Author's Notes: Due to the anime being drastically different than the manga, this chapter has also had an overhaul. I am trying to closely follow the anime, since I first began writing based on that. This will also be the last time this chapter is redone.

Chapter 2

It was a few days later, and Kurai was still mulling over Gaara's words about his clan defending the village if he could not. He was so deep in thought that he didn't see Seishin until he bumped into the older man. "Hey there!"

"Hm? Oh, Tanamari-san!" Kurai quickly bowed in apology. "Sorry, didn't see you there." Seishin chuckled and straightened his head covering.

"It's all right. But what are you so lost in thought about?"

"Something the Kazekage said to me the other day, concerning the possibility of Akatsuki attacking the village."

"After nearly three years, it's a chance they won't bother with us."

"There is still the Shukaku," Kurai reminded him. Seishin frowned a bit.

"I know. If it's not your father still carrying on, it's some of the older Jounins complaining that we have a child leading us, tailed beast or no. Far as I'm concerned, we're doing okay, and the village is still in once piece."

"Senjo says the same thing," the young man said with a smile.

"Well, in a few years she'll be me!" Kurai grimaced at the sudden mental image of Senjo looking like her father, but he quickly laughed it away.

"Yes, but hopefully I won't look like you," the aforementioned redhead as she came up behind her father. "Hey Kurai. Hope he didn't say anything bad about me."

"Actually we were just talking about the Kazekage." Kurai tried to only use his title when referring to Gaara, though around Senjo it was difficult.

"Oh, you mean his comment about the Hajino Clan defending the village should something happen?"

"Yeah, that." Senjo pursed her lips for a moment. She didn't want to think about anything bad happening to her friend. Seishin saw the look on her face and ruffled both the teens' hair.

"Look, you two can be all doom and gloom later. Right now, I want a hug from my daughter before I start my evening." Senjo obliged with a smile, wrapping her arms around Seishin's neck and giving him a quick squeeze. "Now that that's settled, I'll be out at the far cliffs if anyone needs me."

"Back late, then?"

"Tell your mother not to burn dinner waiting up for me." With that, the Jounin left, raising a hand as he headed down the street.

"So, where are you off to, Kurai?" Senjo wondered.

"I have patrol at the Kazekage's building tonight. Nothing major, just door guard. Want to keep me company for a little while?"

"Sure, I don't have anything until tomorrow when Mother needs my help going over some new paperwork." The couple linked hands and then headed off in the opposite direction that Seishin had gone.

Kohaku was enjoying the feel of the setting sun on her face as she took a break from practicing. Sekkou, one of her summoned creatures, was lying beside her, wriggling her nose at the young Jounin. "It's too hot out here," the small mole complained, quickly throwing sand over her kitten-sized body to keep cool. Though the temperature had dropped significantly since the afternoon, the mole still preferred cool forests and fields to the dry desert.

"You could always go back," The dark-haired girl said as she turned her head to talk to Sekkou directly. "Unless you feel I need more practice?"

"No, you're following my directions pretty well lately. A lot better than when you first started." Kohaku laughed a bit as she remembered when she'd first started using summoned creatures. Though at one time she'd told Temari she preferred her techniques and staff, she'd soon seen the advantage to having a partner always ready to be called if need be. Sekkou had been the first she'd been able to summon successfully, and the little mole had begun putting the shinobi through the paces of learning how to scout and eavesdrop better than she had been. The two of them had made a pretty good team, and along with Sekkou's elder brother, Kohaku had not had a major problem on any of her missions. The wind picked up again, but this time, along with the fading heat, it brought the tingling sensation of approaching chakra.

"Sekkou-"

"I'm on it!" The mole quickly dug into the sand using her powerful front legs. Kohaku paused only a moment to place a breathing mask over her mouth and nose before also sinking beneath the sand. Daichi had been the one to suggest travel beneath the sand, and the twins had found it very useful when close to home. Following Sekkou's chakra trail, Kohaku felt the foreign chakra getting closer. Finally she decided she was close enough and stopped, sending out her senses carefully to see what she could find. There were three people, two with massive amounts of chakra, slowly making their way towards the village. Suddenly, one of them left the ground, and Kohaku guessed they were airborne somehow. The others remained perfectly still, as if waiting. Suddenly, something bumped into her, and Kohaku realized it was Sekkou. The little mole was pushing at her insistently, and Kohaku finally retreated a ways and surfaced. With a quick glance, she realized they had traveled near the main entrance to the village hidden along the cliffs. But what could have gotten past the guards there?

"What's wrong?" she demanded, seeing that Sekkou was shaking.

"You remember that group you told me about? The ones after the Kazekage?"

"Akatsuki? You're sure it was them?" Every nerve in Kohaku's body was on alert, and she knew they couldn't waste time.

"I took a long enough look that I saw their cloaks, and I'm pretty sure one of them saw me! But they've got someone else with them too, though I didn't stay to see who it was." Kohaku picked up her friend and nodded.

"Head back, Sekkou. I'll call Kaisaku if I need help." Without another word, the mole vanished back into her realm, and Kohaku was racing for the village wall away from the cliffs. "Please let me be in time. Please let me be in time."

Kurai's senses detected an odd chakra, but he couldn't pinpoint it. "Senjo, do you feel that?" Her senses had been improving since studying fully under her mother, and she could tell who was walking down the street simply by their chakra signature. The redhead closed her eyes and expanded her senses, searching for an unknown entity. She picked it up a moment later, heading towards the building, but something didn't seem right.

"There's something, but it almost seems like-" A trio of explosions from the roof of the building grabbed their attention, and they were on their feet in an instant. "Gaara!"

"Get to your mother's and have them sound the alarm!" Kurai said as the other guards quickly raced into the building. He followed a moment later, but when they reached the Kazekage's office, it was empty.

"Where is he?" someone asked.

"Spread out and alert the village!" Kurai said when he saw them standing around. If someone attacked us, the Kazekage will be after them." The Chuunin guards all scattered out of the room, and Kurai got to the window and onto the balcony. As he looked up, he saw what he'd feared. Gaara was standing on the roof of the building, sand flowing around him. Above him, circling through the sky, was a person on a giant bird the likes of which Kurai had never seen. He leapt across to another building, hoping he would be able to do something.

'Kurai, I will need your word that the Hajino clan will protect the village if I cannot.' The Jounin grit his teeth as he kept an eye on the boy he still considered a friendly rival.

"Show them the power of Hidden Sand, Gaara. Show them your power."

Senjo was halfway to her mother's office when she saw Naiteki leading a squad down the street. "Get all non-combatants inside, and move all squads to defensive positions!" she ordered as her team nodded and dispersed. "Senjo, what the hell is going on?"

"Akatsuki!" the girl said as she changed direction and ran alongside her mother. "They attacked the Kazekage's office, and Kurai told me to get you."

"Where is he?"

"He went inside to check on Gaara."

"Naiteki-san!" a familiar voice called out. A Jounin was beside them a moment later, the eye that was visible narrowed in anger.

"Baki, where's the Kazekage?"

"Dealing with the threat to the village. I have a team ready to assist him."

"Has the Hajino Clan been alerted?"

"They are mobilizing for a counter-assault should the need arise."

"What about the sentries at the cliffs? How the hell did Akatsuki get past them?" Baki shook his head and shrugged.

"We haven't heard from them, but there's a chance they were taken out." He raced down another street, taking to the roofs to meet his team. Naiteki looked at Senjo, who nodded.

"Let's get to the cliffs and get some answers there. The village might have more to worry about than an air assault."

Kohaku entered the village via the outer wall and made eye contact with the two sentries. "Your clan is preparing counter-measures!" one called down. "Find them!"

"All right!" she answered, having no intention of actually finding her family. Suddenly, she spotted Daichi and his team up ahead, hiding in the shadow of a building. "Get inside!" she ordered, coming up behind them. "This is no place for Genins."

"Gaara-sama is up there!" Daichi told her, pointing to the air. Kohaku focused her eyes and saw a floating ball of sand, no doubt belonging to Gaara. She also noticed a large bird, which was carrying someone on its back.

"Whoever that person is, they were flying through the streets up until a few minutes ago," Inkei quickly brought her up-to-speed. "The Kazekage was following with his sand, and that's why everyone's out here." Kohaku glanced around to see that the buildings were crowded with people who wanted to watch the fight between their Kazekage and the unknown assailant. It was something that she would not have pictured two years ago. Suddenly there was a duo of explosions in the air, and the ball of sand sent out a tendril that snared the person off the bird.

"Sabaku kyuu!" they all heard, as Gaara unleashed one of his more common attacks. His attacker fell, and a spray of blood came from their arm as Gaara retracted the sand back into the defensive ball.

"Looks like it's all over," Riki said with a smile. But Kohaku wasn't so sure, and when the bird swooped to catch its rider, she had a very bad feeling.

"Get inside, now," she told the kids, pushing Daichi towards the door of the building. But he pushed back, wanting to watch. "Daichi, plea-" And that's when she saw it: A large object plummeting towards the village. There was chakra laced into it, and Kohaku realized with sudden fear what it was. "Get down!" she screamed, as other shinobi on the street looked up and immediately sought cover. Daichi, eyes wide, sank quickly beneath the sand. Kohaku pushed Inkei and Riki to the ground, slamming her hand to the sand and calling the defense that had never let her down. "Ganseki toku! (Rock Shield)" The rock covered the young Genins and the hunter-nin, and the explosion came a moment later.

Kurai was still running over the rooftops, trying to figure out a way to get to Gaara and help him. He had seen the attacker lose their arm to the Kazekage's sand, and he smiled a bit. But when he noticed what looked like a large doll drop to the village, his heart jumped into his throat. 'I'm too far away to stop that, and I'd need serious help.' Scanning the streets, Kurai saw his father and the other clan members headed towards him. "FATHER! That thing is heading for us!" Taru looked up and saw what Kurai had, and the clan stopped as one and got ready to use whatever means it took to block the doll. Kurai leapt down and stood next to Taru, focusing his chakra quickly. But before any of them had a chance to act, they saw a wave of sand pour from the sky. The doll impacted the shield, but it held.

"How?.." Taru's voice trailed off as he watched the sky.

"The Kazekage," someone said. "He did that."

"He saved the village," another clan member added. But the victory was short-lived as two more explosions took place, and Kurai felt his stomach twist as he saw what he'd never expected…

Senjo and her mother were almost at the cliffs when a huge explosion forced them to turn around. They saw a large dome of sand over the village, but it was slowly returning to the deep desert. A bird creature carrying someone, and- "Oh no," Naiteki said softly. She could easily tell that the Kazekage was in trouble. His normal defensive sand was slowly falling away, and that was all that was keeping him suspended in the air. Even though she wanted to get to the cliffs and see what had happened, she also knew this was something they needed to see.

"Why isn't he getting back down to the ground?" Senjo asked, her heartbeat beginning to pick up as she watched.

"It would waste too much chakra." Naiteki quickly saw that the wave of sand was being pushed back so that it didn't fall onto the village and crush it. How different his attitude was after being made the Kazekage. Three years ago he would've liked nothing better than to drown the village in the sand, and now… "He's using the last of what he has to protect us."

"But why isn't anyone helping him?" Even as she spoke, Senjo saw a wave of giant arrows fly through the air at the large bird and its rider.

"Baki is leading a counterstrike. He will aid the Kazekage as much as he can." When those failed to hit, another wave of arrows with exploding tags was launched from the catapults on the roofs near the fight.

"Come on, hit the target!"

"Even if they can't, they're buying time for him to move the sand."

"But… But mother, what happens when he runs out of chakra?" Naiteki was silent for a moment, but then she decided that Senjo should know the truth.

"That is the sacrifice he is making as the Kazekage. He wants us all to live even if he cannot."

"Wait, what do you mean-" The sand wave entered the deep desert with a final thunderous crash, and then both women's eyes widened as they witnessed what happened next. "Gaara!" Senjo screamed, watching as her friend fell and was caught by the bird. "Mother, we have to help him, we have to go back, we-" Naiteki caught Senjo around the waist and held her tight.

"Senjo, stop! We can't do anything where we are. Let Baki and the others handle it. We need to find out what happened with the sentries." The redhead stopped struggling, holding back tears as she tried to control her emotions.

"I'm sorry. Let's go," she said a moment later. Naiteki nodded and set her down, and they continued for the sentry posts. A minute later, they rounded the last curve and stopped dead. The sentries… All of them were lying motionless on the ground, covered in blood and some lying on pools of it. "Daddy…" Senjo's voice sounded small.

"Check them for any signs of life," Naiteki ordered as she crossed to the closest group of bodies. Senjo did as she was told, but everyone she checked was dead. Naiteki shook her head and ran further down the trail, but Senjo stood rooted to the spot. She moved to the last group and pressed her fingers to their necks. A pulse! Someone had a pulse. She pulled a body off the woman and dragged her carefully onto the trail.

"Hey, wake up! Hey, please answer." The woman moaned and coughed up blood. Senjo dug her medical kit out of her hip pouch and patched the large wound in the woman's side as best she could. "Stay with me, okay? What's your name? What happened here? Did you see who did this?" Green eyes fluttered open and Senjo could tell they were trying to focus, but just couldn't. She cradled the woman's head in her lap and took her hand.

"M-my name is Mai. W-we were at-attacked by… By…" Her eyes closed for a moment, then snapped open with complete clarity. "Captain Yurra. He turned on us when we spotted the Akatsuki duo. I-I don't know if anyone else made it. He got me by surprise, but I stayed down and didn't move. It was almost like… Like someone was controlling him." Senjo felt her heart racing as she carefully moved Mai's head off her lap. She had to find her father, and then she needed to get medics for any other survivors.

"Mai-san, I'm just going to go further up the trail, but then we'll get medics for you and anyone else, okay?" Mai nodded weakly, and then grabbed at her hand.

"You- You're Seishin's daughter?" Senjo nodded, feeling light-headed suddenly. "Go find him. I- I hope he was able to escape notice too."

"I'm sure-" And then the scream echoed down the trail, and every nerve in her body seized up. "Mother! Mother, I'm coming!" She was running a moment later, faster than she ever had. Everything would be okay. They would get medics, they would get everyone patched up, they would- Senjo stopped dead as she saw her mother clutching her father's still form. He was covered in blood, but how much of it was his she didn't know. Naiteki was holding his head and shoulders, and her eyes were wide.

"Seishin, get up! Please wake up! You have to get up!" She suddenly saw Senjo standing there and shouted: "Get back to the village and grab as many med-nins as you can find! Hurry!" There was no arguing, no time even to nod. All there was time for was running and praying silently.

Kohaku retracted the shield and stood as Riki followed her example and hauled Inkei to his feet. Daichi rose from the sand a moment later, and they all gazed up at the shield of sand as it dropped into the desert. "What happened?" Inkei asked softly

"Gaara-sama saved us," Daichi whispered. "He saved us."

"He's the Kazekage," Kohaku said. "It's his job."

"Hey, isn't that Kurai-san and your father?" Riki pointed to one of the streets, where it seemed the entire Hajino clan had gathered. Kurai saw them and ran over.

"Trouble!" he shouted, skidding to a stop next to Kohaku. "They got him."

"Akatsuki took him?" Kohaku asked in disbelief. "Then we need to go after him."

"There's a team on it, already. Kankuro was headed for the desert as well. He'll cut them off."

"I still don't like doing nothing. We should-"

"Medic!" someone screamed. Everyone turned to see Senjo barreling through the streets, yelling at the top of her lungs. "At the cliffs! We need medics!"

"Senjo! Senjo, what happened?" Kurai demanded as he ran to her. She grabbed his vest, twining her fists into the thick fabric.

"The cliffs! The sentries, they were attacked! My father-" Taru was gone in the next moment, shouting for everyone to find whatever med-nins they could. "We need to go back! My father-"

"Senjo, we'll only get in the way," Kurai said softly, running a hand down her cheek to try and calm her.

"Father…" Inkei said as Riki and Daichi placed comforting hands on his shoulders. He stood for a moment, balling his hands into fists. Throwing off his teammates' hands in a surprise move, he made a run for the street that led to the cliffs. Daisuke was suddenly in front of him, wrapping his arms around his adopted brother and lifting him off his feet.

"No Inkei, I can't let you up there," he said, struggling to hold the boy.

"Let me go! I have to see dad! He's in trouble and needs us!"

"Mom's with him, and the medics are on their way. There's nothing you can do."

"I want to see him, Daisuke! Please!"

"Inkei, stop it!" Both boys looked at the assembled group as Riki walked over to them, grabbing Inkei's head with both hands and meeting his eyes. "Getting upset over this is not gonna help your dad. Your sister's upset too, but there's nothing you can do." Inkei stopped fighting and nodded, and Daisuke set him down and adjusted his grip to give him a comforting hug. Suddenly, they all heard the unmistakable sound of an explosion. All heads turned towards the cliffs, where the sound had come from. More shouting could be heard as more shinobi started heading up there. Senjo collapsed into Kurai's arms, hands over her face as she cried. Inkei struggled anew, but both Riki and Daisuke held him. Kohaku had seen enough. She needed to be out doing something, not standing around like an idiot.

"Kurai, get Senjo home. Daisuke, take Inkei there as well. Daichi and Riki, you two follow. I'll meet you as soon as I can."

"Where are you going?" Daichi asked.

"To do my job!"

"Be careful," Daisuke called out, giving her a weak smile, which she returned before running off. Slipping her hunter mask from its pouch, Kohaku placed it over her face and formed seals in quick succession.

"Hinote bunshin no jutsu (Fire Clone)." Her two copies flashed into existence and looked at her. "We'll all head toward the main entrance from different angles. Do not engage the enemy unless necessary." They nodded, and then the trio split up to try and find where Gaara had been taken.