Kabuto's heart was racing madly. His palms were sweaty and constantly slipping off the steering wheel. His eyes kept stealing anxious looks at the crazed woman who had a gun to his head.

He took in a deep gulp and tried to stay calm, but he could see that the gun was shaking and that Anko could make a move at any time and blow his brains out. He was terrified, but had a sick dart of excitement in his gut.

He looked down at the slight tear in Anko's shirt where the bullet had penetrated, but there was no blood. He mentally smiled. Anko had worn bullet-proof mesh under her shirt as a defense against Orochimaru's attack. He must have taught her that, but he was foolish to think she'd forget.

She still was ready to kill him, and he had to put a stop to that long enough to get some answers.

He put on a gentle smile and tried to reason with Anko. "Could you put the gun down just long enough for me to-"

"Shut the Hell up!" Anko screamed as a response. "How dare you try to ask favorites from me after what you did!"

Kabuto gulped. He knew exactly what she was talking about, but why was she only made at him and not Orochimaru? Why was she only angry at him and not the man who helped killed her family, the one who actually enjoyed it for that matter.

"If you shoot me," he explained calmly. "You'll die too. We'll swerve off this road and dive in with the fishes."

Something that sounded like a scoff left her throat. "Do you honestly think I care about that? You'll die; that's all I've ever wanted."

"Look, I understand that you want to see them again, but killing me isn't going to bring them back. And just because you die, that doesn't mean you're going to the same place as them."

"We wouldn't even have this problem if you hadn't killed them, now would we!?" she yelled at him.

"You don't understand!" he defended urgently. "Your father…he was dangerous! He was trying to bring down our Akatsuki organization. You have no idea what kind of a composition we were in! If we didn't kill them, a lot of other people would have died, our people and their families! Don't you see? We didn't have any choice!"

Anko stared at him in complete amazement. Her muscles became weak and it was only by pure instinct that she was able to keep the gun up. "You…didn't have a choice…" tears welled up in her eyes, one dared to escape, which was immensely noticed by Kabuto. "Didn't…have…a choice?"

Kabuto thought for a moment that she was going to burst out into tears, but he was proven incorrect when Anko's tears of disbelief turned into those of rage.

"Stop the car!" Anko commanded. When Kabuto didn't react quickly enough, Anko pressed the gun directly to his temple. "Stop the car damn it!"

Kabuto eased over to a cliff hanging over the ocean, the closest stopping point that would keep him from getting his brains blown out. Anko forced him out of the car towards it, the gun pointed at him to whole time.

"What do you mean you didn't have a choice?! You could have gone to the police, or just walked away from it!"

"I'm sorry!" Kabuto called as he was forced further back on the cliff, tripping over a stone and falling back into the dust. "It didn't mean anything to me then, but…" he smiled sadly. "but then…a woman and her son walked past me and…I realized what I took from you."

Anko watched him closely, disgusted vile filling her stomach as tears fell down his cheeks.

"Yūkimaru…" Kabuto whispered. "He called me father today…" he sobbed quietly for a moment, letting the images of his beautiful family sink in.

"You're…crying?" Anko examined quietly. The rage came back. "You're crying…for your family?! Because you're in pain to have them taken from you?!" she gnashed her teeth together. "What the Hell would you know about pain!?" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "You've done nothing but caused it, how can you possible know what it feels like?!"

Kabuto squeezed his eyes shut. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry Anko…I truly am…"

Anko's entire body was screaming to pull the trigger, anything to get that look off his face and out of her mind. But, an image, several images, stopped her.

.,.,.,.

Twelve year old Anko stared at the new faces the nun was introducing her to.

"Anko," she said gently. "These are the Uchiha's, this is the family you're going to be living with now." She gave her a slight push towards them.

Anko stared down shyly. "H-hello…"

Mikoto crouched down in front of her. "Hello dear. You have no idea how glad I am that you're going to live with us." She leaned in a little more to whisper a secret. "All these boys really work on me."

Anko smiled slightly, glad that this woman actually wanted her.

"I heard that."

The two looked back to see Fugaku smiling down at the scene of his wife and new daughter. "But having another little lady in the house will be a refreshing change." He reached out and took Anko's suitcase from the nun. "Shall we ladies?"

Anko scurried along with them, no longer nervous about the situation she was in.

.,.,

"Itachi! Sasuke!"

Loud footsteps came hurtling down the steps and two boys appeared.

Fugaku placed a hand over the one Mikoto had on Anko's shoulder. "This is Anko. She's your sister now."

The children stared at each other for a long moment.

Anko was scared to death that they would hate her, that she'd have to go back to the orphanage and wait another twelve years before a family fell in love with her again.

However, this doubt was wiped from her mind as the smallest of the two boys, Sasuke, ran over and pounced her.

"Anko nee-chan!" he greeted excitedly. He pulled away from her and took her hand. "Come on! I'll show you my room and you can play with all of my toys!"

Anko looked back nervously. The parents were laughing at their youngest son's actions while the other just stared at her. Anko had no time to reminisce on this for Sasuke already had her halfway up the steps.

Later, after Fugaku and Mikoto had finally gotten Sasuke to settle down and leave Anko in peace in her own new room, Itachi paid her an actual visit.

"Hi." He had said.

Anko twisted the fabric of her gown nervously. "Hi."

He walked up to her, scratching his head for words. "I guess…we're family now, huh?"

She shrugged. "I guess so…"

They were quiet after that, both averting from each other.

"You know," Itachi said. "If…you don't want to be my sister…that's okay."

"What do you-"

"We can just be friends." Itachi hurried along. "Just…someone you can talk to."

Anko saw the redness across his cheeks and smiled slightly. She had seen the same looks on the faces of many others who had experienced their first crush.

"Okay," she said. "Whatever you want."

He smiled before nodding and leaving her slowly.

Anko smiled as well. She hadn't made a brother, she had made a friend.

But somehow…it was more than that.

.,.,.,.,.

"If we're not brother and sister, than what are we?" Anko had asked him several months later.

He looked at her with an all-knowing smirk. "We're…lovers?"

"Lovers?" Anko said like a small child turning their nose up at a much hated food.

"I saw it in one of mom's book." It's two people who really love each other, only they have to keep it kind of a secret because other people won't approve."

"Well, what do we do?"

"Simple." Itachi said. "When we're grown up, we'll get married. And then Mom and Dad will be okay with it."

Anko thought for a moment. She wasn't yet thirteen but knew a lot of things about love and marriage she since she had attended a class for kids who had become adults early in the orphanage. But most of the things they told her were that those kind of things were as sinful as sin could get.

But she and the other girls still read the stories of the princesses who fell in love with their prince and got married. Nothing seemed "sinful" about that.

"Okay." Anko agreed, leaning over and unexpectedly giving Itachi a kiss on the cheek. "But that's just so that you won't forget." She felt Itachi's shocked eyes on her as she left. She was so bad.

.,.,.,.,

"Anko! Anko, wake up!"

Fourteen year old Anko woke with a start to her mother's unusually frightened voice. She sat up to see a blurry Sasuke clinging to Itachi, utter terror in his innocent eyes. Itachi had a straight face, but she could tell that he was shaking.

"What is it?"

Mikoto shushed her sharply, but after a few seconds of silence, grabbed her daughter's shoulders desperately. "I'm so sorry for scolding you darling, but I need you and your brother's to be very quiet and follow me. There are some bad people downstairs who want to hurt us. Please baby, help me."

Anko nodded, fear now feeling her stomach. She got out of bed and put on her slippers as discreet as possible and rushed over to her brothers.

Mikoto led them out of the hallway. Anko could hear yelling and glass breaking downstairs. "Where's dad?"

Her mother kept moving forward, but there was a grim look on her face.

She looked over at the boys but they wouldn't look at her, not even Itachi.

Suddenly there was a loud sound. It was louder than thunder, louder than the fireworks Mikoto and Fugaku had set off on her birthday just a month ago.

Mikoto gasped and pushed all of them into the nearest bedroom, locking the door. "Say close to me children." She whispered. "And don't say a word."

Anko, Sasuke, and Itachi curled up together, like kittens for warmth. They were scared out of their wits but they had each other and that's all that mattered at the moment….

.,.,.,.

Anko didn't remember too much after that. A year of intense training had scrambled her brain up in so many ways.

She lowered her gun only slightly. She knew exactly what Kabuto was talking about before. He had a family and it would kill him a lot faster than one of her bullets if he was taken away from them. But…why should he deserve one while she continued to ache for hers?

"You lucky bastard." Anko spat, lowering her gun a safe distance so that she could pull it back up if she changed her mind.

Kabuto looked up at her in shock. "You're…letting me go?"

"Hell no." Anko answered. "I'm keeping you around for more answers, starting with this one: Why are you and Orochimaru so damn kinky?"

Kabuto stared questionable at her. What had Orochimaru told her? He stood up, brushing himself off thoroughly. "Orochimaru was my partner back when I was in the Akatsuki mob. He helped me…take your family out that night."

He watched the gun slip from her hands and topple to the ground. His eyes went back to her face. She had become deadly pale, her eyes wide. She was shaking, and not from the cool breezed washing over them.

"Anko?" Kabuto questioned. He thought it would be safe to approach her, but she darted off towards the car before he got the chance.

"Anko!"

She jumped in and closed the doors, cranking the vehicle up and swerving in a circle before speeding off with a cloud salty dust behind her.

"Anko!" he called through a cough. He watched her disappear in the opposite direction they had come from. He glared as he wiped the dirt off his glasses with his thumb.

"How the Hell am I supposed to get home!?"

After being answered by silence, he screamed and walked in the direction of wince he came. But he stopped at the thought of returning home. What if Orochimaru were still there? Oh no, what about Guren and Yūkimaru, would he kill them?

Kabuto's heart began to race at the thought of finding their corpses bloodied and cold on the floor. The very idea brought him to his knees, a sickened sob in his throat. "No…not again…"

The blood. The bodies. The little girl crying in the closet. They little girl becoming a killer and wanting him dead.

He swallowed and tried to think of a way around it.

No, Orochimaru wouldn't kill them.

Kabuto was grateful Guren was such a lively, social creature and had made friends with just about everyone in the neighborhood. They all had gotten a look at Orochimaru whenever he paid his frequent visits. They were all suspicious of him as it was, so if Guren or Yūkimaru were found dead, the fingers would automatically point at him. Even Orochimaru couldn't outrun the law forever.

Yes, they would be safe.

But what about him? Orochimaru wouldn't be as lenient with him? No, not after he just tried to kill him.

He was too rusty to start shooting guns off again, he wouldn't stand a chance. Orochimaru had always been good at what he did, even if he went months without picking up a weapon.

Anko was his only redeemer. Orochimaru had apparently trained her, so she must be good as well. He had to find her and tell her about her teacher, thus bringing her on his side. He might get shot in every place possible, but at least he'd have her on his side.

Sighing, he stood up and brushed to dirt off himself, turning to the road Anko had sped down. There was a small town out of that way that existed near the beach. It was a good hour if one drove their by car, but on feet…he'd be there by midnight at the least. Hopefully he could rent a car or find Anko to get his back.

It was indeed well over midnight when he reached the beach town. It was cooler, and Kabuto was numb with exhaustion and cold. He was ready to fall out in the middle of the streets when something familiar came into view.

There was a black car parked in an otherwise empty parking lot outside of a motel. It was his car.

"Anko…" he prayed, limping to the door. He looked around hurriedly. The place was totally empty and was blasting with soft county music. Kabuto growled and turned to the door.

"More please."

He shot around to see a spikey-haired, slouched created holding a sake cup in the air where a bartender was taking his time reaching her. Kabuto slowly approached her, just in case she was drunk enough to start shooting without a second thought like last time. He crept up to the far end of the counter, staring at her haggard appearance.

Her face was flushed from drinking, she'd obviously been here a while, but there was a paleness under her rosy cheeks. Her eyes were angrily drawn down on the cup in her hand, as if nothing could tear them from it.

Except him.

"Is this seat taken?" he teased as he pulled out the seat next to Anko.

She blinked slowly. "Yes, and it'll be filled with your blood if you sit down." She replied without looking up.

He laughed softly, ignoring her warning and taking a seat. "Never took you for one with a sense of humor."

She scoffed and sipped at her cup once more.

Kabuto watched her with uneasiness. "You're a bit too young to be drinking, don't you think?"

"Shove it bastard." Anko snapped. "Just because I didn't blow your head off back there doesn't mean I like you or anything."

"I wasn't trying to-"

Anko slammed her cup down, breaking it into several pieces. "Look you lifeless son of a bitch, go back to your fucking family before do what I wanted to do just this morning!" she jumped up and threw something on the table. "For the drinks." She muttered

Kabuto saw that it was a credit card; his credit card.

"Where the Hell did you get this?" he called after her.

"It was in the damn car!" Anko yelled from afar. "Get a freaking wallet."

He groaned and gave it to the awaiting bartender. It was rung up and given back along with a receipt.

"Ninety-nine dollars?!" Kabuto exclaimed. "Anko?!" he jumped out of his seat and ran to the direction she had gone in.

"Room 2B!" the bartender laughed after him.

Kabuto growled and searched for 2B as well as its inhabitant. "Anko!" he yelled he scanned over the doors. He found it and was about to break it down when a sound picked up his attention. He put his ear to the door and listened closes. It sounded like crying.

He cracked the door open slightly and peeked in. Anko was curled up at the end of the bed, sobbing in her knees. Part of him wanted to walk in and comfort him, but it would only result in getting yelled or shot at again.

He closed the door softly and slowly retreated to the bar where the bartender was drying glasses.

"Give me something strong." Kabuto said.

"Girlfriend troubles?" The bartender laughed, placing a bottle of Bora-Bora and a shot-glass down in front of the depressed Kabuto. He had a New Yorker's accent and a face that held years of pain but good humor to cover it up.

He looked at him with a bit of paranoia. "I wouldn't call her that…"

The bartender leaned against the counter. "If ya' want advice from a guy with experience, I'll tell ya'. Just apologize for what ya' did. Don't make some false aptitude that ya' won't do it again, just apologize and if she still hates your guts," he shrugged. "So be it. But, if she forgives ya'…" he rustled around in his apron and brought out a latex condom. "Make up with the girl."

Kabuto groaned and slammed his head down on the table, causing the liquid in his drink to slosh out slightly.

The bartender sang with laughter. "Believe it or not, it actually works!" he twisted around and brought out something. "Look a'here son."

Kabuto slowly lifted his head up to see a picture of a man, probable a younger version of the bartender, a woman with curls, and three children, two girls with hair like the woman and an infant boy with the man's glossy cheeks. "Their…beautiful." Kabuto commented.

"Aren't they." The bartender chuckled. "I took my own advice when I first cheated on my beautiful Tsunade." He said.

Kabuto's interest sparked slightly.

The bartender continued to smile. "I earned my Tenten and Ino from that. Spent some amazing years raising my girls. Little Naruto came along when they grew up, but that was fine with us, it was just more good times."

Kabuto smiled, thinking about Guren and Yūkimaru and about the possible Tenten's and Ino's they could have. "How are they now?" Kabuto asked, just because he was in better spirits.

The bartender laughed again, but this time it was more drained. "Fine I suppose, as fine as you get in Heaven. They died in a shooting four years ago. Up there in that richly neighborhood that young folk like yourself come from all the time. "

Kabuto froze up completely. Oh shit, a shooting?!

"I'm…"

"Sorry?" the bartender finished. He laughed and set the picture aside. "I was sorry to. I was sorry that I was finally able to get the dream house that my Tsunade always wanted so that my girls could live with us while studying for college and we could finish raising little Naruto. But then those damn mobs…they shoot at any house that had a light on after ten p.m. Shot 'em all, except me, I was barely grazed. They got those bastards, that damn Akatsuki mob, but they got away, and left me to bury my three girls and boy…"

Kabuto looked down so many emotions filling him. This man…was like an angel. He was helping him out in a most difficult time and yet he didn't know that he was helping a former member of the very organization that had taken his family out.

He realized now why Anko was so angry at him. He had a family, a living, breathing, loving family while her and this man in front of him where all alone, with exception for a psycho and a few customers here and there.

"Son?" the bartender spoke up again while wiping his eyes with his rag. "Go talk to that girl. Love her and tell her that you'll do what you can. But don't let her hurt for whatever you did," he chuckled a little. "And for God sakes, be careful of the neighborhood you move into."

Kabuto smiled worriedly. "I'll…I will try…sir." He took his credit card back out, ever though he hadn't even taken a sip of the ruined drink.

"On the house." The bartender said. "Your girl gave me more business tonight than I get in a week. Beside, your conversation was all the pay I needed."

Kabuto nodded and stood. "Thank you…for everything. And…" he wanted to give him some kind of worthless reassurance, but he was sick of telling lies, and sick of saying thing that didn't mean anything. "Just thank you."

"Come back by and see ol' Papa J' when you two get settled down, okay?"

"Yes sir." Kabuto said. He took in a deep breath before heading back to the room where Anko was staying.