Disclaimer: Do not own


Chapter Three

Moving and Waiting


The last time Naruto saw Hinata was seven days ago. The memory of kissing her desperately, hoping that it would be enough to fix everything, clung to his mind. It haunted him at night and tortured him during the day. Was that really the only thing he could do? Only kiss her and then hope? It was a horrible feeling and it left him restless and irritated.

A knock on his office door brought him out of his thoughts. "Come in." he said.

Sasuke entered the room. He was dressed in his green shinobi vest with his sword strapped to his back. His uncovered eye looked at Naruto with concern. Naruto looked back at him impassively. It was futile for Naruto to pretend in front of him. Sasuke already knew Naruto was in agony, there was no point in trying to hide it.

Sasuke found Naruto destroying the training grounds the day after Hinata ended their relationship. The Uchiha had never seen his friend in such a hopeless state. Naruto was an insistent person. He had never been good at stepping aside. He knew this from personal experience.

"Gaara is coming today." he stated, bypassing any greetings. Sasuke already knew Naruto wouldn't appreciate any of his social skills today.

"That's good," Naruto sighed, leaning back into his chair as he stared at the village through his window, "I haven't seen him in a long time."

"Yeah." Sasuke agreed as Naruto returned to his preoccupied state. A silence fell between the two friends. It was a strange silence, the kind where everyone knew what was going on, but no one wanted to talk about it. An open secret that danced between them in mockery.

"I was thinking," Sasuke said, interrupting Naruto's thoughts, "I want to bring back the Uchiha police force."

Naruto's eyes widened at the statement. He never thought Sasuke would want the force after finding out it was just a system designed to appease the Uchiha clan.

"Really?" he asked in wonderment, "What for?"

Sasuke frowned at the reaction, "You don't think it's a good idea?" he answered. Naruto stood up, quick to amend his sudden surprise.

"No!" he exclaimed, "I think it's a great idea! I've been wanting to ask you, but I wasn't sure." Naruto trailed off, unsure of what he wanted to say. How could he have asked his friend to run something that had openly segregated his clan from the rest of the village? He did not want to start his term off with the same mistake as his predecessors. But at the same time, Naruto needed a police system in Konoha.

"There was a time when taking over as chief of police was a dream of mine." he said simply, "I figure, if we start the force without the animosity behind it, then it would better serve the village."

Naruto smiled at his friend. The news had really uplifted him. "Sasuke, you have no idea how much I needed this!" he exclaimed, grateful for his friend's interest. "The village needs this too. I know you've read the reports about the bordering villages."

He nodded. Sasuke knew turmoil was not far from the land of fire. Smaller villages had started revolting against the lords that controlled them. It was only a matter of time before the conflict spilled over into Konoha.

"Who did you want to recruit?" he asked curiously. Sasuke never jumped into anything without a plan.

"Lee, Shino, and Hanabi." Sasuke responded curtly without any hesitation.

"That's not very many people." Naruto said, amused by his answer. Sasuke always had this unexplained respect for Lee and Shino. Lee had been the first person to hand Sasuke his own ass. To Sasuke, Lee will always be a worthy opponent.

Despite Shino's quiet and weird nature, Sasuke had never forgotten the genin ninja who had fought Kankuro so that Sasuke could move on to Gaara.

"Well, I don't want anyone else just yet." he said. "I work better with small crowds anyway."

Naruto smiled. He walked towards Sasuke and placed a hand on his shoulder, "I trust you will make it the best damn force Konoha has ever had." Sasuke smirked at the statement.

"Come on." Sasuke said, walking towards the door with his hands in his pockets "Gaara should be here by now."

Naruto nodded, grabbing his Hokage jacket as he followed after him.


Hanabi and Tadeki were waiting at the village gate for Konohamaru to return from his escort mission. Hanabi was glowing red with embarrassment as Tadeki was wrapping her hand up in a bandage. Despite the injury, he was playfully smiling at her.

"Shut up!" she pleaded with a scowl on her face.

Tadeki never broke his concentration on her hand as he replied, "I haven't said anything."

A few days ago, Hanabi had been working on her eight trigrams technique. Tadeki had ruthlessly thrown shruiken, kunai, and any other weapon he could at her. She couldn't block a particular kunai , instead she tried to catch it. However, she caught the wrong end, and the kunai pierced straight through her hand. Hanabi was so humiliated that Tadeki had to force her to let him check the wound.

"It's just." he said, "How could you not realize which end of the kunai you were going to catch? You have really good vision."

Hanabi faced him, clearly not amused by his sarcasm. Tadeki couldn't prevent the laughter that escaped him because of her reaction.

"I just said shut up!" she repeated, completely mortified by the incident. "And don't you dare tell Konohamaru!"

Tadeki abruptly stopped his laughter as he tied the loose ends of the bandage into a knot. He held onto her hand briefly to inspect the wrappings.

"I won't say anything." he promised, his hand lingered against her's, before he finally let go. Hanabi sighed out of relief and as always grateful for his medical skills.

"Thank you." she said as Tadeki smirked at her. The pair then noticed Naruto and Sasuke approaching the gate. Naruto was wearing his white Hokage robe with the red flames on the bottom. He grinned at the two chuunin, waving his hand enthusiastically towards them. Sasuke walked next him, nonchalant and stoic as always. His singular eye briefly flickered to Hanabi's bandaged hand. Hanabi blushed slightly, hiding her hand away from her teacher. She would be mortified if her teacher ever found out about her stupid accident.

"Naruto-san, Sasuke-san, " Tadeki greeted, "Are you waiting for Konohamaru too?"

Naruto laughed as he remembered that he had sent Konohamaru and Shikamaru on the escort mission to Suna. He smiled at the two ninjas, thrilled by their enthusiasm to greet their teammate.

"Yes and No." he answered, "Konohamaru is escorting Gaara the kazekage. I'm here to greet him."

"It looks like we won't have to wait long." Sasuke said as he pointed towards the village entrance. Hanabi followed the direction of her teacher's hand and saw Konohamaru walking with an intimidating red head and another person completely covered in paint marks.

"Gaara! Kanakuro!" Naruto called waving frantically to the pair.

"Finally, that moron is here." Hanabi exclaimed as she saw Konohamaru walking through the gates. At nineteen, Konohamaru had grown tremendously. He was taller than Naruto and well built, with a beard that rivaled his Uncle Asuma's.

"Who're you calling a moron?" Konohamaru shouted from the gate. Hanabi extended her finger and wordlessly pointed at him.

"You better watch yourself Hanabi!" he warned, "I can beat you with one move."

The younger Hyuga activated her Byakugan eyes and glared at the Sarutobi heir, "Well then bring it." she stated shifting into her gentle fists position.

Before Naruto could register the seals that Konohamaru performed, he heard the familiar sound of the henge no jutsu. Naruto saw Konohamaru transform into a tall and slim man with medium length blond hair and bright blue eyes. There was an uncanny resemblance to Tadeki.

Hanabi became frozen with shock. Despite her strength and harsh personality, she had still been raised in a very strict and sheltered environment. Her face colored red as she became unable to move.

"I told you." he said, as he made the Tadeki flex his chest and wave a finger at the stunned Hyuga.

"Konohamaru!" Tadeki shouted at him while he sent a monstrous punch in his direction, causing the perverted shinobi to release his jutsu. "You fucking moron!"

Despite his flustered state,Tadeki turned back to Hanabi with concern reflecting out of his blue eyes. "Hanabi!" he said while grabbing on to her arms, "Snap out of it!"

Hanabi barely looked into Tadeki's eyes before she promptly fainted. Tadeki caught her swiftly, attempting to hold her upright, while Konohamaru erupted into laughter.

"That was better than imagined!" he laughed as Tadeki glared at him.

Naruto grinned at the scene before him."I take it that is your student." Gaara said with a calm smile on his face.

"Yeah!" Naruto responded proudly, "I've been training him for years!"

Sasuke sighed in annoyance from the spectacle. "He's worse than you." he said crossing his arms.

"You're just mad because he beat your precious student, Sasuke." Naruto taunted. Sasuke frowned at the statement.

"Hanabi can beat Konohamaru in her sleep." he responded, refusing to acknowledge the effects of the henge.

Naruto grinned as he looked back towards Gaara. The red headed kazekage was smiling as well, as if he was remembering an inside joke.

"Where is Temari?" he asked bewildered by the third sand sibling's absence.

"Where's Shikamaru?" Kankuro asked sarcastically. Realization dawned on Naruto as a sly grin stretched across his face. He noticed the Kazekage scowl at the mention of the strategist's name.

"Relax, Gaara." Naruto said casually placing a hand on his shoulder, "I'm sure they're just on a date."

"It must have been some date they planned." Kanakuro responded, "They left us before we even entered the village gates." The scowl on Gaara's face deepened because of the statement.

"Come on!" Naruto interjected, "we have more important things to discuss."

The kazekage nodded at Naruto's statement as he followed him towards the Hokage tower.


Naruto became unsettled at the news Gaara delivered to his council. Refugees from the Grass village had started fleeing to the Sand. Gaara had set up camps to help the displaced villagers but he also explained how the camps were only a temporary solution.

"I'm afraid, the conflict in Grass directly correlates with the turmoil in the mountain village." Gaara explained, "The lords have been ousted in the Mountain village, and the current leadership is helping the Grass fight against their Lord."

Naruto linked his hands together as he leaned on his elbows. He observed the concern looks of his council. "What do you need?" he asked Gaara.

"We need more aid so that we can receive these refugees." Gaara explained, "We are running out of resources. Our desert will kill them."

The sounds of the leaf shinobi discussing their uncertainty filled the room. Many of his friends were concerned with the idea of getting involved. The Grass and Mountain villages were leagues away from Konoha. They had no alliance with the small civilian villages. Why would they want to insert Konoha's influence in a region where the village's name was practically unheard of?

"Naruto," Gaara interrupted the chatter, "We need all the help we can get."

"Naruto!" Kiba yelled, "We shouldn't get involved at all in this conflict." Kiba was always brash, but never short sighted.

"The longer we wait," Sasuke interjected, "the more likely this mess will spread to our village." He turned his gaze toward Naruto, "We need to do something to ease this crisis."

"We need to remain neutral," Shikamaru stated, "We have no allegiance with Grass or Mountain. They are not shinobi villages. Our involvement will only fuel the fire."

"But we can't just let those poor people die." Choji responded, "We have the power to help them." A typical response from the gentle Choji. Naruto could always count on him to make kindness and important part of politics.

Uncertainty weighed down on Naruto. It seemed every option had an undesired effect that nobody wanted. If they sent aid to Gaara, then the smaller villages would think the leaf and sand would be a threat. Naruto did not want to cause panic within his own village either. The last thing he wanted was for leaf shinobi to think they were going to war. However, they couldn't just abandon their alliance with the Sand. It didn't help that every member had differing opinions on the situation.

Naruto looked at Sasuke. He was also right. They both knew it would only be a matter of time before they would find refugees at their own border. These conflicts weren't isolated in only Grass and Mountain, but also in nearby villages such as Waves, Thunder, and Snow.

"The leaf will remain neutral." Naruto stated, "but we will not abandon the Sand."

The room grew quiet at the response. "Sakura-chan, I want you to find medic volunteers willing to travel to the Sand. Any supplies requested will be given. "

"Yamato," Naruto continued, "Gather any left over seed, livestock, or grain that can be spared from our farms. Tell the farmers they will be paid for their donations."

"Naruto," Shikamaru said, "We can't assume the leaf will not be affected by this. We have to take precautions for our own village.

"Naruto and I have reestablished the Uchiha Police Force. " Sasuke said, "I will not let any harm come to the village."

"It will be his duty to ensure the safety of the villagers." Naruto confirmed.

The young strategists grimaced at the proposition. His dislike for idea displayed openly on his face. He never really cared much for Sasuke, but that was a personal issue for Shikamaru. He knew personal dealings had no place in running a village. Still, he had to at least acknowledge Sasuke's desire to protect the village.

"The Yamanaka clan can help with the border." Ino said. The blond smiled at Shikamaru knowingly. She knew he didn't want to leave everything to Sasuke. "Hinata and I have formed an agreement. Our members will start training together. With the Hyuga eyesight, we can keep watch at greater distances. "

It had been the first information Naruto received about the clan since Hinata became the head. His startled expression quickly turned into a huge smile. "This is great Ino-chan!" he exclaimed happy about her proposal as well as Hinata's success within the clan.

His excitement subsided as his thoughts returned to the current situation. He didn't know if his choices resolved the conflict or only served to delay it. The idea rested uncomfortably on his heart.


Hinata watched the door open as her younger sister entered her room. She stood awkwardly in the doorway. She was sheepish and nervous. Hinata thought those traits were very unusual for her.

"Hanabi," she said gently as she stood from her mediating position, "What's wrong?"

The younger Hyuga suddenly wrapped her arms around her older sister. Hinata was surprised by the rare demonstration of affection. She gently placed her hand on top of Hanabi's head, as if trying to soothe her.

"Hinata, I didn't know." she said, "Father told me, I'm sorry!"

"What are you sorry for," she said, "You haven't done anything."

The younger sibling pulled away, and met Hinata's eyes. "I didn't know the clan would separate you from Naruto. If I had known I would have.."

"You would have what?" Hinata interrupted, "Become the head?"

"Well.. Yes!" she stated, "I was supposed to be the head anyway!"

"And what about Konohamaru and Tadeki?" she asked, "You would have left them to take the jonin exam without you?"

"No, I " she began, "I could be the head and still train."

Hinata looked at her younger sister knowingly, "Hanabi, I can see clear as day that you don't want to be the head. At least not yet."

"But look what they've done to you!" she exclaimed, pain swelling in her heart for her sister. Hanabi was great at fighting. She only wanted to get better. She dreaded becoming the head. She had been secretly relieved when her father told her seven years ago that Hinata would reclaim her title.

"Hanabi, I appreciate everything really." she said, " But you're only seventeen. You have a great opportunity training with Sasuke. He'll be able to teach you more than any Hyuga ever could."

Hanabi smirked slightly, "You're always protecting me from shit like this. I hate it."

"Well I'm the older sister," Hinata smiled, "It just kind of happens."

Hinata noticed the bandage around Hanabi's hand. She smiled slyly as she gently took hold of her hand. "Besides," she said, amusement in her voice, "There's no reason for you to miss out on love too."

A ruthless shade of red crossed Hanabi's cheeks as she retracted her hand defensively, "I don't know what you mean." she said.

"I think you know who I mean," Hinata teased, enjoying the flustered look of her brash sister, "I'm sure Tadeki would be just devastated if you couldn't train anymore because of the Hyuga clan."

"He doesn't have anything to do with this!" Hanabi denied, however her face spoke the truth. Hanabi has had a secret crush on Tadeki since the moment she met him. However, she was too stubborn and shy to admit her feelings.

"If you say so," Hinata giggled, "But I've always found men with blond hair and blue eyes are hard to ignore."

"Shut up." Hanabi said, playfully pushing her sister. The laughter died down between them.

"You must really miss him." Hanabi said. Sadness overcame her as she saw her sister's mood dampen dramatically.

"With all my heart." she answered.

"But you'll see him at the Hokage celebration." Hanabi said hopefully, "The clan can't forbid you from that."

Hinata smiled at her sister. She had been eagerly waiting for the celebration to happen. "Yeah, I'm sure I will."


End Chapter Three


A/N: Okay okay, I know I gave my OC some love, literally. I've always thought Sasuke had this strange bond with Lee and Shino because Lee kicked the living shit out of him and Shino came to his rescue by challenging Kankuro, allowing Sasuke to pursue Gaara. Thanks for reading and as always tell me what you think.

Much love

US