"And all of the voices surrounding us here

They just fade out when you take a breath."

Making sure that Kamiko was asleep; Hotaru gently opened up her eyes and looked at Hachiro sitting near the entrance of the cave. Inhaling deeply, she stood up and strolled over to him, placing a hand on his head.

"I'll take the next shift," she smiled. "I mean it's technically supposed to be Ryota-sensei taking care of us, but I suppose this is his way of making us...'tougher'."

The silver-eyed boy snickered lightly, removing Hotaru's hand from his head. "I'm fine, Aru-chan. Go back to sleep."

"If you expect someone with night terrors to fall asleep easily, then I've got news for you, dipstick." she released her hand from his grip and crossed her legs to sit down on his right, leading her eyes up to what seemed to be a hidden moon.

"So..." she continued slowly, looking at him. "I'm the universe, huh?"

He smiled but gritted his teeth, ordering his blood not to amass at his cheeks. "You heard that?"

"Tch, everyone back at Suna heard it!" she laughed, cuffing him on the shoulder. "Just kidding. You weren't that loud, but I was awake. And maybe it was because I was close to you two. I think Ryota-sensei was awake, too."

"Yeah, well..." he faltered, blinking the liquid of exhaustion out of his eyes. "T'wasn't a secret. You already know how much I care about you, Aru-chan."

"Mhm," she beamed, feeling like home. Abruptly, her eyes expanded and she half-shouted. "You wouldn't marry me?!"

He emitted a loud laugh, clutching his dull green t-shirt over his stomach. "You heard wrong."

"Yeah, yeah. Thought we had a deal, you dipstick!"

"You don't know what'll happen in the future!" he whisper-yelled. "I'll be married years before I turn forty."

"...You just said you don't know what'll happen in the future! So, you might not be married by the time you're forty!"

"Shut up," he sneered lightheartedly. "Don't you want to marry that Gaara boy anyway?"

Her blood instantaneously made its way to her cheeks at the mention of his name. "What do you mean? He's just someone I like. I haven't planned anything for the future, dipstick. I'm not Miko-chan."

"Ha! Damn." Hachiro grinned. "If it's not Gaara you'll marry, who do you think you'll end up with?"

She rolled her eyes. "Are you really asking me that right now? Baaa-ka."

He shrugged, looking to the sky. "I'd rather see you with anyone else, honestly."

His statement struck a nerve. "Really? Who then, hm? Who the hell would you rather see me with?"

"Kankurō would be a good choice. Or Kazuhiro."

"Kazu-kun? You're joking!"

"Yeah, I'm serious!"

"Get serious somewhere else," she chose to change the subject, disliking the one they were currently in. "And what was that trash talk about Yondaime-sama, hm? Or this thing about me being like Gaara?"

He eyed her frown before looking away and wiping his eyes, yawning. "Can we talk about that later? I'm done with you and Kamiko-chan's girl-complaints."

Letting out a gasp, Hotaru sent another fist to his arm. "Go to sleep, aniki. You obviously need to."

"You go to sleep, Aru-chan. We both know that you need it more than I do." He grunted, inclining on his outstretched arms.

"And we both know that Miko-chan won't wake up to continue after you. I'm already up so might as well give me the shift, dipstick."

"Go away,"

"You need some sleep."

"No, you need some sleep."

Smiling slyly, Hotaru extended her left leg and kicked away Hachiro's right arm, making him fall to the floor. Crawling to his side, her smile widened. "You don't even have the strength to sit up. Go to bed."

A warm half-smile creased the left side of his face before he yawned and sat up. He knew she was going to do that, but he let her. "You sure?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Go ahead."

"Right then," he murmured. "Take care."

Rolling her eyes, she let out a groan. "We're in a cave, not a battlefield."

He pulled her close and ran his fingers lightly over her face. "'Night, Aru-chan."

Getting up slowly, he strode to his sleeping bag.

"Goodnight, dipstick." she hummed, turning to look at the calm sky.

It's terrifying how much others can care about you.

Your life is no longer your own; every choice you make, every step you take and every little thing that you do is being watched. Sure it's sweet, but it's also scary.

What if I upset them? What if I hurt them without meaning to? What if they leave? Will I be able to continue doing what I'm doing without their watchful eye? Will I be able to put myself back together if they're not there?

No...he'd never leave. He cares about me too much.

Did my parents care about me the way he did? If so, why did they leave? Would they put their lives on the line for me, like he would?

Who would be stupid enough to take their own life while protecting someone they love?

...Who am I kidding? I know I would.

Hell, if I were put up to it, I would protect anyone.

Heh, baaa-ka.

Hotaru looked up at her best friend, observing him secure the radio around his neck and insert the earphones. He turned to his teacher as she watched, fastening her own radio around her neck while keeping her eyes on him.

"Ryo-sensei, why do we have to wear them now? We won't reach the Fire Country until the afternoon." Hachiro whined, rubbing the back of his head and yawning.

"It's better doing it before-hand," his superior stated, adjusting his glasses. "That way, we won't have to stop once we get there. You don't need to turn it on until we reach there."

"Which is why it would be better if we put them on when we get there," Hachiro murmured under his breath, rolling his eyes. "Not 'before-hand'..."

Ryota cleared his throat and strode to where Hotaru stood, looking ahead at the sandy horizon. "All ready?"

Giggling, Hotaru spun to her teammates after having splashed into a little puddle along the ground of the Fire Country.

"It's so beautiful out here!" she said with a grin, spreading her arms and twirling the other way as she walked.

"Oh, right," Kamiko muttered. "She hasn't been out of Suna."

"It was worth the wait," Hotaru replied, dazed by her environs. "I've never seen this many beautiful colors. And look at all these green trees!"

She sprinted ahead of them, eager for the day – entirely clashing her teammate's feelings. Ryota had been to the Fire Country countless times, while the other two genin visited about thrice.

Kamiko watched as Hotaru ran from tree to tree, as if taking mental images of them. Hachiro let out an exaggerated drone.

The team brusquely stopped walking once Hotaru was in front of them, gawking at them with an imploring expression. Her knees were brought together and her fists, along with her jaw, were visibly clamped.

"What?" Kamiko barked.

Hotaru strained a smile to her features. "I...really, really need to go to the bathroom."

Each of their faces went blank, except for Kamiko's; she rolled her emerald eyes and scowled at Hotaru.

"What?!" Hotaru shouted. "I haven't gone since last night! And this morning, I didn't feel the need to go after I finished both of my bottles and also filled them in the Land of Rivers. I thought of that puddle we passed by and..." shutting her eyes and clenching her fists tighter, Hotaru's cheeks turned slightly red. "Can I please just freaking go?!"

"COME ON!" Kamiko screeched, grabbing Hotaru by the elbow and pulling her into the bushes on the right.

She was humming with her hands on her face and her eyes to the sky, finally relaxed by the release of waste.

"Would you hurry it up? We're already late." Kamiko tensed her grip around the kunai in her right hand, grumbling loudly.

"Relax, we're not late." Hotaru stood and sighed, pulling up her shorts. She opened her mouth to speak but Kamiko's hand was tersely placed over her lips. Humming in perplexity, Hotaru jerked her head and arched an eyebrow.

"Shh," the green eyed girl ordered. "I hear something."

Annoyed, Hotaru licked Kamiko's hand and shoved her away gently. Yelling in a whisper, she asked, "What the hell are—"

She was cut short when a kunai flew by, slicing the left side of Kamiko's kimono while completely going through Hotaru, making her gasp.