She felt it before she saw it the old and corrosive chakra belonging to one snake Sannin, Orochimaru.

Her eyes shot toward the Hokage box. Her jaw set firmly upon seeing the bright purple barrier flickered to life Sasuke's stiffen beside her as he to noticed the obstruction trapping the Sandaime Hokage with his student.

"Jiji!" Akihane shouted. Fear flashed through her maroon orbs. From the field, Hinata halted her battle with the Sand Shinobi known as Temari.

The feathers that had started to rain on those in the stands halted. Konoha Nin sprouted from the seats seconds later. The following moments became clouded in the ringing clangs of battle as Sand and It Nin tried to overtake Konoha forces.

Choking back another cry, Akihane turned toward her own enemies. Gaara seemed to have taken the hint and was gathering Sand in preparation for a fight, while Kankuro had suddenly found his body made immobile by a sharp shadow.

"No." Akihane hissed under her breath while empowering her limbs forward. More granules sprang up in the Jinchuuriki's defense, however, Aki was prepared. Taking a note from Jiraiya's book, the girl readied chakra in her right palm.

'I'm not going to let this happen!'

I~~Several Hours Earlier~~I

The day of the Chunin exams was surprisingly sunny.

Akihane hadn't actually believed the day would be dreary, though she really hadn't thought that an invasion could happen on such a nice day.

It went to show that no matter what was going on, no matter how good or normal things seemed to be, bad things happened.

Aki shook her head and twisted so that she could take in the scenery, enjoying her last few moments of freedom. Kakashi had asked her yesterday, before she went back home, to meet him on the training ground during the morning. There was still a good three hours before she was supposed to arrive at the arena, and the Kunoichi reveled in it.

"Enjoying yourself, Aki-Hime?" Kakashi spoke up from behind her. His sudden appearance did little to startle her. After all, she had grown used to the feel on his chakra over the course of the month with the help of Jiraiya and the man. In fact, after Jiraiya had tried and failed to remove the seal that Uzumaki placed on her, Akihane had managed to learn a lot more about sensing.

There were still times when Akihane struggled to work through her emotions, but not it was a lot simpler than the start.

"Alright, so I wanted to make sure you were ready for today. Jiraiya ordered me to check on your seal and the tags that we worked on."

Akihane sighed softly as she made her way toward her Sensei. She supposed asking to enjoy this day while it lasted was too much.

I~~~~I

Hiruzen felt it deep within his chest. The sharp nudge that something would go wrong.

True, he had told all of his forces and had managed to withdraw those outside the village back home, but he still felt dread in his chest.

Many Nin would not make it out of this battle, this invasion, alive. If only Hiruzen could be reassured that those he cared for wouldn't be among the numbers. Except, he cared for Konoha as a whole. No matter the casualty or the face lost, he would still feel it.

"Hiruzen. It's been a long time." A voice called, drawing his attention quickly.

Gazing ahead, Hiruzen allowed a soft smile to grace his features.

"Ahh, Oniki. I'm glad that you decided to come." Hiruzen offered his fellow Kage, eyeing the aged man as he came to stand in front of him.

A rather short old man chuckled. He wore red and green robes and simple red ninja sandals. His brown eyes contrasted his white hair and liver-spotted skin.

Oniki glanced back at the young lady standing behind him after Hiruzen spoke. The woman was actually the Sensei for the Iwa team in the finals, Kurotsuchi. The kunoichi had a grin spreading across her face. Beside her was a young man looking to be withholding a chuckle. Hiruzen did not know the name of this male, but he guessed that he was related to Kurotsuchi and the Tsuchikage based on his features.

Oniki paused and he seemed to think over his words carefully before he replied. "Yes. I originally did not plan on attending, however, Kurotsuchi trained a really good team and I felt it was a waste to not watch them embarrass your Nin further."

Hiruzen chuckled at Oniki's snide comment, his eyes lighting up while he glanced out toward the village.

"Ah, yes. Kopi Hesei Shisui, Rayutai Darui, and Oduriko Yarui, if I am not mistaken? They all performed well in the past two exams, though it is quite sad that Ryutai could not make it to the finals. I'm afraid that was the work of Akihane." Hiruzen subtly rubbed the battle in the man's face, withholding a smirk at the way Onoki's smirk dropped slightly.

Of course, Hiruzen did not wish to bring his granddaughter into view with the Tsuchikage, but, he also had a bit of power play to work on.

As it stood, Akihane had no backing if Iwa learned the truth of her parentage. He needed to make it clear she was off limits to those that wished to take her down for the sins of her elders.

"Hmm. I've heard quite a bit about that girl from my granddaughter and her team. Would you care to elaborate for me?"

Oniki questioned Hiruzen, earning a sharp look from his fellow Kage.

Just as Hiruzen opened his mouth to comment, he was cut off by someone flaring their chakra outside his window. Voices also drew his attention, and soon Oniki's guards stiffened while glancing toward the newcomers.

Kakashi, Jiraiya, and Akihane all entered through the window, the latter looking rather annoyed with her Senseis.

"Just as I told you, Hokage-Jiji is talking with someone. You should have just used the door, Kakashi-Sensei, Ero-Sennin." Akihane thoroughly chastised the two grown men, earning winces from both of Oniki's guards as Aki smacked Kakashi's shoulder and glared holes into Jiraiya's head.

At any other moment, Hiruzen would have started laughing. As it was, he was rather annoyed with his top Ninja.

"Oi, Gaki, respect your elders!" Jiraiya hissed at the young girl, huffing like a child before he took note of those in the room.

His body went through a series of simple movements, but those movements placed him slightly in front of his goddaughter. Kakashi had also noticed those in the room and effectively took his place next to Akihane's side. The two looked to be relaxed, however, Hiruzen knew they were ready to jump to the girl's defense.

Akihane, however, did not seem to care much for their efforts. She stepped forward and made her way to Hiruzen's side, nodding in respect to him before turning toward the other party.

Oniki seemed rather shocked at the ease at which she acted around her Hokage, her eyes even seeking out the Sandaime Hokage's before they shifted over to Oniki.

Hiruzen gestured to the three Nin before speaking. "I believe you remember Jiraiya and Kakashi, however, I don't think you have met Akihane yet. Akihane, this is the Sandiame Tsuchikage."

Akihane took the Hokage's introduction as permission to speak. She gave Oniki a slight bow and commented idly after she raised her head.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Tsuchikage-Sama. My name is Uzumaki Akihane."

Oniki nodded at her in the same manner, his eyes darkening as he took in the way the girl acted. As he had said, Kurotsuchi and her team had told him quite a bit regarding the girl in front of him. Especially the bit about her heritage and her friendliness with the Hokage.

"It's a pleasure to put a name to the face, Uzumaki-San. I have heard a bit about you from my granddaughter." Oniki finally offered, watching as the lavender hues in the girl's eyes darkened to maroon in the span of a few seconds.

She had taken note of his words. Interesting.

"I do hope they were good. I rather enjoyed my match with Ryutai-San. His style is very unique and I enjoyed the spar. Hopefully, I will get to do so again on similar terms." Akihane commented as a closing to Oniki's gentle prod for information.

Jiraiya and Kakashi both noted the girl's instinctual take on the political battle occurring, each of them rather surprised with just how well she handled the curiosity of her father's nemesis.

Upon the end of their exchange, Hiruzen stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Well, seeing as my escorts are here, I suppose we should head toward the arena. The Kazekage mentioned he would wait for us at the Arena."

Everyone took the hint and the shinobi filed out after one another, Jiraiya making his way to his Sensei's side while Akihane and Kakashi filed in front of them. The action was noted by the Tsuchikage from where he stood beside the Hokage. In accordance, Kurotsuchi made her way to Kakashi and Akihane while the other guard stayed beside the Tsuchikage.

Kurotsuchi stepped beside Akihane as they left the Hokage Tower, her brown eyes assessing the Kunoichi before her. Unsurprisingly, Akihane wore her normal attire. Her hair had been trimmed and kept up with, leaving it with a natural short look rather than the choppy cut from before.

Having seen the young girl with both long and short hair, Kurotsuchi found she rather liked the shorter style.

"So, I've been wondering since you beat Yarui…"

Kurotsuchi cut in quickly, watching the way that Aki's eyes held their red appeal while her sensei glanced at them.

"What was that technique you used? I mean Yarui said you pulsed chakra and we felt it…but still." Kurotsuchi let her curiosity become known, watching as Aki mulled over her words.

Her Sensei seemed to want to say something when Aki finally replied.

"Think of it as a henge. How you coat yourself in chakra."

Aki's lips twitched and she glanced to her questioner, taking note of the way the woman's eyes widened. Chuckling gently, Aki turned away and looked toward the sky.

"Ryutai-San may know I'm a sensor, but there is so much more than a Shinobi's specialty that can lead them to prevail. I realized during that battle that I needed to stop being so conventional. I'm sure you understand what I'm saying."

Kurotsuchi did not, in fact, understand the girl. In fact, she was far more confused than before.

I~~~~I

It was time.

Yin knew that his mission began now, that all of his careful planning would come full circle and prove it's use fullness here and now.

For years he had been putting the pieces together in order to fix what had been done.

Now, he only had one item left before everything began.

"Can I trust you with his safety?" A voice behind him called out. The tone was unbelieving and dull, but You could detect the quake in the boy's words.

His gaze was drawn to the stoic Uchiha standing behind him. Uchiha Itachi, Kin-Slayer and promise breaker.

You would think that after all of his displays of power and the years that Yin spent masquerading as someone he wasn't, people would stop asking him whether he would keep his own promises.

The fact that Itachi was the one asking him this was absolutely preposterous.

Yin had never broken a promise he made once he had been committed to it.

When he promised Orama to take care of any of the stupid Nidaime's descendants, he did. He promised Senshi not to stop loving people, and he didn't, no matter how much it hurt when he lost them. He promised Kushina that he would not allow the next Kyuubi Jinchuuriki to be alone, and he made sure she wasn't.

It was true that Akihane still suffered, that Senshi still died and that both he an Orochimaru still twisted into something Orama would be disappointed in, but that only meant so much in the face of the good things.

At some point, he would tell someone his story. At some point, those of his blood would be given his life's work and they would see everything he had done in the name of his promises.

Until then, he'd just have to deal with people like Uchiha Itachi.

"Of course I will. I can't afford to not do so. You just have to keep your end of the deal." Yin drawled boredly with a snide growl ending his sentence.

He did not like Uchihas, let alone the one who had slaughtered his clan. Good cause or not, the murder of family was a grave sin to an Uzumaki.

Itachi narrowed his gaze upon the Uzumaki, his eyes distrusting and filled with an unknown emotion.

Yin met the boy's gaze. His lips twitched and his eyes lit up in a crazed light as he spoke. "If you are so worried, cut the deal off and protect the brat yourself. I can manage Akihane…hell, I might even be able to change the course of this whole damn event. Orochimaru might even get what he wan-"

Itachi surged forward with a Kunai in hand, his arm outstretched while the blade knicked at Yin's neck. The Uzumaki reacted quickly and reached forward, grabbing the boy's wrist before dragging him forward and into his knee.

Itachi grunted, his eyes turning red while Yin twisted his wrist and turned them around, slamming Itachi into the wall. His knee hit the Uchiha's back next, his fingers pressing into the boy's neck while his eyes burned holes into his head.

"Think carefully about your next actions Uchiha. I am not afraid to end you. I am not against changing the course of my plans just to teach you a lesson in knowing your place. I have allowed you to live up until now only because I needed you, but I can easily go through this without you."

Yin sneered and eyed Itachi without remorse. To the Uchiha's surprise, his Mangekyo did not affect the man.

"Try as you might, one of the most important people in my life made sure I would never be a slave to anyone.."

Itachi grunted but made his Sharingan recede and his body slacken.

Yin glared and shoved off the man.

He did not want to deal with any of this, but the Uchiha had doubted him and come at him to 'make sure' he would keep his end of their deal.

"In return for you watching out for Naru during the invasion, I swear to keep Orochimaru from taking your brother. Sound correct?" Yin told Itachi, watching as the boy nodded in acceptance.

Turning, Yin snarled again in ascent before he vanished in a swirl of dark red flames.

I~~~~I

Akihane appeared beside Genma in a swirl of wind, her body shifting so that she leaned on the surprisingly relaxed Tokubetsu Jonin.

Genma glanced down at her in amusement, his trademark Senbon kept between his lips.

Aki hummed and rested her head on his shoulder, uncaring for the eyes watching her every move. After this, she would take her place as the Head of the Uzumaki Clan officially. Genma, being one of the guards not just for Minato, but also Kushina, was only a logical choice as a tutor in Uzumaki Politics paired to those of the Clans in Konoha.

Sasuke, surprisingly, was already present. Anko had apparently made an effort to get the boy there early so she could patronize Kakashi and Naru's group of brothers. Glancing up at the stands, Naru noticed how Yugau was trying to get Anko to stop making Iruka blush.

Stange choice, though Naru wasn't one to judge. Instead, she turned and looked at the others who had arrived.

Hinata stood next to Sasuke, her eyes searching until they came across Aki and settled. Then there was Shino, who nodded at her before staring off into space. Shikamaru played on the ground, no doubt enjoying the nice scenery around them.

The Eldest and Youngest Sand Siblings were just walking into the arena, while the two members of the Iwa team left were standing to the left of the mass of Konoha Genin.

Mere moments passed as people filed into the arena. Akihane watched those in the stands, taking in how several Jonin and Anbu were scattering around the arena.

Gennin and families with children were sectioned off, while nobles and the like were placed in the area with more protection.

Up in the Hokage's stand, Hiruzen was talking with Jiraiya, Kakashi, the Tsuchikage, and the Kazekage.

Surprise flickered for a moment as Aki looked between the Kage. Standing behind the Kazekage was a male in a cloak, his face covered by a simple bandage wrap.

Even with the odd disguise, Aki had a feeling she knew who the man was.

Turning to look at Genna, Aki leaned in and whispered in his ear while covering her mouth with her hand.

"The wind's protector stands with the snake."

Her voice hardly carried, but those from Iwa and Sasuke looked at her when they noticed her whispering.

Genma nodded and gently pulled away from her before raising a hand.

There seemed to be a pause in the talking of the crowd, just before Kakashi flashed down beside Genna.

The two exchanged words before Kakashi vanished again.

Aki glanced to the side just before a foot smashed into the ground beside her. Dust Rose upward and a shout echoed.

"Yush!"

It seemed that Rock Lee had finally arrived.

I~~~~I

Up in the stands, Hiruzen prepared to speak. He rose from his seat as Genma silenced the crowd. He had witnessed Aki speaking to Genma and was curious as to what she had figured out.

Genma angled his gaze at the lazy Jonin currently standing behind Hiruzen. Kakashi's lone eye flickered through several emotions within a single second. He then vanished in a shuinshin and appeared down below where Genma stood.

After exchanging words Kakashi returned, his gaze meeting Hiruzen's.

"Is something the matter, Hiruzen?"

Oniki spoke up from his seat beside the Hokage. Hiruzen took a deep breath and smiled at his fellow leader. "Just adjusting the schedule is all."

Hiruzen then turned to Kakashi, gesturing for him to speak up. Kakashi hummed as he offered a response.

"The Hime has taken interest in Gale's guardian. She finds his friendship with the serpent rather telling."

Hiruzen had not expected this. Even so, he nodded and kept up his smile. The Kazekage and the Tsuchikage both exchanged looks with their guards. They didn't seem to get what Kakashi had said. That was good.

Kakashi settled back beside Jiraiya, quietly reading his book.

Hiruzen turned to face the crowd and sent chakra into the seal at his feet. The application seal broadcasted his voice over the low humidity of the arena's occupants.

"Dear citizens of For Country and travelers, thank you for attending this year's Chunin Exams!"

There was a roar of approval before once again the arena descended into silence.

"Today we will witness the Genin striving to make the next rank. They will showcase their skills and experience in the coming matches. They have trained hard and worked to this point through blood, sweat, and tears. Please enjoy all of their hard work paying off!"

Clapping took over as Hiruzen say down, a smile still playing at his lips.

I~~~~I

Akihane smiled as Hiruzen finished his speech. Quietly she started to gather chakra for her battle.

Genma garnered the attention of the people next, announcing the matches.

"Alright, first off we have the match between Uzumaki Akihane Naru of Konohagakure and Kopi Hesei Shisu of Iwagakure! Everyone else please go to the viewing platform located at the side of the arena!"

For a moment there was silence, a crushing weight that spread over everyone in the arena. Sasuke broke it with a quick whisper in her direction, Hinata following his example.

As the silence broke apart, Akihane's gaze shifted to her opponent.

Shisui had just bud his friend farewell and was now moving toward her so he stood in the correct spot. Genma stood between them, his brown eyes shifting between them both.

Aki could tell that Genma was apprehensive over the match. Despite his feelings, Genma did nothing to halt what would soon occur.

Both Genin awaited the signal from the Tokubetsu Jonin in order to begin. Their fingers inched toward their blades while chakra rolled under the surface of their skin.

"Hajime!" Genma shouted as he withdrew from the line of fire.

Akihane remained in place while Shisui shot toward her. His fingers curled along the hilt of his katana as he withdrew it.

A clang sounded throughout the arena as Akihane summoned forth her own blade.

Tobirama's blade responded to her chakra, funneling her element through its core while she parried another blow. The cool bandages that bound the handle contorted to the shape of her hand while a hum rose in her ears.

The seals working across the blade nearly made it sentient, giving another identity to the dangerous weapon.

A shift of her feet guides Aki's blade through the air toward Shisui's side.

In a flash, Shisui twisted about the strike and deflected a sharp turn of the blow a second later.

The two of them struck again, locking before separating once more. They evolved their blows into an intricate dance. Their moves matched a d flowed in a way that Akihane had only ever experienced with Sasuke before then.

Akihane breathes deeply as she lunges forward. Her blade sweeps past Shisui's throat, only to be deflected by a perfect arch of Shisui's blade.

Another blow goes for Akihane's chest. She twisted to dodge and stepped away from her opponent in order to draw the chakra up.

Earth was beckoned by her call, a spire shooting up from beneath Shisui's feet.

Immediately, Shisui launched into the air and struck at the stalagmite(ground?) with his blade.

More spikes rose as the first was severed. Akihane's onslaught continued as her chakra shot through the ground below Shisui's feet.

The Iwa shinobi was forced to back away with a neat hop and several more strikes of his blade.

This time, however, Shisui was surprised when the spikes were only dented by the force of his blow. This caused him to get nicked and had him launching in the air to a safer distance from his enemy. From his spot, the sun was angled just enough to flash over the spiles rising from the ground. Due to his position, Shisui was able to take in the gleam on the spires as the sun's light reflected from them. Akihane brought her hands upward to form a single solid sign.

As she did so, Shisui raised his fingers as well to form his own signs.

The ground beneath them both groaned and shook, Aki's chakra withdrawing quickly as she flung her body into the air to avoid the cracking of the ground's surface from reaching her legs. Her eyes shifted over his body and she drew forth more of her chakra in order to fire several wind bullets at her opponent. Shisui surprised her by standing in place, twisting his blade around before jabbing it into the ground. As the wind roared and aimed to crash into his area, he brought his arms up and earth surrounded him in a dome.

Aki dropped back to the ground in a crouch, her breaths soft pants that vanished into the dusty air. Shisui's dome cracked and fell apart around his body, revealing that he was unharmed. The two met gazes and Shisui's lips twitched in what Aki read as an uncharacteristic show of emotion.

"I hadn't thought of coating Earth in chakra as a reinforcement. You pressured the stone into hardening, causing it to withstand my own blasts. It's rather ingenious." The boy still spoke cordially, as though he were reciting from a textbook rather than observing her techniques.

Akihane lets a small grin cross her lips before it fell into an easy and lofted smile.

The two faced one another head-on, each waiting out the other's next move.

Then, without warning, the two launched into hand signs. Quicker than most of the younger Nin and even a few Chunin could pick up on, wind collided in the middle of the arena. A wind barrier shot up between Aki and her enemy, the swirling torrent moving away from her body to the outer edges. Contrasting this, Shisui let loose a large spiraling serpent with gaping jaws.

Though the genin made no move to speak the jutsu, those observing knew the name. While fire jutsu were not exclusive to Hi no Kuni, such a large and powerful Fire Dragon Jutsu was highly unlikely from an outsider.

I~~~~I

Sasuke had been watching Akihane's match with narrowed eyes and grim line settled on his lips. While Sasuke knew that Akihane could handle herself, he couldn't help but feel on edge when the girl was fighting a member of her Father's sworn enemies. Iwagakure had yet to forget the transgressions of their elders, which left Akihane to pick up the pieces in regards to the elder generations. Even now, Sasuke feared for Akihane's identity and what the revelation of it would due when she was in the presence of powerful enemies.

That said, this match was still terrifying. From what Sasuke had observed of the Iwa Shinobi, they were very close. The two comrades of Darui's had supported him and each other completely throughout the exams, and it was only during the Preliminary matched that any of them had been damaged enough to need actual care.

Then, there was the fact that both Darui and Yarui looked to Shisui, the perceived leader, for instruction. Obviously, they held the boy in high regard, and if his earlier match was anything to go off of, Sasuke had all the right to worry for his Uzumaki.

Only one the large fire dragon shot from Shisui's mouth did Sasuke feel the shared sentiment form Hinata and Shikamaru beside him. Akihane was in dangerous territory. That much fire, compared to the boy's skill in Earth Justu and from the little bit of wind he had observed pegged Shisui as a Fire Type. The exact enemy of Akihane's Wind element.

"Akihane…" Sasuke whispered under his breath as he gripped the railing he was leaning over. His fingers itched to go through signs and his body thrummed traitorously with the urge to protect her.

His Uzumaki was important. She was someone to cherish, to keep safe and help survive. Not being able to do so was choking him.

The fire swirled and slammed into Akihane's barrier. His breath caught in his throat as Sasuke registered the heat and power from where he was several meters away.

His eyes activated before he could stop them, the red hues taking in the power and strength of the Jutsu while he waited for Akihane's counter.

To the credit of his worry, Sasuke did not notice Yarui's sharp gaze, nor the way the boy zeroed in on the Uzumaki as well.

I~~~~I

Fire spread over wind, swelling and spurring to life even as Akihane tried to redirect the current to stop the growth and choke it down. Akihane's control over the wall flickered, however, and her teeth ground down as she realized that she wouldn't be getting around her problem anytime soon unless she took a different route.

Recalling that water littered the area around her, Akihane swiftly redirected her dwindling chakra and summoned the water forth.

No thought followed her actions as more hand signs were formed by her fingers before a torrent of water rushed upward to form the ground to her aide.

"Water style, Water Dragon Jutsu!" She shouted as the water took shape. The small but dense dragon slammed into its fiery counterpart, the wind vanishing with a sharp cut of Aki's chakra. The water slammed into the fire, generating an explosion of steam.

As her general area was covered in the vapor, Akihane created several clones. The smoke from them was quickly integrated into the steam and went unnoticed. Using that to her advantage, Akihane gave her orders and took off toward Shisui's location.

Her chakra spread through the water, little droplets tugging at her senses like Konohamaru tended to in order to garner her attention. For a moment Akihane was confused, but the next she spent her time twisting around Shisu's arm. Her arm followed her movement and struck the boy's ribs, enough to send him an adequate distance away from her.

The two met eyes and shot toward each other again. They twisted together again in another dance. Their limbs wove through each other and neither seemed to gain the upper hand. Any blow they struck with was met with an equally forceful rebound.

The steam around them was beginning to fade when they passed by Shisui's earlier barrier. Akihane witnessed his fingers clasping around the handle of his blade before she was forced to dodge several chakra and wind enhanced strikes that left her breathless.

Her limbs twisted in ways that she hardly ever needed to go. Akihane dropped down and swerved through two strikes before bending backward to avoid a thrust. A backflip sent Akihane further form Shisui's attacks but left her open to a line of fire from the boy. Shuriken were drawn from his pouches and launched at her landing position.

Without any choice, Akihane continued the improvised backflip into another twist. As she did this, Shisui launched more weapons at her, varying from Kunai to Shuriken and even explosive tags.

Akihane cursed as the tags lit and blew up the arena behind her. She twisted in the air to land on her feet before hopping away again. Her breathing was starting to catch up to her while her fingers closed around the handles of her own blades. She retaliated Shisui's tosses and ducked under another volley before her arm shifted to draw her blade and deflect the rest of Shisui's weapons.

Just as she was about to, a glimmer flickered over the weapons and a tag was suddenly within range of her, the end sizzling in a sure sign of Akihane's fault.

'I hate Genjutsu.' The Uzumaki thought just before she was sent flying across the arena.

Her body twisted and she hit the ground on her side. The wind was knocked form her side while her front flared from the burns sustained by the dwindling tag. Quickly the Kunoichi rolled over and into a crouch, biting down any curses she had picked up over the month from her Sensei and Godfather. Her eyes had darkened to maroon by this point and her chakra flared instinctually.

After a month of Kakashi gleefully using Explosive Clones, or as Aki referred to them 'Kamikaze Clones' on her, the girl was quite used to retaliating after explosions.

Several water whips half-formed within a span of seconds to knock away the fire bullets Shisui began to shoot her way.

Up in the stands, Akihane registered confusion and shock over her ability.

Her water whips were not fully formed, instead only appearing long enough to reject Shisui's attacks while she recovered her breathing. This meant that the fires died after being covered in the liquid, sparks dropping into dying embers around her sagged form.

Shisui was panting gently in front of her, his hand still clenched about his blade in a comfortable grip.

His lips moved and Akihane's eyes widened as she read them.

"Fire Style, Ignite."

"Sh-"

Akihane shouted just as the sparks around her suddenly awakened. The water started to build to combat the flames, only to be swiftly evaporated as the flames surrounded the Uzumaki's body in an unforgiving torrent.

I~~~~I

Kakashi's jaw set in a hard line as he watched Akihane's battle. His eyes were narrowed on his student while she was enveloped in a wall of flame.

Jiraiya stiffened behind him and Hiruzen seemed to choke down some words while the other Kages edged forward in their seats.

Shisui stood before the swirling mass, still on guard despite the apparent defeat of his enemy. Genma was tensed but had yet to move in and stop the battle. His eyes flitted over the arena and Kakashi watched them stop at the same place twice.

The crack in the ground where Kakashi had witnessed Shisui disrupt a water-line and erupt the earth around his student. Quite clever, until it was used against you.

The tense set of Kakashi's shoulders dwindled as he recalled that Akihane had the power to make it through this match.

"Kakashi-Sensei, could you help me with something?"

"Hmm, what do you need?"

A pause, shifting on feet and an uncharacteristic shyness that had Kakashi on edge.

"I-I need help with my elemental affinities. I-I can't get the feel of Earth chakra down correctly…"

Kakashi paused, his eyes roving over the form of his students before he snapped his book shut and replied.

"Alright. Show me."

Akihane had surprised him with her knowledge of the elements, though her perspective on how they functioned was odd. Kakashi had never thought of molding an element based on its properties. Allowing water to flow through your chakra, earth to soak into your energy or even letting win meld and mix, Sensei. The concepts had allowed him to work through his own techniques a lot easier than before. Even so, Akihane had needed his help.

"Here, these are the signs for earth. Often most jutsu require intent, but with earth that fundamental is stronger than ever. That's also the reason why it's one of the elements that make mastering single-seals easier. Discipline is also key."

A nod and Akihane's fingers copying the seals he created. Quick corrections and then repeats. The process continued.

After the basics, they had battled. To Kakashi's surprise again, Akihane showed far more understanding than he could comprehend, despite Earth being one of her weaker elements.

"Alright, try sinking into the ground then. Think of it as stepping in liquid concrete or really thick mud, only you coat your body in earth chakra and the area around you to push past it."

Kakashi waiting and let Akihane try the technique on the ground using only her leg. To his surprise, the ground readily accepted her entry and soon she was waist-deep.

"I suppose it feels a lot like swimming in the dense water," Akihane commented idly.

After that, things had progressed accordingly. Akihane had even managed to catch him with the headhunter jutsu several times in their training sessions. To his credit, he wasn't giving his all.

Though, this battle with Shisui was nothing like their spars or his and Jiraiya's training. No doubt Akihane had picked up on that fact. Kakashi had to withhold a smirk.

This match would be interesting for sure.

I~~~~I

Just as the crowd was growing restless, a hand shot up from beneath Shisui. The Genin startled and moved to back away, only to find the hand hardening into stone around his ankle.

Shisui's eyes widened and he looked up in time to meet six of Akihane's clones firing wind, water, and earth bullets straight toward his body. He hadn't even noticed the clones being created, nor Akihane's emergence from the ground seconds prior to his leg being caught.

His negligence was paid for by the collective impact of the bullets smashing into his body.

I~~~~I

Oof, this had taken far too long. I haven't updated in far too many weeks. I apologize for that, but somethings take awhile and sometimes I don't have the time or I forget to do things. Last Wednesday was PTC and before that FCCLA had something. Either way, I published it today instead. Please enjoy and hopefully, I'll get another update out soon.

Drabble- Toads

Akihane hadn't thought of a summoning contract ever since Shisui's promise of letting her sign his fell through.

When Jiraiya had brought up his own, and then Kakashi had offered to help her start a pack instead, she was reminded.

The two males were staring one another down as though that would affect her choice of a contract, though Akihane was still undecided on that count.

Jiraiya had stepped in to help Kakashi train her several days ago.

From throwing Jutsu at one another they moved to dividing her clones into more groups to practice sealing theory and other principles of training.

It was about a week later that the topic of summoning animals came up.

Of course, Akihane had figured she would find one of her own, but both of her Sensei's insisted she took theirs.

Between Kakashi and her Godfather, Akihane really didn't want to deal with the sulking or offhanded comments about her choice.

With the two both facing each other and a silent argument creating tension in the air, Akihane acted quickly.

"Can't I just do both? Would either contract care?"

Akihane offered, standing straight and leveling a brow at her Senseis as they faced her head on. The two opened their mouths to protest but stopped as they thought over her proposal.

"Actually, that could work…"

Jiraiya whispered.

Kakashi nodded and sighed.

"Unpredictable."

The Jonin whispered while casting her a sidelong glance.

In response, Akihane signed the toad contract first and listened to Kakashi later.