The first time Akemi managed to land a real hit on Sasori- one that actually damaged him- it was a surprise to them both.
The two tended to specialize during fighting, as ninja often did. Sasori had his puppets and Akemi had her kekkei genkai. During their next mission, however, they couldn't use those as much. They had to focus most of their efforts on blending in and appearing to be just like any of the other ninja in the village. So they were ordered to train, to spar specifically to work on the rest of their skills.
Neither was especially looking forward to it. But, without a choice, the two found a spot relatively nearby where they could practice. Wooded, but not too dense, much like the area the partners were due to be at in two weeks time. Without much build up, the two began. Sasori had the obvious advantage. Not only was he twice her age and, therefore, had much more experience, but his body wouldn't tire. Run out of chakra, maybe, but even if that happened, he would still be able to beat her with strength alone. In the end, that's exactly what happened. Sasori was out of her sight and Akemi was laying on the ground, panting for breath, almost trembling with the effort. The match was over. He wouldn't kill her, counter productivity was against his nature. Instead, he hopped to where she was and held out a hand to help her, barely even noticing the hint of a smirk on her face.
Ah, hell.
The two nin were knocked back with the force of a particularly powerful paper bomb. The only thing that stopped their flight were two trees, conveniently in their paths. Sasori carefully clicked his head back into place, assessing the damage he had taken. Several gashes and cuts, at least one broken limb, but nothing that would deter him for long. He noted, with only a hint of pride, that her move had been perfect. Had he been anyone normal, the blow would have done much more damage. The hit to the tree alone was enough to give someone whiplash, or worse.
At that thought, Sasori looked over to his partner. Akemi laid against the tree, slumped over, a small amount of blood dripping from her mouth and the back of her head. She had suffered some burns from the explosion, but didn't appear too damaged. The smile was still on her face, and Sasori couldn't bring himself to disagree with it. She had won the battle, after all. Akemi had taken a risk by letting off a bomb so close to herself, but if he had been an enemy, it had been the right choice.
Maybe she wasn't a terrible partner after all.
