Heeellooo! I've FINALLY finished Chapter 5 \o/ (It's actually much longer than the others lol!) As I'm sure you all know... Time skips... \o. So keep an eye out for that. ^^

Ermm.. As for stuff like funerals and etc... I won't be writing them in for these reasons: 1 - y'all know what happens 2 - I don't want to sound too repetitive with the whole funeral stuff 3 - I'm not a big fan of funerals and that includes writing about it LOL 4 - I'll only have it in if I feel I truuuuly deeply need to LOL (which so far, hasn't been the case).

Thaank you so much for the reviews: El Frijolero & MitsukiCHANandNarutoKUN \o. I hope this update was considered soon to both of you ^^ hahahaha. But even still, it took a while longer than I expected to because it came out longer :p

So let's get on with it, shall we? \o

Chapter Five

Ami was awakened at the break of dawn by her brother. Sasuke knew it wasn't the smartest move he'd ever come up with, but it seemed necessary at the time.
"You better have a good reason for this." She mumbled, still half asleep.
"What if I don't do well?" He sighed. "Are you coming to the gates with us?"
"Sensei said I wasn't allowed to see you off. I'm only allowed to be there when it's over, apparently."
"Well we disobey! I want you there. I might need the support." Sasuke frowned and rested his chin in the palm of his hands. "I'm really nervous about this one."
"Well moping won't get you anywhere. You want to be ready when the time comes to face Itachi, don't you? So suck it up and go do your second Chunnin exam. You'll ace it. I'm sure of it!"
"Fine." He sighed. "You can go back to sleep now. I'll see you soon."

"Your eyes looked different Tachi! I know it did!" Ami pouted. "Show me again!"
"They're the same princess. Come... We have to go home."
Itachi gathered his things and ushered his little sister back towards their home.
"Please show me again!" Ami insisted. "Or at least tell me why they're different."
"Fine." He sighed. "But you must promise not to tell anyone." Ami nodded happily. "I have awakened my Mangekyou Sharingan."
"What's a Mankey Sharingan?" Ami asked confused.
"It's called 'Mangekyou'." Itachi laughed. "And it's simply a different technique... Quite advanced and very powerful."
"How did you do it?" Ami asked, now even more curious than she was before. "You're gonna teach me and Sasuke too, right?"
"Yes... I will teach you, I guess... But not now. Later." He said, poking her forehead.

Itachi began to walk off and Ami had to run to keep up with his pace. He suddenly stopped and fell to the ground. A large snake with a pair of big yellow eyes wrapped its body around him and crushed him to pieces. It began to get closer to Ami, hissing loudly and almost grinning evilly...

Ami jumped up, breathing heavily. She rubbed her forehead, hoping to forget the images of her previous nightmare. She wasn't enjoying the large snake invading her memories at all. She realised it was past midday and decided to get something to eat. After a failed and burnt attempt of mashed potatoes and scrambled eggs, Ami skipped towards the trainings grounds.

Kakashi was resting on the grass, fully concentrated on his book. Ami took the opportunity to practice masking her chakra. It seemed to be working, because she'd managed to get quite close to him and he still hadn't taken his eyes off the book.
"Not quite there yet." He said suddenly, making her jump back slightly. She frowned once she realised she'd been caught. "But with a bit more practice, you might be able to sneak up on me unnoticed."
"Good morning to you too." She huffed.
"Morning? It's practically lunch time."
"Well I slept in." She said nonchalantly. "When will Sasuke be back from his second exam?"
"In a few days, give or take." Kakashi smiled, or at least that's what it seemed like.
"Great... That's extra training for me then." She wriggled her eyebrows. "We can get started right away!"
"I was somewhat hoping to relax a little for the time being. There's no point in rushing you."
"But I need to learn new things or I'll never reach my brother's level!" Ami pouted.
"You're not that far from Sasuke, so I wouldn't worry."
"I'm not talking about Sasuke." Ami rolled her eyes. "Fine... If you don't want to train me I'll go find someone that will."
Kakashi sighed and waved her off, before concentrating once more on his book.

x.x

Iruka dropped a large pile of paperwork in front of Izumo and Kotetsu once he reached the gates. The two men stared at Iruka curiously and wondered what sort of crazy work they would have to do for the Hokage this time.
"Should we even ask?" Izumo complained.
"I need these all filled out by tomorrow morning. I obviously can't do it alone. So I'm coming to you two. You're the only ones that aren't busy helping out with the Chunnin Exams at the moment." Iruka explained.
"Wow, thanks for reminding us." Kotetsu frowned. "What is all this anyway?"
"Student files... I need them filled out, so get started." Iruka ordered.

A hooded man approached the gates whilst the three were working through the large mountain of paper. Iruka sensed his presence and stared over at him curiously. Izumo cleared his throat and stood from his chair.
"Passport." He ordered.
The hooded man took his cloak off and placed it under his arms. He had very light skin, that contrasted with his very dark hair and eyes. The man smiled and handed his passport.
"Welcome to Konoha, Kei." Izumo greeted. "Would you like a list of places you could stay?"
"That's quite fine, I've already made arrangements. I'll possibly be staying until the end of the Chunnin Exams." Kei grinned.
"Well you have the one month authorization; if you wish to stay longer you must come see us." Kotetsu stated. "Enjoy your time in Konoha."
Kei smiled and waved as he entered the village. He looked around curiously; it seemed to have grown since he'd last seen it.
"He reminds me of someone." Iruka said suddenly.
"Who?" Kotetsu asked.
"Not sure... It's just something about him."

x.x

Ami sat with her legs crossed, in the middle of her back garden. She closed her eyes and took in her surroundings. She had a very distant memory of her mother meditating in the exact same spot and she always seemed cheerful and calm afterwards. Normally she and Sasuke would meditate together. He would constantly remind her how important it was for focusing Chakra. She eventually sighed deeply and let her body drop backwards. She slowly opened her eyes and saw a stranger staring down at her.
"What the-" She screamed, quickly jumping on her feet.
"Sorry! I'm so sorry!" The man laughed. "I didn't mean to scare you!"
"Who the heck are you?" Ami spat. "And why are you in my territory?"
"Calm down... I promise you I mean no harm." He smiled. "I'm here simply because this used to be my home."
Ami's eyes went wide. That could only be possible if he was an Uchiha. She began silently analysing him. He could easily pass as someone in her family.
"What's your name?" She whispered curiously.
"Uchiha Kei." He laughed. "I haven't been in this village for quite some time... I even took the 'Uchiha' out."
"Why did you do that?" She asked, even more curious now that she'd confirmed his clan.
"Because every Uchiha is in the Bingo Book... I value my life!" He laughed. "I suggest you do the same once you start going on missions."
"Please... No one would be crazy to take me on!" She smirked. "So, do you have the Sharingan?"
"Of course I do! Although, it's very underused... I'm quite reluctant to use it again and end up draining myself." He said sadly. "I get the feeling you've already activated yours."
"Yes, yes I have." She said proudly. "But even though you can't use it... Would you know how to train it?"
"Of course I would!" He laughed. "Let me guess... You want some pointers."
"No doubt... I'm sure my Sensei won't mind. When can we start?" She said excitedly.
"Well I won't be in the village too long-"
"What! No you can't leave! If you're an Uchiha then you should stay. Sasuke will love to hear that we have another family member still alive." She said happily.
"Still alive? What happened to the rest?" He asked worriedly.
"Well... They're dead." She frowned. "It happened a few years ago. They're all dead. Sasuke and I are the only survivors... And Itachi too. But he doesn't count because he's the reason they're dead."
"Itachi... I see." He said, sadly. "Well... I'll mourn about it later. Let's see what I can teach you."

x.x

Kakashi lazily made his way towards the Uchiha compound. It had been two days without the young Uchiha pestering him for a training session and quite frankly, he was missing it. He reached the all too familiar house and knocked on the door. After five minutes of impatient waiting he concluded that she wasn't home. He spotted the bouncing pair of pigtails once he reached the compound's gates once more.
"Where have you been lately?" He smiled.
"Around." She said emotionlessly. "I'd like to stick around but I'm late for my training session."
Kakashi grabbed the young child before she could run off and held on to her like a father held his toddler.
"I'm not aware of any training sessions." He said.
"Would you put me down?" She wriggled. "And you don't know because it doesn't concern you."
"Yes it does." He said.
"No it doesn't."
"It does." He insisted. "Training with you? Asuma? Gai?"
"You don't know him." Kakashi let her go and she stared up at him. Kakashi rolled his eyes.
"I know the identity of absolutely every Shinobi in this village. Including ANBU and Root."
"What's Root?" She asked curiously.
"Who are you training with?" Kakashi asked again.
"It's no one!" She laughed. "I have to go."
Kakashi groaned as the child ran off. He definitely needed a word with the Hokage.

x.x

Naruto rubbed his aching body as he walked across the village. He'd just survived three days in the forest and preliminaries for the third and final exam. He couldn't help but feel proud of himself. All he needed now was a nice warm bowl of ramen.
"Naruto! I'm so proud of you!" Iruka said happily. "I'm sure you'll do great in the next round."
"I hope so!" Naruto grinned. "But I can't be too sure. The best of the best will be in the next round."
"I wouldn't worry much about it if I were you." Iruka smiled. "How's Sasuke?"
"I'm guessing you heard about him too." Naruto frowned. "Kakashi Sensei said he'd be ok."
"I hope so!" Iruka smiled.
"I wonder how Ami's adapting to Kakashi's training system." Naruto said, before digging into his large bowl.

The blond child was on his fourth bowl when he noticed the all too familiar Uchiha walking towards Ichiraku's ramen shop. She was dragging a dark haired man along with her. All Naruto knew was that he definitely wasn't Kakashi Sensei.
"Who do you suppose he is?" Naruto asked Iruka, curiously.
"I saw him a few days ago." Iruka muttered as he stared at the man.
Ami walked into the shop and ordered ramen for both of them. She waved at Naruto and Iruka but didn't engage in any sort of conversation. Naruto stared at the man for a while longer than necessary before returning to his bowl.
"I don't like him." He huffed.
"You shouldn't judge people instantly, Naruto." Iruka lectured.
"I still don't like him."

Sasuke stopped in the doorway once he spotted his younger sister. He frowned when he realized she was talking to a random stranger. Being the slightly overprotective brother that he was, he gently pulled on her arm and scowled.
"Who's he?" He asked, visibly annoyed by the situation.
"A friend." Ami rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, he can be your friend too."
"You must be Sasuke." Kei smiled. "I'm Kei."
"Kei?" Sasuke lifted one of his eyebrows. "Where are you from? I'm sure I haven't seen you in the village before."
"I'm certain you haven't seen me anywhere at all! I travel around a lot." He smiled. "But I am originally from Konoha."
"His real name is Uchiha Kei." Ami whispered. Sasuke's eyes went wide.
"U-Uchiha?" He whispered back, still in complete shock.
"But you can't tell anyone. He removed the name because he doesn't want Shinobi after him." Ami continued. "So you're sworn to secrecy!"
"Ok, ok. I won't tell anyone. But how can we trust you?" Sasuke wondered. "The dark hair and eyes aren't really much proof."
"He's helping me with my Sharingan!" Ami said excitedly. "That's your proof."
"And I can help you too if you'd like." Kei said happily. "Although I'll only be here until the Chunnin exams are over."
"Why?" Sasuke asked. "Why can't you stay with us? I guarantee there's plenty of room in the compound."
"Although your offer sounds amazing, I still have many places I'd like to visit before settling down." Kei smiled. "Are you hungry Sasuke?"
Sasuke nodded slightly and smiled when Kei ordered him a ramen bowl. He listened to the conversation between him and his younger sister intently. He still wasn't entirely sure whether or not he believed the man but he knew he'd figure it all out eventually.

x.x

Ami dragged herself back to the compound after a long day of intensive training. Kei had made her use her Sharingan to an extent she'd never gone before. He also mentioned he'd teach her a new technique soon. She was extremely curious to know what technique he was referring to. She began imagining all the possible things she could learn by simply using her eyes.

-Flashback-
Sasuke shook Ami until she was awake and frowning. He noticed her cheeks were still wet from the tears and he wiped them dry with his fingers.
"Come." He said in a hoarse voice.

After silently sneaking out of the hospital, the two Uchiha children made their way to their compound. The gates had yellow tape blocking the entrance. Sasuke crawled under it and motioned for his sister to do the same.
"Why are we here?" Ami asked quietly as she held onto her brother's arm.
"We're going to look for something." He replied, just as quietly.

They eventually reached the meeting hall and made their way inside. Sasuke found the trap door and opened it. They carefully walked down the staircase, stopping to light up the candles. Sasuke let go of his sister's hand and began to search for something.
"I'm looking for a large, old looking chest. Help me find it." Sasuke ordered. Ami began searching around the shelves she could reach. "Never mind, found it."
Sasuke pulled Ami towards him as he opened it up. Inside were dozens of scrolls and scribbled paper.
"This is what you were looking for?" Ami frowned.
"Apparently this is important." Sasuke sighed. "These contain our secrets."
"Why would they write secrets in scrolls? Isn't that stupid?" Ami asked curiously.
"Yes... Very." Sasuke laughed. "We're taking this with us. We'll read through it carefully. Once we've learned everything, we'll burn it. Then no one will ever know."
Ami nodded in agreement and helped Sasuke carry the chest back up the stairs.
-EndFlashback-

Ami mentally laughed at the memory. She and Sasuke still hadn't found the courage to burn anything that once belonged to their family. They probably never would. But she knew she wasn't allowed to show the secrets to anyone. Not even Kei.

She slowed her pace when she realized people on the roof not too far from her. She knew how to define how many people were around her by focusing on their chakras and she noticed one of them was fading quickly. The figure she could see left the roof and she made her way up quickly.
"Hello?" She called out, not too loudly. She heard someone cough and ran to their direction. "Gekkou Hayate?"
"Leave." He coughed. Ami noticed he was struggling to stay awake so she decided to get a little closer. She froze slightly when she felt someone approaching them. He coughed again. "It's not safe here. Leave now."
"I can't just leave you here alone." Ami whispered. She could feel the tears threatening to fall. The person's chakra was extremely close and she was almost certain it was the same as the person who was there before. "Stay awake. I'm going to get help."
Ami jumped off the roof and quickly ran towards the Hokage Tower. As she was running across the roofs, she didn't bother to leap down and use the door. Swinging her way through the balconies, she finally reached the Hokage's window. He seemed to be in a meeting with Kakashi and a few other Shinobi. Kakashi stared at the window curiously when he realised the young Uchiha trying to get in.
"May I ask what is the matter?" Sandaime Hokage laughed once the young girl had managed to climb in.
"Gekkou Hayate." She said, already in tears. "He's badly injured and needs help."
At that very moment, two ANBU Shinobi walked through the door without bothering to knock. The one wearing a Cat mask didn't hesitate and made his way straight towards the Hokage.
"Report update, Hokage-sama: a Shinobi was found dead two kilometres from here on one of the rooftops. We believe him to be Gekkou Hayate."

x.x

Kei decided he'd rather skip the third chunnin exam and teach Ami something different. He began talking of the types of Sharingan that existed. Ami's mind was mostly focused on how Sasuke and Naruto would do on their exams instead of the task Kei had given her.
"Are you sure you don't want to go see them?" She insisted once again.
"Positive. I won't be here much longer so I might as well finish off my task with you." He smiled.
"But I've learnt a lot already. We should take a break and go see Sasuke." She whined.
"Get this right and we will."
"Fine." She sighed. "It says here that you need to kill someone in order to awake the Mangekyou Sharingan. I won't be killing anyone."
"I wasn't expecting you to." Kei laughed. "It seems whoever discovered the Mangekyou never really looked into it. You don't need to kill anyone close to you in order to have it. You just need to know death and pain."
"Oh... Well in that case I can get it done." Ami smirked. "Who would've thought I'd learn a new technique thanks to Itachi."
"Indeed." Kei agreed. "But it's going to be slightly more complicated. You'll need to enter a certain state of mind. You must relive that moment of death or pain. Then you must channel all that anger and frustration towards your chakra. That will force the Sharingan to transform."
"So this will take some time." Ami sighed.
"Yes... But I'm sure you can get it done." Kei smiled.
"Can I just please go see Sasuke first?" Ami whined once again. Kei eventually sighed.
"Fine. But I think I'm going to stay here and rest for a while. Don't be long."
"I won't!" Ami called out, already running off.

Apparenly Ami had missed almost everything by the time she reached the stadium. Naruto had managed to win against Neji, Shikamaru decided not to fight Temari from the Sand village and the fight between Sasuke and Gaara had just started.
"Sasuke will win. I know he will." Ami said confidently.
"Of course he'll win! Come on Sasuke! Kick his ass!" Naruto cheered.

Ami froze. She realised something wasn't right. She just wasn't sure what it was. She stared towards Sasuke. He had dark marks up his arm, across his neck and face.
"That can't be normal." She whispered.
"What?" Naruto asked, not taking his eyes off the fight.
"Sasuke... There's something wrong with him."
Sakura turned to face Ami and frowned. She wasn't sure if she could tell her. Sasuke did ask her not to mention anything to anyone, but how was she supposed to know whether that included his only family?
"He might not be in his normal state." Sakura eventually said, after staring at the young Uchiha for a while.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ami rolled her eyes. "If you know something then I suggest you tell me."
"Well I don't know exactly. But we'll talk about it later. Let's focus on this for now."
Ami wanted to protest but something took over her. She felt her eyes getting heavier and heavier. She soon began to drift off to sleep. The last thing she saw was the Jounin Shinobi dart into action.

x.x

Kei gathered his belongings and packed everything away. He walked out of the inn and paid the owner for his stay. He smiled and walked off. He reached into his pockets to find his passport and sighed in frustration because he couldn't remember where he'd left it. He eventually reached the gates, where a random man stared at him emotionlessly.
"I'll be leaving the village. I don't believe I'll be returning any time soon. There's so many places I still need to see!" Kei smiled.
"Yeah, yeah. I hope you've enjoyed your stay in Konoha." The man replied.
The two slightly jumped when they heard a loud bang coming from the stadium. Kei laughed to himself and turned towards the bored man.
"Must be quite a fight going on." Kei smiled. The man simply shrugged. "Well. Thank you for the lovely hospitality!"

x.x

Ami woke up in her room with a terrible headache. She looked around trying to remember why she was here. Kakashi silently walked into the room and left a tray full of food by her bed. She turned to face him and stared.
"Good to see you're awake." Kakashi said quietly. "But you should rest a little more."
"What happened?"
"Sand and Mist worked together to invade the village. They placed a genjutsu on everyone in the stands. I half expected you to snap out of it quickly but it seems you were too exhausted for that." Kakashi sighed. "Sasuke and Naruto got into a slight fight with the Kazekage's son... And Sandaime Hokage fought with Orochimaru."
"Orochi-who?" Ami asked curiously.
"Orochimaru is one of the three legendary sennin and the Sandaime's former student."
"Hokage won, right?" Ami asked worriedly. Kakashi shook his head. "But... Is he ok?"
"No... Unfortunately he didn't make it." Kakashi replied sadly.
"And what about Sasuke and Naruto? Where are they?" Ami tried to hold back her tears. "If the Kazekage's son hurt them then I'll be going after his fat-"
"They're fine." Kakashi laughed. "And you won't be going after anyone young lady."
"I need to go see Kei though." Ami sighed.
"Kei?" Kakashi said quickly. "Who's Kei?"
"I already told you I would find someone who would train me." Ami smirked. "I also told you that you don't know him."
"Wait... That wasn't a joke?" Kakashi now sounded like a worried father. "Who's Kei? Where is he? I need to meet him."
"Calm down Sensei." Ami rolled her eyes. "I don't know where he is."
"Well let me know as soon as you find him and make sure you eat your food."

x.x

Naruto rubbed his painful neck as he walked across the village. Ami was going from door to door, apparently looking for someone.
"Sasuke won't be walking around here." Naruto called out. Ami quickly ran towards him.
"I know." She said, out of breath. "Have you seen a man, with black hair and eyes as dark as mine?"
"No... Why?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Because I'm looking for him. I can't find him anywhere." Ami frowned. "What are you doing around here?"
"I'm looking for Jiraiya!" Naruto grinned. "He promised me he'd help me out with a few things."
"Well... I better go look around for him a bit more."

Kakashi and Asuma watched as the young Uchiha searched endlessly.
"Aren't you going to tell her that he's left?" Asuma asked as he lit another cigarette.
"She'll figure it out eventually." Kakashi sighed. "It's not like she'd believe me anyway."
"You're evil." Asuma laughed.
Kurenai walked up to the two Jounin and nudged Asuma on the arm. Kakashi smirked behind his mask and waved them both goodbye.
"I love it when he takes a hint." Kurenai smiled. Asuma laughed.

"Ami... Let's go." Kakashi called out.
"I still haven't found him." Ami frowned. "Can I go ask Izumo and Kotetsu at the gates?"
"No." Kakashi said simply.
"Please." Ami begged. "I promise I'll come meet you soon."
"Fine... But be quick about it." Kakashi sighed.

Ami ran towards the gates as quickly as she could. Izumo and Kotetsu were happily playing cards with Genma and another man who Ami still hadn't been introduced to.
"Go fish!" Izumo shouted excitedly.
"Hello!" Ami grinned.
"Seeing an Uchiha grin this happily is a bit spooky." Kotetsu whispered to the others before turning towards the young girl. "How may we help?"
"Have any of you seen Kei?"
"Kei left the village a while ago." Izumo sighed. "We figured you knew that already."
"He left without saying goodbye?" Ami said dumbfounded.
"Sorry kiddo." Genma shrugged.
"Who are you?" Ami asked the stranger curiously.
"Raido." The Shinobi smiled. "And I don't know who Kei is, sorry."
"Fine." Ami frowned.
"Ah ha! That expression is something I'm used to!" Kotetsu grinned. "Don't scare me with that grin ever again."
"Oh whatever." Ami rolled her eyes and left.
Genma sighed and stared to the person who was observing them from the other side of the road.
"You can come out now."
"So... You really don't know where he is?" Kakashi asked curiously.
"We have no track whatsoever. He left a while ago." Izumo stated. "Why?"
"He seems too suspicious to be trusted. Let me know if he returns."
The four nodded and went back to their game of cards.

x.x

Kakashi decided to take a small detour before meeting up with Ami and walked through the park. He ended up interrupting a small fight going on between Asuma, Kurenai and two strangers.
"Look at their cloaks." Asuma whispered, once he realised Kakashi was right beside him.
"Akatsuki." Kurenai stated, angrily.
One of the strangers laughed and revealed his face. He was blue and had shark-like features.
"Who are you and what do you want?" Kurenai shouted.
"Kisame." The shark-like man laughed. "And this is Itachi."
Itachi removed his large straw hat and threw it aside. Kakashi's eyes went wide. Asuma and Kurenai noticed Kakashi's sudden scare and stared towards the pale man with dark hair and dark eyes. Kurenai suddenly gasped and Asuma tried to think where he'd seen that person before. Kakashi soon regained his composure and went into his battle stance. Asuma stared at him, visibly confused. Kakashi sighed and decided to clear the man's mind.
"Uchiha Itachi."

Yeeey. Chapter done. \o

I have two little spoilers for all of you - 1 - Next chapter will be a special chapter about the Uchiha massacre and yadda yadda... 2 - Kei will be returning! Buuuut ~ Ami will be the only one knowing about it... What do you suppose the man has to hide? hmmmm...

Let me know how you're feeling about this story ok? ^^ xoxo!