My Heart's Lavender Eyes

by Naruto's overseer

NaruHina. Is really a Romance/Comedy/Angst/Suspense/Adventure. It is a hilarious story of Naruto's life after he becomes Chunnin. It starts just after the beginning of the Shippuden series.

38. Foresight

My Heart's Lavender Eyes

"Normal speech"

Sign Language = Name: (Stuff that they sign)

'Thought'

Kyuubi

Other enormous beings

(Lemon) if you skip a lemon, I'll be sure that you don't miss a thing if you do. Cause I understand that some people would rather skip it because they feel that it is inappropriate, but I think that not having a lemon would be unrealistic to a relationship. But what do I know? I write about ninjas flying around blowing stuff up, how realistic is that in comparison?

Oh well, anyways, enjoy the chappie!

There is a poll on my profile. Answer it if you wish.

There is a forum, it is named:"My Heart's Lavender Eyes Forum." It is for all those who want to discuss this fic. Anything you want to see, or improve, then participate in the forum, and I will read what you have to say. Your opinion can have an effect on this story. Participate if you wish.(Link is in my profile)

"Disclaimer"

I do not own Naruto or any affiliation there being, I am doing this fanfic because I enjoy making this story, not for the profit (which I do not get by the way)

Chapter 38:

Foresight

---

The sun rose up from behind the Hokage monument, slowly rolling sunlight over Konoha, and warming it up from the night's cold.

Tsunade had gotten enough sleep, surely this was true, but she didn't feel any better.

She found herself pacing back and forth in her living room tirelessly.

She had gotten up hours ago out of restlessness, so she was already fully dressed and ready for work.

But her work hours didn't start for another 20 minutes.

'It's morning now, and still no word from ANY of the groups! Even the ANBU detail I had follow Ashley hasn't responded yet!' thought Tsunade incredulously.

She continued to pace back and forth between her couch and her living room windows.

As Tsunade paced back and forth, Jiraiya walked in from the next room.

'She's pacing again...' thought Jiraiya.

"Tsunade?" asked Jiraiya.

"Not now Jiraiya." said Tsunade.

"Come on Tsunade... Just come with me and relax yourself." pleaded Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya please, I'm too busy." said Tsunade.

"You haven't even started work yet. Come on... I made you pancakes..." said Jiraiya.

Tsunade stopped pacing.

"..."

"Banana pancakes?" asked Tsunade.

"With chocolate chips." said Jiraiya.

"And the syrup?" asked Tsunade.

"It's maple syrup. And it's all nice and warm." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"Alright you talked me into it." said Tsunade.

Tsunade walked past Jiraiya into the kitchen.

Jiraiya smirked.

'Works every time...' thought Jiraiya.

He walked into the kitchen, and Tsunade was already sitting at her dining room table and had her plate filled with three pancakes loaded with syrup.

He smiled and walked up behind her.

He reached his hands over her body, and when she didn't respond, he laid his hands on her shoulders.

He began to massage and rub her shoulders, getting her to relax even more.

"See? Everything isn't so bad..." said Jiraiya soothingly.

"(Sigh) I guess you're right." said Tsunade with a small smile.

"Then let's have sex." said Jiraiya.

"What?" asked Tsunade.

"What?" asked Jiraiya in confusion.

"What did you say?" asked Tsunade.

"I said: See? Everything isn't so bad." said Jiraiya.

"No after that." said Tsunade.

"I didn't say anything after that. All this stress must be getting to your head. You should calm down and have some more pancakes." said Jiraiya.

'I must be driving myself mad... I could have sworn he said something...' thought Tsunade.

(Crash!)

They both heard the sound of breaking pottery, and rushed back into the living room.

Tsunade and Jiraiya both stopped in surprise to see the ANBU operative Towa standing next to Tsunade's now-broken lamp.

"What is going on here?" exclaimed Tsunade.

The ANBU member was used to Tsunade's loud and commanding tone, but still jumped at the sound of her voice.

"Hokage-sama! Um, I... well... I left my post to help track Ashley. She was hard to track because of the nature of her movement, but we finally tracked her down." said Towa.

"That is great news! But um... what happened with my lamp?" asked Tsunade.

"Well, I had to leave my post to accomplish the task, so I had Komachi take over for me here." said Towa.

"Komachi?" asked Tsunade.

"Yes Hokage-sama." said Towa.

"...Well where is she?" asked Tsunade.

"She had to hide herself in this room just like I always do, so she henged herself as a lamp." said Towa.

They all looked down at the shattered lamp.

"..."

"But I only have one lamp in this room..." said Tsunade.

They all looked down at the lamp again.

"..."

"Does this mean she's dead?" asked Jiraiya.

"No, I think she must have seen me coming and left her post just before I arrived. I was trying to get her attention, so I poked the lamp. But instead of her un-henging herself and coming out, the lamp just fell over." said Towa.

"Okay then... Well, you said you knew where Ashley was staying? What is the residence?" asked Tsunade.

"It is Apartment Complex 4, floor 3, hallway 19, room number 90." said Towa.

"I could have told you that." said Jiraiya.

They both looked at him incredulously.

"What do you mean?" asked Towa.

"Well, when I met Ashley, she said that she had been sleeping in a tree, so I set her up with an apartment." said Jiraiya.

Towa fell over in disbelief.

"We tried to track her all night... And you knew all along..." stammered Towa from the floor.

"You never asked. And in my defense I was never aware of such an endeavor." said Jiraiya.

Jiraiya turned to Tsunade.

"If you would just talk to me more, then we wouldn't have problems like this." said Jiraiya.

Tsunade was looking guiltily at the ground.

"Alright, I assume that you are setting up surveillance at her residence... in hopes of catching Tyler if he stops by?" asked Jiraiya.

"Yeah... that was the idea." said Tsunade.

"We have nothing to report so far, other than she seems to carry around strange weapons." said Towa.

"Strange weapons? What do you mean?" asked Jiraiya.

"She holsters what would appear to be a very large... kunai or something... It has a strange curved prong shape or something. And that is really the only interesting thing that we have to report." said Towa.

"Hm... Does Tyler know that we have set up surveillance?" asked Tsunade.

"Not likely. The last place Tyler was reported being seen was in a bar." said Towa.

"I know, Shizune told me about that." said Tsunade.

"Well, we will have to keep up surveillance while we can, but we really don't know who to trust at this point." said Jiraiya.

"Right. I should assume my post." said Towa.

Towa twirled around and disappeared in what looked like a vortex of swirling red ribbons.

"..."

"Does he always do that?" asked Jiraiya.

"Yes. But don't touch the ribbons, they are actually really sharp." said Tsunade.

"How did you find out? Couldn't resist the urge to touch them?" asked Jiraiya.

"..."

"(Sigh) Alright, I guess its about time we head on up to the counsel meeting." said Tsunade.

"Alright." said Jiraiya.

---

The sun had reached the hard oak decks of the Hyuuga household. But most of the Hyuuga clan was up long before then.

Especially their leader.

He thought that he had raised good children. He thought that he had done the right things. He thought he had taught the right principals for his children to live by. But no matter how much he tried to keep his children out of trouble, they always seemed to get back into it.

"(Sigh)"

Ever since his series of surgeries at the hospital, they had condemned him to a wheelchair. He knew it wasn't going to be for very long, but he really did hate sitting down all of the time.

He wheeled himself out of his study and into the hallway, past the fanciful adornments, and traditional elegances that commonly colored the home of the Hyuuga.

'Hanabi... Is in deep trouble. Neji... Is in even worse trouble... And Hinata... she could bring about a whole new catastrophe all on her own...' thought Hiashi.

He was wheeling himself through the hallway of the main household, trying to make it to the dining room where an important meeting was being held.

'Why couldn't my children have turned out more like me? All I did when I was their age was train and study...' thought Hiashi.

He finally made his way to the kitchen and wheeled himself passed it to the entrance dining room.

He could already hear a low roar of the counsel's conversation, although it was difficult to make out with so many people talking at once.

'Well, at least things seem to be normal.' thought Hiashi.

Hiashi finally wheeled himself into the dining room, and into sight of the counsel.

Every Hyuuga in the room went into complete silence upon his entering.

The long dining table was filled with the Hyuuga elders and officials of the counsel. Nobody really looked happy to see him in a wheelchair.

'Our leader being in a wheelchair shows all other clans that we are weak. We must replace him immediately before our weakness becomes apparent!' thought an elder.

'The Lord is in a wheelchair! I hope he is alright...' thought another elder.

'He is in a wheelchair even... What did our Lord have to weather through?' thought a counsel man.

"(Sigh)"

'This meeting is going to be trying. I can already sense it.' thought Hiashi.

Hiashi made his way around the table and to the front, where he stopped his wheelchair to face the counsel.

"This meeting is now in session." said Hiashi.

Most of the elders relaxed a bit, seeing that Hiashi going business as usual, despite what had happened to him.

"Alright. First order of business?" asked Hiashi.

"Your well-being." said an elder immediately.

Hiashi was happy that an elder actually cared about him, but he didn't want this meeting to be about him.

'There are more important things at hand.' thought Hiashi.

"I am fine. My health is not relevant to this meeting as of now. I will be recovered within a few weeks." said Hiashi.

"But what about Neji?" asked another elder suddenly.

"Yes. Surely the correct course of action to be taken would be to kill him." said an elder.

Hiashi's eyes snapped to the elder that spoke.

He immediately and regrettably recognized him.

His name was Kobo, an elder that had much respect among the counsel. His ways were not favored by many others, as they were considered too ruthless. In Hiashi's opinion, he was nothing more than a pompous and arrogant man with only one goal, and that was to become the Head of the Hyuuga, the strongest clan in Konoha.

"On what grounds are we to kill Neji Hyuuga?" asked Hiashi quickly.

Most of the counsel looked at Hiashi like he was joking.

"He inflicted that heart attack upon you, which almost killed you Hiashi-sama! Attempted assassination of the Head of our clan not only brings the death penalty, but also the suffering of everyone near and dear to the assassin." said Kobo.

"Neji Hyuuga did not cause me to have a heart attack, therefore he would not deserve any penalty of any kind. He picked up my unconscious body, and whisked it to the hospital. If anything, Neji should be rewarded for saving my life." said Hiashi.

"What? Hiashi, have you gone senile in your old age? Neji Hyuuga is most definitely to be executed. Even if Neji didn't try to kill you, as you just so happen to suddenly say..." began Kobo.

Some elders gasped, while others stood up and quickly backed away from the table, thinking that Hiashi might attack him.

Hiashi narrowed his eyes at Kobo, causing a few more of the Hyuuga in the room to tense.

This was a sign of Hiashi's anger.

Only a few Hyuugas had ever seen Hiashi angry, and they knew to be as far away from him as possible when he was.

But Kobo seemed un-phased, and he continued without care.

"He also openly attacked vital and distinguished members of the Hyuuga counsel. That also brings the death penalty upon his head." finished Kobo.

"Yes, he threw that large and heavy door on us and ran away. That is an attack and insubordination, as well as treason against the clan." said another elder.

"That was not an attack. That was self-defense against attacks and claims from those particular elders." said another elder.

Everyone looked over at that particular elder who spoke. Out of all of the Hyuugas, Kobo hated this one the most.

His name was Hiro. He had been a part of the counsel for the least amount of time, but was the most revered.

Despite the fact he had only spent 10 years in the counsel, he was most trusted by Hiashi Hyuuga, something that really burned Kobo's ego.

"I don't really see how you can conclude that." scoffed Kobo.

Hiro directed his attention to Kobo.

"I am no fool. You, the other elders, and I, tried to activate Neji's seal. We did not have a valid reason to do so, because we were acting on false assumptions. Therefore I say that Neji was entitled to self-defense." said Hiro.

No one reacted to what Hiro said until Hiashi said something they never expected him to say.

"I agree." said Hiashi.

Half the counsel jumped in their seats out of surprise.

Kobo couldn't believe this was happening.

"Hiashi! Please reconsider! Neji has been disobeying the counsel for a while, and now this? I think that there is treason afoot." said Kobo.

"The only reason you say such things is because you only want Neji out of the way so that your son will seem more revered." said another elder.

The entire counsel now looked at Kobo. It was well known that his son had nearly raped their Lord's daughter, the Hyuuga with the purest blood.

Kobo could feel the elder's and counsel's eyes boring into him.

"I have no son. After what he did... after what he tried to do... He is no son of mine." said Kobo.

Hiashi blinked in surprise.

"The reason behind me wanting Neji executed is that he is unstable, and that he is a possible threat. Even with the seal upon his forehead, he could cause surmountable damage to the Hyuuga clan before being stopped or killed." said Kobo.

"I concur... to a point anyway. Neji is a threat, and more than likely has a grudge against us right now. But we need to show him that it was all a misunderstanding, and that he is still a valued shinobi of our clan." said Hiro.

"You are wrong Hiro. Neji is a powerful Shinobi. The next time we meet him, it will either be his last time, or our last time to do so." said Kobo.

"No. you are the one that is wrong. Neji is a good person, he would not harm those close to him." said Hiashi.

Kobo stood up suddenly and turned angrily to Hiashi.

"But even so, what about every other member of the Hyuuga clan? What about the ones who aren't close to him? Is our safety not as important as yours?" exclaimed Kobo angrily.

Hiashi slammed his hands into the table in anger, causing the room to shake for a moment.

"Don't you try to make this about you Kobo! You know as well as I do that Neji would not attempt to harm any of us here, despite the fact that I know a few of you deserve it!" shouted Hiashi.

The elders stared at Hiashi in shock.

They had never seen Hiashi speak out against one of their members so adamantly.

"Neji wouldn't harm anyone? What about 3 years ago when he nearly killed your eldest daughter, the heir to the entire clan?" spat Kobo.

"That was long ago Kobo! Neji has grown, and he no longer has a grudge against the Main branch of the Hyuuga clan." said Hiashi.

"I agree. I believe it was with the help of one Naruto Uzumaki, that Neji's recovery from darkness was made possible." said Hiro.

"Do you honestly trust Neji? What's stopping him from attacking again?" exclaimed Kobo.

"His heart. He would never hurt the ones he cares about." said Hiashi.

Hiashi's simple words struck the counsel deeply.

But it only made Kobo more angry than before.

Kobo stood from his seat and slammed his hands down on the table in anger.

"Now you listen to me Hia..." began Kobo angrily.

"NO! Now YOU listen to ME Kobo Hyuuga!" yelled Hiashi.

Kobo fell back into his seat and blinked in surprise.

"This is what we are going to do. If you don't like it, then leave the clan all-together! I can assure you that at this point, I will NOT miss you!" shouted Hiashi.

The elders were shocked in silence.

"As clan leader, I have decided that the charges against Neji Hyuuga are false and are to be dropped immediately." said Hiashi.

There was an immediate uproar among the elders who were involved in Neji's escape.

"What?" exclaimed Kobo angrily.

"What are you thinking?" exclaimed an elder.

"You can't do this!" exclaimed another.

"I CAN do this... Because I just have." said Hiashi.

Kobo quickly stood up from his chair and stormed angrily to the entryway of the room.

He turned and faced the counsel.

"There are plenty of people that would agree with me Hiashi. So if you don't carry this out properly, then I will just have to do it on my own time." seethed Kobo.

He left the room in a rush, leaving the counsel with something to think about.

"If anyone sees any suspicious activities from Kobo, please notify me immediately." said Hiashi.

"Of course Hiashi-sama." said Hiro.

A few other elders and counsel members agreed, though a few seemed uncomfortable for some reason.

Hiashi ignored this and continued.

"Neji has been through enough with the counsel and the elders. He has suffered through many restricted freedoms and unlawful punishments. All inflicted upon him, despite the fact that he has always done the right thing." began Hiashi.

Nobody said anything, though a few couldn't look up from the table out of guilt or anger.

"Neji has always done the right things. But sometimes those things were against the wishes of our counsel. And without my permission, Neji has been unknowingly beaten and punished for these things. So now that these things have been brought to my attention..." said Hiashi.

Hiashi paused to look at Hiro, who was lightly smiling.

"Neji Hyuuga is now going to be fully underneath my supervision. No one is to pass judgment upon him except me. Hizashi left him in my care, so care for him I shall. Is this clear?" asked Hiashi.

Having been sobered up by the reminder of Hizashi's death, the counsel and elders nodded respectively.

Hiashi's words seemed to be full of proud authority, which made most of the counsel sit up in their seats.

"Hiashi-sama. If Neji is under your care in such a way, won't you show him too much leniency? Seeing that you are his uncle and all." said an elder.

"If Neji has done wrong, and he needs to be punished with 50 strikes from a bamboo stick... Then it will be me who will carry out that punishment." said Hiashi.

After Hiashi said this, no one spoke up, or looked like they had something to say.

"Good. Now on to other matters. We need to move on to the most important matter of all. My daughter." said Hiashi.

"Yes, Hinata. She is supposed to partake in the ritual tomorrow is she not?" asked Hiro.

"She would, but as you all probably know, Hinata was... (sigh) she was accidentally sent away on a mission to the Land of Snow." said Hiashi.

The elders stopped to look at each other.

"Yes... We have all heard this. We have also learned that our Hokage is doing all she can to bring her back as soon as possible." said an elder.

"Lady Tsunade is doing all she can, so Hinata could be back any time now." said Hiro reassuringly.

"..."

Hiashi paused for a moment to think, and silence swept over the counsel.

Finally a counsel member spoke up.

"Hiashi. If Hinata is not back in time for the ritual, then the process of her Bijuu awakening will be unstable, and very unpleasant." said a counsel member.

"It will probably kill her." said Hiro.

Hiashi's head ducked down a bit, and everyone in the counsel shot Hiro a look.

They didn't want their leader to be stressed out.

"What? I am not going to lie. Hinata may not make it through the process of the awakening without the proper sealing. If it is any consolation Hiashi-sama... I would miss Hinata-sama most dearly if she were never to come back. She is so sweet and kind. Any fool can see that she has her heart in the right place." said Hiro.

Hiashi looked up a bit at Hiro, then slowly turned his wheelchair away from the counsel.

"...Hiro." said Hiashi.

"Yes Hiashi-sama?" asked Hiro.

"You are in charge of the remainder of this meeting. I... need to think about some things that are bothering me." said Hiashi.

"H-Hai. Hiashi-sama." said Hiro out of surprise.

Hiashi wheeled his way out of the room, and down the hall.

'Neji... Where are you right now? Are you alright?' thought Hiashi.

---

Aside from the Hyuuga's meeting, the Konoha counsel was having a meeting of it's own in Tsunade's office.

"Alright, this meeting is now underway." said Tsunade.

Tsunade was sitting at her desk. With Shizune at her left, and Jiraiya at her right.

The Konoha counsel was spread out in front of her, all of them sitting in chairs at a horizontally long table, all of them facing her.

Aside from the elders that made up half of the Konoha counsel, Tsunade thankfully knew the other half.

Tsume Inuzuka. Although she was rather rough and rowdy, Tsunade knew the leader of the Inuzuka clan quite well. She was a person she could count on.

Inoichi Yamanaka. A very knowledgeable shinobi with a deep understanding of Konoha's secret files and jutsus. Definitely a reliable resource.

Shibi Aburame. Although very serious, silent, and mysterious, the leader of the Aburame clan always did seem to agree with her.

Choza Akimichi. The leader of the Akimichi. He is very good-hearted, but she just had to remember not to call him fat.

Shikaku Nara. Intelligent, smart, and knowledgeable. The best tactician aside from his son. Always the right man to ask a question.

But the other five members of the counsel, she did not know, nor did she like.

For all she cared they all had the same name.

'Pompous old geezers...' thought Tsunade.

The thing she hated most about Konoha counsel meetings, was that the two supervisors were always completely against her.

'Homura and Koharu...' thought Tsunade.

Almost every tactical decision she made was opposed by those two.

'With those two as the supervisors, it is always hard for things to go my way. And with today's crucial topic, I must be extremely careful not to let this meeting turn the wrong way.' thought Tsunade.

"And what is the main topic of discussion this meeting?" asked Shikaku.

"Yes. I have been quite interested about a few rumors I have been hearing around the village." said Inoichi.

"I assumed it would have something to do with the reports we have been getting." said Choza.

"What do you think Shibi?" asked Shikaku.

"..." said Shibi.

"..."

"If you would all be quiet, your Hokage would have told you by now." said Homura.

"If you would, Tsunade? I would like to get this started." said Koharu.

"Alright. Today's meeting has two important topics, both inter-linked with each other." said Tsunade.

"Well that figures. It always has to be something complicated..." muttered Choza.

"Shh!" shushed Shikaku quietly.

Tsunade continued.

"First off, would be all of the reports we have gotten of foreign Shinobi within our midst. Shikaku, based on a collaboration of all of the reports, what do you think is happening?" asked Tsunade.

Everyone looked to Shikaku, they knew that he was the smartest of them.

"Well Tsunade. There have been sightings of 3 of the 5 major Shinobi nations, plus the largely unknown Koorigakure. The only country that doesn't seem to be involved in this is the Land of Earth." said Shikaku.

"Earth country? Of all of the Shinobi nations, they are the most likely to go to war with us." said Tsume.

"Yet they are not involved. Shikaku, please continue." said Koharu.

"Right. The land of Earth Shinobi have not been sighted in our village, although, The lands of Water, Wind, and Thunder have been sighted here. All of them from their respective primary hidden villages. I would come to assume that this is some sort of collaboration attempt to control the Land of Fire, the most bountiful and resourceful country in these lands." said Shikaku.

"But why now? Why would now be a good time to do so? Is there some sort of event or ordeal taking place soon? Anything that they could take advantage of?" asked Tsume.

"Nothing seems to point to that Tsume. Unlike when Orochimaru used the Chunnin exams to attack us, there is nothing going on that they could use to their advantage." said Shikaku.

"There may not be any events taking place, but there only seems to be one thing that links all five nations to this." said Tsunade.

"Ah. The hosts." said Homura.

Everyone in the room tensed.

"As you may know, the Jinchurikis throughout these lands each have an affiliation with a Shinobi nation. The Land of Wind has Shukaku the Ichibi. The Land of Thunder has the Nibi and the Hachibi. The Land of Water has the Sanbi and the Rokubi. The Land of Earth has the Yonbi and the Gobi. The Land of Waterfall had the Shichibi And finally we have the Kyuubi. Looking at a tactical standpoint, that puts us near the bottom with only one Demon host. We should be weary of countries who have more than one Jinchuriki." said Tsunade.

"So, what you are getting at, is that the countries are all striving to get more Jinchuriki?" asked Shibi.

"The more demons a country has under their control, the more power that country has." said Shikaku.

"But why are they all around Konoha for? What could they possibly want from us? We only have one Jinch..." said Tsume.

She stopped talking, realizing the answer to her own question.

"Naruto." confirmed Tsunade.

"The strongest of all of the Bijuus resides inside of him." said Shikaku.

"If any countries that already have a Bijuu, harness that kind of power, who knows what could happen?" asked Tsume.

"We have already encountered that kind of situation. Does anyone remember Sora of the Fire Temple?" asked Koharu rhetorically.

"A Pseudo-Jinchuriki." said Shikaku.

"We don't need that happening again. As far as we know, only the Kyuubi had enough excess chakra to create a Pseudo-Jinchuriki. So as long as we keep the Kyuubi under our supervision, we shouldn't have to worry about that." said Koharu.

"Well actually... There have been other cases of Pseudo-Jinchuriki being successfully created. And some of those cases reside within Konoha." said Tsunade.

"What?" exclaimed Homura.

All of the members of the counsel were mortified, and even Shikaku looked surprised.

"Why weren't we informed of this?" exclaimed Koharu.

"Well, to put it simply, the last time someone informed you two, that there was a force getting too powerful within our Village, you had them killed." said a voice.

Everyone turned to see a man standing behind the counsel table, and most of them didn't know him. He seemed to carry a massive presence despite his short stature, but that might have just been the huge afro atop his head.

'Oh God... not Tyler...' thought Tsunade.

"Who let this man in here? This is a private meeting! Why didn't the Guards stop you?" exclaimed Homura.

"I didn't pass the guards." said Tyler.

"Then how..." began Koharu.

"He does that. What do you want Tyler?" said Tsunade quickly.

She needed to get him out of the room as fast as she could. Based on her interactions with him so far, he would most likely ruin everything she was trying to accomplish at this meeting.

"I don't want anything relevant to this conversation. But I do feel obligated to offer my input on a subject that seems to concern me." said Tyler.

"This doesn't concern you, whoever you are! I demand that you leave at once!" commanded Koharu.

"Okay." said Tyler.

Tyler instantly disappeared.

'Koharu doesn't want him here? Hm...' thought Tsunade.

"Tyler come back." said Tsunade.

Tyler instantly reappeared.

"Yes Hokage-sama?" asked Tyler.

"I need you to offer your input." said Tsunade.

"Okay." said Tyler.

"Tsunade! You cannot just allow some... some punk to waltz in here and preach! Everyone here on this counsel is a dignified leader which qualifies them to sit in the seats they are in now. How would his opinion matter at all?" exclaimed Koharu.

"Because I say it does. Now, as you were saying Tyler?" asked Tsunade.

'Muhaha... maybe I can use this to my advantage...' thought Tsunade.

"Right. Well, the last time you two heard of a rising power in Konoha, you killed it. A near-complete genocide of the Uchiha clan. So why would Tsunade be compelled to tell you that there are several Pseudo-Jinchuriki in Konoha?" asked Tyler.

"Several?" exclaimed Shikaku.

"I daresay that I'm offended by this! You are insinuating that we are murderers!" exclaimed Homura.

Tyler's sunglasses gleamed as he shifted his sight to Homura, giving off a small amount of anger.

"I'm not insinuating. I'm telling you that I think you are murderers." said Tyler.

"N-N-Now see here!" exclaimed Koharu.

"I am seeing here. I'm seeing there too. I just don't get why you find it so important at this particular moment to check that I'm not blind. Just because you can't see my eyes, doesn't mean they aren't there." said Tyler.

"I concur." said Shibi.

"But-na-wha-you!" stammered Koharu in an outrage.

Tsunade giggled to herself.

'Maybe keeping Tyler here is a good idea, I think I CAN use him.' thought Tsunade.

"Tyler, despite his demeanor, is my secretary in place of Kotetsu. I recently discovered that he is... a Pseudo-Jinchuriki." said Tsunade.

She thought that the room was tense before, but now everyone seemed to inconspicuously move to the edge of their seat, as though they were expecting something terrible to happen.

Everyone had their eyes on Tyler.

"..."

"How do you know that he is a Pseudo-Jinchuriki? Has he shown you his powers?" asked Shikaku.

"Yes. Lets see his power. I want to see it for myself." said Koharu.

"Okay. Yeah sure, why not? And while we're at it, let's all take some explosive sledge hammers, set them on fire, and test them out on the support beams." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"It would have similar results, I assure you." agreed Tsunade.

Suddenly Tyler lifted up his shirt, revealing his bare stomach.

Nothing happened for a moment, until a bright yellow and dark black chakra began forming a seal on his stomach.

Shikaku stood up quickly.

"That seal! That's impossible!" exclaimed Shikaku.

"What is it Shikaku? What's wrong?" asked Choza.

"This is the very same seal that was attached to Naruto shortly after he was born, and as we all know, it was done by the Fourth Hokage. This eight trigram style seal allows the chakra of the Kyuubi to bleed through the upper and lower Four Symbol seals into Naruto, while still keeping the Kyuubi imprisoned. It is the EXACT same seal." said Shikaku.

"Impossible. I happen to know that Kushina Uzumaki personally developed that seal herself. There is no way that there can be a perfect copy." said Koharu.

"Well I don't know what to tell you. Because I've had this seal on me since I was 3 years old." said Tyler.

"Do you remember who sealed you?" asked Homura.

"No, I was just told that it was sealed into me when I was 3. That's all I can remember, it was too long ago." said Tyler.

"Do you remember who told you that?" asked Tsume.

"...Not really anyone specifically, but he wore a long white robe and..." began Tyler.

(Bam!)

Everyone turned to see the door slammed open, with two unconscious guards on the floor, and a cloaked woman with baggy jean pants standing angrily at the doorway.

"Tyler! Where have you been?" exclaimed Ashley.

"Ashley I..." began Tyler.

"Who is she?" asked Homura.

"Shut up! Nobody asked you! Answer me Tyler! Where have you been?" shouted Ashley.

"At work!" exclaimed Tyler.

"How do I know you aren't lying?" asked Ashley.

"Tsunade." said Tyler.

"He was at work." said Tsunade.

"Okay then. But what is this that I found under the bed?" asked Ashley.

She pulled out a bag of brown sugar from her cloak.

Tyler stared at the bag for a moment, not moving a muscle.

He instantly disappeared.

"..."

"No you don't!" shouted Ashley.

Ashley also disappeared, leaving the counsel alone once more.

"..."

"So what was that all about?" asked Tsume.

Everyone turned to Tsuande who was rubbing the bridge of her nose.

'Maybe that wasn't such a hot idea after all...' thought Tsunade.

"Just, (Sigh) Just nevermind. Before Tyler showed up, I was trying to tell you about Pseudo-Jinchurikis... or something like that. There are a few Pseudo-Jinchurikis in Konoha right now, and they are under our control... sort of. " said Tsunade.

"Sort of? SORT OF! Do you have ANY idea what kind of havoc a power like that can reek?" exclaimed Homura.

Tsunade looked over Homura's shoulder at the remaining damage from when Tyler had a fight with Ashley.

There was a huge boarded up gaping hole that took up most of the wall and part of the ceiling. It would be that way until the carpenters got there to work on it.

"No. I have no idea." said Tsunade sarcastically.

"Well you better get an idea, or else." said Homura.

"Tch. Or else what?" asked Tsunade.

"Or else we will revoke your seat as Hokage." said Koharu.

"What?" exclaimed Tsunade.

"Well, those two do have enough influence with the elders to get enough votes." said Shikaku.

"Alright alright take it easy! I have an ANBU detail on the matter as we speak. Seeing that our ANBU were trained on a regimen you agree with, you should have faith in their assignment to such an important task." said Tsunade.

"Okay, that I am happy with." said Homura.

"But we had better see results." warned Koharu.

The two supervisors got up from their seats and made their way to the door.

"By the time of the next meeting, we want names, and we want answers." said Koharu.

The two left Tsunade's office, leaving the remaining counsel.

"Alright, now that they are gone, I can get down to business that I trust only you with." said Tsunade.

"I'm glad you have such trust in us Tsunade." said Tsume.

"Alright, here's a quick summary of what we are dealing with. There are foreign ninja from other hidden villages in Konoha, and they are of sudden and rapid abundance. We have no idea why they are here, but, like we discussed before, we believe that they are searching for Jinchuriki. Now aside from foreign ninja, we have gotten a tip from a certain source that there is to be a lot of Jinchuriki within Konoha before the end of the month." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"Do we basically have to sniff out the Jinchuriki and see who's side they're on?" asked Tsume.

"Well yes, but that is just the beginning of our problems. We DO know 2 confirmed Jinchurikis. But they are both currently in very unstable states." said Jiraiya.

"Unstable? What does that mean? Be more specific." said Shikaku.

"One of the Jinchuriki could transform into their Bijuu at any time, and the other might do the same if nothing is done to help them." said Jiraiya.

There was a silence among the group with many surprised faces.

"Alright then, so let's help them." said Choza.

"We can't." said Jiraiya.

"Why not?" asked Choza.

"Because Tsunade is a drunk." said Jiraiya.

The heat coming from Tsunade told Jiraiya there was an imminent pounding coming his way.

"I mean, They were both accidentally sent on a mission to the Land of Snow. So there is no way of contacting or reaching them. But we have sent an elite team to stop them and bring them back as soon as possible." said Jiraiya.

"So... once they are back, we can treat them?" asked Shibi.

"Well, we definitely know how to treat one of them, but the other is in a state that is entirely new to us. We have no idea whether or not we will be able to treat him." said Tsunade.

"So, even you and Shizune can't... Wait. Where did Shizune go?" asked Tsume.

Tsunade looked to her right, and to her surprise, she was gone.

"She left near the start of the meeting. She said something about this not concerning her, and to let her know how it went." said Jiraiya.

An angry tic appeared on Tsunade's forehead.

"She's playing hooky? Tch. I'll teach her a lesson later. But right now, we have to decide how to handle all of this." said Tsunade.

"Well, we all agree that the ANBU is handling the foreign ninja and Pseudo-Jinchuriki situation for now, and we all know that the only thing we can do for the unstable Jinchuriki is to wait for them to return. Our future actions cannot be decided without more information. We can't just blindly rush into anything. So we will wait for now." said Shikaku.

With that, every nodded, trusting Shikaku's sharp wits and judgment.

"Okay. Thank you all very much." said Tsunade.

"And Tsunade, as for Orochimaru... We trust that you will make the right decision." said Shibi.

Tsunade blinked at the usually quiet Aburame.

"Thank you... That means a lot. It really does." said Tsunade softly.

"Alright, what does the other half of the counsel have to say to this?" asked Jiraiya.

The other half of the counsel, which consisted of elders said nothing.

"...Well?" asked Jiraiya.

"..."

"This is strange. I hadn't noticed this until just now, but the elder half of the counsel hasn't said anything this entire meeting." said Tsunade.

"That is because they are not the elder counsel, they are my shadow clones." said Shikaku.

Suddenly they all disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"What?" asked Tsunade.

"The elders don't even know this meeting is going on." said Choza.

"The only ones who know are us, Koharu, and Homura." said Tsume.

"We have all our loose ends tied up. We are on your side." said Shikaku.

"And we trust that your two strange friends will keep this to themselves?" asked Shibi.

Tsunade blinked for a moment before smiling.

"Yes. I believe I can take care of those two." said Tsunade.

She looked around at the lot before her.

She had friends. And she knew it was always nice to have friends.

"This meeting is adjourned." said Tsunade.

"Tsunade!" exclaimed a voice.

A small pug with a blue cape rushed in the door.

Everyone looked at the small dog.

"Oh. When I saw the two guards unconscious on the floor, I feared the worst." said Pakkun.

Pakkun jumped up onto Tsunade's desk.

"I have a message for you from Kakashi." said Pakkun.

Pakkun dropped a hollow kunai onto her desk.

'Kakashi? He's with Naruto!' thought Tsunade.

She quickly grabbed the kunai and emptied the letter onto her desk.

She picked it up, unfolded it, and immediately began reading it.

Dear Tsunade.

We are doing fine here.

Everyone is healthy and in good condition.

But I have some concerns about Naruto and Hinata.

I'll start with Naruto.

I believe that there is some kind of issue with Naruto's furry friend.

He seems to be incredibly unstable.

He has had several moody outbursts, resulting in him leaking the red chakra.

It has taken a bit of thinking, but I believe that these outbursts are triggered by Naruto's emotions.

Anger or any other overwhelming emotion seems to trigger an explosion of the red chakra output into Naruto's system.

Each time the results seem to get more and more violent.

And then there's Hinata.

I remember that Hinata's Bijuu is supposed to awaken soon.

But I guess it's not that soon since you let her go on such a lengthy mission.

Are there any symptoms prior to the awakening?

I want to know any forthcoming symptoms I should be looking for, and if there is anything I can do to help her when or if they start acting up.

At this point all I can do is try to keep things calm and await your orders concerning these issues.

That is all.

Please immediately respond.

-Kakashi

After Tsunade read the letter, she turned to look at Jiraiya.

Having been at Tsunade's side to see the letter Jiraiya nodded to her.

Tsunade nodded, immediately took out a piece of paper and began scribbling down a message.

"Tsunade? Is everything alright?" asked Choza.

Tsunade said nothing and continued writing.

After she finished, she quickly folded the letter, and stuffed it into the kunai.

"Pakkun, I am sorry to ask this of you after such a long journey, but this needs to be immediately sent to Kakashi. It is a matter of life and death that this gets to him as quickly as possible." said Tsunade.

The worry and seriousness on her face told Pakkun that the situation was even more urgent then she portrayed it.

"Yes Lady Hokage. I will deliver this message with all of my speed and agility." said Pakkun.

Pakkun grabbed the kunai and quickly jumped out the window behind Tsunade.

With Pakkun out the window, and the urgency on Tsunade's face, the present counsel was now on their feet.

"Tsunade? What is it?" asked Tsume.

"Yes Tsunade, What did that message say?" asked Shikaku.

"That letter was from Kakashi. He... told me that Naruto was becoming unstable." said Tsunade.

"So... Naruto is one of the two unstable Jinchuriki you were talking about?" asked Shibi.

"..."

Tsunade crossed her arms and closed her eyes.

"I know fairly well that you all guessed that Naruto was one of the two Jinchuriki from the start." said Tsunade.

"Who is the other Jinchuriki then?" asked Tsume.

"It would be best to let us know everything you can." said Shibi.

Shikaku nodded in agreement.

Tsunade sighed.

"Well, I have already promised that I would not reveal to anyone but a select few about who the second Jinchuriki is... And unfortunately, I have already had to inform more than enough people. I am sorry, I cannot tell you." said Tsunade.

"That's alright, we understand, and we know you will be able to handle this." said Tsume.

Tsunade blinked in surprise.

She had expected them to blow up in her face about keeping it a secret... especially Tsume.

"Alright, Tsunade. All we can do is wait for them to return." said Shikaku.

"And until then, I have other things to deal with. Thank you for everything." said Tsunade.

Tsunade moved around her desk and walked to the door with Jiraiya close behind her.

"Tsunade, shouldn't you..." began Jiraiya.

Without hesitation, Tsunade swiftly left the room.

Jiraiya stopped at the doorway and nodded to everyone before following Tsunade.

'I bet I know what she is thinking about right now...' thought Jiraiya.

'(Sigh) Naruto...' thought Tsunade.

---

-The Shinobi Bar.-

Not exactly bustling with life at the moment, but it was enough to keep its new managers busy.

"Table 4's order is in! Table 3 needs their baskets! Table 19 needs to be cleared! Order #90 is just in!" exclaimed Hanabi.

"I'm on it!" said Konohamaru.

Konohamaru had been helping Hanabi all day. It wasn't this hard most of the time, but when it was busy, it was BUSY.

He helped by taking the orders, handing out the food and drinks, and cleaning up the tables.

Hanabi kept herself busy by cooking the food, handling the orders themselves, and bartending.

It had been a hard experience for her, but a good one.

She learned a lot about responsibilities and cooking.

It took her forever to learn how to cook each dish that was on the menu, but once she got them down, they weren't so bad.

After the morning rush had passed, most of the people had left the bar.

Konohamaru came up to the bar and sat down, nearly out of breathe.

"So, is that it for the orders?" asked Hanabi.

"...Yeah, it has slowed down now that breakfast time is over." said Konohamaru.

"(Sigh) That's good." said Hanabi in relief.

They both plopped their heads down onto the bar counter.

"This is hard work, but we are being paid quite generously to do this." said Hanabi.

"Yeah..." said Konohamaru.

They both sat in a bit of silence.

"The other day... When... um... when you first a-agreed to help me..." began Hanabi.

"Yeah? What about it?" asked Konohamaru.

'Don't stutter, don't stutter! You aren't like you're sister in that way! You are filled to the brim with Hyuuga pride and self-respect!' thought Hanabi.

"I was... um... you... you said that you w-wanted to go on a... on a d-date with me." said Hanabi quietly.

"Oh... You know... if you really aren't interested in me... I'd understand..." began Konohamaru in disappointment.

"N-no! That's n-not it at all!" exclaimed Hanabi hurriedly.

Konohamaru blinked in surprise.

"Well what is it then?" asked Konohamaru.

'I have to get him to tell me... I have to know why...' thought Hanabi.

"Well... Um... B-Before you asked me... Did you... Did you think about it?" asked Hanabi quickly.

"What? What do you mean?" asked Konohamaru.

"Um... Did you... th-think about... me... Before you asked?" asked Hanabi quickly.

Hanabi's face was flushing red, she felt so embarrassed, but she also felt another feeling. A good one.

"Um... Yeah... yeah I did." said Konohamaru with a blush.

"So... w-why... um... why me?" asked Hanabi.

"What do you mean?" asked Konohamaru in confusion.

"Well... um... of all the girls... w-why do you w-want to go... to go out with... with m-me?" asked Hanabi.

She cursed herself, she couldn't help but stutter when she talked to Konohamaru. He made her get all jittery and nervous, she could feel her heart pound when she talked to him.

The question itself seemed to surprise Konohamaru. He never expected Hanabi to ask him such a thing.

"Um... well. I know you. We have spent plenty of time together in class, and I... I guess I just really like you." said Konohamaru.

Hanabi's eyes went a little wide in surprise, and her face turned a light red.

"Aw. That's so cute. Now kiss her." said a voice.

Hanabi and Konohamaru blushed deeply.

They turned to see that three Shinobi now stood at the bar, the one that had talked wore pure black clothes with purple face paint.

"Kankurou! Stop teasing them!" scolded Temari.

"Why? Look how embarrassed they are!" said Kankurou.

"W-we aren't embarrassed!" exclaimed Hanabi.

"Oh yes you are! Especially you girl! Just look how red your cheeks are!" said Kankurou.

"Sh-shut up!" stammered Hanabi.

Her face was growing redder, although it wasn't from embarrassment alone.

Her Hyuuga pride was being tested, and she was growing angry.

"Hanabi, don't let him frazzle you..." whispered Konohamaru.

"I bet just the thought of him kissing you would cause you to faint!" teased Kankurou.

"B-but... no! I... wouldn't... I wouldn't faint!" exclaimed Hanabi angrily.

Her fists were clenched in frustration, she was going to lose to her anger.

Konohamaru's face now began to blush at the direction this random conversation was taking.

"Kankurou! I said to knock it off!" said Temari.

Kankurou ignored her.

"Oh yeah? You would too faint! I can't even imagine how you would react if you actually kissed him!" laughed Kankurou tauntingly.

Hanabi's face flushed even redder from anger and embarrassment.

"Wha! I..." stammered Hanabi.

She looked over at Konohamaru, who was looking back at her.

"Hanabi... don't let them bother you..." began Konohamaru.

"You couldn't even get through one kiss with him!" taunted Kankurou.

"I... I could too!" yelled Hanabi.

"What?" asked Konohamaru in surprise.

"You would not, you would faint like a weak-minded amorous girly girl." taunted Kankurou.

"I would not!" shouted Hanabi.

"You wouldn't faint eh? Prove it!" said Kankurou.

"F-FINE!" shouted Hanabi.

"What?" exclaimed Konohamaru.

Hanabi grabbed Konohamaru by his shoulders and quickly pulled him in front of her.

Then she closed her eyes and thrust herself at him.

Her lips met his and she immediately wrapped her arms tightly around him.

"Mmm!" exclaimed Konohamaru.

They stayed like that for a few moments before Hanabi pulled back and looked into Konohamaru's face, realizing what she had just done.

"Ha... Ha... Hanabi..." whispered Konohamaru quietly.

His eyes were wide, staring into her eyes which were now wide as well.

"Ha! Manipulating people is fun. Well, I guess I'll just let you two realize what you've just done to each other." said Kankurou with a chuckle.

Kankurou got up from his chair and walked to the door.

"Come on let's go, we never should have stopped anyway." said Kankurou with a smirk.

Temari got up and faced Kankurou, putting her hands on her hips.

"You think you're so smart Kankurou. At least these children don't normally walk around in pitch-black pajamas..." said Temari.

"It's a baggy jumpsuit, and you know it." said Kankurou in a huff.

"(Sigh) Come on, we should really get to Tsunade." said Baki.

"(Sigh) Fine." said Temari.

Baki slowly made his way to the door, earning Kankorou's impatience.

"Come on, we gotta go." complained Kankurou.

"Yeah yeah, whatever doll-boy." said Baki.

"They're puppets and you know it!" said Kankurou angrily.

The three shinobi left the bar. The only ones left were Hanabi, Konohamaru, and a few people people sitting in the tables near the back of the bar.

Hanabi still had her arms wrapped around Konohamaru, and they were both staring into each others eyes.

They were both so surprised that it had happened, that they didn't know what to do now that they had done it.

"You... You kissed me." stammered Konohamaru in shock.

Hanabi face flushed red in deeper realization.

Her eyes were wide and she wasn't moving in the slightest.

"Hanabi... I... I really liked it..." began Konohamaru bashfully.

He had to admit, it was quite bold of him to do what he was thinking of doing.

His heart was pounding so hard, the stress from the situation was already so high, but he had to do one thing for sure.

Hanabi was practically glowing red, but she couldn't move from her position.

"And um... well... Would you... would you let me kiss you?" asked Konohamaru with a deep blush.

She was completely motionless, frozen in place and as red as a cherry.

Konohamaru closed his eyes and moved in.

Her mind was racing, her heart was pounding, a kiss was different when it wasn't on a thoughtless impulse.

It seemed like an eternity to her, but finally his lips pressed against hers.

Hanabi's eyes widened as far as possible.

Her brain had reached it's limit.

"AaaaAAAAAHHHH!" screamed Hanabi.

She threw her head forward very quickly, and her forehead collided with Konohamaru's, sending him flying into the wall across the room.

Hanabi's vision faded, and her face met the floor.

The two teens lay on the wooden floor of the bar, out cold.

Two patrons in the bar who had been watching the entire scene, got up from their seats and walked over to the two children unconscious on the floor.

The woman of the two patrons knelt down next to Hanabi.

"This seems very familiar somehow..." said Shizune.

The man of the two patrons knelt down next to Konohamaru.

"How so?" asked Iruka.

"...Nevermind. Lets just get these two home." said Shizune.

"But who will run the bar?" asked Iruka.

"...These two children were running the bar?" asked Shizune incredulously.

"Yes, they were doing it yesterday too." said Iruka.

"..."

"Is that even legal for children their age to run a bar?" asked Shizune.

"I dunno. I would think that you would know seeing that you work with a politician all day." said Iruka.

"Just because I work with one, doesn't mean I know everything." said Shizune.

"(Sigh) I know, but I just figured you would." said Iruka.

Shizune and Iruka looked around the bar. There weren't many people in at the moment, but lunch time had yet to come.

"So, what are we going to do about the bar? It's almost lunch time and there will be plenty of people swarming in here." said Shizune.

Iruka paused for a moment.

"I think I know a guy who would be willing to do me a favor." said Iruka.

---

The forest was quiet, the air was calm, and temperature was fine.

It was indeed a lovely morning.

Four tents laid out in a small open field, all containing sleeping Shinobi.

But in Kakashi's North-facing tent, one of the Shinobi was waking up.

"Ah..." yawned Anko.

She sat up in her sleeping bag and stretched by reaching her hands as high as they could go.

Once she finished she plopped them back down onto her lap.

"Ah. That felt good." sighed Anko happily.

She looked to her left to see Kurenai awkwardly sprawled out underneath her sleeping bag.

'What happened to her? It doesn't look like she slept very well.' thought Anko.

Suddenly, Anko felt something soft and velvety rub up against her upper thigh.

"What the..." muttered Anko.

She unzipped her sleeping bag to see a weasel curled up, sleeping against her underpants.

"Itachi, you pervert!" exclaimed Anko.

"What? who?" mumbled Itachi.

He was half-awake, and he thought he heard a voice.

"Get out!" exclaimed Anko.

Itachi felt himself being scooped up, carried, and then thrown.

---

-Sasuke's tent-

Sasuke was trying to sleep, but he thought he had heard a very loud voice.

'Who's making noise?' thought Sasuke in irritation.

He sat up from his sleeping bag and rubbed his eyes.

"What was that sound?" asked Sasuke.

"It was the sound of nobody caring, now go back to bed." mumbled Yamato.

Before Sasuke could respond, there was a loud "smack" sound.

They both looked to see the shadow outline of a weasel, spread-eagle up against the outside of the tent flap.

The shadow slowly slid down the tent until it hit the ground and fell backwards into the grass.

Sasuke and Yamato blinked.

Sasuke got out of his sleeping bag.

He opened the tent flap to find Hinata's weasel laying on the floor with dizzy spirals in his eyes.

(Sweatdrop)

Sasuke got back in the tent and closed it.

"It was Hinata's weasel." said Sasuke.

"Hinata's weasel? She doesn't have..." began Yamato.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at Yamato.

"I mean... Oh, What was it doing?" asked Yamato as inconspicuously as possible.

'Hm...' thought Sasuke in suspicion.

"Well, seeing that it is a Shinobi, I guess it was trying some kind of technique. It must have lost control and accidentally launched itself at our tent." guessed Sasuke.

"Or, seeing that it is a weasel, maybe it just got over-excited and flung itself at our tent." suggested Yamato.

"...Whatever." muttered Sasuke.

Sasuke pulled his shirt on, and left Yamato in the tent.

He walked out to find an angry Anko standing outside, wearing only boxers and a bra.

"Ha! You little perverted weasel! That should teach ya!" exclaimed Anko triumphantly.

"..."

"Teach me what?" asked Sasuke.

"Hm? I was talking to Ita... I mean Hinata's weasel. I woke up and it was in between my thighs." said Anko.

"In between... you're thighs..." said Sasuke.

"Yeah! The little perv!" exclaimed Anko.

"But it's just a weasel." said Sasuke.

'Uh huh... Sure it is...' thought Anko.

"Whatever." muttered Anko.

"..."

Sasuke picked up the weasel's limp unconscious body and looked at it.

"This weasel... feels familiar... Not by looks or touch but... something else..." muttered Sasuke.

'Oh no! He's going to notice! I've got to distract him!' thought Anko.

"Excuse me Sasuke, but I'm going to strip naked now." said Anko.

Sasuke immediately dropped the weasel and his eyes became extremely wide.

Yamato and Kakashi suddenly scrambled out of their tents.

Anko gave Yamato and Kakashi a weird look.

"I was just um... forgot my vest." muttered Yamato awkwardly.

Yamato hurried back into his tent.

Anko turned and looked at Kakashi.

"What? I wanted to see you strip naked." said Kakashi.

Anko's face flushed red in embarrassment.

"..."

"Well, if you aren't going to do anything, I'm going back to bed for a bit longer." said Kakashi.

Kakashi ducked back into his tent, leaving her alone with Sasuke again.

(Awkward silence.)

"Um... I'd better get dressed." said Anko.

Anko hurried back into Kakashi's tent, but quickly flew back out with her face completely red.

Kakashi peeked his head out of the tent.

"You should ask if someone is changing before entering a tent." said Kakashi.

Kakashi walked out of their tent, already completely dressed.

"You should get dressed too Anko." said Kakashi.

Anko blankly nodded and ducked into the tent.

Kakashi paused for a moment and popped his head back into their tent.

"Mind if I watch?" asked Kakashi.

(Smack!)

Kakashi came back out with a red hand-shaped mark on his face.

"Kurenai woke up." said Kakashi.

Kakashi walked to the circle of logs, and sat down on the log nearest to his tent.

Sasuke shook himself out of his stupor.

He turned back to the ring of logs to see that Anko was gone.

Sasuke calmed his mind, and sat down next to Kakashi.

'What was that all about? For a moment, something took over me... I couldn't look away from her. I knew that it was improper, and I barely know Anko, but the prospect of seeing a naked woman... I'm not that weak... Am I?' thought Sasuke.

Kakashi looked over at Sasuke, knowing very well that he was deep in thought.

"Did you sleep well?" asked Kakashi.

"I slept alright I suppose." said Sasuke.

"I was wondering, because sometimes Yamato can wake you up with his wood techniques." said Kakashi.

"…"

"That… That wasn't to be perverted in any way. Just so you know." said Kakashi.

"That doesn't get rid of the mental images now plaguing my mind, Kakashi." said Sasuke.

"…"

A 10 minute silence went by, and there was no conversation.

They just listened to the morning sounds of the forest.

They heard the birds chirping, the leaves rustling, and the wind gently blowing by.

They relaxed themselves as they attuned their ears to the sounds around them.

"Neji! Quit it! If you are that rough so Sud… (gasp) s-suddenly, they will hear me…" whispered Ten Ten blissfully.

"Just relax Ten. Let me please you." whispered Neji.

Sasuke and Kakashi's faces both turned red.

"Oh Neji… I love it when you feel me like that…" whispered Ten Ten.

"Do they know we can hear them?" whispered Sasuke awkwardly.

"No, but we need to let them know." whispered Kakashi.

"Alright, but be discreet about it." whispered Sasuke.

"(Cough)(Cough) We can hear you two in there! (Cough!)(Cough!)" said Kakashi.

"…"

"Oh yeah Kakashi. That was really stealthy." said Sasuke sarcastically.

"Was he talking to us?" whispered Ten Ten.

"Yes. We were. The tents are made of thin fabric. We can hear everything you do." said Kakashi.

"I don't get why they don't just apply a silence seal." said Sasuke.

"…"

"Hello?" asked Sasuke.

Sasuke waited for a response.

"I would guess that they applied a silence seal." said Kakashi.

"..."

"Well, that ruins that fun." sighed Kakashi.

'Kakashi really is such a pervert…' thought Sasuke.

"…I think I'm going to go on a walk." said Sasuke.

"Take Yamato with you." said Kakashi.

Yamato spawned out of nowhere with a smile on his face.

"I'm going on a walk to take a piss." said Sasuke.

"I don't care if you're going on a walk to hump a tree, you're going to take Yamato with you." said Kakashi.

"..."

"(Sigh) Alright fine. But when I piss, you had better be watching me from behind." muttered Sasuke.

"Why, is that a fantasy of yours?" joked Kakashi.

Sasuke just glared at Kakashi.

"I'm not a pervert like Kakashi-sempai, but I will watch you diligently." said Yamato.

Sasuke sighed and headed out of camp with Yamato following him closely.

---

Anko was fitting her snug and very small black shirt over head, trying to carefully squeeze it on.

Kurenai, who had awoken thanks to Kakashi, was already dressed, but was trying to fix her hair.

"Gah!" exclaimed Anko.

Anko had finally gotten her small t-shirt on.

Anko looked up from her shirt, to notice Kurenai quickly turn away from her.

"…Hey Kurenai." said Anko.

Kurenai looked back at her and blinked. She was a little surprised that Anko was talking to her.

"Yes Anko?" asked Kurenai.

"…You've known Kakashi for a long time right?" asked Anko.

"Um… Yeah. I've known him since I was a Genin. What of it?" asked Kurenai.

"Well… He seems like this really cool guy and all, but I can't help but feel that he could be fake." said Anko.

"...What do you mean?" asked Kurenai.

"I mean… Kakashi may act cool, and say cool things… But is he really always that cool?" asked Anko.

"Well… That depends on what you think cool is." said Kurenai.

Anko suddenly honed in with interest.

"I like snakes, and Icha Icha, and sweet buns, and cool guys, and destroying stuff, and rock music..." began Anko quickly.

"I'll stop you right there." said Kurenai quickly.

'She might never have stopped if I hadn't said something...' thought Kurenai.

"But I wasn't done." whined Anko.

"That's all the data I need." said Kurenai.

"Okay... Data for what?" asked Anko.

"I think I've seen just about everything that has happened so far between you and Kakashi this mission. Based on your interactions, do you think that he is cool?" asked Kurenai.

"Well... yeah. He's always smart, calm, and collective. He has a good sense of humor and he's laid back. He loves the same books that I do, and he is really attractive!" exclaimed Anko.

Kurenai paused for a moment, studying Anko.

'She really likes him…' thought Kurenai.

She looked at Anko's face.

(X3)

She had both her hands clenched into fists, holding them right under her face.

Anko was always excited about everything, but she had never shown any interest toward any men, so this surprised her.

'I have never seen Anko have any sort of fulfillment in her life aside from her work... Maybe letting her experiment with a relationship status would help her out...' thought Kurenai.

But she knew that she also liked Kakashi... But then again, she was considering not going back to him.

'Maybe… I could help her out just a bit. Just this once I... I guess I can help her a little.' thought Kurenai.

"Well Anko, as long as I have known Kakashi, he's ways been like that. He's not afraid to express himself, and shows it daily by publicly reading those books of his. But there are also other things about him, things that are bad." said Kurenai.

Suddenly Anko perked up.

"Really?" asked Anko excitedly.

Kurenai blinked in surprise.

"Well, yes. He is chronically late, he is known to be lazy, and he is quite the ladies man. He has never officially gone out with anyone, although it is rumored that he is highly desirable among certain groups of women. A lot of women have attempted to get his attention, and have failed." said Kurenai.

Anko narrowed her eyes, examining Kurenai for a few seconds.

"Really?" asked Anko.

"Yes, really." said Kurenai.

"…"

"Sqeee! I knew it! He's awesome!" exclaimed Anko happily.

(Sweatdrop)

'Anko, you sure are a weird one.' thought Kurenai.

---

-Naruto's tent-

Naruto felt good, a lot better than usual.

Everything felt so soft... so warm... so completely cuddly.

'Mmm... Must snuggle...' thought Naruto.

He buried his face into his pillow and rubbed his face back and forth.

"(Giggle) Naruto..." mumbled a voice.

The voice that spoke was directly into his ear.

Naruto opened his eyes in surprise.

His eyes focused and recognized Hinata's beautiful face.

Naruto smiled in realization and pulled Hinata close again.

"Mnn... Naruto..." mumbled Hinata.

'She's so cute... Waking up to her makes everything else seem so unimportant.' thought Naruto.

"Yes Naruto..." mumbled Hinata.

'I wonder what she's dreaming about?' thought Naruto.

"Mnn... Yes, rub it like that... Naruto..." mumbled Hinata sexily.

Naruto's hair suddenly stood up on end, while his face flushed red.

Hinata began to grip her body tightly around him, rubbing her hips back and forth very subtly against his.

"Hi... Hiii... Hiiiii-Hinata!" yelped Naruto.

Hinata stopped moving and woke with a start.

"Wha... mnn..." mumbled Hinata.

She sat up slightly, but after a few moments, cuddled back into Naruto.

"Mnn... Five more minutes... good dream..." mumbled Hinata.

Naruto turned a brighter red.

"Ha! Look at that! She really has taken an old-fashion sexual-shine to you!" laughed Kyuubi.

'Shut up! I need to wake her up, and I can't think when you're talking to me!' complained Naruto.

"The reason you can't think isn't because of me talking, it's your hormones that are doing that." said Kyuubi.

'What?' asked Naruto.

"Think about it... rather, think about Hinata for a moment. Her curvy curvy hips, her perfect complexion, her recent sleeping habits." said Kyuubi.

Naruto flushed red, he could feel his whole body start to heat up.

'I said to stop it...' mumbled Naruto.

"It's not me who is distracting you. It's called untamed lust, and you've got to learn how to control it. I would laugh at your expense, but it looks as though I have to be going now." said Kyuubi.

Kyuubi's visage disappeared from his mind, but before Naruto could ask why, he felt something wet touch his cheek.

Hinata was in Naruto's face with her tongue licking Naruto's cheek like a popsicle.

Naruto was frozen in surprise, which would let her do whatever she wanted.

Suddenly she stopped.

Hinata was mumbling something, but then she suddenly fell back to the sleeping bag floor, and rested her head against Naruto's chest.

Naruto shook himself from his stupor and looked down at her.

She cuddled herself close to him.

Naruto was in a nervous suspense, wondering what she would do next.

After a few moments, Hinata stopped moving and her breathing slowed back down.

"Naru..." mumbled Hinata.

Naruto blushed in realization and smiled at her.

She was so cute when she was asleep, and she was even cuddled up against him.

'This is one of our first times sleeping in the same bed together... on purpose anyways...' thought Naruto.

Naruto let himself lay back down onto the sleeping bag with Hinata, wrapping his arms around her gently.

'Hinata...' thought Naruto contently.

He felt himself getting tired again, the peace from the situation seemingly flowing from Hinata's warm body.

"Mmm... Hinata... I wish we could stay like this forever... I feel so wonderful..." began Naruto.

Naruto moved one arm out from underneath Hinata, and held her head to his chest.

He looked down at her head, only seeing a lot of her hair from that angle.

As Naruto focused on Hinata, he began to feel something.

Something felt off. Something was wrong.

Naruto could feel the comfort slipping away from him, being only replaced by sudden fear and uncertainty.

There was something emanating from Hinata's body.

He immediately tried to concentrate on it.

He could make out something in his mind, but he couldn't tell what it was.

He knew that if he wanted to see what this was, he would have to concentrate a lot harder.

Naruto gathered his chakra carefully and tried to delve deeper into whatever he was seeing.

Suddenly Naruto's mind flashed into a blank nothingness, an embodiment of himself before a large whiteness.

'What happened?' thought Naruto.

His thoughts echoed about the nothingness, as though proving that no one other than himself could answer his question.

'I've been here before... I think it's my mind...' thought Naruto.

Suddenly the whiteness flashed into an embodiment of a roaring and never-ending blue inferno.

Beautifully burning flames were all about him. Although potentially calming and mesmerizing, is was also dangerous and searingly loud.

'What is this!' thought Naruto.

Unlike before, his thoughts were now drowned out by the sound of the roaring flames.

He was barely able to hear himself think.

Suddenly, an sound escaped the roar of the flames, faintly calling out to him.

"Naruto..."

The voice startled Naruto in a number of ways.

Upon the chaos of the fire, was the voice of Hinata.

"Hinata? Hinata!" yelled Naruto.

Naruto waited for an answer, but there was no response to him.

After a few moment he could make out a figure in the flames, approaching him slowly.

Hinata's body now appeared among the flames, it was only a matter of time before the flames would engulf and incinerate her.

"Help me Naruto... Help me..." said Hinata.

"Hinata! Get out of there!" yelled Naruto.

"Naruto... You have to help me... I am going to die..." said Hinata.

Naruto desperately sprinted towards the flames, but he never got any closer to them, no matter how hard he tried.

It was like he was on a treadmill.

"Hinata! I'll get you out of there! I'll save you!" yelled Naruto.

Naruto couldn't tell if she could hear him or not.

She looked non-responsive, looking only straight ahead, as if that direction was her fate.

"I cannot escape this. Only you can save me... Naruto." said Hinata.

"Hinata! HINATA!" screamed Naruto.

Suddenly everything flashed white again, leaving him in the empty abyss once more.

But this time it didn't give him time to think.

The white around him began to focus to color.

He was beginning to see and he was beginning to feel.

He realized that whatever was happening in his mind was ending, and that he was beginning to come back to reality.

He felt cold and sweaty. It wasn't a good feeling. He felt sick to his stomach and he felt a bit dizzy.

He vision finally came to focus, and he saw several things he didn't expect at the campsite.

The first thing that he noticed was that his tent had a gaping hole in it.

It looked as though someone had torn right through it.

The second thing he noticed was that everyone was gathered around his tent, staring at him, and at a clump of his tent on the ground near the fire pit.

Kakashi and Anko were at his left, while Kurenai stood to his right.

Kakashi stepped forward and kneeled down next to Naruto to look him over.

"Naruto? What happened? What was all the screaming about?" asked Kakashi in worry.

"S-screaming? I don't..." began Naruto.

He stopped talking when he saw the clump of tent near the fire pit move.

He recognized it as a person based on how it moved.

But he began to recognize key features in the movements.

It moved gently with care and grace. Timidly, yet with precision.

It was then that he immediately realized who it was.

"Hinata!" exclaimed Naruto.

Naruto jumped out of Hinata's sleeping bag, and pushed past Kakashi.

He ran to the clump of tent, kneeling down next to Hinata.

He took off the tent material on top to reveal Hinata, looking directly at him.

It caught him off guard for a moment.

"N-Naruto? W-What happened? What w-was that all ab-bout?" asked Hinata shakily.

When Hinata asked him that question, it made his heart feel grieved with worry.

"What was what all about? What happened here?" asked Naruto in confusion.

Hinata looked at him in confusion.

"Um... That's what I w-want to know..." said Hinata.

"I honestly don't know what happened, Why is the tent ripped? Why are you out here? Are you alright?." asked Naruto quickly.

Hinata could tell that Naruto was deeply worried about her, and that warmed her heart.

But she was conflicted.

"I was... um... We were..." began Hinata.

She looked at all of the eyes watching her, judging her.

Certainly they were her teammates and they meant well, but she couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

She couldn't just talk about sleeping so close to Naruto.

She might not make it through the whole experience consciously.

"We were? We were what Hinata? Tell us what happened." said Kurenai.

"Yeah. All I heard was Naruto screaming your name." said Anko.

'Kinky...' thought Anko.

Naruto blinked in surprise.

"I didn't scream anything... I was asleep." said Naruto in confusion.

'Kinkier...' thought Anko.

"N-no... You did scream... Naruto..." said Hinata quietly.

"I-I did?" asked Naruto.

Hinata nodded.

"Well... Tell me what happened." said Naruto in concern.

"Yes, lets hear it." said Anko with a perverted grin.

Everyone was looking at Hinata now.

Hinata didn't need all of this attention, it made her very nervous.

She didn't want to let everyone that they slept in the same sleeping bag, but she didn't want to lie either.

"I... was j-just um... laying in my sleeping bag, when you s-suddenly... shouted my n-name twice... v-very loudly." said Hinata.

'He likes humping while he sleeps?' thought Anko.

Naruto blinked.

He didn't remember shouting at her.

"I quickly s-sat up in my sleeping bag, but b-before I could... Before I could f-figure out what was happening, y-you shouted again." said Hinata quietly.

'He likes to shout during...' thought Anko.

'That dream... Maybe...' thought Naruto.

"What did I shout?" asked Naruto.

"B-before I could figure out w-what was going on... You suddenly screamed: Hinata! Get out of there!" said Hinata.

'Fire in the hole!' thought Anko.

Everyone blinked in surprise and looked at Naruto.

"I... I-I was so startled, that I tried g-getting out of wherever I was... as... as fast as I could." said Hinata quietly in embarrassment.

"So you flew out through the tent wall, and got tangled up in it as you tripped." said Kakashi.

'Oh. OH! Wait... this had nothing to do with sex... Hinata had her clothes on when she flew out...' thought Anko in disappointment.

Hinata's face turned red, and she looked down at her lap in embarrassment.

"Naruto! What in the world were you thinking? How could you intentionally scare Hinata like that?" exclaimed Kurenai.

"Yeah! The hell is your problem?" exclaimed Anko.

"I didn't do it on purpose! I was... having a bad dream I guess..." said Naruto.

"A bad dream? Is this funny to you! You probably scared the poor girl half to death! How could you!" scolded Kurenai.

'Half to death...' thought Naruto.

The images of Hinata in those blue flames were fresh in Naruto's mind.

He wasn't happy about what the whole mental ordeal could possibly mean.

"It was a bad dream..." repeated Naruto.

'Naruto was having a bad dream... A nightmare bad enough to make him scream in his sleep. Kyuubi is probably responsible then...' thought Kakashi.

Before Kurenai could continue scolding him, Kakashi spoke up.

"Well, we can't blame you for your tormentor giving you nightmares." said Kakashi.

Everyone's eyes widened slightly in realization.

Except Anko.

"Tormentor?" asked Anko.

Naruto's suddenly tail swept out in front of him, startling everyone around him.

He hugged his tail to his chest, looking at the ground.

"I don't mean to worry everyone all of the time..." said Naruto quietly.

The tail was the ultimate reminder of Naruto's demon.

"Oh my God! Naruto! You have a tail?" exclaimed Yamato.

Everyone looked at him weird.

"You didn't know?" asked Kakashi.

"I'm supposed to know this? ...He's supposed to have a tail?" exclaimed Yamato in confusion.

"Just...(Sigh) Just nevermind..." sighed Kakashi.

"Naruto..." said Hinata worriedly.

Hearing Hinata, they looked back to Naruto, who was still holding his tail for comfort.

"I really don't mean to worry you guys... They can just get intense... my dreams I mean..." said Naruto quietly.

"So... So Kyuubi gives you Nightmares?" asked Anko in surprise.

Naruto looked away from everyone and nodded slightly.

Everyone was a bit shocked to hear that Naruto got nightmares from Kyuubi. So nobody really knew what to say.

But Kurenai knew she felt awful for yelling at him.

"Oh Naruto, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have scolded you for... I didn't realize... I didn't think that..." began Kurenai in a fluster.

"It's okay Kurenai, I'm just glad that Hinata is okay." said Naruto.

Naruto looked from his tail to Hinata.

She was still a bit tangled up in the tent fabric, looking at him with a concerned frown.

"I'm sorry I scared you Hinata." said Naruto.

Naruto quickly got up from the ground and turned away from her.

He didn't want to face her. He felt badly about the whole thing. And he felt that it was all his fault for scaring her half to death.

Yet again, something bad happened because of Kyuubi.

'Hinata... I scared her... and she hasn't even seen the scariest side of me...' thought Naruto.

Hinata wanted to say something, anything to help Naruto feel better, but she couldn't think of what to say.

She looked down at her lap.

'He feels bad for being what he is... He knows everyone has to worry about him, but he doesn't want them to. What could I say to make him feel better about it?' thought Hinata.

Hinata looked back up to see that instead of Naruto standing in front of her, it was Kakashi.

He was holding his hand out to her.

"Come on Hinata, up and at em." said Kakashi.

Hinata blinked in slight surprise, but grabbed his outstretched hand.

He pulled her onto her feet.

"There you go." said Kakashi.

Before Kakashi could assure her, and tell her everything was fine, Hinata spoke up.

"Where did Naruto go?" asked Hinata.

Kakashi studied her for a moment before speaking.

"He left the camp. He didn't say where he was going, but I'm sure he's going somewhere to think." said Kakashi.

-Out In the Forest-

'That woman is completely inappropriate...' thought Sasuke.

There was something about Anko in that moment that made him freeze up.

'If it had been during a battle when that happened, I would have been dead...' thought Sasuke.

He did have some clue as to why it happened.

He felt the same effect when Sakura had kissed him, except this time there was something much more potent that made him freeze up. He just didn't know what it was.

'I'll have to talk to Kakashi about this... It won't be a comfortable conversation, but I need to ask someone of experience.' thought Sasuke

He continued to walk forward, thinking about other things that had been going on.

'I showed up unexpectedly at their campsite, and there was nothing there that would point to Itachi's presence. And it's been the same the entire time I've been with them...' thought Sasuke.

Sasuke peered behind him for a moment.

Yamato was still keeping a vigilant eye on him.

'Everyone seems to be keeping something from me... except maybe Naruto and Hinata.' thought Sasuke.

He paused when he saw a stream ahead, gently making its course through the forest.

"I'm going to go to the bathroom now." said Sasuke.

"Alright, just be sure to face away from me. And don't worry, I won't move from this spot." assured Yamato.

Sasuke nodded and walked up to a tree next to the stream.

'Naruto and Hinata... I don't know what it is about those two, but it just feels like I can trust them on this one... Either Everyone is in on it except Hinata and Naruto, or there really is no trace of Itachi here...' thought Sasuke.

Sasuke undid his pants and made sure that he was facing away from Yamato.

As he expected, Yamato partially turned away out of the awkwardness of the situation.

'Now is my chance...' thought Sasuke.

He took a piece pre-written parchment out of his pants pocket and dropped it into the stream.

'This stream came down from the North near the Fire border, so...' thought Sasuke.

The paper, instead of going downstream and away from the Land of Fire, traveled against the current and went upstream.

'Now all that is left is to wait...' thought Sasuke.

It was quite peaceful out in the forest.

No sounds except the birds chirping, trees waving, and the stream of water trickling down its path.

"..."

'And now I really do need to go to the bathroom...' thought Sasuke.

"Are you about done yet?" asked Yamato.

"Just a moment." said Sasuke.

After half a minute, Sasuke set his pants back into place, then turned to Yamato.

"Alright, lets head back to camp." said Sasuke.

"Okay, lead the way. But you have to be ahead of me." said Yamato.

Yamato turned and immediately bumped into something.

Yamato stumbled back for a moment, and was surprised to see Naruto standing in front of him.

"Yamato. Sasuke. We're going." said Naruto.

Naruto turned and walked away from them, back towards camp.

"Naruto?" asked Yamato.

There was no response, he just kept walking away from them.

"What's wrong with him? He seemed very... solemn." said Yamato.

"I know, it is very unlike him." said Sasuke.

The both stood still, watching Naruto slowly and silently disappear from sight.

"..."

"Well, I guess that Kakashi wants to start moving again. Let's head back to camp." said Yamato.

Yamato and Sasuke arrived back at the campsite to find that everything was packed up, and everyone was ready to go.

"Naruto. Yamato. Sasuke. We are going to leave now, I hope you don't mind." said Kakashi.

Yamato blinked.

"Not at all." said Yamato.

'Why would he tell Naruto that were are leaving? I thought Naruto already knew since he said we were going to leave...' thought Yamato.

'Kakashi didn't tell Naruto that they were going to leave? How did he know then?' thought Sasuke.

Naruto walked by Kakashi, and Kakashi gave him a look of concern.

'All the time Naruto spends with Kakashi, he must be able to read him pretty well...' thought Yamato.

Naruto walked over to his pack, which was being held up to him by Hinata.

Hinata wasn't smiling like she usually would.

She was wearing a smile, but it wasn't a real smile.

She was too worried about Naruto to really be happy.

"Here is your pack... Naruto..." said Hinata quietly.

"Arigato..." mumbled Naruto just as quietly.

Hinata frowned slightly at his reaction to her politeness.

He said thank you, but he didn't sound happy or grateful, he sounded depressed.

'Naruto... I don't know what to say, but I want to make you feel better...' thought Hinata sadly.

'Hinata is only trying to be nice... Naruto better watch himself...' thought Neji.

'I hope Neji doesn't over react to that...' thought Ten Ten.

Naruto turned his head slightly to see everyone watching them.

"Well? Are we going to go or not?" asked Naruto emotionlessly.

Kakashi looked at Naruto for a moment before nodding.

'Naruto... Hinata better find a way to cheer you up...' thought Kakashi.

"Right. Lets get going." said Kakashi.

The sun had risen a long while ago, but the entire team was still worn out from their constant traveling the entire day prior.

She was pressed up against something warm, but she could feel that the air around her was pretty cold.

'The forest...' thought Sakura.

She remembered traveling, running into Gai, and Naruto...

'Naruto!' thought Sakura.

She woke with a start, and quickly sat up.

She turned to see that the warm thing she was pressed against was Ino.

"Ugh! Ino!" whined Sakura.

Sakura stood up quickly and brushed herself off.

'Uhck! I slept against Ino...' thought Sakura in disgust.

Sakura stepped back from Ino, but tripped backwards.

She fell hard onto her back, and hit her head on the ground.

"Gah! What the..." mumbled Sakura.

She rubbed her head and looked up at what she tripped on.

'Akamaru...' thought Sakura.

Akamaru was looking up at her from the ground in irritation.

Akamaru whined at Sakura.

"Sorry Akamaru, I didn't see you there..." said Sakura.

Suddenly a bright light shined in her right eye, causing her to flinch.

She put her hand in front of her eyes to block the light, then faced the source.

The sun's light was finally making it all of the way through the dense foliage that made up the boughs of the trees.

'Look how high the sun is already! We completely overslept!' thought Sakura.

Sakura turned and looked down to where she had slept.

"Ino." said Sakura.

Ino moved a bit on her sleeping bag, but she didn't respond.

"Ino come on, its time to get up." said Sakura.

Sakura nudged Ino's hip with her foot.

Ino rolled onto her back and spread her legs.

"Mmm... I like that... a little higher..." mumbled Ino.

Sakura's face flushed red.

"I-Ino? What the hell!" exclaimed Sakura.

Sakura kicked Ino really hard in her side, sending her rolling from her sleeping bag, onto the next sleeping bag.

"OW!" exclaimed Ino.

Ino held her side in pain, but realized she was on top of someone warm.

She opened her eyes to see Gaara's eyes inches away from her own.

"Can I help you?" asked Gaara.

"Gah!" cried Ino.

She flung up from Gaara's sleeping bag, and landed on her feet in surprise.

Gai jumped out of his sleeping bag in response to the noise, as did Lee.

"What's going on here?" exclaimed Gai.

"Yes. What seems to be the problem?" asked Lee.

"I-I don't know! Sakura kicked me!" stammered Ino as she held her side.

"O-Only because you were acting r-really weird!" stammered Sakura.

"Now ladies..." began Gai nicely.

"Acting really weird? I was sleeping!" exclaimed Ino.

"You were not! You were ACTING weird!" exclaimed Sakura.

"Lets not start a fight..." began Gai.

"ACTING weird? You're always LOOKING really weird, but I don't kick you all of the time, billboard-brow!" taunted Ino.

"Ino-Pig!" taunted Sakura.

Sakura and Ino got into each-others faces, ready to fight each other.

A wall of sand quickly formed between them.

The wall morphed into a Gaara look-alike. The replica did not look happy with them.

"That is enough. I will not have you two fighting each other this entire mission." said Gaara's clone.

The sand fell to the ground, then snaked its way back into Gaara's gourd.

Sakura and Ino blinked in surprise.

"I am ready to go." said Gaara.

"As am I." said Gai.

"As... am I" said Lee dramatically.

"Five more minutes..." mumbled Kiba.

They all turned to see Kiba and Houkou in one sleeping bag.

"Alright, you all have five minutes to get ready. Then it is time to start traveling again. The faster we get to Naruto, the faster we insure his, and everyone else's safety." said Gai.

Gai and Lee turned around and quickly began packing their things.

Leaving Gaara, standing there with his arms crossed, staring at Sakura and Ino.

His stare seemed to bore into the both of them. The black around his eyes seemed to amplify a foreboding effect.

"Well?" asked Gaara.

They both jumped in surprise and jumped towards their things. Ino and Sakura quickly started to fumble around for their equipment clumsily. They both eventually stopped fumbling, and began concentrating on actually packing their things.

As they prepped their equipment next to each other, they both kept stealing glances at each other.

Ino would look at Sakura, but when Sakura caught her looking, she would quickly look away with a frown.

"Ino..." said Sakura.

Ino stopped packing for a moment but didn't look at her.

"Yeah Sakura?" asked Ino without interest.

"I'm... I'm sorry that I kicked you. You just freaked me out, and I reacted without thinking, I didn't mean to do it." apologized Sakura.

Ino smiled softly, and continued packing.

"It's okay... And I'm sorry for fighting with you." said Ino.

Sakura smiled. She knew that they commonly fought about a lot of things. But she and Ino were long time friends. As long as they remembered that, they would always make up.

"It's okay, I kicked you pretty hard, so I really had it coming anyways..." said Sakura.

'I've known Ino for so long, even if we fight, we are still best friends...' thought Sakura contently.

Sakura glanced over at Ino.

'I wonder if she's thinking the same thing?' thought Sakura.

'Starve self, think self-consciously... Starve self, think self-consciously...' thought Ino.

They both finished packing, and hoisted their packs onto their backs. The packs fit snugly to their back, allowing for maneuverability, and common motor-movement comfort.

"Ready to go." said Sakura.

Ino nodded in agreement.

"Us too." said Gai and Lee.

"What about Kiba and Houkou?" asked Gaara.

"..."

They looked over to see that they were both still sleeping against each other in their sleeping bag.

"Five minute she too cuddly... Mmmfffffffffff..." mumbled Kiba.

Kiba shoved his face into Houkou chest.

"Oh my God we SO don't have time for this." complained Ino.

"I'll carry them then." said Gai.

Gai bent down and grabbed the sleeping bag near Kiba's head.

He lifted the bag over his had, causing Kiba and Houkou to uncomfortably cramp to the bottom of the bag.

"Ah! What's happening?" exclaimed Houkou.

"Gah! Houkou!Are you alright?" asked Kiba.

"No, I can't feel my legs..." whined Houkou in pain.

"Akamaru!" exclaimed Kiba.

"(Growl...)"

Gai looked to his left to see Akamaru. Akamaru was looking up at Gai, his mouth was snarling and his teeth were baring.

"Alright alright, I get it." said Gai cautiously.

Gai slowly put the sleeping bag down onto the floor, and Kiba came rolling out.

"Thanks Akamaru..." said Kiba.

Akamaru barked in appreciation.

"..."

Everyone was staring at Kiba.

"What?" asked Kiba.

"Hehe... I didn't know you were into Snoopy." taunted Lee.

"What?" asked Kiba in confusion.

"Kiba, put some pants on." said Houkou from their sleeping bag.

Kiba looked down to realize that he was wearing nothing on his lower half but Snoopy boxers.

"Oh..." said Kiba with a blush.

"We need to go now, we are wasting time." said Houkou.

"Then why don't you get out of there and get ready yourself?" asked Lee.

Houkou retreated into the sleeping bag as far as she could. All you could see was her black-slitted eyes glowing in the darkness. Even though you couldn't see her expression, you could tell just by her eyes that she was embarrassed.

"I... um... I sleep in the nude." said Houkou quietly.

Even though they couldn't see her, they knew she was blushing in embarrassment.

"Well alright then." said Sakura.

Without another word, Sakura rushed over to Kiba's bag, and threw it into his arms.

"Kiba put some pants on, and carry Houkou until she can manage to get dressed in there." said Sakura.

"What! That's unreasonable!" exclaimed Houkou.

"We are leaving NOW. Complain all you want if you wish. Both you and Kiba's clothes are in that bag. Seeing that you are both perfectly capable Shinobi, it shouldn't be a problem to dress on the move." said Sakura.

Kiba frowned, but nodded.

"Alright then. Let's go!" said Gai.

Kiba grabbed Houkou's sleeping bag, and slung it over his shoulder.

"K-Kiba! you aren't really going to do this are you?" exclaimed Houkou.

"I have no choice. Sakura is right, we need to go now. The more time we wait, the farther away Naruto gets." said Kiba as he slipped on his pants.

"B-but..." complained Houkou.

"No buts... Now here are your panties..." said Kiba with a blush.

Houkou blushed madly, realizing that everyone was staring at them.

She swiped them angrily from Kiba's hand.

"Alright fine, let's go then." huffed Houkou with a blush.

---

'What a day this has turned out to be... A secret meeting with only part of the counsel... I am now pressured to get information on the Psuedo-Jinchuriki and the foreign Shinobi in our village... Naruto could explode or something crazy like that, and Orochimaru's amnesia...' thought Tsunade.

She walked quickly trough the market, knowing she had one place she needed to be as fast as possible.

'The quicker I get to Ashley's apartment, the quicker I can find Tyler. The quicker I find Tyler, the quicker I'll get some information on the foreign Shinobi.' thought Tsunade.

As Tsunade hurried through the crowds, Jiraiya stayed at her side, making sure she didn't do something rash.

'She's always hasty when she's hurried...' thought Jiraiya.

"Tsunade, if you're in such a hurry, don't you think we should travel by roof?" asked Jiraiya.

"Ashley or Tyler might see us coming if we do that... Besides, I have a huge hang-over." mumbled Tsunade.

"I figured as much." said Jiraiya.

Jiraiya sped up a bit and quickly hoisted Tsunade into his arms, bridal style.

"J-Jiraiya! Put me down right now!" exclaimed Tsunade.

"Nope. I'm going to carry you all of the way there." said Jiraiya, un-phased by her command.

"Jiraiya! I'm the Hokage! I have a reputation to uphold! People are staring!" argued Tsunade as she rowdily squirmed.

"There are only staring because you are making such a fuss. Just relax and take a little map. It'll relieve that headache I'm sure is throbbing your head." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"You drive a compelling argument." said Tsunade.

Tsunade closed her eyes and leaned her head against his chest.

"There, now was that so hard?" asked Jiraiya.

"(Snore...)"

"Hehe... Tsunade may be the beautiful love of my life..." began Jiraiya.

"(SNORE!)"

"..."

"But she snores like a trucker..." sighed Jiraiya.

---

The dark atmosphere, the wooden floors, and the roar of people talking loudly.

The smoke-thick air, the loud music, and the refreshing drinks.

The local bar and grill was one of Shikaku's favorite places to go.

He sat at the bar to the far left, at his favorite wooden stool.

He enjoyed leaning over onto the bar to rest himself on his elbows. It helped him calm himself, and reminisce of the some of the old times that were actually good.

He took out his metal pocket lighter from his vest pouch, and lit himself a cigarette.

He took a deep drag from his cigarette, and slowly exhaled.

"Ahhhhhhh..." breathed Shikaku contently.

'Ah... I really needed a good drag...' thought Shikaku.

"You really shouldn't smoke those you know." said Choza.

Shikaku turned around in time to see Choza sit down next to him.

"You've told me that a million times, but what do I say every time?" asked Shikaku.

"(Sigh) You only live once, and the life of a Shinobi is fleeting..." mumbles Choza.

"Heh, that's right." said a voice.

A man with a long flowing blond ponytail sat down next to Choza. He wore a black cloak, and had a serious expression, as usual.

"About time." said Choza.

"According to the bar clock, I'm early." said Inoichi.

"According to my watch, which in synchronized to both of yours, you are late." said Shikaku.

"Alright whatever." mumbled Inoichi.

"Now now you two, let's not start a fight right off the bat." said Choza.

"Right. Now you both know what I want to talk about." said Shikaku.

They both nodded.

"This is a deeply concerning matter... You were sure that they were identical?" asked Inoichi.

"I'm positive. Even the stroke patterns and positions were completely identical. It was as though it was created by the same person" said Shikaku.

"It is impossible for this information to have gotten out. The fourth never would have shared such a forbidden seal with anyone, let alone another village." said Choza.

"Then why do we have a shinobi from another village with that exact seal?" asked Inoichi.

All three of them sat for a moment before Shikaku quickly stood up.

"I'm going to ask Tsunade's permission to access the fourth Hokage's private archives. You two dig up whatever you can in the meantime." said Shikaku.

"Yondaime had private archives?... Hokage's can have private archives?" exclaimed Choza.

"No of course he doesn't, and no they can't. All matters relating to Konoha are always run through the counsel first before being archived." said Inoichi.

"Yeah, sure Inoichi, you just keep thinking that." chuckled Shikaku.

Inoichi angrily stood up from his seat.

"Are you insinuating that you know something that I don't?" exclaimed Inoichi angrily.

"Yes. But I wouldn't worry about that if I were you. I would worry about who's son is courting your daughter." said Shikaku with a smirk.

Inoichi's frown turned into a look of surprise.

"No... Don't tell me..." stammered Inoichi.

"Alright I won't tell you." said Shikaku.

Shikaku calmly walked out the door, and left the two at the bar.

Choza saw and recognized the look on Inoichi's face.

He knew that he needed to diffuse the situation before something bad happened.

"Now Inoichi... There's no need to let this blow out of proportion..." began Choza.

"Gah! It's Shikamaru! I know it! Him and that cool I-don't-care lazy disposition!" exclaimed Inoichi out of paranoia.

"Now, Inoichi, you have no way of knowing that..." began Choza.

Inoichi quickly stood up from his chair.

"It's Shikamaru! That's why Shikaku knows before me! Ino wouldn't tell me because she'd probably think that I'd over-react!" exclaimed Inoichi madly as he flailed his arms wildly.

'She'd be right to think so...' thought Choza with a sweatdrop.

"It's alright Inoichi, just calm down. It's not like you know that they've had sex or something like that." reasoned Choza.

"..."

"SEX! Oh My God!" exclaimed Inoichi in tears.

Inoichi burst from the bar in a rush.

"Ino! Daddy's coming for you! Daddy will keep the dirty boys away!" shouted Inoichi in stress.

Choza was left alone at the bar.

"(Sigh) It's ironic. Despite my clan's famous temper... those two will always over-react before I do..." muttered Choza.

---

Jiraiya had finally made his way to the designated apartment. Of course, the busy and bustling streets of Konoha did make it a bit difficult to negotiate through.

"Apartment Complex 4... A strictly shinobi complex..." said Jiraiya.

The only sure-fire way to tell if a complex in Konoha was only inhabited by Shinobi, was to simply look for stairs.

'No stairs... That figures. ' thought Jiraiya.

He walked forward and looked straight up the wall of the building.

'Rather tall building for an apartment complex...' thought Jiraiya.

Jiraiya made sure he had a good grip on Tsunade, and planted his feet onto the wall of the complex.

Jiraiya slowly made his way up the wall, trying to keep his steps even and fluid.

'I wouldn't want to wake Tsunade...' thought Jiraiya.

He came to the first veranda, which was built with a convenient gaping hole for Shinobi to walk through.

Jiraiya walked through and made it to the second veranda.

'So far so good...' thought Jiraiya.

"Jiraiya? Tsunade?" asked a voice from his left.

To his left, standing on the veranda, was Asuma Sarutobi, enjoying a cigarette.

"Asuma? What brings you here?" asked Jiraiya.

Suddenly Asuma became nervous.

"Oh I was uh... um...(cough) I was just enjoying the view..." stammered Asuma uncomfortably.

"Eh?" muttered Jiraiya in confusion.

Jiraiya looked behind Asuma to see an apartment door with a box of chocolates and a bouquet of flowers rested against it.

"Ah... I see now. I'm guessing that a certain cutie-pie lives there?" asked Jiraiya slyly.

"W-wha(ahem) whatever do you mean?" asked Asuma awkwardly.

"Don't try to hide it. You left those chocolates for the woman who lives there."said Jiraiya observantly.

"(Sigh) I don't suppose it would do me any good to deny it..." said Asuma in defeat.

"So... What's her name?" asked Jiraiya.

"Hehe... (Sigh)... It's Kurenai." said Asuma.

"Heh-Haaaaa! Yuuhi? By God I never thought she would ever end up with anyone! That's great! So how long have you two been together?" asked Jiraiya happily.

"To date?... Zero minutes and zero seconds." said Asuma sadly.

"Ah. Still courting her eh? I know where you're coming from there..." said Jiraiya.

They both looked down at Tsunade for a moment.

"So, are you two together? Or are you still traveling that rocky path?" asked Asuma.

"Eh... At this point, I'm not quite sure myself." said Jiraiya.

"Well, I suppose uncertainty is better than being certain that she will never love you." said Asuma.

"...I suppose." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"Well, I had better get moving, I have something I need to be doing." said Jiraiya.

"Right. Well it was nice seeing you." said Asuma.

"Likewise." said Jiraiya.

Jiraiya continued on to the third veranda wall, and carefully stepped onto the decking that surrounded the complex of that floor.

'Floor three...' thought Jiraiya.

Jiraiya walked halfway around the building which took around a minute.

He came to an entrance door that was larger than the other doors.

He walked in, and saw a long hallway, which he knew also intersected a great number of other hallways.

He walked down the hallway, counting the numbers displayed above each hallway.

'15... 16... 17... 18... 19. Hallway 19 contains apartments 90 - 95' thought Jiraiya.

He turned right and followed down the hall, stopping at the first door on the right.

'Room 90...' thought Jiraiya.

Jiraiya looked down at Tsunade.

She was still asleep.

'She certainly is peaceful when she is asleep...' thought Jiraiya.

"Tsunade." said Jiraiya quietly.

Tsunade twitched a bit.

"Tsunade, it's time to wake up." said Jiraiya.

Tsunade yawned and put her hand to her forehead.

Jiraiya set her down on the ground, and she firmly planted her feet, rubbing her eyes for a bit while she collected her consciousness.

"We there?" asked Tsunade.

"Yeah." said Jiraiya.

Jiraiya reached forward and knocked on the door.

(knock)

They waited for a moment before knocking again.

(knock!)(knock!)

(Clang!) "Fuck! Aw Fuck!" exclaimed a voice.

"..."

"(Heavy Sigh)Yeah?" shouted a voice irritably.

"...We are here to see Tyler." said Tsunade.

"..."

"Just a moment." said the voice.

(Clang)

"Crap..."

(Cling-clang)

"Wait no! Maybe if I..." began the voice.

(Clang-BANG!-ting-CRASH!)

"God! Mother F$&ing F$%*! God! ...F*$%#$&#%&$#%%&#!" exclaimed the voice.

"..."

They heard the sound of metallic cluttering, and feet shuffling around.

"Hello?" asked Jiraiya.

"..."

"Are you alright?" asked Jiraiya.

"Just a minute!" exclaimed the voice.

After the cluttering sounds stopped, they heard footsteps coming towards the door.

The door opened and Tsunade immediately jumped backwards in surprise, nudging into Jiraiya.

Standing at the door to greet them was a person with a large square metal mask on. The mask had a small window pane for the wearer to see through, but the overall look seemed foreboding.

"What do you want now?" asked the person.

Tsunade blinked in surprise. She recognized the voice. Sure the voice was muffled behind the mask, but she recognized it.

"Ashley? Is that you?" asked Tsunade.

"Yeah." said Ashley.

Ashley lifted up the mask to reveal a green-eyed, dirty, yet pretty face.

"Who else could it have been?" asked Ashley.

"Tyler. It could have been Tyler. Speaking of him, where is he?" asked Jiraiya.

"Oh God, what did he do now?" asked Ashley worriedly.

'The fact that she always assumes the worst of Tyler doesn't speak much for the guy...' thought Jiraiya.

"We were hoping nothing. But we need to speak with him to be sure." said Tsunade.

Ashley seemed to study Tsunade for a moment before answering.

"You want to speak with Tyler... Because you think he has done something wrong?" asked Ashley.

"Yes. It is of utmost importance." assured Jiraiya.

Ashley's eyes narrowed.

"You ask this of me... without providing any details?" asked Ashley.

"We didn't think it necessary to..." began Jiraiya.

"Oh shut up. You won't tell me because you don't trust me." interjected Ashley.

Jiraiya and Tsunade blinked in surprise.

"You have found something out, or you need to find something out. Or maybe it is both. Either way, you need to get to Tyler, meaning you need specific information from him. But because you won't immediately let me in the loop, that means you don't trust me. And if you don't trust me at this point, you don't trust Tyler either." said Ashley quickly.

Tsunade and Jiraiya both stood there in surprise. They didn't know how to react to this.

"I thought that you trusted me when you let me into your home that night. I found it suspicious that you seemed to be keeping something from me, but I shrugged it off. I assumed it had either slipped your mind, or you didn't feel it pertinent to tell me. Either way, I don't care. You were just using me, to try to get to Tyler." said Ashley.

"That's not how it is..." began Tsunade.

"Don't lie. You noticed a pattern in Tyler. One of his many patterns. If he doesn't want to talk about something, he disappears. Inconvenient isn't it? Whatever you want to know must be something he doesn't want to talk about. And if he doesn't want to talk about it... Then it can't be any good." said Ashley.

"You misunderstand. This is a matter of village security." assured Jiraiya.

"Look. I know Tyler. I know him better than any of you possibly could. So if you want to speak to Tyler so badly... Go God damn find him yourself." said Ashley spitefully.

Ashley slammed the door in their faces, surprising them both.

"..."

"Harsh is the scorn of a woman." said Jiraiya.

"But deadly is the scorn of a man like Tyler. If Tyler hears that Ashley no longer trusts us... I have a feeling that he won't trust us either. And he may do something stupid and drastic... Like a man would." said Tsunade.

"(Sigh) Lets not make this sexist, alright?" said Jiraiya.

Jiraiya turned and began walking down the hall.

Tsunade quickly followed after him.

"Where are you going?" asked Tsunade.

"Well, if we want to find Tyler... Maybe we should just check places he would most likely be." said Jiraiya.

"Oh? And where would that be?" asked Tsunade.

"Um, how about at work?" asked Jiraiya.

"Work? Where does he work?" asked Tsunade.

"...He works for you." said Jiraiya.

"..."

"Oh yeah..." mumbled Tsunade.

"...You really should stay off the liquor for a while." sighed Jiraiya.

---

As he wheeled himself through his home, he realized how lonely his home was when it was empty.

With his wife's death, he was greatly depressed, but still had two lovely daughters and a nephew to look after.

He used to enjoy their company. Teaching and training them when he could, while giving them the lessons of life.

But now, all three were out of the home during the day, and he realized that he was very lonely without them.

He made his way past the kitchen, where no one had been for a few days.

He knew this because the chair he fell over in during his heart attack was still tipped over on the kitchen floor.

"(Sigh)"

'Hanabi is a Genin, and is always gone on D-rank missions with team-collaboration training. Hinata is a Chunnin, and is always needed out on the field as a scout and point guard. Neji is a Jounin, and he never seems to have any time for himself, let alone his family.' thought Hiashi.

That's how it usually was, things were always busy.

But now, things were blown all out of proportion.

'Hanabi is having drinking problems... Hinata is a Jinchuriki... And Neji might not even come back...' thought Hiashi sadly.

He began to wheel his way through the impossibly long and ornamental hallway which started at the end of the kitchen.

'I should get someone to clean up the kitchen while I'm out...' thought Hiashi.

As he wheeled himself through the hallway, he took notice of the decor that seem to populate the entire hallway.

There were swords and armor, vases and lamps, and pictures and scrolls galore.

Hiashi stopped and looked at a portrait on the wall to his left.

It was a family portrait.

Unfortunately the picture was taken shortly after his wife's death.

All of the years of being a practical diplomat had hardened him, but nothing had ever prepared him to raise and care for a family by himself.

In the portrait, Hiashi was standing in the middle of a rather empty deck. He had his hands on Hinata's shoulders, and Hinata held a baby Hanabi.

Hiashi felt tears coming up.

He remembered his wife. Her gentle touch, her timid nature, and her over-caring emotions.

It made his heart ache terribly to think of his lost beloved.

But what hurt him the most was the expressions in the portrait.

Hinata looked like she was trying to smile, but it was obvious she wasn't happy.

Her eyes were very watery, and she looked to be on the verge of crying.

Hiashi wiped his eyes on his sleeve and quickly continued down the hall before he got too caught up in the past.

As he made his way to the front of his home, he took deep breathes, calming himself and regaining his famous composure.

He finally wheeled his way to the front door.

He opened it and stopped outside on the deck.

He looked down and remembered that the deck had a stairway that led downstairs into the lawn.

'The Hyuuga manor is mostly wheelchair accessible... But not the front door...' thought Hiashi.

He could go all of the way around, but that would take over 15 minutes.

"(Sigh)"

'Okay... I can do this...' thought Hiashi.

He wheeled his wheelchair to the edge of the stairs, and took a deep breathe.

He quickly lunged the chair forward, hopping it into the air.

He spun around backwards, and caught the wheel baring on the railing.

The chair quickly ground itself down the entire railing, and Hiashi quickly hopped the chair up again before he reached the end.

He spun the chair back around again, and landed perfectly on the ground, skidding to a halt.

"Ha! Take that old age!" exclaimed Hiashi triumphantly.

He wheeled forward...

"Gah!"

Only for his wheelchair to fall into about 17 pieces.

Hiashi laid face first on the floor, not wanting to move.

"..."

"Can someone help me?" called Hiashi.

"..."

"Anyone!" exclaimed Hiashi.

"..."

"I think I broke a hip..." mumbled Hiashi.

---

The branches whizzed past them. Hundreds of trees blurred past them every minute, leaving countless openings for enemy attacks.

Traveling in this manner through the branches of trees seemed dangerous, but each of them had been traveling everywhere in such a manner, ever since they had learned proper chakra control when they were Genin.

It was just something they were used to.

'We are almost to the checkpoint. Soon we will be where we need to be, and everything will be better.' thought Kakashi.

As the team jumped across the branches, Kakashi worried about Naruto.

He looked back at him.

Naruto was depressed, out of place, and sad.

Naruto's emotions seemed so obvious, but it wasn't anything Kakashi could solve himself.

Kakashi sighed and looked forward again, concentrating more on his jumping to keep his mind off of him.

'I can't be worrying about things like this all of the time. I planned on using this trip as a vacation, so I don't need any extra stress.' thought Kakashi.

He wanted to relax, he wanted to stop worrying about him.

But he cared about Naruto, he couldn't just stop caring.

'But in this situation... It is best that I do next to nothing to solve it.' thought Kakashi.

Besides, it seemed like Hinata was already on her way to helping him.

She just didn't know how.

'I want to get him to feel better... It really isn't his fault...' thought Hinata.

As everyone jumped, they kept in groups.

Yamato jumped up front next to Kakashi and Sasuke.

Neji and Ten Ten jumped in the back-left of the group by themselves.

Kurenai and Anko held the back-right, while Naruto and Hinata kept to the center of the group.

Everyone had been traveling for a while, so anything of interest seemed all the more interesting.

Any action, emotion, or conflict would stand out to them. Anything else was better than watching blurring trees 24/7.

And right then, the only thing of interest was that Hinata held a concerned expression on her face.

'He looks so sad... He seems to be deep in thought.' thought Hinata.

'She's staring at him...' thought Yamato.

'Hinata... She cares so much for him...' thought Kurenai.

'I'm so bored...' thought Anko.

Hinata continued to watch him for over 10 minutes.

It wasn't hard to do, watching Naruto was something she enjoyed. Even if he was sad, he would always be her Naruto.

Suddenly Naruto turned his head and looked right at her.

'Finally! Eye contact!' thought Anko.

'Getting a bit interesting...' thought Sasuke.

Hinata blinked in surprise and blushed at being caught watching him.

"Do you want something Hinata?" asked Naruto.

Naruto's expression was still sad, but he also seemed a little concerned.

Hinata held her breathe and she quickly shook her head back and forth in response.

"Alright. Let me know if you need anything." said Naruto.

Naruto turned his attention forward once again, returning to his thinking.

Hinata breathed in and collected herself.

'Kakashi said that Naruto probably wants to think... So maybe the best thing I can do for him is to let him think...' thought Hinata.

Hinata diverted her attention to herself, but found that she kept concentrating on her body.

She kept looking at her hands, although they were hidden under her long sleeves, she could perfectly see them.

'I'm still getting used to feeling... so different...' thought Hinata.

She clenched her hands, feeling the almost over-whelming power flowing through her.

'Ever since that incident with Naruto...' thought Hinata.

(Flashback)

"Naruto... how... how do you feel?" asked Kakashi as he cautiously approached him.

"Funny." said Naruto.

"Funny? What, bad funny? Funny funny? or Rita Rudner funny?" asked Kakashi.

"Bad fffffffunny." said Hinata with a giggle.

She continued to feel up Naruto while he began to stumble.

"Yeah, bad fu..." said Naruto as he collapsed along with Hinata.

They both laid there on the ground, and Sakura quickly got up and ran to their sides to check their pulses.

"Oh God! They're going critical! Their heart's are beating way too slow!" shouted Sakura.

Hinata could feel her senses fading. The first gone was her sense of touch.

The feeling of Naruto's body in her arms faded away.

She could faintly hear frantic voices nearby, but all sounds began to fade away.

Her vision faded to black, it was almost as though her body no longer existed.

Everything became fuzzy.

She became worried. With nothing to see, nothing to hear, and nothing to feel, she began to fear.

And with that fear, she began to get her mind back into place.

'Ugh... What is this?' thought Hinata drowsily.

The first thing she noticed was that she suddenly had footing.

She was supporting herself on something very hard, something metal.

The second thing she noticed was that her feet felt wet.

Cold and wet.

Just like the air she realized she was breathing.

'Am I alive?' thought Hinata.

The darkness around her began to turn a lighter color of gray.

The grayness faded into a wall of metal directly in front of her.

It looked as though the wall was made up of random sheets of metal that were poorly welded together. She was surrounded by sheet metal and random piping on all sides. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all metal.

As everything lightened, she realized that she was standing in a dank and wet corridor.

'I don't know where I am... But I don't like it here...' thought Hinata.

Although this all seemed strange to her, she walked forward through the corridor.

Time seemed to stop in this place, but it seemed like she had been walking forever. She had no real idea of how much time had passed. She couldn't see the sun, if there even was one in this place, so she couldn't tell what time of day it was. For all she knew it was night time.

She continued to walk.

The water at her ankles was cold and bothersome.

But that became irrelevant when she began wondering how much time she was wasting here, and where she even was.

She worried about that... until she felt something.

Suddenly she felt a very comfortable aura about her body.

It was as though a warmth had found her in the depths of this godforsaken place.

She followed the source of the warmth.

It was calling to her, beckoning her to follow.

The comfort reminded her of Naruto. The feeling of his warm arms wrapped around her, his body pressed against her own.

She ran towards the warmth in desperation, taking many many seemingly random turns.

It seemed like an eternity since she had first arrived in this place, and this aura continued to taunt her.

She was cold, alone and scared, but the warmth seemed ever-present, and she knew she was getting closer to the source.

She finally came to a very long corridor.

Fairly far down the the corridor, she could see a glow of warmth emanating from a doorway on the left.

She made a dash towards the door, the warmth continuing its ever-present call, promising comfort and retreat from the cold creepy corridors.

She whipped around into the doorway, but stopped herself in surprise.

She didn't expect what she saw.

She expected something pleasant. Something warm and nice to look at.

Instead there was a large barred jail cell that seemed to take up most of the far wall of the room. This was the first room she had actually come across. As far as she knew, everything else had been corridors.

She had come this far, and waited so long to get to this room.

Even if she didn't know what it was or why, she had to know for sure.

She cautiously walked forward.

As soon as she stepped into the room, she felt as though her energy was slowly being stripped from her.

It was as though her energy was physically being sucked upwards into the air.

'I can feel my chakra being sucked away... But I don't know where it's going... Or what's taking it...' thought Hinata.

She ignored the feeling and continued forward.

She noticed that the water got deeper the closer she got to the cage, and it also got warmer.

The aura of warmth was still there, she could feel it. It was the strongest she had felt it yet. It seemed to get stronger when she got closer to the far wall. The closer she got to the cell, the warmer it got.

She eventually made her way up to the other side of the, room stopping not three feet from the cage.

Now that she was so close, she noticed that the bars of the cage were made of cold iron. Each bar was at least three feet thick.

She began to wonder what monstrosity would need to be held behind such a strong prison.

She suddenly jumped back in surprise.

She had heard something shift within the cell.

By the sound of it, whatever moved was very big, and very dense. When it shifted, the ground shook in correspondence, telling her that whatever it was, it was very heavy as well.

Suddenly, a gust of very warm air hit her in the face, knocking her backwards into the water.

She scrambled to her feet in surprise and took a Jyuuken stance.

The warm gust of air had her surprised, but then a second one hit her.

She still jumped a bit, but it was then that she realized something.

She stood completely still in shock, her eyes wide, and her breathing was slow and cautious.

'Its breathing... The warm gusts of air are its breathe...' thought Hinata.

Whatever was in this cell, behind the shroud of darkness, was alive.

And she was in the same room with it.

She held her breathe, and walked forward, quietly and slowly.

She reached the bars again, and rested her hand against it, peering carefully into the cell.

Suddenly, she felt a wave of power flow through and around her, slowly rushing from the cage.

Large eyes, each one larger than her entire body, opened in the darkness.

The eyes were blood red with giant black slit for a pupil.

Looking into them was an equivalent of looking into the depths of the eyes of Satan.

'A chakra...' thought Kyuubi.

"Who dares disturb my slumber?" boomed Kyuubi.

Hinata fell backwards in surprise, holding her hands over her ears to tone down the explosive sound emanating from the darkness.

"I don't know who you are... But you have chosen the wrong place to intrude!" boomed Kyuubi.

Kyuubi stood up in his cage, drastically towering over Hinata.

The Kyuubi's chakra rushed from the cage, blowing past her with hurricane-like force.

"Prepare yourself for an abrupt and painful decimation of your body, mind, and soul." boomed Kyuubi.

Hinata could feel tears flowing down her face. She was so full of fear, she couldn't move. She knew that she was going to die.

"Suffer my wrath mortal!" growled Kyuubi.

Hinata shut her eyes tight, and cried out in agony of pure fear.

"Naruto!" screamed Hinata.

At the sound of her voice, Kyuubi stopped his movement.

His giant head loomed way down to Hinata's height, and glared at her form.

"That name she screamed... That chakra seeping from her body... " mumbled Kyuubi.

The powerful chakra completely died down, and only the familiar soothing warmth remained once more.

Suddenly, a red and furry arm shot out from the darkness.

It quickly grasped Hinata's body and lifted her into the air.

Kyuubi's hand moved up until it was inches from Kyuubi's face.

He looked at her closely, examining her carefully.

'Her chakra is wonderfully graceful, but she seems to have an irregularity... A second chakra hidden deep within.' thought Kyuubi.

"My, my, You are a special little kitling aren't you?" asked Kyuubi.

Kyuubi looked into his hand, and noticed that the little human was shaking like a leaf and crying profusely.

"Oh." mumbled Kyuubi.

'I should make her more comfortable' thought Kyuubi.

Hinata was still very shaken from the monster's appearance and rage.

Her head fell back in defeat, and she looked straight up.

She could now see her chakra leaving her body.

It was being sucked upwards to the ceiling, but when it hit the ceiling, it seemed to keep going past it, as though the ceiling wasn't there.

Before Hinata could think more about where her chakra was going, a second stream of chakra suddenly came down from the ceiling.

The chakra was perhaps the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Kyuubi didn't seem to notice this, he was still preoccupied with this interesting intruder.

One of Kyuubi's tails wove its way out of the cell, and grasped itself around Hinata in place of his hand.

Hinata felt the warm, soft, and velvety fur of the monster's tail grasp around her.

At the same time, the chakra that came down from the ceiling shot into Hinata's body, flowing quickly throughout her.

Images of Naruto immediately rushed through her mind.

Naruto's soft tail brushing against her face, his strong arms holding her to his well sculpted chest.

Her body relaxed, and she cuddled into Kyuubi's tail.

"Naruto..." whispered Hinata with a blush.

Kyuubi's ears perked up.

'She says his name as if she knows him... But I cannot see another soul that wanders in here, I can't identify who she is...' thought Kyuubi.

All Kyuubi could see, was a small fire of chakra that his tail was wrapped around.

'And yet she seems so familiar...' thought Kyuubi.

Suddenly, the giant eyes behind the great iron cage cringed in pain.

A large amount of chakra suddenly shot out of the cage like a hurricane of unstoppable power.

"What is going on!" demanded Kyuubi.

An unknown force was taking Kyuubi's power, draining it from him. This was no problem to him, seeing that he reproduced chakra at an incredible rate. But for someone to steal it from him, was an insult.

'This better be you doing this kit...' thought Kyuubi.

Kyuubi looked down at the small human in his tail, watching as her eyes slowly closed.

She couldn't see anything. Her vision had gone from a dark prison, to bright orange.

A ferocious orange that seemed to rage everywhere around her.

She could feel herself slipping from consciousness.

She already didn't know where she was, but now she was losing it again.

Suddenly everything flashed white and she felt something pressed against her.

She could feel herself standing now...

And something was grabbing her butt.

She opened her eyes to see Naruto face-to-face with her.

(End Flashback)

'I still remember the feeling of his hand on my body...' thought Hinata with a blush.

Hinata fantasized about that for a moment before returning to her thoughts.

'But aside from that, the entire hallucination with that furry monster in that terrible place wasn't pleasant, and it seemed too real to be a dream.' thought Hinata.

And then there was that drastic difference in power she felt after she woke up.

'I could feel the power flowing through me, power like never before...' thought Hinata.

But that feeling of power went away several times, only to be replaced by a feeling of complete weakness.

'I keep going back and forth between strong and weak... I don't know what's going on with my body...' thought Hinata worriedly.

Right now, she felt strong, but she didn't have any idea how long that feeling would last.

She continued to jump, absent-mindedly thinking about the incident and how it affected her.

(CRACK!)

Hinata jumped straight into a large tree.

But instead of hitting the surface and stopping, her body ripped through it like paper.

Hinata had an astounded look on her face as she fell from the boughs, missing the next branch because of the jump through the tree.

"Did anyone else hear a loud noise?" asked Anko.

Suddenly an orange blur swooped down, grabbed Hinata, and quickly caught back up with the group.

Naruto held Hinata bridal style, but Hinata was still amazed by what just happened to notice.

"What just happened?" asked Kakashi.

Half of the Shinobi who were not paying attention were now wide awake.

Either because of the noise of Hinata going through the tree, or because some wooden shrapnel had hit them.

"What do you mean what just happened?" asked Naruto.

"That noise, that explosion of wooden splinters, what was that?" asked Yamato.

"You're guess is as good as mine..." said Naruto.

Kakashi and Yamato looked at each other in confusion.

Kakashi was about to ask Naruto is he was sure, but he stopped himself when he saw the look in Naruto's eyes.

Naruto was busy paying attention to Hinata, who was still a bit spaced out.

"Hinata." said Naruto.

Hinata blinked and shook herself from her stupor.

"N-Naruto-kun... What just happened?" asked Hinata quietly.

"Well... You just happened. It appears as though some excess chakra is leaking into your chakra coils. And it must be some strong stuff, because it seems to have strengthened your cellular structure quite well." said Naruto quietly.

Hinata's eyes widened a bit.

"Y-you mean... My... um, my Bijuu?" asked Hinata.

"It would seem so. You are slowly becoming a full-fledged Jinchuriki. My cute Hinata-chan." teased Naruto.

Hinata blushed and cuddled her head into Naruto's chest.

"This is all so sudden... One week ago I was a normal Shinobi with a crush on a Jinchuriki... And now I'm Jinchuriki in love with another Jinchuriki..." whispered Hinata with a smile.

Naruto blushed and smiled.

"Hinata..." chuckled Naruto in surprise.

"You know... You can put me down... Naruto..." muttered Hinata bashfully.

"Would you really mind if I carried you?" asked Naruto.

Hinata smiled and cuddled into him.

"No... I guess I wouldn't." said Hinata happily.

END OF CHAPTER