"Sasuke, I swear to The Sage-"

"I'm training!" The twelve-year-old swung the door open and shouted at the seventeen-year-old. Uchiha Sasuke glared at his distant cousin and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Not with my motherfucking kunai you aren't!" Akane's face turned red and she stormed past Sasuke into the training room. "How many goddamned times have I told you not to touch my shit?!" She screeched, her voice cracking at the end when she saw her bag laying open sloppily on the ground. Ankane growled, clenching her teeth and snatched it off the ground. "I have to be at the gates in five minutes, you little shit, I've been looking for my gear the entire morning! Didn't you hear me yelling across the whole house 'SASUKE HAVE YOU SEEN MY KUNAI?!' I'm going to be late and Tenzo-sensei is going to make us run suicide lines through the trees and I hate you!" She stormed past the stormy young man and turned around. "Also I made you a few tomato dishes to last the rest of the month. This C-Rank is going to be a little longer than the last one."

"What?" Sasuke's head snapped to her and he crossed his teeth. "Where are you going? When did you get a new mission?"

"This morning," Akane smiled at Sasuke and winked at him. "See us older ninja get the good missions."

"You're six years older than me…" Sasuke muttered 'but you don't act like it' under his breath. "Where are you going?" He repeated with an edge to his voice.

Akane smiled bashfully at him. "The Land of Waves," she stuffed her bag of kunai into her bag. "Don't worry it's not going to be dangerous. We're just escorting some old drunk back home while he builds a bridge." She shrugged at him.

"Tch, I should be out there in the field. I'll never get strong enough to-"

"Do you talk about anything else?"

"I need to be stronger to kill him and that's not going to happen pulling weeds."

Akane smiled and punched his shoulder gently. "Well, when I become a Chunin this year, I'll request your team for a super awesome mission. But you'll have to call me…Akane-sama."

"Fuck off," Sasuke shut the door of the training room in her face and she laughed loud and high pitched.

Akane was already late so she stopped to get tea. Nothing annoyed the Nerd like when she was late with a treat. She grinned, already picturing his sour face. Genji would probably just roll his eyes and shake his head. But he'd secretly laugh and maybe he'd get to have the rest when she didn't want to finish it. Tenzo-sensei would probably run her into the grave later.

Akane knew her life was weird. Wrong. Yes, she'd woken up in the wrong body and had somehow miraculously woken from the dead a second time. Odd. And she'd sworn that she would make the most of it. Akane wasn't alone and thankfully neither was the kid. And so Akane had sworn when he sobbed in her arms in the hospital room, that she would protect him. And unfortunately…that meant she needed to get stronger than anyone else in the entire world. Times a hundred. Starting with Zabuza.

"You are late, Akane," Tenzo-sensei said the moment she came into ear shot. He turned on his heel and they were off, Akane quickly flashing her shinobi pass at the two gate guards who checked her off the list. They tossed her a green tag that she tucked into her pouch. Better keep track of that. Get caught in another country without it and be beheaded. Seriously.

"What'd you get?" Genji asked with his usual impassive tilt of his head.

"Ice milk tea," she said, taking a sip. She sucked it dry making sure to watch the Nerd out of the corner of her eye. "Mornin' Kabuto-senpai, how are you?"

Kabuto was annoyingly unshakable and smiled sweetly at her. "Better, now that I know the whole team is here. We thought there may have been an emergency."

"Yeah, yeah," Akane rolled her eyes at him and his glasses glinted in the light when he raised his head. "My annoying little roommate was using my kunai again without telling me. Unless you'd rather I traveled without weapons."

"Wouldn't make much of a difference," Kabuto said, casually tossing his pony-tail over his shoulder.

"Can you two brats shut up?" The old man-the client-mumbled, rubbing his head. Hung-over? Yes, no doubt Tenzo-sensei had given him the talk. No smoking, no drinking, no gambling, no whoring. You are a civilian who has requested shinobi aid. Therefore you will follow our orders. These commands are for your own good.

"Quiet," Tenzo-sensei ordered and Akane sighed, but respected her teacher enough to follow his orders. Besides, he wasn't opposed to draconian methods…if need be. Akane and Kabuto separated and stood at the left and right sides of the protective square respectively. Akane dumped out her ice and put her cup in her bag and observed her surroundings. She'd taken this same twenty mile walk out of the forest of Konoha-the only road that was maintained-and into the general territory of the land of fire many times. Well…five times. But this was her first time crossing the border into strange lands. Akane was a bit of an anthropologist in another life. Uchiha Akane was ashamed to say that she was excited, despite the danger she knew was coming. But Akane knew Tenzo-sensei was one of the strongest people ever, and she knew that he'd have the upper hand. She looked at his back and he twitched when he felt her eyes. Akane smiled and looked back at the tree line. She slowly calmed her breath until her lungs were almost still. There were no hostile chakra sources coming towards them.

"I felt that, Akane," Tenzo-sensei said with amusement in his voice. "You need to pull your chakra in closer to your body. You expanded your sense very quickly, good job. But maybe you should make sure to hover over areas sometimes so you can try and figure out who your enemy may be."

"Thank you, Tenzo-sensei," Akane said, practicing pulling her chakra in, feeling it pull in and out of her like a wave. She tried again and Tenzo-sensei told her he felt her coming. Third time's a charm, but she had to sacrifice speed for stealth. But Tenzo-sensei said it was acceptable.

"So…what's your hometown like?" Genji asked Tazuna who squinted at him and glared.

"Small and full of hard working people. We used to be bigger, a huge trade hub. But that was years ago."

"What happened?" Akane asked, satisfied by the stiffness in his shoulders.

"Gato…"

"The business man?" Tenzo-sensei asked casually.

"Yeah…some business…"

They lapsed back into silence and it felt just a little more awkward, though the Nred looked satisfied for whatever reason.

They camped that night, Tenzo-sensei only making a house big enough for him and the client. The rest of Team Twenty slept in a tent.

It went to shit the next morning.

Akane flicked her Chakra out and her eyes widened when she spotted two puddles on the ground. She must have been too obvious, they acted, springing up from the water. They attacked Tenzo-sensei who had taken up a spot in the back. Separating his head from his shoulders, leaving a crumpled figure on the ground. Akane and Genji flanked the enemy while Kabuto rushed in front of their client, guarding him, and throwing kunai towards the enemy on the left.

The clink of metal on their gloves. Chains. Fucking idiots. Akane threw six shuriken and struck the enemy on the right, pinning his chains to the trees. Genji leapt over her shoulders and pulled his sword from its sheath and severed righty's right hand and it fell to the ground, the shinobi going with it.

Akane and Genji didn't waste time, turning to the man on the left who was now heading straight for Kabuto and the client. Akane skid in the dirt and stuck her leg out, tripping the other brother. He stumbled, then launched himself in the air with his hands. Kabuto jumped and kneed him in the face, sending him flying backwards into a tree, following up with a thrown kunai, that embedded itself in the enemy's shoulder when the enemy turned to avoid a fatal blow. Kabuto grit his teeth when he saw the target still drew breath.

Akane darted between the trees and roundhouse kicked the enemy back towards Genji before he hit the ground. Righty surprised her by getting up. Akane lost an inch of hair to the sharp iron of his remaining glove, the one without the chain…obviously. Akane flipped back three times, and skid in the dirt, putting her hands in front of her to stop her momentum, standing behind both Genji and Kabuto who were guarding Tenzo's sides, blocking incoming kunai and shuriken that would occasionally be thrown towards the old man. Her hands flew through the signs and the heat built in the center of her throat. "Fire Style: Fire Ball jutsu!" She yelled, her chest swelling with Chakra before exploding from her mouth engulfing Righty when he lept at them. He would not be surprising them again, she realized with slight horror, stumbling back, her mouth dropping open. Genji looked at her with wide eyes and grabbed her by the sleeve.

Genji looked at her with sorrowful eyes. "Tenzo-sensei would say-"

"That your hand seals are sloppy…" A voice said behind them, then Tenzo darted past them and grabbed Lefty before he could run. "But your foot work is getting much better!"

"Sensei!" Akane cried with wide eyes, forgetting the man for a moment. "You're alive!" She said with a huge smile. The enemy hung from his arm by the neck and Tenzo threw him to the ground, binding him with a branch that sprung out of the ground.

Tenzo-sensei rounded on Tazuna slowly. "I think we need to talk," he said slowly, his voice low and deadly. The old drunk shook. Tenzo-sensei's face brightened when he looked at Akane, Genji, and Kabuto who were slowly starting to calm down from their relatively quick battle. "Good job you three. Genji, you're still leaving your right side open. Kabuto, I'd like to see you act more offensively. There's no need to be shy. Akane, sloppy, sloppy hand seals, but you already knew that. Over all, great reaction time, the client was completely unharmed, and none of you were injured too badly. Great job…now Tazuna-san…you were talking about Gato last night?"

Tazuna swallowed thickly.

"I want a C Rank mission, " was the first thing out of Sasuke's mouth when Kakashi finally managed to stumble his way from the memorial stone. Kakashi cocked his head to the side and raised an eyebrow at the young ninja. Right, Uchiha Akane had left with Tenzo that morning. So maybe Sasuke was feeling left out? He didn't know. But, he was proud of his kohai. Inspired, more like. With his own team almost a year later.

"Meh, let's see what's in the office," Kakashi said with a shrug, almost regretting it when Naruto and Sakura began to cheer. Kakashi honestly couldn't stand the idea of taking his preppy little whippersnappers out into the cold dark world, but he also didn't fool himself into believing that he could ever shield them from it. If anything, maybe it would be good for them to see past the walls of their safe home. Make them more mature. Something easy but something that would teach them about life. He wondered if the monthly Sea Boat C was available.

Maybe he should teach them water walking? Keep 'em from drowning.

"Your mission," began the grizzled Chunin who'd been chain smoking for thirty years. "Is to guard the crew and cargo of the ship: Akira, while they complete their monthly fishing for the land of fire. There are no expected hostiles, however, caution is always of the utmost importance. Your mission will last two weeks, not accounting travel time, but you will complete it within three weeks or face a fifty percent pay cut. Got it?"

Team Seven blinked at him and Kakashi grinned behind his mask, snatching the mission out of the man's hand. "Got it!" He said and spun around. "Be at the gates, tomorrow, six in the morning, sharp!"