A/N: Ermmm... yeah, this one is kinda short…I was bored and the kitchen called to me... I gots chocolate milk!

6am in the morning

It had been 6:00am when he had first learned the truth, or at least some of it.

He had been sitting at his desk in his formal living room, reading his work by a single dim lamp. That girl that they had brought back from Sora had been nagging at his mind ever since Naruto took her away two days ago. She was definitely hiding something, that he was certain. But he didn't know what. That's when they came.

The doorbell rang, and a pounding fist followed. "Hey, open up!" A guy's voice yelled.

"Seeficata, have some manners," a man whispered harshly.

"How many times do I have to tell you, it's Dark. My name is DARK! Not some sissy girl name," the one Dark, Gaara assumed, yelled while stopping the pounding.

A polite knock then broke the odd silence. "Excuse me, can you please open the door. We would like to talk to you," a third mans voice spoke calmly.

"You see Seeficata, that's how you knock on someone's door."

"Oh shut up old man," Dark replied.

"What do you want?" Gaara yelled.

"We have reason to believe that this is where our lost comrade was staying," the calm voice called.

"Comrade?" Gaara whispered to himself. "And what is his name?"

"Oh, it's not a he, it's a she. Her name is Kikiru," the calm one replied again.

Gaara's mouth dropped; Nin from Sora. What did they want? "And what do you want with her?"

"Just open the god damn-"

"Dark, you retard! Have patience! Maybe she isn't even here," the calm one said quietly.

Dark's voice changed. "Oh, I'm sorry. Have hope Ichi, we'll find her. I'm sure she isn't angry."

"Then why did she run without telling us?"

"Well…" he said, trying to think up a logic explanation that would placate his friend. "You know how she is."

"Yeah I know…" the calm one, Ichi, replied.

"Well," Gaara said, opening the door. "She isn't here, but I can tell you where she is." He looked around at the three standing on his doorstep. There were three men: two teenagers, and one in his late twenties. One of the boys had dark purple eyes, spiky black hair, and had that 'I'm an idiot' sense around him. The other one was standing calmly, his light blue eyes twinkling merrily. Gaara had the impression of someone trying to look happy, when they were really under a lot of stress. The third one, probably 25, was a man with dark green eyes, and he looked somewhat angry.

"Hi," the one with blue eyes said happily. "So, she isn't here?"

"No…" Gaara said, trailing off. All three were wearing Sora headbands, and they looked as if they had traveled a long way. He frowned slightly, a bout of anger rising: how did people continually get past the guards of the village?

"Well...then, do you know where she is?" The purple-eyed one asked, receiving a glare from what Gaara presumed to be their sensei.

"Yeah, I do. I'll tell you…" he said, and then an idea popped into his head. "But, I'd like you to tell me some things about her."

"Okay, it's a deal," Ichi replied as Gaara ushered them into his house.

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"So," Iruka began as the four were once again sitting outside. "Any plans for your stay here?"

Kikiru looked at him for a second, then back at her bowl. Then she sneezed, and Naruto smiled. "Someone is talking about you somewhere."

"I wouldn't doubt it..." she said quietly, eyes hazy.

"Well?" Iruka said again.

"Well, Naruto told me last night that his team, team #7 lost a member…and, he recommended I go on missions to help out," She twirled her chopsticks in her hand, deep in thought.

"Well, I think that's a good plan," Iruka said smiling.

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A/N: HI ! I NEED SOME HELP...I'M PLANNING ON HAVING KIKIRU STAY IN KONOHA FOR A WHILE, AND I WANT HER TO GO ON MISSIONS...I NEED YOUR OPINIONS ON SEVERAL TOPICS...DO YOU THINK SHE SHOULD BE A TEMPORARY REPLACEMENT FOR SASUKE? SHOULD SHE TAKE UP NARUTO'S OFFER AND GO ON MISSIONS? IF SO, WITH WHO? YEAH...I WAS AT A LOSS OF IDEAS...SO NOW, I NEED REVIEWS STATING YOUR OPINIONS! P.S.: THANKS FOR THE 1700 HITS!

(K-Chan's Notes: Dobe. :P This was an interesting chapter; I love Dark! He's our favorite idiot, that he is. Well, him and Naruto. Ichi is funny too…lol. –is remembering a different chapter that Dragonfly wrote- Anywho, now that the plot seems to be thickening a bit more, what do you all think?)