Chapter 3

After nearly a week of virtual house arrest at the Hokage's tower, I finally made it back home. Predictably, Mom was eager to talk. After all, we hadn't seen each other in days!

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Honey," she said, wrapping me in her strong arms. "They said it wasn't serious, but a mother always worries."

"Ah, you know how it is at the hospital, Mom."

I grabbed a piece of toast for my lunch. While I was at the fridge, I decided to put something on my toast. I added some cheese, a little ham, a little lettuce, maybe a little more ham…

"Yes, and I'm so impressed with you, dear. It was such a relief to have you away from those dangerous assignments. And that team of yours!"

"Mom…" We'd been through this more than a few times before.

"I honestly don't know which is worse! That Uchiha boy, or," she gave a shudder "Uzumaki. We all know about him!"

"They're my friends, Mom." I decided there was too much meat for just one sandwich, and got out some more bread.

"I know that. But for now they're away on missions of their own, and your poor mother can get some relief. They aren't back anytime soon, are they?"

"You know I can't tell you that. Even if I knew, stuff like that is supposed to be secret."

"Yes, well…"

"So how've you been, Mom? Anything interesting going on?"

I spotted… pickled plums? My favorite! I put a half dozen on the plate beside my three sandwiches.

"Well, we've got some new ideas for the reconstruction…"

"What? You're kidding! It's been years!"

"Yes, but there are still a few families moving out. They think it would be safer in a regular village. The 'lightning rod effect' they're calling it. I say, good riddance! But the empty houses give us some opportunities."

"Mmmm hmmm." I couldn't really talk. The sandwich was a bit thick.

"You remember that we wanted to make the streets all twisted and convoluted, so strangers couldn't find their way through town? With the new building purchases, we're moving to stage two of that plan. We'd always intended it, but we're making the streets look more like each other, so that, unless you're a native and really know the area, you won't be able to tell which of the identical labyrinths you're actually in."

"—at's swell, Mom." I said around a large bite. The city construction committee means well, but most ninja just take to the roofs anyway.

"And in stage three, we're going to take care of foreign roof-hoppers."

That got my interest. "How are you managing that?"

"We're still working on ideas. Traps and the like, mostly. If you're not local, you won't know which roofs are trapped."

"Isn't that kind of a problem for the people living under that roof?"

"That's why the construction committee has to be involved, dear."

"Oh."

I had one of the plums. I just love the way they're so sour.

"I see you found the umeboshi, Dear. I was saving them for you. Since you're eating, don't forget to feed Mr. PussPuss."

"Okay."

On hearing his name, my ginger cat came running in and wound himself through my legs, as I stood at the counter eating my sandwiches.

For a moment, I froze. Stupidly, I hadn't associated my beloved pet's name with the fact that he was a cat. A CAT!

As Ranma, I'd been utterly traumatized by a childhood catastrophe. Calling it a "training accident," as my father preferred to put it, was ignoring the issue. In the name of martial arts, he'd dug a pit that was not so different from a Burmese Tiger Trap (only without the stakes), then thrown in about a thousand house cats (stolen from nearby villages). Then he'd left them to starve for a few days. Then he'd tossed in his six-year-old son. Me. Oh yeah, he smeared me with fish paste first, so I'd be extra tasty. Oh, and then he'd covered the whole pit with a manhole cover or something.

My recollection of the exact details are a bit fuzzy, due to the screaming and clawing and stuff that I was occupied with at the time.

Remarkably, I survived. Unsurprisingly, I didn't come out of the pit with a genius super-power, or the ability to have cat-like reflexes or anything. So, Dad buttered me up with squid paste and threw me back in.

After the sixth or seventh time, I figured out that I was going to either have to learn a genius super-cat-power, or else Dad would keep throwing me back in the pit forever. Super cat powers are tough to learn, but I had considerable motivation. Looking back on it, I think my mind just snapped. I didn't really have the ability to move like a cat, or create cat claws out of solidified ki – I only thought I did.

I smiled, thinking back on it. I remembered shredding all sorts of stuff with those claws – trees, wooden swords, the gym floor, geysers of solidified water. So I guess the claws weren't entirely imaginary.

I blinked, realizing that in my distraction I'd squatted down to pet Mr. PussPuss. He was purring, and I was happy.

That made me blink a few times. What wasn't I terrified?

For that matter, how could I remember those things I'd done in the neko-ken?

I deliberately picked up Mr. PussPuss and stroked him, marveling at the ability to touch a cat. To be happy with my pet, instead of terrified. As a reward for him being such a fine cat, I opened a tin of the good food and fed it to him.

Mom, meanwhile, was continuing with the plans for rebuilding Konoha.

"…new buildings, we're going to be making some of the roofs entirely inaccessible to ninja."

"Nice plan, Mom, but how are you going to do that? Particularly when just about any chunin can walk straight up the wall?"

She looked a bit taken aback. "Really? I've seen some do it, but any chunin? You mean, you can do that?"

"Mom, I've been walking up walls for years now. It's old hat. Tons easier than walking on water. Look—"

I lifted a foot to the wall. This was a little harder than normal, because I had those weights on my ankle. But a little ki funneled more than enough strength to my leg. Then I let some chakra out, to anchor my foot to the wall.

SPARK!

The jolt almost threw me across the room.

"What was that?" Mom yelled.

"I…don't know." My leg was still spasming. "Give me a second… I want to try it again."

"Don't hurt yourself, Dear!"

"Mom, I'm a genin ninja of Konohagakure no Sato! I've been walking on walls and ceilings for years! I'm a chakra master! I know what I'm doing!"

I carefully lifted my leg to the wall…

SPARK!

…and found myself thrown across the room.

"And one other thing," I finally admitted. "I've been working on some new … experiments … with the Hokage. Apparently they've completely messed up my chakra control."

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

It was early, but I took my time cleaning up while I thought about all the implications. If my chakra was messed up – what good was I to anyone? My whole reason for dredging up Ranma's life was to make myself a better ninja, not a worse one. And now, if his memories were screwing up my chakra…

Or maybe it was remembering the neko-ken? That psycho technique was enough to screw up anything. But the memories no longer seemed to be bothering me. But Mr. PussPuss had been there in the room, both times, though he'd jumped with each "spark."

I wasn't sure what the sparks meant, but they'd burned a lot of chakra, and left a scorch mark on the wall. As well as doing some nasty damage inside my foot. My medic training let me see exactly where my flesh had been cauterized. Ugg.

Still in the shower, I let water flow over the burn. Even the lukewarm water was almost too hot. Worried, I placed my hand over the site and pushed in healing energy.

It took a moment to remember that healing used chakra, too.

But it seemed to have worked. Was my chakra back to normal? I was trained enough and flexible enough to balance on one foot, while I pulled up the other, to look at my heel.

Everything seemed okay on that foot. Even the lukewarm water no longer stung.

I healed the other foot, while pondering. Healing was working okay. Was it just wall-walking?

I dreaded the experience, but had to try it again. I shut off the shower, and toweled most of the water off me. Then I raised a foot, oh so delicately, and stepped against the wall. Next, I pushed some chakra through the soles of my feet, into the walls.

They stuck. Just like normal.

Testing myself, I walked up the wall and hung upside down in the mirror, while I finished drying, and did my hair. It's different, brushing out your hair while you hang upside down.

Just to check myself, I dressed while standing on the ceiling. I put on another one of my new outfits. Ranma had a definite thing for mini-skirts. I remembered what they were, but we didn't really have fashions like the ones in his world. The leotard had been the closest match, but even that wasn't exactly the same. Typical leotards in Ranma's world didn't have so much mesh.

Still, I let my older memories push my fashion choice. Even before I started this intensive physical training, I think my legs were maybe my second-best feature, after my hair. If I could get them really toned… maybe I could make even Ino jealous.

So to show off my legs, I had a cheongsam. Really it was a qipao – the female version of the garment – except that it was sleeveless and very short. That, along with the slit up the side, made it seem like it would be immodest for fighting in, but if Shampoo had managed it back in Ranma's day, so would I. I also had arm bands in a matching fabric, and slipper shoes, like Ranma had always preferred.

Not only did the dress show off my legs, it was completely impractical for ninja-wear. Except… if you were good enough, that shouldn't be a problem. I'd just finished slipping into the dress, upside down. The hem should have been falling down, quite immodestly. But the same chakra trick that let me cling to the ceiling allowed me hold my hemline in place. The tiniest bit of chakra imaginable, issued from the top of the thigh – that chakra caused the clothing to cling there.

Later, when I had more ki, I'd use the same trick Kodachi had used on her ribbons. If you have enough ki, you can channel it down a rope or ribbon or chain, and control their movements. They can be almost alive. Applied to clothing, it could assume whatever hang and drape you wanted, even if you were standing upside down.

If you had enough ki. Maybe in a few days.

I tromped downstairs to see Mom again.

"Young lady! What is that outfit?"

I sighed. "It's a perfectly normal outfit, Mom."

"Well it doesn't look like any outfit I've seen around here!"

"That's because Konoha is a ninja village, Mom. All the girls here dress like ninja."

"And what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing! And I'm sure not ashamed of being a ninja or anything. It's just… there was a time when being a ninja used to mean being sneaky, you know? We were a little less obvious about things. I mean, walking into town with a two meter iron fan strapped to your back – it's kind of obvious, don't you think?"

Mom didn't get it. "But… ninja are popular! Especially in Fire Country! I've been to other villages, like Hachirogata and Ugo. The girls there dress like ninja, too. It's popular!"

"Yeah," I agreed, "for wanna-bees. But there's other girls who don't dress like ninja. If I lived in Ikawa, I'd dress like this."

The cheongsam was made with almost a kimono-pattern. This one was white, with a scattering of pink cherry blossoms, that I'd fallen in love with for obvious reasons. Normally you only wear a sakura print in the springtime, but I felt justified wearing it year-round. Anyway, I'd been named because the blossoms matched my hair, so the color on the dress was almost exactly right.

"But… but… you don't look anything like a proper kunoichi!"

"And that's the whole point!"

"But when you jump around and stuff, won't all the boys see up your skirt?"

I smirked. "Allow me to demonstrate."

Being triple-cautious this time, I placed my foot against the wall. No strange spark. With a sigh of relief I walked up the wall and stood on the ceiling.

"See?"

"Why isn't your skirt falling down?"

"Because I'm a ninja!"

"But all the boys will be staring at you!"

"Mom? Duh."

"Oh." She smiled. "Oh!"

So I spent a little quality time with the family. I sat on the couch with Mr. PussPuss curled beside me. It still rather freaked me out that I wasn't freaked out.

I had my sewing in my lap, while I gossiped with mom. She liked to hear all the rumors and talk from the hospital. One of those skills they never taught us in school was knowing what was safe to talk about, and what wasn't. But I'd figured that out long ago. Also the skill of rephrasing things, so that they were interesting, without being disturbing to the audience. I know, it seems like stupid stuff, but these were things that I'd learned as Sakura, and that Ranma had never mastered. I'd been a martial arts genius, but until the day I died I hadn't been able to open my mouth without blurting out something stupid.

"So what are you working on, dear?"

"Training weights. I got these from Rock Lee. You know, he wears that green spandex outfit?"

"Oh, yes. Nice boy. Very sincere."

I shuddered. "Yeah, Mom. Sure. Anyway, his wrist weights are filled with these little pellets. I'm moving the pellets into something more fashionable, like the wrist bands that go with my dress. I'm going to fix up my slippers, too."

I'd need some dexterity training to get back to my peak form in martial arts tailoring. At my best, I'd made an automatic sewing machine look like it was standing still. Hmm, I'd have to master the amaguriken in this body, too. But simple sewing was a step in the right direction, provided that I concentrating on improving my speed and accuracy.

"Heavy shoes? I hope that doesn't tire you out too much during your hospital rounds."

"Uh, yeah. About that. I'm going to be leaving the hospital and doing more field work."

"Are you sure you ought to, Dear? You've got a very prestigious spot in the hospital."

"Yeah. I've pretty much finished my training with the Hogake. I've almost matched her skill, Mom. In two years, I've learned all her techniques! There's still stuff to learn – some more anatomy, diseases, I'll be years learning all the herbs. Oh, and I've barely scratched the surface with toxicology." I laughed at my own joke. "But the personal training – I'm done."

My mother set down the book she'd been flipping through. "Sakura," she said seriously. "I want you to reconsider."

"Huh? Mom, I've already discussed it with the Hokage."

"She'd let you stay, at the hospital. I know she would. You really ought to think about that."

"I've done missions before, Mom. It's no big deal." Particularly once I get decent with my Anything Goes techniques.

"I'm thinking about your future, Honey, and as your parent I have a say in this."

I squinted at my sewing, refusing to look up at her. "Go ahead," I said tightly.

"Well, you have to consider what kind of family you want to have. You know what they say, 'For her first husband, every woman wants a ninja. For her second, a doctor.' And why do you suppose that is?"

I did not want to talk about husbands right then. Besides, there was Sasuke. Not that I was going to marry him, or any boy. And Mom had made her opinion of the Uchiha clan clear enough, on more than one occasion. But if she wouldn't talk about Sasuke, I didn't want to talk about her scheme – whatever it was.

But she wasn't waiting for my participation. "Ninja are dashing, exciting heroes. And they do make good husbands. I have nothing bad to say about your father. Except for the fact that he died at such a young age, just like so many other ninja seem to do. But at least your father started a family, first."

I discovered that cheap sewing needles snap way too easily. "Mooom…" I began to growl.

"So what happens if a good ninja boy gets you pregnant and then goes and gets himself killed. Maybe for your second husband, you'll want someone whose life is a little more stable."

I just kept sewing, ignoring the fact that my knuckles where turning white. "We are not getting into another discussion of my love life!"

"I'm not trying to interfere, Honey. But you already work in a hospital, I just thought that you could skip some of the heartbreak and agony. I was talking to my friend Ryoka the day before yesterday, and she was telling me about how many interns are single—"

"STOP IT! We are not discussing ANY of this until Sasuke-kun comes back!"

"You mean, IF he comes back! Listen to the talk in Konoha! Those Uchiha were always way too arrogant! They were worse than the Hyuga! And the village isn't exactly eager to have the 'Butcher Clan' move back in. Next time they go on a killing spree, what then? Is he just going to kill his wife? Will you be the only one to die, Sakura? Or maybe you and your children? Or maybe, maybe he'll turn his anger outward and kill a bunch of his neighbors. Tell me, will I count as part of the clan? Will he have to kill me, too, when he goes mad? It's in the blood, you know."

"Stop it! Please stop it!" I was crying now, unable to make her understand. Sasuke was nothing like his brother. Nothing!

"Sakura," she rose, moving closer to me. "I don't want you to be unhappy. That's why I want you to think about these things. Better some worry today, than disaster tomorrow. I know how you feel about the boy. Back in my day, all of us were so taken with the sannin – I, like several of my girlfriends, was completely taken with the coolly imperturbable pale member of the sannin."

I looked up in horror. I couldn't believe it! Mom had had a crush on Orochimaru? Other girls did, too? How the hell could you possibly find that fiend attractive?

"We were in our teens, just like you. He wasn't yet 30, and he already had so many accomplishments to his name. So much power and knowledge and fame. And he was always so cool and controlled. Each of us dreamed that we would be the one to break his façade, to rouse him to passion."

The thought was revolting.

"But that wouldn't have worked at all, would it? Looking back, I can only wonder what I was thinking. And Honey, I see you following my same path. The only difference is … I never had a real chance with Orochimaru. He never even knew who I was. But you—"

I rammed on my slippers and jumped to my feet.

"I – I have to go!" My voice was ragged. "I'll be out late with Ino, maybe some other friends. I-- Bye Mom."

And I fled the house, without giving her so much as a hug.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

"What's with that look?" Ino demanded. "I swear, just when I think you can't get any weirder…"

"It's what girls our age wear over in Ikawa. A lot of other villages, too."

"Yeah, so? This is Konoha."

I frowned. She was as bad as my mother about some things. "Doesn't anyone remember when ninja were supposed to blend in, instead of wearing something that screamed, 'Hey! Ninja here!'"

We stopped to pick up Hinata, which was almost a mistake. You have to wonder what they did inside that walled Hyuga compound. What secret were they hiding? Of course, being a ninja, perhaps I could find out. On the other hand, they were mostly ninja, and better than me. Hmmm, maybe I'd just ask Hinata.

Hinata wore her typical over-sized coat, and as usual, seemed to be trying to sink back into it and vanish. I swear, if you've seen the girl fight you know that she's a damned killing machine. She matched Neji blow for blow, and at points her hands and arms were moving too fast to see. She's one of the most dangerous people I know, and she spends her life as meek as a mouse.

"We were just talking about Sakura's new look," Ino said, hooking her thumb back at me.

Hmm, I thought. If I could surgically extract half of Ino's confidence, and implant it in Hinata … they'd both be better off!

"It's…very pretty," the shy girl offered. There was the bare edge to her tone, as if it was wrong that I should look pretty.

"Thanks, Hinata." I thanked her honestly, hoping to ease any tension. "I'd blend right in Ikawa. I'm trying to go back to when ninja dressed to be anonymous, rather than stand out."

She nodded, tentatively. "I've never tried to wear anything that flashy," she admitted. "And, I think my clothes would look normal, almost anywhere."

"Well…" Ino began. "This is Fire Country. What's with the heavy coat? Don't you get hot in there?"

"It's…comfortable."

We meandered along the street, checking out likely bars. I wonder if Ino had mentioned that aspect to Hinata.

From Ranma's memories, I kept expecting to see some small car come puttering by, but that was that world, not this one.

"That place," Ino decided, pointing.

I looked. It was the "Kosugi Inn – Refreshments and Entertainment."

"But…we aren't old enough to go in there," Hinata said, with some confusion.

"Transformation technique," Ino answered. "Come on, are you telling me that you guys never did this back in the academy? Transformation was the graduation test! Once you mastered it, you had to test it by sneaking into a bar. It's like a tradition!"

Hinata and I both shook our heads.

"Oh, you two are just pathetic! I should have tried to cruise along with Anko or something."

I raised an eyebrow. "You hang out with Anko?"

"Someday, someday," Ino said, airily.

"I'm not sure…" Hinata began.

"Come on," my insane friend insisted. "It's training! Can you maintain your henge after a couple of drinks? That alley would be just perfect."

So… Hinata and I allowed ourselves to be dragged along by Ino. And since pretty much every child who graduates the academy has mastered transformation (with the possible exception of Naruto), and since all three of us were more than competent with genjutsu, it only took a couple of quick hand signs before we'd changed.

Ino looked like herself. Perhaps three centimeters taller, and with her figure bumped up a notch everywhere. Same outfit, same everything. It was her, just a twenty-five-year-old Ino. Old enough that they wouldn't bother asking for ID.

Hinata had grown up, too. She had long black hair and brown eyes, but the same face, just adjusted up to look twenty-one. She'd switched outfits to a formal kimono.

And me? I'd picked Uc-chan. I was wearing Uc-chan at about 30, with her tight pants and abbreviated yukata. I'd skipped the bandolier or giant spatula she typically carried. That was a little more conspicuous than I wanted to be. The trick to good transformations is an attention to detail, and in my life as Ranma I'd had plenty of exposure to Uc-chan.

"Ino," I asked in exasperation, "why transform at all if you're going to transform into yourself?"

She shrugged. "It always worked before."

So, with the extrovert leading the way, we trooped into the bar. We were earlier than the dinner rush, but only by an hour or so. The place was finished inside with rough-sawn planking of some dark wood, and lit by oil lamps everywhere. It was dark and warm, and had plenty of mood but looked like a firetrap to me.

"Ladies! Lovely ladies! Half price, if you sit at the bar up front."

Ino shook her head. "Not worth it. We're looking for booze, not companionship. Got a table in back?"

"Certainly, miss. One kunoichi, and two associates. Right this way."

"Start us off with a pitcher of Green Mountain Beer, and three glasses. Come back in thirty minutes."

"Right away."

Once we were served and settled, Ino leaned back and relaxed like an old pro. "Okay, girls, drink up. This is the good stuff. I love Green Mountain. The trick is to pace yourself, and move to the cheaper swill as the night goes on. By then, you'll be half sloshed, and won't care so much."

Hinata and I shared a grimace that left me knowing that while Ino might be anticipating getting drunk off her butt, Hinata and I would be holding back.

"Hey," I said easily. "Be a pig. I'll just call you P-chan."

I blinked at that. Did I end up calling my rival a pig in every life? Maybe I was getting stuck in a rut. On the other hand, if I got reincarnated… I squinted at Ino-pig, trying to imagine her as Ryoga.

"Ino… you've never had any problems getting lost, or finding your way around, have you?"

She brushed back her blonde locks as she up-ended her glass. "What are you talking about? Of course not!"

"Oh. Good."

I decided that even the fates couldn't be that cruel.

"Not that I don't appreciate the company," Hinata spoke up, "but why me?"

"Why'd we drag you out here?" Ino clarified, taking another healthy swallow of her beer, "Because we belong together, the three of us. Maybe the nine of us – the famous 'rookie nine.' But this felt like a girls' night, you know?"

"Yes," Hinata agreed. "Those were interesting times. I often think of those days."

She had a bit of a blush to her face, and I wondered why. She'd always been a shy girl. I remembered how embarrassed I was when Naruto was yelling encouragement down to her, during her fight with Neji.

Hmmm. There was something there, at the corner of my mind…

Curious, I decided to poke at Hinata a bit more. In a friendly sort of way.

"So what does go on behind the secret walls of the Hyuga compound?" I wondered. "Are you practicing secret assassination techniques, or foul bloodline experiments, or all you just all walking around in the buff?"

Hinata's face didn't react, but she seemed to twitch just a hair when I got to the third suggestion.

She realized instantly that she'd betrayed herself. "It's not like what you're describing!"

"Oh my God," I realized, "it's true!"

"What?" Ino demanded. "That they walk around in the buff? That's just a story!"

"No," I said, "I get it now! I was wearing this wild outfit earlier, remember Ino? And I stopped by to visit Team Ten. Tenten was disturbed. Rock Lee almost self-combusted—"

Ino grinned. "You do know that he's madly in love with you, right?"

I scowled at her. "Sorry, I missed that. I think he was too subtle."

"Oh, you!"

"Anyway," I continued, "Neji just looked at me and said there was something different about me."

"Yes," Hinata agreed. "That's been bothering me, too. And once I figured it out, it bothered me even more."

"So I went up to Neji, and accused him of using the byakugan to see through my clothes."

"You shouldn't blame him," Hinata said. "He can't help it."

But Ino couldn't wait. "Yeah, you never finished that part of the story, yesterday. What happened? What'd he say? What did you do to him? That pervert!"

I leaned forward. "I took him aside," I lowered my voice, "and I told him…"

"YES?" Ino demanded.

"That he'd better stay away from Jiraiya!"

"What? Oh, what a waste! Next time I see him, he's going to get such a pounding! That perv!"

Hinata just sat back with her typical small smile.

"You said he couldn't help it," I mentioned, casually.

"It's not a clan secret," the quiet girl admitted. "Although we aren't loud about it. I have to inform the clan leader that you two know this. And I'm supposed to ask you to keep quiet about it. It's because the byakugan is one of the defenses of Konoha."

"Huh," Ino replied, articulately, while guzzling a bit more beer.

"Long ago," Hinata explained, demurely, "when the bloodline was first created, ninja often came in disguise, as you mentioned Sakura-san. The byakugan was developed to spot them, and to spot dangers to the village, or to a target we were protecting. I can see clothes, but they're usually just outlines unless I concentrate. What I can see is every weapon you have, Ino, and where you hid them."

"And Sakura, too, right?" Ino demanded.

"She is, surprisingly, unarmed."

That caught my interest. The byakugan couldn't see through the hidden weapons technique!

"So," I asked casually, "you could see the weapons on that guy at the end of the bar?"

She nodded. "And the bartender."

"Left sleeve and left breast pocket, right?"

"Yes," she agreed. "And one in his shoe."

"Konoha," Ino commented. "You gotta love it."

With the ice broken by the revelation of the Hyuga clan family secret (or at least one of them), Hinata began to unbend a little. She had blossomed from the shy retiring girl of two years ago. Now, she was ever-so-slightly less shy.

Under severe coaxing, we got Hinata to reveal some of the things she'd done and places she'd been. Ino followed up on that, telling about her latest mission and how disgusted she was with herself. She talked about getting her face cut.

"I was lucky I didn't lose an eye," she admitted. "It's enough to make you think twice about getting back into the game. So I guess my decision comes from a lot of things. I'd be a better help to my team, maybe I can save someone else's face, and I think I need a break from combat. I'm thinking … I'm thinking that guys like Lee, and Neji, and even Choji, on my team, they rush ahead. They live for the in-your-face combat. And I can do that, but I'm nowhere as good as them. And if I can't be great at it, maybe it's dumb to be poking my face into danger every day, 'cause I'm going to pay for it, sooner or later."

"But you are great, for some missions," Hinata insisted. "You can leap across a moat and unlock a castle gate, you can capture a spy on another hill."

"How far away can you catch someone, Ino?" I asked.

"Half a kilometer, but I'm working on increasing the distance."

"That's very impressive," Hinata said, supportively. She even turned to smile at me, then seemed to remember something and her face went flat again.

"Okay, what's going on?" I demanded.

"For just a moment, I didn't recognize you."

"Yeah," Ino agreed, "Forehead pulled a pretty good transformation. Voice, too. Nice touch!"

I had decided that if I was going to do Uc-chan, I'd do her all the way.

"Yes, but…" Hinata paused, unsure whether to continue. "…your chakra points have moved. It's very disturbing. I look at you and don't recognize you at first."

"Hey," Ino protested, "I thought you had to do the fully byakugan to see chakra points."

"For targeting and to see the chakra flow in the body, yes. But just for recognizing people, no."

"I'm curious," I said. "You can take a full look, if you want. Has my chakra changed significantly?"

I saw a fleeting shadow of distaste on Hinata's face. She turned toward me and made a quick hand seal, almost whispering the word, "Byakugan."

And she studied me for a moment. "This is impossible. It's impossible! What have you done?"

"What do you see?"

"Your chakra – your chakra points have moved, the flow has changed. It's faster and smoother in some places, more turbulent in others. It's like you were a completely different person!"

Ino began to scoot back, reaching for a weapon.

Hinata continued. "But worst of all – you're not completely different. I recognize you, Sakura, but changed so much!"

Well, crap. There goes the whole show. I'd discussed this with Tsunade-sama, since she'd anticipated this moment.

They key point was to lead people away from the idea that she had a reincarnation jutsu. But as for the reincarnation itself, that was fair game.

"Alright girls, lean forward," I confided. "Big secret, and I don't really want to tell anyone. Hinata, can you check for eavesdroppers?"

The lavender-eyed girl scrutinized our surroundings, though she only turned her head slightly. "We're clear," she told me, with a suspicious tone.

"Thanks. I wasn't kidding about this being huge. It's part of the reason I'm mustering out as Tsunade's apprentice.

"You know that healing can be dangerous, sometimes?"

They nodded, leaning in close.

"Well, I tried a technique that killed me." Which was pretty much true. "For some heart repairs, you have to stop the heart from beating, so you can work on it." True, but unrelated. "And I ended up stopping my heart." True, but deceptive. Now for the big finish. "I hovered in that place that's not alive and not dead, and when I returned, I brought a previous life back with me.

"It's all very confusing – those memories are different, but weird. It wasn't our world. People were different in ways that are hard to describe. On the good side, I think I might have some idea about new techniques to try. On the bad side, my chakra control may be a little messed up – I'm not sure. Anyway, that's why I'm going back to field duty, to experiment and learn. I'm still getting untangled, mentally, and I think I need the solid reality of active work to straighten myself out."

Hinata snorted.

Ino just stared. "You're shitting me."

I held up my hand, as if pledging. "It's true."

"But like I said, if I can figure out something useful from this, it might really help Konoha. And face it, girls, with all the forces lined up against us, the village can use any help it gets."

Ino nodded, emphatically, but sloppily. "I'll drink to that!"

"So, Hinata," I asked, "does that ease your suspicion of me?"

"I suppose." And yet, it seemed to me that there was still a sullen cast to her mood.

"So Sakura-chan's learning new secret jutsu! Maybe we really will have another sannin!"

"Huh?" Hinata and I were both derailed by that out-of-the-blue comment. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, come on! Everyone talks about it! The sannin – the legendary three ninja. Who did we have? Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade. It was like, they had their fingers in everything, one of the other of them. And now, what do we have? Sasuke is Orochimaru's apprentice, Naruto is Jiraiya's apprentice, and Sakura-chan is with Tsunade. And the three of them are smack dab in the middle of the biggest trouble we've seen in a generation. And now, Sakura's got this new thing going. Is it going to be important? Shya. Most likely!"

I blinked. "The three… apprentices?"

"Oh, come on!" Ino bellowed. "Like you never noticed? Don't try to make me think you never figured it out!"

"Well, Sasuke and Naruto," I admitted, "sure. But me?"

"And that's what your problem is," Hinata burst out, unexpectedly. "You're so blind!"

Huh? Why was she so angry at me?

"Hinata," I asked gently, "what are you talking about?"

Maybe the beer had loosened her tongue. Maybe she'd just been repressing herself too long. But in typical Hinata fashion, even when she was exploding, she couldn't bring herself to say too much.

"You just don't see a thing!" she fumed at me. "You…you have what other people would die for, and you just throw it away!"

I looked at Ino in confusion. "Is this about being Tsunade's apprentice? Because Ino's going to move into that role now. That's what we're here to celebrate."

Hinata was almost crying now, which is pretty devastating with those huge eyes of hers. "You have people who would die for you, and can you even be bothered to spare them a kind word!"

What did that have to do with being Tsunade's apprentice?

"Do you mean Rock Lee?" I asked. "I was just talking to him. It's not like I agreed to go on a date or anything, but I was nice. I mean, I tried to be. And yeah, I know he has a thing for me. I guess I'm kind of sorry about that, 'cause despite the goofy haircut and green suit, he's a pretty decent guy. He deserves a little happiness. I'm not trying to lead him on. I've always been honest about where my heart lay." I looked at Ino. "Haven't I?"

"What, you mean draping yourself over Sasuke and saying, 'Take me, I'm yours'? Yeah, you were pretty obvious."

I flushed and took a sip of beer to cover my embarrassment.

Hinata just huffed at me and looked down.

"Look," I said, trying to reach out to her, "I'm sorry about Lee. What do you suggest I do? Okay, I admit I was a little immature back when we were all genin, but I've tried to get better and I—"

My words weren't affecting her in the least. I thought that asking for her suggestions on the problem would help, but if anything, she stiffened at that. So I was talking away, while things percolated in the back of my mind, and suddenly all those little scenes jumped out at me. Her talking to us so nervously, never having half the confidence or aggression she'd shown now, at this table. And her sudden turn-around, in the chunin exam semi-finals. After that idiot Naruto had been yelling at her from the balcony, making such an embarrassing spectacle of himself.

It hit me like the proverbial ton of bricks.

"You like Naruto!" I realized.

"Jeez, you're right, Hinata," Ino slurred. "She is blind!"

"He'd do anything to get your attention, and you just ignore him!" the lavender-eyed girl accused.

I was still busy realigning my worldview. Someone actually liked Naruto, and in a romantic way? This was too weird! I fumbled around, retreating and defending, as I tried to come to terms with this.

"Hey, it's better to ignore him than kill him, right? And you're right that he would do anything to get my attention. But you're acting like that's a good thing. Naruto's been over the top since we were kids. I mean, there is such a thing as trying too hard!" I stared at Hinata. "I'll bet you'd agree with me, if you'd had to put up with even half what I had to endure!"

The Hyuga girl sniffed. "I wish I had that chance."

"Come on," Ino demanded, taking another gulp from her mug. "Give with the details!"

"You want the truth?" I mumbled into my brew. "You can't handle the truth!"

"Naruto's pranks are sweet," Hinata insisted, "and funny, too!"

"Okay, you asked for it," I decided. "Let's see… dying my best dress orange? Why is he obsessed with that color?"

"It's his happy color," Hinata explained.

"Whatever. Tell me when all your best clothes suddenly turn day-glo orange. Hmmm, the superglue lipstick? The perfume that turned out to be a love pheromone for Shino's bugs? The old 'toad in the toilet' trick? Believe me, that got old after the first seven times. Wait, I've got it!" I leaned forward, confidentially.

"It was on our first big mission," I revealed. "Our team was off in Wave Country. It was supposed to be a C-Rank mission, but it turned out to be A-Rank. Missing nins hired by a billionaire, sent to assassinate our client and anyone else who got in his way. I mean, we were facing one of the legendary Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, and I knew that any or all of us could die without a moment's notice. Naruto and Sasuke were training, Kakashi was down, and I was all alone on a foggy bridge, guarding old man Tazuna and waiting for the moment when the missing nin would appear. Did I mention the 'Seven Swordsmen' part? His sword was longer than I was tall. He was in the bingo book, way up there! And for his genin graduation, he'd slaughtered the entire rest of the class. All of them, butchered in cold blood. And I was the only thing standing between this killer and our alcoholic client. So I stood there in the fog, waiting, listening, ready for anything. And absolutely worst of all…"

"Yes?" Ino breathed, hanging on every word.

"I was on my period. So I was terrified, cold, angry, achy, bloated, and just about ready to face the missing nin, just so I'd have something to kill. But then… something happened."

"What?" Hinata demanded.

"Smoke!" I answered. "The perfect cover for an assassin's entrance. Old man Tazuna noticed it a minute after I did. I couldn't tell where it was coming from – it was incredibly thick, coming from all around me. I was about to die of fright when Tazuna realized where the smoke was coming from!"

I paused to sip my drink, while the girls growled in frustration.

"He looked at me and said… 'It's coming from your dress!' And sure enough. Naruto had used smoke tags, and booby trapped my maxi-pads."

Hinata started to giggle.

"Oh, sure, laugh it up! Let's see how you react when he sabotages your hygiene products!"

"You're a ninja," Ino giggled. "I'd think you'd be able to figure out that there's a smoke tag going off in your panties!"

"Well," I said defensively, "I was only twelve. It was only the third time I'd gotten my cycle, so I wasn't entirely sure how everything worked."

Ino, the aptly-named pig, howled with glee.

"And now I can't even go back to Wave Country," I admitted, "because they still recognize me and call me 'hot pants.'"

Hinata was hiccupping now, and leveling a glare at me.

"What?"

"There are some girls," she explained with Hyuga haughtiness, "who would think it was just fine if Naruto played with their underthings."

"Oh, right. The kid's been training with the guy who writes Icha Icha! He's probably even worse now! Let's see how you like it if he puts a smoke tag on your tampon!"

Hinata didn't seem mad at me anymore, but I didn't like the malicious giggles she sent in my direction.

"Our third big mission," I explained desperately, "shutting down some bandits outside of Otafuku Gai, we laid a trap for them. Naruto's part of the trap launched rocks, logs, even a pair of beehives."

"I always thought he was clever," Hinata loyally defended.

"…and when we got back to camp, I found every bra that I'd packed was missing!"

Ino almost spit up her beer. "Not like you need them anyway!"

"You can't use them once they've been stretched out for slingshots! And I'm supposed to put on a bra that's been holding beehives?" I clenched my hand. "The fist of righteous retribution got good use that day!"

"Hmph!" With my last sentence, Hinata turned from amused to sad. "You just can't see how funny it is."

"Oh, come on," I pleaded. "You know how much bras cost!"

"Well then," Hinata insisted, "send him over to play with my bras! The truth is, for all you complain about him, Naruto would give you anything! He's saved your life, probably a dozen times over. And every time, you just throw it back in his face!"

"No, that's not true! I—"

I had so many million examples of Naruto playing rude tricks on me. It was time to end this argument by proving how good I was to him. So I searched my mind for the perfect example, the perfect story to crush Hinata's stupid accusation. Some time when Naruto had really needed help and I'd been the one to graciously offer it.

But nothing came to mind. There had to be some time when I'd saved him… didn't there? Instead, all I could remember was insulting him. And I knew Naruto had a thing for me. He was a little more subtle than Lee, but that's not saying much. I tried my best to think of something selfless that I'd done for my friend. My irritating friend, but still my friend.

But all I could picture was scenes like that last big one. When I'd begged him to find Sasuke, and bring him back.

And Naruto promising.

Was I really that blind? I knew they were rivals. But it wasn't a rivalry over me, it was just between the two of them, right? I mean, what kind of girl would I be, to ask him to do that? To beg him to bring his rival back, so that I could cover Sasuke with affection and attention, and shove poor Naruto out in the cold.

That's exactly what I would have done. Truthfully, that's probably what I'd still do.

"I…"

Hinata was staring at me, accusingly. Her eyes are really good at staring.

"Okay," I admitted, "I wasn't entirely blind to how he felt. But I tried to be. I mean, I knew what Naruto wanted. But I needed Sasuke so bad… You don't know what that's like! It was just the three of us on Team Seven. And it seemed, sometimes, like if I pushed Naruto away a little, I was pushing myself closer to Sasuke."

My voice got quieter at the end as I realized just how damning my confession was.

I lay my stupid forehead down on the rough, cool wood of the tabletop.

"I'm a shit, aren't I?"

"You're the next sannin," Ino said. "People don't realize it yet, but they will. And soon, everyone's going to be watching you, talking about you, judging you." She gave a snort of disgust. "Hell, they'll probably write books about you."

"I am such an asshole. He's my friend. And I've never done a thing for him. Not one thing."

In the back of my mind, I was still trying to defend my actions. We were just kids! No more than thirteen! Of course I was immature!

But that didn't mean that it hurt any less. I remembered, far too clearly, how much it had hurt each time Sasuke had called me "useless." I wasn't that bad to Naruto, was I? I couldn't have been!

And, like always, my mind replayed that final scene. I'd begged him to go after Sasuke, and he'd smiled that smile of his, and promised, and done it. Instantly.

That Naruto smile, masking everything he really felt, and putting on that happy, carefree face that cheered up everyone. Whether it was Ibiki's "cheater's test," or facing missing nin, being short of cash, or facing a life-and-death fight, my friend had always given me a grin and a lift and a little bit of his infinite confidence.

I could feel my eyes puffing up as I looked at Hinata. "What do I do? How do I make it up to him? I can't give him what he wants. I don't feel about him the way he feels…felt…about me."

"Just be his friend," Hinata urged. "You don't have to love him." Her voice dropped down. "Honestly, I'm happier that you don't. But be a real friend."

I realized something. "You know, Hinata… Maybe, back when we were kids, maybe for a while Naruto had a crush on me."

I was speaking aloud as I thought. It was just an indication of how much I'd changed. As Ranma, whenever I'd done this, it had triggered disaster of epic proportions. But as Sakura, somehow, my uncensored words were not the utter insulting disaster that always seemed to issue from my lips in a previous life.

"He definitely had a crush on me. And you know what? Naruto doesn't deserve me. Not the way I've treated him. He deserves someone much better. Someone who would really treat him right. Someone who would put him first."

I raised my face, beginning to feel a shred of self-respect returning. The idea blazed at me.

"Hinata!" I said in excitement. "Don't you get it? I can't be the love that Naruto wants. I can't give him that! But he's – he's an incredible person! He deserves the best. He deserves happiness and love. So why don't we give him that!"

"Huh?" Both of them were staring at me in confusion.

"I've been keeping in touch with Naruto. The letters are irregular, but I can assure you, he doesn't have a girlfriend." I briefly channeled a pair of idiots from my old life. "It's time for: Operation Matchmaker!"

Hinata's expressive face momentarily blossomed, before closing down again.

"I – I can't. I wish I could, but I can't."

Her tone was dead. I don't mean that she sounded depressed, I mean that from her tone, you could tell that she'd had the time to pass through the stages of grief, before finally arriving at "acceptance."

"Yes you can!" I insisted. "With our help—"

Ino put a hand on my shoulder. "I think she's talking about something else."

Hinata nodded. "To control the byakugan – that's the whole purpose of the Hyuga clan. There have been many who wished to marry outside the clan, but they were never allowed. Never. I'm the heir. If I were allowed to defy the clan head – my father – then not only would the line of inheritance be broken, the other families within the clan – all of them – would be free. The restrictions would fall. They would have to. And the clan would disintegrate."

She sniffed.

"That's what would happen if I were to follow my heart."

Ino stared at us with bloodshot eyes. "Well… turd on a stick."

Then, in sympathy, she slammed her head into the table. And then began to snore.

Hinata and I looked at Ino, blinked, and stared at each other.

"She didn't have that much to drink, did she?" I asked.

"I… I don't think so."

But I didn't care. My mind was racing. I owed Naruto, and figured I owed Hinata, too. And to tell the truth, the thought of unrequited love just pierced something in my heart. I had to fix this! But that would mean disrupting the Hyuga clan, and perhaps disrupting their line of succession. How could I convince an utter powerhouse like Hyuga Hiashi that this was not only necessary, but a good idea?

What do you give the man who has everything? The Hyuga clan was already the most powerful clan in Konoha (particularly with the collapse of the Uchiha clan). They were unstoppable in combat, unbeatable in reconnaissance, and unmatched in gathering information. What could possibly make it worthwhile…

I looked at Hinata.

And then I smiled.

"We just have to offer your dad something big enough to make all the trouble worthwhile," I said, with a growing grin.

"I thought about that, but what could I ever give him?"

"Not you. Me. You remember when you said I was unarmed?"

Hinata nodded, looking me up and down.

"Watch closely…"

Instead, she suddenly shielded her eyes with both hands.

END OF CHAPTER 3

Next chapter: High clan negotiations, and Sakura finally learns Naruto's secret!