Hi everyone :) If you're wondering why I've taken so long to upload, in short, it's because I'm completely rewriting one of my original works here on Wattpad.

I sent a long message out to all of my fans explaining why I'm going to be updating Stwf slower than usual, so if for some reason you didn't read the message I sent, head to my profile and have a look for it. It'll still be there somewhere.

Pic of Ashley and Orochimaru -->

I don't know why, but I really like this picture. I drew Ashley and she turned out better than I hoped lol

**Song on the side is You're Goin Down by Sick Puppies**

Ashley’s POV

Orochimaru’s shoulders shake as a low chuckle of amusement escapes his pale lips, green eyes focusing on my face, glinting in the dim light. Though he’s clearly sick and not in his best condition, that bastard still thinks I’m a pushover. He doesn’t think I’ll be able to do anything to him out of fear.

While it’s admittedly true that I’m scared of Orochimaru and am feeling utterly terrified right now, that arrogant smirk on his face…….I can hardly stand that look. It’s making my anger rise so much quicker than I thought was even possible. I have to prove this to him, and to myself, that I can do this. I can defeat him, and I will make him pay for everything he’s ever done to me! I’ll make him regret ever coming to the Land of Ambience!

“You have grown weak “ Orochimaru suddenly informs me, making me pause for a second. “Your eyes never used to hold such a look of uncertainty in them. When you were strong, they held nothing but darkness and blood thirst. You can’t truly believe that you will be able to defeat me in such a pathetic state……The Leaf has ruined you.”

“Don’t speak like you know me” I spit back, slapping my hands together. “You have no idea what I’ve been through since escaping from you. You have no idea how powerful I really am!”

‘Don’t think too much Ashley’ I mentally tell myself, performing a set of hand signs. ‘That’s your problem. Don’t let thoughts get in the way, just go for it!’

“This is for all of the loyal Guardians that you murdered” I growl, narrowing my eyes as Orochimaru’s sick grin widens, “Earth Style: Stone Column Spear!”

Immediately, my chakra flows out into the earthen floor, causing huge, spiked pillars of rock to shoot up out of the ground. They slam into the roof and tear through the few pieces of furniture in the room, sending wooden splinters flying in all directions.

Still smirking at me through the dust cloud that rises from the destruction, Orochimaru remains silent as two pillars of stone spear through the bottom of his arms and hoist him up out of bed. His legs dangle below him, body weight only held up by the spikes through his flesh. Blood trickles slowly from the wounds, the rocky tips peeking through the top part of Orochimaru’s arms.

“When did you acquire the Mangekyo Sharingan?” is all the snake-like man asks, tongue briefly flicking out from between his lips. “It’s different to Itachi’s and Sasuke’s……But it is nowhere near as powerful. As you share merely half of their DNA, I suppose it would be absurd to think you could truly wield it to its full potential.”

I bare my teeth at this and let out an angry growl, hands balling into fists. My eyes blaze in the dimly lit room, the shuriken-like irises spinning back and forth. I see Orochimaru wince as gravity pulls his body weight downwards a little, the wounds in his arms widening as the tips of the spears push up through his flesh. A small bead of sweat drips down the side of his face, smirk fading a little.

How dare he patronize me like that?! He’s the one who destroyed my homeland to get his greedy hands on my Sharingan, and he has the nerve to say that mine is inferior?! While it’s true that the negative side effects of the Sharingan affect me a lot quicker than a full blooded Uchiha, the power of it is no less than that of any other person born with the Kekkei Genkai!

“You think my Sharingan is weak?” I snarl quietly, narrowing my eyes as I step a little further into the room. “Shall we put that to the test? For the innocent people of the Land of Ambience, I’m going to consume you with the eternal flames of the Amaterasu!”

Closing my left eye, I focus my right eye on Orochimaru’s chest, before a stream of blazing, ebony coloured flames shoot towards him at speed. Before the flames can actually reach him however, the injured man throws his head back and opens his mouth so wide, his jaw detaches in an unnatural manner.

My Amaterasu flames collide with Orochimaru just as he coughs up a large, white lump that darts through the air to the other side of the room. His now limp body lights up with a loud fwoosh sound, the impossibly hot flames melting flesh from bone.

Reopening my eye and blinking a few times, trying to rid them of the blurriness I’d been experiencing since I’d run into Kiba, I turn my head to the left and watch as the strange white lump rapidly increases in size.

“After all of the experimenting you’ve done on yourself over the years” I muse, a dark smirk tugging my mouth upwards, “This is what you’ve become? Can you even be considered a human anymore?”

I look up from under my lashes at the gigantic, white Serpent before me, its pillar like body coiled around to fit inside the small room. Its’ scales, which are actually small snakes, hiss and fidget in anticipation, tongues flickering in and out.

Orochimaru opens his enormous jaws, three rows of razor sharp teeth lining his mouth, and lets out a booming laugh.

“Joke all you like whelp” he hisses dangerously, head bobbing slowly from side to side, “You cannot defeat the Great White Snake. I will make you regret ever coming back to me!”

‘I already regret it anyway’ I can’t help thinking, before bending my knees and back flipping out of the way as Orochimaru launches himself at me. His face slams into the ground, shattering through some of my stone spears and sending small shards of rock flying through the air.

I land down on Orochimaru’s bed, only to see that some of the snake scales have extended away from his body and are darting towards me at speed. I quickly perform a set of hand signs and throw my arms out to the sides, blue chakra enveloping my hands.

I push off of one foot and leap into the air, spinning in a rapid circle. As the snakes open their jaws and try to latch onto me, their heads are viciously sliced and severed from their bodies, spraying large amounts of thick, red blood in all directions.

Orochimaru throws his head back and lets out a pained screech as I land on the floor in a crouched position, mutilated snake heads raining down around me. I narrow my eyes at the large Serpent, about to blast him with my Amaterasu again, when I suddenly feel his tail coming towards me.

Placing my palms against the cold, blood stained floor, I focus chakra into my arms and throw my legs up into the air. Easily able to hold my own bodyweight while upside down, thanks to the chakra in my arms, I bend my elbows and push myself up into the air. I manage to evade Orochimaru’s tail as it slams heavily into the rocky floor, leaving an impressive dent in it.

“You’ll never catch me off guard” I inform Orochimaru proudly, landing back on the ground with my hands on my hips. “Not when my Sharingan is activated. I can see the moves you make before you even make them!”

“Such an arrogant whelp” Orochimaru hisses irately, demonic eyes shining with annoyance. “To think you could believe you’d be able to defeat me, when I so easily invaded your homeland and destroyed every living creature in it! Your arrogance is unjustified. Your power pales in comparison to your self pride!”

I stare at Orochimaru in a furious shock, my eyes wide and my teeth gritted together. I clench my hands into fists so tightly, I can feel my arms shaking.

“Your people were weak” Orochimaru continues, beginning to sound hauntingly amused. “They had speed, but nothing else. This is why they were all killed off so easily. Speed alone is not enough to win a battle. You are merely lucky that you have Uchiha genes, or you would be just as worthless as the rest of them……However, after training with Sasuke, I can see that continuing on in the hopes of obtaining your Sharingan would have been fruitless. His eyes possess incredible power, perhaps even more than Itachi’s, but yours……I see nothing in them that is worth my time.”

My brows slowly begin to furrow as Orochimaru speaks, my pride flaring up inside me. I don’t care if this bastard thinks my Sharingan is weaker than Itachi’s, because even I can admit that this is true, and I don’t care if he thinks it’s weaker than Sasuke’s either. Who cares? Maybe it is. But how dare he mock my fellow Minami Clan members?!

Weak? How could we be considered weak when even the Leaf Village had wanted to become our Ally? Our Kekkei Genkai requires no use of chakra, so we can use them continuously without the risk of chakra loss or death. Granted it does require lots of mental training to be able to control the Kekkei Genkai properly, it is hardly a weak ability! My Mother was able to raise the entire sea around our homeland for crying out loud! I’d like to see Orochimaru attempt that!

“You may think that the Minami are weak” I state coldly, glaring up at the blurry image of Orochimaru, “Yet you’re about to die at the hands of one.”

Without another word, I close my left eye and activate my Amaterasu again, sending out another stream of burning hot, black flames. Controlled by me, the flames collide with Orochimaru’s neck, before coiling around his body in a diagonal motion.

The giant Serpent rears back and lets out an agonising screech as steam begins rising from his flesh, a rotten, acrid smell swiftly filling the air.

Orochimaru’s body begins to writhe around in pain, his back pushing against the wall and his eyes squeezing closed. Cracks appear in the wall as Orochimaru pushes against it, a low, raspy groan of pain escaping his mouth.

As Orochimaru cracks his eyes open to look at me, I suddenly smirk at him, before the flames around his neck explode, severing the giant head from its body. His head hits the earth with a boom, before his body soon follows, the heavy impact causing the ground to shake for a few seconds.

I watch on as Orochimaru’s body brows still and the eyes in his severed head slowly close, steam rising from the newly exposed flesh and internal organs.

“And you think I’m weak?” I question flatly, almost feeling a little disappointed. “That fight didn’t even take ten minutes……”

I stare at Orochimaru for a few moments, tilting my head to the side and crossing my arms. Why do I feel……nothing? Shouldn’t I be feeling accomplished or excited or something? I mean, for years I’ve wanted nothing more than to get my revenge on Orochimaru and kill him but….This just isn’t what I expected. I never thought Orochimaru would be so easily defeated. I hadn’t even really gotten started in that fight. I’d been so scared for so long, and now it’s already over.

I get that Orochimaru is sick, seeing as his body has been weakened from all of the Reanimation Jutsu he’d performed over the years, but I just didn’t think it’d be so……Easy.

I’d expected Orochimaru to put up one hell of a fight and push me to my limit, seeing as he’s such a powerful Ninja when he’s healthy. Maybe that’s why I’m feeling so unemotional right now. Unemotional and numb……

Wait…..Numb?!

I exhale sharply as my legs suddenly give out from underneath me, my whole body tingling with what feels like pins and needles.

“Wh-What’s going on here?” I ask rhetorically, only for my eyes to widen with surprise as Orochimaru’s eyes pop open and he leans up to look at me.

“It looks as though it has already begun to take effect” the evil creature chuckles, its green eyes gazing at me in sick amusement. “The bodily fluids of the Great White Snake evaporate when they meet the air. They have a numbing affect in them and I can see that they are already weakening you.”

I narrow my eyes as Orochimaru’s head manages to sit up on the stub of neck still attached to it, his tongue flickering in and out in thought.

“I am immortal and I am eternal” the snake informs me proudly. “Even your strongest Jutsu cannot come close to killing me!”

“Th-Then I won’t use a Jutsu” I reply, pulling a strained face as Orochimaru opens his jaws and launches himself at me. Before he can reach me however, a thick shield of rock suddenly pulls itself up out of the ground in front of me, causing him to collide heavily with it.

The wall shudders from the impact, cracking and crumbling a little. As Orochimaru lifts his head and hisses at me dangerously, he is hit in the face with a powerful blast of wind that slowly begins to push him backwards.

Flicking my eyes down to the ground, I watch as pillars of rock rise up into the air and swiftly begin entangling themselves around Orochimaru like snakes, holding him back from me.

“This wretched Minami Kekkei Genkai” the Serpent hisses irritably, raising his eyes to meet my steely gaze, “It’s so frustrating…..”

“And you had the n-nerve to call it weak” I laugh mockingly, enjoying the fact that Orochimaru’s head is unable to free itself from its bindings. “Now we both can’t move, but I can still attack you.”

Before I can do anything else, a presence to the left catches my attention, causing me to slowly turn my head. I blink in surprise at the person standing in the doorway, though my eyes remained hooded.

“S-Sasuke” I greet, struggling to move any part of my body. “What a-are you doing here? Wh-What happened to D-Deidara?”

“He killed himself” the raven haired male replies shortly, sparing me only a brief glance, before stepping into the room and walking towards the now thrashing Orochimaru.

‘He killed himself?’ I repeat in my head, somewhat shocked by this news. So Sasuke hadn’t managed to kill the blonde, but Deidara had killed himself? Why would he do that? As frustrating as Deidara could be, he was a skilled fighter, so I’m not sure why he’d have done that…..

I watch Sasuke as he talks to Orochimaru, though I’m not really listening to what he’s saying. I’m still too shocked by this news that Deidara has killed himself. What is the Akatsuki Boss going to say? Is he going to blame me, because I didn’t stick around to help? That reminds me, I’m supposed to be finding Orochimaru’s Akatsuki ring…..Where could it be though? And who’s to say it’s even at this stupid hideout? It could be at any one of the-

I suddenly snap out of my thoughts, noting that Sasuke and Orochimaru are staring at each other silently, the tomoe in my cousin’s eyes spinning rapidly.

“No……” I whisper in realisation, my eyes widening. “No! Stop it Sasuke! He’s mine!”

As soon as the words leave my mouth, Sasuke blinks lazily and deactivates his Sharingan, just as Orochimaru slumps to the ground, dead.

I feel my blood immediately boil as Sasuke turns to me with half lidded eyes, my anger once again rising rapidly. I glare hatefully at Sasuke, my teeth bared in a vicious growl.

“Wh-What did you do?!” I seethe through clenched teeth. “He was mine to kill, not yours!”

“I didn’t kill him” Sasuke informs me coolly, one hand on his hip. “I have absorbed him completely.”

“I-I don’t care what you did!” I snap, unable to truly show him how mad I am due to being paralysed. “You know he was mine to kill you bastard! H-How could you do this to m-me?!”

“………” Sasuke merely stares at me for a few moments, before using the back of his hand to wipe some old blood from his cheek. “Why are you still crouching on the floor?”

“I’m paralysed you idiot!” I shout, still baring my teeth. My eyes shine with unshed tears of frustration, while Sasuke looks down and merely regards me with a stoic expression. I’m so angry with him right now, I think I could probably kill him. How could he do this to me?! He knows that I’ve always wanted to be the one to get revenge for my Clan and kill Orochimaru. How would he like it if I just went and killed Itachi?!

“H-Hey!” I cry in protest, as Sasuke squats down beside me and easily scoops me up into his arms, moving to carry me from the room. “P-Put me down you asshole! I’m m-mad at you!”

“I’m not leaving you here” Sasuke explains in a soft, flat tone, his dark eyes focused on the hallway ahead. “Kabuto will be back soon.”

Third Person’s POV

Ashley keeps her arms tightly crossed over her chest, eyes glaring up at Sasuke accusingly as he carries her through the night. It had been half an hour since they’d left Orochimaru’s lair, and half an hour since the two cousins had spoken a word to each other.

Sasuke remained silent because he was Sasuke. He didn’t feel the need to fill the air with unnecessary words, and Ashley…..Well, the paralysis had almost completely worn off now and the blonde girl was just biding her time. She was going to give Sasuke a piece of her mind, but only when the time was right.

Releasing a soft sigh as he comes to a stop below a tree, Sasuke bends down and gently sets Ashley on the ground, her back propped up against the tree’s trunk. He takes a few steps back and surveys the area, while his blonde haired cousin continues to glare up at him angrily.

She couldn’t exactly see Sasuke properly, due to her blurred vision, but the blonde knew exactly where her traitorous bastard of a cousin was standing alright, and he was sure going to cop a good right hook to the face if she could manage it.

“…..Why did you join the Akatsuki?” Sasuke suddenly questions, dark eyes flicking down to Ashley. “Was it to gain enough power to defeat Orochimaru?”

“Well, if that was why I’d done it” Ashley snaps back irritably, “It would have been a complete waste of time thanks to you.”

Sasuke closes his eyes and breathes in through his nose, trying not to sigh. His cousin could be so stubborn and annoying at times.

“Can you just answer the question?” he inquires, to which Ashley rolls her eyes and turns away, shrugging a shoulder.

“As if I’m going to tell you my reasons” she growls lowly. “It’s none of your damn business why I joined them. It sure wasn’t to get stronger through. I’m obviously already strong enough to defeat Orochimaru, I just had the opportunity to prove this stolen away from me before I could defeat him!”

Seeing that Ashley isn’t going to cooperate with him, Sasuke shakes his head and turns around to leave, only for something hard to hit him in the back. The Uchiha stumbles forwards a few steps, before whirling around, only to see Ashley still glaring at him, though she is now on her feet.

“Ashley…..” Sasuke warns, narrowing his eyes as the girl balls her hands into fists.

“Orochimaru was mine to kill” she snarls back, Sharingan eyes blazing in anger. “I’ve been planning on killing him for years Sasuke, years! I wanted revenge for killing my Clan, and you took that away from me! I was so close to killing him you bastard!”

That said, Ashley launches herself at Sasuke, who immediately takes up a defensive position. He catches Ashley’s wrist as she throws her fist towards his face, gazing down at her as the tomoe in her eyes spin dizzily, their red colour standing out in the dark of night.

Struggling to hold back her angry tears, Ashley furiously throws her left fist forwards, only for Sasuke to easily catch that wrist as well. He keeps a tight grip on both of the girl’s arms, as she bares her teeth.

“Calm down” Sasuke orders lowly. “You’re not even fighting properly. You can do much better than this.”

Sasuke’s grip loosens a little as Ashley hangs her head, her arms slackening. The girl hoods her eyes as she stares down at the ground, her tears threatening to overflow. She was so angry with Sasuke right now, angry enough to knock him down and grip his throat until he stopped breathing…..But……….At least he was safe now. The risk of Orochimaru taking over Sasuke’s body was now gone. And for that at least, Ashley finds herself to be thankful. He was a traitor, but Ashley still loved the ravenette standing before her.

Sasuke tilts his head down, releasing Ashley’s wrists as she places her balled up hands against his chest, fingers curling into the white cloth of his shirt. She closes her eyes and gently presses her forehead against his chest as well, releasing a deep sigh.

“I…..I’m glad you’re safe now Sasuke…….” she admits quietly, to which the ravenette blinks. Both Uchiha remain silent for a few moments, before Sasuke closes his eyes and reaches up, placing his hands on Ashley’s shoulders.

The girl slowly raises her head and gazes up at Sasuke as he reopens his eyes, though they remain half lidded. The two stare at each other for a few seconds, though it feels like a lot longer to Ashley, when the blonde sighs again and turns away, arms crossed.

“What now?” she questions in a faint voice, eyes focused on the earth.

“…..I have some people to find” Sasuke replies lowly, also turning away. He briefly pauses to glance over his shoulder and look at Ashley from the corner of his eye, before he leaps up into the air and disappears into the night.

“……..I’m still angry at you, you asshole” Ashley chuckles to herself, though she is anything but amused.

‘Where will you go from here?’ Hakuba questions, sounding a little less aggressive than usual. ‘I’m surprised you didn’t attack the Uchiha boy actually. He has taken away the goal that you have lived for for so long. Are you not angry?’

“I’ve already said that I’m angry Hakuba” Ashley responds, wiping at her eyes. “I’m furious in fact, but……I can’t attack him. He acts cold, but I can tell that he doesn’t feel apathetic towards me. He still cares a little, in his own moody, assholey way. I guess I still you know…..Love him…..”

‘……Human emotions are an enigma to me’ Hakuba comments wryly, to which Ashley chuckles.

“They are to everyone” she agrees, before tilting her head back to look up at the sky. “As for your first question……….I don’t know where to go from here……..I don’t have Orochimaru’s ring, so going back to the Akatsuki would mean certain death………….I think…….I think it’s time to stop all of this craziness and go home….”

‘Do you really think they will accept you back there?’ Hakuba questions doubtfully. ‘While this may have only been a mission to you, they have all believed the lie.’

Ashley blinks at this, brows furrowing a little. Before any negative thoughts can enter her mind however, the blonde sees an image of Kiba standing in the Leaf Village gates, an expectant look on his face. He suddenly breaks out into a smile when he sees Ashley and laughs, before extending out a hand towards her.

Ashley can’t help smiling to herself at this thought and raises her head. Though she can’t see properly, the blonde shrugs off her Akatsuki cloak and dumps it on the ground. Despite the cold, she didn’t want to wear the horrible thing any longer.

“Let’s go home!” she cries, breaking out into a run.

Two Days Later

Kiba scuffs his feet as he walks alongside Hinata, eyes trained down on the ground and his hands stuffed in his pockets. He stares at the tiny dust clouds that he kicks up, releasing a heavy sigh. Why was everything so depressing today?....

“Mm mmm…….” Akamaru whines softly, glancing up at his best friend with concern. He’d been moping like this all day, and nothing was cheering him up.

Hinata mirrors Akamaru’s worried look with one of her own, peering at her teammate from the corner of her eye. She’d tried everything she could to try and distract Kiba today, but nothing she’d thought of was working.

It might have been a little bit easier if most of Kiba’s friends weren’t away on that mission to get revenge on those two Akatsuki members…..

“Hey Hinata!” a female voice suddenly calls out, giving the pretty Hyuga a fright. “Kiba, Akamaru! Over here!”

“Huh?” Hinata asks, pausing and turning to look for the owner of the voice. Looking to her left, Hinata spies Tenten waving to her from a window of the popular restaurant Yakiniku Q. “Oh, h-hello Tenten.”

“Come and have lunch with us you guys!” Tenten invites, brown eyes sparkling. “Me, Neji and Lee only just got here, so we haven’t even ordered yet!”

“Greetings friends!” Lee cries out, his head appearing above Tenten’s in the window. “Please, join us for lunch! It will be good for us to share our youthful energy with each other!”

“Um, I’m not sure that’s a good idea…….” Hinata sweat drops, turning to look back at Kiba, who now has a dark raincloud floating above his hunched figure. Hinata wasn’t too sure that Kiba would really be in the mood for being around positive people like Lee and Tenten today.

“Ruff ruff!” Akamaru agrees, grabbing the back of Kiba’s jacket in his jaws and forcibly dragging the unenthusiastic Inuzuka towards the restaurant. He goes without a fight, hands still in his pockets and head held low, messy fringe covering his eyes.

Hinata sighs lightly, feeling bad for Kiba, before trotting after her teammate and entering Yakiniku Q feeling a little restless. She sincerely hoped Kiba wouldn’t snap at anyone…..

“Hey guys!” Tenten greets cheerfully, raising a hand as Kiba, Akamaru and Hinata stop next to her table. “Take a seat!”

Neji nods a greeting to his cousin, though he raises an eyebrow as Kiba slowly slumps down beside Lee, folding his arms across the table and leaning his chin on them. Hinata slides in beside Neji, once again sweat dropping as she looks to her brown haired teammate. It looked like this wasn’t going to cheer him up either……

“Greetings Kiba!” Lee cries brightly, slapping his friend on the back and causing the Inuzuka to grow an anime vein. “Is it not a beautiful day today? We are so fortunate to live in the Land of Fire!”

“Stop touching me and shut up Lee” Kiba grumbles, earning a dirty look from Tenten, who had been fiddling with the menu. She blinks at the miserable look on Kiba’s face however, her eyebrows rising a little.

“Geez, what’s your problem misery guts?” the pretty, brown haired girl questions. “You’re normally one of the loud ones that won’t sit still.”

“None of your business” Kiba mutters, turning his head away like stubborn child. “Today’s just not a great day for me.”

“That’s hardly a reason to be acting so depressed” Tenten responds matter-of-factly. “Ino, Shikamaru and Choji just lost their Sensei, so if anyone should be depressed, it’s the three of them.”

“Yeah well, our Sensei just lost the Father of her kid” Kiba retorts flatly, glaring down at the table. “Don’t use morbid stuff like that to make a point Tenten. Shut up.”

“Hey!” Lee cries indignantly, as Tenten’s face drops. She turns her head to look out the window, feeling a little bad for bringing Asuma’s sudden death up like that. He’d only been killed a few days ago, on a mission against the Akatsuki, and his three students had watched him die. They were currently out on a mission to hunt down the guy that had killed Asuma but still, Kiba was right. Tenten needed to be careful when she brought stuff like that up.

“You may be upset Kiba, but please do not be so rude to Tenten” Lee requests, holding up one hand. “We are all friends here, so we should not be talking this way amongst ourselves!”

“Yeah I guess” Kiba sighs, feeling somewhat bad. “But it’s just that today is……..I’m just pretty down today okay? Sorry for snapping……”

Ashley sighs heavily, not enjoying the slight rain that is currently dripping from the sky. Normally she’d use her Katsuryoku to keep the rain off of her, but she’d had it activated ever since she left Orochimaru’s hideout, to help her find her way, and she’d grown tired from the constant use.

“The rain makes my hair so heavy” Ashley complains, swiping her long fringe back from her face. “It’s times like these when I hate having long hair….”

Releasing a low groan, Ashley briefly closes her eyes and reaches up to rub her temples, trying to ease the headache she’d been harbouring for the last few hours. Though Ashley could still technically see, the blurriness hadn’t faded from her eyes and was distorting her vision, which was in turn giving her a headache.

“I can’t wait to get home” Ashley mutters, casting an annoyed glance up at they grey, clouded sky. “It hardly ever rains there, and even when it does, it’s not this cold.”

‘I grow tired of listening to you complain’ Hakuba sighs wryly, rolling his red eyes. ‘You’re like a child sometimes.’

“I grow tired of listening to you full stop” Ashley retorts, though it is more playful than nasty. Now that she had decided to drop her mission, Ashley’s usual spunk was back. Hakuba wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not though. Her attitude could be pretty irritating at times…

Ashley suddenly pauses in her walking, eyes narrowing as she slightly tilts her head to the side, seemingly listening to something.

“I’m sure I heard…….” the blonde trails off, quickly activating her Katsuryoku. Now able to sense everything around her, Ashley is swift to drop to the ground, just as something flies right overhead. The object, which would easily have decapitated her had she not dropped to the earth, slams into the ground with a heavy thud.

“Well, well, well” a familiar voice teases, making Ashley’s nose wrinkle in distaste. “Look who it is. It’s your bratty cousin.”

Rising from her low position, Ashley dusts herself off and turns around, arms crossed over her chest. She glares over at Itachi and Kisame, with the blue skinned man grinning broadly, his razor teeth glinting.

“What are you attacking me for?” Ashley asks bluntly, motioning towards Samehada, the object that had been flung at her. “I’m on your side, remember?”

“I’ll never be on your side kid” Kisame chuckles. “I don’t like you. You’re annoying.”

“The feeling is mutual, I assure you” Ashley retorts, trying to keep her gaze solely on Kisame. She didn’t want to look into Itachi’s eyes.

“Kisame” the Uchiha speaks up softly, though his voice is rather cold, “Please, continue on ahead with our mission. I would like to have a word with my cousin.”

“I’m actually heading somewhere important” Ashley states icily, turning her head away. “I don’t have the time to stand around and chat with you.”

“Then you’d better make some time kid” Kisame warns, though he maintains his ominous grin. He breaks away from Itachi and walks over to his Samehada, with Ashley keeping a close eye on him. She didn’t trust the tall man to not attack her from behind.

“Don’t worry about me” Kisame advises, hoisting Samehada up over his shoulder. “I’m heading off. Don’t kill her while I’m gone Itachi, I’d like that honour for myself.”

“I’ll keep that in mind Kisame” Itachi replies, dipping his head as Kisame raises his hand and turns away, soon disappearing from view as he heads off to continue his mission.

Ashley stubbornly glares off to her left with her arms crossed, as Itachi glances over at her, both Uchiha remaining silent. Ashley’s hair gently blows around her in the cold wind, damp from the slight, yet continuous, rainfall.

After a few more moments of utter silence, Ashley huffs loudly and turns around, having decided to brush Itachi off and continue on her journey.

“I said that I wanted to talk to you” Ashley hears her cousin state, to which she shrugs a shoulder and continues walking.

“And I wanted you to not kill my Father” she replies nastily, “So I guess we both don’t get what we want.”

Ashley freezes in place as Itachi suddenly appears right in front of her, a warning look in his scarlet eyes. The blonde girl scowls and swiftly does a back hand spring, not wanting to be too close.

“Don’t test me cousin” Itachi advises in his quiet voice, though Ashley can hear the dark tone in it. “I want to talk………….Where are you going?”

“None of your business” is the girl’s immediate reply.

“….The Leaf Village is in this direction” Itachi comments, turning to glance over his shoulder. “You wouldn’t be heading there would you?”

“Maybe you didn’t hear me the first time” Ashley says through gritted teeth, brows furrowing a little as she glares at Itachi, “But it’s none of your damn business. Now get out of my way.”

Itachi blinks slowly at this, seeing the defiant look on his cousin’s face and in her stance. He could tell she was a little scared to be in his presence, but she didn’t seem to be keeping quiet like she usually did around him nowadays. She seemed quite happy to try and push his buttons in fact.

“Where are Deidara and Tobi?”

“Deidara is dead and I have no idea where that idiot Tobi is” Ashley states coldly, baring her teeth. “Now get lost! I have things to do!”

“Like betraying the Akatsuki?” Itachi questions, masking his surprise that Deidara is dead. “I’m afraid I cannot allow you to do that.”

“What?” Ashley questions irritably, looking at Itachi as though he is stupid. “What the hell gives you that idea? How many times do I have to risk my life and attack Leaf Village Ninja before you Akatsuki morons will believe that I’m on your side?!”

“I do believe…..” Itachi murmurs, narrowing his eyes at Ashley a little, “….That this has all just been an elaborate play…..”

“Huh?” Ashley asks, the colour draining from her face at the look on Itachi’s face. Hadn’t she said those exact words to Ace back when the Akatsuki were deciding what to do with her?

“The Three Tails miraculously recovering and escaping” Itachi continues, his face darkening as he takes a step towards his younger cousin, “Jumping between myself and the Leaf Village boy to save him, returning without those papers……This has all been a lie. You are not one of us at all. Is it safe to assume that you do not have Orochimaru’s ring?”

Ashley stares at Itachi in disbelief, her eyes wide and her breath quickening. Had he……He must have heard her talking to Ace. There’s no way he’d have been able to figure it out on his own….Was there? Surely he wasn’t that perceptive.

“I thought as much” Itachi mutters, eyeing Ashley stonily. “You know what the Akatsuki Leader said. If you don’t bring back the ring, you die.”

That said, Itachi launches himself towards Ashley, causing her to start and jump backwards. She watches as he darts towards her at an impressive, Sharingan eyes locked on her face.

Feeling something heavy slug her in the stomach, Ashley’s eyes bulge from the immense and sudden pain, before she is instantly flung backwards. She flies through the air at speed and then falls to the ground, tumbling across it on her side. She eventually slides to a halt and exhales sharply, blinking a few times in rapid succession.

Well. She hadn’t expected that.

Wincing a little, Ashley leans back on one arm and sits up, placing her free hand to her head. The girl’s neck wrenches around and she glares at Itachi irritably, unhappy that he’d gotten such an easy hit on her.

Itachi, already performing one handed signs, reaches into his robe and pulls out a handful of shuriken with his free hand, one weapon sitting comfortably between each of his fingers.

“Fire Style” the Uchiha murmurs calmly, “Phoenix Flower Jutsu.”

That said, Itachi flings the shuriken out in front of him, before exhaling a large volley of fireballs. The fireballs merge with the spinning shuriken, increasing their speed and destructive power.

Leaning back on her arms, Ashley jumps to her feet and throws her hands out in front of her, eyes watching the incoming shuriken intently. Focusing her Katsuryoku, Ashley is able to slow the flaming weapons down to the point where the come to a complete stop in front of her, bobbing up and down harmlessly in the air.

As Ashley stops the shuriken, Itachi darts to the right, with the blonde girl’s eyes following him closely. She wasn’t about to let him get up close and personal with her again. That punch had hurt.

Growling softly, Ashley flicks her hands in Itachi’s direction, causing the flaming shuriken to shoot towards him, one by one. As the shuriken tear his flesh apart, Itachi suddenly diminishes into a flock of black Crows that immediately fly up into the air and disappear.

“A Clone” Ashley growls, swinging her leg up in a high kick and whirling around. Her kick is block by Itachi’s forearm, before he uses his free hand to grab onto Ashley’s ankle.

“You have good reaction time young cousin” Itachi compliments in a soft, flat tone, when he easily pulls Ashley off of the ground and up into the air. As she flies over his head, Ashley spins around and grabs onto Itachi’s shoulders, rapidly focusing her Katsuryoku.

In an instant, electricity builds up in Ashley’s hands and travels down into Itachi’s body, jolting the Uchiha with a nasty electric shock that causes him to release Ashley’s leg.

Upon being released, the blonde girl places both feet against Itachi’s back and focuses chakra into her legs, before shoving against him and pushing herself backwards. While Ashley does a flip and lands on the ground in a crouched position, Itachi stumbles forwards a few steps, steam rising from his shoulders. He slowly rises to his full height and glances back over his shoulder.

At the sight of his eye, Ashley gasps and suddenly finds herself in a strange world, coloured in inverted grey scale and bright red. Having been caught in this Genjutsu before, Ashley looks down, only to see that her feet are shackled to a thick, wooden stake. Looking to her left and right, sure enough, Ashley’s arms have also been shackled.

“Tsukuyomi” the blonde growls, closing her eyes just as Itachi appears before her, metal spear in hand. “You should know by now that this doesn’t work on me Itachi…”

Reopening her eyes, Ashley finds herself back in the real world, the night sky pitch black, with millions of tiny stars twinkling high above. The moon, not quite full, glows brightly as well, lending the earth a small amount of light.

“Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu” Ashley hears Itachi say, causing her to whirl around. Gritting her teeth and narrowing her eyes at the immense ball of burning hot flames now blazing towards her, Ashley performs her own set of hand signs, noting that Itachi has already begun to move again.

“Wood Style: Tree Wall Barrier!” Ashley cries, crouching down and punching the earth with both hands. Immediately the ground begins to shake, and thick, wooden pillars rip through the ground as if it were nothing stronger than paper. The beams writhe up into the air, entwining themselves around each other to create a strong, defensive wall.

Itachi’s fireball hits the wall with a thunderous boom, sparks skipping around the edges of the shield. Ashley has to take a few steps backwards, due to the intense heat she can feel coming through the wall of thick, chakra enhanced trees.

‘Thanks for the training Captain Yamato’ Ashley thinks, turning her head to look for Itachi. ‘Always use more Water Nature chakra when dealing with a Fire Style Jutsu.’

For the next half an hour, Itachi and Ashley continue to fight against each other, with the blonde girl really only able to stay on the defensive. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to attack, but Itachi had upped his speed and offensive to the point where Ashley really couldn’t do anything more than defend herself.

Itachi was confusing the blonde greatly though. She wasn’t entirely sure how to go about fighting her older cousin. They both obviously couldn’t use Genjutsu, because the other would just negate it with their Sharingan, as displayed in their previous run ins with each other. Ashley didn’t want to let Itachi get near enough for a close combat battle, as his Taijutsu was far superior to her own, and hers wasn’t too shabby. Though she preferred to fight from long distances, it seemed as though Itachi’s skills flourished in any situation. He could fight close up, mid range and long range with ease.

His attacks never let up in power, despite wave after wave of assaults from the older Uchiha. His accuracy was second to none, and if anything, it felt to Ashley as if he was only getting stronger.

And yet, despite all of this, Ashley couldn’t help but feel as if Itachi were holding out on her. It felt more like…..More like he was toying with her or something. As if he wasn’t really taking this whole situation too seriously.

And that made Ashley madder than anything. How dare he patronise her like this? She may be stuck on the defensive, but that didn’t mean she wanted her cousin to go easy on her! If Ashley was going to die, she wanted to be killed by someone who was fighting at their best. It would be an insult to be beaten by someone giving less than their all.

Ashley exhales sharply as she manages to divert yet another giant fireball with her Katsuryoku, sweat dripping down the side of her face while it roars up into the sky and explodes. Her shoulders rise up and down rapidly, lungs burning.

‘He’s hardly breathing heavily at all’ Ashley notes internally, eyes narrowed at her cousin. ‘How is he keeping this up? I didn’t realise he possessed so much chakra.’

‘I could defeat him in no time at all’ Hakuba boasts, to which Ashley sighs and shakes her head.

‘I’m hardly going to use you to fight against my cous-’

“Arghhh!” Ashley cries out, snapped out of her thoughts as a kunai pierces into her calf with a horrible crack sound. The girl immediately drops to the ground as blood splurts from the wound, the kunai having travelled a good six centimetres into her flesh due to the velocity at which it had been thrown. Ashley lands in a large puddle of water, the remnants of an earlier Water Beast Jutsu she’d used.

“You should never let your focus waver during a fight cousin” Itachi advises, causing Ashley’s head to snap up as he performs more hand signs. She glowers at the ravenette for a few moments, gritting her teeth as she rips the kunai from her leg. Barely managing to suppress a cry of pain, Ashley throws the kunai viciously at the ground and rises to her feet, biting her lip as she puts pressure on her injured leg.

“Water Style” Itachi begins, scarlet eyes watching his young cousin intently, “Water Dragon Jutsu!”

Sending his chakra out into the water across the ground, Itachi creates a large, fearsome looking Dragon from the clear liquid. It rises high into the air and lets a terrifying roar rip through the night air, before it throws itself towards Ashley, who has taken up a more sturdy stance.

As the Dragon is about to collide with her, Ashley throws her arms up, causing the watery beast to follow her movements and slither up into the sky. Before she can do anything else however, Itachi suddenly looms in front of the girl and nails her in the stomach with a powerful kick.

Ashley is thrown backwards from the movement, unable to react as Itachi uses his speedy Body Flicker Technique to appear behind her and jam a knee painfully into her lower back.

Ashley exhales sharply as her direction is abruptly changed, the girl slamming heavily into the dirt and tumbling across it at speed. She comes to a sudden halt as she crashes into the base of a large tree, the impact sending up a thick cloud of dust.

Itachi pauses for a few moments, staring into the dust cloud as it slowly billows up into the air. While it was safe to say he was winning this fight, Itachi wasn’t exactly unscathed himself.

His young cousin was a speedy and power packed fighter, despite her small stature. Itachi didn’t know where her seemingly endless source of chakra came from, but she sure knew how to put it to good use. While she could not only manage to swiftly focus chakra to different parts of her body to evade his attacks and enhance her own, the blonde had been throwing around some pretty hefty Jutsu to try and block Itachi’s attacks and keep him away from her. She was making herself as difficult as possible to hit.

Though, she seemed to be losing her focus a little now and Itachi was having an easier time actually hitting her with his attacks. The Uchiha had seen Ashley fight before, and she could be quite vicious at times, but it appeared to him that she was very wary of him, and seemed almost hesitant to actually attack. She’d been playing a defensive game ever since he’d shown up.

“Wh-Why are you attacking me like this Itachi?” Ashley suddenly asks, slowly rising to her feet and leaning against the tree for support. One of her eyes is half lidded as she glares over at Itachi, thick blood trickling from her lower lip and down her chin.

“You have betrayed the Akatsuki” is the male’s cool reply, reaching up to wipe a small amount of blood from his own face. Slashes and burn marks litter Itachi’s cloak, with even a few gashes across his arms as well.

“Well you betrayed the entire LeafVillage” Ashley states smartly, despite her fatigued state, “And you killed my Father, yet I never attacked you once!”

“It was a mistake for you to join the Akatsuki” Itachi continues, ignoring Ashley’s statement. “You are far too weak.”

“……This isn’t going to m-make me hate you ya know” Ashley informs Itachi softly, glancing back over her shoulder as a Shadow Clone suddenly appears behind her. Making no move to escape the inevitable attack, Ashley merely closes her eyes as the clone explodes, sending her flying high into the air. Hot air burns at her back as she tumbles head over heels, before managing to flip around and land on her feet back on the ground. The pain that travels up her leg causes Ashley to cry out and fall to the ground however, blood still slowly dripping from the kunai wound.

Itachi glances down at the girl, now only a metre or two ahead of him. Why had she not tried to evade that attack? Had she given up now that she knew she couldn’t defeat him?

“It doesn’t matter whether you hate me or not” Itachi comments after a short pause, pulling out a kunai knife as the injured Ashley turns to look at him, a wounded look in her fuschia eyes.

“You know, you always used to ask me if I loved you when I was little” the girl begins, only to be cut off as Itachi’s thrown weapon embeds itself below her shoulder, right where her heart is. “A-And I would……Always s-say of c-course Itachi-k-kun…..”

As Ashley falls to the ground, eyes rolling back into her head, she suddenly disappears in a puff of smoke.

“Hm, a very convincing Earth Clone” Itachi mumbles to himself, when a voice catches his attention.

“You never used to answer me though” Ashley finishes, standing a few metres behind Itachi. “I was always quick to answer your question and let you know that I loved you, yet you never even uttered the word to me. It was just a sick game to you. You had all of my trust, and then you ripped my heart to pieces.”

Ashley’s face hardens as Itachi slowly turns around, his eyes narrowed a little. The two glare at each other for a few moments, before Ashley closes her left eye, the shuriken like iris in her right eye beginning to spin.

Black flames immediately appear before the blonde and fire themselves towards Itachi, who quickly counters with his own Amaterasu. The two sets of black flames clash with each other, pushing back and forth as Ashley and Itachi try to overpower each other.

As soon as Itachi’s flames begin to overcome her own, Ashley quells her Amaterasu and darts to the side, narrowly avoiding the black fire as it slams into the ground where she’d just been standing.

“This is going nowhere…..” Ashley sighs raggedly, feeling out of breath from her unusually lengthy battle with Itachi. She slowly looks up, only to see that Itachi is standing over her, though her blurred vision bars Ashley from seeing what kind of expression is on his face.

“You cannot defeat me” the raven haired male states, bending down and grabbing onto Ashley’s throat with a vice like grip. “I am far superior to you in every way, and you don’t harbour enough hate in you to be able to fight me properly. Your display here today has been pitiful.”

“I c-can never hate you” Ashley chokes out, furrowing her brows and squeezing her eyes closed as Itachi slowly lifts her into the air. “Y-You’ve already k-killed my Father and……And I still don’t hate y-you. So th-there’s nothing m-more you can do t-to me…..Y-you lose…..Itachi-kun…..”

Itachi pauses briefly at this statement, though he is unsurprised by the arrogant tone in Ashley’s voice when she tells him that he’s lost.

“I-If there’s one thing I-I’ve learnt o-over these last few y-years” Ashley continues, struggling to speak due to the pressure around her neck, “It’s th-that hate doesn’t m-make you s-strong…..Love is what gives y-you strength….Fighting f-for the people th-that you love……I don’t e-expect you to u-understand….”

Itachi stares intently at Ashley as she speaks, an unreadable expression on his face. The male’s dark eyes narrow as a choking cough escapes Ashley’s lips, more blood trickling down her chin.

“Powerful last words indeed” the Uchiha comments softly, pulling out a kunai knife. “I’m impressed young cousin.”

Sensing her cousin’s intentions, Ashley focuses her Katsuryoku and causes a thick pillar of rock to shoot up out of the ground. It wraps itself tightly around Itachi’s arm, constricting it and rendering him unable to move it at all.

Shakily raising her arms as Itachi’s eyes fall to his incapacitated one, Ashley performs a long sequence of complicated hand signs and lets out a sigh. This wasn’t going to be fun, and if it didn’t kill her, she was going to be in some serious pain later on…..

“F-Forgive me for n-not seeing this out to the end I-Itachi-kun” Ashley coughs, cracking her eyes open and giving Itachi a faint smirk, “But I-I can’t die by your hand r-right here. I s-still have a few th-things left to do in this world….”

Itachi looks up as he feels a strong heat beginning to radiate from his Minami cousin, faint blue sparks dancing across her skin. Ashley feels her skin tingling with a stinging sensation, Lightning Nature chakra building up inside her body. Lady Tsunade would not be happy.

Itachi narrows his eyes a little as thin streaks of lightning begin flashing around Ashley, Kisame having described this Jutsu to him a few years ago when the girl had used it against him. It looked as though she was serious about leaving this fight.

Itachi flinches as one of the lightning streaks cracks against his arm, leaving him with a slight burn and a stinging sensation in his muscles.

Ashley’s body starts to glow with a blue aura, as static and lightning hum around her loudly, some of the streaks whipping at the ground and into the air.

Itachi watches as Ashley fully opens her eyes, feeling that she is about to release all of her pent up energy, her body trembling with the incredible build up of power.

“Good bye Itachi!” Ashley shouts over the cracking lightning and buzzing static around her, unsure if she’s truly saying good bye or trying to rub her inevitable escape in her cousin’s face.

“Ashley-chan…..”

Itachi stares into Ashley’s eyes for a few moments as she glances down at him with an incredulous look on her face. Itachi’s hard expression suddenly softens, a faint smile tugging on his lips and an affectionate look briefly passing through his eyes.

“Happy birthday” he says sincerely, giving the girl a closed eye smile and causing Ashley’s own eyes widen.

“Itachi-ku-” Ashley is abruptly cut off, as she accidentally releases her pent up chakra, disappearing from sight with a bright flash and a thunderous boom that causes the ground to shake.

Itachi doesn’t react as he is zapped with numerous bolts of lightning, his eyes slowly opening and his expression dropping back into its usual stoic one. He stares at the ground Ashley had been dangling over, now blackened and smoking due to the girl’s Jutsu. The earth holding Itachi’s arm captive recedes back into the ground, allowing the former Leaf Ninja to put his kunai away and turn around.

“Keep believing in those words you just spoke to me Ashley-chan, and you’ll do well for yourself” Itachi murmurs, images of his beloved cousin as a young child floating through his mind. “But go back to the Leaf Village where your friends are, and keep away from the Akatsuki….”

Itachi glances up at the cry of a bird flying overhead, it’s long, brown wings outstretched as it rides the night wind. Even in the dark and with his own vision severely deteriorated, Itachi can see that the bird is a large Hawk.

“Well then Sasuke” the raven haired Uchiha says calmly, turning around and beginning to head in the same direction that Kisame had earlier, “Let’s finally bring you peace and finish this…..”

I can't believe no one has asked this before, but Ashley's birthday is April 25th xD And speaking of birthdays, my 21st birthday is coming up on Saturday, July 5th. Wooo partayyyy!

And before anyone jokes about being able to legally drink now and yadda yadda, I live in Australia. The legal drinking age here is 18 lol.