Gaara and I kept each other company all night. After a while we didn't talk because we didn't know what to talk about and it was a comfortable silence. I focused on thinking about what other abilities I have as the three tails jinchuuriki. I can transfer my consciousness to my water clones through the part of Isobu that splits away from my original self, I have the ability to take water molecules out of any living thing to use. I can also breathe underwater. I can't think of any other particular thing that I can do because of Isobu other than that blood release technique, but he refuses to teach me that. If I asked him I wonder if he'll share other techniques with me? I know that he probably would, but if there is anything else on the same level as the blood release he won't teach me that either. If there are other techniques for him to show me I wonder what they would be like? I even wonder if I could somehow learn how to use more than one release at the same time like with my coral.

Either way, that seems like something I would have to wait until I get back to Kirigakure to ask about. Today, I'll be training with Temari and Kankuro. I was thinking about teaching them some taijutsu. Both of them have more ranged attacks and that's a weakness most ranged fighters have. They don't ever let their opponent get close enough to them so that they would need to defend themselves, but a lot of times it's hard to keep your enemies at a distance. So, I'll teach them the taijutsu the Seven Ninja Swordsmen taught me rather than the taijutsu everyone else in Kirigakure knows that utilizes water release with its attacks. Both Kankuro and Temari are relatively strong and it shouldn't be too difficult for me to teach them at least some D-class moves. I may have to start with some more beginner class moves, we can skip Resu Tame Taibu because that's just a fake out technique. I can move to the other beginner class move that's classified as a special move, the Rosutoai which requires the use of concentrated chakra into the knuckles of one of the fists during a punch.

The sun started to rise and its rays illuminated the desert dunes. Everything was golden again just as it was last night when the sun set, but this view was better because the light coming from this direction gave off a more hopeful appearance. Another day filled with a world of possibilities.

I watched the sun rise with Gaara still seated beside me. I suddenly thought of my exposed chest and shoulders reminded me of the full power of the desert sun. I'm surprised that I didn't burn the other day when I was training out in the open with Kankuro, but maybe my hardened skin somehow prevents me from burning too? I can't feel the real temperature of the water when I'm taking a shower so it would make sense that I wouldn't burn in the sun. I wonder if anyone will notice?

Knowing that both Temari and Kankuro were probably still sleeping, I waited before I even thought about waking them up to start training. Instead, I enjoyed the view of the rising sun and watched as the shinobi on the lower levels of the wall changed shifts. After a while I knew it was time to move, so I placed my palms flat and pushed myself up into a standing position.

"Gaara, have you made up your mind? Will you be training with us today?" I asked. If he chose to train with us it would be a bit difficult to teach him how to do any of the moves because it requires immense strength and reflexes. Temari waves around her giant fan and that builds up strength, without her fan I'm sure her reflexes would be faster and she would be stronger. Kankuro possesses a different kind of strength that he's developed through the use of his chakra threads. He was able to lift me with his chakra threads the other day so I know he has strength and his reflexes even when he was using me as a puppet he was able to adjust well enough. I'm not sure if Gaara could adjust. From what I remember he relies more on his sand than he does his physical abilities, I don't know if it would really matter if I taught him some of my taijutsu.

"I'm not sure it would be best if I was training with all of you today." he said. He continued to sit on the ledge, not moving to get up. "Temari and Kankuro would be uncomfortable if I was there."

"They might be, but they are also willing to spend time with you because they don't want to be uncomfortable around you. They want to be closer to you." I said. I walked the short distance to the ladder that lead down to the level below us and climbed down a few rungs on it. "You have a chance to be the family you could have been if things were different. Are you willing to give them a chance? It's just something to think about. Whatever your decision, I'll see you later." I continued down the ladder and managed to find my way down the wall without any help from other shinobi.

It was still early enough that not many people were out in the village yet. For the most part I was ignored, but I also received a few looks of acknowledgement, nothing of a hostile nature, so at least the villagers were getting used to seeing me around.

At the Kazekage building I went to Temari's room first. I wasn't surprised to see her in bed sleeping still, I bet if we let her she would sleep through the whole day. Crossing the room, I gently shook her shoulder to rouse her from her sleep. Her eyes opened and she squinted around the room. "Ketto? What are you doing?" she still sounded tired and I almost felt bad about waking her up, but she shouldn't waste her time sleeping all day.

"We should head out to start some training today." I said.

"Right now?" she groaned.

"Not right now, but you should get up." I withdrew my hand that was still on her shoulder and took a step back. "I'm sure you would like to eat and prepare for today rather than jumping right into it. So we'll head out in about an hour or so."

"Okay." Temari pushed her blanket aside and sat up as she put her legs over the edge of her bed. She yawned again and stretched her arms over her head before standing up and walking over to her wardrobe.

"I'm going to wake Kankuro up. I'll see you in the dining area." I said. Temari just waved me off lazily and continued to find clothes to change into. I left her in order to find Kankuro and wake him up. There was only one room in the hallway that I didn't know about so I assumed it was Kankuro's. First, I listened for any sounds on the other side of the door. I didn't hear anything so I assumed he was still asleep. Slowly, I turned the doorknob in hopes of scaring Kankuro, but once I got in the room I noticed that it was empty. The bed wasn't made, so he must be coming back. I wonder where he is, I honestly thought he would still be sleeping.

I left Kankuro's room in search of him when I realized that he's probably already eating something. I don't understand how he can eat as much as he does and still be hungry, that can't be natural. His love of food must factor in somewhere, what if he eats when he's not hungry and whenever he has a craving for something? The thought of it upsets my stomach.

In the dining room I saw Kankuro eating a bowl of cereal without a shirt on, he still had bandages covering most of his arms to conceal his seals. "I'm surprised you're up." I said.

Mid bite he looked over to me before turning back to his cereal. "I normally try to wake up at a decent time."

"You slept in yesterday." I pointed out.

A bit of a blush formed on his cheeks. "That's different, I was too comfortable to even think about waking up."

"Oh, so you only slept in because you wanted to sleep on me." I said now understanding.

"Subconsciously, I can't control what my body wants." the blush stayed on his face. "Don't say things like that, even if they are true." he mumbled.

I smiled, but didn't say anything else about it. "Temari should be up soon and then we can start training. I can show the two of you some taijutsu." I took a seat next to him.

"I suck at taijutsu." he said.

"It's probably a good thing that we're working on it today then. It's better if you can do some taijutsu that way if something ever happens to your puppets you can still defend yourself." I said.I placed my arms on the table and stretched them out in front of me.

"Do you want some cereal?" Kankuro asked.

"That's okay, I've never had that kind of cereal before." I said. It looked strange, the cereal was small spheres of different colors like purple, pink, blue, and green.

"Here, try some." he picked up his spoon filled with milk and cereal to hold out to me still with a faint blush on his cheeks.

I tilted my head towards him and thought about trying it. I was a bit curious about it, but the colors didn't seem natural. I moved to take the bite and pulled away as I chewed it. I couldn't quite figure out what the flavor was, though I knew it was some kind of berry. It wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be either. I was expecting it to be very sugary and it wasn't. "That's actually not that bad."

"Do you want some more? I can get you a bowl too." he was about to get up from his spot when I waved him off.

"You don't need to do that. I'm not all that hungry anyway." I said. "I would rather save what little bit of an appetite I have for later when Temari is going to make me eat."

"Ah." he went back to eating his cereal. "Do you know if Gaara is going to train with us?"

"I don't think so. He said he was going to think about it, but then he made it seem as if he wasn't going to at all." I leaned forward on the table again waiting for Kankuro to finish eating and Temari to join us.

"I'm a bit relieved." he admitted. "We all still need to spend more time with each other though. I may not like it but I don't want to end up not caring about what happens to him. That just seems wrong."

"It'll work itself out, you just have to be willing to try." I sat up straight when I sensed Temari approaching us. "Act like you do around me. You're pretty fun to be around. You're not too serious, you like to joke around and talk. Which is a good way to diffuse tension."

Temari walked in yawning. "Good morning Kankuro." She walked straight to the kitchen area to grab a piece of bread and put it in the toaster before taking a seat at the table with me and Kankuro. "I have a feeling that after today I'll be sore and exhausted."

"That's a good thing though, if your muscles are sore then that means you've exercised them in a way that they never have been before and they can develop beyond the state they're already in." I said. "Think of the toned muscles Temari."

"It would be nice to be more toned. I just wish I didn't have to go through all of the tiresome hours of training for that to happen." she sighed.

"You have to work for what you want. It'll be worth it, you just have to be patient. Right Kankuro?" I turned to him to see him slurping down the milk in his bowl. I remember the other day when we were training he was very patient and he also pushed himself beyond his limits. He never complained about how tired he was either, otherwise I'm sure he would have wanted to quit long before we did. He's probably going to push himself just as much today too.

"Uh huh." he set the bowl down. "A few days ago when I was training with Ketto, I exhausted all of my chakra stores but because I was able to push myself passed what I knew I could do I think I can use slightly more chakra now."

"It stretches and expands the more you use your chakra." I said. "It's how you become stronger. You're not able to grow if you only do the bare minimum."

"I know that." Temari said. "Still, it's such a strain on your body and I feel like nothing has really changed." The toaster went off and Temari got up to get her toast.

"Maybe you need more challenging training methods in order to progress?" I suggested. I remember that if you're doing the same old thing day after day it becomes more of a warmup than an actual practice or training session. You need to change your routine so that you can workout other muscles that you've never used before or put a lot of strain on your chakra reserves.

"I don't know, but I'm willing to try I guess." Temari said.

Kankuro got up and put his bowl in the sink. "I'm going to go get dressed, I'll be back."

"What are we training in today?" Temari asked curiously.

"I'm going to show you some of my taijutsu. I remember that you said you were kind of good at it, but I was faster than you and you didn't get a chance to use it during the preliminaries."

"If I'm honest, I'm not actually that good at it." Temari admitted. "I focus more on my ninjutsu and my fan." she finished her toast and continued to wait for Kankuro.

"Everyone has something that they excel at." I said. A few people came to mind, like Ameyuri Ringo the previous wielder of the Kiba blades. She was one of the strongest shinobi Kirigakure ever had. I didn't get to train with her much because a year after our training started she fell sick and there wasn't a cure. I remember that most of her attacks involved her blades and her lightning chakra. She never had a need to use taijutsu, not that I witnessed, and she didn't know any genjutsu. Then again, not many Mist ninja know genjutsu because it's seen as a cheap trick. I wonder, I've only ever seen Jinpachi with his sword too. He's strong, but what kind of attack can he perform without his sword? I've never seen him use any particular ninjutsu, so maybe he can't? I'll have to remember that for later when I face him and Kushimaru.

"What's something that you're not good at?" she wondered.

"I don't like the idea of genjutsu, it's too cowardly for me, so I didn't bother to properly learn it." I said. "Apparently genjutsu doesn't work on me anyway."

Kankuro came back fully dressed and with his face painted. I stood from my place at the table, a little anxious to actually do something, staying still for too long bothers me. Besides, I've kind of been lagging in my training lately. I don't feel as if I've been productive, yet I know I've gotten so much done lately.

"Okay, I'm ready." Kankuro said.

"Good lets go." I started to walk out of the room, "Should we go to the sand sea?"

Temari and Kankuro joined me.

"Yeah, I'll lead the way." Kankuro said. Temari and I followed him as he directed us to the same spot we trained in the other day. While we walked through the village we received friendly waves and smiles from the villagers. Someone even wished us good morning, I still find it strange that the villagers call Kankuro, Lord Kankuro. Lady Temari is less strange.

"So, what kind of techniques will you be showing us?" Temari asked. She looked interested in the idea of learning new taijutsu moves. "I'm kind of excited to learn taijutsu from Kirigakure."

"This isn't technically Kirigakure taijutsu. I learned it from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and as far as I know, they are the only ones who know it." I said.

"Even better." she smirked.

"I think I'll show you something on the beginners level first." I said. I didn't want to demonstrate on one of them so I walked over to one of the larger protruding rocks in the sand. "It's considered a special technique for those with little to no experience in this taijutsu style, so I think the two of you should be able to get a grasp of it." I got into a fighting stance with my fists raised in front of me. Then, I gave a quick jab as a fake out and quickly followed with a punch with my left fist that was level with my shoulder. I had chakra coating my knuckles and I leaned into the punch. When my fist connected to the rock the chakra on my knuckles served as a barrier of sorts so I was able to punch deep into the rock, which cracked in several places and crumbled to the ground.

"How is that a beginner move?!" Temari exclaimed while pointing at the demolished rock.

Kankuro was calmly observing my fist, "Temari, she doesn't have a scratch on her."

"Okay, explain to me what you just did." Temari looked confused. "That isn't what you used on me in the preliminaries either."

"It is the same style, all I did was surround my knuckles of my left fist with chakra. During the preliminaries I only used my strength against you, I didn't use any extra chakra." I said. "Without using chakra is the very first stage of this move, but I thought the two of you could skip that and go straight to using chakra. The best part about this move is that even if you don't hit your opponent just release your chakra and they'll still be affected. Your chakra would work as a wind jutsu in that case. Who wants to go first?" I raised my fists again and I was a bit surprised to see Kankuro was the one to square up against me. "I won't use any chakra, but you should try."

Kankuro threw the first punch, which I blocked by brushing it off to the side with my arm. Even if he released the chakra on his knuckles it wouldn't have touched me. His other fist came up as I lost contact with his other arm and he tried to punch me again. With that hit I used my elbow to jab his wrist from underneath and his fist went up into the air. I punched him in the chest with my free arm while there was an opening causing him to stumble back and lose his balance. He quickly gained his footing and came back at me with his fists still raised. He threw a few more hits at me before Temari called out. "Come on Kankuro, can't you land a hit!"

"Shut up Temari, I'm trying." he growled. He threw a series of quick jabs at me, which I either ducked under or batted off to the side again. "She's fast and obviously has more experience. I'd like to see how you do."

"It doesn't matter how experienced I am, you'll get your own experience by fighting me." I said. "You can use your feet, in the more advanced moves there's a lot of kicking involved."

Kankuro seemed to hesitate for a moment before he threw a punch with his left fist that I dodged and then his right before throwing out his left again and pulling up his right leg to kick me. I stepped out of the way of all of the punches at the last minute and was able to grab his leg around his shin during his kick. His eyes widened when I started to push his leg away from me and he started to fall backwards. He landed in the sand sprawled on his back.

"You could have done better than that Kankuro." Temari stood over Kankuro who didn't move to get up yet.

"How would you have gotten out of that hold?" Kankuro snapped. He sat up and pushed himself back to his feet.

"Well, I wouldn't have gotten caught in the first place." she said while crossing her arms over her chest.

"Oh, really?" Kankuro glared at her. "Would you like to give it a try then?"

"Fine." she snapped. Temari got into a defensive position across from me. "Chakra on the knuckles you said right?" Kankuro moved out of the way when I raised my fists and took on my stance.

"Yes, remember if you can't land a direct hit release your chakra anyway, you could still cut me that way." I reminded her. Temari seemed determined, I'm surprised that neither of them call attention to their main disadvantage which is the sand. It's probably better that they are training with that disadvantage anyway, that way when they are on solid ground they can perform better.

Temari stretched her arms across her chest before she also took on a defensive stance. She quickly aimed a punch at my stomach with her left fist while her right followed after to punch me in the chest. I let her fist connect with my stomach, which seemed to surprise her while I grabbed her wrist of the fist she had aimed for my chest so that I could guide it over my shoulder. I used the force of her punch and some of my own strength to lift her into the air and slam her back down into the sand. "What was that?" she asked.

I smiled slightly down at her, "Always expect the unexpected. Don't give your opponent an advantage like that." Kankuro was chuckling in the background. I held my hand out to her to help pull her up.

"You did worse than I did." Kankuro continued to laugh at Temari.

She glared in his direction, "Shut up."

"It wasn't that bad." I said. "If you would have had the knuckles of your left fist coated in chakra you would have got me. Instead, you only had chakra coating your right where you thought you were going to hit me."

Temari was back on her feet with her hands on her hips. She sighed, "Alright, lets go again." She then lifted her fists again to continue to fight.

I threw a few punches at her one after the other to see how she would block them. She mostly slid across the sand just before my fists would have hit her, but she wasn't fast enough to dodge out of the way of all of my hits. I managed to land two hits on her arms because she didn't have the stamina to keep up her pace and she was attempting to brush off my hits with her arms like I was doing with Kankuro but she was sloppy about it. I let up on my barrage of punches to see how she would counter only to see that she didn't have any strength behind her punches. So it seems that for Temari to get anywhere with taijutsu in general she'll need to build up her strength and stamina.

Temari continued to slow down until her punches started to seem pathetic. After I batted her fist to the side one more time I said, "We should stop for now." Temari was breathing more heavily than before and seemed relieved that I said we could stop. I should have realised sooner that Temari didn't reach any of the requirements for this taijutsu or any taijutsu. "Kankuro, it's your turn again." I briefly thought of having them practice against each other, but it looks like Temari needs time to catch her breath and I don't need the two hurting each other if they do land a punch.

Kankuro stood across from me in a defensive stance once again. This time I wasn't going to go easy on him like I did earlier. I was the one to throw the first punch, Kankuro managed to use his hand to direct my fist passed him while his other arm jabbed out to punch me in the stomach. I was able to grab his wrist and pull so that I could move around him to put him in a hold. As I moved behind him I kicked the back of one of his knees and he fell down to the sand. With my grip still on his wrist I used my knee to press into his back and pin him down.

"What the hell?!" he grunted. He moved his head to the side so that his face wasn't pressed into the sand.

"I upped your level of difficulty because you both fought me and observed me fighting someone else. You should have been able to adjust your fighting style to mine." I let go of his wrist and took my knee off of his back. "Would you like to try again?" I fell into a defensive position again while I waited for his response.

"What kind of question is that? It's just the same as when you taught me the walking on water technique, I won't give up that easily." Kankuro rushed at me again, this time he was more determined than the last times he came at me. I was able to exchange a few blows with him before I had him in another hold.

Temari didn't say anything as she watched us, I'm not sure if she admired Kankuro's will to get stronger or if she just didn't want to fight me. Either way, it was just me and Kankuro who were sparring. We trained for hours without interruption, Kankuro was actually improving. It's amazing how fast he catches on to things. I imagine that it would take weeks or even months for any other ninja to progress even a little bit, but Kankuro keeps trying to get better. I wonder if he's always been like this or if it's a new development since everything that's been happening.

Gradually, I've noticed Kankuro's movements become slower and his breathing became more rapid. "Kankuro that's enough." Temari said. She walked closer to the two of us and added, "Why don't you let me fight her again while you catch your breath?"

"Yeah, that seems like a good idea." sweat was dripping down his face and I wondered how he must feel under the layers of his black jumpsuit. He should at least pull his hood down.

Temari replaced Kankuro and soon we were sparring again. She wasn't as skilled as Kankuro, because he had more time to improve his skills than she did today. Yet, she still tried even though she tired out faster than Kankuro did.

She was hunched over with her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath. "What is that?" Temari looked off to the side and I followed her gaze. In the distance I could make out a large white figure flying in the distance across the desert sky. The sight seemed vaguely familiar to me but I couldn't quite remember where I've seen it before.

"I feel like I should know what that is." I said. I squinted to see if I could focus on anything better. It wasn't working. The sun already made everything look brighter and with that white figure I couldn't make anything out other than it being in the shape of a bird. Only it was much larger than any bird I've ever seen.

"It's heading towards the village." Kankuro pointed out. "Should we go back and see what it's about? What if it's an enemy?"

"I don't think that it is, but we can go back anyway." I said. "The two of you put in some good effort today, good job."

"Thanks." Temari said. She was the first one to move and start walking back to the village. Kankuro and I quickly caught up to Temari and the three of us walked back together. "Ketto, you haven't even broken a sweat and your moves, how were you able to become so experienced?"

"I've just had a lot of training and field experience." I replied. "Lately, I've been slacking, but normally I'm always training in something. I've been focusing more on ninjutsu lately and a bit of kenjutsu, so it's been awhile since I've had any taijutsu training. This is just what I needed even if the two of you aren't experienced."

"I feel like I learned a lot today." Kankuro sounded satisfied. "We should train together more."

"I'll be going back to Kirigakure soon, but you can visit if you'd like." I suggested.

"Maybe, we'll have to see." Kankuro seemed like he would be interested in coming to Kiri but would he really travel that far just for some training? He would be crazy to do something like that, yet something tells me that he doesn't care about how ridiculous it seems. He just wants to be as strong as he can be.

As we walked, we saw the birdlike object slowly descend and land in front of the wall of the village. Temari picked up her pace to get closer to the village. I noticed people getting off of the back of the bird and suddenly what was a large white bird disappeared in a poof of smoke, a summoning? I started to sense for chakra only to brush up against one that was very familiar. Though I don't know what kind of business he would have in Suna. Five other people were with him, I didn't recognize any of their chakra signatures only that they were at least of a jounin level. What would this many Mist ninjas be doing out in the middle of the desert?

Some Sand ninjas approached the Mist ninjas to confront them. We were still too far out to hear any of their conversation, but it looked like they came to some kind of understanding. We were eventually close enough so that I could make out his messy pale blue hair and Hiramekarei on his back. I didn't think Chojuro would take a mission way out here in the Sand. I thought he would stay close to the Mist or maybe go as far as the land of Fire, but not way out here. "Chojuro?"

He turned around to reveal his black eyes hidden behind his glasses. His eyes lit up as he saw me and a smile crossed his face. "Ketto, it's nice to see you. This way we don't have to find you."

"You're here for me?" I asked. Chojuro was older than me by a year and so you would think that he's experienced more in life than I did, but he smiles too often and is in such a good mood all the time there's no way he has been through what I've been through. I act like I'm the older one out of the two of us because of that.

"Well yeah." he said. He pulled a scroll out of his pocket and handed it over to me. "This is for you."

"You came all this way just to deliver a message?" Temari couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You've got to be kidding me."

"It's all explained in that scroll." Chojuro said. He nodded at the scroll. I looked down at it and was curious enough about the scroll to open it right away. The seal on it wasn't uncle Yagura's seal, it was of the Shimizu family. The only Shimizu that I know of is elder Shun Shimizu, what business would he have with me? I unrolled the scroll to read it.

Ketto Karatachi, your mission to confront the two members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen; Kushimaru Kuriarare, and Jinpachi Munashi has been reassigned to Chojuro and his team of anbu black ops ninja. You are to remain in Sunagakure until the funeral of the Kazekage and complete negotiations with the Suna council as instructed by the Fourth Mizukage Yagura and then you are to return to Kirigakure as something requires your immediate attention that will not be revealed in this scroll due to the nature of the situation. We look forward to your return. -Shun Shimizu

"Why is elder Shun interfering with my mission?" I questioned. "I only take orders from uncle Yagura." The feeling of unease when I said goodbye to uncle Yagura returned.

"Well, you see there's a lot happening back in the village." Chojuro said sheepishly. He rubbed the back of his head with a close eyed smile. "Elder Shun was just the one available to write."

"Should I be going back to the village now if something's happened?" I watched as Chojuro started to panic.

"No no, it's nothing serious. Everyone's just busy." he tried to brush it off as being nothing of importance, but I grew up with him, I know him really well. I can tell that something isn't quite right. Chojuro isn't very good with lying, he tries, yet he's too invested in making someone believe there isn't something amiss that he doesn't realize that it only makes them wonder about it more.

Chojuro's pointed teeth showed as he smiled, I continued to watch him. I must have given him a look of doubt for one of the anbu with Chojuro to speak up, "Lady Ketto, it's really nothing to concern yourself with until after you are finished here."

"So all of you know." I stated. I looked over the six of them, wondering what it could be that they're keeping from me.

"I'm sorry Ketto, all of us have orders not to tell you anymore than what's already been said in the scroll." Chojuro apologized. He looked away defeated. "I promise that if I could tell you right now, I would, but I can't. We can talk about it together once we're both back in the village."

I was quiet for a moment, "Alright, if you can't tell me then I won't make you." I turned to Temari and Kankuro, "The two of you can go back to the Kazekage building without me. I'll need to debrief Chojuro, who I'm assuming is the captain of this mission."

"How did you know?" Chojuro asked.

"You handed me the scroll." I said.

"Right." he smiled as if he knew that the whole time.

"Yeah, we'll meet you later." Kankuro said. He pulled on Temari's elbow for her to follow him and the two left.

Chojuro turned to the anbu that were with him. "You can all go explore the village while we're here. I'll brief you later on any new information involving the mission. We'll meet back in this spot in an hour." The anbu all nodded their heads and disappeared leaving me alone with Chojuro. "It's kind of been a long trip, can we get something to eat?"

"Sure, though I haven't really traveled through the village much so I don't know where we could eat." I said.

"That's fine, we can just walk around until we find something." Chojuro smiled. The shinobi at the wall let us pass into the village without difficulty, so Chojuro and his team must have settled that before I was close enough to hear anything. We walked through the crack in the wall and down the slight incline to enter the village. "This is different from Kirigakure."

"Is this your first time here?" I wondered.

"Yeah, I don't really leave the village much. This would be my first time out of the nation." he said. I really would have thought he left the land of Water before recently for a mission.

"The design of this village is different than anything I've seen before." I said.

"Me too." Chojuro looked interested in something, so I tried to figure out what he was looking at. "Ketto, have you ever tried grilled lizard before?"

"Grilled lizard?" I've never thought of anyone wanting to try such a thing. I've definitely never thought of it. "No, why?"

"Let's try that, it seems interesting. I'll admit that I've never thought of eating a lizard before." Chojuro lead the way to the shop he saw and we quickly took seats at a table by a window. Chojuro took Hiramekarei off of his holster and set it against his chair. He picked up a menu and said, "They even have grilled scorpion."

"These food choices are strange." eating a lizard is one thing, but a scorpion too?

"I'm sure it's considered a delicacy here. It's the same as eating mussels or shark fins back home." Chojuro made a good point. I guess I could give it a try, I've been willing to eat anything Temari has made for me so this shouldn't be too different. Chojuro went up to the counter and ordered for the two of us before settling in his seat across from me again. "So, I heard that you have another one of the swords?"

"I collected the Kubikiribōchō from the land of Waves." I said. "That's where Zabuza died and was buried."

"This means you're officially a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen like me. We've been waiting for this since we were small." he said. I know this is something Chojuro was looking forward to, but I had other things in mind. I just wanted to make both Zabuza and uncle Yagura proud of me. I knew that one day I would get Zabuza's sword, it just happened a bit sooner than expected. Honestly, when I was younger I never thought about what my overall goal in life would be, but being one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen seems like a good achievement.

"The Kubikiribōchō is lighter than I thought it would be. I was able to do the long range attack and throw the blade to hit my opponent." I said.

"It sounds like all of your training is being put to good use." he said. He looked a bit nervous again. "Are you okay with me taking over this mission?"

"I was looking forward to doing it, but it's okay that you are." I started explaining, "When it comes down to it, the only ones who stand much of a chance against the two of them are me and you and it's because of our compatibility with one of the blades. They have massive stores of chakra, the only way we can beat them is by taking that away from them with one of our blades."

"I figured that was the case being that no one else has been successful in bringing the two back to the village." Chojuro leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table in front of us with his chin in his hands. "It doesn't matter what kind of ninjutsu you use, the two always manage to find a way around it."

"Being that you're going with a bigger group, you should try and separate the two of them." I suggested. "In a way they work well together, but they also don't have a care for each other. I once saw Kushimaru throw Nuibari through Jinpachi just to hit his target and it's the same with Jinpachi and his explosives. Remember that when you face them, I don't want you to be surprised by anything."

"I guess they're not called the Heartless Pair for nothing." Chojuro said. "What can you tell me about their fighting styles?"

"Kushimaru is fast and light on his feet. He uses mostly jabs and thrusts when he's not throwing Nuibari. You also need to be careful of the wire attached to the end of the hilt." I stopped talking for a moment for a young female server to place our food down in front of us. She then walked away leaving the two of us alone again.

"As long as we avoid the blade that shouldn't be an issue." Chojuro said. He picked up one of the grilled lizards with his fingers and turned it around a few times before taking a bite.

"You should always be aware of it. Kushimaru sets traps with the wire and uses that to his advantage because it's hard to detect. Once you're trapped by the wire he can easily pierce you." I watched Chojuro chew the lizard. He seemed to enjoy it, but the idea of eating a lizard seemed weird to me.

"Then we would be better off setting a trap before they can right?" Chojuro asked.

"You could try that." I finally picked up a lizard and took a small bite. I was a bit shocked that it tasted like a crispy piece of chicken with added garlic flavor, it was actually pretty good. "Jinpachi isn't afraid to set off his explosives if it harms himself, so don't think you were able to corner him. I think you really need to be open to every possibility." I ate some more of the lizard but was still eyeing up the scorpion, I wasn't sure of that one yet. Suddenly, I gave Chojuro all of my attention. I can't believe I didn't think of this until now, though there's no way he could have. Could he? "Chojuro, have you ever killed someone before?"

He stopped eating, "Well, no, but the mission is only to stop Kushimaru and Jinpachi from causing anymore harm. Their swords are to be brought back to the village. I planned on imprisoning them in Hozuki Castle."

"You do realize that won't ever happen right?" I asked. "When I was first tasked with this uncle Yagura said, 'I really don't care what you do to them. Jinpachi Munashi and Kushimaru Kuriarare defected from the village years ago, as far as I'm concerned they are traitors and traitors are to be killed.' I've already thought this through and I know that there isn't a way to take them back to Kiri alive. They would fight to their death rather than be imprisoned."

"Do you really think they would do that? Wouldn't being imprisoned be better than being dead?" Chojuro questioned.

"At a certain point you are surrounded by so much death that you don't fear it, you embrace it." I said. "If I was given the choice I would choose death. I've done so much in my lifetime that if I was sent to Hozuki Castle I would never be released. I would rather die free than imprisoned. Wouldn't you?"

"I guess so." he said. His black eyes were downcast and I could sense a depressing aura coming from him.

"Would you be able to kill them?" I pressed.

"I don't know." he confessed.

"Let me tell you something Kisame told me after I made my first kill. To kill a Kiri ninja as a Kiri ninja. What does that make me? Am I a friend or foe? What is my purpose and my position? The answer to these questions is that I am a Kiri ninja. That makes me a protector of the village. I am both friend and foe. My purpose is to protect the village and it's secrets even if another Kiri ninja gets in the way because in the end the village will always be there yet the ninja will not. They will live and die on their own time, but the village will remain strong and that's only if we as Kiri ninja maintain that strength." I watched Chojuro closely, "Do you understand Chojuro? We need to protect the village, if you don't kill the two of them now then they will eventually set their sights back on Kirigakure once they decide that they are done being hunted."

"While I can't deny that it would be protecting the village, I still don't know if I'll be able to do it." he admitted.

"You have a team of anbu with you, I'm sure one of them would be willing to do it for you." I picked up another lizard to eat. "If I were you, I would want to do it. They are from the most powerful generation of swordsmen, I would love to be able to say that I was able to surpass them."

"I guess we'll just have to see what happens, won't we?" Chojuro reached for the scorpion and tore it in half before passing some to me. "You know, I bet this won't taste too bad."

"It's a scorpion, you're not even a little skeptical about it?" I looked at him curiously.

"It reminds me of crawfish." he shrugged his shoulders. "I bet it tastes similar to."

"Well, when you think of it like that..." I brought my piece of the scorpion up to my lips and tried not to think about what was going into my mouth as I took a bite. It was strange, it had a crunchier texture than the lizard did. It actually seemed crunchier than a crawfish too. Surprisingly the scorpion had more flavor than a crawfish too, I couldn't describe it but I preferred it over the crawfish.

Chojuro was chewing on his piece, "I pictured that tasting differently."

"What did you think it would taste like?" I wondered.

"I don't know, I just didn't think I would end up liking it that much." he finished eating what he had left. "It's really good."

"It kind of is, I'm surprised." I was a bit shocked that I enjoyed eating lizards and scorpions, I honestly didn't think that would be the case.

"How long has it been? I think I should be heading back to the wall." Chojuro looked around for a clock and found one on the wall behind the counter. "Yeah, I should be going."

"I don't really have anything planned for the rest of today, but I should get going too." I pushed my empty plate into the center of the table before standing from my spot. Chojuro also stood up, I waited for him to reattach Hiramekarei to the holder on his back before I started to walk towards the counter to pay for our food. Chojuro also took money out, so he paid for half while I paid for the other half.

We walked out into the street where we stopped and faced each other. "You're going back to the Kazekage building now right?" Chojuro asked. I nodded my head as a yes. "We can say our goodbyes here. I want to wish you good luck with negotiations, I know you'll come to a good conclusion."

"I only want to get it over with so that I can go back to Kiri." I found the environment of the desert annoying considering I'm used to the mist and colder temperatures of Kirigakure. "I feel as if I'm not doing much here and that I could be of better use if I was closer to uncle Yagura."

"You'll be back soon enough." Chojuro gave me a weak smile.

"Chojuro, promise me that you'll make it back to Kiri alive. Kushimaru and Jinpachi will be tough opponents, but I think that you and your team can handle them." with Suigetsu missing it's only me and Chojuro left as wielders of the coveted ninja swords. Chojuro is actually the only one left from my past. All of the other swordsmen have either defected or died and Utakata who was my partner in the anbu also defected. "I don't know what secret you're keeping from me, but you'll need to explain that too."

"I will, goodbye Ketto." he waved to me with that weak smile still on his face as he walked away.

I watched him walk back to the wall for a little bit before I turned and started on my way back to the Kazekage building. I wonder what it could be that he isn't telling me? Apparently it isn't something that's too concerning, yet I still feel as if there's more to it than that. I tried to clear my thoughts of what it could be, I didn't want it to get in the way of my current mission. They probably didn't tell me for that very reason, if I knew about the secret I would focus more on that then what I'm already supposed to be doing here.

In the Kazekage building I surprisingly found Kankuro and Temari playing a card game in the living room area while Gaara watched from the couch. The three of them are not interacting with each other, but it's a start. At least they can be alone in the same room together.

"Oh you're back." Kankuro saw me first, which caused the other two to look over to me too. "Are you going to tell us who that guy is that we left you with?"

"Yeah, and what was he doing all the way in Suna?" Temari added.

I sat on the floor in the middle of the small coffee table while Temari and Kankuro each claimed a different side. "Chojuro and I used to train together with the Seven Swordsmen when we were younger. His blade is Hiramekarei, it is capable of storing chakra and with that chakra it can transform into several different weapons like a hammer or a long-sword. The more chakra that is stored in Hiramekarei, the larger the size of the manifested weapon."

"So he's an old friend." Temari said.

I was going to tell her that wasn't the case when I suddenly thought Chojuro could be my friend. Maybe you don't have to confirm a friendship to be in one? Chojuro definitely acts like how I would imagine a friend acting. "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"Why was he here?" Kankuro questioned again. "Don't tell me it really was to deliver a message, because that's what falcons are for."

"It wasn't just to deliver the message. I think he wanted to see me, I haven't seen him in at least a year because I'm always away on missions." I thought that sounded right, Chojuro was always able to express his emotions more freely than anyone I've ever known until I met Jiro. "He's also in the area because he will be confronting Kushimaru and Jinpachi with a team of anbu instead of me. That's what the scroll said, after the Kazekage's funeral and negotiations are settled I am to return to Kirigakure immediately."

Temari glanced away from her cards to look at me. "Is everything okay?"

"I think so, Chojuro and the anbu were given orders not to tell me more than what was in the scroll, so I'm not sure what's happening in Kirigakure. If uncle Yagura needs me to go back sooner then I will." I picked up a few cards from the table and was surprised to see people painted on them. "What kind of card game are you playing?"

"Temari insisted on old maid." Kankuro said. "She never wins, so I don't know why she would want to play it."

Kankuro only had one card left while Temari had two, she obviously had the old maid. "Hey, this is the time I'll beat you." Temari held out her arms towards Kankuro for him to pick a card. "Go on, it's your turn."

"Fine." Kankuro sighed. He held out a hand and hovered over one of Temari's cards for a moment. The second he saw any change in her facial features he moved over and chose the other card. Temari's face fell and I knew she had lost.

"Can we play again?" she asked. She then turned to me. "Ketto, you can play with us this time."

I looked to Kankuro who looked bored out of his mind. "It's more interesting with more than two people."

"I guess I could play a few games." It's not like I had anything better to do, at least it passes the time.

"Yes!" Temari grabbed all of the cards from around the table and started shuffling them. "Gaara, are you sure you don't want to play? It'll be more fun with more people."

"I'm not interested in a children's game." Gaara said.

Temari pouted, "Fine, it will just be me, Kankuro and Ketto."

She started dealing the cards to me and Kankuro before she gave herself some. When I picked up my deck I noticed that I had the old maid card and not a single pair, but that's okay, I could still make this turn out in my favor. I think I have a pretty good poker face, I guess now will be the time I'll see if it's as effective as I think it is.

"Who is picking from who?" I wondered.

"We can go clockwise." Temari said. "I can pick from Kankuro, he picks from you and you pick from me."

I didn't care how we did it, so I didn't say anything. Temari reached for Kankuro's deck and took a random card. She sighed when she realized it wasn't a pair. If Temari is this bad at old maid then I bet she's also bad at poker.

Kankuro turned to me to pick a card. I made sure Temari couldn't see any of my cards, the last thing I need is for her to unintentionally help Kankuro win against me. I kept my face blank even as Kankuro settled his hand on the old maid card. I made eye contact with him as I maintained my nonchalant air. He slowly took that card and the only indication that he gave to show that he ended up with that specific card was a brief look of disbelief. Then I turned to Temari and picked a random card, not caring about which one it was. It ended up being a card that I needed for a pair.

We played for hours all with Temari losing, I really don't understand why she would want to continue playing if she was that bad. I felt as if it was getting late, but I don't care about sleep anyway so I didn't say anything. At some point Kankuro had enough of the game. "Temari, we should stop. We need sleep for tomorrow."

Temari became more solemn, "I don't want to sleep, I don't even know if I'll be able to tonight knowing what is going to happen tomorrow."

"I think you'll be fine." I said. I still don't fully understand the loss of a parent, but I do understand loss to some extent. Whatever pain she's feeling will become more dull with time. "Don't keep yourself up over it. You still need some sleep."

"Like you can talk." Temari mumbled.

"I'm used to not sleeping while on longer missions." I said. "If it will get you to sleep tonight then I will too." I pushed myself off the floor by the table and walked around a bit to try and wake up my legs, they felt a bit cramped from sitting in the same position. "Well? Time for bed?"

"I get Ketto tonight." Temari said.

Gaara glared at her from his spot on the couch. "She was going to sleep with me tonight."

Kankuro sighed, "I better leave before we all end up sleeping together again."

"That's a good idea." Temari said. She grabbed my hand and started pulling me after her. "We can all sleep in my room tonight."

"What have I done." Kankuro groaned.

"Go on, go get changed and come to my room." Temari pulled me down the hallway and to her room. She changed into her pajamas and waited for Gaara and Kankuro.

I took off my sandals and went straight to the bed to lay down. I didn't bother going under the covers quite yet, I thought I should wait for everyone else. Temari seemed restless. After she changed she sat down at her vanity and brushed her hair. She didn't come to the bed, not right away and when she did she kept moving around anxiously.

"Are you okay?" I watched her fluff her pillow for the third time and thought to ask her if anything was wrong.

"I'm fine, where are those two?" she got off the bed and was going to leave her room to go find Gaara and Kankuro when Gaara appeared after she opened the door. Gaara changed into a shirt that looked like a softer cotton and a pair of sweatpants. "At least I don't have to go and find you. I'll be right back." Temari left the two of us alone.

Gaara moved to the bed and settled in the same spot as the other night in the middle of the bed. "Will you really sleep tonight or did you just say that to get her to quiet down?" he asked.

"I'll really sleep." I answered. "After the funeral tomorrow who knows how long it will take for negotiations to be underway or even settled, but I won't be getting any sleep on my way back to Kiri and I will have to leave soon. It won't hurt to get a little bit of sleep to ensure I get back to Kiri safely."

"You were more fine with this the other night." Temari ground out. I looked to see her physically pushing Kankuro into the room.

"That was before, things have changed now." Kankuro said. Is he talking about what he mentioned with Gaara? I can hardly believe it, maybe he just imagined that happened? I mean Gaara glares at them all the time anyway or that's what it seems like.

"Tough, get in the bed Kankuro." Temari continued to push Kankuro over to the bed and managed to push him face first into the mattress. Then she turned off the light.

We all moved to get in the same positions as the other night. I finally went under the covers and settled down with my legs curled close to myself. Kankuro had a pillow up against my legs just as he did before. "If we wake up in an awkward position again it's not my fault." Kankuro grumbled.

"I don't blame you, it's fine, no harm no foul." I said.

"You're not who I'm worried about." Kankuro mumbled. He then turned onto his side and attempted to fall asleep.

"I thought you all should know that the two bodyguards who were found with the Kazekage are also receiving the same service as a way to honor them." I remembered the visits I had with both the Harumori and Osei families. They were prime examples of people showing their grief in different ways, but I think everything is more open for both families. "If they died together then they should be sent off into the after life together."

"I'm sorry for pushing that kind of thing on you Ketto." Temari said. "There's just no way I would have been able to arrange our fathers funeral."

"Me either." Kankuro said. "I thought I could, but I couldn't."

"That's fine. Maybe it was best that it was me." I said. "I wasn't as emotionally attached as any of you were so it made sense that it was me. Now let's all try to get some sleep."

I sat up and reached down to lightly touch Kankuro's right cheek to regulate his chakra. Then, I cupped the side of Temari's face and did the same to her. She was more restless tonight so it took a little bit longer to work on her. As soon as she was sleeping I moved onto Gaara. He was already looking at me when I reached for his face. I cupped his face the same way I did with Temari.

"You really should sleep Ketto." he said as he nodded off.

I laid down and for a second thought of staying awake, but I realized that it really might be awhile until I can get a decent night's sleep so I might as well sleep now while I feel safe enough to do that.