Chapter Eight

Jin paced around Kakashi's place, frowning a little. He'd left just a little while after they had returned with his students to inform them of the Chuunin Exams. He was very worried that Kakashi would be mad at him for nearly getting his students blown up. He'd really thought it would be safe.

He was never good in situations like these. Waiting for punishment was not his strong suit, and the suspense was killing him. He didn't deal well when anger was directed towards him as well, and he could tell that Kakashi had not been happy when he'd left, though he hadn't stayed long enough to ask Jin anything.

And so Jin waited, not bothering to treat the wound he had received from the explosion. His ice kept it from bleeding, so he wasn't at risk for bleeding out, thankfully. Still, he supposed dying a painful death would be less painful than waiting like this. He was scared out of his mind, having no idea what Kakashi would do. Many possibilities crossed his mind.

Would he hit him? Yell at him? Cut him? Burn him? Kick him out? He couldn't keep himself from imagining the worst case scenarios, even though he didn't think that Kakashi would harm him. He couldn't help the awful thoughts running through his mind. Anxiety made him pace faster. Though he was used to that sort of abuse, he was still terrified of receiving it, which in turn made him ashamed. He was a shinobi, and should be able to deal with something like that easily. It wasn't like he was helpless. No, he was a weapon, but somehow every time it happened, his reactions stayed the same as they always had.

He didn't even notice Kakashi come in, until he cleared his throat. Evidently, he had been watching Jin pace for quite a while so far.

Jin nearly jumped out of his skin, looking as if he'd seen a ghost. He stopped and stared at Kakashi, much like a cornered animal. He didn't speak, not trusting his voice yet.

"So, you went back to look for evidence, with my students. The note was appreciated, but I would have preferred to come along." So far, Kakashi sounded as if he were just making friendly conversation. "You nearly got my students killed, you know."

Jin shrank back, staring at Kakashi and waiting for him to explode into a rage. "Ahh...y-yes, I did. I'm s-sorry." He took a few steps backwards, as if trying to escape. "I s-shouldn't have t-taken them along without y-you there."

Kakashi watched him quietly, wondering why he was so cagey all of sudden. Jin looked like he thought he was going to hurt him. Eyes wide and frantic. Hands shaking violently. Fearful steps backwards. His stuttering. It didn't help that he looked beat to hell and back, partly from the still healing bruises from his battle, and partly from the explosion that he had just survived. It was strange, but he looked vulnerable, so different from his typical carefree attitude. "Jin-san, I'm not going to hurt you."

Despite that assurance, Jin didn't relax. He didn't know Kakashi well enough to trust his words at face value, even though his voice was sincere. "H-how can I know t-that? I h-hardly know y-you." His gaze flickered to the door, and then to the window as he contemplated his escape routes.

"Because, even though I'm not happy that you put my students in danger and only left a note, that's no reason to hurt you. Not to mention the fact that harming you would damage relations between the Mist and the Leaf. I'm not angry at you, but it was stupid of you to do something like that when you're not even back to full health. While my students can take care of themselves, it's apparent that we're missing something as far as this supposed trafficking ring goes. Something dangerous." Kakashi replied, wondering what the hell he had done to make Jin act like that.

Jin nodded hesitantly, staring at Kakashi. Though his hands slowly stopped shaking, his violet eyes remained wide and frantic. "I-I see…" Was Kakashi really not angry with him? He really wasn't going to hurt him? He wasn't sure if he'd heard right, but maybe that was just the ringing that remained in his ears after the explosion.

"Come on, you should go to the hospital to have your injuries treated." Kakashi spoke more softly now, almost gently as if he were trying to calm a frightened animal. His words, however, did not seem to calm him.

"N-no. Hakaru-chan can t-take care of me when h-he gets home." He protested, glancing around anxiously now. "B-besides, it's f-fine for now. The ice will s-stop the bleeding…" He protested, staring at Kakashi with even wider eyes. "P-please don't make me go."

Kakashi let out a heavy sigh, but thought, against his better judgement, that perhaps it would be better to just let it go. "Fine," he paused for a moment, "at least let me wrap up whatever injuries you have, so that you don't have to waste your chakra freezing them over when you're still recovering it. I'm not a medical nin, but I can at least do that much."

As Kakashi reached for him, Jin flinched away. He glanced at the window, briefly contemplating making an escape through it. He was certain Kakashi would be able to catch him, though, considering the state he was currently in right now, both mentally and physically. He knew he needed to pull himself together, but it was so hard. That was really what he struggled with a lot of the time. He was almost always so well put together under the emotional mask he wore that he could force himself to handle nearly anything that was thrown at him, but as soon as he was caught off guard or had had time to let the fear take over, he was a wreck.

"D-don't touch me." Jin cast another glance at the window, really just wanting to make a break for it. He was resourceful, so he was sure that he could figure out some way to escape from Kakashi until he'd calmed down. He was pretending not to know that Kakashi would have no trouble catching him.

As he had many times before, Jin wished he had Raizo by his side. Raizo always knew just how to calm him down when he got scared like this. Only Jin and Hakaru had seen the gentle side of Raizo, and any outsider that had known the Kaguya would have been surprised that he was capable of such gentleness. Jin shook his head to clear his thoughts, feeling the all-too-familiar agony that welled up whenever he thought of Raizo, knowing that they would only make his fear and panic much worse.

"Jin-san, I can tell what you're thinking, and even if you do get away from me, someone else will either return you to me like a lost dog or force you to go to the hospital. You might as well just stay here. I'm not going to hurt you, and I'm not going to force you to go to the hospital." Kakashi crossed his arms, but, sensing Jin's need for space, took a step back from him. The last thing he wanted to do was make his fear worse. He'd noticed Jin's hands shaking again.

Jin considered his words for a moment, trying to calm down enough to process what he was telling him. He drew in a deep, shaky breath and stared at Kakashi. While he would normally close his eyes when he took deep breaths to soothe his anxieties, he didn't know him well enough to trust him not to do anything harmful.

After a moment, he cleared his throat and let out a heavy sigh. "Do y-you promise? You won't make m-me go to the hospital?" He took another deep breath, trying to even out his shaky voice. "You're not going to hurt me...?" He hated asking that question because he knew it made him sound weak, but he couldn't help himself.

"I promise that I won't hurt you or take you to the hospital, Jin-san." As a show of bearing no ill will, Kakashi held his hands out in a non-threatening manner. He didn't know why Jin was having a breakdown like this, but he realized now that it had been his fault. He felt like he should have handled that conversation differently, even though he had no way of knowing that Jin would make himself anxious to the point of a breakdown over something like this. His students hadn't suffered any injuries other than a few bruises, and he certainly wasn't going to hold something like that against him since they hadn't been hurt.

Jin stared at Kakashi's hands for several moments, and then looked back up at his masked face. He couldn't really read him, so he had to take his words at face value. He took another deep breath, feeling the tightness in his chest begin to loosen as his fear very slowly began to fade. He had to trust him. How were they supposed to work together if he couldn't trust Kakashi not to harm him when his back was turned? How could they work together if he couldn't trust Kakashi to watch his back for the time they were to be working together? "...okay." He said softly.

Kakashi let out a small sigh. "Now, will you let me wrap your wounds? You don't need to using up your chakra for something like this.

Jin hesitated, staring at him as if he still wasn't convinced. He didn't really have any options, did he? If he refused, there was the likelihood of Kakashi making him go to the hospital again even though he had said he wouldn't, and he couldn't handle that right now. He hated the hospital because the nurses always asked questions, and those questions were ones that he preferred not to answer, lest he bring someone's rage down upon him.

"I guess that would be fine…" He answered hesitantly, forcing himself not to flinch when Kakashi passed him to go retrieve some things from the bathroom. He heaved a sigh and slowly sat down in one of the kitchen chairs. It was a relief to sit down, since he was rather sore from landing so hard after the explosion.

A moment later, Kakashi returned, holding a damp rag in one hand and a roll of bandages in the other. He set both down on the counter and stared at Jin for a few moments, trying to figure out where exactly he had been injured, other than his shoulder. He was caked in dirt from his landing, so that didn't help.

Jin watched Kakashi watch him, feeling a little calmer now. He slowly allowed the ice to melt around the wound on his shoulder, feeling almost self-conscious with Kakashi's gaze on him. He wasn't sure if he should say anything, or stay silent, or what.

Kakashi let out a sigh and pulled up a chair in front of Jin. He sat down in front of him and made him turn so that he could look at the shoulder wound, which had started bleeding again. It looked as if the wound went farther down, past his tank top. "Take off your shirt." He said reluctantly.

Jin couldn't help but blink at him in surprise, but a little of his humor returned and he smiled. "What? Not even going to take me out on a date first?" He couldn't help the words that left his lips as he took off the tank top and shifted so that Kakashi had a better view of the wound.

That earned a slight chuckle from Kakashi, who was glad that Jin seemed to have recovered from his breakdown at least a little. "Nope, now sit still."

The wound wasn't all that bad, though it did go from his shoulder to his spine, where it met up with a deep scar that ran halfway down his spine, and veered off towards his hip. That seemed to be the only scar, though, and the only sign that Jin was indeed a shinobi and not just some pretty courtesan. His skin was otherwise unmarked, and with his slender, athletic build it was easy to see why he got so many glances when he walked through the village. He was well-muscled, but it was subtle enough that it didn't show from beneath his clothes, especially when he wore the kimonos and yukatas he favored so much.

"Scandalous." Jin whispered, not even flinching when Kakashi used the damp rag to wipe the dirt and blood away from his wound. "I didn't realize you were that kind of man, Hatake-sama." He was teasing now, though he had no idea of the sort of literature, if it could even be called that, he cherished.

"Really? Keep in mind that you're the one who walked into that courtesan house, as if you knew exactly what you were doing. Besides, have you seen the picture of you that was sent in your file? You look like a prostitute." Kakashi pointed out idly, taking care not to cause Jin more pain than necessary.

That got a laugh out of Jin. He couldn't help but relax when Kakashi teased him back. "Well, I do know exactly what I'm doing in those places. I was practically raised in one. And as far as that picture goes...well, that was sort of the point. I want people to underestimate me. It's nice to see that look of surprise on their faces when they realize that they have absolutely no chance of beating the guy that looks like he belongs on a stripper pole."

"Is that so? Well, I suppose that, had you not already told us that you were a hunter nin, I may have underestimated you a little. You have a tendency to act pretty pathetic." Kakashi set down the wash rag, and began wrapping Jin's wound. It wasn't perfect, but it would do until Hakaru returned to fix him up.

"I do, don't I? I can assure you, though, that in serious situations, I don't act like that. I've become a rather careful person when I'm working in a team, so as not to let anyone get hurt too badly. But that also means that I can't go all out in battle. When I'm alone, though, or with...ah, sorry, just when I'm alone, I don't hold back. Most who fight me one on one don't live to tell the tale." He sounded almost cheerful by the end of that, as if he enjoyed the idea of that.

"Hm…" Kakashi sounded almost as if he didn't quite believe that. He pulled the bandages tight, and stepped back

"I can prove it you, if you'd like. We can spar. After Hakaru-chan fixes me up, of course. We can have someone mediate and Hakaru-chan can be on standby, too, just so that neither of us get too crazy. It would be bad if we accidentally killed each other, wouldn't it? Mizukage-sama would not be happy, and neither would Hokage-sama. But there's nothing wrong with a little friendly sparring, right? I find that if I know someone's style, it makes it easier to work with them in the future, because there's at least a little bit of understanding how someone is going to react, and how you can react accordingly." Jin smiled up at him.

"Hm...I don't see why not, but someone would definitely need to mediate. I agree with that idea. We'll have to set down some ground rules, though, too." Kakashi turned and tossed the bloody rag into the laundry room, and then went to wash his hands.

"Aww, Hatake-sama, rules are for weaklings." He joked, smiling. "In Kiri, we fight each other with everything we have, even when we're sparring. Of course, there's always someone there to make sure that we don't permanently maim or kill each other, but they don't usually step in otherwise."

"We're not in Kiri." Kakashi reminded him seriously. "We care a little more about each other here. Keep that in mind."

Jin shrugged. "I suppose you're right. But wait, does that mean you care about little ol' me? I'm flattered." He grabbed his tank top and slipped it back on. "I care about you, too. You and your cute little students." His expression grew serious, the smile on his face fading slightly. "Which is why you can be sure that while I'm still hanging around here, I won't let them get into more trouble than they can handle on their own."

Kakashi was about to speak when Hakaru came prancing through the door, humming a pretty tune different than the ones Jin had grown up hearing in his home village. It was happy and upbeat, and nothing like the mourning songs he knew by heart.

"Jin-chan?" Hakaru lifted his nose in the air, smelling the blood on Jin. "You're hurt again." It seemed that he was putting more effort into speaking properly, though he still spoke a little awkwardly, as if unsure of himself. He bounced over to Jin and leaned close to him, sniffing him closely.

While others would be unnerved by his strange actions, Jin was completely used to this sort of thing from Hakaru. "Nothing too bad, Hakaru-chan. It would be nice if you could heal me up, though. Hatake-sama and I wanna spar, but we can't do that until I'm well enough to fight without too much trouble." He ruffled Hakaru's hair gently.

"Jin-chan, you idiot!" Hakaru smacked him, but immediately proceeded in healing him of the wounds he had sustained from the explosion. "No fighting like you do at home. Bad. Too dangerous. You get hurt bad."

"Aww, Hakaru-chan, when I get hurt bad, it's not because I'm sparring or training in any way. It's because the shinobi that are supposed to be my allies are scum and wish to take advantage of me, and when I don't let them, they get mad and try to kill me. Kiri is a pretty terrible place to live, if you're pretty. You know that. It's nothing like it is here." Jin said all of that happily, as if it didn't bother him.

It did, of course, but he wasn't one to show that kind of thing. There was no point in showing weakness if he could help it, and he'd come so far from the child that couldn't protect himself in the courtesan house he'd been forced to work in, the child that couldn't stop the unwanted advances of people that the Land of Water put their trust in to keep their borders safe from enemy shinobi. Even now, when he was caught off guard, he couldn't always stop those unwanted advances.

Hakaru scowled stubbornly, but continued to use his chakra to heal the remainder of Jin's wounds, including the cuts and bruises. "Dummy." He grumbled, as if that were the worst insult he knew.

"Ah, whatever. I'm not a dummy. Anyway, Hatake-sama," he turned his attention to the copy-nin, smiling at him, "how about we have a little bet? You win, and I'll admit that I'm an idiot and am not to be trusted to take care of your precious students. I will not go anywhere even slightly dangerous with them, without you. However, if I win, you accept that I can be trusted to keep your students safe in situations they can't handle on their own, and that I am perfectly capable of watching your back, as well. What do you say?"

"Hm...I suppose that sounds fair." Kakashi replied, not commenting on the conversation between Jin and Hakaru. He hadn't realized how bad it was in the Mist. Of course, its moniker as the 'Bloody Mist' was a giveaway about the cruelty they were brought up with and taught to inflict on enemies. "We still need to set down some ground rules, though."

Jin nodded and stood up once Hakaru was finished with him. He didn't think there was any point in changing out of his outfit, since they were going to be sparring anyway. "Come on, Hakaru-chan. You'll be needed, just in case someone gets hurt. And, we'll also need someone to mediate. Someone strong enough to stop us both if we go too far. We can discuss the rules when we get there, if that's okay with you, Hatake-sama?"

Kakashi nodded slightly and followed the pair out. He ignored the strange looks and whispers that people gave Jin and Hakaru, sighing. There had been rumours starting to spread about the two of them, though Kakashi was sure that they hadn't noticed or even heard most of them. He knew that sooner or later, one or both of them would say something odd, and then it would end up in the news and the papers completely exaggerated. He was surprised that there hadn't been anything in the newspapers yet.

The three of them met up with Kurenai and Asuma heading in the opposite direction, as if they were just returning from telling their students about the Chuunin Exams. In all honesty, Jin had enjoyed the Chuunin Exams, and almost wished he could participate again. Of course, he couldn't, but that didn't stop him from thinking about it.

Jin inclined his head and smiled at the pair. "Yuuhi-hime, Sarutobi-sama. It's a pleasure to see you again." He smiled kindly at them and tilted his head. "Oh, perhaps you two would like to help us out with something? If you're not busy, of course. I wouldn't want to bother you too much."

Kurenai cast a glance at Asuma, who merely shrugged, before turning her attention back to Jin and Kakashi. "What is it?" She asked, not unkindly.

"Hatake-sama and I were going to spar, but we thought it would be a good idea to have a mediator, in case one of us went too far. Perhaps two would be better, if you don't mind helping out. It would be much appreciated." Jin replied, while Kakashi grabbed Hakaru by his wrist and pulled him back when he nearly walked into an old lady.

Kurenai once again glanced at Asuma, her interest piqued. It would be a good opportunity to see what the foreign shinobi was capable of. "I suppose. Asuma?"

Asuma nodded slightly in response. "Sure, I don't see why not." He took a long drag of his cigarette, studying Jin intelligently. He, too, was curious about him, and wondered what more there was to him. After all, as they both had heard the night before, Jin had been forced into wars, and wars changed people. He wondered what was lurking beneath the surface of the Mist shinobi's kind and gentle expressions.

Jin smiled delightedly, and continued walking. "Great! Thanks! I'm glad you can help us out. We'll be sure to put on a good show for you. I imagine that you haven't had much opportunity to see some of the techniques Kiri employs in battle. Perhaps we can all learn from each other. I would definitely enjoy that. I like learning new things."

The group of five continued on their way to the training grounds, all interested in how this was going to go down. Kakashi was a phenomenal shinobi, but this Kiri nin was a wild card, and hadn't shown any sign of how powerful he could be. There was a reason that the Mizukage had sent Jin to represent the Land of Water, and it meant that she had complete faith in whatever abilities he possessed.

When they reached the training grounds, Jin made Hakaru sit somewhere that he wouldn't end up getting caught in the middle of their spar, and had Kurenai and Asuma sit with him. "Hatake-sama, you said you wanted ground rules? I think it would be fair to agree not to use our kekkei genkai, especially since this is just a spar. No killing blows, of course, and no ninjutsu that could cause fatal injuries. Yuuhi-hime, Sarutobi-sama, please intervene if you see any of that. Hatake-sama, do you have any other rules you wish to set?"

"First one to pin the other for a minute wins." Kakashi suggested, knowing that he couldn't underestimate Jin, even if this was just a spar.

Jin nodded in agreement. "That sounds fair. Are you ready to begin, then? Oh, wait, let me grab something first." He dug around in the pouch attached to his belt and retrieved a scroll. When he opened it, he removed a long, pure white sword. The hilt looked startlingly like a femur bone, though the blade was much too long, and it was unlikely that a weapon of bone existed. "I hope you don't mind if I use this. I don't get much chance since it stands out so much, and it was a gift from someone very dear."

Kakashi shook his head, eyeing the blade for a moment. "That's fine." He replied, pulling out a bright orange book, Icha Icha. He didn't appear to be paying any attention to Jin now. He looked perfectly relaxed.

Asuma told them they could begin the match, and Jin watched Kakashi curiously. "Hatake-sama...I didn't know you were a pervert." He mumbled. "Such lewd reading material…"

"Then what does that make you? You know the book, so wouldn't that imply that you're a pervert, too?" Kakashi replied lazily, reading along the page quite easily.

Jin couldn't help but laugh. "I suppose that's true, Hatake-sama. But that's besides the point. I think you should put the book away and focus on me, otherwise you may end up losing this spar." With his free hand, he made a few hand signs, and vanished in a puff of smoke.

Kakashi didn't seem bothered by this, continuing to read quietly. He was a little surprised that Jin was capable of one-handed seals, but it wasn't yet enough to make him put his book away. For now, he wouldn't treat him as a formidable opponent.

Nothing happened for several moments, and everyone but Hakaru was wondering what Jin was planning. Hakaru knew exactly where Jin was, his sense of smell and hearing stronger than everyone else's due to his lack of sight. That, and he'd grown up playing hide-and-seek with him, and knew how he played. He turned his blind gaze in Kurenai and Asuma's general direction.

"Don't underestimate Jin-chan. Even without Raizo-chan, he's extremely deadly." He told them, tilting his head. "If Raizo-chan was still here, no one could beat them. They dangerous."

Kurenai turned her attention to Hakaru, a little unnerved that he seemed to know exactly where their faces were, despite not being able to see. "Kakashi isn't a pushover, either. You shouldn't underestimate him."

"Kakashi-chan didn't live his whole life surrounded by violence. Almost every moment of Jin-chan's life, he was hurt and used as a weapon and treated badly, except when Raizo-chan was around. Jin-chan was raised to be a monster, but he is not. That does not mean that he cannot act like one. All Jin-chan knows is violence, more so than most other shinobi, even at home in Kiri. Jin-chan said once that his first memory was of raging flames and the screams of the dying." Hakaru spoke quietly, turning his attention away. "Jin-chan strikes like snake, and then vanishes like a hunting cat."

Asuma narrowed his eyes slightly, studying Hakaru. He exchanged a glance with Kurenai before turning his attention back to where Kakashi was waiting. A moment later, Hakaru spoke up again.

"Jin-chan is a hunter. He's just watching Kakashi-chan right now to see what he will do, like he is prey. When I hunt, I do same, except listen instead of watch." Hakaru turned his attention back towards Kakashi. "Listen. He is getting ready to make his move. Kakashi-chan won't see it coming."

There was a rustle from the bushes directly behind Kakashi, though he acted as if it didn't bother him. A kunai shot out from the bush, flying right towards him. As soon as it hit him, there was a puff of smoke and he was gone, a log in his place.

Kakashi suddenly reappeared behind the bush, where Jin was crouched. Almost immediately, he put a kunai to his throat. He wasn't underestimating Jin, but the Mist shinobi was really making it easy so far. Until he felt the blade against his own throat.

"You're underestimating me, Ha-ta-ke-sa-ma." Jin said his name slowly, dragging out each syllable. The version of himself that Kakashi held the kunai against vanished into a puddle of water. Just a water clone. "That one was pretty good, huh? You've probably memorized my chakra signature by now and how strong it feels, right? It's an easy trick to make clones like that radiate the same amount of chakra as yourself." He put more pressure on the blade pressed against his throat, though he was careful not to draw blood.

There was another puff of smoke, and Kakashi was gone again, replaced once more by a log.

Jin blinked and looked around, frowning slightly. He sighed and walked out of the shrubbery, returning to where he had stood at the beginning of the match. Kakashi was a slippery one, and it seemed that he would have to actually hunt for him.

He closed his eyes for a moment and drew in a deep breath. He was grounding himself, settling himself into his surroundings and the mode of thinking he took on when he was sent out on missions as a hunter nin. He shifted his weight to the balls of his feet, ready to take off whenever he heard Kakashi make a move.

He felt rather than heard Kakashi come up behind him, and spun around. His blade met Kakashi's kunai, stopping it just before it cut his throat. "You're fast, Hatake-sama." Hardly a second later, they were clashing blades at such a high speed that their blades were merely blurs. It came to a point where their blades clashed so hard that both Jin's sword and Kakashi's kunai were flung out of each other's hands.

Jin leapt at Kakashi, tackling him to the ground. Kakashi was apparently too surprised to use his substitution jutsu. It wasn't very often that shinobi tackled each other like children in battle, or even just spars.

The spar quickly devolved into a wrestling match, each one kicking and punching the other in their attempts to subdue the other. Kurenai and Asuma were startled. Kakashi never acted like that, never got so...riled up that he would resort to something so...juvenile.

The pair grappled for a while until Jin wound up on top, straddling Kakashi to keep him down. "Looks like I'm gonna win this one." He grinned, panting and out of breath. It had been a long time since he'd really gotten out of breath like that in a spar.

Jin leaned his face down close to Kakashi's, stopping when his lips were barely a centimeter from his ear. "It's been such a long time since I've sparred like this with anyone…" His voice was low, his rasping breaths loud against Kakashi's ear. "You're good." He sounded almost seductive, though it certainly wasn't his intention to. "Even in a limited spar like this, it's obvious."

"Oh, is it?" Kakashi asked softly, sitting still for a moment. And then he fought back, their positions quickly switching, with Kakashi on top, pinning Jin to the ground. "You're not going to win this spar."

Jin began to struggle, narrowing his eyes slightly. He managed to free himself partly from Kakashi's grasp, enough to begin fighting back once again. They really were fighting like kids, wrestling around and kicking and punching each other. Well, they were until Jin ended up rolling into a sharp rock, and hitting his head rather hard. He winced in pain, blacking out a moment later.

It had hardly been a minute before Jin regained consciousness, waking to concerned voices. He didn't bother opening his eyes, though he was rather startled to realize that someone was cradling his head in their hands, as if to prevent more damage.

"Keep holding his head still, Kakashi-chan. It'll just be a moment to heal him up. It's not bad." Hakaru's voice sounded concerned, despite his words of reassurance. A moment later, he could feel Hakaru's chakra healing up whatever injury he had sustained. "There. That should do it. Kakashi-chan, please keep Jin-chan's head off the ground until he wakes up." The feeling of Hakaru's gentle chakra faded.

"I'm glad he'll be alright." Though he tried not to show it, Kakashi sounded worried. Though, Jin thought, he was probably only worried because if Jin died, there would be war between the Mist and the Leaf.

He had to admit, though, that Kakashi had very gentle hands and that he was very comfortable just pretending to remain unconscious for a while. Still, he figured that they would get irritated with him if he faked it for too long, so he slowly opened his eyes, wincing a tiny bit at the bright sunlight. "Hakaru-chan, Hatake-sama?" He asked almost feebly.

"Jin-chan, you're awake." His expression clearly showed his delight as he shifted closer. "You hit your head on a rock when you were fighting. Hatake-sama was worried that he might have accidentally killed you."

Jin glanced up at Kakashi, not seeing any concern on what little of his face he could see. He supposed that Kakashi must hide it well if he really was concerned. "Ahh, it's okay. It takes more than a little knock to the head kill me." Slowly, he sat up, happy that Hakaru's healing skills were so advanced, despite how little training he had.

Kakashi let out a sigh, sort of sounding relieved in that apathetic way of his. "Good." He got up and helped Jin to his feet, making sure he was steady on them before he let go.

"Say, Hatake-sama, you have surprisingly gentle hands." Jin smiled at him and promptly changed the subject. "I need a shower, so I'll see you guys later. Thanks for sparring with me. You won this round." He turned and went on his way back towards Kakashi's place, leaving the others behind.


"What the hell happened?! They weren't supposed to catch on this quickly!" The man speaking paced back and forth, raking his hands roughly through his greying hair.

"I...I…" A young woman in the room stepped back, glancing around for an escape route. "It was just one of the s-small facilities...the other ones are still safe." Her voice trembled, and she took another step back, fear clear in her amber eyes.

"Yes, I suppose you're right about that, Aiko." The man's voice went very calm for a moment. "I suppose that means that it's perfectly okay that they're catching on before we're ready, doesn't it? It's not as if we're not ready or anything, is it?"

The woman, Aiko, let out a soft whimper and cast a glance at the tiny window to her left. She could fit through it, but she wouldn't be fast enough. "T-they won't figure it out. Miki is dead now, so they can't get any information from her, and the children...they don't know enough to give anything away. I-I placed the explosive tags like you asked. There shouldn't be any way that they can retrieve anything from the facility now…"

"Shut up, girl. I'm thinking." The man stopped pacing, narrowing his eyes. A slow smirk crept up on his face and he turned his attention back to Aiko.

"I-I'm sorry…" She whimpered, backing up against the wall. "F-forgive me…"

"No, no, dear daughter of mine. You weren't in charge of that facility. Gaku was, and he was an idiot. But that's alright. This can still be salvaged. Aiko, dear, tell me, have you found out who is leading the investigation?" The man smiled eerily, as if he had thought up a foolproof plan.

Aiko looked rather startled, but quickly began fumbling around in her pocket. She retrieved a ragged piece of paper and unfolded it. "It...it seems that Konoha and Kiri are b-both working together...ah, here are the n-names…" she stuttered. "Shiraishi Jin, Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura, Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzumaki Naruto...b-but before I k-killed Miki, she said that only Shiraishi and H-Haruno were in the facility…"

"I see...I see...so the jinchuuriki is involved…" The man mumbled thoughtfully. "But he wasn't in the facility. Yes, yes, this will work out. Aiko, I have a job for you."

The woman shrank away as her father approached, paling considerably. "Y-yes? Whatever it is, I'll do it...y-you know that…"

"Yes, yes you will. Listen to me closely, Aiko." He waited until he was sure that Aiko was paying close attention to what he had to say.

"Y-yes, father...I'm listening…"

"Good. I want you to infiltrate Konoha and eliminate Shiraishi and Haruno, and if you can manage it, Hatake. Leave the Uchiha and Uzumaki. They'll serve a purpose later." He spoke coldly, staring down at his daughter. "Will you do it?"

"Y-yes...I'll do it."


Author's Note: Sorry for the late update! I just got done with finals, so I was busy studying. However, I'm happy to present you with the next chapter! I hope you're noticing some things here, but if not, all will be revealed in due time. I think this chapter shows how unstable Jin can be when he thinks he's made someone angry. Up until now, he hasn't really shown how past abuse has affected him. Anyway, thanks for reading! Feel free to leaves some reviews! I'd love to hear your feedback!

Edit: I have added more and rewritten a little bit of the beginning of this chapter because reviewer Trisana mentioned that the time it took for Jin to recover from his breakdown seemed to short. I agreed, so here's the revised version! Thanks again to Trisana for pointing that out, and I'm glad that you're still enjoying the story!