Disclaimer: I own the OCs in this fic, the rest is Masashi Kishomoto's. Sorry for any spelling mistakes or any OCCness.

Character age:

Akane, Itachi: 20

Naruto, Sasuke: 15

Shisui: 24

Kakashi: 29

"It needs some work." Sasuke kept bandaging my right hand without a sound. "I mean...I knew there was a lot of risks using the Chidori without the Sharingan, but I didn't think that much." I moved my fingers a little. It still hurt.

"The storage part of the seal is good, the Chidori didn't hurt you while it was inside," Sasuke noticed as he put the little bandages he had left in his pouch. I nodded.

"Yeah, it's the release the problem. I need to work on the formula, make it so there is more protective chakra between the jutsu and the palm of my hand." I hated to admit it, but the team working on these Scientific Ninja Tools were good. I raised my eyes on Sasuke. "So, did it give you an idea?"

"Maybe put an indication of the nature of the stored material to make it easier...but then again I would need to be able to unseal from a distance."

"Well...it's possible. Take my Hiraishin for instance. It's pretty much just a storage seal when you think about it, but me or anything or anyone with a marker on them are the subject and we're directly unsealed to another marker. So...you can."

"That trick you do with making weapons pop out from your markers is easier than unsealing a Raiton jutsu, even a minor one." I raised my eyes to the cloudless sky.

"At least you managed to make a technique derived from the Chidori weak enough to be sealed." He scoffed.

"It's not enough." I smirked at him and got up, my club firmly strapped to my back. I poked his arm, where I hit him during training. "Don't you start going easy on me." I raised a brow.

"It didn't even cross my mind. I've given you the authorization to use the Sharingan in certain cases, when I don't think it's the best way to train, because we don't have that much time in front of us, I'm not gonna start to go easy on you." Then, quietly, I added: "I don't want to hurt your manly pride either."

Ignore his glare Akane, you're used to that by now.

"A-ny-way," I started as I took the lead. By lead, I meant I was two centimeters in front of him, because he hated walking behind me, for some reasons. "We'll be seeing the desert soon." The desert...oh joy…

"You don't like the heat, do you?" I sighed.

"I'm from Kiri, mixed with the Yuki clan and their Ice Release...my body can handle colder temperatures than normal, but heat? I'll faint if we stay in the desert for too long."

"I'm not carrying you."

"I swear you sound like senpai or Kakashi."

At the border, I went to a bush to change my top. I replaced my kimono top by a version with short sleeves. The left one reached my elbow, my bandaged arm visible, my black glove still on. The right one stopped at the middle of my arm, a few inches above my elbow, Hinata's bracelet on my wrist. Instead of the black slinky top I had underneath, I changed for a lighter one, the straps and part around my chest black, the rest being just mesh armor.

The mark? It spread to the tip and under my fingers, leaving the palm bare, to just above my left breast. My tank top was leaving my collarbones visible, but it was cut straight in a line just above my breast, hiding any cleavage. Still, my magatama pendant was cold against my skin.

When I left the bush, Sasuke had changed too. Winter was almost there, and the Lands of Earth and Stone were both cold, with dense forests for the latter and lots of windy mountains for the former. But we were going in a desert.

Sasuke still had his navy blue pants tucked in his high black sandals, but the dark blue long-sleeved jackets was gone, leaving him in a white short-sleeved shirt with a V-collar, leaving some of the mesh armor underneath exposed.

There was still no Uchiha fan on his back, and none of these annoying stupid looking high-collars the Uchihas seemed to like so much.

Torture then began. We entered the desert.

I glared back at Sasuke when he would peek at me and then smirk at my turmoil.

Tsk, little fucker.

Last time I came, I didn't really pay attention to the scenery, I was too focused on Naruto and I's fight at the moment. But now, I had to admit it had its charm. It was way different from the wet environment I was used to, but it definitely had its charm. There was actually a sort of path in the sand, with signs every kilometers to keep people from getting lost. Even with the desert, the Land of Wind had a lot of inhabitants. Most towns were built around the oasis, but I had ever only been to Suna.

Luckily, the first one was just three hours from the border and we stopped there. I was already out of water and Sasuke grudgingly gave me some of his. The result was a thirsty Uchiha with an empty canteen and a lot of anger toward me and my sheepish grin.

"More."

"But Sas..."

"Shut up and seal more!" he barked at me, glaring daggers at me. I hunched my shoulders and kept sealing as much water in our respective scrolls I could.

I did drink his water, I owed him that at least.

We ended up staying in town and booking a hotel room as there was a seasonal sand storm coming. I had to be honest, it was very cute to see Sasuke pretending not to be interested in his surroundings.

"You've never been to this country before? Not even for Uchiha business?" He shook his head as I dropped my bag on one of the bed.

"The few times Father had to go outside of the village for the clan he still remained in the country. It's usually boring anyway, even Itachi can't pretend to be into the conversation forever." I chuckled behind my fist. "Ask him, he'll deny how his eyes were closing."

"It's tempting." I shot a look outside. The sun was setting quickly and the wind was rising, but nothing too bothersome. "I'm going to take a walk in town. Wanna come?" He slumped on his bed, his hands crossed behind his head. His eyes were closed.

"You were almost dying a few hours ago and you want to take a walk?" I nodded even if he couldn't see it. "You're on your own."

"Well, see you later then." I left the hotel and wandered aimlessly through the streets of Kousa, a small town subject to a lot of storm in the spring. It was not the biggest, as it was Oashisu, so it was relatively calm. The temperature had fallen quite drastically, as expected in the desert.

I bought a monaka. Noticing stairs to climb on the rampart surrounding the town to protect it from storms, I walked to it, climbed the stairs and leaned on the railing. I started to eat my treat, watching the sun, almost gone by now, giving a darker blue shade to the sky and a pinkish red tint to the clouds.

It was beautiful. The red clouds drifting toward the setting sun because of the wind…

The desert truly was gorgeous. Too bad I couldn't handle it very well during the day.

Hum? There was someone staring at me. I looked all around me and my eyes stopped on a male figure on my right. His face and torso were wrapped in a brown cloak in a way his entire face but his mouth was shadowed by the hood.

"Want my picture?" I asked with a disgruntled look. I squinted to get a better look at his face when he raised it a little bit. I almost choked on a chunk of red bean not smashed enough in the paste and jumped back, coughing and spitting it on the ground.

"I really have a hard time taking you seriously Uzumaki," the guy droned at me. I pointed an accusing finger at him with a dark glare.

"Shut up! You keep appearing when I don't expect you to! Where's Blondie?" The wind blew the hood back slightly, leaving red locks exposed. "Actually, why are you even here? Feeling homesick?" He stared flatly at me.

"I'm here to finish what you can't even start properly." I twitched at Sasori's, yeah Sasori, jab at me.

"You're chasing the snake?" Well, if the Akatsuki was after Orochimaru...I wouldn't get in-between. I mean...the two were our enemies but...if they could kill each other and make it less work for us…

He didn't say anything, settling for readjusting the cloak around him to hide his identity instead. You bet going back to your birth country after leaving it as a criminal wasn't the easiest thing to do. However, he wasn't attacking me or even showing any hostility toward me.

To be fair, he acted as if I wasn't even there or a threat.

I smirked to myself in irritation. He knew I wouldn't create a fight here. If a civilian was killed, it would be a diplomatic incident between the Land of Wind and Land of Water, which would then lead the Land of Fire in a tricky situation. Sasori was smart, he already figured out it was the last thing I wanted.

Still, he wasn't hostile, just here incognito.

"Aren't you going to try to kill me or take me to your Boss again?"

"Not my orders." I exhaled with my nostrils. We went back to the silence, my eyes darting between where the sun was not long ago and him and his relaxed posture.

Well…

This was awkward.

When he moved his arm, I adopted a defensive position by reflex. However, he merely searched something in what was probably a pocket before his arm was limp by his side again. He shot me a bored look.

"On edge?"

"You think?" I shot back sarcastically. Seriously, what was he up to?

He kept staring at the horizon. Only when the stars were high up in the sky did he start to walk away. He casually walked behind me and stopped a few meters further.

"One day, I'll kill you and turn you into a puppet Uzumaki. You'll be one of my masterpieces."

He left and I started breathing again.

It was...unexpected.

I actually followed him to see if he was really leaving. I kept staring at him when he ventured in the desert until he disappeared from sight, then almost ran to my hotel. I almost bumped into Sasuke when I opened the door.

"I was about to go look for you, it's been a while." Seeing my alarmed face, he frowned. "What?"

"When we're in Suna...we need to reach Suna fast." Sasuke was confused. "I saw...Sasori was there."

"Wait, Sasori? You mean the one from the Akatsuki?" I nodded sharply.

"Yeah...I'm fine, we didn't fight," I said quickly, noticing his eyes already scanning me. "Actually, him and Deidara are most probably on Orochimaru's track but..." I moved past him and sat on my bed, my hands crossed on my legs. "Fuck, he was right here and didn't attack."

"Why didn't you?" I raised a brow at him.

"Civilians, possible diplomatic incident, too much variables were at stake if I were to start a fight." He looked down with furrowed brows. "We're leaving tomorrow as soon as we can."

"Understood."

Yeah, I couldn't let Deidara and especially Sasori wandering around the Land of Wind, especially knowing there would be the Chuunin Exams soon. I didn't know where they would be, but Suna would most likely participate and well…

Basically, it was bad.

"Finally!" I cried out when I recognized the entrance of Suna in the distance. "Come on Sasuke!"

"You were whining like a five year-old ten minutes ago," he muttered behind the cloth wrapped around his head and in front of his mouth. I waved him off.

"Shush you!" It was true though, we had only taken one break in the day. He still quickened his pace. I knew I was not the only one sick of walking in the desert! Once we reached the entrance, a shinobi stopped us.

"Decline your identity and reason for coming here."

"Were are Uchiha Sasuke and..." Sasaki? Uzumaki? "...Uzumaki Akane, we are traveling and stopping in Suna for business required by Kiri, Konoha and Suna." He looked unsure. "I'm a Seal Master and already came here a few years ago on request of the Fourth Kazekage."

"I'll take it from there." The shinobi left to be replaced by one with half his face covered by...oh, I met him in Konoha during the Chuunin Exams. He was the Sand Siblings sensei. Baki, was it? "Uzumaki-san."

"Baki-san," I reciprocated, Sasuke silent next to me.

"I will lead you to Kazekage-sama."

"I thought they hadn't found a Kazekage yet," Sasuke whispered to me as we followed Baki-san through the busy streets of the Hidden Sand. I sent Sasuke a funny look.

"Not forever, and I have an idea of who it might be. Now observe and don't speak for nothing." He scoffed and crossed his arms.

"I know that."

The Kazekage tower was like I remembered it to be. Sober but with a beautiful sight of the entire village and the cliffs surrounding it, behind the ramparts surrounding Suna.

Baki-san stopped in front of a door and I smiled at Temari when she opened the door. She blinked at me and returned my smile, although hers was smaller, shyer.

"Please come in, the Kazekage noticed you coming two hours ago." I raised my brows, impressed. I walked in the office, followed closely by Sasuke. My smile turned into a grin at the redhead looking through the window next to Kankurō. He turned around and I could feel Sasuke's surprise behind me, hearing his breathing stopping abruptly for a few seconds.

"Heh, I told you you'd make great things one day." Gaara turned to me, his eyes lacking the blood lust and hatred he had in Konoha. Good, Naruto had always been good at talking apparently.

"Akane-san," he greeted with a nod of the head before settling his eyes on Sasuke. "Uchiha Sasuke."

"Kazekage-sama." Gaara shook his head.

"You are Naruto's friend, there is no use for titles. I am glad to see you have been saved before being engulfed by darkness." Sasuke took a step forward and lowered his head.

"I was told by the Hokage of your intervention during this misjudgment." Although on the outside I didn't perk up at it, inside it was something else. Yeah, running away to Orochimaru and almost killing your best friend was a 'misjudgment'.

"What brings you here by the way?" Kankurō asked us.

"Seal Master business." Understanding flash in Gaara's teal eyes, but before we could get to it someone knocked on the door. Temari opened it.

"Sasuke?" We both turned around at the voice. I widened my eyes a little at Shikamaru and the Suna forehead protector tied around his arm.

"Shikamaru?"

"What are you doing here?" I asked him as he walked closer.

"After Sasuke left for an exchange, Tsunade-sama decided to make one with Suna and chose me." Well, it was an interesting twist. "I have four months left."

"Who's the other side?" Temari grunting answered me. "I see. Well, before we get to the heart of the matter, on the way we stopped in Kousa. I ran into Sasori." It cast a chill. "There was no fight and he implied him and his partner were after Orochimaru."

"So Akasuna No Sasori and Orochimaru are in the country, just great!" Kankurō yelled in anger. He turned to his brother. "Gaara, wh..."

"If this is true, then we should not have to worry about them for now. I will still send shinobi in the area. Temari, Shikamaru, try to figure out Orochimaru's hiding place."

They nodded and left promptly. It was fast.

"Are you aware of why we're traveling Gaara?"

"Yes, I was made aware of it a month ago, when I received the title of Kazekage." It was really recent. "I was surprised Suna accepted."

"It wouldn't be surprising the Council felt like trapped between Konoha and Kiri pressuring them." Kankurō turned his eyes to us. "No offense, it's actually a good thing."

"None taken. In any case, we went to Iwa. The Tsuchikage took the letter and torn it apart without reading it. I managed to warn the two jinchurikis though. Could you transmit the message to Konoha and Kiri?"

"It will be done shortly." His older brother sent him a look. Weird. I shared one with Sasuke and saw he was thinking the same thing. Something was going on in Suna.

"Also, if it's possible, I am tasked to take a look at the jinchuriki's seal and make it stronger, once again if possible. Since you're the Kazekage, I guess it's only your choice now. But, I've already worked on your seal in the past so it..."

"There is no need to convince, once I was made aware of your mission I accepted to have you look at my seal." I crossed my hands in front of me. "The...state I was in in Konoha...Orochimaru provoked it. He broke the seal you placed over Shukaku's and its influence came back all at once."

"Yeah, and three years without him at once is brutal." Gaara got up.

"I will personally arrange hotel rooms for you two. Will you be able to do it tomorrow?" I blinked sheepishly.

"I'm good, but I still need to work on your seal beforehand to avoid any mistakes." Kankurō had that weird look in his eyes again.

"What's the rush, the Chuunin Exams?" Sasuke asked them. An uncomfortable silence took place in the room, that Gaara broke soon enough.

"Please follow me."

However, in the hallways, there were looks. At first I mistook them for looks of mistrust toward us but…

My eyes found the back of Gaara's head.

He still had to gain people's trust as the new Kazekage. He would, in time, but for now…

Kankurō was worried for his brother.

Alright, I wasn't expecting this.

"I usually control it," I confessed blankly as I stared at Shukaku behind Gaara. Gaara was staring at the ghostly form of the Shinigami behind me. I sweat dropped at Shukaku laughing madly.

"A bijuu can attract you if they're good enough, idiot!" I just deadpanned at him. "You think you're so special and now..."

"I didn't know it would happen, I thought I was gonna die you stupid tanuki!" I roared back.

"Who are calling 'stupid' you stupid human!?" I pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Fuck, out of four bijuus I only had troubles with Son Gokū and you're worst than him!"

"I'm not as weak as the others!" I took a deep breath and flared my nostrils at the same time. He was just being childish and I would ignore him.

"Anyway, Gaara..." The Kazekage seemed shocked by my spat with Shukaku, as his wide eyes were staring at me. "How to say this...please don't repeat it to Naruto, I need to find a way to break the news to him. Let's just say I'm not normal, I...it's very hard to shorten it..." I muttered before clearing my throat. "I...I used a forbidden technique of the Uzumaki clan and summoned the Shinigami. However, it didn't kill me but threw my soul back in time. This appearance," I showed me with my hands, "is the one I had when I died. Physically, I'm twenty and a half. In reality, I'm forty-four. It's why I told you you'd do great things one day, because I saw you doing it." He was still looking at me in disbelief, but his eyes were no longer wide opened.

"The Hokage...warned me you were peculiar." Thanks Tsunade-san, really. "And...you can talk to bijuus?" I showed my left arms, the marks shining purple for a couple of seconds.

"This allows me to do it. You know, Death is strong so it pulls us in a deep plan of your subconscious." Shukaku started to make fun of me again, and even if a vein popped on my forehead, I ignored him. "Anyway, because of this, I know the future I guess? A possible one already altered by now. I know what the Akatsuki wants."

"The bijuus," Gaara replied quickly. "You know the reason why?"

"The guy who's leading the Aktsuki wants to revive the Juubi and cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi on the moon so that the whole world is touched. Here, done." It shut Shukaku up.

"The Juubi you say?" I nodded. "What's that?" I blinked at him sheepishly. I assumed the bijuus knew about it and none of them told me otherwise. What… "You mean the form we were in before the old man split us apart?" I nodded and he growled.

"One more thing, they...the bijuus have to be sealed in order."

I broke the connection and shook my head when the brown walls around us were back. Sasuke was still quietly watching, having been granted the right to observe.

I was dizzy.

"Damn, it really was unexpected."

"Sorry." I waved Gaara off.

"It's not your fault." The seal on his stomach was in a triangular shape. Three black thin lines crossed it horizontally, around two centimeters between each, not crossing the edges of the triangle. It was a good seal, but not good enough to fully restrain Shukaku, or his influence at least. There were some black stains at the bottom of the triangle, where I had placed a seal five years ago. "Hmph, Orochimaru was sloppy, breaking my seal like that. It should be done in two days as I already know your seal."

"Is it the fastest you can be?" I nodded. "Fine."

"Do you have another agenda?" Gaara closed his shirt.

"The Chuunin Exams are taking a lot of time to prepare."

There was something else, I knew it, but if I had not been told about it, then I had nothing to do with it.

While I was busy with Gaara's seal, Suna found Orochimaru's lair. It had been destroyed, apparently by a very powerful explosion. Sasori and Deidara were already out of the country, but I doubted Orochimaru was dead. Temari and Shikamaru left for Konoha for the First Stage of the Chuunin Exams. Sasuke and I were ready to leave when Gaara summoned us in his office.

"The Second Stage will start in a few days, it is held in the Demon Desert."

"Oh. Wait, I don't even know if Kiri sent teams. We're still rebuilding."

"There is no team from your village Akane-san." Heh, no surprise there. "Most genin from Konoha who participated in the last Exams have passed the First Stage."

"Sakura?" Sasuke mumbled next to me.

"Are you allowed to tell us this?"

"I am the Kazekage," he replied calmly, handing me a file. "And I thought this might interest you." Sasuke moved closer to peek above my shoulder at the file. I raised my brows.

"Two jounins from Taki are taking part in the Exams with a genin, themselves disguised as genins," Sasuke said before raising his eyes to Gaara. "You don't think it's a regular genin then."

"It would be weird for a small village like Taki to send two jounins for a simple genin," I stated as my eyes scanned the girl's stats. Fū, she had pretty good stats so far, tan skin, short green hair and orange eyes. Nothing was out of the ordinary, except for the fact her teammates were jounins, of course.

"She would be a jinchuriki then? From the Hidden Waterfall?" Sasuke inquired sternly. I hummed at that, already knowing Taki had a bijuu.

"Taki hid it well." Konoha had Kurama, Iwa Son Gokū and Kokuō, Kiri Saiken and Isobu, Suna Shukaku and Kumo had Matatabi and Gyūki. The only one left was the Seven Tails, Chōmei. Old Naruto told me about them, but never in which village they were each or the jinchurikis.

For Kumo, the two were in the Bingo Book. I knew Gaara, Naruto, senpai and Yagura when he was alive. The only one I had not really heard about had been Han, the old geezer and Chōmei's host. If it was this girl and Taki had had a bijuu for who-knew how long for…

Respect.

"If you want to observe the Exams, then you are welcomed to."

"Don't mind if we take the offer then," I answered with a smile.

Hey! Thanks for reading and leave a review to tell me what you thought about this chapter! Thanks to kankananime123, realfan16, Guest, mikan26, Minty and kellygonzalezk001 for the reviews! Iwa is my least favorite too to be honest.

Bye!