When Mieko and Sasuke arrived at Tazuna's house they got a mixture of various emotions from all the people inside, Sakura and Naruto were glaring at their conjoined hands, Kakashi merely looked enraged by the bare chested teen and his daughter who was now wearing Sasuke shirt and had tussled hair, he knew nothing happened but his thoughts could not stop the disgusting thoughts that crossed his mind. Tazuna and his family honestly didn't care. "Why in the hell is she wearing your shirt!" Naruto screamed at Sasuke.
"The other shirt was too big for me so Sasuke offered me his" Mieko defended innocently, she didn't want to share her moment with Sasuke with the others.
"Yeah, so why aren't you wearing your own?" Sakura growled in jealously, how dare Mieko wear Sasuke's shirt. She loved the sight of a bare chest but not the reason for it.
"Because my scroll was destroyed and my belonging along with it" She snapped angrily, Sakura and Naruto retreated "So am I able to borrow some of your clothing Sakura because I don't want to keep stealing Sasuke's" she knew that Sakura would say yes just because she didn't want Mieko wearing his clothes.
"Of course, just let me go get some" the pinkette took one last dreamy stare at Sasuke's bare chest before leaving.
"I knew that would work" Mieko giggled and took a seat beside Naruto "So you think you can climb to the top of the tree Naruto?"
"You better believe I will, I'll be better than Sasuke and even you!" the blonde boasted proudly.
"Dream on loser" Sasuke teased as he took his seat in front of Mieko "You can never hope to be better than me."
"I'll show you! I'll be better than you!"
"Shut up dweeb!" Sakura yelled as she bonked Naruto on the head "these are some clothes you can wear, there a little big on me but I was hoping I would grow into them" she brought the pile of clothes and dumped them on the table in front of Mieko.
"Thanks, Sakura I'll change into them after dinner."
"Can you do it now, I'm sick of seeing the broods bare chest" Naruto grumbled in a low voice. He saw Mieko looking at Sasuke out of the corner of her eye but showed no emotion, something she did when she was hiding a secret, something happened and he didn't like it.
"No they can both get changed after dinner I don't mind" Sakura spoke dreamily as she continued to stare at Sasuke's chest.
"I'm going to get changed now, I don't want to catch a cold" Sasuke muttered, feeling extremely creeped out by Sakura's constant stare, even worse when Mieko didn't even care that he was bare-chested, it was as if their moment together didn't even happen.
"Well please hurry dinner is almost ready" Tsunami called out sweetly.
"Hi, my name is Inari what's yours?" the small child asked as he followed Mieko upstairs, he loved that she had a tail and that her eyes glowed in the dark, it was so cool.
"My name is Mieko Hatake, what's yours?" she replied sweetly, he was such an adorable little boy.
"Inari Shinko. Are you the scary man's daughter?" he asked, his eyes glared back at Sasuke who was eavesdropping on the conversation.
"Yes, he's my father."
"Are you related to the mean boy?" he pointed to Sasuke who was now glaring at him.
"No, he's a good friend of mine."
"Oh…" he trailed off, hoping that the pretty girl wasn't too involved with the mean boy, he liked her "Well that's ok I suppose!"
"Yes I suppose it is" she chuckled softly and allowed Inari to show her where she could get changed.
The next day both Naruto and Sasuke continued their training or as it should be named, tree climbing whilst Sakura and Mieko watched over the construction of the bridge, it was a boring job but they had to watch in case Zabuza decided to attack again. Mieko had her ears, eyes and nose on high alert so she could be aware of everything that passed through, whether it be a small animal or a person she would know it didn't matter, she would find out. Sakura was yawning whilst Mieko sat beside her, reading a book and ignoring Sakura all together "You always this lazy" Tazuna drawled as he walked over to the two girls with a large steel bar over his shoulder "Where's that weird blonde kid and the one with the attitude?"
"Their training" replied Sakura "climbing trees."
"Too tough for you?" Tazuna teased the two girls.
"No, in fact, I'm the best, that's why sensei sent me here to guard you" the pink haired ninja in training puffed her chest out proudly.
Tazuna stopped to look at her "You're joking" Sakura narrowed her eyes and growled.
"Yes she is, I had done this training years before therefore making me the best" Mieko replied but did not take her eyes away from her book, she wasn't boasting, she was just stating the facts.
"WHAT THE HELL MIEKO!" Sakura screamed, Mieko merely did what she used to do in school, look up from her book and stare at Sakura with a blank expression before continuing to read 'what! She's ignoring me again! Now how am I going to get Sasuke to like me if Mieko doesn't acknowledge me! Sasuke doesn't like anyone who Mieko doesn't like so if she doesn't like me…AAAAHHHHH THAT MEANS SASUKE DOESN'T LIKE ME! I'm going to have to change that CHA!'
"Uh hey Tazuna I need to talk to you," a man said, stopping before Tazuna with a stern expression, Mieko stopped reading her book to watch the exchange with calculating eyes.
"Eh? What about?" Tazuna replied cautiously.
"Ahh the thing is, I've been thinking a lot about the bridge and I've decided, I've pushed my luck far enough I want out" Tazuna's eyes widened before narrowing in anger at the man's confession.
"Now you're going to quit on me just like that!" he yelled with a mighty rage "You're kidding!?"
"You know, I stayed on because of our friendship" the man tried to reason, but instead he looked to the floor in shame "But I'm putting my life on the line every day I stay here, Gato and his thugs will show up eventually, when they do they'll kill you and the bridge won't be finished anyway" he looked back up at Tazuna "It's a lost cause Tazuna, why don't we stop now so we can get out of this alive" the two teenaged girls looked at the exchange, one with shock and the other with a blank expression that Sasuke normally wore.
"Not a chance" Tazuna finally spoke, his voice full of determination "This is our bridge, our island is poor and it will stay that way until this bridge connects us to the mainland, comers, trade and hope that's what we're building here."
"There's not going to be much hope if we're all dead" the man shot back, Tazuna merely stared at him for a few fleeting moments before walking past him.
"It's already noon, let's break for lunch."
"Tazuna, let's not end it like this-"
"Save your breath" Tazuna interrupted "Oh and this, don't bother coming back after lunch" he walked away without another word.
"Hmm, this bridge means a lot to Tazuna" Mieko concluded softly.
"Huh?" Sakura looked over to Mieko who still wore that calculating look she got from her father "Why do you say that, of course he does."
"Perhaps it would be nice of us if we helped out, we are strong enough so I am sure we could be of some use" Mieko stood from her sitting position "Let us head off to lunch, I am sure that Tsunami has prepared a great dinner for us."
"Oh ok" Sakura commented and followed the Hatake female, all the while agreeing with her on helping Tazuna.
"Umm, where are we going?" Sakura asked beside Tazuna and Mieko, the bridge builders had stopped working and headed into town to have lunch.
"You wanna eat tonight don't you?" Tazuna asked "I gotta pick up some things for dinner" Sakura nodded and let her eyes wander over all the people who surrounded her, many people, both children and adults lied in the streets covered in dirt and as thin as a twig, their stomachs rumbled from the food they longed to have but could never eat.
'What's wrong with these people?' she thought sadly.
'I hate seeing such misfortune happen to people so young,' thought Mieko, her eyes lingering on two children who were huddled together, her thoughts were swarming with the famine that these people were suffering, she was now more determined than ever to help Tazuna build the bridge so these people could live as they should.
"Ah, here we are" Mieko broke out of her thoughts when Tazuna spoke.
"Welcome" the man from the counter spoke, his voice croaky and hoarse, Mieko and Sakura looked at all the limited food the man had in his store, both with deep frowns, this truly was a devastating sight to see. Sakura's thoughts had her sorely focused on them that she did not see the creepy man reaching for her.
"You pervert!" Mieko screamed and kicked the man straight in the face "Don't touch Sakura that way!" she hissed at the man holding his face, her tail had puffed up and strangely enough so did her hair, she had kept it down so it became incredibly fuzzed due to her irritation.
"No, I was-" the man yelled but with his face broken from the impact and the blood flowing from his mouth and nose he couldn't speak very well, Tazuna quickly gathered and paid for the food they needed and hurried out.
"Wow, you really surprised me back there, not many women fight like that around here. And that hissing you can do is really intimidating, can you growl as well?" the feline woman nodded.
"I was merely making sure that pervert didn't touch Sakura" Mieko commented with a shrug.
"That was amazing!" Sakura had stars in her eyes as she stared at Mieko in awe "But they really should know how to fight, there is seriously something wrong here" A hand reached out but this time it grabbed Mieko and not Sakura.
"Hey watch it-" Mieko went to yell but stopped when she looked at the little boy standing behind her, he reached for both her hands out and smiled at her. He was scruffy and covered with dirt and so thin that she could see his skin just barely stretching over his bones. It nearly broke her heart to watch the famine taking its toll on innocents like the little boy looking pleadingly into her eyes.
"Please?" he said brightly, Mieko being the week willed person she was when it came to children and animals, reached into Sakura's pouch and grabbed all the candy she had.
"Here" she spoke softly and dropped the candy into the boy's hands with a sweet smile.
The cute boy giggled "Thank you pretty lady" he gave her the biggest smile he could and ran off.
"Wow…" Sakura whispered, feeling moved by Mieko's kindness but sadden by the boy's condition.
"Has it always been like this Mr Tazuna?" Mieko asked the Master bridge builder who frowned at her question.
"No, this is how it became when Gato arrived" said Tazuna grimly, watching as Sakura wiped the tears from her eyes "Children suffer and the adults are too afraid to stand up to him" Mieko's eyes hardened "They've lost all hope, that's why we have to finish the bridge, it will bring commerce and trade but more importantly that bridge is a symbol of courage, we must restore the spirit of our people, when the bridge is finished people will start to believe again" his hands tightened into fists and the determination he once showed earlier today seeped back into his voice "They believe that they will live with dignity, we can't let Gato stop us" he finished strongly, his words showed how important the town was to him.
"Then we will help" Mieko spoke after a moment of silence, both Sakura and Tazuna looked at her "We may be small and we may only be fresh out of the academy by we have determination just like you that drives us to help anyone in need, anyone who cannot help themselves, you have the same determination that many Ninja carry and for that I respect you and will help you with building the bridge and protecting your people" she turned her body to face Tazuna and brought a fist to where her heart lay "By the honour of the Hatake clan in which I carry I promise that I will do everything within my power to help you accomplish your task."
"Wow, you're really something huh kid?" Tazuna smiled softly "sure kid you can help."
"Me too!" Sakura yelled, feeling motivated by Mieko's words "I may not have honour from a clan but I still promise to help you."
Tazuna grunted, hiding his gratitude behind a serious expression "Alright you both can help, just don't whine if it gets too much."
"Only Naruto would do that" Mieko comments softly, Tazuna laughed and began heading home with the two young girls trailing behind him happily.
Mieko decided to go look for Naruto and Sasuke to see what they were doing, she arrived just in time to see Naruto fall and Sasuke jump down "Hey guys how is training?"
"Still not good enough!" Naruto yelled angrily "I still need to get as strong as you Mieko!"
"I'm sure you will Naruto, just stop and think for a moment" Naruto nodded and stood still, deep in thought "Do you need help Sasuke?" she asked the glaring boy.
"No, I don't need help" he growled back, he looked over to the Hatake female and saw her raised eyebrow and smirk which told him she knew he was lying. "Fine" her smirk turned into satisfied grin and watched as he looked over at Naruto, noticing how he was focusing intently, thinking that Naruto might have an easier explanation than Mieko did he decided to ask him.
"Hey Naruto" he called out and watched as Naruto flailed and fell to the floor.
"Hey what was that for, I was about to climb the tree" Mieko watched on in amusement, knowing that Sasuke thought that Naruto would be able to explain it to him in much simpler terms than she could, which was true, she was very technical in her explanation which Kakashi can take the blame. When he was training her he made sure that no emotions were apart of it, it was all analytical and logic so that she could understand the lessons in school a lot easier. He always taught her things long before the academy so she would be the top student, she learnt the Clone Jutsu when she was 5 and Chakra when she was 9. He wanted her to not suffer like he did, she was going to be stronger than all the Hatake's combined and far greater than them as well.
"Well uh," he started off lamely, he hated how he needed help but knew that he wasn't going to get better unless he got help "You know the thing is…"
"The thing is what?" Naruto grumbled, crossing his arms in defiance.
Sasuke's eye twitched in annoyance at the situation he was in "Well you know how you asked Sakura for advice when she was here, so what did she tell you?"
Naruto looked at him in silence with eyes as wide as saucers before looking at him arrogantly "I'm not telling you" Sasuke glared at him with hate burning eyes.
Mieko sighed, already seeing an argument forming "don't start guys, just listen to me" she walked over to Sasuke and talked softly "Chakra requires spiritual energy so if you get angry and frustrated it doesn't work, you have to relax and totally focus on the tree, that's how you get a steady chakra flow from your feet. Think of walking up the tree not through it."
"Hey, that's what Sakura told me!" Naruto cried in shock.
"Yes because she recited it from the book of Chakra 101, that's one of the books Iruka sensei gave us to read but neither of you did, hence why Sakura is so good at it since she read the entire book over and over until she knew every word" the two boys blushed "it's getting dark so we should probably get back to Tazuna's house, dinner should be already dished out by now" they both nodded and followed her back, Sasuke immediately wrapped his arms around her waist which pissed off Naruto, the Uchiha smirked since it was his intention all along.
Mieko and Sakura looked at Naruto and Sasuke as they shoved as much food as they could into their mouths "I want some more!" they both shouted at the same time and both glared at each other before vomiting all over the floor.
"Don't eat so much if you're gonna puke it up!" Sakura yelled, watching as Mieko began to dry reach when she saw the puke the was right beside her.
"Oh boy…can't take vomit" Mieko shut her mouth when she felt vomit shoot up into her mouth, she swallowed it and drank some water to keep it down, Inari sat beside her and patted her back and said 'there-there' as he did so.
"I have to…I have to eat" Sasuke muttered angrily whilst paining from the exertion vomiting caused him.
"And I have to eat more than him, it's the only possible way I can get strong enough to beat him" Naruto growled back.
"That's true but puking won't help you," Kakashi said with his eyes closed "Are you ok Mieko?" he asked when he saw how pale Mieko was "is it your stomach?" she nodded.
"What about your stomach?" Sakura asked in curiosity.
"Yeah I don't have a strong stomach when it comes to vomit, blood and guts I can handle, just not puke" she made it her life's duty to look at anything but the vomit beside her, which meant not even looking at Sasuke who frowned at that.
"Excuse me?" Sakura called out, it was after dinner and everyone was drinking tea and Tsunami washing the dishes "This picture is torn, is there some reason for that?" she looked over at the little boy who now sat in Mieko's lap, much to Naruto's and Sasuke's annoyance "Inari kept looking at it all through dinner, it looks like there's someone else in the picture but it got torn out, I mean that kind of strange, isn't it?" Mieko noticed how Inari tensed in her arms, she didn't know what was wrong but she tightened her hold on him and stroked his arm none the less.
"It's my husband," said Tsunami with sadness lacing her words.
"They used to call him a hero in this land" Tazuna grumbled, Mieko loosened her hold when Inari squirmed, she watched as he slipped out of her lap and walked away.
"Inari where are you going?" Tsunami called to her son but it fell on deaf ears, he opened the door and headed outside "Father you can't talk about him in front of Inari, you know that."
"Tsunami, let me get him, you're too busy already" Mieko spoke softly as she laid a hand on the mother's arm, Tsunami sighed and looked at the girl.
"Thank you, he shouldn't have gotten too far" Mieko nodded and left the house in search of the runaway boy.
"Inari! Inari it's me Mieko!" she called out into the darkness "Inari please come out, Inari-" she stopped when she saw a small figure huddled under a tree "there you are Inari, your mother is worried sick?"
"I don't want to go back and listen" he muttered petulantly, he looked so saddened by however was not in that picture.
"You don't have to" Mieko spoke softly, she knelt down beside him "We can stay out here for as long as you want" Inari looked and crawled over to her so his head laid on her lap, she brought her legs out from under her so she could get comfortable.
"He wasn't my real father…his name was Kaiza" Inari spoke after a few moments in silence.
"What was that? He wasn't."
"I was really close to him…he made everyone happy" Mieko remained silent and allowed Inari to speak "a boy stole my dog Poochie and started calling him shooting star, he threw Poochie into the river and made him drown then he pushed me in too but Kaiza saved me, he was my hero" tears began to flow from his eyes, Mieko continued to stay silent as she stroked his hair and listened to his story "he came to our town to follow his dreams, I followed him everywhere."
"You really looked up to him didn't you?" he nodded.
"He was my real father, not the one that left" Inari growled "He was a hero in this town…he told me over and over again 'if you care about something, protect it, even if you have to put your life on the line…protect it with both arms and never give in!' and I always listened to him but one day…Gato came and he hurt father, he hurt father a lot…they killed papa! They killed him and I couldn't protect him! He said he would protect me and this land with both his arms, he made me believe that he could do it! But it was all just a lie!" he was bawling his eyes out now, Mieko grabbed him and pulled him onto her lap so she could wrap her arms around him and press his face him her chest, she allowed him to cry as loudly and as long as he wanted.
"Shh, its ok Inari, its ok" she whispered softly, never stopping her arms from stroking his hair. She waited until he had fallen asleep before picking him up and carrying him back to his home "I'm back" she called out softly to the people who sat in the kitchen.
"Oh, how are you?" Sakura asked, "How is Inari?"
"He's fine, a little shaken up but he cried himself to sleep" Tsunami nodded and walked over to the girl and her son.
"Here let me take him to bed" Mieko nodded and tried to pull Inari off of her but he didn't want to let go "it seems that he does not want to part with you, why don't you take him upstairs and get him settle into bed."
"Of course," Mieko said goodnight to the others and walked upstairs, she was soon joined by Naruto "Oh Naruto, what are you doing?"
"I came to see how Inari was, I know about Kaiza" Mieko smile faltered.
"Oh, you do? He seems fine now" she laid him on his bed and pried his arms off of her "was that all you wanted?"
"His story made me realise something" he continued, he took small steps until he was in front of Mieko "Kaiza used to say that if you cared about something you have to protect it, with both arms and to never give in, that's why…I want to get stronger so I can protect you" he finished strongly his eyes looking into her widened ones intently.
"Naruto…" she trailed off, never had she heard Naruto speak so strongly and so full of emotions before.
"You know I care about you Mieko so I'm gonna get stronger so I can protect you, I'm gonna get stronger so you won't need Sasuke anymore, you'll only need me and no one else" he grabbed her shoulder and pulled her to him so he could put his head on her shoulder, his arms moved so they were around her waist "I'm gonna become stronger so you won't get hurt or killed, believe it."
"Naruto…I know you will get stronger, I have always believed in you, even when no one else has" she smiled and stroked his hair like she had done to Inari "We should really get to bed Naruto" he nodded and took a step back.
"Ok, goodnight" he kissed her on the cheek and sped off, she sighed and shook her head before heading to her own room, not realising that the boy that may be her boyfriend was watching their interaction with a heavy scowl.