Tenmari was surprised, for having dragged her around the Hidden Leaf Village, Saikuron wasn't half bad. Though he initially was sleepy, he shook it off and was a very caring gentleman for the rest of their tour. He had taken her to every shop she wanted to see, bought her lunch, and even carried all her stuff for her. Tenmari was used to intimidating most men, so she never really felt feminine, but Saikuron wasn't afraid of her in the least, so she actually felt like a girl.

He didn't try to hold her hand or put his arm over her, either, so she knew that he still had respect for her. She liked that, respected, not feared. She looked at him and smiled, "You know, for a guy that just spent six hours training, you've been very helpful"

Saikuron smiled back, "Well, I dragged you away from your other work, so this is the least I can do. Besides, not being helpful because it's difficult is the same as being a burden because it's easy"

Tenmari really liked that advice, "Who said that? I want to know, so I can quote them later"

"I did, just now"

She playfully punched his shoulder, "No, idoit, I meant, what famous ninja"

"I don't know if a famous ninja ever said it or not, but my brother once said it"

"You have a lot of syblings, don't you?"

"Not by blood, but I do have a couple I met at the orphanage"

Tenmari felt bad for steering the conversation that way, "So, Kirin isn't really your sister?"

"Not physically, but I still count her as my family"

"Then why did you run away from her earlier?"

"Because Kirin is like real family, she has her moments... and then there's the rest of the time"

"You make her sound terrible! She's an amazing shinobi!"

"How well do you know her?"

"Well... not very well, personally"

"Kirin has a very bad habbit of trying to interfere in the romantic lives of everyone she's close too. She doesn't mean to cause trouble, but then again, good intentions pave the road to hell..."

"How bad could it be?"

"When I was twelve, she convinced my girlfriend that dressing me up as a girl would be a fun idea. Then she insisted my girlfriend suprise me with a trip to a local sushi reasturaunt. My girlfriend decided not to seperate these two events. I spent a week burning all evidence it ever happened, didn't speak to her for a month, and eventually, broke up with my girlfriend"

"Whoa... that is bad...", Tenmari tried to hold back, but some part of her brain enjoyed the freedom of being a normal girl so much that she blurted it out, "Did you make a cute girl?"

Saikuron's head hung low as the color drained from his face, "Please... don't make me visualize it...she was drunk, too, so I'm trying to forgive her"

"Sorry! I didn't mean to ask, it just kind of slipped out!"

"I'm just going to ignore the question. So, is there anything else you need to buy?"

"No, that's all of it. It's wierd, shopping usually takes a lot longer than this... that's what I forgot!"

"What is it?"

"Clothes! Duh! Oh wait...", she looked at her purse, "...I'm out of cash..."

Saikuron tried to lighten her mood, "Here, I'll pay for them, and you can pay me back later, okay?"

Tenmari was a little intimidated by the offer, she had never had a stranger pay her tab before, and she had CERTIANLY never had a boy pay for her clothes before. But there was at least two dresses she had been dying to buy for weeks... she couldn't resist, "O-Okay. T-Thanks"

As the reached the store, Saikuron handed her his wallet and stood by the door, "Here you go. I'll wait out here"

"You aren't coming in?"

"I wasn't going to, why? Do you want me to?"

Tenmari told herself she could do this, she was tough, smart, and certainly capable of being completely honest about her feelings, "M-Maybe you could help me decide on something..."

While Tenmari felt as though she had suffered a crushing defeat, Saikuron did as she asked, "Sure thing"

As they walked in, a familiar face greeted them from behind the counter, "Oh, hey Tenmari!", Tenten waved at her from behind the counter, then noticed her company, "Saikuron? What are you doing here?"

Tenmari tried to answer with posture, "He's assisting me in the purchase of a few dresses, is that a problem?"

Tenten sweated, "N-No... but do you mind if I talk to you real fast, Tenmari?"

Tenmari walked over to the counter, where she and Tenten started to whisper, "What?"

"Why are you buying clothes with Saikuron?!"

"I have to watch him, and he insisted that he help me with my shopping"

"That doesn't explain anything! Why did you bring him here?!"

Tenmari felt herself start to blush a little bit, "I ran out of money... he's paying for the clothes, and I'm going to pay him back later..."

Tenten pieced it together, "Tenmari... you like him!"

Tenmari leaned in, until she was right next to Tenten's ear, "If you tell anyone, so help me god, I will find you and tear you limb from limb"

"Um... Ino might have something to say about that...", Tenten pointed behind Tenmari, who turned around to see Ino, who was entering the changing room.

Tenmari felt herself sweat, "Ino also likes him?!"

"He's staying at her house, her father invited him"

"Hm... what am I going to do?!"

"Why not just let Ino try to date him?"

"No! You don't get it! My entire life, I've been a scary shinobi that works hard and acts tough, but Saikuron... he doesn't make me feel like that! I feel... like a girl... for once..."

Tenten knew how it felt to not get to be a girl, but she also didn't want to hurt Ino's chances, "Well... crap... can you at least talk with Ino about it? I mean, they aren't dating or anything, but I can't imagine Ino would appreciate you just asking him out..."

Tenmari nodded, "Alright"

She turned to see Saikuron holding up a wavy, blue dress, "Hey, Tenmari, do you like this one? This shade would look good on you"

Tenmari hadn't seen the dress before, but it did look amazing, "Wow! Where did you find that dress?!"

Saikuron smiled as he handed it to her, "With four sisters, if I couldn't find good clothes, birthdays would be the death of me"

"Oh... that makes sense"

"Why don't you try it on? I'm sure it would look beautiful on you"

Tenmari felt herself blush, it was the first time in her life someone had ever told her she was beautiful without a reason to. Her moment was cut short as she saw Ino exit the changing room, "Um, hey, could you go find a pair of shoes to go with it?"

Saikuron nodded, "Sure thing"

As he walked off, Tenmari quickly made her way to the dressing room and bumped into Ino, "Ino? Is that you?"

Ino thought it was a genuine accident, "Tenmari? It's been a long time since I've seen you! That dress looks amazing! Can I see what you look like in it?"

Tenmari mentally slapped herself, "Um... do you have to?"

"Why not? I'm sure it would look great on you!"

Tenmari quickly walked into the dressing room and changed. Looking in the mirror, she was stunned at how she looked; she really was beautiful. While it was true she liked to dress up sometimes and try to be pretty, she had never really found a dress that made her feel... beautiful before. For a moment, she hesitated to leave the changing room, her feminine side was something she usually kept to herself. Eventually, she did manage to step out, and she immediately felt the need to go back in.

Unfortunately, Ino wasn't going to let that happen, "Oh, my goodness, Tenmari! You look absolutely stunning!"

"D-Don't stare at me like that... you're making me feel uncomfortable..."

"Why? You look totally amazing! Where did you find that dress?"

"I didn't, a friend of mine found it"

"Please have your friend help me! I've been looking all day, but I can't find anything!"

"H-He can't! He's uh, busy!"

Ino became suspicious, "Tenmari... you're nervous... you're never nervous... oh, my god, you have a hot guy with you, don't you?!"

"N-No! I just wanted to do some shopping, and he's stuck with me today..."

"And he found you that dress?! My god, he must've undressed you with his eyes, I never would've been able to guess that dress would look that amazing!"

Tenmari turned red at the thought of being undressed in Saikuron's head, then she turned red even more when she saw him behind her, holding a wonder pair of blue shoes, "Hey, I finally found a pair, and they were on sale. You look great in that... oh, hi Ino"

Tenmari was so absorbed with what Ino said, she felt absolutely paralyzed as Saikuron looked her over. She dashed back into the changing room, "Stop staring at me you sick pervert!"

Ino and Saikuron were confused, so Ino started, "Saikuron? What are you doing here? Are you here with Tenmari?"

Saikuron tried to shake the feeling he'd done something horribly wrong, "Yeah, this morning, she got stuck as my guard, so I promised to help her finish her shopping. Although, I have no idea why she called me a pervert..."

"Are you the one who picked out her dress?"

"Yep, it was hidden underneath some other ones"

"Well, since it's hard to get a read on her body through all her regular clothes, I might've said you probably undressed her with your eyes..."

Tenmari listened in on them, "Oh, that makes sense. Not that I would ever do that to someone, because that's a horrible and very creepy thing to do to someone"

"Yeah, I can't see you doing that to somebody... oh, could you help me pick out a dress?"

"Sure, what's the occassion?"

"Lee's guy's throwing Lee a party, get this, Lee was able to use a ninjutsu!"

"Really? You don't say?"

Tenmari was surprised that Saikuron wasn't attempting to reveal what he'd done, but then she remembered that he had a phobia of the spotlight, "Yeah! Appearantly, a sage of pure chakra was able to work his chakra coils! Now, with enough training, he'll be able to use ninjutsu and genjutsu, just like everyone else!"

"If you ask me, Lee will probably use that extra chakra just to further his taijutsu"

"You know, you're probably right, but still, for Lee to have that option, it's like he just climbed to the top of the world"

"I am happy for him, Lee must feel great"

"I can't wait to meet this sage at the party!"

Saikuron's face cracked for a microsecond, only Tenmari saw his utter dispair, "The sage is going be the guest of honor! Guy said he had a huge speech prepared for him and everything!"

"H-He didn't say what the sage's name was, did he?"

"No! But he must be incredible if Guy actually wrote something for him!"

Saikuron imagined all of those people he didn't know, all watching him. Then, with a straight face, he entered Tenmari's changing room, where his expression changed to one even more scared than Tenmari's, who was only half done changing. She whispered in a quiet, white rage, "Why did you come in here?!"

He whispered with absolute terror, "Please, I beg you with all my heart, don't force me to go to that party! I will give you anything you want, just help me!"

"Anything?"

"Anything! Just don't let me go to that party tonight!"

"I think I can help you, but you'll have to follow my lead"

"Thank you so much!"

"Thank me later, just get out!"

Ino stared at him with surprise and a bit of anger as he walked out, "Um… Saikuron? That's Tenmari's changing room… that you just walked out of"

"Yeah, she asked me to hand her the shoes"

"You couldn't have done that without going in?"

"Oh… yeah, I guess I could've"

Tenmari stepped out in her normal attire, "Hey, Ino, will you tell Lee I'm sorry I couldn't make it to the party? Me and Saikuron have to return to the Hidden Sand tonight"

"Why does Saikuron have to go with you?"

"Official business of the Hidden Sand, I'm not allowed to tell you"

"Oh… be safe, alright, Saikuron?"

Saikuron smiled at her and held his thumb up, "I promise, I'll be back soon"

"Okay, see you later then"

"Don't be sad, I'll be back"

As they walked out, Tenmari sighed, "Now that we've dealt with our cover for the Leaf, all that's left is to convince Gaara that you need to come back with us"

"Not to be rude, but I hope you have a good plan devised to trick the Kazekage"

"He taking me on a date tonight, so he'll be coming with us back to the village", Tenmari spoke with a slight blush and couldn't look her brothers in the eye, and Kankuro was certianly in total shock.

Gaara was as expressionless as always, "Very well. Kankuro, Tenmari, I need you to prepare the paperwork that we'll need to start once we get back. Saikuron, if you could stay, there's something I'd like to ask you"

Tenmari and Kankuro left, as Saikuron put up a brave face to hide his nervousness, "What did you want to ask me?"

Gaara motioned towards the chair in front of his desk, "Have a seat", Saikuron took a seat as Gaara looked at him, "You intend on taking Tenmari on a date?"

"Yes"

"Does Ino know about this date?"

"No"

"Are you cheating on Ino with Tenmari?"

"No. Cheating is for pathetic, spineless cowards"

"But, you are dating Ino?"

"No..."

"Do you like her?"

"Yes"

"Then why are you going on a date with Tenmari? She is a fair judge of character, but if you are using her, in any way, she won't be the only person you have to fear"

"Wait, hold on, because I think you have the wrong impression about all of this...", Saikuron did his best to clear up the situation, "... and that's how it happened"

Gaara nodded, "I see. So, it wasn't you that asked Tenmari out, it was Tenmari that asked you, through a surprise plan. I'm not quite sure if I believe you or not"

"What? How could I make that up? And what would a lie like that even do for me, anyway?"

"The redicoulusness of it gives it some credibility, but Tenmari has never once been on a date in her life, ever. The idea that she would go on one, let alone, ask someone on one, is a bit far-fetched"

"Why?"

"Her romantic life is non-existant"

"Says who?", Tenmari and Kankuro peeked in through the door, "She's a person, she deserves to be happy! The fact she hasn't persued it doesn't mean she never will, it just means she hasn't found the right path to follow yet"

"And you believe you can be her path?"

"Maybe! I don't know! That's what the date is for, to see if I can make her happy!'

Tenmari was impressed as she watched him talk, because she had seen just how absolutely terrifying it was for him to be the elephant in the room, yet he held nothing back as he spoke. Gaara smiled and nodded, "I had no doubt of Tenmari's judge of character, I was simply curious to see what you were like. Have fun on your date tonight"

Saikuron's seriousness broke, "Actually, I was hoping you could help me out... you see... I've never been to the Hidden Sand village before, so... I have no clue where to take her for the date"

"I see... I can provide you with a map of the area, would that be sufficient?"

Tenmari sighed, there was more to a date than just location, didn't Gaara know that? "Yeah, thanks!"

Kankuro felt the urge to tease his sister overcome his desire not to be hit, "That's a real keeper you got there, sis"

Tenmari punched him in the face, "Shut up, Kankuro!"

As they set off, Tenmari watched as Gaara and Saikuron talked behind her and Kankuro. Kankuro watched as well, "I've never seen Gaara talk so much... what do you think they're talking about?"

Tenmari couldn't begin to fathom it, "I have no idea... but I am curious"

Kankuro spoke up, "Hey, Gaara, whatcha talking about back there?"

Garra responded calmly, "Diversion tactics"

"Diversion tactics?"

"Yes, Saikuron has a vast knowledge of many forms of genjutsu that are foreign to me, we were discussing whether or not he could provide a small lesson to a few of our shinobi"

Saikuron smiled nervously, "No, I don't think I could be a teacher..."

"I was telling him that we could have a ninja pretend to be him, under the guise of a body transformation jutsu, but that doesn't ease his mind"

"I'd rather not be the focus of a classroom"

"Then perhaps you could teach one of our teachers...", the conversation trailed on, as they went back and forth on ways to overcome Saikuron's shy nature. Tenmari listened in, but only a little, her mind was mostly taken with a question she'd ignored until now: If he's so shy, why was he so normal with her?

Kankuro looked through his binoculars, then signaled his team. They were going to remain in place as they retained visual on their target. Kankuro had never before seen an opponent he could consider so powerful, yet so cunning… he could only begin to fathom a inkling of an idea of how Saikuron had gotten a date with Tenmari.

To be honest, he didn't think there was a man alive who had the guts to do it. Tenmari was a beautiful girl, sure, but never once in his life had he seen her act like one. Her vulnerable side was, to the best of his knowledge, non-existent. Tenmari was always the leader of the group, she would never bow out to anyone, unless they were more equipped for the task at hand than she was. The thought she would place her trust into someone else with no idea how it might turn out… he wouldn't have dreamed of it.

Another thing he never would have dreamed of happened right before his eyes as he saw Tenmari step out onto the roof. The way her dress waved in the wind as she walked, her hair hanging behind her, even her make-up was absolutely perfect. If he had seen her walking down the street and was told she was Tennari, he would've called whoever told him that crazy.

Tenmari herself was a bit surprised by her boldness as she looked at Saikuron, who was facing the view from the railing, "I-I'm here…"

Saikuron turned around to look at her, "You look beautiful"

Tenmari felt herself blush,"T-Thank you..."

Saikuron waved her to the railing, "Come here, there's something I want you to see"

Tenmari looked at the view, as Kazekage, the top of Gaara's house would definately have the best view of the village, but it was nothing new to her, "Um... I've seen it before..."

He tried to keep her mind open, "Here, close your eyes"

She wasn't sure why, but she did so, "Okay... what now?"

"Just keep them closed... okay, now look"

Tenmari opened her eyes, and she was surprised, the way the sun set over the sand changed the color of it, the entire village looked magical. She remembered the last time she had seen it, the last time she really looked at the sand when it was beautiful like this, back before she made herself be tough all the time. She smiled as a happy tear formed in her eye, "Wow..."

Saikuron smiled, too, "It's the second most beautiful thing I've seen all day." Tenmari turned to look at him, his gentle gaze cast on a ball of clay in his hand.

Tenmari looked at the clay, "What's that?"

He began to shape it in his hands, "It's called chakra clay, it molds itself to the holder's will", to prove his point, he held up a rose, "See? Here, give it a try"

He handed her the rose, it was beautiful, yet the texture of it was strangly tough, "How do I do it?"

"Just think about something, and then relate it to the clay"

"So, you just though about a flower?"

"No, I was thinking about you. Beautiful, yet strong, like the flower"

Tenmari blushed, "I-I think I'll keep it the way it is..."

He took her hand and led her to a small table with two chairs and a candle on the table. He pulled out her chair and she took a seat, then he lit the candle as the last of the sunlight faded over the horizon, "Here, give me a second", he walked down the stairs.

Tenmari looked at the flower he had crafted out of clay, down to the pattern in the leaves, it was really beautiful. Kankuro was surprised as he watched from a distance, Tenmari had thrown away flowers from admirers before like it was nothing, yet this single rose she held like it was her most prized possetion. Tenmari smiled as she looked at it, there was no way he hadn't started working on this rose before he gave it to her, it was too detailed, too perfect, he had to have known she would want to keep it.

Saikuron returned to the roof with some food, "I bought some groceries in the Hidden Leaf, and since you told me that you liked their food, I made some traditional Hidden Leaf dishes"

Kankuro watched as the two of them ate and talked, just enjoying the night without care. Tenmari had her guard down completely, letting herself get lost in the moment, and truly savoring each second. It was so strange to him, because he'd never seen if before, but at the same time, he thought it was a great thing, because of the way his sister smiled.

Tenmari was happy she had set the date up, she really had enjoyed it, "Thank you, Saikuron, for a wonderful evening"

Saikuron smiled as he stood up to take the dishes back in, "No, thank you, it was really great"

Tenmari noticed he had forgotten a small cup, so she stood up to give it to him, "Wait, you forgot-"

In her motion to hand it to him, he had stopped instantly, causing her to bump into him and the two of them to crash to the floor. She landed on top of him, their eyes locked and their hearts beating rapidly. Both of their faces were red as could be, but Tenmari wasn't going to hold back, she threw all cation to the wind and kissed him like she wasn't afraid to. Saikuron leaned into her, and after a long moment, they just stared at each other. Tenmari drew her fingers back slowly across his shoulder, until she felt it touch something, "What's this?"

She pulled down his shirt to reveal a small mark on the back of his left shoulder; a tiny paw print, no bigger than a marble. Saikuron seemed genuinely surprised, "What is it?"

"It's a tiny paw print, on your shoulder, is it a birthmark?"

"I don't know. Could you make sure it isn't just some ink or something?"

Tenmari ran her finger over the paw, and it began to glow. She stood up and looked in shock as Saikuron's chakra began building. He began breathing heavily, his breath making steam in the air, "Ugh... I feel hot...", the amount of chakra that gathered was massive, reaching that of a tailed beast, "Grr... no... not now..."

Tenmari was frightened, "Saikuron? What's going on?"

Saikuron's nose raised itself into the air, "No... that smell... run, Tenmari! I... I can't... fight... it..."

Tenmari stood back, but she refused to flee, "Please! Let me help you!"

Saikuron leaped up and pinned her against the wall, his hand holding her arm against the wall without strain, "That scent...", he tore the top of her dress off and placed his ear against her chest, "That sound...", his fingers ran across her shoulder, "That feel..."

Tenmari was absolutely horrified at the look in his eyes, she could only tremble as she was helpless to stop him. Her fears were slightly calmed as Saikuron was violently pulled back away from her by a large, wooden puppet. Kankuro shouted as his hands flew, "Stay away from her!"

Tenmari was happy to see her brother, "Kankuro?"

Saikuron howled as he tore the puppet to pieces, a white flame surrounding his body as his eyes turned purple, "Grrrrrrraaaaaaah!"

His roar echoed through the village, causing a horrible shiver to shake amongst the people. Gaara burst through the door onto the roof, "What's going on?!"

Tenmari trembled as she explained, "I found a birthmark on his shoulder, and then he started acting like this!"

Saikuron became busy as Kankuro's team began trying to restrain him with little success. He slashed through all of their traps and attacks like paper, his eyes focused on Tenmari the entire time. Gaara grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back, "I'll deal with this"

Tenmari grabbed his shoulder, "Please! Don't hurt him! That's not... him"

"Tenmari, I will do what I have to in order to protect you and the village, but I will try to refrain from harming him. Now go"

Tenmari decided to leave it in Gaara's hands and fled inside. Immediately feeling vulnerable, she changed out of the torn dress and into her regular clothes. All the while, she couldn't stop thinking about it... that shift in his eyes after she'd touched his birthmark, it was as if he had been replaced with an animal. She heard a cry from the roof, it was Gaara, shouting in pain. She grabbed her gigantic fan and dashed to the roof without hesistation.

When she looked through the door, she found that Saikuron was standing over Gaara with sharp claws and even sharper teeth. Fearing the look in his eyes as he moved closer to Gaara's neck, she used her fan to knock him off of the roof. She ran to Gaara's side, as he coughed up some blood, "Gaara! Are you alright?!"

Gaara coughed again, "Too strong... he is... too strong... I didn't stand... a chance..."

"Damn... I was afraid of this", Tenmari turned to see Saikuron's sister, "You found the brithmark on his back, didn't you?"

Tenmari nodded, "It was a paw..."

Kirin gritted her teeth, "This isn't going to be pretty... please tell me that you're the one who touched his birthmark"

"Y-Yeah..."

"That's good, we still have a chance"

"Chance to do what?"

"I don't know what it is, but something's possessing Saikuron. It's been a part of him for a long time, but it's normally sealed underneath him. That seal is the birthmark on his shoulder. He's never seen it before, I doubt he even knows it's there, but if a person with any chakra at all touches it, the seal is undone, and it takes over"

"So, how do we seal it back?"

"The person who removed the seal has to replace it by touching the same spot. We're gonna need to distract him with something strong enough to give you time to reach him… I just hope I haven't run out of it"

"Run out of what?"

She produced a small bottle from her pocket, "Alright, there's still some in here"

"What is that?"

"Don't worry about it, just go whenever I give you the signal, I'll explain it later-"

Their focus was adjusted as Saikuron jumped onto the roof and howled. The noise he created was powerful enough to shake the building, but Kirin quickly siezed the oppertunity to violently empty the bottle into his mouth. Once the liquid fell down his throat, she held his arms up and shouted, "Now!"

Tenmari thought she was too slow to close the distance, but somehow, she managed to reach his back before he could jerk himself free. The second she touched the spot, the paw reformed itself and Saikuron collapsed on the ground. Tenmari panted heavily, she had never been so scared in all her life, "What was that thing?"

Kirin frowned, "I don't know, but it hasn't come out for a long time, I thought I would never need this bottle ever again"

"Just what is in that bottle?"

Kirin turned Saikuron over, to reveal his eyes had rolled back in his head while his tongue hung out and his pants became stained, "Special aphrodisiac… extremely powerful, and is immune to resistance posed by chakra"

Tenmari was horrified and impressed all at the same time, "That is… disgusting"

"Don't blame him, a whiff of this stuff, and you'd be unable to talk for a week"

"Where the hell do you find something like that?"

"My first mission was to dispose of it, officially, I carried that mission out. But that was the first time he was like this, I've been holding onto the bottle in case it ever happened again. I'm surprised he didn't destroy the entire village before I got here"

"What happened last time?"

"He was two steps away from annihilating the Hidden Mist before they knew what hit them. It was sheer luck that brought that bottle to his lips. He'll wake up tomorrow and remember everything… what am I going to do with him?"

Saikuron's eyes fluttered open, his mind still a blur, he finally focused on Tenmari, who was standing over him, "T-Tenmari…?"

She came into focus as she spoke, "Yeah"

"Where…?"

"The hospital. You lost it when I touched your birthmark"

All of the memories flooded back into his head at once, "Oh god… Gaara… Kankuro… you must hate me…"

Tenmari could almost feel the pain he felt as he looked away, "That wasn't your fault, that wasn't you that did those things"

"That doesn't change anything. I should've been prepared, I should've had a plan"

"What could you have had planned?"

"A counter measure. Something that would've stopped me before… before I did what I did"

Kirin smiled, "That's what I'm here for"

"Kirin… you stopped me?"

"I couldn't have done it alone, but I had a feeling this might happen, so I kept that bottle"

"Kirin… thank you."

"But the bottle's empty now, so you know what you'll have to do"

"… Yeah… I was hoping this would never happen…"

Tenmari was confused, "What does he have to do?"

Kirin folded her arms, "He needs to search his soul, and find the beast within him, then he needs to let it out"

"Beast?"

"The voices in his head, the source of his massive chakra, the being that fueled that rampage. He has to confront it, and own it"

Tenmari remembered the last beast of great power she had tangled with, back before it was taken from her brother. That cold, heartless creature that would happily devour the world without a second thought… she shivered at the notion Saikuron could carry such a being.

With great dispair and a heavy heart, Saikuron sighed, "I can't ignore it anymore… help me up"

Kirin helped him walk, despite his strength, the medicine had robbed him of most of his control, he was completely dependent on Kirin to help him walk. Kirin frowned as she carried him, "Don't be afraid, you'll find it"

Saikuron couldn't let her words comfort him, even if he wanted to.

The Raikage, Tsunade, Kakashi, and Naruto all stood silently behind Saikuron as he sat calmly atop the rocks. Naruto looked to Kirin, "So, why are we here?"

Kirin sweated, "In case this goes wrong"

"And them?"

Kirin looked at Ino and Tenmari, "Emotional support"

"Alright. So, right now, he's trying to contact his inner beast?"

"Yeah, so we should be quiet"

Saikuron couldn't hear them atop the rock, he couldn't hear anything. Everything that was happening outside of his mind was a blank to him. He had silenced everything but himself, and he was terrified that he heard nothing. A howl, a snarl, something that proved he had an inner beast. He had put this off for so long because of what was happening right now; he found no beast, just that he was insane.

He heard his own thoughts begin to argue, "You're pathetic, everything you do is just a way to put off the fact you have no control over yourself"

His conscious thoughts countered, "That isn't true"

"Name one action that was provided purely out of a controlled thought"

"Helping Lee"

"An act to remove discomfort from yourself"

"Bringing the flower to the shop"

"The flower that was found through the voices in your head"

"Kissing Ino and Tenmari"

"…"

"The things that the voices said to do was more than what I did. I didn't let them control me! I am me! Nobody else!"

The thought he considered to be his own took a softer tone, "Finally… you've recovered"

He was surprised as a beautiful girl with white hair and purple eyes formed in his mind, "Who are you?"

"I am your guardian. My name is Cuan, the little wolf. My purpose is to protect you until you no longer need me"

"Where did you come from?"

"Many of my memories have been lost, but I am certain that I was your father's guardian, and his father's guardian before that. But it seems my duties have been fulfilled…", she began to frown.

"Fulfilled? What is that supposed to mean?"

"You have recovered… from that day, you have regained your will to live. You are now strong enough to carry yourself wherever you may need to go. You no longer require someone to watch over you…"

He couldn't stand her tears, "What about you?"

"I have no purpose… I will fade now… until I have vanished"

"No! You don't need to fade away! Stop!"

"You would keep me? After the pain that you have beared under me?"

"Just, don't leave, okay? I don't want you to fade away… you're a part of me"

"My instincts, the sound of my howls, they will remain if I do"

"That's fine"

Cuan continued to cry, "This is…"

Saikuron felt a rage inside of him, "I don't care what you say! I won't let you fade away!"

Cuan smiled through her tears, "I'm not sad… I'm just so happy… my life was created to keep yours happy. All of this time… I felt as though I was failing, that my instinct's effects on your mind and the intense amount of chakra my being put on you… I figured you would be happy to be rid of me…"

"You can't turn away from a part of who you are. To be strong, you have to accept that in ways, you are weak. We can work on the fighting and training later, for now, I'm just glad that you came to me"

As they all looked on, everyone was beginning to grow nervous as Saikuron's body began to glow with a bright, white aura. Naruto held his hand out in front of them, "Wait... there's no malice in it, he's in control"

He began to float in the air, as he grew brighter and brighter, until a flash of light blinded all of them. When they looked again, Saikuron stood before them, basked in a white aura, "I found it"

Kirin stepped forward, "And you've got it under your control?"

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!", as the smoke parted, everyone saw a little girl with white hair in a white nightgown, "This is Cuan, the wolf spirit that lives inside my head"

Cuan hid behind Saikuron as everyone stared at her, "S-S-Saikuron... why is everyone staring at me?! I don't like it!"

Saikuron looked up to see everybody was now staring at him, and he began to shake, "I-It's okay... t-t-t-t-t-t-there's no reason to panic..."

Naruto was confused, "So... there's no tailed beast?"

Cuan spoke shakily while still hiding, "I-I-I'm not a tailed beast... I only have the p-p-power my protected g-g-gives me... but h-he c-can feel chakra around him, s-s-so i-it can reach v-very h-high l-levels..."

Naruto stepped forward, "Then why couldn't Saikuron control himself?"

"S-Since I'm an animal s-spirit, I have very strong i-instincts. Since he and I are merged, t-they must've e-effected him"

The Raikage nodded, "Very well, Saikuron, since she is your guardian, or so she claims, it's up to you whether she stays or goes. Which will it be?"

Saikuron could feel the pressure of everyone around him, but he couldn't let himself crumble, "S-She stays"

Kirin was surprised, "Saikuron, you remember what happened..."

Saikuron nodded, "Y-Yeah, I do. T-That's when Cuan merged with me... because you can't protect something with no will to live. S-She kept me alive and became a part of my mind, I can't a-abandon her"

Tsunade smiled, "Well put. But if this is going to work, the two of you will need to learn to act as one, and not let the other's downsides control you. If you really want that, I have the perfect teachers in mind for both of you"

Saikuron looked to Cuan, they nodded to each other, then both looked at Tsunade, "W-We'll do it!"

"Sounds good! Now, since we've all had an exhausting day, why don't we all go visit the nearest hot spring to unwind?!"

Naruto sighed, "Granny Tsunade..."

Kakashi spoke, "Actually, that's not a bad idea. It would be good for the two of them to relax before their intense training tomorrow"

"Not you too, Kakashi..."

Ino slapped Naruto on the back of the head, "Naruto! You'd be the only guy in the world that would hate going to a hot spring!"

"I'm not against it! I was just giving Granny Tsunade a hard time 'cause she's old!"

Tsunade punched Naruto's head into the ground, "Oh, and Naruto, behave yourself at the hot spring, or else I'll have to kill you"

Tenmari slammed her fan onto the ground in front of Naruto's face, "And I won't hesitate to help her out"

Ino looked him in the eyes, "You know I'll make sure you're good and dead"

Saikuron sighed as he watched Naruto from a distance, then he felt Cuan pull on his shirt, "What is it, Cuan?"

She pointed at Tenmari and Ino, "Those two are Ino and Tenmari, right?"

He smiled, "Yep, that's them"

Cuan moved quickly, pushing both Ino and Tenmari into Saikuron before any of them realized what was going on, "The two of you, please mate with my master!"

Saikuron turned red as he looked at Cuan, "Cuan... what are you doing?"

Cuan looked up innocently, "Well... you love both of them, don't you? Isn't that what people that love each other do, mate?"

"Cuan... it doesn't work like that..."

Ino and Tenmari stared at each other with an intense glare for a second, then both of them turned to Cuan, "Who does Saikuron love more, me or her?!"

Cuan shrunk as they both stared her down, "P-P-P-Please stop staring at me l-l-l-like that..."

Neither of them were going to back down, "Tell her that it's me! No! It's me! GET AWAY FROM MY MAN, YOU SLUT! THAT'S IT!"

The two of them were less than a foot apart when Saikuron stepped between them, "Hold it!"

They both shouted in his ear, "Tell her that you love me!"

Through his two busted eardrums, Saikuron tried to salvage the situation, "I love you both, dammit!"

"Then tell her you love me more!"

Saikuron got fed up with it, "I love you both equally!", he sighed and put his hand to his forehead, "The two of you are completely different people, but you both hold a special place in my heart. The thought of having to chose one of you over the other is more painful than the thought of losing you both. So, no, I can't tell either of you that I love you more than the other, but I can't say I'm lying when I say I love you with both with all of my heart... maybe you both hate me for that. But that's how I feel, and I can't change that. I'm heading to the hot spring now..."

Both Tenmari and Ino saw the amount of pain in his eyes as he walked away, he really was torn between the two of them like a piece of paper between two hurricanes. They all decided that they did just need to soak in the hot spring and clear their heads.

Kakashi sighed, "It's been a while since the last time I went to a hot spring"

The Raikage let out a sigh, "Too long, if you ask me"

Naruto looked at Saikuron, "You alright, man? You're not talking much"

Saikuron sighed from the other side of the spring, "Forgive me if I don't feel comfortable in just a towel around two people I just met"

"Don't worry about it, I've been in weirder situations"

"I wonder what they're talking about..."

"Who, the girls? Two of them love you, one of them is your sister, and the other is merged into your brain. They're probably talking about you."

Saikuron let the water melt his physical pain away, and decided he wanted to take his mind off of everything else, "Hey, Naruto, you wanna hear how the Raikage reacted when he realized a child was outperforming his nightly guard?"

The Riakage became enraged, "No, he doesn't!"

Naruto smiled evilly, "Yeah, I do!"

The Raikage stood up, "Why, you little!"

Kirin heard laughter from the other side of the wall, "Huh, sounds like they're having a ball over there"

Tsunade sighed, "Who cares? The water feels great, and I don't have to do any paperwork right now, they can kill each other over there, as long as they stay over there"

Kirin turned back to Ino, Tenmari, and Cuan, "So, let me get this straight, he loves both of you, he's kissed both of you, and both of you have seen him when he's come under the influence of his natural instincts?", they nodded, "And she's trying to get both of you to have sex with him?"

Cuan tilted her head, "Isn't that what people that love each other do?"

Kirin put her hand on her forehead, "Well, that all sounds... just about right"

Tenmari and Ino were confused, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, Saikuron believes that love isn't limited, when he says he loves you both equally, he means it. I honestly don't know how we could do anything to change his mind"

Cuan raised her hand, "Can I please take off the blindfold now?"

Kirin answered quickly, "No! Since you're a part of Saikuron's brain, you're not allowed to see any of us naked"

Cuan whimpered, "But... I can see through the blindfold"

All of the girls covered themselves with their hands, "Why didn't you say something before?!"

"I-I didn't know why you put the blindfold on me!"

"How can you see through it anyway?!"

"W-Wolf's vision can make an image out of even the smallest amount of light, I can see through the small crevices in the weave of the blindfold"

"Then close your eyes!"

Cuan did as instructed, "I-I'm sorry!"

Tenmari and Ino withheld the deep desire to beat the memory out of Cuan's head. Kirin sighed, "How long have you been a part of his mind, anyway?"

"I was watching over him since birth, but it wasn't until he lost his will to live that we truly merged"

"So, you've known him all his life?"

"I don't know, I can't remember anything before Saikuron's father told me that I was supposed to protect Saikuron"

Tsunade was confused, "That's strange, animal spirits usually have some form of memory from their past life, it would take thousands of years for them to degrade. You really can't remember anything?"

"No. Saikuron is my reason for living, his happiness is my joy"

Kirin was still confused, "Then why are the two of you out of sync? Why does he want to do one thing, while you want to do another?"

"We may be merged, but I am my own entity, my thoughts and his are close, but still seperate. He loves them, but he's not sure how to approach it, so I try to do what I think is best"

Ino and Tenmari both lost it, "So it was you that pinned us down?!"

Cuan shrunk once again, "I thought that was how it worked..."

Tenmari got even more upset, "You don't rip people's clothes off! That's how you make people want to kill you!"

"I-I'm sorry!"

Kirin felt sorry for Cuan, so she turned to Tsunade, "What do you think's gonna come out of all of this?"

"Knowing Ino and Tenmari? Saikuron's love life is about to get very complicated..."

Cuan finally snapped under the pressure of the girls yelling at her, "Saikuron!"

As she shouted, she vanished, and Saikuron was left in her place, dazed and rubbing his eyes, "What the...? Where am I?"

The second he opened his eyes, he was met by a fist that knocked him into the nearest wall, rendering him unconscious. Tenmari and Ino were a bit in shock as Tsunade's forehead bulged. Ino was a bit concerned, "Lady Tsunade... you didn't have to hit him that hard..."

Tsunade realized she had put all of her strength into the punch, "Oh crap… force of habit, I thought he was Naruto. Aw, well, I'll treat his wounds later"

Ino looked at the wreck where Saikuron had landed, "Maybe I should try to heal him…"

Kirin pointed, "Don't bother, you won't be able to help him"

Tenmari and Ino turned to see that Kirin was pointing at a towel on the floor, then they both sunk into the water with red faces, "Or I can stay here…"

They heard Cuan shaking him, "Come on, Saikuron! Wake up! They're both naked, now's your chance!"

Tenmari and Ino looked at Cuan with an evil stare, "Chance for what, exactly?!"

"Quick! Before they put their clothes on!"

Tsunade smirked, "He ain't getting up anytime soon, kid, count on that-"

"What the hell just hit me…?", Saikuron rubbed his forehead with both hands, trying to make the pain go away. He was swiftly met with a kunai to the forehead, with a little tag tied to it. As he went to pull the kunai out, the tag shocked him and Cuan with a dark blue lightning, "Aaaaaaaaahhhh!"

As he keeled over, Kirin smiled, "It's a good thing I prepared a chakra punishment tag. Now even Cuan won't be able to bother us for a while"

Naruto shouted from the other side of the wall, "Hey, is Saikuron over there?!"

Tsunade shouted over the wall back, "If he is, he's a dead man!", she then turned to the rest of the girls, "Best that this is kept quiet, right?"

The Raikage shouted over the wall, "If you want me to, I know how to punish him!"

"It's fine, he's suffering as it is!"

Kakashi sighed as he spoke quietly from the other side, "For his sake, I hope he's unconscious at this point, or else he's in for one hell of a fight that he won't win"

Saikuron sighed as he poured water over Cuan, "Well, at least now that everyone else is gone, we can use the spring in peace…"

Cuan frowned, "Did I mess up earlier when I called you over to the girl's bath without warning?"

"While I would prefer you never do it again, I know you didn't mean to hurt me. So I'm not mad, but yes, it isn't something you should do"

"Why is it so weird for people to be around each other naked? Why is it so awkward?"

Saikuron kept reminding himself that she was just an animal spirit, so she didn't understand it, "Well, people feel vulnerable when they're fully exposed"

"But I don't feel vulnerable around you"

"That's because we're one and the same, I would never do anything to hurt you, and I know you would never hurt me"

"Grr… humans are so complicated!", Cuan began sulking, "Why do people do such weird things…?"

Saikuron sighed, "Because they're too smart to see how dumb they are"

Cuan smiled a little bit, "You're not like that either, you know exactly how dumb you are!"

Saikuron tried to take it as the compliment it was supposed to be, "Maybe not exactly, but I know that I'll never know everything"

Cuan frowned, "Hey, master? Am I dumb? I just think… that I'm pretty clueless compared to you"

"You're not dumb, you just have a lot to learn. Everybody has to learn in order to think wisely, you just need that time and guidance"

"So, you'll teach me to be smart?"

"I have to start a pretty rough training session tomorrow, so Iruka will have to be your teacher"

"Iruka's the guy that got those kids to stop staring at you, right?"

"Yeah, he is"

"That was nice of him"

"You're just as shy as me, aren't you?"

"Yeah… I hate it when people stare at me, too"

"Alright, I'm tired, we should go get some rest for tomorrow"

"Hey, master? If I feel really scared, can I call you to the school?"

"Cuan… you don't need to call me, whenever you feel scared, just remember, I'm right here", he pointed to her heart.

"In my breasts?"

"No, in your heart"

"Oh, like, I can hear you if I listen really hard?"

"Yeah, just like I can hear you if I listen"

Cuan smiled and placed her hand over her heart, "I feel happy! Now I don't have to worry about you so much, you're right here!"

"Only as long as you let me. Come on, we've got a big day ahead of us"

Saikuron felt his heart drop into his stomach, "Kirin… why are Tenmari and Ino here in bathing suits?!"

Kirin smiled as Tsunade put her arm over his shoulder, "You see, Saikuron, since you are a boy of that age, many of your instincts would draw you towards people your age of the opposite gender-"

"I don't need the birds and the bees speech!"

"Good, because this is to test your control over your animal instincts. Should you give in to any urges, you will be forcibly stopped and will be punished with another day of training. Your training begins when you consume the liquid on the desk"

Saikuron looked at the bottle on the desk, "What is this?"

"A mixture that will boost your testosterone and sexual drive through the roof"

"I'm not drinking this!"

"Either you learn control or you give up on Cuan, which will it be?"

Cuan looked at the room, her eye twitching as she counted the number of people staring at her. Once she reached twenty, she grabbed Iruka's sleeve and pulled him into the hallway, "Why are all those people staring at me?!"

Iruka sweated, "You're the new student, they're going to wonder who you are"

Cuan looked ready to cry, "Please make them stop! I'm begging you, Iruka-sensei!"

"I can't just command the class like that… listen, you're here to learn so that you can protect Saikuron better, can't you just ignore them?"

"How am I supposed to ignore a room full of people staring at me?!"

"Just pretend they're not there"

"You're out of your mind?! They'll still be there! That doesn't help!"

Iruka sighed, how could she be so smart if she knew so little? He switched tactics, "I thought you said you'd do anything to learn to be a better guardian?"

Cuan let that sit, she did want to learn to protect Saikuron better... she decided to push through, even if she was absolutely terrified, "You're right, let's do this!"

Saikuron looked at the bottle on the desk, "How many days again?"

Tsunade answered swiftly, "Five, unless you fail during one of them"

Saikuron sighed, "This is gonna suck so bad... let's get this over with", Saikuron downed the bottle in one gulp, "This is gonna be a long day..."