Revised: 5/28/2012

Thank you again to my awesome reviewers: lady-insane-2004, Crestfallenfeline, DarkAnonymous324, anniewanny2and Just Lovely.

Typos pointed out by: Just Lovely.

"Alongside time exists fate, the bearer of cruelty."

~Nix, Persona 3~

"Melted Steel"

By: FenixPhoenix (Giselle González)

Chapter 11: "Sand Castles"

Mission type: S-Rank, Specialist: ANBU operative—chameleon type, Codename: Black Widow, Team: Solo, Objective: Infiltration, Mission ID: 02103828.

Three years. It would have been four, if Konoha had waited a few more days. But of course, I've never been one to have much luck in life, or receive much love from the Gods either. Why do I say this? Because, almost four years of perfect happiness was all I was given before my world tumbled upside down…

My life, luck, or whatever you want to call it, shifted when I went grocery shopping yesterday. With a basket hanging from my arm, I approached the apple stand. That was my first mistake. They were red and fresh and I had always had a weak spot for that particular fruit. It somehow always seemed to fit me, and what I did -which was nothing short of playing the temptress and sinning my way into men's hearts. And even when I have longed since resigned –betrayed- my job as the black widow, I had never been able to ditch the quirk.

That day, though, I wished I had.

Upon picking an apple, I found a small piece of paper tucked beneath. I wondered how it had remained undisturbed, for I was sure apples were preferred by many besides me. Yet, my mind pushed the oddity aside and I grabbed it. The paper was slightly crumbled but, as I held it with trembling fingers, I saw it had one single kanji written on it. Sunrise. It was the code I'd been given before leaving Konoha.

My mission was over.

I couldn't help it. I laughed. Low and sarcastic it came, like a harsh bark. The irony was ridiculous! How many times had I wished for this paper? How many times had I taken it with a sense of triumph at knowing I'd accomplished my objective?

Now there I was, standing on the other side. I awfully felt like this time I was the one being played by none other than Kami-sama himself. I hated the feeling and wondered, for a split second, if this was to be my righteous punishment. Had my past victims felt like this when they'd found out they'd been living in a fragile Sand Castle? Was this, what I had created, a fantasy as well?

I shook my head not in denial, but in anger. Did they truly expect me to return after all this time?

Why? Why now? I asked myself even when I knew the answer. Kami, I knew it and hated it. I was a weapon, one of their best shinobi, and nobody would be so fast to discard me, not even after all this time. That was the heart of the matter, wasn't it? There weren't, I was sure, any other kunoichi trained like I had been, for the purpose that they'd used me time and again. I was unique and this was the first time that I felt no ounce of pride for it.

For a long while, I just stood there, trying to sort out my feelings, trying to hold in my bitterness. I lingered near the apple stand, studying my surroundings, as if I would be able to recognize whoever had come to retrieve me. But of course, that had been too much to ask! For all I knew, he or she was no longer there. They'd have to have gone. Gone to hide and wait for the right time to meet with me on the accorded ground. On the cave past that waterfall where I'd waited in vain for someone to come and save me from losing my frozen heart. But fact was that nobody came and so, forfeited but all too happy, I gave my heart away… for the very first time and for the last as well.

Naively, I asked myself if it would be wiser to just throw the paper away and ignore its existence like Konoha had done with me. I wondered if it would be so terrible for me to walk away. Most of all, I wondered if it would be too stupid of me to hope and pray that whoever had come would leave empty handed, without even an explanation if I failed to meet with him or her.

I laughed again at that, bitterness tainting the sound that came out. I knew better. My hand fisted around the paper that was sentencing me to give it all up in exchange for a bleak existence. The small, wet article stuck to my hand like a leech. Yes. That is what it felt like to me. Like a leech wanting to suck me dry.

I wish I hadn't gone that day. I wish that I could live in my fantasy, in my small little lie for just one more day… one more week… maybe, if it was not too much to ask, a couple of more years. But, in the core of my heart, I knew better. I knew much better than that.

Fate.

It truly hated me. Why else would it have decided to blow at my Sand Castle until it crumbled to the ground? Why? Why did you have to do it now, just when I had been fooled into believing that you, fate, had held me against your breast as if I was your favorite daughter!

I sighed and pushed the cursed little paper into my pocket. I knew I would have to burn it later, else someone would ask about it. When I left the store that day, my heart was heavy with worry, but my mind was whirling with angry thoughts, my tongue held between my teeth else I would curse at anyone who dared greet me with a smile. Yesterday had not been a nice day. Yesterday had been the beginning of my end.

And now, against all my deepest wishes, I find myself here. Sitting in the same spot where I had waited long ago. Kami, it feels to me, looking back upon it, like another life. A life that I was happy to end. A life that I do not want back.

Soaked to my bones, I shiver with something that has nothing to do with my physical wellbeing. I know I don't have much time before someone comes looking for me. It is unlike me to be out of my home for too long without letting at least someone know where I'll be. I think about my little child then. I think about the day that her dad gave her his most precious kunai and named her his champion of steel. I think about how proud I felt. If it had been possible, I know my heart would have burst out of my chest.

My thoughts are interrupted by the presence of someone who'd just stepped into the cave through the curtain of water. I regain my feet, my heart hammering loudly all the way up to my temples. At each of my sides, my hands fist into a white-knuckled grip, my nails digging into my skin. If not for my emotional turmoil, I would have probably felt the pain of it, for I have split the skin and drawn blood. It's weird. I do not know why, but despite my apprehension, I confess I am a little bit excited to see who has cared enough about me to chance being captured by Konoha's greatest enemy. And it doesn't matter that the war has ended. Spies and traitors will find no mercy anywhere, not here and not in Konoha. Which, naturally, begs the question… Would I ever be safe?

"Sayomi," the voice greets me softly, tenderly even. Kami, it has been so long since I've heard my name -my real name spoken out loud. I've almost deluded myself into thinking that Sayomi was truly dead, and that, in its place, Saori was left.

I am a fool.

I whirled around to face the mouth of the cave. I recognize the figure who has spoken even before he steps closer, long before the shadows in his face are chased away. His voice is… unique, you can say. After all this time, it still sounds painfully familiar.

"My heart youthfully sings at the opportunity to see your lovely radiance again." He says in that same tone. A tone that tells me he's not fooling around, like he had been known to do often enough. No. Even the wording he has used is his own. What can I say? He always had a way to be melodramatic, almost to the point of absurdity, prompting those who did not know him very well -even in the most serious of situations—to not take him seriously.

And yet, even though I know this, it still comes as a surprise -a refreshing one at that. For I know now that, if I want to, I can go back to my old life and fit right in, as if I had never left. Following that train of thought, I wonder if the rest of my acquaintances have changed. Or if, like him, they'd stayed frozen in time, personality unchanged.

But it has been nine years! Nine years since I had last seen him and the Hokage and Konoha. Almost ten. And yet, this man looks exactly the same as I remember. I take him in. His bowl-cut black hair; his horrid green spandex he is still, apparently, so fond of; his dark eyes with those thick bushy eyebrows framing them and his smile. Maito Gai's smile could light up any place, even this old, dark, murky cave.

I am a fool.

Never before has his presence terrified me so much, for I know that –from all of those the Hokage could have sent- he would be the last to welcome my betrayal. If I'd ever had a friend back in Konoha, I guess the Green Beast would have been it.

I had been, you have to understand, a loner by nature. It hadn't been hard, what with being constantly sent on one mission after the other. Plus, because of what I did, because of what my skills were used for, it was natural that I would be someone who few trusted, even among my allies. Gai, however, had always looked past that part of me. I realize, as I stare at his open smile, that deep within, even after all I've been through, I fear to disappoint him.

But just as that thought pops unwelcomed into my head, Ryuu's smile sinks it. That is all it takes. A smile from each side is what it takes to remind me of the best of both places. But there isn't even that much of a battle. My decision had been made before I'd stepped inside. My decision had been made, possibly, before I had stepped into this very cave nine years ago. It wasn't Konoha who deserted me. It was me who left first.

I realize suddenly that, while I had been struggling to sort out my feelings, Gai had been talking. He is so very near, at arm's reach really. So I put my hand on his chest and I am, for a second, distracted as I feel his heart drumming fast enough to almost jump out and surrender to my palm. I had not expected this, even though I understand it. I had always ignored that voice inside my head that insisted Gai did not like me just as a friend. I was not about to start listening now. What for? It just wouldn't do to face something that would only bring him more pain. Despite everything, I think… I think I want to protect whatever is left of our friendship.

I am a fool.

"Gai." My voice comes out firm but soft and I am not sure if it was my tone or my touch what tied his tongue. I look up, into his dark, expectant eyes. I am going to break his heart, I know. No amount of pretending would avoid that. But I rather break one heart than three. My family –my new family comes first. With resolve, I tell him what I think he has been fearing, "I'm not coming back."

The pause that follows is long and heavy and…awkward. His gaze doesn't leave my own and, though I have the urge to look away, I dare not. I have to stand my ground if I am to walk away with my head held high.

"I know about your daughter," he says it with a tone that makes me shiver and straightens my spine. It is frigid. I've never heard him speak like this before. Not to me, at least.

My maternal instincts scream in alert. I glare daggers at him, letting him know that she is off limits, "Then you know I cannot leave. I am sorry you had to waste your time."

Gai opens his arms, his voice does not threaten anymore. Instead, it begs, "Sayomi, do not be a fool! I understand why you did it. We left you and you were lonely and you sought comfort. Any youthful soul would do as you have done, especially when you'd just reached your time to blossom! But, worry not, beautiful flower. I am sure that your youthful daughter will be welcome in Konoha, I give you my word on that!"

My daughter but not her dad, I do not fail to notice that he has left Ryuu out of his offer. Purposely, I'm sure. "My daughter belongs here," I say, unmoved. For Gai speaks of what he doesn't know. He thinks that it would all be good and peachy. But I know better. I know what it is like to not be trusted. Tenten is from the Earth, and those of the Leaf and Fire would not welcome her, anymore than they would me.

"She doesn't have to!" He argues fiercely. "She is still your beautiful daughter. She has youthful Fire in her veins, she is from the Leaf!"

I shook my head. "She is silver, Gai, and she should be with the people of silver -with her people." He opens his mouth to argue further, but I will not be convinced. What I speak next, I speak from the heart, "Sayomi is dead, Gai. She died nine years ago in this cave. The only one that came out is me, Saori, wife of Tetsua Ryuu, Mother of Tetsua Tenten."

I do not say I am Earth, for I am not. I am in disguise. I will always wear it, as long as my family lives, possibly even after. But I am no longer Leaf and Fire either. I shed those a long time ago. I wouldn't know how to be one even if I tried, I am afraid.

"Don't… please, Sayomi, don't say that. Please…" His voice trembles and something inside me wretches a little at the sound. How queer that the sadness in your voice touches me so, Gai. How strange that your eyes fill with tears. Can you not see? You asked me not to be a fool. But I am a fool. Only fools fall in love. Isn't that what I'd always said? Isn't that what I had been taught from the moment I learned to think?

"I'm sorry, Gai." I mean it. I truly do.

"Please, come back." The smile is long gone and so is the hope he'd harbored. Had he waited all this time for me? I cannot help but wonder and pray that he had not, even when I know that he has. Why else would he have come? Why else would it hurt him so to find Sayomi gone? "Sayomi, please. Just take my hand." He offers it to me, palm up, glove-less. I can see the calluses on his harden skin, evidence of the commitment to his job. Once upon a time, I had shared that commitment, if not his passion. His passion I have come to know just now, with Ryuu and Tenten and the Tetsua Clan.

I do not take his hand and I see the skin around his eyes tightening a bit. "I am sorry, Gai-."

"Take my hand."

"that you had to come-"

"Sayomi, please, just take my hand!"

"all this way for someone—"

"Please…"

"who is no longer here." I finish, steeling myself against the tears that run down his cheeks, bearing silent testament to his pain. I can almost hear his heart breaking into little pieces. My heart was melted, but it seems that I can still pretend to be heartless when I need to.

Oh, Gai, if only you had found what I have. If only it had been someone else who was sent! If only I could spare you the pain. If only you had forgotten me…

Like me, you too are a fool.

He drops his arm; it hangs limply by his side. He is no longer crying as he stares at me, as if waiting for me to change my mind. I do look away this time. It is the only confirmation I can give him. I close my eyes when I hear him heave a long, tired sigh. He turns to face away and I almost missed his soft goodbye. It tears my heart to see him walk away, even when it was me who chased him off.

"Good bye, Green Beast of Konoha." I return lower still, not daring to finish out loud with what he deserves. Goodbye, my dearest friend.

Forgive me, Gai. I am a fool.

As soon as he's gone, I follow. I do not want to be caught here and raise suspicions. Of course, as I mentioned before, I was never one to enjoy good luck. And so it is that as I pull myself out of the water, I find Gai engaged in a fierce fight with some men. Men that I know. Men that I may not be friends with, but whom I've seen around.

I curse as the insignias on their back prove what I already fear. These are warriors from the Oschiro Clan. There are three of them currently barring Gai's retreat. They haven't seen me, and for a split second, I wonder if I should just leave. Gai has earned the title of Green Beast for a reason. Yet, I hesitate because something inside me comes awake. It is… I guess indignation at having one of my friends attacked for no apparent reason. Never mind that he does not belong here in the first place.

Without thinking, I pull out two kunais, one on each hand, and jump into the fray. I go for the one who has his back to me. Cowardly? Not really, I am a shinobi. This is the best way to fight. With all my might, I plunge the knife not through his heart but into his neck. Even as I feel his life leaving while I vainly try to dislodge the blade, I tell myself that I am being merciful. Yes, I wanted it to be a clean, fast death.

Did that alleviate my guilt? Not much, but some. Anything positive would be welcomed at this point…

The man's death attracts the attention of everyone and, without losing a stride, I order Gai to leave, to run, to hide. He doesn't seem to want to at first but… maybe it is my glare or maybe it is the fact that I have betrayed him… or maybe it is just the pain. Whatever the reason, he does leave. He leaves me to fend the rest of the Oschiros by myself.

I cannot help it, but part of me hates him for it.

Still, I bar the way with my body so that the warriors, who seem reluctant to lay a hand on me, are unable to follow. I know that I would not be able to last for very long, but I hope that it is enough to give him a chance. Of course, now that he is gone, the consequences of what I have done crash into my head, threatening to send me to my knees and beg forgiveness. Kami, what have I done?

Fate. You are as inescapable as you are cruel.

"My, my, look what the beast dragged out," I hear a voice that chills me to the marrow of my bones. I gulp and curse as Nobu steps out of where I assume he's been hiding, watching the show. I see the hate in his eyes and the amusement and, even, the lust. He has never forgiven me for choosing Ryuu over him, and I doubt that neither his twisted affection nor the fact that I belong to the Tetsua Clan will hold his hand.

I do not say anything. What is there to say? I have been caught red handed, both figuratively and literally. I have an unusual urge to clean the blood of off my hand, but I don't. I have one kunai, the other still embedded on a young man's neck. I try not to look at the corpse. I do not wish to further recognize what I have done.

I am a fool.

And because I am a fool, I open my hand and let go of my only weapon. Yes, I am a fool to give myself to this serpent. But what else am I to do? Do not get me wrong, I do not particularly fear for my life, it is my daughter's life that I want spared. Hers and Ryuu's heart, I also want to protect that.

Kami! Will he forgive me? Will Ryuu look at me with this same repugnance that glints in Nobu's eyes? I tremble at the thought, which makes the man before me smile.

It angers me to see his triumph. It angers me to see him standing before me, sizing me up as though I belong to him now. So, I raise my head, the arrogance of the Black Widow returning to make a stand. How ironic, isn't it? The moment I speak out loud that my Konoha persona is dead, is the moment I bring her back from her dark tomb.

Nobu rushes at me like a bull crazed by the smell of blood. I see him raise his hand and fight the urge to defend myself. I killed one of his men. A life for a life, isn't that the motto of revenge? His hand connects with my jaw and I hear something crack. Sprawled on my back I fight to keep conscious as he lands blow after blow on my body, his kicks cracking and ripping and hurting.

I am a fool.

I should not have gone to the store yesterday. I should not have stepped into this mess. I should not have brought the Black Widow back.

But fate hates me, and, you know what? I hate fate too.

-Extract from the Black Widow's Mission Journal. Mission No. 02103828—

-o0o-

Tenten asked for this. She'd pretty much begged for it. In fact, she vividly recalled recurring to low blows and crude tactics to get it, to force it to be done to her. She hadn't given him much of a choice, really. Uchiha Sasuke had only been able to take so much before he'd cave. With anger and concern swirling in his eyes, he'd used his Mangekyō sharingan.

The experience had been…peculiar. Not quite painful but not a stroll in a park either. It was mildly disturbing, like having some invisible weight keeping her body from moving and forcing her eyes to close. Sasuke had been true to his word and had trapped her inside a spiritual world of darkness that resided within her own mind.

Tenten had mentally prepared herself as much she could –with the time given- for a lot of things, but nothing could have prepared her for this. Heck, she hadn't even thought this would be a possibility to begin with!

There was nothing!

Tenten was currently floating aimlessly in an ocean of inky darkness with nothing to give her any sense of direction or to even remind her of her own existence. She was so perplexed that, for a second, she regretted asking for this. Doubts started assailing her mind, weakening her resolve. Perhaps she should have listened to Sasuke's admonition? Perhaps she should have just come out and asked someone about her past? Perhaps she should have begged someone else to help her, someone like Tsunade!

But Tenten was reckless and stupid and so she found herself trapped in a world of her own devising. Perfect. This was just perfect. Her mood soured and she glared at the darkness, as though it was all its fault. But the darkness didn't answer or get offended, instead it ignored her. Or so a voice inside Tenten's mind mocked. She hated that voice, mostly because it was a constant reminder of her inadequacy.

Sighing in frustration, she waited. She was thankful when the dark voice finally decided to give its assault a rest. Like with her direction, Tenten also had no sense of time. Though, to be frank, this at least she had anticipated. Inside this illusion, time was an abstract concept. Sasuke had even been kind enough to remind her of it just before she lost herself within his blood red eyes. Tenten admitted to herself that even if the concept of time were to work here, there would still be nothing to help her measure its flow.

No. There was nothing aside from that damn darkness that seem to seep inside her, dulling even the color of her skin into a sickly gray. It permeated everything, even her own thoughts. It was all consuming and ever present. It was her only companion for what felt like ages.

Tenten hated this. She wished she could somehow get rid of this void of complete and utter darkness that had, at some point, form a cocoon of dark feelings and bleak hopes. She felt her lungs tighten as the concept sunk into her reluctant mind. She was trapped and alone and hopelessness surged, making her tremble. Kami, she was having trouble breathing! She felt as though the walls of darkness were pressing up on her even when she was well aware that she was floating in the open, with nothing solid save her own damn body.

Tenten had never been one to appreciate darkness for long periods of times, and this was not helping in conquering the fear that darkness could swallow a person whole! Was it ironic that shadows where preferred by ninjas and she was a very good ninja? Yes. Yes, it was. But she'd always been able to work around that. What with having her teammates almost always nearby, it made it easier for her to accept the darkness and work despite it. But she was alone now. No one here to distract her of the fact that darkness was cold and morbid and perfect to hide the evil that wanted to get her, to slide inside her, to posses her.

For a frantic moment she twisted around, trying to see something within the darkness. Anxious, she started to ask Sasuke to stop, to bring her out. His warning mocked her from the past. Once she came in, he would have no way to control anything that happened in her world. If she was to prevail and return to her screwed up reality, she would have to do it on her own. No one would or could help her this time.

The startling realization came as a surprise that shouldn't have. She berated herself for it. Most of her life she'd done things on her own, hadn't she? Yes. She needed no one. Never had. Never will. Not even her mother when she was around. No. Tenten could take care of herself. This time was no exception.

Despite her fierce beliefs, here she was, floating around in the vast nothingness of her mind with absolutely no idea as to what to do next. It was upon pondering the magnitude of her predicament, that she decided she didn't want to go down without at least trying something out. She'd always taken pride in her adaptations skills, and she hoped that this would prove no different. If she was inside her mind, where not even Sasuke could enter, then shouldn't she be able to control whatever happened next, even if only marginally?

Perhaps she could excavate the bind herself. Perhaps she could shake it and free some of the things it had locked. Anything at all would be welcomed at this point. Anything was, after all, better than nothing, was it not?

Anything to get rid of the damn darkness…

Resolution rekindled, she focused on the memories that had rushed her when confronted by Nobu, the Serpent of the Oschiro Clan. She brought them forward, one by one. She even called upon the dreams that were not dreams.

For a second nothing happened, except that she'd been successful in birthing a sense of longing and abandonment, which were accompanied by sporadic glimpses of the memories she'd managed to recover on her own. Again, she had no sense of time, but it felt awfully long. She was drowning in the darkness and the complete isolation she'd landed on. Irritated by her lack of success, she cursed and screamed and cursed some more, hating that even that pitiful sound came out in whispers.

Damn it! Even her own mind was ignoring her now! She should not have asked for this! She should have used her brain! What was she to do now? What about the man? What will happen to the man with the hazel eye if she were to stay here, forever trapped? Her hope plummeted, encouraging panic to almost show its ugly face, when she was suddenly dropped onto solid ground. Sweet relief flooded her entire being and she rubbed the ground with both hands, latching onto it as though it was a lifeline. It was still dark, but at least there was something real to keep her company.

The ground started shaking silently and she braced herself, thinking that with her luck, it would open up and consume her. Her fears were baseless. Instead, she jumped to her feet when the darkness lifted to reveal something else. She couldn't help gawking when her surroundings materialized from thin air. It was like watching dust or sand creating things, first the ground –rocky and familiar- then the sky and the sun and lastly the buildings. They came up majestically before her very eyes, like a magic trick design to impress an audience. The audience, she admitted reluctantly, felt very impressed.

The ground stopped shaking when the environment was completed. Tenten whispered her thanks to Kami-sama for being spared from spending more time within the darkness. It somehow always had a way to stir the worst inside her.

Shaking her head, she regarded the newly constructed village. From her vantage point, up on a hill, it looked small and unassuming. Yet, she felt a visceral attraction towards it, like one magnet to another. Afraid that if she over thought her next actions, the little place would vanish as swiftly as it had come, she made her way towards it.

She walked around the small village, studying it avidly. She almost jumped out of her skin, though, when she encountered the first of many ghosts. They didn't look solid. Instead, they looked like imprints of people, most of them too blurry to make out the details of their faces, as they walked to and fro, paying her no mind. On a whim, she reached out to touch a little boy that was racing by. Her hand passed right through his ethereal figure, feeling not the cool sensation she'd expected, but warmth so gentle that it prompted a tear to roll down her cheek. The sense of loss she'd been feeling increased the more she saw, even if she didn't quite comprehend why it had originated.

As if in answer to her unvoiced questions, Tenten heard a familiar voice calling to her. She straightened to attention, her senses sharpened and, in a trance, she followed the trail left by the commanding sound.

She soon found its owner. Unlike the ghosts around town, this woman had sufficient detail to allow Tenten to make out the rough beauty in her features and the elegance in her posture. She looked much more solid too, maybe as much as Tenten herself. The woman was old, her hair already streaked with grey locks here and there. She was standing outside a building, still urging her to come along with a caring smile that froze her and make her eyes sting most uncomfortably. Tenten felt something gripping her heart at the sight of her. Kami, she knew who she was!

She was important!

She moved towards her at a sprint, part of her still waiting for the image to vanish in a poof, like all those memories she'd been the star of. But she didn't, and when she was near enough to touch her, Tenten slid to a stop, breathing heavily despite the short distance.

"Grandmama," she whispered, finding her just as tall as she'd remembered, and just as mesmerizing. The thought made her blink because, somehow, she did remember. The older woman's smile widened and, when she placed a wrinkled, callous hand over her cheek, Tenten realized that she could feel her -her touch, her warmth… her love.

For what felt like years Tenten followed this woman down memory lane. Kami, she'd truly been such an important and intricate part of her life! It was almost as amazing to have forgotten her as it was to have remembered her!

Seven years, almost eight.

She'd lost seven years of her life to a decision she had not been part of, and though she'd wished she could recover all that time, every little detail of it, she couldn't. All she could savage was what had been stored inside her mind. For it was unlikely –maybe even impossible for anyone to hold onto seven whole years worth of memories and Tenten was no exception. But something was better than nothing, and thus she was grateful to re-experience those moments –few at they might seem right now.

Unfortunately, not all her memories were vivid in their details. Some were vague and abstract but strong enough to understand the picture they represented by what she felt towards them. It was sometimes easier for the minds to retain a feeling as oppose to an image, and that was what many of those were, feelings held close to her heart.

She knew, for instance, that for a time her dad hadn't been around and that, in his stead, her uncle Yaemon had been the one to play with her. Though she didn't remember each and every day spent with him, she was positive that he'd been good to her; she was resolute in her feeling of utmost devotion and love towards him. She remembered his smiles and the sound of his laughter, not in any particular setting, but as if her mind had taken recordings of them or photographs and had placed them in a vault for her to open whenever it pleased her.

She also remembered, this with a powerful prang of loss, what had been her home. Contrary to what she'd believed, she hadn't always lived in a house of silence. No. She'd lived in a house surrounded by others, were the symphony of silver had played throughout their compound from dusk till dawn. She remembered the beautiful sound of steel meeting steel. She remembered sitting under the shadow of a tree to watch the multiple mock battles which her eyes regarded as beautifully rehearsed dances. They were as mesmerizing as they was deadly, and she'd been in the heart of it, learning the steps even before she'd been given her first blade.

She remembered other things as well. It was the little things, those that were banal in retrospect, that she was the most confound but surprised about. She discovered, for example, that she'd already given her first kiss. How silly a thought, and yet, there it was, a hidden memory with enough detail to prompt a smile to split her face in half. Kami! It had been to a boy from another Clan. He was shy and followed her around all the time. She'd wanted to make him blush and, to do so, she'd pecked him on a chubby cheek. The boy had been unable to stop grinning the entire day, much to her amusement. Her dad had not been very pleased when he heard the rumor and Tenten, ignorant of his paternal jealousy, had not understood his scowl.

Another event that had left a big impression had been in regards to her hairdo. Tenten had always assumed that she wore her hair up in twin buns because her mom had always done it like that for her. If anything, she'd never had the inclination to ask about it. She didn't know why that was. It could have been that she'd been afraid that the answer would be a simple one with nothing to make it special. And that would have been terrible, because some days –she was embarrassed to admit this even to herself—she'd liked to pretend that she did it for a secret tradition upheld by the ghost of her ancestors on her father's side. Now, though, she knew that it was something special within its normality. Though she remembered this as bits and pieces, she knew that it all started with a story.

Her Grandmama loved to tell her stories of great warriors and beasts that fought evil across all the lands. One time, she'd come up with a story of a ninja fighting to keep a group of friendly pandas safe. The pandas had joined in to help him and, by the end, one of the pandas –the first who'd befriended the ninja—had died defending him. Tenten had cried until her eyes were so puffy, she couldn't keep them open. Regardless of the sad ending, she had loved the story so much that, in honor of that unusual warrior, she'd taken to asking her grandma to put her hair up in buns. And that was it. No tradition, no great purpose, no sense of style –or lack thereof. It was just the way a little girl had dealt with the sense of loss towards a fictional character. It was a silly thing and yet it had also become a secret between her Grandmama and herself, a way to tie them together into an even more sacred bond that just blood and lineage. That was what had made it special enough to keep the hair like that from then onwards, much to her parent's insatiable curiosity.

But of course, there was another side to the coin. So those beautiful, peaceful memories were sometimes followed by crueler ones. Like when she'd first broken her arm during training. The echo of that pain had even caused her to rub at it unconsciously. Or when she'd first tasted the bitterness of defeat at the hands of her uncle -who, having acknowledged that she was old enough for him to take seriously- had sent her sprawling to the ground none too gently. Even the fights she remembered. Like any and every family, she'd had verbal exchanges with her mom and her dad and uncle, although never with her Grandmama. She hadn't had the heart.

The worst, though, had been the day where she'd seen her mom on the ground, broken and bruised by the Oschiro Clan. She remembered her anger and pain and, most of all, her fright. That someone would dare lay a finger on her mom had been an offense not just towards her, but towards the entire Clan! Worst still was what they'd declared loud enough for all the village to hear. Her mom was a traitor, a spy, they said! Lies! All lies! Tenten had never felt so ashamed at the thought of it being true.

Then came the fights among her clansmen. Everyone was on edge, including her dad. He was unusually quiet and Tenten was unnerved by his demeanor. For a while, he hadn't been able to stay in the same room and her mom and Tenten had believed the worst. She'd gone, crying and fore lone, to her uncle and had begged him to intervene. He had. He'd come and talk to her dad and afterwards, to her aggravated anxiousness, he'd locked himself with her recuperating mom inside their room for one entire day.

Tenten had made camp right outside, sleeping on the floor with a blanket and pillow. Her Grandmama would sometimes come and sit by her, without speaking, her simple presence reassuring. Then her dad had come out, tears on his eyes, and had announced what she had feared the most. Her mom was indeed a Konoha spy. Tenten couldn't believe it! How dare he said such things! Angry, she'd risen to her trembling feet with hate in her eyes and had demanded he take it back. Lies! They were all lies! But her dad had just looked at her and given her a quiet command as he proceeded to explain.

She started as a spy, but she'd betrayed her own people for them. She loved the Tetsua Clan enough to discard all other loyalties in order to become one of them. She was Tetsua, and because of that, they could not –should not desert her in her time of need. There were arguments and uncertainties voiced by the oldest members of the Clan. Tenten didn't understand how they could be so cold towards her mom, the same person whom they'd always treated with the utmost respect.

By unanimous decision, there was a trial. It lasted more than three days. Tenten would sit outside the building where the long hearings –all of which addressed new uncertainties – were being held. She would wait for it to end, biting her nails until there was nothing left to chew on. It had been hard times for all the Clan, where the sound of steel had been replaced by heavy silence broken now and then by hushed whispers.

By the end of the third day, two strange men had slipped into the compound in the middle of the night. Tenten had been sleeping with her mom, when her dad came in and woke them. Tenten had been able to see the shadows of the two unknown men through the half-opened door. They didn't have to tell her what would happen. Part of her, somehow, already knew then that they were leaving for another place and taking the entire Clan with them.

The trial ended soon after, with the Clan coming to an almost unanimous decision –save the vote of one head of a minor family, Tetsua Kioji—to believe in the sincerity of her mother. Tenten had been ecstatic when her mom had stepped outside the room she'd been locked into with a smile on her face and tears on her eyes. Her dad had joined them soon after and Tenten had been even more glad to see that he still regarded her with the same love and devotion he had done before this mess.

It was later announced that the Clan was leaving. It didn't really matter how old she was, she was clever enough to admit that the Earth was not always on the right side. Yet, that didn't keep her hear from breaking a little. This was their home! The Leaf had fought them and they had fought her dad! It was weird for her, and she was sure, for some of her kinsmen as well, to just up and go and be friends with whom, for so very long, they'd regarded as their enemies. But fact was that, even if most of the people of the Earth were nice, the leaders that were currently running the country were corrupt to their core.

Surprisingly, the two strange men, whom she'd learned came as representative from Konoha, had built a strong enough case to convince the adults of her Clan to take Konoha's offer and migrate. Again, the decision had almost been unanimous, save for Kioji's vote.

For a week, preparations were made under utmost secrecy. Tenten did not know what or how to feel towards the new temporal –she'd crossed her fingers tight- additions to her life. They were… weird. Even though there was palpable tension all around, one of them kept challenging the other to stupid tests. If anything, the odd exchange brought at least some smiles and laughs back to the otherwise solemn Clan.

The youngest of the two was quiet and mysterious while the other was open and boisterous. She'd learned their names, making it her job to keep an eye of them, else they got into trouble. The quiet one, she found out, was not so quiet after all, he was just laid-back and…well…collected. His name was Kakashi, also known as the copy ninja, though she didn't know why. The other man's name was Gai, also known –according to him—as the beautiful Green Beast of Konoha. She wondered at the beautiful part.

Tenten didn't trust them, though. No matter how open and friendly they seemed. She even made it a point to treat them as coldly as she could muster, fighting not to smile at their bizarre antiques. Until her mom reassured her that they were friends and so, rather reluctantly at first, Tenten played nice with them. They ended up being not that bad after all…

The week soon drew to an end and the fated day came when they would leave. The Clan gathered in the center of the compound, all just bringing whatever they could carry on their backs and nothing else. It was a solemn meeting, as her Clansmen stared at each other and took their surroundings –their home—in one last glance before shuffling, quietly, to the exit. Everything seemed to go according to plan, until they'd opened the Compound gates, stepped outside and where suddenly met by hostile forces.

Someone had betrayed them!

Their escape was successfully thwarted by the Oschiro Clan and so a disappearance act that should have gone smooth, had turned into a fight for survival. It was a memory that nobody –not even the binding done by the third Hokage himself—had been unable to fully purge from Tenten's mind. Instead, it was left there as an echo that resonated each and every year, without a fault, in form of a nightmare.

The 10th of October. It was the anniversary of the day her life as Tetsua Tenten ended. What really happened, though, was far worse than what her nightmares had offered…

It was chaos. Not even the deep darkness of the night could keep her from witnessing the bloody battle raging outside the compound. People shouted, steel sang, and all around the deadly dancers of silver tried to keep the waves of warriors from crushing them all.

Tenten was confused and scared and at a complete loss as to what to do next. How to proceed when they were so painfully outnumbered?

"We need to split into groups," her Dad yelled, quickly giving out orders to those nearby, who later went to impart them to the rest. In seconds the chaos was more or less contained.

Her dad grabbed her hand and pulled her to his side just as, all around her, the mass of warriors dispersed into smaller groups. Tenten looked back, trying to find her mom and uncle and Grandmamma. Through the movement and the screams and the grunts, she found at least the latter. Her Grandmamma was standing, unmoving and unfazed, before a group of menacing warriors that were attempting to get past her.

"Grandmama!" she yelled, prompting her dad to look back and witness what she had. With a curse she'd never heard come out of his lips before, they changed direction, moving back towards the compound they had just left. Still there was no sign of her mom and uncle, but Tenten barely took notice. All of her concern was focused on what was happening near the door.

"Mother, what are you doing!" her dad yelled angrily, signaling some of his nearby warriors to attack before the woman got overwhelmed.

"It's time, Ryuu," Mama Bear said solemnly, her eyes as commanding as her voice. "This is where my journey ends."

"Don't be foolish!" he argued determined to make her understand. But she only shook her head sadly.

"I miss him so much," she told them both, her eyes welling with tears as she gazed back at the compound and the graveyard that lied therein. It was big. Most of the tombstones had only one date; the date of birth and death being shared by all those countless stillborns. At the center of the graveyard, lied the resting place of her Grandpapa. A man Tenten had gotten to know through tales alone.

There was a conversation next sustained in complete silence. Tenten felt left out, but was reluctant to interrupt. After a short while, her dad pulled at her hand, signaling that they would leave. Tenten couldn't believe he would just leave her Grandmama there, alone and outnumbered! She pulled back, looking at his face, confused by the pain in his orbs. It was as if he'd come to terms with the fact that his mother was dead already!

"Grandmama!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, fighting her father even as he forcibly pulled her back towards the predetermined rout to get away. She turned to her then and smiled. It was a glorious, gentle, beautiful smile. It made Tenten cry. "What about me?" her voice came out rough with the hurt she was feeling, it broke by the end.

A single tear leaked out of her bright eyes as her Grandmama stared at her, and her only. Time seemed to stop and it was only them both in a world of chaos.

"I love you, my little panda girl," she reminded her, blowing a kiss in her direction and promising, "I will always be with you. Always, little one."

And then time resumed and her Grandmama was lost within the moving dark wave and she was running, trying to keep up with the wider strides of her father. They reached the forest and navigated through it expertly. Her father was dressed from head to foot in silver garments so that he looked like a beacon of hope. His grip on her little hand was strong enough to make her wince, but she dared not let go of him, afraid that if she did, he would get lost… just as her Grandmama and her uncle and her mom.

The sound of people in pursuit encouraged them to move faster and rendered her speechless. She wanted to ask so many things, but she was afraid that if she did, she would give their position away. When the clouds parted to let the moon shine upon them, Tenten noticed a house –dark and abandoned—just across their path. Her father guided them towards it and, once in, he turned around to close the door.

"Dad," she called in a small voice, her heart hammering inside her chest with the pain of having lost someone she cared about. She forced herself to not think on who else she might lose on this deadly night. She hated the fact that it was so dark…

Her father didn't say anything, instead he knelt before her –after quickly looking around for hidden enemies—and spoke with his eyes alone. He told her in a brief second that they would be alright, that he would keep her safe. Then he pushed her into a cabinet. He was about to say something, when the sound of a branch snapping distracted him. Tenten could feel the tension in his muscles building. With another look, he commanded her to stay and closed the door.

As soon as the door to her hiding place was shut, she fretted, holding to the kunai her dad had given her as though to let go would mean forfeiting her very life. A sliver of light in combination with the sound of shattering glass and broken wood, prompted her to place her eye on a hole just in time to witness three figures crashing inside.

What happened next was the silver dance. It was a dance rehearsed to perfection. Yet she knew it was not. This was not a dance. This was not perfection. This was death. Unwelcomed. Uncontrolled. Raw and primal. But through it all, as inconsistent as the thought was, it was also unequivocally beautiful. Still a dance, but a dance with death. Not perfect, but alluring.

Her dad made quick work of the three dark clad men who'd ambushed them. With swift movements, testament to his skill, he stood tall, unscratched, looking down on his sprawled enemies, who were drowning in pools of their own blood.

Tenten sighed with unbound relief. Though part of her hadn't had any doubt that he would come out victorious, another part had been scared out of her wits. She must have made a sound because her dad's eyes turned to gaze at her, their eyes meeting through the small hole. She wondered if he had somehow sensed her eyes upon him or if it was just luck that he'd detected her small window.

A horrible sound of laugher suddenly resonated throughout the place. Tenten's back straightened and she felt goose bumps coat the skin of her arms and legs. She knew the laugh. She hated and feared it in equal amounts! The door to the cabin was thrown open with such force, that it broke off its hinges with a complaining groan.

Slowly… So very slowly, her dad spun around to face the intruder. She wanted to cry, she wanted to go to him and ask him to run away. She wanted to protect him, to help him. And yet, she could not move. It was a mixture of that last order he had given, wherein he had told her to stay, and her own increasing fear what rooted her in place.

Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her throat when Nobu came marching through, his frame dwarfing her dad's. He was dressed all in black, which would have made it much harder for her to distinguishing him from the shadows if not for the moonlight filtering in through the broken window, door and ceiling. It didn't, however, make him seem less threatening or imposing.

Nobu smiled and brought out his double headed axe. His lips parted in a vicious smile that served to extend a promise of pain. When her Dad remained silent, he started laughing at him mockingly. The sound –crazed and evil- chilled her to the bone. More so when she remembered how cruelly he had looked at her Mom after he'd dragged her through the village and towards her compound. Inside her flimsy shelter of wood and dust, she gasped in a tenuous whisper.

"You're more delusional than I thought, if you think you can beat me, Nobu," her dad growled.

"I will kill you and all of yours, Silver Dragon. And I will laugh all the way through it!" Nobu hissed.

For five tensing minutes they just stared at each other from across the pool of shadows and blood. They were still talking and threatening; only Tenten couldn't hear what they were saying anymore. All she could hear was the rush of her blood and the beat of her heart. And then, just when she thought she could take it no more, they lunged at each other at exactly the same time.

A symphony of clashes, parries, grunts, growls, steps and hisses filled the atmosphere. This time, her heart was drumming a mile per second when she noticed Nobu was connecting just as many blows on her dad as he was. Before long, much to her dismay, her dad let go of one of his twin blades when Nobu slashed at his arm. Blood came pouring out, soaking the silver sleeve and turning it dark. Abnormally, Nobu's arms stretched to twice its reach and he lashed, with the butt of his axe, towards her Dad's head. He, thankfully, managed to raise his other arm just in time to keep Nobu from crushing his skull.

There was a small standstill after this, each seething warrior trying to survey their own wounds and determine where they stood in this fated battle. Nobu finished his inspection first and, as if feeling her eyes upon him, he turned to gaze at where she hid, his eyes piercing her very soul. Cold sweat broke on Tenten's forehead as she was faced with the devil himself, his russet small eyes drinking her with so much malice, that she felt her entire body growing numb with fear. Just when the idea of getting out and away popped into her head, her dad stepped in to save her sanity.

"I'll gouge out your eyes if you dare look at her again," he warned, bringing his sword up into a powerful stand.

Amused, Nobu shook his head and laughed his crazy laugh. "You can try, Dragon," he said, licking his lips as if savoring a meal.

All of a sudden, with a quick motion, he produced out of his back an eight-tailed whip, all the tips ending in wicked spikes, and lashed at his opponent. It connected with his flank with baffling force, sending her dad flying out the broken door. Tenten put a hand to her mouth to keep from screaming, realizing that she was now alone with the dark devil…and utterly helpless.

Kneeling inside the cabinet; arms around her legs and back pressed against old, chipped wood, she considered her options, which weren't many. Her breath hitched as she listened to the loud, impending steps outside. Eyes wide, heart drumming, arms trembling with the rush of adrenaline, she waited and waited… Then the door was pulled opened and she lashed out mindlessly, crazed by the decision to fight before fleeing.

It was her only chance, the only one and she took it without thinking. Time slowed and she tightened the grip on her kunai as she rushed towards the oak of a man that waited for her, lips parted in the same wicked smile he'd shown her when he had stood before the broken figure of her mom.

A morbid voice inside her told her to look up into that same face now, harsh and sunburned. His mouth was still open, and the blade of her kunai had somehow landed on its corner. She screamed, anger overcoming fear for a moment, and pushed forward with the momentum gathered, throwing her entire weight behind that one attack. It was her only chance! Tenten felt more than saw the sharp blade cutting through the fragile skin of his cheek, carving a smile even more gruesome than the one he was known to always wear.

He stepped back, wailing in pain, his hand coming up to hide his face. Tenten's eyes gravitated towards a purple smudge. Anything to keep away from seeing what she'd done! The man stilled, his shoulders shaking, grunts barely muffled by his hands. She noticed then, in a surreal moment of calm, where time seemed to have frozen, that the smudge was really the tattoo that had earned him his nickname. Cobra.

The scaly reptile glared at her, fangs bared in a vicious bite. The serpent seemed to move towards her and she blinked, breaking the spell. With fright and, maybe, somehow, morbid fascination, she forced her eyes to look up, to see what she'd done. Rivers of blood dribbled out between his fingers, covering his skin with a crimson mask that had been torn out of hell.

The man's body turned in her general direction and, with newfound fear, she moved back only to hit her spine with the cabinet that had been her hiding place, hard. Her sight blurred with pain and something more and she felt fear, cold and unyielding, gripping every fiber of her being. Dark eyes peeped out between his tensed digits. She saw fire swirling in his orbs and, within it, rage.

Her eyes closed instinctively as his hand stretched towards her. His big, open palm slapped her on the side of the head ruthlessly, the sound resonating inside her head for a minute longer than it should. Her entire body was sent sprawling onto the cold floor, crashing against the surface in disorientation and pain. Every muscle screamed as fire exploded in her skull.

Terrified, she laid on the floor for what seemed an eternity, gasping for air as sobs shook her frame. Her fingers tightened on her blade, the only thing that seemed to give her some comfort –small as it might be. His voice rose out of nowhere. Kami! He was so near. So very near!

Her bladder failed her and, sprawled before the demon of a man, she peed herself. The smell was awful, the feeling even worse. It was dishonorable, yes, she knew. She should not have done it, part of her chided. But she couldn't help it! She couldn't bring herself to care. Kami! Kami! KAMI! She was going to die! Kami, she was going to die! She didn't want to die! She wanted to run, to leave, to hide!

Where was her father? Where was her mother? Where was her uncle? Where was her Grandmama? Did she not promise that she would never leave her? Had she been swallowed by the darkness that had attacked them never to be seen again?

Where was her Clan! Had they deserted them? Betrayed them after all?

"Why?" she asked between sobs, and then yelled it to him with all her might. She turned on her side and vomited and spat the foul taste out of her mouth. Her tears rolled down and she realized that, hard as she wanted, much as she needed, she could not move.

Help me! Help me! The words were yelled inside her head, but outside it was only his grunts and anger and her helplessness and sobs.

The man moved closer and snarled at her a chain of obscenities that, in any other circumstance, would have made her blush. Slowly and with deliberate emphasis, he threatened to tear her body apart, limb by limb for what she'd done. And he would have done it, she was sure. Kami, she could already feel the pain!

"No! Please, no!" She wailed, trying to crawl away with little success, "Dad! Mom!"

But no one came, no one listened, except him. The cobra of the Oschiros listened and laughed and sneered at her. Tenten, defeated and appalled, closed her eyes tightly, wishing for it all to go away. Go away! Just, please, please, please, go away!

Then suddenly, as she felt his breath upon her, there was a loud sound and then the voice of someone. Someone she knew. Someone she'd called for. Someone she'd waited for.

"Get the fuck away from my daughter, you bastard!" her mom yelled, anger twisting her face, and, with short sword on hand, she singlehandedly pushed the man, the monster away.

She was on her back, shaking, still sitting in a pool of her own pee. Her muscles were tensed and everything inside her screamed at her to get up and run! Her hand tightened around the hilt of her cherished kunai, the silver blade coated red as was part of her hand. But the weapon was heavy and she could not move it. She was petrified.

In front of her, keeping the monster at bay, was the slim, raven-haired figure of her mother. Her pale body seemed to glow as she shielded her, her movements belying the fact that she'd been bedridden not that long ago.

"Traitor!" Nobu yelled, "I'm going to ride you until you beg me to kill you, like the animal you are!"

"You think yourself mighty enough to destroy me?" Her mother snorted, her eyes blazing with a fire Tenten had never seen before. "I used to eat men like you for lunch!"

They said more things, but Tenten's mind suddenly felt too sluggish, too tired, too preoccupied with dealing with everything that was happening to be able to process it. She wondered if she should stop. She wondered if she should shake her head and make it blank. Because what if the only way for her to move would be to stop thinking? But no! She couldn't! She mustn't! Her dad and her uncle both had always told her to always think! That it could, that it would one day save her life!

The day was now!

Nobu lashed at her mother with his long whip, wounding her arm and almost disarming her. Tenten felt tears stinging her eyes, blurring the image of the two figures that were locked in a battle she could not join. Kami, she was afraid and she couldn't move and she just wanted to go, to leave, to run!

Where was her dad? Where had he gone? Was he hurt? Was he… was he… dea- Her air pipe constricted and a wrecking sob was torn unmercifully out of her throat by the hands of despair.

Where was he? He was important! She refused to lose him like she had her Grandmama. Where was she? She'd promised she would not leave her! Where was she!

As though having sensed her anguish, he came with the power of a tempestuous storm. He rushed through the open door and he was not alone. Uncle Yeamon came soon after, with his good friend Riota on tow. Relief flooded her and with it came awe. Because taking a better look at her dad and uncle, she noticed something strange. They were silver. Literally. They were men not covered in silver, but of silver. Her dad's skin and clothes and even hair glinted with the metal, whereas only Yaemon's hands and neck and chest were silver. Still, when they moved, she could hear the slight grating sound of steel.

"Enough fooling around, Nobu," Her dad spat, rushing at him with enhanced speed, and crashing against him. He brought his hand up and a kunai materialized in it, forming with the steel of his armor, and he plunged it up to the hilt into Nobu's arm.

Her Mother took the moment given to approach Tenten, her brow marked with worry and stress. She knelt beside her and took her hand. "We have to go, Tenten," she said, her urgent voice laced with fear almost as palpable as hers. Her mom's eyes turned towards the two fighting figures. More warriors were rushing in, keeping Yaemon and Riota from helping her dad.

Upon noticing this, Tenten saw hesitation surfacing in her mom's grey eyes. But then her dad ordered them to leave and, in seconds, she was pulled to her feet and they were moving, escaping, running away!

They were gliding through the ocean of greens and brows again, shadows moving with them behind them, beside them, around them! Her mother cursed like she'd never heard her curse before, her eyes wide and somewhat crazed.

"Stay close to me!" She ordered, letting go of her hand to unsheathe her small sword. But Tenten didn't have to be told. Her free hand gripped her dark coat, fingers fisting around the smooth, soft, cold fabric as though it was a flimsy safety line that could be cut at anytime. "Damn it!"

As if heeded by her curse, more warriors of the Oshiro Clan jumped out of their hiding place. They were so many, that Tenten wondered where they'd been hiding all this time! Unbidden, she felt her eyes welling with tears again. Why could they not leave them alone! Why, if they wanted to leave the village peacefully, had it come to this! She hated this. This stupid war and its stupid death!

As the warriors were closing in on them with menacing smiles on their rough faces, the two Konoha warriors who had been staying with them appeared. Gai, somehow, had an aura of fire surrounding him and his movements were so fast that he became more than once a green and orange blur.

Following closely behind came the copy ninja, pulling lightning out of nowhere and frying the remaining men. Tenten's breath hitched when her gaze met with Gai's. His black eyes were lost under a white inner light that had taken residence in his sockets. She stepped closer to her mother, thinking perhaps that he'd been possessed by the darkness, like in the stories her Grandmama used to tell her, but her mother, in turn, relaxed.

"It's okay, Tenten," she said, taking a hold of her hand. "They are here to help… everything will be alright."

Tenten nodded. Her mother knew them better than she did. It was going to be alright. She had said so and she'd never lied. Not even when she'd been asked if she had been a spy.

"Where's the rest of them? Where's the Silver Dragon?" Kakashi asked suddenly, reminding her of her dad and uncle and Riota left behind, fighting an enemy that outnumbered them.

Instinctively, she turned towards the direction where she knew her family had stayed only to see a huge, earth-shaking explosion breaking the cloak of darkness. Tongues of smoke and flames painted the sky red, right above –she knew! She just knew!- where they'd been not too long ago.

Tenten felt her Mother letting go of her hand and, though she knew she should be attempting to grab it again, she couldn't. There was no strength left inside her shaking frame. Something inside her broke -she didn't know what exactly, only that it had. Oh, Kami, it had!

Then, out of nowhere, someone screamed at the top of their lungs. It was loud and piercing and it screeched in her skull with such intensity that she placed her hands on her ears, trying to tune it out. But the miserable wail continued and she fell to her knees with tears streaming down her cheeks. And the screaming tore at her heart because she knew, she understood…

That the screech came from her own throat because her father… he was dead…

To be Continued…

Story's notes: Okay, so I'm not sure if some of your would have noticed this or not, but I'm still pointing it out. So when Tenten met Nobu and recalled some of what happened on the night the Tetsua escaped, she mentioned she didn't recognize who Kakashi and Gai were. But now in this one, she does. I am aware I did this and isn't a mistake. This change happened because now she has recovered the full memory.

AN: Please do not forget to review and let me know what you think so far. Also, sorry for the lack of Neji, this chapter just became too long, so I decided to leave his scene for next one. Hope you enjoyed!