[[Yall are too nice to me. I promise to keep this story going as long as I can with yalls help! Enjoy this chapter where we learn more about our loveable Aki and how she got in this huge mess. ~Ginzan]]

"Negative emotions like loneliness, envy, and guilt have an important role to play in a happy life; they're big, flashing signs that something needs to change."

-Gretchen Rubin

The rest of the walk to the Inuzuka compound was pleasantly quiet after Naruto was carted off back to the academy. Though his conversation topics were interesting, nothing quite matched the silence of nature. The wind blowing the leaves in the trees making them rustle, the birds softly chirping to one another about their day and one of my person favorites was running water. Streams, waterfalls, or even the ocean. The sounds were perfectly harmonizing in a way that only nature could produce.

I bowed my head slightly as I entered the compound and acknowledged the Jonin that was on guard to keep most of the riff-raff out. Lucky me most of the shops were located close to the entrance so I wouldn't have to go far to get the food for Haku. Finding myself stopping in front of the first shop, it was brightly colored with drawn puppies on the windows. With a soft smile, I walked through the door only to be greeted with a giant dog sitting in front of me, blocking me from going further in. I looked down at him curiously unsure why I couldn't shop here.

"Sorry, we are already closed. Most of the shops around here close about this time," A young genin stepped out with his own ninken. He was cute for a kid. I huffed a sigh, defeated before I had even started.

"Thank you for letting me know. I'll have to remember that, first time buying here for my new pup. Have a wonderful da-" I was caught off by someone opening the door behind me. The small bell sounded as the door opened slowly. Now I was trapped between a ninken and someone else who had been too late to shop as well.

"Am I too late?" The man behind me asked sheepishly. The boy laughed at this and started to grab something for him. Who was he that he was so special they would sell to him and not me. I wanted to pout at how it was unfair but knew better than to do something so silly in public. Glancing over my shoulder I froze when I saw who was behind me. My first patient. The one that had seen me at my lowest. He was taller than I was by a foot. Unlucky for me, when I had turned to look at him, he also glanced at my face. So there we stood, just staring at one another as if the other was an alien.

"Kakashi you need to try and get here before we close, mother won't sell to you if she's on shift, not me," The boy spoke as he walked around the shopping picking up different things. I wasn't watching but I could hear things rustling as I was locked in the eyes behind me. Kakashi. That was his name, wasn't it? It sounded familiar.

"Excuse me," I whispered with a voice that didn't sound like mine. It sounded scared and I hated it. I was cowering in front of a man I'd only had the briefest contact with. I was pathetic.

"Kakashi?" Lucky me with his name being called out for the second time, forced him to look up and acknowledge the small child that held everything that he had needed. With this distraction, I slipped by the man without giving him a second glance. He looked like he might have stopped me but walked forward to continue his interaction with the ninja.

"Oh sorry got distracted for a moment and yes yes, your mother can be quiet scary when she wants to be," He made a worried face as he checked out.

Out in the fresh air, it felt like I had been holding my breath while he was behind me. I pulled the oxygen into my lungs and held for a moment. Seeing him was traumatizing. I was ready to be over with this whole ordeal of my job and existence. I had resolved to not cry anymore, to never use my kekkei genkai unless my family was in danger, and I was going to find the highlights in this job and do my best not to bad at it. Releasing the breath, I quickly left the compound not wanting to run into this Kakashi ever again. He was the sole reminder of my failure and I had no interest to ever see or meet the man again. Though I didn't realize this at the moment Kakashi Hatake would be in my life, whether I wanted him there or not.

Putting some distance between him and myself, I found myself taking the long way to market. Though I wasn't going to complain. I still had plenty of time, especially now that dog shopping had been canceled. The quietness was calming and helped relax my nerves. Not long after my journey to the market, I found that my trip passed right by the memorial stone. A place I hadn't been since… I stopped in front of it only a yard away as I looked at the rock. So many names lingered here to be honored. They gave their lives for the village. Something I knew I could never have done.

"What's wrong with me Suzuki?" I spoke softly as I took a step forward and sat politely on my knees in front of it. My still empty basket sat beside me quietly as I mourned the friend I lost. This had been the first time I had returned since they had added her name.

Closing my eyes I let the memories flood to the front of my mind as I forgot the world around me. Suzuki had been my very first friend. We met when we were both six years old after she had fallen out of a tree. Her mother had brought her over to our house since it was closer than the hospital and full of medical-nin. We had been the closest of friends anyone could have known. Or At least I thought so.

She had been the first person to see me for me. Back then I wasn't Aki Noragi the medical-nin. I was Aki or Kiki if I liked you. I was a quiet young girl that just existed. Even when we started school she was always there to talk to me and make my life brighter with just her smile. She would have made a great Hokage. I knew she was going to do it too. Deep in my heart the moment she told me that was her dream. Her dream to keep her village safe and everyone in it. Most importantly her family and… And me.

A piece of paper was given to all of us. I started at it curiously as I picked it up and turned it over. Nothing was written on it but it didn't feel like the normal paper we used during class. Suzuki was next to me just staring at it before she started to crumble it and put it in her mouth to eat. My eye grew huge as I was watched her do this.

"What are you doing? Stop that!" She only eyed me and continued to shove it in her mouth. After a moment she spits it back out and started making gagging noises. Scrapping her tongue with her nails to try and get the taste out. I laughed at her as the entire class erupted and laughed with me. We all got a kick out of the odd and silly things she did. She was definitely a unique ninja in training. I gave her a huge smile as she yelled a boy behind her that had called her an idiot. She was so loveable. How could anyone not love her?

"Alright class that's enough," the class quieted down as we returned our attention to our sensei. "Today we are going to figure out your chakra affinity. The five basic natures are the five elemental chakra natures which are the foundation of all elemental ninjutsu. They are so vital to the shinobi lifestyle that each of the five great shinobi countries is named after one of the five.

Each element is naturally weaker than or stronger than another. First is fire, which is strong against wind but weak water. Wind is strong against lightning, weak against fire. Lightning is strong against earth, weak against wind. Earth is strong against water, weak against lightning. And finally, water is strong against fire, weak against earth.

Basically, if an elemental technique is put against another elemental technique of the same level, but of a stronger nature, then the technique with the superior nature will prevail. However, a technique with a weaker nature can overpower a technique with a stronger nature if the former is of a higher level. For example, fire can overpower a water technique if it is first strengthened by a wind technique.

A similar principle applies to how the technique of the same element interacts, what is called counterbalancing. If two techniques of the same nature and the same level are used against each other, they will cancel each other out, as when you use a lightning ninjutsu against another lightning ninjutsu. However, if the two techniques have different levels, the higher-level technique will not only prevail but will grow stronger from interaction with the weaker, as when a high-level fire technique, would grow stronger by absorbing an opposing fire technique." He stopped for a moment and threw a piece of chalk a kid in the far back that had fallen asleep. Though to be fair this was kinda boring. I hoped it got more interesting, I was curious about chakra affinity.

"I hope if we find out what our affinities are, I get earth. Earth Ninjutsu is so cool. One day I'll be able to smash my fist into the ground and the ground will do as I command," I whispered to Suzuki as sensei and the kid were arguing over something.

"Earth? Laaame. Wind is where it's going to be at. One day I wanna fly on the winds like a bird. I could go wherever I wanted to go. I could travel the world before I become Hokage. Learning amazing jutsu and beating up bad guys." Her eyes shone with excitement as she spoke. This is one of the reasons why I loved her so much. She had everything planned out but nothing expected. No one told her to be strong, to be the greatest ninja in the leaf village. She just was.

"You'll come with me right Kiki? If you do get lame old earth then we could be the unstable duo! I would come from sky's while you hit them from the ground. It's the perfect combination!" She turned her attention to me as stars filled her eyes as she planned out our future. I loved the idea. To spend my ninja career with my best friend. What more could I have asked for?

"I think that sounds perfect," I smiled at her with my eyes closed trying to keep the tears from slipping out. I was so happy.

"Alright attention back to the front." The kid was now tried up next to sensei as he spoke." So In general, every person's chakra has an affinity towards one of the five basic nature transformations. Affinity can at times be genetic, or at least common to a particular family. For example, most members of the Uchiha clan have an affinity towards the Fire nature. One's affinity can be determined using pieces of paper made from a special type of tree that is grown and fed with chakra. When this chakra induction paper is exposed to even the slightest hint of chakra, it reacts according to the chakras latent element." By this point, all of us had taken our eyes from our sense and to the paper in front of us. This small piece of paper would tell every one of us what our affinity would be.

"Everyone pick up your paper and concentrate on it. Push your chakra towards your fingertips and see what your affinity is." I held my breath and closed my eyes. I would have given my brother to have an earth affinity but as I used my chakra and opened my eyes my paper split down the middle and piece I hadn't been holding on to fell to my desk. I looked at it curiously, not sure if that was the outcome I wanted. I looked over to Suzuki and her paper had wrinkled up. We both looked confused as everyone around us had their paper do various things.

"Now if your paper ignited and turned to ash you have a fire affinity. If the paper turned to dirt and crumbled away you are earth. If it's wet, you guessed it, you have a water. If you now have two pieces of paper, yours in wind. And finally, if it just wrinkled up, you are lightning." The quiet room was soon charged with happy, annoyed, and confused ninjas to be. My affinity had been wind and my best friends was lightning. I knew she was going to be disappointed and as I turned my attention back to her she was jumping up and down in her chair.

"LIGHTNING! That is sooooo cool. No one can stop a lightning bolt. One day I'll be the fastest ninja. I'll be able to steal all the cookies when moms not looking," I watched as others around her talked to her about it. Apparently lightning was a rare affinity compared to the others but I was more confused about her change. She wanted wind but got lightning. However, she wasn't upset about it. She was excited. I was amazed that she just accepted that that is how things were and was going to make the best of it. Suzuki was amazing.

Being completely opposite but perfect together. Suzuki was a strong ninja and was determined to be the next Hokage. Naruto reminded me a lot of her. They both had blond hair and had the same ambition. She became a Chunin a few years before me, in the same exam as my brother. She really was the quickest ninja in our class. She showed us all that when she won every match with expert speed and use of her ninjutsu. She had been well on her way to being one of the best ninja's that Konoha had ever seen.

Though her dream never came true. Her and her entire team had been whipped out on a mission to the land of mist. That was the day, that changed my entire life. Though I loved my family, Suzuki was my most precious person. She was there when I learned about my kekkei genkai. She listened to me and told me I could be whatever I wanted to be. She taught me to love this village and gave me the will to protect them.

All those feeling disappeared when she died. If my most precious person couldn't accomplish her dream then what hope did I have. Only she ever heard me talk about what I wanted to be. What I wanted to do. That day, the day my life stopped being my own, was when I signed up to be a medical-nin. I stopped training my other skills and focused all my energy on healing and chakra control.

"Hmm," A soft hum brought me out of my thoughts and I looked over my shoulder to once again find the white-haired man. Why was I seeing him everywhere? I wanted him to just go away and never looked in my direction again. I wanted nothing to do with him. Turning my head away, I forced my attention to the stone, hoping he would leave when I didn't speak with him. No hope as a silence filled the air as I became more and more aware of his presence. Not even ten minutes passed before I was at my limit.

"I do not wish to talk with you or ever see you again," I spoke quietly but I knew he would hear me. He was a ninja after all. I was being polite but had a resolution in my voice.

"Hmm I wonder why you say that, but I suppose we all have our own reasons, however," He paused looking for the right words. I didn't like where this was going. He was not deterred by my words and seemed to have a plan already coming into this conversation. A very bad sign for me.

"However, I need to speak with you. You don't have to respond but I saw something dangerous that night in the hospital," I cringed as he brought the exact moment I wanted to forget, "I've seen that look in others eyes." His voice had gone down an octave and it was carried on the wind. A pleasant base that he must have used in many different situations to get his way.

"I don't wish to discuss this with someone who's only ever spoken to me for the first time moments ago." I stood and grabbed my basket and walked passed him, a lot faster than my normal pace when walking.

"You're going down a hard path." He hadn't moved from his position as he looked over the stone himself. "One filled only with sadness and devastation," he paused for a moment before he continued, "That night when I looked into your eyes. I saw myself when I was younger. Much younger then you," He laughed at his own words but I wasn't going to listen. I didn't care. Whatever he had to say, the wind could carry it all the way to the sand village. They had a better chance of hearing them then I did.

However, Kakashi had a different plan. As I tried to make my escape, a hand my on elbow stopped me. I stopped and turned to look at the man before. A man that had no idea I existed until yesterday now deemed himself the person to "save" me. His stare had something hidden behind it that I couldn't read. I could feel the deepest and darkest part of my soul start to react to him. Something deep inside me that I haven't accessed in a very long time. It scared me.

The wind around us picked up so hard that Kakashi's stare was interrupted by him being forced to close his eyes. "Leave me alone," the words were quiet as the wind calmed down. Kakashi opened his eye and looked back at me. With some surprise, he gaged the situation differently than before. I yanked my arm from his grip and turned away from the Jonin. "I am who am. I've accepted my fate long ago and I don't wish to be bothered by you about unimportant things. Mind your own business, and hope you aren't ever under my scalpel." As I walked away from the silence in the air could have been cut with a butter knife.

My heart was beating quickly giving away my emotions plainly. I wasn't the one for threats but I felt that if I hadn't been aggressive towards the man, he would keep bothering me. He didn't know the pain I've gone through. I was going to protect myself. He had good intentions but they were misplaced on me. I was beyond saving at this point. Maybe in another universe, if I had this when I had been broken, I might have accepted the help, but this wasn't another universe. This was my life and I was prepared to live it in whichever way it was destined to be lived. Not wanting for him to stop me from leaving again, I did a hand sign as I walked and my body disappeared into a flock of birds that dispersed into the sky.

In another universe, I could have saved Suzuki, but I was too weak.