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We crept through the quiet village, Kaa-sans face covered by the ANBU headpiece and carrying me efficiently on her back. It was tense, the Kazekage could notice their disappearance at anytime, he wasn't Kage for nothing. He had to have noticed our odd behavior around him at some time, he wasn't thick-headed.

Kaa-san weaved in and out of shadows with practiced ease, eyes scanning her surroundings as she cautiously slunk from building to building, while I stayed perfectly silent. Both of us were suppressing our chakra, though she was better at it then me, being an ANBU.

We were tense, backs clenched, ready for a sudden attack, but surprisingly, none came, and we made it safely to the massive cliffs that served as a natural defense against enemies on the ground.

"Ok Michi-chan, use your chakra to stick to my back, I need to focus on scaling the cliff." She said, just above a whisper. I nodded into her back, and did as she told, it would be exhausting, but I could maybe last until we got over the sandstone mountains and into the actual desert.

Honestly, to think my mother was doing all of this for me... becoming a missing-nin, sending me to a village hostile to Suna just so I won't be forced into the gory life of an underage ninja prodigy, just because she loved me... it was hard to comprehend the love a mother has for a child.

As we started climbing up the cliff, I could feel gravity pulling down on us, trying to drag us back to the Kazekage's clutches. I may have miscalculated how long I would last, but by Kimi I will not force my mother into Chakra exhaustion because of my own incompetency.

The climb was tedious, and to make it worse we had to look over our shoulders to see if all Suna was bearing down on us from behind. It felt like I should be holding my breath, grabbing my weapons, fully alert, but every time I looked back, I just saw the quiet village, asleep, unmoving.

You may be wondering why we're scaling the side of the village's natural walls instead of going through a gate, but that was near impossible.

You see Suna only has two entrances, the rest is enclosed in the cliffs, and seeing as how there is only two entrances, they're both swarming with guards. There would've been no way me and Kaa-san could've gotten through them without risking getting caught, and that is a risk my mother is not willing to take.

Knowing this, my mother took the safer, but more exhausting rout.

I glanced back once more over my shoulder as mother climbed over the lip of the first incline of the sandstone mountains, two more to go before we climb down and run through the desert.

"We'll take a break after every incline, you don't have enough chakra to keep going without breaks yet," she said, not even seeming to be out of breath. The only indication of even slight exhaustion was a sheen of sweat just on her right brow.

I nodded as she shifted me off her back and into her arms, cradling me close to her chest as if I could disappear at any moment. I didn't resist, instead, resting my head on her arm and cuddling closer to her. We stayed like that for a few minutes, before she moved, and grabbed a canteen of water, letting me take a drink of it before she did. She handed me a piece of her rations bar, and after we finished the brief snack, I was back on her back.

We ran for a couple feet, before we were back scaling a cliff. Luckily, this one wasn't as high, and after about twenty minutes of climbing, we reached the top, and took a shorter break.

I could already feel the nudge of chakra exhaustion and frowned when we reached the base of the third and final cliff, before it was a straight drop down to the desert.

With this in mind, I pushed through until we reached the top.

Kaa-san settled me down on her lap once more, taking out another ration bar and giving me half, then, we both took a drink from the canteen.

"It's going to be a tough journey from here on out. The desert is a remorseless place, days are hot and dry, with not a speck of water in sight, and the nights are cold, and dark, making you wish the day would come back," she warned firmly, and I nodded, "Never take off even a single piece of clothing, even if it's a furnace, your skin is too pale, and would burn up in a heartbeat." Grimacing, I nodded once more, thinking about the daunting task at hand.

She gave me a soft smile, "Don't worry, I'll be with you until the end of the journey."

I frowned, there seemed to be a double meaning there, could she...- My thoughts were cut off as she planted a gentle kiss, once more, on my forhead, "I love you Michi-chan."

"...I love you too, Kaa-san," I said with a half-smile.

"Now, lets get going," she said, and continued to hold me tightly in her arms, sticking me there with her chakra. "Hold on."

With that, she ran off the other side of the cliff, and I could practically feel the chakra swarming down to her feet as she cushioned herself from the landing , if anyone other then a ninja had fallen, this stunt would've broken bones.

She stood up straight, while I kept myself from gaping.

"Now, the real journey begins," she said ominously.

- __ - _ - __ -

It was the second day of out headlong sprint...well, mother was sprinting, while I was clutched to her chest. Her speed was inhuman, speed that no normal person would've even begun to dream of competing with. Of course, this was thanks to chakra.

I myself was trying to resist the urge to take my shirt off. I was feeling smothered by the sun's heat; it was as if my clothing had become an unwanted personal sauna.

Mother hadn't stopped even once, even when she ran straight through a sandstorm. I had to bury my face in her cloths and cover my ears just so the sand wouldn't invade the openings on my face.

Thankfully, I did manage to sleep a couple times, even if they weren't deep, they still gave me small bursts of energy.

We only stopped once, at a small village made up of maybe ten, eleven, buildings, one of them an Inn. That night, I slept soundly, still wrapped in my mother's arms.

The next day, she took a shower, and gave me a bath. She hastily washed the cloths we wore, drying them with a wind ninjutsu. We ate a proper meal, instead of the occasional ration bars she gave to me or ate for herself while still running.

After the meal, buying some dried meat and filling four canteens, we were off once more. I didn't know how she kept going for so long, honestly, but, oddly enough, I'd seen her take small white pills throughout the journey.

Again, we didn't stop, until we crossed the border of Suna and went into the unclaimed land between the land of Wind, and the land of Fire. Then, finally, we rested once more at a village named Tani.

"Mother... how much longer?" I asked wearily, rubbing my eyes as I sat in her lap. While it was nice to see actual rivers instead of endless sand, I just wanted this whole thing to end, so we could settle down, and go back to normal life.

"Just two more weeks Michi-chan, just two more weeks," she hugged me to her, and I melted in her grip. She let out a melodious chuckle, "You're such a good hugger." And then she kissed the top of my head.

"your such a good hugger,"...."you give such great hugs"... I blinked in confusion...those words seem...oddly familiar, so familiar....so warm.

"Bath time for you," she grinned, picking me up and carrying me to the other side of the room we rented out for the night and the morning. Walking into the bathroom, she sat me on the counter and began to run the water, making sure it was the perfect temperature before taking off my cloths and placing me in the tub.

After she dried and re-dressed me in now-clean cloths, she took her own shower, placing me on the bed. I sat there, contemplating my thoughts. What she said seemed so familiar, but I just couldn't place it, it was just...itching at the back of my mind...

I shook it off, thinking about more immediate things, like how Konoha would react to a Suna missing-nin and her one-year-old child that claim to be relatives of this...Kakashi.

Kakashi...another annoyingly familiar name. I swear I've never heard of him before, but then why was it so recognizable.

This was all so irritating.

Before I could muse on it further, mother came out of the shower, fully dressed of course, but she had gotten rid of her ANBU uniform. She smiled at me, before sitting down at my side.

"What're you thinking about?" She asked with an amused smirk.

"What makes you think I'm thinking about anything?" I responded.

"You have you're thinking face on."

"I don't have a thinking face," I huffed.

"Yes, you do."

She hugged me before letting me respond, and I scowled lightly. It didn't take long for me to sink further into her grasp as she gently ran her fingers through my locks.

"Go to sleep Michi, we won't be stopping anywhere until we get to Konoha," she murmured softly, and slowly, the rhythmic stroking lulled me into a comfortable sleep, a smile on my face.

- __ - _ - __ -

The next morning, we had a filling breakfast of eggs and bacon, with orange juice to drink for an extra boost of energy. We both smiled, and talked, me sitting in her lap (Because the chairs were massive) and eating my own small plate.

Soon after, we packed up, refilling our supplies and heading off with me snug in her arms.

It didn't take any longer then three days to pass the border into the Land of Fire, and mother was immediately on high alert. Our clothing stood out like a sore thumb in the luscious green of the forest, which didn't have a spot of tan in sight other then the occasional sandy banks, which were usually made up of more pebbles then the silky sand I was used to.

Though, it was better then somehow getting sand in every nook and cranny my body possessed.

I began to get as paranoid as my mother, it was almost as if we were connected. My silver eyes darted around the clearing like a fearful mouse. It was like the land itself was hostile towards us.

I wondered if this is what Fire Country's occupants felt like when they were in our land.

I heard the sound of twigs snapping nearby and shot my gaze towards it, my small heart beating rapidly, eyes wide. I rationalized that it couldn't be a ninja, they wouldn't be so foolish as to step on a twig when pursuing enemies...right?

Despite the sound logic, I couldn't help but race through possibilities. What if Kaa-san and I were killed before we could reach safety? What if we get brought in for questioning and torture? What if this starts a war between my home country and my possible new home? What if? What if?

"Michi-chan, you need to calm down, we can't afford a panic attack here," mother reprimanded sharply. Then, her gaze softened, "I will protect you; I promise."

I inwardly cringed at the word promise. For some reason, I always hated the word, and one saying I've never heard of always surfaced in my mind, whenever I heard it, "Promises lead only to disappointment." That's why I always avoided the word. Never make promises, even if you're sure you'll fulfill it, because you most likely wont.

We continue through the trees, which steadily grew taller, and thicker, more ancient and demanding respect. Sometimes, I swore I saw flashes in the trees, a glint of white, whispers, and my gut told me that it wasn't just my mind playing tricks on me.

Impulsively, I buried my face in my mother's clothes, shivering quietly.

Two days went by before we were confronted by Konoha nin.

I stared at them quietly as they stood before us with weapons drawn. I only hoped that none of them had a personal vendetta against Suna.

Doubtful, it was probably pounded into their heads that we were all evil. Luckily, that didn't happen to me, I hate it when I'm brainwashed to think that a specific group is just all bad. Sure, they may be my enemies, but most likely there were good, and bad people, just like all of humanity.

"What is your business in the Land of Fire, Suna nin?" one of them said with a cold voice, most likely the leader of the group.

Kaa-san glanced around hesitantly, before answering in an unwavering voice, "...I wish to speak to your Hokage, if you would allow it," she bowed, much to my surprise, the Konoha shinobi didn't show any visible reactions.

"Why?" the leader demanded.

"That is for the Hokage to know, all you must know is that I do not wish to attack you or anyone in the Fire Country."

"Why would we take Suna nin into Konoha," one of the shinobi behind the leader sneered.

"I expected you wouldn't trust me, which makes sense," she sighed, "look, take my weapon's pouch, bring me there yourself, I don't care, but I must speak to your Hokage." She said, desperation tinging her voice.

"... Mother, you don't have to do this for me," I said, brows furrowed. I don't want to see her plead and beg; I had seen enough of that with that damn Kazekage.

"No, Michi-chan, I will not let that man force you early into the academy, we've come all this way, we can't go back now," she responded, sadness tinging her features. I cast my eyes down, saying nothing. She turned back to the nin, taking off her headpiece.

"Please."

After a few beats of silence, the leader raised a hand, and the nin behind him lowered their weapons; they didn't put them away though, which wasn't unexpected. He then walked forwards, taking the weapon pouches off my mother. I wasn't worried, she knew a whole slew of ninjutsu, she'd defend us, if needed.

"Come on," the shinobi leader made a few hand signals, and the rest of the group took up positions around us.

We dashed through the trees, following the Konoha nin with relative ease, well, my mother did, I was still held in her arms.

A few more days passed with a single rest where we were guarded all night, before we continued through the forest growing progressively denser. I awed at the trees that blurred past us, eyes wide. There was so much green, so many trees. The only trees I had seen before were the dead ones in the desert and the pathetic ones in the river land.

Soon, I was to be more in awe.

We reached the massive gates of Konoha after four days and a nights of travel. I fought to keep my mouth closed, but I couldn't help just staring at the massive gates. I had never seen the gates of Suna, which, I assume, were just as large, so I expected I'd react like this when my mother told me what Konoha looked like, but still.

"Wow...big," I murmured, and I swear I heard one of our shinobi guard dogs chuckle.

"I know...isn't it beautiful here?" My mother smiled softly.

"Better then getting sand in my ears, that's for sure," I scoffed. Another chuckle, I turned around to the shinobi laughing. "What? It's irritating."

He grinned while another rolled his eyes. When we reached the gates, the guards there asked what we were doing here and for identification. I saw the leader show them a scroll and mutter back something, and after a few more minutes of questioning and some pointed glares in our direction, we were finally able to walk through the gates.

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