Chapter 5: Your New Family

 

 

        Everyone stared at you, shocked. Not once in a million years did they expect you to tell them your real name, especially after today’s events. You were still looking at the view in front of you, with a soft and relaxed smile plastered on your face, ignoring their surprised stares. Temari was the first to break the silence.

        “(Y/N). It’s pretty.” A light pink dusted your cheeks as you closed your eyes, and you snuggled deeper into your knees out of embarrassment. Kankuro smirked.

        “So, I guess this means you trust us then, right?” He teased, and you scoffed in return.

        “Don’t read too much into it, kitty cat.” He scowled at your nickname for him, which referred to the tufts of black on his head that were part of his bodysuit. Before he could make a comeback, Temari stopped him.

        “Maybe you’ll tell us your last name one of these days.” You snorted, and rose your lips into a slight smirk.

        “I’d keep dreaming then. It’s my top secret. No one can know.” Not even me. You didn’t know your last name, only Old Man did, and he never told you, but you wouldn’t tell them that. You weren’t technically lying. It’s still your secret… that you just didn’t know.

        “And why can’t we know?” Kankuro asked. You shrugged your shoulders.

        “Because you can’t.” He groaned, impatient with your stubbornness. You layed back down on the ground and smirked.

        “You are one of the most stubborn people I’ve ever met.”

        “Thank you. You’re one of the most annoying people I’ve ever met.”

        “But you said that you don’t have much contact with people.”

        “Uh huh. Keep going.”

        “Why you little-“

        “How do you two even live with him?” You gestured to Temari and Gaara. “You guys are siblings, right? So you’ve lived with each other all your life.” You chuckled. “I don’t know how though, it must be so much work.” They stared at you, surprised for the second time that night.

        “How did you know that we’re siblings?” Kankuro asked.

        “Yeah, we never told you that.” Temari added. You shrugged your shoulders again.

        “Instincts, you give off vibes. I mean, besides that, I don’t really know. Just can.” You smirked. “But seriously, how do you two live with him?” Of course Gaara didn’t answer, and Temari shrugged her shoulders.

        “I’m not sure if we’re actually alive with him around.” Kankuro stared at Temari, jaw agape.

        “Why are you siding with her!?” He asked incredulously.

        “Is someone jealous?” You teased. Kankuro growled softly, and you held up your hands in mock surrender, well your up since you were still laying down on Gaara’s sand. “Calm your man tits, we’re just joking around. Right, Temari?” Kankuro just continued to glare at you, and you swore Gaara was doing the same when you said ‘man tits’, which was hilarious. Temari, however, smirked. 

        “Weellll, more or less.” She said. You chuckled and sat up.

        “Maybe she wasn’t, but I was.” He was still glaring at you, which you couldn’t blame him for. You didn’t expect, however, for him to reach around Temari and punch you square in the shoulder. It didn’t hurt, but it was still unexpected. You smirked, and didn’t do anything back. “Alright, maybe I deserved that. But that’s the only free hit you get. Next time, let’s just say you won’t be so lucky.” He snorted and smirked.

        “Fine by me.” You smiled.

        “Let me get in on some of that.” Temari said while punching you, annoyingly, in the same spot Kankuro did. You frowned.

        “And what was that for?” You could hear Kankuro snickering, but you were more focused on Temari.

        “I thought we all got a free hit.”

        “Yeah, everyone who’s name is Kankuro and who wears black clothes with little tufts on the head that kinda makes him look like a cat. Anyone else-” She cut you off.

        “You still owe us for the food you stole. I think this is a pretty fair deal.” You didn’t have anything to say back, and you just sighed in defeat.

        “Well, you got me there… this time.”

        “Does this mean I get another hit?” Kankuro asked excitedly. 

        “No.” Was your immediate answer. “You already got your free hit.” He ignored you, and punched you anyway, still in the same exact place as before. “Really?” You turned and saw him smirk at you. You sighed, this time more heavily. “Fine. But seriously, that was it for you.”

        “I get another one then!”

        “What is this, a hit me party?” You asked sarcastically. You turned and saw Temari’s and Kankuro’s excited and evil grins. “OK, alright. This is a party. Just us, no wait! How about we invite the whole damn Leaf Village while we’re at it. Step right up step right up, get your free hits here. One punch and you won’t end up dead. Step right up! Everyone’s invited!” Temari and Kankuro were clutching their stomachs from laughter. “You want in on this too Gaara? Might as well.” You looked up at his green eyes with your own playful ones. You were surprised that he was even looking at you. “This is a once in a lifetime deal, you’ll never get another chance like this.” You offered. He continued to stare at you with the same scowling, stoic expression for a few minutes, never wavering in the slightest, never showing any emotion, no signs of what he was thinking or feeling. Your playful expression never changed as well.

        He eventually turned away from you, not giving you a single glance back, but it didn’t bother you. You shrugged your shoulders and faced forward as well. “Alright. Suit yourself.” You chuckled, since in a way, Gaara was acting just like you. Being silent, showing no emotions, and acting like an outcast in general were all the things you usually did. Well, except for now that is. You felt like you understood him a little, at least from that point of view.

        You saw him glance at you once more before he looked back at the view ahead of him. Out of the corner of your eyes you saw Temari and Kankuro staring at the view with fearful yet slightly surprised expressions. Why do they look so afraid? Psh, there’s nothing scary here. Unless Gaara has a really bad temper or something. Now that I think about it, there is something different I sense about him. It’s almost like there’s two different beings. Bipolar? No, that’s different than what I’m sensing. Well… it’s not like he’s done anything… yet, which is surprising, since I’ve been pretty annoying so far. Actually, why hasn’t he done anything to ‘shut me up’ or something like that? Does he really not find me that annoying… or does he pity me? Whatever the case is, I guess I’ll take it, even if it really is only pity.

        You continued to smile, and closed your eyes as you layed back down on Gaara’s sand. You felt someone messing with your hair, and you opened your eyes back up to see Temari half smiling half smirking down at you.

        “You’re alright kid. You’re alright.” You smirked yourself.

        “I guess you’re not that much of a brat.”

        “You know you’re not much older than me, right?”

        “So? You’re still a brat in my book.”

        “And you’re an angry kitten in mine.” Kankuro huffed, and decided to stop talking. Peaceful silence passed, with the four of you sitting, except you who was laying down, and admiring the view you had shown them. You let out a quiet breath of air, and shifted yourself deeper into Gaara’s sand. I never knew how warm his sand really was until now. It’s actually quite comfortable, almost like that sand in the dream I had…

        Suddenly, a whiff of something caught your nose. You sat straight up, twitching your nose and sniffing the air to find the source of the smell, completely staying still otherwise so as not make other noise. Kankuro, Temari, and even Gaara were watching you in confusion, curious to find out what you were doing.

        “What are you? Some kind of animal-“

        “Shut up.” You whispered in a serious tone, interrupting Kankuro and stopping him from saying anything else. You tilted your head to try and listen for a certain noise that you hoped was a false alarm. When you pinpointed a sound that matched the scent, you snapped your head in the direction it was coming from. Just as you predicted, there was smoke rising from the building you were looking at, and it was the building that was close to… Oh no. Not- “Shit.” You jumped up from Gaara’s sand and onto the edge of the rock of the Hokage mountain. You turned around and stared at the trio with serious and, admittedly, fearful eyes. “Fire.”

        That one word was enough for them to spring into action. They looked at each other, then back at you, and nodded, knowing exactly what to do. Just as you turned around and was about to jump off of the mountain, you were stopped by Kankuro’s shouting.

        “What are you doing!?”

        “What does it look like?” You said impatiently.

        “You can’t jump off the edge!”

        “Glad to see you’re actually concerned, but I’ve got a HUGE problem now, and this is the quickest way to go. So if you wanna come, hurry up and move it.” Kankuro glared at you.

        “And how do you expect us to just jump off this rock without dying?” Temari shouted. You rolled your eyes.

        “Well you’ve got wind.” You pointed to Temari. “You’ve got sand.” You pointed to Gaara. “You’ve got chakra strings.” You pointed to Kankuro, and then a thumb to yourself. “And I’ve got these.” You flashed your hidden blades. “Not that hard to figure out.” Temari sighed.

        “I guess we’ve got it.” You nodded, and not wasting anymore time, jumped off the Hokage mountain, falling straight down to the ground below, with the trio not following too far behind. Before you could hit the floor, you released your blades, and sent charka into the air below you. You used what you could gather and sent a full force of wind towards the mountains, shooting yourself in the direction of the smoke.

        When Temari reached the altitude you were at, she followed your lead and used her fan to propel herself to where you were flying. Kankuro was propelled along with Temari, which you assumed meant that he must’ve tied chakra strings to her so that she would propel both of them with her wind. Gaara was flying with his sand, and he was heading your way as well.

        You roughly landed on the dark floor of a street and instantly started to run with all of your might, sending chakra to your feet to increase your speed. Gaara was somehow able to follow you really well, just like before, with Temari and Kankuro not too far behind Gaara, though Kankuro must’ve unattached his chakra strings from Temari since the two weren’t so close to each other now. You sped through all too familiar alleyways, twisting, turning, and winding your way through without a single problem, following the sick smell of the smoke you had seen. You didn’t even pay attention to the figures watching the area you now entered.

        You abruptly stopped when the scent of smoke was the strongest, and stared at what you saw. About a few yards away, stood a tall blazing wall of flames, dancing and swaying brightly in the moonlight, giving everything around it a light orange glow. You could hear the sizzling and crackling, the sound of the destruction it was causing. The worst part of it all, was the fact that the fire was burning your ‘home’. You could sense the trio behind you, staring at the fire just as you were, realizing why you had stopped.

        “Isn’t this your-” Temari began, but was cut off by you.

        “Yeah. It is, or… was my ‘home’.” Nothing else was said. Nothing was needed to be said, the crackling of the fire providing all the unspoken words that could’ve been said.

        Your eyes moved across the flames, and eventually landed on the center of the fire. All of a sudden, an image of your nightmare from last night flashed through your head. It was of the fire in the building you were chained in, and the memories of the nightmare came rushing at you. You remembered sitting there, trapped, unable to avoid the inevitable burn of the flames that was consuming everything in sight, and you had been scared of certain death in the weak and frail body of your very young self. What scared you now the most though, was that the heart of the fire in front of you, looked the same as the one in the nightmare.

        A surge of pain rushed throughout your head, and you brought your hand up to clutch your aching head. The pain was unbearable. You gritted your teeth, trying to keep yourself from making any noise that would signal your current discomfort, but the trio still noticed your obvious pain.

        “A-Are you OK, (Y/N)?” You heard Temari’s slightly shaky, quiet voice. You tried to subdue the pain as you spoke.

        “Yeah. I’m fine.” You took a few deep breaths, which seemed to help your headache begin to go away. You finally focused on your surroundings again, and saw that there were Jonin circling the fire, who looked like guards. Or lookouts. Wait, no, they’re not guarding this  place. They’re trying to- “You guys should get out of here.” You paused, then turned and looked up at some of the taller roofs behind you. Just as you thought, you saw a few figures in the distance, and one of them you recognized as very very familiar. So you really made a plan this time huh? Burn my ‘home’ to draw me here, then surround me in a way that you could easily ambush me if I tried to get away, and then capture me. Clever. “I don’t think you want the ANBU to see that you’re associated with me.”

        The trio slowly looked behind you, and once they understood, they looked back at you with what you thought was concern in Temari’s and Kankuro’s eyes. Gaara, however, still showed no emotion. You didn’t really know if he cared at all, but that didn’t matter at the moment.

        “You’ll be alright?” Kankuro asked. You smirked.

        “Yeah, I can handle it.”

        “You sure?” Temari pressed on.

        “Yeah, I’m sure. I needed the change anyway. Makes everything more fun.”

        “But, won’t you get…” Temari trailed off, not wanting to finish her thought.

        “I guess you’ll find out in the morning. But don’t worry.” You started cracking your knuckles, shoulders, and neck. “I just need to stretch is all.” As you finished cracking everything, you gave them all one final confident smirk. Temari flashed her own smirk in response.

        “Don’t let us down then.” Your smirk widened.

        “Yeah, take care brat.” Kankuro mumbled.

        “I will.” With that, Kankuro and Temari took off into the night, leaving just you and Gaara left. He was staring at you with those emotionless green eyes that always seemed to pierce through your soul. You couldn’t tell what he was thinking, and you wondered why he didn’t leave with the others. Nevertheless, you smiled sincerely, thinking of nothing to say to him, and showing that you wished him well. It was only for a fraction of a second, but you thought you saw his eyes widen, but they had gone back down to their normal glare so fast that you weren’t sure if what you saw was even real. His eyes drifted to the fire, and you saw him just slightly wince at seeing the flames, almost like you had done just moments before. In fact, that’s exactly what you had done when you looked at the fire. Maybe he saw something in the flames just as I had. I wonder what that could be.

        His eyes glanced back to yours, and you bowed your head to show your respect and farewell to him. You gave him no time to respond, as you leapt off the ground and landed far back on a rooftop where you were sure none of the Jonin watching the area would notice you. You looked back to where you just were, and found that Gaara was no longer there. Good. Now the ANBU shouldn’t be after them if they spot me. I can move without worrying about them.

        You turned your attention up to the taller buildings where you had originally seen the figures of ninja. They were now moving and jumping off the roofs, most likely starting to search for you. You smirked. Let the fun begin. You sent chakra to your feet, and started to run as fast as you could while blending into the shadows around you. Come and get me.

        So far, no one saw you… yet. You were currently near the boundary of where the Jonin were surrounding you, and you hadn’t run into any trouble at all, you never even saw another ninja the whole time you were running. It was strange… too strange. There’s something wrong here. Maybe I should take a ‘detour’ and see if I’m being followed. You took a sudden turn down an alley and began taking a longer path to the boundary.

        After a couple minutes of going your ‘detour’ there was still no sign of anyone at all, which made you even more concerned than before. They have to be planning something, I just can’t figure out what it is. They’re not trying to make me suspicious on purpose, are they? Well, maybe they think that my chakra will be depleted more after running so much. I guess that’s plausible, but I don’t know for sure. I assume they would think that since it’s all of these ninja against one person, they would at least come forward with a direct assault, nothing like this strategic trap. Their plan seems to be a bit more complex than I thought. There’s no other choice but to be predictable for now and try and get past the boundary. I’ll go from there if I actually run into trouble.

         You switched your course so that you would pass one of the tall buildings the ninja had previously been standing on as quickly as possible. You had turned down an alleyway, and was just about to reach it, when a figure suddenly appeared at the end of the alley. Before they could see you, however, you moved to the side and pressed your back up against the wall next to the entrance of the alley. You remembered what had happened with Naruto, and knew you were in some kind of weaker state where your powers to ‘blend in’ weren’t working as well as before. You didn’t want to test your luck against what looked to be a Jonin, especially after already using so much amount of energy, so you couldn’t slip past them nor jump over the roofs in case they saw you, and you didn’t want to take any chances and risk ending up having to fight. It was too much energy, you couldn’t afford to show them your powers, and you didn’t want to fight your own village shinobi, even if they did want to fight you.

        After catching your breath, you ran to another exit, only to see another figure blocking that one as well. You pressed your back up against another wall, breathing in and out, and hiding yourself once again. They’ve begun to cage me in and block the exits. What should be my next move? Maybe I could-

        “There she is!” You gasped, and turned your now horrified expression to where the voice came from. It was a Jonin, standing on the roof right in front of you. As soon as you saw him move, you knew there was no point in sneaking around anymore. You immediately bolted away from him, and took off down the darkened streets ahead of you, not caring who else saw you now as it was already too late. Dammit! How did they find me so fast?

        It wasn’t long before you saw some ANBU members, with their familiar white animal masks, following you from the rooftops above. So the Jonin spot me and then the ANBU track me. But, could there be more to it than just that? This whole plan of theirs has already seemed so elaborate enough, I just know there’s more to it. I should think of all of the possibilities there could be. You took a sudden left down some random alley. Hm… wait. Jonin wouldn’t just be on lookout duty, or at least not this many would, and the ANBU wouldn’t be after someone like me. They would’ve assigned at least a medium or high ranking genin or a low ranking Chunin team for that job. This many Jonin means something. Same goes for the ANBU. There’s gotta be something else I’m missing. Something important. Something that’s right under my nose that I just can’t see.  

        You suddenly dodged an incoming kunai and shuriken attack just as you were about to make another turn, forcing you to change your course and go the opposite way you wanted to go. Wait, that attack seemed poorly thrown by a ninja as high a rank as Jonin or ANBU. It was almost like it was intended to miss me. You again tried to make another turn, but another barrage of shuriken and kunai was sent flying towards you, and you were forced to go the opposite way you were trying to turn again. Wait… that’s what they’re trying to do! They’re trying to lead me to a specific location. That’s why there’s so many Jonin and ANBU here! They’re going to trap me and ambush me! I have to think of something before that happens, though, and fast. Who knows when the ambush will happen. If I don’t think of something soon, I’ll be-

        You looked over your shoulder and saw a couple more ANBU were following you than before. Damn. I must be coming up close. Come on, you’re the Shadow Fox, the Shadow Fox, apparently. You can think of something to get yourself out of this, but what- wait. An idea suddenly popped into your head. Yeah, I am the Shadow Fox, the ‘most despicable, stealthiest, master thief in the village’, and I think they expect a show… so how about I give them one. You smirked as you continued to run through the streets, the ninja behind you oblivious to what you had planned for them.

        You went along with letting the ninjas direct you to wherever the ambush was, still bombarding you with kunai and shuriken every once in a while, and keeping the plan you had thought of still in mind. With each passing second, you came closer and closer to where the ninja were surely going to ambush you. But you weren’t worried, not in the slightest. 

        Eventually you came upon an alleyway, where at the end, you could sense a whole group of ninja waiting for you. You smirked, as you started to put your plan into motion. You reached the end of the alley, when all of a sudden, you were surrounded by a huge cloud of dark smoke. You stopped and swiveled your head around to see that the ANBU were no longer behind you, or at least, what you could see behind you anyway. You turned your head from side to side, trying to look for who was blowing the thick smoke your way. However, you couldn’t concentrate as much, for the smoke’s smell was anything but nice, and you became more focused on the scent surrounding you. It almost smells like… ash. Now that you thought about it, the ‘smoke’ was starting to feel like it was burning your skin, and the more you smelled it, the more your nostrils started to burn as well. With all of these distractions, you couldn’t bring yourself to see anything but dark grey surrounding you.
        
        Out of nowhere, blades protruded from the ‘smoke’ and swiped at you. You had no time to dodge, and the blades cut your left shoulder. The ‘smoke’ dispersed, and it revealed a squad of Jonin surrounding you on the ground, with you in the middle, your cut shoulder displayed for all of them to see. As the Jonin started to approach your injured form, you poofed into a puff of white clouds, and your body was replaced by a box with a wide slash at the top left corner.

        You had already taken off on the rooftops by the time they realized it was a substitution jutsu. You looked over your shoulder and saw that the Jonin were looking for you. One of the Jonin stood out, and you recognized him as Asuma, who you assumed was the one that had blown the smoke at you. I know that’s he’s pretty powerful, and I remember hearing that he can use a fire release jutsu that can burn his opponents, which was what he must’ve used on me. What was it called again? Ash, pile… something? Well, who cares for now. Why is such a powerful Jonin being sent to deal with someone like me? What the hell is going on here? You had to stop yourself from thinking about it anymore, as your plan was still in motion, and you couldn’t afford any distractions. Your mind had to be clear, you had to concentrate on getting out of this.

        As you went to jump off of the roof you were currently on, your foot tripped on one of the tiles, making a noise which the Jonin could surely hear. As soon as that sound crossed their ears, they rushed to the source of it. Asuma said something in the mic he had on his ear then went to where the noise came from. He eventually found your running silhouette and, joined with the ANBU Asuma had most likely contacted, once again started chasing after you.

        Meanwhile, heading the opposite way the Jonin and ANBU were now going, the real you was running away on the streets. Your plan had worked. Before you had even entered the Jonin’s ambush, you had created a shadow clone. It was to trick the ninja with a substitution jutsu, then run off in the opposite direction you had been hiding in and purposefully make a noise that wouldn’t seem too suspicious so that the Jonin squad and at least some of the ANBU would be distracted. They would run after the clone, who would then lead them far away, giving the real you the chance to disappear.

        You had hidden in a spot so that you could see what happened, and at the same time transfer your chakra to the clone. You wanted the clone to be as believable as possible, and you were sure that the Jonin would sense the high chakra level in the clone and still think it was you, which luckily they did. However, when you saw Asuma there after your clone had tricked them with the substitution jutsu, you were worried that someone like him wouldn’t fall for your trick. You were obviously proven wrong when he ran after your clone with no hesitation, and that’s when you took off from your hiding spot as soon as you were sure that they were all gone. 

        That should keep them busy, at least for a little while. I only have to outrun them until morning, when the streets are busy and they can’t risk harming or scaring the villagers and the Chunin exam visitors. Until then, I’ll use this trick anytime I run into another squad, as at this point I’m sure there are more than just Asuma’s. You weren’t sure how many times you could use this trick of yours, and you weren’t sure if the ninja would your plan out, but you would deal with that when the time came. Heh, they shouldn’t underestimate my abilities. Now they’ll never catch me.

        As you were nearing another turn, you felt something ‘change’. You couldn’t explain it, but it felt like the very atmosphere shifted, almost becoming thick. You stopped in your tracks, not liking the change at all, and suspecting that you may have walked into some kind of trap. You looked all around, but you still found no sign of anything suspicious.

        You suddenly felt the ground start to shake, and you turned around to see a tree rising from the earthen street. It started wrapping trunk vines around your form, and you found yourself held back against the tree, trapped. You struggled all you could, confused on why and how a random tree can spring up trap you like this. Out of the corner of your eyes you saw a figure not far away from you, in a certain stance that you almost immediately recognized. The person looks almost like… Kurenai. Focusing all of your exceptional eyesight on them, you observed the figure more closely. You noticed the long curly black hair, and the familiar red and bandaged outfit the person wore. No doubt that it was really Kurenai. And if I remember correctly, she’s a genjutsu master, which means… this isn’t real! It’s only genjutsu!

        With this realization in mind, you stopped struggling and started to concentrate on a different plan. You felt most of your chakra you had transferred into the shadow clone return to you, and even though this meant that Asuma and his squad must’ve now realized that the clone was fake, you were more focused on getting out of Kurenai’s genjutsu. You managed to release your hidden blades through the fake trunks and started to send your chakra into them. Even though the tree was only an illusion, in anyone else’s mind the tree is real, which is what Kurenai would want you to think, so the same rules of reality still applied, which meant that you could still use your powers. You managed to control the trunks enough so that you could join your hands, drew back your hidden blades and moved your hands into the proper hand sign. You muttered a ‘release’, and after a few more seconds of focus, you were released from the illusion. Before Kurenai realized that you had broken her genjutsu, you took off.

        I must’ve made eye contact with her at some point, or she did something else to cast the genjutsu on me. Well, thank goodness I learned about proper chakra control, otherwise I would’ve never been able to pull that off. As you were running, and after you were sure you were far away from Kurenai and the other Jonin you were sure were there with her, you started to worry about what the ninjas’ plans were again. Only this time, you were more worried than ever. Why would two powerful Jonin such as Asuma and Kurenai be after me? Now I know something’s not right, but what? Have I been accused of something major? That’s a possibility, but if a lot of people know about the whole ‘urban legend’ about me, how could anyone pull off an accusation that involves these powerful Jonin? They only know me as a food thief, nothing else. Or maybe they’ve finally had enough of me and are this determined to get rid of me? But that wouldn’t make sense, and if even that was it, then why wait all of these years to finally capture me? Nothing here adds up. You were getting more frustrated by the second. You couldn’t think of anything that would lead to you being in this bad of a situation, with two of the most powerful Jonin in the Leaf after you along with all the other Jonin and ANBU black ops.

        You suddenly sensed people behind you, and you looked to see none other than Asuma and his squad of Jonin and ANBU chasing after you once more. Not long after, they were joined by Kurenai and her group of ninja, which you instantly looked away from when you saw her so she wouldn’t be able to cast another genjutsu on you. You quickened your pace and began winding your way through the alleys, trying to shake them off your tail as best as you could.

        You were close to the border the ninja had all originally surrounded you at, and you thought that since a lot of Jonin and ANBU were after you now, nothing much would block you from going past it. The most you expected were a few more Jonin and ANBU. But you soon realized you were wrong. As you neared the border going down a small street, you could make out another figure in the distance. When you realized that there were more ninja behind the figure, and that the ones chasing you now trapped you between them and the new figure’s group, you completely halted your movements, just as you were starting to run out of breath.

        You stood in the center of Asuma’s, Kurenai’s, and this new figure’s groups, who you were close enough to now see. You recognized the bowl cut shaped hair, the familiar Jonin uniform, and that smirk/smile of his that you had always seen on his face from afar. He was none other than Might Guy, the taijutsu master. You were out of breath and breathing a little heavily, having been chased for so long to no end, and a lot of your chakra had been depleted from battling some of the strongest ninja in the Leaf Village. You didn’t want to have a fight with a taijutsu master and every other ninja that was there surrounding you, you were completely outnumber. None of them were able to see you due to how dark it was, which gave you a significant advantage, but you still didn’t want to fight. Suddenly, Guy started to chuckle, but to your surprise, not in a mocking way.

        “Well, well, if isn’t the Shadow Fox herself.” He spoke in the familiar, kind of weird, voice of his. “I never thought I’d see the day when we finally got to see you in person.” Aw, I’m famous. How touching. Great. “For years I’ve been wondering who the famous master thief of the Leaf Village really is. Who this person is to have evaded our detection for years, manage to steal right from under our noses, and still not get seen by anyone. Just a simple shadow of a person, and nothing else… until now.” You didn’t reply, and he chuckled again. “So, what is it gonna be Shadow Fox? Will it be the easy way?” He cracked his knuckles. “Or the hard way?” 

        You continued to stand there, silent and unmoving. You smirked, and you released your hidden blades, the clinging of metal being the only sound heard all throughout the dark street. Now Guy smirked. “The hard way it is.” 

        There was a moments pause, a stray beam of moonlight reflecting off your blades, shining a ray of silver in the otherwise darkened night. Then, as quick as you could, you stabbed your blades into the ground and sent chakra into your blades and through the street. You made powerful shockwaves that shot straight through the ground and hit all of the ninja around you. They were so surprised and distracted by the sudden attack that you had time to pull your blades out from the ground, and sending chakra into your feet, jump to the next alley over.

        As you were about to run again, you just barely blocked an incoming fist with your metal bracer, and the attacker was none other than Guy himself. If your reflexes weren’t so quick from training over the years, you bet his attack would’ve knocked you unconscious.

        “And where do you think you’re going?” Your arm was shaking under the force of his fist. You knew he was way stronger than you, but even though you were a bit skinny from your lifestyle, you were still pretty strong, which was the only reason you were holding out against him now. You swiftly pushed his hand away and began to attack with your blades. Your weapon choice was specialized for relentless attacks, so you kept striking and striking until he finally tried to land a blow. You lunged away and tried to stab near Guy to try and stun him. Your attacks weren’t intended to be harmful, you didn’t want him to get injured. He was a part of the Leaf Village for crying out loud, and it’s not like he was doing anything wrong, he was really just doing his job, it was nothing personal. At least, that’s how you saw it. You just needed a second or two of Guy to stop attacking, and you could slip away and not have to worry about fighting anymore. But that was going to be a problem, especially since you did not have enough time to use the elements against him, his attacks were too fast for you to send chakra through your blades.

        You and Guy continued to fight, which consisted of you mostly swiping to miss and blocking his attacks, a few almost coming into full on contact. After all, you may be not trying to hurt him, but he was still trying to hurt you. You always just barely missed his attacks, your fast reflexes being the only thing helping you out, but with you quickly becoming more and more drained of energy, it was getting harder to dodge his attacks. You finally slipped, literally, as he swept your leg out from under you, and you fell to the ground, landing on your back. 

        All of a sudden, next to you, a street lantern on the house’s windows lit up, and the golden glow of the light illuminated your face, now giving a clear view of it to Guy who previously could not see you due to the darkness. His eyes widened and he took a step back, most likely surprised at seeing how young you were, as young or even a little younger than some of his pupils. You smirked, he was caught off guard.

        “Now you know.” Three simple words, that’s all you said to him. He looked surprised once again at actually hearing you talk, and you took this brief moment of vulnerability as your chance to escape. You got up from the ground, released chakra into the air, and blew a huge gust of wind towards him. He stumbled back a few steps and raised his arms to form an ‘x’ to shield himself from the wind. While he was distracted, you sent chakra to your feet, jumped onto the next roof over, and began jumping from rooftop to rooftop. You didn’t pay attention to the fact that Guy was no longer being blown by your wind, and you missed his signature smirk as he watched your retreating form. He lowered his head in an approving manner, and closed his eyes.

        “I like this kid.”

        Jonin and ANBU alike were once again chasing you on the rooftops, gaining more ground on you than before as you were becoming more and more tired. Although, now the ninja were so far behind you, it would be extremely easy for you to slip away into the darkness if you so desired, which is exactly why you didn’t. It just seemed too easy. I know those ninja are not getting tired, so what’s going on now? Before you could continue your thoughts, they were interrupted, as you had suddenly come to a complete stop, but not of your own will.

        You were forcibly turned around, and there on another roof was Shikamaru, who you had seen earlier when you were with the sand trio, now in a stance that told you he was the one that trapped you, clearly in some kind of jutsu. The moonlight reached the roofs just right now, so that he and anyone else could see a good view of your face, lit in a light white glow.

        “Well well, if it isn’t the Shadow Fox.” Please tell me you’re not going to repeat what Guy already said. “Are you surprised? To be caught I mean.” He said it so smugly, it annoyed you to no end. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. He chuckled. “You fell right into my trap.” Your eyes widened out of shock. I didn’t know this was all his plan… I guess he really is a genius. He smirked. “I found your little hideaway while you were away somewhere, and that’s when I thought of this plan.” So you were the one who found my ‘home’ the other day ago. “It was such a drag to make, but it was worth it in the end.” He nodded his head gesturing to you, and somehow you were forced to do the same thing. He was mocking you, emphasizing that you were stuck in whatever jutsu he had you trapped in. Ninja were starting to surround you both as he started to explain his plan. “First, we burn your hideaway to draw you in. Then, once one of the Jonin or ANBU patrolling saw you, surround you at different points of a mapped circled out area so you would then be trapped. I knew the circled area had to be wide and spread out enough so you wouldn’t get suspicious and run away before we could even trap you, which is why it was big enough for you to run, but small enough to catch you. Once you were inside the trap, ninja would close the circle and block any exit you could slip through. Some would be standing at the fire acting as lookouts, which you were sure to take notice of. Of course you would be smart enough to figure out that something was wrong, and you would get suspicious enough to try and sneak around and get away from the lookouts at the fire.”

        “Your suspicions would eventually get worse, since we wouldn’t attack yet, and you would take a longer path to get to one of the blocked exits of the closed area, which would lower your energy. Then you’d discover one of the exits blocked, and you, trying not to be seen, would take another route, where ANBU stationed at certain points in the area would be waiting close by to go after you as soon as they sensed your chakra.”

        “They would eventually lead you to the stationed squad of ninja lead by Asuma, who was expected to fail because of whatever trick you would pull.” It wasn’t just ‘some trick’. It’s called strategy, that apparently you can predict… damn. “Then you would be lead to Kurenai, who would hopefully be able to trap you with her genjutsu, as I expected you never had much experience with. But even so, there was a 50-50 chance you would somehow escape, and then if that were the case, you would be dealt with by Guy’s squad, where Asuma and Kurenai would have by then recovered from whatever you had done to them and would have made it back to surround you.” How could you possibly predict all that!?

        “There was only just a small chance that you would somehow outsmart all three of those squads, and if that was the case, one of the ninja would report to me the direction you were headed in. I knew that you would be almost out of energy, which meant that you wouldn’t have the strength to make a clone or do any other tricks you had, and I calculated precisely where you would run to and trap you with my jutsu as an ultimate resort of drastic measures.” He continued to smirk, impressed with himself for coming up with such a complex plan.

        By now, all the ninja who were after you had surrounded you on the rooftops, and you said nothing in response to his long explanation, and you weren’t surprised at all by their large numbers, or Shikamaru’s confident smirk.  Don’t look so smug. Your plan was very smart, but there were flaws and holes in it where it was possible for me to get away. You only got lucky, especially since I’m off my game.

        “Don’t even try to run. You’re caught in my Shadow Possession Jutsu, so I have control over your actions.” Wait. Shadow possession jutsu? That’s right, I forgot about his signature jutsu! Now I’ve got an idea. You glanced down and saw the thick line of shadow that lead from Shikamaru to you. “Face it, there’s no escape once I’ve caught you in this jutsu. By the time I release you, you’ll already be in our custody. You’ve. Failed.” A pause of silence passed, and you smirked. Shikamaru saw this, and his own confident one changed into a frown. “And what do you have to be happy about?” You smirk widened, as you averted your gaze from his shadow line to his eyes.

        “Did you say, Shadow Possession Jutsu?” His eyes widened for a fraction of a second, but immediately returned to a scowl.

        “What does the name have to do with anything?” Your smirk changed into a smug smile, and you looked at him, now fully relaxed. You took one step forward on his shadow line with ease, which greatly surprised him. You almost burst out laughing from looking at his expression. “But, how is that possible!?” You looked around, since you were now able to do so, and all of the ninja, including Asuma, Kurenai, and Guy, were almost as shocked at Shikamaru.

        You looked over your shoulder to where Shikamaru’s shadow line still ended, at the same place you were standing at just a moment ago. Your plan was simple. His jutsu didn’t control the actual body, only their shadow. You may not be able to ‘blend in’ with the shadows, as you like to call it, or manipulate them without chakra either, but you could still at least ‘move’ among them, as it didn’t require much chakra and energy. All you had to do was send just a small amount of chakra into your feet and lightly touch the roof just enough so that only your shadow received your chakra. Then you could manipulate your shadow to stretch however you wanted, so that you could move across Shikamaru’s shadow line wherever you wanted without your own shadow following you or forcing you back. Since you were still technically caught in his jutsu, you couldn’t move anywhere else but his shadow line, and only as long as you kept chakra infused with your own shadow, but it was still better than nothing. 

        You looked back over your shoulder and faced Shikamaru again, this time with a devious smirk. You started taking a couple more steps forward, making Shikamaru become anxious as he tried to hold you in place with his jutsu, but unfortunately for him, to no avail.

        “It’s all in the name, Shikamaru.” You chuckled, as he paled considerably when you said his name. He didn’t remember ever saying it to you, so how did you know who he was? “So, what’s your next move?” You asked sarcastically. “Are you gonna release me and save your chakra for another move, or will you waste it and keep me in this jutsu, and have me force you to release me?” There was a long pause of silence, as Shikamaru thought about what to do next. You stood there with a confident smirk on your face, as you already knew what he was going to do. 

        After another moment of silence passed, Shikamaru made his decision. Just as you predicted, he released you from his jutsu, and you immediately sprung into action. You gathered your chakra you sent to your shadow back to your feet, and jumped off the roof and back onto the streets, beginning yet another chase. 

        You were a good distance away from the ninja and decided to catch your breath, just for a second. You leaned against a wall and began to pant, trying to catch some of your lost breath back. As you rested your head against the wall you began to realize how exhausted you actually were. Your energy felt completely gone, as if all of the adrenaline in you had suddenly drained out, and your chakra was depleted to where you weren’t even sure if you could cast something as simple as a transformation jutsu.

        With each passing second, you grew more light headed, and soon your eyes began to droop. Your sweaty (H/L) (H/C) hair stuck to your head and neck, making your dirty form look worse than usual. When you tried to push yourself off of the wall, you collapsed onto the cold hard floor of the street. You clenched your fists, trying to push yourself back up, but your last remaining strength faded out, and you fell back against the ground. The last thing you saw before you blacked out, was ninja beginning to crowd around you, and a familiar red haired figure sitting atop one of the highest roofs in the village, watching you intensely with his sea green eyes, as your own (E/C) ones shut.

 
3rd Person POV

        “What!? She was caught!?? When!?” Naruto shouted. Sakura covered her ears while Sasuke just stood there, leaning up against the tree of their usual training grounds with his eyes closed, not looking impressed by anything, and annoyed at Naruto as well.

        “It was just last night, sometime when we were asleep. Apparently the ANBU and Jonin that were there had a really hard time trying to catch her. It took them at least a few hours, and they had some of the best ninja in the village assigned to the mission! Even Asuma and Kurenai Sensei were there, and they even had trouble. Shikamaru was even called in and-“

        “Wait, why does THAT lazy bum get to go on cool missions while we’ve been getting stuck with stupid chores!!?” Naruto was about to continue his rampage, until Sakura started yelling back at him.

        “Because he, unlike you, has something called common sense!”

        “And what is that supposed to mean!?”

        “Will you two shut up already? You’re giving me a headache.” Naruto turned his hate filled gaze around to Sasuke, who ignored him as usual.

        “What did you say?”

        “Hn. I said you two are annoying.”

        “Why you little-“

        “Calm down Naruto. Stop making Sasuke so mad.” Sakura tried to calm Naruto down while dreamily staring at Sasuke, who still ignored the two of them.

        “It’s always Sasuke this! Sasuke that! What’s so great about him in the first place?”

        “Naruto, you said you saw the Shadow Fox for yourself, right?” Sasuke asked out of the blue, changing the topic. Naruto smiled proudly, and put his hands on his hips.

        “Yeah I did.” He pointed a thumb to himself.

        “And you said you even landed a hit on her, right?” Naruto’s proud smile faltered slightly.

        “I-I, well, I kinda punched her in the face, b-but I didn’t realize that she was a girl until after, I swear! Plus, she didn’t even look hurt, just stunned, actually.”

        “I don’t care if she got hurt or not. What did she look like?” 

        “Well, she was about our age, and she was shorter than me. She looked skinny though, not enough to see her ribs, but she was still thinner than I was. And, um, I think-“

        “I don’t need to know anymore.” Sasuke stopped Naruto from continuing, which made the said blonde boy glare at him, however he didn’t say anything else back. Sasuke stood there, contemplating.

        “Hey, Sasuke, whatcha thinking about?” Sakura asked. Sasuke finally opened his eyes.

        “They shouldn’t have had a problem.” Sakura, and even Naruto, now looked at him with a curious gaze. “If she’s only our age, has had no training whatsoever, and the ANBU and Jonin who were after her were some of the best this village has, how could she have outlasted them for so long? Especially if Naruto of all people was able to easily find and attack her.”

        “Well I don’t mean to brag but- hey wait a minute!! What is THAT supposed to mean!?” He glared at Sasuke, who scoffed.

        “First of all, you’re a dope. Second, you’re a genin and they’re the highest rank there is. Think about it for a second.” Naruto, ignoring Sasuke’s first comment, put his hand up to his chin, rubbing his index and thumb against his skin in a thinking pose.

        “Hm, well she did have these blade thingies, what did Shikamaru call them again? Ah, nevermind. They were so cool! They slid out of these metal thingies on her wrist and they were like blades hiding up her arm! It was AWESOME!” Sasuke hummed, putting that piece of information into the back of his mind, for now.

        “How did she finally get caught?” He asked Sakura.

        “I don’t know. No one was told that much.”

        “Interesting.”

        “The Jonin couldn’t give anymore information than that because they were called in to help with questioning and guarding. Even Shikamaru’s there right now.”

        “What!? Why him!!?”

        “Because he was part of the mission that actually caught her.” Sakura grumbled.

        “But I saw her first! And I was the one who told Shikamaru about her in the first place! I deserve to be there too!!”

        “Even if you could get in there, we still have to wait for Kakashi.” Sasuke informed.

        “Kakashi’s always late, so it’d be his fault if I leave hours after he was supposed to be here! And-“

        “Wait, where is Kakashi Sensei? Wouldn’t he usually be here by now?” Naruto scoffed.

        “Late as always, of course. That guy’s NEVER on time!”

        “Sakura has a point.” Sasuke said.

        “What!?”

        “Really!?” Sakura practically squealed at Sasuke agreeing with her.

        “We shouldn’t be waiting this long for him. It’s already been over an hour when he usually arrives, he should’ve been here by now.” There was a pause of silence, as even Naruto began to see what they were talking about. Sakura was the first to break it.

        “You don’t think something bad happened to him, do you?” Naruto snorted.

        “I doubt it. I bet he’s just being lazier than he usually is, or he’s trying to finish that dumb book he’s always reading.”

        “Even so, he still wouldn’t be this late. Maybe a few minutes, but never over an hour.” Sasuke pointed out. There was another pause of silence.

        “Then, where’s Kakashi Sensei?”

*Meanwhile*

        “So, she really did get caught then, didn’t she.” Temari sighed, as she leaned against the doorway to the bedroom of their apartment. Kankuro shifted in his chair, sitting backwards on it, with his arms hanging off the seat back.

        “It’s all the village is talking about. ‘The Shadow Fox has finally been captured’, that’s all I’ve been hearing this morning.” Silence was all that was throughout their temporary apartment. 

        “Well, I hope (Y/N) isn’t in too much trouble.”

        “Yeah, hope she’s OK.” There was another tiny moment of silence as Temari thought about something.

        “How did she get caught, anyway?”

        “I don’t know. No one said anything about that.”

        “Gaara, you saw, didn’t you? How’d she get caught?” Gaara had been sitting on the bed the whole conversation, thinking about you and what he had seen the previous night. Not only had he watched you get captured, he had seen the whole chase unfold from just outside of Shikamaru’s ‘trap’. The way you single handedly evaded the village ANBU and Jonin, who he could tell were relatively powerful, was intriguing to him. The way you fought, the strategies you used, escaping Shikamaru’s jutsu, he didn’t realize how powerful you really were, and ever since last night, he was more interested in you than before. To think he had you right under his foot subdued, and tamed that kind of power on his own, it made him feel strong and in control, dominant. He liked that excitement. He closed his eyes in thought.

        “She collapsed from exhaustion.” He finally answered Temari’s question, in his usual raspy monotone voice.

        “Oh.” There was another moment of silence. “Then, if we hadn’t been after her yesterday, would she not have been-“

        “No.” Gaara cut Temari off before she could finish. “Even if she had all of her energy, she still would’ve eventually fallen.”

        “And she knew it, didn’t she.” Kankuro added. “Otherwise, she wouldn’t have told us to leave her.” A long moment of silence passed, and Temari sighed once again.

        I really hope you’re OK, (Y/N).

 
Your POV

        You groaned as you started to regain consciousness, and your eyes started to slowly open. It was hard to move them since your eyelids felt heavy. You felt surrounded in darkness, and you lifted your aching head up from its uncomfortable hanging position. Light suddenly flashed your eyes, and you squinted them until your vision grew clearer, and you were able to observe your surroundings.

        You were sitting in some kind of wooden chair in the middle of a dark room. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all the same maroon like color, but in the center of the room stood a brown wooden table, the only color that wasn’t any sort of dark shading. The light you had seen previously was gone, and was replaced by a few ANBU who were at the opposite end of the table.

        When you tried moving your arms, you found that your wrists were chained down to the arms of the chair, which meant that you couldn’t use your hidden blades to escape. You came to realize that you were now at the mercy of the ANBU black ops, and you had no idea what they were going to do to you.

        “So, you’re finally awake, Shadow Fox.” One of the ANBU said. He had a white animal mask in the shape of either a whiskered bear or a chubby tiger, concealing his face and identity. No response came from you, as there was nothing for you to say, and instead you gave them all an expressionless look. Another one with a bird shaped mask began to speak.

        “Under the Leaf Village, you are charged with multiple accounts of theft, assault, and evading arrest. You have been called in today for interrogation for these crimes. You will answer all questions truthfully and you will cooperate wholeheartedly. If you don’t, your punishment will be more severe. Do you understand?” You still kept silent, and continued to sit there, unwavering in your emotions. “Do you understand.” The bird masked ANBU asked more sternly. You gave an annoyed snort as your answer, which they thankfully took as an acceptable yes.

        All of a sudden, a door on the left side of the room opened, letting in a blinding amount of light into the once darkened room. When your eyes adjusted to the brightness, you saw someone standing in the doorway, and it was none other than Shikamaru.

        “I’m here.” He said in a bored tone. His eyes moved to yours, and slightly lowered. You raised an eyebrow in return, not affected by his stare at all, although you wondered why he was here in the first place. He walked to the center of the room and sat down at the side of the table next to you, and immediately rested his head in the palm of his hand in an irritated manner.

        “Now we can begin.” The last ANBU member, who had a cat mask on, said. Oh great. Questions, my favorite. “Can you reveal your full identity?” Wow. Forbidden question number one right off the bat. You stared at the ANBU with an expressionless face, although you were not comfortable answering this. You would refuse to cooperate, but you had to have a limit and control yourself. After all, you were dealing with the ANBU, the last people you wanted to tick off.

        The bad part about this was that, since the ANBU in front of you wore masks, you couldn’t see their expressions, which meant you couldn’t tell how mad they got at your actions and responses. The cat masked ANBU turned to Shikamaru, who still had the same bored expression on his face. “Do you know her name?”

        “No.” The ANBU turned his head back to you.

        “Will you answer any of our questions?” You didn’t answer. “Can you even talk?”

        “Yes, I can.” You finally answered.

        “I was about to say.” You heard Shikamaru speak, and you turned your head to him. “You didn’t seem to have a problem with speaking last night.” You cracked your lips up into a small fake smile.

        “And I don’t have, well, ‘much’ of a problem with it now. I talk when I need to talk.”

        “If you can talk, why didn’t you answer our previous questions?” Your lips twitched into a light smirk.

        “I said I only talk when I need to. I don’t need to answer these stupid questions, but fine, if that’s what you want. The first question, you don’t need to know, and for the second one, I’m answering them now aren’t I?” You had a smug expression on your face, and you would’ve laughed, but given the circumstances of being at the ANBU’s mercy, you refrained from going too far. You had already most likely overstepped their limits.

        “We can force the answers out of you, so you might as well just tell us now and save everyone the trouble.”

        “Really?” You said mockingly. “I don’t care.” Shikamaru sighed.

        “Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.” The ANBU did nothing to show their emotions and continued to face you.

        “Let us continue then. Shikamaru Nara, please present the evidence you acquired the day before.” Shikamaru slowly rummaged through his pockets until he found what he was looking for. He put an item on the table, and you saw that it was a full water bottle. So you really did find my ‘home’. Damn you were lucky. “Can you explain where you found this?”

        “Down some alleyway at the corner of a building. This one and a few others were under an old blanket.” The ANBU nodded, satisfied with his answer.

        “We received a report the other day ago about a stolen shipment of water bottles from someone who will remain anonymous.” Psh, I already know who it is. I’m not gonna go after them. That kind of ‘revenge’, if you could even call it that, is not my thing. “Is this just a coincidence?” You smirked.

        “Technically, it could be. That water could belong to someone other than the one who made the report.” You paused, debating on whether or not to tell them you actually stole it. Well, they basically already know, so there’s no point in hiding it. Besides, I should take pride in the stuff I’ve stolen without getting caught… relatively speaking, excluding Naruto. “But, yes. I took a shipment of water bottles.” The ANBU turned to Shikamaru.

        “Shikamaru, was that the only one you found?”

        “No, there were a couple more. But it wasn’t enough to make up an entire shipment of them.” Shikamaru glanced your way and gave you an ‘I’m not going easy on you’ look. The ANBU turned back to you.

        “Did you hide any others?” You shook your head.

        “No.”

        “Are you lying?” You scoffed.

        “As if I would be stupid enough to lie to the ANBU.” You saw Shikamaru glaring at you. “Okay, sure, I may stay silent if I don’t like the question, but I’d never lie. It’s such a bother anyway, there’s no point.” It was true. You wouldn’t lie to the ANBU. They’re the specialists, the experts, on investigations like these, so they’d find out rather quickly if you had anything to hide, no matter how good you lied. Thankfully, the ANBU seemed satisfied with your answer, but you couldn’t be completely sure if they believed you, since you still couldn’t tell what they were thinking.

        “Then where are the rest?” You shrugged your shoulders.

        “Maybe still on the ground somewhere, or someone picked them up.”

        “Why would they be on the ground?” Aw shit.

        “…Because I had a little run in with someone.”

        “Who?”

        “Naruto.” Shikamaru looked up expectantly from his bored posture, as if surprised by your answer.

        “What happened?”

        “He saw me make off with the water, started chasing after me with his shadow clones, then one of them ‘bumped’ into me. When he threw a punch I dropped the waters, but I managed to pick some up and escape.” 

        “So Naruto saw you?”

        “Yes.”

        “Did anyone else see you before?”

        “No.” Technically Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara talked to you just last night, and Old Man did four years ago, but they never saw you steal. Sure the trio figured it out that you stole some of their food and Old Man was pretty smart himself, so he probably figured it out by now that you were the thief, but they didn’t actually see you steal like Naruto did. You technically didn’t lie.

        “Shikamaru, did Naruto tell you about this confrontation?”

        “Yes, and you could’ve just asked her that. I’m pretty sure she heard the whole conversation that day, am I right?” You smirked.

        “I don’t know, you tell me. Do I seem like a fraud now?” He had said in that conversation that you were either weak or a fraud, but now he’s seen first hand what you can really do, and he doesn’t even know that your powers are weak. He shouldn’t be thinking I’m a ‘fraud’ now. You smirked. “I’m impressed though. How’d you know I heard?”

        “Educated guess. You seem like the kind of person that ‘gets around’ and ‘knows’ a lot.”

        “I’m flattered, but I don’t think I know as much as you probably think I do. Far from it, actually.” There’s something you’re not telling me, I do know that. There’s another reason why you knew I heard that conversation than just seeing my ‘character, I just know it. Unfortunately, you were not in the position to further question Shikamaru on the matter. He merely smirked and said nothing more, most likely thinking the same thing.

        “Was what Naruto told you match what she just claimed?”

        “Pretty much, yeah.”

        “See, I won’t lie to you.” You smugly grinned, knowing what they had been trying to prove. The ANBU continued to stare at you, ignoring your teasing and moving on.

        “Why did you ‘take’ the water bottles in the first place?”

        “I was thirsty.”

        “You couldn’t buy them?”

        “Nope.”

        “Why?”

        “I have no money. I’m broke.”

        “You don’t have a job, and you never enrolled in the academy?”

        “Yes to both.”

        “Why?” You were silent. “So, you don’t know the answer?”

        “Of course I know the answer.” The reason is because no one likes me, they never did. They wouldn’t let me do anything, and they were always so horrible to me. They wanted me dead. I had no other choice but to be this, but like I’d ever tell you all that. 

        “Then will you tell us?” You stared at the ANBU with no emotion, your silence a clear giveaway to your answer. “Very well.” The ANBU turned to Shikamaru. “Do you have everything you need?” Shikamaru glanced your way.

        “Yeah, I got a good amount of information.” He stood up from the table, giving you one last glare, and slowly walked out the door, leaving you alone in the dark room with only the ANBU once more.

        “We’re going to try something.” The two ANBU who had remained silent most of the time took a couple steps back. The one with the cat mask, the one who had been asking the questions the entire time, stepped forward. “The Time Reversal Technique. When done properly, it pulls out the memories of the person it’s cast on, and allows the person to remember every single detail of them.” You looked up expectantly. That means you can bring back my memories, from before I can’t remember anything! However, your hope soon turned into anger, as the ANBU continued his explanation of the jutsu. “It will also force that person to comply with interrogation, so you will answer every question I ask.” No! Dammit, he’ll find out my secrets, my past! How could I think that I could get my memories back? Besides, the only way he can get all of my memories is if he asks a question about them, and he most likely won’t! How could I forget? In your panicked state, you managed to calm yourself, and think. I have to try and be somewhat aware, at least for certain questions, and I have to be cautious, or I’m ruined. The ANBU made the hand signs, and you braced yourself as he cast the jutsu. “Back to the past jutsu.”

        You felt yourself become more… relaxed, and oddly comfortable. Your muscles were no longer tense, and you felt your whole body become loose and tired. Your head started to hang as if it were becoming limp, and your eyelids drooped until they were completely shut, but you were still somehow conscious. Your mind felt at ease, and a sense of calmness washed over you. It was… nice. When the ANBU member was satisfied with your new state of mind, he started to question you.

        “What is your name?” The question flowed through your ears like milk and honey, and you couldn’t help but say the first answer that came to mind.

        “I am the Shadow Fox.” You softly whispered.

        “Your real name.” You somehow managed to stop yourself from speaking, and bit your tongue to keep your mouth shut. You must’ve been at least somewhat aware, because like before you still didn’t want to answer this question, though your mostly calm mind was making everything more difficult for you to resist. Then an answer came to your mind, and you blurted it out without thinking about it.

        “I have no name.” For some reason, your head started to hurt, as if that answer triggered something in the back of your mind, exactly like when you had looked into the fire last night when that image passed through your head. Thankfully the ANBU seemed to accept the answer, for now, and moved on to something more simple.

        “What are those weapons on your hands?”

        “They’re my hidden blades.”

        “Where did you get them?”

        “They were given to me, when I was eight.”

        “You didn’t steal them?”

        “No, I did not.”

        “Who gave them to you?”

        “Someone kind, and nice. A friend.”

        “Who?” You bit your tongue again, trying not to give away the Hokage’s identity.

        “I can’t tell you.” All three ANBU seemed surprised that you refused to answer, the cat masked one faltering in his hand signal.

        “Why?”

        “It’s a secret, but the person is no one bad, quite the opposite, good.” The ANBU agent realized that he wouldn’t be able to get more information about it out of you, and decided again to try something else and focus on how you were ble to resist later.

        “Where do you live?”

        “My ‘home’ was burned down.”

        “Did you have anything valuable hidden around there?”

        “No.”

        “How long did you ‘live’ there then?”

        “Four years.”

        “How long have you been at the Leaf Village?” Your headache became worse.

        “I was told I was born here, but, I only…” Again, the pain became worse. The ANBU noticed your discomfort, and yet again moved on to not cause more damage, as there was obviously something wrong with your memory, just what they didn’t know yet.

        “Who are your parents?” Again, the ache became worse, and your breathing became heavy.

        “I don’t know.” The ANBU noticed your distress, and were starting to wonder what was wrong with your brain.

        “What was the first thing you can ever remember?” The question eased your head a bit, and you returned to a more relaxed state.

        “I woke up lying on the ground at the village gates, when I was seven.”

        “Is there anything else?” The memory of that day started to come to you more, and you felt yourself slightly trembling.

        “There were people, they were crowding around me as I opened my eyes. They, they whispered… things.”

        “What did they say?” You began to shake as you recalled the familiar names that have always haunted your entire life.

        “Worthless, outcast, street rat, and…” You took a deep breath. “Monster.” A faint whisper was what left your lips. You were starting to breathe more deeply. You didn’t like these memories. You already had to suffer them in your nightmares, putting up with them during the day was beginning to be too much. But still the ANBU pushed on.

        “Can you remember anything before that?” Your whole head began to hurt again, and you didn’t, you couldn’t, answer the question. You were silent except for your fast abnormal breathing. “What happened before you were seven?” This one question made your head snap. The pounding became unbearable, and you moaned from the excruciating pain. It felt like there was a wall that was blocking you from going past that first memory, and you were ramming into that wall repeatedly with no success of breaking  it down. The more the ANBU held the jutsu, the worse the pain got, and you began to whimper every so often, not being able to hold in your discomfort. Your breathing was heavy and rapid, sweat was running down your brow, and you could hear your heart thumping loudly in your chest, seeming to echo within the walls of your skull. It was pure agony. You were ready to scream your heart out, to call out to someone, anyone, to end the torture. Even if no one would come.

 
3rd Person POV

        Gaara suddenly looked out the window. He was still sitting on the bed in his and his sibling’s apartment, and he had still been thinking about you a moment ago, when he sensed something happen. There was something wrong, as if someone was stabbing him from the inside out of his stomach. It didn’t feel right, and he felt almost… bad, in a way. He sensed distress, and it was coming from the Hokage building, the one you were in.

        “What’s wrong Gaara?” Temari asked with concern.

        “You look like you wanna smash the window.” Kankuro added, also with concern. Gaara was too focused on the window to respond, trying to figure out what was happening. The weird feeling couldn’t have anything to do with you, right? You were a girl who was just interesting, nothing more, nothing less. But he still couldn’t help but feel rather ‘uncomfortable’ as the thought of you in trouble ran through his mind. Something told him that the wrong feeling he felt really was dealing with you somehow. But, what was happening to you?

        “It’s nothing.” He said, with a little bit more anger than normal. Temari and Kankuro exchanged glances, both hearing the slight change in Gaara’s voice, knowing exactly what the other was thinking.

        “Gaara, does it have something to do with (Y/N)?” Gaara moved his piercing green eyes to Temari. He didn’t know what this strange feeling was, or how he was feeling it in the first place, but he knew it was connected to you, and he didn’t like feeling this way. Temari and Kankuro figuring this out only made him angrier. He was curious, though, on what happened to you to give him such a bad feeling in the deep pits of his stomach, so he looked back to the window, trying to ignore his siblings as much as he could.

        Temari and Kankuro took his intense glare and silence as a yes, and couldn’t help but to question him more. After all, they cared about you too, although different than Gaara’s confused feelings. Kankuro wouldn’t admit it out loud, but Temari and himself liked you and worried about you a lot, and they would find out if there was something wrong with you, even if it meant suffering a little bit of Gaara’s wrath.

        “Do you think something bad happened to her?” Temari asked, adding to her earlier question. Still, Gaara didn’t answer.

        “Maybe they’re torturing her for information, and she’s hurt.”

        “They wouldn’t torture her, Kankuro. It’s not like she killed the Hokage or something.”

        “Well what else could’ve happened?”

        “I don’t know. Maybe nothing happened to her at all or-“

        “No.” Gaara finally spoke, in a rather angry and serious tone. Temari and Kankuro stopped their conversation immediately, scared by this dark tone of his. Silence filled the room, and the tension in the air became thick. “But something is wrong.” He paused. “And it does have something to do with her.” Temari and Kankuro just stared at him, shocked. Never in their lives did they expect Gaara to admit something like that. It sounded like he actually cared about someone, which was impossible, but Gaara was starting to prove otherwise, much to their disbelief.

        He couldn’t stop himself from thinking about you, as he continued to stare out the window. The more he looked at the Hokage building where you were being held, the more this wrong feeling became worse. He wanted to think that what he was feeling was simple curiosity, but the looks Temari and Kankuro were giving him and to each other started to really anger him for some reason. Usually he wouldn’t be this bothered by them, but the fact that they were looking at him weirdly because of you was infuriating. He would never admit to feeling anything towards you, it was insane. He loves only himself, and everyone else deserves to die, such is the purpose of his life.

        But, deep down, he couldn’t help but feel a bit… different about you. Maybe it had something to do about your blood still infused with his sand. Maybe he craved more of it. After all, that drop of blood is still in his sand, he can sense you better because of it. Maybe it was his desire to have all of your blood spilled, or to again tame your power for that exciting rush of dominance. Why else would something bad happening to you cause him to feel different? He didn’t know why, he didn’t know how, but he did know that it was because of you, and he was determined to find out why and how you drew this feeling out of him.

        I will find out what makes you so special, (Y/N), the Shadow Fox. I swear by it. He snorted at the end of his thoughts, finalizing them, anxious to begin his ‘investigation’ of you. For now though, he would have to deal with the concerned feeling in the dark pits of his stomach, until you would hopefully be released. Don’t die… yet. This just started to get interesting. 

 
Your POV

        All the ANBU looked at each other, and the one with the cat mask holding the jutsu released you from his hold. Your eyes snapped open in a wide terrified look, staring down at the table. You panted heavily, sweat dripping down your brow with the headache still ever present in your head. Out of exhaustion, you lowered your head the more the pain began to disappear, and as you did, your eyes returned to their normal size, and your deep breathing became more regular.

        When the pain in your head completely disappeared, you looked up at the ANBU with slightly tired eyes, your chest rising and falling with each deep breath you took. They looked at you with their expressionless masks as usual.

        “What, was… that?” You breathed out. The ANBU all looked at each other.

        “It doesn’t matter.” You stared at them appalled.

        “What do you mean ‘it doesn’t matter’? It was in my own head and-“

        “You still did not answer all of our questions yet.” What the hell you damn assholes! Unfortunately for you, you didn’t have the energy to argue or fight against them, so you just had to sit there and take whatever else they had to say or do. Before the ANBU had the chance to continue though, the click of the door opening drew everyone’s attention to the door. The light that now entered the room revealed someone standing in the doorway. It wasn’t Shikamaru, but rather it was another man you didn’t recognize.

        “I believe I can take it from here.” The new mysterious person said. The ANBU just stared at the man, seemingly not surprised by his intrusion.

        “What are you doing here?” The man merely stood there without any trace of fear or nervousness.

        “Orders.” He said. The ANBU stared at him, unmoving. “The Hokage would like to see you three, and I was sent here to take care of things from here.” You stared at him suspiciously. You didn’t like the way he said ‘take care of things’. He made it sound like he was going to dispose of you, or something of that nature. The ANBU looked at each other, nodded, then, albeit reluctantly, left the room. They shut the door behind them, leaving you alone, still chained in the chair, with this new mystery man. There was a little moment of silence, until you finally decided to ask him the question you had when he first walked in.

        “Who are you?”

 
3rd Person POV

        “Let me in already! Come on, I need to see the Old Man!”

        “Sorry Naruto, the Hokage’s busy.”

        “Is it about the Shadow Fox? If it is, I can go in. I saw her for myself! It’s totally fine!”

        “I already told you no Naruto, now beat it!”

        “But-“

        “THERE YOU ARE, YOU IDIOT!” Sakura came around the corner of the hallway, looking extremely mad at Naruto, who was now panicking at the sight of an enraged Sakura. Following right behind her was a really annoyed Sasuke with his eyes closed and arms crossed, who would much rather be anywhere else than dealing with a runaway Naruto.

        “S-Sakura! W-What are you doing here?” Naruto asked in a scared, shaky voice.

        “I’M HERE TO GET YOUR STUPID BUTT BACK AFTER YOU RAN OFF!” Naruto was about to run, but Sakura had gotten to him first. She grabbed him by the ear and started dragging him back the way Sasuke and her had just come from. “I SWEAR! THE STUPID IDIOTIC THINGS YOU DO! YOU CAN’T JUST GO WALTZING IN HERE AND EXPECT US TO-“

        “I needed to talk to the Hokage! Shikamaru got to go and see the Shadow Fox again, but I don’t!!! Even though I saw her first!”

        “Well maybe it’s because they don’t need you in there screwing everything up like you do all the time!”

        “You would only get in the way, Naruto.” Sasuke added.

        “It’s still unfair!! Besides, I was gonna ask where Kakashi Sensei is too! We’ve been waiting long enough as it is!”

        “Maybe he has important work to do.” Sakura suggested. “He probably just forgot to tell us… or he really is this late. But that doesn’t matter right now! You can’t just run off like that Naruto! Since Kakashi Sensei isn’t here, and we’re a squad, we’re all responsible for each other!”

        “And the last thing I wanna do is go after your sorry ass every time you go and do something stupid.” Sasuke grumbled.

        “Shut up Sasuke! It’s not stupid, and I wanna- AAH!” Sakura had harshly pulled on his ear again.

        “Just be quiet and don’t run off anymore!” Sakura yelled.

        “But I know Kakashi Sensei’s somewhere here! I just know it!”

        “How do you know he’s here in the Hokage building? And even if he was, he has his own business to take care of, which is none of our concern.”

        “Ugh! Whatever!! I was just tired of waiting is all.” Naruto pouted like a little child, puffing out his lips and cheeks and crossing his arms over his chest. Sakura continued to drag him out of the Hokage building, still nagging him about being an idiot, with Sasuke following, still annoyed, behind them. However, Naruto had made them all realize something that was on all of their minds, which they could no longer ignore.

        Where’s Kakashi Sensei?

 
Your POV

        The man seemed to smile under the mask he wore, and he tilted his head with spiky silver hair to the side, with his only uncovered grey eye closed in an innocent kind of way. It was the complete opposite of your emotionless frown.

        “I’m Kakashi Hatake, and you must be the one everyone’s talking about.” You stared at Kakashi, the name baring some familiarity in your head. Oh, that Kakashi. Yeah, I remember you now. 

        “Oh, sorry, I didn’t recognize you right away. Sometimes I can’t put names to faces that quick.” You said with a hint of sarcasm and irritation. He opened his one good eye to look at you, ignoring your rude tone.

        “Glad to hear you already know who I am then.” He walked to the seat where Shikamaru had sat in. “Do you know a lot of people in the village then?” He asked while pulling out the chair and sitting down in it. You hesitated before giving your answer.

        “Yeah, actually. I know of most of them.” He gave a simple nod of his head, and continued to give you that calm relaxing expression from when he first walked in here. It unnerved you. No one, except for the trio and the Hokage, talked to you like a normal person, but now Kakashi was too, or at least trying to. He even looked like he was still smiling, which you weren’t used to. Smiles had never been directed at you, and you wanted to believe his was fake, but you had a feeling it wasn’t. In your book, he was already completely untrustworthy. Kakashi tilted his head, and gave you a puzzled look.

        “You seem confused. Is something wrong?” You paused.

        “Well, it’s just that-” You stopped yourself before you could say anything else. You wondered if you should really tell him what you were thinking, as you weren’t sure if he was just trying to get information out of you or not. If that were the case, and you did tell him that he was treating you better than most people, maybe he would continue being nice, and it would be easier to get that information from you. I still don’t trust you, Kakashi, ex member of the ANBU. “Nevermind.” Surprisingly, he chuckled.

        “Do you not trust me?” He asked so nonchalantly you almost thought he didn’t just ask that. He noticed your surprised expression, and nodded his head. “I’ll take that as a yes.” 

        “Why should I?” He looked at you curiously.

        “Hmm?”

        “Why should I trust you? How did you even know I didn’t?”

        “Oh, well, I’m pretty sure, based on what I assume, you don’t trust anybody, right?” You paused.

        “Yeah, I guess.” With a few exceptions.

        “Then why would I be any different?” Using common sense, but still rather quick. I’m gonna figure out your game. “But the reason you should trust me, the reason you can, is because we’re both at a disadvantage here.” You raised an eyebrow and stared at him curiously.

        “What do you mean both of us are at a disadvantage? What could you possibly be lacking in this situation? I mean for Pete’s sake I’m chained to chair here.” You wiggled your hands, and he chuckled. 

        “You said earlier that you knew my name, and you know who I am, right?” You nodded your head. “Me, I don’t even know your real name.”

        “But you’ve certainly heard those rumors, am I correct? You must know a few things about me.”

        “Are rumors always true?” You had to admit, he had you there.

        “Not… all of them.”

        “So really, I don’t know much about you at all, yet, I’m pretty sure you know a lot about me. I bet you could even use some of that information against me.” You were beginning to see the point in this. “And you are at a disadvantage because you don’t know me personally, or my skills first hand. So in this case, we both don’t have enough knowledge about each other, which means we’re both at a disadvantage.” You blinked in surprise. Wow. Impressive thought process. But this doesn’t change a thing. I still don’t trust you.

        “Why are you here anyway?” Kakashi didn’t seem surprised that you wanted to get straight to the point, and you swore you saw him still smiling under his mask.

        “I’m interested in you.” Wow, captain obvious.

        “What, in my ‘crimes’? Or maybe even my weapons?”

        “No, not exactly. I mean in general.”

        “And what does that mean?”

        “I read your reports on what they already know on you, as well as your ‘battle’ from last night.”

        “So you admit you do know something about me.”

        “In the end, it wasn’t anything completely useful. I still don’t know much about you.” Is that why you’re here? Curiosity? You remained silent. “But, I did find something out.” Your (E/C) eyes were now completely glued to his one grey eye, wondering what exactly he was going to say, fear lingering in the back of your mind. “In my own opinion, I don’t think you’re the type of person everyone says you are.” What? “I know you’re not the villain that people claim you to be, and I think you have the potential to be someone greater than this.” Do you really mean that? Nothing could prepare you for the next words that came out of his mouth. “I want to help you.” No words could leave your mouth, your thoughts were going a million miles an hour. He was silent as well, letting his words sink into your head. Anger started to mix with your shock. Yeah right. You don’t mean it. You couldn’t. No one would ever think of me as something other than a lowly thief.

        “How could you say that.” Your words barely came out as a whisper. “When you even said so yourself that you don’t even know anything about me?” He sighed.

        “You know, I was invited to join the mission to capture you last night.” He paused. “It was to retrieve you before any of the Chunin participants… ‘found out’ about you.” That would explain the sudden and huge plan. Now he had caught your attention. “I declined. I didn’t think the mission called for so many of our best ninja to stop you.” You frowned, which made him chuckle. When he was quiet again, he paused. “I talked to Guy this morning though. He told me about the fight you two had.” You raised an eyebrow, curious as to what Guy had told him. “He said that he liked you, your spirit, the fight and determination in your eyes at such a young age. He said that in some way, you reminded him of his pupils.” Guy really said that? You shook your head a little. No! I can’t think like that. Kakashi could be lying for all I know. “He said something else too.” You stopped. “He said that whenever you attacked with those blades you have, it always looked like you were trying to miss him. Is that true?” He really isn’t lying about talking to Guy then, or at least, not for the most part. You didn’t know how to respond, you were too confused with yourself and your emotions. You finally decided on what to say. You were reluctant, but you closed your eyes, sighed, and hung your head in defeat. After all, you had no energy to fight or argue back anymore, and the trauma you had just gone through with the Time Reversal Technique and the events from last night and yesterday was finally starting to take its toll on you.

        “You know I was born here.” You opened your saddened and defeated eyes, not caring what he thought about you. “And because of that, the Leaf Village is as much my village as it is yours, or Guy’s, or anyone else who lives here. So why would I hurt my own village just to ‘get away’ for a little longer, it wouldn’t be right.” A moment of silence fell over the room. You finally looked up at him with determined, yet still tired, eyes. “Does that answer your question?” You asked with anger laced in your tone, not because of Kakashi’s questions, but because you were starting to break down in front of him and actually show your true emotions. He still seemed to smile under his mask.

        “I knew you’d say something like that.” You still kept a frown on your face and stared at Kakashi, remaining silent. He sighed at seeing your stubborn expression. “You know, I was outside the door right when they started the Time Reversal Technique.” Your eyes widened out of fear. You quickly turned your head to the side from embarrassment.

        “You heard everything, didn’t you?” You mumbled.

        “I did.” You pressed your head more into the back of the chair and blushed. The part when you talked about your first memory and when you were in pain from being forced to remember something that your mind wouldn’t let you, made you close your eyes in shame. You had given away a secret that wasn’t supposed to be known by anyone, especially to someone you barely knew. Great. Just great. “That was enough for me to figure out that you didn’t choose to become a thief on your own. You were only trying to survive, weren’t you?” You lowered your head and averted your eyes to the floor, strands of your now sweaty (H/C) hair covering your embarrassed and defeated eyes from Kakashi’s sight.

        Silence encompassed the room, as you continued to hide your practically broken form in shame. One person figuring out your past wouldn’t seem like much to anyone else, but to you it was like your whole world just came crumbling down. The last thing you wanted was your nightmares of your past to become a reality once more, you didn’t want history to repeat itself. Even if Kakashi felt sympathy towards you, you didn’t want to be pitied either, if that was even a possibility. A single tear rolled down your cheek and dripped onto the floor, one of many threatening to break loose from your tired eyes. “You know you’re not the villain, right? You don’t need to hide from anyone. There’s no need for it.” One lone (E/C) eye peaked out from your hair, looking at Kakashi with hope, hope that what he was saying was true. However, you couldn’t help but doubt him, even though his words seemed kind. “There, now that you’re looking at me again, we can really talk.” You still remained silent. “I have an offer for you.” This  peaked your curiosity, and you found yourself starting to return to normal, your previously lost energy coming back to your exhausted form.

        “What kind of offer?” 

        “From what I’ve read, you know all of the basic academy jutsus, you’re smart, you’ve demonstrated exceptional skills in taijutsu, genjutsu, and ninjutsu, you’ve done well in battle against multiple powerful Jonins, and you have my official approval. You’re more than qualified.” Both eyes now faced him, with utter bewilderment directed at him.

        “Qualified for what?” He closed his one eye and tilted his head in an innocent way.

        “Why, to be a genin of course.” Your eyes widened considerably, and your jaw hung agape.

        “Y-You can’t be serious.”

        “Well if you prefer, you can stay chained to that chair and let the ANBU come back-“

        “No no!” You paused, realizing you were about to make the biggest, yet, possibly, best decision of your life. “I accept.” For once, you smiled. It wasn’t forced nor fake, it was truly genuine, and Kakashi returned it. He reached into one of his pockets and pulled out an item. He held it at his side with one hand, and the item made your eyes widen. There, right in his hand, was a blue genin Leaf forehead protector.

        “You are now an official Leaf Village shinobi.” He set it on the table and walked behind the chair. He did something, and with a click, your restraints popped off of your wrists, our arms now finally free from the chair. You rubbed both of your sore wrists, and when they felt comfortable enough, you walked up to the table, picked up your new forehead protector, and tied it around your head.

        “Damn. I never thought this would happen in my life.”

        “Do you mean becoming a shinobi, or getting caught and being strapped to a chair?”

        “…Can we just get out of here?” He chuckled.

        “Sure.” You both started walking out of the room, but as he was about to open the door, he stopped suddenly and turned around to face you. “Oh, I almost forgot one thing.” You halted as well, and looked up at him. “If you’re going to become an official genin, we’ll need to know you as something other than the Shadow Fox.” Oh shit. “I need to know your name. Your real name.” Dammit. You bit your teeth and pursed your lips, trying as hard as you could to keep yourself from talking. It wasn’t exactly easy to tell someone your real name when you’ve been keeping it a secret from everyone but Old Man, and the sand trio. Sure you only just recently told the sand trio your name, but that was because of the moment, and you surprisingly had an easy time trusting all of them, including Gaara, who you thought didn’t even care. You opened your mouth to speak a few times, but nothing came out. much like a fish blubbing in water. You were holding yourself back out of an instinct that was five years old, and Kakashi knew this, as he waited patiently for you to answer. Finally, you were able to speak.

        “My name’s… (Y/N).” You breathed out.

        “Is there a last name with that?” You paled.

        “Can we… talk about that later?” You hoped Kakashi would be happy with just your first name, which he seemed satisfied with, for now. He nodded his head, accepting your answer, and opened the door, letting you step into the light for the first time in many years. I’ve now crossed from the dark into the light, literally. Heh, that sounds so cheesy. You smiled. It actually feels… pretty good.

        A realization crossed your mind, and you stopped before you could start down the hallway. Kakashi looked at you curiously. “Did they freaking mess with my weapons?” You muttered to no one in particular. Kakashi smiled under his mask, knowing the answer. You examined your weapons, and found that the slots where the blades come out were clogged, for the second day in a row. “Dammit!”

        You and Kakashi proceeded to walk throughout the Hokage building, heading for the exit as you fixed your weapons, completely ignoring the fact that you were actually out in the open now for the first time since you could remember. You were just so frustrated that you had to fix your hidden blades again, and you were muttering curses under your breath the whole time, not paying any attention to anything else except to not run into walls. Luckily, you fixed them before you arrived at the exit, and you unsheathed the blades to make sure they worked again.

        “I’m impressed you got them fixed so fast.” You smirked.

        “I know every inch of these babies!”

        “Apparently so.” He eyed your blades, more observantly than cautiously, and his eye followed the movement of your blades as you retracted them back into the bracers. You scoffed.

        “I’m not gonna stab you in the back. I don’t even think I could stab you in the back, even if I wanted to.” He hummed in amusement.

        “I’m simply curious is all. I’ve never seen weapons like those anywhere else.” You closed your eyes and still kept your smirk.

        “These are one of a kind.”

        “I can tell.” You stopped before Kakashi could open the door that would lead you out onto the streets of the Leaf Village, the actual main streets instead of small alleys full of crowds of people and, to you, blinding light. He noticed that you were no longer walking, and halted his movements as well. “You coming?” You slowly nodded your head.

        “Y-Yeah.” You cursed yourself for stuttering.

        “Are you nervous?” You nodded your head.

        “Only a little.” Kakashi didn’t seem surprised.

        “You didn’t have a problem walking through these hallways. Anyone could’ve seen you just now.”

        “Well I was a little too busy to think about that.” Kakashi sighed.

        “You’re going to have to face your fears sometime, you can’t hide forever now.”

        “I’m not afraid. Just…” You trailed off, not able to find the right word you were looking for.

        “Afraid?”

        “No.” Kakashi sighed once more.

        “Like it or not, this is part one of your new life as a genin. It involves being seen by people, not hiding in the shadows and avoiding them like you’re used to.” You still didn’t budge. “This is your first test of being a genin, one of bravery and courage. You have to be able to face your fears, stand out in the open now.” He’s right, and it’s not like I’ll be alone. Wherever we’re going, I have to follow Kakashi, and we’ll be out there together. 

        “It’s nothing, I’m ready. I just needed a moment.” You slowly walked up, and gathering all your strength and courage, pushed the door open, revealing the bustling streets outside.

        You and Kakashi started to walk the streets of the Leaf Village, with you keeping your seemingly fearless face in tact, but on the inside, the five year old instinct shouted for you to dash into the nearest alley, or blend into the shadows. You pushed these familiar urges down, and continued to walk side by side with Kakashi to wherever he was taking you.

        The more you walked, the more stares you received. You glanced at people a few times, and watched them follow your movements, some even whispering to the people next to them. With your better hearing, you caught a few snippets of words, but even without your good ears you already figured out what they were saying. Here there was, some stranger girl they’ve never seen, or have forgotten some five years ago, walking along the streets, coincidentally the very same morning the Shadow Fox, who they’ve also never seen before, was brought in.

        Whenever your urges of hiding came up as the whispers and stares of the people continued, you would secretly take a step closer to Kakashi. Eventually, Kakashi stopped you in front of some restaurant and told you to wait outside. You nodded and begrudgingly did as you were told. You felt really uncomfortable standing outside alone, but you kept telling yourself that you would pull through it. You were still the Shadow Fox after all, you could handle anything.

        Although, soon after Kakashi had entered the store, you felt eyes on the back of your head. It wasn’t like the stares you kept receiving, but it felt like these eyes were glaring daggers at you. It was almost as if they were observing you, keeping track of all of your movements. The strangest part about it was the fact that it felt familiar to you, like you knew this stare well, but you couldn’t figure out who’s just by your sixth sense. You searched all around, but you couldn’t find where the source of the strange feeling was coming from. It was starting to make you paranoid, and you began to wonder if someone was after you.

        Thankfully, it wasn’t long before Kakashi came back out of the store with something in his hand that smelled fresh and sweet, and the paranoid feeling disappeared. That was really weird. Kakashi, who either didn’t notice or ignored your weird behavior, possibly brushing it off as being part of your nerves, held out what he had in his hand in front of you. When you took it, you saw that it was a dumpling, and you looked up at him, confused.

        “I’m sure you’re hungry. Eat up.” You still stared at him, not completely sure what to make of this situation. It’s not like you were ever given food before, especially food that was fresh and better than the stuff you usually ate. You brought the dumpling to your mouth, and slowly started to take small bites of the sweet food. Holy shit this is really good! No matter how hungry you were and how sweet the dumpling was, you controlled yourself, and continued to take only small bites of the sweet treat. Kakashi then handed you a water bottle, which you immediately recognized as the one from the dark room in the Hokage building.

        “Thanks.” You said while taking the water, taking small sips from it as well. 

        “You might as well have it. I’m sure it’s not going to be missed anytime soon.” You smiled as you finished the dumpling and water, and throwing the bottle away in a nearby trash can.

        You finally made it to a secluded area, filled mostly with green trees and shrubbery, and a path of grass leading straight ahead to somewhere unknown. You survived the streets of the Leaf Village, though no doubt those stares and whispers would continue, maybe even worsen. But for now, they no longer concerned you, as you were now a genin of the Leaf, an official Leaf Village shinobi, and you were about to begin your training to your new life.

        “Welcome to part two of becoming a genin.” Kakashi stated, walking down the path, with you falling into place right next to him.
 

3rd Person POV

        “I’m sick and tired of waiting for Kakashi Sensei, to get his lazy butt over here!!!!” Naruto yelled from the grass in the middle of the training field.

        “I am too! What’s taking him so long?” Sakura asked, anger and a little worry laced in her tone.

        “This is boring. If he was just gonna leave us like this, why didn’t he just say anything?” Sasuke grumbled, standing against a tree with his arms crossed and eyes closed, also annoyed with the rest of his squad.

        “Why can’t we just go and find him!!!??”

        “Because we’re still supposed to wait for him here, even though he’s extra late today.” Sakura reminded Naruto. On the outside, she was collected and only slightly annoyed, but her inner self was screaming about how she was going to wring Kakashi’s neck when, and if, he finally shows up.

        “Don’t run off again to go look for him Naruto. I hate babysitting you like that.” Sasuke warned. Naruto turned towards Sasuke, fury written all over his face.

        “You’re NOT babysitting me!!”

        “Just shut up and don’t run off anymore-” Naruto sat down on the grass with his legs crossed and putting both of his hands on his knees, and yelled.

        “I’m so BOOORED! I can’t take it anymore!” Sasuke growled softly at Naruto’s interruption. “I swear, when I get my hands on that guy, I’ll-” In the middle of Naruto’s rant, Sakura gasped.

        “Look! I think I see him!” She pointed down the grassy path, where she saw the figure of Kakashi walking towards them. However, there was another smaller figure walking with him. “Wait. Who is-“

        “KAKASHI SENSEI!!” You heard Naruto angrily yell from all the way across the upcoming field. By now, you and Kakashi were close enough for Sakura and Sasuke to be able to catch a glimpse of your features. Sasuke peaked at you with one of his previously closed onyx eyes after hearing Sakura incomplete question. He became just as curious as Sakura was as to who you were. He’s never seen you in the academy, in fact he’s never seen you in the village before, and yet he noticed a Leaf forehead protector on your head.

        Naruto didn’t notice you at all, ignoring you as he ran down the path and stopped right in front of Kakashi, pointing an angry finger at his chest and yelling at him.

        “YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE HERE HOURS AGO!! YOU KNOW HOW LONG I HAD TO WAIT HERE, BORED OUT OF MY MIND, WITH SASUKE!!? WHY ARE YOU SO LATE!!!?” 

        “Naruto, first, stop shouting so loud. You’re hurting my ears, and I’m pretty sure you’re hurting hers too. Second, I was busy-“

        “Wait, her?” That was when he finally noticed you standing next to Kakashi, an emotionless frown on your face, and your ears still ringing from his outburst at Kakashi. Your hearing was better than most others, so you were more affected than anyone else, and man did Naruto’s yelling hurt, a lot. But you still managed to look as if it didn’t affect you at all, and thankfully you could still hear. “Oh, who are-” His face suddenly lit up with recognition. “Wait a minute! You’re the girl who-“

        “Naruto, do you know her?” Sakura asked while walking closer to you.

        “Yeah, I’ve never seen her around before.” Sasuke wasn’t too far behind Sakura. She stood on Naruto’s right while Sasuke came up to Naruto’s left, directly in front of you. They all watched you intently, waiting for Naruto to answer the question.

        “You’re the girl I punched in the face! You’re the-“

        “Yes, I am. Oh, and no hard feelings Naruto. Didn’t hurt, really. I didn’t exactly get to tell you that the last time for… obvious reasons.” You glanced between Sakura’s curious gaze and Sasuke’s scowling one. “Sakura, Sasuke. Nice to finally meet you two.” They both looked a little surprised that you knew their names, even though they’ve never even seen you before.

        “Guys, this is (Y/N).” You saw Naruto’s eyes light up in shock, not expecting to hear your actual name. “Or as you’d more commonly know her, the Shadow Fox.” They all looked at you now, completely shocked to meet the famous master thief in person, and to now even know your real name. Even Sasuke’s usually hate-filled onyx eyes were wide open. You just kept your frown in place, not surprised by their reactions, as Kakashi continued on. “And she is the newest member of Squad 7.”