A/N Chapter two! Woohoo!

An arm has just fallen from a tree, and is now a foot away from me. It's pale, muscular, and has black, painted finger nails and a ring. It's a silver ring, but the gem part was shiny and orange. It had the kanji for three inscribed in black.

"Didn't know Mr. Scythe liked jewelry," I thought, picking up the severed arm and plucking the ring off the lifeless finger. It's to big for my thumb, so I put it in my pocket with plans to make it a necklace later.

I walk to the river slowly, looking at the arm with a devious face on. I toss the arm into the air and passionately tornado-kick it down stream.

"Good luck finding it now!" I cheer triumphantly.

It's almost three o'clock now, so I start heading home. I'm recomposed and feel much better now. All my anger was violently kicked down river along with that disgusting guy's arm. And I have his ring. I might have been frustrated earlier today, but getting back at those guys, even if it was just one, made me feel so much better.

Another thing that's going to really lift my spirits is getting some ramen at Ichiraku's. I'll shop around some jewelry stores for a chain to put this ring on, too.


I walk up stream to get back to town, and after twenty minutes walking, I hear an argument stirring, and a small explosion following. Familiar voices of creepers and bombs are enough to make me race through the forest. No way was I going to run into those guys again. Dashing along, I see Sakura and Naruto in the forest too. I'm actually relieved to run into them.

"Hi Nene!" They cheerfully greet. I wave and walk over.

"What are you doing out here all alone?" asks Sakura.

"I was just taking a walk," I pant.

"You're pretty out of breath for a walk," Naruto notices, nudging my arm.

"Okay, well, I was running, but I was walking for the last few seconds," I say catching my breath.

We laugh and stroll back to town. Chatting, we reach the gates of the village and pass through downtown. I spot a small jewelry shop, and a ask to stop for a minute to pick up a chain. I console Sakura for a little help.

"Hey Sakura, should I get a gold chain or a silver chain for this ring I found?"

"Why don't you wear the ring on your finger?" Naruto butts in.

"It's too big," I pull it out of my pocket and hold it out to Naruto. He snatches it up and puts in on his index finger.

"Hey, this fits!" He exclaims. Sakura and I look at it on his finger, "Why do you want a men's ring as a necklace, Nene?" Sakura asks.

"Well, I found this ring by a river in the forest, but I knew the person who lost it. I hate him, so I want to wear his ring to show that I got a little pay back for what he did," I explained, buffing my nails on my shirt.

"Wow, what did this guy do?" Sakura asks.

"He was being a creep."

"Gross, I hate peepers…" she said glaring at Naruto. Blushing, he bashfully rubs the back of his head and excuses himself, "I'm going to wait outside, guys…"

"You do that," I agree.

The saleswoman comes over to Sakura and me and shows us her chains. I decide that I wanted a long one, so I can tuck in my shirt if I don't want it bouncing around. Sakura advises me that silver would look best. I loop the chain through the ring and the saleswoman clasps the necklace for me. I look in the mirror and it looks just how I envisioned. The ring and chain are shiny and compliment my outfit pretty well. The ring falls right in the middle of my chest, and it's not too bulky either, so it doesn't poke through my shirt. I pay the woman and leave very satisfied.

"Looks great!" Sakura compliments, "You know, I have a few rings that I outgrew, but I really like them. I might use your necklace idea too."

"Go for it."


I continued to hang out with Naruto and Sakura later that day. Relaxing didn't seem like an option for me today. We all went to get ramen, and when we finished I ordered some to take home for my mom and dad.

I feel like I made a big social leap today. Team seven and me were always friends, but I feel like I can really trust them now, and I hope they feel the same. I always hang out with Ino and her gang, and from all the things she told me about Sakura, I though I wouldn't like her, even if I knew that half the things Ino said were lies. Its nice having a broader spectrum of friends.

We parted our ways around six thirty, and made future plans to train together sometime.

I get home and put the ramen on the dinner table.

"Mom! Dad! I'm home!" I announce, "I brought you some ramen!"

"All right!" My dad exclaims, popping into the kitchen. He ruffles my hair and says, "Thanks, sport! This is thoughtful of you."

"Heh, no problem," I say smiling.

Just then, my mom comes in from the backyard with her gardening hat on.

"Nene, you're home!" she says, taking off her hat. She sniffs the air, "Did you bring ramen?"

"Yes, she did!" My dad say excitedly.

"That's so funny; your dad and I were just talking about what we should have for dinner. Thanks honey."

She hugs me over enthusiastically and swings me around a bit until she abruptly stops, "Ouch! What do you have in your shirt," she says, stuffing her hand down my shirt and fishes out my necklace.

"Mom!" I whine, how could she do that in front of my dad, ugh! Typical from my mom.

"Ooh, shiny," my dad praises, coming over for a closer look, "Where'd you get this?"

I wipe the embarrassment from my face and say, "I found it in a river. I got a chain for it on my way home."

"A river? You went swimming?" He asks.

"Eh… no, I just saw it in the water. The current was barley moving today," I lie. Man, have I been stretching the truth today.

"Well, whoever lost it must miss it, this is a nice ring!" added my mom.

"Yeah, I'm glad I found it. Anyway, I already ate with some friends, so you guys go ahead an eat before it gets cold," I suggested, "I'm going to go to my room,"

"Alrighty then, thanks again honey!" my mom shouts as I'm already half way up the stairs.

I get to my room, which has a small balcony, and I open the door to get some fresh air flowing through. I flop on my bed and realize that the breeze in my room could have sufficed for the actual breeze through the trees. If I stayed home today, I could have avoided all the interruptions that came my way… but I wouldn't have gotten this ring.

I pick it up from my chest and inspect it some more, shinning it in the sun. There's something about it, but I can't quite say what it is. It really shouldn't be so important to me, especially because I only had it for a few hours, but I feel like I need to protect this ring, almost as if it's been in the wrong hands and shouldn't return.

Well, I know for a fact that it's been in the wrong hands. It's been on the finger of a nasty man with silver hair. I'm glad I took it from him, but I feel like I'm treating this ring too specially.

Eh, whatever.


I wake up from a jolt on my neck. It's Ino, looking at the ring. Shikamaru, and Choji chat in my room, too. I start to say something but Ino cuts me off.

"What are you-"

"Hey, where'd you get this ring?" Ino asks, "I like how it's around your neck instead of your finger. I might use this idea."

"Stop pulling it so hard, you're going to break the chain," I moan, sitting up from my three hour nap.

"Is this a men's ring?" she interrogates.

"Yeah, that's why it's on a chain. I found it today."

Shikamaru comes over, but Choji goes into my secret snack stash and starts eating my candy.

"Did you find it?" Shika asks.

"Or did you take it," Choji adds.

"Tch, they knows me too well. Smart asses…"

"You got me, I found it and then took it- as payback."

"From who? What guy!" Ino excitedly asks. She sits on the bed next to me and listens in, "I want to hear everything."

"Okay, so I was just trying to relax outside today, 'cause, you know how Tsunade-sama has been making me and Rui run on missions all week. "

They all nod in agreement.

"So, I go to the edge of the village to try and get some peace and quiet and relax, but these idiotic perverts come along and watch me sleep. I woke up when this mental guy screams that he wants to hug me. I start yelling at them and then this guy with anger issues and a missing arm starts calling me a slut and wants to fight me! I had nothing on me though, so I ran away to a river. I was so angry that I punched a tree. And guess what? That guy's arm fell out! Can you believe it? And on his finger, he had this ring. So I took it, and now I wear it as a victory prize."

I show everyone and they nod in approval.

"Serves him right!" Choji chimes.

"Man, I though you had a secret boyfriend or something and had a fight," Ino says disappointed.

"Tch, can you imagine the guy I date?" I ask jokingly.

"You'd only settle for a perfectly chiseled man, Nene. You have extremely high expectations," Shikamaru says.

"What?" I say incredulously, "That's not true… "

Then, Choji says, "Yes it is. It's why you never had a boyfriend for more than two weeks."

I blush and look down. This just depresses me. I'm seventeen and haven't had anyone who loves me romantically.

"Love can be troublesome," says Shikamaru, remembering the time he had a crush on me.

"Aw, come on guys, you're making her upset. Don't worry, Nene, we'll get you a boyfriend one day," Ino reassures, "In fact, lets go out now! That's why we came over. Movies anyone?"

"Yeah, that sounds great," I say. I hop back on my feet, say bye to my parents, and then, I'm out with my buds.


Guess what? I didn't get a boyfriend! Just as I thought. But I'm not put down by it. No way would I let boys bring me down. I did get a lot of compliments on my ring-necklace though.

I woke up at noon the next day, feeling hung over, even though I didn't drink. I stayed up way too late with Ino and the guys last night. But who cares, you're suppose to have fun when you have time off right? That's exactly what I'm going to do today. I'm going to retry my day of relaxation, alone and soaking up the sun. Even though I slept like a rock, I still feel as sleepy as a cranky baby. Plus, sleeping is my favorite hobby, so I can never get enough. Before I head out to the forest again, I pack a few kunai in my messenger bag- just in case. The chances of me running into those creeps again are slim, right? I hope so. I also pack my bathing suit so I can take a quick swim before the water gets too cold later this month.

I go into my kitchen and pack some bread and cheese. I'll have lunch for breakfast when I get to the forest.

As I step out of my house and out to town, I notice a lot of people are out. Typical for a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Walking past the gates of the village, I see Kakashi Sensei, Sakura, and Naruto coming back from a mission. We wave as we pass each other, and Sakura dangles a necklace she's wearing. The pendant that's shining is a sparkly pink ring. I give her a thumbs up and continue on my way.

"I didn't think she'd actually use my necklace idea…"

I dismiss my thoughts and walk far down the path outside the village until I find the river I went to yesterday. If those guys are still looking for that arm they wouldn't look in the same place.

I change into my bathing suit because the water is just too good to resist, and then I wade in the gentle part of the current. I go into deeper water and float around, see if there's anything interesting at the bottom of the river, typical swim stuff, until I see the strangest fish I'd ever seen. I swim to the surface and walk to edge until the water is just grazing my knees.

"What is that?" I say out loud, watching the huge fish's shadow, "Wait a minute… is that-"

All of sudden the fish splashes up, and its not fish at all! At least most of it wasn't a fish.

"Ahhh this water is great!" He exclaims happily.

Then, he sees me.

I stand in fear. He has blue skin and pointy teeth. It's as if he's half shark, half man. Another strange guy! And this time, I'm in a bikini! Maybe I just shouldn't come out here anymore.

"Well, hey there!" The guy greets.

"Eh… hi…" I say uncomfortably with a small wave.

"The water's great, isn't it?" he calls.

"Hehe, yeah. Really refreshing," I agree, slightly less afraid. But that moment of comfort disappears quickly as the guy starts making his way over. When he gets about five feet away I can truly scrutinize him. He's at least a foot taller than me and is extremely built. The things that really stands out to me are his painted finger nails and very similar ring. Luckily I took my necklace off before jumping in.

"Are you around from here?" He asks. He seems nice, but maybe that's how he lures girls to lower their gaurd. I can't trust him at all.

"Eh… sort of. I'm just passing by," I lie.

"Ah, I see. I'm Kisame, by the way. My team mates and I are on a mission, but we're taking a break here."

"Don't tell him your name don't tell him your name just don't!"

"Is that so… I'm uh, Ne…na…"

"Nena? Interesting name. You're all alone here?"

"Oh, geeze…"

"Ah, well my friends are coming soon. They said they'd meet me here."

"Ah, nice. Perhaps we can swim together."

"Dang, I'm sweating."

"Are you okay? You're a really pale."

"Oh…yeah, I'm-"

"TOBI SEES PRETTY-CHAN!"

Kisame and I turn our head to see a self-proclaimed Tobi charge at full speed with his arms out and ready to glomp.

I get knocked down while my breath is squished out of my lungs and I'm too stunned to move.

"I'm being hugged. A freak is hugging me. A stranger is embracing me. A guy is hold his body against mine...

I…I CAN'T HANDLE THIS!"

All I can do is pass out.

A/N: Heyy~ sorry this one was a little boring... i needed to get some background in. I hope Nene isn't too Mary Sue-ish. If she is, please tell me and I'll work on it. I'll also work on a cover for this c: Thanks! And pweese review x3