Pushing into the tent, I slowly glanced at each bed, finally finding Kyoko, beaten and battered under pure white bandages. Kneeling next to her, I grabbed her hand, ignoring all the pain and confusion suddenly thrown into my head. Hiro kneels down next to me, just as relieved as I was to find Kyoko alive. Putting his arm around me, I allowed Hiro's calm demeanor to dispel the frantic confusion. A few tears falling down my face, I turned and nestled my face into Hiro's shoulder, unable to see Kyoko like this anymore.

A few others joined us, Rika, Sasuke, and Naruto included, keeping vigil next to the sleeping Kyoko. Waking every once in a while, Kyoko would writhe as we tried to hold her still, injuries reopening with the sudden movement.

After some time, I felt my eyes begin to feel heavy, sleep starting to envelope me; Hiro looked just as tired, his eyes barely open. Resting my head on his shoulder, it quickly became more and more difficult to stay awake. Then someone gently placed their hand on my shoulder.

"You need to sleep, Mai." Glancing up at Rika, I stared at her for a long moment before returning my gaze to Kyoko.

"I can't just leave her here."

"As noble as that is, Kyoko will be ok. Between all of you, Kyoko hasn't been alone and she still won't," Rika assured, squeezing my shoulder lightly. Sighing, I glanced between Rika and Kyoko, debating. Stretching, Hiro stood, pulling me up with him. All of his exhaustion along with mine crashed down over me as Hiro finally just picked me up off the ground. Finally, I drifted to sleep.

SASUKE'S POV

Days had passed. Everything continued as usual, with the exception of Rika keeping me from training. Instead, I just sat in the tent, sleeping, reading, watching as Kyoko slept. I could tell that she was fighting some storm but I didn't know what it was she was fighting. That alone consumed my mind, the curiosity of what storm plagued her dreams. Rika would return periodically to help change my bandages and then Kyoko's; seeing her wounds, I was furious and ashamed and frustrated. I don't know why I was spending so much time in that tent; that frustrated me even further.

Laying down the book I had only been scarcely reading, I glanced over at Rika. Sitting calmly, she held a wet cloth to Kyoko's head, cooling her fever. Closing my eyes, I inhaled deeply, wondering why the hell I was here at all. I had tried to sleep yet all I had managed was to spend a few hours wrestling with useless thoughts; I couldn't stop thinking about Kyoko, remembering her broken figure as Rika healed her as best she could. Glancing at her now, the scars and bandages and breaks were still evident.

Shaking my head, I focused on the rain which had returned, the light pattern of each drop landing on the canvas covering my head. My body ached and begged for sleep as I focused on my breathing.

Reopening my eyes, they instantly returned to Kyoko; she looked so peaceful. Trying to gain some peace of my own, I rubbed my eyes, sighing in frustration as I had no luck. Why couldn't I just leave? It wouldn't make any difference either way.

Suddenly, she inhaled deeply. Rika jumped almost as high as I did, the ice pack falling to the side as we huddled over Kyoko. Her eyes flicked open suddenly. What the hell?

Kyoko looked as bewildered as us, her reasons different than ours.

What happened?

Kyoko's eyes, normally green, now glowed vibrantly red; her red eyes flicked about, looking around the tent wildly. She stopped searching when her eyes connected with mine. Silent, I held her stare, the intensity both frightening and mesmerizing. Then they faded, returning to their usual green.

KYOKO'S POV

After what had seemed like an endless amount of darkness, I finally woke. My head ached, the rest of my body incredibly sore but I was fully awake. Sasuke grinned slightly, nearly a smirk but less condescending. Glancing up at Rika, I could see her relief and bewilderment, a smile reaching her face as well.

"Morning," she mumbled, brushing hair out of my face. More intent, Rika stared at me for a moment more before standing up, sharing a quick look with Sasuke. "I'll go let the others know you're awake. Make sure she doesn't get up."

Seeing Rika leave the tent, I tried to prop myself up, only to hiss in pain. Sasuke shook his head, giving me the "you're an idiot" look as I fell back to the floor. Seconds later, Mai rushed in, shoving Sasuke over and out of the way as she went.

"You look like hell," Mai laughed, looking like she was about to cry. Half laughing, half coughing, I brushed it off jokingly, trying to push myself up again. Again I failed.

"Help me up," I stated, my third attempt already failing.

"That seems like a stupid idea," Mai said, raising an eyebrow questioningly.

"It is a stupid idea," Sasuke added.

"I don't care," I said, sending a quick glare to Sasuke. Groaning, I managed to prop myself on my elbows. The two watching, I pushed myself to my knee and eventually stood, stumbling over my first few steps; I caught myself but I cursed again under my breath and grasped my head.

Still a bit woozy, I left the tent and hobbled over to the fire, plopping down on one of the benches. Yawning, I squinted to see what person I was sitting next to. Pain shot from my shoulder as Kiba slapped his palm across it.

"Hey, Kyoko! You're back!" he cried, Akamaru barking in response.

"You're a fucking idiot."

"Aw, you and Sasuke are more in common than I thought. Watch!" Sasuke, who had sat a few people away, glanced towards us. Reaching over, Kiba smacked Sasuke's chest with a loud thud. Tensing up, Sasuke cursed at Kiba, ignorantly snickering at his pain.

"Don't you ever do that again," I growled. As if dared, Kiba retracted his hand to thud my shoulder again; snatching his wrist, I immobilized the attack.

"Ouch that hurts!" he mocked.

"Fuck you!"

"I don't happen to like your sexual harassment," he smirked. I had only been up for twenty minutes and Kiba was already pissing me off. Ignoring him, I watched the fire absent mindedly as the genin gathered for the day's training. Seeing everyone start to pack up, I attempted with a huge effort to push myself to my feet once again.

"Where are you going?" Kakashi asked, not looking up from his book.

"Training," I stated, making my second attempt at standing up.

"You can barely move. I would say training is a no," Kakashi replied, shoving his book in his pocket and following his students into the woods. Scowling, I hobbled in the same direction after him. I didn't get far; Rika placed a hand on my shoulder and redirected me toward the tent.

"Not today," she said, leaving me at the tent to join the rest of the group. Trying to follow once again, I finally gave in and plopped down onto the floor of the tent. Sasuke was lying across from me, reading from an old book.

Bored out of my mind, I glanced down at my arms, picking at the bandages that covered them almost completely. Each bandage pure white, I assumed I was healed. I assumed wrong.

Pulling up a bandage covering my palm, blood dripped profusely, dying the other bandages surround a deep red. Grimacing, I tried healing the wound to no avail; it continued to bleed just as much. Sasuke huffed out a sigh next to me.

"What?" I questioned, sending him a glare.

"You're an idiot," he said, sitting up. Dropping his book, Sasuke opened up a box at one end of the tent, tossing a bundle of more white bandages at me. Mocking him, I tugged at the white cloth, ripping a strip off. Tugging it tightly about my palm with my teeth, I stretched my hand out, making sure the bandage stuck. Sighing boredly, I glanced over at Sasuke; glancing at his own bandages, he had removed the ones that had been encircling his chest to reveal deep purple bruises and gashes. I watched as he poked at the wounds then attempted to cover them back up again, failing miserably. After the next failed attempt, I rolled my eyes, crawling over next to him.

"Sit still," I stated, reaching forward to grab the bandage. Sasuke swatted my hand away, giving me a stern glance. Giving him a rough shove, I tried to hold him still; we fought silently, I attempting to reach his bandages and he trying to keep me at a good distance.

I suddenly hissed when he grabbed my arm, wrapping his hand about the jostled and unsteady bones harshly. Sasuke's eyes widened in shock and he immediately let go of my arm, looking at me as if saying "I told you not to". I quickly regained my composure and continued rewrapping Sasuke's bandages with little resistance now, lightly healing the wounds as I went.

Tapping his chest, I turned back to crawl back onto my bed, curling up in the covers of my bed as best I could. Lying back, Sasuke rolled on his side to look at me, some sort of tumult in his eyes.

"Thanks," he muttered, rolling back to look at the ceiling. Taken aback, I shook my head; Sasuke actually thanked me. Then again, why the hell did I help him? What had the world come to? I shook my head again, clearing it and returning the usual disdain I held for the Uchiha.

Rolling to face the tent wall, I fell into an uneasy slumber, and for one of the first times in my life, I had a dream.

I could see everything; the grass was cool beneath my hands, a breeze blowing past my face and the sun setting far away. Slowly, I started to recognize everything; my home was behind me, hidden among the trees, the school where I was taught by Reina-sensei. Lanterns were being lit in the market which still hummed with people. Getting up, I padded to the house, my home, climbing up each porch step. Reaching up on my tip toes, I barely grasped the knob and yanked the door open, beginning my search through the maze of hallways. My first find was the kitchen; Oba and Ojii were preparing dinner as Miki sat at the table talking to Oka. I passed the library, Emi reading among the hundreds of books and scrolls. Passing bedrooms, I heard Aiko talking on the phone with someone, her voice hushed. I continued on, past more rooms, including my own.

At the end of the hall, I pushed the door open to the training grounds, an arena of hardened earth surrounded by high walls. Sitting on the ground, I tugged at a lock of my hair as Ichiro completed complex jutsus, faster than I could keep up with. Looking over his shoulder, Ichiro grinned at me, a red-eyed glance, as I got up, prepared to fight him.

Punch after kick, Ichiro chuckled as he deftly blocked each tiny fist and small foot. Suddenly, as if struck by one of my attacks, Ichiro fell to the ground, feigning a fatal blow. Jumping about, I laughed as he suddenly lifted me off the ground.

"Look at how much you have improved!" He laughed, allowing me to climb onto his back, "You need to stop or else you'll pass me up in the ranks."

"You know it!" I cried, circling my arms around his neck, "I am going to join you and Miko and Hideki on missions! It will be so much fun!"

Ichiro smiled at me again, mussing my hair.

"I can't wait," he mused. Laying my head on his shoulder, I looked at his tattoo, three small marks surrounded by a circle of scrawled words. I poked at it lightly, the skin raised and puffy. I could hear his voice hum in his chest, a light laughter bubbling under his ribs.

Lying awake for some time, I thought about my family: a somewhat cohesive group of ninja who all shared the same odd mixture of genetics; even my mother seemed to fit in this group somewhere. Just as I was almost lulled into slumber by rain patting against the roof, the moonlight which had been flooding my room suddenly disappeared and there was a creak from inside the house. Whipping my head to look at the door, I waited for a minute before slipping out from under the covers, rapping a blanket about my body as I patted to my doorway.

Everything was quiet. Something was wrong; more than a notion, the air bubbled with tension and uneasiness. Creeping through the halls, I ran into Ichiro. He was putting on his gear, loading weapons into a pouch on his side. Then I noticed Oba, nervously pacing the hall as she watched her son. Her daughters joined soon after, rushing past them and bustling outside in their night clothes. Ojii was missing; looking out a near window, I could see his figure along with Aiko, Emi, and Miki; they circled about another figure, one of whom I didn't recognize.

Everyone was so still; suddenly, the man looked at me, his red eyes burning brightly in the night. I froze to the spot, a chill shivering down my spine as his eyes connected with mine. All chaos broke loose; Ichiro scooped me up as a kunai suddenly broke through the window. Shaking, I smeared the blood off my cheek as Ichiro carried me down the hall.

Feeling the rain pour onto my head, I clutched to Ichiro, watching as my home and the town surrounding went into a full uproar. My heart pounded in my chest and my breath came quicker and quicker, each compelling the other to hurry.

This all suddenly dissolved into nothingness as I shot out of my bed in the tent, clammy and panting.

There you are, those still reading. I hope you like it!