In order to become a manager at work I've been switched to night shifts so time has lost all meaning to me, but I hope this chapter didn't take too long to get to you.

Thanks, as always, goes to ncpfan for his assistance.

I have this nagging feeling that I've forgotten something important I wanted to mention, but can't seem to figure it out. Guess we'll just jump directly in.

Mai was not at all pleased when she returned from a nice evening of good food and great company only to discover over half her paperwork missing. The thought that it might be vandals or thieves never crossed her mind considering her office was within the underground Wolf complex and that if someone had managed to get in she would have at least been notified of a break-in.

A quick skim through her pile of complete work quickly confirmed her theory. She'd recognize Naruto's handwriting anywhere and it made it quite obvious that he'd taken her work while she'd been out and had been sending it back in chunks as he finished it.

That stubborn fool was too considerate for his own good and was going to be the death of her - and plenty of the Wolves - some day.

They were trying to reduce his workload, for gods' sake, and here he was taking on as much as he could anyway.

A fond smile briefly tugged at her lips but she quickly reigned it in using her frustration at his - admittedly sweet - action. A tug of guilt helped there, too, as she recalled a brief period in which she shunted some of her own work over to him to free up more time for herself.

Now that had really come back to bite her in the ass.

With him believing there was more work to be done he could never be satisfied with his own workload and wouldn't rest until he was certain everything had been taken care of. Which, naturally, meant Mai was doing more work trying to keep him from working himself too much than her own work, which didn't help any.

Because if her work wasn't done and he noticed how busy she was helping him than he would, without hesitation, take her remaining work upon himself.

'Uhg, I knew I should have finished that before spending time with Tsume.'

Admittedly, there was a lot of work to be done ever since they took over Nami no Kuni and Hana could only get so much done without consulting them first, but that didn't mean it all had to be done immediately. Nami no Kuni had been a mess for years and it would probably take them a good year or two for everything to be operating smoothly again.

She was not, however, prepared to wait that long for the workload to dwindle down so Naruto would stop focusing all of his time and energy on it.

It was, after all, her job to worry about things like that.

His role was to let her know what he wanted done and to be a symbol for his children.

Their children.

A dusting of red spread over her cheeks at the thought but was quickly forced down by will alone. She'd have time to have thoughts like that later. At the moment, she had a Moon God to scold.

'He is so lucky I can't banish him to the couch.'

Not only did they not share a bed permanently and ignoring the facts that his apartment now had quite a few beds and that he was her superior, but even were she to try she would never be able to do that to him. The closest she would be able to achieve would be banishing him to the couch only to end up sharing it with him either in his arms or with his head in her lap.

She really did care a lot for the red-headed young man who had given her and her 'siblings' purpose once more, and that's exactly why he was going to be getting a piece of her mind.

She stood just before his desk, one hand on her cocked hip and her foot tapping impatiently, waiting for him to speak. She had yet to say anything, but he had a pretty good idea what this was about.

The glare pretty much gave it away- she only used that particular glare when she thought he was working too much - so this must be about the work hew had done for her. Well, stolen from her, completed, and given back.

Most of it, anyway. There was a finished stack near him he had yet to send back and a few more pieces of paper before him he hadn't quite finished before she had stormed into his office and begun trying to set him alight with her gaze alone.

Still, he was fairly confident there wasn't anything she could really do to him. Well, there probably was and he knew he would regret even entertaining the thought otherwise, but he couldn't think of anything. Was she going to do less work and make him do it from now on? That would defeat the purpose of the 'punishment' and he would be happy to do what he could to lessen her workload.

….She wouldn't take more work, would she?

That thought, strangely enough, made him rather uncomfortable. Not because he didn't like the idea of the Wolves being out of his hands- for he gave Mai and Sai pretty much full reign over them and suspected, with his other projects, that the Wolves really wouldn't be his for much longer- but because he was of the opinion she worked too hard.

Sai had been wise enough not to mention that they were both trying to accomplish the same thing in the end when he first noticed it. Naruto was his lord and his sister was scary when angered normally; adding Naruto's well-being to the mix was sure to see him taking another tour of Nami no Kuni's temporary medical facility.

He really wasn't keen on that, thank you.

Despite not saying anything, both had come to the same realization on their own but were undeterred in their efforts to help each other.

Of course that could only last so long, which brings us back to Naruto's office.

"Well?" She asked, one brow raising expectantly.

He raised his own brow to match, less expecting and more inquiring, as if he had no idea why she was here or why she might be frustrated with him.

Her eyes narrowed slightly at that, but his questioning "Hmm?" had her scowling. Well, it was almost a scowl.

There was a poutiness to it that took away from it's effectiveness in intimidation but it remained quite persuasive.

"You stole my paperwork."

"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about."

"Naruto..."

"Yes, Mai?"

"I've told you before, if there isn't anymore work on your desk you've finished it all." She continued before he could get in a response. "How am I supposed to do my part if you do everything?"

She was obviously waiting for a response to her question, but his comment was directed to her first statement.

With a negligent wave of his left hand to the entirety of the desk he smirked ever so slightly, almost to the point where most would think it was their imagination. Mai, however, knew him well enough to see it. "Well, I seem to have papers on my desk still. Looks like I haven't quite finished my work for the day."

She blinked once, then twice, in surprise at his sheer audacity before the glare was back.

"So," He continued, not pausing in his work. "How was your day with Tsume?"

"You're not changing the subject that easily."

"Really?"

She thought about it for a moment. Was she really going to accomplish anything by this? He was obviously going to keep doing it. Hell, he was still doing it even as she was standing there trying to get him to knock it off.

"Che, fine." She agreed to end the argument as she slipped into the chair before his desk. "But after we stop the invasion you're finding administrative staff to do most of your work."

When it looked like he was about to object she was quick to add more.

"Alright, for the both of us."

As he was only really objecting because she would still have her own workload his objection was fully retracted.

"Sure, but I won't be following any sort of deadline. When I find those I've determined suitable I'll offer them the position."

"Fair enough." They fell into a comfortable silence for a few minutes, only interrupted by the scratching of his pen as he finished her paperwork.

"Did you really want to hear about my day with Tsume?" She eventually asked.

He looked away from the papers and directly into her eyes, giving her a small smile and his full attention. "Of course, Mai. How did it go?"

Eventually, as Mai spoke about her day, he managed to finish his paperwork. As he sent it back off to Mai's office, despite her sitting right there, she was careful to note who it was that had been aiding him in increasing his workload. She may not have been able to give Naruto a proper scolding, but she'd be damned if she let the Wolves get away with enabling him.

Most of the Wolves in Konoha felt a shiver of dread run down their spines, and it had nothing to do with the upcoming invasion.

Hanabi paid no attention to the bustle of civilians around her as she was escorted by her cousin to the academy for a mandatory viewing of the Chuunin exams.

The Hokage had decided, Iruka had told the class, that they should have a chance to see the skills of Chuunin hopefuls, especially when quite a few teams from a recently gradated class had been present. By having them all meet at the academy where a screen would be receiving live feed from the stadium it ensured they all received seats and that Iruka could point out things they might have otherwise missed during matches.

What Iruka didn't know but Hanabi did was that the idea had been proposed by Naruto and he was making use of it to get her out of the compound without arousing too much suspicion before the branch family staged their revolt.

What neither of them knew was that forces from Suna were going to be attempting an invasion in hopes of eliminating competition and boosting their own prestige. If Naruto had his way, however, they wouldn't need to worry about that.

Hanabi and her escort took a left turn away from the majority of the crowd and with each step the number of people around seemed to diminish. For safety reasons the academy was slightly away from the main roads though remained close enough to avoid being too inconvenient to both Shinobi and civilian alike.

By the time they were a single street away- the turn to the entrance within sight- there wasn't anyone around them. Neji had suggested she leave latter as to avoid the inevitable rush to get seats that began a few hours earlier and she had headed his advice. She was sure that Naruto wouldn't be too thrown off by her late exiting of the compound and might actually appreciate the lack of people around.

Of course, if he was thrown off she had probably picked the wrong person to seek protection from.

She spared a glance at her escort, a single branch member who looked more than a little disinterested in his assigned task. Not that the average Konoha citizen would be able to tell. Any outsider would see a Hyuuga vigilantly guarding the heiress of his clan. Having the ability to see almost everywhere around them for most of their life, however, meant that any Hyuuga would be able to tell the difference between actually paying attention and pretending, as this branch member was doing.

Still, she really couldn't blame him completely, regardless of how insulting she felt it was for her guard to put in a minimal amount of effort. They were considered to be the clan with the single most manpower of the entire village and had enough money and influence that they could get away with just about anything. You know, like enslaving the majority of their clan members.

Who would try anything against them in the heart of Konoha?

The Wolves for one.

Beyond them, she couldn't really think of anyone specific. Orochimaru, maybe? Rumor had it he was more interested in the Sharingan for the ability to copy techniques but it was possible he might be interested enough in the Byakugan to go after one of the Hyuuga. Still, it was unlikely and her guard reflected that. Admittedly the branch member guarding her had absolutely nothing to worry about.

Soon enough the main family would be overthrown- or at least placed into such a horrible situation that the entire clan might as well be considered extinct - and it wouldn't matter if he had failed to protect her. She frowned slightly at the thought. That wasn't' quite right, as the Wolves - specifically Naruto, whatever his relationship with the group might be- seemed to have plans - or at least uses- for her. Knowing that the Wolves were allied with the branch members and putting her money on the Wolves being dominant in that relationship, she was sure there would be repercussions for both the branch family and more specifically the guard who failed in their duty but that wouldn't mean much if he did indeed fail.

That, of course, brought her back to the thought that there were few who might try something - that she could think of, at least- the Wolves being one of them, so the guard before her was probably supremely confident that absolutely everything was going to be just fine.

And it probably would be for him.

Briefly she wished she could do something to teach him that guarding her was serious business and should be treated as such but thought better of it. He was, she knew, going to be the future of the Hyuuga clan in a way.

That was actually a rather depressing thought.

It was most fortuitous that she didn't have to dwell upon that thought for long, as before they reached the academy two Wolves made their appearance. Idly, she noticed both the fact that they wore the same cloaks some of the ANBUS favored -which meant you had to be facing them to know they weren't ANBU- and that her guard jumped slightly in surprise at their arrival.

She smiled lightly at that. It wasn't nearly enough to punish him for not giving proper care to her protection but she'd take what she could get at the moment.

"Hyuuga-San." They addressed her startled guard before turning to her and giving a shallow inclining of the head. "Hanabi-Sama."

If she said she wasn't taking some pleasure from the fact that despite being allied with the branch family they showed her more respect than they did one of their members she'd be lying.

"We'll be your escort from here." They continued, turning back to the branch member and giving a dismissive flick of their wrist. "Your presence is no longer necessary, Hyuuga-San."

The man looked, momentarily, as if he might object to the dismissal but eventually thought better of it as the second Wolf gave a low growl.

She thought it was appropriate, really, that even dogs were of higher standing than the branch members who were planning to take over the Hyuuga clan.

The Wolves were certainly looking as if they had been the proper choice.

"Then I leave her in your capable hands." Hanabi was fairly sure the branch member was hoping the Wolves had some horrible plan for her and was happy to be rid of her and the only reason they had considered objecting was the lack of respect they had been shown.

Well, that and the chances that someone might find out they had lost the Hyuuga heiress before the coup.

That would not end well for them.

The branch member gave her a swift, shallow bow for appearance's sake before turning on his heal and storming off. It had never really occurred to her before now, but the Hyuuga pride seemed kind of pathetic in the grand scheme of things. Even in a situation that favored him, the branch member had been upset that someone hadn't been shown the proper respect.

He was practically a slave, for fuck's sake, what was he really expecting?

What had the Hyuuga clan and Konoha itself lead him to believe?

Maybe the clan really was in desperate need of a change after all. This might be good for it. Not for her, of course, but her duty as the heiress- though she suspected that wouldn't be long remaining- was to the good of the clan before anything else.

Dismissing the thought for now, she looked at the lead Wolf- or that's what she'd assume they were seeing as the other had yet to speak a word- expectantly, knowing only that Naruto was arranging for her to be spirited away somewhere safe for the foreseeable future.

Seeing the look, the Wolf gave her a brief overview. So brief, in fact, it was very nearly on par with the useful information in Kakashi's reports.

"Our orders are to get you to the safe-house where we'll await the eventual arrival of Hyuuga Neji and lock it down. We suspect he will not adapt well enough for the clan."

That was a fair point, actually, and it would be nice not to loose one of her most useful slaves.

A lapdog, indeed.

"I understand." Not completely, she was sure there was more to it than that but if that's all they felt necessary to share than she really wasn't about to question her new protectors. She also didn't know exactly where Naruto actually stood with this group beyond, obviously, in their favor. Still, she would show difference but only to the one she had gone to for aid. Whether or not his plans lined up with the agenda of the Wolves wasn't any of her concern. "Naruto's will be done."

The intention had been, simply, to remind them that her deal was with Naruto and that they, the Wolves, had no control over her beyond what he had asked them to do.

From the way she could practically feel the pleased grins under their masks, however, it would seem like she had also managed to impress the Wolves before her.

Two sharp Konoha salutes were snapped off in unison.

"Naruto's will be done."

As the stadium filled with excited spectators Hana was quite glad the seats of the Daimyo were nice and isolated. Not only did it increase security and lessen the chances of someone discovering that she was back but it gave some respite from the noise that otherwise would have been absolute hell on her sensitive hearing.

She had questioned her mother as to why most of the clan didn't attend such a large event held in Konoha every three years or so and now she understood. Despite that, she was sure her brother was out in the crowd somewhere, just as rambunctious and energetic as the rest of the crowd.

He always had been a loud one and to be honest his hearing wasn't all that better than an average persons, but his sense of smell and direction were among the best of the clan. Despite what a lot of his classmates joked about in the academy and how wild he acted, he was probably the cleanest of them all simply because he couldn't stand his own smell unless he had washed at least thrice every day.

It had never been a hassle to get him to bathe which, she supposed, had been fortunate for her and her mother.

Still, it was odd to think that he was out there with friends, laughing and joking as he prepared to support his comrades through the upcoming matches.

He knew absolutely nothing about the invasion Suna had planned and hadn't the slightest idea that his sister, who was supposedly off on clan business, currently sat among the various nobles who had come to be wowed by the newest Shinobi looking to advance in rank.

She didn't know if she should be thankful he didn't have to worry about that or concerned that he might be caught unaware later. Regardless, she'd have to place her faith in Tsukiyomi's plan. Hopefully they'd be able to crush the invasion attempt before Suna could do more than reveal themselves as the backstabbing shits they were planning on being today.

Well, not all of them, from what she understood. Apparently Tsukiyomi himself had managed to make contact with some Suna Shinobi who didn't want to take part in the invasion including the trump card they were counting on as the backbone of the assault.

She hadn't been informed why a single Shinobi was what they had placed most of their hope upon for the invasion, especially when, from the sound of it, he was one of the Gennin competitors, but on the other had she didn't think she actually wanted to know.

People like that were usually not the pleasant sort.

Having them on your side, though, was typically a good thing.

And, speaking of her sides, she took a quick glance to her right where Tsukiyomi lounged in a manner between regal and lazy. He seemed so at ease she had to wonder if things had been going really well for him since she saw him off back in Nami no Kuni or if he was just acting like this to help place everyone else around him at ease.

Her experience at the feast had her suspecting it was the former but instinct screamed the latter.

Either way, his relaxed position had the Wolves around the box giving extra care to their diligent guard which was actually making some of the other nobles rather nervous. The Daimyo of Hi no Kuni just seemed to be amused by their discomfort if the small grin and occasional glances to the Daimyo of Nami no Kuni were anything to go by.

They would be more appreciative when Suna turned on them. Speaking of which, the Daimyo of Kaze no Kuni was sat directly next to the Fire Daimyo and both were surrounded by Wolves. How Tsukiyomi had convinced his ally to allow that she didn't know but it was a good move on his part. His ally would be protected, the Wind Daimyo would be safe and, more importantly, in his debt, and if absolutely everything went to shit he could take them both hostage.

She had to wonder if her time with the Wolves wasn't making her just a little bit more ruthless. She'd never have entertained such thoughts before. Then again, she had never pictured herself leading a country either.

From what little time she had with her mother earlier, it was apparently doing her good and she had to agree. She had never felt more mature and focused before she had the weight of a country's hope upon her back. The burden had set her free. She was sure that if anyone understood that it was probably the man beside her.

Again she took a quick look at him from behind the veil that hid her face. She wasn't too fond of it but understood the need for secrecy. He was in his usual attire of dark clothes, black cloak, and a scarf wrapped around his face to hide it from view. There had been some debate between Mai and Tsukiyomi about what he would be wearing but the need to keep his identity under wraps had severely limited his options.

There had also been something about how appropriate it would be for him to wear a Wolf mask but for reasons beyond her privileged it had been decided against.

Some part of her, despite feeling that he should be displaying the same face as the pack he was part of, thought it was appropriate. Not that she could say much considering she wasn't wearing the mask either. Despite the merging- admittedly loosely at that- of the packs she wasn't officially a Wolf and she knew that for the sake of image she wouldn't have been able to wear the mask to this even if she was.

Whether it was to make it clear that she was "above them" in station or so that it appeared the Governor wasn't actually a Wolf she wouldn't be able to say.

A sudden quieting of the crowd was more noticeable than the earlier excitement and drew her eyes to the center of the stadium where nine competitors stood ready for their matches. Tsukiyomi seemed to lean forward slightly despite his sprawled position in his seat and the various nobles around them focused their earlier conversations onto the spectacle they had been looking forward to all morning.

Lee and Neji of Team Three faced each other to the gaze of hundreds of eager watchers as the rest left to await their own opportunities on a private viewing balcony. With a wave of the proctor's hand the last round of the Chuunin exams had officially started but Hana couldn't shake the question of how soon they would be coming to an early end.

She hopped the question wasn't answered too soon.

Fate's barbed whip, he hurt.

Not just in his pride, which was sure to be swollen and tender after the beating he had just received, but throughout his entire body. He had always dismissed Lee's Taijutsu simply because it wasn't the Juuken but he'd never be making that mistake again.

And oh, the speed!

He had watched Gennin Naruto as he sparred with the heiress but thought nothing of it. The heiress was young and inexperienced to say nothing of how privileged they were to be a member of the Main House. Only the Branch family ever worked and he was the hardest working of them all.

But, maybe, he had been wrong.

Lee was, even if it was mostly self-proclaimed, a Genius of Hard Work. The sheer speed and strength behind each strike was astonishing.

He had been torn apart like rice-paper.

Even better, that was before the gates had been opened or the leg weights had even come off.

What hurt his pride even more, however, was the fact that Lee had actually seemed disappointed by his performance- or lack thereof- as if he had been expecting more from the Genius of the Hyuuga Clan.

Neji supposed that he probably had been.

Fate he must have been a pathetic sight as Lee avoided each attack as easily as breathing only to get into his guard and deliver crushing attacks that the Hyuuga simply hadn't been equipped to deal with.

Even the mighty Kaiten meant nothing when Lee could move faster than he could spin.

So much for an ultimate defense, even someone unable to use Chakra could get around it.

A groan- half disappointment and half pain- left his mouth as he attempted to adjust his position on the infirmary bed to something more comfortable. He didn't even want to consider how vulnerable he was or how the Main family was going to respond to his utter failure. As if they didn't hate him enough for being better than them, now he had embarrassed the clan before a good portion of Konoha and quite a few local nobles.

"Hyuuga Neji." The voice broke him from his thoughts and he found himself looking up into the mask if a Wolf.

He paused for a moment before cursing internally. He had heard of them when they became a noble house but he had also seen them in the presence of Hinata acting as guards.

That was probably not a good thing for him, especially considering an academy student could overpower him at the moment.

"Yes?" He managed. His memory was a bit fuzzy, but he was pretty sure Lee hit him in the throat earlier. It would explain the nasty bruise that covered it and he could only be thankful Lee hadn't struck harder. His bones, the ones he was sure were broken, told him that Lee could have easily crushed his throat in an instant. The fight could have been over as soon as it began.

He wasn't sure if that would have been better for him in the end.

"For your safety you are to be moved to a more secure location. Remain calm or we have been authorized to subdue you." the Wolf paused for a second before adding. "For your own good, of course."

Ah, he was being kidnapped then. Hmm, wait. This was more of an abduction, wasn't it? Or, if he was being used against someone he supposed it was simply a hostage situation.

Not that he suspected he was worth much to the clan after his recent performance.

"Where are we going?" He didn't expect them to actually tell him and he was right. Two of the Wolves snickered while he was sure the third was scowling at him from behind their mask.

"Don't worry about it, kid. You're safe now."

As a black cloth was wrapped around his eyes and his wrists were lashed together he really, really doubted that.

And with this the third exam has finally started. Gods above, this has taken forever.