When Haruna woke up, he was in his bed chambers. The room was a typical traditional room, just larger than most. Sakura was beside him, reading a scroll. He sat with a yawn, hearing several bones cranking in the process. "Good morning sleepy head," she greeted with a smile. "How long was I out?" he asked as he rubbed his eyes. "About two hours or so," she replied. "Sorry about that," he sighed as he looked down at the sheets. "You haven't been getting enough sleep these days, have you?" she spoke quietly. "As we near the invasion, I can't help but wonder if we're really going to make it," he said. "Stressing about it won't help," she replied.

"I guess," he spoke. "You know, if you had accepted my proposal then maybe things could be easier for me," he added. They were now staring at each other. "You know I can't do that. That would be betraying Harumi," the pinkette said. "Harumi loves me! We'd be great together, I just know it," the clan head exclaimed. "In another world, in another life, then maybe I'd say yes. But in this lifetime, it's a no. I'm not getting married to you," she said firmly.

"I already have Tobirama, what more would I want?" she asked. Both of them knew that Inner Sakura was speaking know. "I don't see him anywhere," Haruna stated as he motioned around the house. Sakura scowled. "That was a low blow and you know it," the kunoichi said with a frown. "I'm just trying my chances. You've always known how I feel for you for the past thirteen years. When I finally gather the guts to tell you, you tell me that you're pregnant with the baby of the most hated person in my life. You know I hate Tobirama's guts. How's that for a low blow?" he asked, his features contorted in hurt. "Haruna," she said softly.

He sighed deeply. "Don't worry about it. I just needed to let out that," he said with an uneasy smile. "Don't feel guilty about it, it happens. I'm just glad that Tobirama didn't taint Harumi, that guy is colder than ice. The only thing that's stopping me from wanting to declare war on the Senju is Harumi. For her sake, I'll keep my peace with Tobirama," he said with a cheeky grin. "You're such a dramatic," Sakura said as she hid her smile behind her hand.


A week before the speculated time of the invasion, the Haruno clan dispatched a team of scouts and spies. The scouts were to watch for any disturbances around their clan perimeter, outside the genjutsu wall. The spies were sent to spy on the Kaguya clan if they were going to proceed with the invasion. They were led by Atsui, the best intel gatherer in the Haruno clan. She was a very tall girl, with straight blonde hair and narrow green eyes and a beauty mark on her left cheek. Despite the tall stature, she was one of the younger generations of ninjas, being only 15 years old. The height made the older ninjas to discard the fact that she was younger than them.

Sakura was in charge of the medical department. During the little time they had left, she made sure that she had stocked a lot of medical equipment in large storage scrolls which had been stocked in the underground location where the children, elderly and the civilians were to stay and hide as the battle took place. Using various jutsus created by the Haruno, she had been able to grow different types of herbs for future use. Using the same weather-based elemental ninjutsu, the Harunos had grown crops which could last them for three months underground, the ninjas included. The food was stored at the outskirts of their village in a storehouse and sealed using high-level fuinjutsu borrowed from the Uzumaki and disguised with their genjutsus as the edge of a cliff.

Naruto and Sasuke were asked to go to the capital and buy weapons whereas Haruna and the council worked to categorize the ninjas according their strengths and create fighting regimes. The tailors were busy making armour with the Haruno crest on their clothes where all would see that they are the Haruno clan. It seemed that the Haruno were as proud as any other clan about their clan symbol, Naruto had commented.


The day before the speculated invasion, the Haruno clan held a feast to lighten the mood so that everyone was energized for the battle. Everyone was dressed in spring-colored kimonos and a green obi as all Harunos were green eyed. Sakura was dressed in a red kimono, Naruto in an orange one, Haruna in a green one and Harumi in a white one. Sasuke had been forced to wear a light blue kimono. All of them had green obis. Naruto was surprised to find the Uzumaki swirl and Uchiha fan on the decorations. He also noticed the Hyuuga clan symbol.

"Hey Haruna, why do you have other clans' symbols on your decorations?" Naruto asked as they walked down the street after purchasing an uchiwa fan with the Haruno crest and Uzumaki swirl inside the crest. "It's because we are all connected. The Haruno clan are descendants of Hamura Otsutsuki and long distant cousins of the Uchiha and Hyuuga just like the Senju are with the Uzumaki," he explained. "By virtue of our ancestors being brothers, we are also long distant cousins of the Senju and Uzumaki," he added. "Our crest represents the moon, where our ancestor Hamura went to look after his mother Kaguya so that she wouldn't come back and try to destroy the world once more," he finished.

"The reason why the Kaguya want to destroy us is because of our neutrality, we don't pick sides. We also have the knowledge of Black Zetsu who had been trying since immemorial to bring back Kaguya. Because only the Haruno clan know this, esteemed clan members that is, they're trying to destroy us under the influence of Black Zetsu so that that knowledge dies with us," Sakura spoke. "Wait, Sakura knew all of this?!" Naruto exclaimed as he stared wide-eyed at the kunoichi. "Of course I don't. It's Inner speaking!" she snapped. "Then why didn't she say anything during out time?" he asked. "Would you have believed her if she did?" she deadpanned. "No."

"That's why we have to make sure that the clan is not annihilated. The reason I told you and Sasuke is because you are already aware of this. We have to make sure that this knowledge is kept secret and protect the world from Black Zetsu. He has been failing all these year because of us," Haruna spoke. "But this time, he found Indra's reincarnation that's stronger than all the previous reincarnations, who's exactly Indra himself," he said in a deadly tone. Everyone knew the answer to that.

"Madara Uchiha."


I hope you like this chapter. Sorry for not updating a in a long, long time. I had written a chapter a few months ago and I accidentally deleted it and lost all inspiration to write. But now I'm back! Please check out my other stories. Read and review.

Tozoonana

AfricanFire.