The picture frame of Team 7 was gone, just the flimsy photo was left in my hand. I frowned as I fingered a slight tear in the corner. This was all I had to my name and to my past. The creases were rough from unfolding and folding so many times. I sighed as I slipped the memory back into my pocket.

"I'm still waiting, Naruto."

I leaned against the building. Listening.

When the jingle noise went off, I sprang to my feet. I stayed close to the wall and aligned myself with the corner of the store. Carefully, I tilted my head just far enough to see the shop keeper lock up and make his way in the opposite direction. I waited patiently until I couldn't see the man's retreating back anymore.

My eyes scanned the streets for civilians. My senses gave me the O.K and I warily made my way to the back of the building. My black gloves clicked and a bobby pin shot out of my pointer finger. Picking locks is child play, I just hope the shopkeeper wasn't a Ninja and put up a seal.

The lock clicked and the door opened with a squeak. I was thankful that my eyes were already adjusted to the darkness, I could easily make out the cash register. I grinned with victory as I made my way over and took all the money I could stuff into my pockets.

As I shut the door behind me, I couldn't help but feel proud. My first B&E.

Well, not really. I've done plenty breaking and entering when I was a Ninja, but never for my own benefit. Always a mission, never for myself.

Stealing gave me a high, and suddenly I wanted to do more than just steal from stores.

"That was too easy," a shaky voice behind me said.

Caught patting my own back, I turned in horror. But that was quickly replaced with relief. It was just an old man. He was short and had grey hair. Something that caught my attention was the black top hat he wore. It had a beautiful, long feather sticking out.

He smiled warmly at me, "You should not give yourself too much credit for such an easy task."

I blinked in surprise, but I immediately became suspicious. My senses were on high alert and yet I could not notice a person standing right outside.

The old man simply raised a hand, "Don't be alarmed, you don't need to be worried about me."

My eyebrow rose in a silent question.

He simply turned around and gestured for me to follow, "Oh, come along. Out of pity I will bring you to my cottage." When I didn't trail after him he said, "You look like you need a shower."

My eyes softened at the thought of a hot shower. I hesitated, "Why should I trust you?"

"A thief can trust a fellow thief, can't they?"

That old man's a thief? "You sure don't look like one," I said bluntly.

A deep belly laugh spilled out of his mouth, "Neither do you." He sighed, "too innocent, too young, too pretty."

"I'm not any of those things," I murmured. "It doesn't matter what your appearance is. A person of any shape or form can steal if they choose."

He stopped walking and turned to face me, "That is true, but not just anyone can successfully walk down the dirt path of a thief, of a bandit, of an assassin."

I shook my head. "What were you doing? Waiting for me?"

"I was taking a leisurely stroll, is that such a crime?" He chuckled at his own joke. When I didn't respond he continued, "You seemed suspicious and I stopped and decided to observed you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, you acted like a novice. I wondered if you had the skills to break into a house and enough courage to act upon it." He said matter-of-factly.

So, out of curiosity and the rare companionship of another person, I decided to follow him. In silence, we arrive at his house. It was wooden with a chimney that puffed out grey clouds of smoke. The thought of killing the old man couldn't be removed from my mind. How easy it would be. The benefits outweighed the burdens.

I hadn't realized I was staring at the cottage until the old man called out, "Come on in!"

My feet were rooted to the ground, "Why?" Why is he doing this? Why should I trust this man? Why should I put myself in danger just because somebody showed me kindness for the first time in months?

"You may still be innocent, but you have been through much heartache."

His words danced around my head, "who are you?"

The old man smiled, "You can just call me Ouji-San. I would like to know your name as well."

I gulped, "Haruno Sakura."

After being introduced to one another, he offered me a cup of tea as I made myself comfortable on his couch by the fire. I felt like a caveman, breaking out of that solid ice cube I've been trapped in for hundreds of years.

"Kenji-Kun, we have a guest!" I heard the old man call.

By the time he was handing me my tea, a young boy with a curious gaze came into the room. He looked up at the old man, "Who's she?"

"Now, now. Don't be rude, Kenji-Kun," Ouji-San lectured.

"My name is Sakura. What's yours?" I said in a sweet, honey-filled voice.

The little boy ignored my attempt at being nice and rolled his eyes, "Didn't you hear? I'm Kenji."

The old man sighed in annoyance, "My apologies, Sakura. Kenji-Kun has a bit of an attitude these days." I watched him as he took off his hat and placed it on the coat rack by the door.

"That's a nice hat," I commented.

"Yes, I agree," the old man smiled, causing wrinkles to form on the side of his eyes. "That hat has quiet the history. Back in my day, the hat had a name."

"Not this story again," Kenji whined.

"A name?" I asked.

The old man nodded, his eyes elsewhere, recalling his memories. "Oh, what fun times I had." He waddled over to sit next to the young boy on the couch. "The hat was once called Feathertop."

"Feathertop?" I repeated.

He sighed in happiness, "Oh, yes. It had quiet the legend. People now-a-days don't know the tale."

"The stupid feather was from a legendary bird. It blessed the person with good fortune if they wear it," Kenji spat out.

Instead of being mad that the boy spoiled the story, the old man only laughed. "It's true. Bandits and thieves from all over the world would hunt for Feathertop in hopes of obtaining good fortune."

I frowned, "good fortune?"

"Love, wealth, power, fame, and health is the ideal package in good fortune," the old man's eyebrows drew together in sadness. "An interesting tale, don't you think?" I watched the man pat the young boy on the head, "Unfortunately, it is only that. An interesting tale, a myth, a legend. Nothing more. If anything it is a curse."

I leaned forward so my elbows rested on my knees, "How is it a curse?"

"Like I mentioned, people - dangerous people from all over the world would search for Feathertop. Once I obtained it, I set myself up for being a human target."

I nodded in understanding, "You aren't anymore, right?"

The old man's saddened look brightened a little, "Of course not." He paused before continuing, "Sakura, are you going to continue thieving?"

The question was a very, very good question. There's always that option that I could become a regular citizen and get a job and earn my money. On the other hand, I could steal from people and live a life that would keep me on the edge.

My train of thought was interrupted by the memories of Konoha. I earned my rightful place there, but yet they didn't have enough brain cells to figure out that I was faithful to my village. I should try something new, something different.

"Yes," my voice low and steady, confident and strong.

"You may take Feathertop, if you wish."

My eyes widened at his offer.

"After my son failed to return from war, I've lost complete faith in that hat," the man said.

I sipped my tea nervously.

"I know you're from Fire Country, Sakura."

My body went rigid and I stared up at the man in shock, "Are you going to try and kill me?"

His face was anything but serious, "Our countries are at peace now, I have no reason to."

Somehow his answer didn't reassure me. "How do you know I'm from The Land of Fire?"

"You are far to bright to come from Sound, Sakura. You have this atmosphere that screams foreign. There is this spark that you have that I only see in Konoha Shinobi." When I only stared at him he continued, "I take it you participated in in the war?"

I frowned, "Yes, I was once a Medical Ninja."

The old man brightened, "Ah, yes. Impressive. I apologize on behalf of my village, we never could see eye-to-eye on certain things."

I really can't figure out this old man. I glanced at the boy, who at the moment, seemed bored out of his mind. For some odd reason, the child looked familiar.

"Now, why would a village get rid a Medical Ninja during a war?" He looked at me innocently.

My hands gripped the cup in my hands, "I was a traitor." When he didn't reply I continued, "Tension was high. The elders in my village wouldn't risk the tiniest possibility that there could be spy in their territory. Even if it was the apprentice of the Hokage." The last part I whispered in a hushed tone.

The old man leaned back against the couch. "You weren't a traitor, though, were you?"

"Of course I wasn't!" I yelled. I exhaled a deep sigh, "Sorry, I didn't mean to yell."

"What happened?" Kenji asked.

I looked down at the boy who was gazing up at me with a newfound interest. "I saved a man." I sipped my tea, "I showed kindness to the enemy and saved his life."

The old man's eyes widened in surprise, "Good for you!"

"You think what I did was right?" This man really confuses me.

The man only scoffed, "I say good riddance. The village wasn't good enough for you, Sakura."

I smirked, "Are you praising me only because I chose to save a Sound Ninja?"

The man laughed, "No, no. What you did was right. Don't let anyone else tell you otherwise, you did the humane thing."

I felt my eyes water at his words. "Would it be bad that I regret doing it?"

The man cocked his head to the side in confusion, "why would you say that? You can't possibly think that you didn't the wrong thing - saving that man."

"I'm not sure. Even after all this time, I still don't know how I feel."

"Was there more to it? Did something else happen?" He asked, genuinely concerned.

I nodded, "I can remember the Sound Shinobi's name without even thinking about it." I gritted my teeth, "The man I saved, his name was Ryu Tanaka and h-"

"My dad?"

I looked at the boy in shock. "What did you say?"

"Ryu?" The old man stared at me, "Ryu is my son! Are you telling me that he is alive?"

"Dad's alive?"

I hadn't realized I dropped my cup of tea until I heard the glass shatter against the floorboards. "Oh, I'm so sorry," I said quickly. I went to get up, but the old man held out his hand.

"Tell me about my son!"

The crackling of the fire was the only thing I heard for a few moments. My gaze settled on the boy, "he did tell me he had a son." I frowned, "Ryu isn't alive." I closed my eyes to block out the sight of their faces. Whatever expression they were making, I didn't want to see.

After a few seconds, the man spoke. "You are welcome to stay."

My eyes slowly fluttered opened, "you aren't mad?"

"No. It was my fault for jumping to conclusions. I apologize," he voice was soft and sincere.

"Well, Ryu Tanaka," I glanced over at Kenji, "mentioned that he had a boy back home. He told me that he missed him very much and wished to go see him."

Kenji's eyes began to fill up with water and spill over his cheeks. He held a frown, trying to hold back his tears.

"Unfortunately," I paused, "he didn't pull through. I'm sorry for your loss."

They'll never have to know the truth about Ryu Tanaka. They never have to know that he chose revenge over the thought of being with his son.

"Let me clean up the little spill," the old man got up from his seat to get a rag from the kitchen. "Sakura, I'm glad I had this conversation with you. Maybe my good fortune is finally starting, hm?"

"There is nothing fortunate about dad's death!" Kenji yelled. "It doesn't matter that she saved Dad, in the end he still isn't alive."

Neither of us said anything. Instead, the old man showed me what would be my room for the next year and a half.

"...And some lettuce, please."

"Here you go ma'am," the lady handed me my bag of groceries. "Have a nice day."

My first time into town with Feathertop. It's a fancy hat and today just seemed right to show to off. Never bothered to before, but why not test it's legend? So far, everything seems ordinary.

I know they aren't, but it feels like everybody is secretly watching me. Knowing the stories that Feathertop came with, I feel self-conscious. Or maybe it's just because I stole twenty dollars from the store clerk in broad daylight.

As I made my way towards Ouji-San's home, I began to feel something was off. Why were there three charkras? They all seemed different than the usual essence that Kenji and Ouji-San gave off. I hurried my pace until I broke out into a run.

When I was a mere fifty yards away, my feet slid across the dirt to try and stop my running.

A man dressed up in a grey armored outfit emerged from the bushes. He didn't wear any forehead protector and he held only one dagger. I forgot how to breath once I spotted drips of blood that dotted his face.

"Whose blood is that?" My voice came out shaky.

The man simply ignored me and continued to stare at my hat. After a few moments of silence, two more men emerged from the bushes.

"I couldn't find it, Butch. It's not there." When the two men caught sight of me, they gazed at me, speechless.

"I found it," Butch said.

I narrowed my eyes, "Whose blood is that?"

Butch simply smiled, "A little boy's. And an old man's."

Before he could utter another syllable I appeared in front of his face. Our noses barely touching.

Thankfully, Ouji-San had me keep my skills updated and honed. Even in times of peace, we must train he said.

I gripped his throat with ease and rubbed my thumb into his vein, "You killed a child?"

When he opened his mouth to reply, I spit down his throat. He choked and struggled under my hand like a mouse caught in a trap. He tried to slash his dagger out at me, but with little force, I caught his wrist and pressed my thumb down just beneath his palm. The man was forced to drop his only weapon.

He is so weak compared to me.

Butch's body eventually fell limp.

I eyed the two other men who didn't bother to do anything to save their leader. I threw the corpse in their direction. As soon as they were about to react, I materialized in front of them. I fisted both of my hands into each other's hair and slammed the two of their heads together. Their eyes rolled back into their head and they immediately slumped against one another.

I backed away from the bodies and stared at my red hands.

"This can't be happening," I murmured. "This can't be happening, this can't be happening!"

My feet turned and ran into the direction of the cottage. I stopped in my tracks when I found Kenji a little ways off from the house. He laid on his stomach with knives thrusted into his back. He must of tried to escape.

I later found Ouji-San nailed to the front door.

After processing what had happened, I could only sit on the wooden steps to the cottage. My mind reeled and I started beating myself up over their deaths.

If I hadn't taken Feathertop, they wouldn't of killed the only two people that brought me happiness. If I hadn't gone to town, I could've protected them and they would still been alive.