"There seems to be a big to-do going on over there. Everyone's rushing around and setting up a big feast." Neji reported.
Shikamaru nodded.
"Can you see any of the girls?" He asked.
Neji looked further and nodded.
"Sakura-chan and TenTen-kun are deep down in the basement." He said.
He clenched his fist, seeing TenTen and Sakura huddled in a corner. Their faces were dirty and they were scantly dressed. Neji could see several bruises on their arms and legs. He ground his teeth when TenTen turned her head and he saw her left eye was swollen and discolored.
"They're in very bad shape." He said through his teeth.
"What about Hinata-chan?" Naruto said fiercely.
Neji shook his head to clear it and continued scanning the hideout. Then he saw her. She was coming down a long flight of stairs. She looked well. Better than well, actually. She was gorgeous, all dressed up in a beautiful gown that accented her petite frame perfectly.
"She's fine. It would seem that she's what all the fuss is about." He said.
Naruto let out a sigh. She was safe, that was all that mattered.
"So, what's the plan?" Temari asked.
Kakashi closed his eyes and rubbed his chin in thought.
"Hm, well a frontal assault seems like it wouldn't get us anywhere. It should be easy enough to sneak down and get to Sakura-chan and TenTen-kun. The question is: how do we get Hinata-chan out of there without calling attention to ourselves?" He pondered.
He looked at Shikamaru.
"You got anything?" he asked, knowing his brain was always hard at work.
Shikamaru shrugged.
"If we could get hold of a maid outfit, Temari-chan could-OW!"
Temari whacked him up-side the head.
"Try again!" She said, annoyed.
Shikamaru rubbed his head.
"Actually, that's not a bad idea." Kakashi said.
Temari looked at him horrified.
"Are you serious? This is no time for sexual harassment!" She hissed.
Kakashi put his hands up defensively and tried to push the image of Temari in a French maid costume out of his mind.
"Listen. If you dress like a servant, you can sneak in undetected and get closer to Hinata-chan than any of us could." He explained.
Temari grimmaced.
"Is that the ONLY thing you can think of?" She asked.
Shikamaru shrugged.
"Depends, how long do you want to spend trying to get her out? Two weeks or three months?" He asked.
Naruto looked at Temari pleadingly. She sighed.
"Alright, alright. I 'll do it. " she said finally.
Hinata carefully made her way down the miles of stairs to the dinning room. She gasped when she saw the elaborate set up. It looked like twenty or more people were dinning instead of just "the boss" and herself. Speaking of which, where was her host?
"This way, Hyuuga-sama." Kasako said, leading her into the room.
Hinata followed, marveling at spread. She recognised most of the dishes, but some she had never seen before. She sincerely hoped she wasn't expected to try everything. Kasako sat her to the left of the head of the table. She sat down and looked up at Kasako.
"I suppose, you won't be staying?" Hinata asked nervously.
Kasako shook her head.
"The only servants allowed to attend will be the ones serving you food." she said with a sad smile.
Kasako ooked around.
"Hidkai-san should be out soon. I have to go." she said.
She looked at Hinata and smiled sympathetically.
"See you later, I suppose." she said before going off.
Kasako Went out of the room and down the hall, heading for her room. Kinoji stopped her. he grabbed her arm and roughly pulled her outside. He cupped his hand over her mouth just as she was about to scream. Tears sprung from her eyes.
"No duties to perform and no big sister to protect you. " Kinoji gloated gleefully.
He dragged her over to a dark, queit spot at the back of the hideout and threw her to the ground. She scrambld to try and get away from him. He caught her by the hair and slammed her face into the ground.
"That's right, little mouse, run! Run as fast as you can! You'll never get away from the mean, nasty cat!" he taunted.
"Please, please let me go! Leave me alone! Please!" Kasako begged.
Kinoji threw his head back and tore at her clothes. She screamed, knowing it was nearly impossible for anyone to hear her. But someone did. A kunai appeared on Kinoji's throat.
"Get off her and back away slowly." a strange blonde girl ordered him.
Kinoji gulped and slowly got off of Kasako. The foreign girl backed him up untill he was a few feet away. Then, without warning, three men appeared out of nowhere and captured him. Kasako didn't know if she sould stand and fight or run. She lay on the ground, too shocked to do either. When Kinoji was safely tied up, the blonde girl looked at Kasako.
"You're lucky we were looking for an opportunity like this." she said.
Kasako, thinking clearly again, got up and tried to run away. Her path was blocked by a big blonde man. He put his hands up.
"It's alright, we're not going to hurt you." he said gently.
Kasako looked at him, scared.
"Wh-Wh-Who are y-you? W-W-What do you w-want?" she asked timidly.
He put his hand on his chest.
"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. " he said.
Kasako's eyes widened. Hinata's fiance.
"And, to put it bluntly, we want your clothes." the blonde girl said from behind.
Kasako turned and looked at her, horrified.
"W-W-What?" she asked, shocked.
The girl shook her head.
"Trust me, it's not what you think. We just need a disguise." she said.
The girl stepped closer to her. Kasako put her hands up.
"Wait! I can help you!" she said desprately.
The girl rolled her eyes and kept coming. Naruto put his hand out to stop her.
"Wait, Temari-chan." he said.
Temari looked at him angrily.
"What's the matter?" she asked, annoyed.
"Let her tell us how she can help us." he said calmly.
Kasako looked at him gratefully. Temari humphed. She looed at Kasako.
"How can yo help us?" she asked.
"You're here to rescue Hinata-sama, aren't you?"
Naruto looked at Kasako, a light in his eyes.
"Do you know her, then?" he asked hopefully.
Kasako nodded.
"I was put in charge of taking care of her. I can get to her and tell her you're here. I can help her escape." she explained.
"Wait a minute!" Temari said.
She stepped forward and towered over Kasako threateningly.
"How do we know you're telling the truth? You could just be leading us into a trap." she questioned.
Kasako gulped. She looked past Temari at Naruto.
"Hyuuga-sama thinks about you all the time. At night, she tosses and turns with nightmares about being separated from you forever. She's going to have your twins. Michiko for a girl and Masashi for a boy." she said.
A tear rolled down Naruto's cheek.
"She's telling the truth, Temari-chan. Leave her alone." he said seriously.