Well here is chapter 7, the cold that has had a hold over me over the past two weeks is ALMOST GONE! YAY :)

Well school is almost over, summer is upon us, i hope your all enjoying the nice weather that we are starting to get :) Summer is the season of beaches and BBQ's ! FUN AND FOOD YAY lol anyway time to respond to the reviews

angeredblackman - Thanks for the review, don't worry, just making a review shows me that i have done a good job enough to get a review :P some are as short as just telling me good job or that they can't wait for the next :P anyway, yes Itachi is actually one of my fav chars in Naruto, and even before it was revealed that he was NOT actually working against Konoha, but in secret working for it, i always knew he wasn't as evil as he was trying to portray himself to be :) that's why i have given him a role in my stories :D Hope you enjoy chapter 7

dragonshaun9 - Thanks for the review and yes lol, Toshiro is actually a fun char to write for, technically, he is just a kid "11-12 years old" however he tries to act older then he is "Just like he does in bleach" he is by far my favorite bleach char and that's why i love writing for him and why he has such a big part in my story :) and yes, night country should be fun ;)

Sakura Lisel - Thanks for the review. Its not so much as Naruto is having the nightmares as much as the Zanpakuto is playing on his emotions, what is one of Naruto's worst fears? To not be accepted by his people, he has worked so hard from being hated and beaten up when he was a kid, to the hero that he is today, loved and respected by all, the Zanpakuto knows this, and uses that fear to torture Naruto

Slop Doggy - Thanks for the review, and i am feeling better yay :) Only headaches and some nasal congestion remains from the stupid cold/flu :)

RairyuuBlade - Thank you, THANK YOU, THANK YOU SO MUCH :P It is NOT your computer, it was my screw up, when i updated chapter 6 with typo fixes, i accidentally replaced it with chapter 3, once i saw your review, i went to see it myself, and i was surprised to see that you were right, i fixed the problem right away and restored chapter 6, on that note, anyone who read chapter 6 and saw that it was named chapter 3, and has not re read it since i have fixed it, please go back now to re read, i apologize for the screw up :) And thanks again RairyuuBlade for the heads up ;)

chickenman00712 - Thanks for the review, its always good to know that some of my oldies from saving old bonds are still around and enjoying the story :D

xzavx - x3 - Thanks for the multiple reviews :) Actually, she hasn't lost any respect for him, she was worried he would betray Konoha :)

Anyway, here is the brand new chapter :) by the way, its a large one ;) :D

Historical Bonds

Chapter 7

PRESENT TIME

Toshiro and Hiyori arrived at the Hokage mansion, Sakura had just returned from putting Naoto to bed for her afternoon nap and was surprised to see them both "Sakura, I am sorry to disturb you, but... Something, or well someone to be more precise has come up" Toshiro told her "She caught me getting everything ready for our mission and well, I guess she is worried that I am attempting to betray the leaf" he continued

Sakura smiled, just over a year ago both of them were enemies of Konoha, but now they were among the most loyal "Don't worry Hiyori, I will explain everything" Sakura began telling her about Naruto's condition and everything else. Hiyori was shocked, she also felt horrible for thinking that Toshiro was trying to betray the leaf

"That's horrible...There is no other way?" She asked

Toshiro shook his head "When a Zanpakuto is violated, even by accident, the only way to calm it down it to bring it back to the temple. Normally it wouldn't be an issue because only the night country posses the Zanpakutos" Toshiro explained

"I see... Toshiro, I am so sorry for thinking that you were trying to harm Konoha... As your former Vice captain I should have known you better then that" Hiyori said sadly, feeling ashamed of herself

"That's alright, you were just looking out for the village, and for that I am proud of you" Toshiro said with a warm smile

"So who are going on this mission?" Hiyori asked

"Well, myself and Hokage Sama of course" Toshiro said

"I am going as well" Sakura added

"I haven't figured out who else yet" Toshiro added

"Count me in" Hiyori said without hesitating

"Hiyori, this is a dangerous mission. I cannot allow you to come, if we were ever captured... You do remember the penalty for treason right?" Toshiro said to her

"I know very well what the penalty is, and I know the risks. But I am a former night ninja, I know the country as well as you do and I am willing to risk my life if it's for lord Hokage" Hiyori told him

"I know you want to help, but I cannot allow it. It's too dangerous, I don't want any harm to come to you Hiyori..." Toshiro said trying to convince her not to come

"Just because you are an ANBU captain doesn't make you the boss of me! You are willing to risk your life for Konoha, so am I. I know the risks, so I am coming. If you have a problem with that then we can always fight it out" She said with a grin, although she knew that Toshiro could beat her in a serious battle, she knew that he would never fight her

Toshiro let out a sigh knowing that he was defeated "Fine...You can come" He finally said caving in

Sakura on the other hand was trying not to giggle at the pair "So that's four of us, I know a few others that we can bring along, I will go speak to them" She told them

"Good, I had a few uniforms ordered up. I and Hiyori can use our old ones, you and Naruto will each have one, leaving room for 8 more" Toshiro told her "I still need to gather a few things. I have to go now if I want them ready for tomorrow" He said as he left the room quickly

"Alright" Sakura simply said as she watched him run out of the house "Hiyori, can you do me a favor?" Sakura asked her

"Of course"

"I need to go out and talk to the people we need for the mission, can you stay here and keep an eye on Naoto? She shouldn't be any trouble; she is sleeping peacefully and shouldn't wake up for a few hours"

"I would love to" Hiyori answered with a large smile "She is my god daughter after all and she is so cute" she added grinning

"Thanks, I shouldn't be long" Sakura said as she left the house

Sakura ran through the village. She couldn't find anyone, Kakashi, Neji, Kiba even Hinata were all out on missions and wouldn't be back in for a while. Suddenly she finally saw someone, he was reading a book in the park, enjoying the sun. It was something that Sakura had rarely seen since he was always on missions or doing other things "Itachi!" She said as she approached him he put down his book and greeted her

"Ah, Lady Sakura, anything new with Hokage Sama?" He asked her

"Actually yes" She answered him, she explained the new information she had "So that's the situation, Toshiro is getting everything ready for the trip. We could use your help" She asked him

"Of course, anything for Hokage Sama. We leave tomorrow?"

"Yes, think you can be ready on time?"

He shut his book and got up "I will get ready right away"

"Alright, thanks Itachi"

"No need to thank me Lady Sakura, I am just doing my duty" He said with a rare smile as he jumped away

"Well that's one..." She said as she left to search for more

Meanwhile Yuki was getting ready for her big birthday; it was a big deal because she was turning sixteen. She was going to invite all of her friends, even that idiot Konohamaru. She began to write the invitations, she was writing up Naruto's, she knew he may be too busy to attend but she was hoping he would at least drop by to wish her happy birthday. She grinned to herself thinking about him but then began to sigh when she thought about Sakura. If only she wouldn't be in the picture Naruto would be all hers for the taking. Suddenly her mind began to wander, she began to think about Konohamaru and about how she was hoping he would come "Wait a minute, why am I thinking about that idiot?! Who cares if he comes or not..." She tried to tell herself "Well... Hanabi is coming and without him I guess team Naruto wouldn't be complete... I need some fresh air, all this planning is draining me" she said as she got up from her bed and opened the window to her room. It was a beautiful sunny day, she leaped out of the window flying through the air feeling the wind caressing her skin, it felt so good. She landed perfectly on her feet "Maybe I should get something to eat, it's such a beautiful day, I shouldn't be stuck inside" She said happily as she began to walk through the village. It was almost noon and the streets were busy with merchants, patrons and people enjoying the day

She stopped at a dumpling stand and requested 2 dango sticks. She knew that It wasn't a real meal but she couldn't resist dangos. Once she purchased them she began walking down the street eating them happily. She spotted Konohamaru walking down the street, he seemed to be searching for something from the street vendors. Yuki smiled "I wonder what he is doing" she decided that she was going to spy on him, although she didn't consider it spying, she rather like to think of it as, going in the same direction by pure coincidence

Konohamaru let out a large sigh "What can I get her... Something that she will like BUT won't get me in trouble, something that's thoughtful, yet won't kill me with it. A plush toy?... No way, this is Yuki. I can't picture her liking a plush toy, I could get her candy? Or is that too much... After all it's not like were dating... Even if I wish we were" He said with another sigh, suddenly he remembered something she had said after their last mission

FLASHBACK

"Damn it, my weapons pouch has a hole in it, I lost a few of my Kunais" Yuki said

"How did you manage to make a hole in your weapons pouch?" Konohamaru asked her

"It was damaged during our last battle, I have been meaning to get it fixed but I just hadn't had the time"

"Why don't you just get a new one? That thing looks older than me" Hanabi commented

"...I can't... My father gave this to me on graduation day. He said it had been in our family for generations, he told me it was my turn to take care of it. I can't just replace it, and now that he is gone, it's all I have left of him" Yuki said with a sad expression

Konohamaru was surprised, Yuki actually had feelings after all. She wasn't the ice queen that she tried to make herself out to be

END FLASHBACK

"That's it!" He suddenly said "But how am I going to get it from her, get it fixed and then return it to her? Well I could always try sneaking into her house... However, if she catches me she will kill me. But I can't think of anything else..." Konohamaru had the look of determination on his face "I will do it! Or die trying... More than likely by her hand...But it's worth the risk!" Konohamaru quickly jumped on top of the buildings and began to run

Yuki looked at him run off, she was wondering where he was heading in such a hurry. She was kind of sad, she was enjoying spying on him. She was hoping that maybe he was shopping for her gift "Yeah right, as if he would be doing something like that... He is an idiot after all" She said laughing to herself, she took a bite out of one of her dango and continued on her walk

Sakura was walking near the old training ground, she began to smile as she remembered when team seven was first formed, and the bell test. They had all failed it miserably, especially her. Then she remembered how she and Naruto succeeded in getting the bells from Kakashi a few years later, although she admits that they used a dirty trick, one that ONLY Naruto could think of. So much had happened since she first met Naruto, she remembered how she treated him like scum in favor of Sasuke, she regretted it deeply now "Sakura?" A voice came from behind and surprised her, she quickly turned around to find out who it was

"Sai?!" She said surprised

"Yes? Why do you look so surprised?" He asked her, he was smiling as always, his skin had also gained some color since he spent a lot more time outdoors then he use too when he was in ROOTS, but he was still pale in comparison to other people. His social skills had also improved, although he still got himself in trouble from time to time

"I thought you were out with Kakashi, isn't team seven on a mission?"

"I was injured during training and had to skip the mission, Kiba took my place. I am fine now and I was just cleared from the hospital, so I wanted to come do a little bit of training. What about you? Just out for a walk? Or a bit of training?"

"Actually... I could use your help" She explained everything to him

"I see, well if I can be of any help to Naruto, you can count on me" Sai answered her

"Thank you so much Sai, we leave tomorrow, meet us at the gate in the morning"

"Alright" He said with a genuine smile, Sakura had learned a long time ago how to tell if he was smiling for real, or not

She began to make her way back to the village "Now that's two, still have six to go, this is harder then I thought. I didn't expect everyone to be out on missions..."

IN THE PAST

It had been a few weeks since the incident with the bandits, work on the village was proceeding at a fast pace. Many houses had been built and the main tower was nearing completion. Masaki was overseeing its construction, however, he had developed a fan club ever since he had defeated the bandits "Masaki San, please show us how you defeated the bandits again" Hiruzen asked as a group of kids were around Masaki

"Now now children, he has work to do, you should know better than to bother him" One of the parents said

"No, that's alright, I could use a brake anyway. Alright kids, but this is the last time" He told them with a smile he led them to the edge of the woods

Masaki took out his blade and whispered to it "I am sorry old friend, but one last time, for the kids" he said with a grin "Blow kaze no kami!" Masaki said while running, his blade suddenly vanished and was replaced by a blade of pure wind, Masaki sliced through trees without any problems. He then stripped them all of their branches leaving behind only the trunks of about twenty trees, he accomplished this in a few minutes and The kids were in awe of his power, they all cheered him

"Well That was simply amazing!" An unknown voice came from behind Masaki who had put away his blade once it had returned to its normal form "I can see how you could take on those bandits alone, can it cut through anything just as easy?"

"No, it cant cut anything that has a chakra flow, basically any living being. However, I am able to cut through a bolder or a blade or these trees here, unless it had chakra running through it"

"Well, it's still impressive"

Masaki turned around to face the one who had spoken to him, his heart had suddenly skipped a beat. Before him stood a young woman with emerald green eyes and red hair, she had an angelic smile that captured his heart

"YEAH! MASAKI IS AWESOME! That's exactly how he took care of those bandits, there were hundreds, maybe even thousands of them, but they were no match for him!" Hiruzen told the other kids

The young girl let out a slight giggle "thousands huh?"

"Uh... There were only twenty of them. Every time he tells that story, the numbers of enemies somehow multiply" He said with a slight blush

"Well either way, he seems to respect you and you have gained a lot of attention from the other clans. Seems like your starting to make a lot of friends around here" She said smiling at him "by the way, my name is Yamashiro Nami, we are a small clan" She said with a smile

Suddenly Tobirama jumped down from a nearby tree "Oh, so this is where you were hiding" He said with a grin

"Oh Hey Tobirama, yeah, just taking a small brake and the kids wanted a demonstration of my blade, although I told them this is the last time"

"You did all this? If you could keep cutting down trees like this we could have the defense walls up in no time!" Tobirama suggested

"Sorry, this is a weapon, not a saw... He wouldn't appreciate being used in that way"

"He? Uh well, it was just a suggestion" He said with a smile "Oh, who do we have here, Nami? Oh I see now, maybe I should leave you two alone huh? Huh?" He said teasingly"

"Don't mind Tobi, he is an idiot" Nami said with a grin

"Hey, that was mean Nami" Tobirama simply responded

"Uh... I take it you two know each other?" Masaki asked

"You could say that, the Yamashiro clan and the Senju clan have been friends for generations, they also use to live next to us, so I would often go there to play as a child. So I have known Nami since we were young" He answered

"And he hasn't grown up one bit since the day I first met him either" Nami said sticking out her tongue in a teasing fashion

"Says the girl who still sticks out her tongue like a child" Tobirama responded making her laugh

"I never claimed that I had grown up either" She answered with a wink

Masaki couldn't take his eyes off of Nami and Tobirama had noticed and grinned "I should be getting back to work, I told father that I was just going to rest for a bit, I have to do my part as well" Nami said with a smile as she walked away from the pair

Tobirama gave an elbow to Masaki "Well, you have great taste I see" He said teasingly

"What? What are you talking about..." He said trying to hide a blush

"It's all over your face man, you like Nami" he said as his grin grew "She is a tough one to crack, many have tried and many have failed, including yours truly. BUT she seems to like you, so you're in luck"

"What? Don't be ridicules, why would she like someone like me?"

"I don't know, but she likes you. I have known her long enough to know"

"So... What happened between you two?" Masaki asked curiously

"Well, she didn't want to risk our friendship, she likes me like a big brother so I stopped trying. That being said, I have been acting like a big brother and have been protecting her from the guys who are not deserving of her" He said proudly

"What about me?" Masaki again asked out of curiosity

"You my friend are different, from all the guys that have been trying to get her, you are a good man and I like you" he said with a grin "However, if you decide to proceed and you hurt her, I will hunt you down and kill you" he added with a serious face

"Uh.. You're kidding right?" Masaki asked

"I don't know... And I hope we don't have to find out" He said with a grin as he walked away leaving Masaki alone with his thoughts

Masaki returned to the construction site with nothing but Nami on his mind, was she really interested in him? He wondered as he went about his day

PRESENT TIME

Sakura was still in search of people for the mission, but she had not had much luck. She returned home since it was getting late and she would need to feed Naoto who should be waking up soon

She walked into the house and heard the familiar giggles of her little girl "Oh no, she is already awake" She said as she quickly made her way to the kitchen, surprised to find Naruto up and feeding Naoto, who was happy to have her father feeding her again "NARUTO!" she said as she held him tightly

Naruto smiled at her and wrapped his arms around her "Hey Sakura Chan..." He looked rested and almost back to his old self, but she knew that it wouldn't last unless they got him to the night country as fast as possible

"How long have you been up?" She asked

"I actually just got up, Hiyori was trying to feed Naoto but she was making a fuss, so I took over. Hiyori is taking a nap, she looked tired" Naruto said as he gave Naoto a spoon full

"She must have missed you feeding her" Sakura said with a smile "Wait, you must be starving! You haven't eaten in almost two days, and even when you were awake, you didn't eat much..."

"Well, I am hungry, but my little girl comes first, right angel?" Naoto giggles as she swung her feed back and forth

"Well, I guess it's up to me to take care of you then" She said giving him a light kiss before opening the cupboards, she was going to make him his favorite, she didn't approve of Ramen much for his health, and had tried to get him to eat other things, but this was a special occasion

Yuki was standing just outside of the Hokage Mansion. She had a letter in hand and she was debating whether or not to give it to Naruto "He probably doesn't have the time to come to my birthday... But then again, he is my Sensei, but he is also the Hokage... Would the leader of Konoha bother going to a little girls party?" she continued to debate over knocking on the door, suddenly she felt a presence behind her. When she turned around she found herself face to face with Toshiro

"Hey Yuki" he simply said

"Captain Hitsugaya!" She said bowing her head in respect of the higher ranked ninja, even though he was younger than her

"You look nervous, are you alright?" He asked her

"Yeah, it's just; my birthday is coming up... And I was wondering if Hokage Sama would even bother showing up. I mean he is the leader of the entire village, he would probably be too busy to bother with my birthday...Right?"

Toshiro smiled "I am sure that he would love to attend, when is it?" Toshiro asked

"It's in three days, you really think he would come?!" She said while getting excited

Toshiro felt horrible, he didn't know it would be so soon "... The Hokage will be on a very important mission, he won't return for a few weeks, sorry, I didn't know it was only in a few days" Toshiro said feeling horrible

"What? Where is he going?" She asked

"Sorry, I can't say" Toshiro answered

"WHAT? I am part of team Naruto, our primary mission is his safety, as the Hokage's personal bodyguards I have a right to know, and I demand to know!" Yuki said, already forgetting that she was talking to an ANBU Captain

Toshiro let out a large sigh, why did he have to keep bumping into demanding women? First Hiyori, now Yuki, and he knew that Sakura was another one, why him? "Look. If you want answers, you will have to speak with Lady Sakura, I am not authorized to talk about the mission" He told her

Yuki turned around and walked over to the door and began knocking, she was determined to find out what was going on. Sakura answered "Hey Yuki" She said with a bright smile, she was in a very good mood since Naruto had woken up

"Lady Sakura, I want to know what's going on, where is Hokage Sama going, why has team Naruto not been informed, and why is it such a big secret?!"

Sakura was surprised at the questions, then she saw Toshiro behind her, and somehow she began to figure out what was going on. He just shrugged "Well come in I guess, Naruto is up, you can speak with him if you wish, he is in the kitchen" She said as she allowed them to enter

"Naruto is awake? How is he?" Toshiro asked as he walked in behind Yuki who continued to walk towards the kitchen

"He is good, he is currently eating, so first Hiyori, now Yuki? How did you get into the ANBU again?" She said teasingly

"Sorry... It's just she was standing in front of the house with a letter, I asked about it and she said it was her birthday in a few days, I kind of said he wouldn't be available, and well..."

"Yeah, I can guess the rest" she said with a smile

Naruto was eating his Ramen happily, Sakura knew how to make it just the way he liked it. Yuki suddenly entered the room with a look of determination on her face "Sensei! What's going on? Why are you going on some secret mission, and why have we not been informed of it, are we not your team? Are we not your bodyguards? Do you think that we would not be able to protect you? Please Hokage Sama, why have we been left out!?" She pleaded

Naruto was shocked and surprised "What are you talking about?" He asked her

"Captain Hitsugaya said you would be leaving on a mission that would last a few weeks and that he was not allowed to tell us why or where, are we not trustworthy Sensei? You told us that we were your personal bodyguards. Have we somehow lost your trust in our ability to protect you?"

Naruto laid down his chopsticks "Of course not Yuki, I have the utmost confidence in my team. It's just I have been sleeping for the past few days, I am not really up to speed on everything yet, but I will tell you what I know so far. Konohamaru already knows most of it, but I don't want to repeat myself, so I want you to go get the rest of the team for a meeting. In the meantime, I will get the latest news on what's been going on while I was sleeping from Sakura and Toshiro"

"Yes Sensei!" Yuki said without hesitating, she ran out the door passing Toshiro and Sakura on the way, forgetting all about the reason that she had actually went to see Naruto, she had dropped the letter to the ground, Sakura picked it up, and it had Naruto's name on the envelope

"Sakura Chan...Toshiro, can I speak with you two…Like Now?" They heard Naruto from the kitchen

End Chapter 7

Well its almost time for the big trip to the night country :) How will it go? smoothly? will they get found out? Will they even return? And who will complete the crew? Find out the answer to some of those questions in the next chapter :P