Gogeta: Hey everybody. Sorry to say, but I've caught up with what I've already written. Turns out that I don't have as much free time as I thought I was going to have and on top of that, I got in a little trouble so I have even less free time now. Because of that, it could be two or three weeks before my next chapter and this chapter is going to be a little bit shorter than the others.

Lee: What happened, Gogeta-san?

Gogeta: Eh, I was five seconds too slow on a run…

Naruto: Five seconds? Couldn't they just let that slide?

Gogeta: Aparently not…

Hinata: How long are you in trouble for?

Gogeta: Until I take another PT test which is in two weeks…

Neji: Two weeks of punishment for being five seconds too slow? Harsh.

Tenten: You just have to train some more for this next test so you'll be sure to pass.

Gogeta: That's the plan and it's also part of the reason I have less free time.

Lee: I will help you train, Gogeta-san!

Gogeta: Aren't you still in the hospital though?

Tsunade: He should be, but he keeps escaping! Get over here Lee!

Lee: Sorry, Gogeta-san, I will have to help you another time!

Tsunade: Lee!

Naruto: Shouldn't you be helping with that, Sakura-chan?

Sakura: You kidding? I'm pregnant. I ain't doing shit.

Shino: That isn't much of an excuse.

Females: Excuse me?

Shikamaru: God, don't you know anything about females?

Choji: You should probably run, Shino.

Kiba: Yeah, double time.

Shino: I'll be going now…

Gogeta: Ok, before more people get attacked, let's start this chapter.

"We're getting close." Neji said, "Only a hundred feet left."

"Let's stop here." Naruto said and they dropped from the tree tops.

"We should probably inform Hokage-sama of our position." Hinata suggested.

"Good idea, but how do we do that?" Naruto asked.

Hinata formed some seals and put her palm to the ground. The summoning circle appeared and a small bird was summoned, "Hyuuga family summoing."

"Technically you're not a Hyuuga anymore." The bird chirped.

"The name may not be hers, but she still has the blood of a Hyuuga." Neji snarled.

"Oh Neji-sama! I did not see you there." The bird said, bowing the best it could.

"Regardless, I have a message for you." Hinata said.

The bird looked mutinous, but one look from Neji and it took the scroll Hinata had made. "Take this map to Hokage-sama and any other Leaf ninja you find along the way."

The bird nodded and flew away with the map in its talons. The four ninja all faced each other and prepared themselves for the worst.

"Are we ready?" Naruto asked as he made two more clones to replace the ones he'd used on the way.

"As we'll ever be." Hinata said.

"I still don't see anything." Tenten said looking in the direction of their target.

"Trust me, it's there." Neji said.

"Whatever is hiding it makes it look like it's underwater." Hinata added.

"I can sense it too." Naruto said, "It's unlike anything I've ever felt."

"There will likely be lots of enemies there." Hinata said.

"Well it's supposed to be the enemy's base." Tenten said.

"Let's go." Naruto said and they continued through the tree tops.

"So what's the plan?" Tenten asked, "Stealth or attack?"

"Whichever is faster." Naruto answered.

"Attack then." Tenten agreed.

"With their Sharingan, stealth would be useless against this enemy anyway." Neji said.

"Get ready, the target is just passed this last tree." Hinata warned.

"Hinata with me, Neji and Tenten, stay back and wait for my signal!" Naruto ordered, "I'm punching through."

"What are you-"

"Just do it!" Naruto roared, cutting Neji off. Rage filled his whole face, but Tenten grabbed Neji and they fell behind. "Don't worry kids, we're coming."

Naruto and Hinata burst from the foliage and found a completely empty clearing where the target should be. Naruto and Hinata shared a look, but before they could ask a question, an alarm began to sound and enemy ninja began to appear out of thin air. They spotted the two Konoha ninja and moved to intercept them. Naruto formed a seal and to the eyes of the Byakugan and Sharingan users, he appeared to be brighter than the sun. He held out his hand to Hinata and her hands moved over his in a rapid blur, forming a Rasengan. It blossomed blue in Naruto's hand, but then shifted to white and began to steadily grow larger. They shared a smile and then Hinata grabbed his shirt, spun in mid-air and flung him earthward just as a lasso wrapped around her waist and yanked her back to the tree line. Naruto roared as he plummeted to the ground and the Rasengan expanded to fill the entire clearing. The enemy ninja unleashed their own attacks, but the White Rasengan easily canceled them out and collided with the ground. It grinded against the earth and sank half way before exploding, blowing Naruto back into the trees. He fell through several branches before Neji appeared and caught him. They both landed and Neji laid Naruto down on the forest floor, finding that he was unconscious. Neji checked him over and found that he was breather, just knocked out.

Naruto, you put that much into an attack and nearly destroyed yourself…all for our children. Neji thought, How…how could I ever have thought that you wouldn't give it your all?

"Naruto!" Hinata cried when she found them.

"He's fine, Hinata-sama." Neji said. "Just pushed himself a little too far."

Hinata came closer and knelt next to Naruto, stroking his hair, "You saw it didn't you? That glow."

"Yes, I almost couldn't look at him he was so bright."

"He absorbed all the natural chakra from the four clones we'd left behind and put it all into that Rasengan."

"He absorbed that much natural chakra?"

"Yes." Hinata said. "It's probably because he released it so quickly that it didn't turn him into a frog."

"How did he survive that explosion though?" Neji asked. "I stayed back and it still almost knocked me down."

"I'm guessing he saved some Natural Chakra to stay in Sage Mode to survive it."

"So...so that wasn't his full power?" Neji said, astonished.

Hinata shook her head and pulled Naruto's head onto her lap, still stroking his hair. Just then Tenten appeared and when she saw the three, her face lost all its color.

"Don't tell me he's…"

"No, he's alive." Hinata said.

"Oh thank goodness," she said, putting a hand over her heart, "I took a look at the wreckage…you should see what's left."

Both Hyuuga's reactivated their Byakugan and their vision moved back through the trees to the clearing. All that was left was a 30 ft deep crater, except for at the center. At the center was a pillar of earth right where there hadn't been any tents and whatever concealment had been in place was gone. In its place was a small ordinary looking house.

"What?" Neji said, "There's no way that's the enemy's hideout."

"How was it not destroyed?" Hinata wondered.

"The concealment you guys saw must have acted like a shield." Tenten said. "Good thing Naruto was here. I don't know how we would've broken through without him."

"Hinata, we can't afford to wait for Naruto to recover. Tenten and I are going on ahead." Neji said.

"N-no…" Naruto muttered, his eyes slowly opening.

"Naruto!" Hinata said "Stay still, you took some damage from that last attack."

"I heal quickly." Naruto said, trying to sit up.

"Naruto! Lay down!" Hinata said with an uncommon forcefulness. Naruto's surprised eyes met her stern ones and he laid his head back down on her lap.

"What about the kids?" he asked.

"Like I said, leave it to us." Neji said.

"Take this just in case." Naruto said pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket.

Neji took it and looked at the paper, "What would I need a seal for?"

"Just in case." Naruto said and passed out again.

"You've never steered me wrong before," Neji said and pocketed the paper, "We'll do our best to find the kids."

"We won't be far behind you." Hinata nodded to her cousin.

Neji and Tenten shared a look and then sped off to the small shack.

"What happened to him?" Tsunade demanded when she saw Lee.

"The enemy was stronger than we anticipated. "Shino explained.

Tsunade placed her hand on Lee and her chakra flooded her hand as she began her initial examination. "I haven't seen him this beat up since the Chuunin Exams."

"These three may also require attention." Shino said, indicating Kiba, Akamaru and Choji.

"Don't worry about us," Kiba said, "Lee's hurt a lot worse than us."

"You're right." Tsunade agreed, "Broken arm, four broken ribs, internal bleeding, cracks to the skull…get him to an operating room STAT!"

"Yes Tsunade-sama." Some nurses said and rushed Lee away.

"Good job getting him back so soon, he'll be fine." Tsunade called as she followed the nurses.

"How are you guys." Ino asked.

"We're ok. Some bumps and bruises, but we'll be fine." Kiba said.

"I should still check you over." Ino said, "If nothing else the kids will be happy to see you're ok."

They all followed Ino back to the children's room to find Iwa still talking to Sakura's stomach while Shikage and Kurotsubaki had started playing Shogi. As they entered, everybody look and the game of Shogi was forgotten.

"Choji-san! You're ok!" Shikage said and ran to him.

"Of course I am. The enemy may be tough, but they can't beat me." Choji said patting her head.

"Have a seat and I'll check you guys over." Ino said pulling out some chairs around Sakura's table.

"Are they hurt?" Sakura asked and moved to get up, but Ino held her down.

"I got this, Sakura-chan. Tsunade-sama trained me too you know."

"I'll help if she needs it." Shizune said reassuringly.

Ino began to check over her friends and deemed them medically healthy. She applied salves and bandages to their minor wounds and used her chakra to relax their stiff muscles. She even managed to reset Choji's nose.

"I'm sorry I can't do anything for Akamaru." Ino said, "I don't know much when it comes to animals."

"Don't worry. We'll stop at home and have him looked at." Kiba said, petting Akamaru who whined quietly.

"Sounds like you should do that sooner rather than later." Ino said, concerned.

"Yeah, but he absolutely hates the V-E-T." Kiba said and Akamaru whined louder, his tail going between his legs.

"Seems he can spell too." Sakura laughed.

"Ino's right though. Thanks Ino, I feel a lot better." Kiba said rubbing his neck, "Come on Akamaru, let's go get you looked at." Akamaru whined again but reluctantly followed.

"Be careful, Kiba." Ino called.

"Hey Choji-san, guess what!" Iwa said.

"What?"

"Ka-sama has a bun in the oven!"

"Oh, what kind? I'm feeling a little peckish." Choji said with a chuckle.

"No, I have a little brother on the way!" Iwa said.

"No way!" Choji said with genuine surprise, "I'm surprised Lee didn't tell us. Congrats Sakura-chan."

"Thank you, Choji." Sakura said with a smile.

"Another Haruno? The village will have to be on its toes." Shino said.

"Was that a joke, Shino?" Sakura laughed, "I'm not sure if I'm more surprised that I said the same thing or if you just made a joke." Shino said nothing, but stared at her blankly.

"So what happened out there, Choji-san?" Shikage asked.

"We found the bad guys trying to steal candy so we beat them up." Choji said.

"Why were they trying tos teal candy?" Shikage asked.

"I don't know, maybe they had a sweet tooth." Choji laughed.

"Or they were hoping to use it to bribe Ki'iro and Hizashi." Kurotsubaki said.

"What do you mean?" Shino asked.

"They've obviously been kidnapped otherwise they'd be here with us." Shikage said.

"Bribing them with candy…I hate when people assume we're just stupid kids." Kurotsubaki mumbled.

The adults shared a look; amazed that the kids had thought of that and fearful of what the enemy might be using the children for.

"Where's Lee?" Sakura asked, "He said you were in his team Choji."

Choji and Shino shared an awkward glance, "He…uh…"

"What happened?" Sakura demanded, fear in her voice.

"He's in surgery now." Ino said.

Sakura's eyes went wide with shock, "What happened?" she demanded again of Choji and Shino.

"To-sama will be ok, right?" Iwa asked.

"Tsunade said he suffered several broken bones, but said he'd be fine."

"Shut up, Ino!" Sakura yelled, "I want them to tell me."

"He attacked the enemy head on and was over powered." Shino said simply.

"I…also may have hurt him…" Choji muttered.

"What?"

"I belly flopped on the enemy and might have hurt Lee." Choji explained.

"They enemy also said they did the damage to him." Shino said.

"You didn't hurt To-sama on purpose did you, Akimichi-san?" Iwa asked.

"No-no, of course not!" Choji said, "I was trying to save him."

Iwa stared at Choji for a long time and Choji could feel sweat beading on his brow, "I believe you. Ka-sama, Akimichi-san didn't hurt To-sama."

"How do you know?" Shino asked curiously.

"I just do." Iwa said simply.

"Choji-san would never hurt a friend." Shikage said.

"Do you believe him Haruno-san?" Kurotsubaki asked.

Sakura looked at the four of them who were all making pleading, pouty faces at her and she had to laugh, "Ok, Choji. I believe you."

"Thank you Sakura-chan."

"I'm glad Tsunade-sama was here though. I wouldn't have been able to help him and there's no one I trust more than her."

"You would've been able to help him, Sakura." Ino said, "I've seen you mend bones hundreds of times."

"Unlike Naruto, I obey laws that forbid involvement in jobs you're too close to." Sakura said, folding her arms, "It's better for Tsunade-sama to handle it."

"Speaking of broken bones, is my nose crooked?" Choji asked.

Hizashi felt as if he were traveling through a hose again and suddenly he found himself on a bed in a brightly lit room. It was a big, four poster bed with red sheets and the walls were a brilliant golden yellow. A fire burned happily on the far side of the room and a decorative shield with a red lion on it hung above the mantle.

"I think this room violates a few copyrights." Hizashi laughed to himself. He rolled out of bed and walked to the only door in the room. He grabbed the gilded handle, but stopped when he heard voices. He listened for a moment, the voices sounding very familiar. He opened the door a crack and sitting in the next room were Neji and Tenten. He wondered if these were really his parents for a moment, but then Neji turned in his seat to look right at Hizashi, "It's not nice to spy you know."

"Is...is it really you?" Hizashi asked, tentatively opening the door.

"Of course it's us." Tenten laughed, "Who else would it be?"

"Analyze the situation." Neji suggested, "Use all the skills we've taught you."

Hizashi thought for a moment. The door hadn't made a noise when he'd opened it, he hadn't made any noises either and on the real Neji would have noticed someone so quiet. Hizashi came to his conclusion and bowed to his parents, "I'm sorry for suspecting you."

He heard his parents get to their feet and the next thing Hizashi knew, both his parents were holding him close to them. Hizashi breathed in their smell and was finally convinced that these were his parents. He felt Tenten's body shaking against his own and he looked into her face to see tears rolling off her cheeks. One landed on his own cheek and tears formed in Hizashi's eyes, rolling down his face to mix with Tenten's. The Hyuuga's held each other for a long time and when they finally separated, Tenten wiped her eyes and reached into her pack.

"These are for you, Hizashi." She said and handed him two scrolls. "I've already sealed lots of weapons into them so they're ready to go."

"Why are you giving me these?" Hizashi asked, staring at the beautifully decorated, red scrolls.

"I felt it was time." Tenten said simply, "You fought beside me at the mansion and you showed how much you have grown. I believe you are old enough to have your own set now."

Hizashi continued to stare at the scrolls as if he were unsure what to do with them. Tenten reached over and pulled one open, revealing the signs inside, "You know how to use them right?"

Hizashi nodded and put his thumb to his mouth. He drew a small amount of blood and made a seal. The sign exploded and when the smoke cleared, a kunai was in its place. Tenten took the knife in her hand and used it to prick her own thumb.

"They're all real, too." Tenten said as a small drop of blood ran down her finger.

Hizashi closed the scroll and hugged his mother, "Thank you, Ka-san."

Tenten hugged her son back, a very serene look on her face.

"How long have we been here?" Hizashi asked, "When I woke up, I was in a dark room chained to a wall."

"You were?" Neji demanded.

"Yes, but then Inchiki the magician showed up and freed us."

"He saved you." Tenten corrected.

"What do you mean?" Hizashi asked.

"You were kidnapped by those ninja who attacked our village," Neji explained, "Inchiki saved you from them and brought you here to his home. I suspect he locked you up because he wasn't sure if you were good or not."

"Then he contacted us at the village and we came here immediately." Tenten said.

"He…he said he could give me Byakugan." Hizashi said.

"He told us that too." Neji said, "We decided that the decision was yours to make."
"Inchiki said I just needed to get a sample of Ki'iro's blood for comparison and then he'd be able to give me Byakugan."

"We know," Tenten said, "It's all a matter of DNA."

"I offered my own blood, but our own DNA is too similar. He said the DNA of a parent and child is usually close to identical and that would cause problems with mapping the strand."

"Do you know where Ki'iro is?" Hizashi asked.

"I can find her." Neji said, pointing to his eyes.

"Then let's go get her." Hizashi cried and they left the room with Neji in the lead.

Ki'iro awoke from her nap and rubbed her eyes. She would often take naps when she was mad at something and usually felt better afterwards. She was still irritated with Hizashi, but was no where near as mad. She climbed out from under her pure white bed sheets and stretched before walking to a vanity on the far side of her room. She began to brush her hair when she heard voices in the next room. She listened hard, but couldn't make out what was being said. She activated her Byakugan and saw that Naruto and Hinata were in the other room. The brush fell from Ki'iro's hand and she raced into the next room. Her parents jumped in surprise and Ki'iro leapt into Hinata's arms, "Ka-san, Ka-san!"

"Don't forget about me." Naruto laughed and held them both in his arms.

The three Uzumaki's held each other, tears streaming down all their faces. When they finally released one another, Naruto got down on Ki'iro's level a large smile on his face.

"Hey, Ki'iro, want to learn how to summon?"

"Summon?" she asked

"Mhm, like this." Naruto said, biting his thumb and forming some seals. He slammed his hand to the ground and a frog appeared from the summoning circle.

"Does…does it have to be frogs?" Ki'iro asked, taking a step back from the slimy creature.

"That's all I know how to summon." Naruto apologized, "you get sued to how they feel."

Ki'rio looked uncertain, but nodded, "I want to learn."

"Great." Naruto said, pulling a large scroll out of his pack. "First you need to sign a contract."

The scroll was unrolled before her and Ki'iro recognized the names of her father, grandfather and their teacher, "Is…is that blood?"

"Yes. The contract must be signed in blood."

"Why…why are you teaching me this?" Ki'iro suddenly asked.

"You were taken from us." Hinata explained, "We wanted you to have a say to defend yourself."

"But I have my Jyuuken. "

"And how much did it help that night?" Naruto asked.

Ki'iro opened her mouth to retort, but could think of mothering to say and hung her head.

"We just want to give you more options in a fight." Hinata said.

Ki'iro nodded and winced as she bit her thumb. She traced her name in her eloquent hand writing and touched all five fingers to the parchment beneath her name. Naruto rolled the scroll back up and carefully stowed it in his pack. He clapped his hands and smiled at Ki'iro, "Now, time to begin your training."

Ki'iro instantly cheered up and watched carefully as Naruto showed her the hand seals for the Summoning Jutsu. None of them noticed that they were being watched from the shadows by eyes that shined with laughter that could not be heard.

Neji and Tenten arrived at the little shack in the center of the crater. To their eyes, it looked like nothing more than an ordinary house. Neji investigated with his Byakugan but it revealed very little.

"What do you see?" Tenten asked.

"Nothing very well." Neji admitted, "The inside must have some kind of protection as well."

"Then shall we try knocking?" Tenten asked.

"Ladies first."

"How gentlemanly." She said with a smile.

She pulled out her scroll and summoned a lard spiked club. She spun it around her head and smashed it into the door. Tenten expected some resistance, but the door fell to splinters and light shone inside the shack. What they saw made no sense. Inside the small shack was a long corridor with two rows of cylinders big enough for a person. Tenten sealed her club away and entered the shack with Neji by her side. Many of the cylinders they passed were empty, but others had creatures suspended in liquied inside them.

"What are they?" Tenten asked, getting closer to one of them.

"Incubation tubes." Neji said darkly, pointing farther down the hall.

"What do you-" but Tenten's eyes followed Neji's finger and three tubes down was what looked to an eight year old child. Tenten's heart stopped at the sight of the child, but then she realized it wasn't Hizashi. "Should we let him out?"

"Nandaime-sama said that we're dealing with clones right?" Neji said, "This is probably one of our enemies."

"What should we do then?"

"Leave them for now." Neji said, "If we can find the main control terminal we can shut them all off rather than taking the time and energy to break all the tubes."

"Or Naruto can break them all for us when he arrives." Tenten laughed.

They continued down the hall and came to a set of door with a button next to them. Tenten pushed the button for the elevator, but a little red light blinked next to a round hole in the wall.

"Looks like we need a key." Tenten said.

"Or we could make our own way." Neji said, "Stand back, it's my turn."

Neji assumed his Jyuuken stance and gathered his chakra into his palms. He thrust his arms forward and a large shockwave exploded from his hands and blew the doors in. They struck the back wall and plummeted down the elevator shaft. Thirty seconds later, an impact was finally heard.

"Sounds deep." Tenten said.

"Let's go." Neji said and used his chakra to cling to the side of the shaft. Tenten hopped over the edge and drove a kunai into the wall. Both began to descend and ten minutes later, they found the bottom of the shaft.

"Why didn't you just use your chakra?" Neji asked.

"That looked cooler." Tenten said simply.

She knelt and opened the escape hatch of the elevator and they dropped into it. This time the elevator opened at the push of a button and they stepped into another long, dark, corridor.

"What an abysmal place." Tenten muttered.

"I'm so very sorry if my home does not meet your standards." A voice said.

"Who's there?" Neji demanded of the empty hall.

"Oh, why ruin the mystery by giving away the answer."

"Tell us where you are or we'll come find you." Neji snarled, his Byakugan activating.

"Unfortunately, that Dojutsu of yours will be of very little help within my walls."

"Why not?" Tenten demanded, "What have you done?"

"Some would call it science, I prefer to call it magic." The voice said with dark delight.

"Oh great, another crazy, egomaniac." Tenten sighed.

"Normally I'd send my minions to attack you for that, but you seem to have destroyed them on your way in. It matters not though; soon I shall have my treasure and you two will be little more than fleas on my skin."

"Treasure? You mean Hizashi and Ki'iro?" Tenten said.

"Little boy and girl, one with Byakugan, one without? Never seen them." The voice laughed evilly.

"We will find them!" but Neji was drowned out by a maniacal laughter that seemed to come from everywhere at once. Neji thrust him palm forward again and the intercom system exploded. The laughter echoed in the empty hall for a few seconds and finally silence fell on them again.

"Where do we begin?" Tenten asked, looking left and right. "This whole place looks the same."

"Let's go this way." Neji said, pointing to the right.

"Why that way?"

"Not sure…it just feels different that way." Neji said.

Tenten nodded and they started down the corridor. They passed several plain doors that refused to open no matter what they did. They continued on and suddenly Neji called a halt.

"Do you feel that?" Neji asked.

"Feel wh-" Tenten began but at that moment the next door exploded outward and a small red creature stood in the doorway growling at them. Its eyes narrowed, and then it lunged at them, eyes burning with blood lust.

Gogeta: Hey everybody, I'm so sorry this took so long. I thought I'd have lots of free time while I was in between classes, but it turns out I had even less free time. Well I'm back in classes now and I have tons of time to write. I already have the next chapter written out, I just have to type it up and upload it.

Sakura: Yeah, I think you said something similar before and look how long we've waited for this chapter.

Gogeta: Shut up Sakura. Being in the Army isn't all bullets and grenades you know.

Neji: It's more papers and rakes isn't it?

Gogeta: Don't remind me…I've raked more lines in dirt than I care to remember.

Lee: At least you are back in class and doing cool stuff right?

Gogeta: Yeah, I've already learned how to build a satellite terminal and how to work my equiptment.

Lee: How much longer will you be in classes.

Gogeta: Ugh…at least another four months…

Lee: Wow.

Gogeta: Thanks for helping me train too. I haven't got in trouble over PT since the last time.

Lee: Of course, Gogeta-san!

Hizashi: Am I going to get my Byakugan soon?

Gogeta: Goddammit Hizashi, stop asking.

Neji: SPOILERS!

Gogeta: So once again, sorry for this one taking so long and the next chapter should be uploaded within the week if not by tomorrow. Also for anybody in the Orlando, Florida area, I'm going to be at MegaCon and I'd love to see you there. I'm going to be going as Choji! Alrighty, until next time. Laters.