Chapter 70 - Command and Control

At the Kitsune Compound, Harry was working on a project with some of his Jewels. Ella had asked if he wanted to look over a design she had put together and, curious, he agreed.

"...And over here, we will have a nursery for the gardens," Ella explained, pointing out a plot of land that was marked as being back of the Clan's property.

"You have put a lot of work into this," Harry said with admiration in his voice as he looked over her plans.

As he was doing that, someone else was watching him. Currently, that someone else was reclining outside in the late summer sun while her keen eyes took in his every move. Her one visible tail swayed lightly in the breeze as she soaked up the heat and behind her eyes, a decision was crystallising in the Tailed Beast's mind.

Vicky, or Kyuubi no Kitsune as she was properly known in her true foxy form, had been toying with the idea for some time now about staying on when the Clan left. Naruto had no real need of her services any longer, not when he could defeat just about any of the Elemental Nations alone, and probably all of them with the help of his wives. Plus, with them all now sharing the Kitsune bloodline, and their foxy decorations, she no longer had to act as intermediary for their mental link. Examining herself, she found that meant she could stay here without breaking the long-ago agreement to destroy Naruto's enemies. In truth, he no longer really had any significant enemies. That peace was what brought them here to Earth. Not only was it getting boring for them back home but it was finally safe enough that they could leave without endangering their families.

However, the Kitsune Clan intended to return to those families and friends they missed but Vicky had no such ties stronger than her strange one to the kit, Harry. Despite the numerous children born to the Clan in the intervening decades since the Time Loops, Harry was the first one to look at her and see her, not a walking engine of destruction nor the monster that had killed so many of these humans back before she started talking to them. She had lived here for a decade without a single call for her chakra, without anyone telling her to kill people, and she found she enjoyed it too much to give up.

Much like her young friend and his mates. Oh, she knew it wasn't formal yet, but she could smell it just as well as anyone else in the Clan. They were his, and he was theirs. Just as Vicky had wished to be his, in odd moments that were coming around more frequently as Harry grew up. Shaking her head free of those thoughts, Vicky contented herself with the prospect of more time with her friend who kept things so delightfully fun and new.

Hundreds of miles away, an old man also thinking of time with Harry. Albus Dumbledore was planning for his coming lessons with the young boy, as he had lots of plans and less time than he liked to think about for all of them.

He was still coming to grips with the overturning of his belief that the boy would have to die to fulfil Sybil's prophecy. Then again, a lot of his beliefs were being overturned thanks to the boy. Never would he have thought that he would be kicked out of Hogwarts. At least now he had time to think about things more. He had planned a comprehensive demonstration for this next lesson. "It should show him why he needs me."

Breaking free of his thoughts, Albus looked at his watch and turned on the spot, silently Disapparating from his living room to the inbound Apparation point near Harry's home. He had taken to heart the Muggle's instructions about appropriate clothes and he had to admit, it was freeing to wear short sleeves and these 'shorts' in the summer sun.

Shortly, Hinata showed up and led the ancient wizard inside to the large room set aside for the lessons. Unbeknownst to Dumbledore, the Clan would all be watching his performance.

Conjuring up his preferred plush armchair, he looked up and spotted Harry who had arrived silently. "Hello, young Mr Potter."

"Good morning, Mr Dumbledore," Harry replied pleasantly to his guest. "Shall we get started?"

"As you like, Mr Potter." Albus drew the Elder Wand with a flourish and began with a simple Banishing Hex on the armchair he had made, sending it flying before his follow-up spells hit it, arresting its momentum then blowing it to bits and Transfiguring the pieces into squirrels that swarmed a target dummy he had conjured while waiting for his first spell to hit.

The Clan, clinging to the ceiling behind Illusions, were mildly impressed. For the first time they got to see in person a wizard using magic at speeds that approached ninja combat. The spells themselves were still far too slow to hit a jonin or most chunins but that was hardly Dumbledore's fault. It also explained why these duels and fights were so short range. It was to give attackers a better chance at hitting their targets. They had insisted on a restrictive Oath before these visits to ensure that Dumbledore used no magic to alter Harry's mind, or permanently alter his body, and to restore any injuries inflicted to the best of his abilities, before they allowed him to draw his wand on Kitsune territory.

Dumbledore might have been tempted to fudge the Oath until he felt the strength of the magical protections guarding the residents, particularly the outermost one which would have to be cut before the other wards could be neutralised. It was a non-standard ward designed to be directly fought by any attackers. To pass it, you needed to have more magical strength between the attackers than the defensive ward possessed. Usually used only as a form of warning, as the power requirements were normally prohibitive due to the inefficiency of charging it, here it would cause Dumbledore himself to stop in his tracks until he could bypass it. He wondered how many wizards Harry had hired to power it.

After Dumbledore's spell chains built to a crescendo, the very air showed the effects, heating up, before it was all dispelled to the sound of a minor thunderclap and he restored the room from the chaos of a battleground to appearance it had before. He took a minute to sip a glass of water then it was time to put Harry to the test of duplicating as many of the spells as he could. Harry got most of them but not all, deliberately skipping the spells too slow to cast to be useful.

"I am amazed, Harry," Dumbledore told him completely honestly.

"Thank you, Mister Dumbledore. However, I can't use some of these in combat. Aren't a number of them illegal except in clear self-defence?"

Dumbledore nodded solemnly. "Indeed they are, and I must insist you refrain from casting them just as I must caution you against the Dark Arts."

Harry resisted the urges to point out the problems in that and contented himself with a nod. Despite his resolution to put training first, the old man made him angry without even trying. "I understand."

"Very good, Harry. Are you ready to put your study to the test?" Dumbledore raised his wand to the standard duelling position.

"Yes, I am." Harry replied automatically as he moved to his own preferred stance, side on and knees slightly bent.

"Then begin!"

Harry immediately conjured some smoke and spread it between them, moving around as soon as he was obscured from sight. However, it appeared Dumbledore was familiar with the tactic, dispelling it and sending another spell at Harry in seemingly the same movement.

Harry didn't stay to see what the spell did, dodging to his left. He returned fire with a carefully cast Cutting Curse, aimed just past Dumbledore's shoulder. As expected, Dumbledore had a counter-spell ready before the curse was even halfway there. Harry tried again with a Bludgeoning Hex at the opposite hip and again, it was countered.

While countering an incoming curse was the best way to ensure it did nothing, it also took time, concentration, a whole lot of skill and slightly more magic than the original spell. Harry was tempted to turn this into a test of magical reserves but set that aside reluctantly. Not only was Dumbledore in possession of his full reserves, while Harry's were still growing, Harry suspected that Dumbledore had performed a number of the power boosting rituals that he and the Jewels were still planning to perform. Combined with his greater training and experience, that made drawing out this duel a very bad idea.

Matching action to thought, Harry created more smoke and blurred as he ran around behind his opponent, blindsiding Dumbledore who was already banishing the smoke and clearing the air. Dumbledore had no time to react before Harry switched to his first spell, a Protego shield charm, then reached under it and slapping Dumbledore's wand out of his hand. Dumbledore was quick as lightning to grab his wand before it moved two feet and he used the arc of movement to line up on Harry to cast another spell, blasting him with icy water and back a step before Harry likewise banished the water and recovered his footing.

Harry switched entirely to silent casting at this point, glad that for the moment Dumbledore had not, and tried using invisible spells to do the job by taking Dumbledore by surprise. In response, his opponent conjured a mist that defied Harry's attempts to remove it, and the mist made his attacks visible again. Harry cursed under his breath but acknowledged it was a good response.

While Harry was busy trying to dispel the mist, Dumbledore was preparing another surprise, making vines grow out of the floor and wrap up Harry, vines that would tighten their hold until Harry was unable to move but were enchanted not to hurt the boy. As they did their work, Dumbledore cast "Expelliarmus!" and disarmed his young opponent.

Taking a moment to get his breath back, Dumbledore quickly released Harry and handed back his holly and phoenix feather wand.

"That was a good start, Harry," he admitted, "but with training you will last longer."

From there, Dumbledore started the theory part of their lesson now that he expected Harry's energy levels to have dropped enough to improve concentration. It had worked with Albus after all. Harry paid the same attention to his tutor as he did to any of his teachers, memorising not just the words but the intonations and gestures that often accompanied them. Albus also made him try a number of new high level spells which burned through his reserves.

Albus looked at his watch two hours later, surprised so much time had passed and that he had enjoyed it as much as he had. The boy had answered the quiz Dumbledore gave him, doing very well, and asked intelligent questions that brought out more of the knowledge and wisdom he had gained in his long life.

"Thank you, Harry. Unfortunately that is all I have time for today. I shall see you next week for your next lesson. Until then, I want you to practice everything you have learned today. 'Practice is essential to master your magic lest it master you.'"

"Yes, Mr Dumbledore, I understand," Harry replied and bowed as he was taught, then escorted Dumbledore out to the exit before heading inside to his girls and collapsing.

Hannah and Susan exchanged a glance then picked him up and sat down, laying him across their laps and letting him rest. It was their turn to pamper Harry.

That afternoon, the Clan showed the duel to the allies who happened to be present, a group that included Minerva McGonagall, Septima Vector and Aurora Sinistra as planned. Their presence allowed Harry to cast spells legally despite his age.

Septima was duly impressed by Dumbledore's performance but the other two were less so. In Aurora's case, it was because she expected Dumbledore to beat a teenager in a duel so his win was entirely unsurprising. For Minerva, she had seen it before. Both of them were more impressed that Harry had come so close to beating his experienced opponent and noticed that his mobility was the key factor for his impressive showing.

Tsunade's question shocked all of them, however.

"What did Dumbledore do wrong?"

"Um, he underestimated Harry?" Septima ventured.

"Very good, that was one of his key mistakes."

"He blocked Harry's spells even when he didn't have to," Minerva added. "I noted two occasions when Harry's attacks clearly would not have hit but Albus countered them anyway."

"Also a good point," Tsunade said.

"He didn't move much while Harry was always moving. Harry always had the advantage of knowing where Dumbledore was and that made his spells more accurate."

"Exactly! The best way to not get hurt is to not get hit and throwing off your enemy's aim does just that a lot of the time. Shielding and countering look great but should be saved for when they are the correct response such as protecting an injured teammate."

The ladies nodded at that, seeing the sense in something so simple.

"Now, what did Harry do wrong?"

"He allowed himself to get distracted when Albus surprised him with that mist," Minerva suggested.

"He stopped moving and gave Albus an easier target,," Aurora stated.

"He tried the smoke trick twice," Septima noted.

"Yes, that's pretty much it, though one big one you didn't mention is that he allowed Dumbledore to control things. That's always a recipe for defeat." Tsunade made that pronouncement with the voice of experience.

As it turned out, the Clan didn't have to wait a full week to hear from Dumbledore. Between them, Snape and he had eliminated a number of progressively more insane methods of removing the Horcrux from the Gaunt ring, up to and including Snape pretending to try it on while Dumbledore readied a hasty Fiendfyre to kill the soul piece as it moved to possess a new body. Sadly, depending on your viewpoint, that plan was a bust like all the rest. Snape had dropped the ring and screamed like a little girl as he ran away from the demonic fire spell his partner had unleashed. Dumbledore had cancelled the spell in order to save Snape from his own attack, and the flames had nearly destroyed Snape's Spinner's End home without coming close to the piece of the Dark Lord which had refused to leave the Ring at the bait.

Since then, Snape had absolutely forbidden the use of Fiendfyre so long as he was anywhere nearby, defined as "on the same planet", and their last method had failed.

Resigned, Snape finally consented to asking for help from a Potter, though only because he considered Harry to be truly Lily's Boy, and a fine Potions student and honorary Slytherin. It still rankled him that he had failed to find another way than asking a student for help.

And so Albus Dumbledore got on bended knee to ask for help. Naturally, this was only because he insisted on using the Floo to make the call rather than using one of those Muggle phones that had become popular. "Ah, Hello, Mrs Todd. I was hoping I could come through to speak on a matter of some importance."

"Good afternoon, Mr Dumbledore. What is it regarding?"

"I would rather discuss that in person, if I may," came the reply.

"I'm afraid we are busy right now. Would tomorrow at eleven suit you?" Hinata's voice was perfectly calm as she reflected that the old dog had learned a new trick in being at least a little more polite to the Clan.

"It would. I shall see you then," Dumbledore offered then finished the call, groaning as his knees protested his attempt to stand.

That evening, Dumbledore's call sparked discussions.

"I wonder if he's finally done something useful," Sally-Anne asked of the room.

"It would be a nice change," Sophie replied dryly.

"Your family never did buy into the image of Dumbledore, did they?" Amelia said.

"Not really. It's one of the reasons we have often been Sorted into Slytherin but we tend to have a more cynical view of the world than, say, the 'Light' faction that coalesced around Dumbledore after his defeat of Grindelwald."

Amelia nodded. "That makes sense."

Daphne sighed and got up, leaving the room rather than bringing the mood down. Susan and Sandra followed her out to cheer her up, finding her in her room and sitting either side of her.

"What's wrong?"

"It seems that lately every time I think our world is a good place, something happens to pierce the illusion," Daphne replied. "The talk about Dumbledore and Grindelwald reminded me of my grandparents' stories. His refusal to intervene until the Germans were already forced back and all but defeated had cost my family so much, both in lives and in fortune, but that wasn't good enough to get him involved. No, he only moved when he had no other choice."

Isaribi watched as the two girls comforted Daphne, letting her recover before speaking up. "That's one of the remaining problems with the Wizarding World as a whole."

"Sorry, what do you mean?" Daphne asked while Sandra rubbed her back.

"Well, there's actually more to it than this, but essentially it's the way that if someone is powerful magically, they are treated as special and worth listening to, even on matters where they have no understanding, and they are expected to clean up society's mess. It's akin to a cult of personality. For example, the Weasleys are solidly 'Light' and as such they defer to Dumbledore's opinions in just about everything, while the Malfoys are solidly 'Dark' and flock to whatever Dark Lords are around. The merits of Dumbledore's and Riddle's positions are practically irrelevant to many witches and wizards because they are almost never considered, only blindly defended with plenty of insults slung around."

Sandra nodded consideringly. "That is very partisan."

"So when Dumbledore established his magical power by defeating Grindelwald, many of the neutrals of the time started deferring to him as well as the 'Light'."

"And their children followed in their footsteps," Susan finished.

"Spreading from Hogwarts to all of the Houses except mine," Daphne added. "And that was only because it had already become the bastion of the 'Dark' while Gryffindor was the same for the 'Light'. Whereas when V- Riddle rose to power, terrorising innocents and Dumbledore didn't stop him, the influence of the 'Dark' grew quickly. Because he had the power, many started saying Riddle was right even if they didn't believe it before."

"If only to protect their families," Sandra acknowledged. "The way he went after whole families was designed to scare off opposition. You can't fault husbands and fathers for having to weigh up the risk to their families if they stood up against Riddle." She didn't want the other Jewels to think too badly of people forced to make that choice, even if regular British people had famously stood up in droves against the darkness.

"That history of bending the knee to the strong, to tradition, rather than looking to see who's right and trying to learn from the past, is one reason we see for the Wizarding World to be in such a state it is now," Isaribi said. "Without that courage to look at things as they really are, you get stuck in dreams of the past as it never was, like the 'Lords' Malfoy, and the whole Pureblood Supremacy nonsense."

Daphne nodded, "Let me guess, it also contributed to the Boy-Who-Lived story."

"And to the establishment of both the Potter Alliance and the Lily Potter Foundation, which used that fame," Isaribi confirmed, tactfully leaving out the Jewels' own relationship. "However, it also meant that both groups met substantially less resistance when they used that fame to challenge and overturn traditions."

"So the problem ended up helping the solution?" Susan asked, smiling.

"Exactly. It's so satisfying on the rare occasions you can do that." The girls agreed with Isaribi, relaxing. "And there are problems in regular Britain that aren't there, or far less, on the magical side."

Daphne gave Isaribi a look of gratitude and led the way back into the other room with a smile.

Albus Dumbledore made sure to arrive early for his appointment, and forewent most of his magical items in order to make sure he got to the meeting on time. His preparations paid off as he had time to enjoy morning tea Clan-style before they got down to business with all due secrecy precautions in place.

"Thank you for seeing me on short notice."

"You indicated that you felt the matter was important, if not urgent, and we do share common ground," Naruto replied with a false smile.

"It is indeed important. I understand that the basilisk in Slytherin's Chamber had a sizable store of venom. If that is true, then I would like some of it."

"Then I am afraid you have wasted your time."

"I beg your pardon?"

"We are not willing to give away such a toxic and corrosive substance. It is simply too dangerous to be left in unknown hands."

"Not even to help in our common goal?"

"Not even then. However-"

"Yes, Mr Todd?" Dumbledore asked, keenly aware he was negotiating from a position of weakness.

"However, there is nothing to say that we are unwilling to do the work ourselves. You could bring us the object that you need cleansed of the dark taint and we would be able to do the job in complete safety."

"I could not in good conscience let it out of my reach like that. The artefact has already caused much harm."

Naruto doubted that it would pose a real threat to the Clan and suspected the true reason was that the ancient wizard didn't want to reveal any of his secrets or lose something valuable.

"Then I have a suggestion, Mr Dumbledore." At the other man's signal, he explained. "Neither of us wants to let what we have out of our control where it may harm others. We both desire to see an end to the Horcruxes as part of our larger goal of removing Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Why don't we each bring our parts to a neutral location where you will set the artefact while I handle the venom? That way, we will each be able to safeguard things so that no one is hurt, and we will leave with what we brought. No one need compromise and all of us will benefit."

Albus smiled. "A most excellent suggestion, Mr Todd. When would you be able to carry through on your end?"

"I can make time this week for it. Do you have any preferred time and location?"

"Ah, yes. There is a field near Ottery St Catchpole that should prove to be ideal. As for the time, would the afternoon of young Harry's next lesson suit you? Say four o'clock."

"That time would be fine. However there are a number of fields 'near' Ottery St Catchpole. One moment while I send for a map."

A quick signal later and Hinata walked in with an Ordnance Survey map of the area and spread it on a table. The three of them looked it over and Albus pointed a finger after he worked out where it was on the map. "There. As you can see, it is out of sight from any roads and there are no houses that look upon it either, but to my knowledge no wizard has claimed it for his own nor visited it apart from I."

"Then we shall see you there, Mr Dumbledore. I am glad we were able to come to an arrangement."

"As am I, Mr Todd. You are most helpful."

Dumbledore was shown the door and left with his heart lighter than when he had arrived. True, he would have preferred to get the basilisk venom right then as it would have been simpler for him but he could not find it in himself to object to someone taking such pains to hide away from the world such a powerful and Dark substance.

The Clan, and their allies, were cautiously pleased. The old wizard had seemed useless or outright harmful for so long that it was a bit of a surprise that he had done anything for the war against Voldemort.

In the interim, Minerva dropped by to discuss the Hogwarts curriculum.

When she arrived, she asked Harry if Minister Bones was visiting.

"She is, Minerva. I'll ask if she is free to meet you." His clone quickly returned with one of Amelia's clones, and Harry guided the women to a nicely appointed office, guessing from her demeanour that Minerva was here for something serious. He caught an approving smile from Amelia at that deduction and made sure the two were comfortable.

"So what brings you down here from the school?" Amelia enquired.

"I have been contemplating making further changes based on the results of the recent exams. Would I have your Ministry's support if I altered the curriculum?"

"Obviously that depends on the nature of the changes," Amelia hedged, "but I don't anticipate that being a real problem."

"What kind of changes did you have in mind?" Harry asked as an interested party.

"I had a number of ideas on how to restore the Hogwarts education to its glory. First, obviously, I want to bring back the older, harder O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. examinations."

"That will be difficult. There will be objections from the Seventh Years especially, and their parents, over that," Amelia pointed out reluctantly. "They will say, and with some justification, that it is unfair to them to have this change suddenly pressed upon them."

Seeing Minerva looking frustrated, Harry spoke up. "Could you offer both exams?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, some students will be fine taking the harder exams. If you can administer both types, which I think shouldn't be much harder than switching entirely to the older ones, then you could let students choose which exam set they take."

"It would be too hard to set up if we only find out in June what they are going to do." Minerva shook her head sadly.

"So ask them earlier, and set a deadline for when their responses have to be in by," Amelia suggested, seeing the obvious solution in Minerva's words.

"Yes, it'll be like just another piece of homework, or choosing whether we will stay at the castle over Christmas."

Minerva nodded slowly to herself. "Yes, I see how that could work. We could give ourselves enough time to handle the arrangements while also giving the parents the chance to choose."

"That would also cut the legs out from under the opposition when they object." Amelia's mind was on the political ramifications.

"And it would only have to be put into place for a year, or two at the most, as a transition to the new format. After that, you would get to simplify the school's preparations back to what you wanted in the first place." Harry gave the ladies a smile.

"Second, I think we all know that we need to make additional changes to the curriculum to meet the challenges of the changing world we are in. Particularly the problem of the Muggles."

Harry looked sharply at her at that.

"I mean, Harry, that regular people aren't the generally ignorant, hungry and poor people they were when Hogwarts was founded. Instead, they are developing faster than we ever did and we are falling behind in explaining them to our students. Fitting in in their society is becoming more important than ever as the balance of power between us grows ever in their favour."

Harry relaxed his look and nodded. "That's certainly true. It's also true that we have a large number of people who are fighting to stop any move towards that."

Amelia grimaced at the oblique reminder that she hadn't permitted more direct action against the Death Eaters but nodded. "That's a fair point. Minerva, did you have any thoughts on that?"

"A number of them," she replied, "but very few fit for polite company. Unlike Albus, I will not sit idle and let those people dictate to our society. For too long, I followed his lead and we see where that has taken us. No, I have to stand for what's right."

"Spoken like a true Gryffindor," Amelia said with a somewhat wry smile.

Minerva surprised them with a chuckle and nodded.

A knock at the door interrupted their discussions and Hinata, Anko and Tsunade asked if they could join in.

"Of course. I can obviously use all the help I can get to make Hogwarts a truly great school again."

During the next hour, the impromptu group hashed out a number of details with the Angels acting as 'educational consultants', a title that saw Harry grimace at the 'management speak'. That prank aside, they put truth in the title, improving and developing Minerva's ideas into the draft of a plan for the year ahead.

Over lunch, the Jewels got involved too, pointing out things from regular schools that they liked or disliked, and why, and brainstorming to make the plans as complete as possible. The girls were very helpful with suggestions for the reworked Muggle Studies class but Minerva had to step in more than once to reject ideas. Regardless, she agreed bringing in a physical fitness program, complete with t-shirts and shorts for both boys and girls, was a good idea but too soon.

Other ideas were rejected due to simply being outlandish. Luna's proposed class on Blibbering Humdingers got everyone laughing and Hermione's Philosophy and Ethics class idea was impossible without a competent teacher and backing from the Board and having the Wizarding Examination Authority certify OWL and NEWT level exams.

And she could just picture the outcry over Lavender's idea of requiring "tasty" girls to wear miniskirts year round.

That evening, once Minerva had finally returned to the castle that had been her home for so long, Naruto's Angels lounged in their spa, relaxing and talking about everything they were doing.

"And so, once I worked out how they lay down the circuits on the boards, it became just another chakra control exercise," Haku finished.

"How far have you got with it?" Yakumo asked curiously.

"Not very," Haku admitted with a light blush. "My first attempts all blew up."

Anko grinned. "Now, Haku. That's not very nice, lying to us. Just how many did you blow up?"

"Just a few... hundred," Haku admitted. "The problem was contamination and placement. This is precision on a scale we have never contemplated before coming here. Normally it doesn't matter if you're off by a tenth of a millimetre when you're stabbing someone with a senbon. DNA can be handled chemically, with medical chakra, or with our bloodline techniques and doesn't require direct manipulation. Here though, we're talking direct manipulation on the microscale."

"Hinata said as much," Anko confirmed.

"Now I know just how Naruto felt trying to get the basic Illusion clone to work. How did he put it?"

"Like wrestling to aim a streaming firehose at a pinhead." Ayame's smile was bittersweet in memory of those days.

"That's it," Haku said.

"Still," Yugito said, "it seems to be a field where hard work is rewarded with better results."

"Definitely! We may never be able to duplicate modern microchips purely with our chakra techniques but there are plenty of useful devices that don't require that finicky precision, ones that will change our world when we return. For the rest, well, we copy current techniques or invent our own."

"Speaking of our return, how is Harry handling that knowledge?" Hinata's caring voice interrupted them.

Tenten answered for them. "I took the chance to speak to him as we worked on his weapons. It was certainly a shock, and I can't say I like the way he's still got abandonment issues thanks to the old man's machinations, but he's strong. Also, he trusts us not to run out on him while he needs us if we say we won't."

"Harry's smart enough to understand up here that it's best for all of us if we do go home. He knows it will give him a chance to grow beyond the restrictions we place upon him. But it still scares him, too. His fears that his Jewels will leave him were worsened by the news, something they have been trying to correct rather energetically," Sakura added with a naughty smile. "They're glowing most of the time now thanks to his responses."

"He has come a long way from the abused little boy we met," Hinata chimed in.

Anko smirked, "Oh he's anything but a little boy now!"

Hinata rolled her eyes and groaned, while Kurenai slapped the back of her friend's head. "Behave!"

Ino grinned. "I didn't know you were into that kind of thing, Kurenai. I am proud of how well he has done, though. He soaked up our teaching faster than I expected. Including your and my specialties, if those girls are anything to go by."

Tsunade sighed. It was just easier to let them get it out of their system to begin with but sometimes Hinata and Kurenai couldn't help themselves and had to challenge them.

"Speaking of his girls, what do you think of them?"

"Our boy has excellent taste," Anko replied without missing a beat.

"And so do they," Ino finished for her.

"Of course," Tsunade replied deadpan. "Any girl who fell for our Harry shows excellent judgement."

Ino pouted as Tsunade spoiled her fun then answered seriously. "I like them. They're obviously still just civilians in their mindsets but they are taking to the training rather well. I'd put them up against any of Konoha's chunin one on one without a worry. It helps that they're more interested in staying alive than in seeking glory. They're really low jounin in their evasion and defensive skills since that's what we have been concentrating on. Offensively they are less powerful than that, naturally, but their shadow clones make up for a lot of that."

Yuugao nodded. "Agreed. For the little amount of time they spend training, their progress is most satisfying."

"Is there any reason to push them into training more?"

"Not that I can see," Hana said. "If they're ambushed, they know how to get out of the trap, and they can tell a near ambush from a far ambush almost all the time. That should keep them safe enough, especially the way they are always running clones and the real girls are almost always near Harry."

The Angels nodded at that. Shizune spoke up for the first time, noting that: "Harry is almost at Kage level now. He ought to be fine to protect them."

"And he'll do whatever it takes to do just that," Temari finished with clear approval.

"There's nothing a girl likes more than a guy who can level mountains to get her back," Ino added cheekily.

Shizune just reached for the sake, beating Tsunade to the bottle.

In the end, Harry was glad that the Angels had to plan for the transaction with Dumbledore. They had taken to giving him hugs at random times of the day and night, which wasn't all that bad, and teasing him about when they would get their chance to enjoy the fruits of their hard work training him.

At least, they didn't do it while his Headmistress was around but they got him to blush over their blatant tactics in front of both Professors Septima Vector and Aurora Sinistra.

In an unusual move, they sent along their real bodies for the meeting on the theory that Dumbledore might do something which exposed their clones entirely by accident.

Naturally they had scouted the field near the mixed wizard/normal village of Ottery St Catchpole where they would conduct their business, finding it to be exactly as the old man had said it would be.

When Severus Snape and Albus Dumbledore arrived by Portkey, they saw Naruto and Hinata standing on the other side of the field stop chatting and walk over to them confidently.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen," Naruto said pleasantly enough.

"Good afternoon, Mr and Mrs Todd," Albus replied for both himself and his associate. Snape was in his usual bad mood, inclining his head fractionally.

"Shall we get to business?" Hinata invited.

"Indeed," Albus replied, dramatically conjuring forth a table and chairs for everyone. He took his seat, his usual chintz armchair creaking as he sank gratefully into its depths. The others took that as their cue, taking their own seats.

Naruto signalled Hinata under the table, his chakra-enhanced nose picking up the scent of corruption from Dumbledore's hand, though it was still rather faint. She replied the same way, "I smell it too."

"Now, Mr Dumbledore," Naruto invited as he processed the knowledge, "I do believe it is time that you showed us just what it is we will be called upon to destroy."

"Very well, Mr Todd," came the affable reply and Albus used a little sleight of hand to produce the ring, set with what he firmly believed to be the Resurrection Stone. "I managed to acquire this on an expedition. I believe it to be the Gaunt family ring and it is tainted with magic most foul."

Neither Kitsune reacted beyond polite interest and Albus was relieved. He hoped to be able to use the fabled powers of the Stone after the meeting, a hope that would be dashed if word got out what he possessed.

Unfortunately for the ancient wizard, Naruto and Hinata both recognised what they were shown. The children's book Tales of Beedle the Bard, and his Tale of the Three Brothers who received three special magical items supposedly from Death was something they had read early on in their investigations of wizard history. They had already spotted the sign of the so-called Deathly Hallows on Harry's cloak and now this ring displayed it prominently on the black stone. If nothing else, it bore investigation.

"Thank you, Mr Dumbledore." Naruto reached into a pocket and pulled out a heavily wrapped container that had been designed with malice aforethought to pander to Wizarding World notions of superiority. It appeared to be simple iron at its core, wrapped in layer after layer of treated cloth to delay the moment when the basilisk venom inside it breached its vessel. Already, supposedly, it seemed to be suffering corrosion from its deadly contents.

The can served its purpose as both wizards looked decidedly unsettled from the moment they saw it. In reality, the inside was lined with a non-reactive ceramic compound that had been glazed inside and out. So long as the ceramic wasn't cracked or broken, the venom was perfectly safe. However, neither wizard knew that and pulled back where before they had been leaning forward, curiosity and avarice on their faces at hopefully finding one of the rarest, and therefore most expensive, substances in the world of magic.

Naruto twisted off the 'metal' cap and set it face down casually on the table, before 'realising' he had to stand to do the job. As he leant over while getting up, he nudged the can and both wizards flinched, closing their eyes. In that same instant, Hinata jerked the table to the side slightly, ensuring that both wizards' panic would keep their eyes closed. Naruto had used one of his many techniques during the short meeting to create a replica of the ring they were supposed to destroy, and while his Angel took and secured the original he placed his fake in its place.

"Hmm?" he grunted, looking up.

Albus opened his eyes, fearing the worst but saw to his amazement and vast relief no sign of a spill. "Yes, shall we get this over with?"

"Sure, Mr Dumbledore. Please don't rush me." Naruto tipped the can over slowly, obviously preparing to drip the venom carefully onto the ring that the wizards were giving a wide berth. Just as obvious, however, were Naruto's nerves. The can was shaking slightly. While Snape wanted to sneer at the Muggle's fear, this was one of the few poisons he could not help but respect.

Then, it happened. Hinata had been leaning in, obviously fascinated and wanting a closer look. She jogged his elbow and splash! Far more than enough basilisk venom poured out all over the ring and a few inches around it.

Albus barely restrained his urge to flee and beside him, Snape was preparing to curse up a storm. The only things stopping them were the knowledge that there was active venom nearby and it was being held by apparently insanely cavalier Muggles! Who knew what they would do.

Naruto muttered an "Oops. Oh well. Still, no harm done." He gave a shrug with the can still open and the liquid inside splashed up and out of the can, miraculously falling back into the narrow mouth of the can as Naruto put the lid back on and the can back in its pocket. Both wizards breathed an audible sigh of relief once that happened.

Hinata nodded firmly, supporting her man. "Better to use too much than not enough," she said, obviously daring anyone to contradict her.

"Indeed," Albus said, forcing his heartbeat to slow down by force of will and putting back on his grandfatherly persona. The participants watched as the venom ate through the gold band and the wooden table underneath, leaving just the black stone on a frail supporting network of fibres. Albus cast a silent Levitation spell on the Stone, laying it on an undamaged part of the table and seeing with satisfaction that it wasn't suffering the effects of the venom, though the stone looked a touch melted. He cast a short series of spells and gave a true smile.

"The ring is entirely free of the taint of Dark Magic," he pronounced and cast a low-powered Aguamenti to wash off any trace of the venom from the fabled Resurrection Stone before picking it up, his smile widening. "This is most excellent news. Your assistance was everything I could have hoped for, Mr Todd," he added, laying it on thick. "I hope this is a sign of things to come for future cooperation."

Naruto refrained from rolling his eyes at the lavish praise that still cast he and his wife as subordinate to the great Albus Dumbledore, merely replying, "As you say, Mr Dumbledore. If there is nothing else, we had best get this back into safe storage."

Naruto was shifting from side to side, playing up his nerves at holding the basilisk venom and Albus shook his head tolerantly. Another wave of his wand Vanished the table and its residue, along with the chairs that they were no longer using.

"No, that will be all, Mr and Mrs Todd. I bid you both a very good day!" And with a near-silent crack, the powerful wizard Apparated away.

Severus Snape relaxed his severe mien to a small extent, unbending just long enough to say "It was interesting to meet the parents of one of my former students. Dare I hope that he has continued his studies in the subtle art?"

"Harry has not slackened for a single day," Hinata replied with a mother's pride, sidestepping the ex-Potions Master's question.

"Very good. You may inform him that I expect he will keep up his good work. Good day, Mr and Mrs Todd." And with a loud crack! he too was gone.

Naruto lifted a single eyebrow at his first love and she smiled back. The pair waited until the hidden watchers signalled the all clear and they cleaned up the site, removing all trace of their own presence before heading back home to Cranleigh, taking the scenic route in their newest Mercedes just in case someone was monitoring them.

Back at the Kitsune Compound, a number of trusted experts examined them both for any sign of magical monitoring or tracing, finding no magic of any kind had been used on the pair since Remus and Sirius last teamed up to prank the Clan.

A rather smaller number of wizards and witches, chosen for their strength of mind as much as for their expertise, were then called to examine the Clan's most recent acquisition. Xeno Lovegood, the foremost enthusiast of the Deathly Hallows in the Potter Alliance, confirmed via video link that the black stone in the ring matched the descriptions for the Resurrection Stone, said to bring back the spirits of the dead. He had refused to get closer to the ring when he heard of its contamination as a Horcrux and the compulsion charms laid upon it.

"I would be putting it on in a trice," he told Tsunade soberly. "Even now, knowing what it would do to me and out of range of the enchantments Riddle placed upon it, it is hard for me to resist the lure of speaking to my Selene again. Ever since she left me -" Xeno couldn't continue as his throat closed up on him, barely holding back the pain.

Tsunade nodded sadly. "I know what you mean. For so long, I was lost and wandering after my Dan was killed. It took someone as special as Naruto to bring me back. Now, he's out there to kill the spirit that's waiting in the ring to lure the unwary. We will be one step closer to putting down the terrorist for good."

Xenophilius Lovegood smiled, acknowledging her change of topic. "Indeed, and the world will be a better place for our children."

"And that's what progress is all about." Tsunade replied before offering tea.

At that moment, Naruto was deep in the Clan's forest with the rest of the Angels looking on. After assuring themselves that every precaution had been taken with the toxic substance and the Gaunt ring, they allowed Naruto to produce an eye dropper from his bag and drip out a single drop of Basilisk venom onto the ring.

As soon as the venom touched it, they all saw and felt the ring's reaction. The hissing that emanated from it was from more than just the ring melting away. They had the impression of a snake-like face and then the screams began and a black cloud streamed away from the ring, leaving the Resurrection Stone intact as planned. Anko was cursing freely as they saw graphic proof of just what had been in Harry's scar all those years ago.

"He dies." Hinata's voice could have frozen a supernova.

"Riddle?" Yugito asked.

"Dumbledore. He knew there was Dark Magic on the Gaunt ring. He was sure he knew when it was destroyed. That means he knew how to detect a Horcrux! And he had Harry for an entire day after he sent his minion Hagrid to fetch him from the ruins of the cottage before Hagrid arrived in Little Whinging. Minerva's recollections of that day also support his knowledge, as does Dumbledore's oh so subtle encouragement of our Harry to die to take out Voldemort."

"There could be another explanation," Shizune said. "We know Dumbledore likes to appear to be all-knowing even, or especially, when he isn't."

"In which case, he allowed his own incompetence to doom a baby. He didn't try to consult anyone at all that we can find. Whether by malice or incompetence, he took responsibility for Harry after James and Lily were murdered and set him up to be abused at the Dursleys. Kidnapping and child abuse and then compounding it by hiring the traitor to teach, abusing more children who were under Dumbledore's control. From the numbers, he's cost the Ministry at least two dozen new Aurors, more probably four dozen who could have made it through the training, when he knew that Riddle was returning." Yuugao was glaring at the melted ring in lieu of the target of her ire. "At this point, does it matter why he did all of that when his crimes have earned him death?"

Naruto shook his head. "He is dying anyway," he said, reminding his Angels. "We found the curse he is suffering in the Black archives. They have no cure for it. Only we could save him."

"And we won't." Hana made the declaration, daring anyone to contradict her.

"We could..." Haku trailed off then finished under the curious looks of her sister wives. "We could offer him a painless way out. A way to undo one of his mistakes."

"You want to use that ritual?" Isaribi asked.

"I think that he is finally trying to help. I think that he may soon prefer just about anything to the constant pain. And I think that he would not want his death to be in vain. And we would be able to return Harry's birth parents to him in a way that satisfies justice."

"The ritual only brings back one person at a time," Temari pointed out.

"Ah, but that assumes we only perform it the once, and dear Severus has such a life debt to repay to James Potter."

Hana's grin was truly feral at that point, matched by the others until Tsunade spoke up.

"I have to veto that." Before the others could ask, she explained. "We don't know how their magic would interfere in the ritual but we can't risk the Potters like that without finding out."

"Then we have our next research project," Naruto said, making his decision.

Thank you for reading. As always, I am grateful to my wonderful betas for their help, Cloud Zen (894440) and Daisy Duck. I look forward to your feedback.