Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Chapter 28

Training with Jiraiya was the hardest thing Naruto had ever done in his entire life. The man was a walking oxymoron of shinobi values. He would train Naruto into the ground all day, then abandon him with a massive pile of reading at night that made Naruto's eyes want to cross while the pervert frolicked with the decadent ladies of the night and drank himself into a stupor. Naruto learned to hide both his own and Jiraiya's ryo as the only way to keep the man from wandering off. It was Naruto's first lesson in the ways of the world: that a man could be a fantastic shinobi, a wonderful sensei, a decent friend, and a lousy man, all at the same time. But he couldn't help but adore Jiraiya, faults and all. The man's blunt approach to life was a refreshing change from the ever guarded faces, hidden motives and politics of the village. He saw why his godfather preferred the open world over the closed in village. Out here no one knew who you were, no one had preconceived ideas about you before you ever opened your mouth. The value of your acquaintance rested solely upon the deeds and words you presented upon the first meeting. It was refreshing.

The spy network was a delicious puzzle of tangled connections that Naruto found to be surprisingly tantalizing. He had always been extroverted and every new contact was another specimen of humanity that broadened his ever growing mental picture of the landscape of society beyond Konoha's looming walls. Jiraiya thrust Naruto into the midst of his dealings with no reservations, knowing that the teenager's thick skin, naive understanding of relationships, and insatiable curiosity could all be fine tuned into a mastery of reading between the lines. The kid had a natural gift for understanding people's emotions, his empathy knew no bounds, and as an added bonus he lacked any kind of hubris whatsoever.

Jiraiya dragged him through every bar, brothel, market, casino, restaurant, factory, farm, and forest in the land of Fire. Forcing him to meet all possible variations of the diverse threads that wove together the tapestry of humanity. Naruto's mind was blown over and over as he listened to the tales and motivations that made each unique person tick. Their experiences varied as widely as their reactions, and his own internal moral compass honed in on his individual sense of right and wrong. He absorbed each perspective and used it to build upon his ever growing understanding of what it meant to do good in an evil world. He learned that doing the right thing at the wrong time could be just as disastrous as intentionally doing harm. Naruto saw that justice was not always served. That at times, revenge was best served cold. And in some instances there came a point when one must shake the dust of a place off your feet and move on. Not everyone wanted to be saved.

Through it all, Naruto maintained his sunny disposition. He solidified in his own mind the belief that everyone started out intrinsically good, and then became molded by their reactions to the world around them and their circumstances in life. He came to the conclusion that it was possible to be a good person who still does bad things for the good of others. He thought of Itachi often at these times. And in his broadening understanding of what it meant to survive in this imperfect planet, he grew increasingly sympathetic towards those left to clean up after the greedy machinations of others. His idealistic dreams of being a Hokage that eradicated the world of all evil matured into a desire to create a balanced world where people still had the freedom to make their own choices, but would face the consequences of their actions, and never take that freedom from another. Where people were satisfied in their daily need for love, companionship, and sustenance, so that they never felt desperate enough to rob their neighbor to feed their family.

The reality was that this world was not perfect, life was not fair, every man was not going to become rich. But if they were given enough, perhaps the balance could be maintained. Sauntering through the elite casinos where hookers threw themselves at any man who could afford them, and also meandering through the vast countryside of the humble farmers who happily went to bed with their wives every night, Naruto saw that simplicity was a source of contentment. That power was not satisfaction.

As the Sannin and his disciple wandered through the various hovels of humanity they trained, studied, and expanded the web of Jiraiya's spy network. Everywhere they went Naruto always carried a book in his back pocket. He chuckled to himself at how much Dog would taunt him to see the way he easily navigated through the streets of a strange place, whiskered face buried in the pages of another text on fuuinjutsu that was filled in with his father's notes along all the margins. He swapped his chunin vest for a dark hooded jacket to hide his bright hair, and for the first time in his life Naruto went unnoticed through his day to day interactions with townspeople and ninja alike.

At least he thought so.

Someone had been following him. He could sense them on the edges of his awareness. It would flicker, like a sputtering candle, barely strong enough to prick his awareness. He made a note of the presence, its passive tone, but it never approached, and so he always continued on his way.

One night when Jiraiya had absconded to the local bathhouse with a few ryo that Naruto had won off an oblivious roadside trickster who thought himself smarter than a shinobi, the ever hungry teenager left his frustratingly scarce research of his father's Hiraishin behind in the hotel and went in search of a late night snack.

As he meandered like a lazy shadow through the crowds of the busy red light district he kept his gaze ahead, ignoring the women dancing in the windows along the street. Jiraiya had taught him that places such as these were where information slipped easily from loose lips and so the two were frequent visitors of such dens of sin, but tonight was not about business but dinner. And Naruto only ever had one woman on his mind.

The latest letter he had written for Hime was burning a hole in his pocket. Naruto had tried to maintain communication with her as often as possible, but the secret nature of their objectives within the spy network necessitated that their location remain a mystery. Jiraiya was meeting with an important contact tonight regarding info about the Akatsuki group from Amegakure, and would be sending a scroll to Tsunade tomorrow. Naruto planned to bribe the messenger toad to make an extra delivery for him, which only added to his need to find some snacks at this late hour.

In the midst of the throngs of mostly men wandering the streets, he picked up on the now familiar presence. It was blipping in and out of his sensory range, and curiosity peaked, Naruto focused and expanded his awareness. They were definitely following him, flickering in a way that would intentionally grab any shinobi's attention. It seemed they had decided to finally make contact.

Now familiar with the surreptitious meetings of Jiraiya's many contacts, Naruto followed protocol and paused in front of a window with a dark haired woman in a matching set of white undergarments that left little to the imagination. But his stare was blank, eyes focused on the reflection of the window which showed a high collared figure, who's red eyes flashed and then disappeared down a side street. Gotcha.

At the end of the alley, a drunk stumbled out from the corner, stuffing himself back into his pants as he staggered back towards the noise of the night. Naruto barely resisted wrinkling his nose at the smell of vomit and urine that pervaded the narrow space, but it offered the privacy that many contacts needed to feel safe.

Naruto casually posted up by the brick wall, pretending to relieve himself as he whistled out a specific tune that only those within the circle of Jiraiya's trust would know.

The answering melody was perfectly on point, and in an instant Naruto flashed through the hand signs that set the privacy seal into place.

"I'm kinda hungry so let's make this quick," he said quickly. He had learned that most contacts had no interest in small talk or friendly attempts at bonding. "Whatcha got for me?"

An object was tossed to him and he easily snatched it out of the air, turning it in his hand to see it in the dim glow of the distant streetlight. The symbol of Konohagakure with a slash carved across it looked back at him from the hitae-ate. Naruto's fingers clamped around the all too familiar forehead protector, and he instantly ramped his senses up to max level.

Kyuubi, if I'm not mistaken this is—

Ah, I see him Kit. It is not a fake. But look at him, he is not here for a fight.

How did he know about the signal? I would remember if he was one of Ero-sennin's contacts. He must have been watching for longer than I thought.

Stay on guard, but I see no need to be jumpy. The last thing I feel like doing tonight is healing your sorry ass after a fight.

Naruto chose not to acknowledge the dig at his aptitude in battle. No matter how well he and the Fox got along, the bijuu never seemed to tire of mocking him. Instead he gave his complete focus over to the unexpected visitor before him.

"Uchiha Itachi. What made you finally decide to show yourself?" The shadows moved and a man barely taller than himself broke away from the wall of the dank alley and approached Naruto. His stance was lax, but the power of his chakra was undeniable. The red clouds of his cloak were barely discernible in the dim light, and only the glow of his Sharingan gave him away as something separate from the night itself.

"A warning," his voice was flat, low, and just loud enough to reach Naruto's ears. "The Akatsuki is on the move. They have heard that you left Konoha, and seek you in earnest as you wander outside the protection of your village."

"Tell me something I don't know," Naruto huffed, crossing his arms. They had in fact only just found out about a pair of shinobi matching the description of Akatsuki being spotted near a local town yesterday, which had prompted their stop in this place to seek out more information about the rogue ninjas in connection with a string of bizarre ritual-type murders. But Itachi didn't need to know that. "What do they want with us? What is the point of all this killing?"

"It depends on who is asked," was Itachi's vague response. "Leader says Peace, but there is another, behind the face of the puppet, who seeks something more, something baser. I have suspected that they had ties with Konoha, but I cannot be sure if that is currently or in the past. For now, you should know that your contact at the Blooming Lotus is a plant. The Akatsuki has infiltrated your network within this village and you need to leave, now. Disappear for a time, while this group refocuses on other prizes."

"I don't particularly like the idea of hiding while others fight my battles," Naruto growled. He had no qualms with being honest with Uchiha Itachi. If anyone knew what it was to face the harsh realities of shinobi life it was this man. Despite his fervent belief that the rogue nin standing before him was nothing short of a martyred hero, he didn't trust his neck to the man, and couldn't say he agreed with all his solutions.

"It is not about running, it is about survival," Itachi didn't react in the slightest to his subtle anger. "You are not strong enough to face the Akatsuki as you are now, and here amongst the civilians would not be an ideal time or place for a battle. You must become stronger if you are to protect those precious to you."

"Do you protect them as well?" Naruto couldn't help but question this fallen prodigy. This valiant murderer, who bore his shame with no regret and walked the outskirts of humanity as a reward for his deeds. Naruto's voice softened minutely and his stance relaxed. "I know what you did Itachi, and while I see you, the rest of the world does not. If it is forgiveness you seek by helping me, I fear that the peace of mind you desire will not come from my lips. Only Sasuke can offer such forgiveness. I can only attest to my own understanding of your motives, and assure you we continue to seek the same prize: peace."

The man was quiet, studying Naruto with his now black eyes that seemed to hold such sadness within them. The heat of the warm, late summer night seemed to not bother him in the least as he stood unblinking before Naruto in his heavy black cloak that hid his lean frame.

"Leave Sasuke to me." The words were soft and quiet. "It is I who overestimated him, I who scarred him, I who broke him. It is my duty to correct my mistakes, in whatever manner I can." His eyes fell to the scratched hitae-ate in Naruto's hand, and his mouth flattened into a thin line that reminded the blond of how Sasuke looked when he was pushing himself to master a difficult new jutsu.

"In the meantime, heed my warning, Namikaze Naruto. It is necessary to trust others until you have become strong enough to reward their loyalty." His body began to break apart into a murder of crows that one by one flew off into the night. Naruto bravely kept his gaze locked onto the swirling glow of Itachi's activating Sharingan, which stabbed his heart not with some deadly genjutsu, but with their weariness and resolve. Just as the last crow with crimson eyes stretched his wings, Naruto tossed the hitae-ate into the air and watched it snatch the object up in its beak before disappearing from view.

He stood in the empty alley for a moment, mulling over the words from the universally vilified shinobi, and debating their merit. Trust was not natural for a shinobi. It was as ever shifting as the wind. The source was never constant and it could change on you in an instant. It could destroy what you had carefully built or it could blow away a fog and reveal the realities hidden by the lies you had never been able to see through. It was powerful yet refreshing. Devastating yet rejuvenating. It was impossible to see, it had to be felt.

Shoving his hands into his pockets Naruto merged back into the flow of human traffic, ducking his head as he ignored the raucous revelers of the night and instead focused on locating Ero-sennin. Uchiha Itachi's truths were a wind that could easily blow one far off course of their preconceived path, such as what happened with Sasuke. But they could also reveal so much more if one took the time to navigate its intricacies so it could fill your sails and accelerate you towards your true purpose.

Picking up Jiraiya's signature and noting the multiple shinobi slowly closing in on the most likely buzzed Sannin, Naruto picked up his pace and hopped up to the rooftops. A grin spread across his face as the wind blew back his hood to reveal the flash of his own red slitted eyes and his futon nature swirled like a burgeoning typhoon within his gut.

He rather liked the wind.


Naruto raced through the forest, abandoning all pretense of stealth as he felt her chakra twinkling on the edges of his senses. Hime. He couldn't stop the silly smile from spreading across his whiskered face as he punched through another cluster of branches, sending leaves scattering to the forest floor.

It had been nearly a full year since he had last laid eyes on his best friend, the letters he had been able to slip to her along with the few updates from Ero-sennin to Baa-chan seemed like a paltry representation of the longing he felt in his heart for her presence. The last note he had received from her had knotted the worry in his chest. The Hyuga had split into two factions, unofficial ones, but very much real in how deeply they divided the clan and council. One favored the tradition of sealing, saying that the Byakugan was too precious and too coveted to leave vulnerable and unprotected. They proposed reinstating the act of sealing all clan members, this time not excluding the Main Branch, which would make it impossible to activate the punishment associated with subservience. But the other side staunchly demanded that no seal be used at all. That the brand itself was a mark of shame and any possibility of having the seal activated was too much of a risk. They favored the idea that a person should be responsible for their own welfare and protection, similar to the way the Uchiha had approached the defense of their Sharingan.

Hinata was torn between the two. Having been the victim of an attempt on her life and freedom simply for the sake of her bloodline, she knew better than to naively believe that an unguarded treasure was safe. Despite the fact that only the strongest Hyuga ever activated their Byakugan and went on to become shinobi, the genetic potential remained in every child born. And to simply ignore the threat of another country's envious plots was a mistake. She favored the idea of a new seal, one that could be applied painlessly to any child, discreetly placed so as not to draw attention, but easily revealed if desired, so that it could serve as a statement to anyone who dared covet their kekkei genkai. A mark of being Hyuga, a mark of pride and protection. A symbol of a unified Clan that valued their own and did not hesitate to shield them, even if they were not able to care for themselves. Naruto had agreed wholeheartedly, and easily reading between the lines, had turned his attention to fashioning just such a unique seal.

But Naruto's free time was scarce. Ever since Itachi's warning, and the ensuing brawl that only served to confirm his words, the jinchuriki and his mentor had departed for Mt. Myoboku. There, Jiraiya had introduced Naruto to a dazzling world of potential, filled with Toads that had knowledge of eons past. Together with Fukasaku and Gamakichi, the Sannin had trained Naruto in the Sage arts of the Toads all day, and drilled him with sealing theory at night. Shima had filled the boy's brain with tales of history, weaving her stories into the events that had led to the current state of the five great shinobi nations, even as she tried to fill his stomach with her cooking. For the first time in his life Naruto found his appetite for knowledge greater than his hunger for food. If one could describe the disgusting meals so generously.

The Sage training was practically intuitive, the long hours of meditation that Neji had forced him to do as a child in order to hone his natural sensing abilities greatly aided in his mastery of Nature Energy. Jiraiya had shown Naruto a small stockpile of journals that had belonged to his father, the same carefully guarded library that he had been plucking books from ever since he had given Naruto his first introductory book on fuuinjutsu. The first thing that had caught the teenager's eager mind was the theoretical notes on the Hiraishin, and after that the Sannin had to practically knock the kid out to get him to put the thing away and sleep.

The weeks had slipped by in a blur, until one day Naruto was summoned by the Great Toad himself. The teenager had spent his sixteenth birthday slack jawed as he was bestowed with a gift he had never imagined receiving, a prophecy that he would save the world. Standing in awe and harboring no small amount of skepticism that he could ever be worthy of such a role, Naruto had been speechless when Jiraiya introduced Gerotora, who presented him with the key to kyuubi's seal. The myriad of arrays had spun before his wide eyes as he took in the mind boggling complexities of the seal and its key. While he stood gaping at the masterful creation the toad had taken the opportunity to make his unholy departure down Naruto's gullet, leaving the birthday boy heaving on the floor in tears as Ero-sennin's laughter echoed throughout the halls. The only one laughing louder had been the stupid Fox himself. Naruto had sworn that if he ever met his father in the afterlife he would greet him with a big ass gut punch for that dirty trick. Who the hell can conjure up such a complex masterpiece of sealing design, but not think of a better way to store the damn key?

Since that day Naruto had taken up the yoke of his destiny and decided that whether it was true or not, he would continue to pursue his own nindo and never give up on his promises to the Leaf and Hime. If that was all he ever accomplished, then at least he would not be a failure, and hopefully be able to rest in peace.

They had wintered in Mt. Myoboku, Jiraiya making short trips back to the Land of Fire to briefly make contact with his network while Naruto juggled the many tasks he had set for himself to accomplish. He learned from his father's journals that the Rasengan was actually an incomplete jutsu, and Jiraiya had nearly shit himself when he returned one night to find his disciple covered in cuts from head to toe and practically buck naked in his shredded clothing. The blond had merely grinned sheepishly, unable to even scratch the back of his neck because of the damaged nerves in his arm. Between the bitching he had to endure from the Kyuubi about having to lend him so much extra chakra for healing and from Ero-sennin about how Tsunade would kill him if he brought back a paralyzed student, Naruto had decided that his new idea for a Rasenshuriken might not be the piece of cake he had imagined.

On the day he had removed the last of the bandages from his right arm, a scroll had arrived with a mission from Tsunade for Naruto, and at the mention of Hime's name he had nearly absconded on the spot to find her. Jiraiya had managed to tie him down long enough for Naruto to realize he still was lacking any decent clothing or supplies, but even so the excited teenager had not slept a wink that night.

They had stopped in a village to restock their gear and rations, Jiraiya heading for Amegakure to follow up on a lead about the Akatsuki and a possible link to some shinobi he had known there once. He had been rather vague and somber about the whole topic, which hadn't escaped Naruto's notice, but it was shuffled to the back of his mind for later contemplation in preference of daydreaming about his reunion with his teammate. They agreed to meet up afterwards in the same spot, and swiftly departed for their separate missions.

Naruto patted the pouches of his new mission gear for the hundredth time, wondering what Hime would think of him now. The sixteen year old was a carbon copy of his father. Long, lanky limbs spoke of a recent growth spurt, topped with a head of freshly trimmed bright yellow hair that spiked wildly around his suntanned face. Clear blue eyes the color of the ocean that always held a friendly expression, and one could almost see his whisker-like birthmarks twitch with mischief when he smiled. Jiraiya had demanded that he leave his days of childish jumpsuits behind, saying that if he wanted to be taken seriously in the wide network of shinobi espionage he had to blend in. Naruto had begrudgingly agreed, and settled for the standard attire of any ninja: a high-necked long sleeved dark shirt under his chunin vest and comfortable calf length pants that had room for his weapons and scrolls. But he absolutely refused to remove the red scarf. It was a gift from his best friend, and each stitch was carefully knit with her care just for him.

Now that same girl's chakra signature was getting stronger, easily discernible to the eager teenager as he somersaulted over a gnarled branch and swung underneath another to propel himself even faster. Naruto stretched out his senses, exercising the max reaches of his growing range. He could cover an entire city at this point, but with less accuracy than shorter ranges. He contemplated pushing himself into Sage Mode, but he didn't want to stop long enough to meditate and absorb the Nature Energy. Even without the boosted senses, some chakra signatures were so familiar to him, he could practically pinpoint them in his sleep.

Like hers. Whenever he had meditated, practicing expanding his range out as far as he could reach, it was always hers that he sought out. He could swear there were times when he could feel her refreshing chakra sparkling like sunlight on the surface of the water, touching the extreme edges of his mind's rippling banks. He had assumed that such moments were the result of her moving around the Land of Fire completing missions. He had been sorely tempted on more than one occasion to abandon the philandering Toad Sage and steal away into the night to see if it really was her, or if it was just his homesickness playing tricks on him.

He heard a caw above his head and leapt up into the canopy, skirting the highest branches to peek over the leaves and see a large black crow with red eyes swoop down to glide by his side. Never breaking stride he easily caught the hitae-ate that it dropped from its beak, and Naruto smirked at the scratched Leaf symbol before giving the creature a salute as it banked hard and retreated the other direction. Apparently Itachi had somehow become aware of their mission, and decided to provide a better tracking scent for this mysterious beetle that Aburame Shino sought.

Tsunade Baa-chan had written that the newly promoted chunin would be the captain of the mission since he had been the one to suggest the beetle as a method of tracking down Konoha's wayward Uchiha Clan Head. Hinata had mentioned that she had frequently been sent out with him and Kiba in Sakura's place since she was practically glued to the hospital full time. The three had formed an impressive tracking unit, and combined with Naruto's sensing capabilities, the Hokage was hoping they could finally nail down and bring home his idiot teammate, and perhaps even get a lock on Orochimaru as well. Naruto held his own reservations, but the chance to work with a team again, especially one with Hime, was what propelled him through the forest at a breakneck pace towards the coordinates listed on the mission scroll.

Naruto grinned as he fingered the custom kunai in his pouch, the ones he had completed while in Mt. Myoboku, and as he felt her chakra flare in a way that signaled her active Byakugan as well as the signatures of the other two boys with her, he couldn't resist the chance to show off, just a bit.

Planting his feet sideways on a massive tree trunk he hurled the three pronged kunai with all his might and changed his body's trajectory straight up into the air. He internally counted, one, two, three, and with the ease of pinpointing the smell of Ramen on an empty stomach, latched onto the seal and disappeared.

The three shinobi had paused when Hinata had signaled that she saw him, but her sudden frown and darting gaze was their only warning before a strange looking kunai pierced the ground between them, followed by a lightning quick flash of chakra.

Naruto landed with a gust of wind, one knee planted in the grass, fingers gently grasping his weapon, scarf dancing, and whiskers prominently framing his wide smirk. He instantly rushed his Hime, sweeping her up into his arms and swinging her around in a full circle with his momentum. He laughed loudly at her shocked squeaks that he had missed so much and gave her a rib cracking hug before finally setting her down and getting a good look at her.

What he saw had him forgetting how to breathe for a moment. If it had not been for the unmistakable feeling of her cherished chakra, he would have had to look twice, thrice even, to recognize her.

Midnight blue hair had grown nearly to her waist, shining and loose as it swirled around her in the blast of wind his abrupt entrance had created. Her mission gear was new, black fitted shinobi trousers under a short lavender colored kimono in the Hyuga style that matched the unique tint of her eyes, which were wide as saucers as she craned her neck up to look into his bright eyes. The thick black obi around her waist displayed her figure in a way that made his stomach flip unexpectedly.

"N-N-Naruto-kun?" The blush that bloomed across her cheeks spread over her face and she looked like she might be ready to faint. That would be a first in a long time, he thought, but chuckled as he instinctively pulled her close before she tipped. It was a mistake. With her chest pressed against his own Naruto was suddenly very aware of another aspect of his Hime that had changed since the last time they met. Color flared up his own neck as he gulped, those are new.

Reluctantly releasing her from the distractingly pleasant embrace, Naruto focused on her eyes, and felt the restless anxiety that was the undercurrent of all his excitement melt away. No amount of words on paper could ever replace the way she could talk to him with her eyes. He forgot about everything else and absorbed the feelings she let him read directly from her heart, since she too was still unable to form words. She was glowing with joy and confidence, but there was a hint of nervousness as well, which he more than understood himself. Naruto smiled down at her, the honesty of his own surprise and delight revealed in his shining blue gaze. He grabbed her hands and swept his chakra through her network like a gust of wind and she washed hers over him like a spring shower. The months melted away, they were together and it was like they had never been apart. Suddenly the world just felt right.

"Subtle. You even put Lee's 'dynamic entry' to shame," from behind him Naruto heard Kiba snickering and turned to see the two members of Team Eight who had also stopped to greet the wandering chunin.

"Impressed already Dog-breath?" Naruto laughed and turned to the approaching Inuzuka and his massive white dog. The two clapped hands and thumped each other on the back. "What the hell have you been feeding Akamaru? I've seen livestock smaller than this guy." The ninken barked and leaned hard into Naruto's hand as he aggressively scratched behind the furry brown ears. Kiba laughed loudly, "he says foxes should watch themselves unless they want to end up hunted by a hound."

"Ha! Anytime, anywhere!" Naruto danced back and forth as Akamaru snapped playfully at the red tails of his scarf, but his challenge went unanswered when a deep voice interrupted their goofiness.

"Kiba has a point, Naruto. For while we are all appreciative of your cooperation, you will need to be quieter. Why, you ask?" Shino raised a single finger to adjust the dark glasses on his nose, causing them to somehow catch the light in a slightly threatening flash. "Because you will scare away all the local arthropods."

"The what now?" Naruto froze mid-leap and scrunched up his face at the hooded captain in frank confusion.

"The insects, Naruto-kun," Hinata translated, having found her voice. "That's why we are here, remember? To find the Bikochu and have it use this to lead us to Sasuke." She bent down to her pack that she had dropped when Naruto had glomped her, pulling out a wrist guard with storage seals on it that Naruto had given the Asshole for his 15th birthday. He couldn't help but scowl at the article, remembering his naive expectation that the gift was a symbol of their growing bond as friends and teammates. The Teme hadn't even worn the thing that long before he left it and them behind for good.

"Where'd you find that thing?" He huffed, taking it from Hinata and wondering if there was anything still sealed within it.

"Sakura. She won't admit it but I'm pretty sure she demolished his apartment in search of clues after he left. She just couldn't accept that he had willingly walked away. It was difficult for all of us, for lots of different reasons." Naruto didn't miss the bitter tone of her words and smiled slightly. In her letters Hime had not held back from voicing her fury at their teammate for selfishly abandoning the village and hurting his comrades in the process. Her emotions after the incident had been much less shocked and tended to lean more towards murderously infuriated.

"How is she these days?" Naruto asked, pulling out the scratched hitae-ate that Itachi's crow had given him and holding it and the wrist guard out for Akamaru to assess.

"Busy, I pretty much only see her when we attend the chakra healing training sessions they've started offering. But she likes it that way. She and Shizune-neechan have really become close. Hokage-sama is so busy with the village, the two of them are really the ones running the hospital these days. She's a very talented medic, her research into poisons and various uses for chakra therapy is way ahead of everyone beside Shizune-neechan and Tsunade-sama." As Hinata spoke she was stepping closer, her eyes narrowing on the new object and the way Akamaru was distinctly pointing at it instead of the wrist guard.

"Oh? And does all that work leave Neechan time to play?" Naruto's mischievous grin had Hinata returning the sly expression.

"If the permanent grin that can be seen even under Kakashi-sensei's mask is anything to go by, then yes." They snickered together at the idea of a googly eyed Dog, but Hinata quickly pointed at the hitae-ate, her curiosity peaked. "Where did you get that?"

"A bird, I'll explain later," he whispered to her, then straightened up and looked at Kiba. "What does Akamaru have to say?"

Kiba raised his eyebrows as he listened to his Ninken. "That headband is definitely Sasuke's and it has a much stronger scent. Good thing you hung onto it all this time."

"Excellent. The stronger the scent the better the odds of the Bikochu successfully locating Sasuke." Shino nodded in approval and signaled for the group to continue on, the sun was getting lower in the sky and there was still time to reach the edge of the valley and set up camp before dark.

As they swiftly moved across the countryside Naruto fell into step by his Hime's side, filling her in on his meeting with Itachi all those months ago. She listened carefully, nodding with his conclusions of Itachi's motives. Then she talked about her own work within the village, assisting Tsunade-sama and running interference amongst the Clan. She talked about her training with Neji, her expanding knowledge of medical jutsu, her nearly complete chakra bank for the Hundred Healings Mark, and her new trademark jutsu that she had been working on, but wanted to show him in person. As she animatedly filled his homesick ears with the news from around the village, his eyes were drinking her in. She had truly become a creature of grace and power. Her long hair and flowing sleeves gave her a celestial quality that made him want to worship her at her feet, while her pulsing Byakugan had a ferocity that flooded him with the urge to beg for her holy mercy. She was glorious, and his admiration was growing with every swerve of her body over the terrain. Since when did she…move like that?

Shino had them stop at a clearing with a view of the unique crater-like valley that was a haven for all kinds of strange insects. There was a river nearby and the edge of the forest offered plenty of cover from the elements.

"Yo Hinata, where do you want us to set up the campfire?" Kiba called from where he had wandered by the far side of the clearing, Akamaru bounding around him wildly.

"Over by that tree Kiba-kun, and the tent can go underneath that lower branch." Hinata smiled warmly at her frequent teammate who nodded and trotted off to gather some wood and a few rocks to ring the fire pit that Akamaru was happily digging. Naruto couldn't help the small niggling feeling of jealousy at the familiar way she addressed the other chunin, but shook it off as immature. She was his Hime, no need for drama. Right?

Shino had unsealed a large tent from the storage scroll in his pack, and was about to shake it out when Naruto jogged over. "I can do that, just leave it to me and I'll have this place all set up in no time, dattebayo! Kage bunshin no jutsu!" Suddenly there was a small swarm of Narutos rapidly clearing a spot on the ground for the tent and racing down to the river to fish for their dinner.

"That is very helpful Naruto. Why? Because as the captain of this mission, I would like to spend more time studying the map." Shino nodded at the Original and went to sit on the grass nearby, taking another scroll with him.

Naruto turned to find Hinata staring at his profile, with an almost wistful expression on her face. Embarrassed to be caught she laughed awkwardly and tucked her long hair behind her ear as she cast her gaze around for a task of her own. Snatching up another storage scroll from the pile Shino had unloaded, she waved it sheepishly in the air saying, "I'll um, just get started on the dinner preparations then." Unsealing a large pot she headed down to the water line to fill it up, shooing away more than one eager Clone that tried to pry it out of her hands.

Naruto couldn't look away as she propped the pot on one hip and swayed down to the water, nearly getting the wind knocked out of him by the heavy roll of tarp chucked in his direction. He turned and glared at the shadow clone who had thrown it and was now snickering at his distractedness. Hoisting the thing over his shoulder he stomped over to the tree Hinata had indicated and set to work.

A short while later, he had just finished tying the last corner of the tent to a tree branch before turning to hold the flap open for his clones to carry in all the bed rolls and backpacks. The bunshins tossed the items onto the ground and disappeared with mock salutes.

Sighing with satisfaction, Naruto bent to pull out his own belongings when he noticed Hinata's bedroll by his feet. A thought crossed his mind, and wiggling his fingers nervously, he snatched it up and laid it next to his own, making sure to place himself between her and the other two guys. Especially Kiba. He nudged the Inuzuka's roll towards the far end of the tent with his toe. Perhaps those guys were just pretending not to notice, probably for Hime's sake, but the girl was different. Apparently while Naruto had been growing like a weed while traveling the Land of Fire with Ero-Sennin, his Hime had been growing as well. He knew full well what went through the mind of a hormonal teenage male, and there was no way in hell he wanted that directed at his girl—er teammate.

"Naruto-kun, the food is ready." A head of dark midnight blue hair popped into the tent and scanned the sleeping arrangements he had made.

He stood up abruptly and smashed his head into the roof of the tent, popping a few stitches at the corners. "Uh, yeah, okay, coming, hehe!" He rubbed his head bashfully at being so easily startled. Hinata stepped inside, raising a delicate eye brow and planted her hands on her shapely, round—seriously since when did she have hips like that? Not needing her Byakugan to see what the blushing boy was up to, Hinata shook her head and laughed.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, we're all just teammates here. I've been on lots of overnight missions with the boys, and they've always been perfect gentlemen." She stepped closer and giggled as she smoothed down the static electricity that was making his wild blond hair even more erratic. Naruto pouted at her easy dismissal of his overprotectiveness. What did she expect from him? The last time he had seen her she was his cute, little Hime, pure and sweet with a feisty streak that only glimpsed at her inner strength, and now... he wasn't quite sure what to make of these confusing feelings when he saw her serene confidence and staggering figure. Earlier he had flinched hard when she had ruthlessly dispelled two of his more rambunctious clones for nearly starting a water fight over who would catch more fish for dinner. She was savage, and soft, and so damn confusing, and…Kami, am I blushing?

"Fuck," he mumbled and rubbed his face with both hands to try and save some of his dignity. Hinata giggled and flicked him on the forehead, kinda hard actually. "Language, Naruto-kun. Now c'mon, let's eat before it gets cold." He watched her loose hair swirl around her as she slipped out of the tent. Crossing his arms, Naruto shot one more baleful glare at the other guys' sleeping bags. Glancing back at the swinging tent flap, he gave the rolls one last kick to the far side of the tent.

"I saw that Naruto-kun!"


Kiba's snoring rattled his sensitive ears, dragging him back to consciousness. Naruto groaned and rolled over, pulling the pillow over his head. How can Hime sleep through this shit?

Lifting the corner of his pillow to peek at her, he pushed himself up onto his elbows when he noticed that her sleeping bag was empty. He reached over and patted the blanket, which held no warmth from her body, and frowned. How long has she been gone?

Deciding this totally justified an investigation, he crept out of the tent and leapt into the tree where one of his clones sat keeping watch. He had volunteered to keep the entire night watch with a kage bunshin, since there was little need for a full shift rotation with no real threats way out here in the middle of the forest. All the nights spent awaiting a signal from one of Jiraiya's numerous contacts had honed his skill for staying awake and hiding his chakra. During a recon mission, unless you were looking for him, really hard, most ninja would have no idea he was there.

Landing silently next to the hidden clone he used hand signs to ask where Hime had gone. The clone responded in kind, about an hour ago, two klicks upriver, I don't sense any distress, maybe she really needed to pee? Naruto scratched his head, he'd heard that girls could take forever in a bathroom, but he didn't think that applied to the forest?

Definitely suspicious, and slightly anxious, he shunshined down to the water surface and started running up the river, keeping his chakra tightly stamped down. Closing his eyes and opening his mind, he let her presence wash over him. Her chakra was spiking and dipping, like waves in a pool after a rock had been tossed in. As he got closer he could sense that she was darting around almost as though sparring with an invisible partner, but she was the only person besides their sleeping teammates within miles. What the hell?

Deciding to err on the side of caution in case there was an unseen attacker that he needed to get the jump on, Naruto skimmed to a stop across the top of the water near a bend in the river, and muted his chakra down to an absolutely undetectable level that even fooled Ero-sennin. The splashing sounds of churning water grew louder as he tip-toed over a wet boulder and braced himself with chakra to the side of a tree.

What he saw, he would never forget for the rest of this life or the next. At first he thought it was some sort of water demon, he had heard of breathtakingly beautiful 'Sirens' who would lure lusting sailors to their death. Her pale skin glowed in the moonlight as she undulated to an inaudible melody that seemed to have bewitched even the water itself. Droplets spiraled around her like fairies hypnotized by her enchanting tune, alighting onto her body to caress down her torso and arms, streaming from her delicate finger tips like strands of shimmering pearls. Chakra shimmered down her body and bled into the ripples around her feet as she kicked off the surface and her gyrating figure launched into a revolution that picked up speed until it encased her in a blue vortex that curved around her shapely form. The luminescent liquid crawled up her long toned legs and conformed to her curvaceous hips, continuing up to wrap around her trim waist, finally sliding sensuously over well-rounded breasts that peeked out between a thick curtain of wet midnight blue hair— OH BLOODY HELL!

The very strained thread of control he had over his body as he clung to the tree, gaping at the water goddess, snapped when he realized her true identity. He fell flat on his ass and tumbled down the slippery rock into the water and froze in horror as he felt the intense blast of overpowering chakra erupting from Hime. Gasping, partially from nearly inhaling a lungful of water and also from having the wind completely knocked out of him by her powerful reaction to his intrusion, he was completely unprepared for what happened next.

Byakugan pulsing, mouth snarling, hair waving around like Medusa's serpents, arms hugging her bosom in a way that totally was not helping his body calm down, the angel of death that was Hyuga Hinata waded with absurd velocity through the waist deep water, and screamed the word he had never thought to ever hear cross her saintly lips.

"What the FUCK, NARUTOOOOO!"

The last thing he saw was the blazing glow of her chakra covered fingers as she juukened him into oblivion.

He woke up the next day, cold and shivering on the ground where she had dragged and dumped his unconscious body next to the banked fire, with Akamaru sniffing at his drool covered face. Naruto had barely been able to lift himself up to crawl into the empty tent and change his clothes before stiffly limping over to join Kiba and Shino by the now crackling fire.

"Seriously dude, what the hell did you do?" Kiba leaned over and whispered harshly to the inexplicably skittish blond. "I've never seen her do that to anyone other than a training dummy before. I would be dead right now if that was me."

Three pairs of eyes followed the chillingly silent kunoichi as she moved about the other side of the campsite. Lavender eyes flashed over their way and Kiba would have sworn the jinchuriki next to him whimpered.

This is ridiculous, Kiba grumbled internally as he thoughtfully ran the tip of his tongue over a sharp canine. He'd been working with Hinata a lot ever since Naruto had left to go train with the Sannin Jiraiya, and had easily picked up on the fact that she had some complicated feelings for her friend. He would never admit it but Kiba was a complete closet romantic, and Shino was just as bad. The two swapped Icha Icha books and secretly discussed the finer points of the intricate plots whenever they were unobserved. After watching one teammate suffer through the throws of unrequited love, when they had heard about the new mission and seen the anticipation twinkling in Hinata's eyes, they had immediately agreed to facilitate this newest potential romance in whatever way they could. Seeing as how Hinata had literally dragged Naruto's comatose carcass back to camp and dumped him like a pile of wet laundry had put a distinct damper on their little side mission.

Kiba took in the crestfallen expression on Naruto's whiskered face and decided to try a different approach, "C'mon man, this is Hinata we're talking about! Sweet, little Hinata-chan! How bad could it be?"

Naruto gripped his knees so hard his knuckles turned white as he whispered in a trembling voice, "She said the F word."

Shino emitted a girlishly high gasp of horror.

"My. God." Kiba uttered, and Akamaru hid under his paws with a whimper.

Returning to the fireside after retrieving a scroll from her pack, Hinata primly began to lay out the food she had unsealed from it for breakfast. The three boys sat huddled together, instinctively seeking strength in numbers. They watched her warily as she neatly dished out several homemade onigiri that were each elaborately decorated to resemble the individual members of the team.

Sharply lifting her head she pierced Naruto with her formidable pearly orbs, and smoothly reached for a rice ball that bore a striking resemblance to the fearful blond. Never breaking eye contact, she raised the edible mini clone made of rice to her mouth. Naruto caught his breath and swallowed hard as she slowly licked her lips, unblinkingly holding his blue gaze as a dainty pink tongue poked out to gently lick the treat.

In a sudden flash of teeth she viciously bit off his face, chewing menacingly while glaring white death into his very soul.

Kit, if you don't make that woman your mate, I will.

That's disgusting. And you can't mate without me anyways!

For a woman like that, I'd find a way.

Shut up you perverted Fox! You're not helping!

Kiba slapped the pale, hunched jinchuriki on the back with brotherly pity. Shino clicked his teeth in disappointment with a small shake of his head. Akamaru snorted, almost tauntingly. Naruto sighed heavily as he watched the woman of his dreams and nightmares devour his delicious face for breakfast.

"Girls are scary, dattebayo."