Julia always knew the life of a shinobi was dangerous. It was logical and the thought ran through her mind a few times. Frankly, she was expecting giant demons to rampage and fallen Gods to descend from the heaven and fuck everything up in one to two decades as it was, however knowing something and truly comprehending it was two different matters entirely.

Every mission she had gone in before now while dangerous she was never desperate. Even when she had her "first kill" She didn't get too hung up over it. Maybe it was because she was just a terrible person but it didn't bother her like she thought it would. There was no puking or sleepless nights, just a distance acknowledgment that she had deemed someone unworthy of living and decided to do something about it.

Rapists didn't deserve rights in her mind, they gave those up when they decided to be no better than an animal, except animals were innately innocent given their lack of higher thoughts.

She sidetracked.

All of her friends with the accept of the Ichiraku family were shinobi, a dangerous profession, and yet she had felt them strangely immune to dangers in a sense. After all, they were "main" characters. Surely fate or whatever power there was would ensure they survive well into the "cannon" or naruto at least? Even if not, they were all-powerful in their own right, so she should be more concerned about herself fucking up and dying instead.

It was naive and childish, and having her new friend getting cornered and having to blow their own fucking arm off to save her really hammered in the underlying mortality of everyone. She thought she was doing well, she thought she was way ahead of her age and was pretty exceptional in her own right.

She was incredibly stupid as she was reminded time and time again.

Julia couldn't be content with just being "exception" she needed to be downright frigging amazing, her goal was to change the fate of the world. She wasn't reaching for the sky, she wanted to grab hold of the stars, and that required more than being self-satisfied with the pitiful amount of power she currently had.

Although she had been steadily changing things, it was still far too slow and far too little in the scheme of things. She was under no delusion she could account for every possibility. Heck, just her trying to save the Uchiha clan could end up fucking things beyond all belief.

More Uchiha meant more possible bodies for Orochimaru to steal. More Sharingan eyes for Danzo's fucked-up arm. More bullshit Hax eye villains might arise. Would a well adjusted Sasuke even be able to have to power and drive to become one of the strongest shinobis in existence?

No, even if he could, was it right of her to rely on children to take that burden?

Her entire plan was full of holes and she didn't know how to patch them up. The more she changed the future the less she would know, the more variables the more easily everything would be fucked up.

For all she knew, killing Danzo would make room for some dastardly other forces to arrive.

It all boiled down to power in the end. If she was strong enough, if she had enough friends and connections, it wouldn't matter what plot there was. Absolute power trumps all. She couldn't do this all alone, she wasn't nearly smart or resourceful enough, and leaving her friends in the dark sounded like a worse idea every second.

"Hey, Sabako?"

Julia had decided. Once she got back to Konoha, she'd kick it into high gear. Everyone had to get stronger, even the would-be Jonin sensei of the Konoha 11. Even Gai and Kakashi.

"Hmm?"

The girl had a mouthful of ice cream. Missing arm or not, nothing got between the Suna nin and her cold treat it would seem. The nurses stopped bothering to try to take it away from her after she holed herself in Buru to eat it last time.

"I'm going to become Tsunade's apprentice. It'll take a while, but I'll fix your arm, I swear."

"Nah, don't sweat it. I only need one to kick ass and take names. I'll bet I'm a sure win for a position in the Puppet Brigade after I get back home, kicking one of the Seven Swordsmen's ass is sure to do wonders for my resume, don't cha think?"

Despite the cheerful grin, Julia knew it must've been hard on the other girl. A puppeteer used their fingers to finely control their chakra threads. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that her Shinobi career was over and her potential was cut by more than half. Julia felt awful knowing she couldn't help her against Zabuza and had a hand in ending a young child's dreams.

She felt bitter knowing that cases like these were probably a dime a dozen in this world, just out of sight from the wonders of Chakra and the glory of their villages.

She was brought out of her thoughts by a fist slamming ontop of her head. A shout of surprise more than pain came out of her.

"Seriously, Julia. It wasn't your fault, if it wasn't for you I'd have died. Twice even! I'm thankful that you were there with me. It's thanks to you that I could wake up this morning and see the sunrise, and its thanks to you that I could even be here right now eating ice cream. I'd say an arm is a more than fair trade. Besides,"

Sabako leaned in closer with a conspiratorial smirk on her face as she mock whispered.

"Between you and me, don't you think I'd be all the more badass for becoming a Puppet Master with only one arm? This is merely another step on my path of becoming a legendary badass, so chin up. And if you still feel bad for some inane reason, you could always get me another cup of ice cream. Blueberry preferably."

The girls laughed as they shared a look. Sabako was out of the Chunin exams, but she was going to stay and watch the rest. There was a two weeks break as they set up the arena for the second stage. During that time she would seek out the Tailless Beast and the Battle Maniacs of the Kaguya clan.

She wouldn't give them anything that would incriminate her knowledge of the future, but maybe she could deny Akatsuki of one of its strongest members and Orochimaru of a powerful shinobi.

"I'll be honest kid, I think you should withdraw while you can. You've already done impressively as it is. I'm sure in a couple of months you'll wipe the floor with the other kids at next year's Chunin Exams."

Julia was an independent kid. Aizawa had always known that from Day 1. She didn't act like others her age, nor did she get along with them with the exception of the Uchiha prodigies, and so far he had been content with letting her have free range. She had done pretty well for herself so far, and he knew she had Gai and Mikoto-san to help her if she needed additional guidance.

But now he wasn't so sure anymore. She had almost died for God's sake, and the idea of him failing another one of his students, letting them die in another god damned Chunin exam, was almost too much to bear.

"Sorry, Aizawa-sensei, but I have to do this."

And it was true. This wasn't some need for the prestige that came with the title nor the money that would come with the promotion. She needed the recognition and political power it came with no matter how little. She needed to be recognized as a fine shinobi and an Adult. There was only so much she could get done using Itachi as a proxy for his clan.

There was only so much one could rely on goodwill. In fact, it'd be best if she could somehow get Itachi to become clan head sooner.

"I see... There isn't much I could do to help you prepare in the next two weeks, I suggest you rest well for now. Starting tomorrow I'll show you all the Water Release I know and some methods to counter them."

"Hai, thank you Sensei."

He dearly wished the precocious girl would make it out alright.

She'd probably get in a shit load of trouble if anyone found out what she was doing. It wasn't exactly a "crime" per se, but it was certainly suspicious and enough to get her locked up. In a village known for being ruthless killers... During an important political event... Fuck she couldn't afford to get caught.

"Hi!"

"...? W-what? Who are you? How'd you get in here?"

Even in a world where child soldiers and assassins were a common theme, there was something jarring about seeing the abuse in front of her. Dirty, dull-eyed, and suffering from obvious malnutrition, Kimimaro Kaguya made for a sorry sight and her heart clenched at his state. Kimimaro's Kekkei Genkai was rare and feared even amongst his own Clan, the ruthless battle maniacs of the Kaguya Clan. So, they had him locked away in this cage far from sight and only let him out when they needed him as a trump card in battles. Thankfully Kimimaro never tried to escape or lash out so the security was incredibly low, in fact, there weren't even any true guards. This coupled with the fact that these idiots weren't the keenest outside of battle ensured that a shadow clone disguised as a common fly got through easily.

After that, it was just a simple matter of dispelling the transformation. Although she supposes she should be glad he didn't scream or tried to skewer her immediately. She'd be suspicious herself if a child with half her face covered and wearing a hoodie suddenly appeared in her room.

"Sorry, my name's a secret~! But you can call me Rose-chan," Using the translated version of her name wasn't the most creative thing in the world, but at least nobody would be able to tie the name to her. Julia also decided to ignore his last question. "You want to play?"

"Play..? Play what? How do I play, when I'm stuck in here?"

He bitterly indicated towards the bars with his small hands. It seems he wasn't put off with a stranger suddenly showing up. That was good to know.

"That's easy, just hold still and watch!"

She flashed through a series of hand signs, and Julia noticed how Kimimaro's eyes widened and his shoulds tensed ever slightly, yet he seemed intrigued enough to watch things play out. Was it confidence in his own abilities or simply naive hope she wouldn't or couldn't hurt him? She didn't know, but it didn't really matter in the end. Soon she was done and a Genjutsu covered both of them, whisking them away from the cold and damp dungeon to a Fire Park back within Konoha.

"Wha- Where are we?"

Finally, the kid started to sound his age as wonder fill his eyes and his voice finally lost the dead monotone he's been using. She supposes considering his living condition and the general climate of Kiri he's never seen such a bright and sunny day before. Heck, it was depressing to think about but chances are he might've never even seen the outside world besides the blood-filled battlefield.

She bit her lips before deciding to trust her guts.

"Konohagakure, my home."

"Konoha..."

The confusion was palpable as he stared at the vast and endless sunbake hills and wildflowers. The clearing was surrounded by some trees, but they were sparse and one could see the buildings of the village all around.

"Cmon, let's go. You ever had ice cream before?"

They went sightseeing and played all the kid games she knew of. Some he liked, such as tag, hide and seek, and skipping rocks, others like patty cake no so much, but he enjoyed the novelty of it all. It took a bit of effort, but she eventually got them two Ichiraku ramen to enjoy on the Hokage Monument watching the sunset. At least as far as her memory could replicate it, anyways. She didn't actually know how to make it, but thankfully in a Genjutsu if you can imagine it you could create it.

"So, did you have fun, Kimimaro-chan?"

A happy hum and a nod as he dug into his ramen. Kicking his feet while sitting on the ledge, it truly made one think he was just an ordinary child. It was too bad all things had to come to an end eventually, especially good things.

"Rose-san, this is all a dream, isn't it? No, a Genjutsu. None of this is real... Soon I'll be back in that room, and you'll leave me, right?"

Such a young child shouldn't have such a look of longing and melancholy in his eyes. They watched the sunset but it felt as if the light was leaving the boy's future as he stared at it.

"Thank you. Today was the greatest day of my life."

"...Kimimaro, just because it's a dream, doesn't mean it's not real, and just because it's not real doesn't mean it can't be. I could take you from here, you know? You can come back to Konoha with me, and we can eat real ice cream or get Ichiraku's Ramen. The real thing is way better than what I could make. I'll introduce you to my friends, they're all nice people, and-"

Suddenly the illusionary world shattered like broken glass. Someone was coming and they both knew it.

"It's ok, I understand, go. I have to stay here and its too dangerous for you to take me. Thanks for everything."

The clone dispelled herself, but she knew that this wasn't over. She'd raid the Kaguya Clan herself if she had too, she was saving that kid.

By the time the older member of the Kaguya Clan had come down with dinner, the only sign of Julia's existence was the faintest smile on Kimiaro and the memories they shared.