CHAPTER 6
(Panther Clan grounds; Kingdom of Zoanthropes-the next morning)
As many people know, healing another individual required using chakra energy. In the case of Hikaru Hyuga, her entire body needed to be repaired and reenergized. And while Naruto's chakra reserves were larger than normal, thanks to Kyubi, the experience had left Naruto drained of nearly all his energy.
He blinked his eyes as he focused on a ceiling he didn't recognize, his body feeling the soft, comfortable bed he was in, the silk sheets and satin covers. However, he also felt someone on top of him. The body was warm, but according to his rather highly developed sense of touch, he realized that not only was this person female, judging from the two huge bumps on his chest, but that she was naked. Just like he was.
He felt the slight tickle of someone's breath on his neck and moved his head slightly to see who it was. His eyes shot wide open as he recognized the hair and partial view of her face.
'Oh crap, H-Hinata-c-chan?' He thought. He tried to get up but her grip was like a vise and it didn't seem like she was planning to let him go anytime soon. 'Oh brother.'
His body tensed when he felt her legs wrap around his, and he prayed that she didn't wake up and found his lower half fully awoken. Her body readjusted itself as her skin moved against his, which didn't help him at all.
"Hmm.... Naruto....-kun.... I love you." she said softly.
Naruto froze when she said that. Looking down he noticed that she was still asleep, so his thought was that she was dreaming. But then again, she was dreaming of him?
Does she really care for me? He wondered, hoping against hope that she did, that maybe he could be happy with someone as wonderful as Hinata.
His hand reached up from behind Hinata and gently stroked her hair, a smile brought to the girls lips as she sighed contentedly.
(Konoha)
Dawn had risen over Konoha, and the meeting of the Zoanthrope clans was done. With the meeting done, the clans began to make their plans a reality.
Taicho was staring out of the compound when one of the lesser known clan heads approached her. He was dressed like a diner chef, with short brown hair and hazel silted eyes. He had golden fur with black spots and huge feathered wings like that of her son's. He was a 'kitty-hawk', part cat (in this case a leopard) on his mothers side, and part hawk on his fathers.
"Lady Taicho," he said. "Everyone is ready,"
Taicho gently nodded to him. "Thank you, Hazen. Report this to Inoichi and tell him that everything shall go as planned." She said.
He nodded and took off.
Meanwhile, Jun and Maya were getting everything ready to leave Konoha. Maya had sent a bat to the Fire Lord with a message detailing everything about what had happened to Naruto during his time in Konoha and for help against ROOT.
"Mom? Do you think she's going to help?" Asked Jun, approaching the older woman.
"I hope so dear, I hope so." Maya sighed, rubbing her arm gently. I wouldn't blame her if she didn't. We are stronger than the damned council give us credit for. But... are we strong enough?
(Forest outside of the Zoanthrope kingdom)
At the eastern forests of the valley, a group of Zoa-Knights were on a routine patrol, when they suddenly paused, coming across the body of a young woman who appeared to be caught under a tree and boulder. The female knight, named Arturia, stared at the woman, taking in her short red hair, tanned body covered in torn and bloody clothes. She was relieved that she was still alive, though her breathing shallow, as she approached and sniffed her.
She's like Anko-san. She thought, herself dressed in a breastplate, black skirt, and shin and forearm guards. She had blond hair in a bun and gray eyes and carried herself as the leader of this patrol. She pointed to the two largest men and quickly gave them orders. "Get this tree off of her!"
The pair saluted her, dropped their weapons, and quickly turned in to their Zoanthrope forms. One was a silver back gorilla while the other was a 9 foot tall polar bear.
They grabbed the large tree and lifted it off of the girl as the woman, who had turned into a lioness, picked her up as gently as she could.
"We must get her to the doctors. Let's go!"
With that they left and headed back to the kingdom.
(The road to the Zoanthrope kingdom)
Not far from where the Zoa-Knights patrol had found the young woman, a young man was rushing hastily through the forest along the path of the road itself. There was fear and panic in his eyes as he continued running, hoping that she was alright.
I swear, if anything has happened to her, I will never forgive myself! He sighed as he picked up his pace. He was dressed in dark robes, hakama pants, tabi socks, sandals and had twin katanas on his hip. Having not seen his twin sister in so long he was naturally worried for her safely. He had heard that a group of hunters were after a woman with short red hair, and immediately panicked at the prospect that she was a target. He couldn't guess the reason, but he knew it had to be bad.
His name was Mizuki, and he was one of the most skilled sword masters in the east. His dream? Besides finding his sister Tayuya, to challenge the Takeuchi heir to an honorable fight and to prove himself as good as the famed sword masters.
He suddenly came upon a small clearing, and signs of a fight. It was then that he smelled something familiar. His sister! He knew it! But he also smelt several other creatures who had only recently been in the area.
That's strange. My sisters blood seems to be older. Like she was here more than an hour. Yet the other scents are fresh. Mere minutes I think. He thought as his tongue darted in and out of his mouth. Hmm. Gorilla, bear, lion. And something else. A badger, maybe? One even smells like a horse, and another has a faint scent of a ram. But where did they go? He thought.
Picking up the trail, Mizuki followed the mixed scents on their path.
(Zoanthrope kingdom, Chambers of Cronos)
Cronos looked up from his throne while speaking to his advisors as the Zoa-Knight patrol entered the throne room, the female leader holding the unconscious girl.
"Yes Arturia, what is it?" He asked, stepping down from his throne.
"My liege, we have found this woman on the outskirts of the kingdom. We think she might be a viper." She said.
Walking over to her, Cronos gently sniffed her.
"You are correct, she is a viper. A king cobra if I am not mistaken." he said, motioning for one of his aids over.
"My lord?"
"See that this girl is tended to." Cronos said.
"Yes, my lord." the man said, as Arturia brought the girl over to the nearest couch.
Several minutes later, another of his knights burst through the door and approached Cronos, bowing to the prince as he did.
"Your highness, there is a young man that wants to see you." the knight said.
"Bring him in." Cronos said.
Seconds later, the knight returned with a young swordsman in tow. His short red hair gave Cronos a sneaking suspicion as to why he was here.
Mizuki bowed to Cronos, standing up to reveal his brown eyes, which held a glint of worry even as they wondered over to the girl laying on the couch.
Cronos looked at the man as his nostrils flared.
"A viper, just like her." he said, looking back to the girl that his doctor was tending to.
Mizuki nodded as he started to transform, his legs turned in to a long snake's tail, his upper body was covered in scales, his hair remained normal as a large hood on his back stretched out and made him seem even bigger than before.
"My name is Mizuki. And that girl is Tayuya, my twin sister. I've been searching for her for years. It was only recently that I learned she was in this region. But when I arrived, I was worried that I was too late." he said as he deformed back into human.
"My knights found her outside the boarders of our kingdom and brought her here." Cronos said. "She was still breathing when they found her. She should be fine."
"I am indebted to you and your knights, my liege. I offer my sword to your kingdom." he said.
Cronos smiled at the man. "You don't have to do that."
"It is the least I can do."
Cronos would have gladly accepted the man and his sister without strings attached, but he knew that look of honor-bound determination and sighed.
"Very well. I welcome you and your sister to my kingdom." he said as the King Cobra swordsman bowed to the prince.
(Panther Clan Fortress)
While Naruto continued to watch the lovely young woman sleeping close to him, several pairs of eyes were watching them from the hallway.
"Are you sure about this, Hikaru?" Kushina asked. "I mean... what if Hinata wakes up and freaks out?"
"Are you worried about my daughter, or your son?" Hikaru asked, playfully.
"Both. They're just so young, and their feelings are immature." the red-haired woman sighed.
"Don't worry. Naruto won't dishonor your precious daughter." Tsunade said as she approached the pair. "I'd have him spend time with Ibiki for that."
"Ibiki?" Kushina asked.
"Our head Interrogator." Tsunade explained.
"You mean torture!" Kushina gasped.
"Right. I should just let you punish him for getting Hinata pregnant."
"If he's only thirteen, maybe we should make wedding plans." Kushina said in a mocking tone. "That would surely make him jump."
"I wouldn't be averse to start planning, at least." Hikaru said. "Although... I would like to spend some time with my daughter. Alone."
"Hmm. Perhaps I can offer a solution." Tsunade said. "Kushina and I could take Naruto back to the Kingdom of Metal and train him. Make him stronger, while you spend time with Hinata and make her stronger as well."
"A training trip?' Hikaru asked. "How long?"
"Two, maybe three years?" Kushina asked her aunt.
"That sounds about normal for a training trip." Tsunade said. "Though, Hinata might be more than a little upset at spending so much time away from her precious Naruto."
"Perhaps. But... absence makes the heart grow fonder." Hikaru said.
The two women looked at the Panther queen.
"When did you become a fortune cookie?" Kushina asked.
"And a romantic one at that?" Tsunade asked with a smirk.
"I'm just saying that it would serve two purposes. We would both get to spend much needed time with our children, as well as gently encourage their feelings for each other, and when they return we could cement the marriage pledge so that..."
"Marriage pledge?" Kushina gasped. "You want your daughter married to my son so quickly?'
"I didn't say marry them off right now. I'm not anxious for grandchildren just yet. I'm just saying, that I like Naruto and that I feel comfortable with him as my daughters fiancée." Hikaru stated. "They wouldn't marry until they were of appropriate age. At least 17 or 18 years of age. Until then they can date as much as they want."
"So long as they remain loyal to each other." Tsunade said. "Don't get me wrong, I adore Hinata, but even with us to steer the pair towards each other, it has to be their choice, not ours."
The women sighed as the blond Hokage said that.
Just then, a small snake summon appeared with a scroll in its mouth, right next to Tsunade. The blond Hokage took the scroll and opened it, reading the message twice as her eyes started to grow.
"Auntie?" Kushina asked.
"It's from Anko! The Zoanthrope clans back in Konoha are planning to go on the offensive!"
"Is she asking for help?" Hikaru asked. "I can rally my Panther knights and..."
"No." Tsunade said, as she quickly wrote a response to Anko's message on the same scroll. "But I need to get back to the village."
"But what about asking Cronos for...."
"I won't ask him for help dealing with those bastards!" she said, handing the scroll back to the snake. "The less they know about this kingdom the better." she said, as the snake vanished.
"You don't have to fight alone, Tsunade-sama." Hikaru said.
"I know. But I can't ask...."
"You never have to." a new voice said as all eyes turned to the bedroom door.
Before them stood Naruto, dressed in only a pair of black pants. Hinata was behind him, dressed in a black silk robe.
"If Zoanthropes are in danger, then we have to help them." he declared.
"And you're sure of this, son?" Kushina asked.
"I am."
"I want to go to!" Hinata said, gently holding Naruto's hand from behind.
"Hina-chan!" Hikaru said.
"Mother, please!" the young Hyuga stated.
There was silence for several seconds, before Tsunade spoke.
"If we go, then we go together." Tsunade said.
"I'll go." Naruto said.
"I'll go." Kushina said.
"I'll go." Hinata said.
"And so will I!" Hikaru said before turning her head. "AZURE!"
Seconds later the beautiful panthress came sprinting through the hallways.
"My Lady?" Azure asked.
"Our brethren in Konoha are preparing for battle. I want 30 of our best warriors ready to leave in one hour. The rest stay to protect our home."
"Yes, My Lady!" Azure bowed and quickly ran off to preform her duty.
"Are you sure about this, Hikaru?" Tsunade asked.
"That damned council ran me out of Konoha years ago! Cut me off from my love, my child!" she said. "I won't let them ruin the lives of any more Zoanthropes! Not if I can help it! If there's going to be a fight, then I will fight!" she said, her fist clenched tightly as her words steeled with strength.
It was the first time Hinata had ever seen her mother like this. And for some reason, it made her feel rather proud.
TBC