Author's Note: Damn, I'm really bad on this timeline thing. I cut this week's chapter a bit short. It seemed appropriate and plus I'd be spending another hour typing the rest DX

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Chapter Five For The Sake of Pride

"THEY HAVE TO BE removed."

Pain's Rin'Negan eyes stared lifelessly at Madara, who shed his emotionless mask the moment he entered the top floor of Amegakure's highest tower. His sources had confirmed one element of the worst situation; Jigoku had snatched Ookamika Saori. Madara had kept tabs on the Genyou Senshi, too, having suspected her truest origins; now she also had returned to the Ookamika Clan. There was no doubt in Madara's mind that the Genyou Senshi would then train Ookamika Saori, and undoubtedly Saori would either match or surpass the Genyou Senshi's own Kekkei Genkai. Jigoku was taking more of Madara's time than he had any right to.

"Pain," Madara growled, removing the little wooden soldier that represented Pain from Kumo to Fire Country's coast, where he suspected the Ookamika had their hide out. "Remove Jigoku of the Ookamika Clan. Konan, remove the Genyou Senshi."

"That is unwise," Pain declared immediately. Konan stared at the ground quietly, knowing perfectly why Pain had spoken out against Madara; it was for her sake. "Jigoku will eventually seek me out. He does not want to mess in this war we're agitating; however, when we succeed, he knows we will remove him and his clan. He does not like waiting for death - he will come for it himself."

"You do not understand; the Ookamika are a potential hindrance to our success."

"The only hindrance that will not naturally remove herself is the Mind's Eye girl. The Genyou Senshi will not meddle until her own life is of concern. By the time she realizes she cannot wait any longer, we will be too powerful to do anything. The girl who has the Mind's Eye, Saori, however, is a young fool. She sticks her nose where it does not belong. Have her removed, and the Ookamika will pose no threat."

"You do not understand, Nagato, I need certainty. Jigoku knows his clan is facing the danger of existence. He will not simply ignore our plans. You and Konan will remove the Ookamika Clan completely. I will not have them wandering in the back of my mind. The last time I took one's death for granted, the brat came back. Destroy their home, obliterate their morale, force them into desperation. Ensure that Saori will not be learning to further her Kekkei Genkai. I trust you and Konan are capable of successfully completing this mission."

"There are many Ookamika. The two of us will not make it on our own."

Madara glared at Pain through his mask. It was not that Pain could not take the Ookamika on his own - for he full well could - it was that Pain did not wish to do so. With Konan in the fight, his fearsome jutsu would put her life at risk. On top of that, he wanted to ensure Konan would be safe against the Genyou Senshi, a rather hard task while handling a few dozen talented shinobi, some of which were capable of messing with his mind. Konan's light paper jutsu would be a poor match against the Genyou Senshi's wind jutsu. Nevertheless, Madara backed down and agreed to Pain's request to send out Amegakure shinobi, the shinobi of the Hidden Rain Village, with him, alongside Hoshigaki Kisame and Uchiha Itachi to ensure a success. "Make sure that this is a quick massacre. Be done by nightfall. We must play possum until we're ready to force the nations back into submission."

Obediently, Pain and Konan accepted Madara's orders without further complaint, though a heavy feeling began to sink in Konan's heart. All along, since their congregation, they had picked out specific people to put out of their miseries. In reuniting both halves of Amegakure, many less specific people had been killed, but for a better sake. She was still unsure of Madara's true intentions, but wiping out a whole clan, especially one in which had been so dearly hanging on to its existence, seemed out of the ordinary for a mercenary organization like Akatsuki. Aside her, Pain offered her a warm gesture of reassurance. "We may not know his intentions, but we know our own. If he falls off the way, we can continue without him. The Ookamika Clan, I must agree, is a possible impediment to our goal of global peace. They must be eradicated."

Konan nodded so as to satisfy Pain, though she was not satisfied herself. This is the clan of that Saori girl Deidara was with. Madara probably thinks that she read Deidara's and Sasori's minds, gleaned all there was to know about the Akatsuki, but that is no reason to be taking out the whole clan. If anything should be done, we should just kill that girl, maybe Jigoku too. The sinking feeling only sank lower.

THE BLOOD WAS POUNDING in her ears; the sand was giving way to soil, to plant life. At last, after two terrible days in the desert, she was at the borderline. With borderlines came the trouble of border patrols, however, such as the one coming her way. Two chuunin and two genin, the girl thought, fiercely concentrating. She had chakra, though she had never used it in actual combat. Jigoku had said she would not last in a shinobi fight. She didn't stand a chance. A little trickle of hope fed its way to her heart as the chakra signatures drew closer. One of them seemed so familiar! They had stopped - maybe they had sensed her? No - it seemed they were resting, probably the end of their shift. It was near sunset, however. Possibly a double shift?

Farther away, the said border patrol was seated in a circle, where one was starting a fire with twigs borrowed from Konoha's forests. The two youngest, the genin, began to scout out the area. That… feels so familiar! the girl thought. Slowly and subtly, the girl leaked out her chakra. The genin nearing her stopped short before suddenly vanishing. "You…! Saori!"

Saori looked up at the sea blue eyes of Benihana. "Benihana, I don't know what to do, I'm really scared, and there's no one and -! You should have seen it, it was awful!"

"Are you out of your mind?" Benihana hissed, pushing Saori down quickly.

"I don't know where to go!"

"You can't stay in Suna. You'll be arrested and probably executed like this!"

"What do you mean?"

"You said you saw, didn't you? Your clan was fighting each other. One of your folk burned the compound down."

"I know, it was Jigoku-sama!"

"It doesn't matter who you say it is. If they find you, you're dead!"

"But why?"

"Look, an Ookamika was looking for you in Suna right after the fire. Suna keeps close tabs on all its clans, even the Ookamika. They know you've got Katon chakra."

"So… so they think that Ookamika is after me for arson? Who was it, was it Jigoku?"

"No, it was someone else. You heard Jigoku's Call, didn't you? Why didn't you just follow where it told you to go?"

"Ye - wait, how do you know about that…?"

"Of course I know, I heard it, too. That's irrelevant! Hurry, you have to get out of here."

Stubbornly, Saori shook her head. "Jigoku burned the compound down, killed all those people. I won't run to him! And anyways, if you heard his Call, that means you're a -"

"Irrelevant! Get out of here before someone notices you're here. You've let your chakra go out of control, someone is bound to feel it soon. Get out of Wind Country. Head north. Never come back."

Saori laughed a little, "I guess I was never really good at listening, Benihana." Benihana offered a small smile before returning to her hair brushing duties. Saori couldn't help but think about how much more vain Benihana had become since they had first met in those far away days of Saori's childhood.

"Nope! You never were. I told you never to come back south, and look what you've gone and done. I suppose there's nothing you can really do about it; Jigoku really wanted to have you in his ranks. That potential of yours must really be something," Benihana continued.

"Well, she's very likely to achieve the fourth state. None of us here can do that," Shirotsuki put in, starting to feel strangely defensive. He was never very fond of Benihana, with all her hair brushing and coronet-fixing, not to mention the constant badgering of poor Takashi. To him, Benihana was a little witch in a brilliant costume. And he felt like he was the only one who saw it.

"Did Jigoku say anything about the fifth state?" she asked nonchalantly.

"Fifth state?" whispered a bewildered Saori.

"You know what fourth state is, right? If you have the chakra capacity, you can kill someone by forcing a complete mental shutdown. It's not guaranteed, though, and many are likely to escape that fate, even civilians. It's risky. By the way, if you do achieve fourth state, don't use it without someone like me or Takashi as support and don't do it to more than one person at a time. The recovery time's too long. Your eye will be the death of you then." For some reason, Saori felt like it already was. "The fifth state gets rid of the possibility of failing to make the kill. It's also very risky. You can only practice in theory."

"Why? It'll be even more risky if I don't practice it!"

"Because you only get one try. The fifth state gets rid of the doubt because in exchange for your life, you guarantee the instant death of someone else." Benihana eyed Saori, who had become still while the morbid feeling sank under her skin. Certain death had a nice ring to it, but in exchange for her own life? And without the certainty of achieving the fifth state? Why would she even bother learning it in theory? As if reading her mind, probably because he actually could, Shirotsuki added, "That kind of power is the kind of thing you have to use against thugs like Uchiha Madara. You won't get him any other way."

"OI! Rumor has it that the laggard's here - I see." The three occupants turned to the newest guest in Benihana's quarters, a tall and aging woman. There was still some residue from the brown dye she'd applied to her hair perhaps some three days ago. Holding out her hand, she introduced herself, "Ookamika Tamaika. It's a pleasure to meet you, Ookamika Saori." Saori took her hand, then glanced at Shirotsuki, who seemed to be her crutch.

He laughed heartily and patted her on the back. "Don't freak out. Us elite know you because you're one of the maybe six folk who refused to come back for a long time. And because of your potential. Think about it, Jigoku waited nine years for you to take a spot on the Alpha Squad. That kind of thing doesn't happen every day."

"I see," Saori replied, though she didn't really at all.

"Hurry up and get some proper clothes on! Come down to the training rooms when you're ready," Tamaika ordered, already heading out.

"Whoa, wait a second, I'm not ready to fight -"

"Takashi says you can't activate your Last Resort, right? Well you're not going to get it by just sitting. The Genyou Senshi will be back soon, and then you'll have to start training your eye ASAP. So come on! Don't you want to know what it looks like?" Saori smiled at Tamaika's belligerent attitude and quickly returned to the room she'd first been brought into to clean up. Smiling seemed so foreign, but, as a quick glance in the mirror informed her, smiling was a nice change.

THEY WERE ON THE move again. Each of them was weary and tired, but they had to run. Risking capture by the other nations or the Akatsuki was sure to lead to death in some way or another. Behind Sakura, Hinata was panting. "Yamato-sensei!" hissed Sakura as to keep their volumes low. The other two members of their makeshift team stopped at Sakura's wish. Hinata gratefully took a seat on the forest floor. Or at least, on the floor of what remained of the forest. Sakura slipped off her black gloves, prepared to check for possible unknown injuries when Hinata swatted her hand away.

"I'm just running out of chakra," Hinata explained, breathless. Sakura eyed Sai, who she was sure had a snide remark ready. He remained silent, eyes trained on Hinata. Yamato surveyed the area and compared its remains to his hastily sketched map.

"Take a breather, Hinata. I think we all need it," Sai offered. Even in these bleak times, Sakura felt a little pride blossom inside at Sai's social growth. He might have lied through his teeth, but at least he was trying to comfort the Hyuuga heiress.

"We've covered a lot of ground the past few days," Yamato reviewed. "And we haven't come across a single survivor from Konoha. I'd imagine that some might have tried to go back, but I think it's too dangerous, not with the type of people our team is made of. Sai being part of Root, Hinata possibly being the Hyuuga clan leader" - Yamato came to regret saying this as Hinata winced in the corner of his eyes - "the late Godaime's apprentice, and a man with the Shodaime's jutsu. I'd say the Akatsuki would like to take us right about now."

"Then what should we do?" Sakura asked, exasperated. "We can't head into Suna, either."

"I say we head into Suna. They were our allies, so it's logical that that's where most of us survivors have gone off to," Yamato tried to reason. Sakura hadn't told anyone that her child resided in Suna, well hidden with Ebizo, nor did she plan to. It wasn't in her plans to lead the Akatsuki and the allied nations right to her child, either. Considering how Madara had personally come to murder Sasori, it was likely the same kind of merciless behavior would be displayed to her son, Tensai.

"No," Sakura argued, a harsh tone in her voice. "I told you already, Suna is ruled by the faction who ordered Tsunade-sama's and Gaara's assassination! It's too dangerous."

"Sakura…" There was definite regret and hesitation in Sai's voice. She had no idea how it happened, but Sai had become a true best friend to Sakura. She had always believed him to be a self-centered and clueless boy who would never be able to assimilate into normal society ever again, but he'd gone and proved her wrong, even becoming her friend. Then he began feeling as though it was his duty to do certain things. Such as being a voice of reason. "I think we should."

"Why?"

Taking a deep breath, Sai continued, "That Saori you spoke of… she comes from the Ookamika Clan. They've technically defected from Suna."

"And?"

"Well, I can only think of good things that could happen if we went to the old Ookamika village." Sakura could hardly muster a 'what.' Hide out in the old Ookamika village? There was bound to be little to no cover there, and it was blistering hot in the desert! Sai surely had gone insane. "Think about it. I have serious doubts the Ookamika is there right now -"

"They're dead, Sai."

"They're not. I'm in Root. I know." Well, Sai did have a point there. "But, there's still a chance they use their old village as a base. If we stay there, we might find an Ookamika who can take us to their home base. I know the Ookamika were never Konoha's allies; they're not friends of any other nation, either. If they were against Konoha, they would have come out and allied with the Akatsuki from the start. The ruins used to be a place for Root spies in Suna to meet up with Root of Konoha, but it's long since been abandoned. Nobody from Suna runs by. The Ookamika had very little effect on life in Suna, and I think most of them forgot after nine years. It has good cover and a network of underground tunnels and rooms. It's a good place to hide out. Also, other jounin know it's there. Maybe they'll swing by. Someone from Root will. The Ookamika provide a necessary fighting force for Konoha. It's a no-lose situation." A no-lose situation sounded nice and was a pleasant change for once to Sakura.

"Are you sure you know how to navigate through these tunnels?"

"I've never been there" - Inner Sakura screamed in rage - "but I am sure I will know when I get there."

"Even if Sai can't figure it out, I can. I've been there. Root isn't the only one who's used the place," interrupted Yamato. Sakura sighed. She wished to disassociate herself with both the Ookamika and Suna, but it seemed there was little choice, unless she wanted to head west of Bird Country to uncharted territory. Even that far from the main Shinobi lands, Madara's reach would still get them.

"Fine. Let's go there." The four were back on their sore feet again. Let's see what nightmare Saori ran from nine years ago.

TENTEN WAS LESS THAN happy about the whole affair. Team Gai was returning home from a long and tiring mission abroad when they came upon Konoha in shambles. Maito Gai and Rock Lee jumped into the fray without so much as thinking, their beastly pride at stake. Neji immediately was after Hyuuga Hinata, the blood of the Hyuuga Clan. Torn between going with her sensei and her teammate, Tenten had chosen to follow Neji. They miraculously stuck together through the chaos, but they lost contact with Hinata.

Worryingly, Tenten chanced a glance at her genius of a teammate. He was by far stressed, but he couldn't be blamed; he witnessed the murder of the Hyuuga Clan's leader, his uncle and Hinata's father. If Hinata was killed…

"Neji…," Neji nearly whispered. This behavior was very much unlike Neji and deviated from his usually calm demeanor.

"It's not going to be alright, Tenten," replied Neji, his voice worn and hoarse. "I'm doubting my own abilities, I can't think of any solutions… I am collapsing." Tenten gently rested her roughened hand on his shoulder, both of their attire and hair covered in dirt and grime. Instinctively, Neji leaned into her, feeling as pathetic as ever.

"You'll get through this. I know you will. It's a tough time we're going through. You don't have to be strong for anyone else but yourself. We're going to show the Akatsuki and the world what we're made of. We're going to find Hinata and protect her. We're going to make Gai-sensei and doofus Lee proud of us. You got it?"

Neji's blank eyes stared at Tenten with wonder. She stiffened, feeling his gaze wash over her face. 'How can you say things like that, with such certainty?"

"Because I have faith. Faith in you. Faith in us."

Neji's lips cracked open slightly, his hand reaching tentatively for her cheek. Midway there, he stopped, blinking a few times. Slowly, he sat back up. "Tenten…," he started. Tenten appeared perfectly calm, but underneath she was screaming hundreds of things at once. What was that look for? What was he going to say? She caught herself hoping it was a three word phrase. Seriously? How could she be thinking about that? He's your teammate, idiot! Tenten snapped at herself. She had never thought of Neji in any other way - perhaps she idolized his genius from time to time - nor did she believe she had reason to think of him any other way. I guess that's what the end of the world does to some people. I haven't even been on a date yet.

Sighing, Neji continued, "Let's get going."

"Right." Both got to their feet without the assistance of the other. Suddenly, warmth filled the empty space around Tenten's hand. She looked at Neji questioningly, but he only had eyes for their joined hands. Tenten fought down a laugh - a half year ago she would have bitten to get her hand free. But now… it felt okay.

"I don't even know where to go… Iwa, Kumo, Suna, and Kiri are in with Akatsuki. I am positive I sighted Kusa and Taki hitai-ate in the attack against Konoha as well. That leaves Ame… the isolated land."

"But you know…"

"I know. The Akatsuki's leader is thought to reside there. Perhaps there is an advantage to living right under their noses. They will expect infiltrations, but not for as long as I should think we will be staying. Will you stay with me, Tenten? For our fallen fool and our fallen teacher?" Tenten gave up trying to think otherwise. Neji was definitely insane. A slight twitch at the corners of his lips confirmed it. "Your answer, my dearest wife?"

Smiling, she gleefully replied, "I shall stay with you for the rest of eternity, my dearest husband."

Neji broke out into a full, silly grin, sweeping Tenten off her feet as if she truly were his wife. "We will have to get some commoner apparel. I hear they can be terribly uncomfortable."

Laughing, she added, "A true shame!" Never did Tenten ever believe she'd see a Hyuuga Neji as the one before her but she was happy that she did. Even as insane as he seemed to have gotten, she wouldn't have chosen any other to be her partner on this suicidal mission. The things the world's end could do to some…!

PERHAPS IT WAS GOOD that Saori and Tamaika fought, or else Saori would have realized too late just how out of shape she had become. She had quickly run back to don the red vest that had been waiting for her earlier, grabbing kunai, shuriken, flash bombs, and bomb seals and snapping on her gold belt on her way out. Tamaika was no easy opponent; she was on Saori in a flash, letting Saori know just what a few weeks unconscious and inactive could do to a honed shinobi's body. Her reflexes truly appalled Saori in its inability to kick in faster, and her muscles had seriously degraded. She couldn't get back to fighting with a gold belt on either - the same gold belt she'd worn for twelve years. Chakra and stamina were disappearing all too quickly.

She doesn't use elemental jutsu, analyzed Saori, so that means my ace, the Ninja Art of Chakra Type Absorption, is out of the playing field. She's good at dodging, too, so any form of fire jutsu I shoot her way won't work because it's too direct and obvious, unless I create an opening… which isn't going to happen any time soon. Saori narrowly missed a rather obvious kick.

"Off your game, huh?" sneered Tamaika.

"Talk after I knock you out for a few weeks and see what it feels like," Saori snapped with evident annoyance. She didn't take stabs to her pride too well; hardly any Ookamika did. She suddenly gasped back to her feet, clutching her torso; her gold belt had cut through two layers of fabric into her side. How she had fought with it on all this time was beyond her.

"True shinobi can fight in anything. It is your fault for choosing such galling apparel," Tamaika replied, none too pleased about Saori's nasty comment.

"Didn't know I would be headed for a fashion show," Saori retorted. The tensions were increasing, as was the animosity between the woman and the girl, both with biting attitudes and deadly precision. Members of Tamaika's subdivision hesitated to cheer for their captain. My one obvious advantage, continued Saori as she nearly landed a kick to the ribs, is my Kekkei Genkai. But that's what she expects and probably wants me to use. Saori glanced warily at her opponent's expression, trying to read her. At first glance, Tamaika's offer to spar to uncover Saori's Last Resort seemed hopelessly innocent and selfless. But Tamaika grievously underestimated Saori's ability to read opponents without a handicap such as her Kekkei Genkai. Tamaika was an arrogant, that much Saori knew. From the way she was fighting, strictly to tactics a deft spy would use, she was out to prove something, most likely to prove that she was a better choice to lead the Espionage division than Saori. If she could prove this, not only did she truly stand amongst the Ookamika elite, but she would gain the respect, admiration, and glory for defeating Saori's Mind's Eye, supposedly the strongest seen in awhile… granted that Saori submitted to Tamaika and used her Mind's Eye. Saori could feel her temper rising from her realization. Don't let her win. Think of your pride. Protect it!

Flesh connected with flesh in a most unpleasant manner. One blocked kick would not stop Tamaika from kicking with her other, as Saori had anticipated. Tamaika's groan of pain was just as unpleasant as her now twisted ankle, courtesy of Saori. Tamaika barely had enough time to grab Saori's forearm barehanded, an enflamed arm just centimeters from her face. Saori forced her chakra to her imprisoned arm, but Tamaika showed het true taijutsu prowess. "You got lucky," Tamaika hissed, ignoring the pain in such a way it didn't seem like there was any at all. "Don't get ahead of yourself."

"Same to you. I don't need my Kekkei Genkai to read you like an open book. Glory's elsewhere. You won't find it from me."

"Shut… up!" Tamaika roared, landing a kick in Saori's stomach. Despite every urge to scream, Saori swallowed the pain down for the sake of her pride. Her shoulder felt inflamed, and probably dislocated from the sudden, quick, and violent movement and Tamaika's death grip on Saori's forearm. Tamaika's hand was surely burnt by now, but like a true shinobi, she ignored the pain. I have to give her points for that, Saori thought as she gritted her teeth. "I'm not done yet."

Out of nowhere, a silver blade protruded from Tamaika's glove. Saori's bicep soon joined her shoulder on a list of things that hurt like hell. Blood oozed between Tamaika's fingers, lodged deep in Saori's bicep, blade an all. Saori's arm, still flaming, flickered, the flames beginning to die down from a lack of sufficient chakra supply. "Chakra running low, hm?" Tamaika teased.

Ripping her gold belt from its rather uncomfortable position in her side, Saori snarled, "Hardly!" She proceeded to make a vibrant display of her chakra supply. Tamaika winced slightly form the sudden pressure one or two feet away from her face, which was to be expected. What wasn't expected was the suddenly less-painful-to-hold belt in Saori's hand. Glancing down, there was now a gold lance in her grip. Considering precision and accuracy was one of few strong points for Saori the lance seemed like a Godsend.

Tamaika recognized it in an instant. Most Ookamika had some sort of blade for a Last Resort, much like Tamaika, whose Last Resort was hidden by her sleeves. If I keep close, she won't be able to throw that at me. I'm better at evasion than precision, so if she gets the opportunity to throw it I should be able to dodge it without problems. But that's true if and only if her speed is slower than mine. And considering what she herself proclaimed, sit wouldn't surprise me if she is faster. I guess I brought this upon myself, though I hadn't anticipated she'd find her Last Resort before she would be forced to use the Mind's Eye. The only thing I've got up on her now is that I only showed her half my Last Resort. But now that she's aware what I can do with my right hand, she'll probably assume I can do it with my left anyways. My best bet…

Saori reacted much faster with renewed confidence, completely stopping Tamaika's kick with her lance, which was snugly stuck between the heel and the sole of Tamaika's boots. Tamaika knew bad news when she saw it. Before Tamaika could use Saori's block against her, Saori lunged forward, pushing the stuck lance with her body weight, effectively bending Tamaika's foot in ways it was never meant to be pushed. Tamaika would only grunt, refusing to scream, to surrender. "Gonna… have to… try… better… than that!"

Tamaika's left Last Resort was after Saori's throat in an instant. Saori wrenched the lance free in an instant, barely managing to evade Tamaika's fatal attack. The sensitive skin just to the left of her right shoulder was nicked, Saori's aorta safe from Tamaika, very much to Saori's relief. Some meters away, Tamaika sat on the ground, nursing her left foot as Saori kept reaching for her neck, just to make sure it hadn't been cut. Without any remorse, Saori lifted her lance to make what was sure to be a death blow - Tamaika's inability to evade properly, such close range - Saori's pride would never recover if she missed.

But her pride would not get the chance to be put to risk. She made all the movements to throw but the lance's movements were hindered by the gray-gloved hand of the Genyou Senshi. Immediately, the color drained from Saori's face. If the Genyou Senshi intended to fight, Saori didn't stand a chance! "We do not give certain death blows to immobile warriors, much less kin. She may not look like it and she may not act like it, but that woman is your flesh and blood. We school emotions, not live by them," said the Genyou Senshi.

The entirety of the training area occupied by Tamaika and Saori was quiet. These words, which held such captivating power, were of Jigoku's dictum, which he had given almost eighty years ago, when he was just a young boy leading a newborn clan during its first civil dispute. Decades having passed, the dictum was mostly ignored and forgotten. Such words pulled at the Ookamika pride that resided in all of its members. Slowly getting to her knees, Saori said, "Thank you for your offer to spar with me. It is my deepest apologies that I led myself blind. I will have learned better when we cross blades again."

Regardless of what the Genyou Senshi expected of her, Tamaika also bowed. "I will not let my arrogance overwhelm me as you have witnessed on this ugly day. IT is my deepest apology. I have accepted yours. I have faith that you will keep to your word."

"As do I. Allow us to be a better people for the sake of tomorrow." Tamaika nodded once before gathering her shattered pride and exiting the eerily quiet grounds.

"She might have faith but I don't. We've no time for your self-loathing. You've wasted enough of my time as is." Knowing better than to argue or snap, Saori obediently but reluctantly followed the Genyou Senshi to a smaller indoor room. It was bare of furniture, save for two cushions on the floor. Following the Genyou Senshi's example by sitting, she waited for her next order. "Cross your legs." Placing a kunai between them, the Genyou Senshi continued, "I will use my second state Mind's Eye to make you use this kunai to cut your throat. You will try to do the same to me. You have no concern for my life, only for yours."

Saori tried to ignore the hairs on her neck, sensing the obvious danger. The Genyou Senshi seemed to contemplate something for a moment before adding, "To get from first state to second state, you had to force your thoughts into Jigoku's mind when he trained you until you could regularly communicate with him in his mind. The same goes here. You must force your thoughts into my head. You must concentrate, and essentially convince my mind to pick up that kunai and slit my own throat. You will feel how I attempt to persuade your mind to do the same. Learn from what I do. You are proud of your precision, are you not? Defend it, or I will crush it.

"Above all, never lose concentration. This training session ends when I run out of chakra. Whether that is at twenty two hundred or two, it will not end prematurely. This" - The Genyou Senshi stuck a talisman to Saori's forehead - "will keep your chakra from reaching zero. I will be using very little chakra and I will have no mind barriers. It should make your job easier. In spite of this, if you break your concentration for whatever reason - whether you are tired or hunger 0 there's a chance I will not be able to stop myself, and you will die. You are having it much easier than all your predecessors. You have no excuse not to achieve third state in a month. Protect that fathomable pride of yours, for your life hangs on it." Taking a deep breath, white displaced the gold of Saori's irises. In the next moment, Saori could feel the Genyou Senshi's consciousness push into her mind. Dusk had yet to fall, but Saori could already feel the strain.

A THERAPY JOURNAL. THE idea itself seemed idiotic to him. Wasn't his body the concern? His body was the one which was burnt to a crisp, not his mind. Furthermore, he couldn't imagine how writing would do any good for an arm sustaining multiple third degree burns. If he grimaced the slightest bit, he'd agitate the burns of equal severity on his face. Quietly, he ignored the voice in his head that reminded him of the title and honor he had recently lost.

Slowly and painstakingly, the boy reached for his brush, biting down the pain, absolutely refusing to scream. In a seat at his bedside sat his lone faithful servant, Akari. He'd given her strict instructions not to assist him, but so faithful was she that she could not seem to follow his orders in favor of his welfare. "Dono, let me help you. Please." The boy glanced at Akari through one visible red eye. "You mustn't agitate your wounds," she quickly added.

Sighing (none too roughly), he conceded in defeat. She prepared ink from water and his ink stick, gently and delicately dipping his brush in the ink before carefully placing it in his grip. "This would be much easier if I just had a…" He didn't want to think about it. Just a thought would incite rage and pain, both of which he had plenty of as is. Akari nodded with sympathy. It just wasn't fair! First he had been set up to murder someone he treasured; not only did he not acquire the jounin rank he was assured, but he had suffered these horrid burns which had received little not no medical attention. After his fatal battle had concluded, medics arrived on scene - apparently by order of his sensei - and immediately began treatment, only to be stopped by his damned cousin. She pulled rank on his sensei, and proceeded to order termination on his treatment. He'd always known her as a foul and deceitful woman, but this was above and beyond. It did not ameliorate his rage any when he woke half a month later with a dry throat, hunger pangs, and in more pain than many might experience in a lifetime. Akari, who was far from being a medic, had been the only one allowed to see to him., The following day he had been informed that the village elders had praised his cousin for stopping his medical treatment and gave her the honorable title that had almost been guaranteed to be his. Almost.

"Dono?" Akari queried, noting the shaking of his hands.

"I want… I want to walk."

"Go outside? Let me get your wheelchair…"

"No!" he snapped, nearly frightening the wits out of the servant. "I want to walk… with my own two feet."

"You can't!" Akari argued, already up in arms. "Your body can't handle it. You have to wait!"

"It's been over half a year. That title has been promised to my cousin but it's not entirely hers yet. I can still take it back, Akari. There's a decisive battle coming - if I come home a war hero, I'll take my title back. But writing crap and sitting here isn't going to help. I need to be ready to fight when the time comes. You know me. The injury to my pride is greater than any physical injury." It was Akari's turn to concede.

"Will you let me help you, at least?"

"…Yes."

"Dono, you're going to kill me one day," she sighed, reaching for his lone uninjured arm. He nearly smirked, had his burns forgotten to r remind him of their existence. Slowly but steadily, he made it to his feet, Akari guiding him patiently. The pain was overwhelming, but he forced it out of his mind, focusing on three words someone had said in his defense: "He will be."

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