Hello~ This story is a revamp of Team Hawk's New Member! I will be leaving the original story up, so if you would like to read it go ahead :).

Edit: I apologize for the long wait! I'm updating this chapter with one or two new details and uploading the second chapter within the next hour.

Warning #1: This story has a slightly different background than the original!

Warning #2: This story has an OC (original character) named Akuma that plays a major role. If you don't like OC's in general, please do not read this story!

Notice: Italics are dreams in this chapter, non-italics are happening in real life.

Enjoy~~~~LucyLu71958~~~~~~

A young boy in the middle of a field of tumbleweed and sand smiles despite himself - for he knows it will soon be his finale. Every breath he takes pains him; the only thing keeping him here is the hope a God that has already failed him once saves him. Wind suddenly rustles through the valley, making the boy's ripped black jacket flutter in the breeze. A small thud can be heard - almost certainly signaling an animal or enemy has arrived. In a last ditch effort to see a friendly face the boy glances over, immediately regretting his decision, for if he had stayed still he might have been sparred.

The gruff and mysterious man who had sent out his teammates to kill him before came back - apparently not satisfied with the job they had done. The boy struggled slightly, not wanting to get any more injuries before his teammates came back. "I wonder how they messed up this job so much... It's just one kid" the man commented, pulling a weapon out of it's sheath. Glazed eyes widened as they watched in utter shock as the knife get closer and closer to it's target - the boy's heart.

"Get away from him!" a voice screamed. Swift steps coming from the side suddenly stopped as the man was kicked aside with gusto. Three people whispered in the background, trying to deduce who the man was. "Maybe it's a hit-man, and this kid is famous" a silver shark gleamed, only to get punched in the head rather hard by the red head next to him "Oh shut up, Suigetsu. Of course it isn't a famous guy, he would have to be way hotter!" A third person in the group stood silently, trying to assess the situation on his own "I hope he doesn't do anything rash..."

"Akuma... You... You're really still with the leaf, after all this time?" Black eyes appeared to almost shiver, indescribable emotions barely surfacing from the pit, only to be pulled under again. The boy, now known to be Akuma, let his eyes flutter and close, knowing he could be in wonderful or terrible hands. A voice softened with exhaustion spoke for the first time in hours "Sasuke, I... Why.. did you save me? Knowing you could be caught?". Distraught laced his words - after all, he cared about his old friend, and if the man stayed around a leaf village shinobi for too long he would surely be caught. "I couldn't just.." the strong voice cracked "I couldn't just let you die."

Confused eyes opened, just enough to see. Even his own teammates - Sakura, Kakashi, and Naruto - had left him. Why did he, the one who had left him in the first place, come back? The thoughts practically written on his face, Sasuke laughed above him - "Because, idiot, you're my friend.. You were they only good thing in that damn village. You and Naruto - can you believe I almost didn't leave because of you two? Listen, Naruto will never join me - I know that... But you, you have a choice." pausing, Sasuke thought, wondering if he should continue. Akuma nodded slightly, silently asking for him to continue. "Akuma, do you want to join me? If you do, you would leave the village and betray everyone... But, we won't hurt you and we will never ever leave you. It's a big decision, I know, but will you take my offer?" that's it - Sasuke thought - the ridiculous proposition is out in the open. Of course Akuma would not leave his village to be a rougue - he would not have a home or a safe place in all of the world. Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted as a harsh voice rang out into the air. "Yes, I'll come."

AKUMA'S P.O.V

As the words came out of my mouth I knew they were absolutely final, but I couldn't bring myself to care. Ever since I was a child I had been harassed in the leaf village - physical and mental abuse for nothing at all is not a very nice experience for a six year old. Their words are seared into my body and mind forever more. The two things I stayed there for - my precious people - were Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke left and I can see now Naruto doesn't care if I live or die. No one choose to save me there, so I choose to save myself here - right?

3rd P.O.V

Sleep threatened to close in on Akuma as Sasuke dressed his wounds, gently moving a limb or two to get to cuts. Trying to keep himself awake Akuma studied the three other people standing to the side, who looked just as interested to see whom he was. The two in the front looked like polar opposites - one with folded arms and crimson red hair, the other with hair the color of snow. The red-head girl looked indifferent, putting her hands on her hips and looking away while the pale boy with hair to match grinned, crossing his arms. 'Just like Naruto and Sakura' Akuma realized. The man standing in the back had wild orange hair, slightly smiling when they made eye contact - he definitely looked the most sane out of the three of them.

Sasuke finished dressing the wounds and picked him up, telling the group that they were heading back to the hide out. A few seconds later they were off, carrying their new addition and weaving through trees. The lull of feet hitting bark and dirt while listening to a heart beat finally getting to him, Akuma fell asleep. His body slumped a little more, one or two faint snores coming out of his mouth, completely unaware of the sweet smile Sasuke had given him.

3rd P.O.V - Dreams

"Mama, Mama look! I made you a crown full of flowers! Do you like it?" the small child reached up and gave the woman his creation - a 'crown' too small to fit around her wrist, let alone her head. "Honey, it's beautiful! Thank you so much! Do you mind doing something for Mommy, honey?" the little boy shook his head "Okay, can you go down to the river and fill this bucket up a little? Not all the way, when it gets too heavy you can stop. Okay?" laughing when she received a very tight nod she gave him the bucket and sent him on his way.

"I guess Mama thinks I'm old enough for this now! I can't wait to tell 'em at school - I'm the best four year old on the block!" The boy bent down to fill up the bucket with water, scooping some up like the bucket was a shovel. Picking it up he realized most of the water had fallen out, solemnly he put the bucket back in, but lost his grip on it. 'Mama will get angry I didn't give her water!' he thought, jumping into the deep water to save the fallen bucket. Not realizing how deep it actually was he began to sink. Grabbing the bucket and trying his best to doggy-paddle out of the murky water, he found it was just a little too heavy for his small body to carry.

Being the stubborn kid he was, he tried to reverse the bucket, feeling a little sick. Suddenly, he felt a tug on his leg - seaweed had wrapped around his ankle. Letting out a scream thinking a monster had gotten him, he swallowed nothing but water. No longer having any air and not being able to get un-tangled from his mess he closed his eyes, praying that Mommy would come for him. A few minutes later his worried mother came to the river, seeing her baby boy drowning in the water. Her eyes widening slightly, she jumped in the water and unraveled the seaweed on his ankle. Forgetting about the bucket, she swam to the surface, hoping he was still alive. "Akuma, Akuma! Baby, come back to me, okay? Breathe!" she pleaded, trying her best to do CPR on his tiny body. After half an hour, she finally realized that she had lost him. "Akuma!"

Akuma had been watching his Mama and, strangely enough, his body for a while now. Seeing her cry like that hurt him, but he didn't understand - was he not right in front of her? Why was she crying? He had even filled the bucket to the tippy top! Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. A tall man with a black robe and cane bent down to his level, smiling warmly at him "Hello, Akuma, do you know my name?" a slight shake of Akuma's head made him pause "Well, I'm Mr. D. - it is very nice to meet you!" Sighing, Mr. D directed his gaze towards Akuma's mother, pondering where to go from here with someone so young. "Listen, Akuma, I know you have been told strangers are dangerous, but please do not be afraid of me. I am only here to help you."

Walking along while holding Akuma's hand the man talked of many things, about life and dreams, about hopes and wishes, and most of all about Akuma's mother. He found out the boy wanted to be a ninja just like all of those 'cool' people he had seen going to help with many things. He also wanted to get his Mama another person who loved her. The man smiled - knowing had this child been alive he would do great things one day. He was also very kind and never once did the smile on his face falter - which is why it startled Akuma when the smile dropped a little.

"Listen, Akuma... You are not in your body right now - can you feel it? You are not breathing, nor are you feeling tired from all this walking, right?" the little boy nodded "Well, you stayed in that scary water a little longer than you thought, and now you have gone to another place very, very far away from where you were before." The little boy looked very confused, looking around "But, we're still right by the river - we didn't go that far, silly!" The man smiled sadly, seeing that he would have to tell the boy straight out - the child was clever, but he was still just a four year old. "Akuma, you and me - we're different than all of the people you see on the streets. They look just like us-" he stopped to tap the boys nose "and they act just like us, but they are... well, living."

One again the boy stopped and stared at Mr. D, wondering where he came up with that idea. "I'm alive, I was just getting water for Mama. I was a little stuck, but I was alive." Knowing this would be difficult the man kneeled down, once again getting face to face with the boy "When you got caught in that river you were down there a very long time. Do you know how long a minute is?" the little boy thought, finally answering "It's pretty long." Laughing, the man nods "Yes, it is pretty long. You were down there for fifteen minutes before your mom found you. That's a lot longer, isn't it?" the boy bobbed his head up and down, understanding that it was a very long time. "Well, your little lungs couldn't get any air down there, and you went to sleep about two minutes in. The rest of those minutes went by, and you never woke up again. Do you understand?" mirthlessly, the small boy nodded - yes, he understood. He was never going to see his Mama again, and he had left just like his Daddy did last year.

"Listen, I have a question for you." They were now back in Mr. D's home city, in a very quiet town where people briskly moved around, weaving in and out of houses and stores. Many houses were big and extravagant, with pools and water slides, while some were smaller and more cozy-looking. Somehow he felt like all of the people here were friendly and would not harm him. He had been told that everyone here had personally made their home straight from their imagination. Mr. D repeated himself and Akuma finally looked over, wondering what the question was.

Mr. D smiled, and finally said "How would you like to be a Death God in-training? They go to the world again and do whatever they want while trying to save as many people they you like to do that?" He didn't need to ask again, Akuma was hooked. As soon as he had gone around to all of the stores and met most of the people out shopping he was going to be leaving again. He packed a bag and got some money from Mr. D, thanking him, worrying about how he would get out of this place. "It is your turn to be silly, Akuma. I got out of this place to get you, did I not? I can get out of this place to drop you off as well."

He was just about to leave when someone in the village came up to him "I knew your mom, child. I present to you this gift." with that she handed him a cloak and a necklace and went on her way. Mr. D praised the cloak, saying that it would grow with him through out the years. "Silly Mr. D, I'll grow in a few years - just like I grew up 'til now, won't I? How will this stay with me throughout the years?" Chuckling a bit the man explained, saying it was enhanced with magic of a sort, which meant whenever he grew it would grow with him. The necklace itself would also grow to fit his neck as well, if needed. Finally understanding, they left while waving good-bye, getting thrown back into the real world.

"Hey, Akuma.. Are you okay? We're just going to change your gauze and rest for a bit. You can go back to sleep now." Sasuke interrupted into his dream land, his voice fading after that sentence. His worried eyes the only thing Akuma saw.

A lively seven year old runs down the street making airplane noises, followed by a calm boy walking with his hands in his pockets. "So, so, you're going to the ninja academy too, mister?" Akuma asked the boy once they caught up to him. "Yes, I am...Who are you again? I don't talk to strangers." the boy seemed intimidated, but tried to keep it in. "Oh right, sorry! I'm Akuma, I'm going to be the best ninja around ya' know! I want to protect everyone, even you, so you should get to know me!" Akuma said, seeming to get more and more excited with every word "Who are you, mister?"

Snapping the boy out of his thoughts (which, unknown to Akuma were mainly focused on how loud and energetic he was), he gazed at Akuma for a few seconds "Right, sorry. I'm Sasuke - Uchiha Sasuke. Nice to meet you!" giving the boy a small smile he started walking a little faster. After a few feet Sasuke apologized, saying he was not a morning person - which is why he was not being very talkative. Akuma nodded and laughed, saying he was an 'all day person' while accepting the apology. Akuma suddenly got a little more serious "Sasuke, do you... Do you have a mom and dad?" the boy looked confused for second "Of course I do, doesn't everyone have parents?" Maybe, Akuma thought, but I'm not everyone.

Searing pain shot through Akuma's body as he was roughly dropped onto the ground. More people were coming, he could feel it - at least one group of eight or nine, maybe more. By the aura in the air they were definitely unexpected guests. Black eyes struggled open, searching for a weapon to defend himself. Warm arms suddenly wrapped around his middle, dragging him away from the small clearing. "Shh, I will come get you once the enemies have been taken care of." Sasuke whispered, quickly shuffling away. Akuma relaxed, knowing he would be okay. Sleep took him over once again, dragging him back to his broken childhood memories.

Today is the academy graduation of Akuma's class and they will finally find out if they have passed, getting their new teams later in the day. Almost bouncing out of his seat in excitement a grin slowly spread over his features. This is one of the only times of his life that he believes he will ever be extremely grateful to be in the beginning of the alphabet. The names they were calling now were only Ab - Abana, Aburn... 'Jeez, how long is this going to be?' Akuma questioned in his head."Ahinara, Aie, Akala.." brightening, Akuma sat up a little straighter, anticipating his name - finally, they were right there- "Alam, Alun, Alexis" - confused, blinking eyes looked at the instructor for a while, wondering if he hadn't heard his name. They went straight from A.k.a to A.l.a... Surely, there had to be some kind of mistake. He had been fifth in the class - right below Hinata. How is it possible that he got rejected?

This had to be a mistake, right? It is not possible for someone who is fifth in their whole class to get rejected, is it? Akuma could feel his heart shatter - his hopes ruined. He would have to go back to the academy or go back home, how would he face Mr. D if he had not protected a single person yet? He was a failure, a failure, that's that he was - that word repeated in his head until it did not even sound like a word anymore. He knew in his heart that's all he was now, someone who had failed at everything - failed at getting the water for his mom all those years ago, failed at living, and now he had failed at being a ninja.

Snapping out of his daze a small bit when the instructor told everyone to leave, wishing them good luck next year if they had to come back. Once everyone was gone Akuma finally got up, walking down the isle to the desk that was now almost empty of head-bands - they always kept extra in case they had counted out the wrong number of children. "Excuse me... Could you go back to the 'A' section? I was wondering if I missed my name..." he sounded so pitiful, even to his own ears, it hurt a little - he should not be like this, this isn't the end of the world. "Sure, what's your name?" looking up, Akuma sighed "Akuma, sir, I don't think I was called, but I wanted to make sure." "Of course, that's completely fine. Now, Akuma... Oh, your name is here - yes, Akuma Knite. Good thing you came up here - you passed. I believe we skipped your name."

Eyes as wide as his grin he took the headband they had offered him, repeatedly bowing and saying thank you as he walked out of the room. "Don't forget that there is a meeting in an hour, Akuma!" the instructor yelled, hoping he had caught the ecstatic boys attention. 'I'm a ninja, I can't believe it! They just missed my name, I'm not going back home!""' Walking to his friends favorite ramen stand he couldn't help but smile - finally a ninja, not just a failure. Turning the corner he saw, or rather - heard one of his favorite people. The blonde was hoping and jumping down the street, whooping every now and then - obviously, he had either won a years worth or ramen or had gotten a head-band as well.

"Hey Naruto, are you okay?" Akuma asked, catching up to the blonde. "Of course, dattebayo! I'm a ninja now, a ninja!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping around. "I wonder if Sasuke got a head band too..." suddenly, Naruto stopped "You mean you weren't even paying attention? Well neither was I, but, Sasuke was first in the class, of course he got one." Akuma nodded, that was very true. "We better get going, we have to get our teams now! Listen, Akuma - I definitely want to be with you, so try to hide behind everyone so you'll get called when I'm called." Akuma nodded and finally, laughing, they walked to the academy for the last time.

"Hello again everyone, I'm very excited to make you the genin of this class. Thank you for coming back, we will now be giving out your genin teams. Genin teams will consist of 3 or 4 people with one jounin instructor. Once your teams are called your instructors will get you... Oh, by the way - this is based on class rank, it is supposed to balance our teams out. So don't be too disappointed!" Once the instructor was finished with his speech he started announcing the teams. "Team 6: Masaru Kon, Ichin Sabag, and Kiol Nani. Team teacher is Uiola... Team 7: Sakura Haruno, Akuma Knite, Sasuke Uchiha, and Naruto Uzumaki. Team teacher is Kakashi..." Cheering, Naruto and Akuma stood up, Sakura sulked, and Sasuke smiled a bit - this team will definitely be a handle for their teacher. Poor Kakashi Sensei...

Blinking slowly, Akuma sat up, gingerly feeling around for broken bones. "Well good morning, sleepy head" a calm voice called out to him. Wincing, Akuma looked around in awe - wondering how he had gotten to his house. Realization hit him like a brick as he realized that this was not his house, nor did he know where he was - what if he had been kidnapped by the enemy along the way, and Sasuke had dyed trying to protect him, or even worse - Sasuke had tricked him. His mind ran a mile a minute, his breathe getting short, and after a few minutes he was gasping for air. "Hey, it's okay, Akuma - don't worry, I won't leave you." Pulling Akuma into a warm embrace Sasuke whispered where they were, telling him it was okay every few words. They were in Team Hawk's hideout, and they were all okay - but it was night time, so they would have to be quiet. Sasuke helped Akuma get up as they walked out of the wooden door, into the cool winter night. Taking a good, long look at Akuma, Sasuke sighed. This would not last long.

"Listen, Akuma... You agreed to join us back at the valley, remember? If you want to leave, we can go now - I will get you to the leaf village before sunrise, and we can act like this never happened. You don't need to stay. However, after a few weeks I cannot guarantee you will be welcomed back to them with an easy excuse." his voice drifted off for a few moments. "I know you were not in your right mind back there, so I don't want to take advantage of you in any way. We would have helped you either way, but I need to know now - do you, Akuma Knite, want to be a member of the Hawks, knowing full well that you will be a rougue ninja, and knowing that you will be fighting against your comrades in the leaf village?" Sasuke kneeled down, preparing himself for Akuma's heart wrenching decline; however, it never came. "I will only say this one more time, so listen well: I will join."

~~~~LucyLu71958~~~~~

Wow, this chapter turned out to be way longer than I thought it would be at first. More updates are soon to come! After this I hope to make whole chapters flashbacks or dreams, instead of making the better part of the chapter a dream, don't worry.

Hope you enjoyed,

Ja'Ne!