Holy...wow. You people rock! 24 reviews for one chapter! -cries and huggles all her reviewers-

Falcon: -shaking Gaara plushie- Can you believe it?...! -cries some more-

This is for all you awesome people!

Shichibi no Suzaku

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Awaken

"…It is a B-Ranked mission, nothing really dangerous, just fussy and time-consuming." A rather large-busted blonde woman looked up momentarily from the notes she held in her hand, at the shinobi before her, before continuing, "So, do you accept?"

A man with a rounded bobble-head haircut and rather prominent eyebrows spoke for all four of the group, "Of course, Tsunade-sama! May the spirit of youth guide our path!"

"…Not that we have much choice in the matter." A boy with stony white eyes remarked cynically.

The girl beside him, now fifteen, dark brown hair tied up in the distinctive two tight buns, elbowed him roughly between the ribs before he could contribute more of his pessimistic sarcasm.

He turned his emotionless gaze on her and glared, a frown tugging at his lips. In response, she stuck her tongue out playfully.

"Yosh! To Sunagakure it is, then!" A young boy clad in a…unique green one-piece suit with a haircut bizarrely similar to the older man was much more optimistic about the endeavor than his raven-haired teammate.

Tenten sighed, shaking her head at his antics, while smiling softly to herself at Lee's seemingly tireless vigor.

As the four parted their separate ways to prepare their packs for the four-day trek, the brown-haired Chuunin ran the details of their briefing through her mind again.

Sunagakure, the great village lost amidst the sand dunes of the west – deceitfully beautiful, and the location for their next task.

It seemed that there was a woman who had recently acquired, as she boasted, two birds born of the "Red Sand", who, despite clipped tongues, possessed voices so entrancing they could wake the dead. More unnerving, however, was that far too many civilians were claiming to have witnessed the deed being done, dispersing the original claim of a rumor born to untamed imaginations. On the other hand, if it was true…tampering with the natural cycle of life was disastrous at best. All in all, it seemed a very fishy business.

They were to keep to the shadows and observe, not interfering with anything. Secrecy was the key here. If there really was necromancy going around, Konoha was to know of it.

The three newly made Chuunin, Neji, Lee and herself, would be the main contributors to the information. Gai was sent in as a leader (this being their first undercover espionage mission) and as backup, in case anything did turn up. There was a great possibility the target was in some way affiliated with a black market. When the assignment contained the execution of impossible Jutsu, such as raising the dead, who knew what could happen?

Tenten frowned to herself at this thought. Neji had perfected his Byakugen to now envelop a range of 359 degrees, an impressive feat in itself for a boy of his age. Coupled with numerous other skills exclusive to the Hyuuga bloodline, he was a weapon to be feared. To underestimate Lee for his lack of chakra control would be setting yourself a death trap and waltzing straight into it. And she, Tenten, had now perfected the Soushouryu to the point where, implementing a tremendous amount of chakra, (God knows where she drew it from) she could force metal to slice through natural elements, like wind, wood, water and fire, among others, without influencing the path of the weapon.

So with all this skill, did they really require a Jounin to accompany them on a mission that didn't even necessitate physical combat?

She supposed she should've been grateful that Konoha had Jounin to spare in this era of strained peace, but she'd wanted the chance to be independent, relying solely on her own skill and people of equal status as herself. Tenten did not know when this need to prove her autonomy first began, but she did know that, as of these past few weeks, a sense of anxious restlessness had begun pervading her mind, eating away at her focus. It was as if something within her was trying to enlighten her to the fact that an extraordinary event was coming, a great change, a cornerstone on the road of life, and she had better be prepared.

For a few moments, she could barely just grasp a wisp of the meaning, finding substance in the murky crevasses of her consciousness, before it would flit away again, a creature of air, taunting her. There was something, someone, if she dared to entertain the thought, confined to a psychological cage within her mind, and every time she was so close to discovering the key, so close she could nearly taste it, a flurry of wings would surround the object of her chase, and when she found the spot again, the nameless entity would be gone.

Some perception urged her, find it, you must find it, but try as she may, it slipped her grasp every time, a feather-thin thought, carried away by a nonexistent wind. The exigency of the pressure strained her thoughts, hampering her usually agile mind.

All the philosophy aside, it was irritating her. As in, A LOT. The journey was to be on foot, with minimal packs to ensure swiftness. She would not have room to carry three bottles of aspirin.

Grumbling to herself at the prospect of four days (Imagine! Four, no, wait for it, four entire DAYS)without the medicine that had now seemingly developed into her lifeline to sanity, Tenten rummaged around the numerous pockets in her green Chunnin vest before pulling out a handful of silver keys.

If only the mystery swirling through her mind could be solved by something as substantial as these bits of metal. Alas, Fate did not seem to favor her much these days.

Such thoughts ran through the skeptical girl's mind as the lock clicked open and she stepped into the small house still haunted by remnants of memories of its once whole family.

Sighing once again, she reached over and subtly adjusted the little picture frame by the mantelpiece – her most prized possession in the world. (Yes, even more so than her weapons.)

Mama's soft smile and Papa's distinctively unwavering dark eyes, mirroring her own, gazed back at her. Tenten felt a rush of hot energy surging toward her eyes.

Before she became sentimental again, she wrenched her thoughts away from recollections with a violent burst of will. Settling her attention back to concentrate on the task at hand, she began to pack.

--

A small rucksack slung across her shoulders, the Chuunin vest, and twin katana strapped across her back were all that she needed. Her teammates were equipped just as lightly. Gai was nowhere to be seen.

She looked to Neji, the inquiry in her eyes, which he answered with a shrug toward the tree stump that marked the meeting place.

Picking up the scrap of paper, her eyes skimmed the page:

Something came up. Genma, Kurenai, and I have been called to another mission, more urgent. But no worries, my youthful students! I have trust that your burning flames will guide your path in your own assignment. Good luck!

-Gai

In her mind's eye, Tenten could just imagine the blinding smile sure to follow the speech, complete with sound effects: ping!

Dropping the note into one of her pockets, she nodded to her teammates. "Well, Neji, Lee, it seems we are now on our own."

"Hn. Cut the speech and let's just go." Neji was blunt as always, before he leapt onto of the trees near the forest edge.

Tenten feigned mock hurt at his attitude, and looked over to Lee for support, who only gave her a sheepish smile. Neji motioned for them to hurry, they didn't have all day, hence the two bounded up to join him, whereas they sped off, insubstantial shadows in the trees.

--

Two days of travel, and everything was going agreeably well.

"Neji! Are we close to the border of the Land of Wind and Fire yet?" Lee shouted over to their assumed squad leader as he moved to another branch. They had still kept to the cover of the trees, both for concealment as well as relief from the heat.

"We should get there any minute." Was his reply.

Tenten stayed silent, sharp eyes scouting for any signs of discord. She noticed none, until far ahead, there came the bright glint of metal. Eyes widening, her body reacted before her mind could comprehend what was happening.

"GUYS! Oh, shi–" Her legs instinctively kicked off the tree branch, body contorting into an aerial backbend as a barbed arrow skimmed past her shoulder blades, where her throat had been a moment before. She felt the current of air created from its passing.

Dropping to the ground, Tenten muttered an inaudible "Kuso," heart still racing from the abruptness of the attack. She sensed rather than saw her two companions drop down to flank her.

Seeing as the enemy knew of their position and had arrows, Lee crossed the possibility of surprise retaliation off his mental list and called out, "Who goes?"

Two shapes emerged murkily from the surrounding foliage, while another jumped down from the trees, holding a bow. Two men and a woman – she had a yellow ponytail while the darker locks of other two contrasted starkly with their pale skin and olive eyes. Their forehead protectors were blank, but Tenten had an inkling they would know what village the intruders were from soon enough.

"So, Konoha has finally sent out nin to inspect the Birds of the Red Sand." The man's eyes glinted brightly, as though consumed with fever.

Tenten knew the silent query in the comment. Are you, or are you not, those sent to scrutinize the birds? Tensing up, but knowing that silence was the best answer in this situation, she prayed the man had not noticed her telltale movement.

Unfortunately for her, these were trained ninja, and all three caught the subtle sign. The woman's mouth twitched slightly, and she shrugged, "I thought as much."

With those words, and no preparation whatsoever, they attacked.

Despite the weightiness of their predicament, the bun-headed girl had noticed the blonde woman's eyes straying hungrily to her white-eyed teammate, and for some reason, this filled her with adrenaline a little too swiftly.

No, no, it couldn't possibly be that. It must be the fact that she had smartly snapped open two green-spotted fans, each looking remarkably like miniature versions of Temari's. That was the last detail she recalled before the unexpected bloodlust of battle took her.

The next thing Tenten knew, Soushouryu Kaze was ripping through that bothersome woman's futile wind fans, slicing that shining, sun-bleached golden mane to shreds, but there was no blood, and the suddenly very dominant presence in her mind demanded blood, so her body obeyed with metal, spreading ruby streaks across the doll-like porcelain skin, and oh, kuso, she was out of weapons, no matter, she could use her hands, and her hands drew fire from her spirit, and that useless woman was doomed now, along with her friends, and white skin smoldered red, such a pretty color, then black, and oh, that was the most charming combination ever, and there was so much flame, fire, fire within her, and she had to let it out, it was such a beautiful thing, and-

"Tenten! Stop! That's enough – she was dead long ago! Stop, Tenten, STOP!" A voice rang clearly through the crimson haze surrounding her mind. Tenten…was she 'Tenten'? That voice, warm, and, so familiar… Images flashed continuously, green clothes, dark, thick eyebrows… a name she…couldn't remember.

"Tenten…! Please, stop." The strained tones of this tenor were different. Something told her this was someone else, and the pictures now were of long hair, brown, a cold, detached voice, along with those…lovely, stunning white eyes, a snowy blanket she could drown herself in, dousing her fire, but somehow, this was okay, because this was…

Neji

The name echoed across a chasm of time, space, and eternity, drawing her back from the inferno that was her birth and would be her grave, their pulls threatening to tear her apart, but he was the stronger. She felt the heat recede, and for the first time in a deceitfully long while, although her eyes had been open for the entirety, she could see, and the burning wreck of the forest was in sudden clarity, awakening the monster again, but no, there were arms around her, quieting the being, and then a face that she had just seen within her memories filled her vision.

All she focused on were those pearl-like orbs, so comforting, despite the irony that everyone else insisted they were infinitely cold, but maybe it was because of that iciness that she calmed, engulfed in her own blaze, as she was.

The lips below the colorless eyes moved, (And such perfect lips they were! a stray thought ventured,) but no sound reached her numbed senses. She tried to read them, but nothing could function, those silent words that she longed to know. Instead, she read his eyes, and they were much easier, everything falling into familiar words: Pain, helplessness, fear, and something bordering on the edge of desperation.

"Is he afraid for me, or of me?" She wondered idly, and the last thing she would recollect before falling to a mercifully deadened sensation of darkness was a soft voice, which only later would she recognize as her own, choking out, "Neji…"

TBC...

--

Yes, TBC. I am evil, no? Don't worry, Tenten's not dead. Next chapter is Suzaku's debut! And she will prove to be very...different from our expectations. XD Mwahahaha...

We meet Gaara in the next chapter, too. He is not yet Kazekage, and still has Shukaku.

Oh, and I need help on Japanese language! Could someone please tell me how to say,

-Sister! (younger)
-Brother! (younger)

Gaara: -blinks- I still have Shukaku? Damn authoress...

Falcon: Nooooo... Don't say that... because I love you, Gaara! -maniacal gleam-

Gaara: -glares- If I kiss you, will you burn the baby pictures?

Falcon: Maybe...

-dun dun dun...to find out the rest of the side story of Falcon vs. Gaara, review! (or just wait for the next chapter. XP)-