OMG I'm so sorry! This chapter took me forever to do! I've been kinda busy lately. Hopefully the next won't be this late. Again I'm so sorry!

R&R PLEASE

---

With the cover of darkness, a shadowed figure crept down the dimly lit hallways. Turning the corner, noticing two guards standing in front of his destination he put two fingers together and whispered , "Nemuri no Jutsu,"

The two Chunin's eyes began to droop until they completely shut and their bodies relaxed and crumbled to the ground. Inwardly smiling, the silver-eyed man slipped past the unconscious men and into the large room. Rows and rows of tall bookcases full of scrolls and books were placed all around the large room. The room didn't have many lights besides a few wall candles scattered around in the room; but it seemed to be just enough light for the man to find his way to a large red and white scroll tucked away from all the other scrolls. The scroll was about 90 centimeters tall and 24 centimeters thick. Wasting no time, he picked it up, strapped it across his back then disappeared into the night, leaving no trace he had even been there.

----

Kana sat by the window staring up at the full moon. Everything was quiet. No one stirred inside the house, as they were deep asleep in their warm beds; well except Gaara. The young girl knew he was awake, but she didn't feel like talking, especially after the dream she had.

~Dream~

She walked along the desolate, darkened streets of Konoha; her feet guiding her to the Hokage building. Confused as to why she was there she continued to let her feet bring her to her their destination. She arrived to see Takatsu sneaking around inside, and then use a sleep jutsu to knock out the Chunin guarding the Scroll Room. She gasped, not sure why he was breaking into the room. Following him inside she saw him then take the forbidden scroll, one of the most important scroll Konoha had, and disappear.

'He must have a good reason,' Kana told herself, following him out of the building.

Takatsu past their house without a second glance, and ran to a large waterfall that was at the base and left corner of the Hokage Monument. Kana had explored Konoha's internal forest many times, but she had never been over here. The base of the mountain terrain was much more rugged with larger trees, bushes, and even animals then the forest closer to the city did. It seemed it was a seldom place people ever ventured to.

Putting his hands together in a seal Kana had never seen before, he placed them up against the waterfall. The water parted just enough for him to walk through then it crashed back down and resumed as if nothing happened. The young kunoichi wasn't sure how he had parted the water, but she was sure that there was darker side to Takatsu she had never known before.

~ End of Dream~

The dream had left a sickly feeling in the pit of her stomach. It's like when someone tells you really bad news and you want to believe it isn't true but in your heart you know it is. Kana tried to tell herself that Takatsu really wouldn't do that, but his recent behavior didn't help her think otherwise. Confused she decided to ask Suzaku.

"What do you think of my dream, Suzaku?" Kana asked, "Do you think he really did take the scroll?"

The golden eyes of the ten tailed phoenix slowly opened and looked down at the girl, "There are many things you do not know about Takatsu. He is more loyal to Kudara-sama than all ten tailed beasts combined. There isn't anyone Kudara trusts more than Takatsu; he will forever remain his most loyal servant. And the thing you need to realize about him is that he is very sneaky and very manipulative. He hasn't been working at all. He's been at a brothel stealing money, information, and scrolls from anyone he can. I don't doubt that he stole that scroll. You are my vessel and you will have some of my powers and knowledge, so these dreams are normal. When you gain more tails, I will give you more information on the Spirit world but for now that is all I can tell you."

"What kind of information?" Kana inquired. There was little she didn't know about the Spirit world, so her curiosity grew as she spoke, "I have read all the history books, memorizing each event and the date it occurred."

Suzaku stared down at the girl with a look of pity in her eyes. Kana was oblivious to the real history behind her heritage, the real history of what her father did. The wise Bijuu closed her eyes, thinking to herself, 'In a few years her innocence will shatter and she will realize just how much worse her world is compared to this one. And I will be the one to guide her along this perilous journey, because my knowledge far surpasses even the largest, and greatest libraries. I will tell her when the times comes.'

"Takatsu is a dangerous man." The phoenix warned, opening her eyes slowly, "You have to continue to seem clueless about everything he does. Watch his actions but do not allow him to become suspicious of you. If not, he might just try and kill you, despite being the Kings daughter."

Kana's eyes widened, "Why would Taka want to hurt me?" Her voice full of hurt and disbelief.

"It's not that he wants to, it's that if you get in his way and jeopardize his plans, then he will be forced to hurt you."

"What plans?" She asked, but Suzaku shook her head.

"Even I do not know what his plans are. For now go to sleep, it's late. You have a very big day ahead of you."

Kana nodded then slowly moved away from the window and into her bed. Pushing the conversation with Suzaku out of her mind, she tried to think of other things.

She repeated Kakashi's instructions from this morning in her head, 'It's been almost two weeks. Zabuza will be able to fight now, so he will attack in the next few days. When he does, I will take care of him. Kana and Naruto will fight his hunter-nin friend and Gaara will protect Tazuna. Kimimaro will stay here in case they decide to take hostages. Do not let your guard down.'

She sighed, as her eyes began to feel heavy. Eventually she gave in and shut her eyes. The young girl began to think about a million different things to keep her mind off the growing uneasiness in her stomach and tears that threatened the fall.

As she twisted and turned, unable to sleep, tears escaped her tightly shut eyes. Only Gaara heard her quiet sob's of pain.

---- 7:00 AM the next Morning ----

Tazuna, Naruto, Gaara, and Kakashi sat around the table; quietly, a clock in the kitchen rhythmically ticked away the seconds.

"What is taking her so long?" Naruto asked, drumming his fingers on the table impulsively.

"It's unlike her to be late, " Gaara commented a hint of worry in his voice as he sat patiently with his back erect against the chair and no emotion on his face; his gourd of sand sitting on the floor next to him.

Knowing she didn't sleep much last night, he began to get up from the table when Kakashi held up a hand. A second later, a door slowly slid open and Kana staggered into the kitchen. Her hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, and the large bags underneath her eyes seemed out of place on her young face. With eyes half open she silently sat down next to Gaara.

"What took you so long? We've been waiting for 15 minutes." Naruto demanded, annoyance evident in his voice.

She slowly turned her head toward the young blonde, "How many hours of sleep did you get last night?" Kana inquired, her voice dangerously quiet.

"Seven hours why?"

A hauntingly smirk appeared on her face, "Of course you did," she muttered under her breath angrily then turned her attention to Kakashi, her tone of voice seemingly changed dramatically, "What's the plan for today?"

Deciding to leave her tardiness alone for now, the silver haired Jounin replied, "Tazuna needs to go into town and get some supplies. We will be going with him. All of us."

Kana nodded her head, "Is there anything else?"

Shaking his head indicating there wasn't, she began to stand up from the table to leave the room.

"Where are you going?" Naruto demanded again, standing up from his chair, this time raising his voice; "You appear for three seconds then leave! We have training to do!"

The fiery haired girl stopped in mid-step, "It is too early to be yelling, besides you're a guest in Tazuna's house. Stop being rude."

"You aren't in charge here. I only take orders from Sensei. You have no control over me. So I think it's you, who is being rude." Naruto corrected, challenging her to say something back.

Gaara shook his head slightly, knowing what was going to happen next, 'She does have authority over you. You just don't know it yet.'

Kana appeared in front of Naruto. Grabbing his neck, she slammed him into the wall behind him, knocking over his chair in the process.

She leaned in; close enough to smell his scent of firethorn and sweat, to whisper in his ear, "Choose your words wisely. And I do have control over you. I'm much stronger than you, which therefore makes me better than you." To make her point she punched him in the stomach then threw him across the room, making him hit the couch in the family room.

Scoffing she walked back into her room, closing the door silently.

Rubbing his temples Kakashi sighed, "Naruto get up." Then addressing Tazuna he said, "We can't leave without her so I'll give her half an hour to come back out." Then turning his attention back to Naruto he said," Don't aggravate her. I really don't want to deal with her temper right now."

Naruto grimaced, "I didn't do anything wrong! She's the one that was late! Why is it that she can do whatever she wants, yet I get yelled at for defending myself!"

"Are you blind?" Kakashi questioned even though the answer was obvious, "Can't you see that she hasn't slept? That' s why she asked how long you slept for. She's probably running on 2 or 3 hours of sleep right now; which has made her extremely irritable. So please Naruto, just leave her alone today."

Frowning, he mumbled, "Whatever." Before leaving the house. Kakashi nodded his head towards the door.

"I'll go after him." Gaara volunteered, getting the hint from Kakashi.

Once the room was quiet, the Jounin closed his eyes and he began rubbing his temples in hope of getting ride of the on coming headache.

"Where's the other kid?" Tazuna asked, taking a drink of tea.

"Kimimaro? He's with Tsunami and Inari."

"I see. What's up with Naruto? On our way here he didn't act like this at all; and he didn't talk to Kana like that either."

Sighing, the Jounin opened his eyes, "Even before they were put on a team, Kana has always been the one that's been a little stronger than the boys. I think when they met he really didn't care about that sort of stuff; he was probably just happy to have made friends. But as they began to train together, he saw how weak he was compared to her, and didn't like it. And it really showed in the fight with Zabuza, the difference in power and intelligence. That was probably when he began resenting her because of her strength. I think it's better described as a one-sided rivalry. As for the acting out, I think he just wants to make her mad because he doesn't know what else to do."

"Kana is two years older then Naruto and Gaara right?" Tazuna inquired.

Kakashi nodded his head, "Yeah, Kana is nine and the boys are seven. They are so young yet they don't act their age at all. If I didn't know them and had to guess based on their strength and mentality, I would say that they were at least 12 years old."

Tazuna nodded, "Wow, I didn't think they were that young." He shook his head, "What has the world come to…"

----

As the group walked, Tazuna in the front leading the way, Kana lagged behind the four, lost in thought. A few meters ahead Gaara and Naruto talked quietly.

"Jeez, just because Kana hasn't slept doesn't mean she can be grouchy to everyone." Naruto exasperated.

"You mean, she's only grouchy to you." Gaara corrected, "If you hadn't said anything this morning, I'm pretty sure she wouldn't have yelled at you. Like Kakashi said people are usually irritable in the mornings."

"I didn't know she was having trouble sleeping, until this morning." Exclaimed Naruto, throwing his hands in the air.

The adults ahead of them chuckled, "Even I knew that and I'm not even a ninja!" Laughed Tazuna.

The blondes cheeks reddened and he looked away, embarrassed that he hadn't noticed, "I just thought she was being mean for no reason…"

Kakashi shook his head, "Kana isn't the type of person to just be mean to someone for the fun of it, you should know that."

"I know but still..." Naruto trailed off, his words and thoughts mixing together the way a drop of food coloring does with water.

As they neared the shops on the main streets of Nami, the group began to see people dressed in rags walking aimlessly asking people for food.

A hand shot out, and in her daze of thoughts, Kana instinctively grabbed the wrist of the perpetrator tightly then harshly pressed a kunai to their throat.

"I'm sorry!" Squealed a small dark haired girl, "I didn't take anything! I swear! Just please let me go!"

Kana's eyes widened, immediately releasing the child's wrist and pocketing her kunai.

"It's okay, just be careful who you try and pickpocket next time." Smiling sadly down at the girl, Kana reached into her bag, retrieving a few Ryo's and placed them into the girl's hand.

Despite the child's appearance of a dirt covered face and very tangled hair, she grinned from ear to ear, so brightly that her green eyes glistened with tears of joy; they rolled down her cheeks, cleaning a trail of grime off her face.

"Th-Thank you!" Cried the girl, hugging Kana's leg. Prying the child off her leg, she crouched down so that she was eye level with her then Kana scooped her up in her arms hugging her.

"Things will get better," The kunoichi whispered in the child's ear, then set her down back on the ground.

"What's your name?"

"Megumi..."

"Well Megumi, can I tell you a secret? Can I trust you won't say anything?"

Megumi nodded vigorously, "Yes! I promise I won't tell anyone!"

Laughing quietly she motioned for her to come closer, then she whispered, "I'm going to come back in a few years. I will be looking for help. I will need someone strong, smart, and easy going. If I give you these," Kana took out three books, a training book, a medical book, and a strategist book on battle tactics, "Will you read all the books you can on these three topics? Find someone to train you and become as strong as you can. So when I come back, you'll be able to help me."

Her eyes lit up again, "Really?! You'll come back for me?"

Kana nodded, "Of course, now I have to go but don't forget what I told you. Be ready in three years."

---

As she caught up to the group Kakashi smiled and nodded approvingly, 'Even if she doesn't show it often, she's a very caring person.'

"What was that all about?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing, just being kind to the villagers sense no one else will." She shrugged then caught up to Gaara.

"That's our future strategist and medic." Kana whispered.

Gaara's lips inched into a half smile, 'She's already preparing allies for the future…'

---

After the pick pocketing 'incident' Kana pulled herself out of her thought and began to pay more attention to her surrounds. Nami was much different from Konoha. For one thing it didn't have a ninja village; so it therefore had to make its income from importing and exporting all sorts of different items. But, sense Gatou was intercepting the ships and stealing the cargo, the once prosperous town became barren. The villagers lived off the very little supplies Gatou allowed them to have. Those that had children would dump them on the streets, because of the lack of food, forcing them to fend for themselves. Most don't last the first week; others give up and kill themselves. So as Kana looked around, she noticed only older children around the ages of 8-13 roamed the streets, pick pocketing, begging, and stealing. Then a thought occurred to her, Megumi only looked to be about 6 years old. So someone had to be taking care of her, either an elder child on the streets or she was living with her family. For her plan to work she needed to know if she had a family. She had to find out.

Tazuna took about an hour in the market, buying supplies and a few groceries. The sun was high in the sky when they returned for lunch. A quick meal, and then Kana and Kakashi were off to the bridge while Gaara and Naruto trained. At sunset, they went back to the house and ate dinner like usual. Only this time something unusual happened.

Inari, Tsunami's son, slammed his fists on the table, "Why do you even bother?! You are going to die in the end! When facing the strong, the weak will only end up getting killed!" He angrily yelled pointing at Naruto.

"Believe what you want. I'm not like you. I'm not weak. I can take care of myself." Naruto replied icily.

"I'd hate to be like you! You're annoying, and stupid! You don't know how hard life can be!" Inari cried, tears streaming down his face.

Kana shook her head, "This boy doesn't know what he just got himself into." She whispered to Gaara.

Naruto narrowed his eyes, only Kana felt the change in his chakra as his voice became dangerously low, "Let me ask you this. Have you been chased by a mob of people that were trying to kill you? Have you ever woken up wondering if today was the day your going to die? Have you been ignored by a mass population of people? Tell me, have you ever been stabbed 12 times by shinobi that were supposed to protect you! I doubt that any of those things happened to you. I would put money on it that it was the complete opposite for you. You have a mother! You have a grandfather! You have a family that loves you! I don't! So don't you DARE tell me I don't know how hard life is, because my bloody bodies been dragged through it!"

He then stormed out of the house slamming the door behind him.

Kakashi motioned with his head, for the second time, for Kana to follow him, so Kana stood up and quietly walked out of the room.

--

She found him pacing back and forth clenching then unclenching his fists tightly.

'Kyuubi what is this feeling?' Naruto mentally asked, not aware of Kana a few meters away.

'It's a taste of my chakra you unconsciously unlocked. Can you feel the power coursing through your veins?'

"Yes," Naruto whispered aloud, smirking. He then noticed Kana, "What do you want?"

Sensing Kyuubi's chakra leaking out into Naruto, she decided to test him.

"Fight me." She declared, falling into a loose offensive stance.

Outstretching his hand, he looked at it then clenched it tightly. Smirking he replied, "Gladly."

---

Kakashi watched the fight carefully with his Sharingan activated. He followed their movements, even if they seemed like a blur, and began to analyze the battle.

---

They each were out of chakra from their training earlier that day, so the fight was strictly Taijutsu. But as it progressed, their chakra seemed to be growing stronger, instead of waning. They went at it with the intent to kill, as each strike was deadlier than the last. The fight was a good hour and a half before they both fell over exhausted. The demonic chakra of their demons vanished, leaving them with no energy to get up.

So they both lay there looking up at the stars.

"Kana…" Naruto began hesitantly, his past anger had long sense vanished, "Um, why was I the only one you yelled at this morning?"

She sighed, "It was nothing personal this morning. You were just the unfortunate person that ticked me off."

"But if Gaara would have said-

"Gaara wouldn't have said anything." Kana interrupted, "He knew, you didn't. I'm sorry for snapping at you this morning."

Naruto turned his face to look at her, "It's okay. I…" He began, "I have to tell you something."

This made her turn her face towards him, "Kay, what is it?"

"I have a demon sealed within me, to be more exact, the nine tailed fox Kyuubi." His voice shook as he continued, "I don't know why, but I'm drawn to you. From the moment I saw you on your first day at the Academy, I wanted to meet you, talk to you, and become your friend. I was afraid you would be like everyone else. But you weren't, you saved me that day on the playground and from then on I've admired your strength and courage. I've aspired to be like you, but when we fought Zabuza you were so much stronger than me; and deep down that bothered me because I wanted to be the one protecting you. I wanted you to rely on me, not the other way around." His words continued to pour out, as Kana sat in shock, "So, I began resenting you, but today in the market when I saw you helping that little girl; all my anger went away. What I guess I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry." Smiling, a tear fell from his cerulean eyes as he stared into Kana's own sea blue eyes.

"Naruto, I have a demon sealed within me as well; the ten tailed phoenix, Suzaku. I'm drawn to you as well. On the playground that day, I wanted to just scoop you up and shield you from everyone; to protect you so that no one could ever hurt you again. I don't know what it is but it feels like there's a string that always pulls me towards you. Maybe it's because we both have demons sealed within us or for some other reason. I don't know. But as far as me being stronger, you just have to train harder than me. You have to have the drive to want to be stronger than me. Then one day, all your hard work will pay off and you will be stronger. Do you talk to Kyuubi?"

"Yea, I first heard his voice when I was three. I had been dying, and he saved me. He's been a friends for as long as I can remember."

Kana smiled, "I'm glad that you have a relationship with your demon. It's important, because you are stuck with them for the rest of your life."

He too smiled as his eyes slowly shut, "Thank you." He whispered before drifting off into unconsciousness.

'Suzaku, will you help me sleep?' Kana asked, she was desperately tired, yet her mind wouldn't shut down and let her rest.

'Of course.'

Her eyes began to shut then within a minute she was fast asleep.

--- On the bridge a few day later---

Thick mist began to surround the bridge. It became eerily quiet, as the temperature dropped at steady rate.

"Sensei," Kana nudged, moving her eyes left and right suspiciously.

"I know. Everyone take your positions." Kakashi ordered, backing up slowly so that he stood in front of the group.

Gaara's sand slowly leaked out of his gourd, spilling onto the ground. Each grain of sand, heavily coated with his chakra, began to come together in the air creating a thick 360-degree barrier cocoon.

Naruto breathed in and out slowly, his breath clearly visible due to the temperature. He took his position at Kana's right hand side in front of Gaara. He too looked around, straining his eyes to look past the thickening mist.

"Are you children still playing ninja?" A voice laughed, "Just give up and I might decide to spar your pathetic lives." Zabuza appeared a few meters away from them on the bridge, this time he was accompanied by the Hunter-nin.

"I see you've brought your friend this time." Kakashi nodded towards to the ninja next to Zabuza.

The ex-Kiri nin smirked, "Haku, why don't you say hello?"

"With pleasure." The masked ninja disappeared leaving a circle of dust then appeared in front of Kana.

Feeling the shift in wind, she side stepped his first punch then caught his second. He then tried to knee her in the stomach, but she blocked it with her own knee.

Twisting his body so that his back was to Kana he grabbed her wrist with his free hand and flipped her over his shoulder, throwing her into the air. Landing on her feet she ran at him. She threw a punch; one she was sure was going to connect until Haku moved his head slight to the right at the last second. Her fist was half a centimeter away, so close that her knuckle grazed his ice-cold mask.

Using the opening, the hunter nin jabbed Kana in the stomach with his left hand then elbowed her in the jaw with his right. She stumbled back, but quickly regained her footing.

'Just as I thought. The two are about equal in power.' Kakashi thought, turning his attention to his own opponent. He moved his headband up to its' full upright position on his forehead to reveal his Sharingan.

"Oh, what's this? I didn't expect you to show it so soon. Well, I guess it only means your finally going to take me seriously this time." Zabuza chuckled, charging Kakashi with his sword.

---

"Lets go Naruto." Kana said, running at Haku. Nodding he too ran at him. They split up, one going right the other going left so that they surrounded him.

"Gaara!" She yelled. He nodded inside the cocoon and the spare sand around him traveled over to the three and began to form a circle around Haku.

"Katon: Haisekishō! (Fire Release: Ash Pile Burning)" Exhaling smoke that immediately surrounded Haku only, she then clicked her teeth, making it explode.

"Futon: Reppūshō! (Wind Release: Violent Wind Palm)" Naruto yelled, as a gust of wind propelled the fire increasing its intensity. The explosion shook the bridge, and when the smoke cleared, Kana and Naruto found themselves enclosed by a dome of mirrors, each one containing the image of Haku inside.

"Makyō Hyōshō (Demonic Ice Crystal Mirrors)" He said, his voice seemingly coming from all of the mirrors at once. A single Senbon appeared each of his hands, "This is were you die." He then threw them at the two.

They each carefully dodged the Senbon.

"They are made of ice so…" Flying through hand seals and she exhaled a fire jutsu at one of the mirrors. But the ice mirror seemed unaffected.

"No fire can break my mirrors."

Exhaling slowly, Kana thought for a moment then she turned to Naruto.

"I need you to distract him, go try and punch one of the mirrors."

Doing as he was told he ran at the mirror in front of them, and punched it as hard as he could. The mirror shattered, and in the shards of the broken ice a Senbon was launched hitting Naruto in the arm. His arm instantly numbed as the weapon lodged into his bicep.

Grunting, he pulled it out; throwing it down on the ground Naruto looked in shock as another then replaced the broken mirror.

"Naruto aim for a higher mirror." Kana called out to him, nodding he jumped off the ground using his chakra, and kicked another mirror on the second row.

It shattered like the one before, but Naruto was ready this time for any flying Senbon. He dodged the first few, but then they seemed to be coming from ever direction.

Kana watched, analyzing Haku's jutsu. As he attacked Naruto, she saw a blur moving from a mirror on the right to the mirror directly across from it, a second later a Senbon came from that position and hit Naruto. But Haku moved so fast she couldn't read where he would appear next.

'Try focusing my chakra to your eyes. It will help slow down his movements.' Suzaku suggested.

Taking her advice, she gathered her demonic chakra and channeled it to her eyes. In an instant, everything slowed down and she was able to see Haku moving from one mirror to the next. He threw multiple Senbon as he moved and when he entered the mirrors.

'So all I have to do is get the timing right and catch him.' She thought.

"Naruto, I have a plan!" Kana yelled, "Just hang in there."

"Well hurry up! I'm becoming a human pin cushion here!" He yelled, breathing heavily. His body becoming numb as multiple Senbon protruded out of his body. One in particular, had barely missed his lungs but had hit one of his ribs.

'He's playing with me.' Naruto scowled, 'This is ridiculous, I'll just break all his mirrors at once.' Smirking he jumped back towards Kana.

Taking a deep breath he began to channel large amounts of Kyuubi's chakra, like he had practiced with Kana every night, until orange black chakra spiraled out and surrounded his crouched body. The bubbling chakra stun at him like a million bee's all stinging him all at once, but the boy ignored it. The Senbon in his body began to melt and his injuries hissed close until they became nonexistent. His canine teeth and nails grew longer, as the chakra reached every part of his body. His blonde hair spiked up in every direction as the chakra filled even the tips of his hair.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Kana yelled, "I have a plan-

Her words fell on deaf ears as he jumped into the air. Two chakra tails forming behind him.

"Oh…my...god…" She whispered, with her chakra enhanced eyes she saw the chakra eating away at his body, 'His body can't withstand this kind of power. It's going to destroy his body from the inside out.'

His two tails swung at the mirrors, crushing them until only five mirrors remained, the ones directly behind him. "Come out you coward! Stop hiding inside your pathetic mirrors!"

Kana's eyes widened as she saw each image of Haku holding a Senbon in each hand. 'There's no way he can dodge 50 Senbon!'

Before she could react, the hunter nin threw them simultaneously.

Naruto laughed hauntingly, as all the Senbon hit the chakra they immediately disintegrated, becoming nothing more than a pile of ash, "This power…" He said clenching his fist "Is absolute," smirking with wild red eyes; he smashed the remaining mirrors, forcing the real Haku to jump out onto the ground.

"There you are!" Naruto yelled running at him. He swung wildly at Haku, making it easy for the elder boy to dodge his attacks.

---

The Jounin's stopped their battle to look back at the ice mirrors as they fell.

"Naruto…" Kakashi whispered feelings the Kyuubi's chakra, "Did he break the seal?"

"They broke Haku's mirrors…" Zabuza exasperated, then frowned, "Your student is going to die, Kakashi." He then charged at him.

---

Jumping back, Naruto took a deep breath then exhaled a gust of wind, which then turned into a tornado.

"Katon: Karyūdan! (Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile)" Kana's stream of fire hit the tornado making it spin more rapidly towards Haku.

The hunter nin tried to move but couldn't. Turning his head he noticed Kana holding her hands in an Ox hand seal, symbolizing she had put him in a bind Genjutsu.

He then looked back just in time to see the flame tornado hit him.

The explosion launched both Kana and Naruto into the air. Pieces of Gaara's sand shield broke off from the force, but he quickly repaired it.

Kana landed on the ground but however Naruto slammed into it.

"Naruto!" She yelled, running over to him.

"My body," He whispered, "It's on fire. It won't stop burning…" He coughed, blood spewing out, "Make it stop, Kana. Please take the pain away." His breathing became irregular and strained; the pain almost unbearable.

"Shit…what do I do? What do I do?" She began to panic, and then mentally slapped herself. 'I have to say calm now think…think…'

All the sudden a thought then hit her, 'Gaara's sand barrier fell because I had willed it too, and so it should be the same with his chakra right?'

Emerging her hands into the chakra, she willed it to go away but after a couple seconds it didn't seem to be working. The chakra nipped at her fingers like a playful puppy would; nothing painful, just surprising. The longer she left her hands submerged in the chakra the harder the bite became.

'The chakra has no where to go…' Suzaku hinted.

"Of course!" Kana then changed her tactic and began to will the chakra into her own body. Slowly but surely chakra decreased around Naruto's body, until it was all gone.

She sighed in relief but it didn't last long as Haku immerged from the mist.

"That was close. You two almost had me there. But you didn't put enough chakra in the binding Genjutsu." He walked with a slight limp, towards them.

Kana eyed the minor stab wound to his leg then Naruto and then back to Haku.

'I don't have enough chakra for any more jutsu's. I'll have to use my demonic chakra.' Standing up, she concentrated like before only this time she didn't direct the chakra anywhere. She let it engulf her body.

Deep blood red and orange chakra coated her body thinly. Unlike Naruto's thick chakra that was about 4 inches off his body. Kana compressed it, tightly packing it close to her body. Her orange red hair grew to where it almost touched her mid-thigh. Instead of becoming spiked, her long hair swayed back and forth slightly.

She narrowed her golden eyes at Haku then disappeared. Reappearing behind him, she enforced her punch with even more demonic chakra then punched right through his chest.

"This is the price you pay for hurting my friends, Haku. The only thing that awaits you now is death." Taking her bloodied hand out of his body, she let him fall to his knees.

Death gripped the boy, as Kana watched the color fade from his body. He tried to whisper something but it was inaudible to hear. As Haku slumped over, eyes wide open, a tear slowly rolled down his check, "I'm sorry Zabuza…" he managed to whisper before he became still, his soul slowly leaving his body.

Kneeling next to him, she placed her hand over his eyes, shutting them. Kana then turned her attention to where Kakashi and Zabuza were fighting.

A howl of dogs pierced the silence as eight dogs emerged from the ground and bit Zabuza's arms and legs, immobilizing him. His sword was too far out of reach for him to retrieve, and he was already bleeding from a previous wound Kakashi had inflicted on him.

"I guess this is it, eh Kakashi? It was a fun while it lasted" Zabuza chuckled, accepting his fate.

"You don't look like your doing very well Zabuza." A voice said behind them. Gato emerged from the mist, "And here I had hoped that you would get the job done for me, but I guess you failed. For that your penalty is death. KILL THEM!" He yelled, as 50 mercenaries ran at the group.

Kakashi released Zabuza then threw him a kunai, "It seems your employer has betrayed you. There is no reason to continue to fight eachother." He then ran at the men two kunai's in hand.

"Gato's mine!" Running at the mercenaries, Zabuza dodged, slashed, and killed everyone in his way, and was even stabbed by multiple spears but he continued to make his way to Gato.

Kakashi flanked him on his right; he too taking out anyone who was within striking distance.

Zabuza reached Gato quickly and the terrified man turned to run but the rouge nin grabbed his shirt, "Don't you dare run, Gato!" He then plunged the kunai into the mans heart, "See you in hell!" Zabuza then pushed him off the unfinished bridge and into the icy cold depths below.

A terrifying wave of red-orange chakra like fire approached the group of mercenaries. Kakashi and Zabuza jumped out of the wave as the fire-chakra, burned all those that touched it into ash. The bridge itself eventually started bend to the fire's will. Thick metal bars began to melt as the fire continued to rage on even after all its targets had been eliminated.

"Kana, you have to control the fire!" Kakashi yelled to her, from the other side of the bridge.

"I…I can't!" Trembling, she tried to will it to stop but the uncontrollable power wasn't going to be defeated so easily.

"Doton: Doro Hōshi! (Earth Release: Mud Indulgence)!" Gaara yelled, as a huge surge of mug engulfed the fire. It wiped wildly, trying to through the mud off but he continued the jutsu covering every inch of it until it slowly sizzled down, into nothing.

Kana dropped to her knees sweating profusely. A bead of sweat rolled off her forehead and onto the ground as she breathed heavily.

"Kana!" Gaara yelled running over to her.

"I'm fine," She waved him off, standing up slowly. Her hair and eyes were back to normal, as if the terrifying chakra had never been there.

"Naruto!" Kana remembered, running over to him, where Kakashi was already kneeling over him.

"He's still breathing but he's barely alive. This is beyond my level of medical knowledge. I don't know what happened, but he needs medical attention. Now." He turned to Tazuna, "Where can I find a medic?"

"There's one at a village about 8 kilometers east of here. The village is mostly filled with gamblers and businessmen though. There's word that she can heal anything."

"Good." He pulled out a map, and pointed to where Tazuna had said, "I'm going take Naruto there now. You three grab our supplies, check in at a hotel and I'll find you guys later. Kana you're in charge." He then picked Naruto up, swinging him onto his back.

"I'm-

Kakashi cut Kana off, "No, you stay here. I'll travel faster if it's just me, besides I've carried grown men when I was your age for longer distances. I'll be fine." He reassured then sped off towards the village.

"Tazuna I'm sorry about the damage to the bridge," She apologized as the four hurried to the house, "We will be back as soon as we can. Just stay inside your house till we return." Once they reached the house, Kana, Gaara, and Kimimaro retrieved their stuff.

Carrying both her and Kakashi's pack, Kana led the boys through the cold forest as they raced to the village.

---- With Kakashi ---

He reached the village in a under a half hour.

'It has to be her.' Kakashi thought, running to the nearest gambling houses. The first few he tried she wasn't there. As he continued it looked like she wasn't at any of the gambling houses. Determined to find her, he tried the last one on the far end of town. He saw her walking out to meet a brown haired woman in a plain kimono, carrying a pig.

"Tsunade-sama," He called, running towards her.

A blonde women turned around, "Kakashi?" She replied, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Please Tsunade-sama, need you to take a look at this boy," He said, referring to Naruto on his back.

"This is going to cost you, Kakashi." The busty women grumbled and led him towards the out skirts of the town, where a two-story traditional style house was. It was built above the water supported by five thick wooden beams that were at least three feet thick; one at each corner and then the fifth in the center, and as he walked closer he saw large gardens full of herbs, poisons, fruit, vegetables, and flowers growing on an elevated garden that was also above the water and connected the house. The abundant amount of variety indicated that this was her permanent residence; she had obviously lived here for a while. (AN: Like this except picture it above water. .com/)

"So this is where you've been hiding out all these years." The Jounin commented, marveling at the sight.

She nodded, "Ya, I got tired of always being on the move. So I decided to build a place of my own somewhere. A retreat away from all the fighting."

"I can see that. Well you've done well for yourself, Tsunade-sama. Does Jiraiya know you live here?"

They came to the edge of the river, to where the front of the house was, but there was no visible way of getting from across the river to the from of her house without walker walking and even then you couldn't reach the house itself.

Making a snake hand seal, a wooden beam appeared out of the water, shot forward, arched upward and ended once it reached the house.

Kakashi's eye widened, "That's…Mokuton (Wood style). I didn't know that you inherited that Kekki Genkai?"

"There are few who do, and I would like to keep it that way. Shizune, prepare a place a room for Kakashi and my workspace." Tsunade ordered, walking across the wooden beam.

The house was quite and cozy yet roomy at the same time. It was what you would expect a woman's house to look like neat, and clean, everything was in its place.

Shizune led Kakashi into a room that was left of the front door and down the hall. It was set up like an operating room in a hospital room. A bed was placed in the center of the room then to the left was a tray of medical instruments, and to the right was a small cabinet the most likely held medicines and other such items.

Kakashi placed Naruto onto the bed and then followed Shizune to his own room.

"Tsunade-sama will probably begin treating him soon. If you could, please, tell me happened?"

"I'm not really sure, as this isn't my area of expertise but one of my other students could tell you. They are staying in a hotel back in town, would they be able to stay here as well?" He asked, then added quickly, "They could all share a room and they are quiet and won't cause any problems."

Tsunade walked into the room, answering his question, "If they, at anytime, bother me while I am trying to work, I will NOT treat this boy. But if they don't, then they can stay."

"Thank you, Tsunade-sama." Kakashi bowed deeply, "If it's alright with you, I'd like to get my students now. They are probably worried sick about Naruto."

She rolled her eyes, "Fine, go. Be back before dark, I don't want to leave my bridge up too long."

---

Kana and the other's arrived forty-five minutes later, and checked in at the nearest hotel that looked decent. Then they anxiously waited for Kakashi to arrive.

"What happened out there?" Gaara asked gently, not wanting to agitate her.

"He released two tails! Two tails, Gaara! At once!" Kana yelled, throwing her hands up in the air, "How did he do it?! I mean he doesn't even have any clue as to how powerful the Kyuubi is, and he doesn't realize all the power that's at his disposal!" Frustrated she slammed her fist into the table, breaking it, then continued to pace the room.

"Kana, we will inform him once this mission is over. Isn't that what we agreed? Anyways, don't worry about how many tails he released." Gaara reassured, sensing some jealously in her voice.

"I'm not jealous Gaara!" She cried, picking up on it what he was implying, "His body isn't trained for that kind of power yet! He released two tails, that's a lot of chakra to start out with!"

"I know, I know. I felt your first tail release remember?"

"Yes I know, but you didn't see the chakra eating away at his body." Kana reminded, shaking her head. Slumping onto the couch she began rubbing her temples. Both physically and mentally exhausted, she hung her head in defeat. Closing her eyes she drifted off to sleep.

---Dream

Naruto walked aimlessly, dragging an injured foot behind him. He stood much taller and his facial features were more defined. The baby fat of his younger years had melted away leaving him with a strong jaw line which gave him more of a rugged look. His yellow-blonde hair was longer, reaching his shoulders. The boy's clothes were ripped in numerous places; and in some cases fist size holes of fabric were missing.

Bloodied and badly wounded, he limped slowly through the dense forest towards what he hoped was a river. The pain in his chest and leg throbbed each time he moved forward. Gritting his teeth tightly he kept walking. He reached a river just as the sun was setting.

"Water." He gasped falling to his knees and he gulped it down, refreshing his parched throat. Once he was done, Naruto lay down tiredly in the dirt and closed his eyes.

The view of Naruto faded and changed to an older Kana. She was taller, though a little shorter than Naruto, with half her hair pulled back in a ponytail and the other half hanging down freely. Her long reddish orange hair reached her mid-back and swayed back and fourth as she ran through the forest. She wore an Anbu Black Ops long grey coat that covered her entire body, and open toed black ninja sandals but no headband was visible.

'Naruto, where are you?' She thought to herself, searching the forest. She passed a river, and as she was moving away from it something pulled at her to turn around. It was as if someone grabbed her shirt and pulled her in that direction. She wasn't sure why, but deciding to trust her gut and instincts she searched along the riverside.

About half a mile down Kana saw a figure lying on the ground, next to the river. Slumped over, half unconscious was Naruto, his hair dirty with blood and dust, and his clothes completely ruined.

"Naruto," She whispered, rushing over to him. Dropping onto the ground, the 19-year-old girl lifted his body so that his arm was draped across her shoulder, and then she helped him to his feet, guiding to him over to a tree.

"Ack," He grunted, grabbing his abdomen. Looking him up and down she inspected his wounds.

There was a gash the size of two fists in his stomach, a broken leg, three fractured fingers, and a severe concussion.

"Why hasn't Kyuubi fixed all of this yet?" She questioned softly, her voice full of worry as her hands touched his warm body.

Her touch calmed Naruto, making him shut his eyes in relaxation as he spoke, "How did you find me?"

Keeping her eyes on his body as she spoke, Kana replied, "I'm not really sure. I just felt like you were over here so I came to check it out and you were here."

Grabbing her hand, Naruto interlocked their fingers tightly and looked into her eyes, "You found me, Kana. You saved my life."

She looked away, continuing to work on his wounds, "You've saved my life numerous times. The least I could do is protect you but I couldn't. I'm sorry Naruto. I'm so sorry."

He cupped her cheek and turned her head softly so she was looking at him, "Don't say that. There's nothing to be sorry about. This is nothing. Don't worry about it, Kay?"

Tears reached her eyes as she started into his blue orbs, "Why hasn't Kyuubi fixed you already?" She asked pulling away from him; repeating the question from earlier.

Naruto looked away from her, unable to answer her.

"Tell me, Naruto! Why isn't he?" Kana cried, grabbing his collared shirt roughly.

Grunting in pain he looked at her, "He can't, okay. He can't. There's something blocking him from doing so."

"What?" She gasped, "You've gotten your seventh tail already, you should be able to heal almost simultaneously."

Naruto shook his head, "I know, it's just not working." Moving his head back he looked directly up at the sky. The sunset painted the sky with a glow of red and pink.

Kana moved closer to him, and stared into his eyes, "I can't lose you Naruto."

He stared back, "You won't. I promise I'll be at your side, always and forever."

-End dream-

She awoke to someone shaking her softly. Wiping her eyes, Kana realized Kakashi was the one who woke her.

"Kakashi!" She jumped up, surprised to see him, "Where's Naruto? He is okay?"

Gaara and Kimimaro were already packed and ready to leave when they came out into the living room.

"He's being treated as we speak, but the doctor needs to know what happened so she knows how to properly heal him. That's why I need you to come with me, all three of you. I'll explain more as we go."

Grabbing her stuff, they hurriedly made their way towards Tsunade's house.