*~~*

It was past midnight when Naruto rose from his bed.

Sasuke had arrived hours before, and was situated in a room down the hallway. However, Naruto was not awake because he was worried about his houseguests.

Right now, he had a mission to complete.

The mission was the one left over from earlier that day, and he was surprised that everyone seemed to have forgotten about it.

As he rose, Naruto quietly packed several kunai and bombs, before sliding on his sandals and walking out his bedroom door. Silent as the grave, the blonde traipsed down the hallway, tiptoed down the stairs, and eased out the front door.

With speed and agility, Naruto made his way over to Destruction territory.

*~~*

Naruto fervently wished that Destruction would not renew the war that he had ended several years prior. More so, he wished he knew why they were renewing it, and who had decided to do so.

However, none of Naruto's wishes were going to come true unless he did something about them. That was how Naruto's wishes always worked.

Unlike during the previous missions that day, Naruto carried next to nothing. He had only a few kunai in his holster, and a few smoke and fire bombs next to his kunai. He wore his basic uniform, and no disguise. He wasn't even carrying a backpack this time.

Crouching in the shadows of an alleyway, Naruto pulled his bandana over his eyes and face, so that the triangle tip of the cloth pointed down toward his chin, and the folded layers at the top of the cloth covered his eyes entirely.

Calm, Naruto breathed deeply and focused his senses. It had been a long time since he had fought this way. He knew it was more efficient than the way he fought in Konoha, but he didn't want to show people his full potential just yet; they tended to get nervous and think it was purely demon influence.

Standing, Naruto raced along the dark alleys, deeply aware of any life forms from the smallest bug to the largest ninja. With great caution, he avoided the crowded alleys and streets as he ran towards his goal.

All the while, however, he felt as though he were flying. This was why he loved Quadgram; he loved his job here. Here, he didn't have to kill, and he didn't have to continually prove himself.

Here, he could be himself; here, he was allowed to be the best.

After all, wasn't he one of the few ever sent on night missions in Destruction?

Destruction was dangerous at any time of day, but they were more so at night, when their uniforms blended with the darkness and the alleyways.

But with the way Naruto ran and fought, Destruction's advantage disappeared.

And tonight, he was going to make a major strike on their army.

*~~*

When Sasuke woke the next morning, he could feel a small itch in back of his mind, as though he knew something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

In the hallway, he met a blushing, shy Hinata, who retreated back into her room when she saw the Uchiha.

After all, it wasn't her intention for Sasuke to see her in her pajamas.

Not that Naruto didn't see her in them. It was just different; that's all.

But as Hinata retreated into her room to dress properly, Sasuke headed downstairs to the kitchen, where Naruto had assured him there would be non-Ramen food.

At the open archway to the kitchen, Sasuke froze.

Suddenly, he understood what the itch meant.

Naruto was sitting idly in the window, eating an apple.

His hair was much wilder than before, with a flaring, spiky quality that made it seem feral, and his eyes seemed more slitted than ever before. His whisker marks, which had always seemed thin and almost unnoticeable to Sasuke, were wide and deep.

Suddenly, everything about Naruto screamed danger and death and untamed and cryptic.

And Sasuke wasn't sure what to do.

*~~*

"You gonna stand there all day, or you gonna eat? We've got things to do," Naruto grinned at the bemused Uchiha.

Sasuke clenched his hands gently and swallowed. Every bite of his apple and every grin of his mouth revealed Naruto's sharp, white teeth, which seemed to have elongated slightly overnight. His nails, Sasuke noticed, had gotten slightly longer, too.

"Fox-kun, um, are we going to train today?" Hinata asked hopefully as she entered the kitchen, stepping around the frozen Uchiha and reaching for an apple from the fruit bowl at the center of the counter.

"Yep," Naruto grinned, again revealing his teeth. Sasuke blinked slowly, hoping the fierce vision before him would fade or disappear.

"Okay," Hinata nodded, smiling brightly at Naruto, despite his odd new appearance.

"Meet me at sensei's, okay guys?" Naruto told them as the tossed the apple core into the trash and leaned backwards out the window. "I'm gonna head to Sparrow's, and then I'll be right there."

Hinata nodded as she began to eat her own apple. As Naruto left, Sasuke felt the tension ease from his body.

"Hinata," Sasuke said forcefully, shaking the girl and forgetting the rules, "tell me you just saw that."

"Wha- what do you mean, Sa-Wolf-kun?" Hinata trembled as the apple fell from her fingertips. Too hard. Sasuke was shaking her too hard.

"Naruto!" Sasuke shook her for emphasis. "Did you see Naruto? It's the demon; it's got him, and it's gonna tear him apart!" Sasuke continued to shake her, until he felt a sharp pain on the side of his face. Stunned, he looked down at the flushing Hyuuga, her hand still raised in the air.

"Don't say that!" Hinata rasped quietly, caught between manners, her shy demeanor, and a sudden burst of anger. "And don't say his name," she added, her voice losing its hostility.

Suddenly, she was extremely embarrassed. She had just smacked Sasuke Uchiha, and now she was reminding him of the rules! And why had she smacked the prodigy? Because he'd been rambling and his eyes had lost focus and he wouldn't stop shaking her!

And because he insulted Naruto.

Quietly, Hinata lowered her hand and Sasuke released her and backed up. The carefully balanced, non-existent relationship between the two had just exploded, and neither was sure what to do.

Hinata wanted to cry, because suddenly she just felt so overwhelmed by the whole situation, and she couldn't imagine running to Naruto or Sakura or Kiba or Kurenai.

Sasuke was dazed from the slap. No one had ever slapped him before.

"Why doesn't it bother you?" Sasuke asked, his quiet voice sounded harsh and troubled. Hinata looked up, surprised by his voice, but the Uchiha was staring at the kitchen tile with an acidic glare. "Don't you know about it? About that damn fox?" Sasuke trailed off, unsure how to finish.

"I know," she whispered, looking away. Ashamed of the truth, she stared at the dislodged apple where it rested on the floor. "Neji-niisan told me, after he figured it out," Hinata's hand rose to her mouth, an action sparked by her memory, and she choked out the words.

"He came to tell me," she whispered, barely audible, "because he thought I should know. He said Na - Fox-kun had the demon in him. I didn't believe him." Hinata bit her lip to hold back the tears as she recalled the memory.

Neji had stormed into her room and shut it quickly behind him. She had been meditating in the center of the floor, and she rose to greet him. Swiftly he cut her off, informing her coldly about what he had discovered. That day, too, her hand had risen unbidden to her mouth to hold back the grief and denial inside her. Then, with an unexpected twist, Neji had hugged her until she had cried herself out.

"Then why aren't you worried?" Sasuke hissed, clenching and unclenching his hands. "You just saw that! It isn't right!"

"I have faith in him," she whispered, tears leaking from her eyes. She heard Sasuke grunt in disgust, turn, and leave. He hates me, she thought.

Overpowered with emotion, Hinata forced herself to walk the tall flight of stairs. She still had to meet Naruto for training.

*~~*

A/N

Onoes, Naruto was up to no good!