The following weekend, Hinata and Xin headed to their parents' home. Manami was excited to see her daughters but wondered why she had to send a car for them. She was certain Hanabi mentioned Xin getting her car back last weekend. Even so, she decided not to question her daughters. The twins found in her bedroom, lounging on the chaise. Xin immediately looked uncomfortable, eyes roving over the large bedroom as if she'd never seen it before. Manami jumped up from the chaise, smiling fondly. "Girls! It's wonderful to see you," She beamed happily and came at them, wrapping her arms tightly around the two. "I've missed you so much. The house is so quiet now that you've both moved out. I think Hana is lonely."

"No I'm not," Hanabi called into the room as she swept by the bedroom. "I'm going to my piano lessons, I'll be home in two hours!" Hanabi announced to Manami. Xin watched her sister go with blank eyes.

"You're not going to ask her twenty questions like you asked me every time I set foot out the door?"

"No," Manami continued to smile fondly. "Every time you stepped foot out of the door, I had to come pick you up from the authorities."

Xin grinned widely and stepped back from her embrace. "Can't say you didn't have fun," She sung loudly while taking Manami's seat at the chaise. "We need to talk to you about something important, Mom," Xin said carefully, wondering how the hell she was supposed to approach the situation. Hinata joined her on the chaise, leaving Manami to sit on the edge of the California king bed.

"Did anything odd happen the night we were born?" Hinata asked up front, remembering Karin's urging. "Anything out of the ordinary?" She pressed, watching as Manami looked thoughtful. Xin glanced at Hinata, slightly impressed that she had pressed on when she didn't know how to ask Manami. She tapped her bottom lip and frowned.

"A snowstorm? You girls already know that."

Xin let out an impatient sigh. "I hit a demon with my car," She stated in a flat voice. Manami stared back at her, looking quite pale. "He says there's something weird about me. Last weekend, we were attacked and nearly killed by this other demon. Tenten came to our rescue because apparently her family comes from a long line of Chinese Enchantresses."

Manami continued to stare at her daughters, looking back and forth between them. Hinata and Xin remained impassive, looking like statues. Manami's eyebrows drew together and her mouth pinched. "Xin, I thought you were done with the wild stories when you were a child," She said slowly, not blinking. Xin's composure stuttered and she tilted her head to the side. "You had therapy and we moved passed all the lies."

"Therapy?" Hinata parroted first. "What are you talking about? You put her in therapy?" She looked at her sister, trying hard to remember when Xin had therapy. She blinked hard and suddenly, she could hear her sister's high pitched voice when they were about four, maybe five.

"Mama, the fox girl came back! Did you see her today? The fox girl with the red hair!"

Hinata blinked hard and then shook her head before a look of surprise crossed her face. "You met Karin before, when we were kids!" She suddenly realized with wide eyes. Xin looked back at her, severely lost. Whatever her mother and sister remembered was lost on her.

"Wait, you put me in therapy?" Xin asked in disbelief.

Manami was stony-faced. "You were seeing things that weren't there, dear. You had an overactive imagination. It was worrisome to hear you talk about girls with fox ears. Those things don't exist."

Hinata hoped Xin wouldn't start throwing things like she threw that remote controller at Tenten. "You're lying," Xin uttered evenly. Manami turned her head slightly, as if she couldn't believe Xin's accusation.

"You watch your mouth," Manami spoke slowly in a warning tone. It was unnerving to witness her reaction. Growing up, the girls were used to Hiashi scolding them. Manami mostly stayed quiet and gently intervened when the arguments got to be too much. "I do not enjoy being called a liar by my child in my own home. Watch your mouth," Manami warned her with a firm voice.

"Then stop lying," Xin shot back just as firmly. "I didn't have an overactive imagination. Demons exist. I was almost killed twice by two different demons. Karin and Suigetsu are demons," Xin's voice began to rise. "Tell me the truth about the night of our birth. Tell us about Jun and Junko."

"Who told you about Jun and Junko?"

"I had a dream about them," Xin replied quickly. Manami's eyes hardened but Xin didn't back down. "Miko twins that looked a lot like the two of us. Tenten said it was against the enchantments for them to tell us about them. I'm guessing that was Ruolan's doing? What's the big secret, Mom? What are we?"

Manami began twisting her fingers together, rumpling her blouse. She looked to the left and began to mutter to herself. Her shoulders sagged and for once, they watched their mother lose her composure. She suddenly looked so sad and tired. And scared. Fear was evident in her eyes when she turned to look back at her. "We wanted to keep you away from all of this," Manami finally said after a stretch of silence. She bit her bottom lip, chewing on the appendage anxiously. "I don't even know how to start…" She twisted her fingers harder. "Just..try to keep an open mind, okay?"

Hinata and Xin exchanged unimpressed looks. They were dealing with demons, Enchanters and there was an entirely different realm that existed. What could possibly surprise them at this point?

"The Hyuga family comes from a long line of priestesses, from your Father's side. You girls remember those old tales of the Hyuga family descending from the Goddess, Kaguya-hime?"

There was an old, tall tale among the Hyuga family. It was said that they were born from Kaguya-hime in the image of the night. Dark hair pulled from the sky, pale skin bathed from twinkling stars and eyes of the moon. It was just some old tale told at bedtime but perhaps there was some truth to the story since Manami was bringing it up all of a sudden.

"Those tales are true…" Manami trailed off, waiting for surprised outbursts. None came but the girls did look a little caught off guard. It was often said that Kaguya-hime eventually went mad with power and was sealed into the moon by her sons and kept under heavy guard and watch by Tsukiyomi-no-Mikoto. There was a running gag in the Hyuga family that Xin inherited Kaguya's temper. It wasn't so funny anymore. "Back in the days when there wasn't anything to keep the humans and supernatural separated, miko were appointed to each settlement and village. They were blessed with mystical powers in order to protect their villages from evil. About five hundred or so years ago...during the Sengoku Period...or the Azuchi-Momoyama Period...I'm not sure...miko twins were born to a settlement on the night of a full moon. That was...out of the ordinary."

"Jun and Junko," Xin said simply. Manami looked straight at her with eyes full of sadness and heartache. For one reason or another, Xin's stomach began to sink. Whatever their mother was about to tell them was not going to sit right with them. She instantly regretted coming over here. The next time she saw Karin, she was going to punch her in the neck.

"They were phenomenal priestesses, as kind as they were fierce. They befriended and came under the protection of a Chinese enchantress, Ruolan and a fox-demon," Manami's mouth twisted at the mention of the fox demon. "They were destined for great things but something went wrong and both priestesses met an untimely end."

Well, they weren't expecting that.

"Ruolan foretold of their eventual reincarnation and placed several enchantments on their eventual reincarnations to protect them from demons and from themselves. The fox demon and another demon she eventually discovered, promised to search for their reincarnations and protect them as the fox demon had done before. Ruolan was eventually reborn once more and mistook Hiashi and Hizashi for Jun and Junko's souls reborn. The Hyuga hadn't borne twins since Jun and Junko. I'm sure that mostly had to do with Ruolan's meddling. For a long time, it was thought Jun and Junko would never manifest….

And then I had the two of you on the night of the full moon during a terrible snowstorm. I hoped and prayed that it wouldn't be the two of you. I did everything in my power to keep them away from you."

They weren't expecting that tidbit either. Manami always seemed calm and placating during their childhood. This fiercely protective woman sitting in front of them was someone entirely different. Her face was set in a mask of stone. "Karin eventually found you two when you were about three. I was furious and my mother suggested that I pass her existence off as Xin's imagination running wild. You eventually suppressed the memories but there wasn't anything I could do when she posed as a high school student…"

Manami allowed the new information to sink in. It seemed...unbelievable. Xin wanted to laugh at her mother's story. Was she really supposed to believe all of this? Maybe she was in a coma. It made a lot more sense than her life these last couple of weeks.

"So you're telling me that our family descended from a psychotic Goddess sealed into the moon and that two dead priestesses have been reborn into the two of us. And what's more...a dead enchantress cast some spell to protect us from the truth? Is that right?" Xin asked slowly, trying to figure out if she should have her mother committed to a psychiatric ward.

"Despite the fact that I was almost murdered by a demon just last week, this sounds a bit far-fetched, Mom," Hinata finally spoke up when words failed her sister. That was a surprise. The new revelation must have really left Xin speechless. She was notorious for her motormouth.

"You wanted me to tell you truth and I did," Manami answered firmly. "But you listen and you listen well," Her voice took on a grave tone. "Ruolan placed enchantments on the two of you to protect you. The blood and flesh of a priestess is pure and was often sought out by demons to consume. I don't know the specifics of the enchantments as they were in Mandarin and destroyed sometime in the early 1700s," She told them, eyes like ice.

"With you knowing of your past and your inheritance, the enchantments are likely broken. I..I don't know what will happen now. Your father and I...we can't protect you from whatever comes after you. I…" Manami rung her hands together nervously. "Your best bet of safety is staying close with...Karin, Suigetsu and Tenten," She seemed loathed to admit such a thing. Xin wondered exactly what the beef was. Manami knew the trio since they met in high school and always treated them fairly. What was different now?

"I wasn't expecting any of this," Xin leaned back with her hands pressed against her face. "This is like some whacked out tv show. This can't be real."

Manami frowned sadly. "I'm sorry, dear. I..from the day you two were born, we did everything we could to keep you from this. I suppose we cannot defy or question fate."

"Yes…" Hinata mused quietly. "Who are we to question fate…?"

"Why don't you mention Gaara to anyone?"

Xin paused in the middle of cooking, hands tightening around the knife. Since returning to their apartment, they steadily avoiding talking about the supernatural. Their mother's revelation, although slightly unbelievable, had shaken them to the core. She looked towards her sister, frowning softly. A look of sadness was evident in her big eyes. "I don't know, sis," She admitted tiredly. "I haven't seen him for a long time, maybe he's gone for good. I didn't think it was necessary."

"It might be...what with Mom told us. He's probably not safe to be around."

Xin's frown deepened and Hinata wondered if her statement about Gaara offended her sister. "I'm sorry about all of this, sis. I shouldn't have let you move in with me. You would have still been under Ruolan's freaky enchantments," Xin confessed sadly. She dropped her head to her chest and took a shuddering breath. Hinata thought she heard her mumble something about Hiashi being right.

Something in Hinata settled. It was true that if Xin refused Hinata's request to move in, she'd probably still be safe from...whatever. But that just meant Xin would have to go through this ordeal alone. The thought of that upset her. Her sister was tough but there's only so much a person could take alone. "You don't have to apologize, Xin. This situation is not...ideal or even normal but it's better than we're going through it together. It will always be you and me," Hinata brushed her hand against Xin's shoulder.

Xin smiled slowly and then shook her head. "Man, this has got to be the craziest thing I've ever gotten us into. Demons, dragon magicians and dead miko. What in the blue fuck…"

"To be fair, you didn't get us into it, per say. Maybe just jump started it. How were we supposed to know about any of this?"

A sigh rattled Xin's shoulders. "There's something I need to tell you," She uttered, watching as Hinata turned towards her. "When I met Gaara, he tried to kill me. He tried to strangle me with his hands and then his...energy, I don't really know. I was choking on it and then I felt something really...pure in my chest. It chased his energy out and that's why Gaara stuck around. He wanted to know what it was."

Hinata was quiet for several seconds. "I suppose we should be glad Jun protected you then, hm?"

"You think that was her?"

"You have her soul, why not?"

"That's kind of freaky, in hindsight."

The elder sister laughed and shook her head. "This entire situation is freaky, to be honest. But like I said, I'd rather we go through it together. We're stronger that way, don't you think?"

Xin couldn't answer, interrupted by a quick knock at the door. She paused, looking in the direction of the front door before sighing. Armed with her knife, she made her way to the door with Hinata. She tilted on the tips of her toes, straining to see through the peephole. Hinata pressed against her back, fingers curled into her tank top to pull her backwards should anything happen.

"Ah, false alarm," Xin settled back onto her feet. "It's just Jabberjaw, Flareon and Chun-Li," She grinned while Hinata sighed in relief, backing up to let Xin open the door.

"Do you always answer the door armed with a knife?" Tenten asked when the door swung open to reveal the twins. The last thing any of them were expecting was Xin wielding a knife. Xin grinned even wider at her, seemingly over her annoyance with all their secret keeping.

"The last time someone knocked on the door, Hinata almost got her head smashed in," Xin replied wanly. She stepped out of the way, letting them in. "Guess you guys are staying for dinner, huh?"

Suigetsu ambled closer to her, hands shoved in his pockets. "If ya insist," He leered down at her, grinning lazily. Xin rolled her eyes and pointed the tip of the knife at his chin. That seemed to greatly amuse him but he backed off. He followed after the gaggle of women, settling at the dining room table. Karin helped Hinata set the table while Xin went to the kitchen. Suigetsu got up to help her with the food and drinks.

Tente looked slightly uncomfortable once they were all settled at the dining room table. "Manami called me," She finally said, unable to hold it in. Hinata and Xin paused, both eyeing her quietly.

"Yeah? About what?"

"Xin, I don't think you realize what the two of you had done," Tenten said seriously. Karin and Suigetsu sat rigidly, disappointed that Tenten brought up her concerns so early in their visit. Couldn't they at least get settled first? Suigetsu reached for the steaming pot in the middle of the table, pulling it out of Xin's reach. Xin had tunnel vision when she was angry.

"Probably not but we all gotta die one day, right?" Xin mused dryly, reaching towards the simmering pot. Tenten leveled her with an unimpressed look.

"You made your mother cry, Xin."

"Tenten, do you really think you can guilt me? I'm Hiashi's daughter for Christ's sake. I don't have a conscious."

"Jun had a conscious," Karin quipped sullenly.

Xin's head snapped in Karin's direction, an unreadable look on her face. Since revealing her close relationship, Xin began to wonder if Karin only befriended her for the sake of Jun. She wondered if Karin saw Xin or Jun when she talked to her. Had she only stuck around because she was the reincarnation of a dead miko?

"Jun is dead," Xin uttered slowly without blinking. "I'm not Jun." Or was she? Did Hyuga Xin really exist as a person or was she just a shell to house Jun's soul? Was she the one with the fiery temper or was it Jun's temper? Did she have a soul of her own or did it belong to Jun?

"Jun is Jun and Xin is Xin, Karin. They're different people. Jun has been dead for years," Suigetsu said slowly. It kind of surprised Xin that Suigetsu would defend her. She expected him to be on Team Jun like his traitorous ass girlfriend.

"Jun and Junko aren't what's important right now. The twins are and if we don't get it together, terrible things will happen," Tenten said seriously. She looked in between the twins. "The enchantments placed are most likely broken since Manami told you the truth. Did she tell you what could happen?"

"That demons will want to eat us? She might have mentioned something like that."

Tenten opened her mouth to scold Xin's nonchalant behavior but Hinata beat her to it. "We're not saying that this situation isn't important but...it's been a long two weeks. Could we just enjoy a dinner with each other like before?" She looked around at the table, frowning softly. Tenten sighed heavily but nodded. Maybe she was being a little obsessive and pushy but it was only because she cared so much for the twins! Even so, they could probably have this conversation some other time. Hinata looked towards Karin with a meaningful expression, warning her not to bring up Jun anymore. She didn't want to hear any more of Jun and Junko for the rest of the night. Karin seemingly received the message loud and clear, sinking down guiltily.

"What's for dessert, Xin?" Suigetsu prompted, easily getting over the awkward bump. He turned to the small woman with a wide grin. She returned the stare almost blankly, her mood most likely shot by Karin and Tenten's words. It's not that she wanted to sit there and agonize over their words, she didn't! But honestly, was their friendships only forged because of some dead priestesses? Did Tenten only stick around because she felt obligated on Ruolan's behalf? Did Suigetsu and Karin remain their friends because it was as close to Jun and Junko as they were going to get? Did she know these people like she thought she did? Her life was on a fast track of spiraling out of control and she didn't know how to get it back to normal.

"Hinata made daifuku at the bakery and Anko let us take some of it home," Xin finally replied, unaware that her blank stare unnerved the three guests. "They're good," She looked down at her food, leaving the table in an awkward silence. Hinata tried not to sigh in agitation. She just wished they could all go back to how things were before finding out the truth.

The dinner continued on awkwardly as the mood was pretty much ruined. Suigetsu looked in between the four girls, not sure how to get rid of the awkward tension. After awhile he gave up and continued eating his food. Before long they were finished their dinner and quietly helped the twins clean up. Just as they were gearing up to leave, Hinata had a sudden thought.

"Does Neji know?"

Tenten frowned at the door. "He does," She answered after several long minutes. "He's known for a long time and has been...involved."

What the hell did that mean? But the brunette didn't explain, opting to quickly leave with Karin and Suigetsu. The twins stewed in shared silence, both thoroughly confused by Tenten's cryptic words.

"So much for no more secrets."

"Oh, you're still alive. I thought for sure that the dagger to the leg was it for you."

Gaara stared blankly at his longtime friend. "Fuck off, Uzumaki. I wouldn't have taken a blessed dagger to the leg if it hadn't been for you."

Naruto grinned widely at Gaara, settling down on the park bench. He stretched his long legs out and continued to grin when Gaara settled next to him. "Don't be like that. If it wasn't for me, you'd still be holed up in Suna with Rasa breathing down your neck."

"Like how Kushina breathes down yours?"

Naruto snorted, slouching into the bench. "Oi, least my Mom isn't an asshole like Rasa," He almost pouted but straightened up. "How'd you get that dagger out anyway? Almost burned your fingers right off when you tried to snatch it out."

Gaara frowned next to him, mind wandering to that shrill, loud mouthed harpy of a woman. He wasn't sure why she was the first one he thought of to get the dagger out. It wasn't like he didn't know any other humans. She hadn't even been home when he arrived at her home. There was also the chance that she would refuse helping him. It's not like they had a great track record. He'd hurt her several times and she even stabbed him. Which, kind of impressed him, in all honesty. The last thing he expected out of that vertically challenged hobbit was for her to stab him. But as he said, he was impressed. Humans tended to not stab at him unless they were armed with blessed weapons.

"A human girl pulled the dagger out."

Naruto raised blonde eyebrows. "You let a human girl touch you? That's a new one. Did you kill her immediately after?"

"No but I have tried before."

"And she's still alive."

"She is."

Naruto blinked at his friend in question. As long as he's known Gaara, which was a long time, he's never known him to have any problems killing...well...anything. He'd kill his own father if the opportunity presented itself. Not that he blamed him, Rasa was a grade-A dick. But even so...Gaara didn't let a lot of beings get away unscathed.

"Something's wrong with that girl and I want to know what," Gaara said while shifting around. He reached for the hemline of his shirt, lifting it up to show an odd scar on his side. "She stabbed me and—"

"A human girl stabbed you?"

"Yes, that's what I said, Uzumaki."

"And she's still alive? Gaara, you're losing your edge—wait...why hasn't that healed yet? Did she stab you with the blessed dagger after pulling it out?"

"No, it was a regular knife. She stabbed me long before I made her remove the blessed dagger."

Naruto's brows drew together in wonderment. "So you're telling me you let a human girl stab you with a knife, that for some reason, left a scar."

"I didn't let her do anything."

"Man, I gotta meet this girl. Why did her stab mark leave a scar? Was the knife she used blessed?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Definitely need to meet her."

He wasn't sure how he felt about Naruto meeting that woman. Naruto wouldn't hurt the woman (not that he really cared) and he was pretty sure she wouldn't hurt him either. But maybe a second opinion on this woman would do him some good. He knew he hadn't been losing his shit when he felt something in her push back. He just couldn't figure out what. "So she knows you're a demon then?" Naruto prompted, breaking him out of his thoughts. The blond watched the other man quietly, eyes slightly narrowed. This was odd behavior for Gaara. Maybe that's what had him so distracted.

"She does. She attacked me with a fuckin' mop and ran to get another damn knife," Gaara admitted. He probably wouldn't admit any of this to any other person. For some odd reason, despite their polar opposite personalities, the two were best friends. He tended to tell Naruto the truth, even if he didn't want to.

"I honestly need to meet this girl."

Gaara rolled his eyes and slumped into the bench. Ignorant humans carried on with their day, not even realizing they were being watched by two vigilant demons. They couldn't sense malevolent intentions but they tended to watch anyway, just in case. They'd been at it for a month but the steady flow of rogue demons wasn't slowing down. Someone was opening portals all over town, allowing demons out to hunt humans down. Naruto had been employed to hunt down the demons and stop them and asked Gaara to help him. The redhead barely let Naruto finish explaining before agreeing. Rasa was driving him up the wall.

"When can I meet her?" Naruto looked like he was going to start bouncing in his seat like a child. Gaara leveled Naruto with a blank stare. "Aw, come on, you can't tell me about this girl and expect me to not want to meet her! She stabbed you for shit's sake. I gotta find out what's wrong with her," Naruto insisted in good nature. Everything was wrong with that woman. Everything down to her freakish eyes. They seemed supernatural.

Naruto wouldn't shut up and Gaara finally relented. Although he told him that there was an off chance that the woman would pull a knife on him. That seemed to just excite Naruto even more. To him, the thought of a human girl pulling a knife on a demon had to be the funniest thing ever. Even funnier when she actually succeeded in stabbing a demon.

For one reason or another, Naruto insisted that they actually use her front door. When Gaara told him that he tended to just use a portal to get into her apartment, he was horrified. He ranted for about twenty minutes that it was considered breaking and entering, even though, he didn't break anything to get inside.

"I'm serious when I say watch her hands, Uzumaki. I don't doubt she'd use anything as a weapon," Gaara folded his arms while Naruto grinned next to him. The redhead shook his head when the elevator came to a stop at the top floor. Due to their enhanced hearing, they could easily hear the woman despite being down the hall and outside of her apartment.

"Oh fuck off, Flareon. This isn't a fuckin' restaurant."

"Please stop cursing, Xin."

"All I'm saying is that I don't like gyōza."

"And all I'm saying is that you can get the fuck out, Shippo."

"I told you to stop it with the stupid nicknames."

"You said stop it with the Pokémon nicknames. That was an InuYasha reference, which in my opinion, is very fitting."

Naruto's grin was so wide Gaara thought it would split his face. He stepped up to the door and politely knocked, halting any conversation going on in the apartment. The apartment became tensely quiet and for a moment, a familiar scent wafted from under the door. Gaara and Naruto frowned in unison.

"Oi, Xin, wait!"

The door swung open, revealing a very confused Xin. Gaara wasn't surprised to see her holding a knife but he was surprised to see a very familiar redheaded woman coming down the hallway towards Xin. The woman's eyes widened at the sight of the two of them. "Karin?" Naruto practically squawked. Karin barely paid Naruto any mind, red eyes trained solely on Gaara. She came to a hard halt at Xin's back, hand slapping against the human's shoulder. Xin flinched under the contact and opened her mouth to snap at Karin but was cut off sharply when Karin yanked her backwards. She tucked the smaller woman into her chest, hand wrapping protectively around her waist. The motion bothered Gaara. Karin loomed over Xin's smaller figure almost possessively.

"What the hell?" Karin hissed at the two of them, teeth sharpening passed her lips. Gaara continued to watch the two women, nose twitching. A new smell came from Xin, smelling….pure and sweet. She certainly didn't smell like that the last he'd been there. She smelled more like….that damn blessed dagger. "What the hell do you think you're doing here?" Karin hissed at the two of them. Naruto glanced in between Karin, Xin and Gaara, clearly missing some components.

"What the hell're you doing here, Rin'?" Naruto asked after a moment of tense silence. Xin craned her neck back, eyeing Karin quietly before turning back towards Gaara and Naruto. She frowned thoughtfully but twirled the knife thoughtlessly. Gaara eyed her motions, sneakily stepping out of her range.

"I think the real question is—" Xin finally spoke up, slightly interested but more so amused in whatever was taking place. "—did you actually knock this time? What a surprise," She crowed with a smirk.

Gaara shrugged leisurely, still keeping an eye out for that knife. "He knocked," He bobbed his head in Naruto's direction. "He wouldn't shut up about breaking and entering."

Xin finally looked at Naruto, eyes blatantly sizing him up. He was as tall as Gaara and just as wide. His hair was a mess of sunshine and his eyes were as a blue as the ocean. He was grinning widely down at her, showing her his own sharpened teeth. Xin tilted her head to the side, noting that the structure of his face seemed oddly familiar. "Gaara, this is the girl who stabbed you?" Naruto looked at Gaara with that same shit-eating grin. "Are you kidding me, man? Holy fuck, this is hilarious! Wait until I tell Sakura about this," He elbowed Gaara playfully.

"And who—" Xin stepped out from underneath Karin's body. She held the knife up, pointing the tip at Naruto's chin. His laughter subsided but his grin remained. "—might you be?"

Hinata's voice could be heard from somewhere down the hallway behind Karin and Xin. "How about we figure this out inside? What will our neighbors think if they poke their head out and see you waving a knife around, Xin? The food is getting cold."

Xin hummed in agreement and stepped back into the apartment, vanishing down the hallway. Karin remained rooted to her spot, scowling at the two new guests. "Does Kushina know you're here, Naruto?" She asked in a frustrated voice.

"Does she know you're here, Karin?" Naruto shot back while ambling by the frustrated redhead. Gaara only offered Karin a fleeting glance as he followed after the tall blond. They ventured passed the kitchen where the twins were already sitting at their dining room table. Karin shoved by the men, sitting down with a huff.

Hinata blinked at the new additions. "Hello, Gaara," She greeted slowly while looking at her sister. "I hope you're doing okay. Who's your friend?" She asked, trying to be polite despite the two new demons in her living space. They weren't trying to kill them but Gaara had attacked Xin in the past. His companion, whoever he was, looked more friendly than Gaara.

"I wouldn't exactly call him a friend—"

"Oi!"

"But his name is Naruto."

Hinata smiled carefully at Naruto. "It's nice to meet you, Naruto. I'm Hinata."

"I'm Xin," Xin waved lazily. "Don't just stand there. Sit down and join us, why don't you?" She prompted. This had to be the oddest month of her life. She just hoped a semblance of normality would be returned to her life. She wasn't sure how much she could take of this. Both Gaara and Naruto took notice of the knife laying idle next to her hand. Gaara moved to sit down across from her, stretching his long legs out to the point of straddling her feet. Xin's hand edged closer to her knife but she did nothing. "I will use this," She warned, pinky brushing against the handle of the knife.

"Apparently so," Naruto quipped and sank down next to his silent friend. "Gaara tells me you stabbed him with a knife."

"He was choking me."

"She was screaming."

"Because a random, violent ass demon broke into my house."

Hinata made an odd noise in her throat, momentarily distracting the two from their bickering. "Karin, you're awfully quiet. Are you okay?" She looked towards the redhead, unaware of why Karin was suddenly so quiet.

"Yeah, Rin," Xin's gaze strayed to Karin, eyebrow quirked and upper lip slightly curling with the pronunciation of Karin's nickname. For as long as they've been friends, she'd never heard anyone use that nickname. It sounded too juvenile for Karin's tastes. "You seem very familiar with—" She paused and looked at Naruto. "—what are you?"

"Fox demon."

"Wow, of course you are," Xin rolled her eyes. "But you seem very familiar with Jolteon here so would you care to explain?"

Karin heaved a heavy sigh and wondered how this would go. Xin's temper was at an all time low with her, Tenten and Suigetsu. She could understand Xin's reasons. They did keep an awful lot of things from the twins before and even now, they still had a lot of secrets they were holding onto. She eyed the knife and frowned, Xin wouldn't actually stab her, would she? And what the hell was this about her stabbing Gaara anyway? How did the two know each other? When the hell did they meet and how long has this been going on? Vaguely she remembered those bruises around Xin's neck and her eyes narrowed. Were those bruises from Gaara? She was going to poison his ass as soon as she got the chance.

"He's my cousin," Karin finally admitted after realizing Xin and Hinata were still staring at her. Hinata made another noise, this one sounding more confused while Xin looked in between her and Naruto.

"...The retarded one?"

"Oi!"

"That isn't nice, Xin."

"And that's not what I said either."

"Oh, I'm sorry. The idiot."

"Kariiiiin,"Naruto whined childishly. "Stop telling people that before meeting me, they'll get the wrong idea," He chided his cousin, nearly pouting.

"You are an idiot," Karin snapped back, showing her teeth.

"Well, he is related to you," Xin commented dryly, grinning sheepishly when Karin's head whipped around in her direction. "Oh calm down, Delphox. It's a joke."

"This is not a joke you little twit. What in the blue fuck did you do to get involved with the likes of him?" Karin pointed an offending finger at Gaara. He eyed the appendage blankly, gazw rising slowly to stare her down. Karin scowled harshly but dropped her finger. "If you're here to kill her, I will kill you first."

"Naruto," Gaara uttered slowly, chewing thoughtfully on the gyōza. He'd hate to admit it but the food was actually good. "Remind your cousin of her place. If I wanted to kill that girl, I already would have."

"Still have that blessed dagger," Xin muttered in monotone. But her comment, for now, went ignored. Tension between the three demons was steadily rising.

"Karin," Naruto said slowly. "We're not here to hurt her," He motioned to Xin. "I just wanted to meet her," He told her in a gentle tone. He seemed all too used to Karin's fleeting temper. Naruto glanced at Xin but she remained impassive, quietly pressing her chopsticks to her mouth while chewing. Her eyes were wide and unblinking, blatantly watching the exchange. For some odd reason, her eyes seemed to glow eerily.

And her scent...well, actually she shared the scent with her sister. It was actually buried under their true scents. It smelled so...pure.

"What are you two?" He suddenly asked, overwhelmed by the faint purity hiding under their skin. He could just barely see flakes of purity and moon dust mixed with their blood and veins. His eyes flickered in between the two of them feverishly. He felt his true demon, a red-eyed beast, yearn for release. His claws scrapped against his ribcage in an almost desperate attempt for freedom.

"Just two normal girls trying to get through life," Xin answered in that same monotonous tone. Naruto was not fooled by her nonchalance. Normal girls didn't invite demons into their home for dinner. Normal girls didn't knowingly stab demons. Normal girls did not smell of pure snow and lunar dust.

"You both smell of that damn dagger," Gaara suddenly pointed out, seemingly ignoring the spat with Karin. Xin rolled her head back on her neck, face towards the ceiling. She blinked slowly and sighed heavily before her gaze wavered to him. "Have you been messing with it?"

"No." She wasn't lying but she was hiding something.

"Wait," Karin frowned. "You mean you still can't tell what they are?"

"Normal girls, I said that."

"Shut up, Xin," Karin reached over to cuff her. "The enchantments were to break as soon as you found out. Perhaps some still remain, perhaps weakened versions of it. Or maybe Tenten figured out how to cast strong ones like Ruolan."

"Tenten? Haven't seen her in awhile. How's she doing?"

"You know Tenten? Nevermind, of course you do. I bet you also know Prince Sidon."

"Prince Sidon?"

Hinata cleared throat, speaking up in what felt like a long time. "She means Suigetsu," She informed them. Hinata shot her sister a reprimanding look. Her nicknames was fine among the five of them but other people wouldn't understand all of her references. It obviously caused quite a confusion.

"Because he's a fuckin' shark and everything," Xin shrugged one shoulder. She still couldn't get over that.

"Getting off track," Gaara reminded them. Xin chanced a small glance at him. She wondered if he would leave her be if they told him what she truly was. Wasn't that the only reason he kept coming back? If he got what he wanted, there would be no need to come back. But on the other hand...Manami did say demons would come after them once the enchantments were broken. Did that mean he really would kill her?

"Do you eat humans?" She prompted, seemingly out of nowhere. To them, the question was absurd but she had to know if he would want to 'consume' her goddamn flesh and bones.

"Not in particular," Gaara answered somberly. Next to him, Naruto made a face of distaste. Xin wasn't sure if it was because he thought eating humans was wrong or if he didn't agree with Gaara's answer of not eating them often.

"Have you ever eaten humans?"

"Once or twice, a very long time ago."

The information didn't exactly warm her heart but he did say a long time ago. Maybe it was safe to tell him? Besides, if all else fails, she could stab him in the goddamn face with that dagger. Settling her jittery nerves, she sat up a little straighter and looked Gaara dead in the eye. "Apparently I have the soul of a dead priestess."

The table was silent as the information sunk in. Gaara studied the girl across from him. His knowledge on priestesses was limited at best but he knew they had the power to purify demons and corrupted humans. Perhaps that would explain their first encounter. And the odd underlying scent of moon dust and snow. "You're an awful priestess," Gaara said after a long moment of silence. Xin nearly gaped at him but managed to save her dignity at the last second.

"I said I have the soul of a priestess, not that I am a priestess you bag of shit."

"How can you have both the soul of a priestess and your own soul?"

Xin didn't reply. That was the thing. Whose soul resided in her? Was it half of her soul and half of Jun's soul or was it just one or the other? She was having an identity crises and she was barely in her twenties. All of this shit was giving her anxiety. What if she woke up one day and wasn't...herself?

"It's possible," Naruto finally spoke up. He looked lost in thought, eyes darting between Xin and Hinata. Maybe the sudden demonic activity had something to do with these two girls. It wasn't their fault but it could explain some things. "It usually doesn't end well. Two souls can't coincide in one body. They start wrestling for control of the body."

Fuckin' great.

Hinata noticeably paled and Xin wondered if her sister was having the same thoughts on Junko. Karin watched their reactions with a frown. "Jun and Junko wouldn't do that. They had their time."

Naruto shrugged apathetically. "Death changes a person. Either that or they'll eventually go mad. I think you humans call it bipolar disorder?"

Well that wasn't a comforting thought. So either Jun would eventually fight to control her body or she'd lose her shit and probably kill herself.

Greeeeat.

"She's already crazy as it is," Gaara commented casually. "I doubt the extra soul will cause a big problem." Oddly enough, it sounded like he was trying to make her feel better. In his own twisted way, words disguised with malice to throw her off. She frowned but didn't put it out. She didn't doubt he would try to choke her again. And she was ready to stab a motherfucker if the time called for it.

"Excuse me but you didn't explain how the hell you know him," Karin's lips pulled back, revealing sharp teeth. The dinner table was quiet for a second time.

"Dude, put those away, damn," Xin spoke up first, scowling in irritation. "Jesus, what'd he do to you, eat your pet? Calm down," She said in a serious tone. Karin's freakish attitude was starting to get under her damn skin. "To answer your question, I hit him with my car. He's the reason my shit was fucked up."

"Your car was messed up because you didn't take care of it," Hinata commented tonelessly. Xin shot her a glare, hissing a quick 'traitor' at her for not keeping that information to herself. So she was awful at maintaining cars, did she look like a mechanic? Blame her goddam parents.

"You hit him," Naruto enunciated slowly. "With your car."

"Well, actually, I merely clipped him but same thing, I guess."

"I think I love this girl."

"Shut the fuck up, Uzumaki."

TeeBeMe: Finally, Naruto! Yaaaaay. Happy New Year, you guys! May 2018 be kind to us all! Flareon, Delphox and Jolteon are all fox-like Pokemon, Shippo is from Inuyasha, as stated, and I'd kind of be surprised if no one knew that. InuYasaha was a starting point for anime for a lot of us, right? Prince Sidon is a character from the newest game Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. He's a Zora but the Zoras from this game resemble sharks more than the other Zoras from different games. Sidon is a fuckin' delight.

moonlight46: I'm still on the fence about the rating but just so I know, what sort of content do you draw the line at? Like would it be okay to include Limes and not Lemons or do you turn away from all sort of sexual content? Karin's nicknames was the most fun I had with the last chapter, lol

curlystruggle: Still on the fence about the content, don't booooo! lol. None of Xin's questions were answered but they will be eventually.

Akari: I was wondering where all your feedback was! Gave me a scare that you weren't reading anymore for a second lol. It meant a lot that you still went through the effort of reviewing three different times in the same timespan. You were pretty much calling everything out with each chapter. Maybe I was hinting too hard lol. Hinata still doesn't have much of an opinion on Naruto but that'll eventually change. She's wary around all demons, even her friends.

marinaa07: Anything that involves Xin is going to have some sort of darkness to it. I feel like that's just partially her thing. Dark comedy is also my thing so there's that, I guess. I enjoy Jura's smitten nature too, he's such a sweetie. Makes me wonder why I torture him so much. Even if Xin is a miko, she's still the same foul-mouthed asshole, ain't no changing that. And oh man, you've never heard of Pokemon? Pokemon is just so iconic! I still play the games even though I'm 22 years old, I've never known not one person that won't completely break out into the first song if they hear the first lines. That's really interesting!

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapters. Honestly, when I was writing Manami's revelation in the beginning, I was like, this sounds too fuckin' weird, maybe I should change it. But then I was like, this is fantasy and supernatural, motherfuckers. Anything goes! Well, not anything but you get what I mean. I hope it was okay but if not, let me know. As I said before, may 2018 treat you all well, read, review, favorite, follow and I'll see you next update.