Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, or any of the Naruto characters used in this fic. They all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I only own any original characters that I choose to include, as well as any of my own original plot ideas.

Chapter 9: Shock

A/N: I'm actually surprised that I'm updating. Especially with all the hype that's going on. :) Ah, well. I guess it doesn't matter. The point is, I'm updating, and having fun writing. And... I really think that some of you who read this are going to be laughing very soon. Because... Well, I laughed my ass off just writing this. XD

Kaoru sighed happily, throwing herself onto the bed with her bag as she entered her room. "Now this is what I call comfort!" she said with a smirk.

It had been several hours since she had been able to fully relax. For the past four days had been spent with proposals of how to carry out the destruction of Konoha and the capture of the two remaining Jinchuriki. And, at the moment, Kaoru didn't want to hear the words "Jinchuriki", "Konoha", or "meeting" again. She was damn tired of all the stupid meetings that had dragged on over the past few days. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy plotting, but that she didn't get to put in her own opinions and whatnot.

And that annoyed her to no end.

Trying to subdue her frustration, she rolled over onto her stomach, unzipping the bag and sifting through its contents. Everything she'd need to unwind was there. All manner of drawing supplies and paper as well as a couple of her favorite novels and a notebook to write her own musings in. Glancing at her drawing notebook, Kaoru remembered the Zabuza chibi she had drawn several days earlier. With a smile, she reached into the notebook, pulling out the drawing and grabbing her pencils.

Humming all the while, Kaoru carefully colored the drawing to perfection, being careful to get the colors just right. Once she had finished, she held it up, looking it over with the utmost care. A wide grin broke out across her face, and she began to laugh at how much the chibi looked like Zabuza.

Wow, she thought, still laughing. If he ever saw this, he'd wring my neck!

"Holy crap, this is hysterical!" she shouted, not caring if anyone heard her.

From outside her door, Kaoru suddenly heard a loud bang come from the end of the hallway. Her eyes widened slightly. Was someone having a temper tantrum? Carefully tucking her supplies back into her bag, she opened her door and peered down the hallway towards Zabuza's room, but nothing seemed to be going on. She scowled, crossing her arms. But what the hell had been with all the noise before?

Her curiosity having gotten the better of her, Kaoru slipped out of her room and dashed down the hallway, pressing her ear against Zabuza's door.

Damn, she thought. Not even a sound now. Well, I might as well check it out.

Carefully opening the door, Kaoru poked her head inside. She carefully scanned the room before entering, quietly closing the door behind her. She scowled, realizing that no one was around. And here she'd been expecting to find some intruder or something. Kaoru paused at the thought of an intruder before smacking herself in the forehead. Oh, yeah. She was the intruder here. Kaoru shrugged, and continued to poke around.

Having scoured the entire room, she realized that, not surprisingly, Zabuza's room was, more or less, empty, except for his massive blade and the few essential supplies he carried with him regularly. Kaoru sighed. This had been a total waste of her time.

"Ugh... What the hell am I doing?" she muttered to herself. "I might as well go back to my room."

She turned to the door, grabbing the handle when she suddenly felt a presence within the room. Kaoru's eyes widened when she felt someone's gaze on the back of her head. Her heart began thumping against her ribs as if it were trying desperately to free itself. Her mind spun with several scenarios that could take place in a matter of moments, as well as numerous ways to get out of said scenarios alive. But the last thing she expected was what was actually happening.

"What the hell are you doing in here?" Zabuza's unmistakable voice demanded. "And don't give me any of that 'nothing' crap."

The young shinobi made a face. Of course, she thought, mentally smacking herself. This is his room, so why wouldn't he be in here? I am such an idiot.

She turned around, a smart-ass response prepared. "I know there's no use making up some half-assed story," she said, her eyes closed for effect. "But I thought I heard something, so I decided to come and investigate. And what do I find?"

Kaoru opened her eyes, nearly passing out at what she saw: A certain someone was wearing nothing but the towel around his waist.

"I really don't get you," the Demon said, leaning against the door frame of the bathroom. "You're nosy, obnoxious, and you just waltz on in here like you own the damn place. You're lucky I don't kill you now."

The young ninja slapped a hand over her eyes, stumbling to find the door. "Holy shit!" she cried in shock, fumbling around. "Warn me next time, will ya? I don't wanna see you without your freaking skivvies! Oh, my hell! My eyes! I'm gonna be blind after seeing that, you arrogant jerk!"

Zabuza rolled his eyes at her, obviously not flustered in the least. "So it's my fault you don't have enough sense to knock on the door before entering someone else's room? Well, I suppose it could have been worse. You could have walked into the bathroom..."

Finally grabbing hold of the door, Kaoru flung it open, running out into the hall and back to her room where she belonged, slamming her door behind her. She leaned against the door, locking it as she struggled to breathe. Falling to the floor, Kaoru felt her gag reflex acting up, and she clamped a hand over her mouth, eyes still wide like saucers. For a few minutes, Kaoru felt as though she were fading in and out of consciousness. Probably due to the massive shock she'd just received.

Holy shit... she thought, her right eye twitching as she dragged herself onto her bed. I never want to see that again!

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"Hey, Sasuke," Karin said as she opened the door to Sasuke's room. "Here's your lunch."

The young Uchiha sat on his bed, a book in hand, his eyes flying from one word to the next as he ignored her. He wanted to be left alone. The teen remained silent, turning one page after the other, leaving Karin to stare at him.

Just... go away, he thought, barely paying attention to the words on the pages. I know what you're after, and I don't want you here.

"S-Sasuke..."

He sighed, snapping the book shut and sitting up on the bed. Sasuke turned to Karin, who had placed the lunch tray on the table beside his bed, glowering at her. "Karin, there's something you have to understand..." He stood up, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You're a member of my team... nothing more. Do you understand? I don't love you, nor will I ever love you. And that's something that you'll have to learn to accept."

Karin nodded slightly, casting her gaze to the floor. Who the hell had she been kidding, flirting with Sasuke the way she had? She searched her heart, realizing that she'd known he didn't care about her in that way. She had simply forced herself to believe that her fantasies would come to fruition and that, by assisting him, she'd win her way into his seemingly impenetrable heart.

"I'm sorry," she said, trying to hide her tears. "I... think I knew all along. I just didn't want to believe the truth." She looked up at him, unable to contain the flood any longer. "Please, don't be angry with me."

He simply grinned, sitting back on the bed, watching her eyes as her tears began to slip down her face. The glum expression that had overcome Karin's usually calm features reminded Sasuke of Sakura. The look on Karin's face was the same one that Sakura had worn on the night that he had left the village three years earlier. He smirked, remembering what he had said to Sakura on that night.

"You... make me sick," he said smugly. "But the funny thing is... I was able to see right through you, when I couldn't even see through my own brother. You know... I've hated him for so long that I can only remember a handful of times that we were actually happy together... as brothers should be. Nothing else really mattered back then. I only ever wanted to be like him; receive the praise that my father would constantly give him. He was my idol and, at the same time, my rival. But now he's gone..."

"Sasuke..."

The raven-haired shinobi turned away, clamping his eyes shut. "Just go, Karin..."

He heard the soft click of the door as Karin closed it behind her, leaving him to his thoughts.

I don't understand you, Brother, he thought bitterly. Why would you want to make me out to be the hero? Why couldn't you just... kill Danzo yourself? Sasuke laughed, recognizing his own stupidity. Of course... Whether you killed Danzo or annihilated the clan, you'd still be seen as the villain... I guess... there was no way for you to win... But regardless, I won't allow your suffering to go unpunished... Konoha will fall. And I will be the savior to redeem the name of clan Uchiha!

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"The nerve of that guy," Suigetsu muttered, taking hold of one of the water bottles strapped to his side. "I mean, who the hell does Sasuke think he is? Just because he's a member of one of the most prestigious ninja clans he thinks he's better than everyone else? Feh!"

Jugo, who was standing near an open window to watch the birds outside, turned and raised an eyebrow. "You're still sore about that after four days?" the taller boy said. "I don't think I understand you, Suigetsu," he said calmly. "Why come with Sasuke if he bothers you so much? Wouldn't you be better off on your own?"

Suigetsu wrinkled his nose, taking a long drink of water from the bottle. Sure, Sasuke pissed him off, but Suigetsu would much rather have the Uchiha on his side than go head-to-head with him in a battle. Then again, Sasuke wasn't the only one who bothered him. Karin annoyed him to death, too. But he supposed that he could live with a little discomfort and confrontation as long as he had a shot at taking both Zabuza and Kisame's swords.

"Ya see Jugo, my motives, unlike Sasuke's, are simple and to the point. All I'm after are the blades of the Seven Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist. Two of said swordsmen are in the same area we're in, which saves me the trouble of having to hunt them down. And trust me, Jugo. Men like Zabuza and Kisame are anything but easy to track. It's a freaking miracle that some punk from the Hidden Rain managed to find him."

Jugo's brows furrowed a bit. What Suigetsu had said didn't make much sense. "Suigetsu, you're imagining things. None of those three kids are from the Hidden Rain. They're from the villages of the Stone and Mist."

Suigetsu rolled his eyes. "The annoying one that attacked Sasuke graduated from the Academy in the Hidden Mist two years before I did. She just showed up one day, said that she was an orphan whose mother had been born and raised in the Mist, and registered for the training. We were even stuck together for a while as partners, so I know her whole story."

"Then why didn't you say anything to each other when she arrived? Surely, she would have at least acknowledged you if you know each other like you say."

"Ha! You don't know Kaoru like I do, Jugo," the white-haired shinobi grinned. "Sure, she's a girl, but she's every bit as tough as one of the guys. And, as rumor has it, she's got the blood of the prestigious Kaguya clan in her."

Jugo merely shrugged, trying not to react too much to Suigetsu's mention of the Kaguya clan, and returned to watching the birds as they began to build a nest on one of the branches. Of course, he had known of the Kaguya clan, due to his friendship with Kimimaro, but he'd never expected that another shinobi with Kaguya blood existed. Much less, a ninja raised in the Hidden Rain village. But it wasn't any of his business, really. But he still couldn't help that Suigetsu's words bothered him. From what Jugo had heard from Kimimaro, the entire Kaguya clan had been wiped out when they attempted to revolt against the Hidden Mist's government. And Kimimaro was the only known survivor of that legendary clan, which was why Orochimaru had shown such an interest in him as a vessel.

Suigetsu laughed, picking up on Jugo's uneasiness. "You kill me, Jugo," he snickered. "You're really surprised, aren't you? Come on, Jugo. It's okay to show a little bit of emotion once in a while. Unless you don't believe me."

"I don't see no reason for her to lie about her kekkei genkai," he replied. "So, it must be true. Besides... Kimimaro once told me about a woman from his clan who escaped to the Hidden Rain the year before the clan's numbers were cut in half. And if that's true, then there's little doubt that this girl is the child of the woman Kimimaro spoke of."

There's no doubt about it... Jugo thought as one of the birds landed on his outstretched arm. She really is... like Kimimaro...

Well, that's it for this chapter. I couldn't think of a better title for this chapter, since it's mainly... shocking.... Yeah... Please review!