Chapter 25

Hidden Grass Village

Kyoudai walked by and hugged each of her new friends one by one. They had stayed for a few days and were now setting off. Kyoudai spent each of those days with them and was close with them all now. She was sad to see them all go. She was sure she'd see them all again at some point in her life. The only question was whether or not it would be as allies or enemies.

"Bye Kyoudai! I'll miss you." Sakura hugged the girl tightly and Kyoudai stepped to hug Neji.

"Have a good trip back home. I'll miss you all." Kyoudai said. "I'm sorry Hijiri disappeared, he must have had some sort of a mission."

"Tell him I'll miss him." Ino said.

"I will don't worry. I'm sure he'll miss you guys too."

Kyoudai went and hugged them all again and they turned to leave. She watched as they walked off into the distance and the village gates closed. She was sad to see them leave. The last few days had been so much fun. She only wished Hijiri had joined them. She missed her childhood friend. She hadn't seen him since he went to Koumei's office to speak with the Orochi.

"That was a very heartfelt goodbye."

Kyoudai jumped slightly at her sudden visitor. It was Hijiri in his regular attire. He had jumped down beside her from a rooftop.

"You were watching? You know, you could have come to say goodbye as well."

"Actually I couldn't. There was a reason that I had stayed away from them during their stay." Hijiri mumbled.

"What was it? Did it have something to do with the Orochi?"

"Yea actually. After talking with him he finally told me, that the blonde one was the container for the Kyuubi."

"Ino?"

"No the guy."

"Naruto?!" Kyoudai gasped. "He's a Jinchuuriki to?" She was fairly surprised by this. Naruto didn't share any of Hijiri's characteristics. His face didn't change like Hijiri's did.

"Yeah, after talking with Koumei we decided that I shouldn't go near him. I can suppress the Orochi, but we don't know whether or not Naruto can do the same. So as a precaution I stayed my distance from him. We didn't want a demon running around the village."

"Why couldn't you go near him though? Do the demons escape if their close to one another?" She asked.

"No, it's just that the Kyuubi and Orochi are basically mortal enemies, and being around one another pisses them off. Causing them to attempt to break free. Like I said, we didn't want Naruto to lose control and turn into the demon."

"What about you? Couldn't you turn into the demon to?

"No, I have more control than that." Hijiri replied.

"Really? Than why does your face always change, I never saw Naruto's change once in any way."

"Well I can't speak for Naruto because I don't really know how he and his demon interact. But the Orochi's chakra is directly linked to my emotions. So whenever I feel strong emotions at any time, my face changes slightly." Hijiri said. "The only way I can stop it is by cutting off my emotions. I have to be a stone to prevent the change from happening."

"Oh, I see. I always thought that when you were pissed or something, you lost a little control and his chakra came out."

"No it's just natural. It doesn't have anything to do with my control over Hachimata."

Kyoudai had to think for a second to realize what he meant. She forgot that the Orochi's name was Hachimata. She always referred to it as 'the demon' or 'the Orochi'. Every now and again Hijiri would refer to it by its actual name. They continued to walk for a while until they reached Hijiri's house. They went inside and Kyoudai flopped onto the couch.

Her stomach growled and she realized that she hadn't had any breakfast. She went to Hijiri's kitchen but was stopped.

"You sit, I'll make breakfast." He said.

"C'mon, I'm getting the hang of it. My cooking is getting better." She whined.

"I'm sure it is, but I'll cook for now. You sit."

Kyoudai grumbled and took a seat back on his couch. It wasn't long before Hijiri had finished cooking and brought her a plate of breakfast. He sat on the couch next to her and undid his bandages to eat.

Kyoudai looked at his face for a moment. She had seen his face many times before; she was one of the few who had actually seen his face. One of the few who had seen his face when it changed.

"You know, it's kind of odd. You're good looking and all, but how would Ino know that?" Kyoudai asked and took a bite of her food.

"No idea, maybe my eyes are overly sexy or something." He joked.

Kyoudai laughed and thought about it, he did have nice eyes. Nice, not sexy though. She wondered what classified as sexy eyes. After a few moments of thinking, she thought of what Hijiri's eyes looked like when they changed. Not fully slit, but when he was at the right amount of irritation, and his eyes went purple. She had to admit, they were somewhat sexy, in an exotic way.

"It's a shame that you couldn't get to know them all better. They're really fun people."

"Yea I guess. I had fun the one day I spent with them. I wouldn't mind getting to know them a little better." Hijiri said. "But like I said, we couldn't risk Naruto losing it."

"Couldn't you take him? You're a Jinchuuriki to." Kyoudai asked.

"Don't know, I try to never use the demon's chakra, I prefer to win battles with my own skill. I have no doubt that I could beat that kid, but if we went full demon I don't know. Kyuubi is stronger than Hachimata. And I wouldn't want to go full demon anyhow. The Orochi is pure evil."

"Pure evil?" She asked.

"Oh yea, I forgot to mention that. When I spoke with him to find out why he was so agitated, he told me the history about the Bijuu. About how each known by what their power represents. And how his power represents pure evil apparently."

Kyoudai frowned at this news. "Doesn't that worry you a little?" She asked. "Considering that his chakra is directly linked to your emotions.

"Not really, I always felt that when I used his chakra, my thoughts became a little more sinister, but I know him."

"What do you mean by that?" Kyoudai finished her food and grabbed Hijiri's empty plate and put them in the sink. She came back to hear what he had to say.

"Well, Hachimata and I are close so to speak. We talk a lot. Mostly in the middle of fights. And whenever I'm bored he and I will have a conversation. So I know him on a bit of a personal note. And one thing I know is that he wants out. He wants to be free."

"He and I talk and are friendly to one another; we joke and make fun of each other, like friends basically. But regardless of this particular 'friendship' that we have, I know for a fact, that if he had the chance, he would corrupt my mind to free himself, he would have no problem in stabbing me in the back. But at the same time, he knows I know this.

"In a way, he and I are friends, but we're enemies, because he is a prisoner and I am his jailor. It's unspoken but we both know that we are enemies, regardless of our friendship."

"I know he wants out, and he knows that I'll never let him free, so instead of fighting over it, we became friends, yet still underneath, we're enemies."

Kyoudai nodded, understanding what he meant. After that little speech he gave, she felt she fully understood the relationship between Hijiri, therefore knowing more about Hijiri himself. She felt like they grew a little closer to one another. Like their friendship grew stronger.

Naruto ran along with his friends. Once Team Gai and Shikamaru had regained their strength, they set off towards Konoha. He would miss Kyoudai, she was a nice girl, but he was sure he would see her again. Ino was fairly sad that that Hijiri guy wasn't there to say goodbye. From what he heard about the guy, he was fun and had the hots for Kurenai. He didn't blame him; Kurenai-sensei was pretty hot.

It would be a while before they reached Konoha, and Naruto had already planned what he would do when he got home. He would have a large bowl of ramen, and go home and rest. He was sure everyone else was planning to do the same. Granny-Tsunade would most likely give them some fair time off after such a large mission. But one it was over, it was on to Chuunin-rank missions. They were successful in the mission, and would be promoted to Chuunin when they reached Konoha.

He thought about the mission. How they decimated Iwa's factories, how some of them didn't make it out alive, how fuzzy-brows was on the verge of being a cripple. And how he made a deal with a demon to save his friend. He didn't like the idea of letting the demon have control when he a need for spilling blood. Naruto didn't like the idea at all.

He couldn't go back on his word, Kyuubi had saved Lee. Maybe he could find a way to re-negotiate. It was a priority that he speak with Kakashi-sensei about the deal he made. He needed to learn how to properly control the demon. That way when he did allow it to rampage around, that he doesn't hurt the wrong people. That he didn't kill the innocent or Naruto's friends. He couldn't live with himself if he hurt one of them.

Even after he allowed the Kyuubi out in Iwa, he felt dirty. He felt like he was still covered in their blood. It was too much for him at the moment. He needed to get everything straight. He needed everything to be under his control. He didn't want to be like Gaara was.

He wondered if all Jinchuuriki were going through the same things he went through. The isolation and torment as a child. The way people looked at him as a monster. He knew Gaara went through it. And he knew that he could have been exactly like Gaara had been, had he not made friends.

But even now, he had friends and people that he loved, and who loved him back. But, what if he still became a monster. If he let the Kyuubi go on his sprees, would those people still love him? Or would they see him as a demon. He knew, he couldn't allow that to happen. He would think of something.

"Naruto?" Naruto snapped out of his mindset and looked to his left. It was Sakura.

"You look troubled, is there something wrong?" She asked.

"No, no, I was just thinking about something. I'm fine Sakura-chan." He smiled at her and she smiled back.

Hidden Mist Village

Suine and her team were sitting and resting at Wakarie and Kyoudai's house. The second part of the exams had finished and the Kazekage had given them a day to rest before the third and final exam, a one-on-one tournament. After their match, the killing had pretty much stopped. A Genin from one of the Iwa teams died. Now there were six teams left. Thirteen had gone into the second exam. Six made it through. Since it was an odd number, the judges had to decide who deserved to continue on. Normally, those who won their matches would automatically advance to the third exam.

Out of the six teams that made it through, her team was the only one from Kiri. There were two from Kumo; Kyou Matsuri and Team Nii. One from Oto; Team Yakushi. And two from Iwa.

Only two of those teams were full. Suine's and Team Nii, The single member teams were Kyou Matsuri and an Iwa Genin. The rest were two member teams. Overall, there were twelve Genin who made it to the final exam. They had watched every single match and they felt that their promotion to Chuunin was nearly a sure thing.

Out of the rest of the competitors, the only ones who stood out and seemed dangerous were Kyou Matsuri and the female member from Team Yakushi. The Iwa teams were average. While Team Nii had excellent teamwork, they didn't seem to shine as individuals. But Suine couldn't write them off as average just yet. Considering her own team fought similarly, with great teamwork, they were most likely though of in the same way she had just judged Team Nii.

But she knew they were strong as individuals. Wakarie and Koyuki were both exceptional ninja, Suine herself was considered the strongest member of the team. But those were different circumstances. Her base abilities were less than theirs, she was technically stronger because she had a power up.

"Do you think we'll end up fighting each other?" Wakarie asked.

"Probably not, we know each others skills; they probably want us to fight someone who we know little to nothing about." Suine replied. "You guys have your battle strategies ready?"

"Not really, I'm just going to wing it." Wakarie answered.

"Pretty shitty plan." Suine said.

"Well, with a war starting, we're not going to know when we're going to fight. So we'll probably going to have to wing it often. I might as well get practice winging it now."

"That makes sense, I was actually planning similar, but I was going to open with a Genjutsu, then wing it. What about you Suine?" Koyuki asked.

"Well, I'm planning on fighting defensively until I know their fighting style. Then go on the offensive. If I get into trouble then I'll use some of our Jutsu."

"Are you sure it's smart going all demon like in front of so many people?" Koyuki asked, sounding a little worried. "Wouldn't it increase the assassination attempts?"

"Probably, but most of Water Country have bounties on my head. It's not like it's a secret. It's common knowledge that I'm a Jinchuuriki."

"That doesn't mean you should advertise it." A voice came from the door. It was Tsumaeko-sensei.

"You may be used to the assassination attempts, but you've been lucky so far. They've been weak ninja and disgruntled villagers. And anytime it's been a strong opponent. Mizura or I have been there to interfere. One of these days you'll encounter a strong opponent without one of us to help."

"I've already thought of that. Why do you think I've embraced this demon like I have? It has a lot to offer me and I can gain a lot of strength with him." Suine said. And it was true. She and the Sanbi were a force to be reckoned with. She expected that it wouldn't be long before she could transform into the demon and retain one-hundred percent control. She even used some of the demon's own Jutsu, and had worked with him to create new Jutsu.

"That may be. Just remember to be careful, try not to make it too obvious." Tsumaeko said.

"Hey sensei. How did u get that cut there?" Wakarie asked. He pointed to a small cut on her arm.

"Oh this, some of the other Jounin-sensei were a little pissed off about the first exam. And some of them challenged me and the other swordsmen to a battle."

"How did that turn out?" Koyuki asked.

"They're dead now. Simple as that. However, it's going to cause a little bit more trouble for us."

"How so?"

"Considering Shisou killed so many Genin, and then we killed some of the Jounin, the other villages will be rather angry with Kiri. They won't declare war with us considering the war we're nearly in. But it makes for a rather bad relationship between us and our allies; it could cause some issues later on."

"Then why did you guys do it?" Suine asked.

"Shisou was in charge of the first exam. I told him it wouldn't bode well with the other villages but the Mizukage gave him full control. As for the Jounin, they attacked us, so we killed them. It doesn't matter though, if problems arise later on. Kiri can handle it." Tsumaeko motioned for her students to get up.

"Since the third exam is tomorrow, I'd like to quickly teach you three a Jutsu. It can come in handy if you fall into a pinch tomorrow.

Suine and her teammates followed their sensei. There was never anything wrong with a new Jutsu. Suine doubted she needed it; she had the Sanbi with her. But, like she said, there was nothing wrong with a new Jutsu.

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