Here's your longer chapter.

Chapter 28: The Human Element?

Gloved hands reached slowly for the black and white mask, and made a clenching motion, as though to remove it, before the middle and index fingers of said hand, the left on the mysterious figure in the midst of all, trailed slowly, almost hypnotically, along some of the shadow swirls as if by rote memory.

"There is no-one behind this mask," came the empty voice. Kakashi stiffened at the response. That was one thing Shadow had never quite grasped: maintaining one's humanity throughout the ANBU guise. How he didn't have multiple personalities was a mystery.

"Muscles and flesh define a person, I suppose?" asked Kage. "If that were the case, Oorochimaru of the Konoha Sannin would be a different person every three or so years. No, Haku-san," he continued as his hand fell to his side, limp. "There is truly no person behind this mask. If once there was, he was long ago destroyed by this world we inhabit. Undoubtedly, under this mask is another, and another. An endless cycle of imbalance and unjust retaliation shattered any humanity in this vessel. All you need know is that this... person, this weapon is loyal only to one ruler, one person once held precious." Haku went rigid as her eyes flicked to Zabuza, who's own orbs were widened.

"But if you insist on seeing what the face of the being that spared you for selfish purposes looks like, I will oblige," with that, he reached up once more and grasped the mask. Before he coulld remove it however, his wrist snapped out and caught Kakashi's own, which had been moving to stop the action.

"Konoha ANBU code section twelve forbids the removal of one's identity while not within safe bounds," the cyclops said.

"Hatake, you seem to be under the impression that I am still officially under ANBU Code jurisdiction. As a matter of fact, I retired from the Black-Ops several years ago. Hokage-sama requested my skills for this support mission as a personal favor. If I wish to remove the cloak that is Kage, I can." to emphasize his point, Kage twisted the wrist in his grip and pushed the Copy-nin away.

"I... I had no idea that those circumstances existed. I apologize."

"Kakashi, weren't you an ANBU Captain?" Zabuza asked with a quirked brow muscle as he rose unsteadily. "Shouldn't you still technically outrank him?"

"Kage was only a regular ANBU in technicality. In actuality he was the first choice to become ANBU Commander for Konoha," several gasps followed Kakashi's statement. "He declined the position on the grounds that there were more experienced and qualified members in the force. Even though he never became a captain, Kage is potentially more lethal than the Hokage, because he is utterly without any emotion or remorse. Kage is... was one of the best definitions of 'Shinobi' that exist."

"Thank you for the unneeded spiel about my abilities, Hatake," with that, the mask was removed and the dull brown hair jumped like it had been electrocuted and began sticking out in all directions, while suddenly being revealed to be a blond brighter than the sun. Sakura gasped in utter shock, drawing a grimace from the boy.

"Surely you had to have seen this coming, Haruno. Your theoretical test score and intelligence were almost Nara level. How could you not have pieced this together? Your teammate goes on 'separate training' and you suddenly have an ANBU shadow? And people call me dense." Naruto turned to Haku and Zabuza and bowed a bit formally. "Sarutobi-Uzumaki Naruto at your service, Momochi- san and Haku-san. I'm afraid though that I must divest you of all weapons, previous affiliatory items, and personal effects until such a time as the Interrogation squad can guarantee that you will not attempt to betray Konohagakure no Sato." Haku seemed shocked that the boy who seemed only a year or so younger than her was making demands, and Zabuza growled and gripped Kubikiribocho's hilt.

"No-one takes my sword," he snarled, only to find twelve Katana blades suddenly rested on his shoulders in six identical scissor-cut formations, courtesy of Naruto and five Shadow Clones no-one had noticed.

"The alternative is for me to kill you, and save your head and sword as bounty items to return to the Mizukage." Zabuza grimaced, but held out his sword slowly as if it physically hurt him. "Thank you," came the deadpan as the five clones poofed from existence and the original took the blade and hefted it over his shoulder as if it weighed nothing. "All items shall be returned to you as soon as it is determined that you will not betray your new village. Jounin Sekazu, divest Momochi-san of all weapons, hidden or otherwise, and take his headband. Genin Haruno," Sakura jumped at being addressed once more. "Search Haku-san. Thoroughly." the pinkette moved to do just that as Haku opened her arms to the sides to make it easier, but never taking her chocolaty eyes from the blond who was so in command of the situation that an Elite Jounin was jumping to fulfill orders given.

Kakashi, meanwhile sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"What am I going to do with you, Naruto?"

"There's nothing you CAN do. Officially, I'm not even here. And mister Tazuna," everyone turned to find the forgotten bridge builder deathly pale and shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. Naruto tossed a scroll to him, very slowly, for him to catch. "In that scroll you will find all of Gato's moneybooks and records, as well as his personal journal. Now, I recommend we all head to your house for a night's rest before we all return to our village. You should be more than safe, considering the man who was gunning for your head on a plate is now a pile of ash and a disconnected head." Tazuna nodded jerkily and moved slowly around the teen to lead the now relatively larger group of extremely deadly Chakra users.

"A question, if I may Sarutobi-san," Haku said hesitantly, but she noticed the blond tilt his head ever so slightly and perk his right ear back to hear. "You are obviously very strong, and you mentioned the surname Uzumaki. Why didn't you use Chakra suppression seals on Zabuza-sama and myself?" the response she got was a bark of laughter.

"Check your right earlobe." her slim fingers flew to said part and began twiddling, until she felt a tiny piece of paper. "Go ahead and remove it, there are three others." she did just that, and slowly unfolded the many-times-bent sheet of sealing paper to show an extremely complex seal that made no sense. She cocked her head to the side in confusion and felt both Konoha Jounins looks at it over her shoulder.

"This doesn't look like a suppression matrix," commented Kakashi.

"It's not," said the blond. "It's a reversal matrix."

"A what now?" Jozun said, scratching his stubble.

"It's a level eleven seal I made myself." Kakashi stumbled and stared with his one eye.

"YOU JUST MADE A LEVEL ELEVEN SEAL AND ARE TALKING ABOUT IT LIKE YOU WOULD THE WEATHER?!"

"Yes."

"What's the big deal?" Sasuke asked, falling back to look at the complex ink strokes.

"Sasuke, there are only Ten levels of Sealing. It has a different ranking system than any other Shinobi art, and as soon as you hit level Eleven, it's declared a Kinjutsu instead of Fuinjutsu." the Uchiha's eyes widened and his mouth fell open as he gaped at the blond.

"Close your mouth, Uchiha. I've been studying Fuinjutsu for going on three years now." Jozun actually tripped on his own feet at that news. He quickly recovered, but still.

"Only three years?! Are you fucking kidding me?! It takes twice that to even reach level four!"

"I'm an Uzumaki, Sekazu."

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"You guys really are idiots," Zabuza said as the group finally reached the two-story house. He sat on the front porch steps. "The Uzumaki were, sorry ARE," he said with a nod to his blond captor. "The strongest and most feared Clan in all of the Elemental Nations."

"But, the Uchiha's were the strongest, right Sasuke-kun?"

"Sakura, seriously. Shut. Up." Jozun hissed as Naruto snapped his eyes, which he had been keeping closed for the entire time his mask was off, open and glared at the girl with his Rinnegan. Haku looked at the purple orbs with interest, but Zabuza turned even paler.

"Holy fucking ,sdjvndxbhfsjlznbc on a crutch. Is that..."

"The legendary Rinnegan as wielded by the Rikoudo Sennin? Yes. And Haruno, the Uchiha, while strong," Naruto said with a tiny nod to his male teammate. "Were nothing compared to the Uzumaki. Sealing is in our blood. We take to it like fish to water."

"But they had the Sharingan! Beat that!"

"Not only do I have literally the best Doujutsu ever conceived, but somewhere in that direction," he turned and gestured in a general westernly direction. "Lies the remains of Uzushiokagure. The Uzumaki had their own Hidden Village, Haruno. And hidden in those ruins are the Uzumaki Archives, wherein lies the total accumulated knowledge of over twenty generations of Uzumaki in Fuinjutsu, Nin, Tai, Gen, Ken, and Kin jutsus, they had scrolls for survival, household activities, child care, medicine, traps. The list goes on Sakura." everyone noticed that Naruto's voice had gradually gotten softer, but it only clicked when he said Sakura's first name, whereas he had previously addressed everyone formally and on a last-name basis unless he didn't know their last name.

"Somewhere over that ocean, across a ring of riptides and whirlpools, an island exists that holds all that remains of my legacy. The Uzumaki could do anything, beat anyone. All they needed was five minutes tops and some sealing paper. At all times, Uzumaki homes were lined with Fuinjutsu to block any form of spying, including the Hyuuga Byakugan. Their Shinobi got seals tattooed on their flesh that negated the memorization abilities of the Sharingan by wildly fluctuating a small amount of Chakra to make it all distort."

"If they were so great, how come they're all gone?!" the girl screeched, causing Naruto to stiffen from what had slowly become a comfortable slouch.

"A combined force of over twenty thousand Shinobi from Iwa, Kiri, and Kumo assaulted the village. For all their might and reputation, active duty Uzumaki numbered only about a tenth of that, at their peak."

"He's right. Twenty thousand against two thousand seems good odds, no?" Zabuza said. The younger ones nodded agreement. "But what the allied force neglected to think about was that even civilian Uzumaki learned seals. Demolition, storage, they could make all their own. What was intended to be a two-day pincer attack and move on to Konoha from behind turned into three months of hell."

"How many of my kin did your blade claim?" Naruto asked calmly.

"None. I didn't have Kubikiribocho at the start.. I was a Genin at the time. I played messenger, and even when I got the blade, I didn't manage any kills."

"I leave the telling to you for your first-hand experience, Momochi-san," with that, Naruto strolled away into the woods. Everyone gathered, including Tazuna and his family, who had come back outside after none of the others entered the house.

"My story? Then I tell it my way, Kakashi I need my Chakra, can you get rid of the seals?"

"What for?"

"A non-harmful Genjutsu to show you my memories as I tell them." Kakashi hmmed and went about locating all the 'reversal seals' on the Nukenin. Twleve in all. He unfolded one and began studying it to his limited knowledge as Zabuza started molding.

"Holy shit... this wouldn't have stopped your Chakra! As far as I can tell, it would have absorbed, amplified, and then reversed it. It would have literally burned you to a crisp with your own Chakra had you tried to use any... that kid scares me..."

"Right, on to the story," Zabuza said as he finished the long sequence of hand seals on the group. "It all started as soon as we breached the riptides..."

Flashback-Genjutsu

"Sir, the front line reports we have broken through the whirl ring and are advancing on the Island in a moment," a young Zabuza Momochi said as he knelt in front of the Jounin Commander of Kirigakure.

"Don't look so disappointed, Momochi. I'm quite sure the 'Demon of the Bloody Mist' will get his fair share of combat."

"Hai." the imposing man returned to hunching over the table of the assault ship with the Commanders of Iwa and Kumo.

"Okay, if Iwa uses mass Doton strikes here," he pointed at a spot on the map of Uzushio. "It should break the seals and the wall. According to our...friend below decks, that is the weakest point in the structure."

"How reliable is this info?" asked the Kumo Commander.

"Considering the prisoner IS an Uzumaki, we can be fairly certain it's accurate. And all it took was three weeks of torture..."

"Only three? Can't Uzumaki stand up against torture for months?"

"Not when you threaten small animals. They all have a weakness for small animals for some reason. And, oddly, that noodle dish that was made about twenty years ago."

"That Ramen stuff?"

"Yeah. It was all he asked for the first six days. And he could put it away, too." the three Jounin went on planning and discussing the attack as the young 'Demon' walked away. After that message delivery, he was to guard the Uzumaki prisoner. It took him a few moments to get to the right place, but he got there and relieved the previous guard. He faced the cell in curiosity.

"A child? They have a child guarding me? How insulting," came the tired voice of a slim man sitting on a cot with a fluffy white rabbit on his lap, his right hand stroking it softly. He was unnaturally thin, and his once obviously resplendent robes hung from his frame in tatters. His crimson hair hung to his neck in uneven shocks, and it didn't appear to have been washed recently, his violet eyes bored into the young Genin as he continued petting the small animal.

"Be quiet, old man. I'm more than enough for the likes of you." the Uzumaki barked a laugh, confusing Zabuza.

"So much disrespect! At least the other one recognized me as a threat, even as a prisoner."

"Your Chakra is suppressed, you haven't been fed in a week, and you're chained to the ship wall. How could you possibly be a threat?" the brash, cocky boy said with a haughty smirk. The Uzumaki merely smiled and leaned against the wall behind him, closing his eyes.

"You, like so many others, greatly underestimate the Uzumaki, Momochi Zabuza." the boy stiffened.

"How do you know my name?"

"Word of your... 'feat' in Kiri spread far an wide, young one. While reprehensible, it was impressive nonetheless. But, we Uzumaki treasure our comrades and family above all else, so we especially frown upon your actions. Coincidentally, my niece, who is some years older than you, heard of your decision and has vowed to find you and beat the tar out of you for killing your comrades. The humorous side of that is that her boyfriend, a fine young man from Konoha, our ally, had to stop her from doing just that."

"Why are you telling me this? I don't care."

"You should. Once one draws the ire of Uzumaki Kushina, there is really no hope for them." Zabuza's eyes widened in shock.

"You're the uncle of the Red Hot-Blooded Habenero?!" the man had the audacity to smile whimsically.

"We will never let her live that nickname down. But yes, her father is my younger brother."

"But isn't she like," Zabuza tried to remember the Bingo Book entry. "in her late twenties or something? You'd have to be at least fourty!" the man cocked his head to the side.

"Yes,what's your point?"

"You look twenty-five!"

"Yes, what's your point?" Zabuza grabbed his head like he had a sudden headache and leaned against the wall opposite the cell. "Boy, you really do know nothing about us. Uzumaki can live far longer than most people. Our oldest recorded lifespan was my grandfather, Arashi. He lived for one hundred and seventy-six years. True, he could barely move he was so shriveled, but still. Our greater lifeforce causes us to age slower."

"Why exactly are you telling me all this? The only thing I can really use is that you're related to one of our biggest threats." the man laughed openly, a sound that evoked the image of a river in the forest.

"Child, before Kushi-chan even hears of my imprisonment, I'll either be dead or free. So that's a moot point. What you SHOULD be worried about is your own safety in this war on my family, who might I add, did nothing to provoke this assault."

"You exist, you pose a threat. We had to act."

"Ah, so it's a case not of what we HAVE done, but what we COULD do. Tsk, Tsk, Tsk. We were more than content to sit behind our walls and allow you five 'Great Nations' to fight each other. We remained neutral, and attacked no-one, and yet three Hidden Villages felt the need to band together to destroy us for our Fuinjutsu Prowess, and the possibility it could be turned on them."

"Are you going somewhere with this?"

"I am going nowhere, Sharu, here, however will be leaving shortly."

"Sharu? You named the bunny?"

"Now, look here you brat!" came a slightly squeaky voice. "I am a RABBIT! Bunnies are smaller!"

The Uzumaki sighed. "Sharu, you were supposed to remain quiet."

"Like hell!" the white rabbit suddenly stood up on two legs, revealing that it was a summon. "I will not sit here and be insulted like this!"

"Uh... but... you... how..." The man grinned and held up his wrists, which were free from the shackles.

"Did you really think your Village's fumbling attempts at Fuinjutsu would stop an Uzumaki? Sharu, return to my brother and inform him of the latest news." the rabbit bowed and vanished in a puff of smoke. The crimson haired man turned to the boy through the bars. "Now, let your war begin."

Zabuza turned to scream up the stairs, but the ship was rocked by a powerful explosion on the side, nearly blowing him to his back. He turned and saw the 'prisoner' calmly walking out of a hole in the side of his cell, and walking on water to a small group of three other people who were obviously Uzumaki.

"Greetings, sister. It's about time you decided to come get me. Let us return to Uzu with all haste." with that, the man turned around once and gave a two-finger salute to the eyebrowless boy, then vanished, along with the three others.

One month later

Zabuza panted as he finally reached the command tent of the allied force. He'd been sent to scout, and was almost spotted.

"Momochi, report!"

"Sir, they've doubled patrols, and they caught one of the scouts."

"Damn... we need to hurry the hell up and kill them! It's bad enough they knew we were coming and ambushed us on the water! Is there any progress on that tunnel we discussed?"

The Iwa commander nodded and pointed to a spot on the map. "We're almost half-way under the village. If we keep up this pace, we'll be through in a week at the longest." the Kiri Jounin growled and smashed his fist to the table.

"That's still too long. We need to be through by tomorrow."

"What? Why?"

"The Six Swordsman are coming in tomorrow evening. Mizukage-sama felt we would need the back-up after my last report."

"Six, sir? I thought we had Seven Swordsman," Zabuza said. He hadn't been dismissed yet. His leader waved.

"The Kubi's wielder fell, and the others haven't found a replacement yet." Zabuza stiffened.

"Akano-sama died?"

"I forgot he was your teacher... yes, he's dead. He was running a strike op into Hi no Kuni and ran into the Yellow Flash." Zabuza sat down hard, taking in that fact. His mentor was dead, and the Seven Swordsman of the Mist were down one. Contrary to popluar belief, Momochi Zabuza did have feelings, he was human. He just hid it so he could remain a Shinobi. He hadn't killed nearly four hundred graduates to quit now.

Sensei is dead... sensei is dead, and the Kubikiribocho is unwielded... wait, the Headcleaver has no butcher to swing it... here, a maniacal grin ripped his young face. Then who better than the Demon of the Bloody Mist? Who better than the Protege of it's previous user?

"Sir, I'd like to request permission to try wielding Akano-sensei's blade." the man snorted.

"You're too young and too small. You couldn't grip it."

"One never knows," came a grating voice from the tent flap. "The Seven Blades have been known to adjust themselves for their chosen wielder." all present snapped to attention as six very imposing men entered, with various blades on each. The most noticeable was a tall blue man that looked vaguely shark-like and had a massive wrapped blade on his back. He turned to a man with two separate swords on his hips.

"Whatcha think, Raiga? Could he give it a shot?"

"Maybe so, Kisame. But if Kubikiri rejects him, he will have a most splendid funeral!" the shark man, Kisame rolled his eyes, then pulled out a scroll from his weapons pouch. He tossed it between his hands for a second, then to the young man.

"I thought you were supposed to arrive tomorrow!" said the Kiri commander.

"We made better time than we expected," said the man who had originally talked, the one who had a blade on his hip that looked like a big sewing needle.

"Might want to take it outside, squirt. Kubi has always been tempermental." Zabuza caught the scroll with reverence, and bowed to the man.

"Thank you, Hoshigaki-sama." he then stalked outside, and opened the scroll. A large Chakra surge blasted forth, and a giant blade that looked like a massive cleaver spat forth. Zabuza caught it and hefted it with some difficulty. Then, agony.

He screamed as a foreign Chakra surged into his arms and torso, bringing him to his knees. Kisame whistled.

"Shouldn't he be dead by now?"

"I. WILL. NOT. SUBMIT!" the young man roared as he forced himself to his feet and hefted the blade above his head, then drove it into the ground, point first. He growled at it. "You are mine, not the other way around." with those words, the blade shrunk somewhat to a more manageable size for the young teen. He panted as the pain left his muscles.

"Nice! Crude and suicidal, but it got it done. Just be glad it was Kubikiribocho, and not any of the others," Kisame commented, patting his own blade handle. "Especially Samehada here, she would've ate you whole." the new Swordsman pulled his sword from the ground and swung it around in a few motions he remembered his Sensei doing. It was incredibly light and maneuverable.

His face split into a cruel smile.

"Lets go."

About two months after that

Zabuza grunted as he blocked ANOTHER series of slashes from the Katana of the man he faced, whom he recognized as the 'prisoner' from the beginning of the assault. All he could do was defend, and he was still getting sliced to ribbons.

"Ah, young Momochi-san. Such a pleasure to discover another Swordsman on the field of battle!" the Teen growled in anger at the man's casual tone as he blocked a stab, which almost went through the hole in his blade.

"I'm not just some swordsman! I'm one of the Seven Swordsman of the Mist!" the man faltered and stared at him with a blank expression, then laughed, sheathing his blade.

"You think having one of the seven Mist blades makes you one of the Seven Swordsman? No, you earn that title through your deeds, young one. Kibikiribocho may have submitted to you, but you have not mastered it!" Zabuza growled again and swung at his foe, only to be shocked when the crimson-haired man jumped over his swipe, and grabbed the blade in the hole-grip in the middle. He was doubly astonished when he no longer found the sword in his grip.

Now, his foe was holding HIS sword as though it was an everyday occurrence, spinning it like a large Fuma Shuriken.

"Boy, you forget the history of these blades. We Uzumaki FORGED them as peace-offering to Kiri, and how do you repay us? By using our creations against us. I sensed Kubikiri and Samehada's sadness the instant the entered Uzu."

"Wh-what?"

"Yes, I personally forged Sharkskin and the Head Cleaver."

"These swords were made over forty years ago!"

"Boy, did you learn nothing from our last talk? I am nearly seventy-six. I know this sword better than any other. Now let me show you what it truly means to wield Kubikiribocho!" Zabuza didn't have time to be stunned, because he was busy dodging the swirling blade. Without removing his hand from the large center hole, the Uzumaki was spinning it exactly like a Fuma Shuriken, the blade tip and hilt alternating trying to decapitate and brain the young man. With one final swipe, the Uzumaki released the blade with an around-the-back flourish and whipped it at the 'Demon of the Bloody Mist', before running after it and grabbing the hilt mid-spin, then turned with the momentum, and did a hurricane slash. Zabuza closed his eyes, sure he was dead, only to find himself pinned to a nearby wall, the half-circle indent on the back of the sword around his neck, the blade stuck into the wall. He looked after this assailant, to find him kneeling on the ground, coughing up blood.

"Kubikiribocho," he panted. "Is not a simple weapon, Momochi. Learn that well. The Executioner's Blade is not for true combat, but interrogations and surprise attacks." with that, the Uzumaki fell to the ground, and Zabuza saw that his back was shredded, courtesy of Hoshigaki Kisame who stood behind him with a wriggling, unwrapped Samehada.

"I'm sorry, my beloved son, that I could not save you," he whispered through the blood running from his pale lips onto the flagstones.

"I thank you for the blade, Akisa-san," Kisame whispered with a sharp-toothed grin. "Die with the knowledge it lives up to it's potential."

"Kisame," the now-named Uzumaki Akisa said with difficulty. It was obvious he didn't have long. "You will serve the Uzumaki. My son Nagato will see to that. Sweet Samehada," the sword writhed and flexed, angling towards the man, making something akin to a sad keen. "Always remember your purpose, Sharkskin." with those final words, the red-head fell silent and stopped moving all together. Kisamew walked over and ripped Kubikiribocho from the wall before handing it to Zabuza.

"Fall back, Momochi. We'll handle the rest."

"...Hai."

Two hours later

It had taken him quite a while, seeing as he had to avoid everyone after witnessing a civilian family run into a crowd of Shinobi, before blowing themselves to smithereens with explosive tags, but Momochi Zabuza finally escaped the city walls of Uzushiogakure.

"I.. can't belive they blew themselves up," he said to himslef, only to find an Iwa Chuunin next to him, trying to catch his breath.

"Crazy... bitch! Either they really don't want to... be prisoners... or they're just insane!" this panted exclamation was followed by a small girl with red hair and purple eyes stumbling from the rubble.

"Mommy?" she called fearfully. The Iwa man smiled maliciously and grabbed the girl by her hair.

"Your momy's dead, brat, but don't worry, Iwa will find some use for you. We could always use those Uzumaki genes!" the way he said it made Zabuza shiver, but the Child's response did much worse. She smiled.

"I know mommy's dead. We learn from the time we can walk not to let ourselves be captured. We know your sick traditions with female prisoners," the Chuunin barely had time to react before six paper bombs went of simultaneously, disintegrating both of them. Zabuza was in shock as the flames licked his chest.

He'd just witnessed a girl no older than six, a child, commit a kamikaze attack so as to avoid being raped. He'd just watched a CIVILAN CHILD wipe out a Chuunin.

Now he knew the strength of the Uzumaki.

He felt bad for the rest of the allied force.

End Flashjutsu

"All told, Uzushio was wiped from the map, and every Uzumaki killed, with a very few escaping and scattering to the wind, but we lost over eighty percent of our forces. We didn't have the forces to attack Konoha at that point, so we retreated. A single clan cost us the war, and you say they were inferior, girl?" he said to Sakura, who was staring at the ground, shaking in fear.

"No, the Uzumaki clan was a name filled with dread to foes, hope to friends, and peace to neutral parties. They remained out of all non-forced hostilities and welcomed those who just wished to stop fighting, no matter their affiliation. So tell me, girl, can you honestly still say the Uchiha clan was better? No offense, ducky," he said to Sasuke, who nodded. "But the Uchiha were a bunch of distrusting warmongers. They frequently stole Jutsu from Allies and Enemies alike, indiscriminately. All in the pursuit of power. The Uzumaki..."

"The Uzumaki," came the dead voice of Naruto, causing everyone to snap around and see him leaning on a nearby tree. "Were the epitome of forgiveness and love. Despite the fact the Uchiha constantly tried to force them into things and were total assholes, they kept forgiving them. Uzumaki loved all their family, even distant cousins, such as the Uchiha and The Senju. Konoha to this day honors my clan," both Leaf Jounin pointed to the red spiral on their flak vests. "Or, the military does anyway. The Villagers spit in the face of everything they supposedly love, every hero they have. All because of a misplaced grudge against a child who did nothing. So next time, Haruno Sakura, don't be so quick to judge someone. Next time you see someone who doesn't fit in, you should ask yourself; are they different because of their own actions, or because of the hatred of others? I know what you thought when first we met, Sakura. You thought I would be a monster, all because of the Villagers you heard every day while with your mother. Instead of forming your own opinions, you went with the crowd, ostracizing me simply because the adults did it."

Sakura was quivering even more now, tears leaking from her eyes.

"You never stopped to consider my feelings. In your pursuit of Sasuke, you never once thought of what he wanted, or what he thought, you merely tried forcing yourself on him, like so many others. Well, it's time to wake up, Haruno. The wolrd will not conform to fit your ideals, or change because you want it to. If you're wondering why I'm the way I am, why I'm so strong, I have the answer for you. I didn't cry and wait for things to happen. I didn't EXPECT things. I worked for them. I trained every day for years until my bones cracked to attain the strength you see." Naruto walked over to her and knelt down in front of her, lifting his chin with his gloved finger, forcing him to look at him.

"I don't hate you, Sakura. I don't blame you for past prejudice. What I do blame you for is your unwillingness to change. You are so focused on the finish line that you forget to enjoy the race. You think there is one way in the world, and anyone who doesn't stick to it is to be shunned."

"Naruto-san," Zabuza said quietly. "If I may?" the blond nodded and stepped back.

"Haruno? Haruno-san, in my experience, weakness is a choice, just as hatred is a choice. Maybe instead of trying to please others, you should focus on pleasing yourself."

"I-" the pinkette finally began. "I'll try."