Thanks to everyone who is still reading this story. It won't take too long anymore.
at dragonstomper: Happy to hear that you liked it. And thanks for your feedback.
at Futago-za07: Well you always need that certain someone. Besides Orochimaru is the best villain in Naruto (at least he'd my favorite).
at ileveria: Thanks for reviewing and I'm afraid no Sakura/Kankuro reunion in this one.
at Guest(s): Thanks for your opinion(s).
at Chewie Cookies: Thanks for the continuing support. Let's see what he's up to.
at Flameraven1: So nice of someone to see the upside to Orochimaru's plans. Also, good to know that I wasn't the only one who found it funny.
at Ayrmed: Thanks for always letting me know what you think. I appreciate it a lot.
at devilzxknight86: I'm not sure I got everything you wanted to say, but details are soon coming up and perhaps that'll answer your questions then.
...
All my thanks goes to Writer's Convexity for betaing this chapter. Thank you so much.
...
I don't own Naruto.
-20-
Shikamaru couldn't quite suppress the smile while reading Hinata's letter. She hadn't included too many details, yet her words rang with hope and anticipation. It would appear the Raikage's proposal was very promising. And if Naruto could get Mei to agree to a Kage's conference then the day he'd seen Temari again was approaching fast.
He should probably tidy up and clean their apartment or she'd kill him. The thought caused his smile to broaden.
The sudden impact of an explosion going off somewhere north from him made Shikamaru meet the ground in a rather harsh way.
"What the…?" Shit of course this had to happen when Naruto wasn't around.
The door to the Hokage's office flew open.
"Konoha's under attack!" Konohamaru reported.
"Who?"
"We don't have any confirmation yet."
"Start evacuating the village's people and the academy."
"Already in progress, Shikamaru-san." Konohamaru's use of the suffix 'san' spoke volumes concerning the gravity of the situation.
Shikamaru answered with a curt nod and together they exited the office swiftly. "Konohamaru, I want you to run to the Cryptanalysis Office. Tell them to send word out to Naruto immediately. Don't bother with much of a code!"
The younger man changed directions wordlessly.
It took Shikamaru about two more minutes to work out who was behind the attack.
"Kakashi!" He spotted the grey haired Jounin a bit ahead of him. "It's Orochimaru!"
The older man came to an abrupt halt, "Are you sure?"
"Positive."
Kakashi cursed creatively, "Naruto?"
"Is being informed, but until he receives the message we're on our own."
"Why did he have to be away now?"
They sped up, the next explosion in sight.
"Awfully convenient, indeed."
"It's not a coincidence, is it?" Kakashi said plainly.
"Naruto's walking into a trap!"
This time curses fell out of both mouths.
…
"Temari will you stop that please. I'm not a vase!" Kankuro wrinkled his nose and refuted Temari's fussing over him.
"Of course you're not a vase," Temari agreed, "but you can't look shabby for the inauguration ceremony."
"I don't see how this is necessary anyway. I've been appointed almost a week ago." Kankuro complained. "I don't need some stupid ceremony … and Temari if I'm not a vase then please stop dusting me off."
Temari huffed but relented and proceeded to plush up the pillows, uncaring that Gaara was still sitting on some of them.
The red head didn't complain but instead got up with a roll of his eyes.
The past months had been enough to get used to Temari's freshly developed cleaning tick. And nothing was safe of getting cleaned and cleansed.
Everyone had their own ways of dealing with grief, he supposed, and basically that had been what all three of them had been doing. Kankuro had avoided all social gatherings since Sakura's departure; he spent an obscene amount of time in her former quarters instead.
Well, and Temari had simply decided that she'd spent every second apart from Shikamaru cleaning everything she got her hands on. And the odd part was that Temari used to hate cleaning with a burning passion. Perhaps that wasn't the right expression, but it had always been Temari's strong belief that just because she was the only female in the household it was not her duty to keep the house clean and tidy. Before their father died it had only been Kankuro who felt her wrath if he didn't help around the house. She'd been too afraid of Gaara, and their father for that matter, to ask them to clean up after themselves.
So, her behavior was worrisome indeed, on the other hand Gaara understood her absolute devotion to keep her mind off the - hopefully temporary - separation from her significant other.
As for Gaara – no one who observed the former Kazekage was able to tell that he was in any way affected by the events of the past months. The shadows under his eyes had become darker again, his demeanor more introverted, but only those closest to him had seen the improvement Hanabi had triggered in him in the first place.
…
Kankuro had paid intense attention to his little brother. He wanted to ensure that Gaara was dealing with Hanabi's absence. He forced him to sleep from time to time, made sure he was delivered something to eat, but clearly he was doing worse than he'd like to admit.
When Kankuro was called into Gaara's office almost six months since the collapse of all diplomatic relations, he didn't think much of it. Most likely another mission was waiting for him, which had been the usual routine for the past half year.
Confidently Kankuro strolled into Gaara's office. The Kazekage looked up from his papers and tiredly ran a few fingers over his forehead, in the fashion Hanabi had showed him. It didn't release the pain in the way Hanabi's touch used to, but the familiar motion somehow helped lighten his heart.
"You're feeling alright?"
Gaara ignored the question. He left his chair and turned to the window. Behind him Kankuro raised an eyebrow.
"I've come to a decision, Kankuro." Gaara started after a few minutes. "I'm going to step back from my position tomorrow."
"What?!" As Kankuro was dealt the blow from his announcement he sprung up from his seat. "What are you talking about? You can't just…"
Gaara's glare stopped his rant. He turned his back to Kankuro once again and continued speaking. "I will propose your candidacy as my successor."
"Me? Wh…" another annoyed scowl from Gaara made him close his mouth once again.
"I don't doubt that you will be appointed Kazekage. Your accomplishments regarding the infrastructure and the concomitant increase of the economy for Suna coupled with your abilities as a shinobi should make you the perfect candidate. Aside from that, I personally would like to ask you to take the position." Gaara continued without turning back to Kankuro. "With you as Kazekage I can rest assured that any and all attempts at reconciliation with the other villages will be taken into account and every possible action to reach out to them will be made."
Kankuro took the following silence as his cue that he was now expected to voice his opinion. But really all that mattered to him was one thing.
"Why? Gaara, why would you do that?"
His brother turned to him and his sea green eyes bore into Kankuro's dark ones. At first the older brother though he wouldn't get an answer, so he uttered his suspicion, "It's because of Hanabi isn't it?"
Gaara cleared his throat but kept his eyes on his brother. "She does play a role, but not in the way you think."
"Then why?"
"As a Kazekage it is one's duty to put the village first. I am no longer able to do so." Gaara explained. "My priorities have shifted and I do not believe that I'm able to represent Suna to my best. I'm afraid that the longer this is going on the more irrational I'll be. I cannot risk damaging the village's reputation."
"And you think I'll be able to do all of that? I'm in the same situation as you, if you remember."
"Perhaps, yet with significant variations. Your relationship was not the cause of the rift and is not public knowledge. And, and this is possibly the more substantial one, your relationship does not include a bloodline limit." Gaara smiled thigh lipped. "Your relationship will give you the necessary motivation to bring those negotiations to an end; my involvement would always cause the lingering question about my motive."
"But the people love you and I thought you loved being Kazekage."
Gaara shrugged, "There are more important things."
"Hanabi?" Kankuro suggested.
Gaara only smiled, but that really was answer enough.
…
"Mizukage-sama" Naruto bowed slightly before the tall woman. "I hope you are well?"
"I'm fine Naruto, thank you. How are you?" Mei asked lightly.
Naruto nodded in relief that Mei didn't insist on formalities.
"I haven't seen Mifune yet. Isn't he here?" Naruto wondered.
"No, I did not see the need to ask him to join us. Unless you disagree?" She smiled openly at him.
He gave her a hesitant smile and frowned secretly at Tenten. "Something feels weird." He whispered.
"I know. Mei's giving me the creeps."
Unobtrusive he glanced around the room. It was exactly like he remembered the room to look like. Plus their journey here had gone without a hitch.
"I don't remember any of the guards." He told his assistant and Tenten took in the room as well.
"They are also placed in an unusual manner. Want me to go take a look around?"
He gave her a curt nod and she excused herself from the table with the excuse of needing to use the bathroom.
"Well, Naruto I hope Hinata is well too?"
"She's great thank you."
"Ah, it must be hard for you to leave her behind, but I promise not to keep you away for long." Mei leaned toward him over the table and patted his hand.
The blond gave her a tight smile and pulled his hand away. Something was definitely weird. His initial assumption that Mei had invited him because she heard about Hinata's travel to Kumo had been proven wrong but that alone meant nothing.
"I'd appreciate that. What did you ask me here for?"
Mei launched into a complicated analysis about what happened until now, and usually Naruto had trouble keeping awake during boring stuff like that, but today he was at edge. Tenten had yet to reappear and the dark feeling in his gut got stronger.
"Naruto."
"Kurama!" The Naruto in his mind opened his eyes in front of the giant fox. "Yes, I know. Something's amiss."
"What are you talking about? I was peacefully sleeping and when I wake up, I find another presence in your mind. What's going on?"
"Another presence? Could it be a Genjutsu?"
"If it is, it's the strongest one I have ever encountered. It's not just something pressed on your mind from the outside. It's like it's in you. I was barely able to guard this part of your consciousness." Kurama told him.
"How do I get rid of it?"
"I have no idea, kid."
Inside his mind Naruto tried to center himself, he needed to assess this other presence. He entered Sage mode within the safety of Kurama's mind space.
And the fox was right there was something else inside of him. Slowly he was becoming agitated – Tenten had still to come back. Pushing his worry down, Naruto concentrated once more to lure out whatever was manipulating his brain.
"Oh, you're good. Better than I thought." A young girl appeared in front of his inner eye. She was sickly pale and her hair was lightly blue with ribbons holding her bangs up, she couldn't be much older than fourteen.
"Who are you?"
"My name's Iria." She giggled, "I'm sorry I can't let you go yet. My master won't be happy if I don't hold you back long enough… - Ups, I don't think I was supposed to tell you that."
"Your…" Naruto racked his brain. Who would benefit from this? And holding him back from what?
His blue eyes once again evaluated the girl. Her ability clearly had something to do with manipulation, messing with someone's perception. It could be a Kekkai Genkai, but he couldn't be sure.
"The Mizukage never reached out to me, did she?"
The girl giggled again and shook her head.
"Orochimaru…." Suddenly the pieces fell together, the Leaf was under attack and he was stuck here in his own consciousness. "Sorry, kid, but get ready to be blown out of my head."
Her eyes widen at his words, she almost seemed frightened at the prospect.
"You're not a fighter are you?" He asked her kindly.
"I can fight!" The girl answered stubbornly but the tremor in her hand gave her away.
"Kagebunshin-no-Jutsu!" Naruto didn't have the time to be considerate.
The fight was over within seconds and Naruto found himself standing in the middle of absolute nowhere.
"Naruto!" Tenten's relieved voice floated over to him. She was in the process of fighting off five men who had posed as guards earlier.
Naruto contemplated fighting them, but discarded the idea quickly. "Let my Bunshins take care of that." He raced over to her and took her by the arm. "We need to get to Konoha. Orochimaru is attacking, this was just a distraction."
"But those shinobi are not very strong." Tenten told him surprised.
"He didn't expect us to fight them. I don't think he has an army as large as the last time, when he collaborated with the Sand." He explained hastily, already halfway through the hand seals for the Hiraishin. "He took the strong fighters with him."
…
"Is that smoke?" Hinata leaned over Sai's shoulder and squinted her eyes together.
"Looks like it." He agreed frowning.
The young woman activated her Byakugan and gasped, "Konoha is being attacked."
Sai looked at her sharply, "We come back one day early and the whole village is on fire." He attempted a joke but his painted eagle sped up.
…
Neji and Lee left a path of destruction behind them as they fought through the pack of enemies to get closer to where Kakashi and Shikamaru were facing Orochimaru.
Ino and Chouji were evacuating the academy and civilians with Iruka. Sakura and Karin as part of the medical squad defended the hospital and took care of the wounded.
"Where the hell is Naruto when you need him?" Neji asked annoyed.
"But Neji, you know where he is." Lee protested.
The Hyuga only rolled his eyes; clearly his advanced sarcasm was lost in Lee.
"Juken!"
"Neji!"
His head jerked up when he heard the familiar voice.
"Tenten! Good that means Naruto is here too." One of her kunai flew past him and hit the shinobi behind him right between the eyes.
"Do you really need to ask?" Tenten gestured around wildly.
Within seconds hundreds of Naruto's flooded Konoha.
…
His blue eyes met her lavender ones immediately after she jumped from Sai's giant bird. On her way to him she dodged every attack aimed at her elegantly and took out whoever got in her way.
"Good to see you, 'Nata."
"I've missed you too." She gifted him with her brightest smile. And he pulled her into a short searing kiss.
"It's not that this isn't romantic and all - but please mind the circumstances!" Hanabi yelled from somewhere behind them.
"Sometimes I curse the Byakugan." Naruto mumbled and Hinata snickered.
"Can you see Orochimaru?" Naruto asked. "He was fighting Shikamaru and Kakashi, but after he killed a few of my Clones I can't seem to find him."
Hinata nodded and stretched her Byakugan concentrating on Orochimaru's sinister chakra.
"He's retreating." She told him with furrowed brows. "I guess after you turned up, he knew he'd need to give up on his plans or face death."
"I can't go after him while his men are still a threat to the village!" Naruto cursed.
"I don't think you'll need to!" Hinata smirked and flipped another foreign shinobi over.
…
Shino grit his teeth. They were still several kilometers away from Konoha, but his insects were in uproar.
"I smell smoke and… It smells like battle, Shino." Kiba voiced Shino's thoughts and looked at him alarmed.
"I suspect Orochimaru finally made his move." Shino said calmly but sped up considerably.
Kiba cast his friend a worried glance. "Shiho…?"
"I haven't heard from her yet," was Shino's tense reply.
And for the first time Kiba found he was grateful that Karui wasn't even close to the village. And he was also glad she didn't know he thought that, because really she was able to take care of herself. If she knew he wanted her to avoid danger, she'd be angry.
Hanta growled next to him and Kiba found the quick time to pet his dog without slowing down. "I know, but we'll make it in time. Don't worry."
They had been running for several minutes and from the distance Konoha's Hokage building was visible, when both of them stopped simultaneously.
"I found Orochimaru's scent… and he's leaving the village with no one pursuing him." Kiba said slowly.
Behind his glasses Shino's eyes shone with mirth. "Shiho just sent me a message. Naruto arrived and they have the situation under control. As far as she knows none of our friends got seriously hurt, but she'll let us know if anything changes."
Kiba nodded at his words and exchanged a look with Hanta.
"Shino…"
"Let's go. We have a mission to fulfill."
And so without looking back at the sight of Konoha drowning in smoke and the aftermath of violence, they turned to pursue the snake.
…
"You let Orochimaru get away?" Neji looked at Naruto in disbelief.
"Kiba and Shino are on his tail, they'll probably send a message soon." Naruto defended.
Neji didn't look convinced but let it go anyway.
"Leave him be Neji." His fiancée chipped in from the side.
"Tenten stop moving or I'll mess up the stiches." Sakura scolded.
"Please, Sakura that wound hardly requires stiches." Neji scoffed.
"Funny you should say that, because when you dragged me away from the hospital half an hour ago, running around like a headless chicken I might add, you made me believe she was going to die." Sakura muttered under her breath, Neji opted to ignore her.
"Ah, Ino, Chouji there you are!" Naruto waved them over. "One of my clones is bringing someone in and I'd like to know if maybe she can be integrated to the Leaf. Could you take care of that Ino?"
"One of Orochimaru's gifted kids?" The blond raised an eyebrow.
"Precisely." Naruto verified.
"I'll get right on it." Ino placed a quick kiss on Chouji's mouth and off she was.
"The academy kids?" The Hokage inquired further.
"None of them got hurt." Chouji told him and Naruto visibly relaxed. His Clones were still spread all over the place and reported all incidents, but that didn't mean he knew everything.
The damage done to Konoha was severe but luckily there weren't all that many casualties. It took them a long time before they were able to go home that night, especially for the Hokage. So when Naruto and Hinata made their way back to their apartment night time had long since fallen.
"You were absolutely awesome today. I don't think I have mentioned that yet." Naruto hugged her from behind and leaned his head on her shoulder.
Hinata smiled softly, Naruto's wandering fingers distracting her from finding the keyhole. In the end they almost tumbled inside.
"I've missed you so bad." His words ghosted over her skin and she shivered.
…
Three days passed before Naruto found the time to finally discuss the new idea for a diplomatic dealing with cross-border-relationships with Kurenai. Of course Hinata had already filled him in but she no longer held an official postion.
"So the basic idea stands then?" Naruto met Kurenai's eyes over the proposal.
"Yes, the Raikage has already sent a request for a Kage Conference within this week." The older woman answered. "Considering the Orochimaru situation we believe it would be best."
Naruto nodded in agreement. Kiba and Shino had updated him on the Snake Sanin's movement, but he had decided to wait with the attack. The longer those two were able to tail him the more of his secret hideouts were discovered, the more his people and resources were uncovered.
"Sounds amazing! I'm looking forward to it." Naruto smiled brightly. "When are we going to get a date for the meeting?"
"Any day now. You might need to be flexible, I highly doubt the other nations will be very considerate about our schedule and the Raikage insists on the earliest meeting possible."
The blond sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Well, keep me posted. Thank you Kurenai-sensei."
"Very well Hokage-sama." Kurenai bowed slightly and left.
With an exited giggle Naruto got up and took the window to exit the office, not without leaving a shadow clone in his wake.
The academy was only a few minutes away from the Hokage building. He stopped short when he caught a glimpse of the image beyond the window. A short step back provided him with the shadow of a tree and hid him from prying eyes.
After Hinata gave up on her position as ambassador Naruto found it best to give her exhausted body and mind a break. He insisted she'd simply regain a bit of her inner balance and weight. However it didn't take very long for her to grow restless. In the end it was Chouji who suggested she'd try out to take over his class when he caught a cold.
And really Naruto was more than happy to give her a teaching position after she had come back looking radiant and finally content again from helping out. She had always gotten along better with children than with adults and giving those children advice and teaching them about her knowledge made her feel needed and gave her content.
Through the window he watched her teach the basic about chakra control and with a shudder he remembered his very limited understanding of the matter. Her long black hair shone with violet highlights in the sunlight as she wrote the different types of chakra on the board. While her pupils were busy writing down the information, Naruto watched her strolling down the aisle and occasionally pointing out something to the students. He loved how relaxed and happy she looked.
For some people it might look like a decline for her but Naruto felt differently about it. Hinata had been excellent at her job, exceptional even, but she had always been tired and stressed. Perhaps not always as much as during the past few months but in general she seemed more at ease now, especially since the resolution to their troubles seemed in reach.
The bell announced the end of the school day loudly and soon the air was filled with noise and laughter.
Hinata jumped in surprise when she felt herself being pulled back against a hard chest by her waist. She stopped defending herself after she realized who exactly it was that had ambushed her. She would recognize his smell or the way his hands felt on her body anywhere.
"What are you doing here?" Hinata smiled and relaxed against him.
"Just wanted to see you." He murmured in her ear and rested his head on her shoulder. "Let's go home."
"Naruto I can't just go. I need to…" The next time Hinata blinked she found herself standing in her bedroom. She turned and shot Naruto a look that said 'I'm-not-impressed-at-all'.
But in the end she wasn't able to resist his boyish grin. With a shake of her head she stepped closer and let her fingers wander up his neck to play with his blond locks.
"You're unbelievable, you know that?"
"That's why you love me." He smiled and brushed a strand away from her face. "Now," he seized the chance to tackle her into the bed. "Have I told you how amazing you are?"
Hinata shrieked with laughter but Naruto's merciless fingers didn't stop their torture. "Na-Naruto stop."
His blue eyes sparkled with happiness as he looked down at her. She was still laughing hard and drew in large gasps of breaths. His eyes darkened with desire at the picture she painted. Her dark purple hair fawned out framing her beautiful face. With her cheeks glowing, she looked breath taking on top of their orange bed sheets.
"You are absolutely perfect. And you did such an amazing job, you are incredible." He said sincerely.
Her dainty hand reached out and smoothed his blond hair back. The purest lavender shone up at him from her eyes, and he couldn't take his eyes off of her. Under his intense gaze she blushed. Naruto took her hand that was still buried in his blond hair and left a chaste kiss at her wrist. His eyes didn't leave hers as he began to kiss up his way to her shoulder. Hinata bit her lips in pleasure when his lips reached her neck. Finally he found her lips and deepened the kiss almost immediately. Hinata clung to him desperately and allowed him access to her mouth.
The hem of her shirt kept him from exploring her silky skin further. Without wasting time he carefully pulled off her top. Just when he believed she couldn't get sexier than this, she surprised him lacy lingerie in orange.
"You're so beautiful." He purred against her skin. While his hands were busy working down her pants, he distracted her focus with his lips on the edge of her bra.
Hinata writhed in pleasure and her hands tugged on his black shirt. He ripped it off impatiently, wanting to feel her fingertips running over his skin. She let her fingers run down his muscled back. A groan made it past her lips as he traveled further down her flat stomach.
A loud obnoxious knocking on the front door interrupted them. At first they opted to ignore it, but somehow the noise just wouldn't stop.
Naruto groaned and let his head fall against her collar bone. "You cannot be serious," he grinded his teeth.
His counterpart didn't seem any less frustrated, "Get rid of whoever that is. Please!"
He crossed the room with a rather furious expression of his face. "When I find out who that is... Oh, this person is so in trouble." He kept muttering threats under his breath.
The front door was ripped open brutally, "What?" Naruto snarled.
He was met with the rather shocked face of Kurenai Yuuhi.
"Oh, uhm, hi Kurenai-sensei." Naruto scratched the spot behind his ear awkwardly. "What can I do for you?"
"Hokage-sama, I'm very sorry for the inconvenience, but we've just gotten word from Iron and you need to leave immediately." Kurenai hurried to explain.
"What do you mean immediately?" A confused look crossed his features.
"Apparently this meeting of his is taking place in two days."
"And no one informed me?" Naruto bristled.
"I think it's some kind of retaliation for our plot. Anyway you can't use the seals and it's a one and a half day journey." Kurenai didn't seem happy either. "Shikamaru will come with you. Tenten agreed to that and it would be good for him."
"What's going on?" Hinata appeared in the doorway, looking perfectly composed.
"I need to go, Kage's meeting." He pulled her in a kiss and went past her to grab his ever packed bag pack.
"Be careful." Hinata asked him.
"Always. I love you."
"I love you, too."
Tell me what you think.