"But what you may not know is that… she is currently being held captive by the current Hokage of the leaf, Danzo Shimura."


"Hokage…" Naruto said sadly thinking about what that meant. The Hokage was supposed to be protecting people, not capturing them.

"How do you know that, Itachi-san?" Hinata asked. Although she trusted him, she wanted to be absolutely sure.

"I spoke with her myself while I was in the village and… this…" He touched the headband covering his eye. "Happened. She had a message for you both as well." Itachi smiled as Hinata and Naruto waited anxiously for his words.

"She loves and misses you both and to not worry about her." Itachi spoke to them. Hinata felt tears start to form in her eyes. It had been a while since she had cried. She promised herself she wouldn't cry as much. Naruto wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly to him, he too, was starting to tear up.

"We'll get her back, Hinata." Naruto said, rubbing the back of her hair. She nodded into his shoulder. "Even if we have to fight the entire leaf village... "

Jiraiya got a knowing look on his face and put his fingers to his chin. He had no doubt in his mind that Danzo was on to him. Not that he particularly minded any more, there wasn't anyone he could send that could defeat Naruto as he is now… or any of them for that matter. Maybe it would be better for them to get Danzo out of power… he only had a few spies left within Konoha and what they reported to him wasn't good.

"You know, Naruto. That isn't too bad of an idea…" Jiraiya said. Naruto looked at him confused. "Danzo has changed the village. It's entirely military now, the only remaining civilians are shop owners."

Naruto, Hinata and Sasuke's eyes widened, they couldn't believe it. The once peaceful welcoming village they had grown up in was gone. Well… not so welcoming to Naruto he had to admit, but he still loved the village all the same. He knew he had abandoned it, but maybe… if he went back… he could change it, make it better. His brow started to furrow and he looked to Jiraiya.

"We'll go back then and kick Danzo's ass to the curb. And we'll rescue Hanabi while we're at it!" Naruto said nodding. Hinata looked up at him with wide, teary eyes. She then smiled and wiped her eyes. Sasuke smirked, it would be great to return and teach his father a lesson.

"What about the Akatsuki?" Itachi asked. They may have defeated two members, but they were arguably the weakest of the group. It was going to get harder from this point forward.

"As long as they have more Bijuu to capture, Naruto can do as he pleases." Jiraiya said shrugging. "They are a legitimate threat, but I have it on good authority that they have to capture the Kyuubi last." He said crossing his arms. "But first kid… if you're going to try and take the Leaf village by force, you're going to need some allies. It just so happens you were able to preserve something they've been looking for…" He pointed to the puppet encased in glass. "He may not be in perfect condition but I'm sure the Kazekage would like to have that body back."

"Who was he?" Naruto asked, letting go of Hinata and walking up to the puppet.

"HIs name was Gaara. He was a the former Jinchuuriki of the Shukaku, the Ichibi." Jiraiya said. Naruto placed his hand on the glass and looked at the boy inside. Even though he did not know the boy personally he still felt a twinge of loss. He was just like him, a host to a bijuu. He was likely treated the same way by his village. Naruto pulled a small scroll out of his pouch and laid it on the ground. The glass orb vanished in a puff of smoke and the kanji for "puppet" appeared in the center of the scroll amongst an array of text.

"What did you do?" Hinata asked.

"I sealed him inside of a scroll so we can get him to the Kazekage faster. Ero-sennin is right, we need some allies if we're going to try and take back Konoha." Naruto said, tying up the scroll and returning it to his pouch before grabbing her hand.

"All right! Let's go to Suna!" Naruto said, pumping his free hand into the air before starting to march forward. He stopped after a few steps and looked back sheepish at Jiraiya.

"Which way to Suna?" he asked rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. Hinata giggled while Sasuke put his palm to his face, some things didn't change.

Jiraiya slapped his forehead. "Are you kidding me kid?" He said before sighing.

"First of all, it's West of here." Jiraiya pointed in the correct direction. "And second of all… I'm not going with you." Jiraiya said.

"What? Why not?!" Naruto asked annoyed.

"I've still got some work to do kid. Akatsuki was particularly active today, as you saw. But even if they are now two members down, they are still extremely dangerous. I've been working on this for the last three years and I think I've finally found something." Jiraiya explained.

"What did you figure out?..." Naruto asked hesitantly, he didn't like where this was going.

"I may have discovered the identity of the leader of the Akatsuki." Everyone's eyes widened. Even Itachi had never seen the man in person.

"How did you come by this information?" Itachi asked. The man in question was very secretive and would only appear as a hologram. The only thing Itachi knew was that the man had purplish grey eyes with six rings extending from the pupil.

"I have a great many spies." Jiraiya said proudly. "I've learned he's probably hiding somewhere within Ame. It will be difficult to get in there, as a matter of fact…" He thought for a moment, having an extra person might be helpful. "Itachi. I need you to come with me."

Itachi looked surprised for a moment. But then nodded, it was a logical choice.

"Nii-san…" Sasuke said, looking concerned for his brother. Itachi turned to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We are only going for recon. There would not be a need to start a fight with him. Even if it is truly him that is there." Itachi said, Sasuke only nodded and Itachi let go of his shoulder and turned to Naruto and Hinata.

"Hinata-san, how is your medical ninjutsu?" Itachi asked. Hinata let go of Naruto's hand.

"I can heal most wounds and likely reattach a limb. There are some things that simply can't be healed though…" She replied. Itachi nodded and put his hand in his pouch. He searched around for a moment before pulling out a small vial from his pack. Within this vial, was an intact round eye, with a four spiked red and black pinwheel. Hinata put her hands to her mouth and gasped. Naruto and Sasuke's jaws dropped and Jiraiya looked curious about who's eye that had been.

"This eye belonged to my best friend, Shisui. He killed himself when Danzo had stolen his other eye. He entrusted this to me so Danzo could not have his way." Itachi said. "Please, implant this in me. With any luck, I can try and influence the leader of the Akatsuki with it."

Hinata looked at the eye apprehensively. She wasn't sure if she was going to be able to do it. She slowly reached up and grabbed the container. She nodded hesitantly.

"I-I will try." She said, now holding the jar as if her life depended on it. Itachi had a rare smile on his face. He knelt down and undid the sash covering his eye and opened it, revealing the empty socket. Hinata gulped and opened the jar to retrieve the eye inside. Everyone around was watching with baited anticipation. Hinata removed the eye from the jar, it had been floating in some kind of embalming fluid. She reached up with her right hand and placed it on Itachi's face. Her hand began to glow green, a numbing sensation began to spread across Itachi's face. She brought the eye to the socket and pushed. The eye entered with a muffled pop and she began using the healing palm. She used her Byakugan, to better help her see inside. She reattached the muscles around the eye as well as the optic nerve, vein and artery. She let out a breath and deactivated her Byakugan, closing her eyes. She opened them again and smiled.

"It's done now." She said, "You'll need to keep it covered for a bit but you should regain your vision in a few days."

Itachi stood up and replaced the headband over his eye. "Thank you." He said, before turning to Jiraiya and nodding.

Jiraiya turned to the trio of young ninja's. "Go to Suna and give them Gaara's body. Try not to antagonize them, Naruto." Jiraiya said the last part deadpan. Naruto just grinned and scratched the back of his head.

"You can find allies in other nations as well kid. There are still two Jinchuuriki out there. I've been keeping tabs on them over the last three years and they are still looking for a few of them… you included. Keep out of their sights as much as you can. These two were easy because they weren't expecting you. I promise you one thing kid; if and when they come for you, they will be much more prepared."

Naruto nodded. "I'll be careful. Not that they could beat me anyway." Naruto said with a smirk.

"Careful with that attitude kid. It'll get you killed." Jiraiya said, ruffling his hair.

"I'm not a kid anymore…" Naruto said whining. Jiraiya chuckled. "Sure."

He began to walk away from the group, Itachi in tow. Naruto got this sinking feeling in his stomach, like this was the last time he was going to see him. He shook it off.

"Kick his ass, ero-sennin!" Naruto yelled at Jiraiya's back. The man simply raised his arm but did not turn around and kept walking. Naruto watched as they vanished along the horizon and he couldn't help but let his worry show on his face.

"What's the matter Naruto-kun?" Hinata said, gently grabbing his hand. He squeezed her hand gently and looked at her.

He now had the chance to get a really good look at her. Her face was more grown up and just as beautiful if not more as when he had last seen her. He smiled lovingly at her as she blushed a bit under his gaze. He reached up and gently moved her hair, it was soft and silky to the touch. He let his hand rest on her face. She was staring at him intently, her face felt warm and she bit her lip. Naruto gently leaned in a gave her a kiss. She sighed into it the kiss. Even though they had kissed before, it still felt like it had been too long. They heard Sasuke clear his throat.

"Can we get going please?" Sasuke said with a hint of annoyance in his tone. Without breaking the kiss Naruto raised one finger to Sasuke, asking him to hold on a moment. He kissed her more deeply, she moaned against his lips. He broke the kiss apart, her eyes fluttering. He leaned in and gently kissed the side of her head. "We'll continue later." He whispered into her ear. Hinata's eyes widened and she shivered at his warm breath against her ear. Naruto pulled her along with him as she stood there in a daze with a blush on her face.

"You ok Hinata?" Sasuke asked. Hinata could only nod and let herself be pulled along by Naruto.


Kiba was jumping through the trees of the land of fire. He and a large Akamaru keeping track of the hunt they had been sent on. Danzo had provided them with Hinata's old leaf headband. It had been found inside the third Hokage's mansion and Danzo had decided to hold on to it, for just such an event as this. They had only gone a short way from Konoha, heading northbound. Recent talks with Danzo had revealed they had to be somewhere up that direction. Sakura followed behind them, her short pink hair moving with the passing wind, a sullen expression on her face. She was thinking about what they needed to do. It had been just over three years since she had last seen all of them. She could remember them all being at the academy together. Learning and playing together. Naruto acting like a dufus, Hinata always by his side and Sasuke… he mostly kept to himself. Sakura had observed him for some time, he was the object of her affection after all.

"Sakura." She heard her teammate, Shino, speak from her left. She just barely looked over to him.

"Are you going to be able to properly complete this mission?" He asked, "You do not seem to be in the correct state of mind for this mission. Why? Because I suspect you still have some emotional regard for Sasuke."

Sakura got annoyed by this. The way he nonchalantly was accusing her of being a burden to the mission.

"And what would you know about it?" She asked, her tone indicating she was not happy with him.

"I am no stranger to emotional attachment. I am not a statue, Sakura. I am simply working on objectivity. Now I will ask you again. Will you be able to complete this mission?" He said again, the tone of his voice never changing.

"I'll be fine." Sakura said looking away from him. She was angry. She didn't want to be on this mission. She still cared deeply for Sasuke and she missed him every day he was gone. Shino had never shown any kind of emotion, towards anything. Everything he did was through pure logic, he didn't know anything as far as she was concerned. She looked forward to Kiba and Akamaru who were still following the scent. She wondered how they felt about all of this, everything that had happened. Team 7 leaving, Danzo becoming Hokage, all the changes he made. She didn't like the new village. It felt cold and unwelcoming. Even though nothing had physically changed and she would still go about her missions as usual… it still felt off, like the light from the village was gone.

Kiba's eyes suddenly perked up and he got a feral grin on his face. The hunt was on.

"Yahoo! I've picked up her scent!" Kiba said, breaking Sakura out of her stupor. She smiled lightly. Even if they they had to drag them all back unconscious, she would definitely bring them all back. Shino's expression remained the same.

"Remember the plan guys. We find them, Shino, you'll immobilize them with your insects, draining their chakra. Sakura, you'll provide medical support if we need it." Kiba commanded.

"Who made you the leader?" Shino asked, raising one eyebrow. "We are equals in this team."

"Nah, I'm clearly the strongest." Kiba said with arrogance as they continued travelling through the trees. "This way, Yahoo!" Kiba yelled suddenly changing direction. Sakura and Shino both stopped and jumped after him.

"Strongest…" Shino said, a slight vein on his forehead. Sakura couldn't help but smile lightly. Maybe Shino did have some emotion.

"Don't worry about it Shino, he's not the strongest." She said, Shino moved his head to look at her. "I am." Sakura said with a grin.

Shino breathed out sharply, almost as if it was a huff. They were clearly underestimating him.


The Akatsuki had all gathered within a dark cavern, as they normally did. Seven figures stood around. One of them with his arms crossed, growing impatient.

"Where the fuck are they?" Hidan said, screaming at the room, asking no one in particular.

"Quiet Hidan." Kakuzu said, shooting him a look. Hidan was about to retaliate when he remembered his mouth being sewn shut. He did not like that experience, he wasn't allowed to eat for a week. He wisely kept his mouth shut, although with great reluctance. An eighth figure finally arrived. It was very large in shape, green pod like creature wearing the black and red Akatsuki cloak. The pod opened revealing a half white and half black man with green air within. The black half only featuring a yellow eye. The white half with proper facial features.

"Deidara and Sasori have fallen." The black half said in a deep raspy voice. "They were killed really quickly, by the Kyuubi." The white half said in a higher younger voice.

Kakuzu raised an eyebrow, Hidan's jaw was just about on the floor. The rest of the Akatsuki remained silent. Kisame grinned from the shadows.

"Zetsu, how did they die?" Pain asked, although it seemed more of a command.

"Deidara got blown up by his own creations." The white half replied, with a bit of a chuckle. Hidan grumbled and flipped Kakuzu a golden coin who caught it.

"How?" Pain commanded.

"It would see the Kyuubi can use every elemental affinity." The white half said. "Including some that you can't." The black half retorted.

Pain ignored the comment, "And Sasori?"

"Naruto has mastered control over his Bijuu and can make a full transformation. He was hit with a bijuudama." The white half said.

"Heh, that's all it took? He's more fragile than he looked." Kisame said with a toothy grin.

"Kisame." Pain said, looking at him. Kisame kept the grin but remained silent.

"For now, leave the Kyuubi. Find the other beasts. I will likely need to deal with him myself." Pain said. "As powerful as he is, he is nothing to a God."

With those words Pain's figure vanished from the dark cave along with the other holograms, leaving the dark cave perfectly still.