Karin's POV

When morning arrived, I was the first to wake up. I put my glasses on and looked around the room to see if Nue was here, but she wasn't. "Nue?" I called. Did she go outside? Maybe she took a walk? I got out of the sleeping bag I slept in and went outside.

"Nue?" I called. I found her on the deck in the backyard with a black guitar in her hands. How did she even make that? Maybe she used her powers to make it. She gently played the guitar as her eyes were closing, singing a song I've never heard before.

There's nothing left to take, but I still try to reach

Try to swallow it all down, yet I can't seem to breathe

Just a single pill of mine, nothing else would suffice

I take it in, now I'm alive

My phone is set on lock and I don't really care

There's a tangle and a knot that I cannot repair

I'm a tragedy, I'm ugly, I'm trying to hide

I say, "Hello" then wave, "Goodbye"

See me fall down

Let me die here, slowly

Nothing goes right

Not a trace of honesty

I'm to blame

So, I'll remain

Black, White, Day, Night

It's all the same

See it run down

Cut away, no worries

Say no more

I can surely say that I've had enough

I still refuse to believe

Every day would be the same

Nothing more, little change

If I cared, it would mean nothing

It's all such a pain

Friendly bonds are so unneeded

I don't give a damn

A busy life, is what I am

Could it be, that 'family' was a way of escape?

Didn't know if it was right, so I threw it away

Couldn't take it anymore, I had taken enough

So then I hid my need for love

Lay me right down

Let me sleep

I'm restless

Cover my eyes

When I'm up, I'll finally fade away

Here, today

Give me a reason, then I'll stay

If I could fly, if for only a moment

There wouldn't be, such a need for casualty

I'm alone, and that is how it'll be

Why does everything I do cause tragedy?

Why does everyone I know keep leaving me here?

Why do I feel so empty inside?

I only wanna die...

See me fall down

Let me die here, slowly

Nothing goes right

Not a trace of honesty

I'm to blame

So I'll remain

Black, White, Day, Night

It's all the same

See it run down

Cut away, no worries

Say no more

I can surely say that I've had enough

I can't remember

That very day

That very day changed me

Happiness died

Like a light I carried

I'll sleep tonight

And hope to finally leave

A world which I don't believe

A life which I don't need

Now, I'll finally be free...

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Megumi asked as she stood beside me, looking at Nue, blankly. "Yeah..." I agreed.

"Nue-kun sure does have a beautiful voice. Every time she sings, I don't see her as a monster or a freak, or whatever the hell villagers call her. Instead, I see Nue-kun as a bright and shining angel." She complimented.

"An angel?" I repeated. I looked back at Nue as she continued to play the guitar. "She is... an angel." I agreed. "I didn't realize I had an audience," Megumi and I looked at Nue as she made her black guitar disappear and turned her head to look at us.

"Morning. How did you two sleep?" Nue asked. "I slept fine." I answered. "Pretty good." Megumi answered. "Who wants breakfast?" Nue said, standing to her feet. 

Nue's POV

We all went back inside the house and I made everyone breakfast. Once it was ready, I served everyone. "Nue." Karin spoke. "Yeah?" I asked. "How do you... plan to beat Madara?" She asked.

"Well, that's easy. I'm just gonna train my ass off."

"Not such a good idea." Megumi chimed in. "What do you mean?" I asked her.

"If you train hard, you'll just be exhausting yourself. Think about it. Once you face Madara, your body will so sore, you won't be able to perform a single jutsu. Besides, you just can't beat him with the regular techniques you have." She explained.

"Megumi's right. With the techniques you have now, Madara could already know them and anticipate you next movement." Karin agreed. "Okay. Then, what do you think I should do?" I asked. "Hmm... Doesn't your clan have an Archives Room?" Megumi asked.

"Yeah, why?" I asked. "Then, that means some of the scrolls contain other techniques. Maybe some that you don't even know?" Karin guessed.

"The elder took me down there once. He said, when I was ready, I would learn all the techniques that are in those scrolls. Some of the techniques are either too advanced or forbidden." I explained. "Perfect!" Megumi said.

"But what if she can't handle all the techniques? What if one of them damages her body?" Karin argued with her. "Nue's an abnormal being. I'm sure she can handle anything that gets thrown at her." Megumi replied, confidently.

"We won't know unless we try now, will we?" I said, smirking. Karin looked at me, then at Megumi before sighing, seeing how the two of us have made up our minds. "Okay. Then, let's get started." She smirked.

After breakfast, we went down to the Archives and began looking through the scrolls. "Ugh! There's so many scrolls down here! It'll take forever for us to look through every single one of these things!" Megumi complained.

"There's not much room down here for you to train, and it'll be bothersome if we keep going back and forth from the Archives to the backyard just for you to master these techniques. We have to find a training room or an arena of some sort for you to train in." Karin said.

"And where do you suggest we look?" Megumi asked as she leaned her hand on the wall. "This place hasn't exist in who-knows-how-many years. The training room or arena could buried with everythi- Argh!" Megumi yelled as she went through the wall.

"Megumi!" Karin and I said at the same time as she went through. We ran over to the wall she fell through and noticed a whole different room. "A... secret room?" Karin said. "Seems that way. Megumi, are you all right?" I asked her as she laid on the floor.

"Ow... I think I cracked my skull open..." Megumi groaned. "Here, let me give you a hand." I said, offering her some help. Megumi grabbed my hand and I helped her to her feet. "Next time, redhead is going through the wall." Megumi said as she dusted the dirt off her clothes.

"Cut it out, Megumi." I said. "What is this place?" Karin asked.

"It looks like... an arena."

"Why would there be an arena in the Archives Room?" Megumi asked, rubbing her head. "Maybe to practice all the techniques that are in the scrolls." Karin assumed. "I guess the elder was practicing from the scrolls in here. No wonder he was so powerful." I said in amazement.

"Well, it looks like we found our practice room." Megumi smiled as she locked her fingers behind her head. "Let's get to work." I said. "Right." They replied in sync.

We went through the scrolls, trying out each one. "Most of these techniques look advanced. Are you sure you'll be able to master all of these, Nue-kun?" Megumi asked. "I'm not really sure. I'm just trying out most of them. Hopefully, I'll be able to master all of them when I do face Madara." I said.

During the training, I took breaks while helping Karin how to use a gun. Her skills have improved greatly. It won't be long until she's able to shoot right on target. I also taught Megumi how to shoot from a gun, too. "Dammit!" Megumi cursed as she missed the target.

"Don't get frustrated if you don't get it. It takes practice." I reminded her. "Right. Let me try again." She said. The two of them shot at the targets, both of them improving fast. "You guys are fast learners." I complimented with a calm smile.

"You were right. It does get easier after a few tries." Karin said. "When do you think we'll start handling your machine guns, Nue-kun?" Megumi said. "Whoa, slow down there, Megumi. The machine guns are a lot heavier than the regular guns. It's also a lot more difficult to use than the others." I explained.

"That sounds complicated." Karin mentioned. "It is." I confirmed. After a few more rounds of gun shooting, we went back to my training. Some of the techniques were extremely difficult, and some brought back memories of me and my mother.

"Mom..." I whispered. "What did you say?" Karin asked. "Huh? Oh, nothing. I didn't say anything." I said. "You said something about your mother." Megumi said as she heard me. "Yeah..." I answered, no use in denying it.

"Do you think about her often?" Karin asked. "All the time. I remember how she used to sing to me as a child. Her hugs were so warm and comforting, I just wanted time to freeze. I... really wish she was here with me." I said, a bit sadly.

"I'm sorry, Nue." Karin apologized. "How did she die?" Megumi asked. "That's just the thing. She's not dead." I confessed. "What?! You mean, she's still alive?!" Karin asked.

"Uh-huh. I remember when she visited me in the Leaf. She posed as a traveler named Chise, and I was assigned to look after her. But I fail to understand why she didn't just tell me the truth when she was with me? Why did she have to act like a different person?" I asked.

"She probably knew you lost your memories and wanted to see if you could remember on your own." Megumi guessed. "Maybe." I somewhat agreed. The doll that Megumi gave me was the same doll my mother gave me when I was younger.

I loved it so much, I felt like I was addicted to it. I even made sure it went everywhere with me. Except for when I went to the hidden villages to train with the Jinchuriki. I mean, I took it with me, but I never showed it to them. 

"So, where do you think your mother is right now if she's alive?" Karin asked. "Not sure. She could be anywhere right now. But one of her favorite places to go were..." I trailed off as I thought about the place until I gasped.

I quickly ran out of the Archives, then our of the clan. "Nue!" Karin called. "Nue-kun, wait up!" Megumi called. I ran through the woods, nearly tripping over my own feet. But I kept running. I ran until I spotted a small cabin up ahead.

"She's gotta be in there." I said with a bit of hope. This cabin used to belong to my grandfather. After he passed away, my mom would come here to keep it clean. I hesitantly placed my hand on the doorknob and opened the door.

I walked into the kitchen, where I spotted a woman sitting at a table, drinking tea as her back was turned to me. "I've been waiting for you, Nue." The woman spoke. She set her teacup down before standing to her feet, flipping her hair back.

She slowly turned around to face and my eyes widened as tears threatened to escape my eyes. "Hello, my child." She said with a soft smile. "Mom..." I whispered.