Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto nor any of the characters, beside the main OC. All credit for creating this amazing series goes to Mr. Kishimoto

Author's note: Thanks to everyone for reading!

I know the title is a cliché and everything, but I already mentioned I suck at giving titles. So I could only come up with this... and well, it somehow fits. This is mostly a filler chapter anyway, describing the aftermath (especially the emotive one) of last chapter. And once again, it did turn out longer than I had planned, but well...

The answer to the reviews are at the bottom... they were too long to put up here. Sorry =)

I hope the chapter is up to standard. I'm glad you are still enjoying the story, it makes writing it a lot more fulfilling that it already is, for this reason I'll thank those of you that have add the story to favourites or that follow it, and a very special big thanks to my reviewers– again. Enjoy:

WHAT DO YOU FIGHT FOR?

Part of the forest was destroyed. No sound could be heard: the high amounts of chakra – evil chakra – had scared most animals away, even the biggest and meanest of them. The air was still filled with an electric, almost tangible, tension.

Then a sigh echoed around.

Akimi was now certain Orochimaru had really left and was not coming back any time soon. So, with a groan, she closed her fists, grasping dirt and grass. Her body was suddenly surrounded by a faint reddish aura. Luckily she had learnt how to use pure Katon chakra to burn off foreign agents from her body, but she wasn't proficient enough to destroy all the poison. She needed help. "Kaera-chan." she murmured. "Get Shino."

"Meow."

Akimi slowly got on her knees, popping one of her pills into her mouth. She tried not to move her right arm, where feeling was slowly numbing away. She grimaced, using her ninja wire to knot a tight string below her shoulder. "This should slow the spreading of the poison off. Let's hope Shino gets here fast..." She felt as if a horde of buffalos had ran over her: apparently her chakra storage seal, albeit useful, did hurt a lot. 'I'm lucky I didn't get chakra burns... I need to refine them.' She thought, coughing, as she crawled towards Naruto.

"What did he do to you?" she asked to no one. "It was a seal, I believe." Knowing she needed to check him out before the others arrived, she quickly unfastened his jacket and raised his shirt.

The seal was not visible, but felt off. Akimi forced a small amount of chakra in the boy's stomach, making it appear. 'The chakra flow is disrupted. Now, the only logical think would be a uneven seal placed upon the even one that holds the fox.' Kaera sent her the image of Orochimaru's hand, with the five purple fingers.

"I see." Akimi muttered. "Gogyō Fūin, blast it. It's a damned A-rank one. I never attempted to do it, nor its counter, but it's worth a shot, isn't it?" she took a deep breath, calling forth all her chakra.

'Work, work, work...' she called forth five seals, hoping to get them right. 'Work!' "Gogyō Kaiin!" she shouted, without noticing that the chakra on her fingers was golden. She slammed her left hand into Naruto's stomach and the boy grunted even though he was unconscious.

Akimi coughed, exhausted, and almost fell over. She focused her senses... yeah, the flow was normal again. She felt a little pang of pride at her success, then she put Naruto's clothes in place and fed him a chakra pill. Just then, he felt Shino and the rest of Team 8 land before her.

"What the hell happened?" Kiba asked.

Akimi sighed, finally managing to get on her feet. "Orochimaru bit Uchiha-san, then attempted to do the same to me and Naruto-kun, but we managed to stop him. I must have pissed him off, because next thing he had a snake poison me – and it was deadly. He placed a seal on Naruto-kun, making him unconscious, but I took it off, so he should wake up soon. I was about to check on Uchiha-san but since you are here I..."

Sakura rushed to her and attempted to hit her. Key word: attempt. Shino stopped her with a lazy gesture, noticing Akimi was very tired and pale. Of course, he didn't need to. Sakura was no match for the other girl, even in a debilitated state. Akimi drew a kunai from her holster and swiftly pointed it at the pink haired girl neck. He noticed that her movements were slower and sloppier that usual, though.

"What is wrong with you, Sakura?" shouted Kiba.

"That's what I would also like to know." Akimi hissed, her voice very cold.

"You... you let him hurt Sasuke-kun! Why didn't you stop him?"

Shino groaned, temped to slap her. SMACK! It was instead Akimi that promptly hit Sakura – and from the sound of it, it must have been a very strong one. He inwardly groaned: he wouldn't want to be in Sakura's shoes right now.

"Now listen to me, you little delusional fan girl! We didn't have to come here and save your sorry asses, but we did nevertheless because you are our comrades! And Kiba-san is actually a friend! So shut up and SUCK IT UP! At least we didn't tremble like the useless little coward you are." Akimi shouted. She put more pressure on her kunai, almost wounding her. "The only reason I'm not going to knock you out it's because we'll have already enough problems carrying Naruto-kun and Uchiha-san. But you better be silent and don't do anything stupid, or I will do it, because I'm already having a bad enough day without your fucking whining."

The other three kids were petrified – especially Sakura. Even Shino had never seen his teammate so enraged. 'Haruno-san is lucky Akimi is almost out of chakra, or she would now spot burning lesions instead.'

Akimi removed her kunai, before breaking in a long coughing attack. "Damn it!" she murmured.

"What's wrong?" Shino shouted, quickly appearing near her as she started to waver.

Kiba and Sakura gaped: they never thought they would hear the stoic Aburame shout. As if the day hadn't been appallingly extraordinary already.

"The poison." she whispered.

"Lie down." Shino ordered, helping her. "It comes from your right arm, correct?" He knew it was strange Akimi used her left one to threaten Sakura.

The girl nodded, as she felt a lot of small legs walking on her skin. "I burned most of it off, but..."

"Stay still. My Kikaichū will remove the rest." Shino explained. "It will be a few minutes and we'll move as soon as they are finished. Haruno-san, you check on Uchiha-san in the meanwhile."

Then he lowered his ear on the ground. "I don't feel any presences nearby" he said.

"This site will soon attire attention because of the battle. There is too much chakra around." Akimi murmured, feeling already better. "We need to scout ahead for a suitable resting place."

As she spoke, Kaera leaped away and Shino sent a swarm of insects out.

"And how is Uchiha-san?" concluded Akimi.

"He... he has an high fever." answered Sakura, stuttering a little. "And a strange bruise on his neck."

"That hebi bastard did bite him there." Akimi confirmed. "I'll examine it better when we find a safe shelter, but I have a feeling only Hokage-sama would be able to do something about it... maybe."

"You should be fine now." Shino said. "We must get going."

Akimi got up. She stumbled a little, but soon regained balance. "Yeah, I'm good." she said. "The river is north-east from here, so I would avoid that direction."

Shino nodded. "Logical. Many teams will make their way towards it for water."

"And how do we plan on surviving?" Kiba asked.

"Sealed supplies. We have got enough for a month." Akimi replied. "Each."

The other two genins looked flabbergasted.

"Did you ever took this exam seriously?" Akimi sighed. "No matter. Kiba-san, are you all right?"

"Yes, the snake did only wear me out. I have some bruises too, but it's fine."

"Can you carry, Uchiha-san?" Akimi enquired. "And take this." she tossed him a pill.

The feral looking boy nodded, swallowing the pill. He trusted Akimi.

"Good then, take him. Shino, you get Naruto."

"Hai."

"I'll be in the front. Kiba-san behind me, then Shino. Haruno-san, you take the rear. You know how to leap on trees, right?"

"We aren't completely clueless, you know, Akimi." Kiba replied, while Akamaru barked.

She raised her arms innocently. "Just making sure."

Later that evening, in a small shelter in the centre of the forest

Teams 7 and 8 stopped after three hours of running, in front of a small, hidden alcove formed by huge tree roots. This time, Shino took charge, ordering Akimi to rest and Sakura to guard her and the unconscious genins, while he and Kiba placed traps all around. He surprised Kiba by using genjutsu-seals to conceal said traps.

When they returned, at sunset, Akimi drew a complex seal on the alcove, to conceal it, then made a perimeter seal around the area. She used her last reserves of chakra to activate them. Shino sat with his leg crossed and eye closed, listening to what his insects where telling him.

"Everything seems fine." he finally said. "I don't feel anyone nearby."

"Kaera can patrol for the night." Akimi said. "But we need to set up turns of guards."

The other boy nodded.

"For now, we need to recover." she murmured, then raising her voice: "Kiba-san, come here, I want to check your bruises. And how is Akamaru-kun?"

The dog barked loudly. "He is fine, Akimi."

"Mah, this pollute should be fine for animals as well. Better be safe."

Akimi finished to tend Kiba's wounds and was about to seal back her first aid kit, when Shino stopped her, asking about the real extent of her injuries.

Sakura, who already felt a little humbled, realised how bad she screwed up when Akimi took off her coat and her shirt, remaining clad in the bandages that protected her breasts, to reveal purple bruises on her back and stomach. Kiba stared at her for a second, with big eyes, before Shino swatted him, ordering him to go on watch duty outside the alcove.

"The snake bastard hit hard." Akimi explained, nonchalantly. "I'll need help to treat my back."

"I-I... I'll do it, Katora-san." Sakura said.

The black haired girl looked at her with narrowed eyes, then nodded. "Thank you." she gave her a small bowl full of a white-grey cream. "Just spread this on my back. Massage carefully, like this..." she showed her by putting the balsam on her stomach. "Then I will put bandages around. By tomorrow, it should be much better."

Few minutes later, Akimi put back on her clothes and checked Naruto and Sasuke again.

"He still has an high fever, but he is breathing steadily." she explained to the other genins. "I can't figure out that mark of his... but I think it's a seal. Whatever is happening to him, it's affecting his whole chakra system. That's why I won't risk giving him a chakra pill. I've a very bad feeling about this."

"What about Naruto?" asked Shino, concerned.

"Exhaustion. He overpowered his last jutsu. He'll be up in no time." Akimi signalled to Shino she would explain better later on, and unzipped Naruto's jacket. "I think Orochimaru hit him as well."

There was a purple bruise on him in fact, but it was somehow fainter than Akimi's. Sakura observed while the black haired girl took care of her teammate, despite her own injuries.

'Useless little coward...' Sakura thought. 'She was right. What did I do? I was there, paralysed with fear, because of Orochimaru's killing intent. But even if I wasn't, what could I do? I only know a couple of genjutsu... and the basics. And I nowhere as strong as Akimi is.' The bruises weren't the only thing Sakura noted about Akimi – the other girl was fit and muscled. She probably could hit as strong as Kiba, maybe even Sasuke... And Naruto? Since when was the blonde so developed? He had a six-pack, damn it! Her musings were interrupted by Shino's sharp voice.

"Here, Haruno-san." he said, waving a scroll. "Help me prepare dinner."

Akimi was about to turn Naruto to treat his back when she felt a subtle change in her Loyalty Seal, indicating he was awake. Not wanting him to react and try to slash her in defence, Akimi sent him a message. "It's me, it's fine..."

"'mi-chan?" Naruto babbled, his voice sleepy and confused.

"Relax and don't move" she said. "Orochimaru knocked you out. We are safe now. Team 8 is with us."

Naruto immediately stopped, as he was about to speak about the Kyūbi. "I used it again." he sent through the seal, sadly.

"You know, this time it was actually for the best. It did make Orochimaru escape, he probably was afraid it would alert ANBU." Akimi gently finished to massage his back, spreading the healing salve around. "Can you sit down, Naruto?"

"Yeah, I only feel a little dizzy." the blonde raised, allowing Akimi to envelope him in bandages. She then passed him his muscle shirt, smiling. "What happen? How did he...?"

"He placed a uneven seal on you, disrupting your chakra flow."

Naruto nodded. "Bastard."

"I concur, but luckily I was able to dispel it."

Naruto put on his jacket and smiled as well. "You are Konoha's future seals mistress, after all." he placed a hand on her cheek. "Forgive me. I should have listened to you."

"You should have." she replied, evenly. "After all this time, you really thought I would have turned my back on them?"

Naruto lowered his head. "I should have know better. I was too impulsive."

"You should always remember the power words have. Stop and think next time, maybe just for a few seconds." Akimi stated. "Baka."

"I'm sorry, I..." he said. His face suddenly fell. "The poison!" he shouted. "How are you?" he looked like he was about to panic – and was almost hyperventilating. "Is it...?"

Akimi placed an hand on his shoulder and smiled softly. "Fine. Katon purification, remember? Shino took care of the rest."

Naruto sighed in relief and dropped down again on his bedroll. "Thank the kami." he mumbled. "Thank the kami you are all right."

Akimi spotted immediately the suspect looking shining in his eyes. 'Damn it, you make so difficult to be angry with you, 'to-kun!' "Naruto..."

"I'm so sorry." he murmured, hoarsely. "I won't do something like that again, I promise, Akimi-chan."

"Get up." she coldly ordered. "Look at me."

Their gazes locked. Akimi could now clearly see the tears in his azure irises. She felt her own eyes water in response. They stayed silent for few moments. Then she nodded.

"You didn't do it to hurt me. I know you, Naruto. It will be fine. Just give me some time to digest it." she kissed his chin, very near to his mouth. "Now let's go eat."

Shino took the first turn of watching duty, Akimi the second. She knew that three hours of sleep would be enough to fill up her reserves. She also told Naruto to rest, because they were going to need their heavy hitter back in shape the next day.

"Akimi." Shino softly called. "It's time."

As they were in a forest full of potential enemies – humans and not – she hadn't been sleeping too deep, so she immediately woke up. "Thanks, Shino." she murmured.

He beckoned her to follow him to the entrance of the alcove, far from the other sleeping genins. "Privacy." he simply said.

Akimi simply traced a couple of symbols on the earth, making a seal in less than a minute. "Activate." she commanded. "Done. What is it?"

"What really happened with Orochimaru?"

She sighed and sat on the ground, hugging her knees. "He could have killed us in the blink of an eye. It's not a nice sensation."

The Aburame curtly nodded. "I know." he said. "You were right. My Kikaichū would have not be effective against him. His chakra is too... evil, corrupted, wicked... you choose. They would have died. I felt..."

"... useless." she finished for him. "But I guess it was to be expected. He is a Sannin, we are genins. Rookie genins."

"Well, I suppose this can either make me depressed, or it can encourage me to train more. I won't depend only on my Kikaichū anymore." Shino smiled a little. "I won't be a nuisance ever again."

"You weren't." she reassured him, sternly. "Without you I would still be poisoned – and we wouldn't have found this place nearly as easily as we did. Actually, don't catch me hearing you say that you are nuisance ever again. I may get angry."

Shino hastily nodded. He still reminded Akimi's enraged outburst earlier that day. It was scary. "I won't."

"Good." Akimi smiled tiredly. "I'm worried about Naruto. He used it again."

"Ah." Shino replied. "He stills has an hard time about it?"

"He feels guilty. I guess that he wants to rely on his own strength only. But he did save me from being bitten, so... I'll have to talk to him again."

Shino didn't answer immediately. "What's the difference from Wave?"

"This time he didn't stop on his own account." Akimi whispered. "Orochimaru placed an uneven seal on him, knocking him out because of the sudden irregularity in the chakra flow. I think he is afraid he would not have stopped otherwise."

Shino nodded, gravely. "Does his main seal react to negative emotion then?"

"Probably yes." Akimi shook her head. "I can't wait to be out of this place, honestly."

"The fight yesterday affected you more than I initially thought." Shino seriously said. "Are you all right?"

"Yes. I'm just bruised, really. I'll be like new in a couple of days..."

"But?"

"Emotion are running high. That fight brought up memories... memories I don't really like, nor wanted to recall."

And Shino knew not to push her buttons. "Just don't stay up all night. Naruto will shout at you otherwise... and I don't want to hear it. Wake him up for the third turn." he turned to get into the alcove. "Everything seems quiet, anyway."

She nodded. "And if not, they will not find us unprepared. No genin team would be able to sneak up on us, with all the protections we set up. And if Orochimaru decided to come back..."

"... it wouldn't make a difference, right?" Shino nodded gravely. "Be careful"

Akimi was sat in front of the alcove, Kaera nested near her. Her eyes were lost in the darkness in front of her. Everything was quiet – if you bar the sudden unnatural screams that could be heard time to time. The forest was full of nocturnal predators.

Despite the fact that she was still shaken by the encounter with Orochimaru, Akimi was slowly regain her usual calm confidence. Speaking with Shino had also helped. 'The emergency is over.' she thought. She and Naruto were in good shape again – he was like new, actually – and with Shino unscratched she was confident Team 7 could defeat any team who dared attacked them, bar Gaara's one and maybe Rock Lee's.

Which was why Akimi felt she could spent time analysing the strange 'ninja-card' Naruto had 'borrowed' from Kabuto. The first thing she did, was channel chakra through the thing, she did so carefully, afraid there could be a sensor seal linked to a trap seal that would destroy the card if it senses foreign chakra. There wasn't. 'Mmm... that's curious. Putting a trap like that would be the logical thing do to for any expert seal user. It's very easy to add to the whole implant... Maybe Kabuto doesn't see sealing as an Art, but only as instrument. How foolish of him. Either that, or he is not creative.'

Akimi noticed her chakra simply did nothing to the card. No change could be seen. 'There is probably a genjutsu seal to hide the collected data and all the seals on the card. So maybe even a double layer of them. Then there is of course a chakra sensor seal, that activates and deactivates the genjutsu.' The problem was to determine how to break down the seal. 'One thing is certain, if I try to break the main genjutsu forcedly, there is got to be a defence mechanism that deletes the info. So the thing I need to break is the chakra sensor seal. It will be difficult, especially considering the size of this card. Right, first thing I need to do, is to make the array of seals visible. Then I can start to study it. The genjutsu that protects the seals has to be separated from the main array. Logically, I would say that it's on the back of the card, with the main array being on the front, where the info appears.'

That determined, Akimi took off her ling and brush and started to draw on a piece of paper the rough draft of a chakra viewing seal, that basically forced ink into lines of chakra, making them visible. After she finished drawing it, she tilted her head to examine it. 'No, I need to modify it so that the part who pours ink is parallel to the chakra entrance symbol, and...'

"Katora-san."

Akimi raised her eyes, startled to see Sakura in front of her. The pink haired girl had a tentative expression on her face and her eyes looked taunted. Akimi glared at Kaera. Why didn't she warn her? Well, no matter. "Haruno-san." Akimi nodded at her. "You haven't slept."

"I... I have a lot on my mind."

Akimi sighed. Sakura wasn't her friend, because, let's be frank, she hated her attitude. But maybe, just maybe, there was potential. And as Naruto often said, she was a softie deep down. "How so?"

"Yesterday... that man... Orochimaru... he almost killed us. We were hopeless..."

"Yeah." Akimi nodded. "That's what I felt as well. He played with me and Naruto-kun, he could have killed us. I'm not sure why he chose to leave when he did, but it was sheer luck."

"Yet you fought him. Why?"

Akimi sighed. "It's very difficult to explain." she put down her brush, before untying her Hitai-ate and showing it to Sakura. "What do you see?"

"Err... your forehead protector?"

"That's the easy answer, Haruno-san." Akimi smiled. "You are aware I use Fūinjutsu, right?. It is my favourite ninja art and I feel I will spend all my life trying to master its mysteries. What seals taught me is that words have power. A seal could be described as an arrays of certain symbols and kanji empowered by chakra. The smallest error in a stroke, can mess up entirely a seal. But you know, drawing symbols and empowering them is not enough... and what truly makes the difference between apprentice and master is understanding. There are many ways to say the same things, but for every different situation, one is best than another. So now I ask you, what do you see?"

"The symbol of Konoha." Sakura said. "The symbol of our village."

"Now, that is a better." Akimi smiled more widely, nodding. "And now tell me, Haruno-san, why did you choose to become a kunoichi and wear this? What do you fight for? It's not family tradition, right?"

Sakura stopped to think. "When I was little, I was bullied a lot, because of my forehead." she blushed. "Then once, Ino saved me. She was... strong. I wanted to be strong as well and I joined the Academy."

"And Uchiha-san?"

"He... he is, I dunno, strong. His whole family died in front of his eyes and he is so cool and mysterious and..." she stopped. "Damn, why am I so swallow?"

"We are teen agers. Being superficial is almost a given. But you are also a kunoichi, Sakura-san." Akimi softly said. "You need to act like one. You wanted to become a ninja because you wanted to never be bullied again... but did you considered what being a ninja really means? Do you understand that you have to kill and risk to be killed on every mission. Have you killed, Sakura-san?"

"No."

"You are still so naive." Akimi sighed. "When Kakashi-sensei first met us, he asked us to introduce ourselves. Likes, dislikes, hobbies, dreams for the future..."

"Kurenai-sensei did also."

"How was your introduction like, then?"

"I like... Sasuke-kun. I dislike... Ino-pig and perverts. My hobbies are... reading, I guess? And my dream is..." she turned to look at Sasuke. "That's what I would have said. I guess maybe it's a little childish, so... I'm not sure anymore."

"I like my friends and family, Kaera-chan, the village and fire." Akimi stopped. "I dislike rudeness, disrespect, prejudices and those who use power to exploit, hurt and abuse others. My hobbies are reading, cooking with Naruto-kun and experimenting. My dreams for the future is to surpass my grandfather in the Art and to always be there to support and protect my precious people."

Sakura bit her lips. "The Art is Fūinjutsu?"

"Yes." Akimi smiled. "Now, turning back to your first question: why did I fight Orochimaru when I knew he could easily have killed me?" she scratched her head. "When we first felt his chakra, we only knew there was a very powerful and evil enemy in the forest. My first reaction was to head in the opposite direction, to safety. Then, Kaera told me Kiba-san was in danger. He is a friend and a comrade and I'm a proud genin of Konohagakure. So of course, I turned on my tracks and went to help him. As my teammates did."

Sakura was looking at her in awe.

"Kaera had in the meantime reached you. After Naruto-kun and I killed the snake, we realised it was a summon – and who but Orochimaru can summon snakes? In that moment, two facts were clear: one, you and Uchiha-san, two of my comrades were in dangers. Two, Orochimaru was an enemy out of my league, a Sannin. What to do then? My instinct told me to run, but I knew better. I was trying to come up with a plan to allow us to escape him, but Naruto-kun is a little more reckless than me, so he ran straight away at you. So of course I followed."

"How can you be so... brave?"

"Sakura-san, don't you remember what Morino-san taught us? What all the first exam was about? Maybe you should have raised your hand."

"I was about to, but then Naruto inspired me. And I didn't want to disappoint Sasuke-kun and Kiba... they deserved a shot at this"

"Is there a point in having strength if then you don't know how to use it? Power for power's sake corrupts and destroys. My grandfather taught me this, a saying of my clan." Akimi traced her forehead protector. "You want to know what I see? I see all the shinobi who gave up their life for this village, to protect those they loved. I see my family and friends and I see the fact that I need to be strong to protect them as well. This is the life I chose, this is what I'm going to do."

Sakura was silent for a while. "I'm... useless. Had it not been for you, Kiba would be dead and I would be dragging an unconscious Sasuke-kun in this forest... and if someone founded me I would..."

Akimi sighed. 'It's not like I could really do something against Orochimaru...' "Right. You have a good mastery of the basis, but you are still as thin as when I first met you. Do you train your body at all? Do you still diet?"

"Kurenai-sensei did beat me out of it." Sakura sheepishly said. "She focused on my genjutsu, though, which is why I haven't worked on my taijutsu."

"I had your chakra reserves when I was seven. You can't properly use ninjutsu. You need to boost your stamina and strength and speed before anything else. But on the other hand, your control is flawless. So yes, you are pretty much useless right now... Well, you know what I think? You can either cry about it, or suck it up and do something about it."

Sakura nodded. "Do you... do you hate me, Akimi-san?"

The other girl laughed. "Why, of course not. I despise your behaviour, yes, but I don't hate you."

"Could we... could we become friends one day? Could you help me become stronger? I don't want to be a burden and a nuisance anymore. I want to become a true ninja."

"You have already started." Akimi looked ahead, seeing that the night sky was starting to lighten. Dawn was coming. "Keep the determination up and you will be fine. I'm sure Yūhi-san will be more than happy to help you now that you have this new resolve. And now, I'm gonna wake Naruto-kun up and sleep a little. You should too." she raised.

"Akimi-san?"

"Yes?"

"Are you and Naruto together?"

"Yes." Akimi tilted her head. "Why do you ask?"

Sakura looked embarrassed. "I was curious I guess. I'm sorry if I offended you."

"As long as you don't talk about it to the whole village. I like my privacy."

"Sure thing! I also wanted to say I'm sorry, Akimi-san, I should have not tried to hit you."

"You were in shock. And you are very obsessed with Uchiha-san. I get it really. I am myself a little protective sometimes." Akimi shrugged. "Besides, I did point a kunai at your throat. So, let's call it even, uh?"

Sakura nodded, feeling relieved. "I'll try to sleep, then. Thank you for the chat."

Akimi rubbed her chin. 'That has got to be the longest talk with a female my age I ever had. Besides the fact that the only woman I really know is Ayame. Maybe I do need some female friends... it was not that bad.' and she smiled.

As soon as she was sure Sakura was sleeping, Akimi raised and approached Naruto. He lightly shook her boyfriend's shoulder. "'to-kun, wake up."

The boy leaped on his feet in an instant. "Are we under attack?" he shouted.

"No."

Shino tensed for a second, before going back to sleep. Akamaru opened one eye, then closed it and yawned, seeing nothing was wrong. Kiba groaned and turned on his back, snoring a little. Sakura sighed heavily, but otherwise remained still.

Naruto looked around, before ruffling his hair with a sheepish smile. "Whoops. I shouldn't have yelled, should I?"

Akimi grinned at his antics. "Probably not. Let's get outside."

As they sat down on the privacy seal Akimi had drawn, Naruto yawned. "Why did you wake me up?"

"I figured you would be in prime conditions by now." Akimi replied. "And I wouldn't mind some extra sleep really."

Naruto smiled softly at her. "Then go rest."

She didn't make to move, simply looking sharply at him in the dim light of the half moon that shone in the sky.

"'mi-chan? Are you all right?"

"Just bruised." she automatically answered. Naruto raised a sceptical eyebrow at her. "And worried."

"About?"

She turned, removing her gaze from him. "You."

Naruto chuckled a little, but it was a bitter laughter. "Don't be. Of course, I almost had an heart attack when I thought he was going to kill you, but now we are fine."

"What about..."

"I'm not proud I used it again, but I have to accept it. I'll get there – eventually." Naruto sighed. "It's just that now is more real... it's not a onetime only thing anymore. It's scary."

"If I close my eyes I keep seeing that evening. The feeling is the same. An opponent so powerful you aren't bigger than a fly next to him. Like... Kuroken."

"'mi-chan."

"It all came back... but it's slowly getting away as well. I've seen the difference. This time I was at least able to try and fight. I didn't freeze in fear. I could do something, only... it wasn't enough." she explained, ranting a little. Naruto let her. "I was talking to Sakura-san before and I was telling her how I couldn't not fight Orochimaru, because I choose to become a kunoichi to make a difference, to fight injustice, to protect my friends and my new home, and I really believe that, but deep down I am also so scared!" her voice had gotten a desperate note on it.

"Akimi." Naruto grasped her shoulder and made her face him again. "It's okay to be scared. I was also... I was afraid that my recklessness would result in your death. Maybe if I had waited we could have come up with a plan, who knows."

She looked about to speak again.

"Ah." Naruto stopped her, putting a finger on her lips. "My turn now." She smiled a little. "What matters is that we are alive, we aren't hurt too much and we are able to see another day. We survived and we can get back on our feet, train like crazy and in a couple of years we'll be able to kick the Oro-teme's ass into next millennium. That Kuroken bastard too, if he is still alive. We'll do it, together... like we always did. I'll promise you, dattebayo! And I never back down on my word. Besides we have Shino and Kaka-sensei too now, don't we?"

Akimi nodded, feeling her eyes water a little. "You are right." she whispered.

"Good, now that this is cleared... did you say you were talking to Sakura?" Naruto asked. "How did it happened? I thought you hated her guts."

"I did." Akimi replied, with a small smirk. "But after I bitch slapped her I felt a lot better. It's true what they say... you should always act on your feelings."

"Bitch slapped?" Naruto pouted. "Damn it, why do I always miss the cool stuff?"

The sun had raised. Naruto let his comrades sleep even though daylight was now bright enough for them to move. Akimi had said it would be unlikely Sasuke would wake up any time soon and she would prefer not to move him again – unless it became necessary.

Besides, sleep would do both her and Team 8 a lot of good. Shino had woken up a little after dawn and was now sitting near him, in silence. A few insects flew around him time to time.

"Everything all right?" the Aburame asked eventually, seeing his pensive face.

"Worried."

Shino repressed an amused snort. 'These two...' "About Akimi?"

"Yeah..."

"You know I had a very similar conversation with her earlier?"

"I didn't." Naruto smiled. "But I probably should have imagined it, dattebayo." he turned to look at her sleeping form. 'I really hope she doesn't get any nightmares again. Stupid Oro-teme'

"She talked to you?"

"Hai." Naruto shrugged. "I think we are both all right. We just need time to deal with everything. You?"

"Fine." Shino sighed. "Just a little humbled... but I'll take this as an excuse to improve even more."

"Now that's talking!" Naruto shouted. "We'll just need to train even more... and help each other even more."

Shino did gave one single chuckled, which basically meant he was really having an heartfelt laughter, had he not been a stoic Aburame. "Yes. Why do you ask? I think you really rubbed off me. I wasn't this obsessed with training before meeting you."

Naruto smirked. "You'll see... I'll eventually make a prankster out of you as well."

"Do that and I will sic Akimi on your back." Shino smirked back in a somehow sadistic way. "I don't know how she would like you 'corrupting' me completely"

Naruto gulped. "Now, that would totally be excessive. I'll be a good boy, dattebayo!"

Shino chuckled again, softly. "And yet somehow I find difficult to believe it."

The blonde laughed with him and then the two boys fell back into a comfortable silence, with Naruto turning to check on Akimi every few minutes – and Shino silently snickering at him each time.

A while later a sleepy Kiba, with Akamaru on tail, emerged from the alcove. "Ehi, guys!" he saluted, with a yawn.

"Inuzuka-san."

"Ohi, Kiba!" Naruto jumped on his feet. "You fine?"

"Golden." the Inuzuka gave a feral smile. "Thirsty for some action again. I need to kick some asses, otherwise I may get down..." Akamaru barked. "Yesterday was a close call."

"Cheer up." Naruto patted his back. "Nobody could have predicted you would need to face a gigantic summoned snake... or the Oro-teme. Had it not been for that I am sure you would have ruled the exams... up until you met us, anyway."

"Kami, you are so full of yourself, Naruto!"

The blonde raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "It's not arrogance if it's true."

This time Shino did snorted, while Kiba looked very sceptical. Naruto pouted.

"Well, perhaps you are right." Kiba sat down. "It was impressive the way you and Akimi dealt with that snake... and what I saw about your fight with Orochimaru as well."

"I wouldn't really call impressive the second part." Naruto seriously said. "It was luck, really." he shivered, thinking about how close he and Akimi had been as well.

"You were outclassed." Shino spoke up. "Yet one may consider impressive the fact that you still went there and fight instead to turn and fight."

"One my call it impressively stupid as well."

"Also impressively noble. It was the right thing to do." They all turned to the entrance of the alcove. Akimi had woken up. "I hope I am not interrupting some kind of testosterone-only meeting..."

Naruto laughed and approached her. "Slept well?" he whispered, taking her hand

She nodded, smiling and squeezed back. They sat down again.

"How long have you been eavesdropping?" asked Shino, surprising Kiba with what he thought was a teasing – 'Shino... teasing?' – hint on his voice.

"I wasn't eavesdropping." Akimi said, offended. "You woke me up with your talking. Not my fault you didn't use the privacy seal I've drawn."

"You didn't use ink. It faded an hour ago." Naruto said.

"Oh, yeah, and you don't know how to draw it, do you?"

"Fair enough."

"Anyway I only heard the last part, starting with Shino's comment. As he should know, considering his Kikaichū are flying around."

"Nothing escapes you ever alert gaze, uh?" Shino muttered. "That's getting annoying."

"Now, you don't really mean that, Shino-chan." Akimi smirked. "I may get the wrong idea."

Naruto burst into laughter.

Shino shivered, but didn't show it. "I didn't really meant that."

"I know." Akimi tilted her head. "Something wrong, Kiba-san?"

Kiba was gaping at them. 'They look so relaxed with each other. Wow... I never thought I would see Shino like... well, this.'

"No" he quickly said. "I was only... well, thinking."

"And does your brain hurt?" asked Naruto with mock concern. "Don't worry you eventually get used to it."

Akimi swatted him. "Baka!" she exclaimed. "What about, Kiba-san?"

"Lot of things. I think I need some major training once we get out from this forest... and the Exam finishes." Kiba smiled his feral smile and Akamaru barked. "I can't let you surpass me like that, Naruto."

The blonde laughed. "I'll look forward to spar with you when the time comes, but I will still kick your—" he was interrupted by a loud growling... from his stomach. "Whoops."

"And this calls for breakfast!" Akimi exclaimed. "I'll get the scrolls and wake Sakura-san up."

"Sakura-san?" Shino asked. "I thought she was 'Haruno-san'. When did this happen?"

"Apparently this place brings forward very touching moments and confessions." Naruto seriously said. He nodded to himself. "Must be the dark trees around and the menacing sounds all around... It's just cosy."

Kiba looked at him, gaping. "Are you serious?" he turned to Shino. "Is he serious?"

Shino nodded gravely. "Sadly, yes."

"Get your ass moving!" Akimi's voice shouted from the alcove in that moment. "Sakura-san and I will not be doing everything just because we are woman. You want to eat, work for it!"

The three boys looked at each other, then ran into the alcove at once. They all knew it was best not to annoy Akimi too much, after all.

April, 14th 214 – Mild morning

"Uchiha-san has still an high fever." Akimi stated. "The safest course of action would head to the tower and require help. Of course, it will also mean that you forfeit, Team 8."

"What about you?" asked Kiba.

"We already have the scrolls." Shino said as stoic as usual.

"What? You mean to tell me that you tracked them down so easily?"

"Exactly." Shino replied, as a matter of a fact.

Naruto smirked and Akimi smiled in amusement, while the Inuzuka just gaped at Team 7... again. 'They really are something else.'

Sakura spoke up then. "It's up to Kiba really, I don't think I'm fit to be a chūnin, anyway. Not yet."

Kiba and Naruto both looked surprised at this. 'Well, I must handle it to 'mi-chan, she has really a way to make people get their head out of their asses.' The blonde thought.

"I would like a chance, yes. Probably Sasuke as well." Kiba replied, while Akamaru barked.

"Then we shall hunt down two teams and find you a set of scrolls." Akimi said. "Since Uchiha-san freely gave your Heaven Scroll to Orochimaru."

"Stupid teme." Naruto mumbled. "Shino, can you still track some Earth Scrolls?"

"There a Ame's team nearby. It's actually in the direction of the tower."

"They probably set up an ambush, then." Akimi said. "We could go for them. Of course, I think it would be prudent to wait until he wakes up." she indicated the unconscious boy. "So I'll send Kaera to track and keep tabs on this Ame team. Shino, send Kikaichū around to scout for other teams."

"I'll shall send some clones as well." Naruto said, while at least a dozen copies of him appeared from nothing.

"What kind of technique is that, Naruto-san?" Sakura asked.

Naruto blinked. Did Sakura just called him san? Weird. "Kage Bunshin. They are solid clones whose memories I get. Great for exploring."

Sakura's eyes widened. 'No, he is not the dead last anymore.'

"Wait a second." Shino said. "Someone is coming..."

JUTSU NOTES

Gogyō Fūin: [Five Elements Seal]: A rank, supplementary, short range; this techniques produces a seal that disrupts or block the chakra flow in an opponent. Once the seal is complete it may even cause unconsciousness for a short while.

Gogyō Kaiin [Five Elements Unseal] A rank, supplementary, short range, this techniques is the exact counter of the Five Elements Seal and it's obviously used to removed it.

Akimi's Katon manipulation as 'antidote': first thing, she has studied and practiced fire manipulation for years. She has probably got one of the best mastery over Katon in all Konoha, but she lacks the stamina/experience to back this fact up. I also mentioned in another chapter that she now practices diffusing a small aura of Katon chakra all around her body... it's a training method similar to the Hyūga's one that eventually results in Kaiten (although she won't have a technique like that ever). So basically Akimi can send fire manipulated chakra all around her body... and use it to destroy foreign agents in her blood stream, for example. She can't do it with an 100% precision though, mainly because she risks to get burned otherwise. This abilities will eventually develop in a specific high ranked technique, but for now is nameless.

Shino's Kikaichū as 'antidote': so I obviously got inspiration from Shibi (Shino's father) removing the poison from Shino in the Shino vs. Kankurō canon fight during the invasion. I'm not sure in canon this works only on Aburame clan's members, but let's assume that this techniques works for everyone in my fic. After all it sounds to me very similar to certain medieval medical techniques that used leeches to drain blood and remove infections and the like (or something like it, I don't remember exactly right now), so it seems likely.

Team 7 also got wary of poisons after their fight with the Demon Brothers and this explains why they have thoroughly looked for a way to counter poison. (And it also gives Shino a key support role on the team).

REVIEW ANSWERS: (sorry they finished up this long)

Guest: very interesting suggestions. I particularly liked the one about cloning Kikaichū. I'm definitely thinking of implementing it into the story. About lighting, I had initially excluded it because its destructive nature could (or should) be harmful for the Kikaichū, but the thing about shocking an opponent is very appealing. Now, I'm strongly considering giving him this affinity instead of the one I initially thought of. Thank you for reviewing! (About slugs: they seem to be more oriented towards medical ninjutsu, so I'm not sure they would fit with Shino... or if Tsunade would let him sign, for that matter)

Wizardmon0073: thank you very much for reviewing. I'm glad you enjoyed Team 7 dynamics and that I was able to integrate Shino well with Akimi and Naruto (even though Shino remains only a very major supporting character). The story is about a 'destructive duo' after all. About Akimi's and Naruto fight, I've put a note at the bottom of the chapter. You also made some excellent points:

1) Shino and summoning:I perfectly agree with you, in fact I wasn't sure about giving Shino a contract because I assume he would use all his chakra to maintain the symbiosis with the Kikaichū, but the realisation that there are certain enemies (namely Orochimaru, tailed beasts and those who posses very corrupted chakra) that cannot be defeated with his insects will make him look for some alternative solution. I suppose that each Aburame is given one hive at birth and as their body and chakra reserves mature, they receive more hives (and eventually gourds etc). Shino will choose to develop extra abilities instead, but his chakra levels will never make him a powerhouse like Naruto and in any case his summoning technique will not have a gigantic boss like Gamabunta, Manda or Katsuyu, on the contrary he will only summon small/medium creatures anyway.

2) Ninja and NobilityLike you said the equation doesn't seem right and I wanted to explain better what I believe about it. I am very aware of the contraposition between shinobi (shadow) and samurai (light). Ninja sneaks, kills etc. etc. I tried to show the darker side of the profession in earlier chapter (namely Nami), but both Akimi and Naruto have a very idealist view of 'being a ninja'. Naruto because it's in his nature, as in canon, he hates killing and he still a little naive at times, he will eventually come to agree with Jiraiya about 'peace' (like in canon). Akimi didn't grew up in Konoha and her grandfather instilled into her a very strict sense of right and wrong, resulting in the fact that she would not hesitate to kill, especially in front of meaningless evil/abuse (like Gatō) and the belief that she is to use her powers to help those who cannot protect themselves. When she arrived in Konoha she was positively impressed by the Third and his 'Will of Fire' and especially by Kakashi and his fierce protectiveness of teammates. The duo will have to deal with the darkest side of the ninja world in future, but for now they are (and they probably will remain) a sort of 'noble' ninja.

3) Akimi and Naruto 'fight': well, I think that their confrontation before facing Orochimaru is more a conflict that an all out fight. So they are basically fine now, like you said it would be very unlikely for them to stay days (and chapters) without talking/or very angry with each other. Naruto feels guilty, Akimi knows it, she has forgiven him and he will still try to make it up to her. Also, like in canon Naruto is one to learn through experience, in a trial and error way. This 'mistake' was necessary to make him realise what the consequence of recklessness is. Besides, Akimi still depends only on Naruto to reveal her deepest fear(s), as it was shown when she didn't really speak about it with Shino, but didn't hesitate ranting to Naruto.

Also, I hope the forgiveness didn't seem like it came too early or too easily. Although this is partly and objectively true, the two of them have depended on each other for years. Before meeting Akimi, Naruto had basically next to nothing. Before meeting Naruto, Akimi had lost everything and was very much on the edge of desperation. She didn't know what to do with her future. What they built in the next two years was a solid friendship (that then matured in love) and they are not about to waste/ruin it for one single fight. Hence the easy forgiveness.

I hope the scenes I wrote and this explanation convey my thoughts about the 'fight' and also Naruto and Akimi's relationship in general.

shadowmarialove: I hope that is a positive exclamation! Thank you for reading and reviewing.

Neo Amon: thank you very much for reviewing. I'll look forward to see what your theory about Loyalty Seal is, but I have to warn you that it will have a very slow development. In fact it will not be really mentioned for a lot of chapters...

About the one tailed mode:well Naruto has a much more stable ground and therefore can withstand Kyūbi's influence more, like you said. He was able to use jutsu because his fighting style is very different from canon and basically makes him a very proficient ninjutsu user/powerhouse. (In canon he only knows Kage Bunshin up to the Chūnin Exams) In fact, even thought he was able to use a techniques, he did hurl it without reasoning, going for the most powerful one his arsenal (Fūton: Namikadou is a B rank), which I believe isn't that different from when he goes throwing Rasengan around without thinking in canon.

Naginator: thank you. Actually I immediately excluded the possibility of giving either of them a cursed seal... besides it wouldn't fit with the plot of this fanfinction. The fact the snake tried though will be fairly significant.

CHAPTER NOTES

So, cliff hanger again, sorry about this. I'll let you wonder about who exactly is approaching Team 7 and 8... I'll try to update soon thought, but I need time to catch up with writing the preliminary matches and that is somehow a drag. (I'm becoming too similar to Shikamaru for my own good, especially considering that I only have a normal IQ...)

Also if you have forgotten, Kuroken is the 'nice' man who killed Akimi's grandfather and whole clan. He will come back to visit in the future, you'll see.

I'm sorry if Shino seemed a little OOC, but well I think that he could have not spent months with Akimi and Naruto without getting a little out of his shell... even though he still remains a stoic Aburame at hearth.

I hope my kilometric notes didn't bore you too much (if you had the stomach to read them). Until next time...