It was the day the shinobi were going to set off. The sun was high in the sky as they were going to head the most sacred village in the Land of Lightning. Ura had done some research and contacted a few people, it would take them initially around a week to get there. As much as it angered Ura, it may be too long to rescue her sister. Either way, they had to continue.

Ura waited by entrance gap for the others as she held the pack on her back. The others were gathering their own weapons as Gaara was making some orders on who would be in charge during his absence. She shifted in her stance as she continued to wait as the minutes ticked back.

"URA!"

She turned just slightly, then was tackled to the ground by a familiar person. Ura was about to slice him up with her hari, then she noticed the bowl-cut, green attired shinobi. He squeezed the breath out of her as she gently patted his back, "Lee...you're killing me..."

"Oh, my apologies," Lee helped her up, dusting the sand off of her, "I am just so happy to see you again."

Ura took a few deep breaths then smiled up at him, "It's nice to see you too, but i'm curious to know why you're here."

"I was originally supposed to join Naruto, but I had some issues with Tenten and the kids," Lee explained as he scratched the back of his head.

"Kids! You have kids!" Ura's jaw dropped in disbelief, "You're a dad!"

"Yes, Tenten is my girlfriend," Lee answered as a sweat drop went down his face, "Is that surprising?"

"Not really, Lee," Ura gently punched his arm, "I'm happy for you."

"So, when are we leaving?" Lee asked as he had a look of determination.

"Uhm...but you just got here... Aren't you tired?" Ura asked, how could Lee have so much energy in him?

"The power of youth courses through my body, I can never be tired!" Lee announced as he posed for the world to see.

"Well... Ok then... Gaara should be along sometime now," Ura looked over her shoulder, still no one was showing up, "It may take awhile..."

"That is perfectly fine," Lee commented, "There is so much to catch up on."

Ura turned to Lee and smiled at him. He was a good friend, they had written to each other for the years after she departed to Suna. She had to tell someone about her rendezvous with Sasuke though. Her conscious was bothering her especially when Gaara had witnessed what Sasuke had wanted from her. Ura took Lee to a more private area and explained all that had happened. Lee was not upset, but worried for her safety. Gaara was a calm young man now, but he could get angry if someone had betrayed his trust. Ura explained further to Lee that what happened with Sasuke was before Gaara knew her feelings, so there wasn't any cheating on her part. Lee understood, but he was still skeptic. He looked over at Gaara's mansion and made sure they were alone, "Ura, if what you say is true, then you have nothing to hide. If Gaara finds out that you and Sasuke were an item before, then he will not be as upset as you think."

"We are talking about the same Gaara right?" Ura asked, then said, "Look, either way, I don't want him to find out. Please...for me..."

"I will not say a word," Lee reassured her, "What will happen if he does? It was before he accepted your feelings for him, right?"

"Yes," Ura nodded, she then saw Gaara exitting his mansion, "If he does find out though, he will not be happy. I told him I've come to him pure."

"That's lying..." Lee shook his head slowly, "Ura-"

"Gaara, look who came too! It's Lee!" Ura called out to Gaara.

Lee sighed as he waved at Gaara, "It is very good to see you again, Gaara!"

"Likewise," Gaara was pleased to know they had more help, then turned to Ura, "Kankurou and Temari are joining us and I have Baki running in my stead since he's head of councel."

"That's promising," Ura agreed, then noticed Naruto bringing Sasuke and Sakura along with him.

Once they were all settled, Ura kept a faster pace above the others as they ran as fast as they could. Gaara even noticed and couldn't help but feel a bit unsettled by her willingness. Naruto asked Gaara as he tried to keep up with the pace Ura was setting, "What's up with her?"

Gaara remained silent, giving Naruto the answer that he hadn't the clue either. They continued to run on and on until the Suna shinobi could detect a sandstorm approaching them. Temari took flight on her large fan to catch up to Ura, telling her they were going to head to a location to keep safe from the storm. Ura was about to argue the matter, but it was a big rule for the desert. If there was a sandstorm, take cover and wait it out. She slowed her pace until they found a cave to find shelter. The cave was slightly smaller than they had realized, Ura stood at the edge as the wind whipped against her skin as she kept her back to the entrance. Gaara noticed Ura's discomfort by the entrance and built a sand wall with some holes in it for oxygen.

"Thanks," Ura went to sit by Gaara, who answered with a nod.

"Running faster than us is breaking formation," Naruto looked over at Ura, "We're going to reach the village eventually."

"Just got excited, sorry," Ura mumbled, but she kept her eyes to the sand door.

The sandstorms were rather short, but this one had to be the longest one for Ura. They needed to hurry, there was no time to waste! Gaara could feel Ura's anticipation in her chakra and softly whispered to her, "Calm down, you're going to run out of energy."

"I'm fine," Ura quickly turned towards Gaara, then realized how close he was to her.

They were older now, why was she so timid around him? A blush formed on her face as she continued to stare at him. If only the others weren't there, she would've kissed him and tell him her worry. But, they recently became an item, she didn't want him to think she was a needy wench. Ura merely smiled and gave his leg a gentle squeeze, "I'm fine, don't worry about me."

As she waited, Ura pulled out the scroll she used for her kekkei-genkai. Sakura had taught her the other day how to strength her Blood Jutsu even though it was taken. The point Sakura made was that even though he stole her original kekkei-genkai, the jutsu was still in her DNA system. Her jutsu may not be the same, but she could still use some of her kekkei-genkai in battle as a last resort. The chakra became visible as she close her eyes, focusing her chakra to fuse with her blood. This time, the process was harder because of all of her former chakra being taken from her. Ura could easily see her blood flowing through her body, entering and exitting her organs as it should. The harder part was having her chakra enter her blood stream. Sweat dripped down her face, dripping on her arms and legs as she began to feel the powerful chakra start to enter her blood. Her next step was focusing her chakra to combine with her blood to manipulate later on.

The process must've taken awhile because she lost focus when Gaara placed a hand on her arm, "It's time to go."

"Oh...ok," Ura answered as she rolled up her scroll and following the others.

She didn't want the others to worry, nor did she want them to think there was something on her mind. Simply, if she was going to save Leila, then she wanted to do it on her own. Ura ran by Gaara so no one would be suspicious.

::::::::

Leila

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"Stop...please..." she begged as blood oozed from her fragile, child's body, "Kill me..."

"Dear child, that would be too easy," Kabutome held a vipor whip in his hand as he towered over her, a sly smile as his beady, golden, snake-like eyes peered down at her, "I need you to hate me with all that you are, hate the fact that you are mine, hate the people who didn't save you, hate each breath you take."

Her eyes bled tears with a mixture of blood as she gazed up at him. For days he had tortured her, putting her body in the pit of boars and made her run for her life from a pack of wolves. Leila watched as he raised the vipor whipe, lashing it down on her body as the snake's fangs dug deeper into her skin. She screamed in agony as she tried to curl into a ball next to a large tree. Where was Ura? Why didn't she come back for her? Leila screamed again as she felt her skin ripping open from the fangs sinking into her back. Why did he capture her? She wasn't strong like Ura or the Kazekage.

"Let me feel your hatred!" Kabutome shouted as he continously whipped her without a break, "I want you to hate me with every last fiber in you!"

She hated him. Wasn't that enough? Leila felt the vipor's fang dig deeper into her, that was it. She couldn't just let him win! The young kunoichi turned quickly and grabbed the vipor whip, squeezing the neck as she held it in place as she glared at him, "Kill me! I can't take this anymore!"

Kabutome kicked her face, knocking her into the tree. Leila was still conscious as she looked up at him through the pain that waved through her body. Death... Why did it evade her? Tears and blood streamed out of her eyes as she looked up at him. She watched him toss the whip aside, turning back to a regular vipor and slithered away. Leila continued to watch Kabutome as he pulled out a hari that belonged to Ura. He squatted in front of her as he held it to her tiny, little neck. Slowly, he carved a thin line from one side to the other, watching as an even tinier stream of blood trailed down her neck. Leila felt the pain, but her body was so beaten up that she couldn't fight back the pain. She closed her eyes tightly, "...kami..."

"Where is your god now?" Kabutome murmured as his own canines began to grow, "I am your only god, and I will create you. Your hatred will make you stronger when i'm done with you.

Kabutome's snake-like eyes turned a crimson red. He reached out and picked up her blood like rope, then yanked it roughly as Leila crashed into the ground as her screams turned to a murderous shriek of pain and agony. Kabutome smirked, "So, this is your sister's power... She turned out to be quite an asset. It's too bad I could only extract most of it. I'll have to kill her next time so I can get the rest. But i'll have you do that for me once your hatred is strong enough."

He stood up and took a few steps back, making the small string of blood longer. Pulling out blood was more painful for the child since her body was so small. A smirk formed on his thin lips as he saw the child squirm in all sorts of balls. Soon, her pain will turn to hatred, and that hatred will be enough for him to use a Forbidden Jutsu on her to make her his little puppet.

::::::::::

Ura

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Finally, they had made it to a dense forest, but the day was beginning to fade. They had ran until the sun began to finally set and the Kage's suggested to make campe for the night. Ura began to fight by saying it would be faster to travel in the night, but even Lee agreed that it was dangerous. Reluctantly, Ura obliged and pulled out a cantine of sake to settle her nerves. Sasuke made a fire as everyone began to bring out some food to snack on and regain their strength. Ura ate a food pill to gain her strength back, how could she sleep knowing Leila was with that...creature...? She sat by the fire as others began to talk amongst themselves or sleep.

Gaara walked over to her and sat by her. It was nice having him there, but it still felt different now that were a couple. He leaned closer to her slightly and asked, "Can we talk in private?"

"You should rest," Ura commented softly, glancing at him through the corner of her eyes.

He wasn't taking 'no' for an answer. Ura watched him stand up and start walking off. If she didn't go, then he would just get mad at her. Taking in a deep breath, Ura also go up and followed Gaara few steps short from him. They continued to walk in that pattern as the moon began to rise in the sky. Ura looked up at the moon, it gave her little peace without her being surprised. She was worried about Leila and the entire group wanted to rest for the night. To her surprise, Gaara stopped walking when a small river blocked his path. Ura stood behind him as she crossed her arms, she tried to mask her worry with a calm demeanor, "We should go back, Gaara..."

"Please," he turned with that worried look in his eyes to face her, "tell me what's bothering you. I don't know how to help you if you won't tell me."

"It's nothing, don't worry about-"

"Stop that," Gaara's eyes went from soft to serious as he crossed his own arms, "You've sworn to protect me, but as your Kazekage, i've sworn to help and protect you and the others. Tell me now."

She couldn't. Ura simply looked away from him as she thought of her little sister. That little girl that was adored by Ura and her mother, the pride of their family due to her playful spirit. Where Ura was more serious and determined, Leila was the child-like, easy going person that made their family whole. Her worry for her sister was too great for her to want to bestow it onto anyone else, but herself. Gaara could see that she was still holding back from him. He glanced to the other side as he contemplated Kankurou's idea of becoming closer to Ura. Was it too soon? They were only a couple for less than a week. He walked over to Ura and caressed her arms, her skin was so soft... Ura looked up at Gaara with surprise, he was taking the initiative? He peered down at her with softer eyes, "Ura."

"It's Leila," Ura finally admitted as she softly pulled herself away from him, but held his hand, "Kabutome took my little sister. I'm getting her back, Gaara, and i'll kill him for taking her from me."

Gaara was more relieved to know the answer. He exhaled deeply as he held her hand, pulling her closer to him as her murmured, "I'll stop at nothing to help you get her back. He will die for his choice of stealing a member from our village."

Ura smiled at the thought of Gaara killing Kabutome. She gently kissed his lips from her joy, then pulled away, "Thank you, Gaara."

He kissed her one more time to remember her lips, then took a step back, "We need to rest now. Tomorrow, we will be doubling our pace."

She followed him back to the fire, but kept her hand enclosed in his. There was not a better feeling in the world than knowing Gaara understood her. When they returned, most of the others were asleep, except Kankurou. He eyed Ura curiously as she turned her attention back to Gaara. When he watched his little brother and Ura sit by the fire, both trying to get some sleep, he noticed the Uchiha stir some more. Kankurou knew he wasn't sleeping, of course he wouldn't...

He would have to watch out for his brother and Ura if Sasuke was going to keep watching them...