Stage Fifteen: Retreat

I decided it was best if I left during the day, rather than the middle of the night. He was the Kazekage now, and left early that morning. I waited a few hours before following him out the door. The sunlight crested over the distant sand dunes; the heat was quickly rising, and the mirages were seen rippling like little waves over the barren landscape.

I lunged to the next roof and tore through the village. It wasn't long before she found herself on top of the Kazekage's office. She could hear him below her, talking in his slow and steady rasp to someone as they talked; they sounded like advisors. I scaled down the side of the bulbous building, and walked calmly through the streets of Sunagakure.

I could spot Kankuro standing, well, leaning against a wall, talking to someone who was intently listening. The wind picked up her long, brown hair, and she looked into the breeze. Her eyes locked into mine; they were a sorrowful green. It was an unusual green, intensified with a surge of emotion. I couldn't tell if it was hatred or disgust. Kankuro soon turned around to see what this girl was glaring at, and then his eyes also found mine. He turned slightly red, then turned to talk to his new interest. I could make out a few mumbled words from the girl.

"No, I don't know her."

"She's really not that bad," Kankuro said, glancing in my direction. I hadn't moved; I hadn't looked away.

"She's watching you."

"She hates me," he admitted.

"I don't like her," the girl decided.

"You don't even know her," he vouched for me.

"Why do you stand up for her, if she hates you?"

He sighed. "It's because she hates me that I stand up for her. I don't know if you'd understand, but she and I were comrades in a way, and it didn't work between our team and hers. The whole mission was jeopardized because we couldn't get along. I learned then that I couldn't continue to let her hatred grow. I also knew she was right about me. I didn't want to admit it, but she was."

"She's not of a village. She doesn't wear a protector plate anywhere."

Kankuro then looked me over and added, "She belongs to a village, although I don't know for certain which one."

"Then what is she doing here?"

"I didn't know she was here, until now."

She pulled out a kunai. "Isn't that a bit suspicious?"

Kankuro's eyes widened. "That isn't a good idea. She is a dangerous opponent. Lord Kazekage had a hard time fighting her, and she was just messing around."

"L-lord Kazekage?" she stuttered.

"Yeah, I've never seen him so pissed before. He just couldn't kill her."

"Then she has to be stopped." She braced herself in a stance that was almost comical. How the hell did she manage to become a genin, even?

I rolled my eyes and walked toward them. That amateur couldn't do anything to me, even if she tried. What made her think that she could take down someone the Kazekage couldn't? Her breath caught when I walked by, and I stopped to listen for an exhale. When she didn't, I looked at them and simply chastised, "Gossip isn't something a Shinobi should endulge in." I glanced at her protector plate. She was from Kirigakure. She wore the same plate that Kisame had scratched through. What business could she have here? "I don't know what they taught you in the Village Hidden in the Mist, but for the Bloody Mist Village, I'm sure they wouldn't condone this behaviour either. Or, rather, have you forgotten that you're representing your entire village while you're here, flirting with a grown boy who plays with dolls?" I suddenly remember the way Sasori mocked Kankuro's skill with the puppets. I laughed as I started to walk away.

I heard that heavy exhale that makes me feel like the monster I really am. I smiled, knowing that I had worked my way into her mind.

I looked at the familiar village layout under the light of the moon. It was about time for me to head inside, now that the gates were closed. Do they really think a twenty foot wall can stop me? I don't think so! I had infiltrated Konohagakure once before, it wouldn't be as easy to blend in this time. For one, I was sure that Neji had followed through with my orders, at that time. I had given him more than enough time. Nevertheless I was cautious, even though I had to take a risk.

I pulled those simple hand signs, "Transformation Jutsu." Only Neji would recognize me, if he looked at me through his Byakugan eyes. It was the same disguise he had looked right through the day I met Itachi, again…

I ran to the top of the tree I was waiting in and lunged toward the top of the wall. I was sure they anticipated a Shinobi doing this. I didn't touch the wall at all as I landed on a rooftop, ten feet below.

The village was just as I remembered it. There was a constant scent of dew or rain as night fell, and the stars were faintly visible, becoming brighter as the city began to sleep. I remembered the different places as I walked down the streets, and remembered the people as well. There was the flower shop where Ino sometimes spent her days, working for her mother. It is rumoured that she is a natural Konoichi, when it comes to the arts. It makes sense, as flower arranging is their family's profession. Art, well, art is something that most people don't agree on, but is considered beautiful, no matter what the definition is. Flower arranging is one of those forms that I find frivolous. Sure, they're pretty, and they make the room smell somewhat better, but the fauna die a slow and painful death, and the beauty doesn't last. There was the ramen shack, where Kankuro had bought my last bowl. I chuckled at his desperate attempts to soothe his new girlfriend. She was so ambitious. It could get her killed.

Of all the places I could go, I didn't know where the Hyuuga compound was. I wandered around for hours, only to discover that it was right next to the Uchiha compound, and I never realized. All those times I went to see Sasuke, and I never ventured next door, never even stopped to notice?

The moon was high when I found myself in the back quarters of the Hyuuga compound. They were like mazes, clan housing. Each one was set up a differently, with no logical way to manoeuvre through them without finding yourself hopelessly lost.

"You're looking for me," I heard him whisper. "I had been wondering when you'd return. I knew that wouldn't have been the last I would hear from you.

I turned around to see him leaning on the wooden railing that surrounded the deck of what I assumed to be his house. "Yeah, I guess I am."

He sighed, and dropped his gaze to his hands, where a stretch of violet fabric was weaving through his fingers, ever so slowly. The flash of the metal, and the reflected eighth note shone brightly, drawing my attention to my discarded affiliation with Orochimaru.

"You didn't burn it," I observed.

"Believe me, I tried. I couldn't do it. I don't know why. I didn't want to believe you. I couldn't imagine that our village would be so weak. I knew that I shouldn't have let you go. Everyone was furious when it happened. We have a new Hokage now."

"How did she handle the news that you knew?"

"I never told her."

"That was probably wise."

His white eyes shone grey in the light. "I feel like a traitor. Why me? Why didn't you tell Sasuke, or someone else?

"No one else could see through me. Sasuke wouldn't have cared. Look where he is now!"

In an instant he was before me, his hand over my mouth. "You'll wake everyone if you keep that up." His eyes darted to the open door that once stood behind him. "Inside," he ordered.

I followed him into the bedroom. It really had no distinguishing qualities. No pictures, no paintings, nothing that would tell you anything about the boy who slept there. I didn't expect that. Surely there would be something that he would use to express his personality.

He stood awkwardly by the door. I stood and faced him, casting shadows from the window behind me. "I guess I should take the band back, then, shouldn't I?"

"Why are you changing your mind?" he asked. Nonetheless, he handed the band over to me, not really fighting for a reason.

"I'm going back."

His eyes widened. "You're going back to that monster? He killed our Hokage, and the Lord Kazekage. You must be insane."

"I've realized a few things while I was in Suna."

"They weren't the answers you were looking for I take."

"No, I didn't have the time to answer any of my questions. The Akatsuki found me before I could find them."

"Why were they looking for you? They found you when you were here, and then let you go. Surely the Uchiha wouldn't be fooled by a simple transformation Jutsu."

"He wasn't, as he saw through it too. No, it was someone else who was sent to find me. Their target was Naruto."

"Why did you come back?"

I looked at my band. "I knew you wouldn't. When I would think about it after I left, I knew that in the end, you wouldn't destroy it. I don't know why I knew. I just did. If I have to face Orochimaru, I'll do it with him thinking that I'm still on his side. I don't want to bring extra suffering, not if I can avoid it."

"What of Sasuke?" Neji finally asked. I knew the question was weighing on his mind, and had been for a while now.

"I don't think he'll ever listen to a word I say again," I answered.

"Why? You two were friends, weren't you?"

"We were, but then he found out I was working for Orochimaru, I'm sure. He was already angry with me when I left."

"Yes, I do recall his fury with your leaving, and his hatred for Gaara as well. I knew it was all linked together."

"What I did with Gaara was simply orders. Orochimaru needed information, and that's all I can say."

"I'm sure," Neji sighed.

I looked down at the headband. "I should probably be going. Thank you, Neji."

"Before you go, you should know that your name was never mentioned when Orochimaru attacked. You left before it happened, so no one drew the connection between you and the third Hokage's death. You are still considered a Konoha Shinobi," he informed her.

"I could never be a Leaf Shinobi, not after all that I've done."

"There's always the chance that Orochimaru won't take you back. Although the odds against you are great, if you were ever to slip away, you could always return."

I looked him in the eye. They were empty and white, as always, showing no emotion. "I'm sure he'd think to look for me here. No one runs from Orochimaru and hides forever. He knows us all, and where we'd go."

"How will you survive?" he asked. I could hear the tone of knowing in his voice. He knew I wouldn't. He knew I didn't want to.

"I'm sure I'll find a way," I lied, regardless of protocol. He looked at me as though he didn't believe a word I said, and I didn't blame him.

"Don't get hurt," he warned. "I don't know how strong you truly are, but if anyone has a chance against Orochimaru, I know it's you. Your chakra isn't the only thing about you that is strange to me. You're driven by something. That drive is unseen anywhere else except for a few people. Use it, and use it well."