Green lights scatter over the village as each member who had died this day returns. Confusing more and more of those who had survived. The village was destroyed but thanks to Naruto who had reached Pein it seems no lives will actually have been lost. However, even as the village began to cheer and Naruto looked ahead at all of those who had come to celebrate his victory, there was one Kakashi did not see amongst the many people. In fact, the more he had looked over the faces he counted three missing. Kakashi found himself sighing. "You alright Kakashi Sensei?" Naruto's tired voice reaches his ear. "Yeah." Kakashi breathes as pain fully settles in his heart. -She's with them huh.- He thought as he sets Naruto down just before the villagers around them take him and begin throwing him into the air. Their joyous cheers drowning out any other noise.

Outside of the village two people crowd around a form on the ground. Silence ringing out between them as they fight to control their own pain. The battle had been tough and neither one of them had found Pein's real body. However, they had been able to stall their individual Pein's long enough to witness The ninetails in full form leaping over the forest. Both of them injured and exhausted their Pein's crumble as the one the Nine-Tails was after needed more control and power. From their own fights, both of them had worried for the other member of their team. The one that was still healing after their confrontation with her younger twin siblings. The one who wasn't supposed to use any jutsu and had just barely been able to maneuver her chakra to even her feet. It was Itachi who moved first picking up the bloodied and torn form from the ground.

As they make their way back to the village neither of them utter a single word. Cheers still echoing over the area though it wasn't as loud as it had been previously. The boys move their tired bodies slowly through the trees. As they come to the village the first thing they notice is the lack of the village wall. A large crater overtaking most of the village that it seems everyone was congregating in. Just at the edge of the trees, his silver hair catches the sun's rays as he turns in his crouched position he had been setting in, watching the joyous activities. His dark eye falling on them first before ever noticing what Itachi was carrying. His eye widens before the pain settles into his gaze. Kakashi couldn't understand it. Why did even he come back thanks to Pein and not her?

As the boys come into view of the others their eyes that had once been happy, sadden taking in the pain-filled gazes of the two Uchiha. "But why?" Naruto breathes before his feet take him forward. His sore weak body stumbling as he fights to run catches Sakura's attention and her eyes travel over the area to find what has her teammate so upset. Her breath catches when she sees it. Kira's bloody form lying limp in Itachi's arms. Getting up from where she had been sitting she herself moves her tired body through the crowd. "Why?" She asks aloud in a breathy voice as she fights to get to them.

Sasuke looks around the village at all of the happy voices. Not understanding what the green lights had been that he witnessed. Naruto was the first to reach them. His usually bright blue eyes dull as fresh tears build in his eyes. "Why her? He brought back everyone else…" His voice cuts off. Sasuke's eyes narrow as he looks away understanding what Naruto had tried to say. Pein revived everyone else but her. As Sakura reaches them she automatically guides Itachi's hesitant arms to the ground. Having him lay Kira upon the freshly disturbed dirt. Sakura shakes her hands trying to get feeling back in them before she holds them out over Kira. The four men around her watch her with bated breaths as she tries to enact her medical ninjutsu.

With her chakra depleted from how many times she's healed people today her hands would begin to glow and then fade. On her fourth try, Kakashi moves up behind her and places a hand on her shoulder, stopping her before she would drop her chakra too far. A sudden gust of wind comes up on them as an Anbu appears next to Sakura. Her expression is hidden by her mask as she peers down at her cousin. Naruto's previously relieved state is gone he raises his right arm and fruitlessly rubs his coat sleeve over his eyes to wipe away his tears. Aphrodite herself was having a difficult time understanding. "The jutsu should have brought her back as well." She speaks to herself. Reaching up slowly Sakura watches as she removes her mask. Her bright blue eyes glowing brilliantly as if they were lights themselves as Aphrodite focuses her energy into her eyes. Relaxing them to view Kira's life energy.

Those around her watch her eyes curiously as to what she is doing before the blond sighs with a smile. "She's alive." She finally speaks to them changing their grief to relief. "Her canteen." She speaks again now finally kneeling next to her cousin. Itachi gently rolls Kira's tattered form with Sakura's help so he can dig into her pouch. When he retrieves his hand he shakes his head. "Her scroll?" Aphrodite questions and again Itachi shakes his head. "She's been conserving her rations." Sasuke speaks up next to them. "She's probably taken to leaving her scroll behind when we are in the village." He offers, and with his words, four of them around her look in the direction of her apartment. Finding nothing but rubble in that direction. Sasuke clicks his tongue and reaches around his brother carefully moving Kira and pulling her onto his lap.

"Sasuke, with her in this state she'll k.." Aphrodite tries to warn but before she can finish he reaches up and slices his hand open with a kunai he had drawn. Moving his hand to Kira's lips he presses the blood-covered extremity against her. Holding his breath as he tries to get a reaction. When nothing happens he nearly cusses before Itachi reaches over and fingers her lips, opening her mouth for him. Together the two brothers drop the blood running from Sasuke's hand into her mouth. Two members of the team around them had known what Kira consumes. She had told them herself shortly after the village had been attacked and Sora was turned loose on the village.

But knowing and seeing were two completely different things. Sakura and Naruto watch as Sasuke works through the pain digging his fingers further into the slice he made into his hand, his eyes unmoving from Kira waiting for any kind of sign that what he is doing is working. When Kakashi was about to have Sasuke stop his eye widens seeing Kira's hand twitch. Seeing this Sakura reaches up and moves the remnants of her halter off of her torso. Gasping as she visibly sees the large hole stitching itself closed. "It's working." She gasps and Sasuke uncurls his hand and lowers it back to her mouth again.

It took only moments before he winces as her fangs sink into his hand. Showing she was now drinking on her own. Sakura watches the wounds closely making sure they were healing properly even as Kira finally reaches up and curls her cold fingers over Sasuke's wrist and cupping his hand with her other. It was when Itachi noticed his brother's weakness that he reaches over and pries her hands off of Sasuke's. With Sakura's help, they wrestle an arguing Sasuke's hand free. However, his words are cut off when Itachi takes her head and slips his wrist where Sasuke's hand had been. Her fangs sinking into him causing Itachi to finally smile in front of everyone for the first time.

It took less time with Itachi than Sasuke before her eyes finally flutter open. At first, her charcoal eyes were glazed and looked more grey than their usual color. After a couple of blinks, the color restores, and her fangs unhinge from Itachi's wrist. The two of them help ease her up into a sitting position when she tries to set up on her own. "Alright!" Naruto shouts before he wraps his arms around her, crushing her sore body beneath him in his excitement. "What?" She asks quietly before Sakura ends up punching Naruto over the head. "Can't you see she's still hurt you, idiot?!" She shouts at him as Naruto drops back rubbing his head after his yelp of pain. "Awe geez Sakura!" He wines and Kira giggles lightly. With what the boys had done for her, she was now much stronger than before however, she was still weak. She knew it and the fact that she had yet moved to stand did not go unnoticed by her three favorite people. However, there was still a lingering feeling, almost as if there was something wrong inside of her. She wanted to pass it off as she was still healing but she knew better. Her wounds are closed and her organs are nearly fully healed. She knew from her injuries that what blood she had been given was only going to be enough to mostly heal and not replenish her. Still, there was something inside of her and she didn't know what it was. This worried her but she wasn't about to tell them that.

As time went on and the sun was beginning to set Kira leans back on her elbows with a smile listening to each of them as they recant their own battles. A look in Kakashi's eye had her glancing at him more than a few times and it was making Kakashi himself wonder if she noticed he left some details out. When Itachi had finished up retelling his fight she was smiling. Not a smile that most of them have grown used to but one that lit her gaze up. There was nothing chilling her eyes or hardening her gaze.

Fact is, all of them at the time she blacked out were either dead or in their own battles. No one had known or was there with her. Kira tilts her head as she looks over all six people around her talking happily. No one was there when Pein had said she was going to die. And yet, somehow there had been only two wounds on her. He never did the finishing blow as he had claimed. Did Pein make the mistake and not finish her off? Pein, who knows how much damage she can withstand. If he was dead set on killing her, he would have. He wouldn't have just walked off and left her. So was she to understand that Pein, wanted her to live?

At some point, Sakura got up and left to go to the others that had been in their class at the academy. Kakashi and Aphrodite had left claiming they had people to check on. Naruto hugged Kira a second time before running to see his other friends. With Kira's sudden question asking about the Uchiha family, Itachi had gotten up to check on them as well. Leaving Kira and Sasuke where everyone had recently sat for hours. With the newfound privacy, Sasuke resituated himself so he was sitting behind her, allowing her to lean back against him rather than straining herself to remain sitting. He reached around her and guided her chin up before he kissed her. An act that didn't go unnoticed. Sakura had just glanced over in her conversation to check on Kira to find them. Her brief hurt filled gasp drew Ino's gaze and her eyes widened. Which got the attention of Choji and Shikamaru. Slowly each one followed suit to see what distracted the one closest to them. When Naruto couldn't get Kiba's attention he followed his gaze as well. At the sight of those two Naruto's eyes widened before softening. A smile on his features. -About time.- He thought having already noticed their feelings for each other in the land of waves five years ago.

With the sudden silence of the kids in front of them, Asuma and Kurenai look away from Kakashi and Aphrodite to see what stunned their happy conversations. Asuma slips his arm around a very pregnant Kurenai as he chuckles. Aphrodite's hand gently squeezes Kakashi's at their side as Kakashi's gaze softens watching Sasuke and Kira. "She's finally happy." Aphrodite sighs as she releases Kakashi's hand to walk away. Instead, Kakashi follows her away from the crowd. Only one person who had noticed wasn't at all happy. His dark onyx eyes narrow on Sasuke as anger wanted to set in. Instead of going over to interrupt them, he diverts his eyes, from Kira not pushing his little brother away. The pain settles in knowing, she had chosen. "Itachi, where's Sasuke and Kira? They okay?" Mitsuki asks as she grabs onto his pants and tugs on the clothing. Fugaku was the first one to realize the state his eldest was in and it didn't take long for him to figure out what Itachi had seen when he had glanced over his shoulder. "Don't worry about those two." Fugaku grunts answering Mitsuki's question and drawing Itachi's gaze. "Men pick their battles and fight the ones he can win." He grumbles as Mikoto smiles up at him. "There are also battles where patience wins the war." He finishes making Mikoto giggle and Itachi's eyes widen if only briefly.