Chapter 8

Akari made her way inside Yakiniku Q. She asked the hostess for her reserved table and was happy to find that most of her friends had already arrived. They had been given a fairly large table. There was Sakura seated Between Rock Lee and Naruto. Hinata sat happily next to her knuckleheaded boyfriend. At the end of the table beside Lee, sat Neji with Tenten. As soon as they saw her they waved her over. As she approached she noticed how close Neji and Tenten were to each other. She smirked at the Hyuga who merely rolled his eyes. Then she noticed Sora. He sat on the other side of the table in front of Naruto. He seemed slightly uncomfortable.

"Hey Akari! Great idea on hanging out tonight!" Sakura stood and gave her a tight hug.

"Thanks. I figured you guys had forgotten how I looked like." She chuckled lightly.

"We almost did! I'm glad we finally got to see you! And since you're here let's eat!" Naruto grinned.

"Now hold on Naruto! We still have the others to wait for!" Sakura chided.

"Awww! Well fine." Naruto groaned.

The two girls took their seats, Akari in front of Hinata and next to Sora. The boy monk gave her a slight nod in greeting. Seeing as how the others had already received their drinks, she ordered her own. The eight of them had small talk while they waited for Team 10 and the rest of Team 8 arrived. They were also missing Sai from Team 7. Akari wondered if he would show. As she thought this, a large white beast burst through the front door and trotted his way towards them.

Akamaru placed his head on her legs and stared up at her happily. She smiled down at the large dog and stroked his head in greeting. Kiba strutted in after his large partner and placed himself firmly next to his dog and Akari.

"Alright! I've arrived so let's eat!" He grinned at everyone.

"What is it with you and Naruto? You weren't the only ones invited you know." Tenten rolled her eyes.

"Well damn. I guess I can wait." Kiba muttered.

He didn't have to wait long. Moments later, Sai walked in accompanied by Shino. The two of them scanned the table and took their seats. Shino chose to be in between his teammates. Sai sat next to Sora and in front of Sakura.

"About time you two!" Naruto exclaimed. "Hinata's starving!"

"Wha...no! No its fine. I'm not really!" Hinata blushed.

At that moment the girl's stomach chose to act up. It growled lightly but loud enough for them to here. Her blush deepened and she wrapped her arms around her stomach. Naruto blinked in surprised he burst into laughter. It wasn't long before the table joined in.

"Whats so funny?"

The group turned to see Team 7 approaching. It was Ino who had spoken.

"At my adorable girlfriend." Naruto grinned.

"Take a seat guys. We'd all like to order now!" Akari smiled at them.

They did just that and joined them. It was a tight fit seeing as how there was 13 of them but it didn't bother anyone. Even Sora seemed okay with the crowd. Though he did still seem a little unsure of himself. As if he wasn't sure he should be there. Akari gave him a small nudge and smiled. He seemed to ease up a little.

The food arrived quickly and the meat and vegetables were passed around. The group ate their meal cheerful. They all shared stories and laughed and just enjoyed each other's company. Akari couldn't stop smiling at all of them. It had been so long since she had seen them. It made her feel homesick. Even now as she sat among them. But at the same time she couldn't help but feel slightly out of place. Like she should be out there on her own. She didn't like that she felt this way. This was her village. Her friends. It seemed that she had grown used to being away from it all.

Fingers brushed against hers lightly. Akari looked up startled.

"Hey. Are you okay?" Hinata asked.

She was smiling, but Akari could see the concern in her eyes.

"Hmm. Oh! Yes. I'm okay." She gave her friend a small smile.

"Are you sure. You seem quiet." The Hyuga whispered.

The others weren't paying attention. They were all entranced with Naruto's story of his mission at the Fire Temple. It was going pretty well until he brought up his fight with Sora. It was leaning more towards his favor. Sora wouldn't have any of it. In no time the two of them began to argue over what was true and what was made up.

"Sorry. My mind was elsewhere. I just have a lot on my plate right now."

"Oh. That's understandable. You have been pretty busy lately." Hinata nodded.

"You sure have. Tell us what you've been up to, Akari."

She turned to the speaker. Shikamaru had his eyebrow raised waiting for an answer. The others stopped talking and stared at her. They had all heard Hinata's last statement as well.

"Um…well. I've had a few A.N.B.U missions. Not to mention a couple of regular ones. Lady Tsunade likes to keep me busy I guess." She gave a small laugh.

"What kind of missions? And why are they so frequent?" Neji asked.

"My Root missions were never so long. I'm curious as to what you do as well." Sai spoke.

"Yeah Akari! You were away for nearly two weeks the last time. Most missions usually last maybe three days or a week at most. Unless they're S Rank." Sakura stated.

"OH MY GOD! Are you being sent on S Rank missions already?" Ino asked wide eyed.

"What! No! Just A and B Rank. That's all." Akari shook her head.

"Really? Then what was your last mission?" Kiba asked.

Hinata stared at Akari. An apology was written all over her eyes. She didn't mean to put Akari in this position. She merely smiled at the girl showing her that it was okay. She could handle it.

"A C Rank actually. It wasn't very exciting. I just had to go and do a little surveillance that's all. It took so long because it was in an area pretty far from here. Anyways it all turned out to be nothing anyways. Just false information." Akari explained.

She kept her tone light and easy going. She made sure here breathing was even and her heart was beating normally. Anything to keep them from doubting her lie.

"Huh. You'd think A.N.B.U missions would be more exciting." Naruto stared at her.

"Yeah, well not all of them are the same." She smiled at him.

"I guess that's true. It would be nice if Granny would ease up on your workload though. It would give us more time with you that's for sure." He smiled back.

After that the conversation turned away from her again. She could finally breathe easily. Then she felt someone staring at her. She turned to see that it was Sora. He was giving her a curious look. As soon as their eyes met he tore his away with a slight blush on his cheeks. What was that?

She didn't think too much into it. The night went on until they were all too tired and full to continue. The group began to disperse, going separate ways. They all hugged Akari in turn, thanking her for dinner and hoping to see more of her. She watched them as they went. She noticed things she hadn't before. Like how Tenten and Neji's shoulders nearly brushed against each other as they left. Or how Ino couldn't help but smile sweetly at Sai. Then there was Rock Lee who waited patiently by the door for Sakura. Naruto and Hinata walked out hand in hand. That she already knew and she smiled at them as they waved goodbye.

Akari stood there waiting for that last of her friends to trickle out. Surprisingly it was Sora who remained in the end. She stared at him curiously as he stood and stopped beside her.

"I don't know why you lied. I don't care to know. I just know that you did. I know because there hasn't been a day that I myself haven't been lied to. All my life I've asked for the truth and instead I've received nothing but false information. And you know what, it hurts. It hurts to know that the people who I've grown up with can't seem to trust me with the truth. They would rather keep their secrets and keep me in the dark. So ask yourself this. How hurt will your friends be when the truth finally comes out?"

Akari blinked in surprise. She didn't know how to answer.

"The truth can't stay hidden for long. Eventually it will come out. Maybe not tomorrow, but someday."

Sora gave her a small nod goodbye and made his way to the front door.

"Sora, wait! Did…did your truth come out? The one you wanted to know?" Akari bit her lip.

The boy stopped but didn't turn around.

"No. But like I said, eventually it will."

With that he walked out. Akari stared at the spot he stood for a moment longer. Then she paid the bill and left the restaurant. She walked the streets watching the villagers finishing up their night.

Sora had seen through her lie. What he said…it was gnawing at her brain! It bothered her that he was right. Her friend would find out everything in time. Would she let them hear it from someone else or tell them herself? Would they be angry? Would they hate her? If they did she would never have a night like this one again! Could she live without her friends? All these questions and not a single answer!

"Why is my life so difficult?" She yelled to no one in particular.

"Because you chose to make it that way." A voice spoke behind her.

She turned to face it.

"Oh. It's you." She grimaced

"Tell me Akari, what troubles you? What difficulties does your life face? What do you get yourself into while you're away from this village you love so much?" Danzo questioned.

"What is this? An Interrogation? I don't have to answer you, nor do I have to continue to listen."

Akari began to walk away.

"I wasn't interrogating you. I was merely curious as to why you seem so distressed. Things have been fairly easy going around here so what could possibly have you so riled up?" The old man continued.

She stopped.

"Shouldn't you know? You've had me followed for the last couple of weeks haven't you?" She scowled.

"And you continue to evade every Root member sent after you. So you know as well as I do that I have no idea where you go or what you do. This worries me, for there is nothing happening in this village that I don't know about. How do I know you're not betraying our precious Leaf Village? You are in love with a traitor are you not? You could be giving him Intel or helping him in his quest of vengeance."

"That's just it. You don't know. And I like it that way. You distrust me and my intentions but the feeling is mutual. I don't think the village is all you care about. There's more to you Danzo. And until I find out what, I'm going to keep my distance."

"There is more to you as well. There's something familiar about you. Like I've met someone like you before."

"I don't know what you mean." Akari muttered.

"There's something else. You're highly skilled for someone your age. Yet I haven't seen you doing much training around here. In fact I haven't seen you train at all. So where have you learned everything you know so far?"

"You can keep asking me questions but you won't be getting any answers."

This time she did walk away.

Back home she found a letter addressed to her from Lady Tsunade. The Hokage would like to speak to her. With a tired sigh she made her way the woman's office. Once she arrived, Shizune led her inside.

"Hey, Lady Tsunade. What's up?"

Akari went around the desk and sat on the edge facing the window. The Hokage seemed slightly annoyed but didn't say anything. She never did.

"Akari. Sorry to call you this late. I needed to speak with you about your last assignment."

"Ok sure. What do you need to know?" Akari yawned.

"You put in your report that the Akatsuki had you follow someone? What was his name? You didn't mention it?"

"Because I didn't know. I was just told that Kakazu and Hidan wanted this man watched until they finished their business." She answered.

"Their business with the Two-tails?"

"Right. Anyways, like it says in my report, I followed the guy for a few days. He was an older man. Bald. Wore a lot of white. Like Sora actually. Come to think of it, he was never too far from the Fire Temple when I would see him. I guess he's a monk."

"But you never saw him actually enter the temple?"

"No. My job was keep track of his routine. They gave me a certain perimeter to keep track of. I was to tell them if he ever left the perimeter and for how long. They told me that he went on a walk through a certain path every day. I was to make sure he never broke routine so I picked a spot and waited until he would pass by."

"Hmmm. What could they gain from this information?"

"I don't know. They don't tell me much. Haven't made their circle of trust just yet." She scowled.

"Alright. Thank you."

Being dismissed, Akari hopped off the desk and followed Shizune out.

"Akari, wait."

Akari faced the Hokage once more.

"I need a favor. Could you…could you keep an eye on Sora for me?"

The older lady seemed bothered by her own question.

"Sora? What for?" Akari asked curiously.

"It's not that I don't trust him. It's just that some information has come to light and he wasn't…well he wasn't too happy about it. I just want to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

Akari wasn't sure what this was about, but she had a feeling that Sora's truth finally came out. She nodded in agreement and left the office.

"Thank you for coming Akari." Shizune smiled at her.

"No problem. Do you know what the whole Sora thing was about?"

"Umm. Well it's a very long story really…"

Shizune didn't have time to finish. Naruto rushed past them and burst through Lady Tsunade's office.

"GRANDMA TSUNADE!" They heard him yell.

Akari and Shizune stared after him in shock until they heard a large crash. In seconds they were following Naruto to see what had happened. What they saw shocked Akari. Naruto held on to Sora's arm which was emitting a lot of chakra. It was aimed at the Hokage who lay on the floor surrounded by broken shards of glass.

"Why are you attacking her?" Naruto exclaimed.

"JUST GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Sora growled.

The boy noticed Akari and Shizune at the door. His eyes fell to Akari's katana which she held firmly in her hand. She hadn't even noticed that she had pulled it out. He gave her a hard look before shoving Naruto away. Instead of continuing his attack, he leapt out the shattered window. Naruto didn't hesitate to follow causing Lady Tsunade to stand and yell after them.

"Lady Tsunade? What's going on?" Akari managed to ask.

"Not anything good."

The three of them stared out the window as lightening pierced the dark sky. Then, everything went black. They watched as one by one, buildings across the village lost power.

"What is this?" Shizune whispered.

Akari could only stare as the village was encased in darkness.