A/N

Hope you're still enjoying the story. Thank you for following, faving and/or reviewing. All of them are great motivators. I will apologize ahead of time in case there are any blatant grammatical or spelling errors, I have been awake for far too long.

Hinata's hands shook as she left the hospital for Hokage Tower. The results of her test had come as no surprise. Though physically she felt perfectly fine, actually better than perfectly fine, there had been other indications that something was going on with her body. Suspecting she was pregnant but being in no rush to get confirmation she had avoided going to the doctor for as long as she could but when the mission was assigned she knew she couldn't put off knowing the truth for any longer.

Sakura being on duty had come as a surprise and though she'd initially been concerned about Sakura being the one to discover her secret she'd quickly realized that she could use that to her advantage. Sakura obviously cared enough for her team-mate to want what was best for him so all Hinata had to do was convince Sakura that she needed the time to figure that out. She didn't think it would be that hard as it was actually the truth and she had been right. Sakura had showed a little discomfort at the idea of not filing an accurate report but Hinata's assurances that she would come clean as soon as the mission was over seemed to satisy the medic. Now all she had to do was get through her meeting with Tsunade. After that she would be off to Kumo for at least two months, time enough to put some uninterrupted thought into her long term plans.

She hadn't really needed any time to think about her immediate plans. Those answers had come to her quickly. She would keep the baby, their baby, and she would tell Naruto when she returned from her mission. She would assure him that he could be as much a part of the child's life as he wanted but he owed her nothing. Her heart was torn at the thought of bearing his child while he moved on with someone else but given that she had taken advantage of his lonely state that night she would not expect anymore from him. That refusal to insist on anything more would likely be a huge thorn in the sides of the elders. Unmarried and pregnant was not a state that Hyuga's found themselves in and though she was no longer the heir to the clan she was expected to hold herself to a high standard. She fully expected there would be consequences for her disregard of that standard. Just in case those consequences involved being removed from the main house and sent to the branch house she needed to ensure that her child was not sealed even if that meant her denouncing her relationship with the Hyuga clan and fighting the age old rule that surround the Caged Bird Seal. It had always been their intent, Neji, hers and Naruto even, to get rid of the seal that bound most of the clan to a deceptive type of slavery. One that hid behind the guise of protecting the clans' secrets but was actually used as a means of discipline. With a child of her own on the way she needed to make that plan a priority. Unfortunately Neji was no longer around to help and Naruto was gone for an undisclosed amount of time so when she had been offered the mission she had thought of B.

After the war, the two remaining jinchuruki had remained close friends and as a result of her own friendship with Naruto she had become, if not close at least familiar with the bulky blonde. She was hoping he would be able to point her in the direction of a fuinjutsu specialist, someone who could in the short term, develop a counter seal that would block the more painful uses of the Caged Bird until she could find a long term solution. She would not allow her child to battle the same demons that had haunted Neji in his early years. That was her promise of a lifetime!

Shizune watched Hinata as she entered the office. She hadn't seen the young Hyuga in months and was surprised at how much she appeared to have changed. Despite outgrowing her almost crippling shyness she had continued to carry herself as if always seeking the shadows. Her pale skin had seemed to support this, never seeming to carry colour unless she was unfortunate enough to have been surprised by Naruto. The woman who entered the room stood taller, her pale cheeks were rosy and she wore a smile. It was the smile that Shizune found to be perhaps the biggest change in the young woman. She wanted to say that what she saw was happiness but that didn't seem to be quite right...content perhaps...not a common emotion in the tumultuous world of the ninja. Shizune wondered, not for the first time, how Naruto had never noticed this young woman.

The young woman in question acknowledged the Hokage's assistance as she dropped her pack, huffing slightly as she did so.

"Hyuga-sama."

Hinata glanced up again, dimples appearing in her cheeks as the smile grew. "Hinata is fine, Shizune-san."

Shizune responded with a slight smile of her own. "I shall let Tsunade know that you are here."

Tsunade motioned for the two men to close the door. Her nose twitched slightly at the smell that was seemed to follow the team's only non-human member. Kiba grinned apologetically. "Sorry Lady Hokage. Akamaru had a little bit of a run in with one of Shino's new strains. Apparently they have an interesting defence tactic."

She accepted his apology with a nod. "Thanks for coming in early. I wanted to go over some details before Hinata gets here."

A frown appeared above Shino's signature dark glasses. "I take it there are details she will not be privy to?"

She nodded again and then there was a short silence before she took a deep breath. "As you're aware you are to escort and guard Hinata while she is in Kumo. That's what Hinata has been told. That is not actually the mission. The teaching assignment does not actually exist. It is just a reason to remove Hinata from the village for a period for her safety." The hokage sat down, contemplating a drink before deciding against one, at least for now. "There is a strong possibility that Hyuga elders are concerned that Hinata may, in the near future, be capable of making changes to the status quo in the Hyuga clan. We have information leading us to believe that they may be attempting an assassination in the near future..."

"Assholes!" Kiba growled. "They truly cannot let that girl be."

She shot him a look that shut him up immediately though she secretly agreed with the comment. "In addition we have discovered that the previous two attempts at kidnapping Hinata by Kumo were most definitely arranged by the someone here in Konoha. I've spoken with the Raikage and after some research into his father's records he was able to tell me that they were contacted by someone in Konoha in regards to a deal that would give Kumo the Byakugan they sought. Money changed hands but either the names of the contact were removed or they had never been known."

"Why the choice to send Hinata to Kumo then?" Shino sounded a little confused.

The blonde leaned back and looked intently at the two young men. "You're not actually."

Both men's eyebrows lifted.

"You will be met at the eastern border of Lightning by B in seven days time. Yes I know it's longer than you would normally take but B can't be there until then and I don't want to risk you being met by anyone other than him. So once you get there I need you to send a hawk. I will send one back with anything new we have and you can just tell Hinata that there's been a delay and you are to camp out until he arrives."

"And you trust the same group that kidnapped a kid?" Kiba's concern was evident.

"Yes I do. So should you. Do you forget how close Naruto is to B? I can't see A risking the bond between the two villages. However," she leaned forward, her golden-brown eyes intense. "No one other than B. If anyone else shows up I want the three of you back here immediately. Got it?

Both men nodded as a knock was heard and the hokage's dark haired assistant appeared in the now open doorway.

"Lady Tsunade, Hinata's here." She turned, ushering the dark haired woman into the room and pulling the door shut as she left.

The hokage smiled pleasantly at the final member of the old team eight as she went to hug both of her old friends. They had remained close after the breakup of their team but since Kiba and Shino had opted to remain in active duty it was uncommon to catch either of them in the village for any length of time. The last time Hinata had seen the boys had been the night she had seen Naruto. Tsunade gave them a few minutes to say hello then addressed Hinata giving her the details of the mission she believed she was going on. Once she had gone over the details she stood and directed the men to meet Hinata at the front gate in an hour. To Hinata she said simply, "Please wait here. I have someone who needs to speak with you urgently before you leave." Hinata nodded. While she waited she tried to come up with a list of people who might be interested in seeing her off but was unable to think of anyone other than perhaps one wacky, blond best friend. Of course, there was no possible way it could be him...was there? Hinata's insides churned as she contemplated the possibility that she would have to face Naruto before her trip. She immediately went into panic mode while her brain seemed unable to produce anything other than a silent voice screaming, "OHMIGOD!OHMIGOD!OHMIGOD!"

It came as a great surprise when she felt a hand on her shoulder interrupted her raging thoughts. An even bigger surprise came as she saw who it was and she heard those unfamiliar words of endearment... "Good morning Hina-chan."