The moon was high in the night sky, glistening brightly as it looked down upon the Fire Country with glory. I lied against the cool, dewy grass, my arms tucked under my head and my legs crossed. The fireflies lit the tree tops and the ground, blinking with an orange glow. A sigh escaped from my mouth, and a small smile tugged at the corners of my lips. Every thought fled from the depths of my mind, and a new type of peace cleansed my body while I happily basked in it.

A crunch of a limb broke, and I clenched my eyes in agitation at the serene being broken. Slight rustling sounded, so I sat up and watched as Sasuke came out from the shadows of a nearby tree. I fell back on my elbows and looked at him.

"What are you doing up at this time, Sasuke? You need your rest. Especially since you have practice with your new team tomorrow." I could see him shrug his shoulders before he walked over and sat down. "Something on your mind?" I questioned when silence clung to the air. Again, he shrugged. "Well, if you aren't going to speak, you need to go back to bed."

"Is Kakashi any good?" He asked. I looked at the side of his face and frowned.

"Kakashi Hatake? Yes, he's very capable. One of the best shinobi in this village." I told him, speaking my words with truth.

"He doesn't seem it. Naruto pulled a prank with a chalkboard eraser, and he fell for it. Plus, he was a few hours late to meet with us." I grinned and put an arm around Sasuke's shoulders.

"Believe me, he knew it was there. And be prepared to deal with that, he might come off as lazy, but he'll teach you a lot. You just have to trust in him."

"He shouldn't of made such a terrible impression on our first day then. He should've showed up on time just like all the other jounins." I could practically see him glare into the night. "I don't have time to waste on someone who won't teach me properly if he can't even show up on time to something as important as meeting his new team."

"Sasuke, stop complaining and appreciate what you have. Kakashi is about as good as it's going to get if you are wanting a sensei with power. You aren't going to get powerful in a week of training, so remove that thought from your head." I scolded.

"But I need someone who actually cares to train me. I need someone who can get me the power I need to defeat Itachi." I sadly looked at the moon and then closed my eyes again, leaning back and tucking my arms back under my head like before he made an appearance.

"Go back to bed, Sasuke." I whispered.

;

Crickets could be heard all around and the faint smell of the earth wafted in the air. I was seated on the cold slab of stone that had the names of the people who died in battle engraved on it, and watched Kakashi Hatake stare at the names. His eyes lingered on a certain one; Obito Uchiha.

It saddened me to look at him, I could discern the longing in the eye he showed. Obito was a wonderful child; a little dopey, but good nonetheless. I knew Kakashi blamed himself for his and Rin's deaths, but I wish he could see that it was just the fate of life. I understood completely what he was feeling; all the kids grew around me at the time Minato was their sensei. They seen me a lot because of him. When news of Obito's death hit my ears, I felt completely broken. Then Rin's made me realize that I had to start straying away from people. I was beginning to get attached again and I felt so foolish. But I felt like an even bigger fool when I didn't get to watch Kakashi grow into what he was today, and spend more time with Minato before he passed on.

I always regretted my decisions. I never made a right one before now; taking care of Sasuke. Though, I feel as if I could've done a better job at trying to raise him, but I bet all guardians of children felt that way.

Silence sang greatly in the absence of words being spoken. It was the way to show respect for the fallen. Kakashi, after awhile, sat down at the bottom of the Memorial Stone.

"Chunin exams are coming up soon. I'm going to give them the applications." He lazily mentioned.

"Are they actually ready for that right now?" I questioned once I jumped from the top of the stone. I landed on the grass in front of him and sat down.

"I think so." I sighed and stared into his visible eye. "They've come a far way. They're stronger than you think."

"They've progressed a lot, yes, but won't this weigh them down? They might feel obligated to do this just because you offered it to them."

"It won't hurt them to experience a little bit of loss. Everything will be fine." He stated, smiling.

;

"What is this, Kakashi?" I questioned. Sasuke had a black, intricate design on the junction of his shoulder. His face contoured in pain when I slightly grazed the mark with my finger.

"It's a curse seal. Orochimaru branded him with it while he and the rest of the team was in the Forest of Death. I tried to seal it away, but I'm not sure if it will hold." We both stared at the boy lying helplessly in the hospital bed.

"Orochimaru just wants his Sharingan. What other reason could he possibly want to do with him?" I asked. I was beginning to get worried; if Orochimaru somehow convinced Sasuke to join him, then he will do it, no doubt. He'll see it as a golden way to gain the power he thinks he needs to defeat Itachi.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure Sasuke stays safe. If he can fight it off like Anko did, I'm sure things will be fine." Kakashi assured.

"Anko? What does this have to do with her?"

"When Orochimaru was her sensei, he ended up giving her the same curse seal. In the end she fought off the powers that came from it."

"I don't think Sasuke will fight off the power it permits." I solemnly stated.

"We won't know until the time comes." Kakashi knew just as well as I did how Sasuke's mind worked. And how Orochimaru was so conniving; he'd stop at nothing to get what he desired.

;

I was suppose to of seen Sasuke after he finished healing, but news from Naruto said that Kakashi took him somewhere to train until the Final Round. I had no objections towards it, only that I wished he would have contacted me instead of just taking Sasuke away. And because of it, I didn't see Sasuke almost a month after Naruto and I spoke. Once that month finished up, the Final Round ended, and the attack on the village by the Sand and Sound shinobi was over with, I spent all the time I could with Sasuke.

"What if you taught me some stuff you know about being a shinobi?" I questioned when we were outside; he was graciously helping me water a small garden I managed to grow.

"Don't you know it already?"

"Well, not precisely. I know how to handle kunai, but the only thing I'm actually good with is detecting chakra signatures. Even then it's difficult." I propped the hoe up by a supply shack and stared at the tween.

"I guess. When do you wanna start?" He put away the shovel he had and sat on some concrete blocks by the apartment building.

"Now, if you wish."

"Do you have any type of chakra control? Can you walk up trees, or across water?" He questioned.

"Um, no." Once again, I felt ridiculous being so old with no experience in such a harsh world. Sasuke sighed and pointed to a thick tree that was surrounded by many more.

"Climb that tree using no hands." He commanded. "You have to focus your chakra to the soles of your feet. Too much with cause the bark to collapse. Too little will cause you to fall."

"Right." I called out, taking a deep breath.

I almost felt bad for the tree. It was caved in in more places than not, and was missing over half of its bark. I took some more of Sasuke's advice, and because of it, the tree was sliced from basically the bottom to the top. By the time nightfall came around, I was bloody and sweaty, trying to capture some oxygen in my lungs.

"Take a break, you've been at this since this evening." Sasuke commented.

"I heard what you and Naruto did. How you accomplished this task. I, too, shall push myself. It's what I deserve anyways." He rolled his eyes and grabbed my arm.

"C'mon, Sumiko. You're finished for the day." Reluctantly, I followed him inside.

;

It was early morning and I still hadn't fallen to sleep; I was still curled up in my blanket, desperately wanting to pass out. Some nights were difficult to get a rested sleep, nightmares would plague my mind. I've tried numerous methods of deep sleep, but it's as if nothing would help. Tea, healing sessions, pills. Nothing worked and I fear nothing ever would.

Itachi was starting to form into them, just like all the other times I slumber with him on my mind. He'd reside well into the same deep, heavily shadowed cave getting tortured along with my feeble body. I couldn't protect him. The only person in this forsaken world that I cared for was groaning, and moaning, and screaming in pain, and my body wouldn't move to shield him from the horrors. Every once in awhile a light would show, and I could see his sweaty, pain stricken face, and in the real world I could feel my stomach turn at the sight. Even if it was illusions of the mind, I felt so helpless.

I groaned and decided to just start my day.

"You know, you need to visit the Third Hokage's grave. I didn't see you at his funeral." Sasuke mentioned when I walked from my room. I managed to slip by a few days without him being brought up in conversation, and I sighed in sadness when it finally happened.

"I know. It's just a little difficult for me right now." I was around Hiruzen since he was a child training underneath the Second Hokage. He had become my best friend. It was only natural that I felt hesitant to visit his grave; it hadn't truly sank in that he passed on. I wouldn't allow it to sink in. It hurt to think I'd never get to see his face in person. I wouldn't get to see him smoke his pipe, or have dinner with him. Nothing.

"I'm going to go venture around, do you have training today?" Sasuke shook his head while trying to quickly finish a tomato on his plate. "Alright, do as you want, just don't cause any trouble." He smirked and nodded. I smiled in return and turned to leave.

For my late breakfast, I decided to head to a nearby tea house; they had the best muffins and coffee in the village. When I walked in, I took a seat near the front and waited to place my order. In my time waiting, I noticed two figures dressed alike in a long cloak donned with red clouds, and a straw hat to hide their faces. I kept staring, quite noticeably, until the one seated on the outside turned their head to stare back. I cringed at being caught so quickly, but when they moved the hat slightly up to show their face, I gasped at the red Sharingan staring intently back at me.

Revised 10/24/16

No big changes, just a few errors fixed.