Kio cursed as she slumped in the shelter of the roots of an old tree. She was gasping for breath and forcing herself to breathe through her nose to minimize the noise she was making.

She was able to grab Naruto from the ground after a sharp object slashed her side and escape in a puff of smoke. She sprinted over the tree branches the way she did in her evening training sessions with Kakashi; one boy on each shoulder and her side bleeding profusely. She spotted a dark hollow space underneath a tree where they could temporarily squeeze into and swooped down, tucking the unconscious Sasuke and Naruto in the inner side of the small space and herself near to opening so she could watch for signs of the enemy.

Kio closed her eyes after a few minutes of tensed quiet. Either they were successful at losing the enemy or it wasn't planning to attack her. She recalled the time when she read about cursed seals: one from a snake bite…The victim was often abducted or tricked into joining a group where they were taught to harness the powers that came from the seal. Kio glanced at Sasuke who was already sweating and gasping for breath. His body temperature was high: signs of a growing fever.

She hovered over him to examine the mark, ignoring the pain that surged throughout her right side at the movement and half hoping it wasn't there. The three tomoe glared back at her. Kio cursed. She remembered that only a few survived the seal at age ten, and Sasuke was six. Whoever was behind it was either insane or ill-informed about the cursed seal.

And unfortunately, she hadn't really tried any sealing method despite reading extensively about them. Or maybe…this was another first time she would just have to risk.

Kio bit her lip and tried to feel the wound on her side, soaking her trembling right hand with liquid. She winced, feeling the pain and numbness spread across the right side of her body. So this was how it felt to be wounded in a Shinobi war. She surveyed the space they were in, remembering the characters she memorized from the sealing method she chanced upon years ago while rummaging through her mother's things. As part of a lineage of genius warriors, she had a knack for easily remembering things so she was confident she could write down all the symbols she would need and perform all the necessary hand seals.

The only challenge was channeling her chakra properly without enough practice on doing so to perform a seal.

Kio glanced at Sasuke's sweat-drenched face. He was too young to go. His family would be heartbroken. Itachi's heart would be crushed. She swallowed, feeling the fear of dying slink its arms around her: warning her that if she dared to save Sasuke, she would die of blood loss. She would lose her uncle. She would lose Itachi. She would lose the family she envisioned she would have. She would lose her future.

—But that future included Sasuke and Naruto. It included seeing Sasuke and Sakura's happy family bonding with her own. If she put herself first, that future would still shatter to pieces.

Tears streamed down her cheeks as the adrenaline in her veins subsided enough for her to lament on the situation she was in. Her body was feeling drained and weakened with every breath she took. If she didn't move soon, her vision would darken and she would faint.

Kio shut her eyes and took two deep breaths. Her life shouldn't matter right now no matter how much she wanted to live. These boys needed her. If she didn't get a decent hold of herself, she would die in vain – Sasuke and Naruto perishing with her. She couldn't have that. She couldn't break Itachi's heart twice.

Kio shakily opened her eyes and started writing down the symbols she would need to suppress the cursed seal on Sasuke – blood loss be damned. She only hoped she would have enough strength to get them out of there after she finished with her task.


Kakashi walked down the dark tunnel that his dogs found beneath Otogakure: the mythical abyss – the jail cell that did not exist.

He slowly took each step, breath ragged after surviving a number of traps that required not only skill but knowledge of the forgotten jutsus. He could inwardly count how many times he thought he was going to die and yet, he couldn't shake the feeling that everything had been too easy. He hadn't met anyone, any guard or army who tried to stop him from entering the tunnels. This was his first time to find the place but he was sure that it should have had tighter security than he had seen.

Kakashi found the end of the tunnel: a door that was supposed to disappear over an illusion spell that he had dissipated earlier. He took a deep ragged breath before kicking the door with whatever strength he had left. It easily slammed open, letting warm light from beyond it blind him for a moment. He winced, his eyes adjusting to the new scenery before him.

When his vision cleared he found a spacious room with a giant snake coiled across from him; its burning eyes glaring coldly at him. He stiffened, knowing the snake could devour him in one gulp, when he realized it was just a massive statue carved from the cave wall.

Underneath the snake's raised chin emerged a silhouette slowly approaching him.

Kakashi blinked twice slowly taking in the features of the man emerging from the shadows: literally white porcelain skin, long dark hair, gold slit-shaped eyes… He was clad in a white robe tied at the waist with a sash and a rope; blue stand-collar shirt and pants underneath. Kakashi couldn't believe how young he looked – oddly even younger than his supposed colleague, Tsunade.

Had Tsunade seen him? If she had, had she been jealous of him?

The man smiled and Kakashi oddly felt a mix of relief and fear.

"Hatake Kakashi," he began, stopping in front of him and studying the damage that his traps had done on Kakashi's person: burns, scrapes, scratches, blood, dirt… He figured he would need a little more adjustment on some of his traps.

"You knew I was coming," the tired ANBU operative replied.

"Your ninken aren't exactly the type my snakes would miss," he said smiling cheerfully at him. "Follow me," he said, turning away from him and leading him to where he came. "Unfortunately, I don't receive guests at all so I don't have tea. Do you eat eggs?"

Kakashi wanted to say he wasn't in the mood to eat anything coming from him, but the journey had him drained and in need of any form of nourishment: poison be damned. "Unfortunately, I do," he muttered.

The man laughed. "You're as interesting as your father," he said.

It should have excited Kakashi but he was just too worn out to feel anything other than a need to rest. He barely registered which flame-lit passage they went through to get to a room with fluorescent light, what seemed like lounge chairs, and odd trinkets on the tables that seemed to be dead frogs immersed in yellow liquid inside glass containers.

Kakashi took a seat on the couch that the man offered while his tired eyes tried to register what kind of room he was in. Across the ensemble of receiving chairs were long tables with a variety of glass flasks and beakers that he had only seen in busy science laboratories. He noticed a beaker seated over a Bunsen burner. It had boiling water and eggs: hard boiled eggs that the man served him with a glass of water.

It should have irked Kakashi but his hunger had him throwing logic out the window, so he obliged and started peeling an egg. "Orochimaru, right?"

"Oh pardon my ill manners," he said smiling widely at him. It wasn't hard to sense that he wasn't really sorry.

"So you met my father," Kakashi said, eyeing him.

"Before he died a terrible death, yes," Orochimaru answered.

Kakashi sighed, trying hard not to feel upset at the way he responded. Tsunade did warn him he would be a twisted psychopath. "I suppose you know why I'm here," he went on.

Orochimaru leaned back on the chair he sat on, eyes smiling as if Kakashi entertained him. "Information," he said.

"And will you give me that information?" he asked after consuming one of the two eggs Orochimaru served him.

"Hatake Kakashi," the snake-line man said, placing his elbows on the arm rest and lacing his fingers together. "You trust me too much."

Sure enough, Kakashi's vision darkened. He suddenly felt like he wanted to sleep.


Kio shakily finished the ritual for the seal, the symbols she wrote in blood creeping into the tomoe, caging it in a tight red circle. The surge of chakra in their little space was sure to catch the attention of the monster pursuing them so Kio forced her exhausted brain to think of the next move she had to make – getting the boys out of the forest.

After the last symbols were sucked into the circle caging the seal, Kio dropped flat on the forest floor: chest aching as she heaved for breath. Her vision was darkening. Her wound continued to bleed. She was feeling cold, her skin drenched in blood and sweat and her limbs starting to grow numb.

She counted five breaths before forcing herself to crouch up. Help. She needed help…but not until she knew the help wouldn't be intercepted by the monster outside. She had scanned the area several times, still not sensing it anywhere close.

She couldn't be complacent though. Lives were on the line.

"Help," she whispered, half hoping someone out there heard her and half hoping no one did. "Itachi…" she said, tears streaming down her face. Itachi! She forced her trembling right hand to feel her pocket.

How could she be so stupid?! This wasn't the pre-common era. They had mobile phones for goodness' sake!

She fished it out, almost dropping the device on the ground because of how weak her fingers were. She pressed the keys, remembering that she put him on speed dial. She then pressed it against her ear, hoping he picked it up quickly and—

"Kio?" his voice rang.

Kio sighed in relief, her lips stretching into a smile. "Park," she gasped. "Hurry…please" she said, her voice breaking.

"I'm on my wa—!" Kio's fingers ended the call as her eyes went wide. She felt the monster's presence getting closer. She had to move!

Adrenaline surged back into her veins. She had no time to prepare for a defensive move or an attack to slow it down. She would just have to run – run and hope it wouldn't catch up. She peaked out of their hiding place and hurled the mobile phone toward the direction of the monster. She then forced chakra onto her limbs, draped Sasuke and Naruto on her shoulders, and ran through the woods as far as her chakra-infused legs could carry her.


Itachi was running down the streets of Konoha, his ears ringing as he recalled the way Kio's voice echoed from the call he just received. She was breathless, weak, dy— He bit his lip. Damn it, no.

He took the quickest routes to the park that he could recall, squeezing down alleys, bumping through groups of people blocking his way, and jumping over obstacles – trash bins, crates…at one point he even almost got run over by a truck down the street.

He ran faster than he had ever done before; his mind focused on reaching Kio.

Itachi spotted Iruka at the entrance of the park, discussing something with the kids he was assigned to watch over for Genin Training. "Iruka-sensei!"

Iruka turned to him, eyes already laced with worry. "Itachi," he acknowledged.

"Kio," Itachi said, stopping in front of him; sweat dripping down the tips of his fringe and his chest heaving painfully for air.

"I told her where Naruto and Sasuke went," Chouji answered, warily looking at them.

Itachi stared confused at Chouji. "What..?"

"We're supposed to meet here at this hour but they're apparently missing," Iruka said.

Itachi cursed, realizing Kio could be in the same danger Sasuke and Naruto were in. "Where?!"

Chouji gave them the direction and Itachi ran toward it, Iruka ordering the kids to call for help – police and an ambulance.


Kio felt the presence of the monster on her tail as she sprinted past the trees. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the exhaustion slowly devoured her limbs, slowing her down. The trees soon became just flashes of darkness as she pushed her legs to its limits – her eyes slowly losing her focus.

Forward, just run forward. Itachi… Itachi's coming. Just run…run forward.

The darkness faded and for a moment she was blinded by the light. Her limbs finally gave way, hurling her over the concrete pavement – her face scraping painfully over the rough surface and the two unconscious boys tumbling over the ground.

Bright…everything was bright…

"Kio!" she heard the murky voice of Itachi ring in the air. She tried to move her lips…her throat…tried to utter his name…

Itachi and Iruka found Kio slumped on the ground, a pool of blood forming beneath her and the two missing boys unconscious and muddy on the pavement next to her. Itachi rushed to Sasuke and Kio's side, Iruka taking charge of checking Naruto.

The older Uchiha was at a loss for what to do and who to check first. His heart was pounding, his brain felt like it would explode at the sight of his loved ones unconscious and bloodstained on the ground.

"S—as—ke," he heard Kio breathlessly say, snapping his baffled senses into focus.

He quickly scanned Sasuke for injuries: nothing too serious aside from some scratches and his high fever. He then slowly took Kio in his arms, cradling her close. He found the source of the blood pool: a deep bleeding open cut on her side. He blinked several times, his mind suddenly going blank and his fingers unsure of what to do. Itachi swallowed, his ears ringing and his heart pounding.

Kio's tired eyes looked up at him, memorizing the blurry shapes that was his face against the bright blue sky overhead. Her purple lips stretched to a soft smile.

Itachi's heart sank. First aid, damn it! He quickly searched his pocket for his handkerchief, fished it out and pressed it into the wound to stop the bleeding. "Help is coming," he told her. "Help is coming Kio. It's on its way," he repeated like a mantra more to calm him down than assure her. "It's going to be okay," he said, watching the light flicker in her dark eyes.

Kio took a deep staggered breath, tears streaming down her cheeks, before falling limp in Itachi's arms.

"Kio," Itachi called, shaking her slightly: her head drooped to his side, her dark eyes no longer seeing anything. "Kio! Kio, look at me," he said. "Kio, please look at me!" His hands searched for the pulse in her neck and found none. He laid her head on the ground, placed his ear against her chest in case he just couldn't find the pulse points and tried his best to listen to a heartbeat.

There was none.

He sat up and started giving her chest compressions, breathing air into her cold lips; her fair skin turning purple by the minute.

"Itachi!" he heard Iruka cry out, realizing that the man's hands had been forcefully dragging him away by the arm and shoulder. He blinked, submitting to Iruka's pull as a team of medics hovered over Kio in his place.

"Let them do their job," Iruka said, blocking his view of the woman he swore to grow old with.

Itachi looked up at him.

Iruka winced, seeing the tears streaming down the young man's cheeks – his face expressionless. "Sasuke needs you," he said, dragging him up to stand and taking him to the ambulance where Sasuke was already taken to with Naruto.

Iruka glanced back at Kio hoping the medic team could revive her pulse.


Izumi watched the forest scenery flash against the train car window, admiring how lively the greens and the blues were against the sandy brown that she had been used to ever since she and her mother moved to Sunagakure for work.

She glanced at her reflection: the mole below her right eye, the lengthy brown hair she tied in a ponytail…how much she had changed since the last time she was in Konoha? She was just about to start primary school when she and her mother left.

When she left Itachi.

She remembered the way he smiled at her as he bid her goodbye from the gates of the Uchiha compound: his kind eyes, the long hair he kept because he wanted to be like his father who sported long hair, and the way he said her name.

"I'll see you again, Izumi-chan."

Izumi blushed, burying her face in her arms. She was alone in her seat but she still felt ashamed at how much Itachi's existence made her heart skip. Did he still remember her? Did his heart yearn for her the way hers did?

Did he have the same dream she had?

As she cried on the way out to Sunagakure, she fell asleep on her mother's lap and dreamed of an adult life with Itachi: happily married to him, taking care of their children, and growing old with him. It shocked her to say the least. But eventually, she took it as a sign that they were meant for each other – that she would one day go back to Konoha and be with him for the rest of their adult lives.

Years later, there she was riding the train across Fire Country and bound for Konoha. She hadn't told anyone in the compound that she was coming to transfer back to Konoha Academy and later attend the Police Academy there with Itachi. It took her a while to convince her mother to let her go back. She wanted to surprise Itachi and see how happy he would be at the sight of her. She imagined him staring at her in shock, running toward her and hugging her tight. He would tell her he would never let her leave again.

Izumi shook her head, cheeks burning as she covered her face from the other passengers of the train. She couldn't wait to be in Konoha. She had seen Itachi's face a few times on the news when the case he worked on made it to the international media. He had grown more handsome than she expected. She was sure he had a line of admirers following him.

Hopefully, he hadn't been smitten by any girl in Konoha.