A/N: After the 'dramatic reveal' of the last chapter, I'd like to thank everyone still reading this story despite the surprise pairing (unless you figured it out beforehand- kudos again to those who did!). Regardless of the number of followers, I'll continue to update, but it definitely makes writing this even more enjoyable when I know other people like it, and offer encouragement through reviews. You guys are the best!

Disclaimer: Nope, nada, not mine!

"Tsunade-sama, reports say that though fighting in the shopping district is ongoing, the cult of 'The Orange' has been disbanded. Still no word from within the vegetable market… But the fires in the housing sector have finally stopped burning, though last I heard, they were planning some sort of 'Trial of the Damned'…" The shinobi giving the report frowned, and nervously scratched at his freckled cheek. "Apparently, some Kusa genin and the Sarutobi brat were responsible for, 'All of this'? I-I wasn't too clear on the details… I'm sorry!"

Tsunade hummed, and waved away the brown-haired chuunin's apology. "No worries, Takeshi- it's going to be a shit show out there for a while, I don't expect you to know everything. Just let me know when you find anything else out."

Takeshi stared back at her with awe. "So kind… so merciful… Anko-sama is nothing compared to you!"

"Uh, sure… Actually, would you be able to tell me where Hatake Kakashi is? It's of the utmost importance."

The chuunin stiffened to attention, gaze unnaturally focused on Tsunade. "The Hokage is currently on top of the Hokage Monument- he was alone last time I saw him, and apparently cloud watching."

Tsunade blinked. "Huh. Little bit of time left, then… Thank you for your help, Takeshi." With an absent minded wave, the legendary sucker signalled for the chuunin to leave. After giving her a deep bow, Takeshi raced away, an enraptured smile planted on his face.

The Senju stared blankly after the chuunin's retreating form. T and I shinobi were nuts…

"Shishou!" Tsunade pivoted at the sudden call, her old student striding into view. The pink-haired woman had traded her previous suit for hospital scrubs, and with her doctor's coat on and hair up, she (thankfully) no longer looked like a mob boss. With purposeful strides and a determined expression, she pushed past the milling crowd congesting the hallway, which was packed now that they were dealing with the fallout of The Bet.

"Shishou, I heard from one of my patients that the fight in the shopping district broke out because Naruto had confessed- do you think she has? Is The Bet over?!"

Sakura came to a halt in front of the surprised Senju. Tsunade rubbed a hand against her chin, but otherwise didn't seem worried. "Don't worry, Sakura. I just heard from a messenger that Kakashi is alone on top of the monument- this Bet's still alive and kicking."

Sakura hummed, and together they made their way out of the hallway that was next to the emergency room. The situation was finally under control, and it looked like the two kunoichi could finally take a break, or at least start dealing with some of the many low-risk patients. They had just entered a crowded lobby that was filled to the brim with waiting patients when a sudden cry stopped them cold in their tracks.

"Hey, Baa-chan! We need your help!"

In a synchronized movement, every person in the vicinity jerked their heads in the direction of the obnoxious voice.

Striding through the main doors, an unlikely trio emerged, two of them supporting the third that was being drug between their arms. Other than the unconscious Kiba, Naruto and Iruka made quite a pair- the usually immaculate chuunin was wearing a blood-splattered jacket, and his brown hair, always so orderly, was lop-sided, his pony tail almost falling out. On the other hand, the orange obsessed blonde had none of her favourite colour in sight. Instead, she wore a lovely blue dress, and her face even held traces of makeup. She looked stunning, and almost appeared to glow with the force of her smile. Sakura had to rub at her eyes and do a double take.

Naruto's smile took on a nervous edge, and she raised her free hand to scratch at the back of her head as everyone in the lobby stared with riveted eyes at her, and only her.

"Naruto, what the hell are you doing here!?" Sakura exclaimed. Naruto puffed out her cheeks in confusion, while Iruka, with a voice of long-suffering that only comes with those familiar to teaching, piped in.

"Sakura, this is a hospital- we're here because Kiba here might have a concussion." Naruto empathetically nodded to punctuate the chuunin's words.

Disgruntled muttering broke out in the lobby, and a few shinobi stared at Naruto with petrified awe. Most though were content with simply watching and waiting to see what would happen next. A single jounin with a splinted leg withdrew a bag of popcorn from his knapsack, and quietly munched away.

Tsunade cut through the mutterings of the crowd, instantly silencing the lingering conversations as she spoke. "Naruto, I heard from someone that you have certain... plans today." Tsunade spun around and pointed at an uninjured, brown-haired civilian that was watching Naruto with unblinking eyes. "You!" she exclaimed.

"Me?!" the man asked, pointing in befuddlement to himself as he stared in confusion at the serious form of the ex-Hokage.

"Yes, you! Go help Iruka carry Kiba to an empty seat- Naruto has more important things to do right now."

The members of the lobby began to furiously nod their heads in agreement with Tsunade, and the previously confused man let out a quiet "Oh!" of understanding. After giving the Senju an exaggerated wink, he began to stroll across the lobby to the bemused forms of Iruka and Naruto (and Kiba, but he was in no position to be confused.)

"Uh, baa-chan, you're old age must be getting to you- I don't need this guy to help Kiba, me and 'Ruka can do that ourselves." Naruto's nose wrinkled as she pursed her lips, and at her side the Umino seemed mildly amused. The blonde turned her head to share a look with the academy sensei, and they automatically smiled at each other, blushes decorating their cheeks.

Naruto turned her head away from Iruka's to narrow her eyes at the approaching man. With a quiet squeak, the civilian backpedalled away from Naruto's determined gaze, and slipped back into the crowd.

Anxious mutterings broke out, and Sakura shot Naruto an incredulous look. "Naruto, you don't have time for this- you need to go confess to the love of your life!"

A few members of the crowd gasped.

"Is she allowed to do that? It feels like she's breaking one of the rules of The Bet…" an injured previous member of 'The Orange' whispered.

"Naruto better go confess to Chouji, I need the cash!"

"Man, Naruto looks super hot right now… maybe even better looking than Anko-sama!" A woman with a recently broken nose exclaimed.

Naruto was seemingly oblivious to the crowd's mutterings, and narrowed her eyes at Sakura. The Uzumaki spoke slowly to the medic like she was an idiot of the highest degree. "Sakura, I don't need to leave the hospital to confess to the guy I'm in love with- I already did!"

Everyone in the room froze.

The Uzumaki continued on with a smile. "I even have a date planned! How do you like them apples, Haruno!"

Most of the crowd were too stunned to speak. The brown haired man that had attempted to help carry Kiba whispered to himself- "Holy shit, it's done… But who did she confess to!?"

Tsunade was unable to move or speak. Sakura, on the other hand, was violently shaking, and a deranged edge had entered her eyes. "N-no! You couldn't have confessed! Kakashi's alone on top of the Hokage monument, and you've been in love with him since you were twelve, and, and-"

Naruto wrinkled her nose. "Kakashi-sensei? I don't like him like that at all! Besides, aren't he and Tenzo together? Hell, I even asked Tenzo for relationship advice!"

The leader of the Slug Gang had finally found her voice. "T-then who?! Who in the world did you confess too, gaki?!" With bated breath, everyone in the lobby waited intently for Naruto's answer, some of them mumbling predictions to themselves.

Ebizo muttered from the side, shifting the singed form of his comrade as he pondered. "Maybe it's Kiba, and he fainted after she told him…"

"It hasth to be Gaara, it hasth to be…" Kankurou slurred, still feeling the effects from the poison he had been afflicted with earlier from Shizune's senbon launcher. (How the hell he had managed to escape the hellish vegetable market, no one was quite sure.)

"Killer Bee, the soaring dove, is the only one, she could ever love…" a fervent Kumo-nin whispered.

The moment of truth dawned. After blinking in surprise at Sakura, Naruto turned to Iruka with a questioning look. The chuunin rolled his eyes, but gave a slight nod of his head, a small smile forming on his tanned face.

Naruto turned back to the waiting crowd and flashed her signature Uzumaki grin. "I confessed to Iruka, obviously!"

…Everyone froze, for a second time.

The Uzumaki grinned at the brown haired chuunin, who continued to shyly smile back. Taking a moment to readjust Kiba, they continued on their way through the lobby, oblivious to the catatonic forms of the crowd.

"As long as we reach one of the hospital rooms, I could probably do the basic first aid myself." Iruka murmured quietly to Naruto. The blonde instantly perked to attention at the sound of his voice.

"You probably should, 'Ruka, everyone else is acting wayyy too weird to be much help." Naruto leaned over Kiba to peck Iruka on the corner of the mouth, and his face instantly went tomato red. "Luckily, you're here to help- you're amazing!" Iruka stuttered out a humble protest, and Naruto continued to cheerfully grin. Together, they left the main entrance and continued on towards the hospital rooms.

In the lobby, the near comatose forms of 116 people returned to lucidity. Identical looks of sheer horror spread across their faces, and a bag of popcorn was dropped to the ground. Sakura began to twitch, her eyes wide and unseeing.

And then the screaming started.

Xxx

"You have been found guilty of many terrible crimes!" Hideyoshi exclaimed. He turned with raised arms to the torch and pitchfork wielding crowd, and pointed backwards at the bound forms of Konohamaru and Nana. "Impersonating Naruto, attempting to steal information on The Bet, and destroying a betting station? I say guilty!" The crowd down on the street howled their approval.

"This isn't a fair trial!" Konohamaru protested, straining against the ropes that bound him. "We didn't set the betting station on fire- you guys did that yourselves by lighting all the apartments around it up!"

Killing intent emanated from the crowd, and Aoba yanked on Konohamaru's scarf, whipping the Sarutobi around to meet his deranged eyes. "Don't you dare try and weasel your way out of this. I'm glad I caught you before you reached another betting station- you probably would have destroyed that one too!"

Nana trembled beside Konohamaru, and the two huddled closer together under Aoba's mad gaze.

The Nara continued to speak, heedless of Aoba words to their prisoners. "In accordance with justice, to the right the terrible wrongs committed, the punishment of this 'Trial of the Damned' shall be…" Hideyoshi paused, and his brow wrinkled in confusion. "Actually, what the hell can we use as punishment? The shinobi nations are at peace! Without consent from a kage, we can't cause any shinobi life-threatening harm…" Anxious muttering broke out in the mob below, and suggestions were quickly fired up to the confused Nara.

"Blow up all their stuff for blowing up the station!"

"Force the Sarutobi into permanent woman form!"

"Blacklist them from The Bet!"

"Make them Anko's minions!" At the final suggestion, everyone in the crowd paused in their ranting and turned to stare in disgust at the sheepish jounin that had offered the suggestion.

Hideyoshi pursed his lips. "That would be cruel and inhumane torture- we don't want them dead. Alas, I know now what their punishment will be!" With bated breath, the mob waited, and the Nara declared the solution with a manic grin. "We will make them-"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Everyone in the shinobi housing sector froze at the sudden exclamation. The bawling form of Ebizo raced through the puzzled crowd, only to dramatically collapse at the edge of the stage that had been formed through an earth jutsu to hold the captured criminals. The tokubetsu-jounin raised his tear-streaked face to Hideyoshi.

"Sir, I was taking some of our wounded from here to the hospital- and I've learned the horrifying truth!"

Hideyoshi stiffened. "What truth?! What the hell happened at the hospital?!"

Ebizo whimpered. "Naruto arrived with an injured comrade, and said- said that she had confessed!" The man shifted so that he was leaning against the stage, then gave a heart wrenching cry, and threw his head down into his crossed arms, his emotional anguish (and melodrama) too much to bear.

Countless gasps met the shivering man's words, and as one the mob closed in around him, attention drawn away from Konohamaru and Nana. Aoba raced towards the collapsed tokubetsu-jounin, heaved him up by his vest, and vigorously began to shake him back and forth.

"WHO? Who did Naruto confess to!? Answer me, damnit!"

The glasses clad man slowly lifted his head, and though he whispered the answer, everyone heard his next words (they were all channelling chakra to their ears to make sure they did).

"Umino Iruka."

…WHAT.

Whereas the reactions of the hospital had been to freeze, then scream, the occupants of the shinobi housing sector were… slightly more explosive.

"Lies!" Aoba cried, dropping Ebizo to the ground as he threw his hands to clutch at his head. Around him, killing intent began to emanate again from the crowd.

"This is bullshit! That would never happen!"

"Naruto was supposed to confess to Kiba!"

"This has to be a genjutsu- we have to free ourselves from the illusion with fire!"

That final comment was well received by the crowd. As one, they lifted their flaming torches and let out an almighty cry as they raced away to ignite the few structures that had escaped the earlier flames. Hideyoshi was oblivious to the rage of those around him- he simply stared at his hands, looking absolutely lost. For the second time that day, the housing sector was set alight.

On the stage, a pile of empty ropes was set aflame by a drifting spark…

Xxx

Yamato cocked his head to the side, intently listening to the sound of distant explosions. He paused in his walk to the shinobi housing sector, and lifted his eyes to watch the reformed pillars of smoke trail into the sky. He had only just started to make his way back from the training grounds because the fires had finally been put out, but apparently, that was no longer the case.

"Nuke-nin it is, then," he mumbled. The mokuton user pivoted on his heel and strode away in the opposite direction.

Xxx

The darkness had swallowed everything.

The Beast loomed in its midst, and drug a bloodied hand through its dishevelled hair, the tie that usually kept it in place long since gone. Narrowed eyes peered forward. Before today, The Beast wouldn't have been able to see through the dark, but things had changed- it had changed.

Absentmindedly, The Beast reached into the pocket of its jounin jacket as it planted its foot on the prone form of one of its many victims. With steady movements, it ignited the cigarette that it had drawn out, and idly gave it a few puffs. The smoke was calming, and the slight gleam of light from its end shone like a beacon in the dark. The dart's shaky glow illuminated a piece of paper that drifted across The Beast's field of few. With a lightning fast movement, it swiped the paper from the air.

The Beast purposefully began to stride away from the pile of its unconscious victims as it read the words upon the paper. Not a single one of its movements was wasteful, and there were no hesitation in its actions. Nothing about it could ever be described as lazy.

The Beast let out a light snort at the contents of the page that proclaimed the bet of a Kiri chuunin, before setting the sheet alight with its cigarette. The glow of the burning paper reflected against its eyes, and The Beast turned its attention to the only other conscious person in its dark domain.

The woman stared back with narrowed eyes, the momentary light allowing her to make out The Beast's form. Her arms were indignantly crossed in front of her, and her right eyebrow was raised. Other than a light trail of dirt on her cheek, nothing about her appearance was out of place.

The Beast strolled toward her, and absentmindedly noted that the woman would no longer be able to see him clearly now that the paper had burned to ash. Only its cigarette would be visible, a single glowing spark in the darkness.

Yet her face held no fear as she gazed upon its shadowy form. It made sense to The Beast- she was a warrior goddess who felt no fear, could face death with a grin on her face, and an incredible woman who-

"Shikamaru, you've had enough time to work through your mental breakdown- it's time to go. You need to clean all the blood off of you, and sort out all the shit you've caused here." Temari drawled.

…could never stop nagging. Troublesome woman…

Temari lifted an unimpressed eyebrow at Shikamaru's lack of response. "By this point, I'm sick and tired of this damn bet- I'm leaving, and I'm not going to come back till I've relaxed a little. I appreciate that you didn't go psycho on me, and allowed my brother to leave, but it's time to end this."

Shikamaru let out a sigh, and replied in a gravelly voice. "Fine. I'll meet you at the nearest town's hot springs once I sort out the mess from The Bet's fallout. Considering Naruto's going to, or has already confessed to Iruka, there's probably going to be absolute chaos." The Suna-jounin's eyes widened comically.

"Iruka?! Since when has she been in love with-"

The Nara interrupted the raving woman in front of him with a lightning fast kiss. With his newfound ability to see in the dark, Shikamaru was treated to lovely sight of Temari, blushing and speechless.

"I'll tell you later how this all happened," Shikamaru rumbled. He gently swung his arm around the stunned kunoichi's shoulders, and guided her to the fringe of his territory. Together, they broke through the shadowy barrier and into the light.

Shikamaru closed his eyes against the harsh rays of the setting sun, but didn't need sight to feel Temari lean over to gently peck him on the cheek. "I'll see you later, Nara," she purred.

Through squinted eyes, the Nara watched her sashay away, down the ruined street and out of sight. Shikamaru smirked to himself, and raised his cigarette to give it another puff, before dropping it to the ground and crushing it under his heel. He strode away from the cloying darkness, its penetrating black slowly fading away as he, the source of the darkness, left it behind. Trails of black vapour slid continually off of his form, but Shikamaru pressed on, determination in every stride, narrowed calculation in his eyes.

Soon, he would restore peace to the village… or snap again in the process. The tightly coiled muscles of The Beast readied for action.

This is what you get when a Nara isn't lazy.

Xxx

"Hinata-sama, Naruto has finally confessed!" Hinata, who had been in the process of stuffing her face with cinnamon buns, froze. At her side, her sister Hanabi fervently gestured across her neck for the Hyuuga messenger to shut the fuck up, but the damage was already done. Hinata lifted crinkled eyes to the trembling branch member before her, an overly happy smile on her face.

"Who, Teru-kun? Who has Naruto confessed to?" Teru darted his eyes to Hanabi's terrified form, and audibly swallowed as he turned back to the ominous expression on his clan leader's face.

"Uh, from the direct words of Uzumaki herself, she confessed to… Umino Iruka." For a moment, everyone in the main Hyuuga sitting room was quiet. Other clan members, who had been anxiously listening in on the conversation from the sides of the room at various tables, waited tensely for Hinata's reaction. Finally, the Hyuuga leader broke from her frozen stupor.

"…Iruka, you say? It was my old academy sensei that stole her from me?" Hinata's smile took on a demented edge. "Always taking her out for ramen… I should have known it would be that slimy bastard from the start." Teru froze at Hinata's sudden swear- she was never this crude!

The Hyuuga boss snapped her fingers. "Yes Hinata-sama?" two branch members immediately asked, quickly darting in front of Teru to take a knee before the serene faced woman.

"Ah, it's quite a shame… I liked Iruka! Kenta, Raiku, would you please assemble the clan for battle? Make sure that we enlist the help of any other shinobi we can. We have a ship to set on fire." The two branch members immediately hurried away to carry out her orders. Hinata rose smoothly from her chair, and with elegant steps made her way to the exit of the room. She cocked her head behind her at the frozen members of her clan, many of which were still seated in their chairs. A clan elder was comically frozen in place, cinnamon bun raised to his mouth mid-bite.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" Hinata cheerfully asked. "We have a woman stealing bastard to destroy." Hinata pivoted on her heel, gracefully exiting the room. With shaky steps, the remaining Hyuuga trailed after her, discarding their dress robes as they went, readying for battle.

Only Hanabi remained in the sitting room. She watched with wide eyes as her previously distraught sister went out, clan in tow, to unleash fury upon the man that had stolen her one true love. It had taken the shipping apocalypse, but it had happened. The once kind, gentle, and angelic Hyuuga Hinata… had gone psycho.

Hanabi shivered, and stared down at her untouched dessert. Iruka was a goner…

Xxx

Far away in Suna, its citizens no longer could be bothered to care about The Bet- they had a much bigger problem on their hands…

"Away with you, foul demon!" Gaara screamed, sweeping the lunging Naruto back through its portal with a torrent of sand. Beside him, one of the few remaining seal 'masters' of Suna threw a hastily scrawled seal inscribed on a kunai through the black hole that gaped above the hospital. As the kunai slipped through, the portal warped in on itself, swirling into non-existence.

Any triumph that may have been felt upon that victory was short lived as Gaara turned to confront another enemy- there always seemed to be another, especially with those damn kage-bunshin! Dozens of other portals still lingered throughout his village.

A passing orange figure wearing a ridiculous mask raced by. "Woo! This is the best vacation I've had in years!" Gaara didn't share the invaders enthusiasm, as a particularly large BOOM! echoed down the street from the direction the masked shinobi had come. Orange mist spread outwards, cloaking the street in neon darkness.

"Awesome prank! But make sure to use some ramen next time- like this!" At those words, another invader that was perched on a nearby roof unleashed a sea of ramen from a storage scroll he had pulled from the confines of his orange jacket, crashing towards Sunagakure like a raging tsunami.

The Kazekage's eyebrow twitched.

A/N: This was mostly a filler chapter (terrible, I know), but the next one will have the dreaded mob- the mob that Kiba himself was worried would kill him if Naruto had confessed to him… Iruka and Naruto are in for a reality check, because there is still a last obstacle in the way of their love.

Till next time!