eyes softening slightly. It was beautiful, all of it. I decided to go out and explore it. I dressed quickly and threw my jacket on, slipping on my gloves as I did so. I wrapped my headband around my neck and taking one more look around the room, slipped out the window silently.

As I jumped from the sides of the buildings, I pulled my charm bracelets out of my jacket pocket. I slipped them on, focusing on jumping quickly. I jumped to the ground and kept running in a flash of black and blue. I raced down the streets and swerved to a stop when I came to the training grounds. It was empty and looked serene with the moonlight shining on it. I walked over to the center clearing and took off my jacket, showing my bare arms. My shirt had no sleeves. I closed my eyes and focused on my energy, calling it forth and shaping it. My hand moved up and formed a gun, my pointing finger pointing towards the front. When I felt my energy rise to its shaping point, I snapped my eyes open. ''Spirit Gun!,'' I yelled, pointing toward a test dummy. A bright beam of light shot from my outstretched finger and hit the dummy, blowing it up into charred pieces of material. I grinned and focused again, pointing my arm towards another dummy. ''Shot Gun!'', I yelled again, focusing on the dummy. A bigger beam of light shot out and blew the dummy up, leaving some charred ashes. My grin widened and I laughed, feeling my worries drain away and the joy of fighting replace them. I made hand signs and thirty clones poofed into existence. They grinned and charged, then the fight began.

Four hours later, I stopped training and looked to the sky. It was lightening and the sun was rising. I scanned the training ground and grinned in victory. The ground had huge craters and deep cracks through it and the dummies were destroyed in multiple ways. All in all, it looked like a twister had blown through. I was a mess. My shirt was torn and tattered. My pants were ripped down the sides and front. My face, arms, and legs were scratched up. I grabbed my jacket and slipped it on, covering the torn shirt. It reached down to my thighs, covering some of the rips, but not all of them. My boots were scratched and worn out. I adjusted my headband and ran out of the training ground, heading toward the house.

I jumped to the window and slid inside, closing it behind me. ''Ahem,what were you doing?,'' a voice asked and I froze, turning my head slowly. Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara were standing in the doorway, watching me. ''Oh, hi Temari, Kankuro, Gaara,'' I said, laughing nervously. ''Answer the question,''Temari ordered, watching me intently. "I couldn't sleep, so I went to train,'' I answered, looking away from them. ''Alright, now that thats settled, lets go eat,'' Temari chirped, smiling and skipping down the stairs. I looked after her with an odd stare. ''See ya downstairs,'' Kankuro said, grinning and following Temari.

I looked at Gaara. ''Did someone give them sake or sugar?,'' I asked. He chuckled. ''No, I don't think anyone gave them sugar or sake,'' he answered, shaking his head. He left and I started dressing. I wore a dark blue sort of halter top with a fishnet top underneath, jet black cargo pants that reached down to my ankles and had a lot of pockets, jet black lace up combat boots with purple laces and a dark blue jacket with black fox fur lining the cuffs, hood, and bottom. It had two pockets filled with soft dark black fur. I slid on my bracelets and choker. The choker was dark black with a purple Tear Gem hanging from the gold chain sewn to the sides of it. The bracelets were silver and gold, charms hung from the chains. I grabbed a black shuriken pouch and strapped it to my left thigh with a white kunai pack to my right. I left my hair down with my bangs covering my eyes. I concentrated and my tail dissapeared, making me appear normal. My hair turned an inky black and straightened out, hanging in my face. My eyes turned a dark gold color. I wrapped my headband around my neck and wrapped a dark purple scarf over it. I looked in the mirror and grinned at my reflection. I looked hot! I grabbed my pack and ran downstairs to eat breakfast. ''Hey, morning,'' I greeted my team. They nodded back, eating quickly. After eating, we went to the Kazekage's office to check for a mission.

*An Hour Later*

''Hurry up Yuki!,'' Temari called to me from downstairs. ''Coming,'' I called back, grabbing my pack and strapping it to my back. I ran back downstairs and looked at my team. Gaara had nothing except his gourd. Kankuro had his puppet. Temari had her fan and a small pack. ''Lets go!,'' I yelled, smiling as I ran up to them. We left and I looked around for something to keep me busy. Then, Isaw the sand. A grin stretched across my face as I went in the back, near Gaara and moved my hand around, focusing on the sand. It stirred and I just barely moved my hand, pointing to Kankuro. It moved with my hand and slithered along the ground, grabbing Kankuro's leg and giving it a small tug. He itched his leg and kept walking. I smirked and moved my hand faster. The sand obeyed me and shifted itself into a solid block of sand before his foot. He went to step and tripped, falling flat on his face. He shot up a minute later and his face was bright red in his anger. ''Ok, who did that?!,'' he yelled, looking at all of us and glaring. I wiped away the grin and put an innocent look on my face, looking at him with big, innocent eyes. ''Why did you trip over dirt, Kankuro?,'' I asked, looking at him with big eyes. Temari, who had seen all of it, cracked up laughing. I could hear Gaara chuckling behind me. After that, we kept walking and I got bored again.

''You control sand?,'' Gaara asked quietly. I turned my head to look at him and saw he was looking at me with questioning eyes. ''Yep, always have since I was a kid,'' I answered, nodding happily. ''Were you happy, as a kid?,'' he asked, looking at me. I stumbled, then looked away. ''Not really,'' I answered, whispering and walking ahead. I walked over to Temari and bumped her playfully. She laughed and bumped me back, our arms twined together and talking about random stuff.

*AN FEW HOURS LATER*

We walked toward the huge gates in the front of the road. I studied the black symbol carved into the center of them and tilted my head. It was the symbol for Konohagakure, or Konoha as others call it. 'Great, just another village for trouble,' I said to myself sarcastically. We showed our passes to the guards and walked inside. I looked around as I walked, trying to memorize where everything was. ''Wow, not bad,'' Kankuro commented, looking around from where he stood beside me. ''Yeah, it isn't half bad,'' Temari added from the other side of me. We walked toward the Hokage's office, making it there in about five minutes.

We walked into her office and they walked to the front, while I leaned against the wall, looking out the window. ''Hokage-sama, we're here for the Chuunin Exams,'' Temari explained, bowing to the drunk Hokage. I could smell the sake on her breath and it was suffocating me. ''Excuse me, but Temari can I go? It smells in here,'' I asked, standing up and turning to Temari. She gave me a puzzled look but nodded anyway. ''Sure, just don't get into any trouble,'' she answered, turning back to the intoxicated Hoakge. I nodded to Kankuro and Gaara, before turning and leaving.

I walked around and after awhile, I felt my stomach growl. 'Hmm, might as well go eat something,' I thought, following my nose to the nearest place that smelled of food. 'Ichiraku Ramen,' I read in my head, looking at the sign. I walked in and sat on a stool, waiting for the owner to see me. He did. ''Hello, what can I get for you?,'' he asked kindly, using a rag to wash a bowl.

''Can I get some beef ramen?,'' I asked, feeling like eating some ramen. ''Sure, be up in a minute. Ayame, one beef ramen!,'' he answered, calling out for someone and walking into the back.

I sat back and waited for my food to cook. I glanced around and saw a genin team. There was a jonin, must be their sensei, in the corner, reading a familiar orange book and wearing a black, half mask. He looked like he was lazy, but appearances can be decieving. I could tell from the way he sat and glanced at things over the top of his book, that he was alert. There was a kid with bright blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and whisker marks on his cheeks. 'He must be the Nine-Tails container,' I thought, glancing at him before looking at the others. There was a boy with black, spiky hair that sort of looked like a duck's butt and dark obsidian eyes. He looked annoyed and emotionless. Lastly, there was a girl with pink bubblegum hair and emerald green eyes. She looked annoyed at the blonde and turned adoring eyes to the other boy. 'It must be a crush,' I thought, rolling my eyes and looking back at the blonde. He was gulping down his ramen like it was his last meal before he died. I chuckled quietly. It reminded me of the way Inuyasha would gulp down his ramen.

I looked up as I heard someone's footsteps coming toward me. ''Here, hope you like it,'' the store owner said, handing me my bowl of beef ramen. I took it out of his hands and set it down before me. I picked up a pair of chopsticks and started to eat. ''What? Ayame, your too sick to cook,'' I heard the owner yell in the back. I looked up and stood, walking over to the counter. I looked around before hopping over it. I walked into the back and saw the owner trying to carry a sick girl up the stairs. ''Uxcuse me, but can I help?,'' I asked, clearing my throat a little. The owner looked at me, then at the girl. ''Don't worry, I'll carry her,'' I added, walking over to him and holding my arms out to take her. He passed her to me gently. I held her gently and started to walk up the stairs. ''I'll get her settled in if you want,'' I said over my shoulder as I walked up the steps. ''Thank you,'' he said quickly, before hurrying back into the front. I set her in bed and tucked her in warmly, blowing out the light as I left. I walked back downstairs and to the front, turning to the owner. ''I can work and cook if you will allow me to,'' I offered, looking at the owner hopefully. I hadn't been able to cook for a long while. He looked hesitant but nodded anyway and pointed to an extra apron hanging from the stove. I sent him a thankful smile and went over to it, picking it up and tieing it around my waist.

I walked over to the orders and looked at them, then started to cook. I cooked all the orders and picked up the beef ramen and chicken ramen, walking over to the counter and looking at it for a minute, before jumping over it. I walked over to the blonde and his team and set down the two orders of ramen. ''Here you go, the rest will be here soon,'' I said, smiling and turning back to get the rest. ''Wait, you look like a new residence. Are you a citizen?,'' the jonin with the mask asked, putting his book away. ''I'm only visiting and no, I'm not a citizen,'' I answered over my shoulder as I hopped back over the counter and grabbed the rest of the orders. I set them down in front of the girl, the dark boy, and the jonin.

''Here you are. Hope you like it,'' I called, walking over to the owner. ''Thank you, miss!,'' the blonde boy yelled after me, making me laugh and turn back, waving to them. ''Thank you, by the way what's your name miss?,'' the owner said, with hopeful eyes. ''Your welcome and my name's Yuki,'' I answered, untieing the apron and hanging it back up. I turned to him when I was finished and smoothed down my outfit. ''Goodbye!,'' I called,waving as I left, walking back to look for my team.

I heard Kankuro's voice and followed it. I came closer and saw Kankuro and Temari, standing there. In front of them were three little kids, one of them being held in the air by Kankuro. There beside the kids was the blonde boy and pink haired girl I saw earlier. I heard Kankuro clearly now. ''You little brat, running into me! I should pound you for that!,'' he yelled at the kid. ''I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!,'' the kid yelled back, close to tears. I growled quietly and clenched my fists, feeling my hands start to bleed from the cuts my hidden claws made. 'That's it!,' I thought, trying to contain my anger at Kankuro for bullying a kid.

He went to punch the kid and I ran in front of him at youkai speed. I appeared in front of him and sent him flying with a punch to his jaw. I caught the kid and set him down gently. I crouched to meet his eyes. ''Go someplace safe,'' I ordered, standing up when he nodded and ran back to his friends. I growled as I turned toward Kankuro. He was getting up from the ground, from across the street and walked over to me, glaring angrily. ''Why did you do that?,'' he yelled, getting close to my face. I stared him down with a look that Sesshomaru would've been proud of. ''Because you shouldn't have been bullying a kid,'' I answered angrily. ''He ran into me!,'' he yelled, pointing at the trembling kids. I narrowed my eyes at him and took a step forward, getting very close to his face. ''I don't care, it doesn't give you the right to bully people,'' I yelled back, glaring angrily. He shrank away and hid behind Temari. I looked back at the kids and walked over to them, kneeling to talk to them. ''Are you alright?,'' I asked, looking at each of them. They nodded and before I knew what was happening, I was tackled by all three kids. I looked down at them incredulously.

''What the heck?,'' I asked, looking at them. ''Thank you nee-chan!,'' They all chorused, getting up and saluting me with straight faces. I looked at them before getting up and dusting myself off. ''Well, since that's resolved. I have to go. See ya,'' I called, running over to Temari and Kankuro. We started walking away, when the girl called us. ''Hey, you're not from here, you can't be here,'' she said snobbishly. I turned back and narrowed my eyes at her. ''We are here for the Chuunin Exams,'' Temari answered, glaring at the girl. I looked away and over to the tree. I grinned and called out, ''Hey Gaara! Why don't you join us?.''

Everybody looked at me funny before looking shocked when a swirl of sand appeared and Gaara appeared beside me. ''That was not necessary,'' he said, glaring at me. My grin grew. ''Oh yes it was,'' I said back, grinning and hugging him quickly. ''So you're really not a civilian?,'' the blonde boy asked, looking at me. ''No, I'm not. Far from it,'' I answered, shaking my head. ''What's your name?,'' he asked. ''Names Yuki and you are?,'' I prompted. ''Naruto Uzmuzaki and that's Sakura Haruno,'' he answered, pointing at the pink haired girl. She huffed and turned her nose up, crossing her arms and turning away. I couldn't help it, I burst out laughing! It was just so funny, because she looked like a pig trying to act rich! ''Oh my god!,'' I wheezed out as I tried to stop laughing. Temari grinned and swung me over her shoulder, making me shriek as I was picked up. ''Let me down, '' I called, pounding her back lightly. We talked and after waving goodbye to them, we left.

The week passed quickly and the first part of the Chuunin Exams came. I dressed in a pair of black leggings, a dark purple skirt, a black cut off shirt with a purple tank top underneath, black boots with purple laces, and a short jean jacket. I wrapped bandages around my stomach, chest, arms, and legs under my clothes. The only bandages that showed were my arms because the cut off shirt didn't have sleeves. Everything else was covered. I grabbed my bracelets and put them on, slipping my choker on as well. It was jet black with a dark purple Tear Gem hanging from the gold chain that was sewn through the sides and center.

My bracelets were gold with purple charms hanging from them. I pulled my hair into a low ponytail with a dark purple ribbon. I grabbed my purple baseball cap and slipped it on, adjusting it so it shadowed my face and made me look cute. I parted my bangs and moved them so they were framing my face.

I put dark purple eyeshadow on with mascarra and a touch of blush. I grinned at my reflection and grabbed a pack of kunai and shuriken, strapping them to each leg.

I slipped out the door and went downstairs,toward Temari. I paused to hug her before tying my Suna headband around my forehead, keeping the curse covered. ''Where's Kankuro and Gaara?,'' I asked, making some cereal and munching on it. ''They're still asleep,'' Temari answered, sipping some coffee. Sure enough, two minutes later Gaara and Kankuro stumbled into the kitchen. ''Morning you two, here's some coffee,'' I called, handing them each a cup. They nodded and sat down across from me and Temari, sipping it greedily. I smiled, some things never change. I sat beside Gaara, leaning back and closing my eyes. ''So, who do you want to fight Yuki?,'' Temari asked, making me open my eyes. I tapped my chin in thought for a few seconds. ''Well, I don't care who I go against but I really want to knock that Uchiha off his pedestal,'' I answered, grinning at the end. He really needed to be knocked down a few pegs and I wanted to be the one to do it.

We were at the opening of the forest, where Anko was explaining things to us. I wasn't listening. I was watching a strange grass nin at the corner of my eye. I could see right through his disguise. It was the old snake Orochimaru. While my team was retrieving our scroll, I snuck up behind him. ''Yes?,'' he asked politely, smiling as I walked up to him. I leaned in close. ''I know who you are and if you make any trouble, you'll deal with me,'' I whispered, letting my eyes flash red for a second. Then I pulled back and walked away, a grin on my face.

The gun was shot and we ran into the forest. I wasn't really running, just walking really. We rested for a few hours until a twig snapped somewhere near us. We jumped up and I looked around while Garra, Temari, and Kankuro talked quietly. ''Yuki, what do you think we should do?,'' Temari asked, looking back at me. I was about to answer when a roar shook the forest. Their eyes widened and I stopped breathing for a full minute. Then I breathed again when a something slithered into the clearing. I recognized it immediately. It was Mistress Centipede, who hated me and wanted to capture me because of my tears. She spotted me and slithered right for me. She collided with a barrier of sand and I looked back. Gaara was holding his hands up, keeping her from reaching me.I flashed a smile of thanks before turning back to the giant bug. She seemed to have understood she couldn't reach me so she went for Kankuro. He was caught off guard and thrown into the air.

''Kankuro!,'' Temari yelled, staring up at him. I jumped over the barrier and into the air, catching up to Kankuro. Mistress Centipede went to eat Kankuro but I grabbed him and pushed him back towards Temari, who caught him. I was still in the air and didn't have time to dodge as Mistress Centipede's incisors sank into my side, tearing it open and sending blood splattering down to the ground.

I twisted in the air and brought my chakra powered fist down on her head,making her let go of me and rip her incisors out of my side. I fell toward the ground. I looked down as something caught me. It was Gaara's sand. It lowered me and gently set me on the ground. I forced myself to stay standing and lifted my hands, clapping them together. ''Spirit Wave!,'' I yelled. A bright wave of my spirit energy hit Mistress Centipede and purified her to ashes.

I fell to my knees, struggling to hold myself up. My powers had been sealed so I was a weakling compared to my real powers. I felt hands pick me up and set my head on their lap. I looked up and saw Gaara's worried face and aqua green eyes. I smiled up at him. ''I'm fine,'' I reassured him, my voice a whisper as I slowly forced myself to sit up.