Hey everyone. I know this is not my most popular writing,but I'm too emotionally invested in this story to give up on it. Thank you for the support of those, far and inbetween, that read this. I would love to see a new review for motivation. Hope you enjoy this new chapter.

As Akaya wrapped the towel around her semi-dry skin, she opened the bathroom door and stepped softly into the hallway. Even though she remembered to bring clean undergarments, she inconveniently forgot to grab clean clothes. He tugged at the cloth so it would stay up as she dashed down the hallway to the room that had been assigned to her.

She quickly slipped inside the room to see a stunning Shinobi outfit. It was a brilliant deep green that sparkled to Akaya's senses as she saw her village's sign embroided on the left shoulder of the shirt. Akaya smiled brightly as she approached the futon and slipped the shirt over her head after she placed her towel over the nearby chair. The shirt was skin-tight but comfortable and flexible, which was needed in her line of work. Touching the pants, she realized the we're black spandex capris that fit her in every curve of her body.

But there was an item more important to Akaya than the new attire: her Konoha headband. As she fixed the band securely around her neck, she saw a handwritten note the had been placed underneath everything. At first, the marks just looked like scribble marks until she examined it more closely. It was a message from Shin. Akaya picked up the note and began to read it.

Akaya,

A village isn't where you're is where and what and who you fight for. It's where you grow and learn. Home lies in your memories and the trust and the connections built between the people there. Death happens, and war can only lead to destruction, but sometimes, that's necessary to prevent even more chaos. Keep your fire bright, and you will be the living honor and respect of Konoha.

-Shin

The words helped to put her at ease, but it didn't stop her mind from wandering to the task ahead of her. But that was the condition of many tied to the Shinobi , Akaya thought about his wordscarefully. Why did he leave her, of all people, a note of encouragement? Shin Ryu, the ruthless demon, cared enough about his pupil to write?

Akaya shook her head in bewilderment as she slipped the note into her pillowcase. She was absolutely positive that the note was supposed to be kept in the strictest of confidences. Leaving it in her pillowcase reassured her that it would still be there when she returned. Akaya solemnly sighed as she remembered who taught her to do that with personal mementos: Himeka. However, as Akaya moved towards the door, her reaction changed. She knew Himeka would be proud of her. Himeka shined brightly through her attire and in Akaya's will power and determination. She felt unstoppable as she confirmed as much glancing at the full-length mirror hanging on the door. For a split second, she swore she was looking at an image of a younger Himeka.

On that encouraging thought, Akaya headed to the conference room. Today was the beginning of the rebellion war, and she was in charge of being on the front lines. Though, to her, the most important aspect of today was that her input was something that mattered.

The large steel door was slightly ajar, and as she entered, Akaya noticed how large the space was. An elongated wooden table was in the center of the room with eight chairs around it. She guessed it was probably where the heads of state would normally sit. What shocked Akaya, however, was the rows of chairs that went up and around and up. It was something that Akaya imagined a theatre would look like. But unlike the theatre in Konoha, this space tripled Konoha's center. And because the highest seats were ground level, this theatre-like structure was submerged underground.

Akaya gazed in amazement, recognizing Shin's intelligence and artistry in such a necessary design. As she started to walk down the stairs to get to the table, Akaya felt a warming grip around her waist, pulling her up off her feet. That gentle touch was Tajek's signature to her now, and she allowed herself to briefly indulge in it. His voice brought her peace as she was set down a two steps ahead of where she had been lifted. "You missed a step there."

The excited teenager turned around to greet Tajek with a witty comment, but as Shin entered the room, his expression made her freeze. Something had happened to his mood since writing the note to her. For the first time, Shin looked truly demonic to her.

Immediately, Shin responded to Akaya's stare and traveled ahead of his two young comrades. "Get serious now. There will be plenty of time for your puppy love later. Now is the time for constructing an elaborate strategy. A strategy that the Nara clan would have been proud to call their own." He smirked as he continued. Shin knew he would strike Akaya's nerves with his belittling comments. "Anyone who can't handle this important responsibility can just sit up in the stands and watch."

Sesoni walked into the room, sensing an aura of disdain emitting from Shin. He was unusually emotional and crude, much unlike his easy-going and sarcastic counterpart. As a fellow demon, it was easy to see that Shin was keeping information to himself; however, Sesoni had a gut feeling that it was not going to be a secret much longer.

As Shin continued down the stairs, Sesoni lightl nudged his two young companions forward. Everyone was focused and serious now, and that was the way it needed to be. Even Aicirret, who followed behind the group, realized the severity of the task at hand. With that thought in the fore front of his mind, Sesoni lightly, almost breathlessly, sighed. Today had just begun, and he already wanted it to end. Preferably quickly. Tjough, it was almost a custom in his life that bad days were drawn hellishly out.

Akaya could not stop admiring her surroundings in the silence. As she approached the table, the chunin was dazzled by the vast distance between the chairs around the table. She sat in one of the middle chairs on the closest side to her, and in the process, she passively let Sesoni and Aicirret sit on both sides of her. Tajek sat down directly across from her. His eyes twinkled as he gazed upon her. Akaya looked backed at him only breifly, knowing that if she looked any longer that, Tajek would become a distraction to her. She looked away, only to see Shin take his place at the head of the table.

The girl focused on Shin's gaze intently. His gaze drifted back to the entrance of the room repeatedly as if he was expecting one more person to come. Akaya didn't see any strife or anxiety from Shin so she deduced that whoever it was had to be an ally of sorts.

When Shin looked over at Akaya, he gave her a small smirk. She was an observant little thing. It was almost scary how similar they were. There was something special about her, and he was frightened by that idea. As a demon, Shin knew secrets were eventually discovered, and unfortunately, the ones he hid now threatened to sit the surface. And they were going to hit intensely hard. As Akaya spoke up, and he looked at her carefully, there was no doubt in his mind anymore: Himeka Hiromi had a child.

"So Shin," Akaya wasn't comfortable with the idea of an unknown person sitting in on their meeting. She knew she could trust the people surrounding her now, but outside these walls, Akaya viewed everyone else as a potential threat, "who is the missing person?"

The footsteps approaching the conference area made Akaya uneasy because it couldn't be real. She looked at Tajek, hoping he knew them as well as she did. In that moment, Akaya noticed the longing in Tajek's eyes that he had seamlessly covered up since their reunion. Akaya never had a family. She never had the heartbreak of losing hem either. The ones that Akaya viewed as family were people she didn't have to worry about.

But Tajek virtually lost his entire family in a day and now, he lost his homeland too. The vilage meant just as much to him as it did to her. The hope that these echoes on the floor were his father's meant there was still hope for rebuilding their beloved home.

In the stillness, Sesoni observed the shock in the young nin's faces. They felt stronger and more determined in moments. It was amazing what fascinated humans and what were simply footsteps to a de,on. But, as observant as Akaya and Tajek were, they weren't analyzing the pattern right. Danter's steps were slightly larger and louder than whose footsteps were headed their way now. Still, Sesoni was impressed; their guess was pretty close.

As the mystery guest turned the corner, Akaya's heart sank. Now, she wished the person was a complete stranger. There was no way of hiding her apparatus disappointmentioned so she let it show. Emotional training or not, Akaya did not like her situation.

"The missing person?" Lodant smiled as he walked down the stairs to the table. "Is that any way to address your Hokage, Akaya?"

As much as Akaya wished she would have liked to show her true feelings about Hokage Lodant to the whole room, she chose to make a sarcastic comment instead. She wanted to ease this intensified atmosphere. "At least you remembered my name this time, Hokage."