"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I asked, clearly uncomfortable in the kimono.

"It's the only idea we have," he said, putting a stray strand of my hair back behind my ear. He left his gloved hand on my cheek for a moment. "You'll know what he's thinking. Do you have your kunai?"

"Shuriken and senbon too, just in case."

"Good. Now go make your entrance. Remember, he's the one with the hooked nose and the golden beard."

I nodded. I took a deep breath outside the doors, and then, with the biggest smile I could muster, I pushed them open.

The room was dark and smoky, but the first thing I heard was laughter. To be more exact, women giggling. My smile faltered for a moment, and no wonder. I was pretending to be a whore. After my first sight of the room, I regained my composure and began looking for the man I was supposed to seduce. Thankfully I didn't have to look long. He was sitting on a large couch with two other women beside him. They were already falling out of their kimonos, and it took more strength than I thought I had to keep the smile on my face.

Found him, I thought to Kakashi, who was preparing to make his own entrance.

How many ninja are with him? I quickly scanned the room and the rooms beyond. Within the vicinity, there were twenty-two people, fourteen of them whores. I was not including the owner of the establishment. He was tied up to a post outside, thanks to Kakashi.

Four men sworn to protect him. They are all in this room. Another of his guards has already taken a woman to one of the other rooms. There are also two more female guards here, dressed as I am. He's taking every precaution he can.

Get as close to him as possible. I'll wait for your signal.

I took a couple of steps towards him. Hachirou was not handsome by any means, but his eyes were penetrating. When his eyes caught mine, I made sure not to look away. I held his gaze while his thoughts ran through my head. He sat forward on the couch, completely disregarding the two girls next to him.

"And who is this little flower?" he asked, with a voice dripping with curiosity. "She has the most interesting eyes I have ever seen."

"Funny," I said, trying to seduce him. "I was going to say the exact same thing about you."

"Really?" he asked, completely intrigued. "What's your name, flower? You seem young."

"Amaya. And you're right. This is my first night." At that, I had him. He wouldn't let me slip out of his sight. He shooed the other girls off the couch and motioned me over. The two female guards in the room were wary of me, but the men weren't. In his mind, Hachirou was completely interested in me. I needed to get him to trust me, and quickly, before Kakashi could enter.

He took me by the hand and sat me on his lap. "You can show a little more skin than that, can't you?" I giggled, but on the inside I wanted to slap him in the face. He took the sleeve of my kimono and tugged it a little, revealing a bare shoulder. I began to panic on the inside when he put his hand on my thigh. He would reach my weapons if he got any higher. I put my hand on his to stop him. He was instantly wary, and he gave me a strange look.

"I'm sorry," I said, breathlessly. "I just…it's my first day…and I…I want to move slower…" I moved my hand to his face and kissed his cheek lightly. He reeked of sake and smoke.

Kakashi…now would be a good time! I yelled at him in my head as Hachirou moved his hand from my leg to my waist. He shoved his lips onto mine. Though every bone and muscle in my body wanted to twist away from him, I didn't. I had a role to play, and this was an A-ranked mission. I closed my eyes and thought of Kakashi, and I began to kiss him back.

Kakashi came into the room, and every one of Hachirou's men went on guard. Hachirou stopped kissing me, thankfully, and looked up at Kakashi, thinking he was another client. He was definitely drunk.

"There's women to go around, sir," he told Kakashi. "All but this one right here. She's mine." He gave me another big wet kiss, and anger immediately flared in Kakashi's mind.

"I'm not here for a woman. I have a document for you, from the Hokage." He took the paper out from his vest and handed it over.

Kakashi, all the men in here are dangerous. The two women with their kimonos still fully on are also dangerous. The rest are innocent.

Hachirou pushed me to the side as he read the edict. Then, he laughed out loud and ripped the paper in two. "You think I need this? I'll leave the fire country on my own damn time. And no way is she putting me out of business."

Take out the two men next to you first.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked innocently. "If you'd like, I can show the mean man what he's missing." Without a word, I climbed on top of Hachirou, straddling him. He liked that. He didn't like my next few words. When I was inches away from his lips, I whispered, "Sorry, but that's the man I love." By the time confusion showed on his face, he was already dead. I had put a senbon in the vein in his neck, killing him instantly. No one else in the room had noticed yet.

I sat up and screamed, drawing the attention of all the other ninja in the room. That gave Kakashi a chance to attack the two nearest to him.

I took out one of the females first, and then turned on one of the males. Kakashi had taken out three by that time. Only one of the females was left, and with all the other women screaming, the man in the back had come out and was on guard. It was two versus two now.

I went after the guy. He was an easy target, because he didn't know what was going on. Then, I joined Kakashi, who was having a harder time. He was using his Sharingan, but the woman he was fighting was fierce. With both of us, however, we took her down and left her unconscious.

By the end, my hair was disheveled and my kimono was ripped from the bottom.

"Can we leave, please? I asked, my voice thin and wavery. I was feeling sicker and sicker the longer we stayed in the room. The taste of sake and smoke was still in my mouth, and I desperately wanted to change. Kakashi wordlessly walked over to me and pulled up the sleeve of my kimono, covering my shoulder again. Then he wiped some of the sweat off of my face and put one strong arm around my waist. With his other hand, he pulled down his mask, and then he kissed me.

Kakashi kissed me. He kissed me, and what did I do?

I started crying.

We spent the night in Otafuku Gai. Kakashi held me in his arms on the balcony of our hotel, electricity spreading across my skin. I was still shaken over the mission we had just completed.

"Do you ever have missions you hate?" I asked quietly.

"Yes. As ninja, we must bear through them. There have been easy missions and hard ones. Missions where I lose people who are close to me, and missions where I gain friends. It is all just part of the life we live."

"Earlier, before we met with the Hokage…I heard you talking to Sasuke." I explained everything to him. "You said you had close companions, and you thought about team seven…but you didn't think about me. I know. What am I to you?"

He sighed. "You're my student as well, and I care about you. But at the same time you're not my student, and I don't hold you in the same category as the other three. You're beautiful, and it's been a long time since I've let myself care about someone the way I care about you."

I frowned, thinking about Itachi. I hadn't talked to him in a while, but the way I had been acting felt so immature. When I was with Itachi, I loved him, and yet the moment I saw Kakashi again, I loved him. But is it all about love? I asked myself. What was my purpose? Somehow, I had been gifted with so much power. I could control four of five elements, read peoples' minds, control their bodies if I wanted too, and I was considered beautiful by many people. All of a sudden, I felt wrong sitting in Kakashi's arms. I needed to think.

"I need to go to bed," I said abruptly, and stood up to go inside the room. Kakashi was completely befuddled by my actions, and yet he didn't say a word.

Sleep did not come to me that night, but I came to the conclusion of what I had to do next. It almost felt like betrayal, but I knew that Kakashi was not meant for me. Not like this. No matter how he made me feel, I was still a monster. Maybe a guardian was housed inside of me, but while she was, I knew I couldn't give Kakashi the life he deserved. He needed someone who would be able to grow old with him. Someone who could give him children of his own, without the threat of a power like mine. My ancestors made enough mistakes with the power Kasumi granted, and it was my duty to end that.

I was subdued on the way back to Konoha, and Kakashi noticed. We returned to the Hokage's office, where she asked to speak with Kakashi alone before she spoke with me. He was in the office for a while, and when he came out, his mind was buzzing with frantic worry. Sasuke had been taken, and a team of four Genin and a Chuunin were sent out to retrieve him. Shikamaru, Naruto, Chouji, Neji, and Kiba. I froze, and was about to go with him, but Tsunade's voice called me back to the office.

Go, Kakashi thought to me. Sasuke and Naruto are my subordinates. I will find them and bring them back.

We parted ways as I entered Tsunade's office.

"Shut the door." I did as she commanded. "You've completed an A-ranked mission," she began. "That's quite a feat, for a Chuunin."

"I had quite a bit of help," I said. "I should never have been allowed on that mission in the first place." Tsunade was surprised at the frankness of my voice.

"Kakashi had faith in you. He says that your skills are much higher than that of a Chuunin. I know about your abilities, Amaya." And your mind reading. Surprise came over my face.

"Did Kakashi tell you that?" I asked.

"No, it was left in a note that the last Hokage wrote. He had it in a secret chamber that I found…don't worry, I'm the only one that knows," she assured when a look of frustration came over my face. I didn't even know how Sarutobi-sensei knew.

"You completed the last mission without hesitation. Kakashi explained to me everything that you had to do," she continued. "I know you just became a Chuunin, but we could use talent like yours on the ANBU squad. Especially now, since the village's forces are dwindling."

I took a moment to consider the option. She sincerely thought I could help, and being on the ANBU squad would be quite prestigious.

"No." I replied.

"Excuse me?" she asked, clearly confused and irritated. Apparently, not many people passed up this opportunity.

I made eye contact with her. "I have another proposition."

I stepped out of Tsunade's office feeling much better. Now that the decision was made, there was no going back. I only wondered what Kakashi would do. Tsunade's thoughts echoed mine.

No, Kakashi wouldn't be happy. I doubted Tsunade would be completely happy either. Not many people were, when they were betrayed.

The next time you come back, it might mean your death, Tsunade's voice came from behind the closed door. I smiled to myself. I knew that already. It wasn't a surprise.

I rounded the corner to my apartment and gathered up my things. I wrote a note to Kakashi, Sakura, and Naruto, if they returned. I had a feeling that Sasuke wasn't going to come back. I delivered them to empty mailboxes, and then began taking steps down the main road toward the entrance of the village. It began to rain, and the smell of barbeque drifted from a nearby shop.

"Amaya! What are you doing?"

I turned around and saw Rai running towards me, his sister walking and laughing behind.

"I have to go, Rai, and I have a feeling I will be gone for a very long time." He was confused.

"Why do you have to go?" he asked.

"I'm fulfilling a duty to the village," I said sincerely. "And a duty to myself." By that time Shiomi had reached us, and she was listening intently to my words. "Rai, promise me this. Never stop training, and protect your sister." I kneeled down and gave him a peck on the top of his head. "Shiomi," I said, looking to her. "Stay strong for him. Take care of him, please."

"I will do that," she said, and Rai nodded his head diligently as well.

"I'm going to tell you a secret. You must not tell this to anyone. Do you promise?" I waited until both of them nodded their heads.

"In the next few years, when people speak my name, you'll hear them whisper 'betrayal.' The secret is, it only looks like betrayal. I have a mission, Rai, and I will stop at nothing until that mission is complete." I stood up and looked toward the main gates. "I need to go," I said. The rain had picked up, and evening was coming.

"Will you promise me that you will come back?" Rai asked, innocently. I thought for a moment, wondering if I could keep that promise if I made it.

"Yes, Rai, I will come back," I finally said. "But I will be a different person. When I come back through those gates, I might be a stranger to you."

"I don't care, as long as you come back!" he said confidently. I smiled sadly. He was young, and naïve. Shiomi gave me a knowing look, but she didn't say a word.

"Goodbye, Rai, Shiomi."

"Goodbye, for now, Amaya."

I turned from them and walked toward the gate of the village. When I stepped through it, I took a deep breath as I looked out into the night rain that fell upon the earth.

Itachi! I called out mentally. I felt his conscious stir on the other side of our bond. I'm ready.

I received two words in response.

It's time.

A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for reading to the end. This is the final chapter of the first part of this story. To be honest, I'm not sure when I'll work on the second part...I've got a story line but currently on hiatus for that.

If you've read to the end, I'd love reviews...this was my first story and I know it started out a little bit shakey. Maybe I'll go back and clean it up a bit at some point.