Birthright

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. Sorry that this one is "late," but I had a couple of busy days outside the Internet, was feeling a bit under the weather, and wanted to make sure I got the new story up. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter and the new story is called Secrets of Avalon, if anyone is interested. (It's a Hinata x Sasuke, but fantasy themed story, Elf Style).

Story Notations: Last chapter, the men were playing poker and combined two standard 52 card decks. Sagara hasn't actually been paid yet. He only gets paid once he gets all the Uchiha Children to sign the contract. There was a Jutsu on the scroll that will only give him the key to the vault when he's done so. Sorry for any confusion. More about the bear will be explained next chapter.

Chapter 22

A short while later, Sagara smirks as he glances over the unconscious form of the Uchiha Children and their teammates. Well at least two of the Uchiha Children. Things would have been a lot easier for him, if the Uchihas had stopped at the twins. He still had six more to go!

"Make sure that they are all chakra cuffed, bound, and blindfolded." The last thing he wanted was to take the chance those eyes of theirs would activate. "Those two might look like kids, but they're really little demons."

He probably would have been fascinated by them, if circumstances were different. Combining two bloodlines was rarely done. Both because families with them didn't want to risk "diluting" or "breeding out" their own bloodline and because one never knew what the results could be.

New bloodlines could be formed if old ones were combined. Which was all very interesting in theory, but it could be dangerous. When a new bloodline formed, no one really knew what the limits were. Those limits were found by trial and error and sometimes, the errors were fatal.

The thugs nod and set about doing exactly that. "You got it boss!" Thugs. That's exactly what they were.

Most of them were criminals or nomads. Some were ninjas, but some weren't. They were really only designed to serve as fodder during the ambushes. That's why he hadn't bothered to hire particularly skilled ninjas. They'd be easier to kill that way.

They were also foreign. That minimized the chances they'd recognize Uchiha Children on sight. As long as their Byakugan and Sharingan weren't activated, there was no reason for his "employees" to get spooked.

"They never would have agreed to help, if they knew." He watches them closely, his voice not even loud enough to be considered a whisper.

Very few people were actually foolish or brave enough to risk the wrath of the Uchiha Parents.

Each of them alone were the stuff of nightmares or at least powerful enough to pose a serious challenge to even the most skilled of ninjas. Sasuke had fought against Madara and lived to tell the tale. He could easily level villages, if he wanted to. Itachi was a man who had been capable of taking out most of his Clan before he was even old enough to be considered a man. And then there was Hinata.

Hinata was a Hyuga. She had all the abilities that the Byakugan granted her. She was also able to drain another person's chakra and give it to someone else. Not to mention, she was also a medic. Medical Jutsus could be applied offensively in battle, if it became necessary.

"They're all set, boss!" One of the thugs looks at him and Sagara smiles in response, nodding in acknowledgment.

That's why he wouldn't take their eyes. It was certainly tempting. They were probably worth even more than was in that vault, but their parents would track him down. If he merely got them to sign something, there was a good chance he might be able to slip away.

Cutting out a child's eyes, well that was more personal. The Uchiha Parents would never rest until they found him and that was just unacceptable. He was in no mood to die this young.

He quickly heads closer and checks their vitals. "They're all still breathing regularly. They should wake soon enough." And then he'd get them to sign the contract.

Of course, Sagara wasn't naïve. He knew that they would try to fight him, during the release. Probably try to drag him back to the Leaf and put him in prison at a minimum. So their release would have to be handled very delicately.

While he certainly didn't mind killing, he wasn't just an assassin. It was almost never his primary goal. He was in it for the money pure and simple. The fact that he had racked up a high body count over the years, well that was just part of being a mercenary and a criminal ninja!

"When they wake, I'll get the to sign the contract and release them." Hopefully, before the parents seven knew what had happened.

Meanwhile Akio rushes towards the Hokage's Office! He had to get help and quickly! They were running out of time! Who knew what could be happening to his teammates right now!

"LORD HOKAGE! LORD HOKAGE!" He didn't care that he was breaking protocol. "I NEED HELP! IT'S MY TEAM!" Aiko would worry about professionalism later! "MY TEAM HAS BEEN KIDNAPPED!"

He knew that his screams were probably loud enough to wake the dead, but he truly didn't care. His friends were in danger!

"Whoa!" The Seventh Hokage runs over to him. "Slow down! Tell me exactly what happened!"

Akio tries to calm himself down enough to be understandable, but it was hard. "We were doing our Survivalist Training. Suddenly, explosives went off." He pauses trying to catch his breath. "It was just sleeping gas though. We tried to cover our mouths, but we were forced to breathe it in as we defended ourselves from attackers."

Naruto frowns and Akio bites his lower lip in anxiety. This was bad. If the Hokage was frowning, this was really bad.

He had never known the bubbly blonde not to have a smile on his face. Despite being a Kage, Naruto was rarely serious and everyone knew that. That was until someone was in big trouble! Like right now!

"Damn it! Did you see which direction they went?" Naruto looks at him anxiously.

Akio shakes his head. "No. They Flickered off, but I can show you where." Maybe, that would help them find his teammates! He could only hope!

Naruto nods and quickly scribbles a message on a scroll. After doing so, he attaches it to a hawk's leg and the bird flies off. Akio gulps upon seeing that because he knew what that meant.

The Seventh Hokage had just informed the Uchihas that one of their children was missing. Of course, he would have been even more terrified, if he knew that Arashi had also be taken. Still, Akio had learned on that day, what the word dread really meant.

"Gotta let them know to follow us." He sighs and heads off with Akio.

The young Genin nervously shows Naruto where Team Seven had been ambushed. He knew that Uchihas would catch up with them soon. After all, it was said that Naruto and Sasuke could sense each other's chakra almost instinctively. He'd be able to track them!

Still, the boy's eyes dart around the area nervously. "It was right here." Almost afraid that the bad people would ambush them again.

"Good. We'll find them." Naruto smiles at him reassuringly. "Don't worry. You did the right thing."

Akio tries his best not to flail at that. Don't worry?! The Seventh Hokage must be crazy! Of course, he was worried!

Back at the Uchiha District, Sasuke blinks when he notices a bird flying towards their window. That was strange. Maybe, it was from Shikamaru or Tenten though. Sometimes Survivalist Training took longer than expected.

"What is it, Sasuke?" Hinata stretches as she watches her husband head towards the window.

"I don't know yet." He smiles at the bird and takes the scroll off its foot before it flies off. "Lets see."

He could feel Itachi's eyes on him, but that was fine. Itachi was almost always watching him, Hinata, or the children. Sometimes, he watched all three of them at once. Itachi was such a protector.

That's when Sasuke made the mistake of looking down and his eyes bleed ruby red and eerie lavender with rage. This couldn't be happening! It was just supposed to be a safe Genin Mission!

Sasuke, Itachi, and Hinata,

I've got some bad news. It looks like Aiya's team was kidnapped. Somehow Akio got away and was able to tell me. We're going to track them!

Don't worry, I promise you that we'll get them back! Just follow my chakra!

Naruto

"Sasuke?" Itachi blinks and Sasuke couldn't blame him. "What's wrong?"

He most likely presented quite the terrifying visual at the moment. Not that he cared. His daughter had been fucking kidnapped! Sasuke was suddenly feeling rather homicidal.

Whoever did this was going to pay. "Aiya's team has been kidnapped. Akio escaped." He needed to find her and make whatever son of a bitch had been foolish enough to mess with his daughter pay! "They're trying to track them. We're supposed to go with them!"

Hinata gasps and drops the plate she had been washing on the floor. "Oh God!" It shattered. "This can't be happening!" His wife was going into shock and it was a miracle that Itachi managed to bump her out of the way before the glass would have cut up her bare feet.

"We'll find who did this and get her back." Itachi's eyes narrow.

Sasuke nods as he heads towards the door. "Sasuke, where are you going?" Itachi raises an eyebrow.

Sasuke glances back at his brother as if he had lost his mind. His daughter had just been kidnapped! Where did the idiot think he was going?!

"I'm going to find her and kill whoever took her!" It was the most obvious thing in the world. "You coming?!" He didn't know why Itachi had suddenly turned into a simpleton. It must have been the shock, he decides.

Itachi shakes his head. "Believe me, I want to do the same but we have eight children. One of them is missing and a second is still on a Survivalist Mission." True…

"I believe what Itachi is trying to say is we need to make sure the others are safe and then go off after Aiya." Hinata bites her lower lip as she puts on sandals. "Sasuke, you go on ahead. We'll track you."

A feeling of dread was threatening to overwhelm him. He didn't like the thought of them splitting, especially not now. Hinata was right though. They had to make sure the other children were alright.

"Got it. What are you two going to be doing?" He looks at them warily.

Itachi smiles and pokes Sasuke's forehead. "Foolish little brother, we're going to drop the rest of the children off with Hinata's family." He sighs and s hakes his head. "Whoever did this might be targeting our Clan as a whole and they would be safest on Hyuga Land with so many eyes watching them. Looking after them."

Right. That made sense. If this was an attack on their family, the Hyuga Estate would be the safest place for the others. "Alright! Hurry!" And with that, he Flickers off.

At that same moment, Aiya's eyes slowly flutter open. Though that mattered little. She was apparently blindfolded.

It took her a few moments to realize what had happened. The last thing she remembered was their team getting ambushed and sleeping gas. That's when her eyes widened in terror.

"Hey, boss!" She hears a man nearby. "When do you think the brats will wake up?"

The brats? They must be the brats. Well she knew at least one thing. They were dealing with at least two enemy ninjas currently and their enemies though that they were unconscious.

Aiya could use that to her advantage. Somehow. She just wasn't sure how yet.

"It will likely take awhile." The second voice sounded smarter than the first. "That was a high dosage of Sleeping Gas." Aiya wasn't sure how she could tell that just by listening to people, but it was something of a gut instinct.

That was the least of her worries though. She could sense other chakra signatures. Chakra signatures of sleeping people and one of them was Arashi! They had captured Arashi too!

"I just felt a small chakra flare." The first was about to rat her out! "I think one of the kids is faking being asleep." Damn it!

The second man chuckles, but it was a humorless laugh. She definitely didn't like the sound of that. "Clever. Well, My Dear, allow me to put your mind at ease." Oh really? "It isn't my intention to kill you. As long as you and your brother sign these papers, we'll let you go."

Papers? What papers?! What could he possible have for her to sign that was worth risking all this?

He had just kidnapped at least four Leaf Ninjas! Probably more! Her brothers team was likely here too! That was going to make the Leaf very angry and then there were their parents.

Sasuke and Itachi were going to kill these sorry sons of a bitches! "What do you want me to sign?" It was somewhat liberating to be able to curse, even if it was only in her head. Though she had more important things to worry about at the moment.

She doubted that he would tell the truth. Still, it was important to keep them talking. That could buy her some time to figure out how to get them out of here!

"Quite simply, I merely want your brother and you to sign these papers vowing that you will not learn the Gentle Fist Technique." Wait. That was it? "Once you do that, I'll have you released."

Gentle Fist Technique? But who would care whether or not she learned her mother's family's techniques? That implied that they were dealing with a Hyuga or someone who was being paid by one. After all, that seemed like such an odd thing to risk your life over. It didn't make any sense!

"I see." She didn't know what else there was to say.

Aiya had never really thought about learning the Gentle Fist Technique. So assuming he was telling the truth, it wouldn't matter much. Though she wasn't very inclined to believe her kidnapper!

He laughs and Aiya imagined that he was probably shaking her head too. "I know that you probably think that sounds too good to be true, but I assure you that it isn't my intention to kill you. I will though, if you force my hand."

Pft! He acted like it was her fault somehow that he had decided to kidnap her! She was so going to find a way out of these restraints and kick his ass! He deserved it!

Elsewhere, Itachi and Hinata had managed to corral the rest of the children. That was no easy task, but it was something both of them had a lot of experience doing. Well at least that was Hinata's opinion.

"Be good for your grandfather, Auntie Hanabi, and Uncle Konohamaru, alright?" The Uchiha Matriarch looks at her children fearfully. "We'll be back soon."

"Alright." Amaya tilts her head though. "Mother, what's wrong?" Hinata winces at that question.

She had always been told that she had too honest of a face to be a ninja. Unfortunately, this was one of those times where that trait was definitely being used against her. Her children now knew something was wrong, but not what.

"Don't worry about anything." Itachi smiles. "We're just going to help your brother and sister train a bit. We didn't want you to get caught up in the middle."

It stunned Hinata that Itachi could lie so easily and to their children, but then again…it probably shouldn't have. He had lied to Sasuke for years. Itachi was truly capable of almost anything when it came to what he perceived as being the Greater Good!

Kenji pouts. "Awe. That's no fair!" Hinata forces a laugh at that.

Any other time, his pouting would have been adorable. That wasn't the case now though. All she could think about is what might be happening to Aiya right now.

"Sorry. Just have fun with your grandfather today." Itachi smiles and kisses their foreheads. "I'm sure that he has plenty of ice cream."

Itachi had apparently said the magic because with that, all their children darted straight into the Hyuga Estate. "I'd say that was cheating, but at least it worked." She sighs and grabs his hand. "We need to get going! You can track Sasuke's chakra right?"

Itachi nods and holds her hand. "Yes, I can. Don't worry." He smiles at her reassuringly. "It's all going to be alright.

Back at the caves where Team Seven and Team Eight were stashed away, Arashi had woken up. He was pretending to be asleep though. Apparently, that probably wouldn't buy him much time, but he would take what he could get.

For some reason, this man wanted them to promise not to use the Gentle First Technique. Arashi couldn't understand why he would go through all this trouble just for that. There had to be money involved somewhere.

If it was a grudge, he would have just killed them before they woke up. "So what do you say?" One of the men was addressing his sister. "Will you make this easier on all of us and just sign the papers?"

Arashi hoped that she wouldn't, but he was enough of a realist to realize there was a chance she might. Aiya might, if she thought it would get them all out of here. If she though that it would protect their teams, she'd probably forfeit the Gentle Fist Style. They had never used it anyway.

"I'd n-need to think about it." Well at least his sister hadn't given into these creeps yet.

Still, they were in a lot of trouble. He was bound. Probably by chakra cuffs and blindfolded. He doubted he could active his Byakugan or Sharingan like this and even if he did, they were still tied up.

A cruel chuckling was heard. "I see. Well I suppose I can humor you for now." A pause followed though. "Don't take too much time. This can still end well for all of us, but I will kill you all…if things seem to be going south."

A mercenary or a criminal ninja. This guy wasn't a regular ninja. He knew that much and Arashi doubted he was a civilian. A civilian wouldn't care about this sort of thing and probably wouldn't know to chakra cuff them.

Aiya was smart enough not to talk further. Which was a good thing. Talking further likely would have just goaded him on more at this point.

Damn it! They had to find a way out of here, but he couldn't for the life of him think of how they were going to get out. They would though! Believe it! (That's what Uncle Naruto always said)!

Elsewhere, Itachi and Hinata had just teleported to the spot where Naruto, Akio, and Sasuke were. Itachi swore that his heart was about to beat out of his chest at this point. He simply couldn't believe it!

"What do we know?" He raises an eyebrow.

He couldn't show it though. Itachi Uchiha couldn't show the complete and utter terror that he was feeling at the moment. One of their children had been kidnapped and on their first mission to boot!

A swirl of sand is seen and Gaara emerges with Mei and Kaemon. Itachi could only blink in confusion. What were they doing here?

"I was supposed to meet with Naruto, but he wasn't in his office." Gaara shakes his head. "Kameon wanted to see his friends today, but we went to your home and discovered you were all missing and from there we tracked you."

Hinata blinks in surprise. "How did you track us?" Yes, Itachi was wondering that as well.

"Awhile ago, Kaemon gave Aiya a stuffed animal." Mei shakes her head in amusement as she smiles fondly at her son. "He put a tracker in it. So he'd know where to find her, if she ever got lost."

"I don't know whether to find that incredibly sweet or disturbing." Itachi groans, but shakes his head. "Nevermind. That's something. Is the tracker still working?"

Sasuke just stares at the young boy as if he had just grown another head. "Right. It has to be or they wouldn't have found us." Itachi could sense Sasuke's hesitation. "Unless she dropped it here when they grabbed her."

Kaemon shook his head. He knew Aiya. Shouldn't have left the bear behind easily.

"She would have put it in her traveling pack. Unless they yanked that off her, it should still be with her." That was just how the eldest Uchiha Child was.

"I'm still highly disturbed that you put a tracker on my daughter!" Sasuke glares at Kaemon. "But right now, it's the only lead we have! Lets go!"

"Kameon, go the Hyuga's Estate or to the hospital." Gaara pauses and decides to elaborate. "Sakura will be there. You'd be safe with her."

His son shakes his head though. "I'm going with you. Besides, I'm the only one who knows how the tracker works." He smiles smugly.

"Gaara, your son…he scares me." Itachi sighs.

The eldest red head shakes his head. "Believe me, there are days when he scares even me. Doesn't make me love him any less though." He smiles at the boy.

"Let's get going!" Kaemon chirps merrily as he pulls out his tracker. "Um let's see here… THAT WAY!" He points north and scurries off with a trail of bewildered adults following after him.

On the other side of the Leaf Village, Miya paces in irritation."It's no fair." The Uchiha Girl was definitely pouting. "We never get to do any of the real ninja stuff."

There were murmurs of agreement from everyone, but Shisui. Shisui was being uncharacteristically quiet and staring at his feet. That told Hoshi everything that he needed to know.

He looks at him in concern. "What happened?" Something was definitely wrong. His younger brother usually wasn't that solemn.

"I was going invisible again." Shisui looks at his feet guiltily. "And I heard mother and fathers talking." He bites his lower lip nervously. "Someone took Aiya! That's where they really went!" There was no training, it seemed!

Immediately, this draws outrage from the other Uchiha Children. Hoshi certainly shared in it, but if they weren't going to help Aiya, that meant they'd need to be smart about this!

"EVERYONE BE QUIET!" Apparently, Kenji felt the same way.

Nara sighs. "We need to go find them." The youngest triplet shakes her head. "If someone took Aiya, they probably took Arashi too." That was a good point. "They might be on different teams, but they were both doing the same kind of training!"

Miya nods. "Then I say we sneak out and take Aoda with us." She nods her head more determinedly. "And go boop some bad guys!"

That was actually a pretty good. "Yeah! Let's get Aoda and Kara and maybe some of their hatchlings!" The bigger ones anyway. "Let's go!" And with that, the Uchiha Children all proceeded to start planning their escape.

After all, it was hard to sneak out of an Estate with that many Byakugans! That bloodline could enable a person to see through walls! And Grandfather Hiashi was very good at Hide and Go Seek!

"We're going to have to Flicker and go invisible." Shisui sighs. "I can take one person at a time. So it's going to take awhile."

"Alright!" Miya jumps up and down excitedly. "We better get started then." And truer words were never spoken as Shisui makes himself and Miya invisible.

"Alright. Hold on tight! I'll come back for the others soon!" And with that, he makes them invisible and Flickers off with one of his sisters. They had work to do!