NEW LIFE : A SECOND CHANCE

At first, no one really paid any attention to the screaming girl in the waiting room lounge* but when her anger did not seem to abate, the screening officer finally stepped up.

"Miss?" one screening officer said politely but was ignored. She was busy shouting and stomping her feet, her eyes glaring at something in the distance.

The screening officer put his hand on her shoulder and the next thing he knew, he was on the floor. The girl had taken his hand, twisted it and flipped him so that he landed on his back. He blinked at her in shock.

Immediately, the other screening officer came and tried to help but before he could even take a step forward, the girl had twirled around and given him a roundhouse kick right at the side of his head. He started seeing stars and fell down on the floor, blood flowing out of his nose.

She then turned back to the first screening officer and started punching his face while he tried to block it. However, her hands were too fast as kept avoiding them and continued to hit him.

The crowd that was in the waiting room lounge immediately started watching the whole show in fascination as security officers turned up, their running feet echoing in the corridor. The sound seemed to have snapped her out of something, for she now looked at the two downed screening officers in shock.

She looked up, only to see several security officers in a semi-circle surrounding her, one bravely coming up to her and asking her in a gentle voice to stop. She asked her to stand still with her hands held in front of her.

The girl sighed. Bringing up her hands up in the air to show that she wasn't going to attack, she then did as was instructed.

She knew she was in the wrong. She bit her bottom lip in frustration, angry at herself for letting her anger cloud her thinking and judgment.

One officer came and tentatively put her hand on her shoulder while the others still in a defensive position. The girl hung her head low as she followed the officer quietly.

Tears started forming at her eyes when she thought of how disappointed her Sensei would be with her.

Anger and hatred then started forming in her hearts towards a certain, smug-faced boy. That image of him waving and blowing her a kiss made her gnash her teeth.

? On the Plane ?

The flight was delayed and everyone was becoming restless. Just then, the pilot made an announcement, apologizing for the delay. He explained that there had been a young person passenger that had yet to board. However, since they were given the 'all-clear' sign, the plane could finally take-off.

Xing Han turned to the apathetic Kyle, shaking his head. When the announcement about the delay was first made, Kyle merely shrugged and said that it was expected and started staring out the window.

Xing Han knew from that stance that Kyle wasn't interested in talking about it, so he let it slide. Personally, he felt that Kyle had gone a bit overboard as the fan had spent money to buy tickets that she could not use. Not only that, Kyle was acting slightly out of character as he would not normally do things that would inconvenience other people.

As he watched Kyle ignoring everything, Xing Han decided that Kyle needed to be kept in check from now on. Once the movie came out, he'd be exposed even more. Would his actions become more extreme? Would his Kyle be different from all of this?

Xing Han's eyebrows furrowed even further thinking about it. With this thought, Xing Han decided that it was best that he followed Kyle as well. All he had to do was figure out the reasoning for it and get his parents' approval. Even though Sam would be there, it was only to help him as his PA. It as not the same as looking out for him like what a BFF would do.

As what only a BFF can do.

With that thought in mind, Xing Han settled down and was busy coming up with his report.

While Xing Han was busy with that, Kyle was lost in thought.

He was thinking about the girl and was itching to know her identity. When she had managed to buy the ticket the first time without a problem, it confirmed to Kyle that she was a local and above 12 years old. A young person traveling alone on a domestic flight didn't have the same restrictions as one on an international flight.

She had done the booking online, indicating she must have used an adult account to do so. Checking in without an unaccompanied adult meant she had the necessary documents to show she was allowed to travel solo. This meant that there was more to this 'following him' than meets the eye.

[Kay, do you have her details now?]

[Yes. Her name is Sayuri Hinata] Kay replied, after accessing the database. It was easy to figure out which one she was, as her name appeared on the two flights Kyle gave her.

[I'm getting information on her right now. The report will be ready by the time you land]

[Thanks, Kay]

Kyle was satisfied. The delay was worth it, as he now had a name.

'Sayuri, huh? Let's see how far we shall be playing this game,' Kyle thought to himself.

? Airport Security ?

Meanwhile, the same Sayuri was passing the time thinking of ways to beat-up Kyle in her mind. It was the only thing that kept her happy at that moment, as she was being held in the airport security.

They couldn't do anything until her uncle, her guardian, arrived. However, she was informed that due to this incident, the airline has decided to blacklist her. From now on, she would not be allowed to travel unaccompanied until she reached 17 years old.

When she heard that, she was so angry that it showed on her face, causing the officers to subconsciously step back. Her facial expression was so ferocious that some beads of sweat actually began to form on their foreheads.

Thirty minutes later, her guardian arrived - much to the relief of everyone there. Though the girl wasn't violent, the dark cloud above her made everyone steer clear away. They remembered what happened to the two poor screening officers.

Her guardian was apologizing profusely to them, paid for the treatment of the two officers and was extremely polite. He assured them that he understood the ban and finally, went over to Sayuri who was sitting down with her head bowed down low.

"Let's go," he said simply.

"Yes, Uncle," she replied softly and got up, following obediently behind him. The officers, upon seeing her, felt pity - even the two that she had beaten up. She looked so sad and contrite.

"When are you going to stand up straight, young lady?!" the man admonished her as they walked out, and she straightened her back instinctively.

"I am sorry, Uncle," she responded.

"Failure is part of life," he said, "What you do from that is what is important. Are you going to learn from it and rise up, or are you going to let it haunt you forever?"

"Failure is not an option!" she hissed, unable to stop herself, her frustration spilling over.

Her uncle sighed and replied patiently, not angry, "And that, my child, is why you will continue to fail."

He looked at his niece and sighed slowly again, not saying anything anymore. This stubborn trait of hers had been inherited from her father, so he knew very well that it was something she had to learn for herself.

Right now, she was too consumed by anger and bitterness over her failure that she would not be able to see it.

He thought back on what his father had told him prior to him coming to pick her up.

"Be firm with her. She has the potential and skill, but she is a bit too arrogant and overconfident. No one had ever been able to beat her so she was sure her initiation was going to be a sure thing. It is time that she tastes defeat and learns how to overcome it. There is always a higher mountain."

"But Father, how come you were so sure that she'd fail?" he had asked.

His father had smiled widely, his eyes twinkling, "Because she is against Kyle Kato Smith".

It was at that moment that everything fell into place.

When the name as entered into the Clan Registry, it had created a huge commotion in their Ninja World. It had been an extremely long time since any outsider was ever allowed into the Family, and Kato Dazai* had done so. Thus, there had been numerous questions posed to Dazai, upon which he answered everything smoothly and confidently.

There even had been various tests done by some Ninja Families - theirs included - and they had been quite satisfied that Dazai's assessment was accurate. The boy truly had been worthy of taking up the mantle and continuing the Kato Line.

Their family had been curious from that, and had always kept an eye out on his progress for a few years. He continued to amaze them and earned their respect, upon which they stopped. When you respect someone, you do not monitor them.

Of course, only those who were officially in the Family knew of him and his little niece did not.

He was the perfect one to bring her down a notch or two.

He turned to look back at his niece, who was still mumbling angrily and felt his father was right. Now, he hoped that the next test they have for her would truly make her grow and improve. If not, no matter how much of a prodigy she was, she would not pass.

Nothing brings a ninja down faster than a black heart.