When she recognized who it was, she concentrated chakra into her tired legs, ready to bolt, but the sharp, agonizing pain that filled her legs stopped her, making her wince in pain. 'Damn it…' she heard him chuckle, and she glared angrily, wishing the pain in her legs would recede so she could just run away. "What's wrong, koneko-chan? Tired?" "No!" she said defiantly, but the pain and fear was obvious in her expressive eyes. She didn't notice her necklace, which she had hid under her kimono, was glowing brightly, like a fairy trapped in someone's cap, the light shining through.

When she noticed, she tried to hide the bright white light, but the crystal seemed to have her chakra building in it, even startling her with the heat. "What's that, koneko-chan?" "N-Nothing!" she said a little too quickly, covering the jewel with both hands, wishing Kakashi and Naruto would get there already. The next thing she knew, she was slammed against the tree she'd been sitting against, her legs barely able to support her, and shaking with the effort as her hands were pried open to show the clear crystal, her chakra making it glow like a fallen star in her hands.

He looked at it a moment before asking, "Who has the others, koneko-chan?" 'He know?!' "No one! This is the only one!" "I can tell you're lying…so just tell me…" she averted her eyes from the Sharingan eyes, feeling like they were looking into her soul, and said, "I'm not lying…I found this one…" "Really?" she could tell he still didn't believe her, but was trying to make her relax so she'd be more likely to spill.

She'd spent enough time with Ibiki to know that much. He held her wrists down, just in case she tried to use her inhuman strength to punch him, and put his fingers under her chin, making her look him in the eyes, though her eyes seemed to look everywhere but at the Sharingan. "I know it's signaling someone…who?" the indecisive fear in her eyes was becoming more noticeable as she was forced to look into the crimson pupils that was the Sharingan. She thought she saw a glow in a bush, like a firefly, though the light seemed to be snuffed out like a candle flame. 'Dad…'

"Don't make me use the Mangekyo Sharingan…" panic filled her eyes, and she tried to move away, closing her eyes. 'No!! Please, no!!' she was only afraid of Itachi for a reason. She could be serious with an enemy, hide her sudden panic under fake playfulness, but she couldn't do that now. The trick of it seemed to have escaped her, and the emotions showed brightly in her eyes. She thought she heard the familiar sound of Rasengan, though the sound itself was faint and hard to hear unless you really tried…or you really hoped to hear it…she felt hope, relief, wash through her body, but she made the mistake of looking into the Mangekyo Sharingan, and getting dragged into the red, black, and white world.

'GOD DAMN IT!!!' she cursed herself, finding that she was tied to a cross, her friends in a line below her, their faces strangely blank. When she saw Itachi standing behind them, a large katana in hand, her heart seemed to stop. "No!! Don't!!!" But her cry went unheeded as he slashed them open, one by one. She felt like her heart was being ripped out, when she saw Naruto's familiar cerulean eyes, only, in this world, they were black. "No…" his chest was slashed open, his blood splattering on her clothes and face.

"Stop it!" tears blinded her, and she couldn't think straight. She felt vengeance building in her chest, mixing with Chiaki's chakra, making her blood boil and her eyes swirl to cat green, her pupils narrowed to slits as the old lightning-blue marking appeared. Even in this world, the chakra was powerful, and she couldn't stand being there another moment. Her chakra came out in a powerful burst, and she was snapped out of the Mangekyo Sharingan's world, suddenly in the real one, Itachi a few yards away, and her leaning against the tree, breathing heavily as she fought to stay conscious.

"Why do you care so much about that little fool?" his words stung, and she glared weakly, feeling a presence behind the tree she was leaning against. She felt darkness eating at the edge of her mind, drawing her into unconsciousness. But the chakra behind the tree was familiar, and welcomed.

"I care about him…because I love him…" she had a small smile on her face as her body slowly relaxed, and, before her hearing darkened as well, she heard a loved voice beside her, but it was faint.

"Michi-chan!! Michi-chan…Michi-chan…"