[OP: "Soldier, Poet, King"--The Oh Hellos--This is the one song everyone knows by them.]

Day 33:

The next morning, bright and early, someone knocked on their door.

It was one of the guards, there to tell them they had visitors.

"We would have told them to beat it--they looked like street rats--but they said you told them to come here expressly," the guard said.

"Yes," Shine said, rubbing her face because she was still sleepy. "And they took me at my word about morning time. You can let them through."

"If you're sure, Likstar-san," they said dubiously.

Ryuji and Lin were gawking at the refurbished jail.

"Never thought they'd put anyone in here," Ryuji said. "This place is creepy."

"Please, sit." Shine directed them to the dining room. "Hardly anyone is up yet. Did you bring your moms?"

"Uh...well, they're out...outside," Lin said. "They were afraid to come in."

"My gosh, people are so terrified of authority here," Shine muttered. "I guess I should get Gaara."

"The Kazekage?" Ryuji said nervously.

"Yes, don't worry, he's very kind," Shine said, exiting the room.

The boys exchanged looks.

"Not a lot of stuff here for the Kage's digs," Lin said.

"Mom said not to take anything," Ryuji said. "Stealing from a kage, that's a big deal. We'd get in real trouble."

"I'm not taking anything. I'm just saying, it's not very high class. You would think they'd put them up more." Lin shrugged.

"Shine, we need to get some kind of schedule for who handles breakfast." Temari ran into Shine on her way towards the boys' building. "I'm the only one who seems to be up other than you, and I'm not doing it every day for 20 people. Especially alone."

"I think that's a good idea, but for now maybe just see if the others are willing to pitch in, because we have guests," Shine replied, "in the dining room. Be nice to them."

She went out.

Temari went into the dining room just in time to see Ryuji flipping on a light switch, curiously.

He flipped it back when he saw her and sat down at once.

"I remember you," Temari said. "Remember me?"

They nodded silently.

"Don't try to take anything," Temari said, leaning on the wall in a pretty intimidating manner, "and we won't have a problem."

"Yes, ma'am," they squeaked.

* * *

 A lot more of a while later than Temari liked, the team was up, and some of them were making breakfast.

Wally often helped with that because he could make eggs really fast, and they were hard to mess up.

Though, eggs were expensive. The allowance they had could only go so far, but Kankuro said they could get more from Sand if they needed to. They never spent all of their allowance as the Kage's family, since he and Temari preferred to live simply. That meant they had more for occasions like this.

The "guests" didn't go over so well with everyone, but they didn't voice any complaints out loud.

But Sakura, when she was washing dishes, complained to Naruto--who was drying them and stacking them with his clones--that Shine and Wally didn't respect anyone's wishes but their own.

Naruto never really took Sakura's complaints that seriously, but he did wonder why she was so upset with them all the time.

"Another thing is," Sakura griped, "what they keep saying about Leaf Village."

"Yeah, I don't like that," Naruto said.

"Why didn't you say something?" Sakura asked.

"I dunno...I thought if I did, I'd get in trouble," Naruto said.

"And...you care about that suddenly?" Sakura looked at him oddly.

"Geez, I don't know, Sakura, something about them is kind of like Yamato-sensei," Naruto said. "They just give me that look and I feel like something bad is going to happen. I mean, they're not hurting Leaf directly or anything..."

"When Sai trashed on Sasuke you wanted to fight him," Sakura said. "They do it every day and you don't. "

"But neither do you," Naruto pointed out. "They're...I dunno, they're just not the kind of people you can just punch and it'll be over, are they? I don't know how to get through to them, but if I find a way, you can be sure I'll put a stop to it." He smiled.

Sakura wasn't appeased. "At least I'm not just taking it lying down," she grumbled. "I thought you were more of a fighter."

"Yeah...well...but Sasuke really doesn't seem to care," Naruto defended himself. "If it bothered him, sure, I'd defend him, but he seems to...kind of not like it when I try."

"They're put ideas into his head," Sakura said. "And you know he's easily misled."

It was funny that both of them knew that to be a fact and yet never considered how it might make the DJs and heroes' concerns valid.

"But they're...helping people," Naruto said. "They might be negative about Leaf and Sasuke, but on the other hand, they're trying to make things better. I'm not saying it's not bad for them to talk like that, but I do like that they're helping people. Isn't that what we're doing this for?"

"I thought you wanted to get out of work."

"Hey, this is more important work, isn't it?" Naruto shrugged. 

"You're hopeless." Sakura rolled her eyes.

Sasuke walked in, but only to grab an apple out of the fridge.

"Hey, why do you get that?" Naruto asked. "There's not too many of those in there and you just took a whole one?"

Sasuke didn't respond to him.

"Don't you think it's scandalous what they're doing?" Sakura applied to him, though she should have known better. "I mean, we'll be a laughingstock in this village if this gets around."

Sasuke paused. "Didn't you say that in the last village? No, that was Tenten."

"So?" Sakura said.

"It didn't happen," Sasuke said, carelessly. "Maybe they just know how to get what they want from people. I doubt the Tsuchikage is any match for them."

"Wow...that's the nicest thing you've said about them," Naruto said. "Sasuke, did you finally start to warm up to the strangers?"

"You don't know where they're from, right?" Sasuke said warily.

"No, no one's ever told me, but Karin thinks it's from across the ocean," Naruto said. "Hey, did you really know she was an Uzumaki the whole time?"

"I truly never once considered it," Sasuke said. "And I'm not sure she ever said her last name. She didn't go by it. Probably because they were wiped out."

He didn't usually offer that much insight on things, Sakura thought. But he had a point...Karin might have wanted that to be a secret.

"I guess that's true..." Naruto said.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have mentioned it anyway," Sasuke added, as if he worried that Naruto might not think he really was that much of a jerk. "It wouldn't have been important to me."

"I think that's a little...mean," Naruto said, confused. "Or do you not mean that? I can't tell these days."

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

This open show of annoyance also seemed new, to Sakura's mind.

But...his cold disdain was...not the same. Disdain was still there, but did it seem less cold?

She wasn't sure she liked this any better.

"You seem...different." Naruto put a hand on his chin and squinted at Sasuke.

So even the blockhead could notice, Sakura thought.

"No, I don't," Sasuke denied it.

"So you really don't care what they're doing to our reputation?" Sakura pressed. "Doesn't anything they do or say bother you?"

"If you mean what they said about Leaf, it's pretty much what I already thought," Sasuke said, knowing it would upset her. 

Sakura's mouth dropped open--though, again, why was she surprised?

"Hey, that's not true," Naruto said. "Leaf isn't like that."

Sasuke looked at him like he was a moron. "Not like that? Really? What did Likstar-san list that was not true? And to make matters worse, you witnessed part of it. Do you really choose to ignore it that much?"

"What Naruto means is," Sakura hastened to say, "that even if those things happened, that's not all there is to Leaf. Of course, it's not perfect, but what village is? It's still better than the ones who betray their own people constantly. But they never give us any credit for what we do right."

"Right," Sasuke repeated. "Is that the word we're using now? Right and wrong? Because before it was just about loyalty."

"It is," Naruto said.

"How can you be loyal to something that you know isn't right?" Sasuke said. "At least, with any honesty."

"Huh?" Naruto was blank.

"It's useless to talk to either of you." Sasuke shook his head. "You've never understood, and you never will."

"But they do?" Sakura seemed determined to hurt her own feelings as much as possible by asking questions she wouldn't like the answers to.

Sasuke wasn't willing to fully support them, even to piss her off, but he could see that it would bug her more if he at least partially did.

"At least some of it," he said. "At least they're not pretending that it's not corrupt. That's offending you for some reason, and I couldn't care less if it is, but what has Leaf Village done for either of you to make you want to defend it so much?"

"It's our home." Sakura frowned.

"That doesn't matter much," Sasuke said darkly.

He gave them a chill. He sounded just like he had before right then.

"Sasuke, I think you're the one who doesn't understand," Naruto argued. "We're not loyal to Leaf Village because of what it's been like in the past--we're loyal because that's where our friends live. It's our home. And we're going to protect it. And we don't like people talking bad about it. And it's your home too."

"No," Sasuke said coldly. "It's not. That's the only good thing about being here."

He turned and walked away.

Sakura and Naruto exchanged looks of astonishment.

[That had to feel good to someone other than me. I hate Sasuke's attitude, but I never could understand how Naruto and Sakura could just act like nothing ever happened to make him dislike Leaf that was valid. His reasons are valid in theory, even if in practice he goes way too far to act on them.]

* * *

Gaara finally managed to reassure the two boys that he was not going to do anything to them and to convince them to ask their parents to come in.

Their moms were two Stone Village women who wore the same red and brown color scheme, though they didn't appear to be shinobi. They looked kind of gaunt, but they weren't that old.

You would have thought Shine was a professional interviewer from the way she asked them about their experience and interests--as if this was a real job.

Wally managed to sound welcoming, as if they were already part of the team.

Naturally, the two ladies were put at ease.

They said they'd be happy to help with the project... One of them nearly burst into tears but kept it together just barely.

"Well, it may not be practical," Temari commented to Kankuro and Shikamaru from where they were all listening from around the corner, "but, their methods are effective in their own way. This shouldn't surprise me anymore. They'll make friends with everyone in the lower class at this rate."

"Why does class matter?" Shikamaru asked.

"It doesn't," Temari said. "Only to snobs, but, unfortunately, they're the ones we need to impress. But I give up. I can't argue with this. We'll just have to take the lumps if the village elders don't like this."

"Maybe they won't find out," Kankuro suggested.

* * *

Unfortunately, that didn't happen. It didn't take long for word to spread about the "hiring" process for Team Zoe. Not everyone knew that it had started over a robbery, but they knew that they'd picked out two people who weren't recommended by the Tsuchikage, and that struck a lot of Stone Shinobi as impudent.

Shine explained to Lord Onoki that they had met by chance and had relevant skills and she just thought anyone from Stone Village was a good worker.

Onoki said he wouldn't have minded if they had run it by him first. 

Kurotsuchi, however, stepped in, since she didn't want it to come out that she'd not mentioned this to him, and suggested that he simply say that they had, and they could save face.

"The village doesn't need to know our private decision-making process that much, Grandfather," she said. "It's like outsourcing. We're busy enough without finding people to work on this special diplomatic project."

"Hmm, that's not a bad idea," Onoki admitted. "Just make sure in the future that you do run it by us."

"Of course, sir." Shine bowed.

But later she said that it was dumb.

"I understand why they felt disrespected," she said. "People micromanage a lot where I live too...but it's silly. If they're working with us, it's our concern. They were citizens of the village--it's not like we invited someone else into it."

"I get it, Honey, but it's just bureaucracy," Wally said. "Even here it's a pain in the neck."

"Mei really must be more laid back," Shoto noted. 

"We didn't do much in Mist that would need her approval," Momo pointed out. 

She and Shoto were still a little chilly, though they'd started speaking again finally and tried to apologize--but it still felt awkward.

"We just have to play along," Wally shrugged. "At least he was cool about it."

"I know, I just don't like to be confined," Shine sighed. "But they're being generous, all things considered. Still, I get the idea that Onoki didn't wholly like my choices, not just that I asked them without clearing it with him first. Face it, this greenhouse idea is not a high level security issue. The real thing they're worried about is looking good for the other villages. I believe asking people who are impoverished, instead of successful businessmen or women, is an image they don't want to get around. They think it makes them look bad."

"How could it?" Wally said.

"Well, Babe, remember that, in our culture, we promote giving opportunities to people who don't have them," Shien said. "Not based on what they earn, but just because they have less to begin with. Whether that's bad or good, you can't deny that's how we think in most areas of life. In contrast, the shinobi world cares about what people earn. And they have very high standards for earning respect. Just hard work isn't even enough. You have to be exceptional to earn a place of honor or authority. So my actions make no sense to them. But then, we do have known criminals in our team. They haven't discovered Team Taka's identities yet, but once they do, they'll have some questions about that. And there's Sasuke."

Sasuke walked past them right at that moment, heading for the outside door.

He didn't act like he'd heard, but Shine thought he must have.

She went quiet, but he probably was listening in even once he'd gone out of sight.

"In Mist Village, they were so aware of their own bloody history," Shine resumed, "that they didn't judge us. They took it as a good sign that we forgave those criminals. Stone Village has not claimed to be guilty of things other than clinging to the old grudges too much. That is far less of a crime, in their society, than betrayal is. And we have traitors in the group. My point is, I could be racking up strikes."

"On the other hand," Wally said, "the whole point is that we're different. And it's not just you. Gaara was all for it too. And so am I."

"Yes...but Gaara wouldn't go out of his way so much if I didn't push for it," Shine mused. "I worry I could be overstepping the boundaries of what's wise."

"Better to do that, trying to help people, than to be too cautious," Wally argued. "That's my motto. You can't second guess everything. It was the right thing to help those ladies. I'd stand by that decision anyday."

"And even if it's not something we would have done," Momo spoke, "at least not usually, I wouldn't argue against your convictions. You were helping them. That can't be so wrong that the villages would need to be ashamed of it. I can't see that it hurts them anyway. Their reputation to the other villages isn't in trouble because of them helping their own people after the war--it's in trouble because they double-crossed them so much. The two things aren't related."

"Even if they said there was real damage to their standing," Shoto said, "you're not from Stone Village. I think it's on them if they let this affect them."

"Let's hope," Shine sighed.

* * *

Days 34-36:

Even with workers and the Kage's permission, it turned out getting the paperwork to build on the lot still had to be processed.

Stone had a more complex process than Leaf or Sand did, so this was a roadblock the team did not expect.

It ended up leading to them spending a few days just sitting in the house again.

Shine amused herself just fine, and so did Momo. Both of them were more homebodies by temperament.

But the others felt like they had cabin fever.

And that was when Bakugo had the brilliant idea of training.

"That's you UA kids' solution for everything," Camie said, when he suggested it--loudly.

"It's freaking about time we stopped slacking off," Bakugo said. "We don't want to get freaking weak before we go home."

"I thought Wally said we wouldn't lose any skills," Shoto said. "Something about the change of--"

"Shoto," Momo warned him.

The ninja were listening.

"You want to train?" Kankuro spoke. "Just you and Todoroki Shoto there, or us too?"

"Hmmf, I haven't got a chance to fight you shinobi that much," Bakugo said, sounding a little too excited about the idea. "We don't even know which of us is the strongest."

"I think Gaara is the strongest here, now," Tenten mused.

"I don't really train," Gaara said. "Too busy with kage responsibilities."

"At your level, isn't it a moot point?" Wally asked, looking up from trying to stack cards (he was bored). "Superman doesn't train."

"I've actually always thought that was a little dumb on his part," Shine remarked. "But, I don't train that much either for fighting. Learn on the job."

"That's...crazy," Tenten said, blankly.

"Believe it or not, I don't do much physical fighting at home." Shine shrugged, turning a page.

Given her ability on the field, the ninja found that shocking.

Sasuke, who was in the adjacent room, thought it might explain the lack of speed in her attacks. But not how they were so powerful despite that.

"I think training together sounds fun," Naruto spoke. "I've hardly ever trained with anyone else. Except Pervy Sage."

Momo winced. "Yes, well, training with peers has certain benefits. But we have nowhere to train. We can't tear up the yard here. What if they need it later?"

"There's a lot of wide, empty space outside the village wall," Sai spoke. "If you want to use it."

"Not a bad idea," Kankuro agreed. "We might get a little rusty too with all this faffing around. But I think we'll have no trouble beating you two heroes. You only have one trick."

"That's what you think, dumba--," Bakugo said. 

"I agree, I don't think it will be that easy for you," Shoto said.

"I'm up for it," Temari said, patting her fan.

"You?" Shoto said, a bit surprised.

"What? Do you not want a girl to participate?" She frowned.

"You are a little older," Shine reminded her. "Technically, you have more experience. It's like an older classmate fighting them."

"They can handle themselves," Temari said. "Besides, it won't be lethal."

"That's what you want to hear," Camie remarked. "I dunno, fahm, physical fighting isn't really my idea of a good time. I prefer to mess with people's heads."

"That's fighting too," Ino said.

"Maybe, but you guys are all so intense. I'm not sure I want to be in the middle of a fight between you, and, like, I'll get all hot and gross," Camie said. "And the nice thing about being in one spot is that I'm not dirty every day."

"Pfft," Bakugo scoffed. "That's just part of the experience of training."

"It's not like you can't just wash later," Tenten said.

"Really, I'd prefer it if Camie sits it out," Sakura muttered.

"Why?" Sai said to her.

"Her illusions, they're so...base, but you can't see through them by breaking a genjutsu," Sakura replied.

"Wait, are you just saying that because you're resistant to genjutsu?" Ino asked her. "And Camie can still fool you?"

Sakura frowned. "It's just not very fair, is it?"

"I'm not sure fair is really part of it when they're so different," Ino replied.

"And I still don't know what that is," Sakura mused. "But I don't like it."

"You don't remem--" Sai started, and Ino nudged him quickly.

"Sai, remember that thing they told us?"

"What thing?" Sai asked.

"Yeah, what thing?" Sakura frowned at Ino again.

"That thing," Ino said vaguely.

Then she put a hand to her temple and projected her voice into Sai's mind "Don't tell Sakura about where they're from. She hasn't been cleared yet, remember?"

Sai had forgotten, actually, but, realizing what he'd almost done, even he looked slightly nervous.

"Oh, that thing," he said aloud.

"What? Did something happen?" Sakura said.

"It's nothing," Sai said, with a fake smile.

Sakura knew he was lying, but before she could pry further, Naruto interrupted them.

"Hey, Sakura, you want to train, right?" he said.

"Huh? Oh...I guess," Sakura said.

"Then all of Team 7 will finally get a chance to train again," Naruto said. "And Karin could--"

"Karin will not be," Karin interrupted him. "Not my thing."

"Because she can't fight," Suigetsu said.

"Shut up!" Karin swatted at him, but she didn't even land the hit this time.

"But Sasuke isn't participating," Sai pointed out. "Unless you meant me as all of Team 7."

"Oh, Sasuke won't pass up a chance to train," Naruto scoffed.

Sai looked slightly disappointed.

Ino was glad that Shikamaru hadn't said something like that about her. At least out loud.

Shikamaru was not raring to go train anyway.

"What a drag," he said. "I prefer only to fight when I have to."

"Shine, do you mind if we do this?" Momo asked her.

"I think I would have said by now if I did," Shine reminded her. "And I'm fine with it, as long as you limit yourselves appropriately to the situation. I don't want to see any big injuries. We don't have Recovery Girl here, and that's a poor excuse anyway, and the medics aren't a crutch."

"So no maiming?" Dabi said. "Dang it, I was hoping there."

Sasuke had finally reappeared.

Naruto might have been right about him. He wouldn't like to miss a chance to train...or show off.

Also he was bored again. And this seemed less awkward than any other activity with the group would be.

"Ah, Sasuke, there you are." Naruto spotted him. "You're coming, right?"

"There's nothing else to do," Sasuke said ungraciously.

"I actually don't think he should," Shoto said, with a sour glance at him.

Sasuke bristled. "Why not? I've followed all your stupid rules so far. Isn't it time for this probation to end?"

"If you mean it's time to let you use your Sharingan again, no," Shine said. "Above all else you cannot do that, especially to the people here. If it was life or death, I still wouldn't like it, but any lower stakes than that and there's no excuse whatsoever."

"I didn't mean that," Sasuke said, which surprised Sakura to hear. "I meant that...percentage thing."

"Oh, that," Shine laughed. "I nearly forgot about that."

Sasuke looked angry when she said that.

"Well, it hasn't really been modified," Shine said, impervious to that look. "But there's going to be plenty of people to watch you, and everyone else, so, what could really go wrong?"

"Plenty," Dabi said.

"Granted, but if it will make you feel better, I'll supervise," Shine offered to Shoto. "I haven't watched you train in a while anyway. Maybe I'll have some pointers."

"Me too," Wally said eagerly. "I wouldn't mind training with you--oh, but that's unfair, huh? I'm way out of your league."

"What would you running circles around them do for them?" Dabi snorted.

"I want to train with you guys!" Hanabi piped up.

They gave her uncertain looks.

"But...you're so much younger than us," Momo said.

"Hey, I read that in the book too," Hanabi said. "'Don't let anyone look down on you because you're young.'"

"You know that verse is about being an example of a good character, not fighting prowess, right?" Shine said.

"Shine-sensei, please." Hanabi gave her the doe eyes. "I can handle it. I'm tough. It's just training. I want to keep improving too, and I never get to train with anyone other than other Hyugas. It's not practical."

"Frick practical, you've never witnessed how nuts these students are, right?" Dabi said. "I wouldn't want to fight them if I didn't have to."

"I'll be fine," she scoffed.

"I guess if they're okay with it," Shine conceded. "And if you all make sure to use attacks that won't hurt anyone too badly. Her parents would kill us if she got injured."

"Hanabi, I don't know about this," Hinata said. "If it was just Naruto, Tenten, and maybe Gaara, I think they wouldn't do anything too difficult to dodge--or at least, Gaara wouldn't be too forceful--but the others hit hard."

"I have to get used to it," Hanabi insisted. "I can't always be behind you in training because Father thinks I should be sheltered. This is the real world, big sister, the enemy isn't going to hold back."

"I suppose not," Hinata said uncertainly.

She resolved to just watch real closely. She had no wish to fight with the others in training.

Shoto had stopped arguing about Sasuke since Shine promised to supervise, but he still thought it was a bad idea. Sasuke might fall back on his dark powers in a pinch, and he was one to show off.

Shoto didn't really like to show off. He used power moves more as an act of defiance against his father or to get ahead quickly, but the attention itself meant little to him. Still, just like Bakugo, he didn't want to get rusty.

Jugo had no interest in fighting either and said he'd stay at the compound.

The others walked out of the village, drawing some stares from people who wondered why they were going.

They told them they were just training, and that seemed to satisfy most of the shinobi.

The area outside the village was very flat, where it didn't have large rocks jutting up out of it. It was a bit like the USJ's flat area, Momo thought.

"Nothing here to worry about destroying," Bakugo declared. "Perfect. I can go all out."

"Actually, Katsuki, you will not be going 'all out'," Shine said firmly. "I know what you're capable of. No one is dying today."

Rather than annoying Bakugo, that only seemed to flatter him. He smirked.

"I hate to be that guy, but we probably should have some ground rules," Wally said.

"Battle ground rules?" Camie joked.

"Exactly," Shine said. "Have fun and all, but any of those big final moves you do are off the table. And so is stabbing each other. I feel like I shouldn't have to say that, but with you kids I do."

"But all my attacks use blades or spikes," Tenten protested.

"If you can't find a way to use that without cutting someone, you'll have to sit this one out," Shine shrugged.

Tenten pouted.

"So you're handicapping all of us heavy hitters?" Temari said. "That's no fun."

"I hate to be the mom who's warning people about being safe," Shine said, "but I hate going to the hospital even more. Got it?"

She sat down on a lawn chair that had just appeared behind her.

"Dang, she's getting good with that," Camie said. "That power is so unfairly useful, like Momo's."

"Can I ask how she does that?" Suigetsu asked. "Just summoning random crap out of thin air?"

"As I understand it, she has to know the location of the object and what it looks like, and she can pull it through spacetime," Momo said. "Apparently, it's much easier than people. And it saves us a lot of packing things we don't want to carry."

"Wait a minute," Sakura said, "that's all? She doesn't need a special rune or something?"

"When has she ever?" Dabi snorted.

"How big of a thing can she summon?" Sakura pressed.

"I think she said she once summoned a floating tower?" Dabi replied. "But that was a special circumstance. Probably nothing bigger than a car--uh, a wagon, normally."

"Wagon!?" Sakura squeaked.

"Rethinking sassing someone who can drop a piano on your head?" Dabi asked her meanly.

"Shine would never do that," Momo said. "That's a horrible thing to say to Sakura."

"Yeah, yeah, lucky for Sakura, Shine's not like me," Dabi said, walking away from them to join Shine and Wally.

"I hate that guy," Sakura said in a low voice.

"Hate is a strong word," Suigetsu said. "Accurate, maybe, but strong. Although I don't think he's so bad. Sure, he's a jackass, but he's pretty flipping funny. Where's your sense of humor?"

"I don't have one," Sakura said.

"I've...actually never heard you laugh," Camie realized. "Do you actually not have one?"

"Well, I mean, everyone has some sense of humor," Sakura hedged. "I was being...hyperbolic. But I don't find stupid things funny."

"Then why do you hang out with Naruto?" Camie replied. "And what do you find funny? Because you're always b----ing about something, and I've never heard you have a good word for anybody."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Sakura got mad.

"She's doing it right now, see?" Suigetsu said. "Just like Karin. Actually, I think Karin might be less temperamental."

"I always thought she was more temperamental," Momo said, forgetting that she shouldn't say that in front of Sakura.

"Excuse me?" Karin heard her.

"I meant...high strung," Momo hastened to say.

"Is that better?" Camie wondered.

"Karin is mostly talk," Suigetsu said, as if Karin was not there. "I feel like Sakura could actually kill you."

"That's not nice," Momo said.

"I'm not nice, Princess," Suigetsu said.

Momo frowned at him. "It's bad enough that Dabi calls me that, but I don't think you should. From someone only slightly older than me, it's ridiculous."

"Sure, Your Highness." Suigetsu didn't know when to let it drop.

"Suigetsu, if you don't stop ragging on Momo," Camie spoke up, "I'll make illusions of you confessing your love to one of the girls on this team."

Suigetsu gave her a look. "Really?"

"Try me." Camie put a finger under her mouth like she was going to blow smoke off a gun.

"You chicks are crazy." Suigetsu edged away from them.

"Wow...thank you," Momo said to Camie in surprise.

"Girl, I got yo' back." Camie winked. "Us hero chicks have to stick together. He acts all tough, but everyone's got something they don't want to be caught dead doing. I just have to figure out what it is." She tapped her temple. "Better go sit out of range."

She pranced away.

"She's also scary," Sakura said. "And annoying."

"Have something good to say about another girl for once." Momo rose to Camie's defense, since Camie had risen to hers. "Perhaps then you would make friends."

She then was surprised at herself. But she shook her head. "I'd better go. Sorry for being so ...rude."

She marched away after a minute.

Sakura frowned and glanced at Karin.

Karin had nothing to say.