So here you go… thanks to discussion with Bhuna I've decided against the time skip for this chapter. This'll be a rather short chapter this time. Kinda like a filler but also a little important to the bonds of the characters. So anyway, enjoy ;P

Chapter 9: True Company.

{Location: Raikage's Office}

"Is that all?" the Raikage's voice boomed down the corridors.

"Yes, Lord Raikage. While we were out there we were attacked by Sound Ninja. It turned out that they were at the Chunin exams under cover as Grass Ninja. They seemed to bear the Curse Mark also, raising suspicions that they were forces from the Leaf-nukenin, Orochimaru. Despite this, Ushido had managed to defeat them, admittedly, putting me to shame since I struggled against one with the rest of the team while he just came in and took him out." Replied Darui, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"I see, well then…"

"That's not all," He interrupts, a serious look on his face, "after the fight, I noticed a change in Ushido."

"Change?" asked the Raikage, now very intrigued.

"Yeah, his eyes… it seems his Sharingan has developed further. After the fight against the Sound ninja, his eyes developed a third tomoe within." He finishes; the Raikage now looks down at the desk, placing his hands beneath his chin.

"Hmm… anything else then? Any sign of Sasuke Uchiha?" he asked.

"No sir… we didn't find him." He replied.

"I see, then I was right to refuse in the first place…"

"Actually," he interrupted again, "Ushido did make contact with someone. He received a message Itachi Uchiha…"

"Itachi!? You let him be approached by Itachi Uchiha?" he blared as he jumped to his feet and slammed his hands down on the desk, shaking the surroundings. Darui took a moment to himself before taking a deep breath and continuing.

"Yes. He said that Itachi somehow managed to contact him through his dreams, telling him to meet him in the hidden Uchiha Hideout." He paused, allowing the Raikage to sit back down and calm himself. "Ushido went in alone and said that Itachi did nothing but question him on his intentions and if he held any hatred towards him for what he did. While he was inside, myself and the other members of the team waited outside with Kisame Hoshigaki. Do not worry, Raikage-Sama, he did no harm to us, as under orders from Itachi himself."

"And? What was his answer?" asked the Raikage.

"He said that he holds no hatred towards him and sees no point in seeking revenge. He finds killing in the name of vengeance a sure way to bringing about more hatred and more death." He beamed, making the Raikage sigh in content.

"Amazing…" he mumbled through his hands. "He truly is an amazing ninja." He finished as he leaned back in his chair and turned his gaze to the window, staring down to the village. "Ushido reminds me a lot about another character that Yugito mentioned a few years ago who had the same mental attitude as our Uchiha. It would be interesting to see the two of them together, don't you think?" A mused, tapping a finger on his cheek in thought.

"Yeah. I'll agree with you there, Raikage-Sama. Who knows what'll happen between the two of them..." Darui pondered as his thoughts trailed off.

{Location: Ushido's Apartment}

Ushido and Koken slumped through the door as Ushido flopped over Koken's shoulder with Jonetsu close behind them. They stumbled their way over to Ushido's bed and promptly dropped him down, not gently either. The moment he hits the bed, Ushido falls back and stretches his hands out across the bed.

"*sigh* It's good to be back home, all that running around and fighting has been really tiring." He said.

"Don't forget that is was YOUR idea to leave the village and go on that wild goose chase!" Jonetsu chided, crossing her arms and tapping her foot on the floor angrily. "You have no idea how worried about you I was when you were with Itachi." She finished as she gives a sad look to Ushido, making him feel sorry.

"I-I'm sorry, May-Chan. I had no idea you were so worried about me. I promise I'll make it up to you." He smiled, making her giggle softly behind her hand and blush slightly.

"Good, you can take me out for dinner tonight then." She winked, taking her leave before Ushido could protest. Koken chuckles under his breath and approaches the fatigued Uchiha.

"Do you think you'll be able to survive tonight?" he laughed as Ushido frowns at him.

"I don't know… I guess I'd better rest up, huh? He replied.

"Yeah, I'll leave you to it. Later, Ushido!" Said Koken as he makes his way out the door.

"See ya, Koken…" he replied as he rests his head back and slowly drifts off to sleep.

{Time Skip: Five Hours}

Ushido is awakened by a constant knocking at his door. He forces himself up as he mumbles slight cursing at whoever disturbed his rest. He slowly made his way to the door and opened it.

"Koken…? What're you doing here?" he asked.

"Figured you could use a hand getting ready. Don't forget that you have your 'date' with Jonetsu tonight." He smiled devilishly.

"Crap… I almost forgot. Yeah, I could use some help. What do you suggest?" he questioned.

"Sure thing, you go clean up and I'll pick out something good to wear."

"What makes you an expert on what to wear for something like this?"

"Just go Ushido, and don't be too long or I'll come in and drag you there nude. Got it?" he ordered.

"Alright, alright! Sheesh!" He replied as he turned and proceeded to the shower.

"Ok then… what to pick?" Koken thought to himself as he searched through the wardrobe.

{Time Skip: Twenty Minutes}

Ushido emerges from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist. Koken steps back from the bed and nods in content with his choice, tidy black trousers with a small grey stripe down the left leg, a short sleeve white shirt with red under the collar and nice black shoes. Ushido nods at him in agreement and proceeds to get dressed. Once dressed, he and Koken made their way out the door and towards the restaurant where Ushido would meet Jonetsu.

{Location: Restaurant}

Koken and Ushido wait together for a while, chatting about the usual things, training, challenges and all the other things they keep tabs on.

"Sorry if I'm late, Ushido-Kun." Called Jonetsu from behind.

"No worries May-Chan," he said as he and Koken begin to turn around, "You're just in…" he stops once his onyx eyes meet her shining sapphire eyes, both he and Koken couldn't help but let their jaws drop from the sight. Her purple silk kimono with light floral patterns perfectly complimented her figure and her mahogany hair tied up as usual yet seemed to shine a bit more than they usually did. But the most mesmerising thing of all, her eyes; those beautiful sapphire eyes shone brightly in the moonlight and lit up her face with an elegant glow. She blushed slightly once she noticed that she had managed to stun both her team-mates without a single word. Koken manages to regain himself and nudges Ushido in the side with his devilish smile on his face again.

"Well I guess I'll leave you kids alone then." He chuckles before turning and taking his leave. Jonetsu smiles sweetly and waves goodbye while Ushido tries to regain himself. Once he gets a grip on himself, he smiles at Jonetsu warmly, earning a blush and a sweet smile in return.

"You… you look amazing May-Chan."

"Thank you Ushido-Kun. Shall we?" she gestures for them to make their way inside. Ushido nods and extends his arm, allowing her to take it to walk in together. At their table they sit comfortably across from each other. Jonetsu has the biggest smile Ushido had ever seen while he looked more nervous than ever.

"It was so nice of you to offer to take me out Ushido-Kun." She giggles, earning a smirk from the young Uchiha.

"How couldn't I?" he replies with a cheeky grin, making her giggle again. They sit in a comfortable silence as they simply watch each other. No words needed to be said, no sound was needed for them to know what they were thinking. Or, at least, they thought…

"Is it just me or is it hot in here? It must be hot… Okay Ushido, calm down. This is just a nice dinner with May-Chan and… holy crap why did she have to look so awesome?! She looks almost as hot as Samui-Senpai, although she's hot for some other reason I just can't figure out… damn it it's hot in here."

"*Squeal* I'm actually on a date with Ushido-Kun. This is the best day ever. Nothing in the future could ever ruin me now. Nothing can ever bring my mood down, it's too high now. I kinda feel sorry for Koken; this'll mean he'll be a third wheel to the group. Oh I'm sure he'll manage; I hear Bee-Senpai's looking for someone to rap with, maybe Koken could rap with him. Heehee… it's funny imagining them on stage rapping. Oh my god I'm in such an awesome mood…"

"May-Chan… I gotta say that when I 'offered' to make it up to you and we decided on this, I was so nervous that but… seeing you look this amazing has really brought me back down to Earth. I'm glad we could do this." He smiles warmly, earning a beautiful smile in return. He'd always loved her smiles; they always made him feel safe and that everything would be okay. It reminded him of whenever he'd get afraid as a child and his mother would hold with, look into his eyes and smile.

{Time Skip: Three Hours}

{Location: Village Marketplace}

Ushido and Jonetsu exit the restaurant arms linked. With the slight chill in the air, Ushido felt Jonetsu shiver slightly beside him. He looked down to her and chuckled softly at her.

"Wh-what's s-so funny, Ushido-k..k..Kun." she says while shaking furiously.

"Nothing, you just look a little cold there. Just a little." He laughs, making her frown. He brings his right hand up to his mouth and whistles loudly then extends his arm out. Within a few seconds, a jacket falls down from above and lands across his arm. "Thanks Koken!" he shouts.

"That's all you get this time, baka!" shouted Koken in return from the building above. Jonetsu looks around in confusion before looking up to Ushido as if to ask for an explanation.

"I made a plan with Koken earlier. We knew it'd be a little cold tonight so we made a bet. If you were a little cold, he'd have to respond to that whistle and bring a jacket for you that I picked out." He takes his arm away from her and wraps the jacket around her. A look of wonder comes across her face as he adjusts it to make sure it fits her nicely.

"And what if I wasn't cold?" she asked, somewhat intrigued.

"Well, I'd pay him a thousand Ryo tomorrow. I'm glad you were cold tonight… I kinda spent the last of what I had tonight." He chuckled. Jonetsu simply rolls her eyes and wraps her arms around his left arm and rested her head into his arm. They continued to walk around for a further hour before stopping by a nice fountain and sat together in comfortable silence.

"May-Chan?"

"Mhmm?"

"Tonight was an awesome night. I'm glad I could hang out with you like this. I wouldn't want to do this with anyone else. Moments like this make me forget all my troubles in the world and just be content with just what's happening right now in the moment, and I'm glad that it's with you." He said with the warmest smile he ever had. Jonetsu looks up into his eyes watches him as he looks out in the distance for a short while before looking down at her and stared into her eyes. They stare into each other's eyes for a while before looking away and continue to sit in comfortable silence for a while. Jonetsu thinks carefully to herself on her next move before deciding on what to do.

"Ushido-Kun?" she called before he looks down to her to see what she wanted. The moment his eyes met hers, she leans in to meet her lips with his. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought him deeper into the kiss, kissing him passionately for what seemed like forever.

Comparing to the kiss she gave him over a year ago, which was simply a kiss on the cheek; this had beaten it by miles. To her, this was by far the best decision she had ever made. She had finally kissed the guy she had set her eyes on for years and she held no regrets for it.

She loosens her grip on him and backs away slowly to look up into his eyes again. The look of surprise on his face almost makes her laugh. She giggles softly into her hand then gently rests her head into his chest. He wraps his arms around her, still a surprised look on his face, which makes her giggles into her hand again. They simply sit together in a comfortable silence and enjoy each other's company for the remainder of their time together. From above, Koken watches in delight at the 'show' then leans back and rests comfortably on his favourite spot in the village.

"Well Jonetsu-Chan… you finally did it. You finally did it…" he smiles as he rests his head back and gazed up at the stars. "Whaddya know, they seem brighter! Coincidence?" he sniggered.

So there we are guys. A nice ending to this chapter and a nice beginning to their relationship. Finally, right? Well time skip next chapter, should be fun. Please Rate and Review, I'd love to hear your opinions. See ya next chapter /(^_^)