"I heard the bridge builder made it back." Gato called out from the doorway, about fifteen rough looking men surrounding him with an assortment of weapons.

Zabuza was in his bed, a sheet pulled up to his neck. Haku was sitting next to him on a small stool, seemingly uninterested with the small mob behind him.

"I won't have my men attack you because you did try to fulfill your obligations to me. Although," Gato strode up next to Zabuza, a new cane in hand. "It doesn't seem like you came out on the winning side of it."

Mocking chuckles echoed around the room.

Haku and Zabuza remained silent, ignoring him.

"Where is Lyseria?" Gato asked calmly, feeling in control of the situation around these two ninja.

They didn't respond.

"I need to have a word with her. She has something of mine that is important."

Silence.

"Was she working with you two from the beginning? Planning on taking my money to help you fulfill your 'dream'?"

Nothing.

"Answer me!" Gato reached for Zabuza, but Haku gripped the little man's arm tightly.

"Keep your filthy hands off of Zabuza-sama!"

"My arm!" Gato wailed, clutching his forearm.

Haku threw the little man towards his mob, bowling him into a few bodies.

There was a collective inhale, ready to charge Haku and Zabuza, but it was cut short when Haku called out, "Stop!" …

…from in the middle of the mob, holding three sebons to Gato's eye.

No one saw him clear the distance.

Everyone backed away from him, creating a small pocket.

Gato was trembling, his eye turned towards the razor sharp projectiles just an inch away from him.

"This is my only warning. If ANYONE makes a move towards Zabuza, I will first kill him, then I will kill you and the person next to you."

The men were looking at each other, pulling one another to get behind the door way as to prevent themselves for being targeted.

"Haku," Zabuza called out thickly from his bed.

"Hai, Zabuza-sama."

"You're doing it wrong," Zabuza turned his head towards his apprentice. "Give Gato to me and just kill the rest."

The silence that filled the air could was stifling.

"Run!" The mob started to turn away, leaving their boss at his enemy's mercy.

Haku stabbed Gato in the thigh without a second thought, hurling him towards Zabuza.

"Aaaah!"

Zabuza threw the sheet away from himself, catching Gato lazily.

The sound of feet and bodies echoed as they stumbled over each other echoed down the hallway.

Haku, hands flurrying through the proper hand signs, calls out, "Makyō Hyōshō!"(Demon Ice Mirrors)

A plane of ice as tall and as wide as Haku formed in the middle of the room. When he melded into it, the hall where the men were trying to find their way out became lined with his secret jutsu, each side paired with the picture of Haku with sebons in his hands.

There were mixed requests for pity, mercy, and help…but those words were soon drowned out by Haku's polite, soft spoken words.

"This is for the will of Zabuza-sama."

Gato covered his ears when he heard the men dying in the hall way. There were crashes and stumbling thud's that carried into Zabuza's room. Sharp hissing sebons flew through the air, finding it's mark in flesh, screams and dying wails that seem to last forever.

Forever, it would seem, lasted about three minutes or so.

Haku returned to the ice mirror that was in Zabuza's room, spotless of any blood. He looked mildly winded, but over all well.

"It is done, Zabuza-sama." Haku bowed respectfully.

"Hmm," He had not let the billionaire go.

Gato could not have been in a worse predicament.

"I believe it's about time we put an end to our business relationship, Gato." Zabuza said without any real emotion.

"W-wait," he began.

"Don't you get tired of coming here and loosing?" Zabuza brought the little man closer to him.

Haku padded quietly next to Zabuza, waiting patiently for his next order.

"D-don't-," Gato began, but grunted in pain when Zabuza twisted his hand, pulling the small man's head to the side.

"Don't what? Kill you? You do know where you are, right?" Zabuza chuckled at this, letting Gato go with a flick of his wrist. Gato scrambled as best he could to the other side of the wall. "You do know that if you tease a predator, it will come after you. It is even more of a possibility if you threaten its habitat. Now, why should I let you live?"

Gato opened his mouth, but was cut off by the Demon of the Bloody Mist, "Ah, yes…you'll give me money, right?"

The shipping tycoon could only make a sound, but nothing else.

"You wanted to know where Lyseria was?" Zabuza gestured to Haku and the boy pulled back a door where the blonde was sitting quietly over a desk, scratching a pen over a few documents that she was shuffling through. Earmuffs adorned her head, which turned when Haku opened the slide.

She seemed to be ignorant of the last few minutes and at ease. She removed her earmuffs and set them aside to speak to him. "I'm just checking a few things over, Haku. Everything is in place."

He smiled at her. "I'm glad, Lyseria-san. It is time."

"Hmm?" She stood up and walked out of the little room, only to flinch when she saw Gato right at her feet.

She almost dropped her stacks of paper.

"You…you were in this all along?" Gato accused, pointing at her.

Haku was there at her side, holding her arm to steady her.

"It's okay, Lyseria-san. Just do as we explained and it will be over with. He can't hurt you."

She licked her lips nervously, but nodded. "Okay…okay."

She shuffled the papers in her hand, tapping them neatly till they conformed to a somewhat organized manner.

"You know what these are, right Mr Gato?"

Gato snatched them from her, muttering distasteful remarks about women in general.

"You out of your god damned mind, woman! I'm not signing-" Gato's rant was cut short when he felt a bloody sebon pressed against his throat.

Haku gripped it taunt against his skin, "I do not appreciate your tone or language towards Lyseria-san."

The needle was so tight against his skin, it drew a drop a blood when he swallowed.

"This power of attorney will allow all funds, accounts, legal entities and projects that are named with in to be transferred to computer servers under my name to become my legal property."

Gato's mouth worked, but was beyond enraged.

"That's one third of my whole net worth!"

"Tell me, Gato-san," Zabuza voiced dully, "What is the value of your life?"

Gato had no answer, but looked at the documents and the pen that his secretary, no ex secretary now held in her hands. He looked stubbornly away.

"I see." Zabuza exhaled, but lifted his hand to get Haku's attention. "You need to show our guest the exit."

Haku turned a questioning glance to Zabuza.

Even Gato was a little surprised by this. Crawling to a spot near Zabuza, he picked up his cane, and eventually get himself to a somewhat standing position.

"I-I'll just go then." Gato carefully inched his way, backwards, towards the open door of Zabuza's room.

No one made a move to stop him.

When he reached the hall, he all but choked on what he saw.

From his end of the hall all the way to the exit of where he came in was littered with bodies in different broken, pierced and very dead positions.

With his wounded leg, he stumbled over one, then landed face first into another, even crawled over a bloody mass of several that were laying on top of each other. From chest to pants, he was covered in the sticky residue of the dead's fluids…not all of it was blood either.

As soon as he was close enough to the door, the exit of his freedom, Haku was already outside with Lyseria, waiting for him.

The images from the last few minutes seemed like a hauntingly possible outcome for him.

"Gato-san, Zabuza told me that if you are not done signing these documents within the next minute, I am to start impaling you from your genitals to your legs."

The blood and other smells on him gave him no doubt that he was capable of doing just that.

"You can't-"

"Zabuza-sama had said to show you the exit, but he did not say anything about letting you leave without signing. The time starts from the moment I see you, counting now. 60, 59, 58, 57-"

"Damn it!" he snatched the thick stack of paper's and pen from Lyseria's hands and started scratching off his signature, flipping a page and then signing off another.

"42, 41, 40, 39-"

He was almost half way through, when he heard Lyseria call out "You need to initial here, here, and here."

"Shut up! I can't concentrate with him counting!"

He flipped the pages back when he heard "28, 27, 26-"

"Done," He handed the documents to Lyseria.

"17, 16, 15-"

She was turning the pages in her hands, scanning to make sure everything was in place.

"I'm done, stop counting!"

"We have to make sure you didn't forget anything, Mr Gato. He doesn't stop counting till I say so."

"8, 7, 6," In a blurr of movement, and without breaking his count, Haku swept the feet from under Gato's feet, pressed his knee across his thighs and a hand across the tycoon's neck.

"I signed everything, I swear!" He reached feebly for Haku's hand, his other hand covered his crotch protectively.

Haku raised the sebon high, eyes focused squarely on Gato's groin.

"3, 2, 1"

"No!"

Lyseria stopped Haku's with a touch on his shoulder, "It's all here, Haku."

"Do you wish to check it over again, Lyseria-san? Zabuza will not be happy if we miss this opportunity."

"It's alright. We're done."

Haku lowered the sliver of metal away from Gato, then offered his hand to help him up.

Gato accepted cautiously, still unable to believe what has happened.

"Gato-san, this is Zabuza's last request for me to tell you: You are to leave the Land of Waves and never come back, take any action against him, or anyone who works for him. I don't have to tell you what will happen if you do. You are alive now simply because you have been useful to him. You are no longer so."

Haku gestured to Lyseria and she pulled an envelope out of a folder she was holding. Offering it to Gato, he opened it warily.

"There is a map with a list of instructions you are to follow." Lyseria began, unfolding it in front of him. "You are to follow these directions till you reach the edge of Wave Country. I'll have transportation ready to send you back home once you arrive."

Gato frowned, "This will take me weeks to go this route!"

"Yes, it will, Mr Gato." Lyseria chimed professionally. "You know as well as I do that it will take time to enact all these documents, get them approved through your lawyers, accountants, project managers, and other affinities. Once it is in place, there will be no need to worry about any future involvement on your half legally."

"Zabuza has contacts all through out this Land and those around, Mr Gato. If you do not follow this trail exactly to the letter, you will be killed. Is that understood?" Haku intoned with his same calm demeanor.

Gato nodded, swallowing hard.

"I want to give you this, as a memory of this moment, Gato-san."

Haku pulled Gato's wrist, pushing the sticky and blood warm sebon into his hand. "I've killed your men with this, so I think you can understand a little more viscerally how I am not afraid to execute Zabuza's will. Remember that on your travels. I truly do hope we do not see each other again. I don't think you need to be reminded anymore of what you have heard, seen, or felt."

Gato nodded numbly...the numbers of his loss still trying to catch up to him.

"Oh, Mr Gato." Lyseria called out.

Gato turned his head in time to see her hand reach back.

Slap!

Gato held his cheek, a nice red hand print burning his cheek.

There was no need for him to say anything, it was well understood why that had happened.

Haku raised a curious eyebrow at her.

"We are done here." Haku called out, watching the short man limp away with one hand on his cane and another on his cheek.

Early morning the next day.

A knock at the door caught Tsunami's attention. "One moment! I'll be right there."

"I've got it." Sasuke called out.

He had not expected to see her again so soon when he opened the door.

"Just what do you think you're doing here?" He sniped off at Shade.

Calmly, she stood perfectly tall with her hands folded in front of her. She did not seem at all bothered by his attitude towards her. With a pleased exhale, she pulled her thick wavy purple hair over her shoulder. "Are you and your friends ready?"

Sasuke reached into his holster, gripping a kunai.

"Excellent, I see that you are." Shade turned on her heel, walking away with her arms crossed. Looking over her shoulder at him, she said, "Bring your friends. This make sure they are equally prepared."

Sasuke contemplated what she said for a moment, then called out, "Wait, Shade."

"Hmm?" She waited for him to catch up.

"Could you teach me that power?" His tone was conspiratorial, his eyes darting left and right, even behind him.

Shade squared her shoulders and gaze, giving him her full attention. "I am willing to teach all of your friends, you included, but at the price of you teaching me about Chakra."

"I could teach you," he gazed back, his voice rising just a little bit more with his mounting excitement. "But I want you to teach me and only me."

"Really?" Her lips turned up in amusement, but curiosity made her ask anyways. "So you want our lessons to be private and exclude your friends? Why would I agree to that?"

"Because I'm an Uchiha." He stated proudly.

She lifted the bandage on her face, revealing her right eye. "Is that supposed to mean something?"

He scowled, not at all pleased with the tone of her voice. "The Uchiha's are the greatest clan in Konoha, the village from where we all came from. We have a power that surpasses all the other clans."

This caught her attention. "Oh, that is interesting. So you have this power now?"

She didn't have to ask. The way he snapped of a "Tch," and looked away gave her all the answer she needed.

"I'm not interested." She turned away, lowering the bandage over her eyes again.

"You don't understand," he grabbed her shoulder, roughly turning her around. "I need more power!"

She tilted her head just enough to examine his hand gripping the fabric of her shoulder. "I can appreciate you enthusiasm, truly I can. However, when I offered Naruto the invitation to touch me anytime he wanted, this courtesy was not extended to you." Her voice was still polite, but in a way that belied a very scantly veiled threat.

"Dobe? Why would you want him? He was the dead last of our academy, even going as far as failing the final three times. You're not going to learn anything from him."

She frowned at this. "Did he? I had not expected someone who was so capable and daring to be inept. Maybe it is the school program in which you two studied."

"Hardly. I was the top of my class in most of our studies and ability. Sakura was the brightest and had the best control. The girl he is always talking to is a Hyuuga, a special clan, like mine, that has a very unique power that easily turned the battle you witnessed in our favor. Had it not been for her involvement, Naruto would not have shined as well as he did."

"I see," she pondered this, not at all content with what she was hearing.

Shade had felt a very strong gravitation to Naruto since the time he had touched her. When his fingers caused her that slight twist of pain, the way he threatened her with those cobalt blue eyes, and the low guttural growl he filled with a protectiveness and barely restraint rage that made her body all but sing.

She wanted more.

Shade was also a failure. As a succubus and as a young woman, she had failed herself with her lack of desire to seduce. For a succubus to not want to entice anyone, male or female, into unspoken forms of unbridled debauchery was the same as a fish wanting to learn how to walk instead of swim. They were just not built for that.

Naruto had sparked her desire to do so.

No one had ever made her want to do this.

Why, she asked herself. What is it in him that has me so interested? He's handsome, nice, funny...but finding those qualities are common among boys my age. Is it possible that I, as a failure, am also attracted to someone who is also a failure?

"And her attachment to him?" She inquired. "What is it those two have, exactly?"

Sasuke made an amused noise, "That is temporary, I assure you."

"Really?" She gently cupped his wrist on her shoulder, putting just enough pressure to take it off of her. "Now why would that be?"

"She's a Hyuuga," he said with just enough distaste as if that answered everything.

She said nothing, waiting for him to offer more.

"Tch, her clan thinks they're so powerful. They're all arrogant, stuck up, and extremely wealthy. They have this special fighting style that no one other then a Hyuuga is allowed to learn. Even the people they are allowed to see as friends are limited so as not to 'taint' their pure standing withing this village or that of anyone's opinion of them."

Sasuke put both of his hands in his pockets. "Once we had back home, I'm sure she'll be punished for even allowing him to be her friend, let alone receive him as affectionately as she has."

The sorceress didn't like the sound of this.

"So, you think her family will keep her from wanting to see him?"

Sasuke opened his mouth to answer, but closed it, as if he realized something.

"What?"

"I bet they've already done this."

"What do you mean?" She leaned closer, curious.

"She has always followed him, Shade." He was now giving her his full stare. "Hinata was always to shy to talk to him directly, but when he even came close to her she would freeze up and pass out. She couldn't even talk right. Every word would come out in a stammer and she'd start to fidget. The dobe used to think she was just weird, but she has always liked him. Hinata's infatuation from him is a borderline sickness. It very well could be that she has already been warned about being around him, but she persists so anyways."

Shade shifted her weight from one foot to the next, looking over his shoulder to the door where his team mates were probably still residing at the moment.

"That is interesting," She rubbed her hands together. "Thank you."

She turned away, her steps leading her around the small house to the pier.

"What about what we talked about?" he called after her.

"I'll consider it," She said over her shoulder, "Bring your friends and seek me out. Be prepared, Uchiha. I'll be waiting."

As her feet took her further and further away from him, she couldn't stop thinking over everything he told her.

So, the shy urchin's family is powerful and rigid. They are so much so that they would probably frown against her consorting with Naruto, even going as far as punishing her for being friendly. That is good to know. Still, Shade thought in retrospect, that is rather romantic. A clueless rogue drawing in the princess and she going against her family's customs to be with him. I have to give her credit, the girl may not show it, but she has a lot of heart. Pity.

Shade's slippered footsteps creaked weathered planks of wood as she neared the end of the pier. Three oddly shaped bundles waited for her.

Sasuke told everyone what had happened, minus his request for Shade to teach only him. Each gennin took in the other's stare as if to judge what outcome they may be facing.

They very well could be walking into another battle with an enemy that had powers beyond their understanding.

"Has Kakashi woken up yet?" Sakura asked nervously. "I have a feeling it would be safer to have him with us."

"He still can't move, Sakura." Sasuke scolded. "No, he hasn't woken up. I think we should go down there anyways."

Hinata was tapping her fingers, her gaze locked on the door that lead to their challenging opponent.

"Hinata-chan?" Naruto got her attention, earning a slight blush with the affectionate way he said 'chan'. "What do you think?"

"Ano...,"She looked everywhere about the room, then at her team mates, the door, then back at Naruto. "If she wanted to really harm us, I don't think she would have announced herself so openly. That...and, well, she wouldn't want to hurt Naruto-kun."

"She's not a ninja," Sakura pointed out. "She may not think like we do, but you did say she is dangerous. We all saw what kind of power she has."

"And that's not to say she has more power that we are not aware of."

"Hmm," Naruto grumbled, eyes closed, arms folded and agreed. "Let me go talk to her. I don't think she's going to hurt anyone."

"Naruto, you heard her last night!" Sakura reminded heatedly.

"Yes, I did," He began, looking at the table where they had all sat and exchanged unpleasant words. "But, wasn't she only speaking a truth we were all thinking? I mean, who here hasn't had more then that available to us at our home?"

No one had to answer that.

"She was speaking her mind and...well..." He scratched his head.

"Nani, Naruto-kun?"

"I was thinking...if..." He blushed slightly at this, "if I saw that my wife...and my child...had so little to eat...wouldn't I be just as upset? Wouldn't I ask myself the same questions and be just as angry at myself?"

Everyone seemed to be less confident that Shade was being belligerent last night, but just spear heading a blatant truth that everyone wanted to ignore or candy coat.

Hinata blushed with the thought of Naruto being so protective of a family. She knew he would be an excellent father and...husband...

"Hinata-chan, are you okay?" Naruto was right in front of her, eyes worried. "You're all red."

He put his hand on her burning forehead...this only made her blush deepen.

He really doesn't know what he's doing to me...yet...would he continue to touch me if he knew how sensitive I was to him...and, well...if I was braver...I'd kiss him right now...Should I?...I...want to. So very much. I still don't think...

"You really are beautiful when you blush, Hinata-chan."

"Arigat-Mph!" Hinata squeaked when he pulled her to him and...

Sakura seemed to choke on the air she was breathing.

...kissed her.

In front of everyone, without fear of reprisal, Uzumaki Naruto cupped Hinata by the back of her head, closed his eyes and pressed his lips softly against hers. It wasn't indecent or too intimate, but it definitely was slow, soft, and endearing enough to let everyone know what he thought of her.

Hinata looked like she could have melted right there.

Without ceremony, Naruto did what Hinata had never thought possible or even fantasied about: He claimed her in front of his friends.

"Naruto, don't..." Sakura wanted to scold him like she always did, but couldn't find the heart to do it.

When did those two get so close? At the pier? Did they share their first kiss under the stars, by the water, quietly sharing private moments like this when we weren't looking? That's so...romantic...so perfect. Who would have known Naruto was capable of being this...attractive?

Sakura's cheeked blushed a little as she saw her orange clad team mate and the drab coat wearing heiress lips part. They were holding each other close, embracing comfortably as if they'd been lovers for an eternity. Hinata looked as content and complete as if her world just came full circle.

She knew, didn't she? Sakura realized. Hinata has watched him for so long she knew that he had this in him. Even that girl, Shade, knows this...she seems perceptive enough to have figured this out already. If this is true from a girl who's clan specializes in being able to see and from a girl who can see even with bandages over her eyes...then why didn't I know this?

Sakura wondered if her and Sasuke-kun would ever be this close, this interested in each other. She was more then willing to put herself in his arms, in his touch like Hinata was with Naruto at the moment, but was Sasuke even built to hold a girl like that? Want a girl so freely like Naruto was with Hinata?

She looked over at Sasuke, who for some unknown reason seem to be showing a rare bit of emotion. He was smirking as if he knew something interesting, something of value. Of what, she wasn't sure. Still, it was a bit unsettling to watch.

She honestly didn't know.

"W-why did you...?" Hinata stuttered slightly, unsure if she wanted to shy away from Naruto or brave pushing herself closer to him.

"You looked like you needed it, Hinata-chan." He said comfortingly, warmly.

"I did. Arigato, Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered quietly into his ear, her face buried in the crook of his neck.

"Anytime, Hinata-chan." He said encouragingly, happily. Turning to everyone, he clenched his fist and raised it in a show of strength.

"Lets go, everyone."

Shade's robes and hair whipped about her with the ocean wind. She waited for them calmly, patiently at the end of the pier. Three small bags lumped off to the side of her.

Crossing her arms, she patiently watched them approach and stop about ten feet from her.

"I'm glad you came." She said clearly, above the gusting breeze.

Even though Hinata and Naruto came to the pier walking hand in hand, Naruto had taken a moment to see how clearly the fabric of her clothes pressed against the amazing outline of her body. From long shapely legs, curvy hips and bust, and even the cascading locks of purple hair that moved about her.

He may not have the feelings for her that he did for Hinata, but that didn't stop him from thinking she was probably the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen.

Naruto let go of Hinata's hand and approached her bravely.

"I don't want to fight you, Shade."

"Oh, you and I are going to put an end to something right now, Naruto." Shade uncrossed her arms, her voice tainted with a strong certainty. She was not compromising. "Are you prepared? All of you," She looked past him to make sure that she caught each and everyone one of his friends attention."

Sakura and Sasuke gripped kunai, feet wide and ready.

Hinata stood next to Naruto, "Please, w-we don't h-have to do this, Shade-chan."

"I can't turn back now, Hinata." Shade said with some regret. "I've put into motion something...well...lets just say it's too late."

She raised her hands, a flicker of energy glowing from her palms.

"Now, choose your weapon!"

The bags around her snapped open and everyone jumped back.

Naruto pulled Hinata behind him, his teeth clenched.

She angled herself to Shade's side, Byakugan active.

Hinata flinched, but not in fear or anger...but in...confusion?

A dark shape launched itself at Naruto, hitting him squarely in the chest.

"Dobe!"

"Naruto!"

Only Hinata was the only one who seemed to be giggling into her hand.

With scales, fins, and a gasping maw at his face, Naruto realized what had attacked him...sort of.

"Groooossss! Ewww! Get it off me! Get it off me!" The knuckle head wailed.

Hinata gripped the fish around the tail, all squeaks and giggles at Naruto's cringing behavior.

"I feel so...slimy. Ick!"

It was a huge fish roughly three quarters as long and half as thick as he was.

"Eh?" Sakura looked baffled.

"This is your weapon?" Sasuke also looked distrusting at the sorceress.

"Yes," Shade offered with a sly girlish chuckle. She examined her fingernails, looking pleased with herself. "Not all weapons need to include bloodshed...at least not each other's. We didn't have a decent meal last night, so I decided to do something about that. A weapon can be any tool that has a purpose of defeating your opponent, right? Well, I believe I came armed with the items necessary to offer a full stomach and show our hostess some gratitude for helping you all and your Master."

"But who is your opponent?" Sakura asked as she glanced in one of the bags, seeing another big fish squirming filled with water.

"All of you," She sauntered past them, hands on her hips.

Sakura felt ridiculously underdeveloped. "How old are you again?"

"I'm 14, why?" Shade glanced over her shoulder at Sakura.

Sakura looked away, mumbling, "Nevermind."

"Now, if we can hurry, I believe we can catch Lady Tsunami before she goes to the market, yes?" Shade offered amicably, waiting for everyone to agree.

With glances around, they decided to agree Shade was okay to trust and accept again.

"Mind helping me carry these in?" She walked right up to Naruto, her mis-matched eyes pleading, her voice small and girlish. "I'm a little tired from getting them."

"Uh..sure," he said.

Comically, he was helping Hinata put that 'big sucker', as he proudly named it, back into the bag. Mind you, this involved a lot of complaining, yelling, and over all grouching at the fish that did not want to go back in the bag. It fought flipper and fin against Naruto, and seemed to be winning.

It was only a matter of time before the fish was back in the sea.

With a quick jab of Hinata's finger to it's side, the fish became motionless. Naruto put the fish back in the bag and groaned thankfully.

"Wow...that's so cool, Hinata-chan." Naruto cheered.

Hinata just took in his praise demurely, shyly, nodding her thanks.

Shade still couldn't shake that she was doing something wrong when she saw how Hinata and Naruto acted around each other. They looked so comfortable together, so really, really at ease with the other's presence.

What am I doing wrong, she wondered.

Shade raised a hand over one of the bags, and it lifted off the ground about four inches or so. "Shall we?"

Sasuke and Naruto took a bag each and followed them both back into the house.

Naruto caught up to Shade, a huge smile on his face. "Thank you for doing this, Shade. They're all going to eat very well now because of you."

"You're welcome, Naruto." Shade voiced quietly, smiling warmly at him. "If you don't mind, I'd really like to talk to you alone. Do you think that's possible?"

Naruto shifted the bag over his shoulder, pondering why she would want to talk to him. "I don't see why not. But why me and why just the two of us?"

She bit her lip, obviously uncomfortable with the reasons. "It's okay, Naruto. You don't have to."

They walked a few more steps before he said, "I mean, I will, but it just sounds so weird that you want to just talk to me. Is it something personal? Will it upset everyone around us?"

Shade looked pointedly towards Hinata. She was pulled off to the side by Sakura and blushing furiously. Apparently Sakura was trying to get all the gossipy details about her and Naruto's kiss and when did the two start doing that.

Shade did not miss the part where Sakura had asked, "When did you and Naruto start kissing?"

If her eyes had not been bandaged over, she would have been glaring openly at Hinata.

"Yes. I think it very well could hurt a few people's feelings."

Naruto looked adamant about not wanting to talk about it then.

"But, I also think it would prepare you for something that, although unpleasant, may benefit everyone in the long run."

Naruto looked at her skeptically, blue eyes weighing his options with the sorceress.

"Let me think about it, okay?"

"As you wish, Naruto." Shade turned away, thinking already of how she was going to tell Naruto what she knew about him and the Hyuga heiress.

She really didn't want to hurt him or her, but if she was going to get him to even consider her, there was going to have to be some wedges in the atmosphere between those two...Unfortunately, the plan to do that was ridiculously easy with the information she knew.

She just needed to wait till they were alone.

Not all weapons have to include bloodshed, she had said before. This was also one of those moments where the tool was not a blade, but information and time....and she was well armed.