Part II

"Lately I've been,

I've been praying hard,

Said no more counting dollars,

We'll be,

We'll be counting stars,"

Counting Stars by One Republic

Chapter Ten

Konohagakure was never the same after the day of the Uchiha Clan Massacre. Of course, the pain and absence the village felt was nothing compared to the pain and absence that two individuals felt. One was Uchiha Sasuke, the survivor of the massacre who turned cold and whose hatred for his elder brother started to rule him. The other was Haruno Miyako, who lost not only a teammate and best friends, but two people who – she had to admit five years later – she had a slight crush on.

Of course, the sense of betrayal Miyako felt had pushed her into becoming stronger. She wanted to know why Itachi did what he did, and she wants to protect Sasuke from the darkness slowly growing within him. Because of this, a year after the massacre – and after Sasuke was declared fit (both mentally and physically) – she demanded that she become Sasuke's guardian and that the two moves into a two-bedroom apartment together. At first, the Hokage was against her request. But the more she pushed, the more he realised he couldn't deny her and so – with the permission of the Haruno's – Miyako became Sasuke's legal guardian and the two moved in together.

Currently, Miyako was preparing breakfast for her and Sasuke, consisting of green tea, natto, a banana, white rice, and slightly cooked eggs. She was humming to herself, whilst Sasuke was just starting to wake up. For the young Uchiha, today was important as it was the day that the exams to become a genin began. Miyako remembers her exams, which – over the course of three days – consisted of a written test for spelling, reading, and grammar, a substitution test, a written test for mathematics and strategies, a written test for history and political knowledge, a test on basic taijutsu and weapon throwing, a transformation test, and – finally – the clone test. Overall, there were seven tests, and one had to pass at least two to become a genin.

"Morning, Sasuke," Miyako greeted as the Uchiha walked into the kitchen-diner of their apartment, his hair sticking up every which way and sleep still in his eyes.

"Hn," Sasuke replied groggily as he sat down at the table as Miyako placed his food in front of him before grabbing her food and sitting across from him.

"Are you ready for your exams?" Miyako questioned Sasuke as she mixed the natto, rice, and eggs together with her chopsticks.

"Hn," Sasuke replied as he brought his food to his mouth.

"I'm glad you're so confident, I was so nervous during my test, I almost vomited right there in the exam room," Miyako explained, shuddering as she remembered that day back when she was seven. "Anyway, I'm going on a mission today, so I might not be back until next week. I spent all of yesterday and last night preparing your Bentos. You'll have to make breakfast yourself."

"Won't this be your first mission as a Jōnin?" Sasuke questioned, knowing that a 'hn' wouldn't convey his question properly – even if Miyako was a master in 'hn' speech.

"That's right. I'll be going with Takeo, Gina, and Tsuneo-sensei. The Hokage gave me the mission last night. We need to take some highly expensive, and rare, medicines to Takumi Village in the Land of Rivers. I should be back by next week, assuming everything goes well," Miyako explained before smiling ruefully. "It'll be nice to work with Gina; we sort of drifted apart after I graduated. We're still friends but..."

Sasuke's dark eyes looked at Miyako who looked sad. He never knew what to say or do when she fell into these moments of sadness, so he finished his banana and tea before getting up to have a shower and get ready, leaving Miyako to gaze out the window of the kitchen.

...

"Miyako!" a female voice called as Miyako walked towards the gates of the village three hours later.

Miyako grinned when she saw the silver-haired, grey-eyed beauty that was Ejiri Gina. She ran up to the chūnin, pulling her into a hug, ignoring the grins of both Tsuneo and Takeo. "God, I missed you, Gina. I'm so excited to go on a mission with you."

"Me too. And I can't believe you're a Jōnin already. Honestly, I feel so weak compared to you," Gina stated with a grin.

"How do you two know each other?" Tsuneo questioned in confusion.

"Gina was my first friend at the academy, we were like sisters up until I graduated. In fact, Takeo, Gina, Hi-Hisoka, and I were close growing up," Miyako explained, stuttering over Hisoka's name.

"Yep, and then the three smart-arses decided to go and graduate before me, so the only time we could hang out was on the off days – which was almost never," Gina explained and Tsuneo blushed as he realised that his training that had stopped the trio from visiting their friend regularly. "But that's all in the past, and right now is the present. And you know what that means?"

"We have a mission to complete?" Takeo offered and Gina grinned.

"We have a mission to complete."

...

Miyako grinned as she stepped into her apartment a little over a week later. The mission was a success, the team only being attacked once by a group of low-level rouges. The medicine was delivered, the group returned home and were paid for their time.

She had missed her small apartment and had missed Sasuke. She wanted to be there for his graduation, but she had missed it, and she hoped Sasuke brought the report card home with him so she could see how well he done. She also wanted to know about his team, who she knew he would meet today for the first time.

It was already late afternoon, so Miyako decided to begin preparing dinner. Tonight, she decided on Sasuke's favourite - tomatoes with steamed rice. She added a little bit of pork to the dish, mostly because she knew that a growing boy needed his protein. She had just finished preparing the meal when Sasuke returned.

"I'm home," he called out.

"Welcome back, Sasuke," Miyako greeted as he walked into the kitchen, a blank look on his face. "Did you bring your report card? What about your team? Who's your sensei?" She questioned as Sasuke placed a folder on the bench as Miyako put the food on the stove to cook.

She turned around and grab the report card. Reading everything, and grinning as she realised Sasuke got the highest marks in the class overall. He was the student of the year. The one all sensei's want on his team. The one to look out for.

"Amazing, your scores are the same as mine," Miyako grinned as she turned back to the pan and threw the pork in with the tomatoes. "So, have you met your teammates and sensei yet?"

"Hn," Sasuke replied.

"That bad huh? Who are they?" Miyako questioned as she grabbed the freshly steamed rice and placed a couple of spoonful's in each bowl.

"Your cousin, Sakura, and the dobe Uzumaki Naruto," Sasuke replied.

"Sakura and Naruto aren't that bad," Miyako stated, defending her younger cousin.

"She's a fangirl and he's a class clown, and our sensei is no better," Sasuke stated as Miyako put the pork and tomatoes on top of the rice and placed the bowls on the table.

"And who's your sensei?" Miyako questioned as Sasuke took his seat and she placed two cups of green tea on the table, taking her seat across from him.

"Itadakimasu," Sasuke and Miyako stated before Sasuke answered her question. "Some Jōnin by the name Hatake Kakashi."

Miyako dropped her chopsticks in surprise. "The Hatake Kakashi?"

"You know him?" Sasuke questioned in surprise.

"Of course, he's a legend. He's one of the best fighters our village has at the moment. In fact, he's perfect to train you. The only thing wrong with him is he's always late... that and he has a habit of failing he's genin teams," Miyako explained with a wide grin.

"We have to do a test tomorrow, he wants us at the training grounds at dawn with no breakfast," Sasuke stated and Miyako gave a sly grin.

"Then you should probably listen to him. I'll prepare a bento for your lunch. You should get a good amount of rest, Kakashi-san is ruthless."

...

The next day, Miyako made her way to the Hokage building. She didn't know why she was called in so soon after her latest mission, but she figured it must've been important as she made her way up the steps to the door that led to the Hokage's office. She knocked on the door and waited before being let in. She stepped in, noticing the Hokage sitting at his desk doing paperwork. When he saw her, he gave her a small smile before gesturing for her to close the door and she made her way up to the desk in front of him.

"Good, I have a mission for you. It's not particularly difficult, and you should be able to have it done by the end of today," the Hokage explained as he stopped writing, placing his pen down to give her his undivided attention.

"The mission, sir?" Miyako questioned, expecting a scroll.

"You are to go to an onsen in Atsuiyama. There you are to meet the sage Jiraiya who will have a scroll for me. The scroll holds important information, and it can't fall into the wrong hands. This is an A-rank mission. If someone gets a hold of the scroll that's not me, set it on fire. Do you understand?" the Hokage questioned and Miyako nodded, schooling her face into an emotionless mask.

"Of course, Lord Hokage," Miyako stated before leaving the office and rushing towards the front gate.

She left the village, knowing that at full ninja speed it will take her a good three hours to reach Atsuiyama. If all goes well, she should finish the mission in time to cook dinner. She ran along the path, before veering off it to cut through the forest, jumping from tree to tree with the ease of a fully trained shinobi. She wondered if she had enough time in Atsuiyama to get some sweets for herself – sweets she couldn't get in Konohagakure – but quickly pushed the thought aside as the importance of the mission took over.

I wonder what's in the scroll, Miyako questioned as she jumped as a weak branch cracked under her. The branch broke as she landed on the branch the next tree over. Should I have packed some extra supplies just in case?

"He never tells me what we're doing, it drives me mad," a male voice flittered across her mind and she stopped in her running, completely hiding her presence from the two people she could sense coming towards her.

She focused on the thoughts, hoping to get more out of them, to gauge if they were friend or foe. She got her answer as the next thought was directed straight at her. "Miyako-chan, I suggest you continue on. Kisame is bloodthirsty."

That was a voice she was familiar with. At first, she was tempted to confront him but knew there was no way she would make it out alive – either by his hand or his partners. With that, Miyako shot forward, going around the duo towards the village. Their minds voices faded as she got further and further away. After all, she hadn't spent the last five years doing nothing. She was determined to protect Sasuke – from both Itachi and himself – and trained until she passed out on a daily basis. The training included activating stage three of Shinjitsu no Kokei, which now allowed her to go through one's memories up to two years old.

After that almost altercation, everything was smooth sailing. She reached Atsuiyama, prepared to go to the onsen when she realised, there were three onsens and she had no idea which one Jiraiya was at. Biting her lip, she walked into the village, contemplating how to figure out which onsen she was meant to go to when she heard screams and she followed them to the front of an onsen where woman wearing nothing but towels were beating up a long, white-haired man, she got her answer.

"Take that you pervert!" the girls screamed before walking back into the onsen, making Miyako smirk as she knew exactly who the man on the ground was.

Miyako walked over to the man, kneeling down so she could see his bruised face. He was dazed, and she swears she could see stars spinning around his head. She cleared her throat, waking the man up from his daze. He looked at the girl in front of him, taking in the sight of her ample breasts before as sleazy grin split his face and he lunged towards her, Miyako easily dodging with a look of disgust on her face.

"You're the great sannin Jiraiya? I should've expected as much from the one who writes the Icha Icha series," Miyako stated and the man grinned, shooting up and doing a pose.

"That's correct, I am the one, the only Jiraiya! Do you want an autograph?" he questioned.

Miyako snorted. "No, but I would like the scroll Lord Third has requested."

At the mention of the scroll, Jiraiya turned serious, looking the girl up and down properly, noticing the forehead protector on her forehead. "I see, it's in my room. Come with me... ah, who are you?"

"Haruno Miyako, Jiraiya-sama," Miyako replied as she followed the man towards his hotel.

"Hmm, with that hair and body, I almost thought she was a Shinjitsu," he's thoughts flitted across her mind, making her roll her eyes, a move that the sannin didn't miss.

"So, Miyako-san, how old are you?" Jiraiya questioned.

"Fourteen," Miyako replied as they made their way inside the hotel.

"And you're a Jōnin? Impressive. You must be quite skilled."

"The Hokage believes so. Though I was only promoted a month ago," Miyako explained as he led her into his room and handed her a scroll with a seal only he or the third could open.

"I see, well then, I'm sure the Hokage told you how important this scroll is. Don't let it fall into the wrong hands," Jiraiya stated and Miyako.

"Of course, Jiraiya-sama. I will be off," Miyako stated before putting the scroll into her travel pack and left, leaving a suspicious sannin behind.

Is she really who she claims to be?

...

"Here you go, Lord Hokage," Miyako stated as she placed the scroll on his desk three hours later.

"Good, did you have any problems?" Hiruzen questioned Miyako frowned.

"It wasn't a problem, per-say, but I did catch the stray thought of two criminals on my way to Atsuiyama," Miyako stated and Hiruzen gestured for her to continue. "I didn't recognise the first voice, however the second one belongs to Uchiha Itachi. He spoke directly to me and mentioned that 'Kisame is bloodthirsty'."

"Itachi?" Hiruzen questioned in surprise as he stared at the young teen in front of him. "And you said Kisame?"

"Yes sir. I didn't make contact with them besides that one thought from Itachi," Miyako replied and Hiruzen frowned.

"Don't speak of this to anyone. And keep an ear out for either of them, they're too close to the village for my liking," Hiruzen stated and Miyako nodded.

"Yes, Lord Hokage."