Rider: Hi again everybody. Um, yeah…I've recently come to realize something. Namely only two people have reviewed and one doesn't really count cause she lives in the same dorm as me.

Star: Hey!

Rider: My concern over this is that I really like this story and want feed back on ways to make it better. Feedback that is sadly not coming in as it has for other stories I've done. I'm not sure if this is because the Naruto pages bump a million times faster than LH or if people simply overlook my summary because they think its boring. To that effect I'm considering…

Star: Review whore.

Rider: (Glares at star) I am considering releasing the potential pairings.

Star: Review whore.

Rider: I am not. Anyway, I think that doing so will make the story somewhat predictable if I do so and that's why I've held off. So, if your reading this and have a preference of released or unreleased let me know so I'll be ready for next chapter. That's all. See you at the end.

Star: (looks over at Rider) You really are a review whore.

Rider: Shut up!

OOOOO

Potential spoiler warning: Uh…I don't think there's anything spoiler related in this one actually.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. This is only for non-profit entertainment purposes. I mean, does anyone think I'm really Kishimoto? I hope not…

OOOOO

A Shinobi's Decision

Chapter Three - Blood for Blood

Tsunade's desk lay in splinters on the floor. "They did what?!"

Kotetsu and Izumo both looked like they were about attempt running for the hills rather than face their Hokage as she was now. Kotetsu looked down at the clipboard that listed the comings and goings of anyone who passed the village gate. "Gomen nasai Godaime-sama." He bowed deeply, grabbing the slightly quivering Izumo and forcing him to bow as well.

"When did they leave?" Tsunade was upset, to say the least, but her concern for the two gennin outweighed that right now.

"About three hours ago." Izumo answered.

"Damn…" Tsunade muttered. "I even with my orders I'd expect something like this from Naruto, but Sakura usually has a better head on her shoulders." In truth, Tsunade knew she was partly to blame for the situation herself. By refusing to allow pursuit of Daiki her apprentice had been forced to take actions into her own hands. It was moment like this she despised the fact that Sakura resembled her so much in her youth. "Anyone else with them?"

"No one." Izumo shook his head.

Kotetsu cleared his throat. "They seemed to be following a rather large insect through…"

The Fifth felt like her temple was going to explode. "Find Kurenai and tell her I want her team in here now!" She ground her teeth as the two chunin ran, happy to still be among the living. "Tora! Taka! Ookami! Inu!" Within a second of her call four ANBU appeared in her office. "Uzumaki and Haruno went after the boy. Three hours lead time. Tiger, Hawk, and Wolf, you are to proceeded directly into search and recovery protocols. Dog, you are to go to the Hyuuga compound with orders, to Hiashi personally, that I want every able bodied Byakugan out there searching for them. Then tell him I want him in my office ten minutes ago. After that rendezvous with your team. If the boy is found consider him S-rank, engage only if attacked or the kids are in danger or hurt." She paused. "Inu…that mask is now more dangerous to you than it has ever been before. Stay alert. Go!" The orders had taken less then a minute and already her men were gone. She clenched her fists as she stared out the window. "Sakura, you better be as damn good a student as I think you are."

OOOOO

She rolled over and pulled her blanket over her shoulder. It was soft and warm in her bed. She could smell the fish her mother was cooking downstairs and even in her half sleep state she felt her stomach growl. She stretched lazily and rolled the covers back preparing to get ready for the day. She stopped as she saw that she was already wearing her usual red dress. In an instant everything came back to Sakura as realized that she was not in her bed, not even in Konoha. She jumped to her feet, and promptly slipped on the bed roll under her.

"Finally up huh?"

She twisted toward the sound of the voice while reaching for her kunai holster. Her hand gripped empty air.

"It's over here."

Sakura looked up again. On the opposite side of the campfire sat Daiki holding up her holster and hip pouch. "Where's Naruto?"

Daiki nodded and placed the two bags back on the ground.

Sakura looked back over her shoulder to see Naruto fast asleep on a bed roll with the covers half kicked off and quite comfortable in his usual spread eagle sleeping position. "What did you do to us?"

"Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu." Daiki replied calmly. "I wanted to make sure you weren't bait. When I was certain that no one else was with you I move us to a safe location and let you sleep it off." He grimaced a bit. "No pun intended."

Sakura stared at him. How could he make jokes? "Where are we?"

"In a safe place." He reached out and pulled a stick from the ground. He tapped the fish on it lightly, nodded, and handed it to Sakura. "The jutsu often leaves you hungry when you wake."

Sakura took the stick and gingerly sniffed at the fish.

Daiki sighed and picked up a roast fish of his own. "If I wanted to kill you I've had more than enough opportunity. It's not poisoned." He bit into his own fish to prove the point.

Sakura was still hesitant, but couldn't argue with his point. Cautiously she took a small bite of the offering. There was no seasoning, but the flesh was soft and tender and she could taste no traces of poison that Tsunade had taught her about. She took another bite and looked around. Night had already fallen, but she really had no way to tell how long she'd been asleep. Or how far away help might be.

"You're free to leave at any time." Daiki leaned back and sat against the tree. "I won't stop you. By the time you meet up with anyone I'll be long gone." He took another bite of his fish. "The fact that you followed me this far means that you wanted something from me." Another bite. "Which either makes you very brave, or very stupid."

Sakura grimaced, was she really that easy to read? "Kakashi-sensei and Tsunade-sama told me about you. I wanted to talk with you."

Daiki paused, fish hanging from his lip. "I have to admit I didn't expect that." He wiped his mouth and took another bite, finishing his fish. He reached beside him and prepared another raw fish before planting it beside the fire. He took up another cooked fish and handed it to Sakura. "What do you want to talk about?"

Sakura took the second fish, surprised to realize she'd eaten the first entirely as she watched him. "Is it true? That we're from the same clan?"

Daiki picked up another fish and bit into it. "More than that, same family."

Sakura ate slowly as she considered her next words. "The rumors said that you had declared to kill Kakashi-sensei and destroy Konoha. Would you have really done it?"

Daiki looked up at the stars. "Yeah, probably."

"What made you stop?"

Daiki snorted and laughed lightly. "Does everyone on your squad ask questions they already know the answers to?"

"Don't talk about them like that!" Sakura's anger surfaced at the rebuke. "What do you know about my team?"

Daiki raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You were the smartest ninja in your age bracket at the academy taking second place to Uchiha Sasuke on exams only because you would get distracted day dreaming about him. Naruto was dead last at everything making his rivalry with Uchiha and his pursuit of you even more laughable. Uchiha's devoted himself to the life of an avenger to kill his brother for slaughtering their family. You use rainforest mist shampoo with extra body. Naruto has more spoiled food in his refrigerator than fresh. Uchiha begged you to remain silent about the seal on his neck even into the preliminary fights of the Chunin Exam. Shall I go on?"

Sakura stared at him. "How?"

Daiki shrugged and took another bite. "I've been spying on Konoha for the last…Hm? Five years or so? Gathering information on the Sharingan for my attack. Every person in your village was given a threat assessment from cadets to your Hokage in case they got in my way."

"But you stopped when you saw me."

Daiki shrugged again. "I was prepared to kill you too."

The statement hit Sakura like a ton of bricks to the face. "But…"

Daiki shrugged as he finished his second fish. "You were part of them. The family…" He made small quote marks with his fingers in the air. "That turned their collective backs on my mom. I wanted nothing to do with them. With you." He grabbed a third fish and ripped half of it into his mouth, taking some of the stick with it. "But then you got in the way and said…"

"I don't know who you are." Sakura remembered.

The boy nodded. "Our mothers were twins, meaning roughly half of our genetics are shared to some extent. Yet you knew nothing of who I was, and I suspect nothing of our clan's history." He sighed. "Even under the genjutsu I placed on myself, I couldn't place you with them any more. I couldn't blame you for the actions of your parents."

"Our clan." Sakura latched on to the topic before he could change. "Tsunade-sama said we once rivaled that of the Uchiha and the Hyuuga…"

"Rivaled?" Daiki laughed out right at the statement. "We owned them! Hell, we practically created them!"

"What?" Sakura, while she didn't quite shriek in surprise, it was rather loud. "Who? How? When?"

It was at this point the noise got so loud that Naruto finally decided to wake up. "What's going on?" He jumped to his feet and spotted Daiki, whom he then pointed an accusatory finger at. "Teme!" He tried to run forward but, like Sakura, slipped on his bed roll.

Daiki sweat dropped. "How the hell did I get punched by you?" He threw one of the roast fish over to the boy. "Ahou."

Naruto looked over at the boy as he caught the meal. "Nani?"

"Just eat Naruto." Sakura turned back to her…cousin. It felt weird to think of him as such, but she continued on. "What did you mean by…"

"I don't think it would be wise to discuss our clan's history at this point." He nodded to Naruto, who was looking for more fish. "Certain items are of a sensitive nature. Not to be heard by outsiders."

Sakura looked over at Naruto as he caught a few more fish from Daiki. She trusted Naruto, but Daiki clearly didn't. "Then come back with us."

Both boys turned sharply, looks of utter disbelief on their faces. "What the hell are you talking about?!"

Daiki looked over at Naruto, his eyes narrowed. "You're not an O, are you?"

"I'm a B!" Naruto shot back.

Both boy's sighed in relief. "Domo Kami…" They glared at each other again.

"I'm serious." Sakura continued before the boys started something that would likely get them killed. "Come back to Konoha with us. Kakashi-sensei feels awful about the past…" She forced herself to continue when she saw Daiki's eyes harden. "And I'm sure he wants to talk with you. To try to explain what happened. To make things right."

"The only way he will ever make things right is in death." Daiki replied in flat tone. "Besides, the moment I walk back into Konoha I'll be a prisoner. Your entire village knows who I am and what I did. The trial will be a sham and I'll be sentenced to execution at which time I will have to break out and kill some more of your people." He raised a hand as if to block and imaginary attack. "Thanks, but I'll pass."

"I'll speak with Tsunade-sama!" Sakura pushed. "She understands the situation. She'll give you a pardon." The girl looked him in the eye. "You will have to be under guard, there's nothing much I can do to change that, but you will get to see Konoha from the inside. I can show you our village, our village." She stressed the term to try and make him see her point. "You said yourself we shared DNA, you have a right to be there just as much as I do. Let me show you that our people can be more than just targets and threat assessments. And you…you can teach me all the things about our clan that I've never known."

Daiki pulled the last of the roast fish and prepared to chomp into it, at least until he saw Naruto drooling. He threw the fish at the blonde in a huff. "And what happens when some guy with a grudge comes after me for some payback. I'm not going to sit there and take it. I will crack skulls."

"No one will bother you." Sakura assured. "And if they say something or look at you funny, I'll deal with them."

"Trust me, no one will go against Sakura-chan." Naruto nodded his head in agreement. "They're too scared of her."

Sakura buried her fist into Naruto brain, planting the top half of his body into the dirt. "You jerk!" She looked up to see Daiki smirking. "What?"

"At least…" Daiki looked up at the sky. "At least the Haruno women of Konoha still have that inner fire."

Sakura couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed at the off-center insult, but was glad that Daiki's eyes had softened a bit from before. "Please come back with us."

Daiki sighed and let his head fall down to look Sakura right in the eyes. He paused a moment seeming to weight his options. "Is this truly that important to you?"

Sakura nodded. "Yes, it is."

Daiki sighed and nodded. "Very well then. It's not wise to travel this area in the dark, rather dangerous if you don't know the terrain. We'll head out in the morning."

Sakura smiled. "Thank you Daiki. I promise you won't regret this."

"I suppose I'll just have to trust you on that." Daiki sighed, a small smile on his lips. "You should get some rest. It will be a long hike tomorrow."

"In a little while." Sakura agreed. "First I want to know why you're so calm now."

"As opposed to a blood thirsty crazy like in town?" Daiki laughed at the nervous expression on the kunoichi's face. "I was under a three part genjutsu that not only masked my appearance, but also my personality. I released the first two to fight the Sharingan…"

"Kakashi-sensei." Sakura interrupted. "His name is Kakashi, not Sharingan."

"I'm willing to make some efforts since you asked them of me. You need to understand he is not one of them." Daiki paused, seeing the grudging acceptance in Sakura's eyes. "Or at least a whole lot of time." He waited until Sakura nodded to continue his explanation. "The third part of the seal was to keep me focused on my task. The assassination and destruction of Konoha. It amplifies the brainwaves that control aggression."

"That's why your blood lust was so overpowering." Sakura realized.

Daiki nodded. "I had to release the third seal after I ran or else tracking me would have been so simple even that idiot could find me." He nodded at the still unconscious Naruto. "Without the jutsu," He raised his hands as if presenting himself. "What you see is what you get."

Sakura looked over at Naruto's limp body. "You could have killed Naruto easily, but you didn't. Why was that?"

"He is still bound to you."

Sakura blinked. "Huh?"

"How's best to explain this?" He mulled over the question silently for a moment. "I assume that you've gotten a crash course in bed side manner and addressing patients?"

"Yeah."

"Then you know the power that words can have on a person. As a clan of medical ninjas, words have a very important role. Sayings not only have to be taken at face value, but also their implied motivations." Daiki explained. "Certain statements, promises for example, carry the weight of a binding contract."

Sakura still failed to see the connection. "What's that have to do with Naruto though?"

"I'll get him back for you."

Sakura gasped as Daiki sounded surprisingly like Naruto.

"It's a promise of a lifetime."

Daiki waited silently for a while to let his newfound cousin take it all in. "I know I seem like a hypocrite, targeting the Sharingan and planning to spare your teammate, and I probably am. But at the time, I don't know, it made sense."

"So you never had any intention to kill Naruto?" Sakura wanted this clarified just to be safe.

"He was safe." Daiki looked at the boy. "He's not much, but as far as I'm concerned his dumb ass belongs to you to do with as you see fit." He grinned as Sakura laughed and looked up at the stars. "You've got about six, maybe six and half hours before the sun comes up. We can talk more at another time. For now get some sleep. The real stuff, not the jutsu induced kind that messes with you." He rolled his eyes as Sakura looked at him accusingly. "I'll still be here in the morning. I promise." He stood and nudged Naruto with his foot. "Oi, Ahou. Pick your ass up and go to bed."

Naruto, still looking slightly concussed, rolled over to his sleeping provisions and promptly passed out.

Sakura wrapped herself in her blanket, wondering briefly where Daiki had gotten it from, as she lay down. She watched him lean back up against his tree and close his eyes. She smiled as she began to drift off to sleep, hearing Daiki's muttered grumbling.

"I still don't understand how that idiot landed a punch on me."

OOOOO

It was almost noon when Izumo spotted them and he roughly shook his partner's shoulder. "Please tell me I'm not imagining this."

Kotetsu turned from his paperwork, followed by practically vaulting over the small desk. "You're back!"

"Well yeah," Naruto sighed. "Why wouldn't we be?

"The entire village as been on alert searching for you guys." Izumo continued to stare slightly. "You guys almost got us killed."

Sakura laughed nervously and bowed. "Sorry about that, we didn't think anyone would miss us."

"Some weird guy comes and almost kills your teacher, you go running off, and you thought no one would miss you?" Kotetsu suddenly had a new found respect for Kakashi and Tsunade. He shook his head. "You need to go see Tsunade-sama. Now."

Izumo paused and pointed to something on Naruto's shoulder. "What's with the frog?"

"I'm not a frog!" The little red amphibian dressed in a blue vest hopped angrily on Naruto's shoulder. "I'm a toad! Get it right!"

Izumo blinked and took a step back in surprise. "Eh…um…Yeah sure, sorry."

Naruto glared at the tiny toad slightly. "Don't be so rude." He shrugged, causing the toad to flail and hit Naruto over the head, eliciting another glare from the blonde.

"After we got lost Naruto decided to summon Gamakichi to help us find our way back." Sakura replied quickly. "Seems he did a good job." She grabbed Naruto and began to drag him off toward the Tower of the Hokage. "Come on Naruto. We need to go see Tsunade-sama."

The two guards watched the scene somewhat dumbfounded. "Think they'll live?" Izumo asked.

"They are Tsunade's favorites." Kotetsu replied slowly. "She might let them live."

Izumo nodded and returned to his post. "And since when can Naruto summon anything?"

Kotetsu shrugged.

"Hey! Forehead!"

They were about half way to the tower when Sakura heard an all to unpleasant voice. "Damn it…" She turned to see the other blonde of the rookie nine chasing her down the street. "What do you want Ino-pig?" She had no time to react as Ino slapped her hard across the face.

"Hey!" Gamakichi leapt from his perch on Naruto's shoulder and slammed his head into Ino's nose. "Keep your hooves off her!"

Ino recoiled and rubbed her nose. "Ahh! Frog! I'll get warts!" Ino promptly turned and ran for the nearest wash room.

Gamakichi hopped angrily up and down on the ground. "I'm a toad!" He stopped as Sakura grabbed him forcefully. "Eep!"

Sakura glared at him. "Don't do that again…"

"Yes ma'am." Gamakichi nodded. "But you have to admit it was effective."

Sakura sighed and placed the frog…toad…thing…on her shoulder before grabbing Naruto again. After a few minutes of navigating the streets they entered the tower and raced up the stairs. Immediately Sakura didn't like what she saw. Neji and the head of the Hyuuga clan stood outside the door of the Hokage's office. The older man pointed once to the door and Sakura knew they were expected. Expected, and in in it up to their necks. She sighed and knocked on the door.

"Get in here!" The door practically shivered with the force of Tsunade's voice.

Sakura opened the door, surprised to find Team Kurenai before the Hokage's desk.

Tsunade nodded to the other team. "Dismissed."

Even Naruto now was beginning to realize how much trouble he was in. Kurenai, perhaps the gentlest of the jounin-sensei, shot him a look that could have melt steel. Kiba shook his head at him. Hinata wouldn't make eye contact, though that was not a real good marker so much as the usual. Even Shino looked…well, like Shino, but more tense in the shoulders. Naruto swallowed hard.

Tsunade waited until the door was closed before rounding the desk and standing before her two charges. Naruto and Sakura were, understandably, confused as Tsunade grabbed them in a hug. Tsunade sighed. "I'm so glad you two are ok…"

Instantly, Naruto felt a change and let out a startled cry which was echoed by Sakura a moment later.

Tsunade now held both children in headlocks, one under each arm. "You damn gaki no baka!" She dragged them about the room. "Do you have any idea how worried I was about you? I was beginning to think you were dead!" She finally released them to catch their breath as they fell to the ground. "You're lucky you only got lost and not discovered by him! Who knows what would have happened if he'd gotten a hold of you?"

"Yes, what would he have done?" Called a voice from the ceiling. "Please tell us since you're such an expert on him."

Tsunade looked up at the voice to see the toad using chakra to sit on the ceiling. "What the hell is Gamakichi doing here?"

Sakura stood, forcing Tsunade to look away from the amphibian. "What if I told you that we didn't get lost?" She forced herself to look past Tsunade's glare. "What if I told you we were captured? And the only thing that happened was we talked and ate dinner?"

Tsunade looked between Sakura, Naruto, and the toad.

"He's willing to surrender. To come back to Konoha under peaceful terms." Sakura pressed. "Would you consider pardoning him?"

Tsunade knew that they were no longer in the realm of hypotheticals. Sakura wouldn't be saying these things without reason, and Tsunade could see how serious this issue was to the girl. "He'd have to remain under guard." She stated evenly.

Sakura nodded. "He's agreed to that."

Tsunade nodded. "Get word to him, I'll send ANBU to provide an escort here."

Sakura smiled. "Thank you Tsunade-sama, but that won't be necessary."

Tsunade blinked. "What? Why?"

Gamakichi fell from the ceiling and vanished in a puff of smoke, instantly Daiki took his place on the ground. "Honestly, you need some new guards at your gate. First illusionary passed them, then a simple Henge no jutsu." He shook his head.

Tsunade sighed as her apprentice grinned. "Seems you're a very good student…"

Sakura beamed.

The Hokage sat at her desk and pulled some paperwork from her drawer before signing it and stamping it. "Ok, he's pardoned. I'll begin circulating it to the village, but don't expect everyone to welcome you." She nodded at Daiki.

"I don't expect their welcome, just keep them off my back."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Well, now we have the second aspect to deal with. Namely, where to put you."

Sakura blinked at this. "I thought he'd be staying with us, my family I mean."

Tsunade looked over at Daiki, already knowing the answer.

"As I told you last night." Daiki's reply was slow. "I want nothing to do with my so called 'Family' other than you Sakura-sama."

Tsunade, making special note of the formality in Daiki's voice, continued before Sakura could argue. "Normally, in times past you'd be placed in the custody of Konoha's Military Police. As I'm sure you are aware the events of recent years have rendered that option impossible."

"It would also be pointless as I've already demonstrated that I can negate the Sharingan's abilities." Daiki added, for Sakura's benefit. "The doujutsu, not the man."

Tsunade nodded, grudgingly admitting his point. "That leaves two options. The first, more extreme option, is a team of ANBU follow you at every step you make."

"And the other option?" Sakura asked.

Tsunade looked over at the door. "I've spoken with the head of the Hyuuga clan. He's agreed to have his clan in charge of your surveillance. A member of their clan will accompany you at all times to keep tabs on you. With their superior eye sight, even to that of the Sharingan, the moment they spot you trying anything they'll sound the alarm."

Daiki seemed to consider this option. "I'm not particularly thrilled with the option of the ANBU, but have you spoken with the boy?" He raised an eye brow as the leader of Konoha nodded. "Then you know I've neutralized the Byakugan as well. Why even consider the option?"

"You came to me." Tsunade pointed out. "You seem willing to trust…to an extent. I am offering the same level of trust. Aside from Neji and Hiashi, the rest of the clan doesn't know about your ability to block them. If you give me your word that you won't do anything…reckless…I'll afford you that much leeway."

"So I'll have paper tigers following me," Daiki considered. "So long as I promise to be a good little boy."

Sakura looked over at Daiki after a few minutes had passed in silence. After what had been said about the value he placed on promises, and what she knew of his feelings for Konoha, there was a good probability that he'd refuse the offer. But if ANBU was following their every move, she'd never be able to convince him that Konoha was a good place to live filled with good people. He could shut down and leave at any time causing her to not only fail to turn him around, but lose any information about her clan. "He won't cause you any trouble Tsunade-sama. I'll promise I'll take full responsibility for him should anything happen."

Both Daiki and Tsunade looked over at the girl with a slight amount of confusion. After a moment Daiki nodded. "As Sakura-sama said, I will agree to your terms. You have my word."

Tsunade looked between the two pink haired cousins. Something had just happened and she wasn't quite sure what it was, but it seemed to play in her favor. "Very well then. Enter!" The door opened and the two Hyuugas entered. "This is Hyuuga Hiashi and Hyuuga Neji."

"I know who they are." Daiki replied evenly before looking at Neji. "I take it you're to be guard number one?"

Neji nodded. "That's correct."

"Super." He sighed and looked over his shoulder at Sakura. "It's your show now, what's next on the list?"

Sakura brought a finger to her chin in thought. "Well, I suppose we should find you a place to stay."

"Part of his surveillance entails that he will be living on the Hyuuga compound." Hiashi, looking more than a little perturbed at being ignored by everyone, supplied. "Guest quarters have been prepared in expectance with his arrival."

Daiki looked over at Tsunade.

The Hokage shrugged. "When we didn't find bodies right off the bat I had a feeling that Naruto's assessment of you might be accurate. Then I counted on Sakura to be able to talk you into this."

Sakura gaped. "You played me?"

"I was right?" Naruto asked.

Daiki nodded, a begrudging smirk on his lips, as he laughed lightly. "Very well, this round to you."

Tsunade grinned. "I may gamble and lose far too much of the time, but I win when it counts."

Naruto had remained silent for most of the conversation because he really wasn't sure of all the undertones that were working through the room. Yet he was able to sense that the negotiations were basically over. Plus, hearing that he had been right about something, the most important part of the conversation as far as he was concerned, had rekindled his excitement. "Now that everyone's friends again, lets go get some ramen to celebrate!"

Daiki grimaced and looked at Sakura. "He's going to make me regret this decision, isn't he?"

Sakura laughed. "You learn to tune him out after a while. I would suggest getting something to eat though before we start walking around town."

Daiki shrugged. "Lead on."

The three gennin and their guest left the room leaving Tsunade and Hiashi alone. The Hyuuga leader turned. "Can we trust him?"

"I don't know." Tsunade admitted. "But I trust Sakura, and she seems to have a hold on him."

"A hold?" Hiashi's eyes narrowed. "In what way?"

Tsunade shrugged. "It's hard to say, but…" She recalled the way that the boy had addressed her apprentice. "I believe it's something akin to the relationship between your daughter and your nephew."

Hiashi turned and walked for the door where he paused. "Based on experience Hokage-sama, I hope your assessment is wrong on that respect."

"Oh? Why's that?"

"Neji despised us to the point that he was ready to kill us all." He continued on. "Should the boy contain similar feelings, he has the power to act on them."

Tsunade sat frowning in her office alone for some time after that.

OOOOO

Naruto and Sakura waved goodbye to Neji and Daiki as they entered the Hyuuga compound before turning away. The day had been nothing like what they had hoped for.

Sakura grimaced as she began to walk. "That could have gone better."

"Could have gone worse too." Naruto suggested, forever looking on the optimistic side of things. "At least no one got hurt."

Sakura nodded. After leaving the Hokage's office they had ended up going to the ramen stand, where Daiki had been refused service. Even the pleading of the stand's best customer had been to no avail. Daiki hadn't seemed to mind, insisting that the others eat instead, but Sakura refused to accept that. She had taken them to the next restaurant, only to have the same thing happen again. This occurred at every eatery they tried to enter until Daiki had used Henge no Jutsu to transform into someone else to avoid attention. After leaving the restaurant they had decided to walk around the city.

Naruto glanced over at Sakura, knowing she was thinking about the numerous almost-fights that had broken out. She had tried so hard to show Daiki the good of the city, but the wounds were too fresh and raw. The villagers wanted retribution for what Daiki had done. It was a feeling that Naruto understood, but he had pushed it aside for Sakura's sake. Still, he had to admire the way the foreign ninja handled things.

Insults had gained no reaction from him, seeming to roll off him as not being worthy of his time. Despite his declaration of the night before, when people had hit him he didn't fight back. Most times he took a few shots and either Naruto, Neji, or Sakura would step in and break it up.

The only reaction that had come had been when one of the assailants, smelling vaguely of sake, attacked Sakura for protecting him. The scene that unfolded was one that Naruto wasn't sure he could believe. Daiki had pushed the man away and placed two fingers at the man's Adam's Apple, informing the man that if he touched Sakura again Daiki would kill him and consequences be damned. In that instant, Daiki had gained a few respect points in Naruto's book.

Before long the two teammates were at the corner where they would part ways for the night. Naruto felt that he should say something to Sakura. To encourage her, to make her feel better, tell her that she was doing the right thing. They both stopped, seeming to not want to move away from each other, but the words wouldn't come.

"Hey? Naruto?" Sakura finally spoke up.

"Yeah?"

Sakura looked up and smiled. "Thank you, for sticking by me today."

For a moment, Naruto considered trying to take her hand and give it a reassuring squeeze. Instead, he laced his hands together behind his head and leaned back on one foot in one of his typical poses. "Hey, come on. You should know by now that I'm always going to be there for you."

"Thanks Naruto." Sakura smiled. "That means a lot to me." She turned and began to walk for home. "Good night."

"Good night Sakura-chan." Naruto watched her go until she rounded the corner out and was out of his sight. "I'll be here if you ever need me."

End Chapter Three

OOOOO

Wraiths: You did the opening with out me?

Rider: Not my fault you didn't get out of bed.

Star: (poke wraiths) Hey, tell him he's a review whore.

Rider: I am not a review whore! (heavy breathing) Uh…that said…(bows head) Damn…please leave a little something if you have time. I hope to get one more chapter up before break ends, so…keep me motivated and stuff. Till the next, live well all.

Wraiths: I am so confused right now…

Star: Later people. (Grins evilly)

Rider: Don't say it!

Star: REVIEW WHORE!

Rider: I hate you Star…

OOOOO

Jutsu glossary

"Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu." - Feigning sleep technique

The jutsu used by Garra to induce sleep and allow Shukaku's spirit to take over. Modified here by Daiki to be used as a subjugation style jutsu against others.