Sakura stared at the large compound before her wondering what she was doing here in the first place, she had three other texts that needed to be memorized and transcribed by the day after tomorrow.

"C'mon Forehead let's go!" Ino's voice pulled her out of her thoughts, it seemed the Ino and Sakura of this world had a friendly rivalry, where they were competing for the spot of Top Kunoichi, and not Sasuke, they still called each other names, but it was more out of competition than malice. She wore her favorite qipao, deep red with the Haruno Family symbol on the back, a full white...spiral.

That was a very...new and exciting change Sakura had become accustomed to. Her Father had explained to her that the Haruno's were a descending branch Clan from an Uzushio family that had moved here along with Mito-sama. And seeing as how most of Uzushio were capable Shinobi before the beginnings of the economy and civilian infrastructure, she had slightly above average Chakra Coils for a family that had become Merchants before returning to Shinobi life.

That didn't explain the spiral though. And her Father's face became somber, explaining that just as Konoha added the spiral to their Village Symbol, so did some of the Uzushio Clans. In Honor of their Fallen Home '...and those, we'd left behind.'

Pulling her out of her thoughts, Ino tugged her towards the Akimichi Compound for Choji's Birthday. She was glad to be invited but felt like she was intruding.(Although she'd probably benefit from making friends with the Akimichi Clan Heir, so she'd come prepared with his favorite chips and a limited edition catalog of Shinobi Dining.)

...

As fate would have it she was warmly welcomed, Choji's mother ecstatic that Ino was making girlfriends, and happy that Sakura had chosen such a perfect gift. Not only that she wasn't out of place at all, well besides the presence of the Four Noble Clans, there was Sasuke, Shikamaru and Naruto present. And her dread became joy. Even though they probably wouldn't be able to speak of anything of that nature.

"Naruto," Sasuke said, looking at the smiling blond," I didn't think anything fancy you owned would stay this clean." The jibe was all in good nature but the adults listening in seemed to be dissatisfied,(cough*Fugaku*cough).

Naruto puffed his chest in pride, he loved his Honorary Hatake Clan Yukata," It's Kaka-Nii's, dattebayo! I'm a ward of the Hatake Clan!" He was really proud of this and Sasuke and Sakura smiled in approval. Naruto's living status was sorted out, now all they had to do was figure out where Jiraiya was.

"Who?" Ino asked she'd been talking with Hinata(trying and failing) and Naruto's mention of Clan had caught her attention. It seemed to catch the attention of one Uchiha Mikoto. Who paused her conversation to walk closer to listen, the rest of the adults doing the same.

"Sakura..." Shikamaru mumbled from where he was playing...Hanafuda? with Choji who was enjoying it immensely. Sakura took that as her cue to sift through her mental library and pull all the necessary information she'd dug up on Kakashi in her last life and compared it with the information available in this world. Finally, cross-referencing it with what was available to the public.

"The Hatake Clan was one of the smaller Clans that have been apart of Konoha since the Shodai's Era and some people state that the Hatake and the Senju had a longstanding Alliance, alongside the Uzumaki's during the Warring States Period," Sakura explained, "It's nothing definitive though. Although the Clan was small it has produced excellent Shinobi until the many Wars whittled it down to its last two members. The White Fang of Konohagakure no Sato, who's apparently retired and his son Hatake Kakashi..." She paused and took notice of her increased audience.

Blushing she twiddled her thumbs, looking as shy and innocent as possible, "I uh...don't really know much beyond that...the library doesn't have any records like that on hand for students."

...

The Clan heads looked thoughtful of this tiny civilian girl who the Yamanaka Heiress had brought with her, her head of pink hair having caught the attention of the more...aloof of the Four Noble Clans.(Who has a child with pink hair?)

Shikaku himself looked thoughtfully at the girl, Sakura if he remembered correctly. She was Mebuki's girl and had both her father's pinkish hair and her mother sharp mind. She could probably keep up with Shikamaru and with practice. What was Shikamaru playing at?

"Smart girl for a civilian," Fugaku commented, taking a sip of his tea.

"Well, Mebuki is her mother," Inoichi said, a little on the defensive side,(probably because Ino and Sakura were best friends, and he saw Sakura as a second daughter) "and considering that woman's work history..." He left it at that, no need for any information of Mebuki's ANBU history to leak to the kids.(Ino was becoming quite the information broker.)

"Not only that, but her family is one of the surviving Clans from Uzushio, her Father's one of our Jounin Diplomats," Shikaku explained, sipping from his tea lazily.

Hiashi hummed thoughtfully, his gaze resting on Naruto interacting with his nephew, trying and succeeding in goading a response from the usually standoffish boy. He hadn't wanted to stay, dropping off his daughter and nephew with the intent to have a Clan member bring them back, but Ageha was...convincing, and though he'd never been the best of friends with Fugaku they were once teammates and so he'd stayed as moral support for him.

(Because as aloof and apathetic Hiashi was, he was much more well-adjusted with dealing with people than Fugaku.)

That and he wanted to see his dead friends son. Their late Teammate and Hokage's son.

Fugaku and Mikoto both followed Hiashi's pained gaze, and they're expressions softened as they listened to the children play, and then they heard it.

"I'm gonna be Hokage teme, you just watch, dattebayo!" And Mikoto turned away, it'd been nearly a decade and that familiar ache was still so fresh. Reaching beneath the table, Fugaku brushed his hand over hers. And her expression must have shown clearly on her face because everyone else had similar expressions of their own.

It had been nearly a decade, and those wounds were still so fresh.

...

"Hope I'm not late! Err..."Tsume announced tossing Kiba into the room with the other kids, Akamaru yipping with joy. Kuromaru and Hana scrambling to soften their fall, "Did I miss something?" She asked looking at Shibi, the Aburame gave her a look affirming her suspicions and turned his gaze towards the children, saw the tuft of bright blonde hair and she quickly put two and two together.

"...I brought sake," she said, and Ageha quickly moved to gather cups for them. After the kids had the cake of course.

"Did you enjoy yourself?"

"It was great, you should have stayed Hebi-Jiji they brought out sake after Kiba's Mom came,dattebayo!"

Naruto was being walked back by Orochimaru, towards the Hatake Compound. A modest thing, at least depending on how far inside you were. The Compound was made to look small, unassuming, and as normal as possible because once you entered you realized the compound went in one straight line, spreading out vertically not horizontally like most compounds did. The trees helped hide the sheer size and space of the compound, helpful in the fact that it made protecting its members.

Naruto had only been able to see a small part of it, when he(nailed it!) had been moving his things to the Compound, and then he'd(haha!) been shoved into the bathroom and instructed to wash thoroughly, wrapped in a pure white yukata with the Hatake Clan Symbol of the back, the name Kakashi embroidered into one of the sleeves.

And according to Sakura, Kaka-Nii's Father was still alive!...Shit. Kaka-Nii's father was alive. Which meant they probably met each other on one occasion or the other.

Quick, Kurama make some name up!/What?!Why!/Kaka-Nii's dad will be suspicious!/This one's on you, Gaki./Don't abandon me you furball!

"You look like you swallowed a lemon." Naruto heard the comment come from in front of him. In the standard Jounin Flak jacket and Konoha Hitaite, stood the White Fang of Konoha. The man had the silvery white hair like Kakashi and the same eyes and...holy shit.

"Now I know what he looks like..." Naruto whispered and the surprised laugh from Sakumo caught him off guard. Orochimaru chuckled along, ruffling Naruto's hair, he'd said that out loud hadn't he?

/Damn, your Sensei has good genes./I know.

Bending down with a smile, Sakumo patted Naruto on the head," Well that wasn't what I expected from our first meeting Naruto-kun." Naruto blushed, his embarrassment giving way to more laughter, and then Naruto remembered what Sakura had said.

"Aren't you retired?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah well, in Konoha," Sakumo began, opening the door to the compound," You'll find that a retired Shinobi is really just a polite way of saying that you'rea liability." Bidding Orochimaru farewell, Sakumo held his hand out for Naruto to take, and gingerly Naruto did so. Leading him through the house, Naruto observed Sakumo's mannerisms, his gait, and the way he held himself.

It reminded him of his Kakashi.

"You're kinda weird Shiro-Jiji," Naruto said," Kinda like Kaka-Nii, but like you're the original." That drew another bout of laughter from Sakumo, now dubbed Shiro-Jiji. Dropping him off near his room, Sakumo pats his head again.

"You're not too shabby yourself kiddo," Shiro-Jiji gave him a once over and then retired to the master bedroom. Kaka-Nii wasn't back yet, so Naruto decided to change and then go exploring. Brushing his teeth and putting away the last of his clothes Naruto began to open his door.

"Naruto, when I pass by and open your room door, I expect to find you in bed," on second thought, sleep sounded like a great idea, he could explore the Compound with Shiro-Jiji tomorrow.

"Good night everyone!" Naruto shouted diving beneath the covers.

"Good night, kid."

"Sasuke," his Father began, watching him make the Onigiri he'd be taking with him later today. His complete 180 of his personality threw everyone for a loop, especially when he made faces during the Uchiha Clan meeting. They were very careful in their words with him present, but Sasuke didn't get to where he was in his world, as Shadow of the Kage, on pure luck.

That and he'd spent the meeting practicing his calligraphy, the Dobe had said he'd help them learn basic Fuinjutsu, and Sakura had basic Field Medicine covered, while Shikamaru tackled Wargame.

"Fugaku-sama, what is your son doing." Less of a question and more of an unspoken order to get Sasuke to stop,'Like hell.'

"He is practicing for his Fuinjutsu lesson with the Uzumaki," his Father replied continuing his previous speech on how they would be doing one thing or another.

"Yes, Father?" Sasuke responded, still making Onigiri while giving his Father an ear.

"...How are your Fuinjutsu lessons going?"The uncertainty of his Fathers tone and the question itself made Sasuke pause what he was doing. Was his Father trying to...talk to him? His Father had done so on a few other occasions, but it was more talking at him and less speaking to him. Glancing at his Father he caught the uncomfortable expression on his face and bit back a laugh.

His Father never was very good at child-rearing...or speaking civilly to someone. Or anyone that wasn't an Uchiha or Clan head.

"It's going well, Naruto's moved me onto basic barrier seals. Shikamaru is teaching us Wargame, and I'm covering Shurikenjutsu. I've made friends with Sakura-chan too, she's teaching me basic Field Medication," Sasuke told him, no hesitancy in his words or his tone searching for approval. He was just informing him, too used to his once position as Shadow to the Hokage, and Head of the Uchiha Clan.

"...You are learning Field Medication?" There was slight disapproval in his Fathers tone, and he could understand that becoming an Iryo-nin was...unbecoming of a male Shinobi of the esteemed Uchiha Clan. But Sasuke didn't care, besides Orochimaru was a good guy(hopefully), he didn't have to worry about anything in the Forest now.(If the time ever came that is.)

"Sakura-chan said she was tired of having to stitch us back together because we didn't know how," Sasuke replied, boxing the last of the Onigiri," and Nara-sama defended her reasoning and Orochimaru-sama wouldn't help us avoid her so...I am training in partial Field Medication."

His Father stared at him in utter disbelief, at least he thought it was disbelief, his Father never was the most expressive man. So Sasuke waited for several silent moments before breaking the silence.

"Father, you're not broken are you?" He hoped he wasn't. That'd be bad. And Sakura would probably punch him if he brought this piece of information forward.

His Father stared, mouth open no sound coming out," Sasuke...Itachi will be accompanying you today alright." And with that, his Father took his bento laid before him and left. Mikoto following after him when he forgot to kiss her goodbye(he assumed.)

But that was none of his business, today was a shuriken lesson day, and Itachi would be accompanying him. This would be good for them since that meant he'd have another War Veterans expertise. Grabbing both their bento's Sasuke scurried to the door(Sakura was right, short legs sucked), slipping on his shoes, he waited for Itachi to come out.

With an extra person.

"Ooh, that smells great~! Sasuke-"

"I didn't think we'd be bringing another body?" He turned to his brother, who looked amused at Shisui's blanched face.

"No, I wasn't, but he ended up tagging along anyway," Itachi gestured towards the path that led to the District Gate. Keeping pace with short legs was hard.

...

Shisui trailed behind them, wary of Sasuke.'Another Body...?'

"Well," Shikamaru began, sharpening his kunai, courtesy of his father," Looks like the gangs almost here." Naruto had informed him a while ago, his Chakra Practice with Sakura had been going well in terms of small term control, Kurama's assistance in this had been a great help. Allowing Naruto to use his own latent Chakra to heal and become a decent sensor-nin. Although whether that was a long-term possibility or not had yet to be seen.

"Shikamaru!" Naruto whisper-shouted, landing down from the tree, signing "Unknown" along with the symbol for "Sasuke". Shikamaru automatically adjusted his position to make it seem like he didn't know what he was doing, or rather didn't care.

Sakura was intently following an instructional scroll on the topic relaying the information back to Naruto and himself, and in her typical Eidetic-self, she explained it word for word, diagram to diagram. And then Sasuke arrived along with his baggage.

Itachi and Shisui.

'Well, our job just got ten times easier.'

Tossing a glance at Sakura and Naruto, they got up to greet them.

"Teme! You're back!" Naruto exclaimed, genuinely happy to see any and all his friends. Throwing himself at Sasuke for a hug only to be stopped by Sakura.

"He's holding food Naruto!" Sakura pulled Naruto up, examining him for any small cuts from where he slammed into the floor. Itachi took immediate notice of this. Shikamaru filed that away for later. Observing the mental and emotional state of Uchiha Itachi was imperative and beyond that the survival of Uchiha Shisui. Perhaps his survival would stop the Uchiha Massacre.

"You guys are adorable," Shisui said, grinning. Itachi sighed beside him, it echoed how the Naruto and Sasuke of his time-line interacted. It hurt watching them.

"Yeah sure," Sakura said," Maybe it'll make it easier when we become full-fledged shinobi." She caught the way Shisui's eyes hardened for a split second before returning to their jolly nature.

"Hey now, becoming a Shinobi is no joke, little miss." Sakura's lower eyelid twitched, she restrained herself from punching him, Naruto and he inching away from her. Poor bastard, he'd be taking a few shots from Sakura (or a shot, depending on how bad it got), and then he'd be scared of her...which might not be a bad idea if Danzo wasn't still around.

"We know that," Naruto spoke up, trying to save Shisui," But if we can't at least accept that we might need to harm people...we can't-do our jobs." Shisui thought about that before patting Sakura's head(oh you sorry idiot),"Yeah but you guy's are still little munchkins you shouldn't have to-*gag*!" And there Shisui went flying, Sakura's fist raised in the air.

As if it wasn't obvious she punched him. Itachi's head was raised, following the trail of Shisui's body. And that's when everything fell silent...Shisui had landed...in his family's forest. And they were tending to the deer in that area.

"Uh-oh..." Sakura whispered, quickly packing up everything she'd brought with her. Naruto helping her stuff random things into different scrolls, they'd organize it when they were safe.

"Nii-san, you're Anbu right?" Itachi's eye widened," Sasuke how do you-"

"Nevermind, we need you to use those skills to help Naruto hide us!" Itachi figured he'd get his answers if he helped, grabbing them and Shunshin'daway. Shisui could figure out his way back on his own.

...

"I think we're clear," Naruto whispered, climbing out of the cupboard tentatively, followed by Sakura then Shikamaru, Sasuke, and a very pained Itachi. The cupboard didn't sit well with him since his first infiltration mission with ANBU. (Let's say after that Itachi swore celibacy.)

"Sakura, I fully support your actions, but what-"

"-The fuck you kids!," Kakashi came barreling through the window in typical Jounin gear, Sharingan out, and livid.

"Uh..." Naruto struggled to find words. Sasuke and Sakura had blanched because this was the first they'd seen of Kakashi, and it was hurting...a lot. Meanwhile, Shikamaru was struggling to keep his eyes open, because sleeping through this was sounding great now. Sleep and ignore the problem, maybe he'd be gone when he opened them.

"Oi, eyes open Nara I'm talking to you," Well there went that how to get out of this.

"In their defense Sempai," bless this man, we're so saving him, and he swore the other three were agreeing with him," Shisui brought that attack on himself."

"Regardless," Kakashi quickly looked around, searching with his Sharingan(probably for ROOT)," We need to keep it on the down low, else I can't exactly promise any of you will be safe...for reasons."

"You mean ROOT?" Naruto said, before realizing what he said and clamping his mouth shut.

"Now might be a good time as any to come clean, Sasuke," Itachi said.

/You know what Weasel-Face, fuck you./

"What the Orange-Furball said!" Naruto exclaimed, waving an angry fist.

"Naruto..." Sakura sighed, kneeling face in her hands.

"Dobe," Sasuke turned to the blond.

"Shut-up teme I know," Naruto was holding back the tears. Fuck.

"...Did you say Orange Furball?"

/Double fuck./