I~~~~I
It was slightly windy in Konoha, a touch of cold in the normally bright and sunny weather.
Sitting in his office, starring out at the village with worried creases on his face, Sarutobi silently cursed the change.
Days such as these were foreboding, and at his age Sarutobi had learned not to shove such feelings aside.
A knock to his door drew him from his thoughts.
"Come in."
The aged Hokage answered, the door opening seconds later to reveal Team Seven and Eight's Senseis walking inside. Their Genin were absent, no doubt enjoying being free after getting their pay.
Naru also had lunch with her 'brothers' if Hiruzen remembered correctly, which was no doubt the reason for their early arrival.
"Yo, Hokage-Sama."
Kakashi waved at the Village Leader, drawing an amused smile from Asuma and an unamused sigh from Hiruzen.
"Report…"
Sarutobi answered dejectedly, wondering why he had to deal with eccentric Jonin.
I~~~~I
When Naru first met Raidou, Iwashi, and Genma, it was a sunny day. Barely a month had passed since Shisui died, and Itachi left her and Sasuke even more alone.
She had been visiting Shisui at the memorial when she the three had come to pay their respects. Upon seeing her, they had frozen. The reason could easily was most likely because she was working on a few seals and had two shadow clones aiding her, the copies heads snapping up at the arrival of the Jonin.
At the time though, Naru didn't trust anyone nearly enough to say hello, instead shooting to her feet, even as Genma, the Jonin with his headband covering his head of spiky brown locks and a Senbon inserted between his lips, called out.
"H-hey!"
She didn't wait though, her clones vanishing from existence as she slammed her palms together, whispering to reverse summon her tools before she took a chakra enhanced leap from the memorial.
The ivory girl left all three flabber ghasted at her, for her reaction to them, her visiting of the memorial stone, and her obvious work in seals.
The second time she met them, she was more or less unable to escape due to the fact they were invited to her class as sub instructors for the day.
Mostly, they left her to herself and observed her interactions from afar, but when class was over they held her back.
Like always, Sasuke tried to stay as did Hinata, but Naru ended up getting them to go make all of their dinners so they could train when she got back.
Shiranui Genma, introduced along with the others at the beginning of class, was the one to ask her why she ran.
"They don't like me at the memorial…I don't want to cause trouble for Hokage-Jiji."
She spoke truthfully, not really having much to hide as she sat on the desk at the front of the class, her hands settled on her lap, her bi-color eyes meeting Genma's hazel ones as he raised a brow.
"And the seals?"
Naru paused, humming gently as her right hand rose, her thumb and forefinger rubbing on the middle tag of her triple charmed necklace.
"It's not surprising honestly. I'm an Uzumaki, it's in my blood."
She hopped from the desk, turning toward the door as the two others stared at her, the eldest looking one, Raidou, looking at her with a forlorn gaze that spoke of sorrow and familiarity, while the younger one, Iwashi, smiled gently at her.
"We could help. We were guards of the Yondaime you know, we know a thing or two, more than what you can find in the library's or in someone else's head around here."
Naru paused, before she turned her head toward Genma, and smiled gently.
"I know what you're hinting at…and you mine as well not even tip toe around the fact. I know my mother wasn't the only gene with seals…and I also know you had no choice in the matter when it came to how I was raised."
And then she faced forward and walked out of the room, bypassing the shocked faces of the adults left in her wake.
It was rather surprising that she wasn't called to the Hokage's office after that, as she had been after revealing her knowledge of the Kyuubi to Itachi, but Naru didn't have to wonder for long why exactly that was the case.
She found out the third time she met the trio, alone but unafraid or deterred by the former Hokage Guards that swore to protect her father and his family but were never able to keep their promises completely, due to her circumstances.
They had met with her at her training grounds, and without any prompting started helping her with her training.
They improved her aim and even aided with her tree climbing while she snuck them tiny glances.
In the end Naru decided on taking matters into her own hands.
"A spar?"
Genma blinked at the girl as she asked him the question. Naru merely nodded, her eyes not leaving his as determination filled her.
"A spar. Traditional…If I win then you tell me why you keep coming back and will leave if I ask. You win, you can ask me a question and stay as long as you wish."
The Jonin paused before he extended his hand to her, or at least two fingers. Naru's eyes darkened as she took them, her white hair swaying against her back as the wind blew across from them.
Within a single moment she had launched herself up at the Tokubetsu Jonin, aiming a pointed kunai at the throat of her sparring partner.
Genma easily evaded, watching the twisting body of his opponent as he struck out, aiming to hit her side and keep her down.
What happened next easily shocked the others, as instead of being hit, Naru was pulled away by a clone that poofed into existence behind her, another appearing seconds later with a jutsu at the ready.
'For you…Shisui-Ni.'
"Water Style, Water Jet!"
I~~~~I
Laughter echoed inside the housing, ivory locks ruffled by large hands while dark haired Jonin joked around with the gently smiling Genin looking at them with happiness.
Food was set on the table of rowdy Jonin, drawing their attention while Yugau smiled down at them, her purple hair let loose around her shoulders.
The ANBU officer sat between Naru and her Fiancé Hayate.
Across from her sat Aoba and Genma, Aoba spouting some nonsense about Genma and a hot tub during a mission.
Iwashi was beside Hayate, the two laughing lightly while Iwashi contributed to the tale. Naru only listened to the brunette ANBU officer, ignoring the groans from the light-brown haired Jonin chewing on a Senbon beside Aoba.
Iwashi's dark hair swept over his dark eyes, only revealing the orbs when he tossed his head back to laugh.
Hayate shook his head beside the man, his own hair a light brown shade like Genma's, his eyes dark with shadows around them while his skin was sickly pale.
"And then Genma decided that if he was going to get the client, we mine as well go all the way and dress the part as well-"
Naru leaned forward to hear the rest, popping some sushi into her mouth as she listened for some blackmail.
I~~~~I
"Hey…wake up."
A gentle shaking of Hinata's shoulder had her hand shooting out to grasp her perceived attacker.
A soft gasp was heard and Hinata opened her eyes to see into deep brown.
Her hand gently let go of the wrist she had grabbed, thin but still strong, as she sat up. Hinata glanced at the feminine teen, taking in several things all at once.
Her eyes flitted over the teen's neck, and the Hyuuga paused at the Adam's apple.
'Male then. Beautiful though.'
Hinata thought as she assessed the male, before sighing gently and offering a small smile.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you."
The girl's hands drifted to her hair and her fingers combed through it as the male giggled at her.
"You're quite alright. I shouldn't have snuck up on a Kunoichi. Forgive me, I was simply gathering herbs."
The bluenette glanced to the Ravenette beside her, before she moved herself into a standing position. "It's fine. You want some help?"
The male blinked at the Konoha Kunoichi for a moment, before smiling kindly and nodding at her.
"Of course."
The two settled into silence, the barest amount of words exchanged as the male showed Hinata which plants to pick and what not to pick, while Hinata informed her of the stuff she did know about herbs.
Only after picking enough herbs did the two teens settle on the grass field Naru had enjoyed trashing the other night.
"My name is Haku, by the way."
The male spoke up randomly, staring ahead at the ocean.
Hinata blinked at the boy before replying. "My name is Hinata, Haku-San."
The male blinked at her in shock, before the shock faded away and he raised a finger to his chin thoughtfully.
"Sunny place?"
Hinata nodded, closing her eyes as another salty breeze brushed past her pale skin. Her nose breathed in the smell of the ocean while her chakra tingled at the amount of water around her.
Haku could only watch as the Kunoichi that had faced off against her master relaxed in his presence, could only gaze at the girl longingly, wishing that he had was she did.
Hinata, or so she proclaimed her name to be, had the complete trust and devotion of her comrades, she had what Haku wanted.
"So why…why do you do it?"
Haku was startled from his thoughts, his head shaking to clear itself while his raven locks twisted around his neck in long smooth strips.
"Do what, Hinata-Chan?"
The girl's eyes snapped open, starring into Haku's own. The color had changed, the deep violet bordering on white, veins strained as the girl spoke with less warmth than before, falling into the shinobi façade. "Why do you stay with Zabuza?"
Haku's breath caught in his throat and his limbs twitched as he became alert.
The former Mist Nin had thought he had fooled the Konoha Nin, had figured that he had managed to inch his way past her barriers under the guise of a harmless civilian.
It appeared as though she had fooled him instead.
"You knew…"
Hinata nodded, shifting before rising from her spot relaxing against the grass. Every movement was filled with grace, and for a moment Haku couldn't help but stare at the girl that had intruded on his way of life, the girl that made him remember what he longed for all this time.
Her hair was pulled into a bun, making her visage seem much more adult. The Kunoichi was already an imposing sight after watching her battle with Haku's master earlier even if she did so with the help of her team, but standing before her like she did the Nuke Nin felt a shiver trace down his spine. He didn't let it show however, rising up to face the formerly meek Kunoichi.
"I've known, since you woke me up. It's not hard…chakra doesn't like to lie."
Haku's lips twitched.
How could he forget that the girl was a Hyuuga?
I~~~~I
Haku's fingers gripped the branch beside him as he tried to remain calm.
It was hard however, because he was watching his master, his idol, be torn apart by a Genin team.
He hated standing by while Zabuza fought to survive, hated waiting on the sidelines helplessly.
Most of all Haku hated the way that the male teammates of the Lavender haired Kunoichi would step in front of their teammate, devoted every ounce of his being to protecting the girl and each other from her master's wrath.
Haku hated it because he wanted that for himself, wanted an ounce of that loyal he divulged in Zabuza to appear like it did for the two males when the girl lurched forward to protect them as well.
So Haku didn't think twice when he saw the opening, didn't stop once when Zabuza was about to be struck with another one of that blaster Hyuuga's strikes.
He launched himself forward, wishing to stop seeing the bond the three had.
Haku's fingers twitched and he let his Senbon fly, dropping down just as the needles struck Zabuza's neck.
His feet hit the ground when Zabuza slumped onto his shoulder, the weight nothing compared to what Haku had experienced before.
Haku didn't even spare the other team members a glance as he nodded to the Genjutsu Mistress stranding by her team, vanishing from the palm poised at Zabuza's body. He seemingly reappeared on the other side of the lake, dropping only to thank the team.
As soon as he spoke the vile words of his hunters, he took off, the warmth of his master making his body feel giddy.
The Nuke Nin finally stopped a minute later, dropping Zabuza carefully onto the ground.
As soon as the male was comfortable, Haku let out a small chuckle.
"Now where should I start…?"
He reached forward, intending to remove the needles from Zabuza's neck and maybe have a bit of pay back along the way.
He was stopped by Zabuza's hand shooting up, grasping his wrist while the Demon of the Mist's other hand reached around to grasp the needles.
"I'll do it."
Haku sighed and allowed the male to remove the needless, careless mirth rolling over his body to cover up the boiling rage inside.
"You could have hit elsewhere…"
Haku only smiled at Zabuza sweetly.
"I had to make it believable."
I~~~~I
Haku was snapped form the memory by a tap on his shoulder, his eyes shooting up in shock to see Hinata right beside him.
"Never mind…I'm pretty sure I know…"
Her eyes drifted across the ocean. "Naru-Hime is the same way when it comes to her family."
The girl straightened, and Haku paused, his mind flitting through several emotions and clues.
"T-this Naru…she's your family…isn't she?"
Hinata glanced at Haku, and she shut her eyes. "She's my world…And Zabuza is yours."
The Konoha Nin walked away from Haku, surprising the male again as she grabbed her jacket on her way out of the clearing, slipping it over her shoulders.
"It was nice to meet you Haku-San…hopefully we don't have to meet on the battlefield the next time I don't want to hurt you."
I~~~~I
Asuma was just finishing his briefing over his team with Hiruzen when a messenger suddenly opened the door.
The messenger looked troubled, Hiruzen turning sharply as the woman stated her purpose.
"Hokage-Sama, it's a message from the Genin Team in Wave, there's been complications."
Hiruzen's earlier dread built up further, the two Jonin before him tensing.
I~~~~I
Hinata returned to Tazuna's house later that evening. She was mildly surprised when Kiba launched at her, demanding to know if she was okay.
The dog boy paused when he came across the faint smell of flowers surrounding her, but didn't question the ivory girl much as he pulled back and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "You shouldn't have run off Hinata!"
Form behind the male, Shino came toward Hinata. The Aburame nodded, his stare seemingly relieved. "Even Kiba knows not to run off during this time."
Kiba turned and shouted a 'hey!' at Shino, while Hinata blushed at their worry, turning in order to face her amused Sensei.
"You didn't come back."
Hinata offered an apologetic look to her Sensei. "I'm sorry Kurenai-Sensei. I just needed some fresh air after…last night."
A gentle sigh left Kurenai's lips and she smiled at Hinata.
"You're okay now, that's what matters."
Kurenai kept her focus on the girl, even if it was rather hard, what with her head pouncing with a dull ache akin to the one in her chest that Zabuza had gifted her with. Fatigue weighed on her even if she didn't show it, forcing her to use the crutches Tsunami, the daughter of Tazuna, had given to her. It was a slight blow to Kurenai's pride that she actually had to resort to such means, but it could easily be worse and the Genjutsu Mistress knew when not to complain and simply be grateful that other things hadn't happened.
"Kurenai-Sensei, I'm sorry for taking so long. Was there anything I missed?"
Kurenai shook her head, pausing only to glance back as Kiba turned away from Shino to hug Hinata to his side, grinning cheekily as he did so.
Hinata blushed a bit more, but Kurenai took careful note of the slight twitch of annoyance on Hinata's part as Kiba mentioned eating dinner to the girl, turning to drag Shino after them into the dining room. The Aburamed followed behind without assistance, glancing briefly to his injured Sensei.
Kurenai smiled in reassurance at the boy, catching the worried gazes of all of her Genin. She wished she didn't scare them, but as it was they needed to see the truth of the Ninja world before long.
All that didn't matter much to anyone else, but Kurenai was tasked to make these three kids fit together and survive, and she'd be damned if she didn't.
A simply clearing of the throat had her Genin's attention back on her crutch plagued form, three sets of eyes staring into her bright red ones. "Alright, we have a lot to catch up on. For now let's start training!"
Kurenai smiled at the three with an evil sort of glee, causing the other Genin to express their sarcastic joy at the comment in each of their very own creative ways. Kiba's was by far her favourite.
"S-Sensei?!"
I~~~~I
Naru had just finished telling Genma about her odd encounter on her mission when Yugau entered the room, her frantic gaze landing on Naru. "Akihane, it's Team Eight, they're in trouble."
Aki's eyes widened and her heart constricted inside her chest as she thought of Hinata, before her emotions were dragged back down into her soul, her feet leading her straight to Yugau while she demanded an answer.
"What happened?!"
I~~~~I
Honestly Hinata found the entire situation rather…overdone.
The mention of the tree climbing exercise had her and Shino admitting they knew it, as well as the water walking exercise which Kurenai wondered how Hinata had learned.
The question Hinata saw in her eyes however was who had taught her.
The Jonin would never get the full answer from Hinata herself however, for as long as the secret was hers to keep. She wouldn't dismiss Naru's trust and out Raidou's group of the adults that gave Naru a chance when no one else would.
Genma had taught Naru the tree and water walking exercises, as well as many of the other chakra control exercises that he himself needed for careful assassinations, and Naur in turn taught them to both Sasuke and Hinata.
Hayate had taught Naru the basics of her blade alongside lessons from Genma and Iwashi, which Naru then shared with Hinata and Sasuke.
Iwashi had supplied them with some easier Genjutsu to use, and also taught Naru how to break them, too which she turned around and taught the two of them.
Raidou, the unspoken leader of the little group had taught Naru how to read and write. He had made sure to teach her how to cook, how to clean, and how to access her own health as well.
The Hyuuga wouldn't give up those few precious people that Naru had, those who had done nothing wrong, especially to a Jonin who didn't know the full story and would jump right into things making conclusions based on half-assed evidence.
"Well, if you both know those exercises than what do you suppose you should do?"
Kurenai's voice was a little unwelcome in the scheme of things, but Hinata dealt with it and answered in a light tone.
"Nature Training, Kurenai-Sensei. I was working on it anyways…"
Hinata's lavender eyes trailed upward, meeting her Sensei's slightly shocked gaze.
"Nature Manipulation?"
The Jonin asked the Hyuuga, her normally gentle features fading slightly as her eyes narrowed on her. Hinata nodded, tapping the scroll at her side. "The Hyuuga libraries have a lot on it. I chose to try it out. I have earth and water. Naru-Chan and Sasuke-San both tried it out as well, since Sasuke-San had the Uchiha archives."
Kurenai nodded, having guessed as much from the scrolls she had seen Hinata lugging around whenever she was near Akihane or Sasuke. She sighed gently and turned her gaze toward Kiba. The boy was working on Tree Climbing while Shino worked on water walking alone.
"Well…as long as you don't go too crazy and stay where I can see you, I suppose you can."
Hinata nodded, thanking Kurenai with a gentle smile before walking away to find a good spot to practice her earth style before working on her water style.
The Genjutsu Mistress stored the information given to her in the back of her mind for later consideration at a time not as troubled before focusing instead on all three of her students as they all settled into their own positions along the field. Hinata removed a scroll from her side, splaying it out in front of her. Her chakra was channeled into the scrolls as soon as she had it in place, causing smoke to erupt around the storage object in her lap.
When the smoke had cleared, the girl was left with a rock core, about twice as long as Hinata's hand, and as wide as her wrist.
The Hyuuga encased her objects in her hands as her scroll dropped to the grass below her, channeling her chakra directly into the core.
A splash was heard behind Kurenai, and the Genjutsu Mistress turned just in time to see a soaked Shino rising from the water, a crash sounding behind her as Kiba fell to the ground once more.
It appeared this training session was going to be quite long.
And Asuma wondered why Kurenai dreaded training children all on her own.
And this chapter is done. I enjoyed writing it as well. This part was pretty easy since I already had the idea jotted down and just needed minor tweaks.
Omake-Genjutsu 101, plus Soaked Scarecrows
"Alright, so all you do is channel your chakra in such a way that it redirects the flow of your opponents chakra, thus breaking their concentration and the jutsu."
Naru spoke up to Hinata, Sasuke not needing much help in the area since he had already done it before.
Hinata nodded at her idol, closing her eyes as she felt Sasuke place the jutsu over her.
Everything changed, but Hinata didn't focus on the jutsu and instead on her chakra, redirecting the flow of it toward the source of the Genjutsu.
Her eyes opened, just as the jutsu burst, leaving her behind in front of a smiling Naru and a non-scowling Uchiha.
The Hyuuga counted that as one for her, and a zero for Sasuke.
It wasn't every day the Heiress managed to make Sasuke a little happier.
Naru noticed and sighed gently, reaching over to grab Hinata's hand while taking Sasuke's in her free one.
"Come on, let's get dinner!"
Hinata nodded with a blush, Sasuke seconds from going colorful himself at the Uzumaki's sudden change in mood.
Neither child noticed the twitching eye of the ANBU Inu as he stood soaking wet in the shadows of a tree, a bucket hanging overhead with a seal next to it.
