AN: So i am very sorry for the long wait. I've been sitting on this story for far too long and have recently decided that i am just going to push on through this writers block even if i'm unhappy with the story and if i decide to rewrite it then i can do so later! Read on my beloved readers!

Chapter 14

Moments after the smoke cleared another cloud of smoke appeared next to them, Shizune stood with a bag over her shoulder. "Oh, good. You didn't wait too long! Here's the stuff you told me to get." She said, tossing the bag onto a nearby couch. "I'm going to head back and get everything set up. Give me the names of the guards."

Tsunade told her who to contact before Shizune teleported away. "Kakashi, you need to be careful of what jutsus are used here. There is a jutsu keeping this place hidden, even the chakra signatures, that can be broken if there is a powerful enough jutsu used within it. So unless you need to, just stay put and don't use any jutsu. The house is fully stocked with food. It has a full bath and four different bedrooms. Pick whichever ones you want. More of your clothes will be brought over when the guards come. Enjoy your stay." She spoke quickly and carefully, making sure that she gave him every detail before teleporting away herself.

Kakashi looked around and carried Nikiya up a set of stairs into the largest bedroom. It had a soft, king sized bed with dark blue blankets. He set her on the bed, lay down next to her, grabbed a book and started reading. "I think I might enjoy this little vacation." He said softly, brushing Nikiya's hair from her face. The sound of a teleportation jutsu in the living room forced him to get up and cautiously walk out. He was greeted with a friendly face.

"Asuma, it's good to see you." He said, looking over Asuma's team as well.

"It's nice to see you too though I wish it were under different circumstances. Where should we be patrolling?" Asuma asked, immediately getting down to business.

"I think it would be best to have two outside and two inside. For the most part, I think we can stay pretty relaxed and just keep an eye out for any unusual chakra signatures nearby."

"Three attempts and you're saying we should stay relaxed? Kakashi, you must not be thinking straight. Ino, Choji, go outside and look around for any places that a nin could hide easily. Keep an eye out for chakra signatures, even familiar ones. If you see anyone or anything, I don't care who or what, come directly to me. Shikamaru, you and I will be checking the house for anything strange and finding a spot to hide Nikiya if anything goes wrong." Asuma started to walk away, motioning for everyone to move out.

Shikamaru hesitated. "Kakashi-sensei, please tell me if she wakes." Signs of worry were clear on his face as he spoke. He moved away to follow Asuma, his face suddenly a mask of uncaring emotionlessness.

Kakashi went back to his reading, watching the others move around and through the house. When night fell, Asuma's team was replaced by Kurenai's team, though not before Shikamaru came to check on Nikiya. Hinata immediately came back to Nikiya when she got there and placed her hands on Nikiya's stomach. They glowed a gentle blue color as she started feeding chakra to Nikiya's system.

"She shouldn't have been asleep this long. I can't believe they gave you two different amounts of time for her to be sleeping like this. Quite a stretch between two days and fifteen days. Hinata told me earlier that she wanted to have a look herself and do some chakra therapy for her." Kurenai leaned against the wall, watching her shy student work. "Kiba and Shino will be in shortly, they're just receiving the report from Asuma."

"Shouldn't you be doing that?" Kakashi asked, not once looking up from his book.

"Making sure that Nikiya is okay is more of a priority. I can gather details from Shino. Have there been any problems?" Kurenai glanced up at Kakashi for a moment before placing a hand over Nikiya's eyes. "That's enough, Hinata. You don't want to hurt her." Kurenai's hand glowed for a moment just before she took it away. Hinata pulled away from Nikiya and whispered to her teacher before leaving the room.

"No problems that I know of. We're comfortable and they haven't found us… yet. I just have a feeling that they will." Kakashi set his book down on the nightstand and put his head in his hands. Kurenai set a hand on his shoulder.

"It feels like all of this shouldn't be happening, doesn't it?" She said, sighing.

"Exactly. She came back. So why can't she just live in peace?"

"We Kunoichi never live in peace, even when everything is fine. We are few in numbers and have to be strong so that we can survive. Sometimes even more so than the other shinobi. I'm sorry, Kakashi. But even after everything with this situation is said and done, she will still have some struggles, even if it is an internal one." Kurenai left the room with her words still hanging in the air.

Three more days went by. Nothing had happened though Kurenai told him that she had seen some of the cloaked men in the village the previous day. Kakashi was beginning to get stir crazy. He wanted to train or even to teach his team again. Asuma assured him that Gai was making sure that they didn't get out of shape while he was gone but he was still having trouble sitting still.

It was around mid-afternoon and he was sitting on the bed next to Nikiya, reading his book, when a hand touched his. He started a bit and looked over to see Nikiya staring at him. Her purple eyes shimmered as she leaned up and hugged him, flinching as she did so. "How long?" She asked, her voice cracking from misuse.

"Eight days." He held her gently.

"Really? Damn, no wonder I'm hungry." She laughed, flinching again.

"What hurts?" He asked.

"My entire torso." She muttered, touching her side gingerly.

"I'm going to go get Asuma so he can send for Tsunade." Kakashi stood to leave the room.

"Wait. Where are we?" She asked.

"I'll explain in a minute. Tsunade will want to see you." He left to get Asuma, returning moments later with Shikamaru. "Asuma is going to get Tsunade. Shikamaru on the other hand, wanted to see you for some reason."

"Shika, I'm sorry." She said, smiling softly.

"You scared the shit out of me." He hugged her tightly.

"I know."

"You are being so troublesome."

"I know, Shika. Not everyone works like you though. I did what I thought I needed to."

"Don't do it again." He muttered.

"I can't promise that and you know it." She chuckled. He glared at her. "But I'll try." She smiled. Tsunade popped into the room and pulled Shikamaru off of Nikiya. "Hey. I was hugging him!" Nikiya pouted jokingly.

"Your torso hurts, yes?" Tsunade asked. Nikiya nodded. "I'm going to need you to remove your shirt then." She said, causing Shikamaru to leave the room and Kakashi to be shooed out by Tsunade. Nikiya pulled off her shirt carefully revealing her pale, bruised skin. Tsunade easily healed them, examining the rest of her torso carefully. "That's strange." She muttered.

"What?" Nikiya looked down, wondering what she was looking at and gasped. Wrapping itself around her waist was a dark blue dragon.

"Did you get this before the attack?" Tsunade asked.

"No. But I think I know what it is." Nikiya said, touching it and flinching in pain. It burned. Where she had touched the mark shimmered and moved slightly, as if it was living.

AN: Again, sorry for the long wait. I've been rather busy with college and can't seem to get any inspiration for this story so i'm attempting to finish it. I do have an ending in mind. I just don't know how to get there. Any help that can be offered is appreciated.