Chapter 36

It felt really odd to be alive again. Not that he had actually died in the first place, but still. After spending seven years holed up underground it was strange to be in the sunshine once more. He had actually forgotten what it had looked like. It was so bright!

Using his hand to shade his chocolate eyes he looked out over the barren wasteland that was once Sunagakure no Sato. It had been almost four years since the Great War they had waged with the fallen village of Konoha. Most of the survivors had relocated to other villages while the few remaining shinobi went into hiding, determined to raise their strength in order to avenge their once proud village.

It had taken him several months to be able to track the Corner Kid's to this point but now he had reached a very dead end. Irritated he looked up towards the wide blue sky to call for his companion.

"Murasami! Do you see anything of use?"

The breathy sound of the snowy owl's voice floated down to where he stood. "No, but I'm sure that we are on the right track. The only thing to do now is continue on."

"But you do sense Kyuubi's chakra print here?"

Murasami nodded. "Yes. It is faint, and many years old, but it is here. It heads off in this direction. Follow."

Nodding he pulled his thick brown cloak closer to his body to shield himself from the scorching sun before he followed after his guardian-familiar.

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Kaemon cursed as he stumbled hard to the ground. Even after nearly two weeks his wounds had yet to completely heal. This was more then likely due to the fact that he had not yet taken the necessary time to pause and bandage them. He had planned to on many occasions but as soon as the idea would cross his mind Sanjimaru would catch the trail of Kisho's guardian-familiar, Jikatsu, and he would force himself onward, no matter how much Sanjimaru insisted that he should rest.

"Please Kaemon, you will be no use to anyone if you are dead." Sanjimaru said. "It will not take long to get the necessary treatment that you are in need of."

Kaemon shook his head and forced himself back to his feet. "I promised that I would find him." He grimaced. "I-I can't go back on that. I'll-I'll find him even-even if I die…in the process."

"Finding him will be meaningless if you are not well enough to extract revenge."

Kaemon was about to respond when he was cut of by Sanjimaru's surprised growl.

"What is it?" Kaemon asked his entire being suddenly on guard.

"There is something coming."

"What?"

Sanjimaru sniffed and noted the familiar sent, but despite this did not drop his own guard.

"It is one of us." He said. "Murasami."

Kaemon blinked in surprise. "Murasami? The guardian-familiar destined for the next fusion born to the Fukurou clan?"

"That is so."

"But that's impossible. The fusions are only born every four generations, and Hatori's guardian-familiar is Natsuobi, right?"

Sanjimaru nodded stiffly but kept his eyes focused on the horizon where he felt the swift approach of Murasami.

"It seems as though the high summons approved the birth of another fusion. The question is: who is that fusion, and why did no one in the village know of them?"

Kaemon spotted the dark shape of a person on the edge of the desert horizon heading quickly in their direction.

"Well," he said. "It looks like we're about to find out."

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Ichigo yawned widely before she opened her eyes to greet the morning light. The sun stung her eyes but she ignored it as she climbed out from beneath the covers to shuffle across her room to the small vanity in the back corner. She paused for a moment after turning on the water to watch the light rust that had built up in the pipes over night run down the drain before she used the now clear water to clean her face. Once she felt refreshed she grabbed an outfit from her closet and pulled it on, smiling slightly at how the dark green and black attire complimented her fire red hair.

It wasn't until she put her hand on the door to leave her room that she realized what it was that she had just done. Her eyes went wide in shock before she did the only thing that came to mind.

She screamed.

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Kyo jerked from his meditation in shock. The high pitched sound of his sister's scream caused him to quickly jump to his feet and race towards the source. Blood pounded in his ears as he reached out with his heartstrings to try and learn what it was that was threatening his little sister.

His terror turned quickly to confusion when he realized that there wasn't anything wrong with her at all. Still, it was highly unlike his sister to scream with out reason.

With that thought lodged in his mind Kyo picked up his speed and continued to race through the forest in the direction of the house where he and his students were staying.

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Being in the rooms right next to Ichigo, Tenten and Temari were the first to reach her. Their hair was wild from sleep and Tenten was only half dressed in the long shirt she uses as a night dress but neither one noticed as they skidded to a halt in front of the frozen girl.

"Ichigo!" Tenten said. "What is it? Did you hear something? Is there a strange aura?"

"Say something dadgum it!" Temari demanded as she grasped Ichigo's shoulders in preparation to shake her from her shock.

Both girls were swiftly pulled away and replaced by Gaara as he grasped the girl's hands gently. "Ichigo, what is it?"

Ichigo's mouth moved wordlessly for several minutes before she finally managed to force out a single sentence.

"I can see…!"

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Yume nestled the sleeping Kane gently in the crook of his arm as he absently fingered the hatai-ate tide gently around the child's waist. After escaping from Konoha he had used the makeshift sling as clothes to keep the child warm. Winter was swiftly approaching and although it never snowed in the Fire Country it did manage to get quite cold at times.

As if to confirm the Yondaime's thoughts Kane gave a light sneeze before he settled back into his slumber. Yume smiled at the boy before moving closer to the fire to warm them both. In order to regain the strength he had lost during the escape Yume had been forced to take refuge in a small cave only a few dozen miles away from the fallen village.

It was actually a rather good thing that his stamina had run out when it did. If not then he would have continued on in the direction of Suna in order to search out his son and his friends. It was only after he had stopped to rest that he realized that the ring's aura was actually guiding him in the completely opposite direction.

Yume was pulled from his thoughts by a soft grunt coming from the infant in his arms. Looking down he noticed that Kane had awakened and was staring up at him through deep black eyes.

His little mouth turned down into a frown when Yume failed to respond to his request for food. He was used to only having to express his wants and needs only once before his mother swiftly complied but it seemed as though this new person (it had to be a new person because it wasn't his daddy. His hair was too light.) didn't seem to be in on the loop of things.

Yume smiled down at the boy as he grunted again. He was already so much like his father it was nearly laughable. His eyes, hair, skin, and even mannerisms reflected the Uchiha heir almost perfectly. The only thing that showed he also belonged to his mother was the shape of his cheek bones and the slope of his nose. It was easy to see that he would be very handsome in the years to come.

Kane blinked up at the man in irritation as he just continued to smile. What was he, stupid? Didn't he understand that he was starving? Once again trying to get his point across Kane grunted again; except to his annoyance it was lightly laced with a bit of a whimper. He frowned again. If this man made him cry…

"What is it little one?" Yume asked. "Are you hungry?"

Kane let out a rushed breath in relief. At least the man wasn't completely stupid.

"Sorry kiddo, but you'll have to wait a little bit longer. I don't have anything to give you."

Scratch that. He was a moron, and the first second he was able to stand on his own he was going to kill him. Unfortunately by the time Kane was finally old enough to do something about it, he would have completely forgotten everything the just transpired.

That thought just served to make Kane all the more irritated.

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"So what do you think Hikoto-chan?" Sakura said. "Would a woman be healed enough by now to go out?"

Hinata shrugged a bit as she started filling a large basket with containers of food. "I am not entirely certain Sakira-chan. You are the one that has had training in that field."

"I know, but Rin-sensei never said anything about the time limit. And I don't remember how long she and Kurenai-sensei would rest before they were up again."

Hinata paused and looked up at Sakura in thought. "Well…I don't recall it being much longer then a few weeks. I don't think that it would be completely unusual for you to be healed after two weeks."

Sakura nodded. "Good, because being cooped up in this house all day is starting to drive me crazy."

Hinata smiled before she continued to fill the basket. "I can finish up here on my own. Why don't you make sure that all of the children are ready? It is rather cold out today."

Sakura nodded again. "Sure, do you have anything specific that you want Shigure and Shinta to wear?"

Hinata giggled a bit before she pointed to the cloth bag next to Sakura's front door. "I may have bought some things to match Iota-kun."

Sakura laughed. "Looks like you and I think a like. I did too."

Once the lunch was packed and the children were dressed Sakura nestled Kaede into a baby sling that crossed over her chest before checking Midori's mittens and then grasping her small hand gently.

"Ready?" She asked looking over to where Hinata was adjusting the knit hat on Shinta's wild straw hair. Hinata nodded back and took Shinta by the hand before lifting the basket into the other.

"Make sure you hold Shinta-chan's hand the whole way Shigure-chan. I don't want to lose you."

Shigure nodded as he bounced excitedly from one foot to the other. He couldn't wait until they got to the bridge. He and the others hadn't been able to go out anywhere since they first got here.

Once the bridge came into view Sakura and Hinata searched out their husbands but it was the children that spotted them first.

"Kousuke-oji-san!" Shigure and Shinta called as they raced towards the dark haired man crouched next to a support beam.

Sasuke grunted in surprise as he found himself being tackled by two blond bullets. His balance wavered but he used his hand to steady himself as he looked behind him to see the twins. He was about to speak when he was hit by another bullet. This time with white-gray hair.

"Otou-san! I missed you!"

Sasuke blinked. "…I saw you this morning."

Midori pouted. "But that was hours and hours and hours ago!"

Sasuke's lips quirked up into a slight smile as he ruffled his 'daughter's' hair. "I see."

"Oi Kousuke-teme! Are you stealing my kids from me?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes in annoyance as Shinta and Shigure dislodged themselves from their 'uncle' and raced for Naruto.

"Otou-san!" the boys said in unison. Naruto laughed and scooped the boys up one at a time to toss them into the air before settling them both into his arms.

"Hey guys! Did you miss me?"

Both boys nodded vigorously and Naruto laughed as he made his way over to Hinata to peck her lightly on the cheek.

"This is a nice surprise Koto-chan."

Hinata blushed and lifted Shinta from Naruto's arms so that she could hand him the basket.

"What is this for?" Sasuke asked as he walked over to Sakura with Midori held in his arms.

Sakura glared and nestled her free hand on her hip while she gently cradled the sling holding Kaede with the other.

"Kousuke-kun, this is the first time I've been able to go out since Kaede-chan was born. You should be happy for me."

Sasuke smirked a little and tapped her lightly on the forehead with his middle and pointer fingers. "Only you would make it a party."

Sakura shrugged. "We have little enough reasons to be happy Kousuke. We should at least make the most of the ones that we have."

Sasuke gently ran his finger from the top of Kaede's forehead to the tip of her nose and nodded. "I suppose you all deserve as much."

Sakura smiled. "We all do."

"So this is yer mysterious wife, eh Kousuke? She's a cute one."

Sakura jumped slightly at Tazuna's sudden interruption. Sasuke nodded in response.

"Yes, and my youngest daughter Kaede."

Tazuna laughed as he looked down at the baby. "Guess you got a problem producing boys eh Kousuke?"

Sasuke's eyes flashed quickly behind his contacts. If it weren't for the fact that his eyes were already colored red then their cover would have been blown right then.

"Are you suggesting that there is something wrong with my daughters Tazuna-san?"

Tazuna dropped back slightly in surprise. "Not in the least, lad. I was only teasin' ya."

"I would appreciate it if next time you would leave my children out of your comments."

Sakura giggled a bit at Tazuna's discomfort before she grabbed Sasuke's hand and led him over to where Hinata and Naruto were setting up the picnic.

"It was lovely meeting you Tazuna-san."

"Uh, yeah. You too, Hiruma-san."

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Kaemon watched the man warily perfectly aware that he was doing the same. After several minutes of tense silence Kaemon finally spoke.

"I was not aware that the Fukurou clan had an exception."

The other man, who looked to be about seventeen, rose his eyebrow in light confusion. "I do not know who the Fukurou clan is. Why would you place me with them?"

"You are an owl fusion. I say 'an' because you are not the only one."

He fell back a bit from shock. "You mean there are more out there like me?"

"In the sense that you mean it, yes, There are several hundred 'like you' out there. However there is only one other Owl and he is known as Hatori. Since he was supposed to be the only owl fusion I am rather confused as to who you are. What is your clan name?"

He shook his head. "I don't have a clan name, but my given name is Yotaro. Yotaro no Konoha."

End Chapter 36

Kaliea: Okay was anyone not surprised by that? Well, well? I hope not otherwise I would have failed completely. That was probably the biggest plot twist in the whole thing. I say that because now that the whole 'Luke I am your father' thing is out of the bag, no one will be overly surprised when they find out that Leia is Luke's twin sister. Okay, I'm babbling. Anyway, I hope that you all enjoyed it. Don't forget to review!

Review Answers:

Hiei-Touya-icedemon: Well I'm glad that you liked it. I know that it took me a while but I had some really important things to do. They're mostly done now so the updates should come faster. I don't want to make any promises of course but I can say that I won't give up on this story, I want to get to the end as much as anyone.

liliachearts: Yes she can, and yes they were. Unfortunately a lot of things have been happening to them over the last few years and the haven't had a lot of time to work on it. They have made some progress but not enough to make a big effect. As for Sakura using her bloodline limit in battle XxShrugsxX She can but as of yet she has had no reason too.

HinaNaruFAN987: I'm glad ;)

Danny-171984: Actually by the time I got around to writing the last chapter I had forgotten that they had just gotten back from the wave country. It wasn't until I went back to re-read what I wrote that I realized that the whole chapter had to be redone. I didn't want to have to think up a knew plot line so I just tweeked it a bit and ran with what I already had.

So-kun: Kinda sucks don't it?

sallyluv16: No big. I do my best.

grim reaper sakura: I'm glad you think so. And yeah Kane's abilities is one of my favorites. I've been wanting to write him for a long time, he's a really cool character.

Shinobi Darkbeak: I'll do my best.

blackXpinksakura: Yeah, but it really freaked his parents out. Couldn't you just picture Itachi hyperventilating?

Dragon Man 180: Maayybe. But then again maybe not. You'll just have to wait and see.

Kaliea: I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. Keep your eyes out for the next one! Till then, ja ne!