Itachi frowned as he read over the scroll in his hand. It had been a week since his mission to guard the Kazekage and a week since he witnessed that intimate event between the Hyuga heiress and the Kazekage. Now he understood the reason for that scene. Glancing back at the scroll, he couldn't refuse it. It would reflect poorly on the Uchiha clan. Though honestly he didn't want to go, these kinds of events weren't interesting for him. Plus he would have to bring Sasuke. Hearing his son enter the house, Itachi called him into the living room.

"Sasuke. Pack you bags. We have been invited to the week long celebration of the Kazekage's marriage to his first wife."

Sasuke blinked. Ususally his dad asked about his shuriken training. This Kazekage person must be really important. Sasuke frowned slightly; he would miss a week at the academy. Although that meant a week away from all the annoying girls there too, maybe it wasn't so bad to go away for a week.

- - - - -

"Hinata-sama, will you go?" Neji asked with concern. He had been worried for his cousin. She had not been herself since a week ago when she saw Gaara. Now he understood why. He must have broken her heart. It angered Neji, though he knew there was nothing anyone could have done about it. It was a political marriage, and Neji was quite certain it hurt Gaara as much as it hurt Hinata.

Sniffling, Hinata responded, "Yes, Neji-nisan. I'm the heiress; it wouldn't look good if I didn't go." Sighing, Hinata tried to conceal her emotions as she put on a weak smile. "Besides, I'm sure the celebration will be wonderful. And I haven't had a vacation in awhile." Wiping her eyes, she shyly looked at her cousin, "Ano, Neji-nisan…you'll come with me right?"

With soft eyes, Neji smiled. "Of course, Hinata-sama, I'm your bodyguard, I go wherever you do." Turning to leave, Neji paused. "We leave tomorrow with the others who have been invited."

"Others?" Hinata blinked.

"Hai, Hinata-sama. The Uchiha clan has been invited, as well as The Hokage, though I assume Naruto will be her representative since it is difficult for Tsunade to leave."

- - - - -

Before dawn a group gathered at the gates of Konoha.

Yawning, Naruto exclaimed "Man, why do we have to leave so early!"

Smiling, Hinata replied, "It's a long trip to Suna, Naruto-kun. We don't want to be late."

"Well then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Naruto said as he climbed into the carriage that would take them to Suna.

"Ano, we still have to wait for Uchiha-san." Hinata replied.

"We're here. Let's go." Itachi suddenly said as he appeared carrying his sleeping son.

"Ah, good morning Itachi-san." Hinata bowed to the older man.

"Hyuga-sama, Hyuga-san, Uzamaki-san." Itachi nodded to his traveling companions.

"Shall we go Hinata-sama?" Neji asked as he offered his hand to help Hinata into the carriage. Glancing back at Konoha, Hinata nodded as she took Neji's hand.

Inside the carriage it was a bit cramped, it was made to sit four, but was accommodating five. Sasuke, although small, still took up some room.

Naruto looked at Sasuke, slightly puzzled. It was unusual for children to go to this kind of event. Noticing Naruto's confusion, Itachi spoke up. "It will be good for Sasuke to experience other cultures."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at that, but said nothing.

After several minutes of silence in the carriage, Naruto decided to initate some conversation, since he never did like silence, unlike the rest of the carriage occupants.

"So, uh, anyone know who the bride is?" Naruto asked, since it was the first thing that popped into his head. However, a glare from Neji and a glance at Hinata told Naruto that was not the best question to ask. Itachi closed his eyes, hoping that if the blond thought he was asleep then he wouldn't bother him with questions.

"Sorry, Hinata." Naruto apologized as he looked at his feet.

"It's alright Naruto-kun." she offered a weak smile. "I'm sure it's a Suna citizen. The first wife usually is."

"First wife?" Naruto looked up confused.

"Ah, yes. Suna permits polygamy. The first wife is usually from Suna so the heirs will belong to Suna. Subsequent wives generally come from other countries for politics, though any children go back to that country." Hinata explained.

"Ohhh…" Naruto exclaimed, as he understood the situation. He never did understand why Hinata and Gaara couldn't be together. But this made sense. The Hyuga would not permit Hinata's husband to have multiple wives, but to marry Gaara, she would not only be one of his many wives, but she wouldn't even be his first wife. 'Stupid traditions.' Naruto thought. Glancing at Itachi, and satisfied that he seemed asleep, Naruto turned to his dear friend. "Hey Hinata-chan...Are you okay with all this?"

Neji gave a warning frown to Naruto not wanting his cousin to get upset. Pacifying Neji with a pat on the shoulder, Hinata gave a wistful sigh. "I will be Naruto-kun. We both knew we couldn't be together. Though he will always be dear to me, as you and Neji are."

With a mischievous grin Naruto asked, "Hey Hinata-chan, remember how you and Gaara met?"

An embarrassed blush streaked across her face as she lightly scolded, "Naruto-kun!"

"Hehe, I couldn't believe that you did that to him! I mean quiet, shy Hinata-chan beating the crap outta Gaara was hilarious!"

Itach, though seemingly asleep, was listening intently to the conversation. His ear piqued at mention of the heiress attacking the Kazekage. 'Maybe she is stronger then she seems.' She had been able to temporarily disable him, though at the time Itachi assumed it was due to his pain and slower reflexes.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata exclaimed. It was so embarrassing to remember that incident. "I was just having a bad day!"

"No kidding! All Gaara did was buy the last chocolate chip cookie from the bakery and you went berserk on him! I mean you closed all his chakra points in his arms…just for a cookie!" Naruto laughed. "Yanno, you never did tell me why you were in such a bad mood to begin with."

Hinata flushed a full crimson at that. It was a personal feminine nature why she just had to have chocolate that day, and there happened to be none in the compound, though after that incident Neji made sure to keep the compound well stocked. Of course she didn't tell anyone why. Neji was insightful enough to know, but Naruto would never understand. Sensing his cousin's embarrassment, Neji warned, "Naruto, if you continue teasing my cousin I will practice all my new techniques on you."

Naruto grimaced. Neji could be one sick guy. Remembering the last time he trained with Neji, Naruto shuddered. He wasn't able to walk for a week since Neji beat him up so much. All because Naruto said Neji would look pretty dressed as a girl.

Itachi was intrigued. The Hyuga were strong. And he was surprised to learn the heiress had managed to land a hit on the Kazekage, since he had a wall of sand to protect him. He wondered who would be stronger, a Hyuga or Uchiha.

A small whimper caught the attention of all the adults in the carriage. Sasuke was still asleep, though he seemed to be having another nightmare.

Itachi frowned. Sasuke had nightmares almost every night, but he never could remember what they were about when he woke up. Itachi didn't like his son being so weak minded to be plagued by nightmares.

Hinata frowned. She had been so caught up in her personal life that she had neglected to check in on Sasuke and Itachi to see if they were doing alright. She was worried about Sasuke. She had hoped his nightmares would stop, but it seemed that she was wrong. Moving closer to the sleeping boy, Hinata tried to soothe him.

The three men looked at the two with great interest. Naruto hated to see his best friend in pain, but having never been comforted as a child he didn't know what to do. Plus he was still uneasy being around the child that was his best friend.

Neji was secretly relieved that Sasuke was with them. The child would distract Hinata from her heartbreak of Gaara's marriage. Though he still held his reservations for the Uchihas, fearing they would regain their memories and harm Hinata, Neji made sure to always be close to her.

Itachi watched carefully, not wanting his son to be hurt by the woman. Although Hinata was doing a good job at soothing the boy, Itachi still distrusted her. True she looked motherly, but it had to be fake. He was sure it was due to her orders to care for them; he couldn't believe that she would willingly act like this normally. However, looking at her care for his son caused a slight stirring in his gut. He was still frustrated he could not remember Sasuke's mother and his lover, but something told him, she would have been similar to Hinata.

Sasuke began to stir. It felt warm and comforting. He remembered waking up like this once. Blinking his eyes, he saw a blurry image of a person. She smelled like flowers and her voice was soft. Moving closer to her, he whispered, "Okaasan…"