Author's Note: Wow so huge response with my last chapter. I've got to say that's the most reviews I've gotten for a chapter and I was ecstatic. So thank you for your input regardless of what you said, I care people I really do.

Ppsh: Thanks for your input regardless. Just understand that this is a fanfiction so things may happen slightly different than what happens in the manga. Also, we apparently have different views on the Kyuubi's control. For the record I believe that once the chakra armor covers Naruto he loses consciousness and the Kyuubi takes over. As for Naruto's angst, he just lost his father figure, his mother/older sister is in a coma and his village has been destroyed. Even in the manga he was upset afterwards and on top of that, he's now being told to stay away from a girl that has admitted that she loves him and he is starting to feel something for her. But thanks anyways and hope you enjoy the rest!

AnonNHlover: I'm glad I'm able to draw you into my story! I just want to say that the story is far from over so just because something didn't happen doesn't mean I won't come back to it later. As for Hinata's little "moments", things have picked up so I have some trouble with finding a way to incorporate those feelings into a faster paced chapter. Don't worry though, they will be back!

As for everyone else that left something in the review, I'm glad you are enjoying the story and you find it worth reading. I promise things are going to get very interesting here in the future. No without further ado, here is the next chapter! And remember R&R please!

Chapter 7: Conflicts

Naruto was on his seventh bowl of ramen when he finally stopped, finding himself staring into the broth lost in thought. Kakashi couldn't help but notice his student's sudden lack of interest in the food in front of him and sighed inwardly as he set his own bowl down.

"Finally full?" he asked already knowing the answer. There was no way that seven bowls filled him up. Especially when he hadn't eaten in over twenty four hours.

Kakashi's question was answered with silence as Naruto continued to stare into his bowl. "Oh boy," he thought as this time he sighed out loud, "I guess he really took what Hiashi said hard."

"Naruto…" he began as he tried to find the right words. "Don't worry about what Hiashi said. Personally I'm proud of the way you stood up for Hinata. There's no doubt in my mind that you'll find a way to fix things."

Naruto finally broke his stare from his apparently interesting bowl of ramen to look at his sensei, and Kakashi smiled at him brightly from underneath his mask. "My god," Kakashi thought as he continued to smile, "I really do suck at this sensei thing!"

Smiling back at him, Naruto laughed as he put a hand behind his head. "Gee, thanks sensei but that's not what I was thinking about."

The copy cat nin couldn't help but show a little surprise at that response.

"Oh is that so?" he said before an evil grin appeared on his face. "Could have fooled me." he said with a casual shrug. "I figured that's what you were thinking about since you defended her so…how should I put it? Passionately?" Suddenly he leaned on the counter propping his head up with one hand and stared intensely into Naruto's eyes. "Tell me, is there something going on between you two that you aren't telling me?" He had to stifle a laugh as he watched Naruto shift uncomfortable in his seat.

"No! There's nothing going on between us, we're just good friends that's all!" Naruto sputtered out as he waved his hands around in the air, but a faint blush suggested that Naruto wasn't entirely convinced in what he said. "Who am I kidding?" he thought miserably to himself staring back down at his unfinished bowl, "I have no clue what's going on."

Still fixated on his bowl Naruto broke the momentary silence, "I was thinking about Sasuke."

Kakashi's eye betrayed how he felt inside. He was shocked since he was not expecting his student to be worrying about his former teammate. "Typical Naruto," he thought to himself, "more worried about others instead of himself." He couldn't help but admire Naruto's selflessness. However, his smile faded as he thought about the dire situation that Sasuke was now in. Quietly he unconsciously flipped out one of his colorful covered books and stared at the page not really reading it, a habit he had developed when he wanted time to think about a situation and be left alone.

"Oh? What about him?" he asked Naruto casually, shooting him a sideways glance.

"I want to ask the Raikage if he will forgive Sasuke." Naruto said looking at Kakashi.

Kakashi nearly dropped his book in surprise as he looked at Naruto as if he was crazy. "You can't be serious?"

"What else can I do?" Naruto said with a shrug, "I'm out of options and I want to keep him as safe as possible. By doing this, at least I may be able to keep other villages from hunting him down."

"Do you think you can really convince him?" Kakashi asked, setting his book down wanting to hear his answer.

Naruto's hand instinctively went to his stomach before he gave his sensei a huge smile. "Of course! If my father believes in me, then I believe I can do it. The way I see it, this would be the first step towards true peace."

"Your…father?" Kakashi asked incredulously.

"Yep, you bet!" Naruto said flashing him a grin.

"So then you know who he is." Kakashi said stating the obvious. "How?"

Naruto's smile faded as he thought about what happened. "It was when the Kyuubi was unleashed during the invasion. Just when the seal was about to be broken the Yondaime showed up and reinforced the seal and told me everything."

Kakashi stared at Naruto in disbelief. "Sensei, you never cease to amaze me. How did you even manage that?" he wondered to himself. He quickly dismissed it though and smiled brightly at Naruto from underneath his mask.

"Well, I guess that means I believe in you as well." he said brightly as he slipped his book back into his pouch and pulled out some money for the food. "I guess I'll go inform Yamato that we'll be leaving early in the morning. If we hurry, we should be able to catch the Raikage before he reaches the summit for the council meeting."

"If you're leaving the village, then I'm coming too."

Naruto and Kakashi both turned around to see Sai standing in the doorway to the stand.

"Sai, what are you doing here?" Kakashi asked with a hint of caution.

"Probably keeping tabs on me." Naruto said dejectedly.

Sai ignored the accusation but answered the question. "Yes," he said as he sat down next to Naruto, "and no. I admit I must keep you under some kind of surveillance but I mostly just wanted to make sure you were okay."

The look on both Kakashi and Naruto's faces was priceless.

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with Sai?" Naruto asked as he began to pinch Sai's face as if he were a fake.

"I'll admit I have no idea how to go about doing this sort of thing." Sai answered as he slapped Naruto's hand away from his face. "But I read in a book that being there to console a friend helps to build a stronger bond." He smiled brightly at his teammate and sensei as they exchanged looks with each other, unsure if it was a genuine smile or not.

"I appreciate it Sai," Naruto said with a smile, but it quickly faded and his mood seemed to darken, "but this is something I have to do on my own. The only reason Kakashi and Yamato-sensei are going is because I'm still only a genin and Yamato-sensei can contain the Kyuubi, if something should happen."

Sai was silent for a moment before nodding in acceptance. Naruto then looked at Kakashi and indicated to the time.

"It's getting late. If we're leaving tomorrow morning we should be heading to bed." Naruto ordered more than suggested.

Kakashi nodded in agreement and they all stood up and walked outside, stopping just long enough to say good night to each other before parting ways.

"Since I cannot go with you I wish the best of luck to you in regards to Sasuke." Sai said with a small smile.

"Thanks Sai." Naruto said returning the smile before turning his attention to the copy nin. "Kakashi-sensei, I'll meet you at the North gates tomorrow morning at seven. Do not be late."

Kakashi's lazy eye smiled back at him as he waved him off. "Sure, sure. Tomorrow at seven, got it."

"Okay," Naruto said turning to leave, "see you tom-" Naruto stopped abruptly as he felt the sharp point of metal against his throat. Shifting his attention to who was in front of him he saw two ninja staring menacingly at him, but mostly on the woman who at the moment was hold a katana to his throat.

"You know Sasuke?" She asked before her mood darkened. "Tell us everything you know about him."

Sakura, Ino, and Kiba were at the BBQ restaurant discussing the events that had transpired that day as a stoic Shino sat by listening in while they awaited the arrival of Tenten and Lee.

"I can't believe this is happening." Ino said helplessly shaking her head in her hands.

"You're telling me, it's like neither one of them can catch a break." Kiba muttered in an irritated manner folding his arms.

"I know." Sakura thought with a slight frown. "But maybe it was meant to be this way?" Sakura said quietly to herself before suddenly realizing that she actually had spoken the last part of her thought out loud. "Oh my god! Did I really just say that?" Looking up she saw Ino's jaw practically hitting the table and Kiba staring at her with a shocked expression. Even Shino had his eyebrows raised in surprise. Sakura immediately looked down as she tried to cover the blush she felt beginning to burn across her cheeks. "What the hell? Where did that come from?"

"S-Sakura?" Ino began finally finding her voice again.

Sakura looked up but was saved as Shikamaru and Choji popped their heads into the booth but not before getting the 'we'll talk later' look from Ino.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Choji asked cheerfully while Shikamaru looked as if he were about to fall asleep, probably woken up and dragged there by his friend who was now drooling as he stared at the BBQ.

"Naruto got in a fight with Hiashi!" Ino blurted out before covering up her mouth.

Choji and Shikamaru glanced at each other before sitting down in the booth and staring at Ino.

"Okay, spill it." Shikamaru said looking at Ino curiously.

Ino shook her head before pointing at Sakura. "Sakura should tell it, she was there."

The two shifted their attention to the pink haired kunoichi as she began to explain what had happened that day. By the time she had finished the story with telling them that Hiashi had threatened Naruto's dream of becoming Hokage if he didn't leave Hinata alone Choji was choking on BBQ and Shikamaru had a very troubled look on his face.

"So after all that effort for her, he's not even allowed to see her. Man that's a total drag." Shikamaru muttered.

"No kidding," Choji said between mouthfuls, "I feel so bad for them."

Everyone at the table agreed, but Ino couldn't help sneaking a glance at Sakura and notice that she was blushing again. "I am definitely gonna have to see what's up with that." She mentally swore to herself.

Just then, Lee and Tenten arrived at the booth to report that Naruto was back to his normal and happy-go-lucky self, much to everyone's relief.

"I don't get it though," Tenten asked, "why was he acting the way he was in the first place?"

"You mean you guys didn't figure it out?" Kiba asked surprised.

"No, as hard as we tried to uncover the mystery behind Naruto's strange behavior we could not uncover the truth." Lee said before standing up. "Naruto has truly become a master of secrecy! I will have to train ten times- No! One hundred times- No! One thou-" the rest was cut off as Tenten planted a solid fist down on top of Lee's head.

"Damn boy! Have you ever heard of volume control?" Tenten asked irritated as she wiggled her pinky finger in her ear.

"Forgive me Tenten, it is a work in progress." Lee said through his tears as he tenderly touched the knot on his head.

"In any case," Tenten said turning her attention back to the group, "what happened?"

So much to Sakura's dismay, she was forced to tell the story for the third time that day. She even tried to paraphrase most of it until Ino demanded that she tell the story in full and included every detail. So with a heavy sigh Sakura told the entire story and by the time she was finally done the entire group sat in complete silence.

"Well, look at that. The gang's all here."

Everyone looked at the opening of the booth to see a rather irritated Neji standing at the opening.

"How did the talk go?" Sakura asked, knowing that Neji had gone to speak with Hiashi about the incident.

Neji gritted his teeth as he thought back to the conversation he had with him. "Let's just say he isn't going to reconsider. The stubborn old fool."

Everyone looked disheartened with the news and silence fell across the group again. After a few moments, Tenten finally spoke.

"I understand that it sucks not being able to see a teammate and friend, but it's not like those two were really close right? I mean, Naruto barely ever noticed Hinata. What's the big deal?"

For the first time that night Shino spoke, reminding everyone that the bug user was still in the booth with them.

"It's true that Naruto never really noticed Hinata before, but that didn't mean that she wasn't important to him. Even though Hinata never spent much time around Naruto he still held her closely as someone important to him, like all of us. However, after the invasion of the village it's no secret that those two have become…closer."

Everyone in the room nodded silently in agreement at what he said.

"But how can Hiashi have any influence over Naruto becoming Hokage?" Kiba asked. "I know he's part of the village council and all but the dynamo is the one who decides the next Hokage."

"Yes that's true but isn't Danzo becoming Hokage a perfect example?" Shikamaru asked with a sigh. "It's no secret that the Fire Dynamo is a blubbering old bag of wind. Danzo basically muscled his way into the position. It's a drag but who's the Dynamo gonna believe: the head of the noble Hyuuga family that's been here since the founding of the village or a drop out knucklehead?"

"But he's a hero!" Tenten protested.

"That doesn't matter." Shikamaru said pointedly. "I've been on diplomatic missions with my dad and met the Fire Dynamo. Naruto doesn't stand a chance if Hiashi gets to him." He frowned as he remembered the hopelessness that was their ruler.

"So why doesn't he just go for Hinata then?" asked Ino. "I know that he swore he would become Hokage but he's always been searching for that special someone as well." She found herself unconsciously glancing in Sakura's direction.

"There's a problem that you all seem to be overlooking." Neji said with an unhappy frown. "Hiashi is Hinata's father and a father's approval is the most important thing when it comes to a relationship."

"So they just run away then." Tenten suggested more than said.

"And leave family and friends behind? To be hunted by the village as rogue ninjas for the rest of their lives?" Shino asked. "No, Naruto wouldn't do that to Hinata and Hinata wouldn't want to put Naruto in anymore danger then what he's already in."

"In other words," Shikamaru stated bluntly. "Naruto is fucked."

Silence once again fell over the group as the realization of Naruto's predicament sunk in.

"So I guess the big question is," Ino asked out loud, "what are we gonna do?"

"Nothing." a small, quiet, familiar voice answered causing everyone to look in the direction of the voice in shock.

Standing just behind Neji with her arms wrapped around herself was Hinata staring at the floor.

"But…why?" asked Sakura who couldn't believe what she just heard. "He was just starting to notice you."

A small blush ran across her cheeks as she thought fondly back on the time they had spent together in the past week. However, the smile faded and the blush was replaced by tears as she remembered the events of that day.

"Because," she said softly trying to control her emotions as best she could as she wrapped her arms tighter around herself for comfort, "it's Naruto-kun's future, not anyone else's. We have no right to decide it for him." She looked up at Neji briefly with tears in her eyes before continuing. "It's up to him to decide what he wants. I refuse to put Naruto-kun's dreams in danger because of my selfishness."

Her tears were now forming a small puddle on the floor at her feet, growing drop by drop like the sense of defeat inside her. "I was so close…so close to getting him to truly noticing me." Hinata turned away from the group embarrassed that her friends saw her in such an emotional wreck. "I was so close until HE got in the way…" She gritted her teeth as she suddenly felt a strange emotion wash over her that she had never felt before. It slowly crept out of the dark corner in her heart and continued to grow and feed until it had completely consumed her body and mind. It was resentment, anger, and frustration all mixed into one powerful concoction. It demanded retribution for what her father had done. It begged for punishment to be dealt towards her father for the injustices he had committed to her Naruto-kun. "He needs to answer for what he's done!"

"Ano, Hinata? Are you okay?" Sakura asked in a concerned tone.

Hinata realized that her body was shaking in anger, her fists clenched tightly at her sides, and her breathing ragged but she didn't calm down, she only became angrier.

Glancing briefly over her shoulder she spoke in a whisper, her voice laced with killer intent so powerful it oppressed the atmosphere around them. "He needs to pay."

Everyone was shocked at the abnormal feeling radiating off of Hinata's body, and the hatred dripping from her words sent shivers down everyone's spines. Without another word she walked quickly out of the restaurant and headed towards her home. "I'll make that worthless bastard pay for everything he's put me through!" She seethed as even more hatred spread throughout her body.

Back at the booth everyone was just coming back to reality as the shock wore off.

"What the hell was that?" Tenten asked in a whisper.

"Oh man, she's acting just like last time." Kiba said as he unconsciously put a hand to his throat.

"I'm sorry but I must leave now." Neji said with a slight look of confusion on his face as he stared after his cousin.

"I'll go with you Neji." Sakura said hurriedly, sensing that he was about to investigate his cousin's strange behavior.

"I was just about to suggest that." Neji said turning to look at her with a leveled gaze.

"Okay, see ya later everyone!" Sakura yelled as she grabbed Neji's hand and bolted for the door. "Shit! They're back! Her eyes turned red again!" Her mind raced as she tried to find a way to subdue Hinata.

"Sakura," Neji asked as they ran towards the Hyuuga complex, "what is going on with my cousin? I saw something strange inside my cousin, it looked almost like…" He trailed off as he tried to find the right words.

"Like demonic chakra." Sakura finished and Neji nodded with a worried look. Sakura stared ahead as she tried to come up with an explanation. "It started when Naruto sealed the Kyuubi's chakra inside of her. It seems like it reacts to her emotions, like when she's really upset." She paused as she thought about it. "To be honest, it's exactly like how Naruto is; anger him too much and he loses control."

Neji was silent before he suddenly spoke. "Sakura, I think we should pick up the pace."

"Why? Do you think something might happen?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Neji said grimly, "but let's not wait around long enough to find out."

Naruto stared rather irritated at the kunoichi in front of him holding a katana to his throat. Giving her a quick once over he saw that she wore a long, grey, short sleeved dress with a flak jacket along with fishnet stockings and knee high boots. Her striking amber colored eyes pierced through him as she stared angrily at him, expecting an answer. Because night had fallen he couldn't tell the color of her hair but he was fairly certain it was some derivative of red that was pulled back and held in place by her head band. His eyes traveled up to her head band and narrowed as he realized just where she was from. "Hidden Cloud." He thought to himself as he gritted his teeth. "That explains why they want information on Sasuke. Probably want to know what they're up against." "Hey Naruto." Kyuubi called out trying to get his attention. "Not now Kyuubi. I already said I was sorry."

Relaxing, he put his hands in his pocket before nonchalantly tilting his head back to look at Kakashi. "Man sensei, I cannot catch a break today huh?" "Naruto." Kyuubi called out again, ignoring Naruto's request to be left alone.

Kakashi nodded slightly, curious as to what his student was up to. "Yes Naruto, it appears that way."

The kunoichi pressed the katana harder against Naruto's neck, unhappy that she was being ignored.

"I'm serious." she growled in contempt, "Tell me what you know about Uchiha Sasuke."

"Narrrrrutooooo." Kyuubi called out in almost sing-song. Naruto was starting to become irritated.

Her partner, who had white spiky hair that practically glowed in the dark and wore a long grey shirt with a hood, shin guards, red bandage-like hand wraps, and a flak jacket as well, furrowed his eyebrows as he seemed troubled by his partner's rather forceful attitude.

"Naruto?" Kyuubi called out once more.

Sucking on a lollipop for a moment, he finally spoke. "Karui, take it easy. There's no need to be forceful like this, they are our allies and should cooperate with us. If you go on like this you may end up killing him by accident." He switched the lollipop to the other side of his mouth before bringing a hand to his chin and becoming lost in thought. "If you kill him on accident, you might upset the clan he's from. They could be an extremely powerful clan and they might swear a blood oath that they will hunt you down and never rest until they kill you. Of course since I'm your teammate I will try to protect you, but will probably die defending you because it's an entire clan. Then you would be heart sickened and unable to cont-"

"-Will you shut the hell up Omoi!" Karui shouted obviously irritated at her teammate's wild imagination.

"Naruto."

"Hey, I'm just saying." Omoi said raising his hands in defense.

"Naruto!" Kyuubi said even louder this time. "Not now!" Naruto hissed back before turning his attention back to Karui. "If you two don't mind I'd like to head home. I'm not going to tell you anything because firstly, I don't like you and secondly, Sasuke is my friend. So this is just a waste of both your time and mine, plus I don't feel like standing here all night while you two argue." Naruto's face never faltered as he stared her straight in the eyes.

Omoi's eyes widened before he face palmed and muttered something to himself. However Karui's eyes narrowed.

"What did you say?" she hissed viciously between her teeth.

Naruto rolled his eyes annoyed. "I said-"

"-Naruto! Naruto! Naruto! Naruto! Naruto! NARRRRUTOOOO!" Kyuubi's voice thundered inside his head.

"FOR GOD'S SAKE WHAT?" Naruto screamed inside his head in utter defeat while clenching his fists and tried to control his breathing.

"Never mind…I forgot." Kyuubi said shyly.

"YOU FORGOT?" Naruto screamed throwing his hands in the air and causing everyone to recoil in shock. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN 'YOU FORGOT'?" Everyone stared at him as if he had grown another head as words became lost to them. Kyuubi, however, was rolling in his cage crying because he was laughing so hard.

"I didn't say anything about forgetting something…" Karui said slowly, confused as to what was happening.

"Not you!" Naruto snapped before suddenly staring off into nothing again, waiting for Kyuubi to answer.

"I don't know I just did. I got all excited and just…forgot." Kyuubi said as innocently as he could.

"Aaargh!" was all Naruto could get out as he started to stomp away towards his apartment. "Oh relax! I'm just having some fun with you." Kyuubi said rolling his eyes. "Now's not the time!" Naruto thought angrily. "Oh I was just trying to loosen you up kit." Kyuubi huffed. "Honestly, you're wound up like a spring."

"Hey! I'm not finished with you!" Karui shouted after him.

"Well I'm finished with you!" Naruto said tersely not even turning his head. However, after he had gone a few steps Karui appeared in front of him blocking his way.

"You're not going anywhere until you tell me what I want to know about that Uchiha bastard!" she yelled determinedly.

After everything that had happened that day, Naruto finally snapped. "Why the hell do you want to know about him so bad?" he yelled angrily. "Why is he so god damn important that you had to travel all the way here to our damaged village to get information on him and want him dead?"

"Because that bastard kidnapped our sensei!" Karui yelled as she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"What?" Naruto asked confused.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Omoi stepped in, "showed up when our sensei, Bee-sama, was training. He and his teammates attacked Bee-sama and kidnapped him." "

"That's why we want information on him." Karui continued blinking away tears. "We want to rescue our sensei!"

"Bee-sama? As in Killer Bee, the jinchuriki of the Hidden Cloud Village?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes, the very same." Omoi said nodding.

"I don't understand," Naruto asked, "what would Sasuke want with the jinchuriki of the Hidden Cloud Village?"

"Well it's no secret that the Akatsuki have been hunting down the jinchuriki." Omoi said pointedly.

"What?" Naruto and Kakashi said in unison.

"That can't be, Sasuke would never join them!" Naruto yelled, angry at the accusations against his friend.

"Sasuke was reported as wearing a black cloak with red clouds on it which matches the description of what the Akatsuki wear." Karui said in a matter-of-fact tone. "There's no way we can forgive him for what he's done! Our sensei is most likely gone forever!" she said bitterly as she fought back tears.

"I highly doubt that." Naruto said calmly causing both Karui and Omoi to look at him in confusion. "It takes the Akatsuki about three days to extract the tailed beast from the jinchurik, probably even longer now that they're low on man power."

"So…there's still time to save our sensei?" Omoi asked hopefully.

"Yes." Naruto assured with a nod.

The two Cloud nin looked relieved but then Karui's look hardened.

"Don't think that this changes anything." she spat out angrily. "I'll still have that bastards head."

Naruto was silent for a moment before turning to Kakashi and Sai. "Kakashi-sensei, I think you better go inform Yamato-sensei of our plans for tomorrow. I'm going home to rest."

Kakashi looked warily at Naruto for a moment before he nodded. "See you in the morning then." And with that he leapt away.

Naruto then looked at Sai. "Could you please leave us alone?" he asked. "There's something I want to talk to these two about." He said motioning with his thumb to the Cloud nin.

Sai nodded and turned around, walking down the street before turning the corner and leaving.

Once Sai was gone Karui turned and looked at Naruto.

"What do you want? Are you going to spill it about Sasuke?" She asked with an edge in her voice.

"No." Naruto said simply much to the irritation of the kunoichi. "I could never betray my friend like that." he said with a sad smile.

"Then what do you want?" she spat out at him.

Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "God forgive me." he thought to himself. "Naruto, what are you doing?" Kyuubi asked warily. Exhaling and opening his eyes Naruto reached into his kuni pouch. "Naruto, NO!" Kyuubi yelled but before either one of the Cloud nin could react, Naruto rushed Karui.

Hinata reached the complex in nothing short of a blind fury. Upon reaching the gates she looked straight at the guards and glared them down.

"Where's Hiashi?" she snapped, impatiently activating her Byakugan and searching the grounds without waiting for an answer.

Before the stunned guard could stammer out a response she found her father in his office and stormed off, but not before muttering about how useless they were leaving the two guards standing there stunned with their mouths agape.

"What the hell was that?" Kenchi asked turning to his partner.

"I don't know." The other said and then shivered. "But I would not want to be Hiashi-sama right now." After a moment he added. "Should we have someone go check on them?"

"No." Neji's voice answered with authority.

"Why not Neji-san?" Kenchi asked.

"Because I will take care of it, stay at your stations." Neji said quickly before walking off the way Hinata had gone.

"Please excuse Hinata's behavior." Sakura said quickly before give a small bow. "She's still a little on edge from the incident." With that being said she quickly ran after Neji. The two guards looked at each other confused before shrugging and going back to their duties.

Hinata reached the door to her father's office and activated her Byakugan to see what he was doing. Truly worthy of being the head of the clan, Hiashi had already sensed the activation of her Byakugan and the killer intent radiating from her and was sitting patiently waiting for her to enter but ready for a fight. "Bastard." she seethed in rage, "He has no idea what's in store for him!" Grabbing the handle of the door she practically ripped the door out of the guides as she slid it open with a crash. As she crossed the threshold of the office she felt a brief flicker pain like a pin prick, but dismissed it since her Byakugan didn't see anything. However, as soon as her foot landed inside the office she felt a wave of calmness wash over her. Her sense began to dull and her anger began to recede slowly. Not missing a beat though, she walked straight up to her father and stared him hard in the eyes.

"Hinata, what is the meaning of this?" he demanded angrily.

"Well father, since you asked I'll tell you." She spat at him, "I couldn't help but over hear that you told Naruto-kun to stay away from me. Why is that?" she asked even though she knew the answer.

"I don't know how you found out but since you want to know so bad I'll tell you. I told him to stay away from you because he is a poison, a ticking time bomb of disaster that spells destruction for anyone close to him." He said with a glare. "And deactivate your eyes! You have some nerve barging in here with those activated!"

Hinata ignored the order though and spoke, although it was getting difficult to focus. "So what you mean is, you told Naruto-kun to stay away from me because you think he's nothing but trash, even after SAVING THE ENTIRE VILLAGE!" she said screaming the last part at him as she slammed her fists down on his desk.

Hiashi rose, furious at the disrespect he was receiving from his own daughter.

"Say another word," he said venomously, "and I'll-"

"-Word." Hinata whispered defiantly back at him. She had deactivated her eyes at this point, unable to control her chakra anymore but she was determined to see this conversation through to the end. It was just getting so hard to focus now and she had to grip the desk just to keep from swaying and falling over. "What is going on?" she wondered in confusion.

"How dare you!" Hiashi shouted in outrage.

"How dare I? How dare I?" Hinata shouted back just as loud in disbelief. "How dare you treat Naruto-kun the way you did! His entire life has been nothing but Hell and when he finally begins to feel a little bit of happiness you drop this on him! This disgusting, horrible, cruel choice!" she shouted as she felt tears beginning to form in her eyes. "What? No! Not now! Where was all that strength I felt earlier? Where did it vanish to?" The room was beginning to spin now but Hinata forced herself to remain standing and focus.

"I did what I did to protect you." Hiashi said quietly, trying to calm down as best he could.

"Oh how fatherly of you." Hinata remarked sarcastically. "Thank you for looking out for me." she said as she did a slightly uncoordinated bow but it got the message across.

"What do you want daughter? What was your purpose for barging in here like a heathen?" Hiashi snapped.

"You!" Hinata whispered digging her nails into the desk. "I want you, father. Tomorrow at noon, meet me in the dojo with the elders. If I win, you dismiss this stupid ultimatum you have put on Naruto-kun and you will apologize to him."

Hiashi thought quietly for a moment before speaking. "I accept your request daughter."

Hinata stood up with a triumphant look on her face before turning and heading for the door, trying to walk in the straightest line possible.

"However." her father's voice rung out stopping her in her tracks. "If I win, you will forget about that demon boy and marry the man that I choose. And you will do it willingly."

Hinata dread swell up inside of her and consume her whole body. "Never see Naruto-kun again? Marry a man that my father chooses who I don't even love? I can't accept this, it's too risky!" Despair filled her heart as her resolve began to erode away. She felt the tears she had been holding back finally become unleashed as they raced down her cheeks like small floods. "No!" she thought to herself. "I've come too far! I've said what I wanted to say and I can't go back on my word now, it's my nindo!"

Stopping the flow of tears she gathered herself up before speaking. "Fine. Just don't be late." she said bitterly as she slid the door behind her with another crash.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Hiashi said with a dark smile.

Hinata made it one step before the drug in her body overcame her finally and she collapsed to the floor. A dark shadow shot out and caught her just in time before she hit however, and cradled her carefully as the figure turned and walked down the hall only to be joined by another shadowy figure.

"That was close." Sakura whispered looking down at the unconscious Hyuuga princess.

"Too close." Neji said with a frown. "I was hoping the drug would take effect before she did anything rash but it appears that is not the case."

"Let's just be thankful she didn't attack him right there in the office." Sakura said with a sigh of relief. "By the way, nice throw with the needle. I would have never known where to throw it to get past her Byakugan."

Neji smiled briefly. "What can I say; for once I'm thankful the Byakugan has a blind spot."

Reaching Hinata's room, Neji tucked her away into bed before he and Sakura exited the room and walked towards the gate.

"Do you think Hinata can win?" Sakura asked breaking the silence.

Neji sighed and closed his eyes. "Logically, no." Sakura looked down at her feet and frowned. "However," Neji said gently looking up at the stars with a small smile, "my heart can't help but ignore that logic and believe that she can win."

Sakura smiled as well and reaching the gates she said good night to Neji before running home across the rooftops. "For your sake Hinata," she prayed "I hope you can win."

Naruto stood a few inches away from Karui staring her straight in the eyes while her katana buried deep into his chest and stuck out the back dripping blood. "Damn I hate getting stabbed!" Naruto thought gritting his teeth. "You're telling me baka!" Kyuubi yelled angrily. "Will you stop your bitching? You can't even feel anything!" yelled back wincing in pain. "So?" Kyuubi retorted angrily. "It's still a pain in the ass to heal!" Naruto could help it as a small chuckle escaped his lips and Karui stood there stunned.

"Why?" she whispered confused. "Why did you attack me?"

Naruto smiled slightly as his hand slipped from his pouch and fell to his side revealing an empty hand.

"I don't understand?" Karui said confused as she lost the grip of her katana and took a step back.

Naruto shuffled forward keeping the distance between them. "Give me your anger." Naruto whispered quietly, piercing through her with his cerulean eyes. "Leave Sasuke out of this."

"But you've done nothing wrong! Sasuke-"

"-Sasuke is confused and in a dark place." Naruto interjected. "Let me shoulder the pain you feel."

"I-I can't!" Karui said taking another step back but not making a difference as Naruto took another step forward.

Omoi stood silently by taking the scene in. "This guy is something else. He doesn't rat out his traitorous friend and then he offers to take his place for punishment."

Naruto continued to stare Karui down, never blinking once.

"Well then I guess Sasuke has nothing to worry about then." Naruto's tone changing suddenly to a snide remark. "Uh, Naruto…what are you doing?" Kyuubi asked as once again he became aware that his prison guard was about to do something regrettable.

"What do you mean? I will make that Uchiha bastard pay for what he did!" Karui said defensively.

"Yeah right." Naruto sneered. "You couldn't even take me down with a sword." he said pointing down to the katana sticking in his chest. "You're weak." "Okay Naruto that's enough." "You're pathetic." "Seriously baka, stop." "It's no wonder your sensei was captured, he's probably as weak as you!" "God damn it, now you've done it!"

Before Naruto could blink Karui grabbed her katana and kicked him off of her sword, sending him flying into the concrete wall behind him. Slowly she began walking towards him radiating killer intent and shaking in rage, her breathing hard and ragged.

"Don't you ever insult my sensei like that again or else I will kill you." She whispered maliciously. Looking down at her clenched fists she continued. "I will never be able to forgive that Uchiha. I have too much anger, too much hate inside of me."

Naruto looked up slowly, bloody trickling down his lips and from his chest. Slowly, very slowly he stood up before looking at her. "I'm not asking you to forgive him." Naruto said quietly. "I'm asking you to leave him alone…But if it helps, give me your anger and hate."

Closing the distance quickly, Karui grabbed Naruto by the front of his shirt and pulled him towards her.

"You think you can handle my hate? You think you can save Sasuke?" she hissed at him as her eyes glowed evilly in the night.

"I made a promise that I would save him. I won't go back on my word now." Naruto whispered determinedly.

"Fine." Karui said as she let go of him. "Let's see how long you last!"

Cocking a fist back, she slammed it into Naruto's cheek causing him to bounce his head off the concrete wall before falling to the ground. Without missing a beat he looked up to her and spoke unwavering.

"Give me your hate."

Like a banshee screeching through the country side in the dead of night, a terrible and frightening cry erupted from Karui's throat as she descended upon Naruto landing devastating after devastating blow. Each punch elicited a dull sickening thud as fist collided with unprotected flesh and bone. A blood mist enveloped the two as Karui rained down the blows, feeling herself become consumed and driven by hate. After five minutes of relentless blows, Karui finally ran out of strength and collapsed to the side of Naruto. Another minute passed as she caught her breath before standing up slowly. Then, to her and Omoi's amazement Naruto slowly stood up as well.

"This changes nothing!" Karui spat out, upset that he was able to move after the beating he had just taken.

Naruto simply stared back at her through the swollen, black and blue slits that were his eyes. Cocking her fist back she threw another punch but was surprised when it didn't connect.

Sai knelt on top of a nearby apartment rooftop and watched in amazement as Naruto allowed himself to be pummeled by the Cloud ninja. "Why Naruto?" asked himself "Why do you continue to jeopardize yourself for the sake of that traitor?" Then he remembered what Sakura had said earlier.

"Naruto would sacrifice his life for anyone that he holds precious to him."

"I sure hope he's as precious as you think he is Naruto." Sai said quietly to himself as he continued to watch the beating.

Finally, after about five minutes the kunoichi looked as if she was done and not a moment too soon. Naruto looked terrible and was definitely in need of medical attention. However, the Cloud nin randomly pulled back another fist and prepared to throw another blow, but Sai suddenly felt a strange feeling come over him, an urge to protect his teammate. In the blink of an eye Sai disappeared from the rooftop and appeared before the Cloud nin shocking her and catching her fist midflight. He was worried that her teammate would intervene but from the look on his face he appeared to almost be thankful that someone had stepped in to stop his teammate.

"Sai…" Naruto said quietly looking at the art ninja defending him. "Stay out of this, it doesn't concern you."

"Why Naruto?" Sigh asked tossing Karui's fist down to the side and turning to look at Naruto. "Why is he so important?" Almost instantly Sai could see guilt flash through his eyes.

"Because he is…" Naruto said looking down in shame. A sudden throb of pain caused him to fall back against the wall and then slide down it.

"Although he defends a traitor and a rogue ninja, his unwavering loyalty is truly admirable." Omoi thought looking on in awe.

"As if that matters!" Karui spat out in between pants.

"Karui, that's enough!"

Everyone turned to see a blonde haired Cloud kunoichi with a rather gifted chest standing with her arms crossed looking very agitated.

"Samui, how did you find us?" Karui said looking guilty.

"What are you kidding?" Samui asked evenly. "The whole village could hear you screaming like a maniac."

Karui stood quietly in her place before glancing over at Naruto. Samui followed her gaze and saw a broken shinobi sitting on the ground in a heap. Looking at him closely her eyes widened in a mixture of fear and shock as she realized who it was. "That's…Uzumaki Naruto. The hero of the Hidden Leaf village and the one who defeated the Akatsuki leader, Pain." Turning on her subordinate, Samui let loose into Karui openly showing her emotions for once in public.

"Do you even realize who that is?" She yelled as she towered over a cowering Karui.

Afraid to answer her team leader she simple shook her head.

"This is Uzumaki Naruto, the hero who saved this village and the people from total inhalation." said in a voice of awe.

Both Omoi and Karui's eyes widened as the realization dawned on them and they both stared at Naruto.

"The fact that you're still breathing," Samui continued, "is a miracle in itself!" Turning to Naruto and Sai her face softened. "Naruto-sama, please forgive my teammates." she apologized sincerely. "They can be total idiots at times." she said shooting Karui a death look and nearly causing her to fall over in fear.

She then noticed that Naruto had not said let alone stirred during the entire time she had been talking.

"Ano, Naruto-sama?" she asked hesitantly.

"Please forgive my comrade." Sai said stepping in and giving her a small yet warm smile. "He will be fine but I should get him some medical assistance for the stab wound to his chest."

Samui's eyes narrowed at the realization that her subordinate may have just made a huge mistake. "I cannot even begin to tell you how sorry I am for their actions." she said with a quick bow. "At least allow me to assist you in getting him to the hospital."

Sai waved her off with a smile as he grabbed one of Naruto's arms and pulled it around his shoulder standing him up. "No, it's quiet alright. I would hate for you to have to get blood all over your lovely che-"

Sai was quickly cut off as Naruto suddenly stopped on his foot causing him to realize he was about to make a critical mistake.

"-features." he finished with another small smile.

To her teammates surprise as well as her own, Samui actually blushed and she absent-mindedly pushed some hair behind her ear. "Thank you…"

"Sai."

"Thank you Sai." she said with a small smile before regaining her composure. "We must be off, once again my apologies for the way my teammates acted. I hope this will not affect our relationship between the countries."

"Don't worry about it." Naruto said quietly looking up with great effort with a bloodied smile. "It was nothing more than a sparring match."

Samui nodded gratefully before speaking. "Well we must be off. Karui, Omoi, let's go!"

"Have a safe trip back my lady." Sai said waving with his free hand and giving one more small smile, gaining another blush from Samui before he turned and started walking Naruto to the hospital.

"So…" Naruto whispered quietly with a small grin, "Where did you learn to talk like that Casanova?"

Sai gave a small shrug. "I read it somewhere."

"Mind telling me where exactly?" Naruto asked trying to suppress the smile attempting to cross his broken face.

Sai simply pulled a book out of his pouch. Although it was night, the soft wash of the moon revealed one of the brightly covered books that his sensei loved to read so much.

"I thought as much." Naruto said knowingly before the smile finally escaped and he added. "Perv."

"Oh?" Sai questioned. "What about you?"

"I didn't have a choice" Naruto said continuing to grin. "Pervy Sage forced me to read and edit them."

"As if that's an excuse." Sai said bluntly before they both broke out into a small chuckle. They walked for a few moments in silence before Naruto spoke again.

"Sai?"

"Yes?"

"Don't tell Sakura about what happened tonight." he said as he lowered his head in shame.

"But-"

"Just promise me you won't!" he said looking at him pleadingly.

Sai was quiet for second before nodding. "I promise."

"Thanks." Naruto said with a smile. "Now what do ya say we call it a night before we end up dead?"

"Sounds like a plan." Sai said, returning the smile.

Although it was late, two small shadows moved briskly from rooftop to rooftop, making their way quickly towards the Hyuuga complex. They moved with precision, determined to accomplish the mission they had like true shinobi: to be in and out without ever being noticed. For them, the night had just begun.