Kakashi sat across from the man. The small room was dimly lit, and besides the two chairs the men sat in, only a small wooden table lay between them. There was a bloodstain on the corner of it, and the man's eyes stared down it. Sweat beaded his face.

The man shifted his gaze to Kakashi as he rested his hand on the table. "So," Kakashi began, "you say you're innocent. You must have a convincing argument."

"I don't, but it's the truth. The woman- she, I don't know, she looked as if she were possessed. I was only trying to help her, but she kept slamming her head against the wall." He shook his head. "I know it sounds crazy."

"Where were you headed before you crossed her path?"

"Me and a group of friends go to the Bar-B-Q place down the road every friday night. I was heading home when I saw her."

"You were also intoxicated."

"I would never hurt anyone, let alone a young woman." The man shook his head, but met Kakashi's eye as he added, "I'm telling you, I know what I saw."

Kakashi tilted his head and replied, "You want me to believe that a woman beat herself up?"

The man rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, I told you, she looked like she was possessed, like she was under some sort of genjutsu."

Kakashi sighed. The man certainly seemed sure of himself, and his tone spoke rationally. But the words didn't make sense. Slowly, he rose to his feet. "We'll see what the woman says when she recovers," Kakashi said. "Until then, you may want to find a very good lawyer."

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She didn't really know what time it was, or if time existed. Sometimes, she would hear voices, though she couldn't make out any words. Everything seemed out of reach, but this oblivion became her bliss. In this floating darkness, she found comfort and didn't know pain.

She had slipped into someone else's dream, unaware in her sick state. Her mind had no guards or protections to keep at bay, no mental barriers they had been set up long ago. Now there was an open plain, and her mind was eager to explore all of it, leaving no stone unturned.

This dream brought tears. Tears of anger and sadness, desperation and hope. He was gone, now an enemy of the village. The dark-headed boy she had spent so much time with on missions, whose skills rose above all others, had left her there on a bench. She was alone, and he was gone. But his last words to her echoed from around, haunting her every move.

"Thank you."

"Sakura…Thank you."

"Thank…"

The dreams never relented as Chiisai lay under the sheets. When would it end? She was tired of people's dreams, tired of seeing their desires and fears, the pointless pictures in their minds. These weren't hers, and she didn't want them.

And the nightmares...The fear, the pain, the anguish of them pierced through her heart. She clawed at her chest, desperate to rid herself of these emotions that poured into her. Kunai's struck her, darkness engulfed her, she was drowning in her comrades' blood. Would it ever stop? Was this her reality? All she wanted was death.

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Chiisai was curled into a ball, one hand clutching her bandaged head and the other digging into her sternum. A scream rippled from her, but she still didn't wake. Tori stood next to her, rubbing his cheek into her shoulder. His claws extended, quickly swiping his human's forearm. Three red lines glistened on her skin. Chiisai's eyes flew open, her screams now silent. Her breaths came out in gasps, and with trembling hands she reached for her medicine. She swallowed the small pills with a glass of water left over from last night.

She threw the covers off of her and headed to the bathroom. Pain split across the back of her head, and she locked the door behind her. Her knees buckled and she sank to the floor. Tori sat beside her, his wide eyes staring up at her. Chiisai rested her elbows on her knees, her hands clutching her face. Tears streamed down her face, and she didn't stop them. A whimper escaped, and she buried her face in her hands.

She had seen their dreams. It was happening all over again, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. The Third Hokage was dead, and the only one that could help was beyond her reach. Fear and longing and dread rested in her heart, settling in her bones. These weren't her feelings, they belonged to the villagers. The tears continued to stream down her face, and she struggled to breathe, to try to regain control. But the emotions continued to overwhelm her heart and burst out in uncontrollable sobs.

Tori nestled beside her, burying his face into her leg. She brought her trembling hand to him and stroked his fur. "Tori, I don't know what to do," she said. "I don't want to hurt anyone again. I'm afraid."

Her body stilled, and her eyes stared straight ahead as a new feeling crept over her. A voice echoed in the back of her mind, one that she recognized. Her eyebrows furrowed, and she shook her head. No, she was going crazy, because it wasn't possible. But the voice mocked her still. Chiisai tried to focus, but her mind seemed to fade, and the words wouldn't form on her lips.

A knock echoed down the hall, and Chiisai blinked in surprise. Her thoughts snapped back into place, and she hastily rubbed her face, drying the tears on her sleeves. She winced at the scratches still decorating her skin, but the pain seemed to sharpen her mind. She yanked off some toilet paper and blew her nose, groaning at the dizziness. Another knock resounded, and she rose to her feet and opened the bathroom. Tori followed her down the hall and to the front door, never leaving her side.

Chiisai cracked the door open and looked up to see Kakashi. "Oh, it's you."

Kakashi smiled, and she glanced away. "I just stopped by to check on you." He opened his eye and paused. "You've been crying. And your arm's bleeding."

Her hand went to cover Tori's claw marks. "I've...My head's been hurting worse. And Tori scratches sometimes." She paused, now studying his expression. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"If I get dressed, could you take me to the hospital? I...I need to see if a medic can heal me."

He frowned down at her and replied, "Your chart forbids medic-nin."

"I was hoping, well, if you could get around that," she whispered. "I'm...not in my right mind."

There was a moment of silence. Kakashi watched her, realizing this was the first time she has spoken clearly since her concussion. She seemed perfectly in her right mind, and her voice didn't even sound congested.

Finally, Kakashi sighed. "I could get in trouble, you know."

"Please."

He raised an eyebrow at her tone. "Alright then," he said, "but I get to use your personal library." It was an impressive collection to say the least, and she had even had books on military tactics, along with several volumes of the history of ninja.

The corners of her lips turned up in a soft smile. "I think that can be arranged."

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"You should have brought her earlier, Kakashi-sensei."

"Eh, sorry, sorry!" He tried to smile, but the facade was already fading. His eye was trained on Chiisai. "She passed out on the way here," he explained. "Her concussion must be severe."

Sakura turned towards the unconscious Chiisai as her hands glowed green. "She's in a lot of pain. I can heal the wounds, but the concussion will still take more time. It's unlike the others I've healed."

Kakashi nodded to his former student. "Thank you."

The girl nodded with a smile before attending to Chiisai. Kakashi waited a couple of minutes, observing the healing process. When nothing seemed to be in disarray, he determined she was in good hands and turned to leave. "I'll be back shortly. You are the only one allowed to see her."

Sakura nodded as Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke.

He appeared outside the Hokage's office. He heard papers flying across the room as Lady Tsunade's voice boomed throughout the building. "NO MORE PAPERWORK! I SWEAR, IF I HAVE TO SIGN ONE MORE PIECE OF PAPER, I'LL KNOCK THIS WHOLE BUILDING DOWN IN ONE PUNCH!"

"Yo."

Both of the women turned to Kakashi. Tsunade lowered her raised fist, her furrowed eyebrows relaxing by force of will.

"Kakashi," she nodded, allowing him to speak. Shizune gave out a sigh of relief and gathered up the papers.

Kakashi shoved a hand in his pouch and pulled out a worn journal. He handed it to the Hokage, who took it with a frown. "What is this?"

"It's a dream journal that belongs to a librarian in the Leaf."

Tsunade flipped through the book in her hand. "These are…a collection of people's dreams?"

"She has over ten years' worth of them written in journals. They're dreams from everyone in the village, from the Third Hokage to Orochimaru." No wonder Chiisai had been diagnosed with so many issues. The dreams of those in the leaf, especially after the Third Great Ninja War, were just a collection of gore and death.

Her eyes widened. "And she lives in the village? What form of kekkei genkai is this? No...Is it even possible? Wait." She shook her head as she said, "This is mine...I remember." Lady Tsunade said to Kakashi, "Who is she? A power like that…If only we had known."

"Karasu Chiisai."

"Karasu…" the blonde muttered. "I'm familiar with that name."

"Her parents both slipped into a coma and died a week apart twelve years ago."

She nodded. "That's right. I was the one that examined them. That was peculiar case, I believe. Shizune," she turned to her assistant. "Get me the Karasu case file."

The brunette nodded, and scurried out with the pig in her arms.

Lady Tsunade turned back to the jonin. "You are sure no one knows about this?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Bring her in. I need more information, and if this is true, she could be of help to the village."

He shook his head and replied, "That may be a problem. I'm afraid in her current condition, she says whatever comes to mind. Not to mention, she has no ninja experience."

"If she has no filter, then what's stopping her from telling the world what she can do?"

"Currently she's unconscious- Sakura's attending to her. Chiisai is…" He sighed and continued, "I believe she holds many of the village's secrets. It would be catastrophic if she fell into the wrong hands."

With a nod, she replied, "It seems this situation takes precedence over your upcoming mission."

Kakashi nodded. When it came to the safety of the Village, he knew he would fulfill whatever task was needed. At least this was a task he didn't mind at all.

"She needs to be protected," Tsunade said. "If word gets out, everyone will be after her. Understood?"

"Hai," He said without emotion.

"If we had some of this knowledge beforehand…" Her eyes suddenly narrowed as she came across a page. "This is about me." Her knuckles turned white against the notebook as her face grew red. "JARAIYA!" Her hand turned into a fist. She threw the notebook at Kakashi, who caught it with one hand. "WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON HIM." Her fist came down on her desk, breaking it in half with a loud crack.

Kakashi took a step back, deciding now would be an excellent time to leave. He suddenly felt glad that Jaraiya was gone training Naruto.

Hopefully she wouldn't kill him when he returned.

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"Is this true?" The older man asked the masked ninja.

"It has yet to be confirmed."

Danzo nodded, staring down at the file in front of him. The woman in the picture seemed quite ordinary. She was a librarian, a mere villager who had no skills or talents. At least, not that he was aware of.

"Observe her. We need more information before we can take action."

"Hai." The ninja disappeared, leaving Danzo alone.

This woman had darkness lurking within her, locked deep within the recesses of her mind. And he was going to make sure it surfaced by any means necessary.

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"Kakashi-sensei, may I say something?"

Sakura tilted her head up, her voice at a whisper. "This woman knew who I was, though we never met. I told her to go back to sleep, but then she told me my dreams. She knew about…" Sakura shut her eyes, trying to fight back tears. "She knew the last words he said to me, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi nodded and replied, "Can you keep this a secret?"

She frowned and nodded. Sakura drew back, but something caught her curiosity. Her eyes flickered to his hand, and she said, "What book is that? It's not Icha Icha."

Kakashi blinked and replied, "Oh, I just thought I'd read something new."

"Whad're you all talking about o'er there?" Chiisai tried to stand but stumbled. Kakashi caught her and sighed, "It seems like she's back to her usual self." It was difficult to believe that this was the same woman he had spoken to earlier today.

"Sorry," Sakura apologized. "The strep was viral. I increased her interferons to destroy the cells, so it may take some time for the symptoms to disappear."

"How's the rest of her? She wasn't acting like this before we came here."

"The concussion should be healed." She frowned. "Her chakra is still jumbled around her frontal lobe. I'm not sure why. It's not natural. Her chakra isn't natural." Sakura waved the clipboard and added, "And I checked her chart. She's on some heavy medicine, so it's probably just the side effects."

Chiisai muttered, "You're not natural."

"Oi, be nice," Kakashi scolded. He lifted Chiisai back up and muttered, "You confuse me to no end."

"Well, you're more confusing!"

Kakashi dropped his head and sighed. Sakura suppressed a giggle at seeing her former sensei in such a state. She smiled and said, "She's more of a hassle than Naruto it seems."

They looked back down at Chiisai expecting a rebuttal, but she was already asleep in his arms.