Book One

Chapter I

Two Jacks and Queen

It was a wonderful day. The sun was bright, the sky clear. The day's earlier rain had left it cool, and kept the normally aggravating dust and sand anchored to the ground. Occasionally, tiny rainbows could be seen dancing in what remained of the showers. It was what Hinata had imagined the west to be when her father had first announced they would be moving.

Under normal circumstances, she would've sat outside for hours, soaking it all in. Unfortunately, these were not normal circumstances, and Hinata, instead of sitting comfortably in a lawn chair while sipping lemonade poured by Ko, found herself tied roughly to the back of a particularly skittish horse.

"Hurry up you stupid horse!" Screamed the man in front of her. No, not man. Not exactly - the...boy was only a few years older than she was, and maybe not even that. "Shino!" He shouted. "Are we losing them?"

His partner, whom Hinata had a nice view of from her uncomfortable position, threw a look over his shoulder and spurred his own horse faster. "Not exactly!"

"Shit!" the boy shouted. "Shit, shit, shit! Shino, this was a horrible idea!"

Hinata wanted to tell them that if they let her go now they could ride off into the sunset no harm done - but she couldn't. Mainly because there was an absolutely disgusting sock in her mouth, preventing her from doing anything other than moan, but also because it wasn't true. Her father may have deemed her a failure, unfit to head the family empire, but he would allow no insult to his family. If her kidnappers stopped, they would be killed.

"Dear Almighty Will of Fire," the boy said to himself, "it's your humble servant, Kiba Inuzuka."

There was a soft whine.

"And Akamaru too," Kiba added. Hinata jerked her head around to see a small coyote pup poking its head over Kiba's shoulder, giving her a curious stare. "We never wanted any trouble, we promise. We just wanted a good life for our families. If you kill us now, think about how poor, innocent Hana will suffer."

He paused for a moment.

"Well maybe Hana's a bad example. But please Lord, Akamaru's just a puppy. He ain't done anything wrong. Please don't-" his prayer was abruptly cut off by a gunshot whizzing by his ear. "Oh fuck! Oh shit! Shino!"

"I know!" His partner shouted back. "We're not going to be able to lose them! I'm going to show them my bugs!"

"Oh shit that is a bad idea! That is a bad idea!" Kiba shouted but Shino wasn't listening. The outlaw had grabbed a large rifle that was slung across his back, and wheeled his horse abruptly around.

Hinata twisted her neck to see what was going to happen. Shino brought the rife to his shoulder and fired - a loud, high pitched whine filled the air, like a swarm of tiny bugs, and one of her father's men fell from his horse with a scream of pain and flash of crimson. Hinata shut her eyes tight, but that didn't prevent her from hearing the same fate befall another one of her would be rescuers.

Kiba, still screaming obscenities, wheeled his own horse around. There was the sound of a gun cocking, and then several loud pistol shots threatened to deafen the young Hyuga.

Then utter silence.

Kiba whooped, and Hinata cracked open her eyes. The horse had stopped, and both Kiba and Shino were on their feet - Kiba doing a happy little dance, Shino making sure her father's men weren't just playing dead.

"We kidnapped an heiress! We kidnapped an heiress! Look at me now Dad!" Kiba shouted to the sky. He leaped up into the air in an attempt to click his heels together, but instead fell to the ground face first.

Hinata wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hiruzen Sarutobi, mayor of New Leaf Town (where you can turn over a new leaf) called his Sheriff into his office.

Danzo Shimura was a ruthless, cunning, and dangerous man. Hiruzen knew that his old friend still harbored the desire to take his job, and he didn't like having him in a position of such power in the town, but the fact remained that Danzo was simply the best there was at keeping order. If only things had gone differently on that one raid, then maybe...

But that was the past. The present had its own problems.

"I just got a telegraph from Hiashi Hyuga," Hiruzen said, as Danzo took a seat in the chair across from him.

The sheriff scratched at bandages that covered his missing eye. "The railroad tycoon?"

"The railroad tycoon," Hiruzen said with a nod. "His oldest daughter was apparently kidnapped by a pair of outlaws. Shino Aburame and Kiba Inuzuka. Ring any bells?"

Danzo grunted. "Those bastard kids are still alive? I thought I killed them with the rest of the Magnificent Eight."

"Apparently not," Hiruzen said. "Hiashi messaged to inform me that he's offering a very generous reward for her return."

"How generous, exactly?"

Hiruzen told him.

Danzo blinked once, then twice, then a third time. "That...is very generous indeed. I'll put my best men on it immediately."

"Do it quickly," Hiruzen said. "Hiashi also informed me that he had Kakashi on her tail."

Danzo frowned. "And wherever that blasted bounty hunter is, Might Guy is there to try and upstage him. That's some heavy duty competition."

"I trust you'll be able to handle it. Oh, and Danzo?"

"Yeah?" Danzo asked, pausing at the door.

"I would like you to include your newest deputy on this assignment. As a personal favor to me."

"You've got to be kidding me."

Hiruzen smiled slightly. "Believe it."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hinata had always enjoyed camping trips. Or at least, she had always enjoyed the idea of camping trips. She loved the thought of eating next to a roaring fire, roasting marshmallows, trading ghost stories, and falling asleep under the stars. Her father would never allow her to do anything as…common as camping. Before now, she had resented him for it.

But now she realized he had been right. Camping was a miserable activity, and if she ever got out of this situation alive she would spend the rest of her life sleeping in a proper bed under a roof.

Another gust of freezing wind bit through her light dress, and she began shivering uncontrollably, huddling closer to the meager fire in an attempt to fend off the night air. She knew that desert nights were cold, but this was ridiculous.

The worst part was that her kidnappers didn't even seem to notice it. They sat on the opposite side of the fire, too busy digging into small cans of beans to talk.

Now that the initial craziness of the kidnapping was past, Hinata had managed to take stock of her captors. They were both only about a year older than her – seventeen, eighteen at the oldest. The wild one, the one that had actually grabbed her, and tied her to the horse, was Kiba Inuzuka. He had a red tattoo on each cheek that looked like a fang. He was dressed in mostly greys and browns, with a furry bandana tied around his neck. An oversized revolver was slung low on his hip, and seemed to be the only clean thing within ten feet of him.

The other one, the calmer one, was Shino Aburame. Hinata had pegged him as the brains of the operation. He was slightly taller than Kiba, with wild hair that seemed to stick straight up. His clothes were muted green, almost an olive, and he wore a bandana that covered the lower portion of his face – he didn't even remove it to eat. His rifle was a long, angular, disjointed looking weapon that he had laid carefully beside him.

They had taken the disgusting sock out of her mouth a few minutes ago so that she could eat, but since they had declined to untie her hands or feet she was forced to bend low over the beans-on-a-pan and eat them with her mouth like a dog. Strands of hair kept getting in her mouth, something Kiba seemed to find incredibly hilarious.

She had not said one word to them since they had ungagged her. She hoped she was projecting a calm, nonplussed image, but just below the surface she was terrified. She felt that they knew it too, which was why they were waiting for her to speak first.

Well, they could have their little victory. She was too tired and scared for these mind games; she had enough of those to look forward to when/if she got home.

"Wh-what are g-g-going to do with me?" She asked. She couldn't tell if her stuttering was from her own fear or the cold – probably the former.

Kiba and Shino exchanged glances, Kiba's shoulders shaking with barely suppressed laughter. Shino rolled his eyes (or at least, Hinata assumed he had – she couldn't see his eyes) and answered her question.

"We're not going to hurt you, if that's what you're asking," he said, calmly scooping up a spoonful of beans and somehow getting the food past his bandana. "We'll send your father our demands in the morning. Then we make the trade. He gets you, we get the money, and everyone walks away happy."

Hinata shook her head. They were just so wrong. They had no idea what her father was like, the lengths he would go through to make sure they would pay for what they had done. "H-He won't g-give you the money. He d-doesn't give in to cr-criminals." She took a deep, shuddering breath, huddling closer to the fire.

Shino observed her coolly and made no move to help. "We will get the money. We are running out of options and cannot afford to allow this venture to be a waste of our time." He took another mouthful of beans. "If your father will not pay for your release, there are others that would want their hands on the Hyuga heiress."

Hinata shivered, but this time it wasn't from the cold.

Shino shrugged. "It pains me to say this, but your well being is significantly less important to us than getting the money we need. We may even be forced to contact the Indigo Witch, though even the thought of her puts a bad taste in my mouth."

"Th-The Indigo W-W-W-Witch?"

Kiba grinned, showing far too many teeth to be completely normal. "One of the most dangerous outlaws this side of the Bridge of Heaven and Earth. They say she steals your mind with poisons and pills. And she's always looking for girls to buy."

Hinata swallowed. "So you are b-b-both slavers."

"We're survivors," Shino said. "We made a regrettable decision a year or so ago and now it is coming back to haunt us. If that makes us monsters, so be it. Better a live monster than a dead hero."

Hinata wanted to shout and scream at them. She wanted to tell them that they were cowards that they were assholes that she hoped her father's men found them and killed them slowly.

Instead she rolled over and tried her best to hold back the tears.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Hinata awoke to Kiba grabbing her and tossing her over his shoulder. She let out a tired eep, but didn't bother fighting him as he strapped her down to the back of his horse. Not that the horse made it easy for him – a steady stream of curses fell from his mouth as he attempted to keep the thing still for more than a few seconds at a time. It was a welcome bit of comedy in the drama that had so suddenly engulfed Hinata's life.

The ride was long and uncomfortable, with no-one speaking. By the time Hinata could see the blurry outline of a village on the horizon, the sun was beginning to set once again. Kiba slowed his horse to a trot but Shino kept riding full speed into the village.

Eventually Kiba pulled to a full stop alongside a canyon wall, sighing and dismounting from his horse. His coyote pup, Akamaru, leapt out of his shirt and onto the dusty ground, running around in circles and yipping excitedly. Kiba laughed, and the spectacle almost made Hinata smile.

A few minutes passed with no noise but the wind and Akamaru's panting, until finally Hinata couldn't stand it anymore. "Why are you doing this?" She asked Kiba. The silence was killing her. She had to speak. And if she couldn't change the hand fate had dealt her, she could at least understand.

Kiba plopped down on the ground and picked up a small rock, lobbing it at her. She flinched as it bounced harmlessly off her head. "Why're you so keen on talking?" He asked. "We'll be partin' ways soon enough."

He did not speak like anyone Hinata had ever met. He lacked the cultured, almost aristocratic tone she had grown up with. It had a different rhythm, a different cadence, and it grated against Hinata's nerves. He spoke like he had never been taught how to speak, had simply picked it up one day and decided it was a useful tool. Hinata knew better. She knew that speaking was an art, and that how someone spoke could tell everything about someone whether they wanted it to or not. Kiba's voice told her everything, or at least everything she needed to know. It told her that he was an uneducated, uncouth, unintelligent asshole that had no idea how to properly speak to a lady and would never, ever amount to anything in his pathetic and most likely short life.

She did her best to stare daggers at him, the way her father could when he got particularly upset. Judging by the smirk on Kiba's face, she failed miserably.

"Shino told you already," he said, shrugging. He took his brown hat off to reveal a mess of unruly brown hair and scratched at the stubble beginning to gather around his mouth and chin. "We borrowed some money, and now we need to pay it back. Pretty simple stuff."

"Who did you borrow money from?" Hinata asked. She only barely noticed that she wasn't stuttering anymore. She wasn't afraid of these boys. They were desperate, down to their last chip, and she was the Ace they had managed to slip out of their sleeves when nobody was watching. They couldn't afford to waste this.

"None'a your business," Kiba said with a scowl. Akamaru curled up in his lap and gave a sleepy yawn.

Hinata bit back a sharp retort about how it was her business because if he and Shino hadn't been idiots and borrowed money they couldn't repay they never would've dragged her into this waking nightmare. Instead, she ground her teeth and asked to go to the bathroom.

Kiba groaned and stood up, untying the ropes that bound her to the horse but not the ones that held her hands and feet. They had given her feet a little slack so that she could waddle around fairly effectively, but her wrists were tied so tightly she was half afraid they would stay deathly pale forever.

"Just don't try and run, right?" Kiba said, turning around to give her some privacy.

Hinata entertained the notion for a brief moment but ultimately decided against it. The town was just too far away – she would never be able to get close enough for the people to hear her before Kiba ran her down. She sighed and went to the bathroom.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

It was dark before Shino got back, horse loaded up with supplies and a grim expression on his face. "I spoke to her father," he said.

"And?" Kiba asked, looking up excitedly from where Akamaru was curled up in his lap. "When is he gonna give us the money?"

"He…isn't," Shino said with a frown.

Hinata's heart simultaneously leaped and shuddered. Kiba and Shino were beginning to realize they had bitten off more than they could chew but…they were already desperate. How far could they be pushed before they went over the ledge completely?

"What the fuck?" Kiba asked. "That fucking asshole won't pay ransom for his own fucking daughter?"

"Apparently not," Shino said. "He also informed me that he had the authorities and several bounty hunters after us. There is quite the generous reward on our heads."

Kiba groaned. "Well that's just fucking great. Did you talk to any other buyers?"

"Yes," Shino said with a nod. "However, none of them were willing to pay our price. They insist that the risk in taking her makes her much less valuable."

Kiba swallowed, his fists literally shaking in anger. "Then what are we gonna do?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Shino asked, sitting down by the crude fire Kiba had made. "We're going to the Indigo Witch."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Naruto Uzumaki adjusted his hat. It was a very nice hat, in his opinion. It was a white hat, the kind heroes in stories wore, but his had a nice orange band around the base of the crown, which he thought gave it a nice personal flair.

But his most notable piece of attire was of course his bright orange duster. It was a bit too large for him and hung nearly down to his knees but he rarely took the thing off – he had worn it so long it was almost a part of him. He wore a blue bandana around his neck for the particularly windy days, and his white dress shirt was a gift from the mayor. It fit him perfectly, and though he had only begun wearing it recently it was quickly becoming part of his iconic outfit. He wore his weapons slung low on his hips, two belts held together by a buckle with the New Leaf Town symbol engraved on it. The guns were experimental, able to spray dozens of bullets with a single squeeze of the trigger, and Naruto was forced to carry several boxes full of extra ammo. He had become quite adept at reloading – in fact it was the only thing he could truly claim as his specialty. On his back hung a cavalry sabre in an old beat up leather sheath.

Naruto adjusted his hat again. The wind was really getting going. Luckily there wasn't too much dirt and sand, so the most annoying thing was the way the wind seemed determined to claim his hat for its own.

New Leaf Town's newest deputy rode several feet behind three other horses, which were occupied by Sheriff Shimura and Senior Deputies Kamizuki and Hagane.

"We've travelled far enough," Sheriff Shimura said, dismounting his horse. "We'll be stopping here for the night. Everyone get ready to pitch tent."

"We're stopping already?" Naruto asked. "Come on, we've barely gotten started! Look, Kurama's still got plenty of energy!" He slapped his horse's side, and the animal reared up a bit, neighing excitedly. "We can put in a few more hours!"

The Sheriff took a deep breath and closed his one eye – Naruto recognized it as his 'tired of this bullshit' face and prepared himself for a verbal smack down.

But to his surprise, the verbal smack down never came. "Alright Deputy Uzumaki," the Sheriff said, "Since you and your horse are ready to keep going, I'm going to let you."

Naruto blinked once. "Really?"

"Really," the Sheriff said with a nod. "You've been bugging me non-stop to give you a real mission, and now you have it." He pointed in the northeastern direction. "We know the kidnappers were heading vaguely north. So you can take the northeast, and we'll take north and northwest. Cover more ground that way. You can send us radio messages when you reach towns."

Naruto's grin spread so wide it threatened to split his face in two. "Thank you sir!" He shouted, giving Danzo a sloppy salute. "You won't be disappointed! I'm gonna find those criminals and bring them to justice! You can believe it!" Without waiting for a response, he wheeled Kurama around and slapped the reigns against the horse's back. Kurama reared up again, an enormous red horse that seemed to sparkle in the setting sun, and took of at speeds that would make a professional racehorse green with envy. "WHEEEEEEEEEEE-HOOOOOOOOOO!"

XXXXXXXXXXXX

"He's gonna die, isn't he?" Deputy Hagane asked as they watched the blonde streak off into the quickly approaching night.

Danzo shrugged. "We should set up camp."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

It was long past closing time when the deputy from New Leaf Town stumbled into the clinic.

Sakura may have been new to the job but she knew a bad wound when she saw one. The deputy was clutching at his poorly bandaged hand and mumbling something about a pair of outlaws called the "Demon Brothers".

"One of them came at me with a knife," he explained as she unwrapped the tape. "He got me across the palm but I got him in the chest with one of my guns. The other one ran away. Then the wound starts hurting like hell – like, more like hell than it was before – and I knew something was up." He spoke in a typical western accent – not as strong as some people on the western side of the Bridge of Heaven and Earth, but noticeable to a city girl like her. Or former city girl anyway.

Sakura arched an eyebrow as she eyed the mottled blue and green flesh around a deep gash in his palm. "Yes, it looks like poison." She prodded the area around the wound a few times with her fingers. "Can you feel that?"

"No."

"How about here?" She asked, poking the inside of his wrist a few times.

He shook his head. "Nothing."

"And here?" She said, poking his forearm. "How long ago was this fight anyway?"

"Can't feel it. And maybe an hour or two. I rode Kurama as hard as I could but we were quite a ways out."

Sakura frowned and tapped his shoulder. "Please tell me you can feel this." The deputy nodded and she immediately went to the medicine cabinet, sorting through the variety of bottles stored there. "Alright. So the poison is spreading through your system fairly quickly. Normally I'd run a few tests to see what exactly it is, but time is running short and we don't have that luxury." She grabbed several bottles and about a half dozen of her largest needles, along with a bit of leather. "So I'm going to pump you full of common antidotes and we pray to the Sage that something works." She gave him the bit of leather. "You might want to put this in your mouth."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Several scream and throw up filled hours later, Naruto (Sakura had asked him his name in a futile attempt to distract him from a particularly painful injection) was slumped up against the wall, guzzling down water and nursing a mostly numb arm.

"Well, you're not dead," Sakura said, carefully applying fresh bandages to his wound. "That's a plus."

"I wish I was dead," Naruto groaned.

Sakura slapped him lightly on the uninjured arm. "Don't even joke about that," she said. "It isn't true and I won't hear it." She wound her hair up into a bun and secured it with a rubber band. "You just need some rest, ok?"

"Ok," Naruto agreed, yawning and resting his head against the wall. "Hey," he said, his eyelids fluttering, "I just wanted to say thanks for saving my life. That was pretty awesome." He tried to say more, but before he had the chance he was overtaken by sleep.

Sakura smiled, leaning her forehead against the window. The sun was beginning to rise over the horizon, a hundred different shades of pink and orange.