Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. This is fanfiction, after all.

Hokage's Office, Konoha – March 18, AK22

"That's the third squad this month. This is more than just a freak accident."

Shikamaru nodded in agreement. "It would be one thing if some members of the squad were coming back, but complete squads disappearing without a trace? There's something going on here."

"From a strategic standpoint, losing eleven chuunin and one special jounin isn't that big of a deal, considering we just had a hundred genin graduates enter the forces. Naruto even projects that his 'cute little students' will be able to challenge high C-ranks by the end of the year although I'm not sure if he's just spouting nonsense like usual. Naruto already pitted his students against some of the other genin squads and his wiped the floor with all of them."

"That little copycat," Kakashi muttered. "That's what I used to call them."

"Let's not get sidetracked here," Shikamaru lightly scolded. "The point is that we can easily replace those we lost with new blood."

"Yes, I get it," the Hokage waved a hand casually in the air to show that he understood. "I read the reports on his team and what they are capable of. If I knew that Naruto would be this talented at teaching, I would I have made him teach students much earlier. When I read about the training methods he came up with, it made me wonder if he's had students before." He frowned. "I still don't like the fact that he continually makes them participate in minor war games without them even knowing it. Sure, the kids grow faster because they think they're being attacked on every mission they take outside the village, but I think he should at least let them know that those 'enemies' are his shadow clones."

"Says the man who took months to teach his students the tree-climbing exercise," Shikamaru muttered. "I don't think Naruto is ever going to forgive you for that one. They could have died because they were so underprepared."

"Well, they all turned out strong, right? Even if one of them did end up going astray."

"No offense, but I think that has to do more with the fact that they ended up becoming apprenticed to the Sannin. Sakura was utterly useless in that first Chuunin Exam that we all took together. Her match with Ino has to rate among the most pathetic battles in the history of the exams. And Naruto?" Shikamaru smirked. "He won with a fart. That was all your teaching amounted to."

"Oh shut up," Kakashi groaned. "Give me some credit here. The last war ended because of the philosophy I passed onto Naruto, remember?"

"Okay, okay," Shikamaru relented, more to just get the argument over with. "You're an amazing teacher. Happy, now?"

"Yup!" The Hokage gave his patented eye-smile.

"Anyway, going back to the subject…technically, we were in the wrong to send those squads to spy in foreign lands. We can't complain that they were killed. But that's not the issue right now. What worries me is the pattern of these attacks. From what our intel tells us, all our squads and the other villages' squads that were killed in this manner were in the Land of Noodles. At first glance, it appears as if Akatsuki is back, considering that Mountain's Graveyard in is the country."

Shikamaru remained respectfully silent as Kakashi winced at that remark. Mountain's Graveyard was the old hideout of Akatsuki. Akatsuki was still something of a sore spot for the Hokage. Not that he blamed the Hokage. Shikamaru figured he too would be permanently traumatized in the hypothetical case where he unintentionally killed Ino and Chouji consequently became the mastermind behind an entire world war. Hell, Shikamaru figured he'd be traumatized enough from killing Ino. He wouldn't say that he hadn't entertained the thought of it though; Ino was still insufferably loud and infinitely troublesome.

"But it's a bit too convincing," Kakashi murmured.

Shikamaru voiced his agreement. "It's probably someone trying to scare us into thinking that Akatsuki might be back."

"Hm…so what do you think?"

"Want the sugar-coated version? Or the real version with all my uncensored assumptions?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I think I've become an expert in processing bad news about situations over the years."

"Well, let me ask you a question. We were never really able to find out where Orochimaru disappeared to after the war, right?"

"Nope. It's he's still alive, he's probably lusting after the Sharingan, but that's not our problem anymore. The village has long come to terms with that fact that Sasuke is no longer a part of this village. Unlike Orochimaru, we have other things that we value more than the Sharingan."

"In any case, this may come as a shock, but I think Orochimaru is back as the head of Oto."

"Wait, what?! Don't you think you're grasping at straws now?" the Sixth asked incredulously. "Oto's been gone for over six years. It was dead before the last war. Even the Land of Rice Fields changed its name back to Land of Rice Fields from the Land of Sound."

Shikamaru groaned. It was going to be troublesome to explain.

"I looked at scouting reports. There has been an increased level of activity in the Land of Rice Fields. There have been reports of disappearances similar to the time nine years ago when Orochimaru was recruiting clans and orphans. Instead of orphans, however, we're seeing missing bandits."

"I'm listening. Go on," Kakashi looked thoughtful at that.

"Can I take this damn mask off first?" Shikamaru growled in irritation. "There's an itch on my forehead."

He ignored the sweat drop that appeared on the side of Kakashi's head and removed his mask.

"You know," Kakashi drawled out, "You're probably the most informal ANBU commander in the history of this village."

"Yeah, well, you can just go and die, Lord Hokage," Shikamaru said in an annoyed tone.

"Tch. I don't understand why all of my strongest ninjas are so annoying. You're a lazy bastard. Naruto's a stubborn bastard. Konohamaru's a rude bastard. Yamato's an ungrateful bastard. Sai's a clueless bastard. Gai's a strange bastard. Why must all of you be bastards? Can't any of you give me some respect?"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes while scratching his forehead. The weather was slowly becoming hotter. He was going to have to see Shino come to his house to order the bugs not to suck his blood out every single night.

"Kakashi, I'm going to ignore the fact that you implied that I have no father, when I had one who died honorably in the last war, and go on. In any case, we both agree that it's not Akatsuki. I had some of my subordinates check out the Land of Noodles based on projected routes are squad took. Fortunately, the Land of Noodles has a lot of clearings so it's easy to figure out how a battle went from the damage on the ground. There were some heavily damaged areas that appeared odd."

"Odd?"

"It's hard to explain so I'll draw it for you," Shikamaru took out a pen and accepted a piece of paper from Kakashi. "Let's take the standard fire technique, the fireball jutsu. Naturally, it first travels straight, burning everything in its path and then explodes once it becomes unstable. The damage on the ground usually appears as a burnt spoon-shaped area. Likewise, exploding tags, which are commonly used, have a spherical blast, so the damage on the ground should appear roughly as a circle. The damage reports showed the expected damage, showing that there was a fight, but had some strange twists. It appears as if chucks are out from the spoon and circular damage patterns."

"So you're saying the ground was not damaged at all in these areas. Instead of a spoon, the damage appears more like a two-pronged pitchfork. And instead of a circle, it appears like a horseshoe" Shikamaru nodded as Kakashi pointed at certain spots on the impromptu map. "I'm still not getting it. How is that significant?"

"Does that make sense?" Shikamaru pressed his point. "Even the strongest ninjas use clones and substitutions in battle. This just looks like someone stood in the middle of a blast radius and took the blow without suffering any damage at all."

"But that could just be a strong ninja using chakra as a shield. Wrapping chakra around your body in a dense form to ward off attack is incredibly wasteful so only Naruto regularly uses it as a battle strategy, but it's not too much of a stretch to think that other high level ninjas use it as intimidation techniques."

"I considered that as well. But there were a couple earth techniques that had human sized holes. It appeared as if someone just charged right through them. That's not normal at all. All of this points to human and chakra experimentation."

"Hm…I still say you're grasping at straws—"

"Team Hanabi is here," Shizune's voice came from beyond the door.

Shikamaru nodded at Kakashi and put on his mask again. He hated the damn thing, but it wouldn't be good if people found out that he was the ANBU commander. As far as people knew, Shikamaru was your typical jounin. Dragon, however, was one of the strongest of the elites in Konoha.

"Shizune, let them in."

Shikamaru watched as Hanabi, Lee, and Tenten walked in. None of them looked injured in the least, but had grim looks on their faces. This wouldn't be a problem with Hanabi, who always was a bit serious, but a stoic Lee meant extremely bad news.

Hanabi stepped forward. "We came as fast as we could. We have urgent news, Lord Hokage."

"Urgent? But if urgent, why are you over two days late?"

"Yes. Our original mission was a success and we were returning home when we were attacked by a ninja with a rather unusual ability. This ninja took down Chuunin Io in one hit before any of could react. We managed to survive, but we had to spend a few days…recovering…"

There was a slight pause. Losing a subordinate was never easy for a team leader, especially one as young as Hanabi. She wasn't even eighteen yet. The extra time must have been spent on securing the body properly and recovering from injuries and chakra exhaustion.

"What is this unusual ability? I'm assuming that's why this news is urgent."

Hanabi nodded. "Chakra nullification."

That made something click in Shikamaru's head. If someone immune to the effects of chakra stood in the middle of a blast…

"Jounin Hyuuga," Shikamaru stepped forward, motioning to the Kakashi to excuse his boldness. "Was this a full-body ability?"

The girl frowned. "It was. How did you know, Commander? Have you encountered it before?"

Shikamaru was aware that Kakashi was giving him a sharp look. "Dragon, before you get ahead of yourself, I should inform you that Team Hanabi went to the Land of Hot Water and not Land of Noodles."

Shikamaru nodded as he turned to look at Hanabi again. He knew, but this sounded too strange to be pure coincidence. "We have had some evidence of some unusual abilities lately. Can you be more specific?"

"It was exactly that. Chakra nullification. Any chakra that came into contact with the enemy simply dispersed. Unlike some of the anti-chakra armors that have come that that block chakra, this ability simply made chakra fade away. Also unlike the anti-chakra armors, this ability protected against even taijutsu and explosive tags."

"What was the source of the technique?" Kakashi inquired.

"Source?"

"I'm assuming that it wasn't a genjutsu since you would have been able to detect the disturbed chakra flow within your own body even if you were ensnared in one. So what was it? Fuinjutsu or ninjutsu?"

"We're fairly certain that it was fuinjutsu. Our enemies were marked with strange seals."

"Did you manage to gather any intel about where they were from?"

Lee decided to step in. "I am not sure how much of this will help, but we learned that the enemy's leader was named Kabuto. If my memory serves me correctly, he was one of the instigators of the last war."

"Dragon, I suppose your guess was close enough. I'll buy you dinner," Kakashi said in a clipped tone before addressing Team Hanabi again. "Oto ninja?"

Hanabi shook her head. "Unconfirmed. We managed to kill the first one before the rest of his squad came. We were about to fight when we were um…when we were interrupted."

Shikamaru did not miss how the three of them suddenly looked uncomfortable.

Lee stepped forward. "We were intercepted by an unidentified S-rank opponent who was wearing a black mask, robe, and cloak. He appeared to be familiar with Kabuto and mercilessly decimated the enemy with a single fire technique. Captain Hanabi estimates that the technique consumed more chakra than what she has in her entire chakra reserves."

"Her entire reserves?" Kakashi gaped in shock. "You're not talking about capacity, are you?"

Hanabi shook her head.

Shikamaru was just as shocked. It would have been more believable if Lee had talked about chakra capacity, which was the maximum amount of chakra able to be used at any given time. Even the most advanced techniques rarely required more than half an elite's capacity. Any techniques that required more were too harsh on the body. Chakra reserves, however, meant the total amount of chakra in the entire body. Hanabi was an elite with very large reserves. To think that someone had the chakra capacity at least as equivalent to Hanabi's chakra reserves was frightening. Even among S-ranks, such raw power was rare.

"I'm not sure if even Naruto would be able to pull that off. That's an incredible amount of chakra to be throwing around."

"Unfortunately, that was the not most unyouthful aspect of this situation. I opened four of the Inner Gates and he still managed to outflank me and knock me out in less than three seconds. I had assumed that it was a space-time ninjutsu as he had demonstrated that ability before, but Captain Hanabi managed to see him actually moving even if she couldn't keep up."

Lost in the explanation was Tenten's role in the battle. Tenten was also being uncharacteristically quiet. Shikamaru figured that they were trying to spare Tenten from being humiliated in front of the Hokage. Kakashi probably didn't miss it either, but must have chosen to remain quiet about it.

Kakashi stared at them with his lone eye for a good minute. "How the hell are you all alive?"

"He…he let us go," Hanabi murmured softly. "He used genjutsu to knock Special Jounin Lee out. After that, I tried attacking him but he let me go, saying something about how he liked the look in my eyes."

Shikamaru froze for a second before turning and meeting Kakashi's gaze. There were only two people they could think of who were familiar with Kabuto and would purposely go out of their way to say something like that. And only one used powerful fire techniques.

"Say…did you manage to see the color of his eyes?" Kakashi asked in a nonchalant voice unsuited for the tension in the room.

"Red."

Both Shikamaru and Kakashi swore.

Hyuuga Compound, Konoha – March 18, AK 22

Hanabi wondered what she would hear from the Hyuuga elders as she changed into her traditional Hyuuga attire. She had been summoned to the meeting hall for a last-minute meeting.

Hanabi frowned. Normally, the civilians would give her a short bow or look of respect. She was known by almost the entire village and it was no secret that she was the favored choice to be the clan head. But this time, instead of respect, as she passed by the villages, she felt excitement and even jealousy among the civilians. It was almost as if she was a celebrity.

She looked around her as she walked to the clan's meeting hall and noticed something similar among the clan members. People were pointing at her and whispering. She resisted the temptation from using her Byakugan to read their lips and kept walking towards the meeting hall. After all, she would get her answers soon.

Hanabi stepped into hall and saw all three elders of the Main House as well as the leader and grand elder of the Main House, her father and grandfather. She also saw the representatives from the different families in the Branch House. Her eyes roamed the room until they landed on one particular Main House member in the room.

Hinata was in tears. Hanabi kept her stoic look as demanded by decorum, but wondered what could have made her older sister upset enough to cry.

"Hanabi Hyuuga," her father said in a firm and formal tone. "Come forth."

Her instinct had been right. This meeting was about her. Her first thought was that she was about to be appointed as the Crown Princess of the Hyuuga clan, but she immediately discarded that thought. It was still a week before her eighteenth birthday and the Hyuuga never appointed a second-born to the position of clan head without a challenge match with the first-born. It was far too soon for the clan to have heard about her loss to the black-cloaked man in the Land of Hot Water. And that information was probably going to be classified. Then what was this meeting about?

"The clan has decided on a political marriage for you."

Even eighteen years of Hyuuga training couldn't stop her eyes from widening in astonishment. Already? Before she even reached adulthood? Why were they marrying her off this quickly? A quick second passed before everything started to come together. The gossip in town. Hinata's tears.

Hanabi wasn't one to curse, even in her own mind but…

Oh mother…!

Even while knowing the answer, in a calm voice that didn't betray how she felt, she asked her question. "With whom?"

Her father's only reaction was to nod at a Branch House member who was the secretary for the clan.

"The Hyuuga clan has both proposed and have received acceptance that Lady Hanabi Hyuuga will be given in marriage to Lord Naruto Uzumaki."

Hyuuga Meeting Hall, Konoha – March 18, AK 22

"The Hyuuga clan has both proposed and have received acceptance that Lady Hanabi Hyuuga will be given in marriage to Lord Naruto Uzumaki."

Hinata fought back her tears as best as she could so she wouldn't shame her father, but that did nothing to stop the tight, ripping sensation she felt in her chest. She thought she saw a look of sympathy on her father's face as their eyes met, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. Hinata figured that her own mind was playing tricks on her. Someone like her father would never sympathize with her.

She didn't know where to start. She had heard rumors about how the council meeting went, but precise details were not and probably will never be known by the general public. From what she had heard, however, she was able to draw her own conclusions. At first, her father felt that she was worthless as an heiress and wanted to marry her off. Because of the little bit of mercy he had, he had tried to marry her off to the boy she loved for years, but had been rebuffed by the said boy. In order to save face and maintain an alliance with the future Hokage, he was forced to offer his favored choice for heiress to Naruto.

A fresh wave of tears streamed down her face.

That same boy she adored had rejected her for a girl he didn't even know. That thought crushed Hinata's heart.

It didn't matter that she managed to claw her way to become a jounin. It didn't matter that she was finally respected among the public for her skills rather than heritage. The two people she wanted approval from—Naruto and her father—both had rejected her for the same person. Hanabi.

What was it about her sister that made her so appealing? Hinata knew that she was prettier, kinder, softer, and more feminine than Hanabi could ever hope to be. So then why? Were those traits just not acceptable to strong people like her father and Naruto? Did she have to become as cold and uncaring as Neji once was to gain any measure of love from those she loved?

Naruto was supposed to be different. He was supposed to care about her. Hinata could even sense millions of people in other worlds rooting for her to end up with Naruto and millions more writing about the thousands of possible ways that she and Naruto would become a couple.

But it just didn't happen.

This didn't make any sense.

"Hanabi," Hinata heard her father speak. "Lord Uzumaki is already well-respected by the villagers. As you already know, he was one of the few candidates for the seat of the Hokage the last time around and it was only his age that prevented him from taking the seat. Eventually, given that the Sixth is notoriously famous for declaring his intent to require as soon as possible, Uzumaki will become Hokage. Perhaps even in the next year."

"Yes, father," Hanabi murmured with her head down reverently. "I understand that it is expected of me as a Hyuuga to lead the clan to new heights. It would be beneficial for the clan should the wife of the Hokage be a Hyuuga."

"Indeed," her grandfather, the Grand Elder, chose to enter the conversation. "The Hyuuga are already known as the strongest in the village. We are, however, but only one of the twelve noble clans. Lord Uzumaki is the head of his own clan and will have the power of the Hokage soon. It would indeed be beneficial for not just us but for Uzumaki as well for this marriage to happen. He would finally gain the political support for his bid to become Hokage and we of the Hyuuga will gain a direct connection to the seat of the Hokage. Unfortunately, while you must give up your status as the Crown Princess of the Hyuuga clan, you will be honored amongst the Hyuuga for ages to come."

Still aother wave of fresh tears rolled down her face. Hinata did not miss the veiled insult towards her. Her grandfather had just announced in public that Hanabi had been the true heiress and it was only by circumstance that Hanabi would not receive the position.

"There is, however, one issue," her father said with a frown. "Lord Uzumaki placed a stipulation in the marriage contract that would nullify this agreement if you had any objections to this marriage. He is a Sage and would be able to detect any falsities on our part."

"Lord Uzumaki, for all his strengths, is too compassionate and idealistic," her grandfather said distastefully. "But in this case, there is little we can do about that. If you wish to remain as a Hyuuga, it is within your right to do so."

"If you have other reasons," Hinata noticed her father sending a quick look in her direction, "for which you wish to reject this contract, you may do so. This is not something we can force you to do. Do not misunderstand. You cannot force yourself to do this. The contract is imbued with nature chakra that has been set to determine whether you are being honest with yourself. If you feel you must do your best for the clan, you may come place your place your hand on this contract. That is all we demand of you. Regardless of the results, you will not be punished."

Hinata had felt uneasy when Hanabi had approached her to talk about Naruto a while back, but she still felt a sliver of hope at her father's statement.

Hanabi was always talking about being free of the clan. Hanabi wanted to be her own person, to do the things she wanted, to find the person she loved. Surely Hanabi wouldn't want to be thrown in a loveless marriage. Hinata knew that while Hanabi had no real desire to be the Hyuuga clan head, Hanabi wouldn't appreciate having a life choice taken away from her by the clan either. Hinata met Hanabi's gaze and willed with all her heart so that Hanabi would understand. Naruto was hers, not Hanabi's. While their relationship wasn't as strong as other siblings', there was no way that Hanabi would knowingly steal her guy. Right?

"Father. Grand Elder. Elders of the Hyuuga clan. Representatives of the Branch House." Hanabi still maintain the gaze as she walked towards the contract and placed her hand on it. There was a flicker of determination in Hanabi's eyes. Hinata felt that tight twisting in her chest again. At that moment, Hinata knew.

Hanabi was in love with Naruto.

Hyuuga Meeting Hall, Konoha – March 18, AK 22

"Hanabi, Lord Uzumaki is already well-respected by the villagers. As you already know, he was one of the four candidates to become the Sixth and it was only his age that held him back from taking the seat. Eventually, he will become the Hokage."

"Yes, father," Hanabi murmured in a quiet tone. "I understand that it is expected of me as a Hyuuga to lead the clan to new heights. It would be beneficial for the clan should the wife of the Hokage be a Hyuuga."

Hanabi's mind was in a whirl. Based on the announcement, it seemed that the Hyuuga proposed first. Why was she offered instead of Hinata? After all, Hinata loved the boy and it was common knowledge that the grand elder did not find Hinata suitable as the heiress. Wouldn't it have made sense to offer Hinata in marriage? That would have taken care of both problems.

Hanabi paused for a second, not really listening to the Grand Elder's explaining the condition that Uzumaki placed on the political marriage.

"If you have other reasons that you wish to reject this contract, you may do so. This is not something we can force you to do. Do not misunderstand either. You cannot force yourself to do this. The contract is imbued with nature chakra that has been set to determine whether you are being honest with yourself. If you feel you must do your best for the clan, you may come place your place your hand on this contract. Regardless of the results, you will not be punished."

Hanabi did not miss the look that her father gave to Hinata. That confirmed it. Her father must have initially offered Hinata to Uzumaki. And Uzumaki rejected the offer. The only question was why?

She and Uzumaki barely knew each other so there was little chance that he loved her. Hanabi wasn't arrogant enough to claim that she was the prettiest woman all of Konoha. For one, even Hanabi had to admit that Hinata put her to shame in the looks department. So, that meant that the Toad Sage had a specific reason for choosing Hanabi. Most people probably thought that Uzumaki wanted strong heirs and thus chose the strongest woman in the Hyuuga clan. His friends might search underneath the obvious reason and come to the conclusion that he was purposefully sacrificing himself to set Hinata to become the uncontested heir of the Hyuuga clan. But Hanabi had a feeling that that wasn't the real reason.

She was suddenly reminded of what she was told on her mission.

Flashback

"Kill you, was it? I like the look in your eyes. It would be a waste if you died."

End Flashback

She remembered cursing her own weakness, defiance at her fate, and a surging desire from freedom. The cloaked man with the mask had seen all that and more. The Sage was also S-ranked. Perhaps he too had seen that fire in her soul as well.

Hanabi shook her head lightly. It really didn't matter. She could eventually get the answers from him. Her own feelings were more important at this time. She leveled a gaze at her older sister. Hinata was clearly pleading with her eyes.

Hanabi might have snorted if she weren't a Hyuuga. Hanabi wondered if Hinata even knew the implications. Hinata had always wanted to make their father proud and become a strong clan leader. Hanabi accepting this contract would guarantee that. Hinata was willing to jeopardize her own future for the sake of her love. How foolish.

Still, Hanabi wished there was something she could do for her sister.

Because deep down inside, Hanabi knew that she wanted this marriage with the Sage.

Her mind wandered to the times she met the Toad Sage in the training ground. She still remembered the feeling his aura.

There was power. Her mind flashed to her fight, if it could be called that, with the cloaked man. She never wanted to feel that helpless and trapped again. As she was still weak on her own, she wanted to attach herself to someone with that power. Why should she deny herself the opportunity when it was given to her on a silver platter?

And from her own personal experiences with him, he wasn't at horrible on the eyes and knew that he would do his best to be the best possible husband. He had held her extremely gently when he was drying her off. Hanabi wouldn't…mind being held in that manner every day of her life.

While he appeared to be carefree, he could be respectful and compassionate when he chose to be. Also, marrying out of the Hyuuga clan to some of Uzumaki's caliber would bring her one step closer towards finally being free.

She internally laughed at her train of thought. She sounded like a preteen girl with a crush. Perhaps she and Hinata weren't so different after all. Somehow they both got involved with the same man.

But while Hinata saw his compassion and determination, Hanabi saw something deeper inside of him. Freedom.

I'm terribly sorry, sister. But you've had fifteen years' worth of opportunities. And I…I am not as kind and unselfish as you are.

"Father. Grand Elder. Elders of the Hyuuga clan. Representatives of the Branch House." Hanabi laid her hand on the contract and felt it absorbing a small amount of her chakra. "I, Hanabi Hyuuga, hereby accept this marriage to become the matriarch of the Uzumaki clan."

Instantly, she saw the Uzumaki clan symbol appear on the now glowing contract. Before she could move, however, a large sealing array appeared below her.

Fuinjutsu? She thought. She found herself unable to move a muscle. I knew that Uzumaki was powerful, but there was no sign that he knew an esoteric art like the sealing arts. But I suppose it should not be a surprise considering that Lord Jiraiya was his master.

"Hiashi! What is this?" Hanabi heard one of elders shout out as sealing symbols began climbing up her legs. "That Uzumaki would dare to hurt the heiress of the Hyuuga clan for rejecting this political marriage in her heart!"

"Father! Do not be rash. Ko! You are one of our sealing elites. What is this?" her father demanded as he turned on his Byakugan. Her father was clearly trying to see if her chakra was being disturbed.

"Lord Hiashi, I am not certain," came the cautious reply from the Main House sealing elite who also had his Byakugan activated. "It appears to be a cross between a blood seal and a branding seal similar to our own cage bird seal. But I know for certain that Lady Hanabi is in no danger."

Her father then motioned everyone to back down and observe.

Hanabi felt a warm sensation on her forehead and heard gasps throughout the room.

She turned her own Byakugan to check her own forehead and saw the reason why.

On her forehead was the Uzumaki clan crest nested in another unknown seal. The Uzumaki crest, however, made it clear to everyone that they were now looking at the matriarch of the Uzumaki clan. She turned her Byakugan off as both the seal on her forehead and on the ground disappeared.

"I believe that this shows that," Hanabi stated in a soft but firm tone, "within two weeks, which was the time agreed upon by the two clans according to the contract, I will no longer be Hanabi Hyuuga."

She didn't even bother hiding her small but victorious smile.

She no longer had to fear being put in a cage.

She was free.

Secret Place, Konoha – March 18, AK22

"It is done. Uzumaki has agreed to marry Hanabi, the second princess of our clan, and she has agreed to marry him. It will formally be announced tomorrow."

Sakuma couldn't contain his glee as he talked with a chakra projection of the Raikage. Uzumaki choosing the stronger girl had been a rather interesting twist, but he supposed even Uzumaki recognized weakness. If Sakuma thought about it, it made perfect sense. Not even an idiot like the boy would want to touch Hinata. Uzumaki was still S-ranked and valued strength. Strength that the first heiress didn't have. Sakuma felt his respect for the damn boy go up just a bit. A tiny bit.

He had been worried when he first heard of the damn seal on the marriage contract. Uzumaki's idealism would have ruined everything, but fortunately, it seemed like the younger princess also had genuine feelings for the brat.

The stars were finally aligning his way.

Still, Sakuma snorted at the thought. It must be some sort of genetic flaw that led both of the Hyuuga princesses lusting after the same man.

"It seems that it didn't go completely to your plan. I'm not entirely pleased that we'll be ending up with the weaker of the two, but we're still getting the Byakugan, I suppose," Ē grunted.

Sakuma frowned. "The Byakugan was what was promised, not a specific person. I believe I can assume that you will follow through with the rest of our plan?"

The projection nodded. "We'll need details on their honeymoon. I personally am not afraid of Uzumaki, but Bee would be the only one in our village who would be able to stand a chance against him besides me. And I will not be risking our greatest asset and my own brother on such a high risk operation."

"Traditionally, clan heads that are also active ninjas are given two to three months of unrestricted vacation time. Given Uzumaki's attempts at trying to show himself as patriotic and loyal," Sakuma spat out the word, "he will no doubt cut his honeymoon short. I will get back to you with more details on that as soon as I find out. The wedding date has already been set for the twenty-seventh of this month. The date was planned so that the Hyuuga would not have to deal with her coming of age ceremony and her rise to become the official heiress."

"We will begin planning now. I have already picked a squad to send. In the future, I will contact you through my right-hand man. Darui will be the leader of the squad I send."

Sakuma smirked and didn't really pay attention as a man with a dull face introduced himself. Soon, everything will become his. That arrogant Hiashi wouldn't know what hit him.

Konoha Streets, Konoha – March 18, AK22

Hanabi figured that it was destiny or something of the sort that led her to run into Uzumaki. She had been walking alone at night in the empty marketplace to clear her mind and sort out her feelings from everything that had happened in the last week. She had lost a subordinate, been terrified out of her mind, and then suddenly found herself married.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely noticed her fiancé head into one of the buildings ahead of her. Curiosity aroused, she had turned on her Byakugan and saw how he had handed out toys to the different children there and donated a large sum of the money to the caretakers there.

She couldn't help but have a small smile on her face. She was getting married to a good man.

"Hey there little firecracker. What's up?" He said as he came out.

"Lord Uzumaki."

The Sage raised an eyebrow. "Nope. Just call me lord. Or if you want…master."

She looked at him in confusion. "Huh?"

"If you're not going to call me Naruto, then call me 'Master.' If you're going to call me 'Lord,' then at least leave the Uzumaki part out of it."

She blinked. "Why?"

"Because saying Uzumaki is a mouthful and it's going to be hard for you to be screaming that on our wedding night," the Toad Sage smirked. "Oh and there's the fact that hearing a girl moan 'Master' in bed is a turn-on for any guy."

Her warm feelings for him at seeing him be gentle with the children disappeared rapidly and she had to suppress the urge to scream at the Sage. He had tried something similar the first time they talked and then completely twisted it around to make her appear as the one with the dirty mind. She narrowed her eyes. If that was how he was going to play, then she would play along for now.

"Very well, Master. Did you make Lady Haruno do this for you as well?" she said viciously, not particularly caring that what she said was probably hurtful.

"Oooooh," Her "lord" winced. "Low blow. Doubly so. Sakura's dead and well, she would have smashed every bone if my body if I asked that of her. Including a certain part of my anatomy."

"Well, Master, I'm not experienced by any means," she put on an innocent smile that even Hinata would have been hard-pressed to match, "but I am sure I can be quite inventive with my Gentle Fist."

She smirked as he turned pale at that the threat. "Wow, wow, wow!" Uzumaki raised his hands up, "I'm not going to let your hands get down anywhere near there! I happen to like my family jewels being intact."

"Why not?" She asked in a sweet voice. "I only aim to please my lord. Does Master not like women with a soft touch?"

The Toad Sage seemed to consider that for a second. Hanabi rolled her eyes as her future husband pretended to do a cost-benefit analysis of letting her "touch" him.

"Okay, okay," he said in defeat. "You win. I lose. You're better at this game than I thought. You're quite the fast learner."

She smirked. "Did you really think I would be caught off guard after your trickery the last time we talked? You made me out to be some kind of pervert!"

"Well, yeah," he replied honestly. "It's something I learned from my master. People thought he was a pervert, and well, he was, but he was also a quite insightful. Subtle sexual innuendos make women raise their emotional guards more often than not while blatantly crude statements make them lose their calm. Girls who have lost their calm are quite easy to manipulate or impress later on."

Hanabi frowned at her fiancé. "So you play this game with every girl you run into? To manipulate or impress them?"

"Why?" he teased. "Getting jealous already?"

"Tch," she turned her head to the side with an undignified pout. She had to admit though. The silly banter had been quite entertaining.

The Sage laughed at that. "Don't worry. I'll only have eyes for you, my little firecracker." He became a bit more serious. "I promise."

Hanabi shied away from him to hide her blush even though she knew he would have seen it instantly. "Thanks, um…N…Na…Naruto."

It was strange to be familiar with someone she barely knew. But if she thought about it, she felt closer to him than almost anyone else in her life already. Maybe Lord Jiraiya did have a point. Naruto's teasing had continued to hammer away at all the emotional walls she set up until they broke.

The jerk. He probably knew the effect he was having on her.

"There," he said with a bright smile, "Now that wasn't so hard, was it?"

Her only response was a glare. Yup. He definitely knew.

Hanabi's eyes softened when she saw him look back at the orphanage that he had just come out of.

"You're surprisingly gentle you know."

It was true. Her fiancé had held some of the youngest children while laughing with them. He had given many of the older ones advice and words of encouragement.

I'm not sure if it's compassion," Uzumaki said sadly. "It's probably empathy more than anything. Or perhaps it's projection. I see myself in those kids, you know. I'm just doing what I wish someone would have done for me."

Hanabi didn't know what to say to that. She had heard stories about how hard his childhood was, but she was too young to remember much of how the villagers had treated him.

"I'm sorry."

He shook his head. "It's not for you to be sorry about. That's just the way life works sometimes. Some people get dealt good cards while others do not. What matters is how we play those cards." She was briefly reminded of his words to her when she had been late in her meeting with him. She hadn't known the words had a much deeper meaning then.

"I see…" she said softly. It seemed that everything about Naruto was like that. He gave the appearance of being shallow, but there was a far greater depth to his mind and heart.

"Anyway, I suppose it's safe to say that you've heard the news."

She noted the shift in tone. It was clear that he didn't want to think too much on the subject. She nodded as she started walk. "Father told me the news as soon as I returned from my mission."

Naruto nodded as he began to walk with her. "I figured. Your father hid it well but he seemed rather excited. I would have been shocked if he hadn't told you already. In the end, he valued his duties as clan head over those as a father."

She gave him an inquisitive look. "What do you mean?"

"He initially offered Hinata's hand in marriage, so I asked him whether he was motivated as a clan head or as a father. He claimed that it was both. So I requested you to see what he would do. Would he be a father and try to convince me to marry Hinata? Or would he be a clan head and readily accept you so that a Hyuuga becomes the wife of the future Hokage? I wanted a glimpse into the soul of the man named Hiashi Hyuuga."

"I see." Hanabi frowned. Did that mean that Naruto was marrying her to prove a point?

"That thought in your head. Get rid of it right now. Hanabi, remember, I could have asked for any girl in the entire village. I picked you out of the thousands of girls in the village. Heck, I could have had my pick out of the hundreds of thousands of girls throughout the Elemental Nations. But I chose you. Publicly shaming your father and proving a point was simply a bonus."

She felt her flush red again and felt the glow in her heart that Hinata always said she felt whenever Naruto acknowledged her. The Toad Sage just had a way with words.

She didn't fully love him just yet—at least she didn't think so—but she decided to take the initiative and grab hold of his hand. Hanabi figured that they had to start their relationship somewhere. It might as well be now.

Naruto stopped to give her a curious look but decided not to say anything and resumed walking.

Hanabi continued the conversation. "I doubt he was upset at all. His daughter is betrothed to someone who is arguably the most powerful person in the Elemental Countries, one who will become Hokage. It would be strange if he were not pleased. For him, a slight embarrassment in public is a small price to pay for all he has to gain."

"I want to ask you something. Why?" Naruto had seemingly ignored her remark but Hanabi knew better. She still had quite a lot to learn about the Toad Sage, but she knew him well enough by now to know what he meant.

"I imagine my sister must be very upset with me right now." Naruto remained quiet so she continued. "But she will become the undisputed heiress of the Hyuuga clan. My eighteenth birthday is coming up in a week and the elders would have forced us to a challenge match. Whatever the results, it would have been hard on both of us. Neither of us wants to be sealed or have the other sealed. I, however, did not want to be clan head as much as she did. That is something she desired from the bottom of her heart. By agreeing to marry you, I removed an obstacle that was stopping her from becoming the clan head while finding a solution for myself not to be sealed."

Naruto chuckled as he started to swing their hands lightly. "You can't fool me. That's the same lie I'm going to tell Kiba when he comes to hunt me down."

Hanabi gave a small smile at being caught. She wasn't surprised. Naruto had proven to her that he had far greater insight than people thought he had.

"Then perhaps you would believe me if I told you I fell in love with you."

A half-truth. She could feel herself falling in love. Nothing else would explain why she was so obsessed with him.

Naruto laughed heartily at that. Hanabi could tell from the laugh that he knew exactly what she meant and that he knew she knew he knew what she meant. Hanabi did feel something for the Toad Sage. It just wasn't love yet.

For now, she was drawn to his power. It was true that she was constantly intrigued by his wisdom, insight, and unexpected intelligence and that his compassion only made him that much more desirable. But for now, she was more interested in being free from her clan and attaching herself to his strength. To be protected against the clan, against her enemies, against the world. To her, more than anything, Naruto was her armor that would give her the ability to explore the world without getting hurt. And Naruto understood her. Her constant obsession with power was the same was his constant declaration that he would become Hokage one day. Naruto called it acknowledgment. To her, it was simply freedom.

It was probably why Naruto did a favor for her and had made the contract signing as dramatic as he did with the glowing sealing array and public marking. It was his way of telling the Hyuuga that they no longer had a claim on her. It was a not-so-subtle way of saying that she was his.

Hanabi smiled lightly as the Toad Sage continued the metaphor to humor her. "We've only met a few times. Love at first sight?"

In a way, it was. That feeling she got from him when he was fighting Neji was probably her instinct screaming that this man was exactly what she had sought. The world saw a brashness and bravado, but she had seen greatness.

She squeezed his hand a little tighter.

"Yes, love at first sight."

Crescent Moon Palace, Land of the Moon – March 18, AK 22

"The answer's no. I won't fund your expenses to build an army. The Land of the Moon already has a hidden village."

"Your Majesty," Karin protested, "we can provide amazing services that your men aren't able to—"

The jolly king shook his head, "Young lady, I don't think you're in a position to tell me what my ninja are and aren't able to do. In fact, it seems like you need me more than I need you."

Sasuke decided that he had enough. The stupid king was being difficult and Sasuke figured he had to use force to get his way. That was how life worked.

For the last six years, he had observed the great villages and the different countries on the continent of the Elemental Nations. He had thought things would change. He had hoped that the covered up stories and the lies and the corruption would all be revealed and fixed. That the history of the Uchiha and Konoha's persecution and eventual massacre of the Uchiha would come to light. But none of that happened. The village leaders were too prideful or too fearful of the consequences. They preferred to cling to their pathetic positions of power and deluded the masses into thinking that there was peace in the world.

To Sasuke, that peace was no different from the Infinite Tsukuyomi that Tobi had tried to plunge the world into. After all, nearly everyone in the world was living a lie.

Sasuke mentally sighed before realizing that he was doing that quite a lot lately. The poor just wanted to eat, the wealthy just wanted to get wealthier, and the powerful just wanted to keep their power. In the end, no one really cared about the truth.

Sasuke had trained with a ferocity that even he did not have before the war. He wanted to gain enough power to unify the entire world. But it had not been enough. He knew that his rival…that Naruto…would be right behind him and would challenge his reign. Sasuke couldn't have that. But relatively recently, he had discovered a new power, a new power that would nullify all of Naruto's borrowed power from the Kyuubi. But he still needed more time. And of course, he needed cannon fodder to deal with the small fry as he personally took care of all the real threats.

"Karin," Sasuke said in a low tone. "Get back." Karin squeaked and moved behind him where Juugo was standing as well. Sasuke looked at the stubborn king. "We have offered you a force for justice, a force that would protect you and your interests as well as bringing your kingdom to new heights as a protector of good. Yet, you spit in our faces and on our goodwill. It seems that I must use force."

The king's eyes narrowed and he raised a hand. "I see. Then I do what I must as well."

Instantly a group of ninjas surrounded them. Sasuke lazily counted them off in his head.

"Karin. Juugo." he drawled.

Instantly, they tossed a dozen kunai each at the ninjas who all dodged or parried. Sasuke noticed that there were enough kunai behind the ninjas to begin his plan.

"Activate!" Juugo cried.

Instantly a green hemi-spherical barrier surrounded them all with the seals on the kunai as the base of the barrier. Sasuke activated the Gelel Stones implanted in his body to use the Gelel flux instead of chakra and merely waited as the ninjas struggled to keep their chakra levels up to deal with the sudden exhaustion they were beginning to feel.

Fools. Conscious molding of chakra would only speed up the nullification of chakra hundredfold. Sasuke walked casually up to each of the ninjas and flicked their foreheads to knock them on the ground before taking out his sword and ending their miserable lives. He normally hated unnecessary bloodshet, but he needed to show his power and intent to the silly king. He would make an exception this time. For justice.

"Weak," he turned to the king who was now wide-eyed with fear. "I believe I have proven my superiority. This is not a request. You will fund our army and you will obey my orders."

The shivering king nodded. "Y…yes."

"Karin," Sasuke ordered. "You and Juugo stay here to make sure this fool obeys our orders. I am going back to our base to do some more experimenting with this power. I'll send over twenty soldiers as backup. Any more than that would attract the attention of the ninja villages."

Karin nodded, as did Juugo.

Sasuke gave his wife and his most loyal friend a small smile before walking past them. He would not be stopped. The blood of the deceased cried out to him too loudly for him to stand aside and let the world run itself to the ground.

Fate even agreed with him and so generously opened his eyes to this new power. There would be no one to stop him.

The world needed a guide. It needed truth. It needed…justice.

Sasuke clenched his fists tightly.

He would be that justice.

AN: How do you like a Tosen-ized (a Bleach character) version of Sasuke? Justice this. Justice that. Except ultimately, he's still just after revenge.

This is probably the last of the "fast" updates. I gave you a slightly longer chapter to apologize in advance (what do most people prefer anyway? More chapters or longer chapters?). There's a small chance that I might be gone for an entire month before another update. Huge test coming up at the end of June. It will pretty much determine how much I'll earn for the rest of my life. Haha.

But don't worry about the story just dying here. I have the chapter written out, but it just needs to be streamlined. Strangely enough, finalizing chapters tend to take longer for me than actually writing the scenes out.