AN: The end of the first arc.

A bit of fighting, a bit of drama, and a bit of fluff. If it doesn't make everyone happy, I don't know what will.

Hinata Hyuuga starred firmly at the training post in front of her. Her brows were furrowed together ever so slightly and her jaw showed signs of being tightened. On any other member of the Hyuuga clan, such an intense expression of focus would not be a surprise but the fact was that Hinata was not the average Hyuuga and her gaze was normally anything but firm.

The heir of the clan was soft-spoken as much as she was soft-hearted, her manners were gentle and her eyes shy. Such a disposition had cost the girl the affection of her father who saw her as weak.

Hiashi Hyuuga was a man who had been changed by the loss of his twin brother and his wife. Grief and pain had become unbearable and he had crafted himself a mask, a poise made of a straight spine and a stern glare that he used in order to smother his heart.

His eldest daughter had needed him after the death of her mother but he had been too cowardly to face her, trying instead to make her like him. Trying to smother her heart, when or maybe because she was so much like her mother.

It had horribly failed obviously and Hinata had gone elsewhere to find and nurture her true strength, the strength that allowed one to endure loss and keep going rather than to become a shell. Hiashi Hyuuga was a craven father and his daughters were infinitely stronger than him.

When he observed his eldest strike the training post she was facing, he could not help but feel a surge of pride at her abilities. He had little to no right to allow himself this emotion, first and foremost because he had not taught her much personally but still, he could not keep it out of his heart.

She seemed so powerful and looked so beautiful and if he had not been such a dastardly man, he would have praised her. She had found her poise and it was one of a warrior fiercely dedicated to those she loved.

Hinata hit the wooden post hard, both her hands aglow with chakra. Her moon-like eyes were focused on the target in intense concentration and the effort was making her sweat. A small smile, however, was tugging on her lips.

She was weird but he liked that. It must mean she could love herself. She was weak but he had said hard work would make her better. It was a revelation to her; she did not lack strength innately and was not stuck to her status. She had been discouraged yet he had pushed her forwards. She just had to run now, run fast, run hard, run as much as she could so that she could catch to him when he would be back.

That was her promise and she did not go back on her promise. That was the nindo he had gifted her.

Then… she would ask. Her breath hitched slightly at that and she momentarily lost her rhythm. She had two years to build her courage.

She could do it. She would do it. She hit the post once again.

Naruto took the spiralling staircase and progressed slowly, a clone in front of him to safely spring any trap that would be waiting for him. The boy himself was actually tiptoeing his way while stuck on the wall.

He was sufficiently adept with trap-making to know a good one was layered.

His carefulness seemed to be for nothing as he reached the base of the tower without any incident. He slowly pushed the door and entered a hallway that engirdled the main, central building of the temple. To his right, he could see the closed, monumental door the kunoichi outside thought she was guarding.

He snickered to himself, not a little proud of his infiltration. The motion jolted his broken shoulder and he grimaced.

The entrance to the inner part of the temple was through a smaller closed door. He surmised people from the Fuuma clan were welcomed in the hallway and only the priests or priestesses could go inside the holy chamber.

Well, he had no time for such considerations. He looked up and smirked when he saw the inner wall was pierced with windows. Carefully, he stuck to the wall with his chakra and walked up to the glass panel. He swore when he realized it was too rough to see through. He'd have to break it, which would attract the attention of whoever was inside, and worst of all, he'd go blind.

A muffled cry came to his ears and suddenly, there was no time to think anymore. One of his clones took a kunai and smashed the ringed end of the handle against the glass, cracking it but not shattering it.

"Rasengan," ordered the original, stretching his left hand out and drawing the necessary chakra. Another clone immediately ensured the wild rotation while he kept it contained. "And fire!"

The whirling ball of pure chakra whined as he smashed it against the glass. It took less than one-tenth of a second for the orb to destabilize.

The window was blown out in a rain of spiralling shards of glass. One replica was hit and dispelled and Naruto got a deep cut across the cheek. The blond realized how lucky he had been that most of the shrapnel had been sent away from him. He would have probably gravely wounded himself with his own attack. As it was, some pieces of glass were embedded in his jacket but it was sturdy enough to resist begin completely cut.

Someone screamed in the inner chamber and Naruto saw a man with black hair and thick eyebrows getting a bloody shard out of his arm. The boy's eyes roamed around as fast as they could.

The inner room of the temple was, logically, an octagon. The walls were painted a soft orange and there were eight big columns of wood, painted red, in the centre, enclosing an even smaller space. The roof was high up and arching into a dome, as the exterior had suggested. He vaguely noticed some paintings inside the cupola but the urgency of the situation did not allow him time to indulge.

His two clones peppered the dark-haired man with shurikens, which were easily deflected by the strange, scissor-like contraption he had mounted on his arm. One clone continued his barrage from the windowsill while the original and the second clone jumped up, still sticking to the wall.

Given the man's weapon, Naruto assumed he was a melee specialist. It was the boy's favourite range but the fact was that he had a broken arm. It was a big problem, considering it also robbed him from his few jutsu and his aim with his left arm sucked considerably.

It was something to correct for the future, he silently noted to himself.

"Help me!" A cry coming from in between the pillars attracted his attention. That was Sasame's voice.

The original nodded to his two clones who winked in response. They would keep the dark-haired man busy and he would save the princess.

Naruto sprinted up and along the walls until he reached the highest point of the pillars. Above him was the cupola and below, the sanctum of the temple. He could the clanging sounds of shuriken and kunai being thrown and deflected and the curses of the man as he no doubts chased his clones to no avail.

The form of Sasame could easily be seen, restrained and laid on an altar. The slab of stone was cut into an eight-branches star and covered in esoteric markings. A masked figure, that of a man given his overall shape, was hovering above the girl, one parchment in hand and muttering something Naruto could not hear.

Stalking down one of the pillars as silently as he could, the blond approached slowly, intent on not giving his presence away. Little by little, snippets of what the man was saying reached his ears.

"How do you open… come on… I traced the glyphs, I gave the blood… reveal yourself to me!"

Naruto shuddered. The man - it was a man's voice, he was sure of that - was unhinged. The blond observed Sasame. The girl was trembling and nursing a cut on her hand as well as she could, given the ropes that bit into her. He needed to get her free and maybe she could help him defeat whoever the masked man was.

Now the question was, how was he going to accomplish that?

Fishing in his pouch for one explosive tag - shadow clones were awesome when it came to not actually using any real supply, the boy realized in passing - Naruto dropped it. Like a leaf in a sweet breeze, the paper bomb fluttered down lazily.

"Kamikiri! Get rid of the pests! I can't concentrate!" The masked man screamed suddenly in annoyance, probably at his companion who was still busy with Naruto's shadow clones. With a huff, he returned his focus to Sasame, just as the explosive tag landed on the girl.

With a strangled cry of panic, the man wildly swiped at the piece of paper and, seizing Sasame, jumped outside of the perimeter delimited by the columns.

Naruto pounced, kunai in his left hand. The knife bit into flesh and there was a grunt of pain before the boy was grabbed by his collar and thrown off.

"You fucking roach! Who are you?"

The blond took a deep breath and grit his jaw to keep from vomiting, the pain in his broken shoulder difficult to ignore. Pointing his bloodied kunai at his opponent, he snarled as threateningly as he could.

"Hand Sasame over, reinforcements are on the way."

The masked man chuckled, his right hand gripping the gash on his left arm. "They won't get past Kotohime."

On the ground, a dazed Sasame widened her eyes suddenly. "No…" She whispered.

"It's okay Sasame-chan, you'll be free soon," assured Naruto as both men started to circle around the prone form of the girl.

"She is going nowhere. I need her here so you'll die."

"Tch, try it, you weirdo," taunted the blond in return.

"Gladly," answered the masked man as he lunged suddenly.

Naruto stepped sideways and attempted to slash with his kunai at the already wounded arm of the man but the blade sliced the air and his wrist was suddenly wrenched in an unnatural way. The blond snapped a kick at his opponent who blocked it with a raised leg. Naruto grunted and let his kunai fall out of his grasp. Faster than the blink of an eye, the blond brought his raised leg down and kicked with the other.

His feet impacted the kunai with force and the blade buried itself in the man's side. At the same second, Naruto felt his nose explode under the strength of a kick. Momentarily blind, he could not adjust his position to his enemy's and his wrist suddenly snapped, broken. A cry meant to escape his lips but a hand suddenly knifed him on the throat and only a gargled sound came out. A foot stomped his sternum and forced all air in his lungs to escape.

"You little bitch!" The man spat and coughed. "You fucking knifed me!"

Naruto, his vision full of dark and bright spots and blurry, could still discern the outline of his kunai deep within the man's right side.

"You'll pay for that! You'll die suffering! Ninpo: Jubaku Mandara!"

The blond blinked several times to clear his eyes from the shock. Suddenly, it seemed like he was trapped in a soap bubble. Hesitantly, he reached to touch the strange frontier that separated him from the world and found it to be a very real wall.

"Wha?"

"You'll die crushed by my mandala," chuckled the man darkly. "Enjoy your last breath, dog."

And suddenly, the iridescent walls that surrounded Naruto began to shrink. Panic slowly settled in as Naruto pushed and trashed against the merciless jutsu that was going to crush him.

"No, please!" Sasame screamed suddenly. "Don't kill him, please!"

"Shut up, girl!"

Sasame sobbed. "A-Arashi, please! I beg you, don't do it!"

The walls suddenly stopped squeezing. "I guess the jutsu gave me away, huh?"

"Why are you doing this Arashi?" Sasame begged, having recognized her supposedly deceased cousin from his technique. "We thought you were dead! Why didn't you come back to us?"

The masked man chuckled. "Because I have had my eyes opened, Sasame," he began in an all too sweet voice. "The Fuuma clan is weak, we bow to the Fire Daimyo and Konoha but we can become great again! We can go back to the glory of the Warring Clans Era! Orochimaru has promised me power and I'll get it as soon as I deliver my end of the deal."

"Orochimaru will betray you," spat Naruto from his prison.

"Silence, dog! You die now!"

"No, please!" Sasame pleaded with tears in her eyes. "Arashi, come back to the clan with me! I can convince Hanzaki-sama-"

"Hanzaki is the reason we lost our pride! His line has doomed us to mediocrity!" Arashi raved with a dangerous glint in his eyes. "We are chosen by the Dragon and Fire County is ours!" With a scream of rage, the man tightened the sign his hands were locked in and pulsed his chakra. Naruto cried as the wall of the mandala tightened.

"Rasengan!"

A blur impacted Arashi, a swirling mass of chakra leashed inside an ord grinding the man's flesh for a second before it exploded outward. There was a brief scream before blood rained.

Naruto took a deep breath, the technique trapping him having dissipated. "Jiraiya-sensei?" He panted, his body feeling like one giant bruise after being nearly squeezed to death.

"Hey, gaki," greeted the sage with a grim visage. "Everything alright?"

Naruto winced and readied himself to count his wounds but a desperate cry of horror silenced him. His eyes tracked the origin of the scream and he saw Sasame desperately crawling to the maimed remains of her dead cousin.

"Arashi, Arashi, please," sobbed the girl.

The Rasengan had probably dug deep into the man but Jiraiya had allowed for the orb to explode, effectively obliterating half of Arashi's body. The man's abdomen was spilt everywhere, bits of guts and other organs dispersed across the room. Arashi was obviously dead, probably killed before he had had even realized what was happening to him. His eyes were still open in a frozen expression of surprise.

Naruto felt sick and averted his gaze, the cries and sobs of Sasame lacerating his ears like blades.

A vision had imposed itself over the gruesome sight. Arashi's corpse was Sasuke's and the crying form of Sasame, Sakura. The boy shuddered and forced his mind away from the thought. He was brought back to the present by the hateful screams of the Fuuma girl, who glared at Jiraiya like she wanted to murder him.

"You killed him! I hate you!" She struggled against her bindings, her eyes two dark pools of pain that promised to suffer. "I hate you! I hate you Naruto!" She screamed until her voice broke and her words were like daggers sinking in the blond's heart.

The Toad Sage chopped the back of her neck and Sasame fell unconscious. A clone of the white-haired man helped Naruto on his feet.

"Don't take it at face value, what she said."

The blond nodded but still looked down, his face marred by a heartbroken grimace.

They exited the temple and Naruto blinked at the sunlight. The clearing around the building was peaceful. The only trace of a fight was a pile of ashes that vaguely resembled a human body.

"The girl outside," began Jiraiya, pointing his chin towards the cinders. "She used some sort of sacrificial jutsu. She nearly got me, too."

Naruto swallowed thickly. He was glad he had not tried to fight against her.

"How did you even get in?" The sage asked. "Actually tell me what happened after you left me."

The blond took a deep breath and proceeded to recount how his mission had gone. Jiraiya interrupted only rarely to ask for clarification but otherwise stayed silent. The two walked through the forest, Sasame secure within the Toad Sage arms until a party of Fuuma warriors met them.

"Jiraiya-sama! Is Sasame-sama…"

"The girl is fine," reassured the white-haired man. "Shaken but fine. She needs rest. Some of you should wait before you go to the temple. I need to speak to Hanzaki-dono first."

"Yes, Jiraiya-sama." The Fuuma ninja said before signalling for one of his men to relieve the Toad Sage from Sasame.

Jiraiya waited for the shinobi to walk away before he turned towards Naruto. "You did good," said the sage with a smile. "Not perfect but good," he punctuated by slapping Naruto heartily on his back.

Pain surged and obliterated the blond's mind and Naruto fell unconscious.

Jiraiya chuckled sheepishly. "Mhm… the shoulder, huh?"

A week passed. Naruto healed quickly: in two days, both his shoulder and wrist were functional again after a doctor set them back into place. They were a little tender, however, and the blond had not taken archery again, preferring to exercise his shurikenjutsu with his left hand.

That, and Sasame refused absolutely to see him and practising the bow without the redhead girl was no fun, Naruto rapidly discovered.

The boy understood of course. She had lost someone dear, a brother who had betrayed her clan what was more. He knew pretty much exactly what she was going through. His attempts to visit here were in vain, however, as servants kept telling him she did not want to see anyone. It tore at his heart but he understood.

Soon it was time to leave, as Jiraiya had resolved any and all pending business between Konoha and the Fuuma clan.

Master and student were packing their belongings, a sluggish Naruto doing his best to misplace socks and shurikens. The boy had his eyes down and sighs were coming to him easily. Jiraiya shook his head.

"You can't let that bother you, Naruto."

The blond did not look at the sage. "I know what she is going through. I could help."

"But that's up to her to accept it."

"I don't want her to hate you!" The boy protested. "I-I…" He stuttered fearfully. "I don't want her to hate me."

It was the sage's turn to sigh. "Do you think she hates you?"

Naruto mumbled his uncertainty and shrugged. "I helped kill her brother."

"That's not close to the truth."

The blond flailed uselessly. "Why doesn't she want to see me then?"

"Because it's painful and she is grieving." Jiraiya shook his head. "You are incredible Naruto, very strong," explained the sage in a small voice, almost a whisper. "When sensei passed away, you endured it and stood straight. Not everyone has this fortitude."

Naruto scoffed. "I was… not good after Sasuke."

"True but you were strong enough to accept help."

Silence fell upon the two men, the boy's gaze lost into nothingness as the elder kept carefully sealing his things away. Naruto smiled bitterly.

"Is that the story of my life?"

"Hm?"

"Trying to reach out to people only for them to ignore me?"

"Oy, gaki, stop with the gloom. You reached the Hyuuga boy, correct? You can't save people from themselves Naruto, they need to want it, they need to choose it. You can show them a way, offer them a hand, but you cannot force them to take it and come to you."

"But-"

"There is no "but", Naruto. What would you do if they refuse? Use a genjutsu on them to make them see things your way?"

"What? No!"

"Then you need to accept that people have their own will and that if you can't convince them, it is not your fault. I know it is hard for you to hear it but it's like that. You can only do your best and accept that everything is not under your control."

Naruto looked down hesitantly. "How do I know it was my best, though?"

Jiraiya sighed. "Your life is important, Naruto. You're your own person, you live not only for others but also for yourself. Those should be the boundaries."

"Isn't that being selfish?"

"That's being human."

The blond fell silent for a few seconds. "Jiji gave his life," he pointed out. "They called it the Will of Fire when he was buried.

Jiraiya rubbed his eyes. "Yes, he gave his life in defence of the village. It was one of those rare situations where every option was under his control. All choices were to be made by him alone. That's the difference. Gambling your life should always be your choice, not someone else's. The Will of Fire is not about becoming a martyr, Naruto. When the options are laid out, decide on those you can and preserve your life."

The blond nodded slowly and got up carefully. "Well then… I decide to try one last time!" He exclaimed before bolting out of the guest house.

The Toad Sage cursed in protest but the boy was long gone. Jiraiya shook his head, chuckling lightly "Good grief, this gaki."

Naruto raced across the village and soon found himself in front of Sasame's house. Without a second of hesitation, the blond climbed the walls and knocked at a window.

"Sasame-chan! It's me, Naruto!"

There was no answer so the boy darted to another window and did the same. When there was no response once again, he repeated his actions for each window around the house, until:

"Go away."

Naruto crossed his arms in front of his chest. "No."

"Go away!"

"No! I can't force you to talk to me but I won't go. I'm your friend Sasame-chan and friends stand by each other."

There was a long silence before the window eventually opened to reveal a crying redhead.

"Hey, Sasame-chan," greeted Naruto gently.

"H-hey, Naruto-kun."

"Can I come in?"

The girl nodded and the boy stepped inside. In a heartbeat, he engulfed the redhead in a hug. Sasame froze and stiffened.

"I'm sorry, I know it hurts," Naruto whispered. "I know you're in pain and confused. I lived through the same thing."

Sasame progressively relaxed in the hug and perked up a bit at the boy's admission. "R-really."

"Really," said Naruto as he proceeded to recount his misadventure with Sasuke.

"How? How are you okay after that," asked Sasame in a small voice.

Naruto felt something get stuck in his throat. "I'm not," he whispered. "Not yet. Some part of me still refuses to accept and never will but I have people who were ready to help me and I… I took it. You have people for you, Sasame. Just… Don't ignore them."

"I see."

The two teens stayed silent for a minute, still hugging.

"I… Do you hate me, Sasame-chan?" Naruto asked in a murmur.

The girl trembled and pushed against the boy. "What!? No! I'm sorry for saying that!" The redhead apologized in a fit of panic. "I was stupid!"

Naruto sighed in relief. "I thought because you didn't want to see me…"

Sasame hugged back fiercely, cutting Naruto's breath short. "No, I don't hate you, Naruto."

"Thank you." The blond said, smiling lightly. "I couldn't leave before I was sure of that."

The girl sputtered in the boy's embrace. "You're leaving?"

Naruto offered her a sad smile. "I need to follow my teacher."

"But… but… You're not done learning archery! And-and I wanted to go to the restaurant with you again! And I wanted to k-" Sasame interrupted herself brusquely, suddenly red from the root of her hair to the top of her chest.

"I know," answered Naruto with a sigh. "It's my training journey though. It wouldn't be much of a journey if I stayed here." The boy frowned before a smile illuminated his visage. "Tell you what! I'll be travelling for two years but I promise I'll come back before that to finish learning the boy with you!"

"You promise?"

Naruto nodded firmly. "You bet. And I don't go back on my promises!"

Sasame nodded and locked gaze with the boy. "Then go," she said, her voice unwavering for the first time. "Go and be safe."

Naruto smiled brightly. "Hehe, sure Sasame-chan, I'll-"

The blond was silenced by the burning lips of the redhead crashing on his own. He felt her tongue brushing on his lips and opened his mouth by reflex. Suddenly, his brain shut down as a primal force took possession of his body. Something was pulsing through him, making him numb to everything but the unbelievable sensation of Sasame's mouth pressed against his own. It was teeth, saliva, softness, and heat and it felt amazing to him.

Eventually, the girl broke contact. Both teens were panting and Naruto was emitting incoherent noises.

"So that you remember me," she whispered.

"Huh?"

Sasame pushed the blond out of her window.

AN: I hope you enjoyed. Next time, prolly somewhere watery.

To be absolutely clear about my take on Naruto: he'll still give a chance to Sasuke. It won't be at all cost, he will not sacrifice his life for it, and he won't chase him around like Sasuke is his lost love but he'll still give the Uchiha a chance.

In the same way, I will try to give the Uchiha a chance to not be a raging emo with unsolved problems.

Leave a review, like any author, I feed on them.