Second Chances

By: FlameXFullmetal

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way.

A/N: I'm back! I'm glad that despite my difficulties in writing the first half of the last chapter it wasn't as bad as I feared. In order to write this chapter I realized I had to go back and watch the episode with Isaribi in it as I didn't remember it as well as I though I did. As I needed to set aside time to plan the fights since the team was different and many factors are no longer present it took a lot of time. Meaning that this chapter went up much later than intended, I apologize for that. As you can tell I am beginning to leave canon. This means that much of what happened after the Yuki no Kuni arc in the manga and anime will no longer happen. Or they will be done behind the scenes and done so quickly they don't warrant a chapter. Or even half a chapter. As I will be placing far more focus on the other characters and their development there won't be nearly as much Naruto and Sasuke in the chapters moving forward. If they do show up and seem to do everything, let me know so that I can fix it, okay? Anyway you know how this goes by now!

TeraBaapBSDK: Umm...what's confusing?

GuardianOfTheEther: I do check facts a lot...that is part of the reason I take so long to update my chapters. Sixty percent of the time is fact checking and researching, thirty percent is the actual writing while the remainder is editing and fixing any errors I find throughout the chapter. I know that in canon Kurenai is a full jonin, however, if you look at her data book entry she is just barely stronger than Iruka (chunin), Morino Ibiki (special jonin), Genma (special jonin) and Anko (special jonin). Furthermore, she falls behind Asuma (jonin), Kakashi (jonin), and Gai (jonin) quite a bit. In all of my research, all jonin with the exception of a few, have stats over 30 with a maximum possible of 40 (who no one except Itachi and Jiraiya have come close to, that are listed.). Most chunin have stats between 20-25 while special jonin average around 26.5. Kurenai's stats are 29.5. By comparison to other jonin with listed stats, she would not be strong enough to be jonin and thus would fall in special jonin range. She would just be on the high end. While Shizune and Sakura, despite being listed as jonin (Sakura in the third data book) are on the very low end with a mere 26. So if you want to go by stats and averages, Sakura, Shizune and Kurenai should be special jonin.

Finally, disregarding the fact that this is fan fiction and I can do what I want to the characters, your argument of only full jonin is invalid as by the wiki page under the heading of special jonin it states that "Tokubetsu jonin are ninja who, rather than having all around jonin skills, only excel in a specific area...They nevertheless possess enough skill overall, as they have been known to given the same opportunity as jonin in leading their own genin teams.". I assure you there is no typo in that sentence as it is verbatim. One of many reasons that I don't like wiki as a source. Despite that special jonin are in fact given teams. Furthermore, the wiki states that "Jonin are generally highly experienced and highly skilled shinobi who serve as military captains. Jonin are generally able to use at least two types of elemental chakra.". Kurenai doesn't even have one. Her only chakra release is yin chakra. By those standards she does not qualify as jonin.

Ben Walker1: While it is true that the caged bird seal is not the original name, I felt it better to use one of the alternative names as calling it the Hyuga Soke no Juinjutsu or it's literal translation Hyuga Main Family's Cursed Seal Technique. Furthermore, Neji often compares himself to a caged bird because of the seal. So it all reality based on this I felt it more fitting to be named the Muryo no Tori hogo Shiru, the free bird seal. If it bothers you though, a literal counter to the cursed seal would be the Hyuga famiri hogo shiru gijutsu or the Hyuga Family protection seal technique (as translated by google translate, which actually translated it to the Hinata famiri hogo shiru gijutsu, lol).

"hello" people (bijuu in human form) speaking

'hello' people (bijuu in human form) thinking/coded hand signals

"HELLO" bijuu (full demon form)/summoning/deity yelling

"hello" bijuu (full demon form)/summoning/deity talking

'hello' bijuu (full demon form)/summoning/deity thinking

hello jutsu

**************Amachi's end**********

Morning had come to soon for the team as they gathered outside of the inn and looked around the sleepy town. For the rookies it was a new experience attempting to plan for every possible scenario that could happen and most found their heads spinning. So when they met up and began to discuss plans they found themselves stumped.

"So we definitely need to work on strategy and planning with you, which is good to know. We can do that as we take breaks between locations." Asuma mused as the rookies blushed. Glancing around once more he nodded, mostly to himself. "Let's start by asking questions and see if we can't locate the target. It would be much to suspicious if we knew exactly where to find them as soon as we arrived. If you locate either target then call in on your radios. Do not approach them. Naruto's data states that Isaribi is quite distrustful and it is only because of his past that she opened up to him."

"Hai."

It didn't take very long for all of the shinobi to notice that many of the local populace as terrified of the number of people that had been "spirited away" and never returned as well as how many more would go missing. They also noticed the amount of venom that was directed towards the only one to return. It was quickly becoming apparent that no matter where they were there would always fear and hate those that were different in any way. Furthermore, it wasn't that hard to locate Isaribi when a commotion occurred near the marketplace. For the rookies it was startling to see just how far some people would go to reject anyone that was different as well as poorly treated they were. All of them had been sheltered by the safety of Konoha's walls, and for those that had them, their clans as well.

"Asuma-sensei...is this what Naruto had to go through in Konoha?" Choji asked quietly.

"Yes, except he didn't understand why until he became a genin. At least the poor girl knows why she is being targeted like this. Granted that doesn't make it right and most certainly take away from the cruelty but this happens everywhere in every village, city and town I'm afraid." He replied. As Isaribi started to make her way from the market they nodded and headed out themselves. Knowing that they would have to move quickly to prevent another ship from being attacked. Catching up with Isaribi once she had left the village Asuma nodded to the team and Shikamaru, Ino and Choji moved from their spots to intercept her.

"Ano, you wouldn't happen to be Isaribi would you?" Shikamaru asked from behind her making her jump. As she turned Ino couldn't help but flinch as the girl's cold eyes fell on them.

"What do you want? Did the villagers send you?" She spat.

"No the village didn't send us. Konoha did actually. Truth is we are here on a mission and the locals told us about you. Said that you were spirited away and was the only one to come back. We were hoping to get more information about your experience." The girl narrowed her eyes at the team and nearly snarled at them.

"I can't tell you anything that you probably don't already know, so leave me alone."

"I'm afraid we can't do that. We know it was Orochimaru's subordinate that abducted you. We also know how the snake works. The most likely scenario was that you were experimented on and that the bandages hide the end result. We also know that you don't escape from Orochimaru or anyone under him. That means that you were sent back to the village. So what is it that he is after?"

"..." Isaribi was quiet as she regarded the team before her, weighing her options. Eventually, she turned and huffed. "Like I said I can't tell you what you are looking for. I don't remember what happened after I was spirited away." Shikamaru sighed and watched as the girl took a few steps.

"There is no cure." The effect was instantaneous. The girl whipped around iin both shock and anger. This time she did snarl at them.

"What would you know?! There is a cure he promised that there was!"

"Of course he did. It was to keep you under his control. Keep promising a cure and you would do whatever he wanted you to do in order to go back to the way you were before. To escape the glares and prejudice. To go back to being normal. Like I said, we know how Orochimaru and his subordinates work. None of Orochimaru's medics or scientist would create something that could be undone. That would make the process and result incomplete and Orochimaru tolerates nothing but perfection. To make an incomplete project would get them killed. Their survival is more important to them then the people whose lives they are destroying." Shikamaru told the girl her eyes widening.

"Furthermore," Ino continued realizing what Shikamaru was doing. "He has you attacking merchant ships in order to fund his research isn't he? The only reason he would do that is if Orochimaru cut his funding and canceled the project. Why would he need to reverse something that Orochimaru deemed useless? He's continuing his research to prove him wrong and to do that he needs to continue and complete it. Which means he won't waste his time making a cure."

"It would take a medic of Tsunade Senju's caliber to even attempt to reverse what was done if it affected you on a genetic level." Choji whispered quietly hoping that the girl would see reason. "I highly doubt that he is that good. Even if Tsunade-sama can't reverse the experimentation she should be able to help you hide the physical signs so you can lead as normal of a life as anyone affected by Orochimaru can."

"You're lying there is a cure!" She cried out indignantly to the shinobi, tears filling her eyes. Ino sighed sympathetically and slowly took a step forward.

"We have no reason to lie about this, Isaribi. We just met you. Even if we hadn't just met there is no reason to torment someone that is clearly clinging to the last shred of hope they have. We have a friend back home. H was treated the same way you are for most of his life. Despite that he is doing his best to move forward and make life better for himself. He wants to move forward. Don't you?"

"SHUT UP!"

"Isaribi, do you remember a young girl with purple hair and pupil less brown eyes?" Ino asked the distraught girl.

"...barely...why?"

"Her name is Anko Mitarashi. She was Orochimaru's apprentice and he abandoned her, leaving her to die after giving her an experimental seal with a 1 in 10 chance of survival. She knows best how Orochimaru works. She knows how Amachi works. She seen him and talked with him. He is just as bad as the snake traitor. He won't "cure" you. When your usefulness has ended he will most likely kill you and, as much as I hate the thought, dissect your remains. We are genuinely trying to save your life and get you to someone that might be able to help you."

"Liars!"

"How about this then? If Amachi really does have the cure he would have to have written it down somewhere, right?" Shikamaru asked her. She merely nodded her head. "In that case, let us deal with Amachi. Let us search for the cure for you and then take you to Tsunade-sama. She would be able to perform whatever medical procedure needed to cure you. If it isn't a medical procedure and just a medicine of some sort then she will make it after ensuring that it is safe and not lethal to you. We will even ask him outright if there is a cure. Does that sound reasonable?"

"How do I know that you aren't trying to trick me? He may say yes and you could tell me no."

"This," Choji replied holding up a piece of paper. "is what we call a listening seal. When active you can hear any conversation that is happening near the linked seal which we will keep on us. You will hear the entire conversation. We can even demonstrate in front of you activating the seal ourselves if need be to prove it is safe."

"...what if...he didn't write it down?" She asked quietly still staring at them with distrust.

"My clan has jutsu that can enter the mind. I could dive into his mind and look there. Unfortunately, there is no way for me to prove my words are true with this. I am unsure if there is a way to take someone with me and I don't know if it would be safe anyway." Ino told her. A still quiet fell over the group as Isaribi contemplated their words. A part of her told her that they were right. That Amachi had lied to her. After all, there is no way he wouldn't have made the cure already and not found someone else to do his work for him. He hadn't really been experimenting lately either. However, the desperate part of her was screaming that they were lying trying to make her lower her guard. How would they know what Amachi had and didn't have? How could they? Still though...that girl Anko...she was there and did know Amachi...if even she claimed that he was unreliable and a manipulative monster...shaking her head to clear her thoughts she found herself doubting Amachi.

"I want to talk to Anko first." She finally declared. Shikamaru sighed.

"She won't be here until the day after tomorrow at best unless she runs all night and wears herself out. In that time Amachi might notice that you are hesitating more than normal. It isn't worth the risk Isaribi. I know that you have trust issues. We have met others like you, that have been ostracized and hurt more than once by people who they have trusted before. We aren't asking for your trust. We are asking you give a chance to prove our words are real. We can see it in your eyes. You hate living this way. You hate hurting people. Let us have one chance to try and give you a better life. That is all we are asking for."

"I...don't know what to do!" She cried in anger and sadness. She was truly conflicted. The team before her knew so much about her. Things that were true. Things they gained by looking at her. If that was true then there was a chance that they truly were telling the truth. If that was the case, then all she had done up to now had been a waste and she had done so many horrible things for a cure that didn't exist. However, if they were lying then that means that she may lose her only chance at being cured.

"I don't know if this will help you make your decision, but Orochimaru is dead. He was killed sometime ago in a failed invasion of Konoha."

"No, that's not possible!" Isaribi cried in shock and a little fear. She knew that Amachi had been continuing the project for both revenge against and to prove Orochimaru wrong. However, if he was dead then that meant that he couldn't. Which would mean that Amachi might just stop working on the project or do even worse things out of anger. He may even blame her, like normal when things didn't go his way, and destroy the cure.

"It is. It was a priority to make sure that Orochimaru couldn't hurt anymore people. He's gone Isaribi." Ino stated knowing that the girl was on the verge of a mental breakdown. "Let us go to Amachi and use the seal so you will know for sure. Please, let us help you." The silence was near deafening and the team was unsure of what to do as the girl seemed to struggle with herself as well as the chance of no cure existing. They were tense ready to move if she tried to run but secretly hoping that she would give them the benefit of a doubt. As time ticked by she seemed more and more resigned about something before she sank to the ground and to the team's surprise began to cry softly. Slowly as not to scare her, Ino approached Isaribi and wrapped her arms around her pulling her close in order to try and comfort her. They stayed that way until Isaribi started to run out of tears.

"Show me...how the seal works." She stated in exhaustion. Nodding and relaxing slightly Shikamaru and Choji sat down and explained as much as they could about how the seal works and demonstrating it for her to show her that the transmission was real. The task took nearly two hours before she finally relented to allow them to confront Amachi and told them how to navigate the base in order to avoid the traps. After walking her back to her shack and chasing away a group of kids that were vandalizing her home (though not before a stern lecture from Ino about civility, etiquette and manners) they headed off to fulfill their mission. Meeting up with the rest of the team they saw Asuma nod in approval.

"Beautifully handled. I thought only Naruto was capable of something like that."

"It was a matter of knowing what to say and when, something that was easily picked up from the details that Naruto gave us. Though I feel bad that we had to play on her emotions like that. We practically tore her already fragile mind apart." Shikamaru said frowning.

"That may be true but bear in mind that if you hadn't she would have thrown herself head first in a situation that could get her killed. Better alive and in need of a few sessions with the Yamanaka clan then headstrong and dead." Neji pointed out making Shikamaru nod slowly.

"We left shadow clones behind in case she tries to make a run for it and changes her mind." Ino reported as they began to move out towards Amachi's base.

"Good thinking. Let's help that girl now shall we? Activate the listening seal so she can hear everything." Asuma ordered making them nod.

"Hey, Isaribi we are heading into the base now. Just a heads up there may be some explosions and loud noises." Ino stated before adding as an afterthought, "also if we go quiet we are just moving silently to get as close to Amachi as we can before he notices we are here and tries to book it." With Isaribi''s instructions they quickly entered the base and slowly but carefully navigated the maze killing any guards that they came across. As they walked through some of the main rooms they grimaced as the smells hit them. It seemed fortuitous that Amachi was in one of the rooms that they entered just before the labs looking over a report.

"You're late Isaribi."

"Isaribi won't be coming Amachi. I'm afraid she has had a change of heart." Amachi's head whipped up at the sound of a male's voice that was most definitely not one of his subordinates.

"So Konoha has come sniffing around again. I'm surprised that you would come back after finding nothing of use except for that Mitarashi girl that Orochimaru abandoned."

"Well, someone has to clean up after the traitor as he was clearly incapable of doing so himself."

"I see." Amachi said before narrowing his eyes. "Was?"

"He died a few months ago during a poorly planned invasion on Konoha during the chunin exams." Shikamaru replied to the medic's query. For a minute nothing happened before the man flew into a rage screaming at the shinobi.

"No that's impossible! I was going to be the one to kill him for ending my project! How dare you take away my revenge!" He ranted nearly foaming at the mouth as he threw his report down and snarled.

"Wow, revenge really does mess someone's head up doesn't it?" Ino mused in surprise.

"Since your project was canceled and there is no longer any reason to continue it on your own stolen funding, would you be kind enough to give us the material necessary to reverse what you have done to Isaribi now?" Gai asked in his normal oblivious state. The request only seemed to anger the man more as his chakra began to rise.

"I will not give you my research! It's mine! Besides it wouldn't help anyway. There is no way to reverse the changes made by the kaima transformation. She is stuck like that forever!" He yelled as Ino sighed. Pulling the seal from her pocket Amachi froze.

"I hope that was enough proof Isaribi. Amachi never had any intention of reversing the experiment. He can't. He doesn't have the skill level or the knowledge to do so."

"You...you...YOU DARE TAKE AWAY MY PAWN? MY ONLY WAY OF FUNDING THE PROJECT?!" He screeched. Growling he pulled out a smoke bomb and threw it on the ground hoping to buy some time to escape the facility. If he could just get to the ocean then he would be able to take them on.

"Futon: Daitoppa." TenTen called dispelling the smoke before Amachi could make it more than three feet.

"Of course you would have a wind user." He grumbled to himself. Cursing he bolted hoping that he would be able to escape and at least release his failed experiments to buy some time. Darting down on of the hallways he formed a half ram seal and smirked. Almost instantly he heard the sound of his explosives collapsing it behind him and the cursing of the two teams behind him. Knowing that it would take them a while before they reached the surface he moved as quickly as he could sealing his research on him and then heading out himself only to gape seeing the two teams waiting for him.

"How?! That should have taken a few more minutes at best!"

"Replacement." They all replied making Amachi's eyes twitch. Smirking however he quickly flew through a chain of hand seals that were very familiar the teams looked at one another and nodded.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu." As the Umibozu appeared before them Amachi grinned evilly at the Konoha nins.

"Look at my greatest creation! Umibozu! The ultimate summon creat..."

"Katon: Goen no Jutsu." Neji, Choji, and Shikamaru intoned as two more voices joined theirs.

"Futon: Daitoppa." Asuma and TenTen added. There was no time for Amachi to process what had just happened as the Umibozu was suddenly wrapped in a massive searingly hot vortex that evaporated it in seconds. Amachi stood there gaping once the flames died down and the rookies smirked in victory. Before Amachi could move to activate his Kaima form however, he found his vision going black as Lee appeared behind the medic and knocked him out.

"That was anti-climatic." Lee said holding the medic so he didn't drown. Shrugging Ino sighed. "Isaribi, we will be coming back just as soon as we have all the information on his experiments so Tsunade-sama has the best chances of helping you, okay? Just hang tight."

"Alright. TenTen seal his chakra completely. Neji check him over for any hidden weapons and suicide pills. Remember we need him alive if we want all of the information he has, alright? When that's done Neji, TenTen, Shikamaru and Lee I want you to look over his lab find any notes he may of missed and dispose of his experiments that can't be saved. Then blow it up." Asuma ordered.

"Ino, once we get back to land you may begin the mind walk. Don't hesitate to leave if you need a break or have to write something down so you don't forget alright?" Gai stated making the blonde nod in understanding. As the teams split and went their own separate ways Asuma sighed.

"Choji, would you be so kind as to lead me to Isaribi so we can talk and see what she wants to do moving forward?" The Akimichi heir nodded and led the man away from the area as Gai went to inform the locals of what they had found and warn them of the explosion.

When Asuma and Choji found Isaribi Ino's clone was once again comforting the girl as best as she could. Seeing the girl weep and knowing that she was just one more of Orochimaru's many victims whether directly or indirectly just like Anko made Asuma flinch internally. She had been trying so hard to go back to a normal life and it had all been ripped away from her in a minute. However, he knew that it had to be done in order to prevent any more people like her from being hurt.

"Isaribi, this is my sensei Asuma Sarutobi." Ino's clone whispered as the girl looked up at the bearded man.

"Hello Isaribi. First and foremost I wish to apologize for what has happened to you as a result of my father not executing the traitor when he had the chance." He said bowing respectfully to the girl who stared in shock at him. "I'm also sorry that you have been mislead and used for so long with the promise of hope being dangled in front of you. I know that nothing we can do or say will change the past however, I do hope that we will be able to make a better future for you."

"What do you mean?"

"You have two options right now Isaribi and it is up to you where you go from here. Considering you haven't really had a say in your life up until now it wouldn't be fair to make the decision for you. You can go on your own way and try to find a new purpose in life. Or, when Anko arrives the day after tomorrow you can accompany her back to the Hidden Leaf and give Tsunade-sama a chance to try and find a way to let you live a normal life. Unlike Amachi I won't promise anything. There is no way of knowing whether or not there is a way to reverse or even hide what was done to you so I won't make that promise. All I can promise is that Tsunade will do everything that she can to try and help you." He informed the girl despite the fact that their mission was to send her back anyway.

"I think that...I at least want to try...I want to be normal again. I don't want to be a monster anymore."

"You're not a monster. Just an unfortunate victim carrying the scars of a traumatic event that you survived when many others didn't. If that makes you a monster then most of the shinobi force from all the nations are monsters." Choji replied sharply making her look up at him in shock.

"We told you didn't we? We have a friend who was called a monster his whole life because of something he couldn't control. While we can't say that we understand what it is like I can say that we have seen the effects that it has on someone. Besides, if we let you call yourself a monster for having battle scars then we would be monsters ourselves now wouldn't we? Since a monster is something or someone that hurts others for no other reason then they can." Wiping her eyes Isaribi nodded.

"Besides that, Gai should be telling the village exactly what happened to everyone that was "Spirited away" and that Amachi was responsible for all of the trouble that had been caused since."

"But the ships...that was..."

"Amachi, since you wouldn't have done it without him."

"How will you explain to them why I came back?"

"They thought you died in the middle of the experiment and discarded your body somewhere else to be found. You survived however, and made your way back to the only place you have ever called home." Asuma replied with a smirk making her giggle. "They deserve to live with a little guilt after what they did to you." As Isaribi's tears dried she smiled at the man hoping that this Tsunade could fix her.

Two Days Later...

After Ino had finished the mind walk and pried everything that she could from Amachi's mind they had swiftly killed him and destroyed the body. Afterwards, the teams met up with Asuma and Choji. However, as soon as TenTen saw the state of the house that she was living in she nearly exploded and promptly sealed her meager belongings before dragging her to the inn that they had been staying in. Isaribi had been surprised at some of the looks of guilt and the sharp decrease in glares and had shied behind Ino. The innkeeper made not a sound at seeing TenTen's look and they proceeded to the rooms that they had rented.

There, Isaribi had been strong armed into taking a real shower for once and treated to a meal afterwards. It didn't take long before TenTen, Isaribi and Ino bonded and began Isaribi soon become enraptured by the tales that were being told of their time in the academy. None of the girls seemed to notice the passing of time outside of sleeping and seemed genuinely surprised when Anko arrived for the report and Isaribi. From there Ino and TenTen promised to look for her as soon as they returned from their mission and exchanged farewells with one another.

Once the girl was out of sight the teams nodded to one another and headed out on their own way to finish their mission. For the most part the bases they located and destroyed had little in the way of guards and valuable intel so it didn't take them long to reach the base where Suigetsu was at. Getting him to cooperate however, was what caused the real problem. He was quite persistent and stubborn and Ino was on the verge of ripping out her hair when Neji finally spoke.

"You want to reform the seven swordsman right?"

"Yup."

"Then where better to start than in Konoha where one of the seven is currently residing. The war in Kiri is still ongoing and if you went back there then you would most likely die before you accomplish your goal. However, if you trained under one of the seven you would not only be considered a worthy candidate to wield one of the blades but also have a chance to live long enough to see your dream come true. Besides you never said you wanted to reform it in Kiri now did you?" Whatever Suigetsu was going to reply with died on his tongue as the words registered in his mind.

"You have a point. Fine."

"Thank kami!" Ino screamed in frustration. The act only seemed to amuse Suigetsu as the team headed out. There were only a few more bases to hit and after that they would be heading home.

**************T.B.C***********

A/N: Sorry I made you wait so long for the update but as I said I had to refresh my memory on that arc and well...I realized why I couldn't remember it so well. I found it quite boring. IN any event I was struggling a bit to write this chapter as it mainly focused on Isaribi and finishing up the last of the bases along with convincing Suigetsu to return to the Hidden Leaf. Unfortunately, I was burned out on this chapter so I know the end is a bit rushed. Sorry for that but I had made you wait long enough. I know going forward I will not be using that arc for any reason due to my issues with it. Anyway, if you see any spelling or grammar errors that I missed let me know! Ja ne!

Katon: Goen no jutsu – Fire release: Great Flame Technique

Futon: Daitoppa – Wind release: Great breakthrough