Author's Note: I'd like to apologize for my pace. I have been busy with numerous work projects. On top of that, there are times when I cannot log in on my account.

I have not been able to attend to any of my stories, but I hope this chapter will compensate. Sadly, a number of my thoughts have gone astray so I'm making use of what comes to mind. My computer had been corrupted as well. This was not supposed to be the second chapter, but seeing as I cannot fully remake the actual one, I compromised it with this. To your liking – I hope it is.

Thank you for all of you who took the time reading it. I'll take in your suggestions if you have any for my story. Some have asked if Kiomi is a Hyuuga. The answer though is no. She's someone from a different clan that was not born in Konoha. She's also my friend's character. I'm borrowing her for my evil multi-purpose purposes. If you want to see a picture of her so that you can get a clear picture of what she looks like you can visit my Deviant Art. I have drawings of her there. .com/

P.S.: Oh, and Rix, your English is fine.

With that out of the way, let's continue with our story, shall we?

:.:.:.:

"Will you all just remain silent?"

His voice wasn't extended, but it was enough to keep the entire clan from becoming too rowdy. Everyone was aware of the new threat that invaded their hide-out. And to be honest, not one of them – not even the clan leader himself – was too pleased with the situation that was ahead of them.

"I know that everyone is against this," his words echoed in the spacious gathering hall, and instantly all eyes were on him. There was a look of agitation on his face, a sign that he was not happy with the decision that he was about to make. But for the sake of someone important to him, there was no real choice that could be taken. He'd rather die than be indebted to some stranger, even if it meant that the stranger could be a possible threat to their clan's existence. "But for the sake of honor, accept it. Izuna's life was spared today and not gaining another casualty is important."

The silence continued to grow strong. Heads turned from side to side and eyes that exchanged glances looked doubtful and resentful, but on the other hand, their leader made a good point. Countless lives had been lost due to the battle that recently ended, and if Izuna had perished at the hands of the enemy like some of their clansmen, then that would have been a bothersome event. Although their current leader was strong and powerful, his younger brother was matched with him evenly. Losing him would have been like losing the next person to lead the clan in case something happened to Madara. "Since you're all silent, can I take this as an answer that everyone in this hall understands?"

"Yes." In unison, everyone answered. A smirk of approval was instantly etched in their leader's face. Trying to convince them for countless hours and arguments paid off. At least now, he can rest well knowing that Izuna will not be blamed for this. On a side note, he wanted to blame that mysterious girl for everything. The uproar that the headquarters tasted was painful to the ears, and she merely slept through it, feverish and oblivious. Not that he hated women, but he always viewed them as troublesome and a complete waste of time. He could not understand his brother's fondness for the little pest especially when she looked as annoying as she does.

Defenseless, what is so good with that? He thought as he dismissed everyone else. Right now, they were back to their own lives, and being an Uchiha, that meant sharpening up their craft or getting ready for their next onset.

While others with busy with their own tasks, Madara decided to be busy on another thing – being an older brother. The strict kind that was about to reprimand the younger brother for his foolish and uncalled for actions.

"Izuna we need to ta—"

An exasperated sigh left his lips as he entered the younger Uchiha's chamber. To see him there on the floor, sleeping, while a foreign body occupied his bed made him twitch internally. Of all the things that he had to display, it really had to be this useless look of infatuation. After being with him for such a long time, he never saw him with such a deep interest in anyone. The girls from their clan who approached him, Izuna turned down without question and yet right now, after being saved…he was like this? He knew his brother was a little bit on the mellow side even if it was not noticeable, but this was just ridiculous.

"Seriously, this younger brother of mine…" The words trailed off from his mouth as he closed the door gently behind him. Slowly he advanced to where his brother was, and removing the coat that he had on, placed it atop Izuna's broad shoulders. Glancing sideways though, he caught sight of the feverish girl. He stared for a moment. "Can that urban legend be true?" There was no one in particular to ask, but like this, the girl seemed…alluring. Face was red; beads of sweat lined her forehead and an unbelievably uncomfortable expression showed in her visage; pretty so to speak. People with high fever really did become mysteriously alluring. But this was not enough to gain his trust or his intrigue. When you've seen one girl, you've seen them all. When you see them sick, they were just contagious. Aside from not having the doujutsu that they had, she was no different from any other girl in the clan – not any different from any other girl in general. Her hair was oddly colored though – and from the looks of it, someone had attended to her. The dirty clothes she wore were folded and placed on one of the chairs inside the room, and for a moment Madara shot his brother a glance. Let's hope this is not you're handy work. He was too young for these kinds of stimulation. At least, even if he was an excellent fighter, he wanted to preserve his cute little brother's manly innocence.

"My brother seems so hung up on you, what's so good with you anyway, woman?" Just in her sleep, he'd ask. There was that irritated look on his face once again. Usually it was something that he can control very well, but for some reason, just seeing her makes him angry. Probably it was because someone was finally snatching away Izuna's concentration. Ever since they returned to the hideout, his younger brother had done nothing but bother about that little wench. 'Brother, I'll take care of her. Please explain the situation to them. It's likely that they'll understand if it came from you.' Just remembering the hassle of telling everyone to shut up was enough to make him angry. Everyone had asked if he was insane. No one and NO ONE ELSE should know about the Uchiha HQ, but right now an outsider was there. Madara was sure that even with that unified "Yes", people were still bothered by it. No, they must be furious about the decision. "I can't wait to throw you out." His index finger would wrap at a few strands of the girl's hair, quite tempted to yank and drag her away from their home.

"Who can't you wait to throw out, Nii-san?" And there! There came the less than amused sound of Izuna's voice. When Madara turned to his brother, he was staring at him with a straight face. Actually, he was staring more at the finger intertwined with hair. Noticing this, Madara relinquished his hold and simply allowed his hand to fall at his side once more.

"Her." He'd turn to his brother before pointing his thumb over his shoulders and at the girl. "I only plan to let her stay here until she's recovered. After that, I don't want to see even her shadow lurking near this place." He continued.

"You're so rough with women, Madara. You'll never get a wife acting like that." Izuna frowned upon him as he sat up and leaned his elbow on the bed.

"It's not like I need one. I only need to protect you and the clan. Others can get married and give birth."

"And your successor would be…?"

"You, of course…and if you get married, at least choose someone from within the clan; not a dubious looking Noraneko (stray cat)."

Izuna simply frowned more upon this. He even sighed after he was counter scolded. To think that his brother desperately hated their guest was a little too much. He knew why – she was a stranger and not an Uchiha at that, but still he was being too judgmental without even getting to know her. In a way, Izuna himself was like that too since he assumes that the mystery girl was harmless. They both had their opinions, and usually they matched, but it was with little things like this that they usually had problems. "Well what if she can gain the clan's trust? Can you let her stay?"

"Izuna, are you serious? They're already against her being here. Don't keep pets just because it's convenient for you."

"She's not a pet, she saved me. At least acknowledge that. I want to repay her."

"I do, but I cannot accept to let her stay in this place for a long time. It will bother everyone. She will be trouble."

"Wanna make a bet then?" This time, it was Izuna's turn to make a bargain. If Madara had been doing it with the clan earlier, this time, it was the younger brother's turn to make the bargain, not only with the entire clan, but towards his older brother specifically.

"Stop it with your games already, it's not amusing." His decision was final. The girl was not going to stay. He turned on his heel to leave. To be honest Madara was not expecting to quarrel with his brother; he really wanted to make sure that he was okay…so how did it turn out like this.

"Afraid that you'll lose then I see…" Izuna trailed off and sighed. These though were words that were like the most potent of poisons. The smallest dose was enough to provoke a reaction. And just as Madara froze in his place, twitching at his brother's arrogance, silver eyes fluttered to a slow open and movement was made over the surface of the bed. Izuna noticing this stole a glance as she tried to sit up, Madara on the other hand turned exactly as she finished. Crimson hues would stare intently at the girl with contempt. The three tomoes looked menacing and upon seeing those, her eyes widened. Wha—what…those eyes?

"A month…I'll give you a month to receive EVERYONE'S trust."

And he'd exit, slamming the door behind him.

"Did you have a good sleep, Noraneko-chan?" That shook the girl from her trance, and she turned to face the direction of the voice. When she looked at the person who addressed her in a weird name, she was shocked once again. This caught Izuna's curiosity.

"Is there something on my face? Although I'm sure that you're more shocked to find yourself in a strange pla—"

"Sasuke…I'll kill you along with that Sharingan of yours!"

Eh? He was surprised. For an outsider to know of his doujutsu was a big deal. Although their clan was infamous, not everyone knew about their eyes. For a girl who suddenly appeared to know them, and question him why he had it – and in addition, spoke of an unknown person who she says possesses the Sharingan – he was curious.

"You, who are y—"

"Don't look at me with those cursed eyes!" Again he was surprised. His eyes were already activated, the crimson orbs present. Just as he was about to put her under a genjutsu, tomoes starting to move in a rotating fashion, she turned away and closed her eyes shut.

Kiomi hated those eyes. They were the eyes that could rob one of their senses. Being trapped within a world of genjutsu was her weakness. She had been caught by it multiple times, unable to break free without suffering some kind of trauma. It would leave her powerless and exhausted. It took too much of her chakra reserves, and it didn't help that it was Sasuke who used it on her. He was a man that he hated so much; and to see so many of these eyes so suddenly made her feel sick. Just the color was enough to make her cringe and seeing one so up close and with a motive to put her under an illusion, she was not taking her chances.

"Woman, how is it that you know about the Sharingan?" Even Izuna had his moments of seriousness. Even if he was deliberately kind, something like this was still information that shouldn't be out of the clan. His brother could be right; she could really be some kind of enemy. And for her to seem to know so much about their eye technique was alarming.

"It's because those eyes are the eyes that I hate the most." She felt a cold material pressed up against her neck. Sharp and digging, it felt like a kunai. It was this time that she fiercely opened her eyes. Orbs of silver glared straight right into crimson ones that instantly deactivated. Izuna jumped back slightly, kunai grasped just above his face as he took a defensive stance to ward off the pair of what seemed like...Ice needles. She – her eyes just now, had such strong killing intent in them.

And in that next instant, she fell back onto the mattress with a flushed face. She looked like she was in pain as she lost consciousness once again. His stance relaxed, kunai being dropped to the ground. He was a little surprised. To feel like that, to be stared at like that…it was the first time that someone reacted to him like that. It made his heart skip a beat – her fierceness. And to add to that, those eyes that were like platinum had an eerie hold on him. Her words captured him instantly. His eyes were the eyes that she hated. Why? He was curious. He himself was noticing his abnormal attraction to this mysterious lady, but he couldn't help it for some reason. Something about her just made him stop thinking. It made him stop thinking rationally for the meantime at least.

"I think I'm forced to believe in it now," he whispered softly as he knelt down by the bed. Her flushed face was twisted in agony, like fighting something in her head; a nightmare maybe. "…love at first sight." Soft locks of hair would be gathered in his hand. Those strands would then be brought to his lips, and then, a gentle kiss.

:.:.:.:

"Ugh, my head feels like a ton of bricks…" Her eyes hadn't opened yet, but she spoke. The girl with silver eyes moved her hand up to rub at her temple. There was a slightly warm feeling that traveled to her body, and upon opening an eye, she noticed why. There was a window, and her most hated Sun was there, forcing her to bask in its majestic glory. Come to think of it…

"What is this place? I feel like I was having a nightmare…" Which included people having Sharingans; a fact that she hoped was fiction. She really didn't like that doujutsu; such a problematic eye technique. Looking around though, she blinked. This wasn't her room. In fact, there were too many scrolls here for it to be her room. It smelled like a guy's room secondly, and she didn't really feel comfortable being here. These were the surroundings of her dream earlier as well. It made her remember the uncanny feeling of cold metal against her neck. It was infuriating. But in her dream she seemed to have fared well enough. She glared at that man and he backed away, then everything was over. Still something told her that everything was drastically wrong and out of place. How come? Why her clothes for example. Looking at it, it could not have been her clothes at all. The usual jacket that she wore was not around her, her turquoise mesh shirt was missing from her body and all she had on was her gray khakis and a long dark blue long sleeved shirt. The collar was a little too familiar too. "Where have I seen this before...?" She was sure that she knew where she saw this style before.

"Sorry to intrude, but I'm coming in."

Her focus was now on the door. Sasuke? No…a different person? When it opened, a man with spiky hair tied in a pony came in with a tray of what seemed like congee. "I knew I heard you talking. You have a nice voice." With that comment, Kiomi's cheeks flared red. If she had another weakness aside from Genjutsu then it was compliments. She absolutely cannot stand them. Talk about tough Otogakure upbringing.

"Are you still sick? Your face is red. Good thing I brought some medicine." He continued to speak as he walked in. Kiomi only watched him as he did as she was still too tired to move. Although, she did sit up again to try and get a better look at this stranger.

"Excuse me, do I know you?" she asked.

"Well no, but you did save me. Here eat something before you drink your medicine. You've been out for two days. You had a very high fever so we took care of you while we could."

He explained simply. For some reason, his outward appearance was easy enough to believe. When he placed the meal on a small bed table that he arranged just above her lap, she instantly began to eat without hesitation. "It's good."

Izuna couldn't help but smile at her pleased look. "Others would have checked for poison. You on the other hand just went straight and dug in."

"Oh, did you put poison in this? I don't mind really." Stunned, he looked at her innocent face. She faced him while saying that, spoon pressed at the base of her lips, like a kid. At this point, he was forced to cover his mouth, clutch his stomach and then look to the side. He wanted to hide his laughter but her couldn't – not fully at least. "Ahaha! What if I really put poison in your food while you eat it? What then?"

"It's this good, I'll still eat it." And she took another spoonful. At this point, he looked at her with disbelief. The girl that was so threatening during her time of high fever was now here, sitting and eating like an innocent child that was without a care in the world. "You – you really wouldn't care…"

"Mm-hmm."

"Why would you do that? You're such a strange girl. Don't you care about dying, you're so young."

"Well, you're one to talk, thinking about killing the me that's so young." she casted her gaze at him only to catch him staring at her as well. "You didn't answer my question. Why would you not care if your food was poisoned?"

"Because I have immunity to it."

"You're so easy to tell people this? Can't you have second thoughts?"

"It's not something secret worthy."

"You're still strange."

"So I've been called countless times."

The girl continued to eat and he could only smile. She was peculiar, definitely not the kind of woman that satisfies his taste, be he still oddly found himself attracted to her in some mysterious way. "Can I know the name of my savior now?"

"Kiomi," She stopped eating for a while only to look at him. "And who owes me his life?"

So she's a little arrogant too, huh?

"Izuna. Uchiha, Izuna."

That caused her to drop her spoon. Was he joking? Weren't the Uchiha dead?

"Uchiha, Izuna? How are you related to Uchiha Sasuke?" The question came suddenly. "You called me 'Sasuke' two nights ago too while attacking me with what looked like ice. I don't know who he is, and I'm sure no one in the clan has the name Sasuke."

Eh?

"What do you mean? But the Uchiha clan was wiped out in Konoha and only Sasuke survived." The curiosity in her eyes was apparent as the meal was discarded. Izuna could not understand what she was saying, and somehow he didn't want to understand it.

"What are you saying? What's a Konoha?" Izuna asked, this time, more curious than she was.

Something was definitely wrong here.

"What the hell are you saying? The Uchiha clan, wiped out? You've seriously got to be killing me." The door opened suddenly, revealing the head of the clan, eyes flaring in its crimson glory.

"Brother," Izuna called out. He too knew how Madara felt.

"Like hell that would happen, not even over my dead body."