Author's Note: Alright, chapter 3 is here a day before I planned on having it finished! :D I'm pretty proud of myself for this chapter, I must admit, and I hope you guy's like it :) It is kind of slow, but it's almost twice the size of my usual chapters, so I hope that makes up for it :p

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Leaf Village. Hokage. Ninjas. None of these words meant anything to Erza, but seeing as she couldn't necessarily call the person who was helping her 'crazy'; she was forced to smile and pretend to be pleased.

This Kakashi guy still struck her as suspicious, even if he had three kids who seemed to think he was alright. What if he was a wizard who used magic to trick people into thinking they belonged in his own twisted little world? No; she couldn't let her guard down.

Thinking of the kids, she had to assume that none of them were his; not that she could've compared facial features with that god-forsaken mask he was wearing, of course. Glancing at him from the corner of her eyes, she decided he knew how to fight and was relatively used to it. He moved silently, his motions smooth and purposeful as his only visible eye constantly surveying the area despite his look of peace.

He was used to being in battles, and as she remembered the three kids, she couldn't help but think they were the same way.

"So, this Hokage of yours, what exactly is he to your people?" She asked conversationally, the word sounding strange on her tongue.

Kakashi glanced over at her, eyes smiling in response, "Well, I suppose you could call him our leader. He makes decisions that concern all of the Land of Fire. He's a good man, and is probably one of the strongest ninjas out there. I'd trust him with my life is I had to."

Erza mulled over his words, the only person coming to mind that resembled his thoughts was Makarov; so this 'Hokage' guy couldn't be too bad.

Within moments, she was face to face with a large gateway, an expansive city lying behind it. Kakashi greeted the two guards as he entered the gate, and Erza couldn't help but notice the confused looks that they gave her.

People were everywhere within the 'village', as the white-haired ninja had called it, and Erza warily tried to watch everyone that passed her; expecting an attack from all sides. No attacks came though, and she was actually surprised at how happy everyone seemed to be, talking and laughing together like they'd known each other their whole lives. It reminded her so much of home, that she felt a strange pang in her heart.

She missed everyone at the guild; including Natsu and Gray and their stupid arguments, and Lucy with her innocent mindset. They were her team, and she needed to have them with her to feel whole again.

Kakashi led her up a long set of steps, all leading to a important looking room that sat up at the very top. Before he opened the door, he glanced over to look at her, "Don't worry, everything is going to be fine." He assured her, as if sensing her growing uneasiness.

Erza nodded, forcing a smile onto her face, "I'm not worried, I assure you." She responded, hoping to sound confident so that he would stop viewing her as the weak little girl that she wasn't. "Open the door; I'm prepared to face him."

Kakashi blinked at her answer, but did as he was told regardless, and the door was opened to reveal a very old man looking over some papers; a pipe in his mouth and a strange red symbol on the top of his hat. "Ah, Kakashi, I hear your mission was a success." He said without looking up, as if expecting the other ninja.

Kakashi nodded, "Naruto got a little carried away like he always does, but I've pretty much come to expect that level of destruction from him. He just has to learn to curb that enthusiasm of his."

Erza had to stifle a chuckle, just imagining Natsu's 'enthusiasm' whenever he completed a mission – which usually involved a lot of destruction being left in his wake. The Hokage chuckled as well, shaking his head at the news, "I'm sure he'll mature at some point, he just requires a little more of a push than the others.

"I do have a question for you though, Kakashi, though I'm sure you have good reason behind your choice. Who is this girl you have decided to bring back with you?" He asked, looking up from his papers for the first time since they'd arrived, looking straight at Erza. "She bears no identification of her village, which causes enough suspicion, but she is also adorned in this strange garb. I wish to know why you thought it wise to lead her to me."

Kakashi dipped his head to the leader, "I found this girl, Erza, within the first after hearing a strange noise while out on the mission and went to investigate. While spying to see if she was a threat, it was made clear to me that she wasn't exactly sure of her location, and that she was no threat to us. It was later cleared up through our conversation, and I have reason to believe that she was transported here after someone altered her memory, and she was clutching her head when I first saw her. I did not discuss this with her, because even if I did ask she would probably only have the altered memories."

Erza blinked as he spoke the last part aloud, instantly feeling indignation before she thought over his words and began to see the logic behind them. What if her memories were just the creations of some criminal? Would that mean all of her feelings up to this point had merely been an illusion? They couldn't be, they just felt way too real… Right?

"Until we can figure out exactly what is going on, I request your permission to have her remain in the village. I will take full responsibility for her, and will continue to train my students as well." Kakashi finished, waiting patiently while the Hokage thought, briefly looking Erza over as if to find a threat.

"Very well. Keep an eye on her to make sure she isn't someone dangerous, and report everything to me." He ordered, not even bothering to hide his words from her. "I would get her a change of clothes, as well; we don't want to let everyone in the village know what's happening."

Kakashi nodded, dipping his head once more. "Thank you, Hokage; I'll be sure to let you know about anything I can find out." He glanced over at Erza as if urging her to do something, and it took her muddled brain a moment to figure out what he meant.

"Oh! Yes, thank you very much. I really appreciate all the help that's been given to me, and I'll be sure to repay you all for your kindness." She said, bowing her head slightly as well to show her gratitude.

The Hokage smiled, "No worries. Now, if you would, I have work to do."

Kakashi grinned, nodding in response to the Hokage's words, "Of course, we were just taking our leave." He said, leading Erza out the way they had come, her mind still reeling from his earlier statement.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sounded a girl's voice once they reached the bottom of the steps, and Erza looked towards the source to find the three children from earlier. Sensei? What did that even mean? She figured it meant something to do with teacher, considering his earlier remark about his students.

"Oh, hello Sakura. I would like you three to meet Erza; she'll be staying in the village for a while." He told them, and they immediately turned their eyes to her in curiosity.

Erza forced a smile, "How do you do?"

Sakura was the first to speak, smiling sweetly as she waved to her, "I'm Sakura, it's really nice to meet you." She greeted, almost interrupted as the blonde one rushed forward, pushing the pink-haired ninja out of his way.

"Hi! I'm Naruto, the strongest ninja to ever walk the earth and future Hokage. Don't worry though, I-" Before his sentence could be finished, Sakura angrily hit him upside the head.

"Shut up, you idiot! Everyone knows that Saskue's the strongest ninja ever." She responded, crossing her arms as she glanced over towards the quiet blue-haired ninja.

He glanced up, "My name is Saskue." Was all he said, and Erza got the opinion that he really didn't like to talk much.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet all of you. If you don't mind, I would really like to rest for a while; could you perhaps show me where a hotel is?" She inquired, glancing at Kakashi when she did.

He raised an eyebrow at her, "Considering you don't have any money on you, from what I can tell, I doubt you'll be able to get a room for cheap. You're just going to have to stay with me, I did promise the Hokage I'd keep an eye on you while you stayed in the village, and that'd be the easiest way." He answered, saying a quick goodbye to the others before heading in the direction of his house.

Erza quickly followed behind, frowning in displeasure, "Are you sure that's alright? I mean, I don't want to be a bother."

Kakashi shook his head, "Don't worry about it. You should be better soon, and I'm hardly ever home anyway. We won't see each other very often unless you decide to come along when I go to train the others, which I doubt you'd want to sit through."

On the contrary, Erza would love to see a training routine, just to get an idea of what these people could do if it came to a fight. When they reached his home, Erza realized it was relatively small and compact, which was practical seeing as he was never there anyway. "Make yourself at home, I'll be back soon." Kakashi said before disappearing, leaving her to search the place for anything suspicious before he returned.

Immediately beginning to sort through his belongings, she was almost disappointed when the most suspicious object was a book by the name of 'Icha Icha Paradise', which had caused Erza to blush after opening it to read only a line. Why he had such a book was a mystery to her, but she figured that everyone had their odd quirks.

After deciding it was safe, she searched for an extra pillow and blanket, easily making a makeshift bed for herself on the couch. She wasn't all that interested in sleeping in some strange man's house, let alone his bed. She had no idea what she'd find there. Not wanting to change out of her armor just yet, she was pretty much ready to sleep when Kakashi suddenly reappeared, a bag of clothes in his hands.

"I got these from a friend of mine; they should fit you just fine." He offered, holding out the bag. She looked inside after taking, finding a few other necessities along with the clothes.

"Thank you, Kakashi. Please thank your friend for me as well." She responded quietly before setting them by the couch, figuring she'd wait until tomorrow to put it in her requipping dimension.

Kakashi nodded and headed for his own room, giving a half-wave as he did, "Good night then, Erza." He called, earning only a mumbled response as she finally decided to requip into her pajamas once he'd closed his door. She requipped a small sword as well, placing it snugly under her pillow in case she needed it.

They may have been kind to her, but she still didn't trust these people. Even if her memories had the possibility of being fake, she still wanted to know for sure before she risked getting hurt.