Edited 30/08/2020

Ashley's POV

I feel myself freeze at Sasuke's question, my eyes growing wide and my mouth opening, though no words come out. The Uchiha continues to glare at me accusingly. I can almost feel the anger radiating off of him.

How had he found out? Had he finally remembered me?!

I hear Aki, Tiez and Jet all growling madly, with Shino firmly grabbing onto the back of Kiba's jacket as he moves to come over. I feel everyone staring at us, the room completely silent, as they all wait to see what Sasuke is going to do to me.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Sasuke asks again, shaking me slightly.

"I-I thought you didn't remember" I admit, still shocked by Sasuke's question and his anger towards me. "You didn't seem like you knew who I was."

"I don't remember" Sasuke states sharply. "Your sister and her Wolf told me!"

I immediately turn my head to look at Kiyumi and Keilor. The Wolf merely wags his tail, tongue hanging from the side of his mouth, as Kiyumi cowers away from me, a guilty look on her face.

I don't know why she would feel guilty about it. It's not like I'm mad that he knows, I'm just surprised. I had thought he would never remember me and I suppose I had become used to that idea.

"Shigeshi Uchiha was your Father?" Sasuke questions, causing me to turn back towards him. I nod my head and smile faintly.

"Yeah, he was my Dad" I confirm softly. "He was your Uncle too huh?"

".....So it's true then?" Sasuke asks, closing his eyes and releasing me from his grip.

I nod again, giving my cousin a closed eye smile. I'm so happy that he knows now. Maybe I'll be able to help him remember some things from our past!

"So you'll know exactly what this is for then" Sasuke decides in an emotionless voice, something that causes my eyes to open, a question mark appearing above my head.

Before I can react, Sasuke punches me in the side of the face, the force sending me reeling to the left. Too shocked to have even tried to avoid the attack, I stumble to the ground, my eyes wide as one hand rises to rub at my aching cheek.

I hear a collective gasp go around the room as I hit the floor, with a few people calling my name as well. I blink a few times, my wide eyes looking up to Sasuke's furious face.

What was that for?!

"That's it!" Kiba shouts irately, charging forwards, one arm pulled back to punch Sasuke in retaliation.

Jet leaps right past the Inuzuka with a roar however, tackling Sasuke to the ground and snapping his jaws at the Uchiha's neck.

"Jet!" I cry out, causing the Wolf to pause, his teeth grazing Sasuke's flesh.

"You crossed the line Sasuke!" Naruto berates, as he and Sakura rush over to me. I look up, only to see that Asuma has blocked Kiba from being able to attack Sasuke, though the Inuzuka is glowering at him hatefully, teeth gritted together.

"Let me go Asuma Sensei" Kiba demands. "I'm gonna punch that idiot right in the face!"

"You would dare attack Lady Ashley?" Jet growls threateningly, his golden eyes narrowed right at Sasuke's face. "You are lucky her Guardian is not here you lowly cretin...."

"He would be dead if Ace were here" Fang speaks up, her eyes hooded as she gives Sasuke the side eye. Perhaps healing him had been a bad idea....

"Are you alright Ashley?" Sakura asks, helping me to her my feet, her voice trembling a little. "That was...."

"I'm fine, thank you" I assure her dismissively, running the back of my hand over my cheek. "There's clearly a misunderstanding here."

I brush Sakura and Naruto off, walking over to Sasuke and gently placing my hand on Jet's side.

"Thank you Jet" I say to the large Wolf, looking down at Sasuke through hooded eyes, an anime vein appearing on the side of my head. "You'd better explain what the hell that was for Sasuke, before I return the favour."

Jet sighs and steps away from Sasuke, though he remains sitting by my side, eyes trained on my cousin. Sasuke, scowling at me, slowly climbs to his feet and turns to me, hands curled into fists again.

"All this time I thought I had no family left" Sasuke seethes, glaring daggers at me. "And you didn't say anything. You didn't say anything!"

Sasuke leaps at me again, aiming another punch for my face, though this time I am able to react swiftly enough to block it. He then spins around and aims a kick for my head, which I duck under. I tilt my head back, only to see that Sasuke is diving down towards me with an elbow drop.

I manage to jump backwards before he can crash his elbow down on top of my head, doing a back hand spring to put a little distance between myself and the furious Uchiha.

"Milady" Jet rumbles, his golden eyes glistening with anger. "Just say the word."

"Don't" I order, my eyes focused on Sasuke.

He rises to his feet and merely stares back at me, his teeth gritted together and his hands curled into fists down at his sides. I can see his shoulders trembling.

"Alright, that's enough" Kakashi Sensei decides, stepping between the two of us. "There's no need to fight about this."

"And what's all this about Shigeshi Uchiha being your Father?" Asuma demands to know, turning to look at me curiously.

"Show me your Sharingan" Sasuke commands, ignoring the others and leaning around Kakashi Sensei to glare at me.

I freeze in place again, my eyes widening in shock. I feel a faint sense of panic immediately well up within me, my eyes darting over to Kiyumi. I see that she is watching me through round eyes, her hands clasped together in front of her chest.

It has suddenly occurred to me, that my little sister knows I have the Sharingan. I exposed my power right before Mother flooded the island. Kiyumi had seen it. And she knew it was the reason Orochimaru and Kabuto had slaughtered most of our Clan.

They themselves had proclaimed it to be the reason they had come to our island.

Did she blame me for what had happened?

"I-I don't know what you're talking about" I stutter, furrowing my brows and turning my head away.

I can feel all of my friends staring at me, no doubt thoroughly confused as to what is going on right now. I feel a sense of shame, realising that thanks to Sasuke, everyone now thinks I have the Sharingan.

This Sharingan...This stupid power. It's proven to be far more of a liability in my life than a help to me. My own Mother hated the Sharingan's ability. Despite marrying an Uchiha, she hated that the Sharingan had the ability to control the Ten Tails, as the demon had been sealed inside of me.

I never thought about it as a child, but now I have to wonder if she was worried that someone would find out about Hakuba being sealed inside me and try to use the Sharingan to force the demon out of my body. Such a thing would kill me after all.

Not only was I ashamed of this ability because of my Mother's dislike for it, but it had been the only reason my entire family had been murdered and my life had changed so drastically. What was so good about it? It had brought me nothing but misfortune all my life.

"Stop lying to me already!" Sasuke snaps, though I'm certain that I can hear the pain in his voice. "Tell me the truth for once!"

I squeeze my eyes closed and shake my head.

For once? When had I lied to him? Sasuke's anger towards me doesn't seem fair and yet, I can't seem to bring myself to tell him off.

"I am!" I shout back, turning my back on Sasuke and folding my arms over my chest. I think I'm shaking.

Sasuke doesn't say anything for a few seconds after that, the room falling uncomfortably silent, when I suddenly hear a strange chirping sound behind me. I lift my head and open my eyes, unsure of what I'm hearing, when Kakashi Sensei lets out a shout.

I immediately spin around, only to find a sparking ball of electricity centimetres from my face. I stare, wide eyed, at the chakra fuelled lightning, only to blink and notice Sasuke's infuriated face glaring at me from behind it.

Kakashi Sensei's hand is firmly gripping Sasuke's wrist, the lightning still crackling loudly around his hand.

"Sasuke" Kakashi Sensei warns seriously. "Knock it off. Now."

My eyes waver as Sasuke briefly glances up at our Sensei, and I feel them beginning to fill with tears. I lower my head and close my eyes, as the lightning fades from around Sasuke's hand. He seems hesitant to stop, but I'm sure he realised that he won't be able to get through Kakashi Sensei who is, once again, defending me.

I can't believe Sasuke wants to see my Sharingan so badly, that he would attack me like that. And from behind no less. That's not like him at all. He must be really angry. Or hurt. I'm not really sure...

"....You want to see it so bad" I say softly, trying to control my voice as I half open my eyes and lift my head. "Here you go."

Kakashi Sensei's expression saddens a little when he sees the look on my face, a tear running down my cheek as I solemnly stare at Sasuke through my now dark eyes.

Sasuke's eyes widen however, his mouth opening in surprise at the sight of my Sharingan. While my Sharingan was of normal colour when I first awakened it, it seems that ever since Hakuba was sealed inside of me, the colours have become inverse. I've no idea why and it was something that confused my Father greatly. Especially considering he didn't know about Hakuba....

".....You really do have it...." Sasuke mutters in disbelief, pulling himself free from Kakashi Sensei's grip and walking closer to inspect me. "I can't believe it...."

"Are you satisfied now?" I ask monotonously, deactivating my Sharingan and wiping at my eyes, before scowling up at Sasuke. "You're a real jerk. I hope you know that."

".......Why didn't you say anything to me?" Sasuke asks again, gentler this time.

"You didn't even recognise me!" I exclaim, throwing my arms in the air in frustration. "What was I supposed to do?! It went on for so long that it just got to a point where I though it would be awkward!"

"Like this is any better?"

"It's hardly my fault that you have anger issues" I snap back, annoyed. "You didn't have to attack me you know."

"Hn" Sasuke offers for an explanation, placing his hands in his pockets and watching me through half lidded eyes now. "......You don't even look like an Uchiha."

"Luckily for me" I scoff, taunting Sasuke a little, "The Minami gene seems to be stronger than the Uchiha one."

Sasuke smirks at me sarcastically, not bothering to argue with me. I can't really tell how he's feeling right now, but it seems that he's not angry at me anymore.

"Okay seriously" Ino speaks up, looking frustrated and confused. "What is going on here?!"

"Yeah, I'm so lost" Naruto agrees, a question mark appearing above his head.

"What a drag" Shikamaru sighs, running a hand down his face. "I thought the Jonin were gonna have to hold you two down or something."

Kiba says nothing, clearly stewing in his own anger, as he continues to glare at Sasuke. I don't even know if he's blinked in the last few minutes. Asuma seems to be keeping a close eye on him however.

"Care to explain to your friends?" Kakashi Sensei suggests wearily.

He already knows about Sasuke and I being related, however, none of the others do. I can understand how this could be extremely confusing for them. Even I'm kind of confused.

"Sasu Chibi-chan and I are cousins" I announce pointedly, crossing my arms and turning to face my friends. "I don't know why he attacked me over it, but-"

"What?!" Naruto exclaims, before immediately bounding over to a shocked Sasuke and smacking him over the head. "Sasuke you idiot! Why would you try to kill your own cousin?!"

"Naruto....." the Uchiha growls, before switching his gaze to me. "That name...."

"You remember it?" I ask smugly, to which Sasuke shrugs.

"Sort of" he replies, blanching. "Enough to know that it was annoying anyway."

"How could you not remember your own cousin?" Saffire asks, folding her arms over her chest and raising one eyebrow.

"Uh, he was kind of going through a lot" Ino points out, glaring at Saffire, before turning back to Sasuke and I. "I can't believe you guys are related! That's great! Looks like I had nothing to worry about after all!"

I give Ino a deadpan look, only for Sakura to approach both Sasuke and I with her hands clasped together and her eyes shining.

"This is wonderful Sasuke-kun" she says softly, looking as if she is about to cry despite the smile on her face. "Ashley-chan is your family. You'll have family in the Village now."

I can't help feeling a little embarrassed by Sakura's heartfelt gladness, with Sasuke glancing down at me from the corner of his eye. It was true. We were family. But we've been separated for a long time and even when we somehow managed to come back together, we didn't live our lives as if we were family.

"I'm happy for you Sasuke" Naruto grins, closing his eyes and chuckling. "You too Ashley-chan."

I rub the back of my head and give my friends a closed eye smile, thankful for their happiness, despite being a little embarrassed by it.

".....I remember meeting you that day when the Hokage sent you to join our team" Sasuke explains, turning to face me. "As soon as I saw you, I thought you were familiar.....But I couldn't figure out why. I wonder why I can't remember......"

"Don't hurt yourself thinking about it" I dismiss, not wanting Sasuke to become upset about his lack of memory. "We'll make new memories from now on. Just be sure not to forget them in future."

Sasuke merely smirks back at me, the closest thing to a smile that I'm sure I'll ever get from my cousin.

I tilt my head to the side to look past Sasuke, as Kiyumi suddenly runs over to me wraps her arms around me in a hug. After a second, she looks up at me guiltily through her lashes.

"I'm sorry for telling him Ashley-chan" she apologises softly, still hugging me. "I-I was curious about him and the Sharingan and-"

"Don't worry about it Kiyu" I interrupt, placing one hand on top of my sister's head affectionately. "I'm not mad that you told him."

"Ah, I'm glad...." Kiyumi sighs with relief, before biting her lip and pausing. "........Y-Your Sharingan is very pretty...."

I blink a few times at that, my breath catching in my throat as I stare at my sister. I feel my eyes getting watery again, so I quickly pull Kiyumi in for a tight hug and close them. I don't say anything to her, too afraid that I'll cry if I try to speak.

She doesn't need to say anything else either. I know that this means she isn't mad at me, nor does she blame me for what happened.

I have to wonder what incredible thing I've done to have deserved all of this. I've come back to my homeland, I've discovered that some of my Clan members are still alive, I've been reunited with my sister, Sasuke now knows that we're related.......

Coming back to the Land of Ambience has both exposed a lot of my life to my friends, things that were too hard for me to say before, while at the same time drastically changing my life for the better.

"You mentioned Shigeshi Uchiha" Asuma reminds everyone, breaking me out of my train of thought. "I'm aware that he was Sasuke's Uncle, but...."

"Yeah, he's mine and Kiyu's Father as well" I confirm, releasing my hold on my sister and smiling at her.

"Confirms where your bad attitude comes from" Asuma comments, to which I deadpan again. "He was a great Ninja and a respected leader, but he sure did whatever the hell he wanted to."

"That does sound like Father" Kiyumi giggles behind her hand, a fond look in her eyes. "Mother t-told us a lot of stories about him."

".....If Shigeshi Uchiha is your Father" Kurenai speaks up slowly, clearly having been deep in thought for the last few minutes, "And Sasuke is your cousin.....Then that means that Itachi Uchiha is also your cousin, correct?"

Sasuke and I both stiffen at the mention of Itachi's name. I stare at Kurenai, wide eyed, wondering why on earth she is bringing my older cousin up right now.

"Kurenai...." Kakashi Sensei says hesitantly, seeing the dark expression on Sasuke's face and the uncomfortable one on mine.

"I don't mean to put a damper on things" Kurenai says apologetically, "But I can't help wondering about something. It's been bothering me ever since we had that run in with Itachi Uchiha."

I wrack my brain, hurriedly trying to remember anything significant about our fight with Itachi and Kisame. Had he said anything suspicious to me back then?! I really can't remember......

"It now makes sense why he spoke as if he knew Ashley" Kurenai continues, now watching me intently. "I remember that he seemed to know things about her and there was something he said that I've been meaning to ask you about for awhile now. He mentioned that you were Orochimaru's protegee. What did he mean by that?"

I freeze in place, as if time has abruptly stopped, staring at Kurenai in horror. I can't hear anything anymore, or feel anything. If I didn't know any better, I'd think my own heart had stopped. All I can see is Kurenai and that suspicious look on her face.

Why would she ask me something like that, here and now? Did it even matter? They were the words of a traitor, and I'd done nothing but prove my loyalty to the Leaf Village.

Why would she ask me that? And why is she looking at me like that? Does she actually suspect me of something?

"Milady..." I hear Jet say warily, the Wolf stepping forwards.

"Orochimaru?" a voice repeats sharply, causing my eyes to slowly look over.

I feel them waver when I see all of the Leaf Ninja staring at me through wide eyes. The only one who doesn't seem shocked is Kakashi Sensei. He just looks incredibly tense. He's watching me carefully, as if he expects something bad to happen, though he turns his head towards Naruto as the blonde takes a step towards me.

His hands are curled into fists and there's an uncharacteristically severe expression on his face. That looks scares me. The intensity behind those normal cheerful eyes makes my chest hurt.

"What does that mean Ashley-chan?" the blonde questions me seriously.

"Do not approach Milady" Jet immediately warns Naruto in a threatening tone, the Wolf now standing beside me. "If you approach her with ill intent......In his place, I will make Ace proud....."

I turn my head slightly and place one hand on Jet's shoulder, curling my fingers into his fur and looking to him for support.

I feel afraid.

How is it that one question can make me so fearful? And of my friends no less.

I've never wanted them to know about my shameful past, especially after Orochimaru attacked the Leaf Village. And Sasuke.

I understand why they're all shocked but.....I'm scared of their judgement. I don't want them to hate me.

"Tell us Ashley-chan!" Naruto demands, his raised voice causing me to jump slightly. I look back over at him, only to see that his blue eyes are tearing up, despite the seriousness of his expression.

"Naruto..." Sakura says softly, sounding hesitant as she looks between Naruto and I. "You're scaring her...."

Naruto's head whips around to look at Sakura in surprise, before he turns back to me, brows furrowed in distress.

"I-I'm not mad at you Ashley-chan" Naruto tells me, gentler this time. "It's just.....You know what Orochimaru did to us. To our Village and I just want to-"

"What he did to you?" Jet snaps, interrupting Naruto angrily. "Don't be so arrogant you little brat! That monster has impacted Milady's life far more than you could ever hope to comprehend, so don't act as though you have a moral high ground!"

I hood my eyes, looking up at Jet appreciatively. He may not be a part of my Pack anymore, but his anger and care on my behalf are so touching, despite the subject matter.

Naruto stares at Jet and I in disbelief, unsure of what to say next. He obviously hadn't been expecting an outburst from my Wolf, or to know that Orochimaru had been such a significant part of my life.

"......What'd he do to you?" Kiba asks quietly, breaking the strange silence in the room.

I warily glance over at the Inuzuka, not wanting to see the suspicion in his eyes. I am surprised however, to see his forehead wrinkled in concern, eyes holding nothing but a sad sort of care in them.

"Did that creep hurt you Ashley-chan?" Naruto asks lowly, his hands shaking now, a dark look on his face.

"Hurt me?" I repeat, looking uncertainly to my Sensei again.

This isn't a topic I want to speak on, but I feel like I've been backed into a corner. If I don't explain myself to them, they're all going to assume things about me.

"....I think it's time to tell them Ashley" Kakashi Sensei advises me in a warm tone, nodding his head. "They're your friends, they'll understand."

I sigh quietly and close my eyes for a moment, before looking over at my Minami family in sadness. I hope they won't be mad at me.

They're all staring at me in alarm, clearly worried by the reactions of the Leaf Ninja and myself. Even though they have no idea who Orochimaru is, it must be easy to tell that this is a pretty bad situation.

Still clinging to Jet, I take a deep breath in and release it, before raising my head and facing my friends.

".....You all know that my Clan was killed off right?" I ask rhetorically, my tone neutral. "Well, Orochimaru brought a whole bunch of his test subjects here. They were all subjects of various experiments he'd been conducting in secret."

I hear a few gasps of horror go around the room, something that makes me sigh again. It was only going to get worse from here....

"....They were monsters" Kurai whispers, shuddering at the memory of them. "They were so scary."

"They were disgusting" Saffire agrees, scowling to herself.

"He was also the one who came to our Village looking for the person who had the Sharingan" I continue explaining. "How he found out that someone on our island had the Sharingan....I have no idea. I've always wondered about that, but he never told me........But he slaughtered my Clan for it and when he was about to kill my Mother and my sister, I told him that I was the one who had it."

I can feel my body beginning to tremble as I get to the worst part of the story, tears threatening to form in my eyes.

"I really don't want to go i-into detail but....." I pause for a second, trying to steady my voice. "I thought we had gotten away, but Orochimaru and Kabuto found me and knocked me out. When I woke up, I was a captive in a dark cell."

"They kidnapped you afterwards?!" Sakura exclaims, horrified.

"No wonder you hated Kabuto when we ran into him at the Chunin Exams" Naruto growls, looking as though he is inwardly berating himself. "I'm so sorry Ashley-chan, I didn't know....."

"It's my fault for not saying anything about it" I mutter, wincing at the memory of running into Kabuto so unexpectedly back then. I had been so certain that he'd been sent there to drag me back to Orochimaru.

"......How long were you held prisoner there?" Shikamaru asks tentatively, morbidly interested in my story.

"...........I managed to run away about two months before I arrived at the Leaf Village" I answer.

"And how old were you when your Clan was killed off?" Shikamaru prompts, not even trying to be sensitive with his words.

"....I was six" I reply, closing my eyes and turning my head when people begin gasping again.

"But you're almost thirteen Ashley!" Ino squawks, dismayed. "You were stuck with that gross jerk for six years?!"

"Ley-chan...." Kiyumi sniffles, tears dripping down her face. "He k-killed everyone a-and then took you a-as well?"

"That bastard!" Saffire shouts, punching the wall. "As if he didn't do enough already!"

"We tried to fight our way out" Jet speaks up for me, allowing me a moment of reprieve. "But we all very quickly learned of that snake's power.....And what would happen if we disobeyed."

"We?" Fang inquires.

"Yes, he took Milady as well as Ace, myself and the others" Jet sighs. "In that way I suppose he was merciful."

"I don't know what I would have done without you all there with me" I say sincerely, stroking Jet's fur as I reminisce on those awful first few weeks.

"So you were trained by Orochimaru then?" Asuma says in a flat tone, though he seems somewhat thoughtful. "This explains why you have some weird powers. Like that time at the Chunin Exam when you used a Lightning Style Jutsu with black electricity."

I blink at that, surprised that Asuma remembers such an insignificant detail. He must have been suspicious of me since that day.

"What's so weird about that?" Naruto asks, tilting his head to the side.

"Black electricity is only used by the Raikage of the Village Hidden in the Clouds" Kakashi Sensei explains. "And a select few in their Village. Orochimaru must have somehow stolen information on that ability. He tends to hunt for powerful jutsu users so he can extract that kind of information from their dead bodies."

I lower my gaze and shrug my shoulders.

"I don't know any other Lightning Style Jutsu" I say simply. "Only that one. I didn't know black lightning was special at the time either."

"This would explain why you were so mean when we first met" Choji jokes, trying to lighten the mood a little, though it seems a bit forced.

I know he means well, but I can't help shooting Choji a nasty look, unamused by his words.

"I imagine you wouldn't be very nice if you were treated so cruelly either" I state tersely, causing Choji to shrink back.

"Aside from training you Ashley" Kurenai interjects, "What else happened before you were able to escape. Six years is a long time."

"Those six years felt like an eternity" I inform the woman, annoyed by how suspicious she'd seemed of me earlier. "It was hell. I was forced to fight, forced to kill people, forced to become one of his damn experiments. Do you know how many times I almost died?!"

I see people beginning to tense up as my frustration grows, me now facing the group properly as angry tears form in my eyes. I can't help it. While I had learned to obey Orochimaru eventually, becoming somewhat of an emotionless shell to survive, it didn't mean that I hadn't suffered greatly.

"Every time he stuck those needles into me, every time he experimented on me and my body was in so much pain that it gave out on me" I shout, "He would stick more needles into me and bring me back! Every time I almost escaped from that living nightmare.....He would bring me back, just so I could keep suffering. So I could keep fighting for him and become stronger for him....."

"A-Ashley-chan...." Sakura trails off, tears falling from her eyes now too.

"You know why he made me suffer like that for so long?" I ask coldly, smiling at everyone. "He did it all, just to make me stronger so he could one day take over my body and have my Sharingan all to himself. He forced powers onto me that shouldn't be mine and he tortured me, after murdering my whole family, just so he could get my Sharingan. Are you happy now Kurenai?"

Kurenai blinks in surprise as I snap at her, a murderous look on my face as I glare, tears silently running down my cheeks.

"....Why would such an awful thing make me happy?" Kurenai asks, sounding hurt. "I hadn't meant to hurt your feelings Ashley, but when it comes to Orochimaru, we can't afford to not be careful. I imagine you understand that better than anyone."

"All that....." Sakura whispers, head tilted downwards. "After all that, you still jumped in front of him to save us at the Chunin Exams?"

Sakura suddenly charges forwards and flings her arms around me, crying and thanking me between her sobs. Seeing the scene, Ino bursts into tears as well, with Hinata sniffling behind her hands.

Before I can react, Kiyumi, Saffire and Kurai all run over to me as well, surrounding me in a big group hug, with all of them crying. I blink a few times, before a faint smile appears on my face, my eyes wavering again, though this time it feels like happy tears are beginning to fall.

"My Granddaughter" Chief Dashi says proudly, stepping over and placing a hand on my head. He smiles at me, his fuchsia eyes filled with warmth. "She grew up so strong."

I stare up into my Grandfather's eyes for a few seconds, comforted by their familiar warmth. Why it feels familiar, I have no idea. It's been so long since I've seen that look on his face.

I glance over at Kakashi Sensei, only to see that his visible eye is hooded and he's smiling at me as well.

'Ah' I think to myself, unable to keep the relief from my face as I close my eyes and hug my friends back. 'That's why it feels so familiar....'

"Argh!" a voice cries out in distress. "Are you girls done yet?! I wanna hug Ashley-chan too!"

Sakura and the other girls begin to giggle as they release me and step back, allowing Naruto to throw himself at me in a vicious hug. He pins my arms to my side and lifts me up, waving me from side to side.

"I'm so sorry Ashley-chan" Naruto apologises, tears streaming down his face like miniature waterfalls. "I wasn't mad at you I swear! And I'm really, really, really, really sorry that you went through all that stuff!"

"I-It's fine N-Naruto" I reply, my eyes spinning. "B-But can you p-please put me down? Y-You're making m-me dizzy....."

"Oh" Naruto immediately pauses, before setting me back down on the ground and rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry Ashley-chan."

"It's okay, I'm fine" I assure the blonde. "....I'm just glad you all don't hate me. I was so ashamed of my past and I was scared that you'd all hate me if you knew...."

"Why would we hate you?" Sasuke scoffs, stepping over and placing one hand on my shoulder. "It's not your fault."

"Sasu Chibi-chan" I purr happily, only for him to grimace at me and retract his hand.

"There's plenty of other reasons to hate you anyway" he informs me, to which I let out a relieved laugh.

"But you're pretty awesome Ashley-chan" Naruto tells me, smiling affectionately at me now. "I'm glad you're my friend."

I feel a flutter in my chest at those words. Words that almost make me want to cry again.

"My sister is amazing" Kiyumi says quietly, looking at me with admiration.

"Yeah, my best friend grew up alright" Saffire boasts, hands on her hips. "It's all because of my influence as a kid."

"Ley-chan, I'm so proud of you" Kurai tells me sweetly, her eyes sparkling as she looks from me to the other Leaf Ninja. "And you've made yourself some wonderful friends. I'm glad they came with you on your journey back home."

I wipe my eyes and smile over at the other Genin, all of whom are grinning back at me, except for Shino and Kiba. While I'm sure Shino is happy for me, he maintains his stoic expression, while Kiba watches me intently.

I tilt my head, wondering why he's looking at me like that, though he doesn't say anything to me. Akamaru however, seeing that I am free, dashes over and leaps into my arms.

"Arf arf arf!" he barks happily, tail wagging a mile a minute as he licks my face and clambers up onto my head. "Arf arf!"

"Hey!" I giggle. "Akamaru, what are you doing up there?"

"Arf arf!" the pup barks again, calling for Kiba's attention. I glance back over, only to see the Inuzuka trying to hide a smile as he watches his Ninken perch on my head the way the pup usually sat on his head.

Feeling a nudge on my shoulder, I turn around, only to see Jet craning his neck down to me.

"Are you alright Milady?" he inquires in his low voice.

"Yes, thank you Jet" I smile up at the large Wolf, reaching out to pat him gently. "I can always rely on you to support me."

"....Yes, always" he responds quietly, a strange sadness entering his golden eyes.

Standing a short distance behind Jet, I see Shimei watching us through hooded eyes. I can't read his expression, as he is keeping it extremely neutral, but from what little time I've had with Shimei, I've noticed that he usually has a pleasant look on his face.

Is he upset that I'm patting Jet?

I immediately retract my hand, not wanting to get between a Minami and his Guardian, when Atsui barges over.

"This is really touching and all" he sighs dramatically, "But can we get back to the real issue he- ack!"

"Have some empathy!" Saffire reprimands, elbowing Atsui in the stomach and causing the boy to lurch backwards. Tsumetai falls from Atsui's shoulder at the sudden motion, however he manages to flip around and land on all fours.

"We gotta figure out how to stop that bad guy and all the other bad guys!" the chibi advises us all wisely, pointing one finger in the air. "Atsui-chan says we gotta kill them all before they kill us!"

"He would say that" Saffire scoffs, glancing at Atsui as he straightens up.

"It's true" Atsui retorts, an anime vein pulsing on the side of his head. "They're bound to come after us and keep coming after us until we're all dead."

"Atsui-kun is right" Kurai says, the tiny girl stepping between Atsui and Saffire before they can argue. "We can't run and hide forever, especially now that we've attacked Sirius."

"I agree" my Grandfather confirms, nodding his head as he turns to Kakashi Sensei and the other Jonin. "Leaf Ninja, I am well aware of what you were hired to do here, but the situation has changed from what you were initially told. With your help, we can cleanse our island from the evil that brought itself here."

I immediately jump forwards, my hands clasped together under my chin as I give Kakashi Sensei an imploring look.

"Please Kakashi Sensei" I plead, wanting to help my fellow Minami get their island back. "We have to help my Clan!"

"Yeah, c'mon Kakashi Sensei!" Naruto urges, copying my pose as he looks up at Jonin with large eyes.

"We have to help Ashley's family out!" Sakura says determinedly, before looking to Sasuke, who also nods his agreement.

"Come on Asuma Sensei" Ino scolds, shaking one finger at the man. "Aren't you always telling us we have to fight for what's right?"

"Yeah but this isn't what I-"

"What a drag" Shikamaru sighs, folding his arms behind his head as he turns to Choji and Ino. "Sensei's going back on his teachings."

"Lame" Choji says, feigning disappointment.

"Now hang on just a-"

"Kurenai Sensei" Hinata speaks up softly. "W-We should help too. Right Shino-kun? Kiba-kun?"

"It's the right thing to do" Shino agrees.

"You're damn right" Kiba adds, baring his sharp teeth in a grin.

"Arf!" Akamaru barks his agreement as well.

My eyes begin to shine as I look at all of my friends, so willing to help my family out. Despite the danger they will be in and despite having to technically break the rules, they all want to help us.

Kakashi Sensei, Kurenai and Asuma all look at one another, sweat dropping. They clearly don't know how to react to so many people begging them to do the right thing.

Even if Kakashi Sensei says we can't help, I'm still going to help anyway. I'm sure it won't be hard to rope Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke into helping either, which Kakashi Sensei undoubtedly knows by now.

"Kakashi, don't think I don't see that look on your face" Kurenai states.

"Oh boy....." Asuma heaves a deep sigh. "I need a cigarette first..."

I stare at Kakashi Sensei as he turns back to face all of us, his eyes specifically landing on me.

".......This is going to be hard to explain to Lady Tsunade" he mutters.