After I finished reading the scroll Pein gave me, I received a lot of info. I knew where to meet up with my partner and our mission was to seal off one of Orochimaru's hideouts.

There were some suspicious things going on. Apparently, there was a lot of information on the Akatsuki in that hideout and Pein wanted it destroyed.

I was currently on my way to a place near Sunagakure to meet up with Kisame. We were to head out immediately.

As I walked through the thick forest in my black and red Akatsuki cloak I tied my bright pink hair into a tight bun.

Honestly, I was nervous. Was I even strong enough to qualify as a member?

The only thing I excelled at was sealing, I was just okay in hand-to-hand combat and ninjutsu.

Though what was really making me nervous was meeting my new partner.

Kisame Hoshigaki. The monster of the mist.

I had done some research on him and I wasn't going to lie, he intimidated me.

There was something about powerful rogued shinobi that made them so scary.

I looked up at the blue sky as I wondered what he was like. There were many types of shinobi out there. There were intelligent and thoughtful ones, loud and talkative ones, a few that were obsessed with their own jutsus and those who were literally shinobi just for fun.

I wondered which category he fell into.

I looked down at the map in front of me as I swallowed hard. This was the place. We were supposed to meet up here.

I stood in front of a dango restaurant and I leaned my back against a nearby tree.

He wasn't here.

I gave a sigh of relief as I felt my heart continue to pound hard in my chest. What was wrong with me? I hadn't even been this nervous when I met up with Pein.

I quickly put the Akatsuki hat I was holding over my head as the long white shrills covered most of my face. I folded my shaking hands.

I clearly wasn't cut out for this type of thing.

I took a deep breath out as I kept my eyes out for my partner.

A few minutes passed and I could see something in the distance. There was someone walking in the distance. I rubbed my eyes trying to confirm that there was someone there. The dirt road was clear and there was no one else around so...my eyes couldn't be playing tricks on me.

The figure in the distance was tall and even though the person was just walking, I couldn't take my eyes off them. Finally, I could see clearly. The person wore similar attire to me with a red and black Akatsuki cloak and the same hat I was wearing seemed to cover their face.

It was him. Kisame.

On his back was a large sword wrapped in white bandages and the handle seemed to pop out over his right shoulder. His step was slow yet steady and at the same time, it seemed so quick.

I quickly shook my head. I was confusing myself.

I clenched my fists before taking steps towards him and soon enough we stood in front of each other. There was a massive height difference between us and I was forced to look up in order to look at him.

Still, I couldn't see his face because his hat was covering it so well. The distance between us was very small and he finally looked down at me.

The first thing I saw was teeth and then a grin.

"You must be Sana," he said.

I could finally see his face. As I took my first look at him I was shocked. His skin was a light blue and his eyes had such a piercing look to them. He had three markings under his eyes and his grin...his grin seemed to frighten me.

He was...a shark.

She was short. Her stature was tiny and she was looking at me with such wide eyes. They seemed to look at me with such curiosity and also almost...fearfully.

An Akatsuki member who was scared of her partner? There was no way.

"You haven't said anything to me yet? Are you scared of me?"

She stiffened at my sudden question and her eyes relaxed almost immediately.

"It's nice to meet you Kisame," she said.

I looked down at her curiously as she extended her hand.

A handshake?

I sighed, "I don't know you. So I'd prefer not to."

Her face turned a bright red as she quickly retracted her hand.

She looked away from me and I stood in silence.

In truth, I didn't want a new partner. I would rather be alone. I didn't see the point in it. Ever since Itachi died...there was a part of me that preferred to be on my own. I didn't think anyone would fit me the same way Itachi did. I had lost a good friend before I even knew it.

I looked down at the pink-haired lady who stood in front of me with disappointed eyes.

I had decided I wouldn't judge the scenario without seeing my partner in person...but she was worse than I expected.

A handshake?

I laughed at the idea and she looked at me confused.

She spoke, "Pein...I mean leader-sama told me that you knew the location of the hideout we are supposed to seal off. Is that true?"

I frowned, "Seal off? That's not true."

She looked at me with confused eyes.

I grinned in amusement, "He just said we had to destroy it. That means we can go on a rampage."

She frowned at my statement and I frowned upon seeing her frown.

Her blue eyes looked straight at me, "Isn't it easier just to seal it off and then go home?"

I looked at her with a disappointed glare and she looked at me in distaste.

We seemed to stand there and stare at each other for a while before I reached my hand behind me and placed it on Samehada.

She immediately took a step backwards as she looked at me with a wary expression.

"I have a proposal, " she said.

I looked at her in silence not removing my hand from Samehada.

"When we get to the hideout...whoever reaches it first can do whatever they want. If you manage to destroy it before I seal it I'll listen to you from now on. If I seal it first you'll have to listen to me."

I blinked curiously at the sudden statement. That sounded...boring.

It was obvious I was going to destroy it before she got the chance to seal it. When I saw her for the first time I didn't get excited. She didn't have the aura of someone who was strong.

She was bluffing.

"Then it's settled," she said.

She broke my train of thought and I realized I had been silent for too long. She had taken it as a yes.

"Let's go," she said pointing in a random direction.

She began to walk and I spoke, "It's the other direction, " I said.

She turned around at once as she began to walk the right way.

I sighed.

She was...so strange.

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