A/N: I'm using both the anime and the manga for reference on the scenes. There are slight differences between the two, and I'm picking and choosing between that.

"Inner Sakura"

"Sakura's thoughts" (Unless stated otherwise)

"Talking"

memory

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. At all. Not even a little.

Their mission success rate greatly increased since Sasuke had forced Sakura's explosion. There was still plenty her team didn't know. She hadn't revealed her dire financial circumstances, her mother's illness and slow deterioration, or that she'd lost her father on a mission. She wasn't quite ready to reveal that, and while they told her to voice what she was thinking more, she was still acutely aware of their situation and didn't want to burden them further with hers. She'd been repressing many of her emotions for so long that it had become habitual, and habits weren't broken in a day. So her internal self, who voiced everything she'd never say out loud was, still held a strong presence in her mind. But she was slowly beginning to voice her annoyance, frustration, and anger, when she was with her team, at least. Around everyone else, it was business as usual.

She was also making a little more, now that they could accomplish more than one mission a day. She didn't have to hustle as much, which freed up a very small bit of time. She no longer had to work odd jobs, instead cutting down her hustles to only supplying Ikehara's apothecary with ointment as needed, or street performing. She still hadn't managed to make enough to give herself enough time to comfortably fit in training, but she did work on alternative methods. When her mother was asleep, she'd use their small "hallway" to do conditioning exercises and stretch. She often dozed off while stretching her split. She'd made some training weights out of an old shirt and some gravel, which she wore on her ankles and wrists all the time. Her favorite method of training actually was street performing. She always used a henge jutsu to hide her identity while doing it, and the combination of the weights, maintaining the henge, while performing incredibly strenuous physical movements for a prolonged period of time, actually did make for some good though unconventional training. Plus she could earn a bit of money doing it—two birds with one stone.

It still wasn't nearly as much as the way Sasuke and Naruto trained, but they had more time and less responsibility than her, so for now this was the best she could do. And Sasuke had been right, for now, that and sharing her analysis of the situation were enough. The entire groups teamwork had increased dramatically. And it was showing in their current mission—to catch a cat.

"Sasuke, here at point B!" His voice sounded even deeper to her over the in ear radio.

"Sakura here at point C!" She reported right after.

It was silent for a couple seconds.

"Naruto here at point A!"

"You're slow Naruto." Kakashi admonished. "Okay, team 7…hm?"

There was a rustling sound as their target darted from its spot.

"The target has moved! Follow it!"

"Alright! It's over there!" Naruto spotted.

The three quickly and silently darted being neighboring trees.

"What's your distance from the target?"

"Five meters. I can go at anytime!" Naruto reported impatiently.

"I'm ready too!" Sasuke was equally impatient to get this done.

"Me too…" Something about this felt like not the best idea to Sakura. Cats were jittery and ferocious when scared, if they all jumped at it now, it could run off again…they weren't even surrounding it, they'd be coming at it in a wall, that'd scare it for sure.

"Ok," she heard Kakashi in her ear, "do it!"

"Wait!" She saw Naruto almost lost his footing and Sasuke sent her a glare.

"What?" She could tell that the sharpness in his tone was less annoyance at her and more a desire to get this stupid mission done. Naruto and Sasuke were both getting stir crazy with these kinds of easy missions.

"If we all jump at it at him at once, we'll scare him off."

"You have a better idea?"

"It takes too long to get a cat to trust you, especially if you don't have food for it…"

She glanced over at the two boys, both looking back at her. Despite their desire to finish this quickly, they placed their trust in her and waited for her idea. That alone made her chest warm. Her gaze landed on Sasuke in particular, who cocked his head arrogantly, his hitai-ate glinting in the sun. Sakura's eyes widened.

"Sasuke-kun, can you sneak around to the opposite side of the clearing?" He nodded and disappeared in an instant.

Sakura leapt into a tree and undid her forehead protector.

"Sasuke in position." His voice murmured in her ear. She blushed at the sound of it but kept focused on her task.

"Both of you go when I give the signal." She angled the metal of her hitai-ate to catch the sun, reflecting into the clearing. She let the reflection dart into the cats line of vision before holding it still. The cat studied the little light and darted towards it, but Sakura jerked the reflection to the side and held it still again. The cat turned his body to the side, so he wasn't directly facing Naruto or Sasuke's position anymore, and got ready to pounce. Sakura waited until the last second and then whispered, "Go!"

The cat jumped at the same time Naruto and Sasuke did. Except they were faster, and the cat, whose attention had been solely on the light, wasn't prepared for them.

"Uyyaaahhhh! I got him!" Naruto, who'd been slightly closer, caught him mid jump, much to his annoyance. He immediately began clawing at the blonds face.

"Does he have the ribbon on his right ear? Are you sure it's our target, Tora?" Kakashi's voice buzzed over the radio.

"It's the target, no mistake." Sasuke answered calmly. Completely ignoring his teammate's cries as the cat continued to attack him.

"Alright! The mission to capture lost pet 'Tora' is complete. Good work you three!"

"ISN'T THERE A MISSION WITH A GREATER SENSE OF URGENCY!?" Naruto shouted, practically blowing out the ear piece and everyone's hearing along with it.

They returned Tora to his owner at mission command. As the woman practically smothered the creature, Sakura found herself empathizing with the cat.

"Serves him right! Stupid cat." Naruto growled watching the scene.

"No wonder he ran away…" Sakura knew what it felt like to be trapped, in her tiny box of an apartment with the weight of her responsibilities endlessly crushing down on her.

"Now then…" the Hokage mumbled as he studied available missions, "the next mission for team 7…an errand to the neighboring town, baby-sitting the chief councilor's boy, helping with digging for potatoes…"

"None of those pay well on their own, but if we complete all three plus capturing Tora, that's not a bad haul for one day…"

"Or we could just aim for a higher paying mission."

"I don't think we're ready for—"

Her thoughts were cut off by a very loud, "Noooo!" Of course it was Naruto. "No! No, thank you! As for me, I want to do like a more exciting mission! Give us something else!"

Sasuke couldn't help but agree, the dead last had a point.

"Man…he's such a pain!"

"This kid's speaking my language!"

"Are you stupid? We can barely train right now! You really think we could handle a serious mission?"

"Nothing'll change if we don't set our sights high! Shannaro!"

Kakashi sighed. He had a feeling this was coming. Iruka didn't seem to take Naruto's outburst as calmly—both out of concern and annoyance. It was no secret the man cared about Naruto more than as just his student.

"You fool! You're still a low rank rookie! At the start, everyone moves up the ladder by gaining experience from simple missions!"

"B-but! It's been nothing but blah missions so far!" Naruto was going to sat more, but Kakashi gave him a hard knock on the head.

"Knock it off!" He admonished.

"Naruto! It's necessary to explain to you what a mission is…" The Hokage sighed.

Naruto looked up from rubbing his head, confused.

"Listen to me! Requests pour into the village every day. They range from babysitting to assassinations. A wide spectrum of requests are recorded on a list and separated into A, B, C, and D ranks in order of difficulty.

"In the village, everyone below me is divided up by ability in order of Jonin, Chunin, Genin, and civilian, but we're not talking about civilians. Of the ninja, we at the highest level distribute the requests as missions, to those who have abilities suited to said missions. Jonin are given A rank and below. Chunin, B and C. Genin, C and D. And if the mission is successful, the fee comes in from the client. You're also paid per mission according to the mission rank."

Sakura knew this already. She'd read up on economics when she was nine. In a village like theirs, being a high ranking Shinobi was the most lucrative career one could have.

"Nevertheless, you three are brand new Genin, which means rank D is about the best you can do…hm?" The Hokage became acutely aware that Naruto was not paying attention. "Listen!"

Sakura couldn't take it anymore, and slapped Naruto upside the head while Kakashi apologized. "Listen while the Hokage is talking to you, damnit! If you're gunning for this position so hard, at least show some respect for it!"

"Hehe, sorry Sakura-chan," Naruto replied sheepishly before returning his attention to the Hokage. "But seriously, all you do is lecture me, gramps!"

Sakura's jaw nearly dropped at his rudeness. Sasuke just rolled his eyes.

"But I'm not the little prankster you think I am!" The blond pouted.

Kakashi scratched at the back of his head, knowing that he would get in trouble for Naruto's impudence. The Hokage studied Naruto for a moment before laughing and shaking his head.

"Alright, fine. If you insist…" All of team 7 jerked in surprise. Naruto's complaining actually worked? "…I'll have you do a C-rank mission. You'll be bodyguards for someone."

"Alright! That'll pay more than these crappy D rank missions!"

"Ok, we should be able to handle a C-rank. Those are also allocated to Genin, after all."

Naruto jumped up in excitement. "Who? Who? A feudal lord? Or a princess?"

"Don't be so hasty, I'll introduce you now. Could you please come in?"

Team 7 turned as the door opened to reveal a surly, old man, drinking some form of alcohol straight from the bottle.

"What's this? It's just a bunch of damned brats! Especially the short one with the stupid face." The man stated, taking another swig from the bottle. "Are you really a Ninja?"

Naruto laughed, not putting the man's diss together until he looked closely at Sasuke and Sakura, standing on either side of him, making his shortness apparent.

"I'll kill him!" Naruto exploded, thrashing as Kakashi held him back.

"What good would it do to kill the old man you're supposed to be guarding, moron?" Kakashi asked with strained patience.

"I'm Tazuna, the veteran bridge builder. You'll be risking life and limb in guarding me to the max until I return to my land and complete my bridge!" The man introduced seriously.

Apparently that wording was enough to temporarily quell Naruto's temper, as he got caught up in the excitement of their real mission. Sasuke smirked, thinking this sounded far more like a ninja mission than catching cats did.

"Wait a minute…risking life and limb? That sounds kind of intense for a C rank…"

Team 7 accepted the mission.

The one thing that was definitely at risk while escorting Tazuna, was Sakura's sanity. He and Naruto were at each others throat so often, it made Sakura's head pound. She was doing her best to tune them out and quadruple check her mental checklist. She'd stocked the kitchen, and prepared enough food to last her mother two and a half weeks. She'd also made enough of her mother's medicine to last the woman a month, it would be on her to remember to take it. But she trusted that her mother would, she didn't have a death wish or anything. She just hoped the food would last…this mission hopefully wouldn't take longer than a week.

They'd been traveling in silence for the past ten minutes, courtesy of Naruto pouting, so she decided to risk amiable conversation with their client.

"Say…Tazuna-san…?"

"What is it?" He asked gruffly, reminding her a little of Ikehara.

"Your country is 'The Land of Waves,' right?"

"What of it?" So much for amiable…

"Kakashi-sensei, are there Ninjas in that land, too?" She was still trying to make sense of Tazuna's life and limb comment.

"No, there aren't any ninjas in the Land of Waves…But in other nations, while cultures and customs are different, hidden villages exist, and there are ninjas there. To the many nations on the continent, the existence of Shinobi Villages is a measure of the nation's military strength. In other words, that's how these nations maintain their relationships with neighboring nations. Even so, Shinobi villages are self governing, not under the control of other nations. On a small island like the Land of Waves, where it's difficult to be influenced by other nations, there is no need for a Shinobi village. Among the respective nations that possess a Shinobi Viilage, the five nations of 'Fire,' 'Water,' 'Lightening,' 'Wind,' and 'Earth,' due to their immense territory and power, are called the Five Great Nations. Each of these nations has a Hidden Village, lead by a Kage. The Kage rule supreme over tens of thousands of ninja in every nation."

"Wow! So Lord Hokage's really incredible!" Sakura mused.

"That boring old guy is really that impressive? I don't buy it."

Naruto was having a similar thought process, taking into consideration the fact that he'd actually knocked the old man out with a sexy transformation jutsu not that long ago.

"You two just doubted the Hokage, didn't you?" Kakashi asked, knowingly. While Naruto and Sakura vigorously shook their heads.

"What is he, a mind reader?"

"Well, don't worry. There are no battles in C-rank missions." Kakashi said, patting his only female student's soft pink head, bringing Sakura back to her initial train of thought.

"Right…That's what I thought…So why would Tazuna-san say something like that earlier…?"

"Oh good! Then there's no worry about getting into a scrape with foreign ninjas!" She said with a fake smile, though she still couldn't shake her unease.

"Of course not." Kakashi soothed.

Sasuke turned to study her face, immediately noting her fake smile and how her brow crinkled in thought as she turned away from their Sensei. Was she just nervous, or was something not adding up to her? She'd become much clearer about saying what she thought, but he'd noticed that she was still prone to hesitating. She didn't like to voice anything unless she had something fully worked out. In some ways it was good. Half baked ideas and groundless suspicions often lead to greater chaos and trouble. But, in moments like these, he still found himself passively curious about what was going on in her head. Deciding to trust that she'd tell them if she reached some sort of concrete solution, he turned away and walked on.

The group traveled in relative peace for a while, and Sakura was beginning to doubt herself.

"Am I overthinking this? He's pretty cantankerous and wasn't thrilled when he saw us…maybe he was just messing with us…"

No sooner had she thought it, then she heard the sound of chains clinking. Whirling around, she turned just in time to see her sensei wrapped in serrated chains, being pulled by two ferocious looking ninja wearing giant claws on their hands.

"The first one down!" One of them jeered. They pulled the chain in opposite directions, shredding through his flesh. Sakura watched in horror as Kakashi was torn in half. She couldn't hold back her horrified scream.

"K-kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled in shock.

"The second one!" The enemy ninja sneered, both appearing behind Naruto, who turned in horror and froze.

Sasuke leapt into action, throwing a well aimed shuriken and kunai, pegging the chain the two wielded to a tree. Sasuke landed on the giant medal claws they wore, braced himself against them, and kicked them both in the face. Sakura and Naruto watched in impressed shock.

The two immediately disconnected the chain from their claw contraption and skirted Sasuke, one running at Naruto, while the other charged at Sakura and the bridge builder.

"T-they're coming for him! I-I can't die here! What'll happen to mom if I die?"

"You should have thought about that before signing up for this!"

"R-right! I need to complete the mission—I have to protect the bridge builder!"

"Stay behind me!" She yelled, jumping in front of him and readying a Kunai in front of herself.

Sasuke's head shot towards Sakura at the sound of her voice. His eyes immediately widened in alarm. While he was mildly impressed that she hadn't frozen up (out of everyone on the team he'd figured she'd be the one who would), placing herself in front of their client in an attempt to protect him, he was acutely aware that there was no way she could take them. He moved as quickly as possible, placing himself in front of her with his arms out, to cover as much of her and the bridge builder as he could. The enemy was coming closer, but he hadn't thought out his next move, at the moment he figured he'd just end up taking the hit for them both.

Out of nowhere, an arm wrapped around the enemy's neck, dragging him away from the two Genin and their client. Naruto looked up from where he'd fallen in his surprise. Their sensei stood before them, holding an assailant in each of his arms.

"Yo…" He greeted smoothly.

Sakura felt a palpable wave of relief. "Kakashi-sensei! He's alive!" She cheered happily.

"Hmph…show off…" Sasuke muttered, both thankful and annoyed. If he was here the whole time, why didn't he just take care of it sooner?

Naruto was still trying to make sense of what he was seeing. "Whaaa—" He turned to see a small pile of logs where their sensei had supposedly been shredded. He'd used a substitution jutsu.

"Naruto, sorry I didn't help you right away. I got you hurt. I didn't think you'd be incapable of moving…Anyhow, I have to say, good job Sasuke. You too Sakura."

"Hey," Sasuke turned to Naruto, a taunting smirk on his face. "Are you hurt, scaredy cat?"

"Sauske!" Naruto roared, ready to pummel the arrogant bastard.

"These guys have poison on their claws. You need to take out the poison quickly." Kakashi cut him off calmly.

"What?!"

"You have to open the wound and drain the poisoned blood. Don't move so much. The poison will spread faster. By the way Tazuna-san—"

"W-what?" The old man asked nervously.

"Why were they after you?" Sakura spoke quietly, but it didn't stop all eyes from landing on her. Kakashi seemed mildly surprised at her interruption, but nodded. "We have to talk." He said with finality, before tying the two ninjas he was holding to a tree with their own chain.

"These are Chunin from the Village Hidden in the Mist. These guys are ninjas known for continuing to fight no matter the sacrifice."

"How were you able to detect our movements?" One of them hissed.

"There probably wouldn't be puddles of water on a clear day like this, when it hasn't rained for days." Kakashi stated, recalling the puddle the group had walked by seconds before the attack.

"Knowing that, why'd you leave it to the kids to fight?" Tazuna asked.

"If I felt like it I could kill these guys instantly, but I had to know who their target was. Was it you, or one of us shinobi being targeted…We haven't heard anything about you being targeted by ninjas."

"But you knew you were being targeted. That explains it…" Again all eyes turned to her.

"What are you talking about Sakura?" Kakashi asked, surprised again by her statement.

"This mission is C-rank and Kakashi-sensei said there wouldn't be any fighting on this kind of mission. But Tazuna-san's introduction earlier…'You'll be risking life and limb in guarding me to the max until I return to my land and complete my bridge'…That would be too much unless you knew for sure someone was after you…"

"So that's why you were like that earlier." Sasuke muttered. He'd never tell her, but he was a little impressed that such a small, easily missed detail had been enough to put her on guard.

"H-huh?" She flushing. "Sasuke-kun was paying attention to me earlier?"

"Why didn't you say something?" Sasuke asked with a sigh.

"W-well, sensei said there were no ninja in the Land of Waves and I thought I might be overthinking it…"

Sasuke fought the urge to sigh again. From what he had learned about her the past few months, that was typical Sakura. The girl even over thought her overthinking.

"Hm. Those are some impressive observation skills, Sakura." Kakashi allowed, making yet another amendment to his opinion of her. She was far weaker than the other two, who held so much power and potential. And when he'd first met her, he decided she was too preoccupied to make a good ninja. But the girl had revealed herself to have a truly bright mind, keen observation skills, and a sense of maturity and responsibility far greater than the average 12 year old. She might just make a fine ninja yet. But now wasn't the time to be thinking of that. He turned back to Tazuna.

"The content of the request was supposed to just be protection from gangs, thieves, and the like…This is now a B-rank or higher mission. The request was supposed to be for backup protection until you finished building your bridge. If our enemies were to be ninjas, the mission would have been estimated to be an expensive B-rank. I'm sure there's some kind of good reason for this, but being lied to on a mission request won't do. This is beyond the scope of our mission."

"This mission is too soon for us. We should go back, we need to get an anesthetic to open up Naruto's wound and get the poisoned blood out. We have to take him back to the village and get him to a doctor!" Sakura reasoned. "We're not ready for a B-rank yet!"

Kakashi glanced over at Naruto and sighed. "This is burdensome. Since we need to treat Naruto's wound, should we go back to the village…?" Kakashi didn't like the idea of abandoning a mission, but Genin weren't ready for this yet. Naruto freezing up was proof of that.

Suddenly, Naruto pulled out a Kunai and stabbed it into his own hand, much to the shock of the others. Blood dripped down his hand and on to the ground. Apparently, he'd decided to deal with his wound himself.

"Why am I so different? Why's it always me, damn it!"

"Naruto! What are you doing?!" Sakura took a couple steps towards him, her eyes locked on the kunai. Every medical and first aid book she ever read flashed through her mind.

"He…He didn't even sterilize the blade first! That idiot! He's gonna get his cut infected!"

"I should be getting stronger…" Naruto growled, thinking back on how hard he trained for everything. "I'll never get into another situation where I need to be rescued. I'll never be afraid or be a coward…I won't lose to Sasuke…I swear on the pain of my left hand! Old man, I'll protect you with this kunai knife!" He turned to face them all with a determined light in his eyes. "The mission continues!" He declared, making the inspiring though completely unilateral decision for all of them.

"Naruto," Kakashi drawled, "It's all well and good you rid yourself of the poison and all, but if you lose anymore blood, you'll die."

Naruto's cool moment shattered, as he began to run around in a panic. "No! No! No! I can't die like this!"

"Sensei! You're not helping!" Sakura admonished. Grabbing the blond's hand impatiently to examine it.

"You idiot! You didn't think to sterilize the blade first? That's like common knowledge!" She growled, pulling rubbing alcohol from her pack and pouring a little over his hand. Her grip tightened when he tried to pull away. "And what made you think you could do this in the first place? What if you'd hit an artery?! Then you really would have bled out! How many times do I have to tell you to think before you do something stupid!?"

"S-Sorry Sakura-chan…you know how to handle wounds like this? What can't you do?"

"Too much…cure mom, make enough to cover her medical costs, train…" She shook her head to quiet her thoughts and focused in on Naruto's wound, trying to figure out if he needed stitches. To her shock, it looked like the edges of the cut were smoking a little as they slowly seemed to be closing up.

"Is he healing already? but…how's that possible?"

"Uh, Sakura-chan…you're kinda scaring me...Am I gonna die?" Naruto asked fretfully.

"No Naruto. You won't die." She softened. The wound definitely seemed to be healing itself faster than it should be…She glanced up at Kakashi who was eyeing it too, but he just gave her an amicable smile.

"I have enough to worry about already. If Kakashi-sensei isn't concerned, I won't worry about it either. Besides, it's not like it's a bad thing…unusual, but not bad."

She pulled out her ointment and applied it gently along the cut, before bandaging it. With Naruto patched up, they continued on.

Sakura sat on the small boat anxiously. Thick fog covered the area and the reduced visibility did nothing to ease her mind. She ran her fingers through her long pink hair—a self soothing habit she'd had since she was five. The soft silky texture against her fingers always helped her ground herself when she felt overwhelmed. It reminded her that when everything was spiraling, no matter how broke and useless she was, there were still things she could control, like her hair. It was something she'd learned long ago from Ino, back when they were best friends. The habit still lingered even though their friendship hadn't, although Sakura knew that was mostly her fault…she'd been the one to push Ino away.

The feeling that they shouldn't be here pressed suffocatingly hard around her.

"This mission is too much for us…"

She glanced at Sasuke and the memory of how well he'd handled their last fight, and how he'd placed himself in front of her danced in her mind.

"Ok, maybe not for him…but Naruto completely froze! And he's stronger than I am, so really what chance do we have? Only 50% of our team is actually useful and if they have to guard three people instead of just one, their focus is going to be too divided…"

"Tazuna-san. I need to ask you something before we arrive at the pier." Kakashi kept his voice low and quiet, so it wouldn't alert anyone to their presence. "Who is after you and why? If you don't tell us, our mission may end when you make landfall."

A very small piece of her hoped he wouldn't answer so their mission would come to an end, but Sakura was someone naturally curious and inquisitive, and her desire for answers was bigger.

"Frankly, I'd like you to listen," the old man began. "Just as you said, this may be beyond the scope of your mission. I'm being targeted by a terrifying man."

"Who?" Kakashi prompted.

"You've probably at least heard his name before. A shipping magnate by the name of Gato."

"Wait…The Gato? Of the Gato Company? One of the richest men in the world?" Sakura asked, astounded. Immediately her teammates eyes landed on her.

"Let me guess. You read about it." Sasuke stated flatly.

"Y-yeah." She mumbled. Sasuke's remark made her face turning a deeper shade than her hair.

Tazuna resumed his tale, drawing the attention back to him.

"On the surface, he's the chief executive of a shipping company, but underneath he's into drug trafficking and deals in contraband using gangs and ninjas. Moreover, he runs a despicable business, ruthlessly taking over nations and enterprises…It was about a year ago, he came to the Land of Waves. He used his wealth and violence to enter this country and before we knew it, he'd completely taken control of the island's maritime transportation and shipping.

"In an Island nation like ours, having a tight grip on the ocean means having control over everything. The one thing Gato fears, is the completion of the bridge that's been under construction for some time now."

"I see," Sakura said, as the puzzle pieces clicked in place, "Since you're the architect of the bridge, you've become a threat."

"Then, those ninjas from before were Gato's men…?" Sasuke asked, turning to her. She gave a nod, having arrived at that conclusion as well.

"But I don't understand." Kakashi said. "Your enemy is dangerous and powerful. Why did you hide that fact from us when you made your request?"

Tazuna sighed defeatedly. "The Land of Waves is a very poor nation. Even the Feudal Lords have no money. Of course, we ordinary citizens don't have any money either. We cannot afford to make B-rank or higher requests."

Sakura's eyes widened. Having to settle for far less than what you needed…She understood that feeling too well. She'd been feeling it for the last four years. Medical books, plants, and a smart child were no substitution for a real doctor.

"That's it! We're helping this man no matter what! I'll build that damn bridge myself if I have to! Shannaro!"

"Gato would be able to afford the strongest ninja…ones we're no match for…" Her fists tightened in her lap. "But that doesn't matter…We have to make this mission a success!"

All her anxiety melted, replaced by pure resolve. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even hear Tazuna guilt tripping the rest of her team into continuing the mission.

"Well…I guess we have no choice. Let's continue as his bodyguards." Kakashi shrugged.

"Oh! I'd be so grateful!" The old man replied, hiding his smug grin knowing he won.

Kakashi glanced over at his students. Naruto had already been on board since he'd removed the poison from his hand, and Sasuke would never back down from a challenging mission. But Sakura had been anxious this whole time, and was much weaker than the other two, he wasn't sure if she was ready for this. However he was surprised by how much determination she held in her eyes. He couldn't find a trace of her previous discomfort. He wondered if it was the bridge builder's guilting that had gotten to her…It certainly wasn't the reaction the rest of them had—begrudging acceptance. While he knew she didn't have a lot of money, he didn't know how bad her situation really was. He had no idea that it was the man's inability to request a higher level mission that she empathized with.

They stepped off the boat and on to a pier. Many of the structures around them were built directly on the water, even some trees grew out of the ocean.

"Alright! Get me home safely!" Tazuna declared. The group headed down the pier to the more solid ground of the island.

Kakashi sighed tiredly. He knew that the next attack wouldn't be Chunin, but an elite level Jonin, and he was not looking forward to balancing that with babysitting. These kids should still be doing D-ranks after all.

Naruto, on the other hand, was excited. This was his chance. He wasn't going to sit back and let Sasuke do all the fun stuff. He ran a bit ahead to scout, and tossed his kunai into a bush the second he heard noise. Nothing happened.

"Must have been a mouse." He declared, readying another kunai.

"Naruto! Don't play around so recklessly with your shuriken like that! It's dangerous and wasteful!" Sakura yelled.

"Don't scare and confuse us like that you little brat!" Tazuna immediately followed.

Naruto ignored them, continuing to look around. He heard a rustle to his left and didn't even think before throwing another kunai.

"What did I just say?!" She yelled, punching him in the face.

"But I swear I heard something this time Sakura-chan!" Naruto defended, scratching the back of his head.

Sakura was about to respond, but stopped when their sensei walked past her, towards the direction Naruto had thrown his kunai. She and Naruto both followed, Sasuke and Tazuna, trailing a little bit behind them.

His kunai was lodged in a tree, right above a terrified looking white rabbit.

"Oh no!" The blond dropped to his knees, hugging the scared animal closely in an attempt to calm it. "I'm so sorry! It was an accident! Snap out of it bunny, please!"

Tazuna sighed in relief. When Kakashi had gone to check it out, he worried the idiot may have actually sensed some real danger. But it was just a rabbit.

"I just said don't scare me like that you noisy runt!" He yelled.

Sakura would have yelled at Naruto for scaring the poor cute animal, but something felt off. She remembered reading in a medical text book that animals were somewhat similar to humans in that their fur color would change depending on the amount of sun they got. The Land of Waves didn't have a harsh winter—it was sunny and mild right now as it had been for weeks. This kind of rabbit should be brown, or at the very least beige…it definitely shouldn't be pure white. Unless it was kept indoors, away from sunlight. Which meant it likely belonged to someone. Someone who was probably nearby.

"Kakashi-sensei…there's something weird going on." She spoke quietly. "Why's this rabbit white?"

Kakashi turned to his female student, once again impressed by her observation and analytical skills. Naruto stopped cuddling the rabbit and looked up confused. He could tell that Sasuke was listening in too, curious.

"You're right. Be on guard. Someone's here." Barely a second later he heard the sound of metal being drawn. "Everyone take cover!" He shouted.

Sakura tackled Naruto to the ground, covering him with her body and pressing his head flat to keep him from trying to look up. Out the corner of her eye, she saw Sasuke do the same for Tazuna. She felt the wind as a giant blade passed narrowly over her head. There was a thunk as it landed solidly in a tree. After a couple more seconds, Sakura deemed it safe to get up.

A man stood balanced on the hilt of a sword that resembled a giant meat cleaver. The man stood topless, showing his broad muscular build. He had bandages wrapped around the bottom half of his face, obscuring it in a fashion somewhat similar to their own sensei.

"Well well well, if it isn't Momochi Zabuza. The missing nin from the Land of Mist." Kakashi drawled, sounding far more at ease than he felt. He sensed Naruto moving behind him, and figuring he meant to charge the man, held out his hand.

"Don't interfere. Give me room. This one is on a different plane from our previous opponents."

"Kakashi of the Sharingan eye, I presume? If it wouldn't be too much trouble, could you hand over the old man?" Zabuza spoke with a deep gravely voice.

"Sharingan? What's that?" Sakura noticed Sasuke stiffen a little. "Sasuke-kun seems like he heard of it before…"

"You three. Assume the Manji battle formation. Protect Tazuna-san. Stay out of this fight no matter what! That's the kind of teamwork this battle calls for." Kakashi ordered. They watched in shock as their sensei moved to lift his haiate, revealing his left eye for the first time since they'd known him. It was red with three black comma like marks surrounding the pupil, connected by a thin black line, like points on a circle. A long scar ran from the tip of his eyelid down over his cheek.

"That scar…Is it not his eye?"

Zabuza let out a rumbling laugh. "To face the legendary Sharingan eye so early in our acquaintance. This is an honor."

Naruto couldn't take not knowing anymore. "You keep saying Sharingan eye—what the heck is that?"

To both Naruto and Sakura's shock, it was Sasuke who answered. "Shinobi who have the Sharingan eye have mastered a form of ocular ninjutsu that enables them to penetrate and see the reality behind any illusion or spell and reflect the power of that magic back on those who cast them…And there's more."

"Exactly." Zabuza said with another gravely laugh. "Most formidable of all is the acuity with which the Sharingan can discern and duplicate its opponent's greatest skill."

That hadn't been what Sasuke was referring to. The Sharingan's true powers were the stuff of Sasuke's nightmares, and if their enemy didn't know about it, he sure as hell wasn't going to reveal it.

"When I was an assassin for Kirigakure, I had the usual bingo book—a who's who of our enemies. It had quite the extensive write up on you. The man who copied over a thousand different techniques…the copy-ninja Hatake Kakashi."

Internally, Sakura's jaw hit the floor, externally, her eyes just widened. "O-over a thousand techniques?!"

"You're telling me the guy who couldn't even dodge a chalkboard eraser is that legendary?! He's really that good?!"

Sasuke felt on edge. Who was his sensei? The Sharingan was unique to the Uchiha clan and even among them, only a small portion actually awakened it. There was no way his sensei was some distant relative, so how could he have his clans ability?

"Enough. Pleasant as this conversation is, I'm on a tight schedule to polish off the old man."

Immediately the three Genin slid into formation around Tazuna.

"Now isn't the time to be fawning over Kakashi-sensei. We have to protect Tazuna-san no matter what!"

"That's right! There's no way this bridge isn't getting built! Shannaro!"

"But Kakashi, it looks like I'm going to have to kill you first."

He moved so fast. One minute, he was standing on his sword, stuck into a tree, the next he was standing on the water, sword on his back.

"He's…Walking on water?"

"Hidden mist jutsu!" As suddenly as he appeared on the water, he vanished, replaced by a rolling fog that began to lazily cover the area.

"Momochi Zabuza of the Kirigakure assassins cops is famous for the art of silent killing. Letting your guard down around him buys you a one way trip to heaven. Stay on your toes!" Kakashi warned.

The fog was coming closer, encroaching on their territory.

"What's with all the fog?" Naruto demanded.

"There are eight targets." Zabuza's voice seemed to surround them, making all of them jerk in surprise. They couldn't pinpoint a location.

"Throat, Spinal column, Lungs, Liver, Jugular vein, Subclavian artery, Kidney, Heart. So many choices…what vulnerable place should I choose."

"Any of those are definite kills without immediate medical attention…even then, the likelihood of survival is only 10%." It was occasions like these when she hated how fast her mind worked.

Sasuke felt himself unraveling. Zabuza's blood lust was palpable. The man was fully ready and willing to kill him if he caught his attention. He hated knowing his life was in someone else's hands. Hated just standing around waiting for the strike that would kill him. It made him almost want to stab himself to just get it over with.

"Sasuke." Kakashi's voice was so calm it was jarring. "Calm down. Even if he gets me, I'll still protect you." Sasuke's eyes widened. When was the last time someone protected him? "I will never let my comrades die!" Kakashi declared.

"I wouldn't bet on that." Somehow, Zabuza had appeared right in the center of their formation. "Game over."

"His weapon of choice is that giant cleaver and he's positioned himself so that all he has to do is pivot with that thing and we're all beheaded or disemboweled. Which means like before our best bet is too—"

"Duck!" She yelled, grateful once again for how fast her mind worked. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Naruto and Sasuke react immediately—they'd gotten used to trusting her judgement in situations and moved without question. Tazuna on the other hand was slower, whether from age, shock, or mistrust she didn't know and she didn't have time to care. Staying low, she gracefully lunged at him, tackling him to the ground just as Zabuza's sword began to hurtle towards him.

The movement was arrested by their sensei, who'd read Zabuza's movements with his Sharingan eye and stabbed him in the chest with a kunai.

"Sensei! Behind you!" Naruto yelled, as Zabuza suddenly appeared behind him, and the one in front of him dissolved into water.

Zabuza sword cut through their sensei like wet clay, and Sakura heard herself shriek. But Kakashi simply dissolved into water, as the assassin had earlier. A kunai came to rest against Zabuza's neck.

"Don't move. Game over." Kakashi said cooly.

The sword wielder let out a rumbling laugh. "You think it's over? It'll take more than mimicking me for you to win. A lot more. But you are good. In that short time you copied my clone technique and used it as a diversion while you watched my every move from the mist. Using my own attack against me. Clever. Too bad for you…I'm not that easy to fool." Another Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi. With a quick flick of his wrist, the Zabuza in front of him dissolved into water and he immediately dropped as the sword swung over his head. The sword stuck into the ground and Zabuza braced against it aiming a powerful kick at Kakashi which sent the man flying meters away into the water.

The three Genin were in shock at how strong their enemy was.

"Wait…the mist, water clones…all of this man's jutsu are water based which means being in the water is a huge disadvantage!"

"Kakashi-Sensei! You need to get out of the water, now!"

Kakashi, who was struggling with the unnatural weight of the water, jerked his head up in surprise. Why was it so imperative for him to get out of the—

"Heh gullible fool. Water prison Jutsu!"

His eyes widened as water surrounded him, completely trapping him. He'd made a tactical error in attempting to go underwater to regroup. One his Genin student had apparently foreseen and tried to warn him about. It was too late to do anything about it now.

"I'll deal with you after I take care of the others." Zabuza informed him, creating another water clone.

"Listen you three! Take Tazuna and run. He has to stay here to hold me, and he'll lose control of his water clones if they go too far. Run!"

The three Genin stood paralyzed, trying to figure out what to do. Zabuza began mocking them, lecturing them on how they weren't real shinobi, but Sakura wasn't listening, she was too busy weighing options.

"If we run, he can't follow us right away, but once he finished with Kakashi-sensei, he'd come after us. Or even if Kakashi sensei managed to survive and kill Zabuza, he'd probably be injured or weakened and might not catch up to us right away. In that time Gato would send someone else to finish off Tazuna-san."

She shifted so she was directly in front of their client. Naruto got kicked by the water clone so hard his forehead protector flew off.

"Naruto!" Sakura shrieked. The blond lay on the ground on all fours, shaking.

"There's no way we could fight him and win…He's Jonin level. Maybe even higher. We can't…"

You may have been able to take the bells if the three of you coordinated and attacked together.

"Run you three! Take Tazuna and run!"

In his attempt to stand up, Naruto pressed hard into his bandaged hand. A wave of pain went through him, but it brought the memories of his vow along with it. Memories of Iruka-sensei taking him out for ramen and of Kakashi's words to them when they passed the bell test. He couldn't run away. He'd made a vow. And he never went back on his word.

Naruto charged Tazuna again. Sakura shrieked and even Sasuke made a noise of surprise. Again Naruto was sent flying, rolling to a stop a little in front of them.

"What were you thinking tackling him by yourself?! Are you hurt? Did you break anything?" Sakura half scolded half worried. Her worry was cut short when Naruto arose, hitai-ate in hand.

"Hey you. What's life like without eyebrows you freak? I got a new listing for your bingo book right here! The guy who's going to be the next Hokage. Uzumaki Naruto! Konoha school Ninja!" He shouted, proudly retying his headband.

It was fool hearty and reckless, but Kakashi couldn't help but be a little impressed with the kid's spunk. Even Tazuna, who'd written Naruto off as a useless loud mouth found himself admiring the young man.

"Is this really Naruto…he's kinda cool like this…"

"Whatever. There are more important things to focus on. Running isn't an option. We can't fight him and win. The only one who might be able to is Kakashi-sensei, which means…"

"Naruto, Sasuke-kun." Both boys moved in closer to her. She spoke quietly so as not to be overheard. "We can't win this battle."

"We can't run away Sakura-chan! We can't just leave Kakashi-sensei!"

"Shut up and let me finish, damnit! We can't beat him, but Kakashi-sensei might be able too."

"He can't help right now." Sasuke stated.

"Which is why we need to free him. We don't even have to do damage, we just need to get the real Zabuza to break the jutsu."

"How do we get him to break the jutsu?" Naruto asked.

"Kakashi-sensei said that Zabuza couldn't move so long as he had to maintain the water prison. Any jutsu requires focus to execute and maintain. That gives us two options. Break his focus, or force him to move—specifically his right arm, since that seems to be the one maintaining the jutsu."

"Oh! That gives me an idea! Sasuke?"

"Hn. So, it's time for some teamwork?"

"Ok! Time to Rock'N'Roll!" Naruto shouted, effectively ending their strategy session.

"Just like that? They're not even gonna discuss his idea?!"

"You're very sure of yourself, but do you really think you stand a chance against me?"

"What's the matter with you? I told you to run! It's over. It was over the second he caught me! You have to do your duty, keep that in mind. We're here to protect Tazuna-san!" Kakashi yelled at them. What were his students thinking? They were being stupid! From Naruto it was expected but Sasuke and Sakura?

"Gramps?" Naruto asked. The three of them turned to Tazuna, waiting for his verdict.

"Let's face the facts, the truth is I got us into this mess by lying. I've had a real long life, and it would be wrong to let you four kids get yourselves killed trying to save me. You're smart, You're skilled, and you're gutsy," he said, addressing the three of them in turn, "if this is the conclusion you've reached, go ahead. Give this fight everything you've got."

"Hn. So that's it!" Sasuke called, answering their sensei, who looked shocked.

"Are you ready for this?" Naruto taunted.

Zabuza broke into peels of laughter. "Apparently you don't care if you live to get any older. Playing at Ninja like it's a child's game. I however…by the time I was your age, I already dyed these hands with my enemies blood."

"The demon Zabuza."

"It appears my reputation precedes me."

"Long ago, the Village hidden in the Mist was also known as the Village of Bloody Mist. The final step to becoming a Ninja was the most inhumanely difficult test imaginable." Kakashi explained.

"So, you've heard of our Graduation exercise."

"What kind of Graduation exercise?" Although she asked, Sakura got the feeling she really didn't want to know the answer.

"It's kind of a killing spree among classmates. Students who'd been friends, eating from the same dish, as undergrads were divided into pairs and forced to fight against each other to the death. Think of it. Comrades who had trained together, lived together, shared each other's every hope and dream…"

"T-that's terrible." Sakura murmured in a broken voice. The mere thought of being forced to kill any of her team or classmates…Sasuke, Naruto, Ino…even Ami. It was painful to even consider. She'd never be able to do it.

"Ten years ago, the elders of the Hidden Mist were forced to enact a sweeping reform to their barbaric graduation ritual, due to an incident that happened the previous year." Kakashi continued.

"What reform?" Sakura pressed. "What incident?…I'm guessing it was related to you?" She said, her attention turning to Zabuza. She wasn't sure how she had the courage to so much as look at the man, but it was the least she could do. She didn't have the ability to face him in battle, the least she could do was keep her fear in check and speak to the man.

"A reform to change the graduation exercise entirely. Because," Kakashi answered, "without a moments hesitation, without any hint of struggle, a boy who hadn't even qualified yet as a ninja, butchered over a hundred members of that year's graduating class."

Zabuza looked up sadistically. "Ah yes. Good times. I used to have such fun."

His water clone was suddenly in front of Sasuke, pounding him into the ground so hard he coughed up blood.

"Sasuke-kun!" She screamed. She wanted to run him, make sure he was ok, but she stopped herself.

"Naruto and Sasuke-kun have a plan, and are already in close proximity to the enemy. If I go to check on him, I might not only get in their way or get myself killed, but I'd be leaving Tazuna-san open."

"But Sasuke-kun!"

"That bridge has to get built. Our mission is to protect Tazuna-san. I might not be able to fight off Zabuza, but I can at least keep the bridge builder alive. I have to stay close to him."

She was right to do so. Naruto and Sasuke did have a counter attack. Using his Shadow clones, Naruto leapt at Zabuza, dog piling on him to keep him away from his teammate. The missing nin dispersed them with one sweep of his sword and sent Naruto flying, but not before the blond tossed a windmill shuriken to Sasuke. The raven haired boy caught it with a graceful spin and leapt up throwing it at the real Zabuza.

The man caught it with ease, but was surprised by the second shuriken, hiding in the shadow of the first coming straight for him. Zabuza was forced to jump to avoid it, but it wasn't enough movement to break the water prison holding their sensei.

"Still an amateur." The man growled smugly.

"Damnit! He dodged—it didn't force enough movement…"

She glanced at Sasuke, expecting to see anger, frustration, or even fear. What she didn't expect was to see him smirking. Suddenly there was a loud poof, and the windmill shuriken Zabuza dodged turned into Naruto, now positioned well behind the enemy's back. Naruto hurled his kunai directly at Zabuza's right shoulder, forcing him to pull his arm away to evade the knife, which still managed to cut across his cheek.

"So that was their plan…amazing, they didn't even really discuss it…"

Zabuza was pissed, immediately charging at the blond with the windmill shuriken he'd caught, and Naruto, just barely splashed in the water, was in no position to save himself. Sakura watched in horror, unable to look away and terrified for the worst, when Kakashi appeared in front of Naruto, blocking the blade with his hand. The white haired man glared up at his opponent and in that moment, he looked scarier than Zabuza.

"Naruto, your scheme was brilliant…"

Naruto gave a cheeky grin. "Sakura-chan said running and fighting wouldn't work and that our best bet was to free you! She said to do that we either had to break his focus or get him to move his arm! So I used the shadow clones as a diversion to transform into a shuriken, Then a clone passed me to Sasuke-teme who noticed immediately and stacked his own shuriken on top to hide me and threw both at the true body. Since he dodged, I was able to get behind him!" Naruto explained proudly.

"You've matured…All of you." Kakashi praised.

"So you got me in such a rage that I dropped my own jutsu."

"Call it what it was Zabuza. Three children cornered you and forced your hand. Just so you know, the same trick won't work on me twice. Your move."

Zabuza leapt away and began weaving hand signs, but was completely mirrored by Kakashi.

"Water style! Water Dragon Missile!" They both cried simultaneously.

There was an explosion of water, completely flooding the area. Sakura held Tazuna to keep him steady, lest he fall at the force of the wave.

The spray died down to reveal Kakashi, copying every small gesture Zabuza made. Whatever Zabuza did, Kakashi did at the exact same time, like a mirror image. And it was throwing the enemy off. He was clearly shaken by how Kakashi saw through his every move. It was like the leaf Jonin was reading his thoughts—he had to be! He was finishing Zabuza's own sentences.

"You mimic me like a parrot! I'll close your damn beak for good!" He shouted, forming the signs for one of his strongest jutsu, but stopped short when he looked at Kakashi and thought he saw himself standing next to him…was it an illusion?

"Water style! Giant waterfall!" Kakashi finished, to Zabuza's horror. The leaf Jonin had completed the jutsu before he had—how was that possible if all he was doing was copying?!

The giant wave splashed over everything, and Sakura slapped her hand over Tazuna's mouth and nose so he wouldn't' inhale the water when it washed over them. When the wave let up, Sakura removed her hand and looked up to see her sensei in a tree above a rattled Zabuza.

"What…Can you see the future?" The man rasped.

"I foresee your death." Kakashi answered coldly, and was just about to go in for the kill when two senbon pierced into Zabuza's neck.

"Where did that come from? Another enemy?" Her eyes immediately traced the needles flight path to their point of origin. A boy in a mask standing on a branch across from her sensei.

The boy let out a light chuckle. "Your prediction came true."

Kakashi jumped down next to Zabuza, checking for a pulse. He found nothing.

"Thank you for your help. I hope you don't mind my interfering. I wanted to put Zabuza out of his misery myself."

"That mask…You're a Hidden Mist hunter nin, if I'm not mistaken."

"Quite the smart one. You're correct." The boy acknowledged.

"A hunter nin?" Sakura asked, the group moving a little closer to their sensei.

"Yes. I'm part of an elite tracking unit, charged with tracking and disposing of missing ninja."

"He sounds our age…maybe younger…"

Naruto had noticed it too, and he didn't take it well.

"What the hell's going on here?! Who are you?!" He demanded.

"Relax Naruto, he's not our enemy." Kakashi chided.

"That's not what I meant! Zabuza wasn't exactly a pushover! How the hell did he take him down so easily?!"

"I get it. It's hard to accept, but it's a fact you'll have to get used too. This won't be the only time you meet someone younger than you, who's stronger than me." Kakashi answered, gently but firmly.

The boy jumped down, alighting silently next to the fallen rouge. "Your battle's over for now, and the remains must be disposed of, lest they give up our secrets to our foes. Well then, I must be off." The boy vanished in a whirlwind along with Zabuza's body.

Something about what the boy said bothered Sakura. She replayed his words in her head.

"Your battle's over for now…why for now? Zabuza's dead…Of course, Gato will likely send others, but this boy shouldn't know that, if his mission was just to kill Zabuza, he wouldn't know about our situation…maybe he was just assuming?" That didn't quite sit well with her though.

"We still have to get Tazuna-san home. Let's put our best foot forward!" But just as he turned to take a step, their sensei abruptly fell. The group rushed over to check on him.

"What happened? Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto cried, in surprised panic.

Sakura dropped down beside him and began looking him over. She worried it may be internal injuries from the kick he took earlier, but she didn't see any bruising when she pulled up his shirt and when she tapped around the area, there wasn't the squishy texture she read about in her medical books. She hadn't seen him take any other injuries except for the one on his hand, which she quickly cleaned, applied ointment to, and bandaged. She had read in one book that ninja's suffering from severe chakra exhaustion might collapse, become temporarily paralyzed, or run low grade fevers.

"Do you know what's wrong with him, Sakura-chan? Will he be ok?"

His questions made her uncomfortable. He was talking to her like she was a doctor, and she was acutely aware of how much she wasn't. Her mom was proof of that. She couldn't do anymore than guesswork and basic first aid.

"I'm not a doctor Naruto!" She answered, unable to keep the annoyance at her inability out of her voice. "How should I know…"

"You're a walking encyclopedia. You most likely read something useful somewhere that can help with this." Sasuke answered. He trusted her judgement—she may not train enough but she did read a lot, and what she read and her application of it seemed useful. Besides, she made that ointment, which had worked. Very well. And that old apothecary who seemed like the type to not like anyone, clearly liked and respected her. That had to mean something. She may not be a doctor, but she was closer to one than he, the dead last, and maybe even Kakashi were.

Her spring green eyes shot to him in shock and her cheeks tinted red. "H-he really…"

"EEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKK! Sasuke-kun believes in us!"

"S-sasuke-kun…" she cleared her throat and looked down at their sensei. She gave him another check for injuries, but again, found nothing obvious. "My guess is it's either blood loss from his hand, or chakra exhaustion…I bandaged his hand already, if it continues to bleed, I can stitch it at Tazuna-san's house. I wouldn't want to do it here, since the conditions are too unsanitary. Although, if it's that, he should still be able to move, although he'd be dizzy. If it's chakra exhaustion, he won't be able to move for at least a day, probably longer. Either way he'll need rest."

"So, we'll have to carry him then." Sasuke finished. He knelt across from her and looped one of Kakashi's arms around his neck, while she did the same with the other. They both rose, bringing their sensei up with them.

"You want me to take him, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked, excited to help her, but she shook her head.

"Sasuke-kun and I are closer in height. It'll be easier this way. Besides, you could use a break too, he kicked you around pretty badly. Lead the way, Tazuna-san."

A/N: I was gonna write each arch as a whole chapter but I realized that is waaaay too long. So here's part 1 of The Land of Waves. Again everything is very close to canon, the only significant change being Sakura. So you are going to be reading a lot of scenes as they happened in the anime/manga. Sorry if that's boring. They are cut and laced with Sakura's thoughts and feelings on the matter, as well as her different responses to the situation. The biggest changes are going to be in the Chunin exam arch.

Thank you so much for all the favs/follows/reviews! Please keep it up!

Celestial-loner, Blu3b3rryT3a, nanacurloce, agirlworthfighting4, Re Zera, chica-flick, Twisted Musalih, RamenLoverPixie...Thank you all so much for your reviews! I love reading them and they really mean a lot to me!

Thank you so much for reading! :)