Chapter Thirty-six

"Great work everyone." Kushina said after the ninja who had been in Land of Snow returned to Shobikou. "So now we have a new hiding spot for the jinchuuriki, some armor we can reverse engineer, and a new watch post for Namikaze's activities?"

Kuramamaru nodded. "Yep, though they want us to end the war quickly so a new daimyo can be put on the throne. Koyuki still prefers being an actress. I can't really blame her for not wanting to be a leader. After what happened to her father I'd be surprised if she didn't have a bad impression of the role."

Inoichi shrugged. "Heh, she's missing nothing by not being an actress for now. I heard they're talking about making a movie based on Icha Icha and thought about putting her in as the lead actress. Can't do that to a daimyo now can they? Would look really bad on her part."

Kushina looked both confused and annoyed, then sighed. "Why would you hear about that Inoichi? Do you like Jiraiya's porn?"

Inoichi quickly shook his head. "No, it's not that. The director of the movie merely mentioned it as a possibility. Though I was curious why they would make that into a movie. I needed to make sure they weren't connected to Konoha after all."

Kushina nodded slowly wondering if the man is trying to save himself. "Alright, so are they?"

Inoichi shook his head again. "No, the excuse I got was the fact that Jiraiya's dead with no clear heir to the copyright so for now they wouldn't have to pay for any movie rights."

The Uzumaki woman accepted this. "Alright, so no real problem there. Overall, this was a success. And honestly, I'm thinking this means we should start getting more active on our end." She pumped her fist with vigor. "Time to start striking back. Deal a blow to Namikaze."

"Do you know where Namikaze's forces are residing?" Shikaku asked, wanting to make sure the Uzumaki matriarch wasn't going to jump the gun.

"No, but my sources have been narrowing down the possibilities. With Namikaze unwelcome in Land of Fire, and not having enough resources to risk fighting Iwa, Kumo, or Kiri, he's only got so many places to hide. Odds are he's in one of the minor nations located around Land of Fire. My sources have over the years confirmed he is not in any of the ones that possess a minor shinobi village."

"That's good. He could have integrated into one and used it to make up for his lose, making him a bigger threat." Chouza noted.

Shikaku furrowed his brow and put his hand on his chin. "Which begs the question of why he hasn't done that. It's not like he couldn't charm a place like Taki or Hoshi into welcoming him in with open arms."

"Maybe he did try and he just wasn't charming enough." Kuramamaru quipped.

"Maybe, but I think it's more likely that he simply hasn't. Almost as if he's certain he doesn't need another village to help him recover."

"Well he is convinced Konoha can win a world war on its own. He must have something to back up that arrogance." Chouza added.

"Actually I think that's it." Hinata jumped in. "He wants Konoha to win this war. If he took over another village like Taki, then technically it would be Taki that was winning the war. Sure he'd still be leading it, but I think he would be shallow enough to care about that factor. To him, winning the war he started with another army would not make him look like the glorious victor he sees himself as."

"Makes sense. Egotistical people like Namikaze usually prefer to lose by themselves rather than win and have to share the credit. By ensuring that Konoha and only Konoha gets to be the winning side he can still claim sole victory." Kushina agreed. "I'll get in touch with my sources, see where they're checking next. If they can find Namikaze's hiding place, I'll tell them what they need to look for in it."

"Like what?" Kuramamaru asked.

"Any hints or leads regarding how his mass retreat works, so he can't use it against us. Also any possible secret weapons he may have. He's got to have at least one, even if it's just more hiraishin kunai."

"Kushina, I hesitate to bring this up again, but could it not be beneficial to have our own forces learn the Hiraishin ourselves?" Inoichi asked.

After Kushina had raided Namikaze's house before Konoha was destroyed, she had immediately destroyed the kunai and anything written about it he did have. At the time a few ninja had contested this, claiming the jutsu could be of use, but the redhead woman had adamantly refused.

"No, for the same reasons I gave last time this came up Inoichi. While Namikaze wants everyone to believe his favorite jutsu is unbeatable, he better than anyone else understands the limits of it. He will be expecting us to use it in our inevitable battle, and be prepared to fight against it. By lacking the jutsu, we will have a sort of advantage against him. And yes I admit on a personal level I simply refuse to have any of us use that man's jutsus ourselves. I want them to die with him."

"Fine, I can accept that. I just don't want my wife and daughter to die just because you ignored a means to win this." Inoichi stated. He still believed that such a jutsu could turn the tide of the war around for them, but he wasn't going to make demands of Kushina to make it happen.

"Noted."

"Hey Mom?" Kuramamaru started. "Shouldn't we check out Suna? As far as we know, they're still allies to Konoha and could be offering Namikaze support one way or another."

Kushina thought about it. "Hmmm... yeah, you're right. We might as well confirm which side they're still on. With everything that has happened, hopefully they'll be open to hearing our side."

"We can go check it out." Hinata offered.

"No, you two just did something already. Let's ask Gaara and his siblings if they're willing to infiltrate their old home. If you two need to be busy, then go be normal teenagers for a bit or see if you can find anything about Akatsuki."

Kuramamaru smirked and put a hand on his chin, the grin on his face saying it all. "Hmm... search for people trying to kill me, or find out how many licks it takes to get to the center of Hinata-chan. Choices."

Hinata blushed and playfully swatted her boyfriend while being unable to resist a small grin of her own. "Don't say things like that in front of your mother!"

"You didn't say no." He pointed out with a wide grin.

"Alright you two, get your minds out of the gutter." Kushina told them.

"Or at least wait until we're not around to get into the gutter." Chouza added.

Kuramamaru and Hinata laughed then ran off together. Kushina shook her head but smiled. "Kids."

"We were kids once. We all did things." Chouza added with a chuckle that everyone joined in.

"Faster Sasuke! Naruto could outrun the Anbu for hours, you want everyone to know you're slower than him?"

Sasuke snarled as best he could while trying to catch his breath. In the short time since Namikaze had gotten pissed off at the two of them Kakashi had been running him ragged, and right now that was very literal. The cycloptic jounin was having him run laps around the entire island all week, telling him to always beat his previous record. And while Wave was a small nation, even ninja couldn't spend an entire week performing a marathon. Not to say Gai and Lee hadn't tried. How they could still run while asleep Kakashi didn't know and he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

There was more to Kakashi's regime of terror of course. Physical exercises, genjutsu resistance, weapon accuracy, but so far no new jutsu. Yet Sasuke could not complain. Mostly because doing it so soon would only ruin him completely in Namikaze's eyes, prove that he wasn't the elite he said he was, but also because the last Uchiha knew he had to wait. Kakashi couldn't procrastinate forever, and if he was going to try, then all Sasuke had to do was wait for a moment when Kakashi was more tired than him.

This was not that moment however.

"Looks like we have a visitor." Kakashi remarked, looking towards the forest. "Why don't you handle this one on your own Sasuke? That is, if you can handle it." He then walked away.

Sasuke mentally groaned and reach for a kunai, only to see Sakura walk into view. "What do you want? How did you even find me?"

"Well for the past few days you've stopped here for a break several times. All I had to do was wait." she answered, coming closer. Sasuke put away his kunai but still looked unwelcoming. "Kakashi's been a real asshole to you lately hasn't he?"

"Tell me something I don't know." He snarled at her while rubbing his sore legs.

"Okay, I think I know how you can destroy him."

Naturally Sasuke looked skeptical at Sakura. "I'm supposed to believe you of all people know how to kill him?"

"Hear me out, what do you have to lose?" She asked, and he did not object. "The thing is Kakashi resents you, he's resented you ever since the Yondaime came back. He wanted to be the Yondaime's heir, and he hates you because that's what you are. His son, his heir. But he can't kill you without making Yondaime-sama an enemy too. So he's going to sabotage your training so someone else will kill you for him."

"You're just saying what I already know. How stupid do you think I am Sakura?" Sasuke asked, annoyed at her.

Sakura held up her index finger and smiled. "I wasn't done yet Sasuke-kun. Kakashi wants you out of the picture so he can steal what is rightfully yours. And he's plotting against you to make it happen. So the best way to truly hurt him is make sure he can never succeed. Never succeed." She repeating the last part for greater emphasis.

"You think I couldn't figure it out?!" Sasuke almost yelled in frustration.

Sakura sighed. "Fine, I'll just get right to the point Sasuke-kun. You want to hurt Kakashi in a way that really hurts him? To hurt him that would make him utterly miserable. Have a child."

Sasuke could only look confused at that. "How the hell would that hurt him?" He asked, sounding like she had completely lost her mind.

"Simple, right now you are the Yondaime's only real heir. If anything happens to you, and Kakashi can't be held responsible, then he has a shot at taking your place and getting everything the Yondaime owns someday. But if you have an heir of your own, Kakashi's plans to replace you are meaningless. You stop him dead in his tracks, ensuring he will never get to be the Yondaime heir."

"And what's to stop him from just killing the kid too?" Sasuke challenged. "I mean he won't have any problem killing me. What about the kid as well?"

"How can he get away with it? Maybe he could get away with blaming your death on Itachi, but if your child were to die, Yondaime-sama would have no one to blame but Kakashi. Who else would have a motive? Get it? Your child is essentially untouchable. If anything happens to it, Kakashi will not live to gain anything. Even if he's not the guilty one."

"Well good for the kid, how does that help me? What good does any of this do me?"

Sakura leaned against a tree and smiled. "How do you think Kakashi's going to take knowing that what he wants the absolute most is forever out of his reach? He's not going to remain very professional is he? Even hearing about this is going to drive him nuts. He'll do something really stupid, which you'll know to be prepared for. This will be your chance to kill him and you will be able to claim he was a threat to you and an innocent child so no one will be mad at you. Meaning you get to kill him with no repercussion whatsoever."

"Hmm..." Sasuke thought about it, admitting that the idea was not completely without merit. It would stick it to Kakashi but also his mother might be happy.

"Besides, I know another way it will hurt him." The pinkette continued with a smile on her face. "I bet Kakashi's still a virgin. Let's face it, has he ever actually been with a woman that you know of? Ever seen him with one? Mention one? He seems to like his porno books a little too much, which honestly doesn't make him appealing to women so I doubt he ever gets a date. How much would his ego be bruised if the boy he was trying to kill got laid before he could?"

Sasuke smirked at the idea of Kakashi being in such anguish. The potential look of embarrassment would be sweet to savor.

Sakura moved away from the tree. "My door's open tonight if you decide to go for it Sasuke-kun." She then walked away in a sensual matter, though he wasn't looking.

"Well Hinata-chan, since our last date in the human realm went off tracks, where would you like to go this time?"

She put her hand on her chin. "Hmm... part of me wants to say hi to Neji and see if Hanabi's finally willing to listen, but you're right, our last date did turn into a mission and I still want to end it properly. So they can wait. Do you have anywhere in mind?"

Kuramamaru shrugged. "No idea."

An idea came to Hinata. "Ooh, what about Wave? It's been a few years so the place has got to be doing better by now. And I think it's a good time of year for us to go swimming, just the two of us for once."

Kuramamaru grinned thinking about that. "Does this mean I'll get to see you in a bikini?" He asked because whenever they went swimming or trained with water in Shobikou with others around she had always worn a one-piece.

The white-eyed girl coyly grinned back and wiggled her eyebrows. "Maybe if you're a good boy."

He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck. "And if I'm a bad little kit?"

"Then maybe something even more revealing." She teased, enjoying the embrace and their casual flirting. It helped her feel so mature and close to him compared to how shy she used to be.

"Then what are we waiting for?"

"Ah, nostalgic, isn't it?"

In the early hours of the night, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro were brought by the foxes to the outside of Suna. The foxes didn't bring them directly inside the village, claiming the risk of being noticed was too high. So the trio would have to find their own way inside.

"Yeah, it's been a while." Temari agreed. "So how do we get in? The village thinks we're dead, doesn't like Gaara, and if Konoha's got anyone here they're not going to greet us warmly."

"We either try it the direct way, or we go in from above." Gaara suggested.

"From above? The village would react with extreme prejudice if we did that." Temari objected.

"Hold on sis, maybe that's exactly what we want." Kankuro countered, receiving a skeptical look from the blonde fan user. "We make them think they're under attack. How can that not draw out Konoha's forces out if they're here?"

"Yeah that would work, but if Konoha's not here then we risk turning Suna against us." Temari pointed out.

"We're not here to recruit Suna. We're here to find out if the enemy already has." Gaara reminded them. "Let the Uzumaki make the effort to recruit Suna if they want. We're here to see if it's already too late."

Right away, Gaara created a platform of levitating sand under them, lifting them into the air. The sand platform silently floated over the walls surrounding Suna, only being noticed by the guards in the area that caught sight of it. Naturally the guards tried to retaliate with some wind jutsu, but it wasn't effective against the compact sand.

Gaara took them over the village and slowly hovered over it like a UFO. Odds are if jutsu weren't so common in this world then people would be claiming this really was an alien invasion. He removed a small portion of the platform and made a cannonball out of sand, then fired it at the Kazekage tower, hitting it with enough force to leave a crater in the walls.

"Gaara, what are you doing?" Kankuro asked as alarms started blaring.

"Provoking a response."

Anbu gathered from all posts and began trying to attack the flying clump of sand. Temari provided some defense with her fan while Gaara pulled up sand from the ground and rooftops below. Thanks to Kushina fixing his shabby seal and taking the time to learn the difference between Shukaku and his mother, Gaara's control over sand had considerably improved. With what he gathered, he fired it back like a barrage of sand ball bearings.

Kankuro released both his Crow and Black Ant puppets to fend off the Anbu. "So far I just see Suna nin, nobody that looks different. Wouldn't Konoha nin stand out?"

"Don't be so sure." Gaara remarked, keeping up the attack while moving the platform away. It just wasn't wise to stay in one place at the moment.

While fighting, Gaara noticed a lot of genin age kids were there alongside the Anbu, trying to fight but not doing such a good job. One of them, a girl who had to be a year or two younger than Gaara himself, lost her balance and fell off a building. Acting on reflex, the raccoon-eyed sand wielder reached out and caught her with some sand, bringing her up to them.

"You saved me?" She asked.

"You saved someone?" Temari added, surprised Gaara would make the effort. Not to say he was still heartless, but this was not expected behavior.

"We need information." Gaara spoke to the frightened girl as they got closer to the Kazekage tower, where atop they could see a man in a cloak stand as if waiting for them. The siblings tensed, waiting to see who this was, since it did look like Namikaze. Around him formed a few fireballs that shot their way, though Gaara shielded them all with some sand that turned to glass upon impact.

"That looked like Scorch Release." Kankuro noted. "So the new Kazekage isn't the Yondaime Hokage."

"That's Nishiryu Gozen, the Godaime Kazekage and not a good man to fight. He won't stop until you're all cremated." The young girl warned, trying to hide behind Gaara's protective shields.

"I don't know about you boys, but I think we've seen enough." Temari claimed.

Gaara shifted the sand to protect them from more fireballs. "Very well, let's leave."

"But we haven't confirmed anything." Kankuro pointed out as Gaara took them away from the tower, prompting the kazekage to try and follow.

"We've got a captive who can inform us." Gaara replied.

"Please, don't hurt me." She pleaded.

"You will be safe. But for now, remain quiet."

The trio of siblings and their hostage went back out into the desert, landing and finding some foxes that returned them to their safe zone.

Kuramamaru and Hinata appeared on the shore of the mainland, not too far from the bridge but not close enough that anyone using it would see them. They walked down the empty bridge, ignoring the plaque with its name on it, eventually coming to the other side which had two surprising guards that stopped them.

"Names and reason for coming to Wave Country?" Izumo demanded to know while Kotetsu held a spear at his side.

"We're Kurama and Hinako, we visited this country a few years ago and thought we'd do it again now that Gato is gone." Kuramamaru greeted, using fake names. Neither he or Hinata recognized the chuunin, but they didn't want to be identified in a country where the daimyo was sure to have a grudge against them.

"Enjoy your visit, and let any of the ninja know if you need something done." Kotetsu replied.

Kuramamaru and Hinata were quite surprised by that. "There are ninja here? That's new."

"Yeah, it's a recent addition, so don't be afraid to ask for help." Izumo added.

"Thanks, we'll keep that in mind." Kuramamaru said as they moved past the guards, making sure to look casual. First chance they got though, they hid behind a tree and applied kitsune genjutsu to themselves to be unnoticed.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" The foxboy asked.

Hinata nodded. "Yes, and now that we're here we have to check this out."

"How did those guards not notice we have henges on?" Kuramamaru added.

"They must not be good sensors. Or maybe our henges are just better than the kind they're used to experiencing."

Kuramamaru let out a sigh and shook his head. "Guess we just can't date in this world without this war getting in the way can we Hinata-chan?"

She smiled and kissed him. "Just more reason to end it quickly."

The two went back to walking, their genjutsu making them primarily unnoticed as long as no one was trying to pay attention to them. So to everyone else they were just standard background passerby, as invisible as anyone in your peripheral vision. But they still had to act casual, lest they draw direct attention to themselves and break the genjutsu.

Hinata of course activated her byakugan to observe the town, primarily the inhabitants. "Kuramamaru-kun, I'm afraid we're right. The Konoha nin are here. I'm seeing byakugans, Aburame, and many people with ninja levels of chakra." She whispered and deactivated her doujutsu, just to be sure no Hyuuga caught on to her.

"Damn, searching for our enemy's base and here we found it by complete accident." Kuramamaru quipped in a whisper too. "Just our luck we walked into it. We need to find somewhere private then go back home. Too risky to go swimming here."

Hinata nodded. "I hate how they ruined our fun. Let's give some jerks some payback while we can."

Kuramamaru grinned. "Hmm... I can think of someone worth doing something a little cruel to while we have the chance. Anyone you wanted to payback Hinata-chan?"

"Yes, one in particular but I know someone back in Shobikou who deserves to be a part of it. Let's find somewhere private first, then we can get started."

"Meet me back here when you're done."

Kurenai relaxed in her small apartment, looking out the window over the waves. Since coming to Wave, she had upped her training regiment to become a stronger jounin for the upcoming war. In the process she had essentially discarded Kiba and Shino to their respective clans all to focus on herself, but frankly both boys seemed okay with that. When not training, she worked at a local daycare watching over little kids. It helped her remember what she was fighting for, a world where kids could be kids without monsters running around free and unpunished.

Speaking of monsters, she eyed a fox pelt on the wall pinned there by kunai in what would have been vital areas. She smiled at the prospect of being able to do the same to the boy who all of Konoha hated, hopefully while Hinata watched. Let that be a sign of what happens when you give your affection away foolishly.

To her surprise, it started to feel hot inside her apartment, causing her to remove a layer of clothing. When that didn't help she went to a window, only to see the frame on fire, with the flames spreading over the wall. These weren't ordinary flames, they were bright blue ones, like the sky itself was the fire.

"What the hell?" She asked, having no clue how a fire could have started. Rather than waste time trying to put it out, she ran out the door hoping to alert someone. But when she got outside, she saw herself surrounded by darkness. "Okay, who's behind this?"

"Behind you." Two voices replied together.

Turning around, Kurenai saw two figures standing among the blue flames of her apartment, which were now primarily surrounding the two in a dreadful way. The two figures were young women, one with long black hair and the other with long chestnut hair, and their eyes identified them both to her.

"Hinata? Yakumo?"

"Hello Kurenai, miss us?"

The genjutsu mistress took up a defensive stance, but she was torn between drawing a weapon or not. After all, she knew these two girls, and that made her somewhat hesitant to initiate a battle. "What brings you here Hinata? And Yakumo? I thought you were killed by Kumo years ago."

Looking over the two, Kurenai noted how both girls had grown over the years. Hinata had developed a knockout figure and her clothes flattered her curves without actually showing anything off. Yakumo wasn't as well endowed by comparison, but her outfit made sure to show off some skin, such as her cleavage and thighs. It kind of reminded Kurenai of what Anko wore, except colored tan and blue, and judging by Yakumo's fine-toned legs, she hadn't been sitting around painting all these years.

"Nope, never dead. Hinata and the Uzumaki saved my life." Yakumo replied.

"The Uzumaki? You allied with them? They are the enemy. You don't know what you are doing siding with them."

"If I sided with you I'd be stuck caged in a house with seals preventing me from ever starting puberty, sensei." Yakumo stated with an unfriendly tone and look in her eyes.

"That was for your own good Yakumo." Kurenai defended, seeing no reason to feign ignorance of what she had done to the girl long ago. "Your power was declared too much of a risk to the village to let it grow in power. Sealing it away wasn't enough, we had to make sure you could never pass it on to another generation. If I hadn't tampered with your ability to grow and reproduce you would have been executed long ago to guarantee it died with you. What I did was the best for you. Any mother would tell you that."

"I doubt my clan were brought into consideration when you and the Sandaime decided that. After all, what right did you have to decide if our bloodline was worth passing down?" Yakumo pointed out, stepping closer to the genjutsu mistress. Kurenai couldn't help but take one step back, but she corrected herself right away.

"You were too much of a liability. Both of you and I stand by what I said, I did what any mother would do." Kurenai declared, eyeing Hinata while she said that.

"Easy to say when we're not your actual children." Hinata countered, hitting a sore spot between them all. "You claim you saw us both as the daughters you never had, yet some old man tells you we're expendable and you don't protest."

"Don't give me that. Every parent in Konoha had to see their children as expendable to some degree. If they didn't, there's no way they'd risk having their children become ninja in the first place."

Hinata flexed her claws but otherwise hid her kitsune features. "How many parents are happy to risk causing brain damage to their children just because they like a boy? How many mothers would prevent her daughter from having children?"

Kurenai glared defiantly but said nothing. She really wanted to attack, but with both girls effectively immune to genjutsu there was little she could do. Her only option was to wait until they made the first move then counterstrike with taijutsu. It shouldn't be too hard, she was a jounin and these girls never officially became genin after all. Sure Hinata had the juuken, but there's no way she could have improved it over the years without help from the Hyuuga. No, Kurenai was certain she could win, but only if these girls initiated the fight.

Yakumo frowned and brandished a kunai. "And are you aware that the Sandaime put another seal on me? One that would kill me if I ever came near the boy Hinata liked, killing him and me together?"

"If you're asking if I care, the answer is no. I loved the two of you like you were my own daughters. All I ever wanted was the best for you both, and yet you both betrayed me and Konoha. All I feel anymore for the two of you is resentment."

"You loved us?" Hinata asked, sounding like the notion was ludicrous. "You seriously expect us to believe that load of crap? You tried to give me brain damage and you tried to keep Yakumo in a cage."

"It was better than the alternative." Kurenai defended. "I made the decision that would be less cruel for the both of you. Both of you are too young to understand."

"What were you afraid of?" Yakumo asked. "Why do you need me to stay a kid and why did you need Hinata to hate one specific boy?"

"Nobody was supposed to like that boy. He's nothing but a tool crafted to be used in the war that will make Konoha great for all eternity. And even if he wasn't meant for that, he was rude, immature, loud, showboating and completely disrespectful."

"Yeah that kind of happens when a child is specifically abandoned and the population is encouraged to hate him." Hinata countered.

"Don't give me that, that boy would have been no different even if his parents had given a damn about him and the hokage wanted him to be treated like a human being." Kurenai argued.

"And what makes you so sure?"

"He's a boy, that's why I'm so sure. Every male is like that at every age. They are all rude, immature, disrespectful showoffs. Even the Yondaime and Sandaime. They never outgrow it, some just learn to hide it better."

"No Kurenai, the problem isn't men, the problem is you." Yakumo stated. "You're the one looking at men and expecting them to be just like women, completely ignoring how they were raised and what society expects out of them. You're the one who assumes women are better human beings by sheer default, making excuses for the times women make mistakes but slandering the male gender for every single one you can find out about. You're just as sexist as you think men are, and being a woman doesn't make it okay. No more than being dark-skinned makes it okay to be racist."

If the genjutsu mistress had less restraint she'd be doing a perfect imitation of Sakura right now. "Shut up! I was a good mentor to the both of you! I was a better mother than both of your real mothers! I knew what was best for the both of you! It's not my fault you're both dangerous and disobedient and let yourself be brainwashed by that Uzumaki trash!"

"Then what if Haruno Sakura had returned Naruto's affection all those years ago?" Hinata tested, using Kuramamaru's original name since it was pointless to use his real one here. "Despite her being one of those fangirls you debased so much? The kind you called having no business being a ninja and just looking for a prince charming? Would you have 'loved' and 'mentored' her too?"

Kurenai clenched a fist but said nothing.

"You don't love either one of us Kurenai." Hinata stated with a hard look in her eyes. "You were just punishing me for liking a boy you didn't like and didn't want anyone else to like. If I had hated Naruto like everyone else, you wouldn't have given a crap about me and instead focused on whoever did like him."

"And you were just using me to pretend to be a mother. To be the baby you never got to have." Yakumo added, then grabbed both of her breasts. "And you thought you couldn't do that anymore if I grew tits now did you? Were you afraid you'd feel old if I grew up? Or do you like puppies but not dogs?"

With Yakumo's hands full and therefore incapable of casting a genjutsu, Kurenai took the chance to throw multiple kunai at the two girls. The kunai went right through the two as if they were ghosts.

"How the hell am I already in a genjutsu?" Kurenai asked, starting to piece things together. "Hinata never learned and Yakumo needs a conduit."

"Information's outdated Kurenai. Did you forget the time I wrote on your body back when you had a team and Kiba didn't need stitches on his penis?" Hinata asked as the surroundings started to melt away into blackness.

When the genjutsu mistress could see again, she was bound to a tree with her arms and legs spread very similar to the time Kuramamaru and Hinata had ambushed her, though at least this time she still had her clothes on. She tried to struggle, but her body was quick to let her know that a good number of tenketsu had already been struck. Hinata and Yakumo stood before her, each with their arms crossed, and Hinata now showing her fox features.

"Not just a traitor, you're a monster." Kurenai rued to the former Hyuuga.

"At least when I say I love someone, I mean it."

Yakumo then pulled out an Anbu sword she had borrowed from Anko when Hinata came back to Shobikou to get back at their shared mentor. Wanting to end this, she jabbed the blade into Kurenai's stomach while covering the older woman's mouth with her free hand.

"Sorry to have to do this Kurenai, but this time humiliating you isn't going to be enough." Hinata whispered.

It took some time, maybe three or four minutes, but slowly Kurenai passed on as she bled internally and her stomach acids spilled into her body cavity. Hinata and Yakumo left her body where it was, to be found the next time Konoha nin did a patrol.

Sasuke knocked at a door, still somewhat surprised he was doing this.

Sakura answered, and she sure looked happy to see him. "I'm glad you came. I was worrying you wouldn't."

"I'm still not certain what you said earlier will work." Sasuke stated, going inside her small house like he didn't want to be seen. He wasn't sure who she lived with since her parents were left behind and frankly he didn't care, but he supposed any housemates were out for the night. "But my best idea for getting what I want isn't working and I can't think of a better one. Keep in mind I want more than just Kakashi humbled and killed. I want to make sure no one ever looks down on me again, not even my father. So if this gets in the way of that or doesn't get me the results you promised, you're on your own and I owe you nothing. Got it?"

Sakura smiled giddily and nodded, then led him into her bedroom.

Done for the night, Kakashi went back to his current apartment grumbling about having to deal with Sasuke so much. The irony that Sasuke was originally the only student he wanted to teach was not lost on him.

"Hello Kakashi." Kuramamaru greeted him inside the apartment.

"You?! How did you get in?!" Kakashi demanded to know, surprised by this visit.

"Oh I'm good at sneaking in and out of places. Didn't you figure that out back before Konoha was conquered?" He asked, taking out the white fang blade and holding it casually to keep the jounin's attention.

"My father's sword? How did you get that?"

"Oh, an ally took it when Orochimaru made his big show. But what do you care about this? You said Namikaze was the father you always wanted. Why would you give a damn about anything reminding you of your real father?"

"That's none of your business." Kakashi stated, rushing towards the whiskered redhead. He had no weapon or jutsu ready and he was tired from spending all day making Sasuke one step away from collapsing, but he figured a good solid strike should hurt the boy enough that he could render him helpless then bring him to Namikaze.

Too bad he forgot Kuramamaru was still holding the white fang sword. Putting chakra into it, Kuramamaru made it transform into what looked like a red fang instead of a white one and swung it in front of him. Kakashi got hit and some blood sprayed out of a cut that started at his left shoulder and ended at the bottom of his right ribs, though thanks to his vest it was only a flesh wound. Kakashi did still manage to get that hit in, but it was weaker than he intended so Kuramamaru could take it.

Kakashi was no stranger to taking hits so this wasn't going to stop him. He grabbed ahold of Kuramamaru's jacket then triggered a joint shunshin, intending to take the traitorous jinchuuriki directly to the Yondaime. But when the smoke cleared, he saw they were instead on the beach, alone.

"What the heck? This isn't where I was going."

"No, it's where I was going." Kuramamaru claimed, having taken over the shunshin since his chakra was stronger. At this range he couldn't swing the sword again and get much of a result, so he reaimed it and jabbed the tip into Kakashi's left foot, effectively severing each toe on said foot.

Kakashi suppressed a yell but pulled his foot away, able to do so, and cursing the fact that for some reason ninja liked to wear open toe footwear. Then all of a sudden, he felt every muscle in his body lock up as if he were having a full body charlie horse and collapsed to his side. The only muscles not frozen were the ones necessary to keep him alive, such as his heart and diaphragm.

"Uzumaki body paralysis fuinjutsu, another thing your precious sensei stole from us." Kuramamaru remarked, returning the sword to normal and sheathing it before kneeling down. "No Kakashi, I'm not going to kill you. I've got something more cruel in mind for the man who gave Namikaze the idea that orphans are more obedient than other children. Let's just say you and Sasuke are going to have more in common."

'Kami-sama help me.' Kakashi thought, feeling real fear for once. For a moment he thought he could see the ghostly figure of Sakumo behind the whiskered redhead, and in Kakashi's mind the deceased jounin was looking at him with disgust while patting Kuramamaru on the shoulder encouragingly.

Then things went black, and Kakashi could not open his mouth but he had to scream.