I personally think of this as more chapter 3.5. Hope you all enjoy it anyway. I promise the next chapter will be closer to the first two in length.

Naruto found himself in a black void. But it wasn't like space, a vacuum. It was more as if he had fallen into a pit of twisting, dense shadow. The ebony world around him seemed to MOVE in the corner of his vision. It was disturbing, it was frightening.

It was familiar.

"No! I killed you, there's no reason for me to be back here!" Naruto shouted, the traumatic triggers of the surroundings making him lash out in denial. For this was where he'd confronted his Guide.

There was no response to Naruto's noise, the air continuing to writhe with darkness. And then, in a rush, it all changed.

Naruto was suddenly standing on a planet. His head was level with the clouds and the towers of cities barely came up to his knee; he was a giant. On the ground were hordes, legions, armies of women, countless numbers of them, all bowing prostrate at his feet. Somehow, Naruto knew that each one was completely devoted to him. Each one would drink his piss and eat his shit to feel closer to him. They stretched out into the distance, carpeting the surface of this strange world.

Harsh, foreign emotion flooded him. He cared nothing for their worship, that was simply the natural order of things. What mattered were his enemies, who might come and steal or destroy his riches, his property, his conquest. Naruto looked to the sky, dismissing his slaves as if they were ants. The next adversary was out there, itching to claim what was HIS. The only solution was to strike first, to obliterate every potential threat before it was realized. He needed MORE. More resources, more worlds, more chattel. It would never be enough, and the rage that filled him at that thought only made him more determined to acquire what little there was in the universe…

What the fuck?

Naruto shook his head. "That's not me," he said.

Something shifted and Naruto became aware of a presence. It was massive, titanic, astronomical. It loomed over him like the star of this fantasy world. It had been radiating approval as Naruto vowed to conquer the universe. Now it projected puzzled bemusement, the shift as obvious and unmistakable as the sunlight changing color.

Naruto gulped, intimidated. Still, he was nothing if not a man of principle. "That's not me!" he repeated. "I won't be like the others!"

The presence contemplated the declaration… and found it wanting.

Naruto bellowed in pain as, quicker than a neural whip, a tendril of shadow with a barbed hook at the end lashed across his chest. The blow felt like it should have disemboweled him, and yet no wound showed on his stomach. But the PAIN! Naruto barely kept himself from collapsing to the ground in agony. Naruto grit his teeth and looked up at where he sensed the… entity looking down on him.

Naruto knew he had a choice to make. He could surrender and comply with the wishes of this abyssal horror regarding him. But what choice was that? He refused to become another heartless tyrant like his father and grandfather and all the other Uzu that had come before him. He'd rather die than compromise his values. And if there was one thing he had learned in the Marines, it was how to go down fighting.

"That the best you got?" he challenged, standing straight up despite the lingering torment.

The thing that had Naruto in its grasp was not amused. With a shrieking dissonance that was more an aural attack than a noise, another tendril with a hook came flying out of the darkness towards Naruto.

Naruto flinched, holding up his hands to try and defend himself.

The tendril lashed out… only to bounce off a wall of white hexagons.

Naruto blinked, and he sensed the same surprised confusion coming from the terror hovering over him. And then it clicked. Naruto was an Uzu. An awakened Uzu. He had psychic powers beyond mortal comprehension.

With a savage grin, Naruto focused. A rod of pure light appeared in his right hand, solid in his grasp as he formed a fist. Naruto reared back and with a heave sent the bolt of psychic energy flying. It raced like lightning skyward, for the black sky filled with glowing pinpricks that Naruto realized were EYES, not stars. The bolt flew true, piercing one of the white dots and exploding upon impact in a conflagration of power. Naruto felt satisfaction for a grand total of two seconds.

And then his enemy screamed.

There were no words for how profane, how unholy, how fundamentally WRONG that scream was. It could easily drive weaker men insane, senseless and gibbering. It traveled for miles out across this dream-space, alerting all who heard it that a being of immeasurable power and hatred had been wounded. It wasn't just a roar of pain; it was a declaration of war. With his thoughtless act of defiance, Naruto had earned an eternal foe. One that would never eat, never sleep, and never stop until he and all those he loved had endured countless torments the likes of which he couldn't even imagine.

His ears bleeding from the intensity of the sonic abomination, Naruto could only think one thing: run away! But running never worked in a dream. Screwing his eyes shut, Naruto focused all his energy on escaping…

… and woke up in bed with Hinata.

The Uzu almost cried, he was so happy, relieved to find himself safe and warm with his Matriarch in his arms. And then he WAS crying, great heaving sobs, as the encounter with that eldritch horror played on a loop in his mind. What had he been thinking, standing up to that thing? It was like an ant picking a fight with a giant! He'd doomed himself. The next time he fell asleep, the THING would find him!

Naruto was dimly aware of his arms being forced open. And then a stinging smack hit him right across the cheek. "NARUTO!" someone said, both very loud and miles away. Another smack. "Naruto, heal yourself! Whatever's wrong with you, FIX IT! You're scaring me!"

Heal himself? Right. He was an Uzu. Naruto reached for the mental representation of his healing powers and willed them to suffuse his body. With crisp, refreshing waves of cool energy, Naruto felt the psionic force take effect. He blinked and suddenly the world made sense again. His vision was clear, and looked straight into the panicking eyes of his only crewmate.

"I'm good. I'm good," Naruto said hoarsely. Had he been screaming?

Hinata's shoulders slumped, all the energy seeming to come out of her. "Thank the gods. I had no idea how to help you. What the bloody blue hell was that all about?" Hinata demanded.

Naruto hesitated. "I almost don't want to tell you. I don't want to inflict this on you too. But on the other hand, I need to share this with someone, try to make sense of it."

"I'm all ears." Hinata stopped holding herself up, laying down on Naruto's chest. The captain of the Fool's Gold gratefully wrapped her in his arms.

*Might be easier to show you instead of tell you,* Naruto projected.

*Lay it on me* Hinata encouraged with her mind.

Naruto replayed the nightmare that was more than just a nightmare in his mind, sharing it across the bond with Hinata. Each detail was sharp and immediate, lacking any sort of dream-like haze. Hinata felt goosebumps on her pale skin and a tremor in her heartbeat as she heard Naruto's memory of that desecrated scream.

*Fuck* she thought succinctly. *What do you think that... whatever it was, wanted with you?*

*My best guess? That… Astral Entity is the god my Guide worshipped. Some kind of malevolent consciousness that is interested in the Uzu. I don't know why. Maybe the first Uzu made a Faustian deal with it, maybe it just found us one day. At the start, it seemed very interested in molding me along traditional Uzu lines. When I refused, it tried to chasten me. Conclusion, for whatever reason, it wants me to try and conquer the universe.*

Hinata gave a weak grin. *But nobody tells Uzumaki Naruto what to do.*

Naruto returned her smile, just as shaky. *I think I made that pretty clear. And it did NOT like my answer.*

*So now what? You never sleep again? Can Psychic Healing do that?* Hinata asked.

Naruto shook his head, thinking the issue through. *That wasn't a dream. I was summoned to the Astral Plane, probably that Entity's personal sub-plane. I just need to wrap myself in the right wards before I go to sleep and that should protect me from any kind of psionic attack. Probably a good policy anyway. This Entity isn't the only one out there. We should ward you before sleep too, just to be safe.*

*Sure thing!* Hinata chirped. *Now, with that rather horrible end to an afternoon nap out of the way, what would you like to do today?*

Naruto sighed. *I love the old girl, but the Fool's Gold can barely go a day without developing a maintenance issue. How about I go to work making sure we don't break down in the middle of nowhere, and you keep me company?*

*Sure, that sounds like fun! You mind if I grab the Holonet reader, though? I've never had access to it before, and if I'm going to turn into some super genius, I'm going to need to fill my head with some facts,* Hinata reasoned.

Naruto grinned and gave her a smooch. *Whatever you want, honey.*

Naruto and Hinata extracted themselves from the bed. He put on his standard fare of long-sleeved t-shirt and combat trousers, and Hinata pulled Naruto's white tee over her head. On her malnourished frame, it was as good as a dress. They paid a quick visit to the cockpit to check the long-range scanners and grab the Holonet reader. Then, multi-tool in hand, Naruto set about the chore list of problems with his vessel. Hinata kept him entertained with a running commentary on how burly and manly he looked working up a sweat knee-deep in the guts of the ship and questions about subjects she found as she browsed.

"Tensions escalate as rogue members of the Kumo Empire engage friendly Konoha Federation ships in the latest of a series of border skirmishes. The brave men and women of the Konoha Federation Navy naturally proved victorious against the marauding aliens," Hinata read aloud. She looked up from the screen to raise a brow at Naruto. "I may have grown up on an asteroid, but I know fake news when I see it."

Naruto shrugged and wiped his brow with his forearm. "What can I say? The Konoha Federation News Network is a government-run agency. When it comes to the military, propaganda is the rule. I've met and traded with Kumo before, and they were perfectly civil. I'm betting the K-Fed is the one that struck first, but good luck finding a reporter brave enough to say that."

"What are the Kumo like? I've only met one alien in my life, you know," Hinata teased, but projecting her earnest curiosity.

Naruto grinned and got back to tightening the right valve. "Kumo Empire, aka the Lizardmen. Seven foot reptiles that can shift from bipedal to quadrupedal. A bit hard on the 'S's when they speak Standard, but they're friendly as anyone if you get past any xenophobia. They use Plasma weaponry, real bitch to deal with. After the Konoha Federation, they're the greatest military power in the Galactic League. At least, on paper. We're not too sure about some of the others and the K-Fed tends to overestimate itself."

Hinata tilted her head. "So if these 'border skirmishes' turn into a full blown war, who'd win?"

"Bloody knockout drag fest until a ceasefire or a decisive victory of one side. If I were a betting man, I'd flip a coin. They're too evenly matched."

On a whim, Hinata pulled up a map of the Galactic League. She gasped at the thousands of stars that filled the screen, sectioned off by color-coded borders. The Konoha Federation sat in the center, roughly originating in a sphere from ancestral Sol and Konoha. It was mostly hemmed in from all directions by other civilizations. "What's out there? Past Karron and the Rim?"

Naruto shivered. "Trust me, you DON'T want to know."

Hinata got a brief flash of a creature she could only describe as chitinous. Shaking her head, she turned back to the map. "This blue one seems very narrow."

"Ah, that's the Oto Regency. Those are just the stars we've confirmed form their border. No one knows how big their territory is."

"Why not?"

Naruto winked and wiggled his fingers in a spooky manner. "Because anyone who crosses further than the border gets blown to smithereens. The Oto have laser weaponry that makes the K-Fed equivalents look like dot pointers. Many have tried trading for their weapons tech, but so far as I know, no one's succeeded."

"So for all we know, the Oto Regency could be twice the size of the rest of the Galactic League?" Hinata asked incredulous.

"Yep. Luckily, we've been at peace for a couple centuries now. I actually traded with an Oto named Kakashi just before going for Karron. They're perfectly nice, they just have a zero-tolerance policy on visitors past the gate."

Hinata narrowed her eyes and grinned, her female intuition and her direct line to Naruto's thoughts and emotions serving her well. "You have a bit of a crush on him, don't you?"

Naruto blushed and busied himself with the valves again. "It's purely platonic. I don't even know if he swings that way."

"So? A couple 'doses' and he'll be as flexible as you are, and he won't even remember those. You just have to reel him in with promises of riches, power, and eternal youth and we're set!" Hinata reasoned with a grin. "So what's Kakashi look like? Is he handsome?"

"I have no idea, actually. No one does. The Oto all wear full-body armor at all times they're in public. The Oto's appearance is as much a mystery as their size. Theories range from a contagious disease to them being so hideous they feel the need to hide from the world. Needless to say, I've never heard of an Oto having a relationship with another species."

Hinata huffed. "So let's put him down as a hard 'maybe'." She turned back to the atlas. "The Suna Collective?"

"The Greys. First alien species we ever came in contact with. They're peaceful explorers and scientists that once laid claim to most of the current K-Fed worlds. When humanity started to expand, they seceded more and more worlds to Konoha until they were left with a fraction of their territory. I don't know if they're cowards or if pacifism is integral to their culture or species. But the Suna have always been our closest neighbors. They have Power Cores and Tachyon Drives miles ahead of the K-Fed."

Hinata tilted her head. "Greys?" she asked.

"They're five foot with huge craniums, grey skin, and big, black eyes. To be honest, they creep me out a little. But they're psychic, and that makes me very interested in meeting them now that I've got my powers," Naruto explained.

"For training?"

"Maybe, though it all seems pretty self-explanatory. What I'm really interested in is what they might know about the Uzu. They're psychic, which means they can transfer memories. Their histories must be perfectly preserved, each memory packet being transferred from one Suna to the next, through the years. It could go back millennia. They might have encountered the Uzu before and kept the memory safe."

Hinata blinked, wrapping her head around the concept. "It hurts my head, but that makes sense. First stop after our return trip to Karron, the Suna homeworld."

Naruto grinned and blew her a kiss before ducking down to get at an awkwardly placed pipe.

Hinata kept going through the list of major civilizations in known space. "Iwa Republic?" she called down to Naruto.

"Nicknamed the Golems. Almost identical to Konoha, just silicon rather than carbon-based. They're half again as tall and three times as heavy as your average Konoha, but they're gentle giants. Excellent miners, and their territory is rich with asteroids. Have the fastest engines in the galaxy and use Fusion weapons that pack a real kick. Their spit feels like lube," Naruto added as an afterthought.

Hinata perked up. "Woohoo, my man, getting some interspecies loving. Boy or girl?"

Naruto smiled as he remembered the encounter fondly. "Couple. She wanted to be double-penetrated and he had a thing for humans. I was the only guy they knew with a cock roughly the same size as his."

"That lucky Iwa gal," Hinata sighed. And then she blinked. "For the record, the lack of jealousy kicks in by the fourth dose, if we're keeping track."

"Good to know. How do you feel about that?"

"I'm certainly not complaining that I'm free from a toxic emotion," Hinata said flippantly. "And last but not least, the Mizu Enclave."

"Don't know much about them, they're pretty isolationist. Basically merpeople, with the strongest shields known to Konoha. I only traded with them once and I picked up a lot of hostility. Whether that's cultural or just that one merchant, I can't say."

Hinata pursed her lips. "Seems everyone else has better stuff than the K-Fed. What's their advantage?"

"The Marine in me wants to say 'the men and women fighting the good fight', but there are species that would wipe us out in a boarding action. Honestly, the K-Fed gets by as a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to various tech and a certain resolute willingness to fight to the last man against all odds. Problem is, those in power always want more, so we keep trying to expand, and get into fights like this mess with the Kumo."

Hinata nodded. "And the Uzu have the best stuff there is."

"Well, the best in known space. And that's just 100 thousand stars out of the 100 billion in the Elemental Spiral. And that's just one galaxy. For all I know, there's a race out there as far ahead of the Uzu as the Uzu are ahead of the Galactic League. There's really no way to tell." Naruto climbed out of the hatch and replaced the grate. "And it's kind of a moot point. Until we get Tenten and find the resources to build an Uzu ship, we're stuck with a 27th century Freighter."

Hinata blinked, and then blushed crimson. "Don't laugh. What's the date again? So much has happened so fast I've lost track."

Naruto smiled and gave her a long, lingering kiss. "It's March 9th, 2779, 1700 Konoha Standard Time."

"My birthday was the 5th. So it's been less than a week since this whole crazy adventure started," Hinata thought aloud. "When's your birthday?" Hinata asked innocently.

"01/01/2739," Naruto replied by rote. "New Year's baby. Supposedly that means I'm blessed with good luck and virility."

"Sounds about right to me. You got me, didn't you? And I doubt there's a more virile man in the universe," Hinata said sultrily, cupping his weighty package through his shorts.

Naruto very nearly growled. "Careful. Naughty girls go to bed without dinner."

Hinata blinked doe-eyes up at him. "Please, sir, I'll be a good girl. Please let me have my dinner."

Naruto grabbed and heaved. Hinata shrieked as she found herself bent over Naruto's shoulder. With strong, purposeful steps, the Uzu carried his Matriarch to his cabin. Then, with a carefully calculated throw, he flung her onto the bed.

Hinata barely had time to catch her breath when she found herself moving as if invisible puppet strings were attached to her limbs. She felt a tendril of fear until she realized the cause was Naruto. Then she simply surrendered to the manipulation, so great was her trust in him. She found herself lying with her feet towards the wall and her head hanging off the edge of the bed. She glanced at her upside-down lover and felt her nether regions gush at the lust in his eyes.

"I made love to you earlier today," he said in a voice as smooth as silk and decadent as fudge. "Now, I'm going to fuck you. I'm going to use your young, tight little body to get myself off. And you'll love it, because it brings me pleasure. And that's all you live for now: my pleasure."

*Too much?* He asked telepathically, letting her know this was all an act, a game to get in the mood.

*Not enough, keep going!* She projected back. "Yes, Master," she said aloud in her most subservient tone. She had never debased herself like this for anyone before. But then, she'd never met anyone worthy of such displays before Naruto.

Naruto shivered when he heard her call him 'Master'. "Good girl," he crooned appreciatively. "Now open that pretty mouth so I can fuck your throat."

Hinata grinned in anticipation before opening her lips wide and sticking out her tongue.

Naruto savored the view of a girl wearing nothing but his shirt, offered up to take him orally. Then he unbuttoned his pants and pulled out his burgeoning cock. The thick shaft filled his palm as he aimed the great erection at Hinata's head. He crouched down so the fleshy pillar was lined up with Hinata's open mouth. Putting his hands on the mattress to steady himself, Naruto implacably moved forward and pushed the head of his not-so-little soldier into the volunteered orifice.

Hinata made no moves to lick or suck, simply breathing and surrendering herself to Naruto. For this encounter, she was just a toy. A tool. Nothing more than a cock sleeve for Naruto to use to masturbate. Her pleasure was inconsequential, but was guaranteed, for she felt everything Naruto felt. Even as the massive organ became lodged deep in her throat, she felt no discomfort. Just a tingling on her clit from psychic feedback and a naughty delight in the knowledge that Naruto was enjoying this.

*Brace yourself* Naruto warned, before he suddenly began to pull out and thrust back in at a fairly rapid pace. Hinata grabbed the sheets with her hands and tried to relax, as she experienced her first skull fuck. Saliva built up in her mouth, overflowing and leaking out her lips to drip to the floor. Her throat was vacated and refilled over and over, rubbing the delicate membranes raw.

And she loved it, because Naruto loved it.

"Fuck, that's so good. You've got such a tight little throat, Hinata," Naruto grunted as continued to hump her head. "The only thing that would be better is if I were doing this to your pussy or ass. But I felt like taking your mouth, so I did. I can do that. I can do whatever I want with you. You're MINE!" he growled.

*Yes! Yours. All yours, Naruto! Now cum already and fill me with your magic jizz!* Hinata egged him on. Her eyes were locked on his quad swaying back and forth above her, filled to the brim with her favorite drink.

Naruto moaned and pushed so deep his pelvis knocked against Hinata's chin. He unloaded, sending jet after jet of sperm-rich spunk down Hinata's gullet and straight into her stomach. The pale, flat plane swelled from within, until Hinata's abdomen appeared 'about to pop' pregnant. Hinata clenched her fists and tried not to react as her complimentary orgasm ripped through her. Male climaxes were great fun, as far as the girl from Karron was concerned.

When he was sure his penis had stopped firing, Naruto withdrew it from Hinata's body. He got down on his knees and gave her and upside-down kiss. "Did you enjoy your dinner?"

Hinata grinned. "My compliments to the chef. And his four little helpers. Now when do I get to ravish you like you're nothing but a blow-up doll?"

Naruto chuckled. "Tomorrow, maybe. Now why don't you sleep off your meal? You're going to be doing a lot of growing this next week and the less energy you expend, the better. I'll do a few more chores and then give you a nightcap before joining you for bed."

Hinata yawned. As soon as he suggested it, she suddenly felt exhausted. Which made sense, she was going through an accelerated growth spurt, her very genome being altered by the psychic power packed in every one of Naruto's little swimmers. There was a reason her body digested the gut-busting feasts it was getting so fast. "Alright. I'll miss you."

*I'll be with you always, no matter where I am,* Naruto reminded as much as he vowed. He pressed his lips to hers again before tucking her into what he already thought of as 'their' bed. She smiled at him and watched his ass move in those tight trousers as he walked out of the room, before closing her eyes to doze.

She awoke again about four hours later, and watched with fascination as Naruto conjured transparent blue hexagons, each of them marked with a different character she didn't recognize. Naruto informed her they were Uzu runes, and that they spelled out an enchantment of protection and hiding, to keep them from being found or harmed by any on the Astral Plane. He wrapped them both in the blue hexagons, which slowly vanished from sight once the full-body shrouds were completed. Hinata then was distracted from the show of psionic powers by Naruto showing her how he masturbated. He treated her to a real show, stroking the shaft, playing with his quad, even leaning down to lick his head. When he was on the brink, he finally allowed her to get her mouth on him. He blew the fourth load of the day down her throat, and then cuddled her until they both fell asleep, his hand resting on her gravid tummy.

The next week passed in a pleasant blur. Naruto and Hinata grew happier by the day, as they learned more and more about each other's minds and bodies. Being able to communicate with raw thought eliminated all the misunderstandings inherent to the spoken word. The inability to lie or hide took some getting used to, but radical honesty soon became the comfortable norm. Hinata revealed every secret she had, and Naruto did the same. How she'd stolen and plied, blackmailed and lied just to get food or resources when living homeless in the tunnels of Karron. How Naruto remembered the face of every man he'd killed, even if he'd made his peace with their deaths. How Tenten had taken her in as an 'assistant' and become good as a sister. How the waitresses in his grandparents' restaurant had used his younger, naive self as a pawn in their little games. They were open books to each other, more transparent than perhaps any couple that came before.

And the SEX! It was truly phenomenal. Three, four, sometimes even five times a day, their bodies became one in some way. Most days, they didn't even bother wearing clothes at all. Hinata just might have become addicted to the taste of Naruto's cum and the feeling of his prodigious girth stretching out her body. Naruto considered it one of his missions in life to maximize the number of orgasms his Matriarch had whenever he was getting squeezed by her pliant yet oh so taut holes. They christened every room in the Fool's Gold except the Engine Room, and that was for safety's sake alone; radiation had a time and place, and mid-coitus wasn't one of them.

Not to say they spent every second of every day together, even if they kept in mental contact. Naruto had to do maintenance on his rusty Freighter, including one harrowing incident when he had to do a spacewalk to check the external systems. Hinata had worried her hair grey until he was safely back in the airlock. Hinata usually could be found in the Cockpit or their cabin, absorbing the virtually limitless knowledge of the Holonet, the reader balanced on her rounded stomach. One of her main interests was Astro-Navigation. The galaxy was so vast, she was quite curious how everyone got around it. Naruto had offered up his layman's understanding to help get her started, but she'd soon raced far past him to collegiate-level science and technical knowledge on the subject. Naruto was infinitely proud, and didn't bother to point out to Hinata her obviously enhanced intelligence.

Hinata's transformation seemed to go unnoticed by her, as if there were blinders in her mind. The lack of mirrors on the Fool's Gold certainly didn't help. Naruto hid his thoughts when he regarded the changes, wanting to save the big reveal until the process was complete. But each morning he woke up next to a slightly different version of the woman he was rapidly falling head over heels for.

The morning of the 16th, Naruto was shaken awake. "Naruto! Naruto! Wake up, you big palooka!"

Naruto woke chuckling. "Have you been watching old gangster movies in your spare time or something?"

"Get up and follow me to the Cockpit, mister, or you'll be sleeping with the fishes," Hinata said imperiously.

Naruto sent phantom fingers to tickle her, but got up anyway. He'd been practicing his telekinesis, as much as he could when bound by the confines of the Fool's Gold. He'd developed technique more than power, but that came in handy when it came to teasing uppity Matriarchs.

Nude as the day they were born, Naruto followed a skipping Hinata to the Cockpit. Rather than use the co-pilot chair, Hinata settled herself in her man's lap. Hugging her to increase the pleasure of the body contact, Naruto tucked his chin on Hinata's shoulder. "So, what did you want to show me?"

"As you know, I've been studying Navigation."

"And film. And economics. And biology. And mathematics. And…"

"Alright! I've been studying a lot, but let's focus on the Astro-Nav, okay?" Hinata giggled, a delightfully feminine sound.

Naruto picked the secret from her thoughts. "You planned a new route?"

She pouted. "Knew I should have practiced my mental shield. You ruined the surprise."

"Sorry, babe. I promise, I'll still be impressed. Show me what you got," Naruto encouraged.

Hinata leaned forward, which shifted her weight atop Naruto's slumbering cock. It began to awake as she leaned back, their planned route appearing on the main screen. "This is your original route to Olympus Shipyard. It will take us 17 more days."

"Okay," Naruto acknowledged. "And what about your new route?"

Hinata flicked a switch on the Pilot's chair. A new route appeared on the screen, overlayed beside the original in a different color. Naruto blinked when he read the proposed ETA attached to the new route. "11 days? In this old heap? How is that possible?"

"The short answer: warp tunneling. It involves taking advantage of oscillations in the hyperwake caused by interaction with nearby gravity wells. Think of it like one car drifting behind another, except we're drifting with ourselves." Hinata shrugged. "It's a tad complicated."

Naruto chuckled, shaking his head. "All that hard work paid off, I guess. Lay in the new course, babe."

Hinata pushed a few buttons and that was that, almost a week shaved off the length of their journey. She hesitated, before standing up. She fetched something from a drawer near the co-pilot's chair, and brought it to him. It was her old foldout ID. Naruto took it, confused. He noted that the face in the photo and the face looking worriedly at him were practically unrecognizable from each other.

"What is it, honey?" Naruto asked.

"Scan this? Please," she asked.

Shrugging, Naruto ran the ID through the scanner. After a brief pause where the signal was sent to the Core Worlds and the Konoha Federation's Citizen Registry, the result popped up on the screen.

"Hyuuga Hinata. Born 03/05/2761. No outstanding warrants… Navigator First Class?" Naruto read incredulously. He turned to his Matriarch, who was biting his lip nervously. "People prepare for YEARS to take that test! You passed after studying for only a week?"

Hinata shrugged. "I'd already read all I could find on Astro-Navigation on the Holonet, and you're going to need a Navigator on your crew. I took the test last night after you fell asleep. I had just enough ryo saved up to cover the fee, I know you're penniless after buying all the Tyrenium. It was a lot easier than I expected, I actually managed to get a perfect score!"

Naruto shook his head, before bursting from his chair and wrapping his arms around Hinata. He lifted her up and twirled her in a circle, letting out a crow of joy. Then, letting her lithe form slide down his front, he kissed her full on the mouth. "I'm so proud of you! I can't believe you did this for me!"

Hinata grinned and returned his kiss with passion. "I'd do anything for you."

Naruto felt his heart stop. He gently pulled her hair back behind her ear, and noted the final change had taken place. "You had a surprise for me. Now I have a surprise for you."

"I like surprises," Hinata grinned guilelessly.

Naruto let her go. "Stay right there, okay?" With her nod, he returned to the Pilot's chair and made a few commands of the cameras. That done, he pulled up the video of Hinata's statement of consent and freezed the first frame. "You remember her?" Naruto asked.

"Duh, she's me. That was only, like, eight days ago," Hinata said, wondering where this was leading. Unlike her, Naruto had practiced his mind shield.

Naruto pushed a button and a second image was placed next to the still of Hinata before her first dose. "What about her? Recognize her?"

Hinata blinked and studied the woman beside her in the hologram. She was tall, not as tall as Naruto but still respectable for a woman. Her indigo hair fell like a waterfall of silk to her midback. Her skin was tanned, toned, and utterly flawless. She looked like a serious athlete, and yet retained a certain softness that made the effect one of delicious femininity. Her breasts would prove too much for even Naruto's big hands to contain. Her ass curved out even when she was standing straight. And, Hinata saw with a start, she was moving. The image was live. Hinata waved at the image, and the beautiful goddess of a woman waved at someone off-screen.

"That's… that's me?" Hinata asked incredulously.

"The effect of three square meals of Uzu semen a day for a week," Naruto said humorously. He walked over to stand beside Hinata and they looked at the live feed of the two of them in the Cockpit. "Now the way you look on the outside reflects the woman I see on the inside. We belong together, don't you see it?"

Hinata looked at the two of them together. They did indeed look a pair, a match, a union of masculine and feminine in perfect, thrilling contrast to each other. They looked like a pair of demigods set to take on the universe. Hinata noticed one detail she'd missed at first.

"My ears!" She reached up to feel them, how instead of rounding they now came to a smooth, sharp taper. "You gave me Uzu ears!"

Naruto chuckled. "Honey, I gave you Uzu everything."

She looked at him uncomprehending.

Naruto elaborated. "I told you I intended to raise every member of my pack to equal standing as me, and I meant it. You're an Uzu now. Probably the first female Uzu in existence. You have just as much power as I do now, and you're immortal even without my cum restoring you. You're more than any Matriarch or Thrall that came before you. You're the Alpha Female to my Alpha Male, and never doubt that you are my equal in every way that matters."

Hinata was getting choked up. She grinned through the tears and gave Naruto the sweetest kiss she could. "Don't worry. I'll still be a good bitch for my mighty wolf. I may be able to kick your ass with psychic powers, but I'll always be your obedient, good little girl."

Naruto growled and attacked her lips. He hoisted her up, and her strong legs wrapped around his waist. "Let's go and celebrate my Navigator getting her certification."

"I was thinking I'd like it a little different today. There's one hole you still haven't claimed as yours," Hinata offered sultrily.

Naruto almost stumbled, before redoubling his pace back to their cabin.

And that's where I'll leave it, on a sexy cliffhanger. Next chapter, first anal and the first major action sequence of this fic. Please favorite, follow, and/or review.