Naruto 1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

It has been roughly eight years since the attack on Konoha by the Nine-Tailed Fox, since the death of the Fourth Hokage - Sarutobi's chosen successor. The Yondaime - having died much sooner than he had expected - had chosen no successor in the event of his death so the previous Hokage stepped up to the task once again. Passing laws to secure the safety of the sole reason for their continued existence.

Now he faces a difficult decision. A decision that may increase the hostilities in the village if he doesn't play this just right. The politics made him wish there is a suitable successor for him to choose so he can step down again and leave headache to them.

Sarutobi looks down at the scroll in his hands. Listing the details of the person whom he has been requested to accept into the village and consider adding to the Shinobi academy.

**_Name_**_: Kazama, Oretzi  
**Parentage**: Unknown**  
Age**: 8 years  
**Birthdate**: March 21  
**Blood type**: A  
**Gender**: female  
**Hair**: dark brown with streaks of silvery white  
**Eyes**: dark brown | Suspicion of a doujutsu - yet to have developed or revealed itself  
**Height**: 4'8" | possibly will grow some more  
**Weight**: slightly underweight for height  
**Notes**: Possibility of demonic parentage. Has a black flexible tail similar to a dog. Nails are sharp and untypically pointed despite filing them down. Rapid healing and unstable chakra manifests whenever angered. Has a great sense of smell and hearing [side note: a dog whistle - blown at the other side of the village - reduced Kazama to tears and begging for the noise to stop]_

"You want me to accept Kazama-chan into Konoha," Sarutobi repeats as he looks at the woman before him, a tall blonde in her mid to late forties. He would be willing to accept her but with Uzumaki Naruto already causing trouble with his pranks and the tension reaching a new high as civilians and Shinobi alike call for his death at the Council meetings. "In addition to that, you want me to consider her for the Shinobi academy. Did I forget anything else?"

"That's everything, Sandaime Hokage," the woman tells him.

"I will admit that Kazama-chan has some admirable traits," he starts, rolling up the scroll. "Yet, the fact that she has a demonic parent makes this decision quite difficult."

"I'm aware, Sandaime-san. However, she has shown some skills in being a tracker." Sarutobi motions for her to continue. "Once, when someone snatched a child from the orphanage she retrieved one of the girl's shirts and used it to get her scent. She then led the local police straight to the man's hideout - right before anything bad could happen to the child." Sarutobi could see the benefits of having her trained to be a hunter-nin, if she so wished it.

"Skills or not," he starts, "there is still the fact that she has a tail. No amount of hiding will keep her identity a secret." He picks up his pipe and takes a few puffs. "If someone discovers the fact that she is a half demon there will be riots all across this village."

The matron of the orphanage makes to say something but stops when there is a soft tentative knock on the door behind her. She recognizes it to belong to her charge and looks at the Sandaime Hokage who is puzzled as to who it could be. "Come in," the elderly man calls to the person.

The door swings open to reveal the girl in question. Sarutobi couldn't help but note the long trench coat that the girl is wearing, effectively hiding her tail or so it would seem. Dark brown eyes stare up at him from the doorway, her dark hair unnaturally spiked and wild in a manner that reminds him of Uzumaki Naruto. There is a single white streak starting at the center of her bangs and swept over her right eye - just slightly obscuring his ability to look at that one. The girl looks like she has already lost all of her baby fat on her face and he was stunned to find that she has already mastered a serious expression that seems to age her beyond her years.

"Pardon me, Hokage-sama," the girl bows before she steps into the office, shutting the door behind her. "But I could not help but hear your conversation."

"Eavesdropping is bad," Sarutobi tells her, "Unless you're a Shinobi."

"Hokage-sama, she cannot help but overhear things, even behind closed doors," the Matron puts in quickly. She didn't want him to assume that Kazama is a nosy child. To be quite honest she usually allow people to keep their secrets, despite the possibility she may already know each and every one of them.

"Ah… your hearing," Sarutobi states simply, recalling the mention regarding the dog whistle. If the girl is allowed to live in the village he'll have to request the Inuzuka clan to not use any dog whistles or something of the like.

"Aye," the girl says before getting down to her knees and press her forehead to the floor in a show of ultimate submission, her posture rigid as she forces herself. "Please, Hokage-sama, permit me to make my case to you."

"You are much too old for your age," he sighs before telling the girl to get up. "Please, sit. Tell me, what is your reasons to want to join the village?"

The girl eases herself into one of the chairs in the office, her hands on her knees. "Has the Matron told you much about my past?" She was staring only at him so when he shakes his head no she sighs to herself. "Up until I was five years old I had lived with the local pack of wolves. Not just any wolves though." She watch his eyes widen slightly at what she is hinting at. "The alpha has told me stories about my mother who fell in love with a man. He never told me what happened to her but they believe she died. My father, however, was - according to the alpha - formerly a member of Konoha Shinobi ranks."

This surprised Sarutobi, causing him to reconsider the girl seriously. There were many Shinobi members he had to consider, not counting the ones who were killed in the Kyuubi attack. "Do you have any details you know about your father?"

The girl looks thoughtful for a moment before she digs into her trench coat's pockets. "The alpha female, she gave me this just before they left me at the village to make my way with the humans. She told me to go to the village from where he lived and join the clan he left," she explains as she pulls out a pendant that is on a thick chain-like necklace. She hands it over to the Hokage and he is stunned to recognize the red fang that are usually tattooed [painted as it is the case for those younger than 16] onto the members of the Inuzuka clan.

"This… alpha female," he pauses to make sure he had that right. When she nods at him he continues, "She gave you this saying that it belonged to your father?"

"Hai. Stalks the Night," the girl starts only to get a confused look at the name, "That's the alpha female's name." He nods his head in understanding. "Stalks the Night once told me that my father was chased away by his partner - the head of the clan from which he is from, only by marriage."

He taps his fingers on his desk, considering his actions now. Inuzuka Tsume would not be pleased to hear that her former partner's offspring has shown up in his office. Nor would she be pleased to know that the child has been left in the care of the orphanage of some random civilian village. If there is one thing he knows about Inuzuka Tsume it's that she hates the orphanages.

"Matron, Kazama-chan, please excuse me for an hour," he tells them after he made his decision. The two nod their heads in acceptance and make to leave. "Wait," he calls after them and gets his secretary to summon up one of the jonins to escort the two around the village for now.

Maybe five minutes later one of the Tokubetsu Jonins appeared in his office with a whirl of leaves that has young Kazama gawking at the display. He has to stifle his chuckles at the girl's amazement, taking it as a sign that the small village where she has been left is too small to host their own Shinobi.

The Tokubetsu Jonin turns out to be Anko Mitarashi, a purple haired woman with lavender eyes that always look blank to him. She has just recently turned twenty, if memory serves him right, and might be the right sensei for the young Kazama. He's getting ahead of himself. First the girl must accept entering the academy and then graduate from it before he can consider her sensei.

"Mitarashi-san, would you be so kind to show Matron Kin and her charge to a nearby restaurant?" he requests her.

The jonin looks down at the girl in the chair who looks at her with those wide eyes, strangely showing her age for the first time in front of Sarutobi. "Sure thing, Hokage-sama." She moves to the door and swings it open, holding it steady for her two charges. "I hope you like dango dumplings."

For the first time since she arrived in Konohagakure in hopes of convincing the Hokage to permit her into the village, Kazama smiles and Anko is struck by the innocence in the girl's face. Almost as fast the girl ducks her head and she mumbles something too low for the older woman to hear. So she turns to the Matron with a questioning look. "Translation?"

"She likes dango, a lot," Kin tells her, shaking her head. "I hope you're prepared to lose a great deal of money to pay for her."

"Eats a lot?"

"If I let her eat only three meals a day she'll unfortunately eat the orphanage out of their money," the Matron explains solemnly, unhappy that she has to restrict the girl's eating.

"Wouldn't that make her eat more, to compensate the lack of meals?" Anko questions and gets a slow nod. "Well, that's stupid."

"You'll understand once you've seen her eat," is Kin's only response.

* * *

Sarutobi studies the pendant in his hand, turning it over several times as he waits for another Tokubetsu Jonin to join him. "Hokage-sama?" he hears and he looks up to see Inuzuka Tsume step into the office with her companion, Kuromaru, right by her side. Kuromaru is a large wolfish dog with his left ear missing and a patch over his right eye. The top of his head at a height just around Tsume's waist. He is probably one of the largest dogs in Konoha, second to Hatake's ninken, Bull.

"Ah, Tsume, thank you for making time for me," he says to her, gesturing at one of the chairs.

"Of course, Hokage-sama," she says to her, her wild hair framing her face and fang-like tattoos. "What was it that you needed?"

"Please, have a seat. I believe this conversation will not be easy for everyone in this office." Tsume share a look with Kuromaru before taking a seat as per his request. "Now… I believe you would know what this is?" he questions as he leans forward, dropping the pendant into Tsume's outstretched hand.

She instinctively curls her fingers around the cool metal that hits her palm. She brings her hand closer to her chest before opening her fingers, her eyes widening at the familiar sigil of her clan. She had not seen this pendant in years, not since she chased off Hana and Kiba's father shortly before Kiba was born. "What are you doing with this?" she questions softly, her eyes dark and borderline feral as she looks at the Hokage.

"There is a child here in the village," he starts, holding up a hand to ward off any protests or shouts from the Inuzuka clan Head. "The Matron of an orphanage in one of Konoha's vassal villages brought the child here in an effort to have her accepted into the village and into the Shinobi academy. She had this pendant with her, given to her prior being left in the vassal village."

"Orphanage?" she mutters in surprise before she is handed a scroll. She unrolls it and quickly scans through the information, her hands shaking as she reads the information about her demonic parentage. "What does this child has to do with me?" she questions, bunching the scroll in her hands before Kuromaru bumps his nose against her hand. She quickly rolls the scroll up before she destroys it any further.

"The child claims that the pendant belonged to her father. Left for her prior his disappearance with the instruction that she is to join Konoha and the clan he previously belonged to." He has to lean back when Tsume slam her hands onto his desk.

"There's no way in hell that my kids' father even fathered another child!"

"I was not under the impression that he was neutered prior his departure," Sarutobi says calmly, getting a wince from Kuromaru at the mention of being neutered. Tsume falls back into her chair as she rubs the bridge of her nose, exasperated by the constant headache her former partner always seems to give her. "Now, regarding the girl's mother… well, from the information provided to us by the Matron she shows a link to wolf demons."

Tsume and Kuromaru looks at him, startled by what he said. "Wolf demons? They're impossible to even find! Let alone talk to them!" Tsume protests. "And you mean to tell me that he sired a child with a wolf?!"

"According to the child, yes." Tsume growls lowly under her breath as she shakes her head in disbelief. "Now, there is an issue I would like to discuss with you." This catches her wandering mind again and she nods her head, giving him her full attention. "I have yet to decide if Konoha can accept the presence of another demon, even if she is a hanyou. Never mind the fact that Naruto is simply a jinchuuriki." Kuromaru nods his head, recalling the fact that many of the civilians and shinobi alike are unwilling to let go of their hatred for the Kyuubi vessel. Going so far to beat him up on his birthdays. "The girl had been instructed, three years prior, to come here and join your clan."

Tsume went tense at his words and made to protest, getting a quick 'hold on now' gesture from Sarutobi. "She does not know what clan her father is from. All she has is the pendant which I have shown you. In the event which I decide to accept her into the village I can easily tell her that the clan does not exist any longer." He staples his fingers together and uses it to prop his chin up as he stares thoughtfully at her. "However, due to her sensitive hearing any dog whistles in the village will be banned to protect her. I will also have to station guards to ensure that the villagers does not attempt to kill her upon the discovery of her hanyou status."

"This all sounds like a great deal of paperwork for you, Hokage-sama," she comments drily.

"In all honesty, it is," he sighs as he considers the young girl. She - according to the information provided by the Matron - is roughly the age of Kiba. "However, I would accept the girl into our ranks in any case."

"Why?"

"Because, Tsume-san, I believe that the next generation will be better than us," he says simply. Kuromaru and Tsume look at him, puzzled before slowly nodding their head reluctantly as if to say 'I don't know what you said, but okay'. "In any case, I will let you decide if you wish to permit the child into your clan or not. Please let me know within the hour."

She bows to him in respect, taking his words as dismissal, and leaves with Kuromaru besides her. She waits until they have exited the office before looking down at him. "What do you think, Kuromaru?"

_"I say the child could be a great asset to the clan,"_ the wolf-dog comments drily. _"A wolf hanyou of all things is extremely rare. She would benefit greatly from the clan's techniques."_

"How the hell would I even begin to explain this to Hana and Kiba?" Tsume wonders out loud.

_"I would suggest waiting until you have made your decision,"_ Kuromaru could remember that she particularly disliked her partner near the end of their relationship. It came to an ugly head when she discovered that she was pregnant again - she had sworn up and down that she was never going to get pregnant again after Hana - and she chased him away. She stayed in Konoha during the pregnancy, giving birth to Kiba, and resumed missions afterwards. _"The child has little to no connection to the clan. The council elders will not be willing to accept her into the clan unless you wrestle them into submission."_

"If the child had been born a dog hanyou it would be much easier," Tsume sighs. Dogs, they can understand. They spend their entire lives around them. But wolves have a strong animosity towards their distant canine relatives. She has yet to meet the child so she doesn't know if the girl will have the same animosity towards dogs as her wolf ancestors do.

They were passing a dango shop when they hear Anko's shout of laughter and amusement. "Damn girl, do you even have a limit?"

"I told you she'll eat you into an early grave, Mitarashi-san," they hear a soft spoken feminine voice say.

"Maybe if you let her eat more often she wouldn't eat your precious orphanage into bankruptcy," came the woman's harsh reprimand.

"Orphanage?" Tsume mutters as she looks at her companion. "Surely this could be a coincidence."

_"I think by now we know better than to assume such a thing,"_ Kuromaru says gruffly. Tsume nods her head in agreement and she steps into the shop with him right behind her. Automatically her eyes land on Anko Mitarashi, a woman whom she had the pleasure of working side by side with several times over the years. Her eyes wonder from the Tokubetsu Jonin and lands on the elderly woman who is bickering with Anko about limited money and food before finally finding the subject of their heated debate.

It is a small girl, standing at perhaps five feet, with her dark wild hair giving her the appearance of an extra inch or two. The wild hair reminds her of her own hair, amusing her a great deal. The girl looked older and taller beyond her years, the baby fat practically nonexistence on her face and body. There was strangely a silver white streak that starts at the center of her hair and drops down through her bangs which have been partially swept over her right eye. The girl is wearing a long trench coat similar to the one Anko Mitarashi is wearing except its' black. The girl is also wearing a completely black outfit.

Kuromaru looks over the girl with approval. _"She certainly does have the making of a shinobi,"_ the ninken comments, attracting the attention of Anko and the woman.

"Tsume!" Anko acknowledges, waving her over. "What you doing here?"

"I overheard your loud voice from outside and thought I'd see what trouble you were getting into," is Tsume's only response as she waves down a waiter and gave her orders.

"Ah," Anko had the decency to look bashful. "Let me introduce everyone," she says before she clears her throat. "Tsume, this is Matron Kin from Phoenix, one of Konohagakure's vassals. With her is Kazama Oretzi." The two bow to Tsume who recognized the girl's name from the scroll. So this is the one who her former partner sired. Obviously she gained her looks from her demon mother. "This is Inuzuka Tsume and her companion, Kuromaru."

_"Hello,"_ Kuromaru greets them, getting a stunned look from Matron Kin and an amused smile from the girl, Kazama Oretzi.

"He can talk?" Matron Kin says in shock while Kazama looks curiously at Tsume.

The mother of two looks at the girl, noticing the question on her face. "What is it?"

"Can I give him one of my dango?" the girl asks, holding up her last one.

"It's up to Kuromaru," she answers her, looking down at the dog in question. Kuromaru doesn't even say anything, simply moved around so that he's right next to Kazama and when she offers the dango - off the stick of course - to him he gobbles it up. The girl smiles before dropping her hands into her lap, gripping her hands tightly.

Tsume was surprised to realize that the girl wanted to pet Kuromaru but isn't asking out of respect. She hadn't expected something like that and was now puzzled as to what she should think. She had been presuming that the girl would harbor the same animosity her ancestors bear towards dogs.

_"You can pet me,"_ the ninken spoke up, startling the child out of her thoughts.

"Really?" she asks excitedly. Kuromaru just nods his head and she smiles at him, first petting his head gently, her hand shifting through his rough fur and sliding down over his back before returning to his head. This time she scratches at a spot right behind his ear and he can't help the wag of his tail when she finds that one spot he can never get. When his tail begins to thump against the floor she takes that as a good sign and continues scratching at it.

"Not many knows where to scratch him," Tsume comments idly, smirking at the pure bliss on her companion's face. She regrets that she doesn't get much time to tend to him as she used to but it is amusing watching this scene unfold.

"The alpha pair had a litter just before they left me with Matron Kin," Kazama explains, "The pups always wanted to be scratched right behind the ears."

"You lived with the wolves?" Tsume questions softly.

"Yah-huh. Stalks the Night told me that mama left me with them before she disappeared. They thinks she died though." Tsume caught that and leans forward to look at the girl's dark brown eyes. Kazama looks back at her, unflinchingly, and she was struck with the notion that she'd make a great clan head someday. Already she shows the attitude of an alpha by not averting her eyes.

"But you don't?"

Kazama shakes her head and puts a hand over her heart. "I think mama had to go away to keep me safe…" Tsume was not surprised but amazed by the girl's ability to be so sure about a matter such as her mother, who apparently been missing from her life since she was a baby. "Stalks the Night told me stories about mama. About how she was the strongest wolf to ever walk on this world and how her five tails could create illusions so powerful no one can ever break free. She could also control plants!"

Tsume and Anko coughs as they realize just who or what little Kazama was describing. She had not expected hear that the Hokou had sired a child! Tsume couldn't believe that one of the Nine Bijuu Lords had sired a child with a human!

"Kazama," Matron Kin reprimands quietly, realizing belatedly that her charge has revealed too much about her heritage. The girl looks at her, startled, before ducking her head. She drops her hand from Kuromaru's head and the ninken looks at her in concern. He shares a glance with his human companion before sighing, moving to rejoin her side. "I think it is best we turn to the Tower," the elderly woman says as she stands, her hand finding purchase at the girl's neck.

The two trained Kunoichi and ninken did not miss the way Kazama tensed at the touch. Tsume, sensing a valid reason behind this, makes to protest the treatment. Anko quickly stands up and ushers them out of the shop, her actions separating the Matron from the young girl. The younger woman's action did not go unnoticed by Tsume and she lets out a relieved and thankful sigh.

_"I sense that the girl is particular sensitive at the neck,"_ Kuromaru states bluntly, getting a 'no shit' look from Tsume. _"What worries me, however, is the reaction she had."_

"You don't think she's been abused?" Tsume growls softly under her breath.

_"Considering the girl lived in an orphanage, for three years, with obvious proof of her mix heritage,"_ Kuromaru starts, _"I would not be surprised."_ He gives Tsume a look. _"After all, Uzumaki does not bear the same obvious signs of his 'burden' and yet the entirety of the village takes their anger and fear out upon him."_

"The boy has too obvious features," the woman states drily as she splits her order into two, handing one half to Kuromaru who quickly snatches it up with a snap of his jaws. "And the villagers found about what happened from the witnesses."

_"Never the less the children of mix heritages such as the girl will always retrieve beatings. They will never be accepted by either of their races."_ Kuromaru's sole remaining eye looks at her grimly. _"Humans and demons rarely if ever accept the presence of the hanyou. They are looked down upon by their demonic peers for their human blood and humans fear and hate them for what they cannot control."_

"You scare me by being so sure about that."

_"It is not that much different from being a wolf-dog hybrid. Hybrids rarely ever get accepted. It takes a deep and caring heart to accept someone of such different races,"_ Kuromaru shakes his head. _"I'm curious as to whether the girl will have much youki."_ He gets a curious look from his companion. _"Many hanyou rarely if ever are ever a perfect stable version of their mixed heritage. The reason for this is unknown. It is possible that such a union is actually isn't supposed to happen and their children are proof of that."_

"What exactly happens with the hanyou?"

_"Mm… well, at one paw there is a possibility that they will simply produce a human with extremely enhanced abilities and senses but rather pathetic youki capabilities. Think a civilian with their chakra."_ Tsume nods her head in understanding, civilian lack the ability to manipulate their chakra as well as the sufficient amount to safely be a ninja. Rock Lee is an example of someone unable to manipulate their chakra but he is well in the safety range to be a ninja. _"Or they can be wild beasts that will attack everything and anything that enters their territory."_

"So much like animal," Tsume concludes bluntly.

_"Much like one,"_ Kuromaru agrees. _"It is possible that the hanyou can retrieve powers from one or both of their parents. Or they can develop powers unique to themselves. However, most hanyou rarely if ever survive their childhood. Demons do not care for the hanyou and will do anything to eliminate them and as we all know, humans are incapable of looking past the surface."_

"Did the girl not mention that her mother left her with a wolf pack? A wolf demon pack?" Tsume questions as she finishes up, leaving money for her order and leaving the dango shop.

_"Actually, yes… I do not know how to explain that one… It is possible that as a result of being born from one of the Bijuu the child inherited the status and strength from her mother. Resulting in respect and protection from the alpha pair."_ Kuromaru's voice expressed his doubts about that reasoning.

"Respect and protection from the alpha pair simply because of who her mother is?" Tsume questions out loud. Both of them shake their head in disagreement with that line. Simply not possible.

_"Perhaps the Bijuu tasked the pack with the job of protecting her child until a suitable age?" _Kuromaru suggests.

"That is a slightly more acceptable reasoning," Tsume says before deciding to leave the matter alone for the time being. Now that she has a faint idea of who the child is she must make her decision.

Shun the child or accept her into her clan.

_**I know, I know, I haven't finished my other two stories (if you're following those) but I just couldn't resist! Like how do you resist the concept of writing a complete OC and not insert her into the world of Naruto?! I don't even know where this story is going. I'm just following along writing the tale as the characters' lives unfold. Anyway, please R&R!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hello everyone! I wanna thank... *checks the name again* XxcandichanxX for liking the first chapter! Yes, I have to agree that Oretzi is kawaii. She's like a combination of a puppy and a kitty cat... Wow, I just imagined her giving me the Puss in Boots look. You know the one, right? The one with the wide eyes that makes you go aww? Yeah, that one. Anyway, disclaimer: I do not own any characters except for the ones you don't recognize. At the moment, that'll be Kazama Oretzi. Onward with the show!**_

_**Chapter 2**_

"Hokage-sama, thank you kindly for taking the time to see us once again," Matron Kin says with a bow. "Have you made your decision?"

The girl looks at the elderly man, her eyes solemnly serious. What eyes to find on a young one not even nine years old. Has her time with the wolves age her beyond her years or is it because she is half wolf that she is like a strange combination of a child and a woman in her later years?

"I have already decided to accept young Kazama into our village," he says, looking directly at the young girl in question. "However, due to a complicated problem I was unable-," he starts before being interrupted.

"To get you accepted into any apartment outside the Inuzuka clan," Tsume says as she walks into the office. The two visitors turn to look at her while the Hokage smiles at her, realizing exactly what she is here for. "Looks like you're stuck with my family, kid."

"You mean it?" the girl asks, just barely managing to hold back her excitement. It was to Sarutobi's amusement that he realized that he was seeing a twinge of movement from under the girl's trench coat. It was apparent that her excitement was determined to come out, one way or another.

"Yep. It'd be my honor to accept you into my family, Oretzi-chan." The girl jumps out of the chair with a cheer and she hugs Tsume. Startled but pleased by her reaction the mother of two ruffles the girl's wild hair, looking at Sarutobi with a smirk. "Looks like I'm responsible for three now," she comments to him.

"Indeed," he chuckles before casually glancing at the matron. At one hand she looks pleased that the child has been accepted into the village and yet at the other she looks worried. About what he doesn't know and has that sinking feeling that there is something else lurking about. "I suppose we best get the adoption papers ready for you to sign," he directs to Tsume.

"So it would," Tsume looks down at the girl. "Do you wish to take my clan's name?"

"Can I?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't want you to have it," she tells the girl. She gets a happy squeal and with a wince she takes that as a yes. "Inuzuka Oretzi," she says out loud to try it. Or-eh-tee, not a bad name despite the fact that she has no idea what it means. "Has a ring to it, don't you think so?" she questions the Hokage.

"Certainly does," he agrees, his eyes darting down to the girl currently clinging to Tsume. It was amusing that the eight year old girl was perhaps seven inches shy of the woman's height and yet behaving like she was more than half her height. Tsume will not be pleased that her new found daughter will be taller than her - much like Hana. Oh he will love to see that discovery when Oretzi gets older.

"Kuromaru," Tsume starts when she notices what the Hokage was subtly telling her, "please take Oretzi-chan out to a park or some place."

_"Why not the compound?"_

"I rather introduce her to the children before they happen upon her," was Tsume's only answer. Kuromaru nods his head before jerking his head to the door, signaling for Oretzi to follow. She quickly releases Tsume and practically skips out of the office with Kuromaru right by her side. "She's certainly energetic," she comments when she sees the exasperated look on her companion's face just before he leaves.

"So, where's that paperwork?" she questions before she notices a tired look on the Hokage's face. "What else is there for me to know?" she asks, taking a seat in front of him, keeping the Matron to her right.

* * *

Kuromaru sits near one of the benches, next to the girl who was looking at him expectantly. He endures the stare for as long as he could before finally sighing. _"Why will not you play with the other children?"_

"Matron never let me," Oretzi answers. "I can hurt people easily," she explains as if it was a matter of a fact.

_"Just how strong are you?"_ he questions. He gets a halfhearted shrug. He sighs as he drops his head half an inch. _"Do you even want to play?"_

"Of course!" Oretzi pouts at him. "I'm a puppy, Kuromaru!"

_"Somehow I get the impression you would still play even after you grow out of your puppyhood,"_ Kuromaru comments drily, getting a giggle from the girl. He scans the children playing in the park before locating a pink haired girl with green eyes and a blonde girl with blue eyes. _"How about you play with them?"_ he questions, jerking his head in their direction.

Oretzi looks in the direction he indicated before looking at him. "Huh?"

_"You know… play?"_

"I know how to play!"

Kuromaru looks at her oddly, suddenly remembering that the girl grew up for five years with wolf demons. And apparently the Matron never allowed her to play with the other children before. What if her definition of play is different from others? _"Have you ever played with other children?"_ He gets a firm headshake that indicated no so he sighs. So maybe this wasn't a good idea after all. _"I have half the mind to let you play with a litter of puppies,"_ he mutters as he stands.

"There's puppies?" the girl asks as she scrambles to her feet, her eyes eager.

_"You know puppies better than you do children,"_ he comments as he leads her past the girls he had pointed out earlier.

"Wow," he hears the pink haired girl say, "she looks like Kiba-kun."

"Do you think she's from the Inuzuka clan?" the blonde asks her friend.

"Maybe?"

He thinks over their conversation as he pauses, his head turning to look at Oretzi. She does look like Kiba, despite her only connection to Hana and Kiba is their father. She could easily pass as Tsume's daughter with their wild hair. He hasn't had a good chance to look at her canines but from what he can see she even has the elongated nails common among the Inuzuka clan members. Her eyes, however, are like Hana, lacking in the slits that can be found in most of the other members. It is like she is a curious blend of Hana and Kiba when it comes to her appearance. _"You sure you do not want to play?"_

"I want to, Kuromaru, but I'll just hurt them…" Oretzi had followed his gaze to the girls again and jerked her face away when she realizes that they're looking back. Kuromaru couldn't help but be amused that she is shy. So he walks around and butts his head against the girl, forcing her to walk towards the two girls. "Kuromaru, no!" Oretzi protests but with one last push she falls onto her knees in front of the two girls with a vivid blush on her tanned face.

"Hi," the pink haired girl says shyly, waving at the young Oretzi - partially hidden by the blue eyed blonde.

"I'm Yamanaka Ino and this is my friend, Haruno Sakura," the blonde introduces themselves.

"I'm Ka-," Oretzi starts before getting nudged by Kuromaru. She looks at him in confusion.

_"Not anymore,"_ he says as a way of explaining when he notices that his one eyed look wasn't coming across properly.

"What?"

He sighs and shakes his head. _"Inuzuka,"_ he tells the girl.

"Oh!" Oretzi exclaims as she thumps her fist into her open palm. "Right. I'm Inuzuka Oretzi!" She smiles shyly at the girls, ducking her head as she lace her fingers together in a stubborn effort to keep from instinctively reaching for her tail. Matron Kin had told her to hide her tail but she never said why.

"Oretzi?" Ino mutters, the name coming out as 'Oh-reh-tee', to the girl's horror.

"No," she shakes her head, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. "Or-eh-tee," the girl repeats slowly.

"Or-eh-tee?" Sakura tries this time. She gets a huge wide grin and it is then they get their first glimpse of the girl's elongated canines. Not even Kiba had fangs like hers!

As if sensing their discomfort Oretzi ducks her head down and mumbles an apology, her black boots scuffing the dirt. Ino was the first one to react by pulling the taller girl into a hug. Oretzi, unused to touch in general when she doesn't initiate it, freezes up. Ino pulls away, her hands on the girl's shoulder, and she eyes her for a long moment. "You're going to be like Sakura-chan, ne?" the blonde questions the brunette.

"I don't understand," Oretzi tells her, her head tilted to the side just slightly in a manner that reminds the blonde of a dog.

"Don't worry about it, Oretzi-chan," Ino waves off the question but once again mispronounced the girl's name. She makes to walk back to their game but stopped at the strange whine she heard from the brunette. "Is something wrong Oretzi-chan?"

"My name, you're saying it wrong," the girl pouts in a manner that is strangely like a puppy dog pout.

"Is it really that bad?"

"It has a different meaning when you say it like that."

"Really?" Sakura says in surprise. She couldn't remember ever encountering the name before.

"Yah-huh. It's unique to my pack," Oretzi tells them. "Mama named me as Oretzi, her little savior."

"But if you say it as 'oh-reh-tee'…?"

"It means destroyer," she informs them grimly. Ino's eyes go wide in shock as Sakura turns to her.

"You need to learn how to say it right!" Sakura exclaims loudly and Ino starts practicing, mangling the name even more with every repetition if that was possible.

Nearby sat Kuromaru, amused and concerned by the scene. Amused because the pup has the two girls practicing to pronounce her rather odd and interesting name. Concerned because the pup's mother is a demon, a full blooded one. All demons know that there are meanings behind names so for the child to have such an important name with two different meanings - pronunciations be damned - he knew that something must be up.

He'll have to get Tsume to check what the abilities of the Hokou are. Because if the Hokou could predict the future then they need to dedicate as much time as possible to teach the girl everything she might need to save the world - and hopefully not destroy it.

_"Pup,"_ he calls out to the girl, _"I believe that your name is currently out of Ino-chan's ability to pronounce."_ The girl pouts and whines, getting dual coos from the two girls that has her blushing. _"Do you have any other name that they can use?"_

"Maybe my last name?"

"You don't call friends by their last name!" Ino exclaims loudly with Sakura timidly nodding her head next to the blonde.

"What about my old one?"

"Nope!"

Oretzi stares blankly at the girls before looking at Kuromaru. "I don't have a nickname! Stalks the Night always called me Pup or Oretzi if she's mad at me!"

"Puppy-chan?" Ino tries, considering it as it rolls off her tongue.

"No, not puppy-chan!" Oretzi whines but unfortunately it was too late. Ino had found a name for the wild girl.

"C'mon, puppy-chan! We're playing House."

"House?" Oretzi forgot about the horrible nickname as she wonders closer to the girls, curious. Eventually, after getting the concept explained to her she was labeled as 'father' and Ino was the 'mother'. Sakura, for some reason Oretzi couldn't fathom, was to be their 'daughter'.

By this point Kuromaru was laughing, loudly and Oretzi kept scowling at the wolfish-dog.

* * *

When Tsume finally arrives in search for Kuromaru and Oretzi she happened onto the scene where Ino, Sakura, and Oretzi are still playing house and Kuromaru is supporting a bump on his head. She questions him about that but gets the silent treatment. Unable to get anything out of him she redirects her attention to the children. She watches Oretzi's interaction with Ino and Sakura, amused by the child's shyness when Ino becomes affectionate towards her.

"Oretzi-chan," she calls out to the girl when she notes that the pink haired girl is feigning sleep.

"Okaa-san," Oretzi greets cheerfully, bounding over to her to hug her. Tsume smiles fondly at her, ruffling the wild hair. She wasn't expecting to be called that title any time soon but found that she liked it.

"Did you have fun?"

"Yah-huh. Ino-chan and Sakura-chan are nice," the girl says cheerfully. Tsume was relieved that the girl had fun.

"Maybe we can arrange for another day for you to play."

"Aw, we have to go?" Tsume was given the full puppy dog pout and she nearly gave in. Until she remembered why she couldn't.

"I thought you might want to meet your Aneki and Aniki." She thinks back to the scroll and approximate age and realized that her son is actually younger than Oretzi. "Er, I mean Otouto."

"Aneki and Aniki?"

She didn't catch the flash of confusion at the words. "No, Aneki and Otouto."

The girl looks confusedly at the wild woman. She looks at Ino and Sakura who have wandered closer to them. "Do you know what an aneki, aniki, and otouto is?" she asks them.

Ino giggles into her hands while Sakura smiles at the clueless brunette. "It's not a what, it's a 'who'," Sakura tells her. "They mean big sister, big brother, and little brother."

"Oooh… Like how okaa-san means mother?" she asks the brilliant girl.

"Hai. Like how I called you otou-san and Ino okaa-san," Sakura explains.

"That makes sense," Oretzi mutters.

Kuromaru and Tsume were amused by the conversation and at the same time Tsume couldn't help but wonder just what is her daughter's level of skill with their language?

"Hey, puppy-chan," Ino suddenly says, looking seriously at Oretzi - prompting another whine from the girl. "Can I call you ane-chan?"

"Ane-chan?" It sounded like aneki but without the 'ki' part.

"Same meaning as aneki," Sakura supplies, looking at her friend in confusion.

"Oh… why?" she directs the question at Ino. Tsume, by this point has chosen to just sit herself and watch this interaction play itself out. Out of the corner of her eye she can see Inoichi and Kizashi approaching them and realizes that they are probably intending to pick up their children.

"Because! You're older than us!" Ino says like it is the most obvious thing in the world. "You can be our big sister! Our ane-chan!"

"You promise not to use puppy-chan ever again?" Oretzi asks warily, hoping to never hear that nickname again.

"Aw but I liked using it. I was gonna call you puppy-ane."

"Puppy big sister?" Oretzi and Sakura asks her with incredibility

"It could use some work," Ino admits. They nod their heads in agreement at that. "Please puppy-chan?"

Oretzi shudders at the nickname. "Okay," she sighs, giving in. "But no one else but you two," she points a mock stern finger at them in imitation of Ino's father. Not that she ever met him. Ino had told her to do that when she wants to get a point across while they were playing House. "I don't want anyone else to call me puppy-chan. So call me ane-chan around everyone else." She gives Ino a look, "Please get my name right one day Ino-chan."

"Hai, ane-chan," Ino giggles before hugging the taller girl. Sakura giggles and hugs them both.

Sensing the end of that amusing conversation the three parents step forward to retrieve their kids. "Time to go, Oretzi-chan," Tsume says as she ruffles the girl's hair. "Say goodbye to your sisters."

"Bye Ino-chan, Sakura-chan," she tells them, hugging them both individually and left them with a kiss on the forehead.

"Bye Ane-chan!" they call out in chorus before running away with giggles.

Tsume takes Oretzi's hand and Kuromaru walks on the other side, effectively shielding the girl from the people. Instincts drove them to protect the young. "Did you have fun?" Tsume asks Oretzi.

"Hai! Ino-chan is really fun! But she's really bossy too. She says that all okaa-sans act like that but I think it's just her," she rambles. "But then again Stalks the Night was really strict. She liked her rules and order." She falls silent as she consider this.

"What about Sakura-chan?" Tsume prompts.

"Saku-chan is really shy," Oretzi exclaims as she reaches over to touch Kuromaru's fur, running over along his back. "Ino-chan told me that she was bullied before they became friends." At that information a growl radiates from the trio, the loudest not coming from Kuromaru but from the new addition to their Clan.

Tsume quickly kneels and turns Oretzi to her. She wanted to tell the girl to be careful about how much of her inner beast gets out but instead she her first glimpse of the possible doujutsu mentioned in the scroll when she sees the pair of glowing golden eyes. She kneels there, caught in an illusion of slightly younger Sakura crying alone, shunned and bullied because of her large forehead. It became worse when she attempted to hide her forehead behind her bangs until Ino intervened with a red ribbon. Her heart almost broke at the wrenching sobs, the loneliness radiating from the girl.

Until she is bumped by Kuromaru and her eyes finally leaves Oretzi. The scent filling her nose alerts her to the fact that it is her companion and she curls her fingers in his fur. She touches her cheek and it came away wet. Startled she looks at her hand to find that it is wet with tears. "What happened?" she questions softly, confused.

"I'm sorry okaa-san!" Oretzi throws her arms around Tsume's neck. "Matron Kin told me to never look people in the eyes. That I can make them lose their senses!"

Tsume blinks her eyes before looking at the puzzled ninken. "Come, we best get back to the compound. This is not for public to know," she finally says as she pries the girl from her neck. She offers her hand to Oretzi in show of no hard feelings. However, she made a note to speak with the Hokage regarding the fact that the suspected doujutsu might have something to do with illusions. She didn't need to look at her daughter's eyes to know that they have returned to their dark brown color. The only thing that she can think of that is remotely similar is the Sharingan with its ability to cast extremely strong genjutsu and create a world within the victim's mind - the Tsukuyomi if she recalls it right.

If Oretzi could develop the doujutsu to whichever path it will go into she may prove useful to the Torture Squad or even the Anbu. She was not pleased with that thought. She would rather have Oretzi developing her skills as a possible hunter than joining something like the Torture squad or the Anbu. She has seen what happened to those who spend their lives torturing people for information, getting tortured. All that blood on them damages them in the end, distorts their sense of being.

She looks at the eight year old and somehow could see her nearly twenty years old. Her eyes blank as she stares at her, old blood and death staining the brunette's hands. How is it any worse than being a typical Shinobi? No, she could not direct the girl down to a different path if she ever choses to serve her village under Ibiki's guidance.

"Okaa-san?" the girl's voice snaps Tsume out of her thoughts. "Who are my aneki and otouto?"

"Your aneki is my daughter, Inuzuka Hana. She's four years older than you and your otouto-kun. She has the Haimaru Sankyodai as her companions," Tsume explains.

"Haimaru Sankyodai?"

_"They are triplets. The name quite literally translates into The Three Grey Full Circle Brothers,"_ Kuromaru explains.

"Oh…" the girl mutters something that has Tsume and Kuromaru staring at her blankly. "Uh… Stalks the Night told me once that pups that look exactly like one another are good luck."

"… How did you learn our language, Oretzi-chan?" Tsume finally asks, curious.

"Stalks the Night knew some words. I learned what food, water, eat, sleep meant long before I joined the orphanage. She also taught me some manners." Oretzi rubs her neck with a sheepish look. "I keep forgetting them though. Wolves have no need for manners. We are what we are." She tilts her head as she thinks about the pack. "Matron Kin had to put me alone a lot because I keep forgetting my manners." She didn't notice the spike of aggressiveness from Tsume but she did notice Kuromaru's hackles rising. "Hey, what's wrong?" she asks, running a smoothing hand over the black and grey tone dog.

_"Do not worry,"_ is his only reply, causing her to frown at him. She could sense his anger but after scratching at the spot behind his ear she drops the subject and looks down at the ground.

Tsume was going to let the pup stay quiet until she recalls that there was two parts to her question. "Your otouto," she starts, catching her newfound daughter's attention once again, "is my son, Inuzuka Kiba. He's actually only a few months younger than you. He has Akamaru has his companion."

The group were silent for the rest of the trip and Oretzi looked up only when Tsume stops. When she sees the Inuzuka clan mark she reaches instinctively for the necklace in her pocket only to realize that she had given it to the Hokage. She frowns briefly before something dangles in front of her.

Her eyes take a second to focus on it but she almost instantly recognizes it as the necklace her father left her. "Looking for this?" Tsume teases her before giving it over. "Sarutobi-sama gave it to me when he realized he still had it."

"Thank you, okaa-san." She smiles as she slips the necklace into her pocket.

_"Why do not you wear it?"_ Kuromaru questions, finally speaks up.

"Matron Kin said I have to earn the right to wear it." Kuromaru bared his fangs briefly in anger at the elderly woman, wishing she was nearby so he can do something to her for her idiocy. She has limited the pup a great deal with the 'do' and 'do not'.

Tsume is right beside him with that line of thinking so she crouches down to look Oretzi in the eye. "You are no longer under Matron Kin's responsibility. Her rules do not apply here." She could see the hesitation in the girl despite her words. "You may wear the pendant," she tells her, "And I wish for you to wear the Inuzuka markings." She gestures to the red fang-like markings on her own face.

"Really?" the excitement in Oretzi's voice could not be hidden and Kuromaru, standing behind her, could see the subtle movement under the trench coat.

"You are part of my clan now, Oretzi-chan. That means you will be raised like you were never born outside our compound," she smiles at her as the girl starts to bounce in place. Kuromaru is amused as the movement under the coat becomes just a bit more pronounced. "Now, let's go and meet your kyoudai," Tsume exclaims as she throws open the doors to the compound.

"Kyoudai?"

_"Your older sister and younger brother,"_ Kuromaru explains before he bounds through the doors, leaving Tsume and Oretzi.

"…Okaa-san?"

"Hai?"

"Aneki and Otouto… they'll accept me… won't they?" Tsume looks at her in surprise. She hadn't expected to meet an insecure side of the girl.

"Your aneki will hit your otouto if he misbehaves," she tells the girl, not mentioning that Kiba misbehaves quite a lot. "But they will both accept you. Just give them time if they don't outwardly show it."

"Hai okaa-san." But it didn't change the quiet reservation that the girl has now fallen into. Tsume simply rests a hand at her back, right between the shoulder blades, and gently leads her into the compound.

* * *

Tsume leads Oretzi into the living room, motioning for her to take a seat on one of the couches and wait for her. Oretzi looks around nervously, her eyes wide as she studies her surroundings. The living room is simple but quite comfortable. The space is furnished with a couch, a loveseat, and a recliner - all of which pressed up against the walls. There is a simple coffee table loaded with books. She picks up one of the books and squints at the title. She couldn't read anything it said but she could tell by the dog eared pages and the underlined sentences. She puts the book in her lap, flipping through the pages. She found illustrations of dogs and when she looks closely she sees the bones. Several other illustrations showed organs and such. There was also a page on different breeds.

She was so intent on studying the images that she missed the fact that someone walked into the room until she felt someone standing just a bit to her right, from behind. Looking up from the book caused her to realize that there is an older girl standing at the entrance into the room.

Her long dark brown hair somehow straightened with just a few wild curls escaping the cruel confinement of the low ponytail she had wrangled it into. Her dark brown eyes eerily similar to the dark brown eyes her okaa-san has but she doesn't have the same slits as her. She even has the same red fang marking on her cheeks. Oretzi realizes that whoever this person is, she is part of the Inuzuka clan too.

"Who are you?" the older girl questions, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. Oretzi's eyes widen in alarm and she scurries away from the couch, her back rigid as she moves away from the girl. Startled the other girl doesn't move from the entrance, having not expected such a reaction from the smaller girl.

"Hana, don't you dare scare her!" they hear Tsume holler from some part of the main house. Oretzi looks towards the sound, pass the older girl, before ducking her head, her bangs covering her face.

Hana, the older girl, studies the smaller girl. She had the appearance of an Inuzuka, with her wild brown hair, elongated nails. She didn't see her canines yet but she can already tell that the girl doesn't have the typical slits in her eyes, much like herself. She compares the girl's wild hair to her brother's and nearly had a laugh as she realizes that the girl's hair trumps his. In fact, it was honestly close to the hairstyle her own mother supports - not that it is really a style.

She looks down when she feels someone brush pass her legs and sees it is Kuromaru. The black ninken walks over to the girl and hops onto the couch to lay his large head in her lap, nearly dwarfing her legs. "Hello, Kuromaru," she greets the ninken. Once she has his attention she raise an eyebrow at him in silent question of what is going on. He just turns his head away from her and nudge the girl's hand, getting an immediate neck scratch.

"Hana-chan, do you know what okaa-chan wanted us for?" she hears her brother asks, with an accompanying questioning from Akamaru.

"No clue, otouto-kun," she tells him, affectionately rubbing Akamaru's head.

"Well, c'mon. She said to go to the living room. Don't know why you're standing outside the room like an idiot," he says as he moves to get pass her. She tries to stop him but the stunned look on his face tells her that she didn't succeed and she steps back to let this play out. "Who are you!" he cries in outrage, causing the girl in the living room to try and scramble back. Hana and Kiba stare at the scared girl, unsure how to take her reaction but Kuromaru gave them a one eyed glare that has them ducking their heads in union.

Except Kuromaru's heavy weight had quite effectively pinned her down.

"Kuromaru!" she whines at the large dog, trying to wiggle her way out from underneath him.

_"They are your kyoudai, pup,"_ he states calmly.

"But-but," she stutters.

_"No buts,"_ he tells her.

"He doesn't want me here, Kuromaru," she whines softly.

_"Has he said those words?"_

"It was in his tone of voice!"

The two of them begin squabbling over that while Hana and Kiba's mother come up from behind him. She immediately grips them by the back of their necks, causing them to yelp loudly. "What do you think you're doing, scaring your sister!" she demands of them as she marches them into the room and forcing them to sit on the couch opposite of Oretzi and Kuromaru.

_**Whoo. Lots of Japanese words flying around here *is wearing a metal strainer for a helmet* I think I translated as I was going but if you need me to clear up any confusion lemme know. Also, I'm not an avid speaker so most of my knowledge comes from the internet. So any mistakes? *points at the websites* Not my fault if they're faulty. Anyway, lemme know what ya'll think!**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Hello folks! I dunno if ya'll are interested in this story but I sorta got a fan (XxcandichanxX) who somehow managed to claim Oretzi-chan as her imouto. So I feel obligated to post this chapter for her. Ya'll know the drill. I don't own Naruto except for the characters you do not recognize. **_

_** Chapter 3**_

"Wait, what?" the Inuzuka siblings shout, causing Oretzi to flinch again. Tsume smacks them both on the head, causing Kiba to double over with a whine while Hana rubs the back of her head.

"It's a valid question okaa-san. I mean, you weren't pregnant or anything and I highly doubt that even you can give birth to a girl almost in her teens."

"She's actually only eight years old," Tsume corrects. Hana was surprised, she hadn't expected to see the tall gangly girl to be her otouto-kun's age.

"But she's so tall!" Kiba protests, perhaps three inches shorter than the girl truthfully.

"And she might get taller," Tsume professes as she ruffles the girl's already wild hair. She gets a whine from the girl as she ducks her head, shielding her hair from further ruffling. "In any case she is your father's daughter," she goes on to explain, causing three heads to turn to her.

"My otou-san was your partner?" Oretzi asks bluntly, getting a slight wince from the older woman.

"Hai, he was."

"Wait, wait," Hana calls, leaning forward as she studies Oretzi and her mother. "You mean to tell me that otou-san had an affair with someone? He cheated on you?" The anger was just barely audible in Hana's voice, hinted at by the low growl emanating from her chest.

"No, he didn't cheat on me…" Tsume turns to look at the girl. "Can you remove your trench coat?"

"But okaa-san…" Oretzi protests weakly, worried about what they would think when they see her tail.

"If they say or do anything I will punish them. You are part of our clan now, Oretzi-chan," Tsume reassures her. Oretzi nods her head slowly, almost reluctant to accept her words at face value but willing to do what she is told to do.

Kuromaru slides off of Oretzi's lap and the girl stands to remove the trench coat. The black material slid off her arms and - holding the jacket with one hand - she turns partially to reveal what the coat has been hiding.

Hana and Kiba gape at the slim tail about the length of Oretzi's arm. Akamaru, looking out from his perch in Kiba's jacket, sees the tail and hops out of Kiba's jacket. He bounds over to Oretzi and hops at her. Startled she catches him and looks down at him. He barks a few times at her and she giggles.

"No, I'm not a big she-dog," Oretzi informs the puppy. "My okaa-san is a wolf demon though." Akamaru's eyes widen slightly and he barks something. "I don't know," she answers, looking thoughtful as a result of his question.

"Akamaru, come back over here," Kiba calls for him, unwilling to let him stay so close to the hanyou. What he didn't expect was for Akamaru to tell him that he likes her.

"So that's your name?" Oretzi asks the puppy, scratching the top of his head. She gets a confirming bark from him. "Such a cute name!" she hugs him, giggling.

"Wait, so… she's eight… born from a wolf demon… Ooh, the gestation cycle is different from humans so she was conceived after otou-san left but born before Kiba," Hana rationalizes, getting a nod from Kuromaru and Tsume and a puzzled look from both Kiba and Oretzi. "Don't worry about it," she tells Oretzi and Kiba. Kiba nods his head in acceptance while Oretzi pouts at her. "You're missing the ears for that to be effective," she tells the younger girl when she recognizes the puppy dog pout.

Oretzi immediately touches the top of her head with a whine, suddenly looking smaller than before. "I want my ears back," she whines as she plops down onto the floor. Her tail thumps on the floor in a rhythm that signals her unhappiness of this.

"Wait, what?" the four looks at the newest member of their family.

"Matron Kin. She had her friend hide my ears," Oretzi explains.

"And he didn't hide everything else?" Hana questions in disbelief.

"Not the best genjutsu user in the world. Anyone walking near me would have felt my tail, even with a genjutsu cast over it," Oretzi explains, having had overheard him explain this to the elderly woman. Her tail continues thumping, still signaling her unhappiness over the matter of her missing ears.

"Mm…" Tsume forms the right hand signs and mutters 'Kai'. There is a small 'poof' of smoke that surrounds the young girl.

Coughing and sneezing Oretzi waves her hands to dispel the smoke, revealing her full hanyou form to her new family.

Perched on the top of her head is a pair of black wolf-like ears with white tuffs at the tips. She reaches up and touches them before smiling and hopping up with a cheer. She does a dance that has Tsume and Kuromaru smiling at the display.

In addition to revealing the girl's ears the dispelling of the genjutsu revealed even more features that were not seen before. Her mostly human visage have now been replaced by a near perfect blend of both heritages. The girl's canines, both top and bottom, have elongated a bit more than before. Her skin have lightened a shade and they can, with the coat now draped across the back of the couch, see black markings twisting up her right arm, vanishing into the sleeve of the girl's shirt. When she reached up to touch her ears the shirt had followed up, revealing a pale strip of skin covered with even more dark markings similar to the ones on her ears. The sight of the markings worried Kuromaru the most, having a sense of worry that those markings mean something.

"I got my ears back!" she cheers before hugging Tsume, her tail wagging excitedly. Hana couldn't hold back the smile at the girl's antics while Kiba scowls. "Thanks okaa-san!"

"Yeah, things should be interesting with you around," Hana comments as she eases herself up from the bed, going over to Oretzi who still held Tsume as her tail stills. Tsume pries herself free from Oretzi's hug and before the girl can do anything Hana scoops her up into a hug. "Welcome to our family, imouto-chan."

"Imouto-chan?" Oretzi asks in confusion, her voice muffled by Hana's shoulder.

_"Similar to otouto. But has the meaning of little sister,"_ Kuromaru explains. He gets an understanding 'oh' from the girl before she hugs Hana back with a happy giggle.

The only one who probably wasn't showing any happiness about this was probably Kiba. He immediately stomped out of the room, almost alone because Akamaru looked back and forth between his master and the strange girl-puppy.

"I'll see you later, Akamaru," Oretzi tells him, having shifted her weight just enough to see the white/brown puppy's actions. The pup barks at her once before running after Kiba. She then shifts her weight to look at Hana, who is still holding her up. "Aneki-chan?" she starts.

"Hai?"

Oretzi just shakes her head and smiles. "I'm glad you're my ane-chan," she tells the older girl before hugging her. Hana couldn't stop the smile that appeared on her face as she hugs her tighter.

"The feeling is mutual, imouto-chan," Hana whispers, looking at their mother. She could see the proud look on Tsume's face as she sets her sister down on the floor. "Let's go and pick out a room for you."

"Hai ane-chan."

* * *

Within the month that has passed since Oretzi's adoption into the clan, Hana has been working with the younger girl to strengthen her skills with the language. In addition to helping her grasp the language she helped with her reading as well. Since Tsume and Kuromaru are often away on missions. Kiba, because of his general dislike for the opposite sex, has been avoiding Oretzi like the plague. Akamaru and the Haimaru Sankyodai, however, enjoyed her company and are often lounging around her or playing with her. The larger dogs, the triplets, were reluctant at first to play rough with her, with their heavier weight but when she proved capable of holding her own with them all gloves were off.

In the span of a month Oretzi's height now borderlines five feet and with the steady supply of meals she has packed on more weight. In some ways the amount of food she eats reminds Tsume and Hana of the Akimichi clan without the increase in size. If anything Oretzi's weight gain was a slow uphill battle for the Inuzuka clan once they discovered several malnourishment issues within her. Even now they have to make sure that she takes her pills - something she despises - and not overdo it with her activities.

"Oretzi-kun!" Hana shouts, looking for her little sister. The girl had vanished after breakfast and it seemed like the all of the ninkens have vanished with her. She even whistled for her own companions but none of them answered. "Oretzi!"

When it becomes obvious that her little sister wasn't anywhere on the compound - for no matter where she was she can always hear someone calling for her - Hana leaves in search for the missing girl. Where she could have gone she had no idea. With her own companions missing as well she decides to trust her nose and see where it leads her.

It doesn't take long for her track the scent of her sister to a local playground. She was not amused when she found that her companions, the Haimaru Sankyodai, are watching over Oretzi, Akamaru, and several other ninkens. But when she sees that her little sister is playing with two other girls, a blonde and a girl with pink hair, she decides not to be too harsh on her companions.

"So… is there a reason why all of the kennel dogs left the compound?" Hana questions. One of the triplets look at her.

_"When the pup expressed a desire to meet with Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura the pack decided as one to escort the pup and to keep her safe."_

Hana sighs, leaning back as she considers what she was told. After Oretzi was brought into the family Tsume had sat her down to have a talk with her about her hanyou status. While it is dangerous for her to wonder about with her demonic visage out it was doubly so to try and hide them. So they, as in the Hokage and Tsume, had agreed that it is best she does not try to hide her tail and ears. To never travel alone until she learns how to defend herself.

While she's not happy that no one told her about going to the park she is glad that her little sister is taking her life seriously. "Next time," she starts, "I would appreciate being informed of this."

_"Our apologies,"_ one of the triplets say to her. Hana simply scratches his head as she keeps her senses on their surroundings, amused by the game the trio of girls are playing.

* * *

"Okaa-san!" Oretzi protests, her arms thrown stubbornly across her chest. The eight years old girl was not happy with the prospect Tsume had proposed to her. Who would?

"Oretzi, you said you want to be a shinobi, right?"

"Hai."

"Well, you need to go to the academy and in order to attend to the academy we need to get you geared up," Tsume concludes, getting another protesting pout from her daughter.

"What's wrong with the way I look now?" Oretzi and Tsume looks at her outfit.

At the moment she is currently clad in shorts that ends just pass her knees - with a large enough opening for her tail - and a short sleeveless shirt that exposes her midriff in a manner too old for her. Apparently the fabrics of the clothes are too restraining for the young girl and she prefers to have as less material on her as possible. Tsume didn't want to consider what she may have worn while with the wolves, or perhaps the lack of.

"You're not dressed in Shinobi clothes," Tsume tells her, gesturing to her own outfit.

Oretzi studies her for a moment before shaking her head. "Nah-huh, those aren't hanyou friendly." Tsume crosses her arms stubbornly as she eyes her daughter, who is nearly her own height.

"There's no shops here that are hanyou friendly," Tsume reminds her. "Those shorts you're wearing? We had to modify them. We can do that with the clothes we will buy for you."

"They're still not hanyou friendly, okaa-san."

"What else do we need to consider aside from your tail?" Tsume questions with a sigh.

"My youki would destroy these clothes within a week," Oretzi answers her, picking at the shirt she is wearing. "I already destroyed half of my wardrobe practicing some of the jutsu Hana-oneesan was working on."

"You were practicing with Hana-chan?" When Oretzi ducks her head down she has to groan quietly into her hand as she realizes what the girl was doing. "How did you even manage to learn how to mold your chakra?"

"Stalks the Night taught me how to mold my youki," Oretzi confesses. "But I don't know how to use my chakra." Tsume sighs as she runs her hand through her hair, thinking.

"And your youki destroys your clothes?"

"Hai."

"… Well, I suppose we better go visit the Hokage and see what he thinks we should do. I'm sure Konoha would not appreciate you running around naked," Tsume says as she turns to walk out of the house, pausing only to grab Oretzi when she tries to sneak away.

"Aw, but okaa-san!" Oretzi tries to protest as she is half carried, half dragged out of the house with Kuromaru joining them at the exit.

_"Don't make such a fuss, pup. We're going to train you to be the best shinobi this village has ever seen,"_ Kuromaru tells her as she crosses her arms stubbornly, still dragging her feet with Tsume holding the collar of her shirt.

"But I don't want new clothes!"

_"You're going to need weapons too, pup. What good is a shinobi without weapons?"_

"I thought shinobi uses whatever they get their hands on?"

_"Well, it is good to know how to turn anything in your hands into a weapon. Yet it is still good to learn how to use kunai, shuriken, and wires."_

"I hate shopping," is Oretzi's only response. Kuromaru sniggers as they reached the heart of the problem. The pup's newfound hatred for shopping, a direct result of Hana's influence when she took Oretzi shopping for clothes. Needless to say she developed a hatred for shopping and would usually disappear whenever there is any kind of shopping to be done - especially with Hana apparently.

* * *

Sarutobi blinks and rubs the bridge of his nose as he tries to process the information that has been unloaded upon him by Inuzuka Tsume and her daughter, Oretzi. "So… we need to find something that is youki proof?" he questions to confirm this. Oretzi nods her head, sitting in her chair with a solemn look on her face. Once again he was struck with the notion that she is older than her years with such an expression on her face. "I'm not aware if there is anything that can tolerate the punishment the youki can dish out."

"Er…" the adults and ninken look at the young girl when she made that sound. "There's a… neutral territory for all demons." She doesn't look up from her lap. "It's dangerous for humans and doubly so for hanyous… but there's a plant that adapted to the presence of the youki and… well…"

_"You mean to say that this plant can absorb the youki?"_ Kuromaru asks.

"Not absorb. But it makes it hard to destroy anything made from the plant. If the clothes are treated by the plant it'll make it difficult for me to destroy them with my youki."

_"But you said that it's dangerous for humans and hanyous to go to this area?"_

"Hai."

Sarutobi sighs and strokes his beard. "I suppose it cannot be helped then. Until we find something that can resist the damaging aspects of your youki we'll just have to stock up on outfits for you," he tells her.

"I can ask one of the pack to visit the area," Oretzi volunteers.

This surprises the adults for they were under the impression that the wolf pack she grew up with had severed all ties with her when they left her at Phoenix. "Pup, didn't the pack leave you at the orphanage?" Tsume questions her.

"Well, yeah, they did. But I know how to get in touch with them. It's quite simple really," Oretzi answers, her face morphing into a thoughtful expression that still made her older than her years.

"What exactly is this method?"

Oretzi smiles at him. "It's the Howl."

"The Howl?" they blink at her while Kuromaru nods his head in realization.

"Hai. All wolves know the Howl." She pauses briefly, crossing her arms as she thinks. "I'll try getting them tonight," she mutters softly before staying quiet for the rest of the conversation.

Tsume sighs and tells Kuromaru to take Oretzi home, deciding to stay with the Hokage for the time being and discuss a few things with him.

Oretzi, not really interested in the prospect of listening to their conversation, is eager to leave the Tower. She chatters with Kuromaru as they leave the office and shuts the door behind them to give the adults some privacy.

"Kuromaru, can we go to the park?" Oretzi asks him, bouncing on the balls of her bare feet. Even now, after living with the Inuzuka clan - and her time with Matron Kin - they could not convince the pup to wear shoes or sandals. Spending five years with the wolf demon pack has made it difficult for her to adjust to human civilization.

By all means, so close to winter, she should be feeling the cold and yet she still have a lot of her skin showing compared to other children her age. She constantly runs at a high body temperature but when Hana - expressing concern about when the summer heat comes - mentioned this to her Oretzi said that she never runs too hot during the summer.

_"I don't know, pup. Tsume told me to take you home,"_ Kuromaru tells her.

"Aw, Kuromaru," she pouts.

_"We are not going to have a repeat of what happened while your mother and I were gone."_ Oretzi blushes at the reminder of her sister's concern when she and the pack disappeared from the compound. She had gotten a good lecture for leaving without telling her or one of the adults about where she is going. And while the older dogs are adults they are not responsible for her like her mother or sister is.

"But I wanted to see my imouto-chans," Oretzi whines, crossing her arms.

_"There are times I am impressed that you manage to act so much older your age,"_ Kuromaru starts, confusing her into dropping her stance, _"And then you go and act your age."_

"Uh… thanks?" Oretzi mutters, scratching the back of her head in confusion. Then before she could say anything she is scooped up into a hug that made her shriek in surprise.

"Kid!" she hears a semi-familiar voice exclaim before she gets a hard noogie between her wolf ears.

"GAH!" she protests, struggling to get out of the grasp of her 'attacker'. "Anko-san!" she protests while Kuromaru, having sensed the approach of the 'crazy' snake shinobi, sniggers at the scene.

"I thought I told you to call me Anko!" the woman exclaims as she continues to noogie the girl. That is, until Oretzi somehow manages to rearrange and position herself in a way that enables her to grab Anko's wrist with her mouth. The tips of her canines just barely piercing the woman's skin. "Girl, you better not bite. You're too young to develop a kink."

This has Kuromaru gaping at the woman, shocked that he would say something like that around her. _"Have you lost your mind?"_

"Most people think I already have," Anko replies as she flexes her trapped wrist. "You're going to regret that if you try to bite me," she warns the girl when she feels the touch of the girl's fangs. Oretzi starts to say something but whatever she was saying was muffled and Anko winces as she starts to feel the girl's drool. "Oh for Kami's- let me go!" She releases the girl, wincing when the girl's teeth drags across her wrist as gravity pulls her down.

Oretzi coughs and sputters as she moves away from the woman who now has four long scrapes from her teeth. Anko narrows her eyes at the girl who chuckles nervously under the stern look before breaking into a run. Leaving a strange after image in her now vacant spot. Kuromaru blinks, startled at her rapid speed, before following after his young charge with a now irate Anko right behind him.

They chased the young hanyou quite a way across Konoha and they doubted that she would ever stop. That is, until there is a loud cry of pain up ahead that made them run faster than before and when they caught up they found that Oretzi and a boy her age have somehow managed to get themselves stuck, in a large pit. Why the pit was inside Konoha they had no clue but Oretzi was clutching the unconscious boy to her and looking closely at the two children showed that Oretzi has a few scrapes and bumps on her - already healing quite fast thanks to her demonic heritage. The boy - dressed in a hideous orange outfit that looks quite familiar to Anko and Kuromaru - looks far worse than Oretzi. Anko couldn't get a good look at him but she could see that there is an unhealthy amount of blood on him and he even looks like he has a few broken bones.

"Oretzi-kun, are you okay?" Anko asks, an unnecessary question that would only serve to perhaps make the girl feel better.

"Yeah!" the girl cries back up, "But he's not okay!" she looked down at the boy in her arms. "He doesn't feel too good to me!" Anko winces as she took that to mean that he has a fever on top of his injuries.

"How on earth did they get down there? And why the fucking hell is there a pit here?"

"Ooh," they suddenly hear Oretzi say, "Anko-san said a bad word." The woman in question blushes as she realizes her mistake and Kuromaru barks with laughter. The woman's inability to not curse in front of Oretzi has reached legendary proportions and the girl has already earned almost a thousand ryō thanks to Anko. (1)

"Kid, sometimes I wish you didn't have those dog ears of yours," Anko sighs.

"They're not dog ears!" Oretzi protests from below. Anko smirks before crossing her arms as she looks at the ninken next to her.

"How do you suggest we get those two gaki out of there?" she asks.

_"… Kage bunshin?"_

Anko considers it for a moment and looks down the pit for a moment. "That has some merit," she confesses. She kneels down to feel the edge of the pit, finding it too smooth for it to be made by nature. She gathers some of her chakra to her hand and presses her hand against the smooth wall. Almost immediately she found that her chakra has been dispelled. "If it wasn't for the fact that this pit was made to keep their victims from using chakra."

Kuromaru's eye widen at the implication of that. He goes to the edge and looks down at the pup sitting at the bottom. _"Was the boy already in the pit when you fell in?"_ he asks.

"Hai," the girl answers.

The ninken looks at Anko who was scowling angrily at nothing. "Once I get my hands on the no good," she trails off in low mutters before she disappears to get something to help her, leaving Kuromaru to keep the kids company.

"Kuromaru?" he hears Oretzi call out.

_"Hai?"_

"I don't think I like being trapped," he could hear the nervous energy in the girl's voice and realizes belatedly that being stuck in a pit must be like being stuck in a corner or a cage. He looks over the edge of the pit where Oretzi is staring grimly up at the skies above.

_"Anko-san will be back shortly with something to get you and Naruto-kun out of the pit."_

"Naruto-kun?" Oretzi questions before she looks down at the boy in her arms. She briefly recalls Sarutobi-ojii telling her about a boy her age who is punished for a burden he carries within. "So you're him," she mutters as she traces the whisker marks on his cheeks. "Funny… you're not exactly something I'd imagine to be carrying such a big burden," she mutters softly as she leans against the wall, closing her eyes for a nap.

* * *

It took Anko and a friend of hers, Yuhi Kurenai, almost an hour to get Oretzi and Naruto out of the pit. By that point Oretzi's stomach has taken to growling at her since it is now close to lunch time. The second they were out of the pit Naruto's injuries began to close and Oretzi, having developed a sense of need to protect him, held onto him with a near savage glare of warning for anyone who came too close to them.

"Gaki, shut it," Anko sighs when she gets a growl. "I care about Naruto, okay?"

"… Someone tried to kill him," Oretzi mutters as she lets Anko take him away from her.

"What?" Kurenai blinks, her eyes meeting dark brown eyes for the first time.

"There's a scent clinging to him," Oretzi expands. "Someone who smells like…" she pauses to consider this. "Steel, ashes, and…oil." Oretzi tilts her head to the side as she slowly but surely works the scent apart. "The oil smells like… death. Old dead oil that burns the longest." Anko frowns as she starts to draw conclusion from the girl's description of the scent. "Oh," Oretzi blinks, her eyes now sharp and - to Anko's surprise - a bit of gold flickers through them. "There's blood."

"Er, gaki, Naruto's covered in blood."

"I don't mean his. I mean on the steel," Oretzi tells them to their confusion.

"Say that again?"

"The steel. There's a smell of blood clinging to it. That means that the person uses the steel a lot to kill. It doesn't smell like animals though so I think the person is a kenjutsu shinobi user." Anko frowns as she narrows it down to strictly ANBU members.

"I'm going to have to track that person down later," Anko mutters softly, thinking about ensuring that no one does something like this ever again.

"Anko-san?" Oretzi grabs the woman's trench coat. Once she has her attention she frowns. "The smell of ashes… I think the person is a smoker," she mutters before walking away with Kuromaru.

"She can't be talking about Sarutobi Asuma," Kurenai mutters, frowning thoughtfully at the girl's back.

"There's a few other smokers in Konoha," Anko reassures her. "Besides, Asuma knows better than to attack Naruto-kun." A quick look over Naruto's prone form confirms that his broken bones have already healed and any open gashes have begun to close. So she decides that for now, instead of taking him to the hospital or the blonde's apartment she'd take him to her own place. At least then she'd be able to keep an eye on him.

"At the moment only Asuma comes to mind."

Anko looks at her friend for a long moment before averting her eyes, unwilling to ask the question that was starting to burn at the corner of her mind. No, she didn't want to know. Not in the stake of her own sanity.

"So… Who was that girl?" Kurenai asks, effectively changing the subject after at least five minutes of a rather awkward silence hovered over them.

"You haven't met the newest Inuzuka member?" Anko was surprised.

"Should I have?"

Anko sighs. "That was Inuzuka Oretzi - formerly known as Kazama Oretzi, officially adopted into the clan as of two months ago." Kurenai's eyebrows raise up in surprise. "As you already saw she's a hanyou."

"Dog?" Kurenai asks.

"No," Anko shakes her head. "Wolf."

Kurenai's eyebrow shoots up again. "She's a wolf hanyou? But they're rare!" Anko snorted a laugh in agreement. "But why would…"

"That's a story that not even I know," Anko interrupts the question. Having asked it several times herself over the last two months. "But whatever the reason Oretzi-kun have already proven to be a rather amusing entertainment for me."

"You're hoping that you'll be her teacher, aren't you?" Kurenai smirks.

"You would too if you knew what I did." Kurenai narrows her eyes at her friend, suddenly curious to find out what her friend knew. "C'mon, lemme get the gaki situated and we'll start talking," Anko tells her, moving Naruto around in her arms to unlock the door to her apartment.

_**Whoo, that was - in the words of an infamous Nara - troublesome. Let's see... Not much really happened - ne? Mostly a few reveals regarding our little hanyou (like her ears and what her youki does to fabric) Oh and Naru-kun meets Oretzi-chan. Well, maybe meet is the wrong word to use seeing he was unconscious the entire time. Oh well. Please R&R so I know what ya'll think! (PS: If you didn't understand something lemme know and I'll either a) adjust the chapter to make it easier to understand or b) explain it to you via pm)**_

_**Also I realized a little mistake of mine. I left US currency in the chapter when honesty it should be in ****ryō. In any case I'm correcting that error.**_

_******(1) One thousand ****ryō equals 10,000 yen which equals... one hundred dollars. So basically think of it like this. Every time Anko curses Oretzi gets a quarter. So as it stands she earned a hundred US dollars in quarters alone. So that means in about two months alone Anko cursed about... what, four hundred times? (Wowza)**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Here I am with the next chapter! And... if there's a few complaints about what happens in this chapter please leave a review or a pm and I'll get to it (either explaining the reason behind it or make some adjustments) Thanks!**_

_**Chapter 4**_

The moon has been up for quite some time when Oretzi slipped out of her room, swinging herself onto the roof and moving along it to get away from the residential area of the compound. Once she's positive that she's a good distance away without actually leaving the clan's grounds she climbs to the top of an old ancient tree. Gathering her youki to her throat she takes a second to recall those long nights listening to her pack Howl. Communicating with one another over vast distances. The various packs howling with one another across the lands.

She lifts her face to the moon and join her voice to the subliminal voices in the world, directing her words to one particular pack. She gives her message to the pack, praying that they have joined the Song tonight. Because if no one was awake to hear the Howl then she'll have to try another night. She'll have to try again and again until she gets their attention.

"Pup," she hears a deep masculine voice say and she smiles giddily at the familiar gruff term.

_"Alpha!"_ she calls cheerfully, fighting the urge to bounce in her place - a bad idea since she's a good distance from the ground.

"What did you need?" she hears another voice question, recognizing the voice to belong to the Alpha's mate, Stalks the Night.

_"Alpha, Prima,"_ she greets both carefully after wrangling her excitement into submission. _"I know I am no longer part of the pack but I have a request to ask of the Lunar Wolves."_

"Speak and you shall be answered," she hears the alpha tell her, granting her permission to make her request.

_"I am in need of the Monkhood plant found only in the Umbra-land,"_ she makes her case - keeping it simple as they have taught her, adjusting herself so that she is straddling the large branch she's sitting on.

"A dangerous plant in the wrong hands, pup," the Prima, the alpha's mate, states drily.

_"I am aware, Prima. But the Monkhood plant is the only thing that will protect the human clothing from falling to pieces whenever I use my youki."_

She didn't need to be standing in front of the two alpha wolves to know that they were blinking at the concept of human clothing. "I see… and these… clothing," she could hear the alpha's slow hesitation regarding subject, "are important?"

_"The clothes are like what fur is to you,"_ she explains simply. She had never understood that concept until Hana dragged her to the stores. On most occasions, while she was still staying at the orphanage, she ran around wearing almost nothing - despite Matron Kin's attempts to 'civilize' her.

She could feel the mutual 'ah-ha' moment the alpha wolves had. "Very well. Expect the plant within six months."

_"Thank you, Alpha, Prima."_

"Live long, pup," she hears the Prima start.

_"Die well,"_ she concludes the farewells.

She bows her head as she lets the Howl die away before rubbing her throat. The Howl always take a lot out of her, her body not quite made to handle it despite her dual inheritance. With a yawn she climbs down from her perch and make her way back to her room, almost falling straight onto the bed the second she got inside.

_"Silly pup,"_ she hears Kuromaru mutter as he hops onto her bed, curling next to her,_ "One of these days you'll learn not to push yourself so hard."_

"Okay," she mumbles as she wraps her arms around his neck, partially burying her face in his fur. "Good night…"

_"Good night pup."_

* * *

"I can't do it!" Oretzi screams at the top of her lungs, her youki perhaps aiding in that little scream out.

Hana has to cover her sensitive ears at the shout and she winces when she sees what the youki laced shout had done to the landscape. She was just glad they weren't on Inuzuka training ground or else their mother would have them fix the damages. "Oretzi-kun, getting angry isn't going to help."

"Why can't I touch my chakra? I can feel it but I can't use it!" the eight year old scowls, plopping down on the grass, her tail beating a pattern on the ground. Her wolf ears twitching with her irritation.

Anko, having raced over to the training ground at the explosion, drops next to the duo - her hand gripping Oretzi's head. "You mean to tell me that I came all the way here because of you?" The wolf hanyou chuckles nervously at the woman and Hana sighs, rubbing her nose.

"How bad was it?" Hana asks.

"Let's just say that everyone may have heard this one's shouting," Anko tells them and Oretzi sweat-drops with another nervous chuckle.

"Sorry…"

"What seems to be the problem anyway?" Anko asks, deciding that since she's already here she may as well help out. Besides, she doesn't want to have to come back when the girl lets out her frustration again. Being a hanyou really doesn't make it easy for venting one's frustration as she has discovered several times in the four months since the girl joined Konoha.

"Imouto-chan apparently can't use her chakra," Hana explains bluntly, getting a low growl of frustration from the girl.

"… But you can use your youki?" Anko asks in disbelief. She has seen some of the things the girl can do with her youki, in fact - she's looking at one of those examples. Several of the younger - and surprisingly enough older - trees have been partially uprooted. And the girl apparently hadn't even used it intentionally!

"Prima taught me how to use it," is Oretzi's only response.

"Prima?" Hana and Anko blinks at the girl.

"The Alpha's mate, Stalks the Night," Oretzi mutters, already trying to access her chakra again. Anko stays quiet and watch her, sensing the youki and chakra battling it out inside the girl as she reaches for it. She couldn't feel the chakra but she can feel the youki - a rough sensation similar to bark that seems to grate against her skin. At first the chakra seems to respond but then the youki surges forward instead. Anko winces and covers her face when the youki goes out of control and knocks everyone back.

"Ugh!" Oretzi growls angrily and when Anko can see again she is half amused by the fact that the girl's shirt has nearly fallen apart now. She wasn't, however, amused when she realizes that the girl's demonic features have gotten more pronounced in her frustration. It only lasts for a few seconds before fading away back to her usual mix.

"Okay, while I'm no Hyuuga or Uchiha, I have a decent idea what's going on," Anko tells her as she dusts herself off, moving so that she's sitting right across from the girl, their knees touching. "From what it feels like your youki is overriding your attempts to reach for your chakra. Maybe it's because you learned to use it first. Or it could be because it's more potent. I don't know. But whatever the case is I think the best way for you to learn how to use your chakra is to meditate."

Anko has to stifle her laughter when Oretzi groans in exasperation at the prospect of meditating. "Do I have to?" she asks.

"Hai. I think you are instinctively reaching for your youki even though you're trying for your chakra. So by meditating we'll slowly but surely make your body used to accessing both."

Oretzi sighs and nods her head in acceptance. "Okay," she mutters softly. Anko watches her adjust herself, slowly but surely slipping into a trance.

When the girl's breathing evens out the snake woman blinks in surprise, having not expected for her to reach her inner peace so quickly. She snaps her fingers a few times in front of the girl's face before whistling, impressed. "Did you teach her how to meditate?" she asks Hana.

"Nope. Apparently the wolves taught her how to meditate when she was growing up with them. She doesn't do it often," Hana explains, looking up from the scroll she is reading. "But when she does do it… well, there's no chances of anyone disturbing her until she comes out of it on her own."

Anko sighs and rubs her temples. "Okay, when I told her to meditate I didn't mean for her to go so deep that she won't be able to hear me."

"She should still be able to hear you. Just tell her what you want her to do and then sit back," Hana suggests. Anko sighs and leans forward to whisper her instructions to the girl. After that she moved away and started practicing her taijutsu, moving easily through the katas.

Seconds trickled down into minutes which became hours. Oretzi sat there, in her trance, for almost three hours before Anko or Hana saw any changes in her ability use chakra. As the girl pulls out of her meditation the chakra followed her, obeying her with no interference from her youki.

She manipulates the chakra to her hands, smiling to herself in triumph.

"Great job, gaki. Now you can stop destroying your clothes," Anko ruffles Oretzi's hair, smiling at the younger girl.

"Thank you, Anko-sensei," Oretzi beams cheerfully at the woman who stills when her mind realizes what she has been called. "Anko-san?" This manages to get the woman to snap out of her daze and she mock-glares at the young girl.

"Will you ever call me Anko?"

Oretzi just tilts her head in confusion. "But why, isn't it rude?"

Anko sighs and throws her arms up in defeat. "I'm going to the dango shop. I need to satisfy my craving," she says as she walks away.

"Aw, bye Anko-san!" Oretzi says to the woman's back before jumping onto Hana. "Ane-chan, I'm hungry." The older girl sighs, lowering the scroll to look at her little sister.

"Then I suppose we best go feed that bottomless pit of yours, ne?" Hana asks, teasing the girl with small pokes to her belly. Getting the giggles she was aiming for she scoops the girl up, despite the fact that Oretzi isn't that much shorter than herself, and walks off with a whistle and protests from her younger sister.

* * *

Oretzi blinks at the other students, shaking her head when she realizes that she is a bit advanced compare to them. She already knows how to use her chakra, which took her another month of perfecting before she joined the Academy, she has a decent usage of a taijutsu that beats the standard taijutsu the Academy is teaching, and she can already use several high level jutsu techniques- her own sister unaware of this feat. But she found, to her own irritation, that the techniques she picked up are not something she can use without a ninken partner. Well, she can but they're more affective with one.

As a result she managed to alienate herself from the other students. It doesn't help that her otouto-kun is in the class too but doesn't want to be associated with her. Akamaru, unable to be with both his Master and his favorite 'she-dog', has to stay with Kiba but every once awhile he would talk with her whenever Kiba gets in trouble with their sensei.

The only ones whom she is actually close to are her imouto-chans, except now they're 'rivals' with each other. A fact that saddens her a great deal when she watches their interactions with one another. Haruno Sakura, still a brilliant girl, has become absorbed in her attempts to win over the attention of a certain emo looking boy with chicken butt hair. Yamanaka Ino didn't look that absorbed in winning his affections and sometimes Oretzi can see the sadness lingering in the blonde's eyes, making her wish she could do something to help them. But she didn't know what to do as an outsider looking in. She can see that Uchiha, the boy whom Sakura-chan is infatuated with, has a cold indifference towards everyone - including their sensei. His attitude left a bitter taste in her mouth, especially when she saw how he is treating her sisters. It made her want to give him such a thrashing he'll have no idea what to do.

Not even six whole months have passed since Oretzi met Sakura and Ino and it broke her heart to see her sisters 'fighting' over the Uchiha boy. Is it really fighting if Ino-chan isn't really fighting?

Aside from the problems going on between her little sisters she also began to be friends with Uzumaki Naruto, remembering him from the pit. Of course, she found out the hard way that she rather liked him better when he was unconscious. Why? Because all of his shouting and pranks grates on her ears, all four of them, and his attitude often causes Iruka-sensei to use the 'Big-Head' jutsu - which includes a bit of shouting and tends to make her ears ring as a result. Despite the pain that comes with associating herself with him she can see pass the cheerful mask and find the boy looking for attention, love, and family.

As a result she has come to see him as her otouto-kun, adopting a protective attitude around him. Except for when he pulls a prank. That's when she just sits back and let him get the punishment Iruka-sensei dishes out on him. Afterwards she would drag him home to the Inuzuka compound for dinner - often getting a gruff complaint from Kiba who gets cuffed by Hana.

In any case, Oretzi is bored in class, on the verge of falling asleep as Iruka-sensei drones on about using Henge jutsu and a Bunshin jutsu in junction with one another to produce the illusion of having multiple different people in the area when really it's just one person. That is, until a kunai is thrown at her and she ducks to avoid it.

"Now that I have your attention, Oretzi-chan, do you mind demonstrating the lesson for the class?" Iruka questions her, with a tick just above his left eyebrow. With a reluctant sigh she leaves her seat and goes down to the front. She eyes him for a moment before her hands fly into a few hand seals, too fast for anyone to catch.

A cloud of smoke obscure their visions of both their sensei and Oretzi. But when the smoke finally did enable to see them the students all dropped their jaws in shock. Standing before them are the first four Hokage. Senju Hashirama, his brother Senju Tobirama, Sarutobi Hiruzen, and Namikaze Minato. As well as the members of the Sannin, Jiraiya the Toad Sennin, Tsunade the Slug-hime, and Orochimaru the Snake Sennin.

Iruka stares at the seven figureheads of Konoha history and notices with great pleasure that he could not tell the differences between any of them. They all look just like the illustrations done on each respective person. In addition, the henge for the Sandaime Hokage was not of the old man currently sitting in his office but of the 'Professor' - the young powerful shinobi in his prime. The same can be said of the Sannin - each of them look of the age they were in their prime, attired in the outfits they had worn while part of the Second Shinobi World War.

However, when he notices that he is missing a student he studies the seven figure heads in an attempt to find her. "Oretzi-chan, dismiss the jutsu now," he orders the Inuzuka girl.

The henged bunshins look at him before vanishing in the cloud of smoke. Coughing and waving his hand he clears the smoke only to realize that his pupil is missing. He immediately roars in outrage and storms out of the classroom to have a fellow Chunin instructor go and find her.

The second the door closes behind him the class burst into laughter as Oretzi shakes her head. She had been sitting behind Iruka-sensei since creating and henging the bunshins into the Hokage and Sannin. She hadn't even made any attempt to hide herself, except maybe suppressing her chakra and youki to the point of being invisible.

"I'm so going to be in trouble, aren't I?" she asks her fellow students, which only provoked them into even more laughs. She sighs and nods her head. "Yeah…" She slips off the desk and goes to her seat, picking up Akamaru when she finds him there. Ino, her desk mate, was still giggling at what happened and she waits for her imouto-chan to breathe again.

"That was so funny! And incredibly awesome, ane-chan," Ino exclaims, her giggles finally tittering off. "But how were you able to do something like that without practice?"

"Ino-chan, don't you practice at home?" Oretzi rubs her face. "The Henge jutsu and the Bunshin jutsu was given to us a few weeks ago. The concept of combining the two jutsu isn't hard. In fact, by using the smoke created by using the bunshin jutsu you can henge them into something else."

"Like what you did?"

"Yep."

Ino could only stare at Oretzi in awe before giggling. Akamaru barks something at them and the Inuzuka girl sighs at him. "That's terribly rude, Akamaru." The puppy barks something else. "I don't care what Kiba says, it's still rude."

"What did he say?"

"He said that your giggles are really loud and like a banshee," Oretzi translates, provoking Ino's immediate ire. The wolf hanyou quickly moves Akamaru out of reach of the angered blonde. "He also said that Kiba is the one who said it first and also calls Sakura-chan a pink banshee." She has to put a hand on Ino's shoulder to keep her from jumping out of her seat to go and hit Kiba for his rude remarks. She turns her attention to the puppy in her lap who has pressed his back fully against her stomach in alarm at Ino's ire. "Now you see why you shouldn't be rude?" She gets a low acknowledging whine from him. "What do you say?"

Akamaru hops from her lap to Ino and bumps his cold nose against Ino, getting a low 'ew' from the blonde. Then he quickly licks her cheek before retreating to a safe distance, and just in time because Ino exploded with a loud 'EW!' and screeched at the pup's form.

Oretzi laughs, muffling it with her hands, and it takes Ino punching her in the arm for her to finally calm down. "Sorry. He was just saying sorry for his rude words," Oretzi finally tells her.

"But he licked me!" Ino protests.

"He's a dog, Ino-chan. He can't exactly express his thoughts in our language yet. Not like Kuromaru or the Haimaru Sankyodai." Ino nods her head, aware of Kuromaru's ability to speak.

She looks up when the door slams open and Iruka-sensei practically stomps his way back inside. His anger almost tangible around him. "Okay class, since Inuzuka Oretzi has decided to ditch-," he starts to say before the class as a whole burst into laughter and Oretzi waves her hand for him to see her. "What the-!" Oretzi ducks her head as he begins to berate her.

"Hey!" Naruto shouts. "She didn't even leave the classroom! She was behind you the entire time!"

Iruka pauses and gives Oretzi a long look that almost has the girl slinking down in her seat. He then nods his head as he goes to pick up the text book. "Inuzuka Oretzi," Iruka starts, causing her to look at him, "please stay after class."

She gulps and nod her head in understanding, thinking she was in trouble for something she didn't really do. Ino pats her friend's shoulder as the girl slinks even lower in her seat, her ears almost flat against her skull.

* * *

The class has left the room and Oretzi has to fight the urge to dart of the room as Iruka-sensei stares her down for what seems like hours. But probably was only minutes. When the scarred man sighs and walks up to her she is sure that she is going to be reprimanded.

Yet to her surprise he simply places a sheet of paper in front of her. "You have thirty minutes to complete the exam," he tells her simply before walking away. Startled by the suddenness of the whole thing Oretzi flips the paper over and after a brief read-through she starts writing down the answers.

Fifteen minutes passed before time was up she was done with the test and she flips it over to signal it. "Impressive," Iruka mutters, thinking that must be the fastest exam ever taken by a student. Oretzi wanted to leave but she had the distinct feeling that he wasn't done with her yet so she stayed there, fidgeting in her seat. "Okay, you've already demonstrated your skills with the bunshin jutsu and the henge jutsu," she overhears him mutter before gesturing for her to follow him.

"You have ten kunai," he instructs her and then gestures at the targets hidden in the training ground. "You have five minutes to eliminate the seven targets with the red X marks." Oretzi nods, her eyes already scanning the grounds for her targets. "Begin!"

Iruka stumbles back when Oretzi takes off, her chakra pooling in her legs to boost her speed - not that she really needed it. He shades his eyes as he watches her dart through the trees and then felt the release of chakra in the first of seven targets. He glances at the time and wrote down the time next to the corresponding target on his clipboard. He was impressed that the girl was able to move and locate the targets so quickly. She had the makings of Hunter or an ANBU.

By the time she had eliminated all of the marked targets only a minute and a half had passed, leaving Iruka with the impression that this girl should've already been a genin already. When Oretzi drops in from a tree she smiles up at the older man, her tail wagging in such a manner that he's reminded of a puppy waiting praise. He also realizes that the girl only used five of her ten kunai - which meant that she did not spend her tools recklessly, conserving them and using them with different reasons. "Well… I think we have another genius," he mutters as he walks away. "Come along, Inuzuka-chan. And good work with the targets." If he had looked back he would have seen the giddy bounce in Oretzi's walk as she trots after him, almost humming under her breath.

Soon she finds herself in a new training ground and when she sees an unfamiliar chunin instructor she warily falls into a neutral fighting stance. Not quite the taijutsu style she had learned by watching Hana but not the Academy's taijutsu. Something that was ingrained in her blood. It could be mistaken for the Inuzuka taijutsu style but her style is relies mostly on speed and strength rather than hit-and-run tactics. The speed to strike her opponents before they can react and the strength to take them down with one or two blows. It doesn't even rely on stealth as most would assume but on endurance.

"Inuzuka-chan, this is Kohaku. Your goal is to disarm him and render him incapable of any further action."

"Er…" Oretzi didn't know how to phrase her question. "When you say incapable…"

"… In simplest words I want you to make a killing blow. Without actually killing him." Oretzi nods her head in understanding as she recalls the anatomy lessons from last week. The best places to land a fatal blow or to put her victim in a near death state. "Ready?" The chunin, Kohaku, and Oretzi stare each other down, both of them in their respective taijutsu styles. "Fight!"

The wolf hanyou lunges forward, leaving deep gouges in the dirt as she runs on all four. At the last possible second she jumps up and as gravity takes over her again she comes down with an ax kick - prompting the young man to either dodge or block her.

Assuming that there wouldn't be a lot of power behind the kick he crosses his arms just as the girl's leg nears him. However the force of the kick overwhelms his lax defense and he is sent sprawling to the ground as Oretzi lands on the balls of her bare feet. She flexes her fingers for a second before lunging again at the man once he has recovered.

No matter what style he used and what move he could make the girl seemed like she was several steps ahead of him. Ducking or dodging his attacks and what little attacks she did take struck him in places that made it harder for him to focus one hundred percent on the fight. As if the girl had purposely hit him in places so that he would tire himself out - the pain from his various bruises and possibly fractured bones driving him to distraction.

Oretzi darts in low and before his brain has the chance to register this she kicks him high up into the air before following. She delivers several hard blows that slams him back to the ground and she lands with her feet at the sides of his chest. (1)

Dark brown eyes study him before she drops to her knees and touches his throat with the tip of her elongated nails/claws - looking up at Iruka-sensei when he starts to clap. "Well done, Inuzuka-chan. Well done," he praises her. She beams at him before moving off of the unconscious form of the chunin. Holding her claws to his neck hadn't been necessary since he had been knocked out but her instincts had told her that he hadn't been incapacitated yet. "Let's see… Written exam - check," she hears him say and she watches him out of curiosity as he checks off a list on his clipboard. "Weaponry - check. Taijutsu - check. Ninjutsu - check." He nods to himself and she has the vaguest feeling that she needs to get ready.

She barely manages to catch the hand seals but when she finds her world twisting and the children from the orphanage mocking her, calling her demon and such. Even when she saved one of them from being used as a man's personal sex toy she was still mocked. She shakes her head and makes to dispel the illusion until she hears a savage growl that sounds too familiar.

Her body tenses as she looks towards the source and she falls on her butt as she stares at the dark brown furred wolf. The fur matted with blood, flat against the wolf's nearly skeletal body, interlocked fangs bared at her with a malicious growl. _"Soon,"_ the raspy nails on board voice chuckles as a chill goes down her back. _"I will dye your world RED!"_ She makes the right hand seal to dispel the genjutsu as the wolf walks closer to her, his rank rotting breath wafting over her sensitive nose. _"Soon, little hanyou, you will destroy your own world. My Oretzi of Light!"_

The genjutsu fades away and she sits there, her body cold as her mind absorbs what just happened. She looks at Iruka's startled face and realizes that the wolf had not been part of his genjutsu - which means… She didn't want to think about what it meant.

"What," Iruka starts to ask before getting caught in the brief glow of golden eyes.

Blinking his eyes he rubs the corners with a hand before shaking his head. "Genjutsu - check." Oretzi frowns at him, curious as to what he is doing. Written exam? Weaponry? Ninjutsu? Taijutsu? And now genjutsu? What is he testing for?

She follows him back into the classroom and hops onto a nearby desk, swinging her legs as she watches him rumble through his things before smiling in triumph. He walks over to her and when he sees that he has her full attention he does a half bow as he offers the item in his hand. She instinctively puts her hands out for it and when she feels the strange feel of unfamiliar cloth she pulls her hands close.

Dark brown eyes widen in surprise as she realizes what exactly she is looking at. It is the Konoha hiati-ate. She looks at the man in shock. "This - Does this mean I-," she starts before gets a ruffle that has her whining as she tries to straighten her hair.

"Welcome to the Shinobi world," is Iruka's simple but efficient answer for the girl. He smiles at her as she ties the hiati-ate on properly, beaming at the man. "Now listen. Since you're graduating ahead of schedule you are to report to the Sandaime Hokage tomorrow at eight." Oretzi nods her head in understanding. "Good, now get," he tells her cheerfully, getting a quick hug from the eight year old before she runs out of the room.

* * *

Oretzi hums happily to herself as she walks down Konoha's street, almost bouncing in her excitement. It hadn't taken her long, she realizes, to become a shinobi thanks to the combined efforts of the Lunar Wolves, her okaa-san, her ane-chan, and Anko-san. She's a shinobi now, just like her otou-san. She couldn't hide her giddiness and even if she could her tail would have given it all away with its wagging.

Half way home she stops, her nose picking up the scent of blood.

She tilts her head slightly to the right as she contemplates the smell. She could smell an underlying scent beneath the overpowering blood - possibly the person whose blood has been split. With a frown she follows the scent into a nearby alley, cautiously stepping into the shadowy path. She couldn't hear anyone in the alley, no distinct steps or presences. But her nose told her that there is someone already there.

She pauses to pull out a kunai - a practice one nonetheless but in her hands she can probably turn it into a weapon - before continuing to where she can scent the blood. It was mildly disturbing for the young girl to be in the dark alley with someone watching over her. She couldn't tell if the person was watching her out of interest for her wellbeing or with malicious intent. When her nose catches the scent again her morals wins and she ignores her instincts yammering at her.

Perhaps halfway into the alley Oretzi finds the source to be an unconscious Uzumaki Naruto with more than a few injuries and several weaponry - such as kunai and shuriken - left in various places designed to make removing them painful for the blonde boy. She could also tell that some of them have been attempted but she can imagine that he passed out before he could fully remove them. Red youki dances over his skin and as she narrows her eyes, squinting at the amount of blood that is pooling underneath him and around her bare feet. Too much to be safe.

She kneels next to him and when she reaches out to remove one of the kunai the red youki lashes out against her, leaving a long chakra burn along her hand and wrist. "Shut up," she hisses lowly, "I'm not here to hurt him. I'm trying to help." The youki, dancing menacingly over the blonde's skin, seems to pause before retreating to his stomach before vanishing altogether. She takes that as a sign to continue and she grabs one of the nearest kunai. Naruto groans, causing her to spare him a look in concern. "I'm sorry Naru-kun," she mutters before she yanks the weapon free with a loud squelch that would make any civilian blanch or puke.

Naruto woke up with a scream at the pain but couldn't move into an upright position because of Oretzi pressing a firm hand to his chest. She removes the other seven kunai and shuriken and by the time she was done he had passed out again from the pain overload. Already she can see the red youki healing the injuries, leaving no trace of his injuries. "One of these days they're going to kill him," Oretzi mutters as she pulls him onto her back for a piggy back ride. She could sense the agreement from the source of the red youki before it vanishes back into Naruto.

_**Yes, Naruto has been beaten up again by someone and Oretzi has swoop in with a rescue. Honestly? I probably should've made her a neko with the way she keeps sticking her nose into danger. Oh well. **_

_**(1) I know she seems overpowered but there's a few things I need to make clear. The chuunin had underestimated her because she is so young. Assuming that he never met her before and is only partially aware of her he probably is assuming that she isn't a threat with only two months worth of Academy training.**_

_**Anyway, thanks for reading! R&R!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**_I hope this chapter comes to ya'll in good time. I need to get this introduction arc done and over with. I feel like I'm dedicating a lot time to her childhood and it looks like it'll be a few more chapters before I get to the part where I wanna focus. _**

**_Chapter 5_**

Shaking her head she makes to leave the alley only to stop when she realizes that both exits have been blocked by two older shinobi. She sniffs as she readjusts herself to have both shinobi in her line of vision. She doesn't recognize them but the KI radiating off of them was enough to inform her that she shouldn't stay there a second longer.

"You little brat," the shinobi that was behind her snarls as he removes a kunai from his pouch. "The demon bastard was almost dead and you saved him." Her ears twitch as she tries to think about what she should do.

"Kovu, silence," says the other shinobi as he unfurls a scroll. "Your mouth is going to get you killed one of these days." He bites his thumb and uses the blood to smear it on the scroll, summoning a short sword about the length of his arm. Oretzi frowns as she recognizes the scent of steel and old dried blood. One of the scent of blood also happened to belong to Naruto. She racks her brain for something can help her get out of the situation she is in but when she comes up blank she looks between the two shinobi again.

With no other choice Oretzi sets Naruto down again and drops into a stance with a savage growl, already drawing up all of her youki. The white youki condensing into the snarling wolf with five tails before forming something similar to a thin layer of second skin - giving her a look of a bristling look as the youki shapes into a wolf face and raised hackles along her neck.

The two shinobi - however - are forced to step back because of the intense KI rolling off her lithe form before they drop into a fighting stance.

Oretzi could sense them as she stays there, tensed and hopefully ready for their first attack. The one called Kovu lunges first and she ducks under his swing before she throws an elbow at his midsection. The simple tap fueled by her youki threw him back and burned him. She turns her attention back to the other shinobi, jumping back just in time to avoid getting her head lobbed off by his sword.

"Another demon!" the man mutters, his breath wafting over her nose - causing her to screw her face up in disgust. The man smelled like he had too much to drink as well as the rank smell of too many cigarettes. It's like that other man - the one with a well-trimmed beard and an ever present cigarette dangling from his mouth. At least Sarutobi-sama's pipe doesn't smell so awful.

"And what of it!" she snarls at him, her voice distorted partially by the youki concentration. The man doesn't answer her but rather renewed his efforts to kill her. The KI that radiated off his lanky form wasn't quite of the same level as her own but she knew that if she wasn't careful he'll put her down like a pitiful dog. The thought of that made her growl savagely and she lunges forward.

The man cuts her in half before cursing when the girl explodes, throwing him back. Oretzi appears behind him and kicks him high where a second Oretzi meets him with a powerful ax kick. He poofs and the girl hisses in outrage as she starts to fall back the ground. Before she lands though she is slashed at, getting a long gash along her arm before she disappears in a puff of smoke. The man curses again as he looks around for the girl. He is kicked forward and he stumbles in his attempt to keep his balance.

Oretzi stays crouched with him in plain view, her tail helping her keep her balance. She couldn't keep up the steady outpour of youki forever and those few hits she got in wasn't enough to put him down. She had to admit that she was out of her leagues in this fight. The other shinobi was bound to get up soon and then she had to worry about two instead of one.

Her youki covered claws twitches as she tries to think of a plan, unsure of what to do in order to come out of this fight with her life intact still.

Just like she predicted the shinobi - Kovu - picks himself up with a wince and joined in the fight, making it harder for her to keep up her defense. Her limited arsenal hindered her a great deal and the burns from her youki was starting to get to her. She couldn't last much longer, that much she knew. Already she can feel her body starting to crash from the youki.

She gathers the youki in her mouth, her body tense as she watches them approach her with cocky smirks on their face. She opens her mouth and lets forth a loud angry roar that throws everything in front of her back - in the same manner that happened when she shouted her frustrations several months ago.

Without waiting for them to recover she ungracefully grabs her unconscious friend and darts out of the alley - her heart and head pounding a mean beat as she weaves through the afternoon crowd, unmindful of the fact that she's bleeding and jostling into random strangers.

* * *

Oretzi whines lowly as she is slammed into a wall, her friend falling out of her arms as her pursuers finally catch up to them in the five-ten minute chase. Her head is pounding angrily now, throbbing painfully and the punch she just retrieved only added to the pain. She instinctively curls into a ball as her attackers kick and punch her exhausted body.

Then one of her attackers screams in pain and the other curses - prompting her to look from the safety of her arms to find that Kuromaru has one of the Shinobi pinned down. His teeth tearing into the man's arm. She looks for the other man to find him squaring down with - she blinks her eyes, doubting what she saw - her mother.

She pushes herself upright in amazement as she watches her okaa-san fight with the kenjutsu shinobi until she senses a familiar presence. She looks to her left to find that Mitarashi Anko has just arrived at the scene. "Anko-san!" she whispers, her voice still raw from the youki charged roar.

"Gaki!" Anko looks her over before nodding her head in satisfaction. "Stay here!" Without checking to make sure that her order would be followed Anko first cuffs the shinobi Kuromaru has pinned down - chakra cuffs to ensure that he doesn't disappear using a jutsu - before she joins Tsume's side. The two Jonins were quickly able to bring down the ANBU, especially with Kuromaru's help.

He was quickly cuffed and Tsume scoops up her daughter in a tight hug. "Thank Kami-sama you're okay," the older Inuzuka woman mutters as she hugs her battered daughter. "What on earth were you doing out here?" Tsume questions her.

"Naru-kun. They tried to kill him again."

"And you interfered?"

"Not on purpose," Oretzi mutters, ducking her head. "All I did was followed my nose. I tried to take him back to the compound but they cornered us." Tsume sighs and strokes the girl's face, noticing that she has bruises and cuts on her face and arms.

"Well, you did the right thing, using your youki and running when you did," Tsume tells the girl, getting a tired smile from her.

"Okaa-san," Oretzi mumbles softly. "The one with the sword," she whispers, "he's the one with the steel, ashes, and oil scent." Tsume looked at her daughter in confusion but the soft curse from Anko told her that the snake woman knew just what the girl meant. "Kovu, the other one… he called Naruto a demon…"

She could tell that the girl is exhausted and fighting herself to stay conscious a moment longer. "Sleep, you're safe now," she tells her daughter. The hanyou nods her head before resting her head on her mother's shoulder. Soon Oretzi's breathing has evened out and as she studies her daughter she realizes that she has yet to give her daughter the Inuzuka markings - something she will have to rectify soon. Tsume looks at Anko who is scowling at the two men in anger. "Do you want to explain to me what my daughter meant with that scent comment?"

Anko sighs and looks at the clan head. "About four months ago Uzumaki Naruto was attacked and left in a pit with chakra disruption seals on the walls. Inuzuka Oretzi fell into this pit and we found them before Naruto-kun could die from extreme blood loss and infection," Anko tells her. "In addition to finding him, Oretzi-chan was able to scent his attacker and break it down for us to search for him."

"And… you mean to tell me that in the four months since the attack, Naruto's assailants were not caught?"

Anko kneels next to the man who had wielded the short sword and tilts his head back so she can look at him. "According to the records this one was out on a mission roughly an hour before Naruto's discovery. I only imagine that he just now returned," the snake woman says as a way of explaining. She roughly pushes him away from her, disgusted by the fact that he tried to hurt two innocent children. She quickly seize both of her hostages and - with one last look to Oretzi and Naruto - she shunshin away with them.

_"Tsume, we best get Naruto and Oretzi back to the compound,"_ Kuromaru speaks up, interrupting whatever else his human companion was going to say. _"Oretzi's injuries are not closing and I don't think she would be pleased to know that we allowed Naruto to return to his apartment instead of taking him back with us."_

Tsume sighs in aggravation, her head thrown back as she thinks. Kuromaru had a valid point regarding the fact that her daughter would be upset about that. It doesn't change that having Naruto in the compound will bring nothing but trouble for the clan because of the laws preventing anyone from adopting the boy. The laws were created to prevent Danz o from attempting to adopt the boy in the sole intent to turn him into an emotionless killing machine. Downside is that it means that he is forced to endure the anger, the pain, and the outrage of everyone in this village alone without the protection a loving family can give him.

Anko is perhaps one of the few that knows his pain simply because she had been his guardian - watching over him from a distance since she couldn't stay by his side like she wanted to. It's also possible that because of who her sensei was the whole of Konoha have branded her as a 'at risk' danger to the entirety of the village.

"Let's go home," she finally says. She creates a kage bunshin and picks up her daughter carefully - mindful of her persistent injuries. She waits for her bunshin to pick up Naruto before she leaves for the compound.

Kuromaru makes to follow his companion but stops when he notices the pup's scent concentrated in a spot. Curious he goes over to it where he finds a hiati-ate lying in a shadowed area. Surprised to find that the pup's scent - a deep forest scent with an underlying hint of fur - clinging to the black fabric of the hiati-ate he picks it up before heading for the compound. The pup can explain the reason behind this whenever she wakes up, he reasons.

* * *

Oretzi groans softly under her breath as she stirs, a deep underlying ache lingering in her joints. "I overdid it with the youki," she mutters softly as she eases herself up into an upright position. She rubs at each aching spot before realizing something. She yanks up her shirt and stares at the long thin scar stretching from her right bottom most rib to an inch above her navel. A gift from the sword fighter. He had caught her on the stomach - she recalls - just before she got slammed into a wall by Kovu's kick. The fact that it's a scar now told her that because she overdid it with the youki her body couldn't regenerate fast enough to keep it from becoming a scar.

She does a quick check over her body before coming to the conclusion that aside from that one scar she came out of the fight with almost nothing to show for it. Because it has been said and done she decides to put it out of her mind before she realizes that she might be late.

With a yelp she jumps out of bed and runs for the bathroom to shower and then get dress. By the time she is running for the door she was dressed in a loose outfit that consists of nearly tattered shorts - purchased already like that - and a shirt cut in a way that allows maximum arm movements. On her hands is a pair of fingerless gloves - a gift from Hana for beginning the Academy - and bandages wrapped around her forearms, stopping at her elbows. Except for her right arm, the bandages continue until they disappear under the shirt.

She jumps down the stairs and almost run into her mother in the hallway by the kitchen. "Hey, Oretzi-chan, where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"I have to report to Hokage-sama!" Oretzi says with panic, sliding past her mother and almost out of the door.

_"Why?"_ Kuromaru questions in confusion with Tsume right beside him in that.

Oretzi's eyes widen as she recalled something and her hand flies up to her forehead. "Aw man, not even one day and I already lost it?" Oretzi exclaims as she turns tail and runs back to her room.

Hana, walking down the stairs, has to jump out of the way when the blur that is her little sister runs up the stairs and nearly threaten to knock her off balance. She stares after her sister's back before looking at her mother in confusion. "Do I want to know?" she asks.

"Apparently your imouto-chan is late for something," Tsume answers with a shrug as she disappears into the kitchen to make her daughters something before they disappear for their respective days. Kuromaru thinks about how Oretzi's hand had flown up to her forehead and leaves the hallway to retrieve something.

"Nani! Where is it?!" the two Inuzuka ladies hear Oretzi screech from her bedroom.

"It's too early for her to be acting this crazy," Hana yawns in a manner similar to a dog coupled with a slight curl of her tongue.

"Agreed," Tsume mutters, looking at the ceiling in concern. The pup rarely if ever act like this so for her to be behaving like so was a bit worrying. "At least she's not suffering too much from yesterday's events."

Hana reluctantly nods her head in agreement. She had seen the shape her sister was in and had to do some patchwork to stem the bleeding. It took maybe an hour or two for her sister's healing factor to kick in - something Tsume rationalizes to be because of the overuse of youki. As a result the less serious injuries closed almost instantly but the larger ones - such as a fractured ribs and a broken arm, as well as a few cuts made by a sword - took longer to heal despite being set and bandaged.

"Okaa-san! Ane-chan!" they hear Oretzi shout as she runs down the stairs. "Have you seen my hiati-ate!"

"Hiati-ate?" they say in union, staring at the young hanyou in shock.

"You mean," Hana starts in disbelief.

"You graduated?" Tsume's face was almost comical with the way her jaw was dropped and her eyes wide.

Kuromaru chose that time to return with a hiati-ate dangling from his mouth, a corner of the black partially ruined cloth clutched by his teeth. Oretzi recognizes the item and shouts in glee at finding her missing hiati-ate, jumping onto the ninken. "You found it Kuromaru!" she cheers as she retrieves it from him. She frowns at the state the cloth is in, realizing that she'll have to treat it to the Monkhood plant as well when it comes in. "Bye!" the girl calls out before running out of the compound without another word.

"She graduated already?" Tsume repeats, her youngest daughter already gone from the house. "How did she even manage that?!"

"Well… Uchiha Itachi graduated from the Academy when he was her age I think," Hana recalls, getting a warning look from her mother as a result. She shrugs her shoulders, deciding to keep her mouth shut.

"How are we supposed to keep her safe if she's out on missions?"

"Okaa-san," Hana sighs as her mother turns to her, "if she managed to graduate from the Academy then I think she'll be capable of protecting herself."

"It's not quite the same," Tsume sighs, rubbing her face as she thinks about what she'll need to do in order to keep her daughter safe. She already tried pairing her daughter with one of the dogs, young or experienced. But none of them could form a bond with her despite her ability to interact with them. She knows that the girl has Inuzuka blood in her, thanks to her father, and the pup has been accepted by the pack. Yet for some odd reason none of the dogs felt drawn to the pup and vice versa. "I'd feel better if she had a companion," the older woman sighs reluctantly.

"Don't worry, okaa-san. Hokage-sama wouldn't put her on the field without a good sensei," Hana reassures her.

"I know that," Tsume sighs before she looks at Kuromaru. He takes one look at her before trotting out of the door without another word. "Remind me later to get the pup taken for her markings soon," Tsume tells before leaving the kitchen.

Hana sighs and picks up one of the sandwiches her mother finished for her and Oretzi. She takes a bite as she considers the strange morning so far. Good news? Oretzi shows no signs of her injuries from the night before. Bad news? Their mother is now in overprotective mood and her little sister is probably going to be assigned to a team sometime later on that day.

She has to keep herself from thinking or saying something like 'What could go wrong?' because of fates tendency to throw them a curveball because of that stupid phrase.

* * *

Oretzi arrived at the Hokage's office in about five, ten minutes - running at top speed in order to make up for the lost time. Of course, now that she has arrived there she could feel every joint protesting against the run. On top of that she feels a bit dizzy. It also looks like the heady feeling wasn't disappearing any time soon, despite the fact that she has been doubled over in front of the Hokage for some time now.

"Did you run the entire way here?" Sarutobi asks with a small chuckle.

"Yah-huh," Oretzi puffs, slowly but surely feeling her breathing return.

"Did you look at the time?" he asks. She blinks before she turns to look at the clock hanging on his wall.

7:05am.

"…" She looks at the Hokage with a blank look. Prompting him to struggle with the laughter that has been attempting to burst through. "May as well let it out," she tells him and that broke his restraint.

She sits in one of his chairs and plays with one of the little statuettes that are on his desk while the old man bangs his fist on the wooden surface. The man was likely to laugh himself into a grave if he doesn't stop to breathe.

7:10am.

She stares at the old man whose face looks like an unhealthy shade of purple. "… I don't want to be accused of killing you by laughter. It's a sad way to go anyway," she comments to him as the Hokage mops his face with a handkerchief. She groans when he starts snickering. "Hokage-sama," she whines, her ears almost flat against her skull as she gives him a wide-eyed pout.

This manages to cure the chuckles right out of him and nearly had him saying 'Aw' to his complete and utter horror. "That look," he starts as he shields his face, "ought to be put in the forbidden jutsu scroll." Oretzi just gives him a smile that has him shaking his head. "Alright, I know you're early today," he begins, getting an embarrassed chuckle from the girl, "so I'll just get down to business."

He pulls out a thin file and flips it open. "Inuzuka Oretzi, formerly known as Kazama Oretzi. Adopted formally by Inuzuka Tsume," he starts, with the girl looking at him in a combination of confusion and curiosity. "Current age is eight years old and… as of yesterday a graduate from the Konohagakure Academy. Very impressive considering that you only joined us six, seven months ago." He smiles at the young hanyou, getting an unsure smile in return. "However, as a result of your early graduation I'm afraid I don't quite have a team to put you in." He leans back and studies the girl in front of him.

"But you have something in mind," she comments, sensing that he has something floating around in his head.

"Perhaps… There are several genins who either a) lost their teams due to misfortune on the field or b) their teammates went on to become chunins."

"So you're thinking about using the genins to form a team?" she asks, her tail thumping against the back of her chair. She has to lay a hand on the long appendage to get it to stay still.

"Sharp as ever," he comments, confirming the girl's suspicions as he retrieves a second file. "As a result of your strong senses your potential as a tracker has some merit. And it just so happened I have a Hyuuga on reserves due to medical reasons," he opens the file and briefly scans through it. "Hyuuga Tamashii, age 13 - according to the stats he has gained a near mastery over his Byakugan as well as some of their clan jutsu." He studies the file a bit more. "I'd like to pair the two of you with someone from the Aburame clan," he continues, "However, there is no one currently a genin and in reserves. In addition to that the only member of their clan in the Academy was actually in your class."

Oretzi frowns as she considers who he might be talking about before she remembers the creepy kid with that annoying buzzing noise coming from inside him. She can recall Ino-chan telling her that he's from the Aburame clan and no one really knows him all that well. "So who would you pair us up with?"

The Hokage frowns as he closes the two files, considering her valid question. "Ideally I want someone who is capable of tracking or using stealth, since with you and Hyuuga Tamashii the team will be better suited for tracking and/or recon."

"Wouldn't knowing how to assassinate be better?" Oretzi asks.

Sarutobi sighs as he leans on his arms, propping his chin on his laced together hands. "That is quite a question to be asking me, Oretzi-chan."

"We are shinobi, Hokage-sama. The way I see it, sugarcoating what we do doesn't make things better or easier to accept," she tells him, her head tilted just slightly that gave her an aura of innocence. Contrasting severely with the topic she is talking about. "Tracking my targets makes me think of hunting," she confesses. "And hunting always lead to death. Not to watch and observe, to get information." She bows her head partially. "I understand the need for information. **Accurate** information, but it will not in my nature to refrain from a kill."

He studies the young eight year old standing in front of him. Wondering if she ever had her innocence or was it taken away by the cruelty of this world. She amazes him how she can be giddy and excited one second and then so serious the next - young in her antics but old in her thinking capabilities. Once again he has to wonder if being half human and half wolf demon has anything to do with the way she seems so mature and immature at the same time.

"At this moment, it probably would be best for your team to learn tracking first. Perhaps later down the road, when you are a bit mature I will have your jonin instructor begin your lessons on assassinations."

"It'd be best to teach us now, Hokage-sama," Oretzi argues. "Yes, we're young. I am doubly so since it is likely I will be the youngest of my new teammates. However, by getting us used to death at an early age as well as inflicting it there will be less chances of us possibly freezing up on the fields." The hanyou cracks her neck before she leans forward, her dark eyes darkening even further until it was like looking into a void. "I may not have lived here in Konohagakure for a year yet but every demon in the Underworld have a bet about how long human shinobi will last - especially the rookies from the Academies. A vast majority of them put their deaths at six months or less."

Sarutobi had to wince at the reality of that. For demons to be making such bets - he didn't want to dwell on it. With a sigh he picks up a third file and looks over it briefly. Ideally this would be the best jonin sensei for Oretzi, someone who is willing to go as far as teach her and her future teammates the skills to later on perform assassinations. He looks at the Hyuuga file again before sighing. He wasn't sure if he is right for this team now with the goal for them to be a tracking/assassination team. On one hand he'd be good for the team because of his kekkei genkai's ability to see in distances - a good skill to have on a tracking team. But for assassinations…

Oretzi shifts in her seat nervously after spending some time in silence, the elderly man studying the files in front of him. "Hokage-sama?" she finally calls out.

"Hai?" His voice didn't tell her to shut up but at the same time there wasn't an invitation to continue.

"Erm… What should I do right now?" she questions him. As it is, she doesn't see her presence helping him make decisions.

Sarutobi blinks and looks up from the files. "Ah right," he mutters as he closes the files, making a decision for now. "Head to Training Ground 2 to meet with your jonin sensei," he instructs before he gets an idea. He leaves his chair, motioning for Oretzi to follow, and goes to one of the bookshelves in his office. He searches through the titles before selecting a scroll. "Here, my present to you for graduating."

Stunned by Sarutobi-ojii's kindness she accepts the scroll with a bow. A glance at the title shows that it has to do with the different types of jutsu available in the world as well as nature transformations. She is then handed a small slip of paper similar to a bookmarker.

"Show this to your sensei and they will tell you what to do with it," Sarutobi instructs her.

"Hai," she tells him before bowing. She then takes her leave and the elderly man sighs, suddenly exhausted now.

"So young," he mutters to himself, collapsing into his chair. In some ways the girl makes him ponder if she is something of a genius - graduating from the Academy at the age of eight is a feat not many manage to do. Hatake Kakashi is one of the few that managed that feat at a much younger age. Jiraiya's student, Namikaze Minato, is another example of a genius produced by Konoha. Uchiha Itachi as well, even if the name brings nothing but regret to him. All of them were considered to be geniuses of their generations. Including one of his former students - Orochimaru. "I've gone sentimental," he mutters as he pulls out several more files to look over. He has to pick out a third member for the new team and as he considers his possibilities one particular file stands out to him.

"Kagami ririisu," he mutters as he glances over the details attached to it. "Mm… with something like that infiltration is possible…" With infiltration the team will be able to gain easy access to a building where their target is hiding which would… The possibilities are virtually limitless. "Looks like I found your third teammate, Oretzi-chan," he mumbles. He didn't know if he should be proud of this fact or not. Was he seriously considering this team to be a tracking/assassination focused?

* * *

Oretzi has been sitting on a post for some time now, her tail twitching every once awhile as she reads the scroll Sarutobi-ojii has given her. Now she had names for some of the jutsu her okaa-san and ane-chan used when sparring. Kage Bunshin no jutsu, Kage Kunai no jutsu or its sister jutsu - Kage Shuriken no jutsu, and on top of that a type of Shunshin! She focused heavily on the shunshin because - while she had observed her okaa-san using it a few times - she never understood the concept behind it. So it was a good way for her to finally practice it - there one second and gone the next.

_'The subject - depending on their nature alignment - will be able to use their affinity in combination with this jutsu. Upon combination with element and this jutsu the subject will disappear and reappear in a show of the element. One example is a shinobi with a dual affinity for lightning and fire. This shinobi is capable of using one or the other or perhaps both when using this jutsu.' _

Oretzi smiles to herself before tilting her head slightly to the left in time to avoid getting her cheek sliced by a kunai. "Anko-san," she whines at the woman, turning to look at her. The snake woman smiles mischievously at her, causing Oretzi to eye her warily.

"Good to see that you're feeling better after yesterday," Anko says as she walks over to the girl. At the moment, because the girl is still sitting on the post, Anko now stands shorter than her. She gives Oretzi a tight smile that has the younger girl worried for a second. Then without warning Anko grabs one of the girl's wolf ears, causing her to yelp. "What the fuck were you thinking?!" she demands angrily as the girl leans with the captured ear in an attempt to relieve the ache. "Facing two jonins - and one of them is an ANBU?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW CLOSE YOU CAME TO BEING KILLED?!"

By this point two things happened. One: Oretzi now has a migraine as a combination from being yelled at in point blank distance and ringing ears as a result of being yelled at. Two: she leaned too far and fell off the post which finally freed her ear. This almost broke her neck and has her clutching her head from the pain of hitting the ground right between her ears and from the splitting headache that struck her because of it.

"Gomen," Oretzi whines as she finally pushes herself into an upright position, still clutching her head. "Gomen nasai."

Anko sighs as she kneels down so that she's at the same eyelevel as the girl. "You scared your okaa-san, gaki," she rubs the girl's head, shaking her head. "Almost terrified her into an early grave." Oretzi looks at her with her wide teary eyes and she lightly bops her. "Hey, don't give me those puppy eyes, gaki. Your okaa-san and I… we care about what happens to you. And feeling your youki like that… well, it made us worry."

Oretzi frowns as she ducks her head, her ears expressing her sorrow at the worry she gave them. Anko could see this perfectly clear - one of the few weaknesses Oretzi has by having a tail and a pair of ears, it always give her away. "Listen, gaki, I know you care about everyone. Your okaa-san, Hana-chan, Kiba-kun even though he's a bit of a douchebag, Sarutobi-sama, Ino-chan, Sakura-chan, Naruto-kun, and I like to think I'm on that list too," Anko says, holding up a hand to keep the girl quiet when she makes to protest. "But getting yourself killed isn't going to help them - not at this level anyway."

Oretzi tilts her head as she studies the older woman. Then without saying anything she simply throws her arms around her, holding her as tightly as she could without hurting her. "I care about you… You're my special person, Anko-chan."

_**Say it with me folks. Awww. Hahaha, what do you think, Candy-chan? Does your imouto-chan seem in or out of character for her? I swear to god that this girl is more trouble then I like. One second she's too serious, acting beyond her age and the next she IS acting her age. Aiyi.**_


	6. Chapter 6

**_Hey everyone! I just recently finished chapter 7 and basically my goal is this. For every chapter I finish (on my laptop) you guys get a chapter. That way I should be able to stay on task (hopefully -_-") Anyway, ya'll know the drill. Naruto ain't mine except for characters you do not recognize. Hope ya'll like this one._**

**_Chapter 6_**

Anko blinks at the endearment, surprised by the change of the suffix. She has been trying for months now to get the girl to call her by her name without any of the suffix but now that she has been called Anko-chan, she felt that she didn't want to lose that suffix ever. She shakes her head and rubs the girl's wolf ear gently as a silent apology for the rough handling.

"So I heard you graduated, ne?" she says, pulling away to get a good look at the girl's hiati-ate.

"Hai!" Oretzi cheers, thrusting a fist up. Anko chuckles at the girl's antic as she grabs her chin to hold her still and brushing her bangs away to study her proof.

"Looks good on you, gaki. But what did you do to the cloth?" she questions her, noticing the shape it is in.

"My youki burned some of it last night," Oretzi pouts.

Anko nods her head in understanding, recalling some of the girl's complaints about how her youki burns her clothes and even that time when she help her learn how to use her chakra instead of her youki. "Alright then, gaki, fork over the hiati-ate," she commands as she digs through her trench coat's pockets.

"Nani?" Oretzi tries to scramble away from Anko, unsure of her intentions.

"Gaki, just let me see the damn hiati-ate," Anko snaps at the girl with a scowl, but the tone she used only convoyed that she wants to help. Oretzi sighs and unties the cloth and hands it over. "Damn, kid, you must've dished out a lot of your youki for it to be this bad."

The black cloth of the hiati-ate - normally thick - has been burned thin for a lack of a better word and from the looks of it was probably a few days short of falling apart. Just one more blast of youki would have been enough to put it in complete and utter tatters. Strangely enough the metal plate wasn't warped or damaged.

"Hey, gaki," Anko calls as she loosens the plate from the rag that is the cloth.

"Hai?"

"Have you tried channeling your youki through your kunai?" Oretzi only blinks at her blankly. "I'll take that as a no." She shakes her head as she considers the possibilities of what the kid can do with her almost limitless youki.

She says almost because she truly don't know how much the girl has. Hatake Kakashi - with his Sharingan - was able to tell that her chakra coils are far larger than most, including Naruto. Yet unlike him she is able to control it far better than he ever was. Now if she could get a Hyuuga to pull their heads out of their asses long enough she might be able to see how much chakra the girl have.

She leans forward and ties the hiati-ate around the girl's neck, smirking to herself. "There, that's a nice collar for you," she teases, getting a blush and an irritated look at the same time.

"Anko-san!" Oretzi protests.

"Aw, gaki, you're already back to calling me that?" Anko frowns as she considers what she can do to get the girl back to calling her Anko-chan.

Oretzi tilts her head and crosses her arms. One of her ear had dropped down while the other one remained upright - almost looking just like the action of a raised eyebrow. Anko had to resist the urge to go 'Aw' at the sight. "It's not polite," the girl declares.

"I don't give a fuck about politeness, kiddo. I don't want to be called Anko-san," the snake woman scowls at the hanyou. "Not by you especially."

The two look at each other, the eight year old hanyou and the twenty year old Tokubetsu jonin - bound to each other by nothing except similar circumstances.

Oretzi, because of her mix parentage, is a subject of many out right abuse from both human and demon races. Humans always look down upon those in her situation and constantly try to kill them. While demons always consider hanyous to be inferior to them and some even consider them to be a rare type of delicacies. Some hanyous are eaten by their demonic parent along with their human parent.

Anko, because of her former mentor, has been restricted to her Tokubetsu status because the Councils - both civilian and military - fears that she would corrupt the next generations. In addition to that they fear she will become like her former sensei. As a result she has been a Tokubetsu for quite some time and it does not seem likely she will be anything else but that. Growing up after being abandoned by him she always felt like she is still under his shadow. No one except a select few do not fear her.

Anko shakes her head and stands up, cracking her neck with a sigh. "Come on, gaki. I'll treat you to a few dangos," the woman says as she makes to leave.

Oretzi scrambles to her feet and jogs so that she's standing by the older woman's side. "Anko-chan?" she questions as her hand slips into the jonin's. This has the unintended effect of causing Anko to freeze up - a comical thing to do when walking. The two look at each other for what seems like a long moment before Oretzi makes to pull her hand away, feeling rejected.

Before she can completely do so Anko clasps her hand around Oretzi's and without another word pulls her to her favorite shop - Sweet-Sweet Dango Shop. Nothing ever beats their service!

* * *

"Anko-chan," Oretzi leans forward, her fingers playing with one of the skewers of her now finished plate of dangos.

"Hai?"

"Why were you at the training ground?" Oretzi asks, a full hour and a half after they left said place.

"…" she looks at the hanyou with such profound incredulity that the young girl was fighting the urge to duck her head in embarrassment. "You know… asking the questions hours after they should've been asked… kind of puts you in a bad spot."

"… I need to work on that don't I?" Oretzi mutters with an awkward chuckle, scratching the back of her head in a manner similar to Naruto.

"You're young. You're not always going to ask the right question," Anko waves it off. "However, in order to answer your question…" She smirks at the young girl and holds out a hand. "I believe Sarutobi-sama told you to give me something?"

Oretzi blinks at the snake woman for a long moment before smiling happily. "Really?" Her tail, already wagging in excitement, gave her an even more puppy look that has Anko chuckling at the girl's happiness. It was enough to off-balance her own gruff brash attitude whenever she is in her presence. She can already see her reputation going down the drain rather quickly as a result.

"Hai," she answer simply.

Oretzi has always prided herself in never being like any other girl. Namely, squealing - aside from that one time when her okaa-san announced that she is being adopted - and screeching. In other words, producing loud high pitched sounds that is liable to make her ears ring for hours. Sadly she managed to squeal for the second time in her life as she throws herself across the table, succeeding in knocking the woman off the seat and onto the ground.

Despite the squeal - Anko will later swear to Kami herself that her eyes saw doubles for a split of a second - the woman was laughing. This eight year old, nearly five feet tall, with wolf ears and tail to boot girl just threw herself across the table in pure giddiness just because she - Mitarashi Anko - is her sensei? She didn't know any other ego booster that would be better than this.

She couldn't resist ruffling the girl's already wild hair as she forces them into a mostly upright position. "Alright, alright, jeez gaki. I'm really feeling the love here." Almost the second she said love Oretzi was off of her like a rocket, an avid blush dusting her cheeks as she reclaims her spot - leaving a puzzled jonin on the floor. Was it something she said?

As she picks herself she notices that Oretzi has placed the item on the table between them. So she retakes her seat and slides the paper to Oretzi. "This is a special type of paper, created from some tree I don't even remember what it's called," Anko starts. "By channeling your chakra through this it'll let me know what your element affinities are."

Oretzi looked positively excited by this prospect of learning her element and picks the small tag up. After taking a second to center herself she pushes her chakra into the paper.

At first nothing happens but then the tag turns into damp dirt that almost immediately turned into small wood chips. Then in addition to that it explodes in a fiery ball of flames, causing the young hanyou to yelp in shock as she puts out the fires with Anko assisting.

Once the shop is in no danger of burning down - with a severe glare of warning from the owners - the two shinobi stare at the charred pieces of the tag before looking at each other. "Um… what does that mean?"

Anko sighs as she takes a swig of her drink. "From the looks of it you have a strong affinity for water, a strong affinity for earth - and judging by what happened with the tag… well I have to guess that you're able to use your affinities for those two elements and combine them to use wood release. In addition to that you have an abnormally high affinity for fire…" She considers the explosion of fire for a moment. "It's possible you might a triple affinity." Oretzi looks at her in confusion at first before she ducks her head as she digs through a pouch.

Oretzi pulls out the scroll she had gotten from the Hokage and opens it to a certain passage. "Wasn't the only person with the Wood release the Shodai Hokage?" she asks innocently, pointing it out to Anko.

"Hai. He was extremely skilled in subduing and controlling the Bijuu Lords as a result." Anko vaguely recognized the scroll from Sarutobi-sama's personal shelves. The fact that it is in someone else's possession implied that he has placed his confidence in her. "No one has ever shown any talent in that particular element since his death."

This has Oretzi tilting her head in thought. "My mama could control the plants," she mutters.

Anko's eyes widen just slightly at the reminder of who the hanyou's mother is. Then her brain factors in that information and her mind concludes that the Wood release was passed down to the girl. "Somehow it's a bit ironic that you have a fire affinity," Anko comments drily as she orders more dangos for the two of them.

Oretzi just tensed at the mention of fire, causing Anko to look at her strangely. "Kid?"

The young hanyou looks at her newfound sensei and Anko could see the suppressed fear lingering in the girl's eyes. It was shocking - for Anko - to see such an emotion in the girl and it has her reaching for the genin.

Almost immediately Oretzi flinched back, the fear turning into panic, and she falls off the chair with a yelp. Followed closely by a whine of pain. In that brief second where Anko's mind was processing the scene there is a thought. How the hell does she know the different types of whines the girl uses?!

The second after that thought crosses her mind Anko is out of her seat and kneeling next to the eight year old who is clutching her head for the second time that day. "Gaki?" she hesitates in reaching for the girl after what just happened.

"Gomen," Oretzi mutters, rubbing her head with one hand and pushing herself upright with the other.

"Kid… do you have… a phobia?" The empty look in Oretzi's eyes made her worry and when she tries to touch her she gets another flinch and she has to pull herself away and show the girl that she isn't a danger to her. "Oretzi-kun?" (1)

Oretzi's shoulders shook for a long moment and slowly but surely she regained her energy, her tail - almost unnaturally still - begins to move back and forth in a lazy pattern. "I…" Before she could say anything else Oretzi's ears flatten themselves against her skull and Anko scoots away just a little. Without another word Oretzi gets up and went to get the bill for their lunch, leaving a stunned and confused Anko at the table.

* * *

With the kid unwilling to explain her reaction towards the word fire Anko saw that it was best not to risk setting her off by attempting to teach her any of her katon jutsu. She might be able to call in a few favors to get other nature specialists to help cover the areas she cannot teach as well as checking out a few scrolls from the library for the kid to read up on the theories.

With no other choice but to focus on Taijutsu and weaponry she gave the young hanyou a specific list of tasks to be done, within a thirty minute time frame - the problem is, the tasks Anko wrote down could, at best, be done within an hour. Maybe an hour and a half. But thirty minutes? No one would be able to do all of the tasks that quickly. Main reason for the seemingly impossible tasks? It tests to make sure that she understands the objective - gather all of the material on the list before time is up - and her ability to follow orders - such as she cannot use anything except Taijutsu and her kunai weaponry.

For one it forces the girl to improve on her speed and - while she does have good aim she generally lack enough power behind the throws - her strength. Anko had already noticed that Oretzi is actually already quite strong but at the same time she thinks it is because of the fact that she is both human and demon. So at the moment she has a feeling that she can go further if she can hone her strength - she makes a note to look into weights or weight seals. It might be easier for the girl to train her muscles by the use of weights - it'll also give the results more readily than the usual training. She hates to admit it but it's possible that she may have to recruit Might Gai's help in the taijutsu department - especially the weights.

She just hopes that Oretzi will resist Gai's attempts to put her in the twice confounded green bodysuit or else she'll do more than grab her wolf ears next time.

She munches on a dango as she waits for Oretzi to show up. A glance at her watch shows that she has less than a minute left before time is up and she'll have to start from scratch again. Already she has done it five times - with no end for the girl's chakra.

She reaches for the last skewer of dango before blinking when she realizes that it is missing. "Who the f-!" she starts before her eyes land on Oretzi who is currently munching on her last dango, her tail wagging happily. Scowling angrily at the girl's back she removes her trench coat, stalking up to the hanyou before grabbing the back of her collar - causing the girl to yelp. "Stealing my dangos?" she growls at the meek girl.

"Gomen, Anko-sensei," Oretzi whines, her eyes wide as she stares at the older woman. "But I finished!" She points to the pile of items her sensei had given her a list to find or win in some form of manner. Anko looks over the pile and smirks when she sees some of the more difficult items laying on top.

"Gaki… did you break into Kurenai's apartment or something?" Anko snickers as she sorts through the items. Then her eyes widen at the sight of Kakashi's precious Icha-Icha series. Especially the ones with the autographs. "Kid, you did well," Anko mutters, ruffling the girl's hair before she seals the items in different scrolls - each one marked with the item's owner's name so that she can return them to the proper owners or - in the case of Kurenai and Kakashi - get something in exchange for returning them.

Oretzi smiles before ducking her head. Anko saw this but couldn't figure out a reason for the girl's actions so she chose to leave it be for the time being.

"Were you seen?"

Oretzi frowns with a sigh. "I think Kurenai-san broke out of my genjutsu before I was completely gone," she tells her sensei. "And Hatake-san had really strong traps in his apartment. I think at least two went off." The girl's tail curls around her waist partially and she reaches for it to reveal a new jagged streak of silver fur along the appendage. "My poor tail," she whines.

Anko blinks at the now bi-colored tail before her eye flicks up to the silver streak in the hanyou's hair. Her mind makes a connection between the two that begins to anger the older woman. She has to force her anger down in an attempt to keep the girl from thinking that she is angry with her.

"Hey, kid..." she waits until Oretzi is looking at her. "If someone was to… leave a scar it'll…"

Oretzi gesture to the silver streak in her hair. "It'll leave some evidence in my hair or fur," she concludes for the older woman before standing, her back popping as she stretches. Anko frowns when she notices a flash of black markings before the shirt hides them once again. "Anko-sensei, is there anything else we should do?"

She blinks, forcing her mind to work again before she shakes her head no. "That's it for today. Meet me here tomorrow at sunrise. We should be able to get in a few hours of practice before your new teammates arrive."

"Hai," Oretzi says before bowing. "See you tomorrow!" she says cheerfully before running off. Anko walks home at a subdued fashion, thinking about the little things she has picked up about the girl. Nothing seems to be adding up in her mind.

* * *

Oretzi lays curled in a loose ball at the base of a tree, her tail draped over her legs. Nearby her sensei sits in a tree, waiting for the girl's new teammates to appear. The exhausted hanyou had already ran ten laps with weights on her arms, chest, and legs, attempted to do the tree climbing exercise with little to no success, and practiced some of Anko's taijutsu style but kept reverting back to the style similar to the Inuzuka clan's.

Anko - at some point - started to doze off at some point so when she hears something she almost falls out of the tree as she jerks to awareness. Her eyes almost immediately finding the person who has entered the training ground.

It is a tall boy, standing at the height of five feet and six inches, with his hair pulled back in a tight ponytail. His hiati-ate tied in its proper place and his pupil-less eyes taking in his surroundings. She studies him and found that she is pleased that he's in good shape already. His body language looks calm and casual but there is that underlying presence of awareness of any possible enemies. She removes a kunai and flicks it at him - satisfied when he dodges it almost like a pro. This kid shouldn't be a genin still.

"Come down here and face me," the boy calls out to the person who had thrown the kunai at him.

"No need to get all huffy gaki," Anko tells him, causing him to whirl around, as she bends down to pick up her kunai.

"Mitarashi Anko?" he questions, narrowing his eyes slightly as he studies the woman.

"Hai."

He frowns ever so slightly before his face turns neutral again. "Hyuuga Tamashii," he introduces himself. He gets a smirk from his new sensei but before he can comment on it he gets a pointed finger.

"Take a seat, gaki. We're still waiting for your teammate," she instructs him before disappearing in a whirl of leaves, causing him to realize that he had been speaking with a clone. Silently cursing himself he walks over to the post, leaning against it as he makes a mental note to step up his training with the Byakugan, never mind the fact that he hadn't had it activated when he spoke with the clone.

Tamashii, waiting for his teammates to arrive, activates his kekkei genkai and is greeted with the ability to see his surroundings easily. He finds his sensei sitting in one of the trees with a bored expression, twirling her kunai with an ease that most shinobi cannot do without injuring themselves. At the base of the same tree sleeps an unfamiliar shinobi. Just looking at this one is enough to give him a headache with the intensity of the chakra burning within her. So instead he looks for something else to focus on.

His silent prayer is answered in the form of a somewhat short girl approaching them. Her chakra levels was slightly above average for most beginner kunoichi. The closer she came the clearer he can see her. She has long purple hair - similar to Mitarashi's hair color but darker- that appears to have been braided back with her bangs left free. The hiati-ate appears to be tied around the girl's arm - the plate slightly modified to be suited for this usage. There is a slight bounce in the girl's strides and he can gauge that she is actually in good shape as oppose to the fan obsessed kunoichi he had the misfortune of meeting in the academy.

If she can take being a shinobi seriously then perhaps this team won't be so insufferable.

It doesn't take long for the girl to arrive at the training ground and before anyone can blink a kunai flies through the air. The girl, instead of dodging it completely, catches it after she sidesteps it, somehow slipping her finger into the ring as it flies past her. With a twist of her body she throws the kunai back at the source.

"Oh, I like this one," someone chuckles off to the side and they look to see that it is Anko who is once again eating dangos off a skewer. She finishes off the last one before using the skewer as a senbon - aimed straight for the sleeping girl under the tree.

Before it can hit the girl's buttocks a black tail sweeps it away and the girl pushes herself up into a sitting position - yawning and stretching her arms. Affording Tamashii and the third teammate a view of her wolf like ears and tail.

"What is she!" the Hyuuga boy exclaims, losing his cool for the first time. Oretzi gives him a puzzled look as she picks herself off the ground, dusting off her clothes.

"A hanyou," the purple haired girl says in shock. She then tackles Oretzi with a squeal, "Oh you're so kawaii!"

This has the unintended result of making Oretzi see doubles from the squeal and causing her to fall under the weight of the older girl. Though the girl is the same height as her she is heavier - actually average for her height. However, Oretzi is still underweight for her height and age so there was a difference.

Oretzi is still struggling to put on weight but everything went almost straight to her energy deposits instead of converting to fat or muscle. So she ends up burning through the calories and as a result she doesn't put on anything except maybe the tiniest bit of weight. Her okaa-san said that if she doesn't put on at least ten or fifteen pounds by the end of the week she'll have to take her to the Akimichi clan and have the clan head - Akimichi Chouza - help her put on weight. She doubted she even put on a pound. If anything she lost weight since she started training with Anko-sensei.

"Ow," Oretzi whines, clutching the back of her head as the purple haired girl scrambles off the wolf hanyou. She pushes herself into upright position, mock glaring at Anko who had burst into laughter at the near automatic reaction of Oretzi's teammate. "Who are you?" she questions the girl as she slowly but surely feel the bump on her head disappear.

"Gomen, my name is Akino Hoshi," the girl bows respectfully.

"Inuzuka Oretzi," the hanyou returns the favor, finally dropping her hand from her head.

"You're an Inuzuka? You look nothing like them. You don't even have the markings!" Tamashii says snidely before he is wacked in the head by Anko. "You're nothing like those stupid mutts!"

"You'd do well to respect others, Hyuuga. I don't care what Clan you are from but in this team you will put aside all petty differences," Anko growls in warning as Oretzi hops onto one of the post, her tail helping her balance at first before sweeping back and forth lazily once she has it.

With one hand on the post to keep her balance she grabs the tall boy's collar, yanking him up slightly with her strength alone. "I may not care about a lot of things in this Human world," she starts lowly, "but my family and Anko-sensei are my precious people. Insult my family again and I will make you wish you were never born." Her eyes shines gold briefly before she releases him to collapse to his knees with a mile long stare that most traumatized victims have.

Anko sighs and takes a cautious look at the Oretzi's eyes to find there is a hint of gold in her eyes - fading rapidly. "While I appreciate the thought, traumatizing your teammate isn't good for the overall teamwork."

"I didn't do anything?" Oretzi says in confusion, the statement coming out as a question as a result.

"… So you're saying you didn't use your doujutsu?"

Oretzi blinks before frowning. "I still haven't mastered it yet," she confesses. This causes Anko to rub her face. That changed everything - with the girl's extreme emotions activating the doujutsu and projecting the intent behind her words. A double edged sword from the few times Tsume and herself had gotten caught up in the effects of the girl's doujutsu.

"We'll have to work on that, gaki," she tells Oretzi before waving a vial under Tamashii's nose - snapping him out of his stupor. The second he recognizes whose face is in front of him he scream his apologies and scrambles away and she turns to a sheepish Oretzi. "Just what were you imagining?" she asks the girl dubiously.

"Er… I was thinking about what Ibiki-san told me once." Anko was torn between groaning and laughing at what the girl said. She had to worry about the mental damage the kid may have done.

"Okay, enough monkeying around, gaki," she gestures for the trio to make themselves comfortable. "So let's get the introductions out of the way. I am Mitarashi Anko. My likes are teasing my friend Yuhi Kurenai, torturing my hapless victims, and eating dangos." She pauses as she is left with the feeling that she has forgotten something. "Oh and messing with Oretzi-kun and Naruto-kun. My dislikes are bullies, anyone who badmouth Oretzi, Naruto, or me. My hobbies are…" she smirks as she frees a kunai and throws it at Oretzi who ducks to avoid getting her cheek sliced. "Trying to taste Oretzi-kun's blood and generally throwing people's expectations of me off."

She looks at her three students before pointing at the Hyuuga boy. "You're next."

"My name is Hyuuga Tamashii. I have no likes. I dislike anyone who annoys me. My hobby is training to further myself." Oretzi coughs something that sounds suspiciously like boring but Anko doesn't call her up on it because she personally agrees.

"Okay, mini-me, you're next."

The girl blinks in surprise at the comment before clearing her throat. Oretzi looks at her in curiosity at Anko's words, wondering how she got that 'mini-me' thing from her. The kunoichi is dressed in loose pants, the ends tucked in boots instead of the usual open toed sandals with plates attached over the toes. She has a short sleeved shirt, tucked into the pants, and bracers over her forearms and thighs. The kunai and shuriken pouches attached to the back of her belt. Her entire outfit done in black with the shiny surfaces of the plates coated with a substance to prevent reflections. Maybe it's the hair?

"My name is Akino Hoshi. My likes are kenjutsu, taijutsu, and star-gazing," she says with a smirk as Oretzi starts to chuckle behind her. "My dislikes are people who believe they're superior to anyone else," she says, glancing at Tamashii, "and anyone who thinks they can pick on the little people." Oretzi wanted to ask what she meant by 'little' people. Did she mean those who are vertically challenged? Or those who can't defend themselves? "My hobbies includes finding kawaii girls," she glances at Oretzi who starts to blush, "and eating ice cream."

Anko has to force herself not to laugh or else she'd never stop. She can definitely see this girl as a mini-her. Now all she needs to do is get her to loosen up a bit more.

"Aright, now for you wolfie-chan," Anko says with a smirk, getting a wide shocked look from the wolf hanyou. And she knew why too. No one has ever dared to call her wolfie before and the pride the girl has about being a wolf - even if she is half a wolf demon - dictated that she do not allow people to use terms that seems demeaning.

"Anko-sensei!" she protests predictability at the term.

"Would you rather I use puppy-chan?" Anko retorts. The girl falls into a silence that was a bit pronounced. "I thought so. Now introduce yourself." (2)

The girl pouts at the woman before clearing her throat, her tail wagging just a bit excitedly. "My name is Inuzuka Oretzi, formerly known as Kazama Oretzi. My likes are wolves, moons, dangos, and Anko-sensei." She gets a mock glare for the formal title. "My dislikes are anyone who threatens my family and friends, _mobs_, and _abusive_ people." Anko frowns at that little insight into Oretzi's mind. What happened to the girl to inspire a dislike for mobs and abusive people? It was obvious by the certain stresses she placed on those words that she really did not like them. "My hobbies… mmm…" Oretzi frowns as she considers this, what were her hobbies? Something she does to relax? "I don't know what my hobbies are at the moment so I'm open to explore." (3)

Anko nods her head before she pulls out three scrolls, tossing them to the trio. "Okay, I'm pretty sure Tamashii-kun and Hoshi-chan have already gone through something similar to this but for the stake of following tradition I'm putting you through a test." Oretzi tosses the scroll back and forth between her hands, her eyes and ears intent on their sensei. "Oretzi-kun, the test is simple. There are ten locations marked on the map in the scroll. Your goal is to find the tags that looks like these," she holds up a thin piece of paper that looks remarkably similar to the explosive tags except the writing is different - meant for something else aside from exploding. "However, only two of the tags are the ones you need to pass this test. The three of you need to locate the tags and bring them to me."

Oretzi and Hoshi nod their heads in agreement while Tamashii curses beneath his breath about having to take the teamwork test again.

"Also, if you fail, Oretzi-kun, I'll have no choice but to send you back to the Academy." Oretzi's stunned look was almost hilarious but she refrained from laughing, aware of the gaki's wish to be like her otou-san and okaa-san. This was no joke for the hanyou. "You have one hour!" she says with a final note, using the shunshin to leave the immediate area.

**_I hope ya'll liked the chapter and this test I'm putting Oretzi-chan through. I didn't want to do a simple Bell test simply because two of the three have already been accepted as a genin. But at the same time she needs to learn something from this test - to demostrate her skills in a way that not even Iruka-sensei could._**

**_(1) A cookie to anyone who figures out the reason for Oretzi-chan's reaction. (I'm decently sure I gave a few hints._**

**_(2) No matter what, being called wolfie-chan or puppy-chan is demeaning. But if one has to chose the lesser of two evils it'd be wolfie-chan. I swear to the goddess above that my ex ruined me to the prospect of being called either one and I'm afraid Oretzi-chan inherited that from me._**

**_(3) You'd think that she'd have a hobby by now, right? After all, she's been alive for a good eight years, been living with the Inuzuka clan for at least 6 or 7 months. But because she focused so much time on training and learning she never really found something to relax - hence the lack of hobby! So I'll take suggestions for hobbies for Oretzi-chan._**

**_Okay, that's enough of me babbling about so leave a review! Btw, Candy-chan, Oretzi-chan's ane-chan should be introduced some time around... Mmm... well, I suppose when she's taking her chunin exams. Probably afterwards. Ja Ne!_**


	7. Chapter 7

_**Hi everyone! Sorry about the long gap! I just finished my spring semester and lemme tell you this. I have no internet once so ever at my house so you can probably imagine that I had no access to the wifi for awhile and I just wanted to chill out. Good news tho? I finished more than a few chapters recently. So... You'll have the chapters up til maybe 9. Once I finish chapter 11 you'll get the 10th. Anyway, ya'll know the drill. I don't own Naruto except for the characters you do not recognize.**_

_**Chapter 7**_

"NANI!" Oretzi shouts with maybe a slight bit of youki slipping into her voice to make it a mini-roar. Not quite enough to do some damage to their surroundings but just enough to make her new teammates' hair move as if a strong burst of wind has rushed through the treed training ground. "Anko-sensei!"

"Ugh stop being so loud," Tamashii grumbles as he rubs his ears, a slight ring building up in them.

"But a test?!" Oretzi whines, her ears almost flat against her skull in aggravation.

"Don't worry, Oretzi-chan. I'm going to be helping," Hoshi states as she ruffles the girl's hair, "Besides, we're a team now. Right Tamashii-kun?"

"It's Hyuuga-san to you," he snaps, causing Hoshi to roll her eyes at him.

"Still a bastard as ever I see," she comments as she opens the scroll to study the locations of the spots. They have less than an hour to search them all for the two tags. They have two out of ten chance of finding it - not exactly the best odds in her opinion, with very little information too. She also didn't expect the help of Tamashii with his 'superior' attitude. He already saw Oretzi as worthless so he wasn't likely to go out of his way to help her pass her test.

"What was that?!" Tamashii snaps before he gets a swift kick from Oretzi - causing him to duck away. "Bitch!"

Oretzi growls loudly at him, her eyes starting to bleed gold. "You are a real meanie," she growls.

"What are you, a five year old? Who says meanie anymore?" he laughs incredulously.

"I'm eight!" Oretzi snaps. The two genin stare at her in shock causing her to growl angrily at them. "Yes, I'm eight years old!" She whirls around and hops off the post, heading to the first location.

"Hey, hey wait Oretzi-chan!" she hears Hoshi yell after her. She pauses for the older girl to join her. She holds up the scroll they were given and points to the group of five red dots, "You can search there, they're close to the Clan districts." She then points at the last remaining group, "I'll search here. Five minutes for each location should be enough time," she adds.

Oretzi nods her head before taking off towards the Clan Districts with Hoshi going the other way.

Anko, having hidden herself to watch the interaction of the team without her presence, found herself disappointed but not surprised by Tamashii's actions. Once a Hyuuga, it seems, always a Hyuuga. She'll have to do something about that. She frowns to herself as she considers her possible options, creating two Kage Bunshins as an afterthought to keep an eye on the two girls. There are a place or two where the girls will not be able to enter due to their gender - making the fact Tamashii refuses to assist an even worse tactical disadvantage.

* * *

Oretzi remembers a jutsu her okaa-san has used a few times and used it for her advantage, forming the right hand seals for the jutsu. There is a brief obscuration of smoke before it clears away to reveal five identical Oretzi standing in a circle, looking at each other.

"Okay, you know each location," the original starts, "go there and find a tag. Then come back here." The four Bunshins nod their heads before running off with the original heading to a location closest to the training ground. Something called 'Pink Sugar'. Maybe it's a bakery shop?

(Meanwhile with Hoshi)

The purple haired girl stared at the first location in shock. "Really? A men only hot spring?" she starts to smack her forehead in disbelief. "You had to pick now of all times, Tamashii, to be a stubborn bastard?" she shakes her head and does the appropriate hand seals for the Henge jutsu. She looks down at herself before nodding in satisfaction. It'll have to do for now - hopefully the tag isn't actually inside the hot spring itself but rather in the locker room.

Her face pale as she prepares herself for the ungodly visual she'll be getting she forces herself to enter the building, her eyes narrowed into slits to keep from seeing something unwanted.

(Oretzi)

The hanyou stares in confusion at the windowless one story building with a simple sign that says 'Pink Sugar' with an image of a woman lounging in what appears to be a cone shaped glass. She tilts her head to the side before shrugging, entering the building through the front door. What's the worst that can go wrong?

Outside where Oretzi had been standing stood Anko - or rather her bunshin - who is staring after Oretzi's back in a mixture of shock and amusement. "Of all the locations you had to get, gaki, you ended up with this one," she shakes her head, laughing. "It's a bit early for you to be exposed to this lifestyle." She taps her chin in thought before shrugging her shoulders. "I did put a tag in there and it's not night so hopefully there shouldn't be too many ladies in there to get her into trouble." With that decision made she returns to the shadows to keep an eye on the only entrance for the gaki's eventual return. Hopefully without being traumatized or Tsume will kill her.

(Hoshi)

She runs out of the hot spring, soaked and slightly burned, cursing their sensei because the tag in the spring was a dud - a blank. She was so pissed off that she was muttering curses low under her breath as she stomps off to the next marker - having spent under two minutes in the place in her haste to find the stupid tag before her embarrassment forced her to drop the Henge.

Only to find that it's a dud?!

"DAMN YOU SENSEI!" she screams to the sky before running off to the next location - obviously feeling just a tad bit better now that she has screamed her frustration.

Not too far where she had stood Anko emerges from the shadow, chuckling. It has been amusing to see Hoshi's rather exaggerated reaction to at least five naked men - and they were all in good shape too. The genin is fortunate - the bunshin thinks - that the second men only location isn't included in the five she has taken upon herself. But unfortunately for the experienced genin there should be at least one location that will test her in a way that is far worse than the hot spring. "I wouldn't want to be you," she laughs as she resumes watching over the genin.

There may never be another chance to get blackmail material on the gaki.

(Oretzi)

Anko frowns in concern when the girl doesn't come out within five minutes and using the Henge jutsu she slips into the club. She walks down the long aisle before finally entering the large room outfitted with a bar, a dance floor, and an array of tables and booths along the sides of the room. She squints her eyes in the dimly lit room before she found the gaki.

The sight has her just about to burst into laughter, her fist pressed against her lips in an effort to stifle what little that did escape. The gaki is sitting at the bar with a gaggle of older women - mostly those in their twenties - surrounding her. Cooing at the young hanyou because of her ears and tail. In fact Oretzi had her tail tightly against her chest with her arms securing it there protectively. Her face bright red as the women insist on rubbing her sensitive ears, her eyes wide as she took in her surroundings.

Still trying not to laugh Anko has to conclude that she was accosted almost immediately if she's still looking around so desperately. Wait. She feels her blood go cold as Oretzi's eyes land on her and she somehow manages to break free of the women's grasp - crossing the room in two heartbeats before latching herself onto the henged bunshin. The suddenness of Oretzi's actions distracted her and she dropped the Henge by accident.

"Anko-chan," the girl whines, her eyes still wide as she stares at the other women with misgiving.

"Aw, she already has a girlfriend," one of the women complain as the crowd begin to thin out.

"Arigatou," Oretzi says to the bunshin as she unlatches herself from her, her tail relaxed as she runs her eyes over the room again. She then returns to the bar, without another look to Anko, and speaks with the bartender who allows her behind the counter and into the backroom where Anko has hidden one of the tags.

Still stunned by the suddenness of Oretzi latching onto her Anko stood there for a minute longer before she overhears someone whispering about how kawaii the hanyou had looked - even when she is clinging to the snake mistress. They went on to say that she deserves someone better - someone who hasn't been tainted by darkness. Reminded by the fact that almost everyone in the village looks down at her she makes to leave only to hear a familiar growl.

Turning around she is stunned to find the eight year old girl staring down the women who had bad mouthed her sensei. If the girl had a full wolf form she would've had raised hackles around her neck and down her back with her fangs bared menacingly at the women. As it was her eyes sending the meanest glare she could muster was enough to startle the women's hearts into their throats.

It was a combination of amusing and worrying because she didn't want the girl to rip them a new one and yet at the same time it was funny because she knew that the girl was not as old as she appeared to be on most occasions. Her four foot and eleven inches, while not exactly an impressive height was something intimating to see from this furious hanyou. It was especially worrying when she realizes that the gaki's demonic visage has strengthen somewhat, the slits in her eyes highlighted by some red glow, her nails and canines elongating, and there was a heavy aura around her.

She quickly moves in and with a small grunt of effort she picks up the girl, throwing her over her shoulder. "Sorry ladies, but we need to take our leave. Say goodbye to them, Oretzi-kun," Anko says cheerfully with a heavy dose of sarcasm before she walks out of the building with the hanyou squirming and protesting to get down.

Once outside she sets the girl down and crosses her arms, staring down at the younger girl. "Damn it, Oretzi, how the hell did you manage to attract that much trouble so quickly?" she shakes her head in disbelief. She hadn't expected for such a mob to appear in the club, not so early in the morning anyway.

"It's the ears and tail," Oretzi protests as she averts her eyes.

"And your near fatal cuteness level," Anko retorts.

"It's not my fault!" Anko snorts her opinion on that. "Anko-san!" Oretzi immediately gets a disappointed look and she ducks her head, confused by the changes in the suffixes. She's someone to be respected, she's her sensei, but she wants to be called Anko-chan or Anko. She makes to say something before one of her Kage Bunshins dispel themselves, alerting her to the fact that they haven't found anything yet. Then, as she is absorbing that information a second one dispels and she blanches as she realized that the bunshin had to enter a gay stripping club - a twenty-four hour club.

Anko couldn't stop the snickers that came the second she saw the girl's face turn pale, figuring out that one of the clones must have dispelled itself. The girl's horrified expression was something of a legend or should be made into a legend.

"You are one sick woman," Oretzi whines, finally shaking her head.

"What, getting molested by a bunch of women doesn't warrant that comment but whatever your bunshin saw did?" This prompts the girl to blush and a series of noises leave her mouth that causes Anko to look at the girl in confusion. Were those barks and whines?

A third kage bunshin dispels itself and she blushes at the merchandise sold at the store. "You have a very perverted mind, Anko-chan," the girl complains to her as she makes her way to the training ground. She had found the a blank tag inside the 'Pink Sugar' club and the fact that only three of the four kage bunshins have dispelled themselves she can only hope that the fourth one will find it.

"Hey, it means there is fun to be had," Anko protests as she follows her student back.

"I'm too young to even begin to understand that kind of fun, Anko-chan," Oretzi protests.

"Kid, once I'm done with you, you're not going to even be able to use that excuse," Anko smirks.

Oretzi didn't bother looking at her sensei at that remark. "Anko-chan, okaa-san isn't going to be very happy with you," she comments as she lands in the training ground. She then turns her attention to the real Anko as the kage bunshin behind her dispels herself. She watch how her sensei stiffen at the rush of information before she starts laughing out loud. "Anko-sensei!" she protests when the woman picks her up and puts her in her lap, her arms tightly around her.

"You gonna tell on me to your okaa-san?" Anko pouts to the hanyou who managed to turn her head enough to get a good look at the woman.

"Nazedesu ka?" Oretzi whines cutely at the woman who merely laughs and rubs the girl's wolf ears - almost turning her putty in her hands. (1)

"Gotta use what I have, kiddo," Anko teases the girl as Oretzi's kage bunshin shunshins into the area, holding up one of the two tags she was supposed to find.

"Hey Boss!" the hanyou clone says cheerfully as she hops onto the original's lap, getting a grunt of pain from both Oretzi and Anko. "Is Anko-chan playing with you?"

Oretzi stares at her clone in disbelief. "Who are you and what have you done with my bunshin?" she questions the clone.

Anko merely smirks and ruffle the girl's hair. "There are chances of producing 'oddballs' when you use the Kage bunshin," Anko tells the girl before she frowns when she recalls something. "Speaking of Kage Bunshin no jutsu, how is it possible for you to already know this one?"

"Er… I watched okaa-san and ane-chan spar with each other," Oretzi confesses while squirming under the weight of her clone. She finally glares at the clone and - after taking the tag away from her - dispels it. Wincing when the clone's information floods into her head and she has a weird sense of identity when she sees how strange it is for her to be in Anko's lap. She looked comfortable and awkward at the same time.

"You mean to tell me that you learned to do a jonin restricted jutsu simply by watching your okaa-san?"

"Hai?"

"Oretzi-kun, that is dangerous," Anko sighs, shaking her head.

"It is how I learn," the girl whispers, averting her eyes to find that Tamashii is looking at them yet he was also out of hearing range. "Anko-sensei, Hyuuga Tamashii doesn't like me does he?" Oretzi hears the woman sigh behind her, at the suffix or the question she doesn't know.

"He doesn't even know you gaki."

"But he's supposed to be my teammate."

Anko sighs again as she ruffles the girl's hair. "Just because he's your teammate, doesn't mean he'll like you." Oretzi tilts her head back in a way that enables her to see Anko's face. "Just be yourself, gaki, and eventually you might win him over."

Oretzi huffs, her tail thumping against Anko's thigh. "He gotta get that stick out of his butt first," the young hanyou retorts.

"Why don't you pull it out for him?" Anko suggests with a laugh.

Oretzi was going to make some sort of remark when Hoshi ran into the training ground with a horde of women behind her. Anko barked a laugh as she jumps up, causing the hanyou to fall flat on her butt before she scrambles to get up.

Hoshi jumps into the tree they were sitting under and left them to deal with the wrath of five or ten female strippers who were angry about her apparent violation of club rules - no women allowed - and her gutsy move to go through their personal belongings. Oretzi backs away from the group of scary women, her mind flashing back to the group of women that kept fondling her wolf ears.

Her movement distracted some of the women from Hoshi so when they saw her ears and tail they had that same instant reaction many other women has had towards her. Namely squealing 'kawaii!' before attempting to pounce her. Oretzi shriek in dismay before jumping straight up into the tree while Anko is forced to jump aside lest she get run over by the rabid ladies.

"What did you do?!" she whines to Hoshi who is balancing herself on one branch - holding the one above her with one hand.

"I had to go through their things to search for the tag," the older girl replies as she holds up the one she had been looking for. "Thing is? It wasn't even in their bags."

Oretzi gives the kunoichi a cold look. "So you mean to say that we're trapped in this tree because you stupidly went through their things for a tag that wasn't even in there?"

Hoshi thinks for a second before nodding grimly. "Sounds about right."

"Akino-san, I like you but I don't like you right now," Oretzi complains as she stays crouched, her elongated nails partially turned into claws to grip the rough bark of the tree, her tail steadying her.

"That is the weirdest contradiction I have ever heard, Oretzi-chan," Hoshi comments. "By the way, call me Hoshi."

Oretzi turns her head partially towards the older woman. "You're going to be like Anko-sensei ne?"

The purple haired genin looks at the hanyou in confusion. "What you mean?"

"Just what I mean," Oretzi replies. She sees the puzzled look and sighs. "Anko-sensei doesn't want me calling her Mitarashi-san or Anko-san or even Anko-sensei." She turns her attention to the crowd beneath them. Most if not all of the women did not want to climb the tree to get the 'pervert' that had gone through their things or to get the 'cute' girl with the ears and tail - which meant that they need to stay in the tree for as long as it takes for the group to become bored with the waiting.

"What does she want you to call her then?"

"Anko-chan or without the suffixes," Oretzi answers simply. She looks through the crowd for the snake mistress before finding her at the far side of the crowd - arguing with someone her age. She tries to listen to them but there is too many people talking for her to hear them so she pushes some of her chakra to her ears, focusing specifically on Anko's husky voice.

* * *

"What the fuck is going on here, Yukiko!" the jonin demands from the woman in front of her.

"That brat is a fuckin' pervert, Mitarashi. The girls want a piece of him for goin' through our fuckin' things." Anko blinks and looks at the genin in question before she figures out that the brat used a henge to be a guy.

"Yukiko, did you forget that I placed a tag in your club?" Anko shakes her head at the woman.

"Our fuckin' things! You didn't even put anything in there!"

"The gaki was being thorough," Anko retorts.

The red haired woman snorts. "I doubt the bastard was even lookin' for the tag. Fuckin' pervert."

Anko sighs. "You are aware that your 'bastard' is a girl?"

"That makes it all the worse."

Anko chose not to argue with the angered woman and looks up at the two genin again. "Oi, gaki!" she shouts.

~A Few minutes Earlier~

Oretzi turns to Hoshi who looks pale. "The red head," she says as she points to the woman, "is not happy with you."

"Considering that she was the one who caught me and tried to seduce me, I'm not surprised."

The hanyou frowns before she realizes something. "You dropped the henge while she was trying to seduce you?" Hoshi looked ashamed as she nods her head.

"It's not even the first time either," Hoshi confesses.

"How many time have you dropped the henge?"

"One too many times," the older genin confesses with a reluctant sigh.

"Extreme emotions?"

"Like no other."

Oretzi nods her head in understanding before she focuses on Anko who chose that moment to look at them.

"Oi, gaki!" their sensei shouts at them, causing the two genin to look at each other. "Get down here!" Oretzi shudders at the prospect of facing the women and possibly getting her ears fondled by them while Hoshi dreaded the thought of facing their wrath. "NOW!" they hear Anko roar and Oretzi jumps out of the tree at the command with Hoshi right behind her.

The young hanyou lands behind Anko and quickly clings to her, her tail wedged between them, to keep the crazy women away from her. While Hoshi is grabbed by their sensei and forced to her knees before the pissed off club owner, Yukiko. "Do you have anything to say to her, Akino?" Anko practically snarled this, getting a hesitant touch from the eight year old girl behind her.

"I apologize, Mizurashi-san, for my intrusion of your club and personal items of both yourself and your staff," Hoshi says with Anko's grip on the back of her neck serving as an encouragement.

The woman, Yukiko, scowls at the genin before huffing. "This is the last time I ever do you a favor, Mitarashi," Yukiko snaps at the jonin sensei before stomping off with the strippers following along behind her.

Oretzi sighs in relief before releasing the woman. "Too many drama in one day," she mutters quietly as she plops down at the base of the tree as Anko lets go of Hoshi. Hoshi joins her and after a moment of silence she pulls out the tag she retrieved and hands it over to Oretzi.

"Here, now your test is done."

Oretzi looks at the tags, studying the writing on the papers. One tag says 'Rules are meant to be followed, the Mission above all else - including your teammates' while the other says 'Teamwork and your fellow shinobi above all else, including the mission'. She looks at Anko for a moment before she looks at her new teammates.

"There's more to this," she finally mutters, her eyes focused on her sensei.

Anko chuckles at the girl's observation as she crouches down in front of her. "Which will be your motto?" she asks.

Oretzi frowns as she studies the tags again. She crumples one in her hand before she offer the other to Anko. "I will never abandon my teammates," she says simply, getting a happy smirk from the older woman.

"Good to hear it gaki." The snake mistress ruffles the hanyou's hair before standing up, stretching her arms. "Now that excitement is over, I'll have to fail Tamashii for not cooperating with the test and send him back to the Academy."

"WHAT?!" the Hyuuga snaps, storming over to the trio in a blaze of fury before he is intercepted by Oretzi by a strong side kick. "YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" he roars at Anko. (2)

"I can and I will," she states simply. "You should have never been allowed to pass," she states, referring to his previous sensei. "Your academy marks put you in an overall low for cooperation and teamwork. On top of that you consistently refuse to assist both your old team and well as your new. This team is going to be strictly tracking, infiltration, and assassination. How the fuck are we going to trust you if you refuse to carry your own weight on this team?" she lectures at him while Oretzi crouches in front of her, her eyes feral as she slides into a stance similar to the Inuzuka's.

"I am a Hyuuga!" he snaps at the woman, "I do not need to work with such lowly shinobi and I refuse to!"

"You're a Branch member!" Anko retorts. "You're not as high and mighty as you and everyone else in your clan like to think!" She crosses her arms. "News flash! Your byakugan isn't as all seeing as your clan likes to put it! And relying purely on taijutsu weakens you severely!"

This angers the boy greatly and he throws himself at Anko only to be intercepted once again by Oretzi, her smaller size enabling her to slip close to him and past his chakra infused attacks before she throws him far away from herself and Anko.

"I told you once and I will tell you again," Oretzi growls, "Anko-sensei is my precious person. You will not lay a hand on her!" Her voice distorted as white youki seems to coat her body, slowly starting to burn her clothes into tatters and her hiati-ate to fall free from around her throat.

Anko curses when she sees what is about to happen and tries to intervene. But before she even takes one step the hanyou is gone in a flash and Tamashii is missing from the field. "Kuso!"

She creates a Kage bunshin and has it search one end of the training ground while she checks the other. One of them is bound to find the gaki before she does serious damage to Tamashii. Especially with her youki!

* * *

Oretzi had a foot pressed against Tamashii's shoulder, the youki slowly but surely burning through his shirt and beginning to leave a mark on his skin. She flexes her fingers as she kneels and ever so gently touches the tips of her youki claws to the other shoulder before deliberately dragging them down and across his chest in a manner that would make people assume he has been hit by a diagonal attack.

His screams - loud and grating as they were - was cut off by Oretzi stuffing the ragged tatters of Tamashii's shirt into his mouth to silence him. Her eyes, glowing an eerily red color, terrifies the older genin and as he struggles to get her off him she just smirks down at him. "I warned you last time," the young hanyou smirks at him as she presses a knee to his heavily damaged chest - provoking a muffled scream. "You insulted my clan, attacked my Anko-chan, and on top of that you're just an insufferable little ass."

Oretzi leans in to stare curiously into his wide eyes. "Death is too merciful for someone like you," she seems to smirk at the boy as she said this. "Is it because of your eyes that you hold yourself so high?" she questions as she holds her claws threateningly above the Hyuuga specific eyes - The All Seeing White eyes. "Maybe I should rid you of them," she remarks to the boy's terror.

She smirks at the scent of his fear and a low rumble similar to a purr seems to vibrate in the girl's chest. "Fear. Sweet, sweet fear," the hanyou smirks, baring her large fangs on her partially shifted face - her head shifting slightly into a shape that is similar to wolves but with a shorter snout. In short her appearance looked far more demonic than before and as she nears the boy's face with her sharp rows of fangs the boy starts to sob and ramble.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'll change!"

Just like that Oretzi is gone and every single injury he ever suffered under her wrath disappears, startling the boy. As he picks himself up Oretzi appears nearby, causing him to jump. "Genjutsu is a success," the girl says simply. He stares at her in awe, having been completely and utterly fooled by the genjutsu, and afraid because he now knows the consequences of angering the young hanyou.

_***wipes sweat off brow* Whew, done :P Hoped ya'll enjoyed that. I wanted to do something that wasn't wholly expected while at the same time giving Oretzi a grasp of what's important. Rules and the mission or the lives of her team.**_

_**(1) Two things about this. What Oretzi-chan said is why? (I think) and her ears are extremely sensitive. And she has four of them. Imagine what you can do to the poor girl :D**_

_**(2) I know I know, he's a Hyuuga, where's his stoic and holier than thou issues? He's a branch and a distant one at that. My reasoning? He just has too much anger for him to use that mask effectively and to top it all off he seriously doesn't like being around kids his age and younger. So let's just go with he's not a very good Hyuuga and leave it at that :)**_

_**Anyway, please leave a review for me! Lemme know if this chapter needs improvement or something of the like :) Also, Candy-chan, what did you think of your imouto?**_


	8. Chapter 8

_**Here we are folks (not even two minutes after chapter 7) with another update as promised. Same drill. I don't own Naruto except for the characters you don't recognize. Oh, also, I wanna thank a few people for reviewing or following the story. I'm decently positive I haven't welcomed grim reaper 15 and XKuroSoraX to the story. And thanked a guest reviewer, Nyanya. Hope you're able to follow the story without an account.**_

_**Chapter 8**_

"That-," his voice broke so he has to clear it a few times to get it back to its normal pitch, "That was a genjutsu?"

"The entire time," Oretzi tells him as she sits in front of him, her brown eyes staring at him.

"It…" He stops, unsure how to put it, but it wasn't necessary as the young hanyou takes the words out of his mouth.

"Was so real?" Tamashii nods his head, his face pale as he recalls every clear detail of what she did to him or rather what her genjutsu did.

Oretzi shrugs her shoulders. "Mama is a really good illusionist," she tells him before offering the tag she had spent her last hour searching for. "Anko-sensei rarely do something without a reason," she tells him. "She's right about you not caring about others…" Tamashii accepts the tag from her and looks at the writing about Teamwork. "We're a team now, aren't we?"

Tamashii frowns as he thinks about what he had gone through because of Oretzi's genjutsu. "You know what," he starts, getting a puzzled noise from the girl, "Screw my family. They tell me to never express my emotions, to always be stoic. But that got me in hot water faster than you can say damn it."

Oretzi made a sound that was a cross breed between a huff and a laugh. "Is there no one you care for within your own clan?" she questions and she watches him as he opens his mouth almost instantly to say 'no' when he pauses. She tilts her head to the side as he doesn't say something for a bit.

"Actually… Hinata-sama… I…" Oretzi nods her head in understanding as she shifts her weight around to stand on her knees.

"Then protect her as your precious person, Tamashii-kun," she tells him before she hops up onto her feet just as Anko arrives in the area, panting. "Anko-sensei!" the girl says cheerfully as she jogs over to the woman who looks surprised that the Hyuuga hasn't been torn into pieces.

"Gaki," the woman starts as Oretzi stands in front of her, her tail wagging happily. "Didn't tear him apart I see."

"I used a genjutsu," she tells the older woman.

"With or without the eyes?"

"With?" Oretzi answers, puzzled by the woman's questioning so the statement came out as a question.

Anko nods her head before she shakes her head. "We still need to get you trained," she comments as she turns her gaze to the Hyuuga. "What is your decision, Hyuuga?"

Oretzi partially turns to so that she can have both in view and she watches Tamashii bow his head for a moment. "I… after Inuzuka-chan has shown me the error of my ways I… I apologize for my words and actions and wish to make up for them." He then bows more formally to show his sincerity.

"What do you think, gaki?" Anko asks, looking at the wolf hanyou who glances at her.

"He seems ready to turn a new leaf," is the hanyou's simple answer before her stomach growl and she puts her arms protectively over the complaining belly - a blush adorning her cheeks.

Anko couldn't stop the laugh that came up and she ruffles the girl's hair. "Guess that means training is over. Hoshi, Tamashii," she calls to her two students, the purple haired genin stepping out from the trees where she had stayed hidden during their conversation. "Let's go, lunch's on me."

"BBQ!" Oretzi cheers as she jumps for joy before the back of her shirt is seized by her sensei. "Nani?"

"You need to go home and change," Anko tells her, causing the hanyou to look down at her now partially destroyed clothes. "Am I going to need to find something to suppress your youki until the damn plant comes in?"

"Mah," the young genin protests before Anko rolls her eyes.

"I suppose I best teach you three how to use fuuinjutsu at some point," Anko mutters, making a mental note as to what she will need to cover.

"Anko-sensei, I already know how to use fuuinjutsu," Hoshi speaks up, removing a scroll with the kanji for rations on it.

"Same." Tamashii chose that time to speak up as well.

Oretzi's ears go flat against her skull as she pouts, realizing that she will have to play a lot of catching up to get to the same level as her teammates. Anko noticed this so she ruffles the girl's hair again. "So, fuuinjutsu is a good place to start. You've already shown high marks for genjutsu. With your taijutsu, strength, and speed a close second," Anko remarks. "You've also already shown that you're capable of picking up most ninjutsu just by watching."

"She sounds like she belongs with the Uchiha clan," Tamashii comments as he wonders closer to them.

"Uchiha is a pain in my neck," Oretzi scowls unhappily as she recalls the boy whom her imouto are fighting over. Tamashii laughs and slings an arm around Oretzi's shoulders.

"Did Uchiha Sasuke reject your love?"

Oretzi shakes her head, a growl already starting to radiate from her throat. Tamashii recognizes this as a danger sign and quickly backs off - assuming that the hanyou does not appreciate his touchiness. She then starts muttering about stupid bakas who is blind to other people's emotions and is single mindedly focused on one thing.

"Did I say something wrong?" Tamashii asks, panicked.

Anko just laughs, shaking her head. "No, no, gaki just have two imouto in the Academy. Apparently both of them fell for the Uchiha and stopped being each other's friends. Long story short? She hates him now." Oretzi continues to mutter about stupid Uchiha and their stupid goals until Anko bops her on the head. "Hey, gaki, go and get some change of clothes!"

"Mah, Anko-chan," the pup whines before she vanishes in a whirl of water.

"C'mon, let's go find that BBQ spot the gaki wants to pig out at," Anko sighs, aware that feeding the young hanyou will be a serious drain on her wallet. Her stomach is like a black hole of some sort and everything she consumes doesn't do anything except give her an energy boost.

"What about Oretzi-chan?" Hoshi questions as she follows the woman with Tamashii close by.

"She'll sniff us out when she's ready," she explains as she attaches Oretzi's hiati-ate plate to a new band for the girl, this one specially designed to absorb chakra when it has been directed at the seals. While chakra are not quite the same as youki she thought it might help.

* * *

Oretzi whines as she rubs her sensitive head, that specific spot between her ears that always leave a strong headache in its wake whenever someone manages to hit her right there. At the moment she is crouched in a tree, her chakra keeping her secured to the branch, with her head almost between her knees.

"You okay, Koinu?" Hoshi asks her over the mic system. (1)

"Hai," Oretzi finally manages to mutter, wincing at the slight pain that comes when she tries to move her head. "Ran into a tree… again." It was a common occurrence for her chakra to fluctuate when she's tree hopping. End results? Her consistent meeting with a trunk.

They hear laughter over the line and Oretzi growls at Tamashii to stop. "What did you do this time? Barrel straight into the tree and come out on the other side?" She stops growling and the silence over the radio lasts for five seconds before Tamashii AND Hoshi starts laughing.

"Alright, alright, that's enough teasing for now," the trio hears their sensei interrupt over the radio. "Ookami, Twinkle, and Soul-boy. Are you in position, over," she goes on to say.

Oretzi moves out of her position and takes a few more jumps before she lands on the forest ground, lingering in the shadows of the trees as her eyes locate their target. "This is Ookami, I'm on site, over," she mutters softly.

"This is Twinkle, I'm in position, over."

"This is Soul-boy, I'm in position, over."

"Good. Now let's-," Anko starts to say before there is some noise on the radio and Oretzi's voice comes through clearly.

"The cat made me!" the hanyou snarls over the radio system before they hear the cat yowling and the girl snarling and - to everyone's surprise - cursing in a manner that impressed Anko and at the same time worried her.

"Code Red!" Anko cries before she goes after her errant student.

"KOINU!" Hoshi shouts into the radio, causing Tamashii and Anko to yank their ear pieces out to keep from being turned deaf.

* * *

The two chunins at the gates were doing they were normally doing when they had gate duties. In short? They were playing a card game with maybe half an ear directed to the road - hey, together they made a full ear.

As such they were unprepared when they hear a soft noise that sounds like someone is clearing their throat. When they turn their full attention to the gates they are alarmed to realize that there is a two stories tall wolf sitting in front of the double gates, looking at them expectantly. The size of the wolf wasn't the only startling thing about it - no, this one also has three-count them- three tails and what appears to be a scroll strapped to its back.

"How long are you going to make me wait?" the wolf questions, its husky voice deep and rumbly.

"Wh-what are you?"

The wolf sighs before shaking its head. "Humans, so foolish and a waste of my time," the wolf mutters before standing. With a single bound the white furred wolf clears the gate, leaving a small sized wolf pup behind. The two chunin stares at the tiny pup before looking at each other.

The pup starts barking and whining before a long white tail appears over the top of the gate and wraps around the small wolf. Before the chunins can say anything the tail and its package disappears over the gate and they are forced to look at each other.

"We better let Hokage-sama know about this," one of them finally says before the tallest one disappears in a whirl of leaves. "Today was such a nice day too," the remaining chunin mutters as he settles down to continue guard duties - this time with his full attention.

The white wolf was careful in where it places its paws, the pup riding on its head and barking about all the strange trees and the strange animals. Every once awhile the wolf would pause to correct the pup's assumptions - that the trees are not trees but buildings and the animals are humans. Such things like those.

Eventually the wolf and its passenger arrives at the tallest tower where the Hokage stood from his balcony, the only place where he can stand eye to eye with the wolf demon. "Hello, what can I do for you?" the old man greets the wolf - who had been warned by Oretzi, six months ago, that her pack will send the monkhood plant with one of their own wolves.

"I have a package for the pup - Kazama Oretzi - and I shall only deliver it to her and no other," the wolf tells the man only to retrieve a puzzled look.

"I apologize, but I understood none of that."

The wolf sighs as the pup on its head barks something at him. The wolf takes a minute to search its memory for the language which the man speaks. _"I have a package for Kazama Oretzi,"_ the wolf repeats, retrieving a nod from the man. _"I will not hand it over to anyone except the pup."_

"I see. Well, Inuzuka Oretzi is out on a mission at the moment so I'm afraid you are in for a bit of a wait," the man tells the wolf demon.

_"Not Inuzuka Oretzi. __**Kazama**__ Oretzi,"_ the wolf corrects the man, putting an emphasis on the hanyou's last name.

"I understand who the package is for, Ookami-san, however, Oretzi-chan has been adopted and her surname changed to Inuzuka."

The wolf growls and tosses its head, accidently throwing off the small pup who yelps at the sudden movement. Realizing its mistake the wolf tries to catch the pup with its tail only to find that a woman hold the small runt with a small wolf-like dog next to her. Well, large by human standards but compare to the wolf he was small.

"Hello, I hear you have a package for my daughter?" the woman comments as she scratch the pup's head before the wolf's tail wraps around the pup's midsection, lifting her away from the woman.

_"I have no package for your daughter,"_ the wolf says simply as it places the pup down on its head once again.

_"The hanyou whom you're searching for has taken on my companion's clan's name. She has accepted Kazama Oretzi as her daughter,"_ the dog informs the wolf.

_"You speak the human's language… I suppose you're not just a pet,"_ the wolf comments drily, as every wolf in the world looks down upon the dogs - bred to be humans' best friends, their lives handed to them on silver platters. Not even the dog demons have any respect from the wolf demons.

_"I am not,"_ Kuromaru says in agreement. _"Your pup has been a great addition to our clan - our pack."_ The wolf looks at the dog in curiosity at the mention of pack. _"As the Hokage has said she is out on a mission at the moment. But her name is no longer Kazama. It is Inuzuka."_

_"She will forever be Kazama Oretzi for that is the name she has been given by her mother,"_ the wolf retorts.

"In any case, regardless what her name is, you are retrieving a great deal of looks because of your size," Tsume interrupts what appeared to be the beginning of an argument. "Do you care to wait for the pup at our compound?"

_"I will wait for her here,"_ the wolf snorts, already sitting itself by the entrance of the tower, its tails curled around its legs to take as little space as possible - which was quite a lot consider its size.

Tsume sighs as she scratches the back of her neck. "Kuromaru, can you keep it company?" she asks her companion, reluctant to leave the wolf alone - hoping that the presence of her companion will keep most idiots from starting something. She thought that it is best she has some words with the Hokage regarding this new development.

* * *

Oretzi sat on top of a large boulder with a calm Toro the cat, her scratches from the brief fight she had with the cat already healing. Hoshi and Tamashii were scowling at the cat - bearing several scratches from when they were attempting to separate their teammate from the hellish cat. Anko stood nearby, shaking her head at the trio.

"Well, I suppose this is a mission success," the jonin comments as Oretzi rubs the cat's belly.

"Do we have to take him back?" Oretzi asks.

"Do you want to fail this mission?" Anko questions her, worried that she might be becoming attached to the cat. How strange it was, for a wolf hanyou to be attached to a cat when the felines and canines tend to be at fangs and claws with each other.

"Well, no but he says that Lady Shijime smolders him all the time," Oretzi says, causing the three of them to look at her strangely. "What?"

"… 'He said'?" Hoshi repeats.

"Hai?"

Hoshi leans over to press the back of her hand to the hanyou's forehead. "She doesn't have a fever," she comments before Oretzi shakes her head.

"I can talk to other animals you know," Oretzi pouts at her. Her teammates look at her in surprise, having not even known that little detail.

"Including cats?"

"Hai," Oretzi nods her head before the cat meows and the hanyou looks down at the feline. "You sure?" To their surprise the trice damned cat nods its head. "There are dogs inside the compound. They're going to chase you." The cat meows again and she sighs. "Okay," she says before hopping down the boulder and placing the cat on her shoulders. "Let's go!" she says cheerfully.

Anko chuckled and motion for her to start walking, trailing after her three students as she mentally assess them after the month they've spent doing D-rank missions. Physically not much has changed aside from Oretzi receiving her Inuzuka tattoos from the elders - her rapid healing taking away most of the pain that came with them.

Training the trio was surprisingly easy with Tamashii and Hoshi already somewhat experienced and improving their chakra control with the tree and water walking exercises. So setting Oretzi onto the same exercises was fairly simple and with the support of her teammates she was able to master the exercises fairly easily, putting her on the same level of control they have.

Their teamwork - after Oretzi managed to get Tamashii to loosen up - was able to improve to a point where they didn't need to exchange a lot of words for the others to have a grasp of their plans. Oretzi was able to master the elements she has an affinity for except for fire - out of pure stubbornness and refusal to even consider the element. Tamashii - with an affinity for lightning - was able learn a few jutsu from Kakashi and a few other jonin, picking up a few more from the scrolls in the library. Hoshi had an affinity for wind and was able to learn a few jutsu from a combination of scrolls and Asuma. Already the trio are talking about how to combine their elemental jutsu together to strengthen their respective attacks.

Aside from them improving their teamwork and their skills with nature transformation Anko had them working on their speed - reasoning that they'll need to move fast to get in and out of any buildings to do any assassinations. Putting chakra weight seals - specifically designed to add more pounds onto the users with every five percent they put into the seals - on them to help improve their muscle mass and give them resistances. Already they're capable of moving twice the speed they were before. Oretzi's speed improving the most out of the three of them with her body seemingly made for it - unfortunately her body weight in general hasn't improved, despite Akimichi Chouza's attempts.

In addition of improving their speed - with it their stamina - she had them work on their taijutsu. She taught Tamashii a new taijutsu style - to give him something so that he's not relying heavily on the Gentle Fist. Gave Hoshi a few pointers about her own style seeing that it's already suited to her. Oretzi, tried all she could, was unable to keep from reverting to her instincts when she fight. So they had Oretzi - the instincts, Tamashii - the refined, and Hoshi - the wildcard.

"Anko-sensei!" she hears Oretzi call for her, pulling her out of her thoughts. Only for her to realize that they're close to the Hokage tower and… She tilts her head back to look at the large white furred wolf that seems to have taken up residency next to the tower.

"Gaki, is this one of your wolves?" she questions the girl who is staring at the wolf with a half-smile.

"This is Moon-Chaser," Oretzi says cheerfully, not even the slightest bit worried about the cat that is digging his claws into her shoulders. "He's Alpha and Prima's oldest son."

"Pup," the wolf greets the hanyou, his tails undoing the straps that held the large scroll to his back. "The plant as requested," he says, setting the thing in front of the hanyou who was tiny compared to the thing.

"Moon-Chaser, that scroll is too big for me!" she protests to him. He compares the sizes before sighing.

"How troublesome," he mutters before his tails does some signs and the scroll is surrounded by smoke. When it clears the now human sized scroll falls into the hands of its intended receiver. With its task completed the white wolf makes to leave, seeing no further reason to remain.

That is, until a series of high pitched barks reminded him of something. "Ah, right." One of the wolf's tail reaches for the tiny pup on his head and he deposits the runt in Oretzi's care. "A gift to you from the Prima."

Oretzi stares wide eyed at the small pup in her arms, purple eyes meeting brown. "The Prima is parting with one of her pup, your own sister?"

"It is of no loss to the Prima. She would not last one day with the pack," Moon-Chaser answers, his tone of voice cold to Oretzi's ears. (2)

"Ah…" Oretzi rubs the pup's head. "In that case give the Prima my thanks." Moon-Chaser nods his head before walking away.

"Gaki?" she hears Anko say from behind her.

"Hai?"

"Is everything okay?" Anko could see the sadness in the girl's shoulders at what the large wolf had said and it worried her.

Oretzi looks away from the pup in her arms and shakes her head. "Nah. Everything's fine," she tells the older woman before she holds up the scroll. "I have the monkhood though."

Anko smirks and ruffles the hanyou's hair. "Great, now you can stop burning through your closet," she teases her.

"Anko-sensei!" Oretzi whines before she got assaulted by licks to the face by the pup. "Ew," she pouts, wiping her face. That's when she was asked about why Moon-Chaser left by the pup so she tells her that she will explain later. "Are we doing any training after we give Toro back to Lady Shijime?"

Anko glances at her other students for a quick assessment before shaking her head. "The rest of today should be used for meditation or personal training," she tells them. "So let's report this as a mission success and then you guys can go home."

Oretzi nods her head and walks into the tower with her team, unaware of Kuromaru slipping away to return to the compound to alert Hana about the new addition to their clan.

* * *

"Oretzi!" Hana howls for her sister, impatient to get her out of the house and to the Yamanaka's house to retrieve her specially treated clothes.

"No!" the hanyou protests from the inside of her bedroom, refusing to take one step out.

"Oretzi, you get your butt out here now!" Hana growls at her little sister.

"No!"

"I will use Gatsuuga if you don't get your butt out here in five seconds!"

"I will not!"

Hana growls as she prepares to use the Gatsuuga, her patience worn thin at this point. That is, until Tsume intervenes, not in the mood to see her house destroyed because the two siblings couldn't work out whatever it was that was bothering the younger girl. "Go and wait downstairs for us," she tells her oldest daughter. Hana grumbles under her breath and walks away, leaving the elder Inuzuka alone to deal with the stubborn hanyou.

"Oretzi-chan," the woman knocks on the door and waits for her to answer.

The door swings open to reveal the pup in Hana's old clothes - having had to give her entire wardrobe over to the Yamanaka clan - and Tsume could detect a hint of discomfort in the girl's movements. Hana's old clothes, from when she was 5'1", consisted of slightly loose shorts that falls just past her knees and a long sleeved shirt. On Oretzi, however, it is evident that the loose clothes are tighter. The shorts stopping mid-thighs instead of ending at her knees and the shirt is clearly tight against the hanyou's chest with the slight development she has going on there and the sleeves strained against the toned muscles that the girl has.

Tsume is both amused by the vast difference between her two daughters and worried at how fast Oretzi is developing. The girl is only eight years old, almost nine, and she has a body of a girl who just hit puberty - thankfully without the menstruation cycle. The only way she can explain it is that the presence of Oretzi's demonic heritage is accelerating her aging process and she briefly wonders when the aging will slow or stop.

"Now, why are you giving your ane-chan such a hard time?" Tsume questions her daughter. "You know that she's in heat and because she doesn't have a mate she has no way to relieve the pressure of it."

"I know… but I don't wanna go outside in these clothes!" Oretzi protests as Tsukiko - the wolf pup - yips gleefully from her bed at the sight of Tsume.

"You need to get your clothes so you can get out of those," Tsume argues, going over to the pup to pick her up as per her request. She then sits on the edge of the bed, studying the girl for a moment. "Well, we can probably make some adjustments so you can feel better about them," she comments as she frees a kunai. "Come here," she instructs her daughter.

Oretzi obeys and stands still as her mother uses the kunai to cut away the sleeves at the shoulders. Tsume then shortens the hemline of the shirt, tying the ends so that the flimsy material doesn't go flying up to reveal her daughter's bandaged chest. The woman finally gets to the shorts, cutting somewhat along the bottom of the shorts to give her some air - since the shorts were clinging to the pup's legs like second skin.

"Better?" she questions her daughter who starts flexing her arms and legs before nodding her head. She then hands Oretzi a roll of bandages to use to cover up her black markings - the family unable to determine what they are for and Oretzi unable to explain the origin of them, only able to say that she had them since she could remember.

The black markings - when Oretzi is not dressed in anything - seems to start at the right side of her midsection in the form of full moon. Black vine like markings spread to her right arm, twisting around the limb, and partially to her right thigh. The markings on her arm stops at her wrist, forming some sort symbol that none of the humans are able to figure out.

"Hai," Oretzi smiles as she covers up the visible markings.

"Good, now go apologize to your ane-chan and pick up your clothes," Tsume instructs her before walking out of the room, placing Tsukiko down on the bed once again.

The excited pup yips at her and she sighs at the runt's hyperactivity. "For someone who was rejected from the pack you sure are one small energy ball," she teases the pup, tackling her to start a tickle war. She then picks up the pup and carries her downstairs since her legs are too short to keep up with Hana and Oretzi's pace.

**_I feel like I need to explain something about this chapter... I'm not sure what though... Oh well, any questions just leave a review or pm and I'll try my best to explain._**

**_(1) Koinu means puppy. I'd imagine that Oretzi would be resistant to that nickname like she was with her imouto but at the same time it's not so blantantly obvious so... *shrugs*_**

**_(2) It goes with the whole 'survival of the fittest' theory. The smallest tends to be overlooked or pushed away to give the nutrients to the more capable. _**

**_Oh, also, any time there's an animal talking and there's underlines it means that they're not speaking the humans' language. _**


	9. Chapter 9

**_Last chapter for today folks (might be for awhile) Oh yeah, Candy-chan, I wasn't able to add that scene we imagined in the chapter. So I might do a flashback at a later time. Anyway, same drill. I don't own Naruto except the characters you don't recognize._**

**_Chapter 9_**

Oretzi flexes her hands as she readjusts herself to the weapons after taking them to Higurashi's Weapon Shop, the store owned by her rival's father, for repairs. She pushes a little bit of chakra into the weapon for the blades to pop out with a very subtle hiss that only her ears can catch, smirking to herself at the fluid grace of the six blades appearing from the metal vambraces. The blades are approximately nearly a foot long, maybe half an inch short, and they do not curve like claws but the way they are positioned gives the illusion of being claws. Each blade are positioned that they appear in the space above each knuckles.

"A job well done," she compliments the man as she pushes a bit more chakra to disengage the weapon - returning it to its dormant state.

"Thank you, Inuzuka-san," he grins, bowing to the nine year old.

"How's Tenten?" she asks after her rival, curious to know how her bukijutsu training is coming along.

"Oh she's good, determined to beat you," he tells her, gesturing to the back of the shop where various thuds could be heard.

"That's good to hear. She's going to be the best kunoichi in her class," Oretzi comments as she offers her hand to the man. The weapon smith smiles at her as he shakes her hand before bidding her a good day as she leaves.

She continued flexing her hands to get the tekagi-shuko weapon to readjust to her muscles. She had to get it repaired after a particularly damaging blow from Hoshi's nintaijutsu the week before. Anko-sensei had taught all of them how to combine their element chakra with their taijutsu and Hoshi's skill with wind was particularly destructive with the ability to basically turn her body into one big giant blade. Tamashii's affinity for lightning was actually more dangerous for Oretzi and Hoshi since the electricity can disrupt their body's signals. Needless to say they always tag team him when Anko gives them permission to have a three-way fight.

Oretzi, in the two months since her ninth birthday, managed to almost rival her ane-chan in terms of height - standing at the height of 5'4 to Hana's 5'6. Her weight, however, still need improvement as her body consume more than she can readily give it, even with the Akimichi clan's help. In fact, she almost ate them out of their compound at one point. Instead, what happened was that instead of gaining weight she gained muscle definition, turning her skinny body to a toned somewhat athletic -underweight- body.

In an effort to keep her youki and chakra within reasonable levels after the latest spike - since each increase of both of her youki and chakra she has to retrain herself - she managed to convince the Hokage to place a seal on her. The seal, as designed by the Gama Sannin, will consistently bind both her youki and chakra. In other words she'll only be allowed to access at least ten percent of her chakra.

Normally a dangerous feat for any normal shinobi but because her body keeps changing, maturing at a faster rate, the sealing is the best way to keep her from becoming too strong at an early age. The only one capable of undoing the seal on her is the Hokage, Jiraiya, and as a precaution for extreme emergencies Anko.

In any case she needs to prepare for her team's first C-rank mission, a simple escort mission to Suna in Kaze no Kuni. So that means light clothing, rationings, and - she looks down at her bare feet - shoes. Anko had vetoed her protests about shoes, stating that where they will be heading she'll be glad that she's wearing shoes because the hot sand will make her feel like the skin on her feet is burning off. She is also to wear clothes that will cover most of her skin vs. her usual bare minimum outfits.

With a reluctant sigh she shunshin home to put together her supplies, sealing them in several scrolls before changing her outfit in favor of loose pants, a short sleeved shirt with bandages wrapped up to her shoulders, the leather bands for the tekagi-shuko already covering and protecting the length of her forearms. For shoes she has to go through Hana's closet before finding something useable and her size. She also grabs a cloak to wear over her outfit and - upon locating Tsukiko - her knapsack to carry the pup in since she's still too small to effectively keep pace with the team.

The wolf pup has grown somewhat in the last four months since she joined the Inuzuka clan but her status as the runt of the litter seems to be working against her, often making herself depressed at her perceived weakness. At such Akamaru, Kuromaru, and Oretzi are required to help bolster her self-esteem by telling her that she's still young and when she becomes much older she will trump even her oldest brother in size. After all, she was approximately two months old when she arrived with Moon-Chaser with the monkhood plant. Also, because she's a full wolf demon she has a much longer lifespan than the average wolves therefore her maturing rate is slower - since they almost look like adult wolves by six months. She possibly won't reach her full size for another year or two.

"Where are we going, nee-chan?" Tsukiko questions, her head peek out from beneath the flap of the knapsack.

"We're headed to Kaze no Kuni," Oretzi answers in wolf so that no one around her thinks she is insane for communicating with an animal. The language leaving her throat without a hint of an accent after spending nearly five years using it.

"Kaze no Kuni?"

"It means the Wind Country. More specifically we're heading to Sunagakure no Sato," Oretzi tells the pup, "Which means Village Hidden by Sand." Tsukiko's natural curiosity of the world in general often prompts her to ask questions and because she had one time been like that Oretzi has a great deal of patience for the pup.

"Oretzi-chan!" she hears Hoshi call her name as she nears the West gate from which they are due to depart from.

"Hoshi-chan," she greets with Tsukiko barking a greeting as well. "Ready?" she asks her.

"Born ready!" the bold Akino heiress smirks before she plays briefly with Tsukiko. "Have you seen Tamashii?"

"Not since yesterday," Oretzi replies as she leans against a tree after removing the knapsack from her shoulder - after all, squishing Tsukiko would guarantee a one way ticket to hell curtsey of her okaa-san and ane-chan.

"Nee-chan!" Tsukiko jumped as she tries to get Oretzi's attention. Once she sees she has it the pup then proceeds to demonstrate a jutsu she has been learning from Kuromaru. The pup jumps and - to the duo's surprise - spins at a ferocious speed at another nearby tree, nearly drilling through the trunk before she loses momentum.

Oretzi catches the little pup as she bounces back, looking at the good sized hole she managed to create. "Impressive, Tsuki," she scratches the pup's belly with a smile before briefly using a medical jutsu to heal what little injuries the pup's healing isn't fixing immediately. "Is this what you've been learning from Kuromaru?" she asks the pup.

_"Hai!"_ the pup manages to say in their language, causing Hoshi to squeal in delight at the kawaii pup. Oretzi immediately loses her grip on her companion as her teammate snatches her up in a tight hug. "Nee-chan!" Tsukiko whines at her as the hanyou double over in laughter.

"Sorry, Tsukiko, you brought that upon yourself." She stops laughing when she feels someone's presence and looks to find that Tamashii is slowly approaching them with a slight hobble, a pained expression on his face. "Hey, Soul-boy, what's wrong?" she calls out to the Hyuuga, catching Hoshi's attention as well who was gob smacked at the sight of their obviously hurting teammate.

"Tamashii!" Hoshi darts over to him with Oretzi and - to anyone watching they would be amused by the wolf pup's attempt to run - Tsukiko right behind her. She helps the Hyuuga boy to a nearby seat and - as the official medic-nin on the team - runs a diagnostic jutsu over him before finding that he pulled a few muscles here and there with signs of some sort of foreign chakra lingering in his system.

"What happened?" Oretzi asks worried with Tsukiko whining questions after questions at the boy.

"The main branch, they were unhappy with me about learning the Eight Trigrams," Tamashii coughs before his two teammates use a medical jutsu to ease his pain.

"The way I see it they're a bunch of jerks," Oretzi growls before Anko shows up, raising her eyebrow at the strange scene her students created with their closeness. One would assume that they have a special relationship with one another if she didn't know about Oretzi's true age.

"Okay gaki, ready to gear and -," she stops when she notices the pained expression on Tamashii's face. "Damn, did they use the juinjutsu on you?" she questions him, used to seeing the same look on her own face after a painful night of the curse seal on her shoulder acting up. When she sees him nod she has to curse in her head as she thinks of what to do. They have to leave now to escort their client to Sunagakure but at the same time she knows that the pain from the juinjutsu usually takes a while to dispel.

"Juinjutsu?" Oretzi mutters before she looks at Hoshi for an explanation.

"It literally translate into Cursed Seal techniques. Its sole purpose is to bring a person or people under their control," Hoshi explains, staring directly at Tamashii. Prompting Oretzi to do the same.

Oretzi turns her attention to Anko who has a hand presses against her neck with her eyes distant with some sort of memory. The young hanyou looks between Tamashii and Anko for several seconds before making a note to do some studying into juinjutsu with two of her team affected by this.

"Anko-sensei, should we tell Hokage-sama that we will not be able to complete the mission?" the hanyou asks her before Tamashii loudly protests that he can still fight. Oretzi gives him a long look in conjuncture with Anko before giving in to him. "Our client is here," she mutters, causing her teammates to turn their collective attention to the man walking up to the gate.

Dressed casually in traveling clothes, Oretzi is struck with the notion that this man will be the source of many headaches for the next while. "Suterareta Hasha?" Anko questions with a bored tone. Oretzi mentally translated the name to find that it means 'Abandoned Champion'.

"Hai," the man nods his head, his eyes traveling over the group before landing on the wolf hanyou. The look in his eyes chilled her to her bones and she had to fight back the urge to growl at him. "Shall we go?" he asks politely.

Anko, having noticed her student's reaction, nods her head and motions for her team to get into position. Oretzi, with her nose and ability to scent out possible traps, took point while Tamashii took the rear guard. Hoshi, using her family's kekkei genkai, mirrored Oretzi - forming a pure human form of the hanyou - and cast a partial Henge on herself to mimic the wolf aspects of her teammate to give people the illusion that there are twins on the team instead of just one. Anko took the position to the right of their client.

In short, the team were ready for any for any possible danger that can send this mission skyrocketing to a whole new ballgame. Plus, Anko was under no delusions about her student's reaction to the man and wanted the mission to be done and over with so she can get Oretzi far away from him.

* * *

Inuzuka Tsume was not having a good day. The reason simply was that she couldn't find her daughter no matter where she looked. Not even Kuromaru could scent her and that alone was alarming. With all the possible locations exhausted and no signs of her daughter or her teammates she heads directly to the Hokage tower to question him about the whereabouts of her daughter.

Disregarding the secretary's attempt to keep her from entering the office Tsume all but kicks in the door, almost but not quite startling the elderly man from his paperwork. "Where is my daughter," she snarls, her long day playing a big role on her anger. Even that said most Kages would be displeased with the disrespect she is showing the man.

However, Sarutobi is well used to the actions of the Inuzuka clan and as a result isn't likely to take offense to her protective instincts regarding her adopted daughter. "Oretzi-chan is currently on a C-rank mission with her teammates to Sunagakure no Sato," he tells her, puffing away on his pipe.

As accepting as he is about his shinobi's actions he was not prepared for Tsume to slam her hands on his desk, scattering his paperwork to his dismay. "You mean to tell me that you sent Oretzi out so close to that time of the month?!" she all but roars at the elderly man.

"Isn't she a bit young to be getting the monthly visitor?" Sarutobi questions, his mind apparently going senile on him if her expression is to go by.

"Hokage-sama, I have a lot of respect for you, but please, for the stake of all our sanity, recall what Matron Kin told us a year ago." Tsume, with nothing else she could do regarding the situation, sits herself in one of the chairs available and watches him with her eyes intent.

Sarutobi frowns to himself as he considers the incident in question. Dropping his pipe as he realizes just what has Tsume in a tizzy. He looks at the sun before searching for his calendar, his fingertip finding the day's date. "Oh Kami-sama," he mutters in dread as he stares at the white circle next to the number. "How could I forget?"

"Can you recall them?" Tsume questions him urgently.

"No, they've been gone for hours. They're probably already close to Kawa no Kuni," he quickly writes a message, sealing an item that will hopefully ensure that the team's survival for the time being, before ordering an ANBU to send the message after Team 13 with one of the fastest messenger hawks available.

Tsume looks at her companion, worry visible in her eyes. "Do you think it'll get there in time?"

Sarutobi looks at them grimly. "I wish I could say," he confesses. "Does Mitarashi-san truly have no idea about what is to happen?"

"I never thought to inform her," Tsume confesses. "The pup has always returned home before the sunsets so there was never a need." She shakes her head as she realize that the lack of information sharing has possibly endangered the jonin and genins. If something happens to the team the responsibility lies solely on her shoulders.

"What about Oretzi-chan, surely she is aware of this."

Tsume shakes her head. "She never showed any signs of recalling what happened during the night. She goes to sleep before the moon rises and wakes up when the moon is gone with no recollection of what happens."

Sarutobi sighs as he props his chin up on his hands. "In that case we will need to remedy this as well as inform Mitarashi and her students about Oretzi-chan's condition to prevent further situations such as this."

Tsume nods her head before getting up to leave, pausing before the door. "I… I hope nothing happens to those kids," she confesses before walking out of the office.

"I hope so too," Sarutobi mutters as he goes back to his paperwork, cursing when he realizes that the previously orderly papers have been scattered all about his office and he now has to clean up the mess.

* * *

Oretzi pauses again, her hand pressed against the trunk of the tree she stood in, her eyes drifting up to the sky unbidden. Below her she can hear her teammates moving along at a more sedated pace with their client to consider. Below she had left a kage bunshin in her place to do her own personal scouting to get away from the creepy staring of their client.

She couldn't see the sun but she can sense the position of it, aware that nightfall is approaching and with this awareness she can feel this sense of unease crawling under her skin. It was getting to the point where she feels like she needs to get rid of the heavy burdensome clothes.

"Oretzi!" she hears Hoshi calls after her, "Stop staring at the sun, you'll turn blind!"

She shakes her head to snap her attention back to attention and starts moving again.

Anko frowns at her student, wondering what exactly seems to be bothering the hanyou. For this is probably the fifth time in the last thirty minutes that the girl stopped to stare at the skies. Before she can go and check on her they hear a screech of a messenger hawk before the bird dive-bombs them, pulling up just in time to land on Anko's outstretched arm. She accepts the scroll and before she can say or offer the bird any refreshment it takes off, leaving deep furrows across her arm.

Taking no time to complain about the injuries she opens the scroll, recognizing the kanji that said urgency, and reads the message quickly. Her eyes wide as she looks ahead to where her youngest student is at. "ORETZI!" she calls after the hanyou, swiping chakra over the seal where a pair of cuffs appear in her hands.

The hanyou stops and returns to the group, dropping in from above. Already eying the pair of silver cuffs with long chains connecting them. "Er… what's that for?" she asks cautiously. Anko doesn't answer immediately, her eyes glancing worriedly up to the sky before she motions for the girl to give her wrists. "Anko-sensei?"

"Oretzi, do you trust me?"

The young girl frowns at the jonin before nodding her head, "Hai."

"Then trust me on this," the snake mistress pleas the girl who sighs and - after eying the cuffs again, she removes her tekagi-shuko weapons - offers her bare wrists to the woman. "Hoshi, Tamashii, find us a campsite, now. Suterareta-san, I'm sorry but we need to set up camp now." The man gives her a disgruntled look before complying. With everyone except Oretzi gone Anko carefully places the cuffs around the girl's wrists after wrapping the chains around her neck, chest and waist - limiting her movements and ensuring that if the hanyou wants out she'll have to hurt herself, as per the instructions on the scroll.

"Anko-chan?" Oretzi whispers, confused and at the same scared by the seriousness of the situation. As human she seems she is still a wolf hanyou and right now her instincts are screaming for her to break free and run.

The snake mistress runs her hands through Oretzi's hair in an attempt to calm her, meeting her scared student's eyes straight on. The girl was only nine years old and already she stands at the same height as herself, meeting her eye to eye. "I know that you don't understand what's going on. But I'm going to be right here besides you during the whole thing, okay?" Oretzi nods her head before she is pulled close to the older woman and a pair of warm moist lips touch her bare forehead. "Let's go, gaki," the woman turns and walks after their team, leaving a puzzled but calmer wolf hanyou behind her.

Oretzi takes a deep breath and, with one last look towards the darkening sky, follows her sensei to the camp.

* * *

The sun has just set, leaving the genin team and their client in the harsh light of their campfire for an hour before the moon would begin its climb. But already they can see that something is wrong with Oretzi. The dark brown color of her eyes has slowly faded, replaced by a red glow that seems to grow stronger with every passing minute.

It was terrifying to watch, especially when her body begins to contort into a new shape, becoming more wolfish in ways she never managed, even in her extreme anger or when she was using her youki as a second skin. The two genin and sensei are forced to watch as their comrade starts to scream in agony as bones break and reform - all four limbs restrained at this point as Anko had added a final piece of Oretzi's bondage just before the sun had set.

Brown fur sprouts from beneath the girl's clothes as her body begins to grow in size, ripping the fabrics into shreds with the shear increase in mass. Her head contorts into a large wolf head proportional to Oretzi's new body, her maw open to reveal the row of sharp canines as her eyes - opening briefly - turn completely red where not even the whites or pupils of her eyes are visible.

A full thirty minutes passed before the painful transformation was over and Oretzi - or the thing that is Oretzi - lays in a quivering ball of fur. Pained huffs puncturing the air before the creature stirs, completely red eyes becoming focused.

Anko gulps as she realizes for the first time that Oretzi has just turned into what appears to be a giant - she thinks she could be capable of standing at just past six feet tall - wolf hybrid since the front paws looks capable of handling things like regular hands. She says hybrid not to speak of those who are born to a wolf and dog but of the strange blend between wolf and human, going beyond what Oretzi is as a hanyou. As the wolf starts fighting to stand Anko recalls a part of the message and looks at her students.

"By any chance does anyone know how to play an instrument or sing?" she asks. The two blank stares she gets as a result of her question answers that and she curses as she looks at the large wolf hybrid. How the hell is she supposed to calm her down without the aid of music?

Without any other choice she starts humming and before long the wolf stills its frantic movements, humming along with her as she relaxes, her long tail thumping in time with the melody. Tamashii and Hoshi, seeing the effect music has on their transformed teammate, quickly joins in their voices. The combine efforts of the hanyou's teammates lullabied her into the dreamland where a familiar melody unlike their humming floats through the air, further calming the wolf.

The silence that followed after Oretzi's breathing has evened out was so heavy that no one knew how to break it and Anko doubted any of them wanted to. She clutches the scroll with the Hokage's brief but to the point instructions about how to subdue Oretzi's wolf in her hands. Her heart heavy as she consider that the girl looked so scared and even her wolf looked scared - desperate to break free.

"What… what did…?" Tamashii couldn't form the right words for his question.

"I don't know, gaki," Anko confesses as Tsukiko finally escapes Hoshi's grasp. Before any of the shinobi could stop the pup she runs to the slumbering wolf and snuggles up to her companion's side. To their surprise the hanyou curls her tail instinctively around the pup - pulling her closer to her larger frame even in her sleep.

Anko looks at their client who, after Oretzi had been lullabied to sleep, laid out his bedroll and apparently has fallen into some kind of slumber. "Hokage-sama only gave me a brief summary of what was going to happen." She studies the manifestation of Oretzi's demonic side and found that while terrifying she couldn't help but sense that her Oretzi is still in there. "Get some rest," she instructs them, creating a kage bunshin to watch the perimeter. They may still be within Hi no Kuni but she had no delusions that they will not run into trouble within their own country.

She takes a minute to watch the even breathing of the wolf that is her student, Oretzi, and after she is sure that her other students are asleep as well she leaves her seat to kneel next to the wolf. She cautiously touches the girl's mane of fur before gently shifting her fingers through the soft tresses of the dark brown fur. Something akin purr of contentment rumbles through the wolf's chest, prompting the woman to move closer to the restrained girl. She just knew that the girl wouldn't hurt her and eventually sleep overtook her and she slumps into Oretzi's warm fur.

* * *

_"Oretzi-kun." The hanyou whines at the intrusion of her dreams, being slowly pulled back into the land of awareness. "Oretzi-kun." The girl opens one of her eyes, blinking away the blurs, to find a red haired girl smiling cheerfully at her. "Oretzi-kun, I learned a new song for you." The girl brings the flute to her lips and a slow peaceful melody surrounds them and Oretzi rocks her body side to side to the song. Clapping her hands happily when the song concludes and the two girls are left beaming at each other._

_"Hoku-chan, you're really good!" the hanyou giggles, throwing her small arms around the slightly older and bigger girl._

_"Arigatou, Oretzi-kun!" the red head smiles before looking up at the sky. "Ano, I need to leave, Oretzi-kun," the girl says sadly._

_"Nani, you just got here," the hanyou protests._

_"I know," the girl sighs and rubs the girl's ear. "But my lord-sama, he's training me to be the best. I can't fail him, Oretzi-kun."_

_"Will I see you again tomorrow?" the hanyou asks hopefully. But when she sees the downtrodden look on the older girl's face she knows that it's not likely to happen. _

_"Gomen nasai, Oretzi-kun," the girl says when she sees the sadden look. "I promise that I'll play more songs for you the next time we meet!" With that promise she runs off, leaving the six year old hanyou alone._

* * *

Oretzi whines as her mind slowly becomes back to the real world, her body registering two presences next to her and… she makes a face as she realizes that she can feel the grass under her and the wind across her back. She can still feel the restraints of the cuffs, the tightness of the chains around her neck, chest, and waist - limiting her movements.

In any case, as she stirs and wiggles to put herself in a better position the heavy weight against her side moves away before something covers her naked form. Turning her head to the side afforded her the view of her sensei, without her trench coat.

"Ohayo," she whispers, her voice cracking.

"Ohayo, gaki," the woman returns as she moves the exhausted hanyou slightly to get to the cuffs with the jutsu to undo the bindings. However, instead of coming off like she expected them to do the chains simply vanish with the cuffs still firmly on the girl's wrists.

Oretzi notices the absence of the chains so she pushes herself upright, her face making a puzzled expression when she notices the cuffs on her wrists. But before she can comment or question on it Anko throws her one of the storage scrolls from the girl's knapsack. "Here, gaki, get dressed."

"What happened last night?" she asks, her mind completely off the cuffs for the moment.

"You don't remember?" Anko thought she would at least remember something!

"Er… just the…" she frowns as she thinks about what she could remember, already beginning to dress herself. "All I remember is music," she finally concludes. She closes her eyes as she tries to remember and all that comes to her is flute music, a slow peaceful melody that almost melts her where she stood.

Anko nods her head, not quite wanting to accept this but having no choice about it in any case. She didn't know what else to do but knew that for the time being it is best to continue on like nothing is wrong. They have a mission to do and Oretzi wouldn't allow them to return to Konoha unless they truly had to. And since she has no recollection of how potentially dangerous she was last night she wasn't going to go for returning.

So without further ado the group destroyed any evidence of their camp and moved on, picking up the pace a little to compensate for the early end and late start. Hoshi and Tamashii were silent, more than usual, and Oretzi's only companion for the travel was Tsukiko who kept asking about the various things she saw, using the hood of her cloak to find a perch on the hanyou's shoulders. The pup's excited barks and questioning whines extended to most of the day and Oretzi's answers were as patient as ever. Not that they could tell since the wolf hanyou was consistently answering in the pup's native language.

* * *

Night quickly descended upon the group in the middle of Kawa no Kuni and almost immediately the group noticed that Oretzi was behaving strangely once again. Before Anko could apply the jutsu to contain her again the hanyou was gone, forcing the jonin to chase after her, leaving a kage bunshin with the group to watch over them.

As she chased after the transforming hanyou she found pieces of the girl's clothing, discarded and leaving her a trail. She wasted no time to pick up the clothes, instead focusing on putting more of her chakra to her legs to speed up after the crazily fast hanyou. For once in her life she realizes that her foresight is working against her as she fights to catch up.

When she reaches the end of the trail of clothes she pauses, straining her senses for any hint of her errant student. All around her are dark trees, a hint of a river off somewhere to her left, and she can sense the near peacefulness of the area. But she, for the life of her, cannot sense her errant student and that worried her to a great deal. She slowly circles around, lavender eyes searching the dark trees for any hint of her student, before the rising full moon shines on a group of trees in front of her. As she stares at the trees she sees a pair of previously undetected eyes glow a malicious red.

The wolf, at being detected, starts to growl. A low rumble that seems to climb in pitch with every second as Anko starts to prepare the jutsu that would bind her feral student. Before she can finish that last hand seal Oretzi lunges at her, forcing her to drop her hands and for the unfinished jutsu to dispel harmlessly as she dodges the powerful hanyou. As she moves to keep the hanyou in sight she realizes what Oretzi has been trying to say about her fighting style.

It was never meant to be a hit-and-run guerilla tactic like the Inuzuka clan's but rather like how a wolf hunts. Isolating one of her preys before constantly attacking her prey in a way that forces them to tire themself out, leaving small scores of injuries along their body at specific locations that will distract them and tire them out even more before finally landing a strong killing blow.

She realizes this now as she faces down the large 6'4" tall wolf hanyou, faced with fangs about the length of her palm and humanoid paws that is capable of dwarfing her hands. Anko is afforded with a good view of her student's transformed state and she found that it'd be easier to run.

**_Wow... I'm cruel ain't I? Anyone figured out what she turned into? (Should be fairly obvious) Oh and also, a cookie to anyone who figures out who Hoku-chan is. :D That oughta be fun. Also, if anyone needs help figuring out what Oretzi's weapons look like, google up Wolverine's claws. That's what the blades resemble. The actual outfitting is similar to hear wearing leather armbands on her forearms with an additional band around her hands to secure the claws to her hands._**

**_Anyway, review please! Lemme know what you think!_**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Hey, everyone, sorry about the extremely late update. Luckily for ya'll I got all the way to chapter 16. So that means you guys get all the chapters to 14. Aren't ya'll happy about that :P**_ _**Chapter 10**_

Glowing red eyes stares down at Anko Mitarashi, sharp fangs bared in a savage snarl. Long ape like arms held up the wolf's large frame as she crouches - prepared to pounce in a second's notice. She couldn't help but notice the jagged silver streak along the wolf's head, about six inches long and half an inch wide. Recalling what the hanyou had said about the scars she glances at the tail to confirm that the jagged streak is still there before searching for any more. She found one more on the wolf's belly, starting at the right bottom most rib across to the navel.

Anko didn't know what to do except fall back on old instincts, slipping into a fighting stance that sparked something in the hanyou. The large head pulls up out of its threatening position, head tilted in a way that telegraphed puzzlement. The near perpetual growl eases up as the wolf looks questioningly at her.

Unsure what to make of this new development Anko stays in her fighting stance as the hanyou shifts the weight to circle her, moving with her to keep her in sight. However, Oretzi's movement has put her downwind of herself and the wind chose that moment to blast Anko's scent into her face. The scent of snakes caused the hackles to raise again and for the growl to return as the hanyou tensed.

Startled by the sudden change Anko jumps into one of the trees, running through them with Oretzi right behind her on the ground. A loud howl pierces the air behind her before there is a distinct crack of wood. A glance over her shoulder reveals that Oretzi had jumped and broke the branch she was just on. Cinching the fact that the girl she knows is not in control and her instincts - her demonic side? - is out for her blood. Oh kami, what did she get herself into?!

Reaching the clearing where she had left her other students she whirls around, quickly flying through the hand seals just as the large transformed hanyou tackles her down, large fangs bearing down upon her.

* * *

Oretzi groans as she comes to, a wicked headache dancing over her brain as if someone with spikes attached to their sandals had decided to do some kind of routine inside her skull. She tries to move but once again finds herself restrained and… her brain takes a minute to take in the information her body is trying to tell her. She tilts her head back, dark brown eyes landing on the exhausted face of her sensei who is tightly holding her naked form in a grip that makes freedom a bit hard to achieve.

"Anko-sensei?" she mutters hoarsely, her voice cracking as if she had used it almost all night long. She pokes the woman's belly, unable to do anything else besides that, craning her head in an attempt to see where her clothes are. Even now she couldn't see where they are and the fact that she woke up with the woman twice in a row naked is beginning to worry her. She may not be self-conscious but it doesn't change the fact that it's pretty weird.

It takes more than a few pokes to get the exhausted woman to wake up and by that point Oretzi was desperate to find her clothes and her teammates. Not once had she heard their breathing or footsteps and was worried about what happened. The last thing she could remember was the infuriating itching just beneath her skin - as crazy as that sounds - and the increasing need to hunt something.

Within five minutes Oretzi was freed from her temporary restraints and Anko managed to gather up some of the discarded clothes. So the hanyou had her pants - a bit tattered but useable - and the fishnet that had been under her shirt. Everything else was missing and they couldn't afford to waste any more time searching for them. So Oretzi used a roll of bandages to secure her chest. She couldn't hide the markings because of a possible future need for bandages so after her chest was wrapped she stored them away and - since the snake mistress had no present clue as to where her other students are - uses her nose to find Hoshi.

Hoshi, her scent forever the scent of fresh apples and cinnamon - forever causing Oretzi to drool a little whenever she catches her scent, was easy for the hanyou to track compared to Tamashii. Simply because whenever she catches his scent she ends up sneezing at the burnt ozone smell that lingers around him ever so subtly and the hint of ashes - possibly a sign of his element's ability to set trees on fire with one strike. In either case, she can track them both but sneezing every two minutes was not an ideal for anyone so she rarely ever focuses on him.

It doesn't take her long to find them and Hoshi tosses the second knapsack to the hanyou with a happy smirk. "Great, lets' get going," her look alike say cheerfully, dark brown eyes meeting dark brown eyes.

"Have I mentioned how creepy it is to be looking at you when you're me?" Oretzi questions the kunoichi.

"Every time," Hoshi retorts with a laugh, even her voice was of the same pitch as Oretzi's. No one except those with a keen sense of smell would be able to detect the difference between the two - which is Hoshi's intention.

"If I didn't know better I'd claim that you two are twins," Tamashii teases them with a smirk as they wait for their client to pack up his things.

"Considering she almost have every part of me mirrored I wouldn't be surprised if it did seem like it," Oretzi shakes her head, stretching her arms with a yawn.

"If only I was able to copy your demonic side," Hoshi sighs, shaking her head while Oretzi just stares at her incredibly.

"Why would you want to be a hanyou like me?"

"The way I see it, Oretzi-chan, there are some benefits of being a hanyou," Hoshi smiles and ruffles the younger girl's hair - having to reach up a bit to do so since Oretzi is now three inches taller than her.

"Not really, Hoshi-chan," the hanyou mutters as she flattens her hair out. "Hanyous are rarely accepted by both worlds. Demons want to eat you, humans want to kill you, and other hanyous are either too feral or too timid to be around," she tells her bluntly as they finally start moving again.

"Do you really believe that?" Hoshi asks, her voice conveying a bit of hurt. "Do you think we want to kill you?"

Oretzi sighs as Tsukiko asks her about what happened the night before. "It's not about what I think, Hoshi-chan. The thing is, that's how most hanyous live. I probably wouldn't be who I am today if the Lunar Wolves hadn't gone out of their way to protect me from other demons…" Tsukiko starts to whines questions after questions at her so she drops the conversation to focus on the pup's curiosity.

* * *

Two chunins at the gates frown when they notice a hazy speck on the horizon, their senses informing them that what they're seeing are not mirages. They quickly sent a message to a nearby shinobi before moving to intercept the group.

Leading point was Oretzi, the cloak whipping around her thin form - the hood sheltering both Tsukiko and her head, with a scarf across the lower half of her face. Her outfit, beneath the cloak, consisted of her pants and a tight fishnet shirt - her back up clothes destroyed as a result of the last few days.

Directly behinds her walks their client and behind him Tamashii with Anko and Hoshi walking besides him. All of them shows signs of various stages of exhaustion and relief at arriving at Suna. Oretzi doubly so because her bare feet are simply unhappy with her at this point - even with her advanced regeneration abilities. Somehow - in the past three days - she lost her only pair of shoes and the group had not come across any villages for her to purchase another. Ironically enough it turns out that shoes are the last to be considered for backup when the others tried to supply her with a pair - discovering that they only brought the pair that they are wearing.

In any case, because Oretzi is leading she could see and scent the approaching of a shinobi and motioned for their sensei to come forward - sensing that the shinobi means them no harm. Just as Anko drew level with the hanyou the Suna-nin appears in front of them in a whirl of sand, hard eyes studying them.

Oretzi diverted half of her attention away from the man in front of them, to take in their surroundings. Wondering if the Arashi Ookami are based anywhere near the area or in the country. Always causing sandstorms to appear with the mere movement of their bodies, Stalks the Night has no love for any of the wolves in the Arashi pack. But they are the fastest wolves in the world, something the Prima has no choice but to admit and respect.

"C'mon, gaki, we're almost half way done," she hears Anko call out to them so once again they move on with the goal of dropping off Suterareta Hasha off before reporting to the Kazekage's office to make sure that he is aware of four Konoha-nins are in the village for the next week or so.

In the words of her old classmate, this is troublesome.

With the end goal in sight Anko took the point and Oretzi took her sensei's former position - keeping her body relaxed and yet at the same time ready for action - something not easily accomplished. Not even Tamashii and Hoshi are capable of such a feat and they've more experience than she does.

The village is probably the same size as Konoha in terms of buildings and such but as she looks around she notices that there is a distinct lack of something. It isn't until they're close to the destination for Suterareta that she realizes it. People. The village lacked the number of people Konoha has. At that realization she looks at the streets with new eyes, noticing the disrepair the buildings have from a combination of sandstorms and neglect.

With that realization comes an estimate of their strength and the status of their economic. After all, you need people to fuel your ranks and to buy your supplies.

As she waits outside while Anko goes inside with Suterareta to make sure that the building's safe she scratches Tsukiko's head, her eyes narrowed and analyzing everything around her. That is, until Hoshi gives her a light shove to snap her out of it.

"Nani?" she questions her friend, rubbing the offended shoulder.

"Relax, Oretzi-chan," Hoshi teases her as she leans against a wall. Yet as she said this her eyes wondered over the scarce few people out and about, studying their threat level. Next to her stood Tamashii, the worst at being 'casual but alert' with his body as tense as a rod. Not even Hoshi could get him to chill out and she's one of the best at distraction techniques.

"Hey, Hoshi-chan," Oretzi calls to the other girl as her eyes scan their surroundings. "How come the village is like this?"

Hoshi sighs as she rubs her face. "Suna has probably fallen on hard times with Konoha retrieving most of the missions available. The best and well-paying jobs tend to go to the strongest shinobi village and well…" the older genin shrugs her shoulders, "After the war Suna sort of lost a lot of military strength and with it their ability to keep themselves afloat." She gestures to their surroundings, "As you can see they're probably up to their necks in sand."

Oretzi nods her head in understanding before moving when she senses Anko leave the store. "C'mon, gaki, time to report to the Kazekage," the woman says simply as she walks towards the dome shaped building at the center of the village.

Oretzi followed along behind Tamashii and Hoshi at a slower pace with Tsukiko - who had claimed she wanted to walk on her own - pouncing along besides her. With her legs too short to keep up with Oretzi's long strides the pup discovered that she can keep up if she runs or jumps.

"Nee-chan," Tsukiko calls to her, "Why are there no trees?"

"Sunagakure is in a desert. Do you know what a desert is?"

"We passed through one, didn't we?"

"Hai, we did," she smiles down at the pup. As she starts to look forward again she bumps into someone and a heavy hand lands on her shoulder, yanking her around.

"Watch where you're going, brat!" a young boy's voice snaps at her as the front of her cloak is seized and she finds herself looking at a face painted with purple lines in some special meaning that is lost to her.

"Nee-chan!" Tsukiko barks as she tries to come to Oretzi's rescue before being kicked away by the boy's leg.

Angered by the boy's disrespect for her companion Oretzi breaks free of his grip and with an open palm strike to the chest she pushes him away from her. She sees his outfit for the first time and is struck with the notion that he wants to be a cat - her eyes focusing mainly at the cat ear tips of the boy's hat. "Tsukiko, you okay?" she asks, not turning her eyes away from the boy in front of her.

"Hai."

"Go find the others, now," she tells her quickly, not bothering to look to see if her companion will follow the order. "I don't want any trouble," she tells the boy coldly.

"Too bad, you found it," he snaps as he stalks towards her, forcing her to shift her weight subtly into a stance she has seen Anko use a few times.

She readies herself for a strike, her eyes narrowed in distaste. "Kankuro!" she hears a slightly older voice snap before a dirty blonde girl shows up and hits the boy - Kankuro she reasons - on the head before he is within striking distance. "Do you want Gaara to get mad?!" she hisses at the boy, her voice too low for most people to hear but just right for the young hanyou. "Apologize!"

"Uh, that's really not-," Oretzi starts before she senses a presence behind her. A diluted power of a demon, similar to the effects of the demon attempting to hide their youki, causing her to disregard the two people in front of her in favor of focusing on the presence. Instead of finding some kind of demon like she expected she finds a red haired boy of her age with cold empty jade green eyes. The boy had to be at least a full feet shorter than her but she instinctively knew that underestimating him will lead to a world of trouble for her.

"Gaara!" the blonde girl exclaims nervously, causing Oretzi to tilt her head in confusion as she glances back at the pair. She could see that the redhead's presence scared them both like they expect him to kill them at any second. What she found worrying is that they are both older than this boy, what has this boy - someone who looks like he is her age or younger - done to be feared by the older children?

"Temari… Kankuro," the redhead starts in a monotone, causing Oretzi to flinch with the two. Though her reason for the instinctive reaction is far different from their fear filled one. Such a cold dead tone the boy has, it's enough to make even the oldest and wisest man on the world flinch with dread and for a demon to smile in pride. "Shut up."

Oretzi frowns at the boy's disrespect but chose to withhold her comments as she studies his eyes and the thick black raccoon-ish like circles around his eyes. The blood red kanji for love etched above his left eye. The sand that seems to move around his feet restlessly. His small… She does a double take when she realizes that the sand around his feet is moving at their own violation.

"Oretzi!" she hears Anko call out to her, prompting her to turn her head at least partially to acknowledge the woman. Unwilling to take her eyes off the boy in front of her.

"Mother… she wants your blood," is her only warning before the sand at his feet lashes out at her, forcing her to do several back flips to get out of harm's way. Her body moving instinctively as the sand beneath her attempts to hold her down so she takes to the top of a nearby building. From her perch she reviews the last minute, realizing that the sand around his feet reacts faster than the sand that had been beneath her.

Anko appears next to Oretzi, her hand resting at the spot between her shoulder blades. Comforting and at the same time restraining to the hanyou. "What did you do?" the woman questions her.

"Existed?" Oretzi replies, unsure of what provoked him in the first place.

"Oh, gaki," Anko sighs before the two are forced to separate by a fist of sand that attempts to hit them from behind. Oretzi lands at the edge of the roof and snarls at the indifferent boy below. "Gaki! Don't attack!" she hears her sensei call out from the other side of the roof just as she made to take the offense to him. "He's the Kazekage's son!"

Using the language she picked up from Tamashii, who has the foulest mouth aside from Anko, and Hoshi she dodges another fist of sand, landing on the ground close to Gaara. "This fight, Gaara-san, is not wholly fair," she growls at him and the sand wave that was about to crush her pauses. She sees this out of the corner of her eyes as she stares the boy down. She stands there, crouched on all fours, as he ponders something.

"Would you fight me, to prove my existence?" he questions her. Oretzi frowns just a margin at the question.

"Do you need blood to prove your sense of worth?" she asks instead.

"No." Oretzi wants to take a breath of relief of that but holds it back as she senses that he is not done. "Death to all who threatens my existence will prove that I am worthy." She sighs in dislike of this boy and his strange ideals.

"Worthy of what?" Gaara doesn't answer this question as the sand wave returns to the ground, smoothing out as if nothing ever called upon them. Oretzi frowns as she digs her partially transformed claws into the ground before sighing when the boy walks away with the blonde girl - Temari - and Kankuro trailing along behind him at a certain distance.

"Damn it, gaki, not even in Suna for an hour and you already made an enemy!" Anko gripes as she grabs the hanyou in a headlock and giving her a noogie.

"Anko-chan!" Oretzi protests as she tries to break free, semi-cautious of her transformed claws in an effort to not gouge into the woman's skin. As she struggles in the headlock Tsukiko runs into view, her tongue lolling out at the side as she pants.

"Nee-chan, nee-chan!" the pup barks happily as she jumps and puts her forepaws on Oretzi's legs, "Did I do ok?"

"Hai!" the hanyou gasps as she finally manages to break free, scooping up the pup while she puts some distance between her and Anko. She rubs her head for a second before attempting to flatten her wayward hair into some resemblance of order.

"C'mon, gaki, we still need to meet with the Kazekage and hopefully explain to him that you didn't start that fight," Anko calls over her shoulder as she heads for the dome again. When she doesn't sense Oretzi following her immediately she goes back and grabs the girl's cloak, proceeding to drag her away.

"Anko-chan!"

* * *

Team 13 bow as one before the Kazekage upon being admitted into the office. The three genin stayed in the background as they let Anko handle the situation. Hoshi, with Oretzi standing between her and Tamashii, could sense the hanyou's restlessness as well as her aggravation but couldn't begin to fathom the reason behind it.

Oretzi can sense the redheaded boy nearby and the bloodlust radiating off of him was striking a chord deep inside. Waking the dormant demon within. She has to fight to keep her youki suppressed - thankful for the seals that has been placed on her because otherwise she'd be losing the fight with her youki, a dangerous thing to do in the presence of a Kage. She can feel his demon just beneath the surface, restrained by the human - by the boy that stands somewhere outside the office.

Unknown to the hanyou her body, after just recently experiencing the effects of the full moon, is flooded with hormones to instinctively attack any demons within the immediate area. And right now Gaara with his strange status of human with youki is provoking her instincts - setting a war within her slim form. Rationality against instincts in a free for all brawl - winner will determine the fate of the future. Her instincts, left uncheck, will possibly start a war should she attack the boy without restraint.

Soon the team is dismissed from the office and the genins follow Anko out, Oretzi tensing when she spies Gaara standing in the shadows of the waiting room. A low growl issues from the girl's throat, feral red eyes warning him to stay away from her, as she walks by him. She watch him, from the corner of her eye, smirk before he is behind her - forcing herself not to turn to keep him in her eyesight, her instincts clamoring at her to never offer her back to her enemies.

By the time they left the dome the hanyou was mentally exhausted from the struggle to not turn around and seek out the redhead. Tsukiko, held in the hood of the cloak, jumps up to put her forepaws on Oretzi's head, prompting the girl to make a questioning whine at the pup.

"Nee-chan," the pup starts.

"Hai?"

"I don't like that boy," the pup tells her, causing her to sigh.

"Which one? There's a lot of boys around here," Oretzi gestures around them to make her point.

"The one with red fur!" Tsukiko exclaims and Oretzi coughs to cover up her laugh.

"Tsukiko, what is fur for wolves is hair for humans," the girl tries to explain as she draws parallel with Hoshi, reaching over to lift up a lock of her hair. "What do you call this?" she questions the pup.

"Fur!" the pup exclaims and the hanyou face palms. Hoshi, having listened to Oretzi's side of the conversation, laughed at the girl's antics.

"What did she say?" she asks after beating down her amusement.

"She's insisting on calling hair, fur," Oretzi sighs.

"It does cover up areas like fur does," Tamashii volunteers from the other side.

"See?! _Tamashii_ agrees with me!" Tsukiko exclaims, managing to say the Hyuuga's name in their language despite the fact that she is speaking wolf. This gets her an award in the form of an Inuzuka treat from Tamashii who has been trying to teach her how to say his name since it always come out as Tama.

"You're spoiling her," she complains to her teammate as the pup's crunching grates on her since the pup's muzzle is right next to her wolf ears.

"Hey, hey, Tsuki-chan, can you say my name?" Hoshi asks hopefully.

"Hoshi!" Tsukiko exclaims in wolf, causing the hanyou to laugh.

"She knows it but she's not saying it in the right language," she snickers at Hoshi's dismayed face.

"Mah, I thought you loved me, Tsuki-chan," Hoshi complains before Anko calls back to them to hurry up - having already found their hotel where they'd be staying for the duration of their mission.

The three genin hurry to catch up with their sensei and set up in their room. With an uneven male to female ratio it was decided that Anko and Tamashii would have their own room while Oretzi and Hoshi shared - adding to the illusion of being sisters. Tsukiko chose to sleep in Anko's room, preferring the older woman to Hoshi to Oretzi's amusement and Hoshi's dismay.

Tired from the long trip the girls prepared for bed, turning down the covers and - because of paranoia - checked the room for any trace of traps or something of the like. By the time they were ready to fall onto their beds and just sleep a knock came from the door, causing the older of the two to groan in dismay.

Fighting the giggles at Hoshi's reaction Oretzi goes to the door, her nose telling her that it's Anko. "Anko-chan," she greets, tilting her head slightly. The woman had a serious expression on her face and as such she shifted her weight to stand at her full height, adopting a more serious attitude as a response.

"We need to talk," the older woman tells her before moving aside for Oretzi to step out of the room. The young hanyou spares her sleepy teammate a look to make sure she overheard the exchange and when she gets a lazy wave she nods and closes the door behind her. She follows the woman to her bedroom.

Oretzi sits on the edge of the bed, her eyes intent on the purple haired woman. She could sense that the next five minutes are not going to be pleasant and instinctively flattens her ears against her head as she recalls the last time she retrieved the woman's ire. Her ears were aching and ringing with the pinching and scolding she had gotten and she is not looking forward to a possible replay.

"You want to explain to me what happened with the Kazekage's son?" Anko questions, pulling up a chair and sitting in it with the back to her chest.

Oretzi just shook her head. "I don't know what the story with him is. He has a bad case of something and whatever it is my death will reassure him of his sense of worth." She rubs her hand down Tsukiko's sleeping form.

"What about your reaction to him in the office?"

The hanyou sighs as she looks back at that. Her memory already fuzzy to her dislike. "I… I'm not sure. I just felt this irrational desire to put him down and show him who is boss." Anko rubs her hand across her face at the girl's explanation. "I… It felt like I was… Sort of like I wasn't exactly in control over my actions. Aware but at the same time not in control," Oretzi confesses. "Like there was this insane need to destroy anyone with youki."

Anko frowns at her, leaning on the back as her lavender eyes study her tired student. "Do you think it's because he's hostile towards you?" she questions, aware that she never behaved like this around Naruto - even before she knew about what happens under the full moon. She didn't think there was a coincidence to Oretzi's increased hostility and the full moon, not after she nearly had her throat torn out.

She shrugs her shoulders. "Maybe. It could be his demon though," she points out. She could recognize what he is after getting away from his presence and allowing herself to calm down. A human with youki not of his own? The answer is clear to her only after ridding herself of the instinctive reaction she has to him. She could still feel the grainy youki caressing her skin roughly, trying to rub her raw. Lessons with the Prima already told her which demon this one is and she was not impressed in the slightest bit.

Compared to Naruto, Gaara's demon rides closer to the surface and she can take a guess that 'Mother' is actually his demon, distorted and possibly taking advantage of the redhead's naivety. That or the boy just doesn't care and wants to do the demon's bidding. Whatever the reason is she knows that if she fights him for real she'll have to make sure that she doesn't give him a chance to allow his demon take over.

"Gaki…" she looks up from the ground which she had taken to staring at in her thoughts. "I think the kid, whatever is name is, may want to fight you. He sure as hell looked dead set on killing you." Oretzi tilts her head as she waits for the woman to make her point. "In any case he might be able to convince the Kazekage to allow you two to fight without taking retaliation on Konoha for the outcome."

It takes the hanyou a second to comprehend what Anko is telling her. But once she gets it she starts wishing she was still in the dark about her point. "I knew it," she whines grumpily.

"What?"

"Suterareta-san is bringing me nothing but headaches," she pouts at the woman who starts guffawing, unable to control her reaction at the girl's complaint. "Anko-chan!" she whines, crossing her arms as her tail thump on the mattress in a rhythm that spells her unhappiness at this situation.

Anko continues laughing to the point where her ribs are begging for her to stop and it only takes on look at Oretzi's unhappy face to nearly send her off into another bout. But she fought it in an effort to talk with the girl about this matter. Laughing every five second is not going to help.

She clears her throat after finally getting her amusement under control and once she has Oretzi's attention she leans against the back. "Tell me your assessment of the Kazekage's son," she tells the girl, prompting her to think back to the brief one-sided fight and the meeting before it.

"…Feared by everyone around him, probably despised as well," Oretzi starts, recalling the blonde girl and strange makeup boy's reaction to the presence of the boy. "He has no respect for his elders… actually, he might not have any respect for anyone except himself." She remembers his coldness. "…From what I can tell from that brief meeting is that he has a demon in him like Naruto."

She didn't have to look at Anko's face to know that she has a shocked expression on her face. "But his demon is closer to the surface than Naruto's. I think he's doing something to his vessel. Maybe he's partially to blame to for what's happening with Gaara or maybe something happened to him when he was younger. But whatever the case may be it doesn't change this one fact..." Dark brown eyes meet lavender and the hanyou sighs sadly as she considers her final piece to say. "He's an example of what Naruto could've been."

Anko has to resist shuddering as she accepts Oretzi's words regarding the boy. Her ability to notice thing top-notch despite her age. What little information she knows about the Bijuu Lords told her that the demon that may be inside the red haired boy may be Ichibi no Shukaku's vessel.

She leaves the chair and - shoving the flimsy furniture out of the way - kneels in front of her student. "Gaki… when the boy comes after you…" she takes the girl's hands in her own "promise me you'll play it safe."

All she gets is a sad smile that almost breaks her heart.

_**I hope the transformation and the resulting chaos after it made sense to everyone. If not just lemme know and I'll try to clear it up. I don't have much to say except don't kill me later on when you get to chapter 12 or 13.**_


	11. Chapter 11

_Hope ya'll liked the previous chapter. Sorta realized that I didn't add the disclaimer which is the usual. I don't own Naruto except for the characters you don't recognize. So that'll be Oretzi and her pack of wolves._ _**Chapter 11**_

Oretzi crouches in front of Hoshi, the middle blades of her weapons fully unsheathed, her tail swishing back and forth. The two genins stare each other down, subconsciously mirroring one another. Off to the side their sensei and Tamashii stood watching, prepared to act as the referees for the spar.

After encountering the red head for the third time in two days Oretzi finally snapped and demanded from Anko that she spars with someone or else she will hunt the boy down and end this. Needless to say Oretzi was close to her breaking point with the boy's unrestrained youki grating on her nerves. The close proximity was keeping her instincts close to the surface longer than it should've been with the moon now beginning its gradual descent into the black nothingness. Not that she knows anything about the moon's role in her demonic instincts.

Oretzi growls before vanishing, moving at such a high speed that the inexperienced would be hard pressed to track her. Hoshi, used to her friend's opening move, ducks to avoid the attack that would have decapitated any other person. As she swings her arm in retaliation she knows that it is too late, the fuuton chakra molded into a sword along the length of her forearm. She dodges to the right to avoid the onslaught of another attack that would've cut off her arm.

Scowling in frustration Hoshi undo the weight seals just a margin to match her younger teammate, her body straining against the speed, the wind blades along her arms clashing with the blades of Oretzi's tekagi-shuko. The chakra thinly coating Oretzi's blades disrupts her fuuton chakra. Cursing the girl for discovering her weakness she wipes some blood against the seal on her wrists, summoning the twin blades. With the blades in hand she drops into a familiar stance, her eyes warily taking her surroundings.

"Evening the field, Hoshi-chan?" she hears her comrade growl loudly from somewhere around her.

"With you, Oretzi-chan, there is no such thing as even," the Akino heiress mutters as she centers herself. The hanyou appears in front of her again, all six blades unsheathed with a feral grin directed at her alone. "Remind me to never piss you off," Hoshi comments as she prepares to fight the girl head on.

Oretzi just snorts before the two meet again with a clash of sparks. Their bodies moving from strike to strike without any necessary thought or planning behind their actions. The times Hoshi got through to cut Oretzi are number less than ten, the injuries quickly sealing without prompt and the few times the hanyou deliberately drops her guard to slip closer to the older genin are higher than anyone in their right mind would care for. Always, at the last second, Hoshi would reverse her grip so that the injury the hanyou receives would not be too severe for her in those reckless moments.

Their fight seems to go on forever before Oretzi back flips away. Already Hoshi can see the various damage to the girl's clothing and she can see the hanyou's impatience as she almost literally tears the loose black shirt off, leaving her in a fishnet shirt that ends not too far from above her navel. Affording the older genin her first look of the black markings that climbs out of the girl's pants, twisting into a full moon before disappearing under the chest wraps. But wasn't the hanyou too young for tattoos aside from the clan marks on her cheeks?

Off to the side Anko sighs in dismay. She's going to have to tell Tsume to buy Oretzi some more clothes… again. The girl keeps going through them rather quickly - as if it's her way of saying that she doesn't want to be wearing them in the first place. Not that she has a bad body to - she blinks as she realizes where her thoughts are going, her eyes having been roaming over her student's body. She shakes away the thoughts with a firm 'she's too young' and goes back to monitoring the sparring match.

Oretzi had begun using ninjutsu with her tekagi-shuko weapons, firing several elemental jutsu in a row before vanishing at a high speed to try and take advantage of Hoshi's distraction when the older girl dodges or counters the jutsu with her wind. Earth is a somewhat defensible element against wind but at the same time it is not naturally stronger than it. The same can be applied to water.

No, the girl's best chance against fuuton related jutsu is katon and already Anko can envision the possible destruction the two genin can wreck together using their elements in conjuncture with one another. With any fuuton jutsu fueling the katon the path of destruction and pain would be deadlier than usual.

If only Anko had been able to convince Oretzi to learn something, anything really, of the fire release. Even now the woman has no idea what it is about the fire element that bothers her youngest student but after seeing this spar she knows that she needs to get the girl to open up about it since she is letting a triple affinity go to waste.

A triple affinity has nothing to do with having an affinity for three elements but rather the person's ability to manipulate that particular element. A triple means that they're capable of absorbing every jutsu related to the affinity and then modifying it to suit their needs - inventing new ones in the time it takes to perform one in battle!

Anko watch her students continue their spar, watch Oretzi jump and twist in midair to land behind Hoshi who reacted a second to slow. Her arms already moving to slice the older genin's back into ribbons.

"Enough," she says in an even tone, using her inside voice - normally too soft for such a loud spar.

Yet it was enough. Across the training field Oretzi freezes, the tips of her blades just inches from cutting into Hoshi, before she drops her arms - straightening herself to look expectantly at the woman. Hoshi, unable to hear as well as Oretzi, sensed the change in her teammate and turned towards their sensei.

"Hoshi, go and patch yourself up. Oretzi, do you want to explain to me why you too so many risks?"

Tamashii, sensing that his presence isn't wanted, leaves with Hoshi to tend to her injuries - since his immense chakra control due to the clan's taijutsu style lends itself over to medical jutsu. In any case he knows that she'll need it from what he can tell. She had at least eight successful hits on her, light scores on locations that would be fatal if Oretzi had really been trying. Speed and strength, fast and lethal - that is Oretzi's style. The fact that she managed to land eight potentially fatal hits was a testament to Anko's anatomy lessons to improve Oretzi's knowledge, even if she still has the instinct to lunge for the throat.

Once they are alone Oretzi sighs and leans against the base of a tree, emotionally and mentally exhausted from trying to fight her instincts. It seems like with every hour they linger in Suna the more compelled she is to fight Gaara, to have an all-out fight with no reservation - no rules, no limits, with death a high possibility. She didn't know where this desire come from but she recognizes it for what it is. She was a challenger to Gaara's throne of sand.

She remembered growing up with the Lunar Wolves, remembered a young loner wolf who challenged the alpha for the pack. She remembers standing next to the Prima, the savage growls, the postures, the snarls as the Alpha and the Loner fought. She remembers the blood splashing across her face as the Alpha kills his challenger. She remembers the first death she ever witnessed and how it lingers beneath, forever reminding her that instincts will always be a part of her life.

"Well, Gaki?" Anko crosses her arms as she stood in front of the hanyou, waiting for her answer. Throughout the entire spar Oretzi had been taking many risks, too many for her tastes - even with her youki healing.

"It's Gaara," she finally confesses, growling slightly when she feels the grainy youki caressing her skin like a lover. Her white youki bristling at the contact. To Anko a light film of youki coats Oretzi's body, acting like what fur would be to a wolf. "It feels like he's around me all the time. It's driving me nuts and I want to fight him."

Anko frowns as she kneels in front of the girl, her hand reaching out for the girl despite the youki dancing along her skin. Just before contact the white youki disappears, taking with it the threat of being burned by it. She brushes the girl's hair from her face, prompting the wolf hanyou to look at her tiredly.

"It's getting that bad, ne?" she asks unnecessarily. She drops her hand to her knee as she considers her options. "You think the Kazekage would be up to a friendly spar between you and his son?"

"I don't see why he would be for it," Oretzi confesses with a sigh. "It feels like I'm probably hours, maybe even minutes, from snapping. Like I will go after him just to put an end to this stupid mess."

"Don't worry, gaki, we'll…" she stops when she notices she doesn't have the girl's attention anymore.

She follows her gaze to the somewhat tall sandy blonde girl with her hair up in four ponytails, a fan strapped to her back, and… Anko takes a minute to study the girl's outfit which consists of a single light purple-colored, off-the-shoulders garment that extends halfway down her thighs, with a scarlet sash around her waist. Her shoulders, bared by the garment, is covered by fishnet and she has her hiati-ate around her neck.

"Know her?" she questions the hanyou when she notices that the young girl, possibly a genin, is approaching them with what seems like a smirk.

"I think her name is Temari," Oretzi tells her sensei as she eases herself up to meet the blonde on equal footing.

"Inuzuka Oretzi from Konoha?" the blonde questions, her green eyes intent on the hanyou. The girl frowns at the mispronunciation of her name.

"It is 'Or-eh-tee'," she automatically corrects before clearing her throat. "Is there something I can help you with?" the girl questions, wary.

The girl nods her head - in response to the question or what she doesn't know. "My name is Sabaku no Temari. You met my brothers, Sabaku no Kankuro and Gaara the other day," she introduces herself.

"I remember," she attempts to say kindly but realizes it probably came across rudely. "You stopped your brother, the one with the face paints."

"That'll be Kankuro," Temari says as she removes a scroll from her sash, offering it to the hanyou. "Kazekage-sama requested that I deliver this message to you," she says formally, the distaste evident in her voice as Oretzi accepts the item from her. She clears her throat and shifts her weight uneasily. Oretzi looks at the scroll for a moment before focusing on the blonde again when she notices that she looks like she is struggling to say something.

"Listen, I have a fair idea of what the scroll says," she confesses, "and this is my advice to you. Don't accept it." With that, and no farewells, Temari whirls around and walks off with any further ado.

Oretzi tilts her head as she watch the blonde's departure, partially unaware of being observed by her sensei. "Well…" she finally starts, "that was interesting."

"Gaki, with you everything is interesting," Anko teases her half-heartedly, thinking about the blonde. She looks like she may have already graduated from the academy so she mentally puts her at the age of twelve. A bit old for the gaki, she rationalizes, but if that's her type she could give her some advice later on.

Oretzi makes a noise at the back of her throat as she undoes the string on the scroll, unrolling it to read the message. Quickly scanning through the carefully written kanji a low rumble of a growl starts in the girl's chest that has Anko looking at her in concern. She hadn't heard the girl make that kind of sound before except once, during her transformed state, and wonders briefly if she needs to run some kind of intervention.

"So that's what she meant," the girl growls, her voice thick, husky and very distorted despite the restraint she is exerting over her youki.

"Gaki?" The hanyou tosses her the scroll and the woman quickly reads through it before quietly groaning to herself. Just what she needed! "Hey, calm-," she starts to say before a growl warns her from finishing that sentence. She sighs and rubs her face, stuffing the scroll into her pocket roughly. "Don't give me that attitude," she snaps at the girl, catching her full attention and to her dismay she can see a red tint bleeding into the girl's chocolate browns. "Gaki, you're not ready for this."

"What else do you suggest for me?" Oretzi huffs, her arms crossed in stubbornness.

Anko stays quiet for a moment before she turns to her right, her hands flashing through a series of hand seals before she exhales a torrent of fire. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Oretzi tense up but she ignores it in favor of controlling the flames before cutting the jutsu. "What happens when sand is exposed to extreme heat?" she questions her student.

**"I don't see what-,"** the hanyou starts to say before Anko gives her a look - both to get her to focus and to study her. If it was possible Oretzi's voice had gone deeper, her entire body practically rigid, her tail unwilling to move. Fire does something to the girl, making her unwilling to cooperate. **"Fine,"** Oretzi snaps irritably, **"Fire turns sand into gla-."**

She smirks as she watch the girl, practically seeing the metaphorical light bulb go off above her head. That's what she wanted her to realize. Now, to see if her student will let go of whatever it is that bothers her about fire. Maybe she'll be able to teach her a few katon jutsu before tomorrow comes.

**"Why do**es it has to be fire?" the girl sighs, the deep husky tone finally fading away as she loosen up, the growl disappearing as well.

"You could ask Tamashii to teach you Raiton, but that'll take you too long," Anko points out, subtly eliminating the only other option. She gets a growl for her efforts, a reluctant one at that - one that admitted defeat but expressed her displeasure at this. Once again Anko wonders about the fact that she's familiar with the girl's various growls. Shaking her head she gestures for the girl to follow her and they take a seat away from the dying fire, sensei facing student like they did all those months ago.

"Okay… Normally I'd just jump into this but I need to understand what it is about fire that has you on edge," Anko leans forward so that she's practically in the hanyou's personal space since their knees are touching. Even now she can see the girl's reluctance to share her past before Konoha. "Gaki, I just want to help you. One day there's going to be an opponent who uses katon. I don't want you to freeze up on the field and get yourself killed."

"…" Oretzi ducks her head for a long moment before sighing. "It happened when I was younger… I had just been left in Phoenix by the Alpha and the Prima. They had told me that it was time for me to join the humans as instructed by my mama…" She turns her eyes to the dying embers, almost entranced by the flames. "Everyone who saw me knew instantly what I was and… well, the best way to describe that is humans never fail to exceed the demons' expectation for pain and destruction." The pained tone behind those words were obvious and Anko feels like her heart is being slowly squeezed by someone with an iron grip as the hanyou tells her story.

**Flashback**

_She ran from the mob of people behind her, their shouts bouncing off the brick walls - making it seem like she is surrounded - her breathing coming in as ragged gasps. Terror screaming at her to run. Her body screaming at her to stop. She wished the Prima was still here! She'd know what to do!_

_She rounds a corner with tears blinding her and slams into something hard and unyielding. With a yelp she bounces back, stunned into inaction just long enough to be grabbed by someone in the mob. _

_With a triumph shout the mob lifts her up, carrying her off like she is some kind of trophy game. Her small body struggling in their grasp, screaming to be free, sobbing when she can't break out of their grip. Various pitchforks and torches bobs around her as the people cart her to the village center. Their words a confusing babble to the hanyou, their voices rising up to a scream._

_She is thrown to the ground without a care in the world and as she scrambles to pick herself up the first blow hits her, sending her sprawling back down. Numerous punches, kicks, and stones rain down upon her until she curls into a tight ball - heartbreaking sobs wracking through her body as tears mingle with blood pouring from a wound on her head._

"Start a pyre!"_ someone shouts, hearing the words but never understanding them until later. _"Burn the demon spawn!"

_She didn't understand the angry cries and the shouts. All she understood is that the blows stopped coming and the presence of some of the people around her have disappeared - walking away?_

_She tries to make her escape but someone spots her attempt and yells out a warning. Hands grab her tiny form and prevents her from running away, forcing her to watch as the mob create a pile of wood and coated it with a foul smelling liquid. All of this didn't make sense to the young hanyou, her dark brown hair partially hiding her terrified eyes._

_Before she can plea for her freedom someone toss a torch into the pile and to her alarm the wood erupts into a raging inferno. Forcing her to renew her efforts to break free, begging, and pleading without success. Her arms forced behind her by someone, her limbs nearly wretched out of their sockets by the rough handling, and a coarse thick rope is wrapped around her wrists, binding her. _

_Hands pushing her towards the fire despite her attempts to escape, her feet currently unbound. The fire growing larger in her eyes as she is forced towards the wild element. _

**End Flashback**

"Matron Kin came in time to prevent me from being burned alive," Oretzi mutters, remembering the intense heat from the fuel driven fire. "They threw me on the fire, or at least tried but she knocked into the ones who were holding me. It threw off their aim and I only got partially burned." She gestures to her silver streak, "That day I retrieved this because my youki was focusing on the more severe injuries. By the time I was out of danger I was low on youki and it didn't close enough to not leave a scar."

Anko frowns, angry that the girl was hurt at such a young age, before she leans forward to lay a gentle hand on the girl's tattooed cheek. "Hey…" Distant eyes shifts to meet hers. "We don't have to do this today."

"I'm going to need all of the advantage I can get," Oretzi mutters, her eyes finally coming into focus as she sets a goal. "Let's get started, Anko-," she cuts herself off for a moment before continuing hesitantly with a small smile, "chan."

Anko, who had been initially puzzled by the girl's hesitation, smiles back at the suffix - reaching over to ruffle her hair. "Let's get started then. I know a few katon for you to use and I came prepared for the day I would eventually get you to start practicing," she says, removing two somewhat thick scrolls from her pockets.

"Good to know that you're always prepared," Oretzi chuckles as she hops up, offering her hand to the older woman. Despite being lighter than the purple haired woman she is still able to haul her up without too much effort.

"Gaki, did you already forget your rules? 'A shinobi must prepare before it is too late to'."

Oretzi shrugs her shoulders carelessly, "I don't exactly follow the typical shinobi way."

"No shit, gaki," Anko chuckles before she proceeds to show the girl the seals for one of lower ranked jutsu. Not as deadly as some would like but efficient for those who is capable of thinking of other ways to use it. "Now listen, this is what you need to do to perform this jutsu…"

* * *

Team 13 walks into the training ground designated by Kazekage. Already the kage and his three children and a jonin stood waiting for them. Oretzi, two days after receiving the message, had finally sent a reply accepting the terms. She notes grimly that Gaara looks almost excited, the sand a lot more active than it was before. She had remembered how the sand in the streets moved slower, less willing to obey, compared to the sand dancing around him in a malicious manner. Temari and Kankuro, she notes, were keeping a distance from the redhead. Looking almost indifference, capable of convincing anyone except her of their lie. She can scent their fear of their brother, setting her resolve to teaching Gaara the value of family.

It's time she woke him up from his dream.

"Welcome," the Kazekage greets them. "I thank you, Inuzuka-san, for accepting my son's invitation for a _friendly_ spar." Anko's fingers twitch at the twist she heard at the man's words.

"No thanks necessary, Kazekage-sama," Oretzi replies. "The feeling was mutual."

The jonin clears his throat before any further pleasantries were exchanged, drawing Oretzi's attention to him. He's a tall man, at least eight to nine inches taller than Oretzi's 5'4" height. He has two distinctive red markings on the right side with the rest covered by a turban-like head gear and a sheet covering the left side of his face, his hiati-ate serving its purpose of a forehead protector. "Kazekage-sama, perhaps we let their spar begin soon?" he suggests, his sole visible eye flickering to Gaara who looks impatient.

The Kage nods his head before retreating to a much, much safer distance. Anko, noting that no one said anything about the rules of the spar, squeezes Oretzi's shoulder to get her attention. Though the girl did not turn her head from the redhead across the field her wolf ear did twitch as a sign of her attention. "Be careful, gaki, I think this might be a free for all fight with no limits," she instructs her as Hoshi and Tamashii parts with a simple pat on the back, silently communicating that they trust her to handle herself. Tsukiko, held in Hoshi's arms, told her that she'll be cheering for her.

"Fine with me," Oretzi mutters before she clears her throat when Anko's grip tightens subtly. "I'll be careful, Anko-chan." She turns her head slightly to give her sensei a smile. "I'm not going to let him beat me, not now not ever."

Partially reassured but still immensely worried Anko nods her head in acceptance of the girl's vow. She waits by her side as she strips off her outer clothes, leaving her in her specially treated fishnet, bandages, and shorts. Once she has the shirt, pants, and shoes she squeezes the girl's shoulder once more before taking her leave, silently vowing to intervene should the fight becomes too much.

Once stripped of the more cumbersome clothes Oretzi takes a second to loosen her limbs before she drops into a familiar stance. Gaara, upon seeing his opponent ready herself, seems to smile in some kind of glee as the sand whirls around him.

To the amazement of the Kage and his children Gaara wasn't lashing out recklessly to attack the hanyou. To Anko's dread, as she recalls that Oretzi always has a bit of trouble when she is going head to head with someone who is a natural strategist. If the boy is one then she'll have to intervene sooner than she thought would need to.

The two nine year olds stare at one another for a long moment before Oretzi flexes her hands, the blades sliding out with a hiss. She lets Gaara see her for one more second before she vanishes in a blur that leaves after images in her wake. She reappears behind him, her arm already in motion for a slash before a wall of sand blocks her. Surprised by the sand she back flips away and studies the sand for a moment.

"No one can get past my sand," Gaara informs her confidently, turning partially to look at the hanyou. Oretzi just smirks at him before disappearing again. Several times his walls comes up, blocking someone seemingly.

At one point the sand comes up instantly on two different sides, causing the redhead to frown just slightly and his siblings, accustomed to his various expression, were shocked when they realize that he is worried. Soon the number of the walls snapping up at the same time increased to three and eventually four before the hanyou appears again with three clones.

"Kage Bunshin no jutsu," the jonin mutters in shock. A genin knows that jutsu already?

"Can't be you controlling the sand, Gaara-kun," Oretzi calls to him mockingly. "Is it your demon?" she questions. Gaara doesn't answer her so she shakes her head as she gestures to her clones. The three clones disappears briefly to reappear in other locations with Gaara surrounded. "Let's get rid of that sand now," she comments drily.

Simultaneously the four Oretzi flash through a series of hand seals, the seals ending on Tiger before they exhale a torrent of fire. Not at Gaara but straight up into the air to the surprise of everyone including her own sensei. The four fire jutsu collides in the air forming an extremely large fire dragon that charges straight down to the redheaded boy. The fire dragon crashes down on the boy, exploding upon impact and even managing to throw Oretzi back some while dispelling the clones.

The hanyou lands on her back, startled by the jutsu's penchant for destruction. "Note to self: all future new jutsu is to be tested prior usage in battle." Satisfied by the thought she performs a kip-up. She stands here for a second, taking in her surroundings before suddenly executing a backflip to dodge a fist of sand attempting an uppercut. "Good to see that you survived, Gaara-kun," she says as she turns to face the irate boy. She's happy to note that he has less sand than before, taking it to mean that he may have used the shunshin no jutsu to escape or the kawarimi no jutsu.

She darts forward again, using the same strategy as before, vanishing in mid-motion. Walls flies up again, this time with scores left behind as Oretzi's mark. Half of the remaining sand focused on his defense while the rest struggled to catch the hanyou to slow or stop her altogether.

Oretzi appeared again, back flipping away from the sand hand attempting to grab her. She needed to breathe, her body couldn't take moving so fast for so long. Sweat glisten along her body, making her slightly uncomfortable but she couldn't stop now. The blades of the tekagi-shuko disappear into the vambraces for her to execute another katon jutsu. Turning the sand hand into glass yet the speed it was going at forces her to quickly slash at it with her weapon. Shattering the glass but getting slice as a result, causing her to growl in frustration.

Four outfits. At least four outfits destroyed since she came onto this stupid mission, two of which she doesn't even know how they were destroyed in the first place. She can already see the shopping trip her ane-chan is going to force her on, her mind already mentally calculating something about her big sister. "Aww," she suddenly whines, puzzling everyone around her including Gaara. "Hana's going to be in heat when I get back to Konoha."

Anko ran her hand down her face in disbelief at her student's inattention. "Gaki, get you head back in the game!" she shouts at her student.

Oretzi glances at the woman, temporarily taking her attention off the boy in front of her, a bad decision for her when she turns her eyes back to the redhead. Just before she feels something on her right arm. Realizing her mistake she tries to get away from the sand that has curled around her arm but at the slightest motion the sand suddenly covers and squeezes the whole of her forearm with a sickening crush.

The scream of pain and outrage was deafening and Anko made a move to intervene but stopped when Tsukiko jumps in front of her, surprising her. Then to her amazement the wolf pup seems to grow three to four times her usual size, further blocking her from saving Oretzi.

"She's in trouble, you silly mutt," she snaps, "let me by!" To her astonishment Tsukiko shakes her head before pouncing on her, the pup effectively pinning her down with a happy pant that has her other students sniggering. "Tsukiko, when I'm through with you you're going to be nothing but a simple throw rug!" The pup woofs something at her before the woman rolls her eyes, turning to watch the spar again, hoping that in her lapse of attention Oretzi hadn't gotten any more injuries.

In the seconds since Anko attempted to come to her rescue Oretzi managed to break free of the sand, her arm a bloody mess, the weapon partially destroyed. Cursing the girl frees the leather band from her skin and tosses it away where it lands somewhere with a wet splat, the healing factor already kicking in. The other tekagi-shuko is removed as well to join its brother on the ground, claws forming as her demonic visage increase with a growl radiating from her chest. The girl's body already loosely coated by her white youki, centering mostly on the damaged arm.

"I have to say, Gaara-kun," Oretzi growls, "Not many manage to hurt me this bad lately." The girl lunges for the boy, leaving after images again before they turn out to be bunshin when they attack him alongside with the original. "Let me return the favor!" Just like that they break through the boy's sand defense and sent him flying up. Before the sand can defend or catch him the hanyou appears just beneath him to send him higher, with her clones working to make him fly higher and higher with each successive hit.

Borrowing heavily on what she has seen someone do once before, Oretzi begins a barrage of attacks with her clones that reminds everyone in the area of the game hot potato before - using her now fully repaired arm - she slashes at him with her youki claws, sending him flying down.

She lands nearby, her head tilting ever so slightly as she listens to him. She can hear him mumbling something before there is a drastic increase of the youki lingering around him, causing her to cringe at the gritty feel of the demonic chakra. She snarls a warning at the jinchuuriki that goes unheeded as the sand forms a sphere around him.

"Oh no you don't!" she snarls as she lunges for him again, fire coming to life around her without a single hand seal. She breaks into the shell of the sphere and a savage howl of pain echoes around the field.

**_Candy-chan, don't kill me for what I've done to your imouto-chan! *is hidden somewhere to avoid the weapons* Something needed to happen. Also, I couldn't resist a little Oretzi/Temari interaction. The image that came to me was just... too good to past up._**

**_R&R please! And Ja Ne!_**


	12. Chapter 12

_**The usual drill. I do not own Naruto except for anything that isn't part of the cannon and isn't readily recognized as one of the characters. Namely Oretzi and her pack of wolves for the time being.**_

_**Chapter 12**_

Silence.

That's all that remained in the field after that howl died away, leaving Anko with that heavy feeling of dread. She shoves at the wolf pup and once she has enough leverage she escapes, running straight for the slowly collapsing sphere of sand. Behind her she can hear her students' footsteps, as light as they are, and knew that they are just as worried as she is.

What they find at the small quarter mile wide crater created by Oretzi's air attack surprises them all, including the Kage's family. The hanyou looks tiredly up at them with Gaara in her arms, the seal on the boy's chest visible and coated in someone's blood. His shirt burned away by the youki charged attack in mid-air as well as when she charged into the sphere of sand with both her youki and katon flaring around her. On the boy's stomach is his first injury, five semi-deep gashes starting at bottom most rib on the left side and drips all the way to his hip.

"Gaara's… well he's not dead but he'll be quiet for a while," she mutters as she starts to lean towards one side a bit too much for Anko's liking. "Can't even… feel him." With that she passes out into her sensei's arms like the woman suspected she would do. The Suna jonin quickly retrieves Gaara and with a silent command from the Kage he disappears from view in a whirl of sand.

The Kage clears his throat, prompting Anko to look up at him. "When Inuzuka-san awakens, please inform her of my many thanks." With that he walks off with Kankuro right behind him.

"Is she going to be okay?" Temari asks, a bit worried as she stares down at the bloodied girl's prone body.

"She should be," Hoshi answers for their sensei.

"She's… she's really strong. A true kunoichi," Temari compliments. "No one has ever defeated Gaara before." With that she runs off to catch up to her brother.

Team 13 look at each other before staring at their unconscious teammate. "She sure is," Tamashii whispers.

"That's our Oretzi-chan, always doing the unexpected," Hoshi laughs, shaking her head before she steadies their sensei when she stands up. "Back to the hotel?" she voices, getting quick nods from both their sensei and her teammate. She picks up the small again wolf pup and follows their sensei back to their rooms.

* * *

Severe youki - not chakra - exhaustion kept Oretzi confined to the hotel room despite her protests that she's _fine_! Her only major injury had been healed prior reaching the end of her limited reserves meaning her arm would not suffer the usual consequences of exhausting her youki to the point where her healing stops. It had been nearly twenty-four hours since she defeated Gaara - the memory of how she did that is a bit hazy - and collapsed next to the jinchuuriki's unconscious form. In that time she studied up on the scrolls Anko had brought along about the available lists of katon jutsu.

But once she was free from the bed and room she was gone from her sensei's supervision with Tsukiko by her side. After all, she owes the pup a treat for keeping Anko out of the fight like she asked her to beforehand. Since Tamashii used up all of the treats she had stored away for events like these she has to buy a small, emphasis on small, package of treats for Tsukiko.

What she wasn't expecting was half of the people she passes on the street to look at her warily while the other half greets her with such a good cheer that she's the one looking at them - almost expecting the worse to happen. After finding a store selling some high quality treats she picks up Tsukiko, putting her in the hood of her cloak, which she has taken to wearing again as a precaution against a sandstorm.

She had the feeling that someone is following her and was prepare to move quickly now that her companion is in her hood instead of trying to exercise her legs. Any other time she'd let her do so.

Turning around a corner she pauses against the wall, her ears intent for any distinctive noise. She couldn't really hear anything underneath the soft noise level of the village so she tries scenting the person. To her surprise she smells some kind of spices and the crisp scent of a hot breeze with a fading scents of paints with wood and blood with sand. She knows only one person with the scent of blood and there her mind flashes back to the red-haired boy and his ever present sand with the lingering scent of blood.

With the scent in her nose she knows who is following her so instead of ducking into an alleyway to ambush her 'tail' she stays where she is. A few minutes after she had turned the corner the blonde kunoichi rounds it, jumping back when she realizes that her quarry is there waiting for her with the wolf pup half perched on her head.

"Ohayo Temari-san," she greets her with Tsukiko barking her own greeting. "She says hi by the way," she adds, gesturing to the pup.

Temari awkwardly clears her throat, embarrassed by her reaction. "Ohayo, Inuzuka-san," she returns the greeting.

"Please, I'm not old enough to have such an honorific. My first name is fair game," she tells the blonde with a smile.

"Is Oretzi-chan fine?"

"Works with me," she tells her before Tsukiko whines at her. "Ah, this little one is Tsukiko," she introduces her companion who barks and wags her tail friendly.

"Ha, pleased to meet you," she greets, offering her hand to the wolf pup who sniffs her hand briefly before bumping her nose against the hand. Temari smiles and starts petting the pup's head.

Oretzi starts laughing at the running commentary by Tsukiko, prompting Temari to look at her in curiosity. "She's telling me that your hand is really soft and know just where to touch," she decides to go with a relatively tamer version of the pup's words. "I probably don't give her enough attention, gomen Tsuki."

Temari chuckles as the small pup turns and starts saying something - she assumes so by the barks, yelps, and whines as well as the expressions flashing briefly on Oretzi's face. She lets her hand drop as the hanyou and her companion starts bickering with one another. She leans her hip against the wall, her arms crossed, as the two of them argue in a language that wasn't any she knows. She takes this opportunity to study the hanyou in front of her.

She doesn't know how old the girl is compare to her but whatever her age she's already 5'4" with a body that implies that she's at least a year older than herself. Maybe even two. Short wild hair that tries to hide the girl's dark brown eyes with a streak of silver in the bangs grouped over the right eye. Two red fang like tattoos adorn the girl's cheeks, enhancing her sharp and strangely feral features. She looks at the girl's outfit, consisting simply of a pair of black pants that looks like they've seen better days, and a fishnet shirt that serves no purpose of hiding anything with a cloak pushed back over her shoulders to allow her arms movement. Her hiati-ate tied around her neck in a fashion of a collar - almost as a joke, she thinks, to her status as a wolf hanyou.

Because of what the shirt is made of she is able to see the chest bindings and the black vine like markings twisting up the girl's arm, over her shoulder and disappear into the chest binding before reappearing briefly to form a full moon and vanish completely into her pants. Curiosity has her wondering where it ends and what possessed the girl to get such an identifying marker. She recalls that the girl had been using a weapon - a tekagi-shuko - and notes that her forearms are bare, allowing her to see the taut muscles under her skin.

Overall she looks hot with her body already toned instead of soft like most kunoichi, Temari concludes, not ashamed to admit it in the privacy of her own mind. Add on the ears and tail and well… Simply to say she didn't see a reason to not pursue the hanyou, especially after she single handedly defeated her youngest brother with no sign or scar to show for it. As part of being a Suna-nin she sees strength as a necessary part of whoever her lover would be, man or woman.

"Ne, Oretzi-chan," she calls the other girl, interrupting whatever argument between her and her companion. The girl blinks before blushing a cute shade of red that has her biting her lip in an attempt to smother the laugh bubbling up in her.

"Gomen, Temari-san, I did not mean to ignore you."

She waves off the apology with a smirk. "Think nothing of it, Oretzi-chan, but please drop the honorific. I am possibly the same age as you," she tells the hanyou as she pushes herself off the wall.

She watch the girl raise an eyebrow, dark brown eyes looking her up and down before a husky chuckle escapes her lips. "I highly doubt you are my age, Temari-san," the girl says before noting the displeased look at the honorific. Mentally sighing to herself at finding another woman who dislikes the proper suffixes - honestly, what good are they for if people insist for the more intimate ones?

"Surely you're not much older than me. By my guess you should already be a chunin if you can beat my brother who is at least that level," Temari tells her, prompting another chuckle and the pup on the other girl's head says something that makes the hanyou laughs again.

"Temari-_chan_," Oretzi accidently puts an emphasis on the suffix, watching the tessenjutsu user's green eyes darken. Recalling an incident that she was unfortunate enough to experience she makes a note to not do that again. "Unless you graduated from the Academy at an early age then I highly doubt that you are my age." She sees the puzzled expression on the blonde's face before it lessens slightly as she starts to realize what she is telling her. "I am under the impression that the standard age for students graduating from the academy is set at 12."

"You…" Temari clears her throat almost awkwardly. "You graduated early?"

"Hai." She wants to see what the blonde thinks her age is. As strange and this is she is amused by it, by a great deal.

Temari studies the girl again, reconsidering some of the things she had thought about the brunette. "Well, you can't be twelve… when did you graduate?"

"A few months ago I suppose," she considers it again. "Roughly six months ago."

"That's not a long time ago," Temari comments. She gets a smirk and a casual shrug. "Okay, so you're eleven?" Oretzi shakes her head with a laugh. "Ten?" Another no. Temari gapes at the girl in disbelief. "Nine?!" This time she gets a nod accompanied by a full blown laugh. "Damn," she mutters to herself in disbelief.

"Hai," Oretzi says in agreement, opening the package and taking out a treat. She says something to Tsukiko and the pup slips back into the girl's hood, receiving the treat. "I was eight years old when I graduated."

"You-, how-." She shakes her head and starts laughing. "Oh Kami, you're like the same age as my brother!"

"Which one?" Oretzi questions, curious with a questioning whine from the pup.

"Gaara."

"Really?" She chuckles. "Well, that's two now."

"Two?"

Oretzi meets Temari's eyes for a moment before shaking her head. "Gomen, might be best that you don't know about that," she tells her before finally frowning at her. "Why were you following me anyway?"

Temari raise an eyebrow at the question, almost amused by the fact that the girl hadn't asked that earlier. "We've been talking for about twenty minutes and only now you ask?"

The hanyou shrugs with a light dust of a blush on her cheeks. "People can't hide their intentions from me because of their scent," she explains in the lightest sense of the word.

"That's… impressive," Temari compliments with a laugh. "My turn to ask," she starts, not even bothering to check to see if it was fine, "How can you be this tall and mature when you're only nine?"

Oretzi shrugs her shoulders. "Way I see it? I'm a hanyou, it's possible that my DNA is enabling a faster growth."

Temari looks doubtful at that. She remembered encountering a shy hanyou once. He had nearly been beaten to death, his small thin malnourished body that of a child - similar to Gaara's small and frail body as a result of his premature birth. When she found out his age she was shocked to find that the hanyou was far older than his appearance suggested. "I think there might be something else playing a role in your rapid aging," she tells the girl.

Oretzi sighs reluctantly - this wasn't the first time she has considered this. She has found that asking questions that no one may have answers to is very depressing. "That may be, Temari-chan. But the only ones who might have an answer is far out of my reach."

"What about other demons?"

Oretzi laughs, shaking her head. "That would be suicide."

"Why?" Temari questions. Surely it wouldn't be that bad?

"Temari-chan, tell me this. Your fellow villagers, do they fear Gaara for what he carries?" Temari doesn't answer this but it didn't matter for she already knows the answer. "He's a pure blood human and he is feared for what he holds - for what he unwillingly jails to keep the people around him safe." The older girl bows her head as she listens to the hanyou's words. "I know that he himself is considered a danger to everyone around him but honestly? From what I've heard around here it seems like he's a bit justified to behave like this."

"Please, understand. Our village, we've gone through -," Temari starts before she gets a gesture from the hanyou who smiles friendly to reassure her.

"Look, there's a lot of factors playing in this. The Bijuu Lords have always been feared. Suna is not going to be the first or last to behave like this." She shakes her head. "In any case, I got distracted," she confesses lightly. "The point I was trying to make, Temari-chan, is that if a jinchuuriki can get that kind of reception - despite being purely human - what do you think is going to happen when the person is half human and half demon. Like me?"

Temari made to answer before she realizes what Oretzi is saying. "And that's only on the human side of things," she comments drily. The brunette nods to confirm this. "Demons… are they worse?"

"In a sense. Some believe that eating hanyous will give them strength and there are a few who consider all types of hanyous to be some kind of delicacy," Oretzi explains lightly. "There are also the types that will sire a hanyou, wait until they're born before consuming them and their human parent." She notes a slight queasy look on Temari's face and chuckles softly. "Demons, while not quite like humans, are capable of feeling a different broad of emotions and some don't really give a damn about morals. I highly doubted they even had morals in the first place."

"I never really knew that hanyous have it so bad," Temari comments softly.

"There is a reason why many don't make it past their first two years," she informs the blonde. "If they can do that then they're probably going to make it in this cruel world, if only for a little while." She clears her throat and stretches her arms. "Which vaguely reminds me of something. You never did answer my question and I answered several of yours already." Temari smirks at the brunette, prompting her to roll her eyes. What is it about people and their smirks that makes her wanna do something to wipe it off yet strangely enough? She didn't feel the desire to do so for the sandy blonde, not in the manner she wants to do for everyone else except Anko.

"Gomen, Oretzi-chan. I wanted to give you this, as my apology for what you went through since arriving in my village and for being injured in the spar with my youngest brother." She bows as she offers a familiar pair of weapons to the stunned hanyou. She had wondered where they disappeared to - having inquired about them to Hoshi.

Oretzi picks up the weapons and upon seeing that they both have been repaired - almost to the same quality as Higurashi's skills - she straps both of them on. She flexes her hands and arms before smiling in approval. "Whoever you took these to, they did an excellent job," she tells the blonde kunoichi - the blonde watching her with amusement dancing in her eyes. She applies the tiniest jolt of chakra to both weapons and smiles in approval at the blades' flawless design. She then blinks when she realizes that she didn't hear the usual hiss. "Wow," she mutters, impressed.

"What is it?" Temari asks, a bit worried.

"Your weapon smith, whoever they may be, managed to silence the hiss."

"There was a hiss?" There was a bit of amusement in the kunoichi's voice when she voiced that question so Oretzi didn't answer, choosing instead to slice at the air - noticing the reduced resistance as she did so. "Do you approve?"

Oretzi smiles at the blonde as all but one of the six blades disappear into the vambraces, eying it critically. "Yep. My many thanks, Temari-chan." The final blade returns to the vambrace and she offers a hand in friendship. The older girl smiles and shakes their hands, sealing the new friendship. They walk in silence with Temari sometime breaking it to explain something to the hanyou.

It isn't until maybe an hour past noon that Oretzi thought of something. "Oh, Temari-chan," she calls to the blonde who was purchasing them a treat.

"Hai?"

"How is Gaara-san?"

Temari, taking the snacks she purchased, walks back to Oretzi and offers the hanyou two of the three skewers - one of which is for her companion. "Well, he's not exactly pleased that he lost. But he's a bit different than he usually is." She takes a minute to eat a piece of the grilled chicken. "I think he was muttering about how he couldn't hear 'Mother' anymore."

"I thought that might be the case," Oretzi comments airily, giving Tsukiko the meat on her skewer and eating the vegetables that divides the meat. Temari looks suspiciously at the hanyou, wondering if she played a role in her brother's tame… whatever. Oretzi notices the look and smiles friendly at the blonde. "Do you remember the sphere of sand Gaara formed at the end of our fight?"

Temari nods her head, recalling the worry that her brother is going to transform into Shukaku in the middle of the village - about how her father will need to use the Gold Dust to stop him again.

"Well… lemme put it like this. I didn't want him calling up his demon so I forced my youki to flood his coils," the hanyou shrugs at Temari's shocked expression, "It seemed to suppress the demon like I hoped. Though I thought it would have reversed itself by now."

"What did you do to my brother?"

Oretzi shrugs her shoulders, unsure what the answer is to that. She has never done anything like she had to a person before so she's not quite familiar with the impact it has on them. "He may back to normal by tomorrow."

"And if he's not?"

The brunette tilts her head slightly. "Well… then there's probably a few explanations for it."

She holds up a finger, "He may not be able to use any form of youki for the rest of his natural life as a result of my foreign youki damaging his chakra coils."

She adds a second finger, "He may be able to use youki after a certain set of time has passed as a result of his body flushing out the youki. My theory on that is that his body is either having difficulty flushing my youki out or I used too much to do so."

She considers something before adding a third, "There may be something wrong with his seal in the first place, since his demon was allowed so close to the surface, and my youki is temporarily preventing his 'Mother' from mentally reaching him and blocking his youki."

Temari mentally goes over the points Oretzi has given her and has no idea which may be the case. "Would you be able to see which case it may be?"

"Perhaps," Oretzi says with a shrug. "I'm no expert and it's quite honestly the first time I've used youki to disrupt anyone's chakra flow or coils." She considers her teammate, Tamashii, and wonders if he can see if there is something disrupting Gaara's chakra. She'll have to ask him later. "Do you want me to?" she asks the blonde, aware of her fear of Gaara. She instinctively knows that if she undo the damage done to him he may go back to killing mercilessly and remorselessly. Unless someone does something to shake him from his beliefs.

"I… As much as he terrifies me he's still my little brother. He relies on Shukaku a lot," Temari comments, shaking her head. "I don't want him to get hurt if he tries to use Shukaku's youki and find he can't."

Oretzi tilts her head, an odd smile on her face. She slips close to the blonde, her arm wrapping around Temari's shoulders with a lazy smirk. "You're a good sister, Temari-san," she chuckles. "If he's not feeling better then," she takes a minute to consider a good location for them to meet, "the village center is probably a good spot to meet, around noon?"

Temari nods her head before taking her leave, bidding Oretzi goodbye.

Oretzi watches her walk away for a moment. "She's certainly an interesting one."

_"Hai, nee-chan!"_ Tsukiko chirps cheerfully, prompting the wolf hanyou to chuckle in amusement.

"You're improving, Tsuki-chan," she compliments as she heads to the hotel, intending to go do some studying and maybe even ask Tamashii if he'd willing to help her the next day.

* * *

The young hanyou hums idly to a lullaby she heard once, waiting in the town square and trying to past the time. Tsukiko had stayed with Hoshi to practice speaking the human language. Anko, with Hoshi and Tsukiko, is keeping an eye on Suterareta since the merchant is expecting some kind of trouble soon. Tamashii had agreed to come with her and is currently waiting in the shadows to get a reading of Gaara's chakra.

About ten minutes after noon Temari jogs into the square with her brothers following along at a more sedated pace. Despite that Kankuro still kept a slightly faster pace compared to his brother to keep some sort of distance between himself and Gaara. While the redhead looks rather displeased with the situation as he seemingly drags his feet, his jade green eyes narrowed in dislike at the hanyou, to Oretzi's morbid amusement.

"Temari-chan," she greets the blonde once she's in earshot, subconsciously taking in Temari's scent of spices and hot summer breeze. Not quite as mouthwatering as Hoshi but just as interesting and quite unique in her opinion. Of course, the best scent she has ever crossed in her nine years is Anko's - the smell of a breeze with a heavy scent of fresh water and pine trees that reminds her a lot of the pack lands.

"Oretzi-chan," Temari returns as she takes the hanyou's arm in a warrior's handshake.

"I take it that his situation hasn't improved if you brought both of your brothers," Oretzi comments with a wary look at the jinchuuriki.

"Worse," the blonde says coldly yet the hanyou could sense that it is not directed at herself. "My father, the Kazekage had sent an assassin last night. He wasn't able to command his sand to kill him though it did defend him like it usually does."

Oretzi frowns as she turns to look at Gaara who showed no signs of any injury - which is a relief for the brunette because she would've felt guilty - and if anything he looks extremely irritated by the whole situation. She pulls her long legs to her, crossing them, as she sits on the narrow ledge with her tail swishing back and forth. "The Kazekage likes to assassinate his own children?" she comments drily as she shakes her head. "Then again, considering the situation I'm not wholly surprised."

"What you saying?" Kankuro snaps gruffly at the hanyou.

"I'm saying that humans' capacity to hurt their own family, their own friends, never ceases to amaze me," she tells him as she leans forward slightly. "At least with demons you know where you stand with them." She points at Gaara. "Take his demon for example. He wants to annihilate every single human that dares to defile his desert." She points at herself. "I may be a half demon but typically what you see is what you get. If I don't like you then I seriously do not like you."

She glances at Gaara at that, recalling the moment of their first encounter and judging by the amused spark in his eyes she can safely say he does too - that or every moment afterwards where he was seriously pushing her buttons. She's irritated that he got to her so quickly but - either because he has no youki radiating off of him or she defeated him - she is surprised that she's not feeling that deep down itch to give him a good thrashing anymore. She supposes she'll find out if it was because of his youki that she wanted to toss him around like an old bone if she fixes his problem.

"So… you like Temari, hate Gaara and…" the painted boy trails off, unsure how to phrase the rest of his sentence.

"I have a bit of a dislike for you, Kankuro, since you're the one who got me into this mess in the first place," the hanyou tells him coldly. Temari sniggers behind her hand at the reminder.

"Hey, you're the one who bumped into me!" Kankuro snaps in irritation.

"And you're the one who made it a bigger mess than it needed to be," she informs him calmly as her ears pick up the near silent laughing of her teammate. Kankuro chooses not to say anything, scowling at her, and she smirks back at him before refocusing on Temari. "So, do you care to go elsewhere so that we can begin to discover the source of your brother's issues?"

Temari nods her head and leaves the town square, not even bothering to check to see if anyone is following her. Oretzi chuckled as hops off the ledge, falling into step behind the blonde's siblings, her ears twitching as she hears her teammate follow in the shadows.

* * *

The Sabaku siblings stood on one side, facing Oretzi alone - not that the hanyou really cares. The only one who actually poses a threat to her is Gaara and with his demon currently out of the playing field he's unable to do much to her. Temari is actually an unknown factor for her since she never seen her in action but she knows that she may be able to handle her.

"So how are we going to do this?" Temari asks, curious.

"We wait," she says simply, her dark brown eyes intent on the redhead.

"For what?" this time Kankuro asks this question.

Oretzi gestures at the redhead and the two siblings look at him in confusion before looking back at the brunette. She sighs at their confusion and clears her throat. "Give me a good reason, Gaara, for me to let you have your youki back."

"It is my right."

She snorts. "It is not your right, Gaara-_kun_," she tells him and sees a flash of irritation on his face before it disappears. "Shukaku was sealed in you. You are just _fortunate_ enough to be given the _privilege_ to use the youki of a mentally chaotic tanuki." Gaara's expression has turned down right hostile at this point and she knows that if he had Shukaku's youki still he'd be lashing out already. She sighs and rubs her face with a hand. Perhaps she needs to take a different route with this…

She meets Gaara's eyes once again with one thought in mind.

* * *

Gaara blinks before he realizes that his siblings are gone, his surroundings destroyed and it seems that Suna has been partially buried by the desert. What he didn't understand is how it all has come into being?

"You know what, Gaara?" Suna's jinchuuriki hears someone say behind him. "You're not the only one who has suffered at someone's hands for a situation they have no control over." He turns to face the speaker, finding it to be the hanyou that had done something to him in their fight. "But you're a lucky one, you actually have family. You know your family, they may not treat you the best but at least you know them." He wills his sand to attack her as she closes the gap between them but discovers that nothing is obeying him, just like before. "You have no control over sand. You never did," she tells the redhead to his confusion.

"Look around you, Gaara, tell me what you see."

He takes another look again before he discovers, to his shock, a slumbering tanuki about the size of… he doesn't know what kind of size but he knows that its massive - standing high above the old trees in Hi no Kuni. "Is that…"

"Ichibi no Shukaku?" He nods his head. "It is. What you see around you is the consequences of Suna never sealing the Ichibi within a vessel. Ichibi only cares about the desert, his bloodlust demanding that all that do not belong is to die." To his shock the tanuki lifts his head up to gaze directly at Gaara. "It wasn't always this way. He used to be a prankster of a sort. Sunagakure did something to him and he became this way."

The ruined Sunagakure melts away and he finds himself looking at a village about the same size as Sunagakure but with trees surrounding the village instead of sand. He stares at the Kage Summit, vaguely recalling the war stories about the other villages' Kages. He's in Konoha.

Before he can question his presence his surroundings change and he finds himself floating along behind a boy of his age with golden blonde hair who is running for his life. He looks to see what he is running from and is stunned by the size of the mob chasing him.

"You're not alone in this world," he hears the hanyou mutter but he cannot find her. "This boy, he suffered just like you. Hated for something he carries."

The mob corners the boy and Gaara finds himself trying to stop it. As he takes one step in the blonde's direction his surroundings melts away and he finds himself standing in a pitch black field with the boy with blonde hair in front of him. He gets his first look of the boy's shining sky blue eyes with a massive smile on his face. Whiskers adorning his cheeks.

The hanyou appears next to the two boys. "He's my friend, Gaara, and I swear to the gods that he will find more friends as he continues to be who he is." The blonde smiles at the redhead and offers his hand to Suna's jinchuuriki.

"Uzumaki Naruto," he introduces himself with that smile on his face.

Feeling compelled to return the sentiment he accepts the boy's hand, "Sabaku no Gaara."

The second he introduces himself to him the blonde's smile grows even larger if that was possible and says something Gaara never expected to hear in his life. "Nice to meet you, Gaara! We'll be great friends, believe it!"

_**By now I hope ya'll would recognize when Oretzi is using her doujutsu (which I've yet to name -_-") Oh, Candy-chan, what do you think I should do about Temari ne? It's so tempting to pair her up with Oretzi :P Lol. **_


	13. Chapter 13

_**Okay, disclaimers are really really dull. So let's just say I did my disclaimer for this chapter and the next and keep it between us, ne? Oh, also, early apologies if some of the things seem redundant For lack of a better phrasing she's stressing out about it and I'm trying my best to convoy it just right.**_

_**Chapter 13**_

Before the redhead can so much say something in return the blonde vanishes like an apparition and his surroundings change into something else. His eyes widening as a mob chase a five year old girl, shouting things like demon spawn and such things of the like. When they finally seize hold of her and lift her up above their heads he sees for the first time the wolf ears and tail, realizing just who it is he is seeing.

A pyre is built and the girl is loosely bound, her wrists behind her back with her legs still free. She is shoved towards the raging inferno and as he tries to intervene she is shoved into the fire, vanishing just like his surroundings.

_"Remember what I said. You're not the only one, so don't give up so easily again,"_ he hears the hanyou whisper to him as he stood in a pitch black field of nothingness. Looking around he cannot see anything that would tell him where he is but before he can ask a white light blinds him, prompting him to shield his eyes.

* * *

Gaara blinks and reaches for his head, feeling a bit dizzy all of a sudden.

"Gaara?" he hears Temari question softly.

"I… I'm okay," he mutters, raising his jade green eyes to meet Temari's darker green ones. Something echoes at the back of his mind that he has family, to keep them close and treat them better than he has recently. "I… I'm sorry about how I…I've treated you." Gaara's siblings stare at him in disbelief while Oretzi just smiles at him in triumph.

"That's a good start, Gaara-san," Oretzi compliments before she does a sign. She turns partially towards the shadows where her teammate steps forward, walking to them. "This is my teammate, Hyuuga Tamashii," she introduces them. "Tamashii, these are the Sabaku siblings. Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara."

Tamashii bows to the siblings before focusing his full gaze to the redhead. He didn't like him, not after the grief that he has given his friend during the duration of their stay. Not after witnessing the brutality of his actions during their spar. He recognized the killer intent behind his attacks and knew that if Oretzi wasn't how she is she would have been killed because she made sure Tsukiko would prevent Anko from intervening.

"Give me a-," he starts to say before he doubles over clutching the back of his head. Oretzi stood behind him with her fist, having just given him a not so gentle bop on the head.

"Baka, I wouldn't have called you over if I didn't think he'd change," the hanyou scowls before sighing. "Can you please just let me know what's going on inside of him?"

Tamashii rubs his sore head before nodding, forming a hand seal since his mastery over the kekkei genkai is not as strong as he likes. He focuses on Gaara, his vision a mixture of black and white, as he studies the redhead's chakra pathway system. A casual glance reveals nothing wrong, prompting a frown as he does a more in-depth study. He sees the boy's chakra fluctuate at his center and realizes that he's seeing two different types of youki battling. He recognizes the white youki as Oretzi's, seemingly surrounding the sandy colored youki and suppressing it.

"… I see the problem," he comments as he deactivates his Byakugan.

"So…?" Oretzi leans on the slightly taller boy as she waits for him to tell her.

"Your youki seems to be suppressing his' at the very core of his system," he informs his friend, earning a reluctant sigh from the hanyou.

"Looks like its theory number three," she mutters softly as she crosses her arms, studying the redhead for a long moment. "Alright, Gaara, let's have a look at your seal since that seems to be the issue here." She takes a seat and motions for him to do the same. "Off with the shirt," she tells him once he's seated.

With no other choice but to do what she tells him he remove his reddish brown shirt. Oretzi frowns when she notices that the black seal on his chest still has some of her blood on it. "Didn't you wash this off?" she questions as she brushes her fingertips against the dried blood, expecting it to flake off. To her surprise she only feels his skin, she doesn't feel any foreign substance. "What the…"

"It's been like that since the fight," Gaara tells her as she leans in further to study the seal.

"Does anyone know what it originally look like?" she asks as she notices that her blood looks like they've formed some kind of line, almost blending with the black lines of the seal. She was curious about why it had done that as well as how her blood manage to be incorporated into Gaara's seal.

"I think I can draw it out," Kankuro confesses, remembering seeing Gaara shirtless a few times when they were younger. Oretzi gives him paper and pen to draw it out. The hanyou watches him over his shoulder and the image that comes out reminds her of something she has seen once before.

She thinks back over the information she read up on fuuinjutsu, considering what his seal means. "That's not good," she mutters as she trace the finished image with a fingertip. "No wonder Shukaku is acting so bizarre," she whispers, tracing the jagged broken lines within the twisting lines of the circle.

"What you mean?" Tamashii looks at the paper. He hadn't done much study on fuuinjutsu so he wasn't aware of the impact of the four jagged thunder like lines positioned at the four key points - north, south, west, and east - of the circle made by three twisting lines. He looks at the redhead's seal to find that the spaces within the circle's twisting lines has been filled in by something red- Oretzi's blood apparently.

"This is an insanity seal combined with a containment seal," Oretzi tells him. "The lines inside the circle are broken and like lightning, meaning he won't be able to think clearly or even rationalize. The containment seal is extremely weak too, three lines isn't enough to hold back a Bijuu Lord, even if he's a one-tail. To make it worse there's gaps in the lines, which makes it easier for him to influence Gaara. It's a serious insult to Shukaku's abilities and power." She shakes her head in disbelief. "No wonder Gaara can't sleep. Shukaku is so out of it he doesn't even realize what's going on. On top of that he can't even capitalize on the fact that he can break free."

Oretzi matches Gaara's gaze and can see the Bijuu lying in its depth, screaming in agony and anger. She can see his insanity as he rams against the bars of his jail. **"Shukaku,"** she mutters in the old language of the demons and the dead - something the Alpha taught her in preparation of one day taking her mother's position as the Hokou. Something she doubts will ever happen but obliged with his attempts as he dreamt big and took great pride in the young hanyou. **"You have suffered a great deal, Lord of Sand and Wind."** When she spoke the tanuki seems to quiet as the language flows over Gaara's frail body. **"I swear that I will do my upmost best to undo this crime against you, Lord of the Desert."**

She clears her throat as she shakes her head to clear her head before studying the new seal. After a few moments of studying she realizes what happen and pulls away with a sheepish look. "… Oops," she mutters.

"Oops?" the three pre-teens exclaims. "What do you mean 'oops'?"

Oretzi scratches the back of her head as she looks skyward for a second. "Whatever I did at the fight made my blood act like ink," she looks back down to Gaara who looks like he's peeved at her. "Basically what happened is that your seal took in my blood and added to itself. Since I was intending to suppress your youki so that Shukaku doesn't surge up…" she trails off with another sheepish look.

Gaara glares at her. "What does that mean exactly?" he demands impatiently.

Oretzi clears her throat again and scratches at the base of her neck. "Well… it's like this. When I flooded your system with my youki as well as smeared my blood onto your seal your seal took it to mean that I was adjusting it. Normally when a person attempts to readjust a seal or something of the like they use ink beforehand and then apply their chakra. So…" she gestures at his chest. "That happened because of what I did."

"Fix it."

The hanyou sighs. "I would if I could, Gaara." She points at the filled in areas of the twisting lines. "The gaps were allowing his youki as well as his mental influence enter your system and your mind. Gaara, without that insanity seal you would've been dead within minutes after Shukaku was sealed in you because the weakness of the containment seal as well as the fact that there's so many ways for him to slip out." She shakes her head. "I'm not going to fix the seal just to return it to the way it was before because of two reasons."

"What are those reasons?" Temari asks as she places a restraining hand on her little brother's shoulder. She only hopes that he doesn't try to kill her later.

"Reason number one: I won't let Shukaku stay insane forever so I'll have to remove the insanity seal. Which sort of leads to reason number two: I won't do something to endanger Gaara and believe me, with the containment seal as weak as it is he'll die the second I remove the insanity seal."

The young wolf hanyou picks herself up, dusting off the back of her pants. "The way I see it, Temari-chan, I'll have to find a stronger seal to replace his seal with to allow him to use the youki. My main concern is that Gaara will revert back to being a sociopath and I wouldn't wish that upon anyone."

"But…" Temari starts, thinking about the fact that Gaara's life will be in danger without his sand.

"I can't simply fix it. It's not as easy as it sound. The containment seal incorporated my attempt to suppress Shukaku. If I try to undo the suppression seal it'll take the containment seal with it and then you'll have a maniac tanuki on your hands as well as a dead brother."

"I'll have a dead brother either way!" the blonde snaps before blushing as the hanyou sighs, rubbing the bridge of her nose as she tries to think of what to do.

"What's going on?" Tamashii questions, having not heard the part about the Kazekage's assassination attempts.

"Long story," she tells him as she crosses her arms, studying the siblings. She then looks at her teammate who frowns at her when he notices her expression.

"No…" he shakes his head but she doesn't drop it. "Oretzi-chan, no." He fidgets under the look. "Damn it, why me?" One of the corners of her lips quirks up and he scowls at her. "Fine, just fine! But if he does something I swear to Kami I will hurt you."

"He can stay with us for the time being," Oretzi turns her attention back to the siblings who are looking at her in confusion before Temari smiles at her in thanks. Gaara turns his jade green eyes onto Tamashii who scowls at him.

"One wrong move, mister, and you'll find yourself as jittery as a rat," the Hyuuga boy threatens him.

"He'll do it too," the hanyou tells him. "He hates sharing his room. Good thing for him that he's the only boy on our team," she snickers as she stretches her arms, popping various joints. "Well, we best get moving," she says to her teammate before directing her next words to the redhead in a whisper, "Gaara, when you're ready just shunshin into his room tonight and then duck to your left."

"Ja ne," the two genins say in union before walking off. Tamashii griping to the younger girl about having to room with a boy with raccoon eyes. Oretzi gripes back at him about having to share a room with a girl who just got her menstrual cycle and is constantly snipping at her.

"She's something else," Kankuro comments drily, watching them walk away.

Temari chuckles softly as she shakes her head. "And she's only nine years old," she tells her brothers as they leave. She doesn't stop to wait for the two of them to come out of their shock at the age of the hanyou.

* * *

Oretzi growls lowly under her breath as she goes through the scrolls she has on fuuinjutsu. She found the insanity seal and discovered that the number of broken jagged lines equals the strength of the insanity the victim will suffer, with five being the maximum. She studies the effects of the insanity seal, anger coursing through her as she reads that the fifth line typically results in death of the victim as they lose all sense of their reality and willingly throw themselves into death's embrace. The effect of sealing Shukaku with the insanity seal also affects anyone else who bears the ink - namely Gaara.

According to Temari, Gaara was never allowed to sleep by both people around him and presuming by Shukaku. The villagers believed that if Gaara was to sleep the demon would eat away at his soul before finally taking over. Which is actually not that far of a stretch with the containment seal as weak as it is.

Removing the insanity seal is a relatively easy feat, just like she thought. But she knows that if she removes it without fixing the containment seal then Shukaku will break free and Gaara will die.

So far, as she search through the scrolls, she cannot find anything that would serve as a better seal for the redhead. She can see the reason behind the combination of the two seals now, since the village obviously wanted Gaara to have access to his demon's youki without the demon breaking free. So it left her pondering about Naruto's seal. Obviously he's not in danger of losing his sanity due to having a demon that won't shut up and as of yet he doesn't display any ability to use his demon's youki - likely due to the fact that he doesn't _know_ about his demon.

"Shimatta!" she exclaims loudly as she threw the scrolls down in frustration.

Hoshi, having dozed off for a moment, jumps out of her nap with a kunai in both hands - ready for a fight. When she realizes that there's nothing in the room aside from her teammate, who looks suspiciously innocent, she scowls at the hanyou. "What have I told you about shouting in a room?" she snarls in a good impression of the girl's voice.

Oretzi chuckles awkwardly. "Not to?" She gets seized up in a headlock and to her dismay she gets a noogie, prompting loud shouts and whines before she is released. "You're mean!" she whines at the older genin who only smirks at her.

"Yep!" She then looks at the discarded scrolls and picks them up, recognizing Oretzi's scratch like writing. With only a year of learning and practice her handwriting is not all that good, barely legible for the more skilled writers. But the art that displays the designs of the seals are well done despite the near illegible writing. "What's up with this anyway?"

"Do you remember what I told you about Gaara's seal?"

"Hai?"

"I'm trying to find a right seal to replace his messed up seals." Oretzi gestures to the balled up papers and scratched out designs, "As you can see, it's not going well."

"Have you tried designing your own?" Hoshi asks as she sits at the foot of the messy bed. Oretzi frowns at the other girl, still slightly creep out by the fact that it's like she's looking a mirror. Though the Akino heiress is not using a henge she still looks remarkably like the hanyou, a human version in any case.

"I know nothing about designing my own, Hoshi-chan," Oretzi mutters as she goes through her scrolls again. "The last thing I ever want to do is become responsible for a whole village if I fail and Shukaku break free."

"When you put it that way… it's a bit worrisome." The two girls lean against the wall as they study the scrolls together. "What's the concept behind fuuinjutsu?"

"… Fuuinjutsu is meant to seal objects, living beings, chakra, and a wide variety of other things within another object. The reverse holds true." She picks up a specific scroll. "Sometimes the seals are easy to decipher," Oretzi tells the older girl as she points to a rather simple seal. "While others are extremely complicated and the meaning isn't clear unless you know what each one means," she says as she points to a different seal.

"Nani?" Hoshi mutters as she compares the two. Ironically enough they are both meant for the same thing but one is stronger than the other. "So the more complex something is…?"

"The more likely it'll be stronger," the girl reaches for a paper with a simple design and holds it out for her teammate. "The seal holding back Ichibi no Shukaku."

"It's… remarkably simple," Hoshi mutters, worried now. She watch Oretzi write something down on a different sheet of paper, muttering something to herself. "I'll leave you alone to think," she comments to the hanyou before she slips off the bed and leaves the room to buy them something to eat.

Oretzi barely made a noise as she scribbles something down. Suppression, chakra management, final release, back up, containment, and… She frowns at the paper before she crumbles it and throws the ball at the wastebasket. She then starts anew, trying to figure out what the replacement seal for Gaara would need. A filter perhaps? To protect his mind from Shukaku's attempts to manipulate him? She writes that down as a definite. What else? There probably should be a seal that prevent a percentage of Shukaku's youki from escaping? No…

An idea strikes the girl's mind and she scribbles it down quickly, the scratch like marks nearly illegible to anyone except her. She then goes through her scrolls for anything that will help her complete her idea.

* * *

Oretzi yawns as she tries to fight off the sleep attempting to claim her. She had finally come up with a decent seal that should protect Gaara. The different seals forming into one with a bit of creative license - a bit amazed that the seal's true purpose hadn't fallen on the wayside with her attempts to create a near perfect seal for the redhead.

She even added a fail-safe for an occasion should the original design fail or some kind of outside influence attempts to do a change. In other words in addition to putting in a failsafe she incorporated the concept of two different triggers for it. If Shukaku somehow manage to get the strength to break free the failsafe will start and in three days Gaara will be a new person. If someone tries to temper with the seal, or break it, and they are not her then the failsafe will be triggered.

She just worries that the seal may not be strong enough for the task. It was too big of a task to ask a beginner to try and achieve. Not to mention that Fuuinjutsu is a dying art - there isn't many people she can ask to teach her. She simply do not have the confidence to put the whole of Suna at risk.

At two in the morning Oretzi slips out of the hotel room and walks down two doors - lightly knocking to awaken the inhabitance inside. She hears semi-loud cursing as the person kicks off their blankets and gets out of bed to come to the door. She takes two step back out of pre-caution in time to avoid getting a swipe of Anko's kunai. "Ohayo, sensei," she greets with a light smile, the sight of the woman's bedraggled appearance. Her purple hair have been taken out of their fan-like ponytail, falling around her shoulders in messy waves. Not yet forming bed hair but pretty close to it.

"Gaki," the older shinobi mutters as she rubs her eyes. "Do you have any idea what time it is?" Oretzi opens her mouth to tell her but gets a glare for her effort so she holds up her hands in a 'surrender' pose. "What are you doing still up?"

"I… I wanted to talk to you about something, Anko-chan."

The older woman looks at the hanyou for a moment before holding the door open for her to enter. "Have a seat," she tells her, gesturing to the messy bed as she closes the door behind them. "What's the problem?"

"Anko-chan… I…" she didn't know how to tell the woman about what she's been trying to do. She instinctively knew that the kunoichi would probably rant about it for a good five minutes, saying that she's being an idiot and such for helping someone who deliberately went out of his way to fight her. "I'vebeentryingtohelpSabakunoGaaraafteroursparbeca useIaccidentlymodifiedhissealsoIneedtofixit," she says quickly and in one breath.

She ducks her head and hopes that Anko wouldn't throw too much of a fit or if she did it wouldn't be loud enough to wake up everyone in the village. When nothing happens she peeks through her bangs to find that her sensei is blinking in confusion.

"Gaki, it's too early for me to decipher that so why don't you try that again, slowly."

She takes a deep breath, nervous about what she's going to say in retaliation to it. "I've been trying to help Sabaku no Gaara after our spar because I accidently modified his seal so I need to fix it," she repeats at a slower pace. This time she got a reaction.

"NANI?!" Anko screams to high heaven that has the brunette rubbing her ears to get the ringing out.

"You're worse than dog whistles," she complains. Which is actually untrue because she'd be on her knees with tears in her eyes. But the ringing in her ears are still bad, no matter the reason behind it.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Anko demands as she grabs the girl's shirt, giving her a good shake. "Do you realize what you're trying to do?!"

"Er… keep a boy from being assassinated by his father due to an inability to use his sand in offense?" Oretzi says, her brain rattling around her skull as Anko finally stops to consider her words.

"… He has assassination attempts on his life?" she didn't realize that things were so desperate for the Kazekage to willingly try to kill his own son.

"He's a jinchuuriki, Anko-chan, and I guess the village elders see him as a danger and a failure since he was so hostile to everyone around him," Oretzi tells her before a puff of smoke surrounds her and Anko finds herself holding a confused and sleepy wolf puppy. She turns to the bed where Oretzi is sitting crossed legged with a frown on her face.

Anko sighs and puts up her hair in a simple ponytail after she gives the sleepy Tsukiko over to Oretzi where she promptly falls asleep. She takes a seat across from Oretzi on the bed, studying her student. "So you said something about his seal?"

"Hai," she says before she explains everything that has happened in the past day or two. "My concern is that I don't think I'm skilled enough to be capable of doing this. I can't practice the seal on anything else because of the nature of the situation."

"What about sealing spirits to items?" she suggests.

The hanyou gives her a look before she sighs, propping her chin on a fist. "That has merit. But in doing so I may risk the wrath of all of the elements as well as upsetting the delicate nature of the balance."

Anko blinks in confusion for a moment. "Uh… that's bad right?"

Oretzi chuckles softly. "Hai, it's bad. Extremely so." She holds out her palms upward. "Basically there are numerous spirits out in the world. Lightning, fire, water, earth, and air are all kept in balance by the spirits of those elements. Even if I take a lesser spirit to use for my practice I risk having the whole of that element after my tail until I free the spirit back to its responsibilities."

She taps on her chin for a second. "In fact, the sealing of the Bijuu Lords is actually far worse than the sealing of a lesser spirit since they're responsible for maintaining the balance, they're the kings and queens of their domains."

She crosses her arms as she bows her head slightly, "The Ichibi is in charge of the desert, of the sand and he is also associated with air. The Nibi is in charge of the dead spirits and is rumored to be made of black purple flames so she's associated with fire. The Sanbi is in charge of the ocean and all of which that dwells within so he's associated with all forms of water." She tilts her head in thought. "The Yonbi is in charge of the swamps and… well, poison. Everything around the Yonbi tends to die of poison no matter what happens. There are few places where the Yonbi can go without killing everything around her." She shakes her head in sadness. "The Hokou, my mama, is in charge of the plants, of the earth itself. She's also a mistress of illusions. The Rokubi is in charge of lightning and is typically the one to start storms and such. The Shichibi is a mistress of the darkness, in charge of all that stalks the night. The Hachibi is similar to the Shichibi except he has power over demons in the shadows. Finally, the Kyuubi, the 'King' of the Bijuu Lords and in charge of fire - also rumored to be able to manipulate other elements."

"Wait, you mean to say that both the Nibi and the Kyuubi is in charge of fire?"

"Well… in lack of a better way of phrasing their roles, sort of. The Nibi rarely ever bothers with fire since the Kyuubi is better adept to the job. Instead she focuses on the dead, the dearly departed and such. She's the 'Grim Reaper' of the old stories."

Oretzi leans against the wall, tired from the long day of researching and sketching. "Methods to seal demons such as the Bijuu Lords are extremely dangerous, classified as Kinjutsu. But whoever did the sealing for Shukaku did so without endangering themselves in the process. However in doing so they placed a heavy burden on his jinchuuriki. Trying to fix that plus my added seal is like trying to move a boulder with pure strength."

Anko sighs and pulls the sleepy girl to her. "Gaki, you're pushing yourself too hard again. Take a nap for now. Maybe it'll come clear for you later," she tells the girl as she pulls them both down to lay on the mattress with Tsukiko laying between their legs.

"But… I need to…"

"You need to sleep, Gaki, so you can help Gaara without endangering yourself and everyone around you," Anko tells her as sleep starts to win the fight in the young hanyou. "Depriving yourself of sleep is going to earn you a one-way ticket to hell."

"Hai…," Oretzi mutters as she snuggles into Anko's embrace, her tail wrapping around the woman's waist.

* * *

Oretzi scowls angrily at the papers around her, her tail thumping against the floor in agitation. She was back to the drawing board as she tries to find something else aside from the one she created. Something or anything that has already been created so she doesn't have to use the one she made. She has no delusions that what she came up with will actually help him. The fail-safes are dangerous as well, since the end result will mean a drastic change for the redhead and frankly she's not fond of it. She wouldn't wish it upon anyone.

"Oretzi-chan?" she hears Hoshi call out to her.

She doesn't look up from the latest sketch she is working on. "Hai?"

"Sabaku no Temari is here." She looks up in surprise to find Hoshi standing close to the door with Temari behind her. She's a bit amused to find that the blonde is looking back and forth between herself and Hoshi - who is still portraying herself as Oretzi.

"Ohayo, Temari-chan," she greets the blonde kunoichi as she tries to smooth down her bed hair. She hadn't stopped since she woke up to shower - stressing out about discovering a better method so she doesn't have to use her untested one. Why couldn't her mama be a fuuinjutsu specialist instead of a genjutsu one?

Temari smirks at her, her eyes roaming over the room. "I'd ask if a tempest had hit this room but I already know that it is Oretzi shaped," she teases as she looks at the brunette who pouts adorably at her. "Wow, you got a lethal weapon there," Temari chuckles as she averts her eyes.

"I've dubbed it the puppy dog pout," Hoshi comments before taking her leave, sensing that their conversation has no part for her. She's no expert in fuuinjutsu and has no personal involvement in their matter aside from the fact that she just left her teammate alone with a Suna-nin.

Out in the hallway she frowns in consideration as she just realizes something. She then goes to her teammate's room and knocks.

"What?" Tamashii grumbles, opening the door to find teammate standing in front of him. At first he assumes it is Oretzi until he notices the clothes. The hanyou hates wearing tight clothes - the only ones she will tolerate are the specially treated ones and barely at that.

"Is Temari-san trustworthy?" she asks.

"What?"

"Is Sabaku no Temari trustworthy?"

The Hyuuga boy shrugs his shoulders. "She's better in comparison to her youngest brother," he turns to glare at the redheaded boy who is sitting on the bed in the far side of the bedroom. "I don't think he slept at all last night."

Hoshi looks past her teammate to the redhead who is meditating. "Oh… Wait, isn't that the boy Oretzi-chan fought awhile back?"

"Hai."

"…Ooh…" She pats her friend's shoulder in mercy before taking her leave, satisfied that she didn't leave Oretzi alone with a possibly hostile shinobi. Tamashii shakes his head at his teammate's strangeness as he shuts the door.

He turns his attention back to the insomniac boy he is forced to share a room with. Gaara had been meditating since before Tamashii fell asleep and when he awoke he was still greeted by the sight of the redhead meditating. Observing him he can tell that the boy is ever so slowly improving his focus and perhaps his control over the sand that guards him.

_**Candy-chan, do you remember what I said about the tail? *points to the scene above* Aren't they kawaii? ... Btw, don't kill me lol.**_


	14. Chapter 14

_**Well, that was fun. -_-" Hopefully I'll be able to finish chapter 16 soon and ya'll can decide whether or not to kill me for what happens in Chapter 15. Candy-chan in particular will be ready with a few sharpened weapons and Oretzi's mother... both of them. Anyway, usual disclaimer that I'm not going to spell out. Enjoy!**_

_**Chapter 14**_

While Hoshi was talking with Tamashii about the trustworthy factor of Temari Oretzi was talking with the blonde in question. Explaining to her the unexpected problem she ran into in her attempt to discover a stronger seal to replace the one on Gaara.

"So none of your scrolls has anything on sealing a Bijuu Lord?"

"They're difficult to seal. I think the only one who actually ever created a good one is probably the Yondaime of my village." She shakes her head as she gestures to the crumbled up balls of papers. "Unfortunately, I don't have access to something like that and even if I did, it's in Konoha."

"… I might be able to get ahold of a few fuuinjutsu scrolls here in Suna's library." Oretzi gives Temari a long look. "What?"

"You do realize that if anyone finds out that you shared those scrolls with me they'll consider you a traitor?" Temari gives her a careless shrug that almost has the hanyou chuckling but she refrains because of the seriousness of the situation. "Temari-chan, are you sure you want to go down this route?"

Temari sighs as she stands up, ruffling the brunette's wild hair. "This is for my brother. I'm not going to just stand by and let him suffer. Besides," she gives Oretzi a confident smile, "I think meeting you has done him a whole world of good." With that she leaves the room and Oretzi grumbles about putting weight on her shoulders.

With no other choice she goes back to reading her scrolls again, going through them quickly since she has all but memorized the words within them by this point. Her stomach growls at her and she realizes that she probably hasn't eaten since lunch yesterday. "Okaa-san is gonna give me such an ass chewing when she finds out I lost weight… again." She shakes her head as she picks herself up and leaves the room, making sure to leave a 'Do not Clean' sign on the door knob. The last thing she needs is a maid throwing away everything that is currently on the floor - which so happens to be everything regarding Gaara's seal and her attempts to design a replacement.

So she went to the café in search for food, absentmindedly patting her pockets for her wallet - aware that she'll probably have to eat twice her usual helpings in order to make up for the loss. If she can out eat the Akimichi clan she'll probably out eat her own wallet.

Ten minutes later found her sitting at a table laden with food of various kind, loaded with fat and calories - as the Akimichi clan deem necessary for her to consume - and sketching on a napkin. Despite her stomach's complains she finds she cannot focus solely on eating with her own mind whirling with thoughts and ideas. So she alternates between eating and sketching, a strange sight for most if not all of the people in the café with her.

It is there Temari found her, carrying a knapsack over her shoulder, shaking her head at the distracted state of the young hanyou. "How did you ever manage to graduate so early when you're this easy to distract?" the blonde kunoichi asks as she slips into the booth.

"I had a goal and I worked towards it," Oretzi tells her as she slides an untouched plate of food to the blonde who gratefully accepts it. She has yet to look up from the sketching as she spoke.

"So…"

"I have a goal," she answers the wordless question as she finally set aside the napkin and starts eating in earnest.

Temari nods her head in acceptance before she hands over the moderately light knapsack with the scrolls she managed to obtain. "Let me know if there is anything you need," the blonde tells the younger girl who gives her a nod in return. "So where's Tsukiko?"

"She's probably with Anko-sensei," she answers as she slowly but surely starts to clear off the numerous plates. "She's fascinated by her scent," Oretzi tacks in, not even mentioning the fact that she herself is of the same.

"Her scent?"

Oretzi nods her head, "Ironically enough she smells like a breeze laden with the scent of fresh water and pine trees. It's actually reminds me of the lands where I grew up and considering Tsukiko spent the first few months of her life there I'm not surprised that she's beholden by my sensei's scent." She smiles warily at the blonde across from her. "It's a bit of a unique scent in my opinion."

"Wow… do you know my scent?"

"Yep," Oretzi chips cheerfully.

Temari waits for maybe a fraction of a second before she decides to prompt the girl. "… Well?"

The wolf hanyou chuckles at the blonde's impatience. "You smell of a mixture of spices and the crisp smell of a hot summer breeze. You also have two different scents lingering around you. One is the mixture of paints - specifically face paint - and treated wood. The second is sand with old dried blood."

Temari looks at the young girl in surprise. "Kankuro and Gaara?"

"Hai."

"Well… can't say I ever expected that," the blonde kunoichi mutters as she plays with her glass of water. "So what else can you smell?"

"On you?"

"Well… maybe not me. I mean, how strong is your sense of smell?"

Oretzi makes a face at that question. "I think it's well enough for me to smell the tiniest hint of a person's scent days after they passed through the area." She recalls a memory of what happened when she was a bit younger - still under the care of Matron Kin. The shirt barely had enough of the girl's scent and any of the dirty laundry had been collected and thrown into the wash just minutes before the discovery of the girl's absence. "A wolf's best sense is their smell. Not even dogs can rival our senses… though I'm sure there is a breed of dog capable of rivaling the wolves'."

"… Somehow, I pity you if you ever accidently step into a person's fart." Oretzi makes a face again and holds up a finger. "Oh Kami-sama, you actually stepped into a person's fart?"

"And suffered greatly for it," the hanyou mutters darkly, remembering the coughing fit, the watering eyes, and the overall lingering smell in her nose. She had to bury her face in Anko's stomach - where her scent is the strongest - just to get the smell out of her nose.

"Be glad Kankuro isn't around. He'd demand to know what it smelt like," Temari teases her, getting a halfhearted glare before it melts into a grateful look. "But on a scale from one to ten, with ten being really bad, how was it?"

"I'd give it a seven. A fart isn't as a bad as a rotting corpse left out in the sun for a week with no scavenger picking at it." It was Temari's turn to make a face.

"Do I want to know why you even had a chance to smell that?"

"I grew up with a pack. I've been around a few corpses growing up," the hanyou tells her with a wary smile.

Temari frowns as she sensed something in the girl's voice, in her words. "You had to get used to death at an early age?"

"In some ways, yes." The last plate joins its brothers in the stack and Oretzi leans on her elbows, propped up on the table. "Wolves don't shelter their young's from the necessary parts of what it means to survive."

Temari wanted to know what kind of death she must have seen but sensed that it's not a question she should be asking anyone. So she holds back her tongue and smiles at the young hanyou. Oretzi smiles back and gets up to pay the bill, the knapsack slung over her back.

Somehow, Temari muses, Gaara threatening and attempting to kill Inuzuka Oretzi turned out to be a great thing for her little brother and herself. She shakes her head as she considers what benefit Kankuro is reaping from this. Absolutely nothing, at least until he finally gets over what is bugging him about the younger girl. Maybe it's because she's a girl? Who is Gaara's age? That managed to do the one thing he couldn't do? Standing up against their little brother and try to show him that he's not alone as he believe he is?

* * *

Oretzi frowns, laying on her stomach on the bed with a scroll in front of her. To anyone looking at her they would be amused by the way her ears are positioned - with one ear upright and the other partially down. Hoshi has dubbed that one as her thinking face. It's when they're both down that it becomes something of a pout, made worse when Oretzi gives the people a pouty look combined with wide eyes.

At the moment Oretzi has spent almost an hour studying different seals the Suna library has on Fuuinjutsu. She discovered that there a variety of seals that aren't mentioned in the scrolls she copied from the Konoha reserves. But she also found them to be a bit lacking. Both villages showed mostly D and C rank seals. She has yet to discover a B or A rank seal - she can guess that Naruto's seal is likely an A or S rank simply because it's holding back the strongest Bijuu Lord in existence.

Surely the fuuinjutsu art has been explored before! There's so many benefits from using it, she couldn't see why anyone would foolishly ignore it.

In any case she couldn't find anything to help Gaara - anything that has already been tested and tried. With no other choice it's likely she'll have to use the design she came up with. Especially since she has no more time to study. Suterareta has finally declared that he will be ready to leave, nearly a full two weeks after their arrival in Sunagakure, and soon they will be leaving. She'll need to perform the sealing process before it comes time for them to leave.

After all, she needs to make sure there's no unplanned or unintended side effect from the jutsu.

With a reluctant sigh she leaves the hotel room after cleaning up the mess and taking the scroll with the design with her. Heading straight to her teammate's room where Gaara has remained for the previous few days. She knocks a few times on Tamashii's door before easing herself into the room where the young Hyuuga grumbles about being woken up at an ungodly hour. Gaara, she notes, looks impassive as ever even as he comes out of his meditation. He also looks secretly - as in she had figured out the tiniest facial cues for him - curious as to why she is in the room so late at night.

"Off with the shirt and pants Gaara, time to get this mess fixed," she instructs him as she removes her weapons and bandages. She'll have to use her blood to do the sealing as well as write seals on the floor. Somehow, she can see Konoha getting a huge bill over the room later. "Tamashii, help me clear off a section of the room."

The sleepy Hyuuga continues grumbling but nevertheless he helps move the beds to the walls while Gaara strips down to his boxers, his sand moving anxiously around him. Before long they manage to move everything to create a wide enough space for Oretzi to do her job. Grateful that the village doesn't use carpeting the hanyou begins to carefully lay down the seals to begin the process, slowly working her way around in a large circle with enough space for Gaara to sit right smack in the middle.

She then use a kunai to cut her palm, just deep enough to get a good amount, focusing on negating her healing factor long enough to write the necessary seals. That is, until Gaara's sand walls slam up and she ends up smearing the blood on herself. "Gaara!" she growls as she wipes her face.

"I'm sorry, it's automatic. I don't know how to stop it."

"Has anyone ever gotten past it?" Oretzi asks, curious. All she got is a pointed look and she recalls that she had a few times in their fight.

She sighs, unwilling to fight with the redhead just to write seals on him in her own blood. She tries again, the wall snapping up instantly. **"Sand, guardian of Sabaku no Gaara, desist at once,"** she growls in the ancient language. **"I mean him no harm."** A third attempt is made and to the surprise of everyone around her the wall doesn't snap up again and she smiles in approval.

"Okay, let's try this again," she mutters as she makes a new cut and quickly writes her blood over the length of his arms, chest, back, and legs. A series of long seals designed to filter and regulate Shukaku's youki in a manner that will not overrun Gaara and ensure his death. On his forehead she does the seal for mind filter, to protect his mind from Shukaku's influence. They will be allowed to interact, should either wish it, but any harmful effects will be stopped. Finally, over the seal she writes the entirety of the seal over the old. One that is meant to remove the insanity and containment seal in the process of implementing the new.

Hopefully Gaara won't come out looking like someone wrote on him with a permanent marker. She can sort of foresee the outcome of what will come to be if that happens.

"Alright, Gaara, take a seat in the center. Please don't step on anything," she instructs him, hoping that if nothing was messed up he should come out relatively better. Once he's situated she goes around once to make sure that everything is still okay and that it's as good as it can be. "Okay, Gaara, this is an untested seal so I don't know what it'll do in real life. But I placed as many safeguards I could without destroying the integrity of the original design so… with luck you'll have Shukaku's youki again without the insanity and as well as an added protection from his influences."

She kneels by the line of the circle, dark brown eyes meeting jaded green. "For what it's worth, Gaara… you're better than a simple jinchuuriki. You just haven't found your reasons, your precious people," she tells him with a smile before she touches the seal, pumping her youki into the seal and into him by default.

Her white youki flows into the seal eagerly, obeying her even now. At first nothing happens but slowly but surely the black ink of the seal on the ground glows a grey color briefly. Once the entire seal is grey it turns completely white like her youki. Then the blood on Gaara begins to glow as well and the boy starts to scream, doubling over clutching his stomach.

"Oretzi, stop!" she hears Tamashii shout but she couldn't even if she wanted.

* * *

For the second she put forth her youki she fell into a trance, finding herself suddenly standing in front of a one tailed tanuki. More specifically the Ichibi no Shukaku.

Strangely enough the tanuki didn't have that glint of insanity anymore - maybe the insanity seal was removed by this point?

**"So you're the one who made the promise,"** the tanuki comments drily, his voice deep and husky with a hint of amusement. **"And I see that you're the Hokou's daughter."**

**"Lord of the Desert, it please me to see that you are sane,"** Oretzi says with a respectful bow.

**"With great thanks to you, so it would see,"** the bijuu mutters with a lazy yawn. **"Though I see that I will be denied my freedom."**

**"Milord, I understand that you will likely have no respect for humans after what they have done to use you as a weapon but please,"** she starts, listening to the slight whisper at the back of her head, **"Understand that I could not let hundreds die for your vengeance. My conscious would not allow it."**

**"Your reasons I understand, as much as I dislike it. However, my role is not to play as judge, jury, and executioner of the humans within my territory. Yet I sense a second reason behind your reasoning?"**

**"Your vessel, Sabaku no Gaara, will die upon the breakage of your containment."**

The Tanuki looked thoughtful for a long moment before a long sigh escapes him. **"Then I see no escape. This seal that you are attempting, what will happen should I attempt freedom?"**

Oretzi sighs as she rubs her neck. **"You will be assembled into Gaara, forcing him to become a hanyou with full range of your abilities."** She studies the bijuu for a moment. **"However, when Gaara reaches the end of his life I may consider releasing the seals so that you may return to your duties."**

The large bijuu roars a laugh, shaking everything around them despite the vast nothingness. **"You have spunk, pup. But for now I accept those terms. I'll just have to make sure the brat doesn't die in the line of combat,"** the bijuu laughs before dismissing her from his prison, sending her back into her body.

* * *

A flash of sandy brown light blinds them all as Oretzi and Tamashii are thrown back by the explosion of high intensity of a strange mix of chakra and youki. Tamashii groans, his head hitting the wall at a tender spot that left spots across his vision. Oretzi passed out from a combination of having most of her youki sucked out of her by the seal and from somehow impaling her right shoulder on a sharp object which broke and dropped her down to the floor.

Gaara slumps over unconscious from the pain of the sealing as well as the flooding of the hanyou's youki in his system.

Three unconscious kids are what Anko and Hoshi as well as any shinobi in the immediate area found when they burst into Tamashii's hotel room. Temari, having been on her way to the hotel for a status update on the research, was one of the first to respond to the situation, right behind Anko and Hoshi.

"GAARA!" Temari exclaims loudly upon seeing her brother, darting over to the unconscious redhead. Gently turning him over she gets a good look at his relatively pain free face before she sees the seal on his stomach. Affording her a look at Shukaku's new prison. She watches her little brother for a moment as his expression becomes rather serene.

While Anko, upon discovering the unconscious forms of two of her three students, went directly to the one who needs her attention more. Namely the one who is currently laying in a pool of her own blood with a large metal piece of what appears to have been part of an art piece sticking out of her shoulder.

"Gaki!" she mutters worriedly, touching the hanyou's prone form, gently checking her pulse and vitals. She also tried to sense the girl's chakra, wondering if she'll have enough youki in her reserves to allow her to heal from this without a scar. "Hoshi, do you know any medical jutsu?"

The Akino heiress, who was doing a diagnostic jutsu on Tamashii, looks over to where Oretzi laid and takes a glancing look over the large metal piece sticking out of her friend. "That looks like a deep penetration. I don't think I have the control or chakra to heal that." She looks down at Tamashii's unconscious form. "I don't think he would be able to either. According to the jutsu I just performed he has the symptoms of chakra exhaustion."

Anko curses below her breath, aware that if she just pulls the piece out now the girl may bleed out before her youki kick starts into action. But at the same time she didn't want to risk her getting an infection from the metal skewer. She grabs Tamashii's knapsack and quickly goes through the bag to find his first aid kit, grateful that he's one of those anal people who has to have a completely stocked and up-to-date kit. "Gaki, get your ass over here. I need you to help me get your teammate patch up _now_!"

Hoshi scrambles over to the older kunoichi, helping Anko cut away the specially treated shirt before the woman prepares the gauzes to stem the bleeding. Once her sensei is ready she wraps her fingers around the rod and brace a hand against her friend's back. 'One…two…Three!' At the count of three she yanks hard on the rod which slides out with some resistance, the pain of it wakening her friend from the dreamlands she had fallen into.

Anko quickly puts pressure on the gaping hole in the hanyou's shoulder who screamed and snarled - her face and nails partially shifting as her instincts fight for freedom to escape or fight. A feverish light takes hold in the hanyou's eyes as she struggles to escape her sensei's hold and pressure.

"Gaki, calm down!" she hisses at the hanyou, not expecting anything to happen with her being out of it due to pain. Yet to her surprise the struggles lessen. Thinking that it may have something to do with her voice the woman starts speaking to her in a low voice, watching her youngest student slowly calm at the sound of her voice before she falls back into the bliss of darkness.

Temari quickly dealt with the shinobi that came into the room, her status as the Kazekage's daughter giving her a bit of an elevated status higher than a typical genin and something she took advantage of now when she needs it the most. By the time she turn her full attention back to the situation in the room Anko had finally fully bandaged the unconscious brunette and is cradling her as careful as she can be. "Is she going to be okay?" she asks cautiously.

"… She might have a scar from this but I think she'll be okay," Anko whispers as she wipes away the blood on Oretzi's face. She creates a kage bunshin to clean up the blood and carries the hanyou to her own bedroom while instructing the blonde and Hoshi to put the boys in the bed before keeping an eye on them for the time being.

* * *

**Daughter of Hokou, named Oretzi, savior or destroyer of light. The world is in your hands.**

So young. Is she truly ready for the burden that comes with her name, with her destiny?

_Ready or not it will seek her out. She will have no choice but to face it._

**What if she is to run?**

Then the world shall fall and she will be its destroyer.

She stands in a field of nothing with three distinct voices booming around her. She couldn't determine the gender of the speakers but had a feeling that if she was to meet them face to face there would be nothing to hint their sex. "Who are you!" she cries out.

Slowly her surroundings morph into something straight of the person's mind of hell. Fire and brimstone floods her sense of smell along with the distinct scent of roasted flesh, charred flesh to be exact. She doesn't have to look to know that she is possibly surrounded by the burned corpses of humans who were probably condemned to an eternity in hell with demons as their tormentors and observers. All around her she can hear the agonized screams of victims, crackling laughter of their tormentors as well as the soft sounds of her own footsteps as she wonders the fires of hell.

**I am the Spinner, creating the thread that is a human's life from the moment they are conceived to the moment they are dead.**

I am the Weaver, creating the life which the person is destined to live using the thread created.

_I am the End, wielding the scythe which cuts the thread of the person when it is time for them to die."_

**_"We are the Sisters of Moirai."_**

Oretzi was a very normal reaction to such a revelation. She fainted dead away.

**… She took it better than most.**

She fainted, dear sister.

_Which is better than her screaming and trying to run away._

… A valid point… Has anyone notice the fact that we're in Hell?

**Really now, sister, are you just noticing this?**

I don't need any smart aleck from you little sister.

**You forget, I come first therefore I am oldest.**

Before anyone knew it the three sisters have spiraled into a quarrel about who is eldest. Which is what Oretzi woken to and as she sat there, listening to them bicker, she tries to understand what she had first heard from them. Savior or Destroyer of Light. Or-eh-tee or Oh-reh-tee of Light. She knows then that something must be coming for the Moirai to come to her and for her mother to name her in such a unique way.

"I want my mama," she sighs sadly, attracting the Moirai's attention once more and causing them to shelf their latest argument for the time being.

**Child of Destiny, you will be reunited with your mother one day.**

But beware the thorns on your path.

_For it shall not be an easy road to travel._

"Nothing is ever easy," she grumbles crossly, her arms stubbornly crossed over her chest with her tail thumping a familiar pattern on the dirt.

**How right you are.**

But do not fret for you will grow and master your powers.

_And with it your destiny._

"Is there a reason for this whole mystic mumbo jumbo talk?" she asks, looking skyward for a second before looking around her. She gets an indignant huff from one of the trio and she has to stifle the giggles that threatens to overwhelm her.

**It comes with the job.**

"Then I'd ask for a new one. It's no fun to talk in riddles," the young hanyou tells them. "Sure, it might be for you but you probably have to sit there for hours just to find the right words to be all mystic and not downright dumb."

… Out of the mouth of the babes.

_Shall come the truth._

**In its most blinding ways.**

Oretzi snorts, amused by the situation. "I'll take that as Moirai's conceding a point to me," she says with a grin before she shakes her head, moving to stand up. "Well, time for me to get going I suppose. This isn't home and this sure as heck ain't a genjutsu. So I must be unconscious having a talk with some subconscious part of me," she rationalizes.

**We are not your subconscious.**

"So you say."

You'd think you know when you are speaking with your subconscious.

"Actually, you shouldn't seeing as it's your subconscious," the hanyou points out.

_Then does that not defeat your theory?_

"People always did get messages from their subconscious during their dreams."

The three sisters were silent for a time, causing Oretzi to smirk just a little. Thinking she managed to out maneuver the sisters for the time being. It was an amusing concept in her opinion.

**Who was the one that gave her the brains?**

_Certainly not me, I'm the one in charge of ending their lives._

Oretzi didn't need to see them to know that the two sisters, Spinner and End, are glaring at Weaver who began to chuckle nervously. She dusts off her pants and clears her throat to catch their attention again. "If I'm not needed any longer I'll take my leave."

**One last thing.**

The hanyou pauses and raise an eyebrow, figuring they would see it.

There will come a day when you will need to make a decision. 

_The fulfilment of an old promise._

**Or the development of a new one.**

The choice you make will determine.

_The fate of the world which you know it. _

**And you may live up to one of the two meanings of your name.**

Oretzi frowns and she looks grouchy at no one in particular. "Have I mentioned lately how much I hate destiny?" she mutters.

**_Not yet._**

"Considered it said," she sighs and shakes her head. "In any case, I will take my leave. Goodbye, sisters of Moirai, until next time." She bows and just like that she's gone.

**She certainly have a flair for dramatics.**

Reminds me of a certain sister of ours.

_Really? Who- Hey!_

**Exactly what I was thinking little sister.**

I thought we established this, I'm the older sister!

And thus begun the second round of the great debate! Also known as who is older.

_**AN: The identity of the Moirai sisters should be fairly obvious. If not, well, cookie to anyone who figures them out! :P As for why they're appearing in this story? I haven't the slightest clue. They just popped up in my writing and I just gave them a 'WTH' look before deciding to go with it. Much easier that way. Also, I'm kinda curious as to if anyone had a laugh at their dialogue. I know I did :P**_


	15. Chapter 15

**Ello folks! Sorry for the long wait! Chapter 16 was being a bummer to write and I couldn't come up with ****anything****! But! I think ya'll won't kill me for it. But you might get frustrated with me for sure. Anyway, same old same old. I don't own the characters except the ones you don't recognize. :D Enjoy!**

_**Chapter 15**_

Awareness was hard for her to grasp since it was acting like water trying to slip through her fingers. Like a slippery snake or something of the like. She can hear people speaking around her before she manage to groan, finally capturing the sneaky thing known as consciousness - forcing herself to awaken.

Dark brown eyes open, a low whine escaping her throat as she narrows them at the bright lights in the room just before they're turned off. "Hey gaki," she hears a familiar voice whisper before the owner's face appear in her line of vision. "You had us all worried."

"How long?" she whispers as she pushes herself up - or tried to when her right arm spasm with pain and she falls back down.

"Just a few hours, gaki. Your healing hasn't kicked in yet," Anko tells her needlessly as the hanyou press a hand to her injured shoulder only for it to come away bloody. "Kuso!" the woman exclaims when she sees the blood and she quickly grabs the kit to replace the bandages. "You've been bleeding almost non-stop since we found you," the woman explains after helping the hanyou sit up, her lavender eyes narrowing at the deep injury. It had gone all the way through, chipping a great deal of bones according to Hoshi.

"I can't feel my youki," Oretzi mutters, not too worried because it's not the first or last time she lose touch with the demonic chakra. She knows that because she's only a half demon her youki isn't as abundant as most one tailed demons - Shukaku being one of the elites demons with a single tail. She may never manifest her second tail because of what she is, nor is she sure she wants to. Simply because she knows that it will mean that she may live long enough to outlive everyone in the village. From the youngest to the oldest.

She shakes away the thoughts before she can go into the usual depressing thought that follows along on those like a faithful puppy.

In either case her healing hasn't started yet which means she'll have a nice little reminder of Suna and her idiotic attempt to fix their stupid mistake. "How's Gaara?" she asks. She took the fact that she didn't hear Ichibi no Shukaku destroying Suna as a sign that he hasn't broken out of his prison - even if he says he isn't their judge, jury, and executioner.

"He's still out. But Hoshi says he's just sleeping," Anko answers as she ties off the bandages, retrieving a slight huff from the hanyou. "Nearly had the Blondie freaking when she realized that he wasn't unconscious." She chuckles. "Somehow, a kid sleeping is worse than him being awake."

"Suna believes that if Gaara is to sleep the demon within him will eat away at his soul before finally taking possession of his body."

Anko gapes at her student before muttering low curses under her breath, not even low enough for Oretzi to not hear her. "Of all the idiotic things to believe that has to be the worse."

"Considering how weak the seal was he would've been able to push forward easily. It's like this. When Gaara's awake he can hold back Shukaku by sheer force of will," Oretzi starts to explain to logic behind this. "But when he's asleep his mind goes into a shutdown period of a sort to start sorting his memories and such. That shut down period allows Shukaku to surge forward and take control because the seal was weak enough for him to do so."

Anko gives her an impressed look before ruffling the girl's hair. "You sure you're only nine?" she asks teasingly.

Despite the teasing tone Oretzi did take the question seriously as she considers the years she spent with the pack. She had spent twenty seasons with them - translating into five years - before they left her in Phoenix in the late flowering season, spring according to the human's calendar. Shortly after her fifth birthday. "I think so," she answers before smiling at Anko's exasperated face.

Without another word exchanging between them Oretzi slides out of bed, stumbling slightly as she gets that distinct woozy feeling that usually comes with losing a lot of blood. The only reason why she didn't fall back down is because the older kunoichi grabbed her in time to support her. "Maybe you should wait until your youki jumpstart."

"I need to check the seal to make sure it didn't do something unexpected," the tired hanyou mutters softly.

"Considering you just used it for the first time anything that you weren't planning for is unexpected," Anko tells her but helps her to the boys' room in any case. She knew that her student is personally invested in this bizarre situation and would go to the extremes to complete the task. And right now, she's probably in the beginning of the end game.

It took them a bit to walk the distance simply because Oretzi was trying to be stubborn and walk it on her own. Not an easy feat considering that the girl was more likely to veer off by accident. But when they finally got inside Temari and Gaara were the only one left in the room since Tamashii had woken up within thirty minutes of the sealing and explained what had happened.

Tamashii explained that he had attempted to pull Oretzi away from the seal when the screaming started but just when he touched her both of them were thrown back as a sandy brown colored light flood the room. Which led Anko to conclude that the sealing had taken most of the hanyou's available youki, not including what is already sealed away, including Tamashii's own as well - since he also suffered chakra exhaustion.

"Oretzi-chan," Temari says as she stood from her seat where she had kept vigil over her brother.

"Temari-chan," the hanyou returns as Anko helps her sit in a chair. Once seated she rubs at her injured shoulder. "How is Gaara at the moment?"

"He's been sleeping, according to your teammate - Akino-san. Hyuuga-san said that he can see his demon's youki flowing beneath Gaara's in a different coil. It's like he has two instead of one apparently." Temari brushes her brother's hair out of his face. "I've never seen him sleep before," she confesses softly as she stares at his young serene face. He had always looked so old, so tired.

"How does his seal look?" Oretzi asks. From where she sits she can see that he doesn't look like someone got super drunk and wrote all over him while he slept - a bonus in her book.

Temari shoots her an amused look. "I don't exactly know. It looks okay but I'm not sure what it is supposed to do."

Oretzi shakes her head and pulls out a scroll, wincing at the pain in her shoulder, which she tosses over to the blonde. "That's what it should look like."

The tessenjutsu future specialist unravels the scroll before staring at the complexity of the design which is to hold back Ichibi no Shukaku. She couldn't figure out where it began or end and she ended up turning the scroll around a few time to try and make head or tail of it.

Anko ended up bursting into laughter at the sight and not even Oretzi whining at her could get her to stop. Temari blushed as she realizes how odd she must have looked and stopped, pulling up her brother' shirt - having redressed him - to reveal his seal.

Squinting at the design and attempting to match the flow of the design to the seal. She tried but the complexity of it confused her and she finds herself losing her spot. "It looks similar but I can't tell," she says to the hanyou who chuckled and nudges her laughing sensei with her foot.

Surprisingly enough the woman quickly picks herself up and looks seriously at her student. Without really being verbally asked she helps Oretzi over to the bed where she sat herself at the edge. She takes a long look at the seal on his chest before sighing in relief. "Good news, your brother is now free of the old seal."

"Is there any bad news to go with that?" Temari asks, worried.

Oretzi thinks about it for a second. "Well… if anyone attempts to manipulate the seal and they're not me it'll trigger a failsafe and he'll come out of it a different person."

"What do you mean by that?" Temari frowns at the younger girl, unsure how to take that particular bit of news and wondering if she should worry about her little brother. Yes, she's grateful to the girl for fixing his seal but at the same time she wants her brother to change because he wants to, not because someone forced him to.

Oretzi sighed as she faces the blonde. "In short? He'll become a hanyou. Ichibi no Shukaku will cease to exist. In his place will be Ichibi no Gaara." Temari and Anko looked at the brunette in shock, stunned at what she had done to ensure that Shukaku does not get free due to anyone's foolishness.

"I… I guess I better tell everyone about that," Temari mutters.

"No, don't," Oretzi stops her. "For now keep it a secret. Including from Gaara. The only ones who knows about the failsafe is the three of us, and Shukaku." She looks at Gaara's sleeping form. "He knows what will happen if someone attempts to mess with the seal so he'll keep Gaara safe simply because he wants to be free one day. **Right, Lord of the Sand?"** The sand, previously dormant under the bed, comes to life at her question and forms a small tanuki about the size of Tsukiko. Anko and Temari stare in shock at the tanuki while Oretzi bows her head slightly in respect to the demon.

**"I shall protect the boy from the foolish Elders of this village. As well as any who he considers his family. This is my promise to you, Kazama Oretzi."**

She nods her head, not bothering to correct the demon, in acceptance of his promise. With one final bow, the sand tanuki dissolves and returns to beneath the bed.

"That… was strange," Temari comments, having understood none of what Oretzi had said after what she said about the Shukaku. But watching the sand form a tanuki was definitely freaky in her opinion and she knows that had Gaara done that when he was mentally unstable she would've feared for her life.

"When you know this gaki after a while it stops being freaky and starts being normal," Anko says as she ruffles Oretzi's hair, to the girl's dismay.

"Why do people like doing that?" the hanyou whines as she smooth out her hair.

"Because your hair looks too tempting," Temari teases her, ruffling the girl's hair after the hanyou had dropped her hands - satisfied with how it is. This prompts another whine and complaint from the girl. "Plus it's sort of cute getting those whines from you." This time she gets a growl - a warning one she thinks - from the hanyou. She smirks at the brunette.

"Anyway, back to the topic at hand," Anko says, clearing her throat to stop the teasing happening in front of her.

"Right," Oretzi mutters, her human ears turning slightly red. "No one should know except the four of us. Simply because the less that knows the better protected he is. The person who created the old seal, whatever they were thinking, will not notice the changes in Gaara. They may think that he's gotten better control over Shukaku but other than that they will not notice any differences." She shakes her head. "Keeping this a secret will benefit all of us in the long run."

Temari nods her head, unsure about the whole thing but willing to accept it. "Alright," she sighs before turning her attention to the hanyou. "How are you feeling anyway?" she asks the brunette, worried about her now that she knows that Gaara will be fine and that nothing had gone wrong with the sealing.

She had seen the amount of blood that escaped her before anyone arrived at the scene. Most would have died from that amount of blood loss. Even now, four hours after the fact, she looks pale and like she belongs in bed and not walking around like she is now. "Never mind, go back to bed."

"Hey, you're not the boss of me," Oretzi counters before she is picked up by her sensei. "Nani?!"

"She's right, gaki, back to bed for you," the woman declares, deciding that the girl's concern for the redhead has been satisfied for the time being.

"I'm not a kid!" Temari and Anko gave her a look that has her blushing. "I mean I'm not so little that I have to be tucked into bed," she grumbles.

"But you are injured with a gaping wound on your shoulder. I indulged in your concerns so indulge in mine," Anko tells her as she carries her out of the room. With no other choice Oretzi waves her byes to the blonde who was watching them with amusement.

Temari shakes her head in disbelief. It's a pity that she's only nine years old because otherwise? She'd date her.

* * *

In the two days since the sealing Oretzi's wound didn't heal on its own because for some bizarre reason her youki never returned. She also refused to have her youki and chakra unsealed by Anko, stating that it's not a life-threatening injury for her to need it undone. So Tamashii and Hoshi, using their combined chakra, healed the injury enough that she'll be able to use her arm without wincing in pain. So the bones and the muscles were reformed - which took most of their chakra since those are the hardest to heal. No one knew why Oretzi's youki hasn't returned to her yet but they had no time to dwell on it with Suterareta ready to leave and they needed to go.

Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara met with the team at the gates. Kankuro somehow managing to bond with Tamashii over the insanity of their siblings/friends respectively. But nonetheless the boy was thankful to Oretzi - pulling her aside for a moment to express them privately. He can now stop living in fear of his little brother's wrath and killing and start being a brother to him.

Gaara had become a different person in the past day or two. No longer did he glare at his siblings for every little thing and has taken to talking civilly with them. Oretzi knew that with time he'll be able to trust them beyond what he has already shown them and be able to express his feelings for them. Already, with his insomnia practically gone, he has begun to show that he's mentally stable - or at least regaining his stability - and has shown some emotions other than apathy and bloodlust.

"Can't believe it's time for you to leave," Temari sighs as she wraps an arm around the hanyou's waist - she still couldn't believe that the girl is only nine years old and already she stands at an impressive height of 5'4" for her age. In the past week they've gotten somewhat close and anyone who doesn't know the Konoha-nin's true age assumed that something more colors their friendship. Even now Anko has taken to teasing the young girl, leaving her hints and such for her to improve their friendship that leaves her blushing to her roots.

"I know," Oretzi chuckles as she wraps an arm around the blonde's shoulders. "I'd tell you to write but it's possible they'll think we're conspiring to commit something," she chuckles again, amused by the elder Nins' paranoia.

"Knowing you, you'd probably love to make them go crazy," Temari teases with a laugh.

Oretzi puts a hand over her heart and makes a wounded look. "Do you truly believe the worse of me, Tema-chan?" she manages to keep up the look for a whole minute before she starts sniggering and Tsukiko shakes her head, perched on top of the hanyou's head.

_"Nee-chan is silly,"_ she proclaims with Temari nodding her head in agreement.

"Hey!" Oretzi protests to the pup.

_"It's true!"_

"Doesn't mean you should shout it for the world to hear."

"So you agree with Tsukiko?" Temari asks, snickering at the 'deer in headlights' look when the hanyou realizes her mistake. "Temari: 4, Oretzi: 4," she tallies, pleased that she was able to even the score before the girl had to leave.

"You shouldn't be so proud of that," the girl mutters, shaking her head. Her eyes scanning the crowd for their late client. Nearby Hoshi, still clad in Oretzi's skin with a henge to make her look exactly like her, and Tamashii waits, quietly chatting with Kankuro and Gaara. She suspects that Gaara has a liking for Hoshi who doesn't treat him like a kid and often proclaims kawaii before she hugs him tightly. It's still strange for her to watch her mirror image act like that.

She gets a thump on the head for her comment and she rubs the spot. "You act too mature, Oretzi-chan. Do you even know how to behave like a child?" Temari shakes her head in disbelief while the hanyou sulks at her.

"I know how to behave like a puppy if that counts," Oretzi laughs as she ducks the blonde's attempt to swat her. "Hey, don't be like that," she teases. Temari tries again and she catches the swing, smirking at the kunoichi.

Her ear twitches before she turns to see Suterareta approaching. Making a face she turns again to wave a sign to Anko who nods and barks a command to Oretzi's teammates. "Well," she starts, facing Temari again. "Time for me to go."

"Yeah… looks like it," Temari mutters before she slips up close to the brunette who looks down at her with a raised brow. Before Oretzi can say or do anything Temari kisses her cheek, at the very corner of the hanyou's lips, and disappears.

Stunned by what just happened and surprised by the blonde's forwardness she searches for her. When she realizes that she isn't able to find her she frowns before leaving to catch up with her teammates.

It was time to return to Konoha so she flips up the hood of her cloak to shield Tsukiko and herself from the winds of the desert as she takes point once again.

* * *

They set up camp just before nightfall came, having reached the edge of Kaze no Kuni and just into Kawa no Kuni. Oretzi took care of the campfire, starting it up with some of the twigs in the clearing while Hoshi went to gather more. Tamashii went to the nearest river while Anko with Tsukiko by her side went to hunt for something for their meal. Oretzi was able to get the tents set up using a Kage Bunshin while Suterareta Hasha just sat there on the log, offering no help. Staring at her like has been since this whole mission started.

She wanted to ask - more like demand - what was so interesting about her but chose to withhold her words. She had a good feeling that Anko-sensei would approve her non-subtle approach. She also didn't want to get a complaint filed against her for her brash questions so she kept her tongue and fed the fire, feeling a strange connection with it despite the fact that she still have reservations about being in close proximity with it.

She listens to her surroundings like always so when she hears a click she jerks her head up to look at the client who has a crossbow aimed at her. Where it came from she doesn't know but the malicious look in his eyes told her that he knows exactly how to use it.

"Suterareta-san," she starts slowly before the man lifts the crossbow higher, both hands steadying the weapon. She notes with a hint of disgust that the weapon is collapsible. Meaning he probably hid it in his rucksack.

"I finally get some time alone with you, demon spawn," he growls, moving to stand. "Just my luck too that this is the new moon night," he chuckles before he tosses her something. She catches it, recognizing them to be the special chakra cuffs, designed to seal away the wearer's chakra and prevent escape. "Put those on, now," he orders gruffly. "No funny business."

With no idea what to do to get out if this situation, as well as feeling strangely weaker than usual, she obliges, figuring that her team will find her with Tamashii and Tsukiko's help. With the cuffs on that weak feeling from earlier intensifies - becoming far worse than she ever thought possible. Just as she passes out from the low chakra she sees the victorious look on Suterareta's face as he says something.

By the time Hoshi returns to the camp with an armload of firewood she finds nothing out of place except the fact that her teammate isn't tending to the campfire and Suterareta is currently nowhere to be seen. "Oretzi?" she calls out softly, aware that the hanyou's senses will allow her to hear the soft call. Nothing moves around her so she spreads out her chakra, keeping it cloaked just like Anko had taught them, to try and sense her teammate.

She doesn't feel anyone within the immediate area, causing dread to go down her spine as she realizes that something is wrong. She reaches for the radio system that they had donned prior going their separate ways to do the chores. "Twinkle to Team, Twinkle to team, over," she starts shakily.

"Twinkle, this is Soul-boy, over," Tamashii checks in, the concern lace in with his voice. She realizes that he probably heard the tone in her voice and knew that something must be up but like always he didn't voice it, instead waiting for her to say something.

"Twinkle, this is Dango, what's wrong? Over," their sensei is next to check in and she's the one to ask the million ryo question.

"Dango, Soul-boy, Ookami's missing. So is the cargo," she tells them, unable to put in the word that will let them know that she has finished speaking by her team's near instantaneous reaction.

"NANI?!" their disbelief comes through clearly in the radio system, almost causing her to yank out the ear piece.

"Soul-boy, back to the camp, now!" she hears Anko order. "Twinkle, preserve the scene, Koinu and I are on our way," she adds before the radio goes silent. When Tsukiko first joined the team Oretzi decided that the pup may as well get a code name for when they speak over the radio so Tamashii deemed her 'Koinu' for the time being.

Within the span of ten minutes her team stood gathered in the clearing, with Tsukiko peeking out from Anko's trench coat's pocket. "Damn it," Anko mutters, her eyes wide as she studies the clearing. "How can it be possible for Oretzi to been taken without a fight?" There wasn't a single sign of a fight, not one. No blood, no nothing. "Fan out! Look for signs!" she barks at them and her two students disappear to do as she ordered. Anko retrieves the wolf pup from her pocket and sets her down. "Tsukiko, tell me what you smell. Is there any foreign scents?"

The pup sniffed around the clearing's edges before she begun to circle the area, slowly working her way to the center. After several minutes she just plops down by the fire and whines up at Anko. _"Nee-chan's scent is here. Fidgety was over there,"_ she gets up and moves to the log across from where Oretzi was. _"Our scents are the only ones here."_

"… Not even a whiff of a new one?" The pup shakes her head causing Anko to frown. She turns on the radio system again. "Dango to Team, anything? Over."

"Twinkle, I haven't found anything, over."

"Soul-boy, same, over."

She curses under her breath. "Tsukiko, can you follow Oretzi's scent?"

_"Hai!"_

Anko nods her head. "Dango to Team. Back to the clearing. We're going to track Ookami by her scent, over."

"Hai," she hears two simultaneous voices say over the radio as she goes to kneel next to the pup whose shoulders only go up to the middle of her shin. "We're counting on you, Tsukiko," she mutters as she scratches the pup's ears.

_"Hai, Mita-chan,"_ Tsukiko tells her, her tiny body still and convoying none of her usual puppy energy. It was like a switch was thrown and the wolf pup has now begun to act much older than she appears to be.

Anko stands up, a serious expression on her face. Lavender eyes studying their surroundings before she kicks dirt onto the low fire to kill the flames. She creates a Kage Bunshin to start taking down the tents and pack their supplies. By the time Hoshi and Tamashii appears she tosses them their knapsacks. "Hoshi, time to get serious," she tells the heiress who nods and morphs back to her true face, dark purple hair framing her slim face with hazel brown eyes meeting lavender.

Akino Hoshi, heiress to the Akino clan and one of the few with the ability to use the kagami ririisu kekkei genkai - the mirror imitation blood limit. She is capable of mirroring anyone perfectly - copying their memories to help infiltrate enemy ranks as well as their personalities, quirks, and such - except those who are protected by demonic blood, like Oretzi. She can mirror her human features, becoming what she would have looked like without the wolf demon, but her memories, her quirks, her personality, anything that makes her unique doesn't come to her like it should.

"Should I mirror Tamashii?" she asks their sensei who shakes her head.

"You should reserve your chakra for now, Hoshi. I think you only have one more in you for today," Anko instructs her, "We might need you to mirror someone when we find the gaki again." She holds up a hand to silent any further talk when she sees that Tsukiko has the trail. She gestures for them to follow the pup who has enlarged herself once again to maybe two or three times her usual size. She now stands a little bigger than Kuromaru and her speed picks up now that she's no longer the size of a puppy.

"How is it possible for her to get so big?" Hoshi questions quietly.

"I think Oretzi-chan explained that once," Tamashii mutters back, guarding the rear with the aid of his Byakugan. "Because she's a full blooded wolf demon she's capable of changing her size to suit her needs. However, if I remember her right, she is only capable of growing five times her original size."

"So… when she gets older she'll be able to get bigger?" Hoshi starts slowly, recalling the large three tailed wolf that had shown up in Konoha just a little under four months ago, almost five months. "Wait, you mean to say that wolf, Moon-Chaser, could've been smaller?"

Tamashii chuckled, "Apparently so. I think Oretzi says that the wolves have a lot of pride about their size so they tend to stay in their original size instead of downsizing." The young Hyuuga boy frowns in thought, his attention divided between watching their surroundings and keeping an eye on Tsukiko who is moving faster than she ever did before.

In the past month, since they've taken this mission, he had watched Oretzi from a distance. For a girl only nine years old she has already shown an impressive amount of strength uncommon in someone her age. Yet, when he saw her 'throw down' with the Gaara kid he had this unmistakable feeling that the girl is destined for something big. Something that will turn the world on its ear and shatter any illusion. It nearly makes him snort as he recalls a cousin of his who constantly goes on about fate and destiny and he's only a year older than Oretzi.

Oretzi, a young girl who by her own words, should not be able to exist if what she says about humans and demons are true. Her maturity off the charts for someone so young. Anyone looking into her eyes - when she's not trying to cast a genjutsu over them - would be able to see the wide spectrum of emotions she feels, thinly veiled by childish innocence. One could probably see the animal within her, hidden away when she is calm and not experiencing some kind of extreme emotion like anger and fear.

A girl who should've been given more time to be a child or to at least regain some sense of a childhood. Instead she insists on learning how to be an assassin, to hunt and kill their targets. He remembered, just a short month after their team was formed, how Oretzi confesses to Hoshi and himself how she convinced the Hokage to form the team with the intention for assassination assignments. She was only eight years old and she was already aware of the dark side of the shinobi life, prepared to do her own part and beyond what most genins do.

Such a darkness within her, kept in check by her willpower. He remembered the glimpse he had gotten when he had pissed her off, all those months ago. The feral darkness within her, the savage wolf surging to fore, thirsting for his blood in revenge. Genjutsu or not he knows that she was projecting what she would have done if she had not kept herself under check.

Seeing her transform into that wolf hybrid just two weeks ago was like seeing her wolf finally surface within her. If not for those chains and the music she probably would have done something to them, something like tear them apart. It made him wonder something. How much is what she projects, how much do they really know her? Is she really the girl they've seen these last few months or is she something more?

Tamashii didn't know the answer to the questions his mind is projecting. But he knows this. Even if she's not who she acts like it doesn't change the fact that she is still his teammate. She would willingly put her life on the line for him and he would return the favor.

**Don't kill me Candi-chan! It had to happen! *is cowering behind something for a shield* I honestly don't know if you'll kill me for the fact that Temari kissed her or for the fact she got kidnapped... Likely the kidnap. Anyway, review folks!**

**Oh and any questions and I'll answer in a review or a pm. Either one works folks!**


	16. Chapter 16

**If I thought I was going to be killed for the previous chapter then I'll definitely be killed for chapter 17... if I don't get killed for the ending of this chapter anyway. Ready the pitchforks folks for you'll want it by the end of this chapter and the torches for the next chapter. I only ask you leave me alive for your future chapters :D Anyway, same drill folks!**

_**Chapter 16**_

Tsukiko led them through Kawa no Kuni for half of the night before they arrived at the border of the territory where Amegakure no Sato is hidden. Anko had to grab the pup by the scuff of her neck to keep her from charging over the border and into hostile territory. "Damn it," she mutters, lavender eyes narrowed in distaste.

Whoever took Oretzi is going to pay trice over before she even _considers_ sending them straight to hell!

"Sensei, what should we do?" Hoshi questions from her left.

She didn't know how to answer that question. Experience told her that she couldn't bring her students along. Amegakure and Konohagakure have been hostile towards one another since the Second Shinobi World War. The second they step into Amegakure it's likely they'll be pursued by chunin and jonin level shinobi once they're discovered.

"Listen up, gaki," she starts, keeping her gaze at the area beyond the border. "This is where we're going have to be extra careful. For now, all signs of our alliance to Konoha is to be hidden," she directs, removing her Hiati-ate and storing it in one of her hidden pockets for the time being.

"But sensei," Tamashii tries to protest.

"No buts, Soul-boy," Anko hisses, tossing him a bandanna to cover up the juinjutsu brand on his forehead as well as a pair of sunglasses to hide his eyes. "Right now this is a rescue effort. And we can't do that if we're on the run from Amegakure shinobi," she explains as she grips the pup's neck. She turns her attention to the wolf, "Do you still have her scent?"

_"Hai… it's fading a bit though."_ The wolf snorts and shakes her body, flinging off the water that had accumulated on her fur as a result of running through various rivers. _"But I did smell Fidgety. He's traveling with nee-chan… maybe carrying her."_

Anko frowns at the implication of what the pup said. So they had a mission with a man who spirited away with one of her students. She rationalizes that he probably used the last two weeks to study their actions before making his move. "We'll find her," she vows quietly before checking her students to find that they have removed any signs of their alliance with Konoha. She nods in approval before releasing Tsukiko. "Let's hunt," she hisses softly into the wolf's ear.

Needing no further prompt Tsukiko shoots forward, her long legs eating a great deal of distance in a short amount of time with the three shinobi taking to the trees, following her from up above. The group traveled north-western direction for maybe an hour before the wolf slowed down, lowering her body into a crouch, her tail barely moving. Anko, upon seeing Tsukiko's movements, jumped down to speak with the pup.

_"Mita-chan, nee-chan's up ahead,"_ Tsukiko mutters. _"… I smell at least ten men and women inside the building. Five men patrolling."_

Anko mutters a few choice words under her breath as she signals for Tamashii to join her. Once he's with her she tells him what Tsukiko told her and asks him to confirm their locations.

"Tsukiko's correct," the Hyuuga boy mutters. "They are all armed with katanas and crossbows," he continues. "One on the roof and two pairs at the midpoints from the clearing to the building."

"What about inside?" Anko questions.

This time he takes a bit longer to answer before suddenly releasing his hold on the Byakugan. "There's a basement, Oretzi's there but… her system was barely…" he trails off and Anko frowns, already guessing what he was going to say. "There's two guarding the front door and two the back. Two at the basement level. The other four seems to be sleeping."

"Okay… here's what we're going to do," she mutters, gesturing for Hoshi to join them before whispering her plan to them. Once it has been said and done her two students nod in acceptance before leaving to fulfill their tasks. She looks down at Tsukiko who nods once before vanishing into the darkness, the rain heavy around them. "Show time," she mutters as she goes to do her part.

* * *

"Damn it, why didn't Hasha just kill the damn demon spawn," the man on the roof grumbles to himself. "Should've just killed her and left her for the spawn's friends to find her." He slicks back his hair, googles keeping the rain from getting in his eyes. "I wouldn't be out here if he just killed her already."

He continues grumbling under his breath before a hand seizes his mouth and a sharp blade cuts his throat, spilling his blood before he can make a sound. Anko, his killer, holds him for a minute longer to make sure that he's truly dead before easing him down. She makes a gesture before using the shunshin no jutsu to get down from the top of the roof and over to where Tsukiko is waiting. She clutches her trench knives in her hands, doing a quick jutsu to shroud the wolf and herself in shadows before motioning for the wolf to follow her.

They approach the two men from behind and she deals with one of them in the same manner as the man on the roof while Tsukiko jumps the other. Her maw finding purchase in his neck and with a great shake of her head she snaps his neck. She pats the pup on the head and retreats to the trees, circling around to where they agreed to meet where her slightly bloodied students waited for them. Seeing that there are no visible injuries or signs of them getting into a scuffle she takes the blood to mean that their targets are dead. She'll have to show them a way to kill their targets without getting their blood on them.

"Okay, Soul-boy, tell me if you see anything new inside," she instructs, wanting to know if there has been any changes inside. He nods his head before activating the Byakugan, studying the positions of the chakra inside.

"Nothing's changed. There are four people sleeping in the rooms on this side of the building," he gestures to the two windows. "Two in that one and two in the other."

"Okay then, gaki," Anko mutters softly, "Tamashii, Hoshi, deal with the ones in the right room. Tsukiko and I will take the other." She looks at the wolf besides her. "I wouldn't suppose you have a human form?"

_"I'm not old enough to get my human form,"_ the pup answers. Anko sighs and shakes her head.

"… I wonder if I can use that jutsu," Anko mutters to herself thoughtfully before shaking her head. It's a clan jutsu and she has no idea how they mold their chakra. Attempting to use it would probably be disastrous so she instructs the pup to return to her original size so that she can carry her into the room.

With that plan in mind the team split into two pairs and went after their chosen targets. Anko slips into the room after opening the window, dropping the pup onto the floor. She quickly kills the woman, her hand covering her mouth as she slits her throat. Her eyes looking over to Tsukiko who had enlarged herself once again to break the woman's neck.

"Good work," she whispers to the pup, giving her a quick scratch before she opens the door, glancing both ways before leaving the room. To her right the door opens to reveal her students, their clothes splattered with even more blood. She also couldn't help but notice they looked like drowned cats. Smirking in amusement she gestures for them to take the guards at the back door while she takes the ones at the front before meeting at the entrance for the basement level.

With the plan set they go separate ways and Anko uses a small pocket-sized mirror to see around the corner. She could tell that the guards look bored but she can also tell that they have a very brief window of opportunity to eliminate the guards before they can sound the alarm. She grabs the needle shooter, strapping it to her wrist before she kneels to have a few words with the pup.

If anyone was to be watching them they would see Tsukiko nodding her head at random intervals before she gives Anko a huge smile. Without further prompting she shrinks down to her usual size and runs around the corner, sticking to the shadows and moving only when the guards weren't looking in her direction. Eventually she manages to get on the other side of the long hallway, the guards standing in the middle of the T-shaped hall, and proceeds to make a noise to attract their attentions.

The both guards turn to face the noise, making movements to go check it out. However, before they got far Anko slips around the corner to fire the senbons at them. Hitting a person's pressure point is hard but trying to do so from a distance while they are moving is doubly so. A feat a few rarely ever master, a feat that the hunter-nins seem to specialize in.

Yet she managed to get one just right and as he slumps over the other turns to confront her, his mouth opened to shout a warning. But before he can utter a single sound Tsukiko is already there, her maw snapping shut around his throat with blood bubbling forth from the injury. She lets the corpse drop from her maw as Anko walks up to her, already removing the needle launcher. She quickly kills the man whom she had taken down using the needle launcher before she turns her attention to the wolf.

"Your pack lost a good wolf," she mutters, her body practically giddy at the prospect of the pup's potential. Tsukiko's tail wagging was the only outward sign of her happiness at the compliment. "Their loss, our gain," she whispers before requesting that Tsukiko track her companion since she honestly has no idea where the door to the basement level is hidden.

Before long she finds her two students standing in front of a door with disgruntle looks on their faces. She eyes them for a moment before deciding to throw caution into the wind and just ask them. "What's bugging you?"

"The guards," Hoshi starts with a scowl that made her proud of her student.

"They were saying something about killing Oretzi. Calling her a demon spawn and everything," Tamashii explains when it becomes obvious that his teammate cannot continue or else she'll shout at the top of her lungs.

"Ah…"

_"Mita-chan,"_ they look down to meet the wolf's serious eyes. _"…I think they're Demon Hunters."_

"Nani?!" Anko had to refrain from shouting, resulting in a strangled whispered shout - as strange as it seemed. "Demon Hunters?!" She have heard about them and to think that Oretzi is in their clutches?! Oi, Tsume is going to kill her when she finds out about this!

_Mita-chan, I smell fresh blood_ Tsukiko exclaims, her facial expression and body language convoying the shock at the realization.

The trio of shinobi curse before they throw open the door and dart down the starts, taking no precaution for stealth. They traded it all in an attempt to save their teammate, their friend. Anything to save her.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs Anko quickly raise her arm as a loud crack sounds and a long slim leather tendril wraps around her forearm. She follows the length to the holder, revealing it to be a woman maybe a few years shy of her own age. Clad in skin tight - enough to appear painted on - black leather that gives her some kind of role playing appearance in some guy's wet dream. Anko's opponent is a young blonde with no specific identifying marker as to which village she belongs to. Behind her Hoshi, Tamashii, and Tsukiko arrive at the scene and they glare unflinchingly at the sight of the man holding a sword to Oretzi's throat.

Tamashii summons up his raiton chakra, the lightning element dancing across his body as he slips into a taijutsu stance. Hoshi, moving away from the dangerous lightning, does the same - a scowl fixated at the man, their client. Former client.

"Ha, you think you can challenge me?" Hasha huffs, laughing. "You won't even be able to touch me!"

Anko grunts off to the side, seizing the whip that has wrapped around her arm, and attempts to yank the blonde off balance. Instead what happens is a jolt of lightning chakra singeing her hand just as she is about to pull, forcing her to release the whip which comes undone and she's free to grab her trench knives. "Don't underestimate my students!" she snaps at the man as she dodges another crack of the woman's whip.

"Want to show him just what sensei meant?" Tamashii questions his teammate.

"With pleasure," she growls in a manner similar to Oretzi.

"You've spent too long pretending to be like Ookami," he teases her before they both moved forward simultaneously. With the other genin growling something similar to shut up at him.

"I want him alive!" they hear Anko snap from where she fought her opponent, anger clearly lacing her words. They didn't need to ask why, because the intent was clear. She wanted revenge.

During the chaos of the fights Tsukiko had slipped unnoticed to Oretzi as was trying futilely to free her unconscious companion from the chains. But her teeth is useless against the metal cuffs and despite her best intentions she could not wake her. _"MITA-CHAN!"_ Tsukiko howls, turning her head to look at the woman's direction. _"NEE-CHAN ISN'T WAKING UP!"_

Anko curses as she grabs the whip when it leaves a score across her cheek. She yanks the woman close and quickly swipes at her throat, leaving a shallow cut to her frustration. "I can't do anything about it, Tsukiko!" she shouts, ducking under another crack. "Guard her for now!" she orders, gritting her teeth when the whip cuts at her right arm.

"Your fight is with me!" the blonde girl snaps.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you're nice and slick before I'm done with you!" Anko snarls, her anger pushing her to the extremes. She spies something beyond the blond and narrows her eyes, a plan springing to the fore of her mind. Not quite the best she can do at the spur of the moment but it'll get the job done. She begins her own barrage of attacks, pushing forward, pushing the blonde back to the best of her ability.

It was hard trying to push close to her, especially since she knows that the younger girl seems to specialize in mid to long distance attacks according to the whip. Whenever she attempts to get past it and into her guard the blonde performs some sort of move she doesn't recognize and she finds herself back at the start position with the blonde at a distance. It pleases her though that the woman is unknowingly giving ground to her to keep some distance between them.

Hoshi appears briefly, swinging her swords simultaneously at Suterareta's head. When her weapons are blocked she vanishes just as Tamashii appears, his arm already in motion to take advantage of the small gap of opening. But to his shock the man blocks him as well, raising up his hand to deflect the punch with a simple tap of the back of his hand with no outward sign of the lightning doing any damage to him.

He vanishes and the two genins reappear just out of reach of the man's sword, their eyes studying him. "Resistant to raiton?" the girl mutters, a frown working its way across her lips.

"Seems like it," Tamashii mutters back before he makes a few gestures at Hoshi. The girl nods before they both vanish and begin a long series of attacks. Whenever one finishes their combo they would switch out almost instantly with their partner, forcing Suterareta to be on his guard constantly.

For a man that is supposedly a civilian he was great at fighting the two head on with more success that shouldn't be possible. In addition to the fact that he was downright nearly beating them he even have the time to mock them for their inability to severely injure him, infuriating the pair despite their best efforts. It was almost enough to make them want to throw jutsu after jutsu at him just to see what will make a mark on him. The key word being _almost_. Lessons from Anko, practically hammered in, kept them from foolishly and carelessly throwing their best at him.

Instead they continue tag teaming him, switching almost smoothly from one style to another. The only time they actually manage to get some kind of breath was when Tamashii placed a genjutsu over the man - which only lasted less than a minute but it was enough to let them know that they found a weakness. Of course, it was a weakness that they cannot truly take advantage of because they lacked the skill to actually use it! Of all the time for Oretzi to be out of the game it had to be now when they need her doujutsu's abilities! It's ironic really, that the one thing that can possibly defeat the man to save their friend is the best thing she can specialize in.

"Sensei!" Hoshi calls out as she flips out of the way of Suterareta's swing. "Nothing we're doing is working on this guy!"

"Welcome to my problem!" Anko snaps irritably.

"I dare say this calls for a switch," Tamashii comments drily from where he is engaging Suterareta, a sword fashioned out of pure lightning chakra. Hoshi hears him and understood instantly his point and vanishes from his side of the room to intercept the blonde's whip, the fuuton chakra slicing through the leather rather easily.

"Gaki," Anko starts to say before she shakes her head, understanding almost instantly what their plans are. She quickly forms hand seals, not even bothering to announce the jutsu as she molds her chakra.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tsukiko whines at her unconscious companion who just hangs there, her arms chained above her head - lifting her a good six inches off the ground. The wolf pup had to enlarge herself to the maximum size she can achieve, enabling her the ability to nose the hanyou in the face. Trying her hardest to wake her from her unresponsive state. Not even licking her face did anything but move her head!

"Nee-chan," she whines, nosing the girl's face. "Nee-chan, wake up."

Nothing and as she starts to turn from the girl she notices something _odd_ about her nee-chan. Tilting her head to the side in confusion, her ears expression that confusion just as well as Oretzi's would have, she gives the unconscious girl another look over.

It doesn't hit her immediately but when she does the visual sight of her maw dropping in shock is something not many ever gets to see. _"MITA-CHAN!"_ the pup howls for the purple haired kunoichi, spinning around and lunging. Of course by this time the blonde woman has been put within easy reach by Hoshi's efforts. Due to her blindly lunging for Anko she was capable of knocking over the blonde with little to no efforts.

Startled by the presence of the woman Tsukiko's heavy weight pinned her down long enough for her to realize that this is the enemy. Once that realization comes she closes her maw around her neck and rips savagely at her throat before hopping over to Hoshi who was breathing a bit hard from the exertion. _"Aki-chan! Aki-chan!"_ she yelps as she slides to a stop in front of the smallest female in the group. _"Nee-chan- Nee-chan is!"_ she couldn't get the words out but it was enough for Hoshi to worry instantly. Without checking with her sensei, who was focusing wholly on the jutsu she is trying to hold on Suterareta, she runs over to her fellow genin and friend.

A quick look over her friend revealed nothing out of the order for the hanyou aside from the dangerously low level of chakra. But with further prompting from Tsukiko she found the same problem that had the wolf demon pup howling and stuttering. Upon discovering it though she was put at a loss at what to do. Here, lay - or is it hung - her teammate and fellow genin/friend and practically comatose to the world.

She knows it's her, after all she did inhabit her body for a near two weeks. Walk, breathe, eat, sleep and even bathed - yes, _bathed_ - in that form, just without the ears and tail. It gave her a chance to practice using her kekkei genkai and holding a specific form for a long period of time as well as get use to the fact that she has to take care of the most basic needs in bodies that is not her own. There was also the added bonus of gaining a short three inches - a small gain but a gain never the less for the forever short girl. As a result of the last two weeks she is unbelievably familiar with her friend's body, with every scar and ache on her skin and bones.

So what she is seeing in front of her just baffles her to beyond and back and looking at Tsukiko she couldn't even phrase the words into a question or a statement. She'd be lucky to actually be able to say _something_. Tsukiko just whined and butts her head against the genin, which was a bit funny for her to do since she just about stood at her height in her largest size she can manage to achieve. As a result? Her head bumped against Hoshi's shoulders and nearly pushed her over without much effort.

_"Nee-chan?"_ she asks worryingly.

"I… I don't really know," Hoshi mutters as she briefly touches the cuffs that holds the younger girl suspended. Just a brief touch left her cold inside and studying the seal on it she knows that there are two different ways to cuffs to open. One: for the chakra flow to stop completely - normally such a feat would happen at the event of death. Two: was for the person with the key or perhaps the unsealing jutsu to open it.

She turns her attention back towards her teammate who was still struggling with Suterareta who was still able to fight him despite being in a genjutsu, an idea churning inside her head. She tells the pup to continue watching over Oretzi before she rejoins the battle, making a conscious effort to get as close as she can to grab at the man.

With the combine effort of her sensei and Tamashii distracting him she was able to touch the man's skin for more than a second, causing her to cry out in triumph just before she is kicked away rather painfully. But it didn't bother her for the fact that she was able to accomplish contact with the man was more than enough.

"Kagami ririisu!" she declares, her hands forming a seal that is unique to her clan. She grew in height, her face and body morphing to an exact imitation of the man in front of her. The clothes - tailored for Oretzi's size, baggy on her original form - were simply too small for Suterareta's height and build. The muscles in the arms and legs ripped through the fabric and she became aware of an uncomfortable sensation in her pants, causing her to grimace at the pain. It seems like she should have worn boxers instead of lingerie - she'll have to correct that lack of hindsight later.

With the form comes the memories. A four year old version of Suterareta training under his father's watchful eyes. The first demon raid on the village which he grew up in. The death of his family at the hands of the demons. Raised alone by a sole survivor of the raid he was trained to be a Demon Hunter, a ruthless man who exist solely on destroying demons. The most recent memories came up to the fore of her mind and with it the knowledge of what he's planning.

"You bastard," she growls, her voice deep and masculine, the same tone the man is capable of using. Everything down to the tiniest detail was mimicked to create a strong look alike.

"So that's what you're capable of," the man mutters. He had been aware of the fact that the girl before him was not a hanyou, the device he used to detect youki indicating her as a standard shinobi. But now, seeing the girl's ability, he realize that he may have to revise his original opinion on what the girl is capable of. "No matter, I will end this!"

"Anko-sensei," Hoshi starts, "leave him to me. Go and try and free Oretzi."

"You sure about this, gaki?"

"I'm sure. I won't let him beat me," the transformed genin vows, her eyes narrowed at the man in dislike. "I won't let you carry out your plan," she informs the man as she adopts a stance identical to the man's.

* * *

Anko, leaving Tamashii to watch over the fight between Hoshi and Suterareta, quickly goes over to her unconscious student with Tsukiko by her side. It takes her a minute to realize the differences in her student but once she sees it she is left gobsmacked.

"How…"

_"I don't know,"_ Tsukiko whines as she nudges the hanyou with her cold wet nose. Anko frowns before she moves the pup out of the way, standing on the tips of her toes to study the shackles binding Oretzi.

"Chakra suppression," she mutters as she fiddles with it, noting that there isn't any obvious keyholes for her to try her hand at lock picking. "I can't do anything about it right now," she mutters softly, shaking her head. "From what I know about these things that there are usually only two, maybe three ways out of these kind of shackles. Number one is that the victim dies before they are removed." Tsukiko whines in dismay at the news. "Number two is that the person placed them on the victim must use the key or their own chakra to unseal them." The pair turn towards the fight where two Suterareta are currently 'duking' it out. "Number three is that something overwhelms the seal and destroys it."

_"Can't you use the third method?"_

"First of all: I know nothing about seals, Tsuki-chan. That would be your companion," Anko informs her. "Second of all: it has to be done from within."

_"You mean…"_

"Yes, it is Oretzi who has to break free. But it has to be a lot of chakra in order for it to be destroyed. Chakra she doesn't seem to possess at the moment." Anko didn't know how she could fix this problem and, as she looks at her students and their opponent, she has to admit that this isn't the ideal situation for her to best protect her students. At the moment only Hoshi was able to match Suterareta and it is only because of her ability to mirror people, copying everything about them and using it to her advantage.

How were they going to free the girl?

* * *

She looks around her, her eyes tired and her body weak. She feels like she could sleep for days if only she could lay down. She couldn't recognize her surroundings. It wasn't the hell that she had become somewhat familiar with thanks to the Moirai sisters. But at the same time it wasn't obvious where she was at. It was dark and very forbidding - and if she squints her eyes she can swear that it looks like she is standing at the grounds of a very ancient forest because she couldn't even begin to see the top of the trees. Everything around her has been cast in shadows and she cannot begin to see anything because of the lack of enough visible light for her eyes. Even if she was to be a true full blooded wolf she would not be able to see well in the lack of light.

"Where am I?" she questions out loud on this moonless night, wishing she knew why she looked like Hoshi did without the ears and tail. It was profoundly strange to be without them after spending all of her short life with them! With the absence of her innate wolf ears and tail came with the absence of her senses. Everything felt _weaker_ and diluted. Was this how it feels like to be a human without any wolf blood flowing through her?

She has to say, she's not exactly liking the prospects at _all._

She walks alone through the forest, wondering what her purpose here is.

That is… until she hears a rather savage growl that reminds her strongly of a wolf that is threatened by her presence. If she still had her tail it would have gone rigid along with her back as she cautiously moves so that she is facing the source of the growl.

She faces the familiar form of the dark browned furred wolf, its fur forever matted with blood and forced flat against its near skeletal form. The wolf's strange interlocked fangs bared at her once again with a malicious growl. She knew no wolf demon with such fangs and recalled seeing it a few times in her dreams when she was still raised by the pack. But she couldn't figure out what the wolf is to her.

_"So I see that you have gotten captured,"_ the wolf laughs, its raspy nails on board voice disturbing for her to listen to. But it brought a reaction out of her as she stares down the intimidating wolf.

"And I see no reason for your presence," she scowls at it. "Unless you wish to proclaim that you will dye my world red and destroy everything I ever cherish," she growls. She didn't like how unlike her it sounded.

The wolf, to her amazement, simply plants its butt down on the dark ground in front of her. _"We have already done the 'I will destroy your world so fear me' routine,"_ it states calmly but its voice still causes the hair at the back of her neck to raise.

"… So what else are you here for?" she questions, her eyes narrowing at it.

_"You have gone and gotten yourself captured,"_ the wolf levels its sickly pale yellow eyes at her and she has to resist the urge to snarl at it. _"I have a… proposal for you."_

She glares at it, wary about accepting any deals with a demon. Especially a demon that constantly threatens to destroy everything she lives for. "And what will you get out of it?"

_"How about listening to the proposal first, little one?"_ she scowls at it, reluctant but at the same time she is struck with a sense of urgency. _"You have not begun to master everything you can be. Considering that this is only your ninth year here on this mortal world I'll forgive you - only by a small margin."_ She has to resist the urge again to growl or snarl at it, silently willing it to get to the point. _"In any case, my offer is that I will give you the knowledge necessary for you to master your demonic abilities to the point where not even the moon will be able to influence you,"_ it narrows its eyes at her when it becomes apparent that she will say something, _"in return you must kill the man that has captured you."_

Her eyes go wide for the first time since this conversation has started. "What?! But- I!"

_"Kill the man or this deal is broken."_

"You're asking me to take a human life."

_"You have always intended to take a human life, foolish girl,"_ it growls at her. _"Or did you conveniently forget that you requested your precious Hokage to create your team for the intention of assassination?"_ She frowns.

She hadn't forgotten that. But she had always thought it would be because she was on an assignment or because someone tried to interfere with it. But to kill someone because of a bargain? Is it worth it, to kill someone who captured her - probably with the intent to kill her or ransom her - in exchange for the knowledge to fully control her demonic side? Is it worth the trade?

_"Is it truly that hard to make a decision?"_ she hears the wolf sneer. _"Did you not want to be a ninja? Isn't a ninja supposed to kill when they need to?"_

"This isn't for an assignment!" she snaps angrily at it.

_"Perhaps not. But it will be your first kill. No matter the reason behind the killing the end result is the same. You took a life."_

She frowns at it before realizing its reasoning. "It doesn't matter the reason why I did it… Better now on my own terms instead of the village's…" she mutters, turning her face from it.

_"Remember. The man's life in exchange for the knowledge to master your demon."_

"Nothing else? No loop holes?"

_"I am not a snake or a fox. I have no reason to trick you."_

"You are a demon," she points out rationally.

_"And so," _it sneers, _"are you."_

She rocks back as if she was punched, the wolf disappearing with a strange huffing laugh that leaves a chill down her back. _"Kill for your right to survive,"_ is the faintest whisper it leaves behind. Leaving her standing there in the dark forest as she struggles to come to an answer.

Kill or…

**... So... who wants to kill me? And yeah, that is the end of this particular chapter. So again. Who wants to kill me?**


	17. Chapter 17

_**I LIVE!... And here's your next chapter. I'm currently working on Chapter 20 so you get up til Chapter 18! So that's two chapters folks! Anyway, you know the drill, please enjoy! And... don't kill me please.**_

_**Chapter 17**_

Things have gotten worse for Team 13. Hoshi, using Suterareta's form, is evenly matched by the demon hunter. Tamashii couldn't interfere because he's not skilled enough to fight him by her side. Anko was busy trying to rouse her third student with Tsukiko whining pitifully at the whole situation - once again feeling worthless.

Because of that none of them were aware of the time - unaware that the sun has been encroaching upon them. Just now triumphing over the night and beginning to break free from the horizon that typically hides its rays from them. The stars and moonless night retreating from the sun's rays.

Just as the sun beings to peek from the horizon Oretzi's eyes snap open, startling Anko and Tsukiko back at the suddenness of it. But there was a strangeness to them as Oretzi's light brown tamed hair morphs back to its dark brown wilderness, her wolf ears and tail reappearing. Her body shifting in their confinements before she snarls - not at them but at her chains. The girl's eyes - typically dark brown, borderline black unless she's using her doujutsu - seems to glow an icy blue color before bleeding back into the dark brown color.

She growls as she pulls herself higher to the point where her head is leveled with her chained wrists, her feet just barely propping her up as she tries to use the tree walking exercise to hold herself steady. Her eyes flashing red for a moment before she steadies her breath. She didn't have to study the chakra suppression seals - almost intimately familiar with them after what happened with Gaara. Instead she simply cuts her palms with her canines, a deep incision that allows the blood to flow down over the seals.

She had found something out when she was fiddling with the reason why her blood was taken into Gaara's seal when she couldn't find any other mention of something similar happening to someone else. It was strange - how her blood acts like a natural encouragement for seals to adjust themselves to her will, to her intention. However, if it is something she can use to her advantage she sees no reason to avoid it.

Her sole thought as she pushes chakra into the seals, willing them - commanding really - to enhance instead of suppress. Reversing the purpose of the seals into something new according to her will. It was a bit scary how a little bit of blood can do that but if it'll get her out of these and into rescuing her exhausted friend then she is all for it.

Dark brown eyes intent on the man who had taken her to the middle of nowhere - currently still dueling with her friend, with Hoshi - as her mind whispers a reminder.

With a savage growl that seems to resonate through the room she starts to pull with all her strength, her chakra returning to her in a rush. Her eyes flashing red - subconsciously summoning her katon chakra to fore. The metal links heating up before she breaks free.

Suterareta - aware of what just happened - tries to knock out his opponent but before he can even begin to make the transition Oretzi is standing in front of him, blood red eyes staring him down. "Demon spawn," he tries to growl threateningly at her.

**_"You called me that before,"_** she grins at him, a hint of her feral nature shining through. Yet strangely enough, despite her anger, she has not lost control of her youki. Then again - to anyone who can sense or see her chakra coils - she does not have any to actually use. **_"You're going to need a better insult,"_** she taunts before lunging for him, her tekagi-shuko's claws unsheathed and ready to taste his blood.

A flurry of action takes place - her blue chakra morphing into a darker shade with every attack and swing she throws at him. It has Tamashii worried as he fights to get Hoshi out of harms' way - her body exhausted with the long fight, from trying to use Suterareta's form against him. But he was too intimately aware of every muscle twitch of his own body and therefore was capable of fighting himself into a stalemate.

Oretzi, however, was a different story. Her body is small compared to his massive size, just slightly bigger than Hoshi in terms of height but everything else she is either of the same weight or lighter compared to the older female genin. Her body, emphasizing on speed, seems to dance around him at a speed that he just barely capable of meeting. The tips of her weapons slicing across various points in his body, driving him to distraction and ever so slowly hindering him enough for her to deliver a final blow.

At least, she intended to deliver a final blow. But found herself hindered by three bodies, her arms held in a firm familiar grip. Her breath coming in short huffs as her eyes bleed back into the dark brown hue, suddenly aware that there is an arm around her neck and another around her waist. Her tail swishing angrily at being stopped, her ears flat against her skull.

He needed to die.

"Nee-chan," she hears Tsukiko say from somewhere.

"Koinu," she hears Hoshi whisper.

"Inuzuka," she hears Tamashii mutter.

"Gaki."

She didn't need to put a name to that voice. To the low husky voice that calls to her, lulling her wolf to sleep.

_The man's life in exchange for the knowledge to master your demon._

She couldn't. She couldn't.

Her eyes bleed red again and she growls something and they found themselves holding nothing but air as Suterareta falls back with an arch of ruby red blood spraying from his form - from his neck specifically.

"Oh gaki," Anko whispers as the young hanyou reappears with her back to them, her tail and body rigid. She hadn't wanted her to kill, not when she's so young. Not yet.

"Oretzi," Tamashii and Hoshi mutter in awe and concern. They had just seen her brutally take down a full grown man in a series of blows without any sign of hesitations. But they are worried because she's young, so young.

She was standing still as a statue, her head bowed, her hands held before her instead of limp by her sides. Her eyes a dark brown hue once again, staring at the wet crimson blood on the blades of her weapons - splattered across her hands. Her first life taken by her own hands and… what was she supposed to feel?

"Was it worth it?" she mutters out loud to no one. "Was it worth… all of this?"

_'A deal is a deal.'_

She whines, the blades disengaging and disappearing into the vambraces, as she tangles her fingers into her hair. Dropping down to her knees with a low keening whine. _'A deal is a deal, my Oretzi of Light.'_

"I don't want this," she barely manage to whine, her eyes screwed shut in protest as so many things begin to flash across her mindscape.

_'It's too late.' _Why does it seems like the wolf is sad that she doesn't want the information now after the fact?

**_'Can't back out of this now.'_**She vaguely remembers them to be the Moirai sisters when they speak in union. Why have they chosen to speak now?

_'Time to face the music, little one.'_ Don't be gentle, don't be kind!

No…

Anko just barely manage to catch the girl as she kneels over in a dead faint. Her heart heavy as she thinks about why the girl would be so adamant to refuse the fact that she just took a life. She wasn't ready. Not yet. Even if she asked for this. Even if she wanted to be trained to take a life. It is one thing to train and it is another to do. Only time will tell if Oretzi will be able to overcome the burden of taking a life and continue being a shinobi.

She lifts the girl into her arms, mildly - and oddly enough - thankful that she is still able to carry the girl despite the fact that they are the same height now. "Let's go home," she turns to her students who are eyeing the cooling corpse of their former client. "Hoshi, do you think you can handle sealing him in a scroll?" she questions. When she gets a quick nod from her she heads up the stairs with Tsukiko padding after her, obviously reluctant to be away from her companion for any reason. Tamashii staying behind to help with the sealing.

How were they going to explain this mess to the Hokage?

How as she going to explain to Tsume that her daughter first got into a fight with the Kazekage's son, had her arm broken and crushed - but don't worry she healed it before she ran out of youki - had to fix the seal on the Suna Jinchuuriki - who so happened to be the youngest son of the Kazekage - and to top it all off she got kidnapped by their client and taken straight into the territory of Amegakure no Sato. Oh and she somehow turned into a humanoid version of herself - a complete opposite of what happened on the full moon!

Is this what it's like to have a hanyou on a team? Because it seems to be more trouble than they're worth.

She frowns at her thoughts and looks at her unconscious student. "…Trouble or not, you're still worth it," she mutters softly.

It doesn't take long for her students to rejoin her, still dressed in their bloody clothes. In fact, they plus Tsukiko look like they came out of a scuffle looking like they have lost. Oretzi somehow managed to avoid the same outcome despite the rather bloody ending to her brief fight with Suterareta. If one can call it a fight.

"Let's go," she mutters to her students, shifting the light girl in her arms before taking point. Just barely remembering to remove Oretzi's hiati-ate as a precaution.

Night came to them in the middle of Hi no Kuni, still a half day travel from Konoha. With no choice but to bunker down the team quickly set up camp with Tsukiko watching over her unconscious companion while everyone else gathered water, firewood, and meat for them to consume. With the night came the moonless skies, triggering a new change in the young hanyou.

Her ears and tail vanish once again, her wild hair softening to the point where it no longer seems as wild as before. The elongated nails becoming like any other typical nails and the sharp blend of both human and wolf in her face and body seems to melt until only human remains. Yet Tsukiko claims that she still smells the same - just without the fur that lingers beneath. Not that any of them could actually smell it unless they were to toss her into a water source. Then she'd smells like wet fur commonly associated with wet dogs.

"What happened to her?" Hoshi whispers as she strokes her friend's light brown hair. It was strange, seeing this pure human version of her friend. She hadn't realized that when she took on Oretzi's form she was still a good lookalike for her. Like a version of her friend without the wolf ears and tail, without the elongated nails and canines. But here, as her friend lays unconscious in the tent they erected, she realizes that with the wolf DNA gone she looks completely different. She doesn't even look like an Inuzuka who apparently gave her half of her feral looks.

She looks so normal, so unlike herself.

"I guess there is an equal and opposite reaction to what occurred on the night of the full moons. Instead of turning into…" Anko gestures vaguely, unable to find the right words, "she turns into..." once again she gestures but this time she gestures at the young girl sleeping the night away. "My guess that it's not because she's away from Konoha for the first time. It seems to me that the Hokage as well as her family are aware of what happens on those nights."

"Why didn't they tell us? Why didn't she tell us?" Tamashii mutters.

"I only have my best guess to go on," she informs her students. "But they lead me to conclude a few things. One: Oretzi shows no signs of recalling what happens during those nights. When she is no longer the… hybrid she is confused and worried that something happened. Two: It didn't occur to the Hokage or Tsume to inform us about her condition and possible danger to us as a team. That or Tsume thought there were was more time before Oretzi was to go out on a mission that would take more than a few hours to complete," Anko didn't like either conclusions.

The first one suggests that her student would be forever unaware of what she does during the full moons and the fact that her student is reduced to a savage creature running purely on instincts means that she is a danger to everyone and to the mission. The second one suggests that they intended to tell her but it slipped their minds before the team departed for Sunagakure - evident by the messenger hawk, the fastest hawk Konohagakure has, appearing with the urgent scroll.

"What should we do?" Hoshi asks quietly.

"… In the event of the full moons one of us needs to be prepared to lull her to sleep with some music. Humming or singing will not always work so I believe one of us should learn an instrument," Anko sighs heavily at the thought. It seems that Oretzi will always impact others in her life.

"What about the new moon?" Hoshi asks, gesturing up to the moonless skies.

"… If she passes out on the night of the new moons then it'll be dangerous for her to be out and about. But… if she still holds her consciousness and awareness then…" Anko pauses, unsure of what she should say. "If nothing profoundly wrong occurs aside from her losing all of her youki and her hanyou form… if she proves capable of fighting even in her weakened state then all missions will resume as normal."

"Six months… six months and she doesn't even tell us about what happens on the new moon nights," Tamashii grumbles below his breath.

"For the time being hold nothing against her. It is possible she doesn't know what happens if she is always asleep when it occurs." Anko fiddles with her trench knives, recalling the cold savagery of her student when she comes to life with the rising sun. Her perfect blend of demon and human returning, icy blue eyes melting into dark brown hues that glint angrily at no one in particular before bleeding into the red violent hues of her wolf hybrid for a too brief of a moment. The pure instinctive movements of her student as she proceeds to take down Suterareta - using nothing but her body and her blades.

Her students settled down to sleep, their body exhausted from the long night and the exceedingly longer day. She herself had to use a soldier pill to keep up her stamina or else she'd collapse somewhere at the border or just beyond it. Fighting the annoying blonde woman with the whip had taken more than she liked. Then trying to hold Suterareta in a genjutsu - not an easy task and it just drained her more than before.

Is there anything to excuse the fact that she lost one student to a Demon Hunter, led her other two students into the heart of enemy territory to take her back, and all three of them losing their innocence in a situation that could have been avoided in the first place? As she ponders this she has to tell herself that no, there is nothing to excuse it.

Tsukiko lays her head in Anko's lap, sensing the woman's turmoil as she silently berates herself for the mission. A simple escort mission twisted into… _this._ Her youngest genin unconscious and unlikely to wake before they arrive in Konoha. She couldn't tell if the genin was hiding away from the fact that she killed a man or if there is something wrong inside of her.

Did her body shut down because of the lack of youki and will be better when she wakes in the morning? If she wakes?

She didn't have any answers and that worries her more than she likes.

The night begins to drag on slowly for Anko, her mind almost begging for her to sleep. But someone needs to stand guard and she didn't have enough chakra to spare for a kage bunshin. She considers asking Tsukiko to keep an eye out for danger but the pup has been largely untested and she didn't want to tempt fate any more after the past two days. So she forces herself to stay awake.

She can do that… right?

* * *

Oretzi jerks awake at the familiar sound of Tsukiko's yelp, icy blue eyes blinking blearily at the dark area above her. Cruel laughter bounce around her as her comrades scramble to get out of the tent - right, that explains the dark area, she's inside a tent. But why is someone laughing?

"Mita-chan!" she hears her companion howl as two simultaneous cries hits the air.

"Hey, boys, lookie here. There's two fine pieces of meat for us to have fun with!" she hears someone laugh before another person orders for someone to check the tent.

Sleep wars with her instincts as she forces herself to stand, the tekagi-shuko's blades slipping out just as someone moves the flap. Reacting she swings her hand, blood sprouting from the three deep gorges in his neck. As he falls back she forces her traitorous body to move forward and out of the tent, blood splattered across her face and body.

Icy blue eyes almost glowing in the dim skies, slowly lightening as the sun begins to climb over the horizon, struggling to pierce the night gloom. Coldly noting that Tamashii is unconscious with a bolt to the shoulder and a knot at the back of his head - testifying that two people had gotten behind him while he was distracted, that he hadn't had his Byakugan activated. Hoshi, her long hair twisted cruelly in a dirty man's hand, is forced to kneel in front of the man. Anko…

Her blood started to boil at the treatment the older woman was undergoing, her blood tinted with some kind of poison that the snake mistress apparently has no partial immunity to. Even while going through the torture of whatever poison in her bloodstream she was still struggling. Still fighting as a group of three men try to beat her into submission.

_'Not yet,'_ some part of her whispers as she makes to stop this. There was four men in total in the clearing, with one already dead. Where is Tsukiko? _'Find her.'_ She turns her gaze away from the torture to find her small companion limping, gnawing at the arrow embedded in her hind leg. _'Save her.'_ She slips through the shadows and - wrapping a hand around her companion's muzzle to silence her whines and yelps - yanks free the arrow as careful as she can afford to be.

Tsukiko's muffled howl of pain before she sags against the hanyou, the injury closing quickly thanks to her rapid healing. "Get the man holding Aki-chan," Oretzi orders the wolf pup once she has her footing. The blood stained blades of her tekagi-shuko weapon sliding out of their vambraces. "Kill him," she adds when she feels the pup's hesitance.

"Nee-chan?"

Oretzi looks at the pup, her icy blue eyes morphing into the dark brown hue as the sun finally triumphs over the horizon and begins its ascent into the sky. Her features returning to its typical every day appearance. "Not right now, Tsuki-chan. Aki-chan needs you. Mita-chan needs me," the girl tells the pup who nods her head quickly before enlarging her form so that she's the same height as Oretzi. The pair go separate ways.

Oretzi, using the kage bunshin no jutsu, summons up two look a likes, her face pale in the morning light. Not enough, not enough chakra for this. She nods her head at them and they each grab a man, vanishing with him to leave Anko alone in the clearing with Tamashii and Hoshi as well as a cooling corpse by the tents.

Pain grips the woman and she can't do anything at first, her body rebelling against her, before panic wars with it.

Kami, where is _Oretzi_?!

She has to force herself to move. To go to Tamashii and tend to the injury in his shoulder with Hoshi stirring from where she had fallen to after Tsukiko attacked the man holding her hostage. How many people is Oretzi going to be forced to kill before she is ten? Is she going to be like Itachi before he turned traitor - before he destroyed his own family and took away his little brother's happiness?

"Sensei?" Hoshi whispers, her voice low and almost broken - the terror of what the men wanted to do with them possibly catching up to her.

"Everything's fine," Anko promises her, her eyes scanning the trees around them. She feels a bit better than she had before but is it enough for a kage bunshin? Can she trust her youngest genin to return to her mentally sane? She looks back down to Tamashii's prone form and beckons Hoshi close, her hand wrapping around the shaft of the arrow. This moment similar to what happened in the hotel room - sensei and student looking at each other at the stark reminder.

Anko nods to the genin who already has the Shosen no jutsu activated and mentally counts down before yanking the arrow out, pressing down on the boy when he jerks awake with a cry. Hoshi quickly applies the jutsu to his shoulder while Anko looks around - worried about Oretzi.

Where are you?

Fire flickers, roars, and claims everything that dares to fall within its embrace as the tall thin form of the hanyou stands nearby. Burning flesh flooding her sensitive nose - ensuring that it's the only thing she smells for hours to come.

She yanks off the shirt and pants, wiping off the blood splattered on her face and arms, before tossing the soiled clothes into the burning pyre. They don't even deserve that kind of honor.

She looks at the burning crosses with the four men strung up, their gutted remains littering the ground. Eyes, tongue, lungs, hearts, stomach, intestines - any of the major organs have been removed by hand, her weapons long ago tossed away to ensure that their blood doesn't ruin the leather. She rubs her hands, feeling the dried blood and the guts that lingers under her nails.

She blinks - the red shine fading away quickly now - as she takes in her surroundings.

She has killed again…

_'I wanted this,'_ she thinks as she surveys everything. _'But does it justify anything?'_ She senses her companion before she feels her weight against her leg. _'Death… so easy to deliver it upon some hapless fool.'_ She reaches down to curl her fist in the wolf's ruff. _'Will I keep my humanity or will I lose it to the world that I have chosen to immerse myself in?'_

"Nee-chan?"

"Hai?"

"Are you okay?"

"…" she looks at the pup who stares back at her with her golden eyes. "I worry. I worry that I will lose my humanity and become cold."

"Why?" She looks at the wolf pup, having looked away to stare at the burning crosses and their burdens. "Why do you worry? You won't be like **them**."

She smiles ruefully at the mention of 'them'.

The demons have stories about the ones who have lost their sanity. The ones humans often encounter the most. The Fallen Ones of the Demons. Lost in their insanity, lost in their rage, destroying anything that comes across their path. The worse of all demons. Even if demons generally hate humans they rarely ever leave such an obvious path of destruction. The Fallen - they have lost everything and are usually on a suicidal run. They are rarely expected to snap out of it.

"… There are worse things to be," she confesses softly. "**They**, in some part of their brains, know that their time has come and willingly rush for the blade that might kill them." She flattens her hand against Tsukiko's ruff and runs her hand over the contradictory fur. Silky and yet coarse.

"… What… what do you mean?"

As old as the pup looks like now Oretzi is reminded that she is still young. After all, she is only six months old. "Don't worry about it right now," she tells the wolf before deciding that it's time to leave. "Let's go back to the others."

"Nee-chan, what about the fire?" the wolf asks as she trots after the hanyou, the fire still blazing hot behind them. The black flames calling out seductively for the young girl.

She pauses as if the question just threw up a wall in front of her. "It'll go out on its own," she answers, her body obeying the mental order to keep moving. Tsukiko turns her head to look at the four pyres and the organs strewed around - spelling out a message. 'Death to all who harms Mitarashi Anko.'

The fire licking at the organs, etching the message permanently into the ground for the years to come.

'There are worse things to be… know that their time has come and willingly rush for the blade that might kill them.'

Tsukiko never felt worried like this before. Has the slip begun?

"Gaki!"

Oretzi smiles - the lift of the corners of her lips halfhearted and distant - at the worried woman. Her eyes distant and almost blank before Anko grabs her by the shoulders and stares worriedly into her dark hues. Dark clash with light for a long moment before she blinks, realizing something. Anko was looking for something. "Anko-chan," she mutters, the smile becoming more animated. The distant look fading somewhat under her sensei's look and touch.

"…" the woman doesn't say anything. Just shook her head and pulled her into a hug, muttering something too low, too soft, too everything for her to understand. Which was strange considering that it was said right next to her wolf ears.

"… I wanted this but…" Oretzi mumbles softly. The older woman didn't need her to clarify what she meant, or what she was talking about. Five people died by her hands, their blood painted on her palms - possibly etched along the lines.

"It doesn't get easier," she tells the girl, absentmindedly rubbing the sensitive ears and sensing the hanyou practically melting into her embrace. Either because of the comfort or because she's rubbing her wolf ears. "Some will tell you that it becomes easier. But they're often the ones who are the most messed up. Kakashi reads his porn. Asuma smokes. Gai… well, he's a bit self-explanatory…"

Oretzi pulls away, her dark eyes lit with understanding. "Drinking and your mask," she mutters softly. Remembering the moment when she and Hana had found the older woman utterly smashed and jeering at someone for some remark he had made. She had seen a new side to the woman that she had never seen before. She knew that she was stubborn, short-tempered (she did eat Anko's dango on more than one occasion), hyperactive. But she had never seen her brash and downright cruel like that before. It had called to fore her wolf, causing her eyes to glint a brilliant red as she meets the drunken woman's gaze. As something passes between them silently.

She was, and still is, not ashamed of Anko's reaction - of her actions despite the whispers around them. Of them whispering that Orochimaru has left his mark on her sensei. That she just proven it to them once again. She remembers the dark scowl on Anko's face at those whispers. Yet in her eyes she could see her insecurity - the hate she has for being compared to her former, traitorous sensei. She could remember it and she can taste the anger that had surged forward at their comments.

How dare they - she remembers thinking - how dare they compare Anko to Orochimaru? It was like comparing a child to their parents! Expecting them to be just like them! Good or bad!

She had wanted so bad to destroy everything around them, to make them realize just what they were doing to her. She was trembling with so much anger, so much rage, she wasn't surprised to know that it took the combined efforts of Hana and a slightly sobered Anko to drag her away from the scene and somewhere else from the prying eyes of society. To a place where she could just let it explode from her - and she did. There was a patch within the forest surrounding Konoha that will never regrow, not for the next hundred years possibly.

"Yes," Anko answers, nodding her head once. She could see the distant look in her student's eyes again so she gently shakes her. Gentle, what has she been reduced to by this one girl? "Listen, don't pull away from your team. They are here for you. They are your friends and your teammates. And I'm here as well," she tells the girl.

A light sparkles in Oretzi's dark hues for a moment. "Hai, Anko-chan," she whispers before she leaves to help take down the camp and destroy the ruined one as well as the cold corpse of her second kill.

Within half an hour all traces of their stay in the clearing as well as the life spilled has been erased with the trees the only witnesses to the violence that had occurred within their homes. The small humans and demon vanishing as they continue on for their own home.

_**And... that's an happyish ending right? Right? *goes to hide anyway***_


	18. Chapter 18

_**Here's your second chapter tonight! And I want to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited, and followed! I'd normally put your name up but I had a lot of guests so I can't really do that. Plus I've been busy lately. You know the drill!**_

_**Chapter 18**_

Oretzi looks up at the gates leading into Konohagakure and… felt dead inside. It was hard for her to believe that just a little over a year ago she had been standing in front of these gates - hopeful that the Hokage will grant her permission to begin a new life there.

The team made their way to the Hokage tower to make their reports. Well, everyone except Tsukiko whom Oretzi had sent straight home to the Inuzuka compound to deliver a message to her mother. Now that the pup can speak using human words communication should be easier between the Inuzuka matriarch and the wolf pup.

She felt out of place in her clothes. The shorts the last of her specially treated clothes, the shirt borrowed from Tamashii after the fiasco with Suterareta and the five men in the clearing. It was too large for her thin frame and acted more like a night shirt than anything else. The hem of the shirt dropping all the way down to her mid-thighs, hiding the shorts that she wears and making it seem like she's not wearing anything beneath the shirt.

Within minutes the team is standing in front of the Hokage, trying and ultimately failing not to look scuffed up. His ancient eyes seeing them and was worried about what happened on the trip. So Anko told him a brief and to the point report of what occurred on the mission and only about the mission. Including the fact that Suterareta had attempted to kill one of their own and that they were unable to capture him but the man no longer lives.

"I see… How are you feeling Oretzi-chan?" the kind man questions the young hanyou.

"I'm feeling… well, sir, if I must be honest I don't feel like me," she tells him, her face completely neutral yet her voice carried a tone that convoyed her concern.

"Well…" he looks at her teammates and requests them to wait for her in the room outside the office. Each of them look reluctant but obliged - each one of them touching the young girl in a manner to show that they're worried and trying show her comfort. Once the door closes behind them and Oretzi has taken a seat Sarutobi sighs. "Do you see, Oretzi-chan, why I was reluctant to assign assassination as your team's purpose?"

"Hai," Oretzi mutters before taking a deep breath. "Sir, I know that it may not seem like I am prepared to take on the burden that comes with this. Maybe I'm just a bit too young to handle my emotions around it. But I still want to continue down this path."

"Even if it seems like you are losing bits and pieces of yourself?" he questions her sincerely.

Dark brown eyes meets his for a moment, a heavy sort of silence hanging over their heads. "I… I am still young and I hope that I never lose the ability to think that killing is horrible." She ducks her head, "I have heard of people who kill simply because they want to. They have become so numb to the act of it and convinced themselves that they love it. Or maybe they really do love it." She shakes her head when she realizes that she had begun to ramble. "I don't want to become like that."

Sarutobi sighs, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "For someone so young you see things that most would not begin to see," he comments. "You have a wisdom that most elders envy for and I can see that your innocence was lost long before you arrived here into our care." The hanyou's eyes meet his for a moment and he could see into their depths before they were carefully shuttered from him.

"In any case, in light of the events following your team's mission it is best that you retrieve the next two months off." He holds up a hand to ward off her protests. "It will not just be you alone, Oretzi-chan. According to your sensei your fellow teammates committed their first kills. At least two each. Four altogether and I do not wish to begin to consider what is going through your companion's mind as your sensei have also explained that at least four died by her…" he trails off as he tries to find the right words.

"Jaws?" she offers helpfully.

"Ah yes," he nods his head. "And you yourself have killed…" he trails again as he tries to get an estimate. "Suterareta is one," he mutters under her breath, "and four of the five was taken care of…"

"I believe it was five, sir," he is interrupted quietly.

"Right," he nods his head. "You have taken care of five men alone - without aid. It is understandable that you would be… concerned." All he got to that was a long heavy sigh. "In any case, please inform your teammates that the three of you have the next two months off. Sent back your sensei please."

She leaves the chair and bows briefly in front of him, taking his request as a dismissal.

She spared as little words possible to Anko, simply informing her that the Hokage wants to see her once again, before telling Tamashii and Hoshi that they have a two month break from missions.

"Well that's no fun," Hoshi grumbles under her breath.

"But considering everything that happened on this mission," Tamashii starts thoughtfully, "It'll be a relief to get some downtime."

"Just be grateful we're not at war," Oretzi comments, getting two identical looks. "What?"

"Nothing… it just… that was a really valid point," Hoshi mutters softly.

"You say it like I don't have valid points often," she pouts at the older girl. Instead of being answered or reassured the two older genins start laughing, making her scowl at them before she throws herself into a chair, her arms crossed moodily.

Of course, nature has a way of making sure that no one ever gets a chance to brood because a hurricane force known as Inuzuka Tsume barreled her way into the waiting room with Kuromaru right behind her. Upon recognizing her mother Oretzi made a noise similar to 'eep' - which has the unfortunate reaction of bringing her mother's attention to her. As one Tsume and Kuromaru practically 'stomped' - a strange feat for a dog to do, funny as hell too - their way over to the hanyou.

She falls off the chair and scrambles back quickly before Kuromaru pins her down with his weight, getting an annoyed and panicky whine from the girl. Within seconds of that she is scooped up in a tight hug that made her realize something.

She felt cold. She has been cold.

Her jaw tight and teeth nearly grinding against one another she curls her fingers desperately into her mother's jacket, burying her face into the coarse material. Her long tail curling protectively around her waist as she whines lowly, everything from the past two days catching up to her.

"I'm here little one," Tsume whispers comfortably, having gotten the whole sordid story from the pup's companion. She intends to have words with both the Hokage and Anko the second she gets the chance.

But instincts dictates that she cares for her pup before she deals with the issue. With a look to her companion she walks out of the room without a backward glance. Hoshi and Tamashii, having fallen silent with the appearance of their teammate's mother, looks at the large wolf-like dog.

Something told them that the second their sensei leaves the office she'll get an earful from the Inuzuka ninken. What they couldn't figure out is whether they should stick around to watch the fireworks or head home to deal with their respective families.

Looking at the ninken's disgruntled expression and body language Hoshi decided that as much as she likes to watch the fireworks she'd better go and face her parents. She tugs briefly on Tamashii's arm and walks out of the room with him at her heels.

* * *

For nearly a week Oretzi was not left alone, surrounded by the pack of Inuzuka dogs, with her mother practically hovering over her. Tsukiko couldn't take their constant presence well and disappeared on the second day to go to one of her teammate's homes for the time being. The little hanyou knew that when she finally decides that enough is enough she'll have to track down her companion to bring her home.

She's yet to find it suffocating because when she did get a moment alone she felt like she was drowning. She didn't care, if she really thought about it, that she killed to protect her precious people. What she cared about was the first kill. He was of no danger to them and to herself, yet she killed him. Simply because she had a deal with a wolf demon that constantly plague her dreams on the night of the full and new moons. A demon that used to proclaim to the skies that she'd destroy her own world by her own hands. Why did she trust it in the first place?

_'The man's life in exchange for the knowledge to master your demon.'_

She couldn't tell if it was worth it, killing someone who couldn't even defend himself by the time she laid the final blow. She already had great control over her youki and as far as she knew her demonic instincts doesn't even interfere that much with her life… right?

Half another week went by before Oretzi encountered her little brother in the family training grounds, practicing the Gatsuuga with Akamaru. By that point half the pack have been sent off to perform various tasks by the matriarch, allowing Oretzi to have some more breathing room while at the same time showing that she is recovering from what had occurred on her mission.

"Hello, otouto-kun," she greets amicably, dark brown hues studying her little brother's jutsu. It seems to be a bit weak overall but slowly improving with every use. Akamaru's jutsu was a slight margin better than his human companion. But she was impressed that they've mastered the Juujin Bunshin no jutsu already. If it wasn't for her sense of smell she wouldn't be able to tell them apart.

As it was she was already tangling her fingers into one of the two Kiba boys. The one to her right scoffs at her. "You can't even tell us apart?"

"Oh, otouto-kun, you'd think that by now that you'd know that you can't hide your scent from me," she retorts as she continues her attention. "Besides, you and I both know that of the two of you I like Akamaru better." She smirks at the henged pup, "Right Akamaru?" She gets a happy expression from the henged puppy so she gives him one last ruffle before turning to face her infuriating little brother.

"Honestly, Kiba-kun, you'd think by now that you'd lose your attitude towards me," she sighs, shaking her head.

"You are not my sister," he growls.

"On the contrary, I am your sister. Your half-sister," she says coolly as she picks at the dirt beneath her nails. Her eyes glinting a brief gold color as she keeps her gaze on her nails. After several months she was finally able to detect when her doujutsu is about to make an unbidden appearance. She has better control over it by this point but her emotions still tend to cause it to surface without warning - though she can sense when it is and avert her eyes briefly until she regains control over it.

"Until my otou-san comes back I don't believe you," Kiba retorts, causing her to roll her eyes.

"So you'll keep going against our okaa-san?" she questions drily. She wasn't in the slightest bit surprised by Kiba's words by this point. His attitude unchanging over the course of the past year.

"She's not your okaa-san!" he shouts angrily.

"Keep telling yourself that, Kiba-kun," she waves off as she leaves, bored with the conversation.

"Fight me!"

She turns to look at her little brother with incredulity. She glances at Akamaru's face to see that he has a stunned look at his friend's rash exclamation. First she points at him, "You're asking me," she points at herself before pointing at him again, "to fight you?" She shakes her head. "Otouto-kun, that has to be the most idiotic idea I've heard from you yet."

"Fight me or else I'll never acknowledge you as my sister," he retorts angrily.

"It's not that big of a loss for me, otouto-kun. The way I see it, you're not worth my time or energy since you insist on being like this," she shrugs her shoulders. "I have better things to do than to tend to your pride over the fact that our otou-san wasn't faithful to your okaa-san." She makes to leave, not even bothering to conclude that since Tsume had chased off their father there was by no means any expectations for him to remain 'faithful' to his former partner.

However, Kiba is young and she wasn't in the mood to rip away this precious image he has of his father. Though if he continues down this path she'd gladly rectify the issue when he's a bit older and hopefully mature - if not by a small margin.

"So you're a coward huh?" She stops in mid-step, "You know, I overheard okaa-san talking to Hana-chan. Seems to me that you're running away." She turns to face him, her eyes blazing gold now. Yet she has yet to catch him in a genjutsu as she barely restrains her emotions.

In terms of appearance it looks remarkably normal if it wasn't for the brief flash of a triangle appearing over her pupils. When her eyes are normal she lacks the typical slits common among the Inuzuka clan but when her doujutsu - which is still unnamed - is activated she gains slits that seems to terrify most people once they regain their senses.

"Want to say it to my face?" she questions him, drawing up to her full height - standing roughly a full foot above him.

"Yeah," he sneers as he gets up into her personal space, her body radiating tension and aggressiveness, "You. Are. A. Coward." With each word he pokes her hard in the chest.

With the last word she snarls and punches him, throwing him back a good eight feet. She reaches up and pinches her nose in aggravation. "Do you take pride in the thought of killing people," she questions him, her voice level and cold, as he picks himself up to throw himself at her. Her words causing him to pause.

"Do you take pride in the fact that once you become a shinobi you sign all rights to your humanity over to the Hokage? He could very well assign you to the task of killing someone who _will_ remind you of maybe Okaa-san or even ane-chan. Hell, maybe that person will remind you of _someone_ you care about." She gives him an icy glare when she sees him start to say something.

"Do you think you can take a life without breaking down?" she growls before forcing herself to calm down. "If you can then by all means, call me a coward. At least I'm trying to make sure I don't lose my humanity." She whirls around and stalk off, her tail swishing angrily behind her.

Stunned by her words Kiba sits there, thinking. Never noticing that Akamaru left sometime during Oretzi's rant - if that's a proper word for it - or that he brought Hana and their mother to him.

"So you think Oretzi-chan is a coward?" he hears their okaa-san say from behind. He whirls around to find her staring menacingly down at him. "Do you like to share your reasons on why you believe such a thing?" He desperately shakes his head no, aware that if he said anything he'll get a good lecture - read that as thrashing - of his life.

"She's your age, Kiba," Hana starts darkly from Tsume's left, "She's nine years old and she killed five people on her own. Can you do that without Akamaru by your side?" She's already shaking her head, either to answer her own question or in disbelief that he would think so lowly of his slightly older sister. "You would've broken down too, if you did what she did," she adds before excusing herself, deciding that checking on Oretzi is more important than giving his little brother an earful. She'd leave that to her mother - she always did have a better way with words than herself.

Hana ended walking all the way to the back of the compound where there is nothing but trees as far as the eye can see. She can smell her little sister but the initial look around does not reveal her so - recalling that Oretzi has a strange fondness for climbing - she looks up. "Imouto-chan," she calls carefully when she sees a hint of movement in one of the branches.

"Hai?" A soft rustle occurs above her head before the girl appear in her line of sight. "Ane-chan?"

"Do you want me to leave you alone?" she asks carefully, trying to keep her tone neutral to keep the concern out. The hanyou had spent nearly two weeks being smothered in concern and love and she knows that the approaching full moon will have her on edge soon if not now.

"… Ane-chan," she hears her imouto mutter and she takes that as an invitation to join her. So, carefully applying her chakra to her soles, she walks up to the branch where the younger girl is sitting and kneels next to her, ruffling the girl's wild hair. "Nee-chan," she hears her whisper before her face is buried in her shoulder.

"Shh, it's okay," she mutters to the trembling girl.

"I wanted to hurt him," Oretzi whispers. "He made me so mad…"

"But you didn't," she reassures.

"But I did… I wanted to… I could've pushed just a little," the hanyou whispers, lifting her hand up to reveal that her tekagi-shuko is strapped on and with a small push of chakra the blades popped out, "I could've killed him if I wanted to."

Hana could hear the concern and worry in her imouto's voice. It was clear to her that the fact that she wanted to hurt their otouto and that she had such an easy access to killing him made her fear for her own sanity.

"What happened to make you this way," she whispers to the girl.

"… Have anyone ever told you to never make a deal with a demon?" She blinks at her words, looking down at her sister in concern. "So many things can go wrong or… there's unintended consequences to making the deals," Oretzi continues quietly. "I… I can't figure out what was my unintended," she whispers, staring at the distant ground beneath them. "Was my unintended the loss of my innocence for something I could have learned on my own?"

"Oretzi-kun…"

The little hanyou turns her full attention to Hana. "I wonder if it was worth it. But… I've come to a realization that wondering about the 'what ifs' doesn't make it any better." She pulls away from Hana and crosses her legs. "I'm not going to get over it easily but I know that brooding about it isn't going to help. The best I can do is learn how to channel my demon. If that demon actually came through with its side of the deal then I'm sure the information will come around when its time."

Hana reaches over and ruffles Oretzi's hair. "That's the best any of us can ask for," she tells her little sister. "Now, c'mon, we should get back to the house."

"What about…"

"Listen, you didn't hurt Kiba-kun. You may have wanted to but you didn't," she tries to reassure her. "I know that he doesn't treat you like he should. But until he learns to keep his mouth shut or figures out that he can trust you you'll continue to feel aggravated by him. But I know that you will never hurt him aside from an occasional punch or two."

Oretzi sighs and looks at her sister, smiling slightly. Then a mischievous look appear on her face and she is up on her feet on the next branch. "Last one home cleans the kennels!" With that she's gone while Hana is cursing, scrambling to her feet and rushing to beat Oretzi home.

Needless to say the younger Inuzuka girl was exempted from cleaning the kennels.

Let it be a lesson to everyone: Don't race against Oretzi. Stamina plus speed equals loser for everyone else.

"Dizzy," Oretzi mutters as she stumbles before plopping onto her butt with Tsukiko doing the same. It takes them a moment to recover from the sensation of having the whole world shifting around them, the hanyou rubbing her face as she resists the urge to close her eyes. Past experience told her that doing so makes the sensation worse.

_"Nee-chan, why do the Inuzuka clan like to spin so much? Do they really like to chase their own tail?"_ the transformed pup questions, Oretzi's dark brown eyes looking back at herself.

The hanyou shrugs her shoulders. She didn't know why they do it either. They had mastered the Gatsuuga roughly two days after Oretzi finally decided that moping around isn't helping her. But the Gatenga was harder because it was similar to doing a tuck and roll - but at a speed similar to Gatsuuga.

"I don't know, Tsuki-chan," Oretzi sighs as she sprawls out on the training ground, closing her eyes briefly. She could feel her chakra and youki. The heavy density of her white youki that reminds most - if not all - humans of the bark of a tree always lurking beneath the lighter but strangely enough darker colored chakra. Like oil to water, respectively. She call feel - sense it really - that her youki has condensed in the last several hours with the approach of the night.

It was the night of the full moon and with every hour that vanishes the heavy sensation of her youki seems to wrap around her. Had Tsukiko been looking at her the pup would have said that her eyes are slowly adopting the red hue that she had bear witness to on the trip to Sunagakure no Sato.

"What do you think about going back inside?" the brunette finally asks after lazing around for a bit. By that point the Juujin Bunshin no jutsu have faded, leaving the pup back in her original form. Now roughly seven, or eight, months old Tsukiko have gained some inches to her size as well as some weight. The tiny gain she has managed to achieve made the pup happy beyond belief for it meant - to her anyway - that she won't stay small forever.

_"Do we have to?"_

"As much as I'd like to be outside it'd best we head in," Oretzi sighs, picking herself up. Dusting off her clothes and straightening them to the best of her ability. "C'mon, I think Okaa-san has dinner ready."

_"But she can't cook!"_ Tsukiko protests as she runs behind the jogging hanyou. _"My stomach always growls when she cooks!"_

"Are you sure that's not because you're still hungry?"

_"It's because she cooks horribly!"_ Oretzi turns around to say something to her companion only to start laughing. She had no chance of stopping so, expecting the worse, Tsukiko turns her head slowly to find an irate Inuzuka Tsume standing behind her. _"Uh-oh…" _the pup mutters before disappearing, leaving a Tsukiko shaped cloud behind.

"I swear," Tsume grumbles under her breath, aware that her daughter is still in giggles over what just happened. "You'd think she'd be grateful that she even gets food."

"She's a wolf, okaa-san. Cooked food isn't exactly the most appetizing thing for them," Oretzi reassures her, having a preference for raw or rare meat on the nights of the full moons.

"She's going to have to learn," Tsume sighs as she ruffles Oretzi's hair, noting for a moment that it's growing out a bit. In the front it is close to touch her daughter's nose and in the back it was just now starting to brush against her shoulders. "Do you want a haircut after dinner?" she asks.

"Hai," the hanyou replies cheerfully as she fights to get her hair back into some resemblance of order. The longer the hair the more likely it'll refuse to obey. It doesn't help that it still retains some manner of wildness as it grows out. Even if she was to mimic Hana's hairstyle she'd still look like she's Tsume's lookalike.

"Why do you dislike long hair anyway, pup?" Tsume asks as she gestures for her daughter to walk in ahead of her.

"They get tangled up in the branches or in the bushes," is her only reply - and considering she spent five years growing up with the wolves it's no wonder she despise long hair on herself.

"Well… it looks like you could be quite a looker if you ever decide to let your hair grow out," Tsume teases her, getting a protesting whine from her daughter before she shoos her off to the dining table.

Shaking her head she grabs the main dish - with Oretzi's own portions set aside - and carries it out to the dining table. Returning briefly for the side dishes and Oretzi's plate. Oretzi smiled gratefully at the older woman and mutters something quietly. Hana, sitting across from Oretzi and next to Kiba, chuckled as she helps herself to some of the food.

It was somewhat peaceful at the table, even with Kiba's sullen looks.

"So, Oretzi-kun, when are you going to go to your team training sessions?" Hana asks, aware that since they have returned from Sunagakure Oretzi had not gone to any of the meetings. Choosing instead to brood around the compound - at least until recently. Now she trains in the Inuzuka clan's jutsu - having already mastered the Juujin Bunshin no jutsu with no need for the Shikyaku no jutsu. From the casual observer Oretzi's use of the Gatsuuga is similar to any of the other Inuzuka's but to Hana and Tsume's eyes hers was more potent. Simply because the girl typically ends up using her youki whenever she uses it - willingly or unwillingly. As a result the youki burns her victims as she slashes at them - making her attack all the more dangerous for her victims.

On one hand the matriarch considers training Oretzi to use only her chakra for the Gatsuuga and on the other hand she wants to let her follow her instincts. The first option enables her daughter to train with others as she works to perfect the jutsu - now that she has already mastered it - while the second one enables her daughter to inflict as much damage as possible in as little time possible.

"I think there's one for tomorrow," Oretzi answers as she cuts into her bleeding steak, her eyes unknowingly shining a bright red color as she glances up at her sister. "Tamashii and Hoshi have taken to dropping by when they are heading to the grounds," she adds in. Her two teammates have been worried for her and have tried to get her to talk to them since their return. "It's time for me to stop cutting myself off from the world," she says casually.

Hana frowns before glancing at their mother. It was almost common for the hanyou to gain a near cocky stance about the world around the time of the full moon. A subtle change that starts in the week leading up to the full moon before the wolf burst free from her.

"Are you sure you're ready?"

Oretzi smiles - a strange mysterious smile - and shrugs her shoulders. "Ready or not I still have a month left before I return to active duty. I plan to hone my skills with my teammates." She looks down at the plate in front of her. "Besides, I chose this path," she whispers before finishing off the last of her meal. She turns her attention up to their mother. "May I be excused?"

"Hai. Remember, you need to be in your room before nightfall," the older woman tells her. Oretzi nods her head before taking her dishes up to the sink - quickly washing them before vanishing up the stairs with a whistle. Shortly after she disappears to the second floor Tsukiko appears briefly from outside, her claws clacking against the wooden floors. Before Tsume could say anything about the dirt she was bringing in the pup disappears up the stairs and the matriarch is left sighing as she shakes her head.

"That girl," she mutters halfheartedly.

There was no words to express the constant contradictions that makes up the girl's personality. She exists in a way that no one can ever truly express, embracing the world for all it is and yet subtly holding everything at a distance.

It made her worry, the distinct feeling that her daughter is maturing too quickly and not developing enough morals to hold herself together in the years to come.

Nightfall came and found Oretzi stripped down to nothing, sitting in the corner of a bare room. After what happened on the way to Sunagakure she had demanded to know everything that happens when she transforms into her half demonic state. What is the right term to call it? Anko had once called it her 'wolf hybrid' form on the account that she looks like a blend between wolf and man - woman in her case.

Her arms long and ropey - scrawny and muscled - and her legs _changed_ to appear similar to wolf's hind legs yet afforded her the ability to stand upright if what Anko said is accurate. Her tail as long as her arm and she can hazard that it enables her the ability to stand like a human. Fully transformed her hands would be humanoid paws capable of manipulating things, with sharp claws ready to gut her hapless preys, her feet similar to paws - no more and no less. Her head fully changed to give her the fearsome appearance of a wolf, her muzzle long and vicious when she snarls.

When the moon raised from the horizon and begun its ascent a loud earth shattering howl shook the compound. The two Inuzuka women standing at the door. They could not begin to fathom why the girl was not slumbering now - the music playing through the door.

"She should've fallen asleep already," Tsume mutters worriedly as they hear the transformed girl thrash the stripped down room hidden in the center of the house. "Did Anko mention any difficulties when you went to visit her, Hana-chan?" she questions.

"Nothing. All she told me was that Oretzi fell asleep whenever she hummed."

Hana was worried, she could hear the savage growls, the violence of the transformed girl as she threw herself around. She can imagine that as she fought for freedom she slashed and bit at anything she could. It would be a matter of time before she broke free if they do not manage to calm her.

"Go get Anko," Tsume orders gruffly, suspecting that something is happening. A subtle change in her daughter and what can calm her. If she is right in her guess, it will result in plenty of changes in the near future.

_**Anyway, I'm busy nowadays and I'm trying my best to finish the next chapter (20) to give it to ya'll quickly! Have a great summer! Leave a review is there a question for me and I'll try my best to answer!**_


	19. Chapter 19

_**Writers block is horrible. It took me awhile to finish chapter 20 just to get chapter 19 out. Though I am disappointed at the no reviews. Oh well though. In any case ya'll know the drill. I don't own anything except those you don't recognize from the show.**_

_**Chapter 19**_

"Oretzi-chan!" the shop keeper greets the young hanyou when she steps into his shop. Tired brown eyes meet the excited man and she makes her way to Higurashi, smiling friendly at him. "Long time no see!"

She chuckles softly. "Yes, it has. Almost two months?" she wonders half to herself, the mission to Suna had taken roughly a month and she had spent another month hidden away in the compound before she came out prepared to face the world once again.

"Just about yes!" he exclaims before he disappears into the back. Puzzled by his actions she scans the shop briefly before hearing his return. "Here, I finally got these to work right!" the man says cheerfully as he sets something down on the counter. She turns to face him before smirking, pleased.

"Awesome!" she cheers as she scoops up the boots, turning them this way and that to examine the black leather and the buckles to secure them shut around her calves. She touches the leather with her chakra, smiling with glee when the blades snick out with a low hiss. A single blade has popped out from the toe of the boot. "Wicked," she smiles before placing them on the counter. "I'll have to get them treated when I get the chance," she comments.

Higurashi doesn't ask about it, used to her comments like so. "Oh, Oretzi-chan, do you need me to do a performance check on the _Black Deaths_?" He gestures to the tekagi-shuko weapons currently adorning her forearms.

She blinks and glances at them, having become so accustomed to their weight that she forgotten that she had chosen to wear them. "Ah, thanks for reminding me," she mutters as she undo the buckles. "They were damaged on that mission I went on just over a month ago," she informs him, "but one of the Suna-nins went and got it repaired for me."

He gasps dramatically, swooning in dismay. "You allowed another blacksmith to touch my babies?" he exclaims as he reaches for the weapons, his fingers seeking them before Oretzi even starts to hand them over.

"I didn't request for the repairs," she reassures him before taking a moment to demonstrate something to him.

Higurashi gapes at her, staring at the tekagi-shuko weapon in shock. "They- They fixed it!" he says in awe as he studies the weapon in earnest. She smirks, chuckling in amusement, at his reaction. The hiss had been a long rival for him since she acquired the weapons and commented on the hiss. It was very quiet for most shinobi not to notice but she wasn't most shinobi and after she pointed it out he realized their one and only flaw.

Behind her she hears the bell tinkle, prompting her to turn to see who it is. To her surprise she finds it to be Anko. "Sensei," she greets with a friendly smile.

"Oretzi-kun," is what she gets along with narrowed eyes. She shrugs her shoulders with an impish smile as she turns back to Higurashi.

"So when can I expect these back?" she asks, distracting the blacksmith from his precious creations.

"Mmm…from what I can tell the weapon smith that dared to touch my babies is an expert one - I would be surprised if he or she was from my generation," the man mutters while Anko leans in to study the craftsmanship, her presence just barely touching Oretzi who instinctively tilted to her.

The heat radiating off this woman was a comforting one and something she instinctively sought no matter what. She wanted her warmth to flood her veins and keep her safe for the nights to come.

When did she get so selfish?

"So…" Oretzi prods the man with a light smile.

"Ah right. Give me two days," he informs her before disappearing into the back with her weapons. She sighs and shakes her head.

"Go figure," she mutters, "The day I decide to return to training is the day my weapon ends up in the workshop."

"We probably should get you a second pair of those," Anko comments as she ruffles her student's shorter hair. She gets a quick whine as the girl shakes her head, her wild locks falling back into place easily now that they have been trimmed. "Mm, I think I liked your hair when it was longer," she mutters half to herself, already reaching over to ruffle her hair again.

Oretzi blinks and looks up at the woman as her hair is ruffled. "Anko-sensei?" she winches when she gets a quick pinch at her human ear. "Gomen. Anko-chan?"

"Hai?"

"… Why are you here?" she asks just before Higurashi shows up with a slim package in his hands.

"I'm here to pick up something," Anko answers simply before accepting the package from Higurashi, telling him her thanks. "Now, are we done?" she questions the girl. She gets a shrug as the hanyou picks up the pair of boots and waves her byes to the man. "Where are you off to?" Anko asks since the training session is not due to start for another hour.

"I need to drop these off at Yamanaka's Shop before I head over to the training ground." She lifts up the pair of boots.

"You're going to start wearing footwear?" Anko was surprised and amused at the same time. She knew that the girl loves the feel of the dirt and ground beneath her soles.

"Might as well start," the girl sighs, shaking her head. "Plus side? These have a blade in each," she grins mischievously.

"Ah-ha, that's why you picked them up at Higurashi's," Anko chuckles. She was amused by the fact that her student had made a request for such a weapon. "Well, let's get moving," she cheers, slinging an arm around Oretzi's shoulder

Oretzi let out a confused whine as Anko leads her towards her nee-chan's family shop where her father currently tends to the Monkhood plant. Harvesting its seeds to grow it when the plant is eventually exhausted. Oretzi has to visit every once awhile to apply a dose of pure concentrated youki for the plant since it does not need air and water like most plants do. So long it receives a dose at a consistent basis the plant will survive for a long period of time.

* * *

Oretzi growls angrily as she slashes at the air, her youki channeled through her arm and out of her hand in a fashion of claws. Roughly twenty feet away the dummy post is destroyed. She scowls as the post falls into five pieces, rolling her eyes in dissatisfaction. The sun's descent to the horizon has left her feeling extremely irritated at everything. She wanted to unleash all of her youki and just be done with it.

Nearby Tamashii and Hoshi watched their youngest teammate destroy the training ground in a fit of anger while Anko sighs, shaking her head at the girl's display. Last night Oretzi had nearly destroyed her safe room in her fit of rage while transformed and it had taken Hana retrieving her - Tsume instructing her to sing or hum something, _anything_ really - to calm the young girl down. She was worried that nothing would calm the girl down if it isn't her and yet at the same time flattered that Oretzi's regard for her held her up so high that nothing else would calm her.

It seemed to her that being worried was the safer option of the two. Constantly having to remind herself that the girl is only nine years old.

"Oretzi," she calls for the girl's attention, already retrieving her special kunai weapons as the angered hanyou turns to face her. "Let's dance."

The simple phrase has the girl sliding back into a simple stance, her white youki already pouring out of her like… well, Anko didn't know the right word to describe it so she didn't bother. In either case the youki has begun to coat the girl's frame, adding size to her thin body. The girl drops down to all four, her body telegraphing her frustration - her irritation - at the world in general. Silently asking for a challenge. A challenge she wonders if she is still capable of providing.

Blade meets dense youki, a flurry of movement mostly unreadable to the two genins sitting at the sideling, adding in their own comments before they get a chill down their backs. Aware of what that means they quickly leap into action, starting their own spar far away from the frenzied actions of their sensei and teammate. Often they wonder if Oretzi will end up leaving them in the dust - often they wonder if they should be jealous of the girl's rapid ascent in power and strength.

But then they realize the drawbacks to the girl's strength and power - realize the costs she is constantly paying as she becomes stronger. Neither of them knew the girl before they were formed into this three men cell. They don't know how she was before she began to train in earnest - they don't know the sacrifices she has made to be accepted into Konoha, to become a citizen of Konoha, to graduate from the Academy to become a shinobi of Konoha.

They don't know any of this but Tamashii once mentioned that when he looks into Oretzi's eyes he sees a woman - not a child, not a girl but a woman. He sees the person behind the mask. The girl is so matured beyond her years that it shows in her eyes despite her attempts to shutter them off to the real world - portraying herself as this strong, mischievous, and downright funny girl. He sees all of this but has no idea how to broach the topic to the girl.

Hoshi cannot see any of this so readily but she knows something about people - after spending so much time people-watching. Hoshi can sense Oretzi's ability to keep an eye out on her surroundings when she should be enjoying her childhood. She can sense that she is world wary and often wonders what it is that makes her hold the world away from her, what makes her accept only a select few into her inner sanctum.

She had pondered this long before she adapted her friend's form as her own for the Sunagakure trip. It was then she discovered the scars and aches that Oretzi never complains of - each one of them telling some kind of story. The aches in her forearms and thighs - in the bones themselves - hinted that they have been broken or fractured once upon a time. The long scar across her abdominal, a long twisting thin scar across her left ankle, and deep puncture marks at her left shoulder. The last two just barely visible in any of her forms - just barely showing any hint of silver when she is transformed into her wolf hybrid form. She has to wonder if eventually the scar on her abdominal area will eventually fade and cease to be such a noticeable feature when she Change.

But then it leads her to thinking about the scar hidden within the girl's hair and - according to the girl - she had retrieved it when she was only five years old. Roughly four years ago. The puncture marks were older than the one hidden in her hair but had more youki to heal it before they were expanded elsewhere. The one on her ankle was younger than the one in her hair but was far more severe - once again, there was sufficient time for it to heal most of the damage before she was forced to draw on the youki for a different task.

Oretzi refused to explain why her youki was never allowed the proper chance to heal the wound that left a scar on her head but whenever Hoshi tries to think about the reasons there was a deep burning sensation along her back, spreading down her left side. Often she wonders if thinking about the old injuries makes some kind of phantom pain raise up to taunt her.

Even when she's not clad in Oretzi's skin she remembers the phantom pain from various injuries. Without the memories of the incidents that gave her those scars, those broken bones, she has no idea if those pain are as sharp as when they were first laid upon her body. Or if they have dulled with time. She has no idea but whatever the case may be she wish that it would leave her friend be.

Hours passed by them before the sun is nearly setting - forcing the team to cease their actions as they realize the time. Oretzi stood there, her untreated clothes long ago burned away by her youki. Despite the fact that a vast majority has been sealed away there seems to be an endless supply of her youki that day, enabling her to continue the spar against Anko using almost only her youki.

Dark brown hair partially hiding away her eyes as she gaze up to the skies with Anko approaching her from behind. "Another day gone," she mutters, her thought lingering on what is to come. She doesn't fear it, the Change that will take place soon. She remembered a little bit of the night before. Of the rage that took over her senses and demanded freedom. She did not want to be trapped within the compound - away from the trees and the fresh air. She did not wish for the imprisonment that her family unwittingly makes her suffer through.

For the first time in nine years she knows what occurs on the night of the full moon and wonders briefly if this was borne from the deal she created with the demon. In that form instincts occurs first before rationality and she ended up raging against being held against her will, away from everything. It wasn't until Anko's voice pierced the night that rationality won over and she was able to calm herself down - reassuring herself that she wasn't in a prison.

"Another night approaches," she hears Anko finish behind her. She nods her head, crossing her arms across her chest. "Best you start heading home, gaki."

"Not tonight," she shakes her head, turning partially to face her sensei. She could see the surprised look on her face. "Going back to be locked away is just going to make me upset when I finally Change."

"Your family will worry. They may believe you will get into some trouble," Anko comments, worried by what the girl is intending to do.

"I know… but I almost destroyed that room last night. When I heard you…" she turns her head away "it felt that everything would be alright again. It calmed me down enough to rationalize that no, I wasn't in a cage. That I wasn't going to die away from the trees and skies and the moon…"

Anko sighs, rubbing her face for a short moment, before making her decision. "Very well then. I'll just have to stay here and make sure that you don't get up into some kind of mischief."

Oretzi laughs softly, grateful to have her by her side. "Just don't put me in that jutsu again," she reminds the woman, remembering that she still have the cuffs on her - hidden away in a seal on her left shoulder. The second Anko activates the jutsu the cuffs and chains will reappear in its full usage, binding her until the jutsu has been undone in its entirety. That, she realizes, is infinity worse than the room. At least in the room she had freedom. In the chains she has none and is left in the mercy of her jailor.

"Will do," Anko promises her, seeing the shadow of insanity lurk beneath those eyes at the thought of the chains.

What were they doing to her? Were they slowly unraveling her with their attempts to keep her safe from humans? Or were they inflicting invisible damage to her in their attempts to keep themselves safe from her wrath?

What was the truth? What was the answer?

Anko shook away the thoughts and - with a squeeze to Oretzi's shoulder - she leaves her be for the time being, choosing instead to inform her other students of Oretzi's intent to stay in the grounds for the night and to request for them to inform Tsume about her decision. Both wanted to stay and help but after a quick word - read that as bops to the head - she was able to convince them to go home and return in the morning with clothes for Oretzi.

So with great reluctance they left to perform their tasks and Oretzi was left alone with Anko. Already she had stripped off her shirt and had begun to unravel her bandages. The sun already inching its way down beyond the horizon, the skies painted a variety of colors that would make a romantic swoon.

She turns her attention away from her young student, sternly reminding herself that she's too young, too everything for her.

What nature of this…

NO.

She shakes her head and refuses to think of it. Nothing good would come of following that thought.

* * *

Night has triumphed over the land and Oretzi stood transformed, her eyes a solid blood red. There was no whites to be seen, no pupil, nothing. Just a savage red color that gazes upon everything with a cold rage. Yet as she stood her nose catches the scent of trees, water, and glorious air. The burning desire to destroy quelled under the scents and she lowers herself onto all four, breathing in nature deeply.

Anko stands nearby, her eyes amazed by the calmness radiating off her student's transformed self. She stays quiet, however, recalling the last three times she had been caught outdoors with the wolf. The second time had been a far more intimidating experience with the girl chasing her for a great deal of length before she activated the jutsu on her. But having her snarling at her face, her maw snapping just inches from her own nose as she tries to calm her using her voice, made it hard to focus.

She once asked the girl what she smelled like - thinking that there must be something that made her chase her like a hated foe - but to her surprise she found that her scent reminded her of home. Of the breeze laden with fresh water and pine trees. It wasn't until later that Oretzi revealed that there is a deep underlying scent of snakes - a scent that appears briefly at extremely random moments.

At Anko's look of confusion Oretzi tells her that she doesn't know why the scent of snakes is so fickle but she knows that she knows when it appears and left it at that. The first time it happened after the incident in the forest Oretzi points at her:_ "Why?"_ she had shouted, _"Why do you smell like __**snakes**__?!"_

It was then, during the pain of her curse seal flaring up, that the jonin realized what was happening.

She had to explain to her that she has a curse seal branded on her neck - a parting gift from her former sensei, Orochimaru. The anger that rose up in her eyes stunned the jonin and before she can question her about it or even calm her the girl's expression became stony and the matter was left alone.

Anko hums quietly, drawing the wolf's attention, and as she hums Oretzi walks over to where she sat. She watches the girl curl up next to her, her large heavy head resting in Anko's lap. She listen to her breathing, amazed that just by humming she can calm her so much that she is lulled into a deep slumber.

She reaches for the girl's head, idly running her hand along the silvery streak on her forehead, starting not too far from her eyebrow and stretching between the two ears. A good six inches long and at least half an inch wide. She remembers how the girl retrieved the injury and found herself wishing that she could turn back time just so that she can massacre each and every one of those fatalistic idiots for daring to touch the girl!

1She wanted to keep her safe, to keep her far away from the idiots that would want to hurt her. She wanted to do a lot of things - some of them were questionable simply because it would raise a few eyebrows at the actions. But she has to refrain from coddling the girl because she can sense her need to prove the world that she is capable of standing on her own two feet.

She has to respect her wishes and trust her to do what is right.

The question is, can she?

* * *

The months slowly passed the team by. Their days filled with training and doing mundane missions. Some were D-ranks, others were C. But none of their missions ever required them to take a life - something Hoshi and Tamashii were grateful for. In addition to perfecting their respective chakra control and mastering their jutsu their konbijutsu improved a great deal. Now that Oretzi's reluctance to use Katon jutsu have all but disappeared Hoshi and the hanyou are able to use their two elements to their fullest potential. And because water and air are great conductors for lightning a jutsu from both elements are capable of magnifying Tamashii's attacks a great deal.

To counter Tamashii's lightning Oretzi would often retort to using Mokuton - Wood Release - by causing plants or sometimes trees to grow suddenly in front of her. She also demonstrated the ability to manipulate the plants around her into shielding her. It was really quite fascinating to watch and downright irritating when facing against her. Oretzi often spend time outside their training sessions playing with the plants, quietly asking them to shape themselves this way or that way.

Strengthening her knowledge of the plants so that she understands what each will be capable of doing for her. Trees are the hardest to manipulate - in her own personal opinion - because they have already formed and need a great deal of conviction in order to be changed from their position. Yet perfect for shielding or holding hostages if she can will them just right. Vines or ivy, anything that grow loosely by wrapping around other objects are better for her to manipulate into wrapping around people as they sprout out of the ground.

In the months that passed the three genin grew in strength, remaining in the circulation as Anko refused to let them try for the chunin exams until they met several criteria of hers. First and foremost was that they needed to complete at least ten C-rank missions: that almost has a checkmark. Second, they need to master at least 5 elemental jutsu - in Oretzi's case five of each element: this one has received a checkmark across the board. Third and most importantly was that Oretzi is to be at least ten years old: another checkmark that is almost ready to be put down.

It was for that reason alone - to finish off the first requirement, after all they only need one more C-rank - that the team stand before the Hokage, a mere month before Oretzi's tenth birthday. Nearly a year has passed since the group's first C-rank mission and the team have done a great deal of growing since.

Oretzi's thin and scrawny form has gained another four inches - placing her at 5'8" - and is still underweight for her height. No matter how much food she packs away she burns away the calories faster than she can consume. Her muscles - after nearly two years of training - have become like steel cords beneath her skin. A hypnotic dance occurring beneath her skin. By this point of time she has mastered some of the Inuzuka's jutsu with her companion, Tsukiko. Who has now reached Kuromaru's size and looking quite proud of herself as she holds her head up high as any wolf borne from the alpha and prima of the Lunar Wolves would do. Despite the increase in her size she is still considered a pup by the wolf society.

She stands roughly at the Oretzi's hip, just a bit shorter, her fur a beautiful shade of silver and white. Proud purple eyes gazing calmly ahead. Because she is a female her body is slimmer compared to most male wolves at her age, her body made for speed and agility rather than brute strength.

Tamashii, standing at the same height as Oretzi, is roughly twenty pounds heavier than her. Of pure muscle and very little fat. After a near incident with a stray Katon his long hair has finally been shaved off in a loose military fashion. Not quite wild or spikey - though he does look good when he styles it into spikes at his teammates' insistences - his hair typically flops into his face without any byes or whatnots. While Oretzi looks tall and lean he looks tall and _muscled_. When he finally did away with the Gentle Fist - retaining the knowledge for the rare few enemies he'd like to face using the family style - he began to develop muscles in his legs and arms as he is forced to rely on strength and skill instead of mostly chakra.

Hoshi, forever cursed to be the shortest of her teammates, stands at a height of five feet and two inches - gaining only a single inch in the past two years since she was assigned to the team. Her long hair has been braided back at Anko and Oretzi's insistences, with a few bangs escaping the confines. Hazel brown eyes glinting mischievously whenever she looks at her friends - a fair warning for them to check their surroundings for some kind of trap or tripwire. In the year since their first C-rank she has taken it upon herself to make sure her team gets some kind of laugh, even at their own expense. Therefore there are usually some kind of prank just waiting for them to trigger in a moment of relaxation. She once caught Oretzi with a triple trap that turned her hair and fur completely red and the streaks black. She had looked like a red haired stepchild with a rebel streak. Another time she took a picture of Tamashii shirtless and gave the picture over to his fan club - cursing him to have to escape them for a month.

Anko, out of everyone in the group, has changed the least. She still curse up a storm that would make a sailor blush - incidentally still earning Oretzi a whole shipload of money by that point - and drink with an ease that could make any other drunk on their ass by the time she declares that she has had enough. Not quite drunk enough for people to slip in remarks that would have them dead but not sober enough for her to keep her inhibitions about her. In other words, piss her off and she'll do things to them that would make them wish they were dead.

All of them - except for Tsukiko of course - are dressed in black clothes of varying styles. Oretzi's consists of a pair of loose pants to enable freedom but not so much that it would create noise as she moves and a semi tight shirt. Tamashii's consist of semi loose pants and a tight muscle shirt that seems to be painted on. Hoshi's consist of a loose shirt and an even looser pair of pants - having learned well from her time as Suterareta that it is best to be safe rather than sorry in terms of clothes. Anko - for this particular mission - was wearing loose fitting pants, a fishnet shirt that show more than it hides, and a black trench coat instead of her usual tan.

In all, they look prepared to do some major sneaking around.

Sarutobi gives them all a long studying look. In one hand he looks pleased at Anko's conservative outfit and the fact that she isn't bursting in through his window. On another hand he wonders if it is now has been spread evenly between her three students, all of whom looks ready to wreck some kind of havoc in his office. He just counts himself lucky that none of them has chosen to burst through _something_ to enter his room. He had a high repair bill thanks to Anko and didn't fancy the thought of having to repair five holes instead of one.

"I can see that everyone is here now so I'll begin the briefing," he starts needlessly as he shuffles around a few paperwork. "Typically I'd give you an escort mission, however," he pauses as he finds the scroll that he was looking for. "I'd like to test your abilities on something so…" he hands the scroll over to Anko who breaks open the seal and glances over the details. "There is a slavery ring operating within the borders of Hi no Kuni and the Fire Lord has requested that we put an end to it. After many attempts it was decided that it is best to infiltrate the base from within and systematically destroy it."

Oretzi's neutral expression twist for a second to reveal the slightest hint of a frown before smoothing over. The hackles on Tsukiko are quick to raise to the occasion and despite the hanyou's absentminded hand smoothing over them they refuse to flatten. A growl is yet to be issued but their tense movement spoke loudly of their dislike of the slavery ring.

For anyone who doesn't know them one would assume that they were eager to begin the hunt - the glint in their eyes seeming almost maniacal. Yet to their teammates the reason for their looks and their tense bodies was quite obvious. They didn't need to call upon a Yamanaka to know that they can already visualize the haunting image of chains, shackles, and bars.

"They target young girls in their teenage to early twenties," Anko mutters as she focuses on that particular detail. Her blood already going frigid as she realizes the Hokage's intention.

To her right, at the farthest end of the line, she can see out of the corner of her eye Oretzi's body tensing even more. The girl isn't a fool, she would be able to figure that out quickly. She grits her teeth in silent aggravation at the situation, aware that Oretzi, Hoshi, and herself will probably end up playing the bait for the slavers.

"This is a dangerous gamble you're intending, sir," Oretzi states in a low voice that practically vibrate with a growl.

"It's a gamble that I have no choice but to make," the elderly man sighs. "Tamashii and Tsukiko will be required to stay out of sight as a precaution for those within direct danger," he goes on to explain.

Anko, reading along, frowns when she sees something, "You want us to pose as simple ladies in a village estimated to be targeted next by the ring." She looks up at the Hokage as she rolls up the scroll. "We won't be able to keep any of our weapons or supplies in order to keep up the guise." They were to enter a mission with little to no available weapon with only a single genin as backup. She could see a lot of things wrong with this picture.

Was the Hokage overestimating her students' abilities?

_**Don't kill me for the kind of mission I've sent these kids onto. It needed to be done! Though I am kicking my own butt for coming up with this idea. Anyway, please leave a review!**_


	20. Chapter 20

Long time no see folks! I'm glad that I got some reviews lately. I wanna say thank you to those who left me a review lately. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. And I apologize if it seems like it was jumping around too much. Anyway, I don't own any of the charas except the ones you don't recognize! Enjoy! Chapter 20

Dark.

Wet.

Fetid.

Cold.

There are a lot of words she can use to describe her surroundings.

But the one thing that she ends up focusing on the most is the one that has her on the edge of panic and rage. Mostly panic. She has to force herself to stay calm. Or as calm as she can be.

Chains.

Thick heavy chains slung across her body and around her arms, secured to the ground. Normally that is something overdone for most 'humans' but after five near breakouts on her part the slavers have figured out they have caught something that needs a bit more _something_ to keep her in their grasp.

Hence the chains.

A low rumble starts in the depths of her belly before growing steadily louder.

Another issue for her to think about. Food. She hadn't had a decent meal in almost three days. Her mind told her that they're starving her to keep her weak and defenseless. Already she can feel her metabolism working on her body fat. Her okaa-san was going to be pissed that she lost weight - again.

* * *

Light. Bright light floods the cage and nearly blinds the young girl listing at the edge of sleep - startling her out of the slight slumber she has fallen into. She splutters against the cold water that has been carelessly tossed over her, tossing her head to fling the wet bangs out of her face. Her eyes glinting in the flooding light as she glares maliciously at her jailors.

Rank body odor clods her nostrils as she fights to her feet, the chains holding her down from her true height. She strains against her bonds before she feels rough hands across her, provoking savage growls from her. Large arms wrap around her neck, squeezing her windpipe ever so slowly.

"Behave, _girl_, or I will let my men have their fill of your body," she hears someone rasp into her ear. The implications behind that cause a shudder to escape her emaciated form and she forces herself to go lax.

Apparently satisfied that she is complying with their intentions her jailors snaps on a collar around her neck, costing a brief growl to raise up in defiance before she forces herself to remain still. The men undo the chains on her and drags her out of the dark cage that has been her 'home' for nearly a week. Her lean form has been nearly reduced to skin and bones, making it easy for her 'masters' to cart her to and from any place of their heart's desire.

Yet to her surprise she finds herself thrown into a tub filled with hot water. Hands yank at the ragged clothes and she fights against them before she hears a familiar voice whispering at her.

_Anko._

She stills her body and blinks her eyes to find a similarly collared Anko kneeling by the tub, her hair down from their usual spiky ponytail, framing her face and sweeping past her shoulders. Water and soapy bubbles have been splashed upon her face but nonetheless it was a familiar one. Dark brown eyes blink at her before Anko gives her a small reassuring smile.

Now that she knows who exactly is touching her she remains still as the older woman washes her hair and her body. She could hear her sensei's soft 'tsk' at the amount of ribs she could count and swears that the woman said something about her okaa-san.

"This is the girl?" she hears someone say. She turns her head towards the speaker to find a tall blonde woman, her hair swept back into an elaborate hairstyle. Cold hard blue eyes glinting down at her. She could estimate her to be roughly 5'10 in height with average weight. Before this mission she probably would have beaten her in a fight but now, with her lost weight, she can bet that she'll either a) struggle with it or b) get beaten.

The woman is dressed in an elaborate dress that seems too fancy for such a surrounding but Oretzi could sense a kind of danger lurking within the woman's body. Much like her own she would guess.

"Yes ma'am," one of her jailors answers the woman, bowing to her in respect.

"Didn't you feed her enough? How is she to be of use to me if she can't even stand on her own two feet?"

"Ma'am, our apologies. We fed her once a day, I swear, but…"

"When was she caught?"

"Not even a week ago, ma'am," the man promises as Anko runs water over Oretzi's head to rinse off the soap. Spluttering at the suddenness Oretzi shakes her head, spraying water everywhere to the man's disgust. "Why you little-!"

His threat is cut off and she looks up to see that the blonde woman has gripped him by his throat, lifting him a good four inches off the ground. "You will not lay a single hand on her, Hideyoshi," the woman growls. Her words causing Oretzi's hair at the back of her neck to raise. She nearly bares her teeth in a silent snarl at the woman before fighting the instinct down, having spent an entire week getting beaten or splashed with icy cold water for it. She watches the woman turn to face her, a strange smile appearing slowly on her face. "This one… she's special. She'll go all the way," the woman comments in a low voice.

"Ma'am?"

"Take her to my private chambers after she is bathed. Tell the servants to prepare a meal for four." The man looks prepared to protest this but a sharp glare from the blonde woman has him shutting his mouth and she gestures for him to leave. Once he is gone she walks over to the tub and kneels down so that their eyes are level. "Tell me, little one, what is your name?"

Oretzi blinks her eyes owlishly for a moment before tilting her head. "Bedloyn," she finally answers, pronouncing it as 'bed-lo-in'. "Ookami Bedloyn." If her mother or her pack was to hear the words leaving her lips they would be shocked that she would name herself as such.

"Bedloyn… Yes, I suppose it will suit you in these next few days, little one," the woman says softly. "I am Nalika. That is all you need to know." With that she stands and walks out of the room, leaving a pale hanyou in her wake.

"Gaki?" she hears her sensei whisper as she leans in again, "What just happened?"

"Kami-sama…" the girl breathes, shuddering not because of the water but because of the name that had been whispered to her. "She is the dark path which people would tread upon to their own demise," she whispers.

"What?"

"Names… they have power in the demon world," Oretzi mutters as Anko rinses her back off. "Oretzi has, depending on the pronunciations, means savior or destroyer. Bedloyn simply means killer. But… Nalika…" she shivers and crosses her arms defensively across her chest. "It means… It has the same meaning as Yami or Shinigami." She ducks her head, "_Reaper of Souls_…"

"Gaki…" she looks up to find Anko frowning thoughtfully at her before gesturing for her to stand. "I wish I knew what to say to fix this. But we're no closer to finishing this mission than we were a week ago. Whoever this Nalika person is, just keep your head down and your ears - all of them - open."

"Hai."

Anko hands her the clean clothes and helps her into the pants when it proves that a week of the bare necessities have taken a toll on her. "Remember, Oretzi, Hoshi and I are here. We're in the shadows," Anko reminds her, "just make sure that when this is all said and done you'll be able to go home in one piece."

This time the young hanyou simply nods her head as she leans down when bidden. Before she can say or do anything she finds her head covered by a thick and sort of fluffy towel. In a heartbeat her hair is viciously rubbed dried and as the elder woman yanks the towel away her hair 'jumps' alive, wild as always. "Nani!" she protests as she attempts to smooth out her wild mane. Anko smirks at her before backing away to the door just barely visible to the naked eye.

"Remember what I said, gaki," the purple haired woman tells her before she leaves the room.

Alone in the room Oretzi glances around at the simple area with items purely for washing off. With no visible items for weapons she goes to the other door and knocks, aware that the man, Hideyoshi, should be on the other side.

She didn't fancy the idea of having to go to Nalika's personal chambers but she also doesn't fancy the thought of returning to the cage that has been her home for the past week. At least, she assumes it was a week. It is hard to keep track of time when kept in the dark.

The man appears in the doorway and without a word escorts her away from the room with a rough hand. If she thought it was possible she would assume that the - surprisingly - shorter man would be frog marching her down the corridors. As it was he kept an extremely fast pace that made it hard for her body to match easily. So by the time they have arrive at the door to Nalika's chambers what little energy she had mustered during the bathing was gone and she was exhausted, just about listing to one side.

That's how Nalika found her when she answered Hideyoshi's knock. With a glower at the man she ushers the exhausted hanyou into her chambers where four trays of food awaits them, two on one side and two on another. With the doors closed behind them she forces the girl to sit before claiming a seat on the other side.

"Come, come, eat," the woman encourages as she begins to eat.

Yet the strangest thing, she could not identify a single thing on her plates. The scents foreign to her nose but it triggers a deep hunger. Her eyes unknowingly shifting to emit a reddish glow as she picks up a nearby leg of meat. Acutely aware of the fact that the blonde is watching her she begins to tear into the food. Her face shifting to a more wolfish appearance, her canines lengthening and claws sprouting from her fingers as she ate.

She pauses when she hears a soft chuckle and looks at the woman, blinking.

"So… that's what you are…" the woman comments with a smug smile. The blonde shakes her head, "Of course, you did tell me your name but I do hate assuming things." Oretzi tilts her head to the side for a moment, her bangs sweeping into her face for a moment. "Wolf Killer," the woman translates with another chuckle, causing Oretzi to tense. "Of course, if we switch the name it would translate into Killer Wolf."

Oretzi frowns at the woman. "Nalika, _reaper of souls_, what are you?" she puts aside one cleaned off plate and leans forward. "I suspect crow for they deal with death and the afterlife the most. Yet they rarely interact with humans and the rare offspring from such unions have an intense dislike of humans due to their demonic heritage."

The two look at each other, studying one another. Oretzi was searching for signs of the woman's dual nature. For a hint of what demon line she hails from. Then for a brief second she found herself staring into golden feline eyes and her breath catches within her chest.

"Do you understand?" the woman asks as Oretzi leans away with a low snarl.

"What do you want from me?"

"Bedloyn," Nalika coos with a lazy smile, "You will become my weapon. My _personal_ weapon, to serve me. In exchange…" she trails off, motioning for the wolf hanyou to continue eating. "In exchange, I will ensure that you have no want of anything. In other words, instead of being treated like you have since your arrival you will instead be treated as if you are a queen."

"And what if I do not have any desire to be treated as such?" the hanyou questions suspiciously.

"Then I am sure we can come to agreement of what you will like as your payment," the woman waves her hand as if to dismiss the concerns the younger girl may have.

Oretzi didn't know what to say for a long moment but when she finally found her tongue it was to ask a single question. "What exactly would I be doing under your service?"

* * *

Blood.

Blood to blood, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Everything will return to which has given birth to it.

She thought of all of that as she stood over the eighth man she had slain in two hours. Each battle taking roughly ten minutes with perhaps five minute breaks for her. Blood splattered across her face and body. How many has she killed already in her life? It was five in that mission just eight months ago. Add in eight more and that rounds up to thirteen. Most would be impressed at the amount of lives she has taken already but she finds it saddening that people can't go without killing.

She accepts the towel from a random person, carefully wiping away the blood from her face as Nalika approaches her from the side. "I must say, Bedloyn, you are proving to be the right person to bear such a heavy name," the woman grins at her.

Dark brown meets cold navy blue eyes for a long moment as she takes a seat for a moment. "How much longer do you intend for me to play your gladiator games?" she questions, gesturing to the vast area walled off with a balcony area for the potential clients to be seated.

From the normal servants the men that are captured are typically thrown into a free for all death match. Any who survives or shows skills at fighting are normally hauled off by the guards that are stationed around the arena. The remaining fighters - the one with skills or luck - are then presented to the clients to purchase.

For some particular reason Nalika wants to demonstrate that she has **_the_** best fighter/slave and has tasked her in defeating whatever enemy is sent out. So far she has managed to keep her demonic visage hidden as well as kill using the weapons provided. Granted, they are of shoddy make but all she truly needs is one good hit. And, if they happened to break before that, well, so long she has at least two or three inches of the blade it'll work.

"I believe a nice round digit will work, mm?" Oretzi blinks at her and crosses her arms, waiting for her answer. "Two more should do the trick."

The brunette sighs and shrugs her shoulders. On one hand she doesn't care how many more she kills. While in the other hand she's worried about losing touch with herself. She also wonders who will be her next opponent.

The ninth man is slain within a minute of the start of the match, a young man not much older than Tamashii with rather mediocre sword skills. In some way she was grateful that Higurashi was willing to teach her some simple kenjutsu katas because otherwise she'd have lost already. It was perhaps a combination of both her skills at taijutsu and her limited skills with kenjutsu that kept her on top. It had been decided, before the start of the mission, to not use any jutsu to keep up the pretense of being average women - girl in her case.

"You're up again," she distantly hears someone say before she is practically shoved up and out of the seat. Straight into the arena.

Stumbling for a moment she turns partially to snarl at the person before turning to face her opponent.

…

No.

She stands tense at the edge of the arena where she can perfectly see her opponent on the other side. Dark purple hair framing her face. Her body hidden by the dirty rags that the servants/slaves are forced to wear. But after so many months working side by side she knows just about every curve.

No.

She growls as she fists her blood crusted hands into her hair. The gods must hate her - she rations - as she finds herself squaring off against someone she knows to be far, far out of her league. Not only that, the only way to escape from the arena alive is… is to kill.

She dare not whisper her name. She dare not acknowledge any attachment. Yet she can feel a strange twisting inside her guts as she takes up a sword, this one actually of a better make than the previous ones, and gives it an experimental twirl. She didn't want to do this, she'd rather kill herself than do something like this.

She looks up to the balcony above her. Where she can see Nalika's stern cold eyes staring down at her. With just a look alone she seems to be saying 'Do not fail me now'.

"So it comes to this," she whispers as she holds the sword loosely by her side as her opponent approaches her with slow steady steps.

"So it would seem… gaki."

She looks up into pupil-less lavender eyes and whines low in under her breath. "I don't want this," she murmurs, the noise of the clients masking her words from the guards.

"Treat this like a training session," the woman tells her as she adopts a semi-familiar stance to the hanyou. It takes her a long moment for her to recognize it as something she has seen the swordsman - the one who had hurt Naruto intentionally - use just before he slashed her abdominal area with his sword. Recognizing it as the basic kata for whatever stance she is using.

"You were an ANBU member," she breathes, beyond impressed that her sensei was part of such a renowned organization. She grins, having always wanted to join them after she heard from Iruka-sensei about some of their tasks. She loved the prospect of working from the shadows, obeying only the Hokage's orders. She could see him, see them all, as the alpha of the village, of the pack. Just like how her okaa-san is the alpha and Stalks the Night's mate, Bear Killer, is the alpha to the Lunar Wolves. Now that she has an idea of the extent to her sensei's skills and capabilities she can see no reason to hold back. "Can you give me a challenge?"

Anko frowns thoughtfully at her as they circle one another. "You want a full out fight?"

"The sky the limit?" she offers with a mischievous smile before it slips when she is reminded of their surroundings. "With death being the only restriction."

"Agreed."

So began their fight.

This time they did not check their strength or their speed. Choosing instead to do battle at full strength. Using anything except ninjutsu and genjutsu - anything that would immediately give them away. The blades sparking madly as they clash with one another. Mostly though, Oretzi retorted to taijutsu - as was her specialty - to preserve the blade for a later use.

They matched blow for blow, kick for kick, and Oretzi found that it is actually harder for her to match her sensei. It leaves her wondering for a moment about whether or not she'd be able to match and triumph if she was to draw on her youki and her full arsenal. The thought tempted her. Called to her and she barely fought off the temptation.

Anko swings her sword at her, snapping Oretzi from her inner thoughts just in time to barely avoid being disemboweled. "You're not focusing," the woman accuses her, causing the hanyou to wince. She knows just how much the jonin dislikes - read that as despise - people not taking a fight seriously or focusing. Just like she expected Anko renewed her assault on Oretzi with a vengeance, to remind her that losing focus was a deadly mistake.

It forced Oretzi into using the sword more often, the woman's blade sliding against her own as she deflects the blows instead of blocking or meeting the strike. Their swords moving in a graceful dance that only they can hear the music.

That is, until Oretzi trips over something and she goes down - just as Anko is swinging her sword. All of time slows down for the pair as the sword arches down with Oretzi unable to dodge the deadly blade. Red hot blood jets out from her small body, landing on Anko's face with a wet splat as she crumbles down.

She is vaguely aware of the collective gasp from the clients up above as she fights to pick herself up, a hand pressing against the deep gorge along her shoulder and halfway down the middle of her chest. Perhaps seven inches long. She could feel her youki straining to heal it but she had been forcing it down, spreading it thin as possible in all of her actions instead of using her chakra. In doing so she ensures that there isn't much youki presence within her body at any given time. The only downside is that when she truly needs it there isn't enough to keep her from bleeding out. That meant her body doesn't have enough youki to close it - slow the bleeding yes but not stop or heal it.

She manages to pick herself up, a hand on her injury and a hand on her sword. "That was a costly mistake on my part," she admits to herself as she holds her weapon properly, lifting away her hand from the wound to grip the hilt with both hands, the blood making it slippery. "I will not make it again," she vows, taking what little remains of her unbound youki and pouring it into her muscles, reinforcing her attacks.

She knows that her eyes have slitted and possibly took on the red hue as it often does when she gives herself over to her youki. The muscles bulging just slightly, enhancing the near ripcord like appearance of her arms and legs.

Their fight renew with a vengeance, the two women - though the term is used lightly concerning Oretzi - fighting one another with all of their skills. Despite Oretzi's youth compare to Anko the past two years training under the older woman has enable her to pick up a lot of techniques to keep herself on a fairly even battleground.

"What are you planning, gaki?" she vaguely hears Anko whisper.

"No holding back," she mutters just before she delivers a quick slash that catches her sensei across the chest. Blood splatters across her face, startling her out of her dark haze. Pupil-less lavender eyes stares at her, stunned, and she could only stare back. Her breathing shallow with disbelief as she realizes that she had acted too rashly.

She stops as her sensei stumbles back, her ears just barely catching the roars and cheers from the people watching their fight. It wasn't until she hears Nalika that she recalls where she is and what just happened. Almost immediately her blood goes cold and icy as dread grips her. As she falls to her knees she has to consider that it might be the loss of blood lending to the icy feeling.

She crawls the little distance to her sensei, falling forward onto the fading woman. "Gomen," she mutters, the black spots dotting her eyesight, her head resting on Anko's shoulder, her blood spilling from her malnourished body too quickly - pooling on the woman's skin, mingling.

As she fades she found herself repeating the word into the black murkiness of unconsciousness.

* * *

It took her awhile to regain the feeling of her entire body but once she did she is flooded with the memories of what she had done. Without another word she throws herself up, not even bothering to do a self-inventory as is customary for her - the counting of scars can wait until she discovers just what happened to her beloved sensei! She just barely manages to escape the blankets that had been covering her and darts for the door.

Before she can even grip the handle she is slammed into the sturdy door by someone, a hand gripping the back of her head in a vice. "Where," she hears the voice of her 'Mistress' whisper into her ear, "do you think you're going?" She has to fight the growl from rising up in her throat as Nalika yanks her back from the door and she is thrown carelessly to the floor. "Do you have any idea what you have done?" the woman growls.

"The fact that I am still alive tells me that I have won the fight," Oretzi tells her in a faux calmness. She knew, just as she knows her own body, that if she had lost the fight she'd found herself in chains once again and probably being tortured instead of resting in a bed that was softer than any other.

"That is not the point," the woman snaps.

"Are you upset merely because there was a moment of doubt of who would win?" Now that she isn't able to immediately run off to find her Anko she sought out the injury she had received from the fight. She knows by the lack of pain that the wound has managed to close and as she feels for it she realizes that it has left a rather deep scar. She can feel a slight ridge where it has not yet quite blend back to the smooth surface of her skin.

"Yet another point that I am not speaking of."

"Then is it because I did not kill my opponent? Or perhaps the fact I showed weakness?" she continues almost lazily. She honestly have no idea what is bothering Nalika exactly but did not wish to linger for much longer. Anko could be still injured or even dead. Her blood turned frigid at the thought of her possible death. She _needed_ to find her.

Something she said prompted the woman into gripping her throat and she is unable to resist the urge to bare her teeth at her. "Have your mother ever told you to never, _ever_, show weakness?"

"That would imply knowing my mother," she retorts, just barely smoothing her features back. She didn't like how Nalika's tight angry expression lost its sharpness as she pulls away. Had she struck some kind of hidden cord? Something to make the woman treat her just a little differently? In any case Nalika was looking at her with these eyes that she found she didn't want.

"In that case… perhaps it is time," the woman mutters before stepping out of the room. Leaving a puzzled Oretzi behind in her wake.

Desperate to know more about what the woman said she was torn between two desires. The answer to Nalika's mysterious comment or Anko…

* * *

"What do you mean you don't know where she is?!" Oretzi snarls into the face of the medic that had been in charge of her sensei. "Is everyone in this compound an idiot?! How do you lose an injured woman on the verge of death?!" She hated pretending that she is only there to finish off the deed. But the anger that she is venting now is genuine only because she want to know _where_ her sensei is.

"I'm telling you, Ookami-san, the woman was in no shape to be moved - not after your fight - so I left her alone for perhaps five minutes to check on something. When I came back she was missing."

She shoves the man away from her and snarls at him, "Take me to the room where she was held!" With her face perhaps partially shifted - as exhausted as her youki reserves are - she has no doubt that she poses a fearsome look towards the man, prompting him to scramble to the room in question. She yanks him back from entering the room once again, her hand gripping his shirt and holding her close to her own face. She takes a deep breath of his rather potent scent - cold congealed blood, old fashion medicines, and bleach - before she shoves him away from the doorway. "Leave," she snaps at him, watching him scramble away before she faces the doorway.

Once she is confident that she will not be disturbed any time soon she slips into the room and takes a deep breath. Abruptly sneezing several times in a row before she can stop. She forces herself to pinch her nose shut as she takes that as a confirmation. She searches the room for any signs before kneeling down to examine the underside of the bed.

She found what she was looking forward and palms the item into a pocket before walking out. As the 'gladiator' for Nalika she has more freedom than anyone else in the compound and even now she could not find her friend, Hoshi, within the quarters for the servants or the cages for the potential slaves. She could not scent her either. She wonders briefly as to what happened to the older genin but realizes that thinking on the matter would do her no help.

Instead she focuses on the matter of what to do about Nalika. The past week has shown her that Nalika is the leader of this slavery ring and that she has some kind of design for herself. She didn't understand why she uses the gladiator ring to eliminate the weaker folks and take the stronger fighters into her ring. After - of course - breaking them of their reasons of returning home to their villages.

She didn't really understand what Nalika is aiming for. But she has that eerie sensation that whatever she is planning spells trouble for the Hi no Kuni. So she can assume that her sensei would instruct her to get closer to Nalika - discover her plans and her weaknesses before taking her down.

Her only concern was… whether she can keep herself from getting emotionally attached to the woman before it is time to take her down. It had only been several hours since Nalika's mysterious parting comment but the moments since then has been strange for the young hanyou. She felt like she is standing at edge for some particular reason and every time she glimpses the woman in her walks she gets the strangest sensation that Nalika is up to something.

She just doesn't know if she's ready for whatever plans the woman has for her.

She wonders the compound for a long time, until it is nearly time for supper, before she is found by one of the guards who informs her that she is wanted by Nalika. With no other choice - now that she knows about the summons - she heads to the woman's personal chambers and knocks on the door to announce her presence.

"Come in," is the soft invitation from the other side of the door and she places her hand on the knob. She takes a deep breath to steady herself before turning it.

Time to face the woman and her plans.


	21. Chapter 21

**Hi everyone! Sorry about the long absence. It couldn't have been helped because of the whole 'lacking internet' issue. And when I did I was on a wifi that rejected access to the ff! How lame is that? Anyway, you know the drill! **

**_Chapter 21_**

She stares grimly at her hands, flexing the slim fingers for several moments before she finally turns her face to meet Nalika's gaze. "This is what you mean by that," she finally comments after being silence for several hours. She had never thought of something like this before. She found that it betrays everything she has ever thought of in the past ten years - well, less considering that children truly don't ever recall their thoughts from the time they are born to the age of three.

In any case, she found that the offer laying before her right this very second is so profoundly out of sorts with her beliefs of the past few years that she finds that it is difficult to… to contemplate this. She does not wish to… but doesn't she deserves the answers that could possibly come out from this?

Yet… does she want to make a deal? Another one after the fiasco of the deal she made with the wolf demon? She is still adjusting to her new found abilities unearthed by the deal and worries that the cons of this deal may outweigh the pros, especially since this one will change something inside her - in ways that the first deal had not.

"Indeed it is, Bedloyn," Nalika smiles at the younger girl, her cold eyes somehow reassuring despite the walls behind them.

"…How soon do you wish to have your answer?" she questions her, dark brown meeting cold blue. She has no delusion that this offer would not be on the board for long.

"Until the sun up on the Ostara celebration," the woman answers, "March twenty-first."

She stills her hands in surprise at that particular news. Her birthday. She wanted the answer on the day - the dawn - of her birthday. That day, if she kept an accurate enough estimation of the time she has spent in the ring, is due to come in three or four weeks. Regardless of _when_ her birthday is approaching there is still the matter of _if_ she should accept this deal.

More importantly, how was she supposed to finish this mission with her sensei out of the commission - by her own hands as well - and Hoshi currently MIA. She can only hope that Tamashii got to Aki-chan before something awful happened to her.

As she thinks about her sensei and Aki-chan she has to consider that this mission has gone on far enough…

Yet she still… she still wants to know.

"I can see that you are unsure of what to think," Nalika cups Oretzi's face and gently - how odd it is for the younger hanyou to notice that - tilts her head back so that their eyes meet. "That is why I am giving you a month to sort through it all." She runs a hand through the girl's wild hair. "I know what it is like, to not know who your mother is. We are kindred spirits, you and I. I would gladly fulfil my part of the bargain," she tells her before releasing her to leave the chambers. "Come, it is time we begin your initiation."

_Initiation?_

What had she gotten herself into?

* * *

Blood streaks down her body, mixing with her sweat, and she rankles her nose at the thought of the smell later when she begins to dry out. She dodges a swing instead and ducks under an attempted shield bash. Five men surrounds her, two more lays dead. Sixteen dead by her hands in the past year and a half. Twenty-one will be the number after these five are gone.

She hated the coldness that seeps through her body as she counts the numbers, as she keeps track of who dies and who lives by her own hands. She hated it but she found that keeping track of the numbers made her feel something. Maybe it's the coldness or maybe it's the knowledge that the lives she is taking isn't just a brief second in her life as she moves on. She knows that there will be people she kills that will absolutely deserve it. Nevertheless she doesn't want to be one of those people who just wakes up one day and realize that they have killed so many that they can only say 'countless' to express just how many.

She disarms a man, bash the hilt into the face of another, and kicked the third in the mid-stomach. She has found that the constant fighting with a sword has improved her techniques somewhat. She has only the basic of kenjutsu in her arsenal but the frequent fights has somewhat forced her into deviating from the original katas and creating her own style for the blades. Her body is still made for speed and agility and as she fights she uses the sword as an extension of her own body. Or at least she tries to. Sometimes she finds herself using rather flashy moves with the sword that requires her to part with it for some time to distract them - taking advantage of their moment of inattention.

If her sensei was around - she rations as she eliminates one of the five - Anko would be horrified at the flashiness of her moves and quickly rectify it all by teaching her a proper form of kenjutsu. Even if she didn't right away she'd still find a way to learn some because there is no way she will let the matter lay after having to rely on it so heavily on a mission.

Ten minutes after the start of the seven against one fight Oretzi stands victorious in the arena, her face slick with the blood of her enemies. She takes the edge of her shirt and uses the underside of it to wipe at the blood for a moment before she turns to face Nalika, who is clapping as she approaches.

"Well done, Bedloyn. I see that this past week has been a great improvement," the woman says with a feral smile. It may have something to do with the full moon that is expected to raise up that night. "I must say, it has been a great deal of pleasure watching you fight."

"You are aware that I am not as old as I appear to be?" the girl questions her with narrowed eyes as she suspect the woman of something. All she gets from her is a laugh as the woman shakes her head and wraps an arm around her slim shoulders.

"That is now how I meant it, my dear Bedloyn. I have no desire to steal such a precious thing from you," Nalika chuckles mischievously as she guides the younger girl back inside. "Now, come, we have much to do and so little time to finish them all."

She follows the woman into the compound and ducks her head when the woman attempts to ruffle her hair. She had to fight the urge to snarl a warning at her, needing to keep her separate from her personal life. And allowing her to do something that her friends and family have done is not going to keep her life separate.

She trails Nalika to her personal chambers, her eyes darkening for a full moment before she slinks up behind her. "Why do you run this ring?" she mutters quietly, unsure why she is giving her the chance to explain herself. She shouldn't, she knows that, but… after nearly two weeks of working by her she feels that she could not deny her a chance.

"Because… little one… the humans must pay for their recklessness. They are the reason why demons exist. They are the reason we exist." Nalika faces Oretzi and stares at her. "Demons exist because of humans' emotions. It is why the Bijuu are so powerful, they live off the negative emotions of the humans," she explains. "It's why we become so powerful when we hate so strongly."

"… Our powers come from…"

"Yes." Nalika shakes her head and holds Oretzi's shoulders. "There is so much you need to learn. It is good that my men found you when they did," she smiles reassuringly before she walks away. "Now, the moon should be rising soon. What say you to a run outside?"

She didn't know how to answer to that. Did she want to see Nalika's demon form? Who would be stronger? A tiger or a wolf?

She has to wince as she realize that the tiger will outweigh her. She who is just barely maintaining her own weight after losing so much. Ever so slowly earning it back but is still strongly underweight. "I'd like that," she finally admits if only for the fact that doing anything else would mean being stuck inside the compound while the moon rises. To be far from the fresh air and probably attack everything around me until I am free. As much control I have gained over my secondary form there is still that moment of irrationality as I fight for my freedom.

* * *

Pain lights up across the board as Oretzi's body shifts, her body expanding outward. Muscles bulging, bones snapping and reforming, as fur sprouts out from beneath her skin. Nails sharpening into claws, her teeth morphing into razor sharp fangs. Her eyes glazed over by a malicious red color. She could feel the wind blowing across her fur, she can feel the earth beneath her claws and knows that nothing can defeat the freedom of the wild.

She shakes out her body, bearing her fangs briefly at the transformed Nalika. While she herself looks like a werewolf whenever she transform Nalika looks like she is a person transformed into a strange hybrid of a human and a cat - more specifically a tiger. She doesn't look like a typical tiger either. She looks like the rare breed, a white tiger with chocolate color stripes, her tail twitching just slightly as she stares down Oretzi.

They stand roughly close in height, Oretzi being maybe four inches shorter still. She can easily tell that Nalika can beat her without truly trying but as she considers this she knows that she cannot play this game any longer. So she crouches down and growls at the woman.

**"So… this is your choice?"** the woman growls at her, her mouth forming the basic words needed for the demonic language.

**"Indeed it is,"** she answers with a sad tone. She has no other choice but to jump to the side when Nalika lunges at her, claws extended and attempting to swipe her. **"You must have known this would happen,"** she growls. **"My friends have been placed in danger because of ****your**** wants."** She jumps onto Nalika, her teeth finding purchase in the woman's ruff.

A battle of supremacy begins between the two hanyou.

The question is, who will win.

* * *

One lays dead. The other struggling to walk away, leaving a thick trail of blood behind as she stumbles about.

Claws morphing back into nails, paws reverting to hands and feet, muscles and bones twisting and returning to her usual form. But what if this form _isn't_ her usual form. What if it's her transformed form and the hybrid wolf she becomes every full moon is her _real_ form?

What if, what if, what if, so many questions with no real answer.

She shudders as she forces herself onto her feet and into moving. Four deep gashes scores deeply across her back, across her spine and into her hip. She had misjudged a lunge and her back was expose to the tigress for too long. She made too many mistakes. Too many.

"Tamashii…" she whispers breathlessly, stumbling blindly before her eyes roll up and she is out like a light.

The darkness rose up and seized her, claiming her and dragging her down as she collapses onto the cold ground. Her eyes just barely catching sight of something approaching her before she passes out completely.

When she regains consciousness she took a deep breath before a long series of sneezes force their way out of her. She barely manage to pinch her nose shut to quell the sneezes. Once she has her body under control she reduces the natural amount of youki concentrated at her nose before easing herself out of the bed. She was surprised at first to find that she is in a bed - not quite comfortable it it'd do for the purpose of providing her some meagre comfort.

Once she is confident that she will suffer no more sneeze attacks she release her nose and looks around this pitifully sparsely decorated room. It takes her only a second to realize that there are bloody bandages wrapped around her, needing to reach behind her to touch the bandages that have stuck to her back. She didn't feel any particular pain radiating from those injuries so she sat back down on the bed and worked on getting the bandages to loosen up from her healed skin.

Only to realize with dismay that her body had healed - absorbing the bandages into her. She has to cut into herself to get the stupid bandages out. She did not fancy the thought of having to do such a thing. But allowing the bandages to remain in her would be too dangerous so with a stubborn growl she cuts away the bandages and then cuts into herself to reopen the wounds enough to pry the bandages free.

Blood immediately spills out of her injuries and she growls at the lightning hot flash of pain. She pries free the bandages stuck inside before pouring the youki into the wounds to close it. Just before she can check on them a woman barges into the room and she wipes her claws at the person. Only to find her hand caught in a firm grip and her eyes staring into golden rod eyes that has her growling a warning at the person.

"A hanyou," the woman mutters as she catches Oretzi's other hand when she attempts to swipe her with her other one. "Explains the youki just now," the woman continues. Oretzi frowns at the woman before she attempts to kick her - prompting the woman to throw her back. A sharp low yelp escaping her mouth when she lands on her back. "Shinobi training."

"Who are you," she growls as she picks herself up. She then gathers youki in her throat and mouth. Preparing to use a shout to knock the woman off balance long enough for her to make an escape.

"Nukiya," the woman answers. Oretzi frowns, having not expected to retrieve any particular answer. Her mind translating the name to mean 'Protector'. "And yours?"

"… Bedloyn," she answers, aware that she is still not out of the wood works. That she might still be held by enemies and cannot assume that she is safe.

"It seems, little one, we are polar opposites," the woman comments with a dry look.

"Were you with Nalika?" she questions, knowing that if Nukiya answers in affirmative she will have to kill to defend herself.

"No… but I was intending to finish things with her," the woman answers mysteriously. "Imagine my surprise when I find that she has been dealt with and… there was a trail of blood leading away from the scene." Oretzi frowns as she holds herself tense, the youki in her throat burning her ever so slightly. Yet she refuse to let it come forth just yet or to let it return to dormancy.

"You are lucky that I have found you. May I take a look at your injuries?"

"Were you the one to bandage me?" she questions instead of complying.

"That I was," the woman answers with a short nod. "I did not recognize you to be a hanyou or else I would have taken greater care with the injuries and checked more often," she did seem sincerely sorry. "So… Bedloyn, what is your demon…"

"Ookami," she answers simply.

"Mm… explains the familiarity I sensed when I first found you," the woman comments before she changes right before Oretzi's eyes. A black pair of ears appear on the woman's head, similarly positioned as Oretzi's currently hidden ones. A long elegant tail, as black as the woman's hair and bearing the same purple streak that is apparent in her bangs. Surprisingly enough she looks similar to Oretzi with the streaks but without the wildness present in Oretzi's hair.

She is outrageously tall, standing perhaps four inches above six foot. It made her wonder if she'll probably get to that height. In addition to the tall factor the woman's legs and arms are amazingly slender and toned. They didn't look lanky or awkward to her body like her own tends to be. She couldn't help but be envious that the woman looks like she is of the proper weight for her height.

"Ookami," she whispers in awe. "But… you're not a hanyou… unless… you're a shinobi?" She mutters.

"Full blooded."

Oretzi whispers a curse under her breath as she realizes that she's in the presence of a full blooded wolf demon. A wolf not from the Lunar Wolves pack. "What is your pack?"

"I belong to none," the woman answers as she beckons for Oretzi to turn around so that she can tend to the injuries on her back. The younger girl frowns for a moment before she nods her head and turns. She braces her bloody hands against the wall as Nukiya pokes and prods at the incisions.

"Well… looks like none of the bandages are still inside. Looks like you did a good job of getting them out," the wolf demon comments quietly as she injects some of her youki in to the wounds. It burned her, startling her into unleashing the youki she had gathered up in her throat in a savage growl. Creating a good size crater in front of her as her body instinctively arches away from the woman's touch.

"That hurt!" she growls angrily at the woman as she whirls around to swipe at her in irritation.

Only to have her hand seized in a firm grasp once again. "Why is your youki confined, little one?"

"That, stranger, is none of your business," she answers tensely. She did not want to explain her reasoning to a stranger, nor explain that her youki has been growing so quickly that it was a constant struggle to relearn her limits and her controls. Each and every time she wakes up to find that it has necessary to retrain to master her chakra and youki.

Oretzi wanted to get away but knows that in order to do that she'd have to get past Nukiya. A task she recognizes as impossible as she takes in the strength radiating off the demon. "What is your age? Your parent?"

She grinds her teeth together for a moment before she forcefully changes some of her body to increase some of her chances of escape. That is, until she is seized by the neck by the woman and lifted off her feet. Startled and unable to think the changes reverses and she ends up struggling under the woman's hand. "Obviously you did not spend much time with your parent," the woman comments disapprovingly. Then she takes a deep breath, golden rod eyes widening in surprise. "Lunar Wolves."

Oretzi growls as she remembers that it is easy to scent certain things from people if one tries hard. The pack whom she has lived with for five years has imbued their unique scent onto their body. "What of it."

"I was not aware that one of the alphas sired a hanyou," the woman comments, unhappy with the thought that there was any straying from one another.

"Neither of them sired me," she snaps angrily, upset that someone would assume something like that. The alpha and the prima have been with each other for so long that the thought of them choosing a different mate for whatever reason is just strange and wrong to her.

"Then who sired you? One of their pups?"

"NO!" she snaps before she is shaken slightly. "None of the Lunar Wolves did!" she growls, kicking out angrily. "It was the Hokou," she snarls before being dropped like a ton of bricks. She lands hard on her tail, prompting a yelp as she hops up to get away from the bipolar woman. Who is currently staring at her with what seems to be shock.

"The… Hokou, Morotzi the Hokou?" the woman whispers, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Is that her name?" Oretzi mutters, perking up at the unfamiliar name. She had never expected to find that her mother shares a similar ending for her name. _Guardian_.

"You're her daughter and you claim that you have never heard her name before!" Oretzi finds herself yanked up once again by the woman. "How can you be her daughter? She would have told me!"

"It's not like she has to proclaim it to the world, baka!" she snaps irritably at the woman. "I don't know what's your relationship is with the Hokou but she was never there for me. She left me with the Lunar Wolves when I was just a babe and they've raised me since!"

"That's not like her at all," Nukiya mutters as she drops the hanyou down once again. Without another word she turns and walks out of the room without a backward glance. Oretzi, surprised that the woman had done such a thing, jogs after her and realizes - as she follows the woman out of the small cabin - that she had transformed easily into a full wolf form.

She stands at the entry way of the cabin, staring at the large wolf currently standing at her shoulder height with pitch black fur. Several purple streaks starting at the outside corners of the wolf's eye and ran all the way down to the tips of her tails. Plural, for two tails. She can guess that the wolf - Nukiya she is assuming - is not even at her full size. Bear Killer stands taller than the Hokage Monument and he is a three tail.

She quickly realizes what is going to happen when she sees the wolf lift her head and covers her sensitive wolf ears with her hands just in time to block out the worse of the howl. She removes her hands to catch her howling for the Hokou. They wait in anxious silence for the Bijuu to answer and when the minutes tick away without any answer they share a look.

"She should have answered. She has never failed to answer the Howl." Nukiya's wolf face formed an expression that she recognizes as confusion and concern. "What… what would cause her to not answer?"

"Why… why do you worry?"

The wolf sits for a moment before she shakes her head. "If you… if you are the daughter of the Hokou then… then I am you elder sister." Without warning the wolf lunges for her and she barely manages to dodge out of the way. "Why would she name you Bedloyn?! Who are you destined to kill?"

"No, no wait, it's Oretzi!" the girl cries out, realizing now that her lie earlier is working against her.

"Which is it?!" The wolf tries to lunge for her again, her maw snapping dangerously in her face.

"Oretzi!" she swears as she dodges. Then she whirls around, summoning up the knowledge of the ancient language. The ancient language demands that only the truth is spoken and braces herself. **"My true name before my adoption is Kazama Oretzi! I only gave you the name, Bedloyn, because I am a shinobi and on a mission!"**

This has Nukiya pausing, staring at her with a frown. "How old are you?"

"Uh…" she has to look up towards the sky for a moment to think about it. "I think I'm about to turn ten," she confess. "Nalika's ring didn't exactly have a calendar around and I was locked up for a while since I was originally caught by the slavers."

Nukiya frowns again before she transform back into her human form, a kimono appearing over her toned body. The kimono was not quite drawn close, being dangerously close to revealing her cleavage, and it does not exactly the traditional type of kimono since it ends roughly three inches above her knees. She tilts her head for a second to study the woman before shaking her head.

"So…" Oretzi mutters, unsure of what to say exactly.

"You are ten years old or just about," Nukiya starts, "and if I remember correctly the age restriction is at thirteen before anyone can graduate from the academy. Would you care to explain to me why you have graduated early?"

"Uh… I displayed an early level of talent and maturity at the age of eight," the young hanyou mutters shyly. She is aware that her… age of graduation is strangely young - causing many to wonder why they would allow her to graduate ahead of her class. She didn't care because it just meant that she can do the things she needs to do a lot sooner than would be typical.

"You graduated at the age of EIGHT?!" The number was shouted quite loudly by the wolf demon. Practically stunned by what she just heard. "What village are you from?!"

Oretzi waves her hands in hopes of convincing the woman to back off. "Look, I'm not going to just give out what village I'm from. I'm not that big of an idiot!" she snaps. "Look, we don't know each other. Just because you claim that the Hokou is your mother and that you're my sister I am not exactly inclined to trust you." She shakes her head and throws her arms around in disgust. "I'm leaving. I need to find my teammates and get the hell out of here," she practically spits out, frustrated by the wolf demon that is supposedly her half-sister from her maternal side of the family.

She didn't get to go far before she is picked up by the wolf demon and held up almost like an insubordinate pup. "By the love of Kami-sama, you sure are feisty," the woman grumbles. She just about ready to squirm out of the woman's grasp when she senses the woman taking a deep breath of her scent. "I will come for you in two years. Do try and stay out of trouble until then," the woman comments as she is placed down on her feet. She whirls around with a hand ready to swipe the wolf demon.

To her displeasure her hand was grabbed once again and she snarls at the woman in irritation. "Don't bother looking for me," she snaps.

"I can't do that, imouto-chan," the wolf shakes her head. She turns and starts to walk away, "Wish me luck on finding our okaa-san," the demon calls over her shoulder just before she disappears into the shadows of the trees.

Oretzi curses out loud several times as she kicks at everything around her.

It takes her over an hour to calm down and by that time the sun has begun to sink down below the horizon. Leaving her no time to go after her teammates. She looks around herself for a moment to determine which way she must go. They had been at the borders of Hi no Kuni and Taki no Kuni when the slavery ring struck the village. The reports given to the team prior their departure had suggested that the slavery ring operated within the borders of Hi no Kuni but after being captured and transported Oretzi knew that their information had been wrong.

The slavery ring spirited away villagers from within Hi no Kuni and kept them within the borders of Taki no Kuni until the day they are sold into bondage.

It had taken Oretzi some time to realize that the gladiator ring had operated the way it had simply because the clients were looking for slaves they can use to bolster their personal 'armies' or 'guards'. The strongest and the most capable were taken out of the arena upon showing their abilities while the rest are forced to slaughter each other in a desperate attempt to stay alive. The best of the best were often recruited into the slavery ring itself to increase the amount of raids they can perform.

As she ponders over the organization she realizes that she needs to check on its status. To see if eliminating Nalika has done anything or if she has spilled blood for a needless reason. So as the moon begins to climb up into the skies she turned towards the scent of old blood and chose to go from there.

* * *

Fire licks at the compound as people - the captives - run out of the burning buildings. The werewolf growls lowly in the back of her throat before she throws herself down the slope and barrels into the crowd. The momentum allowing her to push through the stampede and gain access into the building.

She snarls savagely at the small group before her, her tail flickering once before she bounds over them to get a move on. She is not interested in captives and potential slaves. She is interested in killing those who will be most motivated to keep the organization alive. Hideyoshi and his merry band of men will suffer beneath her. That she vows.

She follows her nose to the source of the commotion within the burning building, keenly aware of the fact that it is dangerously close to collapsing upon itself. Yet as the fire flicks at her fur she becomes aware that the flames sing to her instead of roaring and hissing at her like it had done when she was merely five years old.

A flash of a memory regarding the bonfire flickers into her mind for a second before she shakes it away. Unwilling to consider it for a moment. There is no use dwelling on those moments of true panic and fear. There is nothing _anyone_ can do to stop it from occurring.

In any case she follows the scent to the heart of the compound, the gladiator ring, and was surprised - for a lack of a better word - to discover that the men have been tied to a hammered down stake. Their hands and feet bound as everything around them burn.

"Hey!" she hears a familiar voice call out to her before Tamashii drops down from wherever he had been. "There you are!" She makes a barking noise, wagging her tail in greeting. "I take it that you're doing okay. We found Nalika's body in a clearing not too far from here and came here to get you and get rid of this place," Tamashii explains with a wave of his hand.

Oretzi tilts her head, silently prompting her friend to continue. She wanted to know a few other things, not just what's happening with the mission. When Tamashii makes no effort to expand or go into other topics she growls at him, capturing his attention once more.

"What is it?" She growls and stood to her full height. "Oretzi?" She rolls her eyes and used her hands to mark two different heights. One was just a four inches shorter than Tamashii and the other was roughly a six inches shorter. "… Sensei and Akino-chan?" he mutters, looking at the transformed hanyou to get a slow nod that indicated that she was irritated at him for taking so long to realize that.

"Right, sorry," he coughs with a light blush on his face. "Sensei is hunting down any stray mercenaries while Akino-chan is currently resting back at camp." She whines at him, the noise hitching up slightly to indicate a question. "She was… She's hurting, Oretzi-chan." Her ears twitch down and he runs a hand through her ruff. "She'll be okay, just give her time." He smiles at her before gesturing at the tied up men behind him. "So, what do you say to us ending this before we head back?"

All he got was a wolfish grin with all of her white pearly fangs bearing down on the men.

**Ooh, finally, I'm done with this mission! Lemme know what you think. Oh, btw, I have at least... *counts them all* two more chapters to update after this one.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Here's your next chapter!**

_**Chapter 22**_

The sun rose on team 13 and found Oretzi awake with it, pulling on loose clothes as she walks into the clearing. The scent clinging to the material suggested that it was Anko's, despite the fact that it actually covers more than Anko's usual outfits. Then again, what would be tight and revealing on Anko was actually the opposite for the hanyou.

In either case her return to the camp was marked with Tsukiko's excited greeting, knocking the underweight girl over with her massive body. Her tongue coating Oretzi's face with wet kisses that had her laughing and protesting at the same time. It took some convincing on the hanyou's part to get the wolf demon to quit her attention and to let her up.

_"Nee-chan!"_ the wolf exclaims when she gets a good look at her sister and companion. _"You've lost weight! Tsume-okaa isn't going to be happy!"_

Oretzi groans at the reminder, cradling her head in a hand. "It wasn't even my fault," she whines as she shook her head.

"It probably would have helped if you hadn't raised such a ruckus in the first place," Tamashii mock scolds her as he walks by, a leather knapsack slung over one shoulder.

Tsukiko and Oretzi growled at him in tandem with one another, their voices overlapping as they spoke in union. "There were cages!"

Tamashii only smirked at them as he carry away his knapsack. Returning briefly to pack up the tent he pause for a moment to stand in front of the tent that houses their third teammate. Oretzi had yet to see the other girl but knew, just by scenting the air, that something is gravely wrong.

"Hey… Tamashii… how badly injured was Anko-sensei?" she whispers, the concern that had bothered for weeks returning to her now that there was time to think.

"… Their medicines were pitiful but… it kept her alive long enough for me to get in there and do some emergency healing before relocating her to the camp." Oretzi bows her head, hating herself now that she knows that she had been extremely close to killing her own sensei on a mission. "Hey, Ookami," Tamashii whispers only to get a violent wince from the hanyou at the codename - unaware that it had been Oretzi's alias while within the ring. "Inuzuka," he smoothly switches the names, deciding that until he knows more he'll focus only on reassuring his youngest teammate. "Anko-sensei is going to be okay. She explained everything to me. Don't be upset with yourself about this." He ruffles the girl's hair and sighs.

"I get that feeling that this… all of this will bear down heavily on us in the future," he confess quietly.

"And we're not even Chunin yet," Oretzi whispers as she leans against the only male in the team. "So young and already killing to survive…" she shook her head as she glances up for a moment, her eyes staring at the brightening skies.

"We'll be okay, Inuzuka. Anko-sensei is going to be okay and Akino… well, just give her some time."

The hanyou pulls away from Tamashii, her eyes dark as she study him. "Are they dead?" The Hyuuga boy return the look for a moment before nodding his head slowly. "Then I'll give her all the time she needs," she concludes before walking away with Tsukiko by her side.

Tamashii just shook his head in disbelief. Unsure of how to take all of that.

One thing for sure, he knew that Oretzi will be beating herself up over what happened with Anko-sensei.

* * *

It didn't take them much time to arrive back in Konoha after they confirmed that their tasks were completed - the slavery ring has been put to an end. The second they arrived back in the village Akino and Anko were sent to the hospital for more adequate healing while Oretzi, Tamashii, and Tsukiko reported to the Hokage.

The young hanyou was _not_ looking forward to this. No siree. She remembered how it was just last year she was reminded that being an assassin squad is a long and hard road. She remember the cold hard shock that clung to her skin because of her first kill. Because she thought she killed wrongly.

She looks at her friend and comrade for a moment before squaring her shoulders and stepping into the office.

"Ah, Oretzi-chan, Tamashii-chan, and of course, Tsukiko-chan, how was the mission?" he questions with his grandfatherly smile.

"It has been completed, sir," Oretzi tells him formally as she buries her fingers in Tsukiko's ruff. "Anko-sensei and Akino-san were injured during the mission but they are in stable conditions and currently resting in the hospital."

"Tell me about their injuries," the Hokage requests of her, causing the hanyou to bow her head briefly for a moment.

"I only know of how Anko-sensei retrieved her injuries and I need to admit that it was my doing," she confesses. "The slavery ring was operating in ways that was unexpected at first and I had somehow won the attention of the ring leader. Due to the circumstances I wound up playing as the leader's gladiator in ten consecutive matches." She takes a moment to ground her thoughts as she recalls the tenth and final match. "I was sent out to fight my tenth opponent and found it to be Anko-sensei."

She notes how the Hokage leaned forward, his eyes dark with some kind of emotion she couldn't easily decipher. "We exchanged some words and fought using only taijutsu and kenjutsu - for we were supplied with badly made swords. Several bad moves and lack of focus on my part made it where we were both critically injured. I passed out and according to the leader we were taken into separate rooms to recuperate."

She pauses again to study the old man, wondering what he could possibly be thinking. "I'm not sure why Anko-sensei wasn't killed on the spot after we both passed out. Maybe the leader wanted me to deliver the final blow or maybe she was going to have us do a rematch. There is a lot of questions regarding that particular scenario that was unnecessary to ask after Tamashii rescued sensei from the ring."

The Hokage nods his head before turning to Tamashii. "Is there anything you can tell me about what happened with Akino-san?" he questions.

The Hyuuga meets the Hokage's eyes head on without a flinch as he begins to tell him about what had happened with Hoshi. The things she went through made Oretzi clench her muscles tightly to keep herself from saying or doing something idiotic. With Tsukiko's anger vibrating through both of their bodies.

The Akino heiress had gone through some difficult things that made Oretzi want to destroy the people who dared to touch her friend. Knowing it instinctively and knowing it actively in her own mind made a difference, the hanyou realizes. She had suspected something like this when she did not see Hoshi in the compound and after they had completed their mission she could scent the pain and the lingering scents clouding around her. She knew it instinctively even if she didn't ask about it aside from that one question.

"Mm… I'll have one of the Kunoichi speak with Akino-san soon. To assess how much therapy she will need," the old man concludes after a moment. "Until further notice Team 13 is removed from active duty." Tamashii bows in reverence to the elderly man while Oretzi just stood there, dark eyes studying his own. "Is there something else?" he questions the hanyou, sternly reminding himself not to avert his eyes when he sees her eyes are slowly gaining a red glow. He acknowledges it to be the girl's wolf side which means looking away or lowering his gaze will be perceived as a sign of weakness and submission.

A minute slides by with no obvious sign of Oretzi backing down until her eyes are a mix of both brown and red. Turning them into a strange brick like color. "No sir," she finally concede, following her teammate out of the office. What struck the elderly man strange was that the hanyou did not turn her back to him, simply walking backwards until their view of each other was obstructed by the door. Only then, he suspected, did the girl turn away.

* * *

After leaving the office Oretzi parted ways with Tamashii, who spoke of going to the hospital to check on sensei and Akino, and went to a remote part of the forest surrounding Konoha. Her entire body vibrating with anger. At the situation that resulted in her friend's current pain. The outrage coursing through her body threaten to destroy her, to drive her to distraction and into murdering anyone in the vicinity near her.

By the time she could sense that she was alone she allowed her youki to engulf her body. Coating her skin and burning away the borrowed clothes until all that remains is what she came into this world in. On and on it poured, thickening into a second skin, and she stood as tall as she would have in her hybrid wolf form. She took off running through the forest, the youki burning her skin and damaging her body the longer it coats her but bringing life to the plants around her as she runs. Despite the damage being done to her the youki also healed her.

Leaving a blaze of vibrant wild life as she circles the village, a chant in her head keeping her from doing something like picking a direction and just start running. If she had lived in a world where no enemies exist she would have just given into that fight or flight instinct. To just run and be free forever.

Nightfall crept into the lands and found Oretzi exhausted and sleeping in a den she found in an ancient tree. Seemingly unaware of the world around her as she dreams. Once again she dreams of the sisters of Moirai, of their cryptic messages. Again she dreams of the demon whom she made a deal with. She dreams of the lessons she has learned and they speak of lessons that will await her along the road that is her destiny.

Morning came and Oretzi finally returned to the compound where she is greeted excitedly by the Inuzuka dogs and her family. Only to be scolded for allowing herself to lose what precious weight they had managed to achieve in the past two years. One would assume - had they been walking by the compound that very second - that some kind of fiesta has been thrown with all the cheers and excited chatter happening.

However, anyone who looks right can see that this latest mission has taken a toll on the young Inuzuka hanyou. Hana could see and scent it on her imouto-chan so, with permission from Tsume, she spirits away the girl to her favorite part of the compound for one on one conversation.

While Oretzi is being greeted by her family Tamashii has been visiting his teammate and sensei once again. Not that Anko needed any visiting since - as she proclaims - she is feeling better than ever. Not even the doctors or nurses can determine how it is possible for the woman to be feeling like she is at the top of the world when she was severely injured. The field report - given to them by Tamashii - stated that she had been possibly fatally injured by friendly fire and was just barely rescued from the brink of death.

Tamashii could not heal her entirely by himself, possessing only limited skills with healing jutsu. Some of the internal damages he was able to fix along with closing the injuries but he had feared internal bleeding after he managed to patch her up. Which was why she did not join him at the final stage of their mission - which was tearing down the buildings to ensure that the base of operations could never be used again.

The extent of her injuries meant that she should be weak from blood loss, suffering from numerous symptoms associated with internal bleeding. Yet by the time she was submitted to the hospital, just three hours after being brought in, she showed no signs of any of the typical symptoms and was already threatening the staff with bodily harms if they did not release her immediately.

"Anko-sensei!" Tamashii protests loudly as he ducks beneath a thrown vase. "Please, just let them do their jobs!"

"Gaki, I told you!" the woman glares petulantly at him, "I'm feeling fine!"

"They need to check you over to make sure that it's not a false alarm!" he exclaims as he dodges another thrown item. He didn't bother checking to see what it was as there was another object right behind it that forced him to completely drop down to the floor to avoid it.

"I'm fine!"

"Sensei!" he shouts exasperatedly, "You can't leave to check on Akino-chan until _after_ you've been checked!" He crosses his arms stubbornly at his psycho sensei as he adds the final piece to her 'coffin', "Oretzi-chan would feel terribly guilty for the fact it was by her actions that you wound up in this condition in the first place."

Anko quickly quieted down, glaring nastily at her student. "You fight dirty, gaki," she scowls at her student before sighing. She regrets how their fight had turned out to be. She had not intended for the girl to be injured and she was most definitely not intending to be injured either. It was surreal, their fight, even now it seems like a horrible dream. On top of that Oretzi had her promise to behave before they were turned over to the hospital for checkups. A promise she was now breaking by her antics.

"I need to in order to win," Tamashii retorts quietly as he sits down by Anko's bed. "Sensei… Oretzi is okay, physically. Maybe a few lost pounds but she can always regain those," he starts, gathering the woman's attention. "Emotionally… well, I think she'll be beating herself up for what happened with you. And I suspect she's upset about what happened to Akino-chan… if they weren't already dead they'd be wishing to be dead when she gets through with them." The two of them share a look before he looks away. "Intellectually… I believe she may be questioning herself about why it took her so long to determine her course of action."

"There are days I wished I stayed a Tokubetsu Jonin," Anko mutters to herself as a result of the drama that now follows her around. All she gets for that was a cheeky grin from the Hyuuga boy, prompting her to raise a hand to smack him. She rolls her eyes and drops her hand when he quickly moves out of reach.

He moves back and studies his disgruntled sensei for a moment. "Listen, sensei, all we want is to make sure that you're okay. You were practically disemboweled by Oretzi-chan's sword. I saw… I saw what happened…" He shakes his head in remembrance of the cold dread that ran through him during their fight and the disastrous ending.

"Knowing Oretzi she will be blaming herself for her lack of control in the fight. She will believe that it is her fault that you currently reside in a hospital, your dreaded place of nightmares." He earns a sharp glare as a result of that comment but took it, knowing that it needed to be said. "So maybe…"

"I know," she grumbles grouchily at her student, "I need to behave and let the 'good ole doctors' do their dumb tests."

"Yep!" he gets another grouchy glare from his sensei so he gives her a brief smile. "What will you do after you get out of here?" he finally asks.

She frowns thoughtfully at him, pondering the answer. "… It depends, I suppose, on what happens with Akino," she finally concludes. "If she allows this mission to impact on her heavily then you will need a new teammate."

"Which means we may have to start from the basic to allow the new genin to adjust to us," Tamashii concludes for her. He shakes his head. "Is it bad of me to hope that Hoshi doesn't give up on being a shinobi?"

Anko didn't answer for a long moment. But when she did she took her time answering him, aware that if she phrase it wrong it may come across differently. "After how far you've come… it will seem unfair to you and possibly Oretzi… but knowing you two like I do I think you'd be standing by her side, letting her do what she thinks she needs." She rubs her stomach, at the vague area where she had been slashed at. "Whether it is for her to quit the shinobi world or to continue down this path… I know that no matter what choice she makes you'll never stop being her friends and her teammates."

Tamashii bows his head silently in show of his acknowledgement of her words.

For that was how she trained them. To trust each other like they are one. To stand with one another no matter what choices they make.

That is their Shinobi way.

* * *

Hoshi looks up from her lap when she hears a gentle knock before the door swings open to reveal her teammate. Surprise blanks her thoughts for a relieving second as Inuzuka Oretzi walks in with a grimace on her face. "Oretzi-chan," she smiles weakly at the younger girl.

"Ohayo," the hanyou greets quietly as she pulls up a chair, her dark brown eyes glinting at the older girl. She offers her a vase of various types of flowers.

"Oretzi-chan," the purple haired girl whispers quietly as she stares at the different flowers. She can recognize them all. There were seven in all: daisy, geranium, gladiolus, hibiscus, hydrangea, pansy, and a zinnia. It was apparent to her that the flowers were not selected for their looks for she can see that they clash horribly with one another.

"I've never been interested in these… girly stuff," Oretzi confesses quietly. "But… this morning, when I went back to the Inuzuka compound, I asked aneki-chan for thoughts about flowers. She gave me this book… and well…" she points to the daisy first.

"Innocence, for that is what you will always be to me. Comfort, because I want to provide you comfort and shelter during this time. And I know that should I need it too you'd open your arms out to me. Strength of character because anyone else would have been broken already.

"Delicate beauty for you are the most wonderful person I've ever met. Your beauty isn't who you look like but who you are as a person. The Akino Hoshi I met all those months ago. Perseverance because you would never give up on me or Tamashii - you would never give up on yourself. Loving thoughts because… you made an effort to keep Tamashii and mine's spirits up in this past year. Since we've begun to take C-rank missions. You try to make us laugh because you care and love us in your own unique way. And thoughts of friends for you will always be in my thoughts. No matter what path you chose to take."

Oretzi bows her head for a second as she considers her last words. "Civilian or Shinobi, I will always stand by your side and I will never let anyone hurt you again. If they do… well… they'll find that death is something to be welcomed after I'm through with them." Hoshi was stunned by the amount of venom laced in the girl's voice in her vow.

She carefully sets the vase aside and reach over to touch the hanyou. With that single brush of skin she finds herself with the extremely light girl in her lap, clinging tightly to her as they hold onto each other. "Arigatou, Oretzi-chan," she whispers to the girl as they lay there. "Arigatou."

"Gomen nasai," Oretzi whispers in retaliation to Hoshi's arigatou. "Watashi wa anata o shippaishita," she whispers, blaming herself for what happened to Hoshi.

"No, you didn't," Hoshi whispers, shaking her head firmly. "You did _not_ fail me," she repeats as she cups the girl's face in her hands. The girl hadn't cried yet but she could see that the tears have gathered at the edge of her eyes. Threatening to spill but not quite. "You saved me."

"How?"

Hoshi's smile was bitter as she looks away. "The woman… she organized everything inside the… They pay her and…" She looks back to see that her teammate's eyes have turned into a brilliant gold color, startling her as she found herself sucked into an illusion so strong her heart wretched.

She found herself kneeling in front of a woman with long blonde hair swept up into an elaborate hairstyle, cold hard blue eyes glinting down at her with a smirk. Her bare arm slick with blood that pumps out of her body. She reaches for the woman's proffered arm and bend her head towards the red potent blood. Experiencing an explosion of copper and youki as she tastes the life liquid of the woman before her.

She could feel the burning sensation of the blood streaking down her throat as she licks the liquid off the woman's arm. Falling back from the arm as a scream tears through her throat, images flashing before her eyes as she seems a magnificent five tailed wolf howling in outrage. Her tails flickering and thrashing about. But before she could see anything else it cuts off and she is left with a sense of hollow disappointment.

She gasp out loud as she finally comes to herself, her heart pounding a mean drum in her ears. Her eyes staring in disbelief at the girl in her lap. "O…Oretzi-chan… What… what was that…"

The girl just covers her face, her ears flat against her skull as her tail curls around her. It didn't take a genius to see that she was pulling in on herself. "I…I lost myself…" she whispers quietly. "She… she offered something and I didn't know what to do…" the girl didn't meet her eyes and Hoshi kept quiet to see what she would say. "I felt alone… Anko-sensei was… hurt because of me. I couldn't find you - I didn't know if you were killed or if Tamashii got you out of danger. I was locked up inside a cell for a week- with nothing but my own thoughts and instincts for company. I probably would've stayed there longer if Nalika hadn't heard about me…"

Oretzi pulled away from Hoshi and nothing the older genin could do could stop her. "Everything that happened there… it was because of her… I could've starved to death but - she heard about me… She wanted me - needed me…"

"Oretzi… did something…"

"No…" she shakes her head. "No… nothing like that." Oretzi pulls her legs to her chest, frowning. "She… she had these plans to… _change_ the world. I… she wanted me part of her plans and I… she played off of my…" self-loathing enters her voice as she spoke of the woman's actions "hatred for humans. I hated them, for being so _blinded_ to the fact hanyous are people too…"

She covers her head with her arms, eyes tightly closed. "The reason why I'm so…'strong' is because of my hatred for people."

Hoshi shakes her head as she reaches over to the girl, gently touching her. "Oretzi-chan," the older genin whispers as she waits for the hanyou's full attention. "That's a bunch of bullshit," she tells the girl gently, getting a reaction like she thought she would. The hanyou trying to yank away. "Hey… you're not strong because of your hatred for people. You're strong because of your_ love_ for the people that you _care_ for."

"But… what if she's…"

"No, Oretzi," the girl looks up at Hoshi in surprise at the lack of suffix, "she's wrong. She will always be wrong." She forces the girl to uncurl from the ball she had formed, "Listen to me right this second. You may be half demon but you are half human as well. Anger and hatred may run through your veins but don't ever, _ever_ forget that you're capable of love."

The hanyou looks up at her with big watery eyes and she saw for the first time what her isolation from the team must have done to her. She had no one she could trust by her side while that _woman_ told her things. She could understand - as much as she hates to think it - why it took Oretzi so long to come to the conclusion that she needed to die. Without her teammates, her 'rock' nearby she lost sight of herself. As mature as she seems she is still a kid, a kid who denied herself the childish things to become a shinobi.

"Oretzi…"

"Hoshi…," the girl mutters, returning the lack of suffix and getting a watery smile as a result. She gives back a weak smile before ducking her head again, a frown taking up what seems to be a permanent residency on her mouth.

"Hey, hey," Hoshi prods at the girl, "no need to be like that. Remember, you saved me."

"How?"

"You stopped that woman," she tells the girl, recalling how she never got to her point the last time. "I know you blame yourself for how long it took you but, Oretzi, you were barely ten years old - you're still barely ten years old! You were alone and probably blaming yourself for what happened with Anko-sensei. You had no time to gather your wits to ward off her words." She pulls the hanyou close for a hug, aware that her words had no effects on the girl.

"Have you gone to see Anko-sensei yet?"

"No…"

She heard the want, the need in Oretzi's voice. She knew that the girl wanted to but, if she knew the girl it would be highly likely that the hanyou would not visit her out of guilt. "Will you soon?" she asks despite knowing the answer.

"No, I need to go and meet up with Hana-chan after I leave here. She promised to teach me a few jutsu for Tsukiko and me to practice," Oretzi informs her. She didn't look up to meet Hoshi's eyes.

"Okay…" the Akino heiress whispers before she kisses the hanyou's forehead. "I suppose you'll be leaving soon?"

"Is there anything you need or want?" Oretzi returns instead of answering. She gets a soft 'no' in answer so she sighs. "Then… yeah, I should." She hugs Hoshi before slipping off the bed and stretching her arms. When a few pops are heard both girls wince at the noises. "Gomen," she says sheepishly as she picks up a few things she left in the chair.

"Arigatou," is all Hoshi said in response. Getting a watery smile from the younger girl as she leaves.

All alone in the room Hoshi frowns to herself, thinking about what she had learned from the hanyou in the span of thirty minutes. If that woman had not been dead already she'd hunt her down to kill her for what she had done to the girl.

* * *

A rapid secession of knocks on the door brought Hoshi out of her thoughts in time to see Anko - clad in her usual shinobi outfit - walking into the room. "Hey Gaki," the woman greets her as she takes a seat next to her.

"Hi sensei," she returns quietly, still upset about what she had witnessed in Oretzi just a few hours ago.

"I'd ask about how you're holding up," Anko starts, casually leaning back in her chair, "But I think you and I both know that what you've gone through is pretty shitty. Even if you liked having sex it's still an unnerving thing to go through." Hoshi frowns at her sensei, unsure of where she is going with this. "Listen… do you have any idea what you're going to decide?" she asks, her voice actually a lot gentler than Hoshi ever remembered it being.

Hoshi looks at her sensei for a moment. "Sensei," she starts quietly, "what are you going to do about Oretzi?" She watch a myriad of emotions flicker across the woman's expression before settling down on puzzlement. "She's shouldering a lot of… self-blame for what happened on this mission."

Anko frowns at the girl, her eyes flickering for a second to the vase of flowers next to the bed - her mind registering the meanings of the flowers. "I take it she visited you recently?" She didn't like the emotion that surfaced briefly inside her when she thought about how the girl didn't visit her but apparently visited Hoshi.

"She did… I had a chance to see just how upset she is with herself about what happened," Hoshi made the effort to return the conversation back to the original topic.

Anko's face registered a frown for a split of a second before smoothing back into a semi-neutral expression. "I'll be visiting her shortly. My main concern, however, was for you. From what Tamashii reported to me you went through a grueling experience during this mission…"

"What I went through is nothing compared to Oretzi's pain," Hoshi argues.

"Wrong. Everything the three of you go through is equal to each other. Never put a teammate over another, it will guarantee a failure to the teamwork you've worked hard to develop and destroy the dynamics between the three of you," Anko explains. She takes a minute to breath before countering the arguments she knows Hoshi will make. "Yes, Oretzi is younger than Tamashii and you by a full five years but you cannot forget that she graduated early. I don't blame either of you for taking her mental and emotional wellbeing in mind but please, leave that up to me."

She reaches over to ruffle the girl's hair, "You just worry about being there for her when she needs you." She watches Hoshi flinch at something, causing her to think about what she had said before she herself winces. "Sorry, poor choices of words," she mutters.

"Yeah…" Anko could hear the self-loathing in the girl's voice causing her to pinch her nose for a moment.

"Listen to me gaki," Anko's voice takes on a hint of frustration. "You cannot blame yourself for what happened. The situation made it impossible for us to remain undercover without risking our lives more than it already did." Hoshi looks at her sensei, frowning. "We went in there knowing that things will be dangerous - there will be other missions worse than the one we took on. But the important thing is that we survived it."

"Anko-sensei… I… arigatou, sensei."

Anko studies the girl for a moment before nodding her head, accepting whatever conclusion Hoshi has come to. "I'm going to go look for the other gaki," she declares, pulling herself out of the chair to leave.

"She said that Hana-san is going to teach her a few jutsu," Hoshi informed the woman before she could leave the room. Anko nods her head in acknowledgement as she shuts the door.

She turns to Tamashii, who had chosen to stand outside during their conversation, and crosses her arms. "What are you going to do?" she questions him.

"I'll be keeping Akino-chan company," the boy smirks at her before waving her off. "Go find Oretzi-chan. I think she would really appreciate a talking to from you." With that he enters Hoshi's hospital room and left Anko standing there for a moment.

"I swear, those two worry about the gaki more than they do each other," she grumbles quietly under her breath before she left to find her third student. It was time they had a chat about what happened in the compound - she needed to set her straight about what happened.

**... I hope none of you want to kill me for what happened to everyone in the mission -_-'**


	23. Chapter 23

**Final chapter for tonight everyone! I'm in the process of writing chapter 25 so, with hope and a bit of luck, it might be up by the end of this week or next.**

_**Chapter 23**_

A quick check at the Inuzuka Compound confirmed that the two siblings were not training there. But she did get a stern rant from Inuzuka Tsume for allowing her daughter to lose what precious few pounds she had gained in the last two years. Followed by a rant for not ending the mission when it had gotten too dangerous. Sparking a rather heated debate between the two women about whether or not Anko had made the right decision by not pulling out.

It wasn't until Kuromaru spoke up that their argument - oops, sorry, debate - ended.

_"How would have Anko-san been able to pull her students out when they were scattered throughout the compound? The only one with any freedom to roam the place was apparently Oretzi-chan. And she was the object of the leader's attention,"_ he split his attention between the two women, his gaze going from one to the other. _"Then, considering that Anko-san and Akino-san were injured who else was going to pull Oretzi-chan out of the compound? Hyuuga-san would not been able to even get near Oretzi-chan if my suspicions are correct."_

Anko frowns at the large dog before sighing, glancing at Tsume. "If I could redo the whole thing I would have refused the mission on the grounds of it being too much for them," she informs the woman.

"But we cannot change the past," Tsume states in a tone that was just borderline snappish. "We can only adjust, learn, and move on." She shakes her head. "Hana took Oretzi out to train and possibly get her to vent out her frustration. In either case we have one more night of the full moon," she reminds the purple haired woman who nods her head in acceptance before leaving.

She headed towards the training grounds deep within the forest, far from the edges of Konoha. A place chosen for its isolation since Oretzi was prone to losing control of her youki at the worse inopportune times. As she approached the training area she could sense Oretzi's youki saturating the air, bringing to life the plants all around them.

She pauses at the edge of the clearing, hidden among the shadows and - according to the wind in her face - downwind of the hanyou, Tsukiko, and the Haimaru Sankyodai. She watch how Hana and the Haimaru demonstrate a jutsu that fuse Hana with one of her triplet dogs, transforming them into a huge two headed dog. Oretzi was gaping up at the two of them before she turned to Tsukiko to chatter at her in their wolf language.

She watch how the two of them come to a decision about something and they attempt to do the jutsu. It appeared to go right until something goes wrong and the pair are thrown apart.

"Ow!" Oretzi yelps as a tree breaks in half around her, the heavy trunk collapsing on her.

"Oretzi!" Hana and Anko shout in alarm, the two of them darting forward to the possibly injured girl. But it was Tsukiko who beat them there, her body the size of Moon-Chaser when he arrived in Konoha. Her tail wraps around the large trunk and with no apparent difficulty she lifts the fallen tree off the ground, tossing the trunk away.

Unconscious on the ground lays Oretzi, her right temple bleeding a stunning amount of blood. Which has the women - though the term is used lightly concerning Hana - panicking before one of them recalls that head wounds typically gusts. "C'mon, Oretzi-kun," Hana whispers as she holds her sister in her arms, brushing away the girl's bangs that have grown out in the past few weeks. "Wake up, imouto-chan."

"Don't you have any medical jutsu you can use?" Anko questions the teenager.

"I only know jutsu for canines," Hana mutters, shaking her head. "And past experiences taught me that even though she's part wolf it just doesn't have the same effect on her," she concludes before the woman could ask her about using it on Oretzi.

"Damn it," the jonin woman curses as she fists her hair. "Why isn't it healing then?" she asks worriedly, referring to the hanyou's fast regeneration abilities. "She couldn't have exhausted all of her youki again… could she?" She frowns as she uses some of her medical supplies to clean off the blood.

"I don't know," Hana sighs as she tiredly wipes at her eyes. "Tsukiko-chan, can you tell if she exhausted herself or not?"

The hanyou's companion trots over and lays over the girl's lap, panting happily before she takes a deep sniff of Oretzi's scent. _"She smells like usual. But… she still smells like she did after she came back from the mission with… __**Nalika**__."_

Hana frowns at the wolf demon before looking at a suddenly pale woman, who was practically gnawing at her knuckle in concern. "Who is Nalika?" she asks quietly.

"… Someone who… the gaki had to… deal with," Anko reluctantly answers, aware that Tsume is already upset with her about what occurred on the mission. She didn't want to invoke the wrath of her student's sister.

Hana looks between her unconscious sister the concerned wolf demon, and the unusually quiet kunoichi. "I'll ask Oretzi about it later," she concludes before she feels the barest hint of the girl's awakening.

She gestures at Anko and they quietly watch Oretzi come to with a groan. "Leave me alone Weaver," she whines pitifully before she bolts upright, her hands cradling her head. Her temple throbbed with pain from the impact with the heavy tree trunk. "Ow…" she whines, squinting her eyes to limit as much light as possible. She winces when she realizes that there is blood coating her palm and she pulls it away from her face to study said appendage.

"Why am I still bleeding?" she asks lightly with a slight migraine bothering her. She looks up, her dark brown eyes focusing on her sister before she realizes that Anko is there as well. A troubled look flickers across her expression - quickly quelled under Oretzi's iron fist.

"We're hoping you can answer that for us," Hana tells the girl. "Tsukiko says that you still smell like… well…"

Oretzi glances at her companion who explains it all quickly in the demonic language - causing an already pale Oretzi to whiten even more. "I…" she clears her throat and shakes her head, wincing when it just worsens the headache she had developed. "I… It's something I did to myself to limit my healing rate."

Anko frowns when she realizes just what the girl was referring to. As she considers this she finds it hard to keep a straight face as she realizes that it means Oretzi could be bearing a scar from that disastrous battle between them - if that is the right term for it. She couldn't call it a spar since it was much more than a simple spar and she could not call it a fight since it wasn't something they would have personally chosen to do of their own free will.

"So… you exhausted your youki," Hana summaries shortly.

"That's one way to put it," Oretzi mutters quietly, keeping her back to her sister and her sensei. She didn't want to look at them, especially at her sensei - not after what happened during the mission.

But she did miss the way Hana and Anko looked at each other. "Gaki," Anko starts softly to catch the girl's attention. When she sees her wolf ears subtly move she knows she has it, "Maybe it is time for us to remove the seal."

"Nani?!" the girl exclaims as she whirls around. The action quickly off balances her and she find herself stumbling, her face gaining an uncomfortable shade of green. Anko - worried and a bit startled by the reaction - reaches out for the hanyou who threw herself to the brushes. Before anyone could follow her they hear the nasty sound of retching that holds them back from going to the genin's side.

Anko looks at her student's sister who was pinching her nose shut as if something rotten had wafted across her face. Reminding her that the Inuzuka clan is gifted with extraordinary sharp senses, particularly known for their sense of smell. Anko winces in pity for the teenager and for Oretzi. She takes a minute to steady herself before heading over to the hanyou to check on her.

She steps into the bushes, taking care of where she placed her feet since she had no desire to be stepping into throw up. "Hey, Gaki," she mumbles when she finally finds the girl, kneeling down to peer at her face. "Do you need something to take off the edge of your headache?" she questions the girl.

"I think I'll be fine," Oretzi whispers softly, subconsciously leaning against Anko. But she let her sensei help her up and back into the clearing. Wiping away the lingering traces of the puke with the inside of her collar. "But why do you want to unleash the seal?" she questions while the purple haired woman is helping her sit down, the headache making everything spin a bit.

"Let's face it, Gaki, until your system readjust to you not spreading your youki out again we need to do something to bring you back to par. Way I see it, gaki, unlocking your seal will do the trick."

"But then I'll have to relearn how my limits, _again_!" she protests with a whine before Hana leans in with a scowl.

"Its better you learn how to control your youki and chakra _instead_ of relying on a seal to suppress it. You reassured okaa-san that the seal was only going to be _temporary_," the teenager scowls at the hanyou. "It's been over a year, baka, it's time you start training again."

"I haven't exactly stopped training," Oretzi protests, her ears and tail showing just how much she is internally pouting at this.

"Gaki, let me put it this way," Anko interrupts what seemed to be a potential argument. "When you reach the limit of the ten percent during a battle there is a possibility you'll need more to finish the fight, right?" she pauses to gauge her student's reaction. When she gets the slow nod of agreement she decides to continue. "So I unlock the seal and you're flooded with the rest of your bound powers. Which means you'll end up pushing too much chakra and youki into your jutsu which means…"

"I'll probably end up messing up the jutsu…" Oretzi mutters, her tail twitching with dislike at what the woman is pointing out to her. But the furrowed look on her face told Anko that the wisdom of what she is telling the girl is getting through to her. "How do we know that the fluctuations are over though?" she asks with a slight whine. "That was the reason why I had the seal put on me in the first place. My chakra and youki wasn't stable and kept messing up my control."

"Well…" Anko glances at Hana who is staring up a tree in what appears to be in thought. "We won't know until after we start getting you retrained. So… what do you say?"

Oretzi crosses her arms as she studies the grass before she peers at her companion - who had been lying next to her in silence. "What do you think, Tsuki-chan?" she asks in demon, wishing to keep this conversation private for the time being.

"Anko-sensei has a fair point," Tsukiko answers with a slight huff, laying her head in Oretzi's lap. "Alpha and Prima wouldn't have liked the seal in the first place," she adds in, causing Oretzi to sigh as she took that to mean what it meant.

"Okay… but I still need a cap or something," she insists to her sensei. "I don't need _all_ of my youki and chakra. Besides, I'm not sure if it'll make me manifest a second tail or not," she muttered that last sentence to herself - recalling some of the Alpha's stories of how some demons gained a tail not because of age but because of strength.

Alpha had told of the Kyuubi, one of the few demons to gain a tail because of strength. If she recalls the story right he gained five out of the nine tails because of his power. The rest were gained through age. Marking him at least four hundred years prior his sealing into Uzumaki Naruto. Or older since she doesn't know anyone who is actually capable of gaining more than nine tails.

"The cap will be placed extremely high. No more of this…" Anko gestures her hand wildly, "equal thing. You have the power, gaki, I suggest you start learning how to control it so it doesn't come back to bite you in the ass."

Oretzi frowns as she looks at her sister for a moment, considering Anko's words. "Use it but don't abuse it," she finally mutters, getting nods from her sister and Anko. "Okay," she finally relents.

Anko takes a deep breath and does a few hand seals before taking Oretzi's offered left wrist. The seal - which binds ninety percent of the girl's chakra and youki - appears in its full complicated glory. The chakra flaring around Anko's hands makes contact with the hanyou's seal, causing the black seals to slowly turn change into a different color. There was five seals making up one and it took at least twenty-four minutes for each seal to flare a red color before turning white and then invisible - supposedly vanishing into nothingness.

With each seal's removal there was a significant boost in the girl's reserves, the gash at her temple closing with a spark of white youki - taking less time it takes for a heart to beat once. But the wince of pain lingered in Oretzi's eyes signaling that while it was a quick heal it was still rather painful to have new skin growing in that quickly and tiny blood vessels repairing themselves.

When the final seal was undone Anko releases the hanyou's wrist to instead pull her close as the girl sag under the full strength of her power. Even though it was confined to Oretzi's skin and coil system she could still feel that there was a ridiculous amount within her, marking her as Kage-level at the very least.

"Kami-sama," Oretzi breathes tiredly as her eyes begin to droop. "That's a head rush," she mutters softly, her tails thumping.

Not even a second later she is yanking away from Anko, twisting around to look behind her. "Nani!" she pouts as stares at the second tail she had feared she'd develop. "Not another one!"

Anko's eyes widen in shock as she realizes what just happened while Hana burst out into laughter. Whining Oretzi pouts and pleas at Hana to stop before finally giving up, settling for lunging at her older sister. Almost immediately the two sisters were rolling around on the ground, play wrestling with one another. But Anko's eyes were firmly resting on the fact that Oretzi now has two tails instead of one. The new one is completely black and she can see now that it will remain so unless something was to leave a scar.

Eventually Hana managed to pin down Oretzi, who was looking rather pale again, with a triumph grunt. "Still can't beat me, imouto-chan," the older Inuzuka cheers while the girl just whines pitifully at the teenager.

"So… two tails?" Anko interrupts before their verbal sparring could get underway. She could recognize the signs of their typical sisterly bonding - first is their physical spar/wrestle followed by an argument. A friendly kind of argument that is. The two Inuzuka siblings pull apart from one another with Hana helping the pale Oretzi back up.

"Well… last I checked I'm not two hundred years old so…" Oretzi shrugs as she flexes her tails. Experimenting how to manipulate two tails instead of one. She considers casting a powerful genjutsu or a henge over one of them - probably the new one - to keep it hidden. She recalls the few wolves with two tails and how they use their tails whenever they fight. She couldn't imagine doing something like that with her own. She rarely uses her tail to block projectiles and mostly uses it to balance herself on things.

"What does your age has to do with this?" Hana questions her imouto, puzzled by what she's talking about.

"I think I understand," Anko mutters, "So if it doesn't have to do with your age then why do you have two?"

"It's a show of strength if not age," Oretzi explains with a sigh. "I'm going to have to assume that my power had increase enough to earn me the rank of two tails." She rubs at her temple in what seems to be aggravation. "I wonder if there is something I can use to banish the second tail. I know I've seen a wolf or two with the strength of three tails but they didn't have that many tails," she mutters to herself.

"Why?" Anko questions, "I rather like that you have two tails." This earned a blush from the girl and she ended up smirking. She always did like making her blush, it always made her happy. She refused to think about why though.

Somehow the subject was dropped and now that there was a lull in the conversation Anko remembered the reason why she had originally sought out the hanyou in the first place. "Hana-san, I need to speak with my student for a moment. I promise I'll drop her off at the Inuzuka compound more or less intact," she speaks to the teenager. They end up staring at one another for a moment before the Inuzuka girl nods her head, gesturing at her companions to follow.

"Take care of my imouto-chan," the teenager calls over her shoulder with a casual wave over her shoulder as she left.

Once they were alone Anko studied her student, taking note of the tired set of the hanyou's shoulder as well as the hint of self-disappointment. She decided - with little to no flair of dramatics - to plop herself down in Oretzi's lap, startling the girl out of her thoughts. "You've gotten too big for me to hold in my lap," she offers as a way of explanation when she hears the puzzled whine. She gets a quiet puff of air that she took as acceptance. "So, gaki, I thought about this and well…" she trails off as she leans back against her student, feeling her lay her head on one of her shoulders. "I can only guess but… do you probably feel guilty about a few things that happened in our mission?"

She really didn't need to ask her this but it was always nice to hear the answer from the other. "Hai," the hanyou mutters, actually giving the barest hint of a nod so Anko felt it when the girl's chin dug into her shoulder for a brief second.

"Stop me if I'm wrong but you believe yourself to be guilty for how our match ended, for the fact that Hoshi-chan was hurt, and for taking nearly three weeks to end Nalika's life," Anko lists. She would have gone on further, naming all the perceived wrongs the hanyou might believe she has done, if the said girl hadn't wrapped her arms around Anko's waist. "Did I get something wrong?"

"No… they're all right… but… I know that I'm not to blame myself over what happened with Hoshi," the girl mutters against Anko's shoulder. "As for… what happened with Nalika…I let myself be blinded by her words, by her offer." She turns her head so that her cheek is pressed against the woman's shoulder, her breath brushing against Anko's neck. "When… when we fought I had a lot on my mind, nothing can excuse the fact that because I was distracted I didn't control myself. We're probably both at fault for what happened but that still doesn't change that I hurt you badly enough to kill. Me, I could've survived that kind of injury without fail…"

Anko frowns for a moment before wiggling out of Oretzi's arms so that she can turn around and face her student - never mind the fact that she's currently straddling her. "Listen to me, Oretzi, we both fucked up. You by not focusing on the fight and me by not reacting fast enough. We're both at fault at this." She gently squeezes the back of Oretzi's neck, triggering an instinctive reaction. She watches how the tension in the girl's face leaves for the first time since she watched her attempt the combination jutsu with her companion. "You understand? It's not just your fault," she whispers to the girl.

"I understand," she watch Oretzi whisper before her eyes meet golden rod eyes.

She watch herself swing her sword, felt the biting edge of the sword slicing through her body like a hot knife through butter. The red arc of blood spraying from her thin body, splattering onto the memory self. She could see the horror flickering on her face, could see everything Oretzi had seen and she realizes with a start that she could feel the emotions raging around in her student. She could feel the youki, heavily depleted, straining to close the wound but only managing to stem the flow. She was aware of the disbelief - at being injured? - and the low simmering anger beneath the numbness icing along her limbs.

The stern determination to pick herself, to see this fight through, fueled her into standing once again, to grip her weapon with both hands - even if one is slick with wet blood and the other one soon to join. Her vow to not make the mistake again as she takes the last of her youki and pouring it into her muscles. Experiencing a slight shift in her vision that told her that her eyes have gone slitted as she takes an offensive stance. Aware that with every pump of her heart she loses precious blood.

She could hear her own question, hear the concern laced in the whisper, and realize how she - Oretzi, she realizes this a long while ago - ignored the concern. As she chooses to mutter 'No holding back' just before delivering the slash that catches her sensei - herself - off guard. As blood splatters across her face she feels herself - Oretzi - snap out of the dark anger that made her react with pure emotions, the disbelief as she realizes that she had acted too rashly. The stunned expression one of the last things she sees of Anko.

The cold dread gripping her blood and body as her thoughts whirl with the implications of what she has done. Her last conscious thought was 'gomen' as she collapses on top of her sensei.

She blinks as she comes out of the memory - for what else could that be - and find herself staring at the apologetic hanyou. If she hadn't noticed the strange sensation of being out of her own body - staring at herself and doing things she hadn't done was a big clue - she would have assumed that the gaki had unintentionally pulled her into an illusion just by that expression alone.

"Gaki," she mutters quietly as she butts their foreheads together. "Gomen, Oretzi, gomen nasai."

Oretzi's eyes went wide at the lack of suffix before she is hugging the woman tightly, burying her face in her shoulder. "Anko-chan," she whispers instead of using her usual suffix. She didn't need to look at the woman to know that she was smiling instead of smirking or sneering or what not.

"Are we going to be okay?" Anko whispers quietly into the hanyou's ears, gently rubbing the sensitive wolf ears. "Do you need someone to talk to, professionally?" she questions. "I'm sure it's within my powers to arrange that."

"Hai and no," she answers to both questions, smiling to herself. If they had looked up they would have seen that the sun has begun to sink down to the horizon on the last day of the time known as Wolfstime. But it didn't really matter since Oretzi would never deliberately hurt Anko in her transformed state - not since Anko's first experience of the hanyou's Wolfstime. "I… I just need to know that you're here," she mutters quietly before she takes a deep breath of the woman's scent.

Without warning the hanyou is yanking herself away from the snake mistress, startling the woman out of the light daze she had fallen into. "What happened to your scent?" the girl questions with a puzzled expression.

"What?"

"You… smell different," Oretzi mutters quietly. Anko only gave her a confused look in return, prompting the girl to explain. "Do you remember me telling you that you remind me of the pack lands?" she questions the woman. She gets a slow nod. "Well… it's like you acquired a new layer to your scent."

Anko frowns in confusion before she gives the hanyou a questioning look. "What does it smell like now?"

"... It similar how it always was - minus the snakes that is… and… and…" she stops to recollect her thoughts, slipping her arms around the woman's waist and placed herself back at the same position as before. Her nose buried in Anko's neck once again and she takes a deep breath again to remind herself of the new change. "There's a subtle hint of… fur?"

Anko could hear the slight hitch in the girl's voice that indicated that she was unsure of what she was smelling. She remembered that she rarely got like that - so unsure of her sense of smell that she was left sitting in a spot with an adorable - Anko resented the fact that her mind was thinking that - look of confusion on her face. "Take your time," she reassures the girl, idly scratching at the base of one of her wolf ears.

She gets a low satisfied sigh as she attends to the spot she had found. "You smell almost like… one of the wolves I used to play with," Anko hears her whisper sleepily. "She liked to be in her human form a lot and often went into the nearby villages. A mixture of human scents and the underlying hint of her fur." Anko frowns to herself as she considers what the girl is saying. "Human… but just a hint of something else…"

"A bad hint?" she asks, finally noticing that the shadows have lengthened a great deal to shroud the entire clearing in a strange mixture of light and dark.

"No… I sorta like it now that I've had a chance to get to know it," she hears the girl mutter before she finally falls into a light slumber. Anko looks up at the skies to gauge how much daylight is left, knowing that when the transformation begins the hanyou will be forced to wake.

Once she is satisfied with how much time remains she leans against the tree behind her and allow herself to close her eyes. To relax in Oretzi's warmth.

* * *

A week of hard work and constant training made it possible for Oretzi to master most of the fifty percent of her youki and chakra that remained free outside the temporary cap she had chosen to place on herself. A simple masking seal to hide her true strength to the entire world around her. Also, due to her Howl with the Alpha she was able to discover the trick to hide or rid her second tail. She hadn't decided on whether she wanted to permanently get rid of her second tail so for the time being she chose to simply hide it.

While she was working on retraining herself in the input and output of her system her two teammates were training themselves in preparation of the chunin exams. Which was due to start in under three months.

Hoshi had obviously chosen to remain a shinobi and have been speaking with Anko about the impact of their tenth C-rank mission. On top of that she had been training with a family relative to strengthen her usages in the family kekkei genkai. She had only been able to improve the times she can use her kagami ririisu from two to three in the past nine months so she had chosen to work on it even more - even on how long she can hold the form before she reverts back.

Tamashii, with him no longer relying on the Gentle Fist, was in need of training with someone who can actually further him along his taijutsu training. Unfortunately for him the only person Anko could mildly trust with his training is Maito Gai, the self-proclaimed 'Konoha's Sublime Green Beast of Prey'. Oretzi just calls him Loudmouth on the account that her ears practically rings for at least an hour or two thanks to his dramatic speech. Tamashii downright hates being around the jonin but had admitted that his mastery over taijutsu made him the best choice.

Anko, with Team 13 out of the commission for a while, has chosen to dedicate her freed up hours to training herself as well as Oretzi. Hoshi and Tamashii too whenever they're away from their personal training. Because of what happened during their tenth C-rank mission Anko has taken to training Oretzi in the art of kenjutsu and sending her to the library to look up any other type of weapon styles she'd be interested in learning.

As anyone can imagine, retraining oneself to the new limits of their chakra system as well as training with a sensei known as the psycho it's a wonder Oretzi managed to do anything in one week alone. But because she was well familiar with a particular jonin restricted jutsu she was able to devote herself to training with Anko, Hana - to improve on her Inuzuka jutsu, and retraining herself.

With the help of the kage bunshin she was able to do leaps and bounds in her various trainings - so long she actually remembered to dispel the clones one by one instead of all at once. Like she did several months ago - resulting in a massive migraine the size of Kaze no Kuni. Which is bigger Hi no Kuni.

"Well, gaki," Anko pulled aside her youngest student, "it's time for a break."

"Aw, sensei, I'm close to mastering the fourth kata!" Oretzi protests loudly before she gets a pinch centered on her wolf ears - resulting in a yelp. "Nani!"

"Gaki, did you forget what tomorrow is?" Anko asks amusedly. She gets a confused look from her student, prompting a sigh. "Gaki, what month is it?"

"March," Oretzi frowns up at the purple haired woman - currently sprawled out on the dirt ground.

"What's today?"

"March twenty of the-," Oretzi cuts herself off as she realizes exactly what her sensei's point is. "NANI?!" she screeches as she executes a perfect kip-up. "How could I forget my own birthday?!"

With that the girl disappears in a whirl of fire and water - having used the shunshin jutsu to head straight home. Leaving Anko in the training ground by herself - chuckling in amusement as she picks up the abandoned practice sword. Hefting the blunted sword up in her hand she considers the gift she had gotten the girl. It's her sincerest hope that the girl likes it.

Anko shrugs her shoulders and decide that it's best to simply head home - whistling an eerie tune as she carries the two practice swords. If she managed to creep out a few villagers - well, who to say she was trying to do such a thing? Even if one of them could testify to the wicked smirk on her face.

On her way back to her apartment her path crosses with Hoshi and Tamashii who pauses when they realizes that she's whistling _and_ smirking. "What did you do, Anko-sensei?" Hoshi asks worriedly with a wary smile on her face.

"Nothing at all, gaki," she laughs, the smirk growing larger.

"Forgive us if we don't believe you," Tamashii pipes up. Anko glances at him to find that he's smirking at her.

"You're forgiven," she replies, just barely managing to refrain a chuckle.

Tamashii rolled his eyes - not that anyone could really see that - and shook his head. Hoshi stifled her giggles. "So… the fact you're not telling us anything," Hoshi finally manages to get through her amusement, "tells me that you did something to Oretzi-chan."

Anko clasps her fist over her heart as if her accusations pained her, "I'm offended you would think such a thing," she somehow manages to say seriously before bursting into guffaws. Her two students roll their eyes at her antics. "So," she clears her throat when it went too high, "have you two gotten your teammate anything for her birthday?"

The two genuine shock played on across her genins' faces prompted Anko into laughter. "Nani?! Her birthday's already here?!" Hoshi exclaims loudly.

"Yeah, it's tomorrow in fact," Anko laughs as Tamashii swore loudly. Hoshi rubbed at her face as she shook her.

"I'll assume that you actually remembered and got her something?" Hoshi questions as Tamashii grips her elbow. She never got to wait for her answer because the Hyuuga was quickly dragging her off to go shopping for a gift for Oretzi. Anko just laughed and continued on home.

**Yes, it's her birthday the next chapter! And I cannot believe this but it took up the entire chapter! The ENTIRE chapter! **

**Anyway, please R&R (also, any guests of mine, please leave a name or sig so that I can identify you if you asked a question and I want to answer it)**


	24. Chapter 24

**Here's chapter 24 everyone! And, reviewer BAS, if I remember correctly I was able to create an account just using an email. I didn't get around to posting a story until almost three or four years later. Anyway, you know the drill folks. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter 24

Oretzi's birthday arrived with a great deal of fanfare - a howling greeting from all of the Inuzuka's ninkens with loud cheers from her okaa-san, Aneki-chan, otouto-kun (with a great deal of reluctance), and all of her aunts, uncles, and cousins. The Inuzuka clan was huge because anyone with the blood of the Inuzuka, half or quarter or whatever percentage, was accepted and given a ninken partner. Tsukiko was right there with the entire pack, howling her greeting before pouncing on the now ten year old genin.

Laughing she grabs her companion and began to easily rough house with her. Their mutual strength - doesn't mean its equal - enabled them to continue wrestling until someone - namely Tsume - decided that enough is enough. With a yelp Oretzi found her neck seized in a firm but not harsh grip. "Hi," she says with a slight giggle as she looks at her slightly peeved mother.

"Oretzi-chan," the matriarch sighs, "how about you go and say hi to your imouto-chans before they start arguing with each other?" Tsume had been privy to several arguments already in the past two years and was not looking forward to quelling yet another one. Not when she needed to get Akimichi Chouza ready to put the meat on the grills soon.

Oretzi nods her head and the second she is freed from her okaa-san's grasp she followed her nose to where Ino and Sakura were seated with Kiba, Naruto, Hyuuga Hinata (the poor girl looks like she has a perpetual blush on her cheeks), Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji, Aburame Shino, and Tenten. She notices that the entire Academy class was there but she then revises her thought on that when she realizes that Uchiha Sasuke was missing. She can only assume that he chose not to join the festivities. At least, she thinks he might have. It's possible she may have neglected inviting him.

"Wow, big turn out," she teases them all, hugging Ino and then Sakura. She ruffled Naruto's hair and clasped her hand with Choji - having gotten to known the boy due to eating at the Akimichi compound often. "Shikamaru-kun, still cloud watching?" she questions the boy. When she gets a faint 'troublesome' from him she laughed. When she got to Shino she nodded her head at him, aware that he isn't all that comfortable with contact from anyone outside his clan. She gets a nod in return so she moved on to spare him any discomfort.

When it was Hinata's turn the Hyuuga girl stammered for a moment before Oretzi scooped the small and seemingly fragile girl into a huge bear hug. "Hinata-chan, thanks for coming!" she says happily. She had gotten to know the smaller girl due to the fact that she would occasionally swing by the Hyuuga compound to retrieve Tamashii - pausing long enough to give the girl some pointers about her confidence.

"Oretzi-sama!" Hinata squeaks in the older girl's arms.

"Hinata-chan, please, call me Oretzi or Oretzi-chan. No more of this 'sama' business!" the genin scolds the girl as she puts her back down. Tsukiko quickly bounds over and attended to the Hyuuga girl with wet kisses. "Tsuki!" Oretzi laughs an admonishment, pulling her off the heiress.

"Hi Tsuki-chan," the Hyuuga heiress greets the wolf pup - for she is still a pup despite the size. "Oh, Oretzi-chan," the Inuzuka hanyou smiles at the suffix for now, "Tamashii-kun said he'll be a bit late. That he'll be here in time for presents."

"That's fine with me, Hinata-chan," Oretzi chuckles as she urges the girl to join the others. "Now c'mon, I think there are going to be a few games for all of us to play."

"Puppy-chan!" she hears Ino call out to her - recognizing the trice confounded endearment as well as the voice. She looks away from the Hyuuga heiress in front of her to find Ino walking towards her with two flowers in her hand.

"Ino-chan," she greets, scooping down some to hug the shorter girl. "What's that you got there?" she questions lightly before finding the flowers thrusted into her face.

"Here," the girl says simply as she takes it from her, noting the red and yellow roses. "It means joy, happiness, and excitement," Ino recites with a happy smile. Earning a chuckle from the taller girl. "Happy Birthday."

"Aw, arigatou, imouto-chan," she hugs the girl to her before stowing away the precious flowers. "Are you ready to play games?" she asks before she looks around to find Sakura. "Where's Sakura-chan?" she asks lightly, aware of the other girl's animosity towards the third part of their trio.

"I'm not her keeper," Ino scowls before sighing when she sees the disappointed look on Oretzi's face. "I think she went inside the compound in search of the bathroom," she says instead.

Oretzi blinks for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. "Ah in that case we'll just have to get her join the games when she's back," she comments as she grins at the blonde.

"I guess so," Ino mutters before she frowns at the older girl. "Ane-chan, why are you so tall?"

She blinks down at the blonde, realizing for the first time that she's probably a full foot taller than the other. "That's a question no one knows," she replies as she shrugs her shoulders. She found it a bit hard to believe sometimes that she's the same age as Ino and Sakura when she's actually close to Tamashii's height. "Hey, let me go get the Sankyodai so that we can start our game," she says as a way of an excuse.

"Wait, we're playing with the ninkens?" Ino made a face at the thought of it. Oretzi, having looked back at the comment, smirked at the dismayed look. She knows that the blonde had no love for any of the Inuzuka's ninkens. Not after being licked by Akamaru that one time.

"No worries, imouto-chan, the ninkens will behave themselves," she reassures the girl before her nose catches scent of a familiar smell. "Looks like Sakura-chan's finally back," she comments idly as she turns to face the wind.

Ino turns to find that yes, Sakura had left the building. She could see the girl's unique hair color in the sea of wild brown hair though she did wonder how the heck Oretzi was able to scent her with all the people in the compound. It was amusing, she thinks to herself, that Sakura looked almost down right uncomfortable in the press of the entirety of the Inuzuka clan. Even with Tsukiko jumping around her legs - Ino was almost surprised to realize that the wolf pup was over with Sakura instead of Oretzi - Sakura was surrounded by members of Oretzi's family.

"Ane-chan!" Sakura calls for the tall brunette, squirming to squeeze past two members.

"Saku-chan," Oretzi laughs as she helps her out of the crowd, hugging her tightly. "Come, the games are to begin!" With that she ushers her two imouto-chans away from the adults and with the help of their imaginations and her genjutsu skills they began an adventure interesting enough to catch the boys' attention and girly enough for the girls to partake in.

* * *

"Happy Birthday Gaki!" she suddenly hears her sensei shout in a way that suggests that she may have been in the sake already. Before she can do anything she finds herself seized in a headlock, her hair ruffled crazily by the jonin instructor. "You're now officially ten!" the woman cheers with a laugh. "How you feel?"

Oretzi, having been shaken a few times in the past five minutes during Anko's excited greeting, feels dizzy and made it clear to her sensei. If it had been a cartoon one would have seen birds flying around her head, chirping. "Anko-chan," she whines at her mentor before she is released by the woman. Rubbing her neck she mock glares at her sensei before sighing at the mischievous look on the woman's face.

She was too accustomed to the look - she thinks to herself - knowing when to back down and just let Anko have the run of whatever plan she cooked up. She just hopes that it isn't enough to get her okaa-san all mama wolf (it seems wrong to call her okaa-san mama dog for some reason) on Anko.

"So am I late for the cake?" Anko questions, smirking again with that mischievous look.

"Nope," Oretzi shakes her head as she finally regains her bearings. "I think there's still some barbeque around if you're hungry?" she offers, glancing around momentarily for her imouto-chans or even Hinata-chan. The boys were off doing something with her otouto-kun and she didn't feel it was necessary to bother them with Kiba's animosity towards her.

"No need, gaki," Oretzi finds herself pulled back to Anko, the older woman wrapping her arms around her shoulders. Never mind the fact that the jonin is two inches shorter than her now. Almost unwillingly she finds her body relaxing into the woman's embrace, allowing Anko to move them to a chair. She found the lack of sleep in the past week and the month before has taken a toll as she twists around to make herself comfortable. "Geez, you're like a kid in a woman's body," she hears Anko mutter softly just before she finally finds the right spot.

"I am a kid in a woman's body," Oretzi grumbles, aware that her unusual height makes everyone think she's a teenager like Tamashii or Hana. She looked too old for her own body and she was aware that even when she was actually the right size for her age she still looked too old. Her emotions and her responses as well as her ability to maintain a stoic face was beyond her age. She knew all of that.

"Were you ever a kid?" Anko mutters quietly, stroking the spot where she knows there are deep puncture marks - a reminder of a rogue wolf that managed to bite the hanyou before the girl's Alpha dealt with him.

"… Once upon a time, yes," Oretzi mutters back, "Growing up with the pack there wasn't much to worry about except rival and rogue wolves. Everyone respected the Alpha and whenever there was a challenge Prima always made sure I was somewhere safe and out from beneath their paws." Anko could hear the wistful tone in the girl's voice and knew that she missed the Lunar Wolves. "The structure of the pack… it's complicated but they've always made it work…"

"You miss that, huh?"

Oretzi pulls away to frown at the older woman. "I guess I do. They're all I've ever known, before I was left at the Orphanage. Life was simple there. The orphanage was full of rules - of do and don't. Coming here… was like finding a second home that was just as good as the first," she mutters as she lays her head back on the woman's shoulder. Never mind the fact that they're at a birthday party - _her own_ birthday party. She just wanted to stay here and relax with her sensei.

"Remember your first day here?" Anko laughs quietly. She could feel the girl's nod and a slight shake of her body that she took to mean that she's laughing too. "I think you had an even twenty of dumplings."

"I gave my twenty-first to Kuromaru," Oretzi speaks up with a slight laugh. She remembered how she wanted to pet the wolf-dog but had been unsure until he spoke up about it. She remembered the conversation that sprung up about her mother, about the Hokou. How she believes that she is still alive - that she was willingly given up in order to be safe from whatever enemies she had.

The fact that she didn't answer the Howl when Nukiya - dare she think of the wolf demon as her sister? - attempted to contact her testified to the fact that something has happened to her. Even Nukiya - what is she to call her aside from her name? For it seems too informal - was concerned and she was the one who apparently knows the Hokou.

"What are you thinking about, gaki?" Oretzi hears Anko question softly.

"… I met someone - just after killing Nalika. She saved my life and…" she trails off for a moment, prompting Anko to pull away to look down at the girl in her arms. "Apparently she's my sister, from the Hokou's side of the family." Oretzi looked up in time to see Anko staring at her with a stunned expression on her face. "… Uh… this is a big shock isn't it?" she mutters awkwardly.

"This is more than a shock," Anko leaned back as she rubs at her face. "Did she offer any proof that she's the Hokou's daughter? For that matter, why did you even tell her that you're the Hokou's daughter?"

"I didn't exactly have a choice. She scented the Lunar Wolves on me and kept making assumptions about one of them being my sire." Anko shook her head in disbelief as she realizes what the girl is saying.

"You and your pride will be your downfall," she sighs. Oretzi briefly averted her eyes for a moment before they meet hers' again. She could see the girl's defiance on the matter, causing her to frown before letting the matter drop. It wasn't time to deal with something like this - not at the gaki's birthday. "I think it's time for presents," Anko declares, causing the hanyou to pull away from her completely.

She squish the feeling of emptiness when the gaki pulled away, aware that allowing it to grow into anything would lead her into a world of trouble.

"Where is Hoshi-chan and Tamashii-kun?" Oretzi wonders out loud as she looks around for her two teammates. "Tamashii-kun should've been here by now and I would've thought Hoshi-chan would've come for the food already." It wasn't normal for them to be late like this.

"I believe Akino-san had a last minute task for Hoshi-chan to run," the hanyou hears Anko say from behind, "and Tamashii-kun should be here sometime soon." She shrugs her shoulders, accepting it as it is before wondering over to her okaa-san when she hears her name. Leaving her sensei alone to her own thoughts.

It was just as well because Anko did not want nor need the company of anyone present in the compound as she mentally goes over the last of her plans. Mentally aware that this has a good chance of making Oretzi speechless for at _least_ five minutes she nevertheless chose to continue onward with it. Nothing wrong about surprising the gaki - unless she forgets herself and accidently lashes out.

With that she goes to see if the gaki is carrying any weapons on her - aside from the customary back-up kunai stashed away somewhere on her person. Oh, and her claws… Anko frowns as she realizes that there is no way to make sure Oretzi doesn't hurt someone accidently since her whole body is a weapon.

Left with that to ponder over Anko drifted along the edges of the party, going over her plans again to ensure that no one will come away damaged in any way that may prompt the council's wrath upon the hanyou.

* * *

It wasn't quite time for presents but it was time for cake and - to Oretzi's immense pleasure - ice cream. The girl was practically giddy over the revelation of ice cream, her tail wagging so hard the people behind her had to back away to avoid being thumped constantly by it. Tsukiko was in complete giggles about her partner's excitement, not yet quite understanding Oretzi's obsession with the icy treat since she was never permitted to taste the hanyou's favorite since it contained chocolate - something Hana and Tsume are unsure of allowing a pureblood wolf demon to consume.

Nevertheless, Oretzi was excited like heck. Just barely managing to stay still in her seat - with her tail being the only betrayer of her excitement - she smiles up at her okaa-san. The cake was styled in an elaborate style of what looks to be a forest. If she looks closely to the cake - which she had much earlier - she could make out the silhouette of what looks to be a wolf with five tails. She knows that her okaa-san would never have the patience for something like this and looking at her sister Hana she could conclude the same from her. She spent a moment more considering who may have created the cake for her before halting that line of thought. She didn't really need to know because she knows that it just means that they care about her.

"Gaki, I'm not even sure we need to be giving you this much sugar," she hears her sensei say from somewhere behind her before a pair of arms wraps around her shoulders and a weight settles on her head, just between her wolf ears.

"Anko-chan!" she whines, moving slightly in an attempt to look at the woman. "I like my sweets!" she exclaims

"Is that a new like?' Anko questions out loud, recalling the introductions they had done on their first day as a team.

"I guess?" Oretzi mutters before smiling gleefully when her okaa-san lights up the ten candles on her birthday cake. She attempted to pull away from her sensei but when she tried she found that the woman wasn't going to let her go.

With a shrug she accepts the restriction and closes her eyes for a moment to consider what should be her birthday wish. Her mind had rationalized - on her first birthday celebration with the Inuzuka clan - that this whole thing is a silly waste of time. But after experiencing her first celebration it was just too much fun to resist.

After a moment she realizes exactly what she wants to wish for and takes a deep breath before blowing it all out. Somehow managing to get all ten in one breath. Smiling in victory she accepts the hugs from all around - with Anko forced to let go of her - while her okaa-san cuts the cake for everyone. Most of the Inuzuka clan clamored for a slice while the matriarch barked orders at them to step aside for the kids.

While munching on her marble flavored cake Oretzi was presented with gifts from the Inuzuka branch (there is too many members of the branch to retrieve individual gifts), her okaa-san, Hana-oneesan, Kiba-kun, her former Academy class, and the Higurashi family. She was surprised that Tamashii and Hoshi hadn't arrived yet and when she glances at Anko the woman signed that she'd be retrieving her gift later when her teammates arrive.

The gift from her distant relatives was an ensemble that confused her for a moment before comprehension flooded her mind. It was a light weight battle armor and as she taps at the simple looking jacket she could feel the resonance of metal strategically placed to protect vital organs. She notes that it was a bit larger than herself so she looks up at one of her distant cousins - an inventor of sort if she remembers right - in askance.

"It's so you can grow into it," he laughs as he gestures to the few buckles that dangles from the chest and abdominal area of the jacket. "Those are to make sure that the plates are actually where they're supposed to be and to ensure that the fabric doesn't snag on anything." Oretzi holds up the jacket to her chest, revealing for the first time that the jacket is actually more like a vest with the lack of sleeves. "Tsume-sama also mentioned that you don't like your arms restricted so I took that into consideration."

"Arigatou," she tells him before she removes another item from the box, revealing it to be a harness. She stares at it in confusion before turning to her companion and holding it up to her body. "Hey, you got a matching one!" she teases the pup who just beams with pride. "Arigatou, cousin," she smiles at him before nodding her head at everyone else. She gets a rough ruffling of her hair but bears in good well - acknowledging it as their way of showing their affections.

Her next present came from her okaa-san and it was a set of customized knives - not kunai but actual fighting knives. One side made for cutting with the other side serrated. She smiled almost wickedly as she twirls one of the blades in her hand, getting a feel of the weapon. The grip was wrapped in flexible leather, molded in a way that fits in her hand easily, and the hilt simple but effective. When she holds it in a reverse grip she nods her head in satisfaction. "Thank you okaa-san," she hugs the matriarch who awkwardly cleared her throat as she pats the taller girl on the shoulder before telling her to continue on.

Hana's gift was like her previous two, made to be used as she continued down her path as a shinobi. Whereas the branch had chosen armor and their okaa-san had chosen weaponry Hana choose something a bit more symbolic - a sign of her belief of Oretzi's ability to accomplish her goals. It was a porcelain mask with forest green marks carving out the face of a snarling wolf. It had her smiling and she hugged her slightly shorter sister in thanks for the present.

Kiba's present surprised her, since they had yet to resolve the tension that has been floating around them. But the simple wooden carving of Tsukiko and herself crouched in a fighting stance greeted when she opened the box. Further investigation revealed several more carvings -one of Kiba and Akamaru, their okaa-san and Kuromaru, Hana and the Haimaru Sankyodai, and finally all four of them without their companions. It had to have taken him months to do all of these - months she thought he was spending in anger with her.

"Otouto-kun," she mutters out loud for the first time in several months. She could immediately see the bashful look on his face, prompting a wary smile from her. "Arigatou," she mutters, holding up a fist. He stares at her for a moment before bumping his own against hers'.

"Welcome to the family, oneechan," he says simply and she couldn't help the wide grin from appearing on her face. It had taken two years, just a little under, for him to accept her into the family. For her this was a big accomplishment and the carvings were proof of that.

Her gifts from her former Academy class was an associated kit of supplies. Everything a typical shinobi would need in a field she found in the kit. There was enough to last her for at least a month worth of missions - longer if she uses them wisely or sparingly. When she found a container that was unmarked she took a cautious sniff - her nose identifying several scents that she has come to associate with effective healing salves. And an additional scent linger around the container when she shuts it, identifying the person who was the creator of the salve. So she smiles her thanks to Hinata, causing the poor girl to blush.

When she gets to the Higurashi's gifts to her she was curious as to what they would give her. So far she has been retrieving something that would aid her on her missions. And Higurashi was the best blacksmith in the entire village so it stand to reason that he would be gifting her with something extraordinary. The _Black Deaths_ was just one example of his workmanship. So when she retrieves a smallish package from Tenten she was surprised to find that it was light, extremely so. Unraveling it revealed it to be a scroll so - with a glance towards Tenten and her father - she opens the scroll. Her eyes widening when she realizes just what she has in her hands.

It contained an old fighting style - from what she could read - and she realizes that it also demands the use of a weapon that reminds her of nunchuks without chains or even a Bo staff, or at least the two halves of one. It looked like something that is designed for defense or blunt force instead of piercing or slashing. Yet, as she speed reads the katas she can tell that the motions and swings are similar to what she does for her unique battle style.

"Oretzi-chan," she hears Higurashi call her name, bringing her back to the present and making her realize that she had gotten absorbed in the scroll.

"Gomen everyone," she says with a slight bow as she rolls up the scroll.

"Nonsense, Oretzi-chan," Higurashi laughs as he presents his gift to her. "I'm glad you liked Tenten's gift. It means that you'll love mine," he boasts with a smile as she cradles the light package.

Oretzi laughs as she places the box in her lap and undid the simple strings to the plain brown wrapping paper. Actually, it was more like simple packaging paper instead of wrapping paper. She shakes her head as she removes the covering and lifts up the lid.

Her eyebrows, without warning, made a wild attempt for her hairline as she gawks at the two pristine polished metal weapons. Just like the weapons from the scroll! "Higurashi, you didn't!" she exclaims excitedly as she picks them up, finding them settling into her palms easily like they've always been there.

"I did," the man smirks in a manner that would have normally been seen as arrogance.

"Have I told you lately that you're the best?" she questions him as she studies the weapons in full, running cautious fingers along the vine like designs until her nail catches a snag on something. Remembering the last time something like that happened she pulls her face away from the weapon and attempts to press it. When that didn't work she tries a jolt of her chakra. To her surprise a blade pops out with something that resembles hilts.

Blinking she resumes her study of the weapon before smiling at the blacksmith. "No hiss," she informs the man with a dazzling grin, causing the man to laugh. It had been his ambition to create a weapon from the get-go without a hiss after discovering that it is possible. "Arigatou, Higurashi, Tenten," she bows to them in respect.

She did a quick inventory of her presents, making the decision to practice with her new found weapons - which reminds her of something. "What are their names?" she asks Higurashi, holding up the weapons in question. Another inspection had revealed that one was given the vine designs she had felt earlier and the other one was given the designs of fire. The vines made her think of wood so she took it to mean that they're representing her two strongest elemental affinities - though water and earth are a default.

"_Moku_ and _Faia_," the man informs her. "They're both made of materials that will channel the specific elements through them. _Moku_ will enhance your Mokuton and _Faia_ will enhance your Katon." This made Oretzi positively giddy.

"You're like the best!" she exclaims loudly and gleefully as she spins and twirls the weapons in her hands. She loved the way they seem to move with just the barest twitch of her muscles. She just practically dances in her seat as she cradles the weapons - of course, this was after applying another jolt of chakra to revert them back to their dormant states.

Then, before she can react, she finds herself in a headlock, her hair being ruffled like crazy. She instinctively whines, struggling to break free. "Gaki, if you think Higurashi-san's gifts was the best you'll down right think mine is the bomb!" she hears a familiar voice exclaim loudly with what seems to be a crackle.

"Anko-chan!" she whines loudly as she goes lax. Accepting that nothing would break her free of her sensei's grasp until the woman decides to release her.

"Anko-sensei," she hears one of her teammates - Hoshi, from the sound of her voice - call out. The jonin turns around and by default - with Oretzi locked in the headlock - the hanyou ends up following. "Oh, hi Oretzi-chan," the future Mitarashi Anko greets the birthday girl. "When will you learn how to get out of that?"

Oretzi's wolf ears flatten against her ears for a second, "I've tried everything I could think of!" She have already tried biting (and that was by complete accident), pleading, twisting, brute strength, and everything else!

"… I'm going to assume you never thought to use her weaknesses?" the purple haired teenager questions her. Oretzi blinks in surprise for a moment before her eyes widen and she realizes just what the teenager is telling her.

Anko frowns at her two students before yelping, dropping the hanyou like a hot potato and glaring at her look-alike. Oretzi had a triumphed look on her face as she smirks at the woman while Hoshi just looked like she was attempting to be innocent. "Gaki," she scowls at the two girls before roughly shaking her head. "Where's Tamashii-kun?" she looks around for the Hyuuga before spotting him with the presents they had gotten for Oretzi.

Anko quickly directs the hanyou over to where Tamashii is and joins him and Hoshi. "Well, Oretzi-chan, it's almost been two years since you've joined Konoha and became part of our lives," Hoshi starts cheerfully.

"You've changed me for the better," Tamashii continues, smirking slightly as he remembers just how much of a jackass he had been towards the hanyou until the younger genin retaliated with a vicious genjutsu. "You may be the youngest of the three of us, but you're a major part of our team."

"It's been an honor for me, Oretzi-chan, to be your sensei," Anko picks up as she hands over a scroll. "After sixteen months with you as my student nothing else would serve as a gift from me to you aside from this." Oretzi, completely confused by the formalities, accepts the scroll and unrolls it. Her mind registering the storage seals on the paper and instinctively undoing them.

So her face completely convoyed her surprise when out pops a katana, her hand instantly grabbing the weapon. Her body going rigid at the current of unfamiliar youki zapping through her system. It was painful, it was exhilarating. It was everything and nothing all at once. Inside her head something whispers, 'Hikari o Houki', as she draws the sword. Out slides a bastard sword instead of a katana - startling everyone except Anko.

"Ooh, I know what this is!" Oretzi exclaims excitedly, "this is a demonic sword! Forged in the deepest part of Andawarudo!" Her eyes examining the blade with a critical eye. The blade was a colored a deep black and, as she runs a finger along it, she knows that it isn't oil or anything else a shinobi uses to coat shiny surfaces. The guard of the sword was stretched out in what appears to be dragon wings and as she looks closer she realizes that the hilt is like the 'body' of the dragon, with the head resting on the base of the blade. She flips it over to the other side to see that it's the same. While looking at the blade she realizes that there is a spot lighter than the rest and as she stares at it she realizes she sees a series of kanji. "Hikari o Houki," she mutters quietly, "Abandonment of Light… So that's what this one's name is."

"Oretzi-chan," she hears Hoshi calls out to her, pulling her attention away from the mesmerizing sword. She slides the bastard sword back into the katana sheathe as Hoshi hands her a scroll. "This is our present to you," the Akino heiress states with a wide grin. She unravels the scroll and swipes her thumb across it.

She finds herself holding a completely black outfit. Holding up the shirt she notices that it's like a midriff shirt, with no sleeves once so ever. The pants was similar to the typical shinobi pants except there were several strategic pockets stored here and there. A fingerless pair of gloves with metal plates protecting the back of the hands. "Uh…" she mutters, unsure of what to make with this.

"Look at the back of the shirt, baka," Tamashii laughs so she flips it around to see a white five tailed wolf embroidered onto the shirt, the tails fanned out. She then notices that the wolf's forepaws are resting on a kanji for thirteen. She grins as she realizes what it symbolizes. She picks up the pants to look at it as well, noting that there is another five tailed wolf embroidered onto the back pocket, it wasn't resting on a thirteen but it was still as amazing.

"Aw, arigatou!" she exclaims as she throws herself at her teammates. "This is the best birthday party ever!"

**-_-' I hope this was an okay birthday celebration. I'm not used to writing birthday parties and all the stuff Oretzi got was not something someone would give a ten year old in our world. **

**Please leave a review! Let me know if you think something else could've been given to Oretzi. Because I've realized I've given this girl three different types of weapons to use. Btw, BAS, if you create an account you don't need to start writing a story. But it does let you follow or favorite other people's stories. **


	25. Chapter 25

**I was originally planning on holding onto this (Even though I already finished chapter 26) but I felt like being nice and viola, here you go. You know the usual drills, everyone. Don't own Naruto but the folks you don't recognize are mine.**

**Chapter 25**

"Ah!" Oretzi yelps as she is knocked back at least four yards, her head colliding with the ground harshly as she goes head over heels several times before she comes to a stop. Coughing and sneezing she forces herself back onto her feet in time to see her maniacal sensei swinging a katana at her head. Her eyes widens before the sword cuts into her.

'Poof!'

Anko scowls when she finds that Oretzi had done a kawarimi jutsu, replacing herself with a log. She whirls in place to block a sword swing that sends her sliding back at least five feet.

They trade blows for a few moments longer before two more Oretzi appear. One of them swings low at Anko's knees while the other swings high at her neck while the 'original' grasps her hand to keep her in place.

But all three are forced away when Anko shunshin away in a whirl of fire. Despite their high affinity for fire they cannot be close to another person's fire shunshin or risk being dispelled. The three clones split off into different directions in search for Anko.

Off to the side, having their own private little spar, was Tamashii and Hoshi. They were originally working alongside with Oretzi, until Anko 'took' them out with a fatal shot. So they were down for the count and making bets on who would win the team spar. Oretzi - with her insane speed and stamina - or Anko - with her battle experience and knowledge.

Hoshi was rooting for Oretzi, aware of the fact that the girl has an insane amount of stamina and an ability to keep moving long after anyone else would be pasting out from exhaustion. While Tamashii was rooting for their sensei because of her world experience. He was confident that she would still have some kind of trick up her sleeve in order to counter Oretzi's rash and blunt methods.

A maelstrom of fire sprang up out of nowhere, scorching everything in its path. Causing Hoshi and Tamashii to jump out of the way as the blaze grows larger before it encounters another firestorm. The two clashes with one another before dying out.

"Oretzi went a little too crazy with that maelstrom," Hoshi coughs as the ashes clogs the air.

"Yeah, sorry about that," they hear Oretzi say sheepishly, causing the two of them to turn around and find the hanyou smiling at them. "I pumped too much youki into that one." She was scratching at the base of her neck.

"Um… where's Anko-sensei?" Tamashii question, looking around for her.

"I think she's busy fighting the fire clones," the hanyou says with a chuckle and a mischievous grin. "So, why aren't you guys doing anything to improve yourselves?" she questions them. "I mean I know that you're out of the game for now but you can always do something to better yourselves."

Tamashii blinks in surprise at the hanyou's words before palming his face. Hoshi had a sheepish look on her face. "Sometimes you come up with the perfect way to make others see their errors," Hoshi sighs, shaking her head. She then hops up onto her feet, grabbing Tamashii's hand. "We'll be on the other part of the training grounds!" she shouts over her shoulder as she drags off the taller boy.

Oretzi chuckles softly to herself before executing a perfect back flip to dodge a thrown kunai. She turns to face the thrower as Anko walks out of the woods, holding several more kunai and her sword. The hanyou was amused to find the blade of the katana has been shattered with only three inches left of the impressive weapon.

"Heh, did Tsukiko break your weapon?" she asks with a smirk.

"You're paying for the repair bills, gaki," the woman scowls as she tosses the useless weapon and holding her kunais in a reverse grip.

"Only if you win this round," the hanyou replies just before she vanishes in a burst of speed that has Anko cursing loudly.

Two hours passed before their spar was concluded with no clear victor. Mainly because Oretzi never stuck around long enough for Anko to win using her expertise. It also meant that she spent a lot of time setting up traps - as if she is the hunter and Anko is the 'prey' - and each one always nearly takes out the older woman. She even used the triple wires that Hoshi had caught her with and that was nearly the demise of the experienced jonin. While the jonin's experiences were aiding her in staying just one step ahead of the hanyou, enabling her to avoid the traps and stay at an even pace with Oretzi's speed.

If Anko had been less experienced or cockier with her abilities it was more than likely that Oretzi would have surpassed her already. The whole thing made it clear that Oretzi's dream to join the ANBU would be possible and at her current rate she'd achieve it a lot sooner than most people would think.

"I'm tired," Oretzi whines as she slumps against her sensei, her clothes singed with a thick scent of smoke clinging to her skin, hair, and fur. Four more firestorms have been summoned up in the two hours since Tamashii and Hoshi split off to do their own training. The thick cloud of ashes and smoke lingered over the training grounds and the vegetation around them would take weeks in returning to their former glories. Which made her feel guilty like nothing else since she was always the one to start up the fire fight.

It didn't help that she was fully capable of manipulating Anko's fire jutsu to turn it against to her. Like Anko's Enkou Tou - which is a jutsu that creates a fountain of fire and cannot revert back towards the user - or her Inferuno Gufuu - which does as it is named, creating a tornado of fire that burns everything in its path.

The Enkou Tou, the only jutsu that cannot be reverted back - as far as she's aware anyway - was manipulated back towards its user once she overwhelmed Anko's chakra inside the jutsu and made it hers. The Inferuno Gufuu - well, she destroyed it completely using a Suiton jutsu before creating an even stronger version of it by adding in a Doton jutsu.

"Considering you kept using your youki and chakra I'm not surprised," Anko mutters as she idly strokes the girl's neck, sensing her relaxation. She wasn't happy that her clothes were singed but given the fact that they've been manipulating Katon all day she wasn't all that upset. "I don't think you ever had the chance to use one or the other so often. It's possible that your system is going to need some readjustments."

"Joy," the girl rumbles, a noise seemingly growing inside Oretzi's chest. It didn't take long for Anko to realize that the sound she was hearing was not an ominous one but… a pleased one? With every minute that passed the noise grows louder until she can feel it in her bones.

"Gaki, what's going on with you?" she pulls away from the genin, looking at the girl in concern. She had never felt her do something like that before, had never felt her practically vibrate as a result. Sure, she has done it once in contentment in her transformed state. Also, another time when she was feeling threatened - once again, in her transformed state.

As she thinks she is reminded of the time when the girl read the challenge issued by Sabaku no Gaara but other than that it was mostly done when she was transformed - reacting, she realizes, on pure instincts. Thinking everything over, she comes to the realization that the girl isn't angry about something, since the hanyou is still prone on against her shoulder but simply content.

She knew this because the girl whined in displeasure at losing her favorite pillow. She settled back against Anko, her arms wrapped around the jonin's waist as if to discourage her from moving away again. Not that the jonin was willing to move away now that she realizes just what the girl is convoying through her rumbles. The slow steady thumps of her tail - tails - was just another indicator of the hanyou's comfort.

"Anko-chan… are we going to be ready for the chunin exams?" the hanyou mutters, her voice thick with exhaustion.

"I dunno, gaki… Hoshi has some… more things to deal with before she's ready to go back into the battlefield," Anko confesses, intimately aware that the Akino heiress had taken a great deal of precaution to avoid the men in the village. Trusting only Tamashii and perhaps her father and brother. Everyone else, though, she treated them as if they have the plague. That kind of mentality - Anko rationalizes - will make missions difficult and the chunin exams may be something outside of the girl's comfort zone. Since almost all teams are composed of two males and a female.

"… She'll feel guilty and pressured to do the chunin exams since we've been preparing for it for nearly a year now," Oretzi comments, the slow thump of her tails nearly stopping as she starts to worry about her teammate. "She might put aside her personal feelings and reservations to go through the exams… What if she uses her kagami ririisu to mimic a male? With everyone believing her to be a guy they won't give her much attention as they would towards a girl."

Anko stares at her student as she realizes the merit of her thought patterns. "I'll let her know about that particular option," she says simply as she runs her hand down the girl's spine, prompting her tails to resume their happy thumps.

Sometime after they called a ceasefire and chosen a spot under a relatively untouched tree, choosing shade over comfort, the other genins in Team 13 finally reappeared to find their sensei and youngest teammate napping. Seemingly unaware of the world around them. It is also where Inuzuka Hana finally found them, after searching almost everywhere for her sister on the orders of their okaa-san.

Of course, she ended up finding Tamashii and Hoshi first since her imouto-chan's scent clung to them. The scent of a forest with the unfamiliar hint of pheromones. It was enough to drive most of the Inuzuka dogs into distraction since they rely on instincts more than their human companions. It was also enough to make Kiba run out of the compound the second his oneechan came downstairs that morning, clutching Akamaru to him.

It had taken her at least three hours for their okaa-san to convince Hana - who had been in the clinic at the time of Oretzi's departure - to go and bring back Oretzi. Mainly because Hana was busy dealing with the aftermath of the hanyou's scent impacting the Inuzuka ninkens. Even people without their sensitive sense of smell would have been impacted as well - just so long they can smell and their brain can decipher the signals.

Even now, with the barest hint of what's occurring inside her imouto-chan could affect Hana which is why she had chosen to apply a medicine she had used before to clog up her nose. She'll have to apply it every few hours but it'll do its purpose of making sure that she doesn't react wrongly upon discovering her imouto-chan. She didn't know how else to phrase the whole thing.

The fact that her okaa-san was reluctant to try and bring her back herself meant that she too had a reaction and was either a) ashamed, b) startled or c) concerned by it.

Looking over Tamashii and Hoshi she was able to conclude that they hadn't noticed the pheromones cloud around her imouto-chan - that or they just weren't interested in females. Which says a lot about the Hyuuga boy.

However, when they found Oretzi Hana was surprised by how close her imouto was with the jonin instructor and suspicious. The conflicted look on Anko's face made her narrow her eyes as she notes that the hanyou's tails were thumping a slow pleased pace with a low but audible rumble of contentment in the air.

"Oretzi-chan," she calls out carefully, suspecting that if she goes any closer and disturb her imouto she'd probably regret it. Despite the heavy cloud of… well, she wishes she had her sense of smell back because she has no idea what that is but it might be smoke since the whole training ground looks like it has gone through a wildfire twice.

The girl stirs for a second before snuggling in tighter to Anko's side. The jonin glances at the chunin for a moment before lightly shaking Oretzi before she finally rouses out of her nap with a whine. Yet she didn't let go of the woman, her body seems permanently attached to the woman, reluctant to even entertain the thought of pulling away.

"Oretzi," she tries again with a slightly more stern tone. This has her imouto looking at her with a strange look. "Time to go home," she instructs the girl.

"I don't wanna go home yet."

"Okaa-san wants us back at the compound in fifteen minutes." A lie but a worthwhile one if it means getting her imouto away. The fact that Anko - a known bisexual in town - wasn't reacting to the thick pheromone cloud meant that Oretzi wasn't quite ready yet. She didn't want to test that particular theory though and getting her back to the compound before _something_ happens is a priority in her mind.

"No," the girl replies stubbornly, causing a faint growl to radiate from Hana before she manages to get ahold of herself. But the challenge was issued and the hanyou was up and on her feet, dark brown eyes narrowed warningly at her aneki. At once Hana realizes her mistake as she finds herself being stared down by her younger but _taller_ sister.

"We need to leave now," she tries to say sternly, despite knowing that she had earned her imouto's ire and now risk provoking her. Dogs - and wolves as well - are extremely testy around mating times and will take any attempts to steal away their potential 'mates' as a challenge. Just by growling at her imouto she had prompted her into considering herself as a rival.

This was worse than the time Oretzi deliberately irritated her during her heat.

"Gaki," Anko interrupts before a fight could break out between the two Inuzuka sisters. "Go home with your aneki. It might be serious," the jonin concludes when she sees that she has Oretzi's attention, even if the hanyou didn't turn her hard gaze from Hana.

She got a protesting whine from the hanyou and shook her head to ward off any protests she would've made. "Go," she says firmly as she picks herself up. "C'mon, Tamashii, Hoshi, let's get back to your training. I want you to tell me what you could have done to avoid those 'fatal' shots I had given you." She walked off as she spoke, not even turning to look back at the dejected and confused hanyou.

Tamashii and Hoshi spared their youngest teammate a look before rushing off to follow their sensei. Leaving her alone, her tails swishing behind her in an agitated way. Then without warning she turns on her heels and walks away - her strides long and seemingly unhurried - with Hana right behind her.

* * *

Oretzi fidgeted in her seat, struggling to stay still and not do or say something idiotic as she is sorely tempted to. It is like there is an itch deep beneath her skin and it is driving her insane. All she can decipher from her emotions is a deep need to find Anko and stay by her side. She has been home for nearly ten minutes already and has yet to see her okaa-san, aneki, or even her otouto-kun.

Tsukiko - who had disappeared after the stalemate - bounds into the living room and pounces onto her human companion, knocks her off the couch. _"Nee-chan!"_ the wolf demon says cheerfully, _"Anko-sensei said you went home!"_

"I did," she mutters grouchily at her companion, choosing to lay on her back instead of forcing the heavier wolf to get off her. She wasn't in any mood to fight or squabble with her companion for some reason.

_"Nee-chan?"_ She looks at the puzzled wolf and made a slight noise to let her know she's listening. _"What's wrong?"_

"Nothing."

_"Doesn't smell like nothing."_

"That's just the ashes from earlier," she informs the wolf.

_"Nah-uh, I know you and you smell like you're brooding over something."_

"I'm not brooding!"

_"You are too!"_ the pup retaliates and before they knew it they were wrestling, with loud growls echoing through the main house. The couch got shoved out of the way, the coffee table kicked away with a resounding crack, and various other things as they rolled around. There was nothing playful in this wrestle as the hanyou have been pushed too far, her ire snapping at her companion for the first time ever.

Without even intending to Oretzi's youki sprang forward, altering her features more so that she looks more like a wolf than human, lengthening her canines and her claws. Never before had either one of them drawn blood deliberately yet for as Oretzi threw the pup away from her blood coated the tips of her claws as blood red eyes glower at the wolf demon.

The pure instincts that have remained dormant since the deal with the strange wolf demon have been brought to the surface once again and this time it'll run its course until she manages to snap out of it. As it stood now though, it was likely she would remain in her anger and mindlessness until the flux of hormones end.

Tsukiko, stunned by the impact of the wall and the four gouges in her side, was slow to pick herself up and Oretzi didn't move. She seemed content to stay where she stood, her eyes narrowed at her companion.

That's how the Inuzuka family found them. With Tsukiko staring at her human companion with hurt eyes and Oretzi staring right back at her with cold vicious eyes.

"Shimatta," Tsume exclaims as Hana hurried over to Tsukiko when she sees the blood on her fur coat. "What did you do, Oretzi?" a low growl issued from the matriarch's throat and the hanyou responded with a warning growl of her own - their eyes connecting and enabling the Tokubetsu Jonin to see that Oretzi's eyes are completely red.

"Oretzi-chan… please, calm yourself," Tsume tries instead of ordering her. Suspecting that if she does something that the hanyou doesn't like she'll go to an extreme no one will come out unscathed from.

None of them knew how long it took for Oretzi to snap out of it but the fading red in her eyes and the gradual reduce of the sharp wolf features were noticeable for the two Inuzuka females. Once Oretzi was freed from the mindless instincts she sagged, nearly falling down to her knees, but somehow managing to catch herself. Holding a hand to her pounding temples as she struggles to remain standing.

"I…" she mutters as she blinks owlishly at her surroundings. She couldn't remember much from the past five or ten minutes. "What happened?" Her eyes fall upon her companion and she notes with dismay that the pup is supporting blood on her fur. "Oh, Tsuki, what happened?!"

Hana stepped in between Oretzi and Tsukiko, her face stern and disapproving. "Stop," she states almost coldly. "You are out of control, imouto-chan. You've deliberately injured your own companion in a meaningless dispute." The hanyou blinks at her aneki, confused, before looking down at her hand, noting for the first time the blood that coats the tips of her nails.

"Hana, that's enough," came Tsume's sharp voice as she stood up to grip Oretzi's shoulders. "I will not make any excuses for Oretzi but you and I both know what it is like to endure the same thing for the very first time."

"What's happening to me?" came the girl's quiet and quite honestly scared voice. The wild need to be near Anko was getting worse by the second and the boiling rage seems to be frothing just beneath the surface of her emotions. She couldn't remember the last time she had this much trouble from her anger.

She gets a quiet sigh from her okaa-san before she is directed to the couch - still shoved far out of its usual spot - and force to sit. "Oretzi-chan… there is no easy way to explain this so…" Tsume clears her throat. "You're in heat."

The result was instantaneous.

"NANI?!"

Thump.

Oretzi had passed out.

Tsume looks at her oldest daughter with a sigh, "Well, that went better than I had hoped."

Hana shakes her head, still angry about the fact that Oretzi had injured her own companion, but her face softens as she recalls her own heat. The first one always set the pattern for all future ones and as it was, Oretzi acted clingy to the person whom she seems interested in but at the same time aggressive to anyone who threatens her personal claim or just plain irritated her.

In her mind though, lifelong companions are the sole exceptions to that rule. Oretzi should have never laid a hand on her own companion like that.

* * *

A week went by before Oretzi was permitted to leave the compound with Tsukiko by her side. Not because Hana was still furious at her for injuring her but because it took that long for her heat to dissipate and stop clouding her senses. She had apologized to her companion the first chance she got - which was shortly after she awoke from her fainting spell (she'll never live that down) - and begged for her forgiveness. Something Tsukiko was quite willing to give upon the agreement that she'd be as forgiving when her own heat comes around.

The deal was struck and the two wolves as tight as ever.

Now, all that remained was finding Team 13 and check on the status of their training. Since less than three weeks remain before the start of the chunin exams in June. She needed to see if Hoshi will be able to go into the exams with all of her wits gathered around her or if they will need to postpone until December.

She arrived at the Training Grounds 44: The Forest of Death. Her least favorite place to be in the entire world. Simply because a lot of the animals there has a tiny bit of youki from what seems to be residential energy. Her guess is that there was once a portal to the Andawarudo but something happened and closed it, leaving behind a lot of youki energy just floating around. She didn't like having to fight them since they seem impervious to both chakra and youki reinforced or charged attacks.

Yet it was Anko's favorite place to train and her sadism insisted that she bring her students there as well. At least she didn't bring them there for their first year. As much as Oretzi hated the place she knew she would've hated it even more had she been brought there right off the bat.

_"Nee-chan?"_

"Hai?" Oretzi stops in one of the trees at least twenty meters in, turning to face her companion. She didn't like the tone in her companion's voice.

_"Uh…"_ She frowns and follows Tsukiko's gaze, which lands on a familiar but unwelcoming sight.

"Oi!" Oretzi exclaims as she lunges for the gates, knowing that she isn't going to arrive in time to keep her from entering the training grounds.

The blonde was just passing the first set of trees when Oretzi lands in front of her, her ears flat against her skull in anger. "What do you think you're doing, Ino?!" she growls as she straightens herself from her crouch.

"P-Puppy-chan!" Ino yelps as she jumps back, "Don't do that!"

"You're in the Forest of Death, Ino! You're lucky it was just me and not something else like… oh I don't know, man eating giant tigers!" she practically snarled as she turns the blonde around and march her right back to the gate.

"There's man eating giant tigers?" Ino asks as she looks up at the taller girl.

"There are even worse things aside from them," Oretzi growls. "What's so important that you'd risk your life by coming here?"

"Uh… actually, now that you've mentioned it, it probably could've waited…"

Oretzi scowls for a moment as she forces the gates open again, escorting Ino out and making sure to padlock the stupid thing since _someone_ apparently forgot to do that before. "Well, tell me."

"Um… I wanted to know if you… wanted to, well, train with me?" This has Oretzi blinking at her imouto-chan in surprise. "I mean, stuff like exercise and running laps. I'm not exactly ready to do the psycho training you do with your team."

"Ah…" Oretzi clears her throat, thinking about what she can say or do. The pros of this is that it'll probably make her imouto-chan take the shinobi training seriously. The cons is that she doesn't have the necessary time to devote to it properly. "…Sure thing. But you'll have to settle for a kage bunshin. I have to train with my teammates today and probably for the rest of this week. Is that fine?"

"Yeah. Just… uh, start easy?"

Ino looked a bit worried about starting extremely hard. "Don't worry, we'll start at a moderate pace for you and go from there." Oretzi pats the girl's hair, the blonde's hair getting too long for her to ruffle it properly now. She creates a kage bunshin for Ino before excusing herself to find her team.

Five minutes later found Oretzi and Tsukiko arriving at the A-class sector in time to fight off an attack consisting of Hoshi and Tamashii. Using Juujin Bunshin no jutsu Tsukiko was transformed into an exact image of Oretzi - since she still hasn't mastered her human shape just yet.

"C'mon Tsuki!" she calls out as she crouches down, just after kicking back her teammates. The transformed pup hops onto her back. "GATSUUGA!" The two spin at a ferocious speed in union and delivered many powerful attacks before landing on the other side of the clearing with Hoshi and Tamashii sporting multiple gashes.

"Ugh! I hate that jutsu!" Hoshi exclaims loudly as she gets back on her feet, dusting herself off - not even paying attention to the blood on her.

"It's a good thing we stopped wearing our mission clothes during our training sessions or we'd still be buying new clothes every week," Tamashii comments drily. His clothes were pretty badly tattered, slashed up on some spots and just plain burned as a result of Oretzi's youki.

_"You're just lucky we just remembered to hold back on the youki,"_ Tsukiko smirks, leaning casually against Oretzi.

"It's too ingrained for us to not use youki," Oretzi comments unapologetically. Before ducking to the left - off settling Tsukiko - in time to avoid a kunai to the cheek. "Hi, Anko-chan."

"You're late, gaki," the jonin greets, munching on a dango while sitting on an exposed root.

_"We were sidetracked taking care of a certain blonde entering the training grounds."_

"Uh, wolfie said what?" Anko leans forward to look at the still henged wolf pup - her voice has a slight hint of a lilt that isn't quite human.

_"Hey, that's actually really offensive!"_ Tsukiko snaps, crossing her arms.

"Ino-chan had a question for me and apparently decided to follow us into the Forest of Death," Oretzi interrupts before Tsuki could add something else to her rant. If there is one thing she has learned about her wolf companion is that she absolutely hates it when people makes comments like that.

"…You mean to tell me that Yamanaka Ino tried to follow you into the Forest?" Oretzi nods her head and Anko groans softly to herself. "I'll have a talk with her later. That or let her father know about this. Because that… that was just stupid for someone who is the heiress to the Yamanaka legacy."

"Yeah… have fun with that," Oretzi mutters, thinking about the stern lecture Anko might have with Ino. She turns back to her teammates and focused on sparring with them again - turning Tsukiko's attention back to them as well. She knows from past experiences that unless she re-aims her companion's anger there will be unfortunate casualties.

**There was no easy way of writing that. It needed to be done but I didn't like it! How is one supposed to write something like that? A ten year old going through her first heat, aiyi. **

**Please leave a review and tell me how horrible this part was. -_-"**


	26. Chapter 26

_**Ya'll are lucky I'm curious about something. As a result ya'll get this chapter early (as in I'm not even done with chapter 27). My question/proposal/information alert is at the bottom of this chapter. Enjoy!**_

_**Chapter 26**_

The rest of the week passed pretty quickly for Team 13 and by the time they needed to make their decision it was a dead brainer as to what they were going to do. For Tamashii, nothing was going to keep him away from finally becoming a chunin. Fifteen years old already and yet to achieve the chunin rank was pathetic to his own mind. Hoshi's reason for doing the chunin exams this time around instead of waiting for the next one - like some of them believed she might opt to do - was to prove to them and to herself that she is ready to return to the fields. Oretzi's reason was simple, there was no way to go except up from that point on.

So it was with a unanimous decision with the trio and with Anko's consent they were off to Kumogakure for the Chunin Exams!

Through Yu no Kuni and Shimo no Kuni before finally touching into Kaminari no Kuni!

Of course, since they were leaving a full two weeks early it was also decided that stopping in Yu no Kuni for some of their famous hot springs was a must. Needless to say the three females in the team really had a time of their lives while Tamashii was hassled a lot by other men. Some thinks that being surrounded by 'hot' women makes him a lucky player - since many people sees Oretzi as someone in her teens, even if she has a relatively flat chest, and no matter what height Hoshi stands at she is still obviously a growing woman.

However, once they got through the country Tamashii had them promise not to make another stop there on the way back. It had nothing to do with the fact that he may or may have not broken at least fifteen bones on at least three men for inappropriate remarks towards his teammates.

It amused his two teammates to no end that he was protective over them, even when they have proven capable of defending themselves - the Ring mission a completely different matter. In either case they made good travel time after their two day stop in Yu no Kuni and a slight setback in Shimo no Kuni. The delay belonging to the two females who were admittedly not quite dressed for the cold frost of the aptly named country. Hoshi ended up riding on Tsukiko - as horrible as that sounds - and Anko on Oretzi's back, the two wolves generating enough body heat to keep the two from freezing out in the middle of nowhere. But Oretzi did want to make a quick stop in Shimo again on the way back, positively giddy with the prospect of ice skating - real ice skating and not the water version of ice skating due to excellent control over one's chakra/youki.

In either case the two countries provided the team with distractions that made it necessary for a whole week to be used instead of just a few days as planned. Which also means they were extremely grateful that they had left the village two weeks early instead of a week early since the deadline to register for the exams is two days prior its' start. A security precaution.

By the start of the second week Oretzi was feeling excited by the entire prospect and has nothing to do with the approaching full moon. Or so she likes to rationalize. And like all other times her body just wasn't capable of suppressing that explosion of jittery motion so her ears and tails were practically vibrating with it. Of course, her second tail was still under a powerful genjutsu to hide it, but the fact remains that her tails - both of them - were uncontrollable in her current state.

"Jeez, Oretzi, calm down," Hoshi laughs, her voice practically vibrating with the rapid like bouncing the hanyou was doing in her excitement.

"Gomen, Hoshi, I just can't help it," the girl apologizes as she tries to settle herself, attempting - that's the keyword there - to take a deep breath and center herself. After like five minutes of that she was bouncing all over again. Giggling Hoshi hops off her friend's back, aware that if she can't stay still for long it's just best to quit before losing all sense of self-cool. Tamashii actually lost it several times since they were teamed up because of Oretzi's inability to control herself - of course, this was before he actually started to loosen up.

Afterwards it was just a matter of recognizing the potential problem **before** it becomes a problem. A henged Tsukiko - not quite suffering the same effect - lays her hands on Oretzi and physically keeps her from bouncing all over the place with her sugar-like high. Not that anyone is stupid enough to feed Oretzi sugar after her tenth birthday fiasco. Needless to say she was practically vibrating with too much sugar. It wasn't something anyone is willing to repeat unless there is someone - read that as victim - available to distract her.

"Arigatou Tsuki," Oretzi chuckles, looking over her shoulder at her.

_"Let's not Kumogakure a reason to kick us out before the exams even start,"_ Tsukiko responds with a chuckle of her own. Somehow that got through Oretzi and she was quickly calm once again. _"Better now?"_

"Hai," the hanyou laughs as Tsukiko releases her.

"Are you done yet?" they hear Tamashii call back to them, prompting the trio to look up ahead where the Hyuuga and Anko have moved on ahead while they were trying to calm Oretzi down. They were waiting at the gates to Kumogakure and with one last look with each other they crossed the last distance to their destination with a burst of speed, declaring the last one there buys dinner for everyone. Of course, if Tsukiko ends up being last Oretzi will have to pay for dinner since the wolf pup doesn't actually **earn** money and it'll be expensive paying for a wolf demon and a hanyou.

Oretzi, being the speed 'demon' she is, was second with Tsukiko being first and Hoshi was reminded why anyone shouldn't make bets or deals with the hanyou when it involves her speed. There just no winning it with her around. "I really shouldn't have done that," Hoshi whines as she counts her money, mentally calculating that she'll be going home broke. "Really, really shouldn't have done that."

"It's not my fault you guys keep forgetting not to make bets with me!" Oretzi laughs before she gets a nip from Tsukiko, a reminder to calm down. Several deep breaths later found her as calm as she can be, which is as calm as a kid being physically restrained.

They present their travel papers to the guards at the gates, gaining access to Kumogakure so long they behave themselves - that means no jutsu outside testing areas or permission from the guides. They are to stay at their designated areas, if they were found wondering in restricted areas they'll be charged with espionage and punished according to the laws of Kumogakure.

The whole thing sounded very restricting to Oretzi, who was finding her interest in the whole thing lessening with every second of the guard's lecture. When they were finally freed from their stern and not so brief lecture Anko pats the hanyou's shoulder, perhaps sensing the girl's settling pessimistic opinion about the exams. "Don't worry, Gaki, it's just to make sure that there isn't any premature eliminations of the applicants. The areas that are restricted are usually areas that are reserved for higher leveled shinobi in the first place. You'll find a lot of genins, both local and other countries."

"… Arigatou, sensei," Oretzi grins at the jonin as she straightens her shoulders and adopt a more sturdy approach as they follow their guide to the hotel where they'll be staying with other Konoha shinobi. They wouldn't be staying with other shinobi from the different villages - which is actually a brilliant idea since there was a high chance of fights and eliminations breaking out before the start of the exams.

"You'll get the hang of it, gaki," Anko laughs as she ruffles the girl's hair. In the past several months it has been growing out again, leaving enough for some to be gathered into a small tight ponytail at the hanyou's nape. In some ways it reminds the jonin of Inuzuka Hana's except the girl's wild hair remained that despite the confines.

Then, without warning the girl tenses up, her body slowly turning in place to face the west as she tilts her head up to stare at the rooftops. Following her youngest genin's line of sight Anko spies someone crouching at the edge of one of the building, eerily dark eyes glinting down at them from above. The jonin sensei was reminded of cats and as she recalls their location she comes to another realization.

This could be Kumogakure's jinchuuriki. She didn't know which one of two jinchuuriki this one could be but she knows that one of them is old enough to have briefly fought the Fourth Hokage during the Third Shinobi World War. She was starting to hate all of the jinchuuriki, it seemed like there was always some kind of problem surrounding them. Naruto was in constant need of supervision, Gaara needed to be taken down a peg or four and his seal fixed, and now apparently there was this one. She didn't want to know what sort of issues Oretzi will probably end up facing with this one.

Yet, just because she didn't want to know it doesn't mean she can remain ignorant of this jinchuuriki. "What is it?" she asks her student quietly.

"… I think... this is going to be a pretty fun," Oretzi smirks as she waves once to the shadowy figure on the rooftop. The shinobi doesn't return the gesture and without a word being exchanged between the two the watcher vanishes.

"Do you know which jinchuuriki that might have been?"

Oretzi turns to look at the jonin, a slight frown marring her face. "I have a hunch," she mutters as she recalls the feel of fire and decay when she sensed the jinchuuriki's presence. It was similar to how she had sensed Gaara and because each Bijuu Lord is different she could possibly identify each of them by their youki. The feel of fire would have normally made her assume Kyuubi if she hadn't known that the Bijuu was already sealed with a certain blue eyed blond boy in Konoha. Add in the sense of decay and it was a no brainer as to who it was she had sensed.

Are all nine of the Bijuu captured and sealed away? She couldn't remember if there was any mention of the Bijuu Lords over the years while she was growing up with the pack. But if she could remember it would probably give her a clue as to who she might expect to encounter. She knows that her okaa-san had to been free in order to meet her otou-san and well… to have her. Afterwards she was probably sealed within someone who is either her age or just a little older, that would explain why she never answered the Howl. Since the Howl spans into any and all dimensions.

Oretzi comes back to her senses when she feels a light prodding in her shoulder, prompting her to look at her sensei. "C'mon Gaki, we best turn in for the night." With one last look up at the roof where they had been watched she nods her head and follows Anko and her team to the hotel their guide had been blabbering on about. It amused the hanyou a bit that the man hadn't realized that his 'charges' have stopped for a moment during his 'grand tour'.

When they finally retrieved the hotel rooms, with Hoshi and Oretzi sharing and Tamashii getting his own room once again, Oretzi immediately claimed the one nearest to the window. Tossing her knapsack onto the sheets and throwing open the window to lean out of it, breathing in that thick moisture in the air. The hint of a storm lingering in the air. She wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the shinobi here is capable of manipulating raiton like Tamashii. She would probably pity anyone who had an extremely high affinity for raiton since it's likely that the lightning in the thunderstorms tend to be attracted to them.

"A storm's headed here," Oretzi mutters as she looks up at the waxing moon. She could tell that the moon will be full soon. Which means that she'll be able to get the full moon out of the way before the start of the exams. It also means that she won't be tearing people apart - maybe? - during the exams. Not that it would be such a bad thing… right? She shakes her head to kick away those thoughts since it was not in the slightest bit helpful.

"You can scent it?" Hoshi questions her from the other bed, aware that her nose is sensitive to the smell of lightning. After all, Oretzi has to try to ignore Tamashii's scent whenever he's around or else she'd end up sneezing every two second.

"Yeah… not sure when it's going to be here. It's possible the burnt ozone smell always linger here…"

"Do you remember how Suna smelled?"

"Dry, dusty, with a hint of clear clean water," Oretzi rattled off without hesitation. She hasn't been able to get Suna out of her mind for a while now. The scent of the place was just the least of what she has been recalling about the village. She's been wondering how Temari is getting on with her training. If Temari has progressed to Chunin yet. She wondered all that and she also wondered if Kankuro graduated from the academy yet. He should be of the age to graduate if she's right. "… Great, now you got me wanting to go and visit them."

"Heh, sorry about that. It's a pity we don't have a more stable alliance with them," Hoshi sighs, prompting Oretzi to roll her eyes.

"You know why it's like that. Suna has been losing their business to the other villages, Tema-chan told me that they're blaming Konoha the most for it."

"Suna blames Konoha, Iwa hates Konoha, Kumo tried to kidnap the heiress to the Hyuuga clan, Kusa… well, I don't think we did anything to them but I could be wrong. Kiri was involved with some kind of incident that was meant to target Konoha. And that's just the larger villages," Hoshi speaks up, revealing her knowledge of the world history. Oretzi just blinked at her. She hadn't spent a lot of time in the academy and any history she knows is the history in the demonic world. The shinobi or human world is pretty much uncharted territory for her.

Hoshi notices the look and sighs, making a mental note to get the wolf hanyou a history book or something that will make the history of the world the slightest bit interesting for her. "There's too much history for me to go over it tonight. But right now, since we're in Kumo, I could explain some of the issues we have with them."

"That probably would be a good idea," Oretzi mutters as she strips off her outer wear and hops onto the bed. Tsukiko hops on as well and the hanyou works on removing the jacket. "You mentioned something about the Hyuuga?"

"Yep. You see, a few years back, about… oh, five years I suppose, Kumogakure and Konohagakure had decided - after another conflict - to formally end their constant fighting. So the Head Shinobi of Kumogakure was sent to Konoha to sign a peace treaty. While they were there their true intentions was revealed when a kidnapping attempt was made by the Ambassador."

Oretzi was frowning thoughtfully at her teammate by this point and the older genin noticed. "Her father, Hyuuga Hiashi, managed to save her but he killed the Ambassador in the process. Unfortunately for all of us Kumogakure claimed to have known nothing about this shinobi's intentions and demanded retributions. I don't know all of the details but it was enough for me to know that Kumogakure went home 'happy'," actual air quotes were used, "and Hinata-chan grew up to… well, I've suspected that the incident may have rubbed off on her just a bit."

The hanyou mutters softly to herself as she thinks about it. Recalling the few things she has overheard servants and such say. "I think it's because Hiashi-san has been extremely… stern with her." Hoshi's eyebrow goes up at the odd phrasing in her teammate's voice, suspecting something worse now that her imagination is running off on her.

Oretzi wasn't looking at Hoshi so she didn't see the suspicions running rampage in her mind. "It makes quite a lot of sense when I think about it," she goes on. "It also explains why Tamashii-kun is so protective over her. He's constantly telling her to avoid Neji-san." The wolf hanyou mutters to herself as she considers the quiet, polite, and respectful sisters. Hinata is so shy, insecure about her place, and she has Tamashii's rants that it's because of Hyuuga Hiashi's stern berating.

Hanabi is different compared to her aneki. She was much more confident about herself and she showed it with the way she speaks and acts. When Oretzi and Hanabi met for the first time, several months after Team 13 was formed, the Hyuuga girl got mad at the hanyou for something and ordered her to do something. Of course, because she didn't take well to orders from anyone smaller or younger than herself - especially from someone who hasn't earned her respect - Oretzi overreacted and gave her a verbal smack down. It would have been physical but Tamashii had physically restrained her before she could do something of the like.

"Wait, what this about Hyuuga Neji?" Hoshi breaks into Oretzi's thought, bringing her back into the present. "Last I heard about him he's due to graduate soon and apparently believed to be the rookie of the year."

"They do estimates on who will be rookie of the year?" Oretzi questions, surprised with that and completely overlooking the original question. Then again, she graduated early and was placed with experienced genins. She didn't exactly have the whole 'rookies' experience as she would have if she had rejected the hiati-ate and just waited. Though, she did wonder if she would've been able to wait three years.

"Basically, depending on your scores, you're determined as to what team you may belong to. If you had stayed with your class year it's likely you would've been the top of your class and the top rookie," Hoshi explains. "Since you tested out early it's possible that the top rookie will be Sasuke." At the mention of his name Oretzi makes a low growling noise that reminds the Akino heiress that she has an intense dislike for the Uchiha boy.

"… What were we talking about before?" Oretzi asks, puzzled as she tries to remember why they were talking about rookies and Neji.

"Uh, I think we were talking about Kumogakure…" Hoshi mutters thoughtfully, just as puzzled as Oretzi. She rubs her face as she thinks over it. She remembers telling her teammate about the Hyuuga incident. "Oh!" she exclaims as she realizes just where they were going with this. "What were you saying about Hyuuga Neji?"

"Huh?" Oretzi blinks at Hoshi, her wolf ears expressing her confusion clearly even if no one needed to look at her face.

"You said something about Tamashii and Neji-san?" she attempts to prompt the girl.

"Oooh, right. You know how I like to visit Tamashii-kun every once awhile?" she gets a nod from the Akino heiress. "Well, I've had a few chances to catch a few of Hinata-chan's training spars with Neji-san," she confesses. She glances around and leans over just a bit as she lowers her voice. "I wasn't supposed to, seeing how I'm not a Hyuuga, but I have. I've seen how he deliberately land hits that would be deadly if he had been using chakra."

She shakes her head, her tails - the second finally released from its henge - thumping on the bed in aggravation. "Tamashii-kun explained to me that Neji-san blames the Main Branch for what happened with his father. He didn't tell me anything about _why_ he blames them but it was clear to me that he's taking it out on Hinata-chan."

"Why that good for nothing little -," Hoshi cuts herself off as she tries to avoid cursing in front of Oretzi. She had managed to avoid using any swear words in front of the hanyou, even though she knows that it's futile because of the corrupting influences of both Anko and Tamashii. "It's a pity we're so far out here or else I'd be beating the snot out of that little brat."

"You'll have to wait in line," Oretzi chimes in with another unhappy grumble. "Tamashii and I called dibs. All we can really do right now is to try and give her as much confidence as possible. That's all we can really hope to do."

"We should give her a makeover!" Hoshi says cheerfully. Oretzi just groans out loud, not too crazy about the whole fashion thing. Ever since the shopping trip with her aneki she downright despise the whole process of searching for the right clothes. Weapons and shinobi supplies are a different matter to her. Food, another entirely different matter. "Okay, maybe not," the heiress amends when she hears her teammate's complaint.

"Let's not," Oretzi mutters. She kicks down the covers with a little growl with Tsukiko seizing them as a makeshift pillow for herself at the foot of the bed. "We'll just give her advice and maybe… uh… I dunno what else we can do."

"We'll just start with the basics, praise her for a good job and all that. Give her encouragements," Hoshi chirps in.

Oretzi gives her a stink eye, "You made me think of how a person treats a dog." Hoshi chuckled nervously, having not intended to allude to that at all. "Oh never mind," she mutters as she rolls over to lay on her belly, her eyes lazily going over to the still open window.

With an ease that is unnatural for shinobi both of the two genins fell asleep quickly, along with the sole wolf demon.

* * *

When morning came and found Hoshi staring at an aggravated Oretzi, the hanyou pacing the length of the room with an angry scowl on her face. She glances at the wolf demon to find her lazily following her partner with her eyes. Tsukiko had originally reacted in a manner similar to Oretzi except she had settled down within five minutes. It's been twenty minutes since they all woken up and so far the hanyou is still growling about something.

"Hey, Tsuki-chan," Hoshi whispers, fully aware that Oretzi can hear her.

_"Hai?"_

"What is she saying?" she asks, wondering if she's speaking in that other language. If she did a mental count Oretzi is capable of speaking their language, Wolf, Ancient Demon - which apparently involves spirits - and…. Actually, that seems like all of them.

_"She's muttering about a neko who doesn't know when not to poke her nose into someone else's privacy,"_ Tsukiko translates for the Akino heiress.

"A neko?"

_"Hai. We had a midnight visitor,"_ she explain cheerfully, causing Hoshi to look at the wolf demon with a look akin to disbelief. _"Nani?"_

"We had a midnight visitor?!" she exclaims, somehow managing to get through Oretzi and snapping her out of the ranting spree she was in.

"Oh, yeah we did," Oretzi mutters, rubbing the back of her neck. She shakes her head before grabbing an outfit for today. Making sure to grab the jacket she got for her birthday. She had stitched on seals in the pockets to make it easier to carry items without the bulk. The pockets hold the modified nun chucks, one in each, so that all that she needs to do is put her hands within her pockets and pull them out.

The seals didn't really work like regular seals anyway, it was a personal creation of her own. It doesn't need any blood or chakra. Because the seals' dimensions are permanently half open all she needs to do is reach into them and pull them out without a minute hesitation. It makes cleaning the jacket a bit of a hassle because the water will easily go into the dimensions unless she remembers to close the seals completely before putting it through the washer.

She puts on the outfit she had gotten from her teammates and slings her jacket on over it, readjusting the leather on her shoulders.

"Hey, Oretzi-chan, aren't you going to bandage your arm?" Hoshi questions the hanyou, pointing the exposed markings.

"Nah, I'm just going to leave it be for now. I was only hiding it before because okaa-san was worried that someone would freak out at the sight of them. Though I think my alpha knew what they mean. He told me to be careful around other people's blood," Oretzi mutters thoughtfully. She wonders for a moment why she didn't remember that when her okaa-san was getting ahold of her contacts and informants - trying to discover the meaning of the markings.

"I thought you knew nothing about them!"

"I don't. The whole 'avoid sharing blood with anyone, and I don't mean sharing your blood I mean sharing their blood' thing never made sense to me," Oretzi shrugs her shoulders as she combs her hair. "Do you want breakfast?" she questions, changing the subject. She gets a dismissive wave which she took as a no and left for the stairs, holding the door open for her companion. "Okay, Tsuki and I are going to walk around after we get some food. Later Hoshi-chan," she calls out to her teammate as she leaves.

A half hour later found the pair wondering the street, munching on various food they found from the stalls. They are both chatting in wolf, with Oretzi attempting to teach Tsuki the ancient language since the pup was tired of not understanding her whenever she starts speaking in it. Not that she uses it all that much since it is often the language the Bijuu Lords use to communicate with each other. Oretzi wasn't getting far in her attempts to teach Tsukiko since the pup hasn't had much time in the world learning how to mentally censor her own thoughts.

Because the ancient language requires the absolute truth Tsukiko keeps blurting out what she truly thinks about something and not what she thinks is polite to say. As a result Oretzi is alternating between laughing and being offended by what the pup is saying.

**"You're really horrible at this,"** she laughs while Tsukiko switches back to wolf.

"I can't help it!" the wolf pup whines loudly as she throws her head down in disappointment.

**"It takes practice to learn how to word your sentences. Remember, the Bijuu Lords rarely ever like each other so they need to exercise a lot of mental control to avoid doing or saying something that would initiate a war among them," **Oretzi explains with a chuckle, helping herself to some of the food she had purchased, tossing Tsukiko a few every once awhile.

"I understand that. But it's embarrassing to blurt out everything!" Tsuki protests, slowing when she notices that Oretzi has stopped for some reason. "Nee-chan?"

"Mm?"

"What are you looking at?" the wolf pup tries to peer at whatever it is that caught her partner's attention. Oretzi didn't answer for a moment but when she finally lower her gaze she has a weird smile on her face. "Nee-chan? Hey, nee-chan!" Tsukiko was not used to being ignored and right now, as her partner buys some fish on a stick, she gets a feeling she knows just what the hanyou is intending to do. "Did you lose what last bit of marbles you had on the way here?"

"Now that is just offensive," the hanyou narrows her eyes playfully at her companion. "Follow me," she tells the pup before jumping up to the rooftops with an ease that many shinobi train their entire lives to achieve. Less than a heartbeat later Tsukiko is following right behind her.

The pair appear in front of another shinobi dressed in short-sleeved black and purple blouse and black pants, both with a design similar to cloud on them, a pair of purple fingerless gloves and a chain of white beads wound around her left hand. A further look reveals that she wears the standard Kumo forehead protector and a kunai holster strapped to her right thigh - indicating that she's right handed. She also wears bandages around her arms and legs and to complete her assemble is a red belt around her waist. Instead of the standard sandals she wears ankle high boots with what seems to be rubber soles.

Oretzi takes in all of that and the long, straight blonde hair loosely bound in a braid and dark eyes that studies her with a cold indifference that reminds her of Gaara just a bit. It wasn't because she radiated bloodlust or some kind of mindless rage - that was something she seems to have. The indifference though, that was exactly like Gaara's and it made her a bit sad.

"Fish on a stick?" she offers to the blonde shinobi, aware that she might be rejected. She suspects, however, that she'll get accepted since there appears to be a gaunt appearance around her and the clothes seems to be loose on her frame. Of course, it is possible that the clothes are intended to be loose.

With a cautious air around her the other shinobi reaches for the stick and when Oretzi makes no move to yank the proffered food away the blonde snatches it away and disappears with it. The hanyou didn't show any visible reaction until maybe a minute afterwards while Tsukiko is growling and bristling at the blatant disrespect.

"Mm, that was rude," Oretzi comments out loud as she thinks about what just happened.

"What was her problem?!" Tsukiko growls, her teeth bared in a snarl. Oretzi drops her hand into her companion's ruff, smoothing down the fur absentmindedly. She recognizes a part of her wants to chase down the blonde and teach her some manners.

She could only guess that it's been a long time since the other shinobi ate and if she was right she can only imagine it's because the villagers treat her in a manner similar to Naruto. Inflated prices and docked incomes as well as poor quality food would mean the blonde doesn't eat the greatest kinds of food. The cheapest kind of food for an average civilian would be priced as something a billionaire would think as cheap.

**"She's like Naruto-kun and Gaara-kun,"** Oretzi explains carelessly, choosing to speak in the ancient as she spreads her chakra out in the manner Anko had hammered into her. Her suspicions confirmed when her chakra encounters the tightly confined youki within chakra.

"She is?"

**"Hai."**

_"That's interesting,"_ Tsukiko switches to human as she plops her tail down, her purple eyes intent on her partner. _"It's still rude,"_ the pup chirps in.

**"Hai, it is. I'll enjoy a fight with her,"** she admits as she recognizes the itch that she had felt around Gaara.

**"Sometimes I think you're crazy,"** Tsukiko comments in ancient before whining as she covers her snout with a paw. Oretzi burst into laughter at the blunt sentence. "I GIVE UP!" the pup howls in dismay.

"You'll get the hang of it," Oretzi reassure the pup as she turns to study the village. "Look alive, Tsukiko, the exams begins in less than a week and we have three nights of the full moon coming."

"Oh joy," Tsukiko mutters sarcastically as she follows her partner back down to the streets. "This bounds to be ogles of fun."

"Hey, if you didn't want to be part of the exams why did you come with us?"

"Aren't we supposed to be partners?"

Oretzi just laughs under her breath as she scratches Tsukiko's ears. "Sometimes, I don't know what I'm going to do with you," she confesses as she attends to her friend.

**"You'd be lost without me,"** Tsukiko replies in ancient, prompting another round of laughter from the hanyou.

* * *

_**Okay, I have a poll up on my profile because I'm deadly curious as to who ya'll want Oretzi to be paired up with. You see, I have this idea firmly stuck in my head and a way to make it fit. Buuut if ya'll think there's someone else of the four I offer better for her then I'll take it into consideration and fit it in somehow.**_

_**Also, as for what just happened with Oretzi and a certain blonde - I blame a certain gal for giving me this idea. Ja ne!**_


	27. Chapter 27

_**I hope this chapter finds everyone in good spirits and that this doesn't seem to awkward (the chapter, not this greeting) In either case I'm glad that I finally got through chapter 28 and have begun chapter 29. As everyone already figured out Oretzi is taking the exams but it won't be like the one in Konoha. Because of that I have to come up with an entirely new one that fits the purpose of the bloody thing. Joy, right? Anyway, enjoy this chapter and be patient with me please. (Also, you know the drill, I don't own anyone except the originals: though I suspect its the reverse sometimes)**_

_**Chapter 27**_

Night came and the full moon rose with Oretzi sleeping fitfully in the hotel room she is sharing with Hoshi. Their jonin sensei nowhere to be found, with Oretzi requesting that she goes through the night without her. Her reasoning being that she cannot rely on Anko to keep her in control forever.

"Oretzi, sometimes, I swear you have the strangest ideas at the worst times!" Hoshi grumbles as her teammate sleeps on the other bed. "Testing out your ability to remain level headed _even_ in your transformed state, _now_ of all times?!" Tsukiko snickers, prompting the genin to kick her. "Don't laugh at me!"

_"It's not like you're in any danger with her sleeping,"_ Tsukiko reminds the genin who has been too worried about Oretzi's potential rampage to try and sleep.

"I think you've forgotten just how she can be like when she wakes up in the middle of the night!" The pair look at each other before looking at the transformed hanyou who was sleeping with her two tails draped over her snout, her ears twitching every few seconds. A four hundred twenty six pound wolf taking up the entirety of a twin size bed - which by the way seems to groan under her weight. The bed is just lucky that she isn't readjusting her position every five minutes. Instead it was every ten minutes. Not that it was any better. "She's going to break that bed before the night is over," she grumbles.

_"It seems likely,"_ the wolf pup agrees, content to lay on her back with her belly up and her tail thumping lazily on the bed. _"And maybe we'll be lucky enough that she doesn't wake up."_

"I doubt we ever will be _that_ fortunate," she mutters and as if on cue Oretzi stirs with an ominous growl raising up in her chest. Razor sharp claws cuts into the fabric of the covers as the hanyou picks herself up from the bed. Bright red eyes cuts into them briefly before the transformed hanyou heads over to the open window - which allowed the fresh air to circulate the room and enabling the hanyou to relax without that entrapped feeling.

_"Oh great, **she's** back,"_ Tsukiko growls, rolling onto her paws just as the transformed hanyou ease herself out of the window. _"She shouldn't have been able to get out through that small thing,"_ the wolf pup's expression was akin to amazement. The hanyou had grown an extra foot, as per usual, and stood at six foot eight inches. Her lean form bulking out a great deal.

"Uh, Tsukiko, don't you think you should follow her?" Hoshi questions the pup as she gets up herself, grabbing her own sandals as she heads to the window. "I can't believe I'm going to go after a near seven foot tall… what the heck did we decide to call her?!"

_"Werewolf,"_ Tsukiko replies as she hops out of the window with Hoshi right behind her. _"Not that I understand why you've chosen to call her that."_

"Why is Oretzi even awake?" she asks, disregarding Tsukiko's reply, finally touching onto the heart of her concern. She couldn't even recall the last time Oretzi did something remotely like this. She doesn't usually leave the room when she wakes up then again, Anko was typically in the room with them.

_"We had an encounter with a jinchuuriki earlier today,"_ Tsukiko explains simply as she tracks down her partner. But no matter how fast she moves - with Hoshi riding her back because otherwise she'd be left behind in the dirt - she knows that Oretzi is far ahead of her. Untransformed they are roughly matched in terms of speed but while transformed the hanyou holds the title. _"Needless to say, full moon, jinchuuriki, and rude actions just doesn't mix all that well."_

"And you wait until _now_ to mention this?!" Hoshi exclaims with disbelief. "Had we known about this Anko-sensei wouldn't ever let Oretzi try to sleep alone!" Tsukiko makes to answer but there is an explosion of demonic youki that has Hoshi's skin crawling with goosebumps and the wolf pup pouring on the speed as much as possible. "What was that?!"

_"That feels like…"_

Fire and decay licks at the wolf demon's senses, nearly prompting her into gagging since it is far worse than a two week rotting body. Along with the foul scent is Oretzi's brand of youki burning strongly. She was surprised to find that the decaying youki seems to be overpowering her partner's and hurried up even more.

They arrive at the scene with a soft thud, their eyes widening in shock when they see that Oretzi is growling threateningly at a blonde surrounded in dense purple fiery youki that just seems to burn with decay. "Oretzi!" Hoshi calls out to her comrade.

She gets an ear twitch as she hops off of Tsukiko's back. "Oretzi, let's head back to the hotel," she tries again but gets a firm headshake. "Oretzi?" A series of growls and barks leaves the hanyou's throat and Hoshi turns her attention to Tsukiko for a translation.

_"She invaded my space at the worse time possible,"_ Tsukiko translates for both of their sakes. The blonde, surrounded by her youki, hisses at the wolf hanyou. Tsuki's eyes wide in surprise at the hiss of ancient.

* * *

Oretzi had regained her mental balance within minutes of waking, her instincts receding despite the intrusion and turning her eyes blue once again. Following her nose she chased the jinchuuriki into what appears to be a graveyard, growling savagely at the jinchuuriki. She knows that in this current form she cannot speak using the human's language - her snout just isn't made for it and she couldn't remember how to form the words - but it is natural for her to use wolf or ancient.

"Nibi no Nekomata, you have tested the last of my patience," she growls angrily.

A hiss answers her, her mind struggling to translate the unfamiliar response. A second hiss comes and this time she recognizes it as ancient. **"I test yourrr patience? You arrre inside _my_ lands. You do _not_ belong herrre!"** Black purple youki begins to leak through wherever the seal is hidden, beginning to surround the blonde and thickening from a flame like state into a shroud that forms into an appearance of a cat. Confirming Oretzi's suspicions.

**"Neither of us belong here, Nibi. But I am here for the Exams that _your_ host's village is responsible for. Already she infiltrated _my_ room and has insulted me with her manners. _She _needs to learn some manners!"**

She probably would have continued with her rant if her partner and teammate hadn't chosen to make their appearances. "Oretzi!" she twitch, her ear moving slightly to let Hoshi know that she has her attention. "Oretzi, let's head back to the hotel." She shakes her head and growl at the Kumo shinobi.

Faintly registering the fact that Tsukiko is translating her words.

**"You arrre a _guest_ in _my_ home. You will _not_ make demands within my _lands_!"**

Oretzi snarl at the blonde as her instincts raise up despite her best intentions. **"You are a Bijuu _confined_ within a human! You have no claim!"** Her words prompts the Bijuu controlled jinchuuriki to breathe a strong stream of fire that singes Oretzi's fur but does nothing more than that. The fire whirling around her for a moment before it goes out with a powerful roar from her. **"Fire? You throw fire at me?"** She couldn't help the growl of arrogance at with the usage of fire - her strongest element. She couldn't manipulate the element as well as she could in her human form but it doesn't change the fact that she is a triple.

She howls, her tails trashing and with her tail plants rose up in an attempt to seize the jinchuuriki. Her fangs bared and lunges for the blonde when the fire breathing Bijuu in control kills the plants she had called up. The dead raising up to grab at her, their fingers grabbing at her fur and pulling out clumps. Distracted from her intention to seize hold of the jinchuuriki she whirls around and tears into the undead with a savage growl.

Her eyes, with improvements over her demonic side, had been a solid blue color throughout the entire 'conversation' with Nibi - with minor specks of red bleeding through. Now though, her eyes begins to bleed into a solid red as she begins to lose control of her temper. Until finally with a savage howl she blows the undead away, blasting them with pure concentrated youki.

_"She lost it!"_ Tsukiko yelps, enlarging herself to shield Hoshi from the blast. _"She's completely reacting on pure instincts now!"_

"ORETZI!" the Akino heiress screams, trying to reach the hanyou with her voice. The hanyou ignored her, a thick coat of white youki forming around her and enlarging her presence even more. "Tsuki, we need sensei!"

_"There's no time for that! The jonins will be here soon and if we don't get her back to the hotel we're going to have a problem!"_ Tsukiko snaps worriedly. _"I don't want to test what Kumogakure will do to her if they find her like this!"_

"You're worried about her? I'm worried about what she'll do to _them_?!" she exclaims. A legit concern considering what she did to the men in the slavery ring - at least, according to Tamashii. Tsukiko just gives her a nasty look that has Hoshi huffing.

_"Hoshi,"_ Tsukiko starts in a tone that suggest she has the beginning of an idea in her mind, _"Did you ever use your kekkei genkai on Mita-chan?"_ Hoshi stares at the wolf pup, distantly aware of the ensuring battle between the hanyou and the jinchuuriki. The dead raising up with every snarl of the jinchuuriki. Yet with each snarl less answered her call as the hanyou completely obliterates everything within reach.

"What does that have to- Ooh I get what you're thinking!"

* * *

The blaze of the black/purple youki around the jinchuuriki burns the hanyou every time they start to grapple with one another. Singed fur cloyed the air, driving Oretzi mad as she attacks the blonde with a vengeance.

"GAKI!"

She freezes at the familiar voice calling that familiar but hated name, her claws digging into the jinchuuriki's shroud and skin, until she is thrown off and into a tree. Which cracks and falls under the speed of her fall and her weight.

"Nee-chan!" she distantly hears Tsukiko call for her with a strong wave of déjà vu hovering over her consciousness, the weight of the tree pinning her until her partner heaves it off of her. "Nee-chan, we need to return to the hotel room!"

**"Rrrunning away? Go back to your den,"** Oretzi hears Nibi hiss through the Kumo shinobi.

Tsukiko growls at the jinchuuriki, sensing her partner's raising ire. **"Shut up and leave her alone! You want a fight with her? Well, wait until the Chunin exams unless you're a scaredy-cat!"**

If it had been any other situation Oretzi would've laughed. As it was, struggling with her temper, all it confirms is that Tsukiko is by her side and willing to fight with her. The Bijuu, however, took the wolf demon's words as it was, snarling a response. **"Then I suggest you watch yourrrself, puppies, and make it to the last stage. We settle this on the final stage of the Chunin Exams."** With that the blonde shinobi disappears in a cloud of smoke and Tsukiko turns to her partner.

A mix of blue and red - which strangely never blends into purple - stares at her before the hanyou huffs, the white youki bleeding away until all that remains is a battle weary werewolf. "Nee-chan?" Oretzi turns and makes to head back to the hotel with a soft 'let's go', spoken in wolf instead of ancient.

Though the wolf hanyou did stop when she is side by side with Hoshi. She shakes her head and swings the smaller genin onto her back, her human like paws making the task easy for her. She grumbles something in wolf that has Tsukiko huffing a laugh.

_"She says that while she is grateful that you interfered, don't call her gaki again,"_ the wolf demon translate for the Akino heiress.

"That's a deal," Hoshi agrees, having found that the 'endearment' invoked strange feelings in her. Or at the very least in Anko-sensei. She wasn't sure how she feels about those feelings and quite frankly if it means avoid saying 'gaki' won't make them surface then she'll do it. It rose too many questions she didn't want to ponder on. "I'm just grateful that it snapped you out of your… well I suppose I could call it bloodlust."

Oretzi replies with something as she hops onto the ledge, a large hand/paw seizing the one above them to provide herself balance. Her youki too strong and exhausted for her to use it to cling to the wall. Her chakra also out of her reach within this form.

_"She says to call it as it is,"_ Tsukiko translates for her partner, landing on the ledge just seconds after Oretzi. _"Pure unadulterated anger. Plain and simple."_ Oretzi helps Hoshi off her back and into the room before slipping through herself. She climbs back into her abandoned bed and curls up tightly, her tails covering her snout as she attempts to settle back down to sleep. "Nee-chan, who was that…?"

"You insult a jinchuuriki's Bijuu without **knowing** who exactly you're insulting?" Oretzi huffs in disbelief as her tails move to reveal her face. "Did I not teach you anything about the Bijuu Lords?"

"Uh… I don't think you did?"

Oretzi blinks as she turns to look at her partner, who is currently laying on Hoshi's bed. "In that case, it'll have to wait until morning. Since I doubt you'd like to go back and forth with the translations." With that she closes her eyes and covers her face with her tails. A low snore starting to resonate through the room.

"Well… that was quick," Hoshi comments drily as she makes herself comfortable, nudging the wolf demon around a few times as she fights to get under the blanket. Before long everyone within the room was asleep.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the other side of the village, the blonde jinchuuriki paces the length of her bare living room. Ranting out loud to seemingly no one. "I can't believe you! You deliberately sought her out!" she yells.

**"My lands," **a purr answers her stubbornly.** "She has no business being in _my_ home."**

"She has official business in case you've forgotten! She's here for the Chunin Exams! The _same_ Exams I'm partaking in!"

**"Kitten, be calm,"** the Nibi purrs at her, **"She is not a norrrmal genin. She isn't human… if only I could rrrememberrr who she rrreminds me of…"** It had been bugging the Bijuu lord for quite some time. She cannot remember whether there has been a wolf capable of standing on two legs instead of all fours. Also, since the wolf was in the same room as the Konoha-nin she came across there is a good chance that the wolf is something else entirely. **"Who does she rrreminds me of?"** the Bijuu mutters thoughtfully.

"She looked like she's a hanyou and she speaks wolf and ancient," the blonde comments before shaking her head, remembering the reason why she is upset with her bijuu. "If you were so curious about who she reminds you of couldn't you have made friends with her?!"

**"I am a Bijuu. I do not make frrriends with lowly humans!"** The blonde flinch at the words and ducks her head down. Almost too late the Bijuu realizes her mistake, **"No, no wait, Yugito. Don't-."**

Yugito shakes her head and mentally blocks the Bijuu, unwilling to deal with the cat demon after the trouble she had gotten her into. She shouldn't have let Nibi run rampage on the full moons but the demon was just so restless that it was just easier to let her have the reins instead of trying to ignore her pacing within her 'cell'. She hadn't known that the Konoha genin she saw two nights ago was going to be such a huge problem for Nibi.

She'll have to apologize to her when she gets the chance… that is, if the girl doesn't bite her head off first.

With no other choice but to sleep Yugito heads over to her cot, carefully lowering herself onto the threadbare mattress and covering herself with the thin blanket that is hardly ever enough to ward off the cold in winter.

It was a sad scene to see and if anyone with a merciful heart would have saw this it would've broken.

* * *

Oretzi woke up with a headache the size of… well, it was a horrible headache and to top it all off, she could smell last night's fight on her. Patting herself down reassures the hanyou that while she did get singed several times in the fight as well as scratched by the walking undead she came away from it unscarred. Yawning she throws her boot at Hoshi's sleeping form, aware that if she lets her sleep any longer it's possible she won't ever wake up before lunch.

The hanyou suspects that it's because the older genin was nervous about her doing something without Anko-sensei around to calm her. Not that her fears were unfounded. But in her defense it's because her 'sanctuary' was invaded by that trice damned jinchuuriki!

Hoshi splutters awake at the impact of the shoe, blindly grabbing it and throwing it back to its owner. "It's too early!" the girl complains as she finally manages to untangle herself from the covers and sleepily grabs at her clothes and shoes.

"You didn't have to stay up the entire night," Oretzi teases the girl lightly, pulling on her own clothes - a similar outfit to yesterday with the jacket secured around her. "But thank you," she adds, aware that if Hoshi hadn't followed her it was likely she would have stayed berserk throughout the night to awaken in some random alley. It also means that Hoshi probably saved the lives of the jonins that were headed towards the scene.

"We're teammates," Hoshi replies simply with a sleepy smile, finally dressed though she looks like she is still a bit… well, out of it. "I wasn't going to let you do a baka thing."

Oretzi chuckles softly as she straightens out her teammate's clothing and offers the other genin her support. Which is gratefully accepted and without further ado the pair and Tsukiko make their way down to the buffet to meet up with Anko-sensei and Tamashii. "Anko-sensei… kuso," Oretzi mutters as she realizes something.

"What?"

"She'll never let me sleep on my own again if she finds out about last night," the hanyou explains to the older genin.

"Maybe you're just not ready yet. I'm a bit worried about the fact that you lost control over yourself like that," Hoshi confesses. "This is the first time we've tried to test this. Honestly, we should've done it back in Konoha, in familiar grounds."

"There's a lot of things we should've done. First of all, I shouldn't have tried to confine myself in the room in the first place. That was the main reason why it was so easy for the jinchuuriki to disturb me in my sleep. Second of all, you're right, we should've tried this back in Konoha for the first time." Oretzi shakes her head, "The things you realize with hindsight."

"Tell me about it," Hoshi mutters in agreement. "But seriously, don't," she adds when she realizes that Oretzi had taken a breath in preparation. All she gets is a snicker as a response as they finally arrive in the dining hall.

"Morning Gaki, Hoshi-chan," Anko greets them, receiving a strange look from her 'look-alike' and a cheerful 'Morning!' from Oretzi. "How was last night?" she asks, deciding to ignore the strange look for the time being.

"As good as any other," Hoshi comments, "Though I think Oretzi will end up breaking her bed before Wolfstime is over."

"Are you calling me fat?" the hanyou exclaims with mock indignant coloring her voice.

"Considering you weight about four times your usual weight, yes I am," the Akino heiress answers. Oretzi pauses thoughtfully for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. She couldn't really retort to that. "You're still underweight though," the heiress adds in.

"It's not my fault I can't put on any weight!" Oretzi protests.

"Can't you just pig out on fatty food?" Tamashii interjects before their conversation/argument could continue.

"I've tried," the hanyou grumbles while Anko chuckles at a memory. "It does nothing except give me chakra and muscles." With a bored expression she flexes an arm, revealing some muscle definition that is uncommon in ten year olds. She knows that she is an unusual case. Shooting up like a beanstalk when in all rights she should be vertically challenged with the lack of proper nutrition. She should have multiple health problems and for a while she did - but they all were taken care of several months after her ninth birthday. All except for her weight, which remains an issue two years later.

"Though you did pack on a bit of weight after you came out of your isolation," Anko remarks, recalling the differences. After a week of meals once a day Oretzi had been extremely underweight compared to her usual weight, with all of her ribs visible. By the time their near fatal match happened though Oretzi had improved a bit. Not quite back to her usual weight but not as gaunt she had been. Though the weight loss was still noticeable for Tsume to spot by the time they returned to Konoha.

"I know right?" Oretzi shakes her head in disbelief, recalling that time as well. "_She_ had me on some kind of special diet that made me feel a whole lot better," she adds, wondering about the food she had been consuming during the duration of that mission. There was something about it that… she couldn't quite put a name to it but she knows that it filled her a lot faster.

"A diet?" Hoshi asks in confusion.

"Nothing like that whole stupid 'fasting' diet some of the women are going through," Oretzi comments. "It was… well, best way to explain it is that the meals always had this meat served with it. Morning, noon, evening, all of the meals were consisted of that one type of meat. Everything else was… well, fruits and vegetables that I didn't recognize." She shakes her head, piling on the foods offered onto several plates for herself. She had finally remembered why they were in the dining hall and was liberally helping herself to the food.

At this rate she'll end up eating the hotel out of business.

After breakfast was over Anko told them to go and mingle, she also reminds them about the rules of the exams. No jutsu or fighting outside the testing grounds or else there will be expulsions. With the warning in mind the trio leave the hotel, deciding to go around and just simply enjoy the sights. Oretzi making a decision to not let anything disturb the team's bonding - including a certain jinchuuriki.

* * *

Nightfall came quickly and Oretzi once again transformed, this time choosing to pace the room instead of attempting to sleep. Hoshi didn't bother trying to sleep, aware that the clacking of Oretzi's claws will eventually just drive her nuts. It was better to just try and stay awake instead of trying to ignore the noise. Besides, it is a habit she doesn't want to develop.

"You know what?" Hoshi mutters, attracting the hanyou's attention. "You never did tell us about the Bijuu Lords," she comments, reminding the girl that she had promised Tsukiko - and Hoshi by default - that she would tell them everything she knows about the Bijuu Lords.

Oretzi sighs as she climbs onto her own bed, as gently as she could without breaking or tearing anything. She still couldn't communicate in the humans' language so she questions her companion about whether or not she is willing to translate what she tells them. Once she gets her confirmation she decides that it is best to start with the biggest one and work her way down.

"The strongest bijuu in existence and well known for his destruction is the Kyuubi. His full title, in some areas, is Kyuubi no Yoko - the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. But among the Bijuu Lords he is known simply as Kurama. His tails capable of cleaving mountains into mere hills and creating tsunamis capable of wiping out multiple towns along the shores and inland," Oretzi starts. "Since the tails are one of the methods we use to estimate on how strong or old a demon is, the fact he has nine is an intimidating factor. Yet, five out of the nine are a result of his strength, the rest are a byproduct of his age."

"So… the Kyuubi is only four hundred years old?" Hoshi questions, having recalled that a tail represents a hundred years each.

"Or older. There is no documented proof that it is possible to go past the ninth tail," Oretzi corrects. "In either case the Kyuubi is dangerous and like any of the other Bijuu he is fully capable of sensing the negative emotions in any mortals within a certain range. It is also said that the Kyuubi has the personality to match any typical Kitsunes."

Hoshi grimaces, imagining the Kyuubi doing practical jokes or something of the like. She couldn't imagine it without picturing deaths.

"Next is the Hachibi no Orochi. Much like the Kyuubi he is known as Gyuuki among the Bijuu Lords. I don't honestly know all that much about him except the fact that he has eight heads instead of tails - I can't imagine the struggle it must be trying to work together with eight heads - and rules over the demons within shadows. Oh, wait, I forgot to mention that he's also a dragon," Oretzi mutters, trying to get her facts straight. She shakes her head - unaware that her teammate and partner are staring at her in disbelief.

"Let me try that again. The Hachibi has eight heads instead of tails - I'm not sure where it puts him in the age category or even on the power scale. It is also said that each head represents a symbol: the souls, ghosts, evil, the devil, the world after death, and finally death. His power resides mainly over the demons within the shadows. I don't have much experience with any particular demons within the shadows but I know that they're handy for spying and such."

Hoshi was silent for a moment as she peers at her shadow. "I'm suddenly worried about undressing with the lights on," she finally mutters.

"The lack of lights still produce shadows," Oretzi comments off handedly as she mentally moves onto the seventh Bijuu. "Shichibi no Kaku - also known as Choumei - is the seven tailed phoenix. Responsible for all things that belongs in the darkness of the nights. As phoenixes go the Shichibi is vastly different compared to the ones in the legends because somewhere in the past a demon somehow corrupted a phoenix and in its grief, in its anger, the phoenix became the exact opposite of what it was in life. Physically it doesn't even look like a phoenix, all majestic and beautiful looking. Supposedly, when you look upon the Shichibi you see a something that resembles a bat out of hell."

"That's… well, that's really sad," Hoshi mutters.

"Indeed… Rokubi no Raijuu - known as Saiken - is the six-tailed weasel of lightning. Though I personally think it could be some kind of bird. Some say that the Rokubi was originally a god - corrupted in a similar manner as the Shichibi and turned into a demon. In either case it's responsible for creating the thunder and lightning storms here in Kumo. Though… if the Rokubi is sealed away then something else is causing the violent storms around here…Mm… I wonder if the other elementals are at work here…" Oretzi looked extremely thoughtful about this before Tsukiko reminds her about her intentions - which prompts her to snap out of her thoughts.

"Right, anyway, next is my mother. She is the Gobi no Hokou and among the Bijuu she is known as Morotzi. Her powers are primarily with the plants. Though she does have the natural ability to manipulate all five elements. In either case she's renowned for her abilities to weave masterful illusions so strong that no one could ever break out of them. Think of it like my doujutsu but a thousand times stronger."

"That's a bit terrifying," Hoshi confesses thoughtfully. "Imagine being trapped in a genjutsu that you can't _ever_ break out of."

Oretzi had no response to her about that, having never experience a powerful enough genjutsu to pull her under. Her doujutsu acting like a natural barrier against any genjutsu cast by enemies. "The Yonbi no Sokou, a strange mixture between a rooster and something reptilian with - as I'm sure you can guess - four tails. Among the others she is known as Son Gokuu - which, ironically doesn't sound like a girl's name at all… In either case, I would have assumed she'd be an alligator or even a crocodile but nope, she's a strange crossbreed between a rooster and a reptile. In either case, the Yonbi is responsible for all creatures within the swamps. To top it all off there is a side effect of being around her for too long. She is capable of turning the air around you foul with poison. Luckily though, she's also capable of creating the antidotes." Oretzi seems to shrug her shoulders at this particular tidbit.

"The Sanbi no Isonade is a three tailed shark, responsible for all things within the ocean and for the ocean itself. If you think a tsunami is bad the Sanbi is capable of creating things far, far worse than that," Oretzi shakes her head and lays her head down, getting drowsy. "The Bijuu knows her as Isobu. Among the humans though, he cause quite a lot of problems whenever he surfaces from the depths of the oceans. It is said that he causes storms and tidal waves in the surrounding areas, the ships unfortunate enough to be nearby forced to sink. This also provides him food for the durations of his time down in the depths. Ironically enough he is never seen alone, always in the company of Samehada." She looks thoughtful for a long moment. "If Isobu was separated from Samehada it is possible that he was taken down fairly quickly…" She shakes her head and moves on.

"The two tailed Bijuu is Nibi no Nekomata, also named Matatabi - responsible for the dead spirits and associated with fire. I don't know why that is the case - it may have something to do with the old funeral practices back before people started to bury the dead. In either case she is capable of summoning the dead, bringing them to a twisted state of 'life' and the undead will mindlessly do her bidding. Keep in mind that they have no souls of their own, they will not recall their loved ones. They are puppets, nothing more, nothing less." Tsukiko frowns as she starts to realize exactly what the hanyou is explaining. The jinchuuriki they ran into the other night was able to bring the dead back but it was not like… they were alive.

"Last but not least is the Ichibi no Shukaku. Strangely enough he is known by no other name. In either case he is responsible for the desert and sand. Prior to his containment within a human he was largely responsible for the sandstorms that occurs within the desert. Afterwards I believe it largely fell upon the Arashi pack… Anyway, all of the Bijuu Lords are associated with some kind of element - it may not be of the five elements we care capable of using but nonetheless it's an element." Oretzi yawns as she stretches her body out, the bed creaking ominously under her weight.

"… Wow. So let me get this straight. The Bijuu Lords are associated with something and…"

_"That association will make identifying them through the feel of their youki easy. The Ichibi we already met, in Gaara-kun,"_ Tsukiko pipes up, with Oretzi nodding her head.

"He… he felt a bit… gritty?" Hoshi comments unsurely, relaxing when she gets a confirmation from the hanyou.

_"Your mother, the Hokou, she's associated with the plants and when I think of plants I think of the trees first. Like your Mokuton."_

"Like your youki," Hoshi adds with Tsukiko agreeing.

"I inherited a lot of things from my mama. The youki is probably similar."

_"So the Gobi's youki is probably rough like bark."_

"Perhaps."

"What would the Sanbi's?"

_"Wet perhaps? Salty like the ocean?"_ Tsukiko mutters unsurely.

"I haven't encountered the Sanbi so your guess is as good as mine. The only known Bijuu I've encountered - contained within a jinchuuriki - are the Ichibi, Kyuubi, and Nibi."

_"The… oh, of course, the girl from last night. When her youki came out it smelled like decay and fire."_

"That must've been pleasant," Hoshi says sarcastically.

"It's no worse than feeling like my skin is being rubbed thin due to Gaara's youki and hostility," Oretzi comments drily as she starts to close her eyes.

_"I just realized something."_

"What?" Hoshi and Oretzi asks in union.

_"I insulted the Nibi no Nekomata and I called her a scaredy-cat."_ Hoshi paled while Oretzi started snickering, getting a pitiful whine from the worried pup.

_**If any of this seemed awkward please let me know. I'll try to fit it somehow (it helps if someone tells me what part is iffy) And I know I used Nanabi earlier in the chapters and now I'm using Shichibi. I've gone back to correct the earlier issue. I've decided that I preferred using 'Shichibi' seems more elegant I suppose. I've also made an attempt to describe how my version of the Bijuu looks like and their roles. I know it's not similar to the Bijuu in the Naruto series but it fits the purpose here in this story (considering how Oretzi is actually the daughter of one. And last I checked the bijuu in the storyline is made of pure concentrated chakra) **_

_**Anyway, please leave a review! Or a pm, which ever works for you.**_


	28. Chapter 28

**_I have this strange sensation that something is going to happen to provoke an angry response. Strange... Oh well, have fun reading this ya'll. This ain't based on the Chunin Exams in the series. Well... sorta ish but not that much. Ya'll understand when we get into swing. Anyway, ya'll know the drill and just have fun reading._**

**_Chapter 28_**

By the end of the week, just a day before the exams are due to begin, Oretzi had somehow managed to chat up all the guards and shinobi within Kumo. Finding the one person who would willingly let her use one of the more remote training grounds for a little bit of last minute practice. She would've extended the invite to her teammates - actually, she did - but the two older genins were insistent about enjoying their last day of 'freedom' before the start of the Chunin Exams.

Oretzi doesn't realize that in the process of chatting with this one particular shinobi she had been flirting with her. She is lucky she hadn't started her heat while in Kumo or else she would be dealing with something more than simple flirting. By the time dusk finally came Anko found the hanyou still training and the Kumo shinobi ogling her student. Of course, when she actually sees the state her student is in she couldn't fault the woman for it.

Oretzi had either stripped down to the specially treated clothes - which still consists of a shirt that resembles a sports bra and high shorts - or lost her clothes due to the concentration of her youki. Either way a great deal of flesh has been left exposed and - thanks to the weather - was slick with rain. A pervert's dream come true.

With a scowl towards the jonin - just because she couldn't fault her for it doesn't mean she's going to take it lying down - she walks over to her student. Making enough noise for the hanyou to know that she's approaching so that she doesn't wind up with a skewer. There are times she regrets making the gaki so paranoid of her surroundings. Then she remembers what kind of world they are living in and tosses that regret out like trash. "Gaki," she greets the girl, before touching her shoulder.

"Konnichiwa," the hanyou greets with a happy smile, her ears adding an air of innocence. Something she hadn't seen for some time.

"Konnichiwa," she returns as she ruffles the girl's hair, noting that with the rain in her hair the wild tresses have been subdued for the time being. Giving her the appearance of a drowned dog. "What are you doing out here?"

"Training."

"I can see that. What I meant is, why are you not relaxing with your teammates?" Anko turns partially to look at the jonin - somewhat pleased to note that the woman actually looks like she is focusing on her surroundings instead of openly ogling her student.

"I was feeling a bit restless," the girl confesses with a slight whine. "Aimi-san was kind enough to let me use this area for a little bit of training. She also gave me permission to use my chakra."

Anko frowns at the girl. "And if she intended to gather information on you?"

"I stuck with the academy jutsu and stance," Oretzi informs her sensei. "I was restless, not stupid," she mutters, getting a sigh and a hair ruffle.

"Gomen, gaki. I worry too much sometimes," the woman comments drily as she slicks the girl's hair out of her face. It was possible that Oretzi will want a haircut after the exams, she thinks to herself, now that it's begun to grow out once again. The back of the girl's hair now brushes against her collar and her bangs threatens to hide her eyes and blind her. "Are you ready to head back to the hotel?"

Oretzi shakes her head but sighs anyway. "I'm not ready but I can't do anything without revealing some of my cards," she confesses, picking up her jacket from its spot beneath a tree. "Bye, Aimi-san! Arigatou for letting me use the grounds!" she calls out to the jonin before the pair leaves for the hotel.

"You're going to be trouble when you get older," Anko comments drily, getting a confused and innocent look from her student. "Don't worry about it gaki," Anko shakes her head, patting the girl's head.

"You make a comment and then go on to tell me not to worry about it," Oretzi complains before she sighs, letting the matter drop. She looks around for her companion, remembering that the wolf demon had ventured off for dry shelter after the storm broke over them. When she doesn't see her in the immediate vicinity - which she was positive she told the pup to stay in - she pulls free a whistle from the inside pocket of her jacket. "I'm going to hate myself for this," she mutters as she pulls the hood of her jacket over her head for some mediocre protection. She takes a deep breath and blows through the whistle producing a pitch at a high frequency that pierced through her wolf ears, making her wince.

"Ow, ow, ow," she whines as she rubs her ears. Trying but failing to get rid of the ringing in her ears.

Anko winces in sympathy at the girl's plight. While Oretzi is on the ground clutching her ears the jonin hears an answering howl, prompting her to nudge the girl with her knee. "Gaki, Tsukiko responded," she informs the girl once she has her attention. Aware that her lips are probably being read for the time being.

Oretzi nods her head before rubbing her ears again, picking herself up with Anko's help. "I hate using that whistle," she mutters as she sends a flare of her chakra. Alerting her companion to where she is at. Then she uses a code that they worked out to inform the pup that she's headed to the hotel and to meet up there.

She wishes she could use that method instead of blowing the whistle but experience has taught her that Tsukiko doesn't pay attention to chakra as often as she should, so any attempts to contact her via chakra when she is off goofing around would ultimately end up ignored or unnoticed. End result is that she needs to catch her partner's attention and unfortunately the best way to do it - without alerting all of the dogs within the vicinity - is a whistle that is specially created to reach a frequency higher than the dogs' usual range of hearing and well within a wolf's.

After some delays - which mostly consisted of getting food to fill Oretzi's black hole of a stomach and get something in apology to Tsukiko - they finally arrive at the hotel with Oretzi struggling to fight off the cold that has begun to seep into her through her wet clothes. Anko notices her student's predicament and drops her trench coat onto the girl's head. "Go to your room and get dry, gaki, before you catch your death because of a cold."

"Hai," the girl mutters before she runs up the stairs. Anko sighs to herself and went to her own room, wondering what she'll do with her students in the exams and she has however long of a freedom until they are free from the exams. Either failing - she prays to Kami-sama that they don't fail - or passing. She also hopes that all three of them pass. She cannot imagine what it's going to be like with only one or two of them passing, leaving the rest behind.

* * *

The morning finds Oretzi dressed in her gear, wearing the outfit her teammates had given her for her birthday - each article carefully treated with Monkshood to prevent any corrosion due to her youki - with her jacket strapped over her shirt. In addition to wearing an outfit that resembles a jonin's she is also wearing her boots - the pair she retrieved from Higurashi's shop.

She makes sure that each weapon are stashed away in its proper spot and the seals half open to enable her to remove them from their sub-space. She also checks her supplies before nodding her head in satisfaction.

Once everything is in place she leaves the room and heads down to the lobby where her other two teammates wait for her. Hoshi stood clad in an outfit similar to Oretzi except instead of a wolf there is a simple five point star stitched to the back with the number 13 right smack in the middle. Tamashii is clad in a similar manner as well, with the number 13 stitched on to the back, done in a style that resembles lightning - to symbolize his affinity to raiton. All in all the trio looks pretty good and as Tsukiko joins them - wearing the harness the branch house gave Oretzi - there was not a shadow of doubt about their ability to pass the exams.

Anko appears in front of her students and was stunned to realize that there was moisture gathering at the corners of her eyes. Clearing her throat she blinks back the waterworks and smirks at them. "Alright, you guys had about two or more years to work your way up here. You have so much experience that you're practically bursting with it," she smirks at the slight chuckle she got from Oretzi, "Just remember that no matter what happens I'll always be proud of you." The trio nods their heads in acceptance of her words. "Also, never forget what I've taught you."

"Work together," Tamashii speaks up before she can continue.

"Trust each other," Hoshi adds in.

"Never leave a teammate behind," Oretzi chirps.

_"Kick some asses,"_ Tsukiko puts in.

"And we can't go wrong," they conclude.

Anko chuckles at them, amused that they broke up the advice like that and relieved that she has done her best to prepare them for this. "That's right," she reaches down to scratch Tsukiko's head. "And good job with that line," she tells the pup. Getting a happy pant from her. Sometimes, it is easy to forget that the pup has yet to reach her second year, already the size of Kuromaru if not a slightest bit bigger.

"I don't think I have anything else to say. Just watch out for each other," she reminds them, getting nods from each of them, including Tsukiko. With that she steps aside and lets them leave to head for the academy where the first stage of the exams will begin. "Kuso, what am I going to do for the next week?" she grumbles to herself, wishing she had brought something for her to read.

With no choice she leaves the hotel to find something to entertain herself and to distract herself from the fact that her students are now going to be partaking in an exam that could possibly end with one of their deaths. "I'm depressing myself with this," she grumbles.

While Anko was depressing herself with thoughts of her students' future struggles and possible deaths Oretzi and her teammates have finally arrived at the academy, the youngest staring at the building in awe. "This puts our Academy to shame," she mutters as she looks around, impressed with the whole thing. She could see murals painted along the walls and as they walk along she can identify two different bijuu on the walls. The Nibi and Hachibi. She would have thought that the Hachibi would be in Tsuchi no Kuni, the lands being much larger and filled with mountains and valleys for the dragon to hide within - not that Kaminari no Kuni doesn't have their own share of mountains.

"Perhaps," Hoshi concedes as she takes in the sights as well, but still on the lookout for possible rival genins looking to eliminate the competitions.

"I have to admit that their murals are very impressive," Tamashii comments. "But we cannot truly say that their Academy puts ours to shame. For all we know their instructional classes are similar to ours."

Oretzi didn't look fazed at all, having been mostly self-taught when it came to jutsu - having watched her okaa-san and Hana's sparring when she was first starting out. She picked up a few jutsu that was well beyond her years and mastered them. The best jutsu in her reserves is the Kage Bunshin no jutsu since it allows her to retain the memories of her clones.

The trio pauses when they see a crowd of genin up ahead, causing the tallest - that being Tamashii - to frown at the scene. "What on earth could be happening?" he mutters to his teammates.

"Whatever it is… let's just keep a low key for now," Hoshi comments before both of the older genins turn to Oretzi. Their eyes flickering up to her ears and down to her tail - the second one under a henge once again.

The hanyou sighs as she gets what they're saying with their eyes and casts a strong genjutsu over her tail, making sure to wrap the appendage around her hips and pulls her hood over her head. "Better?" she asks them, narrowing her shadowed eyes at them.

"Much," Tamashii teases her.

"Just to be on the safe side, can you cast a genjutsu over your ears?" Hoshi requests of the smaller girl. The hanyou shrugs her shoulders and repeats the genjutsu but decides to keep the hood up anyway. Because of the long hood it is capable of casting her half of her upper face into shadows, leaving some of her nose, lips, and her clan tattoos visible.

The markings on her arms, however, were visible and anyone with a pair of eyes would be able to see them. Of course, with there being no one who actually understands the meaning or purpose of them she sees no reason to hide them away. The Lunar Wolves didn't know what they mean - though the Alpha did give her that warning. She readjusts her mental thought about Bear-Killer on that note and includes Stalks-the-Night with that.

"I'm ready," she announces to her teammates who looks her over before nodding their heads.

"You look like a brooding bona fide Inuzuka," Hoshi teases her teammate. "If I didn't know better I'd say that you are one hundred percent your okaa-san's daughter." She pats the girl's back and moves on ahead, prompting Oretzi to roll her eyes and mutter something in ancient, getting a wheezing laugh from her partner.

"Hey, Tsuki," she kneels down so that she is at eye level with her companion. "I know that you're proud of this size you've worked hard to get," she starts, getting a suspicious look from the pup. "Can you downgrade to the size you were back during our first C-rank?"

"What? Why?" Tsukiko questions with a hint of protest in her voice.

"It's another tactic. If they think that you're too small to be any use to me they'll overlook you," she explains to her. She can see that the logic made sense to her companion but it didn't mean that she wanted to do it. "I know it's asking a lot. But it can be an advantage to us. The second things start to get hairy revert back to your true size - or bigger if the situation demands it - and we'll go from there. Okay?"

This time she gets a confirming nod and the pup reverts back to the size she had been just a year ago. She scoops up the grumbling wolf demon and puts her on top of her head - since she's now back to the size Akamaru is - and moves to catch up to her teammates. Hoshi turns towards her and spots the new addition to the girl's person.

"Well, it's been a long time since I've seen you in this size," Hoshi comments with a laugh, scratching Tsukiko's chin.

_"I feel stupid,"_ the wolf grumbles.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry about that," Oretzi says to her companion, "Also, it might be best you pretend you don't know how to speak in the human's language. Kuromaru didn't learn how to speak it until his fourth year as a ninken. It'll be strange for you to show such a mastery over it."

_"You are really testing my willingness to help,"_ Tsukiko mutters before switching to her native language.

"I know, and I'll make it up to you. Swear."

"Let's just move on," Tsukiko sighs as she lays her head on her paws. "The sooner we finish this test the sooner I can go back to my normal size!"

Oretzi laughs at the pup's comment, prompting Hoshi and Tamashii to give her a puzzled look. "She may have never spent time with the Lunar Wolves but they still instilled an instinctive dislike for downsizing," she explains to them. They nod their heads in understanding, apparently recalling when Moon-Chaser had come to the village with the Monkshood and Tsukiko. He had been massive - perhaps the size of a boss summon or smaller.

"Who's going to be the team leader?" Oretzi asks as they approach the massive crowd. She glances at her two teammates to see them pondering this. She knows that she doesn't have the emotional or mental maturity to handle the responsibility. Plus she tends to react more than think things through. Hoshi has both of the maturity but she doesn't have that natural ability to think on her feet, give her enough time and she'll come up with a plan but often, in the middle of a fight, she'll follow her instincts or work in conjecture with someone else. Tamashii, on the other hand, has all the maturity they need and a good head on his shoulders.

She - and Hoshi - looks to Tamashii who looks back at them for a second before he realizes what they're telling him. "Really?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Who else?" Hoshi comments. Oretzi nods her head. "She," Hoshi points at the hanyou, "is too young and… well, we both know that she tends to 'hit first, ask questions later'." Oretzi doesn't protest this, aware that she does do that. Sometimes, though, she just trusts what her nose tells her. "I'm better at following, which is pretty pathetic of me considering I'm supposed to lead my clan one day."

"That's the key word there, Hoshi-chan. _One day_," Oretzi comments as she pats the heiress' shoulder. "You're still young and your father is still in charge."

Tamashii laughs quietly as he agrees with the hanyou. "Very well, I'll be the team leader. And I suggest we hurry up or else we'll miss the deadline," he adds in, prompting the two girls to move.

"I could've said that," Tsukiko grumbles, still unhappy about her new size.

"I'll make sure you get some of Hana's special treats when we get back to Konoha," she promises her, getting a huff that has her smiling.

They make their way through the crowd, the hanyou frowning as she catches the hint of a genjutsu in the air. Once they reach the source of the problem she studies the sole chunin barring the entryway to a room. She glances at the papers she is carrying to see where they are to report to before glancing at the sign.

"Single file, single file. I want the team leaders handing in their teams' applications to me!" the man shouts. The hanyou frowns again before she grabs her teammates' hands and pull them back out of the crowd, her eyes scanning the area. Once she has herself situated she pulls them away from the crowd and around a corner.

"Oretzi, where are you taking us? We're supposed to get in line," Hoshi protests before she gets shushed by the younger girl.

"That wasn't the room," she informs the heiress. "There was a genjutsu on the sign to fool the genins," she adds as she follows the hall to another room, this one having the correct sign. "This is the one we're looking for."

"Okay," Tamashii accepts her words, squeezing her shoulder and shoving the door open. A first glance around reveals that several teams have already made it past the deception. Another glance around confirms it to be at least fifteen teams, not including themselves. "Mm… big turn out so far," he comments as they grab some seats at the far side of the room, with a direct line of sight to the doors and the front.

"And to think that the exams hasn't even started yet," Oretzi mutters thoughtfully as she helps Tsukiko down from her head, placing her in her lap. "We still have twenty more minutes before the doors close and this thing starts."

"What do you think will happen?" Hoshi asks, curious.

Tamashii sighs as he leans back in his seat. "If we had been in Konoha it's like we would've started on something that will test our infiltration or information gathering skills."

"What are the main things they're looking for in a chunin anyway?"

"Mm… ability to lead is one of those qualities," Oretzi mutters. "To analyze the situation and know when to push or pull out…" She thinks for a moment, "And their abilities in combat."

"Leadership, strategy, tactics, and combat abilities," Tamashii concludes simply with his teammates nodding in agreement. "Seems like you'll have issues with two of them," he comments to Oretzi, getting a pout from her.

"It's not my fault I have problems thinking ahead," she grumbles, "Wolves live in the _now_ not in the _things to be_!"

"Maybe we should start playing shogi," Hoshi suggests to her, "I hear it's a good way to start learning strategy." Oretzi just starts grumbling again and Hoshi decides to leave her be about that, chuckling. That is, until Tsukiko starts saying something that has the hanyou blushing to her roots. "What?"

"Tsukiko thinks I should start practicing," Oretzi sighs as she rubs her face. "Something about it being helpful for whenever I create or take over a pack."

"You can do that?" Hoshi asks in surprise that has the hanyou sighing.

"Theoretically yes, I can. It all boils down to having enough strength to fight the alpha of a pack - if I decide to take over one. The thing about that is that most alphas are usually two or three tails. A four tail rarely leads a pack, typically choosing to travel the lands or gather as much wisdom as possible. They also tend to become generals for the Hokou." She stops for a moment, thoughtful. "There hasn't been another five tailed though. Always been just one, throughout history. It's the same for all the Bijuu Lords," she confesses.

"So… what are you saying?"

Oretzi looks at her teammates, thinking. "Well… I don't think the tails mean what they mean… if a wolf lives for seven hundred years - and they can because all demons have extremely long lives - then why are there only one five tailed wolf? There isn't a single wolf with a tail past five."

"So… it's not just age or power?" Hoshi mutters quietly.

"Wait, wait let me get this straight. None of the Tanuki ever achieved two tails? None of the nekos gone past two? And all the other demons in the same classes as the Bijuus never, _ever_ achieved the level of the Bijuu or beyond?" Tamashii exclaims in a low voice.

"As far as history shows me," Oretzi sighs as she rubs her head, getting a headache just from trying to rationalize this. "For some reason the Bijuu Lords aren't capable of increasing in power or tails. Each one is limited to the tails that comes with their station. On top of that it's hereditary. If the Bijuu decides to they can pass down the title to their heir and just… fade away."

"How often has that happened?" Hoshi asks with Tsukiko looking extremely curious about this too.

Oretzi turns her gaze away from them as a team enters the room, her hackles raising at the sight of a semi-familiar blonde. A slight rumble starts up in her chest before she can subdue it and she takes a deep breath through her mouth. "Several times for at least a few of the Bijuu Lords. I know that my mama is the second generation. The Yonbi is probably a third generation by now. I'm not quite sure," she finally mutters. "I'm not quite up to date when it comes to what's happening with the Bijuu. I know that three of them have been sealed away, my mama is currently missing in action, and the rest are unknown factors for me right now."

"We'll have to rectify that someday, won't we?" Tamashii questions her.

"It seems likely," Hoshi adds in. "The Bijuu are extremely powerful. Not knowing what's happening with them is like trying to stay ignorant of the fact that the world is falling apart around us."

"Not to mention that they're supposedly responsible for the elements that they're responsible for. If they're sealed away then it leaves the balance of nature unstable," Tsukiko speaks up.

"You're right about that, Tsuki," she mutters quietly before explaining to her teammates what the pup said. "The Bijuu needs to be freed and if that isn't an option then the title must be passed down to the next heir."

"But that won't solve the issue. People are deadly afraid of the Bijuu, they fear that unless they are contained they will continue wreak havoc across the lands," Hoshi points out.

"I know… we'll have to work it out eventually," Oretzi mutters, faintly recalling a heated argument between the alpha and another wolf. She couldn't remember what it had been over but she has the faintest impression that they had been arguing about the demons' role in the world. Or rather, the growing lack of it.

Eventually the trio's conversation dies down as they notice that at least fifty teams altogether have made it through the crowd outside and are firmly seated - waiting for the exams to begin. The tension in the air was so thick that you can literally cut it with a dull kunai and _still_ not get anywhere. It is enough to have Tsukiko sulking in Oretzi's lap, physically struggling not to attack anyone who so much twitch the wrong way. The hanyou is almost the same way except she managed to pull all of her youki inside within herself - which she had discovered to be the source of her problems after Wolfstime is over - to keep from instinctively lashing out at people surrounding her.

The week surrounding Wolfstime is the most dangerous for anyone around her except those she knows extremely well and can trust them with her guards down. Currently that is mainly the Inuzuka clan and her team - that includes her sensei. Anyone else is best to keep their distance from her.

During the Chunin exams she figures that it will work to her advantage since Anko has warned them that they need to expect to be tested for their ability to work together as a team as well as leadership skills. All Oretzi needs to know that so long they work together they'll have a good chance passing this.

Most genins get at least a year before making their first attempt on the exams. She herself was able to get two years of experience. Tamashii and Hoshi has gotten at least three years, waiting for her to meet Anko's standards. The three of them have more experience compare to most first timers, giving them a slight edge. Yet she doesn't depend on it all that much, thinking that it is impossible for them to have an upper hand with that. All they can really do is just rely on themselves and trust that they can past this thing.

* * *

In no time the doors are shut and sealed with an elaborate seal on a slip of paper. Oretzi couldn't see the seal from where she was but she could sense the protection that sprang up as a result. It is designed to block out sound from the outside and to prevent sound from leaving the room. It is also to prevent anyone from entering or leaving the room. She frowns as she considers the fact that the seal can be used to keep everyone in the room hostage until the tag is removed.

If she paints her room with the seals and then use chakra to activate or deactivate it, will it work? It's an experiment she'll have to try when she gets the chance. But that also means she needs to get a good look at the seals in order to understand it. She leans down and whispers to her companion who gives her a puzzled look before slipping down off her lap, slinking through many legs and desks. She only hopes that no one is vicious enough to attempt to kick her friend or else someone's blood will paint the walls.

"Alright, listen up!" the proctor for the first exam calls out in his loud booming voice. "I'm going to explain a few rules for you before we start!" he picks up a chalk and proceeds to write down at least three rules.

1) Under no circumstances are you allowed to fight another genin without the explicit permission from the proctor (Yamane Haru) or the sentinels.

2) Everyone starts with ten points.

3) Teams will pass or fail based on total scores of all three teammates.

This has Oretzi staring at the proctor in disbelief for a moment before she sighs while everyone else explodes into protests around them. She glances at her teammates, noticing that they were keeping quiet, their eyes intent on the jonin but their ears listening to their surroundings.

"Quiet!" It takes him glaring at many of the genins and him repeating the order before they all settle down once again. "Now listen, your first exam will take place out in Kumo. I will give each of you a slip of paper. It will appear blank for the time being, at least until the exam begins. On this paper will be instructions." The shinobi next to him hands him a stack of papers, "Now, I want all the team leaders up here. Everyone else, wait until they return and once I give the single you have two hours to complete the exam and meet at the final destination."

Tamashii stands up and joins the other in line while Oretzi is frowning thoughtfully at the desk. This has the smell of tracking, spying, and information gathering all over it. She glances at her teammate, thinking about the kagami ririisu and its possible uses here. She leans over to her teammate, keeping her voice low, "How many times can you use the kagami?"

"Five times," Hoshi answers quietly, narrowing her eyes in question at the hanyou.

"Limit it to one per exam," she suggest, thinking of something.

"What do you have in mind?"

"Nothing concrete at the moment. Just… wild thoughts." There is a hesitant tone in Oretzi's voice which Hoshi takes as a sign that she's unsure of the plan's potential but willing to put _some_ fate in it to speak up.

"Okay," she mutters to the girl, offering a smile. Her eyes tracking Tamashii. "Ready?"

"As I can be," the hanyou mutters back.

* * *

_**And that's that for now folks. I'm currently in the process of writing chapter 30. I will say this though, I don't think the exams will end for at least 5 chapters, minimum. I say this because I thought the first test will end by the time I was done with chapter 29. That isn't the case. **_

_**Anyway, please leave a review! Also, I wanna give thanks to someone for helping me figure out the some of the ideas for the exams. Domo arigatou **_Neko-chan_**. And I wanna thank **_DevilDragon713_** for reading through my ramblings while I'm processing or creating an idea for this story. Thank you both. **_


	29. Chapter 29

**_Aiyiyi Chapter 30 was a nightmare to work on. It took off into an entirely different direction before I knew it! You'll see what I mean (hopefully) when you start to read it. In either case, have fun reading this chapter. And I'll try to finish Chapter 31... of course, I need to start it before I can finish it... Ya'll know the drill._**

**_Chapter 29_**

It doesn't take Tamashii long for him to retrieve the paper from the proctor and he quickly reclaims his seat with his teammate. He hands the paper over to Hoshi, who is currently sandwiched between the two - as awkward as that sounds - and activates the Byakugan to search the hall for the wolf demon. "Oretzi," he speaks quietly, "why is Tsukiko over by the door?" The hanyou turns her head slightly to see that the pup is hopping, trying to get a better view of the seal.

She makes a face as she realizes that the pup is currently too small to even get a good view of the seal, making her request a little impossible to carry out. With a sigh she whistles for the pup, attracting some attention but she reasons that she can deal with it so long she gets her partner back by her side. The wolf demon runs back to her and with a hop she is back in her lap, apologizing for not being able to see the seal. "Don't worry about it, Tsukiko, I didn't think that through."

After all of the team leaders are seated once again the proctor turns briefly to speak with one of the sentinels. With a nod the shinobi steps back and gestures to the other sentinels with him. Oretzi watches them with interest, wondering what exactly they are going to be doing.

The group form a single hand sign and a pulse of pure focused chakra washes over her, causing her to tense up with a growl before she gets nudged in the side by Hoshi. Turning her attention over to her she sees her flash the previously blank paper at her and understanding floods her mind. It doesn't mean she is pleased with it though.

"The First Exam begins…" the proctor looks at the clock, prompting her to do the same and as the minute hand lands on the twelve - indicating it to be ten in the morning - the proctor bellows out his last word to them, "NOW!"

Stunned and reacting on an old drilled habit she jumps out of her seat - following Tamashii and Hoshi out of the hall. Her mind noting that somewhere along the way the barrier was taken down to allow all of the genins to leave the room at once. They stop at a rooftop not too far from the Academy, the trio huddling together with Tsukiko keeping an ear and nose out for any one suspicious.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Hoshi asks, curious.

"Let's see…" Tamashii lays the paper flat against the roof. There was a few lines, a picture, and that's about it. Oh, and a note at the bottom saying that after objective one has been met the second will be revealed. "We're supposed to… follow a woman named Katsura Mayoko. Gather intelligence on her - enough to mimic her and infiltrate her organization." The trio smirk to each other, having the perfect solution to that issue.

"Oretzi, you perfect little," Hoshi giggles as she kisses the hanyou's cheek, a vivid blush appearing on the girl's tanned skin.

"We're going to need a henge for you to get up close," Tamashii comments as he folds the paper and pockets it.

Oretzi makes a noise in the back of her throat, thoughtful. "What is Katsura's occupation?" she questions, prompting the boy to just hand over the paper to her. She unfolds it quickly and reads through it. "Mm… it doesn't mention it. We should spend at least ten minutes observing her before we attempt a henge to get close to her."

"She may just be a shinobi in disguise," the wolf demon comments from her perch, still acting as a lookout for them.

"We're aware of that Tsuki, but we still need to approach this like we would a mission." She refolds the paper and hands it back to Tamashii. "What's the plan Tamashii?" she questions him.

"We'll follow your suggestion about observing her," the boy answers as he pulls out a map. "The paper mention her frequently visited areas as well as her home address. My suggestion is that we find her home and Oretzi," the hanyou perks up at her name, "do you think you'll be able to track her down?"

"If I can't Tsukiko should be able to," the girl responds, the wolf demon puffing her chest out in pride. The trio chuckles at her antics before deciding to make their move. They have less than two hours to complete the exam and they have no idea how long it'll take to finish everything they need, especially if they can't read ahead to figure out what their tasks are.

With their plan of action decided the trio and ninken made their way to their target's house, with Tsukiko attempting to follow along using her own legs instead of relying on Oretzi like she used to when she was younger. The task wasn't easy but her determination made her refuse to give up. The hanyou kept a partial eye on her companion, aware of her trice damned pride. She may not have grown up with her pack but she sure as heck inherited their pride and stubbornness.

In no time they arrived and the pair quickly went to work, sniffing around outside for a hint of their target's scent. A minute later they shake their head and Hoshi sighs, pulling out a lock pick kit. Before she does anything she lets Oretzi cast a genjutsu over the immediate area, making any passerby believe that nothing is out of the ordinary when they walk by, before she starts on the front door.

Within a minute the door is unlocked and the hanyou and wolf demon are inside, with their teammates outside and keeping a lookout. Splitting up the pair went about attempting to isolate the woman's scent. Oretzi took the upstairs, searching for a bedroom for any dirty laundry for her to use. She notes that the place is too big for one person so a quick look through the rooms reveal that there must be at least two more folks living in the house with the woman. From the toys in one room and the teenager mess in another she can conclude that the woman has kids - or, if this is an extremely unique situation, siblings living with her. That'll make identifying her a bit trickier with the scent of two others lingering around her.

"Tsuki! There's evidence of two others here!" she growls down the stairs as she searches for the master bedroom.

**"Just our luck!"** the wolf snaps back.

Before long she finds the master bedroom and looks through the drawers and closet to see if there's a male to worry about. Upon discovering no hint of a father figure she searches for the laundry. "Tsuki, any luck yet?!" she calls down as she pulls out a recent shirt, taking a cautious sniff. There was a hint of lightning in the scent, an extremely weak one, making it easy to conclude that she has an affinity for raiton - not that it is any special considering the fact that it's pretty popular here in Kumo. Another sniff reveals the presence of ink and a third one tells that works with a lot of shinobi.

She drops the shirt back into the basket before retreating down the stairs, following the scent down and into the kitchen. Where she finds Tsukiko coming out of a room that looks like the laundry room. "Anything?" she asks.

**"Nothing. There are several scents mingling in here. I can't isolate them."**

Oretzi sighs. "It seems to be a hint of lightning, ink, and a strange melting pot of scents. She might be working in a place where she's around a lot of people and ink."

**"The Academy might be one place,"** Tsukiko suggests.

"Or the Hokage Tower."

**"I doubt that they will let a group of foreign genins enter the Hokage Tower for this exam."**

"We just need to track her scent. It's possible that she won't be anywhere near the Tower for this purpose," Oretzi counters before she heads back to the door.

"Got it?" Tamashii asks once they are within view and hearing range.

"Hai," the hanyou answers as Hoshi locks up the door tightly as it had been. "I got the scent," she adds as she kneels down next to her companion. "What about you?"

"Raiton, ink, and melting pot. Shouldn't be too hard," Tsukiko mutters before she gets started on trying to track the scent. In no time she has it and Oretzi joins her, confirming it herself.

"We got it," she tells her teammates quietly before the pair begins to follow it, picking up seed as they realize that they have spent fifteen minutes making a plan and getting the scent. They track it down to a playground of some sort, prompting the hanyou to take to the trees with Tsukiko, her teammates joining them. "She has her kids with her," she mutter grouchily, her eyes identifying the two kids from the pictures she had seen on the walls.

"So we just need to make sure that they don't cross our paths after Hoshi uses her kagami," Tamashii concludes simply.

"Should we make the contact now?" the hanyou questions.

"We'll need a reason of some sort for Hoshi to be in the area," the boy responds before looking at the girls. He looks down at the pup next to Oretzi's legs and just like that he has an idea. "Tsukiko," he starts, getting a puzzled look before she huffs and shakes her head.

"She says that whatever you're thinking of count her out," Oretzi translates.

"It's just going to be a temporary thing, Tsukiko. Just long enough for Hoshi to get close to the target," the boy tries to cajole the demon.

"If you want it so bad do it yourself," Oretzi translates when there is another huff and a snap.

"Wow, you really are in a bad mood," Hoshi says in amazement, having never seen the pup behave like this before.

"Considering the fact that she downgraded her size I'm not surprised," the hanyou comments as she rubs the pup's ears. She lowers her head some and mutters something to the wolf, causing her ears to twitch in attention. A minute goes by before Tsukiko sighs and nods her head. "Alright, Hoshi," she turns to her and considers for a moment something that would allow the girl to escape most people's notice. "I have something that should work for you," she finally confesses.

"Let's do it then. You're the best one here with henges and genjutsu," Hoshi comments, getting a nod from the girl.

She forms the signs for the jutsu, concentrating on the image in her mind and with a slight poof the purple haired genin is surrounded by smoke. When it clears away her new appearance is revealed to them and Tamashii nearly whistles in approval. "That's pretty good," he praises the girl, squeezing her shoulder while Hoshi gets out a mirror to examine her new features.

Oretzi had henged the older girl into an appearance of a seven year old girl with ashen white blonde hair and icy blue eyes, making her seem a lot older, but when Hoshi smiles she begins to look more like a kid than she did with a neutral expression. Her clothes have changed into something similar to a sundress and Oretzi also gave her a leash - a simple rope henged to look like a proper leather leash. In her other hand is a collar, a something Tsukiko _should_ be wearing but absolutely refuses to wear it under no circumstances.

"You went all out with this one," Hoshi comments before starting. Her voice had been changed to a slightly higher pitch, making her sound a lot younger.

"Just remember to _act_ like a seven year old," the hanyou reminds her.

"Yeah, yeah," the girl rolls her eyes before looking at Tsukiko. "Ready?" She gets a nod and the pup jumps off, landing in the bushes without a rustle. She gives the pup a five minute head start before jumping down herself and begins to call out a name - Kiku - as she seemingly roams the park at random.

Oretzi and Tamashii can see from their perch that she is steadily moving closer to their target until she is finally within earshot of the woman. "Kiku, where are you?!" she cries out in a tone that seems desperate and borderline whiney, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. "Kiku!" The woman frowns at her and moves to her.

"Sweetie, what's wrong?"

"I-I lost my puppy," Hoshi sniffles. "I-I can't find her. She just ran off and I need to find her!"

Oretzi's eyebrow twitches as she glances at her teammate, "She's laying it on a bit thick."

"Just a bit," he agrees.

"Sweetie, take a deep breath," Katsura instructs the near hysterical girl. Hoshi does as she is instructed before Katsura nods her head in satisfaction. "There, now, tell me what she looks like?"

"She's small and-and white. She has these pretty eyes like-like a flower!" the girl says excitedly, supposedly forgetting her concern. "I only got her last week and she got away from me and her collar!" she exclaims with a pout that reminds the Hyuuga of Oretzi's - just without the wolf ears.

"Sweetie, calm down. I'll help you look for her," the woman reassures Hoshi before offering her hand to her. The disguised genin takes her hand and they begin their search while Oretzi does a small scale version of a victory pump.

"We need to extract Hoshi out of there soon and move onto the next task," the Hyuuga boy mutters quietly to the hanyou next.

"Give her at least five minutes. And I'll let Tsukiko know that she needs to respond to Kiku," she adds, aware that they hadn't discussed what name she'll have to respond to. Using just a touch of her youki she sends out a coded message for her partner.

Soon the time came for the extraction to happen and Oretzi watch with a bated breath as Hoshi calls out for 'Kiku' again. This time, unlike before, there is an answering bark - which Oretzi's mind translate to _'I am never doing this again'_ - before the white wolf bounds out of the bushes with her tail wagging.

"Kiku! There you are!" Hoshi exclaims as she scoops up the pup, holding her to her chest. "Don't ever run away like that again!" Tsukiko barks something - _'The end of this stupid exam cannot come fast enough'_ - and licks the girl's cheek while Hoshi slips on the collar. "Thank you pretty lady!" she tells the woman before running off with Tsukiko back on her paws - the 'leash' tied off to the collar.

Oretzi and Tamashii don't meet their teammate until she is well outside the playground, and as she stretches her arms with a cheerful smile the hanyou removes the collar on Tsukiko, slipping it back into one of her inter-dimensions pockets - handy little things as troublesome they are when she forgets about them. It's hard to get water and soap out of an inter-dimension that is literally capable of holding anything so long it can fit through the opening. Though she has wondered where it goes…

"That wasn't too bad," Hoshi comments with a smile as she gives Tsukiko some attention, "Thank you so much for helping. When we get the chance I'll make you a five course meal!" This gets some cheering from the wolf - who is simply just hooked on Hoshi's cooking or rather her ability to make the meats just the way a wolf likes it if it simply must be cooked. In other words, extremely rare.

Any other time the offer would have excited Oretzi too - and actually, it is - but aware that by the time they actually do get the chance to eat Hoshi's Wolf friendly meals it'll be too far from the full moon for the hanyou to even _want_ to consume raw-ish meat. That was something she had noticed after she finally gained control over her demonic side. That the closer it is to the full moon the more likely she'll consume raw meat. She wonders how she never noticed this during her years with the pack.

"How was the info?" Tamashii asks as Oretzi offers Tsukiko a full bar - it tastes horrible but it's filling. And she can already hear a rumble of hunger in her companion.

"Pretty solid. Ended up with her entire life story," Hoshi comments with a slight grimace. "There are just some things you don't want to see," she adds as she shudders.

Oretzi snickers quietly. "Considering the fact that it looks like she has two kids I bet you now have the knowledge of what it's like to actually _give_ birth."

"Actually… yeah, that and she has a few kinks that I seriously hope they don't stick around after this," she mutters, prompting her teammates to stare at her with slightly wide eyes. The concern she just expressed was something no one can really cancel out. Since it's a side effect from using the Kagami Ririisu that supposedly been influencing the clan since its creation. In either case she has already picked up a few things from her previous copies - tiny fragments that lingered instead of flushing out with the rest.

From Suterareta, the Demon Hunter, she gained a knowledge about how to kill most types of demons and a great skill with swords. If Hoshi had been capable of fully copying Oretzi it is likely that she would have improved animalistic instincts if nothing else. As it was, because of the partial copy nothing stuck. Apparently it has to be a complete copy, full life story, or else it's nothing.

"We'll have to worry about that after we get through this," Tamashii finally concludes as they take temporary refuge in an alley. "Oretzi, can you do another henge for Hoshi? Just the clothes this time." The hanyou nods her head. "Hoshi… do you think your clothes will survive the transformation?"

"I think I brought my brother's clothes with me just in case," Hoshi comments before telling her teammates to turn around. Oretzi did her better by creating a genjutsu that will make her seem invisible to anyone and because of who she is no one can easily take it down unless they match the strength put into the jutsu. And considering the fact that she felt the touch of youki - which is two or three times denser than chakra as well as potent - just confirms that the person has to be a demon or a hanyou to break the genjutsu.

In literally no time at all the older girl is changed and 'garbed' in Katsura's skin. Oretzi raises a brow at her teammate, the transformation never ceasing to amaze her. Everything changes when it's a full transformation - including the scent. But underneath it all Hoshi is in control. Still, if the real Katsura had been in the alley with them she would've never been able to tell the differences between them. It's a transformation far better than using a Henge no jutsu considering that there are still human errors to consider. The Kagami Ririisu copies everything exactly.

"Great," Oretzi smiles before she activates her doujutsu, her control over it slightly better than before now that she had unlocked the second stage. She wasn't going to use it on her teammate - she didn't want her going catatonic right that second - but because of what the second stage does she can use it to search for Katsura's preferred outfit. Anyone who looks into her eyes will fall prey to them so it's usually dormant until she has need of it or it ends up being activated by her emotions. "Ready?" she asks, keeping her back to Hoshi.

"Ready as ever," the transformed genin mutter softly, disliking the sensation that usually comes with looking into Oretzi's doujutsu. The hanyou turns about and golden eyes meet emerald green. Hoshi experiences the falling sensation with Oretzi following her, images flashing besides them until a particular memory comes up alongside another. The one to her left is Katsura clad in a traditional shinobi outfit for Kumo chunin, a kunai pouch on her left leg - indicating that she's left handed or at least stronger with it - and a short katana strapped to her back. All in all fairly average in terms of appearances. To Hoshi's right is a memory turned nightmare turned worst fear.

The second stage of the doujutsu enables her to dive into her 'victim's' mind and pull up their worst fear, molding it into a powerful genjutsu that will terrify and possibly break them. In most situations Oretzi can do the mind dive in less than two seconds but because she's purposely looking for a memory and not a worst fear it's taking longer. The doujutsu usually brings the surface without any apparent effort on her part and she just snatches it from her victim's mind and project it for the unfortunate to experience.

Oretzi withdraws from Hoshi's mind, her hands flashing through the signs for the Henge no jutsu before the Hoshi is garbed in the clothes that is Katsura's preferred outfit, her hair done in a simple braid that she usually has it in.

"Did I ever mention that I seriously do not like the Kokoro no Giman?" Hoshi comments as she rubs her neck to work out the tension from there. **(1)**

"I believe you mentioned it," Oretzi smiles kindly as her eyes return back to normal. She knows that Hoshi doesn't like the mental dive she does when she is pulling something out that goes against the usage of her second stage. She may have accepted the occasional accidents with the first stage but the second stage felt like an invasion to the older girl.

It had taken many months for their sensei and her okaa-san to finally get the details about what they know about the doujutsu written down. The main reason why it took them so long is because every time they look into her eyes when it activate itself they are drawn into whatever genjutsu her mind is thinking of. Or wants them to feel or see.

When activated her eyes turn into a golden color that seems to glow. Originally Anko reported that she can see a flash of a triangle within each orb but sometime ago, just after Oretzi unlocked the second stage, she adjusts it - saying that it appears to be made of three interlocked pointed circles within another circle. Or rather it is just one simple line that flows to form the interlocked circles with another forming the outside one. She also notes that with the second stage unlocked there is now what appears to be a small star - for lack of a better word - in two of the three open spaces formed by the knot as Anko has taken to calling it. Her okaa-san theorized that there may be three stages to the doujutsu since there had originally been one star until she achieved the second stage.

"It'll never change," Hoshi mutters.

"Hoshi-chan, whenever I get the hang of the thing," Oretzi starts with a chuckle, "I'm going to hone my control so that I can have it active _without_ instantly pulling them into a genjutsu."

"That's a terrifying thought," Tamashii comments softly before reminding his teammates that they're on a time limit. With the reminder Hoshi leaves to head to the building where her organization meets every day with her teammates following along in the crowds. With Oretzi masterfully weaving a genjutsu around them to make them seem like another face in the crowd. "Sometimes you scare me with how good you are with your genjutsu," he comments quietly since the illusion around them doesn't truly eliminate their voices.

"I'm not the best yet. Maybe one day," she mutters back, dodging a man who was practically stomping his way through the street and crowd. "But I don't want to rely on it. It's bad enough that my eyes are practically hardwired to project my feelings, my anger, onto people if I'm not careful," she sighs. She had nearly traumatized Tamashii when they first met due to his behavior and her protective anger over Anko.

"I remember," Tamashii mutters. It had taken him awhile to readjust his attitude after the second encounter with the Kokoro no Giman but it was greatly sped up with a third encounter, when she lost her temper with him yet again. For an eight year old she sure was capable of imaging really violent things. He blames Ibiki-san for telling her tales about his scars just because she wasn't scared to ask about them when they first met. She had an overactive imagination - she still do apparently - and it didn't help that he went into _details_ about it.

"Hey, at least I managed to tone it down," she sticks her tongue out at him with a smirk. It was a strange thing to witness, with her ears and tails hidden away and the top of her face hidden away. He was so used to her ears tilted in such a way that you can literally see the mischief with her tails wagging away that the lack of it was strange. It was easy to forget that she becomes like any other person on the night of the new moon because everything about her seem to change. The hair, the eyes, the nails, everything except her height and weight.

As a human her hair resembles Hana with the lack of wild tresses, falling flat instead of attempting to defy gravity and her eyes an icy blue color - similar to the color she used for the child Henge on Hoshi. She looks like an average girl with no hint of her heritage to the Inuzuka clan.

"It took you a year though," he reminds her before shushing her when he sees Hoshi pausing in front of a door before entering the store. "Show time," he mutters before he does a few signs that has the hanyou nodding her head with Tsukiko grumbling something in her native language as she fights for her balance.

They move to different points with views of different escape points, with Oretzi creating a few extra Kage Bunshins to cover a few more that they didn't have the manpower to cover. She looks down at Tsukiko and settles her nails into her ruff, scratching an itch between the blades of her forelegs.

While they wait outside for any hint of trouble Hoshi is casually strolling through the weapon shop, following the pattern Katsura always trace when she is giving the sentinels time to recognize her. She picks out specific items and takes them to the register before asking if the package has come in. She gets sent into the back and she follows the memory to the back of the storage room, pressing her hand against the wall. With the press of her hand the hidden entryway to the room beneath the building slides open and she walks down the stairs, mentally counting the steps and skipping the thirteenth as well as the eighteenth. The thirteenth because Katsura is just a bit superstitious and the eighteenth is because of a pressure plate trap. She pauses at the thirty-fifth and waits for five seconds before walking down the rest of the steps.

"Katsura," Hoshi hears a familiar - to Katsura - voice call out to her in greeting as she walks into the room. It takes her a minute to recognize the man as the proctor of the first exam. "Did anyone follow you?"

Hoshi makes herself comfortable in the chair across from Yamane as she makes a thoughtful expression. "A couple of kids followed me but I created a bunshin just before I came down the stairs. They're probably following it," she comments with a wary smile. A completely different person compared to the woman in the park. She was in full shinobi mode.

"Mm… Must not be good at this if they were spotted," Yamane mutters thoughtfully to himself.

"Any orders for me sir?" she asks.

"Do another circle for now," Yamane answers, "we'll see if they manage to get anything off you. Though I doubt they'll complete the second half with just a little over an hour left."

"I probably wouldn't count them out. Kids have a tendency to surprise you," she tells him, "I'm constantly being surprised by mine." He nods his head before dismissing her. She gives him a hint of a smirk before walking back up the stairs. At the very top she sends out a pulse of chakra.

Outside the building Tamashii tilts a mirror at Oretzi to get her attention before he gives her a sign. Without waiting for a response he returns to the ground and meets up with her at the door. They walk into the door, a henge on them to change their appearances to a few Kumo genins Oretzi had spotted while they were waiting for the exams to begin. The cashier calls out a greeting to them and they return the gesture before saying that they're on a trail and can't stay and talk.

With that they vanish into the back room to meet up with Hoshi who tells them to count their steps and skip the eighteenth. With that she walks down the steps, reversing the transformation as she tightens the belt on her brother's pants. Oretzi, taking her cue from the older genin, removes the henges on all three of them. Tamashii warns them all to be on their guard as he preps himself in case there is any issues.

They arrive at the bottom of the stairs and Hoshi steps aside to let Oretzi and Tamashii through. "Konichiwa," the purple haired genin greets him, prompting the man to turn towards them with surprise.

"What- how?" he exclaims before his eyes widen at the sight of the purple haired genin morphing to look exactly like his chunin that was in the room less than a minute ago. "Certainly not a Henge… you knew things that you shouldn't have known about in less than an hour," he mutters before he shakes his head. "Hand over your paper. I'll put activate the next part," he instructs them.

Oretzi didn't detect a hint of deceit in his scent and a glance at her companion indicated the same so when the Hyuuga made to turn the paper over she didn't argue with him. But it didn't mean she didn't watch him with narrowed eyes, naturally suspicious of anything that might jeopardize their chances of passing the first exam. She feels a flare of chakra similar to how it had been used to activate the first task.

When it is handed over she peers around Tamashii's shoulder, her eyes finding the next part of the test. It was a simple line, stating to report at a specific location - giving the name of their destination - fifteen minutes before the deadline. Oretzi looks at her teammates before moving enough to let them past.

"Thank you, Yamane-san," she bows to him just a bit. She waits until she knows that her teammates are at the top of the stairs before she throws down a small handful of smoke pellets.

**_There, that's the end of this chapter but not the first exam. OMG, just how long is this exam going to take me? Oh, and I've added details to several things since I didn't do so before or it wasn't enough to satisfy my crazy mind. _**

**_And I've FINALLY named Oretzi's doujutsu. And described the physical appearance of it - also, that interlocked pointed circle thingie is one type of the celtic knot used to represent the trinity. I don't think it was that popular in Japan so that's why Anko didn't call it a celtic knot just to clear that up. _**

**_(1) Kokoro no Giman - Deception of the Mind_**

**_Also, while I'm on the subject of translations I think I may have forgotten to translate a few words in the previous chapters. If I have can you lemme know? Arigatou!_**

**_Ja ne! And please review!_**


	30. Chapter 30

_**Oh Kami-sama will this test never end? I am never doing an original exam ever again! Uncharted territory? Put down five checkmarks for yes! *calms down* Now that I have that rant of the way please, for a round of applause for this brand spanking new chapter! (also, usual disclaimer goes around here somewhere)**_

_**Chapter 30**_

Oretzi paces around the statue of Kumo's first Raikage, her teammates casually sitting against the base of the massive monument. Since they retrieved the second instruction they have been waiting but now that less than twenty minutes remains before the deadline of the second task she wonders if they have retrieved faulty information. One of the dangers of being a shinobi is that someone may unintentionally hand over inaccurate information and incomplete or imprecise info can lead to the mission going horribly wrong.

Unbidden her mind summons up the C-rank mission from Andawarudo as she likes to think it. It had been hell since the day they shoved her into that tight cell with iron bars…

_Wide brown eyes stares at the iron barrier that kept her from freedom, a mantra in her head the only thing keeping her from throwing herself against it in a blind panic. Her features hidden in a semi-permanent henge to disguise the fact that she isn't an average woman they found in a remote village. She couldn't smell her teammate - just the rank smell of too many unwashed bodies kept in a cell. _

_She couldn't smell that mouthwatering scent anywhere or even that hint of her pack's lands. She was truly isolated in a sea of other captives. It wasn't until a pair of guards came and looked through the bars that she had a sinking feeling that something was about to happen. When they attempted to pull her out from the others she lashed out…_

_She couldn't remember what happened next but she knows that she woke up alone in a dark cell. Without realizing it a cycle started to develop between her and the guards. They would try to retrieve her and she would violently resist them every time she sees the chains dangling in their hands then she would remember nothing except a flash of pain. _

_After two days she distantly realized that she wasn't being fed enough. As her stomach demanded food and got nothing, as her body dipped into its emergency storage - which is frighteningly little considering her underweight issues - she realizes that it's becoming harder to focus. Lack of focus - that worried her. It meant that it'll be easy for her demon to come out. A slight side effect of the early mastery over __**her**__. It blurred the line between them, blending them and at the same time allowing her closer to the surface. _

_The demon - the Howler as Oretzi has taken to calling it - had reassured her that eventually the demon will become her so completely that there will never be an issue with her instincts. But a year wasn't enough and if __**she**__ came up everyone will be killed and she'd be driven insane by the cage until she breaks out. _

"Oretzi!" she suddenly hears Hoshi shout right next to her, provoking a startled yelp from her as she doubles over clutching her ears.

"By Kami-sama!" Oretzi whines to the older genin as she held her head between her kneels, appearing so small for the first time in months. Hoshi grimace, realizing her mistake, as she rubs tight circles on the hanyou's shoulders.

"Gomen," the girl mutters quietly as she lets her readjust.

"What did you need?" the hanyou whines, wincing as her own voice grates on her sensitive ears.

"The deadline's here," Hoshi informs her, "And we're not alone."

She turns her attention outward for the first time since she started going down memory lane and her eyes widen at the sight of at least thirteen other teams aside from themselves. A quick glance around reveals that there are no stray teams in the immediate area and to top that off there isn't a hint of any of the other genins within a mile of the area.

"Did you do a look-around?" the hanyou questions the older girl.

"I'm not that good at that," she reminds the hanyou, causing them to look at Tamashii who looks like he is meditating. "Oi, Soul-boy," the older girl calls to him. He comes out of his thoughts and looks at her. "We need a look-around."

He nods his head before closing his eyes. Oretzi shivers just a bit as his chakra washes over her, forever carrying that hint of raiton - it is taking her entire will to not sneeze. Something about lightning just doesn't like her. And considering she's in a village with natural affinity to raiton it's a wonder she hasn't been sneezing twenty-four seven. A quick glance towards the other genins confirm that none of them sensed Tamashii's chakra - confirming Anko's theory that because they're used to each other's chakra it's easier for them to sense it when they subtly checking out their surroundings.

"… Everyone who is in the immediate vicinity are the only shinobi in the area," Tamashii finally confirms.

"Looks like fourteen teams will past this exam," Oretzi comments quietly as she leans against the monument before tensing up when she senses a familiar youki that has her growling.

"Whoa," she hears an unfamiliar voice say before the blonde Kumo shinobi appears before her. "Parley."

Hoshi makes a noise in the back of her throat, "We're not pirates."

Oretzi lays a hand on her teammate's shoulder, her eyes intent on the blonde genin in front of her. "Granted," she informs the girl whose tense body relaxes just a margin.

"Arigatou." She cautiously brings a hand up to her jacket, her hand clearly intending to go beneath the material and when it doesn't make that final journey it becomes clear to the hanyou that she is waiting for confirmation. So she nods her head in consent, her eyes warily watching the jinchuuriki.

So imagine her surprise when she is handed a scroll that - when she opens it - reveals a seal written on it. A binding seal - to be exact - to the blonde in front of her. She studies it for a second, her eyes taking in the blonde's name, Nii Yugito, and the Nibi's name. Matatabi.

She was surprised and stunned because she knows what it means to have a binding seal with the person's full name written in the void. It was a sign of submission. It was useful only once and with the binding seal she can force the blonde and Matatabi into doing whatever. With the right words she could make her do something she would _typically_ do and she'll follow the orders to the letter or die trying. It was no worse than the slave seal, just a step below it actually.

"Why?" she asks as she lets the scroll close once again. She'll have to take good care of the scroll because if anything happen to it while the seal is still active it'll kill the 'victims' whose name is written within the void - taking it as the user's desire/order to the victims.

"I, through actions that were not my own, have cause you a great deal of inconveniences while you were here. No words can express my… sorrow for such activity and I wish to make it up to you," the blonde explains carefully. "I have long since learned that actions speaks louder than words."

Oretzi takes a deep breath to center her thoughts before handing the scroll to Hoshi - who looks at her confusedly before she gestures at her to open the scroll. She already used a kunai to slice open her palm and once the scroll has been completely unfurled she places her bloody hand against the seal, focusing on the intention as she pushes her youki through her hand and onto the seal.

Once she feels the final shape of the seal click into place she removes her hand, allowing her youki to settle back inside her skin where she has taken to confining it during the duration of the first exam. While they had been tracking their target down. She examines the new seal before she hands it back to the blonde Kumo genin.

"You've given me too much control," she informs the blonde as she opens the scroll.

"This… this is a partnership seal," Yugito protests in shock.

"It is," Oretzi agrees as she studies the jinchuuriki. "I will admit that I was not happy with you over what I perceived to be rude manners but I am willing to let it go because you had no reason to trust me. Wolfstime is not a good time for anyone around me because my instincts run closer to the surface and it's easy for me to take offense to everything," she explains. "My current issues lies not with you but with your demon."

She turns her head slightly as she feels a flare of chakra she associates with shunshin no jutsu and steps away from the Kumo. "If you wish to enter a partnership with me add your chakra to the seal. I will know if you decide to," she adds before walking away with her teammates next to her.

She barely even walked ten steps before she tenses, turning back to stare at the blonde incredibly. She hadn't been expecting her to make her decision so quickly and she could feel a hum that comes with the activation of the seal. She could also feel a secondary link that has her narrowing her eyes just a bit. She mentally touches the second link, sending a single thought down through it before she gently closes it to prevent the person on the other end from retorting.

_'Don't assume that because we have a partnership now that I won't do __**everything**__ in my power to end what we started last week.'_

A reminder and a challenge - all of it directed to Matatabi.

If Tsukiko thinks calling Nibi a 'scaredy-cat' was bad then sending that challenge is even worse. If there's one thing she knows about Nibi is that she doesn't take to challenges all that well.

* * *

The trio plus ninken chose a somewhat high perch as the proctor blabber on about something and as the hanyou mentally goes through memories, stuffing a few darker ones into the back so she doesn't have to think about them, she hears the sentinels dismissing at least two teams. "What's going on?" she asks her teammates quietly.

"The proctor is setting up a third and final task but he's also giving us a chance to back down," Hoshi comments.

"It's because of the new rule," Tamashii adds in when Oretzi makes a puzzled sound. "If we mess up with this task we'll fail and be prevented from retaking the exams for two years."

The hanyou blinks before she shakes her head. "Sounds like it's just gonna be another mindfuck," she comments, getting chuckles from Tamashii - who is still the most foul-mouthed member of their team.

"Sometimes, I wonder about you," Hoshi sighs, shaking her head. "You sometime seem so innocent and then without warning become this foul-mouthed kid."

"I'm just unique that way," she chuckles before she gets a comment from Tsukiko about how the proctor seems to be glaring at them. She looks towards the man's direction to see that she is getting a glare from him. She smirks and gives him a cheeky finger wave before turning back to her conversation with her teammates.

"You know, I don't think he liked that," Hoshi points out, having watched the hanyou's actions. "And that is actually another point I want to make."

"What's that?" she asks, curious.

"You're getting too cocky." Oretzi stares at her teammate, stunned by that. "It's true. You usually respect people, you add the appropriate suffixes unless someone asks you to not use them and even then you _struggle_ with that. But just now you smirked and on top of that you gave him a finger wave. You're not taking him seriously."

"I-," she cuts herself as she ponders this. _Had_ she become over-confident? She knows that she trusts in her team but is she over estimating her abilities? She doesn't even know her own limits, having refused to remove the cap she placed on herself after her seal was removed. She didn't _want_ her power. Is it so hard to believe that she just wants to be another kid on the block? Equal to her teammates?

She doesn't speak another word for the rest of that particular exam.

* * *

Yamane looks over the genins in the area, noting that each and every one of them are prepared to take the consequences. Though the ones who shouldn't have been able to sneak into his base looked like they didn't care about the exam all that much. Especially the one with the black hooded jacket. Something about her seemed off to him and he didn't know how to classify it. There was a sharp edge of danger whenever he looks at her, something feral hidden beneath the surface.

It almost reminds him of the attack by the Nibi prior its confinement. But he didn't understand why he felt like that. As far as his eye can tell she looks just like another kid he had the displeasure of being around.

He didn't even get a reaction out of her as he declares that the remaining twelve teams have passed the first exam - provoking many shouts of disbelief and questions. The Konoha genin just stood still, crouched on that branch. As calm as calm can be. Her teammates however looked relieved to hear the news but at the same time they keep glancing at the one between them.

Something is disturbing their teamwork and as a result upsetting them.

"Listen up maggots!" he calls out to the remaining teams. "Your next exam will begin in two hours and I suggest you spend those time getting supplies. You will meet your proctor here at two." He then dismisses them, his focus still intent on the Konoha genins. He notes that the boy is speaking quietly to the hooded girl who continues to remain crouched on the branch.

He didn't know what happened with them but something tells him he should inform his friend to keep an eye out for them during the second exam. It may prove interesting for her.

* * *

Oretzi hears Tamashii speaking with her but her thoughts demanded her full attention as she ponders on whether or not she had taken a turn for the worse. She wasn't happy with the thought of it personally. She knows that there are people better than her. She knows that so why would she let herself become overconfident when it just means people can die because she assumed she can handle it. It made no sense once so ever!

But as she wonders about this she couldn't shake it off. She couldn't shake that somehow she did begin to touch with the person she wanted to be. How many people have she killed in two years? Five on her first C-rank mission or rather shortly after it. She killed at least twenty-three during her tenth C-rank and she hadn't needed to kill anyone else in between. It wasn't necessary with the low risks. It just that the slavery ring turned out to be a lot more complicated than anyone had originally thought. They had been overestimated by the Hokage.

Had she been actively listening she would've known that Hoshi has been apologizing to her. But she hadn't been and once she notes that the proctor is gone she turns and leaves with Hoshi and Tamashii scurrying after her. She doesn't notice that Tsukiko had disappeared. That's how deeply involved she is in her own thoughts.

Tamashii and Hoshi lingered behind the brooding girl, the latter regretting her words already. She had no idea that the hanyou would withdraw into herself like so. If anything she's being reminded of the time when she pulled away from her teammates after their first C-rank mission.

"What are we going to do?" she asks the team leader.

"I… I'm not sure," Tamashii mutters, disliking that he couldn't reach the younger girl. "She shut us out the last time she acted like this."

"Who reached her the last time?"

"I… I think she pulled herself out of it," the Hyuuga boy mutters. "But we can't afford to wait a month," he adds in.

"Should we go get Anko-sensei?"

"… I don't think we have time. The next test bounds to be a survival task. We need to make sure we stock up on rations and supplies," he tells his teammate.

"I think one of us should stay here while the other gets the supplies."

Tamashii pats her on the shoulder. "I'll handle the supplies. You should try getting through to her." Hoshi nods her head, just a bit apprehensive but at the same time aware that she needs to face this heads on. With that they go separate ways.

* * *

By the time her teammates made their decision on what they were going to do Oretzi had chosen a spot by a gushing water fountain. Her legs crossed and her hands forming a seal as she meditates. Falling deep into herself to find her answers.

When she finds herself standing in a familiar forest with several obvious differences. For one it has become somewhat brighter and that forbidding sensation from last time has lessen somewhat. It isn't quite welcoming yet but she knows that it'll eventually start to feel like that. She wonders the forest for a moment before she feels a presence nearby.

She turns to face the presence which is the dark brown furred wolf. Narrowing her eyes just a smidge she can see that the fur isn't as matted as it was the last time she had seen it and there appears to be some weight on it now. The wolf watches her calmly from the edge of the clearing she had appeared in, its tail thumping against the dirt.

She does a double take when she realizes that there are _two_ tails not one.

She would've sworn that it only had one tail before…

_"Hello,"_ it greets her. She blinks, stunned by the change in the wolf's voice. Before it had been similar to listening to someone drag nails across a black board. Now though, it sounds softer. Easier to listen to but it doesn't provoke that disturbing sensation from before.

"… Hello."

_"Willingly coming here. Something must be bothering you,"_ the wolf comments, its head tilted just a bit. _"You have never willingly ventured into my domain."_

"I wasn't trying," she confesses as she takes a seat herself. She didn't make an attempt to approach the wolf and it didn't make an attempt to approach her. It just wasn't something they do.

_"I see… So what brings you here?"_

"Do you remember our deal?" she asks it.

_"Of course."_

"… It's been a year now. I haven't seen any… side effects yet. Aside from my demon being closer to the surface that is."

_"You have not yet completed the merge,"_ the wolf comments drily. _"The side-effects you fear will not have any negative impact on you."_ The tails thumps against the ground for a moment before stilling. _"Or your __**precious**__ friends."_

She sighs, closing her eyes for a moment. "I've changed…"

_"Last I checked that is what mortals do."_

"But it's for the worse."

_"Are you so sure?"_

"…I don't want to put my teammates in danger by being overconfident. And if I have become overconfident then…"

_"You worry about things that you do not know for sure are there."_

"I just don't… I'm not like everyone else. I have… I have so much anger inside me. So much hatred…"

_"And your teammate says that you also have love and compassion,"_ she looks up from her lap to find that the wolf had moved closer. Not a noticeable distance but it was definitely a bit closer. _"That woman is right about demons. It's especially true for the Bijuu Lords. The circumstances surrounding them are… unique. You are the daughter of the Gobi. But you are also the daughter of a human. The balance between both of your natures is delicate. The anger that woman manipulated out of you is fueled by the demon. Once the merge is completed do you know what will happen?"_

She shakes her head, her voice stuck in her throat as she listens. _"Because of the natures of your duality the merge will ensure that the balance between the two will never again be upset."_ Blood red eyes peers at her for a moment. _"So long you favor love and compassion over anger the merge will ensure that your sanity will remain intact. Do you understand?"_

"… This is the side effects of the deal we made," she mutters quietly. "How does… overconfidence and arrogance fit in this?"

_"You have power, little one. Nothing will change that,"_ the demon states as a matter of fact. _"You have yet to meet someone who can beat you. All I can tell you is to grow. To never stop growing. To never stop changing."_ She watches as the wolf stands up and approaches her until its rank breath is in her face. Yet she doesn't flinch as she meets its solid red eyes. _"Always remember that you have not yet reached your full potential."_ It places its paw against her chest, _"Now go and learn."_ With that final statement it pushes and she finds herself falling, the forest vanishing as the wolf stares down at her.

She comes to herself with a shudder, her hand reaching up to rub her neck as she thinks about what the wolf has told her. It didn't quite reassure her but she knows now that there is nothing she can really do.

"Oretzi?" she hears Hoshi call to her softly. She looks up to find her teammate standing in front of her, hesitant. She offers her a smile and gets a relieved one from her. "I'm really sorry, Oretzi-chan. I… I guess I thought you were changing too fast," she mutters as she sits down next to the hanyou. "It's hard for me to remember that you made your decisions. You were only eight years old and on top of that you were… more innocent back then."

"It's hard to stay innocent when you have the blood of at least thirty people on your hands," Oretzi comments to the older genin. "I don't think I ever…" she looks at her right hand for a moment before clenching it into a fist, "I don't know why I fight anymore. I don't think I ever knew."

Hoshi frowns at her teammate before she wraps an arm around her. "What do you think you want to fight for? What or who would you use your strength for?"

"… My clan… you and Tamashii… Naruto-kun. My imouto-chans…" she loosen up her hand and touches the scar on her chest - the one she had gotten from Anko just several months ago. "Anko-sensei… I'd use my strength to protect everyone I ever care about."

Hoshi smiles at her and pulls down the hood to ruffle Oretzi's hair. "That sounds like a plan. Do you remember me telling you that you're strong because of your love?" she asks, getting a nod. "I understand that you have a lot of anger, I don't blame you for that. But I have seen your capability for love… You act so old sometimes that it makes me worry that you're forcing yourself to grow up so fast." She sighs and shakes her head. "You're ten years old now, Oretzi-chan… I sometime want to hide you away from the world."

Oretzi laughs quietly. "I don't think that's going to work. The Moirai sisters have something planned for me," she informs the other genin, getting a puzzled look. "Don't worry about it. Just know that even if I wanted to back away from this… world I've chosen something tells me I can't."

She stands up, stretching her arms out before she turns to look at Hoshi. "Can you help me act more like my age?" she asks her with a small hopeful smile.

"I'll try," Hoshi returns the smile as she wraps her arm around her waist. "What do you say we go find Tamashii?"

"Sure. But we're doing it the old fashion way," Oretzi informs her. "I am not in the mood to be sneezing."

"That's fair enough," the Akino heiress giggles as they walk out of the park.

* * *

Before long the two hour mark has finally come and the genins have regrouped at the town square. Oretzi scratches Tsukiko's ear, muttering something in their native language while waiting for the second proctor. She was calm again, ready for whatever the proctors will throw at her. Determined that one way or another her teammates will reach the finals.

Her thoughts would've continued down that path had she not been startled by a loud bang that causes her ears to ring from the pitch of it. She grips the branch beneath her, her nails digging into the bark, to keep her balance as she turns her gaze towards the commotion.

"LISTEN UP MAGGOTS!" a feminine voice shouts to the skies, stunning the hanyou. "MY NAME IS HIRA REI AND I AM THE SECOND EXAM PROCTOR!"

"Oh Kami-sama," Hoshi whispers, just as stunned as the hanyou.

"She reminds me of Anko-sensei," Tamashii comments from the other side of Oretzi who is trying to block out the worse of the woman's voice. Until finally she is forced to pull as much chakra and youki from her ears to prevent herself from going deaf.

"She is Anko-sensei. Or rather, the person she would've become had we not met," Oretzi finally comments once the noise level has reached a more tolerable level.

"Are you sure?" Tamashii asks, a bit surprised.

"She's like Naruto. Confident, brash, loud. You name it, she's like him. But she also thinks before she does something, doesn't waste her time thinking too long but she does nonetheless," Oretzi tells them. "When we first met she was a Tokubetsu Jonin, she wasn't eligible to be a sensei to any teams."

"I remember, Hiashi-sama was surprised that she was to be my new jonin-sensei."

"My father was surprised too. But he said he'd trust in the Hokage's decisions," Hoshi chips in.

Their conversation probably would have gone on for a bit longer if they hadn't gotten blasted with an extra strong dose of KI. Oretzi was bombed with images of her teammates dead beside her and a kunai headed straight for her. With a savage growl she turns the blast with a stronger hit of her own, forcing herself to stand up. Her eyes tracing the KI back to the proctor.

She would've attacked the woman right there and then if Hoshi hadn't recovered in time to grab her wrist. She wanted to kill her, no one does something like that to her teammates. She wanted to _change_ - to assume her werewolf form just to tear her apart.

It takes Tamashii's touch as well to get her to settle down. She wasn't calm but she was settled for the time being. Her teammates had a sinking feeling that she'll probably do something rash during the second stage and can only hope that whatever happens will not eliminate their chances of getting through it.

Without further ado Hira Rei begins to explain the exam, which is predictably a survival exam, and the rules. Oretzi, still boiling mad with anger towards the proctor, barely manages to force herself to pay attention to the woman's words.

"Alright, now that I am no longer being interrupted I will explain the rules to you," Hira glares at the trio that her comrade had told her to keep an eye out. But she didn't think that he meant that they were troublemakers. So far her first impression of them is that she hates them, especially the one that fought back with her own KI. Impressive but at the same time infuriating.

"Rule number one: You cannot leave the area during which the exam is taking place," she starts, holding up a finger, adding to it as she goes along. "Rule number two: if your teammate is incapacitated in any manner that prevents them from making it to the safe zone under their own power your team will be disqualified. Rule number three: if you reach the safe zone without the necessary items to complete it you will automatically be disqualified. Rule number four: if you open the packages before the arrival at the safe zone you will be disqualified." The woman glares at the genins in front of her. "Last but not least there are three different types of packages. You need one of each to pass this exam."

Oretzi blinks, her ears twitching before she forces herself to calm down. It is beginning to sound similar to a mission they took once. They were responsible for transporting precious cargo while guarding the messenger. They were forbidden from glimpsing at the cargo during the transportation and when it was revealed as to what they were carrying Oretzi was struck with the need to liberate the poor thing. Anko had needed to intervene or else they wouldn't have been paid for the mission.

"Does any of this sound familiar?" she questions her teammates, getting simultaneous nods from them and Tsukiko. "So we already know the drill," she mumbles quietly, propping her head up on her fist as she listens to the rest. Before long a packet of consent forms are being passed around and Tsukiko hops down to secure the trio some.

"Do any of us have any doubts?" she questions her teammates as she signs her paper. The way she sees it she'd gladly give her life to protect her team. But if they don't want to continue on she'll accept their decisions and wait until the next one.

"Not me," Tamashii speaks up as he signs his own. "Nothing is going to stop me from becoming a chunin." They turn towards Hoshi who sits quietly against the trunk, her eyes glazed over slightly as she looks over the crowd beneath them. Twelve teams have been passed, eleven when not counting Team 13, and all of them seems to be consisted of the standard ratio of boys to girls. That means over twenty males are preparing to take the second exam.

Oretzi could sense the growing unease in the older genin and gently wraps her arm around her waist, pulling her into an awkward embrace due to how they are positioned on the branch. "Tamashii, Tsukiko, and I are going to be there right beside you," she tells the girl in a low whisper. "If anyone dares to lay a hand on you for any reason aside from combat I will personally give them a hell they will never wake from," she vows and Hoshi giggles weakly as she understands just what she means by that.

"And I'll see to it that they will never be able to produce a child later in life," Tamashii speaks up with a slight grimace.

Oretzi laughs at him, "That's impressive for a guy to say." She smirks at him, grateful that he would make a threat like that despite his 'manly' pride. She turns back to Hoshi who is shaking, her hands pressed against her mouth. Her ears, despite the decrease in her hearing capabilities, could catch the stray giggles escaping her attempts to smother it. "We all good?" she asks her, poking her in the side which only causes her to lose control of her giggles and just start laughing freely. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Domo arigatou," Hoshi kisses Oretzi's cheek before signing her paper. "What do you guys say to us getting our package?"

_**Oohrah! Chapter 30 completed! Now, I accidentally gave a reviewer a spoiler just recently so my apologies. I'll try to finish the next chapter quickly so you can find out what happened to make me complain. **_

_**Please leave a review folks!**_


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