Ouch...It's been a while since I updated last. Anywho, read back a few chapters to get a feel for what's going on if you forgot. I've been really busy with work as of late. Here...Please enjoy...
KONOHA COUNCIL CHANMBERS
It was mid morning, just after breakfast time when the Clan Heads and Civilian Counselors all began to arrive in the chambers, conveneing for the tribunal of one Sasuke Uchiha. The Clan Leaders were not very happy about Sasuke breaking the restrictions of his suspension and attempting to strike a small girl in the Academy, but then he attempted to escape from the arresting Chuunin, attacked three Chuunin and a Jounin, attempted to defect and he fully admitted to it. This was treason, plain and simple.
Finally, after twenty minutes of people filing in, Jiraiya himself, along with his two counselors Tsunade and Sarutobi, arrived with the victim and witnesses in tow. Shikamaru and Asuma were asked to testify, which they accepted easily along with Iruka and Naruto. Sakura was brought along by her mother, but the most surprizing of the people who had volunteered to testify was none other than Kakashi. Jiraiya didn't know what he was getting at, but would wait and see what he would do as he called the gathering to order.
"I call this Military Court Marshal to order! Bring in the prisoner!" He ordered to the ANBU, who opened a door and two more ANBU came out, holding Sasuke's chains like he was a rabid dog.
"Uchiha Sasuke. You stand accused of not only attempted assualt on an Academy student, but also disrespecting your superior officers, attempting to escape from custody, striking a ninja of superior rank, and attempted treason. Have you anything to say before we start?" The Toad Sage asked, his gaze hard as iron.
"Everything was just fine until that dobe got better than me...THIS IS ALL HIS FAULT!" Sasuke ranted until one of the guards struck him across the face to silence him.
"Your conduct hardly does you justice, Uchiha-san. He had nothing to do with your fall into disgrace." Hiashi stated with thinly veiled disgust.
"Do not think that your name will grant you any leniency here, Uchiha-san, for it will not." Aburame Shibi added.
"How dare you strike Uchiha-sama? He has done nothing wrong here!" A fat merchant and counselor, Miyamura Kishou, bellowed.
"That is quite enough, Jiraiya! I demand that you cease this...this...farce at once!" Homura demanded, but the room was flooded with Ki as the civilain council was culled.
"You are only here as a formality. You no longer hold any sway in ninja matters. This is a full military tribunal and it is not open for debate. One more outburst will see you visiting Ibiki." Jiraiya threatened.
"Now...If that is all you have to screech, we will begin." Jiraiya said as he called Sakura forward.
Chiaki and Naruto had a hard time calming her down after that outburst of Ki, so Jiraiya went down there himself to help calm her since he scared the poor girl so badly.
"Shh...It's okay...I wasn't angry with you. Now...Can you tell me what happened to you when he tried to attack you?" He asked of her. Sakura seemed to calm down after this and told everyone the events that had occured in great detail, drawing a few chuckles from her conversation with Hanabi, Konohamaru and his friends, who seemed to take her under their wing. What set Sasuke off was when they began to talk about Naruto within earshot and he lost all reason in his rage. Sakura would have been hit hard enough to give her a concussion if Naruto hadn't rescued her.
"I can concur with her story on that account. My granddaughter was there and saw the whole thing, as well. It turns out that she befriended the girl and she and Konohamaru have taken a shine to her." Koharu stated.
"T-That's preposterous! How can we take this seriously? I demand that her testimony be stricken from the record!" Kishou bellowed.
"Denied. She is the victim of the attempted assualt, so her testimony is both valid and vital." Yamanaka Inoichi countered, shooting down their objection.
"Alright. We have her testimony, now we move onto the testimony of our Chuunin and Jounin." Sarutobi called out, moving the trial along.
Naruto stepped forward first to deliver his statement, follow by Iruka, Shikamaru, and Asuma, who pursued and captured him. The final statement and nail in the coffin was delivered by Kakashi himself.
"Kakashi, before you speak, we would all like to hear about your change of heart. What caused you to change your mind like this?" Tsunade asked skeptically.
"I...I had a nightmare...Sensei...Kushina...My teammates and my father...They were so angry with me...I am nothing but a disgrace to them for how I treated my team, especially Naruto-san. This was brought on when I looked in on Sasuke to see how he was doing and he was looking into Naruto's...secret." Kakashi explained, looking around.
Naruto picked up on it in a heartbeat and spoke out.
"Sakura-chan already knows and I trust Shikamaru to not freak out, so spit it out." Naruto half snapped at him to continue.
"Ahem...Sasuke was studying on how to either become a Jinchuuriki or how to control a Bijuu's power, like Naruto-san can. I feel that he is going insane. Taking him out of the equation will be an act of mercy for both us and for him." Kakashi stated honestly.
"I see...The Shinobi Council and Elders will now collaberate and render a verdict." Jiraiya announced as they all huddled together.
"So...What do you guys think? Is he redeemable in your eyes?" Jiraiya asked them.
"To be perfectly frank and in Kushina-san's words...Hell no. He's been given everything his heart desired, but it still wasn't enough for that spoiled brat and now he dares to attempt treason and with Orochimaru on top of that. He needs to be made an example of." Hiashi stated, the others nodding grimly in agreement.
"You guys agree, too?" He asked Tsunade and Sarutobi.
"It pains me that one so young has threatened treason, but what's done is done. We cannot allow Orochimaru to get his hands on the Sharingan." Sarutobi said.
"That little bastard is just as bad as the rest of his clan. He needs to go before something awful happens." Tsunade agreed. The verdict was in...Uchiha Sasuke's fate had been sealed.
"We have reached a verdict. We find Uchiha Sasuke guilty on all counts and will be given the maximum penalty of death for his crime of treason and admission of conspiring with the worst criminal Konoha has ever known." Inoichi declared, drawing looks of disbelief from the civilian side over the situation over the decision.
"Right. His execution will be held publicly in two days time." Jiraiya confirmed, his glare curtailing any argument that might have come forth. He gave the ANBU a hand signal to take the Uchiha away.
"You can't kill me! I am an Uchiha! No one can kill me!" He was heard ranting all the way down the hall before a heavy thud slienced him. They were all ready to go home, but a few questions needed to be asked.
"Kakashi...Since when did you care about doing the right thing? I thought that you were attached to the Uchiha lip to ass." Tsunade commented, catching the attention of the fleeing Civilian Council.
"Yes...We would like to know this as well, Hatake." Danzou added, his one good eye narrowed in suspicion. He was sure that he had Kakashi under his thumb and blindly following what they told him. He was VERY interested knowing what made him change his mind.
"I've had some time to think about what I've been doing wrong. What happened to Sakura, Naruto making Chuunin without me or the team, and Sasuke literally losing his mind and demanding to be made into a Jinchuuriki..." Kakashi rattled off.
"He WHAT?" Homura exclaimed.
"You heard me. He wanted to be made into a Jinchuuriki. I told him that even if he survived the process, which was next to impossible, the charka would poison him since Naruto has a near immunity to it from the Kyuubi being within him since birth and it would still be useless if Jiraiya-sama hadn't helped him control it. After all of that, I wanted no part of any of his madness." Kakashi finished. His explaination...well, explained pretty much everything else. However, certain individuals on the Civilian Council thought they had found something to use against Jiraiya and was audacious enough to call him out on it.
"You showed the Demon brat favortism, Jiraiya?" Genshou Higi, a promenent land owner and real estate investor, bellowed in an accusatory tone. That was a very stupid thing to do since an ANBU knocked him out and dragged him from the room while the others looked outraged.
"Even though everyone present possessed knowledge of Naruto's special status, it was unwise to call me out like that without knowing the full situation. I trained him before the Chuunin Exams and at that time, becoming the Hokage wasn't even a thought on my mind. I know what this job entails better than anyone in this room other than sensei himself and it pains me that I cannot train my godson any further. I still have many things to teach him from his father, my student. I know that if Kushina were still with us, half of this council would have been dead long ago." Jiraiya glowered at the council while the shinobi pieced things together.
It was time that they all knew the truth. Naruto was plenty strong and he would only become even more powerful with time. Iwa's grudge against the Yondaime had died with him, as he had personally found out from one of Old Man Tsuchikage himself just this morning. Old Onoki, as it had turned out, knew about Naruto being the son of his hated enemy from the get go, but chose to let the grudge die. He just wanted to see Konoha sweat over it for a good laugh, but he highly disapproved of the council's methods in handling a Jinchuuriki. Also, as it had turned out, his own Granddaughter, Kurotsuchi, had seen an intelligence report on him which included a picture and was somewhat smitten. When word got out that Naruto was a shinobi and how he faired against Kiba despite his massive handicap, he was toying with the idea of arranging a marriage with his granddaughter to Naruto. He had just gotten the missive that morning. With all of this, it was time for him to be recognised as the son of the Yondaime Hokage.
"No way...He's the Yondaime's kid? I feel like such a collosal idiot for not spotting the resemblance sooner..." Asuma smacked himself in the forehead while Shikamaru went slackjawed. The civilian council members that didn't know were stunned into silence. Kakashi...hit the deck hard, out cold from the sensory overload to his already frayed nerves. Iruka had a gut feeling as to who's kid he was. That kind of pranking genius could only have come from Kushina.
'No wonder sensei was so angry with me...I treated his son like he was worthless...He's going to kill me again after I die...' Were Kakashi's last thoughts before entering blissful unconsciousness.
Hiashi and the rest on the Shinobi council who knew merely smirked when the truth came out. They felt that it was about damn time the kid's true heritage came out into the open. Once the main populace found out that they were abusing the only child of their greatest hero, they had no doubt that many would be getting shit drunk tonight and maybe a few suicides. The bottomline was that since the former elders knew the truth, but did it anyway, they would lose their popular support within the village and have no leg to stand on any longer. Even Danzou wouldn't escape unscathed like he usually did.
"Wow, Nii-chan...Your daddy was the Yondaime? He was my uncle?" Sakura asked him in childish wonder. However...That innocent question was caught by the former elders. Now, during all of this, Danzou had been suspiciously quiet, but chose this moment to speak.
"I guess that blood sample from the hospital wasn't a lie. Kushina Uzumaki wasn't the last Uzumaki, she had a sister that also survived and now a niece." He said.
"What makes you say that?" Tsunade asked tightly. Danzou wasn't completely correct and there was no need to tip their hand yet, but he was too close to the truth for comfort.
"Come now...That little girl looks like her and come to mention it...So does her mother." Danzou replied, pulling out a DNA readout and handed it to the civilian council members, who's grins were starting to turn predatory.
"Yes...I am curious about this now, too..." Homura chimed in.
"I quite agree...If this information is indeed accurate, I propose that Haruno Chiaki and her daughter be used to boost the numbers of the Uzumaki Clan. We will screen candidates for use and they will be married off. Young Sakura will be expected to have her first child after she hits puberty and Chiaki Haruno will be paired with a shinobi of our choosing." Danzou stated callously.
"Wait just a minute! I am MARRIED, thank you! On top of that, I want NOTHING to do with your sick plans and leave my daughter out of this!" Chiaki snarled, throwing what Ki she could still muster at them while she grabbed Sakura and got behind Naruto and the other shinobi.
"Wait just a GODDAMNED minute here...If you so much as LOOK at them wrong...I'll kill you all!" Naruto snarled loudly, his Ki becoming suffocating but aimed.
"D-Did you hear that? He threatened to kill us all!" Kishou yelled until Tsunade was in his face in a heartbeat.
"Good...Because whoever he DOESN'T kill, I will. By extension, they are also of the Senju Clan and therefore fall under my protection. If I even hear a rumor of you guys trying something, I'll be the one to kill you." She threatened, her powerful grip snapping off a chunk of the fat merchant's chair like a rice cracker.
"Jiraiya! Stop this madness! We only seek to increase our strength! You've already deprived us of the last Uchiha!" Homura shrieked.
"No. I will not allow this to happen. Chiaki is already married and Sakura is far too young for that, not to mention the acting Uzumaki Clan Head, Naruto, had denied you. Besides, Naruto is an Uzumaki and he is already making use of the CRA. I believe Hyuuga Hinata is one of the three brides he had currently with at least two more slots open. The other two girls are from powerful Martial Arts families and he is the nephew of Fuurinji Hayato by blood." Jiraiya explained, making Koharu think of a way to put a positive spin on it.
"Is that so? Then there is nothing to worry about since Naruto-san has already shouldered the CRA for his clan. If anything he will help to spread these powerful bloodlines further and given his performance during the exams, his children will likely be even stronger than him." She reasoned, making the family sigh with relief. Homura and Danzou looked scandilized.
"Do you know what you are saying?" Homura exclaimed.
"Of course I do. The combined Namikaze, Fuurinji, and Uzumaki bloodlines within the boy, coupled with the demon he houses, those children will be powerhouses the likes of which we may never see again. Although, I am kicking myself for agreeing that he should be suppressed. If we had nutured his latent talents instead of trying to quell it, think of what he might have been by now." The old bat reasoned yet again. Jiraiya, Sarutobi, and Tsunade were shocked that the old battleaxe was taking Naruto's side all of the sudden.
"That settles that. Chiaki and Sakura Haruno are not to be bothered by these matters any further. Since this was the final issue, I would like to conclude this meeting." Jiraiya stated as the Civilian Council staggered out in a daze, the shinobi walking out feeling vindicated, but he called for Koharu to stay behind to talk with himself, Tsunade, and Sarutobi.
"Now...What was that about back there? You hated that kid since he was born, but now you side with him? I'm gonna need a damn good explaination for this." Tsunade demanded.
"I simply agreed that Naruto-san had done the right thing without needing to be prodded. I also regret that I had a hand in repressing his growth. I have no doubts that if he were treated fairly, he would be far more powerful than he is now, if his near supernatural growth during the training month for the Chuunin Exams was any indicator. Also, I have no intention of tearing a married woman from her husband or a young child from her loving parents and her very protective cousin. This is a boon to the village, more so than the Uchiha." Koharu explained carefully.
The three rolled this information over carefully, looking for any deceit but finding none...For now. They decided to let her alone for now, but would err on the side of caution when dealing with her.
Out in the hall, the rest of the shinobi had gathered to converse on what had happened inside and on the new information they just learned.
"Man Naruto...You just get more troublesome by the second. Now you're the son of the freaking Yondaime." Shikamaru griped.
"I have to say that it was a real shock, but then again, it wasn't. I mean, the answer was right in front of us the whole time and we still didn't see it." Asuma added, mentally smacking himself from not noticing sooner.
"Me too...I mean...I had a crush on your mom." Iruka said in disbelief.
"Iruka...Too much information, man..." Naruto groaned at the statement from his former sensei and now fellow Chuunin.
"Seriously. That was a tad creepy." Shikamaru agreed as little Sakura and her mother walked up.
"Naruto-kun...Thank you for protecting my daughter and myself in there." Chiaki thanked him.
"You're my family. I'll do anything for my family." Naruto replied as Sakura hugged his waist, he himself smoothing her hair down.
"That bad person won't try to hurt us again?" She asked. She knew what the punishment meant, but her young mind still needed that re-assureance that he wouldn't try to hurt her again.
"No...No he won't, Sakura-chan. He won't hurt you or anyone else ever again." Naruto reassured her. He felt that this was for the best. Sasuke had become more like a rabid animal that needed to be put down, for everyone's sake. He was willing to jepordize everyone's safety and well being for his own selfish desires, that included his newly discovered family and his friends.
'Yes...This is for the best.' He told himself.
Team 7 was finished after the pre-lims were over and it was clear that nothing would ever be the same again. This past month had been a whirlwind for him. So many things had changed in such a short span of time, many of them wonderful, like learning of his true family, regaining a friend once thought to be lost to him forever, becoming a Chuunin, and gaining his future brides. He looked over at his friends and family, then to the sky.
'My life...It's changed so much, but the things that I have gained and earned, I will never let them go, nor will I forget that it was my precious people that helped me get as far as I have. I will keep training, getting stronger for their sake. With that strength, I'll protect my fiancees and family from anything that threatens them. I'll make them all proud, become a great Hokage just like the ones before me and my dad. That is a promise of a lifetime.' Naruto swore as he prepared to walk out of the hall with all of them, but a voice called him back.
"Naruto!" Tsunade called out to him, making him turn around.
"Yeah?" He replied.
"We need to talk to you about something. It's really important." Tsunade told him, her expression conveying as such. He knew her well enough to know when she was serious, so he turned to the rest.
"Sakura-chan, Aunt Chiaki...I need to go. I'll try to visit later." He told them.
"Okay...Bye, Nii-chan." Sakura pouted, but was perked back up slightly as she hugged her tightly. He then walked in after his Godmother to hear what was going on.
Once he was inside, the doors closed behind him, a silence seal activating to prevent eavesdroppers from listening in. As it turned out, the Shinobi council was still there, waiting expectantly for the news Jiraiya had to offer. He moved over to a file folder that contained a single message bearing the seal of the Tsuchikage, dated yesterday morning.
"This was delivered to my office yesterday morning from Iwa. That old goat Onoki knows about Naruto and about who he really is." He told them, making them gasp. Naruto tensed up too. He was always told that the Yondaime, his father, was their mortal and hated enemy. If they knew about him, they might try to hurt his family.
"If he knows...Then he will more than likely want revenge." Hiashi surmised.
"Yeah, that's what I thought, too. It turns out that he's known about him for several years, but chose to do nothing. He let the grudge die out when Minato died, saying in his letter that it was a waste of energy and time to hold a grudge against a dead man and that he hoped that the younger generation wouldn't pick up on it. That's why we haven't heard much out of Iwa for such a long time." Jiraiya explained.
Sarutobi's jaw dropped. He could imagine that old goat laughing his head off and at his expense. His face burned with embarrassment and indignation. Tsunade was equally shocked. She thought that she would be seeing Iwa assassins inside of a few days, but this was a literal bombshell. The rest of the council shared looks of surprize. It was like seeing the Kyuubi pop out of a cake and saying that the attack was just his version of a practical joke.
"I'm not even finished yet. You see, that old fart has a granddaughter Naruto's age and she's seen his profile and a recent picture from a few days ago. He's toying with the idea of a political marriage to establish ties to our village, in an attempt to jump start trade and the stagnant economy in his village since she's kind of taken with the gaki." Jiraiya informed them, teasing his godson slightly at the end.
The clan heads were giving this some serious thought while Naruto's nervous system nearly fried out.
"D-Wha...How...?" He sputtered out as he did his best impersonation of a fish out of water.
"Gah ha ha! The gaki's speechless! I hear that she's a real looker, too! You've got the Goddess of Good Fortune lookin' out for you, kiddo! Now you've got four brides to please on your wedding night, so I hope you've got stamina!" Tsume Inuzuka laughed, couple of others chuckling along.
"Naruto, I've already accepted on your behalf and he's sending her here in the next few days to meet you." Jiraiya informed his Godson, showing him a picture of the young Iwa kunoichi in question. He had to admit that she was a looker. She had short bobbed ebony hair and golden colored eyes along with a face that reminded him of that crazy proctor lady from the second exam. Sh elooked both pretty, but scary. However, those thoughts were the furthest things form his mind at the moment as he let out one of the intelligent responses he was famous for.
"You WHAT? Are you INSANE?" He yelled, some of the old Naruto coming out.
"You heard me, gaki. You're getting every red-blooded males wet dream! I could get research capital from you alone! Geh he he he ha ha!" The Ero-Hokage cackled with mad glee.
"Jiraiya...What have I told you about using our godson for your research?" Tsunade growled in disapproval.
"To not to..." He answered meekly.
"You won't don't, will you?" She asked him, to which he shook his head no so fast, they thought he got whiplash.
"Good boy." She replied, patting his head while she turned to Naruto.
"I know this will be tough to deal with, but please give this a chance. She already likes you, from what we've heard. What we need to do now is explain the situation to the girls. Hopefully, they will understand. If not...I'm sure we can find another shinobi of good standing in your age group. You don't have to do this if it comes down to that, Naruto. I'm sure the Tsuchikage will understand." She soothed her fretting godson.
"If you say so, Oba-san..." Naruto replied, not sounding too relieved. The three brides-to-be were beyond wonderful and honestly more than he believed he deserved and he loved them dearly, but they expected more? He just didn't feel right about it.
"Naruto...What's wrong? You can tell me." She told him gently as she slipped an arm around him. If there was one thing she knew about her Godson, it was how to get him to open up to her. He needed a motherly presence in his life and he seemed to accept her as such.
"I...It's just...What about the others? I mean, I already have more than I really deserve and I don't think it's really fair to the girls to introduce ANOTHER girl into this." Naruto explained.
Tsunade understood what his problem was immeadiately after he said that.
'He's loyal to them to a fault and that proves that he's no pervert. You're really one in a million, brat.'
"I understand, Naruto-san, and I commend you on your steadfast loyalty to my daughter. Many young men would have jumped at the chance to add another woman to their betrothal, but you resisted. I will talk with Hinata about this, as well as Kensei-dono and Tenmon-dono and get their thoughts on this matter. They will talk with their daughters and we can work from there. How does that sound." Hiashi offered, further calming the fretting Chuunin down.
"I'll talk with them too, Naruto. I'm your Godmother, so it's pretty much a given that I wanna look out for you." Tsunade added, nudging Jiraiya.
"What?" He asked.
"Well? You forced him into this by accepting without telling him, so you need to help him smooth things over." Tsunade chided.
"Oh yeah...He heh...That. Yeah, sure. I'll lend a hand." He agreed, mainly after seeing the vein on Tsunade's neck enlarge seemingly own it's own volition.
He thought about it for a moment and relented. It would at least give his girls a chance to voice their opinions on the subject and give him a chance to talk with Hayato-jiisan, Miu-onechan and Shigure-onechan, and the other sensei about it.
'At least Tsunade-obasan is willing to comprimise on it...' The young blond sighed to himself as he exited the hall and proceeded to head back to Ryouzanpaku, hoping that their training/ass-kicking sessions would help him focus on the problem he now faced.
'Wait a minute...' Naruto halted his walk out the door and spun around quickly.
"Oi...Jiji...Kyoufu...Didn't you two say that you had to hide who I was to prevent Iwa from coming to kill me?" Naruto asked, a sharp untone in his voice.
"Well...Yeah. That's what we thought." Jiraiya answered.
"Damn that old goat..." Naruto snarled in anger.
"What's wrong..." Tsunade was about to asked, until she got what he meant.
'If that old goat had just came out with it in the first place...We could have announced his brithright much sooner and spared him so much trouble and heartache.' She surmised sadly.
"What's the problem, Naruto-kun?" Inoichi asked.
"Yeah...What's eatin' ya, kid?" Tsume added.
"If he had just told Jiji in the first place...Then he could have told me who my parents were YEARS AGO! I just wanted to know their names! I didn't care what they meant to anybody, about who or what they were! I just wanted to know, dammit!" Naruto yelled, his anger starting to boil.
"You know...He is correct on that account." Hiashi agreed.
"Do you think he knew how Naruto was being treated up until now?" Chouza asked.
"There's no way of telling until we talk with him in person. He will be arriving with his granddaughter soon...Sometime tomorrow. We can ask him then." Sarutobi answered.
"Good.. I wanna know what kind of sick joke he was playing at..." Naruto snarled.
"Naru-chan...Please calm down. You know...If he hadn't done that, you might not have had some of the things you have now...Like Sakura-chan, your aunt and the girls?" Tsunade soothed him. He almost immeadiately calmed down.
"You...You're right. I might have turned out like the Teme...I'm sorry, Oba-san...Kyoufu...For yelling like that." Naruto apologized, ashamed of himself.
"It's okay, kiddo. You had a good reason to be upset. That info coming out would have saved you from a lot of hardships, but that's all in the past now and your stronger for it." Tsunade soothed him.
'Man...What else could happen today?' He asked himself, as if to tempt fate.
OUTSIDE OF THE VILLAGE...
"So...Sasuke-kun got himself into trouble and will be executed tomorrow...Did I hear you correctly?" Kabuto asked the three elite shinobi of Orochimaru's personal guard as he pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to ward off a migraine. They had called for reinforcements to pull off the mission, so he brought along Kimimaro and Karin, another medic, and a contingent of Sound Jounin who were waiting near the border. She was brought to keep Kimimaro's diesease under control and to help improve Sasuke's curse mark. During the time they were there, she stuck close to Tayuya, one of her only friends since Kin died during the exams.
"Yeah...He tried to smack this one kid who mouthed off to him, but his ex-teammate took him down. More people showed up and took him away. While they were transporting him, he blabbed about defecting and tried to escape, but they stopped him cold and imprisoned him. Now, they decided to execute him for treason. He's being imprisoned in the High Security wing of the ANBU prison as we speak." Sakon informed the Snake Sannin's right hand man.
"That little fool..." Kabuto growled in displeasure.
"That little Uchiha fucker's more trouble than he's worth. I say we leave him for the fuckin' crows." Tayuya groused.
"No. Lord Orochimaru will have his new body. We will go in and take him back tonight." Kimimaro told them, the tone of voice he used leaving no room for arguments.
"Yeah...But...!" Kidoumaru tried to reason, but was held at knife point.
"We will carry out Lord Orochimaru's will. Do not forget who your master is." He threatened them.
"Yeah...How could we fuckin' forget with that damned hickey on us like collars?" Tayuya growled. She wasn't recruited like they were. She was forced into his service after her mother was killed, a refugee from an now defunct country called Uzushio. She was shown to have a talent with Genjutsu and large chakra reserves, so he branded her. To her, the seal is nothing but a slave collar, but it was people like Kabuto and Kimimaro, the either fanatically loyal or really slimy types, that made sure she served her function...Like now.
'Heh...At least fatass got released from his seal...I hope he's doin' better where he is...' The foul mouthed red head thought as she was jarred from her thoughts.
"We move tonight. Lord Orochimaru's insider has made...Special arrangments for us and has given us an added target...This girl..." Kabuto informed them, showing them a picture of a young pink haired girl, no more than six at the most.
"Who's the brat?" Kidoumaru asked.
"Her name is Haruno Sakura...An Uzumaki. Lord Orochimaru would be most pleased to experiment on her, and possibly breed more." Kabuto answered, his grin something vile. Tayuya eyes flew wide at the mention of the name Uzumaki.
'Holy shit...Me and Karin...We ain't the last?' She thought. Some time ago, she discovered that Karin was a blood relative of hers and they kept that information a secret. Who knew what they would do if they found out?
"We will need to be careful, though. She is being guarded her cousin. He is none other than the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, Uzumaki Naruto. He is a recently promoted Chuunin and he fought and defeated not only Sasuke-kun and the Hyuuga genius, but also Suna's Jinchuuriki at his full strength, all within an hour's time." Kabuto warned them. He got all of this information from a disenfanchised member of the old council...A certain Warhawk. Naruto had proven himself to be quite a threat.
'Although...He isn't the only danger within those walls. Ryouzanpaku...Some of the only people Lord Orochimaru fears are there...' Kabuto thought, but withheld the information.
Again, the red head went ridged with alarm. 'Oh my God...That blond runt really IS an Uzumaki...I just thought it was a coincidence...I...I can't do this!' Tayuya warred within herself. She knew that she had to follow her orders, or she would suffer a fate worse than death. But...She now knew they weren't the last. There were others left besides them.
'That sick fuck told me they were all dead...Now he wants one to experiment on and carve up like a turkey! There's no way in HELL I'm lettin' that happen!' Karin swore within herself as she tried to come up with a plan. They were running out of time. The two then made an unspoken choice...During the mission, they defect if possible. If not, they at least make sure that little girl doesn't fall into Orochimaru's hands.
"Come. We will wait until dark and for when the signal will be given." Kabuto ordered as they followed him.
LATER THAT NIGHT...
Night time fell quickly on the village as they awaited the signal to attack. Deep in the jail cells, a ROOT ANBU cleaned the blood off of his blade, casting his blank stare down at the two Jounin who were guarding Sasuke. He then opened the doors and freed him, removing the restraints and seals that he could. He then set off a decoy explosion on the opposite side of the village as a distraction and as the signal he was ordered to give. Kabuto had Tayuya, Karin, and Kidoumaru retrieve Sasuke while Kimimaro, Sakon, and himself went to acheive their secondary objective, pelting over to the Haruno household. Kabuto and his team were able to move in relatively easy due to the chaos the distraction caused and kicked in the door to the house.
"Who are you? What do you want?" Takato demanded of the intruders, trying to defend his family. He got a bony knife in his shoulder for his troubles from Kimimaro while Chiaki stood in fromt of her daughter.
"Who we are is irrelevant. What we want is the girl. Lord Orochimaru has plans for her and we have come to get her." The Kaguya said in a hollow tone.
"There is no need for pointless bloodshed. All we want is the girl." Kabuto smirked, his voice laced with false compassion.
"Over my dead body..." Chiaki snarled as she turned to her daughter and shoved her into a closet.
"Sakura-chan! Don't come out!" She ordered as she tried to at least make enough of a commotion to attract other ninja. She vaulted at them with surprizing speed as she uncorked a mid-level water jutsu, nailing Sakon and sending him out into the street where she quickly ran out and fired off as big of a fireball as she could, hoping someone saw it until she recieved a blow to the back of her head as Kimimaro moved in to finish her off, but Kabuto stopped him.
"Forget her and that weakling inside. Grab the brat and let's get out of here before we have to fight the whole village." Kabuto ordered. He relented and did as he was told. Afterwards, they ran off into the night just as Naruto arrived on the scene with Iruka, Kisara, and Takeda. Upon finding Chiaki down, he flew over to her side as Kisara and Iruka performed some emergency first aid.
"Who did this? Where's your husband and Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked frantically.
"T-Takato..inside. They...took Sakura-chan..." The woman managed to grate out.
"WHO?" Naruto asked again.
"Sound...White hair..." Was all she could say before she passed out again
"We need to get them to the hospital now." Kisara stated as Takeda rushed into the house and carried out Takato, Iruka shoudering Chiaki. Naruto nodded reluctantly as they sped off to the hospital.
KONOHA HOSPITAL
They made it to the hospital within a few moments and rushed the wounded Haruno's into surgury. Takato's wound turned out to be light and Chiaki had a minor concussion.
"She was damn lucky they didn't kill them both." Tsunade told them as she finished working on them, Jiraiya, Sarutobi joining them with grave looks on their faces.
"The Uchiha has escaped. It looks like he was busted out by someone and I bet it was Orochimaru." Jiraiya growled out.
"Chiaki-obasan...Said something about Sound and white hair...That snake ass kidnapped Sakura-chan, too?" Naruto exclaimed as he tried to rush out of the door to follow them.
"Hold it, runt. We need to put together a team to go after them." Jiraiya ordered. Naruto halted in his tracks and turned on his angrily.
"Those bastards are getting away!" He replied.
"You won't get very far and even if you do manage to find them, you can't do it alone. Those white haired shinobi Chiaki mentioned had to have been Yakushi Kabuto and Kaguya Kimimaro, two of that snake's top ninja and he no doubt has more waiting. We'll put together a team to get her back and put the Uchiha down for good." Tsunade told him.
"I wanna be on the team that goes." Naruto insisted.
"That's one slot filled. Now for the rest..." Jiraiya thought as they went over the potential candidates.
A/N: Another chapter down...Again. I'm sorry about the recent slump I've been in. I'm just so busy lately and I've been working back to back 12-hour work days. One of my first impulses is to get something to eat, then sleep.
Anyway...Sasuke has been sentenced to death for his crimes of attempted treason and Naruto might be getting ANOTHER fiancee. He's a little reluctant, though. It also seems as though the Tsuchikage knew all about Naruto being his father's son, but chose to let the grudge die, but withheld that from Sarutobi to see him sweat. Unfortunately, that had a nasty side effect on Naruto's life. Who knows how he'll approach the crotchety old Kage and his granddaughter? Also, two more Uzumaki? Like I said before, if Nagato/Pain could turn out to be an Uzumaki, why can't they? They've both got the red hair and I'd imagine that it would be an exceedingly rare hair color. Also, their pasts are also unknown, allowing for some imagination and no, they will NOT be in the harem.
Also, I would like your thoughts on who should be dispatched to go on the retrival/rescue mission! Don't be shy with those suggestions!