DISLAIMER: Naruto and the characters from the said anime is not mine. The (cough*crappy*cough) plot, though, of this story is mine; not to mention the characters like Hiro, Ai, and Keiko.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: It has been a pretty long time, ne? And for that, I apologize. And I'm not very sure if there are new reviews so I'll just thank everyone who reviewed: Hidan's Little Riku, Narutoske, Miakimiharu, tempest in a tea cup and Heidi. Thank you very much for your support. I do hope that you find this quite enjoyable and interesting. And, oh, if ever you were well... disappointed with how the last few chapters I had posted turned out, I am very sorry. Anyway, here goes the fifth chapter. Another thing, please forgive my bloody grammar. Thanks! Have fun! :]

CHAPTER V

Brown eyes scanned the village hidden in the leaves or what was known as Konoha and the owner of the brown eyes sighed. Nothing seemed to be off but somehow, there was a lump in Tsunade's throat and her heart hadn't stopped beating erratically. She felt something was wrong. Either that or something was going to be wrong any time soon.

However, the Godaime Hokage was brought out of her musings when her eyes saw a flash of green and her mind registered that blinding set of pearly whites.

Rock Lee.

So their team has already arrived, ne? They have always been a fast group. Quick to leave, quick to accomplish mission, quick to return and, of course, quicker than lightning itself to get their fattened payche-

Tsunade wasn't even able to complete her thoughts because in less than two seconds, Lee had already made it to her office when she just saw him at the gates of the village.

"Tsunade-sama, we have bad news," he started and Tsunade's heart beat picked up an even faster rate, if that was still possible at all.

So this was the trouble.

Hana, he thought as his legs sprang from branch to branch. He shouldn't have asked Hana to go to Keiko's rescue but it's too late to do anything about it now. Itachi knew Suigetsu was a very good shinobi and Hana might hurt herself or even, Kami-sama please don't let this happen, get herself killed while protecting the girl.

Itachi's calculations were right and he knew that, by now, Hana would have had received the message of the bunshin and she would have gone to go get the girl. He also knew that in a few minutes, Hana with Keiko safe in her arms would have been at the gates of Konoha but his instincts wouldn't let him rest without seeing his wife.

In a jiffy, Itachi was already sprinting across the forest, locating Hana's chakra.

This is it…This is what I get for wishful thinking. This is what I get for wanting to have adventures and thrills to color up my then boring existence… Keiko's thoughts ran as she continued to fall.

She had been falling for the last four seconds and she was still airborne, I might have made a wrong approximation. Either that or I may be nearer to death now than I had anticipated.

But when she came to a stop, there was no pain. There was only an "ooff!" sound. It was human voice and from the pitch of it, Keiko could tell that the person was a girl or a lady rather.

Keiko traveled her gaze towards the lady's face; it was easy especially since the lady had Keiko scooped in her arms. The lady, as Keiko had observed, had brown eyes and dark brown hair, she's pretty. Nope, scratch that – she's gorgeous with her fierce brown eyes and her perfect complexion.

Her face bore two fang-like marks, tattoos maybe?

Keiko's savior's gaze was so penetrating that the young girl was already ready to cower under the older one's quite intimidating gaze but all fear melted when the older one flashed Keiko a sunny smile or something more like a grin which revealed the former's fangs.

Cool.

"I'm Hana. …Inuzuka Hana. And you're Senju Keiko, right?"

"Y-yes. Uh, Uhm… Thank you for saving me. And it was… nice meeting you, Hana-san," she replied and flashed Hana a sunny smile of her own to which Hana just nodded. Keiko had that weird feeling that Hana lied about something, Hana's name, perhaps? Also, she felt that they weren't the only ones around the clearing where they were standing or somewhere near it. There was another "aura" (Keiko couldn't think of another word for it so she settled for "aura") very near Hana. Weird.

Hana then let her stand but since her feet still ached, Keiko wasn't able to stand by herself for too long causing her to fall back to the dirt - behind first. Hana, not being the most patient person in Konoha let alone the world, pursed her lips which caused Keiko to blush and bow down her head in shame.

This way, she was able to see the half of Hana's body and saw the answers to her questions. She was pregnant, and by the looks of it, she was already in her eight or even ninth month. What?! And she caught me? Oh no… The baby might be miscarried.

"Here," said the Inuzuka as she extended a hand to Keiko.

This only led Keiko to blush even more. But she shook her head and continued to stand. She wouldn't burden Hana.

Or I wouldn't burden her even more, she corrected herself as her mind unwillingly replayed what transpired moments ago.

With much difficulty and discomfort in her part, Keiko was able to stand.

She had never been the strong type of person. She wanted adventure, yes, but at times or make that most of the time, she could really be a klutz and end up hurting and rendering herself and the people around her incapable of accomplishing adventurous thinkgs. But she never wanted to be a dead weight. She never wanted anyone burdened because of her.

Hana had already started walking when she noticed a hand on her shoulder. It was Keiko's.

"Hana-san are you sure you can still walk?"

Her eyes flashed - Hana was, to say the least, affronted.

"Pregnancy wouldn't stop me from doing simple things like walking. Weakling!"

Keiko had wanted to argue back but when she saw Hana flushed because of anger, Keiko knew she had no choice but to agree with the older woman.

Releasing a sigh and a few muttered words of extreme and unhidden irritation, Hana started to lead the lead the girl back to the village when a she felt a slick, wet thing circle its way around her throat.

She froze.

From somewhere behind Hana, she heard Keiko's breathing hitch.

"TenTen," he called as he oddly felt that something was wrong.

The girl looked back at him with brown eyes full of questions.

"He's attacking people, we've got to help."

TenTen sucked her breath in shock but recovered as soon as she remembered her responsibilities as a kunoichi so she nodded her head and followed Neji as he leapt to the place where Orochimaru's chakra came from, leaving Lee to go on to Konoha on his own, inform the Hokage and request for back-up on his own. Too bad, though, that Lee didn't know.

Well, he'll be shocked, she thought with teasing grimness.

"But don't you think it is weird that Orochimaru isn't masking his chakra?" asked she as she traveled her gaze towards his direction. Neji had always looked so handsome but with his long hair flowing in the wind and his face calm even though she could feel his heart beat quickening as they slowly approached the place, he looked so perfect, she realized. TenTen blushed at the thought and looked away.

Why was she ogling at him? Was it because she was afraid that this moment might be her last? TenTen sighed at how true her thoughts might be but she prayed with her all that her mind was just too weird for her own good. Orochimaru is a skilled ninja – this fight wouldn't be an easy feat.

"No. Orochimaru isn't much in control of his new container yet so he couldn't mask his chakra but he will be able to do that very soon." Neji's answer 'woke' her from her reverie.

In silence, the two ninjas continued their flight.

Soon after, they arrived.

"WHAT?!"

"Yes, Hokage-sama, Neji saw him in Suigetsu's body. We came here as soon as we could."

"We, you say but where are your teammates, Lee?"

That was the only time that Lee realized he was all alone. Neji and TenTen were just behind me when we were returning to the village. They both knew that Orochimaru might attack Konoha but why aren't they here yet? They are not this slow, now, are they? Unless…

Bile raced up to the bushy-browed shinobi's throat as realization dawned on him.

"Hokage-sama, Neji said that Orochimaru might possibly attack Konoha, do you think they went out to prevent him?"

"No. That would be absurd." Lee's eyes became glassy with this statement, "Neji knows very well that even a jounin couldn't match up to Orochimaru."

"Then maybe, there was someone who was being attached by Orochimaru and they rescued her?"

With this, the Hokage's brows furrowed, the kid sure has a point. Lee took the time to get out of the room. They were a team – Neji, TenTen, and Lee. He knew that the others were his responsibility as he was theirs as well.

I needed to help them. Wait for me, TenTen and Neji! I will help you with my youth!

Tsunade's blood clumped when Lee mentioned someone being attacked by the snake sannin. Keiko, she thought. Her thoughts raced as her lips moved on their own accord to give orders.

"Gather half of the chuunins at the four gates and guard the gates while the remaining chuunins get the civilians evacuated immediately and keep them protected at all costs. If the genins asked for missions, tell them to guard themselves and their families.

"Let half of the special jounins be with the chuunins guarding the gates. While the ANBU guard the forest and act as first defense if you cannot stop Orochimaru, try to fight him for us to buy some time. Second line of defense is to be composed of the remaining jounins since many of them are out on missions. I will join the first line of defense and offense.

"Also, set up infirmaries on each gate. Station one trained medic nin in each gate."

Tsunade looked at Yamato and Shizune who had entered when Tsunade yelled. Both of them had their eyes wide open.

"I might be overreacting. I'm not sure. All I know is that the snaky bastard is near Konoha and he must be driven out if not killed," she said in an attempt to explain everything in a sentence.

"And you know that Akatsuki might take this chance to attack us to get Naruto and a few others who might be of … use to them," she faltered at the word 'use'. Surely, that's what Akatsuki will do to them but still…

Wait… Naruto. Where is that knuckle-headed kid now? Oh, no…

Tsunade could only groan. Loudly. She stood up and readied herself.

Suddenly, her head was throbbing and beads of sweat rolled down her neck.

Then, her vision dimmed until eventually, everything was covered with black. She couldn't see anything. And before she reluctantly started to surrender to unconsciousness, Tsunade heard Shizune's cries of worry.

A fainting spell, she realized.

The hokage tried to fight it but found the effort futile when she tripped and fell on her office floor. Face-first.

Ai sat quietly on a bench at the park and Naruto sat beside her. They had been like this for quite some time now – nine minutes, forty seven seconds to be exact. Both were very silent, and if it was even possible no movement had been done but since it was not possible for humans, they moved but only in the slightest ways possible.

She was used to many of her friends asking forgiveness the very moment something wrong was done. And now, being stuck with a clueless, idiotic boy who hadn't even realized that he did something mean to her was simply unnerving. However, Ai had never been one to shout out her frustrations – she'd rather cry.

Also, Ai knew that not everyone is like her friends; always asking for forgiveness. She knew people out in the real world have humongous egos and wouldn't let their precious prides be wounded for the world. That meant she must never expect everyone to do what she willed. For example, she wanted Naruto to apologize but it was apparent that he wouldn't so she figured she just had to put up with it. So she just sat quietly.

She was used to controlling her anger by sitting quietly and letting the tears spring forth from her eyes. And look! There they are, Ai thought grimly as she felt hot tears roll down her cheeks.

Naruto had always lived a loud, noisy life and the occasional silence he found when he was not with any other person was always treasured in the deepest abyss of his heart but the silence that reigned in between Ai and him was … a bit too uncomfortable.

Another thing was the tight knot in his stomach that had not disappeared. Actually, it only worsened. And he knew it wasn't about hunger (or starvation, as he had put it earlier); he knew it was guilt.

Naruto was not averse to guilt. He felt this guilt when Sasuke left and he couldn't do anything about it. He felt this when he realized what happened to his friends in their quest to bring back the Uchiha. He had the same feeling when Gaara died, and when Chiyo-baa-sama died during the life-transfer jutsu she performed in order to bring Gaara back to life.

Guilt. He was guilty because of the one mean thing he said to this girl who had done nothing to him. The whole "whatever" thing at Ichiraku's was actually nothing to what he did to her.

The exact words he said weren't that painful, he noticed, but the underlying meaning was harsh beyond compare. It was like an "I don't care if she dies this second" only multiplied five times.

With a deep sigh, he ran a hand through his hair. He was about to say his apologies when he sensed someone. No it was a snake, so therefore it was a something, he thought with utter disgust and loathing.

However the snake was not alone.

Oh no...

A thousand alarms went off in his head.