Chapter 14

The warm light of morning crept through the window, illuminating the comfortable silence of a room still lingering in the stillness of rest. Naruto lay with his back to the light and to Sasuke, the sheets low around his waist.

At some point through his wanderings between dreams and wakefulness, Sasuke's obsidian eyes had slipped open. His gaze immediately fell over the sleeping blond, the sun gleaming warmly in his hair and on his tanned skin. The brightness of the sunlight made the pale scars on Naruto's strong back stand out in vivid contrast to the rest of his skin.

Sasuke's fingers ghosted over every scar as he attempted to commit their shape and location to memory. He wanted to know how each mark had appeared on Naruto's body. He wanted to know how much the wound had hurt, and how long it had taken to heal. He wanted to know if any of these old scars still ached, from time to time.

This was the part of Naruto that Sasuke desired to possess. He wanted Naruto in the moments between every beat of his heart, in the seconds between inhale and exhale. He wanted the parts of him that no one else was allowed to see; the parts which were soft and vulnerable and fleeting.

He pressed his palm over one of the several star-like scars which marred Naruto's body; the places where he had been impaled in his fight against Pein. As Sasuke closed his eyes, feeling Naruto's warmth beneath his hands, he wondered how long it would be before these scars had completely faded from sight. Even if Naruto's body forgot these old hurts, Sasuke was determined to remember. He would recall the pain of every faded wound as if they were his own, to keep himself from taking advantage of the Jinchuuriki's power. He was determined to regain his strength, to prevent more scars from dotting the landscape of Naruto's body.

Beneath his confidence and his untouchable aura, Naruto Uzumaki was still a man of flesh and bone, after all. There would be moments when even he needed to be saved. Sasuke was confident that someday, he would be able to compensate for any weaknesses the blond might have.

A fluttering sigh danced between Naruto's lips, the breathy sound catching Sasuke's attention.

"You're scheming." Naruto muttered sleepily. "It is way too early for you to be scheming."

Sasuke laughed softly, leaning on his elbow as he angled his torso towards the blond. Naruto turned his head towards him with a content hum, making it easier for Sasuke to place a kiss on the sharp slant of his cheekbone.

"I'm not scheming, dobe." Sasuke whispered, his lips now brushing against Naruto's temple. "Just thinking."

"Thinking." Naruto repeated as he rolled over, flumping down on Sasuke's torso and using him as a pillow. He pressed a kiss on Sasuke's pale chest, his breath fanning across the sensitive skin.

"Yeah."

Sasuke smiled as he combed his fingers through blond strands, easing Naruto's bangs away from his face. Sighing contently, Naruto listened to the beating of Sasuke's heart while his calloused fingers traced across the soft ridges of his ribcage. Each rib was as delicate and ivory-white as the keys of a piano, humming expectantly under Naruto's touch as if he was the pianist.

Their music was a harmony of heartbeats and heavy breaths.

Sasuke watched those fingers tracing over his bones, his skin prickling under the warm touch. He continued to comb his fingers through Naruto's messy hair, smoothing the unruly strands until they were shiny in the light.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened?"

The Jinchuuriki glanced up at the sudden question. Sasuke's voice had lulled gently, easing the question onto Naruto without seeming forced or demanding.

Sasuke watched, patiently, as the memory of moonlit sand and crimson flashed across Naruto's eyes. The hand which had been stroking Sasuke's skin balled into a fist. Naruto shifted his position slightly, resting his chin on his fist so that he was looking at Sasuke.

"I -" Naruto began, before abruptly cutting himself off. He inhaled deeply as pain pinched the corners of his eyes, his eyebrows meeting in a frown. "I didn't have any other choice. None of them were willing to talk to us, let alone surrender. The Kou were behind it, as well. So I…we, Gaara and I…we destroyed them."

The warmth of the sunlight seemed to cool in the heavy silence that followed. Naruto allowed his eyelids to slip closed, unwilling to look Sasuke in the eye as guilt shot pain directly into his heart.

This vague information was enough to give the raven-haired ninja an idea of what had happened. But even so, Naruto had been in the business of killing since he was a young boy. And since most of his opponents were laughably weak compared to him, this sort of thing shouldn't have bothered him, in theory.

"It must have happened again." Sasuke realized, his fingers growing still in Naruto's hair as his dark eyes widened.

Sasuke had seen it with his own eyes, when he and Naruto had joined forces at the end of the war. At one point, they had been forced to cut across the carnage of a battlefield in order to reach their destination. Surrounded by the ruined earth and the debris and the bodies, Naruto had shone pure and beautifully. The voices of the injured and dying called out to him; calling out to him as if he was their saviour, their guardian angel. Sasuke would never forget the look of horrified agony that had appeared on Naruto's face, when he realized that he was unable to save them.

"I don't believe in angels."

Or so Sasuke kept telling himself. But as his eyes traced the contours of high cheekbones, a strong jawline, and sensually full lips, he began to suspect that he was lying to himself. He couldn't help but smirk at the irony, as he realized that his whole existence lay within eyes as deeply blue and restless as tropical seas.

He swallowed audibly. "When I attacked the Kage Summit," Sasuke began, resuming the slow, soothing rake of his fingers through Naruto's hair. "I faced the Kazekage."

Naruto slipped his eyes open. This wasn't news to him, so he listened quietly as Sasuke continued.

"He wept for me then." He continued in a low voice. "Gaara wept for us both. He wouldn't ask you to do anything that he thought would make you unhappy, unless it was absolutely imperative."

"Yeah," Naruto agreed with a smile. "I know."

Sasuke returned the smile, his fingers slipping out of Naruto's hair to brush his thumb softly along his bottom lip, the memory of Naruto's pain chasing a frown onto his pale face. "I don't want to see you making that face ever again." He whispered.

Blue eyes softened as Naruto smiled sadly. "I know." He repeated.

The hours drifted by unnoticed by the young ninja, who spent the day safely within their warm fortress of sheets. They devoted themselves piously, memorizing every shift of muscle and contour of bone in the body of their partner; their figures flowing together with near perfect compatibility. The combination of their heavy breaths and racing heartbeats merged: a new track on their record. The chorus was Sasuke's voice, low and burning through heavy gasps. The lyrics were the words they whispered to one another between exchanges of heat and breath.

However, one word stood out above all the others; a word that laced promises into skin and lips and trembling bones. A word which, in its own way, somehow summarized all the things they were too proud to admit to each other.

"Always."

The buzzing, angry sound of the streets drifted on the reeking air, the slight breeze whisking away the ash at the burning end of Shikamaru's cigarette. His team stood behind him like a pack of menacing phantoms, their dancing eyes gleaming in the flashing neon lights. A strong lead in Konoha's investigation of the Kou's raid, and the rumours that they were aided by spies from the rebellion, had led them here; to this putrid city far removed from the quiet streets of the Leaf.

Shikamaru flicked his cigarette, raising one thin eyebrow. "Geez, how the hell did we wind up in a place like this?" He grumbled. "The snow doesn't even look like snow here. It's filthier than the scum that floats in the sewers."

This had once been a holy city of ornate temples, located only a few hours away from Konoha. It was an important landmark at a place where all the major roads in the country met, though its given name was now remembered only by the pages of history books. A haven for gangsters, mercenaries and rogue ninja, this place was a breeding ground for dangerous criminals and petty trouble makers. The city was known as Last Gate, a place for hopeless men who had sold their dreams to the devil.

"Seriously, why the hell is a carpenter lurking around here?" Shikamaru griped, lighting up another cigarette.

Neji's low voice buzzed through the transmitter, which was hanging loosely on its wire from the stud in Shikamaru's ear. "Focus on the mission, Nara."

"What a drag." The strategist drawled, putting the small device into his ear properly. "Has the target made a move yet?"

"Nothing significant," Neji replied smoothly. "They still seem to be talking. Although I now have no doubt that he is one of the labourers currently employed in our village. We shall have to make sure that his employer is properly compensated, not only for the tip regarding his strange behaviour, but for the loss of a worker as well."

"You plan on taking him out, Hyūga?" Shikamaru asked, his tone darkening. He felt the shinobi behind him stiffen.

After a slight pause, Neji's voice cut through the airwaves. "He has made himself an enemy of the Leaf. I would prefer not to make our presence here known, however, if I must, my team and I will not hesitate to make a formal arrest."

Shikamaru sighed a lung full of dense smoke. "Ha, that sounds flashy. As long as you don't kill the guy before we get information out of him, then I don't give a damn what you do." He replied. "But let's hope it doesn't come to that. If this guy's boss really is in this city, then he'll probably hear about it and split before we can catch up to him."

A low hum of agreement was Neji's only response. Shikamaru let his hand fall away from the transmitter, his dark, tired eyes still scanning the street. He suddenly felt glad that he hadn't requested for Naruto to participate in this mission. Seeing a filthy city like this would probably only sadden him.

"There are rats swarming all over the place."

"Nara." Neji suddenly said. "Movement."

"Of what kind?"

Shikamaru let the butt of his cigarette slip between his gloved fingers, watching it fall down to the street.

"Chakra movement." Neji replied, the confusion obvious in his tone. "Evidently, this man was also making use of chakra seals. Though, I can't understand why – he hardly has enough chakra for it to be worth concealing. What I find most interesting, actually, is that the seal suddenly vanished."

Shikamaru frowned. "Does he seem aggravated or something? What about his pals?"

"Negative on both. The only thing that has changed is his chak – wait a minute! He's on the move." Neji suddenly said. Shikamaru could hear the sound of rushing air through his earpiece. "He's making a run for it! I will continue tracking him. Inform Sai immediately."

"Yeah yeah, Hyūga, I'm on it." Shikamaru replied, glancing over his shoulder at the four silent, darkly clad entities behind him. "Hey, Sai. Your Captain just told me the hunt is on."

Steady, dark eyes stared out from the holes in the cat-like mask, its details painted in a deep crimson red.

"Yes, sir." Sai replied.

The ANBU ninja dispersed immediately, their focus on the target as they raced away on the rooftops. Shikamaru sighed again, the screams of women drawing his attention to a street fight far below.

"Yeah, definitely glad I didn't trouble Naruto with this." He muttered, his eyes flashing across the blade of a gruesomely crafted knife, pulled out of some thugs pocket. "Ever since that mission to the Sand a couple weeks back, he's been more stressed than ever. Seeing this place would make him lose it for sure. It would be glowy fire demon all over this dump."

Neji allowed himself a soft exhale of laughter. "Your position, Nara?"

"The same," Shikamaru replied as he turned away from the street and the sound of screams, traipsing across the roof. "I have to make sure I stay in radio contact with both teams."

"I know that." Neji's voice whispered through the airwaves. "Nara, shouldn't you do something about that brawl? The screaming is a bother."

Shikamaru laughed, pulling another cigarette from his pack and slotting it between his lips. "Nope, I'm not interested in heroics. It's too troublesome." He said as he dug around for his lighter in his pockets.

"I can hear you smoking, Nara. Stop it." Neji said disapprovingly. "Sai and the others have found me. We will move in for the arrest. I will contact you again when I have information."

"Sure."

Shikamaru jumped from one roof to the other, wandering like a stray cat along the eaves. His unlit cigarette hanging from his lips, he shoved his hands in his pockets. Smirking, Shikamaru could feel his old cynicism coming back to him as he walked along. He couldn't help but wonder why Naruto so desperately desired to save the world. Why he bothered risking his life and his sanity to rescue people who wasted their lives, and probably wouldn't even remember his name.

The modern word was putrid. More and more cities were becoming like Last Gate: rotting from the core.

"Shikamaru."

He jumped in surprise at the low, nervous voice which suddenly crept through his transmitter. He mentally kicked himself for losing focus as he replied, "What's up, Captain Yamato?"

"Yes. I just received information from Sakura. It seems that the Elder Council meeting which was scheduled for today was cancelled, on account of one of the important members failing to show. There were no representatives there for him either. Apparently, the Hokage is furious. The Elder seems to be making a habit of skipping important dates. If you remember, he also failed to show up for Sasuke-kun's trial."

"The Elders name?"

"Yokozawa." Yamato replied in hushed tones. "I am beginning to share in your suspicions towards Lord Yokozawa's family."

Shikamaru laughed. "Is your team still in position? Don't make a move until I give the order."

"Yes."

As soon as the connection was cut off, Shikamaru growled in frustration. "Dammit, why are there such troublesome bastards everywhere?"

He took off running, heading towards the rest of his team as silently as a shadow.

The temperature plummeted as evening settled in, the dark sky turbulent with dense clouds. Sensing an oncoming snowstorm, most of Last Gate's civilians had retreated indoors. The only people left on the streets were drunks and beggars, their blurry eyes peering down the alleys in their bleak world. They barely reacted as the man in workers coveralls sprinted past them, racing through to dark streets with chakra-fueled steps.

The snow crunched under his feet, his breath billowing around him as his eyes darted from rooftop to rooftop, sensing the presence of his silent pursuers. He drew several shuriken into his gloved hands, slotting the aerial weapons between his fingers.

Not long ago, he had been enjoying a drink at the inn with several of his business partners, when the seal that had been concealing his chakra suddenly vanished. With his chakra came his awareness, and he had immediately sensed the presence of the ninja lurking in the rafters, directly above his head. Automatically, he had excused himself and left the bar, taking off down the nearest alleyway.

It hadn't taken long for them to find him.

As the man rounded a corner in the road, a curse tore out of his throat. A pair of curved throwing knives rigged with steel wire came twisting out of a side street, coiling around his legs. He grunted in pain as he fell heavily into the snow. The pseudo-carpenter twisted quickly and began tugging at the wires wrapped around his shins, nervous sweat making his palms slick.

He froze as a shiver rattled his frame. Ever so slowly, he turned his head, only to find himself face to face with the smiling cat mask of a crouching ANBU ninja.

"Holy shit!" He exclaimed, rolling to create distance between them. With desperate hands he searched through the snow, hunting for the shuriken that had escaped from him when he fell.

His fingers met cold metal, and without hesitating he threw the weapon towards the masked ninja in a flurry of snow. The sharp clang of metal-on-metal echoed around the silent street, sparks flashing momentarily under the light of the neon signs. As the snow cleared, the man's eyes fell across the short sword in the ANBU's hand. Like a thread through the eye of a needle, the shuriken was still spinning around the blade of the sword.

"My, that was unexpected." The masked ninja said in a polite voice. A flick of his wrist sent the small weapon flying. "But it was also very stupid."

The man shivered at the sound of approaching footsteps. He head whipped from side to side as masked faces detached themselves from the darkness, seeming to float before the darkly clad bodies came into view.

"Excellent work, Sai." A deep, regal voice cut out through the darkness.

Sai inclined his head towards his Captain, who glided towards them on silent feet. Their prey's eyes widened in panic as he recognized the Captains chakra as the one he'd sensed in the bar. Before he could react, he was restrained from behind by one of the ANBU ninja, while two others approached to stand by like sentinels. Neji crouched down beside Sai, his eyes gleaming from within the holes of his mask.

A soft laugh slipped between his lips. "It took five minutes to catch him." The Captain said, "Perhaps it's time for us to increase our training regime."

"Should we take him to Ibiki-san, Captain?" Sai asked, grimacing at the idea of even more intensive training.

"No need." Neji said as he stood, standing before their captive. "I suspect that he will break very quickly."

To enforce the threat in his voice, glowing chakra appeared on the tips of Neji's gloved fingers.

The man struggled wildly against the ninja restraining him, his eyes bulging as panic took hold of him. "Spare me!" He cried out desperately. "I'm just a hired hand! I was ordered to pose as a construction worker!"

"Oh?" Neji said, his mane of smooth brown hair swaying as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "And why would you need to do that?"

"T-to try to establish a rebellion, sir." The man replied, still struggling.

"I see." Neji replied calmly. "And who, may I ask, is your benefactor?"

After a long moment of hesitation, the spy reluctantly responded. "Lord Yokozawa, sir."

Immediately, Neji's gloved fingers flew to his ear, pressing the button on his transmitter. "Nara," He said in a low voice. "Your theory was correct. Order the team on standby to move in for the arrest."

A low, irritated voice crackled through the earpiece. "Troublesome bastards. I'm making my way to your location now."

Shikamaru fiddled with the dials on his transmitter, tuning into the channel of communication that connected to the other team.

"Captain Yamato," He drawled. "You just got the okay to move in. Try not to kill anyone in the household, though. My ear will get chewed off if you do."

"Roger that, Shikamaru."

"Ah, by the way, don't tell them why they're being arrested. I'm interested to hear what they'll say." Shikamaru said with a grin.

He heard Yamato make a sharp noise of disapproval. "You're a bit of a sadist, Shikamaru-kun."

Yamato sighed at Shikamaru's chuckle, signalling to his team. As a unit, they began creeping towards the walled mansion, which had been utterly silent all day long. The wood-style ninja closed his eyes with a grimace, remembering Shikamaru's vague and rushed description of the mission.

At the time, he had appeared frazzled and utterly exhausted, his eyelids red and sore.

"All I need you to do is hang out in the bushes and watch the old guy's house." He had said as he shuffled through the stack of files in his arms. "There's usually a couple ANBU watching the place, but you'll be replacing them. If this lead turns out to be good, and we get the information we're looking for, I'll be asking you to move in and arrest the head of the house."

He had finally discovered the file he was seeking, handing the mission summary over to the Captain.

"I've assigned four people to you." He said, pointing to the paper. "Lee and Hinata will be entering the mansion with you, since they're skilled in close combat and the sneaky sort of stuff. Kiba and Tenten will be covering the outside, since they specialize in larger scale attacks. I know it's kind of a weird group, but with everyone so scattered on missions this is the best I can do. They're all members of the Konoha Eleven though, so you shouldn't have a problem with compatibility."

Shikamaru had dismissed himself before Yamato could ask any questions, muttering about how he had to deliver the files to Naruto before the blond left on a political mission with Kakashi.

"Captain!" Lee exclaimed as he crawled through the snowy underbrush, looking uncomfortably similar to a giant lizard without a tale. "I am wondering what the point of carrying out a raid on this seemingly empty house is, sir! Though I am willing to do it regardless, since it was none other than Shikamaru-kun who asked, you have not told us the purpose of this mission!"

Captain Yamato sighed as the other members turned to look at him questioningly.

"I don't really know all the details either." He admitted, rubbing his temple nervously. "You know how Shikamaru gets when he's in tactician mode. He forgets that not everyone is on the same wavelength as him."

"Che, talk about annoying." Kiba growled. Akamaru let out a low bark in agreement.

"Honestly, Naruto's the same nowadays. You can never tell what's going on in that head of his." Tenten added. "I can tell they're both onto something though, so we should just kind of trust them to do their thing."

"Excellently stated, Tenten!" Lee exclaimed excitedly. "I am feeling energized by this youthful display of trust between comrades!"

"Would you shut up already?" Tenten replied with a groan. "We're supposed to be sneaky here. Sneaky, Lee."

Yamato sighed, tuning out their bickering as he glanced over his shoulder at the silent Hyūga. The veins around her pale lavender eyes bulged as she focused her dōjutsu, her gaze penetrating the high walls which loomed steadily closer. Sensing his gaze, she shook her head slowly.

"It's strange," She began in a low voice. "Even though this house is huge, there are only five people in there. And they all seem to be in one central location."

The group fell silent as they glanced from Hinata to the tall, watchful walls which surrounded the mansion.

"I'm concerned though." She continued. "The person that they are all crowded around, who I assume is the head of the family…his chakra is very strange. I can't figure out why, but looking at it is making me uncomfortable."

Captain Yamato frowned. "Lee, Hinata, we're going in now. Be wary, but don't attack unless it's necessary. Kiba, Tenten, stay out here and conceal yourselves unless someone tries to escape from the grounds. Let's go!"

"Yes, sir!" They chorused, as the three infiltrators took off through the trees at a sprint.

Yamato's fingers flashed through familiar hand signs, and with a low rumbling, a ramp of twisting tree trunks shot out of the earth. The trio ascended without slowing, jumping over the ornate claw-like spikes which covered the top of the walls. They peered down into the grounds, their eyes sweeping across the silent traditional garden and the dark windows of the house.

"Ah, they are all in that room there." Hinata whispered, gesturing towards a dimly lit window on the third floor of the mansion. She frowned then, the corners of her mouth turning sharply downwards. "One of them, the only female, does not appear to be a ninja. She doesn't have any chakra worth mentioning."

"Perhaps a hostage?" Lee mused as they jumped over the edge of the wall, landing in the garden as silently as falling leaves. "Or, since you mentioned that one of them seems quite ill, it is entirely possible that she is a caretaker of some kind?"

"We won't know until we're in there." The Captain said. "Since there's no one else in the house, we'll go in through that window directly. Ah, I have a bad feeling about this…"

They raced through the twisting paths of the garden, their shadows flickering in the lights of the lanterns which were nestled in the foliage. Within minutes, they were jumping from one level of the roof to the other, their footsteps clinking on the ceramic shingles. As they reached the third level, the trio slowed, creeping towards the windows as silently as possible.

Lee and Yamato peered into the room, discovering it to be extremely ornate and gently lit by several red lamps. A futon was spread out in the middle of the room, though they could not see the person lying there because of the figure sitting with her back to them. A third person, dressed entirely in black, stood in the corner of the room like a guard.

"Hinata, where are the other two?" The wood user asked in a low voice.

"Outside the door." Hinata whispered, her Byakugan seeing through the walls. "Ah, I'm sorry, but it looks like they noticed that we're here."

The woman screamed in shock as Lee and Yamato burst through the window in a shower of glass. At almost the exact same moment, the two guards in the hall burst into the room while the third stepped forward. Hinata flitted through the window a second later, taking her place on the right of their spearhead formation.

Yamato raised his hands. "Listen, we aren't here to harm any of you." He began in a soothing voice, taking a careful step forward. He froze when the three guards raised their weapons; each of them wielding a traditional katana. Lee assumed a defensive position in response to their threat, his bandaged hand flat as he held it out.

"We are shinobi of the Leaf." Yamato continued, uncomfortable in the tense silence. "We have been ordered by the Fifth Hokage to arrest the head of the household. I understand that you have a duty to protect your master, but please lower your weapons so we can do this peacefully."

The caretaker, seeming to recover from the shock, suddenly raised her voice. "Help us!" She cried out, her fist held to her chest as she leaned forward. Her desperate eyes fell onto Hinata.

"That bitch!" One of the guards yelled angrily, procuring a small throwing knife.

Hinata moved at the same time as he did, stepping into the path of the weapon the guard had flung at the woman and knocking it off course with the side of her hand. She crouched down in front of the woman while Yamato and Lee jumped into action. The Captain promptly caught on of the guards, branches twisting from his fingers and coiling around the man's arms.

Lee neatly evaded the swinging katana of his opponent, his body twisting acrobatically. Frustration fueled the guards swings as he found himself unable to get his blade anywhere near the spandex wearing ninja. Lee ducked under a slash directed towards his stomach, jumping up without hesitation as soon as the blade had passed to deliver a solid punch to the guards jaw. The man flew back into the wall, completely unconscious.

Captain Yamato made short work of the third, tying his up with his comrades.

Hinata sighed as she released her dōjutsu, turning to smile comfortingly at the woman who was clinging to the back of her Jounin vest. The woman's hands were trembling, tears falling from her dark, bloodshot eyes. She was still kneeling beside the occupied futon, her long black braid pouring down her back to rest on the tatami mats beneath them.

"Thank you." She whispered in a shaking voice. "Thank you so much."

"Everything is alright now." Hinata said soothingly, holding the woman's shaking hands in her own. "Could you please tell us your name?"

The woman managed a small smile in return. "Yuu." She replied. "I am the master's personal caretaker. Those men have been holding us hostage for weeks."

"How did we not notice that?" Yamato muttered, glancing over to the man on the futon. His eyes widened in shock.

Lord Yokozawa looked completely different since the last time any of them had seen him, which was only a few weeks before Sasuke's trial. He had looked young for a man in his late sixties, with keen, laughing eyes and jet black hair. The man who was lying under a pile of thick blankets, however, looked to be in his late eighties: his thinning hair was pure white and his eyes were milky with blindness.

"This…" Captain Yamato muttered, crouching down beside the man. "Can't be Lord Yokozawa?"

The caretaker bowed her head. "I'm afraid it is." She replied sadly. "Several months ago, the master suddenly fell terribly ill. It wasn't long before he was not well enough to run the household. That is when our young master, Akira, began acting strangely."

Hinata frowned. She remembered Akira Yokozawa from Sasuke's trial. He was a handsome but conceited young man, who had asserted his opinions not only onto Naruto, but on the Elders of the Council as well. They had tolerated it, believing that he had been sent by his father as a representative. However, looking down at the obviously delirious master of the house, Hinata doubted that to be the case.

She glanced over to the unconscious guards. "Those men are…?"

"Master Akira's lackeys, miss." Yuu replied, grimacing at them. "They fired all the other staff members but me, so that I could continue to care for the master."

"You have done a most splendid job, under the circumstances!" Lee praised with a sparkling grin. "Might I be as bold as to ask what is wrong with Lord Yokozawa, Ms. Yuu?"

The caretaker blushed nervously. "I have no idea." She admitted, her eyes straying across the tormented and wrinkled expression on her masters face. "It seemed that, all at once, he completely lost his grip on reality."

A sudden moan drew their attention. The master of the house screwed his eyes shut, his neck craning and mouth gasping as if there were invisible hands around his throat. His legs thrashed wildly as he kicked the blankets off, groaning and gasping desperately. His limbs were thin and bony as he reached out blindly, his hand finding Yuu's with surprising accuracy.

"Don't touch him," The young woman whispered, fresh tears dripping from her eyes. "It will only get worse of you touch him."

"I am…Yokozawa." The man croaked out, his eyes bulging. "No! Yokozawa….I am Yokozawa."

"Master," Yuu said in a low, soothing voice. "There are people here who have come to save us. Look, Master Yokozawa, they are friends of yours from Konoha."

"Yuu…" The shuddering man managed to choke out, his eyes rolling back in his head. "Friends from…Konoha. Konoha...I am Yokozawa."

"That's right, sir." Yuu said, her voice trembling. The hand which was still holding Hinata's fingers tightened. "They want to help you."

Suddenly, the man became completely still. He blinked several times, and all at once, his eyes seemed to clear and become focused. Immediately, his gaze fell across Hinata's lavender eyes.

"Hyūga," He whispered, slowly raising his hand to lay it over his heart. "Please, heiress, release me…while I am still myself. I am Yokozawa…head of this house."

He gripped Yuu's fingers tighter as his hand fell back to his side. His eyes began losing focus again as he stared at the ceiling. "You're wrong." He muttered to no one in particular. "I am Yokozawa…not Kou."

A chill of realization rippled through the shinobi. Tears welled up in Hinata's eyes as she activated her Byakugan, scanning the master's chakra network.

"This is bad," She whispered, shaking her head. "Even if we get him immediate medical attention, he will be dead within a couple days. I've never seen such sickly chakra."

Yuu gripped her master's hand with both of her own, leaning over him. "No," She said tearfully. "I won't let you die."

Lord Yokozawa's eyes gained recognition again as he turned his head towards the Captain. "Yamato," He muttered. "Akira, my son…he is no longer…a man of the Leaf."

"I understand, sir." Yamato replied, leaning closing to the dying man.

"He is in…the tainted holy ground…Akira Yokozawa." His voice trailed off as tears leaked from the corners of his wrinkled eyes.

He turned his gaze to the woman at his side, his lips trembling as he looked at her tear stained face. "Yuu," He whispered. "Let me go. Let me die…as the master of this house."

Holding his frail hand to her damp cheeks, Yuu managed to smile through her tears. "Yes, Master Yokozawa."

The Elder smiled, turning his focus from Yuu to Hinata. "Heiress?" He said gently.

Several tears escaped from Hinata's lavender eyes. "I will help you." She whispered.

Yamato and Lee stood up, allowing Hinata to take their spot on his left side. They turned their backs to the scene as Yuu bent over, her wailing gasps echoing in the room.

"Lee," Yamato muttered, his tone as rough and pinched as his eyes. "Please go report the situation to Kiba and Tenten."

"Right away, Captain." Lee replied in a subdued tone, glancing back at the young woman. "We're going to take her back with us, right sir?"

Captain Yamato nodded. After Lee had launched himself back out the window, Yamato quietly slipped out of the room. He fiddled with the dials on his wireless transmitter, waiting for a response from Shikamaru.

"Nara?" He said in a tired voice. "Come in, Shikamaru."

"I hear you, Captain." Shikamaru replied. "What happened?"

"It's not what we suspected." Yamato replied, leaning against the wall in the dark hallway. "It seems that the Yokozawa heir betrayed his father. Lord Yokozawa is currently battling against the Kou who is attempting to take possession of his mind."

"Shit…" The strategist muttered. "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't considered that possibility, but I was hoping that it wouldn't be true."

"Yes, this is beyond unfortunate." The Captain replied with a sigh. "He has asked for us to release him from his suffering while he still has a slight grip on reality. Hinata is taking care of that as we speak. The only remaining member of his household and staff is a young female caretaker, who we will bring back to Konoha. We will bring Akira Yokozawa's men back with us as well."

"Got it." Shikamaru replied. "I'll make sure to pay each of them a visit when I get back."

"Alright. Oh, one more thing." Yamato said. "Lord Yokozawa is under the impression that his son is in Last Gate right now."

"Neji's getting information out of our guy right now." A strangled cry in the background punctuated his next comment wonderfully. "If you think I'm a sadist, you should take a peek at Neji's information extracting methods. Really great stuff."

"Ugh." Yamato responded, grimacing. "Just let me know when you hear something useful, okay? I'm trusting your team to handle this, since we have some added cargo to bring back with us."

"Later, then."

Yamato sighed, walking back towards the softly lit room reluctantly. He wanted to sink into the floorboards, slink his way back to Konoha and go for a drink at the closest bar. He rounded the corner, entering the room just in time to see the flash of Hinata's fingers at they closed several vital chakra points in Lord Yokozawa's heart and lungs.

Within minutes, the Elder of the Leaf was dead, the faintest of smiles still clinging to his withered lips. Hinata and Yamato bowed their heads to pray for him, while to breathless cries of his devoted caretaker pierced through the silence of the night.

Far away in the dark trees, Akamaru started howling.