Herald of the End Chapter 35: What Hurts The Most, a naruto fanfic

You guys are awesome.

As far as the poll went about including the storyline from Bonds, it seems that you guys didn't want me to include it, so it won't be showing up in any real manner in HotE.

Since quite a few reviewers asked the same question about Fu, I'll answer it here. Fu is not going to be joining Naruto in any romantic sense of the word. They are/will be more like siblings than anything else.

AU Changes: There is quite a bit of exposition/backstory in this chapter and a decent chunk of it got altered from canon. It was mostly the silly bits, such as space aliens. (Why was there space aliens in a medieval fantasy setting with superpowers?).

And without any more delay, here's the next chapter. Chapter 35: What Hurts The Most

"Naruto!" Fu happily waved at her friend as he approached, "How are you doing?"

"Good." Naruto grinned at her, her happy demeanor proving infectious, "Did you manage to save the villagers?"

"Yep." Fu nodded, her bottom lip poking out slightly to accent the final syllable, "And two of them even thanked me for rescuing them." Her face twisted slightly in disappointment for the briefest of seconds. "They didn't want to be my friend though…" She then shrugged, her easy smile returning to her face. "But that's okay. They can always become my friend tomorrow."

"That's the spirit." Naruto encouraged her, "You'll never know what tomorrow will bring." He paused, considering something. "How did you take down the missing ninjas anyway?"

"Well," Fu's orange eyes shined as she began regaling her friend with her tale of bravery, "Once you had gone, I created a second water sword…"

Fu leapt off of the tallest building she could find with an excited woop of glee. In that single moment of stillness, before gravity pulled her back into it's embrace, she soared. Gravity restored itself a moment later and the missing nin, alerted by Fu's shout, fired their most powerful ranged jutsus in her direction. Fire, water, lightning, a few odd earth techniques, and a smattering assortment of weapons rocketed up to meet the mint haired kunoichi.

Feeling the trickle of the Chomei's chakra edging at the corner of her mind, Fu let the powerful chakra of the Biju flow through her without resistance, fully trusting her friend. Countless chakra threads shot out of Fu, only to wrap around her like a cocoon, protecting its container from the rapidly approaching techniques. A moment after the light green cocoon finished creating its shell, the missing ninjas' attacks hit. The resounding BOOM as each of the techniques slammed into the target made almost made them flinch.

The cocoon dropped out of the steam and smoke clouds, completely unharmed. Upon touching the ground, it broke apart into individual threads that then retreated into Fu's back once again.

"Thanks Chomei!" Fu sent the mental thanks to her best friend. As soon as the cocoon cleared enough for Fu to see, she charged at the still shocked missing nin. Her water sword, shaped out of compressed chakra-laced water, sliced into the first missing nin without any resistance. Normally a water sword, already a rather poor choice of an element to shape into a weapon, would have had some difficulty cutting into the missing nin, but supercharged with chakra as the sword was, it cut through the man like he was made of paper.

Blood fountained to the ground in rather copious amounts and the rest of the missing nin froze in shock. Ironically, if Fu had calculated it on purpose, it would have been a master stroke of an opening attack, catching her enemies off guard with the brutal attack. In reality, however, Fu never learned the art of subtlety. She simply and fully committed everything she had to everything she did, never holding anything back.

"Hi." Fu waved at the shocked missing ninjas, "Please surrender."

Credit must be given to the few smarter missing nin, who clearly understood what they faced. Dropping their weapons, they quickly moved out of the line of fire, know that their less than brilliant 'teammates' would be attempting to futily attack the powerful girl once again. They were right.

Fu shot forward, water coalescing on her arm for a moment before she flung it outward, towards a group of enemies that seemed to be attempting to collaborate on a jutsu. A massive wave of unstoppable water flew at them, missing the hostages on the ground, but still close enough to thoroughly soak the tied-up villagers. The wave slammed into the group of missing ninja with the force of a speeding tsunami, smashing some into the ground while blasting others away into buildings and, in one instance, a candy stall that sold rock candy.

One of the missing nin managed to get a sword up in time to block Fu's strike, only for her second sword to bash through his defenses. The bodies of the missing nin soon littered the ground, the blood mixing with the pools of water Fu's overpowered techniques left behind. The few missing nin that were left, wanting to avert their fate, surrendered.

Fu, now that all of the enemies were dead, incapacitated, or had surrendered, trotted over to the first group of tied up civilians and Genin. The same water sword that had so easily sliced through flesh cut just as easily through the wet ropes. Fu, happy that she had been able to save people - and perhaps some of them would be her friend? - Friends, or soon to be friends, saved each other, right? - moved on to the second group.

"This is all your fault." The voice sounded angrily behind her, "You caused this!" Fu turned around, open confusion on her face. How had she caused this? "You...and your...freakishness; your oddities; your differences; you brought them here! And if that wasn't enough, you destroyed my stand; my livelihood!"

The mint girl rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. "Sorry about that." She shot an sheepish grin at him. "Sometimes I get carried away, ya know?" She paused, attempting to think of how she could help him. "I'll help you rebuild your shop." She nodded in acceptance of her plan. "I'll get it fixed right up in no time!"

"You aren't touching anything with your filthy, cursed hands demon." The man turned and began helping his fellow villagers up, ignoring the mint haired girl's attempts to explain herself. Fu, while feeling hurt by his words, soon pushed them out of her mind in favor of cutting free the remaining groups of captured villagers and ninja.

"Don't worry about his words dearie." An older woman patted Fu's arm, "He's just angry. People say things they don't mean when they are angry." Fu, instantly happier, freed the last group. Even more amazingly, one boy about her age had thanked her as well. Fu had happily hugged him in response, completely missed how he had blushed from being in close contact with a cute girl. Once everyone had been freed, Fu had waved enthusiastically once more before heading towards the center of town to see if she could help Naruto.

"That's awesome, Fu." Naruto grinned. He was happy for her, knowing how wonderful it felt for someone to say a kind word to you. "But we should talk about your fighting style tomorrow."

Fu blinked. "My fighting style? Is there something wrong with it?"

"There's nothing wrong with it." Naruto hastened to reassure her, "But it can be refined. Back before Jiraiya started training me, I was a lot like you: I had powerful attacks, but no control; no refinement." Looking back, Naruto was still surprised that he had come as far as he had. "And I will teach you what I have learned, if you would like me to."

"That's…" Fu did her best not to cry, "I...would love for you to teach me!" Could her life get any better?

With nighttime rapidly approaching, Naruto parted ways with a slightly reluctant Fu and headed to the motel room Jiraiya had picked out. "Naruto." Jiraiya greeted his godson as he entered the room, "How's it feel to be the hero of the village?"

Naruto tilted his head, looking slightly confused. "Hero of the village?"

"Yep." The white haired ninja nodded, "Basically everyone heard how you took down Suien and his men single-handedly, saving the village as a result." The Super Pervert giggled. "It's like you are planning to get a harem or something…"

"I doubt that any of my girlfriends would approve of your line of thinking." Naruto was slowly learning to reply to Jiraiya's comments, while appearing to not react to them. The Uzumaki headed past Jiraiya, intent on catching a few hours of sleep before getting up to train. In addition, he needed to talk to the Kyubi. Perhaps it knew something about the chains and the woman's voice?

"True." Jiraiya grudgingly conceded, before perking up. "Speaking of which, I have to tell you something about Fu."

"Hmmm?" Naruto paused, glancing at his teacher, "What about her?" Despite only having met Fu, Naruto could shake the feeling of familiarity he had with the mint haired girl. "Perhaps it's because she's a Jinchuriki. Or perhaps it's because she's like an optimistic version of me before I met Sakura-Chan." Either way, Naruto could already see Fu being like a sister of sorts.

"Given that this attack happened, Shibuki is going to be letting Fu go. She will be asked to leave Taki permanently." A pause. "He's going to tell her tomorrow morning."

"Damn." Naruto shook his head sadly. He intellectually understood why Shibuki was doing it, but more importantly, Fu was going to be extremely hurt by this rejection. It's not what he would have done, but he wasn't Shibuki. "She can come back to Konoha with us, right?"

"I don't see any reason why she can't." Jiraiya shrugged. "And Tsunade-Hime won't protest it."

"Good." Naruto nodded. He definitely had to wake up early now. He was well aware of just how much rejection hurt, and he would be there for Fu. Flopping onto his bed, he voiced the last question he had.

"Jiraiya?"

"Yeah?"

"Where were you when the missing ninja attacked?"

"I had to go meet with one of my spies. I had to leave the village to do it." Jiraiya didn't open his eyes.

"Ah." Naruto nodded. Jiraiya's explanation made sense. The Uzumaki closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Drip

"Naruto." The Kyubi tilted it's massive head in greeting.

"Kyubi." Naruto returned, also tilting his head in greeting.

"You are here to ask about the chains, are you not?" Subtlety wasn't something it understood.

"Yes." Here, in this place with one of his closest friends, Naruto didn't have to hide how uncomfortable it was to hear someone else's voice echo out of your own. "What was up with the voice?"

"Before we talk about that," The Kyubi hesitated briefly, "I need to tell you something first before Chomei spills it." It scowled. "It's not like I didn't want to tell you or anything, it's just…" The Nine-Tails looked uncomfortable.

"If you don't want to tell me," Naruto smiled comfortingly at his friend, "Don't force yourself. I'll wait until you are ready."

"No." The Kyubi shook it's head, "I will tell you." It took a deep breath. "A long time ago, there was a woman by the name of Kaguya Otsutsuki. She was said to be kind and powerful. Back in her time, chakra was a rarity, a thing that only few in the world possessed. But there was a tree that was said to contain the powers of a god…"

"Kaguya knew that it was forbidden to eat the fruit of the God Tree, but she didn't care. She dreamed of a world where everyone was peaceful and no one was ever hurt. She dared to challenge even the most sacred of taboos." The Kyubi's gaze was directed to the wall, but it was seeing events of a different age; a different time. "So she tore down the gates that protected the God Tree from the world and ate one of the forbidden fruit."

The Kyubi wasn't sure what it was feeling. "When she ate of the fruit, her chakra levels, before barely existent, instantly grew to become that of a deity's. She was the First. The first person to be able to mold the formless chakra within her into something else. She was the first to gain the Rinnegan." A chuckle. "Kaguya entered the God Tree's garden as Kaguya Otsutsuki, but left it as the Rabbit Goddess. She taught the world how to use chakra, quickly coming to believe that she was the world's mother in a way. But, power corrupts, and Kaguya was almost power itself."

Naruto quietly waited for his friend, sensing that this story was somehow deeply personal to the Kyubi.

"Within only a few years, she single handedly ended the wars that plagued the land. She grew from a benevolent mother to a seemingly cruel and tyrannical ruler. The only person she deeply cared about was her son, Hagoromo. Eventually Hagoromo could not stand the way their mother was treating her 'subjects'. The Kyubi's tone indicating that using the word 'subjects' was charitable at best, "Using the Rinnegan that Hagoromo inherited from his mother, he fought his mother and her guards, trying to make her see reason. Enraged, Kaguya stormed back to the God Tree and merged with it, seeking even more power."

The Kyubi looked over at Naruto. "This is where my story starts. When the Rabbit Goddess merged with the God Tree, the tree gained sentience, and it began changing. No longer was it the God Tree, but it was Ame no Hitotsu no Kami, the Ten Tails." The Kyubi, now firmly in the grips of it's past, didn't hear Naruto's exclamation of surprise.

"It's chakra began flowing through Kaguya's body. Hagoromo, acting before she could fully react, temporarily sealed the Ten Tails in the moon." The Kyubi closed it's eyes, remembering Kaguya's screams from so long ago…

"I am your Mother!" Kaguya's ethereal beauty was distorted into an ugly mask of rage and hate, "And you reject me? You hate me?!"

"No Mother." Hagoromo shook his head sadly, his heart breaking, "I don't hate you. I love you, I always have and always will."

"Then why are you opposing me?" Kaguya just couldn't understand. Why was her precious little boy trying to stop her from making the world a better place?

"Because you have forgotten why you ate the Fruit in the first place."

"I have not forgotten." Her pale purple eyes flickered, "I wanted bring peace; to make sure no one ever got hurt ever again." Tears streamed down her face. "Is that so wrong?" It was but a whisper.

"No." Hagoromo shook his head, "It's not wrong. But you can't take all of the hurt and pain away. Not like this." He paused. "You want to create a world where there is no freedom, an infinite genjutsu. It will end any hope of real world will stagnate and fall into ruin."

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Kaguya cried out in anguish, "I taught them how to use chakra so they could grow in peace." Her tears slid down her cheeks, serving to only increase her beauty. "But what did they do with my teachings? They perverted it; using it to kill each other."

"I caused the world so much pain." It was a broken whisper from the woman. "Through me, the world has been hurt so much."

Her fists clenched. "So I decided to make them live in peace. I became what I had to be; the terrible tyrant in order to save them." She looked pleadingly at her son, "Don't you see? They can't be trusted with anything; they are like babies entrusted with fire. They can't help themselves."

"You know that those you speak of is only a small number." Hagoromo quietly pointed out, hoping and praying that he wouldn't have to fight his mother. "The rest were just simply caught in the crossfire."

"But were they happy to be free of pain? Did they thank me for peace?" There was the slightest maddened edge to her words now, as the power of the Ten-Tails began to affect her mind, "No. They cursed me. They fought me with every breath. Even when I put down the troublemakers; the ones who caused everyone pain; they feared me."

"Stay with me Mother!" Hagoromo took a step forward, seeking to embrace his distraught mother, "This isn't you!"

"This is who I AM!" Her voice thundered out, the very earth shaking at her words. "I AM their mother! They would be nothing without ME! But do they praise me for it? NO! They hurt others with MY gifts."

Chakra began swirling around her form. "So Iike a child who cannot be trusted, I will take it back."

"But that will kill them!" Hagoromo tried to reach his mother, ignoring how the razor sharp blades of chakra sliced into his skin, "Taking their chakra away would kill them all!"

"Then so be it. The world would be better off without humans. All they know is how to hurt; how to cause pain."

"Please don't do this." Hagoromo stopped moving towards Kaguya. He pulsed his own chakra, activating his own Rinnegan. A shield of pure chakra blocked the errant blades of chakra that lashed mindlessly outwards from Kaguya.

"You would betray me?" Tears coursed down Kaguya's cheeks as her heart broke. "You, my beloved son?"

"No." A lone tear slid down Hagoromo's face, "You betray yourself."

"AAARRRGGG!" Kaguya's mind snapped, leaving only maddened rage in the wake of shattered pieces of her heart and mind. "I will destroy everything and create the world anew! Only it will be perfect, because I will remove all that can cause pain from mankind!"

"I'm sorry Mother." Hagoromo took a step forward, pulling all of the ambient Nature Chakra to himself. "But that world isn't something anyone should be forced to live in."

"And so they fought. Their battle was so fierce that it created the mountains that mark the Land of Earth. The great ocean boiled away, leaving only sand behind. The world was shaped and torn apart by their battle. Eventually Hagoromo prevailed against his mother, casting her down to the earth. And with her last breath, she begged him, asking him why…."

"Why?" The words bubbled out of her lips along with the dark red blood, "Why do you choose them? All they do is cause pain to themselves and others."

"That's the funny thing about pain." Hagoromo knelt down by his dying mother, holding her hand as he explained, his voice patient and kind, "If all you are looking for is pain and hurt, that's all you will find." He smiled as he remembered walking among the villages, hearing the carefree laughter of the children. "But there is more to life than pain; more to emotions than hurt. There is happiness, joy, understanding, faith, kindness, humility, and hope."

"You do get hurt. It's a part of life. But happiness is part of life too." He felt her hand tremble ever so slightly. "And without pain, how could you understand happiness? Without ever being hurt, how could you learn to cherish those closest to you?" He bowed his head as her breaths grew shorter.

"Yes, pain hurts. But it will make you stronger if you let it. To make the world a better place, so that someone else doesn't feel that pain you did." Hagoromo shook his head. "But you can't take pain away, not completely. Pain is necessary for us to grow. It's what makes love, joy, and peace so wonderful. It's inspires us to work together towards a better world."

It was only then, that Kaguya understood. At the edge of life and death, she understood. "You are wise my son." Her voice was but a whisper, broken by wet coughs. "I was wrong about you. You make me so proud. I…" Blood splattered Hagoromo's face as she coughed, her face growing pale and waxen. Determination blazed in her eyes one last time as she caught her breath, wanting to tell her son her final message. "I….love you my son. I always will."

Her breath stilled as death embraced her. Hagoromo wanted to cry; he wanted to scream out his pain; to give into the hurt; but he would not. No, there was still the Ten-Tails to defeat, and he would not let it harm anyone else, to let any other mothers die; to let any child feel the pain of seeing their mother's corpse.

"And so Hagoromo fought the Ten-Tails who mind, possessing only an appetite for destruction, sought to destroy Hagoromo and the world. The ground was torn asunder; the sky caught fire; the water raged. But Hagoromo drew Nature's endless chakra to himself, becoming the world's first Sage. He eventually sealed the Ten Tails within himself, lacking the power to permanently destroy it. For the rest of his life he traveled the land, showing others how to use their gifts, chakra or otherwise, to help others. He would eventually be called the Sage of Six Paths." The Kyubi didn't dare look at Naruto, not wanting to see it's friend's face during the next part of the story, "Nearing the end of his life, Sage of Six Paths knew that when he died, the Ten-Tails would be released. His sons, while powerful, were not strong enough to stop it. So he split the Ten-Tails into nine separate beings; nine separate Biju."

"On that day I was born. He gave us each a name, an identity, and a mission. I was the eldest, the strongest, and the most powerful. My mission was to protect my brothers and sisters, to keep their power from being exploited." A fond smile spread unconsciously across the Fox's massive muzzle. "For a time we traveled together, growing in power and understanding. For a time, we were family. But," A shadow crossed over the Nine-Tails' face, "Eventually I grew tired of the burden of being the leader and protector. I told them all that they should grow stronger without me, that strength was the only thing that mattered." A humorless chuckle echoed in the chamber.

"And so we slowly drifted apart, one by one. And once we were alone, the humans began sealing us away, one by one. Some part of me screamed in rage and hurt when one of my brethren was sealed, but I ignored that part of me. I told myself that they were simply not strong enough." Another chuckle. "And then I was sealed...and I began to hate."

"So now that you know me, know my secret; how I failed to protect, what will you do? What questions do you have?" The Kyubi told itself that it would not blame Naruto if he left it in the dark, it was, after all, what it deserved for turning it's back on it's brothers and sisters all those years ago; for failing to protect them.

"Will you tell me your name?" Naruto did not judge, he understood that while the Kyubi had failed, the Kyubi had never asked to become the protector. It had just been born, and already such a heavy burden had been placed upon it's shoulders. Naruto wouldn't blame his friend for falling down under the strain.

The Kyubi couldn't help the swelling of gratefulness at Naruto's question. Naruto wasn't rejecting him! His friend wasn't leaving him alone! "My name is Kurama."

"Hi Kurama." Naruto smiled up at his friend, "My name is Naruto."

Kurama, for the first time in it's existence, felt a new emotion. It was powerful and light...and...freeing. Having little experience with any emotion besides hate and anger, the Kyubi would have preferred to simply push the new emotion away. But...it wouldn't go away. Every time Kurama attempted to push it down, it would remember Naruto's simple words of acceptance and the damned emotion would come roaring right back.

"Uhhh…" The Kyubi's eyes darted back and forth, seeking for an excuse to send Naruto away until it found a way to deal with this strange and troublesome emotion, "Oh look at that." Sending a spike of chakra to his container, Kurama quickly bypassed the need for Naruto to sleep, "You are fully rested."

"Are you ok, Kurama?" Naruto asked his friend, wanting to help if he could.

The strange emotion doubled. "Yes. Now go and train." The Kyubi made a 'shooing' motion with it's paws. "You have to get stronger, remember?"

"Right." Naruto nodded. He paused just before leaving the mindscape. "Kurama, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm always here to listen."

Waiting until Naruto left the mindscape, Kurama let itself slump to the floor. "What is this emotion? Is this...happiness?"The Nine Tails grunted to itself in confusion. This new emotion was...most vexing.

Naruto, Fu decided, wasn't perfect. While he was kind, intelligent, very good at combat, and a patient teacher, he was apparently completely oblivious to moments when members of the opposite gender were flirting with him. "Come on, Naruto! The line 'Can I see your sword' does not obviously mean that she wants to see your sword sword." Fu frowned at the three women surrounding the table that Fu and Naruto were sitting at. Well, to be more accurate, they were all grouped around Naruto and completely ignoring Fu's existence.

"I leave for five minutes to use the bathroom and these...bitches move in." Fu glared at the three, mentally feeling the Chomei doing the same. The Seven Tails and her container felt the same way about the subject, albeit for different reasons. Fu wasn't pleased because her friend and fellow Jinchuriki had three girlfriends he cared about deeply cared about, and he wasn't trying to attract anyone else. As for the Chomei, she wasn't about to let her Kurama-Chan and it's container be seduced by some floozy females.

"Fu-Chan." Chomei's voice echoed in Fu's ear, "You should just tell them to leave Naruto alone."

"Excuse me." Fu spoke up, surprising the three girls. They glanced at her in shock for a few seconds, before their faces turned up in disgust.

"What do you want?" The snobbish tone made Fu want to punch the lead girl straight in her perfect little nose, "Can't you see we are busy?"

Unsurprisingly, the moment the girl had taken that tone with Fu, Naruto noticed. "Excuse me." His voice was flat and controlled, giving nothing away, "Do you have a problem with my friend?"

The girl turned back to Naruto with a beatific smile. "Don't worry about her Naruto-Kun~." She leaned a bit closer to the Uzumaki, "She's going to be leaving."

"No," Naruto shook his head, "She isn't." His bright blue eyes had a icy tint to them as he locked eyes with the three girls who looked more than slightly shocked. "Fu is my friend. And if you have a problem with her, you have a problem with me."

"B-But she is a demon." One of the girls stammered, not understanding how the clearly freakish features that Fu had could attract anyone, much less the savior of the village.

"Oh." Naruto tilted his head for a second before smiling and sticking out his hand to the girl, but the smile never managed to reach his eyes. "Hello." She shook his hand, a blush reddening her face. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, the Jinchuriki of the Nine Tails." His eyes flickered dark blue for the briefest of seconds. "Pleased to meet you."

"Y-You're a...a…" They were now terribly confused and more than slightly frightened now.

"Yes." Naruto nodded. "Now please go away. My friend and I were having a nice breakfast until you decided to ignore and insult her." The three girls quickly fled, unable to accept the fact that their attractive savior was also a demon like Fu.

"Are you alright?" The question shook Fu out of her annoyed thoughts about the girls.

"Huh?" Fu blinked, and Chomei quickly filled the mint haired girl in onto what Naruto had said. "Oh. Yeah." Fu broke out in a wide smile, positively beaming at Naruto as she remembered Naruto standing up for her. She was well aware that her features were nothing to look at, but despite that, Naruto had stood up for her against several young women who were blessed with the more acceptable looks that were classically cherished in Taki. "Thanks for standing up for me."

"Anytime." Naruto smiled back at her, knowing how wonderful it felt when someone stood up for you, "You're my friend."

Spotting Fu's happy mood, Naruto didn't want to say anything about what Shibuki had planned for Fu, but he didn't want her going in blind if he could help it. "Fu?"

"Hmmmm…?" Fu glanced up from her cinnamon bun, the happy smile still affixed on her face, "Yes Naruto?" Spotting the serious look on his face, Fu sat up, attempting to school her face into an equally serious face. She was slightly successful. The warm feeling she had gotten from when her friend - who was rapidly approaching best friend status - had stood up for her wouldn't abate.

"I have to tell you something." Naruto sighed and barely avoided letting his feelings show on his face. "Remember when I was talking about the Akatsuki?" At Fu's nod, he started to continue, "Well, Jiraiya has been speaking to…"

"Genin Fu." One of Shibuki's personal guards suddenly spoke up as he arrived in a swirl of illusionary water that was the signature of the water shinshin. "Shibuki-Sama needs to speak to you."

"Sorry Naruto." Fu stood up, "Could this wait until I get back?"

"Yeah." Naruto attempted to smile at the mint haired girl, "It can."

"Okey-dokie." Fu turned and gave an enthusiastic salute to the Taki ninja, "I'll head over to see Shibuki right away."

"Fu!" Naruto called out to his friend, "Just remember that I'm always here to listen."

"Thanks!" Fu wasn't exactly sure why Naruto had phrased that the way he did, but it was...good to hear it from him regardless of the situation.

"Genin Fu reporting for duty." The perfect salute and statement was ruined by Fu's happy and slightly impish smile.

Shibuki felt his mournful mood deepen at her expression. "I'm sorry Fu-Chan. I wish there was another way." Fu's grin faltered, "Shibuki?" She dropped her salute and trotted closer to her friend. "Is something wrong?" Her orange trusting eyes peered at him. "I can help with whatever you need."

Shibuki swallowed the lump in his throat. "No." It was a sad whisper, "You can't help me with this." Glancing up at Fu's visibly worried face, Shibuki took a deep breathe and began. "Fu, do you know who the Akatsuki is?"

"Yeah." Fu nodded, still trying to determine how she could help her oldest friend. He was sad, and she was determined to make him feel better. "Naruto told me all about them." She paused, considering. A moment later she realized why Shibuki was sad. "Don't worry." Fu took a step back from Shibuki's desk and struck several heroic poses. "I'll protect the village." Visions of exciting battles raced through her mind. "And then everyone in Taki will become my friends." The mint haired girl sighed happily.

Shibuki didn't think he could feel any worse, his stomach was sinking even more than he thought possible. "Fu," He attempted to still the tremor in his voice, "You aren't going to be defending the village."

"W-What?" Fu froze, "What do ya mean?" She just didn't understand. How could she not defend the villagers that would one day become her friends?

"The missing ninja that attacked last night were merely Jonin level." Shibuki clenched his fist underneath the desk as he thought of Suien's actions. "All it took to bring Taki to it's knees was a mere army of missing nin."

"But Naruto and I saved everyone." Fu protested. She just didn't understand!

"Yes you two did. But," The leader of Taki shook his head, "The fact remains: It only took mere Jonin." He shook his head again. "We can't hope to stand against an S-Class ninja, let alone an organization of them."

"That's why I'm here." Fu reassured her friend, "Chomei and I will protect everyone."

"No." The leader of Taki shook his head, "You won't be defending Taki." He ruthlessly suppressed his own emotions to the best of his ability. "I have to choose between the village and you. The Akatsuki will destroy Taki to get to you." He swallowed. "As of this moment, you are no longer a ninja of Taki. I…" Shibuki's voice broke, but he forced the words past the painful lump in his throat. "...Revoke your ninja status. You are no longer welcome in Taki."

"W-Wha…a-are you saying Shibuki?" Fu stammered, confusion and hurt laced in her tone, "Th-That's a good joke." She forced herself to laugh. "But it's just a joke right?"

"I'm sorry." Shibuki watched Fu's inner happiness shatter into a thousand irrecoverable pieces. Pain, pure raw, confused pain reflected in her orange orbs. "I'm so sorry."

"Why?" It was a tearful plea. "Wha-What ever I did, I'm sorry. I-I'll never pull pranks again." Tears began sliding down Fu's cheeks. "I'll do anything. Tell me what I did so I can fix it. Just don't make me leave!" Fu fought back the sob. "Please."

"I'm sorry." Shibuki felt his heart break. "It's nothing you did. It's who you are. You have until tomorrow morning to leave the village."

Fu felt like her world was collapsing. Spinning on her heel, she sprinted out of the building, her tear obsured vision just clear enough to guide her towards her small apartment. Soon anguished sobs of pain and misery echoed outside her room.

"Leave me." Shibuki requested, his words choked up and hard to understand. The guards bowed and left the room, closing the door behind them. They stood in front of the closed door, vowing to keep their Shibuki-Sama undisturbed until he was done grieving. While they didn't feel bad for having to kick the demon girl out, they understood and empathized with their leader. They admired his strength of character, having the courage to do was was right.

Chomei hovered sadly in the confines of the seal as she watched Fu sob. While the Seven Tails understood why Shibuki had done what he had done, it didn't make her feel any better. Her container and friend was feeling horribly betrayed and there really wasn't anything Chomei could do about it. Sending her chakra towards her container, Chomei did her best to instill the feeling of comfort and care into her chakra, giving Fu something to hold onto. The Seven Tails wished it knew what to say to make her container feel better.

"Fu?" Naruto's voice called out from her rickety front door, "Are you alright?" A pause. "You don't have to answer right now. I'll wait until you are feeling up to replying." Settling himself comfortably on the top step outside Fu's apartment, Naruto pulled out an Uzumaki scroll on the theory of accelerating mass through the vacuum of a storage seal.

It was perhaps twenty minutes later when Naruto heard Fu's footsteps heading towards the front door. Standing up, he sealed the scroll back into it's storage seal and turned towards the door.

Fu hesitantly opened her front door, half expecting that Naruto had left by now. After all, if Shibuki hadn't wanted to be her friend anymore, why would Naruto want to be? She opened the door and was shocked to see her friend standing there.

"Hey." Naruto gave Fu an understanding look, "Would you like me to come in?" He spoke gently, remembering how he had felt all those years ago when he had felt what Fu must be feeling right now. And he would be there for her, just like he had always wished someone had been been there for him, all those years ago. Naruto had dealt with the pain alone, and become stronger for it, learning from it. And now, he would use his knowledge to help Fu realize that she didn't have to go through this alone.

"Damn." Jiraiya sometimes didn't like the things he had to do. While it was better for everyone involved if Fu left Taki, that knowledge was cold comfort when hearing her cry. The Spymaster hadn't lied to Naruto about meeting with one of his spies...from a certain point of view. Jiraiya sighed. This is why he didn't like these types of missions. Watching Fu let Naruto inside, Jiraiya didn't really feel up to letting out a perverted giggle. He knew that his godson wouldn't be doing anything remotely intimate with Fu. If he had to guess, Jiraiya suspected that their relationship would be a brother/sister type of relationship. And not in the 'fun' kind of sibling relationship.

"I still need to figure out how Naruto managed to convince three independent young kunoichi to share him." Jiraiya still couldn't figure out if he was amazed, proud, or jealous of Naruto having a harem. "Oh well. When Naruto introduces Fu to them it should be interesting." Settling himself more comfortably on top of the building that overlooked Fu's apartment, the Toad Sannin contented himself with keeping watch to make sure none of the villagers tried to interrupt Fu and Naruto's time.

Finally feeling Fu's sobs taper off, Naruto loosened the hug. "Feeling better?"

"Uh-huh." Fu nodded as she sniffled slightly as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Would you like to travel with Jiraiya and me?" Naruto's question hung in the quiet air, "You could stay with us for as long as you like."

"Really?" Fu's voice was small and uncertain. Her faith had just taken a huge blow, and she didn't think she could take another rejection this soon.

"Really." Naruto smiled at Fu, before standing up and offering her his hand. "Why don't you get cleaned up and then we can start packing. I'll be back in a half hour." Keeping yourself motivated was the first step in dealing with something as soul shattering as this. As strange as it sounded, Naruto was thankful that he could use his experiences to help Fu.

"Right." Fu stood up as well, nodding in acceptance of Naruto's plan. "Naruto," she called out as the blonde Uzumaki headed for the door, "Thanks."

Naruto grinned back. "Anytime. It's what friends do."

Heading towards the shower, Fu didn't try to stop the tiny smile that creased her lips. While it was a far cry from her normal wide smiles, it brought something else more precious with it.

Hope.

"Welp," Jiraiya started as he, Naruto, and Fu left the area Taki controlled several hours later, "Now we are far enough away from Taki, I have something to show you two." Fu, who had fallen silent as she left the only home she had ever known, couldn't help the curiosity that bubbled up within her, causing her to look over at Jiraiya as he stopped along the path and pulled out a rather large sealing scroll.

Tapping his finger onto the center of the array, the Spymaster dropped the scroll onto the ground and waited for Fu's response.

Fu's mouth dropped open as six large wooden crates that proudly displayed the words 'Rock Candy' in bold black lettering suddenly appeared in a puff of smoke. Wondering close to one, she almost reverently opened the crate. Countless sticks of delicious looking rock candy, each one bundled in pristine wax paper, greeted her.

Her eyes practically shining, Fu turned to the white haired ninja. "Is this...for us?"

Jiraiya grinned, accidently coping Naruto's signature teasing grin. "Technically it's for you...provided you can learn how to seal them into a sealing scroll." Seeing Fu's mind almost overloading with the information that she could have all of that wonderful sugary delight, Jiraiya couldn't help but add, "I'm sure Naruto wouldn't mind teaching you how sealing scrolls work."

Naruto was immediately accosted by an exuberant Fu. "Naruto, can you teach me? Can you? Pleasepleaseplease?"

Naruto couldn't help but agree in the face of her excitement. "Sure. When we stop to eat lunch, I'll start on the basics of sealing with you."

"Thank-you!" Fu pulled Naruto into a quick tight hug before hurrying over to Jiraiya, and to the Toad Sannin's surprise, gave him an equally tight hug. Releasing Jiraiya, she grabbed Naruto's hand and began pulling him forward. "Come on! Let's get as far as we can before lunch!"

Watching Fu happily munch on a rock candy stick as she raced forward, Jiraiya knew he had made the right decision in buying all of the merchant's rock candy. The merchant had been looking to sell his stock cheap, given that it looked practically soaked by water, and Jiraiya had been more then happy take it off his hands at a drastically reduced rate. Jiraiya smirked to himself. It wasn't his fault if the merchant didn't bother to check if the crates were actually wet, rather than just looking wet…

As much as Fu valiantly tried to stay awake, the emotional events of the day quickly tired Fu out, and she slipped off to sleep after eating some of Naruto's warm ramen and chicken.

"Fu-Chan." Chomei floated towards her partner, "Are you feeling any better?"

Fu shook head before pausing and then nodding. "It still hurts." She whispered, feeling a few tears trickle down her cheeks. Now that she didn't have anything to distract her, the open wound of Shibuki's rejection throbbed within her.

"It's alright Fu-Chan." Chomei moved to her container, encircling Fu in her wings. "Rest now. I'm here for you." Watching Fu drift off to sleep, Chomei couldn't help but be relieved that Fu had someone like Naruto as her friend. Chomei only had a brief moment to 'feel' Naruto's character when she was in the shared mindscape with Kurama, but it had been enough. He had felt safe, kind, and compassionate. But at the same time, there was core of steel within him, and he would not let anyone harm those he deemed important.

Feeling Fu snuggle deeper into her embrace, Chomei let her chakra surround them. "Sleep well Fu-Chan."

"So…." Jiraiya couldn't contain himself any longer, "Want to test out those chakra chains?"

Naruto grinned. "You bet."

After Naruto created a squad of clones to guard Fu as she slept, he and Jiraiya moved several hundred yards away to begin their testing. "Ready?" Naruto questioned, taking the same precautions as he did with any new technique. Jiraiya nodded. Concentrating on the feeling he had felt when the chakra chains had burst forth, Naruto felt his chakra tensing and coiling beneath his skin. Searching his memories, he couldn't remember how to materialize the chains. So, lacking any other options, he let himself fall back into instinct.

The seven chains burst from his back, easily tearing through the back of his t-shirt. One chain burst from each of his wrists. The chains quivered slightly, seemingly waiting for something.

"How do you feel?" Jiraiya called to the Uzumaki, "Did that hurt?"

"No." Naruto shook his head, "It just feels…" He tried to come up with a word to describe the sensation that he was getting from the chains, "...Weird."

"How so?"

"You know how your arm feels when you accidentally sleep on it? Right before you get the pins and needles? That sorta numb feeling?" The Toad Sannin nodded. "Kinda like that."

"Huh." Jiraiya scratched his head. "I have no real background with chakra chains besides what your mother could do with them."

"Mom had chakra chains?" Naruto instantly focused on Jiraiya, not noticing the chains still at Jiraiya's words.

"Yeah." Jiraiya didn't miss the chains' reactions. "She mostly used them in conjunction with her swords, but sometimes, when she got enraged, she just used her chains." He couldn't help but wince at the memory of the time when he had tried to peep on Kushina and Minato. If it wasn't for Minato calming her down, Jiraiya wasn't sure if he would still have all of his arms and legs, much less have survived at all. "I'm going to create a clone and send it in to see what happens." If the chains were what Jiraiya was beginning to suspect, then they would protect Naruto.

"Doton: Bunshin."

Forming a clone out of mud, the humanoid clone trudged towards Naruto. The moment it got within ten feet of Naruto, Jiraiya learned he was very, very wrong about the chakra chains' reactions. Striking forward like an angry scorpion tails, the seven chains from his Naruto's back tore into the clone in an determined frenzy. A few impaled the clone, while another ripped off an arm. The remaining settled for slashing and piercing the clone until it crumbled into dust.

"Well then." Jiraiya was quite glad he had sent a clone, rather than testing them out himself. "So that happened." Making a mental note to ban the chains from friendly spars, he shrugged. "Let's continue testing."

"Right." Naruto abently nodded, still more than confused as to why the chains attacked on their own. He hadn't really giving them a message, nor had he concentrated on sending them to attack the clone. They had simply reacted as soon as the clone had gotten in range.

After testing for little over an hour, both Naruto and Jiraiya had come to a rather startling and possibly disturbing revelation: The only aspect of the chains Naruto could control was creating or dismissing them. Once formed, the chains attacked anything that they - through some method Jiraiya or Naruto hadn't been able to divine - perceived as a threat to Naruto. And it wasn't always an overt threat either. The leaf that Jiraiya had tossed in Naruto's general direction had been thoroughly diced into pieces. Even Jiraiya's clone hadn't been safe.

"So you didn't manage to talk to the Kyubi about the woman's voice?" Jiraiya relaxed next to his godson as he jotted a few theories he needed to talk to Tsunade and Inoichi Yamanaka about. If his completely outlandish idea was right...

"We didn't get the chance." Naruto glanced away, "We talked...about other things."

"Oh?" Jiraiya raised an eyebrow before giggling, "Don't tell me that the Kyubi is secretly a female." A rather perverted grin began to slowly slid onto his face. "And she's been secretly falling in love with you, regretting all thing that you suffered because of her." The super pervert giggled again. "And last night she decided to show you her...human form…" Another giggle. "And she offered to teach you anything you wanted…"

"..."

"..."

"..." Naruto wasn't honestly sure what to think.

"You should manifest my chakra and rip him apart." The Kyubi wasn't sure what to think either, so it settled on overwhelming violence.

"Kurama is a Biju." Naruto began slowly, not wanting to know where Jiraiya had gotten that idea from, "It doesn't have a gender."

"Not yet!" Jiraiya was now openly giggling as he began to write down ideas for his newest masterpiece.

"Explode him." Kurama requested, "Before he gives Chomei any ideas."

"What does Chomei have to do with this?" Naruto mentally asked the very annoyed demon fox, wondering what Fu's friend had to do with any of this...conversation he just had with Jiraiya.

"You remember when you met Matatabi when you were in Kumo?"

Naruto mentally nodded. "Yeah. She very nice and polite."

"Back when we were traveling together all those years ago, she.." Kurama paused, correcting itself, "It started calling itself female." The Kyubi grunted to itself at the memory. "She kept trying to stay close to me 'in order to stay warm'." A pause. "She is literally made of blue fire! It's impossible for her to be cold." Naruto didn't comment on how Kurama referred to Matatabi. "And if she heard what the pervert had just said…" The Nine Tails felt a shiver run up it's spine, "I would never hear the end of it."

"You should explode him."

"Jiraiya." Naruto finally spoke.

"Hmmm?" Jiraiya didn't glance up from his note book.

"Kyubi wants me to explode you."

"Oh." Jiraiya instantly paled and sealed away the notebook. "It's gone. That conversation about the Kyubi never happened."

"Good." Kumara was pleased that Naruto had learned to strike fear with only a few spoken words.

The next three and a half weeks were some of the best days of Fu's life. She had learned so much from Naruto about sealing, had been taught several new earth techniques by Jiraiya, got to experience the world outside of Taki, and had learned how to create a special seal that kept all of her rock candy safe and secure.

Arriving on the border of Konoha, Fu couldn't help but send a thankful and exuberant smile over in Naruto's direction. She had initially thought that she was attracted to the blonde Uzumaki, but she had figured out that it wasn't the type of attraction that was even remotely sexual in nature. Instead, what she felt was a sibling affection, almost as if he was her older brother. As far as she could tell, Naruto felt the same way.

It still hurt when she thought about Taki and Shibuki, but it was no longer the raw open emotional wound that it had been. Naruto had helped her see why Shibuki had done what he had, even if Naruto didn't approve of it. Fu grinned happily to herself as she remembered that she would be meeting Naruto's friends - he had assured her that they would want to be her friend too - and Naruto's girlfriends, who she was eternally thankful for. Without them, Fu wasn't sure if Naruto would have been the same person who had become her friend. From what Naruto had told her about them, Fu was certain that they were the type of kunoichi she aspired to be.

It took the trio only three days to navigate through Konoha's land, and on the morning of the fourth day, they spotted Konoha itself. "Wow." Fu breathed out, amazed at the size of Konoha's gates. They were tall and imposing, and looked like they could keep out any enemy, no matter the size of their army. The gates stood open, inviting her to enter. While some part of her logically knew that she wouldn't be welcomed everywhere - given that the factions had split Konoha -, it was hard to imagine the bright and sunny place being filled with anything but potential friends.

After checking in with the gate guards, Jiraiya sent Fu off with Naruto to unpack her things while Jiraiya himself spoke with Tsunade and informed her of the outcome of their mission.

"Are you certain?" Danzo's emotionless voice rang out in the darkened room. Had it been anyone else, there would have been visible surprise on their face.

"Yes Danzo-Sama." Sai didn't look up as he confirmed his report. "The Seven-Tails' Jinchuriki, Fu, has arrived in Konoha with Naruto Uzumaki and Jiraiya the Toad Sannin. She looked to be…" The pale boy's limited emotional range made it a struggle for him to identify exactly what emotion the mint-haired girl had been showing, "...At ease with Naruto-San."

"I see." Danzo almost couldn't believe his good fortune. When he had placed the orphaned baby, who later would later be named Fu, outside Taki, it had been a calculated decision. Given that Uzumaki were all but extinct, finding a suitable person to become a jinchuriki was quite difficult.

In order to minimize the chance that the Biju's chakra would overwhelm it's container, you had to make sure that the potential jinchuriki had the same alignment as the Biju. For Taki, given that they were almost exclusively water chakra aligned, finding a earth aligned child or baby would be very difficult.

Danzo, knowing Taki's attitude against those who looked different, had made a calculated move. He had found the most unique looking earth chakra aligned baby he could find, and had the baby placed outside of Taki, near one of the natural springs. A large dose of algae introduced to the Hero Water pool had ensured that the baby would be met with suspicion and scorn. Eventually either the child would lose itself to hatred and release the Seven Tails, which in turn would destroy Taki, removing a potential threat to Konoha. Or the child would come to defend it's village, relying on the few people that cared for it for emotional attachment. If that was the case, then Taki would stand unknowingly between Konoha and Iwa.

But he had never expected this. For Naruto Uzumaki to successfully convince Taki, without a fight, to surrender the Seven Tails was almost beyond belief. Granted, Fu would be undoubtedly be part of the Uzumaki Faction first and a Konoha ninja second, but that was easy enough to manipulate. "Naruto Uzumaki, you are one of Konoha's greatest weapons and tools."

"Sai." Danzo turned to the still kneeling ROOT member, "I have a long term mission for you."

"Danzo-Sama?"

"Team Seven has been without a third member for some time now and each team should have three members at all times…"

"I'm home!" Naruto called out as he entered the main Uzumaki home.

"Just a minute Naruto-Kun." Sakura called out from somewhere farther inside the home, "Is Fu with you?"

"Yeah." Naruto called back, confused as to why Sakura had been specifically looking for Fu. During the time he had been gone, Naruto had exchanged letters with Sakura, Haku, and Hinata using toad summons. Normally all of the chakra expenditure required to summon made such a method of communication would be all but impractical, but it was no issue for Naruto.

During the journey back, several letters addressed directly to Fu and been sent along with letters for Naruto. He wasn't sure what was contained in those letters, but other than turning several shades of white as she read the first one, Fu hadn't seemed to mind them.

"Naruto-Kun." Sakura hurried into the room, not stopping the joyful smile that appeared on her face, "Welcome back."

Naruto smiled his radiant true smile, and opened his arms for a hug. Sakura hurled herself into his arms and pulled him into a tight, affectionate hug. "I missed you." Naruto whispered.

"I missed you too." Sakura wanted to do nothing more than relax in her love's arms, but she had a mission to complete.

"Naruto-Kun, Haku-Chan and Hinata-Chan are out back in the training area. I need to talk to Fu for a few minutes." Naruto grinned and headed deeper into the compound to see his other girlfriends.

"Fu…" Sakura looked directly at the mint haired girl, "What do you think of Naruto-Kun?"

Fu grinned happily as she thought of her friend. "Naruto is amazing. He's strong, fast, kind, and smart. He's one of the best friends anyone could ask for!" She paused, tilting her head as she considered something. "He's kinda like my older brother, but better. 'Cause he's also my friend too."

Sakura carefully analyzed Fu's words and body language as the mint haired girl spoke of Naruto. Sakura had been taking lessons from Ino about how to determine things from a person's body language, and as far as Sakura could tell, Fu did not see Naruto in any sort of romantic or sexual light. Which was good, considering the Naruto Fan Club that had cropped up in the time that Naruto was gone. "Fan girls." Sakura mentally shook her head, "So useless and annoying."

"So Fu," Sakura took a page from Naruto's book, "Tell me about yourself."

"Well," Fu skipped over to the nearest chair and plopped down, "I was born fourteen years ago…"

Naruto sighed contentedly as he lay in his bed. Beside him, Hinata had already latched onto his arm and fallen asleep, a soft content smile etched on her face. From what Naruto could tell, Fu had been welcomed into the house and was well on her way to becoming friends with Haku, Hinata, and Sakura. Fu had gotten a room of her own, and had already unpacked her few possessions. Tomorrow Fu would be sworn in as a Konoha shinobi, and would be tested to see what area of expertise best suited her for training.

The Uzumaki Clan Head had been surprised that so many on the council had easily accepted Fu's status as Jinchuriki, and even more amazingly, the Humanitarian Faction hadn't really said anything. And perhaps most importantly, Naruto had been able to spend quality time with each of his girlfriends, soaking up their presence. All in all, it had been a fantastic day.

Drip

"Hey Kurama." Naruto greeted his friend, "Why did you pull me into the seal? Did you remember more about Mom's chakra chains?" The blonde Uzumaki blinked in confusion as he stared up at Kurama. The Nine Tails seemed shocked and bewildered. Extending a single claw, the Kyubi pointed at something behind Naruto. Confused, Naruto turned around, only to freeze as he saw that there was someone else in his mindscape. She had long red hair, and Naruto couldn't believe his eyes as he recognized her from the picture album Sakura had gotten him.

"Mom?"

So what did you guys think? Drop a review and let me know.

Sorry about the cliff hanger. This was the best place I could find to stop without increasing chapter length anymore. I'm determined to get chapters back down to the 9k-ish mark so I can bring them out every two weeks.

To my reviewers direct questions:

Vanishing Raptor: Yeah, unless something drastic happens soon, there's going to be civil war.

Guest: You have to remember that while Hinata seems OOC from canon's perspective, she isn't from HotE's perspective. Hinata was talented even in canon, but she never pushed herself nor pushed to be the best. HotE Hinata is doesn't have that problem. As far as Sakura stuttering, you have to remember that they are roughly 10 years old at the time, and quite a few things can be intimidating, especially coming from a person who is normally nice.

Charbchillin: Funny you should ask that…

Gunato the Great: Keep in mind that the herem technically isn't in set in stone yet, but if there was one, it would be Sakura, Hinata, and Haku.

Ebony sword: I'm not sure to tell you the truth. Honoka is a ghost/spirit thing, and I'm not sure how deep I want to delve into the afterlife of Narutoverse. However, I was given an idea by another awesome reviewer, so I'm not going to say for certain that she isn't going to show up.

Animaman: The elders learned their lesson from Hiruzen, and Tsunade's demonstration at her first meeting as Hokage insured that they aren't going to toe the line.

Illiminated: You'll find out what Jiraiya was up to this chapter. And yeah, they could be suspicious, but there's nothing they could really do about it. If they send Fu away temporarily, that wouldn't remove the problem of the Akatsuki.

Belthezzor: Hiruzen is/was caught between being the leader of the village and trying to keep alive the last remaining link to Minato. He figured that if he let Naruto alone, Naruto would come to believe that Leaf was the best village ever and thus defend it at all costs, much like in canon.

Belthezzor: Naruto's speed was reduced when his chakra was sealed. Naruto, unlike most ninja, has lived his entire life with so much chakra running through him that when it was sealed, his body wasn't sure how to compensate. As far as the five-point seal goes, HotE would be much less inconvenienced if he still had access to all his chakra. Plus...Chapter 31.

xNaruHina: The reason Naruto thought about Sakura was because she was the one that Haku healed first.

dontdoithaha: Sadly, I am frequently plagued by writer's block and the occasional real life stuff, so I don't have a set update schedule. In a perfect world, it would be every two weeks, but I haven't managed that yet.

Nin-Guest: I want to thank you for your completely epic review(s). I have a few ideas related to the Daimyo(s) now, and hopefully they will be showing up within the next chapter or two. As far as Honoka goes, you definitely shifted me from "probably not including her" to "it's not out of the question".