A/N I do not own Naruto or any of these characters! I just happen to enjoy them. MANGA SPOILERS If you are not current up to the 400s in this manga, this story contains canon references! I hope you enjoy this work in progress.

Through the Eyes of the Hyuuga

The sun was moments from the horizon as Neji looked out over the still ravaged landscape of Konoha. The quietude was a welcome change for the village, but soon an army of craftsman and workers would start hammering through the day , in the chaotic rhythm of rebuilding. He looked down with his pearl-colored, pupil-less eyes and sipped his tea and thought about the past, the recent past of the village, and of his own life. He thought of his father with fervent admiration for the man who gave his life in service to the main family so he could, in death, be free. The man who had done it willingly, and with resolve. "Have I become the man you wanted me to be, Father?" he thought as the day started to break and the soft sounds of morning in the Hyuuga main house reached his ears.

He turned from the window and began to dress for the day. As he looked around his room in the house of his Uncle, he felt at ease. Gone were the days that he despised and blamed his Uncle and the clan elders for the death of his father. After his chuunin exam defeat at the hands of Uzumaki Naruto, he had learned the truth. He would never forget the sight of his Uncle, Hyuuga Hiashi, bowing low at his feet. For the first time in his life he saw the pain the head of the Main family felt over the loss of his identical twin born only a few moments after him. Those were the few moments that determined the fate of his father to a Branch family that had shaped Neji's destiny until then. Similarly in the span of just a few moments alone with his hated Uncle Hiashi, things began to change. After finally hearing the truth, and reading it in his father's own hand, it was the first time in his young life that he got a taste of that sweet thing called freedom.

Thinking back, he painfully remembered how he nearly took the life of his cousin-sister Hinata. He unleashed his full power on her tiny frame, her existence alone keeping him locked away in the cage of destiny. He had set out to annihilate her and show the main house that he had attained mastery of the Byakugan bloodline trait far beyond the girl who by birthright would be the future of the Hyuuga main family. But even then, the changes were starting. In the battle, she showed him a determination he had never before seen in the timid girl. Clearly, he had the upper hand. And yet, she stood, badly injured and trembling, but determined to follow her way of the ninja, the way of Uzumaki Naruto. "You, Brother Neji, are suffering far greater than I." He had ignored her words in the battle, but her wisdom had finally made sense when the truth about his father had been revealed.

Hinata had known the pain of being a failure in her father's eyes. The true heiress was shamelessly passed off to a regular genin squad by Hiashi himself as he favored and nurtured the talents of her younger sister. They both suffered the pain of the Hyuuga clan in their own way. In the months and years following the chuunin exams, Neji had grown fond and proud of his cousin-sister who never gave up. Sure, he thought, she would always be shy. But he knew that her strong and kind heart would someday be her salvation. Though she may never have been the most gifted with the bloodline, she had profound kindness to everyone she met and an endless capacity both to love and to forgive. She also had the determination to learn, and to keep the ninja way of the boy she admired as her own nindo. He began to spar with her and help her develop her talents. She had her own unique way of using the Byakugan and she developed into a successful chunin as time went on. Even Hiashi had begun to take notice, and their relationship, though still cool and distant, was improving.

As he put on the traditional attire of the Hyuuga, he looked at the man in the mirror, the cool, serene eyes that were the Hyuuga clan's bloodline trait stared back . A Hyuuga, a jounin, a Konoha Shinobi, he was all of these things. But was he a man of whom his father could be proud? "Uzumaki Naruto," he thought, "you don't bend your words. You said when you became Hokage you would change the way of the Hyuuga. You vowed not to lose with Hinata's blood on your hand and you didn't lose. You showed me I alone had the power to change my destiny. You've become strong and I've seen the raw emotion that lies within your heart. I've seen your tears and anguish when we thought the Kazekage was lost and when Jiraiya never returned alive, and now I have seen you protect the village though it nearly cost you your life. You are making your dream of becoming Hokage a closer reality. We have all grown stronger. Father, is it time for our generation to lead? Am I ready to become the Hyuuga you always knew I could be?"

His thoughts were interrupted by a quiet knock on the screen to his room. "Neji-niisan? Are you awake?"

"Yes, Hanabi-sama," he replied to the second daughter of the main family. "I'm coming."

With that, he pushed away his musings and opened the door . "Good morning, Hanabi-sama. I trust you slept well."

"Yes."

The two cousin-siblings walked silently toward the garden to have tea and breakfast before heading out for what was sure to be another challenging day. They sat down quietly and began to prepare tea. Hanabi had never been comfortable around Neji. He was quiet like her sister, and she could never quite get a good read on his moods. In fact, to her, it seemed Neji only had one mood. Somber.

To her amazement, it was Neji who broke the uncomfortable silence. "Will Hinata-sama be joining us this morning?"

"She's already gone for the day," came the reply. Somehow, Neji knew that would be the answer. After all this time, even after his two year absence from the village to train with Jiraiya-sama one of the Legendary Three Nins, Hinata still had her silent and unrequited love for Naruto. No doubt she would be there, sitting silently in his room at the hospital as he slept, the only time she could be close to him and not faint dead away, a crimson blush coming to her cheeks. Neji knew Hinata had admired and even loved Naruto from afar for a very long time. In fact, Naruto seemed to be one of the very few people who wasn't aware of her admiration. Still, Neji would never betray the secrets of his cousin-sister's heart. She would have to overcome her shyness in her own time.

"Very well. I know I will see her shortly at the morning briefing from the Hokage." With that, Neji rose. "Thank you, Hanabi-sama, for your company this morning." He bowed to the second daughter and began to head toward the exit of the Hyuuga compound.

"Neji-niisan?"

"Yes?"

"Will you see Father today?"

"I'm not sure, Hanabi-sama. Do you have a message for him?"

"No, not really," sighed the young girl, "But if you see him, will you ask him if I could speak to him when he arrives home?"

"I will. Is that all?"

The girl nodded and Neji bowed again and turned to leave. Of the two princess sisters, Hanabi was the one with whom he felt the least comfortable. Where Hinata was shy and refined, the very epitome of what an heiress should be, Hanabi was forward and could be somewhat demanding of attention. The years of obvious favoritism from their only surviving parent had made her confident and prone to exaggeration. It was odd for her to be in a more quiet mood this morning, but even the princess had the weight of recent events on her young mind.

Neji started walking toward the Hokage mansion, taking a route that would pass the Konoha hospital. When the hospital came into view, he saw the familiar form of his cousin-sister Hinata exiting the main door. He quickened his pace, hoping to catch up with Hinata and ask how the patient she had been visiting was doing.

Hinata had started walking toward the Hokage mansion for the morning briefing when she sensed a familiar presence behind her. Turning, she saw her cousin-brother Neji approaching. She waited for him, thankful that she could have his company for the rest of the short walk to see Hokage Tsunade.

"Good morning, Hinata-sama," said Neji. After a short pause, he asked, "How is he?"

Hinata's face turned a shade of pink at the question. "Good morning, Niisan. H-He's still sleeping, but they say his life is no longer in danger."

"I am relieved."

"Y-Yes. I am as well," came the soft reply from the heiress. She was beautiful in every way, yet Neji could see the fatigue in her face. He thought that she must not have slept in days, worrying for the Shinobi she loved.

"Do not worry, Hinata-sama. He recovers fast, always has. He is strong, and has his dream to fulfill. He'll be fine. Just give it a little time. You should be resting yourself."

"Y-Yes, Neji-niisan. I-I know," she said almost inaudibly. She had grown to have a close bond with her cousin-brother, even closer than the one she shared with her sister. She knew he was aware of her feelings for Uzumaki Naruto, but he never said much or offered any unsolicited advice. He was respectful to a fault, and Hinata secretly was happy at least someone knew who would never utter a single word. She had never told him directly about her childhood crush, but she found out he already knew the day Naruto left with the legendary Jiraiya.

Neji had been helping her train that day on the grounds of the Hyuuga compound shortly after her father had brought him into the main house to live. It was Neji who stopped their sparring session early. He said, "Let's stop here for today, Hinata-sama." He had turned away from her and continued, "It should be about time. We won't be seeing him for a long time." That was all. He had never judged, he had never asked her questions. That was just Neji's way, and she was thankful for it. After that, she had run off to catch a glimpse of Naruto leaving the village for his training. The organization Akatsuki had targeted him for reasons unknown to her at the time, and he needed to prepare for what she came to learn would be life threatening battles ahead for him. It would be two long years without seeing the boy she admired the most. She had vowed to get stronger too, for not giving up was his way of the ninja, and it was now hers as well.

Now the Shinobi she loved had been near death defending himself and the village he loved with his whole body and heart. All she could do was watch him sleep and hope to see his beautiful face awake and happy again. She needed to be strong. She needed to stop fainting around him, too. Thankfully, Neji had never faulted her for that either.

Within moments, the two Hyuuga were upon the Hokage mansion. They saw many of the familiar faces of their comrades entering the building. Hinata remembered being part of the "Rookie Nine", thinking to herself how far away and carefree those times seemed compared to recent weeks. They could hardly be called rookies anymore. The nine Shinobi had all improved and were among Konoha's strongest. Combined with the strength of her cousin-brother's team from the year before, Konoha seemed to be blessed with a generation of talented Shinobi rivaling that of the time of the Village's founding by the Hyuuga and the other noble clans. Now they were the ones expected to battle for their Village, and Hinata took quiet pride in having the chance to show that she was not a failure, but a necessary stitch in the fabric of Konoha.

Two Shinobi approached them as they walked. Her teammates, Inuzuka Kiba and his Nin-dog Akamaru and Aburame Shino greeted them. The two young Shinobi were Hinata's best friends and she looked on them with an affection normally reserved for family. They had always supported her, and were like true brothers, not just brothers in arms. Together with Akamaru, they were known as an expert tracking team, and she was honored and proud to have worked with them for so long.

"Hey Hinata! Hi, Neji!" greeted the always cheerful Kiba. Shino gave his customary, "Hello," and quick nod.

"Hello, Kiba-kun, Shino-kun," replied the girl as Neji nodded to Hinata's teammates. He was definitely more fond of Shino, but maybe that was because he was also a quiet type. Kiba's endless enthusiasm reminded him of two of his own team members who could be extremely energetic to say the least.

"Shall we enter, Hinata-sama?"

"Y-Yes, let's go." The four Ninja and Nin-dog entered the mansion and began to make their way to the rooftop, nodding greetings to their fellow jounin and chuunin Shinobi as they walked. This was a high level briefing from their Hokage, Lady Tsunade. Even though the village saw the sun rise peacefully today, the Shinobi of Konoha instinctively knew their troubles were far from over.

The rooftop was awash with Konoha Shinobi as they awaited the news of the day from the Hokage. Neji could see his teammates and Sensei standing near the front and made his way toward them, leaving Hinata with her own team. He was thankful that she had two teammates who adored her and valued her in a way his Uncle never had. They would lay their life on the line for her, of that he was sure, and they helped Hinata become stronger in her own right. Ever since he started living in the Main house with Uncle and the two princesses, he had resolved to protect them with all of his being, in the same way his father had before him. But he knew that times were changing, and the young kunoichi could handle themselves well with or without his help. Even though it was his unspoken duty to protect them with his life, he had a feeling that he would not die protecting them as his father had all those years ago.

As Neji walked toward his teammates, one of them turned and motioned for him to hurry. There was the familiar face of the lone kunoichi on his team, TenTen, who was rapidly making a name for herself as the undisputed weapons master of Konoha. Although many of the other girls considered her to be somewhat of a tomboy, Neji knew from years of missions with the young woman that she was much more feminine than her playful, and, yes, often lethal exterior might suggest. Her hair tied up in twin braided buns on her head and her large scroll of summoning weapons secured to her shoulder, she was the person who he had opened up to more than anyone. She understood him in ways that few could or would. Neji was always happy to see her, even if he rarely expressed it.

"Hey, Neji," she said with a smile.

"Good morning TenTen, Lee, Gai Sensei, " he said as he greeted TenTen and the two most energetic men in all of Konoha, Rock Lee and Maito Gai. His Sensei and other teammate Lee could tire nearly anyone out with their exuberant attitudes and full throttle personality. They often pushed the quiet Neji, and even the more feisty TenTen to the limits of their sanity. But somehow, this collection of mismatches made for an incredibly fast and diverse battle squad, and they were highly sought after for the most difficult of missions.

As Neji received a hearty greeting from Gai and Lee, all eyes began to shift toward the rear of the building as two ANBU operatives and Shizune, the Hokage's ever present assistant emerged from the doorway. A hush came over the crowd of Shinobi as the Fifth Hokage, Lady Tsunade, strode onto the scene in what looked to be a particularly foul mood. Under the watchful gaze of the giant Hokage monument depicting the stone faces of herself and the four previous Hokage, she waited for silence.

When she was satisfied that she had the attention of everyone present she began to shout her briefing and her directives for the day.

"My fellow Shinobi. I have downgraded our emergency status to a level two, but do NOT, I repeat, do NOT become complacent! We are still under the threat of further attack! Although the village has survived thanks to all of your efforts, we have lost more than a few valuable Shinobi in this latest crisis against the organization known as Akatsuki. Though they are in retreat, we MUST not let them infiltrate our village again! We know that in our confrontations with various Akatsuki members over the last several months, they have lost several in their number. But while their leader Pain still breathes, the Shinobi of Konoha will NOT rest until they are eliminated!"

Neji listened to Tsunade thinking that it seemed the battles with Akatsuki never seemed to have a definite end. The organization had suffered losses. But it seemed rather like a starfish that would regenerate an arm if an arm was lost to an enemy. Every member they had encountered was an S-Ranked criminal, the highest deviant on any Village's Bingo Book. Also, there were always new members popping up that no one had met before. It seemed that the leader Pain was able to recruit some incredibly talented Shinobi. The promise of world domination was too much for these types of people to resist, he supposed.

"I have sent out my personal ANBU to forward positions to scout for information," Tsunade continued, "and I have instructed them not to engage the enemy without the full might of Konoha if at all possible. The rest of you will have different orders. Squads 11-25!"

"HAI!" came the collective response.

"You will take shifts along the perimeter of the Village. I want the walls patrolled twenty four hours a day with ZERO exceptions! Do not hesitate to report even the tiniest oddity! DISMISSED!"

"HAI!"

As the whooshing sound of the squads as they scattered was heard, Tsunade continued, "All remaining squads less teams seven, eight, ten, and two, will oversee the rebuilding and watch the Village from inside. Report any suspicious activity to my office IMMEDIATELY!"

"HAI!"

After the last squads scattered, only a few remained. Neji's team, team two, or team Gai, was the only one of the remaining three teams who still had all of its original members. The other teams had suffered losses. Hinata's team was without their Sensei, as the Yuuhi Kurenai was with child and was no longer sent out on missions. Her child, the child of Saritobi Asuma, son of the Third Hokage would be born soon.

Then there was team ten, the team formerly led by Saritobi Asuma. Akatsuki had already claimed his life, so this team, too, was without its Sensei. But Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino, and Akamichi Chouji had proven themselves as fine chuunin, and with Shikamaru as the brilliant strategist, they were a force to be reckoned with on their own. Neji thought surely that Shikamaru would be the next in their generation to join him in the rank of Jounin. A lazy personality belied his intellectual genius, and, Neji surmised, if it wasn't for that, he would already be a Jounin.

Lastly, there was team seven. This team had gone through the most changes since their childhood days. The team led by the great Hatake Kakashi, or, the Copy Ninja as he was known, had once consisted of Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto, and Uchiha Sasuke. But over the years, much had happened. The team had effectively been disbanded when the Uchiha left the Village, seeking out power from the Konoha's old nemesis, Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Three Ninja. Hokage Tsunade had taken on Sakura as her own apprentice in both the healing arts and the art of brutal physical attacks, and Naruto had gone off for two years to train with Jiraiya. The Three Ninja, or Sannin, had each an apprentice who seemed to be destined to surpass them, for better or for worse.

With both Naruto and Kakashi in the hospital recovering from the battle, team seven was represented by Sakura, their new team captain Yamato, and Sai, who was placed on the team by the village elders as a replacement for the missing Uchiha. Neji knew that Sai had been a member of ROOT. ROOT was a faction of ANBU Black Ops controlled by Danzou, one of the elders who had a strong distaste for Lady Tsunade as the Fifth Hokage. But it seemed that Sai was drifting away from his ROOT background, and slowly coming into the fold of Leaf Shinobi under Lady Tsunade's command. Neji thought to himself that surely Naruto had a hand in this evolving transformation. There seemed to be almost no limit to the change that Uzumaki Naruto could make in people.

After a few moments of tense silence, the Fifth Hokage spoke again, her tone lower. Neji sensed a hint of sadness and worry in her demeanor as she continued.

"I have received some disturbing information from the Raikage of the Village hidden in the Cloud. We have been aware for some time that the Cloud had among them two Jinchurriki. This has made them a target of Akatsuki as well. The host of the two tails was captured and killed by Kakuzu and Hidan, a pair that we have successfully eliminated, though not without paying a grave price."

At this, Neji noticed the faces of Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru tighten into a collective frown of distaste. It was they, along with Kakashi and Naruto, who had dealt the fatal blow to the pair that took the life of their sensei Asuma. Though the Akatsuki's primary goal was the capture of the Tailed Chakra Beasts, many of which were sealed in humans somewhat callously labeled Jinchurriki, they had been known take the time to collect bounty on the Black Market for other Shinobi across the world. Unfortunately, Asuma had a price on his head too large for them to resist engaging him when confronted. Though they never collected the bounty, they dealt Konoha a huge blow at the death of one of its elite Jounin.

Tsunade went on, "I have just received word from the Cloud that the second of their Jinchuuriki was also captured. The host of the Eight Tails was the younger brother of the Raikage himself. The group of four Shinobi who captured him wore the black cloak with the red cloud design of Akatsuki."

'Four Shinobi?' thought Neji. That was odd. Up until this latest attack on Konoha by the leader and his, well, corpse-like puppets, for lack of a better term, Akatsuki was known to only travel in pairs of two. When he was on the mission to help rescue Gaara of the Desert, the Sand Village's Kazekage, there were two enemies responsible for his kidnapping. Deidara was the one who used chakra explosives, and the other was Sasori of the Red Sand, the puppet master and missing nin from the Sand Village. He was defeated by Sakura and one of the Sand Village elders in an intense battle. Hidan and Kakuzu also traveled and fought together as a pair.

Another pair Konoha had encountered was the pair of Hoshigaki Kisame of the Hidden Mist, whom his own team had had difficulties with and Uchiha Itachi, the brother of the Konoha's own missing nin, Uchiha Sasuke. Itachi was the man who annihilated his own clan save his younger brother in one night, and whose target had been Uzumaki Naruto, the Jinchurriki and host of the Nine Tailed Demon Fox. There had been another two who may not have necessarily been a pair about which Neji knew even less, but that he knew Hinata had encountered with her team on a mission to locate Uchiha Itachi.

"The fact that in this instance the Akatsuki doubled their number to capture the Jinchurriki is not what concerns me most." The Fifth Hokage stared directly at team seven and her pupil Sakura when she continued, "What concerns me most is that the Raikage is certain that one of the four had the crest of the Uchiha clan on his clothes."

Neji could hear Sakura draw in a quick breath at the mention of the Uchiha name. The others tensed as well, having a good idea of where this was going. "The Raikage has requested us to give him any and all information regarding Uchiha Sasuke, and has formally requested him to be designated an S-Rank Criminal."

Her statement was met with a heavy silence as the young Shinobi who had been Sasuke's comrades listened. Many of them had tried unsuccessfully on more than one occasion to bring him back to the village before things got too far out of hand. Neji himself had been on one of those such missions, and it nearly cost him his life. He had sometimes heard rumblings among his peers that the Village should have made him an S-Rank missing nin a long time ago. Although he was the only member of one of Konoha's elite founding clans in the village, the massacre of his family at the hands of his elder brother whom he idolized had turned Sasuke into a dark and vengeful child. His revenge was all that mattered to him, and he sought out Orochimaru, who had killed the Third Hokage in an attempt to take over the Village by force. Orochimaru had already set his sights on the younger Uchiha, and, as he predicted, Sasuke eventually did seek him out to increase his power. Nothing his teammates could do would stop him. This had been especially hard for Naruto and Sakura. They had never once given up on Sasuke, and it was their personal mission to bring him back.

Neji had not known Uchiha Sasuke well, but the boy had reminded Neji of how he himself used to be when he was younger, blinded by what he thought was his own destiny. No matter what his personality was like, or whether or not he was a personal friend, Sasuke was a fellow leaf Shinobi. That was more than enough reason to try and help when they had first gone to retrieve him. But he could see the pain in Naruto. Naruto had helped Neji to change, and he was desperately trying to help his friend, Sasuke. Neji had come to have confidence in Naruto, thinking only he would be able to turn Sasuke around. He resolved to do whatever part he had to do to help Naruto save the friend he was losing to darkness. Neji had told Naruto that he thought his eyes were better than his own. He had meant it wholeheartedly.

Unfortunately, Neji had found out that Sasuke had nearly killed Naruto, leaving him unconscious only to be found by his sensei Kakashi. The disappointment they had all felt went so much deeper than simply that which came from failing a mission.

Neji knew that Naruto had considered Sasuke to be the brother he never had. Naruto had grown up despised in the village. His childhood, Neji felt, must have been full of misery and unanswered questions. Though Neji had lost his parents at an early age, a situation common among the children of active Shinobi, Naruto was an orphan. Over time, he came to learn that he was the infant in whom the Nine Tailed Demon Fox had been sealed by the Fourth Hokage. When Neji learned this, it began to make sense why the older people in the village had ostracized the boy and even feared him. The memory of the attack of the Nine Tailed Fox was forever a fire brand in their minds. Naruto was a Jinchuuriki, the human host of the demon fox that took the lives of so many in the village, and even that of the Fourth Hokage himself.

Over the years, Naruto did everything he could to attract attention. He pulled pranks, he was loud, he was just plain annoying. It seemed ludicrous for him to enter the Ninja Academy. He barely made Genin. But gradually, his true power became known to his comrades, and even to the villagers who had looked upon him with hatred. His was the power to change people. His was the power to make a friend where once there was an enemy. But even though he had helped so many people in his life to change, he had never been able to reach Sasuke. The Uchiha always seemed to be one step ahead. Neji knew that Naruto took this as a personal failure.

Neji also knew that Naruto would never rest until he saved his friend. He never went against his ninja way. He would never give up. No matter how many times Sasuke would slip through his grasp, he persisted, all the while getting stronger and stronger. Though, by rank, Naruto was still a genin ninja, the lowest class of nin, Neji had witnessed his new powers. He was stronger than even most Jounin. In some ways, Naruto was stronger than Neji himself. Naruto's dream was to become Hokage someday, to be the protector of the Village, like a father protecting his family. It was so much like the way Neji's father had protected the Hyuuga main family with his life. Neji had already accepted in his own mind that Naruto would make an excellent Hokage someday, an Hokage that the village would be proud to have as its leader. He knew that soon, this generation, Neji's generation, would be the one's to defend the Village's Will of Fire passed on to them by all the former generations of Konoha Shinobi.

Sakura had collected herself and quietly spoke to her master. "Tsunade-sama. Have you decided on a course of action?"

Tsunade breathed a big sigh. "Sakura. I know that the last thing you and Naruto want is for Sasuke to be declared a criminal. But, at this point, I'm not sure I will have a choice. He has gone too far this time. When it was learned that he had killed Orochimaru, I still had a faint hope that we could intervene before he eliminated his brother. We failed. Now it would seem as if he is acting on his own, and he has a team of powerful Shinobi, former associates of Orochimaru, no less, assisting him. As long as they are using the banner of Akatsuki, we may ultimately have to comply with the Raikage's wishes and consider Uchiha Sasuke and his companions a threat to Konoha as well."

Just then, Tsunade's gaze shifted to fall on a masked Shinobi who was slowly walking with the assistance of a medic onto the roof top. "I assume you have heard most of what I have just said, Kakashi."

"Kakashi-sensei!" gasped Sakura, going to assist her sensei toward the group. He was still injured from the battle, and Neji knew that things were getting very serious for him to come in his current condition.

"I have, Tsunade-sama," Kakashi said weakly.

"Then I will tell you all our course of action," said Tsunade. "I have been asked by the Raikage of the Cloud to attend a summit with the Kages of all the Five Great Shinobi Nations. I am sure the purpose of this is to discuss how we intend to put an end to Akatsuki for good. But I also know that Raikage will be especially insistent upon finding and taking Uchiha Sasuke into custody for the crime he has committed against the Cloud. He has not the jurisdiction to arrest a shinobi from another village unless I formally agree that Uchiha Sasuke is an S-Ranked criminal..."

"But SHISHOU!" Sakura interrupted.

"SILENCE, Sakura!"

The young kunoichi immediately fell silent, and Neji could sense the pain she was feeling. It seemed Tsunade did as well and her tone softened. "Sakura. I am not prepared to declare Sasuke a criminal just on the Raikage's word alone." That seemed to settle her student for the moment.

To the rest of the gathered Shinobi she said, "However, you all know that relations between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud have been tenuous at best for a long time. Neji and Hinata, you two especially are aware of this."

Indeed they were. It was Cloud Ninja who had kidnapped Hinata-sama when she was a toddler to try and steal the secrets of the Hyuuga Byakugan Blood line. His Uncle had gone to rescue his daughter, and had killed her captors. The Raikage was enraged that his nins were killed, and had called for his Uncle's head. After the elders and the Third Hokage had met to decide how to handle the situation, it was Neji's own father who volunteered to die in his brother's place. His Uncle Hiashi was the leader of the Main Family. His father's duty was to ensure its survival. Even though Uncle had protested, his father followed his duty to the death. As an identical twin, the Cloud would have been satisfied that it was Uncle's body they received. The Main Family was preserved, and Neji's father was free. And Neji was left with nothing but resentment toward Hinata, his Uncle, and the clan elders until he learned the truth: that his father had chosen death of his own volition, as a way to be free from his destiny.

"Because of this, I will attend the summit, and will evaluate the evidence against Sasuke for myself. If Uchiha Sasuke is indeed part of Akatsuki, I fear I will have little choice but to declare him a threat to the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Something tells me that we do yet have all the answers. I think there is something more to this than we understand at this time. Therefore, I am placing the teams assembled here on standby until I have acquired information worthy of investigating. You must all be prepared to depart at a moment's notice should the ANBU or I get any leads!"

The always tactical Shikamaru spoke up next. "Tsunade-sama," he began, "surely you intend to leave someone in your stead while you attend the summit."

"I do indeed," the Hokage replied with more than a hint of confidence in her voice. "I name Hatake Kakashi to lead in my absence."

All eyes turned to the injured masked ninja. Neji and the others were not particularly surprised. It was well known that Hatake Kakashi was one of the Hokage's most trusted Jounin. He was a former ANBU, an excellent Shinobi, and had the full trust of two of the Three Ninja, Tsunade and the late Jiraiya. He personally had the responsibility of Naruto's development upon his return to the village, and had undertaken many classified information gathering missions, both on his own and with Jiraiya. It was rumored that he had inherited the knowledge of Jiraiya's vast information network, and there was little doubt he was next in line for the Hokage seat.

"I am honored, Tsunade-sama," Kakashi replied solemnly. "Tsunade-sama, a question."

"What is it, Kakashi?"

"What about Naruto?"

With a thoughtful expression on her face, Tsunade looked at Kakashi, and then at Sakura. "Sakura. I will not keep these developments from Naruto. I will tell him personally about our situation regarding Sasuke. I am pretty sure, given your reaction, that his will be the same. But you both need to trust me as your Hokage that I will put the village first, and deal with Sasuke the best way I know how."

'Deal with him?' Neji thought. That was the first time he had heard it quite put that way. He knew, as a Shinobi, that it needed to be said, but Tsunade had always given Naruto and Sakura an extreme amount of leeway when it came to their missing teammate, even going so far as to have her own judgment questioned by the Village Elders. She had always been more than sensitive to the feelings of her pupil and of Naruto who Neji knew was very important to her. It seemed to him that even Tsunade was coming upon a crossroads with regard to the Uchiha. Some kind of decision had to be made. Neji got the feeling another ominous episode was about to befall the Village, and that, this time, it would involve Sasuke. Time seemed to be running out for Naruto and Sakura to reunite their team.

He looked over at Hinata, who had turned a shade of pink at the mention of Naruto's name. Hinata was listening intently with her team, but Neji knew she felt empathy for Naruto for his situation. She saw the pain the loss of Sasuke brought to the eyes of the Shinobi she admired, and found herself disliking Sasuke for hurting him, even though she had barely known the raven haired Uchiha. All the other girls had swooned over him when they were young, but she had only eyes for his raucous blonde teammate. Now he was fast becoming a true enemy of Konoha, and Hinata was sure these new developments would sadden Naruto greatly.

Naruto had given her strength without even realizing it. Now Hinata resolved that she would be strong for him. She looked up in time to see Neji quickly avert his eyes from her. Neji always seemed to be able to read her thoughts so easily. He really was her closest ally aside from her teammates. Maybe she would ask him privately what she should do for their friend.

"All right. Teams two, seven, eight, and ten, you are ordered on standby at or near your homes. Be ready to be called to action. Nara Shikamaru!"

"Hai."

"You will meet with Kakashi to discuss the Shinobi resources we have, and where they will be best used."

"Understood."

"Haruno Sakura!"

"Hai, Tsunade-shishou!"

"You will assume your medical duties, but have the medics continually briefed on the status of your patients should you be called away!"

"Hai!"

"The rest of you will be available to Kakashi and Shikamaru when needed. But Hyuuga Neji and Hyuuga Hinata, I would like you two to remain here for a moment after everyone is dismissed. I have some questions for you regarding the Cloud."

"Understood, Tsunade-sama."

"Very well. You are DISMISSED!"