The rest of the trip home was taken slowly with frequent breaks. By the time they finally walked through Konoha's gates and handed in their paperwork to Kotetsu, they were dead on their feet. Kakashi was leaning to one side with an obvious limp and the cut on Avurin's lip was still healing so they were both directed to the hospital prior to meeting with the Hokage.

The cut on Avurin's lip was a simple excuse to bring her in but the medic that was looking them over had done a full-body checkup just to make sure she didn't have any further injuries. Of course, Avurin had lied about the cut and told the medic she'd busted it when she got caught up in a trap on their mission. The medic had simply said that it was healing really well, almost unnaturally quick actually, but it might scar. Avurin had shrugged.

Kakashi, however, was told to take it easy for at least a week. He had a sprained hip, as he'd guessed before they left the Okita mansion, and the travel back to Konoha had made it worse. Avurin was worried about that but she knew they would both get at least a week off from missions after this one considering what they'd dealt with and what they'd found.

Avurin fully expected to be given time to research what was in the chest while she was back in the village and she would not be accepting any D-Ranks after this. She was fully capable of completing C-Ranks and the constant D-Ranks were a complete waste of her skills. She would also need to hunker down and actually look into how the Okita kekkei genkai was trained. If there was a safe way to do it, she was finally ready to do it.

Kakashi had given her one look after they were freed from the hospital and she knew they were headed straight for Hokage Tower. If anyone needed to be updated on where things stood with the research she needed to work on and Kakashi's injury, it was the Hokage. Only the Hokage. They were technically carrying clan secrets that needed to be secured immediately.

Which was how they found themselves at the Hokage's door, knocking and waiting to be admitted.

"It feels odd to enter the office this way," Kakashi said with obvious amusement in his tone. Avurin crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

"Well considering you're injured, we're not using the window this time. Have some common courtesy every once in a while!" she snapped at him. He just laughed, slipping his hands into his pockets as the door in front of them opened. Kakashi's quiet laughing cut off immediately at the faces coming out of the office. Avurin was still getting reacquainted with the concept of the elders that were on the council that the Hokage answered to but she had already figured out there was something off about some of them, especially Danzo.

The man that was currently staring her down like a freshly cut piece of meat.

"Ah, welcome back to the village, Avurin Okita. I don't believe we've had a chance to meet since your return." Danzo's voice made her want to physically step away from the man. Something about him just wasn't right. Knowing she couldn't act on instinct alone, she just nodded to him.

"Thank you. No, we haven't had a chance to meet. I've been focusing on reintegrating into the village." she countered carefully. Just seeing him now, she already knew he was one of the people in this village that should never have the information she was currently carrying in her storage scrolls. The man tilted his head to the side and smiled. Avurin internally winced. He was so creepy.

"Ah, yes. We've noticed your progress on your missions lately and we hope your most recent mission was met with success. You look exhausted so I assume you just got back. Please, don't let us keep you any longer." Danzo inclined his head in a very small bow and she repeated the gesture.

"Have a good evening," she responded as he turned to walk away with two other elders who gave her calculating looks. Kakashi's hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her into the Hokage's office where the door was shut as quickly as possible.

"Welcome back, you two. I trust the mission was a success?" Hiruzen asked as he tapped his pipe into the ashtray at his desk. Kakashi stepped forward.

"I would recommend activating the silencing seals for the office and treating this report with utmost discretion," Kakashi asserted and Avurin nodded her agreement. Hiruzen waved to the Anbu in the rafters who disappeared, one of them coming down to activate the seals for the office and taking a place next to the Hokage for the conversation.

"By your reaction, I'm assuming that you found some very sensitive information?" Hiruzen probed. Avurin stepped forward, brushing Kakashi's shoulder with her own, and nodded.

"Yes, I found everything that I was looking for. Kakashi has memorized what was relevant for Konoha, however we did find more than we thought we would in regards to the clan secrets. I will be withholding that information for the safety of myself and those that wish to use this kekkei genkai for reasons I don't agree with. The only things I can confirm are that the mansion we were sent to was the Okita estate, a home base for them of sorts, and it is heavily warded." Avurin took a deep breath.

"There will be no tampering there, I am the only one who can enter and only I know the way to bring an additional person with me. I am the last remaining Okita. That was confirmed by a family tree and extensive records kept at the estate. The secrets I found will live and die with me. Kakashi is not aware of most of them but he is free to tell you of the records that he memorized. A lot of it was just political records going so far back that there was talk of the Warring States era. I trust him with that information and to know what I do and don't want revealed." She glanced at Kakashi who nodded. He knew more than she was willing to confess, a promise of safety between the two of them. He knew what to say and what to keep to himself.

Hiruzen sighed before taking a puff of his pipe, digesting the information he was given. He set down the pipe to lace his fingers together in front of him.

"I want a written report for the mission. However, I don't want any mention of finding these clan secrets in that report. Reveal what you are okay with revealing in detail and include what Kakashi has memorized. If you must, lie and say you were disappointed not to find what you were looking for. I don't think I need to say that there are prying eyes that may not take kindly to clan secrets being kept as just that, clan secrets. You are the last remaining member so you don't have the strength of a clan to protect what you have found. Find a good place to hide your findings." Hiruzen explained.

"We have a place in mind. I will be assisting her with her training and other related research. Unfortunately, the mansion was filled with traps and we were caught in one that resulted in injury, so I will be out of commission for at least a week." Kakashi paused, shuffling his feet. Hiruzen nodded, taking note of the small flinch that Kakashi attempted to hide. Kakashi took that as a cue to continue.

"I will be meeting with my Genin team to discuss the upcoming Chunin Exams so I will not be able to take any missions outside of the village for quite a while. Avurin will need time to process the information and train so I would recommend keeping her in the village as well. With the upcoming exams, I'm sure you already planned to tighten up security. We will provide our skills in that for the foreseeable future unless there is an emergency." Avurin almost ran a hand through her hair in frustration. That wasn't very eloquently put. If anyone was going to jump the gun and immediately tell the Hokage they weren't going to do their job for a while, it would be Kakashi.

Hiruzen just smiled.

"I understand. I'll prepare the paperwork for the Chunin Exam applications. The official announcement for the Chunin Exams will be in a few days. You two have a couple of days before I expect the report on your mission. In the meantime, please, go get some rest. You're dismissed." Avurin immediately swiveled on her heel and made for the door. She was exhausted and she wasn't going to try to pick apart conversations that seemed to have double meanings. She was missing something there and she couldn't bring herself to care for what it was.

Maybe it was the fact that they had been around each other constantly for the last few weeks but she only barely registered Kakashi's footsteps following her as she made her way back to the Hatake compound. She couldn't shake the feeling of eyes staring at her back and the storage scrolls she had in her backpack felt heavy. Kakashi was willing to protect her secrets with his life, but she knew he wouldn't always be able to save her if someone decided they wanted to use underhanded tactics to get access to her clan's information. She still didn't know what exactly was vital information on the kekkei genkai or not. Just the information regarding the Sasaki kekkei genkai was enough to ruin any positive reputation her clan still had left.

It wasn't until they were within the walls of the Hatake compound that Avurin felt that unsettling feeling dissipate. Kakashi took the lead and, instead of directing her to the cabin, he walked towards the main house on the property. They didn't say a word just in case there were listening ears but Avurin had a feeling Kakashi was putting his own feelings aside to show her the safest place for the information she was carrying despite how badly he wanted to avoid it, the main house.

The sun was setting as they walked into the home, toeing off their shoes at the front door. Avurin followed Kakashi to the living room as he touched various corners of the room, activating small seals that were carefully hidden among curtains near the windows and along the seams of sliding doors. She settled down at the kotatsu in the middle of the living room, unclipping her backpack next to her and waiting until he finished. Once he gave her a quiet thumbs-up and sat down across from her, she let out a breath.

"That was tense," she mumbled as she pulled out the scrolls and laid them on the table, a chaotic stack that they had left unmarked for the sake of not revealing their contents. Kakashi pulled his mask down and gave her a small smile.

"Well, you may have a few people keeping an eye on you but you can always come back to the compound if anything happens. The wards will keep intruders out for the most part. I won't say this place is completely impenetrable, but it would take quite a scene to get inside. I don't think anyone will do anything yet, they'll want to observe before possibly making any moves." If Kakashi was trying to be reassuring, Avurin wasn't feeling reassured. She did not enjoy the thought of being stalked.

"I'll keep that in mind. For now, what do we do with these?" She gestured to the pile of scrolls. She would need to be able to easily access them but they needed to be secure. Did the Hatake keep their own records locked away behind traps like her family had?

"There's a sealed room in this house that you can put them in. We'll blend them in with the rest of the collection. It's disguised as a hidden office and a well-placed genjustu will keep them well hidden. I've been doing the same thing for the Hatake records." Avurin nodded. It was as good as she was going to get at the moment. She took several of the scrolls while Kakashi picked up the rest, leading her to the back of the house. They walked into what looked like a normal office before Kakashi pushed a tatami mat aside, revealing a hatch that led to an underground room.

Once they climbed the ladder down into the hidden room, Avurin was surprised to see that the room under the house was just as well-furnished and taken care of as the rest of the house. It felt pleasant despite the faint buzz of the seals she could feel just on the edge of her senses. She was not a sensor by any means, so the fact that she could feel the seals without consciously looking for them meant that they were very strong.

She followed his example and wedged the scrolls in with other stacked scrolls and hid some under some of the bookshelves. She mentally kept track of where she was setting them before returning to the middle of the room, watching Kakashi make a hand sign and reveal his Sharingan, casting a genjutsu that would divert the eyes of anyone looking for the scrolls. Avurin would remember where she put them and since they were still going to physically be in the locations she chose, she would still be able to pick them out and study them without relying on him to find them in the office.

She followed him out of the room silently, knowing that the longer they stayed in the room, the more likely it could be discovered if anyone with a strong sensing ability was able to pinpoint their location from nearby. Kakashi was quick to shut the hatch, locking it and sealing it, before covering it back up with the rug. They both glanced at each other before making their way out of the room and going back to the living room. The sun had fully set and Avurin could hear the crickets outside.

The weight of their mission seemed to crash down on her all at once as she slumped down at the kotatsu.

"'Kashi, I'm tired…" She let her head rest on the table as her eyes started to shut on their own. A hand on her shoulder had her sighing and leaning into the touch.

"Let's get you back to the cabin." He pulled on her shoulder and she stumbled back up to stand, grumbling about having to move.

It was as Kakashi was tucking her into her bed in the cabin and turning to leave that she finally got enough energy to hold herself up.

"Where are you going?" Kakashi turned back to her, an odd look on his covered face. He must have pulled his mask back up before they left the main house.

"I'm going home tonight. I need to get some energy to deal with the pups tomorrow and start their training for the exams." It was a logical choice, yet Avurin felt herself sag back into the bed. He had responsibilities and his Genin team had been without their sensei for a solid two weeks. She couldn't hijack his time constantly, he was one of the most trusted shinobi in the village and he had to take care of his team. The Chunin Exams were a big deal and he was right, the kids would need him.

"Oh, okay." She laid back down on the bed and stared at the ceiling. They both needed rest. She shouldn't expect to have him at her beck and call constantly.

"Goodnight, Avie." She ignored the door sliding shut behind him and chose to roll over in the bed, facing away from the door.

Wait, didn't the medic tell him to take it easy for a week?