AN: Alright, here is the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it.
As for why I haven't been updating recently, I added a program to my computer to block certain websites that seem to pop up more often then not… and found out too late that fanfiction was blocked as well! AND I CAN'T REMOVE IT! I know a lot about computers, don't get me wrong. I can do a hundred things to disable a regular program. But this is special and different. I haven't had access for a long time and I had to write this and update this using an I-pod touch instead of my laptop. If you have any idea how long it takes to type on that thing, you will understand the two month wait.
So I am updating now, and hope to finish the story before the end of the school year.
Thanks for waiting.
Chapter 35: Loved Ones
Hinata awoke to find herself, first of all, alive. This surprised her more then anything else.
How did I survive? Who was that figure who took all eight of those monsters?
Hinata stared at the ceiling of the hospital room, wondering why her life had been spared, when she decided it was worth trying to get out of bed. Then it hit her.
She couldn't move her legs.
Or her arms.
Only her head.
But before she broke into a panic she turned her head to the side and found herself staring directly into the sleeping face of Naruto Uzumaki, the very same Naruto that, upon closer inspection, happened to have his legs tangled in hers and his arms wrapped tightly around her arms.
I don't know how, I don't understand it at all, but somehow he managed to save me again.
Hinata gave a small giggle when Naruto curled up closer to her. His face was only inches away from her own, and Hinata couldn't help but steal a light kiss, which caused her to revert to her old habit of blushing. As luck would have it, Naruto managed to wake up just before the kiss, providing him with one of the better wake up calls he had ever experienced.
"Hm… Hinata…"
"Naruto?" Hinata's blush deepened as she realized exactly what she had done.
"Wake me up like that all the time, ok?" Naruto opened his eyes and gave her a kiss on her nose, which only made her blush more.
"H…Hai. Demo…"
"What?" Naruto's face suddenly went from smiling to worried, but Hinata just smiled at him.
"Could you let me out? I need to go to the restroom."
Naruto looked confused for a second before realized exactly what she had said.
"Oh! Hai."
Naruto carefully disentangled his arms and legs from his fiancé with his own blush before getting out of the bed. Hinata couldn't help but give him another kiss, this time full on the mouth, before going the restroom. Naruto took a seat outside the door, not willing to leave Hinata but respecting her privacy. From the door he heard a shower turn on. He sat in peace for a few minutes, just relaxing in the silence. The shower shut off, followed by Hinata asking a question through the door.
"Naruto… how did you get here? I heard that you were unconscious in Suna still…"
"Ah… that. Well, I'm sure there were plenty of exaggerations about the battle…"
"No, no one was allowed to talk about it. It is a war secret at this time. I still have no idea what went on."
"Oh… well, to make it short… I kinda tried to take on Orochimaru by myself."
"Alright."
Naruto had certainly not expected an affirmation from Hinata. Anyone else would have hit him over the head and told him how dumb it had been. Hell, when Jiraiya arrived he was positive that that would be exactly what happened. But, then again, this was Hinata. She knew him better then anyone else already.
"Yeah… and he ran away when I tried my new jutsu."
"New jutsu?"
"Yeah, but it is a forbidden jutsu now, I guess. I didn't get Orochimaru, but I wiped out the entire army in one shot, and nearly myself. It was a stupid mistake, using that, because it almost killed me and three hundred others."
"Naruto…"
"I… I just really… really didn't want to use Hiraishin."
"I… I know, Naruto."
Naruto turned to see Hinata drying her hair with a towel. He just stared, wondering what great deeds he had done in previous lives that would cause Kami to give him a love such as Hinata. She was easily the most beautiful being he had ever seen, and if the almighty Kami had come down in the form of a woman, Naruto wouldn't have been able to say she was more beautiful then his Hinata. Her voice exuded warmth and comfort, her heart was as pure as freshly fallen snow, and her eyes…
Kami.
Her eyes stared into his soul and told him every time he looked into them that everything would be alright. They weren't impassive walls like Neji Hyuga's used to be, and they didn't even seem to have the terrorizing demeanor that Hiashi was sometimes capable of. They were like windows to his own soul, providing him with peace. She was a miracle.
"Naruto?"
Naruto shock himself out of his trance mentally, cursing himself for being caught staring. He managed to come out of his daze in time to realize exactly what she had said.
"Hinata, you know about the… side-effects of the Hiraishin?"
"Hai… Jiraiya felt I should know, because… because your father went through the same thing. Nightmares and horrible memories. And he told me how the Fourth got through it."
"Really?"
"Hai, it was… your okaa-san…"
"Kaa…-san…"
"She kept him going. And… and I decided after the invasion of Kiri, that… that I want to be that for you. I want… I'll always be here for you, Naruto. You don't need to be alone… and I won't let you be anymore. From now on I'll always be right here, beside you."
"Hinata…" Naruto got up and embraced Hinata. She dug her head into his shoulder and he pulled her closer to him. "Hinata, arigato…" Naruto kissed the young woman in his arms with as much passion as he had in him. Minutes passed before they broke apart.
"Well, I see you're both back to normal."
Naruto and Hinata, when months or years ago would have jumped apart at the sudden intrusion, only broke their kiss and slightly loosened their embrace. They both turned to see the Hokage standing in the doorway of the room with a smirk on her face.
"Hai, bachan."
"Good, you're awake, Naruto. Now I want an explanation from you."
"Well, she is my fiancée…"
"That's not what I mean, and you know it."
"I'll try my hardest to answer all your questions, bachan."
"Why the hell did you turn a few kilos of Suna into glass? Why were you asleep for days? And finally, how the hell did you get to Konoha in less then an hour!"
Hinata stared at Naruto in wonder. Apparently there was more to this jutsu then he had let on. And… how had he gotten to Konoha so fast?
"Well, to answer them in order. To kill Orochimaru without using Hiraishin, though he escaped. I was being held captive by Kyuubi until I admitted that I had made mistakes and promised not to make them again. And I used the Hiraishin to get back."
"Used Hiraishin… Naruto, that doesn't make sense. That would have drained the Fourth ten times over…"
"And it drained me once. I did it, bachan. Really, I did. I felt that Hinata was in trouble, so I came. Now, can you please tell me what is going on? What happened after the battle?"
"You were out for a few days, but nothing happened. Besides this most recent attack by two dozen of those cursed beings. You and Hinata stopped them well. Two ANBU were overconfident and managed to die for their lack of intelligence, and over thirty villagers were either wounded or killed. Your old sensei, Umino Iruka, is actually recovering in his own room here from more severe chakra exhaustion then either of you. His fiancé, Mitarashi Anko, is still in critical condition from an apparent run in with those monsters, but it looks like she will recover. Even if it will only be with one lung, one kidney, and only some limited movement in her left leg."
"Damn it, she was a good ninja."
"I know, one of the best. Iruka is pissed as hell, if you can imagine it, and Anko hasn't woken up yet. I think everyone will be surprised at her reaction."
"Why, Tsunade-sama?"
"Because I think Anko was ready to give up being a ninja the moment Iruka asked her to marry him. Anyway, nothing else has happened, though I was able to examine one of those monsters up close for the first time."
"Anything interesting?"
"No, just that our original assumption were correct. Incurable, but extremely deadly ninja. There was only one revelation, and that was that their minds are truly incapable of independent thought. Orochimaru gives them an order and they follow it. In this case, the order was to attack Anko's group and anyone who got in the way. That's why they came here."
"That's horrible…"
"So what comes next?"
Tsunade smirked at him as she walked back to the door. She walked out the door and held the door open for a moment before looking back at the two left sitting in the room.
"You two get some rest. The next move is going to be made by them, not us. Oh, Hinata."
"Hai?"
Tsunade casually flipped a scroll over her shoulder, which Hinata caught.
"The test yesterday was an emergency promotion test. You passed, and are now a jonin. Stop by my office later today for instructions."
Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it…
Iruka Umino, usually a happy or at least easy to get along with man, was not happy. In fact, if it weren't for the restraints that lashed him to the hospital bed, he would be already in the room next to his. The only one that mattered.
At least she is alive, right? That's what matters, right? She won't come to her senses and… and…
"Sensei, who put you in here?"
Iruka stopped staring into space and turned to see the door frame filled with two of his favorite students that he had ever had. That, at least, brought a small smile to his face.
"Naruto, Hinata. It is nice to see you both again."
"Same here, sensei! Though I never thought it would be me standing above your hospital bed with you tied to it, I guess turnabout is fair play, eh? Who did you piss off to get tied down?" Naruto gave him a wide grin, which Iruka returned. Both remembered multiple instances where Iruka had taken Naruto in for medical treatment do to poor planning with explosive notes or from showing off with his kunai skills. It had at least shown he cared for Naruto, because most of the time the wound was healed half way to the hospital. It was one of the many things that made Iruka one of Naruto's most precious people.
"Good morning, sensei." Hinata gave him a small smile, one that brought back memories to his mind of the shy little blind girl who everyone pitied except Naruto.
"Morning? I guess my job as teacher wasn't done as well as I had hoped. Look at the sun, it isn't rising in the west, is it? It seems to be setting."
"Nani? We were asleep for a whole day!"
"I wouldn't know, I only woke up around noon."
"That reminds me, sensei…" Hinata's small smile became a little sad. "…are you ok? With Anko-san, I mean."
Iruka's smile dropped completely and he once again stared straight ahead, his common activity for the past few hours.
"Sensei?"
"Will she be the same person, you think?"
"What?"
"Anko was a ninja, that was her life…" Iruka turned to look out his window at the evening sky. As the sun set, he couldn't help but wonder if Anko was setting with it.
Another man watched the same sunset with entirely different feelings. A muscle bound youth stood with sweat dripping in his eyes with a smile that could match Naruto's best on his face. Rock Lee couldn't think of a more perfect end to a perfect day of perfect training in his goal to be perfect. Unless I could be like Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, and Choji. That would be perfect. All I need now is a girlfriend.
Rock Lee, taijutsu master and master with his own weapons, wanted a girlfriend more than anything. He had even changed his outfit recently in order drive less women away from him in fear. It was something Gai had told him was the price of greatness, but Lee was allowed to disagree with his sensei on at least some things. Instead of green spandex and a hair style that looked like it could repel kunai, Lee wore what the average chunin or jonin wore plus his leg warmers and weights. His hair had grown out some so it looked less like a helmet and more like hair. He would still loudly rant about the "fires of youth", but it was less often and less loud then in the past.
Now all he needed to do was wait.
Lee placed his weight weapons back in his sheaths in his leg warmers and toweled his face off. He knew, without a doubt, that women would come flocking to him eventually. If only a certain girl would get over his teammates boyfriend and look at him.
Sakura… how I wish you would look at me with the same eyes you stare at Sasuke with. Until you do I must shine even brighter with the fires of youthfulness that I hold.
Like lightning, the weapon was out of its sheath in the leg warmers and a training log exploded. Lee stood at the ready, his weapon already over his shoulder and prepared for a second attack. He had been practicing his draw all day, and it was only getting faster. Once again he placed his weights in their sheaths and this time walked off, leaving a decimated training ground behind him.
"Lee, you stance would allow for more speed if it was only one centimeter lower to the ground."
Lee looked into the air to see the lazy genius, Shikamaru, sitting in a tree perfectly still and silent. Lee hadn't even noticed him there. Lee was never the type to disregard advice, especially from such a reliable source, so he sunk his stance only a slight bit lower and felt the increase in muscle tension. Exactly as the genius had said. But training was over for today.
"Arigato Shikamaru-kun, but I'm done with training for today."
"Really? I thought you would never quit. I need you to come with me. The Hokage has a mission for us."
Choji Akimichi, one of the strongest men in Konoha, sat in a beautiful greenhouse drinking tea. If someone had passed by and looked through the glass walls they would have seen an absolutely massive man sitting perfectly straight and drinking his green tea right next to a woman half his size who was nibbling on a sweet rice ball. Ino Yamanaka, former shinobi and now proprietor of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, sat leaning against a wall of muscle she had claimed as her owned. An odder pair, at least physically, could not be seen in all the five elemental countries.
"Ino…"
"Hm?"
"How… are you today?"
Choji Akimichi was probably the largest and physically strongest person close to his age, but was nearly the shyest in the world. Only Hinata, before Naruto had left, would probably beat him out in that category. And right now he was attempting the impossible.
"Um… fine? But that's the fourth time you've asked me that question in an hour, Choji. Is something wrong?"
Ino, on the other hand, had mellowed out considerably upon leaving the shinobi life. Sasuke had a girlfriend who could dismember her, so there was no reason to pursue him any more. And then Choji had kept up his visits even though he was busy with shinobi work. He still treated her as if they were teammates, maybe even something more, and so Ino had asked him out. Two years ago. And without competition with Sakura or anyone she had no longer felt it was necessary to keep up her diet. She wasn't fat now, not at all. She was healthy.
"Uh… nope!" Choji gave a weak fake smile and put his arm behind his head with a laugh. Ino snickered at his antics, knowing without a doubt that something was up. But with Choji, it usually meant he was trying to ask her out on a date or something. She'd figured that he would have gotten used to her after two years, but apparently he was still in awe of her affection.
And that was fine with her, it made things interesting.
Choji returned to his tea with shaking hands, which didn't go unnoticed by Ino, and took another sip to calm down. He had almost asked her just then. Almost. But he didn't.
Come on… come on… you can do this!
"Choji, just ask me what you want to ask me. I can tell from here that you're going crazy over something, so just say it."
Choji's eyes darted to Ino, astounded at her perception even thought a normal human could have noticed the same thing.
"Ah… you got me Ino. I… was… well…"
"Do I need to read you mind, Choji, or are you going to tell me?"
"No, no, no! Don't do that!"
Ino frowned. That was a new reaction. Was he hiding something from her? Did he… want to break up? The thought itself almost made her choke on the rice ball. She set it down and took a quick drink of tea to cover her reaction. That couldn't be what he wanted to say, right? They had been together for years now… but there were only two places to go from here…
Either they would break up…
… or be together forever.
Which did Ino want?
Would it be so bad if Choji dated someone else? It isn't like we ever did 'it'. I could date other guys…
But her mind refused to find any shred of possible joy in that thought. In fact, the only feeling she could imagine without Choji was…
Pain?
Oh Kami… I'm in love!
And that thought did cause her to choke on her tea. Choji gently patted her back until she calmed down. Another one of Choji's finer points. He was gentle as a child to anyone that was not his enemy.
"Are you ok, Ino?"
Tears from the choking were in her eyes, but at least one was a tear of sadness from merely the thought of what might be said soon.
"F…fine. I'm fine."
"Good." And then he gave her that big smile the size of Konoha and her heart melted like it always did.
Because I'm in love.
The thought calmed her and made her more anxious at the same time. She at least understood herself more now. But what was Choji trying to say.
"Choji?"
"Hm?"
"Wha… what were you going to say?"
Great. Now it's me who is stuttering.
"I… um… well, you see… the point is that… I… I really… l… like you."
That's not what I wanted to say.
Like me? Like me as in 'Let's just be friends?'?
"No… that's not it… I… I…"
SAY IT, you damn mouth! You better say it or no food for a… half a day.
He doesn't like me?
"I love you. Will you marry me?"
… There. I said it
... nani?
"Will I… marry you?"
"Hai."
"You… love me?"
"Hai."
"I…"
What will she say?
What do I say?
"I… yeah."
"You… yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Sure?"
"Hai."
"You'll marry me?"
"Hai."
"Really?"
"Hai."
"…Really?"
"Are you trying to talk me out of it?"
"No! I mean… if you don't want to…"
"Shut up."
And it was then, after saying all that, that Ino realized exactly what she had said. Her mind had shut down and her heart had acted for itself. And she was perfectly fine with that. So she jumped up and stood on her toes to kiss the sitting giant silent. A minute later a stoic man in a coat obviously too warm for this greenhouse stepped out from the foliage. Shino had no more time to wait.
"I do not wish to interrupt, but Choji has been called to a meeting with the Hokage."
Choji looked like he was waking up when they broke their kiss, but after the words 'meeting' and 'Hokage' he was ready to move. It was his job.
"Um… I'll be back soon, Ino!"
"Hai."
His now fiancé's face looked just as dazed as his had moments ago.
"Congratulations, by the way."
"Huh?"
"On the engagement."
"Oh, yeah!"
And with that, the two were off towards the Hokage tower. One with a straight face, the other with his dazed look still attached to his face along with a silly smile.
"Hyuga Neji, Akimichi Choji, Rock Lee, Uchiha Sasuke, Nara Shikamaru, Aburame Shino and Ten-ten. Good of all of you to make it. You are here because we are in desperate need of information about the movements of the enemy. You all have specific skills that I have determined to be important to the mission. It will be A-ranked, for all who want to know. You will be investigating the defenses of the capital city of Kumo. And, if the circumstances provide, you will cause damage to their war effort in any way possible. Survival is more important than damage, obviously. So use discretion. Any questions?"
Shikamaru raised his hand.
"Two. First, who is leading the mission? Second, why is Naruto not with us? If it is damage you want caused then Naruto would be the one to come."
"Two answer you questions, first of all I am not sending Naruto because he is still recovering from his battle at Suna and trip back to Konoha along with the fact that I would never send him to use that jutsu ever. It is too powerful and innocents will get killed. To answer the first question, the leaders are right outside my office. Haruno Sakura, my protégé, will be assistant leader and healer on this mission. The leader will be Hatake Kakashi."
Shikamaru nodded and stepped back, assuming such. Ten-ten frowned from the addition of the girl who still fawned over her boyfriend, but accepted it silently. Sasuke smirked at the chance to work with his old sensei again, even if it was with his old teammate as well. Choji stared into space out the window.
"Choji, are you alright?"
The Hokage was suddenly in front of the huge youth, only three quarters his height. Choji noticed that everyone seemed to be staring at him.
"Um… what was the question?"
"I was going to ask what was the problem, but I asked five times already."
"Sorry, I was just… thinking."
"About what, may I ask? You're lack of hearing is not what I expect from one of our top ninja."
"I… well…"
"Choji just asked Yamanaka Ino to marry him."
Instantly all eyes in the room turned to face Shino.
"What?"
"I did." Choji gave a small glare in Shino's direction. This was his story.
"And?"
"She said yes."
The room broke into congratulations and slaps on the back. Even the Hokage smiled about the news that was at least a sparkle of brightness in the darkness of the war. Shikamaru, usually one of the least emotional, was congratulating his best friend the most.
"Congratulations, kid."
A new voice and a new face in the room caused each ninja to suddenly tense and turn before relaxing in realization. The toad hermit sat in the window, wearing a serious face that could only mean something that most everyone else would weep about.
"Jiraiya, what news from the Iwa front?"
"The siege of Suna destroyed what we assumed to be a large fraction of their forces, but we were wrong. The kage and what I can only guess is a force of over ten thousand is ready to march. My guess is that they already have begun to march since I left."
Gasps of disbelief, even from Shikamaru, filled the room. Tsunade stared deep into Jiraiya's eyes, knowing that he would only report the truth these days.
"If this is true then we have a serious problem, Jiraiya."
"I know."
Silence filled the room. Ten thousand? That was more ninja than all of the allied nations together could come up with.
"How many cursed?"
"Three quarters."
Over seven thousand monsters, each the equivalent of a jonin, were about to march on what could only be assumed would be Konoha.
"That is the good news."
"The good news? What on earth makes that GOOD?" Tsunade was getting very stressed.
"They are a fair distance away, two days for a group that large and in need of control. Orochimaru was not among them, making those monsters less manageable. The bad news… well, whatever mission you about to send these guys on should be postponed."
"What? What is it? This day can't get much worse…"
"Kumo is missing."
No one moved. No one breathed.
"What… do you mean?"
"Kumo, the nation, is completely shrouded in fog. When I reached the capitol… it was empty of all ninja. Not one was left. I followed every path I could find and saw absolutely no sign of… well… anything. It was as if the entire ninja population disappeared. They could be anywhere now…"
"ANBU!"
Instantly three ANBU black ops were next to the Hokage.
"Warn the gate guards of a potential attack and to be prepared immediately. You, call all active jonin to an emergency meeting in exactly ten minutes. And you, all clan heads need to be in the counsel room in exactly fifteen minutes." The three disappeared. "And you…"
Kakashi and Sakura had come in during Jiraiya's report and now the entire team was standing at attention for their orders.
"…your mission has changed. You will travel south and east of Konoha in a search pattern. If Kumo is out there, they will be going for a surprise attack from that direction. I need a report, so don't engage unless necessary. Go, NOW!"
With that, the team of ninja, chunin and jonin all, was off.
Mitarashi Anko sat up in her hospital bed with an unreadable expression on her face. Her eyes drifted from her visitors to the surroundings and out the window. She didn't even acknowledge their presence. Hinata, Naruto, and a mostly recovered Iruka sat in an awkward and complete silence, none able to speak for fear of saying the wrong thing. Anko hadn't responded to a word that was said to her, not even from Iruka.
She was like a shell of her former self.
"Anko… I…" Iruka didn't know what to say. He might be a ninja of Konoha, but he had no idea what to do now. His fiancé had suffered a crippling injury, possibly permanent and most definantly career ending, and she wouldn't speak to him or anyone.
Naruto was sick of it.
"Stop it, sensei. She's not gonna talk. She's just gonna sit there in her self pity and angst and wonder what life would be like if she had been just a bit faster. She isn't going to take notice of the fact that she isn't dead, that a guy who loves her almost killed himself to save her, that the same guy was going to marry her, that she was going to settle down anyway and have tons of kids all named after me so she wouldn't even want to be off risking the life of her children's mother. She's just going to mope and cry and forget the only things that made life worth living…"
Naruto's only warning was the small glint of sun on steal before he was forced to pull two kunai out of his cloak where they had him pinned to the wall. All three pairs of eyes in the room were looking at him. Two in absolute shock that Naruto would ever say something that cruel to Anko. One in anger at the comments.
One in anger, not lack of emotion. A change.
But before Anko decided to follow up her attack on Naruto, her face changed from anger to anguish. Naruto's face dropped from angry to a smile as Anko broke into sobs.
"Hey, hey… now that's the crazy lady I remember."
Iruka wrapped is arms around Anko again, but instead of shrugging out of his arms like before, she buried her face into his chest.
"Anko…"
"Gomen… gomen…"
Naruto and Hinata were already gone by the time Iruka stopped stroking Anko's hair.
Hinata walked through the garden of the Hyuga manor with absolute grace and poise. Her hair flowed out behind her like indigo waves in the late fall wind. The leafs of the trees were falling as she strode towards the main house with a graceful quickness. She had returned home from the hospital hours ago and, after spending some well deserved time with Naruto, had taken a walk alone in the garden. At least it had been peaceful until a servant had come running up saying her father and Naruto had both been summoned to an emergency meeting by the Hokage. It had only been for active jonin of Konoha, and Hinata had not yet been officially discharged from the hospital. For all she knew this would be a mission for Naruto where she wouldn't see him again for the almost two months before…
The wedding! I almost forgot!
That thought nearly drove her to quicken her pace, but she maintained her pace for the servant's sake.
"Hinata-sama, they have already been in the meeting for at least ten minutes!"
"Then I'll meet them at the door when they return."
Most of the cadet family branch adored Hinata, and it was easy to see why. Where many main branch members treated them as cattle, Hinata treated them as people even higher then herself.
She reached the main gate in one a minute and straightened her white yukata just in time for the door to open. In walked Hiashi and a small personal guard, but they were not the ones Hinata was worried about.
Naruto walked in moments later to her instantaneous relief. It was only when she saw his face that she understood that things weren't right.
"Otou-san… Naruto? What is wrong?"
"Hinata, come to the counsel room. I'm calling an emergency meeting and you should be there as heiress. Naruto, follow me."
Hinata was left standing confused in the entryway with only a small, weak smile from Naruto as he followed Hiashi with absolute silence.
Something was definitely wrong.
Kakashi led his large team towards the south east at breakneck speed. The only one in the team not tired out by the pace was Lee, but that didn't stop any of them. Complete silence and stealth was called for in this mission, they all knew it. Hopefully the enemy was not out here. Hopefully they were merely hiding to the north on the tip of the peninsula of cloud. But they all knew hope does not effect reality.
They had traveled a regular day's distance in only hours and were coming up on the border of wave country when they were stopped by Kakashi.
"Honorable counsel members of the Hyuga clan, what I say today is top secret and cannot, under penalty of death, be repeated outside of the room. The entire ninja armies of Kumo and Iwa are on the move. Approximately twenty thousand ninjas are preparing an all out attack on Konoha in the near future. We have maybe a day and a half to prepare."
Whispers of worry and confusion rattled through the room. Naruto and Hinata sat on either side of Hiashi, Hinata looking to Naruto and Naruto staring at the table with his hands folded.
Thinking.
"The Aburame clan has already deployed its ninja to defend against the remains of the Kamizuru clan. The Nara clan is with them. The Akimichi clan is with the Nara clan as well. Three of Konoha's most prestigious clans will be on the North front of this battle. The Hokage believes Kumo will come from the South. I have already decided what our clan will do. All able ninja in the Hyuga clan, cadet or main branch, will be armed and ready for battle in exactly twenty four hours. I include myself and many of you in that group. Our clan will be fighting against Kumo. Further orders will be given when the clan meets in the great hall in exactly twenty four hours. Everyone must be there, and everyone on the lists in front of you must be armed for battle."
Not a sound went through the room. Never in the history of the clan had something like this happened. The shear numbers of the enemy would be enough to make even Might Gai cringe. Naruto knew this, and as Hiashi sat down he stood up.
"I will be leading our ninja against Iwa, as much as I would rather fight with you. Even though I am technically part of my own clan, I was raised in this one as a Hyuga and if I could I would fight beside all of you to save our village and nation."
"I think we have a problem. Neji."
"Byakugan."
"What is out there, Neji?"
Neji stood looking into the trees of a forest, Kakashi and his team behind him. A minute passed before Neji spoke.
"The army of Kumo."
"I can't promise you that we will win when Suna will only send a thousand ninja and we only have about three ourselves. But I can promise you one thing. If we don't win, our elderly will be killed. If we don't win, our women will be raped. If we don't win then every citizen in this town will be enslaved or killed. If we don't win then everything every man and woman has ever stood for in Konohagakure will have been for nothing. So even if you care nothing for anyone outside of this clan, fight. Fight for the clan's right to exist."
"How many?"
"Too many to count. Thousands of ninja and monsters."
"How far."
"Six hundred meters and closing. They will be on us in two minutes… no."
"What?"
"They've seen us."
"I will fight for my city and everyone in it. Until the last ninja of Konoha falls, this coming battle will NOT END."
"What do we do, Kakashi?"
"Run."
Instantly the team was off, back towards Konoha and the temporary safety of the city.
"The Hyuga clan has long proclaimed to be the greatest clan in Konoha. Well, now is the time to prove it. You will be going against monsters who are twice as fast as a normal human and five times as strong, who possess the Byakugan, and who have the chakra to push a kaiten into the ground."
Sasuke and Ten-ten stopped and set a quick trap that took less then a second to set. Lee had dropped his weights and was heading back towards Konoha to warn everyone about the position of the enemy. Neji, Kakashi, Sakura, Shikamaru, Shino, and Choji ran on.
But the sounds of cracking trees seemed to be getting closer.
"Surrender is not an option. Surrender means death for all ninja. So what will you do? Will you cower like dogs in your beds?"
Sasuke pulled out a kunai and spun in mid air to block five shurikin thrown at twice the speed of any he had ever seen.
"We have company, Kakashi."
Kakashi spun around and, faster then any could see, he shoved an electrically charged hand into the heart of a jumping curse victim.
"Go, I'll hold them off."
Kakashi pulled a strange looking weapon from his pouch and twirled it on his finger before gripping it like a sword. Almost instantly a blade coated in chakra appeared, sharp as the day it was used to slay rock ninja in the wars. It cut a deformed wing from the next beast and quickly cut the head off before it had a chance to hit the ground.
"GO!"
"Or will you show the will of fire that has been gone from our clan for far too long!"
The team was gone. They were all on their way to safety. Kakashi, though, stood in the middle of the forest floor surrounded by cursed beings.
"Who's next?"
Kakashi was covered in the blood of his enemies, their corpses littered the ground. But it seemed as if an endless supply of then surrounded him and he was getting tired.
Damn it… this isn't what was supposed to happen. I was supposed to get Kurenai to marry me. I was…
Then a kunai came from the trees ahead and pierced one of the monsters in the forehead.
"Be prepared tomorrow for an…" Naruto suddenly stopped talking and stared into space. Hinata was about to get up and check if he was ok when he disappeared.
Choji, Ten-ten, and Sasuke appeared on the branches above Kakashi and the enemies surrounding him.
"Kakashi, you didn't think we would let you sacrifice yourself, did you?"
Ten-ten pulled another kunai from her pouch as Choji started gathering chakra. Sasuke's eyes turned from black to the sharingan.
The kunai Ten-ten was holding disappeared a moment later, only to appear buried in the flesh of another enemy's neck. She truly was the weapon mistress of Konoha.
Kakashi smirked, knowing that no matter how hard they tried, four ninja would only take about fifty total enemies at the most, not ten thousand.
Despair did not cross his mind, though. Despair was for those who did not expect to die. Kakashi had planned this day for years.
"You idiots. All three of you are engaged. Get going."
Only Choji's face softened slightly. He really should get back to Ino…
He didn't need to decide what to do, for at that moment Naruto Uzumaki slammed at high speed into the arm of a monster. The same arm that a kunai was imbedded in from a certain scroll Ten-ten had received.
"Nani? What the hell are you guys do…ing…"
Naruto suddenly realized exactly where he was and what was going on.
"Naruto? Where did you come from?"
"Someone threw my kunai. So I showed up."
"But… the distance?"
"I don't know, ask me when there isn't a thousand monsters around us."
The five ninja now stood in a circle with their backs to each other, each ready to fight to the death.
"Dobe, why'd you have to show?"
"Because, teme, you threw a kunai with my name on it."
"Actually, that was me."
"Ten-ten, you should watch what you throw."
"Why? Can't you just used your move and kill 'um all?"
"Maybe if I had kunai on me! I have two explosive notes and one kunai. That's it."
"Stop arguing. Here's a scroll."
Naruto grabbed the scroll behind his back and opened it. He bit his thumb when an idea came to him.
"Everyone, hang on."
"Wha…"
The group was forced into silence by an enormous burst of chakra from Naruto. They turned to see what was going on.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
A large cloud of smoke enveloped the ninja and when it cleared they were gone.
The five other members of the ninja team were already far ahead of the enemies, many with tears in their eyes from watching their friends from the academy fade into the trees to an almost certain death. Lee was forced to carry Sakura when she had broken down in tears for her former sensei and teammate. He had come back to the group after reaching the gates of Konoha and telling the chunin on duty to bring the Hokage to the gate.
"Kakashi… and Sasuke…"
Sasuke? Not Sasuke-kun?
"Sakura-chan… don't worry. Those four are strong with the fires of…" Lee stopped talking when he noticed it didn't seem to be helping. She just wept into her hands. When she had calmed down a little Lee set her back down. He was surprised to receive a hug from the girl.
"Arigato… Lee…"
"Ah… um…"
Lee was stunned into silence. Sakura managed a weak smile on her red and tear streaked face. It seemed she was finally looking at Lee. And all Lee could do was smile back.
The Hokage and an ANBU guard were there to meet the five as they came into the city. Coincidently, Ino Yamanaka was delivering some flowers to someone who lived near the gate and decided to go greet the Hokage herself.
She was almost at the gate when the remains of the team arrived at the gate, panting for breath and sweating profusely. Neji reported.
"Hokage-sama, it was as you predicted. They are out their, many thousands strong. Only a days travel away for an army of that size."
Ino was startled but stood her ground. What were they talking about?
"And the others."
"We were spotted."
"Shit…"
"Kakashi stayed behind and Sasuke, Ten-ten and…" Neji stopped before saying the next name and glanced towards Ino's direction where she stared at them in shock and horror.
Sasuke and Kakashi? Dead? Ten-ten, the girl everyone was jealous of for earning Sasuke's love… was gone? And who else…
Wait… oh no… no…
"No…"
Ino watched as Neji averted his eyes and mumbled the last name to the Hokage.
She saw his lips.
No.
"Shit… he was the best in his clan."
Ino had calmly walked up to Neji and looked him in the eyes before Neji broke the glare and stared at the ground.
"You're lying…" Ino's voice was perfectly calm. "Choji isn't dead."
"Ino…"
"Choji ISN'T DEAD!" Tears were already pouring from her eyes and her voice was cracking as she screamed the last part to the world before slapping Neji.
Hard.
Ino had dropped the flowers when she had heard of her friend's deaths and, in her haste to run away from the group Choji should be with, she tripped over them and landed on the road in a heap. She didn't even try to get up. She just curled her body into a ball with tears pouring from her eyes.
"It's not true… it's not true… it can't be true… he asked me to marry him… he's fine… just a little late, that's all…"
The entire group had tears in their eyes for their friends and Sakura was trying her best to comfort her friend when a small toad, the size of a fist, hopped through the gate and onto the Hokage's head.
It croaked a little and then hopped off, breaking the entire feeling of the moment. Only an instant later the frog hopped into an empty area of the road and opened its mouth.
Everyone was surprised to se a hand pop out of the mouth, easily the size of the mouth. Slowly, and disgustingly, an arm was out, then a head and a body. Eventually the entire form of Naruto Uzumaki was out of the frog. He didn't even notice the gaping crowd of ninja staring at him as he shook off the toad oil and reached his hand back into the bottomless toad. Another person emerged, followed by another and another. After a few minutes, Naruto stood beside a complaining Ten-ten and Sasuke, a calm Kakashi, and a happy Choji.
"Thanks for the ride, bud."
The toad croaked and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. Only then didn't Naruto turn around to see the group of ninja staring at them with wide open mouths and eyes almost bugging out of their sockets.
"Oh. Hey everyone? Bet you're all wondering why I just pulled three people out of a toad, huh? Well, you see, a great ninja never lets out his secre…" Naruto was hit in the back of the head by an annoyed Ten-ten.
"Sorry for worrying you all. It turns out Naruto was able to save our butts when we threw one of his kunai. Weirdest freaking jutsu that I have ever seen. It was… oh… nasty… bleh… bleh bleh bleh…" Ten-ten had gotten some toad oil in her mouth from her soaking hair. Sasuke was behind her and trying not to laugh. Naruto did laugh, but that only earned him another kick to the back of his head. Kakashi saluted the Hokage and walked off to find Kurenai.
"Ino?" Choji was looking down of the form of his fiancé curled around some crushed flowers. She had been staring at him like he was a ghost and he could see the tell tale signs of tears on her face.
"Ch…choji?"
"Are you ok? What happened? Did you trip? Are you hurt?" Choji helped her stand with his usual kindness and gentleness. Ino sniffed a bit before embracing him in a hug. She couldn't wrap her arms completely around his body, but anyone could tell that she had no intention of letting go.