A/N: Hold it, hold it… YES – another chapter is indeed here! (cheers and bounces all over the place) I WOULD'VE updated yesterday, but decided to go down. (growls)

But, first things first… Thank you from the very bottom of my heart for those absolutely baffling reviews! (sends out hugs and mountains of chocolate) You guys have seriously done miracles to my inspiration, you know? Thank you! Ah, before I forget… There's been A LOT of technical issues, so I wasn't able to send responses to reviews to all of you. Those who haven't received response to their review, search for it from underneath the chapter. I'm so sorry about the inconvenience! (winces)

Awkay, before you'll start throwing pitchforks at me… LET'S GO! I really hope you'll have great time with this one.

/ I close my eyes, I dare not look
When I can't see the another shore
Nor feel the land under my feet
I walk lonely steps
And now between the dark sky and the stream
I'm asking you to help

Hold my hand if my leg falters
Carry me, when my straw collapses
Let me fly from the shadows into the light
Carry me under the aegis of your wings
For my spirit is weak, a slave of luck
It's temple is fragile and slim
Will you walk with me over this bridge,
Morning and the last evening? /

(Indica: "Hold my hand", translated lyrics mostly from Lirama)

/ What most people in Konoha had already learned to know about Namikaze Minato was that he was not one to wait patiently, especially when something precious to him was at stake. That quite literally dark day, which was slowly turning into night, he was growing so exasperated that he wasn't able to sit still anymore.

He knew he should've been fighting – after all, there was a warn raging outside. But at the moment his mind was firmly fixed elsewhere.

His wife had been bleeding so badly when she'd been rushed over to give birth to their child! What if…?

" Hokage-sama?" The midwife's exhausted, soft voice brought him back into awareness. Turning his gaze, he met a woman who seemed just about ready to collapse.

He swallowed thickly, growing completely still. " Well?"

The woman hesitated for the longest time. " We managed to stop your wife's bleeding, but it's still too early to say whether she'll make it or not."

It felt like icy fist had hit him straight in the abdomen with full force, and he emitted a tiny gasp, his eyes squinting ever so slightly at pain he was unable to defend himself against. It took several minutes until he managed to look at the woman again. " What… What about the baby?" he all but breathed out. Finding no answer from her eyes, he went on. " My son… Did he make it?" /

CHAPTER 14: Hold My Hand

Naruto panted heavily and all but screamed when waking up from yet another nightmare Kyuubi had pushed him through, everything he'd just seen much too clear in his mind.

Fights… Blood… Bodies… Death…

He shuddered a little when feeling a hand on his shoulder until he recognized the touch. " Naruto?" Sasuke's eyes filled with understanding as soon as he looked at the boy. " You had nightmares again, didn't you?"

He looked away, biting his lip hard. At the moment, they both failed to become as disturbed as they should've when he snuggled close to the Uchiha's warmth, resting his head against the raven's comforting shoulder. " I just… I wish it'd leave me alone already."

Sasuke said or did nothing, but somehow it was the best he would've ever dared to hope for. He wasn't shoved away from the presence that comforted him far more than it should have. Words of ridicule also weren't thrown at him, although a part of him expected such.

In a spur of the moment his lips moved. " Hey, Sasuke…" He glanced towards the other, only to find that the boy was looking away. " Thanks." Even though the word itself was plain, he meant it more than he'd ever meant anything in his entire life.

Sasuke remained absolutely still for a moment, until there was something that sounded suspiciously lot like a 'Hn'. He found that it felt a lot worse than it should have when their hands lost contact. (The tiny moment reminded him painfully of those nightmarish days when Sasuke had been drifting far away from the rest of the world after Madara's tricks.) The raven got up, investigating their current environment – a forest – with sharp, careful eyes. " We should get going", the other announced rather gruffly. " This journey's already taken far longer than it should've. There's no need to make whoever's waiting for you even more annoyed."

He nodded, his mind busy with musings. " Yeah."

Ever since they'd left Suna, he'd had a distinct feeling that the Uchiha was stalling their journey on purpose. Slower pace – for the sake of Kyuubi and his leg, the raven had claimed – and extra hours spent resting, even at the risk of getting caught… He, however, chose not to investigate that so-called hunch any further. If he was honest with himself, he didn't really have absolutely anything against the delay.

They gathered their few belongings fast, then started to continue their journey towards the unknown.

He'd never been too good at fighting against his urges. That's why his hand brushed Sasuke's before either of them could really see it coming.

Sasuke cast a somewhat puzzled look towards him, eyes not carrying even tenth of the hardness the Uchiha would've probably wanted. " What are you doing?"

With reluctance that confused him his hand withdrew. A grin appeared to his face while he did something very childish. " Race you!" And before the raven could utter a word he'd sprinted into motion, not exactly sure of what he was running away from.

His smirk widened even still and his chest became warm when the boy muttered darkly but followed.

Had he paid more attention, he would've heard Kyuubi chuckle, but for once his ears were blissfully deaf to the demon. ' Kit, do you have any idea of how obvious you are?'

Karin had always considered Sasuke Uchiha as someone who was most often careful when it came to plans. That's why the raven's newest move made no sense to her. Would Sasuke really just take off with Naruto, when everything was still hanging up in the air?

" I know you don't usually listen to me, but I hope you will this time", Suigetsu stated in a somewhat edgy tone when they entered Sasuke's room. " We're making a huge mistake, because if he comes back we're dead."

She rolled her eyes. " Some ninja you are…"

The boy snorted, looking around. " Well excuse me for having normal instinct of self protection."

She opened her mouth to retort, also glancing around the room, when her eyes caught something and she grinned. " Gotcha!"

She felt Suigetsu's eyes sweep her way. " Now what?"

Eyes flashing, she knelt down and carefully – as though it could've shattered from touch – took what she'd just spotted from underneath the bed.

She'd found exactly what she'd been looking for.

Unlike most probably imagined, Gaara had never been a morning person. And that annoyingly bright daybreak was definitely on the lower end of his list of favourites.

Ever since that kiss after their sparring session, Neji had been basically avoiding him. Hard as he'd tried, he hadn't managed to catch a glimpse of the brunette since then. He had a pretty good idea of why.

He'd showed up into the garden two minutes late. All he'd found was a single drop of blood on a flower's petal.

He'd never been particularly patient. And that morning, he finally decided that enough was enough. He wasn't about to let Neji just push him away after all they'd been through – too many important things were left unsaid…

For someone who was playing hiding game, Neji was surprisingly easy to spot – apparently the Hyuuga had been too tired to think of escaping.

The building's library was so quiet that his steps echoed in walls while he approached the brunette (who was currently reading) slowly. " I have to admit, this place does seem fitting for you."

Neji's back was to him, so the brunette's expression remained a mystery to him. But he found every bit of information required from how the boy's shoulders tensed up completely while the other's book was slammed shut loudly. There was a long, heavy silence. " Any word from Naruto and Sasuke?"

His heart twitched a bit at the tone, let alone those words, but he refused to be a quitter. His eyes flashed. " Not yet. Fortunately that troupe from Konoha is still camping outside the village, so they haven't gotten their hands on those two. But that's not what I came here to talk about."

Did Neji just shudder? " I thought I made myself clear." The book made an unnaturally loud sound when the boy put it away slowly. " There's nothing left to be talked about."

He shivered a bit.

He hadn't managed to mess things up this badly by arriving too late, right?

He grit his teeth, eyes flashing. " Yes, there is." He counted to five before speaking again. " Neji, would you please at least turn around?"

Very slowly the Hyuuga obeyed – and his heart froze a bit at what he found. There was a huge, dark bruise decorating the boy's right eye.

At first came shock, then anger, so boiling it outshone even the one he'd felt while there was a demon inside him. " Who did that?" His voice screeched like metal. " Neji, who the hell did that to you?" Not that he would've needed to ask, really – he already knew.

Unfortunately Neji never had to answer, because there were steps before Suigetsu's voice spoke. " Uh… Are we… interrupting something?" the boy inquired, eyebrow arched.

He fought the urge to attack. " Yes." He went on after taking a deep breath. " What now?"

Karin, who'd been stood beside Suigetsu, walked up to him and handed a note with a solemn expression. " You should read this – I found it from under a bed. It's Sasuke's handwriting."

Frowning, he folded the paper open and shuddered at the words.

' Someone just lured Naruto away from Suna. I'm going with him.

Follow us as soon as you get this – it's a trap.'

His eyes flashed while fist clenched around the piece of paper. " Pack up. We're leaving – now."

Hinata had always been emotional. That's why it didn't really surprise her that all the feelings she was far from used to disturbed her.

It wasn't all that long from when she'd last met Kiba, but she wished from the bottom of her heart that they could've been back in Konoha. It was pure torture to be apart when there were this many unsolved things between – including that stupid kiss she was still embarrassed by.

" Hinata." TenTen's voice – despite the fact that it was soft and filled with sympathy – startled her. She found the girl glancing her way while they kept sprinting forth. " Something's been bothering you since we left Konoha." The girl mused for a while. " Is it Kiba?"

Her cheeks gained a shade of scarlet in a matter of seconds, and she looked away in a desperate attempt to hide at least some of her humiliation. " I… I d-did something s-stupid."

" You mean that kiss?" The brunette smirked wistfully when facing her nearly scared look. " When the shyest girl in the entire village does something that remarkable, the word is out fast." The girl's eyes turned gentle, then almost sad. " Look… I know what unrequited love looks and feels like. Trust me, yours isn't such."

She opened her mouth, but before a word came out Chouji interrupted them with a voice that was much more grave than usually. " I… found something."

Exchanging worried looks, they walked towards the boy's direction. Hinata threw up as soon as the sight met her.

Laying on the ground before them was a young woman at the age of about twenty with long-grown, tied up strange hair that held colours of honey and red. Her blood caked headband carried Konoha's symbol. (1)

TenTen swallowed thickly. " Is she…?" The unfinished question was quite pointless. The blood spreading everywhere around them told that all hope had been lost long ago.

Chouji knelt down, then nodded with a solemn expression. " She's already cold", the boy murmured, voice shuddering just a little. " It must've been hours, if not even days…"

All three of them stared at the corpse in utter silence, all wondering the same thing.

Who the hell could do something like this?!

The girls were surprised when Chouji suddenly moved, lifting the young woman gently into his arms. " W-What are y-you doing?" Hinata inquired, voice shaky.

Chouji's eyes flashed just a bit. " We… We can't just leave her here." The boy then started to speed off once more, the stranger still in his arms. " Let's go – we've still got a lot of miles to cover."

Just as she was about to follow, Hinata noticed something on the ground. A bloodied envelope, which had most definitely fallen from the woman. She picked it up, noticing that there was only one word written to it, every tiny straw of pen revealing great affection.

' Rina'

After hesitating for a moment she slid the finding into her pocket before following her team.

She had no idea of why just yet, but she got a feeling that it was something precious and important.

-

None of them noticed a raven sitting on nearby tree branch. If it's possible for birds to cry, that's exactly what it did while watching the unmoving form in Chouji's arms.

Giving a heartbroken cry, it rose to its wings and headed towards the unknown.

It's earthly task wasn't quite finished yet.

It was Naruto's own little secret that he'd always enjoyed travelling around. But at the moment, with the full truth about his family out there waiting for him, he was getting even more impatient than usually.

" Teme, are we there yet?" he all but whined, kicking an innocent stone. " If I didn't know better, I'd say we're running around in circles."

Sasuke made a groan-like sound, and seemed to come close to rolling his eyes. " Deadlast, if it's that unbearable for you to be here, just leave. You were the one who insisted on making this journey, remember?"

The words he spoke with a wide grin weren't those he'd expected to come. " Who said I'd have anything against this?" His expression then faltered. " I just wish I knew what's waiting for us."

His eyes found the surface of a small river, and he stared at his reflection for a while.

Very soon, he might finally learn everything about his family – whether he was ready for the information or not. That creepy hooded person had said something about him learning his true destiny. Suddenly, he was terrified of finding out what that was, especially now that he'd been basically exiled from Konoha.

He was coaxed out of those thoughts by a rather gentle swat directed to his head. " Dobe, stop sulking", Sasuke commanded while taking a seat beside him.

" Bastard!" he accused, but nonetheless found himself sneaking just a little bit closer to the Uchiha, almost enough so to touch warm skin. A smile spread across his face while he subconsciously took the boy's hand.

Maybe things weren't as messed up as he'd thought, after all.

They sat there for a lot longer than they'd indented, and when they finally got up their muscles were stiff and sore.

He groaned loudly. " That was a big mistake."

Sasuke was just about to respond until they head a small snap that certainly did not belong to nature. Looking down, they saw a branch that'd remained intact although both of them had stepped on it.

A trap.

He winced. " This is bad, right?"

He wasn't entirely sure if he imagined it, but it looked like Sasuke stiffened even further when nodding.

All of a sudden two shurikens came flying towards them from the high tops of nearby trees, obviously to warn them. They ducked – ending up so close that the proximity brought both of them chills – and watched as weapon after another flew by some seconds later, shot towards them from a tree directly before them. " What the hell was that about?" he all but snarled.

Sasuke's eyes flashed red. " We're close, and someone wants us to make it until the end."

He opened his mouth when looking towards the Uchiha – but all words froze into his throat, and he emitted a gasp instead.

Sasuke frowned. " What?"

He nodded, signalling Sasuke to look towards the direction. The raven did as ordered, and they stared at what they found for the longest time.

A cave.

" How about that, teme – you were right. We really are close", he barely managed.

Kankuro had never been good at saying goodbye. That's why he tried to avoid Izumi at all costs before heading on his mission.

All his efforts were, however, proven to be in vain, for less than an our before his departure the door of his room opened after a quick knock. He didn't have to turn around, for the scent of exotic herbs told him instantly who it was.

Izumi remained silent for a long time before speaking with a voice he barely recognized. " So you were planning on leaving without goodbye?"

He grit his teeth before words broke through what felt like a wall. " No."

" You're a pretty bad liar."

Gathering all his courage, he managed to turn around to find her approaching.

Izumi's hand was far colder than he'd remembered when she laid it to his cheek, unseeing eyes looking into his as though they would've been able to make out every single detail and trace of a lie. " Come back alive, do you hear me?"

He smirked, although it didn't come out quite the way he would've wanted. " I'll definitely do my best", he promised in a hoarse tone.

This was a tender moment – possibly the last time they ever saw each other, both knew although it wasn't voiced. That's why unexpected moves were very acceptable.

A shudder crossed him when Izumi rose to her tiptoes all of a sudden and brushed her lips against his, knowing where to find them perfectly. After having remained frozen by shock for a while he responded, doing his hardest to express absolutely everything in that gesture.

Once they were done with the kiss, they took a long look towards each other although Izumi couldn't see, trying their hardest to imprint every little detail. Then, without saying a word, he let go of her hand he didn't remember grabbing and walked out of the room fast before he would've changed his mind.

-

Izumi stood completely still for a long time, using absolutely all training given to her to remain at least slightly composed.

Then – so fast she surprised even herself – she started to dash out of the room.

She couldn't participate in the battle. But that didn't mean she would've been unable to help.

Shino had never particularly enjoyed of afternoons, even more so now in Suna. It was always too hot already early on, and heat made it impossible to think clearly. But nonetheless, he couldn't help feeling very well satisfied while watching sunrays play on Suzume's skin while the girl pulled on a shirt.

The girl's back was to him, but that didn't mean she would've been completely oblivious. " You know, it's entertaining to sit here being stared at by you, but don't we have something else to do?"

It took his all not to groan. " Yeah", he admitted with utter reluctance while starting to prepare himself. " Sakura's going to come and drag us out of here with force if we show up too late."

Suna's early afternoons were often merciless. That's why he was surprised when feeling a disturbingly cold breeze entering through the room's window and caressing his skin.

Suzume, apparently noticing his moment of discomfort, glanced towards him with a frown. " What's wrong?"

He, too, frowned. " I… don't know." In a spur of the moment, he went on. " Look… I know this sounds completely idiotic, but… Promise me that this will end well."

Suzume blinked slowly for a couple of times before uttering. " What?"

He winced. Like this wouldn't already be humiliating enough… " Just promise me, okay? Please."

Suzume's eyes softened when she seemed to understand just how important the silly promise was to him. " Yeah, I promise." She took his hand, most likely without even noticing it. " Now let's go. I think we're already too late."

It was the last and most bitter time he chose to not trust on his instincts, which were currently screaming at him that something was terribly wrong.

While preparing himself for heading after Naruto and Sasuke, Neji mused that he'd been suffering from a lot of headaches since coming to Suna. Ache was pounding right underneath his skull that afternoon as well, heavier than ever.

The night he'd been supposed to meet Gaara in the garden, a about fifty-years-old man had showed up instead. The man's words were far fresher in his mind than the bruise covering his eye.

/ " You have to understand that he's the leader of a village. He has responsibilities, and a lot is expected of him. That… thing you're seeking to have with him… It'd destroy him, and this village. Would you really be able to live with yourself after causing that?" /

" I know you won't talk." Gaara's voice sent shivers down his spine. " But there's nothing you can do to keep yourself from listening."

He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and grit his teeth. Doesn't this hurt enough already? " Gaara, stop it." His voice was choked, barely a wheeze. " Whatever you've got to say, just… just forget it, please. It's better this way."

At that moment, it seemed, urges took the best of the usually cool and composed redhead. He didn't manage to do anything but inhale some breath for a snarl before the boy had marched over to him, whirled him around and crushed a pair of hot, demanding lips against his.

Even with that man's words still bombarding his head, he found himself melting into the forbidden touch and his lips moved with something that was far from harsh words.

Several minutes must've passed before lack of oxygen forced them into breaking apart. " You shouldn't have done that", he breathed out in a pant, eyes firmly closed once more.

A small sound of amusement escaped from Gaara while the redhead's hand reached out and started to stroke his hair gently. " I know. But I needed to."

He didn't care in the slightest if he was shuddering, or even if he'd bring down the whole damn world with what he was about to do. No sense, logic or future mattered.

Very slowly, his lips found Gaara's and melted against them.

Because in all honesty… Gaara wasn't the only one who needed this.

-

It was fortunate, perhaps, that the couple was too worked up by each other to notice Gaara's personal advisor, Genji, peering towards them through the room's slightly open door.

The man's eyes immediately flashed with repulsion.

He'd wished things wouldn't go this far, but now…

He would do anything to protect his village. Even if it'd take breaking some foolish hearts…

Although his heart was far heavier than it should've been, Sai already thought he'd managed to dodge danger while walking towards the village's gates about half an hour later. He discovered how sadly wrong he'd been only when he saw a very familiar girl stood about ten steps away, arms folded and a stormy expression upon her face.

The others stood back subtly while he approached slowly. " I… thought you were supposed to stay here." His heart was a hammering a little although it couldn't be seen from his face. If she'd come along, if she'd get hurt…

Ino's eyes flamed. " If you're expecting a girl to just sit around waiting, you shouldn't leave them a flower and a note that says 'I'm sorry'", she all but hissed.

His eyebrows furrowed, forming a frown. " Why are you doing this? I thought…"

Before he could ever finish, Ino visibly gathered absolutely all her courage and slammed her lips against his with such force that took his breath away.

The kiss lasted for about half a minute before she pulled away, adrenaline making her eyes flash. " Does that answer your question?" Seeing him open his mouth breathlessly, she nodded. " Good. Now let's go, we have a lot of distance to cover."

Their hands remained clasped together as they went.

Although they hadn't been traveling for all that long, the journey towards the Akatsuki's base felt endless to Shikamaru, who'd been suffering from a crushing headache ever since crossing Konoha's borderline. Temari's presence certainly did nothing to help.

He gave a sudden yelp when feeling ice cold water from a nearby river being poured over him. His eyes narrowed dangerously when rising and meeting Temari, who was holding a now empty bucket in her hands. " What the heck did you do that for?!"

" You've been spacing out all morning", the girl informed him somewhat dryly. " We're approaching the enemy's territory, Nara – I don't want to see you walking in your sleep like that. So spill."

He looked down, watched how drops of water fell from him to the ground. " I…" He sighed with exasperation, gazing back at the girl. " I'm just too damn confused."

Temari's eyebrow bounced up, sending a loud alarming sign. " This is about Shiho, right?"

At the moment, he decided that half-truth was better than getting himself killed. " Yeah." He groaned, rubbing his face with one hand. " I'm such a stupid coward sometimes." There'd been something important he'd wanted to tell Shiho before leaving Konoha. He'd made it to her doorstep, but never knocked.

Temari seemed to click in an instant, and the girl's teal coloured eyes filled with accusation. " You left without goodbyes or explanations, didn't you?" When he couldn't come up with anything to say, she shook her head with an expression that was impossible to read. " You guys are incredibly idiotic at times, you know that?" With that, she started to walk away. " I'll go and see if Kiba and Akamaru have found anything yet."

-

In the meantime, Kakashi's head was also very much busy. It wasn't enough that he had Rin, Naruto, Sasuke and even Sakura to worry about. It also appeared that Iruka hadn't recovered as fast as the man had claimed, either.

He gave a deep frown when seeing the man wince, then move his fingers in a rhythm of some jutsu he didn't know. " That's the fifth time today I see you trying to get rid of the pain", he pointed out, voice uncharacteristically soft. He hesitated for a while before asking, not sure if he wanted an answer. " Just how bad is it?"

Finishing up the jutsu, the teacher shuddered a little, not meeting his eyes. " Nothing I can't handle", the brunette murmured.

They remained in somewhat thoughtful silence for a long time – he once again much too aware of Iruka's injuries, and the man trying to fight off pain – until he couldn't keep himself from asking anymore. " Iruka… Why are you doing this? Why…?" Why are you risking your life for this damn mission?

The man's eyes rose, and he felt chills when meeting their intensity. " I think you already know." With that the brunette got up, all but rushing away from him. " I'll better take a little walk – it usually helps with the pain."

He stared at the teacher's distancing back for quite a while with helpless, almost annoyed eyes, until his gaze turned and met Shikamaru's, who'd just managed to look away from distancing Temari.

Their gazes held the same message.

' I know exactly how you feel.'

-

What the group couldn't possibly know was that their approach was being monitored…

Konan – who'd just sunken deep into her thoughts – jolted back into awareness when Pein growled, eyes flaming with annoyance. " What's wrong?"

It took a while before the man managed to produce a reply. " Those people from Konoha are approaching, fast. It seems they know there isn't much time left."

She frowned. " How?" Had someone sold them out?

" I don't know." Pein's eyes turned chilling before the man turned around and started to walk away. " But it seems that if I want something done, I'll have to do it myself."

Sasuke definitely wasn't someone to get worked up or nervous easily. That's why the emotions circling underneath his skin unnerved him while he entered the cave with Naruto.

Something bad was going on. He could feel it with every single cell in his body.

He shuddered but didn't find it in him to pull away when Naruto grabbed his hand, blue eyes filled with anticipation. " So… This is it, huh? The moment of truth."

" Hn", was all he managed to come up with at the moment.

Just then, they noticed stairs about six steps ahead. Naruto gave a very nervous grin, starting to proceed. " Well, here goes nothing…"

Naruto was too agitated to pay attention, but his eyes were sharp enough to notice that there was something wrong with the floor. His eyes flew wide when he saw a piece of stone dip under the blonde's foot. " Naruto, don't…!" He never made it to the finish.

For several seconds they only stared at each other, hearts hammering in a perfectly synced rhythm. Then, all happened so fast that he didn't even manage to blink.

Floor disappeared from underneath his feet and he fell, Naruto's horror filled scream left echoing into his skull. The blonde reached out a hand, but their fingers never got the chance to even brush. " SASUKE!"

He tried to respond, but no words willed their way to his tongue.

He fell, fell and fell, for what felt like an infinity, until his back met something hard, heavily. He winced and coughed despite himself when all air became slammed out of his lungs.

" Well isn't this a pleasant surprise." Chills ran down his spine at the far too familiar voice. " I'm sorry about the harsh welcome."

Still unable to utter another word with the infuriating lack of breath, he lifted his gaze to meet Madara's masked face. Very slowly, he got enough of air to half-wheeze a soul word. " Naruto…" If that bastard would harm the dobe…

" I wouldn't worry about him", Madara stated in strange, purr like voice. " I'm sure he'll have… pleasant time with my apprentice." The man pointed towards a chair. " Why don't you sit down and relax? This may take a while."

-

Naruto had no idea of for how long he stayed there on the edge of the opening that'd appeared in the floor – screaming with desperation and some tears leaking to his cheeks – until there was a sound he recognized much too well, coming from somewhere underneath the stairs he'd seen before. " I'd suggest you to stop whining", the hooded stranger he couldn't see yet advised. " If you want your little… friend back, you'll have to find me first."

His legs felt unnaturally heavy when he made his way down the stony stairs, heart hammering against his ribcage.

He'd brought Sasuke here, into a trap. The least he could do was to try and fix this mess.

Kyuubi's voice didn't sound quite like the one he'd remembered when the demon yet again stirred into life inside his head. ' This is going to be interesting.'

He made a hissing sound, squinting his eyes. ' You, stay out of this!'

There was a chuckle. ' I'm afraid I can't. I'm already much too involved.'

He frowned, and was just about to ask for a clarification until the hooded one's voice interrupted him. " You don't have to search any longer, Naruto. I'm right here."

Spinning around, he saw a hooded figure standing in shadows, leaning against a wall just as carelessly as the last time they'd met. " You", he all but growled, Kyuubi's constantly growing power almost more than he could handle. " Give Sasuke back right now, and tell me whatever the hell that information you're supposed to have is."

The other chuckled. " Getting impatient, are we? I'm not surprised – I can feel it, too." There was a moment's pause, during which the other undoubtedly examined him from covers of a fabric. " But, like you said, let's get to business." There was a pause. " What I told you wasn't a lie – your mother is alive, she lives in the middle of a forest. She's quite a herbalist these days."

He swallowed, mouth very dry and head starting to spin. " How…?" He didn't even know where to start. " Why…?"

" As to why, I'm not entirely sure – after all, not even I am all knowing. But according to what's been told to me, Danzou ordered to have her removed from the village for her safety. She lost her memory quite soon after the Fourth's death. Those few who know she's alive suspect she asked Danzou to wipe it away." The other held a break to allow him to try and swallow this information. " Danzou demanded you to be killed as soon as a piece of Kyuubi had been sealed into you, and even went as far as telling your mother that you died during the sealing process. He would've done absolutely anything he saw fit for her, you see – for his daughter. Still would."

His head spun so badly that he had to support himself against a wall, eyes growing even wider than they'd been before.

Danzou, he was… He had… His mother was…

The hooded one started to walk closer. " I know it's overwhelming. But I need you to focus for just a little bit longer." A chillingly cool hand was planted to his cheek. " Because you haven't heard the full story just yet. You see, there are three Uzumakis left in the world."

His eyes – an inch from changing when Kyuubi gained even more strength from the other's touch – squinted to slits, and before his companion could do more than take a sidestep he slashed with long grown nails, managing to all but shred the stranger's hood. " Stay the hell away from me!"

The other took a look at the practically destroyed fabric, then shrugged. " Oh well… I'm sick and tired of wearing this thing, anyway."

/ " It isn't the only secret that's been kept from you." /

/ " Congratulations, Hokage-sama!" /

Naruto's eyes – still blue although some transformation had taken place – widened significantly when the hood finally became removed, revealing him the face of a girl that took all his breath away. His chest turned completely cold.

Familiar whisker marks… Long, blonde hair of equally recognizable shade tied to a ponytail… In fact – apart from gender – the only difference were those eyes, burgundy and full of icy fire.

/ " I happen to have… a very special bond to Naruto." /

/ " You have twins – a boy and a girl." /

The girl stood before him was an exact female version of him.

She grinned, clearly enjoying of his expression. " Hello there, Naruto." The eyes turned even colder still. " You have no idea of how long I've been waiting for this."

TBC, un!

1) Because I'm not a sadist enough to expect you to remember… Rina was introduced some chapters back – she's that chick who saved Sasuke with letting him escape, plus both the Uchiha and Naruto with putting up a storm.

A/N: (glances around with fidgety eyes)

Eh… My defence? The next chapter is ALMOST done, so I'll be able to update fast.

So PLEASE don't kill me – if you do, you'll never get the next chapter!

(screams and runs away from sharp objects)

PLEASE do leave a review, yeah?

Until next time, no?

Be good!

Five chapters to go, counting in the epilogue.

StreetRacerSakura: Sweet and cute? Aww, thank you so much!
Massive thank yous for the review – I'm thrilled to hear you enjoyed of your stay with the chapter! C ya around, yeah?

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realityfling18: A LOT of drama and excitement indeed! And I doubt it'll get any lesser towards the end… (sweatdrops)

Gosh – I still find it absolutely incredible that someone would admire my writing skills! (faints from shock) Thank you, from the bottom of my heart! (bows, blushing quite a bit like Hinata)

Colossal thank yous for the review – I'm jumping with joy upon hearing you enjoyed the chapter and that it had you leaning over your seat, as well to know the story isn't confusing although so much is happening! I really hope you'll like the rest just as much.

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DeathRow609: FABULOUS?! (blushes) WOAH – thank you so much!

Everest sized thank yous for the review – 'thrilled to hear you had good time with the chapter! I really hope you'll enjoy the rest as well.

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Izolda: Together again indeed! (squeals with delight) Aren't they just too adorable?

Gigantic thank yous for the review – I'm beyond thrilled to hear you think the story's getting better and better! I really hope you'll enjoy the rest as well.

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Halskr: Heh, you're very welcome for the fast updates. I've just decided to add fuel, because quite soon I'll have be too busy to do pretty much any writing at all… (sweatdrops) We'll see what happens to the updates.

BUT, back to present!

It indeed is a lot easier to keep track on everything now that everything's happening in only a couple of places and everyone has the pretty much same goal, eh? Gosh, how I've been waiting for this point of the story!
Awww – I'm thrilled to hear you think those various acts add depth! I feel it's too strapping to only describe what's happening from one or two people's point(s) of view. I'm glad I haven't made a huge mistake with adding different angles. (jumps with joy)

Monumental thank yous for the heart warming review – heh, it's DEFINITELY my pleasure to share this lil' fic with audience like you! I really hope you'll enjoy the rest as well.

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EdSpikeSesshyGirl: (chuckles) Skip school, hmm? Now there's a thought!

(snickers sadistically) OF COURSE there was another wrinkle – there always is… (keeps snickering mysteriously)
And GOSH, am I glad Sasuke went with Naru-kun, too! To think what kind of a mess the kitsune would've gotten into if he'd left all alone… (shudders)

Massive thank yous for the review! I really hope you'll have a good time with the rest of the story as well.

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lydia-chan: Lots of fluff in chapter 13 indeed!

GaaraNeji is SO cute! I really hope it's Gaara approaching the Hyuuga, too. If not… (shudders) The options aren't exactly pleasant.

KibaHina totally RULES!

Heh, so I'm not the only one who has a weird soft spot for Kisame! I've just always found something oddly adorable about him. Plus, I loved his interaction with Itachi. (sniffs) (Poor 'Tachi-kun – R.I.P!)

Everest sized thank yous for the review – 'thrilled to hear you liked the chapter! I really hope you'll enjoy the rest as well.