Hi everyone! Here's the next chapter. Thank you to those of you who PM and review! It makes my day to hear from you guys. The feedback is always helpful and conversation's always welcome.

Beki hesitated at the edge of the field. You're being stupid, Tsukimori. Gai sensei was the friendliest, most welcoming sensei in the Leaf. Beki had only been in the village for a few weeks when he offered to let her join them to train anytime. He had consistently been true to that offer, stepping up and taking her into his pod whenever she asked. Today, though, watching Team Gai on as they trained, Beki couldn't ever remember feeling so unwelcome. Neji, Lee, Tenten, and Gai were laughing and having a good time. Lee was going at it with 120% as always, destorying equipment or looping his teammates into his activity against their will. Neji was getting manhandled and doing everything in his power to avoid Lee and Gai's embraces. Tenten was up to her knees in their antics, the only voice of reason in the group, trying to keep things on an even keel. Normally Beki would be chomping at the bit to hop into the fray, wrestle with Lee and bring out Tenten's fun side by getting her to surrender to the chaos. Gai would tell her what to do and Beki would fail miserably but make a good show of it so everyone would get a laugh. Then Neji would yell at her for being reckless or something. But that didn't happen anymore.

The kanabo felt heavier than usual. Beki adjusted it across her shoulders and tugged at her braid self consciously. The moment she stepped into the ring with them, the balance would shift. Neji would withdraw emotionally and become aloof. Lee and Gai would step up the crazy to try to lure him back into things, which would set off Tenten even more. This was a stupid idea. I'm just going to go for a walk instead. Just as she turned to walk away, Beki heard someone call her name. Busted.

"Beki!" Lee practically screamed. "Are you here to join us for training?!"

Beki put on the best smile she could, which she already knew was going to be a weak one. She turned around. "Yeah, I mean if you guys have room for one more. I get it if you can't-"

"Of course we have room for one more!" Gai beamed, the light catching his too-white teeth just right. "We were just about to start a hike. As long as you have feet, you can participate."

A small, irrational part of Beki's brain briefly considered "dropping" the kanabo on her feet until the rest of her brain smothered it to silence. "Sure." As Beki approached them, she noticed Lee and Gai looked geniunely happy to see her. Tenten had a smile on her face but it was slowly melting with each glance she cautiously stole at Neji. Beki made a point of keeping her face passive as she strapped the kanabo to her back. Neji, for his part, seemed to be looking everywhere but at her: Lee, Gai, Tenten, the forest, the grass, the top of Beki's head when his gaze had to pass over her.

"Today's hike is going to be at top speed." Gai folded his arms and turned his attention to Beki. "Will you be able to keep pace in your armor?"

"Speed has never really been my thing but I'll do my best." Beki grinned.

"Is it because you aren't wearing anything under the armor, Beki?" Lee asked innocently.

Tenten smacked his shoulder. "Lee, you can't casually ask a girl if she's going commando."

"I was just going to offer her a pair of tights," Lee blinked.

"That's okay," Beki shook her head. "Speed training in the armor would probably be good for me."

Gai laughed. "That's the spirit!" With a wave, he gathered the group closer and explained their route. Then Gai took off like a shot, Lee close behind him. As the rest of the group started running, Beki did her best to match Neji's pace. Maybe over the course of a long run he would soften up and talk to her. It had been so long since Beki had been close to Neji that the feeling of the warmth coming off his skin and the smell of him was making her heart race. Beki was terrified she would make the problem worse, that anything she did or said would push him further away. She desperately wanted to take ahold of him and shake him. Beki wanted to beg him, to say that she knew something was wrong between them and that she would do anything to fix it. Neji had been there for Beki through everything, big or small. He helped her when she first came to Konoha when she didn't know where anything was. Neji introduced her to his team and was responsible for the slow but steady growth of her circle of friends. Whenever she was in a crisis, like when her father died, Neji showed up without fail. Sometimes, he seemed to materialize out of nothing like a guardian angel.

Lee and Gai were off far ahead, their voices heard but their words jumbled by the distance. Tenten was keeping pace with Beki and Neji. She hung a little behind them in an attempt to grant them some privacy. The silence between Beki and Neji seemed infinite, an ominous oppressive thing. Then, Neji started to put physical distance between them. He slowly picked up speed. Beki did her best to match it, to mimic his long quick strides, but she couldn't. Beki knew her limitations yet she desperately pushed her boundaries, desperate to maintain a physical proximity to Neji. If Beki had lost out forever on his emotional comfort and companionship, then she at least wanted to be physically close to him. All she needed was to glean some strength off those memories. Beki would be okay so long as she could pretend they were still okay and that if she got in trouble he would come swooping in to save her like always. Like she needed him to. As the moments stretched into minutes and Neji's pace had picked up almost to match Gai and Lee, Beki's heart sank. She was a kid standing in the street with an empty cone, staring at the ice cream melting at her feet as if somehow magically by wishing hard enough, it would materialize good as new back into her hands.

Beki swallowed hard at the lump forming in her throat and bit her lip to chase away the tears. Tenten filled the hole Neji had left beside her, softening the blow. Beki knew Tenten was much faster than she was. Tenten was just too good of a person to leave Beki straggling along behind them like a popped balloon. After several minutes of silence, Tenten finally spoke.

"Just so you know, he hasn't said anything to us about what happened."

Beki sighed. Her expression looked angry but she was one bad question away from crying. "If I'm being honest, I don't really know what happened either. Things were weird and a little distant for a while but now he isn't even talking to me."

"That's really unlike him." Tenten echoed Beki's sigh. "He's been a little more withdrawn around us than usual, too." Tenten glanced at Beki and looked her over cautiously. "Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Shoot." Beki had resigned herself to the strong possibility she was going to end up crying in front of Tenten for the second time. At least that was better than the boys seeing it. The idea of Gai trying to comfort her was terrifying. He would probably stick Beki and Neji in a "get along" shirt and make them spend the day like that.

"Did the two of you get into a fight or something?" Tenten asked.

Beki shook her head. "Not really. It wasn't a fight. There was a misunderstanding between us and as far as I could tell we worked it out."

"I can tell you it isn't." Tenten gazed at the back of Neji's head. "The way he's been acting, I thought you cut him off or something."

"It's the opposite. I can't even get him to stand near me anymore, let alone talk to me." Beki strained to keep up the pace with her full armor on. It didn't help that the kanabo was slapping up against her lower back as she ran. Beki already knew she was going to have bruises from this little romp.

"Is there something Lee and I can do to help?" Tenten glanced at Beki, who shook her head in response.

Beki rolled her eyes. "I don't know, Tenten? Do you know any good jokes that would break the ice?"

Tenten winced. "You know, Beki, Neji doesn't laugh a whole lot. The only time I have ever seen him laugh is when he's with you."

A strange feeling came over Beki at Tenten's revelation. Neji only laughed when Beki was around? It told Beki everything she needed to know. Whatever was going on, Neji was hurting and he needed her for once. "Here," Beki pulled the kanabo off her back and shoved it into Tenten's hands. "Take care of that for me."

Tenten blinked in confusion. "Beki, what are you going to do?"

"I told you, I'm going to go tell him a joke!" Beki dropped her head and took off at a full sprint. They were finally headed somewhat downhill, so Beki was able to pick up speed. She came down the hill after Neji like a runaway train. When he looked over his shoulder to locate the source of the heavy footfalls, it was already too late. Beki collided with him at full force, tackling him to the ground. The two of them rolled a couple times with Beki ending up on top of Neji, pinning him down.

"Beki, what the hell?!" Neji struggled but she kept him pinned.

"A man goes to a zoo with only one animal in it," Beki panted. "Which was a dog. It was a shi tzu."

Neji went deathly still. "Did you run me down like a ronin, tackle me to the ground, and fracture my ribs to tell me a crappy joke?"

Beki stared him down. "I would have told you earlier but you ran away."

Neji closed his eyes and put his hands over his face. There was a shallow up and down movement to his chest. For a moment, Beki thought he was crying. She jumped off him believing that she he'd been seriously injured. Neji rolled up onto his hands and knees, shaking his head as he rose up onto his feet. He was laughing. "You are actually insane, Beki."

Beki's heart soared at the sight of his smile. Or was it because he was talking to her again? Either way, Beki was ecstatic. Seeing her opening, she dove in and threw her arms around him. Neji winced and gingerly put his arms around her, lacing his fingers through her hair. Beki breathed deeply, not knowing the next time she would get a chance to be this close to him. Her anxieties slowly drifted away and a calm broke over her. It felt like a physical weight had been lifted off her chest. There were words at the tip of her tongue, something her heart wanted her to say. Beki didn't know what it was but something desperately wanted out. As she groped for them with her face to his chest, Neji patted her back and let her go. "Come on. We don't want to lose sight of Gai and Lee."

Beki blinked. "Wait…Gai sensei said we're going to get a reward at the end of this hike. Are we headed for that curry of life place you told me about?"

Neji grabbed her by the back of the neck and looked her dead in the eye. "Yes. And no matter how much they goad you, do not, under any circumstances get the curry any hotter than mild. I cannot carry you home in your armor and nothing is less dignified than being carried home by Gai sensei."

Beki chuckled, happy for the contact. Tenten caught up to them, completely out of breath. "Beki! How do you do anything with a damned tree strapped to your back?!"

Beki shrugged and took the kanabo out of her hands. "You kind of stop noticing it after a while."

"Yeah, and then you take out an unsuspecting passerby with it when you turn around too fast," Neji called over his shoulder.

"I told you I was sorry!" Beki cried out, running after him. "Why haven't you let that go yet?!"

Tenten ran up along side Beki and gave her a smile, quietly mouthing "thank you". Beki smiled and shook her head. Maybe things were finally going to go back to normal.

…

A few weeks later, Yuki had finally released Beki from an especially grueling training session. Part of Beki wanted to head right home but she knew better. The moment Beki crossed the threshold and peeled off her armor, she would be useless for the rest of the day. Instead, she pushed past the pain and headed into town.

By this point Beki had gotten used to running her errands alone. Although her mother was usually by her side, Beki couldn't stand taking Yuki on errands. The woman was constantly engaged with a war on the present, haranguing Beki with tales of how products had cheapened quality wise, sizes shrunk to less generous portions, and skyrocketing prices. Those reactions were contained to places Yuki had no choice but to buy from, like a drug store. When it came to anything else, like clothes or shoes, Yuki spent the whole time scoffing and browbeating Beki about why she didn't just "trust" Yuki to take care of these things for her. There was no denying the quality of Yuki's gear and her taste, but Beki wasn't going to sit around for three months waiting for a completely customized pair of training shoes.

Earlier on, Beki had the pleasure of either Hinata or Neji's company on her errands. Naruto's reappearance had eaten up more and more of Hinata's time, and understandably so. Beki held no grudge against her friend. And although Neji was finally talking to her again, Team Gai was out on a mission. Once in awhile, Beki would stumble across another familiar face in a shop, like Sakura or Chouji, and visit with them for a few minutes. Today Beki didn't bother to look. She just wanted to grab her items, pay, and get home.

The shop she entered was a long narrow thing, with huge paned windows on the front of the store. Beki liked it because the shop keepers never gave her a hard time about coming in the store in her armor. Its bulk sometimes resulted in a cleared shelf if Beki turned too quickly; she'd been politely asked not to return to few places unless in plain clothes. Here, the aisles were wide, catering to the shinobi clientele. Beki headed right for the pain aisle, where she proceeded to gather her usual stock of sore muscle balm, chafing cream, and headache medicine. Afterwards, she stopped by the beauty aisle and debated over two varieties of eye cream- her late nights reading paperwork and the mental burden of their contents kept her up more often than not. The bags that were settling in made her look more cadaverous than normal. She was so absorbed in the active ingredients that she barely registered the arms wrapping around her torso.

"Nee san!" Konohamaru's voice ripped her from her thoughts.

"Oh, hey buddy." Beki ruffled his hair with her free hand. "It's been a while."

He looked better than the last time she had seen him, less depressed. The color in his skin was good and the light was back in his eyes. There was a little bit of reservation in his smile though; the irrevocable cost of innocence lost. Beki tried not to frown at the thought of how it would never get any better, either. "What are you doing here?"

Konohamaru tugged at his scarf self-consciously. "I saw you come in and you didn't look busy. I just wanted to say 'hi'."

Beki grinned at him, despite herself. She leaned forward and clonked her forehead against his, their noses bumping. "Hi."

He beamed at the attention, a slight flush coming into his cheeks. "So what have you been up to, Nee san?"

Beki shrugged. "Just the usual stuff. Training a lot, doing paperwork," She paused. Usually she had something interesting to report. There was the whole murder-her-uncle expedition, wherein she nearly killed the Sound kunoichi she'd befriended and summarily gotten her ass whooped. Beki thought it would be better to keep that information out of circulation. There was a distinct lack of interesting developments in her social life, too. Beki could feel Konohamaru's expectant eyes. Without anything else to add, she shrugged and smiled at him. "How about you?"

Konohamaru immediately exploded into story mode. His eyes widened as he desperately spilled the contents of every mission he had been on in the past month, his facial expressions and impressions of people conducted with all seriousness. It took everything Beki had not to laugh in amusement. Through the jumble of his words, as they approached the counter, Beki noticed something was off. Or rather, she felt it. Her eyes caught up to her subconscious and she saw how everyone in the store drifted towards the paned glass windows. There was an electricity, a scent in the air had changed. A familiar chill crept down her spine, a sensation that in the past would have triggered the Drowned Maiden to emerge. She tentatively took a single step closer, noticing how everyone's necks were craned straight up towards something hovering in the sky.

Beki tossed aside her basket, keeping her face completely neutral as she grabbed Konohamaru's arm and headed for the emergency exit. He looked up at her with confusion on his face, his eyes darting between her, her discarded basket, and the other people in the store. "What's going on?"

"I don't know," Beki shook her head, her hair standing on end even within the furnace of her armor. "We need to get out of here."

As she opened the door, which surprisingly set off no alarms, a large sudden cacophony of cries stole from the throats of the shoppers. Then, like the ghost of a whisper, Beki felt something she hadn't in what seemed like a lifetime. Cold fingers crept down from her skull along her spine, wrapping her body in a terrible sensation of foreboding. She looked down at her braid, half expecting the hair to be black as ink. Her subconscious was trying to warn her of some impending doom and this was the best way to catch her attention. Heeding her body's warning, Beki broke out in full sprint, dragging Konohamaru along behind her. Suddenly, the sky filled with a cold, horrible light, and it sounded like a bomb went off in the distance. Beki turned her head as the shockwave raced to meet them, slamming into the building they had just left. It had all happened in seconds, yet time seemed to move in slow motion as the building collapsed, being blown towards them by the explosion. There was no time. Beki knew her limitations and one of them was speed. There was no way she could ever clear the blast in time. Instead, Beki came to a dead stop, planted her feet, and with every ounce of strength in her adrenaline fueled body, Beki grabbed Konohamaru with her other arm and swung. It was a clean, fluid motion, beautiful in its simplicity. The momentum was perfect; an action she had practiced with the kanabo a hundred thousand times. At the perfect moment in the arc, she released Konohamaru. The boy was sent flying through the air, his surprise causing him to tumble head over heels for a moment before he caught his footing. He turned to look at her with a confused expression, his mouth poised to cry out, but time had caught up to them.

Konohamaru watched in horror as Beki was swallowed by the brick and mortar of the store they had just exited. It wasn't just that store. All the buildings around him had been leveled and screams filled the air. People were desperately scrambling to their feet, rushing into the ruins to extract trapped loved ones. Fear turned Konohamaru cold, an iron grip closing around the base of his spine. Then his shinobi training kicked in. As a kid, Konohamaru had learned to count to ten when he was upset. Ten seconds was too long. His new method got him into action sooner.

"One," His voice shook as he took a lead footed step towards the ruin. "Two," His voice grew stronger as he pushed all the terror deep down inside him. "Go!" Konohamaru ran back towards the wreckage. He scooped at bricks around where he had last seen Beki. "Beki!" He cried, his voice trembling despite his efforts to calm himself. There was a soft groan beneath his feet and Konohamaru jumped back, immediately digging towards the sound. He felt the rough bricks tearing up his hands, the sting of fresh cuts. A moment of warmth as the blood dripped from the wounds, only to be immediately staunched by bits of plaster and dirt. After a few more bricks, he saw hands laced over hair, statue gray from the debris. Konohamaru kept scooping away the bits of building until a whole head was visible. Beki coughed bodily, puffs of debris kicking up in their wake. She looked up at him, her face twisted in pain. "Hey buddy. You okay?"

Konohamaru nodded, the fear abating somewhat. Cool determination crept in. "Hang in there. I'll have you out in a minute."

Beki braced her hands against the clearing he'd opened up in front of her. She attempted a push up to loosen herself from her burden, only to find herself unable to lift even an inch. As Konohamaru worked, Beki watched as he unearthed a support beam planted squarely across her strong back. He paused, blinking at the sight. Beki tentatively tried to move her legs, to no avail. I'm paralyzed. Beki blessed the dirt on her face so Konohamaru didn't see her blanche. The support beam was incredibly heavy, being propped up mostly by the detrius around it. As the wreck settled, however, the beam was sinking. Beki could feel the pressure of it slowly buckling her armor, millimeters at a time. Forget paralyzed for life, I'm going to be crushed to death.

Konohamaru attempted to move the beam, struggling under its weight and crying out in frustration when his efforts proved useless. He looked at her with desperation in his eyes. "What do I do, Beki?!"

"Go find help," Beki said, hoping she sounded more confident than she felt. "I've got the armor on. I'll be fine for a while." It was hard lying to his face. Beki knew he had been through enough suffering in his short life. She wasn't going to let him watch her die. Konohamaru backed away and hesitated. "I can't leave you alone."

"Just go, Konohamaru! There isn't any time to waste!" Beki cried, the urgency in her voice turning him on his heel and sending him off at a sprint. Beki looked around her. The destruction made what she saw in Suna after the Akatsuki attack look tame. Limbs stuck out at odd angles from collapsed buildings. People screaming in pain and crying over the limp bodies of their loved ones. The beam was getting noticeably heavier. Beki was finding it harder and harder to draw air into her lungs. Suffocation was a terrible way to go, the horrible desperate feeling as her body went into survival mode. Adrenaline and fear coursed through her as she gasped for each breath, tears stinging her eyes as she faced her mortality. Fire won't help me here. Everything I've ever done, all the training I've ever been through, and nothing I have can save me. The insult of her powerlessness almost eclipsed the panic of suffocating. Almost.

Beki bowed her head and closed her eyes, hurried footsteps in the background bleeding in to the crumble of buildings and the cries of other victims. She focused on the quick shallow breaths she had to take and tried to stay lucid enough to emit a final prayer.

A rush of cold air jolted her eyes open. Konohamaru was doubled over, panting breathlessly beside a panic stricken Yukihana. Beki felt her mother's ice enveloping her protectively, weasling its way between her armor and the beam. Once the frigid fingers had met in the middle of her back, the ice pressed outward, simultaneously expanding the space and thickening to support the opening it created. Beki inhaled sharply, taking huge gulps of air as her armor popped back to its original shape. She immediately began to choke on the dust, spurring a violent coughing fit. Yuki rushed forward and pulled Beki bodily out of the debris, hands searching all over for any other signs of damage.

"Are you okay?!" Yuki practically screamed in her face. Beki's face screwed up, unable to keep back the tears, and began to weep bitterly. "Oh no, oh no," Yuki wrapped her arms around Beki and rocked her gently. "You're okay. Mama's here. You're safe."

"I thought I was going to die," Beki hiccuped between sobs. "I couldn't breathe. I thought I was going to suffocate in there."

"Shh," Yuki stroked her head. "Come on now. You're already a Burned and a Drowned Maiden. You can't be a Hanged Maiden, too. You have to leave something for the Tsukiyama to feel special."

Beki pulled away, disbelief twisting her face that her mother would already be cracking jokes. Then she saw the tears streaming down Yuki's cheeks, the half cocked, unsure angle of her smile. Beki had scared her, more than she would ever be willing to admit, and now Yuki was just trying to cover the obvious vulnerability. Instead of yelling or pushing her away, Beki buried herself in her mother's chest. The coolness of her mother's arms around her neck and her physical presence slowly settled Beki down. Once her cries became still and silent, Beki felt another set of arms wrapping around her from behind. Konohamaru had pressed himself against her, his face in the back of her neck. "I was scared too, Beki. I didn't want you to die." His voice was soft. His words were followed by a few drops of warmth falling onto her skin.

Yuki reached up and ruffled his hair reassuringly. "You ran into the right person." Now that she had confirmation her daughter was alright, Yuki could slip back into crisis rescue mode. She wasn't from Konoha and she didn't know most of these people but devastation like this couldn't be ignored. The old, deep seated obligations of her priestess upbringing overwhelmed her more recent, self preserving shinobi attitude. Yuki had no choice but to help, but there was no way she could do that with Beki vulnerable and out in the open. "Can I ask you a favor?"

Konohamaru raised his face to meet Yuki's gaze, snot and tears running freely. Yuki suppressed a smile. Shinobi or not, kids were kids. "Can you get her somewhere safe? Beki's not seriously injured, but she's hurt enough that she shouldn't be out here."

Konohamaru nodded. "Leave it to me."

Beki blinked in surprise and looked around. "I can help, though. I can't just leave people out here-"

"You have no medical training and the abilities you do have lean way more towards destructive than constructive." Yuki pulled her to her feet. "You're a big, scary, strong girl. Go cuddle some scared kids or something."

Beki wanted to protest, to insist on being out there and doing something. For once, though, she didn't mind taking the bench. The experience had shaken her to the core. She nodded and sighed as Konohmaru took her by the hand.

"I'm probably going to get in trouble for this…" Konohamaru shook his head. "But I can't think of anywhere else to take you."

Beki furrowed her brow. The light was starting to hurt. She tentatively reached up and felt around her crown with her free hand. Sure enough she had a goose egg or two forming. "So don't panic or anything but I may have a concussion."

Konohamaru sighed. "Well maybe I can get away with it then. If you've got a head injury they might just yell at me a little bit. I'll have to play up on the 'I'm still a kid' thing, but what else can I do?"

"Are you talking to me or just to yourself, bud?" Beki blinked, trying hard to focus. Everything seemed a little fuzzy around the edges.

"Don't worry about it. Come on." Konohamaru tugged on her hand, leading her towards the tunnel they took him and the other academy students to when the Sound attacked. "If you can, play up the head injury a little."

"Huh?" Beki blinked.

"Yeah, like that." Konohamaru nodded.