~~~~~

Kana was surprised to find that she wasn't alone in her bed. Soft, fluffy, fur tickled her legs, and something cold and wet touched her knee.

"You up?" A gruff voice asked.

Kana twitched her toes and slowly opened her eyes, blinking out the gunk.

"... Yeah..." She mumbled, reaching for where she knew Gray's face should be.

Her hand met fur and Gray growled pleasantly.

"So, what exactly happened to you yesterday?" Gray asked. "You summoned me and then just fell asleep. I hope that the blood wasn't yours."

"I've never even seen my own blood before," Kana sighed. "No, it wasn't my blood. And I'll explain later."

"Fine, but don't put this off forever." Gray huffed. "I'm here for you, and so is kaa-san and Yuki."

"Thanks, Gray, you can go back now."

Gray got off the bed, giving Kana a toothy grin before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Gray knew about Kana's 'eating habits' however, Kana almost never spoke about her thoughts and how she felt. The wolves were shocked by it at first, and uncomfortable, but they slowly realized that Kana really was no different, what she ate didn't matter.

Kana tugged off the long white t-shirt and black shorts she wore, slipping on her battle kimono and fastening her kodachi to her lower back. She pulled her hair back in a neat braid over her shoulder and put on her sandals, heading out of her little room and running straight into Haku.

"Good morning, Haku." Kana smiled politely.

"Good morning, would you like any tofu and rice?" Haku asked.

"No thank you, I'm not hungry." She replied truthfully.

"I would feel insulted, but this isn't the first time you've rejected my cooking," Haku chuckled. "Is there a reason as to why?"

"I'm sure you'll find out eventually," Kana sighed. "Especially if you and Zabuza stay with the Akatsuki."

"I guess I'll just have to wait then," He smiled. "But since you're not eating anything, would you like to help me collect some herbs to speed up Zabuza-sama's healing?"

"Sure, I'm happy to help." Kana smiled back.

"Wait here, I'll be back in five minutes."

~~~~~

True to his word, Haku was back five minutes later, his outfit totally changed and his hair let down. Kana shamefully admitted to herself that she was jealous of his hairs length.

"What are we looking for anyway?" Kana asked as they left the hut.

"Ashwagandha, it is a plant that helps with healing," Haku replied, handing a basket over to me. "Look for a plant with triangular leaves and orange-pink buds."

"Got it." Kana nodded.

They stepped out into the forest and started searching, unaware of how close they wandered to Tazuna's house.

~~~~~

"Is this it?" Kana asked, pointing to a bush of orangish-pink flower buds.

"Yes, it is," Haku smiled, his face absolutely elated at the sight. "Please, could you cut as many as you can? Make sure you leave at least two though."

"Alright, I'll get to work then." Kana replied, pulling one of her Kodachi from it's sheath.

She expertly used the blade, efficiently cutting off the flowers, buds, and leaves of the plant. She neatly placed them all in her basket. She glanced over and watched as Haku gently placed his own plant matter inside his basket, managing to be quick, yet gentle.

Haku seemed like a gentle person in general, however, he was two-faced, along with almost any other shinobi or kunoichi out there.

He was gentle, yet ruthless, kind, and yet, he killed for his master. Kana was no different. Kana faces that nice Konoha team always pretending to be their friends, knowing full-well that she was siding with who they considered the enemies. She smiled and laughed with them, knowing she could be the one to end their lives one day.

Her ultimate goal was peace, and that wouldn't come without sacrifices.

The Konoha team were almost too readable, it was scary. They didn't hide anything. They didn't wear masks as she did. They were honest people, fighting for their village. But then again, they were normal.

At least when Kana is at home with the Akatsuki, she is normal.

She came to terms with the fact that they were all criminals years ago, but they weren't bad people at all. They've made mistakes, that's all. They are misunderstood, and only people like Kana, and the rest of the Akatsuki understood that.

The Akatsuki members would also try and remind her of how bad they were, but to no avail. Kana always managed to outsmart them.

"I killed my clan." Itachi would say.

"But you never would have met me if you didn't, I'm sure you had a reason." Kana would smile.

They couldn't convince her they were bad, no matter how much they tried. They wore masks of evil, but they cracked and shattered over time.

It was the same with Haku and Zabuza.

She just had to break their masks.

~~~~~

It had gotten much later when Kana and Haku finally finished. With baskets full and the sun setting, they headed home.

Kana's nose twitched as someone approached, someone she knew. Her hands blurred together as she used a basic transformation.

She hoped Deidara didn't mind that she copied his hair and face, except with longer eyelashes and more feminine curves.

"Oh, sorry about that, I was just training out here," None other than Naruto chuckled. "I didn't expect to see others out here."

"It's no problem," Kana said in a higher pitched voice. "Me and my friend were just going to leave."

"Oh, well it was nice meeting you, my name's Naruto Uzumaki!" Naruto exclaimed.

Kana was tempted to roll her eyes at how he gave out his name.

"I am Haku." Haku replied.

"Dei." Kana said.

"Well it was nice meeting you, Haku, Dei, but I got to finish this training before Sasuke!" Naruto smirked.

"Good luck, Naruto." Haku smiled.

"Good luck." I nodded.

Naruto ran back to the house, and as he ran, her smile faded. Kana's disguise flickered away and she sighed.

"He can't sense chakra, otherwise he would've known it was me." She sighed.

"Lucky," Haku agreed. "Now let's head back, I still need to prepare dinner."

"I'll pass." Kana said.

Haku eyed her suspiciously but said nothing, starting the long walk back.

"How about a ride?" Kana suggested. "I haven't talked to Yuki in a while."

"Yuki?" Haku asked.

"Another summon of mine, I think you'll like her." Kana smiled.

Kana's hands flashed through the handsigns and she tapped the ground. "Summoning jutsu!"

A pure white cloud of smoke cleared, and out stepped a beautiful wolf, with white fur and blue eyes.

"This is Yuki, and you've already met her older brother, Gray." Kana said.

"Hello, Kana, and friend?" Yuki said, eyeing Haku.

"My name is Haku." Haku replied.

"He is a new ally." Kana briefly explained.

"Ah, welcome to the family I suppose." Yuki grinned, which looked more like a snarl.

"Family?" Haku asked.

"Yes, the Akatsuki is a family of sorts, granted it's a strange one." Yuki chuckled. "Anyways, was there a reason you called? Or are you just in need of some conversation?"

"A ride would be nice," Kana replied. "Straight ahead, about 10 kilometres north of here."

"No problem, I've been wanting to stretch my legs!" Yuki howled, bowing down. "Climb on."

Kana hopped on first, offering Haku a hand which he gladly took. Kana sat in front of him, holding onto the scruff of Yuki's neck.

"You're going to want to hold on to something, Yuki is known for her speed." Kana chuckled as Yuki stood up.

Haku nodded and awkwardly wrapped his hands around her waist. Thankfully her hair was back in a braid or he'd be getting a faceful of hair.

Yuki crouched before her powerful legs pushed off the ground. Haku almost lost his grip with the landing, but he held on, keeping his head low to avoid the wind.

Kana whooped in excitement as they raced the wind itself. Yuki howled along and Haku couldn't help but understand.

Before they knew it, they had already arrived, and the two climbed off Yuki's back.

"You've found yourself a keeper Kana," Yuki chuckled. "He's a real pretty boy."

Kana stared at her summon in confusion as Haku forced down a blush, instead giving the wolf a smile and changing the subject.

"How could you tell I was a boy?" Haku asked. "Most can't tell."

"That's an easy one," Yuki chuckled. "Males and females have a different scent. It doesn't matter if you are using a transformation jutsu, wolves, and other animals, can still tell your gender."

"Good to know." Haku replied.

"Alright, well I should get to bed soon, I should probably train tomorrow." Kana replied, adding her own thoughts.

And I should try and get a hold of Pein.

"Good evening then." Yuki bowed her head.

"See you later Yuki." Kana smiled, placing her hand on Yuki's giant snout.

Yuki shut her eyes for a moment before vanishing. Leaving Kana and Haku alone outside.

"Good night, Haku." Kana yawned, handing him her basket.

"Good night." Haku replied.

Kana climbed into bed and put out her candle, her mind going back to what Yuki had said.

"You've found yourself a keeper Kana, he's a real pretty boy."

What did she mean by that?

A/N

Sorry about the lack of updates, but here's a longer chapter to make up for it. The whole wave arc should be done soon, and then there will be another new character coming! Who could it be?! You'll have to guess!

Bye!