I do not own the Naruto-verse, i am borrowing for the hell of it. It says rated M but none of the M stuff is coming until probably this chapter, where there's going to be fighting and swearing and the start of the two characters adventures in Konoha. In those chapters, the fourth war will have happened, Neji survives (because i can't kill off my favorite Byakugan user), and everyone will be doing normal life things like dating and missions and all sorts of stuff so don't worry. The content will live up to rating in a little while. Had to make em growed up first haha. Enjoy and reviews are always welcome. I'm going to try to keep up with the story because its really fun to write

Five Years Later

'Parry. Block. Shift left. Parry again and follow through with thrust. Backpedal…'

Hanzo mentally coached himself as he sparred with his master, their blades whirling around them and flashing in the light like silver fishes in water. He'd spent six years on his own honing his Hyuuga technique. Surpassing the limits of his body. Then he'd met his master. Five years. Five grueling years. Training, working. Day in and day out. He was seventeen now. Seventeen and more skilled than he could have ever imagined. His sword was a natural extension of his body and mind. His taijutsu was impeccable, having perfected the Hyuuga techniques as well as adding in new styles of combat he'd managed to blend with his traditional fighting style. His shuriken-jutsu, thanks to his best friend, was more than on par, though he couldn't quite master it the way she could. His ninjutsu had exploded way beyond the capability of a normal Hyuuga. He couldn't. Fucking. Wait. To get back to the village.

'Dodge, half spin and reverse slash… Parry, block into counter thrust'

Jin hadn't missed a step as he aged. He was 40 and still sprightly and combat effective. Even after five years, Hanzo was hard pressed to even disarm him, though he'd been getting the hang of it. Now, he had been charged by his master with an impossible task: Either Hanzo wounded him in battle, or he'd have to train for another year. Growling, Hanzo spun on his heel and whirled his blade around in an arc to give him some breathing room. Then he charged. There was no use planning too hard when it came to a battle like this. That had been one of his main teachings under Jin-sama. The principle of nagare, or flow. The mindset of being able to flow like water where the current of battle led. It had shown him just how limited he'd been before in combat. He was a versatile ninja now. A truly unorthodox shinobi. And now, all he had to do was prove to his master that he was good enough to leave and go it alone.

'Fuck.'

Sayuri watched as Hanzo and Jin practically tried to kill each other in their garden training yard. She'd come over with all the belongings she'd accumulated over the years sealed in a traveling scroll, and had come to do the same for her friend before he'd roped her into watching this "training session". She'd had to activate her Sharingan the moment the fight began. They were simply too fast. She had to have it active simply to watch them at a normal speed. The more effort she put into it, the more she could predict their movements before they came. She'd rapidly progressed with her kekkai genkai and had gained her triple-tomoe Sharingan for her efforts. Her taijutsu was more or less on par with Hanzo since she'd started training with him four years ago. Her ninjutsu and genjutsu were excellent to say the least. And her shuriken-jutsu was still outstanding. Still, as she watched Hanzo go at it with his father she was awed. Her best friend was a superb ninja. Just like she was. She couldn't believe that neither of them had an actual rank in the ninja hierarchy and was dreading the thought of being made a genin upon her arrival in Konoha. She thought she'd make at least Chunin with her skill set. Refocusing on the fight, she was amazed to see Hanzo removing the strips of cloth around his forearms and legs. She was even more amazed when she saw him remove what could only be a set of weights from each appendage. The resulting boom from the weights hitting the floor nearly made her pee herself. After that? She could barely see Hanzo. He was so fast that her Sharingan was the only reason she could keep up with his movements. Clearly Jin-sama had been putting her friend through the wringer over the years. But the old man wasn't a slouch by any means, using his superior ability to drive Hanzo back on the defensive every time he tried to launch an attack. After a few minutes, she sensed someone join her on the bench and turned to smile at Miyuki-sama. The older woman returned the smile before turning towards the fight. Leaning back on her hands, she chuckled a little to herself.

"Jin won't be winning this one." She said softly.

Puzzled, Sayuri shifted her gaze to the fray, only to find that the two combatants had taken their sparring session to the rooftops.

"What makes you say that, ma'am?"

She had no clue how Jin's wife, a civilian, could tell that her husband was going to lose this battle when, to her, it looked like Hanzo was only just keeping himself from being defeated.

"I know how my husband battles. I watch him when he practices from the tea room. I know enough from that to see that Hanzo is the one dictating this battle, not Jin." The woman said with a small smile.

Sayuri glanced sideways at her and saw that her eyes had filled with motherly pride as she gazed at the blur she knew to be her adopted son. She'd been visiting Hanzo and his parents for years now and she was always awed to see how much the woman cared for the boy despite the fact that she wasn't his biological parent. Even so, Sayuri didn't see how Hanzo was the one setting the pace in this altercation. Looking back towards the fray, she concentrated hard, trying to see what Hanzo's mother saw. Trying to catch Hanzo's advantage.

No weights meant Hanzo could move a whole lot better, not to mention he could strike full force and move much faster. Jin had compensated and still managed to match him step for step, however. But Hanzo had been cooking up a plan. Thankfully, father had moved the fight to the rooftop so he wouldn't have to worry about collateral damage. Now, though, he had to concentrate. He'd been massing chakra as much as he could into his body so that he could use his newest technique. It had started with only a thought, during his nature manipulation training, when he'd found out that he was a Wind natured shinobi. Afterwards, he'd been practicing on getting to use it in many of his techniques, mainly his Hyuuga ones. Recently, however, he'd managed to perfect something that he'd been keeping secret from his father. Good thing he was ambidextrous. As Jin came in, sword flying, Hanzo lashed out with a lightning quick slash that forced the older man to step back.

'NOW!'

Hanzo took his left hand off of his sword hilt and held it out from his body, channeling the massed chakra into his palm, then outwards. He heard Sayuri's f-bomb from where she was sitting as they all watched his chakra take form in his left hand, mimicking the sword he held in his right. Thank Kami he was wind nature. It made the whole blade thing easy, especially since Jin had taught him how to use wind nature to give his real sword a razors edge.

"Kami damn it all, son, you are full of surprises." Jin said with a proud smile.

Hanzo allowed himself to bask in the praise for a second before launching himself forward, going for the win. Jin had only had enough time to channel his chakra into his blade to prevent his sword from being sliced in two by Hanzo's new weapon. Even still, Hanzo knew he had the upper hand, especially since he could now attack and defend at the same time. He forced his father backwards, entering a state of absolute peace in his mind. He didn't have to think anymore, he simply let his body react instinctively as his five years of training kicked in. He dodged a slice to the forearm and brought his left sword up to feint a strike to the body then whirled around to attempt a cut to his mentor's sword arm with his right handed blade, using the movement to hide the fact that he'd changed grip on his left hand weapon and was bringing it in high. Jin had definitely taken the bait and he was trying to deflect the next blow by shifting his sword enough that it would toss Hanzo's real sword to the side and be ready for another deflection. Too bad, the reverse grip that Hanzo was using offered him a solution to that problem. Bending, he tucked his chakra sword down and up, right under his mentors guard while he activated his Byakugan so that he didn't miss his intended target. They both froze and watched as a single droplet of blood fell to the roof tiles with a soft plip.

Sayuri was absolutely stunned. First he'd basically whipped a sword into existence out of thin air. Then he'd been dual-wielding those blades like he'd come out the womb. And, finally, he'd ended the fight with such precision that it was scary to see. But, she could definitely see that Hanzo had sank the literal tip of his chakra sword into his father's nose. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Miyuki smiling proudly at her son.

"He's been working on that for month's now. I'm glad to see he's perfected it. And that's not even the most spectacular thing about what he can do with his nature manipulation." Miyuki said as she rose to her feet, "He's able to do it with both hands, leaving him in a situation where he'll never be weaponless, and he can make a chakra version of any weapon he chooses. And Jin has been teaching him how to use many, not just a sword. He's surpassed his father in many ways. He's ready to leave." She finished with a sad smile.

Sayuri turned to see that the woman's eyes were glistening. She couldn't help feeling a twinge of envy towards her best friend for having something she didn't. But she felt sad for the woman who was going to lose her son.

"You're going to miss him…aren't you?"

Sayuri spoke softly when she said this and had the good grace to look away as Miyuki began to silently cry for a few minutes. When the woman cleared her throat, she looked at her again and saw that Miyuki had a smile on her face.

"I will miss my boy… but he's a man now. I can't hold him here and he has to return to his real home."

Sayuri simply watched as Miyuki dried her eyes and cleared her throat. The swish of a cloak alerted them both to the landing of father and son.

"Yuri-chan!"

She didn't have time to move before she was trapped in a bear hug, Hanzo lifting her off of the ground. She suppressed her smile and whapped him over the head with her hand, making him put her down.

"What was that for?" he asked with a wince, though he was still grinning.

"You were going to break me in half, you moron!" she said, poking him hard in the ribs.

Hanzo simply chuckled and turned to give his mother a hug. Sayuri looked away as another twinge of jealousy zipped through her. Really, she shouldn't be feeling this way but it hurt that she had never known the love of a mother, or the protection of a father. All she had known was a sort of cruel affection at the hands of… No, she wasn't going to think about that man, thing, whatever it was. She had more than enough issues as is, thank you very much. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into Jin's face.

"Jin-sama." she said with a respectful nod. Jin smiled at her.

"Sayuri-chan. All set to leave with Hanzo-kun?" he asked, gesturing to the scroll she had strapped to her back.

"Yes sir, I'm just waiting to seal all of Hanzo's clothing." She said with a nod.

Jin wiped the dot of blood on his nose and chuckled as he looked at it.

"I never thought he'd be this advanced with his nature manipulation. He's surpassed me in many ways. I'm glad I got to be the one who raised him for these five years. He might not have been ready otherwise." Jin said softly, before turning to look at her, "Take care of him, please? I know he can more than look after himself but I'd feel better if someone with a bit more sense was looking after my boy."

"I heard that father."

Sayuri had to chuckle as Hanzo came strolling over with a pout.

"I'll be fine, father. I learned from you after all."

Jin cracked a smile and clapped his son on the shoulder, turning to join his wife as Hanzo led Sayuri into the living room where he had neatly organized all of his clothing for her to seal away. Both of them sat on the couch, Hanzo passing his clothing to Sayuri who would seal them away into a scroll that Hanzo would carry for them both all the way to Konoha. After a few minutes, Sayuri broke the silence.

"You nervous to go back?"

Hanzo bit his lip and then nodded.

"Yeah…I know for a fact that the first day back for me will be rough."

She said nothing as she considered again the reason he had left Konoha in the first place. They'd have to be on guard the moment they entered the village. Hanzo would most definitely be accosted if they didn't keep a low profile before he could get to the compound. And once they figured out she was an Uchiha then she'd be in the spotlight as well.

"I hope I'm ready…"

As her friend uttered these words she rolled her eyes and scoffed at him.

"You spent five years learning how to become a shinobi under a fine master. You're stronger than you give yourself credit for. You'll do fine." she said to him as she sealed away the last bit of his clothing and started to roll up the scroll. When she looked up, Hanzo was beaming at her.

"Thanks 'Yuri. I'm really glad you're coming along."

She smiled back at him and tossed the scroll towards him as well as the ones containing her items. They both stood when Jin-sama and Miyuki-sama entered the living room, the latter holding a money bag that anyone could see was tightly packed full of ryo. The former was holding something that made Hanzo's eyes widen.

"Son," Jin-sama began, "from the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew that you would grow into a man worthy of respect. A good man. One with integrity. I didn't know why you lived the way you did but I knew that you'd been no stranger to hardship and trials. I took you in that day because you needed the guidance and the good fortune. You had earned it. And now, I send you back out into the world as a man, as a fully trained shinobi, as a son who I couldn't be more proud of. As such, I want you to have this, in place of the blade you used today. I had crafted this for you about three months ago. May it serve you well."

Sayuri gasped when Jin held out the gift in his arms: a sword that looked to be about three feet in length with a five inch handle. The blade was a black, chakra loving steel, double edged and had the silhouette of the kanji character for Wind stamped into the blade. The handle was bade of the same steel, but with an ornamental wrapping of white silk around it for a comfortable grip. The blade looked almost too beautiful to be put through the inevitable combat it would see but, knowing the old sword maker, the weapon would perform beautifully when the time came. She turned to look as Hanzo accepted the gift, sliding the blade into its black lacquer saya, eyes brimming with tears. She was going to put a hand on his shoulder when Jin turned to her and held out a beautiful looking tessen fan, its metal spines gleaming silver with red etchings in them of dragons and phoenixes. The end of the fan was sharpened to a deadly edge and she had to give Jin-sama some credit. It would work excellently with her shuriken-jutsu and she'd be able to work better as a kunoichi as the fan would give her a discreet weapon to work with. She looked at Jin-sama with eyes full of gratitude before he spoke.

"Sayuri-chan. I have known you for a long time and you have always been a true friend to my son. Without your encouragement and determination to train alongside him, he would not be where he is today. You have my eternal gratitude and my friendship. Thank you for helping my son grow. Thank you for being his friend. And thank you for always being there. May this tessen fan serve you well as you continue to grow."

Yeah, she was gonna cry. Absolutely going to start bawling. She'd never heard words like those, spoken with such sincerity. She was just a girl with no family and plenty of talent but to be actually held in such high esteem by a man of such renown? She snapped the tessen shut and flung herself at Jin, wrapping the man in a hug while she silently cried into his chest. She felt warm arms wrap around her and held on tighter to the swords master, trying to take in a lifetime of care and fatherly protection in that one moment.

Hanzo politely averted his eyes as Sayuri had a bit of a breakdown in his father's arms. He knew that she would have been overwhelmed by the gesture of the weapon she was gifted in but then father had told her that he cared about her. He smiled a little as Sayuri peeked out from Jin's chest and smiled at him before finally letting go. Mother hugged her and father ruffled her hair. He still felt bad that he'd been blessed with a family while she'd had to struggle. He hoped she'd find a better life and lots more friends in the village. Speaking of, it was already noon and Konoha was a day or two's journey away. He left the three to converse and secured the scrolls to his back from their slings, before placing his new weapon on his hip. It was good that he'd left the room to get everything set up for their departure. His hands had started shaking. His breaths coming in gasps. He was going home. Back to Hyuuga Compound. Back to the family that had shunned him. Had marked him for death. Back to his blood father. Tears spilled over his eyes and he slammed his lids shut, cutting off every emotion he had besides a burning sense of determination. He wasn't going to break down like this any longer. No, he was going to show his blood relatives just how much better than them he'd become. As he ruminated in his thoughts he felt a hand on his shoulder, gentle and warm. He didn't have to turn or activate the Byakugan to know that Sayuri was standing behind him, ready to go. He hastily swiped under his eyes and then straightened his spine, standing tall and proud like any member of the Hyuuga clan would. He was ready to make the journey.

"Let's get a move on Hanzo. If we travel fast, we can get halfway there by nightfall then make the rest of the trip tomorrow afternoon."

Hanzo nodded and turned just in time for his mother to toss the money bag at him. He caught it on reflex and smiled.

"Thanks mom." he said as he tucked the money into the lapel of his jacket. He gave his mother a kiss on the cheek, then hugged his father, hard. Then he looked at his best friend.

"Let's go. Time for Konoha to regain two kick-ass shinobi."

Sayuri didn't need any further prompting. In a flash, they had burst through the front doors of Hanzo's home, jumped onto the rooftops, then into the trees as they raced towards Konoha. And towards their new lives as shinobi.