Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

Chapter 14

Life after that went on as usual. It took another three days before Yashamaru discharged Minoko from the hospital. She was just glad to feel the sun on her face again. Seriously, that room was way too cold! She was lucky that Gaara had been able to sneak her a second blanket before she woke up, or she would have turned into a popsicle.

Minoko ended up with two permanent scars; one on her back and one on her front. The katana entered her from the back at a steep angle a couple inches below her right shoulder, close to where the shoulder blade started. The exit wound came out just below her sternum. It pierced her right lung clean through, which was why blood had started leaking from her mouth and why she was so close to dying. She was lucky that the blade hadn't nicked any major arteries as well.

Minoko was disappointed that her mom never came to visit her. Her dad said that he had sent a message as soon as he found out that she was in the hospital, but he never received a response. Minoko was finally realizing that she really wasn't coming back.

Sensei eased her back into training for about two weeks with Gaara helping any chance he got before the three of them started to take missions again. Her best friend could usually be found hovering around her to make sure she didn't over do it.

She wasn't really surprised to see that they were started off with C-ranks again right off the bat. Luckily they were all fairly standard and nothing strange or unexpected occurred. They were basically glorified chores.

Between missions, Yashamaru-sensei slowly increased the amount of training for her each day. After three months, she was in peak condition, even more so than she was before she fell into a coma. In addition to physical conditioning, she learned more about sensing other's chakra, camouflage, hiding in plain sight, and information gathering. This way she would be better prepared for situations like that disastrous one in Ishi. On top of that, sensei taught her another earth style jutsu: Doton: Doryuso. This way, she would have an offensive and defensive jutsu in her arsenal.

Every time they trained or left the village for a mission, sensei would have her create a new persona. He had noticed that she had been uncomfortable when she was acting in Ishi, so he wanted her to get used to behaving differently. He had her create names, background information, and mannerisms for each persona. If she deviated from character, sensei would wack her and have her try again until she got it right. It took a while, but she could finally sink into a new personality with only a little trouble now and then. Such as her breaking character to tackle Gaara when he started laughing at her in retaliation. Just because she had to act like a timid girly-girl did not mean that she couldn't get him back for being a jerk. The following smack to the back of her head was totally worth it.

During that timeframe, Minoko had her fifth birthday as well. Gaara came over to her house for the day to celebrate. Taru attempted to make a cake for her, but she ended up having to step in to save it when he almost used salt instead of sugar. Minoko insisted that the small party was to celebrate both her and Gaara becoming five since she missed his birthday while she was in the hospital.

Gaara gave her a small potted cactus and explained how she was supposed to take care of it. He made sure to give her one of the ones that stayed relatively small and flowered frequently. She smiled brightly when he brought it out and gave him a small kiss on the cheek, causing his face to practically match his hair.

It had now been five months since she had been released from the hospital and she was bored! Gaara had gone out into the desert to gather more cacti for his greenhouse. He had to travel two days to the far west border of Kaze in order to acquire a rare species that only bloomed once every ten years. Yashamaru-sensei insisted on going with him to make sure nothing happened. Gaara stubbornly insisted that she stay behind to rest, even though she had fully recovered from her ordeal a couple months ago. He was just being paranoid, but it was kind of sweet, too. However, this also meant that Minoko was left all alone!

Her dad was currently at work. He was a woodworker and could carve just about anything in under an hour. When they came to Suna about a year and a half ago and showed off his skills, the puppetry division snatched him up quickly despite him being a civilian.

She was sitting on the couch in her living room, trying to get through some of the study materials that sensei had left for her, but her mind kept wandering for some reason. She gave up concentrating with a groan and flopped down on her back, sinking into the well-worn cushions. Why couldn't something exciting happen?

Not a moment later, there was a knock at her door. She picked her head up to stare at the door when a second knock came. She sighed and got up to answer.

Minoko padded over to the door and opened it, revealing an ANBU. He was dressed in traditional Suna ANBU attire, covered head to toe. His face was covered by a piece of cloth that attached to the turban-like head-dressing and only his dark brown eyes showed.

"Kai Minoko?" he asked in a gravelly voice.

"Yes."

"The Kazekage requests your presence immediately."

She nodded, "I'll head over as soon as I change," she said, gesturing to her pajamas. Sure it was after noon, but they were comfy and she didn't have to be anywhere that day.

The man nodded briskly, then disappeared in a shunshin.

She sighed and turned to her room to change clothes, "I just had to jinx myself, didn't I?"

…

Ten minutes later, Minoko was standing alone in front of the Kazekage, Rasa. He was still as intimidating as the first time they met and she couldn't help but feel anxious as he sized her up from behind his desk. She kept still with her eyes lowered in respect as she waited for him to speak.

"Yashamaru has told me a good deal about you, Kai Minoko," he said.

She didn't respond, but raised her head up slightly so that she was looking at the top of his desk.

"I must say that I'm impressed with the progress that you've made," he continued, "Not many children have the drive that you do, don't you think?"

"Sir," she started, answering carefully, "I am a genin. It is my duty to put in every effort that I can."

Rasa hummed, "Well said." He stood from his chair and walked to the window, hands clasped behind his back. Minoko continued to look at the desk and saw him move from the corner of her eye. He looked back to her, "I believe that you could qualify for a promotion soon."

Minoko's eyes widened a bit. A promotion? She was only five and she was going to be a chunin?

"Of course," the Kazekage said, breaking her out of her momentary lapse in attentiveness, "You would need to prove yourself capable of completing missions to a certain standard. Normally, this would take place at the Chunin Exams that are held bi-yearly, but as you don't have a full team, you are automatically barred from them."

He walked to stand in front of her and she raised her head enough to look at his chest.

"This leaves me in an odd predicament. It would be a waste to not utilize your talents, and that is what would happen if you were to remain a genin. I believe that with the right training, you could complete certain B or A rank missions. Missions that you are not permitted to take part in at you current rank."

He moved his hand to her chin and raised her face to meet his gaze. Minoko felt an uneasy chill go through her body at his touch.

"I have a proposition for you," he said, keeping a hold of her chin, "There is a solo infiltration mission to Kirigakure that needs to be completed soon. It could last several months. You would be required to discretely send reports to update me about the current situation and gather as much information as you can about the current political climate. If you complete this mission successfully and to my standards, you will receive a field promotion to chunin. Do you accept?"

Minoko knew that her eyes were wide as she processed the information. A solo mission? That means no Yashamaru-sensei. No Gaara. Could she really do this?

She glanced into the unrelenting eyes of her leader. I don't think that I actually have a choice, she thought.

"I accept this mission, Kazekage-sama. When do I leave?"

He finally released his hold on her chin and gave a chilling smile, "Good. You leave at dawn in three days. I expect weekly reports, so I will have one of my jonin have you sign a contract and teach you how to summon. You are to learn this jutsu before you leave. Dismissed."

Minoko bowed deeply and took her leave. When the office door closed behind her, she started to tremble. What in the world did she just get herself in to?

A/N: I'm back! How does she keep getting into these situations? Until next time! Please leave a review :D

Doton: Doryuso: Earth Style: Falling Earth Spears

Kirigakure: Hidden Mist Village