at Jjmcm541 (Guest): Usually I first write the complete story and then start posting it after rereading chapter by chapter. At first that's what I did with the story. But then after the first few chapters there were some comments that made me rething my story line, so I deleted my original story and currently write chapter after chapter. My best guess it...about 4 chapters, maybe.

at Hime-Love-97: I take it you don't like Orochimaru then?

at kavya (Guest): Was that really suprising? I thought my story was painfully obviously... Good to know some people were suprised by it.

at no-maybee-okay: Yeah, well...what can I say. That was exactly the reaction I was hoping for.

at Chewie Cookies: I do too. Thanks for the encouragement.

at chrysant: Thank you so very much. I'm really happy you liked the last chapter. Sorry for taking so long.

at TL (Guest): Great insight. I don't want to give too much away but a very good guess on your part. As for your question... read the chapter and you'll know.

at Ayrmed: It was, wasn't it? It just so horrible for everyone. And your most definitely right about Hinata.

Thanks to all of you for reviewing.

I do not own Naruto.

-17-

"What the hell is that supposed to be, Naruto?" Kiba had a lot of trouble keeping his anger in check.

This morning Karui had come home to him crying and informed him that all the ambassadors had to leave the village immediately and she had no idea when they'd be back.

And now she was gone. Just like that.

And Kiba was mad, he was angry and he was very close to attack Naruto in case he didn't get an answer and Karui back this very instance.

Hinata hadn't left Naruto side all day, she knew what was about to come and she didn't want him to take the blame in her stand. Both of them had suspected that sooner rather than later Shikamaru and Kiba would confront them about the department of their respective girlfriends. And true to their word not even half an hour after Karui and Temari had to leave town, both of them had loudly barged in without waiting and despite Tenten's protest entered Naruto's office. But really, Hinata doubted that she put up much of a fight. She had experienced everything going down first hand. By now the Hyuga Clan was probably informed as well, courtesy of Tenten telling Neji about the disastrous conference. At least that would spare her from having to tell them herself.

The young woman felt a tremble go through her at Kiba's enraged face. The guilt inside her became almost overwhelming because she knew Kiba well enough to know that he barely was able to cover up his pain. Shikamaru seemed calmer but somehow Hinata didn't trust the glint in his eyes that clearly showed otherwise.

Naruto took a deep breath. He usually didn't play the 'Hokage Card' with his friends but he was afraid it wouldn't be too long before he had to. And for the first time since he had taken over the office he hated the job. He hated how he had to separate himself from what had to be done as Hokage, how he had to subdue the empathy he felt for them, if anyone would take Hinata away from him, he wouldn't rest until he got her back. But he had to keep them in line.

"Please sit down." He offered calmly.

"Like hell, I'll sit down." Kiba shook with anger. "You will immediately tell me why I had to comfort my crying girlfriend who not even an hour ago came home telling me she had to leave town and didn't know when or if she'd be back?" He spit out keeping his eyes on Naruto.

"Kiba, please." Hinata finally said softly sending a pleading look his way. It did little to appease him.

"This is your fault." Shikamaru spoke up. He was completely still, his eyes drained on the petite woman. Anger etched in his face, slowly but surely. "You did this. This wouldn't have happened if you and your sister didn't mess up."

Hinata took a step back in shock. She knew Shikamaru was right, but hearing him say it, seeing the rage in his eyes directed at her, hit her hard.

"I'm…" She started to apologize her voice faint and quivering.

"Shikamaru, you will not talk to the main ambassador like that. None of this is her fault." Naruto's eyes had hardened considerably. He had abandoned his seat and rounded the table to stand in between them, shielding Hinata from Shikamaru. "We all knew about the risk and you were as much a part of this as any of us."

He saw the defiance in his face but Kiba interrupted before either of them gave in their desire to explode.

"What the heck are you talking about?" He demanded to know.

Since neither Shikamaru nor Naruto seemed willing to back down from the staring tournament, Hinata spoke up. The blow from Shikamaru's earlier accusation, albeit rightful, was still evident in her voice.

"A few months ago Hanabi and Gaara started seeing each other. We have kept this information from the other Kages as to not endanger the negotiations for the 'Cross-border relationship agreement'."

Kiba's eyes shot to her and an emotion crossed his face that Hinata couldn't quite name.

"Why don't you tell him the truth?" Shikamaru asked with venom. "The only reason you even started to care about cross-border relationships is because your sister started to date the Kazekage."

"No, Shikamaru that's not…" She wanted to protest but deep down she knew he wasn't completely wrong. The fact that her sister was involved helped speed the process along. But the plans had been there for a longer time.

"Shikamaru!" Naruto's blue eyes blasted with anger he had trouble keeping at bay. Hinata had been through enough and especially since Orochimaru's attack; Naruto's protectiveness of her had become even more intense than before. "Don't you dare, attack Hinata."

The Hokage took a deep breath. "Listen you two. I know that this is hard for you, but I promise that we'll do everything in our power to sort this out. We'll bring them back." He looked at both of them intensely, keeping each gaze for a few seconds. "But I need both of you. So please go home, calm down for now and in a few days we can meet up again and talk about a plan on how to proceed."

Shikamaru turned around abruptly and left the office without looking back. Kiba stood still for a few seconds before he looked up to meet Hinata's pale eyes. His fist trembled at his side. "Shikamaru's right. This is your fault. And you better bring her back."

The door slammed shut after him and at that moment Hinata's legs gave out. In a flash Naruto appeared next to her, catching her before she hit the ground. He cradled her in his arms and she sobbed in his chest unrestrained.

Naruto ground his teeth hard and tightened his hold on her. "Hinata? 'Nata please look at me." If he could he would go back and strangle Shikamaru and potentially Kiba. Conveniently he dismissed that he would have done the same thing if anyone would dare to take Hinata from him.

"Naruto, d-don't." She whimpered and fisted her fingers in his robe. "T-their right. It was my f-fault. Please ju-just don't."

He closed his eyes and concentrated on her smell, the feeling of her body against his and he pushed away his urge to disagree with her. Naruto hated that she blamed herself but really maybe he just needed to accept that she was right. Not even Naruto could deny that part of this was caused by Hinata's carelessness to write down Hanabi's and Gaara's name on that scroll.

"Fine." He breathed out. "Fine! Hinata look at me." He ordered intently.

Hesitantly she met his eyes and he put his hands on either side of her face, making sure she saw every inch of love and trust for her in his eyes.

"Fine, Hinata, you messed up. You shouldn't have written down their names, but you didn't do it on purpose. You are not responsible for Orochimaru trying to destroy the peace. So, yes, you messed up but what happened has happened, and for the past eight years you have worked to ensure this peace and you have been more successful than anyone else. You have done everything in your power and it's only thanks to you that we've come so far. You're the best at what you're doing. And if anyone can sort this out, it's you. You made a mistake and now we'll just have to make the best of it, all of us together. And we will. We can do this."

A very hesitant smile made its way to her lips. "Thank you."

She said, but somehow she knew things wouldn't be that easy. She had yet to face the council and the consequences would be dire. Still, Naruto was with her and she found comfort in that.

…

"Well, that's a less than optimal situation." Shino said in his usual calm tone.

Their team made up from shinobi from each nation in order to pursuit Orochimaru had been called back immediately. And Shino had just been informed of the reason.

"Yes." Naruto agreed with a sigh. "I still would like to know if your team found anything. Sadly the other teams came up empty."

Shino took in the information without a visible movement. "I understand. As for your question, I think we were on a good trail. Someone from a village told us, as we were asking question, that a young boy disappeared. Homeless and an orphan, but the guy also said that the kid seemed to have a special ability. He said that it might have something to do with manipulating people. It appeared to us that this seemed to fit Orochimaru's predator-prey-system."

The Hokage nodded deep in thought. Orochimaru did have an affinity to take in lonely desperate kids and manipulate them to his advantage.

"I would like to request of you to find yourself an appropriate team and keep looking for him."

"I agree. Orochimaru stays a threat, especially for Konoha." Shino nodded. "I'd like to request Kiba as well, but considering the current circumstances, I don't know if that is possible."

Naruto pinched his nose in frustration. He hadn't heard from Kiba in three days, whenever he tried to talk to the man, he gotten nothing but snarky remarks, if he even gotten so close. Usually the dogs went berserk at even his scent and he was attacked by them furiously. Clearly their loyalty laid with their own rather than with their Hokage.

"I don't know to be honest. I think it would be good for him to go on a mission and get out of town for a while." He stood up and trailed to the window taking in the beautiful landscape of Konoha bathed in sunlight. "You can always try and ask him. I think a team of four, like in the original mission would be appropriate, but I believe you're more than suited to know what is needed for that mission as you are going to lead it. Just let me know who you picked, so I can make sure their not needed otherwise. Also I think Shiho is arriving from Kiri today, take two days and spent some time with her. I don't think a few days matter all that much."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama. I'll gather the appropriate people." Shino excused himself with a slight bow.

"It's Naruto, Shino how often do I have to…" He trailed off after realizing that Shino had already left the office.

…

"Ah, hello Sai. Did you just arrive?" Hinata forced a smile on her face.

"I did indeed. Hello Hinata-san." The pale man greeted her and stopped his approach of the Hokage tower.

He eyed her briefly but stopped himself from commenting on her red eyes or the tired shadows around them or the usual grey tone of her skin and perhaps even the slight loss of weight. His years training his 'people skills' under the Diplomacy Office of Konoha taught him that much.

"Oh, please Sai, you don't have to be so formal." She told him with another fake smile. "I'm sure you're confused at being called back so suddenly."

Sai frowned at the petite woman. He had a very good guess on what was causing her to fake a smile like that. Having spent most of his life faking any and all emotions had made him keen on picking up on such things.

He shook his head at her question, "Not really. The Raikage was not very discrete, I'm afraid."

An almost painful grimace crossed Hinata's face before she straightened her features to the friendly mask. "I can imagine. Naruto will be able to answer the rest of your question, I'm sure he's already awaiting you, the other ambassadors are expected to arrive today as well." With another pathetic attempt at a genuine smile she excused herself and made her way to yet another Council meeting.

Sai watched her retreating back with a hint of worry in his stomach. He had grown fond of the woman, not only was she Naruto's girlfriend but she had spent countless hours with him teaching him the basics of diplomacy after he had shown up at her office one day, asking for the possibility to work for her in order to help his skills in interacting with other people.

It wasn't that he didn't like being back in Konoha. Sai felt immense loyalty to the village and to Naruto especially, but his life in Kumo had been very nice. He'd much prefer for things to go back the way they were before and he could only guess that he was not the only one. Judging by the appearance of Hinata and her rather forced demeanor she was not very happy with the current state of affairs either. The man wondered if Naruto was aware how poorly his girlfriend was taking care of herself and if perhaps he should carefully alert his friend of that.

…

"I really don't feel like I should be here." Shiho pointed out as they made their way to Kiba's home. "You're certain they won't attack us? I don't think they're happy to see us and… Ah, that one just growled." She jumped back and gripped Shino's arm hard.

"Shiho, I assure you they won't attack us. How I know that? I am one of Kiba's best friends and I have been on his team for years. During these years I have visited Kiba a lot and never has a dog try to stop me. They know who I am and that I don't mean any harm."

Calmly the Aburame heir made his way through the Inuzuka compound, ignoring the large amount of huge dogs that spread around the area. His blonde companion's distress didn't go unnoticed however and so he stopped to look at her bespectacled face. "Would you rather I accompany you out again?"

Shiho hesitate for the split of a second. She was not too fond of dogs, actually anything bigger than a mouse was somewhat of a challenge for her. Shino's bugs were her much preferred size for animals. "No, you said they would try to hurt us. I trust you."

The slight smile on his face was hidden by the high collar of his coat, but she knew it was there nevertheless and smiled back at him brightly and with a hint of blush in her cheeks.

Yet her trust didn't stop her from eying the monstrous dogs suspiciously as they picked up their former pace once more.

"You think he'll be willing to take the mission? I mean with Akamaru's death and Karui's departure… You think he'll be able to handle that?" Shiho hesitated. She quite liked Shino's former teammates, admittedly she knew Hinata better than Kiba but he was a nice guy, even if a little flirty. "I just don't want you to get hurt because Kiba is…"

"Shiho." Shino turned to her and smoothed a strand of fair hair behind his ear. He wasn't comfortable to show endearments in public, but felt it was necessary to comfort her in more physical manner. "I assure you that Kiba would not let his emotions interfere in any way that could cause potential harm to his teammates."

"Well… good then."

As they neared Kiba's house they were greeted with the sounds of something crashing down and it didn't take a genius to figure out that Kiba was taking out his frustration on the training ground. The place behind the house looked like a battle field, had there been trees before there was certainly nothing left of them anymore. nstead of the luscious green surrounding most of the Inuzuka territory Kiba's training ground was painted in muddy brown. The man himself and what Shino assumed to be his new dog were restlessly going at it, causing more dents on the ground.

Patiently the pair waited until Kiba was willing to acknowledge them. It was highly unlikely that his supersensitive ears or his extraordinary sense of smell hadn't picked them up already.

After finishing their move Kiba turned and faced his former teammate with a grin and made his way over to the couple.

Shino didn't dwell on how Kiba looked worse to wear than ever and how his smile didn't quite reach his eyes even though his happiness about seeing him again was real. It wasn't necessary for him to make Kiba aware of the bangs under his eyes or the fact that he was clearly on the verge of collapsing, mostly because Shino knew Kiba was very much aware of it himself. The reason for his behavior was easily deduced as the absence of his girlfriend. However if this self-destruction went on, Kiba would be in real trouble; therefore a mission was the best course of action.

"Shino, it's good to see you mate!" Kiba came over and pulled the silent man in a hug.

"Shiho, you look great." He bestowed another hug to the blonde woman who smiled tightly at him. Usually she'd give back the compliment, only this time it would be a blunt lie. Her worry for him was only overshadowed by her worry for Shino's safety on the upcoming mission, considering Kiba's mental state.

"Thanks." She whispered instead. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

He took a step back and gave her a curt nod. A pained expression crossing his features.

"Do you want to come in?" Kiba asked.

Shino agreed and they made their way inside after Kiba petted Hanta and quickly introduced the dog to Shino and Shiho. The house looked exactly as Shino had predicted, the inside was wrecked; Kiba had obviously took out his frustration on the interior.

The silent man raised an eyebrow at the lack of a chair that was still whole, he felt Shiho shift uncomfortable unsure whether she should address it or not.

She shot him a questioning glance over her glasses which he acknowledged with a shrug. Then he cleared his throat, "Kiba I have a proposition for you. I'll be heading out for a mission in a day's time and I'm still in need of a team member. Why am I telling you this? Because I would like to request you help on it. I do presume that you and Hanta are ready to head out already."

For a few minutes Kiba didn't answer. Instead he stared out of the window deep in thoughts. A few days ago he would have looked forward for an exciting mission. After what happened with Akamaru Kiba had felt like it was the end of the world, but after taking up training with Hanta he felt restricted being kept in the village. Kiba was itching to try out whether or not he and Hanta could work as well together in the field as they did in training. There was a small part of him that had tried to tell him that he was betraying Akamaru but Kiba knew it wasn't true and he had spent some time with other Clan members who had lost their respective dogs. All of them had gone through the same thing; it helped him deal as much as Karui did.

But now things had changed. Karui had left the village and the only thing he was able to do was to make sure Igi was there to protect her. Kiba had given the dog clear instructions to keep Karui safe and take care of her. It was the only thing he could do for her. In case she came back Kiba wanted to be here, if he left on a mission…

The again, if he stayed in Konoha he might just go crazy.

"What's the mission?"

One word – one answer.

"Orochimaru."

"I'm in."

So...tell me what you think.

…