Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto


The abysm of Kirigakure no Sato had finally descended upon the coast of the Eastern elemental nations. Howls of anguish echoed throughout the sky as the Kiri soldiers ripped apart the ordinary ranks of the land of Honey. There was no comparison, it was no contest. This was simply a bloodbath driven by the ambitions of one woman.

The final dregs of daylight had heralded the beginning of the Imperial conquest that Kimiko had long envisioned. The setting sun signalled the coming of night and Kiri's inevitable victory against their immediate neighbours to the East.

The land of Honey would fall by midnight, of this, Kimiko was certain. There would be no outside intervention, their attack so swift it had caught their opponents off guard. They had not been afforded the time to call on the other nations.

The Western nations would never have come either way, with Kiri controlling the lines of communication through their central position. The West had effectively been cut off from any contact with the East. Going the long way round would do no good, the time frame not allowing for the West to get there in time. There was no help forth coming.

The land of Honey had no shinobi of its own, making the acquisition of their land easier for Kiri, more effective, yet the Mizukage did not like this fact. The whole point of having an army was to test its capabilities against others, yet she would not look a gift horse in the mouth. She had to take everything in stride if things were to go her way.

Kimiko stepped out of one of the ships that had boarded the shores of Honey country, her eyes looking over the carnage born of her will. This was the fruit of her struggle, her brainchild. Participating would have been an arduous task for her considering how hard it would have been to stay interested in the fight, if you could call it that.

Houses had gone up in flames, with most of the population fleeing from her soldiers. It was futile though, for none could escape her reach. All life was now within the palm of her hand.

She watched as another man was slaughered before his family, his body going limp. The wife screamed as the shinobi dragged both her and her child to the side. The rich lands of this nation would soon be hers. However, this was not Kimiko's main concern.

To her, war was never about greed or amassing power. No, it was all about the conquest, the nationalistic pride, and the glory of Kirigakure as a whole. Her ambitions lay in the sole resurrection of their noble country to what it once was, a feared territory worthy of its name.

"I'm sorry," she whispered as she closed her eyes, yet there was no sympathy in her voice. "But your sacrifice was necessary," She turned on her heel to go back inside.

"All of this...is for the glory of the Hidden Mist,"

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Konohagakure no Sato, Western coast

He rarely ever came to this place, yet he had now come to visit twice in such a short amount of time. The alcohol was not half bad, but that wasn't why he came over. He was certain that this was where she was. It was fairly routine that she spent her time here each Friday night, in Hayate's absence of course.

Kakashi was proven correct the moment he walked in, his lone eye narrowing in on the form that was Yugao. He tilted his head to the side as he packed his book into his back pocket, viewing her.

Her mask was off to the side, the katana next to it neatly. Her usually long free-flowing hair was caught up in a ponytail flat on her back, her left palm cupping her cheek while her right hand delicately held the glass of liquor. She seemed bored by everything in the establishment, but she was still kind enough to answer the bartender that was chatting her up. Kakashi felt sorry for the guy, knowing that nothing would come of it.

He shook his head and walked over before sitting himself down on the stool right next to Yugao. His hand reached across her and grasped the blade she had discarded to her side. Yugao dragged her eyes away from the bartender and looked over to the man at her side. She watched his hand drag the sword back to him before she took another sip of her beverage.

"I see you still have this," Kakashi eye smiled as Yugao set the glass down by the counter, taking a moment to arrange her thoughts into something cohesive enough to be understood.

"Of course, you gifted it to me sometime back. You didn't think I would lose it, did you?" She smiled, her tone wistful.

"Honestly, I'm surprised you kept it with you," He said as he looked over what to order. She shrugged as if the details were unimportant, yet to her they were.

She gulped down the contents of her drink and set the empty container on the counter softly.

"The hilt is easy on the wrist and the blade is light and slices through most things pretty well. It would be a waste to just get rid of it," she told him as she hummed to herself. It was a happy tune, Kakashi absently noted.

"You know, l would have thought you would miss your captain in his absence and be happy for his safe return," Kakashi started. Yugao closed her eyes before taking a moment to herself. Then, she turned to face him, the dim lights of the bar darkening her hair.

"I was happy, but the effect wore off. Even when you know someone is gonna be late, a woman can only wait for so long," she rested her head on the table, a slight blush on her features. It was clear she was more than a little tipsy now. Kakashi sighed at her display.

"Is that so?" he stated as he stared at the contents of his glass. Suddenly, he didn't feel thirsty anymore.

'What a waste of money,'

Kakashi readjusted and got off his stool before taking Yugao into his arms. He shifted her onto his back and then grabbed the blade with his free hand, the other firmly securing the purple-haired woman onto his back. It was a shame he could not read his lovely book now.

"Where are we going?" Yugao asked in her drunken slur. Kakashi shrugged at the question.

"My place...I'm ashamed to admit this but I have no idea where Hayate lives," he told the woman on his back. Yugao nodded as if letting it all sink into her wasted brain.

"Try not to vomit on me," the copy ninja off-handedly told her. Yugao frowned against his back, and suddenly, the very idea seemed appealing to her.

"Jerk,"

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"Again!" Naruto yelled to himself as he stood from within the lake and tried once more to perfect his water walking. He had been going at it for approximately three hours, his clothes thoroughly soaked. Though by now he honestly did not mind how his clothes were sticking to him like a second skin. He was not ready to call it quits just yet, even though the sun had set so long ago. He glanced over to his far right, where Himika sat on one of the park's benches.

She flicked the last page of her book and finally closed it. She was done and had nothing left to do but watch him fail miserably once again. He had insisted that he had no need for her help, and truthfully, she had no idea how to help him with this one. His pools of chakra were simply too large to perform such a technique.

"A-again," he stuttered as he emerged from the cold depths of the water, his tiny body shaking. Himika shook her head at the sight. He was pushing himself too hard. She doubted his current method of approach would work. She had no solution, however.

The white-haired girl hopped off the bench, book in hand as she turned on her heel. She still needed to sleep and she was certain that the custodians would notice her absence.

Naruto collapsed onto the mossy ground and looked around only to see Himika walking off. He jumped back up and ran to catch up with the girl. Himika slowed her pace for him, but it was barely noticeable.

To him anyway.

"Is it really that late?" Naruto finally asked as he threw his hands behind his head, his posture laid back. In contrast, Himika's hands were placed in her lap, book in hand.

"Yes...for us kids anyway," she did not seem to like acknowledging that she was still pretty young in comparison to most of the villagers, but she would admit it had some perks to it. The benefits outweighed the cost in her opinion.

"You know, sometimes I just don't get you," Naruto smiled as he looked up at the stars in the sky. He missed the look Himika tossed his way. One of confusion and sudden attentiveness.

"I don't like it when I can't understand others, when I can't understand you. It bothers me you know," Naruto shrugged it off as if it were unimportant. She saw through him easily though.

"I can't even understand myself sometimes," Himika said as she looked back at the road in front of her, her hands tightening around the hard covering of the book.

"Actually, you've never told me what your goal in life is," Naruto bent over a bit to get a good look at her face as he awaited her response to the unasked question.

"That's because I don't have one...I'm content with just watching others from afar," she turned her head away from him just in case he could read her face. She knew she was just being paranoid. She did not intend on telling him that she was simply content with watching him and Sasuke, with studying them to the point where she would know them both by heart. What would come after was something she had yet to concern herself with.

"That's pretty lazy, but I guess that means you get a front-row seat at my ina...ina...?" he failed to finish it off and looked towards her for assistance. She shook her head at him ever so slowly.

"Inauguration, you mean," Himika corrected him politely as they rounded the corner towards the orphanage.

"Yeah, that thing," he smashed his hands together, some of the water droplets hitting her square in the face. She chose to ignore the wet feeling they provided.

Himika stopped by the gates of the orphanage while Naruto walked on without care. This was not the first time they had done this. There was no need to say goodbye when he would see her the next morning, yet she still said it anyway.

"Goodbye," she blamed it on courtesy, not her preference. He waved her off as he smiled to himself.

Himika watched him leave, her mind thinking back to what he had said and her initial response to it. The most logical path to follow would be that of a kunoichi if she intended to watch the two boys as she had said. Even before she had realized it, she had already subconsciously chosen a path.

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Land of Honey

Midnight had fallen, with Kiri's conquest finally coming to a close.The land of Honey had crumbled under the military might of the Mist in only a few hours, a success unparalleled in scale and precision. The children of the nation had been secured in one of the ships, all the able bodied men and women locked up in another ship.

Kimiko opened her eyes slightly, her cheek resting in the palm of her hand as she sat on her throne. In front of her stood a table, the wood nearly as old as she was, if not older. A map was laid bear on it, the piece of paper showing the route she had marked out.

"We await your orders, Lady Kimiko," one of her soldiers yelled out. She lazyly let her amethyst gaze flicker to him. He stilled, his body tensing under her half-lidded stare.

Kimiko wondered what coarse of action she should take, all the while quietly assessing the man before her. She knew that even if they waited, the Western nations wouldn't be able to find out in time. It would afford the land of Wolves, the next country, some time to prepare, something she wanted to occur just to provide a test for her army. Yet, they could also take immediate action.

"Tell the soldiers to stand guard. Rest is necessary," Kimiko started before stopping to think of something else entirely.

"Also...tell them to prepare the ceremony for tomorrow morning," the man nodded slowly, cautious of his leader. He straightened his back as he walked out, happy to be away from the woman.

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Konohagakure no Sato, 5hrs later

Yugao groaned as her eyes opened, desperately trying to adjust to the sunlight that was creeping through the curtain. It was still too early, her mind reasoned.

She sat up on the bed, the soft linen sheets sliding off her. This was not her bed, not was this her room. She leaned her head against the headboard and thought back to last night, even though the room was vaguely familiar. She was sure if that was from yesterday or from some other time.

'Yesterday,' She decided as the pieces fell into place.

"This is Kakashi's room," she realised with no real shock. It didn't seem that strange to her though. She looked at the spot next to her. It was cold and untouched.

"So no one slept there," she voiced out to herself. It made her wonder where Kakashi had slept last night.

"What, did you want me to spend the night?" Kakashi's playful voice echoed throughout the room. Yugao dragged her eyes up to the door where Kakashi stood.

"Is that an offer?" she questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Kakashi shrugged off the question and fully opened the curtain. Yugao rubbed her eyes and rolled out of bed. She had to get to work.

"Nah, that's fine. Since I'm back, I'll be taking over once more. Of course, you still get to monitor Naruto's training," the man eye-smiled at her. It made Yugao realise that Kakashi was already wearing a mask at- she cast a glance at the alarm clock at the side of her bed, well Kakashi's bed anyway- four in the morning. Did he even take it off when he went to bed? She supposed she would never know. She let her head fall back on the pillow as she stared at the ceiling.

"I need a shower,"