Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (either manga or anime!); the wonderful Masashi Kishimoto-sensei owns all rights. However, the plot and Namiko Uzumaki are mine!

Chapter 29: Falling

The next morning, Namiko's eyes fluttered open and she found herself looking at thick, jet-black hair framing the handsome face that she had become all too familiar with over the last couple of weeks. She realized that she must have moved during the night, and apparently, she wasn't the only one who did, as Sasuke was lying facing her as well.

He must have lit the candle at some point again that morning because the room was filled with a warm glow, just enough to see the man in front of her. Sasuke was still asleep, so she took the opportunity to take her time to examine his appearance in detail.

His smooth jawline was accentuated by the tiniest cleft in his chin and well-defined cheekbones. His shirt had pulled open slightly more than normal and she could see the lean muscle and fair skin that was often hidden by the semi-baggy clothing. Her eyes trailed back up to his face and his full lips that had been so soft and warm on hers; the thought made her flush slightly.

"Do I want to know what is going on in that head of yours?" said Sasuke smoothly as he noticed exactly where her gaze was focused.

Namiko's eyes snapped to his in surprise. "AH!" she shouted as she leaned back, falling off the bed, and smacking the back of her head on the wall. "…ouch."

She sat up rubbing the back of her head. She looked up to see Sasuke walking over to her with an amused smirk threatening to turn into a smile. "Go ahead and laugh," she muttered in embarrassment, her cheeks fully reddened.

Sasuke crouched next to her, his smirk fading a little. "Are you hurt anywhere?" He reached forward, brushed her bangs out of her eyes, and gently felt the back of her head for any injury.

Namiko pouted her lips. "…just my dignity." She pushed his arm half-heartedly with the back of her hand.

"What happened to being on high alert?" He stood and offered her a hand up.

She accepted it and stood, sighing. "I was distracted…" she said quietly, refusing to meet his gaze.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow as he asked teasingly, "By what?"

She shot him a glare. "You know by exactly what!" she said as she motioned to his body with her hand. He kept his expression the same hoping she'd go into detail, and she groaned, "…you're going to make me say it, aren't you?"

"Say what?"

"That you caught me ogling you…" She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear as she continued to pout slightly, looking away from him. She wanted to crawl under a rock after admitting that to him.

A cocky smirk drifted across his face. "Did you like what you saw?"

"Oh you—" Namiko smacked his chest lightly as she shot him another glare.

He caught her wrist and pulled her closer to him, causing her to look up at him curiously. "Did you know you're cute when you're frustrated?" He leaned down and kissed her forehead before letting go of her wrist, turning on his heel, and heading over to the kitchen, leaving Namiko staring after him in shock.

'Did Sasuke just flirt with me? Who would've suspected we'd end up here?' She sighed heavily as she got up to change her clothes before heading to the kitchen as well.

Sasuke and Namiko headed to check on their traps after eating breakfast. Namiko had packed lunch for them again, just some more onigiri. As they walked through the forest, something bright red caught her eye. "Raspberries!" she exclaimed as she shot toward the large bush and stuck some in her bag. She popped one into her mouth. "These will be good for later. I wonder if we can find more kinds of berries somewhere."

"Probably. The forest is pretty thick here overall," said Sasuke as he reset a trap.

"This brings back memories of one of my missions with Team 8. It was after we all made chuunin and it was our first mission without Kurenai-sensei," Namiko said as she moved to another bush. "Hinata and I picked berries right off the bushes while we were surveilling. It had been a dull mission and we were bored. There ended up being a huge bald patch on the bush we were crouched behind."

"You know, I honestly kind of prefer the quiet missions sometimes. I know I'm not very strong, so intelligence and tracking are my favorite kinds of missions because I don't feel totally useless," she said with a sigh.

"You're far from useless," assured Sasuke firmly. "You did a great job holding your own against Kabuto that first day and that was with the limitations that Orochimaru placed on you. I think you limit yourself more than you think."

Namiko turned to look up at him with a bashful smile. "You're sweet."

"I'm truthful," Sasuke said as he brushed the dirt off his hands. "You're more capable than you give yourself credit for."

"Sasuke, you've been gone for nearly three years. You have no idea what my capabilities are."

"I know you've learned two major jutsu during that time, and one of those is an S-rank that only two other people have ever done before you."

"Yeah, which I still can't even do to the fullest extent. Our father was a genius and it's obvious that neither Naruto nor I inherited that." She rolled her eyes and made a frustrated noise. "Flying Raijin itself isn't hard once you learn to apply the formula, but you have to be able to manipulate your chakra in a certain way, which I can only do so many times effectively and I'm not very efficient at it. I can only assume it's due to the kyuubi. I know Naruto had similar troubles when he worked on his Rasengan, which coincidentally enough, is also our father's jutsu."

Namiko stared at the ground. "I just wish I could've known him. Hell, I'd settle for a notebook explaining some things…" A bittersweet smile flickered over her face. "I do have one thing from my mom though. Kakashi-sensei had a bracelet of hers that he kept for when we were older. He gave it to me after I mastered Adamantine Sealing Chains. I have it hidden in my backpack because I don't want to lose it."

"So, that's what you went searching through your backpack for when Kabuto gave you it back," said Sasuke, finally understanding why she had been so protective over her backpack.

She nodded. "Sealing Chains comes a lot easier to me though than Flying Raijin does. I already had a pretty solid grasp on it by the time Naruto left with Jiraiya-ji-chan. Kakashi-sensei says it's probably because of the Uzumaki bloodline."

The sky suddenly started to darken and the wind started picking up. "Look like a storm is about to blow in," said Sasuke as he gently grabbed her hand. "There's a cave not too far from here that we can take shelter in for a while. Come on."

She smiled when she looked at their hands as Sasuke laced his fingers through hers. They quickly made their way to the cave and just before they got to the entrance, the rain started pouring. By the time they entered the cave, both were fully soaked by the storm.

The cave was more like a small rock overhang, probably only ten meters by ten meters, but large enough to stay dry from the chaos outside. Sasuke found some wood along the wall; this was not the first time someone had used this area to seek shelter and he made quick work of starting a fire to help them dry off. They ate their lunch in comfortable silence and then sat by the fire to wait out the rest of the storm.

"Thanks for setting that up," said Namiko as she scooted closer to the fire. "Makes me wish I could do fire style, it's a lot handier than some others."

Sasuke sat next to her. "What chakra natures can you use? I know you've used lightning before like I do."

She nodded as she watched the rain outside. "I can use a water jutsu or two but lightning is more comfortable. Obviously, you can use lightning and fire, anything else?"

"I mean, I could use another chakra nature if I wanted to because of the Sharingan, but those are my most comfortable chakra natures, so that's all I use."

"You know, it's kind of funny that you have multiple chakra natures and have been able to use them both since you were fresh out of the academy," she paused, trying to hold back a mischievous smile, "yet you're still a genin. So, technically, I outrank you."

Sasuke looked at her sharply. "Rank is just a label."

Namiko couldn't hold back her smirk any longer. "Jealous?"

"Not in the slightest," he countered. "You already know I can still beat you every time, genin rank or not." Sasuke turned away from her and threw a small piece of wood into the fire.

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You're cute when you're embarrassed."

"Uchiha don't get embarrassed."

Namiko became quiet for a moment before speaking softly, "I know you don't like to talk about your clan, but…what were your parents like?"

"My tou-san was pretty strict and mainly only paid attention to Itachi since he was the oldest. He did teach me Great Fireball Jutsu though. My kaa-san…she was always warm and inviting. She was a jounin like our father, but when she was pregnant with Itachi, she decided to permanently retire." He gave a wistful scoff. "I asked her once why she did it, and she said it was more rewarding to be our mother than to be a jounin."

"Your mother sounded like a wonderful woman. I think I can understand her, wanting to be with family as much as possible instead of away from them for weeks or months," said Namiko, her voice soft and sentimental. She saw she had Sasuke's full attention at her comment. "You know…I'm going to tell you a secret no one knows. Not Naruto, not Hinata…no one. You're the only one who will ever know this…"

She stared into the fire, avoiding eye contact with him. "I never wanted to be a shinobi…"

Silence filled the air for a moment before Sasuke asked, "Then why bother going through everything to be one?"

"I didn't want to leave Naruto. I never wanted to be a shinobi because all I wanted was to grow up, get married, and have a family, but when Naruto decided to go to the academy after talking to Sandaime, I followed him because I was scared that if I stayed home while he became a shinobi, I would lose the only family I ever had." She played with the end of her braid anxiously. "So I followed him to protect him. Then whenever I got a good score on a test or completed a jutsu, I thought maybe I made the right decision and would learn to like it, and I do like parts of it now, but part of me wonders if maybe your mother had the right idea. Staying home and spending time taking care of a family that needed her instead of risking her life as a jounin."

"My mother still lost her life."

"Yes, but not on a battlefield or a mission." She finally looked at him, tears threatening to spill over at any moment. A tinge of anger seeped into her voice, "I never got the chance to know my parents. I never even got to know their names or see a picture of either of them until I was thirteen years old!"

She blew out her breath slowly to calm herself and sniffled to keep the tears at bay. "I can only hope that my future kids will never have to go through what I did or even what you did. But I can't guarantee that…"

Finally, a lone tear streaked down her cheek, her voice barely audible above the crackling of the fire, "…all I want is to live a normal life…and that will never happen because of the kyuubi." She cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't be dumping this on you."

"Namiko," said Sasuke as he wiped away the tear that made its way to her jaw. "I just want you to be happy, however that happens. If that means I get to protect you the rest of our lives, then I gladly accept the challenge." Her eyes widened at his words and he backpedaled after realizing what he unintentionally implied, "I mean…I'll protect you as long as you want me or need me to."

Namiko turned to face him, kneeling on her hands and knees. "I wouldn't want anyone but you." She leaned up to give him a chaste kiss on the corner of his mouth, but he turned his head and captured her lips with his own. The kiss started slow but gradually built as Sasuke pulled her closer. She sat with her knees touching his thigh and placed her hands on his shoulders to steady herself as she leaned up to him. He brought a hand to cup her jaw, tilting her head up for a better angle to kiss her.

She timidly ran her tongue on his lower lip before quickly backing out of the kiss entirely, removing her hands from his shoulders as she blushed furiously. "…sorry. I don't know what I was thinking."

"Then don't think," muttered Sasuke as he moved his hand to the back of her neck and pulled her back in, capturing her lips once more.

She returned the kiss with fervor now that it seemed that Sasuke wanted this just as badly as she did. He kept one hand on the back of her neck, threading his fingers into the hair at her nape. Her hands started on his shoulders again, but the moment she moved them to touch the exposed skin of his chest, he froze and broke the kiss.

She looked at him quizzically. "Was that my fault?"

"No, I just don't want to jump into something so soon that we'll both regret it later on," he replied as she sat back. "And if you keep going like that, we just might," he added, his voice lowered in timbre before he turned his head away and cleared his throat.

Her face flushed again and she scooted a few centimeters away, refocusing on the fire in front of them. 'Ugh, I wish Kurenai sensei was here. Why are relationships hard to navigate?'

Kurenai sighed contentedly as she snuggled further into Asuma's arms as they sat on her couch. "You know, people are becoming more suspicious of us."

Asuma chuckled. "What are you talking about? Our teams figured things out were official between us several months ago."

"Though Namiko was the first one out of both our teams to begin to suspect something, even before we were even actually together," she said with a giggle. "That was almost three years ago. She told me we weren't as good as we thought at hiding our body language."

Asuma kissed her cheek. "It has been a long time. Maybe it's time we move beyond a drawer at each other's place?"

"Huh? What do you mean?" Kurenai sat up and turned to face him.

"Move in with me."

She stilled as time seemed to freeze for a moment before she regained the ability to speak. "Move in? But doesn't that blow our cover officially?"

"What's wrong with that? Who cares who knows?" questioned Asuma. "Kakashi and Gai and our teams already know."

"Well, it would be nice to finally be able to tell those girls that flirt with you at the bar that you're taken." Kurenai smiled at him and kissed his lips softly. "I guess it wouldn't be so bad," she said, her tone teasing.

"Jealously is one hell of a motivator," he said with a full laugh.

"You know what they say, 'he that is jealous is not in love' and I love you, so I'm not jealous, just possessive," quipped Kurenai with a wink.

Rain still poured heavily outside with thunder so loud it sounded like Chouji was using Human Boulder overtop the cave. They had been stuck in the cave for over four hours and the rain showed no signs of slowing down. Sasuke had set to carving a small piece of wood using a kunai as Namiko just sat next to the fire, watching the rain fall.

Namiko gave a heavy sigh. She usually liked the rain, but she was getting a bit stir-crazy, and being alone with Sasuke wasn't helping her wandering mind. "I should've brought my notebook." She muttered as she laid back on the dirt with her arms behind her head like a pillow. "Maybe we should just run back. It's not like we can't use chakra to just speed through it."

"Tch." He looked up at her and threw the piece of wood he'd been carving into the fire. "If we do that, you'd get sick for sure. Plus, the lightning strikes have been getting stronger and closer and I'm not going to risk your safety."

Namiko looked at him critically as she sat back up. "You know I'm not a fragile porcelain doll that will break into a million pieces if something touches me, right?"

"I know that, but that doesn't mean I don't try to look out for your safety and best interests either." Sasuke leaned against the wall of the cave with one knee bent up and his arm resting atop it. "Since when did you become so impulsive and reckless?"

"Since I had to take care of myself when both you and Naruto left me," a heavy tone of bitterness threaded through her voice. "And I'm not reckless, I just had to learn to be a little more independent and handle things without help."

"I left to protect you."

"I don't need to be protected. I needed you and you left. Then I lost Naruto." Her gaze bore holes in the fire in front of her. "I lost Naruto for over two years because he followed you. I was alone because of you. I don't want to be alone again…"

"I'm sorry. It's my fault," Sasuke sighed in defeat. "You won't be alone again."

Namiko turned, her anger beginning to turn to hesitant hope. "You can't guarantee that."

"No, but I can do everything in my power to make sure that as long as I'm alive, you'll never be alone again."

All her anger dissipated like smoke. "What? Are you planning to come back to Konoha with me then?"

"Yes."

She sat frozen in place, her eyes unblinking as she stared at him in shock. Her voice cracked as she spoke, "I…thought you said you wouldn't go back because you'd probably be imprisoned?"

"I'm willing to take the chance if it means getting you home safely. Hopefully, if I'm arrested, I'll get a fair trial. I've yet to kill anyone and the only people I plan on killing are both rogue shinobi." Sasuke moved closer to her. "I've committed no crimes against Konoha except desertion."

"So, you do plan on killing Orochimaru…" Her voice held a bit of apprehension at the thought.

Sasuke nodded. "I don't know how else to be free of him. I don't want to take the chance of just seeing what happens at the end of his three-year mark. He could just die, or he could have a burst of unknown power. I'd rather play it safe and kill him before we're forced to find out."

"No, you're right. It just makes me nervous." She looked over at him, her voice quieting again. "I just found you, and I don't want to lose you again…"

He reached out, placing his hand tenderly on her face and using his thumb to caress her cheekbone. "I just told you; you're not going to lose me. I promise." He leaned forward and kissed her forehead before letting go and sitting back.

"You better keep that promise, Uchiha Sasuke," she chastised with a smile.

"I will. I always keep my promises," he replied with a ghost of a smile on his face.

Namiko grabbed the canvas bag from earlier and popped a raspberry in her mouth. "Want one?"

"I don't like sweets, you know that."

"These are more tart than sweet. I don't think they are quite ripe enough, but they still taste good."

"Fine, let me try one." He held out his hand but was surprised when Namiko bypassed his hand and stuck one straight into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed it quickly. "Really? What was that for? I'm perfectly capable of feeding myself."

She giggled, hiding her grin behind her hand. "I couldn't resist the opportunity to tease you. Take this as an example of why I don't want you to baby me."

He sighed forcefully. "Stubborn woman. I get your point, just next time, use words instead."

"Hey, I did use words first, but you argued with me."

"I didn't argue with you, I just disagreed."

"Tomato, tomahto." She then burst into another fit of giggles.

"What's so funny?"

She tried to stifle her laughter. "Tomatoes are your favorite food."

Sasuke shook his head. "I think the campfire smoke is getting to your head."

"I'm perfectly fine!" she said as she stuck out her tongue at him. A monstrous crack sounded as the sky lit up multiple times in a row. "The storm must be directly overhead now; it almost reminds me of the fireworks from Tsunade's inaugural festival."

"I remember that night."

"Me too." She watched the storm outside almost wistfully as she thought back to that night. "You know, it's funny, I was so nervous around you that night. Kiba told me a few days before that you liked me and I tried to explain to him that there was no way, but everything you did that night I overanalyzed to the extreme."

"He was right."

Namiko's eyes snapped to Sasuke. "…what? What do you mean 'he was right'?"

"He was right. I'm not sure how he knew that, but he was and is still right," said Sasuke like he was stating the most basic fact possible.

Namiko felt like her head was spinning; maybe she should get away from the fire. "…you liked me back then?" Sasuke nodded and she felt like her heart skipped a beat. "We were just kids!"

"You were fascinating to me. And beautiful. And smart. Why wouldn't I have liked you?" Sasuke shrugged nonchalantly.

Namiko needed to know the truth. "So, in the Forest of Death when you found out Zaku hurt me…"

"I broke his arms so he couldn't hurt you again."

"And during the Chuunin Exam preliminaries, did you really ask Kakashi-sensei to 'please stay' after your match just to watch mine?"

"…yes."

"Did you try to give me mouth-to-mouth after I fell in the Uchiha Pond? I vaguely remember you leaning over me."

"I was about to, but you woke enough to clear your own lungs."

"All the little touches…the grabbing my hand or touching my arm…?"

It could've been her imagination, but she swore the tip of Sasuke's ears were slightly pink as he answered, "They were because I wanted to. You're the only person I wanted to be around." A small smile played across his lips. "You've always been the one to break my walls down. Even now you still do."

Namiko pressed her lips together. "So when did you start…liking me?"

"In our academy days."

"But we rarely spoke back then!"

"I think it started as a respect for you that just morphed into actual feelings. I always trusted you though. I wouldn't have asked you to come with me when I left Konoha if I didn't."

Namiko was trying to wrap her head around all the newfound information. "Then why tell me to go back home once I actually came?"

"Because I realized this was far more dangerous than I thought it would be and I didn't want to risk your life. The only reason you're still here is because I know I can protect you."

"I want to come when you face Itachi too." She stared into his eyes determinedly. "I am your best bet to track him, and if it makes you feel any better, I can set up escape routes for me if you insist that I don't help."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "How?"

"I can set up multiple marks for Flying Raijin. I do it all the time when I'm on a mission and I started doing it as we traveled with Orochimaru. For instance, right now I can sense five marks in range."

"You've made that many?"

She nodded. "Well, I've placed three since we've been here. I placed one inside our room, one near that raspberry bush, and one on a tree a couple hundred meters from the base. I already had a mark near the Valley of the End…and then there's the one I placed…on you." She felt her cheeks warm slightly.

"Why and when did you place one on me? And why can I not see it?"

"I placed a mark on you the first time we sparred. The marks fade visually within a minute or two, but they remain there forever. As for the why…" Now she was sure her face had to be as red as her hair. "It was because I didn't want to lose you again. I wanted a fail-safe so even if I did return with my brother and had to leave you behind, if I ever felt your chakra again when I was on a mission or otherwise, I could go directly to your side and bring you home."

"I promise," he said as he grasped her hand gently, "I'll come back home with you after everything is over."

Her gaze snapped to his. "For real?"

"Yes, but you have to promise me something as well."

"Anything! Just name it!" Namiko was practically bouncing with excitement. It was moments like these where he could see how she and Naruto were related.

"We're dealing with some of the most dangerous shinobi alive. If I tell you to do something, you need to promise you'll do what I ask of you."

"I promise!" A beaming smile was on her face as she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him square on the lips. Sasuke didn't even have time to reciprocate before she pulled back. "The rain is finally slowing down. Can we go back now?"

Sasuke nodded as Namiko quickly got to her feet and made a few hand signs for water jutsu and used the water outside to put out the fire. Smoke billowed and she coughed trying to fan the smoke from her face. "Let's go."

They made it back in time for Namiko to fix dinner before retiring to their room for the evening. They both bathed and got into bed the same as they had been, Sasuke on top of the blankets and Namiko underneath. Both drifted off quickly to sleep facing opposite directions.

Namiko's whimpering broke the silence of the bedroom and immediately put Sasuke on guard. He sat up to check her over, noticing tears streaking down her cheeks. He laid a gentle hand on her jaw, brushing away the evidence of whatever night terror she was having. "Namiko?" he asked softly as he activated his Sharingan. "I need you to open your eyes."

Soft whimpers turned into full sobs as she turned to face him and curled her body to be as small as possible. She began gasping for breath and Sasuke had enough. "Namiko, I'm here. You're safe. I need you to wake up." He pulled her to him and her breathing started to even out though tears still streamed down her face.

"Sasuke…?" her voice cracked as she tilted her head up to see Sasuke's Sharingan active, tomoes lazily spinning.

"I'm here and you're safe." He wiped another tear from her cheek. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head and pushed away from him to go to the bathroom. She splashed some water on her face and cupped her hands to drink. Slowly, she made her way back to the bed, crawling under the covers and facing him, still trying to make herself as small as possible.

Sasuke had no idea what to do. He wasn't exactly the best at handling complex emotions. "Are you okay?"

Namiko just shook her head. He reached out to her and pulled her against his chest. She let out a slow, shaky breath. "…you're alive…"

He gave a puzzled look that she couldn't see as she buried her face in his loose shirt. "Of course I'm alive. I told you I wouldn't leave you."

Another slow deep breath. "I dreamt the kyuubi took me over and I killed you; it kept showing me it over and over. I just wanted it to stop but I heard your voice calling out to me and I was able to wake up. That has never happened before." She tilted her head up to look into his Sharingan. "Can you hold me tonight?"

Sasuke froze for a moment before he tightened his arms around her and lay down. "Of course." He noticed her small smile as he kissed her forehead. "Now, close your eyes and rest. I'll be here with you in the morning." She nodded her head against his chest and both quickly fell asleep again.

Sasuke was the first to wake up and noticed that neither were in the same position they fell asleep in. When they had fallen asleep, she had been lying next to him under the blanket with her head on his chest and he had been lying on his back on top of the blanket.

But now, as he tilted his head down to see their bodies, he realized they were facing each other and flush against each other, both under the blanket. Sasuke was mostly on his side now, holding her like if he moved, she'd disappear. Namiko was snuggled flush against him with her right arm wrapped around his chest, and her right leg was tangled in between his own. He had no idea how to get them out of this position without waking her.

Thankfully, she stirred and pulled away from him slightly as she yawned, her eyes still closed. She opened her eyes slowly and found herself face-to-bare chest. She realized that not only was her right arm wrapped around his chest, but it was inside his shirt, touching bare skin. Her eyes widened as she quickly pulled her arm out and scooted away from him entirely and to the edge of the bed. "I'm so sorry!" Her hands covered her face in embarrassment.

"You're fine." Sasuke sat up and coughed slightly to cover up his own embarrassment. "Let's just go eat."

They were finishing getting ready when Namiko realized that both Kabuto and Orochimaru were in the kitchen. "Uh, Sasuke? What time is it?"

He walked over and looked at the small clock on the desk, his eyes widening. "11:52 am."

Namiko zipped her boot as he announced the time, accidentally pinching her finger in the zipper. "Ouch! …wait, what?"

They quickly walked into the kitchen to see both men sitting at the table eating some of the leftover food from the night before. Namiko bowed deeply. "I'm so sorry! We woke up late. I should've made sure to set the alarm but normally I'm okay without it."

Kabuto raised an eyebrow suggestively. "You two must've been awfully cozy in bed for both of you to sleep over twelve hours. Are you enjoying your morning cuddles?"

Sasuke glared daggers at the bespectacled shinobi. "We didn't do whatever your disgusting mind is coming up with," he snapped.

"Calm down, Sasuke-kun, I'm sure Kabuto-kun was just teasing you. Though it's nice seeing you two getting along so well." Orochimaru's grin matched Kabuto's. "I'm sure we have no reason to doubt our Namiko-chan's honor is still intact."

Sasuke chose to ignore the sannin's comment. Namiko flushed pink and held her hands up defensively as she explained, "No, no, nothing like that. I just had a nightmare last night and I woke him up, so I think we both just needed the extra rest."

"Good to know," said Orochimaru as he stood from his seat with Kabuto following suit. "Now we have some things to attend to. You two are on your own." The two men walked out of the kitchen, leaving behind two very confused teenagers.

As Orochimaru entered his study area and sat down, another sly smile crossed his face as he looked at Kabuto. "Ah, just what I had hoped would happen. The power that will result from their bond will be magnificent. We'll just have to bide our time…"

A/N: The quote that Kurenai says is a quote by Saint Augustine. Thank you all for your patience with my updates this week; having two kids in elementary school makes for a cesspool of sickness. I'm doing much better though and we should be back on a regular weekly rotation again.

See you next week!

Love, Eriisu