AN: Warning: Gore

Lesson 7: The wisest people remember the past, walk in the present, and gaze forward into the future.

"There was this jutsu I wanted to teach you... As a graduation present you know." Kakashi said out of the blue one day after a grueling day of D-Rank missions. I was startled out of my thoughts and almost dropped the book I was reading. He gave me a look and I flushed in embarrassment. It was bad enough that it was called Heartfelt, was pink, and was one of the notoriously romantic teenage books on the shelves. To be 'caught' completely engrossed in it, was mortifying. He raised an eyebrow.

"Don't give me that look. You do it too." I said defensively. He just rolled his eyes.

"As I was saying, there's this new jutsu I wanted to teach you, but it's a long process, especially since you have none of the requirements needed to actually preform the jutsu yet."

I inwardly shuddered at the thought of work and long in the same sentence.

"What is it?" I asked tentatively.

"It's called 'Chidori'. Lightning affinity assassination technique. I think you're ready for this level of technique after seeing your progress in training this last week."

Wait, what?

I would have squealed in fangirlish excitement had I no clue what kind of effort would be involved. Kakashi had been my favorite character in my old life and learning Chidori would have excited me before because it was his signature jutsu. Instead I felt the blood drain out of my face. He may have been my favorite, but he was brutally rigorous when it came to training me.

"I'm guessing I have no choice in the matter?"

He gave me an innocent looking eye smile.

"Of course you don't."

I felt the sudden urge to flee. He put a hand on my shoulder, rooting me to the spot, while still eye smiling.

"We'll start as soon as we're done with tomorrow's mission."

Well, shit.

I have to say that I was not expecting the training that Kakashi put me through to less than torture. Of course it involved him pulling me around the village again, but this time at shunshin speed and then making me train more. However, all the running away that I did from canine and Anbu alike actually helped me to see where we were going and keep whiplash from the rapid turns to a minimum.

Never thought I would be grateful for being run into the ground.

By the end of the training cession, I felt like my arm had been turned into a noodle and my legs felt similarly like jelly. What did surprise me about it, was that he had taken me to the training ground on the Hokage plateau. Everything was already set up with what I assumed was a training doll in the distance, a bunch of traps and other sharp odds and ends.

"How long have you been planning this?" I asked suspiciously.

He looked at me blankly. "I don't know what you're talking about." Liar.

I huffed. "And what wonderful things have you set up for me on this pleasant autumn day?" I asked sarcastically.

"The objective of this course," he said as I looked carefully at the straight line of sight to the training dummy and observed the two trenches on either side of the 1.5 meter wide runway. "Is to strike the dummy and avoid any of the goodies that might or might not spring up from those lovely trap pits." He said sunnily. Then he broke composure and looked at me seriously.

"The standard time I want you to get to by the end of the month is 3.5 seconds without traps and 5 second with traps, at least." I groaned trying to measure the distance between the start line and the dummy. It was roughly 200 meters. Screw trying for high chūnin-level speed (which I had previously been aiming for), I needed to go 1.23 times faster than that, because it was about twenty meters longer than my previous training ground. I could have reached that time on a good day with the wind behind me and rice candy in my system at the old track, and now I had to be consecutively faster than my average time to even consider making this move useful?

I had to go from 173 meters in four seconds to 200 meters in three? That was a over forty kph velocity change!

I blinked, slightly disconcerted when the calculation came to me as easily as breathing. My lips twitched into a frown as my fingers ran through my chaotically wind blown hair and contemplated the thought. I was pretty sure that I shouldn't have come up with the numbers that quickly.

"There are four stages to this training." He held up his fingers, oblivious to my inner confusion. "First is getting you up to the correct speed. Because you don't have the Sharingan like I do to help you, you need to hone the speed to nearly twice as fast as I have to with it. Second is reflexes, which plays into the first stage. You need to be able to counter anything and everything that happens when moving at that speed. Compared to my aided Chidori, you have to be three times more aware of your surroundings and have one-fourth times shorter the natural reflex time. The third and fourth are putting the Chidori to the first and second stages."

I thought about what he had explained and frowned. He had put way too much thought into this. He didn't need to perfect this jutsu anymore without the use of the Sharingan... So he wouldn't unnecessarily put in the time and effort into a lost cause... Unless...

He thinks that I could actually perfect it.

He knew that I wasn't a "kill it" kind of person, and more of a "traumatize it" kind. He knew that I was absolutely not the kind of person who wanted to use an assassination technique. But he knew that I was crazy enough and creative enough to pull 'practically ingenious solutions' to problems out of my butt.

There were three ways to go about solving the problem. One; I could brute force it and try and build up my speed and reaction time past human level so that I could completely bypass the counterattack situation like he had just said, two; I could completely change the structure of the jutsu and eliminate the opening for a counter, or three; I could tweak just a tiny part of the jutsu, possibly in a small enough way, and make it flexible enough to counter a counterattack.

I scowled. My mind kept working.

The first way was the cleanest and put the least amount of pressure on me as a user, but would take the most effort and time. The second would work, but it would bastardize the jutsu and remove the point in teaching it to me in the first place, not even mentioning that all the time in the world may not make it up to the Chidori's standard. The third would take anal nitpicking and skill that I didn't really have as an intermediate lighting user but was the most practical approach to the problem.

I scowled harder.

"How the hell do you think I can master it without the Sharingan? Or here's a better question. Why do you even think I have a chance at it at all?"

"By using your highly functional brain and because I have faith in you." He said simply. I froze, face going slack. Chuckling at my expression, he swiftly reached out and ruffled my hair. "You forget, Ameko. Unlike your teammates, I actually like you."

"Um... Thanks?"

"Don't thank me. You haven't even started training yet."

I went back to scowling.

After three days, I was four hours into my training schedule when the team showed up at the usual training ground. Since there was no way for me to stay with the team and train at the 'secret' training ground Kakashi had set up the runway of death in, I was stuck trying to sock the training dummy in the presence of my teammates.

"Hey there, Ameko-chan! You here for training too?" Naruto asked excitedly as usual. I looked up from the ground as I heaved for breath. They had just showed up at the training ground for some new training and Kakashi was late as always.

"I am not in the mood for your exuberance today, Naruto." I answered bluntly aggravated at the fact that I hadn't hit the stupid straw doll yet. "And yes, I'm here for training. Although, I think Kakashi-nii gave me a different assignment then you guys." I said.

"What kind of training is that?" Naruto asked eagerly. "Something super cool and awesome and advanced?! Is that what kind of training we're gonna be doing? Huh? Huh?!" He blabbed. Sakura sighed while Sasuke just tried to ignore us.

"He has me doing speed training. Nothing too fancy." I told him. "I have a week to get up to the target speed so he's having me sprint and try and hit a training dummy that replaces itself every ten seconds to a new location on the training ground."

"How do you know where it is?" Sakura asked looking around.

I frowned. "It's over there." I said locating it easily. "It's been here since this morning when the dew was settling, so its pretty easy to find."

"Eh?" Sakura asked. "What does that have to do with the location? Did you memorize where it pops up?"

"Er... No, but listening for it isn't too hard either, I guess if you wanna try locating it by sound."

"So uh, so uh, how do you find it then?" Naruto asked. Sasuke's very uninterested stance twitched slightly at that.

I tapped the side of my nose the proceeded to say, "Magic."

They all collapsed dramatically at my answer.

"Grr! You never make any sense Ameko-chan!" Naruto griped.

"For once, Naruto's right. You're hopeless." Sakura nodded. Naruto looked like he was doing to cry with happiness. Ugh. I've got to start working with them and get rid of their infatuation. I felt a feeling of guilt well up in me as my hypocrisy made itself known. Maybe I'll start...later.

"What kind of training are you guys gonna be doing?" I asked, flinging the conversation in a different direction.

"Sensei said we were going to do some kind of chakra training." Sakura explained vaguely. "He said something about 'chasing Ame-chan up a tree' when explaining, but who knows what that means."

"Exactly what it sounds like." I spoke flatly. Like I said, his training methods are crazy. They are effective, despite their ludicrous processes, and, in fact, they create plenty of 'how the hell did that happen?' situations. Just like this training regimine too. I'm basically trying to hit a straw dummy that has a seal on it, making it substitute itself to the other side of the training field every time I almost hit it, and making me face plant almost every time while doing so. It was infuriatingly frustrating, but effective. "He offhandedly remarked that chakra control could allow one to climb a tree and then the next day, he's chasing me with it in his hand." I continued. That was the time I drew a smile on all his masks. The bastard deserved it.

"Huh?" Naruto asked. "What's it?"

"It's sad that Sakura's probably the only one immune to it." I sighed. "She's probably the only one who'll be able to dodge it too." I added as an after thought.

"What is it?" Sakura repeated, now genuinely curious. I was about to explain when Kakashi showed up.

"What are my cute little students muttering about? Hm?" All four of us jumped to see Kakashi listening in on our conversation from one of the trees. Sitting vertically on the side of course.

"YOU'RE LATE!" "How the hell are you doing that?!" Sakura and Naruto yelled. Sasuke's face twitched. I just sighed.

"Do you enjoy doing this to us?" I questioned.

"Just as much as I enjoy my Icha Icha. Now mini minions," he addressed the other three. "I want each of you to find a tall tree within sight and climb to the top."

Naruto reddened at the name. "We are not your minions! And how the hell is climbing up a stupid tree gonna help me become a better ninja? I could do that in my sleep."

"Plot twist." I interjected. "No using your hands."

Dead silence for two seconds. Then, as predicted...

"That's CRAZY! How the hell are we supposed to do that!"

"He's doing it..." Sasuke muttered under his breath about Kakashi.

"That's impossible. Running up a straight drop is impossible." Sakura protested.

"On the contrary, it is very possible." Kakashi answered dryly.

"Oh yeah? How do you do it then?"

"Magic again?" I suggested.

They stared at me.

"You're crazy." Then three of them said in unison. Well, more like Naruto shouted, Sakura stated, and Sasuke sneered, but you get the picture.

I blinked and then shook my head at the absurdity of their statement and the irony of their simultaneous-ness.

"It's just like walking normally, but you add chakra and control and bam. You're supernatural."

Quite an apt description considering where I was from.

"What Ame-chan is trying to say is, you need to channel your chakra to the soles of your feet to stick to he tree. It's one of he hardest places to concentrate chakra and it will help hone your chakra control and make it easier to do jutsu."

I crossed my arms. "Like I said, magic."

"Ame-chan, do we have to go through this again? Chakra is not magic. It is a scientifically explainable phenomenon." I gave him a flat look. I remembered that conversation, and remembered the headache that followed afterwards.

"I reject your reality and substitute my own." Kakashi face-palmed at my reference. I clearly remember the first time I had used it and was barely able to keep my loony grin off my face at the thought.

"Really?" He asked. "You just had to go there again, didn't you?"

"Considering how you taught me how to shoot lightning from my fingertips, yes. I went there. Besides, reality can be boring. Insanity is much more fun." So is pretending to be a Sith Lord.

"Careful imouto. Your teammates might actually think you're crazy if you keep this up."

"I deny nothing." I deadpanned. Then another thought hit me. "You brought it with you didn't you? To motivate them?"

"Of course I did." Kakashi said looking offended. "Who do you take me for?"

"Come on! Tell me what it IS already!" Naruto shouted.

"Specialized paint balloons of course. Neon pink, green, and yellow." Kakashi answered gleefully. "All with rotten garlic mixed in, of course. So even if the stains do ever come out, the stench will inevitably linger."

All three of them paled.

"Good luck." I said to them. "And you thought I was crazy... Kakashi-nii is twice as insane as I am when it comes to training." Kakashi just grinned wider as he explained the entire exercise to my trio of teammates, not that they could see of course. I found myself grinning with him and it was a bit disconcerting that he had essentially brought out my suppressed sadistic side.

For the next six hours, I was entertained by the sound of my struggling teammates as I continued to charge at the dummy. If this was what chakra control training was like, I couldn't wait until stealth training.

"How are you doing on the speed training, imouto?" Kakashi asked the next day.

"I hate you sometimes. You're such a slave driver. I don't even get to see my teammates half the time. How am I supposed to bond with them?" I complained sarcastically.

"You talk to them all the time, Ame-chan." He replied unfazed. "You didn't answer my question."

I sighed. "I'll probably reach Jounin speed in the next two or three days." I resigned.

Kakashi seemed surprised. "Really? I thought it would have taken you at least one more week to get to that level."

"You're the one who's making me train for fucking fourteen hours a day!"

"Maa, language. And I thought you would be more behind in this considering how much effort you usually put into things like this. Is there something you're not telling me?" He asked slyly.

"What do you mean? I haven't done anything wrong."

"No, but you have impressed me. And I must say that it takes a lot to impress me."

"Me?"

"Yes."

"Impress you?"

"That is what I said."

I thought about it. The training. The conversations we had been having. Having to directly deflect a question about what kind of training I was doing. Then it hit me.

Despite my committed work ethic back in the Academy, I had done nothing exceptional or attention grabbing besides act like a weirdo and placing on the high average side in overall grades. I had purposefully held myself back from exploring my strengths and expanding my skill set, no matter how tempting it was to go into the library and look up books besides history and romance, so that I wouldn't have to deal with this situation at all.

Then of course, deduction thing for the genin test happened.

And then this speed thing.

Added to my talent for words and climbing achievements due to his meddling with my training schedule, again.

And I had probably just made myself out to be a prodigy.

Shit.

I had just impressed the Hatake Kakashi.

"I am not advanced at whatever the hell you think I am."

He smiled. "No. You're not."

I did a double take. Eh?

"How high did you score on that IQ test Shikaku gave you?"

"That thing he gave me was an IQ test!?"

He raised an eyebrow. So much for observational skills.

"Uh... Average?"

"What was the number?"

"...123?" I said uncertainly. That was average, I hoped. I like the number. It was odd, simple, and quirky.

I saw Kakashi's smile grow underneath his mask. "You have arguably just tested as a certifiable prodigy in intelligence." I paled.

"Wait! Isn't 160 the genius level? How does a number 37 points in difference count as prodigal level?" I asked my voice edged with panic.

"Anything over 120 is prodigy edged."

"Had you gotten a good night's rest the night before, you probably could have scored two to three points higher." He said gleefully. I felt irony making its presence known as he was the one who drove me the exhaustion in the first place. "Now, I can step up your training with actual, logical reasoning behind it instead of just getting away with being a 'slave driver' as you put it. You have surprised me and also proven to me that I have underestimated your intelligence multiple times. Take some credit. Admit you're a genius." He said teasingly.

Wait. Did he just... Oh, hell no.

"I am NOT a GENIUS!" I screamed at him. I think I saw him stiffen at the volume. "I've told you people a million times!" I ranted. "Don't call me that! Just 'cause I'm smart and good at learning things does not mean that I am a genius." I crossed my arms. I hated it when people called me that.

Kakashi was silent for a moment.

"Many would say otherwise, imouto." He pointed out, calmly.

"Shut up."

The third week of my training, I was finally able to activate and perform the jutsu. It was truly a one hit kill as I turned the straw dummy into dust when I struck it and I almost fainted from using up all my chakra.

At least that's what I'm supposed to tell people.

Yeah...

I was standing on the far end of the track waiting for the timer to go off. We had long since determined that I worked best under pressure, where my focus was almost inhuman and my mind sharpened to a razor's edge. My eyes narrowed in concentration as I waited in a relaxed guard stance and when the timer went off, my fingers were flying though the hand signs for chidori as I sprinted forward and the chirping mass of deadly lightning grew in my palm within the few precious seconds.

I dodged the first kunai barrage. Two seconds.

The chakra began screaming, reminding me of a bird's cry.

I avoided the senbon barrage, the fireball, and the flying swords. Three point six four seconds.

I pulled my arm back. Four point seven one seconds.

Then I hit it and straw exploded everywhere. As well as pulverized stone. And the remains of my glove and left sleeve.

I was frozen in place as my momentum was gone but I was more paralyzed by the fact that I had just vaporized a solid object. I had just theoretically killed my first opponent.

I stood there a moment, as the situation soaked in, before the shock hit me.

Hard.

The earth was ripped out from underneath me and I hit the ground with a bounce and a dull thud. My breathing turned shallow and quick as my heart raced to meet it and I gripped my arm like it wasn't apart of my body. Because it wasn't anymore.

It was a weapon. A weapon designed to kill.

I rolled over to the side, pulled down my mask and vomited. My vision faded in and out of black as I struggled to keep consciousness. I was shaking badly.

More than that, I was scared. The only thing was, I couldn't run away from my fears or give it a slap in the face like I normally would. This fear was of me, and my power. My power to kill. Oh God, I could kill people. I could turn them to dust.

Images flashed through my mind of Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Kakashi... All of them, blood spurting from their lips as electricity burned through their chests, their eyes wide as words of disbelief and betrayal spilled from their mouths.

I didn't realize that I was sobbing until I was already being examined by medics as the arms supporting me were shoved away and were replaced with proving fingers and cold metal.

I let out a terrified whimper, not remembering how I had gotten to the hospital in the first place, and I watched them pull Kakashi away even as his heated tenor protested against it. I was then pushed down onto a bed and strapped down like an asylum inhabitant and wheeled away.

I began screaming.

Then there were more hands and then the sudden introduction of ice into my skin drained the energy of my limbs and pulled me into the darkness.

I snapped awake, hitting my arm on the armrest next to my head with a thunk and a curse.

Wait, armrest?

I gazed at my surroundings and noticed that the couch I was laying on was made of a brown supple leather that I hadn't seen since I fell into my residence at Konoha.

I shook my head to clear mg thoughts and a grey painter's style cap flopped off my head and onto the red carpeted floor as mussed brown locked inhibited my vision. I lifted a hand to brush them out of the way when it hit me.

I was back. On Earth. In my old house.

Where my parents and brother lived with me.

Before I knew what I was doing, I was sprinting towards the lit kitchen where I was sure I would find them.

Instead I walked into a murder scene.

I turned the corner too quickly and slipped on the wet floor, crashing onto my butt with a flying explicative. But when I moved to pick myself up from the ground, I saw the bright crimson smear that I had made in the expanding puddles beneath me.

I screamed.

To my left my dad was lying face down with a serrated knife buried in his back and to my right my mom was face up with a bullet hole in her forehead. I had slipped in their blood.

I heard whimpering behind me and I turned to see my little brother Richard staring at mom and dad from the crack between the cabinet doors.

"Sis!" He whisper screamed at me. "They're still here! They-... Mom and Daddy..." He was trying very hard to keep the sobs quiet. I shushed him but my scream had already brought attention to us.

"What do we have here?" A voice snarled. Next I was being pulled up by my arms and pulled away from the cabinet. "Looks like you were right Kyle. There were a couple of brats hiding from us." A second man ripped open the cabinet and pulled out my screaming brother from his sanctuary.

"Leave him alone!" I yelled, trying to reach my brother, but the man slapped me across the face hard. I bit my lip to keep in the yelp of pain. "Fuck you bastards! Let me go!"

I heard two clicks and froze as the man holding my brother brought the loaded weapon up to his head. The other made its presence known as its cold muzzle pressed against my temple. I looked down. The man holding me was standing straight up, knees locked, and elbow wide. The gun he held was larger than his partner's, more of a revolver type than the pistol the other held, which meant it was heavier. A plan began formulating in my head.

"Ceccie," I heard Richard say. "Ceccie I'm scared."

The bastards snickered.

"Ricky, look at me." I said. "Look at me." My entire body was shaking. He opened his eyes, frightened. "I'll get us out of this. I- look at me. I promise." He nodded tearily. Perhaps knowing that I was lying through my teeth. I was crying too.

"That's sweet." The man behind me said. I steeled myself. "Too bad your gonna have to break that promise." I grit my teeth in anger.

Alighting my fury, I pushed against the thumb of the grip holding me in place freeing myself, then twisted the gun in his hand and shot. Then I ripped it from his fingers and fired it in the direction of the man holding Ricky.

His collar exploded red and he and my brother tumbled to the floor limp.

I instantly dropped the gun and rushed over to him. He wasn't moving. I pulled him into my arms, but then I saw the blood.

"What...? No. Nononononono!" I cradled him in my arms and patted his cheek. Red was flowing from the side of his head. "Ricky?! Ricky!" I tried. I shook him, trying to get him to respond to me. But it was too late. Ricky's eyes were already glazed over. I looked over to the dead man (the one I had killed) and I saw that his face was contorted in pain and knuckles were clenched tight against the grip of his gun. The gun that was pointed at my brother's temple.

I screeched in agony, crying in anguish against my brother's stained school uniform. I had just killed my brother.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Please just don't leave me alone. Don't leave me!

Everything turned white.

I found myself floating in a large white expanse. It was completely silent. There was absolutely nothing anywhere. It was empty.

Then a voice echoed in my head.

"You cannot live with a foot in two worlds. You must understand this. Nothing can remain balanced if physical tangents exist between worlds. Your period of trial has ended. Which world do you choose?"

There was nothing left to live for. I had just buried what was left of my mother, father, and brother. There was no point in living on Earth anymore. It wouldn't be the same. I would be living in a world devoid of color. No. Not living. Just existing.

I had to find a new purpose. I could no longer keep longing, deep in my heart, for my old life. It was over. Pointless.

"I choose the world of chakra."

I faded into the black of unconsciousness.

"Kaka-sensei, when's Ameko-chan going to wake up."

"Stop asking him, you idiot. Can't you see how torn up he is about this?" Came the whisper reply.

"Sasuke's right Naruto. Just leave him alone!"

...

"You really upset Inu-senpai by getting yourself hurt like this."

Silence.

"He hasn't spoken a word since you went under like this."

Silence.

"He won't forgive himself until you wake up."

Silence.

A sigh.

"I won't forgive you if you die."

...

"Hey, Ameko. It's a real drag to come and visit you when you don't talk back. You better get your sorry sarcastic self up and awake. ... Chouji's been crying like you're already gone and Ino won't even visit she's so upset. ... Mum and dad are worried too... Just wake up, okay?"

...

"You still asleep, Ameko? You that dog tired?"

"K-Kiba! That's rude!"

"What should I say then?!"

"U-umm..."

"Hm. It's inefficient to sleep so long. You need to be active to stay healthy."

Silence.

"Shino, you're shit at this too."

...

"Please. Please just wake up."

...

My nose itched.

I was warm and comfortable and completely at ease in whatever fluffy thing that surrounded me. I was content in just lying there and slumbering on, but...

My nose itched.

Do you know what happens when my nose itches?

I sneeze.

So I tried to convince myself that my nose was not itchy at all. It was just the same nose that was smelling antiseptic and dog.

My thoughts suddenly stop. I didn't know anything that smelled like both antiseptic and dog. I scrunched up my nose at the thought, and then it happened.

I sneezed.

Which promptly caused my entire body to convulse and several canine yelps violated my eardrums as well as make me feel how sore I was. I let out a groan.

"Ame-chan?" I heard a voice ask weakly.

I snapped open my eyes and blinked blearily. "Kashi-nii?" I answered looking for the noticeable shock of silver. Everything seemed to have had color thrown up on it as I saw reds, and blues, and greens dotting my vision.

When I finally blinked away the blurriness, I nearly fainted at what I saw.

I was surrounded by colorful, gift wrapped goodies and flowers and ninken and four pairs of eyes.

All of them were uncharacteristically serious and quiet.

Suddenly I noticed that Kakashi, Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke were wearing black.

I realized in horror that they had believed me to be dead.

Fresh tears began cascading down my cheeks.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" I sobbed. "I didn't mean-... I'm so sorry! I just-"

"Ame-chan-"

"I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to!" I flashed back to when I was holding Ricky in my arms, dead and bloody.

Suddenly arms were around me, and I was crying into Kakashi's shoulder.

"It's okay, Ame-chan." He soothed.

"I didn't mean to kill him! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

He pulled back from me.

"What are you talking about?"

"I killed him, nii-san. I killed him."

"Who?"

My voice dropped to barely a whisper. "I killed my baby brother."

It took me three more days in the hospital before I stopped being hysterical and calmed down enough to be released. I wasn't allowed to see anyone besides my team during that time, as it was a rather personal and sensitive matter, but the day I was let out, everyone came to see me.

But I didn't want to see them.

I holed myself up in my room and sat there, soaking in my self loathing and guilt. My door was locked tight and I didn't answer for anyone. I didn't leave my room for anything. I didn't eat or sleep. I just sat there.

It was dark out when my door opened.

I looked up from my balled up position in the corner of the main room to see a tall, familiar figure walk in and close the door behind him. The bastard had picked the damn lock and dismantled all the traps before I had even noticed his presence.

I was so not in the mood.

"What do you want, nii-san?" I asked tiredly.

He didn't say a word, but he grabbed my arm and tugged me out of the building. I don't have the strength to resist anymore, nor did I have the energy to keep mourning. I was stuck in an emotional limbo that I didn't know how to fix.

We walked in silence, him leading the way, and me following behind dutifully. When we finally stopped, I looked up to see the black memorial stone gleaming dully in the light of the crescent moon.

"I come here every day, you know." He spoke evenly. I knew. He walked up to the stone and brought my hand to touch it. Then slid it down and slightly to the side, brushing it against one of the names carved there. "I killed my brother." Uchiha Obito. "I killed my sister." He slid my hand lower. Nohara Rin. "I killed my teacher." Namikaze Minato. "And his wife." Uzumaki Kushina. "I even killed my own father."

He gave me a long, sad look. "I know, it's hard." He said. "You will never forgive yourself for it. But you can't keep dwelling on it like this."

Silence.

"How do you do it?" I asked. "How do you just, move forward, knowing that, one mistake, and you could do it again?"

Kakashi gave me a wistful look.

"A wise man once told me, 'Living is not about how long or how well you live. Living is being able to remember the past, act in the present, and work towards the future.' I took his words to heart."

I let the words sink in and we stood there in silence until the sun arose on the horizon.

As its gentle rays of light began peeking over the mountains, I felt myself begin to move on, to accept it. And to vow to never let it happen again.

"I'll try." I promised.

AN: I only have three words to say. I hate school. And sorry I'm late. Again. At least I'm back! Maybe... No promises on frequent updates. School is kicking my butt right now. There's a poll up on my profile. If you have the time, please input your opinion. Also, no beta. And I totally cried while writing this.