Thank you to those of you who have been reviewing the B Route chapters. I know it's been a little while since I have posted regularly so I'm incredibly grateful for the feedback. I'm working diligently on developing a more thoughtful, fleshed out narrative as I feel that's what this plot line demands. There was a lot of planned content I cut during the original run in favor of making the Route A plot work. I'm excited to be able to use some of those cut ideas and new original content with you now. Your thoughts, comments, and feedback are greatly appreciated as always. If you have any questions about what's going on in the plot or anything, feel free to PM me or leave them in a review. I will message you back or address them in the pre-script here. Thank you in advance, XO Ponchoninjax3.

"Do you want to talk about that?" Yuki asked several miles into their trek. The curiosity had been killing her. Throughout the duration of the exchange between Neji and Beki, Yuki had been forced to make herself scarce. Neither of them seemed to remember she was present at the time. Even so, Yuki had been raised with enough grace to know when to give people some privacy.

Several of the comments exchanged had raised questions and she was hungry for answers. All Yuki could hope was her good behavior during a time of so great a temptation would earn her the biscuit she was looking for.

Beki shook her head. "No. I'd really rather not."

"I kept my nose out of it," Yuki tossed her hair over her shoulder. "I was missing the context of a lot of what was said. I also didn't catch quite a few comments that may have cleared up some of the misunderstandings I walked away with."

"And what misunderstandings would those be?" Beki raised an eyebrow. There was no playfulness in her eyes as she stared her mother down.

"Oh, I don't know," Yuki gave an exaggerated shrug. "Sounded an awful lot like a couple's spat."

Beki set her jaw and didn't answer.

As much as Yuki wanted to press the issue, she was learning Beki resembled her father during conflicts. If Yuki applied the thumb screws before Seiichiro was ready to talk he clammed up. It didn't matter what Yuki tried to bribe him with; it set his resolve to never speak of the issue again to spite her. That had successfully conditioned Yuki to give him the space he wanted. Beki wasn't quite so resolute, however her stubbornness still outlasted Yuki's patience.

"I'm glad you got to say goodbye to your friends." Yuki said with enough sincerity to draw Beki's attention. "I know you made a lot of memories there. Getting to say some parting words softens the blow of separation somewhat."

Yuki smacked her arm reassuringly. "Hell, if all this calms down, maybe you can start writing people."

"Yeah." Beki nodded. "Maybe. It won't be the same, though. It's just like when I left my teammates in Getsu. We wrote each other all the time but people change so much so quickly. After a couple years' separation sometimes it feels like you never knew the person at all."

"We aren't supposed to get so attached." Yuki offered. "Out of all the relationships you have in a lifetime, only a couple end up being lifelong. Everyone else drifts in and out over seasons of different lengths. They all have something to teach us. Some of it's good, some of it's bad."

Beki squinted. "That's weird advice from the most anti-social person I know."

Yuki winced and delicately placed a hand on her collarbone. "You wound me."

"You avoided every adult in town except Kakashi and you fought with him all the time," Beki rolled her eyes. "Most of the time you were elbowing your way into my age group trying to be the 'cool' mom."

"First of all, it wasn't fighting. It's called 'banter'." Yuki folded her arms. "Second of all, can you forgive me for being more interested in spending time with my estranged baby than a bunch of mamby pamby Leaflings? Who the hell was I supposed to hang out with? I'm dead, remember? The less I put myself out there, the less likely I am to have a ronin hit squad roll up with a few too many questions."

"I mean I get you had extenuating circumstances," Beki said. "Doesn't change the fact you're a hard person to take social advice from."

"Fair enough, I guess." Yuki sputtered.

After another hour of quiet travel, Beki found herself calm enough to talk. The sharp smell of the pine and earth, the bird calls and breeze through the branches, and crunch of the sticks and gravel underfoot were all comforting. Enough so for Beki's guard to relax and her mind to wander. Her last three encounters played in her head, changing slightly with each retelling, until Beki wasn't quite sure what had actually been said. She shook her head to dispel the doubt and drew her mother's attention.

"What's up?"

"Just…caught up in my thoughts." Beki sighed.

"How'd Hinata take the news?" Yuki asked.

"She isn't stupid," Beki adjusted the kanabo. "Hinata is too well bred to call me out on a bold faced lie. I'm sure she knows I'm doing it for good reason. So of course, everything she said was perfect and I'm left wondering how much of an ass I made of myself."

Yuki shook her head. "Hinata loves you. It'll take more than you being contemptable bastard once to sever that kind of a bond. That should be the easiest relationship for you to repair later."

"Yeah, I know you're right," Beki said. "Doesn't make me feel like less of a cur."

"Run into anybody else?" Yuki said with measured nonchalance.

"Did you?" Beki didn't take the bait.

"No." Yuki silently cursed. "I didn't. I would be a liar if I said I didn't hope to at least catch a glimpse of Kakashi. He is one of the top shinobi in the world, though. I can't expect him to just be around when it suits me."

Beki swallowed hard. "I…Neji…It's com-"

Yuki grabbed her by the front of her breastplate and gave a hard yank. "I swear to God if you say 'it's complicated' I'm going to give you frostbite on your left boob."

Beki suppressed the urge to ask why only the left one knowing full well her mother's eccentricities bordered on the sadistic. It was better to let her warped thoughts remain unspoken.

"It is, though," Beki chuffed and knocked away the threatening hand. "We're really close. It felt like we were family. He's one of the most important people in my life and we have been through a lot together. Neji makes me feel safe. To be honest, if he isn't around I feel kind of naked and vulnerable-"

Yuki opened her mouth, a wicked glint in her eye, the off-color comment on the tip of her tongue practically visible.

"Don't!" Beki spat. A slight glow came into her skin with the rush of anger. Yuki relented, resetting her face to neutral.

Beki exhaled in frustration but it came out sounding like a growl. "I was available. Gaara and I weren't serious for a long time. He should have said something sooner, dammit."

"So you're saying you would have been interested?" Yuki cocked an eyebrow.

"How the hell do I know?" Beki pressed the heels of her palms to her eyes. "I've never thought about him that way because it was never on the table. Hinata is like a sister to me and genetically speaking, he's her brother. On paper, Neji has everything I like in a guy. He's at least as tall as I am, cute, smart, and we're in the same line of work."

"That's an awfully short list," Yuki snorted. "Is the bar really that low?'

Beki rolled her eyes. "I had to give up on the 'comes from a normal family' and 'has a good sense of humor' a long time ago. Not all of us respond to trauma with gallows humor."

Yuki wrinkled her nose. "I feel like that was targeted at me."

"I don't know. Maybe something was there." Beki's face settled into something resembling indigestion. "When did he start acting weird…?"

"Define 'weird', because I saw him dressed as an eggplant once and cross dressing I don't know how many times." Yuki laughed. "And I don't know what upset me more: how pretty he was as a girl or how comfortably he cosplays as vegetables."

Beki shook her head. "No that's normal. Avoiding me, making cryptic remarks, speaking formally, that sort of thing."

"As your parent I am concerned about the cultural exposure you've experienced in that town." Yuki shook her head.

"My male roommate turns into a centerfold model, my female roommate is one plot deviation away from being a hentai character, I've lost a bet and had to run through town in just my underwear," Beki counted off on her fingers. "I've been in the presence of the Hokage during multiple wardrobe malfunctions that resulted in nip slips on her part and my teddy bear underwear being exposed on my part, I developed powers that forced me to walk through town naked and borrow clothes from strangers-"

"Enough," Yuki waved her hand with an exasperated sigh. "You've made your point. You have been more cowardly than I would have been in the same circumstances."

"How- Wait, no. Not going there." Beki shook her head. "Not falling for that trap."

Yuki shrugged. "Suit yourself. If I'd been around you would have had more fun."

After a beat, Yuki glanced at Beki out of the corner of her eye. "So was it an outright confession earlier, or…?"

"Of course not. In typical Hyuga fashion he said enough for me to get the idea but not enough for me to be sure." Beki hissed.

"It seemed pretty obvious from where I was behind the tree." Yuki offered.

Beki glared. "I know you couldn't help being there but it's tacky to gloat."

"Any mother would kill to get front row seats like that." Yuki grinned.

"Regardless of what was or was not said, things are definitely weird now." Beki folded her arms. "Not irrecoverable weird unless he decides to make things that way. Which is his prerogative."

"Good thing we're cutting and running, then." Yuki stretched. "Some people take rejection the wrong way and double down. Stalking isn't unheard of from that family. Nothing would be worse than having a stalker that could see through walls."

"Leave Hinata alone." Beki sighed. "She's marrying the guy. You're telling me you've never peeped at a boy you liked?"

Yuki shook her head. "Not successfully."

"Why wasn't it successful?" Beki asked. "I can't imagine you wimping out or lacking the technical skills to pull off the voyeur routine."

"Trying to creep on top tier shinobi is a bigger risk than that little kid crap. The big boys can not only sense they're being lurked on but that it's you." Yukie said. "You get yourself called out in more ways than one."

Beki cocked an eyebrow in a perfect imitation of her mother. "How so?"

"Try to watch an S rank shinobi in the shower, you get invited in the shower." Yuki explained. "You might not be ready for that but now you look like a coward and a creep if you back down."

"This sounds awfully specific." Beki shuddered.

"Hey, you asked. I did tell you I'd never been successful at pulling off a flawless peep. How's your track record?" Yuki frowned.

"Subtlety is not in my nature." Beki flushed as she looked away. "I may or may not have a bad track record with showers."

"Oh? Who was peeping on you?" Yuki's smug grin fell off her face as she pondered. "Then again in a compound full of potential peeping toms, you probably only ever got a vague sense it was happening without ever getting to confirm the identity of the perp. Hell, you probably had a bunch of Hyuga lurking at some point or another-"

"No, it was me." Beki's face was almost crimson. "I've walked in on a lot of people on accident."

"It isn't peeping if you walked in on people on accident." Yuki puffed up her cheeks. "You aren't being a creep if there's no intent."

"I did molest the Kazekage in the shower." Beki squirmed. "Early on, when we were still awkward. Really jumped the gun on that one."

"I'm impressed." Yuki nodded approvingly. "My daughter had one of the five most powerful shinobi in the palm of her hand, literally."

"STOP!" Beki's attempts to turtle into her armor were unsuccessful.

"Although to be fair, you two are still awkward. At least his obsession with you makes a bit more sense." Yuki laughed. "We shinobi do so love to be with a partner that can hunt us. I doubt with that scary mug he has a lot of people willing to try, let alone so brazenly as to accost him when he's naked."

"I'm uncomfortable by how accurately that sums us up." Beki frowned. "We're all just adrenaline junkies at the end of the day."

Several hours later, the pair stopped to make camp well off the beaten trail in the middle of no man's land. Out in this remote of a location, risking a fire was a matter of preference. The light and warmth could be invaluable on one hand, on the other it could draw in forces far worse than being left cold or blind. Yuki and Beki opted out of the fire as both had plenty of independent thermal regulation. It was a moonless night, however, which forced them to stay in close proximity.

After settling in to sleep they laid down on the soft ground in silence. Beki had her eyes closed and was focusing on the soothing sound of the wind across the plain. The tall grass nearby sighed softly from time to time as the crickets chirped out their evening song. Sudden movement beside her forced Beki's eyes open out of habit.

Yuki squirmed as though feeling confined in her own flesh. "So I've been thinking,"

"Rare for you," Beki said before realizing it had come out of her mouth.

Her mother's eyes widened and she swatted at Beki with the spirit of an offended cat. "Hey! Watch it or I'll shave your eyebrows in your sleep!"

Beki laughed. "Sorry. Please spare my face caterpillars. Gaara wouldn't know if I was making fun of him or trying to twin and that is not a conversation I'm ready to take on."

Yuki, visibly bristled, settled back in and attempted to regain her composure. "About Red."

"Mom, I've made up my mind about it." Beki rubbed her temples. "I really don't want to hash it out anymore-"

"No, that's not it." Yuki shook her head and propped herself up on her elbow. "I don't know if I gave you two a fair shake to begin with."

The statement caught Beki off guard. Yuki had no qualms in the past with expressing her dislike, or rather, distrust of the Kazekage. Her subtle (and not-so-subtle) parental barrage of advice and doubt sewing had been nonstop since her arrival in Beki's life. Yuki was also not a person to change her mind. Beki found herself completely enrapt, wondering what out of character revelations were about to be shared.

Yuki ran her hands through her hair and stared off with a set jaw. "I…I don't like being told what to do. I see any attempt to change a person as control. I like being the boss in my life. I go where I want to go, do what I want to do, and say whatever I please. To hell with anyone who dares to get in my way."

Beki nodded. So far this was all on brand for her mother.

"I don't know if you've noticed but I've applied that to my relationship with you." Yuki laid back down and folded her arms. "You're a big girl. When I was about your age I was fighting in a war with no leash to speak of. Carte blanche for murder, grand theft, sabotage, whatever it took to get the job done. My attitude was ultimately a benefit to our village. In the long run, it isn't team players that get things done. It's one-man demolition crews that do the most damage and my God there has never been a bigger box of explosives strapped to a wrecking ball than me."

A moment of pensive silence passed before she continued:

"I've been comparing Red to your father." Yuki squeezed her arms. "Your dad understood me. He loved me and accepted me exactly as I was."

When Yuki spoke of Seiichiro it always created a sense of duality for Beki. The man her mother described never quite lined up with the man who raised her. There was love and acceptance, yes, but Seiichiro was tough on Beki. He tried to teach her the right way to be and never let up when she strayed. Her behavior may not have changed as a result of Seiichiro's nagging but Beki sure knew what her father's expectations were for her at all times. As Beki opened her mouth to comment, Yuki beat her to the punch:

"That's me looking at things through rose colored glasses." Yuki swallowed hard. "Your dad did work on me. He was just…good at it, I guess. Discreet enough that it never put me on edge and made me feel confronted. Seiichiro gave me room to breathe and be myself. He also loved me too much to let me go on being an absolute selfish monster, though. Oddly enough, when I think about it, Kakashi is the same way. He confronts me all the time about my behavior. He teases me, embarrasses me, and calls me out whenever I'm out of line."

Yuki looked at her daughter with an expression fraught with internal turmoil. "I…I guess I'm trying to say I was wrong. When I think about the stuff I've eavesdropped or what you've told me, Red isn't trying to control you. He isn't rejecting you and trying to pressure you into being someone you're not."

Beki realized her mouth was hanging open. She slowly closed it and considered her mother as though she were a stranger dressed in Yuki's skin.

"I can't hold it against the kid that he is more direct than I'm used to." Yuki stared up at the sky. "And I say this with every fiber of my being screaming in protest: you should listen to him. You don't have to do what he says when he says it like a dog following its master. He isn't an idiot and he cares about you, so at least give what he says some consideration. And maybe I should…"

Yuki's voice trailed off as she pouted self-indulgently. "Mind my own business."

"Where is this coming from?" Beki knit her brows. "A few days ago you were trying to talk me into going ronin to escape my engagement."

"I know." Yuki said. "As many reservations as I may have about the kid, he did make kage at fifteen. On paper as your mother I should be over the moon. He comes from old money, has a good job, and sure as hell is strong enough to protect you. Your father and I aren't peasants by any means but we're from a small village. Aside from the benefits to you directly as my daughter from a political standpoint it would be like winning the lottery for the entire country."

"I've never heard you say so many nice things consecutively about anyone other than yourself." Beki said half to herself. "Well, I guess Miki, but only about her body."

Yuki scoffed. "If you were running away with her I'd hold my damn tongue. Sound ronin or not, I couldn't hold it against you to need to learn that life lesson yourself."

"Which one?" Beki asked.

"Lust versus love." Yuki sighed and shook her head. "I guess a lot of this comes from jealousy. You were mine, Beki. Yes, Seiichiro had his contribution, but I was so comfortable around him he was like part of my own body. Before you were born I knew you. I knew what foods you liked and hated, what music you danced to, felt you stretch and grow. You were my everything. I, the most selfish self-serving person I have ever met, didn't hesitate for a second when your life was in danger. Orochimaru is small potatoes next to what I would have taken head on like a bull for you."

Yuki swallowed hard at the lump forming in her throat. "I just got you back. I feel like I am finally catching up to where I left you. I know you again. I know we can't go back to how things were. You aren't going to live with me, let me dress you, love me in that dependent unconditional way only a toddler can."

"At least when you were in Konoha I could see you all the time." Yuki clenched her fists, hating herself for the way her eyes watered and her heart ached. "I could be a part of your life. Check in on you and steal as many happy memories as I could. Even if I move with you to Suna, if you're married to a kage everything will change. I won't just be fighting for time with you from your friends. It'll be your husband, your duties, his family; the list goes on. We won't get to frolic and play. We'll have to be on our best behavior and I'll lose the last chance I have to pretend that you're still my little girl."

In the still darkness, Beki reached out and took her mother's hand. Yuki squeezed it tight and took long deep breaths to dispel the traitorous tightness in her chest. "I cannot handle loss."

"Could that be why you don't let anyone in?" Beki asked.

Yuki blinked a few times. "More than I would like to admit."

"I will never not need you. I will always want you to be a part of my life," Beki offered. "Between you and dad, you did a good job as parents. I'm safe. I grew up healthy and strong. I picked a good partner and I'm going to start my own family. Me leaving the nest means you guys were successful. That doesn't mean I have it all figured out. Hell, most of it scares me so bad I want to run."

Beki wiped her dewy eyes on her shoulder. "Dad taught me it was okay to run. If it was dangerous, if it was hard, I just needed to focus on surviving. All he cared about was me living for another day. Relationships, property, Tsukimori honor be damned. It was all easy to replace or discard."

"So much for the whole 'hold the line' motto." Yuki chuckled, grateful for a chance to lighten the mood.

Beki nodded. "But you don't run. Sure, in a fight you'll stage tactical retreats, but it's always with an intent to come back twice as strong. You taught me not to run. You didn't run from Orochimaru, you didn't run from what happened with dad, you didn't run from me. It would have been easier for you. You could have spared yourself so much pain and heartache but you showed up. You held the line even if you were standing alone."

Yuki clapped a hand over her mouth as a violent sob tried to steal itself to the surface.

Beki looked over at her mother in the darkness and smiled. "I wanna be just like you, Mom. If I grow up to be even an eighth of the badass you are, I'll think I did pretty good."

Unable to contain her emotions any longer, Yuki rolled over and pulled Beki into the tightest bear hug she could. The thought of her daughter seeing her cry was unbearable. Burying her face into the girl's shoulder was enough to hide the tears but not the violent shaking as her body was wracked with sobs. She muffled those the best she could to hide her shameful whimpering.

In her lifetime Yuki had made a lot of questionable calls. She had been cursed with a certainty other people lacked, a quality that brought her the ire of her peers. Arrogance, pride, having a god complex; all were sins she was accused of for her aloof confidence in the ruthless execution of her plans. Motherhood in itself had been a terrifying concept. Shortly after finding out the title would soon be hers, Yuki had attacked it with the same dogged determination of everything else in her life. She would be a good mother. She would love and protect her child like she had been born with that as her only purpose.

In moments like this, Yuki could comfort herself with one simple truth: If she had been wrong about every other decision in her life, this was the one thing she had done right. Beki had always been and would always be the right answer. Everyone else be damned.

After they calmed, the pair fell asleep the way they had when Beki was small. It reminded them both of a time when everything had been sure and safe. At least for that moment, that night, all was well again.

…

Wind whipped against the walls and rattled the windows of the drafty tavern. The fire in the hearth sputtered and nearly died every few minutes, forcing the burly man behind the bar to reluctantly throw another log on with a curse. The patrons were all huddled close to the meager flame. They shook and shivered despite the layers that should have cut the cruel ocean cold. Only the most grizzled and seasoned of the sailors sat at the booths and tables on the edges of the room. Them, and a stranger in armor. Armor that caught the light of the flames and flashed with fleeting glimpses of souls tormented in hell.

Generations of the hardest men the patrons had ever known had spoken of its owner. The descriptions varied in the telling, some making him a true oni nearly three meters tall, others reducing him to smaller than the average man. Every tale ended in bones crushed to dust, mangled corpses, and a trail of blood and flames. Any doubts of the authenticity of the living legend in their midst were silenced by the kanabo leaning against the wall beside him and the oni mask plastered to his face. Seafarers were superstitious types out of necessity. None of them were foolish enough to even breathe the Reaper had been in their midst, lest he came for them through the smoke. The rumors of his demise compounded this fear. Freed from his mortal coil, he was more dangerous than ever before, and therefore warranted a wide berth.

If only the men had looked closer, they would have noticed the young unblemished complexion. When the Reaper growled out an order to the barkeep, a close listener would have heard the pitch and volume were too soft. The biggest giveaway that this was an imposter were the hands. Small with long, delicate fingers, nails too clean for a man who had been on the road, and callouses too new for a nightmare that had stalked the land for decades. Had any of the men noticed, however, they were still unlikely to make mention of it. A double take at the accursed armor felt like drawing the attention of an eldritch being. Men who had learned to read the seas developed those observational skills upon fear of death. Perhaps it was this grim perspective that gave them the ability to perceive what a layman would never notice. Maybe it was the constant waltz with death, the near misses to finding themselves in a watery grave their families would never find, that helped them sense better when great and terrible forces beyond their control were present. Whatever the cause, every one of them could feel the armor breathe.

Strange shapes took form on the surface of the polished plates. Screaming mouths, gnashing teeth, and vacant eyes. A lingering stare seemed to anger the thing. The ways in which the metal caught the light defied sense, and soon one eye on the plate became legion staring back at the interloper. None dared stare long enough for the whispering to begin. Although the men called the thing they feared the Reaper and assigned that moniker to the owner of that terrible relic, in truth they feared what the armor bearer carried with them. They feared whatever was in that armor.

The door whipped open, ripped forcefully from the hands of the poor soul looking for refuge inside. It met the wall with a crack and clattered in place as two forms entered the dimly lit room. Both were tall and slender, clad in dark capes and drawn hoods. No one dared to notice. It was perfectly natural for wraiths to meet with a Reaper.

As they glided across the room, a few of the weaker stomached amongst the patrons squirmed in place. No good could come from being present for such a meeting. They were forced between weathering the physical violence of the storm outside or tempting fate. Unlike dealing with a natural force, when confronted with the supernatural sometimes it was as dangerous to run as it was to remain. Instead they muttered prayers to their respective gods and attempted to distract themselves with the piss swill beer and bad conversation. The wraiths huddled around the Reaper, obscuring that horrible visage from view.

Beki slowly raised her eyes, recognizing the partially exposed faces. She glanced at the fairer of the two.

"What did you do?"

"Me?" Yuki chuckled. "I told him what you did."

"I ordered a beer. As bad as it is, it has to be safer than the water." Beki slid it across the table at the other cowled figure.

The silence stretched. The air vibrated with the sheer amount of rage coming off Yuki's companion. Beki found herself incredibly grateful she had opted to wear the oni mask. She kept her eyes on the table but didn't have to hide the frightened childish pout on her lips

Yuki leaned over and raised a corner of the hood. Her hand was met with a smack and she recoiled. "Sorry. Had to make sure your apoplectic fit didn't cause a stroke."

"Do you have any idea-" Ishida began, his voice shaking. "No. That's a stupid question. You couldn't possibly know."

Sometimes she forgot how long he had been around her father. Seiichiro had been Isihida's mentor but the pair were complete opposites. Seiichiro was rugged, a rough-cut boulder of a man. Ishida was polished, ever composed, and lanky. He was more prone to conversation than Seiichiro but oddly was the less friendly of the two. From his clean-shaven face, stylish glasses, trendy haircut, and penchant for bespoke suits the man couldn't have been any further from the image of her father. He pulled back his hood just enough for Beki to see his eyes and found the resemblance chilling.

It wasn't the metropolitan Ishida staring her down, it was her father's uncanny visage boring a hole right through her soul. It was so startling Beki wondered for a moment if he was being possessed by Seiichiro's vengeful wandering spirit, his face twisted in rage that could only be cultivated from beyond the grave.

"You are a child. An idiot child that I foolishly trusted to do a series of simple tasks. I could have trained an ape to do what was asked of you, Haruka. Not even an ape. A parrot with a backpack would have sufficed." Ishida leaned in. Beki had to steel herself, resisting her knee jerk need to recoil in fear. "Deliver papers. Answer a few questions. Conduct yourself so as not to embarrass our king or country. A parrot, Haruka. That's all you had to be."

Beki shot a quick glance over at her mother. Yuki had waved another beer over from the bartender. She was sipping on the one Beki had left abandoned, clearly giggling behind the glass.

"Perhaps you were dropped on your head as an infant. Not to speak ill of the dead but I suspect your father had a hard time with a small child when left unattended. You rolled off the changing table headfirst and he thought to himself, 'everything seems fine', not realizing the breadth of the damage would only be tangible much later. By the grace of God you maintained enough cognitive abilities to function. Thrive even, when given tasks of brute strength or endurance. Regardless there has clearly been some great tragedy in the course of your mental development that has led us to this comedy of errors."

Ishida was almost whispering which made the whole situation much worse. Subconsciously Beki had to strain her hearing to make out what he was saying, allowing each word to register as an individual slap. "Pass papers. Answer a few questions. Be a wallflower. How could you interpret that to mean marry the fucking Kazekage?!"

"How is securing a marriage alliance with one of the Big Five considered a fool's decision?" Beki spat back, her own dander rising.

Ishida reached into his cloak and removed his glasses. He set them gently on the table and pinched the bridge of his nose. After a few cycles of deeply inhaling and exhaling, he slammed his fist on the table with enough suddenness to cause Yuki to jump in her seat.

"Where is the contract, Haruka?! Surely you were mentally checked in and not so fixated on pocket lint and shiny rocks you perceived that much in your father's presence? When an ambassador works with heads of state pieces of paper are exchanged? Maybe even noticed the writing or shiny wax seals?" Ishida's glare intensified to the diamond cutting setting. "Were you so distracted by the number of belts on his pants you forgot?! Or was it the hair? Please don't tell me it was the scar. I will be so embarrassed if it was the scar."

"One of the five most powerful shinobi in the world humbles himself. Gets down on one knee and bares his soul to me and you want me to counter with a prenup?!" Beki's skin took on a soft glow. It wasn't enough to start any fires but the booth began to smell of hot cotton. "I thought you were good at your job? I'm sure insulting a kage in a moment of personal weakness and vulnerability would have went swell."

"Obviously not, you expired coupon of a child." Ishida set his elbow on the table and rested his forehead on his hand. "However, you securing a position as arm warmer for a kage does nothing for Getsu if there's no contract. How long has it been? Perhaps it isn't too late to fix this travesty."

"About a week and a half." Yuki offered.

"If I work nonstop for the next fortnight I can probably draft a document worthy of the momentous occasion of a partnership with the Sand." Ishida put his glasses back on slowly. "Have you slept with him?"

Beki balked. "How the hell is that any of your business?"

"I need to know how desperate he is." Ishida said. "He's a teenage boy, kage or not. If you've been holding your affections hostage that puts Getsu at an advantage."

"Yes." Beki grumbled within the mask. "We've slept together."

"Dammit." Ishida bopped the table with his still closed fist. "Is he smitten at least? Your mother must have provided you some instruction in that area."

"He asked me to marry him…?" Beki knit her brows in confusion.

"First of all, how dare you? I'm a lady." Yuki elbowed Ishida before turning to Beki. "He's asking if you were good enough in the sack that Red will go mad without you."

Beki felt a flush coming into her cheeks. "What?!"

"Yes. Probably." Yuki sighed. "I wouldn't gamble on this one, Ishida. You're playing keep away with a cat that has claws. Red isn't unreasonable. He'll recognize we're from a smaller village and be as generous as he can."

"Here is what we are going to do. You are going back to Kami to Akuma. You are not writing anyone outside the village. All correspondence with your future husband will now go through me. You will not speak of this to anyone, let alone wear that gaudy bauble on your finger. And I swear to God in heaven if you so much as breathe out of line I will pluck every hair from your head individually."

"The ring is cute, leave her alone." Yuki gave him a gentle nudge.

"It's a tangible reminder we are working with teenagers with too much power and money." Ishida sighed. "I'm embarrassed for both of you and your respective parents."

"You're trying to tell me that I'm not allowed to talk to my fiancé, the Kazekage, if he tries to contact me?" Beki raised an eyebrow. "You're not my dad, Ishida."

"You're right." Ishida adjusted his cloak. "Your father would have been much louder, between the property damage and homicide that would have followed your announcement. Blessedly, you are not my child. The one disadvantage to our lack of familial relation is my inability to strike the stupid out of you."

Beki had a flashback to Gaara being knocked out of the sky with the kanabo. "Point taken. For the record, Dad was okay with me dating the Kazekage."

"What the hell else was he supposed to say, Haruka?" Ishida threw up his hands. "How do you think that would have gone? Between your foolish desire for teenage rebellion and the current Kazekage having a habit of grinding people who tell him 'no' into a paste, Seiichiro had no other choice."

"Is it impossible for you to consider my father might have approved of the match?" Beki cocked her head.

"It's not impossible. Your father did have odd ideas about relationships." Ishida made no attempt to hide the contempt as he cast her mother a sidelong glance.

"This almost seems unfair, Ishida." Yuki folded her arms. "You have a decade and some change in experience and the Kazekage is only nineteen. I know this is your job. I know you have to do what's best for Getsu. I also know I'm one to talk considering most of the time, when I walk into someone's life I'm the Black Hat. Let's put the politics aside for a minute. The two of them are young adults who have had a lot of responsibility on their plate. They love each other and are ready and willing to take care of one another for the rest of their lives. Shouldn't we as the only responsible adults around them be doing everything we can to give them their best shot? You know, considering literally the entire world is going to be putting pressure on their relationship from the outside?"

Ishida's expression softened but the frown remained. "Yukihana, I wish it were that simple."

Beki watched as the man seemed to age ten years before her eyes. His shoulders slumped and his glasses settled further down his nose, magnifying the bags under his eyes and the beginnings of crow's feet forming at the corners.

"Suna is similar to Getsu in that the position of Kage is hereditary. However, unlike our king who rules through divine right with a council to support him, the Kazekage is beholden to a council of elders. He may be the strongest shinobi in that village and have the support of his villagers but that council has him by the balls."

"Gaara's never mentioned anything to me about them," Beki mused. "About us, I mean."

"Understandably so. Worst case scenario he was having to quietly bat for you," Ishida explained. "Best case they took you for a plaything. When the safety and image of your village rests squarely on the shoulders of someone with enough firepower to potentially wipe out the town singlehandedly, you do what you can to keep them happy. If that means turning a blind eye to romantic trysts, so be it. As I understood, the previous Hokage had a penchant for gambling the Konoha elders begrudgingly turned a blind eye to."

"There were times I thought that might be what was going on," Beki stared at her folded hands. "It was all inexperience with relationships. Any legitimate complaint I had, I never had to tell him twice. This is someone who would rather be flayed than think they hurt me."

"That's a relief to hear, given his reputation globally." Ishida leaned back into the booth, his frown deepening at the cloud of dust the cushion exhaled. "Was this his first proposal?"

Beki shook her head. "He's been asking me on and off for the last year or so. Playfully, most of the time. This was the real proposal."

Ishida nodded. "I see. Then I can proceed assuming this was an act of passion. The elders will not be pleased, I'm certain."

"Is there anything we can do on our side?" Yuki asked. "She should be a worthy candidate. Between my fortune and what her father left her, I can give Beki a sizeable dowry. Typically, sticklers for tradition waver when the coffers are running dry."

"After the failed invasion of Konoha and the Akatsuki attack, they will certainly be seeking additional income." Ishida said. "I'll put out feelers for how crippled their reserves are and discuss enticing numbers with you after."

"There should be no complaints about her pedigree." Yuki stretched languidly, earning a disapproving look from Ishida. "We're both landed with holdings, she's the official heiress to at least the Asou clan if not the de facto Tsukimori heiress based on her kekke. Then there's the active expression of both our families' valuable kekke genkai in her blood."

"Those two would normally make Haruka a very attractive candidate for almost anyone. Village headmen worldwide would salivate at the thought of a chance at her hand. This is the Big Five we're dealing with here. It's like moving from local tournaments to taking on a Grand Master at chess," Ishida explained. "The rules, what they care about, it's all different."

"Take for example Haruka's land holdings and status as an heiress to two powerful Getsu clans," Ishida tapped the table. "Those are by small village standards quite substantial. They can't match the typical holdings and affluence a clan heiress in the Big Five would have. Secondly, Haruka will be expected to renounce her citizenship to Getsu, her status as heiress, and either surrender or sell her personal assets. There can be no conflict of interest when it comes to disagreements between Suna and Getsu. Nor can the temptation exist for her to apply pressure on her spouse for her or her kinsman's personal gain."

"That all seems pretty routine to me," Yuki rested her chin on her hand.

"No. It's disproportionately not in a foreigner's favor to marry into the Big Five." Ishida cleaned his glasses on a small cloth from within his cloak. "If Haruka was an heiress to a clan in the Land of Wind, she would be permitted to retain her property as it could be inherited by the Kazekage's heirs. It's a joining of two families, not a severing of one. That heiress would likely have a relative on the council of elders to support and advocate for her both during the marriage process and during any subsequent disputes that may arise."

Yuki was silent for a moment as she processed. "They already have someone."

"Several someones if I'm correct." Ishida looked up at Beki. "If ever in my time serving under your father I had thought this was a cross roads we may come to, I would have tried to prepare you for this. Relationships, especially for the young, are fraught with obstacles you have to learn to overcome together to be successful. What you have accomplished is no small feat. If successful, a marriage alliance between a small village like Getsu and Suna could change our country the way a commoner marrying a prince would. How often does that happen, though? How often do you see such inversions of fate?"

Beki shook her head. "Almost never. There has to be some supernatural force on their behalf, like a fairy godmother-"

"More like excessive beauty, unholy wealth, or Machiavellian blackmail and extortion." Yuki interrupted.

"This would have been a pitched battle if we'd been working on it for a decade." Ishida sighed. "We would have had to craft a public image for you, invest excessively in your physical appearance and dress, had your father establish friendships with influential families-"

"Make me a debutant, is what you're saying." Beki became painfully aware of her bulky, masculine, mud-splattered armor. Every blemish on her face flashed through her mind. Her shirt splitting open at the chunin exams, walking through Konoha with her clothes burned off, accidentally flashing the Kazekage with her underwear several times. Ishida was aware of none of those incidents but she was certain those tipped the scales decidedly more against her than in her favor.

"You are asking them to become the mother of their nation." Ishida said with quiet reverence. "Not just the Kazekage's heirs. The way a kage needs to be the strong arm that guides, disciplines, and protects the village as their family, their spouse must be the arm that embraces them. To support them culturally, an ear to hear them, and a mouth to console them. If he were married, the Kazekage's wife would have been at the hospital after the Akatsuki attacks. She would have been assembling a soup kitchen, delegating civilians or nonessential workers to assemble medical supplies, the in-town equivalent of seeing a general lead the charge on the field."

Beki thought back to the Akatsuki attacks on both Suna and Konoha. She would have never thought to do those things, let alone known how to get them off the ground. Search and rescue? Sure. Combat? Definitely. Comforting and empowering terrified housewives? Not so much. She chewed her cheek as her mind wandered to Hinata. She was exactly the kind of Big Five heiress Ishida kept describing. She had the money, the training, and the influence to make things happen.

"So you're saying they want a local girl because of her resources." Beki said. "Her influence through her family could help mobilize things. Make a bigger impact more quickly by tapping into her own money and manpower on behalf of their village."

Ishida steepled his hands. "Now you're getting it. Even if they themselves are lacking in terms of training, personality, or initiative, they come with a built-in support system. A patriarch or a matriarch that can wrest away the reigns and make things happen."

"I'm not saying it isn't possible for an individual to be able to carry this burden all on their own. They would just have to be extraordinary," Ishida explained. "The same way you have shinobi like your paramour who can act as a one-man army. Individuals of that caliber tend to be few and far between."

"I could teach her." Yuki's voice startled them both. She'd fallen so quiet during the discourse the two had almost forgotten she was there. "I had exactly that kind of upbringing. In some ways, priestess training is more rigorous than that of a typical heiress. Had Beki grown up under my instruction she would be ready for this already."

Yuki leaned in closer, to which Ishida recoiled slightly. "Give me a year. If Beki wants this, I can make it happen. There will be no candidate they can find to hold a candle to my baby. As long as no one asks questions about bruises I can make a first lady the likes of which they have never seen."

"Wait a second-" Beki began to protest but Ishida held up a hand.

"No, she has a point. As much as I detest your mother in general, she is the best man for the job," Ishida nodded. "She has the right cultural, academic, and social education to equip you for the position."

"That also buys us time to grease some palms, bolster your public image, maybe sprinkle in a few strategic poisonings-" Yuki counted off on her fingers.

"What he hell, Mom?" Beki balked. "We're not poisoning the competition!"

"Shhhh," Yuki waved her hand dismissively. "Let Mommy take care of it."

She turned her attention to Ishida. "What's happened since the Third War? Why is everyone so lily livered?"

Ishida adjusted his glasses with a look of disdain. "Perhaps the world developed a mutual distaste for wanton murder."

"Scoff at my methods but I dare you to question my results." Yuki folded her arms. "My generation got shit done."

"Yes, at the expense of a decent percent of the world's fertile population, we did create conditions where only apex predators survived." Ishida said. "So yes. Whatever was left of your generation are definitely movers and shakers."

Beki had tuned them out as her mind wandered to other less bloody paths. "What happens if we just…go for it? None of this formal stuff. Gaara and I do the bare minimum and get married like a normal couple?"

"The previous Kazekage wasn't stupid. He had his 'heir and a spare'," Ishida's expression was eerily calm. "There would either be an unfortunate accident or an outright coupe. It would be the equivalent of cutting off a leg caught in a bear trap. They would lose their most powerful shinobi and put the village in a state of unrest as they weeded out dissent. Little to no missions could be conducted due to the conflict within. Following the incident there would be a large loss of outside clients. Whichever of his siblings they forced into his position would also have to deal with the taboo of committing fratricide and a much shorter leash than Gaara was given."

Ishida interpreted the staggering silence as permission to proceed. "Kage are essentially big scary attack dogs. A council can't afford something that dangerous to disobey, or God forbid, bite the hand that feeds them. And if you were still there, well…Maybe they would be kind enough to ransom you back to your mother a few teeth or fingers shy of whole and with a crippling fear of bathtubs."

Beki swallowed bile. Most of the arguments everyone had made about her and Gaara getting together had focused on her sacrifices. Normal, everyday expectations that could affect anyone married to a busy businessman. This conversation put everything in a whole new perspective. She was suddenly crushed beneath the titanic weight of her own inadequacies. Her mind kept wandering to Gaara. Four years. The two of them had been together for four years and he had never once mentioned the danger they were in. Was he unaware of the blade at their throats? Or had he, in typical Gaara fashion, quietly bore that burden alone?

"Why do you think he's going through with all this for me?" Beki looked at Ishida, the vulnerability clear on her face. "Like you said, I'm nothing special. I possess no great fortune or otherworldly beauty-"

"And your personality leaves much to be desired," Ishida added. "You're uncultured and crass, to boot."

Beki glared. "Thank you. I almost forgot."

Ishida shrugged. "You're teenagers. Youth breeds a sense of invincibility amongst the most miserable of your lot. He made kage at fifteen and has come back from the dead. That would give any man a near lethal dose of hubris. So worst case, it's out of a drastically inflated amount of self-confidence, best case he feels that through hard work and determination he can work everything out in the end."

"That doesn't answer the question of 'why me?', though." Beki shuffled uncomfortably in her seat.

"He loves you," Yuki shrugged. "Look at his circle, Beki. Both of your parents loved you so much we were willing to die for you without question. Who does he have that's like that? His brother, his sister, that blond, blue eyed heartthrob you insist nothing has happened with, and you."

"Don't remind me about your daughter inviting herself on a top secret Konoha mission to Suna," Ishida sighed. "I had palpitations over that. Your mother, again to my chagrin, is correct. Cooler heads than his have made incredibly foolish decisions over the woman they loved. Women far homelier and bird brained than you. At least you have shiningly brilliant moments of compassion when it counts. The one savant-like trait in your portfolio of inadequacy."

Beki squinted. "…Thanks?"

"That's a close as you're ever going to get to a compliment from Ishida," Yuki laughed. "Unless you're Seiichiro. Even then, he would only praise his sensei in his absence."

"It would have gone to his head." Ishida defended himself. "He was better at hiding his ego than you. Didn't change the bounce it put in his step when he heard people whisper his name in fear. If I had complimented him to his face, he might have ended up juggling heads like a certain someone."

"You know you love us, Ishida." Yuki beamed. "Especially me. If I hadn't won over your beloved sensei, you could have been stuck with some dowdy house-mouse type. Thanks to me you've never had a dull moment."

"I cannot comprehend the depravity of my sin in a previous life that has forced me to share a fate with this family." Ishida folded his hand on the table. "Or perhaps it is through overcoming such insurmountable trials with humility and servitude I may be permitted into heaven. Either way I accept the challenge with the calm resignation of a man at the gallows."

"So now that we have all this soul crushing political planning out of the way, are you going to walk me down the aisle or not?" Beki sighed. "The only other male relatives left are uncle Daichiro and Shinichi. If they're my only options I'm walking alone."

"It would be my honor, Haruka." Ishida said as he took the spare beer from Yuki, who had graciously chilled it for him. "Now have you two decided on a traditional or a modern wedding?"