At one of Orochimaru's hideouts...

She held up her arm, stretching it out in front of her. The sleeveless red tunic and short-sleeve white undershirt being a practical choice as much as for fashion. She held her elbow at an angle, staring at her lightly tanned skin. She had never been so tan before coming, but the hours of training and time spent outside had darkened the skin ever so slightly. She blushed for a moment as she remembered Sasuke's compliment of it a few days ago. He had said it 'looked good on her,' and had caught her just like anything he said could.

Sakura shook her head and brought herself back to the moment, focusing on the arm and drawing her chakra through it. There was a time for swooning, and a time for her drills. Sasuke had told her that too, abet in a much cooler way. He always was cooler about it. He often would come and watch her, saying nothing at all more often then not. Sometimes he would compliment her after a particularly impressive display, and sometimes he would reprimand her for poor performance. He was never cruel and never superfluous, always direct in his comments and praise. He had learned not to be so hung up on his words, but in private she was always still happy for them. It was not unless he complimented her looks or something of that sort that she truly returned to her flustered state.

She slowly began sucking in breath as she visualized the effect she wanted, calling on the gift locked within her blood. She watched as strange beads began to appear on her arm, color a light red to the point of almost being pink. They began to grow in size slowly, gathering up in geometric shapes at first and then began spreading out and upwards. The crystal structures grew all around her arm, shifting and changing, and eventually beginning to blossom into perfect crystalline representations of her name sake bloom. She smiled.

She was getting better at this.

She carefully brought the hand over the opposite shoulder and then sharply snapped it out. The blossoms detached as she did, but they did not go off flying into the distance. Instead, they began to whirl around her following the vague movements of her fingers slightly as the twirled about. And, just as fast, she snapped her fingers forward. Dozens of crystalline flowers went racing forward. They sliced into the target dummies, cutting deep and embedding into their surface. The razor-edged flower blossoms were something of a signature to her now. When they spun they could slice through almost anything, but she had only recently been able to get them to stick instead of shattering when they hit a solid object. It was a notable improvement.

Sakura had learned to focus on hardening them. It was a balancing act, however. She had to balance the hardness and density to be enough to stick without being too hard or too soft. Too soft and it would fly fast but shatter easily. Too hard and it would fly slow and get stopped. Gradually she gained the ability to modulate the hardness by judging the object she was throwing. She had always been a smart one with sharp eyes, Sasuke had said. He had praised her had gotten it down. Now it was second nature to her.

Growing the crystal out of her body was easy, but she had been working on something more. She was going to get it down. She wanted to be better, not just for Sasuke but because she owed it to herself. She had found that strange at first, how she began to train for more then just his praise and approval. She did not have it unconditionally nor did she want it, but more and more she had found that she wanted to approve of herself as well. Not to say her desire for his approval lessened at all, of course. It hadn't. It was simply supplemented now.

She crossed her arms across her chest and closed her eyes. Slowly but surely she began to control the chakra flow in her body, letting her tenketsu pores open more and more. Chakra began to flow out of her, contacting and mingling in the air around her. She began to draw the particles in the air, the moisture and the dust and everything else which surrounded her, and drew it together with her chakra. Crystals began to bud on her skin again as they also began appearing in the air around her, smaller then those grown directly on her skin; simple singular petals instead of full blossoms. But they were just as sharp, and deadly fast. The smiled. She was getting it down.

She snapped both of her arms away, sending both arms of crystal blooms off, joining the ruby petals that were dancing around her. She snapped her arms back forward, fingers outstretched, and unleashed hell.

The razor-sharp blades shot forward, spinning and whistling as they did. Impacts against the stone behind the half a dozen wooden dummies echoed through the room; the sounds of shattering crystal, cracking concrete, and breaking wood. She was breathing heavy, tenketsu rapidly closing off from the exertion and chakra reservoir half drained.

And then, slowly but surly, the dummies began to fall apart in thousands of pieces and splinters. Sakura smiled.

She was getting better.

Nearby...

Suigetsu, Karin, Jūgo.

It was a balanced team, and that's why Sasuke had picked them. They each brought a unique skill to the party, and would compliment his own style quite well. He knew were each of them were, and he knew that he could get all three of them to follow. There was no worry in that, really. The only actual concern was Karin's rather unwanted advances towards him. She reminded him of Sakura in her early days, back before she'd proven she had some use. And it was that nature which made Sasuke worried ever so slightly.

Sakura and Karin would not get along. They hadn't before in the few times they'd worked together on the behast of Orochimaru. It was where he'd gotten first hand experience with her abilities and came to appreciate their usefulness, though the was less useful, by far, when it came to actual combat. And, of course, her infatuation with him was rather annoying. He ignored it, as any acknowledgment of it likely would have just made things worse. But Sakura was unlikely to be so forgiving.

He adjusted himself on the bed, moving out of the cross legged meditation stance he'd been in as he sorted through his memories and planned the future moves. It was not an uncommon thing for him to do. He found it soothing to go over his plans again, making sure to work out what kinks he could and straighten up the loose ends. He knew it wouldn't all work perfectly, but there were certain things he could rely on. Like Sakura.

She had come a long way, Sasuke could admit. She was no longer an annoying little girl with unused potential. Now she was becoming a rather powerful woman, with confidence and skill in equal parts. She had a sharp mind and sharper eyes, and she was starting to get a sharp tongue a well. Not to him, of course, but he found her rather casual dismissal of Orochimaru rather nice. She'd picked that up from him, he realized. That thought made him smile.

He placed a hand over his neck, rubbing the spot where the cursed seal of heaven lay dormant. He had gained supreme control over the mark, though he found it would still try to ruin him from time to time. It was a power he used only rarely. He would need to draw on it to fight Orochimaru, he expected. Which was why he planned to have Sakura close by.

She had that strange ability to suppress it. It was not mystical or arcane, really. Simply her honest begging that managed to break through and help him. She had done it recently, even, and he had taken to bringing her along whenever he trained. Soothing words cut through the haze that overtook him when the curse mark pressed his sanity. It was cliche, almost. The power of love? Maybe. Who knows, it wouldn't be the strangest thing he'd ever seen.

He stood and headed for his door. He would check up on Sakura. She was training still, he knew. He made his way down the hallways, slowly but with a clear direction. He found it easier to navigate now that he'd spent so long here. They'd spent more time here then they had in any other of Orochimaru's hideouts. He wondered why, and suspected it might be his 'masters' rapidly deteriorating health. Pathetic. He was finally reaching the end of his usefulness and becoming fundamentally weak. He'd had to end the snake's life soon.

Very soon.

Elsewhere, in the Hokage's office...

Tsunade was not in a particularly good mood, not after that meeting with the council members, and even moreso when that bastard of a man, Danzō, had shown up. Despite his opposition status when it came to things, he was a member of the old guard and popular with some members. She had relented to allow a single one of their demands, a personal choice for the third member of the team which would be sent on this particular mission. But when the one-eyed bastard walked in she had almost immediately regretted it.

She needed a drink. She turned her seat around and looked out the window of her office, staring off into the distance. The last thing the village needed was more political turmoil, but she wasn't sure Danzō would agree.

"You're not seriously going to send him on this mission, are you?" Shizune asked, her tone revealing that she likely already knew the answer before she asked. Tsunade didn't even turn around to reply.

"My decision is final, Shizune. I couldn't stop him even if I wanted to. And I don't want to." she said with a grin, "Because if anyone is going to bring that boy home, it'll be him. I'd bet on it."

"Lady, with your luck, perhaps that's not a good idea." Shizune responded without thinking, slapping a hand over her mouth as she did. Tsunade turned to her slowly, very unamused. The young medical-nin sweatdropped, and she could have swore she saw stars appear in the hokage's eyes.

"As I was saying-" the hokage said, turning back to her desk, "Naruto isn't going to give up. He's the strongest kid I've ever seen, with more guts then anyone. He'll do it."

Shizune wasn't so convinced, "You really think so, Lady Tsunade?"

The hokage simply chuckled and sighed, "No, Shizune. I know so."

Shizune looked at her long time master and simply nodded, waiting a moment before speaking again, "And... what about Hinata, Lady Tsunade?"

That question took longer for the hokage to answer. She closed her eyes and she sat in silence for a few moments. "Other then her protective nature and the little stunt she pulled a few years back that likely saved his life? Well, other then that... she's good for him, Shizune. In a way neither Naruto nor Hinata quite understand, I think. And she has the potential to be more precious to him then anyone. And-"

She let her words trail off for a moment, causing Shizune to frown, "Yes, my lady?"

"I feel bad to say it, somewhat. But, the truth of the matter is she's somewhat of a replacement for Sakura. Naruto needed that, I think, or else this could have been far worse for him." she said, slight frown on her face, "She is starting to really love him, I think. Not just admire or respect, but actual love. I'm not sure he will know how to deal with that, but I think it'll make him a better person."

She turned to her companion with a weary look, "And if I am proven wrong, and he can't- God Forbid- bring them home, then she might be the only one to pull him through it."

Elsewhere in Konohagakure...

"It would seem, then, that the days of the old Team Eight are at an end, Kurenai-sensei." Shino said in his trademark logical monotone. His clothing had gotten even more enclosed over the years, which made him extremely hard to read, even for one with her skills.

He had come over for a nondescript reason, but that was not so uncommon. All of her team would often spend time talking with her, and visit even though Team 8 hadn't gone on a true mission together for months now. Shino was sitting across from her, sharing a friendly tea and chat with his long time teacher.

She had always liked her team, even for all their quirks. And they were a very quirky bunch. Shino had his clan's cold, logical precision but was not the most social of people. In a way, though, Shino might have been the most well adjusted of the group, and the one with the best home life. His family was complete and his clan status was secure. He was happy, in his own way, and she had succeeded in getting him to 'come out of his shell' a fair bit. Now he was joining his clan as a director for colony breeding. He was a mature, skilled, and most of all functional adult. She could be proud of having a part in that.

Kiba, on the other hand, was far more problematic then one might have expected at first. He was an aggressive young boy from a clan who tended to exemplify those traits, and he very much acted like a dog, both in loyalty and behavior. But that wasn't the real issue, and Kurenai did not begrudge anyone their clan traditions. But, Kiba also had grown up at least part of his life without a father, as, in his own words, his mother 'scared him off.' So she sometimes wondered how much of his behavior was his clan and how much of it was his imitation of what a 'guy' should be due to lacking experience. His time with her was good for him, but when Kakashi had stepped up and taken him on as a pupil after his dejection and near loss of Akamaru the boy truly began tho thrive.

"That's right." she replied somewhat sadly, "With your closer work with your clan, Hinata's being requested for another team, and Kiba's entrance into the ANBU, seems that things have come to an end. And I've been requested to take on some teaching duties at the academy."

"I must admit surprise at this turn of events." Shino said, taking a sip of his tea in such a way that made Kurenai wonder what meals were like at the Aburame compound. Their entire family tended to share that same style of covering up. He somehow managed to drink tea without even lowering his collar It never ceased to amaze her.

"Oh, that's not very much like you, Shino." she said with a smile, her pupil's tone never even shifting.

"Indeed, but the truth is the truth. Particularly, Kiba-san being chosen for the ANBU was most unexpected."

"Well, being trained by Kakashi was good for him." she said, a twinge of jealousy in her voice. She did think it was good, she really did. Kiba was changed, though. He was a bit more quiet, and reserved, but she felt that he might have been taking it a bit too far. Or maybe she just missed the Kiba she always knew. But he had to grow up some time.

"I agree." Shino said, again making Kurenai wishing he was easier to read. Sometimes she thought maybe she should take everything said at face value, but her experiences with the rest of society made her think otherwise. Perhaps that was why she so enjoyed his company. He was a challenge,

"But," Shino said, causing Kurenai focus more intently for a moment, "it is Hinata who has surprised me the most."

"Yes." Kurenai said, feeling both a twinge of jealousy and pride at the same time. She had spent much time with Hinata, and although she had never been able to become a surrogate mother to the troubled young girl, she had taken on a roll as almost an older sister. She had helped guide Hinata when she needed it, she knew, and she was happy for that. Even if she was jealousy that when he truly began to bloom that she had been taken under the wing of a new teacher. But then again, there was pride in that as well. She had not only requested that training, from one of the sannin and the hokage no less, but she had been granted it and taken on as her apprentice.

Hinata had had the most problematic of all the team's back stories. Her home life was abysmal: she'd lost her mother when she was young and her father had become increasingly colder and harsher with his daughter over time. She had no confidence in her skill, and she hadn't much skill to have confidence in. She was hopelessly obsessed with a boy, which wasn't truly bad but it could have become something very unhealthy. But, that obsession actually became something that saved her. Naruto did not exploit it, or even notice it really. He simply cheered her on and believed in her, giving her a boost that only he could do. But something worried Kurenai still about her bond to that boy.

She was worried it could become a worse obsession, in a way, particularly with Naruto's growing attraction and attention of her as well. Kurenai read people, and Naruto wasn't a particularly deceptive person, after all. Even if he tried to, his own unique 'upbringing' (or lack there of) meant that he simply had no idea how to hide his intentions at all.

"She's become a beautiful and strong woman. Naruto is very lucky." Shino said, causing Kurenai to freeze up for a moment. She recovered quickly and smiled.

"Yes. Very lucky." he said, and then looked out the window of her small apartment. She hoped it would be that way. Hinata deserved it, and so did Naruto honestly. But she couldn't help but worry.

Just like a big sister.

Some distance away, in Amegakure...

Madara stood at the edge of one of the tall towers, overlooking the industrial jungle that was the Village Hidden in the Rain. It was raining, as it so often was, and the Uchiha found that rather soothing. He needed all the soothing he could get, as well, particularly given this latest catastrophe.

He was not particularly pleased with this turn of events. It had been rather strongly outside of his predictions for how things would go, and he rarely had his predictions proven wrong. Honestly, the loss of one, or even two Akatsuki members had they successfully been able to extract one of the tailed beasts. Fundamentally, they were all expendable. Some where more expendable then others. But he did not appreciate having them squandered. And, given they'd failed in the extraction of the One-Tailed Shukaku, they had particularly failed. But they couldn't leave even that failure to stand alone.

They hadn't even the decency to die. Instead they'd had the gall to be captured alive, by Konoha no less! It put Madara in an interesting situation: did he rescue them, despite their failure? Did he just have them killed, despite the fact they might still be useful? Or did he simply rely on the fact they had only fraction of the true knowledge about the organization and move on. He could replace them, he knew. People with a lust for power were a dime a dozen in this world. He already had a few in mind...

"Pain." he said, causing the de jure leader of Akatsuki to look up at him from his silent brooding. "We'll replace the two. You know the candidates. Send them to recover Sasori and Deidara."

Pain said nothing. Madara did not expect him to. He would follow the order, Madara knew. Pain was a fairly effective leader. Somewhat idealistic, in his own dark way, but effective still. And powerful. The Rinnegan was an impressive tool, and one Madara was glad to have in his arsenal. And, of course, with Pain came Konan. Not as impressive, but skilled never-the-less and just as useful. And she kept Pain in check more then he realized. But this little catastrophe would still need to be dealt with.

He frowned. Perhaps it was time to make a personal appearance, of sorts.

Back in Konohagakure...

"So what's with blondie?" Temari asked, waggling her pair of chopsticks in the direction that Naruto had just taken off to. She and Shikamaru had taken a lunch break from their assigned duties, mostly to give her a breather. Still working with the lazy Nara on the upcoming chuunin exams, they were working on the various mechanics of the exam, weighing the pros and cons of each round and deciding proctors and the other minutiae. It was a tedious process that Shikamaru described as both a 'drag' and 'troublesome' at various points in time, yet he always was quite thorough. Almost too thorough in his contingencies sometimes, and she was happy to change the subject off the exams and onto something else for a short while. In this case, a certain recently returned genin's speedy pace through town.

"Hrm, what, you mean Naruto?" Shikamaru said, looking up from his meal with a bored look on his face.

"Yeah, of course that kid, who else?" she replied a bit sharply, but true to his nature he seemed too lazy to care about her tone.

"I don't know, haven't really talked with him much since he got back. He showed up and then was right out the door with Kakashi and Hinata in tow. Now he's back and he's rushing around again. Too troublesome to bother with. I'll talk to him when he slows down." he said and then returned to his meal, earning a sigh from his dining companion.

"So... what about your friend as the first proctor, then?" she said after a short pause, causing him to look up with a uncommonly dark look on his face. Temari almost frowned, being rather unaccustomed to those strange moments. His team was a touchy subject as of late. But the look faded quickly, replaced with a smirk.

"She certainly knows how to get inside peoples heads." he said, leaning back as he did, "She'll be perfect."

Meanwhile, at the ANBU Headquarters...

Deidara was bored. Like, extremely bored, yeah? More bored then he'd ever been in his own life. He hadn't really ever considered what life would be like without arms, but had he likely still wouldn't have ever imagined just HOW boring it actually was. He had no metaphor for just how boring it was, and he had run through all of the ones he could think of. Though, the boredom could have been enhanced by the fact he was armless and tied up in a Leaf Village prison (or at least what the thought was a prison, yeah.) That made things definitely worse.

Bored.

He had tried singing, but realized he didn't really know any good songs.

He wondered how long he'd been there, because it felt like a few years. He knew it couldn't be more then a few hours. Days? Something like that. It was less then a year, he was fairly sure. I mean, hard to tell, really. He supposed it had to be, he would have starved otherwise. At least, I mean, that was likely what would happen, unless Konohagakure had some crazy 'sustenance beam' and was keeping him alive. But he doubted they were that dedicated to trying to mess with his head.

So a few hours likely, he figured. Or days. Maybe a day or two. Or three. He was pretty hungry, after all. When was the last time he'd eaten? A few days ago too? He wasn't sure how many, the room had no window. Just a a chair, padded all the way around and bolted to the floor; a bed, also padded all the way around, with a metal-less mattress that was also glued to the frame, which was also padded and bolted; and a single light that dangled from a short span of wire, with a single light bulb. He had spent a few minutes (or was it hours?) trying to guess how long the length of wire was. He had finally settled on two feat (or was it three feet and seven inches?) and then tried to sleep.

He couldn't sleep. Mattress sucked and the light never went off, ever. Didn't have the decency to flicker either, yeah. The room had no sink, which he couldn't have used likely anyway (no arms meant no hands after all, yeah) and it had no toilet, but he hadn't had to go cus he hadn't really eaten anything for a few days (or was it hours?) He really wished he had a window. He couldn't find the air vent, but he was pretty sure there was one, given the fact the air never seemed to get too warm or stuffy. He wished he had some clay. But then again, he had no arms so wouldn't have been all that useful, yeah.

He sat down on his bed. He didn't really like the chair much. It just sat there in the center of the room. No table or anything. He'd spent a few hours (or was it days?) in the chair, and moved to the bed. He couldn't sleep, but he liked the bed better then the chair, even though he couldn't sleep. They never turned the light out you see, not even a flicker, yeah.

The mattress was too spongy. Room was too gray. Just gray concrete. All the same, very uniform. He wondered how they managed to do that, make everything smooth and clean.

He was a little bit hungry, but ninja could go for a long time without sustenance. He wondered if Konohagakure had something that also took care of that cus he hadn't felt really all that hungry at all for all the days he'd been in the room (or was it hours?) He wondered how long the wire was for that light bulb. He wished the light would flicker. The light never flickered. And it never went off either. He couldn't sleep at all. The mattress was too spongy. Maybe he'd go and sit on the chair. He wasn't sure what he liked better, the chair or the bed.

He was really bored.

He hadn't ever considered how bored he would be without arms.

Outside the cell...

"How much longer are you planning to keep him in there?" Ibiki asked with an amused grin on his face, staring at the armless Akatsuki from behind a hidden window.

"I'll give him another twenty minutes, sensei." Ino replied, smirking evilly.

"How long has he been in there, anyway?" the scarred Tokubetsu Jōnin asked, turning to his young pupil.

"Five days, two hours, and thirty-seven minutes." she said, grin growing increasingly sinister with each word. "I love the room. Always messes with their heads."

Ibiki just smiled. She really did take after her ol' teacher. And then some. He was hoping she'd take over as the head of ANBU Torture and Interrogation in a few years. She'd proven very effective at getting in peoples heads, and that nice girl attitude she brought in always messed with their heads even better then Ibiki could sans his bandanna. She'd started her own solo interrogations in the last few months, and had a rather impressive success rate. She hadn't once needed him to step in, though officially he was supposed to be watching her for 'her and the subjects protection.'

Honestly, though, he just enjoyed watching her work.

Later, in town...

It was eerie, really. Konohamaru couldn't shake the strangest feeling of being followed. Like there were a pair of eyes always on him, staring into his very soul. It was creepy, honestly, but every time he'd tried looking around or surprising someone, he'd found nothing at all and just made a fool of himself. He began picking up his pace, trying to rush back to his home and, he hoped safety. Last thing he wanted was to be caught out in the open when whatever it was that was following him made a move.

He and his team had just gotten done a fairly grueling training session with Ebisu-sensei, and turned in their daily Rank D mission. It wasn't the most rewarding of things, but it was how every ninja started, and even Naruto-oyabun told him that he just had to suffer through it and that he'd get his chance eventually. The young genin had sighed and resigned himself to his fate, and the fact that he was falling so far behind oyabun. He had to speed things up, or else he'd never be ready to be the seventh hokage at this rate.

He turned around suddenly, eyes scanning for that strange presence again, and then frowned. Foiled again, it seemed. Slowly, he turned back around and hurried on home. He idly wondered if maybe he should talk to oyabun about this.

"Nah," he said to himself, "like he'd know what I'm talking about."

The young Sarutobi picked up his pace, long scarf fluttering behind him as he did.

Some distance back, a young, lavender-eyed girl peeked from around the corner, watching as Konohamaru ran. Her eyes flashed as she watched him, a smirk on her confident face. Yes, she was going to get that boy some time, and make him her guy. He should feel lucky for the chance, even.

She would do it, or her name wasn't Hanabi Hyuuga.