Third Person's POV

"Bomb's away!" Naruto shouts, before leaping down from a high tree branch and bending his knees, hugging them to his chest.

Ashley throws her hands over her face and turns her head, giggling as Naruto hits the water, the blonde sending it splashing all over her and the others.

"Nice one Naruto" Ashley compliments, as his head reappears above the water, mouth pulled up in a huge grin.

"Wasn't as good as mine though" Choji boasts, head bobbing up and down in the water. "I definitely made the biggest splash so far."

"That's not fair though" Naruto complains, climbing on top of the water and jabbing a hand down at Choji. "Of course you're gonna make a bigger splash than me, you're hu- ack!"

Naruto is cut off as a large wave crashes over the top of him, knocking him off his feet and sending him sprawling back under the water's surface.

Sweat dropping, Ashley lowers both of her hands, only to see a deadpan Shikamaru crouched on top of the water, not too far from her.

"Thanks" the Nara sighs, running a hand down his face. "You think he'd know not to say stuff like that by now."

"I'm here for fun" Ashley grins sheepishly, shrugging. "Not to break up fights."

"What was that for Ashley-chan?!" Naruto demands to know, sputtering as he bursts up out of the water and lands on top of it.

"I just wanted to shut your mouth before you put your foot in it" Ashley replies, poking her tongue out. "Besides, we all know that I could make the biggest splash if I wanted to."

"Yeah" Naruto shoots back, pouting, "By cheating."

Wading in the shallow water by the riverbank, Sakura, Hinata and Ino watch on as Ashley teases Naruto. Sakura and Hinata giggle at the pair ahead, while Ino watches on through hooded eyes, silent. She turns her head after a few moments, only to see Kiba seated on a tree branch hanging above the water, his elbow resting on his knee and his chin in his palm.

Ino hadn't seen Kiba get in the water even once yet, and while she didn't particularly like the Inuzuka, he was usually the kind to take hold of a fun chance like this with both hands. It seemed that he didn't feel particularly energetic either, since their encounter with Kurai.

While initially excited about the chance to see Sasuke without his shirt on, Ino admittedly had barely spared the Uchiha a glance since he had gotten into the water.

She had been too focused on Ashley.

Kurai had sounded pretty serious about Ashley staying here and leaving her friends, but the blonde's behaviour just didn't seem to reflect that decision. Ino wanted to know the truth, as the idea of Ashley staying was bothering her, but she felt awkward bringing the topic up directly with the girl herself.

"....Hey Sakura" Ino says slowly, causing the pinkette to turn around. ".......Has um.....Has Ashley said anything to you?"

"Huh?" Sakura asks, a question mark appearing above her head. "Said anything about what?"

"Well......" Ino trails off uncertainly, looking to Hinata for help.

Noting the hesitant expression on both girls' faces, Sakura's brows furrow. Why were they looking at each other like that? She didn't like that tone in Ino's voice either.

Ino always sounded confident, even if she didn't actually feel that way. To hear her sounding so hesitant was extremely unusual and it made Sakura feel a little uneasy.

"What's wrong you guys?" Sakura asks seriously. "Did something happen with Ashley?"

"Not exactly" Ino sighs, her shoulders drooping slightly. "I'm just wondering if......if Ashley has said anything to you about staying here when Shino has recovered and we can head back to the Leaf Village?"

"What?" Sakura asks sharply, only to lower her eyes and furrow her brows, as she thinks back to recent interactions with her teammate. "No, she's never said anything like that. Why would she? Did she tell you that she's going to stay here?"

Ino blinks at the slight panic in Sakura's voice as the girl looks back at her, her green eyes wide.

"N-No, she hasn't" Ino assures her friend. "But......that girl with the pink hair said that Ashley isn't going to come home with us because she wants to stay here with her family."

".....What?" Sakura asks again, much softer this time. She turns her head to look at Ashley, only to see that she has Naruto in a headlock, the two blondes laughing loudly. "Surely....surely that's not true...."

"W-we didn't think so either" Hinata speaks up nervously, not really wanting to join in on the conversation, but also not wanting Ino to feel pressured.

Ino crosses her arms over her chest as she looks over at Ashley, a troubled expression on her face.

"I can't imagine that she would stay" the blonde sighs, "But that girl was adamant."

"She can't stay" Sakura states, her voice trembling a little. "She's our friend and my teammate. We can't be Team Seven w-without h-her..."

"Ah, don't cry Sakura!" Ino whispers loudly, moving to comfort her friend and placing a hand on her back.

"W-We don't know th-that it's true" Hinata tries to reason, glancing over her shoulder at the two Wolves resting on the riverbank. "I-If Ashley-chan hasn't m-mentioned it to you, th-then it's probably not true.....Right?"

Wiping at her eyes in an attempt to keep from crying, Sakura snivels and nods her head.

"Y-Yeah" the girl agrees, quickly straightening up. "You're right. She would have mentioned something as important as that. Maybe Kurai is just hoping that Ashley will stay."

"Yeah that has to be it" Ino smiles, though she isn't sure she believes her and Sakura's words. "I mean, look at them. No way they could be separated."

Despite the tight feeling in her chest, Sakura can't help laughing as she looks ahead again. Trying to cling to an annoyed Sasuke's back, one arm around his neck, Ashley shouts something about getting Naruto, who seems to be grinning triumphantly about something.

An angry vein beginning to pulse on his head, Sasuke manages to grab onto Ashley's arm and fling her over his shoulder, sending her bouncing across the water, before she disappears beneath it.

Sasuke's vein is soon replaced by a sweat drop however, when Ashley's head slowly rises out of the water, a large wave writhing around behind her. A dark aura seems to float above the girl, her eyes twinkling menacingly.

Resting on the riverbank, Rei watches with great amusement as Sasuke is slammed with the wave, causing the boy to vanish from sight, while Ace tries to maintain the urge to roll his eyes every three seconds.

"You would think they would know not to challenge Milady in the water by now" Ace comments flatly, to which Rei nods in agreement.

"They're just having fun though dear" she smiles, before flicking her lavender eyes up to Kiba. She watches for a few seconds, before lowering her eyes back down to Sakura and Ino. "Well, most of them are having fun anyway...."

"You'd better swim fast Ashley" Sasuke warns, popping back up out of the water.

Ashley almost laughs at this, barely managing to hold it in. With his hair sopping wet like that, Sasuke looked about as threatening as a kitten.

"Wait a second!" Choji exclaims, causing everyone to pause. ".....Ashley, if you can control the water and you can stand on water........Can you control the water that you're standing on?"

Ashley stares straight ahead for a second, before tilting her head to look at Choji thoughtfully.

"I have no idea" she admits. "I've never tried it before."

"It'd be so cool!" Choji urges excitedly. "Try it, try it!"

"Yeah, do it Ashley-chan!" Naruto encourages, paddling through the water until he reaches a tree. He begins to clamber up the trunk, trying to watch Ashley over his shoulder as he does so.

Ashley tilts her head in thought, trying to figure out the best way to even attempt the feat. It wasn't like she could ask any of the Minami for assistance with this, seeing as none of them used chakra.

"Hey Ace" Ashley calls, climbing on top of the water's surface. "Have you ever done this before?"

"I have not" Ace replies, a faint smirk on his face. "I look forward to seeing you excel Milady."

"Jerk" Ashley huffs, deadpanning. "You just want me to fall...."

While Ace's abilities allowed him to create fire, as well as manipulate water, Ashley didn't think she'd ever seen him control the water he'd been standing on. It was going to be new territory for Ashley and, with everybody watching, she didn't want to embarrass herself.

While standing and walking on top of water had taken Ashley a long time to master, it now came as second nature and hardly took any concentration at all. Manipulating the water while standing on it however, was going to be something completely different...

Taking a deep breath, Ashley points both palms down towards the water, activating her Katsuryoku. She remains still for a few seconds, before slowly beginning to raise her hands upwards.

The girl's eyes widen slightly as she begins to rise up into the air, standing atop a small wave of water. After only rising a metre or two however, the water begins to ripple, its uneven surface becoming difficult to balance on.

Focusing as much as she can, Ashley tries to calm the disturbed water, though she finds that she is unable to. Concentrating on trying to keep the chakra flow even in her feet to stand on such an uneven surface, while also trying to focus her Katsuryoku was apparently going to be even harder than Ashley had initially imagined.

"Ack!" Ashley cries out, before abruptly falling through the water and dropping back down into the river.

Dumping himself down into a sitting position next to Kiba, his legs dangling over the side of the branch, Naruto howls with laughter at the sight of Ashley falling back into the water.

Sitting on the water, his arms draped over his knees, Sasuke is unable to keep from smirking as his cousin bursts back up out of the water, gasping for air. Choji also chuckles to himself, trying to do so quietly, while Shikamaru looks skywards, biting the insides of his cheeks to hold in his own laughter.

"It's not funny you assholes!" Ashley barks, her cheeks turning red with embarrassment. She stands back up on top of the water and puts her hands on her hips. "If you guys think it's so easy, then you do it!"

"You're the most ungraceful Ninja" Sasuke teases, earning himself a withering look from Ashley.

"That's not true" she protests, jabbing one hand up at Naruto. "He is."

"Hey!" Naruto exclaims, raising a fist in the air.

"I'm gonna climb up a tree and jump in again" Choji decides, having seen Naruto scurry up the one he is currently in. "You wanna try it Shikamaru?"

"Nah" the Nara declines easily, relaxing and floating on his back, hands behind his head. "If I go up there, I know one of you guys is gonna shove me off."

"We wouldn't do that" Choji argues, his attempt at feigning innocence causing Shikamaru to chuckle.

"Arf!" Akamaru barks, catching Ashley's attention and causing her to turn around. She spots the small Ninken crouched on the same branch as Kiba and Naruto, his butt in the air and his tail wagging.

"C'mon Akamaru!" Ashley urges, holding her arms up towards him. "I'll catch you!"

"Arf arf!" Akamaru agrees, backing up a little, before charging forwards and leaping off of the branch.

Her arms outstretched, a giggling Ashley catches Akamaru and pulls him to her chest. At the same time, she cuts off the chakra flow to her feet, allowing both herself and Akamaru to fall back into the water.

From up above, Kiba watches on silently as Ashley and Akamaru reappear, the blonde laughing and the pup wagging his tail. He begins paddling around Ashley in a circle, much to the girl's delight.

His tiny paws splashing in the water was adorable!

Kiba can't help the faint smile that crosses his face, though it soon dissipates when he remembers the earlier conversation with Kurai.

It had been bothering him this whole time. To the point that he didn't even feel like swimming and having fun anymore.

"Oi....Naruto" Kiba addresses quietly, his chin still in his palm and his eyes trained on Ashley and Akamaru.

"Yeah, what?" Naruto asks, pausing as he is about to jump.

"........If Ashley was gonna stay here when we all leave" Kiba begins, a little unsure of how to ask the question, "Would she have told you?"

"Huh?!" Naruto replies, thoroughly confused by the question. He turns around, small question marks appearing above his head as he looks to Kiba. "What're you talking about? Ashley's not staying here."

"Did she tell you that?" Kiba presses, brows furrowing slightly. Any sort of confirmation that what Kurai had said was untrue would do....

"Well, no but......" Naruto trails off, before spinning around and abruptly throwing himself off the branch. "Ashley-chan!"

Looking up in fright upon hearing her name being screeched, Ashley's eyes grow to large, white circles at the sight of the incoming Naruto. She quickly snatches Akamaru out of the way, just as the blonde slams into the water right in front of her.

"Naruto you idiot" Ashley berates. "You almost landed on top of Akamaru!"

"Ashley-chan" Naruto whimpers, reaching out and clinging onto the front of the girl's shirt. "You're not ditching us, right?"

"Huh?" Ashley asks in a flat tone, her expression now deadpan. "What are you raving on about?"

"You're coming back to the Leaf Village, aren't you?" Naruto questions, his eyes pleading.

"Seriously, what're you talking about?" Ashley sighs roughly, pulling herself free from Naruto's grip. "Of course I am, stupid. Why would you even ask me tha-"

"See?!" Naruto hollers up at the Inuzuka, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Ashley-chan's staying with us! Told ya!"

Blinking in surprise at Naruto's sudden personality change, Ashley tilts her head back to look up at Kiba questioningly.

Why was Naruto telling him that? Had Kiba asked that question?

Ashley's brows furrow a little.

Is that why Kiba had been acting all weird and quiet this whole time? Had he thought she was leaving?

Ashley feels her heart beat a little faster at the thought. Had Kiba been sad about the prospect of Ashley not coming home?

"Sh-Shut up, idiot" Kiba reprimands, covering his now blushing face with his hand. He hadn't wanted to directly ask Ashley about it, and he certainly hadn't wanted Naruto to do it. Not like that.

"Are you gonna swim or what Mutt?"

Kiba pauses at Ashley's words, able to hear the smirk in them. He lowers his hand from his face and glances down, only to confirm for himself, that she is indeed smirking up at him.

"Maybe you can't swim" the blonde suggests teasingly, trying to break Kiba out of his mood and have him join in with everyone.

It wasn't often that they had downtime like this, and Ashley wanted to enjoy every minute of swimming in her homeland with her friends while she could. Kiba included.

"Arf arf!" Akamaru encourages, splashing around near Ashley.

"Heh, you know I can swim" Kiba retorts, climbing to his feet. "We've been here before."

"I recall you falling out of the trees" Ashley answers smartly. "Not swimming."

From the riverbank, Ino and Sakura stare at Ashley and Kiba with deadpan expressions.

"Ugh..." Sakura grunts, to which Ino nods.

"Yeah" the blonde agrees. "Could they flirt somewhere else, instead of doing it here in front of everyone?"

Overhearing the two girls, Ace blanches, his body going rigid at the thought of his precious partner flirting with such a lowly creature as Kiba. Rei however, smiles to herself. She quite liked the Inuzuka and was secretly rooting for him.

Rei knew that her Lady Ashley was going to be a tough nut to crack though.

"Alright Angel" Kiba sighs, now breaking out into his signature smirk, sharp teeth on display. "You asked for it."

Everyone watches as Kiba crouches down on all fours, still smirking, when he suddenly launches himself away from the branch at speed. He drills violently through the air, crashing into the water beside Ashley in a mere second.

Ashley throws her arms in the air and laughs loudly as she is carried through the water from the force of Kiba's collision, while Akamaru clings to her shoulder, not wanting to get swept away.

Naruto, Sasuke and Shikamaru are all swept in different directions as well, with Naruto cackling hysterically.

"Now that was a good one!" he cheers, eventually coming to a slow stop further down the river.

"Idiot" Sasuke grumbles, swatting wet hair from his face as he climbs back on top of the water, glaring in Kiba's direction.

".....I think I breathed in some water" Shikamaru states, looking a little blue in the face. "Give us a warning next time Kiba?"

"You had plenty of time to react" the Inuzuka brushes Shikamaru's concern off, now crouching on top of the water. He shakes his head vigorously, spraying drops of water in every direction. "Look, even Ashley managed to get away."

"Hn" Ashley grunts, amused. "Go on Akamaru, go to Kiba. You'd better enjoy being with him before he mysteriously drowns soon."

"Hah!" Kiba barks out a laugh, reaching his arms out as Akamaru paddles over to him. "You couldn't drown me without using your Kekkei Genkai and cheating."

"My abilities are not cheating" Ashley argues, treading water. "They're-"

"Expansion Jutsu!" a voice calls out, causing everyone to turn and look.

Everyone's eyes widen, when they spot Choji leap off of a high tree branch, his hands placed together in a hand sign and his body rapidly expanding into a huge sphere.

"Choji you idiot!" Shikamaru shouts, turning to try and swim out of the way as his best friend falls towards the water at speed.

"This is gonna be great!" Naruto cheers, throwing both fists into the air.

Before anyone is able to get far, a grinning Choji slams heavily into the water, sending up a large wave that immediately engulfs everyone in the near vicinity.

Ino and Sakura cover their heads with their hands and turn their backs to the water, screaming as they are dowsed head to toe. Hinata, having also turned away, gasps for breath as the water falls, her jacket now heavy with water.

On the riverbank, Rei and Ace watch as the water flows right up to their paws, before the white Wolf bursts out laughing. Ace merely sighs and shakes his head, looking to see where Ashley had ended up.

The blonde girl suddenly bursts up out of the water, arms flailing, before she rests her elbows on top of the water. She takes a few deep breathes and wipes the water from her eyes, one eyebrow twitching.

She turns her head, hearing two people laughing loudly, only to see Naruto sitting cross legged on top of the water and slapping his knee. Not too far away, Kiba laughs as well, only his head visible above the water. Akamaru lays wearily in his hair, his tail not wagging for once.

Nearby, Shikamaru floats on his back, staring up at the sky listlessly. He had almost died just then. Choji had been mere centimetres away from landing right on top of him......

"Idiots..." Sasuke growls under his breath, standing on a high branch above the river. The Uchiha had been the only one to escape from Choji's super bomb into the water.

"Aw yeah!" Choji exclaims, his head appearing above the water. He jabs one fist into the air victoriously. "I win! I made the biggest splash!"

"You almost killed us" Shikamaru points out in a flat tone, to which Choji shrugs.

"I still won."

"Choji you moron!" Ino screeches, dripping wet as she steps up onto the riverbank and stabs one finger at her teammate. "When you get over here, you're dead! Do you hear me?! Dead! We didn't want to get wet!"

"Why'd they even come swimming then?" Kiba can't help wondering out loud, leaning backwards to float in the water.

Akamaru immediately jumps onto Kiba's stomach and gets comfortable, also happy to float along in the water.

Pouting, Ashley stares at Choji, though she decides not to berate him. It was true, he had definitely made the biggest splash so far. But if Choji was allowed to use his abilities to make a big splash, then why was it cheating if Ashley used hers?

Suddenly realising that a relaxed Kiba has started floating towards her, his arms folded behind his head and his eyes closed, Ashley breaks into a devilish grin. She turns her body and slowly, quietly, begins swimming towards the Inuzuka, doing her best to disturb the water as little as possible.

Once Kiba's head is just about bumping into her, Ashley raises both arms, the sound of the water splashing so close to him causing the Inuzuka to open his eyes. He immediately sweat drops at the sight of Ashley's evil expression above him, but before he can move, the blonde presses down on Kiba's shoulders and shoves him under the water, head first.

Kiba flails his arms and legs as he is dunked, the movement causing a half asleep Akamaru to slide into the water.

"Arf!" the puppy barks in fright, dismayed at finding himself in the water again.

After getting hit with the wave from Choji's bomb, Akamaru had had quite enough of the water for one day.

Ashley begins to giggle again, unable to stop herself, when Kiba bursts back up out of the water, sputtering and coughing. Hearing Ashley laugh, he flicks his wet hair out of his face and glares at her, unimpressed.

"Looks like you were wrong about me not being able to drown you without cheating Mutt" the girl states smugly, something that causes Kiba to blink.

He lets out a short laugh, running a hand through his hair to push it back from his face.

"Fine" he concedes, now holding up both hands in mock defeat. "You win. For now."

"I'll be sure to watch my back" Ashley says sarcastically, having heard the warning in Kiba's words.

"Hey Ley-chan!" a voice suddenly calls from the riverbank, causing everyone to turn and look over.

Her hands on her hips and a less than impressed expression plastered across her face, Saffire stands with Fang and Kai beside her, staring directly at Ashley.

"Hey Saffire!" Ashley calls back, happy to see her friend. "You come for a swim too?"

"Psh, no" Saffire scoffs, wrinkling her nose at the thought of hanging out with the Leaf Ninja. "I've been looking for you."

"Well, we're busy having fun right now" Ino sniffs, mirroring Saffire's look of distaste. "So go away."

Kai barks out a laugh at Ino's words, while Saffire whirls around to glare at the girl.

"What did you need?" Ashley asks, hoping to interject before Saffire and Ino can start fighting.

"Kiyu-chan is awake" Saffire says, a vein pulsing on the side of her head. She had come to find Ashley to tell her the good news about her sister, not to fight with her unpleasant Leaf Village friends.

Although, it was difficult not to, seeing as Saffire didn't like any of them.

"What?" Ashley breathes, her eyes widening. "Really?"

"Yep" Saffire confirms, finally breaking into a grin. "First thing she asked for was her big sister, so I came looking for you. Aren't I such a good friend?"

A broad smile spreading across her face, Ashley focuses chakra into her hands and feet and immediately climbs on top of the water's surface. She breaks into a sprint, her heart thudding in her chest as she runs towards Saffire.

It had been a good number of hours since Ashley had visited her sister in the morning, and while Keilor had said that Kiyumi was doing better, Ashley couldn't have imagined that she'd be awake so soon!

"C'mon, let's go, let's go!" Ashley urges Saffire, jumping onto the riverbank and running right past the taller girl.

"Wait a second Milady" Ace calls, causing the girl to skid to a halt and throw the Wolf an impatient look over her shoulder. "You are dripping wet. Please, dry off first....."

"Oh" Ashley realises, looking down at herself. "No problem!"

Moving her arms, Ashley uses her Katsuryoku to drag the excess water from her clothes and hair, before dumping it back into the river, leaving her as dry as she had been before jumping in for the first time.

As the girl is about to turn and leave however, she pauses mid step, something having come to mind.

"Rei" the blonde addresses. "Do you mind staying with the others? They won't know the way back to the Village if I leave."

"Who cares if they get lost?" Saffire scoffs, strolling past Ashley and shrugging her shoulders.

"Want me to stay?" Kai asks cheekily, sending a menacing glance back at the three girls standing on the riverbank.

"Please, not him" Sakura begs, peeking at the large Wolf from behind Ino.

"....What did you do to them?" Fang asks curiously, to which Kai merely begins to chuckle in an evil way.

"I'm happy to stay" Rei chirps, climbing to her feet and stretching. "I may even go for a swim myself!"

"Thanks Rei" Ashley says appreciatively, walking back over to pet the Wolf's head. "Alright guys, I'm gonna head back to see Kiyu. Rei will guide you all back to the Village when you want to leave, okay?"

"Okay Ashley-chan!" Naruto calls back, waving one arm in the air. "Good luck with your sister!"

"See you later" Sakura adds, giving Ashley a tiny smile and wave.

Sasuke, always too cool, bends his wrist and slightly raises his hand in a sort of wave, before turning his head to face the other way.

Closing both eyes, Ashley grins at her friends, before turning around and running back towards the Village, with Ace, Saffire, Fang and Kai in tow.

Rei smiles at their backs until they are out of sight, before the Wolf hoods her lavender eyes and walks over to Sakura, Ino and Hinata.

"Pardon me dears" the Wolf addresses softly, sounding serious, "But about what you were saying earlier......Has Milady really mentioned something about staying here in the Land of Ambience?"

The three Genin all blink at Rei, before exchanging hesitant looks with each other.

"....So, she hasn't said anything to you about it?" Sakura asks, feeling a little hopeful. If Ashley hadn't even mentioned it to her Wolves, then surely it wasn't true.

"No, she hasn't" Rei confirms, though her brows furrow with worry.

It didn't make sense to Rei that Ashley would want to stay here in the Land of Ambience. Sure, it was her homeland and the surviving members of her family were here, but this place also held many painful and horrific memories for Ashley.

Not to mention, Rei could see just how much Ashley cared for her Leaf Village friends, whether the girl wanted to admit it or not. Rei couldn't imagine that she would be happy in a place without them.

Staying here would surely only lead to more pain for Ashley......

"What brought up this concern?" Rei adds, wanting to get to the bottom of it.

"Um.....Kurai told us that Ashley was going to stay" Ino admits, feeling a little bad for some reason. She felt as if she was tattling on someone, though it was probably better for Rei to know.

"Kurai?" Rei repeats, before closing her eyes and sighing. "I see......"

Rei didn't remember too much about the pink haired girl, but she knew a few things. While Kurai was certainly a genuinely sweet and kind girl, she also had a side that was as equally unsweet. If Kurai felt threatened, she was not one to sit back and accept things.

Rei was certain that Ashley would have never mentioned staying here, especially not to Kurai, so the pink haired girl must have reached that conclusion on her own. While Rei could understand why Kurai would assume such a thing, as she would have wanted Kiyumi to always have her sister with her, it wasn't fair of Kurai to go around declaring such a thing......

"It's not true, is it?" Sakura asks, almost sounding pleading, as she looks to Rei with wavering eyes. "I don't think I could stand it if we had to be separated....."

"I don't know dear" Rei responds gently, though she sends the girl a reassuring smile. "Milady hasn't said anything to me, nor do I believe she has told Kurai such a thing. Kurai may have jumped to conclusions........Perhaps she feels the same way you do about Milady leaving her and the other Minami?"

"I'm glad you're feeling better Kiyumi....." Dashi says softly, one hand gently resting on his granddaughter's head as he smiles down at her. "I was very worried."

"I told you that she'd be alright Dashi" Arelle reminds the older man, only to laugh good naturedly when he sweat drops.

"I know" Dashi sighs, "And you know that I trust your visions with my life. But......seeing my precious granddaughter like that.....It was hard to believe...."

"I'm sorry for worrying you Chief" Kiyumi apologises quietly, though she is smiling to herself. She glances around the room, thankful to see the remaining members of her Clan surrounding her.

Atsui, sitting in a chair right beside Kiyumi's bed, holds onto the girl's right hand, concern replacing his usually stern expression. Normally he'd be too embarrassed to sit here and hold Kiyumi's hand, but considering he had thought that she was going to die, holding her hand suddenly didn't seem like such a difficult thing to do anymore...

Unusually calm, Tsumetai perches in Atsui's lap, now back in his normal chibi form. He blinks his large eyes, tail wagging when he sees Kiyumi look at him.

Kurai sits on the other side of Kiyumi's bed, one hand over her heart and the other resting on Kiyumi's arm. She watches the younger girl through affectionate eyes, despite the way her body is trembling. She too had been terrified that Kiyumi was going to die, and after what they had all been through together, the thought of being torn apart in such a horrific way just felt too overwhelming.

Standing behind Kurai, Shimei rests both hands on the girl's shoulders to reassure her, understanding how frightened she had been at the thought of losing Kiyumi.

Tamashi stands beside Keilor, leaning against the shorter Wolf comfortingly. While, of course, Keilor had been all over Kiyumi the second she had woken up, he was trying to restrain himself while the other Clan members were present.

If Keilor had his way, he'd be sitting on Kiyumi's pillow and snuggling against her cheek right now.

"We're all so relieved that you're awake Kiyu-chan" Kurai says, her voice trembling a little. "We were all-"

Suddenly, the sliding door of the room is thrown open, the ruckus causing everyone to turn around, just as Ashley comes skidding into the room, breathing heavily.

The room falls silent, save for the sound of Ashley's panting, as the two sisters lock eyes with each other. Ashley feels a pang in her heart, at the sight of her younger sister sitting in the hospital bed, bandages and bruises all over her.

Kiyumi stares right back, her eyes immediately filling with tears of relief and guilt. She had dragged her tired and injured sister out to help her during that fight, knowing that she'd be too weak to do much, and then Kiyumi had managed to get seriously injured.

If Kiyumi had just been more careful......her wonderful sister wouldn't have transformed into the Ten Tails and gone on a rampage.

It was all Kiyumi's fault, because she was too weak. She would understand if Ashley was extremely mad at her.

After all, having the Ten Tails sealed inside of her had been incredibly traumatic for Ashley, and had led to many problems, even in the short time Kiyumi had known her as a Jinchuuriki back then. Ashley had hated having the beast sealed inside her even as a kid, so Kiyumi felt so guilty for causing her to use it's power in such a way.....Not to mention, it was incredibly dangerous for Ashley to do so.

"Kiyu......" Ashley says, dragging the younger girl out of her train of thought.

Before Kiyumi can speak however, Ashley darts across the room and flings her arms around her sister's shoulders, hugging the girl tightly to her chest. Kiyumi blinks in surprise at Ashley's reaction, able to feel her sister's body shivering as she begins to cry.

"D-Don't cry Ley-chan" Kiyumi begs softly, reaching up to hug her sister back. She closes her eyes, her own tears falling now as well.

The relief she felt at being held by her older sister was indescribable. It wouldn't have mattered whether it was Chief Dashi, Keilor, or her own Mother......Nobody could make Kiyumi feel as safe as Ashley did.

"I'm sorry Kiyu" Ashley apologises, her fingers curling into the back of her sister's shirt. "I'm sorry.....I'm really sorry......."

"S-Sorry?" Kiyumi repeats, shocked. "Why would you be-"

"You got hurt because I couldn't protect you" Ashley interrupts, sounding angry. "It was my fault that bastard hit you. I should have protected you, or at least jumped in the way of-"

"Don't say that!" Kiyumi cries, pushing Ashley away from her and looking up. She sees the ashamed look on her sister's face as the girl avoids eye contact, tears pouring down her cheeks.

Clinging on to her sister's arms, Kiyumi tries not to begin sobbing, having to take a few quick breaths to try and calm herself down.

"Ley-chan" Kiyumi tries again. "It wasn't your fault, it was mine. I wasn't strong enough, and even though I knew you were injured, I still dragged you out there. If I hadn't done that......y-you wouldn't have....you wouldn't have had to transform into that m-monster. It's my fault that happened to you, so I'm r-really....I'm really, r-really s-sorry!"

From the back of the room, Ace watches as Kiyumi bursts into tears, sobbing loudly at the guilt she felt for causing her sister harm. He tilts his head to the side, feeling rather affectionate as Ashley hurriedly grabs at Kiyumi and begins hugging her again.

Nothing brought out Ashley's protective side like her little sister. Being able to see them together again felt nice...

"D-Don't be stupid Kiyu" Ashley admonishes quietly. "My transforming wasn't your fault. I just wanted to kill that stupid bastard."

"Yeah but if I hadn't-"

"Enough blaming yourselves for the others' pain now" Chief Dashi commands, though his tone is kind. "No one is to blame for any of this except Sirius, and he's gone now. We should be celebrating the freedom of our homeland and the recovery of my granddaughter. Not to mention the discovery of my other granddaughter."

"Yeah!" Saffire agrees, having been leaning against the wall at the back of the room. "We've got heaps to celebrate, so hurry up and get better Kiyu-chan!"

"Everyone has recovered so well" Fang agrees, sitting beside Kai. "We really ought to celebrate."

"How can we celebrate when Kiyu-chan is still bed ridden?" Kurai wonders, frowning in thought.

"Tai-chan knows, Tai-chan knows!" Tsumetai declares, jumping up and down in Atsui's lap. "Let's eat lots of snacks! Lots and lots of snacks!"

"We can't eat snacks in the hospital" Atsui sighs irritably. "Don't be-"

"I bet we could convince the hospital staff to let us eat snacks in the room with Kiyu-chan" Saffire decides, smacking her fist down into the palm of her other hand. "Or, we could get real food and eat. I bet you're hungry, right Kiyu-chan?"

The Minami all look to Kiyumi knowingly. The girl was always happy to eat.

"I could definitely eat" Kiyumi smiles self-consciously, sweat dropping. "I haven't eaten for a few days now...."

"We're gonna have to order a lot of food to make her happy" Atsui points out, a faint smile on his face as he looks to Kiyumi.

The girl immediately blushes and ducks her head, avoiding eye contact with Ashley. A question mark appears over the older twins' head, causing Saffire to smirk teasingly.

"Kiyumi is a bottomless pit when it comes to food" the girl explains, only to giggle at the pleading look that Kiyumi sends her.

Ashley blinks a few times, turning her head to look down at Kiyumi. She stares in silence for a few seconds, before breaking out into a wolfish grin, her sharp teeth on display.

"I bet I can eat more than you Kiyu" Ashley declares, her words surprisingly the younger blonde.

Kiyumi looks up at Ashley, only to giggle. Kiyumi didn't really possess the same mischievous spirit as Ashley, but it seemed that she certainly shared her sister's appetite!

"I doubt that Ley-chan" Kiyumi jokes, her words lighting the competitive fire within Ashley.