This is my first guide, so I will keep it sweet and simple and try to explain as much as I can!

-Pros-
Amazing burst and lane sustain
Can close gaps fairly easily
Nice escape tool by using Shadow Dance to leap to minions
Top end ganker
Oracles elixir doesn't shut you out completely

-Cons-
Doesn't really have any presence until level 6
Can be focused especially if Twilight Shroud is on cooldown
If you don't have any Shadow Dance charges you are at a severe disadvantage
Very squishy

The runes chosen are to start your passives off right off the bat! Fairly easy to get, all are relatively easy to get and cheap except for Greater Glyph of Fortitude.

For those who don't know, Mark of the Assassin is the bread and butter of doing burst. Paired with Lich Bane can do massive amounts of damage!

Early on MotA is all you will need, but when you hit level 2 you want to grab shroud as it will save your life countless times! It is also a deterrent and area blocking tool, which is what makes Akali such a great solo/mid laner!

Cresent Slash is very useful for farming, and taking out the adds around red/blue buffs! It costs a lot of energy for not a lot of damage, so try to avoid using it on champions unless you know you will land the kill!

All around these are the best for major burst and sustain.
First off is the longsword which is used for extra spell vamp so that you can sustain in lane. Afterwards comes boots so you can actually move, then hextech revolver, which is amazing for helping you stay in lane longer! Then comes merc treads to cut down on slows and give you some magic defense as AP targets are your main source of feeds! Then comes the scepter which will help save you some charges of Shadow Dance by slowing the enemy and scoring you more kills, As well as giving more health early on. Then comes sheen, which increases burst damage by almost 250 damage! Amazing? YES! working into lich bane allowing all that AP you worked up to be put to full use! Then we go ahead and take our hextech revolver and turn it into a hextech gunblade to keep up with the amount of damage that is going out, as well as giving you a ranged slow if your MotA is on CD, and it can score that last hit you may need on a runner! After that we go ahead and grab a rabadon in order to up our AP even more! Then we make use of that longsword by turning it into a maldreds blood razor, so that way we can handle tanks, because at the end of the game is about when they start to hit their max HP, in which you come around with the bloodrazor and throw on some more burst! ;)

Luckily for you, you have a ranged ability that you can spam and never have to leave lane! You can last hit minions with that, or use it to reset swing timer and get a last hit that way as well! Because of this and shroud it makes Akali a very powerful mid or solo laner! So don't be fooled that because she is melee, that she can't play mid well!

I would not suggest it. Only at about level 6-8 is when you should start (if you don't already have one). Use this to keep your enemies on their toes so when they over extend and think you are on the other end of the map you pop out of the river and burst them down! Jungling is also a great way to get unsapped XP so that you have an advantage over others on the opposing team!

The only one i can think to mention is that if you are laning against a potential target, with maxed out MotA, toss one at them, wait for the cooldown to finish then shadow dance in, trigger it, toss another, trigger it. This will maximize the amount of burst you do in the least amount of time!

Will probably add more, but this is just a guide that has worked for me. Not many people know to stack MR to counter Akali which can land you a lot of easy kills! These past games I've gone about 20+/3, so i thought id make a guide and share my build so others can try! I will try and update every so often, thank you for at least looking, and i hope with worked for you!