Kaeru Hatake, a 23 years old silver-haired jōnin, was, to say at least, dangerous. He understood that fact completely, knowing his past, and for that same reason, always keep his guards up even around his friends.

His job as a sensei is done, and with that in mind, he returned back to Anbu, doing solo missions like what he did in his past. Just like now.

The man was walking through the thick forest, preparing himself to meet the rouge-nins he had to kill. A group of them, actually. However, his advanced senses caught something strange, and he stopped.

Blood, the smell of blood. Metals clashing, yells, the sound of people fighting. Then the bloodlust, so intense that it's almost choking.

But not for him. A smirk made its way onto Kaeru's face, as his hand reached out for his tantō. He pulled down the hood of his cloak, and took off running.

'Still far away', he noted, 'Not yet close and it's getting dark.'

A scream interrupted his thoughts, and he stopped immediately. A painful scream, coming from a girl. Those criminals took a hostage? Now that pisses him off.

Spinning the tantō in his hand, he ran faster. No one deserves to be in pain like that. He knows how it feels, he understood that really well.

But when he reached the battlefield, he was stunned. The only girl there wasn't the victim. She was the culprit instead.

Holding a large sword in hand, she smiling at the corpses around her, licking the blood off her fingers. As she spotted him, her smile turned into a wide proud grin, while she lifted her sword up, leaning it on her shoulder.

"Hello, newcomer! Konoha shinobi? How can I help you?"

Kaeru lowered his weapons. "Before that... who are these?" He asked back, referring to the dead body around her. The girl giggled.

"An organization called the what-Ripper or whatsoever. There, some of them are still, unfortunately, alive. You can just ask them."

Kaeru shook his head slightly, chuckling at the girl. "To your luck, my task is to eliminate them. Mind if I help you?"

"Hell yes, I do mind," the girl snapped, "They're my prey. Not yours."

"Oh, come on," Kaeru whined, his psychotic side began to kick in, "I want to get some points too. Can't you share some with me?"

Before the girl could reply, another bunch of rouge-nins had arrived at the scene.

"Reinforcements?" Kaeru muttered, a little spark of hope flickered in his eyes. More people, more enemies, more fights. "So?"

The girl huffed, moving to her stance as she prepared her sword. "Alright. We both can start from zero here, what about that? Let's see who can get more."

Kaeru grinned and tightened his grip around his tantō. "Is that a challenge?"

The said girl nodded, smirking.

He chuckled, shaking his head disapprovingly.

"You're definitely losing."

| × | * | × | * | × |

Kaeru slammed his tantō down, stabbing through the man's chest before he pulled out the blade and kicked the body away. He sneaked a glance at the girl, trying to make sure she was fine.

Well, she was enjoying the fight, it seems.

"Did you just try to-..." her gaze sharpened, "How dare you?! I'll cut you to pieces!"

Kaeru had to turn away when another man lunged at him; the Hatake stepped aside and quickly grabbed his attacker's arm, twisting it behind his back before he slashed his throat in one swift movement. Dropping the corpse, he was caught by surprise to see thick red mist covering the battlefield, while the girl is nowhere to be seen.

'So she's from Kiri? Interesting.'

The mist behind him thickened, and soon it solidified itself into the said girl. She was holding her large sword in front of herself, one hand on each of the hilts. She flashed a shark-like grin towards him, shaking her head disapprovingly as her attention returned to the remaining rouge nins.

"What are you daydreaming about? If you get distracted, you'll die."

"So far, I'm still alive, aren't I?"

"Good point." She split her sword in half and lunged at another attacker. Cutting his stomach with one of her blades, the red-eyed girl released the hilt and jumped, kicking his head and pulled her sword out in the air. Meanwhile, her other hand already slammed down the other pair of the sword, stabbing the shoulder of another nin before her first blade went through his chest.

"Never thought you would be the heavy-hitter type."

She shrugged, "I can say the same to you. These days I can hardly found any shinobi who relies on speed and endurance only."

Kaeru smiled, sheathing his tantō and pulled out his twin katanas. "Well, it was necessary." He inhaled deeply, "I'm not as good as everyone else, but I believe this can make up for it."

The girl eyed him curiously, a bit surprised once she realized that the man had let his opponent stab his shoulder. His body began to shook, and she could hear a sinister chuckle from him. The silver-haired man looked up, and upon seeing the crazed look on his face, she couldn't hold back her grin as well.

"You want to fight me?" he asked as he swung the katanas up, slashing an 'X' on his opponent's body, stopping just a little above his shoulders before swiftly cutting through his neck. He blocked an attack from his left and stabbed another from his right, and lightning ran through both his swords, electrocuting his enemies.

"Well, be my guests, fuckers!"

| × | * | × | * | × |

It took a while, but once Kaeru regained his senses, he was greeted by the usual sight of death in front of him. As always, he barely remembers his fight, but does it matter? His job was done, and that was that.

"Well, that was fun. I lost my count," a girl's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. He watched as she placed her swords back together and sheathed it, before walking back towards him.

Kaeru frowned. The girl is powerful, he'd give her that, but it was heartbreaking to see how she killed her enemies without mercy.

Just like him.

But he knows what makes him like that. He had been 'broken' by the people in his past, and he tends to lash out at anyone who provokes him, his enemies.

But this girl? She is just as young as he was, in the same state as he was, probably going through the same.

"I don't even remember my fight. I moved on instincts," Kaeru admitted, "So no one wins?"

"We both win. I never lose, bitches," the girl sang, "Anyways. You're not that bad, I think. I'm Akane. You?"

"Kaeru. How old are you?"

"Thirteen. And you're the old one, with all those weird white hair..."

Kaeru couldn't help but run his fingers through his hair. "It's silver? I'm just 23..."

Akane laughed, "No worries, dude. I think I like you, you're pretty cool." She looked up, and seeing that the sun hasn't risen, her smile returned.

"It's still early. Surely you're not going straight home?"

"I was planning on that, but now I think I need to clean up first," he said, "Where are you heading to? I'm going to find an inn and get a little rest before heading home."

"I'll go with you. Will you buy me some breakfast?"

Kaeru laughed. "Of course, if that's what you want."

| × | * | × | * | × |

"You got any spare clothes? Mine is totally soaked, Akai wouldn't like it. She'll get mad at me again."

"Akai? Who's that?"

"An annoying bitch who bosses me around. I hate her, but none of us can hurt each other so we just had to deal with it. And it sucks. Anything I can borrow, Kaeru?"

Kaeru nodded and pulled out a scroll, unsealing his stuff and placed them on the bed. "Here, catch." Akane easily caught the pair of clothes he threw her, waving as she walked out of the room and shut the door close.

Once she disappeared, Kaeru slammed his body onto the bed, letting out a groan and rubbed his eyes. "What the fuck am I doing... I met that kid just hours ago!"

He closed his eyes, trying to shake the thoughts off, but another voice rang in his mind instead.

-Are you really that desperate for some company, Kaeru? That girl is just too kind, she shouldn't have trusted you. What a fool.-

'Hello again, Waru. If anything, I'm sure Akane is the one who can hurt me.'

-But once you lose control, no one can stop you. She'll die in your hands.-

'She did nothing wrong.'

-Yeah. But that's exactly why you're going to kill her, right? Monsters have no mercy,- the voice snickered, -Would be a pity, I can already imagine the way you cut her body up and destroy it all.-

Kaeru flinched. 'I don't want to hurt anyone. Especially not a girl like her.'

-You're joking. Your lack of self-control already ruins your life, killing a brat like her won't affect anything, right?-

He clutched the sides of his head. 'Shut up.'

-I'm just telling you the truth, Kaeru.-

'I said shut the fuck up!'

Waru's laughter got louder, and it was starting to feel like torture, but luckily, he was brought back to reality by the sound of someone slamming the door open.

"I'm done! And now I want my-... Hey, what the fuck is wrong with you?"

Kaeru slowly opened his eyes, letting out a sigh as he realized that Akane had returned. "... Just headache, it's nothing serious."

"You sure?"

Kaeru nodded, pushing himself off the bed, "What do you want? Breakfast?"

"Hell yes! Let's go, I'm really hungry!" Akane exclaimed, as she grabbed his wrist and began to drag him out of the room.

"At this hour, I doubt there's any place open. Why don't we just rest for a bit?"

"No way. I'm running out of time as well, we need to hurry. I'll have to leave soon." For a second, Kaeru saw the sad look in her eyes, but it was quickly replaced with her wide smile, "Oh! We can get sake!"

"Aren't you still underage?"

"Is that supposed to be a problem?"

Kaeru shrugged, deciding to let the girl lead the way. She continued to jump and skip around while playing with her giant sword, much to his amusement. Finally, they entered a small bar, where Akane went straight to the counter.

"Four bottles of sake, old man!"

"Get out of here, brat."

"Oi, I know I'm short, but I'm eighteen! Give me my orders or I'll cut you to pieces!"

Kaeru quickly pushed her away, "She's with me. Here," he paid for the drinks and added some tip as well, "Sorry about her manners," he apologized, watching as Akane grabbed all the bottles and trotted away to the nearest empty table. The bartender only grunted and took the money, while Kaeru sat down in front of the girl.

"You need to be polite next time, Akane," he said, but she shrugged, unsheathing her sword as it transformed back into a dagger.

"That's just a waste of time. Manners will get you nowhere," she replied, grabbing one of the sake bottles and began to chug it down, "In most cases, at least, being kind doesn't help."

"You had it hard, too, huh..."

"Maybe?" Akane smiled, motioning to the remaining drinks on the table, "Have a little fun, Kaeru, you're the one paying for this."

"Sorry, I don't drink."

"Eh? That's strange. Are you sure?"

He eyed her for a minute before letting out a small sigh. "I guess one wouldn't hurt..."

"Good enough." Copying his action, she took another bottle, lifting it up, "For the death of our enemies!"

"Cheers."

She grinned, gulping down her second drink, while Kaeru took small sips of his.

He hates alcohol, he despises them with a burning passion, even if he could handle them. Though like this time, he just couldn't help but have it. For formality, perhaps?

Or sometimes just curiosity, like this time.

"The last one's yours."

Akane giggled. "You're too nice to be a shinobi. Why?"

"I have my reasons," he replied with a frown. She nodded in understanding and mindlessly began to stab the table repeatedly.

"I won't pry, then," she muttered, "I become a shinobi because I had to. I was left alone to take care of my little cousin, well, you know, the usual shit. People leave or die."

Kaeru turned to look at her. Her expression didn't show much emotion, only slight annoyance.

"Kirigakure is known for its cruelty. Have you ever gone there?"

He nodded, and she smiled bitterly. "Living there sucks. The rivalry between each shinobi, the superiors' apathy towards their inferior, it's suffocating. Some of them piss me off so much, I killed them."

"I know that feeling." Kaeru finished his drink in a few quick gulps, "You just lost your control, and it happened, right?"

"You've done the same? That's surprising," she was about to continue, but suddenly she flinched. Kaeru noticed the way she hurriedly glanced at the window, her fists clenched as she sheathed her dagger.

"What's wrong?"

"Let's get out of here," she muttered. Her knees trembled, and Kaeru managed to catch her before she fell, "Get me out of here! Anywhere, away from these people!!"

Holding the girl, Kaeru teleported back inside the inn. Akane pushed him away, holding her head as she started whimpering.

"What the fuck, Akai?!" she growled in anger. Kaeru did a quick jutsu to keep the room soundproof while trying to figure out what's wrong with the red-eyed girl.

A few seconds later, she began to scream.

There's not much he could do, he only tried to make sure she wouldn't hurt herself during the struggle. She had grabbed his wrist, her grip tightened with each passing moments, but he guessed she did so unconsciously.

It felt like forever, but once her screams ceased, everything just felt... different. Her chakra signature didn't change. Her appearance... maybe her hair turned to a lighter shade of blue?

"That bitch..."

"... Akane?"

She opened her eyes, and he was surprised to see the dull grey orbs staring back at him. No longer red. Not a fiery, powerful red; just a desperate and exhausted grey.

"Sorry, she's no longer here. I'm Akai." Kaeru frowned. Akai, he noted, has a much softer tone, her steps and her movements were somehow gentle compared to Akane's. She pushed herself up and stumbled on her feet as she sat on the bed.

"Akane and I only shared a body, if you're wondering. We aren't the same person."

"Obviously."

She smiled at his comment, "thank you for taking care of her. She's a bit hard to handle, isn't she?"

"Don't worry, I enjoy her company."

"Is there anything I can do to repay you, Kaeru-san?" Her gaze landed on his shoulder, "You're injured. Let me heal you."

So that's what he did. He took off his shirt and allowed her to inspect the deep wound.

"It has been hours, why hasn't it healed yet?" she wondered as she cleaned the cut. He shook his head, assuring her that it wasn't anything serious.

"My chakra level isn't as high as others."

"My opposite, then," Akai smiled, and began to heal the wound, "I find it admirable... I mean, I came from a powerful clan. I have talent, connections, while guys like you just... it's pure hard work."

"I'm glad you see it that way."

"It's done. I'm not a medic but I hope I did good enough." She soon frowned, letting out a disappointed groan. "Wait, give me your wrist." He waited as she looked at the bruise, her frown deepened, "... I did this, didn't I?"

"Probably?"

"You don't even feel the pain?"

"Now that you mention it, I do."

"... The hell...?" Kaeru only shrugged, waiting until Akai finished her self-appointed job. Once she did, she stood up and pulled out a red cloak from her weapon pouch.

"I'll have to leave soon." She put on her cloak and glanced back at him, "You're weird, Kaeru-san, but you're a good person. Sorry for all the trouble."

"I can say the same," he added, "Be careful on your way, Akai."

"I will. Thank you."

Kaeru nodded, watching as her figure dispersed into a thick red mist. It slowly faded away, and once the mist disappeared, Kaeru released the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"... Akai's pretty cool, but Akane's more fun."

| × | * | × | * | × |

Yeah, we worked on this for more than a year (we forgot about this damn one shot, haha).

Any feedback? Who else ships KaeNe?

Well, consider this as a compensation for the not-yet-done update for Akai and Kaeru. 2600+ words, man, I thought this one would be short!

Comment, vote, tell us what you think!

(Should we make a characters Q&A here?)