Akai grinned, as she backflipped and landed smoothly on her feet, before she dashed off, running to find a shelter for the night.

"Damn this large village... Full of shinobis, too, tashikani... And they want me to live with Scarface?!" She muttered under her breath, before she climbed some windows and starts running on the roofs. She saw an empty apartment room, with the window opened, and she decided to enter.

The moment she jumped in, her eyes twitched. The place was a mess. Dirty clothes and empty ramen cups were scattered everywhere. Not mentioning the smell of the room.

However, she closed the window, and starts twirling her dagger around her fingers, looking around.

"This place is worthless. No weapon, no useful stuff, no food. Who the hell is the owner, tashikani?!" She grunted, before she put her daggers between her teeth, and starts rummaging through the wardrobe. She managed to find a white shirt. She was about to put it on, when a boy opened the door.

And the boy screamed. As her response, Akai screamed as well. He dropped the cans of paint he was holding, and she dropped the shirt.

"W-Who the hell are you, dattebayo?!"

Akai was laughing at the inside. Of course he would act this way. Who wouldn't, if they entered their room to find a blue haired girl biting a dagger while holding their clothes?

Akai tilted her head, as she put her dagger back to her pocket.

"I'm someone, tashikani." She replied flatly, before she picked up the shirt, and asked, "Hey, Whiskers, may I borrow this, tashikani?"

"... What are you talking about, dattebayo?"

Akai mentally faceplamed. "Isn't it obvious? I want to borrow this shirt. Now, may I, tashikani?"

The blonde slowly nodded, as he started making a tower with his paint cans.

"How can you be here, dattebayo?" He asked, as he sat on the bed. She laughed.

"The window, Whiskers. You didn't lock it, tashikani."

"... Why do you keep saying 'tashikani', dattebayo?"

"Why do you keep saying 'dattebayo', tashikani?" She asked back, as she entered the bathroom, and changed into the white shirt. She walked out, to find the blonde laughing, clutching his stomach.

"You're so funny, dattebayo! Are you a ninja? I mean, if you can climb to the window, then-..."

"No. Not a ninja, tashikani. Although, I can defeat one."

"Cool! Hey, by the way, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, dattebayo!"

Akai smiled. "As much as I want to tell you my name, I can't, tashikani."

"... Why, dattebayo?"

Akai smirked, and leaned to his ear. With a low, deep, mysterious tone, she whispered, "I'm being chased. By the bad ninjas, tashikani."

"Woah! What did you do, dattebayo?"

She sat beside him. "I stole some ramen coupons from them, tashikani." She said, as she pulled out the coupons from her pocket, "You can have it, Whiskers. But, can I hide here, tashikani?"

His eyes lightened up in an instant. "W-What?! Thank you so much, dattebayo! Of course you can stay here, Pretty-Blue-Girl!"

She smiled. "... By the way, Naruto, what's those paints for, tashikani?"

"Don't tell anyone," he started, as a grin spread across his face, "I'm going to paint the Hokage's faces next morning, dattebayo!"

Akai smirked. "I'll help, tashikani."

| * | * | * | * | * |

When morning came, Akai was up before Naruto. But that wasn't much of a surprise, since Naruto was known for being late. Akai stretched her arms up in the air, a long yawn passing her lips as her shoulder made a popping noise.

Her eyes were barely open as she got off of the couch that Naruto had been so kind as to allow her to sleep on that night. She glanced around after she used her fist to rub her eyes, before she sighed and pushed herself up.

As she walked around the apartment, her eyes landed on the paint buckets, and a evil smile formed over her lips as she remembered her and naruto's plan. With the smile still on her lips, she made her way to Naruto's room.

"Naruto." Akai said as she gave the boy a shove. He continued to snore heavily, a line of drool trailing down his face. An irk mark formed on the girls forehead as she began to shake him harder.

"Naruto. Naruto. NARUTO, TASHIKANI!" She screamed, and Naruto sat up quickly. Their foreheads collided, causing both of them to fall back. Akai fell onto the floor, cradling her forehead with her hands, while Naruto laid back on his bed doing the same thing.

"What was that for, dattebayo?!"

"I was just trying to wake you up, tashikani!" Akai shouted back at him. A blush formed over the blonde's cheek as he smiled at her, and began to nervously scratch the back of his head.

"Oh, I'm sorry, dattebayo." Naruto said as he slung his legs over the side of the bed, his feet touching the ground beside of where Akai laid. "Hey, are you ready to go paint?"

"Tashikani!" Akai said as she jumped up from the floor, her feet landing on the ground as she stood up straight.

"Let's go, uh... blue haired girl!" Naruto shouted, not knowing the girls name still. Akai nodded her head quickly as Naruto quickly got dressed in his orange jumper and the two of them ran out of the house, the buckets of paint in their hands.

It was still dark out when the two made their way to the hokage's faces. The two of them climbed up the mountain.

And once they were at the top, they begin their fun.

| * | * | * | * | * |

When the two of them were finished, they both had large smiles on their faces of complete achievement. But their moment of glory didn't last long, because the voices of two shinobi called out to them.

"NARUTO! WHAT DID YOU DO?!" They shouted out, and both Naruto and Akai turned towards each other, their eyes wide.

"Run." Naruto said to Akai, and they took off. Even though Naruto was a soon-to-be ninja, without using his chakra he wasn't as fast as Akai. She had always been a fast runner, she assumed that she gained the factor since she was constantly running, but she wasn't completely sure.

The two of them ran with the shinobi on their heels, but the further they got, the more the shinobi lost their trail. Naruto and Akai took a sharp turn into an ally way, their breathing rough and ragged from so much running.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" A man with a scar over his face said, and Naruto let out a nervous laugh.

"Oh, hey Iruka-Sensei." Naruto said nervously, but Akai just stared at the man. She didn't know him, so he wasn't of trouble to her.

"Well lookie here, it's the criminal." A deep voice said, and Akai froze in her place as she glanced over at where the voice came from.

And there stood Ibiki in all his pride and glory.

| * | * | * | * | * |

Akai and Naruto was both dragged to the Hokage Office. Naruto was screaming, while Akai was glaring at the ground, her fingers twitched every now and then. Naruto gulped, as he was the only one who can hear her animalistic growl.

"Old smoker! I drew a cigarette on your face, tashikani!" Akai announced as soon as she entered the office.

Naruto starts laughing again. "She's a genius, dattebayo! She drew whiskers on the Fourth, too!"

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes. Nevertheless, he shook his head disapprovingly.

"Naruto, do you know her?"

"Of course, dattebayo! She gave me ramen coupons and even help me with my art! Well, she kinda stayed in my apartment last night. And she borrowed one of my shirt, dattebayo."

Akai mentally slapped herself. He didn't need to explain those details!

"Naruto, next time a stranger came to your apartment, you must tell me. Okay?" The Hokage asked, trying to calm himself down.

Naruto pouted. "Oh, come on, old man! You're a ninja! She's not a ninja and she is stronger! Besides, I helped her hiding from the bad ninjas, dattebayo!"

Akai poked his shoulder. "Whiskers, I was hiding from them, tashikani." She commented, pointing at Ibiki.

Naruto laughed awkwardly.

Hiruzen turned at Akai. "So, child, let me ask you again. Name?"

She shrugged. "What will I get if I tell you?"

The Hokage sighed. "What do you want?"

"I want... A medium-sized cell, with clean bed and food everyday, tashikani. There can only be two guards and-..."

"HOLD UP, STOP! Are you asking to be put in a prison?!" Ibiki asked in disbelief.

Akai shrugged. "Yesterday, you told me to chose either join the Academy or being put in a maximum security cell. I chose the latter, tashikani."

"Why, dattebayo?! I mean, you are awesome, and ninjas are awesome. Of you become a ninja, you will be super awesome!"

"... I hate them. Understand, tashikani?"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Akai slammed her palm on her forehead. "Listen, tashikani. I hate ninjas. I hate shinobis. I hate kunoichis. I hate the Kages, ANBUs, and anything that involves shinobis. Okay?"

"But I think-..."

"Naruto, stop. Stop before I explode, tashikani." She said between her gritted teeth.

And for the first time in history, Naruto dragged Iruka to the classroom.

After the blonde exited the room, Akai clenched her fist and punched the wall, as she screamed in frustration.

"SERIOUSLY, WHAT DO YOU GUYS WANT?! I'M TIRED OF THIS, TASHIKANI!"

Ibiki's eyes widened, before he narrowed his eyes.

"Why do you hate shinobi so much? This has to do with your past, doesn't it?" The interrogator asked calmly.

Akai stayed silent.

"If you don't answer our questions, we will have to go through your mind." The Hokage informed with a warning tone.

Akai's glare hardened. "This is why I hate you, tashikani! You shinobis always play dirty!"

"We don't. We gave you chances yesterday." Ibiki smugly replied, "Now, your decision?"

"I'm not becoming a ninja! You have no right to know why I hate shinobi, tashikani!" Akai said, her voice slightly raised.

"Then you leave us no choice." Ibiki said as he began to walk towards her, his eyes watching as the girl became more and more nervous.

"W-Wait, tashikani! Please don't!" Akai called out to him, but Ibiki continued to move closer to her. "You don't have a right to go through my brain, my memories! I have my reason to hate shinobi, and I don't want you to know, tashikani!"

"Either you tell us and we throw you in the prison with your rules, or we force you to join the academy and become a shinobi." The Third said.

"Why do you want to know so bad, huh?!" Akai screamed. "I'm not your child, I'm not your responsibility!"

"Because you damaged my town, you stole from my shinobi, you drank underage, and you snuck off from us. All of those things are worthy of being thrown in a prison for the rest of your life, but because you are a child, we are trying to help you." Hizuren said with a sigh.

"If you don't tell us, we're going into your mind. If you don't want us to know, join the academy." Ibiki said, and Akai was quiet for some time before she sighed heavily.

"Fine, tashikani..." She said, her complete traits changing from a smart ass to depressed. It was obviously something the girl wasn't okay with being a ninja, but she would have to put up with it.

"Great, now like we discussed yesterday, you will be staying with Ibiki until I can trust you and you can pay for your own apartment." Hizuren said, continuing when he saw he would get no further response from Akai. "Ibiki, you can take her home now. Be sure you keep a watchful eye on her."

"Hai." Ibiki said as Akai stood up beside of him, and he escorted her to his house.

| * | * | * | * | * |

For the first time since Ibiki met Akai, she wasn't talking. She wasn't rambling. She wasn't going on about anything and everything and shouting 'Tashikani!' every two minutes.

And it kinda annoyed Ibiki.

"Hey kid, what's your name? I need to know for obvious reasons." Ibiki asked, and Akai stared at him for a few moments with a fairly blank expression on her face, before she sighed heavily.

"Akai. Just Akai." The blue haired girl said, and Ibiki nodded slightly.

"You'll be staying in my guest room, which I will allow you to somewhat decorate. Since it's obvious you have never been a ninja, I will start to train you tomorrow. You will join the academy within the next few days even thought they are close to graduation. With me as your mentor, you will be able to pass by the time they have the graduation exam. Now, do you know which chakra natures you have?"

The girl only shook her head 'no.', and Ibiki nodded slightly. "Alright, come here Akai." He said, and the girl followed him into his room. He grabbed a chakra paper and held it out in front of her.

"Place your hands on this and flow your chakra into it, so that you know which chakra nature you have."

Akai took a deep breath, her thoughts traveling back to when she had her little bit of training, and began to focus her chakra into the paper. When she was done, Ibiki looked at the paper and nodded his head.

"Water, wind and lightning. A fairly good combo, if you ask me." Ibiki said. Akai only nodded slightly.

***
"We will start your training tomorrow, right after you came back from Academy. Now that we're living in the same roof, I think we should know each other better."

Akai scoffed.

"My name is Ibiki Morino, head of Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Sector. 26 years old, Tokubetsu Jōnin. Excels in interrogating, torturing, and gathering information."

Akai slammed her body on the couch, letting out a heavy sigh, as she pulled out her dagger and starts twirling it around.

"Akai. 12. Thief, mercenary, traveler. Excels in martial arts, or taijutsu, as how you call it. Addition: Fast runner."

She turned, staring at Ibiki, before saying, "Don't worry, tashikani. I'm a faithful person, even if I'm a thief. I already accept the deal, and I won't break it if you don't. If people ask me to give them back their stuff, I would gladly obeyed."

The Morino nodded. "And we shinobis are just like that. We will keep the deal. If we don't, you may leave."

She stood up, pocketing her dagger. "Show me my room, tashikani."

| * | * | * | * | * |