Well, here it is. This chapter focuses more on Hinata and begins her real introduction into this story. I will return to everyone else in the next chapter. This chapter occurs during the next few days after Kurama was transferred back into Naruto.

As of now, I think I've got a good idea on who's going to be the 15th person, although this person won't be revealed for a few chapters at least.

I'll start by answering a few comments

ermda: The reason why Kushina and Minato have not had another child yet was because in all honestly, they were shaken by what nearly befell their new family when Naruto was born.

Analon: No, Mikoto is also alive and there are a few other Uchiha alive. Some of them were able to retaliate against Danzo's sneak attack and as such they lived. Roughly 10-12 Uchiha are still alive at this point.

anyone who mentioned Zetsu: Yes, he was spying. He only was able to get the part about the jinchuriki transfer. He is not aware Naruto is a time traveler, and the fact that they are changing jinchurikis will shake up Akatsuki slightly. Regarding White Zetsu's comment, one ability that Zetsu has (not sure if it's cannon or not, if it's not then it's still going to be part of this story, is the ability to sense life forms.)

Larry: No, Danzo is not with Akatsuki. However, Orochimaru still is considering Itachi won't join.

Whoever asked about Tsunade knowing (sorry, too many comments to sort through): Yes, Tsunade will be coming back soon and she will be the final person informed about the future.

Well, that's it for now. Enjoy the chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Posted: 5/23/13

Chapter 13: Another Unforeseen Problem

Namikaze Naruto. Images of the blonde enigma flashed in and out of the mind of one Hyuga Hinata. Ever since that one day when she was three and was kidnapped by Kumo, something had been tugging at her mind. If there was anything she remembered about that night, it was the deep blue eyes of the mysterious masked ninja that had saved her from Kumo's hand. She knew she had seen them before, but the answer didn't come until a few years later, when she was saved again by a boy with the same exact eyes as that one night. That boy just so happened to be Namikaze Naruto. She didn't know how to explain it, but she could just tell…

One the outside, he seemed like a happy, cheerful son of the Hokage, not a worry in his life. But through his eyes, she saw a much different person. The soul that had made its home in Naruto's body knew the pain and suffering associated with great losses, something she knew from the untimely death of the mother she loved dearly. But the odd thing was that whenever she looked towards the blonde miniature-Hokage, for some reason she could feel herself being drawn to the boy. This one person had been the cause of so many recent dreams for the young Hyuga. Who was Namikaze Naruto? And why did she feel like she was drawn to him?

For the past few days, she had found herself worried about the blonde. Like everyone else in Konoha, she had heard about the Uchiha Massacre, but was even more shocked to realize that Naruto had been at the scene while it took place. The horrors he must have seen…no wonder he hadn't come to school for a few days.

Hinata was pulled out of her thoughts as she realized that it was, in fact, time to go to school. Making her way out of the house, she passed her father who was enjoying his own breakfast. "Hinata" Hiashi spoke with an emotionless and neutral tone. "After school today, you will be sparring with one of the elders to evaluate your current skills. I hope you will not disappoint me."

Hinata hesitated for a moment. The spars with the clan elders were always harsh and it was as if they were trying to show her just how worthless she was. Hinata knew she wasn't liked by the clan. They saw her as a kind and gentle soul, weak by their standards and not fit for the title of clan heiress. Normally, these spars went something along the lines where the elder she was sparing was ruthless, completely forgetting the fact that she was still a child and in the academy. Sadly for her, her father was still stuck in the old ways of the clan and was nearly as strict as the elders themselves when it came to training.

The young Hyuga said nothing as she made her way to the academy. Hopefully something, or someone, would cheer her up and not make this day a complete disappointment for her. Seeing as she just wanted to get away from the Hyuga compound, Hinata had actually arrived at the academy relatively early, while everyone was still outside enjoying the late spring weather before classes started. Still, she kind of just wanted to be alone so she made her way into the classroom.

"Wait! Stop!" shouted a familiar voice as she took a step inside the room. Before she knew it, someone had yanked her out of the way of what appeared to be a flying tomato. Unfortunately, said person ended up tripping over the steps in the room, taker with them as they tumbled down the stairs.

As the Hyuga girl was able to regain her bearings, she saw that she was now laying across something orange.

"Ouch. That really hurt, -ttebayo!" said the person in question.

Apart from the orange and the verbal tick, it didn't take Hinata too long to register who it was she had landed atop and it took even quicker to jump back, turn about as red as the tomato that had nearly pegged her, and try her best to become one with the wall behind her.

"N-naruto-k-kun, a-are y-you o-okay?" stuttered a worried Hinata.

"Yeah, thank Hinata" replied Naruto. "I'm sorry I almost hit you with that tomato launcher."

Hinata wanted to ask why Naruto had a tomato launcher rigged to a pressure plate, but the blonde spoke first. "You see, Mister Grumpy-pants over there needs something to cheer him up after what happened to him and his family. I figured seeing all those fan girls pelted in the face by tomatoes would give him a laugh or two."

Hinata looked up to see an irritated Sasuke, sending the blonde a death glare due to being called 'Mister Grumpy-pants'.

Naruto had gone back to rigging his pressure panel for the tomato launcher as Hinata took her usual seat in the back of the room. She had only been here for two minutes, but already Naruto was doing what he did best and trying to cheer up one of his friends. She couldn't help but smile at the blonde. Despite witnessing the same horrors that Sasuke had, Naruto was still being positive and that was what she had admired the most about him. Despite whatever may have hurt him in the past, he was still able to keep a warm smile on his face.

About 10 minutes later…Splat! Naruto's latest prank had claimed its first victim, one of Sasuke's largest fangirls, Ami. Naruto was already rolling on the ground in side-splitting pain, as he nearly rolled down the stairs (again) laughing. This continued to happen for the next five to ten minutes, regardless of who walked through, although Chouji actually caught and ate his…and the next one…and the one after that…and even the one that was meant for Shikamaru. Those who had belonged to the 'Naruto Fan Club' simply brushed off Naruto's latest prank and were glad that their sunshine was back in class. Those who didn't…well let's just say they weren't happy.

As the final bell rang, the last two students entered the class. Sadly (or thankfully), thanks to a certain Akimichi, Ino and Sakura were spared from Naruto's prank.

"Naruto, move it! It's my turn to sit next to Sasuke-kun!" shouted Sakura.

"Yeah, come on Naruto-kun, let's go sit somewhere else…together" said Ino and that's when it finally dawned on Naruto…Ino was one of HIS fangirls.

"Oh crap!" swore Naruto. "Well, at least that solves the problem about them competing for Sasuke's attention. But still, crap!"

Before Ino could pull Naruto away or Sakura could wriggle her way in-between them, Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-teme had entered the room as well, setting off yet another one of Naruto's traps.

Iruka had activated a pressure plate that Naruto had rigged just behind the lectern, only instead of catching Iruka in the trap; Mizuki was the one who found himself buried under a mountain of tomatoes.

Iruka just sent Naruto a glare that said 'we'll talk after class' before he resumed the day's lecture.

Still, even the quite Hinata couldn't help but let out a slight giggle at Naruto's morning antics. It was good to see him back in class as he always was able to cheer her up with something.

While class for Hinata was relatively enjoyable, what awaited her was not. As always, the elder Haro was brutal in the spar and her own father had simply looked down on her with scorn or disappointment. She had even heard him mutter the words 'Hopefully you won't be as much of a disgrace' to her four-year old sister who was observing the spar.

The bruised and sore Hinata was now lying in her room, trying to nurse her own aching body.

"Neesan?" called out a voice from outside her room. Calling out, Hinata let her younger sister, Hanabi, enter. "Neesan, are you okay?" asked the four-year old Hyuga.

"I am…" replied Hinata. She wasn't telling the truth, but she didn't want to worry little Hanabi.

"Neesan, why do father and the elders do this to you?" asked Hanabi as she noticed the bruises on Hinata's arm from the spar.

"F-father can be…very strict" said Hinata. "I-I know h-he means best a-and I try to impress him, b-but it's never enough…"

Her father had started training her at the age of three in the Hyuga arts and for nearly the past seven years, it's just been one disappointment in his eyes after another. And ever since last year, when Hanabi turned three, the time her father spent on her became less and less as he began to shift his attention to Hanabi. No matter how hard Hinata tried, it was never enough to impress her father and she feared that her father would soon give up on her completely. Once that happened, it would only be a matter of time before he had her branded and cast aside.

"Neesan…" said a sorrowful Hanabi. Hinata began to slowly pick herself up from her bed and to her feet as she walked to and out of her bedroom door. "Neesan, where are you going?"

"I…I just need to take a little walk Imouto" smiled Hinata before she left the Hyuga compound all together.

Kushina clapped her hands together and immediately the golden chakra cloak that she had used a few weeks ago enveloped her. "You know, this is actually kind of cool, dattebane!" exclaimed Kushina. She and Naruto were out in the private Namikaze training grounds with Naruto helping his mother get a feel for the Kyuubi-mode chakra cloak that she was now able to use since Kurama had graciously left her a sizeable portion of his own chakra.

"Huh?" Kushina said, picking her head up and looking in a direction not too far away. "What's this?"

"What's what?" asked Naruto.

"It feels like someone's in pain and suffering" said Kushina. By accessing the Kyubi-chakra-mode, she had also accessed one of the special abilities associated with it, the Negative Emotions Sensing ability. And right now, she could tell that someone was hurt and was suffering, not too far away from where they were.

Kushina darted off towards the source of these emotions, with Naruto curiously following from behind. As Kushina and Naruto came to a secluded clearing with a large pond in the middle, they saw a small girl with short midnight-blue hair sitting at the waterside and crying.

"Is that?" asked Kushina as she began to recognize just who it was. However, Naruto was already walking forward towards the girl at the water's edge.

"Hinata?" called out Naruto. Unfortunately, this only served to startle poor Hinata, who had thought she was alone. Despite the person being Naruto, she instinctively jumped up and backwards away from Naruto. Unfortunately, this resulted in her falling into the pond. "Hinata!"

Naruto ran out onto the water, helping the startled girl regain her composure and lift her out of the water. "Hinata, are you okay?!"

"N-naruto-k-kun? Eep!" Hinata squeaked when she realized that Naruto was actually within just a few inches of her.

"Since when could Naruto walk on water?" asked Kushina as she had witnessed that Naruto was in fact standing on the water's surface. "Wait…never mind."

Kushina joined her son and the now soaked Hinata. "Oh dear. I'm sorry we startled you. Here, let me get you out of that soaked jacket" said Kushina as she removed Hinata's now soaked and heavy jacket. Her breathing had increased due to being startled, but every time she breathed heavily, there was a slight wince of pain. As she got past the sleeves of the shirt Hinata was wearing underneath, she spotted a large black and blue area on Hinata's upper arm.

"Hinata, where did you get these bruises?" asked Kushina before Hinata could attempt to pull her jacket back over herself to cover them up.

"I-It was n-nothing. I was t-training" stuttered the shy girl. For some reason, Kushina didn't quite believe the girl could tell that she was obviously hiding something.

"Well how about we go back to our place and get you dried off. It may be warm out, but you can still catch a cold if you're all wet" said Kushina.

Back at the Namikaze household, Kushina walked in carrying a still damp Hinata on her back, with Naruto following closely behind.

"I've never been to Naruto-kun's house before" thought Hinata as she surveyed the place Naruto called home. Unlike the Hyuga compound, it was a warm and inviting household with some neatly arranged furniture, some plants, and a few pictures along the walls. The Hyuga compound was unfortunately, relatively bland and even the only picture she had in her room was a small bedside frame with a picture of her mother. There was nothing scary or surprising about this household, unless you count the man who just appeared out of nowhere in a bright yellow flash.

"Eek!" squeaked Hinata as Minato's sudden appearance startled the young Hyuga.

"Minato! You scared her" reprimanded Kushina, who now had a timid Hinata hiding behind her. "This is why I don't want TWO Yellow Flashes!"

"Oh sorry. You must be Hiashi's daughter Hinata" said Minato, smiling down at Hinata.

"H-h-hokage-sama…" stuttered Hinata.

"Please, Minato's fine" replied Minato.

"Y-yes, M-minato-san" said Hinata.

"So what's she doing here? Did Naruto decide to bring a new friend from school home?" asked Minato. "And why is she soaking wet?"

"Well, Naruto and I were kind of training together and we found her at the edge of the pond and kind of startled her" said Kushina. "That caused her to fall in, so here we are. Come on, Hinata-chan. Let's get you out of those we clothes. I'm sure I can find something of mine for you to wear while yours dry."

Hesitantly, Hinata followed Kushina upstairs and into the bathroom. However, Kushina was less worried by the wet clothes and more so what she would find underneath those clothes.

"So Naruto, mind telling me about this tomato launcher at school today?" asked Minato, earning a foxy grin from his son.

"Well dad, you see…"

"Oh Minato…" called out Kushina from upstairs in a sweet, gentle, and if you knew her well enough, the 'someone's dead' voice, something she picked up from her sensei. "Where did you put my sword?"

Naruto and Minato both immediately paled at Kushina's question, remembering the reason why they hid it in the first place.

"Quick dad, escape plan alpha!" shouted Naruto as he latched onto his dad and they were gone in a panicked flash of yellow.

The Hyuga clan, now the strongest clan in all of Konoha after the incident about two weeks ago. They were a clan who recognized and praised the strong and were prideful and entrenched in their own traditional ways.

After a long training session with his younger daughter Hanabi, Hiashi was sitting in his study enjoying a cup of tea as he reflected the progress his youngest daughter was showing. Even at the ripe age of four, Hanabi was already showing prowess as a strong and worthy warrior. His eldest daughter; however, was not. She was timid and kind, something looked down upon by all Hyuga. Once again, he had been disappointed by her progress as seen from the spar with the elder Haro earlier today. Simply put, she was weak.

Hinata had fallen in the spar miserably. While it was never expected that a 9 year-old child would win against an elder, he had seen no signs of improvement in her form or her skills at all. All in all, his eldest daughter was weak and a failure. If things kept up the way they were, then Hiashi would have no choice but to name Hanabi the true heir to the clan, leaving Hinata to be cast aside into the branch house at best.

Just earlier today, Hinata had gone out on a 'walk', following her shameful failure of a spar. Hiashi knew where she probably went. There was a small pond not too far away from the compound that was isolated by forests. It was a place where her mother would take her all the time when she was little and it was normally the place Hinata would go and think or, in this most shameful case, cry.

He had been generous and given her a few minutes before sending Ko to go and retrieve her.

"Hiashi-sama, I went to the pond you described but she wasn't there" addressed Ko as he arrived at Hiashi's study.

Hiashi sighed. Where did she run off to this time? "Very well gather a few others and search the village for her" said Hiashi. She would most certainly be in trouble for leaving the clan unsupervised. Had she stayed at the pond, he might have been a little more lenient, but considering that it appeared as if she had simply ran off, that would no longer be the case.

"Hiashi-sama!" shouted another Hyuga, who looked as if he had just seen the Shinigami himself. "At the gate…Kushina-sama wishes to speak with you…she has her sword."

Every Hyuga in the room paled at that mention. If Kushina was carrying her sword around the village, then it was obvious she wanted someone's head. The last time this had happened, Kushina had discovered a scene in one of Jiraiya's books that closely resembled the first night she and Minato had spent together. The following result was not pretty and Jiraiya had been beaten even closer to death than that one time Tsunade caught him peeping on her in the hot springs.

The Hyuga's saw themselves as the strongest clan in the village and the number of people they truly feared could be counted on one hand…Uzumaki Kushina was one of those people.

After Kushina had stormed out of the house carrying her sword, both blondes in the household flashed back into the middle of the living room, a look of relief on their faces. "Whew. Thank Kami she's not after one of us" commented Naruto.

"I just hope Sensei didn't anything that ticked her off again" commented Minato.

"Umm…" a quiet voice came from up the stairs and Naruto and Minato realized that Hinata was still in the house (wearing some drier, yet rather big clothes).

"Oh, Hinata? Do you know why Kaachan went storming off like she did?" asked Naruto.

"W-well, y-you see…"

Flashback no Jutsu

Kushina had taken the lavender-eyed girl up to the bathroom to change her out of the wet clothes…and to investigate a bit further into the bruise that was on Hinata's arm.

As Kushina returned to the bathroom, carrying some of her old clothes that would have to work for Hinata until hers dried, she noticed the young Hyuga wrapped tightly in a towel, trying to cover her arms.

Moving to remove the towel from Hinata so that she could finally get the young girl out of her soaking wet clothes before she caught a cold, Hinata held on tight, trying her best to hide something.

"Aww, don't be shy dear. I won't bite or anything, -ttebane" smiled Kushina as Hinata gave in and allowed Kushina to remove the towel, allowing the redhead to look at the bruises on her arm again. "Even for training, those bruises look a little too much. And even I'm afraid to look under that shirt she's wearing."

Kushina moved then to take the soaking wet shirt off of Hinata, again with the young Hyuga hesitantly refusing to have the shirt moved. "I'm sorry Hinata-chan, but we need to get that shirt off of you. If we don't you'll most certainly get sick and you don't want that now, do you?"

Hinata shook her head, realizing that Kushina was right as a slight chill shook her body. At least they were in the privacy of the bathroom, and Kushina was actually someone she knew from when her mother was still alive. Hinata had remembered her mother and Kushina being rather close friends, along with Uchiha Mikoto, and despite not talking to Kushina much recently, Hinata still saw the woman as a close family friend.

As Kushina began to remove Hinata's soaking shirt, what lied below horrified the redhead. The bruise on the shoulder wasn't the only bruise on the young girl's body. In fact, she had quite a few of them scattered across her abdomen and back as well, indicating that she had been beaten quite badly and not too long ago.

"These bruises aren't from training. It's like they beat the poor girl. What the hell would warrant this?! Hikari, please forgive me for what I'm about to do to those bastards you called your family" thought Kushina. She quickly dried Hinata off and put some drier clothes on the girl before turning to the door.

"Hinata dear, please tell me everything that's been going on at home" asked Kushina. Hinata gave in, telling her about the spar with Haro earlier today and then continuing on to the multiple spars in the past that ended nearly identical to the one today. It was also then that she revealed that her father had practically given up on her prowess, berating her as weak and hopeless.

"Oh Minato…" Kushina called out of the bathroom in a sweet and kind voice that foreshadowed someone's imminent doom…a talent she had picked up from her own sensei before she left Konoha due to numerous tragedies. "Where did you put my sword?"

End Flashback no Jutsu

"Damnit, I thought I told Hiashi to change those traditionalist views of his and the clan!" thought Minato. As a good friend of Hizashi, Minato had always been against the way the main branch of the Hyuga Clan had treated the side branches and he had been trying to get the Hyugas to drop some of their ancient traditions. He and Jiraiya were also looking into a way to counter and remove the infamous Caged Bird Seal, but they were having trouble decoding the entire sealing matrix due to the secrecy of the Hyugas. Still, it disgusted Minato by the way the main branch treated one of their own. He might have been Hokage and leader of the village, possessing a large amount of political power; however the clans were still able to manage their own internal affairs due to a few laws set up during the Shodai's time as Hokage and during the founding of the village. He had been working to undo or revise some of these laws, but he had not gathered enough support from the clan heads to do such.

"Naruto, would you mind watching Hinata-chan for me? I need to go make sure Kushina's damage is only limited to the Hyuga compound" said Minato.

Naruto nodded and Minato was gone in a flash as he went to settle Kushina down before the damage was more than just limited to the Hyugas.

"What the hell is wrong with that clan? First Neji in the previous timeline and now Hinata-chan?" thought Naruto. "It wasn't like this in the past. I mean, Hiashi was still kind of strict, but he never treated Hinata like this. What happened that would have changed him? I didn't change anything with the Hyuga yet…oh wait. I might have…"

Naruto recalled over 6 years ago when he was the one to stop Hinata from being kidnapped. In the past, Hizashi had sacrificed himself and that event triggered a series of events that eventually led to the Hyuga clan head opening up and beginning to oppose some of the Hyuga's strict traditions. However, since Hizashi never had to sacrifice himself, meaning that Hiashi hadn't begun to open up and was still entrenched in the Hyuga's strict, and stupid, traditions. Unfortunately, a kind soul like Hinata, who deserved none of this, was simply a victim of tradition.

Turning to look at the depressed girl, who had taken a seat on one of the chairs, Naruto thought. "You were the kindest person I ever knew. I don't know what's going through their heads, but your clan…your family has no right to treat you like that" thought Naruto. "It's like I promised Neji, I WILL change the Hyuga."

"This never was a matter of right or wrong. It's about power and strength. Even in the past, those Hyuga bastards only looked at the strong who shared their ideals. That girl may be stronger than even she thinks, but she'll never be accepted by them because of who she is" commented Kurama.

"Huh? Hey Kurama, I thought we wouldn't be able to communicate like this for awhile until my seal was loosened" replied Naruto.

"Apparently not. I can still talk to you, but I can't assist you for a few years. Which is good I suppose, because it won't get as lonely in here" replied Kurama.

"So anyways, that's why they don't like her? Because she's being exactly who she's supposed to be?" thought Naruto.

"Humans can be cruel in that sense, only recognizing certain traits that they see as ideal. If you aren't exactly how they think you should be, then they just toss you aside."

"Hinata-chan, are you okay? Can I get you anything?" asked Naruto. "Hinata-chan? Where'd that come from?" Naruto had just added the –chan honorific subconsciously.

Hinata shook her head. "T-thank y-you, b-but I d-don't want to b-burden you" stuttered the Hyuga girl. Unfortunately, this only served to further his current frustration.

"Don't say that!" shouted Naruto, before flinching as he realized that he had actually shouted at Hinata. "I'm sorry. But please don't do that. Remember what I told you a few years ago? When those bullies were picking on you?"

"Don't do that…d-do w-what?...Doubt yourself. You're not weak and you can be strong if you just believe in yourself. Be who you want to be, not what other's are trying to make you out as."

Those words for a few years replayed in Hinata's mind. "I-I d-do" replied Hinata.

"I don't care what those stuck up pricks say. You're not a burden and you're not weak" replied Naruto with a fire in his eye.

N-naruto-k-kun" was all Hinata could say. "Arigato."

"Hey, I think there are some cinnamon buns from breakfast still in the pantry. Maybe those will help cheer you up" said Naruto as Hinata's own salivary glands began to work against her. Cinnamon buns were by far her favorite food.

A few minutes after Naruto dug them out of the pantry and reheated them, Hinata was having a hard time not drooling as the cinnamony aroma wafted through the house and tickled her nose.

"Here. Kaachan baked these. They're actually pretty good, although I honestly prefer her breakfast ramen" said Naruto as he handed Hinata the fluffy pastry of cinnamony goodness.

Taking a bite of the pastry, Hinata's taste buds were bathed in cinnamon goodness. The last time she had cinnamon buns this good was when her own mother baked them for her. It appears as if her mother and Kushina had traded recipes in the past or given each other tips.

"WHY THOSE BASTARDS! HOW DARE THEY EVEN THINK OF DOING THAT TO A LITTLE GIRL! DATTEBANE!" shouted Kushina from just outside the door as she stormed through the door, a not so happy Minato trailing just behind.

Kushina slammed the door behind her, causing the entire house to shake and Hinata to 'eep'.

"Kaachan? Is everything okay?" asked Naruto.

"You mean besides you getting into my breakfast for tomorrow?" asked Kushina.

"Heh, sorry" grinned Naruto.

"It's okay. You were trying to cheer up Hinata-chan" commented Kushina.

"So is everything okay?" asked a concerned Naruto.

Kushina sighed. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, Hinata-chan."

Flashback no Jutsu

"Kushina-san, may I ask the meaning behind this visit?" asked Hiashi.

"I'm here on behalf of your daughter" said Kushina.

"I take it you know the whereabouts of Hinata?" asked a neutral Hiashi.

"My son and I found her by a pond, crying. We accidentally startled her and she ended up falling in, so we took her back to get her dried off. But do you know what I found when I got her out of those soaked clothes?" asked Kushina with venom in her voice. "Her entire body was rattled with bruises!"

"She was sparring with the elders today. A few minor bruises are expected after an intense training session. I doubt even you can't say that Naruto's never come out of a training session unmarked" explained Hiashi.

"I could understand a few minor bruises; however, these were anything but! One, the number of distinct bruises were at least 10 and they were rather severe. And two, I may be no medic, but I'm confident she's got a cracked rib!" spat Kushina. "If that's what you call training, especially considering she's only an academy student, then I hate to imagine the kinds of torments you'll put her through when she graduates!"

"Your concern for my daughter is touching, but I simply ask that you keep your nose out of MY clan's private business" spoke Hiashi.

"Hiashi, I thought I told you to lighten up on your clan's outdated traditions" retorted Minato as he flashed next to Kushina.

"Hokage-sama!" exclaimed a few Hyugas as their Hokage arrived on scene.

"Minato" called out Hizashi as he made his way towards the commotion in the clan's courtyard.

"Hiashi, I've seen some of the marks on your daughter and I'll say for sure that they are more than just the byproduct of some training session" spoke Minato. "May I speak with the elder who Hinata spared with?"

The elder Haro stepped forward. "Hokage-sama."

"Haro-san, I understand you were the one who sparred with Hinata today? The one who gave her those marks and bruises?" asked Minato.

"I am the one who spared her, but it is not my fault she is in her present state" commented Haro. "Perhaps if she were stronger, then she could have prevented this."

"Oh, so now you're placing the blame on her?! You're blaming the numerous spars that ended just like that one on MY goddaughter?!" shouted Kushina. "Why don't you and I fight and I'll show you exactly what she had to go through, dattebane!"

"Normally, I could excuse this as a normal training exercise, but Kushina's right" said Minato. "This was not a onetime occurrence and the injuries point more towards abuse than just the byproducts of a training session."

"She told me that this was how spars normally would go for her. How she would fear and dread the days you had her spar against the elders" said Kushina, directing her rage at Hiashi. "She's your daughter! Why must you subject her to such torments?!"

"I am simply doing what I must in the best interest of the clan. Hinata is below the standards of the clan. She is weak for an heiress" explained Hiashi.

"Only because you never encourage her or help her. All you did was berate her and toss her aside!" By this point in time, Kushina's hair resembled nine tails and if Kurama was still sealed inside her, she most certainly would have dawned a tailed chakra cloak.

"If you believe otherwise, then why don't you take over her training? If she's got no use for the future of this clan, then she might as well be of use to the village" spoke Hiashi.

"You know, perhaps I will!" replied Kushina. "I can't believe you of all people have failed to see just how like Hikari she is. You have no idea how to raise her! She just requires the proper sort of encouragement! –ttebane!"

"If that is what you believe, then I'll turn full responsibility for her over to you. I'll be over in the morning to sign the necessary documents, Hokage-sama" spoke Hiashi. He wasn't fast enough to block or avoid the slap that Kushina lashed him with across his cheek, prompting Hiashi to activate his own Byakugan and prepare to retaliate. "Kushina, calm down" ordered Minato, not wanting this to escalate any further. While it might have been satisfying, assault would not better the situation.

"Fine" said Kushina as she turned to walk out of the compound with Minato behind.

"Now before you go" spoke Haro. "We need to make arrangements for Hinata to…" Haro found himself at an immediate loss of words as he felt the cold steel tip of a sword against his throat. The tip had broke the skin just enough to draw a drop of blood. Kushina had drawn her sword with immense skill at a speed that not even a Sharingan would be able to see and her eyes were red, subconsciously drawing on the Kyuubi chakra present within her.

"If you even think about placing that damned seal on her…I promise you I'll make what Danzo did to the Uchiha clan look like mere child's play" growled Kushina.

Letting her own KI flare to make her point, Kushina recalled her sword as she turned to Hiashi. "She would be ashamed by what you've become since she left this world for a better life."

Following Kushina out of the gates, Minato spoke the last words. "I strongly suggest you rethink your clan's ways, Hiashi. The next time, I won't be here to stop my wife from cutting lose."

End Flashback no Jutsu

Hinata could only help but cry as she had just been given the new that her father had effectively tossed her out of the clan. Why did she have to be weak? Why couldn't her father acknowledge her and love her like a father was supposed to? Was she really that pathetic that even her own father couldn't look at her anymore?

She felt herself embraced in caring arms by the redheaded woman that was her godmother. "You were there for Naruto-kun in the past. I know you were too shy to come forward, but you were one of the few who saw him for what he truly was. I can't believe this happened, but no matter what, I'll be here for you" thought Kushina.

Later that night, Naruto was sitting alone in his own room, reflecting on what exactly had just happened. For some reason unbeknown to Naruto and his parents, Hinata had been kicked out of her own family for being too kind and gentle, one of the best things about her. As her godmother, Kushina was more than happy to take the poor girl in and had already pledged to herself and Hikari to look after and raise Hinata in a manner that her former teammate would have preferred.

Kushina had already noticed the blush that crept onto Hinata's face and unlike Naruto, who was still shown to be rather oblivious in this timeline, despite having a mind that had already been influenced by the self-proclaimed super pervert, she knew that somehow the girl was already developing that same crush on the blonde that she had in the past.

However, the main question still remained. Hiashi was not like this in the past. Why was he this cold? Knocking on the door to Naruto's room, Kushina entered with a curious Minato following.

"Naruto-kun, do you have any idea on what might have happened to cause this?" asked Kushina as Minato closed the door, wanting to have a private conversation with Naruto.

"I've been thinking about it. I mean, there are a lot of things. By stopping the Kyuubi attack, I made it so the Uchiha never revolted, even though the end was nearly the same" said Naruto, saddening Kushina a little. "The only thing I changed was the Hyuga incident…wait! That might be it!"

"You mean when Kumo tried to kidnap Hinata and a three year-old you, using an advanced transformation, stopped it?" asked Minato.

"Yeah. If I remember now, Neji told me something about Hiashi starting to oppose the Hyuga's strict traditions after his father sacrificed himself in the past" replied Naruto.

"But Hizashi's still alive. I see…" replied Minato. "If Hiashi warmed up because of his brother's noble sacrifice that opposed clan traditions, then because Hizashi never sacrificed himself…Hiashi's still lost in that traditional mindset of his."

"And poor Hinata-chan was just a victim" said Kushina.

"She never was arrogant, or traditional. She was kind and sweet" replied Naruto. "That was always the best thing about her, even if she was a little weird."

Their conversation was interrupted as Minato sensed someone was at their door, via the seal matrix that was spread up across the Namikaze estate. A few seconds later, a knock was heard at the door, and the blondes and red made their way down to the living room.

"Hizashi? What are you doing here?" asked Minato as he opened the door.

"I am here on behalf of my brother" spoke an irritated Hizashi. "I have the documents he requested signing. He feels it best to resolve this issue sooner rather than later, and for once I agree with him. Is she alright?"

"And why would you want to know? You and your clan abuse her and NOW you're worried about her?" growled Kushina.

"Kushina, please. If there's anyone I trust from the Hyuga's its Hizashi. At least let him speak" replied Minato.

"Thank you, Minato. First allow me to apologize for my brother's foolish actions yesterday, but I do agree that Hinata-sama is better off here than in the clan" replied Hizashi. "The branch has looked kindly upon Hinata-sama, but we've always been hesitant to help her out because of…well, you know. The main family has always looked down upon her as weak and unworthy. They use those spars as an excuse to punish her for being weak. And if things were to continue as they are, we fear deeply for the girl."

"What do you mean?" asked Kushina.

"If there is anyone who we feel doesn't deserve the fate of the Caged Bird Seal, it is her. We were afraid that they would most certainly seal her one day soon" responded Hizashi. "However, in Hiashi's brashness, and thanks to your little outrage Kushina-san, he has hesitated long enough to produce these documents before having her sealed. With them signed, he's releasing her into your custody and thus sparing her from the fate we all feared. I want to thank you one last time, and apologize for the events that transpired. Hopefully, she will be happier here."

Before Hizashi left, Minato and Kushina had signed the documents.

Up in the guest room, Hinata was busy trying to cry herself to sleep, a few thoughts on her mind, but one prevailing…Hanabi. She loved her sister and was fearful of what would befall Hanabi without her there.

"So the Kyuubi jinchuriki has switched has it?" asked a silhouetted figure with rippled eyes.

"We arrived just at the end of the transfer ritual to realize what they were doing" spoke a plant-like figure. "The jinchuriki is now their 9-year old child. The reasons behind are still unknown."

"This does complicate things a little. The only reason I could think of, is that they have become aware of our operations" commented a masked figure. "Or perhaps this makes things a bit easier for us."

"Kukuku, what are you up to now, Minato?" thought a snake-like figure. "Making your own son a jinchuriki? Even I'm surprised."

"That may be, but there's no way they could have realized our true goals by now" commented the ripple-eyed figure. "Our primary mission is to prepare for when we make our move on the biju. To do this, we need to strengthen ourselves first and foremost. While it is a relief that we know of the change in Kyuubi jinchuriki, there is not much we can do at the moment, so for now we shall continue working on recruiting the three remaining members required before we can advance our plans."

"Perhaps you'll find one I can't kill for once" commented the masked figure. "It really does drain our coffers every time I end up killing one."

"Hey Hinata-chan, I'm sorry everything happened" said Naruto as he and Hinata were on their way back from the Academy the next day. Hinata was still in a state of depression after everything that happened and Naruto felt that it was partially his fault.

"I-its o-okay" stuttered Hinata. "Y-you d-d-didn't do a-anything." The rest of the walk was shared in an awkward silence and when they arrived at home, Hinata just went to the room that Kushina and Minato had given her…her room.

Leaving Naruto and his mother alone in the living room, the two grew concerned about the young ex-Hyuga's state of mind.

"I really hate seeing her like this. Even though she was shy, she was always a cheerful girl" commented Kushina. "I wish I knew of some way to cheer her up."

"Well, I already know how Kaachan" replied Naruto, earning a questioning look from Kushina. "It's about time for Naruto, King of Pranks, to work his magic. That'll surely cheer her up for sure! Dattebayo!"

"Oh, who said you were the King of Pranks? You've still got a LONG way to go before you can even be considered a novice prankster!" argued Kushina. "If anyone of us is the Queen of Pranks, it's me! Dattebane!"

"Please. You call dying the ANBU uniforms a prank? That was just a warm up for me" replied Naruto.

"Oh really? So you think you're a real hot-shot just because you fired tomatoes at all of your classmates with a jerry rigged launcher?" retorted Kushina.

"Even that was nothing! I've done so much more than that and you don't even know it!" stated Naruto.

"Well why don't you put your prank skills where your mouth is. Or don't you think you can live up to MY legacy?"

"Oh it's so on, Kaachan! Dattenbayo!" exclaimed Naruto.

From his office, Minato could only help but look at the chaotic state that his village was suddenly thrown into. The sight before his eyes was just like a scene out of a horror story. The walls and buildings were dyed red and bodies were littered throughout the street. Masked beasts ran wildly across the rooftop, screaming agonizing cries that echoed throughout the village. And mass confusion ensued as the severely dwindled forces of Konoha tried their best to understand what sort of enemy had besieged their village. Ringing and blasts echoed through the village's ears and growling of ravenous beasts could be heard in the distance.

War had come to Konoha…much earlier than Minato had ever anticipated.

Author Notes

Why was this chapter like this? Well, in cannon, Hiashi was still a very strict individual. Even with all of the episodes revolving around Neji, Hinata, and the Hyuga clan, a lot is still left to be interpreted. I see Hiashi as being like all main family Hyugas, strict, harsh, and engrained in their traditions. In cannon, Hiashi began to oppose this image of a Hyuga head when his brother sacrificed himself for Hiashi. However, Hizashi never sacrificed himself in this story. As such, Hiashi has never opened up and is still a stuck-up, main branch Hyuga. This ultimately led to the fall out between Hiashi and Kushina. Out of pride and rashness, instilled by the argument, Hiashi effectively disowned Hinata who he still saw as a weak failure. Now, Hiashi's not going to remain this way, but it will take some time for him develop into the Hiashi that actually cares for his daughters and not just how strong they are.

What will end up transpiring is that Kushina will effectively take over the role Kurenai played in Hinata's life, although maybe a little more involved, in cannon. Hinata will also take up residence in Naruto's house. I said this story will end up being Naru/Hina and that's going to be the case. I'm beginning a bit of development revolving around Hinata at this point in time, but don't expect them to be an official couple for a few years.

Akatsuki: At this time, Akatsuki is still in the process of recruiting members. They only have 7 right now: Pein, Konan, Sasori, Orochimaru, Kisame, Kakuzu, and Zetsu (no, Zetsu does not count as 2). Deidara and Hidan have yet to be recruited and we already know about Itachi. The tenth will probably be an OC of some sort (Tobito's not really a member, but he uses Zetsu and Kisame as proxies to Akatsuki).

This chapter focused mainly on Hinata and the consequences of Hizashi living. As of now, I will begin to focus a bit more on Hinata as she begins to develop under Kushina's tutelage.

For those of you wondering, yes I am pulling Hinata's mother (or at least what's known about her) from The Uzumaki Tales: The Return of the Whirlpool. I am also going to be stealing the idea of a wind-Hinata from that story, and no I am not giving the author of that story any credit (muahaha)

A quick note for some of you wondering. I don't know exactly if they were this way in cannon, but the teams of Minato's generation were arranged as such: Minato, Hizashi, and Fugaku were on Team Jiraiya and Kushina, Mikoto, and Hikari were on Team Tsunade. Remember, these teams were formed either during or just after the Second War I believe.

I'll touch back on everyone else in the next chapter and Minato finally gets to see the Rasenshuriken .

Anyways, please review!